Splice

Disturbante. E non è un termine che uso spesso, associato ad un film.
Splice sembra aver diviso molto il (poco) pubblico che - specie in America - pare non averlo digerito molto.

Peccato, perché è uno dei rari esempi recenti di fantascienza fatta come si deve: con uno spunto interessante e capace di stupire. E con le palle, cosa davvero non da tutti, di questi tempi in cui ci si appiattisce regolarmente sul minimo sindacale, per non pestare i piedi a nessuno.

Brillante coppia di genetisti mette a punto un paio di singolari creature capaci di sintetizzare tutta una serie di molecole utili all'industria farmaceutica. Un inopportuno cambiamento manda però a gambe all'aria la presentazione agli azionisti ed i due cadono in disgrazia.
Riusciranno però a portare avanti un loro personalissimo piano, creando qualcosa di davvero nuovo che contiene in sé anche geni umani.
Come prevedibile si affezioneranno alla creatura, che cresce e cambia in fretta, trascinando i due scienziati (che già non erano sanissimi di loro, se vogliamo ) in un incubo senza fine.

Come detto: disturbante. La piega che ad un certo punto prende il film rasenta il sordido, e non faccio fatica a credere che parecchi abbiano storto il nasino delicato.
VM 14 meritatissimo, per la cronaca.

Molto ben diretto (giù il cappello a Vincenzo Natali), creativo ed inventivo alla David Cronenberg e con un make-up intrigante, il film soffre però anche di una serie di indubbi difetti: partenza piuttosto lenta, qualche dialogo rivedibile, un po' di ingenuità assortite e - soprattutto prove attoriali scadenti.
Così-così Sarah Polley e continuo a pensare malissimo di Adrien Brody; mooolto brava invece Delphine Chanéac nel ruolo della creatura adulta.

Detto ciò, avercene di film del genere.

Voto: 9. NB: se poi vi fa cacare, non fatevela con me.
Tags: fantascienza, horror, drammatico, thriller, Vincenzo Natali, creatura, genetica, genetisti, scienziati, coppia, gene, mutazione, multinazionale, affetto, granaio, fuga, omicidio, veleno, ali, anfibio, morte, gatto, violenza, stupro, sesso, esperimento, madre, fratello, nudo, chimera, etica, gravidanza, sangue.

Chanéac, Delphine

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Data di nascita: 14 November 1978

Ultimi lavori:

• Mens Insana (2011) .... Eva Von Nagel (rumored) [attrice]
• L'amour vache (2010) (TV) .... Lili [attrice]
• The Big Black (2010) .... Eve [attrice]
• Splice (2009) .... Dren [attrice]
• Verso (2009) .... Anja Lagrange [attrice]
• "Madame Hollywood" (2007) .... Sybille [attrice]
• Trenhotel (2007) (TV) .... Chloé [attrice]
• Incontrôlable (2006) .... Laura [attrice]
• "Laura, le compte à rebours a commencé" (2006) (mini) .... Laura [attrice]
• The Pink Panther (2006) .... Ticket Checker (as Délphine Chaneac) [attrice]

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Cronenberg, David

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Nome di battesimo: Cronenberg, David Paul
Data di nascita: 15 March 1943
Altezza: 5' 9" (1.75 m)
Coniuge: Carolyn Zeifman::(1979 - present) 2 children, Margaret Hindson::(1970 - 1977) (divorced) 1 child

Ultimi lavori:

• A Dangerous Method (2011) .... [regista]
• London Fields (2010) .... (writer) [scrittore]
• The Plan (2008/I) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Chacun son cinéma ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'éteint et que le film commence (2007) .... (segment "At the Suicide of the Last Jew in the World in the Last Cinema in the World") [regista]
• Eastern Promises (2007) .... [regista]
• A History of Violence (2005) .... [regista]
• Spider (2002) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Jason X (2001) .... Dr. Wimmer [attore]
• Short6 (2001) .... (writer) (segment "Camera") [scrittore]
• The Judge (2001) (TV) .... Det. Stobel [attore]

