Kristin Scott Thomas Page 3

There's A Lot To Love (And Hate) In "Only God Forgives"

By Victoria Pavlova in Movies / TV / Theatre on 01 August 2013

It's just one of those films...

There’s a lot to love in Only God Forgives – or hate, depending on where exactly on the love/hate Nicholas Winding Refn spectrum your sympathies lie. This film is no Drive, by any stretch of the imagination and will not endear the Gosling/Winding Refn duo to any fans of that film. Still, the things that get some moviegoers to demand their money back are the exact same things that make others love this movie.

Watch the Only God Forgives trailer below.

Continue reading: There's A Lot To Love (And Hate) In "Only God Forgives"

The Final Word On 'Only God Forgives? Refn's Worst. Probably Gosling's.

By Michael West in Movies / TV / Theatre on 19 July 2013

Ryan Gosling Nicolas Winding Refn Kristin Scott Thomas

Only God can forgive Only God Forgives...

Nicolas Winding Refn appears to have hit a bum-note with his latest movie, the violent drama Only God Forgives, starring Hollywood pin-up Ryan Gosling.

Refn had hinted at some degree of skill and precision with Bronson and to a lesser extent Drive, though Only God Forgives appears to be a backwards step for the enigmatic filmmaker and certainly a career blot for Gosling.

On the face of it, the narrative looks solid. Gosling plays Julian, a drug-king pin of the Bangkok underworld who doubles as the owner of a Thai boxing club. When his brother Billy is suddenly murdered, his unstable mother Crystal (Kristin Scott Thomas) arrives from London to bring back the body, however, she also wants Julian to settle scores and avenge the killing of his brother.

Continue reading: The Final Word On 'Only God Forgives? Refn's Worst. Probably Gosling's.

Is Ryan Gosling's 'Only God Forgives' Too Violent For His Fanbase?

By Michael West in Movies / TV / Theatre on 18 July 2013

Ryan Gosling Nicolas Winding Refn Kristin Scott Thomas

Does Ryan Gosling risk alienating his established fanbase with 'Only God Forgives'?

There were audible boos in the auditorium when Ryan Gosling and Nicolas Winding Refn's latest effort Only God Forgives premiered at the Cannes Film Festival back in May. Several of the theatregoers walked out, owing to the explicit violence in the film that tells the story of a Thai boxing club owner who goes on the hunt for his brother's killers.

The ever-capable Gosling - who showed flashes of sheer brilliance in 'Place Beyond the Pines - and Kristin Scott Thomas, one of the world's greatest actresses, appears to be a match made in heaven, though critics are not enamoured by the movie. The problem may lie with Refn's writing.

Peter Debruge of Variety said: "The wallpaper emotes more than Ryan Gosling does in Only God Forgives, an exercise in supreme style and minimal substance from Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn."

Continue reading: Is Ryan Gosling's 'Only God Forgives' Too Violent For His Fanbase?

Is Ryan Gosling's 'Only God Forgives' The Most Violent Movie Of 2013? [Trailer]

By Michael West in Movies / TV / Theatre on 27 June 2013

Ryan Gosling Kristin Scott Thomas

Ryan Gosling's new movie Only God Forgives divided critics at Cannes.

A new trailer for Nicolas Winding Refn's latest collaboration with Ryan Gosling, Only God Forgives, has rolled out online ahead of its release in the US next month. The film, which caused huge controversy and split critics at the Cannes Film Festival, follows Gosling as a drug-smuggler thriving in Bangkok's criminal underwood.

Masquerading as a boxing club owner, Julian is living the high life shifting drugs, though life becomes complicated when he is urged by his mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) to avenge the violent and horrifying death of his brother.

Ryan Gosling At The Premiere Of His Last Movie - A Place Beyond The Pines

Continue reading: Is Ryan Gosling's 'Only God Forgives' The Most Violent Movie Of 2013? [Trailer]

Cannes Wasn't Forgiving To "Only God Forgives"

By Victoria Pavlova on 23 May 2013

Ryan Gosling Nicolas Winding Refn Kristin Scott Thomas

The film got a cool reception at Cannes

There is an understanding in Hollywood that if they don’t like your film at Cannes, you’ll know, which is exactly what happened yesterday with Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest flick Only God Forgives. The film stars Ryan Gosling with Refn in the director’s seat – a promising combination, considering that their last team project (Drive) nabbed the Best Director award at the festival. Only God Forgives, however, probably isn’t going to reach the same acclaim, at least not if the audience of journalists, movie critics and assorted insiders is any indication.

Ryan Gosling, Place Beyond the Pines Premiere
Once again, Gosling has been type-cast as the strong, silent character.

