MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY LEADS MAGNIFICENT VOYAGE IN “INTERSTELLAR”

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Newly-minted Oscar-winner Matthew McConaughey stars in Warner Bros. Pictures' “Interstellar” as Cooper, a former test pilot and engineer in the tradition of the adrenaline-fueled flyboys who continually challenge their own limitations to carve our path into the stars.

Photo courtesy of Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros.

For director Christopher Nolan, only Matthew McCounaughey could effortlessly convey that archetypal figure. “He embodies everything we were looking for in casting Cooper—the spirit of adventure, a cowboy-like swagger, and the warmth of somebody who’s involved with his family first and foremost,” the director states. “He has all of those intangible qualities present in the character, paired with his incredible professionalism and humor. It was a wonderful experience to work with him on this film.”

McConaughey describes Cooper as “a dreamer and a man out of time. He’s not supposed to be a farmer. He’s supposed to be out there—that’s where he lives.” But in “Interstellar,” the world needs farmers, not pilots. After a blight has decimated the food supply, civilization has turned back to the earth and clings to the only viable crop left—corn. “Life has become about growing food and having clean water,” the actor continues. “We don’t need any explorers; we don’t need any astronauts; we don’t need any bright ideas. But Cooper is trying his best to live in this world, and to hold things together for his children.”

Cooper’s teenage son Tom, played by Timothée Chalamet, loves the farm and helps his dad to keep it running. Chalamet recalls that on the day before shooting began, McConaughey helped set the stage for their onscreen relationship. “Matthew asked me, ‘What do you know about combine greasing and the methods in which pesticides are sprayed over corn fields?’” Chalamet recalls. “That night, I looked everything up to make sure I could answer all those questions the next day, but that experience with Matthew told me so much about Tom’s relationship with his dad. Cooper wants to know he can rely on him to handle things, and Tom wants to prove to him that he can.”

Cooper’s daughter, Murph, played by Mackenzie Foy, takes after her father in ways Tom never could. “Murph is obsessed with rockets and space, even though no one talks about those things anymore,” Foy says. “She might have felt out of place in this world, but her dad encourages her to stay curious and that gives her the confidence to be brave.”

Producer Emma Thomas reveals, “Cooper loves both of his children deeply, but shares a special bond with Murph over their shared passion for science and discovery. But, as with many parents and children, what binds them together can also pull them apart.”

Sealed off in an underground bunker, a small group of scientists and engineers is aiming higher than the dirt that no longer seems willing to sustain the human race and are gambling their lives on the prospect that somewhere in the universe lies a planet that might. The project was sparked by the mysterious appearance of a disturbance near Saturn—a wormhole that bores through a higher dimension of space and time to a galaxy that would take lifetimes to reach without it. And to endure such a journey, the group has salvaged the best available technology from the ruins of the space program to build the mission’s three ships: the Ranger shuttle, the Lander heavy-lift vehicle, and the Endurance mothership waiting in low Earth orbit.

The one thing the mission lacks is an experienced pilot. McConaughey offers, “Suddenly, the dream that Cooper’s been chasing all his life is knocking on his door. And it’s not just the chance to be a pilot again but to lead the most important mission of all time. The consequence of that opportunity, though, is having to leave his two kids behind, and what no one can tell him is how long he will be gone.”

“Interstellar” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company. “Interstellar” is available in four formats: IMAX 70mm Film (at IMAX SM Mall of Asia), 35mm Film (at Glorietta 4, Sta. Lucia East and Trinoma), IMAX Digital (at SM Aura Premiere, SM Cebu, SM Clark, SM Lanang, SM Megamall, SM North EDSA and SM Southmall) and Digital 2D (most theatres nationwide).

JOYS, PAINS OF FAMILY AT HEART OF “THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU”

Press release

From director Shawn Levy (“Real Steel”) comes the dramatic comedy “This is Where I Leave You” based on the hilarious and poignant best-selling novel by Jonathan Tropper.

It features a starring ensemble cast, including Golden Globe-winner Jason Bateman (“Arrested Development”); Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner Tina Fey (“30 Rock”); and two-time Oscar winner, multiple Golden Globe honoree and Emmy Award nominee Jane Fonda (“Coming Home,” HBO’s “The Newsroom”).

