The Latest in ShowBiz News

2008/09/04 at 12:00am

Toronto Film Festival just not the same

09.4.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Bad news for Oscar prognosticators: The Toronto International Film Festival, starting Thursday, isn’t quite its bellwether self this year.

Factors such as rising travel costs, delays caused by the writers’ strike and weakened art-house divisions have kept the most likely best-picture candidates out of the lineup.

Unlike in the past, when 1999’s American Beauty proved a trip up north could lead to Oscar glory, late fall’s choicest academy bait, such as Frost/Nixon and Australia, won’t be there. Even high-profile titles opening in October — Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies, Oliver Stone’s W — are missing.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be celebrity gridlock at the 33rd edition of North America’s premier film gathering, which features 312 movies from 64 countries through Sept. 13.

Among the hundreds of stars expected: Keira Knightley, Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Benicio Del Toro, Charlize Theron, Adrien Brody, Dakota Fanning, Michael Caine, Queen Latifah and Viggo Mortensen. Even the tabloid world’s most famous former couple, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, will be there — on separate days.

If there is a major upside to the 2008 schedule, it is that the doom and gloom cast by last year’s dour war-themed dramas (In the Valley of Elah, Rendition) and vigilante gut-wrenchers (The Brave One, Reservation Road) have been replaced by what the festival’s co-director Piers Handling declares as “the return of the American comedy.”

Call it the Juno effect. “There are a few films about the Iraq war,” such as Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker and The Lucky Ones with Rachel McAdams, he says. “But there are at least five really good, solid comedies. Kevin Smith’s Zack and Miri Make a Porno. Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist. Ghost Town, Religulous. The Coen brothers with Burn After Reading.”

Even British filmmaker Mike Leigh, whose last outing was the 2004 abortion weeper Vera Drake, has an effort that lives up to its title: Happy-Go-Lucky.

And a possible crowd-pleaser has emerged, if the reactions at Telluride can be trusted: Slumdog Millionaire, the story of a teen orphan in India who wins the jackpot on a Hindi version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting), it was recently picked up by Fox Searchlight in a deal with Warner Bros.

Fair warning, though. There is a Paris Hilton documentary, as if we didn’t know enough about the celebutante, helpfully titled Paris, Not France. But, as Handling notes, “It’s really short.”

By Mack Chico

2008/09/03 at 12:00am

Movies

‘Tarzan’ returns to the big screen

09.3.2008 | By Mack Chico |

He’s already tackled Huckleberry Finn and Mowgli, so let’s see what Stephen Sommers can do with Tarzan.

The “Jungle Book” director is in negotiations with Warner Bros. to bring a new version of the classic Edgar Rice Burroughs creation “Tarzan, Lord of the Apes,” to the big screen. “Collateral” screenwriter Stu Beattie will write the project with Sommers.

Jerry Weintraub (“Ocean’s Eleven”) is producing through his Jerry Weintraub Prods. Jessica Goodman and Jesse Ehrman will oversee for the studio.

Guillermo del Toro had been attached to direct a script written by John Collee (“Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World”) when the project was announced two years ago. But “The Mummy” director will get his shot now that Del Toro is committed to a four-year stint choreographing dwarves in New Zealand for the MGM-Warner Bros. two-fer of “The Hobbit.”

With the first two “Mummy” movies, “The Scorpion King” and “Van Helsing,” Sommers, who is repped by WMA, has become a connoisseur of the big-budget, effects-driven spectacle. He recently finished shooting the summer 2009 Paramount tentpole, “G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra,” which Beattie came in to write for him.

Over the decades, Tarzan has come in for any number of epic treatments, from John Derek’s 1981 Jane-driven “Tarzan, the Ape Man,” to the 1984 drama “Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes,” which famously earned pseudonymous screenwriter Robert Towne’s dog, P.H. Vazak, an Oscar nomination. Disney released its take on the jungle king in 1999, replete with an incongruous (but Oscar-winning) Phil Collins soundtrack.

Beattie and Sommers do not plan to work from the original 1914 Burroughs tome or any previous film. An entirely new approach is in the works, though more details beyond that are being kept under wraps tighter than Tarzan’s loincloth.

Beattie, has “Australia” coming out in November, which he co-wrote with director Baz Luhrmann.

