Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
In this pastiche of James Bond films directed by Jay Roach, Myers stars as Austin Powers and as his arch-villain, Dr. Evil. Myers also wrote the script for the film in about three weeks after spouting the hero’s trademark catchphrases to his wife. Myers says Roach encouraged the cast to go off-script: “About 30 to 40 percent is improv.”
Fellow SNL star Ferrell appears in a small role as Mustafa, Dr. Evil’s Moroccan (and resilient) henchman.
Hamlet
Williams plays Osric in this drama directed by Kenneth Branagh based on the William Shakespeare play. Hamlet returns home to find out his father is dead and his mother is marrying his uncle who is his father’s murderer. Co-starring Billie Crystal, Julie Christie, and Derek Jacobi. Branagh on Williams:
(He’s) an actor who would be funny, but could also be real in the way I felt was necessary.
http://youtu.be/-rd74Gniz-A
The Preacher’s Wife
Washington plays Dudley in the comedy drama The Preacher’s Wife. Reverend Henry Biggs and his wife Julia, played by actors Courtney B. Vance and Whitney Houston, are losing their small Baptist church due to declining membership. Unsure of what to do, the reverend prays to God. A charming angel named Dudley comes along to show them the way. Houston on Washington:
Denzel’s funny, he likes to have fun and frolic around a lot.
Mars Attacks!
Portman plays Taffy Dale in the 1996 sci-fi comedy Mars Attacks! In the film, Martians have attacked the world and everyone must fight for their survival. The actress teams up with an all-star cast of Hollywood actors including Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, and more.
The Secret Agent
In the drama thriller directed by Christopher Hampton, based on the novel by Joseph Conrad, Williams plays an assassin who owns a porn shop London as a front. He really is an anarchist, who holds meetings in his apartment with plans to overthrow the government. Co-starring Bob Hoskins, Patricia Arquette, and Gerard Depardieu.
I don’t carry the characters around when I’m doing the movie, because it can be quite frightening for your family to come home as those people.
Jack
Williams stars in this comedy drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. He plays Jack Powell, a boy who suffers from a rare disorder that ages his appearance four times faster than his actual age. The story depicts his struggles in dealing with this disorder as well as the relationships he builds with this family and friends. He co-stars with Diane Lane, Brian Kerwin, Jennifer Lopez and Bill Cosby.
But I think what made me want to play Jack was that innocent time before all that, riding bikes, friends in treehouses, all those things that loom on the boundaries of child and boy.
Courage Under Fire
Washington plays Lieutenant Colonel Nathaniel Serling in the drama Courage Under Fire. After her death, Captain Karen Walden, played by actress Meg Ryan, is set to be the first woman to receive the Medal of Honor. As Serling investigates the incident and the worthiness of her the award, conflicting stories send him on a hunt for the truth.
I also had the opportunity to talk to many soldiers…who had fought in Desert Storm and other battles.
Jumanji
Williams stars in this fantasy drama as character Alan Parish, a boy who opened the board game Jumanji and was sucked into the game for decades before being freed by two new players. Parish must help to complete the game to return the horrors Jumanji has created.
There is a scene in the movie where you wrestle a crocodile and there is things in the movie that are computer effects and the rest an animatronic which means muppets on steroids. I was wrestling this crocodile and I pounding it on the head and I hear someone inside go “hey!”
Heat
Portman stars as Lauren Gustafson in the 1995 crime-drama Heat, alongside veteran movie actors, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and Val Kilmer. The actress plays the distraught stepdaughter of police lieutenant Vincent Hanna, played by Pacino. The film revolves around Hanna’s hunt for De Niro’s character, criminal Neil McCauley.
Devil in a Blue Dress
Washington plays Ezekiel ‘Easy’ Rawlins in the crime drama Devil in a Blue Dress. Set in the 1940’s, Rawlins, a World War II veteran, returns home looking for a job. As a private investigator he takes on his first case which involves looking for a missing woman. With the war behind him, Rawlins steps into a new career full of corrupt cops, gangsters, and murder.