When their father passes away, four grown siblings, bruised and banged up by their respective adult lives, are forced to return to their childhood home and live under the same roof together for a week, along with their over-sharing mother and an assortment of spouses, exes and might-have-beens. Confronting their history and the frayed states of their relationships among the people who know and love them best, they ultimately reconnect in hysterical and emotionally affecting ways amid the chaos, humor, heartache and redemption that only families can provide—driving us insane even as they remind us of our truest, and often best, selves.

The film also stars Adam Driver (“Girls”), Rose Byrne (“Bridesmaids”), Corey Stoll (“Midnight in Paris”), Kathryn Hahn (“Parks and Recreation”), Connie Britton (“Nashville”), Timothy Olyphant (“Justified”), Dax Shepard (“Parenthood”), Debra Monk (“Damages”), Abigail Spencer (“Rectify”), and Ben Schwartz (“House of Lies”).

Filmmaker Shawn Levy’s response to This is Where I Leave You was heartfelt and immediate. “I loved it,” Levy recalls of his first time reading Jonathan Tropper’s richly entertaining, best-selling novel about love, loss, family, growing up, and getting on with the business of life. “It resonated for me in ways that were both comedic and deeply moving. There was something in its blend of humanity, warmth and humor that rang true, and I knew it was a movie I wanted to make, a story I wanted to share.”

It may seem like something of a departure for Levy, best known by moviegoers around the world for the blockbuster “Night at the Museum” films. “At the time, I was doing bigger, broader comedy, whereas this is more character-based and nuanced in its detail, so it had to be drawn with a finer brush,” he says.

“This is Where I Leave You” finds Levy still very much in the business of making people laugh, but this time those laughs spring from a more intimate place, as the film holds up a mirror to the kinds of emotional entanglements, conflicts and secrets, pitfalls, pratfalls and second chances in life that we can all relate to, as the ties that bind often tie us up in knots. “It’s a grounded, honest story about human behavior and connections that I think is as comfortable being funny as it is being poignant,” he adds.

The producers hired Tropper to write the screenplay for “This is Where I Leave You,” marking the first time the author has adapted his own work for the screen.

Says Tropper, “Working with Shawn and the producers, seeing other people get invested in these characters in a different way, and then seeing the actors make them their own; it’s been an exciting process.”

For those who loved the story and will be rediscovering it on the big screen, he adds, “I’ve always been a big movie fan and I look at movies as a very different animal, so it wasn’t really hard to take apart the book and find the movie inside of it. It’s the same message and the same story. The hardest part was finding the balance between what people would find fun and entertaining and, at the same time, wanting them to be touched by its underlying themes.”

Throughout, Tropper worked closely with Levy, who felt, “It was my job to honor the novel. Much of my process was reminding Jonathan of the beauty of his prose and importing ideas, or lines, or whole scenes from the novel.

“I don’t know that I’ve ever followed my gut as faithfully as I did in the pursuit of this book, and this story, and really in every decision I made during the making of this movie,” the director continues. “The reason I wanted to make it was because it’s so inspirational and warm-hearted and redeeming in ways that I like movies to be.”

This is Where I Leave You” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.

WARNER'S NEW DRAMEDY “LEAVES” FIRST TRAILER

Warner Bros. Pictures' new dramatic comedy “This is Where I Leave You,” directed by Shawn Levy, and based on the hilarious and poignant best-selling novel by Jonathan Tropper, has just unreeled its first trailer.

            The film features a starring ensemble cast including Golden Globe winner Jason Bateman (“Arrested Development”); Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner Tina Fey (“30 Rock”); and two-time Oscar® winner, multiple Golden Globe honoree and 2013 Emmy Award nominee Jane Fonda (“Klute,” “Coming Home,” HBO’s “The Newsroom”). 

            When their father passes away, four grown siblings, bruised and banged up by their respective adult lives, are forced to return to their childhood home and live under the same roof together for a week, along with their over-sharing mother and an assortment of spouses, exes and might-have-beens. Confronting their history and the frayed states of their relationships among the people who know and love them best, they ultimately reconnect in hysterical and emotionally affecting ways amid the chaos, humor, heartache and redemption that only families can provide—driving us insane even as they remind us of our truest, and often best, selves.

            Levy, who helmed the blockbuster “Night at the Museum” films, as well as “Date Night” and “Real Steel,” directs from a screenplay by Jonathan Tropper. 

            The film also stars Adam Driver (HBO’s “Girls,” upcoming “Star Wars: Episode VII”), Rose Byrne (“Bridesmaids,” “X-Men: First Class”), Corey Stoll (“Midnight in Paris”) and Kathryn Hahn (“We're the Millers”).

