Review: 'Son of a Gun' starring Ewan McGregor, Brenton Thwaites, and Alicia Vikander

The basic components of a great crime movie are pretty simple as for as I'm concerned: clever crime, dynamic personalities, and preferably some kind of energized sexual component from a hot femme fatale. On paper, Julius Avery's Australian crime flick Son of a Gun would seem to have some of those pieces in place with a cast that includes Ewan McGregor, rising star Brenton Thwaites, and Alicia Vikander. Is there plenty of action? Yes. Is it sexy? Sometimes, yeah. But clever it isn't, and the film comes across like any number of generic crime movies you might find on late night cable or On Demand.

Thwaites and his model good looks plays JR, a teenager we first meet as he's strip searched before starting a 6-month prison bid. This isn't going to be an easy stint, either, as the joint he's holed up in resembles the brutal confines of HBO's Oz or the gritty Brit drama Starred Up. JR's no wimp, but he's too pretty for a place like that and becomes the instant target of those looking for an easy mark. Fortunately he makes friends with Brendan (McGregor, scruffy and in full Scottish mode), a prison heavy who offers him protection....at a price. Brendan's not getting out any time soon, but when JR is released he aids in a ballsy prison escape involving helicopters and a wild shootout guaranteed to make the evening news. But that's not all, once on the outside Brendan enlists JR's help in another scheme; a heist that could net them $4M.

The expected complications arise in the form of their shady backer, Sam (Jacek Koman), who is a double-cross waiting to happen. And then there's the gorgeous Tasha (Vikander) who JR gets close to even though he knows it may upset Sam who is also close to her. You won't be surprised to learn she has aspirations of something better than being a crime boss' side piece, and JR is her ticket to it. Their relationship doesn't exactly calm Brendan's fears about being caught, either, since she's the kind of girl that grabs attention.

Avery, another in a growing line of talented Aussie filmmakers, has an eye for choreographing action but struggles with tone. There's an edge to the prison scenes that is curiously lost on the outside, and you can't help but wish they'd stayed behind bars and maintained a sense of unpredictability. The crime itself isn't especially inventive, and thus little tension in how it plays out. Where Son of a Gun excels is in the performances by McGregor and Vikander. McGregor may not be the perfect fit for a role like this, playing the bruising criminal, but that's exactly why it's so much fun to watch. He overpowers Thwaites in pretty much every scene, but the same can also be said for the excellent Vikander who finds moments of depth in a familiar role. It doesn't hurt that she's pretty good on the eyes, as well. Thwaites has the look of a movie star but is too vanilla to be memorable, and that is pretty much what could be said about Son of a Gun. It looks the part of a great heist movie but doesn't compare to those that that truly are.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

Read More

Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer have Style in First Look at 'The Man from UNCLE'

There have been so many troubled blockbusters over the last couple of years that it's easy to overlook The Man from UNCLE, Warner Bros.' adaptation of the cult spy TV series from the 1960s.  Let's not forget that George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh were once attached to the project before dropping out, leaving the studio in a funk on how to proceed. Tom Cruise was briefly on board to star, also, but he too left. Finally Warner Bros. went the safe route, bringing in Sherlock Holmes director Guy Ritchie and Man of Steel's Henry Cavill to join co-star Armie Hammer. While the film may lack the luster it once did, the first image promises it will be a stylish affair.

Cavill, Hammer, and Alicia Vikander capture the look of the swingin' '60s in these shot, relaxing with a drink after what must have been a tough mission. They play American spy Napoleon Solo (Cavill) and the KGB's Illya Kuryakin (Hammer) who are part of a joint effort to stop a global terrorist organization during the height of the Cold War.

Hopefully this means a trailer is on the way. The Man from UNCLE opens August 14th 2015.

Read More

New Trailer for Heist Flick 'Son of a Gun' with Ewan McGregor, Alicia Vikander, and Brenton Thwaites

A couple of months ago we received the first trailer for Son of a Gun, a heist thriller that looked pretty conventional by genre standards. That's except for the cast which features Ewan McGregor and Alicia Vikander, two reasons to take interest in the film, plus rising star Brenton Thwaites, who has had a big year already with Maleficent and The Giver. Now that the film has made its way to theaters overseas, a U.S. release is mere weeks away and now a new trailer has arrived that is a step up from the earlier one.

The story is one we've heard before. McGregor plays a veteran criminal with Thwaites as a young thug under his wing, as they team up for a gold heist that could change their lives. Of course, things don't quite go as planned because of that "no honor among thieves" thing that criminals always seem to forget.

