Review: 'Ophelia', Shakespeare Would Not Be Amused At This Lousy 'Hamlet' Reimagining

*NOTE: This is a reprint of my review from the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Ophelia opens on June 28th.*

The works of William Shakespeare have been reinterpreted, modernized, even sequel-ized enough times to be commonplace. And that's fine; Shakespeare should be adapted and expanded upon like anything else. But if you're going to do it, have something new to bring to the table, otherwise don't bother. It's a lesson director Claire McCarthy would have been wise to learn before her adaptation of Ophelia, which stars Daisy Ridley as the oft-misunderstood potential lover of Hamlet.

Similar to Disney's Maleficent, the film seeks to tell the Hamlet story from the perspective of Ophelia, which is an idea definitely worth exploring in theory. Ophelia is one of the most discussed characters in literary history, tragic heroine or feminist icon? The movie doesn't do much to clear up the debate, choosing instead to load up the film with one bad subplot after another that has little to do with increasing our understanding of who Ophelia is.

After a howlingly bad intro with Ridley's flat narration over Ophelia's final scene in Hamlet, we're then whisked away because we don't know her true story. A young, "willful" Ophelia has no station in this land of kings and queens, but she's rambunctious enough to catch the eye of Queen Gertrude (Naomi Watts), who perhaps sees some of herself in the girl.  Ophelia rises up as a lady-in-waiting, one that draws scorn from the other ladies, but earns the attraction of a surprisingly passionate Hamlet (George MacKay). There's also Hamlet's uncle Claudius (Clive Owen with fantastically fake hair) stirring up palace intrigue, and Getrude's exiled twin sister Mechtild, who happens to be a witch. Never heard of Mechtild, eh? She's a new character created in the novel by Lisa Klein, and her presence is just one of the odd additions that muddle why Ophelia needs her own story to begin with.

A better idea might have been to do what so many have done, which is just use Shakespeare as the framework for a totally different story. The screenplay by Semi Chellas struggles to breathe within the confines of the Hamlet story, and once it gets going Ophelia still feels like an observer to events going on around her.  And when things happen that she was not directly involved in, entire events are simply made up, creating almost an entirely new work of fiction. So why not just do that? And yet, when it boils down to the finale, Shakespeare's classic poison plot from Romeo & Juliet is cribbed from pretty shamelessly. 

I couldn't wrap my brain around the production values, which are lush and green, but also stagey and cheap looking. It's like they wanted it to both look like a stage play but also natural, and couldn't decide which way to go. Indecision is a killer for this film in general.

Ridley gives Ophelia all of the strong qualities she gave to Rey in the Star Wars movies. She's brave, curious, and eager for a mentor, a role Gertrude is only too happy to fill unlike that tool Luke Skywalker. But that's really the problem in a nutshell. Ophelia and Rey are not the same, they shouldn't be remotely alike. Rather than Hamlet seen from a different perspective, it's as if someone just didn't like the Ophelia character and changed everything about her. Ophelia is both hopelessly beholden to Shakespeare and yet unwilling to completely break free from it. Who exactly is this movie for?

Rating: 1.5 out of 5

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Review: 'Megan Leavey' Effectively Honors Our Soldiers Of Every Species

We don't normally think of pet movies and war films as going hand-in-hand, but maybe we should. The bond between soldiers mirrors the devotion between a Marine and her combat dog, Rex, in the stirring if frustratingly straight-forward biopic Megan Leavey. In exploring the emotional connection between human and animal, the film tells an effective story of redemption that does its real-life subjects the honor they deserve.

In a too-rare leading performance, Kate Mara brings an understated intensity as Megan, who is told early on from a former boss that she doesn't "really connect with people very well". Of course, she's told this just as she's being fired from a dead-end job, the latest in an apparent string of them. Megan is drifting through life after the death of her best friend, not really caring much about her good-for-nothing mother (Edie Falco), the wayward father (Bradley Whitford) she never sees, or anything else. On a whim she signs up for the Marines, hoping this irrational decision will turn out better than all of the others. While it does provide her the strict structure she apparently needs, a drunken evening earns her a punishment cleaning the kennels in the K-9 unit.

It's there that she meets another troubled spirit, Rex, a bomb sniffing German Shepard deemed to be too aggressive.  The two bond, sensing in one another an outsider status that has dogged them (no pun intended) all of their lives. Megan decides to get her act together in order to attain the status of dog handler so she can work with Rex, although her gruff commander (played by Common) doesn't seem to think it will ever happen.

Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite last made an impact with her documentary, Blackfish, which pulled the curtain back on the treatment of killer whales at SeaWorld.  It was a movie with a message and a call to action, but also found room to chronicle that spark between audiences and the whales putting on a show. So it's no surprise that here she focuses mostly on the relationship between Megan and Rex, and not so much on the complexities of the war itself. The screenplay credited to Pamela Gray, Annie Mumolo, and Tim Lovestedt makes the barest of passing references to the politics of the miserably unnecessary Iraq War, and the decision-makers who so callously sent soldiers there, soldier like Megan and Rex.

It's impossible not to think of Megan and Rex as a duo, as soldiers-in-arms on equal footing with one another. When an IED injures them both, in a heartbreaking scene made more terrible by Rex's determination to continue on, the film shifts to that of soldiers coping with PTSD. Megan isn't the only one dealing with the trauma of her experience, and if the screenplay is most effective at anything it's making us realize that combat dogs suffer in much the same way. You'll never think of them the same way when this movie is over.

The lack of detail and intricacy becomes a problem as the film shifts again to Megan's public campaign to adopt Rex, who she gets separated from after their injuries. We see Megan making lots of phone calls, which are mostly rejected, and her pleas are shot down due to an overzealous veterinarian who says Rex is unfit to be adopted. And while an encounter with Senator Chuck Schumer to gain his support in her adoption efforts is clearly meant to show the extent Megan went, it also opens up the question of why she didn't make this a larger campaign for ALL combat dogs to be adopted. It remains such a self-contained effort that it comes across as a little bit selfish rather than magnanimous as it was meant to.  But that may be a result of too much being left on the cutting room floor, as Megan's story feels oddly truncated in just about every way. It's also possible Cowperthwaite is just playing things a little too restrained, keeping her distance the way any good documentarian should.

Fortunately, where Megan Leavey succeeds is in the interactions between Mara and her canine co-star, Varco, the dog who plays Rex in the majority of shots. The film pays proper tribute to our soldiers, ALL of them, even the four-legged variety, in a subtle but moving way.

Rating: 3 out of 5



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Paris Jackson Making Feature Debut; Clive Owen Joins 'Ophelia''

Michael Jackson didn't appear in a lot of movies, but the ones he chose were as strange and unpredictable as the King of Pop himself. The Wiz, Moonwalker, the Stephen King-penned Ghosts, and 2004's bizarre Miss Cast Away and the Island Girls suggest that Jackson's tastes skewed towards the offbeat. Based on the first role taken by his daughter, Paris, the apple may have fallen a bit further from the tree. Paris Jackson will make her feature acting debut in Nash Edgerton's untitled movie that has David Oyelowo, Joel Edgerton, Charlize Theron, Amanda Seyfried, Yul Vazquez, Sharlto Copley, and Thandie Newton starring. The dark comedy finds Oyelowo as Harold, a mild-mannered businessman who crosses the border into Mexico where he crosses the line from citizen to criminal while tangling with duplicitous business partners, Mexican drug lords, international mercenaries, and the DEA. Paris will play Nelly, an edgy 20-year-old. [Deadline]

Clive Owen, George Mckay (Captain Fantastic), Tom Felton (The Flash), and Devon Terrell (Barry) have joined Daisy Ridley and Naomi Watts in Ophelia. Directed by Claire McCarthy and based on the Lisa Klein novel, the film is a reimagining of Shakespeare's Hamlet focused on the tragic Ophelia.  Here's a synopsis:  Set in the 14th Century but spoken in a contemporary voice, Ophelia is a dynamic re-imagining of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Ophelia (Ridley) takes center stage as the Queen’s (Watts) most trusted lady-in-waiting. Beautiful and intelligent, she soon captures the attention of the handsome Prince Hamlet and a forbidden love blossoms. As war brews, lust and betrayal are tearing Elsinore Castle apart from within and Ophelia must decide between her true love or her own life in order to protect a very dangerous secret. Owen will play Claudius, MacKay will play Hamlet, Felton will play Laertes, and Terrell will play Horatio.

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Chadwick Boseman Delivers A Vengeful 'Message From The King' In New Trailer

Chadwick Boseman's going to be plenty busy with Avengers: Infinity War and a Black Panther solo film for the next few years, so it's good to see him in something else that doesn't involve superheroes, but gives him a chance to bone up on his African accent.

