Thompson on Hollywood

Review Roundup: 'Jack the Giant Slayer,' from Fee-Fi to Ho-Hum, End of Fairy Tale Rainbow?

Reviews

Critics are divided on Bryan Singer's "Jack the Giant Slayer," starring Nicholas Hoult, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci and Eleanor Tomlinson. Some bluntly call it "pretty dumb" and label it as yet another Hollywood cash-in on the fairytale trend, while others find Singer's direction admirable -- "smart, thrilling and a whole lot of fun." Roundup below.

By Beth Hanna
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February 27, 2013 12:40 PM
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Oscar Watch: Spanish Sleeper 'The Impossible,' McGregor Talks True Survival Saga

Interviews

Guillermo del Toro, who knows how to spot talent, helped to push J.A. Bayona's 2007 smart horror Spanish Oscar entry "The Orphanage" into an international smash hit ($79.6 million). The same trio behind that movie, Bayona, NYU-educated screenwriter Sergio Sanchez and producer Belen Atienza, became fascinated by the true story of a Spanish family who survived the 2004 tsunami that swept over the coast of Thailand, causing some 5000 deaths. Atienza was so moved by a radio interview with Maria Belon, who fought to live for the sake of her young son, that she arranged a meeting.

By Anne Thompson
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November 6, 2012 4:48 PM
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McGregor and Hudson Topline Capaldi Backstage Comedy 'Born To Be King'

News

Scottish writer-director-actor Peter Capaldi ("In the Loop") has landed Ewan McGregor and is in talks with Kate Hudson to star in his mistaken identity backstage comedy "Born to be King." The film will shoot at Pinewood Studios in January. Indomina's Stephanie Denton is handling foreign sales at the American Film Market.

By Anne Thompson
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October 18, 2012 2:50 PM
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Casting Watch: McGregor Joins Streep and Roberts in 'August: Osage County'

News

Ewan McGregor is joining the cast of John Wells' "August: Osage County," with Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts already onboard. The Weinstein Co. film is an adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play by Tracy Letts.

By Beth Hanna
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September 12, 2012 5:44 PM
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Get Your Tissues: The Trailer for Bayona's True Story of Family Survival 'The Impossible,' with Watts & McGregor

Video

The new trailer for Juan Antonio Bayona's "The Impossible" aims for the tear ducts. Thailand tsunami disaster + true story of a family's survival + U2's "One Love" + Naomi Watts + Ewan McGregor. We are sold (and crying), hook, line and sinker. Bayona reteamed with his "The Orphanage" screenwriter, Sergio G. Sánchez. Watch the terrifying and gorgeously shot trailer below. The film lands in theaters December 21 after playing next month in Toronto.

By Sophia Savage
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August 21, 2012 7:00 AM
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Festival Watch: 65th Cannes Festival Jury - Abbass, Kruger, Gaultier, McGregor, Arnold, Payne

Festivals

The Competition Jury for the 65th Cannes Film Festival, presided over by Nanni Moretti, welcomes to its ranks:

By Maggie Lange
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April 25, 2012 1:04 PM
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Trailer Watch: "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" Stars McGregor and Blunt

Video

The new trailer for CBS Films' Toronto pick-up "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" has landed at Yahoo Movies.

By Jacob Combs
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December 17, 2011 8:47 PM
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AFI Fest Confirms Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire as Secret Screening

Festivals

While most of the films being shown for free thanks to Audi at the AFI FEST (November 3-10) have been screened at other festivals, the AFI FEST has managed to grab some movies that weren’t ready for earlier fall tests. They scored the world premiere of Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar (November 9) for opening night, landed the closing night North American premiere of Steven Spielberg’s December stateside release The Adventures of Tintin, which is scoring enormous box office overseas, and will show (as we already reported) Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire (January 20) as its Secret Screening. That means it’s not an official world premiere—although in effect it is.