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Michael Sheen & Timothy Spall
The Damned United
Michael Sheen & Timothy Spall in The Damned United
This engaging film, a winner for soccer fans and soccer idiots alike, focuses on Brian Clough, one-time English footballer turned failed manager of the Leeds United club. Michael Sheen, who played David Frost in 'Frost/Nixon,' portrays Clough
Sam Worthington & Zoe Saldana
Avatar
Sam Worthington & Zoe Saldana in Avatar
The first 90 minutes of Avatar are pretty terrific -- a full-immersion technological wonder with wonders to spare. The other 72 minutes, less and less terrific. Director James Cameron's futuristic story becomes intentionally grueling in its heavily telegraphed narrative turn toward genocidal anguish, grim echoes of Vietnam-style firefights and the inevitable payback time and sequel setup
Emily Blunt & Rupert Friend
The Young Victoria
Emily Blunt & Rupert Friend in The Young Victoria
Starring Emily Blunt as the 18-year-old queen of England circa 1837, this delicious historical romance is a rich pastiche of first love, teen empowerment, fabulous fashion and fate. Filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallee has captured that hot blush of pure emotion that comes before kisses, sex and heartbreak. Credit also goes to Blunt and to Rupert Friend
Hugh Grant & Sarah Jessica Parker
Did You Hear About the Morgans?
Hugh Grant & Sarah Jessica Parker in Did You Hear About the Morgans?
Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker play the Morgans, a Manhattan power couple on the outs and the brink of divorce. He cheated on her, citing reasons of infertility-related stress; she is not in the forgiving vein and has already begun thinking about adoption on her own. He wants her back and proposes a trial reconciliation
Penelope Cruz & Lluis Homar
Broken Embraces
Penelope Cruz & Lluis Homar in Broken Embraces
Sleek and swank, director Pedro Almodovar's latest movie is destined to be overlooked come awards time. Broken Embraces reworks a slew of noir plot lines for a stimulating story of an affair between a call girl turned actress and her director
Ursula Werner & Horst Westphal
Cloud 9 (Wolke Neun)
Ursula Werner & Horst Westphal in Cloud 9
The German film Cloud 9, which is being distributed by Chicago's own Music Box Films, makes a case for a third, broader and more expansive image of mature sexuality. It's a small picture but a good one, truthfully acted and calmly compelling.
Invictus
Invictus
Morgan Freeman & Matt Damon in Invictus
This stately, impressive film from director Clint Eastwood is anchored by its actors. Morgan Freeman plays South African president and revolutionary game-changer Nelson Mandela, and Matt Damon plays rugby captain Francois Pienaar. In the South African rugby team's long-shot chances for a victory in the 1995 World Cup Final, Mandela sees a grand opportunity.
The Maid
Catalina Saavedra & Mariana Loyola in The Maid
A spiky social comedy from Chile, Sebastian Silva's 'The Maid' features a marvelous, moon-eyed actress, Catalina Saavedra, as a sphinx-like servant who has lived, worked and, slowly, calcified for a bourgeois Santiago family for 23 of her 41 years.
Tony Leung & Takeshi Kaneshiro
Red Cliff
Tony Leung & Takeshi Kaneshiro in Red Cliff
Red Cliff tells the story of the pivotal Battle of Red Cliff, which finds vile Prime Minister Cao Cao leading an armada into the Southland of China to take on a rabble of rebellious warlords.
Kristen Stewart & Robert Pattinson
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Kristen Stewart & Robert Pattinson in The Twilight Saga: New Moon
This much-anticipated sequel is actually pretty good -- a tick better than the first 'Twilight,' which wasn't bad, either. The second film in the series is bigger, better in the effects and more vibrant visually.
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day
Gentlemen Broncos
Michael Angarano & Jemaine Clement in Gentlemen Broncos
The latest collaboration from Jared and Jerusha Hess is about a home-schooled square of a kid who writes cheesy sci-fi fantasy books that belie his introverted demeanor. After his best manuscript is plagiarized by a pompous author whose career is on the skids (Jemaine Clement), our young hero finds himself facing a weird series of personal and creative challenges.
Gabourey Sidibe
Precious
Gabourey Sidibe in Precious
Precious is an exceptional film about nearly unendurable circumstances, endured. The story is about a teen living in 1980s Harlem, raped by her barely glimpsed father, abused by her unfathomably cruel mother. Precious is illiterate but bright, and she switches to an alternative school where she comes under the life-saving tutelage of Ms. Rain. There'll be an Oscar nomination or two in this film's near future
Michael Jackson's This Is It
Michael Jackson in Michael Jackson's This Is It
Produced with the cooperation of the Jackson estate, "This Is It" has no interest in telling the full story of anything, or the crumbling state of anyone. Director Kenny Ortega -- Jackson's partner in staging the London concert that never came to fruition -- is simply trying to suggest in some detail what sort of overstuffed career retrospective Jackson was attempting
Astro Boy Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant
Angels & Demons
Tom Hanks & Ewan McGregor in Angels & Demons
On the heels of the 2006 adaptation of Dan Brown's best-seller "The Da Vinci Code," Tom Hanks returns to the dullest role of his career, once again under the direction of Ron Howard, who takes the material as seriously as a kidney stone on the way out.
Every Little Step
Bob Avian & Baayork Lee in Every Little Step
"A Chorus Line" celebrates the itch to perform and the exquisite, control-freaky showmanship that is the Broadway musical at its greatest. You can assess the stage original's influence through this wonderful new documentary, which intercuts the story of how the original 1975 show came together with a step-by-step, fly-on-the-wall account of how the custodians of the recent 2006 Broadway revival came to cast whom they cast and why
Star Trek
Chris Pine & Zachary Quinto in Star Trek
The new "Star Trek" seeks to extend a lucrative brand with a young demographic. But it's a real movie -- breathlessly paced bordering on manic, but propulsively entertaining.
The script ping-pongs early on between Iowa and Vulcan, as the destinies of James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) entwine.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Hugh Jackman & Liev Schreiber in X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Here and there you get what you want from an "X-Men" prequel, thanks to the irrepressible Hugh Jackman and several other members of the cast, including Liev Schreiber as Wolverine's nemesis, Sabretooth. But there's a rote quality to the proceedings ...
IN THEATERS: MOVIE REVIEWS & MOVIE TRAILERS
- Management
- Next Day Air
- Little Ashes
- Ghosts of Girlfriends Past
- Battle for Terra
- Is Anybody There?
- Tyson
- The Soloist
- Earth
- Anvil! The Story of Anvil
- Tyson
- Fighting
- The Informers
- 17 Again
- State of Play
- Sugar
- Hunger
- American Violet
- Observe and Report
- Mysteries of Pittsburgh
- The Fast and the Furious
- Adventureland
- Even More Movie Reviews & Trailers ...
'I used to be a raving lunatic'
Ray Winstone plays troubled hardmen with such conviction, it's easy to believe he's not acting. He talks about his violent past, happy-go-lucky nature and love of westerns According to an old Fleet Street adage, it is a bad idea to interview your heroes. As I don't have very many, however, the situation seldom arises. But the warning began to make sense while I was getting ready to meet Ray Winstone, for it's hard not to be at least a bit in love with him. So if he turned out to be a twit, I worried, it would be disproportionately upsetting. Winstone is the East End's answer to George Clooney – the opposite of a luvvie, unaffected and occasionally ungovernable, the kind of man with whom men want to get drunk, and women want to sleep. Haunting performances as a wife-beater in Nil by Mouth, and a retired robber in Sexy Beast, elevated him to the attention of Hollywood, yet despite starring in films by Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg he has stayed in Essex, where he lives with his wife of 30 years. He turned down the part of McNulty in The Wire just because he didn't want to uproot his youngest daughter to the US, and everyone who works with him says how lovely he is – great fun, down to earth, an authentic diamond geezer. So I arrive at an exclusive private members' club in east London feeling mildly uneasy. The feeling lasts for less than a second, replaced by the disorientating sensation of having already met him, so exactly is Winstone as you'd hope him to be. He only chose the swanky venue, he explains, because you can smoke on the terrace, and "I was here in 30 minutes – straight dahn the M11, Old Ford Road and I'm 'ere." He likes being able to get to see West Ham easily, he adds – "keep in touch with my roots" – but is having a crisis of faith in football, after England's World Cup performance. "I don't think I can go to football any more. It's doing my head in. The lack of passion, it was embarrassing, really embarrassing. Any other profession in the world, if you performed like that, well, you wouldn't get a job. You'd be sacked. And I'm, I'm kind of tired of watching people roll about on the floor – the cheating side of it. I think it's about time they started acting like men, I really do." Masculinity, it would be fair to say, means a great deal to Winstone. He has that solid, low centre of gravity you find in men who are unusually at ease in their own skin, and a twinkly air of old-fashioned amazement at the silliness of modern metropolitan ideas. Was that, I ask, why he has agreed to promote a western season on the cable channel TCM? "I just love westerns. One of my favourite actors is John Wayne, probably one of the most underrated actors there's ever been. He's quite an incredible actor. He had this way of being a big man, a big tough man, but he can almost show a sadness on his face – very much in the way James Stewart was, and Henry Fonda, you know? But because they were known as classical actors they got the recognition, didn't they?" It sounds as if he might identify with this description. "Yeah, I think so," he agrees. "I remember watching The Long Good Friday [starring Bob Hoskins] one evening, and all the swearwords were bleeped out. Then the following week there was a film on with Laurence Olivier, Sir Laurence Olivier? Set in Italy, I think it was. And he swears in it – but he's allowed to swear. Because he's a classical actor. And poor old Bob comes from Luton. And I remember thinking to myself, why on earth is Sir Laurence allowed to say fuck? Does it sound better or something? And Bob from Luton ain't. What, is it less offensive?" Kathy Burke, Winstone's great friend and co-star in Nil by Mouth, has complained in the past that critics "forget that we're actors. Just because we tend to appear in things with our own accents, saying dialogue that comes naturally to us, people think we're just being ourselves." When I ask Winstone if he agrees, for a moment he hesitates, as if wary of sounding like a whinger. "Well – well, yeah. You kind of think – well, to me it's about believing in the character you're watching on screen. And I've worked with directors who want to know you're acting. But I don't want to see the acting thing in it. Gary [Oldman] used to say, 'I can see you acting, Raymond.' And I'd go right, OK, let's do it again." His dramatic realism, he says, is more appreciated in the US. "They kind of get it. But here, I see things here that say, well that's just Ray, innit? Well, OK, but no, it's not. I don't beat my wife, and I don't rape my kids, and I don't snort cocaine and go out and beat people. What, that's me? Well, what is Robert De Niro? What's Al Pacino? I don't count myself in that class, but you know, you've got to be believable. You either believe in what you're doing or you don't, and I kind of believe in what I'm doing so I just do it that way." When Winstone first appeared in the 1977 BBC television play Scum, he was so believable as a violent borstal inmate that the programme was banned, but re-made for cinema two years later. Winstone had just returned from his honeymoon and was completely unprepared for the mayhem that greeted the film's Leicester Square premiere. "It was quite mad," he chuckles. "My wife probably thought, 'Ooh, I've had a right result here.'" If so, she was in for a disappointment, as her husband's early promise soon began to unravel into bit parts, punch-ups, too much resting and raucous partying. Born in Hackney in 1957, the son of a fruit-and-veg market stall trader, Winstone had been a schoolboy boxing champion but got just a single CSE in drama, and was expelled from drama school for vandalising the head's car. His performance in Scum began to look like one of those rare, mercurial moments of unrepeatable inspiration – and he admits that, in truth, "technically and all that, I wasn't good enough". Living in a two-bedroom London council flat with his wife and two young daughters, he wound up bankrupt. "I just didn't know how to handle money. It was my fault. I wasn't earning a lot of money, I got 1,800 quid for Scum, and when I worked we was just spending it. It was just like a laugh, you know?" Wasn't he worried? "No, I've never really worried about anything, you know. Well, that's my trouble, I don't get stressed. No, if I did I'd have probably not got into the situation in the first place. I remember being indoors one day and we got a cheque through the post for Robin of Sherwood. And instead of paying the tax we went on holiday. 'Come on, let's go on holiday, you only live once and all that. We'll worry about the rest tomorrow.' "But after a while I thought I was probably wasting my time, and I should go out and get a proper job. I couldn't really see myself as an actor. I don't know, I just thought it's not really for me, this." He doesn't know what else he'd have done – "Haven't got a clue, babes" – but maintains he'd still have been happy. "Well, knowing the mentality of me I probably would have been. Yeah, I'm sure I would have been." I don't think he can have been quite as happy as he says, though, because he was forever getting into fights – though in fairness even this memory doesn't seem to trouble him. "I mean, I was punching people and everything," he recalls with a wolfish grin. "They deserved it, don't worry. A couple of things happened on set where I thought people were rude and that, and they got a clump. I remember years ago I was an extra, just an extra, and instead of asking me to move – he was a big fella – the director just picked me up and moved me. And I headbutted him. You know, he shouldn't have done that, but I shouldn't have done that either. I just done it." What did you think afterwards? "Well, he deserved it. Then another director, he was so rude all the time – he was molestering [sic] people, I thought – and I was with my little girl, and he started digging me up at a party. And I give it 'im an' all, he got it." He grins, then shrugs philosophically. "But it's all part of growing up I guess." I wonder what his wife said. "Well, Elaine was with me. She said, have you finished now? She said we'd best go now. And she drove us home." She sounds remarkably sanguine, I laugh. "Well, yeah, I guess she's seen a bit." He chuckles fondly. "Not any more, thank God." So she wouldn't have said, Ray, we've got to pay the rent – sort yourself out? "No," he smiles with undisguised pride. "She'd usually join in." It was Burke who came to the rescue, casting Winstone in a play called Mr Thomas in 1986 that reminded him why he wanted to act. More parts came his way – One Foot in the Grave, Kavanagh QC, The Bill – but he was still basically a jobbing actor until 1997, when Nil by Mouth produced a performance so devastatingly ugly and bathetic, it was impossible to imagine any other actor in the role. Winstone's instinct for the humanity buried inside the most brutalised masculinity was astonishing to witness. He knew himself, even as they were filming, that something radically different was happening. "Yeah, I thought so. There was a magic about it. It was tough to make, but I knew enough to be much more technically minded, more disciplined. It was the first time I could really stand up on me own feet and be in control of how you was going to go about this, and not be frightened of pushing it to the limit." The family moved to a big house in Essex, bigger parts came rolling in, and after Sexy Beast in 2000, Hollywood began calling, with starring roles alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Angelina Jolie and Mel Gibson. It must feel strange for the fantasy future he'd hoped for more than 30 years ago to finally arrive – and now that it has, I wonder if he can still feel like the same person. "You'd like to think you were the same person," he ponders thoughtfully. "But I'm much more chilled out. I think I used to be a bit of a raving lunatic." Life in the Winstone household sounds almost like a caricature of a working-class boy done good. There's his inhouse bar – Raymondo's – and his Sunday roasts, and a photograph of the one time Winstone ever picked up a vacuum cleaner. "Elaine caught me once doing the Hoovering, and took a picture. I do a bit of ironing. But nah, I'm quite old-fashioned." Elaine is a traditional housewife and their eldest two daughters, Lois and Jaime, are now grown-up and both actors, but the youngest goes to the local primary school. "I was all right with nappies, but I had to wear a mask. I can see blood all day long, no bother. But poo? Urggh, no. We don't have nannies and all that, we look after our own kids. It's just what you do. If you want a big family that's just what you do, isn't it?" When I ask how he's managed to stay married for 30 years, he offers mildly: "I don't know. I suppose being a bit old-fashioned, really. Nowadays it's so easy to have a row and walk away, but I'm pretty old-fashioned, you work at it." Some people claim it's impossible for an actor to remain faithful – but at this, Winstone rolls his eyes and lets rip: "Oh, it's just bullshit. It's fucking hard for anyone. It is, 'cos you're always going to have your rows, and you're always going to have temptations. Always. I kind of look at it and go, 'Why would a 28-year-old want to look at a 53-year-old fat boy?' I don't understand when you look at the paper and see all these people getting caught out," and he pretends to read: "'Sixty-two-year-old so-and-so caught with an 18-year-old so-and-so.' You go, mate, what did you actually think she wanted? Is it hard to work out?" He shakes his head and laughs. "You're going to lose everything, your kids, your wife, your home, everything. Down to some old bird? Nah, I don't think so." The only time he ever looks vaguely uncomfortable is when I ask why he fronts the frankly tacky TV ads for Bet365, a gambling website. "Cos it's great," he says slightly defensively. "I don't do bank ads or insurance commercials, but with betting, people have a choice. And Bet365 actually helps me to be able to afford to do a film like Fathers of Girls for no money." I'd been dreading the moment when Fathers of Girls would come up. The forthcoming low-budget film, in which he plays a small-town solicitor whose daughter dies of a drug overdose, is so mawkishly awful, you'd need to be Winstone's own mother (or possibly his daughter Lois, who appears alongside him) not to cringe, or to wonder what Winstone was thinking. His high opinion of the film seems unaccountable - but his explanation turns out to be irreproachable. "Karl [Howman, the director] is my mate. I read the script and I said it's great, Karl, do you want me to do it? He said: 'What?' I said: 'Do you want me to do it? I'll do it.' He said: 'What, really, would you do it?' 'Of course I'll fucking do it. You're my mate. We've known each other 37 years.' So then we went and done it." Knowing everything he knows now, if Winstone could go back to back to Scum and 1977, I wonder what would he do differently. He doesn't even pause to think about his answer. "Nothing. There's no way I'd change anything. Nah, I 'ad a result." Ray Winstone launches TCM's Western Week, which starts on Monday, Sky Channel 317. Father of Girls is released in October.
