Big Gay Picture Show

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema and more

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema & more

Jennifer Connelly Joins Ewan McGregor In American Pastoral

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jennifer-connelly-slideThe decades-long journey to get Philip Roth’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel American Pastoral onto the big screen finally looks like it might be coming to fruition, with Philip Noyce in place to direct and Ewan McGregor recently signing on to star.

Now he has a co-star, as Jennifer Connelly has joined the movie.

Connelly will play Dawn, the wife of McGregor’s Swede Levov. Swede is a legendary high school athlete who grows up to marry a former beauty queen and inherits his father’s business. However his seemingly perfect life is shatteeds when his daughter rebels by becoming a revolutionary and committing a savage act of political terrorism during the Vietnam War.

We’ve still got a while to wait for the movie though, as is won’t start shooting until March 2015.

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Ewan McGregor Up For American Pastoral Adaptation

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Ewan-McgregorFor over a decade now Hollywood has been working on an adaptation of Philip Roth’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel American Pastoral. Various directors have come and gone, but it’s never gotten off the ground. The latest to give it a go is Philip Noyce, who suggests to ComingSoon that the biggest issue with getting the film made has been finding the right actor for the lead role.

However now he thinks he done it, as Ewan McGregor is attached to the film.

Roth is definitely one of the great men of American letters, but despite attempts such as Portnoy’s Complaint and The Human Stain, his books have proven very tough to turn into decent films. The 1997 American Pastoral follows Seymour ‘Swede’ Levov, a legendary high school athlete who grows up to marry a former beauty queen and inherits his father’s business. Swede’s seemingly perfect life shatters when his daughter rebels by becoming a revolutionary and commits a savage act of political terrorism during the Vietnam War.

It’s a great book, although Roth’s great strength is in painting the internal lives of his characters, something that can be tough to get across on screen.

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The Giver Trailer – Meryl Streep wants control over Brenton Thwaites & Alexander Skarsgard

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Jeff Bridges must be a happy man. After trying to get an adaptation of Lois Lowry’s The Giver on the big screen for over two decades he’s finally managed it and it will be on the big screen in August (which will hopefully make him mind less that the other young adult movie he’s made, Seventh Son, has been pushed back to the graveyard of February).

The new trailer gives us a better look at Meryl Streep’s rather creepy character (not least because of her hair), as well as showing us that Brenton Thwaites will be learning secrets about his world  – and Alexander Skarsgard – that literally let him see things in colour.

The Giver centers on Jonas (Thwaites), who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community. The film is based on Lois Lowry’s beloved young adult novel of the same name, which was the winner the 1994 Newbury Medal and has sold over 10 million copies worldwide.

Jonas’ new position sees him cut off from everyone he knows and he is mentored by the former Receiver of Memories, known as The Giver (Bridges). The great cast also includes Katie Holmes and Taylor Swift.

The Giver – Brenton Thwaites
The Giver – Meryl Streep
The Giver – Jeff Bridges
The Giver – Alexander Skarsgard
The Giver – Katie Holmes
The Giver – Odeya Rush
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The Giver Trailer – Jeff Bridges guides Brenton Thwaites in a dystopian future

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Jeff Bridges has been trying to get an adaptation of The Giver off the ground for over around two decades, but it’s only now, with the popularity of other young adult movies, that it’s finally happened.

We can take our first proper look at the movie at The Weinstein Company has released the first trailer.

The Giver ‘centers on Jonas (Brenton Thwaites), who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community. The film is based on Lois Lowry’s beloved young adult novel of the same name, which was the winner the 1994 Newbury Medal and has sold over 10 million copies worldwide.

Jonas’ new position sees him cut off from everyone he knows and he is mentored by the former Receiver of Memories, known as The Giver (Bridges). The great cast also includes Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgard, Katie Holmes and Taylor Swift. It’s due out in August.

And it certainly seems to be Brenton Thwaites day, as we only just posted the trailer for his film, The Signal. [Read more…]

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First Look At Brenton Thwaites & Jeff Bridges In The Giver

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giver-pic1
Jeff Bridges’ dream is finally coming true. He’s been trying to get an adaptation of The Giver off the ground for over around two decades, but it’s only now, with the popularity of other young adult movies, that it’s finally happened. EW has released the first couple of images from the film, featuring Bridges and Brenton Thwaites, which you can see above and below.

Lois Lowry’s original book is a philosophical fantasy set in another world where all emotions, history and freedom have been expunged. Thwaites plays Jonas, a young man who, when assigned a profession, is given the important yet painful job of being the society’s Receiver of Memories. The new position sees him cut off from everyone he knows and he is mentored by the former Receiver of Memories, known as The Giver (Bridges). As Jonas and The Giver work together, the young man’s eyes are opened to the lies that the society is built upon.

The great cast also includes Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgard, Katie Holme and Taylor Swift. It’s due out in August.

giver-pic2

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Taylor Swift & Katie Holmes Up For The Giver, Alongside Jeff Bridges & Meryl Streep

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KATIE-HOLMESAfter years of trying to get it off the grounds, Jeff Bridges is finally moving an adaptation of The Giver towards the screen. The likes of Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgard, Cameron Monaghan, Odeya Rush and Brenton Thwaites have already signed up to star alongside Bridges, and now Katie Holmes and Taylor Swift may join them.

