| The IllusionistUS limited release
date: August 18, 2006, nationwide September 1
Jessica Biel (Sophie) and Rufus (Prince Leopold)
Click here for "The Illusionist"
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Jessica Biel, who co-stars in the upcoming supernatural period drama The Illusionist,
told SCI FI Wire that co-star Rufus Sewell slapped in her in a key scene, and it was no
illusion. Biel said Sewell slaps her when her character, a noblewoman named Sophie, defies
his, Crown Prince Leopold, to whom she is betrothed.
"It was a big step," Biel said in an interview. "It was extremely
nerve-wracking, but I knew that if it terrified me that I should do it. I was enamored
with the story and with the character and with the idea of that time period and being in
that wardrobe and really creating this person and stepping into the shoes of someone that
I have no idea about."
Playing a traditional woman in the turn-of-the-20th-century drama was a departure for
Biel, who is better known for her kickass action heroines in such films as Stealth
and Blade: Trinity. "I felt that it was very different from previous roles
that I've done, modern roles," Biel said. "I felt that I was pretty much me in a
lot of those roles, just changing it up a little bit. But with this I felt like I was
stepping into the abyss. I didn't know what was going to happen, really. So I just enjoyed
the challenge and was excited to surprise people with it. I'm just so happy that it turned
out the way that it did."
In the scene in which Leopold slaps Sophie, she is telling her betrothed that she is in
love with Eisenheim (Edward Norton), a magician with seemingly supernatural powers.
"There's an intense emotional aspect to that scene," Biel said. "I think,
... 'I can't do this anymore. I'm just trying to be honest with you.' Of course, he goes
off the handle and strikes her. I think the way that I felt as a character was that I felt
so violated by that, that the best response, better than attacking back or hitting back,
is to really say, 'Well, that doesn't bother me. I'm leaving.' And that's what was so cool
about Sophie in that scene and how we played it. It was just, 'I'm not going to react to
this. Goodbye.' She didn't react to it, and that's what pissed him off. In the beginning
of the scene he says something, and she barely reacts to it, and he's getting crazy, and
he's doing exactly what she knows he's going to do. She doesn't react to it. It built like
that until that final moment, which was like a kick to the face when she just walks out.
He couldn't believe it."
The redness in her cheek that's apparent in the film is no illusion either. "My cheek
did get really red," Biel said. "I saw that, too. He did not ever hit me, but it
startled me every time, I think, and I just felt demeaned by it for some reason. I guess
that I was very involved in that scene, and I felt very in the moment in that scene, and I
do remember my face just sort of blushing."
Biel added that the scene was the toughest part of the film for her. "I think that
Rufus and I really like each other, and so it was probably hard," she said. "I
mean, we had a nice friendship, and he was a really lovely guy. I'm sure that he didn't
want to pretend and smack me. I'm sure that it wasn't just another scene. It was really
emotional for him as well." The Illusionist, which is based on Steven
Millhauser's short story "Eisenheim the Illusionist," opens Aug. 18. —Mike
SzymanskiThanks,
Therese! |
Prince Leopold
special thanks to Minx of EMS for this photo!
thanks for these caps from the Variety.com video clips, Uke!
View "The
Illusionist" video clips at Variety.com
Cinematical Seven: Kim Voynar's
Sundance picks
http://www.cinematical.com/2006/01/19/cinematical-seven-kim-voynars-sundance-picks/
The
Illusionist - This film, described as a "stunning romantic
thriller" tells the tale of Eisenheim, a magician with the hots for the crown
prince's fiancee (never a good idea if you want to keep your head). When the fiancee ends
up dead, Eisenheim has to prove the crown prince did it before the monarcy destroys him. The
Illusionist, which "explores art and technology as populist forces" (how's
that for a highbrow description?), stars Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, Paul Giamatti (who
is just good in everything) and Rufus Sewell.
ComingSoon.net
Secrets of The Illusionist Set Revealed
Source: Andyman
April 30, 2005
Scooper 'Andyman' is giving ComingSoon.net an exclusive look at the set of writer/director
Neil Burger's The Illusionist, a turn-of-the-century drama starring Edward Norton, Paul
Giamatti, Jessica Biel and Rufus Sewell.
Burger's adaptation of the Steven Millhauser short story "Eisenheim the
Illusionist" is set in 1900 Vienna. In the film, a streetwise magician (Norton) uses
his dark arts to win Princess Sophie (Biel) away from Crown
Prince Leopold (Sewell).