According to Vulture’s Kyle Buchanan, the movie has ample amounts of blood and guts, properly amplified by the eye-popping red lighting that’s meant to signify Bangkok’s seediest neighbourhoods. What it doesn’t have though is the subtlety and tender moments, necessary to balance out the gore. Gosling’s performance is once ago according to type – the strong silent type, who is bullied by his terrible mother into avenging the death of his even more terrible brother.

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Ryan Gosling Has Just 17 Lines In Five-Star 'Only God Forgives' [Pictures]

By Michael West in Movies / TV / Theatre on 22 May 2013

Ryan Gosling Kristin Scott Thomas Nicolas Winding Refn

'Only God Forgives' is incredibly violent, but won high praise at Cannes.

Ryan Gosling's new movie Only God Forgives has received a slew of five-star reviews following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, though the bankable American star has just 17 lines in the violent thriller. Gosling plays a Bangkok boxing ring owner seeking revenge in Nicolas Winding Refn's latest film, which boasts another pulsing soundtrack by Clint Martinez.

In his review of the film, the Guardian's film critic Peter Bradshaw said, "It is ultraviolent, creepy and scary, an enriched-uranium cake of pulp, with a neon sheen," adding, "Only God Forgives will, understandably, have people running for the exits, and running for the hills. It is very violent, but Winding Refn's bizarre infernal creation, an entire created world of fear, really is gripping." Gosling's lack of dialogue allows Kristin Scott Thomas - one of the greatest of her generation - to thrive, and the British-French actress steals the movie away from her popular co-star. She was in attendance at the photo-call for the movie at Cannes, though Gosling chose not to attend. "I can't believe that I'm not in Cannes with you," the actor wrote in a letter which was read out by Cannes director Thierry Fremaux at a press conference this week, "I was hoping to be coming but I am in the third week of shooting my movie. I miss you all. Nicolas, my friend, we really are the same, simply in different worlds and I am sending you good vibrations. I am with you all." Err, yeah, fair enough Ryan.

His absence is a blow to the festival, with organisers probably banking on the popular Hollywood star as one of marquee names.

Continue reading: Ryan Gosling Has Just 17 Lines In Five-Star 'Only God Forgives' [Pictures]

In The House [Dans La Maison] Review

By Rich Cline

Excellent

With Ozon's usual sharp writing and direction, this black comedy is a fabulous series of provocations, challenging us to explore how we see, or perhaps imagine, the people in our lives. It's also a playful exploration of the nature of storytelling itself, using a teacher-student relationship to reveal all kinds of uncomfortable truths.

The teacher and student in question are Germain (Luchini), who's tired of teaching literature to illiterate students, and shy 16-year-old Claude (Umhauer), a gifted young writer. His essays spark Germain's imagination because they continue on from each other to serialise his encounters with the family of his friend Rapha (Ughetto). As Claude writes about flirting with Rapha's mum (Sagnier) or becoming pals with his dad (Menochet), Germain becomes gripped by the story. And so does his wife Jeanne (Scott Thomas), who sees this as a wonderful escape from the mundane pressures in her life. But in a private tutoring session with Claude, Germain crosses an ethical line. And things start to get strange.

Writer-director Ozon is wickedly blurring the line between fact and fiction, as everyone who reads Claude's essays imagines the people in ways that fuel their own fantasies. So events unfold through a variety of perspectives, some of which must surely be imagined, especially as Germain and Claude adjust the characters to reveal hidden secrets. Yes, this brings out the voyeuristic tendencies in all of the characters, and in us as well, since we too are living vicariously through people whose lives seem so much more interesting than ours. Even if they are supposed to be us.

Continue reading: In The House [Dans La Maison] Review

Love Crime [Crime D'Amour] Review

By Rich Cline

Very Good

This French dramatic thriller is so gleefully trashy that it's rather entertaining, as long as you don't try to take it seriously. Sleek and seductive, it's a pungent tale that plays out like a particularly lurid corporate soap. It also gives smart actresses Sagnier and Scott Thomas plenty of juicy material to play with as two women who try to derail each others' lives.

In the Paris office of a multinational corporation, Christine (Scott Thomas) is a fiercely ambitious executive looking for opportunities to advance her career. But then so is her brainy assistant Isabelle (Sagnier). And when Christine passes one of Isabelle's clever ideas off as her own, Isabelle gets even by seducing Christine's boyfriend (Mille) and deploying her assistant (Marquet) on secret missions. From here the manipulative manoeuvring accelerates, as both women try to get the upper hand. And Isabelle seems to be playing a much longer game.

Director Corneau fully indulges in the story's sordid elements, letting both Sagnier and Scott Thomas play up their characters' nasty ambitions as they engage in a vicious tit for tat. Every word and gesture is designed to bring the other one down a notch. As the balance of power shifts back and forth, we are aware that there's a larger plot developing off-screen, so watching it emerge is a lot of fun, especially then there's so much twisted chemistry between these two actresses and the hapless men they use to carry out their evil scheming.

