In Monday’s round-up of news briefs, a quick look at weekend pick ups at the Toronto International Film Festival including The Place Beyond the Pines , Aftershock , Great Expectations and more that will head to a theater (hopefully) near you. Also Beasts Of The Southern Wild takes a top prize at the Deauville Film Festival in France. Focus Features Takes Toronto’s The Place Beyond the Pines The new drama starring Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper and Eva Mendes will be released in the U.S. via Focus Features. Directed by Derek Cianfrance ( Blue Valentine ). A World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, the film explores the consequences of motorcycle rider Luke (Mr. Gosling)’s fateful decision to commit a crime to support his child. The incident renders him targeted by policeman Avery (Mr. Cooper), and the two men become locked on a tense collision course which will have a devastating impact on both of their families in the years following. Toronto’s Great Expectations Heads to U.S. Theaters The Toronto Gala starring Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Jeremy Irvine, and Holliday Grainger, will head to theaters in North America via Outsource Media Group. Directed by Mike Newell, Great Expectations is a retelling of the classic and beloved Charles Dickens story of the young orphan Pip, who is given a chance to rise from his humble beginnings thanks to a mysterious benefactor. Moving through London’s class-ridden world as a gentleman, Pip uses his newfound position to pursue the beautiful Estella, a spoilt heiress he’s loved since childhood. Michel Gondry’s The We and the I Heads to N. American Theaters French director Michel Gondry’s Cannes Directors Fortnight opener The We and the I , which is having its N. American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, will open in theaters in the U.S. and Canada in early March. Distribution partners 108 Media and Paladin acquired the rights to the film that follows a group of Bronx high schoolers who board a city bus on their way home. With summer break ahead of them, and feeling more liberated than usual, this broad array of kids–the cool ones, the outsiders, and everyone in between–act out as only teenagers can and, in the course of one afternoon, their friendships, rivalries, ambitions, and anxieties are revealed. Strand Nabs In the Fog U.S. rights to Sergei Loznitsa’s In the Fog are headed to Strand Releasing. The film follows three men three men who find themselves deep in a forest during World War II and face a moral conflict. It received a FIPRESCI prize in Cannes. The film is currently playing Toronto. Leviathan Heads to Cinema Guild The doc by Lucien Castaing-Taylor will open theatrically in early 2013. The film takes a look at the commercial fishing business in the North Atlantic. It is having its North Americna premiere in Toronto and will have its U.S. debut at the upcoming New York Film Festival. Around the ‘net… Beasts of the Southern Wild, Una Noche Win Top Deauville Prizes Benh Zeitlin’s debut film won the Grand Prize at France’s Deauville Film Festival as well as the Cartier Revelation Award, while Lucy Mulloy’s “day in the life Cuban drama” took the Jury Prize. The International Critics Prize went to Michel Gondry’s The We and the I , THR reports . Dimension Scores Eli Roth’s Aftershock and Clown Dimension picked up rights to Aftershock , which is screening at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is an earthquake thriller scripted by Roth, Nicolas Lopez & Guillermo Amoedo. The label headed by Bob Weinstein also picked up rights to Eli Roth’s Clown , which is based on a fan-made trailer that grabbed Roth’s attention after it went viral, Deadline reports .
Here are Selena Gomez , Vanessa Hudgens , Ashley Benson and Rachel Korine back together in Toronto to promote their film “Spring Breakers”. For this post, we’re going to focus on Selena because clearly the others didn’t get the Hollywood Tuna memo. No cleavage, no love. It appears to me that Selena’s young and wild little chesticles are trying to escape from that sexy leopard print dress. They need to be tamed. And guess what? I’m the perfect guy to be their handlers.
