(Left) Amanda Seyfried as Nina Winchester in ‘The Housemaid’. Photo: Daniel McFadden/Lionsgate. (Center) Tramell Tillman in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+. (Right) Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird in ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.’ Photo Credit: Murray Close.
Preview:
Amanda Seyfried, Rachel Zegler and Tramell Tillman will appear in musical adaptation ‘Octet’
Lin-Manuel Miranda is directing the movie.
It follows people struggling with digital dependence.
Going full speed ahead on musical adaptation ‘Octet’, director Lin-Manuel Miranda (no stranger to stage work himself), has found the cast for the movie version.
The New York cast of stage musical ‘Octet’. Photo: Joan Marcus/WNYC Studios.
With a script and score by Dave Malloy, directed by Annie Tippe, the show follows an octet of people struggling with digital dependency, charting their compulsions using only the analog vibrancy of their own voices. With witty lyrics, shimmering harmonies and virtuosic solos, ‘Octet’ sings of connection, redemption, hope — and how we can be truly present with each other.
It opened off-Broadway on May 19, 2019, at the Signature Theatre in New York City, before ending its run on June 30. That was followed by a west coast premiere with a five-week run at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2022.
Here’s Miranda’s statement on tackling the musical for the screen:
“I haven’t stopped thinking about ‘Octet’ since I saw Annie Tippe’s premiere production in November of 2019. Dave Malloy’s score is versatile, brilliant and grows more relevant with each passing year. It won’t leave me alone so here we are.”
(L to R) Luigi (Charlie Day), Mario (Chris Pratt), Yoshi (Donald Glover) and Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) in Nintendo and Illumination’s ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic.
Video game movies have come a long way over the years!
Early adaptations like 1993’s ‘Super Mario Bros.‘ and 1994’s ‘Street Fighter‘ struggled to capture what made their source material so popular, but Hollywood has finally started to crack the code.
In honor of the new sequel’s release, Moviefone is counting down the 20 best movies adapted from video games of all time, including ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’.
Jake Gyllenhaal stars in ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’. Photo: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
A rogue prince (Jake Gyllenhaal) reluctantly joins forces with a mysterious princess (Gemma Arterton) and together, they race against dark forces to safeguard an ancient dagger capable of releasing the Sands of Time – gift from the gods that can reverse time and allow its possessor to rule the world.
Through a technology that unlocks the genetic memories of his ancestor in 15th century Spain, Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender) discovers he is a descendant of an ancient line of Assassins and amasses lethal skills to take on the oppressive Templar Order.
The film revolves around a local street-racer (Aaron Paul) who partners with a rich and arrogant business associate (Dominic Cooper), only to find himself framed by his colleague and sent to prison. After he gets out, he joins a New York-to-Los Angeles race to get revenge. But when the ex-partner learns of the scheme, he puts a massive bounty on the racer’s head, forcing him to run a cross-country gauntlet of illegal racers in all manner of supercharged vehicles.
The peaceful realm of Azeroth stands on the brink of war as its civilization faces a fearsome race of invaders: orc warriors fleeing their dying home to colonize another. As a portal opens to connect the two worlds, one army faces destruction and the other faces extinction. From opposing sides, two heroes are set on a collision course that will decide the fate of their family, their people, and their home.
One year after her sister Melanie (Maia Mitchell) mysteriously disappeared, Clover (Ella Rubin) and her friends head into the remote valley where she vanished in search of answers. Exploring an abandoned visitor center, they find themselves stalked by a masked killer and horrifically murdered one by one…only to wake up and find themselves back at the beginning of the same evening.
Dwayne Johnson in ‘Rampage’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Primatologist Davis Okoye (Dwayne Johnson) shares an unshakable bond with George, the extraordinarily intelligent, silverback gorilla who has been in his care since birth. But a rogue genetic experiment gone awry mutates this gentle ape into a raging creature of enormous size. To make matters worse, it’s soon discovered there are other similarly altered animals. As these newly created alpha predators tear across North America, destroying everything in their path, Okoye teams with a discredited genetic engineer (Naomie Harris) to secure an antidote, fighting his way through an ever-changing battlefield, not only to halt a global catastrophe but to save the fearsome creature that was once his friend.