Biografia:
David Cronenberg, also known as the King of Venereal Horror or the Baron of blood, was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1943. His father was a journalist, and his mother was a piano player. After showing an inclination for literature at an early age (he wrote and published eerie short stories, thus following his father's path) and for music (playing classical guitar until he was 12), Cronenberg graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in Literature after switching from the science department. He reached the cult status of horror-meister with the gore-filled, modern-vampire variations of Shivers (1975) and Rabid (1977), following an experimental apprenticeship in independent filmmaking and in Canadian television programs. Cronenberg gained popularity with the head-exploding, telepathy-based Scanners (1981) after the release of the much underrated, controversial, and autobiographical The Brood (1979). Cronenberg become a sort of a mass media guru with Videodrome (1983), a shocking investigation of the hazards of reality-morphing television and a prophetic critique of contemporary aesthetics. The issues of tech-induced mutation of the human body and topics of the prominent dichotomy between body and mind were back again in The Dead Zone (1983) and The Fly (1986), both bright examples of a personal filmmaking identity, even if both films are based on mass-entertainment materials: the first being a rendition of a Stephen King best-seller, the latter a remake of famous American horror movie. With Dead Ringers (1988) and Naked Lunch (1991), the Canadian director, no more a mere genre movie-maker but a fully realized auteur, got the acclaim of international critics. Such profound statements on modern humanity and ever-changing society are prominent in the provocative Crash (1996) and in the virtual reality essay of eXistenZ (1999), both of which well fared at the Cannes and Berlin Film Festivals. In the last two filmic projects Spider (2002) and A History of Violence (2005), Cronenberg avoids expressing his teratologic and oniric expressionism in favour of a more psycological exploration of human contradictions and idiosyncrasies.

Trivia random: Deferred his own salary to make Spider (2002).
Citazione random: I have no rules. For me, it's a full, full experience to make a movie. It takes a lot of time, and I want there to be a lot of stuff in it. You're looking for every shot in the movie to have resonance and want it to be something you can see a second time, and then I'd like it to be something you can see 10 years later, and it becomes a different movie, because you're a different person. So that means I want it to be deep, not in a pretentious way, but I guess I can say I am pretentious in that I pretend. I have aspirations that the movie should trigger off a lot of complex responses.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Natali, Vincenzo

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Data di nascita: 6 January 1969

Ultimi lavori:

• Splice (2009) .... (screenplay) (story) [scrittore]
• Rip Cage (2007) .... Marcus Fiehls [attore]
• Paris, je t'aime (2006) .... (segment "Quartier de la Madeleine") [scrittore]
• Getting Gilliam (2005) .... [regista]
• Tideland (2005) .... (director: making of documentary 'Dreamland') [misc]
• Nothing (2003) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Cypher (2002) .... [regista]
• Made in Canada, Volume 1: Best of the CFC (2002) (V) .... [regista]
• Cube (1997) .... (written by) [scrittore]
• Elevated (1997) .... (writer) [scrittore]

Trivia random: The Twilight Zone Episode: "Five Characters in Search of an Exit" was an inspiration for his film "Cube".

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Brody, Adrien

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Data di nascita: 14 April 1973
Altezza: 6' 1" (1.85 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• Detachment (2011) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Midnight in Paris (2011) .... [attore]
• Sweet Baby Jesus (2011) .... Joe (rumored) [attore]
• Waco (2011) .... Steve Schneider [attore]
• High School (2010) .... Psycho Ed [attore]
• Predators (2010) .... Royce [attore]
• The Experiment (2010/I) .... Travis [attore]
• Wrecked (2010) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) .... Rickity the Field Mouse (voice) [attore]
• Giallo (2009) .... (producer) [produttore]

