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AUSTRALIA

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, David Wenham, Bryan Brown, Jack Thompson, David Gulpilil, and Brandon Walters

Written and Directed by: Baz Luhrmann

Rated PG-13

By John Delia

At last, a true front-runner for the best motion picture Oscar for 2008, Australia. Filled with an emotional storyline, magnificent acting and cinematic grandeur the nearly three-hour film is marvelous yet untiring. If you like impressive period films that entertain, then Australia is your cup of tea.
Lady Sarah Ashley (Kidman) a British aristocrat goes to Australia to meet with her husband who has been working their ranch Faraway Downs. Arriving in 1939 with the South Pacific in turmoil over a possible world at war, she sets out to the backcountry with Drover (Jackman) hired by her husband to take her to the ranch. She arrives at Faraway Downs after a long a dusty trip and finds that her husband has been murdered. Torn by the news, and offered a shady deal for her land, Lady Ashley’s strength starts to dwindle. In one last effort to save her property, Lady Ashley, together, with Drover, a rag tag group of volunteers and a young half-cast boy Nullah (Walters) try to move 2000 cattle over undeveloped territory to the port city of Darwin. After a hazardous journey during which they face many hardships Lady Ashley arrives at her destination only to face even greater peril.
Although the love story was not as emotional as I would have liked, Kidman and Jackman have a great chemistry together in their portrayal of the tormented couple that choose to fight off their adversaries in an attempt to bring order to their lives. Getting into some very testy situations, the two prove their acting skills with excellent character development much like Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn in African Queen.
I loved the touch by Director Luhrmann of working with an all-Australian starring cast that is brilliant in their roles. The casting of Walters in the pivotal role of Nullah is also brilliant. The boy has the emotion and charisma needed to make the center of this tale plausible and sensational. His presence in the film shows the segregation of the half white, half black children that were taken out of society much like the ones depicted in Rabbit Proof Fence.
Direction by Luhrmann of the epic period piece is award winning. Dealing with hundreds of cast members and numerous scenes that require that extra effort, Luhrmann turns in a masterpiece that will last for years to come. Luhrmann who gave us Moulin Rouge!, Romeo + Juliet and Strictly Ballroom provides a film nearly equal to David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, A Passage to India and The Bridge on the River Kwai.
Cinematographer Mandy Walker creates an amazing backdrop for the saga that runs nearly three hours long. Focused on the bleak wilderness, unforgiving terrain and explosive attacks, yet intertwining a touch of beauty with softened highlights, the dramatic photography provides a poignant landscape for the dramatic storyline. Costumes by Catherine Martin are perfect for the period. I especially liked Kidman’s attire throughout the film.
The film has been rated PG-13 and contains violence, language, and a scene of sensuality so please be cautioned when deciding to bring youngsters to see the film.

FINAL ANALYSIS: Australia imparts a dramatic and visual satisfying film with magnificent acting and directing. (5 of 5 stars)

TRANSPORTER 3

Starring: Jason Statham, Natalya Rudakova, Francois Berleand, Jeroen Krabbe and Robert Knepper

Directed by: Olivier Megaton

Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action and violence, some sexual content and drug material

