P39 Layout 1

lifestyle MONDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2014 MUSIC & MOVIES Benjamin Lutzke is awarded best performance for an actor by The team of the film “HOPE” poses as they arrive on the red carpet during the14th Clotilde Hesme is awarded by Alan Rickman for the best actress per- Melanie Laurent. Russian filmMarrakech on International disabled Film Festival in Marrakesh. tops — AFP photos Moroccoformance. festival ilm “Corrections Class”, dealing with a Morocco. The jury headed by French actress across the world. eran of Egyptian cinema. The 10-day festival tionally dominated by Arab, French and group of disabled teenagers in a Isabelle Huppert awarded the Golden Star to Also honored at Saturday night’s awards featured 87 films and paid tribute to American films. The Jury Prize award went to FRussian high school, has scooped the “Corrections Class”, by debut director Ivan ceremony were British actor Jeremy Irons, US Japanese cinema by showcasing a retrospec- “Chrieg”-a feature film debut by Swiss direc- top prize at the Marrakech Film Festival in Tverdovsky, from a field of 15 films from star Viggo Mortensen and Adel Imam, a vet- tive of more than 20 movies at an event tradi- tor Simon Jaquemet. —AFP Film Review: ‘Annie’ Belgian singer and songwriter Stromae, centre, arrives at the Cannes festival palace, to take part in the NRJ Music awards This image released by Columbis Pictures shows Quvenzhane Wallis in a scene ceremony, from “Annie.” — AP Saturday in hile there are several possible good Grace (Rose Byrne); and a Russian-accented Cannes, reasons to remake the Depression- social-services bureaucrat (an excellent southeastern Wset musical “Annie” in 2014, none of Stephanie Kurtzuba) delightedly dance and France. —AP them seem to have informed Will Gluck’s squeal over each instance of runaway opulence. overblown yet undernourished treatment. The rest of the plot roughly follows the original, More of a facelift than an update, the pic fea- with Annie bringing her patented optimism to Keaton: ‘I’m Batman, Leonardo DiCaprio called tures a multiracial cast, dusts off some old bear on the obsessions and bitterness of those songs, adds a few desultory stabs at new ones, around her, dispensing epiphanies and granti- and stuffs the frame with shiny upscale gadg- ng salvation with the flash of a smile. I’m very secure in that’ ets that scream “modern.” Featuring an all-star Wallis conveys the energy and perkiness of ‘Despicable’ in new Sony emails cast with few pretensions to dancing expert- her character convincingly and charmingly, but ise, the film replaces choreography with lacks even a hint of the desperation that lies t’s widely known that Leonardo DiCaprio Willow and Jaden Smith, the children of one of metronomic editing, while one-note over- behind the belted-out infinite deferral of was originally supposed to play Steve Jobs the studio’s biggest moneymakers, Will Smith. statement drowns out character development. “Tomorrow.” Indeed, the entire film lacks any Ibut later passed on the upcoming Aaron Smith’s relationship with the studio extends all Even without the Sony hacking scandal that sense of poverty beyond the simple absence of Sorking movie. What isn’t common knowl- the way back to 1997, when he starred in “Men caused it to leak online early, “Annie” would luxury. Unlike the New York of Sidney Lumet’s edge: how Amy Pascal and the film’s producer in Black.”According to the Daily Beast, Tom seem headed for a lackluster Christmas bow. similarly location-transplanted “The Wiz,” took the news. “Horrible behavior,” producer Rothman, head of TriStar productions, sent a The film begins promisingly with a pre- Gluck’s Gotham might as well be Toronto, with Mark Gordon wrote. “Actually despicable,” message to Sony Pictures Entertainment presi- credits sequence wherein Gluck acknowl- Stacks’ private helicopter swooping among the Pascal corrected him. According to the stolen dent Doug Belgrad on November 18 following edges the obvious parallel between the Great shiny glass skyscrapers as yet another bonus of emails, published by the Daily Beast on the release of Willow and Jaden Smith’s now- Depression and the currently widening the high life. Saturday, Gordon had asked the Sony Pictures infamous T Magazine interview. “1. Read this,” rich/poor divide: A schoolroom show-and-tell The acting in general tends toward the co-chairman whether DiCaprio’s decision to the email, which forwarded a link, read. “2. produces a standard-issue, red-haired “Annie one-note and over-the-top. Foxx, the film’s pull out of the Apple biopic was based on they r home schooled: don’t let this family A,” only to replace her with an afro’d “Annie B” only performer with extensive singing expe- money or not. date your movies!!!” Meanwhile, exchanges (Quvenzhane Wallis, the Academy Award- rience onscreen, wisely opts for understate- Pascal replied “the latter.” The role ultimate- between Pascal and Gosling’s talent manager nominated waif from “Beasts of the Southern ment, but Diaz’s