Lara Croft (Alicia Vikander), the fiercely independent daughter of a missing adventurer (Dominic West), must push herself beyond her limits when she finds herself on the island where her father disappeared.
In a world ravaged by a virus infection, turning its victims into the Undead, Alice (Milla Jovovich) continues on her journey to find survivors and lead them to safety. Her deadly battle with the Umbrella Corporation reaches new heights, but Alice gets some unexpected help from an old friend (Ali Larter). A new lead that promises a safe haven from the Undead takes them to Los Angeles, but when they arrive the city is overrun by thousands of Undead – and Alice and her comrades are about to step into a deadly trap.
A genetically engineered assassin with deadly aim, known only as “Agent 47” (Timothy Olyphant) eliminates strategic targets for a top-secret organization. But when he’s double-crossed, the hunter becomes the prey as 47 finds himself in a life-or-death game of international intrigue.
The stars are gone. The planets have disappeared. Only individuals aboard space stations or starships were left to give the end a name — The Quiet Rapture. After decades of decay and crumbling infrastructure, the Consolidation of Iron has made a discovery on a barren moon designated AT-5. An ocean of blood. Hoping to discover desperately needed resources they immediately launch an expedition. A submarine is crafted and a convict is welded inside. Due to the pressure and depth of the ocean the forward viewport has been encased in metal. If successful, they will earn their freedom. If not, another will follow. This will be the 13th expedition.
(L to R) Yoshi (Donald Glover), Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) in Nintendo and Illumination’s ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic.
Having thwarted Bowser’s (Jack Black) previous plot to marry Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) now face a fresh threat in Bowser Jr. (Benny Safdie), who is determined to liberate his father from captivity and restore the family legacy. Alongside companions new and old, the brothers travel across the stars to stop the young heir’s crusade.
Street-smart thief Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) is recruited by seasoned treasure hunter Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) to recover a fortune lost by Ferdinand Magellan 500 years ago. What starts as a heist job for the duo becomes a globe-trotting, white-knuckle race to reach the prize before the ruthless Moncada (Antonio Banderas), who believes he and his family are the rightful heirs. If Nate and Sully can decipher the clues and solve one of the world’s oldest mysteries, they stand to find $5 billion in treasure and perhaps even Nate’s long-lost brother…but only if they can learn to work together.
In a world where people collect pocket-size monsters (Pokémon) to do battle, a boy (Justice Smith) comes across an intelligent monster (Ryan Reynolds) who seeks to be a detective.
Four misfits (Sebastian Eugene Hansen, Emma Myers, Danielle Brooks, and Jason Momoa) find themselves struggling with ordinary problems when they are suddenly pulled through a mysterious portal into the Overworld: a bizarre, cubic wonderland that thrives on imagination. To get back home, they’ll have to master this world while embarking on a magical quest with an unexpected, expert crafter, Steve (Jack Black).
Recently fired and desperate for work, a troubled young man named Mike (Josh Hutcherson) agrees to take a position as a night security guard at an abandoned theme restaurant: Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria. But he soon discovers that nothing at Freddy’s is what it seems.
Jim Carrey as Dr. Robotnik in ‘Sonic the Hedgehog.’ Photo: Paramount Pictures.
Powered with incredible speed, Sonic The Hedgehog (Ben Schwartz) embraces his new home on Earth. That is, until Sonic sparks the attention of super-uncool evil genius Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey). Now it’s super-villain vs. super-sonic in an all-out race across the globe to stop Robotnik from using Sonic’s unique power for world domination.
