Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Sidney Lumet è uno che alla soglia degli 84 anni è ancora capace di fare film come Onora il Padre e la Madre. E c'è da calarsi il cappello.

Due fratelli con seri problemi di soldi decidono di rapinare la piccola gioelleria dei genitori: un negozietto di provincia, con una anziana donna come commessa; l'assicurazione li avrebbe rifusi e nessuno si sarebbe fatto davvero male.
Sarà invece una tragedia, e tutto il cinismo, la crudeltà e gli antichi dissapori famigliari verranno presto a galla.

Film montato in maniera impeccabile - già a dieci minuti dall'inizio viene già mostrata la conclusione della rapina - con continui salti tra i protagonisti ed i momenti-chiave. Ottima regia, semplice ma solida la sceneggiatura - bei dialoghi.
Tensione ed angoscia, mentre tutti sono indaffarati a scavare per raggiungere nuovi sprofondi di bassezza e malvagità. Nessuno è salvo.

Cast da paura: bravo Ethan Hawke (che in alcune espressioni ricorda molto il buon Kevin Bacon), grande Albert Finney così come Marisa Tomei, 44enne più che tonica.
Caso a parte Philip Seymour Hoffman che alcuni non amano: a me piace parecchio come attore, e qui dà veramente il massimo - spietato e calcolatore, meraviglioso nelle scene di "caos misurato" con cui reagirà al precipitare degli eventi.

Film ottimo; se quello italiano non è male, va ricordato il bel titolo originale: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.

Voto: 9+. Da vedere.
Tags: thriller, drammatico, crimine, rapina, gioielleria, famiglia, fratelli, moglie, sesso, droga, denaro, tradimento, violenza, sparatoria, pistola, complice, automobile, fuga, truffa, impotenza, disperazione, abbandono, ricettatore, nudo, nudo femminile, nudo maschile, funerale, cuore, ospedale, New York, omicidio.

Tomei, Marisa

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Data di nascita: 4 December 1964
Altezza: 5' 6" (1.68 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• The Wrestler (2009) .... Cassidy [attrice]
• The Night Job (2008) .... [attrice]
• War, Inc. (2008) .... Natalie Hegalhuzen [attrice]
• Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) .... Gina Hanson [attrice]
• Grace Is Gone (2007) .... Woman at Pool [attrice]
• The Rich Inner Life of Penelope Cloud (2007) (TV) .... Penelope Cloud [attrice]
• Wild Hogs (2007) .... Maggie [attrice]
• Danika (2006) .... Danika [attrice]
• Factotum (2005) .... Laura [attrice]
• Loverboy (2005) .... Sybil [attrice]

Biografia:
Marisa Tomei was born on December 4, 1964, in Brooklyn, New York to mother Patricia "Addie" Tomei, an English teacher and father Gary Tomei, a lawyer. Marisa also has a brother, actor Adam Tomei. As a child, Marisa's mother frequently corrected her speech as to eliminate her heavy Brooklyn accent. As a teen, Marisa attended Edward R. Murrow High School and graduated in the class of 1982. She was one year into her college education at Boston University when she dropped out for a co-starring role on the CBS daytime drama "As the World Turns" (1956). Her role on that show paved the way for her entrance into film: in 1984, she made her film debut with a bit part in The Flamingo Kid (1984). Three years later, Marisa became known for her role as Maggie Lawton, Lisa Bonet's college roommate, on the sitcom "A Different World" (1987). Her real breakthrough came in 1992, when she co-starred as Joe Pesci's hilariously foul-mouthed, scene-stealing girlfriend in My Cousin Vinny (1992), a performance that won her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Later that year, she turned up briefly as a snippy Mabel Normand in director Richard Attenborough's biopic Chaplin (1992), and was soon given her first starring role in Untamed Heart (1993). A subsequent starring role -- and attempted makeover into Audrey Hepburn -- in the romantic comedy Only You (1994) proved only moderately successful. Marisa's other 1994 role as Michael Keaton's hugely pregnant wife in The Paper (1994) was well-received, although the film as a whole was not. Fortunately for Tomei, she was able to rebound the following year with a solid performance as a troubled single mother in Nick Cassavetes Unhook the Stars (1996) which earned her a Screen Actors Guild nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She turned in a similarly strong work in Welcome to Sarajevo (1997), and in 1998 did some of her best work in years as the sexually liberated, unhinged cousin of Natasha Lyonne's Vivian Abramowitz in Tamara Jenkins Slums of Beverly Hills (1998). In recent years, Marisa has co-starred with Mel Gibson in the hugely successful romantic comedy What Women Want (2000) and during the 2002 movie award season, she proved her first Best Supporting Actress Oscar win was no fluke when she received her second nomination in the same category for the critically acclaimed dark drama, In the Bedroom (2001).

Trivia random: Before the 1993 Oscar ceremony, she told "Entertainment Tonight" (1981) that her biggest fear was that she would trip on the steps on her way to the stage. She did.
Citazione random: "Singing really oxygenates your blood. You stretch your lungs and take in much more air into them than before. It's really good for your health."

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007)

Onora il padre e la madre

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Regista: Sidney Lumet
Scrittore: Kelly Masterson
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller, Crime
Valutazione: 7.7/10 (7686 voti)
Durata: USA:117 min
Paese: USA
Lingua: English

Cast:

• Philip Seymour Hoffman .... Andrew 'Andy' Hanson
• Ethan Hawke .... Henry 'Hank' Hanson
• Albert Finney .... Charles Hanson
• Marisa Tomei .... Gina Hanson
• Rosemary Harris .... Nanette Hanson
• Aleksa Palladino .... Chris Lasorda
• Michael Shannon .... Dex
• Amy Ryan .... Martha Hanson
• Brian F. O'Byrne .... Bobby Lasorda
• Blaine Horton .... Justin

Trama:
Needing extra cash, two brothers conspire to pull off the perfect, victimless crime. No guns, no violence, no problem. But when an accomplice ignores the rules and crosses the line, his actions trigger a series of events in which no one is left unscathed.

Trivia random: Title taken from the Irish toast: "May you have food and raiment, a soft pillow for your head; may you be 40 years in heaven, before the devil knows you're dead."

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Finney, Albert

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Data di nascita: 9 May 1936
Altezza: 5' 9" (1.75 m)
Coniuge: Katherine Attson::(1989 - 1991) (divorced) 1 child, Anouk Aimée::(7 August 1970 - 1978) (divorced), Jane Wenham::(1957 - 1961) (divorced) 1 child

Ultimi lavori:

• Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) .... Charles Hanson [attore]
• The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) .... Dr. Albert Hirsch [attore]
• Amazing Grace (2006) .... John Newton [attore]
• A Good Year (2006) .... Uncle Henry Skinner [attore]
• Aspects of Love (2005) .... George Dillingham [attore]
• Corpse Bride (2005) .... Finis Everglot (voice) [attore]
• Ocean's Twelve (2004) .... Gaspar LeMarque (uncredited) [attore]
• Big Fish (2003) .... Ed Bloom - Older [attore]
• My Uncle Silas II (2003) (TV) .... Uncle Silas [attore]
• The Gathering Storm (2002) (TV) .... Winston Churchill [attore]

Biografia:
Albert Finney came from the theatre, where he was especially successful in plays of William Shakespeare, to the movies. There he became a leading figure of the young Free Cinema. His debut in cinema was in 1960 with The Entertainer (1960) of Tony Richardson who had directed him also in theatre plays various times before. His typical role were young prolets like, e.g. Arthur Seaton in Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960).

