Forest Whitaker Page 4

Forest Whitaker has finally made his Broadway debut in Michael Grandage's revival of Eugene O'Neill's 'Hughie'; a safe choice in some ways, given that there's little action involved and it stands at just an hour in length, but a risky endeavour in others because much more depth is expected from a play of such little substance.

Frank Wood and Forest Whitaker star in 'Hughie'

Set in 1928 in a New York hotel lobby, 'Hughie' features just two characters. Whitaker plays a man named Erie Smith who spends the play delivering a number of anecdotes to the uninterested night clerk Charlie Hughes - played by Frank Wood - while grieving over the death of his friend, Hughies predecessor Hughie. Alas, critics have not been too kind about it. While praising his magificent talent as a big screen actor, having appeared in such epics as 'The Butler', 'Platoon' and his Oscar winning 'The Last King of Scotland', it seems Whitaker's acting style doesn't translate as well to the stage.

Continue reading: Forest Whitaker Fails To Engage Critics With His Broadway Debut 'Hughie'

Liam Neeson is set to return yet again for another spell of breakneck action and a seemingly impossible manhunt in 'Taken 3'; a movie which he claims will be the biggest of the franchise yet as the tables turn on Bryan Mills.

Liam Neeson returns in 'Taken 3'

We thought the Mills family had finally got their happy ending, with Bryan re-united with Lenore (Famke Janssen) and their daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) apparently over her sex-trafficking trauma of the first movie, moving on with her new boyfriend and heading to college. We thought wrong. Unfortunately for Bryan, he didn't kill enough people and now more overseas criminals are out to eradicate his loved ones, and frame him for murder along the way. On the run from the LAPD, the FBI and the CIA while attempting to hunt down the real killer, Mills is facing a bigger challenge than ever.

Continue reading: Liam Neeson Admits Bryan Mills Has Finally Met His Match In 'Taken 3'

Two big premieres this week were more about raising awards-worthy awareness than launching a movie. Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Ewan McGregor, Chris Cooper, Abigail Breslin and Juliette Lewis were all on hand for the August: Osage County premiere in Los Angeles. Meanwhile in New York, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner were all dressed up for American Hustle. Both films are scooping up awards and nominations at the moment. Watch Bradley Cooper and Christian Bale arrive at 'American Hustle' NY Premiere and here's another video showing Amy Adams as she dazzles on the red carpet.

Justin Bieber won't be chasing awards for his latest behind-the-scenes doc Believe, which held its much-hyped world premiere in Hollywood on Wednesday. He was joined on the red carpet by director Jon M Chu, who also directed two Step Up movies, the last G.I. Joe blockbuster and Bieber's previous doc, 2011's Never Say Never. You can watch the trailer for Justin Bieber: Believe here.

Continue reading: A Week In Movies: Stars Court Awards Attention At Premieres, While Bieber Hits The Red Carpet And Several New Trailers Arrive

It’s a big weekend for the UK box office, kicking off tomorrow (Fri Nov 15), when Jude Law’s Don Hemingway, Forest Whitaker’s The Butler, Joseph Gordon Levitt’s Don Jon and Michael Fassbender’s The Counsellor all coming out.

Jude Law, Forest Whitaker, Joseph Gordon Levit and Michael Fassbender are all hoping to dominate the box office this weekend

Continue reading: UK Movie Reviews Special: Dom Hemingway, The Butler, Don Jon, The Counsellor

As expected, predicted and prophesized, the wonderfully strange world of Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 enticed enough families to propel it to the top of the weekend box office.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 proved magical enough.

It didn’t manage to outgun Hotel Transylvania, though, as the animated comedy grabbed $35m - $7.5m less than the spooky flick managed last September.

Continue reading: It Was Always Going To Be Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs For The Box Office This Weekend

The first shaky reports of the Labor Day holiday box office taking couldn't decide whether Lee Daniel's The Butler or Morgan Spurlock's One Direction documentary This Is Us had sold the most movie tickets across the weekend, so neck and neck they were for a while.

Watch The Butler Trailer:

Initially, it did look as though the 1D concert documentary would race ahead, with a predicted $21 million in takings. However, the boyband movie performed well, raking in $18 million but not well enough to overtake The Butler's massive earnings of $20 million. Not only did the two films collectively help made this year's Labor Day the highest earning ever, with $156 million, compared to 2007's $148 million, reports THR, but  the weekend also helped contribute to a record breaking summer where an incredible $4.7 billion was taken thanks to a wide array of film to entice filmgoers.

Continue reading: 'The Butler' Gives Rivals The Brush Off Over Labor Day Weekend: Why Is Lee Daniel's Movie So Successful?

