News

Edward Norton still has the honor of starring in the only solo Hulk movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he is also one of the few actors to have their role replaced in the series that spans over 30 movies and 10 canonical shows. Ruffalo began his MCU journey a dozen years ago in the first Avengers blockbuster; where he “incredibly” captured the duality of Banner/Hulk better than any prior performer. Ruffalo managed to pull off the feat in a team-up event, whereas Norton, and a pre-mcu Eric Bana, had an entire feature dedicated to the hero.

Ruffalo immediately connected with audiences more than any of his predecessors, which raised the bar for how compelling this hero could be in live-action, while also rounding out the Avengers ensemble wonderfully. He gave the Marvel Cinematic Universe a big green hand to help lift the franchise to stratospheric heights. Without individual projects to focus on,...

Mark Ruffalo's remarkable range and ability to seamlessly transition between genres has made him a respected and versatile actor in the film industry. Ruffalo's performances in films like Shutter Island, The Kids Are All Right, and Foxcatcher showcase his impeccable acting skills and his ability to bring vulnerability to his roles. Ruffalo's standout performances in films like Spotlight and The Normal Heart demonstrate his range and growth as an actor, earning him critical acclaim.

Mark Ruffalo has been a prominent figure in the film industry, leaving a lasting impact through his diverse and compelling roles in movies. With a career spanning more than three decades, Ruffalo's ability to seamlessly transition between drama, comedy, and independent films has made him a respected and versatile actor. He has taken on iconic characters, including the complex Bruce Banner in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a role he took on despite initial skepticism — and...

Exclusive: Elvis and Point Break star Luke Bracey has wrapped under-the-radar psychological thriller Mercy Road, written and directed by John Curran (Chappaquiddick).

Bracey will play a flawed everyman who commits an impulsive and vicious crime. In his journey to redemption, he learns just how far he is willing to go to save his child. Above is a first look at the film.

The Chris Pelletier and Jesse Heffring script also stars Susie Porter (Cargo), Huw Higginson (The Nightingale) and Toby Jones (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy).

The film is produced by Arclight Films’ Gary Hamilton, Ying Ye and Michelle Krumm with filmmaker Alex Proyas, Penny Karlin and Daniaile Jarry also producers.

Arclight Films is handling international rights and is launching sales on the completed film at the European Film Market. Arclight Films is jointly representing North American rights with CAA Media Finance.

According to producers, the project is the...

Anton Yelchin, Lucie Lucas star in Portugal-set drama executive produced by Jim Jarmusch Bando à Parte and Double Play Films have announced that principal photography has wrapped on director Gabe Klinger's provisionally titled "Porto Mon Amour," a narrative drama set in Portugal starring Anton Yelchin and Lucie Lucas. Jim Jarmusch executive-produced this experimental narrative focused on a romantic encounter between a young woman (Lucas) and man (Yelchin), shot in Super 8mm, 16mm and 35mm film stock. Set mainly in the northerly Portuguese city of Porto -- hence the title's echoes of "Hiroshima Mon Amour" -- this is Klinger's feature debut following Venice-winning doc "Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater" from 2013. Klinger co-wrote the screenplay with "We Don't Live Here Anymore" scribe Larry Gross, while producing alongside Rodrigo Areias, Patrick Cunningham ("Martha Marcy May Marlene") and Jon Karas. In France,...

Gabe Klinger has completed principle photography on his followup to his award-winning documentary, Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater. In Porto Mon Amour, Anton Yelchin and Lucie Lucas play a couple who spend a night in Portugal's second-largest city. Gabe's co-written the screenplay with Larry Gross (We Don't Live Here Anymore, 48 Hours) and Jim Jarmusch has signed on as executive producer. Gabe's co-producing with Rodrigo Areias (Centro Historico), Patrick Cunningham (Starlet, Martha Marcy May Marlene) and Jon Karas. » - David Hudson...

Gabe Klinger has completed principle photography on his followup to his award-winning documentary, Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater. In Porto Mon Amour, Anton Yelchin and Lucie Lucas play a couple who spend a night in Portugal's second-largest city. Gabe's co-written the screenplay with Larry Gross (We Don't Live Here Anymore, 48 Hours) and Jim Jarmusch has signed on as executive producer. Gabe's co-producing with Rodrigo Areias (Centro Historico), Patrick Cunningham (Starlet, Martha Marcy May Marlene) and Jon Karas. » - David Hudson...

