Let's Talk About Ched

Ched Evans is a criminal. He has been convicted of his crimes. He has served two and a half years in prison for his crimes. Ched Evans is now out of prison seeking to rehabilitate himself back into society. Ched Evans is a footballer. Kicking a ball for a living is all he knows. The normal rules of society do not seem to adhere to professional sportsman.

Today, Tuesday 11th November 2014, the players union of professional footballers, The Professional Football Association (PFA) made a request to his previous employer, Sheffield United, that Evans be allowed to train with the club.  No decision has been made by the club to re-employ him although why would a club entertain a request without the possibility of future employment.

Footballers are positioned in a vaunted status in British society, they are put on a pedestal by us all. Which young child at school doesn't want to be a professional footballer with all the riches and glamour that come with the role.  However, you get one shot at stardom and if you cock up then you should seek an alternative route to fame and fortune, as your poor lack of judgment has cost you ultimately.

Yet when you are told you are good at something from an early age you believe it is your right to do it for as long as you can.  Evans has only known one skill, to play football. He has represented his country, Wales, and yet he has been convicted of rape.

Upon release, Evans claimed he is innocent and was wrongly convicted. This was exemplified by his failure to show neither remorse nor apologise to the victim of his case.  Evans has released a video statement but has not done any media appearances and go on the charm offensive.  His anonymity is speaking volumes at this time.

When Lee Hughes was jailed for causing death by drink driving, he showed remorse and went and played for a non-league side paying his dues and then being bought by Oldham Athletic and Notts County eventually. Although even his attmept at rehabilitation was not totally successful. He is currently playing for Forest Green Rovers

Evans is becoming a sort of privileged figure, he has served a jail sentence but is going back to work. Would this happen to a binman or school teacher, there is always a period of rehabilitation but none of the stigmatism a sex offender against children would have stained against their name.

Think of this situation. There are female assistant referees in the Football League who no doubt officiate games involving Sheffield United. When they do the handshakes before the game to laughingly portray Respect, what if one of those female assistants choose to not shake the hand of Evans. If this writer is thinking about it, someone higher up in power must be or they think a convicted rapist can shake the hand of a hard working young female under the spotlight of respect.

We can talk about Ched. But Ched needs to speak more for himself instead of hiding behind a governing body which should be ashamed for their stance in this instance. When figures come out about the small number of minority figures in the national sport, that same governing body are giving support to a man who should remain unemployable until he shows remorse for his actions.

Battle of the Five Armies - Main trailer

Following on from the teaser trailer I covered last week, today I can show you a link to the offiical main trailer for The Battle of the Five Armies, which will be released worldwide on December 12th in time for Christmas. And in so doing ending the trilogy and the fine work of Peter Jackson.

To see the trailer for yourself, click here:

The trailer features a lot more than we saw in the teaser; we even have glimpses of returning characters from the Lord of the Rings trilogy with appearances by Hugo Weaving and Sir Christopher Lee.  Most pleasingly, though, the trailer does not give away too much unlike some other trailers - we have enough action and enough dialogue to indicate the gripping nature of battle between brothers in combat, yet the sheer majesty and grandeur of the war is not given away. Although with the film likely to have a three hour running time, this will surely be one long battle.

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The Gambler - New trailer

 

 THE ONLY WAY OUT IS ALL IN

Paramount Pictures are pleased to announce the new trailer of The Gambler starring Mark Wahlberg and directed by Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes).

The new trailer allows us more of a glimpse into the life of Jim Bennett (Wahlberg), an English professor who has a secret double life as a high stakes gambler at night.  Jim owes money to several people who we meet, Frank (John Goodman), a loan shark and a gangster played by Michael Carter Williams, who takes Jim's life as collateral for the loan.  Coupled with the difficult relationship with his mother (Jessica Lange) and the blossoming relationship with a student (Brie Larson); the film offers many twists and turns as Jim finds the answers to his problems and win back the money he owes everyone without losing his life.

The trailer shows a lot, a lot of generic dialogue is thrown around by Goodman as the paternal advisor to Wahlberg; and Wahlberg's character does come across as someone who does not learn his lesson to often, therefore the introduction of a young fair maiden might make him change his ways.

For Wyatt, this a great shot in the arm to follow up the unexpected success of his Apes reimagining with a solid dramatic work with some established Hollywood veterans in Wahlberg, Goodman and Lange; who seem to be enjoying their work.

The Gambler is out in UK cinemas on 19th December

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Men, Women and Children - preview

 

Paramount Pictures is pleased to release a brand new trailer and poster of the forthcoming Men, Women & Children from acclaimed director, Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air) starring Ansel Elgort, Jennifer Garner, Adam Sandler and Emma Thompson.

Men, Women & Children follows the story of a group of high school teenagers and their parents as they attempt to navigate the many ways the internet has changed their relationships, their communication, their self-image, and their love lives. The film attempts to stare down social issues such as video game culture, anorexia, infidelity, fame hunting, and the proliferation of illicit material on the Internet. As each character and each relationship is tested, we are shown the variety of roads people choose - some tragic, some hopeful - as it becomes clear that no one is immune to this enormous social change that has come through our phones, our tablets, and our computers.

