Walter Salles’ long-awaited screen adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road got its in-competition red carpet premiere tonight at the Cannes Film Festival. The reception from critics has so far been mixed, with most having something to say about the amount of time star Kristen Stewart spends with her clothes off. (I guess that’s the way to shed your teen heart-throb image. Her Twilight costar and real-life paramour Robert Pattinson must agree since he apparently does the same in Bel Ami.)

Speaking of RPatz, I think this is an example of what Gerard Butler was alluding to when he said “you can’t really do down other people’s press-lines” and what I meant when I said that if someone not associated with a movie stole the spotlight it was the fault of the press and not the attendee. While it’s lovely that he’s there to support KStew (plus he has a movie, Cosmopolis,  also screening in competition later this week) there are at least as many pics of Pattinson at this premiere out there on the web as there are of Kristen Stewart. Not only might a casual observer think that Pattinson was in the movie, but that he and Stewart were in it alone. If I were Kirsten Dunst, Sam Riley, Garret Hedlund or Tom Sturridge, I’d be pissed. Viggo Mortensen probably doesn’t care one way or another. 

Enjoy the pics from the On the Road premiere as well as the photocall earlier in the day!

*observations: Kiki Dunst looked very pretty at the photocall, almost bridal-wonder if that was a message for Garrett Hedlund? Also, Tom Sturridge does not look old enough to be Sienna Miller's baby-daddy (He's actually 26 to her 30 so I guess he is).

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In today’s Prometheus news (doesn’t it seem like it’s been a few days?) we have a new featurette that focuses on Weyland Industries representative Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron). Vickers is not exactly the Paul Reiser of the group, she’s much more insidious, in my opinion and just going by what I’ve been able to glean so far. Listening to Theron talk about the character, I suspect she’s being kind.

Vickers strikes me as being a lot less warm and cuddly and much more cold-blooded than Michael Fassbender’s android, David, and he’s bloodless! Actually, there is speculation that Vickers is also an android. Damon Lindelof, one of the screenwriters, has hinted as much during a recent Twitter Q & A.

My favorite question and Lindelof’s answer:

@AnothaJmoore Hey Damon, are the Aliens mean in #Prometheus or are they like into just hanging out, having a beer with Fassbender?

Prometheus ‏@PrometheusMovie

.@AnothaJmoore BE WARNED: Having a beer with Fassbender can be every bit as dangerous as getting acid blood sprayed in your face.

Speaking of Michael Fassbender and David, we also have a new image. That’s David at the top of the post inside the star map that appears to play a huge part in the plot.

And finally, we have a clip of the Paris Metro passing through the Prometheus Ghost Station. Fox has turned an old station on the Metro into an ad for the film. It’s recorded here with the soundtrack of the trailer underneath it.

Prometheus opens 1^st June in the UK and June 8 in the US, in 2D and 3D. (It was shot in 3D and that’s “how Ridley wants you to see it” according to Lindelof. I have no doubt that’s true.)

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Vickers video source via Moviefanatic

There are few actresses of the modern era of whom you can say, “she looks like a movie star”.  One of those women is most certainly Nicole Kidman, as I think this still from HBO’s Hemingway & Gelhorn proves.  She looks like a movie star in the tradition of Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis, Hedy Lamar, and Greta Garbo.  (She walks the walk and talks the talk, too. You never see pics of Nicole Kidman out and about looking like a schlub, even on her way to the gym.)

The other new image is of Clive Owen, who plays the titular Ernest Hemingway. I do love me some Clive Owen. He’s not the the person who immediately comes to mind when you need an actor to play the gruff bear of a literary icon known as “Papa” Hemingway, but from the trailers and clips we’ve seen, he was an inspired choice and he will make us believe.

Hemingway & Gelhorn, which screened at the Cannes Film Festival a few days ago to favorable reviews (most citing the film’s smoking hot chemistry between the leads), also stars Robert Duvall, Rodrigo Santoro, Parker Posey, Molly Parker, Tony Shalhoub, David Strahairn and Peter Coyote. It finally gets its HBO premiere on Monday May 28.  Perfect way to cap a holiday weekend.