By John Delia

The Transporter series has been good up till now, but killing this sequel is the acting of Statham’s costar Rudakova and some major silliness. Much like the previous flicks, there are plenty of explosive scenes to keep your attention. If you like films that provide an adrenaline rush with stylized fights and absurd car chases, then Transporter 3 should kick you into high gear.
Frank Martin (Statham) has been pressured into transporting Valentina (Rudakova), the kidnapped daughter of Leonid Vasilev (Krabbe), the head of the Environmental Protection Agency for the Ukraine, from Marseilles through Stuttgart and Budapest until he ends up in Odessa on the Black Sea. Along the way, with the help of Inspector Tarconi (Berleand), Frank has to contend with the people who strong armed him to take the job, agents sent by Vasilev to intercept him, and the general non-cooperation of his passenger. Despite Valentina’s cynical disposition and his resistance to get involved, Frank and Valentina fall for each other, while escaping from one life-threatening situation after another.
The more they make films like Transporter 3, Crank, Hitman, Shoot Em Up, and Fast and Furious, the bar gets raised even higher to out do one another. Tranporter 3 however, misses the high jump by a mile. There are several scenes that make the film absurd including a fight between Statham and several bad guys where he uses almost every piece of clothing on his body as a weapon (I guess cloth is a weapon), bracelets that do not allow Frank and Valentina to go 75 feet form the car in which they are riding (except when you are riding a bicycle) and tilting his car so it can slide between two sixteen wheelers (there must have been a secret mechanism to get it to tilt).
Direction by Megaton was not his best effort. Either he was strapped with Rudakova or there must have been a breakdown between the two as her performance was slovenly at best. The scenes were she doesn’t talk are her most bearable, while those where she recites her lines are emotionless. Her wardrobe looked like it came courtesy of K-Mart and her make-up person should have covered up the thousands of freckles that distract from her beauty.
On the upside, Statham keeps his kick-butt attitude going in this installment and makes the weak script at least tolerable. The car landing on the train scene was really wacky and the wild bike chase radical.
The film contains some sequences of intense action and violence, some sexual content and drug material so immature children are not recommended as tagalongs.

FINAL ANALYSIS: Transporter 3 looses its energy with absurd scenes and mundane acting. (2 of 5 stars)

FOUR CHRISTMASES
Starring: Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen, Jon Voight, Sissy Spacek
Directed by: Seth Gordon
Rated PG-13 for some sexual humor and language
By John Delia
Vince Vaughn does his best to save Four Christmases from doom, but the nervous little comedy is too over the top to come out a winner. Trouble in the film includes overacting, a too predictable plot and a lot of overused comical banter. The film may have been a lot better had they used lesser known actors. If you like Vaughn so much that you have to have more of his glib humor, then Four Christmases will be your mistletoe of delight.
Brad (Vaughn) and Kate (Witherspoon) are an unmarried couple that has been avoiding spending the holiday with their dysfunctional divorced parents and going on a vacation instead every year. This year has not been any different, except when they get to the airport, they find out that there flight to Figi has been cancelled for at least a day. To top it off, a news crew spots the disappointed couple and they become the number one TV news item. With their plans revealed they decide to visit each of the four families in reckoning for their ill-fated plan. When they do, however, a lot more gets revealed about their lives then they want told.
The film has many problems, some of which could have been avoided with more directorial control. In addition, Four Christmases is void of imagination and so predictable that it becomes more of a stand up for Vaughn than a platform to show his genius. Some of the blame for the not so original script has to be placed on rookie feature film director Gordon who seems to let his high profile cast get away from him and take over the production.
Vaughn plays himself, the glib comic that doesn’t see his own faults except when they are pointed out to him. He seems to go off on tangents at times and Gordon allows Vaughn to dominate. Miscast Witherspoon seems to be trying to just keep up with Vaughn as he overshadows her overly abiding character. The topper comes with Favreau putting wrestling holds on his brother (Vaughn’s character) time an again until it isn’t funny anymore.
The film is not devoid of humor however, and contains some very funny scenes, including one with Witherspoon getting cornered by kids in a bounce house following a pregnancy test and another when she handles a puking child. Vaughn’s funniest involves him attending a church and volunteering to be Joseph in a Nativity play.
The film contains some sexual humor and language so be cautioned when deciding to bring youngsters.
FINAL ANALYSIS: Four Christmases gets a little too predictable with not enough original comical situations. (2.5 of 5 stars)

SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK

Starring: Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Samantha Morton, Catherine Keener, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michelle Williams, Tilda Swinton, Hope Davis, Emily Watson, Dianne Wiest, Robin Weigert and Tom Noonan