Biografia:
The son of Hungarian-born photographer Sylvia Plachy and retired history professor Elliot Brody, Adrien Brody grew up an only child in the Woodhaven section of Queens, New York, where he accompanied his mother on assignments for the Village Voice. He credits her with making him feel comfortable in front of the camera. He attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts in New York. Despite a strong performance in The Thin Red Line (1998), time constraints forced the director to edit out much of Adrien's part. In spite of his later work with Spike Lee and Barry Levinson, he never became the star many expected he would become until Roman Polanski called on him to play a celebrated Jewish pianist in Nazi-occupied Warsaw. He pulled off a brilliant performance in The Pianist (2002), drawing on the heritage and rare dialect of his Polish grandmother, as well as his father, who lost family members during the Holocaust, and his mother, who fled Communist Hungary as a child during the 1956 uprising against the Soviet Union.

Trivia random: Was dressed by Zegna for the Academy Awards.
Citazione random: [On playing hero Jack Driscoll in Peter Jackson's King Kong (2005)] I've always wanted to do something like King Kong. It's a phenomenal role that any actor would kill for. I've been looking for this kind of iconic leading man guy for years, but they are hard to find.
Salario massimo: $2,750,000, per The Village (2004)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Polley, Sarah (I)

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Data di nascita: 8 January 1979
Altezza: 5' 2" (1.57 m)
Coniuge: David Wharnsby::(10 September 2003 - present)

Ultimi lavori:

• Take This Waltz (2011) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Trigger (2010/II) .... Hillary [attrice]
• Mr. Nobody (2009) .... Elise [attrice]
• Splice (2009) .... Elsa Kast [attrice]
• Away from Her (2006) .... (written by) [scrittore]
• Beowulf & Grendel (2005) .... Selma [attrice]
• Don't Come Knocking (2005) .... Sky [attrice]
• The Secret Life of Words (2005) .... Hanna [attrice]
• Dawn of the Dead (2004) .... Ana [attrice]
• Siblings (2004) .... Tabby [attrice]

