‘Side Effects’ is a provocative thriller about Emily and Martin, a successful New York couple whose world unravels when a new drug prescribed by Emily’s psychiatrist – intended to treat anxiety – has unexpected side effects.

Emily (Academy Award nominee Rooney Mara) and Martin Taylor (Channing Tatum) are a young, beautiful, wealthy couple living the good life, with a mansion, a sailboat and every luxury money can buy – until Martin is sent to prison for insider trading. For four years, Emily waits for him in a tiny apartment in upper Manhattan, but his release is just as devastating as his incarceration and Emily sinks into a deep depression.

After a failed suicide attempt, psychiatrist Jonathan Banks (Academy Award nominee Jude Law) is called in to consult on Emily’s case. Desperate not to be hospitalized, Emily agrees to a regimen of therapy and antidepressants, a decision that will change the lives of everyone involved. When Emily’s symptoms don’t improve, Banks prescribes a new medication that quiets her demons. But the side effects of the drug have chilling consequences: marriages are ruined, Banks’ practice is decimated and someone is dead—but who is responsible? Devastated by this professional setback, Banks becomes obsessed with finding an answer. But the truth he uncovers threatens to destroy whatever is left of his career and his private life.

Stories of psychopharmacology

Over a decade ago screenwriter Scott Z. Burns spent several weeks doing research at New York’s famed Bellevue Hospital psychiatric facility. Burns, who was then writing for the acclaimed television medical drama “Wonderland,” spoke with the psychiatrists on staff and watched them at work with mentally ill patients, including many who had a criminal past.

“It was one of the most extraordinary experiences of my life,” says Burns. “There were people there who were truly terrifying criminals. There were also people who were so ill they were unable to understand the rules of society and couldn’t possibly be expected to play by them.”

The experience planted a seed in Burns’ imagination. “I wanted to write a noir-style thriller that took the audience in and spun it around, like ‘Double Indemnity’ or ‘Body Heat’, set in the world of psychopharmacology,” says Burns. “I was inspired by films that involve crafty, clever scams, set against the society the audience is really living in. People seem to have stopped making those, but I have always loved the genre.”

Burns began to develop the script that would eventually become ‘Side Effects’ with the help of Dr. Sasha Bardey, who was at the time Deputy Director of Forensic Psychiatry for Bellevue Hospital. “Sasha and I met working on ‘Wonderland,’” says Burns. “His input was essential because this movie needed to be firmly rooted in reality.”

Bardey too had always been intrigued by the idea of a thriller involving psychiatry. “Once we came up with the backbone of this story, Scott did the writing, and I provided the context.”

The combination of Burns’ prodigious storytelling skills and Bardey’s expertise resulted in an eye-opening thriller. “It looks at the idea of where reality ends and mental illness begins,” says Bardey. “You don’t know if things are what they appear to be. In that sense, it’s got a Hitchcockian feel to it. And the ending is fantastic, a great lesson and a lot of fun.”

As he constructed his narrative, Burns also conducted extensive research on the growing use of anti-depressants in this country with the help of Dr. Bardey, who ultimately served as on-set adviser and co-producer.

Burns found evidence in the news stories of the day that the same medications used to treat depression, anxiety and other psychological ailments were also creating inexplicable behavior in a small but significant number of patients. Commonly prescribed drugs were being blamed for crimes ranging from vehicular homicide to physical assault. A man in California was acquitted of charges in a non-injury vehicular accident while under the influence of a popular sleep remedy.

One widely prescribed antidepressant was even implicated in a shocking kidnapping and rape.

Just as fascinating to Burns were stories he uncovered about the misbehavior of respected doctors. “There was a story in the news about a psychiatrist who tried to hire one of his patients, a convicted criminal, to kill his mistress,” says Burns. “When the patient went to the police, they didn’t believe him because he’s obviously a crazy person. Our story is completely different than that one, but it’s full of plot twists and turns that have you constantly questioning what actually happened and who is telling the truth.”