MMA fighter Cole Young (Lewis Tan), accustomed to taking a beating for money, is unaware of his heritage or why Outworld’s Emperor Shang Tsung (Chin Han) has sent his best warrior, Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim), an otherworldly Cryomancer, to hunt Cole down. Fearing for his family’s safety, Cole goes in search of Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee) at the direction of Jax (Mehcad Brooks), a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Soon, he finds himself at the temple of Lord Raiden (Tadanabu Asano), an Elder God and the protector of Earthrealm, who grants sanctuary to those who bear the mark. Here, Cole trains with experienced warriors Liu Kang (Ludi Lin), Kung Lao (Max Huang) and rogue mercenary Kano (Josh Lawson), as he prepares to stand with Earth’s greatest champions against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe. But will Cole be pushed hard enough to unlock his arcana, ”the immense power from within his soul”, in time to save not only his family, but to stop Outworld once and for all?
Orphaned heiress, English aristocrat and intrepid archaeologist, Lara Croft (Angelina Jolie), embarks on a dangerous quest to retrieve the two halves of an ancient artifact which controls time before it falls into the wrong hands. As an extremely rare planetary alignment is about to occur for the first time in 5,000 years, the fearless tomb raider will have to team up with rival adventurers and sworn enemies to collect the pieces, while time is running out. But, in the end, who can harness the archaic talisman’s unlimited power?
While working underground to fix a water main, Brooklyn plumbers—and brothers—Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) are transported down a mysterious pipe and wander into a magical new world. But when the brothers are separated, Mario embarks on an epic quest to find Luigi.
Milla Jovovich in ‘Resident Evil’. Photo: Screen Gems.
When a virus leaks from a top-secret facility, turning all resident researchers into ravenous zombies and their lab animals into mutated hounds from hell, the government sends in an elite military task force to contain the outbreak.
(L to R) Ice Cube and Kevin Hart in ‘Ride Along’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Preview:
A third ‘Ride Along’ movie is in development.
Ice Cube, Kevin Hart and director Will Packer may all return.
Writer Daniel Gold has come up with a new script.
It has been 10 years since ‘Ride Along 2’ hit screens, so naturally Universal has been trying to get another one into development.
Per Deadline, the studio has a new script in the works with writer Daniel Gold (‘Workin’ Moms’), and if it all lines up, the lead duo of Ice Cube and Kevin Hart are likely to return.
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In addition to the actors, director Tim Story may also come back for the putative third outing.
(L to R) Kevin Hart and Ice Cube in ‘Ride Along 2’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
In ‘Ride Along’, security guard Ben Barber (Hart) must prove himself to his girlfriend’s brother, top police officer James Payton (Cube). In doing so, Ben rides along with James on a 24-hour patrol of Atlanta.
In part two, the duo head to Miami to take down a drug dealer who is supplying drugs to Atlanta.
There are no details yet on the story for the new movie, but Gold’s concept has reportedly got the main players excited to return after years of rejected ideas.
When will ‘Ride Along 3’ be on screens?
Universal has yet to confirm the new movie is in development (it made no mention of it at the studio’s recent CinemaCon presentation), but if the script is as good as hoped, expect this one to be fast tracked.
(L to R) Ice Cube and Kevin Hart in ‘Ride Along 2’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Billy Zane in 1996’s ‘The Phantom’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
First published in newspaper comic strip form, ‘The Phantom’ follows a fictional costumed crime-fighter who operates from the fictional African country of Bangalla.
The character has been adapted for television, film and video games through the years, including a previous live-action series and the 1996 movie starring Billy Zane as the title character.
‘The Phantom’ TV series: the studio talks
Here’s King Features president C.J. Kettler on the new development:
“The development of a live-action series for the iconic comic strip ‘The Phantom’ marks a pivotal expansion to meet the current cultural zeitgeist for this brand. By partnering with award-nominated director Reginald Hudlin, who possesses a deep reverence for the comic industry and source material itself, we are confident this adaptation will meet the high expectations of both longtime and new fans globally.”
(L to R) Billy Zane and Kristy Swanson in 1996’s ‘The Phantom’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
In honor of the new film, Moviefone is counting down the top 20 Rock and Roll biopics of all time.
NOTE: Since the term “Rock and Roll” can cover several different genres of music, we are only including movies about musical artists who were known for performing popular music within the rock genre, including jazz, blues, country, rap, etc.
