“Movie "Kill Octopus Paul" takes look at soccer betting - Reuters India” plus 2 more |
- Movie "Kill Octopus Paul" takes look at soccer betting - Reuters India
- Russian Arctic drama wins best movie title - Asian Age
- MOVIE REVIEW: ‘Conviction’ one guilty pleasure of a movie (video) - New Haven Register
| Movie "Kill Octopus Paul" takes look at soccer betting - Reuters India Posted: 29 Oct 2010 02:09 AM PDT
Ten most corrupt countries in the world. Slideshow Paul the octopus is seen before entering the 'England 2018 World Cup bid box' in the Sea Life Centre in Oberhausen, Germany, in this undated handout photograph received in London on August 20, 2010. Credit: Reuters/Sea Life Centre/Pitch/Handout BEIJING | BEIJING (Reuters Life!) - Shortly after the passing of the world's beloved eight-legged soccer soothsayer, a Chinese film called "Kill Octopus Paul" is challenging the truth behind the oracle octopus who correctly predicted World Cup results. Director Xiao Jiang's fictional thriller follows a group of Chinese soccer enthusiasts who travel to South Africa to uncover an international betting cartel conspiracy. The plot twists and turns as viewers find out that the legend of Paul, the visionary mollusk, was fabricated and manipulated to aid a match-fixing scheme and international betting ring. "I really like soccer and I love the World Cup. But I know the World Cup had a lot of people betting on it," said Xiao, after a media preview in Beijing on Thursday. "So when I started to think about making this movie, I wanted to film about people who because of betting encountered some sticky situations." English-born Paul made headlines across the globe after he correctly forecast how Germany would fare in seven matches, before his oracular abilities were challenged ahead of the final between Spain and the Netherlands. He picked Spain, the winner. Before each game, two containers of food were placed in Paul's tank, each one adorned with the flag of the teams that were about to compete. The container Paul chose first was seen as his pick. While Xiao said she did not believe in Paul's soothsaying abilities herself, his fame was key in gaining greater global interest for the World Cup. "As far as I know, a record of Paul choosing 8 for 8 correctly does not exist. And an octopus cannot be as intelligent as a human being," she added. "So this is a perfect plan, and this plan has fooled people all over the world. This is because people all over the world really like Paul because Paul is very cute." Paul died of natural causes this week at the Oberhausen Aquarium. The movie will be released on November 30. (Writing by Phyllis Xu and Elaine Lies; editing by Paul Casciato) *We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language or appear to be spam and review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters.
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| Russian Arctic drama wins best movie title - Asian Age Posted: 28 Oct 2010 09:23 PM PDT Russian psychological drama set in a meteorological station in the Arctic Circle, How I Ended This Summer, has been awarded the best film award at the London Film Festival. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now | |
| MOVIE REVIEW: ‘Conviction’ one guilty pleasure of a movie (video) - New Haven Register Posted: 28 Oct 2010 11:39 PM PDT
Ron Batzdorff/Fox Searchlight, Hilary Swank and Sam Rockwell in "Conviction." The great ones get you, tell you their story, with just a look. The opening shot of "Conviction" has Oscar winner Hilary Swank lock eyes with the splendid Sam Rockwell. Just a couple of seconds of emotional screen foreshadowing and we know their story and can even guess their history. He's in the joint. She's trying to get him out. They're siblings. This "based on a true story" tale is about a short-tempered rural Massachusetts punk and his adoring sister, the sister he protected when they were kids, the sister who bails him out after each of his many scrapes with the law. But not this time. Kenny (Rockwell) has been convicted of murder. Betty Anne tries everything she can think of to get him out. And when she runs out of ideas, she goes to law school to learn a few more. Continued... Swank was born to play underdogs — coarse, rough-hewn working-class women who look at home behind a bar. That's where Abra (Minnie Driver) spies Betty Anne. "We're gonna be friends," her law school classmate announces, "because we're the only ones in class to go through puberty." Through Kenny's years in jail and Betty Anne's ongoing struggle with life, family and law school, "Conviction" takes us on an emotional roller coaster that flies in the face