Venice 2008 – “The Burning Plain”

“The Burning Plain” is a drama that explores the mysterious connection between several characters separated by time and space: Mariana (Jennifer Lawrence), a 16-year-old girl trying to put together the shattered lives of her parents in a Mexican border town; Sylvia (Charlize Theron), a woman in Portland who must undertake an emotional odyssey to burnish a sin from her past; Gina, Sylvia’s mother (Kim Basinger) and Nick (Joaquim de Almeida), a couple who must deal with an intense and clandestine affair; and Maria (Tessa Ia), a young girl who helps her parents find redemption, forgiveness and love.

The film is the first of five U.S. entries to appear in the main competition at the Venice Film Festival.

“The Burning Plain” is the directorial debut by acclaimed Mexican screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga who is best known for his scripts that include well received dramas “Amores perros“, “21 Grams” and “Babel“, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award. Arriaga also wrote “The Burning Plain.”

“I enjoyed every single moment of it. I can tell you that directing was maybe the happiest moment of my professional life. Just arriving on set I had a smile … and it hasn’t vanished until now”

he told reporters.

As well as time, the film explores the elements, each storyline represents either earth, air, fire or water. Landscape is central to the movie which Arriaga initially had titled, “The Four Elements.” Water, earth, wind and fire are present as the story moves back and forth from the searing dryness of New Mexico to the nonstop rain in Portland, Ore.

“We experienced the desert and the sun and the extreme cold in the desert to the nonstop rain in Oregon. I think the weather and the landscape also influences the character.”

“We never in real life tell stories in a linear way. We tell it always in a decomposed way. I think that cinema is a very young medium and it’s beginning to find its own language and among these languages is the deconstruction of time”

Arriaga said.

Continue Reading…

More “City of Ember” Movie Photos

City of Ember: Saoirse Ronan

Today, we have three pictures from the upcoming Bill Murray fantasy movie “City of Ember.”

In the movie, for generations, the people of the City of Ember have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights. But Ember’s once powerful generator is failing … and the great lamps that illuminate the city are starting to flicker. Now, two teenagers in a race against time, must search Ember for clues that will unlock the ancient mystery of the city’s existence, and help the citizens escape before the lights go out forever.

The film stars Saoirse Ronan, Harry Treadaway, Bill Murray, Tim Robbins, Martin Landau, Mackenzie Crook and Toby Jones. It opens 10th October.

“Incredible Hulk” – Unseen Poster Work Versions

Do you remember the green Norton’s giant and whole buzz about “The Incredible Hulk“? Of course you do!

Well, it’s easy for us to sit and wait for new trailers or posters for movies but for people who do the job the whole thing is much harder.

We found some posters for “Incredible Hulk”, actually the work versions, which were, if I may say ignored.

FBI May Be On The Verge of Identifying The Real Zodiac Killer

According to CBS13 in Sacramento, the FBI is now running lab tests on the belongings of a man named Jack Tarrance, who died in 2006. Tarrance’s stepson, Dennis Kaufman, has spent eight years trying to prove that Tarrance was the Zodiac killer.

For those that don’t remember the film Zodiac, it chronicled the attempts of San Francisco Chronicle employees Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr.) and Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal), in addition to detective Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo), to find the identity of a serial killer who brutally murdered several people in Northern California during the late 1960s…Read more: /Film

New “Eagle Eye” Movie Photos

Eagle Eye: Shia LaBeouf

A bunch of new images from D.J Caruso’s “Eagle Eye” starring Shia LaBeouf, Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, Billy Bob Thornton and Michael Chiklis have hit the net.

Shia LaBeouf reteams with Disturbia director D.J. Caruso as a young slacker whose overachieving twin brother has died mysteriously. When the young man returns home, both he and a single mother find they have been framed as terrorists. Forced to become members of a cell that has plans to carry out a political assassination, they must work together to extricate themselves. Continue Reading…

“Passengers” – Trailer, Poster, Synopsis and Photo Gallery

Take a look at the first trailer and poster for the upcoming Rodrigo Garcia directed thriller “Passengers” starring Anne Hathaway, Patrick Wilson, David Morse, Andre Braugher, Clea DuVall and Dianne Wiest.

After a plane crash, a young therapist, Claire (Anne Hathaway), is assigned by her mentor (Andre Braugher) to counsel the flight’s five survivors. When they share their recollections of the incident – which some say include an explosion that the airline claims never happened – Claire is intrigued by Eric (Patrick Wilson), the most secretive of the passengers. Just as Claire’s professional relationship with Eric – despite her better judgment – blossoms into a romance, the survivors begin to disappear mysteriously, one by one. Claire suspects that Eric may hold all the answers and becomes determined to uncover the truth, no matter the consequences.

Check out the “Passengers” Photo Gallery

Zac Efron in “Me and Orson Welles”

Me and Orson Welles: Zack Efron and Claire Danes

EW posted another one of their upcoming preview galleries, they included a new look at the Richard Linklater directed drama “Me and Orson Welles” which feature a look at Zack Efron (High School Musical) and Claire Danes.

Based on Robert Kaplow’s novel of the same name, “Me and Orson Welles” tells the story of Samuels ( Zac Efron), a teenager who gets the chance to make his big break when he is hired to star in Orson Welles’ production of Julius Caesar. Falling in love with a production assistant, he soon learns the horrible secret of show business.

The film which is yet to have its release date will be screened at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival held from September 4 to 13.