Caroline Frost2013-06-18T04:00:55-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/index.php?author=caroline-frostCopyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc.HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Caroline FrostGood old fashioned elbow grease.'Agatha Christie's Marple: A Caribbean Mystery' Review - Julia McKenzie Leads A Cool Cast In A Hot-Blooded Taletag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//2013-06-16T15:58:45-04:002013-06-16T17:10:57-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
Julia McKenzie was on her usual sweetly sly form as the curious spinster, sent on a warm holiday by her solicitous nephew, and then stuck at dinner next to an old major, who insisted on remembering scandals past. One old photograph, one look of surprise later, and the major was toast. But which of the glamorous guests around the table decided his stories had gone on too long?
A dinner with the major brought murderous revelations for Miss Marple
This kind of story is what those Agatha Christie people at ITV do best. Whereas last week's 'Elephants Can Remember' found Poirot and his pal Ariadne Oliver plodding through one flashback interview after another, 'Caribbean Mystery' was far more electric, with lots of set pieces from a fine ensemble cast, including always the cool Hermione Norris and a suave Anthony Sher.
Hermione Norris was one of those Caribbean visitors harbouring a secret in this high quality Miss Marple mystery
Of course, with fiery passions, past affairs and brooding resentments all bubbling away, this kind of story has more than a few similarities to the group plots of 'Evil Under The Sun' and 'Death on the Nile' - but there's a reason these remain among the big favourites of Christie aficianados, with plenty of material for different actors to get their teeth into, and lots of opportunities to eavesdrop between the swaying palms.
And with a sure directing hand and the exotic surroundings rightly jumped on by the 'Death in Paradise' gang, well, you can hardly go wrong. And they didn't. Two happy hours. ]]>'The White Queen' Episode 1 Review - Rebecca Ferguson Shines In This Regal Romptag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//2013-06-16T13:58:42-04:002013-06-16T18:01:00-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
Judging by this first episode, it shouldn't be too difficult. 'The White Queen' shares the mystical mystery of 'Game of Thrones' with the courtly pageantry - and clunky dialogue, it has to be said - of 'The Tudors'. What's not to like?
Rebecca Ferguson plays commoner Elizabeth Woodville, destined for the throne of England
It's been reported that historians will grimace at this re-telling of the Wars of the Roses, but novelist Philippa Gregory, on whose book the series is based, has made the point that, bearing in mind we're talking about events of 1464 here, it's pretty much anyone's guess.
You could see the whole thing as a contemporarily relevant feminist polemic, with Lancastrian commoner Elizabeth Woodville (newcomer Rebecca Ferguson - no, another one) forced to use her womanly wiles to climb her own social ladder once her husband's death deprives her of all status.
The BBC has spent a reported £1 million an episode on 'The White Queen'
Or a slightly supernatural tale with Elizabeth's mother (fabulous Janet McTeer) spinning her own gothic spell with daughter as mere puppet. Or a royal romance where even a York King (Max Irons, son of Jeremy) with a war going on can't resist a "roadside strumpet" with the face of an angel, much to cousin Warwick's despair and mother Cecily's cartoonish contempt.
At an estimated £1 million spent on each of the 10 episodes, the BBC will be praying that many eyeballs will be coming to this regal romp. For sure, whatever their people politics, there's loads to feast on for those who do - particularly the gorgeous Rebecca Ferguson, obviously a star in the making, reeling in the young King, and keeping us all guessing as to what she will do now she's convinced him to put a ring on it, and incite in Warwick a tantrum of Malcolm Tucker-esque proportions.]]>Freed Pussy Rioter Ekaterina Samutsevich Tells UK Audience Of Fears For Jailed Bandmates, Following Documentary Premieretag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34328992013-06-13T02:36:04-04:002013-06-13T04:59:19-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/Pussy Rioter told a UK audience last night that she has to contact her jailed bandmates anonymously through other people, now they are serving the rest of their sentences in a penal colony.
Ekaterina Samutsevich - 'Katia' - who was released on appeal earlier this year, explained: "There is a some sort of information blockade around Nadia (NadezhdaTolokonnikova) so it has been weeks since I've spoken to her. With Masha (Maria Alyokhina) it's easier, there are lawyers coming and going, so we speak every week."
The world's press watched as three Pussy Rioters - Katia, Masha and Nadia - were jailed last year, but the girls kept smiling
All three members of the punk protest band Pussy Riot were given two-year sentences for 'hooligan motivated by religious hatred' following their part in a performance in a Moscow church last year. Katia was freed after her lawyer argued that she hadn't actually participated in any of the act - video footage proved she hadn't had time to play her guitar before being bundled off by a security guard.
Katia added last night that, although prison conditions had been 'normal' during her six-month stint behind bars, where inmates were divided into those supporting the young women and those against them, she worries for her two bandmates now they are in a penal colony, where conditions are reported to be harsher.