A new trailer for the neo-noir Message from the King has arrived, a revenge movie in which Boseman plays Jacob King. King arrives in Los Angeles from South Africa to locate his missing sister, only to learn that she's been killed. That leaves him with only a week to get revenge for her death. Teresa Palmer, Tom Felton, Natalie Martinez, Luke Evans, Alfred Molina, and Dale Dickey round out an excellent cast for Belgian filmmaker Fabrice Du Welz.

So far there's no U.S. release date but I imagine that will change soon because this looks pretty good.

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Review: 'A United Kingdom' Starring David Oyelowo And Rosamund Pike

Forming an unofficial trilogy with Belle and Loving, Amma Asante's A United Kingdom is another glorious, poignant biopic on interracial love that challenges then changes the world. It was Asante who surprised all of us three years ago with Belle, a period romance that overcame its potential stuffiness with a story that felt modern and relevant. She faces a similar challenge here with the complicated politics that bound inspiring real-life couple Seretse Khama (David Oyelowo) and Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike), and she succeeds in giving them a sweeping, beautiful film worthy of their incredible story.

The story of Seretse and Ruth is one, a lot like Hidden Figures, that I was amazed to not have heard anything about. So I was left slack-jawed as their hardships unfolded on the big screen. Admittedly, it begins a little slowly as we meet Seretse, a Bechuanaland (later Botswana) prince in London studying law at Oxford. He's a refined fellow, who likes to spend his evening in jazz clubs. It's there that he meets Ruth, a typist with no intention of falling in love any time soon. Neither is he, for that matter. They dance, they talk, they flirt, they begin spending more time together, enduring the slurs that come with it. Post-war London has yet to look favorably on interracial relationship. If only Seretse and Ruth's problems amounted to a handful of bigoted douchebags on the street.

The decision to marry isn't an easy one. Her father disapproves immediately and practically disowns her. It's more difficult for Seretse. He's a prince, and to marry Ruth would mean bringing her back home to Bechuanaland where he can take over as Regent from his uncle (Vusi Kunene), who is adamantly against the idea of a white, British woman from a lower economic class. Worse are the machinations of the British government, which has been in control of Bechuanaland and has a partnership worked out with South Africa, who are beginning to institute the racist policies of apartheid. Britain can't be seen to be favoring Seretse's marriage to a British woman or it threatens access to South Africa's vast mineral resources.

There's a ton of plot for Asante and writer Guy Hibbert to wade through, so they smartly frontload everything we need to see of Seretse and Ruth's courtship. It makes for a crowded opening act that isn't helped by cinematography limited by London's busy, stifling streets. We see the first initial defenses of their union, as preparation for the big battles to follow. What we learn about them is that they always stand strong and put on a brave public face. In private they lean on one another for support. It's a practice they will get used to as evil mustache-twirling British representatives (played by Jack Davenport and Draco Malfoy...er, Tom Felton) and Seretse's uncle try to force his hand. Even the people are against him at first, seen in a tribal meeting where the men make decisions and the women hang around on the outskirts, scornfully judging Ruth.

Of course, we know things will eventually turn around, but getting there is the roller coaster. Threats, exiles, betrayals, and more stand in their way,  but the biggest obstacle is popular opinion in Botswana. Even through all of his fights with the British, Seretse's deep love of country and for his wife remains paramount, and that is what helps turn the tide. He remains a true son of Botswana, and a loyal husband even when pushed to the breaking point. It should go without saying that Oyelowo and Pike are tremendous, whether separate or together.  Pike may have the more difficult role, capturing the fear Ruth must have felt coming into an unknown place and being met with such fierce resistance. But she also shows Ruth's strength and determination, which only seems to grow when she's in Seretse's presence. He too, is a better man, a more vocal leader when she is around. They complement one another in every way that matters.  The two look immaculate against the wide open, sprawling vistas of Botswana, gorgeously captured by DP Sam McCurdy.

There's no complete escape from  the deluge of story points and factoids that bog things down, but we remain invested in seeing this unbelievable partnership endure. Perhaps it's because things are so divided now racially that A United Kingdom shines like a beacon for how we ought to be.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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Dominic Cooper Is First Into Action In New Trailer For 'Stratton'

Remember when the spy flick Stratton was a project being shepherded by Superman himself, Henry Cavill, as potentially his next franchise vehicle? Well that was a while ago now, and instead the role went to another comic book actor, Dominic Cooper, who splits his time between AMC's Preacher and as young Howard Stark in the Marvel Universe.

