For all of you Clive Owen fans out there (remember him? the best part about Gosford Park?), PCC felt obliged spread the word about his latest film, I'll Sleep When I'm Dead. This is Owen's second collaboration with British director Mike Hodges, who brought us the wonderful Croupier. The film focuses on the life of a London mob boss (Owen), who has 'retired' to the country for a simpler life. But, as is always the case, he's pulled back into his old life, returning to London following his brother's mysterious suicide. Joining Owen is a truly amazing cast, including Charlotte Rampling, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Malcom McDowell. What causes Hodge's new film to stand out, argues Stephen Chinball of the British film journal Sight & Sound, is the fact that the catalyst for the narrative is male rape, and the subsequent rape revenge. Chinball argues that "though several Hollywood scenarios have tackled male rape (notably John Boorman's Deliverance)...this subject has never before emerged in British cinema" (from the Sepetember 2003 issue which PCC would gladly link, except that she is reading a hard copy).
Sadly, US audiences will have to wait until April 2004 to see Hodges new film in theaters. It premiered at the 2003 Edinburgh Film Festival. Also be on the look out for Mr. Owen in September's Beyond Borders, with Angelina Jolie, and next year's King Arthur, with Pirate queen Keira Knightley.
Posted by jordan at August 28, 2003 3:07 PM