Exclusive: Palisades Park Pictures (Ppp) will be representing global sales for action-thriller Duchess from director Neil Marshall (Hellboy).
Post production recently wrapped with Ppp screening for buyers at the Cannes market next week.
Duchess stars Charlotte Kirk (Vice) in the titular role as she navigates the world of diamond smuggling. Philip Winchester (Strike Back), Colm Meaney (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Sean Pertwee (Event Horizon), and Stephanie Beacham (Dracula A.D. 1972) also star.
Duchess follows Kirk’s no-nonsense Scarlett Monaghan and her rise from a working-class petty criminal to becoming a ruthless organized crime leader in the seedy underbelly of the diamond smuggling circuit of Tenerife.
Marshall and Kirk co-penned the screenplay, with Emily Corcoran of Cork Films and Kristyna Sellnerova as producers.
Joe Simpson, Simon Williams, Jonathan Bross and Matthew E. Chausse of Ashland Hill Media Finance and Norman Merry and Peter Hampden of Lip Sync executive-produced along with Jon Dean,...
Post production recently wrapped with Ppp screening for buyers at the Cannes market next week.
Duchess stars Charlotte Kirk (Vice) in the titular role as she navigates the world of diamond smuggling. Philip Winchester (Strike Back), Colm Meaney (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Sean Pertwee (Event Horizon), and Stephanie Beacham (Dracula A.D. 1972) also star.
Duchess follows Kirk’s no-nonsense Scarlett Monaghan and her rise from a working-class petty criminal to becoming a ruthless organized crime leader in the seedy underbelly of the diamond smuggling circuit of Tenerife.
Marshall and Kirk co-penned the screenplay, with Emily Corcoran of Cork Films and Kristyna Sellnerova as producers.
Joe Simpson, Simon Williams, Jonathan Bross and Matthew E. Chausse of Ashland Hill Media Finance and Norman Merry and Peter Hampden of Lip Sync executive-produced along with Jon Dean,...
- 5/12/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
When Emmy-winning visual effects artist Ted Rae discussed Netflix’s “Shadow and Bone” with show creator Eric Heisserer and the source material’s author, Leigh Bardugo, Rae said he had no plans to read Bardugo’s series of books just yet.
“I wanted to react a bit more like a regular audience member; to what I knew from the script not what I knew from the books,” Rae says in a recent chat with Gold Derby. “I didn’t want to know things that the audience wouldn’t know. I was hoping that by taking that approach, it would help me present things visually in a way the audience will more quickly understand — because the majority of the audience is not going to have read the books.”
But what Rae discovered was that despite his approach, the “Shadow and Bone” readers were bowled over by the visual effects.
See over...
“I wanted to react a bit more like a regular audience member; to what I knew from the script not what I knew from the books,” Rae says in a recent chat with Gold Derby. “I didn’t want to know things that the audience wouldn’t know. I was hoping that by taking that approach, it would help me present things visually in a way the audience will more quickly understand — because the majority of the audience is not going to have read the books.”
But what Rae discovered was that despite his approach, the “Shadow and Bone” readers were bowled over by the visual effects.
See over...
- 6/13/2021
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
The first big dramatic crescendo for AMC’s horror-on-the-ice series comes in the third episode of the anthology series, when, in his quixotic quest to discover the Northwest Passage through the Arctic for the British Admiralty, Captain Sir John Franklin (Ciaran Hinds) is violently killed by the monstrous Tuunbaq. Executive producers David Kajganich and Soo Hugh wanted to maintain the show’s ubeer-realistic approach while creating a sequence so evocative viewers felt like they got a glimpse of the mythical creature, even though it remains completely obscured. “One of our first rules on the horror side of the show was to always be a bit closer to the action than the audience is used to being,” Kajganich says. “Our mandate was to infuse this death with a subjective point of view, that we stay in the show’s tone that even death come from a subjective experience,” adds Hugh. “It...
- 5/30/2018
- by Scott Huver
- Variety Film + TV
[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for “The Terror” Episode 7, “Horrible from Supper.”]
