Coming off of last year’s magnificent Moonrise Kingdom, writer/director Wes Anderson is currently in the midst of filming his highly anticipated follow-up, a period film called The Grand Budapest Hotel.  Plot details for the pic have been hard to come by thus far, but we know that it takes place in 1927 and centers around the goings-on at a Hungarian hotel.  Now a full synopsis has landed online, revealing that the central story involves a legendary concierge and a young employee who becomes his trusted protégé, with a litany of other fascinating plot points taking place at the titular hotel.  Given that Ralph Fiennes and Saoirse Ronan are leading the stellar ensemble, one assumes they will be playing the concierge and protégé.

Hit the jump for more, including the full synopsis and news regarding the film’s release date.  The pic also stars Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, Jude Law, Tilda Swinton, Jeff Goldblum, and Willem Dafoe.

Opening this weekend is writer/director Andrew Niccol’s adaptation of The Host, a sci-fi novel from Twilight author Stephenie Meyer.  The Host centers on Melanie Stryder (Saoirse Ronan), a human girl who attempts to escape alien invaders but is captured and implanted with a parasite known as a Soul.  As Melanie’s consciousness fights against the Soul for possession of her own body, the two must work together in order to protect their loved ones in either species.

During a recent interview session, we sat down with Ronan to talk about The Host, how she compared to her character in real life, how she made her role as Melanie distinct from that of the Soul named Wanderer, co-starring with Max Irons and Jake Abel, receiving input from Meyer and signing on for possible future films.  Ronan also commented on her work in Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel, which she recently wrapped on, and looking forward to Ryan Gosling’s directorial debut of How to Catch a Monster, which should begin filming within the month.  Hit the jump to watch the interview.

The first set photos and video from Wes Anderson‘s Grand Budapest Hotel have leaked online.  Details about the film are scarce, but we know it takes place in 1927 in a Hungarian hotel and has Ralph Fiennes and Saoirse Ronan in the lead roles. Plot details are scarce, but the movie is reportedly in the vein of the films of Billy Wilder (The Apartment) and Ernest Lubitsch (The Shop Around the Corner).  The impressive cast also includes Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson, Jeff Goldblum, F. Murray Abraham, Jude Law, and Mathieu Amalric.  In addition to showing off the setting, the images also show us the colorful costumes (I like the purple coats) and Goldblum’s commanding facial hair.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  Grand Budapest Hotel should arrive some time next year.

Opening this weekend is director Steven Soderbergh’s psychological thriller Side Effects.  Written by Scott Z. Burns (Contagion, The Informant!), the film is about “a successful New York couple (Rooney Mara and Channing Tatum) whose world unravels when a new drug prescribed by Emily’s psychiatrist (Jude Law)—intended to treat anxiety—has unexpected side effects.”  The film also stars Catherine Zeta-Jones.

At the recent Los Angeles press day I landed an exclusive interview with Jude Law.  During our wide ranging conversation we talked about old projects like Gattaca, eXistenZ, and A.I., how he got involved with Side Effects, what it was like to work with Soderbergh again, how he prepares for a role, and more.  In addition, we also talked about future projects like Sherlock Holmes 3, the new Wes Anderson movie The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dom Hemingway, Queen of the Desert, his thoughts on the comic book genre and whether he’s interested in doing one, and a lot more.  Hit the jump to either read or listen to the interview.

Coming off of 2012’s splendid Moonrise Kingdom, writer/director Wes Anderson is putting the pieces together for his next feature, Grand Budapest Hotel.  As usual with Anderson’s films, plot details are scarce, but we do know that the story takes place 85 years ago and centers on the troubles and tribulations of a hotel concierge played by Ralph Fiennes.  As production gears up to begin, word now comes that one of Anderson’s recent collaborators will be joining the project: composer Alexandre Desplat.  Hit the jump for more details.

Wes Anderson has never had much problem lining-up impressive ensembles for his movies.  Even his earlier movies have great casts albeit less famous ones.  In a recent interview with THR, Anderson revealed his next film, Grand Budapest Hotel, will have one of his best casts to date.  First, Anderson confirmed Ralph Fiennes, Bill Murray, and Saoirse Ronan were in the flick (Fiennes and Ronan are the leads).  But they’re only a small part of the large cast.  Anderson will reunite with Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel, Tilda Swinton, and Jason Schwartzman. Owen Wilson might also have a small role.  The movie will also include Jeff Goldblum, F. Murray Abraham, Jude Law, and Mathieu Amalric (Quantum of Solace).

Hit the jump for more.

Wes Anderson has been gathering a great cast for his upcoming film, The Grand Budapest Hotel.  He’s brought back regulars Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman, added new faces with Ralph Fiennes, Jude Law, and now another welcome addition has joined the picture.  Variety reports that Oscar-nominee Saoirse Ronan is set to play the female lead in the period picture, which takes place in 1927 in a Hungarian hotel (the title is not misleading). Plot details are scarce, but the movie is reportedly in the vein of the films of Billy Wilder (The Apartment) and Ernest Lubitsch (The Shop Around the Corner).  Filming is set to being in Germany early next year.

Ronan is a terrific addition to any cast due to her versatility, and I’m eager to learn more about her role in Anderson’s movie.  Ronan is also attached to lead the historical drama Mary Queen of Scots, and she’ll next be seen in The Host, which opens March 29, 2013.

Let’s get to a couple of casting announcements, shall we?

• Ryan Reynolds (Green Lantern) is reportedly circling The Voices, a psychological thriller directed by Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis) from a Black List script by Michael R. Perry (Paranormal Activity).
• Ralph Fiennes (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2) is in talks to join director Wes Anderson’s Europe-set picture, The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Hit the jump for more on both actors and films.

Last week we got confirmation that Bill Murray and Angela Lansbury will be appearing in writer/director Wes Anderson’s next film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, but at the time it was assumed that the majority of the rest of the cast was already firmed up.  Johnny Depp had long been reported as the star of the film, but Anderson has now revealed that Depp will not be in this next feature.  Speaking with Huffington Post, Anderson said that though he’d love to work with Depp at some point, the actor won’t be appearing in The Grand Budapest Hotel.

The Moonrise Kingdom filmmaker went on to caution that “the Internet has a way of announcing things on its own,” adding that you’ll never find him actually saying who’s in the movie.  Murray, Lansbury, and Jude Law have all confirmed themselves that they’re in the pic, and it’s been reported that Edward Norton and Owen Wilson are also set to appear.  Details are scarce, but we know that The Grand Budapest Hotel takes place in Europe and will be filming in Germany.

Writer/director Wes Anderson’s wonderfully entertaining Moonrise Kingdom remains one of the best films of 2012, and now the aesthetically inclined filmmaker is already gearing up to start shooting his next feature.  We learned in July that he was courting some big names for his new film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and recently it was confirmed that Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Edward Norton, and Owen Wilson would definitely be joining the cast.  Now we have confirmation that frequent collaborator Bill Murray and Murder She Wrote legend Angela Lansbury will also be a part of the ensemble.  Hit the jump for more.

About a week ago, we heard that writer/director Wes Anderson was eyeing a top-notch ensemble cast for his next untitled feature, with stars like Johnny Depp, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Edward Norton, Jude Law, Jeff Goldblum, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe and Angela Lansbury apparently being eyed for roles.  Though the exact status of each actor’s involvement was unclear at the time (it’s safe to assume Murray and Wilson will definitely be onboard), we now have confirmation that at least one of those actors is officially involved: Johnny Depp.  Hit the jump for more.