Trivia random: Was the first choice of Laurence Olivier to take over his post as the head of Britain's National Theatre. Finney had played a season shortly after the National Theatre's inaugural season in 1963-64. Finney declined the offer.
Citazione random: [on Charles Laughton] He was the first kind of legend I actually had contact with professionally, which was very exciting. I admired him in his movies; I'd never seen him on the stage. I thought he was terrific.
Salario massimo: $1 million, per Annie (1982)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Lumet, Sidney

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Data di nascita: 25 June 1924
Altezza: 5' 5" (1.65 m)
Coniuge: Mary Gimbel::(1980 - present), Gail Lumet Buckley::(23 November 1963 - 1978) (divorced) 2 children, Gloria Vanderbilt::(27 August 1956 - 1963) (divorced), Rita Gam::(1949 - 1954) (divorced)

Ultimi lavori:

• Getting Out (2009) .... (writer) [scrittore]
• Directed by Sidney Lumet: How the Devil Was Made (2008) (V) .... [regista]
• How to Change in 9 Weeks (2008) .... (consultant) [misc]
• Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) .... [regista]
• Find Me Guilty (2006) .... (written by) [scrittore]
• The Manchurian Candidate (2004) .... Political Pundit [attore]
• Rachel, quand du seigneur (2004) .... [regista]
• Strip Search (2004) (TV) .... [regista]
• Gloria (1999) .... [regista]
• Critical Care (1997) .... (producer) [produttore]

Biografia:
Though not as consistent as Martin Scorsese or Stanley Kubrick, Sidney Lumet is nevertheless a master of cinema. Known for his technical knowledge and his skill at getting first-rate performances from his actors--and for shooting most of his films in his beloved New York--Lumet has made over 40 movies, often emotional, but seldom overly sentimental. He often tells intelligent, complex stories. Although his politics are somewhat left-leaning and he often treats socially relevant themes in his films, he doesn't want to make political movies in the first place, and some of them (Serpico (1973), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), Prince of the City (1981), Q & A (1990)) are atmospherically comparable to the gritty, intense films of Scorsese. Born on June 25, 1924, in Philadelphia, the son of actor Baruch Lumet and dancer Eugenia Wermus Lumet, he made his stage debut at age four at the Yiddish Art Theater in New York. He played many roles on Broadway in the 1930s (such as "Dead End"), and his acting debut in films came in One Third of a Nation (1939). In 1947 he started an off-Broadway acting troupe that included such future stars as Yul Brynner and Eli Wallach, and other former members of Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio who had become unsatisfied with Strasberg's concepts. Lumet made his stage directing debut in 1955. However, he had been directing television shows since 1950, beginning at CBS, and soon became regarded as an important TV director. He piloted about 150 episodes of the crime series "Danger" (1950) and 26 episodes of "You Are There" (1953) (he was still directing successful TV teleplays as late as 1960, long after he had become an established film director). He made his feature film directing debut with the critical and financial hit 12 Angry Men (1957), which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and earned Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Director and Adapted Screenplay, and is justly regarded as one of the most auspicious directorial debuts in film history. It takes place almost entirely in a jury room (in several Lumet films you can find the motif of the closed space). His second and third films, Stage Struck (1958) and That Kind of Woman (1959) respectively, are considered less important (I haven't seen them yet). Lumet directed Marlon Brando in the imperfect but very good The Fugitive Kind (1959), an underrated, financially unsuccessful adaptation of Tennessee Williams' "Orpheus Descending". Afterwards he directed the French-Italian Arthur Miller adaptation Vu du pont (1961) ("A View From the Bridge"), which is considered a solid film (I haven't seen it as yet, either). The first half of the 1960s was one of Lumet's most artistically successful periods. Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962), a masterful, brilliantly photographed adaptation of the Eugene ONeill play, is one of several Lumet films about families. It earned Katharine Hepburn, Ralph Richardson, Dean Stockwell and Jason Robards deserved acting awards in Cannes and Hepburn an Oscar nomination. Lumet's next film, Fail-Safe (1964), a tense drama about the Cold War (a bit too America-centered for my taste), suffered a little in comparison to Stanley Kubrick's great, thematically equal satire Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), which was released shortly before. Afterwards Lumet directed the masterful drama The Pawnbroker (1964), about a Holocaust survivor who lives in New York and can't overcome his experiences in the Nazi concentration camps. Rod Steiger's unforgettable performance in the title role earned an Academy Award nomination. Lumet's intense character study The Hill (1965), about inhumanity in a military prison camp, was expertly directed and featured superb performances by Sean Connery (with whom Lumet has made five films up to now) and Harry Andrews, among others. Lumet made the soapy, overly talky but watchable drama The Group (1966) about young upper-class women in the 1930s, and the good spy thriller The Deadly Affair (1966) (with a fine cast including James Mason, Maximilian Schell and Simone Signoret). The late 1960s was a rather unsuccessful time in Lumet's career. The comedy Bye Bye Braverman (1968) and the Anton Chekhov adaptation The Sea Gull (1968) got mixed reviews. The Appointment (1969) and Last of the Mobile Hot Shots (1970) were disappointing. Lumet and Joseph L. Mankiewicz directed the Oscar-nominated documentary film King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis (1970) about Martin Luther King's civil-rights work in the Deep South. Lumet's The Anderson Tapes (1971) (starring Connery again), an unusual but satisfying caper movie, was a box-office hit. After the flop Child's Play (1972) Lumet directed the British film The Offence (1972), an interesting if somewhat slow-moving character study. Connery delivered a fine performance in this worthwhile but commercially unsuccessful movie. The terrific cop thriller Serpico (1973), the first of his films about police corruption in New York City, featured a fascinating Al Pacino and was the beginning of the most successful phase of Lumet's career. It was also one of his biggest critical and financial successes. Pacino won the Golden Globe, and the picture earned two Oscar nominations. After the less acclaimed Lovin' Molly (1974), Lumet's British adaptation of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express (1974) was another success, a very good, exquisitely photographed murder mystery with an all-star cast (including Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Connery and Ingrid Bergman). It earned six Oscar nominations, and Bergman won her third Academy Award. Then Lumet directed the hit Dog Day Afternoon (1975), a complex masterpiece about a bungled bank robbery in New York City. Pauline Kael called it "one of the best "New York" movies ever made." It starred a wonderful Al Pacino and earned six Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture, Director and Actor) and won the Academy Award for Frank Pierson's Original Screenplay. Lumet's following film is one of his most famous: the media satire Network (1976). It earned ten Academy Award nominations (including Picture and Director) and won in four categories (Best Actor for Peter Finch, Best Actress for Faye Dunaway, Best Original Screenplay by Paddy Chayefsky, Best Supporting Actress for Beatrice Straight). Lumet won the Golden Globe for his direction (he won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards for his direction in Dog Day Afternoon (1975) and Network (1976). Both pictures won LAFCA awards for Best Picture, too). Lumet's Equus (1977), an overly naturalistic adaptation of Peter Shaffer's stage play, earned Oscar nominations for Richard Burton and Peter Firth and for Shaffer's screenplay. The musical The Wiz (1978/I) earned four Oscar nominations, but was a critical and commercial misfire. The strange comedy Just Tell Me What You Want (1980) featured a fine Alan King performance and had funny moments, but was uneven overall. Lumet won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for his terrific direction in Prince of the City (1981), one of his best and most typical films. It's about police corruption, but hardly a remake of Serpico (1973). Starring a powerful Treat Williams, it's an extraordinarily multi-layered film. In his highly informative book "Making Movies" (1995), Lumet describes the film in the following way: "When we try to control everything, everything winds up controlling us. Nothing is what it seems." It's also a movie about values, friendship and drug addiction and, like "Serpico", is based on a true story. It was adapted by Lumet himself and Jay Presson Allen from Robert Daley's book. Their screenplay earned an Academy Award nomination, and the picture, Lumet and Williams earned Golden Globe nominations. After his less important but entertaining thriller Deathtrap (1982) Lumet directed another masterful courtroom drama, The Verdict (1982), starring Paul Newman, James Mason, Jack Warden and Charlotte Rampling. The picture, Lumet, Newman, Mason and David Mamet's Adapted Screenplay earned well-deserved Academy Award nominations. The next in Lumet's filmography is the controversial drama Daniel (1983) with Timothy Hutton, an adaptation of E.L. Doctorow's "The Book of Daniel" about two young people whose parents were executed during the McCarthy Red Scare hysteria in the 1950s for alleged espionage. I haven't seen the film yet, but Lumet writes in "Making Movies": "Despite its critical and financial failure, I think it's one of the best pictures I've ever done." After this film, though, Lumet's reputation fell a bit. The comedy Garbo Talks (1984), which I haven't seen up to now, is considered a watchable film. Power (1986) and The Morning After (1986) (which earned Jane Fonda an Oscar nomination) were too uneven and a little too pretentious to be successful. Then he made another real masterpiece: Running on Empty (1988). Although it is one of his lesser known films, I think it's his best one, and is thematically similar to "Daniel". Its story concerns a family on the run from the FBI, because the parents (played by Christine Lahti and Judd Hirsch) committed a bomb attack on a napalm laboratory in 1971 to protest the war in Vietnam. The son (played by River Phoenix) gets into an inner conflict: he loves a girl (Martha Plimpton) and wishes to stay with her and study music, but that would destroy the family, and he knows that his parents need him. The film features magnificent performances by all the actors. Phoenix earned a well-deserved Oscar nomination for his extraordinarily moving performance. Lahti won the LAFCA award for her equally excellent interpretation. Naomi Foner's screenplay won the Golden Globe and earned an Oscar nomination. The film earned four other Golden Globe nominations as well (Picture, Director, Lahti and Phoenix). After the entertaining, well-acted, but still disappointing gangster comedy Family Business (1989) (with Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick) Lumet directed the underrated cop thriller Q & A (1990) with fine performances by Nick Nolte, Timothy Hutton, Armand Assante and others. Though a bit overly constructed at times, it is still a very good and complex film about corruption and racism. In the beginning of the 1990s Lumet directed two unsatisfying films: A Stranger Among Us (1992), which is basically a variation on Peter Weir's Witness (1985) and not a particularly good one, and the rather sterile courtroom thriller Guilty as Sin (1993). However, he staged a comeback of sorts with his imperfect but fascinating crime drama Night Falls on Manhattan (1997), which is thematically similar to "Serpico", "Prince of the City" and "Q". In 1993 Lumet received the D.W. Griffith Award from the Directors Guild of America.