Julian Schnabel brings Palestine to Venice
Director talks of 'responsibility' to tell story of Middle East conflict in film Miral, told through eyes of two Palestinian women The American artist and film-maker Julian Schnabel said he felt a "responsibility" as a Jew to tell the story of Palestine when he opened his new movie at the Venice film festival. Schnabel's film Miral, competing with 22 others for the Golden Lion award, brought a note of seriousness to an event that sometimes veers towards the frothier side of culture. Miral is told mainly through the eyes of two Palestinian women, covering 40 years of history from the birth of the state of Israel in 1948 to the failed Oslo peace accord of 1993. Its message is that education is the only hope to bringing any kind of resolution to the conflict. Yesterday Schnabel said he felt a responsibility to bring the story to the big screen. "Coming from my background, as an American Jewish person whose mother was president of Hadassah [the Women's Zionist Organisation of America] in 1948, I figured I was a pretty good person to try to tell the story of the other side." Schnabel has admitted not knowing much about the Palestinian people until he read the semi-autobiographical book by Rula Jebreal on which the film is based. "I felt it was my responsibility to confront this issue because, maybe, I've spent most of my life receding from my responsibility as a Jewish person." He said there was an urgency to his film. "This conflict has to end. Every time a child dies on each side — there's no reason for it." Miral tells the story of the Dar al-Tifl orphanage in Jerusalem, which was set up by a rich socialite called Hind Husseini in 1948 after she came across 55 orphans in the street. Within six months she had a school for 2,000 children. The film shows how one of the orphans, Miral, is forced to grow up fast when she falls in love with a Palestinian activist. Miral is played by Slumdog Millionaire's Freida Pinto, and while there have been eyebrows raised at the Indian actor's casting as a Palestinian, Pinto bears an uncanny resemblance to Jebreal, on whom the character of Miral is based. Vanessa Redgrave and Willem Dafoe have small cameo roles. Schnabel said the values that were instilled in him by his mother were the same as the ones instilled in Jebreal by Hind Husseini. "One of the reasons why I made this film is that it was so obvious to me that there are more similarities between these people than differences." The debut of Miral was well-timed, coming on the day the US president, Barack Obama, opened a new round of Middle East peace talks. Meanwhile, Iranian film-maker Jafar Panahi has been forbidden by the authorities from attending the premiere of his new short film Accordion. He was arrested last year and imprisoned for making a film looking at the Iranian elections, but had planned to attend.
Zeta-Jones angry at doctors over Douglas cancer diagnosis
Actor says in interview her husband was told nothing was wrong for months before a tumour was discovered on his tongue Catherine Zeta-Jones has spoken of her pain watching her husband, Michael Douglas, deal with throat cancer and says she is furious with doctors for not detecting his disease sooner. Douglas, the Oscar-winning star of Wall Street and a veteran of Hollywood movies and television, said that he spent months seeking attention for persistent throat and ear pain only to be told nothing was wrong until August. He announced on 16 August that doctors had found a tumour in his throat and that he would undergo radiation and chemotherapy, which he has now started. "It makes me furious they didn't detect it earlier," Zeta-Jones told People magazine. "He sought every option and nothing was found." Zeta-Jones, herself an Oscar winner for Chicago, has been married to Douglas for 10 years and the couple have two children together, Dylan, 10, and Carys, 7. Douglas, 65, is now undergoing radiation and chemotherapy five days a week, every three weeks, to rid himself of a walnut-sized tumour at the base of his tongue. Zeta-Jones said she could not stand the thought of watching her husband undergoing chemotherapy and radiation and losing his strength as he battles the disease. "I know maybe I should be stronger, but emotionally I just don't want to see that," she said, later adding: "The hardest part is seeing his fatigue, because Michael is never tired." Douglas made his first post-announcement TV appearance on Tuesday on The Late Show with David Letterman, and told the talkshow audience that although his cancer was late "stage four", doctors say he has an 80% chance of recovery. He told People magazine that he was optimistic about his odds. "I'm treating this as a curable disease," he said. "It's a fight. I'll beat this." But he admitted that he was uncertain about the future, and noted that "you just never think it's going to be you". Still, after months of feeling the pain creep up on him, of having a dry throat and hoarse voice, the news of his cancer came as little surprise to both Hollywood stars. "It wasn't a huge shock. I knew something was up. He knew something was up," said Zeta-Jones. And while she is furious about the lack of an early diagnosis, Douglas seems more understanding. "Without having to blame anybody ... these things sometimes just don't show up," he said.
How wrestling is taking over the movies
Wrestling stars are muscling their way into cinema multiplexes – but can WWE really beat Hollywood on its own mat? Brace yourself, adjust the volume controls and get ready, in a very real sense, to rumble – because the wrestlers are coming. The good news, at least, is that they're not here to grapple or drop-kick, but instead to emote, frown, wisecrack and demonstrate the full range of the emotional register. This summer, the drip-drip of US wrestling's incursions into mainstream cinema under the aegis of World Wrestling Entertainment's in-house movie production arm, WWE Studios, has shown its first real signs of becoming a surge. In August, former WWE wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's ascent into legitimate crossover status resumed with the US release of The Other Guys, a Will Ferrell comedy in which Johnson co-stars. And, this month, current ace face John Cena's new film, the WWE-produced Legendary, is also released. As Cena says: "WWE studios has got five movies in the can right now and every one of them has come out ahead of expectations. We have all the channels in place and I think it's going to be a good time for us." At a time when many studios are facing financial pruning, a new and aggressively resourced presence is stalking the multiplex, rippling its perma-tanned pectorals. Wrestling wants in. WWE has stealthily pursued its move into cinema ever since the foundation of its Los Angeles-based production arm in 2002. "We saw this as a broadening and a natural extension of the entertainment business we're already in," says Andrew Whittaker, WWE executive vice-president. "It is natural for WWE superstars who are already well known in 149 countries to extend their brand status around the world. Nine films planned for release gives you as clear an indication as you need of our ambition." Ambition – and opportunity – aside, what wrestling can really boast is its production line of camera-ready, six-packed, violently extroverted talent. Its hottest product at the moment is Cena (pronounced see-nah), a 33-year-old nine-time WWE champion described by Whittaker as "the top world star in the current era". Cena's big break as an actor came with 2006's The Marine, a critically panned Iraq war drama but a commercial success, making $30m in its first 12 weeks on DVD. The Marine was followed by 2009's 12 Rounds, a cop revenge yarn that is, above all, extremely loud. Legendary, the new film, is an entry in the strangely undersaturated small-town high-school wrestling family action-drama genre. "It was a bit of a change to what I was used to," Cena says. "But I was really attracted to the storyline and by the chance to play somebody's brother. When I read the script, I realised it was a great chance to show I can do more than just dodge bullets. I knew it wouldn't be too far out of my range." In fact, Cena is a convincingly weighty presence in Legendary. Within the first 10 minutes he appears broodingly stripped to the waist. He pouts, he flexes, he fights in bars. And throughout he does indeed have something of the glacially square-jawed leading man about him, coming on a bit like Matt Damon's harder, perennially cross bad-boy cousin. Legendary follows the story of a nerdy schoolboy, played by Devon Graye, who takes up wrestling to follow in the footsteps of his estranged brother, a troubled, bull-necked ex-champ (played by Cena) – a decision that causes his mother to slam down her dinner plate: "I know wrestling … It will take you away from everything else." "But … Dad wrestled." "And it ate him up." Actually, Legendary isn't all that bad, and Cena is easily the best thing in it. A college-educated native of Massachusetts, he trod a familiar pre-WWE path through minor athletic success, a subsequent excursion into bodybuilding and a stint as a chauffeur. His wrestling career took off overnight when he adopted a Vanilla Ice-style white-rapper persona that proved hugely popular with fans. Even before taking to acting, Cena already had a diverse portfolio of entertainment credits: his rap album You Can't See Me entered the Billboard chart at No 15. Versatility is everything with WWE: even Legendary, with its chirpy sentimentality and family-orientated plotlines, is an embodiment of Whittaker's dictum that "we wanted to do things differently to what you might expect – not just action films, but all genres: comedy, drama." It is a theme Cena warms to: "Anybody who sees me automatically assumes I'm just the big, strong, beat-'em-up kind of guy. This movie, I'm so happy with the way it came out. I don't want to say it's going to shut anybody up, but it's certainly going to open a few people's eyes." Is he genuinely interested in expanding against type into other genres? Into comedy? Period drama? "Yeah, absolutely. Not only myself but the other WWE superstars. We've got a ton of talent in that locker room, and any time we get the chance, we'll show what we're all about." Perhaps where things go from here for Cena will depend on whether mainstream audiences can absorb another likable slice of wrestling beef when they already have Johnson, now a bona fide self-employed movie star. WWE's four break-out co-productions – The Scorpion King (2002), The Rundown (2003), Walking Tall (2004) and Behind Enemy Lines (2009) – all had Johnson in the starring role. His ascent has been mirrored by his gradual shedding of the cloak of his WWE title: from "The Rock" in his early film credits, to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and now simply Dwayne Johnson. He had conquered the wrestling world so absolutely by 2001 that there were no fresh peaks left; so he began acting that same year. He made his debut with a brief appearance in The Mummy Returns, in which he so uncannily nailed the role of taciturn, muscular bad guy that he landed his own spin-off vehicle, The Scorpion King; its dizzying $5.5m fee is still the highest salary for an actor in his first starring role. Johnson has since appeared in The Rundown, Be Cool, Walking Tall, Gridiron Gang, The Game Plan, Get Smart, Race to Witch Mountain, Planet 51, Tooth Fairy, Doom, and Why Did I Get Married Too? You might not have seen them all, but Johnson has now undeniably broken through the Lycra ceiling into that other place where wrestling becomes merely his backstory. That is no mean achievement. Wrestling has had a long and at times difficult relationship with the movies. WWE first dipped its toe in the waters as long ago as 1989, with the Hulk Hogan vehicle No Holds Barred. Hogan had previously played Thunderlips in Rocky III, a high-water mark in a short-lived period of semi-ironic muscle-hunk superstardom, which would eventually map out a familiar trajectory: from wrestling vehicle to action vehicle to zany family comedy. (Hogan's career would reach tipping point with Mr Nanny in 1993.) Around the same time, Jesse Ventura appeared in 1987's Predator, followed by bits and bobs in The Running Man, Demolition Man and Batman & Robin. Heading back into wrestling's mistier past, Tor Johnson, "The Super Swedish Angel", starred in some well-known B-movies, most notably as police inspector-turned-zombie Dan Clay in 1959's Plan 9 from Outer Space, an oddity still cherished by the movie-kitsch crowd. In more recent times, the likes of Johnson and Cena have arrived not as tentative pioneers, but with a mob-handed back-up crew. Triple H appeared as a vampire heavy in Blade: Trinity. Kevin Nash wrestled under the excellent alias "Big Sexy" before taking a role in the 2004 action film The Punisher. There isn't that much of a stretch in all this, from one form of rehearsed and character-driven punch-up to the world of big-screen action filler. As Cena says: "It's really an extension of what we do. It's just in a different form. There's a ton of similarities." And maybe this is simply wrestling's time for other reasons. WWE may be a venerable behemoth, tracing its lineage back to the formation of the Capitol Wrestling Corporation in the 1950s, and coming of age in the 1980s with the syndication of its high-adrenaline, high-drama, high-camp version of the grapple game; but it is decidedly cutting-edge in its intimate global reach. There is a sense that the real masterplan here may be the chance to use WWE's well-grooved pre-existing multimedia channels to outflank the traditional studio distribution methods. "We co-produced our first four movies," Whittaker says. "It was a learning experience to work with top-notch studios. Post that experience, we saw efficiencies in going on our own, with our distribution paths in DVD, digital and pay-per-view. We knew we were going to be able to expand into non-traditional release space." Wrestling isn't just rattling the door handle – it's brushing the chalk from its hands and preparing to vault the elasticated ropes. It has the distribution, the personnel, and above all a spirit of energetic can-do, a bicep-flexing assertiveness. "The worst thing we could do would be to come out with a really crappy movie," Cena says. "Other studios make so many movies they can get away with making one that fails. We will be watched by so many people, under such a microscope, that we just have to put out good movie after good movie." Legendary is released on 10 September, and on DVD on 27 September.
