Thompson on Hollywood

Brad Pitt Talks Tentpole 'World War Z,' Unused Budapest Scenes and Fast vs. Slow Zombies in New EW

Interviews

Much has been reported on "World War Z"'s laborious trek to the big screen (June 21), plagued with re-shoots and re-writes -- all the while taking the title of Most Expensive Zombie Movie Ever Made. Despite rumors of conflict between director Marc Forster ("Quantum of Solace") and his producer-star, it's up to Brad Pitt's to turn this movie into a winner for all concerned. And so he sits down with Entertainment Weekly (which hits newsstands March 29), and discusses his newfound admiration for the big-budget tentpole, the stealthy zombies in the film, and why he loosened up on his original political interests in the project.

By Beth Hanna
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March 28, 2013 1:43 PM
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Q & A: How Willimon Runs Fincher's 'House of Cards': From Smart Horror to Last-Minute Corey Stoll Rewrites

Interviews

You don't just wind up running a $60 million web series like "House of Cards" out of nowhere. Writer Beau Willimon is the guy who, day in and day out, steers and makes sense of the Netflix show that is swiftly heading toward production on Season Two. Director David Fincher pulled him in after seeing what he did with George Clooney's "Ides of March," for which Willimon earned an Oscar nomination for adapting his own nasty political play "Farragut North." Willimon knew what he was writing about. He had worked on several campaigns, brought in by his chum Jay Carson, who rose through the K-Street ranks--and now consults for "House of Cards."

By Anne Thompson
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March 26, 2013 6:54 AM
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Q & A: Matteo Garrone Follows 'Gomorra' with Fellini-esque Fable 'Reality,' Starring Imprisoned Actor Arena (TRAILER)

Interviews

Italian Matteo Garrone is a filmmaker to watch. He has chops, and range. Italy submitted his last film "Gomorra" for the Oscars, a gritty slice of the uber-violent underworld. His follow-up "Reality" is a much lighter fairy tale fable about a man, well-played by prisoner actor Aniello Arena, obsessed with getting his family on Italian reality show "Big Brother." It's a delightfully colorful comedy in the classical Fellini tradition.

By Anne Thompson
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March 20, 2013 3:40 PM
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Vincent Cassel Breaks Genre, Gender Rules in Boyle's 'Trance,' Plays CG Monster in 'Beauty and the Beast' (TRAILER)

Interviews

I was fascinated by "Trance," Danny Boyle's smart, assaultive psychological thriller (Fox Searchlight, April 5), which resembles Darren Aronofsky's darkly violent ballet drama "Black Swan," also starring Cassel, or Steven Soderbergh's nastily twisty "Side Effects," which also pivots on a sexily manipulative femme fatale. Boyle's stylish thrill-ride breaks genre rules as it goes. At the center of the movie is an all-is-not-what-it-seems triangle between ruthless gangster Vincent Cassel, who at first tortures London fine-art auctioneer and amnesia victim James McAvoy to find out where he has stashed a stolen Goya painting, then hires a seductive hypno-therapist (Rosario Dawson) to ferret it out of him.

By Anne Thompson
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March 18, 2013 3:38 PM
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Tina Fey Talks Her Post-'30 Rock' Career, 'Admission,' and Oscar Hosting

Interviews

A few weeks ago I went to see Tina Fey's latest movie "Admission" (March 22) on the same night that I watched the last episode of her seven-year NBC sitcom "30 Rock." Fey is a fascinating example of a pioneering woman who has become hugely successful while playing inside the box of what men can handle without being threatened.

By Anne Thompson
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March 13, 2013 4:28 PM
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SXSW 2013: 'Loves Her Gun' Star Trieste Kelly Dunn Talks Improv, Road-Tripping and Directors

Interviews

Geoff Marslet's "Loves Her Gun" will be talked about at SXSW, not only because it centers around violence and gun control, but because the improvised dialogue makes for a naturalistic portrait of a woman's progression from victim to aggressor. Trieste Kelly Dunn, who broke out in SXSW 2010's "Cold Weather" and went on to star in Cinemax's "Banshee." The story starts off with a random act of violence in NYC before a road-trek to Austin, Texas, where the majority of the drama unfolds, complete with hipster band, moustache and river tubing with beer.

By Sophia Savage
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March 11, 2013 7:04 AM
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New Insight from David Fincher on 'House of Cards'

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"House of Cards," David Fincher's diabolically watchable big-budget foray into Netflix programing, is ground-breaking in its presentation. But the show stands on its own apart from its much-hyped release plan. (CAA reveals the numbers behind the series here.)

By Maggie Lange
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March 10, 2013 5:32 PM
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Interview: How Noomi Rapace Became a Global Movie Star, from 'Dragon Tattoo' to Ridley Scott, Brian De Palma and 'Dead Man Down'

Interviews

Swedish actress Noomi Rapace never wanted to go Hollywood. As far as she's concerned, she hasn't changed her preference for complicated, compelling roles. Look at the range of what she's done since "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" series catapulted her into a bankable global marquee name. She played a happily married woman facing her estranged, once-abusive mother in Pernilla August's Swedish family drama "Beyond." Rapace brought strength and spirituality to her role as a space-trekking scientist in Ridley Scott's summer epic "Prometheus." And she didn't play another pretty sidekick in "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows," which led to her co-starring opposite Rachel McAdams again in Brian De Palma's kinky Eurothriller "Passion," which comes out in June.

By Anne Thompson
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March 7, 2013 6:00 AM
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SXSW Interview: Olivia Wilde Finds Her Inner Slapstick Comedian in 'The Incredible Burt Wonderstone'

Interviews

SXSW opener “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” -- which even Steve Carrell admits “won’t be changing any lives” -- did give Olivia Wilde a chance to get in touch with her “inner Lucy.” What? She pulls a football out from under Jim Carrey? No, she has to act awkward and ungainly and do “my tiny homage to Lucille Ball, who I grew up watching obsessively.”

By John Anderson
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March 6, 2013 12:46 PM
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Interview: Canadian Director Kim Nguyen Talks Foreign Oscar Nominee 'War Witch'

Interviews

French-Canadian director Kim Nguyen's coming-of-age drama "War Witch" was one of the five nominees for the 2013 Foreign-Language Oscar. The film tells the harrowing yet poignant story of a young African girl abducted into a rebel army, and her brave journey to free herself from the army's clutches. (Here's the iTunes trailer.)