Sorry, I’m late to this party but my internet was down for most of the day yesterday. (I’ve finally stopped shaking.) The Producers Guild Awards were held Saturday night January 21 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, the last stop on the circuit before the Academy Award nominations are announced (which they will be tomorrow morning). (That’s not to say it’s the last stop before the ceremony by any stretch. This coming Sunday we have the SAG awards to get through.) The Producers Guild Awards ceremony is different because it’s all about the films, or the television shows.  It’s about the finished product.  This might be why the winner of Producer of the Year is so often the producer of the Best Picture winner at the Oscars.

I’ve been saying for months that it’s going to come down to a battle between The Descendants and The Artist. (Which, by the way, has nothing to do with how I feel about those two films personally. I’m just psychic.) A fine point was pretty much put on that idea when the former won the Golden Globe for Best Drama and the latter won for Best Musical or Comedy.  The Artist got another leg up from the PGA when it won out over The Descendants and Thomas Langmann walked away with the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures of the Year honors.

I can’t remember when I’ve been looking forward to the Oscar nominations less than I am this year, with one exception. I’ll be biting my nails to find out if Michael Fassbender gets a nod or if Demian Bichir takes his slot again (as he did with the SAGs). He’s the only “outsider” with a chance. The one performance that I would have thought would have been a lock has been virtually and inexplicably shut out, and that’s Vanessa Redgrave in Coriolanus.  Would I love to be wrong? You bet I would. We’ll see.

In the meantime, enjoy the pretty pictures of some of the pretty people at Saturday night’s bash. Many of them didn’t walk the red carpet (just to show how serious the proceedings are. Plus I think George Clooney's squeeze had a prior committment. God forbid he should be seen solo), but we have some shots of Morticia and Gomez…I mean Angie and Brad, as well as Jessica Chastain looking very Jessica Rabbit (practicing for her Oscar look perhaps), Viola Davis looking absolutely stunning as always and Shailene Woodley looking old beyond her years. Someone get that girl a stylist!

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Since it’s Monday, I figured it might take a bit more to get the old heart pumping so we have another B-roll from Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus to share, as well as interviews with Fiennes, Vanessa Redgrave who plays Coriolanus’ fierce, militaristic mother Volumnia and, of course, Gerard Butler who plays his arch-nemesis.

Written by John Logan (Gladiator, The Aviator, The Last Samurai, Rango, Hugo and Skyfall), Coriolanus is based on the Shakespeare play of the same name in which a banished hero of Rome, Caius Martius Coriolanus (Fiennes) allies with a sworn enemy, Tullus Aufidius (Butler) to take his revenge on the city. Jessica Chastain plays Coriolanus’ wife Virgilia, Brian Cox plays mentor/advisor/father figure, Menenius and James Nesbitt is Sicinius

Enjoy the footage. Coriolanus is currently in theaters in NY, LA, San Francisco, the UK and select cities in Canada. It’s being slowly rolled out across the rest of the US during the coming weeks. (And entirely too slowly in my opinion! C’mon Harvey. You have other films on your slate besides Madonna’s.)

Part IV of IV

Ralph Fiennes Interview

Vanessa Redgrave Interview

Gerard Butler Interview

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We have a lot of B-roll clips from Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus to share with you. B-roll, in case you were wondering, is an editing term. It originally meant footage that was used to cover a ‘cut-away’ between dialogue. The footage was on a secondary or “B” roll of film.  That meaning is kind of antiquated since most movies are shot digitally and are edited in a very different manner. Today it generally means behind-the-scenes footage of the making of a film, shot alongside the filming of the actual movie, and usually used for a “making of” style documentary.

Technical enough for you? I find this stuff fascinating, but if you’re worried it will distract you when you get to see the movie, skip it and just watch the interviews. For me, since I’ve already seen the film once, I enjoy seeing the behind the scenes, then watching the movie again from a different angle.

Ralph Fiennes, making his directorial debut plays the title character from Shakespeare's historical tragedy. Gerard Butle plays his archenemy, Tullus Aufidius. Lest we get too esoteric…there’s a lot of great footage of Gerard Butler doing what he does best…acting…breathing…

Part I of IVPart II of IVPart III of IVMore to come!

