Australian supermodel-turned-actress Abbey Lee, who’ll next be seen in this summer’s Mad Max: Fury Road, is Drive auteur Nicolas Winding Refn’s choice to lead his horror film The Neon Demon.
Lee, who also has a part in Summit and Lionsgate’s upcoming tentpole Gods of Egypt, will play Sarah, the “cool ringleader of a maniacal group of models,” according to Deadline, which broke news of the casting. She joins Super 8 and Maleficent actress Elle Fanning, whom Refn has set to play an aspiring model who becomes mired in a world of beauty and demise.
Along with Lee’s casting came some spoiler-y plot details for The Neon Demon, which you can check out below. Seeing as we don’t know the name of Fanning’s lead yet, these could either be massive plot points or minor details. Consider yourself warned:
In Neon Demon, she [Lee] plays a...
Lee, who also has a part in Summit and Lionsgate’s upcoming tentpole Gods of Egypt, will play Sarah, the “cool ringleader of a maniacal group of models,” according to Deadline, which broke news of the casting. She joins Super 8 and Maleficent actress Elle Fanning, whom Refn has set to play an aspiring model who becomes mired in a world of beauty and demise.
Along with Lee’s casting came some spoiler-y plot details for The Neon Demon, which you can check out below. Seeing as we don’t know the name of Fanning’s lead yet, these could either be massive plot points or minor details. Consider yourself warned:
In Neon Demon, she [Lee] plays a...
- 1/30/2015
- by Isaac Feldberg
- We Got This Covered
Danish filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn looks poised to return to the neon-lit sidewalks, back alleys and pool halls of his cinematic Los Angeles for his next project, The Neon Demon. Announced late last year, the flick is still in the early stages – as he’s currently deep in development on I Walk With The Dead – but the casting calls have begun in earnest as Elle Fanning is in discussions to nab a role.
Described by the director as a bona fide horror about “vicious beauty,” The Neon Demon is set to orbit around an all-female cast within the City Of Angels. We can now add one name to that core cast, as The Wrap reports that Maleficent star Fanning is in negotiations for a role as “an aspiring model who is caught in a world of beauty and demise.” It seems Refn couldn’t be happier to add the actress to his roster,...
Described by the director as a bona fide horror about “vicious beauty,” The Neon Demon is set to orbit around an all-female cast within the City Of Angels. We can now add one name to that core cast, as The Wrap reports that Maleficent star Fanning is in negotiations for a role as “an aspiring model who is caught in a world of beauty and demise.” It seems Refn couldn’t be happier to add the actress to his roster,...
- 1/6/2015
- by Gem Seddon
- We Got This Covered
Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn has added a new film project to his pipeline called The Neon Demon. The movie is described as a horror story that is set in Los Angeles, and it features a young female-led cast. The director was developing a film called I Walk With The Dead before this project came along, but according to Deadline, The Neon Demon will be his next project. When talking about the film, to Refn said,
“One morning I woke and realized I was both surrounded and dominated by women. Strangely, a sudden urge was planted in me to make a horror film about vicious beauty.”
He’s looking to start shooting the film early next year with frequent collaborators Cliff Martinez (composer) and Matthew Norman (editor). Refn has proven to be an insane director that is capable of telling crazy surreal stories. There's no doubt that seeing a horror...
“One morning I woke and realized I was both surrounded and dominated by women. Strangely, a sudden urge was planted in me to make a horror film about vicious beauty.”
He’s looking to start shooting the film early next year with frequent collaborators Cliff Martinez (composer) and Matthew Norman (editor). Refn has proven to be an insane director that is capable of telling crazy surreal stories. There's no doubt that seeing a horror...
- 11/9/2014
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
At this point in his career, Danish filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn and the thriller genre have almost become synonymous. Building upon his work on Bronson and Valhalla Rising, the director struck a chord with the neon-drenched Drive in 2011, before following up with last year’s somewhat divisive Only God Forgives.
Now, Winding Refn is currently developing I Walk With The Dead (described as yet another thriller taking place in Miami) due to release at some point in 2015. But that’s not the only stylish thriller we’ll see from the Danish helmer next year, as Winding Refn has announced his latest project, The Neon Demon.
“One morning I woke and realized I was both surrounded and dominated by women. Strangely, a sudden urge was planted in me to make a horror film about vicious beauty,” the director said in a statement.
According to Deadline, the film will be a female-led...