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VH1 is known for music programming and reality television; however, that will soon change as the network makes its bold, first attempt at a scripted film,”Crazy Sexy Cool: The TLC Story.” The long awaited film will take viewers on a ride from the group members’ beginnings, to their meteoric rise to the top of the music charts in the 1990s and beyond.

Hip-hop artist and television personality Lil Mama will have the honor of portraying the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez. Lil Mama emerged onto the scene in 2007 with her infectious hit single “Lip Gloss” from her “VYP: Voice of the Young People” album. The song attained a Gold certification from the RIAA in 2008, while the album went on to sell 19, 000 copies in its first week and 66,000 copies thereafter. Lil Mama then began serving as a judge on MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew“ in 2008 at the age of 19. This will be her first film.

Keke Palmer has been chosen to portray Rozunda “Chili” Thomas. Unlike Lil Mama, Palmer is not new to the film industry. The 19-year-old has appeared in films alongside Laurence Fishburne (‘Akeelah and the Bee’), Tyler Perry (‘Madea’s Family Reunion’), Ice Cube (‘The Longshots’) and Dolly Parton (‘Joyful Noise’), among others. Of her new role, Palmer tells the Daily News, “I’m excited to be a part of this amazing project portraying one of the members of such an iconic group that inspired my passion for music.”

Drew Sidora will round out the cast as Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins. Sidora’s most notable roles are as Lucy Avila in ‘Step Up’, alongside Channing Tatum, and as herself on “The Game”, a television series. When the news first broke of her involvement in the biopic, Sidora took to her twitter account to thank her fans and share a few encouraging words. “Be sure to always believe in yourself. Never give up! Stay optimistic and persistent and amazing things will come into play!”

Though some TLC fans have expressed doubts that the ladies will be able to pull off their portrayals, VH1’s Executive Vice President of Original Programming and Production is confident that the project will be a success. “With this cast, we are thrilled with the talent assembled both in front of and behind the cameras,” he said. “TLC are truly music pioneers and this movie is a fantastic way to expand our scripted push by combining our audience’s passion for music with their love of story. We know our viewers will be eager to go beyond the headlines and into the surprisingly personal, never before told stories of these groundbreaking women.”

TLC’s surviving members, Thomas and Watkins, will serve as the film’s executive producers.

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Paramount recently announced that ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation’, which had been slated to open June 29, 2012, will not be released this year; instead, it has been moved to premiere in March 2013 so that they can convert the film into 3D. It is single-handedly one of the worst moves a film studio has made since Legendary Pictures converted ‘Clash of the Titans’ (2010) to 3D.

3D is already a polarizing issue in our society. There are three basic camps for the uprising of 3D in the last five to six years: those who like it, those who are indifferent to it, and those who dislike it. The pro-3D people enjoy the extra layer of involvement that 3D, when done properly, adds to a film. When used the right way, 3D gives the illusion of joining the characters in a movie on their adventures. Positive examples of 3D are ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ (2010), Avatar (2009), and Toy Story 3 (2010).

However, 3D also has many downsides. For example, it adds an extra handful of dollars to the already absurdly high ticket prices at the box office. Thus, studios have been misusing the technology in order to gain higher profits rather than concentrating on making the film better. The shift from relying on good storytelling to relying on expensive tickets is a bad sign. Moviegoers know that making money is important to film studios, but blatantly slapping 3D on every film discourages sales.

Furthermore, the recent trend of movies converting to 3D rather than filming with 3D cameras is visually frustrating. Last minute conversions damage the visuals of a film by darkening the colors, distorting the outlines, and muddying the overall quality. The most infamous example is ‘Clash of the Titans.’ Already a mediocre movie, the hasty 3D conversion made it one of the worst cinematic experiences in a long time.

If one could forgive the choice to convert ‘Retaliation’ to 3D, there is still the fact that many fans are angry and disappointed that they cannot enjoy the film this summer. ‘Retaliation’ was no stranger to advertisement. It had trailers in front of most of the summer blockbusters and actually started building buzz in Fall 2011.

