Film News: Star Wars VII cast revealed; Restored Stereoscopic animations by Norman McLaren at EIFF
EIFF RESTORE CLASSIC STEREOSCOPIC ANIMATED FILMS BY NORMAN MCLAREN
The Edinburgh International Film Festival (18-29 Jun), which will this year celebrate the life and work of Scottish-born, Canadian filmmaker and animator Norman McLaren, have announced screenings of four films shot using the stereoscoping technique, precursor of today's 3D films. The animated films, all of which McLaren either directed or had a hand in, were first screened in 1952 at the Festival of Britain – now lovingly digitally restored, they will be shown at EIFF on 21 June.
Narcissus by Norman McLaren, National Film Board of Canada
Now Is The Time (1951), O Canada (1952), Twirligig (1952) and Around Is Around (1952) are not the only films from McLaren featuring at EIFF this year. His final film, Narcissus (1983) will also be screened, and 2014 marks the 25th anniversary of EIFF's McLaren Award for Best British Animation, with the eligible films this year split into two categories. The regular strand will be looking at films relating to McLaren's deeply-held principles, social conscience and pacifism, the educational aspects of his work, and his pioneering technological approaches. There will also be a special strand focusing on work relating to the centenary of the First World War.
Iain Gardner, Artistic Director of the McLaren 2014 programme and EIFF animation programmer said: "I’m delighted that EIFF’s long association with McLaren’s name and work is being celebrated in his centenary year, and I can’t wait to discover who the public votes as our 25th winner. I had the privilege of reviewing the progress at the National Film Board of the last remaining McLaren films to be digitally restored, and his use of stereoscopy resets your appreciation for his genius."
A few more details of the EIFF's Industry strand have been revealed this week, including a special Visual Effects Case Study, exploring Jonathan Glazer's recent film Under the Skin, shot in Glasgow and rural Scotland with Scarlett Johannsson in the lead role. Aspiring scriptwriters can take part in a panel discussion called Developing Writing Talent, examining opportunities for up and coming writers through schemes including Channel 4’s Coming Up. Screenwriter Moira Buffini (Byzantium) will also give a special talk, in conversation with co-chair of the Writers Guild of Great Britain Film Committee, Andrea Gibb.
The popular Market Place Live event also returns, offering "an entertaining journey through the life of a hypothetical film project from development through to release – wrapped inside an unique 90 minute live panel event." Film London's Deborah Sathe will also present a talk called So You Didn't Get Your Public Funding?, looking at alternative strategies for emerging filmmakers seeking backing for their projects. More details of EIFF's 2014 season will be revealed soon – we'll keep you posted as the list of events and screenings continues to grow. For now, visit the Edinburgh International Film Festival site for more details.
SOUTHSIDE FILM FESTIVAL PRESENTS CINEMAP
Part of the forthcoming Southside Film Festival (23-25 May), Cinemap will curate a series of screenings in pop-up cinemas throughout Glasgow's Southside, including sites such as a shopping arcade, a cafe, a swimming pool, an allotment, a green space in a tenement backcourt and in a multi-arts venue. Last year, the Albert Drive project asked local residents to get involved in filmmaking projects in and about their area – Cinemap will screen some of the resulting films, including work by Basharet Khan and Abigail Howkins. The rest of the programme will be made up of films submitted via an open call, on related topics.
With screenings at Tramway, Shawlands Arcade, The Glad Cafe, East Pollokshields Quad, Govanhill Baths and several other venues in the area, most with events happening simultaneously, featuring stalls, food and drink and crafts from local artists and makers, the weekend presents an opportunity to explore the city's culturally diverse and artistically thriving Southside, taking in its history, its people and its art. The full programme, with dates and times of all the screenings, is available now.
ALBERT DRIVE Exhibition from ALBERT DRIVE on Vimeo.
STAR WARS VII CAST FINALISED
The rumour mill can stop churning – the official cast of Star Wars VII was announced this week, ending months of internet speculation. Director J.J. Abrams has finally unveiled his choice of actors for the new trilogy, which picks up where Return of the Jedi left off, some years after the initial Rebel victory over the Empire.
Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Anthony Daniels (C3P0), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), and Kenny Baker (R2D2) all reprise their original roles, which will be sure to please those fans of the original trilogy so disappointed by the lack of continuity in the George Lucas-helmed prequels. Joining them will be a stack of newcomers, with a few high-profile names mixed in –although character names, bios and details have yet to be released, there is speculation that Adam Driver (Girls) will play one of the lead Imperial or Sith villains.
John Boyega (Attack The Block) is touted as a possible male lead; Daisy Ridley, the least well known of the new cast, who bears a striking resemblance to Natalie Portman, has been kept under a blanket of almost total media blackout since the rumours of her casting emerged, with some fans speculating that this means Star Wars VII could have a main female protagonist, rather than a male one. Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis) and Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings trilogy) have also joined the cast, along with Domhnall Gleeson (Bill Weasley in the Harry Potter films), who could also be a good bet for a young Jedi lead. Veteran actor Max von Sydow also joins the cast, presumably in a villainous role.
So now the cast list is out, what do you make of it? Does this have all the ingredients of a timeless SF / Fantasy classic, or is it bound to be a lens-flare-addled turkey full of no-mark up-and-coming actors, and over the hill thesps retreading former glories? Lets get stuck into the Great Star Wars Debate in the comments below.
