Julianne Moore Joining Kingsman Sequel

Fresh from her villainous turn in The Hunger Games Julianne Moore is now reportedly in talks to join the cast of the sequel to Kingsman The Secret Service. She’d be facing off against returning star Taron Egerton’s chav turned superspy,  apparently playing the main villain in the follow up to the slow burning box office hit.

It remains unclear whether Moore would be reunited with her former A Single Man co-star Colin Firth. Despite early talks about creative ways to bring Firth back in some capacity despite his apparent demise in the first film, it still looks unlikely he’ll feature in the new Kingsman film.

Empire Awards Nominations 2016

Empire readers and the cinema-going public have nominated 50 films, seven TV shows and five games for this year’s Jameson Empire Awards, honouring a diverse spectrum of entertainment from the past year. The public will continue to cast their votes at www.empireonline.com/awards2016 with the winners to be announced at a star-studded ceremony on March 20th  hosted by David Walliams

George Miller’s high-octane Mad Max: Fury Road and Star Wars: The Force Awakens lead the pack, followed by The Martian with six nominations and BAFTA favourite The Revenant, with nods in five categories. All four films are nominated for the prestigious Best Director (presented by Vue Entertainment) and Best Film (presented by Sky Movies) categories where they are joined by The Hateful Eight for Best Film and Ryan Coogler for Best Director for Creed.

Overlooked by other awards bodies, Creed also secures a nomination for Michael B. Jordan in the Jameson Best Actor category alongside Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant),Matt Damon (The Martian), Michael Fassbender (Macbeth/Steve Jobs) and Tom Hardy (Legend/Mad Max: Fury Road). Hardy’s Mad Max co-star Charlize Theron is nominated in the Best Actress category alongside Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl), Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2), Emily Blunt (Sicario) and BAFTA-winner Brie Larson (Room).

Rising stars of the acting world are recognised in the Best Newcomer categories, including Larson’s nine year-old Room co-star Jacob Tremblay who is nominated alongside

15 year-old Ghanaian actor Abraham Attah, who made his film acting debut in Beasts Of No Nation. Rounding off the Best Male Newcomer category are: Thomas Mann (Me And Earl And The Dying Girl); Jason Mitchell (Straight Outta Compton) and BAFTA EE Rising Star winner John Boyega (Star Wars: The Force Awakens). Fox Searchlight’s Sundance award-winning Me And Earl And The Dying Girl also features in the Best Female Newcomer category, with a nod for actress Olivia Cooke, who is nominated with fellow Brits Daisy Ridley (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) and Bel Powley (The Diary Of A Teenage Girl), alongside Maika Monroe (It Follows) and Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation).

British filmmaking talent is once more recognised in the coveted Best British Film category, which is presented this year by The Hollywood Reporter. Historical drama Suffragette rallies for votes alongside 45 Years, Legend, Macbeth and Spectre.

Mad Max: Fury Road also dominates the newly introduced craft categories with nominations for Best Costume Design, Best Make-Up and Hairstyling, Best Visual Effects, Best Production Design and Best Soundtrack. The introduction of 11 new categories in 2016 has attracted a wider range of nominations and recognition for films such as Crimson Peak(Best Costume Design, Best Make-Up and Hairstyling, Best Production Design), Cinderella (Best Costume Design) and Jurassic World (Best Visual Effects).

The specialised genre categories continue to champion a broad range of cinema not otherwise included in most awards nominations, such as Krampus, Insidious: Chapter 3 andThe Hallow, which are all nominated for Best Horror, and Ant-Man, Spy, Inside Out and Trainwreck amongst the nominations for Best Comedy (presented by Absolute Radio). Amy Schumer’s hilarious script is also recognised in the new Best Screenplay category, where Trainwreck takes on Steve Jobs and The Hateful Eight as well as recent BAFTA-winners Spotlight and The Big Short.

Animation scores a dedicated category this year with nods for Inside Out, Minions, Shaun The Sheep The Movie, Song Of The Sea and The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya,while Pixar is also recognised in the Best Short Film category (presented by Jameson Irish Whiskey) with nominations for Lava and the Oscar®-nominated Sanjay’s Super Team which are nominated alongside fellow Oscar®-nominee Stutterer as well as World of Tomorrow and Kung Fury. Elsewhere, the new Best Documentary category recognises both film and TV formats with nominations including: Amy; He Named Me Malala; Going Clear: Scientology And The Prison Of Belief; The Jinx: The Life And Deaths Of Robert Durst and much-debated Netflix series, Making A Murderer.

The unparalleled popularity of television drama is recognised with the introduction of the Best TV Series category, which will see Game Of Thrones and  Marvel’s Jessica Jones take on Fargo, This Is England ’90 and Marvel’s Daredevil. Another comic superhero features in the Best Game nominations, with Batman: Arkham Knight up against record-selling Fallout 4 in addition to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and Bloodborne.

