Dame
Margaret Natalie Smith, more commonly known as “Maggie” is an acting legend. So how could this be a blog on Scotland’s Film Scene without mentioning someone of
her calibre?
Having been performing for 60 years she is still going strong with
her most recent release being in “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel." Smith portrays a hard-nosed
bigoted woman called Muriel, who gradually begins to soften and show a more
vulnerable side after spending time in India for a hip replacement. The film
features a number of elderly people who have all travelled to India for
different reasons, after being advertised the false image of a beautiful hotel.
The reality is far from what they originally thought, however, with the
hopeless but loveable hotel manager, Sonny, who is struggling to fulfil his
dreams; played by Dev
Patel
the star of “Slumdog Millionaire.” Amongst the cast are fellow acting heroes:
Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy. The heart-warming film follows the
characters through huge milestones in each of their lives and sees unlikely
relationships blossom.
Cast of "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel"
As Professor McGonagall
Maggie
Smith has also recently starred in much loved TV series “Downton Abbey” where
she plays the character of Violet Crawley. And, of course, playing the role of
Professor McGonagall in the mammoth “Harry Potter” franchise, which made the author;
J.K. Rowling worth an estimated £620 million ($1 billion) as of March 2011
and created a world-wide fan base.
Smith
is also involved in the comedy, drama “Quartet” which isn’t to be released
until November 2012. Staring alongside Michael Gambon and Billy Connoly,
Dame Maggie plays Jean who causes trouble for her ex-husband Reggie and other
residents living in the home for retired opera singers. Directed by Dustin
Hoffman, the film’s storyline revolves around residents who want to take part
in a birthday concert, with the character of Jean acting like a diva and disrupting
the show.
In recent years the Edinburgh
International Film Festival has been struggling slightly with securing finance,
and last year in 2011 it was described as a “flop” despite its long and
prestigious history. But fortunately for the festival the new animated
Disney-Pixar film “Brave” could save the day! Set in the ScottishHighlands
and due to be released later this year, the film festival has managed to secure
the European premier of the movie for their finale. And the film’s world premier is expected to go to Hollywood. Staring the (voices of)
Scottish actor Billy Connolly with Kelly Macdonald playing the lead role of Merida.
Trailer:
Alex Salmond, Scotland’s
First Minister, was lucky enough to experience an exclusive screening of clips
from the film, which is expected to boost Scotland’s tourism, and he seemed suitably impressed. The plot revolves around the character of Princess Merida who
is determined to take control of her own life and gain independence from her
parents; a slightly more modest ambition than Salmond’s aim for an independent Scotland.
A word on the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2012:
Running from the 20th of June
till the 1st of July there’s still plenty of time to get involved or
even work at this year’s festival with a link to their website.
Kelly Macdonald:
The Scottish actress is known for playing Diane in the independent film “Trainspotting” (1996) as well as her more recent mainstream roles including Evangeline in “Nanny McPhee” (2005) and Helena Ravenclaw also known as “The Grey Lady” in the finally Harry Potter movie (2011).
Macdonald was also mentioned in one of the previous blog posts as she stars in “The
Decoy Bride” with David Tennant.
As Billy Connolly also features in "Brave" playing the role of King Fergus, here is a link to the blog about his part in movie adaptation of "The Hobbit."
Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, affectionately known by fans as The Big Yin, is set to play a dwarf in Peter Jackson’s movie adaption of the hit novel by J.R.R. Tolkien.
“The Hobbit”,
which was first published in 1937, is a prelude to Tolkien’s popular “The Lord
of the Rings” series and will be split into two films. The first movie: “The
Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is scheduled to be released in December of this
year (2012) with the second movie: “The Hobbit: There and Back Again” to come
out late the following year.
Trailer:
Jackson, the director, was quoted saying:
"We could not think of a more
fitting actor to play Dain Ironfoot, the staunchest and toughest of the
dwarves, than Billy Connolly, the Big Yin himself,"
Filming has
already begun in New Zealand
where The Shire, home to the hobbits, and other sets have been built.
Recently,
after being voted the “most influential comedian of all time” by the public in a
poll organised by TV channel Dave, Connolly has suffered heckles from some of
his UK
audience members. This has resulted in two of his shows being prematurely ended,
leaving both the 69-year-old funny man and his fans unimpressed.