Trivia random: Studied acting with Sanford Meisner.
Citazione random: [on Tab Hunter] Also talented, but primarily a character actor, yet always used as a leading man because he's so pretty. I've seen him do character parts in which he's really great. But as a leading man he tightens up. Mostly he turned to character work in American television when his Hollywood career started going sour. Then he played the roles of psychotic killers and so forth, and his talent became clear.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Hawke, Ethan

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Nome di battesimo: Hawke, Ethan Green
Data di nascita: 6 November 1970
Altezza: 5' 10½" (1.79 m)
Coniuge: Uma Thurman::(1 May 1998 - 20 July 2004) (divorced) 2 children

Ultimi lavori:

• Boyhood (2013) .... [attore]
• Daybreakers (2008) .... [attore]
• Real Men Cry (2008) .... Paulie [attore]
• Staten Island (2008) .... [attore]
• Tonight at Noon (2008) .... Lefty [attore]
• Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) .... Henry 'Hank' Hanson [attore]
• Fast Food Nation (2006) .... Pete [attore]
• The Hottest State (2006) .... (novel The Hottest State) (screenplay) [scrittore]
• Assault on Precinct 13 (2005) .... Sgt. Jake Roenick [attore]
• Lord of War (2005) .... Jack Valentine [attore]

Trivia random: Stepbrother Patrick Powers is a Green Beret who served a six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan, and is currently (late 2006/early 2007) serving a six-month tour in Iraq.
Citazione random: A lot of these movies, they're really enjoyable to see. Really, it's like smoking crack or something--you walk out and you feel diminished by it. It's eye candy, just violence and sex. Definitely lots of sex, people making out or showing their tits, which is always fun, but it wasn't what I wanted to do with my life. I tried it - I tried doing this Angelina Jolie movie [Taking Lives (2004)], a popcorn movie, the first movie I did that's about nothing. And I didn't like it, because I do ultimately feel there's enough crap like this. It's so much more fun and harder and more challenging to try to make something that's entertaining but isn't wasting your time.
Salario massimo: $12,000,000, per Training Day (2001)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Bacon, Kevin

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Nome di battesimo: Bacon, Kevin Norwood
Data di nascita: 8 July 1958
Altezza: 5' 11" (1.80 m)
Coniuge: Kyra Sedgwick::(4 September 1988 - present) 2 children

Ultimi lavori:

• Frost/Nixon (2008) .... Jack Brennan [attore]
• New York, I Love You (2008) .... (rumored) [attore]
• Taking Chance (2008) (TV) .... Lt. Col. Michael Strobl [attore]
• The Air I Breathe (2007) .... Love [attore]
• Death Sentence (2007) .... Nick Hume [attore]
• Rails & Ties (2007) .... Tom Stark [attore]
• Saving Angelo (2007) .... Brent [attore]
• Beauty Shop (2005) .... Jorge [attore]
• Loverboy (2005) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Where the Truth Lies (2005) .... Lanny [attore]

Biografia:
Kevin Bacon's early training as an actor came from The Manning Street. His debut as the strict Chip Diller in Animal House (1978) almost seems like an inside joke, but he managed to escape almost unnoticed from that role. Diner (1982) became the turning point after a couple of TV series and a number of less-than-memorable movie roles. In a cast of soon-to-be stars, he more than held his end up, and we saw a glimpse of the real lunatic image of The Bacon. He also starred in Footloose (1984), in She's Having a Baby (1988), in Tremors (1990) with Fred Ward, in Flatliners (1990), and in Apollo 13 (1995).

Trivia random: His father was Edmund Bacon, a famous Philadelphia city planner. His mother was Ruth Bacon, a teacher and liberal political activist.
Citazione random: [on playing a pedophile in The Woodsman (2004)] I don't have people who would advise me against this based on some sort of "image". At some point you have to decide if you're going to be a personality or you're going to be an actor. If playing this kind of a role could have a negative effect on my public personality, I don't care. I'll play anything, if I think there's something compelling, or there's a director I'm dying to work with, or a part I hadn't done before or a co-star I think is great.
Salario massimo: $2,500,000, per Sleepers (1996)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Hoffman, Philip Seymour

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Data di nascita: 23 July 1967
Altezza: 5' 9½" (1.77 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• The Boat That Rocked (2009) .... The Count [attore]
• Durham Grill (2009) .... Gus Leroy (rumored) [attore]
• Doubt (2008) .... Father Flynn [attore]
• Synecdoche, New York (2008) .... Caden [attore]
• The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2008) .... William Kunstler [attore]
• Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) .... Andrew 'Andy' Hanson [attore]
• Charlie Wilson's War (2007) .... Gust Avrakotos [attore]
• The Savages (2007) .... Jon Savage [attore]
• Mission: Impossible III (2006) .... Owen Davian [attore]
• Capote (2005) .... (executive producer) [produttore]

Biografia:
Film and stage actor and theater director Philip Seymour Hoffman was born in the Rochester, New York, suburb of Fairport on July 23, 1967. After becoming involved in high school theatrics, he attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, graduating with a B.F.A. degree in Drama in 1989. He made his feature film debut in the indie production Triple Bogey on a Par Five Hole (1991) as Phil Hoffman, and his first role in a major release came the next year in My New Gun (1992). While he had supporting roles in some other major productions, his breakthrough role came in Paul Thomas Anderson's Boogie Nights (1997). He quickly became an icon of indie cinema, establishing a reputation as one of the screen's finest actors, in a variety of supporting and second leads in indie and major features, including Todd Solondz's Happiness (1998), Flawless (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia (1999), Almost Famous (2000) and State and Main (2000). He also appeared in supporting roles in such mainstream, big-budget features as Red Dragon (2002), Cold Mountain (2003) and the upcoming Mission: Impossible III (2006). Hoffman is also quite active on the stage. On Broadway, he has earned two Tony nominations, as Best Actor (Play) in 2000 for a revival of Sam Shepard's "True West" and as Best Actor (Featured Role - Play) in 2003 for a revival of Eugene O'Neill (I)'s "Long Day's Journey into Night". His other acting credits in the New York theater include "The Seagull" (directed by Mike Nichols for The New York Shakespeare Festival), "Defying Gravity", "The Merchant of Venice" (directed by Peter Sellars), "Shopping and F*@%ing" and "The Author's Voice" (Drama Desk nomination). He is the Co-Artistic Director of the LAByrinth Theater Company in New York, for which he directed "Our Lady of 121st Street" by Stephen Adly Guirgis. He also has directed "In Arabia, We'd All Be Kings" and "Jesus Hopped the A Train" by Guirgis for LAByrinth, and "The Glory of Living" by Rebecca Gilman at the Manhattan Class Company. Hoffman consolidated his reputation as one of the finest actors under the age of 40 with his turn in the title role of Capote (2005), for which he won the Los Angeles Film Critics Award as Best Actor. In 2006, he was awarded the Best Actor Oscar for the same role.