Judging by the newly-released trailer, Cooper is more than capable of carrying the action burden.  The film is based on the popular eight-book series by Duncan Falconer that follows SBS operative and MI6 agent John Stratton who must track down and stop a dangerous terrorist cell. Yeah, that's pretty basic, but the footage suggests a lean, slick thriller from director Simon West (The Mechanic), who clearly has been studying up on James Bond.

Also starring Derek Jacobi, Tom Felton, Tyler Hoechlin, Austin Stowell, Connie Nielsen, Gemma Chan, Thomas Kretschmann, and Jake Fairbrother, Stratton opens overseas soon but has yet to find a U.S. distributor. That should change soon, I would think.

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Ex-WWE Superstar Cody Rhodes To Appear On 'Arrow', Tom Felton Joins 'The Flash' Season 3

When Arrow star Stephen Amell started showing up on WWE television last year, it was to square off against the demented heel Stardust, played by Cody Rhodes. It was one of the most enjoyable angles WWE had going at the time because it was presented purely as a superhero vs. supervillain showdown. In the process Amell and Rhodes became good friends and wanted to work together again, but now that the latter is no longer in WWE the two will reunite on Arrow, instead.

Amell confirmed at the Heroes & Villain Fanfest that Rhodes, the son of the late great "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, will guest star on Arrow when it returns this fall. Who will he be playing? That much isn't clear but it wouldn't be a shock if he played a variation on his twisted Stardust character, make-up included.  Here's what Amell had to say...

"We have a new guest star on Arrow this year: Mr. Cody Rhodes. I'm so fired up for this guy; he and I haven't really had much of a chance to talk about it but we've been friends for a little over a year now. I know that Cody has really wanted to get into the acting business. He went to LA, he read for a part, and his deal closed yesterday and the dude is going to be on Arrow and I'm so fired up."

He's right that Rhodes has been hoping to get into acting but I hope this doesn't keep him away from the squared circle too much as his  non-compete clause expires soon.

Meanwhile, Tom Felton, best known for playing Draco Malfoy in every Harry Potter film, has joined CW's The Flash as a series regular. In his case we know exactly who he'll play, a CSI named Julian Dorn who suspects there's more to Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) than meets the eye.

Could he ultimately become a supervillain? Felton's best playing the bad guy so it's probably a good bet. Anything can happen, though, especially following Barry's decision to alter the timeline by going back to save his mother from Reverse-Flash. His actions will set in motion the series' version of the crucial "Flashpoint" storyline that has drastic ramifications on multiple alternate realities.

Arrow returns for its 5th season on October 5th, preceded by The Flash season 3 on October 4th.

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Review: ‘Risen' Starring Joseph Fiennes, Tom Felton, And Cliff Curtis

 

Genres have strict definitions, and the faith-based-film genre is particularly inflexible. These movies are almost solely Christian in ideology, unyielding in their exclusivity, and not particularly generous with their budget. It’s refreshing, then, to see something like Risen, which makes a variety of small deviations in content and production to set itself apart from the pack.

Yes, Risen is still very, very Christian, but it gives itself room for some doubt about Jesus’s resurrection. Yes, Risen is made in the golden-age-of-Hollywood mold like a modern-day Ben-Hur, but at least the production value isn’t bottom of the barrel. And although in reality Risen seems like a real-life version of the faux film Hail, Caesar! from that latest Coen brothers movie, at least it’s not as painfully preachy as other films in this genre, like last year’s War Room. Nothing could be worse than War Room.

Risen focuses on Roman Centurion Clavius (Fiennes), a general who has spent his life slaughtering people who dare question the Roman Empire and who commands 100 soldiers responsible for doing the same thing. He’s trusted by prefect Pontius Pilate (Peter Firth), which is why Pontius assigns him the responsibility of overseeing the crucifixion and burial of a supposed Jewish messiah, Yeshua (Cliff Curtis).

The task goes as expected, even though there are crowds of would-be rioters protesting Yeshua’s death and others spitting on his body (Jewish people are not presented well in this movie), but then something shocking happens: Yeshua’s body, after being entombed in a cave blocked with a boulder wrapped in wax, disappears. The two Roman guards in charge of the tomb have no idea recollection of what happened, begging Clavius to “explain” it to them. But what he can explain? He needs answers, and he needs to find Yeshua’s body. Otherwise, isn’t everything he believes plagued with doubt?