Written and directed by Julius Avery, Son of a Gun debuts exclusively on DirecTV starting December 11th, followed by a theatrical run in January.

Read More

New Trailer for 'Seventh Son' starring Julianne Moore, Jeff Bridges, Kit Harington, and More

In a few days Julianne Moore will make her first foray into the YA field with The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. Oh wait, that's not exactly true. Nearly three years ago she filmed a role in Seventh Son alongside an impressive cast of Jeff Bridges, Ben Barnes, Djimon Hounsou, Kit Harington, and Alicia Vikander. So where has the film been all this time? Stuck in release date Hell, that's where, but the oft-delayed project is finally headed to theaters next winter, and a new trailer for it has been released.

Based on the first book in Joseph Delaney's The Wardstone Chronicles series, Seventh Son follows a young farmhand (Barnes) who is taken in by Master Gregory (Bridges) and trained in the dark arts in order to stop the evil witch Mother Malkin (Moore).  The most recent trailers have been superior to some of the earlier ones but this still looks like a film that will have  hard time finding a niche in a crowded genre.

Directed by Sergei Bodrov, Seventh Son opens February 6th 2015.

Read More

New Trailer for 'Testament of Youth' starring Alicia Vikander and Kit Harington

Not every female hero in the movies has super powers; some get by on personal strength and unbreakable will. Vera Brittain was one such woman, whose story is being told in James Kent's WWI drama Testament of Youth, starring Alicia Vikander as the real life heroine whose memoir inspired this story.

Co-starring Kit Harington,  Taron Egerton, Dominic West, Emily Watson, Hayley Atwell, Jonathan Bailey, Alexandra Roach, Anna Chancellor and more, the latest trailer introduces us to Brittain, a well-known pacifist who hope to buck preconceived notions for women by attending Oxford University, only to have everything she planned disrupted by the war. As battle edges closer, she makes the decision to join the war effort as a frontline nurse, an experience that would change her perceptions forever.

Directed by James Kent, this looks like another handsomely done, impeccably acted period piece, but those are in great supply throughout the year. Testament of Youth has yet to receive a stateside date but will arrive in the U.K. on January 16th.

Read More

Trailers for Alex Garland's Sci-Fi Thriller 'Ex Machina' with Oscar Isaac,Domhnall Gleeson, and Alicia Vikander

When one things of artificial intelligences in the movies, the first thought that springs to mind, outside of the Stanley Kubrick film, is that of evil robots and nuclear scenarios inspired by Wargames and Terminator flicks. But if a movie like Spike Jonze's Her accomplished anything, it's change the way we look at our deep connection with technology. Alex Garland, the writer of 28 Days Later, Dredd, Sunshine, and many more in the genre realm, is taking some of the ideas Jonze presented in Her to a whole new level with his directorial debut, Ex Machina.

The first trailers and posters have been released for the anticipated sci-fi film, which features a great young cast in Alicia Vikander (Anna Karenina), Domhnall Gleeson, and Oscar Isaac, the latter two both starring in Star Wars: Episode VII. Gleeson plays a computer programmer hired by his company's reclusive CEO to take part in a very special experiment. He's tasked with spending time with Ava, an unique, sophisticated artificial intelligence in the form of a very seductive, alluring woman. His goal is to find out just how human Ava really is, and he may not be prepared for the answer.

There have been some pretty high expectations for this one and it looks like Garland is up to meeting them. Ex Machina opens April 10th 2015.




Ex Machina - Official International Trailer 1 (Universal Pictures) HD. by NewTrailers BOS

Read More

Trailer for YA Adaptation 'Seventh Son' that You Probably Forgot About

Figure this: Jeff Bridges will be starring in just as many YA adaptations as Jennifer Lawrence and Shailene Woodley over the next year. "The Dude" finally got his forever-developing adaptation of The Giver off the ground earlier this month, not that anybody saw it, and next year he'll star in Seven Son, which has been plagued with behind the scenes troubles. More than a year after the first trailer hit a new one has arrived and it looks like a new approach is being taken.

