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Date:05-Mar-2001 From:here)
Bob Strauss Keanu Reeves is bad, very bad in The Gift. But intentionally, and quite effectively. As a wife-beating redneck who threatens Cate Blanchett's small-town psychic, Reeves revels in a nasty performance that couldn't be further from the sweet-tempered stoners of his Bill & Ted period or the iconic action hero that he's more recently developed into. Now preparing for the massive, 16-month simultaneous shoot of the Wachowski Brothers' two sequels to The Matrix, the 36-year-old Reeves is more anxious than ever to be taken seriously as an actor. A few more performances like the one in The Gift might scare critics into offering the kind of respect that's so far eluded him... For a Canadian-Hawaiian you make a pretty convincing Southerner. Thanks. I went to Georgia for three weeks before filming. I found some rednecks and just hung out with them. Just going to bars, talking to people about what it was like to grow up in this locale. Although he's pretty hateful, you don't play him like a standard, two-dimensional villain. I wanted to make him human. All of these people are trying to understand something that's happened to them. They've been victimised by circumstance or events in their lives, and they've got to see Cate Blanchett's character to try and understand themselves. And through not understanding, this violence occurs. I wanted to understand what happened to Donnie through that. He's a damaged man... and, hopefully, he's not just a special effect. But since you usually play sweet or heroic guys, was it cool to just vent on everybody Donnie came in contact with? Yeah, confronting everyone, in the character, was kind of fun for me. And, in an odd way, liberating, in that this guy knows what he's feeling, knows what he's thinking and he's acting upon it. There's no confusion on his part, though he's ultimately misguided. So are you looking forward to making the Matrix sequels? I hope that they make incredible demands of me. I know that, while in the first film, the fights were one-on-one, now they're going to have multi-fights, and there are some cool weapons involved. Any more you can tell us? It's the continued unfolding of the story of trying to save Zion and answering the question of what is the Matrix. Lots of surprises, and really just an ambition to continue to reinvent cinema to the potential of what actors and what the camera can do. They've done a lot of, and are continuing to do, research and development with new ways for the camera to capture the action. What kind of training did you do to prepare? It was four months, officially from 10 to 4 every day. But I was there until 5:30, lifting weights. And your band, Dogstar - with all the other work you're involved in, will you still have time to nurture your music? Hopefully. I'm committed to it as long as we're interested in writing together and playing. For me, it's a great experience when I'm not working, 'cause there's kind of a carefree aspect to it that I cherish. It's a different kind of good time. I hope that my band brothers will keep enjoying it and get along. It's hard to keep a band together, but we're working on it.
Date:23-Jan-2001 From:Dailynews.yahoo.com (http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010121/re/film_boxoffice_dc_4.html) [Snipped for Keanu content] Two limited release films expanded this weekend. ``The Gift'' (Viacom's Paramount Classics), a psychological thriller starring Cate Blanchett and Keanu Reeves, grossed about $3.5 million from 805 theaters. The Sam Raimi-directed low-budget film had previously played on one screen in order to qualify for Academy Award consideration. It averaged $4,286.
Date:20-Dec-2000 From:Daily Rader (http://www.dailyradar.com/features/showbiz_feature_page_211_1.html) [Snipped for Keanu content] DR: Why did you want to cast Keanu Reeves against type as wife-beater Donnie Barksdale? Raimi: What happened was when they said he was interested, I said, "You must be crazy." Then, they said, "He wants to meet you." I said "Yeah, but I don't want to meet him and then say no. It'll make it worse." They said, "Let him meet you," so I went to this meeting dreading it. He came in, and I found out that I had been fooled like everybody is fooled by movie actors. You know, you watch Kevin Costner, and you think he's a swell guy. But in this case, I just thought he was that kid from Bill and Ted's, but he turned out to be this very intelligent young man, very dedicated to the craft of acting. Then I was reminded that he was in A Walk in the Clouds which I really liked, his performance as a young romantic lead. Then I thought about Matrix which I had only seen a little bit of, actually, but I remember he had a very different character in that. I started to look back over his work and realized that yes, they had typed him into this one part, and sometimes he was miscast, but he actually had a very deep understanding of this role. Then he slipped into the part in little bits and pieces. Suddenly I saw in that moment that Donnie Barksdale could be this sexual animal also. That became a very new and exciting idea to me. I suddenly thought, "Yes. That makes sense that he is a sexual creature." I wanted to know why this woman is attracted to him. The stuff about cycle of abuse is about weakness, and I never believe in a cycle of abuse. Suddenly it was interesting -- she finds him to be this sexy, powerful animal and yes, she's weak and trapped, but there's an admission of, and it's not a pretty thing to say, but she likes Donnie. She finds him attractive. I realized that attractive quality could help me there.