Like many other details surrounding the latter parts of the real-life expedition that formed the basis for “The Terror,” there’s a tiny bit of haziness around the color of the cans that provided much of the crew’s food. Those Goldner’s cans, innocent-seeming at first, have now become one of the most menacing forces in a series that’s already seen attacks of all different kinds.
“We knew they were some shade of red, because of the cans that were found on King William Island, but those are so distressed at this point, you could really make a bold choice about what shade you wanted to go with,” executive producer and co-showrunner David Kajganich told IndieWire. “We tried a bunch and figured out that that was the one that sort of draws the eye in a way that subtextually feels ominous without overdoing it.
Like many other details surrounding the latter parts of the real-life expedition that formed the basis for “The Terror,” there’s a tiny bit of haziness around the color of the cans that provided much of the crew’s food. Those Goldner’s cans, innocent-seeming at first, have now become one of the most menacing forces in a series that’s already seen attacks of all different kinds.
“We knew they were some shade of red, because of the cans that were found on King William Island, but those are so distressed at this point, you could really make a bold choice about what shade you wanted to go with,” executive producer and co-showrunner David Kajganich told IndieWire. “We tried a bunch and figured out that that was the one that sort of draws the eye in a way that subtextually feels ominous without overdoing it.
- 5/1/2018
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
[Editor’s note: The following interviews contain spoilers for “The Terror” Episode 6, “A Mercy.”]
Life on “The Terror” has not been a simple one for the members of the title vessel. The polar freeze, dwindling rations, and a looming four-legged menace have all conspired to make this a growing, drawn-out nightmare for everyone on screen.
But this week’s episode, “A Mercy,” brought the equally frightening idea that these men’s biggest enemy may very well be themselves.
Organized in part by the newly in-command Fitzjames (Tobias Menzies) to lighten the spirits of the crew, a night of frivolity is one big good intention paving the way for the hellish 800-mile trek to potential safety. After finding out that the men very well may be doomed before they even take a single step, Dr. Stanley (Alistair Petrie) takes it upon himself to end an ill-fated trip before it even begins. A night of merry-making and reverie quickly becomes a...
Life on “The Terror” has not been a simple one for the members of the title vessel. The polar freeze, dwindling rations, and a looming four-legged menace have all conspired to make this a growing, drawn-out nightmare for everyone on screen.
But this week’s episode, “A Mercy,” brought the equally frightening idea that these men’s biggest enemy may very well be themselves.
Organized in part by the newly in-command Fitzjames (Tobias Menzies) to lighten the spirits of the crew, a night of frivolity is one big good intention paving the way for the hellish 800-mile trek to potential safety. After finding out that the men very well may be doomed before they even take a single step, Dr. Stanley (Alistair Petrie) takes it upon himself to end an ill-fated trip before it even begins. A night of merry-making and reverie quickly becomes a...
- 4/24/2018
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
If no two scenes in “The Terror” are alike, that’s by design. Even for a show hurtling across a timeline faster than most other series of its kind, part of what makes the new AMC show such a thorough adaptation of Dan Simmons’ bestselling novel is the idea that the pieces of this story adapt to the changing circumstances.
Very little on-location shooting went into the series; most of the show’s doomed Arctic expedition took place on closed sets with the aid of true-effects wizards. To create a chilly, authentic feel for “The Terror” meant a mammoth undertaking in creating the ship that gives the story its title.
“[The Hms] Terror especially has such a long, fascinating history. Even though we don’t speak to it directly in our show, we wanted the audience to feel that as much as possible,” said executive producer Soo Hugh.
The Hms Terror itself...
Very little on-location shooting went into the series; most of the show’s doomed Arctic expedition took place on closed sets with the aid of true-effects wizards. To create a chilly, authentic feel for “The Terror” meant a mammoth undertaking in creating the ship that gives the story its title.
“[The Hms] Terror especially has such a long, fascinating history. Even though we don’t speak to it directly in our show, we wanted the audience to feel that as much as possible,” said executive producer Soo Hugh.
The Hms Terror itself...