"Like any journey, it's not what you carry, but what you leave behind." Continuing our latest feature, the Monthly Must See profile, this time around I'm highlighting an extraordinarily beautiful film called Tracks, set in Australia directed by John Curran of We Don't Live Here Anymore and The Painted Veil previously. Tracks is now playing in limited theaters and first premiered at the fall film festivals in 2013, where I first caught it. Actress Mia Wasikowska stars as Robyn in the true story of an independent young woman who decides to hike 1,700 miles across the Australian desert on her own. Aside from her dog and three camels. Tracks is a very dream-like experience, filled with never-ending, gorgeous landscape cinematography from Mandy Walker complimented by a remarkably beautiful score by Garth Stevenson (I really, really love this score - currently listening to it while writing this up). I first saw the film...

Tracks sounds like a slog, the true story of Robyn Davidson (Mia Wasikowska) as she treks 1,700 miles across the Australian desert with four capricious camels and a black dog named Diggity. The journey, which spawned an article for National Geographic and a global bestseller, begins in April 1977 and lasts for nine arduous months. But hold on. The movie, which lasts a scant 112 minutes, is no mission for masochists. Tracks is an exhilarating adventure that opens up an unknown world to most of us and does it so well that we feel we're living it too.

The Academy has announced the new class of invited members for 2014 and, as is typical, many of which are among last year's nominees, which includes Barkhad Abdi, Michael Fassbender, Sally Hawkins, Mads Mikkelsen, Lupita Nyong'o and June Squibb in the Actors branch not to mention curious additions such as Josh Hutcherson, Rob Riggle and Jason Statham, but, okay. The Directors branch adds Jay and Mark Duplass along with Jean-Marc Vallee, Denis Villeneuve and Thomas Vinterberg. I didn't do an immediate tally of male to female additions or other demographics, but at first glance it seems to be a wide spread batch of new additions on all fronts. The Academy is also clearly attempting to aggressively bump up the demographics as this is the second year in a row where they have added a large number of new members, well over the average of 133 new members from 2004 to 2012. As far as...

The Weinstein Co. has premiered the first trailer for Tracks, an Outback-set adventure drama starring Mia Wasikowska as a young woman on a 1,700 mile trek across the deserts of West Australia with her four camels and faithful dog. Adam Driver co-stars as National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan, who documented her travels. The film was directed by John Curran, whose only films I've seen are Stone and We Don't Live Here Anymore, neither of which I remember as overly compelling, but I've heard plenty of good things about The Painted Veil. Thing is, Curran's work doesn't really have a heartbeat that matches up to mine so I'm not too sure this one is going to appeal to me. The Weinsteins have yet to announce a release date.

A new trailer for John Curran's adventure drama Tracks is now available.  Mia Wasikowska stars as Robyn Davidson, who set off on foot to traverse the West Australian desert, a near 2,000 mile trek.  Accompanied by only her dog and four unpredictable camels, she meets National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan (Adam Driver) along the way, who documents her voyage.  This new cut features some new footage not seen in the previously released trailer. Tracks, also starring Emma Booth, Melanie Zanetti, and Jessica Tovey, is now playing in Australia and will open in international territories throughout the year.  No U.S. release date is set at this point.  Hit the jump to watch the new trailer. Check out the Tracks trailer below (via Yahoo!): Synopsis: Director John Curran (The Painted Veil, We Don't Live Here Anymore) and the producers of The Kings Speech bring you the film Tracks, which tells...

"When people ask why I'm doing it, my usual answer is: why not." The Weinstein Company has unveiled their full theatrical Us trailer for the film Tracks, from director John Curran (The Painted Veil), starring Mia Wasikowska as explorer Robyn Davidson, who hiked her way solo across the Australian Outback. It's a wonderful, extraordinary, beautiful adventure about the incredible journey of one woman, and it's a compelling and inspiring film to boot. Adam Driver co-stars, but it's mostly all Wasikowska and her dogs and camels. The trailer features M83's "Outro" and is basically a recut of the first international trailer from last year, but I'm still happy to highlight this film. In my Tiff review I called it a "beautiful, beautiful film." Here's the latest theatrical trailer for John Curran's Tracks, originally from Yahoo: Starring Mia Wasikowska (Jane Eyre, Stoker) and Adam Driver ("Girls", Frances Ha, Inside Llewyn Davis...

