Answers to Nothing

A Roadside Attractions release of a Cold Iron Pictures presentation an Ambush Entertainment production. Produced by Amanda Marshall, Sim Sarna. Executive producer, Matthew Leutwyler. Directed, edited by Matthew Leutwyler. Screenplay, Leutwyler, Gillian Vigman.With: Julie Benz, Dane Cook, Greg Germann, Zack Gilford, Kali Hawk, Elizabeth Mitchell, Erik Palladino, Barbara Hershey, Miranda Bailey, Vincent Ventresca, Mark Kelly, Tony Denison, Aja Volkman.After a run of genre films and disappointing lit adaptation "The River Why," writer-director Matthew Leutwyler goes for something more personal with "Answers to Nothing." Stitching together a quilt of stories involving disparate Angelenos in the mode of "Magnolia" and "Short Cuts" and myriad other crisscrossers, this somber drama is well crafted and watchable but lacks the distinctive story content, style and standout performances to become more than a serviceable reboot of familiar ideas. With comedian Dane Cook toplining and muted critical support likely, prospects are mild for Dec. 2 launch in 12 U.S. cities. Home-format potential looks more upbeat. The various strands circle around the highly publicized search for a recently vanished 10-year-old suburban girl. Police have questioned a suspicious neighbor (Greg Germann), though viewers are also led to wonder about a creepy schoolteacher (Mark Kelly) who obsesses over the case whenever he's not playing fantasy games online. Likewise living alone in the teacher's apartment building is a cop-in-training (Erik Palladino) dealing with his own hidden issues. Cook plays a therapist who's having an affair with a wild-child musician (Aja Volkman, from band Nico Vega) while glumly withdrawing from his wife (Elizabeth Mitchell), who desperately wants a child. He's further soured by the neediness of his mother (Barbara Hershey), who still insists his father will return after a decade's abandonment. Meanwhile, one of his clients, a TV writer (Kali Hawk), embarks on a tentative romance with a sound technician (Zach Gilford) while battling the internalized racism she's developed from perpetually being the lone African-American in her privileged professional and social situations. At the opposite end of the spectrum, a jobless recovered alcoholic (Miranda Bailey) fights for custody of a brother (Vincent Ventresca) who's braindead from an accident she was involved in. Hatched during a period of soul-searching the director experienced after a divorce, these characters in crisis maintain interest over a fairly long but well-paced narrative haul. Low-key tenor is sacrificed for two climaxes that feel a tad conventional, one a violent conclusion to the kidnapping mystery, the other a triumph-of-human-spirit episode involving a marathon. Cast encompassing several of Leutwyler's regular collaborators is solid, though in truth none of the principal figures is particularly absorbing, sympathetic or three-dimensional. Pic's episodic nature, assortment of issues, and just-modest impact will play best on the smallscreen, where its lack of originality won't seem so conspicuous. Packaging is pro, though the jittery handheld lensing applied by d.p. David Robert Jones feels inapt for these intimate dramatics.Camera (color, HD-to-35mm), David Robert Jones; music, Craig Richey; music supervisor, Michael Becker; production designer, Joe Lemmon; set decorator, Jennifer Lemmon; costume designer, Keri Smith; sound, Eugene Thompson; re-recording mixer, Jeremy Grody; assistant director, Chip Touhey; casting, Michael Testa, Dan Shaner. Reviewed on DVD, San Francisco, Nov. 26, 2011. MPAA Rating: R. Running time: 124 MIN. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Tom Hardy & Chris Nolan Speak About Bane