This year's Labor Day box office takings marked a record year for Hollywood, with an estimated $156 million paid to see movies across the national holiday weekend. One film "steamed" ahead over the weekend to give all other contenders the "brush" off by "sweeping" in $20 million over the four day holiday. Ok, enough of the cleaning puns; if you hadn't guessed, Lee Daniels' The Butler was the highest earning movie of the weekend, advancing its existing domestic earnings to a total of $79.3 million, according to THR.

Watch The Butler Trailer:

Continue reading: The Labor Day Box Office Round-Up: Which Film "Cleaned Up" Over The Record Weekend?

The Butler, the star-studded historical drama by director Lee Daniels, has topped the North American box office for a second week with $17 million in takings, reports BBC News.

Forest Whitaker [L] and Cuba Gooding Jr [R] In 'The Butler

Officially titled Lee Daniels' The Butler owing to a legal battle, the movie stars Forest Whitaker as a long-serving member of the White House team. Despite early Oscars talk, the movie appeared to have taken a knock with several mediocre reviews, though it battled to a box-office win in its first week.

Continue reading: 'The Butler' Serves Up $17 Million Box-Office To Remain No.1

The Butler has outperformed all of its rivals upon its first weekend, having been released on 16th August to much nodding from critics and $25 million (£15.9m) earned. The film showcases an all-star cast, who portray a period of dramatic social upheaval in America, set around the life of the not-entirely-fictional butler, Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker).

A Shot From The Movie Showing The Kennedys Meeting The Whitehouse's Staff.

Gaines serves as a butler in the White House for 34 years and eight presidents and uses his unique position to witness important presidential discussions of national civil rights issues as the historical events play out. The movie charts such landmark events as Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, the Vietnam war, the Nixon resignation, Obama's presidential campaign and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Gaines' character is based upon the life of Eugene Allen who worked in the White House from 1952 to 1986.

Continue reading: 'The Butler' Gives Competitors The Brush-Off In First Weekend Success

Lee Daniels' The Butler has defeated other newcomers Kick-Ass 2 and Jobs in the US Weekend Box Office. The Butler has headed straight to number one whilst Kick-Ass 2 and Jobs have respectively gained 4th and 7th place.

Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey who star in Lee Daniels' The Butler as Cecil and Gloria Gaines at the L.A. premiere.

The Butler has made $25 million in its opening weekend and has gained critical praise. The historical epic is inspired by the true story of Cecil Gaines, a black butler who whilst serving at the White House, saw the offices of eight presidents. His life and family form a touchstone for the audience when addressing such historical events as the Civil Rights Movement and the rise of Black Power in the US. 

Continue reading: 'Lee Daniels' The Butler' Beats 'Kick-Ass 2' And 'Jobs' In US Weekend Box Office

Lee Daniels' The Butler is released today in US cinemas. Early reviews of the historical drama have been mixed although most suggest the film is definitely worth a watch.

Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey at the L.A. premiere of The Butler.

The film has been praised by critics for being "both deeply affecting and blatant Oscar bait", according to Claudia Puig of USA Today. Whilst Joe Morgenstern of the Wall Street Journal wrote in his review "fiction merges with fact, and finally soars."

Continue reading: Lee Daniels' The Butler Is "Deeply Affecting And Oscar Bait"

Lee Daniels’ The Butler will only see its US-wide release tomorrow (August 16), but the film, telling the story of a White House butler, who saw eight presidents come and go during his residency, is already being praised across the internet and back.

The Butler might be patchy, but it's not bad, say critics.

For once, everyone seems to agree what’s so great about the film. The story of Cecil Gains is captivating in many ways, not least of all for its portrayal of the civil rights movement, but for Forest Whitaker in the title role, who steals the show.

Continue reading: Lee Daniels' 'The Butler' Already Aiming At The Distant Glow Of The Oscars

Oprah Winfrey claimed last week that she was the victim of a seemingly racist attack by a store clerk in Switzerland. Nearly ten days ago (5 August), the Queen of chat was speaking with Entertainment Weekly when she recalled a recent experience at an exclusive handbag boutique in Zurich - whose identity she chose not to reveal, although it later turned out to be the glitzy Trois Pommes - which sparked a media frenzy across much of the globe and calls for an explanation from the store clerk and the store manager.