Trivia random: As of 2008, he and Dustin Hoffman are the only two winners of best actor in a leading role at the Oscars to share a last name. Philip won for 'Capote' and Dustin won for 'Kramer vs. Kramer' and 'Rain Man'.
Citazione random: "Success isn't what makes you happy. It really isn't. Success is doing what makes you happy and doing good work and hopefully having a fruitful life. If I've felt like I've done good work, that makes me happy. The success part of it is all gravy."

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

san valentino di sangue... ri-treddi

Ho - tanto per cambiare - fatto violenza ai miei sani principi e, complice il fatto che non lo si trovava in 2D in nessun dove ad orari decenti, ho avuto la sventura di vedere pure San Valentino di Sangue in 3D.
Con questo credo di aver foraggiato il mio masochismo per un bel pezzo.

Il tutto non merita neppure una recensione: una stupidità disarmante, vero monumento alla tecnologia tridimensionale, qui usata solo ed esclusivamente per far ingoiare al pubblico qualcosa di indecoroso.
Non rientra neppure sotto l'etichetta "cinema", questo pattume.

Si segnala, oltre all'indecenza collettiva di regia, trama, dialoghi ed interpreti, la scena di nudo integrale più gratuita della storia del cinema, con full-frontal (e pure full-rear ) talmente insistito, inutile e prolungato da suscitare ilarità prima e (ok, quasi ) noia poi. A circa un terzo della scena, inizierete a commentare "no dai, dura ancora molto?!"

Catastrofico.
Stavolta basta sul serio: neppure se torna Kubrick a dirmi che il 3D salverà il mondo, ci riprovo.

Voto: 1. Trashometro^® 4/10:
Tags: horror, remake, pattume, schifezza, cagata pazzesca, 3D, 3D attira-gonzi, full-frontal, nudo, nudo integrale, ma stiamo scherzando, miniera, minatore, polizia, amore, sesso, amante, commessa, san valentino, sangue, figlio, sopravvissuto, trash.

My Bloody Valentine (2009)

San Valentino di sangue 3D

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Regista: Patrick Lussier
Scrittore: Todd Farmer, Zane Smith
Genere: Crime, Horror, Mystery, Thriller, Crime
Valutazione: 6.1/10 (8892 voti)
Durata: 101 min
Paese: USA
Lingua: English

Cast:

• Jensen Ackles .... Tom Hanniger
• Jaime King .... Sarah Palmer
• Kerr Smith .... Axel Palmer
• Betsy Rue .... Irene
• Edi Gathegi .... Deputy Martin
• Tom Atkins .... Burke
• Kevin Tighe .... Ben Foley
• Megan Boone .... Megan
• Karen Baum .... Deputy Ferris
• Joy de la Paz .... Rosa

Trama:
Tom returns to his hometown on the tenth anniversary of the Valentine's night massacre that claimed the lives of 22 people. Instead of a homecoming, however, Tom finds himself suspected of committing the murders, and it seems like his old flame is the only one will believes he's innocent.

Trivia random: The screenwriter, Todd Farmer, also appears in the film playing the role of Frank the trucker.
Citazione random: Burke: [to a crime scene corpse] Happy fucking Valentine's Day. sid: q-channel : MIDDLE_CENTER

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

the hole

Ho avuto il piacere di rivedere quel piccolo classico piuttosto sottovalutato di The Hole.

Con la necessità di sfuggire ad una noiosa gita del college da un lato e dai genitori dall'altro, quattro figli di papà si affidano ad un ingegnoso studente che propone loro una singolare soluzione: chiudersi per tre giorni in un bunker antiatomico in disuso.
Scenario idea per la più o meno sfigata Liz, che spera di sfruttare l'occasione per fare colpo su Mike, affascinante figlio di una rock-star.
Piccolo dettaglio: la porta è chiusa dall'esterno, ed il terzo giorno nessuno verrà.

Il film si apre (in maniera notevole) su cosa succede all'apertura del bunker, e da lì in avanti si procede per gradi svelando gli eventi attraverso il racconto dei coinvolti.
Come tutto sommato prevedibile, si scoprirà che le cose sono più complicate di quanto non sembrasse inizialmente (grazie al cielo, però, non si eccede in colpi di scena e stravolgimenti della prospettiva, come ogni tanto succede).

Breve quanto basta per tenere sempre alto l'interesse, con dei bei personaggi anche ben interpretati, ha il notevole merito di non essere il solito horror che punta tutto su schifezza e rumori assordanti come ne sono stati prodotti a migliaia negli ultimi 15 anni.
Bravo e claustrofobico quanto basta Nick Hamm alla regia (che non si è più ripetuto, mi pare), fa sempre piacere rivedere Thora Birch e - come da horror che si rispetti - abbiamo pure una giovane Keira Knightley che mostra le tettine semi-anoressiche.

Voto: 8.
Tags: horror, mistero, drammatico, crimine, thriller, college, scuola, gita, Inghilterra, sesso, bunker, bunker antiatomico, porta, intrappolati, urla, vomito, morte, sangue, caduta, omicidio, cibo, acqua, ossessione, amore, follia, confessione, flashback, doccia, rock-star, nudo, nudo maschile, nudo femminile, seno, tette, popolarità, nerd, amicizia, invidia, film indipendente, colpo di scena, polizia, indagini, interrogatorio, psicologa, Keira Knightley, Thora Birch.

Hamm, Nick

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Data di nascita: 1957

Ultimi lavori:

• Killing Bono (2010) .... [regista]
• "Off the Hook" (2009) .... (unknown episodes) [regista]
• "Fresh!" (2008) TV series (executive producer) (2008) .... [produttore]
• Godsend (2004) .... [regista]
• The Hole (2001) .... [regista]
• Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence (1998) .... [regista]
• Talk of Angels (1998) .... [regista]
• Briefest Encounter (1993) (TV) .... [regista]
• Dancing Queen (1993) (TV) .... [regista]
• Micky Love (1993) (TV) .... [regista]

Biografia:
Nick Hamm, (Theatre and Film Director) was resident director with the Royal Shakespeare Company from 1983 to 1988. He has directed major productions in Europe and served as British Artistic Director of the Sadler's Wells Theatre Company. In 1989 he moved into television/ film, directing The Bottom Line, a documentary about the crisis of culture, featuring, among others, Arthur Miller and Dustin Hoffman. In 1992, his 30-minute drama The Harmfulness of Tobacco, starring Edward Fox and Celia Imrie, won the BAFTA Award (British Association of Film and Television Awards) for Best Short Film. He went on to direct Play on One for the BBC starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Colin Firth. Followed by the highly acclaimed series Rik Mayall Presents for Granada, starring Amanda Donohoe, Jennifer Ehle and Helena Bonham Carter. Hamm's feature work includes films for Miramax, Pathe, Film Four and Lions Gate. His first feature, Talk of Angels, an epic love story set against the background of the Spanish Civil War starred Vincent Perez and Polly Walker and was made for Miramax. His second was a romantic comedy for Film Four/ Miramax. Martha Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence starred Monica Potter and Joseph Fiennes. The film was re-titled for its US release to The Very Thought Of You. His third feature was the highly original European cult movie The Hole starring Thora Birch and Keira Knightley. This movie was originally made for Pathe Films and picked up for US distribution by Miramax. Godsend starring Robert De Niro, Greg Kinnear, and Rebecca Romijn Stamos is Hamm's first US film, made for Lions Gate Films and premiering in in April 2004. Godsend opened in the UK in July 2004 and was distributed by Pathe.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Hole, The (2001)

