Bill Nighy
When Nighy became a star with his wickedly funny turn as a boozy and blunt rock star in 2003's Love Actually, he was an overnight success 30 years in the making. Although he had consistently turned in...
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BirthDate BirthPlace |
12/11/1949
Caterham, Surrey, England |
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Bill Nighy Defends Costar Tom Cruise
August 01, 2007 6:40am ESTBritish actor Bill Nighy has defended his costar Tom Cruise's religious beliefs after filming on their new movie was jeopardized by German authorities' Scientology concerns. Cruise is playing World War II hero Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg--who led an unsuccessful plot to assassinate Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler--in Rubicon. However, efforts to shoot the movie on military sites were thwarted in July by Germany's Defense Ministry, allegedly because Cruise's Scientology beliefs are viewed as a "moneymaking cult" instead of a legitimate church by the German government. But Nighy--who has already defended the film as a "heroic tale that deserves to be told”--is now urging greater tolerance for Cruise's views. He says, "It doesn't make sense. I can't see the point of persecuting an individual for what they believe. Whatever they believe." COPYRIGHT 2007 WORLD ENTERTAINMENT NEWS NETWORK LTD. All Global Rights Reserved.
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Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Review
May 25, 2007 7:50am ESTSailing to the end of the world escaping Davy Jones’ Locker betraying your fellow shipmates forming alliances and/or crossing swords with either dead crustaceans or British government baddies is just another day in the life of these pirates whose convoluted interactions with one another rival any soap opera. The players have all returned: Elizabeth Swan (Keira Knightley) now a expert pirate herself; steadfast Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) estranged from his love Elizabeth and on a mission to save his father Bootstrap (Stellan Skarsgard); Capt. Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) risen from the dead to lead the Black Pearl; Lord Beckett (Tom Hollander) the evil head of the East India Trading Company who has control of the Flying Dutchman as well as the inky Davy Jones (Bill Nighy); Tia Dalma (Naomie Harris) the mystic who may be a little more powerful than we think. And a few new faces too namely Capt. Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat) a cunning Chinese pirate. And then there’s Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) who since being rescued by his mates from the depths of hell has some great dead man’s tales to tell—as well as a few debts to pay. As the Pirates of the Caribbean get ready for their final titanic battle all their lives and fortunes--and the entire future of the freedom-loving pirate way—hang in the balance. Everyone does a nice job further developing their characters in this third installment. As the young lovers Knightley’s Elizabeth has gone from being a pampered—albeit feisty—lass to a full-fledged ass-kicking pirate (even if she has clean teeth) while Bloom’s Will once green at the whole hero thing turns into a true leader. Rush as the new and improved Barbossa isn’t nearly as menacing in human form as he was undead but his sparring with Captain Jack over who’s the rightful captain of the Black Pearl makes for some hilarious scenes. Nighy even gets to display a somewhat softer side to Davy Jones as we learn more about the octopus head’s backstory. Hollander (Pride & Prejudice) appropriately oozes villainy while Chow makes a nice addition as the grizzled Chinese pirate lord. Last but not least is Mr. Depp. Thankfully his Jack Sparrow isn’t as cartoonish as he was in Dead Man's Chest. In fact watching him interact with a whole pirate ship full of Jack Sparrow clones is quite something. But with a mixture of pirate swagger sexuality and effeminate mannerisms Jack never really changes—and that’s fine by us. And yes Keith Richards makes a well-placed cameo. That guy was born to play a pirate. Two hours and 45 minutes folks—that’s what you’re in for with At World's End. Even if you are a pirate fan that’s a lot of time yo-ho-ho-ing out at sea. Maybe director Gore Verbinski wanted to make four POTC movies but instead he’s forced to tie up all the loose ends—of which there seems to be an endless supply—in the third installment. At one point just to further things along Verbinski stages a long scene of exposition backstabbing and deal making by cutting between characters pacing around on their respective ships. We get it. Everyone has an agenda and no one can be trusted. To its credit however At World's End still manages to keep your attention with its amazing visuals. The production value and special effects on this trilogy rivals another famous trilogy involving a place called Middle Earth. In At World's End we have: the crowded waterways of Singapore and opulent den of Sao Feng; Shipwreck Cove where an important pirate summit is held; watching how the Black Pearl makes its way from a dry flat sea bed to the ocean AND the way to get from Davy Jones’ Locker back to the world of the living; and of course the final climactic battle at sea. The movie’s long but definitely worth its weight in gold doubloons giving just a whiff of possibility to a fourth one.
