Tim Burton’s Alice Is Off to England

Posted by Kathleen Kane
Categories: Disney, Adventure, Animation, Classics, Family, Mystery, Books, Casting, Celebrity Gossip, Filmmaking, Rumors, Upcoming Releases

Disney’s favorite eccentric director Tim Burton is at it again, and this time he’s digging a bit older and traveling a bit further for his latest classic remake: Alice in Wonderland.

Burton is taking the cast and crew across the pond to Plymouth, where they will be holding auditions this week for the film’s extras. Casting director Ilenka Jelowicki explains why the locale is perfect for production:

“It’s a period movie, set in Victorian England, so we’re very specific about the look we need. In an ideal world, out of the 125 women we need, they would all have long, naturally coloured hair. We’d love men with beards or facial hair – lamb chops or big sideburns, that sort of thing.”

The only confirmed cast member is HBO’s Australian actress Mia Wasikowska (In Treatment), who is set to play Alice. Take a wild guess who might be casted as one of the crazy Wonderland characters—I dare you!

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Read More | The Independent

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‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age’: A Less Than Royal Film

Posted by K.C. Morgan
Categories: Universal, Drama, Period, Sequels, Box Office, New Releases

When Cate Blanchett blazed onto the big screen as Queen Elizabeth I nine years ago, Hollywood couldn’t help but to take notice. She commanded royally, earning an Oscar nomination and much acclaim for her role as England’s 16th century monarch. Elizabeth has long been a character of fascination to historians and ordinary people, the daughter of Henry VIII and a woman who led in a time when most females followed. But that doesn’t guarantee Blanchett will lead at the box office, and early reviews are unflattering, to say the least.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age showcases the queen during a later period of rule, a hectic time that sees Elizabeth battling for supremacy against the frightening Spanish Armada, and Queen of Scots Mary Stuart. Elaborate sets and costumes give viewers plenty of eye candy in the Golden Age, but the timid approach to bold subject matter is sure to turn audiences off. Blanchett is nearing forty, though The Golden Age portrays a Queen beyond the age of 50. The movie, at least, offers some true historical accuracy – and if it didn’t, I would be the first one to start hollering. Elizabeth was a Protestant in a time when England wasn’t so hip to changing religious trends, a woman who defied convention and the Pope to rule her people the way she desired. This caused a clash between England’s Queen and her own cousin Mary Stuart, the devoutly Catholic Queen of Scotland. The imprisonment and subsequent execution of Mary Stuart has long been a stain on England’s history, and a famous fable that has been re-told countless times. Stuart was the mother of James, who would become King James I of England and the man who brought the Bible to the common folk.

Click to continue reading ‘Elizabeth: The Golden Age’: A Less Than Royal Film

Read More | Entertainment Weekly

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