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has been faithfully tweeting links, interviews, and on-site anecdotes about shooting the film, thus drawing in his own fans as well as those of G.I. Joe. Millions of dollars have already been poured into advertising ‘Retaliation’ and increasing hype since the previous film was a large disappointment. This one even seemed to fix all the problems—removing the annoying Marlon Wayans, downgrading Channing Tatum’s role, turning Cobra back into a legitimate threat, and downplaying the camp factor.

Paramount has demonstrated a startling lack of appreciation for its fans and moviegoers in general. It would be one thing to delay the movie for production problems, fine-tuning the script, or even re-shooting certain scenes, but this move is strictly done for profit. It has already alienated a large portion of the fans and angered the anti-3D movement even further. The quality of a film is based on the hard work of the actors, the writers, and the film crew.

It is not based on how the film is viewed, whether in 2D or 3D. Furthermore, there is no law dictating that every theater in the world will have to show the film in 3D. Most theaters show movies in both 2D and 3D, leaving the option up to viewers, so this decision to stall the movie a year just to convert it to 3D is even more illogical.

Paramount is going to have difficulty putting out fires in the upcoming year. People still want to see ‘Retaliation,’ but their frustration with the studio will have an effect on the profits they seem to be so concerned about.

Image Courtesy of   G.I. Joe

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Los Angeles, U.S.A. - The 2012 Los Angeles Film Festival will screen a diverse slate of nearly 200 feature films, short films, and music videos, representing more than 30 countries, along with signature programs such as the Filmmaker Retreat, Poolside Chats, Coffee Talks, music events and more. Woody Allen’s To Rome with Love will be Opening the Night as Lorene Scafaria’s Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, Ava DuVernay’s Middle of Nowhere and Benh Zeitlin’s Beasts of the Southern Wild were selected for the Galas section.

Returning to downtown Los Angeles and headquartered at L.A. LIVE for a third year, the Festival will run from June 14 to June 24 2012. Now in its eighteenth year, the Festival is widely recognized as a world-class event, showcasing the best in new American and international cinema, and is produced by Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that also produces the Spirit Awards.

“There is nothing more satisfying than shining a spotlight on so many unique films from both seasoned and emerging filmmakers. Come experience the wonder of Beasts of the Southern Wild, Let Call Me Kuchu Break your Heart and Call you to Action, or simply be entertained by Channing Tatum and Matthew McConaughey in Magic Mike,” said Festival Director Stephanie Allain.

“These are just a few of the diverse stories that bring us into new worlds or put a fresh twist on familiar ones. ‘Exclusively for Everyone’ isn’t just a tag line. It’s an invitation to experience both the specific and the universal, and hopefully come away entertained and enlightened. Enjoy!”

“We’ve got a marvelous mix this year that reflects the incredible diversity of world cinema and of Los Angeles itself. I’m excited to have such giants as Woody Allen, Steven Soderbergh and Andre Techine alongside some amazing first-time filmmakers whose names you’ll be hearing a lot in the future. We want to offer festival-goers stories and visions they haven’t seen before and a chance to meet the most creative minds working in movies.

It’s going to be a fun and mind-expanding ten days,” said Festival Artistic Director David Ansen. The Festival will end its festivities with the World Premiere of Warner Bros. Pictures’ Magic Mike, directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Reid Carolin. Set in the world of male strippers, the dramatic comedy follows Mike (Tatum) as he takes a young dancer called The Kid (Pettyfer) under his wing and schools him in the fine arts of partying, picking up women, and making easy money. Warner Bros. Pictures will release the film nationwide on June 29, 2012.

Dreamworks Pictures’ People Like Us will have its World Premiere amongst the Summer Showcase screenings. The film is directed by Alex Kurtzman, written by Kurtzman and Roberto Orci and Jody Lambert. In a story inspired by true events, Sam (Pine), a twenty-something, fast-talking salesman, is tasked with fulfilling his estranged father’s last wishes – delivering an inheritance to a sister he never knew he had. Dreamworks Pictures will release the film on June 29, 2012.