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'300' & 'Pirates of the Caribbean' Lead Nominations at MTV Movie Awards
April 30, 2007 11:37am ESTWar epic 300 and sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest are leading the nominations for the 2007 MTV Movie Awards with five and four nods apiece. Both films have been nominated for the Best Movie award, alongside Blades of Glory, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan and Little Miss Sunshine. 300 star Gerard Butler is up for Best Performance and Best Fight, while Lena Headey and Rodrigo Santoro have been nominated for Breakthrough Performance and Best Villain, respectively. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest actors Johnny Depp and Keira Knightley have also both picked up nods for Best Performance, while Bill Nighy is up for Best Villain. The full list of 2007 MTV Movie Awards nominees is: Best Movie: 300 Blades of Glory Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan Little Miss Sunshine Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Best Performance: Gerard Butler--300 Johnny Depp--Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Keira Knightley--Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Jennifer Hudson--Dreamgirls Beyonce Knowles--Dreamgirls Will Smith--The Pursuit of Happyness Breakthrough Performance: Emily Blunt--The Devil Wears Prada Abigail Breslin--Little Miss Sunshine Lena Headey--300 Columbus Short--Stomp the Yard Jaden Smith--The Pursuit of Happyness Justin Timberlake--Alpha Dog Best Comedic Performance: Emily Blunt--The Devil Wears Prada Sacha Baron Cohen--Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan Will Ferrell--Blades of Glory Adam Sandler--Click Ben Stiller--Night at the Museum Best Kiss: Cameron Diaz & Jude Law--The Holiday Will Ferrell & Sacha Baron Cohen--Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby Columbus Short & Meagan Good--Stomp the Yard Mark Wahlberg & Elizabeth Banks--Invincible Marlon Wayans & Brittany Daniel--The Little Man Best Villain: Tobin Bell--Saw III Jack Nicholson--The Departed Bill Nighy--Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Rodrigo Santoro--300 Meryl Streep--The Devil Wears Prada Best Fight: Jack Black & Hector Jimenez vs. Los Duendes (Wrestling Match)--Nacho Libre Gerard Butler vs. 'The Uber Immortal' (The Spartan/Persian Battle)--300 Sacha Baron Cohen vs. Ken Davitian (Naked Wrestling)--Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan Will Ferrell vs. Jon Heder (Ice-Rink Fight)--Blades of Glory Uma Thurman vs. Anna Faris (Super Girl Fight)--My Super Ex-Girlfriend Best Summer Movie You Haven't Seen Yet: Evan Almighty (released June 22) Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (released June 15) Hairspray (released July 20) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (released July 13) Rush Hour 3 (released Aug. 10) Transformers (released July 4) MTVu Best Filmmaker on Campus: Robert Dastoli--Southwestern Orange County vs. The Flying Saucers (University of Central Florida) Maria Gigante--Girls Room (Columbia College, Chicago) Josh Greenbaum--Border Patrol (University of Southern California) Alexander Poe--Please Forget I Exist (Columbia University) Andrew Shipsides--Bottleneck (Savannah College of Art & Design) COPYRIGHT 2007 WORLD ENTERTAINMENT NEWS NETWORK LTD. All Global Rights Reserved.
