Paul Dano Page 2

Nic Pizzolatto put the sincerity and quality of True Detective’s story over multiple seasons of the show, asserting that a strict 8-episode format would be condusive to a strong third act. And judging by the critical claim he’s received – his creation is being talked about in the same breath as The Wire – one is inclined to trust the man who risked everything to write the new HBO anthology series.

Woody Harrelson [L] and Matthew McConuaghey [R] as Hart and Cohle in 'True Detective'

“One of the reasons I wanted to do an anthology format is I like stories with endings. I like a good third act. And continuing serial dramas, they tend to have really good beginnings and really long middles and then sort of have to hustle to develop an ending. And I like the idea of telling a self-contained story,” explained Pizzolatto.

Continue reading: True Detective Season 2: Which Pairing Can Pick Up From Cohle And Hart?

If '12 Years a Slave' doesn’t win a single award from now until the Oscars, it will still go down in history as one of the 21st century’s most important, affecting films. The story of Solomon Northrup’s enslavement and the subsequent hell he faced is as brutal as any ever told, and to truly extract even a modicum of sincerity, the entire cast had to be both honest and befittingly talented.

Chiwetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender in 12 Years a Slave

But when you’re speaking of a cast that comprises Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Brad Pitt, Pual Giamatti, Quvenzhané Wallis and Michael K. Williams, honesty and talent is never in question.

Continue reading: Meet The Cast Of 12 Years A Slave [Video]

Steve McQueen was the subject of some pretty ugly heckling at last night; New York Film Critics Circle Awards where a critic shouted insults at the director. As a critic, whether you like someone's work or not should be confined to your review but one man decided to step out of line and make things personal.

Steve McQueen Was The Victim Of Some Petty Heckling At An Awards Show Last Night.

However, Armond White, a New York critic, hated McQueen's latest movie, 12 Years A Slave, so much that he couldn't resist spewing a little hatred as the director took to the stage to collect his 'Best Director' award. "You're an embarrassing doorman and garbage man. F*** you. Kiss my ass," yelled White, according to Variety.

Continue reading: Steve McQueen Harassed By Rude Critic At New York Film Critics Circle Awards [Trailer]

It’s been a pretty special year for cinema: we had Henry Cavill donning the big S and playing Superman in Man of Steel; Steve Carrell and his Minions sending everyone into raptures, and low budget horror, Insidious: Chapter 2 thrilling its way to the top of the box office. And with all these titles either just released, or coming out at some point in December, here’s your definitive Christmas DVD list, so you can be sure not to miss out on a single stocking filler. All release dates are American.

Kick Ass 2 - Released on December 17th

These super heroes might not have super powers, but they certainly kick ass

Continue reading: Christmas DVD Releases: From Superman To Minions - See What's Out, When

12 Years A Slave is the film version of Solomon Northup's account of his kidnap and subsequent sale into slavery until his rescue twelve years later. The real-life account of the tragic fate of Northup and the appalling conditions he and millions of other slaves were forced to endure has been turned into a feature-length epic by British director Steve McQueen, who leads a largely British cast in the film that is being heralded by critics as a must-see film.

Chiwetel Ejiofor is spellbounding in 12 Years A Slave

Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon, McQueen adapted the memoirs of the main character along with John Ridley to chronicle Solomon's harrowing twelve years, where he went from being a freeman living in New York, to a plantation slave in New Orleans between 1841 and 1853. Ejiofor has been roundly praised for his exceptonal acting talents, as have the rest of the cast, who include Brad Pitt, Paul Giamatti, Paul Dano, Benedict Cumberbatch, Alfre Woodard and Michael Fassbender, whose role as the heartless slave trader Edwin Epps has also been widely applauded for his unflinching brutality and realism.

Continue reading: '12 Years A Slave' Is A Harrowing Trip Back To A Darker Period In History: Review Round-Up

Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal star in Oscar-nominated director Denis Villeneuve's Prisoners, a film that might just be one of the best thrillers, if not one of the all-round best films, of the year. The film hits cinemas up and down the US this weekend (arriving in UK cinemas on 4 October) and whilst it may be lacking in the audience pull power of the latest superhero epic, it has all the substance a gritty thriller needs and promises to be one of the year's most thought-provoking watches.