The latest trailer for director John Curran's "Tracks," about a young woman's treacherous journey across the wilds of the West Australian desert and starring the sublime Mia Wasikowska, has landed. Release date via distributor The Weinstein Company forthcoming. A hit at Venice and Telluride, this is Curran's first film since the tepid thriller "Stone" (2010). Before that, he directed the lush weepie "The Painted Veil" (2006) and the elegant adultery drama "We Don't Live Here Anymore" (2004). Written by Marion Nelson from Robyn Davidson's autobiographical book, "Tracks" costars Adam Driver (eep!). Julia Roberts was originally circling the role of Davidson, 27 at the time of the film's events, until Wasikowska nabbed it.  Here's our Venice review of the film. Trailer below via Yahoo! Movies. It's a tad overdramatic, given the triumphant indie soundtrack, but see for yourself.

Mia Wasikowska is a fantastic young actress that has a long successful acting career ahead of her. She's been in films such as Jane Eyre, Stoker, Alice in Wonderland, Lawless, and several more. She was amazing in all of those, and now she's basically going to carry a whole film on her shoulders with Tracks, which is based on an inspiring true story. This looks like a beautifully shot film, and I'll be checking it out when it is released. 

The movie also stars Adam Driver (HBO's Girls), and it comes from director John Curran (The Painted Veil, We Don't Live Here Anymore). Here's a detailed synopsis of the story,

Tracks is based on the inspirational and iconic true story of Robyn Davidson. Robyn's phenomenal solo trek from Alice Springs to Uluru and on to the Indian Ocean saw her traverse 2700km of spectacular yet unforgiving Australian desert accompanied only...

"When people ask me why I'm doing it, my usual answer is, 'Why not?'"

That's the explanation that Robyn Davidson (Mia Wasikowska) gives in this new trailer for "Tracks" for deciding to trek 2,000 miles from the middle of the Australian Outback to the Indian Ocean. The film is based on a true story, making Davidson's decision all the more remarkable, and director John Curran ("We Don't Live Here Anymore," "The Painted Veil") spares no detail in bringing her inspiring journey to life against the gorgeous landscape.

Davidson has detractors at every turn -- "Your plan is ridiculous," one tells her -- including Adam Driver, who plays a National Geographic photographer documenting her walk.

"You want to die out there or something?" an incredulous Driver asks.

But of course, Davidson's journey is about more than the destination, and along with snakes and sunburns, she finds herself. The movie received raves...

An epic journey of wilderness travel and self-imposed isolation is at the heart of John Curran's ("The Painted Veil," "We Don't Live Here Anymore") new film, "Tracks." Mia Wasikowska ("Stoker," "Alice in Wonderland") stars in the true story of Robyn Davidson who in 1975 traveled 2700km across the Australian desert accompanied only by her dog and four camels. Read More: Mia Wasikowska On Having Three Films at Tiff and Why She Stuck to Indies Following 'Alice in Wonderland' The trailer highlights Australia's epic landscapes that almost seem overwhelming. National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan (Adam Driver) intermediately breaks Davidson's solitude, forming an unlikely friendship.  Though there is no release date yet, The Weinstein Company is distributing the film Stateside. Watch the trailer below and tell us what you think in the comments. ...

Veteran award-winning screenwriters Henry Bean ("The Believer"), Larry Gross ("We Don't Live Here Anymore") and Naomi Foner ("Very Good Girls") talked about their craft and tricks of the trade, along with Filmmaker in Residence Andrea Arnold ("Fishtank") yesterday at the Story Creation and the Artistic Process panel as part of the Nyff Live free-to-the-public series of filmmaker conversations. Arnold is currently in New York as the 2013 "Filmmaker in Residence" for the 51st New York Film Festival. The project she is working on, which she described as a "road movie," is set in the U.S. so she felt the "filmmaker in residence" gig was just what she needed to finish it. "I've already written a draft and I'm really self-critical with my writing and I've been holding it close to me for quite a long time. When this residence thing came up, I thought 'oh my God, that's just what...

The Weinstein Company (TWC) today has acquired U.S. rights from HanWay Films to John Curran's true Australian odyssey "Tracks," starring Mia Wasikowska and Adam Driver, which debuted at Venice and Telluride to strong reviews and will go on to screen at Toronto. Here's Toh. John Curran ("The Painted Veil," "We Don't Live Here Anymore") tells the true story of Robyn Davidson (Mia Wasikowska), a woman from the city who makes a solo trek in 1977 through 1700 miles of inhospitable Australian desert. Accompanied by only her dog Diggity and four ornery camels, she sets off on a life-changing journey beginning in Alice Springs and ending at the Indian Ocean. Along the way, she meets National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan (Adam Driver) who photographs her voyage.  Julia Roberts was one of many actresses attached to "Tracks" during its long journey to the big screen, but Wasikowska portraying Davidson, an unremarkable 27-year-old.

