ENTER TO WIN A DOUBLE PASS TO SEE "LAWLESS" IN TORONTO

Official Artwork for Lawless

Mr. Will-W.:Pop Maven &Alliance Films are thrilled to give Readers a chance to win a Double Pass to see Lawless, starring Gary Oldman, Guy Pearce, Tom Hardy, Shia Labeouf, Mia Wasikowska and Jessica Chastain.

In the mountains of Franklin County, Virginia, the Bondurant Brothers are the stuff of legend. Times are tough and jobs are scarce, but the Bondurants are Entrepreneurs and have built a thriving local business by concocting an intense and popular brand of moonshine. But Franklin County’s bootlegging days are about to end with the arrival of Special Deputy Charlie Rakes (Guy Pearce) from Chicago. The new “law” Rakes brings is lethal and corrupt and will challenge everything the brothers have built and represent. Determined to do whatever is necessary to fight for what is theirs, the Bondurants take up arms and confront the corrupt forces of the law in a faceoff to determine who controls the wettest county in the World.

The Screening takes place in Toronto, Monday, August 27, 2012.

To enter, click "like" on this Post at Mr. Will-W.:Pop Maven on Facebook. You should also be following on Twitter too!  Your deadline is Friday, August 24, 2012.

Watch the Trailer for Lawless here.

Alliance Films releases Lawless on Wednesday, August 29, 2012.

(Photo credit: Alliance Films)

MIA WASIKOWSKA & MICHAEL FASSBENDER AT NEW YORK PREMIERE OF "JANE EYRE"

Mia Wasikowska & Michael Fassbender at Jane Eyre Premiere

The New York Premiere of Jane Eyre was held tonight at the Tribeca Grand Hotel, but not after a bit of a kerfuffle. Apparently, the Screening was to happen at the Soho Grand Hotel, but due to leaks in information, the location had to be changed at the last minute.

Stars Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender arrived in style, doing the rounds and posing together on the Red Carpet. Doesn't Wasikowska look perfect in Elie Saab? This more than makes up for her absence this past Awards season where she was nowhere to be found, sadly.

Fassbender was rumoured to be in Toronto filming Sir Ridley Scott's Prometheus, although this has been verified as false information.

Click here to see the complete Photo Collection at Zimbio by Stephen Lovekin of Getty Images.

(Photo credit: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)

CAST OF "THE SOCIAL NETWORK" HONOURED AT HOLLYWOOD AWARDS GALA

The Social Network's Rashida Jones, Josh Pence, Jesse Eisenberg,
,Justin Timberlake, Max Minghella and Andrew Garfield

Congratulations to the cast of David Fincher's The Social Network who were honoured at the Beverly Hilton last night for the 14th annual Hollywood Awards Gala.  And Awards season still hasn't begun yet! The Actors won the  Ensemble Acting Award and my guess is that they're likely to win the Screen Actor's Guild Award for Best Ensemble Cast on Sunday, January 30, 2011 too.

Other Actors honoured last night include:

DANIEL CRAIG CONFIRMED FOR U.S. VERSION OF THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

OMG. They're practically Twins.  Daniel Craig has been confirmed to play the role of disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist in the American adaptation of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.  The role was played originally by Swedish actor Michael Nyqvist in the Millennium Trilogy.  As you're all aware the amazing David Fincher will be directing the first instalment of the series.

Of course, casting for the edgy starring role of Lisabeth Sander is still up in the air with Carey Mulligan no longer among the candidates.  Rumoured actresses up for the role at this point in casting include Ellen Page, Mia Wasikowska and Rooney Mara according to Entertainment Weekly.  Expect them to throw us for a loop and cast someone obscure.  Sneaky.

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT REVIEW

Director/Screenwriter Lisa Cholodenko's The Kids Are All Right is an actor's dream come true - the type of opportunity that comes rarely with meaty, well-developed stories and multi-layered characters.

Annette Bening (Nic) and Julianne Moore (Jules) are a perfect pairing as a Lesbian couple who raise two children together who were conceived via artificial insemination. Mia Wasikowska (Joni) and Josh Hutcherson (Laser) play the children who go on a search, without their mothers' knowing, successfully locate their biological father, sexy Mark Ruffalo (Paul). Normally the stories end there, and rarely do stories ever touch upon what really happens after the Reunion has passed; Cholodenko goes there totally. What changes are there dynamically when a family which has not had a Father Figure, suddenly has one?

REVIEW: TIM BURTON'S ALICE IN WONDERLAND

Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is a gorgeous visual spectacle. Although fantasy films aren't exactly my favourite genre of film, watching this in 3-D (my very first time) was simply breathtaking.

