Currently available on VOD and opening in select theaters on September 20th is the new crime noir thriller A Single Shot from director David M. Rosenthal (Janie Jones, Falling Up, See This Movie). The film, which is based on the novel of the same name by Matthew F. Jones, who also wrote the screenplay, stars an impressive cast of actors that includes Sam Rockwell (The Way Way Back), William H. Macy (The Sessions), Kelly Reilly (Flight), Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter series), Joe Anderson (The Grey), Ted Levine (The Silence of the Lambs), Jeffrey Wright (Broken City), and Academy Award-winner Melissa Leo (Olympus Has Fallen).
The movie features a powerful performance by Rockwell as a classic noir character named John Moon, an everyman-type hunter who can’t seem to catch a break. Recently separated from his family, Moon is struggling to make ends meet in West Virginia while living in his wilderness home. After the accidental death of a young girl, he stumbles upon a box of cash, which he thinks will change his luck for the better. But when the criminals that the box belongs to come looking for their money, it begins a chain of events that threatens both him and his estranged family. Now Moon must use his wits and skills to protect his family in the backwoods area that he knows so well, while surviving a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse between him and the killers who will stop at nothing to retrieve their cash.
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with director David M. Rosenthal about his work on A Single Shot. The accomplished filmmaker discussed his new movie, what attracted him to the project, the noir genre, the visual pitch he used to get hired, other movies that influenced this film, why it was helpful to have author Matthew F. Jones adapt his own novel into the screenplay, working with actor Sam Rockwell, the classic noir character of John Moon, assembling the impressive ensemble cast, William H. Macy and Jason Isaacs unusual performances, and the film’s silent opening sequence.
After directing several critically acclaimed films and even a James Bond movie, director Marc Forster is now taking on the zombie apocalypse!
Forster first gained attention for his drama Monster’s Ball, which earned Halle Berry her Oscar for Best Actress. He followed that up with Finding Neverland, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture and based on the life of author J.M. Barrie. He would go on to direct the popular Will Ferrell comedy Stranger Than Fiction, an adaption of the beloved novel The Kite Runner, and the true-life story Machine Gun Preacher, before taking on 007 with the box office smash Quantum of Solace, a sequel to Casino Royale once again starring Daniel Craig. But this summer the director turned his sights on zombies with his hit movie World War Z starring Brad Pitt, which will be available on Blu-ray and DVD beginning September 17th.
In the film, which is based on the popular book by Max Brooks, United Nations employee Gerry Lane (Pitt) travels the world in a race against time to stop the Zombie pandemic that is toppling armies and governments, and threatening to destroy humanity itself. In addition to Pitt (who also produced the film), the movie stars Mireille Enos (TV’s The Killing), James Badge Dale (The Lone Ranger), Matthew Fox (Emperor), and veteran actor David Morse (The Odd Life of Timothy Green). The film was based on the book of the same name and an original story created by Matthew Michael Carnahan (The Kingdom) and Michael J. Straczynski (TV’s Babylon 5), while Carnahan, Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods), and Damon Lindelof (Prometheus) wrote the screenplay.
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Marc Forster about his work on World War Z. The acclaimed filmmaker discussed his latest movie, what excited him about the project, why the film is so different than the book, adapting existing material into a new movie, working with the film’s writers, the project’s early bad press, how he dealt with it, why it happened, working with actor/producer Brad Pitt, his process as an actor, why the director likes the zombie genre, the look of the zombies in the film, fast vs. slow zombies, and if he will return to direct the proposed sequel.
By now, film fans are familiar with established stars and moviemakers turning to Kickstarter to get a project off the ground.
With Reach Me, however, writer-director John Herzfeld faced an unprecedented situation, as his drama featuring an unbelievable all-star ensemble cast lost a financier in the midst of shooting.
A producer and actor as well, Herzfeld has previously written and directed films including 2 Days in the Valley, 15 Minutes, and Don King: Only In America. Reach Me is a passion project marking the culmination of more than a decade of effort. The film is an ambitious drama about a sprawling group of varied character whose lives are pulled together and eventually collide because of an underground inspirational book with an anonymous author.
