Vera Farmiga

SAFE HOUSE Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 9th, 2012 at 10:25 am

There’s no problem with delivering a solid action thriller that doesn’t reinvent the genre, but Safe House goes through the motions without an ounce of creativity or flavor.  It’s the bare minimum of what an action movie should be and marches through gunfights and car chases because that’s what the genre requires, not what makes the film exciting.  Denzel Washington doesn’t add much by doing a tamer retread of his Training Day performance, and Ryan Reynolds is the film’s redeeming aspect as he tries to bring a little nuance and shading to his character.  But the main fault lays with director Daniel Espinosa, who knows how to make Safe House loud, but not much else.

Vera Farmiga to Play Fleetwood Mac Singer Christine McVie in Dennis Wilson Biopic THE DRUMMER

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 30th, 2012 at 2:55 pm

Development on the indie music biopic The Drummer seems to be heating up. Aaron Eckhart is set to star as Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson in the pic, and now Variety reports that Vera Farmiga will play Fleetwood Mac singer-songwriter Christine McVie. Randy Miller is directing the biopic, which will focus on the last six years of Wilson’s life “during which he and McVie sparked a passionate and tumultuous relationship before Wilson’s death in 1983.” We previously reported that Eckhart would be recording his own renditions from Wilson’s 1977 solo album Pacific Ocean Blue, and Variety’s report indicates that Farmiga will partake in a number of duets with Eckhart in the film. The actress is actually a classically trained pianist.

Eckhart is also executive producing The Drummer, which is slated to begin production in June. Wilson’s children are onboard as co-producers, so one assumes the film will be taking few—if any—artistic licenses. The Fleetwood Mac song “Hold Me”, co-written by McVie, was allegedly inspired by Wilson. Hit the jump to take a listen.

Sundance 2012: GOATS Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 27th, 2012 at 12:26 am

I don’t really care if teenagers learn life lessons anymore.  The coming-of-age genre has become as stolid as the rom-com, but the coming-of-age movies still get a pass because they’re done under the auspices of being indie and artistic.  Goats makes an odd trade-off for the genre.  The movie doesn’t pack its main character full of quirks, but instead of growing as a person, he goes from a mostly-boring kid to a completely-boring kid.  All the quirks are for the one-dimensional characters who have almost no impact on his life.  The only fascinating thing about Goats is the values it preaches.

Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga in Talks to Join Supernatural Thriller THE CONJURING

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: January 20th, 2012 at 3:23 pm

As last years Insidious was one of 2011’s most profitable movies, New Line is hoping that lightning will strike twice by reuniting director James Wan and Insidious-top liner, Patrick Wilson. Wilson, along with Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air) are in final negotiations to star in Wan’s new supernatural thriller, The Conjuring. Written by Chad and Carey Hayes, the duo would play Ed and Lorraine Warren, a husband and wife team who happen to be demonologists/psychic investigators who come up against the toughest challenge in their career by way of nasty spirits in a Rhode Island farmhouse. Based on the true events of the Perron family in the 1970s, New Line acquired not only the pitch from the Hayes, but also the life rights to the family and investigators. The Conjuring is set to begin production in March in North Carolina. Hit the jump for more on the project.

Sundance 2012: First Images from CELESTE AND JESSE FOREVER, LAY THE FAVORITE, GOATS, and SHADOW DANCER

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: December 5th, 2011 at 4:27 pm

Today, the 2012 Sundance Film Festival announced their premieres line-up. Along with the announcement comes a boat load of images from the films set to be showcased at the fest. After the jump we’ve got images and syonpses from Celeste and Jesse Forever (starring Andy Samberg, Rashida Jones, and Elijah Wood), Lay the Favorite (starring Rebecca Hall, Bruce Willis, and Catherine Zeta-Jones), GOATS (starring David Duchovny, Vera Farmiga, and Ty Burrell), and Shadow Dancer (starring Andrea Riseborough, Gillian Anderson, and Clive Owen).

The 2012 Sundance Film Festival runs from January 19 – 29th.

New Trailer and Images for SAFE HOUSE Starring Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: November 3rd, 2011 at 11:44 am

Universal has released the first trailer for the thriller Safe House starring Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds.  The story centers on a young CIA agent (Reynolds) who must team up with the dangerous criminal in order to survive when their safe house is destroyed by mercenaries.  The trailer goes heavy on the action, but it looks like director Daniel Espinosa (Snabba Cash) has done a great job.  But the biggest hook is the dynamic between Washington and Reynolds.  Few actors have as much fun playing the bad guy as Washington and he clearly relishes flipping between charm and malevolence on a dime.  My only complaint with the trailer is that it shows a little too much, but overall I like what I’m seeing.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer and the larger version of the poster and image released yesterday, plus two new images.  The film also stars Brendan Gleeson, Sam Shepard, Vera Farmiga, Fares Fares, Robert Patrick, Nora Arnezeder, Liam Cunningham, Joel Kinnaman, and Ruben Blades.  Safe House opens February 10, 2012.