Directed by: Charlie Kaufman

R for language and some sexual content/nudity

By John Delia

This may not come as a surprise to you who have seen Synecdoche, New York, but the film is amazingly acted, superbly filmed, and totally off the wall. Mainstream filmgoers will be hard pressed to sit through the convoluted plot that only a true indie lover or film student could avail.
Theater director Caden Cotard (Hoffman) is mounting a new play. His life catering to suburban blue-hairs at the local regional theater in Schenectady, New York is looking bleak. His wife Adele (Keener) has left him to pursue her painting in Berlin, taking their young daughter Olive (Sadie Goldstein) with her. His therapist, Madeleine Gravis (Davis), is better at plugging her best seller than she is at counseling him. A new relationship with the alluringly candid Hazel (Morton) has prematurely run aground. And a mysterious condition is systematically shutting down each of his autonomic functions, one by one.
Worried about the transience of his life, he leaves his home behind. He gathers an ensemble cast into a warehouse in New York City, hoping to create a work of brutal honesty. He directs them in a celebration of the mundane, instructing each to live out their constructed lives in a growing mockup of the city outside. However, as the city inside the warehouse grows, Caden's own life veers wildly off the tracks. Somewhere in Berlin, his daughter is growing up under the questionable guidance of Adele's friend, Maria (Leigh). His lingering attachments to both Adele and Hazel are causing him to helplessly drive his new marriage to actress Claire (Williams) into the ground. Sammy (Noonan) and Tammy (Watson), the actors hired to play Caden and Hazel, are making it difficult for the real Caden to revive his relationship with the real Hazel. The textured tangle of real and theatrical relationships blurs the line between the worlds of the play and that of Caden's own deteriorating reality.
The years rapidly fold into each other, and Caden buries himself deeper into his masterpiece. As he pushes the limits of his relationships, both personally and professionally, a change in creative direction arrives in Millicent Weems (Wiest), a celebrated theater actress who may offer Caden the break he needs.
The reason I have given you the full synopsis of the film is that if you go to see it, you will be able to follow the reasoning behind the whole thing. The somewhat complicated film did not amuse me, as it tended to be very wordy and unashamedly boring. After some time I found myself saying, ‘so what’s the point? ’.
The acting however, is superb and if that’s what you are looking for, then this is your cup of tea. Hoffman gives his best performance as the delusional director who just can’t get a grip on his mind numbing life. The actor shows how great he is even though the role in the long-winded script was probably not the best choice of his great career. Others giving their best support include Davis, who came out of hiding to give a great performance as Hoffman’s therapist in the film, Leigh as his wife’s sarcastic best friend and Morton who portrays the love interest he cannot seem to hold onto.
The film contains language and some sexual content with nudity, so even though the children you have to lug along will probably fall asleep within the first half hour, please be forewarned.

FINAL ANALYSIS: Film buffs and students may find the film interesting and enjoyable, but don’t count on it too much. (1.5 of 5 stars)

BATTLE IN SEATTLE

Starring: Charliz Theron, Jennifer Carpenter, Martin Henderson, Woody Harrelson, Ray Liotta, Michelle Rodriguez, Channing Tatum, Joshua Jackson and Andre Benjamin

Directed By: Stuart Townsend

Rated R for language and some violence

By John Delia

Interesting, captivating and realistic, Battle in Seattle delivers a powerful message and some lessons to be learned. Directed with precision by Townsend, the docudrama reflects the reality of the true incident and comes off the screen delivering strong emotional content. Comprised of excellent cast performances enhancing the thrust of the film, the Battle in Seattle comes up a big winner.
In November of 1999 five days rocked the world as tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Seattle in protest of the World Trade Organizations Ministerial Meeting. Among them are Django (Benjamin), Sam (Carpenter), Lou (Rodriguez) and Jay (Henderson). Each has a unique story, but they're united in a common desire to be heard and to make a difference in the world. For these four protesters, this is very personal and the stakes are higher than mere politics.
A peaceful demonstration to stop the WTO talks quickly escalates into a full-scale riot, and soon the Mayor of Seattle declares a State of Emergency. The streets are mayhem, and the WTO is paralyzed. Caught in the crossfire of civil liberties and keeping peace are Seattle residents, including its beleaguered mayor (Liotta), a riot cop on the streets (Harrelson) and his pregnant wife (Theron). The choices everyone involved make, will change their lives forever.
Mixed with real film footage of the actual riot, writer/director Townsend gave me the feeling that it was all in real time. Without the fine actors telling the stories of their characters that show different points of view on the protest however, the message that the film provides would not have been as powerful. Giving an outstanding portrayal as Seattle’s mayor Tim Tobin, Liotta steals the show. Under pressure from the state and national governments, Liotta shows two sides to his historic decision-making. Sympathetic with the protesters yet caught between big government and the World Trade Organization, the mayor found himself at odds with his decision-making.
In support, Theron gives a gut wrenching performance as a pregnant woman who gets accosted by the police, while Rodriguez makes a believable anti-WTO protester caught up in the heat of the full-scale riot. Add to this the aggressive cinematography that makes the film frightful and unsettling, and Battle in Seattle comes up a winner.
The film is rated R for frequent use of harsh language and riot violence.

