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May 3 2014
Cannes Check 2014: Ryan Reynolds in Atom Egoyan's 'The Captive'
Continuing our festival preview with the Oscar-nominated director's
kidnap thriller
By Guy Lodge
Welcome back to Cannes Check, In Contention's annual preview of the
films in Competition at next month's Cannes Film Festival, which kicks
off on May 14. Taking on different selections every day, we'll be
examining what they're about, who's involved and what their chances
are of snagging an award from Jane Campion's jury. Next up, the third
Canadian director in the lineup: Atom Egoyan's "The Captive."
The director: Atom Egoyan (Canadian, 53 years old). There was a time
when Egoyan looked to be as estimable a festival fixture as his
compatriot David Cronenberg, but his career hasn't moved in the
direction many thought it would after he won big at Cannes (and
scooped a surprise Best Director Oscar nod) for 1997's critical peak
"The Sweet Hereafter." Born in Cairo to Armenian-Egyptian parents - a
heritage he'd later explore in his 2002 film "Ararat" - Egoyan largely
grew up in British Columbia and studied at the University of Toronto
(where he taught for several years in the 2000s).
After cutting his teeth on multiple shorts, he made his debut feature
"Next of Kin" in 1984 - it was on that project that he met his wife
and regular collaborator, actress Arsinee Khanjian. A varied range of
projects (including episodes of "The Twilight Zone" and "Alfred
Hitchcock Presents") followed before his breakout feature (and first
Cannes selection) "Exotica" in 1994. "The Sweet Hereafter" followed,
but his status has slipped in the new century: in particular,
star-driven semi-mainstream projects like the Julianne Moore thriller
"Chloe" and last year's "Devil's Knot" failed to win over critics.
The talent: A fellow son of British Columbia whose career could
similarly use a lift is actor Ryan Reynolds, whose Hollywood
leading-man credentials have taken a knock with duds like "The Green
Lantern" and "R.I.P.D" - retreating to smaller festival fare seems a
natural move at this point. Co-starring are Rosario Dawson, Mireille
Enos (whose work on TV's "The Killing" scored her an Emmy nod) and
Canadian standbys Scott Speedman and Bruce Greenwood. Egoyan is on
script duty as usual; his co-writer David Fraser takes his first
feature credit here after a handful of TV films, but previous worked
with the director as a story consultant on "Ararat." Cinematographer
Paul Sarossy (recently an Emmy nominee for "The Borgias") and editor
Susan Shipton are both longtime Egoyan collaborators, as is composer
Mychael Danna ("The Ice Storm," "Capote") whose already high profile
got a further boost with an Oscar for "Life of Pi."
The pitch: In light of his recent work, it's not a surprise to see
Egoyan swimming in mainstream thriller waters again, even if the
Cannes berth -- something neither "Chloe" nor "Devil's Knot," both
Toronto premieres, could claim -- might lead some to expect a return
to art-house fare. The premise and trailer for "The Captive" promise a
kidnap thriller in quite a familiar vein; its leading man's beardy
countenance is the least of its resemblances to Denis Villeuneuve's
"Prisoners." Reynolds plays a family man whose young daughter is taken
from the back seat of his car. As the investigation uncovers
surveillance cameras in his own home, it becomes clear this is no
ordinary kidnapping case; the narrative spools out across eight years.
Enos plays Reynolds' wife; Dawson an investigating officer.
The prestige: Cannes may not have hosted Egoyan's last two films, but
the festival has remained pretty loyal to the director through thick
and thin. This is his sixth time in Competition. The first two were
his most successful, as "Exotica" took the FIPRESCI prize in 1994, and
"The Sweet Hereafter" did the same -- plus, more importantly, winning
the Grand Prix -- in 1997. "Felicia's Journey" (starring the late Bob
Hoskins) was a slight step down, but still met with respectable
reviews; "Where the Truth Lies" (2005) and "Adoration" (2008) didn't
set pulses racing either.
http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/cannes-check-2014-ryan-reynolds-in-atom-egoyans-the-captive
From: A. Papazian
May 3 2014
Cannes Check 2014: Ryan Reynolds in Atom Egoyan's 'The Captive'
Continuing our festival preview with the Oscar-nominated director's
kidnap thriller
By Guy Lodge
Welcome back to Cannes Check, In Contention's annual preview of the
films in Competition at next month's Cannes Film Festival, which kicks
off on May 14. Taking on different selections every day, we'll be
examining what they're about, who's involved and what their chances
are of snagging an award from Jane Campion's jury. Next up, the third
Canadian director in the lineup: Atom Egoyan's "The Captive."