Bruce Springsteen (Jeremy Allen White), a young musician on the cusp of global superstardom, struggles to reconcile the pressures of success with the ghosts of his past.
(Left) Sam Riley as Ian Curtis in ‘Control’. Photo: The Weinstein Company.
The story of Joy Division’s lead singer Ian Curtis (Sam Riley), from his schoolboy days in 1973 to his suicide on the eve of the band’s first American tour in 1980.
Jaafar Jackson as Michael Jackson in ‘Michael’. Photo Credit: Glen Wilson.
Discover the story of Michael Jackson (Jaafar Jackson), one of the most influential artists the world has ever known, and his life beyond the music, tracing his journey from the discovery of his extraordinary talent as the lead of the Jackson Five, to the visionary artist whose creative ambition fueled a relentless pursuit to become the biggest entertainer in the world, highlighting both his life off-stage and some of the most iconic performances from his early solo career.
(L to R) Alia Shawkat as Robin Robins, Riley Keough as Marie Currie, Scout Taylor-Compton as Lita Ford, Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett, and Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie in ‘The Runaways’. Photo: Summit Entertainment.
Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) and Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning), two rebellious teenagers from Southern California, become the frontwomen for the Runaways — the now-legendary group that paved the way for future generations of female rockers. Under the Svengali-like influence of impresario Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), the band becomes a huge success.
Lou Diamond Phillips as Ritchie Valens in ‘La Bamba’. Photo: Columbia Pictures.
Los Angeles teenager Ritchie Valens (Lou Diamond Phillips) becomes an overnight rock ‘n’ roll success in 1958, thanks to a love ballad called “Donna” that he wrote for his girlfriend. But as his star rises, Valens has conflicts with his jealous brother, Bob (Esai Morales), and becomes haunted by a recurring nightmare of a plane crash just as he begins his first national tour alongside Buddy Holly (Marshall Crenshaw).
Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles in ‘Ray’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Born on a sharecropping plantation in Northern Florida, Ray Charles (Jamie Foxx) went blind at seven. Inspired by a fiercely independent mom who insisted he make his own way, He found his calling and his gift behind a piano keyboard. Touring across the Southern musical circuit, the soulful singer gained a reputation and then exploded with worldwide fame when he pioneered coupling gospel and country together.
(L to R) Gary Oldman as Sid Vicious and Chloe Webb as Nancy Spungen in ‘SId and Nancy’. Photo: Palace Pictures.
January 1978. After their success in England, the punk rock band Sex Pistols venture out on their tour of the southern United States. Temperamental bassist Sid Vicious (Gary Oldman) is forced by his band mates to travel without his troubled girlfriend, Nancy Spungen (Chloe Webb), who will meet him in New York. When the band breaks up and Sid begins his solo career in a hostile city, the turbulent couple definitely falls into the depths of drug addiction.
Paul Dano as Brian Wilson in ‘Love & Mercy’. Photo: Lionsgate.
In the late 1960s, the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson (Paul Dano and John Cusack) stops touring, produces “Pet Sounds” and begins to lose his grip on reality. By the 1980s, Wilson, under the sway of a controlling therapist, finds a savior in Melinda Ledbetter (Elizabeth Banks).
Taron Egerton as Elton John in ‘Rocketman’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
The story of Elton John‘s (Taron Egerton) life, from his years as a prodigy at the Royal Academy of Music through his influential and enduring musical partnership with Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell).
(L to R) Reese Witherspoon as June Carter and Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash in ‘Walk the Line’.
A chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash‘s (Joaquin Phoenix) life, from his early days on an Arkansas cotton farm to his rise to fame with Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins.
Set in the influential New York music scene of the early 60s, ‘A Complete Unknown’ follows 19-year-old Minnesota musician Bob Dylan‘s (Timothée Chalamet) meteoric rise as a folk singer to concert halls and the top of the charts – his songs and mystique becoming a worldwide sensation – culminating in his groundbreaking electric rock and roll performance at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965.
