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Tag: John Turturro

‘Pinocchio’ Trailer for Guillermo del Toro’s Animated Adventure

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Adapting classic tale ‘Pinocchio’ has been something of a labor of love for Guillermo del Toro, the director behind such memorable fantasies as ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ and ‘The Shape of Water’.

It has also been an effort fraught with changes and false starts, but he’s finally going to deliver in December via Netflix, which has put out a new trailer for the movie.

Collodi’s tale was originally published in serial form as ‘The Story of a Puppet’ way back in July 1881. The publication stopped at Chapter 15, but popular demand meant it resumed in February 1882. Re-released in single book form in 1883, it has been hailed as one of the greatest works of Italian literature.

It has been adapted many times for the screen – probably most famously in Disney’s 1940 animated version, which took home Oscars for original song and score.

The studio has now turned it (alongside so many of its previously animated stories) into a live action/CG hybrid movie under the direction of Robert Zemeckis. That version, which boasts Tom Hanks, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Luke Evans among its cast, will be on Disney+ this coming September 8th as part of 2022’s Disney+ Day.

‘Pinocchio’ is releasing in theaters in November before launching on Netflix in December.

As for del Toro, he’s been aiming to get his ‘Pinocchio’ made since at least 2008 and the movie has grappled through different combinations of filmmakers on its journey to the screen, struggling to find studio support for the ambitious, darkly hewed story. For this version, del Toro co-directs with Claymation veteran Mark Gustafson (who was director of animation on Wes Anderson’s ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ in 2009) and the script is from del Toro, Patrick McHale, Gus Grimly and Matthew Robbins.

This new trailer is narrated by Sebastian J. Cricket (voiced by Ewan McGregor), the latest incarnation of the character who usually serves as an advisor to the central character, a puppet who longs to become a real boy. In true del Toro style, here he’s not simply a funny character along for the ride – he lives in Pinocchio’s heart.

Along with his quest to become truly real, Pinocchio has another mission – he’ll mend the heart of his creator/father figure, the woodcarver Geppetto, who is mourning the loss of his son. But it won’t be an easy task, and Pinocchio’s journey is fraught with danger. He’ll have to learn that disobedience can be as crucial to growing up and becoming who you’re meant to be as blind loyalty.

Alongside McGregor, Gregory Mann is voicing Pinocchio, while ‘Harry Potter’ alumnus David Bradley is Geppetto. Finn Wolfhard plays Candlewick, Cate Blanchett is Sprezzatura, Christoph Waltz is the cunning Count Volpe, while John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, Tilda Swinton and Ron Perlman make up the rest of the main cast.

Thankfully, for those who want to experience del Toro and his team’s work on the big screen, Netflix is releasing this one in theaters in November ahead of a December launch on the streaming service.

‘Pinocchio’ is releasing in theaters in November before launching on Netflix in December.
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July 27, 2022
‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ TV Adaptation Adds Paul Dano, John Turturro and Michaela Coel

Paul Dano at London Special Screening of ‘The Batman.’

There is new intelligence to be found about ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’, the TV adaptation of Doug Liman’s spy caper thriller that has Donald Glover co-starring and co-creating.

The cast is growing by three as Paul Dano, John Turturro and Michaela Coel are all joining as guest stars, according to Variety.

Originally released in 2005 and written by Simon Kinberg, the movie of ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ starred Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as John and Jane Smith, a married couple whose relationship has succumbed to ennui. They’re a little surprised, then, to learn that they’re both assassins and that they’ve just been hired by competing agencies to take each other out – and not in a date night sense of the word.

Exact story details of the TV version – which will show up on Prime Video – are still being kept largely confidential, though it sounds like the series will follow the characters from a younger age to their movie counterparts, tracking as they’re hired by a spy agency and figuring out both married life and espionage.

Maya Erskine, one of the creators and stars of Hulu’s ‘Pen15’ is co-starring as Jane Smith, but the character assignments for the new recruits have yet to be revealed.

John Turturro at New York premiere of ‘The Batman.’ Photo Credit: Dave Allocca/Starpix.

Turturro needs little introduction, having carved a successful career as a character for years, appearing in a wide swathe of movies and directing some. Though he’s primarily been known for his big screen work, he’s recently been receiving praise for his performance on the Apple TV+ series ‘Severance’.

Dano, meanwhile, was most recently seen playing the Riddler in ‘The Batman’, facing off against Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader (the film also featured Turturro, though they didn’t share a scene). He’ll next show up in Steven Spielberg’s much-anticipated, semi-autobiographical drama ‘The Fabelmans’, playing a character loosely based on the director’s father.

He’s also appeared in movies including ‘There Will be Blood’, ‘Swiss Army Man’, ’12 Years a Slave’, ‘Ruby Sparks’ and ‘Looper’

Coel, who is a rising star, might be best known for creating and starring in the limited series ‘I May Destroy You’. She pulled double duty on TV series ‘Chewing Gum’. Movie-wise, she has a role in Marvel’s upcoming ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’, in theaters on November 11th.

Though it originally intended to reunite Glover with his ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and she jumped aboard to co-write with him, creative differences led to an amicable split and Waller-Bridge departing the series.

Francesca Sloane is aboard to run the show, having worked on the scripts with Glover, but there’s no word on who might be directing it just yet. And given that ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ is still in pre-production, Amazon is yet to assign it a premiere date.

(L to R) Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in 2005’s ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith.’
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July 1, 2022
Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinocchio’ Releases First Teaser

Photo of Guillermo del Toro courtesy of mandraketheblack.de and Netflix

Guillermo del Toro is the sort of director/producer/writer who always has plenty of potential movies and TV shows bubbling away either in his head or set up at various studios. An animated adaptation of Carlo Collodi’s classic tale ‘Pinocchio’ has long been a passion project for the ‘Nightmare Alley’ filmmaker, and it is finally headed to our screens this December via Netflix, as a new teaser announces.