THE RUMOUR MILL: MENDES ON BOND 24, WOLVERINE 3 – THE END FOR JACKMAN, ASSASSIN'S CREED FINDS DIRECTOR, DC COMICS MOVIES IN DEVELOPMENT, KEVIN SMITH'S XMAS HORROR, ELVIS MOVIE FROM BAZ LUHRMANN
A smörgåsbord of rumours and speculation to feast on today – first up, here's Sam Mendes speaking to PBS about his plans for the as-yet untitled Bond 24. "I started a number of stories that were incomplete," says Mendes. "I cast a new M, I cast a new Moneypenny, I cast a new Q, I cast a new Tanner. I felt like there was a way to create the second part of a two-part story. And then I started to get re-interested again when they agreed to wait a little longer, and not go immediately and not go with two movies but with one, which I felt very strongly about."
Mendes indicates that the new film will be less of a direct sequel than Skyfall was to Quantum of Solace and Casino Royale, but rather a thematic follow-up: "What we tried to do, and what audiences seemed to embrace in Skyfall was [that] for the first time, characters were allowed to age, and they were allowed to acknowledge the passing of the years, and could acknowledge the history in a kind of sly, mischievous way." So expect more of the same, which can only be a good thing considering how wrinkled and grumpy Daniel Craig looks nowadays, increasingly resembling some kind of human-turtle hybrid.
The planned Wolverine 3 will almost certainly be Hugh Jackman's last. "I still am very ambitious for the character. And tonally I feel like we corrected the ship with the last one. But I feel we can still go further, in a way. If I did another one I’m 99.9% sure it would be the last, so that will inform what it is for me," Jackman told SFX this week.
Asked rather teasingly if he could still play Wolverine a few years down the line in an adaptation of the Mark Millar-written graphic novel Old Man Logan, Jackman laughed and said: "We are looking at a lot of different storylines. No one has jumped out... I’m excited to see what we can come up with, but I haven’t 'signed on' signed on. I’m genuinely at that point where unless it’s better than the last one I’m not going to do it." James Mangold, director of The Wolverine, is on board to write and direct.
Director Justin Kurzel, currently working on a version of Macbeth with Michael Fassbender, is in talks to direct the movie adaptation of Assassin's Creed, in which Fassbender will also star, and act as producer, according to Deadline. Fassbender can do no wrong in our eyes, so we're hugely excited for this one. They could stick him in a James Cameron-produced, M. Night Shyamalan-directed threequel to Avatar: The Last Airbender and we'd still watch it.
A list of DC Comics adaptations currently awaiting the green light, or in pre-production at Warner Bros. has emerged this week via the Wall Street Journal – to add to the planned Batman Vs. Superman, Justice League and potential Wonder Woman movies already being talked about, you can now add Fables, a tale of fairytale creatures living in New York City under cover; Sandman, currently linked with possible director and star Joseph Gordon Levitt; Shazam (for the uninitiated, he's basically Superman, but magic, and his alter-ego is a little boy); adult thriller 100 Bullets; and Metal Men, about a team of artificially intelligent robot superheroes; and Justice League Dark, which would unite the magical and occult heroes of the DC Universe, including Swamp Thing and John Constantine. This is in addition to the in-production John Constantine and The Flash TV shows, and existing or mothballed shows such as Arrow and Birds of Prey.
Last week we told you about Kevin Smith's Tusk, a planned horror film from the New Jersey director, for which actors Johnny Depp, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osment, Genesis Rodriguez and Michael Parks have already signed on. Now, news reaches us via Den of Geek that Smith will also be filming a Christmas-themed horror film, called Anti-Claus, about a mythical creature called The Krampus who eats naughty children on Christmas Eve. All we can say about this project is... YES. Den of Geek also reports that the Tusk cast could well feature heavily in Anti-Claus too.
And finally, The Guardian reports that Baz Luhrmann is in talks to make an Elvis biopic – the script will be handled by Kelly Marcel (Saving Mr. Banks), with Warner Bros. already having shelled out for the rights to use The King's songs (something the studio behind upcoming Jimi Hendrix biopic All Is By My Side were unable or unwilling to do). So which actor or actors would play Elvis in this potential scenario? Our vote has to go to Michael Madsen for the final third of the film...
TRAILERS: THE SACRAMENT, AGE OF UPRISING
It must be cool to write for VICE – their sneering hipster journalists are regularly parachuted in to remote locations to find out what they can about the weird shit going on in the world's more secluded or war-torn corners, summing it all up into crass 500 word editorials or glitzy, fast-paced, cocaine-fuelled documentaries. Now, those wily VICE kids even have their own 'based on a true story' movie about themselves, in the form of The Sacrament, examining a group of reporters' experiences of living with a religious cult.
Borrowing liberally from the story of the Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Sacrament is actually a work of fiction presented as a found footage horror film. Which means, if you go and watch this, you might just see a VICE journalist get eviscerated! (Note to VICE – we're just kidding folks, your magazine is pretty cool.) This one's helmed by Ti West and produced by Eli Roth.
And finally, Age of Uprising – Mads Mikkelsen stars as German folk hero Hans Kohlhase, who gets into some bother over a shady horse-trading deal, and has to go all Conan on the Leipzig locals with a massive sword. Mads Mikkelsen. With a big fuck-off sword. Sign us up! Don't be put off by the hilariously unnecessary voiceover on the trailer.