All Articles by Bill Graham

FANTASTIC FEST 2011 Signature Events and Additional Films

Posted: September 20th, 2011 at 2:04 pm

Sometimes it seems like film festivals can’t keep from brimming over with content. Last year held very few surprises at Fantastic Fest, besides being awesome and having four secret screenings that remained truly secret. This year, Fantastic Fest keeps adding more content and actually announcing it. Oh, and we have two secret screenings and possibly more content on the way. Scott Wampler and I are going to be busy bees covering the event. Stepping back a bit though, the genre festival also loves throwing events, and lots of them. How many film festivals can you recall that actually invites attendees and non-attendees alike to come celebrate and embrace the absurdity that genre films often entail? Austin’s annual film festival, co-created by Alamo Drafthouse creator Tim League, goes above and beyond to celebrate the madness and this year is no different. Among the events are karaoke, debates followed by boxing matches, horror film feuds pitting America versus the rest, parties, a film-inspired prom, superhero carnival, and much more. Drinking is encouraged, but with responsibility of course. Hit the jump for the full details including the two most recent film additions.

STRAW DOGS Review

Posted: September 16th, 2011 at 7:14 am

Remaking a well-known film can leave you with many problems. If you stick too closely to the original, the audience will call you on it and more than anything, the film’s twists and turns can become predictable bores. Luckily for director Rod Lurie, he chose to remake a film that has a strong cinemaphile profile but never caught on with the mainstream crowd back in 1971: Straw Dogs. Sam Peckinpah’s controversial little film on violence and the nature of man starred Dustin Hoffman, yet never caught on, only raking in $11 million worldwide. What this means is that despite only changing the setting from England to the redneck South of the United States, Lurie’s tale can exist as a wholly new experience for the average filmgoer. However, your appreciation for that may be tempered by the controversial parts largely being in tact. Hit the jump for my full review.

Exclusive: DRIVE Director Nicolas Winding Refn on Flunking Driving Tests, Practical Effects, and WONDER WOMAN

Posted: September 15th, 2011 at 6:17 am

I recently had the great privilege to sit down with Nicolas Winding Refn, the director of one of my favorite films of the year, Drive. As with most of my interviews, my goal is to try and find out new things and not have him rehash the same thing he has answered numerous times. You have a limited amount of time, and likely one go, so why not ask something you don’t already know the answer to? So, that’s exactly what I did. Along the way Refn spoke about the fact that he doesn’t have a driver’s license, his reasoning for going with practical effects, and how his fetish with Wonder Woman came about. So hit the jump to read what he had to say.

WARRIOR Review

Posted: September 9th, 2011 at 7:13 am

The performances and well-choreographed fights are the main event of Warrior, a mixed martial arts drama that delivers counter-punches to the numerous cliches that continuously crop up. Raw emotion and rare truths are explored in this flawed film helmed by writer-director Gavin O’Connor. Equal parts testosterone-filled entertainment and a story of redemption and forgiveness, Warrior has a curious based-on-a-true-story feel. The film isn’t shy about giving you a story, clocking in at 139 minutes, and it’s that devotion to plot and background that will help it cut open a broader audience than the standard fight drama. There are hurdles to overcome as an audience, but the reward is a gritty bit of truth in an unlikely and fun package. Hit the jump for my full review.

Has Craig Gillespie Left PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES? [Updated]

Posted: August 30th, 2011 at 9:16 am

Despite the living dead being hotter than ever, zombies are having a tough time coming to the silver screen. The film adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s bestselling mashup, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, once seemed like a sure thing. Yet that simply isn’t the case anymore. The project has started and stalled repeatedly over the last few years, beginning in December 2009 when Natalie Portman first announced she would both produce and star in the film. Enter a long list of potential directors, and Portman dropping out of the role last October, and things started to become hazy. Then Craig Gillespie (Fright Night) came on board as director in April and things finally seemed to be heading in the right direction. Now, all of that seems to be in question again. Sigh. Hit the jump for full details and more.