Naomi Watts is already getting positive reviews for capturing the look and spirit of the late Princess Diana in photos and snippets released ahead of her new movie Diana, due out September 20. Now she's opening up about what persuaded her to take the role and she reveals the challenges of portraying such an iconic figure.

In an interview conducted by her longtime friend and We Don't Live Here Anymore costar, Laura Dern, Watts tells Hamptons magazine she knew she'd face close scrutiny for the role. "So many people are going to pounce on me for not looking enough like her, not being tall enough, not being properly British -- and I am actually properly British," she said. "I'm also Australian, but all of those negative comments were sort of floating around in the back of my head and really stifling me about whether or not I should do this..."

Pics: Stars On Set

The 44-year-old, two-time Oscar nominee...

Larry Gross will write Turbulent Souls adapted from Stephen J. Dubner's memoir. The Group Entertainment's production is based on the 1998 book originally called Turbulent Souls, now being titled as Choosing My Religion. In the memoir, Dubner, who is the co-writer of Freakonomics, recounts the time he learned of his family's Jewish roots after being raised as a Catholic. After embracing his past, this led to a split with his mother which had the archbishop of New York involved in order to resolve the issue. Gross wrote the script for 48 Hours, True Crime and We Don't Live Here Anymore.

Larry Gross will write Turbulent Souls adapted from Stephen J. Dubner's memoir. The Group Entertainment's production is based on the 1998 book originally called Turbulent Souls, now being titled as Choosing My Religion. In the memoir, Dubner, who is the co-writer of Freakonomics, recounts the time he learned of his family's Jewish roots after being raised as a Catholic. After embracing his past, this led to a split with his mother which had the archbishop of New York involved in order to resolve the issue. Gross wrote the script for 48 Hours, True Crime and We Don't Live Here Anymore.

Larry Gross will write Turbulent Souls adapted from Stephen J. Dubner's memoir. The Group Entertainment's production is based on the 1998 book originally called Turbulent Souls, now being titled as Choosing My Religion. In the memoir, Dubner, who is the co-writer of Freakonomics, recounts the time he learned of his family's Jewish roots after being raised as a Catholic. After embracing his past, this led to a split with his mother which had the archbishop of New York involved in order to resolve the issue. Gross wrote the script for 48 Hours, True Crime and We Don't Live Here Anymore.

If Naomi Watts had only done Mulholland Drive she would be secure in movie history. She deserves a lot of camera time

Who ever heard a bad word about Naomi Watts? And don't expect to read one here. Still, her latest film, Fair Game, where she plays the outed CIA agent Valerie Plame, with Sean Penn as her husband, made too little impression on all of us who like her. It seemed promising: attractive married people plus international intrigue, along with the suspicion of there being more to the case than we ever heard. Directed by Doug Liman, the movie turns out rather dull. Is playing opposite Sean Penn anti-chemical (this was the third time Watts had tried)? Or did the drama need to be shifted towards comedy? Being married to a "spy" may play best as a version of "Can you trust your wife?"

But if the Anglo-Australian Watts...

Actor Mark Ruffalo had a tough time getting his career started, having to bartend for nine years before getting his first break in the 2000 indie gem, "You Can Count of Me." Now the dedicated performer is firmly cemented in the Oscars echelons, nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his turn in "The Kids Are All Right."

Find out more about Ruffalo's career!

Oscar Nominee Trivia File: Mark RuffaloThe Love of the Theater

Mark took classes...

After displaying serious chest rug and limberness during the multiple sex scenes that were called for in the celebrated, smart comedy The Kids Are All Right, Mark Ruffalo is headed back to the bedroom to play a sex addict for Stuart Blulmberg, who co-wrote The Kids with director Lisa Cholodenko.

Ruffalo is no stranger to simulating the act on screen - have you Seen Xx/Xy, We Don't Live Here Anymore, In the Cut, etc.? - but will, for the first time, play a man at the mercy of his pathological urges in Thanks for Sharing, which will mark Blumberg's directorial debut.

Stone director John Curran talks about his talented trio of stars, shooting in Michigan, the religious aspects of the movie and more.

Director John Curran's career is the epitome of going against the grain in Hollywood. He takes in distinctly different material from one project to the next, with indie gems such as Praise, We Don't Live Here Anymore and The Painted Veil to his credit. And what's more different than a romantic period piece like The Painted Veil? A gritty prison drama such as John Curran's latest movie Stone, which will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on January 18. I had the chance to speak with John Curran about his new movie, which stars Robert De Niro as a retiring parole officer, Edward Norton as a supposedly-reformed felon and Milla Jovovich as the convict's tempting wife. Here's what the director had to say:

Can you take me...

