Final DnD Movie Trailer Gives Hugh Grant's Villain The Spotlight

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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is using its final trailer to put villain Hugh Grant front and center. The film, which comes to theaters on March 31, is a new attempt to bring the vibrant world of the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons to life, inventing an original story and set of characters to explore its memorable setting. As the team opposing Grant's rogue, the film stars Chris Pine as a bard, Michelle Rodriguez as a barbarian, Regé-Jean Page as a paladin, Justice Smith as a sorcerer, and Sophia Lillis as a tiefling druid.

Today, Paramount Pictures unveiled the final official trailer for the film ahead of the Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves release date premiere.

This trailer incorporates new footage along with praise from the film's early reviews, including one critic who hails "the most Chris Pine a Chris Pine performance has been in a long time." It also puts Grant's villain front and center, showcasing how the sardonic humor of the film undercuts the grandiose face he attempts to put on in public.

Hugh Grant's Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Villain Explained

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In Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Grant is playing the original character Forge Fitzwilliam. So far, the exact nature of how his villainous antics impact the overarching plot of the fantasy epic is largely unknown. However, the fact that he is a con man who is now Lord of Neverwinter gives him a lot of power over the band of misfit heroes at the center of the film, elevating his status much higher than the typical rogue-class Dungeons & Dragons character could typically dream of.

Forge has a personal connection to this particular band, as he used to be among their number. He and Pine's character Edgin Darvis had a falling out before Edgin was sent to prison, leaving his daughter Kira (Chloe Coleman) in Forge's clutches. Edgin's primary goal will be to rescue Kira, though he may have to fight to stop the end of the world as they know it beforehand when Forge's advisor Sofina (Daisy Head) uses her powers of necromancy for her own dastardly ends.

It remains to be seen whether Sofina's magical threat to the world in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is more intense than the family conflict at the center of the film. Forge's outward charisma makes him a much more duplicitous enemy who can switch allegiance on a dime, much like Tom Hiddleston's Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With Edgin's daughter swayed over to his side, he could do a lot of damage to his former friend.

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Downton Abbey's Michelle Dockery lands next lead movie role

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Dockery will star in Please Don't Feed the Children, the first film from the daughter of Hollywood icon Steven Spielberg.

Production for the upcoming horror film will begin in Mexico in April, as confirmed by Deadline, and has been described as an "elevated genre film".

The synopsis of the film reads: "After a viral outbreak ravaged the country's adult population, a group of orphans heads south in search of a new life, only to find themselves at the mercy of a deranged woman harboring a dangerous secret."

Speaking in a statement, Spielberg said it was a "dream come true" to work with Dockery on the movie.

"I am so grateful to have the opportunity to bring this story to the screen with such a collaborative and inspirational team. This picture is so much more than just a horror film. It's a dream come true to work with a talent such as Michelle Dockery. I am excited to elevate the genre with our incredible cast and crew."

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Dockery is also set to lead the new series by Peaky Blinders director Steven Knight, titled This Town. David Dawson and Nicholas Pinnock are also set to star in the show that is filming in Birmingham.

The series will follow a family and four youngsters exploring the world of ska and two-tone music in the 1970s and 1980s, and how this connected the communities of Coventry and Birmingham.

Knight previously shared in a statement: "This is a project very close to my heart. It's about an era I lived through and know well and it involves characters who I feel I grew up with. It's a love letter to Birmingham and Coventry but I hope people from all over the world will relate to it."

Dockery has also been cast in the thriller Boy Kills World as Melanie, the sister in the film's main family of characters, according to Deadline. She's described as a sociopath who tries to to hide the real chaos of her family to the outside world.

Downton Abbey The Movie is available to buy on digital, DVD and Blu-ray now. Downton Abbey: A New Era will be released in cinemas on April 29 in the UK and May 20 in the US.

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'Pasanga' fame actor Kishore DS gets married

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Tamil actor Kishore DS, of 'Pasanga' fame, got engaged earlier in December 2022 to Tamil television actress Preethi Kumar. The young couple have tied the knot today on March 23, 2023 and got married. Wishes have been pouring in for the young couple and pictures and videos from their wedding have been going viral on the internet.

After making an impressive debut in 'Pasanga' as a child artist, Kishore DS had acted in films like Drohi, Goli Soda, Nedunchaalai, Sagaa and was last seen in Lakshmy Ramakrishnan's 'House Owner'.

Preethi Kumar, made her acting debut in the Tamil television serial 'Office'. She has also acted in well known Tamil serials includes Keladi Kanmani, Deivam Thandha Veedu, Priyamanaval, Lakshmi Vandhachu, Priyamanaval, Valli, Nenjam Marappadhillai and Vanathai Pola. She is Currently working in lead role on Eeramana Rojave Season 2 along with Dhiraviam Rajakumaran, Gabriella Charlton and Sidharth Kumaran in the lead roles.