As part of the Los Angeles Film Festival’s free outdoor programming, there will be a Dirty Dancing Dance-A-Long at California Plaza on June 22 at 7pm to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the film. Produced in cooperation with Dance Camera West and Grand Performances, there will be free salsa lessons by Contra-Tiempo, a screening of the film with special guests and a shadow cast consisting of performers from local dance companies to dance on stage below the screening during key scenes.

Image Courtesy of   To Rome With Love

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’21 Jump Street’ is in theaters now, starring Channing Tatum and recent Academy Award nominee Jonah Hill. It is loosely based on the 1987 television series of the same name, which launched the career of Johnny Depp.

The movie has already proven to be a favorite of the critics and strong box office performer, grossing over $100 million worldwide since its release on March 16. Sony recently announced that a sequel is already in the works, and that stars Tatum and Hill are expected to return.

The film’s success can perhaps be attributed to its accessibility to audiences unfamiliar with the 1980s television series. It features a new cast, makes contemporary cultural references (Tatum’s character cites ‘Glee’ as the reason for the new high school hierarchy), and offers only passing remarks about its 1980s predecessor (Nick Offerman’s character notes that in their jobs, “all they do now is recycle stuff from the past and expect us not to notice”).

Michael Bacall’s screenplay keeps things simple and sharp, while directing duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller keep things moving at a snappy pace, leaving behind all traces of the brand’s past screen life.

Making the transition from television to film has been a tricky business in the last couple of decades. From ‘The X-Files’ to ‘The Simpsons,’ producers have attempted to find the right balance between continuity from the series and accessibility for new viewers. Here is a brief look at how some have fared:

‘The Simpsons Movie’ – Budget: $75 million / Box Office: $527 million.

After several years of talks and delays, the big-screen adaptation of FOX’s long-running animated series was released in summer 2007. ‘The Simpsons Movie’ was a huge box office success and garnered strong critical acclaim, being nominated for a Golden Globe, a Critics’ Choice and four Annie Awards. Its success has been credited with reinvigorating interest in ‘The Simpsons,’ as the series recently celebrated its 500th episode and was renewed through the end of the 2013-2014 television season.

‘Sex and the City’ – Budget: $65 million / Box Office: $415 million.

HBO’s 2008 adaptation of its hit series proved to be a huge box office success and the biggest ever R-rated opening for a comedy. The film came four years after the series went off the air, and picked up on many of the narrative strands left presumably resolved in the final episode.

As audiences continued to flock, a sequel was greenlit, the budget was increased to $95 million, and it hit theatres in May 2010. However, the sequel grossed a weaker $295 million and was critically maligned, all but ending future big-screen outings for the franchise. Still, The CW network recently ordered a pilot for ‘The Carrie Diaries,’ a prequel series charting the adventures of Carrie Bradshaw through her adolescence, showing the studios’ belief in the brand still having an impact on the small screen.

‘The X-Files’ – Budget: $66 million / Box Office: $189 million.

Right in the middle of the sci-fi thriller’s ninth season run on FOX, came its first film adaptation featuring stars Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny. The film almost tripled its budget, received generally positive reviews, and capitalized on the success of the series’ highest-rated season.

However, it would be ten years, and six years after the series went off the air, before a sequel would be released. ‘The X-Files: I Want to Believe’ was released in July 2008 with a budget of just $30 million, grossing $68 million. While it still earned back its budget, the numbers were significantly lower than what fans had hoped, and have cast serious doubt on whether a third film will be made.

Then there is the case of the long-awaited ’24′ feature film, based on the FOX series of the same name, which ran for eight successful seasons between 2001 and 2010. The film has been stuck in development for several years, even while the series was in the midst of its run.

In March of this year it looked like the cast and crew would soon be ready to commence production. However, delays in finding a director and scheduling conflicts with star Kiefer Sutherland have meant that the film has been shelved for at least another 12 months. Like ‘The X-Files,’ ’24′ was heavily serialized and had declined in the ratings toward the end of its run. It therefore might struggle to succeed on the big screen as more years go by with it out of production.

