Director Joseph Kosinski speaks exclusively with MTV News about his sci-fi feature. By Amy Wilkinson, with reporting by Josh Horowitz Tom Cruise in “Oblivion” Photo: Universal Pictures
If you’d like one good reason to see Killing Them Softly in spite of its “F” Cinemascore and anemic opening box-office numbers, I’ll give you a great one: Scoot McNairy’s portrayal of the tragi-comic hood Frankie in Andrew Dominik’s contemporary film noir is the kind of breakthrough performance that will stick with you long after the financials are forgotten. Killing Them Softly is studded with top-notch acting — Ben Mendelsohn , Ray Liotta , James Gandolfini and Richard Jenkins also put in memorable turns — but McNairy’s emotionally dexterous performance as the in-over-his-head Frankie is something to behold, particularly in the tense bar scene where he first encounters Brad Pitt’s mob enforcer character Jackie Cogan. (Even novelist and outspoken cinema curmudgeon Bret Easton Ellis was moved to tweet that “Scoot McNairy is now officially on the radar” after the American Psycho author saw Killing Them Softly. ) McNairy talked to Movieline about shooting those pivotal moments with Pitt, his admiration for Dominik (Cinemascore be damned), and his busy work slate. The Texas native can currently be seen in the Ben Affleck -directed Argo, a job that, he says got with the help of Dominik, and also has a few scenes in the Gus Van Sant -directed Promised Land , which opens Dec. 28. Next up, are two films with Michael Fassbender , a trip to Australia to appear in Animal Kingdom director David Michod’s The Rover with Guy Pearce and Robert Pattinson . Movieline: Looking through your credits, I noticed that you’ve done quite a bit of producing as well as acting. Scoot McNairy: Yeah, it’s funny. I got into producing from having done commercials for so long. I was financially stable at the time, and I had so much time on my hands that I just got bored and said I can’t be sitting around. I figured that I could at least be putting together projects or looking for material for me to do. I felt like I should just be generating my own work. Tell me a little bit about yourself. Where are you from and how’d you get into acting? I was born and raised outside of Dallas. I did some theater when I was a kid. I’ve always loved movies. I’ve always been passionate about them. And it wasn’t until I was 18 that I moved down to Austin, Texas and, just for a hobby, started to take these classes at the Dougherty Art Center. One day, the director Alex Holdridge came in to one of the classes and said he was casting the lead of his first film, Wrong Numbers . I stuck around after class and read for it. He called me two weeks later and gave me the part. Nice. I mean, talk about a shoestring budget. We probably made that movie for $2,000, but it got some attention. The film went to the Austin Film Festival and in 2001 won the Grand Jury prize and the Audience award. Through the process of shooting that movie, I fell in love with cinematography. I really thought that I wanted to be a cameraman. And that’s what brought me out to California. I went to film school to be a cinematographer. Where did you go? I went to the Art Institute of Los Angeles, but I only did a year of that. Then, for about nine months to a year in L.A., I worked building sets. When I was younger, my trade was carpentry, and I knew a lot about construction. The guy in the warehouse next to where I worked, Jesus Pedroza, was running a floral business. He and I always hung out on our smoke breaks, and one day, he asked me to bartend at his friend John Pierce’s agency Christmas party. It was a really small boutique agency for commercials. It was $100 or $200 for the night. I needed cash. I took the job. That’s where I met John, who is now my producing partner, my theatrical manager and my personal agent. He said, “Can I send you out?” And I said, “Yeah, sure.” He turned to his friend and said, “This kid will never work, but I like him and I’ll take him on.” I ended up doing about 15 national spots that first year. (Check out McNairy’s first commercial, directed by Mike Mills for Levi’s.) Wow. And that’s when he was like, “You should be doing TV and movies.” So I got into an acting class and really started to hit it hard. I got back into theater and started doing plays in L.A. Still, it was another four years of just doing commercials, and that’s when I had so much time on my hands that I got into producing. Down the line, that led to In Search of a Midnight Kiss . I’d done a second movie in Austin with Alex, Sexless, in 2003 and then he moved to California and we did Midnight Kiss . I was a producer on that and in 2009 we won the Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award. I think that gave me a little bit of credibility as far as an actor. And then I went on to do Monsters , which gave me a little bit more credibility. And then Andrew cast me in Killing Them Softly . He told me, “I’d never seen you, never heard of you.” He cast me from my audition tape.