Deadline is now reporting that Dance will play Christopher Dent, the imposing (and, if lore holds, abusive) father to Harvey Dent, who will be brought to screens this time by Sebastian Stan.
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And we now also know that Scarlett Johansson, whose part until recently has been a mystery, will be Dent’s wife.
Little is known officially about what Pattinson’s Caped Crusader will tackle, but we do know that Farrell is back as Oz Cobb, the villainous gangster nicknamed “The Penguin” while Jeffrey Wright (James Gordon) is also predicted to be back.
We can probably expect to see Batman tackle another menace from his rogues’ gallery, with Barry Keoghan teased as a potential Joker at the end of the original movie, but nothing confirmed about him actually playing the role.
When will ‘The Batman: Part II’ be in theaters?
Following a variety of release date shifts as Reeves and co-writer Mattson Tomlin honed the script, the movie is currently set to land on screens on October 1, 2027.
Moviefone recently has the pleasure of speaking with Toby Jones about his work on ‘Mr. Burton’, his first reaction to the screenplay, what he learned about Burton’s early life, Richard’s friendship with mentor Phillip Burton, working with Harry Lawtey and director Marc Evans, mentors that have helped Jones along the way, and the legacy of Richard Burton.
Toby Jones as Philip Burton in ‘Mr. Burton’. Photo: Icon Film Distribution.
Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and how much did you already know about this point in Richard Burton’s life?
Toby Jones: I knew nothing about it, and so as a result, I was astonished by what I read. It felt like I was reading a 19th century novel, this idea of a man effectively adopting a son in this way, felt incredible. Then, my first meeting with Mark Evans, I was just keen to verify all of that. Not because it bothered me whether it was true or not, but I couldn’t quite believe that it was true. But it’s shocking in the film and I’m pleased at how shocking it is in the film. Because I think it’s also what makes, what could seem like a very traditional biopic, much darker, and suggests a darkness that might well have partly explained some of Burton’s more erratic behavior in his life.
MF: Through being part of this project and doing research into his life, did you learn anything that changed your perspective on Richard Burton’s life and career?
TJ: Yeah, it really did. I mean, I knew that he’d come from a working-class background. He was almost the most famous of a whole generation of British actors, including my father, which is why it’s so personal to me, who through a mixture of education, inspirational teaching and the economic climate of the time were able to escape the precariousness and the inevitability of their lives and through acting to achieve stardom. I mean, extraordinary celebrity in the case of Richard Burton. So, I found that fascinating. There’s a big debate in our country, there has been for the last 10 years that we don’t produce as many working-class actors as we used to. By working class, I mean people who aren’t able through their economic circumstances to go to drama school, which is the traditional way into the profession. Because the access points aren’t there, the scholarships aren’t there. So, this film, in a way, highlights how there used to be access in the most unlikely way and how education brings freedom.
Harry Lawtey as Richard Burton in ‘Mr. Burton’. Photo: Icon Film Distribution.
MF: How would you describe Philip and Richard’s friendship in your own words?
TJ: I think that Richard Jenkins (Burton), however wounded he was, was smart enough, and naturally clever enough, to realize that Philip was a channel in which he could realize who he was. It wasn’t an easy channel, and I think we see this in the film because there was such a strong culture of masculinity in the mining towns of those Welsh valley towns. Yet there was something about how Philip Burton was able to channel the power of literature, and the power of Shakespeare, specifically, but the power of words and education. It tells you something about Richard Jenkins’s sophistication that somehow, he was able to. Yes, Philip helped him, but I think Richard was a survivor and was able to realize that this was a way out and that he could. It was an escape route, and I think that was their relationship in that sense. It’s very moving for me. There are two different kinds of masculinity going on. But there’s at the same time, a joint love of learning that they both have, and Richard Burton had that for the rest of his life. You know, he used to carry bags of books around him, wherever he went. He was able to recite poetry off the top of his head, and all the roots of that are here. For all the famous, rambunctious alcoholic years later, he never lost that love of literature and that love of the spoken word. You see that in the interviews he did on TV, and the root of all that is here in this chemistry between the two men. For Philip, it’s a complicated situation because he’s a single man and I think he glimpses for himself a way out as well. Because after the events of this film, Philip comes out and he goes to America. He forms a drama school, lives in Florida and doesn’t have any kind of pathetic life at all. He flourishes in later years. I think Richard was the source of that strength to do that in a way.