In order to realize his vision of a hopeful and redemptive tale, Herzfeld enlisted a tremendous cast led by Sylvester Stallone (Rocky) and including the likes of Kelsey Grammer (Frasier), Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer), Lauren Cohan (The Walking Dead), Terry Crews (The Expendables), Danny Aiello (Do The Right Thing), Nelly, Ryan Kwanten (True Blood), Thomas Jane (Stander), Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride), Kevin Connolly (Entourage), Tom Berenger (Inception), Omari Hardwick (Kick-Ass), Danny Trejo (Machete Kills), and Tom Sizemore (Saving Private Ryan).
In an IAR exclusive interview with Managing Editor Jami Philbrick, John Herzfeld graciously shared his thoughts on casting Reach Me, his longtime friendship with Stallone, losing a significant portion of funding during principal photography, the many benefits of turning to Kickstarter for the film's completion, the artistic freedom provided by crowdfunding, and the changing landscape of filmmaking.
Harry Dean Stanton is not only a legendary actor and singer, but he is also an American original!
Stanton has been working on stage, television, and film for almost 60 years. His resume of accomplishments is too long to list but includes highlights such as Cool Hand Luke, In the Heat of the Night, Kelly’s Heroes, Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid, The Godfather Part II, Cheech & Chong’s Up in Smoke, Alien, Escape from New York, Paris, Texas, Red Dawn, Pretty in Pink, The Last Temptation of Christ, Wild at Heart, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Straight Story, The Green Mile, and Anger Management.
He also starred on the popular HBO series Big Love, and at age 87 shows no signs of stopping any time soon having appeared in such recent films as The Last Stand with Arnold Schwarzenegger, the critically acclaimed Seven Psychopaths, and the blockbuster hit Marvel’s The Avengers. In addition to his acting triumphs, Stanton is also a renowned singer and musical performer. Now, a new documentary called Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction, which opens in theaters on September 13th, gives audiences an inside look at the man, the myth, and the legendary icon that is Harry Dean Stanton!
The new film takes a look at the iconic actor and is comprised of intimate moments and film clips from some of his 250 films, as well as his own heart-breaking renditions of American folk songs. Directed by Sophie Huber, the film explores the actor's enigmatic outlook on his life, his unexploited talents as a musician, and includes candid scenes with filmmakers David Lynch and Wim Wenders, as well as Sam Shepard, Kris Kristofferson and Debbie Harry.
I recently had the absolute pleasure of speaking with the legendary Harry Dean Stanton about Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction, his life, and his incredible career. The iconic performer discussed the new documentary, how he felt about making it, his theories on acting, why Paris, Texas is his favorite movie, his collaborations with director David Lynch, his music, playing the harmonica, his friendships with Jack Nicholson, Marlon Brando, and Kris Kristofferson, why he continues to work at this point in his career, his philosophy on life, and what he hopes audiences learn about him from watching this movie.
Shemar Moore isn't interested in resting on his laurels.
Thanks to his role as Derek Morgan on the ABC series Criminal Minds, the former The Young and the Restless star has earned legions of new fans over the previous eight seasons.
As the series enters its ninth season, though, Moore isn't just keeping an eye on the future, he's actively building towards it. Moore is returning to features for this first time since 2005's Diary of a Mad Black Woman with his crowdfunded passion project The Bounce Back. He's also jumping into the animation game as the voice of Cyborg in the upcoming DC Universe movie Justice League: War.
Moore is spearheading The Bounce Back as both star and executive producer. The film centers Matthew Taylor, who pens a bestselling book an creates a whole philosophy as means of self-defense following the death of his first love. In order to continue hiding his heartbreak, Taylor mounts a year-long speaking tour espousing the benefits of his system, which keeps him from experiencing such vulnerability ever again. When he meets the beautiful and unpredictable Kristin Moreland, however, Tyler must renounce his book and his philosophy for a second chance at love.
In an IAR-exclusive interview with Managing Editor Jami Philbrick, Shemar Moore recently shared his enthusiasm for The Bounce Back, the process of using social media to secure funding for the romantic comedy-drama, and the project's current status. He also joining the DC Universe as the voice of Cyborg in Justice League: War, and his fervent hope to play the superhero in a live-action Justice League movie.
Omari Hardwick is doing something very unusual for a Hollywood actor … he’s abandoning big budget studio films to focus on his craft!
