This is really something of a make or break summer for Tom Hardy. He's just been sort of anointed as a top leading man even though that hasn't exactly paid off at the box office. Everybody loved Warrior, but nobody paid to see it. And the less said about This Means War the better. We all know he'll be a part of The Dark Knight Rises' march into the history books later this month, but beyond that the film which will be a bigger measuring stick for his status is Lawless. Directed by John Hillcoat and based on Matt Bondurant's phenomenal novel, The Wettest County in the World, the film has captured the attention of many because of its remarkable cast and the story's gangster vibe.
A new one-minute trailer has been released, and it doesn't show much that we haven't already seen. There does seem to be an emphasis on Hardy as Forrest Bondurant, the fearsome middle brother who is the mastermind behind the illegal bootlegging operation he and his brothers are running in Prohibition era Virginia. Shia LaBeouf plays Jack Bondurant, the youngest and most naive of the brothers, while Jason Clarke is the massive Howard Bondurant, the brawler of the bunch.
The Weinstein Company, eager to find new ways to market what they hope will be a prestige awards film for them, have also released a cool new infographic detailing the different handguns each character uses. Why? Who cares? It's pointless, but fun.
From those friends of mine who've already seen it, they say the film hits many of the notes we've seen in the clips and trailers, which is of a tough, mobster-style story full of guns, corrupt cops, and car chases. That's all fine and good, but for a book as epic as Matt Bondurant's novel was, I was hoping for something more. Lawless co-stars Mia Wasikowska, Guy Pearce, Jessica Chastain, Gary Oldman, and Dane DeHaan, and hits theaters on August 29th. Check the trailer and the infographic below...