Commenting on this year’s shortlist, Empire’s Editor-In-Chief, Terri White, concludes:

“2015 was an absolutely cracking year for film and entertainment, evidenced by the strength of the actors, filmmakers, movies and TV shows fighting it out for gongs this year. With Mad Max: Fury Road and Star Wars: The Force Awakens going head to head with awards favourite so far The Revenant, I can’t wait to see who walks away with the Empire trophies on the night. It’d take a braver woman than me to bet against any of them.”

The nominations for the Jameson Empire Awards cover films released within the period January 31, 2015, until January 31, 2016

Check Out Video Coverage of past Empire Awards Red Carpets Below:

Triple 9 Review

The Plot

A gang of criminals and corrupt cops find themselves resorting to increasingly desperate measures to meet the demands of a scheming mob mistress. With increasingly limited options, planning their biggest heist yet might mean they have to cross the ultimate line and kill one of their own..

The Good

Director John Hillcoat has a celebrated pedigree for bleak and distinctly violent drama. His work in adapting The Road and box office hit Lawless demonstrated a knack for balancing stark brutality with emotive storytelling. In Triple 9 he has assembled a host of talented and very familiar faces to bring a world of ruthless corruption to life. The film’s dirty visual flare matches the mood of the subject matter well. Likewise the film succeeds in injecting tangible senses of urgency into its frequent action sequences.

It’s hard to fault a cast that includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kate Winslet, Casey Affleck, Aaron Paul, Norman Reedus, Anthony Mackie, Clifton Collins Jr and Woody Harrelson. The film even throws some casual eye candy from Gal Gadot and Teresa Palmer at audiences. The cast all deliver committed and earnest performances that make the very best of the by the numbers action thriller material.

Chiwetel Ejiofor deserves particular credit for playing viciously against type, likewise recent BAFTA winner Kate Winselt for lending her award winning class to a decidedly trashy mobster role. Woody Harrelson and character actor Clifton Collins Jr add some typical flamboyance to proceedings while a convincingly heroic Casey Affleck gives audiences at least one good guy to root for.

Indeed Affleck’s success at establishing himself as an honest cop and likeable young family man is key to the film maintaining tension when his life quickly comes under threat from the corruption that surrounds him. The film at least tries to offer some depth and motivation for each character in its ensemble cast but Affleck’s rookie cop is at the centre of almost everything.

The Bad

Despite an impressive cast and acclaimed director Triple 9 struggles at times to distinguish itself from the rest of the increasingly saturated genre of heist thrillers and ‘dirty’ cop action flicks. It’s particularly hard to avoid obvious comparisons to films like Training Day and The Town. This film combines many elements of both those contemporary classic, largely treading across overly familiar ground no matter how competently it struts.

The film’s mostly bleak narrative and frequent bouts of violence won’t appeal to everyone of course. Audiences seeking the uncomplicated escapism of a blockbuster action film won’t welcome the effort to inject serious melodrama into satisfying mayhem. Likewise those mistakenly anticipating the latest thoughtful Kate Winselt dramatics won’t appreciate having a shotgun frequently brandished in their face by gang members & crooked cops.

The Ugly Truth

Triple 9 is a violent crime drama elevated from countless similar films mostly by an impressively assembled all-star cast. Though far from feel good the film remains at least compelling from its opening moments till its final shot.

Review by Russell Nelson

Arrowhead Review

The Plot

An interstellar Jekyll and Hyde, Arrowhead tells a tale of survival set amongst the distant stars. Kye is a prisoner of war caught between two armies, neither of whose ideology he believes in. When offered an opportunity for freedom, Kye sets out on one last rescue mission only to become stranded when his ship crash lands. Kye soon realises that the deadliest creature on the desert moon is himself.

The Good

Shot on a micro-budget in just 22 days in a remote corner of the Australian outback Arrowhead actually delivers a sincerely impressive production quality.

The film’s plot is built around several classic science fiction elements; namely galactic civil war, mysterious Alien dangers and strange anomalies in time & space. Taking those potentially overly familiar themes Arrowhead tires to actually focus on a more personal and metaphysical journey for one character dealing with the transformative effect of isolation. For ardent science fiction fans, it’s reminiscent of cult Dennis Quaid favourite Enemy Mine or more recently Duncan Jones critically praised Moon.

Leading the human cast Dan Mor manages to keep mercenary castaway Kye interesting and likable. With large portions of the film focused on his isolated existence and metaphysical anxieties the film could easily have struggled with a less emotive pair of eyes staring back at audiences.