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Regista: Nick Hamm
Scrittore: Guy Burt, Ben Court
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Horror, Thriller, Crime
Valutazione: 6.3/10 (15356 voti)
Durata: 102 min
Paese: UK
Lingua: English

Cast:

• Thora Birch .... Liz Dunn
• Desmond Harrington .... Mike Steel
• Daniel Brocklebank .... Martyn Taylor
• Laurence Fox .... Geoff Bingham
• Keira Knightley .... Frances 'Frankie' Almond Smith
• Embeth Davidtz .... Dr. Philippa Horwood
• Steven Waddington .... DCS Tom Howard
• Emma Griffiths Malin .... Daisy
• Jemma Powell .... Minnie (as Gemma Powell)
• Gemma Craven .... Mrs. Dunn

Trama:
One misty morning, Liz Dunn stumbles down the road to her school and screams for help. A police psychologist gets her to reveal her story: A month earlier: three rebellious teenagers - Mike, Frankie and Geoff are trying to ditch the school field trip to Wales. The school nerd Martin helps them out by allowing them to stay in an old war bunker for the three days on the condition that his friend Liz joins them. The teens go down, party and have great fun but Martin doesn't return to let them out and they hope and pray that someone will find them... Citazione random: Mike: And then there's all those exciting exams to look forward to.
Frankie: Way to look on the positive side.
Mike: No, no, no. I've got a hard-on for these exams, they're great.
Geoff: You've got a hard-on for everything.
Mike: Not for you, mate.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Knightley, Keira

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Nome di battesimo: Knightley, Keira Christina
Data di nascita: 26 March 1985
Altezza: 5' 7" (1.70 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• Last Night (2010) .... Joanna Reed [attrice]
• London Boulevard (2010) .... Charlotte [attrice]
• My Fair Lady (2010) .... Eliza Doolittle (rumored) [attrice]
• Never Let Me Go (2010) .... Ruth [attrice]
• The Beautiful and the Damned (2010) .... Zelda Sayre [attrice]
• The Continuing and Lamentable Saga of the Suicide Brothers (2009) .... The Fairy [attrice]
• Looking Over: The Edge of Love (2008) (V) .... Vera Phillips [attrice]
• The Duchess (2008) .... Georgiana [attrice]
• The Edge of Love (2008) .... Vera Phillips [attrice]
• Atonement (2007) .... Cecilia Tallis [attrice]

Biografia:
The daughter of actor Will Knightley and playwright Sharman Macdonald. After she requested an agent at the age of three, her parents allowed her to work on productions in her summer holidays. Her first role was at the age of 9, in Moira Armstrong's A Village Affair (1995) (TV). However, Knightley's first high profile role came in 1999, as Sabe, Decoy Queen to Natalie Portman's Queen Amidala in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999). Since then she has completed an impressive array of films including The Hole (2001), but is probably best known for her role of tomboy footballer Jules Paxton in Gurinder Chadha's Bend It Like Beckham (2002).

Trivia random: Voted #15 in the AfterEllen Hot 100, a list of the hottest women in entertainment as voted by lesbian and bisexual women (June 2007).
Citazione random: I don't think about nutrition. The very thought of a diet makes me want chips and ice cream. And I just hate going to the gym. I cannot stand it.
Salario massimo: $5,000,000, per Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Birch, Thora

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Data di nascita: 11 March 1982
Altezza: 5' 4" (1.63 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• Crossmaglen (2010) .... Nulla McGarvey [attrice]
• Pregnancy Pact (2010) (TV) .... Sidney [attrice]
• The Story of Bonnie and Clyde (2010) .... Blanche Barrow (rumored) [attrice]
• Cavegirl (2009) .... Cavegirl [attrice]
• Deadline (2009/I) .... Lucy Woods [attrice]
• Winter of Frozen Dreams (2009) .... Barbara Hoffman [attrice]
• Train (2008/I) .... Alex [attrice]
• Dark Corners (2006) .... Karen Clarke/Susan Hamilton [attrice]
• Tainted Love (2006) .... Mia [attrice]
• Slingshot (2005) .... April [attrice]

Biografia:
From Monkey Trouble (1994) to American Beauty (1999)-- that's Hollywood "Hocus Pocus"! Thora Birch was born on Thursday (as in Thor's Day) March 11, 1982. Her father Jack, and mom Carol, named her after the Norse God Thor ("Thora" being the feminine), the God of thunder; she has a younger brother named Bolt. Thora appeared in one of the "classic" California raisin commercials in 1986 (at age 4), and later did other commercials. At age 6, Thora appeared in Purple People Eater (1988) and won a Youth in Film Award for her performance. Then she appeared in the television series "Parenthood" (1990), which co-starred a not-yet-discovered Leonardo DiCaprio. Thora's breakout movie was Paradise (1991) with bona fide stars Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith; Thora bested 4,000 young hopefuls to land the role, and she again got great reviews. Thora appeared in Hocus Pocus (1993) with major stars; however, she got real recognition by having a starring role in Monkey Trouble (1994), in which her affection for her pet (and sometimes scene-stealing) monkey basically carried the entire movie (she and the monkey did their own stunts). All grown up, this petite beauty (5' 4") with green eyes had a major role in American Beauty (1999) which won 5 Oscar awards. Thora delivered a strong, effective performance as the alienated daughter of parents whose mid-life crises drive them to affairs and destruction; her acting was convincing and inspired, and once again received good reviews. A down-to-earth young woman in real life, she loves Italian food and diet root beer.

Trivia random: Appeared in Moby's video "We Are All Made Of Stars" (2002) and "Eat You Alive" by Limp Bizkit (2003).
Citazione random: "For me, romance isn't an over-the-top act. It's someone offering to help and to support me. Or if that person thinks I'm making the wrong decision, he'll tell me. I want him to be honest, because being that honest takes a lot of guts."

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Watchmen

Che dire... mi risulta difficile scrivere qualcosa di sensato su Watchmen: da un lato avevo aspettative altissime (non deluse: mi è piaciuto davvero molto), dall'altro faccio fatica a giudicarlo come film in sé, immaginandomi nei panni di chi non ha letto il fumetto (non riesco a capire se possa davvero risultare del tutto comprensibile ed appassionante, senza svariate riletture alle spalle). Ora come ora ho difficoltà ad analizzarlo se non a livello di cosa funziona (molto) e cosa non funziona (poco). Di seguito dichiarerò eventuali spoiler all'inizio di ogni paragrafo: se credete, saltate oltre.

Semplificando oltre il lecito la trama: in un 1985 alternativo Stati Uniti e Russia sono sull'orlo della guerra nucleare; Doc Manhattan - superuomo generato nel più classico degli incidenti da laboratorio - ha infatti abbandonato la Terra lasciando l'America priva del suo più formidabile deterrente: un essere in grado di gestire materia e tempo (più o meno) a suo piacimento.
Tempo prima Doc Manhattan fece parte di un gruppo di vigilantes mascherati (ora dichiarati illegali); il suo allontanamento, la morte violenta di un altro membro del gruppo ed un attentato alla vita di un terzo, susciterà i dubbi di chi non ha mai abbandonato la maschera e prosegue la sua lotta al crimine.
Lentamente, emergerà un macchinoso complotto.
Considerazione sulla vita, l'universo e tutto quanto sparse in tutte le decine di sottotrame.

