For some of you the name Oren Moverman may not have immediately rang a bell, but I assume when I tell you he co-wrote and directed The Messenger, which ultimately earned two Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actor (Woody Harrelson) and Best Original Screenplay, perhaps you know who I’m talking about. Curiously enough, even though Harrelson was nominated for an Oscar for The Messenger, it’s probably Ben Foster’s performance from that film that most people remember. Well, all three are back for Rampart.
This time Moverman teamed with crime novelist James Ellroy (“L.A. Confidential”) with a story concerning the LAPD Rampart Division. Here’s the synopsis:
A genre-bending, 1990s Los Angeles police family drama, Rampart explores the dark soul and romantic misadventures of a never-changing LAPD cop (Woody Harrelson) whose past is finally catching up with him in the wake of a department-wide corruption scandal. Along the way, he is forced to confront his disgruntled daughters (Brie Larson, Sammy Boyarsky), his two ex-wives (Anne Heche, Cynthia Nixon), a tenacious Deputy DA (Sigourney Weaver), an investigator on his trail (Ice Cube), a homeless witness to his crimes (Ben Foster), his aging mentor (Ned Beatty) and a mysterious new lover who may or may not be on his side (Robin Wright), as he fights for his own sanity and survival.
As the synopsis indicates, this thing is loaded with talent and expectations are rightfully high, but will it be able to follow in The Messenger‘s footsteps?
So far the film has not been picked up for distribution so the Toronto premiere is a bit of a big deal in determining the film’s future and I hope I can be part of something big when it screens for the first time.
On top of the images featured here, you can check out four more additional pictures from the film in our gallery right here.
The 2011 Toronto International Film Festival plays from September 8-18. For my complete coverage click here.