I really got into it as I did the research and started. I even went to Houston. I went to the Third Ward and I met guys who were kind of prominent in the neighborhood now. They introduced me to the old guys…
Seven
Pitt portrays a young and newly-married homicide detective in this psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher. He and his older partner played by Morgan Freeman investigate and hunt down a sadistic serial killer who murders his victims according to the seven deadly sins. Kevin Spacey plays the killer and Gwyneth Paltrow plays Pitt’s wife.
I certainly don’t have the answer, but maybe because being as tough as life is, seeing people go to these depths, it’s just fascinating. It’s horrifying but there’s fascination.
Hackers
In this action comedy directed by Iain Softley, Jolie plays Kate, the only girl in the group of hackers. which meets a new boy at school named Dade who is banned from computers until his 18th birthday because he got caught pulling off a major hack. Kate challenges him to a hacking competition. Soon the group discovers that they are the only ones that can stop top hacker, The Plague, and save the world. Also starring Jonny Lee Miller, Mathew Lilliard, and Fisher Stevens. What the movie makes her think of:
Well, oddly, love. That’s where I met Jonny, who is still a great friend. So I think of him when I think of that. Although, I’m sure the movie looks so ancient now, but we had a lot of fun making that.
A Bucket of Blood
0 0 Paul M. Paul M.2014-06-27 21:40:422014-06-27 21:40:42A Bucket of Blood
Virtuosity
Washington plays Lt. Parker Barnes in the action sci-fi film Virtuosity. A program meant to help train police officers is created from the personalities of over 100 serial killers. Russell Crowe plays the program, which is somehow synthesized and processed into the real world, and it is up to Barnes to try and stop him. On taking part in the film:
It was fascinating. I said I don’t think that anybody has done this yet, and if we can do it right, if we can get the script right and he can get the technology right, then we’ll have something interesting.
Crimson Tide
Washington plays Lt. Commander Ron Hunter in the action drama Crimson Tide. The U.S. Navy sends a nuclear ballistic submarine to intercept a possible launch from Russia. Captain Frank Ramsay, played by actor Gene Hackman, and Hunter do not agree with their orders and a mutiny within the sub is organized. On acting alongside Hackman:
I’d sit there sometimes and they’d almost have to go, ‘Denzel, your line.’ I was watching one of the great actors of all time.
Criminal Hearts
0 0 Paul M. Paul M.2014-06-29 19:01:392015-02-23 11:00:34Criminal Hearts
Tammy and the T-Rex
Walker plays Michael, the boyfriend of Tammy, who is bullied by a boy named Billy in Tammy and the T-Rex. When a violent fight with Billy leaves Michael comatose in the hospital, his brain is put inside an animatronic dinosaur. When Tammy realizes the dinosaur is Michael, she searches for a more suitable body for him.
Legends of the Fall
Pitt stars in this Western epic film based on the Jim Harrison novella. He plays Tristan, Col. William Ludlow’s adventurous and wild son, who practices American Indian customs. He and his family go through various trials that are brought about by nature, love, prohibition, and the ongoing war. His co-stars include Sir Anthony Hopkins, Aidan Quinn, Julia Ormond, and Henry Thomas. On his character:
Sinking below, rising above, going off, giving up, taking charge, taking control. This man’s journey seemed very accurate to me and very true.
Léon: The Professional
Portman stars as Mathilda in the 1994 drama Léon: The Professional. The actress makes her Hollywood debut at the age of 11, alongside actors Jean Reno and Gary Oldman. Mathilda is a young New York girl whose entire family is killed by a corrupt cop. She finds shelter in her neighbor Léon’sapartment and uncovers his secret profession of being a hitman. On reading her script for the first time:
I read it and I was crying by the end. I was a very emotional kid.
Interview with the Vampire
Pitt stars in this Neil Jordan-directed film based on the Anne Rice novel. He plays Louis de Pointe du Lac, a 200-year old vampire who sits down with a journalist and tells him about his transformation and exploits as a vampire. Co-stars include Tom Cruise, Christian Slater, and Kirsten Dunst. On shooting in New Orleans:
The great thing that came out of that movie is that it birthed my love affair with New Orleans. We were shooting nights. So I just rode my bike around all night. I made some great friends there.