The brief look at the stop-motion style of animation focuses on Sebastian J. Cricket (voiced by Ewan McGregor), the latest incarnation of the character who usually serves as an advisor to the central character, a puppet who longs to become a real boy. In true del Toro style, here he’s not simply a funny character along for the ride – he lives in Pinocchio’s heart.

Quite what else del Toro is planning for the story remains to be seen, but Netflix’s plot synopsis is roughly in keeping with the original: “a wooden marionette is magically brought to life in order to mend the heart of a grieving woodcarver named Geppetto.”

Alongside McGregor, Gregory Mann (who had a small role in 2018’s British movie ‘The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society’) is Pinocchio, with ‘Harry Potter’ alumnus David Bradley voicing Geppetto. Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, Christoph Waltz, Tilda Swinton, and Ron Perlman – the latter of whom has appeared in almost everything del Toro has ever made – are all playing various characters.
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Most of their roles are unknown right now, though the cast list mentions Waltz playing the scheming Fox and Perlman taking on the part of Mangiafuoco, the owner of a marionette theatre who proves to be a real threat in Pinocchio’s life.

Collodi’s story, ‘The Adventures Of Pinocchio’ was originally published in serial form in an 1880s Children’s magazine before being collected as a book in 1883. It has been adapted many times for both movies and TV, though possibly the most famous version remains Disney’s 1940 ‘Pinocchio.’ The studio is making its own new adaptation, a live-action ‘Pinocchio‘ starring Tom Hanks, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Luke Evans, and Cynthia Erivo, which is directed by Robert Zemeckis. It’s also due this year, and headed to Disney+. Looks like we have ourselves a puppet-off. Or a Pinocchio-off?

Del Toro originally announced his stop-motion movie back in 2008 and has been through different combinations of filmmakers on its journey to the screen, struggling to find studio support for the ambitious, darkly hewed story. Currently, del Toro and Claymation veteran Mark Gustafson (who was director of animation on Wes Anderson’s ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ in 2009) are listed as co-directors, and the script is credited to del Toro and Patrick McHale, though Gus Grimly and Matthew Robbins have both contributed through the years.

The teaser simply lists the film as coming in December of this year – with luck, Netflix will give it a theatrical release ahead of its appearance on the streaming service. After all, don’t we want to see a fantasy film from Guillermo del Toro on a big movie screen?
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January 24, 2022
New ‘The Batman’ Posters

(L to R) Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz in ‘The Batman’

Director Matt Reeves and the team from ‘The Batman’ certainly seem to be tapping into what we all want from the movie, which is moody, stylish shots of stars such as Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz. Hence the new posters for the upcoming superhero movie.

The first image is of Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne/Batman and Kravitz’ Selina Kyle/Catwoman standing on a Gotham City rooftop staring out towards a sunset. It’s classic Batman stuff – he spends so much time posing on rooftops that you sometimes wonder how he gets any crimefighting done.

(L to R) Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz in ‘The Batman’

We already know from ‘The Batman’s various teasers and trailers that Pattinson’s Wayne and Kravitz’ Kyle will have a connection that is by turns flirty and confrontational. Bruce is a guarded loner wrestling with a complicated Wayne family legacy, while Kyle is eager to kick some butt. Can they work together? The history of Batman and Catwoman team-ups suggest it’s risky at best.

Following that image, we have a close-up of Batman’s cowl, his eye peering from beneath. The slightly battered look of the cowl suggests he’s seen some serious clashes, while the tagline “Unmask the truth” points to Bruce’s journey as well as that of Edward Nashton, AKA The Riddler (Paul Dano). The cryptic villain’s aim – at least according to him – is cleaning up the “cesspool” that is Gotham. And he’s even got his eye on Bruce Wayne.

Robert Pattinson in ‘The Batman’

Also in the cast are Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin, a crime lord looking to secure his grip on power. This is a very different look for Farrell, here buried under prosthetics to bring his character to life. The Penguin’s story will continue to be told outside of cinema screens, as HBO Max is developing a TV series to follow the character in what has been described as a ‘Scarface’-style narrative. Reeves is an executive producer on the show, with Lauren LeFranc writing the initial script.

Jeffrey Wright is this movie’s Commissioner Jim Gordon, trying to combat the rising tide of crime and wondering whether he can trust the masked vigilantes. Andy Serkis, a veteran of working with director Reeves on the last couple of Planet Of The Apes movies is Alfred, the loyal Wayne family butler who here is not on the best of terms with his headstrong young charge.

Other characters here include an ambitious District Attorney, played by Peter Sarsgaard (coincidentally, his wife Maggie Gyllenhaal played lawyer Rachel Dawes in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight) and John Turturro’s classic Batman mob boss Carmine Falcone.

(L to R) director Matt Reeves and actor Robert Pattinson on the set of ‘The Batman’

Reeves’ style looks to hew more closely to Nolan’s realistic Batman than the more art deco, operatic days of Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher, or even the brute force aesthetic of Zack Snyder’s time in the DC Universe. His movie won’t be an origin story for Batman but is instead set in his early days as the crime-fighting hero.

Co-written (with Peter Craig) and directed by Reeves, ‘The Batman’ also features ‘Dune’ cinematographer Greig Fraser’s visuals and ‘Star Trek’ composer Michael Giacchino (a long-time Reeves collaborator) providing the score. The movie is set for release on March 4.
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January 20, 2022