Trailer for Omnibus 'The Turning' with Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Hugo Weaving, and More

Omnibus films have always had a hard time finding an audience, no matter the amount of big names that may be attached. Case in point the Australian anthology film The Turning, which features performances by Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Rose Byrne, Hugo Weaving, and Miranda Otto, along with segments directed by David Wenham, Mia Wasikowska, and Justin Kurzel. Completed in 2013, it still hasn't secured a U.S. date but has a new trailer ahead of its U.K. release.

Based on the short stories of Tim Winton, The Turning tells ten interweaving stories largely centered on the troubled Lang family. Here's the official synopsis:

Ten stories interweave in their respective narratives, creating an intriguing and twisting central plot-line that often centres around the enigmatic members of the Lang family, each consumed by their shared pasts.

The Turning explores the impact of past on present, how the seemingly random incidents that change and shape us can never be escaped or let go of. All of the stories are bound together by recurring themes; the passing of time, regret, addiction and obsession.

A 90-minute broadcast version aired in Australia early last year, but the cut headed to theaters elsewhere would presumably run the full 180 minutes. The Turning opens in the UK on February 6th.

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Hugo Weaving Reveals Whether He'd Return for 'Captain America 3'

While our attention has been rightfully focuses on Star Wars: The Force Awakens lately, let's not forget that Disney still has a slew of Marvel movies coming up. Next year brings both Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man, but with an entire slate of movies revealed the questions have begun to swirl about who will appear in some of them. Captain America: Civil War arrives in 2016 and with the recent casting of Daniel Bruhl (Rush), some have begun to speculate he'll be playing a modern version of the Red Skull. What does that mean for prior Red Skull, Hugo Weaving? Would he be open to a return? Ummm...no.

Weaving hasn't shown much love for his stint as the Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger, and while doing press for his new film The Mule, he tells I Am Rogue his opinion hasn't changed at all.

Weaving: "My views have not changed. You never know what might or might not happen. But my views have not really changed. I certainly have not had any conversations with anyone about that. No change at all on that landscape. I was talking to you about another Matrix, and I doubt that would happen. But there are always circumstances. Certain circumstances do change, and there is always a good reason to revisit or reinvestigate something. It may not be worth following, but it is always good to keep your options open and your mind open. Having said all of that, I have not really changed my opinion about not wanting to do another Captain America. It was fun to do. It was a very great thing to do in many ways, but I suppose my focus is more likely to be elsewhere, but who knows."

Marvel may not be interested in his services, anyway, as Weaving told THR that he hasn't talked to anyone about a return at all. Assuming Marvel is going to stay reasonably faithful to the Civil War arc, then we should expect the Red Skull to play a major role. Certainly the character has survived into the present day and probably is leading HYDRA, the terrorist organization last seen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Captain America: Civil War opens May 6th 2016.  Weaving will be seen next in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

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Nicole Kidman Searches the Australian Outback in Tense 'Strangerland' Trailer

It's been a rough couple of years for Nicole Kidman as she's no longer the automatic awards contender she used to be. Grace of Monaco got ripped savagely after opening at Cannes, The Railway Man didn't fare much better (it was awful), and while I enjoyed Before I Go to Sleep audiences didn't bother to check it out. There's at least one film on the horizon that may be more of what we expect from her and it's the new Aussie thriller, Strangerland, and now there's a haunting new trailer for it.

Marking the directorial debut by Kim Farrant with Hugo Weaving and Joseph Fiennes co-starring, the film centers on a couple's desperate search to find their children who went missing in the harsh Australian outback. This is exactly the kind of role Kidman is great at and we haven't seen nearly enough from her lately, so hopefully Strangerland will get U.S. distribution soon.


Strangerland by Teaser-Trailer.com

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Stacy Martin Joins 'The Childhood of a Leader'; 'The Martian' Adds Donald Glover; Hugo Weaving meets 'The Dressmaker'

Nymphomaniac breakout Stacy Martin will take on another sure-to-be controversial project, joining Robert Pattinson in Brady Corbet's directorial debut, The Childhood of a Leader. Written by Corbet and Mona Fastvold (The Sleepwalker), with Tim Roth and Berenice Bejo co-starring, the film is described as “a chilling fable about the rise of fascism in the 20th Century” and follows an American living in 1918 France whose experiences there give birth to a "terrifying ego". Martin will play the boy's French teacher. [ScreenDaily]

Ridley Scott has added Donald Glover (Community) to the otherwise amazing cast of The Martian. Sorry, he does nothing for me. Anyway, the film stars Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, Michael Pena, Mackenzie Davis and Jeff Daniels in the story of an astronaut, one of the first to ever step foot on Mars, who is abandoned after an accident and must stay alive long enough to be rescued. Also coming aboard is Aksel Hennie, best known for starring in Headhunters. Glover will play a NASA employee while Hennie is a fellow astronaut. [TheWrap]

