jeezbee

Zac signed up for a new movie, The Death and Life for Charlie St. Cloud, after he dropped out of Footloose back in March/April. The movie is a supernatural romantic drama based on Ben Sherwood’s novel of the same name and will be directed by Burr Steers and distributed by Universal in 2010.

The film recently started filming in Vancouver. Official shooting dates are from 31 July through 22 October 2009 (based on production lists from various Canadian guilds).

So far only a few cast members have been announced:

• Amanda Crew as Tess Caroll
• Charlie Tahan as Sam St. Cloud
• Kim Basinger as Charlie’s & Sam’s mother

Here is a summary of the book courtesy of Ben Sherwood (note: synopsis naturally contains spoilers):

Continue reading…

This is obviously a bit late but with the M&OW teaser trailer out, here are the reviews from the professional sites and media outlets the movie got at TIFF08 last year:

• LA Times, The Big Picture
• The Hollywoodreporter
• Screen Daily
• Chicago Sun-Times, Roger Ebert
• Variety, Thompson on Hollywood
• Variety
• ComingSoon.net
• CinemaBlend
• FirstShowing
• Time Out Chicago
• AICN
• Boston Globe
• Cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer
• Cinematical
• moviefone
• Entertainment Weekly
• Chud
• Hollywood Elsewhere
• Collider
• AV Club
• Time Out New York
• LA Weekly
• The Playlist
• canoe.ca
• Awards Daily
• … and the winner is
• InContention
• FilmBlather
• The Christian Science Monitor
• Filmmaker International
• Filmmaker Magazine
• Lucidforce
• Fast Forward Weekly
• The Coast
• Paste Magazine
• Austin Chronicle
• AICN, Beaks
• Premiere
• Cleveland Scene
• /Film
• The Boston Phoenix
• Bryn Mawr Film Institute
• Ottawa Citizen
• The Strand
• Fipresci
• The Manitoban
• exclaim.ca

Continue reading…

Me and Orson Welles had been screened at SXSW 2009 in March 2009 as mystery screening, ie people showed up without knowing which movie they are going to see until it started. Considering that Austin is Richard Linklater’s hometown many people suspected that it’s going to be M&OW though.

There have been a bunch of reviews (mostly private) coming out of this screening which you can find below.

• Austin Film Society
• Pajiba
• AICN
• Nerve.com
• Magnet Magazine
• The Wrap
• Hollywood Elsewhere – Arthouse Cowboy
• Triple Threat
• Spotlight on SXSW

Continue reading…

Once again, I haven’t been updating the blog as I wanted… so I’ll be trying to play catch up – again.

To start things off, the very basics about last night’s premiere of Me and Orson Welles at the Toronto International Film Festival. There were many articles leading up to the premiere indicating high hopes for this movie (which I’ll put together in a later catch up post). There aren’t many reviews out yet (and not really any important ones) but the first reaction seems to be that the film is good but not brilliant. I’ll try to stay at least on top of the reviews. For this post, here is the entry about Me and Orson Welles from the festival website (written by the TIFF co-director Cameron Bailey) and a first clip from the movie.

Me and Orson Welles

Following on from School of Rock, Before Sunset and A Scanner Darkly, Richard Linklater continues to range across American cinema with the freedom of a true maverick. Is it any surprise that he has arrived at the doorstep of Orson Welles?

It is November, 1937, and teenager Richard Samuels (Zac Efron) dreams of making it on Broadway. One day he runs into Welles (Christian McKay), years before Citizen Kane but already a famous New York dramatist. With his new Mercury Theatre troupe as his instrument, Welles plans to mount a production of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar that will shake the foundations of American stagecraft. But he needs a bit player. Young Richard impresses him with his bravado and his singing voice – he’s hired.

Like a moth to a flame, Richard seeks the approval of the quick-tempered director, but soon finds himself distracted by Welles’s girl Friday, Sonja. Crisply played by Claire Danes as a woman with equal parts candour and ambition, she is irresistible, and knowingly so.

As Welles whips the troupe into shape for the pending premiere, egos and passions simmer to a boil. Richard falls for Sonja, but Sonja has a soft spot for more powerful men. Welles erupts into roaring fury when things don’t go his way, but can turn on a dime to charm an investor or a pouting actor.

McKay was discovered for this role doing a one-man show as Welles, and his performance is pitch perfect in voice and gesture – nothing short of dazzling. Efron is stretching his talent in new directions. He shows truly impressive range here, as the heady environment of the theatre awakens his character’s confidence and brings him to an inevitable clash with Welles.

Based on the novel by Robert Kaplow, Me and Orson Welles offers all the thrills of watching genius through the eyes of an innocent. The man who rose from Julius Caesar to War of the Worlds to Citizen Kane must have been hell to live with, which is the delicious pleasure of Me and Orson Welles.

And here is the short clip where Richard auditions for Orson Welles in front of the Mercury Theatre:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kteUGbN9CD4[/youtube]

Disney published a press release about the start of their promotional campaign with a “First Look” thingie on the Disney Channel hosted by Zac and Vanessa and the trailer as well as the launch of the online campaign on Disney.com.

Well get to see some footage as well as the opening song “Now or Never” during that 5 minute “First Look” as well as a trailer which will be show for the first time on 13 July on the DC. The song debuts even earlier (11 July) on Radio Disney. The online launch will kick off on Disney.com on 14 July at 12:01 a.m. ET.

Here is the full press release: Continue reading…