Yet with the success of ’21 Jump Street’ more than two decades after the end of its television run, there is hope that the issue of ‘timing’ is just one of many needed for the successful transition of a television series into film.

Case in point is ‘Glee: The 3D Concert Movie,’ which was released last summer and failed to replicate the success of the television series, ultimately grossing just $18 million. TV-to-Film adaptations is a tricky business, but one in which networks and studios are perpetually interested in trying to get right.

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The Vow, Kim and Krickitt Carpenter’s amazing, true story of faith and commitment and the inspiration behind the No. 1 movie in the country, topped the New York Times non-fiction best-seller list in its first week of re-release.

From B&H Publishing Group, The Vow joins three other film-related, faith-based books as national best sellers, including The Resolution for Men, The Resolution for Women and The Love Dare, Nos. 10, 12 and 13, respectively on the Times paperback advice list.

“The phenomenal success of these books—each dealing with the importance of faith and commitment in the family—shows the great hunger for encouraging and inspiring messages today,” said Selma Wilson, B&H Publishing Group president. “The Carpenters, Alex and Stephen Kendrick and Priscilla Shirer are sharing needed and wanted truth and doing so in a way that encourages and engages readers.”

The Vow traces actual events from the 1990s, when Kim and Krickitt Carpenter met, fell in love and married. Just 10 weeks later, the couple survived a terrible car wreck with Krickitt awakening in the hospital married to a stranger. The accident had claimed 18 months of her memories, including all recollection of Kim.

With Kim committed to his marriage vows and Krickitt maintaining her strong Christian faith, even if recent memories were gone, the couple began the long road to a rebuilt relationship, choosing to fall in love again and capping that with a second wedding ceremony and renewal of their vows almost three years later.

Their story inspired the No. 1 movie in the country, THE VOW starring Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams, which took in over $40 million its opening weekend. The Vow book, in addition to its No. 1 rank on the Times non-fiction best-seller list, also earned the No. 7 spot for combined non-fiction print and e-books. The book, originally released in 2000, launched again Feb. 10 with an additional chapter and photos updating the Carpenter’s story.

“Krickitt and I feel very blessed that our story might give hope to others facing difficult circumstances,”Kim Carpenter said, “and inspire them to stick together for better or worse, in sickness and in health.”

Also from B&H Publishing Group, three more books with connection to faith films maintained best-seller status.

• The Resolution for Men by brothers and filmmakers Alex and Stephen Kendrick with Randy Alcorn issues a call to godly parenting, challenging fathers to resolve to be the kind of dads God means them to be and their families need them to be. The book title relates to the film COURAGEOUS, which featured four fathers publicly resolving to lead their families well.
• The Resolution for Women , by nationally known speaker and Bible teacher Priscilla Shirer with Alex and Stephen Kendrick, offers help, hope and challenge to women desiring to find God’s will and live it God’s way in their lives and the lives of their families.
• The Love Dare also is by Alex and Stephen Kendrick and now marks more than 170 weeks as a Times best seller. Reflected in the Kendricks’ hit movie FIREPROOF, The Love Dare challenges readers to offer 40 days of acts of unconditional love to spouses.

Image Courtesy of  https://www.facebook.com/TheVow

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‘Romance,’ the celebrated women’s fragrance by Ralph Lauren, has been named the exclusive fragrance partner for the upcoming feature film, ‘The Vow,’ a romantic drama starring Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum, in theaters February 10, 2012.

‘The Vow’ and Ralph Lauren ‘Romance’ share the theme of enduring love. Paige and Leo (Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum) are a happy newlywed couple whose lives are changed by a car accident that puts Paige in a coma. Waking up with severe memory loss, Paige has no memory of Leo, a confusing relationship with her parents (Sam Neill and Jessica Lange), and an ex-fiance (Scott Speedman) she may still have feelings for. Despite these complications, Leo endeavors to win her heart again and rebuild their marriage.