Oprah has since backed down from the racism row

An explanation is exactly what we got too, and it was one that pleaded the store's innocence and that the whole ordeal was a big misunderstanding, something that even Oprah is starting to agree with. Trudie Goetz, the manager of the Zurich boutique, spoke to CNN to say that the entire incident was a "200 percent misunderstanding" and was in no way to do with racism. Similarly, the woman who served Oprah in Trois Pommes and supposedly declined her permission to see a handbag that was being kept behind the counter has also given her side of the story, again saying that there was a misunderstand between the two, which was most likely caused by her poor grasp of English. Speaking to Swiss paper SonntagsBlick, the shop assistant said, "I wasn't sure what I should present to her when she came in on the afternoon of Saturday July 20 so I showed her some bags from the Jennifer Aniston collection. I explained to her the bags came in different sizes and materials, like I always do."

Continue reading: Oprah Winfrey Apologizes For Naming & Shaming Swiss Handbag Merchants In Racism Claim

The big news this week was that Harrison Ford will join the Expendables for their third film adventure. Sylvester Stallone tweeted the announcement, then went on to mention that Bruce Willis won't be around this time, apparently because he asked for too much money. Stallone was also caught on camera poking fun at Arnold Schwarzenegger's "big ego". Before they re-team for the next Expendables movie, they're costarring in the prison-break thriller Escape Plan. Watch Sly talking about Arnie at Comic Con here.

The next big superhero blockbuster will be Thor: The Dark World, and we got a more detailed look at the film in a new trailer this week. Pretty much everyone is back, including Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Idris Elba and Stellan Skarsgard. The movie looks like a huge-scale action adventure with a sense of humour about it. It opens in October. Watch the trailer for Thor: The Dark World here.

Continue reading: A Week In Movies: Ford Joins The Expendables, Thor Strikes Back, And Get Ready For The Biopics

While The Butler seemed like an early contender for Oscar contention, the early reviews suggest it may have fallen short in some areas. Praised were the performances, especially Forest Whitaker's, but criticized is the depth of this ambitious movie.

Forest Whitaker and Cuba Gooding Jr in The Butler

“Whitaker digs in deep and gives a marvelous under-the-skin performance; he seems to catch the very essence of a man who has spent his whole life trying not to be seen,” say Variety. “A great film about the American civil rights movement is way overdue. The Butler, overwhelmed by flash and good intentions, doesn't even come close,” The Guardian write in their review.

Continue reading: 'The Butler' - Was Oscar Talk A Tad Premature? Reviews Are In!

Lee Daniels has earned his reputation as the director of difficult, socially loaded pictures and his latest, The Butler, is no exception to the rule. The film, based on a true story, details the life of Eugene Allen, a butler, who worked in cotton fields, before being employed by the White House for 34 years and serving during several presidential administration. In the script, Allen has been renamed to Cecil Gaines and the number of presidents, as well as some other details, has been changed, but the film still maintains historical accuracy. The film offers an intimate perspective of the dramatic twists of African-American history in the 20th century.

Watch the trailer for Lee Daniels' The Butler below.

Continue reading: Lee Daniels' The Butler" Premiere Gathers Celebrities For Some Heavy Social Commentary [Trailer] [Pictures]

The big global release this week is The Hangover Part III, and the cast has been jetting around the world for premieres in Los Angeles and London, where fans screamed at actors Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms and Ken Jeong as they paraded up the red carpet. The critical response hasn't been quite as positive.

The 66th Cannes Film Festival winds down this weekend in France. Critics are praising new films by Steven Soderbergh (Behind the Candelabra starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon), Alexander Payne (Nebraska with Bruce Dern) and the Coen Brothers (Inside Llewyn Davis with break-out actor Oscar Isaac). They weren't so thrilled by Ryan Gosling's reunion with Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn for Only God Forgives, although they praised costar Kristin Scott Thomas for going far against type.

Continue reading: A Week In Movies: The Hangover Saga Ends, The Hunger Games Cast Talk Catching Fire And Jennifer Aniston Plays A Stripper

The first trailer for 'Precious' director Lee Daniels' new movie The Butler starring Forest Whitaker has rolled out online. It has always been assumed that Harvey Weinstein believes the film is one of his better chances of tasting Oscars success this season and the trailer certainly appears to confirm that. It stars Whitaker as Eugene Allen, the man who served eight presidents as the White House's head butler. It's over-the-top, patriotic and, well, Oscar bait.

In the mould as The King's Speech and The Iron Lady, the historical biopic is set for release on October 18th - just in time to be wafted under the nose of the Academy. As well as Whitaker returning to a leading role, 'The Butler' boasts one of the more spectacular casts of the year, including Robin Williams (Dwight Eisenhower), John Cusack (Richard Nixon), James Marsden (JFK), Liev Schreiber (Lydon B. Johnson), Alan Rickman (Reagan), Cuba Gooding Jr (Carter Wilson). David Oyelowo (Loius Gaines) and Oprah Winfrey (Gloria Gaines) are among the supporting cast though this one appears to be set up for Whitaker.