So what's the deal? Seventh Son is based on the first book in The Wardstone Chronicles series, and it began life at Warner Bros. but now falls under the Legendary/Universal banner. That was partially the reason for a nearly two-year delay, although the main reason is the film just didn't have any notable buzz. And clearly producers paid attention to that because this latest trailer is cut in a completely different way, emphasizing the big action and monsters while hyping the studio's success with Godzilla. It's a smart strategy, and with a cast that includes Ben Barnes, Julianne Moore,  Alicia Vikander, Djimon Hounsou, Antje Traue and Olivia Williams it's not hurting for star power.  Here's the official synopsis:

In a time of enchantments when legends and magic collide, the sole remaining warrior of a mystical order (Oscar® winner Jeff Bridges) travels to find a prophesized hero born with incredible powers, the last Seventh Son (Ben Barnes). Torn from his quiet life as a farmhand, the unlikely young hero embarks on a daring adventure with his battle-hardened mentor to vanquish a dark queen (Julianne Moore) and the army of supernatural assassins she has dispatched against their kingdom. 

Directed by Sergei Bodrov, Seventh Son opens in 3D February 6th 2015. 

Read More

Trailer for Gold Heist Thriller 'Son of a Gun' with Ewan McGregor, Brenton Thwaites, and Alicia Vikander

Remember that kid who starred in The Giver? Y'know, the only one not named Jeff Bridges or Meryl Streep who had anything to do? Considering that attempt at a YA franchise went *poof* before it really got started, you may not know the star was Brenton Thwaites, and while he was pretty forgettable another chance to make an impression is around the corner. Thwaites is starring with Ewan McGregor and Alicia Vikander in the heist thriller Son of a Gun, and the first trailer for it has arrived.

So with a cast like this why doesn't Son of a Gun have more attention, or at the very least a U.S. release date? Possibly because it looks like a conventional, bare-bones flick writer/director Julius Avery (Jerrycan) has put together. Thwaites plays a prison inmate who comes under the protection of a veteran criminal (McGregor), but to repay the debt he must aid in a major gold heist on the outside. Nothing new here, although McGregor is clearly having a ball and Vikander is playing sexier than we've ever seen her.

Son of a Gun opens in Australia on October 16th.


Son of a Gun by Teaser-Trailer.com

Read More

Trailer for War-Torn Drama 'Testament of Youth' Starring Alicia Vikander and Kit Harington

With 2014 marking the 100th anniversary of the start of WWI, you'd think more films centered on the Great War would be making the rounds, but that hasn't proven to be the case. One film that hopes to shine a spotlight on a forgotten hero of the war is Testament of Youth, which features a deep roster of top British talent, and now it also has a very impressive first trailer.

Filming only began a few days ago so having footage this soon is pretty remarkable. The film stars Alicia Vikander as renowned author and pacifist, Vera Brittain, and is based on her best-selling 1933 memoir. Brittain was an Oxford student who took time away from her studies to serve as a nurse on the frontlines after nearly everyone she loved was killed in the fighting. That was just the beginning of her story, and director James Kent hopes to tell it as a sweeping war-torn romance, with Game of Thrones' Kit Harington as Brittain's fiance. 

Also starring Hayley Atwell, Emily Watson, Taron Egerton, Dominic West, Alexandra Roach, and Anna Chancellor, Testament of Youth opens in the U.K. on January 2nd. No word on a U.S. date.

Read More

Bradley Cooper's 'Chef' Retitled 'Adam Jones', Adds Emma Thompson, Daniel Bruhl, and Alicia Vikander

 It's surprising things have gone on this long with Bradley Cooper's upcoming culinary world film maintaining the Chef title, what with Jon Favreau's film still in theaters. But finally somebody has gotten around to a name change, retitling it Adam Jones, which hopefully won't confuse audiences into thinking it's about the troubled football player known for "making it rain".

Along with the name change comes a big boost in talent. Joining Cooper and Sienna Miller are Emma Thompson, Alicia Vikander, Daniel Bruhl,  Riccardo Scamarcio, Lily James, and Fifty Shades of Grey's Jamie Dornan. No mention of Omar Sy in Daily Mail's report, but it could be just an oversight. The film, directed by John Wells from a Steven Knight script, centers on a celebrity chef who loses everything due to his hard partying ways. Cleaning himself up, he returns to London and opens up a new restaurant in hopes of winning a third Michelin star.

Seriously though, that title is terrible.

Read More

Alicia Vikander Joins 'The Light Between Oceans' and 'The Danish Girl'

After turning heads in a pair of highly-praised period features, A Royal Affair and Joe Wright's Anna Karenina, Alicia Vikander has been mentioned for just about every major female lead in Hollywood. With upcoming roles in The Man from UNCLE, Tulip Fever, and Testament of Youth, she doesn't appear to be going away any time soon, and now Vikander is adding two very high-profile projects to keep busy with.