“The moving narrative of The Vow reflects the Ralph Lauren Romance story about true love conquering all,” says Guillaume de Lesquen, President of Ralph Lauren Fragrances Worldwide, “and there couldn’t be two better actors than Rachel and Channing to convey this narrative.”

As part of the collaboration, Ralph Lauren ‘Romance’ will be the exclusive sponsor of ‘The Vow’ red carpet world premiere and after-party, taking place on Monday, February 6, 2012 in Los Angeles. One winner of two passes to these events, and three winners of the Ralph Lauren Romance fragrance, will be randomly selected on January 19, 2012 through a sweepstakes hosted on the Ralph Lauren Facebook fan site.

The Ralph Lauren Romance commercial ad, shot by renowned photographer and filmmaker Bruce Weber, will appear in advanced screenings of ‘The Vow’ throughout the U.S. and Canada January 24-26, 2012. The advertisement features Argentinean polo player, Nacho Figueras, with his wife, Delfina Blaquier, on location at Blaquier’s family’s Argentinean estate, ‘La Concepcion.’ The advertisement depicts their real-life fairytale love story and creates a perfect pairing for the romantic premise of ‘The Vow.’

vipflash / Shutterstock.com

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Paramount Pictures announced it ended 2011 in the No. 1 position among all studios, having achieved the highest total combined gross of any studio for the year, earning a record $5.17 billion worldwide. The studio, which released a total of 16 new releases domestically this year, placed first in the North American market share with $1.96 billion, while also amassing record grosses at the international box office with $3.21 billion.

“This achievement reflects the combined efforts of our entire team across the globe and the careful process by which we select the projects and partners we believe in,” said Paramount Pictures Chairman & CEO Brad Grey. “We produce pictures that aspire to entertain audiences around the world, while at the same time we have sought to find innovative ways to reach movie-goers in this changing entertainment environment.

“This year our studio reached some key milestones, including the release of three vibrant Paramount franchise pictures and our first original CGI animated film. Our studio had its first ever $1 billion worldwide grossing film in Michael Bay’s hit ‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’; we successfully re-launched our ‘Mission Impossible’ franchise with Tom Cruise, JJ Abrams and Brad Bird; our latest installment in the ‘Paranormal Activity’ franchise had another $100 million dollar success; our first original animated film ‘Rango,’ from director Gore Verbinski, earned rave reviews and more than $100 million at the domestic box office; and  we released global phenomenon ‘Super 8,’ directed by JJ Abrams, who will now direct the newest ‘Star Trek’ for 2013. We also benefited from our distribution partnerships with DreamWorks Animation and Marvel and I want to thank them both.”

“Film President Adam Goodman and his team in production and development, and Vice Chairman Rob Moore and his team in marketing and distribution, did outstanding work and truly delivered. As we prepare to celebrate Paramount’s 100th year in 2012, we are all grateful to be part of this wonderful institution as it continues to prosper,” added Grey.

In 2012, Paramount’s release slate highlights include ‘World War Z,’ a zombie thriller starring Brad Pitt and directed by Marc Forster, ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation,’ the next installment in the global franchise starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Channing Tatum, a new chapter in the ‘Paranormal Activity’ franchise, and ‘The Dictator,’ starring Sacha Baron Cohen and directed by Larry Charles, the team behind ‘Borat.’