Jackman (L) and Gyllenhaal (R) are being praised for their performances

Jackman stars as Keller Dover, who is put into a position no parent ever want to be in when his six-year-old daughter and her friend go missing at Thanksgiving. When Detective Loki (Gyllenhaal) is called in to handle the case, he promises to bring back Keller's daughter, and when the creepy, RV-dwelling outsider Alex Jones (Paul Dano) is found near the scene, he immediately becomes the prime suspect. But with police unable to pin him for the crime he may have committed, he is released following a 48-hour hold, enraging Keller, who decided to take matters into his own hand. It is up to Loki to get to the bottom of the case before it's too late for the missing girls, and before Keller does something he might regret.

Continue reading: Why The Hugh Jackman & Jake Gyllenhaal's 'Prisoners' Is This Year's Must See Thriller

Prisoners is by no means your average crime thriller, and maybe that's why critics are swooning over the latest project form Oscar-nominated director Denis Villeneuve (Incendies); a kidnapping-based movie that promises to leave viewers questioning their own morals as to how far they'd go to protect their child. Starring Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal and the massively under-rated Paul Dano, the film has being widely praise since it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this month, with critics tipping their hats to the actors, director and everyone else involved for making one of the most memorable thrillers in years.

Jackman and Gyllenhaal star alongside each other in "an actor's duel"

The film is set in a rural American town and poses the question, 'how far would you go to protect your child?' When the unthinkable happens to Keller Dover (Jackman) when his 6-year-old daughter and her friend go missing, seemingly leaving no trail and no certain answers as to where they could be. There is one possibility as to where they could be though, and that's the dilapidated RV of neighbourhood creepy guy Alex Jones (Dano), which was seen only moments later in the same vicinity as where the two girls went missing. It's a test against time as Detective Loki (Gyllenhaal) must get to the bottom of the crime before Dover gets to Jones and makes him pay for what he may have done.

Continue reading: Critics Agree That 'Prisoners' Is A Stroke Of Excellence: Review Round-Up

Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave has secured a place as ‘Oscars favorite’ following its triumph at this year’s Toronto Film Festival. The Steve McQueen-directed epic – based on the memoir of Solomon Northrup – remains the odds on choice for Best Picture at 13/4.

Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave.

By winning the BlackBerry People's Choice award, 12 Years a Slave follows in the footsteps of previous Oscar winners, The Kings Speech and Slumdog Millionaire. What was once a the faint hum of Oscars buzz is now a powerful thud as McQueen’s latest effort leaves Mandela and Osage County in its wake.

Continue reading: '12 Years A Slave' And Every Inch An Oscar Contender Following Toronto Win

Solomon Northup was a regular New York resident who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. He was rescued 12 years later. 172 years on, and Chiwetel Ejiofor is an early Oscar contender for his turn as Northup in Steve McQueen’s 12 Days a Slave, which has a new trailer.

Chiwetel Ejiofor looks excellent as Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave

British actor Ejiofor is joined by an impressive cast, featuring Michael Fassbender, Paul Giamatti, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Michael K. Williams, Quvenzhane Wallis, Alfre Woodard, Scoot McNairy, Taran Killam and Brad Pitt, while John Ridley adapted the script from Northup’s biography.

Continue reading: Solomon Northup's Story Comes To Life In '12 Years A Slave' [Trailer + Pictures]

Films - or should we say writers and directors - that dare to tackle the issue of slavery come rarely, and when they due, they face an increased level of scrutiny due to the sensitive subject matter. They are necessary though; teaching the world of the horrors it has faced will ensure they never happen again, or so they say.

Chiwetel Ejiofor could be in for the biggest role of his life

Django Unchained came and went, as Quentin Tarantino’s ability to satirize and trivialize some of history’s most controversial times slowly turns into a trilogy of movies. Mixed reviews and a cavalier use of the ‘N’ word meant people saw it as less of a history lesson and more of a taboo comedy, which is exactly what it was.

Continue reading: 12 Years A Slave: The Slavery Movie We've All Been Waiting For

The trailer for Steve McQueen's hugely anticipated historical drama 12 Years A Slave, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as a free man tricked into slavery in the 1840s, has rolled out online.

Also featuring Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender and Paul Giamatti, the movie appears to be a far more hard-hitting than many were expecting with some writers suggesting it tells the real story of the pre-civil war period in the United States of America, as opposed to, say, Quentin Taratino's Django Unchained.

Ejiofor plays a free black New Yorker who is sold into slavery after being lured to Washington DC with the promise of a well-paid job playing fiddle in a circus.

Continue reading: Is '12 Years A Slave' The Movie Django Should Have Been? [Trailer]