[Update: Reps for Lionsgate have emailed us saying that Gillespie is still attached to direct.]

GRIFF THE INVISIBLE Review

Posted: August 19th, 2011 at 7:26 am

No matter how strange you may think your interests are, there are likely other like-minded people out there. Griff The Invisible explores this notion in one of the quirkiest ways possible, focusing on how we can perceive our own world differently until we are snapped back to reality. Although the film might be called a superhero film by some, it really defies that description. Griff, played by Ryan Kwanten, may run around in spandex here and there, but this film is really about his personal journey and not his crime-fighting at night. Griff has to come to grips with the world when he is confronted with Melody, an equally odd spirit that doesn’t mind standing out against the mundane. As their lives mix, it is up to them to lean on each other for support against a world that only wants them to conform. For the rest of my review, hit the jump.

FINAL DESTINATION 5 Review

Posted: August 12th, 2011 at 4:34 am

Sometimes you get what you want. If you have been a fan of the previous entries in the Final Destination series, the fifth entry is ready to prove that this franchise hasn’t given in to death just yet. A sequel like this one could feel like more of the same, yet the magnificence of going over the top with ridiculous deaths is half of the charm of the series. People are going to die, in a certain order, but the other appeal is that you never know what is going to get them and when. At least, that should be the setup, and that’s exactly what Final Destination 5 gets right. Director Steven Quale and screenwriter Eric Heisserer embrace the inevitability of the deaths, but don’t telegraph the how. Along the way we are treated to two outstanding set pieces, even more deaths, and pleasing use of 3D where it counts. The film plays as more black comedy than horror, but there are cringe worthy moments that don’t involve the gore. Hit the jump for my full review.

THE LION KING 3D Conversion Images Show Off Depth of Field; Stereographer Robert Neuman Talks About the Process

Posted: August 9th, 2011 at 6:38 pm

Disney’s The Lion King will release into theaters this year in a new 3D format for the very first time on September 16th. The film was a childhood favorite of mine, and every time I hear “The Circle of Life,” I get goosebumps. Needless to say, I look forward to viewing the film on the big screen, something I may have done when I was little but can’t recall. However, I do wonder how a film from the ’90s will hold up, animation wise, and how a 3D conversion of it will fare on the big screen.

Today, Disney sent over some images showing just what the conversion process entails, including adding notes of depth and then using filters to key in on what will be in the foreground, background, and everywhere in between. The process is a lot more difficult than this, but it gives us a great idea of what the process entails on a basic, easy to understand level. Hit the jump to view those images, including a description of what we are looking at, a discussion with the stereographer Robert Neuman about the procedure itself, and my impressions of the scenes they showed before Cars 2.

Exclusive Interview With SARAH’S KEY Author Tatiana de Rosnay

Posted: August 2nd, 2011 at 3:30 pm

A few weeks ago I had the great pleasure of sitting down with bestselling author Tatiana de Rosnay to speak about her novel Sarah’s Key being adapted into the Kristin Scott Thomas feature film that is expanding over the next few months. She went on a press tour to promote the movie, and as she mentions in my exclusive interview, she wouldn’t be doing it if she wasn’t proud of the film. Of course, there is a lot to be proud of as I thought the film was incredibly well-made and affecting. The film and the book interweave story lines of a modern day journalist investigating the Vel’ d’Hiv Roundup for an article and a young Jewish girl in the 1940s that lives through the experience. Those stories intersect in a morose way that changes the journalist’s life forever. Among the topics de Rosnay and I discussed were her involvement in the film, whether she likes to read the book before seeing a film, the different boldness in the novel that sets Sarah and Julia’s stories apart, when she realized the book had become a hit, and a touching case of life imitating art. For the audio and full transcript, hit the jump.

