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The Herald Scotland
13-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Not just any old schmaltz fest as Tom Hanks is at his US Everyman best
*** TIME was when a Saturday night movie starring Tom Hanks would have involved an expedition to the cinema. Now you can see the double Oscar-winner for free, at home, in a film on general release not that long ago (as long as you don't mind the ads). Old Hollywood would think the business had lost its collective mind. A Man Called Otto began life as a Swedish novel and film before this US remake by Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, World War Z). Tom Hanks plays a grumpy widower who thinks most of the world are idiots and a large proportion of them live in his street. Without Otto doing his morning 'rounds' and telling people off for poor parking and other crimes, it would be anarchy out there. So far, so Victor Meldrew. What are the odds, do you reckon, of Otto staying a grouch for long, maybe even doubling down on his crankiness? Perhaps in another movie universe, but on this planet, with this actor, forget it. Sure enough, a young family moves into the cul-de-sac and chips away at Otto's Easter Island exterior. Before you know it, he's doing good deeds left, right and centre. Among A-listers, what's left of them, only Hanks could get away with such an obvious schmaltz fest as A Man Called Otto. Tom Cruise would only attempt it if snow shovelling could be turned into a life-or-death stunt. Harrison Ford comes across as authentically grumpy, so that wouldn't be much fun. Clint Eastwood probably came closest in Gran Torino, though that too was a touch spiky for some. But Hanks, the heir to Jimmy Stewart as a paragon of decency? Perfect. Read more That said, credit to the Forrest Gump and Philadelphia star for sticking with the Swedish original and going to some very bleak places with the grief-stricken Otto. Otto, we learn from (too many) flashbacks is another in a long line of everyday American heroes to feature on the Hanks cv, but this one is interesting because he is ordinary to the point of almost being dull. What raises him aobve the norm is love, pure and simple. Hanks's son Truman does a fine job of playing the young Otto. It is keeping it in the family, but this is far preferable to the startling moment when Hanks appears as his younger self, complete with weird CGI face and unfeasibly dark hair. Besides staying true to the tone of the Swedish original, Hanks keeps a lid on the schmaltz by giving Otto a convincingly bad temper. Even though the targets are obvious - property developers trying to buy up the neighbourhood, etc - Hanks lets rip in spectacular fashion. As for the business model behind A Man Called Otto, it more than paid its way, being made for $50 million and grossing more than double that worldwide in cinemas. Nice guys like Hanks never finish last. Showing again Tuesday at 9pm on 4seven, and available to stream for 30 days for free on 4.
Cosmopolitan
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Cosmopolitan
The film turns 20! See the Charlie and The Chocolate Factory cast of ticket-winning kids then vs now
Ready to feel old? The Tim Burton movie Charlie and The Chocolate Factory is officially turning twenty years old next week. Though the Roald Dahl novel the movie is based on has been adapted a number of times, first in 1971 starring Gene Wilder as Wonka, and then more recently with Wonka's origin story being told with Timothée Chalamet starring as the titular character, if you grew up in the early 2000s, then the 2005 version is likely to be the one you remember best. Starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Christopher Lee and Freddie Highmore, the movie was the eighth-highest grossing movie in the world in 2005. And in the two decades since the movie debuted, a lot has changed foe the cast of the movie, particularly those playing the ticket-winning child roles. So what are those five golden ticket winners up to now? Here's a look at the cast of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory kids then and now. Freddie Highmore had already starred in nearly 10 projects at age 13, and had just wrapped on the highly acclaimed Finding Neverland, when he began filming as the lead of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. Following on from his golden ticket role, Freddie has gone onto star in many more projects including The Spiderwick Chronicles, Astro Boy, The Art of Getting By, Bates Motel and the series he is now most currently known for - The Good Doctor, of which he has been the lead for seven seasons and received a Golden Globe nomination for. Oh, and he's now married too. You can next catch him on screen in Prime Video's The Assassin, which he is starring in alongside Keeley Hawes. AnnaSophia Robb played the bubblegum blowing Violet Beauregarde in 2005. It was her third movie role at age 12 and she went onto star in some of the biggest children's films of the 2000s including Bridge to Terabitha (alongside Josh Hutcherson), Spy School, and Race to Witch Mountain. In her adult career she's played a young Carrie Bradshaw in The Carrie Diaries, been main cast in the series Mercy Street, The Act and most recently you can see her in the series Grosse Point Garden Society. Like her Charlie and The Chocolate Factory co-star Freddie, AnnaSophia has also gotten married, tying the knot in 2022 to partner Trevor Paul. Jordan Fry played Mike Teavee, who as his name suggested did nothing but watch TV. Charlie and The Chocolate Factory was Jordan's first role and since then he's gone onto star in a few films - Meet The Robinsons, Raising Flagg and The Journey. More recently he's been starring in short and indie films. Augustus Gloop is the first child to be eliminated as he falls in the chocolate river. He was played in the 2005 film by Philip Wiegratz, who hails from Germany and has continued his career with a number of German TV shows and movies including Lore, Die Wölfe and Der Schlunz. Veruca Salt was the spoilt brat of the group of kids who attend the Willy Wonka tour, she was played by Swedish actress Julia Winter. Unlike the rest of her cast mates, Julia never acted again and has since stayed out of the public eye.