Biografia:
Sarah Polley is an actress and director renowned in her native Canada for her political activism. Blessed with an extremely expressive face that enables directors to minimize dialog due to her uncanny ability to suggest a character's thoughts, Polley has become a favorite of critics for her sensitive portraits of wounded and conflicted young women in independent films. She was born into a show business family: her father, Michael Polley, appeared with her in the movie The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988) and on the television series "Road to Avonlea" (1989); and her mother, Diane Polley, was an actress and casting director. It was her mother's connections that launched Sarah, at her own insistence, on an acting career at the age of four, following in the footsteps of her older brother Mark Polley. A second brother, John Buchan, is a casting director and producer. Her career as a child actress shifted into high gear when she was cast as the Cockney waif Jody Turner in Lantern Hill (1990) (TV), for which she won a Gemini Award, the Canadian equivalent of the Emmy, in 1992. Produced by Kevin Sullivan, the film was based on the book by Lucy Maud Montgomery, author of Anne of Green Gables (1985) (TV). When Sullivan created a television series based on Montgomery's work, he cast Polley in the lead role of Sara Stanley in "Road to Avonlea" (1989). The series propelled Polley into the first rank of Canadian TV stars and made her independently wealthy by the age of 14. Her personal life was deeply affected by the death of her mother Diane from cancer shortly after her 11th birthday, a development that ironically paralleled the fictional life of her character Sara. Highly intelligent and politically progressive at a young age, Polley eventually rebelled against what she felt was the Americanization of the series after it was picked up by the Disney Channel for distribution in the US, eventually dropping out of the show. Though she does not blame her parents, she remains publicly disenchanted over the loss of her childhood and, in October 2003, said she is working on a script about a 12-year-old girl on a TV show. Polley, who picked up a second Gemini Award for her performance in the TV series "Straight Up" (1996), subsequently quit acting and high school to turn her attention to politics, positioning herself on the extreme left of Canada's left-of-center New Democratic Party. The publicity ensuing from her losing some teeth after being slugged by an Ontario policeman during a protest against the Conservative provincial government, plus the stinging cynicism from some other activists unimpressed by her celebrity, led her to lower her political profile temporarily and return to acting in Atom Egoyan's film The Sweet Hereafter (1997). It was her appearance as Nicole, the teenage girl injured in a school bus accident who serves as the conscience of the small town rent by the tragedy, that first brought her to the attention of critics in the US. In Canada, the role was heralded by critics as her successful breakthrough to adult roles. It was her second film with Egoyan, who wrote the part with her in mind when he adapted the novel by Russell Banks, who, ironically, is American. Predictions of an Academy Award nomination and future stardom were part of the critical consensus, and she received her first Best Actress Genie nomination from Canada's Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television and the Best Supporting Actress award from the Boston Society of Film Critics. It was the buzz created at the Sundance Festival, where her starring role in the film Guinevere (1999) was showcased, when the entertainment media crowned her the it-girl of 1999. Intensely private and extremely ambivalent about the personal cost of celebrity and the Hollywood ethos Fame is the Name of the Game, Polley could be seen as rebelling against the expectations of mainstream cinema when she embarked on a career path that took her out of the spotlight thrown by the harsh lights of the Hollywood hype/publicity machine after shooting the film Go (1999). She dropped out of Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous (2000), the US$60 million mega-hyped vehicle that was supposed to make her a mainstream star in the US, choosing to return to Canada to make the CDN$1.5 million The Law of Enclosures (2000) for Genie Award-winner John Greyson, a director she admires greatly. The film grossed poorly in Canada and was not released in the US, but it did garner Polley her second Genie nomination for Best Actress. While her replacement in Almost Famous (2000) went on to win an Oscar nomination and a career above the title in glossy Hollywood films, she took a wide variety of parts, large and small, in independent films, including significant roles in the ensemble pieces The Claim (2000) and The Weight of Water (2000); bit parts in eXistenZ (1999) and Love Come Down (2000); and the lead in No Such Thing (2001). Her choice of projects showed her to be a questing spirit more focused on learning the art of her craft than on stardom. She has said that her choice of film roles, eschewing mainstream Hollywood movies for chancier, non-commercial independent fare, was the result of an ethical decision on her part to make films with social importance. A less-observant viewer might think that the rebel Polley played in her political life that had previously manifested itself in her profession was now driving her to the verge of career suicide in terms of popularity, marketability, and choice of future roles. However, that interpretation does not recognize the extraordinary talent that will always keep her in demand by directors, if not casting agents, with an eye on the opening weekend box office. One must understand Polley's career progression in light of her attendance at the Canadian Film Centre's directors program and her production of short films, including Don't Think Twice (1999) and the highly praised I Shout Love (2001). Polley is a cinema artist. This woman wants to make, and will make films. Thus, we can understand her career choices as a desire to work with and understand the technique of some of the best directors in film, including David Cronenberg, Michael Winterbottom, and Hal Hartley. Polley is as renowned for her intelligence as for her remarkable talent. The problem of the intelligent person in the acting field is that the actor, as artist, in not ultimately in control of their medium, and it is artistic control that is the hallmark of the great artist. The controlling intelligence on a movie set is the director, and her attendance at the Canadian Film Centre has given her a new perspective on acting. The actor, she says, should not try to give a complete performance for the camera (that is, control the representation on film) but must remember that the function of the actor is to give the director as much coverage as possible as a film, as well as a performance, is made in the editing room. According to Polley, this realization, that the film actor exists to serve the director, has given her new enthusiasm for acting. Thus, her career, and her career choices, can be seen as a quest for knowledge about the art of cinema, a journey whose fruition we will see in her future feature work as both actor and director.