FINAL ANALYSIS: If you like realistic docudramas with a message of protest, Battle in Seattle makes a huge statement. (3.5 of 5 stars)

QUANTUM OF SOLACE

Starring: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylanko, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Jesper Christensen and Mathieu Amalric

Directed By: Marc Forster

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some sexual content

By John Delia

This has to be the most action packed Bond ever as it had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish with bombs, bullets and blades. Proving me wrong in Quantum of Solace, as I was unhappy with his performance in Casino Royale, Daniel Craig has become the new improved Bond.
The film opens right where Casino Royale ended showing the completion of Bond’s (Craig) assignment with the delivery of Mr. White (Christensen) to M (Dench) for interrogation. In an instant we find that there has been betrayal within the ranks and a mysterious organization Quantum has become a major player in the game of world domination. Bond jumps right in on a quest to find the man who heads up the ruthless organization. Along the way he runs into Camile (Kurylenko) who has a vendetta for Dominic Greene, a businessman working on a deal in South America. When Bond finds out that the two are the key to major takeover, he waists no time getting to the bottom of it.
Craig plays Bond much edgier than the pervious actors. With Craig you get a lot less debonair and more relentless vengeance. Even most of the stunts are attempted by Craig allowing the camera work to flow with the character adding more potency to the role. The look of Craig is more ruddy than previous Bonds. He has sterling eyes and very few smiles, while Roger Moore for example was always grinning after he took out his foe. In most scenes Moore came up without a scratch, while Craig most always shows signs of being in a fight, most of which were probably real.
I like the new Bond although it took a second film to prove his worth. But, the producers have let me down a bit. The central theme music in both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace leaves a lot to be desired. Where all the previous 007 moves have the rhythmic Bond theme running through it giving the audience the feeling that the agent is about to be engaged in some action, the new Bond thrillers are not so enlivened. Only at the end of the film do we get the Bond theme, where it is too late to really enjoy. Producer Barbara Broccoli, PLEASE bring back my running James Bond theme for the next one, so I can feel the power.
The film has some intense sequences of violence and action, and some sexual content, so be forewarned.

FINAL ANALYSIS: Quantum of Solace is an action packed thriller with an edgier Bond. (4 of 5 stars)

Interview with Olga Kurylenko, Actress Quantum of Solace

By John Delia

Ever chat with a beautiful woman and get tongue-tied? Well, I almost did when I interviewed the newest James Bond Girl in Miami. Her role is that of a tough cookie in Quantum of Solace, however the conversation I had with her was nice and easy.
Although she may be known in the future as one of the Bond Girls, Olga had already made a name for herself in Hollywood with some very high profile films. She played in the high energy films Hit Man with Timothy Olyphant and as the hot siren Natasha opposite Mark Wahlberg in Max Payne. Those two quick hits put her in front of millions of moviegoers, but I predict she will be on top of the world when Quantum of Solace hits the screen.
Quantum of Solace finds James Bond (Daniel Craig) back in action exactly where he left off in Casino Royale. His new mission has him moving from one country to the next in pursuit of Dominic Green the ruthless head of an organization called Quantum. His trek leads him to South America, where with his newest bond girl Camille (Olga), he corners the mysterious man who’s trying to get power over a small country.