Shirley MacLaine Set, Alan Arkin and Vera Farmiga in Talks for Indie THE LOCALS; Nicholas Braun Added to NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH

by Jason Barr    Posted: September 12th, 2011 at 2:45 pm

We have a few bits of casting news to bring your way this afternoon. First up, Shirley MacLaine has signed on to director Sue Kramer’s (Gray Matters) indie The Locals which also has Alan Arkin and Vera Farmiga in talks to join. Per Deadline, The Locals will seek to place the timeless Romeo & Juliet tale in a contemporary setting and will feature a “Jewish/Italian twist.” Kramer penned the script for the film which will be co-produced by her Bella Films moniker alongside Grow Pictures and Curious Pictures. Production on the pic is set to begin in the Bronx this fall.

Next up, Variety reports that Prom‘s Nicholas Braun has been added to director Akiva Schaffer’s (of The Lonely Island and Hot Rod fame) comedy Neighborhood Watch. Braun joins a cast that already includes Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and Rosemarie DeWitt. Watch is written by Superbad cohorts Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and centers on a group of neighbors who, in the process of keeping their streets crime free, find themselves in the middle of a larger conspiracy. The film is due out next summer on July 27th. As for Braun, the young actor also nabbed the lead in Fox’s upcoming comedy Gay Dude and can be seen alongside Paul Rudd, Emma Watson and Logan Lerman in The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

Vera Farmiga and Mark Strong Sign on for CLOSER TO THE MOON

by Phil Brown    Posted: August 9th, 2011 at 10:51 am

Vera Farmiga’s career has really taken off in recent years with the long-underrated actress seemingly appearing in a new movie every month varying from her Oscar-nominated work in Up In The Air to more schlocky fare like The Orphan.  Today Farmiga has signed for her latest role in the rather intriguing-sounding communist bank-robber drama (yep, that’s a genre now) Closer To The Moon. British character actor Mark Strong will play the lead role as a put upon bank robber forced to re-enact his crime for a propaganda film. It’s an incredibly strange, but undeniably interesting concept that could quickly become one of the biggest Romanian films of all time. We know that you’ve all been waiting for that, so today is a day of celebration. Hit the jump for further details.

SOURCE CODE Blu-ray Review

by Kevin Panasiewicz    Posted: July 19th, 2011 at 7:30 am

Source Code is a fast-paced thriller in which the military can transport a soldier into the final 8 minutes of a dead man’s memory to gain access to a crime scene that has come and gone. This time-travelling plot device is more than vaguely familiar, as it is a culmination of concepts previously seen in Groundhog Day, Déjà vu, and the Quantum Leap TV series, but, when blended with a Twilight Zone-meets-Hitchcockian adventure vibe, this effort feels wholly original in a year swamped with sequels.

While not as intellectually compelling as director Duncan Jones’ Moon, it wasn’t designed to be. Where Moon was contemplative of its themes and sported a career-high turn from Sam Rockwell, this strong sophomore effort’s goal was to entertain and excite, and it fully succeeds on both counts. Duncan Jones proves he is still a talent to keep close tabs on. After living its first days on the screenplay blacklist, Source Code now finds itself readily available to the widest audience possible on home video. Hit the jump to read my review of the Source Code Blu-ray.

Vera Farmiga Joins Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds in SAFE HOUSE

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: April 25th, 2011 at 11:09 am

Filming on Daniel Espinosa’s thriller Safe House is well underway (we showed you some set photos from the film back in early March), but the production has just landed another great actor.  Deadline reports that Vera Farmiga has joined the film, which follows a young agent (Ryan Reynolds) assigned to escort a deadly operative (Denzel Washington) to safety after their safe house is attacked.  According to Deadline, “Farmiga will play a CIA operative supervising Reynolds’ character.”  The film also stars Nora Arnezeder, Ruben Blades, Brendan Gleeson, Liam Cunningham, Tim McGraw, Robert Patrick, and Sam Shepard.