[cosa funziona]
L'imponente - per qualità e quantità - opera di Alan Moore era difficilissima da trasportare al cinema, ma grazie al cielo i 163 minuti del film fanno un eccellente lavoro: merito della più che discreta regia di Zack Snyder ed ancor di più dell'ottima sceneggiatura di David Hayter ed Alex Tse.
Per sottolineare quanto è valida la sceneggiatura basti questo: praticamente tutto ciò che è stato aggiunto (e c'è più di una cosa) non sfigura minimamente rispetto all'opera originale.
Pregevolissimi i minuti iniziali, che riassumono la storia dei Minutemen in maniera meravigliosa (ma anche qui mi sono chiesto: chi non ha letto tutto il resto, ha davvero colto abbastanza?)
Buona la regia, degni gli effetti speciali, decenti (senza morirci dietro, però) le scazzottate.
Mediamente adeguati gli interpreti, quasi tutti (ma vedi dopo) fisicamente adatti, anche se nessuno brilla in quanto ad abilità recitative - a parte un Rorschach più che perfetto: anche la sua maschera è qualcosa.
Quasi sempre buona la musica, anche se parecchio del lavoro era già stato fatto (bella la versione di Hendrix di All Along The Watchtower).
Doc Manhattan è abbastanza diverso da come me lo sarei immaginato (e sì, gli intravede il pisellino, ed è tutto blu: avrà problemi circolatori o ecceduto col viagra? ), ma risulta molto efficace - spettacolare quando sbatte le palpebre.

[spoiler - cosa funziona]
Il finale. Sì, è diverso. Già, niente alieno. Si potrà discutere per anni su quanto un simile cambiamento modifichi alcuni dei messaggi dell'opera (ed in parte è sicuramente vero), ma una cosa va detta: la nuova soluzione funziona. Non è la stessa cosa, certo, ma col materiale a disposizione (salvo riprendere l'alieno, che si poteva pure fare) non si poteva davvero sperare in meglio.
Impressione a caldo, è che sia un finale più cupo: nel fumetto c'era un nemico comune, ma che generava unità ed in fondo speranza. Qui il nemico è ancora più concreto ed affatto latente: siamo di fronte ad una reale e concreta minaccia; qui si vive davvero (per quanto ne sa la gente, almeno) costantemente "nell'ombra di Manhattan". Come soluzione, mi piace anche questa.

[cosa non funziona]
Veidt. Sul serio: davvero inadatto al ruolo; troppo giovane, troppo fesso, troppo poco atletico. Dannato Jude Law, dovevi esserci tu! Ci si poteva anche sbattere un po' di più a raccontare la sua crescita, ma ok...
Pur temendo peggio, il doppiaggio a tratti mi è parso poco ispirato (di norma comunque si sopporta molto bene, e Rorschach a narrare se la cava benissimo).

[spoiler - cosa non funziona]
Anche qualche scena ha i suoi bei difetti: Nite Owl II che aspetta sullo stipite come un pirla che Manhattan disintegri Rorschach (scena, per il resto, ottimamente costruita) e poi si lancia in un "noooo" da film di serie B.
Il sesso su Archie: scena a tratti imbarazzante, anche per l'uso di Alleluia come canzone (ma You're My Thrill, no?)

[concludendo]
Mancano un certo numero di cose e personaggi secondari (per dire: niente pirati, a Hollis Mason mi pare non succeda nulla), ed alcuni dettagli sono stati semplificati, ma va benissimo così. La versione estesa e gli extra del DVD saranno molto interessanti, mi sa.

Sicuramente non accontenterà tutti, e di certo non ha accontentato Moore che come al solito si è fatto togliere dai credits (che io sappia, i diritti economici sulle opere derivate non li ha mai avuti, quindi la sua è una rinuncia puramente simbolica - così, tanto per fare il rompicoglioni una volta di più )
Sulla necessità di totale fedeltà alle opere originali ho già discusso, e resto del parere che sia un giochetto da onanisti. Poi ognuno è libero di disgustarsi per ciò che preferisce.

Insomma: bello e a mio parere rispetta lo spirito del fumetto (che comunque dovrebbe essere letto da chiunque).


Voto: 9- (chissà come regge ad una seconda visione)
Tags: drammatico, thriller, azione, fantascienza, fantasy, Watchmen, fumetto, tratto da un fumetto, olocausto nucleare, Stati Uniti, Russia, Vietnam, supereroi, vigilantes, costume, crimine, morte, complotto, superuomo, terza guerra mondiale, nudo, nudo maschile, nudo femminile, detective, psicopatico, psichiatra, Antartico, ricchezza, intelligenza, ricerca, follia, comico, realtà alternativa, Afghanistan, inchiostro, macchie, Marte, Richard Nixon, utopia, distopia, distruzione, tachioni, futuro, cancro, DC comics, carcere, evasione, investigazione, attentato, tempo, imprenditore, New York, Silk Spectre, Doc Manhattan, Veidt, Ozymandias, The Comedian, Nite Owl.

Moore, Alan (III)

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Data di nascita: 18 November 1953
Coniuge: Melinda Gebbie::(12 May 2007 - present), Phyllis::(1974 - 1989) (divorced) 2 children

Ultimi lavori:

• Watchmen (2009) .... (graphic novel) (uncredited) [scrittore]
• The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) .... (comic books) [scrittore]
• From Hell (2001) .... (graphic novel) [scrittore]

Trivia random: His daughter Leah Moore has now followed in her fathers footsteps with her first comic book "Wild Girl", co-written with John Reppion.
Citazione random: There is more integrity in comics. It sounds simplistic, but I believe there is a formula that you can apply to almost any work of modern culture...

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Hayter, David (I)

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Nome di battesimo: Hayter, David Bryan
Data di nascita: 6 February 1969
Altezza: 6' 1" (1.85 m)
Coniuge: Marisa Cody::(? - present) 1 child

Ultimi lavori:

• Watchmen (2009) .... (screenplay) [scrittore]
• Dairantô Sumasshu Burazâzu ekkusu (2008) (VG) .... Snake (voice: English version) [attore]
• Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (2006) (VG) .... Snake (voice: English version) [attore]
• Metal Gear Ac!d² (2005) (VG) .... Snake (voice: English version) [attore]
• Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (2005) (VG) .... Naked Snake (voice: English version) [attore]
• Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004) (VG) .... Naked Snake (voice: English version) [attore]
• Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (2004) (VG) .... Solid Snake (voice) [attore]
• X2 (2003) .... (screenplay) (story) [scrittore]
• Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem (2002) (VG) .... Roman Legionnaire 1 / Roman Legionnaire 2 / Angkor Thom Guard (voice) [attore]
• Lost in Oz (2002) (TV) .... (executive producer) [produttore]

Trivia random: Wrote an unused draft of Hulk (2003).

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Tse, Alex

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Ultimi lavori:

• Frankie Machine (2010) .... (adaptation) [scrittore]
• The Illustrated Man (2010) .... (adaptation) (screenplay) [scrittore]
• Watchmen (2009) .... (screenplay) [scrittore]
• Sucker Free City (2004) (TV) .... (co-executive producer) [produttore]
• Bleach (2002) .... (co-producer) [produttore]
• Silent Rain in the Ninth (1999) .... (co-producer) [produttore]

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Watchmen (2009)

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Regista: Zack Snyder
Scrittore: David Hayter, Alex Tse
Genere: Action, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller, Action
Valutazione: 8.5/10 (3451 voti) [#216 nella top250]
Durata: 163 min
Paese: UK, USA, Canada
Lingua: English

Cast:

• Malin Akerman .... Laurie Jupiter / Silk Spectre II
• Billy Crudup .... Dr. Manhattan / Jon Osterman
• Matthew Goode .... Adrian Veidt / Ozymandias
• Jackie Earle Haley .... Walter Kovacs / Rorschach
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan .... Edward Blake / The Comedian
• Patrick Wilson .... Dan Dreiberg / Nite Owl II
• Carla Gugino .... Sally Jupiter / Silk Spectre
• Matt Frewer .... Edgar Jacobi / Moloch the Mystic
• Stephen McHattie .... Hollis Mason / Nite Owl
• Laura Mennell .... Janey Slater

Trama:
In a gritty and alternate 1985 the glory days of costumed vigilantes have been brought to a close by a government crackdown, but after one of the masked veterans is brutally murdered an investigation into the killer is initiated. The reunited heroes set out to prevent their own destruction, but in doing so discover a deeper and far more diabolical plot.