You can tell that Stone was written by a playwright, in that it's primarily a character-driven piece for four talented actors. And the casting is magnificent: Edward Norton, Robert De Niro, Milla Jovovich, and Frances Conroy. It's the kind of acting that would destroy you on the stage, the sheer electricity of those four performances would fry you right in your seats. But this isn't a play, it's a feature film. While the performances are amazing, they're couched in a really insubstantial narrative. There's not a single subtlety or surprise in the entire film, and the actions of the characters feel completely motivated by the page and not the pace. They do stupid and random shit because the script tells them to. There's a world of difference between bluntness and lack of nuance. There's nothing surprising or tense about the film. It unspools like a particularly clunky episode of "NCIS.

Director: John Curran Writer: Angus MacLachlan Starring: Robert De Niro, Edward Norton, Milla Jovovich, Frances Conroy Stone takes us to the economically ravaged, and socially decayed suburban Detroit and a nearby maximum security state prison. Days from retirement, Michigan parole officer Jack Mabry (Robert De Niro) begins to review the case of a corn-rowed street-talking convict Gerald “Stone” Creeson (Edward Norton), who has been in jail for eight years for arson in connection to the murder of his grandparents committed by his cousin. Stone is now eligible for an early release and insists that he’s a changed man who has found religion (an abscure one at that) and deserves parole. However, Jack has seen and heard it all from the countless cons that enter his office. Seeing this, Stone wises up and recruits his beautiful wife Lucetta (Milla Jovovich) to intervene with Jack. Seduced by Lucetta, Jack stumbles into...

Director John Curran discusses his latest film starring Edward Norton and Robert De Niro

Director John Curran first gained attention for his work on the 2004 drama We Don't Live Here Anymore starring Mark Ruffalo and Naomi Watts. He followed that up with the critically acclaimed 2006 drama The Painted Veil, also starring Naomi Watts along with PEnXNtqpsrKurq||Edward Norton} and Liev Schreiber. Earlier this year he wrote The Killer Inside Me, which is based on Jim Thompson's popular novel and stars Casey Affleck, Kate Hudson and Jessica Alba.

Now Curran returns to the director's chair and once again teams up with Edward Norton for the new film Stone, which opens in theaters on October 8th and also stars Oscar winner Robert De Niro and Milla Jovovich. The movie reunites De Niro and Norton for the first time since they starred opposite each other in the 2001 film The Score. In the picture,...

Opening theatrically Oct. 8, "Stone," the new film from director John Curran ("We Don't Live Here Anymore," "The Painted Veil") is a challenging character study. The movie focuses on retiring parole officer Jack Mabry (Robert De Niro), who is assigned the case of Gerald "Stone" Creeson (Edward Norton), an eccentric prisoner up for parole. This final case of Mabry's proves to be a bit more complicated than he expected, especially when Stone's wife, Lucetta (Milla Jovovich), gets involved. Curran's nuanced film, written by Angus MacLachlan, makes great use of performances by De Niro, Norton, and Jovovich; poses poignant questions about free will, morality, and judgment; and ultimately purports that the moral high ground is never set in stone. Back Stage caught up with Curran to talk about the project, its themes, and the experience of working with the film's all-star cast. Back Stage: Edward Norton has described you as...

It's been a long known fact that it's hard to get dramas made in Hollywood, but when director John Curran ( We Don't Live Here Anymore ) decided to make Stone , he had the benefits of a cast headlined by Robert De Niro and Edward Norton, who appeared in Curran's previous film The Painted Veil . De Niro plays Jack Mabry, a soon-to-retire parole officer at a maximum security prison in the suburbs of Detroit who takes on his last case, that of Gerald "Stone" Creeson, Norton's character, who has been imprisoned for the murder of his grandparents in a fire he started. While Creeson pleads his case and tries to convince Jack he's reformed, his sexy (and slightly crazy) wife Lucetta, played by Milla Jovovich, uses her own methods of convincing Mabry to release her husband, just...

Marvel Studios is indebted to Bryan Singer's X-Men for being the first successful adaptation of one of their comic properties ultimately becoming a blockbuster hit. (Though let's be honest, the Wesley Snipes vehicle Blade did it two years earlier just a lot more modestly.) Singer did a wonderful job of not only bringing the X-Men to life as flesh and blood characters, but making it feel as if they were a part of our real world. The story did in fact have more than a number of holes, taking place in “the not-too-distant-future” yet asking us to believe that a sixty-something year old man like the villain Magneto (Ian McKellan), survived a Nazi concentration camp as a teen during World War II. Singer's sequel X2 was also a good film, yet even though it's story was more epic and production values higher, I personally felt it was a missed opportunity.