Back in the day at the 1994 Source Awards, Tupac allegedly dissed A Tribe Called Quest, and the beef was on. The urban legend is that ATCQ, who are members of the Zulu Nation, were ready to step to the late rapper after he infamously cut off their acceptance speech for the Artist Of The Year Award… Continue
Halle Berry was seen at the Toronto Film Festival and Alicia Keys attended some shows at New York’s Fashion Week. Out of these two lovely ladies… Who Looked More Bangin??? WENN/SplashNews
‘As a person, I couldn’t stand by,” the actor tells MTV News about his involvement with Toronto film fest documentary about murders, ‘West Of Memphis.’ By Kat Rosenfield Johnny Depp at the “West of Memphis” premiere in Toronto Photo: Jason Merritt/ Getty Images
‘Anyone who’s a die-hard’ Kerouac fan will love the updated version, KStew tells MTV News at the Toronto film fest. By Kat Rosenfield Kristen Stewart Photo: MTV News
If there is any disappointment or bitterness that The Master was set to receive the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival today, only for the top prize there to be “re-assigned” due to a rule limiting the number of awards one title can receive, then director Paul Thomas Anderson did not show it this afternoon at the Toronto International Film Festival where the film is having its North American premiere. Anderson along with actress Amy Adams and producer JoAnne Sellar spoke with reporters at the festival along with TIFF co-director Cameron Bailey. “It was amazing what happened in Venice. Philip [Seymour Hoffman] was able to go over there because Joaquin [Phoenix] and I have duties over here at this festival,” said Anderson. “And, it was amazing what they gave us. The best part was that they gave [awards] to both of the boys.” Anderson acknowledged that he was aware of the apparent controversy, but said he was satisfied with the prizes The Master received at the Italian festival. “I’m thrilled with whatever they want to hand over. I heard some of the scuttlebutt recently but I’m just thrilled with what they hand over. And that’s all.” Along with the Best Actor prize being split by Hoffman and Phoenix, Paul Thomas Anderson was awarded Venice’s Silver Lion for Best Director, while Korean director Kim-Ki Duk’s Pieta received the festival’s Golden Lion. Asked if he was disappointed he couldn’t be in Venice to pick up the awards personally, Anderson joked, “Through our studies on this film we’ve gotten to where we can do time travel. I’m actually at two places at once. I’m at the Pizza Hut and the Taco Bell.” Audiences in Venice and now Toronto are buzzing over The Master . Laura Dern also stars in the film along with Hoffman, Phoenix and Adams revolving around “drifters and seekers” in post World War II America. The film revolves around the journey of a Naval veteran (Joaquin Phoenix) who arrives home from war unsettled and uncertain of his future – until he is tantalized by “The Cause” and its charismatic leader (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Anderson appeared to be a bit surprised by the buzz the film is generating, but said he is pleased. “I don’t know why the film is resonating. I’m not sure what’s going on. We were proud to show it, but for people to be gravitating to it in such a way, it just feels so gratifying.” “It’s a film you really have to think about and it’s part of the time we’re living in,” added Sellar. “There aren’t a lot of films out there at the moment like that.” Amy Adams said her experience on the set were not quite what she had expected going in, saying she was surprised by the leeway that she and her fellow actors were given. “I thought it was going to be very very serious, but we actually laughed a lot and had a lot of fun,” said Adams. “There was a lot of freedom and we were allowed to experiment and fail. But going into it, I thought it would be very, very serious.” “Over the years, Paul has become a freer director [and] more organic,” added Sellar. “For me and Daniel [Lupi], my producing partner, we were able to support his vision and make changes and go on the fly.” And now that Venice’s awards are history, chatter in Toronto is now already looking toward Oscar and The Master is getting plenty of buzz. Asked about the Academy Award conversation among TIFF attendees this weekend, Anderson said simply, “Great.”
New Zealand native Melanie Lynskey finds her way to the spotlight – at long last – playing a woman, stuck in a sadly hilarious vortex of post-divorce depression, who’s jolted out of her early mid-life ennui by an electrifying affair with a younger man ( GIRLS ’ Christopher Abbott) in Todd Luiso’s Hello I Must Be Going . It’s an extraordinary dual capacity for deeply-felt pathos and comedy that Lynskey possesses and showcases, often simultaneously, as Amy Minsky; for Lynskey, one of the most genuine actors in the game, it was the kind of role that’s come along all too infrequently in the nearly two decades since her assured debut at the age of 15 in Peter Jackson’s Heavenly Creatures . “It was kind of a dream that I would find a part that had so much for me to do, but it’s so rare,” Lynskey said over iced coffees in Los Angeles. Longtime devotees know her well from Heavenly Creatures , in which she and Kate Winslet played a pair of real-life teen murderesses, or from her supporting turns in films like Ever After , Detroit Rock City , and Coyote Ugly ; when we first met in Seattle a few months prior, a fan recognized her as Reese Witherspoon’s old classmate in Sweet Home Alabama (“Baby in a bar!”). But while she’s tasted mainstream success, the soft-spoken Lynskey, whose wicked sense of humor complements her humility (she’s truly one of the most grounded actors around, as evidenced by her Twitter musings ), seems far more at home in the creatively-fulfilling climes of independent film. Three years into her tenure as the daffy, delightful Rose on Two and a Half Men , she asked to be let out of her contract so she could make films while coming back as-needed