Tom Hardy speaks for the first time about taking on masked villain Bane in the third Batman installment The Dark Knight Rises. And Christopher Nolan speaks for the first time about Hardy and Bane. The duo gave the interview exclusively to UK’s Empire magazine for a special Batman/Bane edition embargoed until today: Tom Hardy On Bane: Hes brutal, brutal. Hes expedient delivery of brutality. And you know, hes a big dude. Hes a big dude whos incredibly clinical, in the fact that he has a result-based and orientated fighting style. The result is clear. Do you know what I mean? Its: f**k off and die. Quicker. Quicker. Everything is thought out way before. Hes hit you, hes already hit somebody else. Its not about fighting. Its just about carnage with Bane. Hes a smashing machine. Hes a wrecking ball. The style is heavy-handed, heavy-footed, its nasty. Anything from small joint manipulation to crushing skulls, crushing rib cages, stamping on shins and knees and necks and collarbones and snapping heads off and tearing his fists through chests, ripping out spinal columns. Its anything he can get away with. He is a terrorist in his mentality as well as brutal action. So hes horrible. A really horrible piece of work. About filming the fight scenes: Its very overwhelming. When youre training in a rehearsal room you go, Okay, I have a contact with seven people. This guy I chin, this one I slip and I punch, this one I pick up and suplex, this guy I kick in the face, and this one, he stops a hammer with his head. And then I meet Batman. Thats all alright in a rehearsal room, but then you add 1,000 people that are all dressed the same as the seven youre supposed to hit cause theyre all police officers and I dont know where my police officers are. But the stuntmasters like, Dont worry. They will find you. About Christian Bales Batman: He looks really intimidating! Theres a three-year-old in me thats going, Oh my God thats Batman! Thats Batman and hes going to hit me! But I love Batman! Then I look in the mirror. And I hit him back. Twice as hard. Christopher Nolan On Bane: With Bane, we are looking to give Batman a physical challenge that he hasnt had before, says the films director, Christopher Nolan. With our choice of villain and with our choice of story were testing Batman both physically as well as mentally. Also, in terms of finishing our story and increasing its scope, we were trying to craft an epic, so the physicality of the film became very important.Banes a very different kind of villain than Batman has faced before in our films. Hes a great sort of movie monster, but with an incredible brain, and that was a side of him that hadnt been tapped before. Because the stories from the comics are very epic and very evocative very much in the way that Bruce Waynes origin story is epic and evocative. We were looking to really parallel that with our choice of villain. So he is a worthy adversary. What Bane represents in the comics is the ultimate physical villain. Aboutcasting Tom Hardy in the role: He has this incredible disjunct between the expressiveness of the voice and the stillness of the movement of his body. Hes found a way to play a character who is enormous and powerful with a sort of calm to it, but also is able to be incredibly fast at times. Unpredictable. He just has a raw threat to him thats extraordinary. Its a very powerful thing when you see it come together, beyond what I had ever imagined. Thats what you get from working with great actors.

George Clooney and Michelle Williams To Be Honored at the Palm Springs Film Festival

