LEE DANIELS' "THE PAPERBOY" OFFICIAL TRAILER

Still from The Paperboy

Perhaps the most intriguing TIFF 2012 Film which still has yet to be announced. Zac Efron Fans, scroll to the 1:39 mark. That is all.

This already is looking like my favourite Film of 2012. It's got sizzling Drama, real Transformations and burning Intensity. Kidman. McConaughey. Cusack. Efron. Delicious.

Check out this just-released Trailer for Lee Daniels' (Precious) The Paperboy:

64TH PRIMETIME EMMY AWARD NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

The Judges of NBC's The Voice

The 64th Primetime Emmy Award Nominees have been announced and indeed Television has stepped-up its game with field upon field of tough competition in each category. This year we see the return of AMC's Mad Men after a lengthy absence and it is a force to be reckoned with Elisabeth Moss, Jon Hamm, Christina Hendricks and even the underrated Jared Harris being recognized for their superb work. HBO's Comedy, Girls, also is a force to be reckoned with, getting nods for Outstanding Comedy Series and Lead Actress in a Comedy with Lena Dunham. 

ABC's Modern Family once again is well-represented with all four of its male Stars, Ty Burrell, Ed O'Neill, Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson all up against each other for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Kristen Wiig stands a v. good chance at winning in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actress for her work on NBC's Saturday Night Live with this past season having been her finale one.

Julianne Moore is up against her The Hours Co-star Nicole Kidman for Outstanding Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie for her portrayal of Sarah Palin in HBO's Game Change, while the latter is being recognized for her work in HBO's Hemingway & Gellhorn.  Ashley Judd somehow is angled into the same category for her work in Missing which after its cancellation, is now being considered a Miniseries? Girl, please.

Interestingly, NBC's The Voice is nominated in the category of Outstanding Reality Program, while the Godfather in the genre, FOX's American Idol fails to get any recognition from the Academy.  The two programs have had v. public feuds in the Media in the past with Idol's Randy Jackson having called its Foe, "second-rate".

Click here for a full list of Nominees.

(Photo credit: NBC)

NICOLE KIDMAN IN "THE PAPERBOY"

Still from The Paperboy

This Still of Nicole Kidman from The Paperboy looking pretty much like a Hooker is why I am a devout Fan of hers for life.  She lives, breathes and emanates everything that it means to be a real Star and despite a few missteps following Moulin Rouge, The Hours and maybe even Fur, her Oscar-nominated performance in 2010's Rabbit Hole has ours attentions once again.

My Inside Sources are telling me pretty much that the Film will be at TIFF 2012 come September and for those who don't know, Lee Daniels (Precious) directs this Drama about a Reporter named Ward (Matthew McConaughey) and his younger Brother Jack (Zac Efron) who investigate a Murder in hopes of exonerating a Man on Death Row (John Cusack).  If that list of Notables doesn't excite you, then I truly don't know what will.  Although Reviews are somewhat mixed at this point, it did receive a Standing Ovation at Cannes in May.

Although this little Teaser doesn't reveal much, here's a taste of The Paperboy:

NICOLAS CAGE AT TIFF 2011 FOR "TRESPASS"

Nicolas Cage at TIFF 2011 Premiere of Trespass

Despite being a two-time Academy Award winner and bona fide Megastar Nicolas Cage graced the Red Carpet at Roy Thomson Hall last night for Joel Schumacher's new Thriller Trespass.  Despite drizzling rain, Cage was a great sport working the crowd with Autographs and Photos from start to finish, after arriving early.

Cage stars as a wealthy Businessman named Kyle who has fallen on tougher times.  He and his his Wife Sarah (Nicole Kidman) and Daughter Avery (Liana Liberato) are taken hostage in their own home but as the Story unfolds, we learn of these Extortionists different motives - some more personal than others.  Will Kyle and his Family be able to outsmart their Captors as secrets are unveiled along the way, or will they lose it all including their lives if their demands are left unsatisfied?

CONDÉ NAST & UNIQLO "SAVE JAPAN!T-SHIRTS"

Karl Lagerfeld Save Japan!T-Shirt

Show your support for Japan's ongoing Disaster Relief by purchasing a limited edition Save Japan!T-Shirt from Japanese Fashion retailer Uniqlo and Publisher Condé Nast, featuring designs by an array of Celebrities.

The likes of Lady Gaga, Victoria Beckham, Nicole Kidman, Karl Lagerfeld, Blake Lively, Charlize Theron, Cyndi Lauper and more contributed designs for the Initiative.  I myself am quite fond of Lagerfeld's design! For $19 US plus Shipping, you too can show your support.