Don LaFontaine, legendary voice of trailers dies at 68

By Mack Chico

2008/09/03 at 12:00am

Movies

Don LaFontaine, legendary voice of trailers dies at 68

09.3.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Don LaFontaine, who brought his sonorous, ominous, melodramatic baritone to so many thousands of movie trailers, commercials and television promos that he became known in the industry as “the voice of God,” or just “the V.O.G.,” died Monday near his home in Los Angeles. He was 68.

His death was confirmed by his agent, Kevin Motley. The official cause has not been released.

In a 33-year career Mr. LaFontaine did voice-overs for more than 5,000 movie trailers, 350,000 commercials and thousands of television promos, including dozens of “Next week on ‘E.R.’ “ spots.

“Don was an absolute treasure to the voice-over industry,” Joan Baker, the author of “Secrets of Voice-Over Success” (Sentient Publications, 2005), said in an interview on Tuesday. “He had a unique sound, a voice placed deep in his body that cut through the sound bites and the music.”

Ms. Baker said Mr. LaFontaine “understood the dynamics of each word and gave each word a musical note that was intuitive, which is why he could perform in so many genres — action, drama, comedy, romance, horror films, science fiction.”

Mr. LaFontaine wrote most of his voice-overs and, sometimes with collaborators, came up with familiar phrases like “a one-man army,” “one man, one destiny,” “from the bedroom to the boardroom,” and “nowhere to run, nowhere to hide and no way out.”

But he is best known for “In a world where … ,” which has become overused and the subject of parody. Ms. Baker could not say for what production that phrase was first used. But in an interview last year, Mr. LaFontaine explained its intent.

“We have to very rapidly establish the world we are transporting them to,” he said of his viewers. “That’s very easily done by saying: ‘In a world where … violence rules,’ ‘In a world where … men are slaves and women are the conquerors.’ You very rapidly set the scene.”

Comics have since pounced on the phrase, and in 2005 Mr. LaFontaine himself spoofed it in a commercial for Geico Insurance. It was one of a series in which celebrities commented on the tales of real people involved in accidents.

“People had heard his voice for decades, but the Geico spot put him on the map, visually,” Ms. Baker said. “In his commercial, this very plain woman describes her accident, and Don, in the background, narrates it in movie-trailer promo talk. The very first thing he says starts, ‘In a world where both of our cars are totally under water … ’ “

Born in Duluth, Minn., on Aug. 26, 1940, Mr. LaFontaine joined the Army soon after graduating from high school and was assigned to an Army band as a recording engineer. After his discharge, he got a job with National Recording Studios in New York. There he met Floyd Peterson, a producer of radio commercials, and they formed a company to produce movie trailers.

In 1965, a scheduling mix-up prevented an announcer from making a session; Mr. LaFontaine took over the mike to read radio spots for “Gunfighters of Casa Grande.” To his surprise, MGM liked his first personal performance. In 1976, Mr. LaFontaine started his own production company. His first assignment was for “The Godfather, Part II.” Two years later, he became head of the trailer department at Paramount Pictures.

He later returned to independent production. Over the years, he did promos for films including “Terminator,” “Fatal Attraction,” “Cheaper by the Dozen,” “Batman Returns” and “The Elephant Man.” He did commercials for Chevrolet, Pontiac, Ford, Budweiser, McDonald’s and Coca-Cola, among other companies.

Mr. LaFontaine is survived by his wife, the singer-actress Nita Whitaker, and three daughters, Christine, Skye and Elyse.

Working from a home studio that his wife dubbed “the Hole,” Mr. LaFontaine remained active until recently, averaging at least seven voice-overs a day. Last year, he did a promotion for the “The Simpsons Movie,” in which his comments were immediately echoed by characters from the film. At one point he says, “Hey, you’re just repeating everything I’m saying!” and Homer responds: “I know. It’s weird!”

Gael García Bernal’s brother debuts on film

By Mack Chico

2008/09/03 at 12:00am

Movies

Gael García Bernal’s brother debuts on film

09.3.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Alameda Films, Mexico’s oldest and most prolific film production company, marks its 60th year with a turn toward edgier fare. The producer of various Arturo Ripstein classics and 2003 Oscar-nommed “The Crime of Father Amaro,” the highest-grossing local pic in Mexican film history, started shooting “Daniel & Ana” last week. Drama tracks two siblings whose joint kidnapping takes its toll on their relationship and their family.