of what we know about Hollywood "get my brother out of jail" stories. This one has genuine edge-of-your-seat appeal. Will witnesses recant? Will DNA testing clear him? Does Kenny, whose temper doesn't cool much over the years, even deserve to get out? Actor-turned-director Tony Goldwyn proclaims himself an "actor's director" with this film, giving his stellar cast and even the bit players close-ups that let them register emotion, confusion, anger and pain. Melissa Leo is the cop who caught Kenny, Peter Gallagher is the famous Innocence Project lawyer Barry Schenk, Clea DuVall and Juliette Lewis are Kenny's trashy ex-girlfriends, and to a one — they dazzle. Young Ari Graynor stands out as the daughter who has grown up knowing her father's in prison for murder. Goldwyn, working from a Pamela Gray's heart-and-humor-filled script, fills in the details of the crime, the trial and ensuing years in snatches — flashbacks — giving away the tale's secrets with care. The focus here is on what Betty Anne rolls up her working class sleeves and resolves to do — get a law degree, take over her brother's case. You'd have to have a stone heart not to be moved by her accent-perfect "It's going to take a long time, Kenny. A really long time." The magic to the story is the way he gives her limited life purpose — a driving obsession — and the way she gives him hope, hope that frequently is dashed as the bureaucracy of a system that never likes to admit mistakes (if indeed it made one) stops Betty Anne in her tracks. Continued...
Ron Batzdorff/Fox Searchlight, Hilary Swank and Sam Rockwell in "Conviction." The great ones get you, tell you their story, with just a look. The opening shot of "Conviction" has Oscar winner Hilary Swank lock eyes with the splendid Sam Rockwell. Just a couple of seconds of emotional screen foreshadowing and we know their story and can even guess their history. He's in the joint. She's trying to get him out. They're siblings. This "based on a true story" tale is about a short-tempered rural Massachusetts punk and his adoring sister, the sister he protected when they were kids, the sister who bails him out after each of his many scrapes with the law. But not this time. Kenny (Rockwell) has been convicted of murder. Betty Anne tries everything she can think of to get him out. And when she runs out of ideas, she goes to law school to learn a few more. Swank was born to play underdogs — coarse, rough-hewn working-class women who look at home behind a bar. That's where Abra (Minnie Driver) spies Betty Anne. "We're gonna be friends," her law school classmate announces, "because we're the only ones in class to go through puberty." Through Kenny's years in jail and Betty Anne's ongoing struggle with life, family and law school, "Conviction" takes us on an emotional roller coaster that flies in the face of what we know about Hollywood "get my brother out of jail" stories. This one has genuine edge-of-your-seat appeal. Will witnesses recant? Will DNA testing clear him? Does Kenny, whose temper doesn't cool much over the years, even deserve to get out? Actor-turned-director Tony Goldwyn proclaims himself an "actor's director" with this film, giving his stellar cast and even the bit players close-ups that let them register emotion, confusion, anger and pain. Melissa Leo is the cop who caught Kenny, Peter Gallagher is the famous Innocence Project lawyer Barry Schenk, Clea DuVall and Juliette Lewis are Kenny's trashy ex-girlfriends, and to a one — they dazzle. Young Ari Graynor stands out as the daughter who has grown up knowing her father's in prison for murder. Goldwyn, working from a Pamela Gray's heart-and-humor-filled script, fills in the details of the crime, the trial and ensuing years in snatches — flashbacks — giving away the tale's secrets with care. The focus here is on what Betty Anne rolls up her working class sleeves and resolves to do — get a law degree, take over her brother's case. You'd have to have a stone heart not to be moved by her accent-perfect "It's going to take a long time, Kenny. A really long time." The magic to the story is the way he gives her limited life purpose — a driving obsession — and the way she gives him hope, hope that frequently is dashed as the bureaucracy of a system that never likes to admit mistakes (if indeed it made one) stops Betty Anne in her tracks. But the magic in the film is in the actors. Only somebody who has stripped himself emotionally bare for the camera could achieve the level of performance that Goldwyn gets from every single SAG member on this set. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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