You are viewing the archive: Christopher Nolan
Director's Cut || ||

Warner To Announce New DC Superhero Movies (And Remember Those Joseph Gordon-Levitt Rumors?)

Warner To Announce New DC Superhero Movies (And Remember Those Joseph Gordon-Levitt Rumors?)

Faster than a speeding bullet!  More powerful than a public-relations crisis! It's....Superman?  After weeks of speculation about the fate of the Justice League movie and whether The Dark Knight trilogy director Christopher Nolan might ride to the rescue,  Warner Bros.Pictures Group President, Jeff Robinov harnessed the hotly anticipated release of its Man of Steel movie to reframe the future of DC superhero movies at the studio as a bright one. more »

Newswire || ||

Christopher Nolan To Direct 'Interstellar': Peep The Science Behind The Wormhole Sci-Fi Pic

Christopher Nolan To Direct 'Interstellar': Peep The Science Behind The Wormhole Sci-Fi Pic

Nolanites, prepare to get really nerdy: Per THR, Christopher Nolan is in talks to direct and produce Interstellar, scripted by brother Jonathan Nolan, AKA the 2001-esque project that Steven Spielberg was once attached to which "involves time travel and alternate dimensions in a story that sees a group of explorers travel through a wormhole."
more »

On the Scene || ||

Batman Cameo Rumors Bring Cheshire Smile To Christopher Nolan's Face At Hugh Jackman Salute

<> the Museum Of Moving Images Salute To Hugh Jackman at Cipriani Wall Street on December 11, 2012 in New York City.

Hugh Jackman is way more emo than I thought.

But I'll get to that in a moment.  Among the filmmakers who turned up to praise the Les Misérables star at the Museum of the Moving Image's salute to Jackman in lower Manhattan on Tuesday night was The Dark Knight Rises director Christopher Nolan who grew an enormous Cheshire-Cat grin when I asked him if the Superman reboot he is producing, Man of Steel, would see a cameo by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, or any actor, as Batman, and if he had any objections to a cameo as a continuity move to tie the Supes movie to the 2015 Justice League movie. 

"I can't talk about that.  You know that," Nolan said cheerily. I didn't know that, actually, but now that I do, I feel compelled to point out that, despite the frustratingly inconclusive nature of his answer, it's not a 'No.'  Yes, JG-L's camp shot down the speculation as "entirely false" back in November, but if the idea had been ruled out, wouldn't Nolan be saying something along those lines, too, so that the fan boys could move on? You know how angry they can get when their casting hopes and dreams are suddenly deflated after being allowed to build for months.

The impish smile on Nolan's face as he issued that no comment also heightened my optimism, especially in the wake of the powerful Man of Steel trailer that's now burning up the Internet. Zack Snyder's take on Superman clearly aspires to have the kind of psychological heft and dark undertones that made The Dark Knight trilogy so satisfying. If the movie attains or even approaches those standards, a JG-L Batman cameo  would not dishonor Nolan's work and it would set the bar high for Justice League . No pressure, Warner Bros.

Nolan, Hathaway, Weisz Honor Jackman At Museum of The Moving Image Fete

Getting back to Jackman, who's on the fast-track to a Best Actor Oscar nomination, Nolan had much more to say about  the actor, who he directed along with Christian Bale in The Prestige.  The filmmaker told guests at the Museum of the Moving Image fete that though "ruthless" is not a word usually associated with Jackman, The Wolverine star is indeed "ruthless creatively" and a performer "driven by intense ambition."  The director also said that he looked forward to working with Jackman again, "probably not on a musical though," despite Jackman's urging him to direct one.

Also praising Jackman were his wife, actress Deborra-Lee Furness, his X-Men Origins: Wolverine co-star Liev Schreiber, director Mike Nichols, former Saturday Night Live cast member Rachel Dratch, who got big laughs mocking Jackman's Australian dialect and  two of his Les Misérables co-stars Anne Hathaway and Eddie Redmayne.

In an effusive, rambling speech, Hathaway called Jackman "deep as the sea."

Rachel Weisz offered up an even more intriguing description of the actor, calling him an "incredible cocktail of light and dark."  She also told the most revealing story of the night:  During the filming of The Fountain, which was directed by her ex-husband Darren Aronofsky, Weisz said that Jackman gave himself so completely to a scene in which his character realizes he's going to die that "he sobbed for about half an hour after the cameras stopped" while Weisz comforted him.  "He'd gone to the deepest, darkest place a person can go," she said. "And he wasn't faking it."

