Weekly Rewind | 7 July 2017

Production on Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 2 to Begin Filming at Leavesden Studios, Plus Casting Announcements

Principle photography has begun for the next movie in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them series at Warner Brother's Leavesden Studios in London. The announcement came with new information on casting for the new film. The studio announced, through Pottermore.com, that Ingvar Sigurdsson, William Nadylam, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Callum Turner, and Zoë Kravitz will join Jude Law (Albus Dumbledore) as new cast members. The studio also reaffirmed that Eddie Redmayne (Newt Scamander), Katherine Waterston (Tina Goldstein), Dan Fogler (Jacob Kowalski), Alison Sudol (Queenie), and Ezra Miller (Credence) will return. The new movie, not yet named, is directed by David Yates and will be released 16 November 2018.
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The casting information has raised quite a lot of eyebrows regarding what Fantastic Beasts 2 is going to entail. Most notably is Ólafur Darri Ólafsson as Skender, who plays an owner of a wizarding circus, and Claudia Kim as one of the circus’s ‘featured attractions’. Newt isn't going to happy about something caging up one of his fantastic beasts. And what role will Ezar Miller's character Credence play in this new movie? An ally? An enemy? 

The 2017 Wimbledon Championships Begin

On 3 July, the 2017 Wimbledon championship began. The championships, held every year at the All England Club in London, hosts a grand stage for the world's greatest tennis players. The championship is one of the most prestigious and oldest tennis competitions in the world. This year Team GB has numerous players taking to the courts, with stars like world's number one (and my hearts) Andy Murray, Johana Konta, Heather Watson, and Aljaz Beden taking center stage. Other notable players in the competition include Venus Williams, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Petra Kvitová.
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*Cue Siobhan Sharp voice* We love Wimbledon! I actually do love Wimbledon so much! Every summer I look forward to this fortnight of anxiety and tension as I watch Andy Murray narrowly make it into the finals. As a person who detests sport, I can say that tennis has a certain elegance to it. I do find tennis very entertaining and kind of soothing (when I'm not tearing my hair out watching Murray, that is). But what makes me love the Wimbledon championships the most is, of course, the British-ness of the whole affair. Royal visits, celebrity sightings, Pimms, strawberries and cream-- it all kicks off at Wimbledon. 

Acclaimed British Film Critic, Barry Norman, Dies

The acclaimed, and adored, film critic, Barry Norman died at 83 years old this week. Norman was best known to the British public for presenting the BBC Film Show for 26 years. Industry professionals like Jonathan Ross and the BBC's director general Tony Hall shared their condolences for the journalists passing and expressed their admiration and gratitude towards Norman's work. 
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It's so sad to hear of the passing of Barry Norman. I was a massive fan of the Film Show and admired the work Norman did. I learned so much from his articulate and intriguing film reviews and analyses. Norman had a legendary career inspiring people to watch films, a career I could only dream of emulating.  

Newest Trailers 

Breathe
Directed by Andy Serkis

Andy Serkis' feature directorial debut, Breathe, released it's first trailer this week. The bio-pic follows the true story of Robin Cavendish, a British advocate for the medically disabled. The BFI calls the film a  "heart-warming and and highly emotional celebration of bravery and human possibility, a love story about living every breath as through it's your last." The film stars Andrew Garfield (Hacksaw Ridge) as Cavendish and Claire Foy (The Crown) as his wife Diana. 
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​Last week, the BFI announced that Breathe would open the 2017 London Film Festival. The synopsis of the film left me a little weary of its appeal, but I help out hope because of its stars Garfield and Foy. Now that the trailer has been released, I lost the little hope I had for this film. Essentially, Breathe is 2017's The Theory of Everything, but not nearly as good. What really made me lose hope was the fact that I couldn't even watch the trailer through completely the first time because I got bored. And I never get bored watching trailers. I love trailers. So this is bad news for Breathe. 

Good Time
​Directed by Josh and Benny Safdie

From the acclaimed directors of Heaven Knows What comes their new film Good Time starring Robert Pattinson (Cosmopolis). The film follows Pattinson as Constantine "Connie" Nikas, a small-time criminal who attempts to get his brother out of jail after a bank robbery goes wrong. The film won acclaim at this year's Cannes festival, with Pattinson being a contender for Best Actor. The film also stars Benny Sadie, Barkhad Abdi, and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and opens in cinemas 11 August. 
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I'm going to admit it... I like Robert Pattinson. He has proven himself as a fine actor since his days of sucking face and sucking blood in Twilight. He has chosen challenging and unique projects since his blockbuster days, proving his versatility as an actor. I was shocked, but also pleased, to hear of the glowing reviews for him and this film at Cannes. The trailer gives an exciting glance at this thrilling heist film.