Budgeted at $1.5 million, somber tale is the directorial feature debut of Michel Franco and stars newcomers Dario Yazbek Bernal, the younger brother of “Father Amaro” lead Gael Garcia Bernal, and Marimar Vega, daughter of veteran thesp Gonzalo Vega.

Cinematographer Chuy Chavez‘s credits include the visually arresting “Me and You and Everyone We Know.” Spain’s Morena Films co- produces pic.

Under the stewardship of Daniel Birman Ripstein, who took over full reins of the company when partner/ grandfather Alfredo Ripstein (and father of helmer Arturo) died in January 2007, Alameda Films has a lined up a couple of ambitious projects.

Shingle moves into uncharted territory with its first animated pic, “El Santos,” based on the wildly popular ’80s comic strip by illustrators Jis and Trino. Development has been under way the past three years, according to Birman who, chafing at the sluggish pace of animation filmmaking, says the pic should be finished by 2010.

“El Santos” could bring Alameda box office gold, just as it did the makers of 2006 toon “Una pelicula de huevos” (A Movie With Eggs), which now ranks as the second all-time grossing Mexican pic. Alameda is also developing an adaptation of Arthur Machen’s short story, “The Islington Mystery” which inspired the darkly comic 1960 pic “El esqueleto de la Senora Morales” (The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales).

Meanwhile, company is prepping digitally restored collections of the more than 100 pics produced by Alfredo Ripstein/Alameda since 1948, among them Jorge Pons‘ “Midaq Alley,” which launched Salma Hayek.

Shingle produced a couple of docus in the past years, among them Carrera’s “The Red Queen: A Mayan Mystery” for the Discovery Channel. Birman is co-producing the Mexican adaptation of Broadway show “Avenue Q.” He also heads sister distrib Film House, which has released a number of pics.

“There just weren’t that many good projects out there,” says Birman of the shingle’s five year hiatus from fiction pics. But once he read Franco’s screenplay, Birman jumped at the chance to produce it. “I know that this has been well worth the wait.”

By Mack Chico

2008/09/02 at 12:00am

Movies

‘Wanted’ to have 2 sequels

09.2.2008 | By Mack Chico |

As the DVD release for the film version of Mark MillarJG Jones and ’ Wanted looms on the horizon (Millar’s completed his work for it already), and the film’s worldwide box office total hovers near the $260 million mark the focus has shifted to Wanted 2 and…Wanted 3.

Word of the sequel came early on, just after the movie opened, actually. Millar said that he remembers the moment well. “At the premiere, everybody knew that it was going to make a lot of money, and we were all buzzing,” Millar told Newsarama. “On the way out, Mark Platt, the main producer put his arms around me and JG and said, ‘Okay, so what’s the plan for Wanted 2?’ I looked at him and said, ‘There is no plan,’ and he said to me, ‘Okay, well, have something for us next week.’”

Millar has said before that he and Jones would not be going back to Wanted in a comic book sequel to the original 2004 miniseries, and he’s sticking to that pledge. “I’ve got this reputation of being a total whore, and even when I’m adamant about something like this, people don’t believe me, but there is nothing else coming from Wanted,” Millar said. “That six issues was the end. I love doing new stuff anyway – I get bored so quickly.”

That’s not to say he’s not doing something for Wanted 2 though…

“What I will be doing is providing them with a very small amount of stuff for a story, and that will be used as a basic story that they can build from. It will be a small outline that can possibly be picked apart and not used – but it will be something exclusively for the second film, and no one will ever really see it.”

Given that the film version of the story differs from the comic book version in a number of ways (some quite substantial) Millar’s outline will be set in the film’s continuity, but will reach back to the comics. “It will be some of the stuff that we didn’t utilize from the first book for the movie – like chapters three and four – there will be some stuff from that, so in the loosest sense it will be based on the book, but only very little,” Millar said. “The nice thing about owning it and creator-owned properties is that JG and I will still be producers on the thing, and will still obviously get paid for the rights.”

Millar acknowledged that he too had heard that Terence Stamp has said his character of Pekwarsky would be coming back for the sequel, and reportedly play a much larger role. Also, Wanted screenwriters Derek Haas and Michael Brandt have been at work on the screenplay for the sequel for some time.