According to Deadline, Vikander has landed the female lead opposite Michael Fassbender in The Light Between Oceans. Directed by Derek Cianfrance from M.L. Stedman's novel, the story centers on a lighthouse keeper on a remote Australian island who along with his grieving wife rescues an abandoned baby in a rowboat. Raising the child as their own, it isn't long before the consequences of their decision are felt.

And once that film is wrapped, Vikander will join Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl from Les Miserables director, Tom Hooper.  This one had Nicole Kidman and Marion Cotillard attached to it some time ago, but they dropped out some time ago. Based on David Ebershoff's novel about Danish painter Einar Wegener, one of the first men to undergo a sex change, the story follows his relationship with wife Gerda (likely to be Vikander) who loved and encouraged her husband even as he went through a process that ended their marriage.

Read More

Greta Gerwig Cast in 'The Humbling'; Alexandra Daddario goes to 'San Andreas'; Kit Harington Leads 'Testament of Youth'

* Here's one that you may have forgotten. A few years ago, back before Al Pacino and director Barry Levinson were going to team for that Gotti film (Levinson dropped out of it), they were set to unite for The Humbling, an adaptation of Philip Roth's book about "an aging actor who has an affair with a lesbian woman half his age at a secluded country house in Connecticut". Not much was heard about it, but the movie is now in post-production and has been picked up by Millennium Films with Greta Gerwig and Dianne Wiest joining the cast.  Charles Grodin, Kyra Sedgewick, Dan Hedaya, Nina Arianda, and Billy Porter co-star, and presumably we'll see this by the end of the year. [Variety]

* If you've been keeping up with True Detective (I'm still an episode behind, so sue me), then you've seen Alexandra Daddario having her way with one Mr. Woody Harrelson. Now she'll get to hang out with Dwayne Johnson in 3D disaster flick San Andreas, directed by Brad Peyton. Johnson plays a chopper pilot attempting to rescue his estranged daughter after California is devastated by a massive Earthquake. Daddario, who also starred in two Percy Jackson films, is apparently being sought for a role in the Entourage movie.  [Deadline]

* Pompeii and Game of Thrones star Kit Harington will join Alicia Vikander in Testament of Youth, an adaptation of Vera Brittain's WWI memoir. Published in 1933, the book recounted how Britain's world was thrown upside down when the war took the lives of her fiance and brother, forcing her to become a nurse on the sidelines. After the fighting stopped, she attempted to regain her life and became a prominent feminist and writer. Vikander will play Brittain, having replaced the previously-cast Saoirse Ronan, with Harington as her fiance. David Heyman (Harry Potter franchise) is producing with James Kent directing. [THR]

Read More

Alicia Vikander to Star In 'Tulip Fever'; Matthias Schoenaerts Eyed for Role

In development for nearly a decade, the adaptation of Deborah Moggach's novel Tulip Fever has seen everyone from John Madden (Shakespeare In Love) to Tom Hooper (Les Miserables) circling it as a potential directing project, with Keira Knightley and Jude Law once set to star. But for various reasons, most fairly boring, nothing ever came about despite a script by Tom Stoppard  already in place. Now it appears the film is back on track, with some up 'n coming talent on board.

Anna Karenina star Alicia Vikander will star in the 17th century romance, which centers on the illicit affair between a painter and the wife of a wealthy merchant during a time when tulipmania had struck Amsterdam. So one can imagine all of the sexual metaphors that will be at play in a story about blooming and ripening flowers. Sought for the role of the lover is Rust and Bone star Matthias Schoenaerts, with Justin Chadwick (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom) now behind the director's chair.

Considering the many times it looked like Tulip Fever had finally come together with nothing really happening, it's tough to have any confidence just yet. Production will have to wait until Schoenaerts finishes up with Animal Rescue, and possibly his second teaming with Noomi Rapace in Alive Alone. Vikander has The Man from UNCLE next on her list. [DailyMail]

Read More

Alicia Vikander takes the female lead in 'The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'

After taking on a pair of period pieces in A Royal Affair and Anna Karenina, Alicia Vikander is primed for a major breakout. Recently having wrapped up Wikileaks film The Fifth Estate opposite Benedict Cumberbatch, and having been in the running for Disney's Cinderella, the talented Swedish actress is now landing her first studio tentpole, and it'll be opposite none other than Tom Cruise.

