Book, Film & TV Reviews
Most recently known for his role as a young Magneto in the latest X-Men franchise, Michael Fassbender is most credible for his compelling performances in a number of hard-hitting true stories, most notably alongside directed Steve McQueen. It certainly took a few bad films to get him there, but he is now one of the best working actors around.
Here is my ranking of his performances (not of the films themselves) to date:
Making her debut role in Joe Wright’s beautiful Pride & Prejudice alongside Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan has led some of the biggest and best films of the past few years. She’s since gone onto to star alongside Michael Fassbender in Shame and Ryan Gosling in Drive, as well as leading the BBC TV drama, Collateral.
It’s that time of year again, so here are my top 10 films of 2012.
I think it’s fair to say that it’s been a very hit and miss year for film this year with some exceptional releases scattered throughout 2012, but with some completely disappointing films filling in the months between (Anything involving Taylor Kitsch, I’m looking at you!). From the end of trilogies (The Dark Knight Rises) to the start of new ones (The Hunger Games, The Amazing Spider-Man), to the combination of many film characters into one big blockbuster (Avengers Assemble) and to some brilliant novel adaptations (On The Road, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower), we’ve certainly had it all. Read below to see what I thought of the year in film, and feel free to let me know what you thought about the year too.
I still need to see a couple more films, so for a constantly updated list you can visit my Letterboxd page.
A film guide for January 2012 including reviews for:
– Shame
– The Descendants
– The Sitter
– Like Crazy
In Retrospect is a monthly film publication that I make just for a bit of fun, visit the blog here.
(Published in Issue 6 of my publication In Retrospect)
Directed by Steve McQueen, Shame follows a successful man living in New York City who, behind closed doors, is living a carefully cultivated life as a sex addict. From picking up women with his charming persona in nightclubs, to paying for physical encounters with just about anyone, Brandon (Michael Fassbender) struggles on a day-to-day basis trying to find where his next night, or even minutes, of passion will come from. That is until his sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) turns up to live with him indefinitely. Looking for only comfort, Sissy throws her brother’s life into a world of uncertainty as he must deal with each of their damaged lives, whilst also trying to hide and feed his own shameful appetite for sex.
2012 has only just begun, and we’re already talking about some of the amazing films that are set to be released over the next year. With many anticipated films that have already been released in the US that we are yet to see, to the many Marvel films that we are frantically waiting for, we won’t be short of great films to put on the ‘to see’ list. Let’s not forget Peter Jackon’s The Hobbit as well, of course.
So, films of 2012, assemble! Here’s a list of what to look forward to this year, and also a few that you may want to avoid.
(Weekly feature written for BritScene)
This week has seen the overall box office suffer its worst weekend since 2008, but one British movie has enjoyed robust numbers whilst another two are continuing their successful theatrical runs. There’s also some great new films set to be released over the next week that feature a number of Brits in their cast, including the Sherlock Holmes sequel, Roman Polanski’s Carnage, Mission Impossible 4 and David Fincher’s English adaptation of The Girl With A Dragon Tattoo.
(Weekly feature written for BritScene)
This week we’re bringing back our weekly feature ‘Brits At The Box Office’, where we pull together all the information you need about the British cinema heading your way over the next seven days. It’s a great week for cinema too, with some brilliant films full of spies, sex addicts, and a little bit of Christmas. What better way to kick off December?
(Written for BritScene)
Fox Searchlight have posted another trailer for Steve McQueen’s Shame on their Facebook this week. Earlier this month we showed you a trailer that included Carey Mulligan’s singing performance of “New York, New York”, but this latest trailer shows the film’s darker yet sexier side of the film, which is the reason the film has been given a NC-17 rating.
Continue reading “Red Band Trailer For ‘Shame’ Shows Its More Provocative Side”
(Written for BritScene)
The latest trailer for British director Steve McQueen‘s Shame has been released this week, which includes Carey Mulligan‘s singing performance of “New York, New York”.
Shame stars Michael Fassbender (X Men: First Class) as a lonely sex-addict in New York whose ordered lifestyle of one-night stands spirals out of control when his younger sister, played by Carey Mulligan (Drive), moves into his apartment indefinitely.
Continue reading “New Trailer for ‘Shame’ with Carey Mulligan Singing”
(Written for BritScene)
Steve McQueen’s Shame has this week been given a US trailer and a new clip. But it’s not all good news – the controversial sexual drama has also been given the dreaded NC-17 rating because of the extreme amount of male nudity and “shocking” sex scenes.
Shame stars Michael Fassbender (X Men: First Class) as a lonely sex-addict in New York whose ordered lifestyle of one-night stands spirals out of control when his younger sister, played by Carey Mulligan (Drive), moves into his apartment indefinitely.
British director McQueen made it clear that he embraced the NC-17 rating when he made his deal for Fox Searchlight to release Shame, which the film has officially been given this week.
Continue reading “Steve McQueen’s ‘Shame’ Gets US Trailer & New Clip”
(Written for Lost In The Multiplex)
Carey Mulligan gave a stunning performance is last month’s Drive, and is now becoming a face that we look forward to seeing. Fortunately, she’s keeping herself busy in 2012, landing the female lead in Coen Brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis and beginning negotiations for a lead role in a project for Spike Jonze.
Inside Llewyn Davis follows a musician trying to make it in the 1960s New York music scene. Mulligan, the lead female musician, will star opposite Oscar Isaac. Whilst it is unknown if Mulligan will be asked to sing in the film, she has certainly proven that she is up to the job in Steve McQueen’s Shame, which is set to be released in January 2012.
Continue reading “Carey Mulligan To Work With the Coen Brothers and Spike Jonze”
(Written for BritScene)
Directed and co-written by Steve McQueen (Hunger), Shame is a remarkable examination of the nature of need and is a raw and realistic look at how we live our lives, which has today finally sees the arrival of its first trailer.
Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class) plays a sex addict living in New York City whose ordered lifestyle of one-night stands spirals out of control with the unexpected arrival of his needy sister, played by Carey Mulligan (Drive), for an indefinite stay.
Fassbender starred in McQueen’s debut feature Hunger as well, so hopefully this will be as much of an excellent piece of filmmaking too.
Continue reading “Steve McQueen’s ‘Shame’ Gets a Universal Trailer”
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