Katia is now free but worries for her bandmates
The Russian activist was speaking via Skype to the audience in Sheffield following the premiere showing of 'Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer', the opening night film at this year's DocFest.
The documentary, directed by Mike Lerner and Maxim Pozdorovkin, follows the three women put on trial, following their spontaneous punk protest in one of Moscow's most revered churches.
It's a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look at one aspect of modern Russia, showing both the Rioters' earnest intentions - "we're sorry if we offended anyone, we're not against religion, just against the union of church and state" - and the way their acts were perceived by huge numbers of people relieved to get their church back after it was destroyed post-Revolution.
The film is also balanced, with the elegant state prosecutors explaining, "If the state doesn't punish them, some fanatic will go for them." Meanwhile, an Orthodox priest denounces 'Pussy' as 'deranged uteruses', while Putin himself puts an interviewer in his place when asked about the Pussy Rioters - "Does it make you morally uncomfortable to say it?"
Masha's favourite word as a child was 'unjust', her mother tells the filmmakers
While famous activists around the world also appear - with Madonna incurring the wrath of Russia by writing 'Pussy Riot' on her bare skin at a Moscow concert - at the centre of the film is the wit and courage of the three young women, laughing at the press even as they face the might of the Russian justice system - "They're going to show us smiling and say we're laughing at the trial," they whisper to each other during that famous, caged photo-call inside the courtroom. "Let's put on serious faces" - and so they do.
Katia told the audience afterwards: "We're not politicians. We're artists. We're fighting against the current political form, we have no wish to be part of that."
Nadia used her final statement in court to quote the lyrics of a Pussy Riot song - 'Take off your uniforms'
However, you know you're causing ripples when a country changes its laws around you. It is now illegal to "offend religious feelings" in Russia, and to wear a balaclava (this one they're calling the 'Pussy Riot law'). The Rioters wore bright ones during their protest - so people would know they meant no harm, explains Nadia in the film.
She also uses her final statement in the courtroom to quote the lyrics from a Pussy Riot song "Open all the doors, take off your uniforms, come and taste freedom with us." And she's smiling all the while - the definition of a charm offensive.
'Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer' goes on UK release later in the year. Watch the trailer below...]]>Joss Whedon Tells HuffPostUK Why Superheroes 'Avengers' To Shakespeare's 'Much Ado About Nothing' Is A Natural Steptag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34267432013-06-12T06:53:30-04:002013-06-12T09:02:22-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
From here, it looks as though fans’ favourite Whedon, the man who created 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and penned 'Toy Story', made an effortless leap into the chair for Avengers Assemble, but he says it wasn't as easy as it looks.
"You missed almost a decade's worth of meetings at Marvel. Kevin (Feige, Marvel Executive) and I had known each other for a long while, and he was the guy in the room who understood what was going on. I'd gotten close to doing Marvel movies before, but it had never worked out.
Joss Whedon was pleasantly surprised by the worldwide success of 'Avengers'
“Part of Kevin's mandate is to find someone with a point of view, not necessarily action hacks, but someone who's bringing a sensibility. So this means not necessarily going for action directors, but also people who could use the lift and were cheap.”
Even with Feige's vision, the money that 'Avengers' eventually brought in must have caused great whoops around the Whedon household...
"I did not expect it to hit as hard as it did, but you don't make these things trying to alienate an audience, so you go in hoping..." he grins.
"I felt good about the film. It's not perfect, but it delivers what it should do. But there's a level at which I'll never comprehend this level of success. It didn't change my lifestyle, it just seems like a very nice thing."
Whedon's next film is a distinct change of style, a black and white contemporary working of Shakespeare's comedy 'Much Ado About Nothing'. First, why black and white?
“I was going for something fairly classical, and the movies I was trying to evoke were comedies from the 1940s and 50s," explains. "It was timeless, plus it covered up anything in frame that was bright orange that I couldn't get rid of."
The director explains this came out of weekend parties at his own house, where his group of actor friends would regularly appear and take turns reciting the Bard.
Joss Whedon's 'Much Ado About Nothing' came out of weekend parties sessions at his house
“At my house, for years we would do readings of Shakespeare, just friends - writers, actors, buddies. If there were songs, we'd sing songs. It also led to a lot of other jam sessions and all kinds of activities and eventually led to Much Ado with Amy and Alexis, and I thought, 'If I'm going to film something, it may as well be that.'
"But it was years before we did anything, because you have to have a reason to make a movie, not just because your friends are delightful.
“I finally figured out what I wanted to say with the text, it wasn't just charming with some other bits, the whole thing was coherent and dark and textured and almost cynically romantic on the constraints of love.”
“We behave a certain way because we're told to do so. The play starts like this, and ends somewhere else. We don't have to be aggressively single, or aggressively in love, we can just be grown-ups."