A shot of Kentucky spirit
There's an Oscar buzz growing around 20-year-old Jennifer Lawrence. Jane Graham meets a determined self-starter At first glance, everything about Jennifer Lawrence suggests honey. It's in her gleaming, golden skin, her luxuriant Timotei hair, and the warm, welcoming and well-rehearsed smile she flashes once formal introductions have established that you are someone it is her duty to talk to. Every bit of her gleams with a sweet and shiny polish: which is probably a natural residue of her southern-belle charm, but is probably also partly attributable to the professional gloss the 20-year-old seems to have acquired with remarkable ease over her nascent two-year film career. "Oh my gosh," she says, in her rich, dewy Kentucky accent, and holds out a perfectly manicured hand. "It's really good to meet you." She sits back in her chair, the youthful epitome of good health, good genes and good luck, and only in the slight set of her jaw is there a hint of the dutiful actor at work. It's that steeliness that has finally secured Lawrence the serious attention – and accompanying Oscar buzz – she has sought since she was a determined 14-year-old. She has the fresh, casual beauty and blooming sexuality required for the corrupted-cheerleader look much favoured by Hollywood franchises, but has set herself apart from the likes of Megan Fox and Ashley Greene by failing to exploit them; her role in Debra Granik's Winter's Bone – as Ree Dolly, the resolute big sister left to tend to her catatonic mother and young siblings after the disappearance of her meth-dealing father – studiously eschews glamour. Set in the Ozark mountains in Missouri, where a vast, ice-white sky stretches for miles over a wasteland of barbed wire, burnt-out cars and strip-lit barns, and life is soundtracked by a loop of barking dogs and distant gunshots, Winter's Bone presents as forlorn an atmosphere as any you'll experience in cinemas this year. But Lawrence's still, graceful performance as the preternaturally strong-willed teenager doggedly juggling the multiple roles she has been forced into – her siblings' mother, her mother's carer, her father's replacement – is so intriguing and emotionally compelling that you're likely to emerge feeling unexpectedly warmed up. "I'd have walked on hot coals to get the part," says Lawrence. "I thought it was the best female role I'd read – ever. I was so impressed by Ree's tenacity and that she didn't take no for an answer. For the audition, I had to fly on the redeye to New York and be as ugly as possible. I didn't wash my hair for a week, I had no makeup on. I looked beat up in there. I think I had icicles hanging from my eyebrows." Lawrence employs military language when she talks about her mission to impress Granik, and admits that since high school, she has been almost pathologically focused on her career. While her friends were hanging around street corners mooning over Justin Timberlake and wondering if they'd get away with forgetting their maths homework, 14-year-old Lawrence was harassing her mother into taking her to New York to audition for a part in a script she'd got hold of. She isn't sentimental about her ambitious younger self – "I was a stubborn little shit" – but you suspect that though she pretends to consider her naive refusal to countenance failure "totally stupid", she is proud of her intense sense of purpose. It is, after all, what attracted her to Winter's Bone. "When I first got to New York, my feet hit the sidewalk and you'd have thought I was born and raised there," she says. "I took over that town. None of my friends took me seriously. I came home and announced, 'I'm going to move to New York,' and they were like 'OK.' Then when I did, they kept waiting for me to fail and come back. But I knew I wouldn't. I was like, 'I'll show you.'" She didn't get that first part – "I totally sucked at first" – but she did get herself an agent, and, as far as Lawrence was concerned, that was the cue for a seismic life-change. She persuaded her parents to have her taken out of school and set her sights on her first movie role. After attracting acclaim for her sure-footed debut as a troubled, thrill-seeking teenager in Guillermo Arriaga's Burning Plain in 2008, she shone in the gritty The Poker House, as another smart, determined kid with the weight of her dependent family – in this case, her prostitute mother and two younger sisters – threatening to kill off any chances of a normal, hope-spangled life. Lawrence cites Charlize Theron, whom she played opposite in The Burning Plain, as an early acting hero, and Theron's portrayal of serial-killing prostitute Aileen Wuornos in Monster as one of her favourite performances. It seems likely that she has been influenced not only by Theron's choice of roles and but also by her determination not to allow her obvious allure to undermine her reputation. Lawrence is already putting together a strong set of opinions about Hollywood's attitude to young female actors, her face screwing up with contempt when she considers the kind of roles she's been offered in the last couple of years. "I just don't like that you can either be ugly and smart or pretty and dumb, or ugly and nice or pretty and mean," she says scornfully. "It's in every studio film you see. There's not a lot of imagination out there. Nobody outside of indie films steps outside the box. That drives me nuts." It's bold talk, but so far, Lawrence's choice of roles has justified her chutzpah; her next project, Jodie Foster's The Beaver, is a "weird as hell film" (Lawrence's words) with Mel Gibson as a depressed man who communicates through his beaver hand-puppet. If she sounds like a cliche – another cocksure, ambition-driven engine who was "born to act" bravely battling the hazards of her youthful comeliness – Lawrence is enough of a surprise package to keep her interesting and likable. Just as Ree Dolly is at her most beguiling when her mask momentarily slips, and her face briefly twinges with trauma and adolescent uncertainty, the usually formidable Lawrence's childish vulnerability is her most affecting quality. "Being away from home is my least favourite part of all of this," she says. "That really is the hardest part of my job. I really get so homesick. I always get so scared before I go and film a movie because I know I'm going to get homesick." Winter's Bone was the first film on which Lawrence wasn't accompanied by her mother – she turned 18 just before production. "I hadn't felt like I'd needed her before but when she wasn't there, I ended up phoning her crying and asked her to come. And she and my dad came to me. I was getting sick, and I was just so tired, so I just called my mommy, crying, and asked her to come. She loved that, of course." Another unlikely item on the Lawrence CV is a photo and video shoot for Esquire magazine earlier this year, in which she threw herself into the kind of role she has firmly refused to offer Hollywood thus far, frolicking (the only word for it) in a bikini in classic sex-kitten mode. When asked about it, she shrugs in a manner that suggests she is part defensive and part sick of the subject. She's said in the past that she did it to avoid being typecast after a succession of dowdy roles, which makes some kind of sense. Today though, she is more clear-cut. The point, she implies, is that she gets the industry for what it is. We won't be reading about Jennifer Lawrence's quarter-life crisis any time soon. "There are two sides of this job," she says, her jaw setting again. "There's the artistic side, which is acting in the movie. But there's also the business side. And I understood that the shoot was a good business decision. I had many people that I completely trust – agents, publicists – and they said it was a good idea. And I agreed. I understood why it had to happen. I'm sure I've been criticised for doing it but you know what? I don't care." Winter's Bone is released on 17 September.
Scott Pilgrim's love letter to Canada
Film-makers looking to stay true to a particular setting should take a maple leaf out of the quirky hero's book Near the end of Scott Pilgrim Vs the World, Comeau, the guy who "knows everybody", can be overheard having a conversation about which is better, the movie or the comic book. Lest I be out-meta'ed, then, let me carefully sidestep the issue of whether Bryan Lee O'Malley's graphic novel is superior to its big screen adaptation (or vice versa) and just say this: Hollywood nimbly dodged a fireball and landed a 64-punch combo by staying so true to Scott Pilgrim's strange, funny and very deep-rooted Canadianness. Which is not an easy thing to define. A surefire dinner party conversation starter with Canadians (and a quick way to send everyone else home early) is to ask: "But what ... exactly does it mean to be Canadian?" Try it. If you come up with anything other than single-tier universal healthcare, ice hockey and a sort of vague licentiousness, I have a 1kg bottle of Quebec Medium No 1 maple syrup with your name on it. But Scott Pilgrim has Canada – or at least Toronto – down. It nails the city's confident but self-conscious sense of humour, the love of bad puns ("I was just a little bi-curious!" "Well honey, I'm a little bi-furious"), the self-deprecating jokes ("What's the website for Amazon.ca?"), and the very malleability of being Canadian ("When I'm around you, I kind of feel like I'm on drugs. Not that I do drugs. Unless you do drugs, in which case I do them all the time.") Many Canadians feel towards their country exactly what the Scott Pilgrim comic/film feels towards its protagonist: fond contempt. Not taking yourself too seriously seems to be key when you're lying in bed with a cultural elephant that could not only squash you, but doesn't even know you're there. This wary jokiness about America is also a key element of the plot. In search of bigger US box office takings, Edgar Wright could well have set Scott Pilgrim in, say, Seattle, but only at the expense of the comic's wonderfully pitched attitude towards the States. Scott's love interest, Ramona Flowers, is an American, and so is the No 1 big boss ex-boyfriend, music promoter Gideon. The latter makes various disparaging remarks about Canada, but Scott (or, as Ramona calls him in the comic, "Canada boy"), fights right back: "You're pretentious, this club sucks, I have beef. Let's fight." With a light touch, the film captures Toronto's paradoxical, smug inferiority towards the US, and specifically New York. Torontonians know they're less important, less powerful and generally less stylish than New Yorkers, but take a perverse pride in not caring. It shows off what I've always loved about Toronto: its beautiful marriage of big-city sheen and quiet, empty, snow-muffled desolation. Toronto is a romantic city, especially in winter, especially if you take romance with a grain of salt. If you can set a romcom in coffee chains in Seattle, it's about time we had one on snowy park swings at midnight. Not all film adaptations are as faithful to setting – with often disastrous results. Fever Pitch transposed Nick Hornby's novel about his solitary, girl-free obsession with Arsenal into a romcom starring Jimmy Fallon as a Boston Red Sox fan. The US remake of the Australian comedy Kath and Kim inexplicably made the two characters educated, middle class and attractive, thus inherently negating the "bogan" hilarity of the original. Also, in its American, Richard Gere-led incarnation, Shall We Dance? was an embarrassing misstep. This makes sense when you understand that what made the original Japanese film a hit is that ballroom dancing, and the public male-female physical interaction it requires, is fairly taboo in Japan. But my vote for worst locale-changing in film goes to U571. This ping-and-periscope schlock about the boarding of a German U-boat in the second world war had the gall to state it was American submarine officers who captured the famous Enigma cipher machine from the Nazis, thus changing the course of the war and helping to defeat Hitler. It was, of course, British naval officers who captured the first Enigma, not to mention British codebreakers at Bletchley Park, led by Alan Turing (British), who cracked its secrets. The movie's only saving grace is that Jon Bon Jovi gets swept overboard. U571's setting crimes may soon be dwarfed, however, if rumours of a live-action Akira set in Manhattan, rather than nuclear-afeared Tokyo, are true. (See this artist's rendering of Akira USA for further evidence.) But that's just my precious little Canadian opinion. Let's hear your votes: know any Fear & Loathing in Enfields I haven't mentioned?
Video: No Impact Man trailer
No Impact Man is a film chronicling Colin Beavan and his 'retail-worshipping' wife Michelle's year-long experiment living a zero-waste lifestyle, during which they bought nothing, unplugged from the electrical grid, and created no rubbish
Film review: Dinner for Schmucks
A Hollwyood remake of a French film about a sadistic dinner party game becomes a crass comedy that completely blows Steve Carell's funnyman credibility, says Peter Bradshaw Steve Carell's comedy stock-price takes a terrible knock with this buttock-clenchingly bad film, a deeply unfunny pseudo-French farce and a remake of Francis Veber's 1998 black comedy Le Dîner de Cons, or The Dinner Game. That was about a sadistic parlour game practised by a group of sneery metropolitan sophisticates. Each would invite the biggest idiot he could find to a regular formal dinner; the dopes would be mocked behind their back and a prize (secretly) awarded to the most egregious loser. I remember very much enjoying the original, but maybe distance now lends something other than enchantment to the view. Perhaps Veber's original has been trashed – or perhaps this crass movie has, disturbingly, located something crass in the source material itself. Paul Rudd plays a basically decent guy who finds himself dragged into this "game" to please the boss: the idiot he finds is a sad sack who stuffs and dresses up dead mice in cute costumes. He is played, with worrying lack of fun, by Carell. Our own David Walliams has a gag-free cameo as a Swiss financier. This is one for everyone to omit from their CV.
Film review: Perestroika
Sarah Turner's challenging art film is a stream of consciousness memory-jogger, says Peter Bradshaw Film-maker Sarah Turner investigates the boundaries of film and video art with this startling, strange, deeply pessimistic personal record: a filmic essay and visual journal that touches on the themes of autobiography, memory, identity and self – but quite without any catharsis, any emollient sense of a "journey" towards clarity or the alleviation of unhappiness. At the end of the piece, its author seems more scared and bewildered than before. In a samey week at the cinema, Turner's cold, experimental adventure stands out. What unspools on screen is what a passenger can see from the window of the Trans-Siberian Express; Turner appears simply to point her camera out of the window and hit Rec, and this is, in part, an attempt at emotional reconstruction. She has evidently been involved in an accident involving a partial memory loss. Now, to challenge or repair this loss, she is undertaking a journey she made 20 years ago in Russia (the Gorbachev era of "perestroika", or reconstruction) with, among others, her best friend – who died in a cycling accident similar to the one that injured her. At that time, too, she filmed out of the window and Turner intersperses the "old" and "new" footage. What is different is not so much what we see – the unending frieze of snowy landscape does not look much different, despite the fuzzier pre-digital video. The difference lies in what we hear. Before, there is the cheerful ambient chatter of Turner's mates. Now, there is just Turner's agonised monologue, muttered like an exceptionally lucid sleeptalker, and sometimes as if through clenched teeth or an appalling migraine. It is a stream of consciousness or semi-consciousness, recounting sometimes what she said and did and felt 20 years ago, and sometimes what she's feeling now. Turner herself is a kind of ghost: we get only glimpses of her face, reflected in the glass. And the viewer is confronted simply by the vastness of the snowy Siberian landscape in all its colossal indifference. We leave the train only really to visit the derelict shell of the Intourist hotel where the group stayed in 1988: an eerie experience. I was reminded of Scott's awestruck, defeated response to the Antarctic: "Great God, this is an awful place." It is the kind of film that is arguably better viewed on the wall of an art gallery, but the concentration that comes from watching these images in a cinema gives the movie its distinctive bleak power – a rising sense of alienation, even panic, as we stare, endlessly, at these glimpsed images of cities and people whose meaning is withheld from us. Perestroika is a difficult, challenging and experimental piece and not for everyone. But it is conceived with intelligence and arresting intensity.
