Peter O’Toole joins star studded cast in British Independent Film ‘Katherine Of Alexandria’

• All-star British cast includes Joss Ackland, Steven Berkoff, and Edward Fox 
• Saint Katherine’s story to be told for the first time on screen
• One of the biggest British independent films for decades
• The cream of British cinema talent behind the camera

November 25, 2013: Multi-award winning actor Peter O’Toole joins a star-studded cast in one of the biggest British Independent productions for decades. The film tells the remarkable story of Katherine of Alexandria and her link to Constantine the Great. Katherine, the patron saint of scholars, was officially removed from the Catholic calendar in 1969 only to be reinstated in 2002 by Pope John Paul II.

Peter O’Toole, nominated for a total of eight Academy Awards, given an honorary Oscar, and winner of four Golden Globes, produces a fine performance as palace orator Gallus, alongside Romanian newcomer Nicole Keniheart who plays the persecuted Katherine.

Screen-writer and director Michael Redwood states: “My agenda was simple: painstaking research, to create an intelligent screenplay and to seek out Britain’s best performers for their unrivalled ability to help portray the story of this religious icon. The dialogue demanded some of the world’s most recognisable voices such as Peter O’Toole and Edward Fox, who were an inspiration to work with. Katherine’s voice also had to be most haunting in its delivery”

The film stars Joss Ackland, C.B.E, (White Mischief, Lethal Weapon 2) playing Rufus, Steven Berkoff (Octopussy, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) as Liberius, Edward Fox, O.B.E, (The Day of the Jackal, Edward VIII) playing Emperor Constantius and Samantha Beckinsale (London’s Burning, Shelley), half-sister of Kate Beckinsale, as the Empress Vita. Katherine of Alexandria was directed by British filmmaker Michael Redwood and filmed at Paphos in Cyprus, and Hadrian’s Wall, Pinewood Studios and Elstree Studios in the UK. The movie is set for release early 2014.

Behind the camera, debut director Redwood surrounded himself with award winning talent. Oscar winner John Poyner is Sound Supervisor, Golden Globe winner Matt Howe is Surround Sound Mixer, Oscar winner John Schoonraad is Prosthetics Supervisor and award winning cinematographer Peter Taylor is on camera.

Over 2 billion Christians around the world are expected to celebrate St Katherine’s Day on 25th November, and there are approximately 1,100 buildings in her honour around the globe. Millions of people each year pay homage to the Saint at her monastery on Mount Sinai, Egypt, her final resting place. Despite this, so little is known about the intrigue surrounding this iconic woman.

It is commonly believed that Katherine was a Christian maiden of Alexandria in Egypt, possessing beauty, brains and noble birth. Redwood’s film portrays Katherine as a real woman, with feelings of torment and fear but a steadfast belief in her denouncement of Rome’s enforced pagan worship upon the masses. This would eventually lead to her being pitted against Rome’s finest scholars at an open trial in Alexandria, one of the film’s most dramatic scenes.

For more information please visit www.katherineofalexandria.com

How To Train Your Dragon 2

While Astrid, Snoutlout and the rest of the gang are challenging each other to dragon races (the island's new favorite contact sport), the now inseparable pair journey through the skies, charting unmapped territories and exploring new worlds. When one of their adventures leads to the discovery of a secret ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider, the two friends find themselves at the center of a battle to protect the peace. Now, Hiccup and Toothless must unite to stand up for what they believe while recognizing that only together do they have the power to change the future of both men and dragons.

How To Train Your Dragon 2 hits UK cinemas June 2014.

The Fifth Beatle Graphic Novel Short Review

4 stars all the way for this brilliant new addition to the unstoppable machine that is the Beatles.

The Fifth Beatle is a graphic novel from the well known and respected Dark Horse Comics, written by Vivek J. Tiwary (Greenday's American Idiot, The Addams Family) and beautifully illustrated by Andrew C. Robinson (Dusty Star) and Kyle Baker (Why I hate Saturn, Plastic Man), who is responsible for a special section in the middle of the book, paying homage to the Beatles comics of the 1960s.

As a fan of the Beatles, if you said to me "the fifth Beatle" my mind would automatically go to George Martin, their record producer, as I think would most peoples. So it was rather a surprise to discover that this is in fact the Brian Epstein story.

And a tragic and fascinating tale it is. As he explains in his afterword, Vivek J. Tiwary has devoted a good portion of his career to researching and uncovering the truth behind this flawed hero, responsible for the Beatles meteoric rise to fame.

Find out more over at Road Rash Reviews

Utopia Cinema Release Short Review

5 stars for this enlightening and disturbing documentary.
Written, produced and presented by John Pilger, this is an in depth and highly controversial look into the treatment of the indigenous peoples of Australia and the attitudes which surround them.

John Pilger is an Australian journalist who has been campaigning for the rights of the Aboriginal population for many years.

In this documentary he lifts the lid on what is a very shocking legacy of abuse and mistreatment of the indigenous population by the government and the general population of one of the richest countries on Earth, which continues even to this day.

Read more about this shocking new film over at  Road Rash Reviews

One Piece Collection 4 DVD Release Short Review

4 stars for the next part of this fantastic anime series.
One Piece Collection 4 carries on (predictably) where One Piece Collection 3 finished, completing the Drum Island arc and set during the Alabasta saga (episodes 79-103).
The start of this collection sees the Straw Hat Pirates, still on the Grand Line and on board the Going Merry, engaged in a battle with the evil pirate Wapol and his band of misfits.

With Wapol dispatched (for now), the crew must find a doctor for Nami, who has been struck down by a life threatening fever while in Little Garden. They spot a winter island in the distance, which they hope will have medical facilities. This turns out to be Drum Island, where they land and are immediately attacked by the militia.

 Find out more about this excellent adventure over at Road Rash Reviews

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Moments Worth Paying For

Film search engine FindAnyFilm.com has recruited The Hunger Games: Catching Fire to support their on-going Moments Worth Paying For campaign with a fiery new trailer. Showcasing the vast array of visual effects and highly skilled stunt work in the film, the FindAnyFilm trailer shows the emotional impact these moments have on the audience, inspiring viewers to pay for the real deal.

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE begins as Katniss Everdeen has returned home safe after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games along with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Winning means that they must turn around and leave their family and close friends, embarking on a "Victor's Tour" of the districts. Along the way Katniss senses that a rebellion is simmering, but the Capitol is still very much in control as President Snow prepares the 75th Annual Hunger Games (The Quarter Quell) - a competition that could change Panem forever.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire will now be released in cinemas on November 21, 2013

LEGO gets a new poster

Still with a good few months to go before the film hits the silver screen, we have seen the latest poster as well as the final couple of character posters for the film.

The LEGO Movie follows Emmet, an ordinary, rules-following, perfectly average LEGO minifigure who is mistakenly identified as the most extraordinary person and the key to saving the world. Emmet (Chris Pratt) is drafted into a fellowship of strangers on an epic quest to stop an evil tyrant, a journey for which he is hopelessly and hilariously underprepared.

Building into cinemas February 14, 2014.