Much Ado’s heroine Beatrix is as feminist an icon as Buffy - a coincidence?
“I don't think I realised how strong Beatrix was,” reflects Whedon now. “And I'm still amazed every time I watch, and realise Shakespeare's really putting it out there, she's just saying it, it's not coy, it's not couched, she's just saying 'this ain't right' and that's pretty exciting. For me, she's an extremely articulate and a feminist but she's a complete buffoon, and if you have both, then you have someone you can completely invest in.”
Whedon opted for black and white, to create "a timeless piece - and to hide any bright things we couldn't get rid of"
After the psychedelic antics of 'Avengers', the black and white conversation piece of 'Much Ado' might appear a pole apart, but Whedon assures me this isn’t the case...
"Superheroes are bigger than life, and Shakespeare, he's always bigger than life, but ultimately it all comes down to an absolute love of immersive storytelling."
So where’s he at with Avengers 2?
"Clickety clack," Whedon mimes fingers furiously at work on a keyboard. "As soon as I finish the Shield pilot, there will be more cloistering. The cloister is the best, writing is the best fun. Everything is creating, I love directing, but of my favourite things, I would say writing, then editing, then directing."
Has his phenomenal success with the first Avengers outing changed everything?
"I think there's a certain amount of trust going into the next one, which had to be earned. Expectation doesn't really bother me. The expectation isn't 'Will we make more money?' The expectation is 'Let's try to make a film worth making all on its own, not just cashing in.'"
If it came down to enjoying the enormous budgetary freedom of Marvel, or creative control of Shakespeare, where would he land? He smiles widely.
"I am in the fortunate position of not having to make that choice. But forced… you have to go with control."
Finally, talking of returning to much-loved projects, any chance of a Buffy reprisal? As a Buffy fan, I wait with bated breath, but...
“I think her work is done.”
'Much Ado About Nothing' is on release from Friday 14 June. Watch the trailer below...]]>TV Tonight: 'Agnetha: Abba & After' Reveals The Girl With The Golden Hair Wasn't Always So Lucky...tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34211312013-06-11T08:47:34-04:002013-06-11T09:37:29-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
With Agnetha Faltskog's glorious return to the music scene, the time is right for this tantalising glimpse into the private world of the 'girl with the golden hair', the dazzling but shyest member of one of the world's most enduring pop groups.
Benny, Friday, Agnetha, Bjorn - one of Sweden's biggest success stories
Her sweet manner belied her ambition which saw her, at 15, become a successful pop artist in her own right, with self-penned songs that propelled her into the charts, and later into the arms of fellow Swedish young star Bjorn Ulvaeus. They joined forces with another couple, Benny and Frida, and hence ABBA was born.
The next decade we saw them charting happiness, and misery to the tune of 370 million record sales, and global fame. Going behind the scenes of hits like 'Dancing Queen', the most moving part of this documentary is when Agnetha and Bjorn, interviewed separately, talk about the song 'The Winner Takes It All', the soundtrack to their divorce which became an enduring global ode to heartbreak.
At risk of teaching ABBA fans to suck eggs, and boring non-fans, I won't go on, but it's all here, with contributors Benny and Bjorn both speaking admiringly of Agnetha's own song-writing abilities. We don't hear from Frida, although Agnetha is at pains to say that reports of their disharmony are exaggerated.
Nor do we hear much about her personal life since ABBA, including the strange episode when her ex-boyfriend was issued with a restraining order after he was arrested for stalking her. What is clear is that Agnetha is neither a freaky recluse, nor a neurotic Sunset Boulevard character living out a strange existence on her lonely island. She is just a very successful, talented person who doesn't like live performing and has plenty of family, and money, to keep her occupied...
Until now. The documentary brings us right up to date, with her return to the studio for her latest album, which includes a duet with our very own Gary Barlow. The sight of him meeting her for the first time - AFTER the recording - is slightly cringeworthy, with him begging her to perform live, and her crying off, but you can't blame the man. There's only one Agnetha, even if she doesn't feel any need to prove it.
'Agnetha: Abba & After' is on tonight at 10.35pm, BBC1. ]]>REVIEW: 'Man of Steel' - 'S' Stands For Serioustag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.34203042013-06-11T07:39:26-04:002013-06-11T10:59:53-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
Superman is the same - red cape, arms crossed, the mother of quiffs - but different, as director Zack Snyder (Watchmen, 300) puts his stamp on (arguably?) the ultimate superhero, in his massive reboot Man of Steel.
Henry Cavill is just your normal bi-planetary bloke dealing with his destiny
I guess if you want a re-run of the courtly, hammy, almost effeminate charms of the much loved and missed Christopher Reeve, who defined Superman for a generation with his trilogy (we don't mention IV: Quest for Peace), you could just dig out the videos and feast again on his squabbles with Luthor, bumbling Otis and Terence Stamp's scene-stealing General Zod. Zack Snyder has brought something very different to the screen.