After starring in a string of high profile Hollywood movies like Beauty Shop, Gridiron Gang, The Guardian, Spike Lee’s Miracle at St. Anna, Kick-Ass, The A-Team, Tyler Perry’s For Colored Girls, and Whitney Houston’s final film Sparkle, the actor has begun to concentrate on appearing in smaller character driven projects. Last year’s independent hit Middle of Nowhere is a perfect example, as is his latest film Things Never Said, which opens in theaters on September 6th.
The film marks TV writer Charles Murray’s (Third Watch) directorial debut and follows an aspiring poet (Shanola Hampton) in a troubled marriage that falls for a new man (Hardwick) who helps her find her artistic voice. In addition to Hardwick and Hampton, the film also stars Elimu Nelson (Love Don’t Cost a Thing), Michael Beach (Broken City), and Tamala Jones (Castle).
I recently had the pleasure of speaking to Omari Hardwick about his work on Things Never Said. The popular actor discussed his new movie, why he’s made the shift to independent film, his life long passion for poetry, how that made playing this role so natural for him, and working with first time feature film director Charles Murray.
One of the most prolific and successful writers working in Hollywood today is Alex Kurtzman!
Along with his partner Roberto Orci, they are responsible for writing such popular films as The Legend of Zorro, Mission: Impossible III, Transformers, Star Trek, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and Cowboys & Aliens, as well as the upcoming films Edge of Tomorrow, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. They also created the TV series Fringe and Hawaii Five-0, not to mention that Kurtzman recently made his directorial debut with the film People Like Us. In addition, the duo produced this summer’s surprise hit Now You See Me, as well as the highly anticipated Ender’s Game. Now their latest film Star Trek Into Darkness, which they co-wrote with Damon Lindelof (Prometheus) and is a sequel to the popular 2009 reimagining of the iconic franchise, is available on Blu-ray and DVD beginning September 10th.
Once again directed by J.J. Abrams, Star Trek Into Darkness finds the crew of the USS Enterprise discovering an unstoppable force of terror within their own organization that forces Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) to lead a manhunt into a war-zone world in order to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction named Khan Noonien Singh (Benedict Cumberbatch). Along with Pine, the returning cast includes Zachary Quinto as Spock, Zoe Saldana as Uhura, Karl Urban as Bones, Simon Pegg as Scotty, John Cho as Sulu, Anton Yelchin as Chekov, and Bruce Greenwood as Pike, as well as new cast members Alice Eve (The Raven) as Carol Marcus, and Peter Weller (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns - Part 1) as Admiral Marcus.
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with writer and producer Alex Kurtzman about his work on Star Trek Into Darkness, as well as its recently announced follow up Star Trek 3, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The popular filmmaker discussed the latest Star Trek movie, the decision to use iconic Trek character Khan as the film’s villain, why there was so much secrecy surrounding the role during the movie’s marketing campaign, returning to the franchise without director J.J. Abrams, and the process of choosing the villains for The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
Veteran actress Beverly D’Angelo has been entertaining people with her film and television performances for over 35 years. However, believe it or not, until now she has never really appeared in an action genre film during her illustrious career.
D’Angelo first gained attention for her supporting roles in such iconic films as Annie Hall, Hair, and Coal Minor’s Daughter, but it was her role as Ellen Griswold in National Lampoon’s Vacation, National Lampoon’s European Vacation, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, and Vegas Vacation that made her a household name. She has gone on to appear in such films as Pacific Heights, American History X, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, and The House Bunny, as well as playing a pivotal role on the popular HBO series Entourage. But now she marks her foray into the action film genre with the new movie Bounty Killer, which opens in theaters and on VOD beginning September 6th.
The film is directed by Henry Saine and is set in a post-apocalyptic future where vigilantes known as Bounty Killers compete for body counts, fame and a fat stack of cash. Their quest is to end the plague of corporate greed by killing CEOs and providing the survivors of the apocalypse with retribution. In addition to D’Angelo, the film also stars Matthew Marsden (Rambo), Christian Pitre (Crazy, Stupid, Love), Kristina Loken (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines), Eve (xXx), Alexa Vega (Spy Kids), and the great Gary Busey (Lethal Weapon). D’Angelo has also been rumored to be in talks to reprise her role as Ellen Griswold once again opposite Chevy Chase in a fifth Vacation movie that would see a grown up Rusty Griswold (possibly played by Ed Helms) taking his own family on problematic vacation.