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Movie Review: ‘John Wick: Chapter 4, a festival of fatality’

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NEW YORK (OSV News) – Saul has slain his thousands and Keanu Reeves his tens of thousands. Or so, at least, it seems by the end of the close to three hour-long festival of fatality that is “John Wick: Chapter 4” (Lionsgate).

Stylish savagery is the order of the day as Reeves reprises his role as the hitman of the title. Wick’s ongoing struggle to break free of the High Table, the ultra-powerful behind-the-scenes criminal empire that once claimed his allegiance, becomes the cue for innumerable doomed extras to bite the dust. They prove as actuarially unsound as a Russian general in Ukraine.

A couple of Wick’s adversaries have speaking parts, however, and so manage to offer more long-lasting opposition. One such is Vincent de Gramont (Bill Skarsgård), the foppish French nobleman the High Table leaders have entrusted with the task of exterminating the apparently indestructible Wick. He’s not the first to find this a tall order.

A nameless bounty hunter (Shamier Anderson), acting independently, is also on Wick’s trail. He’s accompanied by an attack dog who, at his command, variously disembowels or castrates those who get in his master’s way.

Wick gets unstinting aid from his old Osaka-based ally Shimazu Koji (Hiroyuki Sanada). But two other former friends, blind assassin Caine (Donnie Yen) and disgraced High Table satrap Winston Scott (Ian McShane), find their loyalties conflicted.

In adding to a series that got its start in 2014, franchise director Chad Stahelski helms a visually interesting but morally befuddled thriller whose deliberately over-the-top mayhem makes a visceral appeal to viewers while simultaneously winking at them. His movie’s incidental treatment of religion is also unpleasantly ambiguous and sometimes barely skirts sacrilege.

Thus, at one point, an Orthodox priest in the middle of a church service suddenly produces a shotgun from under his vestments. Obviously ruthless villains are shown at prayer and widower Wick himself pauses from his killing spree long enough to light a candle for his deceased wife – just in case, the dialogue later explains, his disbelief in an afterlife should turn out to be wrong.

The mumbo jumbo associated with the High Table, moreover, includes Latin phrases hijacked from Catholicism and the movie’s climactic showdown unfolds on the terrace of Paris’ Sacre Coeur Basilica. Piled on top of a body count that might put a serious dent in the census figures, these details will steer wise moviegoers clear of this bloody capping off of a queasy quartet.

The film contains excessive nasty violence with much gore, brief irreverent humor, at least one mild oath, several rough terms and considerable crude language. The OSV News classification is O — morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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The Star Wars Movie Shakeups Continue

 

The Star Wars Movie Shakeups Continue

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It’s a game of musical screenwriters over at Lucasfilm. In the wake of the shelving of Patty Jenkins’ and Kevin Feige’s Star Wars projects, yet another Star Wars film has changed hands. Last fall, news broke that Damon Lindelof (Watchmen) was writing a Star Wars screenplay with a co-writer who was later learned to be Justin Britt-Gibson (The Strain).

The film still has Ms. Marvel‘s Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy as director, but Lindelof and Britt-Gibson have left the project—to be swiftly replaced by Peaky Blinders creator Steve Knight.

Does that seem like a weird one to you? It seems like a weird one to me. Knight has other credits, but is arguably best known for Peaky Blinders, and for writing things like Eastern Promises. He also created the Apple TV+ series See and wrote the Princess Diana film Spencer, along with the fairly cornball Amazing Grace. So there’s some range there, sure.

Rumors have been swirling about Lindelof’s departure since an interview with Slashfilm earlier this month, when he sounded a bit less than fully enthused about the project: “I will just say, that for reasons that I can’t get into on this Sunday morning, on this day, the degree of difficulty is extremely, extremely, extremely high.”

According to Variety, Lindelof and Britt-Gibson turned in a draft of their screenplay early this year, then left the film in February. What this means for their story—is Knight working from their screenplay, or starting fresh?—is not known, but Above the Line says the title and brief summary will be announced at Star Wars Celebration next month, which suggests there is some certainty as to what the film is about.

I just want to go see a Star War, but patience we must have.

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Ranbir Kapoor Feels Saawariya’s Box Office’s ‘Disater-ness’ Was Celebrated, Says “My First Film Itself Was A Very Big…”

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Bollywood star Ranbir Kapoor has seen more highs than lows in his career which spans over 15 years. However, the actor believes that his failures have always taught him more than his success and that he’s running his own race.

Ranbir made his acting debut in 2007 with ‘Saawariya’. He was then seen in hits such as ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’, ‘Wake Up Sid!’, ‘Rockstar’, ‘Barfi!’, ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’, ‘Ae Dil Hai Mushkil’, ‘Brahmastra: Part One – Shiva’ and ‘Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar’.

Asked about when did he feel he’s a star, Ranbir Kapoor told IANS: “My first film itself was a very big disaster, the disaster-ness was celebrated but somewhere as an actor and artiste I had a deep conviction that flops and hits won’t matter to me. That gave me confidence.”