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Hot Fuzz Review
April 20, 2007 7:55am ESTNothing about the action-packed cop genre is left untouched in Hot Fuzz. It starts off by introducing Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) a sort of supercop with an arrest record 400 percent higher than anyone else's on the London force. He's so good he makes everyone else look bad—so his superiors reassign him to the sleepy English village of Sanford. Angel is then paired up with the well-meaning but bumbling Police Constable Danny Butterman (Nick Frost) who is also an affirmed action-movie junkie. He views Angel as a chance to possibly see some real gun-blazin’ action—except nothing much happens in Sanford. Or does it? A series of grisly deaths leads Angel to believe this quiet burg may not be what it seems even though the elders of the town (police inspector Jim Broadbent and local grocery story owner Timothy Dalton among others) shrug them off as “accidents.” It just might be time for these small-town cops to break out some big-city justice. Yippee ki-yay! Pegg and Frost have way too much fun with this. The boys were friends long before Shaun of the Dead and their natural camaraderie is obvious. Pegg is the perfect Abbott to Frost’s Costello as the no-nonsense Angel teaches the affable Butterman a few things about law enforcement while Butterman teaches Angel how to loosen up a bit. Plus that wonderfully dry British sense of humor they both share is infectious which clearly must be the reason the myriad of veteran British actors appear in supporting roles. Along with Dalton and Broadbent there’s Bill Nighy and Martin Freeman as Angel’s superiors who ship him off to Sanford. Around the World in 80 Days' Steve Coogan Cate Blanchett and Extras’ Stephen Merchant make uncredited appearances. Even lesser-known but still recognizable Brits show up including the original The Omen’s Billie Whitelaw (Mrs. Baylock) and Raiders of the Lost Ark’s Paul Freeman (Belloq). Everyone is not only laughing on the outside but on the inside as well. Pegg and Frost’s third partner in crime is co-writer/director Edgar Wright. After the three of them cooked up 2004’s Shaun of the Dead their side-splitting send-up of George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead none of them could have imagined the cult success it would achieve. Simon Pegg went on to co-star with Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible III while Nick Frost starred in the British indie Kinky Boots. But it’s Wright who seems to have gained the most attention notably from Quentin Tarantino who took Wright under his wing even asking the Brit to shoot one of the “trailers” for Grindhouse’s intermission. Wright is very creative with Hot Fuzz employing hard quick cuts and framing the action much like the genre he’s poking fun at. The best is after one of the climactic gun battles Angel and Butterman stand in the town square as the camera revolves around them 360 degrees á la Bad Boys. The one drawback to Hot Fuzz is its troubled ending. After what would seem to be a perfect way to conclude the film drags on for another 20 minutes trying to pack in more action-movie clichés. But overall this won’t really detract from the fun you’ll have.
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Notes on a Scandal Review
December 25, 2006 9:27am ESTBased on the prize-winning novel by Zoe Heller Notes on a Scandal is a case study in obsessive relationships. When Sheba Hart (Cate Blanchett) joins a London secondary school as the new art teacher fellow teacher Barbara Covett (Judi Dench) who rules her young charges with an iron fist senses a kindred spirit—and perhaps salvation to her lonely existence. But as Barbara notes in her acerbic diary she is not the only one drawn to the luminous Sheba. She soon begins an illicit affair with one of her high school students (Andrew Simpson) and Barbara suddenly becomes the keeper of Sheba’s secret. Barbara could expose Sheba to both her husband (Bill Nighy) and the world but instead Barbara manipulates it for her own nefarious and selfish reasons. And in playing this dangerously compulsive game Barbara’s own secrets come tumbling to the fore exposing the deceptions at the core of each of the women's lives. Dench and Blanchett give tour-de-force performances yet again. Blanchett’s natural effervescence provides the beacon for all the wanted—and unwanted—attention Sheba receives but it’s her fragile emotional state that draws you in. Played like a wounded butterfly Sheba is too weak to either stave off a dalliance with the young gent—played with convincing lustfulness by newcomer Simpson—or tell the stifling Barbara to bugger off despite the consequences. Then there’s Dench as Barbara representing the opposite end of the spectrum as Notes’ driving force. She’s a bull dog whose withering glares stop her students in their tracks and cutting remarks slice her fellow colleagues to bits all punctuated by her caustic running commentary. Still when Barbara turns madly obsessive with her soft underbelly eventually exposed she crumbles with the best of them. And the best part of Notes is watching these two brilliant actress go toe-to-toe for the first time on film. The underrated Nighy also does a fine job ditching his Pirates of the Caribbean’s tentacles to play Sheba’s down-to-earth yet hapless husband. A top-notch cast all around. Director Richard Eyre is no stranger to crafting intimate pro-actor dramas having helmed such films as Stage Beauty and the Oscar-nominated Iris. He understands where to move the camera to best frame his players as they pour their hearts out on screen. And with Notes on a Scandal Eyre knows that besides his two leading ladies the real star of the film is playwright/screenwriter Patrick Marber’s superb adaptation of Heller’s introspective novel. Voice-over narration is always a tricky film device but for Notes on a Scandal it’s absolutely essential and Marber faithfully captures the inner-workings of Barbara’s skewed thoughts which she fervently writes down in her diary in such delectable ways. Then he entwines the twisty events around these two women. Much like his other work including the exquisite Closer Marber hands in another true gem. Combined with all this is another haunting pulse-pounding score from Philip Glass (The Hours) who sets the tone so perfectly. Notes on a Scandal is definitely one for the Academy Awards’ books.
