Hitchcock: Psycho and The Man Behind the Camera

His influence on Hollywood horror, suspense, and thriller films is legendary, so much so that he’s been dubbed “The Master of Suspense.”  He worked with hundreds of famous names during the production of his movies, acting and producing talent alike.  His name is known worldwide.  And yet no one thought to make a movie about this great man as a director and person.

Now we’re getting two of them; Hitchcock and The Girl –  We’re only concerned with the first one for now though…

Directed by Sacha Gervasi, Hitchcock will get a limited release in U.S. theaters this November.  Starring Sir Anthony Hopkins as Alfred Hitchcock and Helen Mirren as his wife Alma Reville, the film follows the story of Hitchcock and his wife as he struggles to make the movie Psycho in 1959.  As if Hopkins and Mirren are not going to be enough joy to watch on-screen, they are joined by Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh, Jessica Biel as Vera Miles, and James D’Arcy as Anthony Perkins; who of course played Norman Bates.

Hitchcock is supposedly going to be “a love story”, but we’re guessing from the trailer there will be a lot more to the film than hearts and kisses.

Hitchcock has elements of not just love between Hitchcock and Reville, but also some delightful hints of an underdog story.  According to Hollywood history, most people thought Hitchcock was mad to try a “low-class” horror film like Psycho, a situation which this trailer clearly exemplifies.  In addition, we see the typical struggle between an artist determined to go after his passion of creating a film and the producers and accountants who insist that it will be a financial flop.

Judging from the trailer, this film appears to have something everyone will enjoy.  There’s the relationship between Hitchcock and his wife for the romance lovers, and there’s the business and social tensions that arise around Hitchcock’s decisions for those of us who love a good drama.  Even more than that, though, will be the nostalgia this film brings to all film buffs.  Oh, and let’s not forget the dry British humor Hopkins already delivers so well in the three short minutes of the trailer.

Seriously, the breasts are there for a reason, darling.

Make sure to add Hitchcock to your list of movies to see this year — fortunately, you won’t have to wait very long.  In the meantime, check out this PSA in theatres now that Hopkins filmed as Hitchcock, begging movie-goers to avoid cell phone usage during films:

What We Know About ‘Red 2’

After the critical and box office smash that was 2010’s Red, fans of the original film are getting excited about the upcoming 2013 sequel, Red 2. Bringing back most of the original cast plus some excellent additions, the Red series is turning out to be a geriatric version of The Expendables, which is pretty geriatric on its own.

The sequel was announced in January of 2011, with the entire original cast settling negotiations by later that year. Since then, numerous actors have been signed on to the project including Catherine Zeta-Jones, Lee Byung-hun, David Thewlis (Professor Lupin from the Harry Potter movies), and even Anthony Hopkins. Dean Parisot, who directed the brilliant Galaxy Quest but the so-so Fun With Dick and Jane, signed on to direct, which both increased and decreased the film’s potential simultaneously. If science proves to be true, that means absolutely no change was made to the film’s potential. Moving on.

As of right now, not much is known about the film except that the gang reunites to face new enemies in Europe. With that being said, I doubt the setting and plot of the film will play much of a factor into its level of adrenaline-fueled fun. I’ll admit, I was one of the people who was initially disappointed by Red when I first saw it in theaters back in 2010. Maybe the humongous age gap between me and the central characters played a part in it, but I can honestly say I walked out before Helen Mirren made it on-screen.

But after re-watching it, Red proved to be quality action cinema. The Expendables with a little more brain and about 50 collective years of age added to its cast. Red is a fun flick that will hopefully spawn a halfway decent sequel. I’m a huge Dean Parisot fan and I’m sure that, unlike Simon West’s directorial contribution to The Expendables 2, he’ll find a great way to either improve or reinvent the material of the original film, which rested mostly in the surprise that came from Helen Mirren shooting a .50 cal, among other things.

Sadly, Ernest Borgnine’s passing will prevent him from participating in the film, but I’m interested to see how the recent additions to the cast will play against the original members of the group. One thing that really relieved me was how the casting focused on talent as opposed to the biggest names in Hollywood. Ladies, I’m sorry to say that one of the Hemsworth bros will, in fact, not be participating in Red 2. As talented as they both are, Liam felt really out-of-place in Expendables 2, and he successfully out acted everyone in the cast except for Jason Statham.

Getting back on track, Red 2 is probably going to be a cool flick. Though somewhere deep down I hoped to see Richard Jenkins attached to this somehow. Anything that guy touches turns to old, I mean, gold. Thinking about it, wouldn’t it be funny if the cast of Red and the cast of The Expendables 2 teamed up for one giant movie. It’d be almost too much for one screen to handle. Then again, Bruce Willis would literally have to play Frank Moses and Mr. Church in the same movie. Double the Willis, double the disdain for humanity. I can see it now.

Check out the first Red 2 poster below:

Hitchcock Biography: Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Red Forman and The Karate Kid

A Hitchcock Biography sounds like a perfect idea for a film. The man was a genius, with over 60 titles to his credit he gave us such classics as Psycho, Rear Window, North by Northwest, The Birds, and Vertigo. He was a truly brilliant filmmaker. The folks at Left Hand Horror give the official press release from Fox Searchlight. In it  they say that principal photography began April 13th. The film stars Anthony Hopkins as Hitchcock. The cast also includes Academy Award® winner Helen Mirren as Hitchcok’s wife. The ever beautiful Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Biel, Toni Collette of Little Miss Sunshine and Sixth Sense fame, and to round it all off we also have Red Forman (Kurtwood Smith) and Daneilson (Ralph Macchio), who most likely will have something to do involving boots and asses.