"Bel Ami", "Cosmopolis", "On The Road" and "SWATH" among the Dark Horizons' Notable Films of 2012

"Bel Ami", "Cosmopolis", "On The Road" and "SWATH" among the Dark Horizons' Notable Films of 2012

Bel Ami

Opens: 2012

Cast: Uma Thurman, Robert Pattinson, Christina Ricci, Kristin Scott Thomas

Director: Declan Donnellan, Nick Ormerod

Analysis: Though it shares the same name as Europe's most prestigious hardcore gay porn studio, this is an adaptation of French author Guy de Maupassant's much beloved 1885 novel about a young former soldier who screws his way up the social ladder of Parisian high society.

Recent trailers show a period faithful film that's pretty to look at but oddly inert in emotion, a not unexpected sign considering the author's legendarily efficient and involving prose is very difficult to translate on screen. As a classic French tale, if this English-language adaptation proves anything less than adequate it will likely get torn apart by European critics.

Cosmopolis

Opens: 2012

Cast: Robert Pattinson, Paul Giamatti, Jay Baruchel, Juliette Binoche, Kevin Durand

Director: David Cronenberg

Analysis: After reinventing himself with 2005's "A History of Violence", David Cronenberg's second coming has kept up its strong track record with both "Eastern Promises" and this year's "A Dangerous Method" scoring very good notices.

Now comes this high-concept adaptation of Don DeLillo's popular novel in which "Twilight" star Robert Pattinson plays a financial whiz who risks his immense fortune by betting against the yen on one particularly chaotic day.

Much of the action is set inside a limousine with Pattinson's character transported from one location to another so expect a fairly tight little piece akin to "Phone Booth" - a deliberate comparison considering Colin Farrell was originally cast in the lead role.

Pattinson has yet to really tackle a film not primarily aimed at women, and it'll be an interesting experiment to see if both critics and Cronenberg fans can get over their issues with a "Twilight" star being in this and judge it fairly.

On the Road

Opens: 2012

Cast: Sam Riley, Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart, Viggo Mortensen, Amy Adams

Director: Walter Salles

Analysis: The term 'long gestating' film takes on a whole new meaning with this adaptation of the definitive novel of the Beat Generation. For over five decades now there's been talk of a film adaptation of Jack Kerouac's autobiographical book about his time spent traveling America in the 1940's with his friend Neal Cassady. Kerouac wanted to play his literary counterpart Sal Paradise himself alongside Marlon Brando as the Cassady-inspired Dean Moriarty back in the late 50's when the book first came out.

It wasn't until six years ago that Francis Ford Coppola, who attempted to adapt it himself and failed, convinced Brazilian director Walter Salles to direct and this $25 million production got underway at last. In preparation, Salles shot a documentary taking the same road trip as Sal Paradise and speaking to other Beat poets who knew Kerouac.

Using much of the same crew who shot "The Motorcycle Diaries", filming got underway in August in Montreal with the cast undergoing a month-long "beatnik boot camp" where they all learned about the Beat Generation. Shooting also took place in New Orleans, San Francisco, Calgary, Arizona, Mexico and Argentina with minimal crew members on hand to lend an almost documentary feel to the proceedings.

Reviews of the script have been raves and Salles will certainly bring his A-game to the material. The only question now is will this stand up to the scrutiny that comes when any film is adapted from a beloved novel that's considered one of the defining works of a generation.

Snow White and the Huntsman

Opens: June 1st 2012

Cast: Charlize Theron, Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Sam Clafin, Ian McShane

Director: Rupert Sanders

Analysis: Initially it was a film that left many scratching their heads. In the wake of the billion-dollar success of Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland", the studios seemed to be in a race to get out new cinematic takes on famous fairy tales and public domain literature with this new version of 'Snow White' seemingly the first to move forward. Numerous names were linked with the project during the casting phase, and various people came and went before the key three (Theron, Hemsworth, Stewart) were settled on.

The director was an unknown, the budget relatively tight ($70 million), writer Hossein Amini's hadn't really done much since the late-90's, and a similar sounding rival project was on the way. Then the first inklings of something different emerged at Comic Con last year where character sketches and artwork drew good reaction.

The game changer though came late last year when a teaser trailer hit and shocked the hell out of everyone - this looked good. Sanders delivered a visually impressive take that lived up to the claims of the movie having a "Lord of the Rings"-style tone with large battles and a dark heart that didn't soft pedal the darker and more twisted aspects of the Grimm brothers original story. If anything it made it more epic in scale and trounced the trailer for said rival ("Mirror Mirror") flat.

While Theron looks deliciously evil and Hemsworth is a suitable choice, the casting of "Twilight" star Stewart is still the unknown. Given the right material she can be a solid little performer, but oddly no promo material so far has her speaking a word of dialogue. Even if she proves a weak link, she's surrounded by a top notch cast and crew including some of the greatest British actors alive playing the assorted dwarves. An unexpected tentpole but its one that will likely surprise.

Source => Dark Horizons / Via => Thinking of Rob