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'Babel' Towers over Rivals in Golden Globe Nominations
December 14, 2006 6:23am ESTEnsemble drama Babel leads the nominations at next year's Golden Globe Awards, boasting seven nods including Best Dramatic Picture and an acting accolade for star Brad Pitt. The film, spanning several countries telling four interrelated stories, sees Pitt praised in the Best Actor in a Supporting Role category. He'll battle it out alongside Ben Affleck (Hollywoodland) and Eddie Murphy (Dreamgirls), as well as The Departed co-stars Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg. The mob thriller earned a total of six nominations today. Babel's Rinko Kikuchi and Adriana Barraza also received supporting acting nods, along with Cate Blanchett for Notes on a Scandal, Emily Blunt for The Devil Wears Prada and Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls. But it's Leonardo DiCaprio who looks most likely to convert an acting nomination into a trophy after being named twice in the Best Actor category. His performances in The Departed and Blood Diamond are up against Peter O'Toole's in Venus, Will Smith's in The Pursuit of Happyness and Forest Whitaker's portrayal of former Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland. Actor-turned-director Clint Eastwood is another star with a double reason to celebrate--Flags of Our Fathers competes against his other war film Letters from Iwo Jima in the Best Director category. Meanwhile, Helen Mirren stands to win three awards at the star-studded Hollywood ceremony next month. Her role as monarch-in-crisis Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen pits her against another veteran British actress, Judi Dench, for Notes on a Scandal. Penelope Cruz is also a strong contender for Best Actress in Volver, as well Maggie Gyllenhaal (Sherrybaby) and Kate Winslet in the suburban drama Little Children. Mirren's other nods are for small-screen work--her roles in Prime Suspect: The Final Act and period piece Elizabeth I could see her pick up a Best Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Both films will compete for Best TV Mini-Series alongside the star-studded adaptation of Charles Dickens' complicated crime masterpiece Bleak House, Broken Trail and Mrs. Harris. There were no surprises in the most popular TV categories with 24, Big Love, Lost, Heroes, and hospital drama Grey's Anatomy all in with a chance to win the Best Drama Prize, and Desperate Housewives, Entourage, The Office, Ugly Betty and Weeds battling it out for the Best Comedy or Musical. Last month it was revealed Hollywood legend Warren Beatty is to be honored with the 64th Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement at the 2007 Golden Globe Awards. It will be Beatty's sixth Globe. The awards are given out annually by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and are a key indicator of which movies will compete for the Academy Awards, the film industry's top honors. Click "next" for full list of nominations. COPYRIGHT 2006 WORLD ENTERTAINMENT NEWS NETWORK LTD. All Global Rights Reserved. Best Motion Picture – Drama Babel Anonymous Content Production/Una Producción De ZetaFilm/Central Film Production; ParamountPictures/Paramount Vantage Bobby Bold Films; The Weinstein Company The Departed Warner Bros. Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures Little Children New Line Cinema; New Line Cinema The Queen A GranadaProduction; Miramax Films Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture – Drama Penélope Cruz Volver Judi Dench Notes On A Scandal Maggie Gyllenhaal Sherrybaby Helen Mirren The Queen Kate Winslet Little Children Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – Drama Leonardo Dicaprio Blood Diamond Leonardo Dicaprio The Departed Peter O’toole Venus Will Smith The Pursuit Of Happyness Forest Whitaker The Last King Of Scotland Best Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical Borat: Cultural Learnings Of AmericaFor Make Benefit Glorious Nation Of Kazakhstan One America;Twentieth Century Fox The Devil Wears Prada Twentieth