So begins the “CSI: Jerusalem” portion of Risen, with Clavius and his men kicking in doors, questioning people like Mary Magdalene, and trying to reclaim Yeshua’s body before an uprising by enslaved Jews and Yeshua’s followers threatens what the Romans have built. “You look for something you’ll never find,” Mary Magdalene says, and her certainly only adds to Clavius’s mystery.

If you’re expecting a list of the miracles performed by Jesus, as seen in the aforementioned Ben-Hur and of course discussed in the Bible, you’re in luck! We see Yeshua provide a feast of fish for his followers and curse people with leprosy, and for the religious audiences inevitably seeing this movie, these are strong scenes that will reaffirm their faith. But it’s nice that Risen veers in a few different directions, like offering another explanation for what could have happened to Jesus’s body, and casting an ethnic-looking actor, Curtis, as Jesus, flying in the face of the blonde, blue-eyed, and white portrayal of him that has dominated Christianity for so long.

Ultimately, Risen is certainly a step up for this genre, and it’s more open-minded than you would expect. But this is still a movie made for a captured Christian audience, and it will be those viewers who will like it best.

Review: 3 out of 5 Guttenbergs

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Han Solo Spinoff Targets Miles Teller, Rami Malek, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and 2500 More Contenders

Since Harrison Ford is getting up there in age his two most famous roles now need to be filled by somebody else. One is obviously Indiana Jones, and the speculation on who will don the fedora have begun without a movie even being green lit. And then, of course, there's Han Solo; with a young version of the infamous rogue set to feature in an untitled spinoff directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller. How does Lucasfilm go about finding someone to take on such an important character in the Star Wars mythos? Audition everybody.

According to THR more than 2500 actors are in the mix to play Han Solo, meaning they've either put themselves on tape or actually met to discuss it. That list runs the gamut from well-known actors, mostly American, to lesser-knowns that includes some from across the pond. Dave Franco, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Miles Teller, Nick Robinson,, Logan Lerman, Ansel Elgort, Jack Reynor, Colton Haynes, Max Thieriot, Chandler Riggs, Hunter Parrish, Rami Malek, Ed Westwick, and Tom Felton make up just a small part of the wide net being cast.  

Well, at least Chris Pratt's name isn't in there, right? That makes one role he's not up for. Only one.

In football they say if you have two starting quarterbacks you really don't have any. The same thing kind of applies here. With so many actors being looked at Lucasfilm can't be anywhere near making a decision, so they might as well not have any candidates at all, especially since these actors are so wildly different. The film doesn't arrive until May 25th 2018 which should give them plenty of time to narrow down the guy who will be piloting the Millennium Falcon. 

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Edgar Ramirez Joins 'The Girl On the Train', Tom Felton Boards Two Projects, Zosia Mamet Meets 'The Boy Downstairs'

Edgar Ramirez, who will be seen in Joy and the Point Break remake later this year, has joined another highly-anticipated film, The Girl On the Train. He joins Rebecca Ferguson, Emily Blunt, and Haley Bennett in Tate Taylor's adaptation of Paula Hawkins' best-selling thriller. The story centers on a drunken divorcee (Blunt) who fantasizes about the seemingly-perfect family she passes every day on the train, only to become involved when the wife goes missing. Ramirez plays Dr. Kamal Abdric, a therapist whose affair with the missing woman makes him a suspect. Chris Evans and Jared Leto are reportedly up for the other male roles, but no deal has been signed. [Deadline]

Tom Felton aka Draco Malfoy has joined Kate Mara in the Iraq War biopic, Megan Leavey. Directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite with Edie Falco and Ramon Rodriguez co-starring, the film tells the true story of Leavey, a troubled female Marine whose life is changed when she joins a K9 unit. Felton will play a veteran dog handler.