Click here to see more.

(Photo credit: Uniqlo)

"W" MAGAZINE'S BEST PERFORMANCES OF THE YEAR PORTRAITS

Natalie Portman in W Magazine

I quite literally screamed when I saw these Photos.  Lynn Hirschenberg sits down with  the major Oscar contenders of 2011 in the February issue of W Magazine with stunning Photography by Inez Van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin.  The Photos are astounding.  

Interestingly we learn that my new favourite Natalie Portman is a huge fan of Dirty Dancing admitting, "I always loved Penny, probably because I was really like Baby. I was a Jewish girl from a Jewish family, so of course I liked the tall, skinny blond girl.”

Jeff Bridges reveals shockingly that he is a huge fan of the quirky Gay-themed Comedy Chuck & Buck, telling Hirschenberg, "I thought the best performance of the last decade was Mike White in Chuck & Buck.  I dug that performance."

A PLEA FOR NICOLE KIDMAN IN "RABBIT HOLE"

Nicole Kidman at TIFF 2010

With all the attention Natalie Portman and Black Swan are getting in the race for Best Actress at the Oscars next February, I thought I'd do a little championing of a deserving Candidate in Nicole Kidman.  I saw Rabbit Hole a second time tonight and feel strongly about her work here really.  Love you too Annette Bening, but this time around Nicole upstaged you even.

In my opinion, Kidman's performance is even stronger than her portrayal of Virginia Woolf in The Hours, for which she actually won an Oscar in 2003.  She nails it absolutely in a pitch-perfect performance.  It's such a shame that this Film had to come out this year, as in any other year she would be the Toast of the Town.  

If you haven't had a chance to see Rabbit Hole yet, please do yourself a favour and see it. You'll be pleasantly surprised - you'll laugh, cry and feel watching her as Becca, a Woman coping with the loss of her four year-old Son in an accident.

Although I posted my review back in September after seeing it at TIFF, I thought I'd re-post it again seeing that some momentum is building for the Film.  Click here to read it.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)

NICOLE KIDMAN AND AARON ECKHART AT APPLE STORE, SOHO FOR "RABBIT HOLE"

Aaron Eckhart and Nicole Kidman at Apple Store, SoHo

One of my favourite films of 2010 definitely is Rabbit Hole and since I reviewed it here back in September at TIFF, the Drama is getting lots of positive buzz, especially for its Producer/Star Nicole Kidman.  Just two weeks ago it was announced that she would be receiving the Santa Barbara International Film Festival's Cinema Vanguard Award on February 5, 2011 based on her performance.

With promotions in high gear now, Kidman and co-star Aaron Eckhart made an appearance at New York City's Apple Store, SoHo as part of their Meet the Filmmaker series.  God, I wish I were there as our Apple Stores here in Toronto barely have enough room for standing - let alone room to host an event of this magnitude!  And I came oh-so-close to getting a picture with Kidman in Toronto, until her Publicist pulled her away.  I will never forget.  

Other upcoming appearances in the Meet the Filmmaker series include Director David O. Russell for The Fighter, Sofia Coppola for Somewhere and Derek Cianfrance for Blue Valentine.  

Read my review here for Rabbit Hole, which opens in Limited Release on December 17, 2010.

Zimbio posted lots of great shots of both Kidman and Eckhart last night.  Click here to see more.

(Photo credit: Zimbio/WireImage)

NEW STILL FROM "TRESPASS" - NICOLE KIDMAN & CAM GIGANDET

Still from Trespass

Occasionally some Stills from an upcoming movie get released and I get excited and this one sure looks good (other than for the obvious reasons).  Nicole Kidman and Nicolas Cage are paired together as Sarah and Kyle, a wealthy couple in Joel Schumacher's latest project Trespass.  The Thriller sees a wealthy couple who are held for ransom by four men, but as the situation becomes more desperate, a story of Betrayal is unravelled.  Oh yes.  

Just putting it out there, that if you're a Burglar and you look like Burlesque's Cam Gigandet, who plays the role of Jonah, you're more than welcome to help yourself to whatever Snacks are in the cupboard.  Thanks.

Schumacher has been quiet of late but when he is working on something you can almost be certain that it's great and suspenseful.  Veronica Guerin and Phone Booth are two of his more memorable recent works.  This latest effort does not yet have a release date, but will be released in 2011.

JustJared has posted additional Stills from Trespass here.