Century Fox; Twentieth Century Fox Dreamgirls Dreamworks Pictures/Paramount Pictures; DreamworksPictures/Paramount Pictures Little Miss Sunshine Big Beach/Bonafide Productions; Fox Searchlight Pictures Thank You For Smoking Room 9 Entertainment/David O. Sacks Production/ContentFilm; Fox Searchlight Pictures Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture –Comedy Or Musical Annette Bening Running With Scissors Toni Collette Little Miss Sunshine Beyoncé Knowles Dreamgirls Meryl Streep The Devil Wears Prada Renee Zellweger Miss Potter Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – ComedyOr Musical Sacha Baron Cohen Borat: Cultural Learnings Of AmericaFor Make Benefit Glorious Nation Of Kazakhstan Johnny Depp Pirates Of The Caribbean:Dead Man’s Chest Aaron Eckhart Thank You For Smoking Chiwetel Ejiofor Kinky Boots Will Ferrell Stranger Than Fiction Best Animated Feature Film Cars Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation Studio; Buena Vista Pictures Distribution Happy Feet Kingdom Pictures, Llc; Warner Bros. Pictures/VillageRoadshow Pictures Monster House ColumbiaPictures; Sony Pictures Releasing Best Foreign Language Film Apocalypto (USA) Touchstone Pictures/Icon Productions; Buena Vista Pictures Distribution Letters From Iwo Jima(USA/Japan) Warner Bros. Pictures/Dreamworks Pictures; Warner Bros.Pictures The Lives Of Others (Germany) Wiedemann & Berg Filmproduktion; Sony PicturesClassics Pan’s Labyrinth (Mexico) Estudios Picasso/Tequila Gang/Esperanto; Picturehouse Volver (Spain) El Deseo; Sony Pictures Classics Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In AMotion Picture Adriana Barraza Babel Cate Blanchett Notes On A Scandal Emily Blunt The Devil Wears Prada Jennifer Hudson Dreamgirls Rinko Kikuchi Babel Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role In AMotion Picture Ben Affleck Hollywoodland Eddie Murphy Dreamgirls Jack Nicholson The Departed Brad Pitt Babel Mark Wahlberg The Departed Best Director – Motion Picture Clint Eastwood Flags Of Our Fathers Clint Eastwood Letters From Iwo Jima Stephen Frears The Queen Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu Babel Martin Scorsese The Departed Best Screenplay – Motion Picture Guillermo Arriaga Babel Todd Field & Tom Perrotta Little Children Patrick Marber Notes On A Scandal William Monahan The Departed Peter Morgan The Queen Best Original Score – Motion Picture Alexandre Desplat The Painted Veil Clint Mansell The Fountain Gustavo Santaolalla Babel Carlo Siliotto Nomad Hans Zimmer The Da Vinci Code Best Original Song – Motion Picture “A Father’s Way” — The Pursuit Of Happyness Music By: Seal And Christopher Bruce Lyrics By: Seal “Listen” — Dreamgirls Music & Lyrics By: Henry Krieger, Anne Preven, ScottCutler And Beyoncé Knowles “Never Gonna Break My Faith” — Bobby Music & Lyrics By: Bryan Adams, Eliot Kennedy AndAndrea Remanda “The Song Of The Heart” — Happy Feet Music & Lyrics By: Prince Rogers Nelson “Try Not To Remember” — Home Of The Brave Music & Lyrics By:Sheryl Crow Best Television Series – Drama 24 (Fox) Imagine Television And 20th Century Fox Television I.A.W.Real Time Prods. Big Love (HBO) Anima Sola And Playtone Prods. I.A.W. HBO Entertainment Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) Touchstone Television Heroes (NBC) Nbc Universal Television Studios I.A.W. Tailwind Prods. Lost (ABC) Touchstone Television Best Performance By An Actress In A Television Series –Drama Patricia Arquette Medium Edie Falco The Sopranos Evangeline Lilly Lost Ellen Pompeo Grey’s Anatomy Kyra Sedgwick The Closer Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series – Drama Patrick Dempsey Grey’s Anatomy Michael C. Hall Dexter Hugh Laurie House Bill Paxton Big Love Kiefer Sutherland 24 Best Television Series – Comedy Or Musical DesperateHousewives (ABC) Touchstone Television Entourage (HBO) Leverage And Closest To The Hole Prods. I.A.W. HboEntertainment The Office (NBC) Deedle Dee Prods. WithReveille I.A.W. Nbc Universal Television Studio Ugly Betty (ABC) Touchstone Television Weeds (Showtime) Showtime I.A.W. Lionsgate Television And Tilted