Trivia random: Her father, Michael Polley, said of his famously independent daughter in 1997, "She was at her best when she was out of kilter with society in some way."
Citazione random: I always think it's a bit of a joke when I get described as an activist. Really, for two or three months of my year I organise stuff, but I'm not as involved as I used to be.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Splice (2009)

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Regista: Vincenzo Natali
Scrittore: Vincenzo Natali, Antoinette Terry Bryant, Doug Taylor
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Valutazione: 6.4/10 (9122 voti)
Durata: 104 min
Paese: Canada, France, USA
Lingua: English, French

Cast:

• Adrien Brody .... Clive Nicoli
• Sarah Polley .... Elsa Kast
• Delphine Chanéac .... Dren
• Brandon McGibbon .... Gavin Nicoli
• Simona Maicanescu .... Joan Chorot
• David Hewlett .... William Barlow
• Abigail Chu .... Child Dren

Trama:
Elsa and Clive, two young rebellious scientists, defy legal and ethical boundaries and forge ahead with a dangerous experiment: splicing together human and animal DNA to create a new organism. Named "Dren", the creature rapidly develops from a deformed female infant into a beautiful but dangerous winged human-chimera, who forges a bond with both of her creators - only to have that bond turn deadly.

Trivia random: Delphine Chanéac, who plays the creature Dren, shaved her head for this film.
Citazione random: Elsa Kast: [crying] What do you want? What do you want?
Dren: Inside... you...

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

pa-pa-pa-PANDEMONIUM!

L'esordiente presunto regista Christian Alvart deve avere un sacco di parenti che gli vogliono bene, se con oltre 28.000 voti su IMDb è riuscito ad assestarsi su una media di 6.9, per il suo Pandorum.

Nata come grande idea (?) post-peperonata nella testolina dello stesso regista, inizialmente venne tentata la via della produzione a basso costo.
A dimostrazione che di ubriachi è pieno il mondo, finì invece nelle mani di un capace produttore che vi investì 33 dannatissimi milioni di dollari (non suoi) e fu così che come per ogni block-buster che si rispetti venne chiamato il grande nome che ti attira frotte di pubblico in sala: Dennis Quaid.
Tom Cruise quella sera era impegnato...
La grande idea, peraltro partorita come primo capitolo di una trilogia, incassò circa un terzo di quanto venne a costare.
C'è sicuramente una morale in tutto ciò, ma preferisco non soffermarmi troppo a pensarci...

Trama davvero innovativa: due tizi - tra cui Quaid, mica pippe - si risvegliano su un'astronave prossima al collasso. Sono dell'equipaggio, ma non ricordano quasi nulla della missione (col senno di poi, lasciare un block notes con un paio di istruzioni poteva essere una idea).
Andando a zonzo scopriranno la verità sulla loro missione (non ci crederete: la Terra era andata in mona), perché non c'è quasi nessuno vivo a bordo (viaggereste voi su un'astronave guidata da Dennis Quaid?), cosa cavolo sono i soliti mostroidi semi-umani che ammazzano tutto ciò che incontrano (spettatori scontenti?) e dove mai sono capitati.

Girato vergognosamente male, specie nelle innumerevoli scene di lotta, ciò che davvero contraddistingue il film è l'ennesima grande prova attoriale di Dennis Quaid, capace qui di mettere in imbarazzo l'intera umanità smentendo l'ultimo milione di anni di evoluzione.
Ah già: anche la signorina dai prosperosi seni anti-gravitazionali ha il suo perché.
Per il resto, solo noia, stupidità e sofferenza.
Complimenti al sottotitolo italiano - "l'universo parallelo" - composto durante una partita a Scarabeo, immagino.

Prossimamente, l'unica cosa per cui valga la pena andare al cinema in questi giorni: Splice. Numi, che bello.

Voto: 2 Trashometro^® 5/10: Fai più male che bene.
Tags: guarda mamma un film con Dennis Quaid, ehi ma quello è Dennis Quaid, fantascienza, horror, thriller, azione, combattimento, lotta, astronave, spazio, missione, ibernazione, risveglio, capsula di salvataggio, motore, esplosione, mostro, mutante, tettona, trash.