The director: Atom Egoyan (Canadian, 53 years old). There was a time
when Egoyan looked to be as estimable a festival fixture as his
compatriot David Cronenberg, but his career hasn't moved in the
direction many thought it would after he won big at Cannes (and
scooped a surprise Best Director Oscar nod) for 1997's critical peak
"The Sweet Hereafter." Born in Cairo to Armenian-Egyptian parents - a
heritage he'd later explore in his 2002 film "Ararat" - Egoyan largely
grew up in British Columbia and studied at the University of Toronto
(where he taught for several years in the 2000s).
After cutting his teeth on multiple shorts, he made his debut feature
"Next of Kin" in 1984 - it was on that project that he met his wife
and regular collaborator, actress Arsinee Khanjian. A varied range of
projects (including episodes of "The Twilight Zone" and "Alfred
Hitchcock Presents") followed before his breakout feature (and first
Cannes selection) "Exotica" in 1994. "The Sweet Hereafter" followed,
but his status has slipped in the new century: in particular,
star-driven semi-mainstream projects like the Julianne Moore thriller
"Chloe" and last year's "Devil's Knot" failed to win over critics.
The talent: A fellow son of British Columbia whose career could
similarly use a lift is actor Ryan Reynolds, whose Hollywood
leading-man credentials have taken a knock with duds like "The Green
Lantern" and "R.I.P.D" - retreating to smaller festival fare seems a
natural move at this point. Co-starring are Rosario Dawson, Mireille
Enos (whose work on TV's "The Killing" scored her an Emmy nod) and
Canadian standbys Scott Speedman and Bruce Greenwood. Egoyan is on
script duty as usual; his co-writer David Fraser takes his first
feature credit here after a handful of TV films, but previous worked
with the director as a story consultant on "Ararat." Cinematographer
Paul Sarossy (recently an Emmy nominee for "The Borgias") and editor
Susan Shipton are both longtime Egoyan collaborators, as is composer
Mychael Danna ("The Ice Storm," "Capote") whose already high profile
got a further boost with an Oscar for "Life of Pi."
The pitch: In light of his recent work, it's not a surprise to see
Egoyan swimming in mainstream thriller waters again, even if the
Cannes berth -- something neither "Chloe" nor "Devil's Knot," both
Toronto premieres, could claim -- might lead some to expect a return
to art-house fare. The premise and trailer for "The Captive" promise a
kidnap thriller in quite a familiar vein; its leading man's beardy
countenance is the least of its resemblances to Denis Villeuneuve's
"Prisoners." Reynolds plays a family man whose young daughter is taken
from the back seat of his car. As the investigation uncovers
surveillance cameras in his own home, it becomes clear this is no
ordinary kidnapping case; the narrative spools out across eight years.
Enos plays Reynolds' wife; Dawson an investigating officer.
The prestige: Cannes may not have hosted Egoyan's last two films, but
the festival has remained pretty loyal to the director through thick
and thin. This is his sixth time in Competition. The first two were
his most successful, as "Exotica" took the FIPRESCI prize in 1994, and
"The Sweet Hereafter" did the same -- plus, more importantly, winning
the Grand Prix -- in 1997. "Felicia's Journey" (starring the late Bob
Hoskins) was a slight step down, but still met with respectable
reviews; "Where the Truth Lies" (2005) and "Adoration" (2008) didn't
set pulses racing either.
http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/cannes-check-2014-ryan-reynolds-in-atom-egoyans-the-captive
From: A. Papazian