Prods., Inc. Best Performance By An Actress In A Television Series –ComedyOr Musical Marcia Cross Desperate Housewives AmericaFerrera Ugly Betty Felicity Huffman Desperate Housewives Julia Louis-Dreyfus The New Adventures Of Old Christine Mary-Louise Parker Weeds Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series – ComedyOr Musical Alec Baldwin 30 Rock Zach Braff Scrubs Steve Carrell The Office Jason Lee My Name Is Earl Tony Shalhoub Monk Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television Bleak House (PBS) Bbc And Wgbh BostonProd. I.A.W. Deep Indigo Broken Trail (AMC) Butchers Run Films And Once Upon A Time Films I.A.W. SonyPictures Television Elizabeth I (HBO) Company Pictures And Channel 4 I.A.W. Hbo Films Mrs. Harris (HBO) Killer Films, Number 9 Films And John Wells Prod. I.A.W. HboFilms Prime Suspect: The Final Act (PBS) GranadaAnd Wgbh-Boston Prod. Best Performance By An Actress In A Mini-Series Or MotionPicture Made For Television Gillian Anderson Bleak House Annette Bening Mrs. Harris Helen Mirren Elizabeth I Helen Mirren Prime Suspect: The Final Act Sophie Okonedo Tsunami, The Aftermath Best Performance By An Actor In A Mini-Series Or MotionPicture Made For Television André Braugher Thief Robert Duvall Broken Trail Michael Ealy Sleeper Cell: American Terror Chiwetel Ejiofor Tsunami, The Aftermath Ben Kingsley Mrs. Harris Bill Nighy Gideon’s Daughter Matthew Perry The Ron Clark Story Best Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role In ASeries, Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television Emily Blunt Gideon’s Daughter Toni Collette Tsunami, The Aftermath Katherine Heigl Grey’s Anatomy Sarah Paulson Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip Elizabeth Perkins Weeds Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role In ASeries, Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television Thomas Haden Church Broken Trail Jeremy Irons Elizabeth I Justin Kirk Weeds Masi Oka Heroes Jeremy Piven Entourage
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Flushed Away Review
November 03, 2006 12:22pm ESTAs clever as it can be at times Flushed Away’s plot is still formulaically step by step. Step one: Introduce hero one Roderick St. James (Hugh Jackman) aka Roddy a pampered but lonely pet mouse who lives in a posh Kensington flat in London. Step two: Propel Roddy into the utterly foreign world of the city’s sewers by flushing him down the toilet. Step three: Hook him up with a cute renegade mouse named Rita (Kate Winslet) with a nifty boat who makes a pact with Roddy to take him back to his home in exchange for some riches she can use to help her extended family (32 brothers and sisters to be exact). Step four: Have the two of them then outwit the villainous Toad (Ian McKellen) mob kingpin of the sewer city Ratropolis after discovering his dastardly plan to rid the sewers of the rats. Step five: Happy ending. Not too complicated. We’ve got a mostly British A-list this time around and everyone sounds enthused to be indulging in the make-up free come-in-your-sweats fun of vocal work. Jackman infuses Roddy with the appropriate upper crustiness but who soon warms to his surroundings—and his new friend especially since he’s never really had any friends before. Winslet’s Rita is all pluck and spunk with a keen fashion sense and big mouse ears while McKellen’s malevolent frog is a big blowhard with a goiter. But as is the case with these animated films the side characters provide the laughs. There’s Toad’s main hench-rats—Whitey (a very deep-voiced Bill Nighy) an ex-laboratory rat who’s experimental shampooings have left him bald and an albino and Sid (Andy Serkis) a wiry weasel who is not nearly as tough as he purports to be. Toad’s French cousin Le Frog (Jean Reno) a cross between Jackie Chan and Inspector Clouseau is also hilarious. The best part however are the sewer slugs who don’t say much but rather add any musical accompaniment deemed necessary. Aardman Productions and DreamWorks the same folks who gave us Wallace and Gromit movies seem to have perfected the clay animation techniques and