Even though it’s his first comic book to make the leap to film, Millar’s taking it all in stride, and talking like a poolside-sitting, cigar-chomping, sunglass-wearing Hollywood insider. “The minute the movie came out and made $55 million the opening weekend, they knew it would be headed toward the $300 million mark in theaters, and another $200 estimated on DVD,” Millar said. “So they invested $100 million in it, and made $500 million back, and they were really pleased with that, so immediately, Wanted 2 and 3 were greenlit, and James [McAvoy] was signed on for another two movies, so there’s a larger plan at work here.”

While Millar declined to mention any plot specifics that he’s suggested to the producers and screenwriters in his outlines, he did reflect on Wanted’s creation and originally writing the project – a time when veering off to write a creator-owned project caused some strife in the Millar household.

“I remember what my wife said to me about five years ago when I was writing Wanted – ‘Oh I wish you were just doing six issues of X-Men again,” because we were doing Wanted for virtually nothing, and here’s it’s turned out to be a nice long-term bet,” Millar said. “Obviously in comics, both Marvel and DC – they really don’t take care of you when you’re an older guy and after you’ve done your work, so it’s nice having these things out there that will keeping bringing in money even after you’ve done your time with the big publishers. You start to realize that Robert Kirkman is right in a lot of ways. Creator-owned work is the kind of stuff that will take care of you when you’re older.”

Millar’s next comic to make it to film, Kick-Ass (the fourth issue of which shipped this week) begins filming in early September, and is directed by Matthew Vaughn and boasts Nic Cage in its cast. That film and project, Millar said, is rife with possibilities for sequels and spinoffs.

“Kick-Ass is the only thing that I feel I could never get bored with – I genuinely love doing that, and already have the sequel worked out for the movie and the comic, because the story ends in a way that is so completely going into another one,” the writer said. “So Kick-Ass is the only thing I see as a franchise that will just run and run and run, but everything else I see as being quite self-contained.”

Russell Crowe to star as ‘Watson’ in ‘Sherlock Holmes’

By Mack Chico

2008/09/02 at 12:00am

Movies

Russell Crowe to star as ‘Watson’ in ‘Sherlock Holmes’

09.2.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Russell Crowe is set to star in Guy Ritchie‘s new film about legendary English detective Sherlock Holmes.

Crowe will star as the detective’s famous assistant, Dr Watson, alongside Robert Downey Jr in the lead role.

“Russell wants the part, Guy wants Russell,” a movie source told The Sun newspaper.

“All they’ve got left to do is dot the i’s and cross the t’s.”

Crowe had been due to start work on Ridley Scott‘s film about Robin Hood and star as the Sheriff of Nottingham.

But that has now been put on the backburner because of production delay, leaving Crowe free to concentrate on his new role as Dr Watson.

The movie’s script is based on a new comic book series about the famous English detective, with filming due to begin next month.

Mexican actress Bianca Marroquin comes back to ‘Chicago’

By Mack Chico

2008/09/02 at 12:00am

Movies

Mexican actress Bianca Marroquin comes back to ‘Chicago’

09.2.2008 | By Mack Chico |

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the CHICAGO company is pleased to welcome back Mexican stage sensation Bianca Marroquin to the role of merry murderess Roxie Hart beginning Sunday, September 15.

Marroquin first portrayed Roxie Hart in the Mexico City production of CHICAGO in 2002. For that performance, she received five awards from the Mexican Critics Association, including New Revelation and Best Actress.

Following the critical and popular success of that production, she was then invited to crossover from Mexico City to New York City, and made her English-language debut as Roxie Hart on Broadway later that year.

For that acheivement, Marroquin holds the distinction of being the first — and only — Latina actress to crossover from Mexico to Broadway in a leading role.

Marroquin later took Roxie on the road, kicking off the third National Tour of CHICAGO and earning a 2004 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actress.

Earlier this year, she was recognized by the General Consulate of Mexico for her unparalleled success as a Mexican actress on Broadway. This citation was presented to Marroquin at a special ceremony hosted by Mexican Consul General Ruben Beltran on April 8, 2008.