With all such superhero irony, and iron, currently being monopolised by Robert Downey Jr, Snyder has opted instead to focus on the origin story, as well as the serious, big-stakes intent of Superman's mission. And yes, if a comic icon swapping ham for heroism does sound familiar, new Batman bard Christopher Nolan does indeed share the story credit for this first instalment.
Fellow Batman alumnus David S Goyer's script emphasises the duality of Superman, who starts life as Kal-El on doomed planet Krypton, before his parents ensure his solo survival by sending him to Earth. Thus, from the off, he is a boy who must face his destiny, confused by his bi-planetary DNA, strength sent from Krypton, a moral compass sent from... not sure, but he's confused, anyway.
He starts out in corn-pickin' Kansas with adopted parents Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Costner, Diane Lane) but there's no time for high jinks like racing against trains and picking up cars this time around. Clark (his nom de Earth) is too busy racing against time to save his adopted planet from more pesky Kryptonian interlopers - led by General Zod, played by a brooding Michael Shannon - intent on making Earth their own.
But, first, there is, oh, so much Krypton to be had. Whereas in earlier films, we basically had what looked like one of those Scandinavian ice bars with Marlon Brando wandering around for a bit, here we have the whole other-worldly shebang.... Lots and lots of exposition, alien creatures all spawning other ones, Star Trek-esque tales of planets collapsing, peoples doomed and hopes set on some mysterious element - 'the codex'. So far, so Prometheus. We're most definitely not in Kansas any more.
The good news is that this gives Russell Crowe, as Kal-El's scientist father Jor-El, far more than Brando's lucrative walk-on and his most physical role since Gladiator. He swims, he fights, he makes the most nonsensical lines about other planets sound reasonable, at least until he is reduced by Zod to an Obi-Wan type figure, wandering in and out of the rest of the film when needed, usually to protect Clark from the obsessed Zod, intent on claiming 'the codex'.
As Kal-El or Clark as we come to know him, Henry Cavill is beautiful and brave, his clefted chin wobbling every time he has to make a decision that may cause harm. If After Earth was accused of a Scientological sub-text, there's a whole load of Christian business bubbling away through Man of Steel. The big blue man with the cape hovers in the sky, enveloped by a bright light, every time he needs to have a man-to-(Super)man chat with earthly authorities and, just in case we missed it, he even goes and has a chat at one point with his local priest - as you do, between propping up falling oil rigs - who doesn't even flinch at the sight of a fugitive man wanted in two planets, and reminds him to keep the faith.
So without the theatrics of Gene Hackman, or Superman's knowing winks in coffee bars, what DO we get for our 143 minutes? Well, lots and lots of violence, destruction, big puffs of black smoke and two strong blokes knocking the high heaven out of each other, across bridges, through buildings and burst water mains. Zealous Zod just goes on and on about his mission for his people. And, in definitive proof that we live in the age of entitlement, Superman receives barely a nod of gratitude from the Earthlings for all the risks he's taking for them. Is Superman really sure he wants to unite these two worlds? He doesn't seem too popular in either, with nay a shout of 'It's Superman!' to be heard.
Some of the best bits in the film are Clark's childhood days, told in flashback with Lane and Costner both on gentle form as his parents, and I'd have liked a bit more of this American Pie wholesomeness to balance all these puffs of big black smoke everywhere.
There's not much time for romance, either, with Amy Adams as Lois Lane - ditzy but Pulitzer Prize-winning, naturally - too busy flying spaceships to provide much of an ordinary contrast to Clark's crazy other-life. The best line of the film is saved for the end - when Goyer finally nods to the legacy of Superman on the big screen, and it sets things up nicely for the inevitable sequel.
So, yes, Zack Snyder can safely say he's put his own stamp on a 80-year brand, and it's the stuff teenage male dreams are made of, but I'd have happily swapped 30 minutes of the black puffs of smokey apocalypse for just a couple more raised eyebrows and acknowledgement that a beautiful man, blue tights, arms crossed, red cape and quiff a-kimbo is actually quite a funny thing when you think about it.
Man of Steel is in cinemas on 14 June. Stills below...
]]>'The Fall' Episode 5 Final Review - Unsatisfying Conclusion For Gillian Anderson And Jamie Dornantag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//2013-06-10T18:27:06-04:002013-06-11T02:04:52-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
Paul Spector was having to improvise furiously after his most recent spree went horribly awry, and he finished off his intended victim's brother. Things were no smoother on the domestic front, where one lie led to another. Actress Bronagh Waugh came into her own as wronged wifey, but you know things have gone a bit pear-shaped when telling your wife you've been having an affair - when you haven't - seems like the safer option.