Terrence Howard joins a slew of stars in a cop caper. Also in Friday’s round-up of news, the weekend is not shaping up to be a kind one for Playing for Keeps at the box office; James Marsden is strolling toward a Walk of Shame with Elizabeth Banks ; Hyde Park On Hudson , In Our Nature and California Solo are among the weekend’s Specialty Release newcomers; and Rubberneck & Redflag head to theaters via Tribeca Film. Terrence Howard Joins Chain Gang in Prisoners Also starring Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Melissa Leo, Viola Davis, Maria Bello and Paul Dano, the film follows a small-town carpenter (Jackman) whose daughter and her best friend are abducted. The cops cannot find them and he takes the law into his own hands. In the process, he comes into contact with a detective (Gyllenhaal) who oozes confidence, Deadline reports . Weekend Box Office Preview: Playing for Keeps Likely a Flop Gerard Butler’s soccer romantic comedy Playing for Keeps with Jessica Biel, Uma Thurman, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Dennis Quaid may only open in the $6 million range, THR reports . James Marsden Strolling a Walk of Shame Marsden will join Steven Brill’s Walk of Shame with Elizabeth Banks. Banks plays a news anchor who has a wild night out and is locked out on the street without money, phone, ID etc and has a series of misadventures while winding a path to the most important job interview of her life, TOH reports . Specialty Release Preview: Hyde Park on Hudson , In Our Nature , California Solo & More Oscar hopeful Hyde Park on Hudson with Bill Murray as Franklin Delano Roosevelt is this weekend’s highest profile debut in the specialty market. There’s also In Our Nature with Jena Malone and John Slattery, and Robert Carlyle headlines California Solo in a role written with him in mind. The late Ernest Borgnine stars in The Man Who Shook The Hand Of Vicente Fernandez in a role that turns the idea of celebrity upside-down, Deadline reports . Rubberneck and Red Flag Head to Theaters via Tribeca Rubberneck revolves around a workplace obsession gone wrong. Boston scientist Paul lusts after a co-worker and though at first it’s polite flirtation at first, things go south when the co-worker begins to date someone else on the job. Red Flag centers on a solipsistic filmmaker takes his independent film on tour. Hoping to escape the pain of his recent breakup. Tribeca Film picked up both films directed by Alex Karpovsky and will be released theatrically in February.
Hugh Jackman is known for his love of a good musical as much as he’s known for his portrayal of the adamantium-reinforced wise-ass Wolverine . So, it’s no surprise that he used a bit of the latter character’s blunt persuasiveness to land the part of Jean Valjean in Les Misérables . At a press conference for the hotly anticipated musical at Claridge’s on Wednesday, Jackman recalled that upon hearing from his agent that a film adaptation of the vaunted musical was in the works, he began to lobby for the part. Director Tom Hooper had barely had the chance to unpack his best director Oscar from The King’s Speech , let alone formally announce his next project, when Jackman called to arrange a meeting. Upon meeting Hooper, Jackman didn’t mince words. The straight-talking Aussie told the British filmmaker: “Mate, I’m going to audition for you,” and persisted with both Hooper and Les Misérables ’ legendary theater producer, Sir Cameron MacKintosh until the deal was sealed. “I’ve dreamt of being in a movie musical for a long time. For some reason I never even thought Les Mis would be possible,” Jackman said. “It was so iconic, the role wasn’t even on my radar.” Once cast, Jackman said that Hooper issued a clear directive to him about his coming portrayal of Valjean: “I want you unrecognizable. If you’re recognizable, I want your friends to think you’re sick,” the director told him. Upon which Jackman lost around 15 kilos (33lb) — more weight than Anne Hathaway shed for her role of Fantine, as the actress pointed out following a New York screening in November — to shoot the movie’s opening scenes as an emaciated prisoner. Jackman later gorged to regain the weight for following scenes, gleefully stating, “That bit was fun by the way!” Jackman insisted that Les Misérables has been the most physically demanding role he has ever tackled. It seems giving Eddie Redmayne a fireman’s lift while wading through the movie equivalent of chin-high sewage (in reality, watery peat), remains a prominent struggle in the then rehabilitated-man-mountain’s mind, “It was very, very cold, and Eddie, a very trim guy, is not a light as he looks, let me tell you! I constantly wanted to call for a double.” Alas, Jackman said, Hooper wasn’t up for that. As a regular performer on the musical scene, the physical requirements of the role were no surprise to Jackman, “It’s weird coming from me, who’s played Wolverine, or has been in other action movies, you’d probably think, ‘at least a musical is going to be easy.’ But anyone who’s done a musical knows; whether you’re dancing or not, physically it’s the most difficult thing you can do. “Singing is incredibly physical. All of those things combined, as well as emotionally and vocally, it’s the most challenging thing, and usually all at once. It’s the kind of thing you want as an actor. You want to feel challenged. It’s good to feel uncomfortable. “I’m really grateful, that’s the overwhelming feeling.” A head-strong actor with a passion for both musical and action genres — does anyone see a hybrid movie on the horizon, The Sound of Mutants perhaps? Les Misérables opens in U.S. theaters on December 25. MORE ON LES MIS: Variety Review: Hathaway’s A Dream But ‘Les Misérables’ Doesn’t Sing Jackman, Hathaway & Co-Stars Are Masters Of The House At ‘Les Misérables’ Premiere Early Reaction: Oscar Race Heats Up As NYC Screening Of ‘Les Miserables’ Prompts Cheers & Tears Follow Movieline on Twitter.
