Antonio Banderas

HAYWIRE Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 19th, 2012 at 3:01 pm

Men are taught (or at least they should be taught) to never hit a woman.  The lesson is based on the assumption that women are physically weaker and don’t have the strength to defend themselves (also, hitting people isn’t very nice in general).  But what if the woman can not only hit back, but her job is to hit back and she knows how to hit back harder than anyone?  In Steven Soderbergh‘s Haywire, mercenary Mallory Kane (Gina Carano) is that woman, and Soderbergh is unapologetic about having her hit in return.  The film forces us to confront our convictions about the fragility of women, and where that belief comes from.  Is the movie a blow for equality in showing that women can take and dish out a beating like a man?  Is a woman’s physicality always sexual?  Haywire doesn’t have easy answers to these questions, but it has no problem asking them under the cover of a badass European flavored action-thriller.

Antonio Banderas Talks HAYWIRE and the PUSS IN BOOTS Sequel; Wants to Direct, Produce, and Star in Sci-fi Project SOLO

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: January 12th, 2012 at 9:10 am

With director Steven Soderbergh’s spy-action pic Haywire opening January 20th, this past weekend I got to sit down with most of the cast to talk about making the movie.  Starring MMA fighter Gina Carano as a burned spy who takes revenge against her handlers, Haywire also stars Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, and Bill Paxton.  I’ve seen Haywire twice now and it’s fantastic.  On top of Carano’s star-making performance, the action scenes are some of the best I’ve seen in years.   It’s absolutely something you should see in a theater.

During my interview with Banderas we talked about how he got involved in Haywire, his feelings on not being involved in more of the action scenes, karaoke, his home recording studio, and what’s up with the Puss in Boots sequel.   In addition, he talked about a sci-fi project that he’s developing (called Solo) which he would direct, produce and star in.  Hit the jump to watch.

3 Movie Clips and 37 Images from Steven Soderbergh’s HAYWIRE

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: January 7th, 2012 at 6:00 pm

With director Steven Soderbergh’s spy-action pic Haywire opening January 20th, we’ve been provided with three clips and almost forty images from the film.  Staring MMA fighter Gina Carano as a burned spy who takes revenge against her handlers, Haywire also stars Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, and Bill Paxton.

I’ve seen Haywire twice now and it’s fantastic.  On top of Carano’s star in the making performance, the action scenes are some of the best I’ve seen in years.   It’s absolutely something you should see in a theater.  Hit the jump for the clips and images and look for my exclusive video interviews with the cast next week.

New Trailer for Steven Soderbergh’s HAYWIRE Starring Gina Carano

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 4th, 2012 at 4:25 pm

A new trailer for director Steven Soderbergh’s spy-action pic Haywire has gone online. The movie centers on a burned spy (MMA fighter Gina Carano) who takes revenge against her handlers. Soderbergh has surrounded Carano with a stellar ensemble of familiar faces (including Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, and Michael Douglas), and the action scenes here look absolutely brutal. This new trailer delves a bit more into the plot, and it’s actually a tad spoiler-heavy by way of revealing a couple of the deaths that take place onscreen. Soderbergh’s an incredibly interesting director, and I’m intrigued to see how he handles a film this action-heavy  so it’s safe to say I’m anticipating Haywire quite a bit.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer. The film also stars Channing Tatum, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, and Bill Paxton. Haywire opens January 20th.

New Posters for THE AVENGERS and HAYWIRE

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: December 20th, 2011 at 9:54 am

New posters have gone online for The Avengers and Haywire.  Marvel seems to be taking a page from Warner Bros’ Harry Potter playbook by churning out as many character posters as possible between now and the arrival of the movie.  We’ve already seen the character banners, but now Marvel is disassembling these banners into individual posters.

There’s also a new poster for Haywire and it shares the same eye-catching design as the previous one-sheets.  It even makes the actors’ face-boxes look cool.  Hit the jump to check out the new posters.  Haywire opens January 20, 2012.  The Avengers opens in 3D on May 4, 2012.