Disney's The Muppets appear to be anything but washed up.our editor recommends'The Muppets': White House Hosting Screening for Military Families (Exclusive)Martin Scorsese Calls Filming 'Hugo' in 3D 'An Enjoyable Headache'The Muppets: Film ReviewHugo: Film ReviewArthur Christmas: Film Review PHOTOS: 'The Muppets' Premiere Red Carpet Arrivals According to box office tracking, the family film holds a safe lead over the other two new Thanksgiving films, Sony and Aardman's Arthur Christmas and Paramount's Hugo, directed by Martin Scorsese. All three films open nationwide on Wednesday, hoping to feast on Thanksgiving holiday traffic. The Muppets, starring Jason Segel and Amy Adams opposite the iconic puppets, is headed for a $40 million or better five day debut. Holdover The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn--Part 1 could win the Thanksgiving box office overall, but Muppets should be able to claim a victorious start for Disney, which made the film for a modest $45 million. VIDEO: Jason Segel, Amy Adams Talk Muppet Purists, Script Tricks and Being 'Too Ambitious' Disney bought the rights to The Muppets in 2004, and returning the puppets to fame has been a priority for Walt Disney Studios chairman Rich Ross, who wants to create a new generation of fans. The studio's marketing division has enlisted the entire Disney empire in plugging the film, as well as arranging a White House screening of the movie for military families on Tuesday that Segel hosted. Arthur Christmas is projected to open in the mid to high teens for the five days. Sony is hopeful that the 3D film will be a slow burn and have strong legs throughout December because of its Christmas theme, and points out it doesn't have the brand recognition that Muppets enjoys since its an original property. Arthur Christmas, which answers the question of how Santa Claus delivers toys all over the world in one night, has already grossed north of $10 in four markets overseas, the bullk of which was earned in the U.K., home of Aardman.This weekend, it continues to roll out overseas, including in Japan, France, Korea and New Zealand. THR COVER STORY: The Dreams of Martin Scorsese It's unclear where Warner Bros. holdover Happy Feet Two will land over the Thanksgiving holiday after opening to a disappointing $21.2 million last weekend. Hugo is Scorsese's first family film, as well as his first 3D title. Produced by Graham King and distributed by Paramount, Hugo--which cost north of $100 million to produce--is expected to open in the low teens for the five days. Paramount has decided to go with a slow roll out, and will only open Hugo in some 1,200 theaters, compared to more than 3,000 locations for Muppets and Arthur Christmas. That's because Hugo is expected to play a bit older than a regular family film, as well as appeal to a more sophisticated audience. By scaling back Hugo's initial footprint, Paramount hopes to ride the wave of good reviews and awards attention as December gets underway, much as it did last year with True Grit, which was released over Christmas, and became a box office success. Hugo isn't alone in sporting rave reviews--in an unusual Thanksgiving twist, The Muppets and Arthur Christmas also are criticial darlings (Muppetsboasted a 100 percent fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.com as of Thursday afternoon). The specialty box office also sees several high-profile debuts. On Wednesday, the Weinstein Co. opens Michelle Williams starrer My Week with Marilyn in 123 theaters in 12 markets before expanding into an additional 61 markets on Friday, bringing the film's total theater count to 224. The smaller roll out on Wednesday is designed to give the film some breathing room from Fox Searchlight's The Descendants, which expands into a total of 400 theaters on Thanksgiving eve. Also on Wednesday, Sony Pictures Classics launches David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method, starring Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley and Viggo Mortensen, in four theaters in NY and Los Angeles. Friday brings the NY-Los Angeles debut of the critically acclaimed French silent film The Artist, which the Weinstein Co. opens in four theaters in those two cities. Related Topics Box Office The Muppets Hugo