Jackman kept his speech much lighter saying that his Christmas gift wish list was a simple one.   All he wanted, he said, was "a movie with me starring in it to open on Christmas Day."

Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter.

Follow Movieline on Twitter.

DVD Releases || ||

Addiction, Consequence, Redemption: Chris Nolan & Co. Talk 'The Dark Knight Rises' On Blu-Ray

Addiction, Consequence, Redemption: Chris Nolan & Co. Talk 'The Dark Knight Rises' On Blu-Ray

"Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up."

Was The Dark Knight Rises the finale that Batman deserved and needed? On the new TDKR DVD/Blu-ray release (on shelves today), Christopher Nolan and his collaborators wax poetic about their Batman saga and shed light on what made Bruce Wayne's rise, fall, and redemption such compelling material.
more »

On the Scene || ||

Christopher Nolan Talks Batman Trilogy, Heath Ledger & 'Man Of Steel'

Christopher Nolan Talks Batman Trilogy, Heath Ledger & 'Man Of Steel'

Photo by Belem Destefani

Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy has amassed nearly $2.4 billion theatrically worldwide to date, but Wednesday night, the Oscar-nominated filmmaker (Memento, Inception) sat down at the Film Society of Lincoln Center giving insight on the nuts and bolts of the series, which ended this summer with The Dark Knight Rises, its classic Bond-esque treatment of terrorism, the late Heath Ledger, and the upcoming Man of Steel.
more »

Talkback || ||

What Does Nolan's Final Word On 'TDKR' Mean For Those Joseph Gordon-Levitt Batman Rumors?

What Does Nolan's Final Word On 'TDKR' Mean For Those Joseph Gordon-Levitt Batman Rumors?

Christopher Nolan may have left the door wide open for speculation at the end of The Dark Knight Rises where Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Gotham cop John Blake is concerned, and he is producer/co-writer on Zack Snyder's Man of Steel, which the rumor mill suggests could see a Very Special Gordon-Levitt cameo. But in a chat with Film Comment about his entire Batman trilogy, Nolan was asked if he was completely done with his Dark Knight universe. So what are the implications for those JG-L rumors?
more »

Newswire || ||

Dark Knight Rises Cinematographer Calls The Avengers 'Appalling'

Dark Knight Rises Cinematographer Calls The Avengers 'Appalling'

They were two of the biggest movies in terms of box office this summer - and likely for all of 2012, yet the battle between The Dark Knight Rises and Marvel's The Avengers opened a new front in the artistic sphere. TDKR made just over $1.07 billion worldwide (with a $250 million production budget), while Marvel's The Avengers roared on with a $1.511 billion worldwide gross (and a production budget reportedly at $220 million). One cinematographer offered up his own impressions about the rival's merits, calling it "appalling."
more »

The Player || ||

Christopher Nolan As Metal Gear Solid Director? The Player Responds To Your Comments

Christopher Nolan As Metal Gear Solid Director? The Player Responds To Your Comments

My CODEC has been ringing off the hook since my Metal Gear Solid movie post on Monday. It seems that the Internet agrees with Hideo Kojima: they love huge walking nuclear battle tanks and extended discussions of everything around them. Given that many of those discussions took place in the comments section of my post and because talking about cool things with smart people is more than just a job to me, I've decided to respond to a couple of select points that were made.  more »

DVD Releases || ||

'The Dark Knight Rises' DVD/Blu-Ray Release Date: Christmas Is Coming Early

The Dark Knight Rises - Bat Fans

Fire up the Bat-signal: Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises has a home video street date of December 3, which means Christmas is coming early for the kids, the action fans, the Bat-fans, pretty much all grown adults, Christian Baleheads, Tom Hardyites, Nolanazis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt's transmedia empire, Furries who count Anne Hathaway's Catwoman getup, freeclimbing enthusiasts, and those Warner Home Video suits awaiting their piles of cash. Mark your calendars!
more »

Behind the Camera || ||

Keanu Reeves Wrote 'Old-Fashioned Letter' to Christopher Nolan To Appear In Side By Side

Keanu Reeves Wrote 'Old-Fashioned Letter' to Christopher Nolan To Appear In Side By Side