in a recurring role. In the time since, she’s turned in some of her best, most acclaimed work in potent supporting turns like Away We Go , Up In The Air , The Informant , and Win Win . “The show was so successful and I could see a crossroads,” she explained. “It was like, this way you’ll be a millionaire and one of the people on this show, and this way you’re not going to make a lot of money but you’re going to be able to build something that’s a little more interesting.” In Hello I Must Be Going that choice paid off not just with her first starring role, it also prompted Lynskey to examine her own journey in contrast to Amy’s vulnerable emotional life. “You come home and everything looks beautiful. It gave me a real appreciation for happiness, and for my friends, for interests that I have, and the fact that I do have a life that I really love.” Below, dive in as Melanie Lynskey takes us into her work on Hello I Must Be Going , her reaction to male critics who’ve criticized Amy’s physicality, lessons learned on the set of Heavenly Creatures , her experience on – and pulling away from – Two and a Half Men , her favorite film critics, David Wain’s upcoming They Came Together , and the theme songs she uses to get into character. One of the great things about Hello I Must Be Going is that audiences get to see you front and center – they know your work, we’ve seen you do comedy and drama, but this is a vehicle that allows you to combine those talents. Were you looking for something of this more intimate scale, or these particular chords to play? It was kind of a dream that I would find a part that had so much for me to do, but it’s so rare. We made this movie for no money, but even those tiny, tiny movies – movie stars are doing them, famous people. So much of the stuff that Michelle Williams does – can you imagine doing Wendy & Lucy ? What a dream! Or Blue Valentine ? She’s so amazing. But what a great thing to get to create something like that. It seems performers do have to turn to the independent world to find projects like that. How did they find you for this film? Yeah, I think so. I just got asked – I was in Toronto and my agent was like, do you want to come do this reading for the Sundance Institute? They were doing a staged reading of it in front of a little audience. I read the script and said, “Yes – I will fly myself back!” I loved it so much. At the time I thought I’d just be doing the reading, I didn’t anticipate having a future with it. Who was at the initial staged reading? There were not a lot of the same actors. Dane DeHaan read Chris Abbott’s part, and he was wonderful. There were a lot of good actors in it. It was fun. We worked on it for a day and Todd [Luiso] directed it. It just went really great, the energy was really wonderful. After that reading they said, “We want to make it with you,” and at the time with Dane, and then they tried to get money that way – but they realized they had to ask for less and less money with me in it. [Laughs] Eventually they got some money and stuck with me and I’m so grateful. Your character is stuck in a post-divorce depression but there’s a real humorous undercurrent to her, and so much of that is expressed in your face – in your expressions, your reactions to these oblivious people around you. There’s a tone to the script where you can just tell how Amy is feeling, and it was written from her perspective. There weren’t many reaction cues in the script but Sarah [Koskoff] and are really similar, the writer and I, so that was good – we have a similar take on things and were both excited that we wanted to do the same thing with it. Chris balances the film opposite you – there’s a quality to his eyes that makes you feel you’re peering into his soul, just looking at him. That’s such a perfect way to put it. It’s so true. There’s something about him that’s open and accessible but still mysterious; he has a really interesting quality, and his performance is so spontaneous. It feels off the cuff. He’s such a great person, a sweet, sweet person. Kind and lovely – I got so lucky with him. He seems like he’s always perceiving the world around him. He is, and he’s not judging. It’s nice. There’s a nice quality to him where he’s sort of scoping people out and watching people but he’s not too cool for school, even though he’s very cool. [Laughs] It was funny when I started watching GIRLS – I was like, Oh my god, he’s playing such a goofball! It’s so different from him. Was there much time to get to know him before you started shooting? No. It was crazy, because the other actor was going to do the movie and the casting process was kind of quick after he had to drop out. I remember Todd saying to me one day, “Do you want to watch this audition tape? I keep thinking about this one person…” and when he showed me Chris’s audition tape I started crying. I cried with relief, mostly, like, “Oh thank God they have somebody good!” I was so afraid! That’s a good point – there are so many elements up in the air in the making of a movie. And the age difference between the characters – she’s 35, he’s 19 – sort of requires two performers who can meet in the middle . It was important to me that it wasn’t all about the age difference in a creepy way, and Chris has a maturity to him which I think is important. The characters are at such similar points in their lives; “Who am I, and what am I going to do with the rest of my life?” So I didn’t want it to be sketchy. They cast Chris and I was in Connecticut working with Todd and Sarah and we sort of just awkwardly met each other. He had to leave to go shoot something and they were like, “He’s cute, right? Did you like him?” It was like a weird set-up. “He’s tall!” This was a really quick shoot, which means that you get what you get while you’re there. It’s always interesting to me to just kind of go along for the ride. Sometimes you come across somebody with whom your ideas don’t mesh and it’s an unfortunate kind of clash, but that doesn’t happen very often. What