The film is based on Lewis Carroll's books Alice in Wonderland, in addition to Through The Looking Glass. The story begins in Alice's (newcomer Mia Wasikowska) late teens, where she finds herself at a party in which she is to become engaged to Hamish (Leo Bill). She of course has absolutely no desire to marry him and escapes to Wonderland once again, lost and in danger at the hands of the evil Red Queen, acted to perfection by Helena Bonham-Carter. Along her journey, Alice is reunited with old friends including Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp), Cheshire Cat (Stephen Fry) and Blue Caterpillar (Alan Rickman) whom are all there to protect her in uniting Alice with the good White Queen (Anne Hathaway). There is of course, a sibling rivalry between Red Queen and White Queen and in the end Alice acting as the White Queen's champion, is pitted against the Red Queen's champion, The Jabberwocky.  But does she believe in herself enough to control her own destiny?

Although there are some riveting CGI graphics and very strong performances by the outstanding ensemble cast, all eyes just gravitate to Helena Bonham-Carter as the bulbous-headed Red Queen. Depp is curiously charming as Mad Hatter and Hathaway, whom I absolutely adore, is simply out-acted in this film perhaps confusing the true essence of White Queen in her exaggerated prissiness.  Wasikowska exceeds all expectations as the film's star and certainly has a bright future ahead of her.

Let's be honest though - the narrative is far from perfect. There are many gaps in the back story of sibling rivalry between White Queen and Red Queen. Above this, many of the characters who appear in the story, which carries on Alice's legacy in her late teens already have a history with her which Burton assumes all know, which might be hasty. There are just enough details given in Alice in Wonderland to give the audience the gist of what Lewis Carroll's treasured stories are all about. In the end though, the true message of the story is timeless and important to young people: to live their lives on their own terms and to always make decisions for themselves.

DISNEY FIGHTS FOR EARLY DVD RELEASE OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND

According to Variety Magazine, there is a bit of an uproar brewing between Disney and theatre owners over Alice in Wonderland, due in theatres March 5, 2010.  Disney is pushing for the DVD release of the film to be bumped up from the standard 16 weeks to just 12 weeks.  This move raised some concerns with theatre owners as they were unclear to whether or not it was Disney's intention to negotiate a new standard for all their releases. 

As negotiations continued, Disney had an opportunity to clarify that they are in fact only lobbying for their studio to be granted at most, one or two advanced DVD releases a year.  Other studios are likely to follow Disney's lead as this will likely set a new precedent for DVD release schedules.  

This of course, raises many concerns as shortening theatrical runs for blockbusters like Alice in Wonderland could adversely impact Box Office grosses.  On the other hand though, this might increase revenue for movie studios which in turn might mean they will have more money to invest in a wider selection of films in the long term.  Or perhaps, movie-goers might feel the pressure and actually go out to see films closer to their actual release dates.  

What do you think?  Are DVD releases of films generally coming too far after their theatrical releases?

VANITY FAIR - HOLLYWOOD'S NEW "IT GIRLS"

.... and a warm welcome goes to Hollywood's newest batch of "It Girls".  These photos above, taken by Annie Leibowitz will be appearing in the March 2010 issue of Vanity Fair and Evgenia Peretz does a brief profile on each of these talented young actresses.

Sasha Stone at one of my favourite blogs Awards Daily, really nailed it on the head though - there are no minorities in this group of actresses.  The Huffington Post made a similar observation.  Is Hollywood really progressing enough to cast actors who are truly indicative of America's social reality?  Or has a wider ethnic spectrum of talent been excluded in this photo shoot?

Included in the group are:

• Carey Mulligan who is getting a lot of Oscar buzz for her breakthrough performance in An Education. I did have the opportunity to meet her last fall at TIFF and she is absolutely delightful.
• Kristen Stewart, star of Twilight and A New Moon.  Her next film in theatres this March is The Runaways, which has her playing rock legend Joan Jett.
• Amanda Seyfried, best known perhaps for her ability to predict weather with her boobs in Mean Girls and for starring alongside Meryl Streep in Mamma Mia.  I also got to meet her a TIFF this past September and she's another sweetheart. Her latest tear-jerker Dear John is also poised to debut big at the Box Office.
• Abbie Cornish, who is getting a bit of Oscar buzz for her turn in Bright Star.
• Rebecca Hall who gave us a wow one-two punch with strong performances in Woody Allen's Vicky Christina Barcelona and then Frost/Nixon.  Love her.
• Emma Stone who was hilarious in The House Bunny as a "sacrificed virgin" and also in Box Office champ Zombieland.
• Anna Kendrick, star of Twilight and Best Supporting Actress contender for her role alongside George Clooney in Up in the Air.  I was inches away from her at TIFF, but had no idea who she was at that point :(
• Evan Rachel Wood, who hasn't quite exceeded the promise she showed in Catherine Hardwicke's Thirteen, but is still undeniably one of the best in her generation.
• Mia Wasikowska, whom I have seen only briefly in failed Amelia Earheart biopic Amelia, but her upcoming starring role in Alice in Wonderland almost guarantees that she will be a big star.

Click here to read the rest of Peretz's write-up.  What I'm really excited to see though is Leibowitz's annual Oscar contender portraits, which will also be featured in the issue.