It’s no secret that indie filmmakers can often feel like Bob Cratchit, begging for just a little bit of coal from Scroogy Hollywood so they can keep their creative fire burning. But the multi-platform release, initially frowned upon, has become a boon for indie filmmakers. We’ve already seen Arbitrage with Richard Gere and Lay the Favorite with Bruce Willis hit VOD services at the same time they hit movie theaters, and now Edward Burns’ The Fitzgerald Family Christmas is doing the same. And because of that, Burns tells me his films are turning a profit for the first time since She’s The One . Check out my full interview with actor and filmmaker below, as well as the film’s website to find out if it’s playing at a theater near you when it goes into limited release this Friday, Dec. 7. If not, you can catch it on iTunes, Amazon, or VOD. Follow Movieline on Twitter . Follow Grace Randolph on Twitter .
Most first-time filmmakers don’t have a posse of A-listers filling roles in their films. But then again, most first-time directors aren’t Joseph Gordon-Levitt . The charming actor is taking his turn behind the camera (though he’s also in front) with Don Jon’s Addiction , which will have its debut at the Sundance Film Festival in the event’s Premieres section in January. Sundance didn’t readily have an image from Don Jon’s Addiction available when they rolled out their 2013 lineup late last week and earlier this week, but this one turned up with a demure looking Scarlett Johansson appearing to size-up Josheph Gordon-Levitt (or maybe the other way around) in what appears to be a club? video bar? new age art installation? Also starring Julianne Moore , Sundance did not give too much detail about the film but it will likely be a hot title to watch… One thing is for sure, Gordon-Levitt is having a good run after a year of The Dark Knight Rises (and all the ensuing Batman/Robin Hood rumors), Looper and Lincoln . The minimal Sundance Film Festival description follows: In Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s charming directorial debut, a selfish modern-day Don Juan attempts to change his ways. Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore, Tony Danza, Glenne Headly, Rob Brown.
This Japanese Iron Man 3 trailer has surfaced, and though it doesn’t offer much in the way of new footage, you do get an added glimpse of Pepper Potts ( Gwyneth Paltrow ) getting blown back by the blast of the helicopter attack on Tony Stark’s U.S.S. Enterprise-like home. Although Movies.com points out that that Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige recently went on record saying Iron Man 3 isn’t so much a “serious” film as a serious exploration of Tony Stark’s character, I still think that based upon this new image and the shot of a tortured-looking Pepper in the last trailer, the arc of Paltrow’s character is going to be crucial to the plot . There’s also that moment in the last trailer where Stark ( Robert Downey Jr .) says: “I hope I can protect the one thing I can’t live without.” Even though his use of the word “thing” is unfortunate, you know that’s a speech about Pepper. Oh, and one last non-Pepper point: Unless Marvel is trying to make Ben Kingsley’s indeterminately international Mandarin character intentionally cheesy, it needs to lose that “Heroes–there is no such thing” line from future promotional clips. That’s dialogue more befitting of Austin Powers than Iron Man. More on Iron Man 3: ‘Iron Man 3′ Teaser-palooza! Trailer Foreshadows Pepper Potts’ Peril Marvel Studios Says Iron Man 3 Villain The Mandarin Isn’t Chinese, He’s International Marvel Unmasks New ‘Iron Man 3’ Images [ Movies.com ] Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
There are no movie stars in Brazil. When a local comedy show asked people to list the most famous Brazilians, the top three were Gisele Bundchen, Pele, and Blanka — the green ogre from Street Fighter 2 who got his powers from the bite of an Amazonian electric eel. So far in 2012, not a single Brazilian-made movie has cracked the top ten in the country’s own box office—in fact, to find a domestic hit, you have to go all the way down to the romantic comedy E Ai…Comeu? , which to date has made about half of as many reals as Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked . But Brazil does have soap stars. And at the Amazonas Film Festival in Manaus, Brazil — the heart of the Amazon — soap stars, dozens and dozens of them, all handsome and cheerful and thrilled by their own fame, were the main event. That a film festival celebrates soap stars makes no sense, until it does. One of the major reasons for trekking these TV celebrities out to Manaus is to lure schoolchildren to attend the free festival where, between hooting hellos at their idols, they watch a movie, fall in love with film and kickstart the next generation of Brazilian cinema. The second reason for the soap star deluge is to make the rest of the country pay attention to Manaus. Until very