Traue, Antje

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Data di nascita: 18 January 1981
Altezza: 5' 6½" (1.69 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• Georgia (2010) .... Zoe [attrice]
• Wave (2010) .... Kate [attrice]
• Pandorum (2009) .... Nadia [attrice]
• Phantomschmerz (2009) .... Anja (uncredited) [attrice]
• Berlin am Meer (2008) .... Estelle [attrice]
• Goldjunge (2006) .... Manuela [attrice]
• Kleinruppin forever (2004) .... Ramona [attrice]
• Die Nacht davor (2003) .... Franziska Teenstätten [attrice]
• Verlorene Kinder (2000) (TV) .... [attrice]

Biografia:
Antje Traue was born on January 18, 1981 in Mittweida/Saxony. While still a pupil, she discovered her stage fever and portrayed "Jeanne d'Arc" in school's theatre. At the age of sixteen, Antje attended a music theatre casting at the International Munich Art Lab for the Hip Hop Musical "West End Opera" and was rewarded with the lead role. For four years she was on stage with the ensemble, touring Germany, Europe and New York City. In 2002 Antje moved to Berlin and played in various films and TV movies such as "Kleinruppin Forever", "Berlin am Meer" and "Phantomschmerz". In 2008 she was invited to audition for the female lead role in the international science fiction film "Pandorum", directed by Christian Alvart. After several auditions and test shootings Antje finally got the part and played her first lead opposite Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Splice (2009)

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Regista: Vincenzo Natali
Scrittore: Vincenzo Natali, Antoinette Terry Bryant
Genere: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Valutazione: 6.5/10 (8502 voti)
Durata: 104 min
Paese: Canada, France, USA
Lingua: English, French

Cast:

• Adrien Brody .... Clive Nicoli
• Sarah Polley .... Elsa Kast
• Delphine Chanéac .... Dren
• Brandon McGibbon .... Gavin Nicoli
• Simona Maicanescu .... Joan Chorot
• David Hewlett .... William Barlow
• Abigail Chu .... Child Dren

Trama:
Elsa and Clive, two young rebellious scientists, defy legal and ethical boundaries and forge ahead with a dangerous experiment: splicing together human and animal DNA to create a new organism. Named "Dren", the creature rapidly develops from a deformed female infant into a beautiful but dangerous winged human-chimera, who forges a bond with both of her creators - only to have that bond turn deadly.

Trivia random: The main scientist characters, Clive and Elsa, are named as an homage to Bride of Frankenstein (1935), a similarly themed movie. Colin Clive played Dr. Henry Frankenstein while Elsa Lanchester played Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley/The Bride.
Citazione random: Elsa Kast: [crying] What do you want? What do you want?
Dren: Inside... you...

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Cruise, Tom

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Nome di battesimo: IV, Thomas Cruise Mapother
Data di nascita: 3 July 1962
Altezza: 5' 7" (1.70 m)
Coniuge: Katie Holmes::(18 November 2006 - present) 1 child, Nicole Kidman::(24 December 1990 - 8 August 2001) (divorced) 2 (adopted) children, Mimi Rogers::(9 May 1987 - 4 February 1990) (divorced)

Ultimi lavori:

• The Hardy Men (2013) .... [attore]
• Mission: Impossible IV (2011) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Knight and Day (2010) .... Roy Miller [attore]
• Tropic Thunder (2008) .... Les Grossman - Grossman's Office [attore]
• Valkyrie (2008) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Lions for Lambs (2007) .... Senator Jasper Irving [attore]
• Ask the Dust (2006) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Mission: Impossible III (2006) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Elizabethtown (2005) .... (producer) [produttore]
• War of the Worlds (2005) .... Ray Ferrier [attore]