- 4/9/2018
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
Blending history with speculative fiction, AMC’s new series “The Terror,” based on Dan Simmons’ novel of the same name, follows a British Royal Navy expedition into the Arctic in the mid-1800s as it searches for the Northwest Passage. The doomed voyage leaves two ships, the Hms Terror and the Hms Erebus, trapped in ice — and their sailors tormented by a mysterious and terrifying predator.
“It sounded fascinating and like a real challenge right from the start, knowing that we were obviously going to be studio-based,” says production designer Jonathan McKinstry.
Much of the series was shot on a soundstage at Stern Film Studio near Budapest, where McKinstry constructed a multipurpose vessel. “We didn’t have space, time or money to build both ships, so we built one that we modified to become the Terror or the Erebus by changing the stern, changing the signs, changing the dressing, changing...
“It sounded fascinating and like a real challenge right from the start, knowing that we were obviously going to be studio-based,” says production designer Jonathan McKinstry.
Much of the series was shot on a soundstage at Stern Film Studio near Budapest, where McKinstry constructed a multipurpose vessel. “We didn’t have space, time or money to build both ships, so we built one that we modified to become the Terror or the Erebus by changing the stern, changing the signs, changing the dressing, changing...
- 3/29/2018
- by Christine Champagne
- Variety Film + TV
HBO’s sci-fi western “Westworld,” is the heavy favorite to win for contemporary and fantasy production design. The question is whether two nominations for both its western theme park and futuristic programming center actually doubles its chances — or cancels it out. Competition comes from the dystopian minimalism of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the richly Gothic “Penny Dreadful” (nominated last year), and the Vatican beauty of “The Young Pope.”
Meanwhile, the royalty glam of Peter Morgan’s “The Crown” is the heavy favorite to win for period production design, with competition from the Old Hollywood trappings of “Feud: Bette and Joan,” the nightmarish ’80s sci-fi of “Stranger Things,” the alt history of “The Man in the High Castle” (nominated last year), and perennial contender, “Masters of Sex.”
The Dueling Dystopias
The imagination and scope of “Westworld” was unrivaled. In re-imagining Michael Crichton’s adult theme park gone berserk, Jonathan Nolan and...
Meanwhile, the royalty glam of Peter Morgan’s “The Crown” is the heavy favorite to win for period production design, with competition from the Old Hollywood trappings of “Feud: Bette and Joan,” the nightmarish ’80s sci-fi of “Stranger Things,” the alt history of “The Man in the High Castle” (nominated last year), and perennial contender, “Masters of Sex.”
The Dueling Dystopias
The imagination and scope of “Westworld” was unrivaled. In re-imagining Michael Crichton’s adult theme park gone berserk, Jonathan Nolan and...
- 8/7/2017
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Penny Dreadful picked up three awards at the British Academy Television Craft Awards.
The period thriller series, produced by Neal Street with Showtime, triumphed in the Production Design, Make Up & Hair Design and Original Music categories.
BBC drama Sherlock received two Bafta craft awards: one for Sound: Fiction and the other for Editing: Fiction, taking its total tally of Baftas to nine in four years.
Meanwhile, Mackenzie Crook picked up his first-ever Bafta for BBC comedy Detectorists. He won in the Writer: Comedy category, and also stars in the show, which has been recommissioned.
In terms of broadcasters, the awards were spread around. BBC1 led the way with six of the 20 awards, with Channel 4 picking up five.
ITV and Sky Atlantic won three awards each, while BBC2 landed two and BBC4 one.
The winners in full
The winners in full:
Breakthrough Talent
Marc Williamson
The Last Chance School - Minnow Films/Channel 4
Costume Design
[link...
The period thriller series, produced by Neal Street with Showtime, triumphed in the Production Design, Make Up & Hair Design and Original Music categories.
BBC drama Sherlock received two Bafta craft awards: one for Sound: Fiction and the other for Editing: Fiction, taking its total tally of Baftas to nine in four years.
Meanwhile, Mackenzie Crook picked up his first-ever Bafta for BBC comedy Detectorists. He won in the Writer: Comedy category, and also stars in the show, which has been recommissioned.