The Chicago International Film Festival unveiled the first twenty films confirmed for this year's lineup. All festival screenings will take place October 7 through October 21 at the AMC River East 21 Theater. The festival will start with the prison drama "Stone" from director John Curran ("The Painted Veil," "We Don't Live Here Anymore"), starring Robert DeNiro and Edward Norton. The complete list of twenty announced films, (with descriptions from the ...

Stone, starring Robert DeNiro, Milla Jovovich, and Edward Norton, is about a convicted arsonist (Norton) who uses his wife (Jovovich) to seduce his parole officer (DeNiro) into securing Norton an early release, only to then play some sort of psychological game with Norton.

Norton can do low-rent prison thug as well as anyone (see American History X), but I'm not really buying into this particular character (at least, based on the trailer), unless the Norton character turns out to be something he's not: Like an intelligent dude pretending to be a low-rent prison thug. But hey: DeNiro and Jovovich bang uglies, so if that jiggles the rocks, then maybe this is your thing. It does come from John Curran, who directed the exemplary We Don't Live Here Anymore, so I'm hoping there's a lot more to this movie than the trailer portends. Of course, the last time that Norton and DeNiro got together,...

Overture Films has released the first official trailer for the dramatic thriller Stone starring Edward Norton, Robert DeNiro and Milla Jovovich. In this trailer it's clear that Norton is continuing on his pattern of wholly unique and defined characters completely different than previous roles. It's a bit reminiscent of Sean Penn's turn in Dead Man Walking, but here, Norton has to contend with DeNiro who is still a mighty presence on screen. Jovovich spices it up a bit for a thriller that looks tense and even quite erotic. Director John Curran has shown a knack for isolated dramas like We Don't Live Here Anymore, so this should be very interesting. Watch the official trailer for John Curran's Stone: [flv:http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/Stoneofficialtrailer-full.flv http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/Stoneofficialtrailer-full.jpg 598 248] You can also watch the official trailer for Stone in High Definition on Apple A convicted arsonist (Norton) tries to manipulate his way out of the prison by having...

Wasn't it just yesterday in a comment thread when someone mentioned Meryl Streep & Jeff Bridges not having worked together. To which I was all "hey, they're the same age but they never let actresses play romantically opposite actors the same age!" Funny how these things pop up in the internet ether and the next thing you know, we all seem like prophets.

The Bridges & The Gummers

Jeff & Meryl know a little something about longterm coupling

But I'm burying the lead... or at least muddying it. Okay. As you may have heard Streep & Bridges are close to signing for a marital drama called Great Hope Springs about a couple who've been together for decades having an intense weekend therapy session that will decide the fate of their marriage.

I always argue with myself about movies in development. To wit:

Meryl Streep and Jeff Bridges working together = Probably gah!some and reason enough to be very excited.

For well over a year, actor Mark Ruffalo has been on what he calls "a rollercoaster ride." After surviving a brain tumor in 2002, Ruffalo had spent much of the decade prepping his directorial debut, “Sympathy for Delicious,” a comedic drama about a paraplegic DJ-turned-faith healer, when his brother Scott was killed during its preproduction.

Ruffalo forged ahead to honor his brother's memory and real-life paraplegic friend -- Christopher Thornton, who wrote and stars in the film -- until the production ran out of money last summer. He took a few weeks to co-star in Lisa Cholodenko's moving comedy "The Kids Are All Right," then spent the hiatus with his wife and three children, even contemplating a break from acting. Then in December, Sundance saved the day by giving "Sympathy" a prime opening weekend slot in the U.S. Dramatic Competition. Audiences responded with hefty applause, and after some mixed...

I've sort of lost track of this project since it was first announced as a possible The Deer Hunter reunion between Robert De and Meryl Streep. A lot has changed since this first announcement. De Niro and Edward Norton remained on board but the supporting actresses were changed for Frances Conroy and Milla Jovovich. Today, John Curran's dramatic-thriller has a confirmed release next year with Overture swooping up domestic rights. - I've sort of lost track of this project since it was first announced as a possible The Deer Hunter reunion between Robert De and Meryl Streep. A lot has changed since this first announcement. De Niro and Edward Norton remained on board but the supporting actresses were changed for Frances Conroy and Milla Jovovich. Today, John Curran's dramatic-thriller has a confirmed release next year with Overture swooping up domestic rights.   Based on Angus MacLachlan's play,...