Perennial tough evil guy Hugo Weaving will play a cross-dressing police sergeant in Jocelyn Moorhouse's The Dressmaker. Starring Kate Winslet, Isla Fisher, Liam Hemsworth, and Elizabeth Debicki, the adaptation of Rosalie Ham's book centers on Tilly, a scorned woman who returns to the small country hometown she fled after as a child after being accused of murder. This is hardly new territory for Weaving who played a drag queen in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

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'Star Wars: Episode VII' Details Emerge; Michael Fassbender, Hugo Weaving, Adam Driver Sought for Roles

If you thought the Star Wars: Episode VII rumors were flying around at a fast pace before, it's only picked up as production inches closer. The difference is these stories are coming from reputable sources with hard info, not random blogs following a hunch, and after word broke recently that Jesse Plemons is in talks for a lead role, THR has just dropped a mountain of new information.

The site not only confirms Plemons for a meeting with J.J. Abrams about a role throughout the trilogy, but also mentions Michael Fassbender, Hugo Weaving, and Adam Driver as among those being considered. Weaving apparently met to play an Imperial commander, but since nothing is set in stone we can just add them all to the lengthy list of possibilities that includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael B. Jordan, Saoirse Ronan, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Driver seems to be something of a franchise favorite, at least as far as rumors go, as he also mentioned for a Nightwing role in Man of Steel 2.

There's far more to the story than just casting, however, as the trade reveals screenwriter Michael Arndt's recent departure had nothing to do with scheduling, but conflicts over the story's focus. That has led Abrams and fellow co-writer Lawrence Kasdan to go in a different direction, one that focuses on the original trio of Luke, Han, and Leia in order to give them "a fitting send-off". Their children would be in supporting roles, at least for the first movie, and presumably will take over the rest of the way. So it sounds as if Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher will be turning up only to wrap up their characters' storylines, sell a few million action figures for Disney, then fly off into the Corellian sunset.

Apparently the script is still evolving, too, and characters are changing in just about every respect. That means some of the actors who read for parts earlier, such as Mud star Tye Sherdian, are no longer in the picture because that character has been aged up considerably. A mixed-race or African-American female in her 20s is also being sought to play the possible daughter or granddaughter of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Who knew Ob-Wan had 'Dagobah Fever'?

Expect more news to come. Star Wars: Episode VII opens December 18th 2015.

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Nicole Kidman Lands Aussie Mystery 'Strangerland' as 'Grace of Monaco' Controversy Heats Up

While the most recent new wave of Australian cinema has mostly been led by directors such as David Michod, Cate Shortland, and John Hillcoat, there are plenty of veteran actors from Down Under who have been carrying the torch for some time. As part of a substantial $32.3M deal for a package of six feature films that will unite some of Australia's best directors and actors together, and the most promising of which will bring together the talents of Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce.

Variety reports the trio will return to their native home for Strangerland, an Aussie mystery about a couple whose relationship crumbles when their children mysteriously go missing in the Outback. The film marks the feature directorial debut by Kim Farrant (Naked On the Inside), with a script by Fiona Seres and Michael Kinirons.

Certainly it sounds promising, and it will be good to hear all three in their native accents rather than ducking behind American ones. Screen Australia describes the film as having “strong creative potential and massive A-list festival potential.”, which is something that also could have been said for Kidman's biopic, Grace of Monaco. The Grace Kelly film was meant to arrive this fall and likely would have secured Kidman a place in the Best Actress race, but The Weinstein Company bumped it into next year, saying the film simply wasn't finished. Think that's the end of the story? Not when Weinstein is involved.

According to director Olivier Dahan, the real flap is over the final cut of the film, and yes Harvey "Scissorhands" Weinstein has his paws all over this one as well. Dahan tells Liberation (via THR) that he's basically fighting to put out the version he always intended....

Dahan: "The film that I am in the process of finishing is complicated to finalize, although actually, for me, it is finished. What's complicated at the moment is ensuring that you, the critics, can review my version of the film and not that of somebody else. It's not over yet. I haven't given up."

He went on to add that Weinstein is essentially trying to back him into a corner to agree on the studio version of the film, but based on his answers this could be a long battle....

Dahan: "It's right to struggle, but when you confront an American distributor like Weinstein, not to name names, there is not much you can do. Either you say 'Go figure it out with your pile of shit' or you brace yourself so the blackmail isn't as violent … If I don't sign, that's where the out-and-out blackmail starts, but I could go that far. There are two versions of the film for now: mine and his … which I find catastrophic."

So who knows how this will turn out, but Kidman should be good to go either way. Besides Strangerland she also recently agreed to produce and star in an adaptation of best-selling novel, The Silent Wife.

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The path to 'Marvel's The Avengers': 'Captain America'

So by now some of you readers out there might have already seen The Avengers. Going out late at night, to be one of the first people to see this movie in the United States. But most likely if you did all that you might not have needed these recaps now did you. Now for all the rest of you who have been getting your Marvel Movieverse cliff notes on here we have it the last and final recap, at least until The Avengers 2, here is the recap of Captain America:The First Avenger.