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with the wonderful Beverly D’Angelo about her work on Bounty Killer, as well as her impressive career and possibly returning to the Vacation franchise. The veteran actress discussed her new movie, making her first action film, why it’s Tarantino-esque, working with the beautiful and talented Christina Pitre, Hollywood’s obsession with the comic book culture, big budget movies vs. independent films, her thoughts on VOD, the film project on her resume that she is most proud of, the status of the proposed Vacation reboot, Ed Helms possible participation, reuniting with Chevy Chase, and the legacy of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
He may look like the monosyllabic bruiser checking your I.D. on the way into an unsavory bar, but Vin Diesel is possessed of the gift of gab.
The loquacious action star is sharing his enthusiasm for Riddick, this Friday's sci-fi sequel that heralds the title character's return after an absence of almost a decade.
Interstellar outlaw Richard B. Riddick first charmed audiences thirteen years ago as the breakout character in Pitch Black. As one of the survivors of a crash landing on a desolate alien world, the extremely proficient killer whose polished eyes see in the dark went up against a swarm of nocturnal beasts. The sequel, 2004's summer event movie The Chronicles of Riddick, put the anti-hero at the center of a vast mythology, revealing him as the last of an extinct species known as Furyans and putting him in conflict with a marauding galactic empire.
Nine years after the straightforward sci-fi spectacle of that sequel comes Riddick, a return to form for the genre's foremost tank top-wearing mass murderer. Without abandoning the elements introduced in The Chronicles of Riddick, this entry more closely follows the stripped-down approach of Pitch Black. Once again, Riddick finds himself marooned on harsh alien soil. With no other option, he activates a distress beacon, one that brings not rescue, but bounty hunters intent on collecting his head. Unluckily for them, the mercenaries aren't just facing the most dangerous man in the galaxy, but also another limitless hoard of alien carnivores.
On Riddick, Vin Diesel dons the characters goggles again, working with David Twohy (A Perfect Getaway), the writer-director behind both Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick. IAR recently attended a press conference in which star and producer Diesel was happy to discuss Richard Riddick's return, how his fatherhood affected the character, building franchises like Fast & Furious, financing Riddick independently, Dungeons and Dragons influencing the atmosphere on set, matching muscles with professional wrestlers, and the future of the last Furyan.
After the great Harry Houdini, David Copperfield is probably the most famous illusionist/magician of all-time!
Beginning his career in the mid-‘70s, Copperfield has been entertaining audiences on television, Broadway, and in Las Vegas for almost 40 years. He’s starred in 20 TV specials and is most famous for a series of amazing illusions including the Death Saw, Portal, flying, walking through the Great Wall of China, and vanishing the Statue of Liberty. Copperfield also owns the International Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts, and has purportedly grossed over $3 billion in sales as a solo entertainer, more than anyone else in history. Recently, he has turned his attention to Hollywood and appeared in The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, as well as being the magic advisor on the film. Copperfield was also an advisor on the recent box office hit Now You See Me, which was inspired by his Portal illusion and will be available on Blu-ray and DVD beginning September 3rd.
Now You See Me was directed by Louis Leterrier (The Incredible Hulk), produced by Alex Kurtzman (People Like Us) and Roberto Orci (Star Trek), and based on a screenplay by Ed Solomon (Men in Black), Edward Ricourt and director Boaz Yakin (Remember the Titans). The film follows an FBI agent (Mark Ruffalo) and an Interpol detective (Melanie Laurent) who mist track a team of illusionists (Jessie Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, and Dave Franco) who pull off bank heists during their performances and reward their audiences with the money. In addition to that impressive cast of actors, the movie also features Academy Award-winners Morgan Freeman (The Magic of Belle Isle), and Michael Caine (The Dark Knight Rises). It was recently announced that plans for a sequel to Now You See Me are in the work, and that Leterrier will return to direct.
I recently had the absolute pleasure of speaking with the great David Copperfield about his contributions to Now You See Me, as well as magic, the upcoming Now You See Me sequel, and a possible film about Houdini. The legendary performer discussed Now You See Me, his work on the film, how his illusion helped inspire the story, criticism that the film relied too much on CGI, the status of the upcoming sequel, developing a film about Harry Houdini, his favorite films about magic, how the industry has changed over the years, and his own legacy as the world’s greatest illusionist.