SARAH’S KEY Review

Posted: July 29th, 2011 at 8:34 am

Mixing historical realities with a fictional modern discovery is a difficult combination to pull off. Writer/director Gilles Paquet-Brenner is helped along by thrilling source material that is based around a little known event in France’s grim times under the occupation of Nazi control in the heat of World War II. Sarah’s Key is bolstered by an engrossing turn by Kristen Scott Thomas and a swift kick of an ending that will leave audiences with sincere emotion. The film also keeps much of what made Tatiana de Rosnay’s novel so alluring with the back and forth between the present and the past, and the result is pulled off with absolute confidence. Hit the jump for my full review.

Comic-Con 2011: THE DIVIDE Review

Posted: July 29th, 2011 at 8:19 am

What hasn’t been explored in the post-apocalyptic genre before? Ponder that before you jump into another film in that genre and you will realize how hard writers and directors have to work to just make something memorable. Luckily for The Divide, making a memorable experience is something they have achieved. The question is, will you want to remember your experience? That’s exactly what I thought over after leaving the basement of a bar where the screening too place last Friday in San Diego. Hit the jump for my full review.

Casting Call: David Oyelowo Joins PAPER BOY, Lee Pace Cast in LINCOLN, Cody Horn Added to END OF WATCH

Posted: July 28th, 2011 at 11:18 am

Casting is a year round event, and today we have three new casting details to provide. Director Lee Daniels (Precious) has picked up David Oyelowo (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) for his film The Paperboy, while Lee Pace will join Steven Spielberg’s period drama Lincoln. Not to be outdone is Cody Horn, who will join End of Watch with the writer of Training Day, David Ayer, at the helm. Daniels has made quite a few casting changes, with actors dropping in and out. However, it seems this may be the final trio of male actors for the film before production begins. As for Lincoln, everything is fitting in place for a nice film, with Daniel-Day Lewis in the role of Lincoln. For more on each of these films and the actors just cast, hit the jump.

Comic-Con 2011: NIKITA Panel Recap; Maggie Q Demonstrates Climbing Up Tall Guys and First Footage of Season 2

Posted: July 26th, 2011 at 8:47 am

At this year’s Comic-Con, The CW held a panel for their hit show, Nikita, and it was an absolute riot.  They showed a brief teaser for the next season, as well as a music-infused highlight reel of the biggest moments of season one.  Oh, and star Maggie Q demonstrated how she climbs up tall guys in the show to knock them out…on an attendee.  Yea, things got crazy.  Hit the jump to check out my full recap of the panel and a preview of Nikita season two.

Comic-Con 2011: Dominic Cooper Talks THE DEVIL’S DOUBLE, CAPTAIN AMERICA, and ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER

Posted: July 26th, 2011 at 7:52 am

At Comic-Con, I had the great pleasure to sit down with Dominic Cooper one-on-one to talk about his upcoming film, The Devil’s Double. Although I haven’t seen the film myself, I have heard his portrayal is phenomenal. Because we were at Comic-Con, though, we started off talking about what he thinks about all of it and then jumped into the film. We really dug into his dueling roles as Latif Yahia and Uday Hussein and how it was shot. Along the way we also talked about his experience on Captain America: The First Avenger (he plays Howard Stark), the upcoming Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, and how it was to work with director Timur Bekmambetov. Hit the jump to check out the full audio and a complete transcription of my interview.

Comic-Con 2011: THE SECRET CIRCLE Pilot Screening and Panel Recap

Posted: July 26th, 2011 at 7:31 am

CW’s newest supernatural series, The Secret Circle, had a fun-filled pilot screening Saturday night in Room 6BCF. Despite a line that wrapped out of the building and by some nether-region of the San Diego Convention Center, I was shuffled through the doors in time to sit down and immediately soak the screening in. I’ll be upfront now, though: CW shows usually aren’t my thing. However, by the amount of catcalls and swoons, I can see that they have clearly worked out a niche market and aren’t going to stop in the near future. Following the pilot screening, we were treated to an all-too-brief Q&A with the stars and crew. Hit the jump for my thoughts on the pilot and a recap of the panel.

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