For Blood Ties, Guillaume Canet gathered together a cast both familiar and not – including his own real-life partner, Marion Cotillard. The French actress, who won an Oscar for 2007’s La Vie en Rose, had worked with Canet on his 2010 film Little White Lies, but was focusing on James Gray’s The Immigrant in the run-up.
“I would work at night and he would work during the day, and we would say ‘hello’ in the morning. So we wouldn’t share a lot. It was like shift hours,” Cotillard recalls.
While in Gray’s film she plays a Polish immigrant, here Cotillard and Canet decided her character Monica – the prostitute ex-wife to the film’s central character Chris (Clive Owen) – would be Italian. “It took me as long to learn four sentences in Italian than 20 pages in Polish. I don’t know why – I just can’t manage Italian. It was a really stressful experience,” says Cotillard.
In truth, her work is as impeccable as ever. “I’m happy to know it was good,” she says. “I don’t think I want to know if it’s not, because I cannot change it.”
Intriguingly, for a remake of a French film set in 1974 New York, Canet took on an international cast – from Cotillard’s Rust and Bone co-star, the Belgium-born Matthias Schoenaerts, to the Hollywood star Zoe Saldana, who plays an abused woman, caught in a masculine world of crime and cops.
“Guillaume was like, ‘I really want you to play Vanessa,’ and he told me the whole background of him doing the movie first in France and then wanting to adapt it to New York culture in the 1970s,” says Saldana. “As a New Yorker, that really enticed me.”
Owen came on board after he received a phone call from his Children of Men director Alfonso Cuarón – a good friend of Canet – who encouraged him read the script. To prepare, he gorged on 1970s Hollywood movies, everything from Taxi Driver to The Panic in Needle Park.
“I always try, whenever I’m doing a film, to watch films that are related in some way for inspiration,” Owen says. “And it was a golden period. They’ve made some fantastic films. And these were big, mainstream popular films. They were well-crafted and well-acted, they were intelligent and they were adult.”
Of course, it helps when you have James Caan in the cast; a star of The Godfather, one of the most iconic Hollywood films ever made. Caan plays the father to Owen’s ex-con Chris and his brother Frank (Bill Crudup), a rising star of the NYPD – and it’s this increasingly tense dynamic that truly drives the film.
“There just seemed to be an awful lot to play with … from an acting point of view,” says Owen. “There’s no scene that’s ever simple and straightforward. It wasn’t about a good guy and a bad guy. It was about people that are linked through their blood and the difficulties that can bring.”
• Blood Ties is out now in UAE cinemas
artslife@thenational.ae
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
SPECS
Engine: 4-litre V8 twin-turbo
Power: 630hp
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: 8-speed Tiptronic automatic
Price: From Dh599,000
On sale: Now
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champioons League semi-final:
First leg: Liverpool 5 Roma 2
Second leg: Wednesday, May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
TV: BeIN Sports, 10.45pm (UAE)
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
The five pillars of Islam
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
more from Janine di Giovanni
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Company%20profile
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The flights: South African Airways flies from Dubai International Airport with a stop in Johannesburg, with prices starting from around Dh4,000 return. Emirates can get you there with a stop in Lusaka from around Dh4,600 return.
The details: Visas are available for 247 Zambian kwacha or US$20 (Dh73) per person on arrival at Livingstone Airport. Single entry into Victoria Falls for international visitors costs 371 kwacha or $30 (Dh110). Microlight flights are available through Batoka Sky, with 15-minute flights costing 2,265 kwacha (Dh680).
Accommodation: The Royal Livingstone Victoria Falls Hotel by Anantara is an ideal place to stay, within walking distance of the falls and right on the Zambezi River. Rooms here start from 6,635 kwacha (Dh2,398) per night, including breakfast, taxes and Wi-Fi. Water arrivals cost from 587 kwacha (Dh212) per person.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Super heroes
Iron Man
Reduced risk of dementia
Alcohol consumption could be an issue
Hulk
Cardiac disease, stroke and dementia from high heart rate
Spider-Man
Agility reduces risk of falls
Increased risk of obesity and mental health issues
Black Panther
Vegetarian diet reduces obesity
Unknown risks of potion drinking
Black Widow
Childhood traumas increase risk of mental illnesses
Thor
He's a god
DC%20League%20of%20Super-Pets
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Jared%20Stern%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Dwayne%20Johnson%2C%20Kevin%20Hart%2C%20John%20Krasinski%2C%20Keanu%20Reeves%2C%20Olivia%20Wilde%2C%20Kate%20McKinnon%2C%20Jameela%20Jamil%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: nine-speed
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh848,000
On sale: now
Company%20Profile
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPHONE%2014
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