Biografia:
If you had told 14 year old Franciscan seminary student Thomas Cruise Mapother IV that one day in the not too distant future he would be considered one of the top 100 movie stars of all time, he would have probably grinned and told you that his ambition was to become a priest. Nonetheless, this sensitive, deeply religious youngster who was born in July 1962 in Syracuse, New York, was destined to become Tom Cruise, one of the highest paid and most sought after actors in screen history. The only son (among four children) of nomadic parents young Tom spent his boyhood eternally on the move and by the time he was 14 he had attended 15 different schools in the US and Canada. He finally settled in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, with his mother and her new husband. While in high school, he developed an interest in acting and abandoned his plans of becoming a priest, dropped out of school, and at age 18 headed for New York and a possible acting career. The next 15 years of his life are the stuff of legends. He made his film debut with a small part in Endless Love (1981) and from the outset exhibited an undeniable box office appeal to both male and female audiences. Though below average height and not particularly handsome in the traditional sense, within 5 years Tom Cruise was starring in some of the top grossing films of the decade including Top Gun (1986); The Color of Money (1986), Rain Man (1988) and Born on the Fourth of July (1989). By the 1990s and 2000s he was one of the highest paid actors in the world earning an average 15 million dollars a picture in such blockbuster hits as Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994), Mission: Impossible (1996), Mission: Impossible II (2000), Mission: Impossible III (2006), Vanilla Sky (2001), Minority Report (2002), The Last Samurai (2003), Collateral (2004), War of the Worlds (2005), and Jerry Maguire (1996) - for which he received an Academy Award Nomination for best actor. In 1990 he renounced his devout Catholic beliefs and embraced The Church Of Scientology claiming that Scientology teachings had cured him of the dyslexia that had plagued him all of his life. A kind and thoughtful man well known for his compassion and generosity, Tom Cruise is one of the best liked members of the movie community. He was married to actress Nicole Kidman until 2001. Thomas Cruise Mapother IV has indeed come a long way from the lonely wanderings of his youth.

Trivia random: Was named the #1 top money-making star at the box office in Quigley Publications annual poll of movie exhibitors a record seven times between 1986 and 2005. Being crowned the top box office champ in 2005 put Cruise one title ahead of Tom Hanks, who has been named #1 at the B.O. six times. Bing Crosby and Burt Reynolds both were named #1 for five consecutive years, and Clint Eastwood also has been #1 five times, but non-consecutively.
Citazione random: I'm passionate about learning. I'm passionate about life.
Salario massimo: $20,000,000 against 15%, per Jerry Maguire (1996)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Pandorum (2009)

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Regista: Christian Alvart
Scrittore: Travis Milloy, Travis Milloy
Genere: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Valutazione: 6.9/10 (28154 voti)
Durata: 108 min
Paese: USA, Germany
Lingua: English, Vietnamese, German

Cast:

• Dennis Quaid .... Payton
• Ben Foster .... Bower
• Cam Gigandet .... Gallo
• Antje Traue .... Nadia
• Cung Le .... Manh
• Eddie Rouse .... Leland
• Norman Reedus .... Shepard
• André Hennicke .... Hunter Leader
• Friederike Kempter .... Evalon
• Niels-Bruno Schmidt .... Insane Officer 'Eden'

Trama:
Two crew members are stranded on a spacecraft and quickly - and horrifically - realize they are not alone. Two astronauts awaken in a hyper-sleep chamber aboard a seemingly abandoned spacecraft. It's pitch black, they are disoriented, and the only sound is a low rumble and creak from the belly of the ship. They can't remember anything: Who are they? What is their mission? With Lt. Payton staying behind to guide him via radio transmitter, Cpl. Bower ventures deep into the ship and begins to uncover a terrifying reality. Slowly the spacecraft's shocking, deadly secrets are revealed...and the astronauts find their own survival is more important than they could ever have imagined.