            This is Where I Leave You” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.

THE LOVE FEELS IN “1ST KO SI 3RD” - EXCLUSIVE AT AYALA MALLS CINEMAS

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“1st Ko si 3rd” made its debut in this year’s Cinemalaya X’s and has generated most of the “feels” amongst all the entries in the New Breed category.   Before heading to compete at the prestigious Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF), “1st Ko si 3rd” is going to be shown in (Phils.) theaters nationwide exclusively at Ayala Malls Cinemas starting November 12.  

                “1st Ko si 3rd” is about Corazon (played by Nova Villa), a recently retired government employee who's been married to Alejandro (Dante Rivero) for the past four decades.  But their monotonous marriage is about to change when Corazon and Third (Freddie Webb), her first love, crosses path once again after their abrupt separation in the past.  Initially avoiding the opportunities to meet up withThird, Corazon finally finds herself rekindling old feelings and living each moment with the first love of her life.

               In an article at Yahoo Philippines by Gerry Plaza, the writer commends the film's director Real Florido, who has succeeded in infusing “1st Ko si 3rd” with both indie and mainstream appeal that struck a universal chord.

               An unconventional love story with heartfelt humor and drama, “1st Ko si 3rd” is director Florido’s directorial debut and marks Nova Villa’s reunion with her long-time screen partner Freddie Webb.

               Anyday can be your grandmother's day, especially starting this November 12, watch “1st Ko si 3rd” at Ayala Malls  Cinemas with them.  Log on to www.sureseats.com for advance ticket online purchase and schedule of "1st Ko si 3rd."

Keanu Reeves in John Wick

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 The much anticipated return of Keanu Reeves in full-tilt action is about to end in his upcoming movie "John Wick" where he plays an ex-hitman forced to come out of retirement and brings bloody vengeance to the Russian mobsters who took everything from him.     

               Making their directorial debut in "John Wick" are Chad Stahelski and David Leitch whom Reeves have long collaborated with since in "The Matrix" films who have served as the movies' stunt coordinators and are now Hollywood's most in-demand when it comes to training actors in action films. Most recently, the duo's works include phenomenal hits such as "300," "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," "The Bourne Legacy" and "The Hunger Games."

               Starring alongside an all-star cast with Willem Dafoe, Michael Nyvist, Adrianne Palicki, Alfie Allen, Bridget Moynahan, Ian McShane and John Leguizamo, Reeves ups the action ante in "John Wick" as he pulls off the latest grueling and highly complex action scenes.

              In recent interviews, Reeves enthused on reuniting with Chad and David,  "Working with Chad and Dave, there was an ambition to do something at a high level. They've wanted to direct a film for a long time, and they wanted to raise the bar, have a style, have a vision."

               Retracing their passion for martial arts where Chad and David met while studying the moves, they soon find themselves as stuntmen for movies and has since progressed as stunt coordinators/directors.

           

     In "John Wick," they have a chance to showcase the high-concept stunt have they been working on for years which they call the "gun fu," a hybrid stunt that includes flying fists and firearms.  With Reeves, this "gun fu" mix of martial arts and guns is something they believe the actor can believably pull off.  "We've had the pleasure to work with a lot of actors, but Keanu is as hard-core as they come," Leitch said. "He's as hard-boiled as John Wick. We asked more of him than we'd ever asked of any actor, and he never let us down.

AMERICA’S BOX-OFFICE WINNER AND NUMBER 1 FILM “FURY” NOW SHOWING IN (PHILIPPINES) CINEMAS

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The World War II action drama “Fury” that recently landed number one at the North American box-office at $23.5 million debut starring Academy Award Winner Brad Pitt is now showing nationwide in the Philippines.

               “Fury” puts together a winning cast along with Pitt, a squadron of fearless soldiers in a Sherman tank called Fury – Shia LaBeouf, Michael Pena, Jason Isaacs, Jon Bernthal and Logan Lerman.  The movie brings these American soldiers to German territory during the last days and bastion of World War II.    

                Rotten Tomatoes, worldwide online reference when it comes to movies reflects an 80% score among critics with an overall consensus that the movie is a well-acted, suitably raw depiction of the horrors of war that offers visceral battle scenes. 