Now, Winding Refn is currently developing I Walk With The Dead (described as yet another thriller taking place in Miami) due to release at some point in 2015. But that’s not the only stylish thriller we’ll see from the Danish helmer next year, as Winding Refn has announced his latest project, The Neon Demon.
“One morning I woke and realized I was both surrounded and dominated by women. Strangely, a sudden urge was planted in me to make a horror film about vicious beauty,” the director said in a statement.
According to Deadline, the film will be a female-led...
- 11/3/2014
- by Michael Briers
- We Got This Covered
While Nicolas Winding Refn had been busy developing I Walk With The Dead, it appears another project has supplanted it in on his To Do list. The Drive director is now preparing to shoot Los Angeles-set horror thriller The Neon Demon.With distribution rights to the film up for grabs at the American Film Market, The Neon Demon (which Refn co-wrote with Mary Laws) is being labelled as a terror tale set in the City of Angels and featuring a young female-led cast. That would be in keeping with his stated drive to work on movies with more female characters after his recent spate of Gosling time.“One morning I woke and realized I was both surrounded and dominated by women,” Refn tells Deadline. “Strangely, a sudden urge was planted in me to make a horror film about vicious beauty.” He’s looking to start the cameras rolling early next...
- 11/3/2014
- EmpireOnline
This is the Pure Movies review of Salute directed by Matt Norman and starring Christopher Kirby, Bob Beamon and Ralph Boston. Written by Michael Holder for @puremovies With the Olympic Games now well underway, any prior pockets of British cynicism have inevitably crumbled to ambivalence under the barrage of media coverage of Team Gb’s successes. TV schedules full of life-affirming documentaries showcasing sporting spirit and endeavour past and present were irresistible, if a little suffocating. But not every Olympic story has a happy ending, and not every daring moment of human sacrifice and achievement is given its due recognition or support, as this fresh if not entirely successful documentary film shows.
- 8/25/2012
- by Michael Holder
- Pure Movies
This week sees the Oscar-winning Jean Dujardin (The Artist) in his follow-up performance, The Players, the 18-rated comedy that promises a very different side to his silent-film award-winning performance. We are also treated to the Carnegie Hall performance of blind pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii, who performed late last year a fantastic array of pieces, including one of his own, written in dedication to the memory of the victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March last year.
My picks of the week:
The omnibus comedy, with multiple directors, The Players.
Nobuyuki Tsuki: Live at Carnegie Hall.
The Players Iframe Embed for Youtube
DVD
After taking the Oscar for Best Actor earlier this year in The Artist, Jean Dujardin returns behind and in front of the camera in The Players (Les Infidèles), a series of vignettes based on the theme of male infidelity.
As you can imagine, it looks to be...
My picks of the week:
The omnibus comedy, with multiple directors, The Players.
Nobuyuki Tsuki: Live at Carnegie Hall.
The Players Iframe Embed for Youtube
DVD
After taking the Oscar for Best Actor earlier this year in The Artist, Jean Dujardin returns behind and in front of the camera in The Players (Les Infidèles), a series of vignettes based on the theme of male infidelity.
As you can imagine, it looks to be...
- 7/30/2012
- by Kenji Lloyd
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Magic Mike (15)
(Steven Soderbergh, 2012, Us) Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Cody Horn, Matthew McConaughey, Olivia Munn. 110 mins
The roles are reversed but the themes are familiar in this rise-and-fall tale of male strippers, making and losing their way in a (sort of) woman's world. It's like a cross between The Full Monty, Boogie Nights and Showgirls, sketching a landscape of exploitation and desperation – even as it participates in it by serving up the barely clad Tatum and other beef products.
Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World (15)
(Lorene Scafaria, 2012, Us) Steve Carell, Keira Knightley, Patton Oswalt. 101 mins
Do passion and the apocalypse mix? Or Carell and Knightley? This faltering effort tries anyway.
Detachment (15)
(Tony Kaye, 2011, Us) Adrien Brody, Marcia Gay Harden. 98 mins
No provocation left behind in this scathing schoolroom drama with a starry cast.
Ice Age 4: Continental Drift (U)
(Steve Martino, Mark Thurmeier, 2012, Us) Ray Romano, Denis Leary.
(Steven Soderbergh, 2012, Us) Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Cody Horn, Matthew McConaughey, Olivia Munn. 110 mins
The roles are reversed but the themes are familiar in this rise-and-fall tale of male strippers, making and losing their way in a (sort of) woman's world. It's like a cross between The Full Monty, Boogie Nights and Showgirls, sketching a landscape of exploitation and desperation – even as it participates in it by serving up the barely clad Tatum and other beef products.
Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World (15)
(Lorene Scafaria, 2012, Us) Steve Carell, Keira Knightley, Patton Oswalt. 101 mins
Do passion and the apocalypse mix? Or Carell and Knightley? This faltering effort tries anyway.
Detachment (15)
(Tony Kaye, 2011, Us) Adrien Brody, Marcia Gay Harden. 98 mins
No provocation left behind in this scathing schoolroom drama with a starry cast.
Ice Age 4: Continental Drift (U)
(Steve Martino, Mark Thurmeier, 2012, Us) Ray Romano, Denis Leary.
- 7/13/2012
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
This week’s box office was absolutely dominated by The Amazing Spider-Man, to the point where all other films may as well not even have bothered. Marc Webb’s web-slinging reboot took a whopping £11million in its opening weekend on release.
To put that into context, the movie in second place this week, Ice Age 4 (still not technically released yet), took around £700,000 in the same time, which means, if my rudimentary maths is correct, that Spidey took over £10 million more than it’s nearest rival….. *gets out calculator and makes sure*….yes, £10 million. It’s already on course to be one of the box office smashes of the year with perhaps only Avengers Assemble and The Dark Knight Rises expecting to take a larger haul. Critics have been resoundingly positive, and while few are totally raving about the movie, it seems to have more than justified the studios decision...
To put that into context, the movie in second place this week, Ice Age 4 (still not technically released yet), took around £700,000 in the same time, which means, if my rudimentary maths is correct, that Spidey took over £10 million more than it’s nearest rival….. *gets out calculator and makes sure*….yes, £10 million. It’s already on course to be one of the box office smashes of the year with perhaps only Avengers Assemble and The Dark Knight Rises expecting to take a larger haul. Critics have been resoundingly positive, and while few are totally raving about the movie, it seems to have more than justified the studios decision...
- 7/13/2012
- by Rob Keeling
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The Ioc furthers its reputation for frigid pomposity in Matt Norman's documentary about black-power-saluting athletes
Matt Norman's documentary about a great Olympic controversy raises more questions than it answers. At the 1968 Mexico games, African-American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the gold and bronze medallists in the 200m race, gave the black-power salute on the podium to protest about racism, Vietnam and civil rights. Perhaps more sensationally still, the Australian silver medallist Peter Norman wore the same human-rights badge as Smith and Carlos as a quiet gesture of solidarity. The Americans were thrown out of the games by the Ioc, and Norman was cold-shouldered by Australia's stuffy athletic establishment, and not even invited to the 2000 Sydney games. But who was Peter Norman? The film depicts an independent-minded, working-class figure, steeped in the Christian egalitarianism of his parents, who were members of the Salvation Army. When Smith and Carlos...
Matt Norman's documentary about a great Olympic controversy raises more questions than it answers. At the 1968 Mexico games, African-American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the gold and bronze medallists in the 200m race, gave the black-power salute on the podium to protest about racism, Vietnam and civil rights. Perhaps more sensationally still, the Australian silver medallist Peter Norman wore the same human-rights badge as Smith and Carlos as a quiet gesture of solidarity. The Americans were thrown out of the games by the Ioc, and Norman was cold-shouldered by Australia's stuffy athletic establishment, and not even invited to the 2000 Sydney games. But who was Peter Norman? The film depicts an independent-minded, working-class figure, steeped in the Christian egalitarianism of his parents, who were members of the Salvation Army. When Smith and Carlos...
- 7/12/2012
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
★★★★☆ The Olympics have long proven to be an excellent stage for socio-political statements. At the 1968 Mexico Olympics, American 200m sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos both raised a black-gloved fist during their medal ceremony to show their support for racial equality. Despite being on the podium that day, Peter Norman's role in the proceedings have gone largely unknown - hence filmmaker Matt Norman (Norman's nephew) taking it upon himself to tell Peter's story with his 2008 doc Salute.
Read more »...
Read more »...
- 7/11/2012
- by CineVue
- CineVue
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Mexico’s 1968 Summer Olympics are best remembered not for the tremendous physical displays, but rather for the now-iconic Black Power salute given by two black American athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, on the winner’s podium. The star of this story, however, is the third man on the podium, Peter Norman, the white Australian who stood in support of their actions, donning an “Olympic Project for Human Rights” badge, as would make headlines worldwide.