Before that, Felton will rejoin Belle director Amma Asante for United Kingdom. Starring David Oyelowo and Rosamund Pike, the period romance centers on the illicit romance between  South African royal Seretse Khama who falls in love with a white English commoner. Felton, always a great bad guy, will play the posh district commissioner preventing Khama from getting married to the woman he loves. [THR]

Girls star Zosia Mamet will lead indie comedy The Boy Downstairs from writer/director Sophie Brooks. Also featuring Deirdre O’Connell, Matthew Shear, and Diana Irvine, the story follows a young New York City woman who accidentally moves into her ex-boyfriend's building after returning from a trip to Europe. [Deadline]

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Tom Felton and Joseph Fiennes Investigate Jesus' Resurrection in Trailer for 'Risen'

What if a pair of Law & Order cops were sent to investigate the resurrection of Jesus Christ? That would kind of be interesting, wouldn't it? Well, that's not exactly the plot of the Biblical mystery, Risen, but it's close. Joseph Fiennes and Tom Felton play Roman soldiers investigating the mystery of Jesus' Resurrection. Seriously, here's the plot to prove it:

"Risen" is the epic Biblical story of the Resurrection, as told through the eyes of a non-believer. Clavius (Joseph Fiennes), a powerful Roman Military Tribune, and his aide Lucius (Tom Felton), are tasked with solving the mystery of what happened to Jesus in the weeks following the crucifixion, in order to disprove the rumors of a risen Messiah and prevent an uprising in Jerusalem.

That sounds both absolutely absurd and kind of amazing. We could be talking about a disaster on the level of Waterworld or something. Oh wait, the film is directed by Waterworld's Kevin Reynolds?  Even better! Should we be surprised Risen is slated for a January release next year? Check out the trailer:

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Review: 'Belle' Starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Tom Wilkinson

The painting of Dido Elizabeth Belle and her cousin Elizabeth currently hanging in Scotland's Scone Palace is fascinating for a number of reasons. The first is the striking beauty of the two women, and the obvious closeness of the two women. Both are clearly aristocratic to some degree, judging by their clothing and the very regal nature of the portrait itself. And it's that last aspect which makes the image all the more interesting, because Dido is black, a fact which would normally have her removed from the ways and means of aristocrats in 18th century England, where slavery was still very much a part of life.

There are faint echoes of 12 Years a Slave in Belle, Amma Asante's first directorial effort since 2004's accomplished debut, A Way of Life. What's missing is the emotional backbone to support Dido's uncommon story that saw her stuck between a world of privilege and one of subservience. Breaking free of the formulaic, saggy screenplay is the title performance by Gugu Mbatha Raw, who shows Dido to be a woman of exceptional inner strength. The illegitimate daughter of Admiral John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) and a slave, Dido was sent to live on the palatial estate of his uncle, William Murray (Tom Wilkinson), the 1st Earl of Mansfield. There she was treated as one of the family, becoming good friends with her cousin Lady Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon), and enduring the initial discontent of Murray's wife (Emily Watson).

"I am too high to eat with the servants, too low to join you at dinner", Dido says at one point, and it's true that being a part of high society has as many restraints as privileges. While loved and cared for by her family when alone, Belle is spirited off to other corners of the home when guests arrive, lest her presence offend their delicate sensibilities. The convergence of race and gender issues are skillfully dealt with when Dido suddenly becomes wealthy, granted an annual inheritance by her father. Now Dido finds she is suddenly very desirable to men who would otherwise turn up their nose at her, while her less financially secure cousin struggles to find a man who will accept her unconditionally. For women, upward mobility is all about money and power, nothing more. Mention love and you're likely to get scoffed at. But Dido is fortunate as she is granted the wealth to make decisions for herself, something most women do not have the luxury of.

"I have been blessed with freedom twice over."

Less effectively portrayed is growing debate over slavery taking place in England at the time, with Murray presiding over the real-life case of the Zong massacre, in which over 140 slaves were dumped off a ship in order to collect the insurance money on them. Dido is seen as forceful voice of reason in William's ear, and she finds support in the fiery rhetoric of upstart lawyer, John Davinier (Sam Reid), a suitor unlike any she has met before. Fitting with the film's generally shallow approach, little is seen of the harsh realities of slavery, preferring to tackle it through mechanical speeches on justice and equality. The lack of passion detracts from a handsomely photographed film and Mbatha-Raw's stirring attempt to do Dido's story proper justice.

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Elizabeth Olsen and Oscar Isaac Have an Illicit Affair in Trailer for 'In Secret'

It's not that Oscar Isaac and Elizabeth Olsen seem to be everywhere lately, it's that they are taking on as wide an array of roles as possible. Isaac is basking in the critical praise for his turn as a downtrodden folk singer the Coens' Inside Llewyn Davis. Olsen is coming off playing author Edie Parker in Kill Your Darlings, which was pretty tame compared to her part in Spike Lee's Oldboy remake. Now the two are coming together for a film that finds them caught in the embrace of a forbidden love.