incorporated a lot more CGI. Flushed Away is definitely more polished than the W&G’s but the big teeth and general sardonic British sensibilities are all still there. The sewer life is visually bustling using everyday items to create their world such as the bad guys riding hand mixers as wave runners to chase after Rita’s boat. Plus the film is loaded with enough funny pop culture references to keep the adults laughing (thank YOU Shrek!) For example when Roddy is zooming his way down the water pipes he sees a yellow striped fish who asks “Have you seen my dad?” Nope there really isn’t anything inherently wrong with Flushed Away save for an overdone plot. Kids and parents alike should enjoy themselves.
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Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker Review
October 13, 2006 5:40am ESTOr maybe it’s because there’s a really cute teenage super spy in it. Meet Alex Rider (Alex Pettyfer) said cutie who lives with his uncle Ian (Ewan McGregor) a boring bank manager. Or is he? After Ian mysteriously disappears Alex soon learns his uncle was a spy for Britain’s secret intelligence service MI6 and unbeknownst to Alex has been secretly training him—scuba diving mountaineering martial arts as well as knowing several languages—so Alex can take up the family business. Suddenly Alex’s whole world is turned upside down. He is immediately recruited by Mr. Blunt (Bill Nighy) to go after billionaire Darrius Sayle (Mickey Rourke) who created a mega-computer Stormbreaker which could bring about the end of the world. With the help of his housekeeper Jack Starbright (Alicia Silverstone) and his friend Sabina Pleasure (Sarah Bolger) Alex takes Sayle head-on in a dangerous race against time to stop the evil plan. No big whoop. Newcomer Pettyfer—who apparently beat out over 500 teenagers to win the role of Alex Rider—does an admirable first attempt if a tad stiff. He’s got some big shoes to fill bringing to life a character beloved by fans of the best-selling series by novelist Anthony Horowitz but he has more than enough potential to hone those skills. And with his wind-swept blonde hair dreamy eyes and lilting British accent he should be a surefire hit with tweens of the female persuasion. The rest of the colorful cast fits in nicely. Nighy (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest) with all his delightful little ticks is fun as Mr. Blunt—the “M ” as it were of the spy organization—and Sophie Okonedo (Hotel Rwanda) as his second in command Mrs. Jones. Silverstone who was once Clueless but now grown up is surprisingly quirky as the devoted housekeeper while Rourke is sufficiently slimy as the villain. Then there’s a small laundry list of character actors who add to the proceedings including Missi Pyle (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) as Sayle’s dominatrix-esque paramour and Andy Serkis (Lord of the Rings’ Gollum AND King Kong) as Sayle’s severely scarred grunting henchman. Wonder if Serkis will ever get to play someone normal for once. British director Geoffrey Sax (White Noise) keeps to the spirit of the books something author Anthony Horowitz was adamant about before finding the right people to adapt his stories. No big studio feel here but there is plenty of action—motorcycle racing dangling from tall buildings and even a chase on horseback. There are also plenty of cool gadgets all things a typical teenager might have such as a super-charged PDA. And numerous and nefarious ways to dispose of our young hero. At one point Alex finds himself in a water tank with a giant jellyfish who won’t necessarily attack but if Alex gets tired of treading water and drifts into the marine invertebrate—well you get the picture. This kind of standard James Bond fare reminds me of Dr. Evil who says in the first Austin Powers “No no no I'm going to leave them alone and not actually witness them dying I'm just gonna assume it all went to plan. What?” Thankfully Stormbreaker doesn’t take itself too seriously but rather has fun with the genre and introduces a new young hunk to make the young girls swoon.