The story of Captain America is set during America’s time in World War II. A young man by the name of Steve Rogers has tried many times to sign up for the Army. Continually denied because he doesn’t meet the physical requirements he is finally let in after a chance meeting with scientist by the name of Professor Erskine. Erskine is working on the project to create the world’s first super solider. Erskine feels that Rogers is the perfect candidate because he feels the power won’t go to his head and he’d do the right thing. After the process and Rogers is a super solider a Nazi spy shoots and kills Erskine, Steve gives chase and in turn becomes a celebrity as Captain America. He’s used mostly for U.S.O. shows instead of in the field. After deciding to disobey orders and saving a base of captured Allied troops and facing down Red Skull Cap is now a bonafide hero and secret weapon of the US forces.

This movie is pretty much a surprise through and through. It’s pretty hard to do a good film set in the past and even more in a war and then add on superheroes. This movie was like almost destined to fail but it did the exact opposite. This movie feels like an old propaganda WWII adventure serial but done with all our current fancy filmmaking tech. Now Cap might not work for everyone, it’s at times bit cartoonish in character and there really isn’t a lot of development but I think you can argue that wasn’t their goal with this.

So what nuggets are in this movie to the other ones? Well you could say that Cap himself is basically the key that causes the rest of the events we see in most of these films. The Red Skull and his Tesseract aka the Cosmic Cube is a big part in Avengers as Loki’s goal. We also meet a young Tony Stark and see how the Starks are very important to the superhero side of the universe with him being part of the super solider project. The film both begin and end in the present and S.H.I.E.L.D. discovering a frozen Steve Rogers. With Fury meeting Steve Rogers for the first time he finally has the key he needs to make his team of the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

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New poster and trailer for Captain America: The First Avenger

Captain America: The First Avenger is the closing salvo of the superhero summer season. So far it's been a pretty good run. Thor was fantastic, a bit silly but a lot of fun. X-men: First Class is top notch in every conceivable way. And then there was Green Lantern. The less said about that the better. Captain America has some of the same problems that Green Lantern does. He's very easy to screw up. Patriotic characters always are. We've seen trailers for the film before, and one thing I've liked is just how kinetic and fast paced it is once Chris Evans gets bulked up and puts on that uniform.

My problem was the stuff that comes before, with Evans looking flat out creepy as a skinny little runt. The latest trailer shows us a lot more of that end of things, and to me it still doesn't look right. Kinda makes my skin crawl.  I love everything else about it, though. We get to see a lot more of Stanley Tucci as the scientist who comes up with the transformative Super Soldier serum that gives Cap his powers. The second half of the trailer is pure adrenaline, and renews my confidence that Marvel may have a hit on their hands. 

Captain America: The First Avenger was directed by Joe Johnston, and stars Chris Evans, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell, Dominic Cooper, Stanley Tucci, Derek Luke, Neal McDonough, Sebastian Stan, Toby Jones, and Samuel L. Jackson. It's due to open on July 22nd.

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1st look at the Red Skull wielding the Cosmic Cube in Captain America: The First Avenger

The Cosmic Cube is one of those objects floating around the Marvel Universe that basically serves as a sort of super MacGuffin. It pops up occasionally to be coveted and pursued by villainous types with plans of universal domination, then disappears for awhile. It's basically an all powerful item that allows the wielder to control and reshape reality in virtually any way imaginable. 

Last I checked, the Cosmic Cube was in the posession of the Red Skull in the comics, but it's been awhile since I read anything Captain America related. We've known for awhile that the Cube would be appearing in Captain America: The First Avenger as an item again coveted by Cap's arch-nemesis. Supposedly the Cube's presence will be felt in all of the upcoming Marvel flicks, but now we're getting our first glimpse of it in the posession of the Red Skull, as portrayed by Hugo Weaving. Check out the pic below!

Looks like a block of friggin' ice, and judging by the look on Weaving's face I bet he's about to say something super campy and villainy like "I now posesses the most powerful weapon in all the universe!! No one can stop me!!" just moments before Cap's shield knocks the Cube out of his hand or something.  You know I'm right.
The image comes courtesy of the latest issue of SFX, but it was BleedingCool that first brought it to my attention. Thanks, gang!

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1st Look at the HYDRA logo from Captain America

Real quick like...

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, The First Avenger: Captain America director Joe Johnston unveiled the logo for HYDRA, the villainous organization that the Red Skull(Hugo Weaving) would be working alongside. He did it in rather unique fashion, too, by putting it on his cell phone. I wonder if he has a skin from The Wolfman on his Ipod touch?  He probably did before he got the box office receipts on it....

HYDRA are the chief rivals of Nick Fury's S.H.I.E.L.D., and will likely be a recurring threat throughout the Marvel films, especially leading into The Avengers.

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