Continue reading: Love Crime [Crime D'Amour] Review

Salmon Fishing In The Yemen Review

By Rich Cline

Good

The heavy hand of a screenwriter (or perhaps novelist) intrudes on an otherwise jaunty, engaging little story, fruitlessly trying to stir up suspense when none was needed. And filmmaker Hallstrom indulges in rather too much sappy sentiment.

Fred (McGregor) is a UK government fishing expert assigned to help a wildly wealthy sheikh (Waked) create a fly-fishing site in the Yemen. Working with the sheikh's financial advisor Harriet (Blunt), Fred struggles to overcome his doubts about the scheme. But he's won over by the fact that the sheikh is both passionate about fishing and has enough cash to achieve the seemingly impossible. As Fred begins to fall for Harriet, he'll need to make a decision about his estranged wife (Stirling), while Harriet's special-services boyfriend (Mison) has gone missing in action.

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Bel Ami Review

By Rich Cline

Good

Guy de Maupassant's 1885 novel was first adapted for the cinema in 1919, and yet the story has some intriguing parallels with European society today. On the other hand, this adaptation never finds its tone, and it doesn't give us a single character to care about.

In 1890 Paris, penniless charmer Georges (Pattinson) has a chance encounter with former comrade Charles (Glenister), who offers him a job as a journalist.

Unable to string a sentence together, Charles' wife Madeleine (Thurman) offers to help, but refuses his relentless flirting. Instead he starts a torrid affair with married family friend Clotilde (Ricci). But a taste of the high life goes to his head, and when Charles dies, he makes a move for Madeleine. Or maybe he can get more out of Virginie (Scott Thomas), wife of the newspaper boss (Meaney).

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The Woman In The Fifth Review

By Rich Cline

Very Good

This intriguing experiment in cinematic disorientation is so well-made that it can't help but pull us into its perplexing narrative. It's a little too vague to be satisfying, but it's thoroughly haunting.

One-time novelist Tom (Hawke) travels from America to Paris to reconnect with his ex-wife (Chuillot) and his 6-year-old daughter (Papillon), but is immediately confronted with a restraining order. He's also robbed of his luggage and left in a cafe on the edge of town, where the waitress (Kulig) and owner (Guesmi) offer him a room and a job as a night watchman. Then he meets the alluring Margit (Scott Thomas) at a literary party, and she begins to take his mind off his troubles.

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Bel Ami Trailer

Georges Duroy is a French non-commissioned officer (NCO) who has just spent three months serving in Algeria, in North Africa. He arrives back in Paris and begins working as a clerk for the next six months, soon becoming penniless. One night, Georges goes to a pub after work and runs into former comrade, Charles Forestier, who is now working as a journalist. After catching up, Forestier offers Georges a job at the publication where he works, which he accepts.

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Salmon Fishing In The Yemen Trailer

Dr. Fred Jones is a middle-aged scientist working for the National Centre for Fisheries Excellence in London. One day, he gets a call from a Harriet Chetwode-Talbot, who works for a sheik. The sheik has had an idea to introduce the British sport of salmon fishing to the Yemen, in the Middle East. However, Fred flatly refuses when meeting with Harriet in London, saying the idea is ridiculous and pointing out that the fish could not survive in the very different environment. He leaves the meeting and the matter is soon forgotten about.

Sometime later, British politicians receive word that a bomb exploded in the Middle East. Politician Bridget Maxwell is reluctant to release the news story, saying that she does not want to make the war on Afghanistan any worse. Instead, she instructs her colleagues to find a positive news story from the Middle East to release. After several failed attempts, they discover plans to introduce salmon fishing in the Yemen.

With pressure from the government, Fred has no choice but to go ahead with the idea and so he travels to the Yemen to meet the sheik and Harriet. During his time there, he discovers to his surprise that the sport is a great success. He also finds himself falling for Harriet. While Fred has always had a dull life, he soon finds himself becoming happier and more relaxed the longer he stays in the Yemen and with Harriet.

Based on the novel of the same name by Paul Torday

Starring: Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas, Amr Waked, Rachael Stirling and Tom Mison

Directed by: Lasse Hallstrom
Written by: Simon Beaufoy (screenplay)
Produced by: Paul Webster

Video - Kristin Scott Thomas Fascinated By France's Involvement In Second World War

British actress Kristin Scott Thomas (Gosford Park; The English Patient; Mission: Impossible) attends a press junket for her new film, Sarah's Key. She discusses how fascinated she was about France's involvement in the Second World War and jokes that her research with her journalist friends was nothing more than a long conversation over a cup of coffee.