               The intensity of the screenplay that "Fury" director David Ayer wrote for Fury has become his hallmark, but the movie, like his screenplays for Training Day, The Fast and theFurious, and other films, also demonstrates a deep connection between the characters.  “David’s movies are visceral and real, but they’re also deeply about brotherly love and friendship in the most extreme circumstances,” says producer Bill Block.

               Details of the tankers’ memories come alive in Fury– for example, that every fifth bullet from the machine gun is a tracer; that there are so many tracers that the heat can melt the barrel; that the difference between outgoing and incoming artillery is the incoming’s telltale whistle; that the outgunned Sherman tanks could find ways to use their exceptional mobility against the Germans’ mighty Tiger tanks.  It’s these details that make the film feel true-to-life.

               “Veteran accounts are hugely important, because they bring it to life,” says David Rae, one of the military technical advisors on the film.  “They give you the actual ground truth of how a crew fought through different theaters – through Normandy, North Africa, through the low countries, and finally to Germany, that final push.  They give you interesting stories that you can grab hold of and emotionally attach yourself to.”

               There were five main tanks used for filming, all various models of the M4 Sherman tank: in the film, the tanks are nicknamed Fury, Matador, Lucy Sue, Old Phyllis, and Murder Inc. 

               To populate the tank crews, Dowdall says, “We thought that the best thing would be to use trained tank crews – not collectors, but guys who’d been to Afghanistan and other combat situations recently.  They could not only command the tanks properly, but think on their feet if something went wrong with one of these seventy-year-old vehicles.”   For the Fury herself, there were three main vehicles used by the production.  First, naturally, was a real tank, supplied by the Bovington Tank Museum, a late-war Sherman with a 76mm gun. 

               The tank – which was a rolling set that had to be dressed and maintained as a picture vehicle every day – also became a second home of sorts for the actors who portray its crew.  “When they had boot camp, they were taught to live outside;later, when Fury became available to them, we couldn’t really get them out of it,” says Tank Crew Supervisor Jim Dowdall.  “They put their own stamp on it.  They began to live and to eat inside it.  Between rehearsals, instead of getting off the tank, they just hunkered down inside and talked and lived like a tank crew would.  I think that shows in the movie – there’s a familiarity.”

               Jon Bernthal – like all of the actors – became very attached to the Fury.  “They say it ain’t the size of the dog in a fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.  She’s a badass tank,” he says, describing the tank.  “She’s not the biggest, not the strongest – you should see the Tiger! – but she’s all heart.”

               Adds Logan Lerman: “Seeing the tanks up and running, these seventy-year-old vehicles – it was a beautiful sight.” 

               Over the course of the 24 fateful hours wherein the movie takes place, the actors' training will be tested as their roles as the five men of the Fury – Wardaddy (Pitt), the commander; Boyd Swan (LaBeouf), the gunner; Grady Travis (Bernthal), the loader; Trini Garcia (Pena), the driver; and Norman (Lerman), the assistant driver – take on 300 enemy German troops in a desperate battle for survival. 

               "Fury" is now showing at a theater near you!

Presscon Coverage: Beauty In A Bottle

Skylight Films and Quantum Films in collaboration with Star Cinema brings you something to tickle your funny bones with this new comedy, Beauty In A Bottle. The movie cast includes for the first time Angelica Panganiban, Assunta de Rossi  and Angeline Quinto. 

The movie consists of three separate stories of the main characters played by the ladies I mentioned earlier about their insecurities. Angelica plays a former child star struggling in her career image because of her weight problem. Assunta plays a PR manager who is threatened to be replaced by a younger executive. Angeline plays a consumer of a beauty product overcome her physical insecurities.

The cast also includes Carmi Martin, Tom Rodriguez, Ellen Adarna, Nanette Inventor, Ricci Chan, Empress as herself and more. Assunta was not the first choice for the role. Ruffa Gutierrez was offered the role but because of her ongoing reality show, she cannot commit.

What I like about the movie that it brought Nanette Inventor, Ricci Chan and Carmi Martin who are veteran comedians. Carmi Martin is famous for her gag shows. Ricci Chan is known for his brand of comedy in stage and the screen, Nanette Inventor is known for her stand up comic impersonations.

For more presscon coverage, follow this blog or L.E.N.S. blogs on Facebook. Opens October 29 in cinemas.