Film review: The Switch
Jennifer Aniston stars yet again as a woman who can't find love, in yet another sickly rom-com, writes Peter Bradshaw Loosely based on a 1996 short story by Jeffrey Eugenides, The Switch is a romantic comedy with an interesting and ingenious high concept, initially pursued with verve, but let down by inconsistent characterisation and finally ending in gloopy sentimentality and silliness. Jennifer Aniston plays Kassie, a woman who is going to have a baby using her own form of artificial insemination; she has persuaded a handsome, married acquaintance Roland (Patrick Wilson) to donate sperm, and hosts a bizarre "fertility" party to inaugurate the event. Present is Wally, her best friend, played by Jason Bateman. He has undeclared feelings for Kassie, gets very drunk, and something terrible happens. At the beginning of the film, Roland is supposed to be a right-on lecturer in feminist history, but halfway through, he mutates into a crass, unreflective jock. It's a fundamental flaw in the script: but Wally's liberal agonies are nicely portrayed by Bateman. Jeff Goldblum has a very funny role as his friend and confidant – not so very long ago, Goldblum might well have been playing Bateman's role himself.
Film review: SoulBoy
Despite a nice performance from Martin Compston, this teen drama set in the 70s northern soul era is entertaining but a bit too predictable, writes Peter Bradshaw There's a likable, open and energetic performance from Martin Compston in this period 1970s drama centred on the northern soul scene – but in the end, there is something just a little too formulaic about the film. It has a distinct resemblance to Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's Cemetery Junction, amplified by the presence of Felicity Jones in another girl-next-door role. Compston is Joe, a likely lad who discovers the Dionysiac all-nighters at the Wigan Casino, gets into the dancing and falls for glamorous Jane (Burley) while shy, pretty Mandy (Jones) nurses feelings for him – but the presence of drugs at the club threatens to take the soul out of Soul. Amiable stuff, perhaps a little too derivative.
Film review: Why Did I Get Married Too?
This comedy-drama about upscale African-Americans is a little too self-satisfied for its own good, writes Andrew Pulver Tyler Perry has made a lot of money in the US, churning out heartwarming plays and films aimed at upscale African- Americans, mounted like expensive TV soap operas. This is a sequel to a film about four married couples that was never actually released in UK cinemas; here, the (slightly reordered) couples reassemble in a Bahamian beach house where, naturally, the strengths and weaknesses of each marriage are thrown into sharp relief. Perry, himself a confident, leonine presence in one of the lead roles, displays a fondness for dialogue seemingly copied out of a self-actualisation handbook; luckily, then, Janet Jackson plays a book-writing pop psychologist. Perry has plugged a hole in the market, for sure; it's just all a bit pleased with itself.
Film review: Certified Copy
Juliette Binoche stars in the first film Abbas Kiarostami has made outside Iran. Peter Bradshaw finds it very odd indeed Abbas Kiarostami's new movie has an Italian setting; it is his first fiction feature to be made outside Iran, and it really is an oddity – an intriguing oddity, but an oddity nonetheless. Certified Copy is the deconstructed portrait of a marriage, acted with well-intentioned fervour by Juliette Binoche, but persistently baffling, contrived, and often simply bizarre – a highbrow misfire of the most peculiar sort. It looks like the work of a sophisticated director with no feel for the languages he's working in, and sometimes even like the work of a highly intelligent and observant space alien who still has not quite grasped how Earthlings actually relate to each other. The film is set in Tuscany, where visiting British author James Miller, played by newcomer William Shimell, is giving a reading from his latest book, entitled Certified Copy. This is a daring work of art history, which claims that a reproduction is as valuable as an original, and that the distinction between the two is founded on fallacious and naive assumptions about authenticity and truth. Binoche plays a French antiques dealer, invited along to his talk, who is fascinated and a little nettled by the man's provocations – her teenage son teasingly accuses her of having a crush on this handsome celebrity. She has offered to give him a local tour, where James turns out to be prickly and difficult; their conversations are tense, and the proprietor of a local cafe tellingly mistakes them for a married couple. The idea appears to amuse them both, and without ever remarking explicitly on what is happening, the pair embark on a kind of exploratory role-play, in which Binoche finds that she can speak with unaccustomed freedom to her "copy" husband about the crisis in her marriage, and finds that this virtual-reality intimacy may be more powerfully real than the real thing. It is a film that is pregnant with ideas, and for aspiring to a cinema of ideas Kiarostami is to be thanked and admired. But the simple human inter-relation between the two characters is never in the smallest way convincing, and there is a translated, inert feel to the dialogue. As James, William Shimell gives a performance that is technically fine: despite being an opera singer by training, he is never showy or stagey; on the contrary, he is calm, unruffled, with an easy address to the camera. He has aplomb, even when called upon to give a rather Basil Fawltyish temper tantrum in a restaurant. But his character is perplexing. James is outrageously supercilious, arrogant, conceited and rude. But is he intended to be these things? Or just drily intellectual? It is difficult to tell if Kiarostami quite understands how unresponsive James appears, or how overwhelmingly strange the whole movie really is. Certainly, Binoche reacts with exasperation to James sometimes, but never asks about his own life or marital situation, and seems in her way quite as weirdly solipsistic as he is. An anecdote about the copy of Michelangelo's David in Florence's Piazza della Signoria leads to the pair discovering an extraordinary connection between them – which is never developed, nor mentioned again. The unreality caused by the characters never remarking on their role-play (strange for a stuffy Brit) never leaves the film, although at one stage Binoche begs the reticent James to pretend that they were married in a particular church where a young couple's wedding is taking place; both she and the couple themselves good-naturedly beg James to pose in photographs with them. Even given that the newlyweds will never discover the truth, and that it makes them happy, it seems an extraordinarily fatuous, dishonest prank. Why does Binoche want to do it so very much? Is it because their marital "copy" has become so real, or perhaps because her resulting emotional crisis has unbalanced her? Maybe. But like so much here, it is unconvincing and uninteresting. Certified Copy has resemblances to other Kiarostami films: there are extended dialogue scenes in cars, and business with mobile phones indicating a breakdown in communication. He contrives an elegant sight gag for an ageing French tourist, played in cameo by the screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière, talking on his hands-free device. Only for a moment does Kiarostami display his most eccentric tic, cancelling the shot-reverse-shot convention by keeping the camera on the listener, not the speaker. It is as distinctive a mannerism as Ozu's direct sightlines into camera – a style that Kiarostami employs when the two are talking to each other. This just further underscores the curious disconnect between the two characters, which is so distinct that I almost suspected some M Night Shyamalan-type twist in the tail. The theme of spectral absence is certainly relevant. Kiarostami may have absorbed other influences. Certified Copy has something of Rossellini's Journey to Italy, and I wonder if he might even have been influenced by Woody Allen and Diane Keaton's initial squabble in Manhattan about everything from Van Gogh to Heinrich Böll. In its very strangeness, and unworldliness, and utter unreality, Certified Copy has a species of charm. It is an intensely composed and choreographed film in its way, unmistakably an example of Kiarostami's compositional technique, though not a successful example. It may go down as the strangest "meet-cute" in the history of cinema.
Film review: No Impact Man
This eco-documentary about living a low-impact lifestyle is undermined by irritating devices and ersatz drama, says Peter Bradshaw Superdownsize Me could be the subtitle of this eco-conscious documentary, presented in all an too familiar format; it advances important and laudable ideas, but in a cliched, gimmicky way. Colin Beavan is a New York blogger and environmentalist who at the end of 2006 came up with an idea that soon made him a media darling – to his own elaborate, saucer-eyed surprise. For one year, he and his family will live a lifestyle that has "no impact" on the environment: no car-driving, no TV, no buying anything new, no unnecessary packaging, no electricity, and – gulp! – no toilet paper. What is supposed to make this story cute is that Colin's wife Michelle is a high-flying Business Week journalist with a Carrie-Bradshaw-type love of retail therapy, and for her, the No Impact experiment is having a very traumatic impact indeed. The movie coyly creates a human-interest subplot about whether or not they are going to have another child, a heartwarming drama intended to sugar the pill of boring old eco-politics. A somewhat trying and self-conscious film.
Director Marc Webb: Why I'm a student of the Graduate
The Graduate has a film language all of its own, and a style so seductive that, as a filmmaker, it is hard not to imitate it – as Marc Webb, director of 500 Days of Summer, admits In the beginning, there was The Graduate. It's probably the first film I saw that made me curious about its creator, because Mike Nichols developed a film language all his own. So many of my contemporaries (and myself) have borrowed or outright stolen from those sacred frames: Rushmore, Little Miss Sunshine, Garden State – its influence is clear. I once heard David O Russell say that it is almost dangerous to watch The Graduate. Its allure, he says, is so profound that you will simply try to imitate it as a film-maker. He's got a point. It's too late for me. Anyone who's seen my movie 500 Days of Summer knows that the movie is permanently fused to my brainstem. But I'll argue the influence is a positive one – one that enables rather than limits. Let's talk about simple craft for a second. One of the oddly tricky things about making a movie is where to put the camera. It sounds like an obvious problem, but when you really consider how many options there are, it can be overwhelming. You want to be stylish – but it's very easy for style to erode emotion. If you fetishise a shot, you might capture the audience for an instant but you risk alienating them. Or maybe you shoot it conventionally in masters and close-ups, toss the footage to the editor and hope for the best. But then where's your identity? Where's the unique experience you as an artist are obligated to provide? Before shooting 500 Days, I studied The Graduate to try to deduce why Mike Nichols put the camera where he did. How did this director know to open the movie on a close-up of Dustin Hoffman? Why did he put the fish tank behind Benjamin's head? Was he just being funny? How was he brave enough to cover the entire party downstairs in a single long take? A close-up, no less! Who the hell covers a scene like that? We don't see the other partygoers' pecking faces – but, judging by Ben's befuddled expression, neither does he. As he wanders through the party, we start to feel what Benjamin feels. Claustrophobic. Shut off. We feel like prey to the horrible swarms of the affluent middle-aged. We see the world as he sees the world. Blacks and whites. Crisp wardrobes. Cool, long takes. And then she comes along … It's easy to think of The Graduate as an artful string of iconic shots and sequences. But a pattern emerges. Underneath, there's a deep logic: Mike Nichols puts us in Benjamin Braddock's shoes. For me, that's one of many great lessons of The Graduate: point of view. Put the camera where the protagonist is, literally and metaphorically. For fun, I try to deduce his influences. Are those bold frames a result of Kurosawa? Do the confident long takes and superb blocking come from his days in the theatre? Is the deadpan delivery a residue of Nichols and May? I don't know. What I do know is that he is a master and an artist. Last year, I got an email from Mr Nichols after my film had come out. It was brief but generous. I parlayed it into an incredibly delightful lunch in New York. The Grad, as he called it, took a long time for people to settle down and grasp – longer than anyone except Nichols and scriptwriter Buck Henry remember. He chalked it up to a generational difference. I think great films are not simply a diversion. Great films can recreate and articulate emotions that feel – until we see them onscreen – too confusing to talk about. Too private and deep to say aloud. When a movie cracks that for me, it becomes a friend. A warning. A guide. A conversation piece. A prism through which we can view our own experience. It's like a voice from the ether that whispers: "You are not alone." The Grad is such a film. The Graduate is out on Blu-ray on 13 September.
Film review: The Last Exorcism
This yarn about a priest who uses exorcism as a form of therapy is a neat and scary little horror film – it's enough to restore your faith in the genre, writes Phelim O'Neill The poster for this film makes a big deal out of the involvement of Hostel director Eli Roth. But don't worry; as producer, Roth is here using his powers for good, giving some industry weight so this excellent horror film doesn't become ignored like Stamm's previous, A Necessary Death. Cynical evangelist Cotton Marcus (Fabian) has a documentary crew follow him as he performs his lucrative sideline of exorcisms, a ritual he believes to be more an effective placebo for the mentally stressed than actual divine intervention against demonic possession. His work takes him to a backwoods farm where teenage Nell (Bell) is suffering blackouts and animals are found mutilated. Rather than go for easy jump shocks, Stamm effectively crafts a dozen or so marvellously creepy moments. Audience faith in the existence of decent horror films is reaffirmed.
Film review: Jonah Hex
The acclaimed graphic novel about the mysterious, scarred old West bounty hunter has become a muddled, inept film, says Phelim O'Neill Even if you didn't know how troubled this adaptation of John Albano's comic book was, with rumours of countless rewrites and reshoots, it's obvious something is drastically wrong here even before the opening titles are over. After we are introduced to gruesomely scarred semi-supernatural old west bounty hunter Hex (Brolin, in grisly prosthetics), there is a terrible expositional animated sequence; it's as if they simply forgot to film some key scenes. Otherwise, it seems like a bad case of lost nerve: Hex is never quite the bad-ass he is in the comics, while the plot attempts some clunky relevance as Hex hunts down a campy villain (Malkovich) who is making an olden-days weapon of mass destruction. It just gets louder and more nonsensical as it progresses, with Fox shoe-horned into as many scenes as possible.
Film review: Cherry Tree Lane
Paul Andrew Williams finally makes a decent follow-up to London to Brighton, with this low-budget home invasion movie that plays on middle class fear of youth, writes Peter Bradshaw If Michael Haneke were drafted in to direct an EastEnders Christmas special, it might look like this raw, no-budget, home-invasion nightmare. It begins in a studied, low-key style – all the more disturbing for being so banal. A middle-aged couple sit down to a boring, yet tense, dinner in their pleasant London home. Their dialogue is so subdued as to be almost inaudible; they are clenched with unhappiness and so wrapped up in themselves and their banal marital problems that they hardly care at all about their son, who appears to be mixed up with drugs. Then there is a ring on the doorbell and the ordeal begins. The movie is effectively claustrophobic and unnerving and the more potent for unfolding in real time. It plays brutally on the liberal middle-class fear of crime and fear of the young. The acting is sometimes a little rough around the edges, and the film suffers from a lack of ideas about how it should end: this is where Haneke, with his icy rigour and pitiless clarity, scores higher. But it certainly manages some nasty turns of the screw.