The 2011 box office results seen from the studio were built on a wide reaching range of titles, including the following (with current domestic grosses): ‘True Grit’ ($85 mil this year, $171.2 million total), Ivan Reitman’s ‘No Strings Attached’ ($70.7 mil), Jon Chu’s ‘Justin Bieber: Never Say Never’ ($73 mil), Gore Verbinski’s ‘Rango’  ($123.5 mil), Marvel Studio’s ‘Thor’ ($181 mil), DreamWorks Animation’s ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’ ($165.2 mil), JJ Abrams ‘Super 8’  ($127 mil), Michael Bay’s ‘Transformers:  Dark of the Moon’ ($352.4 mil), Marvel Studio’s ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’  ($176.7 mil), Craig Brewer’s ‘Footloose’ ($51.7 mil), the third installment in the hit ‘Paranormal Activity’ franchise ($104 mil), DreamWorks Animation’s ‘Puss In Boots’ ($145.8 mil), Sundance prize-winner ‘Like Crazy’ ($3.4 mil), Martin Scorsese and GK Films’ ‘Hugo’ ($50.2 mil), Jason Reitman’s ‘Young Adult’ ($12.8 mil), Brad Bird’s ‘Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol’ ($142.8 mil) and Steven Spielberg’s ‘Tintin’ ($51.4 mil).

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One of today’s busiest actresses, Amanda Seyfried has showcased plenty of excellent performances in the last couple of years. The 25-year-old starlet has starred alongside starts such as Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, Sissy Spacek and Robin Wright and proved to many that she is worthy of her place among these profiles.

In the sci-fi action thriller In Time, she plays the part of rich girl Sylvia who’s encounter with Will Salas makes the explosive cocktail for one of the most exciting movies this winter. While Sylvia may become someone who inspires Will to take up the fight, she certainly does not start out that way.

The nascent darker side of Sylvia was something Seyfried could bring to the fore, says executive producer Andrew Z. Davis: “What I love about Amanda is there’s a sweetness about her but, at the same time, she has an edge. I don’t think audiences have really gotten to see her edge that much in movies.”

“Sylvia is the girl in the gilded cage,” seconds his co-executive producer Amy Israel, “trapped by her situation; she questions it because she isn’t sure everything is exactly the way it should be. But she’s kept in that system by her father and her circumstance, all the time yearning for more, wanting to take risks. But no one in New Greenwich takes risks.”

“Sylvia dreads her life every day,” reveals Amanda Seyfried. “She wants to have some kind of adventure. In a world like this, you spend so much time trying to protect your life that you don’t really end up living. Everybody has bodyguards. They all eat very well, but very little, they don’t drink or smoke; it’s mundane.

Sylvia just isn’t made for this kind of life. She gets her wish for a different life when Will takes her away.” Seyfried was attracted to many of the things that captured her on-screen partner Justin Timberlake’s imagination about the world Niccol had created. “Andrew’s one of a kind, and I wanted to be a part of this.

It’s so very different, but at the same time, it has so many parallels to the way we live, which is why it’s so smart. And I have to admit, getting to hold a gun and kick some butt also sounded like a blast.” Sylvia and Will are running for their lives – not just to find enough time to make it through another day, but from the Timekeepers out to capture the fugitive duo.

“Timekeepers keep the system running; they actually keep time,” says Niccol. “And our principal antagonist, Timekeeper Leon, is not really a villain. He is just a bureaucrat, an authority figure who has allegiance to no one, rich or poor. His only allegiance is to minutes and seconds.”

For the role of the Timekeeper Leon the filmmakers cast another versatile actor, Cillian Murphy. Murphy acknowledges the circumstances of his character – “he’s a cop charged with keeping this system going” – but the actor finds the deeper layers of Leon more compelling to play: “What’s great about the character is that he is a contradiction, because he’s actually from that same ghetto where Will lives.

Deep down, he knows that it’s a corrupt system, and yet he’s decided to accept that and pursue his goal of keeping time. He’s a very kinetic and focused character, and for him it’s just about constantly moving forward. I think he’s suppressed all of his past. What I liked about the writing is that Will and Leon, they’re the flip side of each other.

It’s just different paths having been taken. This is the path he’s chosen, and he suppresses all of the misgivings and issues he has with this system. He’s tried to leave them behind over the course of his life.”

As with the classic archetypal chase – the hunter and the hunted – so beautifully realized in, for example, The Fugitive, a bond forms as the chase quickens. Murphy adds, “Not only does Leon realize he’s from the same side of the tracks as Will, but there is a sense of history; Leon knew Will’s father. I think over the course of the story, they gain a respect for each other.”

Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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