Edward Norton is not a man to give a casual answer. When discussing the spiritual journey of the title character of STONE, or his preparations to play the prisoner manipulating his way to parole, he conveys his committment to finding the right voice, literally and figuratively, for Stone. The story is gritty, but the themes… Read More »
Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu is BIUTIFUL
Until now Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu has made films that feature multiple story lines of people in crisis. With BIUTIFUL, he follows one story from beginning to end, but loses none of the complexity or richness of his previous work. It also incorporates part of his own experience of feeling a brush with death. When I… Read More »
The CONVICTION of Pamela Grey
The true story behind the film CONVICTION is remarkable and then some. Betty Anne Waters spent 18 years trying to get her brother, Kenny, out of prison for a brutal murder that she was sure he didn’t commit. First she had to get her GED, then her B.A., and finally be admitted to, and graduate from, law… Read More »
Danny Boyle’s 127 HOURS
Based on Between A Rock and A Hard Place, the book Aron Ralston wrote about his ordeal of being trapped in a slot canyon by a massive boulder pinning his hand, 127 HOURS was conceived by director/co-screenwriter Danny Boyle as a spiritual journey of a man forced to confront the solitary existence he had chosen for himself.… Read More »
Cary Fukunaga & Mia Wasikowska Revisit JANE EYRE
Revisiting a classic is always a tricky business, but the latest film adaptation of JANE EYRE takes some daring chances in telling Charlotte Bronte’s much loved story of a plain governess and her love for her dashing, if difficult employer. During my talk with them on March 2, 2011, director Cary Fukunaga and star Mia… Read More »
Lou Taylor Pucci & Jim Kohlberg Reveal Why THE MUSIC NEVER STOPPED
When I spoke with director Jim Kohlberg and actor Lou Taylor Pucci about THE MUSIC NEVER STOPPED on March 2, 2011, it was hard to know where to start. The film, based on an essay by Oliver Sacks about a man who lost his short-term memory, but not his love for music, raises many questions… Read More »
Todd Haynes Reimagines MILDRED PIERCE
Todd Haynes took on an icon when he decided to film MILDRED PIERCE. Even though his adaptation sticks to the James M. Cain novel with a loving fidelity, he was surprised by how much spectre of Joan Crawford in the title role of Michael Curtiz’s classic noir still looms. Addressing that issue when I spoke… Read More »
Ewan McGregor & Mike Mills are BEGINNERS
BEGINNERS is based on writer/director Mike Mills’ experience of having his father come out as gay when he became a widower after forty years of marriage. The film is fictionalized, the father is Hal, played by Christopher Plummer, the son is Oliver, played by McGregor, as far as the details go, but is emotionally true… Read More »
John Madden Pays THE DEBT
When tapped to direct THE DEBT, John Madden had not seen HA HOV, the Israeli film on which it is based. When he read the script, he decided he wanted to see the original, but only once. The re-make follows the same general outlines, but Madden emphasized that it is its own entity, distinct and with… Read More »
Jonah Hill Plays MONEYBALL
Jonah Hill started his film career in comedies such as SUPERBAD and FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL, but his roots are in writing, and his goal is to be a serious actor. When I spoke to him on September 16, 2011, the conversation moved from MONEYBALL, and the journey his character, Peter Brand, makes during the course… Read More »
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