Arrowhead also does a surprisingly good job of creating an expansive alien landscape, by re-imagining the barren Australian wilderness as a hostile and strange desert Moon. The simple addition of a couple of giant looming planets to the naturally vast skyline is a well-executed VFX trick that instantly gives the film a much needed sense of scale.

Likewise the film delivers a very convincing robotic sidekick for marooned hero Kye, thanks to a simple combination of practical effects and brief CGI additions. Mostly embodied on screen just by a glowing red light and a flickering computer monitor,  REEF is superbly brought to life by the vocal charms of Australian comedy veteran Shaun Micallef. It’s a character clearly crafted in the classic tradition of 2001’s infamous spaceship computer HAL. REEF’s detached and pleasantly placid tone of voice is ominous and amiable by equal measure. In many ways REEF serves as an emotional center for the film, alongside being a convenient tool for providing useful explanations of key plot points.

The Bad

There are a few moments where weaker VFX shots and a sparsely populated cast might be an unwelcome reminder for audiences of the time and budget restraints the film was admittedly made under. But in the context of low budget science fiction it’s fair to say countless other films have definitely achieved much less having squandered far more time and money.

Arrowhead has flashes of true class, showcasing some inventive practical effects and paying homage to great genre classics, though ultimately the film’s plot struggles to maintain focus particular in its later stages. Mutant monsters, galactic conspiracies and time travel are a lot for audiences to contend with simultaneously. So as the film makes its way through a series of plot twists and reveals it’s not entirely clear what the big picture is really supposed to mean.

It’s hard to entirely avoid the sense that the unanswered questions the films leaves and the meager human cast are both a result of budgetary constraints rather than conscious storytelling choices.

The Ugly Truth

Arrowhead is a proud piece of inventive small scale science fiction the makes the very most of a modest budget and some big ideas. Those mistakenly expecting blockbuster action should be aware this isn’t Starship Troopers or Avatar, but genre fans will enjoy a watchable film that mixes occasional action with metaphysical musings.

Review by Russell Nelson

Arrowhead is available on DVD and VOD from 22nd February 2016

BAFTA Launch 3 Day Guru Live Festival

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) today announced a brand new three-day festival that will give aspiring creatives the opportunity to meet and learn from leading names in the film, television and games industries.

BAFTA’s Guru Live will run from Saturday 30 April to Monday 2 May at BAFTA 195 Piccadilly in London, and will feature masterclasses, panels and keynote talks by professionals including BAFTA winners and nominees. Tickets for individual sessions will cost £6, and professionals with at least six months’ experience will have the chance to purchase one of 150 all-access ‘Guru Pro’ tickets to the event, which include a day of bespoke one-to-one meetings and round tables with top industry speakers.

Guru Live is an extension of BAFTA Guru (www.bafta.org/guru), BAFTA’s online resource that shares advice and inspiration from the best creative minds working in film, television and games. Each day will focus on a different one of the three industries that BAFTA represents, and will comprise: a ‘Creative Keynote’ talk from a highly acclaimed figure; sessions covering specific craft skills and areas such as finance and distribution; case studies showcasing recent success stories; examples of cross-sector working; and networking events.

Speakers confirmed to attend include: games producer Dan Gray (Monument Valley); film producer Mark Herbert (This Is England, Submarine); games writer Meg Jayanth (80 Days); talent agent for film and television Sara Putt; and games creators Luke Whittaker and Katherine Bidwell (Lumino City).

Tim Hunter, Director of Learning and New Talent at BAFTA, said: “Guru Live brings our successful BAFTA Guru online channel to life, giving emerging talent the chance to learn first-hand from some of the leading figures in the moving image industries. Film, television and games can be among the hardest industries to break in to, so this opportunity to meet and engage with BAFTA members, nominees and winners is a brilliant way to help break down the barriers new talent may be facing. Guru Live also offers a chance for attendees to network with peers at a similar level, which is essential for career starters.

“We’ve already seen huge success with our previous industry-specific events Generation Next for television, Filmmakers Forum and Inside Games, and we’re looking forward to Guru Live streamlining the best elements of those events to create a new BAFTA flagship festival for anyone hoping to build a successful career in film, television or games.”

Applications for Guru Pro tickets, which cost £40, are open now at http://guru.bafta.org/live/pros and close on Wednesday 23 March. Bursaries will be available to support expenses. General admission tickets are priced at £6 per session and open for bookings on Monday 29 February. To book, go to:http://guru.bafta.org/live.

Guru Live has received funding from generous individuals and BAFTA partners supporting ‘Give Something Back’ – BAFTA’s campaign to support emerging talent from all backgrounds to enter the film, television and games industries.

Highlights from the event will be available on the BAFTA Guru website: www.bafta.org/guru.