MR. WILL-W.'S TIFF 2010 BEST-OF LISTS

Nicole Kidman for Rabbit
Hole at TIFF

TIFF 2010 has been wonderful and the last day of the Festival is always bittersweet for me.  After ten days of sheer madness, the normalcy once again is always welcome and for one, I'm sure my dog Billy will appreciate seeing me home more.  And I'm sure my waistline will appreciate it again too as all I've been eating on the go are Hot Dogs (you've never had a Hot Dog until you've had a Toronto Hot Dog), Pastries, Order-at-the-counter Chinese and Starbucks.

Reflecting on my favourite highlights is always a challenge, but this year in particular is difficult to extract from as the first few days of the Festival were extraordinarily concentrated with action, that  surely amidst the madness I might have missed the buzz on some amazing films (i.e. Clint Eastwood's Hereafter) and actors in town.  But if I were to make a few selections, I would narrow it down as follows:





MR. WILL-W.'S TOP FILMS OF TIFF 2010

1. Rabbit  Hole 

2. Black Swan

3. Blue Valentine

4. The Debt

5. 127 Hours

James Franco for 127 Hours

MR. WILL-W.'S GREATEST GUYS OF TIFF 2010

1. James Franco

2. Sam Worthington

3. Ryan Reynolds

4. Ryan Gosling

5. Michael Sheen

RABBIT HOLE REVIEW

Rabbit Hole

John Cameron Mitchell's (Shortbus, Hedwig and the Angry Inch) Rabbit Hole just might be my favourite film of TIFF 2010. Howie and Becca Corbett (Aaron Eckhart and Nicole Kidman) are the couple with everything. A beautiful home and an adorable four year-old son Danny. That is, until the day he gets hit by a car in front of their home and dies tragically.

The story begins after the loss as we see Howie and Becca try to cope with the death of their son, attending support groups and from here we get a sense of how this tragedy has caused a divide in their relationship. Becca is jaded and skeptical - lying beneath the surface is an undercurrent of suppressed rage. Howie has an open heart and is willing to seek help and it is Becca's unwillingness to seek help that causes strain between them.

We see Becca turn to her mother played perfectly by Dianne Wiest for support, but at the same time aims her anger at her mother for failing to understand her struggle. We see Becca blow up also at those around her including her neighbour, sister and even a woman randomly while doing groceries. Howie continues to attend Group Therapy alone and befriends another mourning mother played by the brilliant Sandra Oh.  With tensions mounting between Howie and Beckie, we find Howie further drawn to Oh's character.  In addition to Howie engaging in an emotional affair with someone else, Becca seeks resolve secretly with the boy who killed her daughter accidentally, Jason (Miles Teller).  It is in him and not Therapy that she is able to get her own sense of closure and forgiveness.

NICOLE KIDMAN AT TIFF PRESS CONFERENCE FOR "RABBIT HOLE"

Nicole Kidman surprised just about everyone arriving about an hour early for her own Press Conference for Rabbit Hole, which also stars Aaron Eckhart. The John Cameron Mitchell film centers around a couple who lose their child and the struggles they face coping with this misfortune. Early reviews are looking positive, which is wonderful considering that Kidman could really use a break with her latest string of commercial under-performers.  The film premiered at VISA Screening Room last night.

Kidman did her best to sign autographs and did photos with a couple lucky fans. And I was oh-so-close! She and husband Keith Urban flew out of Toronto this afternoon shortly after doing a round of promotion.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)

MARION COTILLARD CHATS WITH NICOLE KIDMAN ON AUGUST ISSUE OF INTERVIEW MAGAZINE

Marion Cotillard covers August's Interview Magazine and does an interview with none other than Nicole Kidman, her NINE co-star.  In the article the two talk about Ecology and how while working together on NINE, she was always pushing for others on-set to be more environmentally conscious. 

Kidman tells Cotillard,  "....you’re otherworldly, that it seems like you come from another planet—and I mean that in the most beautiful way. And yet you are the most Earth-based of all of us. That’s a very strange paradox.  Otherworldly, that it seems like you come from another planet—and I mean that in the most beautiful way. And yet you are the most Earth-based of all of us. That’s a very strange paradox. ".

Cotillard is tapped to star in Woody Allen's next film and the actresses had nothing but praise for the Director.  Kidman asks Cotillard, "But Penélope Cruz loved working with Woody, didn’t she?  Cotillard replied, "She loved it. And so did Naomi Watts."  And being close friends with Watts, Kidman stated "Naomi said it was the best film experience that she’s ever had".