Trivia random: Darren Aronofsky was going to direct the film but dropped out after scheduling conflicts with The Fountain (2006).
Citazione random: Adrian Veidt: It doesn't take a genius to see the world has problems.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Law, Jude

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Nome di battesimo: Law, David Jude
Data di nascita: 29 December 1972
Altezza: 6' 0¾" (1.85 m)
Coniuge: Sadie Frost::(2 September 1997 - 29 October 2003) (divorced) 3 children

Ultimi lavori:

• Dexterity (2009) .... (producer) [produttore]
• The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) .... Tony [attore]
• Rage (2009/I) .... Minx [attore]
• Repossession Mambo (2009) .... Remy [attore]
• Sherlock Holmes (2009) .... Dr. John Watson [attore]
• My Blueberry Nights (2007) .... Jeremy [attore]
• Sleuth (2007) .... (producer) [produttore]
• All the King's Men (2006) .... Jack Burden [attore]
• Breaking and Entering (2006) .... Will [attore]
• The Holiday (2006) .... Graham Simpkins [attore]

Biografia:
Jude Law was born December 29, 1972 in south east London. He started acting with the National Youth Music Theatre at the age of 12 and, at 17, he dropped out of school completely, to star in a Granada daytime TV Soap called "Families" (1990). In 1992, Jude began his stage career. He starred in many plays throughout London, and was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award of "Outstanding Newcomer". After doing the play "Indiscretions" in London, he moved and did it again on Broadway. This time, he was alongside Kathleen Turner. He then received a Tony Nomination for "Outstanding Supporting Actor". He was then rewarded the Theatre World Award. After Broadway, Jude started on the big screen, in many independent films. His first big named movie was Gattaca (1997), with Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke. He also had a good role in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997). Jude's latest rise to fame has been because of The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), in which he plays Matt Damon's obsession. The film did very well at the box office, and critics loved the acting of Jude. He is also a partner in the production company "Natural Nylon". His partners include Jonny Lee Miller, Ewan McGregor and his ex-wife Sadie Frost. With his production company producing and Jude acting, his career seems to be on the rise.

Trivia random: Friend of Andrea Logiudice.
Citazione random: I would never know how to sell myself as a sex symbol. That's not how I'm programmed.
Salario massimo: $10,000,000, per Cold Mountain (2003)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Snyder, Zack

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Data di nascita: 1 March 1966
Altezza: 5' 7" (1.70 m)
Coniuge: Deborah Snyder::(25 September 2004 - present), Denise Snyder::(? - ?) (divorced) 4 children

Ultimi lavori:

• Cobalt 60 (2011) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Army of the Dead (2010) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Guardians of Ga'Hoole (2010) .... [regista]
• Heavy Metal (2010) .... [regista]
• The Illustrated Man (2010) .... (producer) [produttore]
• The Last Photograph (2010) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Sucker Punch (2010) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Untitled 300 Sequel (2010) .... [regista]
• Tales of the Black Freighter (2009) (V) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Watchmen (2009) .... [regista]

Trivia random: Directed a commercial for Subaru WRX. He used it in his debut, Dawn of the Dead (2004), as the commercial before the "Special Report" on TV.
Citazione random: It's difficult to find a movie that feels true to itself. You feel the hand of Hollywood, the moviemaking by committee, on everything.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Eastern Promises

Intanto, complimentoni a chi ha tradotto "Eastern Promises" con "La Promessa dell'Assassino".
Detto questo, sono rimasto alquanto soddisfatto dall'ultimo film di Cronenberg.

Una ragazza dell'est muore di parto; quel cuore d'oro di Naomi Watts cerca di farsi tradurre il diario della giovane, nella speranza di rintracciarne i parenti.
Si imbatterà in una famiglia della mafia russa nella quale zio Viggo si sta facendo strada: partito come autista, punta a conquistarsi la fiducia del capo.

Film potente, pur con un passo lento (ma la tensione non viene mai meno) che si regge su una sceneggiatura davvero ottima. Crudo al limite della brutalità, non ci si fa mancare proprio nulla: violenza sessuale, prostituzione, sgozzamenti, accoltellamenti, omicidi a mani nude e tutto il repertorio.
Brava la Watts e Cassel buono giusto per il ruolo di depravato ubriacone; bravi gli altri, anche se tutti scompaiono di fronte al più forte Viggo Mortensen di tutti i tempi: sono certo che potrebbe sconfiggere a rutti financo il ben più acculturato Dolph Lundgren.
Il vero guaio è che se Viggo fa ripetutamente intravedere il Piccolo Viggo^®, la Watts sta tutto il tempo in maglione.

Dopo la delusione di A History of Violence, ed un film pesante (pure non brutto) come Spider, mi sento in parte riconciliato con Cronenberg.
Certo, non è più il regista della carnaccia che abbiamo adorato.
È un Cronenberg ripulito, con più soldi, una ottima fotografia ed una regia precisa e misurata; lo si amava di più prima, ma va bene anche così.

Voto: 8+. Avercene.
Tags: drammatico, thriller, crimine, mafia russa, Russia, Londra, sgozzamento, vendetta, stupro, minorenne, parto, morte, morte di parto, abbandono, autista, omicidio, occultamento di cadavere, amputazione, droga, alcol, cena, compleanno, infermiera, zio, ubriacone, infiltrato, figlio, tatuaggi, sauna, accoltellamento, FSB, polizia, moto, nudo maschile, nudo femminile, prostituzione, lotta.

Eastern Promises (2007)

Promessa dell'assassino, La

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Regista: David Cronenberg
Scrittore: Steven Knight
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller, Crime
Valutazione: 8.0/10 (19076 voti)
Durata: 100 min
Paese: UK, Canada, USA
Lingua: English, Russian, Turkish

Cast:

• Josef Altin .... Ekrem
• Mina E. Mina .... Azim
• Aleksandar Mikic .... Soyka
• Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse .... Tatiana
• Lalita Ahmed .... Customer
• Badi Uzzaman .... Chemist
• Naomi Watts .... Anna
• Doña Croll .... Nurse (as Dona Croll)
• Raza Jaffrey .... Doctor Aziz
• Sinéad Cusack .... Helen

Trama:
The mysterious and charismatic Russian-born Nikolai Luzhin is a driver for one of London's most notorious organized crime families of Eastern European origin. The family itself is part of the Vory V Zakone criminal brotherhood. Headed by Semyon, whose courtly charm as the welcoming proprietor of the plush Trans-Siberian restaurant impeccably masks a cold and brutal core, the family's fortunes are tested by Semyon's volatile son and enforcer, Kirill, who is more tightly bound to Nikolai than to his own father. But Nikolai's carefully maintained existence is jarred once he crosses paths at Christmastime with Anna Khitrova, a midwife at a North London hospital. Anna is deeply affected by the desperate situation of a young teenager who dies while giving birth to a baby. Anna resolves to try to trace the baby's lineage and relatives. The girl's personal diary also survives her; it is written in Russian, and Anna seeks answers in it. Anna's mother Helen does not discourage her, but Anna's irascible Russian-born uncle Stepan urges caution. He is right to do so; by delving into the diary, Anna has accidentally unleashed the full fury of the Vory. With Semyon and Kirill closing ranks and Anna pressing her inquiries, Nikolai unexpectedly finds his loyalties divided. The family tightens its grip on him; who can, or should, he trust? Several lives - including his own - hang in the balance as a harrowing chain of murder, deceit, and retribution reverberates through the darkest corners of both the family and London itself.