Trivia random: Pandorum (2009) is the first in a proposed trilogy. But its doubtful the sequels will ever see the light of day due to the first film's low box-office performance.
Citazione random: Nadia: Where's your Lieutenant?
Bower: He's not my Lieutenant.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Alvart, Christian

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Data di nascita: 28 May 1974

Ultimi lavori:

• 8 Uhr 28 (2010) .... [regista]
• Case 39 (2009) .... [regista]
• Pandorum (2009) .... (story) [scrittore]
• Antikörper (2005) .... (co-producer) [produttore]
• Curiosity & the Cat (1999) .... (writer) [scrittore]

Biografia:
Christian Alvart was born in 1974 near Frankfurt, Germany. His strict Christian background frowned upon films and television and in his childhood he was rarely allowed to see a movie. He developed a fascination and love for the forbidden subject matter and quickly became an "expert" in his circle of friends, successfully hiding that he hadn't seen most of the films they were talking about. Instead, he read about films, their making, the novels or the source material they were based on. When he finally was able to get his hands on films he couldn't stop watching, often going to the cinema six times a week. In 1990 he started making small video and Super-8 films with his friends. The group became part of a network of hobby-filmmakers and geeks. Most of his peers were professionally working in lower positions on movies, creating their own projects in their free time. At the age of 19 Alvart became an editor and layout designer with the X-TRO Filmmagazin, soon working his way up to editor-in-chief and eventually even owning the special interest publication. In 1997, he decided to make his own films again and moved with his company Syrreal Entertainment to Berlin. To get a glance at the world of "professional filmmaking" he started as a runner, soon working his way up again to 1st AD on two features within the same year. In 1998, he wrote, produced and directed Curiosity & The Cat, his first 35mm feature film - a low budget thriller which cost only $30K. Many of his friends from the Frankfurt days were part of the project. The film was nominated for the Max-Ophüls-Award and the Prize of the Minister President of the State Saarland. Alvart then worked as a writer for several German features and TV shows. In 2005, he debuted Antibodies, his second work as a director. When it premiered at The Tribeca Film Festival he was named as one of "Five Directors To Watch" as well as the "German New Face of Cinema" at The AFI Festival. Antibodies was also invited to the Edinburgh Film Festival as well as many others, winning numerous awards.

Trivia random: Wrote the script of "Killer Queen" at the age of sixteen.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Quaid, Dennis

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Nome di battesimo: Quaid, Dennis William
Data di nascita: 9 April 1954
Altezza: 6' (1.83 m)
Coniuge: Kimberly Quaid::(4 July 2004 - present) 2 children, Meg Ryan::(14 February 1991 - 16 July 2001) (divorced) 1 child, P.J. Soles::(23 November 1978 - 23 January 1983) (divorced)

Ultimi lavori:

• Footloose (2011) .... Rev. Shaw Moore (rumored) [attore]
• Soul Surfer (2011) .... Tom Hamilton [attore]
• The Tent (2011) .... Corey [attore]
• Legion (2010) .... Bob Hanson [attore]
• The Special Relationship (2010) (TV) .... Bill Clinton [attore]
• G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) .... General Abernathy / Hawk [attore]
• Horsemen (2009) .... Det. Aidan J. Breslin [attore]
• Pandorum (2009) .... Payton [attore]
• Smart People (2008) .... Lawrence Wetherhold [attore]
• The Express (2008) .... Ben Schwartzwalder [attore]

Biografia:
Dennis Quaid was born in Houston, Texas, the son of an electrician. He studied drama in high school and in college, but dropped out before completing his studies, moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career. His brother, Randy Quaid, had already began to build a successful career, but Dennis initially had trouble finding work. He began to gain notice when he appeared in Breaking Away (1979) and earned strong reviews for his role in The Right Stuff (1983). Aside from acting, Quaid is also a musician, and plays with his band, the Sharks.

Trivia random: He was inducted into the Texas Film Hall of Fame in march 2005 in Austin, Texas.
Citazione random: [On The Express (2008)] At its core, it's about living your life with grace. If God bestows grace upon you, that you should live your life to its full effect. You know, Ernie Davis embodied that in his short life. He touched everybody around him.
Salario massimo: $60,000, per Playing by Heart (1998)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.