MF: What was it like creating that relationship on screen with Harry Lawtey?
TJ: Harry comes from a generation who don’t know who Richard Burton is, which seems incredible to people like me who grew up with him being so famous. So, he totally immersed himself in it, every night after filming, he’d go back and watch another movie. He’d watched everything once already. He listened to the voice, and he had a very complicated job to do, and part of the complicated gestation of this film was trying to find an actor who was old enough to be able to play Burton in the later scenes, but could also suggest the young, naive Burton, and be able to tell the story of his evolution, the evolution of his voice as much as anything, and how the evolution of his voice almost tells the story of the character emerging. Harry’s sophistication at doing that was great. You hope that you’re going to meet collaborators like that all the time, but the dream is that you learn from younger actors, and I relearned something from Harry about that kind of immersion and it was great just working with him.
Harry Lawtey as Richard Burton in ‘Mr. Burton’. Photo: Icon Film Distribution.
MF: Have you had a teacher or mentor who helped guide you, and have you mentored anyone yourself?
TJ: I’ve certainly been asked to be a mentor, whether I’ve succeeded in that, I don’t know. You’d have to ask people who I’ve taught, spoken to, or chatted with. It’s a complicated relationship because often there’s a certain feeling of unworthiness in it. There’s something about pontificating about acting that I feel a little uncomfortable about. Often with actors who are requiring advice of you, I think, “Well, if you need advice, it’s probably not the best profession for you.” Because normally people are mad, and you must be a certain kind of madcap, confident person, and confident in your own individuality that you don’t listen to it, but you literally pursue your own course. That said, I certainly had a mentor when I trained in Paris under a guy called Jacques Lecoq in the 1990s. He was an extraordinary teacher, and he fed me with enough curiosity about the world and how the world might be used in my work, to last me a lifetime. There isn’t really a day that goes by where I don’t try to honor what I learnt in those classes, not just what I did, but what I saw happening in the classes. Then I was lucky enough at school to have a few great teachers of literature, a bit like Philip, who imbued me with a sort of lifelong love of words, and to not fear words.
MF: What was it like working with director Marc Evans on set?
TJ: He’s a very relaxed director. That’s at least how he appears. He’s very quietly spoken, enthusiastic, very supportive, and very Welsh. He’s extraordinarily humble for someone who is an experienced filmmaker. He’s very keen to solicit our views on things, but has a very interesting poetic eye, and an understanding of the landscape of poverty, because that’s the culture that spawned him. So, he’s the ideal translator of that world, really. I absolutely adored working with him. He’s got nothing to prove and as a result, we’re able to talk very frankly to each other.
Harry Lawtey as Richard Burton in ‘Mr. Burton’. Photo: Icon Film Distribution.
MF: Finally, for a younger generation not familiar with Richard Burton and his work, which of his films would you recommend?
TJ: Well, you can see online his ‘Hamlet’, which was extraordinary. It was directed by John Gielgud and the battle that he had with Burton about how to play Hamlet has been turned into a play. It has been made into a play that’s going to be on Broadway called ‘The Motive and the Cue’. It’s a very interesting play, but you can see the whole performance. on YouTube, which is just great. I loved his last performance in ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ with John Hurt. I thought he was amazing in that. I enjoyed ‘Equus’ on film, and even the old films like ‘Alexander the Great’ and ‘Cleopatra’. They are kind of camp, but camp in an interesting way. Even the schlock that he did like “Where Eagles Dare’, there’s always a wonderful gravitas about him. But it’s interesting, his voice, which was almost unlike anyone else’s voice, it’s fascinating now because there’s something so unapologetic about the joy of speaking that you don’t get in actors now, and that itself dates him a little bit.