Watch 'The Butler' Trailer!

Speaking to Indiewire last year, Daniels hinted that his movie might be a little too focused on awards, "I'm trying to keep it [The Butler] PG13 which is not easy for me. It's very un-Precious and un-Paperboy... I can't go into my bag of tricks on this one [...] I felt like I directed the film in handcuffs and a muzzle," he said.

Continue reading: Forest Whitaker As 'The Butler' Could Be A Recipe For Success [Trailer]

Few had even heard of Ryan Coogler's Fruitvale Station before it won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. It was snapped up by Harvey Weinstein, who has a well-documented knack of taking little known movies from the film festival and turning them into Oscars gold. Will he do the same with this gritty drama? The signs look good.

Watch the Fruitvale Station trailer!

Based on a true story, it stars The Wire's Michael B. Jordan as Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old living in the San Francisco Bay area. As the New Year approaches, he become determines to turn around his life and provide for his girlfriend and 4-year-old daughter. After boarding a particularly crowded Bay Area Rapid Transit train, Oscar manages to get involved in a fight with some old adversaries and when the BART police are called, he is detained along with other passengers at Fruitvale Station. Through a cruel twist of fate, he is accidentally fatally shot in the early hours by a police officer who withdrew his gun rather than his intended taser. Oscar winner Octavia Spencer (The Help) plays Grant's mother, while Best Actor Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland) is one of the film's producers. This thing has pedigree.

It is due for US release on July 26th 2013, though reaction at this week's Cannes Film Festival - where it is competing in the Un Certain Regard competition - has been unanimously positive. Xan Brooks of The Guardian wrote, "Fruitvale Station made a noise at Sundance, was snapped up by the Weinsteins and played out to roaring approval here in the Un Certain Regard section."

Continue reading: Fruitvale Station Stuns Sundance And Cannes, Next Stop The Oscars? [Trailer]

The first trailer for 'Precious' director Lee Daniels' new movie The Butler starring Forest Whitaker has rolled out online and Harvey Weinstein's ambitions of taking this film all the way to the Oscars couldn't be more apparent. Whitaker stars as Eugene Allen, the man who served eight presidents as the White House's head butler.

The movie is clearly Oscar bait. Firstly, it's a typical Weinstein movie in the same mould as The King's Speech and The Iron Lady and secondly it's set for release on October 18th - just in time to be wafted under the nose of the Academy. Oh, and there's a pretty strong cast with plenty of Oscar winners and several up-and-coming stars. Robin Williams (Dwight Eisenhower), John Cusack (Richard Nixon), James Marsden (JFK), Liev Schreiber (Lydon B. Johnson), Alan Rickman (Reagan), Cuba Gooding Jr (Carter Wilson), David Oyelowo (Loius Gaines) and Oprah Winfrey (Gloria Gaines) are among the supporting cast though this one appears to be set up for Whitaker.

Continue reading: Forest Whitaker's 'The Butler' Clearly Has Oscar Glory In Its Sights [Trailer]

'Skyfall', the new James Bond movie directed by Sam Mendes, hits cinemas on November 9 and already attention is turning to whether or not the picture could snag a surprise Oscar nomination.

'Oscar bait' is a term often used to describe a movie awash with all the key themes that the Academy so readily rewards. For example, they're suckers for epic dramas (Titanic, Gladiator), romance (Shakespeare in Love, The English Patient) and movies packed full of previous Oscar winners (Traffic, The Kings Speech). Oscar bait movies usually hit cinemas at the same time each year- in November or December, wafting themselves under the noses of the Academy just weeks before nominations are announced.

This year, Sony seems to have thrown 'Skyfall' into the fray as Oscar bait, so does the film have a realistic chance of a nomination? Well, as HitFix.com rightly points out, the movie has attached an Oscar winning director in Mendes, an Oscar winning and three time nominated actor in Javier Bardem and an Oscar winning actress and six-time nominee in Judi Dench. Its screenwriter is a three-time nominee while cinematographer Roger Deakins is a nine-time nominee who is almost certain to scoop the prize come February if industry insiders are to be believed. Deakins - best known for his work on just about every Coen Brothers movie - is revered in the movie business and often considered the finest cinematographer of all time. On top of all this, Skyfall's production designer, art director and second unit director have all been handed nominations in the past: i.e - the movie has all the bases covered.

Continue reading: Why ‘Skyfall’ Could Land James Bond An Oscar Nomination