ZOE SALDANA IN “THE BOOK OF LIFE”

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 From visionary filmmaker Jorge Gutierrez whose unique visual style and vibrant storytelling technique, “The Book of Life” tells the story of three best friends - Manolo and his equally courageous best friend Joaquin are not your typical Prince Charmings; the object of their affections is far from being your average princess, hence “The Book of Life” is a fairy tale that doesn’t go by the book.   

Our story begins in a museum, where we meet a mysterious tour guide named Mary Beth, who is taken on the seemingly thankless task of guiding a group of rowdy kids who would rather be anywhere else, on a tour.  But Mary Beth has something special in store for them, and escorts them into a secret room, where the magic of “The Book of Life” begins to unfold.  “This particular area of the museum looks like Latin America basically exploded into it, turning it into a place filled with life and color,” says Gutierrez.

Christina Applegate voices Mary Beth and introduces us to the principal characters and their hometown of San Angel. We meet Manolo (voiced by Diego Luna), who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart.  Before choosing which path to follow, Manolo embarks upon an incredible adventure that spans three fantastical worlds, where he must face his greatest fears. The object of Manolo’s affections, Maria, voiced by Zoë Saldana, is an independent, strong-willed and fun-loving young woman who is wooed by her best friends Manolo and Joaquin (Channing Tatum), from their time as children to a reunion years later as adults. 

She’s certainly not your average “princess,” and is equal –or superior – to her suitors in any number of ways.

Maria is close to both boys, but perhaps the wistful Manolo is her true soul mate.  “Even when they were kids, Maria had a soft spot for Manolo,” says Saldana.  “She understands and feels a connection to his sensitive nature.  I guess deep down, Maria is an artist and a philosopher.”

                And, maybe, she’s a songstress, too?  At the very least, Saldana loved the idea of singing in the film, especially when she learned that Luna would be singing as Manolo. “At first, I wasn’t sure Jorge would take my request to sing very seriously.  And then, they told me, ‘Well, there’s this beautiful song, ‘No Matter Where You Are,’ and we want you to be a part of it.’  And I had a really great time with the song.”

Manolo, Maria and Joaquin – three best friends – have been close since childhood.  Their bond was interrupted when Maria, who was a bit too rebellious for her father’s taste, was sent to Europe to become a proper lady.  Joaquin joined the military academy and became a legendary bandit-fighter.  But Manolo didn’t go anywhere – he stayed in San Angel and practiced to become a bullfighter, as his father did before him, and his father before him.

“But even after this long absence, Maria discovers that Manolo and Joaquin haven’t changed a bit,” says Saldana. “They’re still fighting for Maria’s attention, but she’s her own woman, who is going to make that decision – and many others – on her own.  She doesn’t consider herself a prize that’s going to be won by one of these great guys.”

Indeed, love has to wait; first Maria must make some tough decisions, sprint into action to defend her town from marauding bandits, and tend to her four-legged best friend, Chuy, a pig gifted to her by Manolo. A loyal and protective pet, Chuy weighs in at over 300 pounds, sounds like a goat and acts like a puppy.

NINA DOBREV JOINS BUDDY COMEDY MOVIE “LET’S BE COPS”

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  Lifetime buddies Justin and Ryan are struggling to make it big in their own chosen fields – Justin (Damon Wayans, Jr.) toiling at a videogame company while Ryan (Jake Johnson) still revels in his glory days as a college quarterback as he bounces from one job to another in “Let’s Be Cops.” 

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox

                But things suddenly changed when they attended a masquerade party dressed as cops, thinking it is a costume bash – after being laughed out of the black tie party, they notice something has changed as they walk down the streets of Hollywood: women swarm them, bad guys follow their every command and bartenders give them drinks on the house, all because they are mistaken for cops. For Ryan, this is the ultimate high, though the shy Justin is less enthusiastic at the prospect of real police busting them. Soon, Ryan has purchased a police car (off eBay!), lights and a radio scanner – and the boys are rolling up to real 911 calls.

Wearing a police badge has also done wonders for Justin’s love life, as waitress Josie (Nina Dobrev) begins to warm up to him at a modest restaurant the guys frequent.  Dobrev, who recently came to fame with her role in the hit series, “The Vampire Diaries” spreads her acting chops in this latest buddy cop comedy.    

