Riz Ahmed Page 3

Riz Ahmed Pens Essay On Racial Profiling In Hollywood

By Ed Biggs in Movies / TV / Theatre on 16 September 2016

The 'Rogue One' and 'Nightcrawler' star, 33, also details how stereotyping extends into the real world.

‘The Night Of’ and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story actor Riz Ahmed has penned a heartfelt essay about breaking down racial stereotypes in Hollywood and the wider world, published by The Guardian this week.

The 33 year old British actor, who comes from a Pakistani family, has revealed he feels both “typecast” as a terrorist every time he passes through airport security when travelling, and also that this impression extends the range of roles he’s offered as a professional film star.

At the start of his career, he was frequently given narrow roles based around what he calls “the minicab driver / terrorist / cornershop owner” stereotype, he wrote in the article published on Thursday (September 15th).

Continue reading: Riz Ahmed Pens Essay On Racial Profiling In Hollywood

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Trailer

The Galaxy is on the brink of a major war being won by dangerous rulers and only a few fighters stand between the Emperor and his unrelenting army which is constantly surging peaceful plants. The destruction and invasion of any planet who won't agree to the Empire's stringent regulations is all but destroyed.

Jyn Erso is one such rebel fighter who is willing to go to any lengths to fulfil her mission, often landing her in trouble with her seniors but her independent demeanour means that she might be a perfect candidate for an imperative mission - the failure of which could mean the end of the galaxy as its citizens know.

Jyn and a small team of fellow rebels must steal plans for the Emperor's newest and deadliest weapon, The Death Star.

Continue: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Trailer

Jason Bourne Review

Very Good

It's been nine years since Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass collaborated on The Bourne Ultimatum, and now they're back. The plot feels like it was agreed by a committee, as thin as the non-title of this film. Honestly, this franchise offers endless options for titles, and they just decided not to bother this time. So even though the story has a whisper of soap-opera silliness about it (yet another blurred memory comes to light), the film is relentlessly entertaining, building momentum as it surges from dark drama to intense action.

Since finally figuring out who he is, Jason (Damon) has been earning a living as a bare-knuckle boxer on the Greek-Albania border. Then his former cohort Nicky (Julia Stiles) uncovers a new piece in his life puzzle, which allows the CIA's Director Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones) to track them down. As he sends in a ruthless assassin (Vincent Cassel) to get rid of them once and for all, plucky CIA analyst Heather (Alicia Vikander) takes a different approach, determined to bring Jason back into the firm. But he's not coming in without a fight, and as the stakes rise, the chase shifts from Athens to Berlin, London and finally Las Vegas.

As all of this is happening, Dewey is also trying to strong-arm the billionaire founder (Riz Ahmed) of a hot social media platform to allow the CIA to have access to its customers. And he's heading to Vegas as well. This sideplot integrates cleverly with the main narrative, although its message about government overreach is a bit heavy-handed ("Privacy is freedom!"). Still, it adds some kick to the whizzy computer gadgetry that fills this franchise, from tracking devices and tiny earpieces to miraculous hacks.

Continue reading: Jason Bourne Review

Jason Bourne Trailer

Jason Bourne comes as the fifth instalment in the revival of Bourne to our screens where the film sees the return of Matt Damon as the protagonist and its returning director Paul Greengrass. Bourne is a former secret agent who has previously failed to understand his own identity and battles with a constant process of finding out new information about himself. In this sequel Bourne is once again at war with the people that have turned him into the man he is and struggles to cope with the sheer amount of pressure he is put under from the state.

Continue: Jason Bourne Trailer

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Trailer

We all know the story of Luke Skywalker and the legendary Jedi and rebels who fought to keep the universe safe but what about the other Rebel Alliance fighters who were doing their all to protect their freedom? Jyn Erso has never been one to stick to the rules; she's been alone since her teens and doesn't require the protection of others to make her own way. A member of the rebellion who likes to rebel from all authority on both sides of the war.

She has unlimited gumption and a fierce attitude which attracts her to the leaders of her rebel unit. Jyn is ordered to locate and bring back important data on a new deadly weapon that the Galactic Empire is building and beginning to test. The Dark Star is the Empire's new planet destroyer and its secrets are closely guarded by Darth Vader and his legions of fighters all willing to lose their lives in a bid to keep the Empire the ruling force.

Jyn and her small team of fighters set out on a mission that they know they're likely not to return from. The rewards outweigh the risks and Jyn must retrieve the plans before it's too late.

Jason Bourne - Teaser Trailer

Jason Bourne is used to living in the shadows. Since uncovering the wrongdoings of operation Blackbriar and Treadstone, Bourne has been in hiding, to the outside world Jason Bourne does not exist. Once again finding himself having to surface, Jason Bourne is a hunted man.

Memories of his past are slowly returning to Bourne but what as his limited allies are quick to remind him, there's a war going on and what Jason might not remember are the things that might be most important.