'Tinker Tailor' scribe keeps stiff upper lip

"Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" was the last script that Peter Straughan wrote with his wife, Bridget O'Connor, before her death at age 49 after a brief bout with cancer in September 2010, on the very day the film went into production. A year later, Straughan is finally starting to write again. But he's finding it hard to enjoy the acclaim and Oscar buzz around their critically acclaimed distillation of John Le Carre's classic spy novel. "It would have been great if the circumstances were different," he says. "But I see this in a very strange light, because Bridget never saw the film. All I feel is relief that the film turned out well, because it would have been very difficult if people thought the last thing we did together wasn't any good." "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" is dedicated to her memory. So is John Madden's "The Debt," which Straughan wrote a couple of years earlier , with uncredited help from O'Connor. Even when her name wasn't actually on his scripts, he says, they wrote everything together. "She had the downstairs office. I was always popping down and asking whether she'd like a cup of tea, and could she think of a line?" O'Connor was an award-winning writer of plays and short stories. Aside from "Tinker Tailor," her other shared feature credits with Straughan were "Sixty Six" (made by "Tinker Tailor" producer Working Title) and "Mrs. Ratcliffe's Revolution." Straughan also wrote "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People" and "The Men Who Stare at Goats." That script, adapted from Jon Ronson's nonfiction book about the CIA, made Straughan's reputation in Hollywood long before the movie was made, even though the finished film didn't quite live up to the promise of his screenplay. He and O'Connor were hired to adapt the Le Carre novel after Working Title abandoned a previous attempt by Peter Morgan, who retains an exec producer credit. They started afresh, rewatching the iconic BBC TV series, and then digging back into the book, with the encouragement of Le Carre to alter whatever they felt necessary. In fact, Le Carre helped them with some of the biggest changes. They invented a Christmas party scene, inspired by an anecdote Le Carre told them over lunch about an actual MI6 party that got so boisterous the police were called to shut it down. When Straughan and O'Connor decided to switch the opening ambush from a forest to a shopping arcade, Le Carre advised them on exactly how the KGB would have mounted such a sting. "When the author is so free with his own material, it makes it much easier to adapt, but we tried to stay as faithful to the book as we could within a 120-page script," Straughan says. "Most of the original material in this film came from Bridget. She was a very original and imaginative writer, whereas I'm much more the editor, the shaper." Perhaps the script's greatest achievement is to keep the pacing unhurried for a story with so much plot and so many characters. "There were bad versions we didn't want to make, with a lot of MTV editing speed to fit as much as possible in," Straughan says. "We felt it was more important to keep the autumnal tone, to leave that space, that air in the script, than to pack all the plot in."Asked how it feels to write without O'Connor, Straughan answers simply, "I don't know how it will be. I'm just getting started. I didn't do any work for a year. My whole life has changed on so many levels." He has recently resumed work on a couple of projects that have been waiting patiently for his return for the past year. "Frank," a script co-written with Ronson, is loosely inspired by Ronson's experience as a guitarist for cult comedy pop act Frank Sidebottom, who performed wearing a papier-mache head to make him look like a cartoon character. Backed by Film4, with Irish helmer Lenny Abrahamson onboard to direct, the project is casting to shoot next year. The script is reportedly sparking interest among Hollywood stars. Straughan is also adapting John Crowley's sci-fi novella "Great Work of Time" for Film4 and producer Stephen Woolley. After that, he has signed to adapt Hilary Mantel's Booker Prize-winning historical novel "Wolf Hall" as a TV series for HBO and the BBC. George Clooney and Grant Heslov's Smokehouse is looking for a director for another Straughan script, "Our Brand Is Crisis," based on the true story of the Washington spin doctors who worked on the Bolivian presidential campaign. And Straughan also wants to direct. In June 2010, just before O'Connor fell seriously ill, he directed a short, "Gee Gee," which he adapted from a John Cheever story. He has an idea for an original screenplay that Film4 is encouraging him to direct. n Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

'Game of Thrones' RPG Coming 2012

Now you'll have the ability to eliminate all of your favorite figures yourself! A completely new action-RPG based on George R.R. Martin's hit fantasy series, starting with "Wager on Thrones," is striking PC after which generation consoles noisy . 2012. French designers Cyanide Art galleries have released a couple of screen shots for his or her blog. From the design of the grabs, it game will pull more from Martin's books as opposed to the Cinemax series, so sadly, you won't like to see an Eddard Stark that seems like Sean Bean. What you need to recognize might be the snowy landscape and dirty searching brutes. Cyanide launched their first "Wager on Thrones" game this fall, a technique game referred to as "Wager on Thrones: Genesis." MTV Geek has more in news reports.

Dancing With the Stars: J.R. Is On Top Again

JR Martinez J.R. Martinez may now be impossible to beat. The actor and Iraqi war vet and his pro partner, Karina Smirnoff, had the Dancing With the Stars audience on their feet even before they finished their first dance Monday night. It was as if they wrapped the ballroom in a hug, dancing an elegant, electrifying waltz to "What the World Needs Now."What viewers didn't see, as Martinez and Smirnoff skipped up the stairs to the skybox for their post-dance interview with Brooke Burke Charvet, was the rare sight of head judge Len Goodman getting to his feet, giving the charismatic Martinez his own standing ovation as the crowd continued to cheer. "He just makes you feel good to be around him," said host Tom Bergeron, another big fan."He reminds me of myself," joked Romeo, the young actor and rapper who came in fifth last season. "If I was a little bit better." Romeo was in the audience, and Martinez came over to him directly after the show to give him a hug. "I'm getting my sexiness from Romeo," said Martinez.The fact is that Martinez, a frontrunner from Week 1, took it harder than he likes to let on when he fell to fourth place last week. He was very down on himself, exposing a chink in the armor of a man who has overcome so much through the power of positive thinking. "We were tired last week, and things didn't click," explained Smirnoff. "And that pushed us to work harder this week."And what a difference seven days makes, with Martinez scoring the first perfect 30 score of the season - and then doing it again when he danced the "Insta-Dance" jive. "Coming back from last week, I really wanted to make an impression on the judges and everybody," said Martinez. "Let them know that last week's tango was a one-time thing. I said to myself, 'I'm gonna work my butt off.' And I think it showed tonight."It didn't hurt that the cameras caught sight of men in uniform seated in the audience, hooting and howling for Martinez. How could anybody vote against that?Subscribe to TV Guide Magazine now!