Vikander has landed the female lead in The Man from UNCLE, Guy Ritchie's big screen adaptation of the cult favorite 1960s spy TV series. She'll play a British spy with an affiinity for cars, with Cruise as American agent Napoleon Solo and Armie Hammer as a version of Russian spy Illya Kuryakin. They work for the titular espionage organization battling a global terrorist outfit known as THRUSH. Her character is said to be a new one and not related to the show or the brief spinoff, The Girl from UNCLE, which if you ever saw it was pretty friggin' awful.

Just a couple of days ago, Vikander signed up to play the robotic fembot in Alex Garland's Ex Machina, so she's keeping plenty busy as she climbs up the Hollywood ladder. [THR]

Read More

Alicia Vikander will get robotic in 'Ex Machina'

Having already shown she can handle a pair of historical romances in Anna Karenina and A Royal Affair, Alicia Vikander has chose a diverse slate to fill out the rest of the year. She'll star opposite Ben Barnes in the YA adaptation The Seventh Son, and then joins Benedict Cumberbatch in the Wikileaks film, The Fifth Estate. Now she's stepping into the future by starring in Ex Machina, the directorial debut by Dredd and 28 Days Later scribe Alex Garland.

Vikander and Felicity Jones (Like Crazy) were said to be the final two trying out for the role last month, at the same time that Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson were coming aboard. Isaac plays a billionaire who handpicks Gleeson to spend a week at his estate and test out his latest experiment, which turns out to be an advanced female robot, with Vikander as the fembot. Garland will direct and pen the $15M project, which is set up with his usual collaborators at DNA Films.

Filming on Ex Machina is set to begin later this year.[TheWrap]

Read More

Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson join Alex Garland's 'Ex Machina'

It's safe to say that the sci-fi genre has been very good to screenwriter Alex Garland, which is why he's content to not try and fix what isn't broken. Getting his start with Danny Boyle on 28 Days Later and the underrated Sunshine, he moved on to pen the futuristic Never Let Me Go and last year's Dredd. A few weeks ago we learned he'd be sticking with the genre for his directorial debut, Ex Machina, and now he's assembling a talented cast to join him.

Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson, the latter having a small role in Never Let Me Go, are coming aboard the film. Written by Garland and budgeted at $15M, the story has Isaac as a billionaire  programmer, with Gleeson as his employee handpicked to spend a week at his remote estate and participate in a test involving his latest invention: an artificially intelligent female robot.  As for who will play the fembot herself, Alicia Vikander (Anna Karenina) and Felicity Jones (Like Crazy) are said to be in the running.

Producer Scott Rudin knows Isaac and Gleeson pretty well, having worked with them on Inside Llewyn Davis and True Grit.  This sounds extremely promising, and it'll be interesting to see Garland's hand behind the camera for once. [The Wrap]

Read More

Saoirse Ronan, Alicia Vikander, and Gabriella WIlde in the running for 'Cinderella'

Just a few days ago we learned Disney was moving forward in a big way with Cate Blanchett circling the evil stepmother role in a live-action Cinderella, to be directed by Mark Romanek(Never Let Me Go). Well, today brings word on three actresses who will get the privilege of being the object of her scorn.

Variety reports that Saoirse Ronan, Gabriella Wilde, and Alicia Vikander are vying for the role, with Ronan probably having a leg up on her competition. Ronan was at one time attached to star in Disney's Order of the Seven, a Snow White adaptation that was shelved after two other similar films were released in just a few months. So she has a connection to the studio already, and according to the story Blanchett was set for 'Order' as well, so this could be Disney just repackaging an earlier plan. Plus, Ronan clearly has more experience than the other two ladies, and could be red hot if The Host turns out to be the hit some are expecting. But she's also the most busy, and has a pair of major productions coming up that could interfere with scheduling.

Wilde is probably the least known of the three, having made her biggest U.S. appearance in The Three Musketeers. She'll turn up next opposite Chloe Moretz in the Carrie remake. Meanwhile, Vikander is on a roll right now. She was one of the best parts of Joe Wright's Anna Karenina, stars in the Best Foreign Language contender A Royal Affair, and even has a potential franchise gig in The Seventh Son. I'd love to see Vikander get a role like this and really boost her profile. Remember what Alice in Wonderland did for Mia Wasikowska? Or what Kick-Ass did for Chloe Moretz?

No word on when filming will begin, but I imagine a lot of it will have to do with who they ultimately choose.

Read More