Phillip Noyce is set to direct the sci-fi drama, which is based on a novel by author Lois Lowry. The story is set in the future where the entire range of human emotion has been forgotten. In the society, the Receiver of Memorieshas been given the right to remember the past in case it is deemed necessary to make use of it. A young boy named Jonas (Brenton Thwaites) has been given the right to become the next Receiver of Memories and his life is thrown into question when he begins his training with an elderly Receiver.

Meryl Streep will be playing the Chief Elder in the movie, an antagonist and authoritarian charged with keeping order in [the] society. Jeff Bridges meanwhile will be the title character, who delivers the memories that uproot a rebellion in the young man. Monaghan will portray Asher, Jonas’ best friend.

Katir Holmes will be Jonas’ mother, with Skarsgard as his father. Swift has signed on for the part of Rosemary, who has previous been mentored by Bridges character.

Shooting start next month in South Africa, with an August 15th, 2014 release already set.

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Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgard & Cameron Monaghan Join Jeff Bridges in The Giver

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Meryl-StreepJust yesterday it was revealed Meryl Streep had signed up to reunite with Robert De Niro for The Good House. Now Deadline and The Wrap report that she’s also circling The Giver, which perhaps surprisingly will mark the first time she’s star alongside Jeff Bridges. Alexander Skarsgard & Cameron Monaghan are also up for the movie.

Phillip Noyce is set to direct the sci-fi drama, which is based on a novel by author Lois Lowry. The story is set in the future where the entire range of human emotion has been forgotten. In the society, The Giver has been given the right to remember the past in case it is deemed necessary to make use of it. A young boy named Jonas (Brenton Thwaites) has been given the right to become the next Giver and his life is thrown into question when he begins his training with an elderly Giver.

Meryl Streep will be playing the Chief Elder in the movie, an antagonist and “authoritarian charged with keeping order in [the] society.” Jeff Bridges meanwhile will be the title character, who delivers the memories that uproot a rebellion in the young man. Skarsgard is set to play Jonas’ father, while Monaghan will portray Asher, Jonas’ best friend.

The Weinstein Company and Walden Media are backing the movie, although it isn’t clear when it will shoot.

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Brenton Thwaites To Star Opposite Jeff Bridges In The Giver

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brenton-thwaitesYoung Aussie actor Brenton Thwaites should see his star rise next year when he plays the Prince in Maleficent, and now he’s hoping to capitalise of that by signing up to star opposite Jeff Bridges in The Giver, which Philip Noyce is directing, based on Lois Lowry’s dystopian young adult novel.

Thwaites beat out the likes of Kings of Summer’s Nick Robinson, Mud’s Tye Sheridan and Prisoners’ Dylan Minnette for the role.

The book is a philosophical fantasy set in another world where all emotions, history and freedom have been expunged. Thwaites will play Jonas, a young man who, when assigned a profession, is given the important yet painful job of being the society’s Receiver of Memories. The new position sees him cut off from everyone he knows and he is mentored by the former Receiver of Memories, known as The Giver (Bridges). As Jonas and The Giver work together, the young man’s eyes are opened to the lies that the society is built upon.

Bridges is producing as well as starring, having been trying to put a movie version together for around two decades. It’s only now, with the success of other young adult projects, that it’s finally coming together, with the hope they’ll be able to start shooting this Autumn in South Africa. (Source: TheWrap)

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Sam Worthington Is For The Dogs In A New Assassin Thriller

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Sam WorthingtonSam Worthington has several projects he’s attached to while he waits for Jame Cameron to be ready to shoot Avatar 2 & 3, and now Variety says he’s added another one, the indie thriller For The Dogs.

Phillip Noyce (Salt) is set to direct from a screenplay by Oren Moverman (working from Paul Leyden’s earlier draft), based on Kevin Wignall’s novel. It’s about a lone assassin who agrees to help a bright college girl exact revenge on those who mercilessly murdered her parents and younger brother.

The producers plan to look for distributors and funding at the Berlin Film Festival before kicking of shooting later this year.

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Phillip Noyce In Talks To Take On The Giver, With Jeff Bridges Still Set To Star

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Jeff Bridges has had a long relationship with the young adult novel The Giver. In the late 90s, he started trying to adapt Lois Lowry’s book for the big screen, but despite several years of effort, he had to admit defeat in 2007 when the rights were sold to Warner. However last year they became free again and so Bridges and producing partner Nikki Silver stepped in once more, and set Vadim Perelmen to handle the script.

Now the project is moving forward once more, with Phillip Noyce (Salt) is talks to helm the film. Variety says the negotiations “as there are a lot of moving parts to this,” most of which surround his other commitments, as he’s also attached to My Wild Life, the thriller The Arrangement, and the sci-fi romance Timeless.

The Giver is set in a utopian society where all memory of human history have been erased. A young boy is assigned to be The Giver of his community, a task which requires him to bear all of his community’s past experiences and emotions, in case a time comes when they will be of use. The 12-year-old boy is taken under the wing of the town’s current, elderly Giver, but he begins to question this new lifestyle.

Showing just how time can change a project, Bridges has previously said, “I originally thought of the role of The Giver as a vehicle for my father, the late Lloyd Bridges, however… I feel the time is right for me to do it.” There’s no news on when it might shoot.

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