Ranbir Kapoor added, “I have never felt competitive towards anybody. I have never felt that I am better or worse than anybody. I feel like I am running my own race. I feel like I have very strong views on how and what I want to do in my life, the kind of films I want to do.”

“The kind of characters I want to portray and of course I am going to see a lot of failures.”

Ranbir Kapoor believes that “failures have always taught me more than my successes.”

“Whenever your films work, I promise you the only feeling you get is ‘phew!’ till the next one. But when you have failure, you understand, you introspect and come to perspective.”

He added: “I have had a very blessed 15 year career and I have a lot of self confidence in myself that I am the best ofcourse I don’t like to put that energy out and say it but I tell myself I am the best because that keeps me going.”

Before making it big as a Bollywood star, Ranbir Kapoor worked behind the camera as an assistant director for filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali in the 2005 film ‘Black’ starring Amitabh Bachchan.

Does behind the camera experience gives more edge to an actor?

Ranbir said: “More than being in a film school, I learnt from being on a film set. When I assisted Mr Bhansali in ‘Black’ that one year period that taught me so much about movies. I was seeing actors like Amitabh Bachchan and Rani Mukerji perform. I was seeing Mr Bhansali direct a movie.”

That experience really “grounded” Ranbir Kapoor.

He added: “I come from a little bit of a sheltered film family so going out – and Mr Bhansali is a hard task master, if you make a mistake he will reprimand you in front of everybody – I think that kind of training was important for someone like me. So, it prepared me for any failure in the world.”

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MOVIE REVIEW: ‘Chapter 4’ is the biggest, wildest John Wick yet

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The “John Wick” series of films masterminded by director Chad Stahelski and star Keanu Reeves are able to keep firing on all cylinders thanks to a potent blend of well-choreographed action sequences and focused, constantly unfolding mythology. 

Action movie sequels are certainly nothing new in the landscape of popular American movies, but while many action franchises get by simply by shoehorning their hero into yet another odd circumstance that requires their particular skills, the “Wick” movies thrive on keeping their main character in a rule-bound, densely populated world of assassins and crime syndicates who all serve the same mysterious master. 

That means the world feels richer, and by extension John’s place in that world feels both anchored in a certain established status quo and, because we know the rules, capable of constant reinvention and subversion. 

“John Wick: Chapter 4,” the latest installment that reunites Stahelski, Reeves, and the franchise’s best-known supporting cast members, is all about walking that line between the rules we know and just how much John and his friends can break said rules. Building on the showdown that made up the finale of the previous film, and running to nearly three hours of breathless action, “Chapter 4” is easily the most ambitious “Wick” film to date, but it never feels like it’s losing its grip on the world that’s been so lovingly created for this character over the years. It’s action filmmaking at its finest, and a welcome addition to an already stellar story. 

In the wake of his betrayal by the High Table at the end of “Chapter 3,” John Wick (Reeves) has recuperated from his injuries and is ready to take his quest for vengeance straight to the top. This time, though, the High Table is poised to hit back. 

One of its members, the Marquis de Gramont (Bill Skarsgard), has launched a personal mission to make an example of Wick, and enhance his own reputation in the process. To do this, he turns to a bounty hunter who calls himself Nobody (Shamier Anderson), and one of John’s old friends, the retired blind assassin known as Caine (Donnie Yen), commissioning them both to take down Wick no matter the cost. 

If he’s going to survive, John must summon all his strength, and the few friends he has left, to mount a challenge against the Marquis and win his freedom from the High Table’s rules, even if he has to die to get it. 

As with the previous John Wick films, this is all plot scaffolding designed to pit John against wave after wave of adversaries, and showcase the franchise’s always-exceptional action design. In that regard, “John Wick: Chapter 4” rises to meet the challenge lain before it to surpass its predecessors, delivering the biggest action setpieces of the series so far, taking John from Japanese hotels to Berlin nightclubs to the streets of Paris. 

And, as always, Stahelski has recruited a who’s who of action stars to join in the fun, from the always-welcome Yen as Caine to the great Hiroyuki Sanada as another of John’s allies. It all feels appropriately grand and ambitious, and helps to amplify the emotional stakes of this particular struggle, as John once again tries to get out of a game that has no winners.

If there’s a flaw in this design, though, it’s that the grandness is almost too much, even for this franchise. Fight sequences seem to reach a natural conclusion, then spark right back up again, risking repetition and a kind of numbing quality each time they do. At its best, this effect places us at the core of the endless, seemingly insurmountable gauntlet John is up against. At its worst, it reminds us that we’re watching a very long movie, and makes us wonder why it had to be this long to begin with.

But those moments are few and far between, and the overall effect of “Chapter 4” as a “John Wick” entry is another dazzling, thrilling theatrical experience. This franchise may wrap up eventually, but this mighty film and its expansive story is proof that there’s still plenty of gas in the tank, and still plenty of weighty emotion behind Reeves’ steely eyes. It’s action cinema done right, and great time at the movies.

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