The demise of film and the seeming triumph of digital has been a hot topic of discussion for insiders and hardcore enthusiasts for a number of years. But Keanu Reeves is taking the topic into the mainstream(ish) realm with his latest project, Side by Side, which bowed recently in Los Angeles and is set to hit cities around the U.S. in the coming weeks. Co-produced and narrated by Reeves, the 98-minute documentary landed the likes of James Cameron, David Fincher, David Lynch, George Lucas, Danny Boyle, Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan and Steven Soderbergh to weigh in on movie-making's (d)evolution. Nolan, he noted, was the most difficult to reach among the people who appear in the doc, which features interviews with 70-plus filmmaking powerhouses. To lure The Dark Knight Rises filmmaker, Reeves went snail mail.
more »

Quick Take || ||

Christopher Nolan Condemns 'Unbearably Savage' Massacre

Christopher Nolan Condemns 'Unbearably Savage' Massacre

"Speaking on behalf of the cast and crew of The Dark Knight Rises, I would like to express our profound sorrow at the senseless tragedy that has befallen the entire Aurora community. I would not presume to know anything about the victims of the shooting but that they were there last night to watch a movie. I believe movies are one of the great American art forms and the shared experience of watching a story unfold on screen is an important and joyful pastime. The movie theatre is my home, and the idea that someone would violate that innocent and hopeful place in such an unbearably savage way is devastating to me. Nothing any of us can say could ever adequately express our feelings for the innocent victims of this appalling crime, but our thoughts are with them and their families." [via ABC]

Review || ||

REVIEW: Ambitious, Thrilling 'Dark Knight Rises' Undermined By Hollow Vision

REVIEW: Ambitious, Thrilling 'Dark Knight Rises' Undermined By Hollow Vision

The Batman brand is in the toilet at the outset of The Dark Knight Rises, the third and most self-consciously ornate pillar of Christopher Nolan’s caped crusader resurrection trilogy. The four years since The Dark Knight have passed as eight within the city state of Gotham — one of the neater doublings in a movie inlaid with prismatic tiling — and even the mayor condemns Batman as “a murderous thug.”
more »

Newswire || ||

Christopher Nolan Defends Fans' Irate Response to Dark Knight Rises Reviews

Director Christopher Nolan"Insomnia" PremiereEl Capitan TheatreHollywood, California USAMay 22, 2002Photo by Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage.comTo license this image (473936), contact WireImage:+1 212-686-8900 (tel)+1 212-686-8901 (fax)sales@wireimage.com (e-mail)www.wireimage.com (web site)

The Dark Knight Rises director Christopher weighed in about the brouhaha that flared this week after some passionate Batman fans threw a fit after a spattering of negative reviews, resulting in aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes' decision to disable user comments for the time being. Nolan's final stint in the trilogy is expected to fetch box office records this weekend and so far reviews have been mostly positive, but a few critics gave TDKR a thumbs down and some fans went ballistic. Wednesday night at the film's London premiere, Nolan appeared to defend fans' emotional response.
more »

Photo Booth || ||

The Dark Knight Rises: Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway (Plus Donald Trump & Gloria Steinem) Hit Gotham Premiere

The Dark Knight Rises - Christian Bale and Gary Oldman

The stars of Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises descended upon NYC — the O.G. Gotham City — to premiere the Batman trilogy finale Monday night, with some surprise guest celebs hitting the red carpet alongside Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Wonder how red carpet guest Donald Trump enjoyed the flick, which sees the hulking villain Bane encourage the 99% to rise up and topple the system into ruin? Or if Hathaway shared the secrets of her Catwoman costume with feminist icon Gloria Steinem? Those snaps and more in Movieline's TDKR premiere gallery...
more »

Close Reads || ||

Dear Batman Fanboys: You Don’t Know What Real Love Is

The Dark Knight Rises Imax poster

On Monday a shockwave rippled through the delicate ecosystem that is the internet, the place where fans, critics, commenters, bloggers, and lurkers live and breathe (and mouth-breathe), over the first reviews of The Dark Knight Rises. The Bat- and Christopher Nolan-faithful rose in arms against the first critics who dared break the news that the comic book movie threequel was maybe not the best movie of all time. Threats were made. Nasty comments were flung. Entire websites were overrun and taken out in retribution. So I ask you, Bat-fans: What Would Batman Do?
more »