Trivia random: To prepare for his role, Viggo Mortensen traveled alone to Moscow, St. Petersburg and the Ural Mountain region of Siberia, spending weeks driving around without a translator. He studied the gangs of the vory v zakone (thieves in law), read books on Russian prison culture and the importance of prison tattoos as criminal résumés, and perfected his character's Siberian accent and learned lines in Russian, Ukrainian and English. During filming, he used worry beads made in prison from melted-down plastic cigarette lighters and decorated his trailer with copies of Russian icons.
Citazione random: Semyon: Soyka had brothers.::Nikolai Luzhin: Kirill has me.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Watts, Naomi

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Nome di battesimo: Watts, Naomi Ellen
Data di nascita: 28 September 1968
Altezza: 5' 5" (1.65 m)

Ultimi lavori:

• The Birds (2009) .... Melanie Daniels (rumored) [attrice]
• Kicked, Bitten and Scratched (2009) .... [attrice]
• Need (2009) .... [attrice]
• Angels & Demons (2008) .... Vittoria Vetra [attrice]
• The International (2008) .... [attrice]
• Eastern Promises (2007) .... Anna [attrice]
• Funny Games U.S. (2007) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Inland Empire (2006) .... Suzie Rabbit (voice) [attrice]
• The Painted Veil (2006) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Ellie Parker (2005) .... (producer) [produttore]

Biografia:
Born in Shoreham, England and raised in Australia, Naomi Watts has been working actively in the film industry for 15 years. After she moved to Hollywood, she worked regularly, acting in small roles in film projects she was less than enthusiastic about. Finally, her big break came when she was contacted to audition for a coveted spot in David Lynch's Mulholland Dr. (2001). Her star-turning performance in the dual role of Betty Elms/Diane Selwyn has garnered an array of critic's awards and the attention of some major players in Hollywood and beyond. Watts is now enjoying greater choice of film roles and played (with great success)the lead in Gore Verbinski's remake of the Japanese horror classic The Ring (2002). She also starred opposite Kate Hudson in Merchant/Ivory's adaptation of the Diane Johnson novel Divorce, Le (2003). Subsequently, Watts' creative acting abilities have continued to grow and deepen. She has been cast in an array of films with only the best directors and actors and continues to stun critics and amaze filmgoers with her versatility and range.

Trivia random: Her brother Ben Watts is a well-known photographer. He's been living in the US since 1994.
Citazione random: When I had dark hair I definitely felt that I was more anonymous.
Salario massimo: $5,000,000, per King Kong (2005)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Harold, Erika

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Trivia random: Miss America 2003.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Cassel, Vincent

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Nome di battesimo: Crochon, Vincent
Data di nascita: 23 November 1966
Altezza: 6' 2" (1.88 m)
Coniuge: Monica Bellucci::(1999 - present) 1 child

Ultimi lavori:

• L'Ennemi public n° 1 (2008) .... Jacques Mesrine [attore]
• L'Instinct de mort (2008) .... Jacques Mesrine [attore]
• À Deriva (2008) .... [attore]
• Eastern Promises (2007) .... Kirill [attore]
• Ocean's Thirteen (2007) .... François Toulour [attore]
• Sa majesté Minor (2007) .... Satyre [attore]
• FBI Zoo (2006) .... Walt le sexy (voice) [attore]
• Sheitan (2006) .... (producer) [produttore]
• Derailed (2005/I) .... LaRoche [attore]
• Agents secrets (2004) .... Brisseau [attore]

Biografia:
Blue-eyed Vincent Cassel was born in Paris to a leading French actor father, Jean-Pierre Cassel and a journalist mother. Often labeled as a tough guy because of his roles, eclectic choices and talent have made of him a star of European cinema. First in Haine, La (1995), the young actor, actually coming from upper classes, succeeded to express the despair of a social class living in the suburbs of towns, breaking totally with his personal life. Then the success of The crimson rivers, where he plays a young French cop alongside Jean Reno, made of him "the man to count on." He never hid his taste for rap music, break dance, Capoeira, Brasil and his endless energy, but Vincent is also a family man, married to Monica Bellucci, his Italian co-star from Appartement, L' (1996) (aka The Apartment); and recently a father. Now a rising international star, Cassel could easily become the idol of many.

Trivia random: Half-brother of Cécile Cassel. Vincent also had a sister named Olivia.
Citazione random: The day after I had my licence to drive I made Paris/Nice at 230 km/hour.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Lundgren, Dolph

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Nome di battesimo: Lundgren, Hans Dolph
Data di nascita: 3 November 1957
Altezza: 6' 5¼" (1.96 m)
Coniuge: Anette Qviberg::(27 February 1994 - present) 2 children

Ultimi lavori:

• Tokyo Suckerpunch (2008) .... Chaka (rumored) [attore]
• Tumbling Dice (2008) .... (attached) [regista]
• Diamond Dogs (2007) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
• Missionary Man (2007) .... (producer) [produttore]
• L'Inchiesta (2006) .... Brixos [attore]
• The Mechanik (2005) .... (story) [scrittore]
• The Defender (2004) .... [regista]
• Direct Action (2004) .... Frank Gannon [attore]
• Fat Slags (2004) .... Randy [attore]
• Retrograde (2004) .... John Foster [attore]

Biografia:
Dolph Lundgren attended the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He received a master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in 1982, and the next year was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to MIT. In New York City, he met drama coach Warren Robertson and decided to try his luck as an actor in action movies. His film The Shooter (1995) was shot mainly in Prague, Czech Republic. Lundgren has a second-degree black belt in karate and is aiming for his third-degree black belt.

Trivia random: He was the first actor cast for the 1987 cult sci-fi film Masters of the Universe (1987).
Citazione random: I was turned down at my first audition for Rocky IV for being too tall. I was 6ft 5in and you were supposed to be 6ft 3in maximum. I didn't know what the casting call was for and I just showed up, they asked me how tall I was, I said 6ft 5in and they said NEXT!
Salario massimo: FRF 15,000,000, per The Shooter (1995)

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.

Mortensen, Viggo

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Nome di battesimo: Jr., Viggo Peter Mortensen
Data di nascita: 20 October 1958
Altezza: 5' 11" (1.80 m)
Coniuge: Exene Cervenka::(8 July 1987 - 13 March 1998) (divorced) 1 child

Ultimi lavori:

• Poe (2009) .... Edgar Allan Poe (rumored) [attore]
• Appaloosa (2008) .... Everett Hitch [attore]
• Good (2008) .... Halder [attore]
• The Road (2008) .... Father (rumored) [attore]
• Eastern Promises (2007) .... Nikolai [attore]
• Alatriste (2006) .... Diego Alatriste y Tenorio [attore]
• A History of Violence (2005) .... Tom Stall [attore]
• Hidalgo (2004) .... Frank Hopkins [attore]
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) .... Aragorn [attore]
• The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) .... Aragorn [attore]

Biografia:
Since his screen debut as a young Amish Farmer in Peter Weir's Witness (1985), Viggo Mortensen's career has been marked by a steady string of well-rounded performances. Critics have continually recognized his work in over thirty movies, including such diverse projects as Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady (1996), Sean Penn's The Indian Runner (1991), Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way (1993), Ridley Scott's G.I. Jane (1997), Tony Scott's Crimson Tide (1995), Andrew Davis's A Perfect Murder (1998), Ray Loriga's Pistola de mi hermano, La (1997), and Tony Goldwyn's A Walk on the Moon (1999). Born in New York to a Danish father and an American mother, Mortensen spent the early part of his childhood in Manhattan. His family traveled a great deal and he spent several years living in Venezuela, Argentina and Denmark. He began acting in New York, studying with Warren Robertson. He appeared in several plays and movies, and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where his performance in "Bent" at the Coast Playhouse earned him a Drama-logue Critic's Award. Mortensen is also an accomplished poet, photographer and painter.

Trivia random: Although their divorce only became final in 1998, he and his former wife, Exene Cervenka, separated in late 1990/early 1991 after less than 3 years of marriage but remain close friends often working together and co-parenting their son.
Citazione random: On the role of an actor in film: "It comes down to the fact that you supply the blue, and they supply the other colors and mix them with your blue, and maybe there's some blue left in the painting and maybe there isn't. Maybe there wasn't supposed to be any there in the first place. So have some fun and make a good blue and walk away."
Salario massimo: $2,000,000, per Hidalgo (2004)

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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:

• Drone (2008) .... (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]
• The Judge (2001) (TV) .... Det. Stobel [attore]
• Camera (2000/III) .... [scrittore]
• Resurrection (1999) .... Father Rousell [attore]
• eXistenZ (1999) .... (producer) [produttore]

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/I) 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: Brother of costume designer Denise Cronenberg.
Citazione random: We've all got the disease - the disease of being finite. Death is the basis of all horror.

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Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.