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I have to commend the marketing geniuses behind the campaign for Disney/Pixar’s Brave. They have really come up with some clever ways to keep this film in the public consciousness and build excitement over the last nine months or so.  In addition to the usual clips from the film, trailers and tv spots, they’ve managed to come up with a couple of ingenious “ads” for Scottish-related, if non-existent products.

First there was the inspired ad for a line of kilts by Ruff MacLauren, and now for a fictitious record compilation called “Freedom Broch” (you know there are people out there who will want to buy it anyway). It’s a collection of bagpipe hits. That’s right, bagpipe hits.  (Reminds me of a bit by comedian once, Bill Kirchenbauer, "We need to create some sort of obnoxious musical instrument. Something that will reeeally make people angry. Let's see what happens when we blow into the vacuum" of course intoned with a thick brogue.)

We also have a “new” clip. The clip in its entirety is new even though we’ve seen bits of it before, in the above spot and In the last trailer, but this time you’ll hear a reference to Mordu, a monstrous bear who claimed King Fergus’ leg. As Merida howls in imitation of the mythical beast, King Fergus shouts, "Let him return! I'll finish what I guttled in the first place!"

Brave, featuring the voices of Kelly Macdonald, Kevin McKidd, Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly, Craig Ferguson and Robbie Coltrane, opens June 22 in the US and August 10 in the UK.

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It feels like it was just yesterday we were all eagerly awaiting the start of season 2 of HBO’s bold and mythic "Game of Thrones". Now we’re only days away from the penultimate episode! This Sunday’s episode is titled Blackwater. It promises, if nothing else, some epic battle scenes. I’d really like it if Joffrey, when he whines “there are too many,” were hit with a flaming arrow, but I suspect that isn’t going to happen. Can we at least get Tyrion to slap him some more?

There is so much going on in this story and so many disparate threads (that I know will eventually all be woven into the tapestry that is "Game of Thrones") that there just isn’t time to deal with everything in two short hours. But this show had better not depart for however long we have to wait until season 3 without doing a few things first. I need some good news on the Arya Stark front and Sansa as well. Oh, and then there’s Dany. Where the hell are her dragons? And will someone please get Theon Greyjoy out of Winterfell? Cat Stark needs to get her ass home and tend to “the little lord”. And Robb managed to get some, now it’s Jon Snow’s turn. (I know, I know, the oath….)  My list is a lot longer that this but I’m sure you have your own.

Here are a couple of teasers for this coming Sunday’s episode:

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P. Diddy, Puff Daddy, Puffy…whatever Sean Combs is calling himself these days, has been a presence all week long on the Croisette.  I don’t know if he has an actual business reason for being at the Cannes Film Festival, but he’s donned a tux for all of the major red carpet premieres and made the rounds of all of the swell parties.  Last night, he threw one of his own. Aboard a yacht…of course. I’m sure the champagne and the Ciroc flowed freely.

Now, you’d think that Diddy would be able to attract the crème de la crème of Cannes attendees, but I think most of them left town after the big weekend. Almost everyone who showed up was strictly C-List. American reality tv stalwarts like Kim Kardashian (with Kanye in tow) and Paris Hilton (as well as sister Nicky) were there. What exactly does Tara Reid do? Oh yeah, she’s in American Pie Reunion. I guess that’s why photographers snapped so many pics of her hunting for her shoes. (All shoes are removed when boarding the yachts). Kelly Brook had a movie screening earlier in the week but she’s clearly there to party. She did two costume changes at last night's bash alone. British heiress Lady Victoria Hervey, famous for being British and dressing like a skank showed up to do both, Michelle Rodriguez and Benicio del Toro were in town for a movie. 

Why am I bothering with this post you may well add? Because since his bro left town,  Adrien Brody apparently needed something to do. He showed up in jeans and biker jacket to lend the joint an air of class. So I get to post some pics of Adrien Brody. Nuff said.  Enjoy the pics!