In terms of broadcasters, the awards were spread around. BBC1 led the way with six of the 20 awards, with Channel 4 picking up five.
ITV and Sky Atlantic won three awards each, while BBC2 landed two and BBC4 one.
The winners in full
The winners in full:
Breakthrough Talent
Marc Williamson
The Last Chance School - Minnow Films/Channel 4
Costume Design
[link...
- 4/27/2015
- ScreenDaily
Penny Dreadful and Sherlock are among the winners at this year's British Academy Television Craft Awards.
The ceremony, which celebrated behind-the-scenes talent in British television during 2014, took place tonight (April 26) and was hosted by Stephen Mangan.
Penny Dreadful walked away with three awards, with wins in Production Design and Make Up and Hair Design as well as Original Music for Abel Korzeniowski.
Sherlock's BAFTA successes increase to nine in four years as Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat's drama picked up two wins in Sound: Fiction and Editing: Fiction.
Sally Wainwright received the Writer: Drama award for Happy Valley, while Mackenzie Crook won the first ever BAFTA of his career for Detectorists, which won the Writer: Comedy category.
The X Factor won Entertainment Craft Team - bringing the talent show's BAFTA tally up to seven - as Doctor Who succeeded in the Special, Visual & Graphic Effects category.
See a...
The ceremony, which celebrated behind-the-scenes talent in British television during 2014, took place tonight (April 26) and was hosted by Stephen Mangan.
Penny Dreadful walked away with three awards, with wins in Production Design and Make Up and Hair Design as well as Original Music for Abel Korzeniowski.
Sherlock's BAFTA successes increase to nine in four years as Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat's drama picked up two wins in Sound: Fiction and Editing: Fiction.
Sally Wainwright received the Writer: Drama award for Happy Valley, while Mackenzie Crook won the first ever BAFTA of his career for Detectorists, which won the Writer: Comedy category.
The X Factor won Entertainment Craft Team - bringing the talent show's BAFTA tally up to seven - as Doctor Who succeeded in the Special, Visual & Graphic Effects category.
See a...
- 4/26/2015
- Digital Spy
This review was written for the theatrical release of "Home of the Brave".Going boldly where "The Best Years of Our Lives" and "Coming Home" have gone before, "Home of the Brave" examines the personal battles fought on the home front by returning war vets.
But while the Irwin Winkler film can take credit for being the first major feature to take on the plight of several American soldiers struggling to resume their lives back home after completing their tours of duty in Iraq, one hopes it isn't the last, given how dramatically inferior it is to its World War II and Vietnam-era predecessors.
Timeliness is all very well, but the significant subject matter cries out for a defter directorial touch and a deeper complexity in regard to the characters and performances (save for a valiant effort by Samuel L. Jackson) than what is provided by Mark Friedman's screenplay and the picture's young cast.
The end result might still be enough to provide fodder for newspaper and magazine articles, but it is not likely to attract much attention at movie theaters, especially at a time of year when paying audiences are searching for something a little more in keeping with the festive spirit.
Although the story is primarily set in Spokane, Wash., the action begins in Iraq (actually Morocco), where a National Guard unit has just received word that it is about to be demobilized.
Their understandably jubilant mood is cut short when they are ordered out on one last humanitarian mission. Things take a tragic turn when the troops find themselves caught in a bloody ambush that will take a physical and emotional toll on the survivors.
Among those having trouble readjusting to life on the domestic front are Jackson's Will Marsh, a medic who returns home to a wife, a son and a worsening drinking problem, and Jessica Biel's Vanessa Price, a teacher and single mom whose hand was claimed by an insurgent's bomb.
Then there is Tommy Yates (Brian Presley), a private who lost his best buddy Chad Michael Murray) during the attack, and Jamal Aiken (Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson), whose coping mechanism has seriously short-circuited, reaching a tragic point of no return.
Any film that includes a quote by Machiavelli ("Wars begin where you will, but they do not end where you please") is obviously coming from a purposeful place, but Winkler, who shares story credit with Friedman, fails to follow through with fully developed characters or compelling plot lines.
