Thompson on Hollywood

Empire Magazine's Jameson Awards Honor 'Skyfall' as Best Film of 2012, Helen Mirren Makes Plea for More Women in Film

Awards

The Jameson Empire Awards for the best films of 2012 were handed out in London on March 24, with Sam Mendes taking top honors as Best Director, and 23rd Bond installment "Skyfall" receiving Best Picture as well as the Empire Award. Helen Mirren, who was honored with the Empire Legend award, noted that in Mendes' acceptance speech, none of his favorite classic film moments feature a woman behind the camera. Watch below, with a full list of winners included.

By Beth Hanna
|
March 25, 2013 11:54 AM
|
0 Comments

More:

'Trance' Director Danny Boyle Channels Evil Side with Naked Femme Fatale: Exclusive Interview, Early Reviews

Reviews

"Trance" is stylish escapist fun that makes excellent use of reflective surfaces including the iPad, among other visual tricks--when it isn't pummeling you into submission. Boyle isn't one to sit back and let you feel calm and relaxed. Early reviews by trade critics claim that style trumps substance here. Our video interview with Boyle is below.

By Anne Thompson
|
March 22, 2013 2:54 PM
|
1 Comment

More:

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
|
March 18, 2013 3:38 PM
|
1 Comment

More:

Who Should Direct Bond 24? Take Our Poll

Features

Now that Sam Mendes has dropped out of directing "Bond 24," who should helm the follow-up to the billion-dollar "Skyfall"? The new MI6 table's been set with M (Ralph Fiennes), Q (Ben Whishaw), and Moneypenny (Naomie Harris), and with no more rites of passage or existential crises to deal with, Daniel Craig's 007 is now fully formed and reporting for duty "with pleasure."

By Anne Thompson and Bill Desowitz
|
March 7, 2013 4:17 PM
|
6 Comments

More:

Watch: Head-Exploding Red Band Trailer for Danny Boyle's 'Trance,' Starring McAvoy, Cassel and Dawson

Video

Check out this new red band trailer for Danny Boyle's psychological thriller "Trance," starring James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson and Vincent Cassel. The final moments surprise us with a trippy, unexpectedly gruesome image -- it's, er, mindblowing...

By Beth Hanna
|
February 14, 2013 12:46 PM
|
0 Comments

More:

Danny Boyle Recreates Bucolic English Countryside for London's 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony; Stephen Daldry Also On Deck

News

Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle is facing a challenge that would make most directors shrink: Directing a cast of thousands, including a village cricket team and parade of nurses, plus 12 horses, 10 chickens, 9 geese and 70 (!) sheep. But this isn't a new film -- it's London's 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.

By Beth Hanna
|
June 13, 2012 2:36 PM
|
1 Comment

More:

The Career Progression of Freida Pinto, From 'Slumdog' to 'Trishna': Auteur's Leading Lady or Shallow Ingenue?

Features

Since Freida Pinto and Dev Patel broke out with Danny Boyle's Oscar-winning "Slumdog Millionaire," the real-life couple have had slightly different career paths. Pinto's had the boost of beauty endorsements (L'Oreal) and magazine covers, and it's easier to find roles for a beautiful ethnically-ambiguous ingenue than a quirky Indian man.

By Sophia Savage
|
February 16, 2012 4:21 PM
|
7 Comments

More:

Fiction Vs. Non-Fiction Death Match

POV blogger Tom Roston (@docsoupman), an old colleague from Premiere, loves documentaries--in fact, he blogs about them. And while I enjoy digging into The Interrupters as much as the next cinephile, I love fiction films even better. So Roston challenged me to pit five fiction films, "whether they’ve been produced in Hollywood, New York or Bombay, against their poor, bedraggled step-siblings, non-fiction films, in a death match." Naturally, Roston thinks his docs are going to win hands-down, but that's part of the fun.

By Anne Thompson and Tom Roston
|
August 23, 2011 4:00 AM
|
1 Comment

More:

Spirit Awards: Black Swan Wins Four, Portman and Franco Take Home Acting Awards

Fox Searchlight was the big winner Saturday at Film Independent's Spirit Awards as Black Swan collected four awards, for best feature, actress (Natalie Portman), director (Darren Aronfosky) and cinematography (Matthew Libatique) while a tired-looking James Franco, who is not only co-hosting Sunday's Oscars but threw a post-Gagosian show party Friday night, won best actor for 127 Hours.

By Anne Thompson
|
February 27, 2011 12:50 AM
|
1 Comment

More:

Live From The Indie Spirit Awards: Black Swan Dominates, Winners Talk (UPDATE)

We are live on the beaches of Santa Monica for the 2011 Indie Spirit Awards. It's a sunny but blistering February afternoon. The clouds will likely roll in as the show starts at 2 pm. Winners will be ushered into the press tent to give their last comments before tomorrow's season-finale Oscar showdown. Check back for live updates. Here is the complete list of nominees.