Biography: Michael Angarano

As one of the most gifted actors of his generation, Michael Angarano is making his mark on Hollywood with diverse roles that have established him as a respected and sought after young actor.

Angarano recently wrapped production on Craig Zisk‘s “The English Teacher,” starring opposite Julianne Moore, Nathan Lane, and Greg Kinnear. Angarano plays a failed playright who returns to to his hometown, and unwittingly upends the life of his former high school English teacher (Moore), who falls for him.

Additionally, he will be seen upcoming in Ramaa Mosley‘s “The Brass Teapot” opposite Juno Temple. The film follows a young married couple (Angarano and Temple) who are trying to break out of poverty when they find a mysterious teapot that will grant them unlimited money in exchange for someone else’s suffering. The film is to be released in 2012.

Recently, Angarano starred opposite Melissa Leo and John Goodman in “Red State,” which premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and was released on October 19th, 2011. Additionally, he appeared in Gavin Wiesen’s “The Art of Getting By” opposite Emma Roberts and Freddie Highmore and Max Winkler‘s “Ceremony” opposite Uma Thurman. “Ceremony” follows a young guy (Angarano) who tries to crash the wedding of a thirty-something woman (Thurman) with whom he’s infatuated.  Read more

Review: Steven Soderbergh’s ‘Haywire’ is Gut-Punchingly Good

“You shouldn’t think of her as a woman. That would be a mistake.”

The woman in question is MMA star Gina Carano, who plays Mallory Kane (great character name) in Steven Soderbergh‘s brutally realistic espionage thriller, Haywire.

Kane is a highly trained operative who works for a secret government contractor. After she and a fellow operative, played by Channing Tatum, rescue a kidnapped journalist she is asked by former boyfriend Kenneth (Ewan McGregor) to do one more job for the agency.

She’s quickly double-crossed and in an effort to save herself, she devises a plan to get back at those she once trusted.

Haywire is a no-nonsense, ultra-real film with some of the best fight scenes I’ve seen in years.When the action takes place, there is no music that the filmmakers rely upon. It’s just the noise of flesh hitting flesh, head’s hitting walls and crashing into glass. This draws you into the scene and into the action so much more than it would if there were music behind it.

There is music – think of the Soderbergh’s Ocean’s films and you’ll get the idea of what the soundtrack is – but the film adds it where most other films wouldn’t it. It’s almost a flip-flop of conventional action flicks; action scenes – no music. Normal (what else do I call it?) scenes – music. Read more

Watch: The First 5 Minutes of Steven Soderbergh’s ‘Haywire’

Hulu is hosting the first 5 minutes of Steven Soderbergh‘s new action flick, Haywire. 

Ok, it’s actually 4 minutes and 43 seconds. But in that time we definitely get a sense of the film and I’m definitely looking forward to it.

The clip features MMA star Gina Carano and Channing Tatum having a nice conversation in a out of the way diner… then things go, well, haywire. 

Even Michael Angarano gets in on the fun.  Read more

Michael Fassbender: “I’m pretty good at washing away a day’s work”

It’s a given that some actors will be personally affected by the roles they play, and for thirty-four year old Shame actor Michael Fassbender, portraying his character Brandon, a sex addict, was no different.

Discussing the dynamics of his alter ego in the Steve McQueen directed picture with Moviefone, Fassbender says there was a time when he thought he was going a little “loopy” after immersing himself in the world of such a troubled individual.

Trying to get inside and channel what he calls a “lonely soul”, the X Men: First Class star also went on to explain that he made it a point not to dwell on his character in Shame, stepping away from being pulled in by such a wildly complicated character. 

Fassbender’s role has since scored him rave reviews and piqued the interests of some well regarded directors in the movie industry.  Fassbender is now off and running, working on a few other projects.  The Jane Eyre performer is currently juggling both Haywire, a Steven Soderbergh directed black ops action thriller, and Prometheus from Ridley Scott.  Read more

Trailer #2: Steven Soderbergh’s ‘Haywire” starring Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas

Haywire: Mallory Kane is a highly trained operative who works for a government security contractor in the dirtiest, most dangerous corners of the world. After successfully freeing a Chinese journalist held hostage, she is double crossed and left for dead by someone close to her in her own agency. Suddenly the target of skilled assassins who know her every move, Mallory must find the truth in order to stay alive.

Using her black-ops military training, she devises an ingenious—and dangerous—trap. But when things go haywire, Mallory realizes she’ll be killed in the blink of an eye unless she finds a way to turn the tables on her ruthless adversary.