Film review: Splintered
A low-budget British horror film in the style of Hollyoaks. By Phelim O'Neill A low-budget British horror film about a group of friends who foolishly venture deep into the Welsh woods to capture (on video) a legendary local beast that has been killing livestock, and soon find themselves chased by a huffing and puffing big bad wolfman. But this feels more like an episode of Hollyoaks: when faced with actors with little talent, simply have them argue constantly, so these dead-eyed, bland beauties will at least register as living creatures. Of course, the trouble with this is that they quickly become immensely irritating, and you just can't wait for them to get killed off quickly enough.
David Thomson on Stephen Frears
Stephen Frears is an amused connoisseur. I can't dispute his estimate that the less money he's had at risk on a venture, the better it ends up Inasmuch as he will be 70 next year, and is a national treasure, I suspect some honours list will notice Stephen Frears soon. Of course, it is possible in his humble, muttering self-effacement that he wouldn't hear of such a distinction (I think there's a republican in there). On the other hand, he did make The Queen (with writer Peter Morgan and pretender Helen Mirren), the most sophisticated public relations boost HRH has had in 20 years, and all the more affectionate because it was wry and a bit of a tease. By now, it is taken for granted that Frears – whom I count as a friend – gets away with nearly anything he cares to try, and as he grows older, he is less conventional and obvious. So his latest film, Tamara Drewe, is taken from the Posy Simmonds graphic novel, just as the previous picture, Cheri, was from Colette, with a screenplay by Christopher Hampton. And both films are in love with pretty women, albeit a generation apart. Neither is Frears at his best, but he has never been too distressed by films that haven't worked completely. He is an amused connoisseur of the vagaries of production and the way hopes and dreams can be frustrated by too much or too little money. He doesn't like his own film Mary Reilly, and felt it was going wrong from early on – so I have shouldered the lifelong task of gently persuading him that it's very good. I won't win, and I can't dispute his estimate that the less money he's had at risk on a venture, the better it ends up. So if the royal household is thinking of some award (involving a sword), I'd urge them to look at things many people may have forgotten – like A Day Out (1972), about an Edwardian cycling club going to Bolton Abbey (it was written by Alan Bennett). Or Sunset Across the Bay, another Bennett script done for television. Or even Saigon: Year of the Cat (1983), a love affair between Judi Dench and Frederic Forrest (is that daring, or unlikely?) that was written by David Hare. Or even Walter (1982) the amazingly dark opening-night offering for Channel 4, written by David Cook and starring Ian McKellen. These are rich dramas realised with integrity and devoted to English character, irony and tragedy. Taken as a group, they cast Frears in a rather sombre, realist light that was deserved if not entirely accurate. He was, until then, a TV director despite the genre aplomb and wit of Gumshoe (1971). But then a TV venture, Hanif Kureishi's My Beautiful Laundrette (1985), seemed to inhale the multiculturalism and confused gender of a new Britain, and became a modest theatrical success that released energy and confidence in Frears. His stride grew longer, his grip more relaxed, and Prick Up Your Ears and Sammy and Rosie Get Laid led to the international hit Dangerous Liaisons (1988) (written by Hampton). From that Frears became a director in America, and The Grifters (1990) is outstanding, fond of rotten people, without sentimentality or condescension. Hero was not a success – nor was Mary Reilly – and that seemed to send Frears home to smaller pictures: The Snapper, The Van and the characteristic A Personal History of British Cinema. Frears seems ready to take on anything odd and piquant, as likely to be for TV as cinema: so The Deal (2003) was a pioneering work about goings-on inside politics, and a launch for Peter Morgan and Michael Sheen; Fail Safe was a shot at redoing live TV drama; and Skip Tracer was TV again. But High Fidelity was a surprisingly successful transfer of Nick Hornby to America, and Dirty Pretty Things was another artful look at the underside of Britain. You could say that Frears hasn't quite made a masterpiece yet, and he would probably answer that he doesn't do masterpieces – as if to suggest that the concept is vulgar and pretentious. He doesn't want to be seen being that personal or vain, I suppose. So he labours on in an age when making English movies is said to be harder and harder, yet he makes it seem easier. Give him a prize.
Film review: 22 Bullets
Jean Reno stars as a gangster who survives being shot with the eponymous number of bullets in a revenge yarn that goes way, way over the top, writes Catherine Shoard How would it feel to be peppered with bullets by hitmen hired by your former best friend? This revenge yarn, starring Jean Reno as a mamma-loving ex-mafioso who suffers just that fate, goes out of its way to recreate the sensation, with body-blow plotting, bombastic moralising and remorseless orchestration in which every line of dialogue is forced to compete with kettledrums. If you can cope with all the pummelling as Reno wreaks dreadful vengeance, then guilty pleasure can be taken in the drizzly streets and grizzly cops, as well as the great sides of Gallic jambon in the supporting cast. But the dice are too stacked for this to be taken seriously. When the chief baddie both stutters and slaughters puppies, you know you're in trouble.
Film review: Bonded by Blood
Yet another Brit-gangster film version of the Rettendon Range Rover murders; this is as shoddy and cliched as the rest of them, writes Xan Brooks Just as the American western had its Gunfight at the OK Corral, so the British crime flick has the Rettendon Range Rover murders of December 1995, in which a trio of drug dealers were shotgunned to death on the back roads of Essex. This is the third film to revisit the scene, scampering in the wake of Essex Boys and Rise of the Footsoldier, trampling the evidence underfoot as it sniffs excitably at a pungent mess of gangster cliche. Tamer Hassan, king of the British B-movie, stars as the thuggishly avuncular Pat Kane, who dons various outfits as he wades from triumph to disaster. Here he is, resplendent in regulation knitwear as he tosses a snivelling grass over the prison railings. There he is, modelling a natty bathrobe as he hurls his girlfriend down the steps of their bungalow. And here he is again, poignantly swaddled in a heavy car-coat as he drives through the snow to meet his Waterloo.
Cove star stages protest over Japanese dolphin hunt
Ric O'Barry, who appeared in the Oscar-winning film, delivers petition signed by 1.7 million people to US embassy in Tokyo The star of an Oscar-winning film about dolphin hunting in Japan delivered a petition to the country's US embassy calling for an end to the practice. Ric O'Barry, 70 – who appeared in The Cove and trained dolphins for 1960s TV show Flipper – was flanked by police and dozens of supporters carrying banners. The petition was signed by 1.7 million people from 151 countries. O'Barry had hoped to deliver it to the Japanese fisheries agency but cancelled the plan after threats from a nationalist group with a history of violence. The Cove, which won this year's Oscar for best documentary, shows fishermen from the town of Taiji who scare dolphins into a cove before killing them slowly by piercing them repeatedly. O'Barry said: "I'm not losing hope. Our voice is being heard in Taiji." The annual hunt in the town began on Wednesday, but boats came back empty. The government allows the hunting of around 20,000 dolphins a year and argues that killing them is no different from breeding cows and pigs for slaughter. Most Japanese have never eaten dolphin meat and, even in Taiji, it is not consumed regularly.
Liz Hurley and Hugh Grant attend a bread fest. Crumbs!
Do they have to go to a launch to eat? Don't they have any friends? And so to what I believe might be referred to as a crowd-sourcing exercise, wherein Lost in Showbiz readers are asked to isolate and send in the week's single most brimstone-beckoning clause in British showbiz news. To start the ball rolling, this week's hails from the Daily Mail, which in the course of some confected snippet about Hugh Grant and Liz Hurley (pictured) casually mentions the pair were "at a party to mark the opening of a fashionable new London bakery". Do let's see that again: "at a party to mark the opening of a fashionable new London bakery". Did you ever? A bakery? Fashionable? Launched with a party? Don't these people have actual friends, or, come to that, access to cake that doesn't involve dressing up and whingeing about photographers? Scanning through this week's slew of PR invitations – every one of which is routinely moved unopened to the trash folder, so feel free to stop sending them – Lost in Showbiz discovers that it was actually invited to said soiree, and wishes only that life was like a fairytale, and that it was empowered to turn up at such events and put all other guests to sleep for 100 years. In the absence of such supernatural gifts, the Twataclysm of the Week contest will have to do. I will be in rehab for the next fortnight, but expect a slew of suggestions on my return.
Iranian film-maker Jafar Panahi banned from Venice film festival
Golden Lion winner denied the right to leave Iran to attend this year's festival despite being released from jail The Iranian film-maker Jafar Panahi has been denied the right to attend this year's Venice international film festival. Due to open the short film section of the festival with The Accordion, his request was refused by officials in Tehran. Imprisoned earlier this year while making a film described by Iranian culture minister, Mohammad Hosseini, as "anti-regime", Panahi was released on bail in May following a two-week hunger strike and international outcry. But his freedom does not appear to extend to the right to promote his work elsewhere. "Despite having been released, I am still not free to travel outside my country to attend film festivals," the director explained. "When a film-maker is not allowed to make films, he is mentally imprisoned. He may not be confined to a small cell, but he is still wandering in a larger prison." This is not the first time Panahi has been conspicuously absent from international events. A member of the jury panel for this year's Cannes film festival, his seat was left deliberately empty by officials when incarceration kept Panahi from his duties. Accepting the best actress award for her role in Certified Copy, a film by Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami, Juliette Binoche condemned the Panahi's imprisonment: "His fault is to be an artist, to be independent." She described the government's treatment of Panahi as "an attack on art". A winner of Venice's top film honour, the Golden Lion, for his 2000 film Circle, as well as the 1995 Camera d'Or at Cannes, Panahi is an active participant in international film dialogue. In a statement to festival officials, he expressed his gratitude to fellow film-makers: "In the most desperate moments of my imprisonment ... I drew courage thinking of myself as a proud member of this community." Screened yesterday at Venice, eight-minute short film The Accordion explores the lives of two young street musicians. Filmed in Iran as part of UN-backed project Then and Now: Beyond Borders and Differences, Panahi's work was intended to promote ideas of tolerance and international dialogue.
Kick-Ass 2: are fans in for a long wait?
A sequel to the superhero hit has been greenlit, according to the writer of the original comic book. But doubts have been raised over the film's production schedule Kick-Ass was always rather nicely set up for a sequel, what with that open-ended denouement, so it's hardly surprising that Mark Millar, who wrote the original comic book, has been talking up a second film. Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Millar said the film's success on DVD in the US, where it sold 1.4m units in its first week, meant the project was finally greenlit. "The estimate is that Kick-Ass will do 100 to 150m on DVD based on the American sales, so it'll end up making a $250m (£160m) on a $28m investment," said Millar. "So it should be OK. The sequel's greenlit, we can go ahead and do the follow-up now. The first made so much compared to what it cost, it would be crazy not to." Millar's announcement, however, has been greeted with a degree of scepticism in the blogosphere, not least because Kick-Ass director Matthew Vaughn and screenwriter Jane Goldman are tied up with preparations for X Men: First Class. In a later interview with MTV, Millar said the film was "probably about nine months away from production starting, at the earliest". He added: "Matthew's got to do X-Men: First Class. He just wants to get X-Men done next year, then hopefully we'll just go straight into Kick-Ass 2. That's the plan." All of which sounds a little less concrete. And there's the small matter of Vaughn's comments immediately following Kick-Ass's release, when he seemed to indicate there would probably not be a sequel. Could Millar, who clearly stands to benefit from a second film, be over-egging the biscuit? Probably. Having interviewed him, he's a refreshingly candid chap, saying that film-makers attempting to bring less well-known superheroes to the big screen were "fucked", following the arrival of Kick-Ass's postmodern take. And this is a man who works extensively for Marvel Comics. The truth probably lies somewhere between the two positions. What we do know is that if Kick-Ass 2 does get made, it will likely centre on Dave Lizewski's encounters with a new breed of wannabe superheroes and supervillains, inspired by his adventures. The film will show Hit Girl struggling to lead a normal life, and I can't imagine there not being a prime role for Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Red Mist. Millar said in March that he was planning on writing the second book in April. "The idea of Kick-Ass was: what would happen if people in the real world tried to become superheroes?" Millar told IGN earlier this year. "The second one is: what if people tried to be bad guys as a reaction to the superheroes? Millar adds: "And it's just that simple: The same way these wee guys were contacting each other on Facebook and trying out superhero costumes, what if bad kids started to do this? You've got this horrible Clockwork Orange kind of scenario going on, where these kids are happy-slapping. "They're out there with their mobile phones dressed up as villains doing horrible things to people, recording it and putting it online. And that becoming massively viral all over the world." It's a vivid image that one can imagine working well for Vaughn, if the sequel does end up being made. For me, Kick-Ass was an enjoyably throwaway, fluid and vibrant slice of comic-book silliness, which made great viewing on the big screen. I'd very much like to see a sequel. They'd better get a move on though – Chloë Moretz won't stay 13 forever, and a grown-up Hit Girl would rather defeat the object, don't you think?
Video: Juliette Binoche on Certified Copy: 'We all want to try and be original'
Having taken home the best actress award at Cannes for her role in Abbas Kiarostami's Certified Copy, Juliette Binoche talks to Catherine Shoard about the importance of originality and the fallout from her acceptance speech, in which she highlighted the plight of Iranian director Jafar Panahi, who was jailed for criticising the state
Toronto film festival gets bed bug all-clear
Fears of bed bug epidemic put to rest after authorities declare Scotiabank theatre pest-free Cinemagoers attending the forthcoming Toronto international film festival can do so safe in the knowledge that the bed bugs won't be biting after authorities called in specialists to investigate a health scare. Fears of an epidemic of the minute insects spread after a patron complained of being bitten after watching a film on Monday at the Scotiabank theatre, the event's main venue for press and industry screenings. Exterminators and trained sniffing dogs were brought in overnight and concluded the site was pest-free. "The safety and security of our guests and staff are our number one concern, which is why we took this claim very seriously and acted immediately," said Pat Marshall of Cineplex, which operates the Scotiabank theatre. She suggested similar scares in Manhattan, combined with a heatwave in Toronto, may have caused festivalgoers to panic. "Recent media coverage related to two New York City theatres has caused a flurry of media calls and guest inquiries and unfortunately has lead many people to jump to erroneous conclusions." This year'sToronto international film festival runs from 9 to 19 September.
Film Weekly gets down with SoulBoy and seeks out Secret Cinema
This week, Jason Solomons discovers the heated passion for soul music in the chilly north of England as revealed in SoulBoy, a coming-of-age tale tracing the musical awakening of a young man during the mid 70s. Lead actor Michael Compston, who made his name in Ken Loach's Sweet Sixteen, talks about spending a nervous month perfecting his dance steps. We also have two signed copies of the superb SoulBoy soundtrack to win. Jason also talks to Fabien Riggall, the founder of Secret Cinema, which hosts screenings of classic films in strangely appropriate locations. Ahead of a mystery screening at Alexandra Palace, Riggall discusses the motivation behind Secret Cinema and the growing popularity of experiencing film outside the multiplex. Plus, Xan Brooks joins Jason to review some of this week's other releases, including Dinner for Schmucks, starring Steve Carell and Paul Rudd, and Certified Copy, starring Juliette Binoche.