Your Entertainment Ticket: You have chosen some very good sexy characters in past films you were in. What was your motivation to play a tough Bond Girl and how did you prepare for it?
Olga: “Everything about the role made me want to play it. The role was just so exciting to me, because I had so much to learn. I had to go through so much transformation for my part, that I think it’s the movie that I had to make the biggest change. I am not even talking about all the fight training I had to do and learning to sky dive and working with guns, all of which I have never done before. Learning to adopt a different accent and being a person from a different country, getting a tan and physically trying to look like a Latina, and everything, was a lot of work. I was a different person than I am in my real life, so I had to get into a different skin.”

YET: But weren’t you a tough person in your other films?
O: “I haven’t been very rough in any of the other movies except this one. This is the first one where I am a fighter because in Hitman and Max Payne I am just a girl. So this is the first experience where I was involved in action scenes. Now I don’t want to do just that, but this was amazing because it was the first time. Anything that’s new to me is amazing.”

YET: Tell us about your character. What was Camille like? Did you do some of your stunts?
O: “Kicking a guys butt does feel good especially when I am fighting this big guy Medrano. I mean my character Camille was very well prepared and obviously went through a lot of training. It is possible to be a woman like that, but it is very rare. You have to have a strong background and that is obviously where she is coming from. ”



YET: Now that you have described your character, what was the most difficult part of your role?
O: “The most difficult part was getting all the stunt things right. It was all very precise and very technical and I had to train very hard for it. Even little thing like punches that look easy on the screen was still very difficult to do. It is not like fighting in real life, as you have to also make it look good in front of the camera. That is why stunt guys are stunt guys because they know how to do it on camera. It has to be much faster because the camera catches everything. You need to do it precisely and that is why we trained for six months and then you see it on screen and it is thirty seconds, but it took so much work. That was something new for me apart from the acting. I had to suddenly become a stunt woman too. It was like a different job. I had some bruises and cuts, but that was to be expected.”

YET: Do you think the audience will like the film and your character Quantum of Solace?
O: “I think this movie will please all kinds of people. It is made for a very big audience and I hope they enjoy it. The people I have met who have seen the movie at a screening have been so happy that I am portraying this different strong woman. I think women are very satisfied to see this woman who can kick ass. I am glad for women like her. It is very important.”

YET: Were there any fun experiences you can relate that happened on the set?
O: “We had fun making the movie. Even when we were fighting with the stunt guys we were always joking amongst ourselves. We spent six months together so I can’t come up with anything specific. We just had a really good time because the people were so nice.”

YET: What was it like working with Daniel Craig?
O: “Working with Daniel Craig was good. He is a wonderful actor. He is a good inspiration because you see this actor who works so much and is so focused on his role. I have never seen anyone so focused. He worked on his role everyday, all the time. He does many of the stunts himself so he sets the bar really high. You want to keep yourself at his level. He is a good example so it made me work even harder too. Everybody is so involved it makes you want to be involved that much more. When I came on board, I already wanted to be involved because it was exciting, but when you see these people working it inspires you even more.”

YET: How did you get the part of Camille in Quantum of Solace?
O: “The audition process was different in that it was long. For this movie I went through three tours, three different auditions and each time I got a call back the circle was smaller and smaller. At the end I was very happy when I found out I got it. The casting process was intense because this movie was so big. It is not like any other movie. This was Bond, the biggest movie of the year. You feel tense. It is a big competition to go through. I knew there were a number of people all around the world going for it so in the beginning you think what is your chances when there are so many people from around the world. It is kind of unbelievable.”

YET: There are many Bond Girls over the years of making 007 series. Do you have a favorite Bond Girl?
O: “I don’t have any favorite Bond girls. They are all been different and great. Some have been less interesting as a character as they were just there for eye candy but the last one I thought was a beautiful character in Casino Royale. She was smart and independent.”

YET: You were born in Russia in the late 70’s. What was it like growing up during that time and what is it like now?
O: “In the Ukraine today people are doing slightly better as they have more opportunities. My situation changed so I am helping my family, but there are still people who struggle and have no money. If you keep working and you study and get an education there are jobs. Before there was nothing, no matter what you tried there were no opportunities. You know what I mean? Now there are professions that can allow you to earn, but still there are many that are underpaid. The most important professions like doctors and teachers are always underpaid. The people who make us who we are and the people who save our lives, are the ones that are the most underpaid. It is not fair, but that is life. Life is very unfair. It makes no sense.”