Matt Damon returns as Jason Bourne in the fourth film in the series - fifth if including the spin-off The Bourne Legacy. Jason Bourne is directed by Paul Greengrass.

Nightcrawler - Featurette

Jake Gyllenhaal discusses the great lengths he went through to prepare for his role in the film 'Nightcrawler'. In the movie, Gyllenhaal portrays an insomniac new reporter, who creeps around recording crimes and the aftermaths thereof, selling the footage to local news networks for a living. The actor discusses how different the character was from anything he had ever done before, as well as revealing how he spent two months losing weight and staying up at night and sleeping during the day. In this featurette, actress Rene Russo and 'Four Lions' star Riz Ahmed discuss how much they admire Gyllenhaal for, not just his performance, but the lengths he went through to achieve said performance.

Continue: Nightcrawler - Featurette

Robert De Niro Steps In To Replace James Gandolfini On HBO's 'Criminal Justice'

By Joe Wilde in Movies / TV / Theatre on 26 September 2013

Robert De Niro James Gandolfini Riz Ahmed Steven Zaillian

Following the passing of 'The Sopranos' star, screen great Robert De Niro will step in to portray the lead character on the HBO series

Robert De Niro has been appointed as the lead actor in the upcoming HBO mini-series Criminal Justice, a seven-episode stretch that the late James Gandolfini was initially slated to star in. The passing of Gandolfini had left the project in limbo, however with the appointment of De Niro the show will continue to air as planned.

Robert De Niro James Gandolfini
De Niro will now star in the crime drama in place of Gandolfini

HBO confrimed De Niro's appointment to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, 25 September, adding that Gandolfini will be given a posthumous executive producer credit on the show. The mini-series is an American adaption of the hit 2008 BBC series of the same name, which was the brainchild Peter Moffat and starred Ben Whishaw and the late Pete Postlethwaite. The HBO version, which is being made in association association with BBC Worldwide Production, of the show will be initially directed by Steven Zaillian, with others stepping in as the series progresses. Moffat will serve as an executive producer on the HBO series.

Continue reading: Robert De Niro Steps In To Replace James Gandolfini On HBO's 'Criminal Justice'

Closed Circuit Trailer

Martin and Claudia are two lawyers who were formerly in a relationship. They are roped into a case together on the defense team of an alleged terrorist, following a tragic bombing in a London market one morning in November. It may be a difficult job to being with, but things don't get any easier when they covertly discover that their client was actually assigned as an undercover spy for MI5 and was supposed to lead them to the bombers before the attack. They soon begin to realise that their every move is being closely watched, and with threats on their life by some powerful people following their investigations and risky suggestions in court, they must escape the controlling force that is the government before they are eradicated - though it could be too late.

Continue: Closed Circuit Trailer

The Reluctant Fundamentalist Review

By Rich Cline

Good

A terrific story is compromised by the demands of commercial filmmaking, adding action-thriller scenes to what should be an introspective drama while distractingly beefing up side-roles for American stars. But at the centre is another superb performance from Riz Ahmed (Four Lions), who again takes a complex, challenging approach to the subject of terrorism.

The narrative is fragmented into flashbacks as Changez (Ahmed) tells his story to an American journalist (Schreiber) in Pakistan while a tense hostage situation swirls all around them. Years earlier, Changez was a high-flying Pakistani student, graduating from Princeton and landing a prestigious job on Wall Street when an executive (Sutherland) recognises his talent. He also has a sexy artist girlfriend (Hudson). But all of this is shaken after the 9/11 attacks, when he is harassed by police and immigration officials. Fundamentally changed, he returns to Lahore to become a lecturer in violent uprisings. But this makes the CIA think that he's become a terrorist himself. Perhaps he has.

The various strands of the story are intriguing, and the actors are all watchable as they add layers to Changez's overall story. But the jumbled structure of the film reduces the narrative to a series of seemingly unrelated scenes. Hudson and Sutherland are solid but add little beyond their characters' stereotypical American reactions to Changez's decisions. The always superb Schreiber is better used as a more shady figure. But other characters vanish just when they get interesting, such as Changez's parents, played by acting legends Puri and Azmi.

Continue reading: The Reluctant Fundamentalist Review

Video - Kate Hudson, Matthew Bellamy And Riz Ahmed Arrive At 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' Premiere At Tribeca

Stars of 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' including Kate Hudson with her Muse frontman boyfriend Matthew Bellamy, Riz Ahmed and Kiefer Sutherland arrive at the film's premiere at New York's 2013 Tribeca Film Festival. Director Mira Nair and producer Lydia Dean Pilcher are also snapped on the red carpet as well as Mohammed Al Turki who is the executive producer of 'Adult World' which was also screened at the festival.

Continue: Video - Kate Hudson, Matthew Bellamy And Riz Ahmed Arrive At 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' Premiere At Tribeca