* Now that all the fussing is over and we know Woody Allen will shoot his next film this summer in San Francisco and New York, the cast is finally starting to come together, and he couldn't have made a better choice. With Cate Blanchett and Bradley Cooper still circling roles on the untitled film, Variety reports that Sally Hawkins(Happy Go Lucky) has signed on, playing a "neurotic who is more fun and rough around the edges". Say wha? I guess that's in comparison to what Blanchett's role would be, playing a sophisticated woman with her life together. Hawkins has worked with Allen before, scoring a role in Cassandra's Dream in 2007.
* Let the parade of biopics on legendary film makers continue! With two Alfred Hitchcock movies on the way, and Martin Scorsese's recent Hugo, you can now add Fellini Black and White to the list. Of course it'll be a movie about influential Italian director, Federico Fellini(La Dolce Vita). Henry Bromwell will write and direct the rather nifty story, which questions Fellini's whereabouts for two days right before the 1957 Academy Award ceremony in Los Angeles, where his Nights of Cabiria was nominated. The story has Fellini discovering the vibrant jazz and surf scene, and falling in love with a veterinarian. Meanwhile, his wife drowns her sorrows by cavorting with Ricky Nelson. Oh yeah, this is classic Fellini stuff. Wagner Moura(Elite Squad) will play Fellini, with Terrence Howard, Peter Dinklage, and William H. Macy co-starring. [Variety]
* As if Dead Man Down couldn't get any better, they go and add the always interesting, always challenging Isabelle Huppert to a cast which includes Colin Farrell, Noomi Rapace, Dominic Cooper, and the recently added Terrence Howard. Directed by Niels Arden Oplov(The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), the story has Farrell an a mysterious insider squaring off against a drug lord played by Howard, with Farrell picking off his men one-by-one as vengeance for the death of a family member. Sounds awesome, and with filming set to begin in the next few days, we may not have to wait long to see it. This is basically Huppert's first "mainstream" role since I Heart Huckabees, although I would suggest you run out and check out her powerful performance in 2010's White Material. Riveting stuff.