Farmiga recently co-starred in Source Code.   She recently signed on to co-star with Michael C. Hall in Love, Scotch and Death. Her directorial debut, Higher Ground, played at Sundance and will hit theaters this summer. Safe House is due out February 10, 2012.

DEXTER Creator to Helm LOVE, SCOTCH AND DEATH Starring Michael C. Hall and Vera Farmiga

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: April 13th, 2011 at 3:39 pm

James Manos Jr., who created the Showtime series Dexter, is poised to make his feature directorial debut with Love, Scotch and Death. The semi-autobiographical film was written by Manos and will star Michael C. Hall and Vera Farmiga. Deadline reports that the story follows a very strange week in the protagonist’s life. Hall’s character returns home from a stressful vacation to find out that his parents have died, leading him on a bizarre path where he encounters “an unsympathetic funeral director, his bewildered children and manic wife, an eccentric priest, and some over-sexed neighbors.”

Filming is scheduled to begin on the independent film this November, after Hall wraps the latest season of Dexter. Manos previously wrote for The Sopranos, winning an Emmy for co-writing the classic first season episode “College.”

Alex Shaffer Interview WIN WIN

by Ron Messer    Posted: April 2nd, 2011 at 8:00 am

Win Win is easily one of the best-reviewed films of 2011.  The film’s success is especially impressive, given that it rests so heavily on the performance of a teenager whose only prior acting experience came in a high school class and a small role in his 6^th grade production of The Pirates of Penzance.  17-year-old Alex Shaffer delivers a strikingly assured film debut opposite three Oscar nominees: (Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan and Burt Young), an Emmy winner (Bobby Cannavale) and a 6-time Emmy nominee (Jeffrey Tambor).  Luckily for the film, which continues its national rollout this weekend in a host of new cities and theaters, Alex wasn’t phased.

Shaffer filled Collider in on how much his life has changed since he went to the fateful audition that he had to be hassled into attending by a friend.  Hit the jump for the audio and transcript of our lively exchange, including stories of why he had a hard time staying awake on set, whether he’d still pick wrestling over acting and which famous actor had him tongue-tied at Sundance.

SOURCE CODE Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: April 1st, 2011 at 9:17 am

With his 2009 film Moon, director Duncan Jones demanded that audiences sit up and take notice of smart science fiction.  Audiences then wondered why everything was so quiet, slow, and moody and became impatient for stuff to start blowing up real good.  For his second feature, Source Code, Jones has made a more accessible sci-fi that delivers on fast-paced action, lots of explosions, sharp dialogue, while still using sci-fi as a means to explore powerful themes about identity and sacrifice.  Even when the story steers towards a forced “happy” ending, it still comes up with enough ambiguity to make the trip worthwhile.

Vera Farmiga Video Interview SOURCE CODE; Plus an Update on GOATS

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: March 28th, 2011 at 9:39 am

Opening this weekend is Summit Entertainment’s sci-fi thriller Source Code.  Directed by Duncan Jones (who previously made the incredible Moon), the film stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga, and Jeffrey Wright.   If you aren’t familiar with the plot, Gyllenhaal stars as a soldier who wakes up in the body of a stranger on a Chicago commuter train and “learns he’s part of a government experiment called the ‘Source Code,’ a program that enables him to cross over into another man’s identity in the last 8 minutes of his life.”  If you’re nervous that Jones was a one hit wonder, don’t be.  Source Code is an intelligent thriller that’s definitely worth your time.  You can read Scott’s review here. I also definitely recommend it.

A few days ago I did video interviews with the cast and after the jump you can watch my conversation with Vera Farmiga. We talked about how she got involved in the project, did she watch Groundhog Day before filming, what kind of flexibility did she have with the script to add her own lines, what’s her karaoke song, and she talks about two upcoming projects: Henry’s Crime and Goats.

Trailer for HENRY’S CRIME Starring Keanu Reeves

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: March 16th, 2011 at 2:57 pm

Moving Pictures has released a trailer for Henry’s Crime, a heist comedy starring Keanu Reeves, Vera Farmiga, and James Caan.  While it’s basically the same trailer that leaked online back in January, we never posted it and now it’s in higher quality.

The story centers on a nice guy (Reeves) who goes to jail for a bank robbery he didn’t commit.  Now released from prison, he enlists his old cellmate (Caan) to rob the bank for real this time.  The film looks cute and it’s nice to see Reeves in an intentional comedy.  Hit the jump to check out the trailer and click here for Steve’s interview with Reeves from when the film played back at the Toronto Film Festival.  Henry’s Crime opens April 8th.

Copyright ©2005 - 2012. All Rights Reserved. California web design