One of the movie’s key roles to cast was that of the beautiful waitress Josie, a new employee at the guys’ hangout, Georgie’s Restaurant.  “Josie dreams of being a makeup artist just like Justin dreams of being a videogame designer,” says co-writer and executive producer Nicholas Thomas. “But her history with men is not good. She calls herself a ‘douchebag magnet’ because of all the liars and cheaters who have gravitated towards her in the past. But once she sees Justin in his uniform, she thinks she has finally found her true hero.”

Nina Dobrev, who stars in the hit television series “The Vampire Diaries,” was looking to do a comedic role when she read the script for “Let’s Be Cops.”  “The coolest part about doing a comedy is that you do a take as written and then have the freedom to improvise,” says Dobrev. “Jake and Damon play off each other, and whoever is with them better be able to roll with the punches. It was so liberating to work with them.”

“Nina is a fantastic actress, but who knew she could be so goofy,” says Jake Johnson. “She would surprise us by improvising these physical bits like tripping or falling or spilling something that just totally brought a fresh and vital twist to the scene.”

“Let’s Be Cops” opens November 5 in cinemas from 20^th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros.

PSYCHIC PRANK VIDEO PROMOTES “OUIJA” MOVIE BY SCARING PATRONS

A special kind of viral marketing agency called Thinkmodo scared unsuspecting New Yorkers to run for their lives in yet another prank ad. This time by inviting customers to walk in and experience a free Ouija readings session.

During the session, the psychic would tell her customers to feel relaxed and to focus on their thoughts and just a few moments later, she pops her eyes out and scares them roughly, telling them to RUN!

If the unusual psychic’s eye-popping wasn’t enough, the next thing that happens is that a dead person comes out of the wooden floor and makes the clients really run for their lives.

This ad was created to promote the upcoming supernatural horror movie “Ouija” from director Stiles White.

Universal Pictures presents the horror thriller “Ouija” just in time for the upcoming Halloween season.

In the film, a group of friends must confront their most terrifying fears when they awaken the dark powers of an ancient spirit board. “Ouija” stars Olivia Cooke (“Bates Motel,” “The Quiet Ones”), Douglas Smith and Bianca Santos.

Stiles White (“The Knowing”) directs the supernatural thriller that is produced by Platinum Dunes partners Michael Bay, Andrew Form and Brad Fuller (“The Purge,” “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “Friday the 13th”) alongside Blumhouse Productions' Jason Blum (“Paranormal Activity” and “Insidious” series), Bennett Schneir (“Battleship”) and Hasbro. Juliet Snowden and Stiles White wrote the script.

Opening across the Philippines on October 29, “Ouija is distributed by United International Pictures through Columbia Pictures.

“DEVIL’S PACT” HAUNTS SOON IN CINEMAS

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 “Devil’s Pact,” the terrifying sequel to the UK box-office smash well-executed chilling horror “The Pact” will soon haunt cinemas directed and written by Dallas Hallam and Patrick Horvath.

                In “Devil’s Pact," only a few weeks after Annie Barlow exterminated the plague from the first film that was the Judas Killer, we meet June Abbott (played by Grey Anatomy’s Camilla Luddington), a woman whose carefully constructed life in Los Angeles is beginning to unravel due to lucid nightmares so awful they disturb her waking life.

When Special Agent Terrence Ballard, the FBI agent assigned to wrap up the case of the newly deceased Judas Killer, shows up at June’s door, he brings with him some terrifying news – there is a Judas copycat killer on the loose in her neighborhood! In the course of his investigation, Ballard shows June a picture of the copycat killer’s victim, and she is stunned to see that it’s the same woman she saw brutally murdered in her nightmares.

A series of hauntings begin to torment June, growing in frequency and ferocity over time. Now, not only does she see murder victims, but her dreams put herself in the role of the murderer. June fears that the spirit of the Judas Killer is the architect of some greater plan in which she must now play a part. June struggles to maintain her grip on sanity as she plunges into her own investigation of these events. No matter the result, the truth will be horrifying; either there is true evil inside of her, or someone, or something, is determined to destroy her…

        

        “Devil’s Pact” will open November 5 in theatres nationwide from Axinite Digicinema.

ROSAMUND PIKE: FULLY TITULAR IN “GONE GIRL”

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  Regarded as a contemporary and multifaceted actress, Rosamund Pike, who has has earned international acclaim for both her stage and film roles goes fully titular in the movie adaptation of the bestselling novel by Gillian Flynn of the same title in “Gone Girl.”