Carrington: what a carry-on | Reel history
There's an awful lot of clothes shed and souls bared in Christopher Hampton's biopic of the Bloomsbury artist, but precious little is actually revealed Director: Christopher Hampton Dora Carrington was an early 20th century artist. She was connected to the Bloomsbury Set through her relationship with the writer Lytton Strachey. Lytton Strachey (Jonathan Pryce) arrives at Charleston in Sussex for a house party. "Who on earth is that ravishing boy?" he murmurs, looking out of the window. It's not a boy at all, but Dora Carrington (Emma Thompson), wearing trousers and a Prince Valiant haircut. So begins the unlikely romance between one of the most openly gay men in Britain at the time, and a bisexual woman. Not that you'd know she was bisexual from this movie – Carrington's affairs with women have been left out. "I wish I'd been a boy," she sighs to Strachey. "You have such lovely ears," he says, and kisses her. She shoves him away, shouting: "Don't! Stop it! Would you mind not!" "Sorry," he mutters. Ah, posh British courtship. For some reason, she's all over him a few scenes later. Perhaps the line about her ears took a while to sink in. Standing as a large, angry obstacle to Carrington and Strachey's relationship is the artist Mark Gertler (Rufus Sewell), who appears to believe that it's his right to have sex with Carrington because he wants to. She prefers Strachey. "But he's just a disgusting pervert!" protests Gertler. "You always have to put up with something," she says. Meanwhile, Strachey attempts to get out of serving in World War I by becoming a conscientious objector. "Would you care to tell us what you would do if you saw a German soldier raping your sister?" asks the military representative on the tribunal. "I believe I should attempt to come between them," replies Strachey, archly. Which is less funny than the real line he came out with, as his biographer has it: "I should try and interpose my own body." Still, the sentiment is accurate. Strachey was eventually disqualified from service on medical grounds. Strachey and Carrington move to the country together. They both take a lover, Ralph Partridge, and Carrington eventually marries him. Then she moves on to her husband's best friend. All of this is more or less as it happened, but soon there is so much tortured bed-hopping and half-stifled jealousy in the film that there's almost nothing else. Much though the Bloomsbury Set and its affiliates are famed for putting it about, they did occasionally do other stuff, such as writing books or painting pictures. Once or twice, Strachey refers offhandedly to his most famous work, Eminent Victorians. Carrington fiddles around with canvases and brushes. Despite powerful performances by Pryce and Thompson, though, the film's blinkered obsession with the sexual neuroses of Strachey and Carrington soon becomes tiresome. Finally, Strachey, Carrington and their menagerie of lovers move into Ham Spray House in Wiltshire, surely the house with the yuckiest name in England. Maybe Dunroamin was already taken. Amid the opulence, yet more sexual neuroses ensue. By this point, even the most bohemian viewer is probably seeing the virtue of having a nice, sensible, conventional relationship with just one other person. Strachey is soon bedridden with undiagnosed stomach cancer. "If this is dying, I don't think much of it," he snaps, and expires. An accurate quote from the man himself, and some of the best last words in history. Carrington is unable to live without him. She attempts suicide by shooting herself in the heart with a shotgun. The film implies that it worked, rolling credits straight after the gunshot. It didn't. She missed her heart, sustained a horrible wound to her side, and was found by the gardener. Carrington lived for half a day in what must have been awful pain, apologising to her aghast friends through a haze of morphia. So don't try this at home. Really, don't. Drawing extensively on its subjects' diaries and letters, Carrington is certainly an accurate historical movie – but not a particularly revealing one.
Entertainment grade: C
History grade: A–Romance
People
Sex
Death
Verdict
Film | guardian.co.uk
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BBC News - Entertainment & Arts
The latest stories from the Entertainment & Arts section of the BBC News web site.
Carell and Rudd love Brit comedy
Steve Carell and Paul Rudd are avid fans of British comedy.
Sheen enjoys flying with fairies
Michael Sheen has enjoyed his very own Mary Poppins moment.
Gone With The Wind child star dies
Cammie King Conlon, the actress who portrayed the doomed daughter of Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With The Wind, has died aged 76.
Richard Gere injury delays film
Richard Gere has dislocated his shoulder rehearsing a fight scene for his new film The Double.
Jolie turns down Gravity adventure
Angelina Jolie has turned down offers to star in the 3D film Gravity, according to reports.
Cage accountant lawsuit dismissed
A lawsuit in which Nicolas Cage accused his former accountant of mismanagement has been dismissed.
Patton wins the Impossible role
Paula Patton has landed the coveted female lead in the fourth Mission Impossible film.
Styler felt 'spoilt' by film role
Trudie Styler enjoyed playing a glamour puss in Paris Connections - because she got to spend time in her favourite city.
Stallone turned down DWTS invite
Sylvester Stallone turned down an invite to appear on Dancing With The Stars, according to reports.
Drew: Justin's a 'good kisser'
Drew Barrymore says it was easy working with co-star Justin Long - because he's a good kisser.
Wahlberg glad Ferrell wasn't dull
Mark Wahlberg has admitted that he feared Will Ferrell would be boring and grumpy in real life.
Clooney's Farragut comes together
George Clooney is finally going to direct a big-screen adaptation of the political drama Farragut North - more than three years after he announced that he wanted to make the movie.
Portman's 'hyper' ballet training
Natalie Portman added a glamorous touch to the opening of the Venice film festival as she launched her new ballet film Black Swan.
Michael Douglas vows to beat cancer
Michael Douglas has vowed to beat cancer.
Tarantino hails 'eclectic' Venice
Quentin Tarantino has said the Venice Film Festival bill is "one of the most wildest, cool, eclectic line-ups" he's ever seen.
Malek joins Breaking Dawn cast
Rami Malek has said he is "thrilled" to be joining the superstar cast of Twilight.
Styler admits directing dreams
Trudie Styler has her eyes set on being the next Kathryn Bigelow.
Kelly Osbourne eyes up gritty drama
Kelly Osbourne is eyeing up a role in a "gritty drama".
Rodriguez dips into skinny movie
Danny Trejo and Michelle Rodriguez are set to act together again in new indie drama Skinny Dip, according to reports.
N-Dubz Dappy: I'm settling down
Dappy has vowed to tame his wild ways and become a responsible family man.
Johnson cast in Journey sequel
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson will have an adventure like never before as he joins the cast of Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, according to reports.
Julia: 'Randomness' in acting world
Julia Ormond has confessed to experiencing the "randomness and rejection" of being a working actress in Hollywood.
Douglas upbeat over cancer battle
Actor Michael Douglas said he had begun treatment for throat cancer and that his odds of recovery were high.
Taylor Lautner's push-up challenge
Taylor Lautner has been challenged to a push-up contest by the owner of a motor home dealership being sued by the Twilight star.
Jonathan Ross returning to the BBC
Jonathan Ross is to return to the BBC less than three months after his high-profile departure, to host a movie awards show.
Takers grabs top spot in America
Hayden Christensen's new movie has clinched the No 1 spot at the weekend box office in the US.
Brad Pitt narrates Super Bowl film
Brad Pitt has lent his voice to a film about American football, according to reports.
Lynda Carter on Wonder Woman cameo
Lynda Carter has revealed she would only take on a cameo in the new Wonder Woman movie if she feels the role is good enough for her.
Rose Byrne keeps mum over X-Men
Rose Byrne refused to spill the beans on reports she'll be starring in the next X-Men movie as she attended a glitzy tea party in Los Angeles.
Drew and Justin 'have chemistry'
Drew Barrymore and Justin Long have an "amazing chemistry" according to Going The Distance director Nanette Burstein.
I want my career back, says Lindsay
Lindsay Lohan has said she admits making mistakes in the past and "dabbling in certain things".
Jean Reno makes film 'believable'
Jean Reno has insisted he couldn't contemplate taking it easy in stunt scenes for his latest film 22 Bullets, as making his work believable is the most important thing to him.
Gervais on 'serious' TV directing
Ricky Gervais believes TV directors are not taken as seriously as film directors.
Rodriguez gives Spy Kids a 'reboot'
Robert Rodriguez is getting ready to "reboot" his family-friendly hit Spy Kids.
Sharleen Spiteri's movie debut
Sharleen Spiteri is to make her movie debut opposite The Wire's Dominic West.
Shane Meadows hails leading lady
Shane Meadows has said he is shocked at how his protege Vicky McClure failed to land big acting roles.
Don Johnson: Rodriguez is rock star
Don Johnson says filmmaker Robert Rodriguez was "a total rock star" to work with on Machete.
Jerry Hall's movie model training
Jerry Hall has revealed her love of old movies has helped her daughters in their modelling careers.
Paris Hilton arrested over cocaine
Socialite Paris Hilton has been arrested for possession of cocaine after officers stopped the car she was in on a Las Vegas street, police said.
James Bond star backs World Cup bid
James Bond star Daniel Craig became the two millionth supporter of England's bid to hold the 2018 World Cup.
Michelle Rodriguez' Machete warning
Michelle Rodriguez has teased that new movie Machete may disturb some cinema-goers.
Madonna tests Wallis' languages
Madonna tested Annabelle Wallis on her language skills during her audition for WE.
Brad Pitt yearbook photo unearthed
A photo of Brad Pitt sulking about having to make decorations for a school party has been published online for the first time.
Gemma keeps fake nose from film
Gemma Arterton has revealed she has kept the prosthetic nose from her new film, Tamara Drewe.
Maggie Q: I'm inspired by Angelina
Angelina Jolie is Maggie Q's favourite action woman.
Stephen Dorff to 'Carjack' Bello?
Stephen Dorff is in talks to star opposite Maria Bello in the indie thriller Carjacked.
Quentin Tarantino to get 'roasted'
Quentin Tarantino is to feel the heat as he gets 'roasted' by Hollywood icons like Samuel L Jackson and Uma Thurman.
Kim leaves SATC fans in the dark
Kim Cattrall has kept fans guessing about whether there will be a third Sex And The City movie.
The special effect of Ray Harryhausen
In the sitting room of the West London home of Ray Harryhausen, the special-effects pioneer and stop-motion animation legend, there is a shelf that bristles with awards, including the lifetime-achievement Oscar that he was presented in 1991. There are exquisitely crafted bronze figures of some of the most iconic creatures (he prefers the more empathetic term “creature” to “monster”) from 20th-century cinema. And on the coffee table are two mugs of tea, a plate of ginger biscuits and Medusa, one of the stars of the original 1981 version of Clash of the Titans, which was recently remade as a 3-D, CGI extravaganza. “I haven’t seen it. It’s somebody else’s interpretation. They wanted me to get involved [in the remake] but I just couldn’t.” This didn’t stop the film-makers borrowing heavily from Harryhausen’s distinctive vision.
Carrie on cruising
After sitting through Sex and the City 2, all I can say is, bring back the squirting vagina. Fans of the television series will remember the outrageous episode in which Samantha was going through a lesbian phase and got a squirt as unexpected as a jet of water from a clown’s trick flower. That incident summed up the TV Sex and the City at its best: funny, frank and daring. It was a great gynaecological look at the loves and lives of the metropolitan modern girl. Look at it now. What a tame, bland, bloated and tedious thing it has become. It’s all middle-aged and overweight. (It lasts for 2½ hours!) It’s sad and saggy; when it tries to sparkle, you can see its dentures. There are stretchmarks around the lips from the strain of fake smiles.
A mission to entertain
It’s axiomatic that war is 90% boredom. When I was much younger, I couldn’t understand why my grandfather’s most potent memory of D-day was not landing on Sword Beach, but the boredom and uncertainty of the days building up to the great offensive. My book The Junior Officers’ Reading Club was born not under fire in the desert around Basra, but idly passing the time behind a tent in the sprawling Camp Shaibah, tanning on improvised loungers under the Iraqi sun. Even in the intense fighting in Afghanistan, most soldiers will spend long days in sapping routine in primitive, defensive patrol bases (PBs), simply trying to pass the time.
He’ll hit her – and think it feels like a kiss
Stanley Kubrick described it as “probably the most chilling and believable first-person story of a criminally warped mind I have ever encountered”. That’s some commendation, not least from Kubrick, who had a propensity for challenging material, and whose films — Lolita, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining — featured some deliciously warped individuals. The novel was Jim Thompson’s 1952 pulp-fiction classic The Killer Inside Me. Kubrick had employed Thompson as a writer on his crime drama The Killing and his anti-war film Paths of Glory, in the 1950s, but, perhaps surprisingly, didn’t go on to make a screen version of The Killer Inside Me himself. Not even he, though, would have brought Thompson’s novel to the screen with more visceral, gut-wrenching punch — punch being the operative word — than Michael Winterbottom.
The happiness of Sam Taylor-Wood
Sam Taylor-Wood leads the way out on to the roof terrace of her office-cum-HQ close to the Barbican in London and, to her relief, sees that a table has been set. “I’m afraid food is going to have to be involved,” she says, her right hand tracing the curve of her belly. “If I go somewhere and there’s nothing to eat I turn into a complete and panicking wreck.”
Mathew Horne shares his music and comedy choices
After a dizzyingly busy 2009 — when he and his Gavin & Stacey co-star James Corden became so ubiquitous (films, sketch shows, hosting award bashes) that it started to count against them — Mathew Horne is taking it easy. He had to after collapsing on stage during a performance of Entertaining Mr Sloane in the West End. “There was definitely a sense of my body saying, ‘That’s it, no more, you’re going to stop right now!’ ” Horne, 31, says. “I wasn’t going to slow down otherwise.” Recently he played the Culture Club drummer Jon Moss in the well-received TV biopic on Boy George, Worried about the Boy, and is judging a short film competition. “I’ve decided to choose more unique, standalone projects. I’ve been afforded the luxury of being able to be a bit more picky.” Is there the nagging feeling that he will always be remembered as Gavin? “It’s going to be very difficult for anybody to be released from a definitive role like that. So it’s important for me to mix it up now. But I’m not saying Gavin won’t prevail for a long, long time.”
Emma Roberts: what aunt Julia taught me
Emma Roberts is not a fan of nudity. Not her own, anyway. “I would show my back and my butt on camera, but I would never go topless,” says the 19-year-old actress, tween icon and Hollywood heiress (her aunt is Julia Roberts, her father Eric Roberts). “Going topless is so tasteless, and I prefer to leave all that stuff to people’s imagination,” she pronounces wisely, from a secluded restaurant booth in an even more secluded West End hotel. She is kohl-eyed, with dirty blonde and bedraggled hair, and sports a gold Marc Jacobs safety-pin earring, a graffiti-style sleeveless Tibi top and the mock dishevelled mien of a “sk8ter-girl” supermodel. She is tiny. Kylie tiny. And though she has the frame of a sparrow, she has the handshake of a builder.
