The Dark Knight Rises, aka Batman 3, and likely director Christopher Nolan (Inception) last entry in his Batman trilogy, is clearly one of the hottest commodities in Hollywood. We speculated on some of the actress names that were being attached as having interest in the project a while back, but now, via THR, is a list that is supposedly confirmed for who are up for some roles. Some different names from the original list, and some hot names just the same.
According to the report, the list includes Jessica Biel, the rising star of Kate Mara, Charlotte Riley (who I am not familiar with) and Gemma Arterton, though the report says she might be out of the running due to other conflicts. The two other previously reported names, Anne Hathaway and Keira Knightley (Never Let Me Go) are also listed as in the running.
My thoughts? Depending on the roles, Biel would be a great choice (especially if in a villanous role). Mara is proving more versatile as I see her more, and Hathaway is in a non-leading role (ala a reporter in Spider-Man), I could work with. Knightley can be good as well, in a similar capacity. A little disappointed that Lively is not being mentioned, as she proved her worth in The Town. Still, pretty good names under consideration overall. Your thoughts? Dive in and share.
Here is the footage that remains from director Quentin Tarantino’s first film, My Best Friend’s Birthday. According to reports, there are 36 minutes of film, shot on 16mm, that remain from the film after much of it was destroyed. This footage features some quintessential Tarantino moments.
QT only co-wrote this piece of work, but fans should recognize stylistic and dialogue elements that were, no surprisingly, evident back before the days of Inglourious Basterds, Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. It is black and white footage, but would have made a great extra on any of Tarantino’s DVD extras I think. Too bad some of the film was damaged. Still, check it out for yourself and let me know what you think. Thanks to Movieline and /film for the drop.
Can Colin Farrell one up the Governator? That is what director Len Wiseman and producer Neil Moritz are banking on when they cast Colin Farrell as the lead in a remake of the former Schwarzenegger vehicle, Total Recall. Contrary to earlier reports, the movie will NOT be shot in 3-D.
According to /film, the movie will be larger in scope than other upcoming actioners Battle: LA and The Green Hornet, though I don’t know if that is necessarily a good thing. The film also will be set on Earth (not outer space like the original), and will show a futuristic vision of what the world will be like down the line. Moritz has some more gushing quotes about the film, but since nobody has seen a lick outside of a few inside the studio walls, we can take that with buckets of salt.
I was a reasonable fan of the original as a youngster. It was cheesy fun, but appropriate for the time period in my life. I am less excited about the remake but adding Farrell is a curious and good move in my estimation. He is a talent that has been under mainstream wraps for a few years and appears to have an opportunity to re-break out with this movie. Share your thoughts on the casting if you wish.
This is the third year that annual movie awards have been given out here at The Film Nest, and I think this year had the best overall top picture of any that we’ve had in that time period. You can see the 1st Annual Platinum Nest Movie Awards here and the 2nd Annual Awards here (from last year). For past lists of all the movies I’ve seen released since 2006 (give or take a few), you can visit the Film Rankings link in the sidebar. This year, the voting was left up to me, myself and I, so without further ado, here you go. Let me know what you think. (Note: I reserve the right to amend the list based on a few movies from 2010 that I have yet to see. Those would theoretically be seen within the next few weeks if they are to change any of my picks – perhaps unlikely, but maybe).
Best Picture
Inception
Best Director
Christopher Nolan – Inception
Best Actor
Joaquin Phoenix – I’m Still Here / Leonardo DiCaprio – Shutter Island
In one of the worst bits of news I can recall hearing about in the last several months, The Wrap has reported that The Weinstein Company is focused on making a sequel to Swingers, one of my most beloved films ever, amongst other titles. This was briefly rumored not long ago but now it appears to be closer to being confirmed. This pic lists some of the titles that they have in production for 2011.
The report also lists sequels to Amityville Horror (a sequel of a remake, yay!) and Bad Santa as those on the top of the Weistein’s list. The Weinstein Company is devoted to rededicating themselves to making independent films, which I think is a great idea, but don’t ruin what is an amazing film by attempting a sequel to it, in Swingers. I am curious to see what Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn have to say about this news. Devastating if it is indeed true.