The first trailer for In Secret (formerly titled Therese) has been released, and for a period romance it at least packs a good deal of passion. Based on the classic novel by Emile Zola, the story follows Therese, a young woman forced into a loveless marriage with her sickly pencil-neck cousin (Tom Felton), with her aunt (Jessica Lange) encouraging the union. Stuck in a boring life with little hope for salvation, she finds an illicit escape in the arms of Laurent (Isaac), her husband's dashing friend.

In Secret arrives next year on February 21st.

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First Trailer for Historical Drama 'Belle' Starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw

Steve McQueen's unrelenting 12 Years A Slave (review here) is in theaters now, and while the film has been greatly buzzed about and is all but a lock for the Oscars, it's going to be too tough for many to sit through. But for those who, for whatever reason, are looking for a film that follows similar thematic territory, there has been a great deal of positive talk surrounding Belle, a period drama directed by Amma Asante. The film premiered at Toronto last month and while it's still a ways off from hitting theaters, Fox Searchlight is riding 12 Years A Slave's coattails to start getting the word out.

Starring the extremely talented Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Larry Crowne) in her first feature film lead, the true story centers on Dido Elizabeth Belle, the illegitimate biracial daughter of Royal Navy Admiral Sir John Lindsay, who is raised as an aristocrat by her great uncle (Tom Wilkinson) and aunt (Emily Watson). Despite her priviledged status, Belle's mixed race heritage continues to be an issue in an England where slavery is still a way of life.

Co-starring Tom Felton, Sarah Gadon, Miranda Richardson, and Matthew Goode, Belle opens on May 2nd 2014.


BELLE Movie Trailer by GaMeFORGaMeRz

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Sure Shots: Tom Felton; Antje Traue; Carrie-Anne Moss

* He'll probably always be recognized as Harry Potter's cowardly nemesis Draco Malvoy, but Tom Felton has done a pretty good job of moving on past the long-running franchise. He'll next join Garret Dillahunt (Looper) and Jake Abel (The Host) for WWII thriller Ghosts of the Pacific. American Film Company president Brian Falk will direct the film, which tells the true story of a three Navy airmen stranded in the South Pacific Ocean after their plane crashes. Felton will play bombardier Tony Pastula, while Dillahunt and Abel are pilot Harold Dixon and radioman Gene Aldrich. Production is set to begin later this month.

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Review: 'The Apparition', starring Ashley Greene and Sebastian Stan

For a time now horror movies have been stagnant,  stuck in this place of torture porn or some cheap found footage mess. Long gone are the days of monsters terrorizing a nice couple or your classic All-American family. We’ve also lost the beautiful art of cheesy eighties bad horror movies. It was like back then all those movies you’d surely end up seeing on a Saturday afternoon on syndicated television were intentionally bad,  and maybe they were. But one thing can be said that The Apparition, a 2012 film was not made terrible on purpose and isn’t from the 80s no matter how much if feels like it is.

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'The Apparition' advance screening!

Who's ready for a good scare? The stars of three of today's biggest franchises come together in The Apparition, a horror film about a university experiment that goes terribly wrong, unleashing an evil presence into the world. Ashley Greene(Twilight), Sebastian Stan(Captain America: The First Avenger), and Tom Felton(Harry Potter series) star, with Todd Lincoln making his directorial debut.

We want you to be among the first to experience The Apparition by attending a free advance screening. The event will take place on Thursday, August 23rd at 7:30pm, located at Regal Majestic in Silver Spring. To qualify, you must first be a fan of Punch Drunk Critics on Facebook. 20 winners will be chosen at random out of those who leave a comment here with their name and email address. Those selected will receive an email on August 17th with a unique Gofobo code that will allow them to download up to two passes for the screening. If you haven't registered for Gofobo, you'll need to do that first.

We hope to see you there! Check out a trailer for The Apparition below....