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox

                Under the direction of acclaimed filmmaker David Fincher, known for his thrilling works in “Fight Club,” “Sev7n,” “The Social Network,” “Zodiac” and “Panic Room,” Pike gives the audience an unforgettable portrayal of Amy Dunne, a woman gone missing on the morning of their fifth year wedding anniversary.  Playing opposite Ben Affleck as Nick Dunne, the better half and the prime suspect of Amy’s disappearance – “Gone Girl” opens up a vault of ugly truths on a marriage gone really bad. 

In “Gone Girl,” Amy Dunne is gone.  But at the same time that she disappears into thin air, she becomes an omnipresent media sensation, the paragon of all the beautiful, fragile things that are too easily lost in the world.   That is how she is now known throughout America.  Yet that is not her only identity.

Indeed, Amy never developed a single persona.  She grew up in the long shadow of her psychologist parents’ popular children’s books about her alter-ego:  the impossibly perfect “Amazing Amy.”  Later, she morphed into the woman she believed her Nick most desired: the perfect “cool girl,” as sexed-up and playfully easy-going as she is on top of things.  Then, after moving to Nick’s recession-ravaged hometown in Missouri, leveraging her trust fund in the process, Amy took on new facets. 

So just who is Amy Dunne?  That is the bottomless abyss into which actress Rosamund Pike descended.  A London native, Pike came to the fore as a Bond Girl in “Die Another Day,” and went on to roles in “Pride and Prejudice,” “An Education,” “Jack Reacher” and “World’s End.”  But Amy would take Pike into fresh challenges as a character with unending layers that peel away to leave no solid center. 

Pike recalls being drawn instantly towards the book’s inky, x-ray view of the underside of marital bliss.  “I was quite intrigued by this idea of marriage as con game – the idea that we’re all selling a version of ourselves,” she muses.  “And Amy is such a remarkable creation.  It fascinated me that she is always performing, perhaps in part because it points back to the life of an actor.  The challenge of being Amy is that nothing that happens with her is quite what it seems on the surface.”

That was both the challenge and the allure.  She continues:  “In playing Amy, I get to explore so many different aspects of the feminine brain.  There are scenes where Amy is playing two different things to two different people in the same room – and the audience has to see both.” 

In the beginning, Pike believes Amy hoped to construct the perfect relationship.  “Those early glory days were really fun for her,” says the actress, “but they weren’t sustainable.  “When things started to go wrong – when Nick’s mother got cancer, when Amy’s parents started having financial troubles – the marriage changed.  I think Amy felt she showed her real self and Nick didn’t like it.” 

Playing Amy took Pike through physical and emotional extremes.  “The challenge was peeling back one layer after another of the onion that is this marriage,” she comments.  But she says along with the challenges came rich rewards, especially working with Fincher. “David is so detailed in the most psychologically observant ways . . . and because he wants to explore everything, he leaves you feeling that no stone was left unturned,” she says. 

Fincher has reciprocal respect for Pike.  “Amy is a very, very tricky part,” he says.  “The audience should have no idea what she’s going to do next. I’d seen Rosamund’s work and I was struck by the fact that I couldn’t get a read on her. There was something about the way she catches the light in a different way… you don’t really have a grasp of who she is. The most important aspect of Amy for me was that I needed the feeling of an only child.  I needed an orchid.  I needed a hothouse flower.  Rosamund had that thing and she’s also impeccably craft oriented, luminously beautiful and incredibly watchable.  I know there were people saying, this is a risk.  But when I sat with her I saw that this was somebody who was going to give you everything.” 

JENNIFER GARNER DISPLAYS DELIGHTFUL MATERNAL SIDE IN “ALEXANDER”

Movie release material

Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning actress Jennifer Garner portrays super mom Kelly Cooper—a force of nature, in Walt Disney Pictures' hilarious family comedy “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.”

Photo courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures

Based on the 32-page children's classic book by Judith Viorst, “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” follows the exploits of 11-year-old Alexander (Ed Oxenbould) as he experiences the most terrible and horrible day of his young life—a day that begins with gum stuck in his hair, followed by one calamity after another. But when Alexander tells his upbeat family about the misadventures of his disastrous day, he finds little sympathy and begins to wonder if bad things only happen to him. He soon learns that he’s not alone when his mom (Garner), dad (Steve Carell), brother (Dylan Minnette) and sister (Kerris Dorsey) all find themselves living through their own terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Anyone who says there is no such thing as a bad day just hasn't had one.