Interview with Daniel Craig, Actor Quantum of Solace

By John Delia

Daniel Craig was in Miami recently and with his newest Bond film Quantum of Solace opening, he was eager to do interviews. First of all, the man does not seem to break character in real life. He’s in command, even in an interview, which blew me away with his strong commitment to the film and his frank answers to my questions.
Craig debut in film came with Power of One in which he played the small role of Sgt. Botha. In 2001 he played opposite Angelina Jolie in Laura Croft: Tomb Raider and a year later in Road to Perdition as Conner Rooney opposite Paul Newman. In 2004 Craig got the starring role in Layer Cake, a crime drama in which he plays a gangster. Since that time he has been on the big screen steadily showing his diverse acting ability in The Jacket, Sorstalanság, Munich, Infamous, Casino Royale, The Invasion, The golden Compass and Defiance. With Quantum of Solace it marks Craig’s 51st appearances that includes film, TV, video and video games.
Quantum of Solace finds James Bond (Craig) back in action exactly where he left off in Casino Royale. His new mission has him moving from one country to the next in pursuit of Dominic Green the ruthless head of an organization called Quantum. His trek leads him to South America where with his newest bond girl Camille (Olga Kurylenko) he corners the mysterious man who’s trying to get power over a small country.

Your Entertainment Ticket: I understand you have signed up for at least two more Bond films. Your Casino Royale made nearly 600 million worldwide. Where do you see the franchise heading?

Craig: “Yes, I signed for four and this is number two. We are nearly there. Nearly over. What we are trying to achieve with the second movie is to make a solid base. One of the biggest things is you’ve got to live up to the expectations that everybody expects from a Bond movie. Everyone expects the ‘Bondisms’, for lack of a better word. They all expect the martinis and the characters Q and M and all those people and I think we need to earn all those things. You can’t just plunk them straight into a movie and expect them to work. I don’t think they work as well as they use to. So what this has been about is the earning of all those things. So as far as I am concerned we’ve done that so we can do whatever we want now. We can introduce Q back in or we can introduce Moneypenny or we can introduce the submarine base if we need to. We are there. We’ve got to that point and I am very excited about doing another movie.”

YET: Do you have any input into the scripts of this or future Bond films?
C: “I actually have input on the script. I have been involved with this script from the beginning of its conception just because I am like that.”

YET: Do you consider yourself a sex symbol?
C: “I actually don’t think about those things (sex symbol issues). We make the sexiest, most beautiful best Bonds we can and if they appeal, they appeal and if they do that’s great.”

YET: Were you a Bond fan growing up and are you one now that you are portraying him as an edgier character?
C: “Yes, I was a Bond fan. I love the fact that he is edgier now but I always thought he was a bit edgy. I take most of my cues from the older movies like From Russia with Love and Doctor No. I think they were very edgy and I think what Sean Connery did was develop an incredibly strong character from the Ian Fleming novels, but he made him into a very edgy man. I would never ever copy what has been done. All of the Bonds have done wonderful jobs. I just put my take, my attitude towards it. I’ve read all the books, done the research and I am a Bond fan and so that is what I aim to put into the character.”

YET: Can you define your Bond and are there some things you still want to change?
C: “(laughing) I have not found a favorite way to catch villains yet, but when I do I will let you know. Bond is a double 0 because he is an assassin. That is how he makes his living. I would like to think we will strike a balance one of these days between lover and killer with Bond.”

YET: How physical is it to play Bond?
C: “The physicality of the character has been the hardest. There was a lot to do but it is very satisfying as I am working with some of the best people in the business. We are pushing each other to try and improve on what we did in Casino Royale. I think we’ve topped it, which was pretty difficult.”

YET: In the film Bond is doing a lot of difficult jumps and falls while chasing or fleeing the bad guys. So why did you take a chance on getting hurt by doing your own stunts?
C: “I think it’s just a tradition. There is a tradition, an old Hollywood tradition about Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd, I am a huge fan of those people. When they did their scenes, there was no camera cuts, no special effects, that was them, up the tower or the house falling, and I think it sort of goes…There is something within me that goes ‘Do it, do it! And you make it as safe and you make it as exciting as possible.”