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Ralph Fiennes’ directorial debut, Coriolanus, an adaptation of one of Shakespeare’s lesser known historical tragedies, finally opens wide in the US and the UK this Friday, January 20. Have I been looking forward to it? You know I have. (I really cannot wait to see it again! It’s a masterful, powerful film and a fantastic debut. No wonder BAFTA nominated it for Best First Feature – a category that other awards giving bodies should think about adding.)

Last night, January 17, Ralph along with Vanessa Redgrave and Jessica Chastain, attended another special screening fo the film, the second held in New York. (The Weinstein Company held one back in December before its awards qualifying opening.) Notably absent last night was Ralph’s co-star, Gerard Butler, who plays Coriolanus’ arch-nemesis Tullus Aufidius. That’s okay, he didn’t stand us up. He wasn’t expected to attend. (Which doesn’t mean I’m not disappointed, but I can live on the Golden Globes pics for a little while longer.)

Enjoy the pics from the screening as well as two new promo images (courtesy of Hollywood.com). Don’t let the fact that this is Shakespeare scare you off of this film. It’s highly accessible Shakespeare and its themes are extremely relevant.

The synopsis: The citizens of Rome are hungry. Coriolanus, the hero of Rome, a a revered and feared General and a man of inflexible self-belief despises the people. Pushed by his controlling and ambitious mother Volumnia to seek the exalted and powerful position of Consul, he is loath to ingratiate himself with the masses whose votes he needs in order to secure the office. When the public refuses to support him, Coriolanus' anger prompts a riot that culminates in his expulsion from Rome. The banished hero then allies himself with his sworn enemy Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler) to take his revenge on the city.

Bottom line, if you enjoyed The Hurt Locker, complete with tanks and explosions, you'll enjoy Coriolanus. Frankly if you like Greco-Roman wrestling, you'll like Coriolanus…just sayin'.

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Photo Credit: Ivan Nikolov/WENN.com

Another new clip for Ralph Fiennes’ directorial debut, Coriolanus has been released. This one takes place early in the film when Caius Martius, aka Coriolanus (Fiennes) and his arch-nemesis Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler) encounter each other in the heat of battle. Yeah…heat…very hot…and this clip ends before they even get to the good stuff.

Fiennes and screenwriter John Logan have updated the setting of Shakespeare’s play to the 21st century, yet maintained the language and style. The play's themes of class conflict, pride, betrayal and revenge are all still very relevant.

The synopsis: The citizens of Rome are hungry. Coriolanus, the hero of Rome, a a revered and feared General and a man of inflexible self-belief despises the people. Pushed by his controlling and ambitious mother Volumnia to seek the exalted and powerful position of Consul, he is loath to ingratiate himself with the masses whose votes he needs in order to secure the office. When the public refuses to support him, Coriolanus' anger prompts a riot that culminates in his expulsion from Rome. The banished hero then allies himself with his sworn enemy Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler) to take his revenge on the city.

Coriolanus, with Fiennes, Butler  and Vanessa Redgrave (You know I love typing those names together. I’m going to do it every chance I get), Jessica Chastain, Brian Cox and James Nesbitt, opens wide January 20. Go see it!

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By now, you should be aware that Coriolanus is an adaptation of the Shakespeare tragedy of the same name and is also Ralph Fiennes’ directorial debut. Should also be aware that Fiennes stars in the title role with extraordinary assistance from Gerard Butler as Coriolanus’ nemesis, Tullus Aufidius,  Vanessa Redgrave  as his mother Volumnia, Jessica Chastain as his wife Virgilia , the ever brilliant Brian Cox advisor and father figure Menenius  and James Nesbitt as scheming politico, the Tribune Siciniuus

Yahoo Movies, who has the world exclusive, has delivered up a new clip from the film in which an angry mob breaks through a barrier before being brutally beaten back by the police, leading to a confrontation between Coriolanus and the mob’s leader during which he condemns the activists and their actions. The scene has been compared to the “Occupy…” movement, which reinforces the timeliness of the piece. (Filming was completed in May 2010, long before OWS was a germ of an idea). Taken on its own, it looks like a clip from the evening news. Within the context of the movie, it's even more powerful.

Coriolanus will finally march into theaters in the US, UK and Canada on 20th January.

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