I like seeing is what somebody wants. Every experience is so different, but you never know until you start. Actors often say the gratifying part of the process is the work they do on set, within scenes. Do you feel that way, and to what extent did this particular shoot do that? It’s interesting. It was somewhat of a transition period for me, even though I wasn’t aware of it at the time. It’s interesting to play a character who’s asking, “What does the rest of my life hold for me? I’ve made these choices and I sort of thought everything was going to go one way, and what would happen if it all got turned upside down?” It was interesting to put yourself in that space of having nothing and feeling nothing and just not knowing what was going to come at all. In a lot of those scenes, the toughest stuff for me in those scenes is where she’s very depressed, because it’s just so horrible to sit in that, you know? But it’s hopeful. It’s an interesting thing as a person to spend a day where you’re just letting yourself feel awful. You come home and everything looks beautiful. It gave me a real appreciation for happiness, and for my friends, and for interests that I have and the fact that I do have a life that I really love. It’s good that you are able to pull yourself from that darkness. Not everybody has that, and it seems like one of the tougher aspects of being an actor. I was kind of trained to do that on Heavenly Creatures . It was pretty crazy. They were so worried about taking this 15-year-old who’s never done a movie before and being like, “Hey, cry all day and go crazy and see you tomorrow!” They were so concerned about me losing my mind, so there was a whole process at the end of the day of getting rid of everything. The woman who played my mother was kind of my acting teacher – she was helping me with technique and stuff, and she would brush me off and brush the emotion away. It was really great, and it was a good lesson to learn. You don’t need to take it home with you, and it’s better if you don’t. You were 15 when you made that film – at what point did you realize Heavenly Creatures was the real beginning of a career, that it would launch you into the world? It’s funny, because it doesn’t feel like it did. [Laughs] There was a point when I realized it was not going to. But it was a start. I think when I got an agent in America and I was like, “Oh my god, people really saw this movie.” But the progression was so slow, there was no kind of – here are movies, and here’s other opportunities! It was just like, “Nice job.” I mean, I went to the Venice Film Festival – that was incredible, that was crazy. I had so many surreal moments. Yesterday I was at high school studying for my English exam, and today I’m having lunch with Uma Thurman and Harvey Weinstein. And Quentin Tarantino, talking and talking. It was amazing. Heavenly Creatures is a fascinating film to look at now, just to revisit this point when three careers – yours, Kate Winslet, and Peter Jackson, whose films to that point had been very different – sprang and took off. It’s so amazing. It’s absolutely no surprise to me that Peter has done what he’s done and Kate has done what she’s done. But it was kind of a crazy thing to be a high school student and do this movie with people who had such a fire in them. How did your classmates react to the film? Some people were nice. I had friends who were like, “The movie was really beautiful,” but then most people were like, “I could see your tits.” [Laughs] I was like, yep, you could. “You kissed a girl!” I did. But that was fine. It was just a little alienating.
Call it the zen of Ryan. During a roundtable interview with Ryan Gosling and filmmaker Derek Cianfrance for their latest film, The Place Beyond The Pines , I asked the actor if he felt that the media focused too much on the more superficial aspects of his acting career — remember the hubub over Bradley Cooper being chosen over him as People magazine’s sexiest man of the year last fall? — when he keeps proving himself to be one of the finest actors working today. “I’m not really allowed to have an opinion so I just choose to not think about it,” Gosling said. “It is what it is.” After memorable performances last year in Drive , Ides of March and Crazy, Stupid Love , Gosling is riveting in The Place Beyond The Pines as a former stunt motorcyclist who turns to bank-robbing to support a son he fathered. Although the film has yet to secure a distributor, the buzz at the festival on Saturday night was that it was only a matter of time. During the roundtable interview — more of which we’ll post tomorrow — Gosling and Cianfrance, who previously worked together on the 2010 heartwrencher Blue Valentine , did not look like they were worried about their film reaching a wider audience. Asked what made the actor special, Cianfrance sounded mostly sincere when he called Gosling a “magic person who makes things better,” adding: “We’ve all seen him save people from getting hit by a car, and we’ve all seen him break up fights in the city. He makes the world a better place. And that’s what he does in a movie. He makes me a better filmmaker and everyone around him better.” In response to the same question, the deadpan Gosling replied: “I look like Derek.” Gosling declined to reveal the plot of his directorial debut, How to Catch A Monster , during the interview, but, elsewhere in Toronto, the star of his movie, Christina Hendricks was spilling the beans to Vulture . The actress said she portrays a single mother “supporting two children and trying to provide a home for them ” who finds herself working a “very surreal” fetish club “that gets me into a sort of predicament” while her two boys discover an underground city. Sounds like Fifty Shades of Grey meets City of Ember . Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
‘All the attention I’m getting, I hope it’s not going to my head,’ YouTube dancer Ton Do-Nguyen told MTV News after ceremony. By Terri Schwartz Snuggie Kid Photo: MTV News
