It’s ridiculous that it’s taken six years for Little Miss Sunshine directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris to make a follow-up movie, but finally Ruby Sparks is on its way and the first trailer has been released. In the film Calvin (Paul Dano) is a young novelist who achieved phenomenal success early in his career but is now struggling with his writing – as well as his romantic life. Finally, he makes a breakthrough and creates a character named Ruby who inspires him. When Calvin finds Ruby (Zoe Kazan), in the flesh, sitting on his couch about a week later, he is completely flabbergasted that his words have turned into a living, breathing person. It hits US cinemas in July, but no UK date is currently set.
Virginia Trailer – Jennifer Connelly stars in Dustin Lance Black’s directorial debut
Virginia (or Whats Wrong With Virginia? as it was initially titled) debuted with mixed-to-bad reviews at the Toronto Film Festival a few months ago, but Dustin Lance Blacks directorial debut still seems like itll be worth a look. Its out on the US in May and should reach the UK later this year. Black is, of course, best known as the screenwriter of Milk and J. Edgar, but here thing are less historical and more satirical. In the film, a sheriff (Ed Harris) sees his state senate bid slide onto the ice when his daughter begins to date the son of a charming but psychologically disturbed woman (Jennifer Connelly) with whom the sheriff has engaged in a two-decades-long affair. Some have commented that the trailer seems deceptive, as the film they saw plays out more tragic than the comic tone of the promo, However it has been completely re-edited since its TIFF debut, due to some of the severe criticism it came in for. Hopefully Dustin will have sorted things out, as the trailer does make the movie look decent enough.
Beauty (Skoonheid) – Wonderfully intense character drama from South Africa
Winner of the Queer Palm at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Beauty is one of those films on queer themes which stretches beyond just a gay audience. It’s a thought-provoking film full of tension, which will stay in your head long after the credits role.
Francois (Deon Lotz) is a middle-aged man living in South Africa. On the surface everything seems perfectly fine, although his marriage seems utterly devoid of any sign of affection. However his life is actually a morass of contradictions, so that he hates gay people, but goes off to retreats to have sex with others men (although gays and blacks are banned from these occasions). He seems to have everything pretty much under control though until he meets Christian (Charlie Keegan), the son of a long-lost friend.
His secret interest in the handsome young man gradually turns into an obsession, with Francoise following him around at a distance and watching his interactions with various people. Things gradually build to a crescendo, especially after he sees what could be a note of affection between Christian and a male friend.
Beauty is a wonderfully intense character study that looks hard at its subject and asks the audience to really think about what they’re seeing. There are numerous shots just looking at Francois, inviting the viewer to peer into the darkness inside him. It creates a wonderful sense of tension, as at any moment it feels he could either explode into dangerous self-destruction or start to find a way towards some kind of genuine happiness.
It’s a film where you start out with hope for Francois, who’s a rather sad figure, trapped by his inability to see past the strictures thrust upon him growing up in a conservative, white South Africa during Apartheid. The film’s most poignant moments contrast the buttoned down Francois, with the easy freedom of young people, for whom sexuality and race aren’t major issues, something the older man seems incapable of even imagining for himself. Indeed at the film’s most disturbing moment, part of its power isn’t just the brutality of what happens but the almost sweet patheticness of what leads up to it. Francois’ obsession with Christian is at least partly an envy of what his life could have been if he was 20 years younger, which makes the conclusion all the more affecting.
Francois is a wonderfully complex creation given impressive life by actor Deon Lotz, who manages to make him both tragic and yet despicable, cruel and yet almost forgiveable (up to a point) due to his misguided, blinkered views that seem to be beyond his control. You can understand exactly where he’s coming from, trapped in a prison of his own making. At first it makes him rather sad, until you realise how cruel and dangerous he is and how it poisons all those around him.
It’s a film where one viewing isn’t really enough to get the full measure of the movie, as it’s so rich and asks so many questions of the audience that you need to watch it twice to really let it all in. Director Oliver Hermanus shows himself to be a real talent to watch out for with one of the most powerful movies on gay themes in recent memory.
Overall Verdict: Beauty certainly packs a punch with its penetrating, wonderfully acted character study of a man trapped in prison of his own mental making.
Reviewer: Tim Isaac
New Full Cosmopolis Trailer – Robert Pattinson wants a haircut but gets much more in Cronenberg’s movie
There were a lot of raised eyebrows when David Cronenberg cast Robert Pattinson in Cosmopolis, largely because it seemed such a jump from the world of Twilight. However as people started to charge their mind when the teaser trailer debuted, and this new French trailer is likely to further convince people this will show a different side to Pattinson and it’s likely to be intense! The film, based on Don DeLillo’s book, sees R-Patz as young billionaire Eric Packer, who starts out just wanting to get a haircut, but as the day progresses and he travel around New York, he must deal with the fallout from the decisions he’s made in his life. Cosmopolis will compete at Cannes in May should be out in cinemas later this year and it look like it’s gonna be rather unusual.
Skyfall Shanghai Set Video – Get the latest from the new Bond adventure
It wouldn’t be Bond if the production didn’t jet all over the world (although always coming back to its UK base, of course), and Skyfall is doing just that, with a new set video just released from the film’s Shanghai location shoot. The movie will hit cinemas on October 26th, but whet your appetite with the latest behind the scene look.
Magic Mike Trailer – Tatum, Pettyfer, Bomer and McConaughey get their stripper on!
I think it’s safe to say that a lot of women and gay men are looking forward to Magic Mike, if only because Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Matthew Bomer, Matthew McConaughey and more play strippers! The trailer suggests there’s some sort of romance type plot too, but I don’t think anyone actually cares about that, or that much admired director Steven Soderbergh is behind the camera. Nope, they just want the buff blokes to get their kit off! Partly based on Tatum’s experiences as a young male stripper, the film sees him mentoring a newbie (Pettyfer) and apparently having romantic problems. The film hits UK cinemas July 13th.
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