In the trailer we get to meet Tim (Elgort) and Brandy (Kaitlyn Dever) two individuals who find each other at high school, yet the path of true love does not run smooth as Brandy's mother (Garner) deliberately watches all of her daughter's interactive activity through her phone and the internet.  Is her mother living vicariously through her daughter, or protecting her as best she can in a dangerous world or can this be prescribed as over-parenting to the nth degree?  Following on from the box office success of The Fault in our Stars, there is a potential for another box office hit with the right balance of humour, affection and another bedside hospital visit foreboding.

The film has the usual sheen associated with Reitman's work which took a slight dramatic detour with Labor Day last year, yet this return to an ensemble piece (such as his under-rated Thank You for Smoking) could well harken back to his work with Juno, where his chops of garnering good teenage performances can be expected. Based on the novel by Chad Kultgen, Reitman wrote the screenplay with Erin Cressida Wilson (Secretary, Fur)

A link to the trailer is available here

The film is scheduled for release in UK cinemas on December 5th

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In the Heart of the Sea

 

Directed by Oscar winner Ron Howard and starring Chris Hemsworth, Cillian Murphy, Ben Whishaw and Brendan Gleeson, In the Heart of the Sea tells the epic true story of men who survived upon the vessel Essex which would serve as the inspiration for Herman Melville's Moby Dick in the winter of 1820.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=E0b2bYO519s
 
In the Heart of the Sea reveals the encounter’s harrowing aftermath, as the ship’s surviving crew is pushed to their limits and forced to do the unthinkable to stay alive.  Braving storms, starvation, panic and despair, the men will call into question their deepest beliefs, from the value of their lives to the morality of their trade, as their captain searches for direction on the open sea and his first mate still seeks to bring the great whale down.

 

In the Heart of the Sea stars Chris Hemsworth (The Avengers, Rush) as the vessel’s veteran first mate Owen Chase; Benjamin Walker (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) as its inexperienced Captain, George Pollard; Cillian Murphy (The Dark Knight Rises) as second mate Matthew Joy; and Ben Whishaw (Skyfall) as novelist Herman Melville, whose inquiries into the event 30 years later helped bring the story to light.  Tom Holland (The Impossible) also stars as young seaman Tom Nickerson, and Brendan Gleeson (Edge of Tomorrow) as the same man, 30 years later.  Spanish actor Jordi Mollà (Riddick) is the captain of another ship, the Archimedes, who tries to warn the Essex of what may lie ahead.

The trailer is a gripping two and a half minute teaser which has the customary voice over from the experienced old dog, some lilting music from the soundtrack and some amazing photography of the action at the sea, borrowing a trick from Spielberg's Jaws in that we do not see all of the beast. 

 

The film promises to be the best nautical movie seen since Master and Commander, which was directed by Hemsworth compatriot Peter Weir and starred Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany.  That film, pardon the pun, sank from public consciousness but hopefully will be remembered now, and if the film does half of what the trailer envisages we land lovers are in for a treat.

Opening worldwide beginning March 13, 2015 in theatres and IMAX, the film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.

In the Heart of the Sea will be released in UK cinemas on 13th March 2015

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Grand Central

 

GRAND CENTRAL stars two of France’s most exciting and talented actors - Léa Seydoux, winner of the Palme d’Or in 2013 for her stunning performance in Blue Is The Warmest Colour, and Tahar Rahim who received many accolades for his gripping performance in A Prophet including two César Awards and Best Actor from the European Film Awards. 

Gary (Tahar Rahim) is young, agile and a quick learner.  He's one of those guys who's never been promised anything.  After a succession of odd jobs, he’s taken on at a nuclear power plant.  There, amongst the reactors and their high doses of radioactivity, he finally finds what he's been looking for: money, a team, a family.  But the team also includes Karole (Léa Seydoux), the wife of his colleague, Toni (Denis Menochet), with whom he falls in love.

While the film may follow the familiar narrative arc of forbidden love and thou shall not covet thy neighbours wife, the film is elevated beyond the average by having two starlets such as Rahim and Seydoux, who are head and shoulders above the rest of French actors currently.  Menochet does well with the idiot husband role, Menochet starred in the brilliant French drama The Returned, which has provided a springboard to many a French actor in recent years.

At times beautifully shot when in the countryside, and the young director Rebecca Zlotowski (Belle epine) has an observant eye to relationships and garners electrifying performances from the actors involved, evoking passion and a certain enigmatic quality not to be missed.

The film is released on Home Entertainment DVD and Download on Monday 10th November by StudioCanal. 

www.studiocanal.co.uk

Battle of the Five Armies - Preview

 

Click here to see an exclusive World Premiere Announcement video starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Richard Armitage and Luke Evans.  The World Premiere takes place in London on December 1st, 2014; with Peter Jackson and much of the cast and crew in attendance to meet and greet fans. The Battle of the Five Armies will be opening in UK cinemas on Friday 12th December.

If you click here you will also see the teaser trailer where the battle holds the centre of attention, with Armitage and Evans exchanging words before battle.  Epic in scope, huge in its ambition yet the music of Howard Shore forebodes an underlying finality to proceedings.

Following on from the DVD/Blu-ray release of The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition, the appetite is getting well and truly whetted before the conclusion of The Hobbit Trilogy: The Battle of the Five Armies promises to not disappoint.

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