In the late sixties, a time of great change and also of great peril, the fallout to these men and their stand naturally proved contentious. Director Matt Norman, Peter Norman’s nephew, manages to, through extensive archive footage and intimate interviews with the subjects, immerse us fully in the time and place of this delicate period of social unrest.
Norman gives us a well-rounded, three-act delivery of the events, beginning with...
Mexico’s 1968 Summer Olympics are best remembered not for the tremendous physical displays, but rather for the now-iconic Black Power salute given by two black American athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, on the winner’s podium. The star of this story, however, is the third man on the podium, Peter Norman, the white Australian who stood in support of their actions, donning an “Olympic Project for Human Rights” badge, as would make headlines worldwide.
In the late sixties, a time of great change and also of great peril, the fallout to these men and their stand naturally proved contentious. Director Matt Norman, Peter Norman’s nephew, manages to, through extensive archive footage and intimate interviews with the subjects, immerse us fully in the time and place of this delicate period of social unrest.
Norman gives us a well-rounded, three-act delivery of the events, beginning with...
- 7/11/2012
- by Shaun Munro
- Obsessed with Film
If you prefer something a little more grown-up and historical than the Monsters University teaser earlier today, how about Salute? A documentary about events at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, it hits cinemas in the UK just ahead of this year's Games, on July 13. And we have an exclusive new trailer for it here. brightcove.createExperiences();The story, as you may have gathered, concerns what happened on the podium following the 200m race that year. The Gold and Bronze medalists, Tommie Smith and John Carlos respectively, raised their arms in a salute similar to the Black Power salute (they describe it as a human rights salute), while Silver medalist Peter Norman wore a badge supporting the statement. All three faced controversy and criticism for the move afterwards.Salute is directed by Matt Norman, Peter's nephew, and looks at both the statement itself and its aftermath. While it's been around...
- 6/20/2012
- EmpireOnline
It.s a 2008 documentary but Salute has been sold to Arrow Films for an imminent UK theatrical release because of its relevance to the Olympic Games, which kick off in London on July 27.
Salute is about a very symbolic event in the history of African-America civil rights and the part played in that event by champion Australian sprinter Peter Norman.
It was in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City that Tommie Smith won the 200 metres, Norman came second and John Carlos came third . and all hell broke loose in sporting circles when the two Americans raised their fists in support of black power after accepting their medals.
What happened on the podium that day was highly controversial because many saw it as politicising the Olympics and all three sprinters paid the price, including Norman, who made it clear he supported his fellow runners. Norman died in 2006 and never ran for his country again.
Salute is about a very symbolic event in the history of African-America civil rights and the part played in that event by champion Australian sprinter Peter Norman.
It was in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City that Tommie Smith won the 200 metres, Norman came second and John Carlos came third . and all hell broke loose in sporting circles when the two Americans raised their fists in support of black power after accepting their medals.
What happened on the podium that day was highly controversial because many saw it as politicising the Olympics and all three sprinters paid the price, including Norman, who made it clear he supported his fellow runners. Norman died in 2006 and never ran for his country again.
- 5/7/2012
- by Sandy George
- IF.com.au
Domestic Violets
By Matthew Norman
Paperback | Kindle
Harper Perennial
Release Date: August 9, 2011
Have you wished that you’d have everything you ever wanted by the time you reached a certain age? Meet Tom Violet, he’s just like you. He wants to be rich and famous with a gorgeous wife and a career as a novelist by the age of 35. Well, Tom is 35 now and has a beautiful wife, but hasn’t become a successful novelist like his Pulitzer Prize-winning father. He’s written a novel which sits in a desk and Tom works a soul crushing job that he doesn’t love. Did I also mention he has a crush on his young female co-worker? Tom Violet’s life is not the one he wanted but he’s going to try to change it [...]...
By Matthew Norman
Paperback | Kindle
Harper Perennial
Release Date: August 9, 2011
Have you wished that you’d have everything you ever wanted by the time you reached a certain age? Meet Tom Violet, he’s just like you. He wants to be rich and famous with a gorgeous wife and a career as a novelist by the age of 35. Well, Tom is 35 now and has a beautiful wife, but hasn’t become a successful novelist like his Pulitzer Prize-winning father. He’s written a novel which sits in a desk and Tom works a soul crushing job that he doesn’t love. Did I also mention he has a crush on his young female co-worker? Tom Violet’s life is not the one he wanted but he’s going to try to change it [...]...
