Book, Film & TV Reviews
Directed by Morten Tyldum and based on the biography Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges, The Imitation Game tells the true story of British mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst and pioneering computer scientist Alan Turing, Benedict Cumberbatch, a key figure in cracking Nazi Germany’s Enigma code that helped the Allies win World War II, only to later be criminally prosecuted by the UK government in 1952 for his homosexuality which the country deemed illegal.
Directed by John Carney, Begin Again follows the encounter of a disgraced music-business executive, Dan (Mark Ruffalo), and a young singer-songwriter, Gretta (Keira Knightley). When Gretta and her long-term boyfriend and songwriting partner, Dave (Adam Levine), break up after recently moving to New York when Dave lands a major label deal, lovelorn Gretta is left to face the city on her own. But her world takes a turn for the better when Dan stumbles upon her performing on an East Village stage and is immediately captivated by her raw talent.
Directed by Kenneth Branagh and based on the character created by bestselling author Tom Clancy, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit follows a young covert CIA analyst, Jack Ryan (Chris Pine), who uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a financial terrorist plot. Set in the present day, the story follows him from 9/11 through his tour of duty in Afghanistan and into his early days in the Financial Intelligence Unit of the modern CIA. Under the guardianship of his handler, Harper (Kevin Costner), Ryan must go from analyst to spy in order to save his own life, as well as the lives of countless others, while also trying to protect the thing that’s more important to him than anything, his relationship with his fiancée Cathy (Keira Knightley).
Directed by Joe Wright and the twelfth adaptation of Leo Tolstoy‘s 1877 novel of the same name in total, Anna Karenina is set in late-19th-century Russia and follows socialite Anna Karenina (Keira Knightley) who, married to the passionless government official Alexei (Jude Law), journeys to Moscow to visit her philandering brother Oblonsky (Matthew Macfadyen) to help save his marriage to Dolly (Kelly Macdonald). Exploring the capacity for love that surges through the human heart, the film follows Anna’s affair with the affluent Count Vronsky (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), as well as the relationship between Oblonsky’s best friend Levin (Domhnall Gleeson) and Dolly’s younger sister Kitty (Alicia Vikander).
(Written for Lost In The Multiplex)
If you haven’t heard much about this summer’s highly anticipated indie film Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World, or even if you are looking forward to it already, then we have a big treat for you with three new clips, eight new images, a couple of TV spots and a behind-the-scenes featurette released by Focus.
(Written for BritScene)
This week’s casting news begins with a bit of a Harry Potter special. Whilst we’ve seen much from Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson since the end of filming for the Harry Potter franchise, it’s now time for Tom Felton and Rupert Grint to return to the big screen. Other news includes that of Keira Knightley, Colin Farrell, Clive Owen, Louise Lombard, Simon Merrells and Naomie Harris, so keep reading to see who will be Winnie Mandela to Idris Elba‘s Nelson, Marcus Crassus in Starz Original’s Spartacus series, and one of the lead roles in Warner Bros. Arthur and Lancelot.
Continue reading “Casting Catch-Up: Tom Felton, Rupert Grint, Colin Farell, Clive Owen & Many More!”
(This was published on Total Film’s website as a series of Film Homepages that they asked their subscribers to write for them).
In a Nutshell:
As three children grow-up, they prepare themselves for the haunting reality that awaits them.
Tagline:
‘Based on ‘The Best Novel Of The Decade” – Time
Never Let Me Go, directed by Mark Romanek, is an adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel of the same title. Beginning in the late 1990s, the story is narrated by thirty-one-year-old Kathy (Carey Mulligan) who was brought up at the seemingly idyllic Hailsham school along with her closest friends, Tommy (Andrew Garfield) and Ruth (Keira Knightley). Now a carer of organ donors, Kathy attempts to come to terms with her childhood at Hailsham and the fate that was set out for her and her friends in the wider world.
Directed by Joe Wright and based on Ian McEwan‘s 2001 novel of the same name, Atonement is set in 1935 where 13-year-old aspiring writer Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) and her family live a life of wealth and privilege in their enormous mansion. On the warmest day of the year, Briony’s imagination is running wild when she witnesses her sister Cecilia (Keira Knightley) and the educated son of the family’s housekeeper, Robbie (James McAvoy) doing something she doesn’t yet understand. Accusing Robbie of a crime he did not commit, he is arrested and sent to war, an event that changes all of their lives forever.
Directed by Joe Wright and based on Jane Austen‘s 1813 novel of the same name, Pride and Prejudice is set in the close of the 18th century which follows Mr and Mrs Bennets (Brenda Blethyn and Donald Sutherland), the parents of five daughters, who are comfortable within their means but well short of rich. Looking for suitable husbands for their girls, they are encouraged to learn that an eligible young bachelor from a wealthy family, Charles Bingley (Simon Woods), has moved into a nearby estate. Eager to see if a match can be made, the Bennets bring their daughters, Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) and Jane (Rosamund Pike), to a ball thrown by their new neighbour to see if sparks will fly. Jane seems to like Charles, and he appears to feel the same, but Elizabeth takes an immediate dislike to his best friend, Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen). As fate causes Elizabeth and Darcy to frequently cross paths, and while they don’t care for one another, they can’t stop thinking about each other, either.
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