YET: What were some of the most difficult stunts you had to do?
C: “I think the fall into the art gallery. The ropes were really tough (In a scene in Quantum of Solace Bond has to drop crashing through a skylight into an art gallery). There are two doubles. I have an acrobat and a gymnast who do a lot of that stuff but I was hanging up there quite a lot and it’s very tough.”

YET: How was it working with Director Marc Forster (Monster’s Ball, The Kite Runner)?
C: “The biggest thrill I get out of this job is working with the people I do. The chance to work with Marc Forster was always a dream because I’ve admired him as a director. If you had told me three years ago that he was going to direct a Bond movie I would have told you that you were silly, but actually it has worked out so well.”

YET: What scenes are on the cutting room floor that you thought should stay in the film?
C: “I got over that a long time ago as an actor so there are none on the cutting room floor that bother me. You have to really get over that because the amount of times you go and watch a performance or movie you’ve done and you go hey where has it gone but once you finish a movie you have to hand it over to the director because he is the one who has the overview. He is the one actually telling the story. I honesty look at the movie and can’t remember the other stuff we did. I just wait until the DVD extras and say oh I had forgotten we did that because it is just gone from my memory. If I trust the director I accept his choices and I accept his cuts. This movie is very fast and very punchy so there is probably tons of stuff that I’ve forgotten about.”

YET: The movie was shot in many countries. Was there any one place that was best and will remember the most?
C: “I loved shooting in Colon, Panama. We were there a very long time so we got to know the place very well. It is a very deprived place Colon and it’s got this art deco city that is poor and on the other side of the Panama Canal you’ve got this amazing Caribbean coastline. It is just insane, but the warmth of the people was great. They just sort of dragged us in and looked after us and took care of us. That is one of my most memorable. Every place was memorable but that one is the one that will live in my heart I think.”

YET: Olga Kurylenko plays opposite you in the film. What was it like working with this new Bond girl?
C: “Olga has done just a wonderful job. She is not the classic Bond girl. She plays a very strong character that is on a vendetta. Bond’s journey is about something else and Olga just brings this strength and beauty to the role. I think they complement each other very well. She is the one on a vendetta. Everybody thinks Bond is on a vendetta, but he really isn’t. He is just a loose cannon.”

RESEÑA DE LA PELICULA PARAISO TRAVEL 

Presentada en el Festival Internacional de Cine de Fort Lauderdale del 15 de Octubre al 11 de Noviembre de 2008. Paraíso Travel, basada en el exitoso libro del mismo nombre escrito por Jorge Franco, quien también escribió el guión junto con Juan Rendón, ha tenido un éxito total en este Festival que ya conocemos como FLIFF.  

Muy buena dirección de parte de Simon Brand, quien logra visualizar las escenas de una manera conmovedora. Relata la historia de Marlon Cruz, (Aldemar Correa) un muchacho de Medellín, quien es seducido por Reina, (Angelica Blandon) quien tiene la fiebre del sueño americano. Marlon, no muy convencido, pero débil de carácter, se deja llevar por Reina, una mujer manipuladora, con una meta fija y no deja que nada se atraviese en su camino. Inclusive Marlon renuncia a todo lo que tiene valor para el, para irse a Nueva York, cruzando por México en un viaje muy arriesgado. 

Al llegar a Nueva York sin dinero y nada de lo que les habían prometido, el sueño americano se convierte en pesadilla cuando la pareja se separa accidentalmente, y esta terrible y desconocida ciudad de hierro se traga a Marlon, quien a punto de morir de hambre y de frío, es rescatado por compatriotas generosos. Marlon, completamente iluso y vulnerable se propone encontrar a Reina, pase lo que pase.  

Al final, Marlon ha sido transformado por las duras lecciones de la vida de un inmigrante ilegal. Otros personajes en esta historia revelan esta terrible verdad: Raquel (Margarita Rosa de Francisco), y Milagros (Ana de la Reguera). Todas las actuaciones son fenomenales. 

Le recomiendo que vaya a ver esta película. 

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Reseña escrita por Lucía Obregón