Meanwhile, sanguine Stella was finally revealing her human side as she battled with hospital authorities to get some forensics out of Spector's latest victim.. Was that a flicker of emotion we saw cross her face? Nope, must have been dreaming - especially as 5 minutes later, she was giving her colleague short shrift for "judging" - so back to normal Stella. Phew.
Finally, two worlds converge
Solid detective work and surveillance footage forced Spector into the police station, where his world converged with Stella's for the first time this series. It was a mark of how far we've come in five episodes that this moment was so highly anticipated, and so thrilling, without a word being said.
Were you satisfied by 'The Fall' finale, or left hanging? Let us know below...
The best set piece of the night was Spector's phone call to her, his calm description of his killings, while we saw him being as nondescript as it's possible to be. As Gibson said, "Even a multiple murderer can have his share of good qualities, or a pretty face." Or indeed walking around a shopping mall looking like everyone else. Chilling.
But the ultimate face-off we wanted was never to be. Stella gave her uniquely calm version of a rant against his "age-old violence against women" and made clear just how much she knew about him, in as classy a bit of dialogue as anything writer Alan Cubitt's come up with during this consistently compelling tale.
And yet Spector still managed to sneak away, family and life intact. While the good news is the fruits are all there for a cracking second series, it was beyond frustrating that Stella didn't get her man. Oh well, there's always next time...]]>Arne Dahl Tells HuffPostUK Why The Murders In His Latest Nordic Noir Offering Have To Be Quite So Brutaltag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34161442013-06-10T08:43:13-04:002013-06-10T12:39:24-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/classic Nordic Noir territory here.
Arne Dahl is the latest Scandinavian offering to hit our screens
Something's different, though. The Arne Dahl stories have all the high-quality hallmarks we have come to associate with the genre that brought us 'The Killing', 'The Bridge', 'Unit One'. But while 'The Killing' was all torches and dark corridors, and 'The Bridge' seemed bathed in a pale grey light, 'Arne Dahl' can be marked by the grisly nature with which victims meet their ends. Rich businessmen go splat across the dinner table, blood gushing from the throat. A dart pieces someone squarely in the eye.
It's bleak and beautiful, but also brutal, something the best-selling Swedish writer after whom the series has been named is quick to defend.
"This is life and death, it needs to be portrayed as something big," says Dahl (real name Jan Arnald). "You can't pretend that life and death amounts to a beautiful body in the library.
"Much as I enjoy that type of crime drama, it belongs in the past. If you want to do something contemporary, you have to be prepared to show it."
The officers in Arne Dahl are slick on the job, but with messy personal lives
It seems it was a real-life brutal incident that stirred Dahl's criminally creative instincts. The killing of the Swedish prime minister Olof Palme in 1996 was, as Dahl describes it, "a blow to the idealised view we had of ourselves, that the Prime Minister could walk around in the evening without any protection. That illusion was lost. And suddenly there were a lot of changes".
The series begins as CID inspector Jenny Hultin assembles an elite police team to catch a prolific, highly dangerous serial killer. Known as the "A-group," the six Swedish officers are hand-picked for their unique skill sets and differing backgrounds.
The 10-part series focuses around five of Dahl's novels, each with a different member of "A-group" at the fore. The cases the team are called upon to handle are of the very highest-priority, involving complex and dangerous violent crimes with an international connection.
Dahl has obviously thought about this at length. "We lost our idea of being morally superior, living in this slightly isolated, self-conscious country. It became clear that the idea of the social democratic welfare state could not exist side-by-side with globalisation. A new kind of crime appeared, and there was a lot to write about."
Dahl found writing about a collective more interesting than "the traditional, lonely, alcoholic, divorced cop"
And a lot of writers ready to pick up a pen. With so many Scandinavian writers jumping on board, believing, in Dahl's words of the "quick fortune to be made", how does he stay unique?
"I've never read much crime fiction, as I wanted to avoid copying anything. And I read so much as a child, I didn't have to look at crime fiction to know how it worked.
"So instead of concentrating on the plot, I've always focused on the single fingerprint, the tone, the characters, and so I've found and kept my own style."
Dahl will be appearing, along with several of his cast, in London this weekend for Nordicana, the first expo in the UK dedicated to all things Nordic telly can provide - some exclusive snippets of TV series, film screenings, plus Q&As with cast and crew.
Does all this attention come as a shock to a writer, who has spent 15 years in solitary effort?
"The writer's life is divided into two extremes these days," he acknowledges. "Extreme loneliness on the one hand, extremely social on the other.
"It's a new thing for writers, we used to be an introspective bunch, afraid of cameras, but that has all changed, and we've had to adapt.
"To share your work, you have to answer questions on Facebook, be prepared to share. But it's still slightly strange to meet lots of people face to face.
"But the fundamental aspect of writing hasn't changed, there is always the work to be done. There's no escaping it."
