Remarkable directing-screenwriting duo John Hillcoat and Nick Cave (The Proposition) are back with a gangster movie set in the prohibition era. The film tells the tale of the famous Bondurant brothers, whose uneventful bootlegging trade in a remote corner of Virginia one day comes up against the dogged resistance of special agent Rakes. This stylish spectacle, recently screened in competition at Cannes, is particularly appealing for the suggestive acting performances of Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Gary Oldman, Jessica Chastain and Guy Pearce.
Of all the American movies in the program for this year’s Cannes festival, Lawless was without question "the most American.” Set in a period that ranks high in North American mythology, this exquisitely shot genre spectacle presents sensitive roughnecks; women both innocent and fallen; a traditional, progress-denouncing religious community; and, in contrast, it celebrates the infectious joy of a prosperous enterprise. The noteworthy directing-screenwriting duo of John Hillcoat and Nick Cave (The Proposition) returns with a Prohibition-era gangster flick about the notorious Bondurant brothers (Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, and Jason Clarke), whose peaceful distilling and bootlegging activities in the Virginia outback one day run up against the dogged resistance of Special Agent Rakes (a perverse dandy played by Guy Pearce). Despite its period framing, the film (which also features Gary Oldman, Jessica Chastain, and Mia Wasikowska) does have certain contemporary parallels. Although the Bondurant brothers operate an illegal business, they are also the most principled citizens of a town that is shot through with corruption.
115 min / Color, DCP
Director John Hillcoat
/ Screenplay Nick Cave podle knihy / based on the book by Matt Bondurant
/ Dir. of Photography Benoit Delhomme
/ Music Nick Cave, Jordan Tappis
/ Editor Dylan Tichenor
/ Producer Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher, Megan Ellison, Michael Benaroya
/ Production Red Wagon Productions, Annapurna Pictures, Blum Hanson Allen Films, Benaroya Pictures
/ Cast Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Jason Clarke, Guy Pearce, Jessica Chastain
/ Contact Bontonfilm, a.s., FilmNation Entertainment
/ Distributor Bontonfilm, a.s.
John Hillcoat (b. 1961, Queensland, Australia), director and occasional screenwriter, took a degree in fine arts. After graduating from the School of Film and Television at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, he began working on his feature debut, the crime drama Ghosts… of the Civil Dead, co-written by and co-starring Hillcoat’s frequent collaborator Nick Cave. In addition to writing the music for the cult Western drama The Proposition (2004), the renowned rocker once again co-wrote the script with director Hillcoat, and the movie stars their friend Guy Pearce. Hillcoat also brought his penchant for tough environments, in which the characters find themselves facing a crucial life decision, to his adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road (2009). Hillcoat, also a celebrated maker of music videos (Depeche Mode, INXS, Placebo), competed at this year’s Cannes festival with his latest film Lawless.
Bontonfilm, a.s.
Na Poříčí 1047/26, 110 00, Praha 1
Czech Republic
Phone: +420 257 415 111
E-mail: [email protected]
FilmNation Entertainment
150 W. 22nd Str., 9th Floor, NY 10011, New York
United States of America
Phone: +1 917 484 8900
E-mail: [email protected]
Aleš Danielis
Distributor
Marek Jeníček
Distributor, Producer
First-hand brews throughout the year.
Be among the first to learn about upcoming events and other news. We only send the newsletter when we have something to say.