DIRECTOR: Steven Soderbergh

WRITER: Lem Dobbs

CAST: Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Bill Paxton

In Theaters: January 20th, 2012
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Trailer: Steven Soderbergh’s “Haywire” starring Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Bill Paxton

Haywire: Mallory Kane is a highly trained operative who works for a government security contractor in the dirtiest, most dangerous corners of the world. After successfully freeing a Chinese journalist held hostage, she is double crossed and left for dead by someone close to her in her own agency. Suddenly the target of skilled assassins who know her every move, Mallory must find the truth in order to stay alive. Using her black-ops military training, she devises an ingenious–and dangerous–trap. But when things go haywire, Mallory realizes she’ll be killed in the blink of an eye unless she finds a way to turn the tables on her ruthless adversary. from trailers.apple.com

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Bill Paxton
Writers: Lem Dobbs

In theaters: January 20th, 2012

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Trailer: “The Art of Getting By” starring Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano

The Art of Getting By: Freddie Highmore is George, a lonely and fatalistic teen who’s made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, who is befriended by Sally, a beautiful and complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit. from trailers.apple.com

Director: Gavin Wiesen
Cast: Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano, Elizabeth Reaser, Sam Robards, Jarlath Conroy, Ann Dowd, Marcus Carl Franklin, Sasha Spielberg, Rita Wilson, Blair Underwood

In theaters: June 17th, 2011

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Michael Angarano on his new film, ‘Ceremony’, and how the rehearsal process was like a theater workshop

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:18 — 5.7MB)

For over a year, Michael Angarano was supposed to play the role of the best friend opposite lead Jesse Eisenberg in Max Winkler’s debut film, Ceremony. But when Eisenberg dropped out due to scheduling issues, Winkler quickly cast Michael as Sam, in the coming-of-age film.

Michael’s career has been hot lately. He can be seen in Kevin Smith’s new film, Red State and just wrapped Steven Soderbergh‘s Haywire (opposite Michael Douglas, Channing Tatum and Ewan McGregor) and Homework (with Emma Roberts and Freddie Highmore).

Right before SXSW, I talked to Michael about the film, his role and how the year-long rehearsal process of the movie felt like a theater workshop.

Tell me about your role of the film.

Michael Angarano: My character is Sam Davis, he is a 23-year-old children’s book writer with very unsuccessful, he’s unpublished.  And he is in love with an older woman played by Uma Thurman and the movie is about Sam trying to stop Uma from getting married and running off away with Sam, which is a very kind of grandiose idea of life.

But I think it just represents the kind of person Sam is.  He’s a very impressionable, very romanticized young guy who really hasn’t found himself yet and that’s what the movie is. Max puts it really well, a coming of age story in reverse about a man discovering he is a boy. A boy discovering he is a boy and so – yeah that’s really – it’s kind of Sam in a nutshell I guess.

You were originally cast in a different part. How did you get your original role, just through the initial casting process?

Michael Angarano: Yeah, I had met Max through our agent and we went to dinner, had a great conversation. The script was one of the best scripts I’ve ever read. I was gonna play Marshall who Reece Thompson plays in the film and for about a year and a half, Jesse Eisenberg and I would rehearse with Max and so by the time the movie came around and it was all systems go to film, Jesse dropped out and Max and I decided that it would be interesting to try and switch it up and see if I can play Sam. So, that’s kind of how it happened but originally it was Marshall.

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Director Max Winkler on his feature debut, ‘Ceremony’

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:19 — 5.7MB)

Max Winkler – yup, Henry’s son – has made his feature-length directorial debut with the coming of-age story, Ceremony.

If you’re a fan of the web-series, Clark and Michael (starring his friends Michael Cera and Clark Duke) you already know Winkler’s work. Ceremony, which he also wrote, follows Sam (Michael Angarano) on a quest to stop a former fling (Uma Thurman) from marrying a worldly filmmaker (Lee Pace).

I talked with Max right before SXSW about the film, how he got the cast and tells me a funny bit of advice his dad gave him.

Where did the idea for this movie come from?

Max Winkler: Well, the idea of the movie probably came from a lot of places. It was pretty personal movie that I wrote, and I thought that would be sort of a good way to make my first film to sort of ensure that I feel very close to it and at the same time sort of have all the answers to any questions anyone may have. And also I was just sort of  waiting around for other movies to come around that I was hoping that I could direct and I felt like while I have a second I should take the time and write something that I can probably really relate to.

You got Uma Thurman, Lee Pace, and you got Michael Aragano. This being your first film how did you get this cast?

Max Winkler: Because the script was so personal to me, I think people could probably find parts that they related in to it, ‘cause I wrote it from such an emotional place. I just had really good conversations with all of them and I felt so lucky that I got to have all these people come and make this movie with me.

Let’s go to the casting of Michael, he was originally cast as the best friend? And then Jessie Eisenberg dropped out and you decided to go with Michael, how did that happen? How did you decide to make that choice?

Max Winkler: Michael had been rehearsing the part for so long with Jesse and I. Just sort of having dinner together and reading the script around my dining room table. Michael really got sort of first hand practice at both characters. And when the time came when scheduling stuff happened and Jessie had to leave, we started to sort of search around everywhere, but before we really did it I just said “Mike do you just want try it and see how it feels, we’ll do it.” We recorded just Michael reading through the bedroom scene with Uma, with me playing Uma, in the office in LA. And I sent it to the producers, I think it became incredibly clear to everyone that like, we just really sort of figured out what our movies was.
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