The set was built in the historic town of Tabor, Czech Republic.
http://comingsoon.net/news/topnews.php?id=9400
thanks, Ukelelehip!
http://www.network54.com/Forum/169498
The Hollywood Reporter
By Anne Thompson
March 28, 2005
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Jessica Biel and Rufus
Sewell are joining Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti in "The Illusionist," writer-
director Neil Burger's $17 million turn-of-the-century drama that begins shooting April 4
in Prague.
Burger's adaptation of the Steven Millhauser short story
"Eisenheim the Illusionist" is set in 1900 Vienna. A streetwise magician
(Norton) uses his dark arts to win Princess Sophie (Biel)
away from Crown Prince Leopold (Sewell). Famed magician/historian Ricky Jay is consulting
on the film.
Best known for her role as a wholesome teen on television's
"7th Heaven," Biel has been changing her image with such films as "The
Rules of Attraction," "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "Blade:
Trinity."
She recently received a positive response at a ShoWest
screening of footage from the upcoming summer action movie "Stealth." She also
stars in Cameron Crowe's next film, "Elizabethtown."
Biel landed the coveted female lead in "The
Illusionist," which she actively chased, after an arduous casting process including
several screen tests.
Filmmakers were seeking an actress who could bring a
contemporary feel to a period yarn, and "she fit the bill," producer Michael
London said.
British actor Sewell's credits include "A Knight's
Tale," "Hamlet," "Cold Comfort Farm" and television's "Helen
of Troy" and "Middlemarch." His upcoming features are "Tristan &
Isolde" and "Legend of Zorro."
Thanks, Minx!
In brief: Ron
Howard to direct Spanish conquest epic
Guardian Unlimited
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Plus: Rufus Sewell and Jessica Biel join The
Illusionist, Hogwarts relocates to eastern
Europe, Ridley Scott faces plagiarism allegation and Brief Encounter music is nation's top
classic
Staff and agencies
Tuesday March 29, 2005
Apollo 13 director Ron Howard is to direct a historical saga about the Spanish conquest of
Mexico, The Serpent and The Eagle. The original script is being reworked by LA
Confidential and Mystic River writer Brian Helgeland. But before Howard can get his hands
dirty in Mexico, he must first complete two high profile projects, the adaptations of The
Da Vinci Code and East of Eden.
Brit thesp Rufus Sewell and Hollywood rising star Jessica Biel are to join Edward
Norton and Sideways' Paul Giamatti on the set of The Illusionist, a drama set in
turn-of-the-century Vienna. The plot involves a magician (played by Norton) using his
powers to seduce a princess (played by Biel) away from the crown prince (played by
Sewell). The Illusionist is written and directed by relative newcomer Neil Burger. Filming
is to start next week in Prague.
The next Harry Potter films could be shot in eastern Europe instead of the UK. An
anonymous source told the Mail on Sunday newspaper that Warner Brother executives are
planning the move in order to cut costs. All Harry Potter instalments have so far been
shot in Leavesden studios in Hertfordshire and at various locations across the UK.
Ridley Scott could be facing a legal dispute over his forthcoming Crusade saga Kingdom of
Heaven, expected to be a box office hit next May. Historian James Reston Jr is accusing
the Blade Runner director and 20th Century Fox of violating American and international
copyright law. According to legal papers, the film uses "events, characters, scenes,
descriptions and character tensions" that were "strikingly similar" to
passages of his book, Warriors of God: Richard the Lionheart and Saladin in the Third
Crusade. The studio denies the allegations, saying that Scott has never read the book. Mr
Reston Jr will decide this week whether he will go to court. Production on Kingdom of
Heaven is currently being completed in England.
Meanwhile, Ridley's brother, Tony Scott, is in talks to direct the romantic thriller
Déjà Vu for Jerry Bruckheimer and Walt Disney Studios. The plot involves an FBI agent
travelling back in time to save a woman from a murder. Unsurprisingly, the two fall in
love. Scott is currently completing production on Domino, the true story of a
model-turned-bounty-hunter starring Keira Knightley.
The music from Brief Encounter, David Lean's tragic love story, has been named Britain's
most popular piece of classical music, according to a Classic FM poll. The haunting
melodies of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No 2 were favoured over The Lark Ascending by
Vaughan Williams and Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A.
http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,12589,1447491,00.html?gusrc=rss
network54.com/Forum
Prague TV
Friday, March 18, 2005
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