The full series of 'Arne Dahl' is available now on DVD - trailer below. Nordicana will be taking place in London on 15/16th June - click here for details and ticket info.
]]>EXCLUSIVE TRAILER: 'The Killing' Star Sofie Grabol Stars In Nordic Noir Thriller - 'Accused'tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34143492013-06-10T06:59:56-04:002013-06-11T10:04:05-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/Sofie Gråbøl helped kick-start the UK’s love affair with Scandinavian television, and successfully heralded a full-scale Nordic cultural invasion.
Now the woman who became the poster girl for gloomy Saturday evenings, stylised Danish landscapes, terrible social skills, and Faroese knitwear returns to the big screen in 'Accused' (out on DVD next Monday), which portrays the dark side of family life, with the world of a happy middle-class couple torn apart by their troubled 14-year-old daughter.
HuffPostUK is pleased to host the exclusive trailer for 'Accused' - WATCH ABOVE.
'The Accused' - filmed back in 2005 but only now making its way here, co-stars Troels Lyby, recognisable from the first series of 'The Killing. Here's some blurb...
Henrik and Nina are an ordinary couple. Henrik is a swimming instructor, and his wife Nina a secretary. The only glitch in their comfortable family lifestyle is Stine, their 14-year-old adolescent daughter, who is gradually becoming more and more difficult to be around. Stine is going through a difficult phase and it’s not easy for Henrik and Nina to get through to her. As time goes by she distances herself yet further from her parents, so much so that it is recommended that Stine visits the school therapist.
During one therapy session, Stine accuses her father of something truly horrific, something that will go on to shake the very foundations on which their family life is built...
For fans of Scandinavian cultural delights, the Nordicana expo takes place this weekend in Clarkenwell, London! All the info of what’s on offer is at http://nordicnoir.tv/nordicana/]]>'Behind The Candelabra' Review: Michael Douglas, Matt Damon Tell Story Of Liberace's Secret Lovetag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34026362013-06-07T09:18:06-04:002013-06-11T10:07:52-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/Rob Lowe called it "unlike any other movie, Gordon Gekko making love to Jason Bourne".
Certainly, 'Behind the Candelabra' has brought out hitherto undemonstrated aspects of both Michael Douglas and Matt Damon as they tell the story of supreme showman Liberace and his secret love, Scott Thurson, based on Thurson's real-life memoir.
Michael Douglas and Matt Damon star as Liberace and his secret love, Scott Thurson in 'Behind the Candelabra'
Similarly to 'Brokeback Mountain', this film - however camp it may be, "too gay" to be considered for studio release according to director Steven Soderbergh - is only incidentally about a same-sex relationship. In 'Brokeback's case, it was really about secrecy. In this case, it's really a black comedy about the age-old tragedy of passionate love gone bad, even if the surrounding props are fur stoles, on-stage Rolls Royces, jacuzzis and lots and lots of pianos.
As Thurson, Matt Damon ages convincingly from an impressionable teenager, caught up in the glittering world of one of the world's most exuberant entertainers. For an actor who's made his name as the beyond-macho Jason Bourne, he's totally at home as the passive but increasingly resentful stay-at-home 'chauffeur'.
Michael Douglas, equally masculine as Wall Street's Gordon Gekko, is somehow both recognisably himself but completely believable as Liberace, dancing around without his toupee, stroking his pet poodle Baby Boy and, as for any self-respecting lifelong bachelor, arguing with his ageing mother. How DID Liberace get away with suing Britain's Daily Mirror for alleging that he might just be the non-marrying type? He kind of explains in the film of his female fan base, "they see what they want to see."
But the real scene-stealer isn't Baby Boy, despite the poodle winning the Palme Dog Award. It's Rob Lowe as Liberace's go-to cosmetic surgeon Dr. Jack Startz, charged with the slightly creepy task of turning Thurson into a youthful version of Liberace himself - "I want to be everything to you, Scott, father, lover, brother, best friend, " Liberace tells his companion - and responsible for introducing Thurson to the 'Hollywood diet' of cocaine and amphetamines to keep the weight off.
Judging from his narrow-eyed insouciance, Startz has had a few too many goes with his own treatments, and Rob Lowe chews up the scenery. It's a part to die for, and only one of the joyful reasons to indulge in this camp-fest of love, betrayal and lots and lots of bling.
'Behind the Candelabra' is in cinemas now. Watch the trailer above, plus pictures below... ]]>'Springsteen And I' Documentary Poster Released, Showing 350 Fans Who Offered Their Photos, Alongside The Bosstag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.34018722013-06-07T08:27:07-04:002013-06-07T08:47:30-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/documentary 'Made of Stone' was an unabashed act of fan worship, well... this puts it to shame.
