French actress Virginie Ledoyen, whose claim to international fame was a starring role in The Beach alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, will appear in a movie inspired by Doors singer Jim Morrison.
The Last Beat is loosely based on his last days in Paris, where he died in 1971. Ledoyen will play Clémence, a countess and one of the two love interests of Jay Douglas, the Morrison-inspired character played by Shawn Andrews. Hit the jump for the synopsis and more.
Its timing will somewhat coincide with the 40
th anniversary of Morrison’s death 2011, although the release date has been announced for 2012. Oliver Stone’s 1991 biopic
The Doors was released in time for the 30
th anniversary, but that’s where the comparison between the two films ends.
Stone based his movie on Danny Sugerman and Jerry Hopkins’s biography of The Doors No One Here Gets Out Alive, and what bothers me is that he chose to portray mostly the negative aspects of Morrison’s life. Granted, there were many and it makes for good entertainment but the book depicted him as more than just a spoiled rock star and tortured soul.
While I have some reservations about The Last Beat — I’m not sure about the cliché love triangle — I am relieved that it will feature an original soundtrack and not a massacre of Doors songs.
The production company Bohemia Group revealed more details in a press release:
Writer and Director Robert Saitzyk (Godspeed) dives deeply into the torrid world of rock and roll to craft the realm that is the last days of rock star Jay Douglas in the film The Last Beat. Leading the cast in this powerful drama as the famous and tortured Douglas is Shawn Andrews, whose screen credits include the award winning Fix opposite Olivia Wilde, Dazed and Confused and City of Ghosts, and now attached is the César-nominated French actress Virginie Ledoyen, who has been seen in films such as Tout ce qui brille, The Army of Crime and of course Danny Boyle’s The Beach. Ledoyen will play Clémence, a French Countess involved in a turbulent love triangle between Jay Douglas and his self-professed “soul mate” — the earthy, but fiery Valerie Eason.
The Last Beat explores the life of a world weary self exiled rock star searching for a more artistic existence as a poet and writer in Paris, with the hope of erasing his tarnished former stardom. The film’s rich storyline will be accompanied by a completely original soundtrack redolent with the influences of the early 70’s ranging from Rock n Roll to French Pop. The Last Beat will offer audiences a refreshing view of the turbulent end of the 60’s and early 70’s along with an insightful perspective into the melancholy lifestyle and unerring clarity of a rock star and poet coming to terms with his own end.
Production is set to commence in late spring 2011 and will be shot primarily on location in Paris, France.
I’m assuming Valerie Eason is based on Jim Morrison’s girlfriend Pamela Courson, who died in 1974. The actress for the role hasn’t been announced yet.
Ledoyen’s international career never really took off after 2000’s
The Beach, not Marion Cotillard style anyway, although she has worked consistently ever since. She has made a slew of (often average) French films and starred this year in Géraldine Nakach’s
Tout ce qui brille. But Ledoyen seems intent on making an international “comeback” and is set to appear on TV in
XIII: The Series, based on the popular comic by Jean Van Hamme and William Vanc, and, as we
previously reported, has been cast in L.D. Napier’s directorial debut,
Mis-Fits.
by Matt Goldberg Posted: December 13th, 2010
Disney has released a new trailer for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. As we’ve previously reported, the film picks up where Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End left off: with Captain Jack Sparrow hunting for the Fountain of Youth. Unfortunately for Captain Jack, a woman from his past forces him on to the Queen Anne’s Revenge, which is a nice little ship as long as you don’t mind that its captain is the ruthless pirate Blackbeard.
Hit the jump to check out the trailer, which contains mermaids, zombies, and Keith Richards. The film stars Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Ian McShane, Kevin R. McNally, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Sam Claflin, and Geoffrey Rush.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides opens in 3D on May 20, 2011.
Click here to check out our write-up of the trailer’s premiere at Disneyland.
Briefly, this trailer doesn’t sway me one way or the other on the movie. Jack looks like he’ll remain a static characters and the plot looks overstuffed. However, I’m one of the few people that likes the overstuffed Dead Man’s Chest and At World’s End. The trailer shows a lot of scenes with low-lighting which makes me nervous about the 3D since the technology almost always dims the picture. I’ve got mixed feelings on this flick, but hopefully I’ll end up enjoying it as much as the first three.
Here’s the official synopsis for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides:
Captain Jack Sparrow crosses paths with a woman from his past and he’s not sure if it’s love or if she’s a ruthless con artist who’s using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. When she forces him aboard the Queen Anne’s Revenge, the ship of the formidable pirate Blackbeard, Jack finds himself on an unexpected adventure in which he doesn’t know who to fear more: Blackbeard or the woman from his past.