As if to compensate, the direction has little patience for subtleties or any of life's little ironies, mechanically switching the Iraq-flashback switch each time there is a personal crisis, or repeatedly showing Biel's prosthetic limb staring up at her from the bathroom counter, hammering home that alienating feeling of detachment.
Even though Samuel L. Jackson makes a concerted effort to lend his character -- the potentially most interesting of the grouping -- some welcome gravitas, he ultimately loses out to the encroaching melodrama.
On the technical front, the tight compositions by cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts using state-of-the-art high-def widescreen video cameras capture the desired immediacy, while the Sheryl Crow closing credits tune, the Sarah McLachlan-esque "Try Not to Remember", ultimately conveys the necessary understated emotional tone that went AWOL throughout the rest of the "Home of the Brave".
HOME OF THE BRAVE
MGM
A Winkler/Cowan production with Millennium Films
Credits:
Director: Irwin Winkler
Screenwriter: Mark Friedman
Story: Mark Friedman, Irwin Winkler
Producers: Irwin Winkler, Rob Cowan, George Furla, Avi Lerner
Executive producers: Randall Emmett, John Thompson, Boaz Davidson, Danny Dimbort, Trevor Short, Mick Flannigan
Director of photography: Tony Pierce-Roberts
Production designers: Jonathan McKinstry, Warren Alan Young
Editor: Clayton Halsey
Costume designer: Karyn Wagner
Cast:
Will Marsh: Samuel L. Jackson
Vanessa Price: Jessica Biel
Sarah Schivino: Christina Ricci
Jamal Aiken: Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson
Jordan Owens: Chad Michael Murray
Tommy Yates: Brian Presley
Running time -- 105 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
But while the Irwin Winkler film can take credit for being the first major feature to take on the plight of several American soldiers struggling to resume their lives back home after completing their tours of duty in Iraq, one hopes it isn't the last, given how dramatically inferior it is to its World War II and Vietnam-era predecessors.
Timeliness is all very well, but the significant subject matter cries out for a defter directorial touch and a deeper complexity in regard to the characters and performances (save for a valiant effort by Samuel L. Jackson) than what is provided by Mark Friedman's screenplay and the picture's young cast.
The end result might still be enough to provide fodder for newspaper and magazine articles, but it is not likely to attract much attention at movie theaters, especially at a time of year when paying audiences are searching for something a little more in keeping with the festive spirit.
Although the story is primarily set in Spokane, Wash., the action begins in Iraq (actually Morocco), where a National Guard unit has just received word that it is about to be demobilized.
Their understandably jubilant mood is cut short when they are ordered out on one last humanitarian mission. Things take a tragic turn when the troops find themselves caught in a bloody ambush that will take a physical and emotional toll on the survivors.
Among those having trouble readjusting to life on the domestic front are Jackson's Will Marsh, a medic who returns home to a wife, a son and a worsening drinking problem, and Jessica Biel's Vanessa Price, a teacher and single mom whose hand was claimed by an insurgent's bomb.
Then there is Tommy Yates (Brian Presley), a private who lost his best buddy Chad Michael Murray) during the attack, and Jamal Aiken (Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson), whose coping mechanism has seriously short-circuited, reaching a tragic point of no return.
Any film that includes a quote by Machiavelli ("Wars begin where you will, but they do not end where you please") is obviously coming from a purposeful place, but Winkler, who shares story credit with Friedman, fails to follow through with fully developed characters or compelling plot lines.
As if to compensate, the direction has little patience for subtleties or any of life's little ironies, mechanically switching the Iraq-flashback switch each time there is a personal crisis, or repeatedly showing Biel's prosthetic limb staring up at her from the bathroom counter, hammering home that alienating feeling of detachment.
Even though Samuel L. Jackson makes a concerted effort to lend his character -- the potentially most interesting of the grouping -- some welcome gravitas, he ultimately loses out to the encroaching melodrama.
On the technical front, the tight compositions by cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts using state-of-the-art high-def widescreen video cameras capture the desired immediacy, while the Sheryl Crow closing credits tune, the Sarah McLachlan-esque "Try Not to Remember", ultimately conveys the necessary understated emotional tone that went AWOL throughout the rest of the "Home of the Brave".