Tickets go on sale today for the highly anticipated worldwide cinema broadcast of 'Springsteen and I' on 22 July 2013. Cinemas in over 50 countries around the globe will broadcast this music documentary, created for the fans, by the fans, which includes Bruce Springsteen's most loved songs and unseen concert footage, as well as the chance for fans to explain - sometimes surprisingly - just how much The Boss means to them.
Executive producer Ridley Scott reflects, "This beautifully crafted film provides a unique insight into the powerful bond between a recording artist and those who connect so profoundly with his music."
To celebrate the release of the film, fans around the world were given the chance to star in the official documentary poster (above) by submitting a picture of themselves with their first Springsteen album. More than 350 Bruce fans were chosen to appear on the official film poster that will be used around the globe.
Can you spot yourself in the poster above?
If you can't see yourself here, all is not lost. There is an interactive poster with all 350 images here.
British fans haven't been left out. Tickets for the film go on sale today for over 200 cinemas in locations across the UK including London, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Brighton and many more - Click here for full location details and ticket sale links.
'Springsteen and I' is on release 22 July. Watch the trailer below...]]>'Veep' First Season Reviewtag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.33967022013-06-06T10:42:36-04:002013-06-07T06:02:51-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/Veep turned up on HBO's screens last year, it was heralded as 'The Thick of It meets West Wing'. With two more series commissioned in the States, and the first series now available in this country on DVD and Blu-Ray, it's time to ask: Is it all that?
Because Armando Iannucci is so singularly British with his impeccable comedic CV, it was with no small bit of dread that I learned he and co-creator Simon Blackwell were taking The Thick of It stateside, building on the Oscar-nominated success of In The Loop, and putting home-grown humour into the White House for Veep - describing the boil and bubble that go into running the smooth-looking machine of the Vice-President's office.
The good news is that, instead of pandering to any American expectations, Iannucci has brought his international audience round to his notions of what's funny. This proves two things a) that the lines of American-British humour are increasingly blurred as we soak up other's influences, both in creating and watching, and b) Iannucci is still very, very funny.
The series hits the ground running, with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Senator Selina Meyer turned Vice-President (hence Veep) walking and talking a la West Wing, beseeching her aides to give her honest appraisal of her new look, before over-riding them, inevitably: "Glasses make me look weak, wheelchair for the eye." And we're off.
The show rides or falls on the power of Louis-Dreyfus, stalking the corridors of power and relying on and despising her staff in equal measure. She looks fabulous, and flips between bemused, beseeching and belligerent. When she's in danger of being cornered in a meeting, she instructs her staff, "Get me out of here. Surround me like a human motorcade."
She fires verbal grenades through a fixed grin, and you think it's going to be Malcolm Tucker without the f***s - until they start flying, and you remember this is cable TV. "I am in there trying to put out two f***king fires," she blasts Amy, "And then I find out you have set fire to the f***king fire truck."
Confronted with a speech redacted out of existence, just as she walks onto stage to make it, she screeches, "What's left of this speech? I have hello and prepositions." It's early days but all indications are Iannucci has created another comic creation to join the ranks of Partridge and Co.
What does the show lack? Well, the Veep herself bags many of the best lines for now, but that's because there's no equal adversary yet in sight. That's the only thing this programme needs to move it away from the pack - a tireless campaigner of hostility whose own well of vitriol is buried deep into the earth, with fathomless powers of breadth and self-regeneration.
Yes, Mr Tucker, I'm looking at you...
Without the benevolence of Bartlett or the Tantric tantrums of Tucker, Veep makes up for it in its sharp, quick writing, and builds over eight episodes to a satisfactory finale, when Selina Meyer discovers that where her lack of knowledge, experience, influence or power ultimately let her down, she's still got one more card to play. Think Sarah Palin with wit.
If Meyer's entourage aren't quite up to the peerless Thick of It troops, they're game enough with some dissonance already present in the ranks. "What can't you do?" Selina asks rapturously of her new favourite, Dan. "Foreplay, direct sunlight..." we hear somewhere from behind.
It's scarily quick and dense, the holy grail of comedy that you don't mind watching twice, back to back, to make sure you catch everything. It's a wonder that Iannucci and his co-writer Simon Blackwell have so much untapped, imaginative venom left in them and it seems that US politics has provided them with another deep well to draw from.
Veep: The Complete First Season is available on Blu-Ray and DVD now. Watch our exclusive clip below...]]>The Pentagon? The White House? The CIA? No Pressure!tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.33956582013-06-06T08:37:15-04:002013-06-06T10:09:36-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
"It's what screen writers do all the time.," he tells me in London on the eve of the premiere of the film charting the tracking and capture of Osama Bin Laden. "I don't see how it's different from writing A Beautiful Mind - or any other film about a real person."