Millenium Films has released a marketing trailer for The Painted Veil and We Don't Live Here Anymore director John Curran's new film, a prison-set psychological crime thriller. Edward Norton stars as a convicted arsonist who looks to manipulate a parole officer (Robert De Niro) into a plan to secure his parole by placing his beautiful wife (Mila Jovovich) in the lawman's path. Originally written as a play, and adapted for the screen by Independent Spirit Award-nominated scribe Angus MacLachlan, a Winston-Salem screenwriter and playwright, best known for the 2005 film Junebug and the short film Tater Tomater. A bit of trivia: Zachary Quinto (Heroes, Star Trek) played the lead in the one and only Los Angeles table reading performance of the play in 2003. It's a rough cut trailer for exhibitors and marketing, but you'll get the idea. Watch it now embedded after the jump. Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Adam of Club Silencio here with another look at my favorite actresses and their distinguishing claims to fame.

I had a dream. In fact, it was the night I met you. In the dream there was our world, and the world was dark because there weren't any robins... and the robins represented love. And for the longest time there was just this darkness. And all of a sudden, thousands of robins were set free and they flew down and brought this blinding light of love! And it seemed like that love would be the only thing that would make any difference... And it did. So I guess it means there is trouble till the robins come. Martin Luther King Jr. and Laura Dern; civil rights or robins of love. Both valid dreams from inspirational dreamers. Laura Dern is one of our most bright, inspiring and expressive actresses -- an angelic beauty with an edge.

Robert De Niro and Edward Norton have signed on to star in the indie psychological thriller Stone, which is being directed by John Curran. Angus MacLachlan (Junebug) penned the screenplay, which is based on his play. The story centers on a correctional officer (De Niro) who is seduced by the wife of a convicted arsonist (Norton) up for parole. De Niro and Norton previously teamed in 2001 on the heist flick The Score. Stone marks the debut film of Mimran Schur Pictures, a company formed earlier this year by private investor David Mimran and longtime music biz executive and former Geffen Records president Jordan Schur. De Niro is also set to reprise his Jack Byrnes character in the latest chapter in the Meet the Parents franchise, Little Fockers. Norton next stars in the indie dramedy Leaves of Grass, which was directed by his Incredible Hulk co-star Tim Blake Nelson. Curran previously...

Robert De Niro and Edward Norton will star in director John Curran's Stone , reports Production Weekly . The movie will be based on a play by Junebug screenwriter Angus MacLachlan. De Niro will play a parole officer who develops a friendship with a teaching assistant. Filming begins in May. Curran, whose credits include The Painted Veil and We Don't Live Here Anymore , will also direct Keira Knightley in The Beautiful and the Damned .

Al Pacino is a legend in his own right. He's played countless iconic characters, uttered famous lines in famous scenes of famous films. And he's set to do it again. The actor has long been interested in playing one of the most complex and infamous characters in human history: Napoleon Bonaparte. With Betsy and the Emperor, he's finally going to get his chance, according to THR. The film is to be the screen adaptation of Staton Rabin's children's book "Betsy and the Emperor", about Napoleon's last five years in exile on the island of St. Helena and his interactions with the teenage daughter, Miss Betsy Balcombe, of his jailer. The script was written by Brian Edgar and the film will be directed by John Curran, of We Don't Live Here Anymore and The Painted Veil. Previously, French director Patrice Chereau (Queen Margot, Intimacy) was on-board at Warner Brothers, with Pacino...

Al Pacino has signed on to star in Betsy and the Emperor, a film that will see the Oscar winner portray famous French emperor Napoleon. Killer Films is behind the project, which is based on Staton Rabin's young adult novel of the same name. John Curran, director of the 2004 Mark Ruffalo drama-romance We Don't Live Here Anymore and The Painted Veil, is attached to helm from a screenplay by Brian Edgar. Napoleon Bonaparte, later known as Emperor Napoleon I, was a military and political leader of France whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century. He revolutionized military organization and training; sponsored the Napoleonic Code, the prototype of later civil-law codes; reorganized education; and established the long-lived Concordat with the papacy. The novel is a historical fantasy based on Napoleon's earliest years on St. Helena. Rabin has re-imagined Napoleon's exile through the eyes of fourteen-year-old Betsy Balcombe, the...