HOME OF THE BRAVE
MGM
A Winkler/Cowan production with Millennium Films
Credits:
Director: Irwin Winkler
Screenwriter: Mark Friedman
Story: Mark Friedman, Irwin Winkler
Producers: Irwin Winkler, Rob Cowan, George Furla, Avi Lerner
Executive producers: Randall Emmett, John Thompson, Boaz Davidson, Danny Dimbort, Trevor Short, Mick Flannigan
Director of photography: Tony Pierce-Roberts
Production designers: Jonathan McKinstry, Warren Alan Young
Editor: Clayton Halsey
Costume designer: Karyn Wagner
Cast:
Will Marsh: Samuel L. Jackson
Vanessa Price: Jessica Biel
Sarah Schivino: Christina Ricci
Jamal Aiken: Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson
Jordan Owens: Chad Michael Murray
Tommy Yates: Brian Presley
Running time -- 105 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 12/11/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Going boldly where The Best Years of Our Lives and Coming Home have gone before, Home of the Brave examines the personal battles fought on the home front by returning war vets.
But while the Irwin Winkler film can take credit for being the first major feature to take on the plight of several American soldiers struggling to resume their lives back home after completing their tours of duty in Iraq, one hopes it isn't the last, given how dramatically inferior it is to its World War II and Vietnam-era predecessors.
Timeliness is all very well, but the significant subject matter cries out for a defter directorial touch and a deeper complexity in regard to the characters and performances (save for a valiant effort by Samuel L. Jackson) than what is provided by Mark Friedman's screenplay and the picture's young cast.
The end result might still be enough to provide fodder for newspaper and magazine articles, but it is not likely to attract much attention at movie theaters, especially at a time of year when paying audiences are searching for something a little more in keeping with the festive spirit.
Although the story is primarily set in Spokane, Wash., the action begins in Iraq (actually Morocco), where a National Guard unit has just received word that it is about to be demobilized.
Their understandably jubilant mood is cut short when they are ordered out on one last humanitarian mission. Things take a tragic turn when the troops find themselves caught in a bloody ambush that will take a physical and emotional toll on the survivors.
Among those having trouble readjusting to life on the domestic front are Jackson's Will Marsh, a medic who returns home to a wife, a son and a worsening drinking problem, and Jessica Biel's Vanessa Price, a teacher and single mom whose hand was claimed by an insurgent's bomb.
Then there is Tommy Yates (Brian Presley), a private who lost his best buddy Chad Michael Murray) during the attack, and Jamal Aiken (Curtis 50 Cent Jackson), whose coping mechanism has seriously short-circuited, reaching a tragic point of no return.
Any film that includes a quote by Machiavelli ("Wars begin where you will, but they do not end where you please") is obviously coming from a purposeful place, but Winkler, who shares story credit with Friedman, fails to follow through with fully developed characters or compelling plot lines.
As if to compensate, the direction has little patience for subtleties or any of life's little ironies, mechanically switching the Iraq-flashback switch each time there is a personal crisis, or repeatedly showing Biel's prosthetic limb staring up at her from the bathroom counter, hammering home that alienating feeling of detachment.
Even though Samuel L. Jackson makes a concerted effort to lend his character -- the potentially most interesting of the grouping -- some welcome gravitas, he ultimately loses out to the encroaching melodrama.
On the technical front, the tight compositions by cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts using state-of-the-art high-def widescreen video cameras capture the desired immediacy, while the Sheryl Crow closing credits tune, the Sarah McLachlan-esque Try Not to Remember, ultimately conveys the necessary understated emotional tone that went AWOL throughout the rest of the Home of the Brave.
