“Emma Watson to star in 'Marilyn' movie? - New Kerala” plus 2 more

Emma Watson to star in 'Marilyn' movie? - New Kerala
Movie review: 'Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole' - Los Angeles Times
Carey Mulligan on Her New Movie ‘Never Let Me Go’ - Wall Street Journal

Emma Watson to star in 'Marilyn' movie? - New Kerala

Posted: 26 Sep 2010 06:01 AM PDT

London, Sep 24 : Hollywood actress Emma Watson is in negotiations to play a role in "My Week With Marilyn" opposite Kenneth Branagh and Michelle Williams.

The 20-year-old actress, who played Hermione Granger in all eight Harry POtter movies based on J.K. Rowling's bestselling books has landed a part in "My Week With Marilyn", reports femalefirst.co.uk.

Emma will reportedly play a wardrobe assistant named Lucy in the movie based on the memoirs of Colin Clark (to be played by Eddie Redmayne), who worked as Laurence Olivier's assistant in the film "The Prince And The Showgirl" in 1956. The movie also starred Marilyn Monroe with whom Colin became obsessed.

The film, directed by Simon Curtis, features Michelle Williams - who will play Marilyn Monroe, Kenneth Branagh, Dominic Cooper and Dame Judi Dench.

The film produced by David Parfitt and the Weinstein Company will begin shooting Oct 4 at Pinewood Studios, Britain.

--IANS

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Movie review: 'Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole' - Los Angeles Times

Posted: 23 Sep 2010 07:41 PM PDT

"Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole" is essentially the kids' version of "Braveheart" with owls — a dark and dense tale filled with noble warriors, mighty clashes and feathers flying (rather than kilts, whew, a relief). Though there is less blood in Ga'Hoole and nothing disemboweled, there are many raging battles, and when the fighting fowls strap on those metal talons … let's just say it's strong stuff for the young set this 3-D animated film has in its sights.

On paper it would seem the perfect match of story and storyteller, with director Zack Snyder pouring all that he's learned about ancient legends and fantasy worlds from his action and ab-packed "300" into this sometimes soaring drama. The magnificent arcing swoops and spins of the owls achieved by the animation team (the folks behind "Happy Feet," as the ads trumpet loudly) make such good use of the 3-D technology you can almost feel the pure freedom and joy of flight.

But there's a confusion that you can sense as well, with the film pulled between its light and dark sides just as the owls struggle with forces of good and evil. That hesitation keeps "Guardians" from reaching the deep, emotionally rich center that confers greatness in the animation world. (You can't help but hope Pixar doesn't hold the patent on heartfelt high notes, though at times it seems the case.)

Adapted by John Orloff and Emil Stern from the first three in the children's 15-book series "Guardians of Ga'Hoole" by Kathryn Lasky, our central characters are Soren ( Jim Sturgess) and Kludd ( Ryan Kwanten), brothers at increasingly lethal Cain and Abel odds, though you have to wonder if the names their parents gave them sealed that destiny. They are barn owls, commoners within the owl community, with their heart-shaped faces — a mask of white feathers tipped by dark brown — so beautiful it's hard to believe that evil could be lurking, though of course it is.

The central tension of the film is set up when Soren and Kludd are kidnapped after falling from the nest when they attempt to fly while the parents are out picking up some mice for dinner. A morality tale through and through, this particular fall from grace is only the first in a series, with real consequences meted out in ways that may frighten little ones.

It turns out that young owl abductions are on the rise, with evil marauders called the Pure Ones trying to build a slave army of moon-blinked owl chicks (apparently a hazard of the species — look at the light too long and risk a white-eyed zombie-like future.) The Pure Ones have world domination in mind, with a scarred and bitter general, a sooty owl named Metal Beak ( Joel Edgerton) and a snow white sorceress named Nyra ( Helen Mirren) stirring up a bad brew. (The list of characters is long, topped by Geoffrey Rush's Ezylryb, with the comic relief pair of Digger [ David Wenham] and Twilight [ Anthony LaPaglia] the best of the bunch.)

With the stage set, young Soren begins that important quest to find the mythic protectors of all things good, the Guardians, the warrior owls of Ga'Hoole he learned about at his father's knee. And there is his even tougher journey from innocent owlet into an adult who trusts his gizzard, which we learn is how one takes the measure of an owl.

The animation itself is startlingly beautiful, as is the ancient owl world it imagines. The battles are complex and, in true Snyder tradition, heavy on the action. The flying sequences are breathtaking, though like plane trips they go on too long. There is some strange laser action caused by piling up "flecks" (or some such thing), which are shiny bits plucked out of the nasty pellets of innards owls routinely cough up. The look is cool — like highly concentrated blue lightning strikes — but out of place in this otherwise low-tech world.

betsy.sharkey@latimes.com

Carey Mulligan on Her New Movie ‘Never Let Me Go’ - Wall Street Journal

Posted: 15 Sep 2010 08:59 AM PDT

By Lorraine Cwelich

Carey Mulligan stars in director Mark Romanek's film adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's acclaimed novel, "Never Let Me Go," which opens today.

The British actress was nominated earlier this year for a best actress Oscar for her depiction of innocence shattered in "An Education." Mulligan made her film debut in "Pride and Prejudice," which co-starred Keira Knightley. Mulligan and Knightley co-star again in "Never Let Me Go," but instead of playing sisters, they portray rivals in a haunting love triangle.

Without giving too much of the sci-fi plot twist away, the women ultimately learn that although they are less than fully human — and medically destined for an early demise — their souls are real. Speakeasy spoke with Mulligan and Romanek in New York last night, as they prepared for the film's premiere.

We asked Mulligan how she accessed the very deep emotions called for in this role. "I really took my cue from the book," she said, noting that her character "doesn't have much to say and she's an observer for much of the film. Every time I was in a scene where I wasn't quite sure where I was going with it, I would go to the book and read through the lines because she's unreliable, in that much of the time she's not being truly honest with herself or the audience."

Romanek said that Mulligan's acting "has a style that is very unique, at least in this film. She's sort of a minimalist and yet it resonates with a lot of emotion. It's almost a mystical thing that she does. It actually affected the way I shot the film and inspired me to create a context for this unusual style of acting, a visual grammar for Kazuo's style of writing, which is deceptively simple. It's an interesting hybrid between a Japanese and British sensibility, so it has a reserve and an understatement to it."

Because Mulligan is friends with Knightley, we asked her if it was difficult to play rivals when you're really friends with someone. "No, it was fun!" Mulligan replied. "When you know somebody, it's actually easier, especially since Keira and I are great friends. We can be really blunt and honest with each other, without feeling insulted or hurt."

For more on "Never Let me Go" go to: 'Never Let Me Go' Review Revue

Movie Film New Release

Monday, September 27, 2010