Battle of the boxset: Curb Your Enthusiasm
Laura Silverman Like the principle of drinking at parties, mixing your shows is a no-no unless you’re Larry David or a youngish Woody Allen. Here, the onscreen Larry creates a Seinfeld reunion to get back with his fictional ex-wife Cheryl. I missed the Nineties sitcom but even I gathered that the interplay between levels of fictional reality was multi-storied genius.
Streetdance 3D and other unlikely smashes
Click here to watch a clip of StreetDance on our new site, thetimes.co.uk
Juliette Binoche and the naked truth
As Juliette Binoche took the award for Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday, she wore a strapless white dress and carried a large sign. The name on it was Jafar Panahi, the Iranian director who has been imprisoned for allegedly making “the wrong kind of films” and is now on hunger strike. Tears filled Binoche’s eyes, and she said: “I hope Jafar Panahi will be here next year.”
Relative Values: John Boorman and his son, Charley
John: We moved to Ireland when I was directing Leo the Last, starring Marcello Mastroianni, in 1970. I’d fallen in love with the Wicklow Hills, just south of Dublin, so my first wife [Christel Kruse, a costume designer] and I started looking around for a holiday home. I’d been living in Los Angeles, but I wasn’t very happy there. We already had four children — Charley was the third, born just ahead of his twin, Daisy — and it soon became clear we weren’t all going to fit into a traditional Irish cottage. An estate agent showed us this Georgian rectory, which was being auctioned the following day in Dublin, and then I just happened to be passing by the agency at the exact moment the sale started. I walked in, sat down and had this sort of out-of-body experience. There were two people bidding for it and one of them was me! Suddenly people were congratulating me and shaking my hand. I paid £21,500 for the house, a lot of money in those days.
A strange kind of action hero
Stage nerves aren’t a Richard Coyle speciality. Into the foyer of the Donmar Warehouse he strolls, 90 minutes from curtain-up, casual as you like. He’s dressed in a grungy check shirt and jeans, mixed with a business jacket, and the ensemble is topped with several days’ beard growth and a gloriously unkempt explosion of curls — a sort of fledgling white man’s afro. A few minutes late, Coyle cheerily lofts the reason, a shopping bag: “New five-a-side ball.”
Classic westerns
1 The radio & TV western: The Lone Ranger (1933-) Like Old West precursors of Batman and Robin, the Lone Ranger and sidekick Tonto kept the wild frontier free of crime across radio, TV and B-movie serials. A fantasy symbol of innocent heroism, this do-gooder later inspired numerous novels, comic books and cartoons.
A beautiful blonde, the CIA and America’s lies about Iraq
Cannes, from what I have seen from afar, has always seemed like the epicentre of surreality. Up close it is, if anything, even more surreal. We arrived on Sunday in a charming seaside town thronged with sightseers, journalists, aspiring actresses scarcely out of their teens, and white guys in linen blazers with tans and mobile phones. But daily this small, easygoing place is transformed, as the pressure of tens of thousands of people buying, selling, watching and writing about fantasy — with some documentary thrown in — grows. Every day the crowds grow thicker, the energy level higher and the fashion sense on the Croisette, the elegant sweep of palm-fringed pedestrian walkway by the sea, more extreme and startling.
Sex and the City: Post-feminist icons, or just a con?
Sex and the City is back on the big screen. After a whopping £280 million box-office haul by the first movie, in which the franchise heroine Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) finally married the swoonsome Big (Chris North), the ladies are back for another blingtastic adventure. This time there’s a week-long spending splurge in Abu Dhabi on the menu, plus a possible romantic distraction for Carrie. And yet, as the franchise that began in 1994 with a newspaper column by Candace Bushnell cruises disgracefully into its twilight years — Samantha (Kim Cattrall) celebrated her 50th birthday at the end of the last movie — what has been its abiding legacy, how has it affected popular culture, and is there life in the old girls yet? Six experts give their opinions.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Valerie Plame-Wilson, the CIA spy who took to the Cannes red carpet
For more than 20 years Valerie Plame-Wilson’s most important professional consideration was to stay below the radar.
Fair Game at Cannes Film Festival
Rolling Stones’ long party: documentary film tells of children
Few albums are as soaked in the mythology of sex, drugs and rock’n’roll as Exile on Main St by the Rolling Stones.
Carlos the Jackal rages at character assassination in film
Carlos the Jackal, one of the most feared international terrorists of the 1970s, took to the airwaves from his French prison yesterday to vent his wrath. His target was not an imperialist plot of the type that the self-styled revolutionary used to combat. He was just upset over his portrayal in a movie biography that was screened at the Cannes festival.
Hollywood director says Britain is now the place to work
Ever since Charlie Chaplin went to California to make his name in silent films, British talent has moved to Hollywood for a chance to prove itself. Almost a century later at least one prominent American film-maker thinks that the tide is starting to turn.
Film News from Times Online
Film News from Times Online
One to Watch: Yellow Wire - Where Is The Summer video
After a two-year hiatus, Ol Beach returns with his a solo project, Yellow
Wire, and a new single, Where Is The Summer?
Richard and Judy's last word in loyalty
What you need to know about Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan is that he
speaks a lot and she mostly listens, says Bryony Gordon.
Gordon Ramsay: 'the level of personal attack is incredible'
Ahead of his new Channel 4 series, the chef tells Benji Wilson why his
recent troubles won't dull his ambition.
Guns N' Roses forced offstage
Axl Rose, the Guns N' Roses frontman, had to be prevented from walking out on
a gig after fans pelted the band with plastic glasses.
Ten wonderful government-issue shorts
Philip Horne surveys public-information films from across the decades
Prom 2010: Prom 62: Gustav Mahler, Jugendorchester/Blomstedt, review
A nimble orchestra and a baritone with a sense of complete emotional honesty. Rating:
* * * *
Corinne Day: 'Be proud of holes in your jumper'
Lucy Davies celebrates the work of photographer Corinne Day, who has died at
the age of 48
Posy Simmonds: writing in pictures
Cartoonist Posy Simmonds' Tamara Drewe has been adapted into an enjoyable film
starring Gemma Arterton.
Perestroika, review
Dir: Sarah Turner; Rating: * * * *
Genre: Thrillers
Jeremy Jehu's round-up of the latest thrillers
Certified Copy, review
Dir: Abbas Kiarostami; Starring: William Shimell, Juliette Binoche; Rating: *
* * *
Strictly English by Simon Heffer: Part Three
In the third of four extracts from his book instructing us on correct written
English, Simon Heffer tackles the language of tabloid exaggeration
Antiques collectors' corner: Picasso pottery
It is possible to purchase your own Picasso and you don't have to be a
multimillionaire to do it.
Dinner for Schmucks, review
Dir: Jay Roach; Starring: Paul Rudd, Steve Carell; Rating: * *
The Switch, review
Dir: Josh Gordon; Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman; Rating: * * *
Foster by Claire Keegan: review
Sameer Rahim on a melancholy, lush collection of short stories: Foster by
Claire Keegan
Blood Rites of the Bourgeoisie by Stewart Home: review
Sukhdev Sandhu relishes a delightfully scurrilous anti-novel, Blood Rites of
the Bourgeoisie by Stewart Home
A Page in the Life: Will Self
Tim Robey goes to LA Fitness with Will Self, to discuss the author's new book
about Los Angeles
Zero History by William Gibson: review
Ed Cumming finds a subsonic buzz in William Gibson's novel Zero History
Everything is Broken: The Untold Story of Disaster Under Burma's Military Regime: review
Simon Scott Plummer on Everything is Broken by Emma Larkin, an account of the
troubles under Burma's Military Junta
Human Chain by Seamus Heaney: review
Nobel Prize-winner Seamus Heaney's latest collection has an other-worldly
aura, says Nick Laird
Chopin: Polonaise-Fantaisie Op 61; 2 Nocturnes Op 62; Andante spianato and Grande Polonaise Op 22; 12 ?tudes Op 10
Nelson Goerner (piano). Rating * * * *
Korngold: String Quartets Doric String Quartet
Doric String Quartet. Rating * * * *
Marc-André Hamelin: 12 ?tudes in all the minor keys; Little Nocturne; Theme and Variations
Marc-André Hamelin. Rating * * *
Respighi: Concerto in modo misolidio; Fontane di Roma
Olli Mustonen (piano), Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, cond Sakari Oramo.
Rating * * * *
Arts news, reviews and previews: culture, movies, music, theatre, books and TV
The latest arts, culture and entertainment news from the Telegraph. Your source for arts, movies, music, theatre, books and TV reviews and previews.
Helena Bonham Carter and Colin Firth's The King's Speech has a real Oscar chance
A movie about the personal agony of how the Queen's parents coped with the Abdication Crisis is expected to become a major contender at the Oscars in March.
Ultimate Big Brother 2010: Ulrika and Nasty Nick kiss as they recreate Endless Love duet
The recreation was part of the housemates' Retrospective shopping task, in which they are reliving important moments from the last 10 years.
How Demi keeps showing us Moore (... and Moore and Moore and Moore!)
Ever since the popular Twitter phenomenon began, she and her husband, fellow actor Ashton Kutcher, have used the internet site to share often excruciatingly intimate details of their home life.
Robbie Williams and new wife Ayda step out for first time since their wedding
The newlyweds, who tied the knot on August 7th, went out for a romantic meal at Mayfair restaurant Locanda Locatelli last night, holding hands and looking loved-up.
Kat Von D steps out with Sandra Bullock's ex Jesse James
After being spotted holding hands earlier in the week, Sandra Bullock's ex-husband Jesse James and girlfriend Kat Von D have made their first public appearance as a couple.
Dinner for Schmucks: Why is Steve Carell wasting his talents in this movie?
Along with Freddy Got Fingered, Guest House Paradiso and Sex Lives Of The Potato Men, Dinner For Schmucks is one of the worst films I've ever seen.
Diary Of A Wimpy Kid review: Pint-sized, but a giant pain
Greg, the hero, isn't wimpy - he's cocky, selfish, disloyal and obsessed with status. He even frames his best friend and steals one of his favourite games.
The Switch: Jennifer Aniston proves to be her own best friend
The Switch is an amiable heart-warmer, and that is enough to put it way ahead of most Hollywood comedies this year.
Paul Connolly's TV and Radio Week: Come Dine With Me is overcooked
Come Dine With Me, at least for the time being, is no longer the reality show it's acceptable to enjoy, despite the fantastically acerbic commentary of Dave Lamb.
Jonah Hex: Go West - and keep on going as Megan Fox shows she's one of the worst actresses on the planet
Jonah Hex is a unique mixture of horror story, comic strip and Western. You won’t have seen anything like it.
That’s because almost everything is wrong with it.
Vanessa Feltz still eating cupcakes despite having gastric band fitted
She's publicly admitted having a gastric band fitted in a bid to beat the bulge - but Vanessa Feltz seems to have forgotten an important rule in her weight loss battle.
Emmy Awards 2010: British actress Archie Panjabi triumphs
Encouraged by her mother, Archana 'Archie' Panjabi refused to listen. She has now won an Emmy.
As Hugh Grant hits 50, we track down Divine Brown - the LA hooker with whom he wrecked his image and lost Liz Hurley
Divine Brown doesn’t look anything like a hooker these days. She still has the big lips Hugh Grant found so alluring. But she has a baby, a fiance and a pretty home.
Scott Pilgrim Vs The World review: Too clever for its own good but deserves to be a big hit
It's the old romcom story - boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy fights to win back girl. But it's steeped in pop culture, especially video games, rock and comic strips.
Grown Ups review: It's enough to make a grown man weep
If you thought writer-producer-actor Adam Sandler would never stoop lower than Little Nicky, here's the unwelcome proof that you were wrong.
TV&Showbiz | Mail Online
All the latest celebrity news, gossip and pictures from the world of Showbusiness
The Girl Who Played With Fire, Scott Pilgrim vs The World, Grown Ups and Diary Of A Wimpy
HOLLYWOOD must be wishing the recent Swedish versions of Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy would quietly disappear as it gears up for production of its own adaptations, starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara.
The Girl Who Played With Fire film review and trailer
IS THERE anyone left who hasn't read Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy?
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World film review and trailer
SCOTT Pilgrim Vs. The World is a film you either love or hate. I didn't love it.
Grown Ups film review and trailer
WE ALL know that most men are just little boys at heart.
Diary of A Wimpy Kid film review and trailer
EVERYBODY wants to make a good impression at school.
Dog Pound film review and trailer
THE inescapable circle of violence and abuse in the old British borstal system was memorably laid bare in Alan Clarke's brutal film Scum more than 30 years ago.
The Leopard film review and trailer
LUCHINO Visconti's majestic epic The Leopard is one of the great glories of European cinema in the Sixties.
Review: The Expendables, Salt, Piranha 3D and Marmaduke
IT MUST great to be Sylvester Stallone. While the most fun available to the average sexagenarian is a free bus pass and cheap theatre tickets, Sly, 64, gets to reunite all his old muscular muckers in The Expendables, a slam-bang action movie shot in sizzling Brazil. Suddenly that senior citizen winter fuel allowance is not so hot.
Salt film review and trailer
ANYTHING Jason Bourne can do Angelina Jolie can do better.
Daily Express :: Film Feed
Simply The Best 7 Days A Week
Now the theatre can come to you
An often-voiced frustration from around the country comes from would-be theatre goers who might read of some outstanding new production opening in London, but are prevented by distance from attending performances.
Opera preview
THERE'S a chance to be interactive when English National Opera launches its autumn season with its first Opera Preview on Friday in the Sky and Balcony Bars of the Coliseum.
Review: Le Cirque Invisible, Queen Elizabeth Hall, South Bank, London SE1
IT WAS THE best news I had read in a very long time. "We have no metaphysical messages or cultural theories, " boasted Jean Baptiste Thieree and Victoria Chaplin in their programme notes.
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
THIS year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, now in its 64th year, is the biggest edition yet of the world's biggest arts festival, with nearly 2,500 shows crammed into a three-week span that ends tomorrow, so when I saw 25 shows over four nights and five days last week, I saw a mere one per cent of the output.
The Merry Wives Of Windsor: Shakespeare's Globe, London
I HAVE always loathed this Shakespearean potboiler, dashed off to satisfy Elizabeth I's whim to see Falstaff "in love" on stage.