recently, the 2.2 million capital city of the Amazon was only accessible by plane and boat; most of the celebrities in attendance from the southern metropolises of Rio and Sao Paulo had never been there at all. It takes longer to drive from Rio to Manaus than it does to drive from Los Angeles to New York, and the cultural distance between the two is so vast that the TV actors kept insisting to us gringo journalists that Manaus wasn’t even really Brazil, but more like how we think of Alaska. But if Manaus has a lot to prove, they’ve also got the money to do it. In case you haven’t heard: Brazil is rich. And Brazil sets aside .85% of the federal budget to support the arts, while the United States manages a meager .066% — and Mitt Romney still wanted to kill Big Bird. The 2012 Amazonas Film Festival was a lavish spare-no-expenses wonder: Every night one to two movies screened for attendees sitting in the velvet chairs of the Teatro Amazonas, an opera house built in 1896, and every day, the festival hosted trips to waterfalls and rainforests and palaces. One afternoon, everyone trekked to a nature reserve to celebrate as Elizabeth the sloth was rechristened a native name meaning “Beloved by Humans.” There was a fireworks salute, the clinking of goblets filled with Coca-Cola and Guarana soda, and then the DJ spun “Jungle Boogie.” Meanwhile, a concession stand employee fed stray marmoset monkeys like they were pigeons. And unlike Sundance in Park City, Utah, the film festival isn’t even the town’s high point of the year: Manaus hosts a big cultural festival every month for rock, opera, folklore, carnival, jazz, theater, dance, pop music, and even Christmas, which this year will be produced by Disney and aired on national TV. Americans have seen Manaus before, even if they don’t realize it. The Ice Cube and Jennifer Lopez masterpiece Anaconda claims to have been shot there, although none of the locals would admit it. (They should.) So few feature films have been shot in the region that when the fest played A Floresta De Jonathas (aka Jonathas’ Forest — “Jonathas” is not a typo), a trippy slow burn about a teenager lost in the jungle, it was heralded as the first flick filmed there in 10 years. Film nerds can name a third flick from Manaus: Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo , which opens with Klaus Kinksi and Claudia Cardinale leaping from a canoe to dash up the stairs of the grand old Teatro Amazonas, desperate to see Enrico Caruso. But most Brazilians haven’t heard of that movie either, though if you believe a word Kinski wrote in his sex-mad autobiography All I Need is Love , he had to have left behind at least a half-dozen half-Brazilian children. The Teatro Amazonas (pictured at top), where the seven-day film festival was held, looks almost the same as it did when Herzog filmed there in 1982, except for the mime dressed like Charlie Chaplin who stalked the red carpet each night and eagerly leaped in front of every camera. At the opening of the Amazonas Film Festival, the old marble walls — imported from Italy back when the rubber barons of Manaus made it the richest city in the world — buzzed with energy. We American journalists were given headsets that translated the introductory speeches from Portuguese to English, not that they helped us make any sense of the moment when a soap star named Igor, a dead-ringer for Benicio del Toro, stormed the stage uninvited and shouted something loosely paraphrased as, “Thanks for letting me have sex with my girlfriend under a waterfall!” to the Minister of Culture. Then he pulled a pair of sheer black pantyhose over his head like he was about to rob a convenience store, and fled the stage to massive applause. Lost in translation, I suppose. The opening night film, Colegas ( Buddies ) has been sweeping up awards in Brazil. It’s comedy version of Natural Born Killers with a twist — the two gun-toting lovebirds on the run with their best friend all have Downs Syndrome. Plus, the trio, headed by de facto leader Stallone (whose parents named him after their favorite actor) were so bored at their institution for the mentally handicapped that they spent their days memorizing old Hollywood movies on VHS. It’s a Brazilian movie about American movies — even the credits riff off old posters for Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Godfather . When girlfriend Aniha waves a pistol in a fancy Buenos Aires restaurant, she hollers, “Everybody be cool — this is a robbery!” and when she and Stallone snuggle up, he whispers, “Are you trying to seduce me, Mrs. Robinson?” The inevitable Fox Searchlight remake will rake in millions, especially with the built-in controversy of a cast that’s half-disabled. But there was no frisson of exploitation here, though when lead ingenue Rita Pokk literally lowered to her knees onstage to thank the director for allowing her to act, he hastily joined her on the ground. Continued…
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