Shouldering the family’s breadwinning duties, Kelly secretly craves more time with her family. She starts her terrible day behind schedule and finds herself battling a potentially career-ending publishing blunder. “It’s a big moment in her career,” says screenwriter Rob Lieber. “There’s a celebrity reading that day, and a rather unfortunate misprint is discovered at the last minute. Everything goes wrong.”

Says Garner, “I don’t think I’ve ever played anything closer to my real life. Not that I have days as bad as this, but just days with the chaos of having a bunch of kids in the house—when there’s a kid peeing on the floor, and the dog is throwing up and somebody’s about to step in it, and you’re trying to get dinner on the table. I can definitely relate to the idea of trying to do too much in a day.

“Steve and I definitely drew from our own lives as parents,” continues Garner. “We understand having a baby who won’t stop crying, passing the child off so you can deal with something else, and taking it back because it won’t stop crying. All of that happened very naturally for us on set.”

The actress talks further about “Alexander” in the following interview:

Question: How do you describe the movie to people who aren’t familiar with the book?

Jennifer Garner: The book is just seen from the eyes of a kid who finds that everything possible goes wrong in his day from the minute he wakes up till the end of the day. It’s been rotten, but tomorrow is another day. I love reading this book to my kids, because it teaches you that it’s OK to have a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day.

Q: How does the film expand on the book?

Garner: Our movie is inspired by the book; it follows Alexander having a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day—everything goes wrong for him. When his family is blasé about how bad his day has been, he wishes that his family would just understand what it’s like to have a bad day. And the next day, his mom, dad, brothers and sister all have their own bad days. Alexander has a great day, but is watching the world fall apart for his family, which is where it’s really different from the book.

When I heard that they were making this movie and Steve Carell was in it, I said, “I’m in, I’m in.” And when I read the script and saw how smart the adaptation was, I was even more excited. It’s such a funny movie. There’s so much physical comedy for kids, but at the same time there’s so much that parents will relate to. It’s a true family movie.

Q: Who plays Alexander?

Garner: Ed Oxenbould is a revelation as Alexander in this movie. He really is. He is such a special kid. He is joyful. He came to work ready to play. And he really plays. He played all day. He played with the older kids. He played with the babies. He played with us. He played with the crew. He’s just up for a good time. One of the camera guys, with whom I have worked on a bunch of different movies, leaned down to me on one of the first days of production and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone more real in front of the camera than this kid. He can’t play a false note.” Ed is pretty great. He’s pretty impressive.

Q: How did the cast get along?

Garner: We lucked out with the kids. They’re such good, smart, sweet kids who all have their heads on straight and have been parented really well. And they all came wanting to be part of a group. Steve and I are both parents, which had a lot to do with the way that we played our roles.

Q: What are your thoughts on director Miguel Arteta?

Garner: I would do anything with [director] Miguel [Arteta]. He is kind and thoughtful and purposeful and intentional. He’s such a great guy to be around. At the same time, he’s totally clear about what he wants and how to get there. He’s not cookie-cutter at all. He has a real sensibility about him. And to take the slight bit of unexpected that you might find in his films “Cedar Rapids” or “Chuck and Buck,” and add that to a pretty straightforward family movie—it’s a great fit.

Q: Who should see this movie?

Garner: This is a movie that families should see together. You can take your little kids. You can take your big kids. But the parents will have a good time, too. There is something for everyone. It’s that kind of movie.

The Judge movie review

Coincidentally, there is a local movie that also shows drama in the courtroom. There was a time that courtroom drama was a trending genre in American movies especially when it is adapted from a known author who specializes in this particular theme.

 

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

What I like about the story is not that it shows drama in the court of law also in family. The character of Robert Downey, Jr. has issues with his immediate family specifically with his father, a local judge in his hometown. When his mother died, Downey’s character traveled home to pay his respects to his mother.

But the tension between him and the father were put to test when the judge was charged of homicide. The son who is a practicing lawyer known for winning cases of accused clients ends up being the lawyer of his dad.

There are character developments that can entertain as well as touch your heart. You may still see Tony Stark in the cocky defense attorney in Downey’s character but that is his trademark and it is relevant to the story. But it is good that he is doing other roles besides Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes.

There are also some comical moments despite the seriousness in the story. But it is also heartwarming and the how the movie ended was just right for me. The Judge also stars Robert Duvall and Billy Bob Thorton. The Judge is released and distributed by Warner Bros.