slutty dipsomaniac rants on ly went to Michael Fassbender (after Christian Ilene Feldman had a much different tone. Wild”). Wallis’ Annie proceeds to conduct the unchecked, her falling-down-drunk numbers Bale passed, too) and the movie, which origi- “Ryan absolutely loved you,” Feldman class in an interactive historical performance as unchoreographed as her would-be comic Michael Keaton nated at Sony, was eventually picked up by wrote on October 3. “Said it was like speed piece celebrating FDR’s New Deal, no less. But bits are poorly directed. Byrne’s line readings Universal Pictures. Sony declined to comment dating because he was late after hitting every he actors who have played Batman on film general- this hint of modern-day hard times, it turns verge on the surreal as she attempts to on this story.It’s the latest fallout from a para- wrong gate on the lot. Not it should turn to out, is evoked only to be treated as a quaint express Grace’s career-gal loneliness by over- ly fall in two camps: those who still regret their turn lyzing cyber-attack against Sony Pictures in marriage. He really wants to do something conceit. protesting her contentment, and Cannavale’s Tas the Caped Crusader and those who are forever recent weeks that has seen employee informa- with you.”Pascal then looked into what project In Gluck’s 21st-century version, Annie lives dirty-tricks politico makes for a flabby villain. proud. Michael Keaton seems to be among the latter tion, personal emails and unreleased movies Gosling was interested in pursuing, which is with other girls not in an orphanage but in a Only David Zayas’ turn as Miss Hannigan’s group. Unlike Christian Bale, who most recently portrayed hit the Web. allegedly Paul Feig’s “Ghostbusters” female- Harlem foster home run by bitter, alcoholic eternally ignored but defiantly working-class the superhero in Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” trilogy, Also lambasted in the new emails were reboot. —Reuters Colleen Hannigan (Cameron Diaz), lamenting suitor brings a believable if simplistic sense Keaton told the ShortList that he’s not jealous that Ben her failed career as a backup singer. Poverty, in of class division to the film. Affleck will soon be donning the cape and cowl in this squeaky-clean Gotham, relies entirely on Very young kids may be diverted by “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.” sterile set decoration; a rat under a transparent “Annie’s” wall-to-wall music and nonstop “No,” he simply said when asked if he feels envious. “Do plastic bowl looks more like an artifact than an movement; characters rarely pause to take a you know why? Because I’m Batman. I’m very secure in actual denizen of Miss Hannigan’s apartment. breath. Special thought was obviously that.” In light of the 25th anniversary of Tim Burton’s Racing through the streets for her dog, expended on the presentation of the show’s “Batman,” Keaton said he’s proud of the director for usher- Sandy (here named after the hurricane, in an Charles Strouse/Martin Charnin standards. ing in the era of superhero movies. “Tim changed, or utterly superfluous example of contemporiza- “It’s the Hard-Knock Life,” danced by Wallis started, everything,” he said. “And I’m proud of the choice I tion), Annie careens into the film’s reincarna- and the other tyke actors with occasionally made, in terms of how to play Batman. It’s probably easier tion of Daddy Warbucks, aka Will Stacks (Jamie percussive, object-slamming accompaniment now because Tim paved the way, and if I did anything to Foxx), a cell-phone billionaire running for may- vaguely reminiscent of “Stomp” (already pave the way, I’m proud of that, too.” or, who absentmindedly saves her from an feeling more dated than Busby Berkeley), is Aside from the first “Spider-Man,” Keaton said he’s nev- oncoming car. When a video of the rescue winningly executed by this exceptionally er watched a superhero movie from beginning to end. goes viral, Stacks’ opportunistic campaign talented child troupe. By far the film’s best manager (Bobby Cannavale) arranges a photo incorporation of New York locations occurs “You can step into it more easily now, is my guess,” he session with the adorable moppet, which in the staging of “Tomorrow”: Like Snow said. “Technically, (superhero movies) do everything for Annie savvily parlays into room and board in White warbling into her wishing well, Wallis you. They create a world where all you’ve basically got to exchange for future photo ops. starts off singing into a sidewalk rain pud- do is show up, not screw up too much and you’ll come off dle, while Gluck continues to catch her OK.”Meanwhile, the actor has received critical acclaim for Another bonus reflection against plate-glass buildings and his role in “Birdman,” where he plays a has-been actor still File photo shows US actors Leonardo DiCaprio, left, and Tom Hanks joking during Stacks reluctantly installs her in his palatial the windows of passing buses throughout obsessed with his role as an iconic superhero.

Load more