FRANKIE, a nine year-old deaf boy, has been writing to his father since his family split up. He lives with his mother Lizzie (Emily Mortimer) in a Glasgow flat and thinks his dad, who he can't remember, is working on a ship sailing round the world. What he doesn't...
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BUTLER STEERING CLEAR OF BOND
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA star GERARD BUTLER wishes people would stop asking him if he's going to replace PIERCE BROSNAN as British superspy JAMES BOND. The 35-year-old shot to fame starring in the recent movie adaptation of ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER's hit musical, and...
INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE
Equipped with crucifixes and garlic, Total DVD met Dracula - well Gerard Butler How do you start getting your head around being transformed into the legend that is Dracula? Panic, panic, panic... and then let it go, you know? That was the thing, I really, really...
Broadway Flavors James Bond Casting
NEW YORK - The illustrious leading men of the great white way are heralded as triple threats for demonstrating not only dramatic flair, but also the equal physical dexterity demanded by dancers and athletes, and the vocal range to match. That triple dose of strength...
Best of Scottish screen
The nominations for the Bowmore Scottish Screen Awards exclusively offer readers of The Sunday Times the chance to vote in Scotland's democratic version of the Oscars. Be sure to cast your vote - and win the opportunity to attend this year's glittering award ceremony...
A QUIET TRIUMPH OF BRITISH INTENSITY
DEAR FRANKIE CERT 12A 105 MINS Despite being given a standing ovation at Cannes and then a well received UK premiere at last year's Edinburgh Film Festival, the debut feature by Warwickshire based director Shona Auerbach has been somewhat unceremoniously left to...
A bit of a Jack the lad
There are times when Jack manages somehow to marry the naiviety and wide-eyed wonder of the average Glasgow school kid with the cool swagger of James Dean or maybe Steve McQueen, whom he cites as one of his favourite actors. "My dad is quite a big Steve McQueen fan...
Dear Frankie (12A) ****
Directed by: Shona Auerbach Starring: Emily Mortimer, Gerald Butler, Jack McElhone YOU might have heard about Dear Frankie. It’s the little Scottish film no-one wanted to make that became one of the hits of last year’s Cannes film festival, where it reportedly...
PREGNANCY CHANGED MORTIMER’S OUTLOOK
British actress EMILY MORTIMER was too protective of her unborn baby to mix with her DEAR FRANKIE co-stars off-set - even though her anti-social attitude turned her into an outcast. Mortimer - whose character runs away from her husband with their young son in the film...
Gerard Butler talks about his James Bond prospects
In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph (Australia), 35-year-old Scottish actor Gerard Butler ("Timeline", "Reign of Fire", "Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life") - who can currently be seen playing the title character in the film version of "The Phantom of the Opera",...
Feel good Frankie proves to have warm heart
Director: Shona Auerbach Cast: Emily Mortimer, Gerard Butler, Jack McElhone, Sharon Small Cert: 12. A warm-hearted story of deception for the right reasons and the consequences of the deception, Dear Frankie is handled with skill and charm by debutante director Shona...
Who are your Scots stars?
The first nominations for the Bowmore Scottish Screen Awards exclusively offer readers of the Sunday Times the chance to vote in Scotland's democratic version of the Oscars. Be sure to cast your vote - and win the opportunity to attend this year's glittering award...
PHANTOM DAD; REAL-LIFE DRAMA – OPERA STAR GERARD IS MOVED TO TEARS BY HIS ROLE IN
PHANTOM of the Opera star Gerard Butler understands why his new film Dear Frankie has had audiences crying their eyes out. He felt the same way when he first read the script. Just like nine-year-old Frankie - played by Jack McElhone - Gerard grew up estranged from his...
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom Of The Opera: An Interview with Gerard Butler
When word went out that "The Phantom of the Opera" would finally be made into a film, many wondered if the original Broadway star, Michael Crawford, would reprise his role. Surprising, Crawford didn't get the call. After all, he played the role over 15 years ago and...
Don’t expect happy endings
The screenwriter Andrea Gibb has drawn on the real-life experience of her family to come up with a pair of tearjerkers, writes Anna Burnside Within the film industry, writers have traditionally occupied a place somewhere between the wig technician and the second...
THE RAZZ: BEST ACTOR? BUTLER DID IT
SCOTS movie star Gerard Butler has started off 2005 well - he's just been named best actor at an Italian film festival. The Phantom Of The Opera star won the best actor gong at the Capri Film Festival for his new film Dear Frankie. In the movie he plays a troubled man...
Film fest earned its good luck
For the St. Louis International Film Festival, which concluded on Sunday, 13 was a lucky number. The 13th installment was both a commercial and artistic success, with solid attendance, distinguished guests, a near-perfectly balanced roster and an enthusiastic...
“Les Choristes,” and “Kinsey” Take St. Louis Honors
France's selection for best foreign language Oscar consideration "Les Choristes" by Christophe Barrastier has taken top honors at the 13th annual St. Louis International Film Festival, which ended on Sunday night. "Les Choristes," which centers on a teacher at a...
Audiences pick fest’s top films
The High Falls Film Festival has announced its Audience Choice Award Winners. Born into Brothels was the Audience Choice Award Winner for Documentary, while Dear Frankie was the Audience Choice Award Winner for Feature Film, said Randi Minetor, executive director of...
Year 13: 170 films, 30 nations
The St. Louis International Film Festival - which runs tonight through Nov. 21 at the Tivoli and Hi-Pointe theaters and Webster University - turns 13 this year. Since its awkward beginnings in the nursery of the Esquire Theatre, SLIFF has grown confident and strong,...
Three Rivers Film Fest continues its mix of fact and fiction
The Three Rivers Film Festival continues this weekend. Here are capsule reviews of some of the films showing: 'Dear Frankie' "Dear Frankie" is a wee charmer of a movie. The boy of the title is a 9-year-old (Jack McElhone) who is frequently on the move with his...
Get ready for 300- Frank Miller style
One of last years biggest hits was the cinematic feast, SIN CITY. Based on Frank Miller's cult comic series and amazingly adapted to the screen by Robert Rodriquez. Now up for adaptation is another one of Miller's acclaimed graphic novels, "300!". 300 tells the true...
New dark stars are born
Edinburgh is dominated by brooding, homegrown talent with an ability to turn from the comic to the violent Film festivals tend to be about directors, countries or genres, but sometimes they are also about a new star. In Cannes, it was the young Mexican actor Gael...
‘Sprung’ finds a home
NEW YORK -- Miramax has sealed a pact with Pathe Pictures Intl. to acquire distribution rights to animated feature "Sprung! The Magic Roundabout" for North and South America. In post-production and set to be completed in January, "Sprung" is based on the vintage U.K....
Actor ‘Rediscovered Glasgow’ During Filming
The leading actor in a movie which is to receive its UK premiere tonight, today described filming on location in the west coast of Scotland as “just a really good, simple experience”. Tomb Raider star Gerard Butler, who grew up in Paisley, said that shooting Dear...