‘Mr. Burton’ opens in UK theaters on April 4th.
What is the plot of ‘Mr. Burton’?
In the Welsh town of Port Talbot, 1942, Richard Jenkins (Harry Lawtey) lives as a wayward schoolboy, caught between the pressures of his struggling family, a devastating war, and his own ambitions. However, a new opportunity arises when Richard’s natural talent for drama catches the attention of his teacher, Philip Burton (Toby Jones).
(Left) Andrew McCarthy in ‘Less than Zero’. Photo: 20th Century Fox. (Center) Lena Headey stars in ‘Normal’. (Right) James Lance in ‘Ted Lasso’, now streaming on Apple TV.
Preview:
Lena Headey, Andrew McCarthy & James Lance have been cast in ‘Wednesday’.
The third season of the Netflix hit is shooting now.
While there is no official plotline out there yet, the second season ended with Wednesday (Jenna Ortega) heading off with her Uncle Fester (Fred Armisen) to rescue roommate and friend Enid (Emma Myers) from being trapped as an alpha werewolf.
When will ‘Wednesday’ Season 3 hit Netflix?
You’d need Wednesday’s psychic abilities to guess that at this point, but we can presume that it’ll either hit later this year or (more likely) early in 2027.
(L to R) Samara Weaving and Jason Segel in Jorma Taccone’s ‘Over Your Dead Body’. Courtesy of Independent Film Company. An Independent Film Company Release.
(L to R) Jason Segel and Samara Weaving in Jorma Taccone’s ‘Over Your Dead Body’. Courtesy of Independent Film Company. An Independent Film Company Release.
Marriages where the passion has long cooled have been a fertile source for bloody comedies in the past, including ‘The War of the Roses’ (remade recently as ‘The Roses’) into that genre steps ‘Over Your Dead Body’, which boasts the comic stylings of Jason Segel and the comedy/action chops of Samara Weaving. But does it deliver?
Script and Direction
‘Over Your Dead Body’ director Jorma Taccone.
Adapted from the Norwegian film ‘The Trip’ (which was co-written and directed by Tommy Wirkola), the new movie features a script from Nick Kocher (‘Pizza Movie’) and Brian McElhaney (‘Plus One’) that sets up the bad romance between Segel and Weaving’s characters before throwing all manner of comically violent twists in. It doesn’t always work, but when it hits, it hits hard.
Jorma Taccone, the Lonely Island co-founder, shows a knack for staging violent set pieces here, and keeps the movie feeling fun.
Cast and Performances
(L to R) Juliette Lewis, Samara Weaving, and Timothy Olyphant in Jorma Taccone’s ‘Over Your Dead Body’. Courtesy of Independent Film Company. An Independent Film Company Release.
Segel and Weaving are excellent as the central pair, but kudos also to Timothy Olyphant, Juliette Lewis and Keith Jardine, who all give committed, loopy performances.
Final Thoughts
Timothy Olyphant in Jorma Taccone’s ‘Over Your Dead Body’. Courtesy of Independent Film Company. An Independent Film Company Release.
If you watch one action comedy this year where Samara Weaving regrets her choices and fights for her life, make it ‘Ready or Not 2: Here I Come’. But if you’ve room for two, then ‘Over Your Dead Body’ has plenty to offer.
‘Over Your Dead Body’ receives 69 out of 100.
(L to R) Jason Segel and Samara Weaving in Jorma Taccone’s ‘Over Your Dead Body’. Courtesy of Independent Film Company. An Independent Film Company Release.
What is the plot of ‘Over Your Dead Body’?
A couple (Jason Segel and Samara Weaving) tries to reconnect while on vacation, only to find out they have plans to kill each other.
“It’s a story about Lex Luthor and Superman having to work together to a certain degree against a much, much bigger threat. It’s more complicated than that but that’s a big part of it. It’s as much a Lex movie as it is a Superman movie. I loved working with Nicholas Hoult. I relate to the character of Lex, sadly. I really wanted to create something extraordinary with the two of them. I Just love the script so much.”