(btw, for those of you, like myself already suffering from Butler Cannes Party Watch Withdrawal, I’ll be back later with treats.)

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I have been looking forward to the trailer for Baz Luhrmann’s version of The Great Gatsby since the day it was announced that he would direct and Leonardo DiCaprio would star as F. Scott Fitzgerald’s America Between the Wars anti-hero, Jay Gatsby. Now that it’s here, I’m not quite sure what to think. I’m going to have to watch it a few times before I fall in love. I expected to love it right away, but it didn’t grab me. (Part of it stems from Luhrmann’s propensity to use modern music. The song under the trailer isn’t bad, but I wanted hot jazz.) Just like with the trailer for Gangster Squad, I think my expectations were too high and too assuming, I guess is the right word. I should not have assumed a straight-ahead retelling or something quietly charming and pretty like the Robert Redford/Mia Farrow version of 1974. I should, rather, have expected something a bit bolder in the vein of Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet (the director’s first pairing with star DiCaprio) or even Moulin Rouge, rather than Australia. The dramatics as well as the sexual tension are obviously heightened here and Luhrmann’s certainly got a handle on the look of the period. His wife, Catherine Martin, has designed a hell of an ode to the “roaring twenties” with her gorgeous sets and costumes.  I definitely want to see more, in fact as I write this, and I watch the trailer again, the more I like it.  

It’s got a cast that won’t be denied. DiCaprio as Gatsby is about as good as one is likely to get. (Me thinks my crush has been rekindled already.) Carey Mulligan’s Daisy I’m still unsure about, but I can well imagineTobey Maguire as thoughtful, perceptive Nick Carraway (DiCaprio’s r/l best pal) with his veneer of honesty. I can only compare Joel Edgerton’s Tom Buchanan to Bruce Dern in my head and Edgerton has it all over him. He can convey quiet menace with a raised eyebrow instead of barely controlled batshit crazy (which is what I always got from Dern.) We didn’t really get a good look at Isla Fisher’s Myrtle Wilson or Jason Clarke as her husband, but there’s plenty of time before Christmas for that. I think this trailer has probably done its job in that it will get all those who see it and are interested in either the subject or a Baz Luhrmann film, talking. I’d see it for the cast and the costumes no matter what. I’m not sold on the 3D idea. I can well imagine it will serve to enhance the already spectacular visuals, but at what cost to the narrative? I think 3D cost Martin Scorsese an Oscar. We’ll see.

As of right now, Warner Brothers still has The Great Gatsby opening on Christmas Day (in the US, Boxing Day in the UK), head to head with Tarantino’s Django Unchained, also starring Leonardo DiCaprio. I’m still betting one of them moves. WB is playing chicken with Harvey Weinstein. I know who my money’s on. 

We also have some new images from the film below. Enjoy!

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Andrew Dominik's first feature since The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford five years ago, Killing Them Softly, just had a big in-competition premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. To celebrate, The Weinstein Company has released a  brand new poster has for the film.

The story is adapted from George V. Higgins's New Orleans set novel, "Cogan's Trade", that follows professional mob enforcer, Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt), who investigates a heist that occurs during a high stakes, mob-protected, poker game. James Gandolfini plays an alcoholic hitman, Richard Jenkins is a mob-lawyer and Ray Liotta (what would a mob movie be without Ray Liotta?) plays the mob boss running the poker game, a man who has a history of robbing his own games. The film focuses on the attempt by Cogan to clean up the mess and find the assailants – local hoods-for-hire Russell (Ben Mendelsohn), Frankie (Scoot McNairy- I love that name!) and the brains of the operation Squirrel (Vincent Curatola). Richard Jenkins plays a mysterious driver who acts as a mouth-piece for Cogan’s unseen employer.

The reviews coming out of Cannes are so far, very positive. Killing Them Softly will open in the US and the UK on September 21.  More as we get it.  Here are some pics of Brad Pitt and Ray Liotta from today’s press conference and premiere. Angie must be home with the kids, as it appeared Brad was flying solo.

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