'Michael Jackson' Documentary Producer David Gest Comments On Conrad Murray Trial

Lengthy-time personal friend of Michael Jackson, David Gest, hasn't been quiet about his opinions if this involves the late artist. A brand new documentary, "Michael Jackson: The Existence of the Icon," which Gest created, attacks the costs of child molestation mind on and defends the legacy from the legendary singer. With a verdict imminent within the wrongful death situation against Jackson's former physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, Gest required a while to speak to MTV News concerning the trial and why he states he has not been following it. "I've found it way too hard to look at,Inch Gest told MTV News. Gest and Jackson had spent a lot of their early lives as very close buddies, which connection is exactly what makes the trial so desperately. "I understood Michael so well which i just think it is way too hard to look at.Inch Though he has not looked at, Gest certainly wasn't short on his opinion of Murray's guilt and what should happen using the trial. "I believe it is extremely black and whitened," Gest stated. "One, he provide him a drug measuring only to become given inside a hospital with nurses the ones around to consider proper care of him. It had been illegal to achieve that, and that he did that. Point blank. Now he needs to spend the money for effects." The complicated particulars from the trial haven't clouded Gest's feelings concerning the crime which was allegedly committed. He stated he thinks the problem is a straightforward one. "I do not worry about all of the he stated, she stated. If everyone could give drugs to anybody once they desired to when they are not said to be given outdoors a hospital, we'd have many people in very, very sick and ill situations and dying," Gest stated. "This is exactly why a physician should really administer things through the law and just how it's said to be governed by hospitals by what the law states from the U . s . States. He did not stick to the law, point blank. Now you have for him to pay for his dues. He needs to visit jail." A jury is scheduled to come back a verdict today (November 7). Stay updated to MTV News for particulars because they emerge.

Puerto Rico bows one-stop look for production

Puerto Rico's public and private film industries have banded together to produce a u . s ., one-stop shop to advertise local and worldwide productions around the island, that they are starting in the AFM. Reps in Santa Monica include co-chairs entertainment lawyer Antonio Sifre and producer Luillo Ruizm unit production manager Rosi Acosta, Film commissioner Mariella Perez Serrano and Puerto Rico's assistant secretary of commerce, Carlos F. Amy. The Puerto Rico Industry Cluster, brought by executive director Glorimar Marrero Sanchez, is spinning within the co-operation of hotels, city halls, museums and ancillary services. Among its key goals would be to organize training courses for ambitious film students and helmers in addition to strengthen Puerto Rico's presence at film and television marketplaces and fests. The initiative occurs the heels of the recently broadened film law that grows the present 40% tax credit on local expenses of film and television projects to incorporate advertisements, music videos, live performances and non-fiction TV programs. Law also introduced a brand new 20% tax credit for non-resident on-screen talent. "We view a rise in queries and programs, especially TV advertisements," stated Perez Serrano who suggested that the major studio pic is placed to film around the island. "We're beginning to obtain queries for locations apart from beaches," stated Amy, who needs to announce the making of major seem procedures in the approaching several weeks. Contact the range newsroom at news@variety.com