- 9/24/2011
- by Willie Gillis
- Geeks of Doom
Director/producer Matt Norman has partnered with Victorian expat and Camera d’Or winner Michael Rowe to produce films in Mexico, and with producer Alexandra Townsend to raise funding for his Us projects and run Wingman Pictures’ Los Angeles office.
The Salute filmmaker also announced that Craig Jansson will head Wingman Pictures Studio 1 in Melbourne, a facility which will give the Wingman “a full in-house production, post-production, finance, sales and distribution company” to complement its slate of projects.
“[Townsend] brings a brilliant energy and a hard working passion for making big budget feature films but is as comfortable with smaller $5-10m projects as well,” said Norman of the appointment.
“Rowe is a smart writer/director; he fits perfectly as a partner and we see Mexico as the perfect place to open another office for non-English speaking films”. Michael has already started writing his next masterpiece,” explained Norman.
Norman said that...
The Salute filmmaker also announced that Craig Jansson will head Wingman Pictures Studio 1 in Melbourne, a facility which will give the Wingman “a full in-house production, post-production, finance, sales and distribution company” to complement its slate of projects.
“[Townsend] brings a brilliant energy and a hard working passion for making big budget feature films but is as comfortable with smaller $5-10m projects as well,” said Norman of the appointment.
“Rowe is a smart writer/director; he fits perfectly as a partner and we see Mexico as the perfect place to open another office for non-English speaking films”. Michael has already started writing his next masterpiece,” explained Norman.
Norman said that...
- 8/24/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Angelina Jolie is reportedly upset about a new unauthorised book about her, and Jonathan Margolis, author of several celeb biographies, is beginning to see why
There can't be many people who feel a pang of empathy for Angelina Jolie, who, along with her PR team, is reportedly upset about an unauthorised biography of her by Andrew Morton.
The assiduous Morton's book, apparently pieced together from interviews with unnamed sources – oh, and Jolie's childhood nanny – is a veritable juice-a-thon. In it, so it's being said in the States, we learn that Jolie once had a fling with Leonardo DiCaprio, that she was raised for two years by nannies in a Los Angeles serviced apartment, and that she has a tattoo on her bottom in honour of her former husband, Billy Bob Thornton, written in the helvetica font.
Well, as a red-blooded hack of over 30 years' standing (some of this standing outside...
There can't be many people who feel a pang of empathy for Angelina Jolie, who, along with her PR team, is reportedly upset about an unauthorised biography of her by Andrew Morton.
The assiduous Morton's book, apparently pieced together from interviews with unnamed sources – oh, and Jolie's childhood nanny – is a veritable juice-a-thon. In it, so it's being said in the States, we learn that Jolie once had a fling with Leonardo DiCaprio, that she was raised for two years by nannies in a Los Angeles serviced apartment, and that she has a tattoo on her bottom in honour of her former husband, Billy Bob Thornton, written in the helvetica font.
Well, as a red-blooded hack of over 30 years' standing (some of this standing outside...
- 8/3/2010
- by Jonathan Margolis
- The Guardian - Film News
Salute director Matt Norman and his business partner Dave Pederson have opened a New York office for their company Wingman Pictures.
“Who knew that Hollywood actually had less sharks in it than Australia […] In Australia we get cut down by an industry that only looks after its mates. That’s not an industry, that’s a crime,” said Norman in a statement.
One of the company’s first activities will be the release of the 2008 documentary Salute in American cinemas this October, and production of Carmilla, the Homecoming, which Wingman will produce, executive produce and sell in Australia and New Zealand. The project is a partnership with Lionsgate, HBO and Pathe France. It will be shot in Louisiana, USA.
Mickey Rourke is set to star, directed by Abel Ferrara (Bad Lieutenant), in what Norman says will be ‘the adult Twilight’.
In a statement, Norman said “I’ve dealt with the...
“Who knew that Hollywood actually had less sharks in it than Australia […] In Australia we get cut down by an industry that only looks after its mates. That’s not an industry, that’s a crime,” said Norman in a statement.
One of the company’s first activities will be the release of the 2008 documentary Salute in American cinemas this October, and production of Carmilla, the Homecoming, which Wingman will produce, executive produce and sell in Australia and New Zealand. The project is a partnership with Lionsgate, HBO and Pathe France. It will be shot in Louisiana, USA.
Mickey Rourke is set to star, directed by Abel Ferrara (Bad Lieutenant), in what Norman says will be ‘the adult Twilight’.
In a statement, Norman said “I’ve dealt with the...
- 6/14/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
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