New Indian Express
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Shining in Style: a mother-daughter fashion duo
Many of us, growing up, would have watched our mother dressing up and admired her style, hoping to someday be like her. We may have even tried on her jewellery, messed up her makeup or gotten hopelessly tangled in her sarees. But fashion designer Seema Malhotra didn't just admire her mom – Jamila Malhotra shining in Bengaluru's elite social circles with her intricate hand embroidered outfits – but also learnt her skills, creating the luxury bridal fashion brand, Shimmer, in UB City, alongside her. 'I think I developed that flair from her because she was always a trendsetter,' says Seema, as Jamila adds, 'I used to do all my own designing and embroidery. Slowly, Seema also got interested... It was beautiful because, my mother too, was a great seamstress,' adds Jamila. What started off as making clothes for friends and family, evolved into more as the pair began to dress Bollywood celebrities like Manisha Koirala, Raveena Tandon, Farah Khan, and more while working alongside foreign designers to create costumes for actors in Hollywood films like Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth (1998), Finding Neverland (2004), and Judi Dench in Shakespeare in Love (1998) which went on to win an Oscar for costume design. 'We worked on the embroidery for Judi Dench's peacock gown which got a lot of attention. A lot of research went into it – we looked up stitches and embroidery styles that were done hundreds of years ago. It's very different from working in Bollywood, where things are churned out a day before the shoot,' recalls Seema.
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BFI Appoints Board-Level 'Anti-Racism Champions' After Mishandling Discrimination Complaint
BFI chair Jay Hunt has revealed that she has appointed 'anti-racism champions' to the movie body's board after an independent investigation concluded last year that it mishandled a discrimination complaint. Appearing before lawmakers on the Culture, Media and Sport Committee on Tuesday, Hunt and BFI CEO Ben Roberts were asked about concerns raised by producer and researcher Faisal A. Qureshi, who has worked on series including Finding Neverland and Lockerbie: A Search for Truth. More from Deadline BFI Chair Jay Hunt Raises Concern Over "Very Protectionist Language Around Hollywood" Since Donald Trump Returned To White House BFI's Global Screen Fund Set For Funding Boost As UK Government Launches "Soft Power" Program Why Apple TV+'s Noel Fielding Comedy 'The Completely Made-Up Adventures Of Dick Turpin' Came To An Untimely Halt Deadline first revealed Qureshi's concerns in March 2023 and has continued to follow his story. Qureshi alleged he experienced discrimination during a March 2019 funding meeting with the BFI Network, a third-party BFI delivery organization. Qureshi said his complaint about the meeting was compounded by the BFI's response, which he felt was dismissive of his concerns. He escalated his grievance to Verita, the complaints reviewer for National Lottery-funded organizations, which concluded in a report last year that the BFI's handling of the issue fell 'well short' of expected standards. Verita did not find evidence to support Qureshi's claims that he experienced racial discrimination during the 2019 meeting, though it was clear that the BFI made 'little effort' to collect information about his allegations. The BFI accepted Verita's conclusions and apologized to Qureshi. Hunt told the Culture, Media and Sport Committee: 'Verita reported that there was no evidence of racism in the way that that was handled, [which] I think is significant. It was not a well-handled complaint, and we have discussed that at board level. As a consequence of that, the complaint system at the BFI has been reviewed, there's been additional training for key individuals, and we are watching that very carefully.' Hunt, who also serves as Apple TV+'s boss in Europe, added that she had appointed 'two anti-racism champions to sit on the board to ensure that the strategy continues to be something of focus.' She did not disclose the identity of the BFI governors overseeing the issue. She added that the anti-racism training undertaken by BFI employees was 'second to none' in the industry. 'I don't think it's a small thing that the organization has taken that as seriously as it has,' Hunt said. The BFI chair continued: 'There will always be people who are disappointed that an organization has been unable to support them creatively. That will always happen. It doesn't necessarily mean the choices that have been made are incorrect.' This echoed the sentiments of BFI chief Roberts, who told MPs that the movie body is 'mostly in the business of turning down filmmakers' and that creates a lot of 'unhappiness.' He added that the BFI has diversity 'baked into' its principles and is exceeding targets in supporting Black and global majority filmmakers. Qureshi told Deadline that he was 'disappointed' that the BFI continued to paint him as a 'disaffected rejected applicant' when he did not apply for funding. He added: 'I don't have an issue with being rejected for any application as long as it is conducted fairly and transparently.' On the lack of evidence about racism, Qureshi pointed to the Verita report, which he said made clear that the BFI 'didn't collect the evidence as soon as they learned about the complaint.' Indeed, Verita's report disclosed an internal email from a BFI Network employee in which Qureshi's discrimination claims were dismissed as 'crazy.' Qureshi, who has not accepted an apology from the BFI, said: 'They were disingenuous in their remarks and were implying stuff about myself and my character that was untrue. I was very disappointed by their performance.' Best of Deadline The 2025 Oscars: Everything We Know So Far About The Nominations, Ceremony, Date & Host 'The White Lotus' Season 3: Everything We Know About The Cast, Premiere Date & More 2025 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Oscars, Spirits, Grammys, Tonys, Guilds & More