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Keith Richards 'Drunk' on 'Pirates' Set
September 22, 2006 8:39am ESTKeith Richards’ appearance in the second Pirates of the Caribbean sequel descended into chaos after he reportedly got so drunk on the movie set that the film's director had to prop him up. The hell-raising Rolling Stones guitarist finally shot his long awaited cameo as Johnny Depp's father in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End earlier this summer, but he is unlikely to remember the occasion which concluded months of speculation. Bill Nighy, who plays Davy Jones in the film, tells Empire Online that Richards was inebriated by the time the production team retrieved him from his trailer to shoot his scene, and he required a little support from director Gore Verbinski. The 62-year-old rocker is reported to have remarked, "If you wanted straight, then you got the wrong man." Article Copyright Entertainment News Network All Rights Reserved.
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Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Review
July 07, 2006 8:23am ESTPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest does the right thing as a sequel: It maintains the same carefree spirit of the original and creates an even more fitting story to the whole Pirates lore. After narrowly escaping the gallows--with the help of his friends Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley)--and reclaiming his cursed Black Pearl it still seems Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) has a few more fish to fry. More specifically the barnacle-encrusted undead onboard the ghostly Flying Dutchman lead by Mr. Octopus Face himself Davy Jones (Bill Nighy). Jack apparently owes a blood debt to the inky captain and if he can’t find a way out of it--namely locating the secret contents of Jones’ famed locker--Sparrow will be doomed to eternal damnation and servitude in the afterlife [insert Jack Sparrow’s face of disgust here]. Making matters worse Sparrow's problems manage to interfere with the wedding plans of Will and Elizabeth who are forced to join Jack on yet another one of his misadventures. Depp’s Oscar-nominated performance as Captain Jack is still a marvel in slovenly pirate behavior with his slurred speech swaying swagger and slack waving arms. But whether channeling famed Rolling Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards or not it’s the duality of the character that continues to intrigue us. He is a lusty fearless man with a deeply defiant and somewhat sneaky streak but whose delicate features long dreadlocked hair kohl-rimmed eyes and almost girly mannerisms give him a subtly effeminate air that belies his macho antics. This time around young Brits Knightley and Bloom have a little more to do with Elizabeth’s growing attraction to Jack and Will’s reunion with his father Bill “Bootstrap” Turner (Stellan Skarsgård) who’s soul is stuck on the Flying Dutchman. And Nighy (Love Actually) once again makes his mark as an effective villain infusing his rather quirky acting ticks--the laconic delivery the laid-back attitude--which shines through all the special effects make-up. Let’s just say Nighy certainly rivals Depp in the arrogant rock star stance even if he has tentacles for a face. The other thing Dead Man's Chest does right is make things bigger and better. From a hair-raising sword fight on top of a spinning water wheel to the way Davy Jones and his crew look--all water logged and crustacean-like--the film’s production value is simply amazing. Returning producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski make sure the action sequences the sets the costumes the make-up and the special effects give the audience a familiarity to the original while also taking them on a whole new adventure. And if you are a fan of the Disney park attraction (the one at Disneyland not Disney World) the elements that got missed in the first one--the creepy bayou the beating heart in the treasure chest--are in this sequel. Dead Man's Chest does lag a bit from time to time especially in heating up the Jack Elizabeth and Will love triangle. But that’s OK. We enjoy watching their banter as much as we do the rest of it. And for those who’ll want more adventure after the movie ends Dead Man's Chest gives us a promise the third installment will be just as much pirate fun.