New Trailer for Steven Soderbergh’s HAYWIRE

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: November 10th, 2011 at 9:44 am

A new trailer for Steven Sodebergh‘s spy-action flick Haywire has gone online.  The film stars MMA fighter Gina Carano as a burned spy who takes revenge against her handlers.  The new trailer again sells the basic concept: here’s a woman who’s really hot, and she’ll hit you so hard that all of your progeny will feel pain.  The plot looks like standard spy-movie fare, but it appears that Soderbergh is setting his movie apart by embracing the brutality of the fight scenes between Carano and her male co-stars, and questioning how far the audience is willing to go when it comes to seeing a woman getting hit even though she’s holding her own in the fight.

Hit the jump to check out the new trailer.  The film also stars Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, and Bill Paxton.  Haywire opens January 20, 2012.

Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek PUSS IN BOOTS Interview

by Christina Radish    Posted: October 28th, 2011 at 8:18 am

In Puss in Boots, the adorable little creature with the deep voice who became a fan favorite in the Shrek films gets to go on his own adventure. A notorious fighter, lover and outlaw, Puss (Antonio Banderas) sets off with the tough and street smart Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek) and his childhood best friend Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis), in search of magic beans to grow a beanstalk that will lead them to the fabled goose that can lay golden eggs. Making things rather difficult for them is the notorious Jack and Jill (Billy Bob Thornton and Amy Sedaris), who will do anything to see that the trio does not succeed.

At a press conference for the film, Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek talked about how lucky and proud they are to be a part of the film, working without a script ahead of time as the story was developed along the way, and how the got the unusual opportunity to do a voice recording session together. Check out what they had to say after the jump:

PUSS IN BOOTS Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 27th, 2011 at 12:30 pm

Puss in Boots is an adventure movie, but the advertising and the film’s first act would like you to believe otherwise.  The filmmakers can’t be held responsible for DreamWorks Animation’s marketing campaign, but they can take the blame for setting up their movie as an action-comedy before choosing to drop the jokes and shifting into a rote adventure film that takes no chances, makes dated references, and short-changes its title character.  Ironically, the technical aspects of the movie are full of passion, but the story is as soulless and calculated as they come.

New Extended Clip from PUSS IN BOOTS

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 26th, 2011 at 11:48 am

DreamWorks Animation has released a new five-minute clip from Puss in Boots.  I love the intro because watching Antonio Banderas try to dance while talking to a fake digital cat is hilarious.  As for the clip, it shows off the strong start to the movie where it’s balancing humor and action, plus it shows off the terrific animation and fantastic score.  While I’ll have my full review up on Friday, people should know that Puss in Boots drops most of the comedy after the first act and becomes a straight-up adventure movie.  This extended clip shows a good part of the movie, but only the animation and score stay strong throughout the film.

Hit the jump to check out the clip.  Puss in Boots opens in 3D this Friday.

THE SKIN I LIVE IN Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 14th, 2011 at 5:45 am

[This is a re-print of my review that ran during the Toronto International Film Festival.  The film opens today in limited release.]

Never doubt Pedro Almodóvar. He may not deliver a movie you like, but it will probably be a movie unlike any you’ve seen that year. With his latest film, The Skin I Live In, he slow plays the audience. He introduces a slightly off-kilter world, but you can wrap your mind around it. When the film gets melodramatic, you’re slightly amused but you know that Almodóvar is no stranger to that tone. Then the movie gets a little slow, a little redundant, and dare I say a little pedestrian. And then The Skin I Live In starts building to something. You tell yourself…”No…that’s not going to happen. That’s too fucking crazy. He wouldn’t—” and then the film hits you with a twist that’s narratively sound, thematically fitting, and will leave you picking your exploded brain off the floor.

