Red Carpet
British Independent Film Awards Winners
The winners of the 11th British Independent Film Awards have been announced on Sunday, November 30, 2008 which were handed in London.
“Nominations and award winners prove that filmmaking in Britain is alive and well”, says Elliot Grove, the founder of Raindance and the British Independent Film Awards.
“Slumdog Millionaire” directed by Danny Boyle (“Trainspotting”) and Steve McQueen’s “Hunger” both won three honors at the BIFA.
“Slumdog Millionaire” won the top two awards – Best British Independent Film and Best Director.
Steve McQueen with his movie “Hunger” was nominated for both Best Debut Director and Best Screenplay and won Douglas Hickox award for debut director. Michael Fassbender who plays Bobby Sands in “Hunger” won prize for Best Actor. The third prize for this movie is for Best Technical Achievement for Cinematography – Sean Bobbitt.
“In Bruges” written and directed by Martin McDonagh won one but great, screenplay award, of six nominations: Best Actor – Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, Best British Independent Film, Best Screenplay – Martin McDonagh, Best Supporting Actor – Ralph Fiennes and Best Technical Achievement – Jon Gregory (for editing).
Israeli animated “Waltz With Bashir” written and directed by Ari Folman is the winner in Best Foreign Film category at the British Independent Film Awards.
It wasn’t a great night for director Eran Creevy’s low-budget “Shifty,” about 24 hours in the life of a crack dealer, with five nominations but without award.
Take a look at the list of the winners:
“Australia” Premieres in New York
Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman hit the red carpet in New York for the premiere of their epic movie “Australia” on Monday, November 24.
Kidman, 41, looked glamourous in a sequinned gold and black dress when she arrived with her husband, country singer Keith Urban, also 41. But she was booed by waiting crowds when she shunned interviews and instead rushed inside the Ziegfeld Theatre.
Joining Jackman and Kidman on the red carpet were director Baz Luhrmann and co-producer Catherine Martin. Aside from them, other celebrity guests, like Kelsey Grammer, Olivia Newton-John, Lauren Bacall, Alicia Witt, Deborra-Lee Furness, Helena Christensen, and many others, have also been spotted attending the special event.
Australia follows the story of Lady Sarah Ashley, played by Nicole Kidman, who inherits a remote cattle station called Faraway Downs in the mid-1930s, before World War II.
When cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn drover, played by Jackman, to drive thousands of cattle across the country, only to face the bombing of Darwin by Japanese forces. Continue Reading…
“Twilight” Premiere And Reviews
For many of “Twilight” fans, the long-awaited premiere of “Twilight” is the biggest event of the year, of course. With nearly 2,000 shows already sold out, Summit Entertainment’s teen vampire romance “Twilight” is looking more like a studio blockbuster than some of the blockbusters.
“Twilight” has whipped up such a frenzy among tween and teenage girls that advance ticket sales are the biggest for any film since “The Dark Knight.” – Variety
“Twilight,” the big screen adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s novel opened this Friday. Directed by Catherine Hardwicke from a script by Melissa Rosenberg, the Summit release stars Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Billy Burke, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Cam Cigandet, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone and Ashley Greene.
Seems most of the major outlets have published reviews, and they’re quite positive, there are also lots of disappointment.
“Australia” Reviews
Some early reviews have criticised the length of the “Australia.” At the media conference, Baz Luhrmann said he didn’t expect everyone to like it but was hoping it would become a classic.
“It is between the film and the audience,” he said of the reviews at the press conference, describing the film as an epic in the style of ‘Out of Africa’ or ‘Gone with the Wind.’ I wanted to make a film that everyone could go and see.”
Nicole Kidman said the film’s release should be reason for the whole country to celebrate: “This is a celebration for me and hopefully for this country, she said, It’s not meant to be the second coming, but it is meant to be let’s have fun and enjoy it.”
“Bolt” Premiere, Los Angeles
Disney star Miley Cyrus, John Travolta and Billy Ray Cyrus hit the red carpet at the premiere of their animated film “Bolt” from Walt Disney Animation Studios in Hollywood.
John Lasseter, chief creative officer for Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios and executive producer of the animated film
For Bolt (voiced by John Travolta), every day is filled with adventure, danger and intrigue, at least until the cameras stop rolling. When the canine star of a hit TV show is accidentally shipped from his Hollywood soundstage to New York City, he begins his biggest adventure yet, a cross-country journey through the real world.
Armed only with the delusions that all his amazing feats and powers are real, and with the help of two unlikely traveling companions, a jaded, abandoned housecat named Mittens (voiced by Susie Essman), and TV-obsessed hamster in a plastic ball named Rhino, Bolt discovers he doesn’t need superpowers to be a hero. Miley Cyrus brings her vocal talents to the role of Penny, Bolt’s human co-star on the television series. Continue Reading…
“Quantum of Solace” World Premiere
“Quantum of Solace,” 22nd James Bond movie, debuted in Britain broke a UK record for an opening day taking $8 million distributor Columbia Pictures said. makes “Quantum Of Solace” the biggest Friday opening of all time in the UK.
Previous Friday best was “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” earning $6.5 million in 2005. Bond 21st – “Casino Royale” did $4.7 million on its opening Friday (2006). “Casino Royale,” was a huge box office success with a global haul of $594 million.
“Quantum of Solace” from director Marc Forster is scheduled to appear in US theaters on November 14th 2008.
Take a look at photos of the film’s stars from the event – Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini and Bond girls Gemma Arterton and Olga Kurylenko.
Check out “Quantum Of Solace” Movie Page
“The Duchess” London Premiere
Keira Knightley faces life as “The Duchess” premiering at the Odeon Cinema, Leicester Square on Wednesday, September 3 2008.
“The Duchess” is the story of an extraordinary woman who rose to fame by staying true to her passions in a world of protocol, gossip and social rules – and paid the price.
Academy Award nominee Keira Knightley and Academy Award winner Ralph Fiennes head an international cast that also includes Dominic Cooper as the abolitionist Charles Grey, the Duchess’s favorite lover, Haley Atwell as the Duchess’s alluring best friend and rival, Lady Elizabeth “Bess” Spencer; and Charlotte Rampling as the Duchess’s mother, the Lady Spencer. Continue Reading…