HOME OF THE BRAVE
MGM
A Winkler/Cowan production with Millennium Films
Credits:
Director: Irwin Winkler
Screenwriter: Mark Friedman
Story: Mark Friedman, Irwin Winkler
Producers: Irwin Winkler, Rob Cowan, George Furla, Avi Lerner
Executive producers: Randall Emmett, John Thompson, Boaz Davidson, Danny Dimbort, Trevor Short, Mick Flannigan
Director of photography: Tony Pierce-Roberts
Production designers: Jonathan McKinstry, Warren Alan Young
Editor: Clayton Halsey
Costume designer: Karyn Wagner
Cast:
Will Marsh: Samuel L. Jackson
Vanessa Price: Jessica Biel
Sarah Schivino: Christina Ricci
Jamal Aiken: Curtis 50 Cent Jackson
Jordan Owens: Chad Michael Murray
Tommy Yates: Brian Presley
Running time -- 105 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
But while the Irwin Winkler film can take credit for being the first major feature to take on the plight of several American soldiers struggling to resume their lives back home after completing their tours of duty in Iraq, one hopes it isn't the last, given how dramatically inferior it is to its World War II and Vietnam-era predecessors.
Timeliness is all very well, but the significant subject matter cries out for a defter directorial touch and a deeper complexity in regard to the characters and performances (save for a valiant effort by Samuel L. Jackson) than what is provided by Mark Friedman's screenplay and the picture's young cast.
The end result might still be enough to provide fodder for newspaper and magazine articles, but it is not likely to attract much attention at movie theaters, especially at a time of year when paying audiences are searching for something a little more in keeping with the festive spirit.
Although the story is primarily set in Spokane, Wash., the action begins in Iraq (actually Morocco), where a National Guard unit has just received word that it is about to be demobilized.
Their understandably jubilant mood is cut short when they are ordered out on one last humanitarian mission. Things take a tragic turn when the troops find themselves caught in a bloody ambush that will take a physical and emotional toll on the survivors.
Among those having trouble readjusting to life on the domestic front are Jackson's Will Marsh, a medic who returns home to a wife, a son and a worsening drinking problem, and Jessica Biel's Vanessa Price, a teacher and single mom whose hand was claimed by an insurgent's bomb.
Then there is Tommy Yates (Brian Presley), a private who lost his best buddy Chad Michael Murray) during the attack, and Jamal Aiken (Curtis 50 Cent Jackson), whose coping mechanism has seriously short-circuited, reaching a tragic point of no return.
Any film that includes a quote by Machiavelli ("Wars begin where you will, but they do not end where you please") is obviously coming from a purposeful place, but Winkler, who shares story credit with Friedman, fails to follow through with fully developed characters or compelling plot lines.
As if to compensate, the direction has little patience for subtleties or any of life's little ironies, mechanically switching the Iraq-flashback switch each time there is a personal crisis, or repeatedly showing Biel's prosthetic limb staring up at her from the bathroom counter, hammering home that alienating feeling of detachment.
Even though Samuel L. Jackson makes a concerted effort to lend his character -- the potentially most interesting of the grouping -- some welcome gravitas, he ultimately loses out to the encroaching melodrama.
On the technical front, the tight compositions by cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts using state-of-the-art high-def widescreen video cameras capture the desired immediacy, while the Sheryl Crow closing credits tune, the Sarah McLachlan-esque Try Not to Remember, ultimately conveys the necessary understated emotional tone that went AWOL throughout the rest of the Home of the Brave.
HOME OF THE BRAVE
MGM
A Winkler/Cowan production with Millennium Films
Credits:
Director: Irwin Winkler
Screenwriter: Mark Friedman
Story: Mark Friedman, Irwin Winkler
Producers: Irwin Winkler, Rob Cowan, George Furla, Avi Lerner
Executive producers: Randall Emmett, John Thompson, Boaz Davidson, Danny Dimbort, Trevor Short, Mick Flannigan
Director of photography: Tony Pierce-Roberts
Production designers: Jonathan McKinstry, Warren Alan Young
Editor: Clayton Halsey
Costume designer: Karyn Wagner
Cast:
Will Marsh: Samuel L. Jackson
Vanessa Price: Jessica Biel
Sarah Schivino: Christina Ricci
Jamal Aiken: Curtis 50 Cent Jackson
Jordan Owens: Chad Michael Murray
Tommy Yates: Brian Presley
Running time -- 105 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 12/11/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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