Kristin's next project is Only God Forgives, in which she plays a Mafioso godmother. She will be starring alongside The Ides of March actor Ryan Gosling

The Heir Apparent: Largo Winch Trailer

Nerio Winch is a self made multi billionaire. While relaxing on his yacht one day he is pulled to his death by a scuba diver who had been lying in wait. Nerio's death throws his company into financial distress, as Nerio apparently has no living heirs to carry on the business.

Continue: The Heir Apparent: Largo Winch Trailer

Sarah's Key Trailer

In the present day, New York journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to work on an article about the Vel'd'Hiv Roundup of Jews by French authorities in 1942. Julia and her French husband, Bertrand, move to an apartment in Paris, where a Jewish family, the Starzynski's, once lived, until they were rounded up.

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Leaving [Partir] Review

By Rich Cline

Very Good

This fascinating drama puts us in the mind of a deeply flawed person and makes us sympathise completely with her. This is no mean feat, especially when she does some seriously irrational things. But Scott Thomas is so good in the role that she really makes us care.

In southern France, Suzanne (Scott Thomas) is a wife and mother who, bored with her bourgeois life, decides to go back to work. But when beefy builder Ivan (Lopez) arrives to work on her home office, she starts flirting with him. This eventually turns into a lusty affair, and she decides to leave her husband Samuel (Attal) and teen children (Vidal and Broom). But exchanging financial stability for passion isn't easy; when money runs short Samuel tries to exploit her need for security. And things get very messy indeed.

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Nowhere Boy Trailer

Watch the trailer for Nowhere Boy

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Confessions Of A Shopaholic Review

By Bill Gibron

Good

Hollywood has found a new cash cow, though the use of the latter term might get more than a few supposedly chauvinistic critics in trouble. The modern woman, sick of the same old sloppy rom-com rationalizations, has decided to go gourmand. Like Veruca Salt in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, she wants it all and she wants it now. Oh course, back in the '70s, said little girl was considered a brat. Today, she is the reigning glamour queen of conspicuous consumption.

A perfect example of this ideal is Rebecca Bloomwood. The heroine of P.J. Hogan's adaptation of Sophia Kinsella's Confessions of a Shopaholic, this spunky career gal wants a cushy job, a suave boyfriend, an understanding best bud, and an unlimited credit line... and that's just for starters. Only problem is, Rebecca (played with real drive by Isla Fisher) is neck-deep in debt. She just can't stop spending. When her job as a writer for a gardening rag falls through, she applies at the nation's number one fashion magazine. Named after its editor, Alette Naylor (Kristin Scott Thomas), the job represents the completion of all our heroine's career goals. Sadly, she has to settle for a gig writing at Successful Saving, a financial magazine. Oh, irony! Luckily, it's managed by the humble British hunk Luke Brandon (Hugh Dancy).

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Life As A House Review

By Norm Schrager

Good

The good news for George, a middle-aged, washed up architect, is that an enormous life change has motivated him to connect with his horrible teenage son and build a house by the ocean. The bad news is that the change is terminal cancer. The good news for moviegoers is that Irwin Winkler's Life as a House is filled with sharp, solid acting, a decent, sometimes harsh, script, and a few surprises. The bad news is that anything worth seeing here lives within an uneven sap of a film, unable to break free from the traditional Hollywood devices.

But much of Life as a House is completely watchable. Mark Andrus's script (he's written As Good As It Gets and the underrated, rarely seen Late For Dinner) appears cookie-cutter: he gives us the lazy, lonely, eccentric nobody (Kevin Kline); his estranged family, including beautiful ex-wife (Kristin Scott Thomas) and alienated teen (Hayden Christensen); and his predictably uptight neighbors, pissed off that his ramshackle of a house has stood in their beautiful oceanside neighborhood for twenty years.

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Sweet Revenge Review

By Christopher Null

Weak

Supposedly a black comedy, Sweet Revenge gives us Helena Bonham Carter, Sam Niell, and Kristin Scott Thomas in an asinine homage to Hitchcock's Strangers on a Train, with Carter and Neill playing a "game" to drive a nuisance in each other's life over the edge. The comedy is certainly lost with rare exception here, with much of the film playing out while you sit back in your chair, just waiting for some inevitable spin to make it worthwhile in the end. Too bad, there isn't one.

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Four Weddings And A Funeral Review

By Pete Croatto

Excellent

In the spring of 1994, Four Weddings and a Funeral was an international hit, earning an Oscar nomination for Best Picture and turning Hugh Grant into a star. It was the My Big Fat Greek Wedding of its day. There's just one tiny difference. Four Weddings and a Funeral is a far superior movie in just about every way, a funny and stirring look at stumbling toward love and the effect of friendship.

And, there's not a bottle of Windex anywhere to be found.

Continue reading: Four Weddings And A Funeral Review