Marroquin returns to CHICAGO this month in celebration of the 20th Anniversary of Hispanic Heritage Month, a nationwide observance to recognize the contributions of Hispanic Americans to the United States and to celebrate Hispanic heritage and culture. The observation was enacted in August 1988 by President Ronald Reagan. The annual celebration begins on September 15 and continues through October 15.

CHICAGO also stars Tony nominee Brenda Braxton as Velma Kelly, Tony nominee Tom Wopat as Billy Flynn, Tony nominee Kevin Chamberlin as Amos Hart and Carol Woods as Matron “Mama” Morton.

Visit www.chicagothemusical.com for additional information.

By Mack Chico

2008/08/31 at 12:00am

Movies

Hitchcock’s 37 film cameos!

08.31.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Here, from FSR and similar listings on the Hitchcock.tv site and the Wikipedia entry, are all of his brief appearances. How many do you remember?

The Lodger (1926) – :03 at a desk in newsroom and (unconfirmed) part of the crowd at 1:32
Easy Virtue (1927) – :15 walking past tennis court
Blackmail (1929) – :11 reading a book in subway
Murder! (1930) – 1:00 walking past house
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) – :31 walking across screen in trench coat (also unconfirmed)
The 39 Steps (1935) – :06 tossing some litter
Young and Innocent (1938) – :15 holding a camera outside courhouse
The Lady Vanishes (1938) – 1:30 wearing a black coat and smoking a cigarette
Foreign Correspondent (1940) – :13 wearing a coat and hat, reading a newspaper
Rebecca (1940) – 2:03 walking near the phone booth
Mr. and Mrs. Smith (1941) – :43 passing by Robert Montgomery
Suspicion (1941) – :46 mailing a letter
Saboteur (1942) – 1:04 in front of drug store
Shadow of a Doubt (1943) – :17 playing cards on the train
Lifeboat (1944) – :25 in a newspaper ad for Reduco Obesity Slayer
Spellbound (1945) – :35 carrying violin and smoking a cigar
Notorious (1946) – 1:00 drinking champagne
The Paradine Case (1947) – :36 leaving the train carrying a cello
Rope (1948) – :02 holding a newspaper during opening credits and at :55 his silhouette is shown on a neon sign
Under Capricorn (1949) – :04 in the town square during parade and at :14 on the steps of Government House
Stage Fright (1950) – :39 turning back to look at Jane Wyman
Strangers on a Train (1951) – :10 boarding the train with a double bass
I Confess (1953) – :01 walking across top of stairs
Dial M for Murder (1954) – in class reunion photo
Rear Window (1954) – :25 winding clock in the songwriter’s apartment
To Catch a Thief (1955) – :10 sitting next to Cary Grant on bus
The Trouble with Harry (1955) – :22 walking past the parked limousine
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) – :25 watching acrobats with his back to the camera
Vertigo (1958) – :11 walking in the street
North by Northwest (1959) – :02 missing a bus
Psycho (1960) – :06 through Janet Leigh’s window, wearing a cowboy hat
The Birds (1963) – :02 leaving the pet shop with two white dogs
Marnie (1964) – :05 entering into the hotel corridor
Torn Curtain (1966) – :08 sitting in the lobby with baby on his knee
Topaz (1969) – :33 pushed a wheelchair at the airport
Frenzy (1972) – :03 wearing a bowler hat, not applauding
Family Plot (1976) – :40 shown in silhouette through the door

Looking at the time in the film where Hitch makes his appearance, it seems clear that he started putting it in early. I believe this was so movie-goers who knew of his signature appearances could get it out of the way and focus on the thrills to come.

Here is a video featuring many of the cameos. It even highlights them for you so won’t miss them in your next viewing of the Hitchcock movie. Enjoy!

‘Tropic Thunder’ reigns for third straight week

By Mack Chico

2008/08/31 at 12:00am

Movies

‘Tropic Thunder’ reigns for third straight week

08.31.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Action film parody “Tropic Thunder” clung to the top spot at the North American box office for a third straight week as the summer moviegoing season sputtered to a lackluster close, Hollywood studios reported on Sunday.

Paramount Pictures’ farcical combat movie within a comedy, starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black, sold an estimated $11.5 million in U.S. and Canadian tickets Friday through Sunday to bring its three-week tally to $83.8 million.