Business matters

'Winter's Bone'The fest's Industry Days (November. 16-18) involve Work happening tests of 10 incomplete Scandinavian films. This Years selection includes Lasse Hallstrom's first Swedish movie in 24 years, "The Hypnotherapist" "Comrade" by helmer Petter Naess and "Quick Money 2."Each year around 15-20 game game titles are acquired for distribution.With 900 accredited journalists from 52 nations, the fest also provides a considerable worldwide impact. Fest topper Git Scheynius states when Chinese TV did research on Scandinavian cinema within the festival couple of years ago, it led to many new Sino connections for local filmmakers.The fest also functions just like a launchpad for worldwide films, and particularly for U.S. indies, in Sweden. Debra Granik's "Winter's Bone" was the big prize champion a year ago, acquiring best film and actress, and Sweden ended up as that pic's second-finest territory worldwide.Scheynius states U.S indies directed by women, for instance "Winter's Bone," aided to inspire the fest's decision to create its own production fund dedicated to new Swedish female company company directors.STOCKHOLM Worldwide FILM FESTIVAL Scandis fund femme visions Business matters Swedish muscle Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com

'Mirror Mirror': Untitled Snow White Film Finally Gets Title

If you've ever wanted to hear your voice in a blockbuster movie, composer Hans Zimmer is finally giving you the chance. Zimmer, who's written scores for 'The Lion King' and 'Inception,' is currently writing the music for next summer's 'The Dark Knight Rises,' and he recently posted a note on UJam asking fans of the 'Batman' series to make their own contributions. You can read Zimmer's full offer ahead. We need to hear your voices! Now and Loud! We are creating the sound of a worldwide chant. Everyone come and be part of it. It's easy: There is no such thing as out-of-tune, no timing we can't fix later. If you mumble, growl, scream or whisper, it's all good. Make it yours. If you only get halfway through, no problem! Do it alone, bring your friends, but do it with energy and commitment. Let your voice be heard and be a part of our adventure!" It's not clear how Zimmer plans on compiling what's sure to be thousands of voices into one coherent score, but considering the reputation he has a composer, you can assuming he'll be able to figure it out. Also, if it sounds anything like the example recording on Ujam does (which was the track first heard when the cryptic 'Dark Knight Rises' viral site launched), it's going to be fairly creepy. 'The Dark Knight Rises' opens on July 20, 2012. 'The Dark Knight Rises' Hits NY See All Moviefone Galleries » [via Collider] Follow Moviefone on Twitter Like Moviefone on Facebook

Ethan Zohn's Cancer Returns

Ethan Zohn Ethan Zohn's cancer has came back.The first kind Survivor champion was identified having a rare type of Hodgkin's lymphoma last year coupled with experienced remission since April 2010. Doctors told him from the relapse on Sept. 14. "It's localized during my bronchi,Inch Zohn informs People. "But it is good it's not every over my body system.InchExamine out photos of Ethan ZohnOn March. 18, Zohn, 37, started a "wise" type of chemotherapy that only targets cancerous cells, and that he won't lose his hair again. After 12 days of treatment, he hopes to endure another stem-cell transplant in one of his siblings - but doctors will not simply tell him which. "They did not want me to begin dealing with one in a different way compared to other," he states. "Obviously my whole household is taking bets on who it's.InchZohn states his girlfriend and Amazing Race partner, fellow Survivor champion Jenna Morasca, continues to be "taking it such as the rock star that they is."Amazing Race's Ethan and Jenna: We prefer Survivor"We are both full of fear and anger and anxiety and gratitude and frustration. There is however a lot love there," he states. "It's this complete spectrum of feelings."Determined to not allow the not so good news slow him lower, Zohn still intends to run Sunday's NY City Marathon to boost money for Grassroot Soccer, his nonprofit organization that encourages Aids/Helps education."I would like individuals to know that you could still live a satisfied existence and move ahead,Inch he states.

Watch Michelle Williams Shimmy, Shake and Sing in My Week With Marilyn Clip

You may not be able to see My Week With Marilyn until Thanksgiving, but you can watch Michelle Williams channel the Hollywood bombshell right now. In a song and dance clip courtesy of our friends at Moviefone, the probable Oscar contender shimmies and shakes out a rendition of Irving Berlin’s “Heat Wave” in sequins. The temperature rises ahead. If you’re looking for a sudsy, slightly spoilery Marilyn clip, look no further than The Playlist. Simon Curtis’s Monroe biopic, set during the production of The Prince and the Showgirl, opens in theaters November 23. [via Moviefone] Follow Julie Miller on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.