Possibly because of the very emotive subject of the debate around the tactics involved, the torture scenes depicted, the question of who knew what about Bin Laden's whereabouts in the months leading up to his capture in Pakistan - in a sequence quite stark and startlingly beautiful under Kathryn Bigelow's assured direction?
"Our intention was to tell a story," Boal explains emphatically. "I could write a controversial movie if I wanted to, I think I would know how to do that. Here, it just so happens that the underlying issues that the story addresses aren't resolved.
"They're being debated at the highest levels of the US government, between the US Senate Intelligence Committee and the CIA, so there's no way to tell this story without people picking sides, that's the nature of the beast.
"The only other option would be for us to say, let's not tell stories that touch on topics that still hit raw nerves. That's the opposite of our intention. Which was to delve into topical subjects because we thought that was a valid thing for us to do. The fact that it's being discussed doesn't mitigate that in my mind."
He's right in that the contents of Zero Dark Thirty were being discussed long before Bigelow shouted 'Action'. And as Boal points out, "A small percentage of that discussion has been about the movie, a large percentage of it was about pre-existing political conversation that the movie is useful for."
Despite his assertion that "I didn't make the movie to try to influence the debate in the commentating classes of this culture," he's certainly proved his impartisanship by cheesing so many people off from different sides of the political fence. He agrees with a grin, "The green party haven't weighed in, I don't know what happened to them."
So, how is Boal, with or without his longtime frequent collaborator Bigelow, planning to follow this up? I would say 'recover' but he doesn't seem to need any recovery time...
"I think I want to do a wildly inaccurate movie about money and politics."
No doubt Washington will be watching.
'Zero Dark Thirty' is available on Blu-Ray and DVD now. Watch our exclusive clip below...
]]>EXCLUSIVE TRAILER: 'The Battle Of The Sexes' Documents Tennis Player Bobby Riggs Taking On Billie Jean King For Matchtag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.33950102013-06-06T04:55:15-04:002013-06-06T08:07:44-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/
So spoke Bobby Riggs, a charismatic, fast-talking, chauvinist showman of the court, in 1973. What did he set in motion? A tennis match that started out as a pure sporting event and became a landmark in the fight against sexism.
Now, documentary 'The Battle of the Sexes' tells the story - and we have the WORLD EXCLUSIVE TRAILER below.
Billie Jean King - "doesn't belong on the same court as a man" according to Bobby Riggs
Billie Jean King, the darling of American tennis, was already an outspoken activist against sexism in sport and society. So when she heard Bobby Riggs saying, "I want to prove that women are lousy, they stink, they don't belong on the same court as a man," it put some extra fire in her racquet.
The ensuing 'courtship' - between Riggs, a 55-year-old former Wimbledon champion, who arrived on court in a rickshaw pulled by glamour models, and King, the reigning Wimbledon Ladies champion and queen of the court - captured the imagination of sporting fans and many more, and helped empower a generation.
Bobby Riggs - arrived on court for the showdown in a rickshaw
'The Battle of the Sexes' includes interviews with Margaret Court, Chris Evert, Venus and Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, but at the heart of it is the match that took place in Houston in September 1973 - with a winner-takes-all prize of £100,000 at stake - and the raw rage of Billie Jean King, who reflects now...
"I wanted to change the hearts and minds of people. And as we know, to change hearts and minds to match the law isn't that easy. So I had to beat him for a lot of reasons. But it wasn't about a tennis match - it was about social change."
'The Battle of the Sexes' is in cinemas from 26 June, with its world premiere at the Edinburgh Film Festival on 21 June. Watch our exclusive trailer below... ]]>EXCLUSIVE CLIP: Shane Meadows Meets Stone Roses Fans For 'Made Of Stone' Documentarytag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/thenewswire//2.33827812013-06-04T06:45:26-04:002013-06-04T07:15:17-04:00Caroline Frosthttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/caroline-frost/ their favourite band AND Shane Meadows in one room at last week's world premiere of 'Made Of Stone' in Manchester.
'Made of Stone' begins with a mesmerising shot of Ian Brown meeting the band's fans
For the rest of the band's devoted following, Meadows' love letter to his musical icons is in cinemas this week, and we have an EXCLUSIVE. WORLDWIDE. CLIP above.
Meadows has made an unapologetically gushing film about the Stone Roses reunion - something he signposted early on, telling frontman Ian Brown that if they let anyone else make the documentary, he would kill himself.
Shane Meadows has made an unapologetic love letter to the Stone Roses
What Shane Meadows undoubtedly brings is his unique touch at depicting normal people (award-garneringly so in 'Made in England') and never more effectively in 'Made of Stone' than letting the fans speak for themselves - as in our clip above - particularly those lucky few who made it to the Roses' impromptu warm-up gig in Warrington last year, before their emotional comeback proper at Heaton Park.
'Made of Stone' is in UK cinemas tomorrow - Wednesday 5 June - watch the trailer below...]]>