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Trailer Time: 'The Apparition', starring Ashley Greene and Sebastian Stan

You'd think at some point they'd figure out that by saying a supernatural horror is "based on true events" doesn't actually make a movie any scarier. It was a tactic that worked perfectly well back in the days of The Amityville Horror but this is a totally different time, and people are too savvy(or maybe cynical is a better word?) and smart to buy into the thought of some evil poltergeist ratting the silverware and slamming cabinet doors as a real thing. We don't need to be told "Hey, this is real!" for a movie to make us feel like it could happen. Yet every single time we get another exorcism or haunted house flick, you can bet on it beginning with those words: 'based on true events".

The trailer for The Apparition takes a slightly different tract, but its goal is exactly the same. The film is indeed based on the supposedly real university experiment that set out to prove the supernatural can be brought into existence through the power of thought. That if we simply believe in them strong enough, spirits and ghosts can be brought into reality.  The eager(read: moronic) group of scientists succeed all too well, and unleash the forces into the world, where they proceed to terrorize a young couple played Ashley Greene(Twilight) and Sebastian Stan(Captain America: The First Avenger). Tom Felton(Harry Potter), who is so much better than this, co-stars as the friend who knows more about the supernatural than anybody should. Todd Lincoln wrote and directed the film, and to me it just looks like a completely generic thriller best left to $5 DVD bins. I could be wrong, but the trailer doesn't hold a lot of promise. Why anybody would think that adding scientific formulas and reasoning to a horror movie would be effective is beyond me. The Apparition is set to open on August 24th....

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Sure Shots: Tom Felton; Chloe Moretz; '24' put on hold

* Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson aren't the only Harry Potter alums making a smooth transition into other, more challenging roles. Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy in the decade long franchise, will get to sex up Sharon Stone as part of Tony Kaye's upcoming thriller, Attachment. Written by Christopher Denham, the film has Stone playing a married woman who has a fling with a student, only to have it bite her in the arse when he begins dating her daughter and stalking the family. D'oh! [ComingSoon]

* Speaking of former Hogwarts graduates, Rupert Grint will be making his first big post-Potter move by joining The Drummer, the biopic of Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson. He'll be joined by Chloe Moretz(Kick-Ass), with Aaron Eckhart set to star alongside Vera Farmiga. Grint will play an intern who befriended Wilson later in his life, while Moretz is Wilson's daughter, Jennifer. Randy Miller(Bottle Shock) will direct. [Variety]

* Sorry, Jack Bauer fans! Despite Kiefer Sutherland's obvious enthusiasm for a 24 film, something always seems to get in the way. First it was problems with Billy Ray's script, which was eventually touched up by Mark Bomback, and now the film has run into enough of a roadblock(a lot of it over budget) that Fox has decided to push the start date back all the way to 2013....maybe. It's actually on indefinite hold, with next year just being the earliest possible time. It may not happen at all. Sutherland had only recently stated that production would start in April or May, with the film beginning six months after the end of the series finale. According to Deadline, Antoine Fuqua(Training Day) is a name being tossed around as potential director.

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Sure Shots: 'The Hobbit'; Mary Elizabeth Winstead; Elizabeth Olsen

* Even though Peter Jackson has been filming The Hobbit for nearly a year, casting on the second chapter has already begun. Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, who I still remember from the final season of Head of the Class, will play the dwarf Dain Ironfoot in the film. Dain is only a marginal member of the story, appearing at the final battle at the request of his cousin, Thorin Oakenshield(Richard Armitage). The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will open on December 14th, but we'll likely see Connolly in The Hobbit: There and Back Again which opens a year later. [Deadline]

* Daniel Stamm may have missed out on directing a sequel to his surprise horror hit, The Last Exorcism, but he's already busy casting his follow-up. Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who is riding high on the critical buzz from her festival hit, Smashed, will star in The Darkness, a psychological horror based on a novel by Henry James. The story centers on an American student working in an English manor for a charismatic tudor, who comes to think that the children are being haunted. Oh this sounds lazy and dreadful, but Winstead is always worth the price of admission. [Screen Daily]

* Elizabeth Olsen will join Glenn Close and Tom Felton(Harry Potter) are all in talks to star in an adaptation of Emile Zola's 1867 classic novel, Therese Raquin. The story, which was turned into a famous stageplay in 1873, tells the story of an unhappy wife who murders her husband with the assistance of her lover. When the two are then married, they continue to be haunted by the victim's spirit. Charlie Stratton, an acclaimed theater director who has led stage versions of the novel before, will be behind the camera. Olsen was recently screwed out of a Best Actress nomination for her role in Martha Marcy May Marlene, while Close received one for Albert Nobbs. [Deadline]

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