Antonio Banderas Talks THE SKIN I LIVE IN and PUSS IN BOOTS

by Christina Radish    Posted: October 12th, 2011 at 7:34 am

From Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar, The Skin I Live In is a story of extreme revenge. Ever since his wife was burned in a car crash, eminent plastic surgeon Dr. Robert Ledgard (Antonio Banderas) has been obsessed with creating a new skin that could have saved her. After years of study and experimentation, he needs a human guinea pig – one whom no one will miss.

At the film’s press day, actor Antonio Banderas spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about the genesis of this project, what it was like to reunite with Pedro Almodovar after more than 20 years since their last film together, what it was like to play such a cold and emotionless psychopath, and working on set with such an oppressive mood, in telling this very layered and complex story. He also talked about getting to explore his lighter side for Puss in Boots, and how he hopes his bad boy cat gets a franchise of his own. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

Final Trailer and Poster for PUSS IN BOOTS

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 6th, 2011 at 7:29 am

After getting bumped up from November 4th to October 28th, Puss in Boots now has a final trailer and poster.  While I didn’t even bother with Shrek Forever After, I’m getting pretty psyched for the spin-off.  The trailers have been funny and charming, the story looks fun (Puss goes off to find the Goose that Lays the Golden Eggs), and there’s no cynical ogre and his irritating donkey sidekick in sight.  The new poster isn’t as good as the one with Puss walking away from an explosion, but it gets the job done.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer (which still says the movie is coming out November 4th, but they clearly cut it before the date was changed) and poster.  The film features the voices of Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Zach Galifianakis, Amy Serdaris, and Billy Bob Thornton.

New Images From DreamWorks Animation’s PUSS IN BOOTS

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: September 29th, 2011 at 9:13 am

DreamWorks Animation and Paramount have released a number of new images from director Chris Miller’s Puss  in Boots.  Featuring the voices of Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Zach Galifianakis, Billy Bob Thornton and Amy Sedaris, Puss in Boots takes place before the events of Shrek.  Here’s the synopsis:

“Long before he even met Shrek, the notorious fighter, lover and outlaw Puss in Boots becomes a hero when he sets off on an adventure with the tough and street smart Kitty Softpaws and the mastermind Humpty Dumpty to save his town.  This is the true story of The Cat, The Myth, The Legend…The Boots.”

I got to see the opening of the film earlier this year and walked away very impressed by the footage.  Of course, it might have something to do with Guillermo del Toro…as he executive produced the film.  Hit the jump for the new images.  Puss in Boots gets released November 4.

TIFF 2011: THE SKIN I LIVE IN Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 10th, 2011 at 12:59 pm

Never doubt Pedro Almodóvar.  He may not deliver a movie you like, but it will probably be a movie unlike any you’ve seen that year.  With his latest film, The Skin I Live In, he slow plays the audience. He introduces a slightly off-kilter world, but you can wrap your mind around it.  When the film gets melodramatic, you’re slightly amused but you know that Almodóvar is no stranger to that tone.  Then the movie gets a little slow, a little redundant, and dare I say a little pedestrian.  And then The Skin I Live In starts building to something.  You tell yourself…”No…that’s not going to happen.  That’s too fucking crazy.  He wouldn’t—” and then the film hits you with a twist that’s narratively sound, thematically fitting, and will leave you picking your exploded brain off the floor.

PUSS IN BOOTS Is the Most Interesting Cat in the World

by Jason Barr    Posted: September 9th, 2011 at 4:41 pm

It’s no secret that modern animated films seek to attract audiences young and old alike. As it goes, parents can take their kids who will almost undoubtedly love “Animated Movie A” while trusting that the more adult humor and themes will go over their heads. More times than not, at the end of the day, it’s a win-win-win (kids, parents, studios) situation.

All of this in mind, DreamWorks is unabashedly reaching out to its adult ticket buyers with a new Puss in Boots promo that parodies Dos Equis’ “World’s Most Interesting Man” commercials. It’s a clever idea that I think is worth checking out after the jump. Directed by Chris Miller (Shrek the Third) and starring the vocal talents of Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Zach Galifianakis and Billy Bob Thorton, Puss in Boots opens later this year on November 4th.

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