Genre: Action Adventure
Cast: Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Ian McShane, Kevin R. McNally (Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl), Astrid Berges-Frisbey (The Sea Wall), Sam Claflin (The Pillars of the Earth), and Geoffrey Rush
Directed by: Rob Marshall (Chicago)
Screenplay by: Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio
Produced by: Jerry Bruckheimer
Executive Producers: John DeLuca, Ted Elliott, Chad Oman, Terry Rossio, Mike Stenson, Barry H. Waldman
by Rob Vaux Posted: December 13th, 2010
Swashbucklers of all varieties swarmed the Disneyland Resort this morning, eager to watch the world premiere of the Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides trailer. Fans and contest winners lined up in front of the AMC theaters in Downtown Disney, braving the icy cold California morning (in which temperatures plunged into the low 50s) in order to be the first to catch a glimpse of Jack Sparrow’s new adventures. “Official” pirates from the park sang sea shanties and conducted costume contests, while director Rob Marshall appeared beforehand to introduce the trailer. In the midst of it, he dropped a few tantalizing hints about the content of the new film. (Avast mateys! Thar be spoilers ahead. Fairly warned thee be, says I.)
After the trailer screening, guests were taken into the Disneyland park just before the gates opened for the day. The sailing ship Columbia appeared—complete with crew—who sang more sea shanties and swore in the new “crew members” with a lengthy pirate oath. They were joined by none other than Jack Sparrow himself, who seemed confused as to whether the guests were to be conscripted or executed. Once the issue was cleared up (thankfully with no blood being spilt), the guests took a trip on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, followed by a breakfast and after-party at a nearby pavilion. While Disney provided bacon and eggs, the guests could take pictures with Jack and his crew, as well as with the huge mock-up of the film’s teaser poster, featuring a grinning silver Jack skull. Hit the jump for more.
UPDATE: Disney has provided us with some footage from today’s event as well as an interview with director Rob Marshall. Both are after the jump:
As for the trailer itself? It featured an introduction from Geoffrey Rush, who reprises his role of Captain Barbossa in the film, The wily pirate has changed sides, it seems: now serving as a captain in the British Navy (though we suspect this particular leopard retains the same spots as ever). He and Johnny Depp’s Jack open the proceedings in London, where Jack is seeking the whereabouts of an imposter. From there, it’s back to the New World in search of the legendary Fountain of Youth. Along the way, they’re joined by Penelope Cruz’s feisty pirate queen and Ian McShane’s thoroughly unpleasant Blackbeard. Watch it for yourself
here.
The trailer only hinted at the details—though to be sure, there were plenty of buckles swashed throughout—concentrating instead on the film’s use of 3D. The camera swooped through lush jungles and barren shorelines while Jack (and the audience) dodge cannonballs, rapiers, and the occasional zombie hurtling right in our face. As impressive as they all looked, however, the real selling point was the same as it was for the first three films: Depp, at his mincing, quipping best in the center of all the mayhem. The trailer delivered plenty of his one-liners (“I hope you all saw that, “ he gesticulates after a spectacular dive, “because I will not be doing it again!”), as well as more athletic moments of the crossing-sabers-and-swinging-from-yardarms variety. The trailer made clear that—whatever changes On Stranger Tides makes—the essence of the series remains intact.
Afterwards, Marshall himself spoke to the press about the film, and the big turnout for the trailer.
“I remember going on the ride as a kid,” he said, while standing in front of the entrance. “It was back when they used tickets for the different rides. This was definitely an E-ticket back then, and we got the same feeling with this shoot: a real adventure.”
Part of that adventure involved getting the 3D right. Marshall said he considered it a key step because it immerses the audience in Jack’s world… a world, he stressed, that relied on actual locations rather than CGI.
“Because there’s 3D involved, you’re bringing in 3D rigs. It’s one thing if you’re bringing it into a soundstage or on a green screen. Here, we’re bringing it into caves and into waterfalls, and jungles and swamps…. Some pretty amazing places.”
Marshall was quick to sing the praises of his entire cast, particularly Depp, who he described as “a dream.” Working with him posed a particular challenge, since the actor knows the character so well, but both men quickly established a working rapport. “He’s an actor, and he wants guidance,” Marshall claimed. “It was my job to give him what he needed without getting in the way of this wonderful figure he’s created.”
As for other surprises the film might contain, the director was tight lipped, and when asked if it would make any nods to the ride, he simply smiled. “There are two… but I’m not going to tell you which ones.”
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides opens May 20, 2011.
UPDATE: Here’s director Rob Marshall talking about today’s event and the next video is 10 minutes of behind the scenes footage from this morning. In case you weren’t able to go, now you can see what you missed:
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by Matt Goldberg Posted: December 13th, 2010
Last month, we reported that director Michael Hoffman (
The Last Station) had come on board to helm the Coen Brothers-scripted remake of the 1966 Michael Caine caper comedy
Gambit.
Deadline now reports that Oscar nominee Colin Firth is in talks to play the Caine role of a cat burglar who attempts to steal a priceless statue from a billionaire by enlisting the help of a waitress (played in the original by Shirley MacLaine) who looks like the billionaire’s deceased wife.
Firth, who is likely to receive an Oscar nomination for his wonderful performance in
The King’s Speech, is currently developing a film based on the
Amanda Knox murder case with director Michael Winterbottom (
The Killer Inside Me), and is co-starring in Tomas Alfredson’s
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.