While the final weekend heading into the U.S. Labor Day holiday is typically one of the slowest of the summer, the box office was especially lethargic despite five new films competing for attention in domestic theaters. None of those even managed to even crack the $10 million mark.

“It was an underwhelming end to a phenomenal summer,” said Paul Dergarabedian, head of box office tracking service Media By Numbers.

Business also was likely dampened by the approach of Hurricane Gustav along the U.S. Gulf Coast, where many families were too busy boarding up their homes and fleeing to higher ground to go to the movies.

“Tropic Thunder,” about a group of self-absorbed actors who get caught up in a real-life battle with narco-terrorists while filming a war movie in Southeast Asia, was the only film to post ticket sales in the double-digit millions.

Its biggest competition came from a real action flick, the sci-fi thriller “Babylon A.D.” from 20th Century Fox starring Vin Diesel, which grossed an estimated $9.7 million in its first weekend to land at No. 2.

Blockbuster Batman sequel “The Dark Knight” climbed up a notch on the box office chart to No. 3 with weekend receipts of nearly $8.8 million, pushing its cumulative domestic haul to an estimated $502 million after 45 days in release.

“Dark Knight,” a Warner Bros picture, becomes only the second film to cross the $500 million threshold. Two weeks ago, it surpassed “Star Wars” as the second highest grossing movie ever, behind only “Titanic” at $601 million.

Weekend ticket sales as a whole were sluggish, however, down 14 percent from the same period a year ago, as several new films failed to gain traction at the megaplex.

Two comedies opening on Friday, “Disaster Movie” and “College,” plus Don Cheadle’s thriller “Traitor,” which debuted on Wednesday, and “Hamlet 2,” a comedy that expanded nationally on Wednesday, grossed just $17.9 combined this weekend.

Together with “Babylon A.D.” those films together accounted for $27.6 million in ticket sales, only about $1 million more than the top-grossing movie from last year’s same weekend, “Halloween,” managed all by itself.

The Labor Day holiday on Monday marks the official conclusion to the 18-week summer film season, which can account for as much as 40 percent of the movie industry’s total business for the year.

When final studio figures come in later this week, Hollywood is expected to eke out roughly $4 billion in North American box office receipts, perhaps even slightly exceeding last summer’s record $4.18 total.

But with the actual number of admissions down more than 3 percent from a year ago, the gain in revenues is fueled mostly by higher ticket prices.

John Lennon’s teenage years to be seen in ‘Nowhere Boy’

By Mack Chico

2008/08/30 at 12:00am

Movies

John Lennon’s teenage years to be seen in ‘Nowhere Boy’

08.30.2008 | By Mack Chico |

Brit artist-turned-helmer Sam Taylor-Wood has signed on to direct “Nowhere Boy,” which tells the story of the teenage years of John Lennon.

U.K.-based Ecosse Films’ Robert Bernstein and Douglas Rae will produce the project, with Hanway Films handling worldwide sales.

Pic will be part of Hanway’s slate in Toronto, which also includes Michael Winterbottom’s “Genova,” starring Colin Firth, and Gerald McMorrow’s “Franklyn,” starring Eva Green and Ryan Phillippe.

Taylor-Wood was nominated for a Palme d’Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival for her debut short “Love You More,” produced by her mentor, the late Anthony Minghella.

She was previously part of the loosely defined Young British Artist group, alongside the likes of Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin, which turned the Brit art scene on its head during much of the 1990s. She is married to leading art dealer Jay Jopling.

“The story spoke to me on so many levels — both personal and artistic,” commented Taylor-Wood. “From the heightened emotional content to the color and animation that I want to bring to the story.

“The women in John’s early life truly shaped who he became and the strengths and weaknesses of their relationships are central to this film.

“It’s a passionate, alive and tender film; full of love, anger and rock’n’roll.”

Pic is written by Matt Greenhalgh, who won a BAFTA earlier this year for helmer Anton Corbijn’s “Control,” about doomed Joy Division singer Ian Curtis.

“Nowhere Boy” follows Lennon through his formative years growing up in Liverpool, the tense relationship between his aunt Mimi and mother Julia and on to his first meetings with Paul McCartney.

Casting for the lead roles is underway, with lensing set to start in March next year on location in Liverpool.

Pic was co-developed by public funding org. the U.K. Film Council.