Here's your daily dose of film news for April 8, 2009:

• Larry Charles, who directed the hilarious "Borat" and "Religulous," is in talks to helm "Winter's Discontent," according to Variety. The film follows a widower who moves into a retirement home to - guess what - get laid. Charles most recently directed Sacha Baron Cohen's upcoming comedy "Brüno."

• And another video game will move to the big screen. This time, Sony will adapt "Shadow of the Colossus," with Justin Marks ("Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li") on-board to write the screenplay. The plot of the game follows a man who must fight his way through a wasteland battling 16 creatures. (Variety)

• Believe it or not, but Al Pacino is getting ready to play Napoleon in the big-screen adaptation of Staton Rabin's children's book "Betsy and the Emperor." John Curran, whose credits include the very interesting "We Don't Live Here Anymore" and decent enough "The Painted Veil,...

• Looks like Killer Films might once again position themselves in one of those uncomfortable situations where they embark on a project knowing that there is another similar project floating around. Recently I had discussed how they might lose in the first to get the Beat Poet Allen Ginsberg biography out there (their John Krokidas-directed Kill Your Darlings is going up against Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein's Howl) and now they have set up another fatal scenario – it all depends on whether financiers/producers Adi Cohen and Joseph Grinkorn’s Gc Corp. have really been able to acquire “all film and stage adaptation rights” as stated by Variety. Problem is that Killer Film's Betsy and the Emperor might be going up against Napoleon and Betsy – a project pegged with a 2010 start date after actress Emma Watson completes the Deathly Hallows part I and II. Watson would play the titular role of Betsy Balcombe.

...

I would've expected Keira Knightley to learn her lesson by now. After Pride & Prejudice, Atonement, Silk, and The Duchess this year, I was hoping she'd stop making such dull period pieces -- apparently not. Knightley has been cast in The Beautiful and the Damned, the next project from filmmaker John Curran. Curran last directed the period film The Painted Veil as well as We Don't Live Here Anymore before that. The Beautiful and the Damned concerns the turbulent marriage of alcoholic writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and his schizophrenic wife Zelda Sayre. Something to get excited about? I highly doubt it. The Beautiful and the Damned will begin production in March. The story takes place in the high society of the roaring '20s, which was when Fitzgerald wrote some of his greatest novels, including This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and Damned (for which this movie is named), and The...

Nick Cassavetes may be a lot of things-- the director of the insanely successful romance The Notebook, son of legendary director John Cassavetes-- but he's not a guy who screams "high-toned period piece." Luckily, John Curran is, and he's replaced Cassavetes as the director of The Beautiful and the Damned, the story of writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and his totally loony wife, Zelda. Keira Knightley, of course, will be starring as Zelda-- is there a period piece she won't star in?-- and has been on board since Cassavetes was the director. Variety doesn't explain what happened to Cassavetes, just that he "fell out along the way," which could mean basically anything. Maybe there was a Nicholas Sparks novel that needed adapting? Curran, who directed the 2006 period piece The Painted Veil as well as We Don't Live Here Anymore, seems like a much better fit for the material,...

John Curran is set to replace Nick Cassavetes as director for Film Department's upcoming period drama "The Beautiful and the Damned."

The film is set during the Roaring '20s and centers on the extravagant lifestyle and turbulent marriage of alcoholic writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda Sayre, a schizophrenic.

Hanna Weg wrote the script for the film, and Keira Knightley is on board to star.

Curran's credits include the decent "The Painted Veil" and "We Don't Live Here Anymore."

As for Fitzgerald, one of his short stories recenely inspired David Fincher's "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." Another one of his creations, "The Great Gatsby," will be directed by Baz Luhrmann.

Variety says Cassavetes recently dropped the project but doesn't state the reason.

John Curran has signed on to direct The Beautiful and the Damned, a upcoming period drama that Keira Knightley is attached to star in. Nick Cassavetes (Alpha Dog, The Notebook) was previously signed on to direct the film. Hanna Weg wrote the script, which follows the turbulent marriage of alcoholic writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and his mercurial wife Zelda Sayre (Knightley), who was schizophrenic. The tempestuous relationship, which unfolded in the high society of the Roaring '20s, inspired some of the novelist's works. Curran’s past credits include Praise, We Don't Live Here Anymore and most recently The Painted Veil, which opened in 2006 and starred Sally Hawkins, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, Toby Jones and Liev Schreiber. Knightley hit the screen in 2008 in The Edge of Love and The Duchess. She next stars in the romantic drama Last Night, opposite Sam Worthington and Eva Mendes. Production on Dammed is slated to start in March.