Darling Of The Day: Lost Musicals, Ondaatje Wing Theatre, The National Portrait Gallery
BASED on Arnold Bennett's play The Great Adventure, Darling Of The Day is a remarkable example of a misfiring masterpiece.
Caledonia, King's Theatre, Edinburgh International Festival
IT WAS a time when unfettered greed swept the land. A moment of folly when idle speculators put their trust in the promises of bankers who vowed to make them rich beyond their wildest dreams.
OPERA: Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin and Gergiev/LSO Scriabin/Stravinsky
FROM THE start, director Dmitri Tcheniakov sets out to overturn hallowed memories of Bolshoi Opera's traditional Eugene Onegin and it's not surprising his production created a furore when first seen in Moscow in 2006.
DANCE: Xander Parish in Chopiniana
YORKSHIRE-BORN Xander Parish, 24, is creating British theatrical history.
Review: Into The Woods, Sister Act and Billy Elliot - The Musical
THE London theatre is whistling many a happy tune this summer, even if the weather isn't always matching it.
Daily Express :: Stage Feed
Simply The Best 7 Days A Week
Hilton 'to pay back film investors'
Paris Hilton may have to pay 160,000 US dollars to investors in her 2006 movie Pledge This.
Chris Brown at top of US charts
Chris Brown has hit the top of the US RnB chart, less than two years after assaulting his ex-girlfriend Rihanna.
Brendan Fraser wins Broadway role
Brendan Fraser and Denis O'Hare are to star in a stage version of the comedy Elling.
Michael Jackson estate appeal set
Michael Jackson's father Joe will appear in court next month to argue he deserves a role in his son's estate.
Two more housemates to be booted out in double eviction
Two housemates will be booted out of the Big Brother house tonight in a double eviction.
Perry plans post-wedding silence
Katy Perry and Russell Brand won't be talking about their relationship once they get married.
Lionel Richie eyes Robbie duet
Lionel Richie has revealed he would like to duet with Robbie Williams.
Carell and Rudd love Brit comedy
Steve Carell and Paul Rudd are avid fans of British comedy.
Brandy: Career won't help on DWTS
Brandy wants Dancing With The Stars fans to know she hasn't got any advantage over the rest of this year's line-up.
Saunders to pen Spice Girls musical
The Spice Girls musical will get an absolutely fabulous plot - courtesy of writer Jennifer Saunders.
Williams to switch on Illuminations
Robbie Williams is due to perform the switch-on of the world-famous Blackpool Illuminations.
Two more housemates face the boot
Two housemates are to be booted out of the Big Brother house in a double eviction.
Gone With The Wind child star dies
Cammie King Conlon, the actress who portrayed the doomed daughter of Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With The Wind, has died aged 76.
Emmerdale's Ryan Lamb says he hopeless with the ladies
As jailed Ryan Lamb in Emmerdale, he is kept under close watch by his glamorous prison warden.
Janet Jackson talks about life after Michael
We all remember where we were when we heard the news. In Janet Jackson’s case, she was at home in New York about to start shooting the sequel to the hit film Why Did I Get Married? The date was June 25, 2009. She was preoccupied, focused and slightly nervous, but above all excited.
Kelly Brook poses in 'revolutionary bra' as her 'naked month' extends into September
Kelly Brook has boosted her assets with what is claimed to be the world's most technologically advanced bra.
Single TV presenter Julia Bradbury reveals she is desperate for a baby but fears it may be too late
Her TV career is going from strength to strength but self-confessed commitment-phobe Julia Bradbury is desperate for a baby.
Kelly Brook flashes her boobs in 'world’s most technologically advanced bra' by Ultimo
Curvy Kelly Brook flashes her assets in what one British lingerie firm claims is the world’s most technologically advanced bra.
Katy Perry wants to become a British citizen when she marries Russell Brand
Katy Perry has been gushing over the new love of her life – and it ain’t Russell Brand.
Cheryl Cole reveals her joy her marriage is finally over as divorce from Ashley Cole is finalised today
Cheryl Cole has spoken of her joy that her marriage will finally end today, saying: “Thank God the nightmare is over”.
Kimberley Walsh chatted up by Usher and Jason Derulo
Kimberley Walsh gets all the fun. As presenter on Viva's Suck My Pop, the Girls Aloud lovely is chatted up by US smoothies Usher and Jason Derulo.
3am's Clocked: Annie Lennox and Liz Hurley
Annie Lennox tucking into satay and stir fry at Awana, in Chelsea... Elizabeth Hurley browsing through the racks at Dolce&Gabbana, in Piccadilly...
Kate Hudson isn't looking to marry Muse's Matt Bellamy any time soon
They might be rock's new king and queen, but Kate Hudson isn't looking to marry Muse's Matt Bellamy any time soon.The actress, who was once hitched to Black Crowes rocker Chris Robinson, said: "It's definitely not something I'm looking for. I'll just see what happens." But Kate, 31, did tell Elle: "I do believe in love. I believe that when you really open yourself up to love, it's the most beautiful thing."
Mel B tweets pic of her gold leaf cleavage - pic
Mel B is taking a leaf out of Demi Moore's book by constantly tweeting pictures of her cleavage.
Peaches Geldof looks super cool in faux fur, bowler hat and shorts
Peaches Geldof looks like the cream of the crop in this get-up.
Nando's feasts awaits Sean Paul and Akon at Nelson Mandela gig
Sean Paul and Akon are to perform in front of Nelson Mandela in Zimbabwe on Saturday - and they won't go hungry.
Naomi Campbell sets tongues wagging with a rounder than usual-looking tummy
Is it just the light or has Naomi Campbell got tum-thing to tell us? The supermodel's tummy looked rounder than usual at the Venice Film Festival with boyfriend Vladimir Doronin. Perhaps she's got a taste for pick and mix like us!
BBC and ITV agree to avoid X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing clash
The BBC and ITV have finally ended their ratings war between Strictly Come Dancing and X Factor.
Transformers actress Rachael Taylor 'accuses ex of assault'
Transformers actress Rachael Taylor feared her violent lover would kill her during a year of physical, verbal and mental abuse, court documents claim.
Richard Madeley fills in on This Morning after Eamonn Holmes gets stuck in traffic
Richard Madeley ended up presenting his old show, This Morning, for five minutes yesterday.
mirror.co.uk - Home - Celebs
Read today's News Headlines at the home of the Daily Mirror Newspaper - get the latest breaking News, Sport and Celebs updated throughout the day at Mirror.co.uk.
Chantelle and Preston's Ultimate Big Brother 'fix'
LOVEBIRDS Chantelle Houghton and Preston were last night accused of "fixing" the show so they both make next Friday's final.
Ultimate Big Brother: Anthony goes in to date Makosi
ANTHONY has made a surprise visit to the Big Brother house to share a date with Makosi.
Eastenders
THERE are many qualities for which EastEnders has won a place in our hearts over the years.
Digging for Britain
IN the penultimate programme, Dr Alice Roberts heads to Bamburgh, on the north-east coast, where generations of Anglo Saxons once lived.
Britain's ugliest models
SEVENTY-eight-year-old character model Prince Albert sets out this week to become the world's most pierced man.
Ultimate Big Brother suicide fear for Chantelle
PALS of Big Brother babe Chantelle Houghton fear she will consider suicide again if Preston breaks her heart a second time.
Makosi shows why she's Ultimate Big Brother's African Queen
ULTIMATE Big Brother favourite Brian Dowling got to grips with former winner Sophie Reade during a dinner date.
Coronation Street: Michelle Keegan's fear of going live
CORONATION STREET sex kitten Michelle Keegan says she fears she will ruin the soap's live episode.
Eastenders: Janine Butcher weds Ryan Malloy
HAS someone finally made an honest woman of Janine Butcher?
Emmerdale: Eve Jenson and Carl King kiss
TEMPTRESS Eve Jenson soon sinks her claws into Carl King.
Daily Star :: TV Feed
Simply The Best 7 Days A Week
Plain White T's to illuminate Blackpool with Robbie Williams
CHICAGO rockers Plain White T's can't wait to help Robbie Williams switch on Blackpool's illuminations tonight.
Chris Martin unveils new Coldplay song
CHRIS Martin unveiled a new Coldplay song at the launch of Apple's latest range of iPods this week.
Labrinth set to wow JLS
LABRINTH has given JLS a sonic make-over on their highly anticipated second album.
Gig review: Robert Plant at One Mayfair, London
SINCE Led Zeppelin split in 1980, Robert Plant's road has constantly been the one less travelled. Not for him the cash cow tours of Rod Stewart or Elton John.
Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus duet
AW, don't they grow up fast? Here's wee Justin Bieber, 16, singing his socks off to fellow tween starlet Miley Cyrus at his Madison Square Garden gig in New York.
Ironik's Jessica Lowndes 90210 joy
BRIT hip-hop star Ironik is challenging N-Dubz and Tinie Tempah for US domination by hooking up with a 90210 hottie.
Katy Perry bonds with Russell Brand's mum
KATY PERRY is so comfortable with her future mother-in-law that she already calls her Mum.
Hayley Hasselhoff strikes a sexy pose
THE sexy fruit of David Hasselhoff's loins struck her best glamour girl pose as she arrived at USA OK! magazine's birthday party.
Brigitte Nielsen's John McCririck horror
BRIGITTE NIELSEN refused to go back into the Big Brother House because she couldn't stand to be under the same roof as John McCririck.
Mark Ronson's Daisy Lowe regrets
DJ Mark Ronson has admitted dating model Daisy Lowe, 21, was a big mistake.
Daily Star :: Celebrity Feed
Simply The Best 7 Days A Week
Review: Jonah Hex (15) - Megan Fox chops it up
ONE more comic book hero erupts on the big screen when James Brolin's hideously scarred soldier Jonah Hex seeks violent vengeance against John Malkovich for the murder of his family.
Review The Switch (12A) Aniston back at her best
JENNIFER ANISTON follows where Jennifer Lopez's artificial insemination comedy The Back-up Plan deservedly flopped.
Review: Hex
Hex 2/5
Review: The Switch
The Switch 3/5
Review: The Girl Who Played With Fire
MAKE an appointment with a manicurist.
Review: Scott Pilgrim vs The World
YOU will never have seen a fight scene like this before.
Review: Piranha 3D
NOBODY goes to a trashfest expecting to see next year's Oscar-winning performance.
Angelina Jolie is mesmerising in Salt
ANGELINA Jolie may lack the muscle of Matt Damon's Jason Bourne but she more than makes up for it in feline agility in this -pulse-racing espionage thriller.
Review: The Sorcerer's Apprentice (PG) - Wizard stuff!
MASTER sorcerer Nicolas Cage moans that he hasn't eaten in a decade.
Review: The Sorceror's Apprentice (PG) - A call to charms
FEW people get to indulge their private obsessions like Nicolas Cage.
Daily Star :: Movie Reviews Feed
Simply The Best 7 Days A Week
Mad Men returns: Has the high-rolling, thrill-seeking lifestyle portrayed in the TV hit really run out of puff?
THE slow pouring of cocktails in the office, the lighting of cigarettes, the extramarital carousing of elegantly dressed advertising executives in hats, and ah, the mixed feel
Festival ticket sales boom? It's all show
ORGANISERS of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe have admitted inflating its box office numbers by including thousands of free shows in the ticket sales figures.
Joyce McMillan on theatre: Three factors truly arresting Citizens' development
Shuffling the top brass at the Glasgow institution might improve its fortunes, but there are also deeper questions of funding and public interest all theatres must address
US honour for songwriter Don Black
British songwriter Don Black, known for tracks such as Born Free and Michael Jackson's Ben, is to be honoured by the US music industry.
TV review: Waterloo Road
Waterloo Road
BBC1
Theatre review: Fly Me to the Moon
THEATRE
FLY ME TO THE MOON ****
ORAN MOR, GLASGOW
Edinburgh International Festival review: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra: Mahler 3
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra: Mahler 3 *****
Usher Hall, Edinburgh
Edinburgh International Festival review: Ars Nova Copenhagen
Ars Nova Copenhagen ***
Queen's Hall, Edinburgh
Bill Jamieson: Bliss of a happy operatic ending
A traditionalist until now, this new contemporary opera has changed my views, writes Bill Jamieson
Edinburgh festivals face cash crisis as SNP can't commit to Expo Fund
SCOTLAND'S culture minister has refused to guarantee the future of a scheme which has supported dozens of home-grown productions at Edinburgh's festivals over the last
The Stig's Top Gear job hits break down lane
The BBC has slammed the brakes on racing driver Ben Collins's career as Top Gear's The Stig following their High Court battle, according to sources.
Analysis: Free and paid admissions are two different things
WHEN it comes to measuring audiences, there is no international standard or strict criteria as such.
Ross 'left BBC due to negative press'
Jonathan Ross said the "sheer volume of negative press" he was attracting to the BBC was one of the reasons he quit the corporation.
Interview: Jean Reno, actor
Jean Reno has developed a theory about Avatar. "Do you realise that when you watch it, it's what you've been doing since the beginning of going to the movies? Whe
One hundred not out for concert season that simply won't lie down
One of the most touching photographs I know is that of Sir Henry Wood standing among the ruins of the Queen's Hall in London soon after it was bombed in May 1941.
Jim Gilchrist: Honour to the memory of the unsung hero who could forgive but not forget
"UNSUNG heroes" was a phrase much exercised in reports of last month's 65th anniversary of VJ Day, and in particular the fate of the men of the Lanarkshire Yeomanr
TV review: Nature Shock: Killer Squid | The Deep
Nature Shock: Killer Squid
Five
The Deep
BBC1
Edinburgh International Festival review: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
ROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA ****
USHER HALL, EDINBURGH
Edinburgh International Festival review: James Crabb
JAMES CRABB ****
THE HUB, EDINBURGH
Edinburgh International Festival review: Steven Osborne
STEVEN OSBORNE *****
Queen's Hall
Scotsman.com News - Entertainment
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2010 FIFA World Cup
- "The Champions" Painting by Paul Junior Kasemwana
- Spaniards Adorned with Medals and Trophy
- Iniesta Celebrates his World Cup Winning Goal
- Stekelenburg Shows his Dejection
- Arjen Robben closes down Xavi Hernandez
- Sergio Ramos Missed Header Opportunity
- Iker Casillas saves Arjen Robben shot
- Navas and Van Bronckhorst Battle for the Ball
- Spain Celebrates 1-0 Victory
- Posing with World Cup Trophy
- Top Marks for South Africa's World Cup
- World Cup Firsts Recap
- History of the FIFA World Cup
- Vuvuzela: Symbol of the 2010 World Cup
- At Last Americans Becoming Soccer Fans
- FIFA World Cup Trivia
- World Cup Soccer Can Have Political Impact