Date:20-Dec-2000 From:Mothership In an interview with our sister site iF Magazine about his new genre drama, THE GIFT, SPIDER-MAN director talked about the ease of his recent work with Keanu Reeves, and his lingering... irritation with Kevin Costner (WATERWORLD, THE POSTMAN) during his last film FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME. Raimi's anger with Costner stems from the actor/director using his clout to take away the final cut of GAME from Raimi before release. Being burned like that by a big star made Raimi leery of casting Reeves as a wife beater in GIFT. "When they said [Reeves] was interested," Raimi said, "I said, 'he must be crazy.' [Studio officials] said he wants to meet you and I said 'yeah, but I don't want to meet him because I don't want to meet him and then say no.'" But that wasn't the only reason he shied from the meeting. "I went to this meeting dreading it." Raimi said, a slim smile on his features, "and [Reeves] came in and I found out that I had been fooled like everybody's fooled by movie actors. You know you watch Kevin Costner and you think he's a swell guy." "In this case I just thought he was just this kid from BILL AND TED'S [EXCELLENT ADVENTURE]. But he turned out to be this very intelligent young man, very dedicated to the craft of acting and then I was reminded he was in WALK IN THE CLOUDS which I liked very much, and thought about THE MATRIX." So what was it he learned, in the final balance, from his troubled relationship with Costner? "I must have control over casting," Raimi said. "The director has to be in control."
From:Scifi.com Sam Raimi, director of the upcoming supernatural thriller movie The Gift, told SCI FI Wire that fans of his earlier Evil Dead movies should expect a different kind of ghost story. "Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2--the early horror movies that I made--were about trying to show the supernatural as an outrageous, funny, bold, exciting and terrifying force," Raimi said during a press briefing. "In this movie, ... the point of view is so different, because the goal was to service the screenplay and the actors' performances and try to present the supernatural as something that was real." The Gift, which opens for a limited run in Los Angeles Dec. 20 and nationally Jan. 19, stars Cate Blanchett as Annie Wilson, a small-town psychic who is enlisted to find the missing daughter of the town's richest man. In the process, she crosses paths with a wife abuser played by Keanu Reeves. "It was a different approach that the screenplay guided us all in, which is that this is a real woman and a real family, and the supernatural exists," Raimi said. "So we ... wanted to make it real. We wanted Cate to first establish that she was real and her family was real, so that the journey of the supernatural would be terrifying, not because of the extreme or exaggerated effects or camera movement, but rather because you care about this woman and her family. And when the slightest thing happens, however subtle, in the world of the supernatural, and it might threaten her, it has greater impact because you believe her. That was the difference in the approach of this picture. That's what guided the style of the film." Raimi also had reservations about casting Reeves in the key role of abuser Donnie Barksdale. "When they said he was interested, I said, 'You must be crazy,'" Raimi recalled. "And then they said, 'He wants to meet you.' I said, 'Yeah, but I don't want to meet him, because I don't want to meet him and then say no. It'll only make it worse.' And they said, 'Let him meet you.' So I go into this meeting, thinking, 'Ah, I'm dreading this meeting.' So he came in, and I found out that I had been fooled, like everybody's fooled by movie actors. ... In this case, I just thought he was that kid from [Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure]. But he turned out to be this very intelligent young man, very dedicated to the craft of acting. ... And then he slipped into the part, in little bits and pieces, and suddenly I saw, in that moment, that Donnie Barksdale could be this sexual animal also. And that became a very new and exciting idea to me."
Date:18-Feb-2000 From Paramount Classic According to http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/000218/ca_paramou_1.html LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Lakeshore Entertainment and Paramount Classics have begun principal photography on the Lakeshore Entertainment/Alphaville production ``The Gift,'' a southern thriller starring Academy Award-nominee and Golden Globe-winner Cate Blanchett (``Elizabeth,'' ``The Talented Mr. Ripley'') as a small-town psychic who becomes embroiled in a local murder. Sam Raimi (``For Love of the Game,'' ``A Simple Plan'') directs from a screenplay by Billy Bob Thornton (``Slingblade,'' ``One False Move'') and Tom Epperson (``One False Move,'' ``A Family Thing''). Also starring are Keanu Reeves (``The Matrix,'' ``Speed''); Katie Holmes (``Go,'' ``Disturbing Behavior''); Giovanni Ribisi (``Saving Private Ryan,'' ``Boiler Room''); Academy Award-nominee Greg Kinnear (``As Good As It Gets,'' the upcoming ``What Planet Are You From'') and Golden Globe-winner and Oscar nominee Hilary Swank (``Boys Don't Cry''). The film is produced by Jim Jacks (``A Simple Plan,'' ``The Mummy'') and Tom Rosenberg (``Runaway Bride,'' the upcoming ``The Next Best Thing''), with Gary Lucchesi (``Runaway Bride,'' the upcoming ``The Next Best Thing''), Gregory Goodman (``Three Kings,'' ``Kalifornia''), Sean Daniel (``The Mummy'' the upcoming ``Numbers'') and Ted Taunebaum (``Runaway Bride,'' the upcoming ``The Next Best Thing'') serving as executive producers. Richard Wright (``Runaway Bride,'' the upcoming ``The Next Best Thing'') serves as co-producer. Director of photography is Jamie Anderson, A.S.C. (``Gross Point Blank,'' ``Odd Couple II''); production designer is Neil Spisak (``Face Off,'' ``Heat''); Julie Weiss (``American Beauty,'' ``A Simple Plan'') serves as costume designer; Arthur Coburn (``For Love of the Game,'' ``A Simple Plan'') and Bob Murawski (``Hard Target,'' ``Army of Darkness'') serve as editors. Goodhearted Annie Wilson (Blanchett) is a recently widowed mother of three young boys in the tiny town of Brixton, Georgia, who bears ``the gift'' of psychic vision. Scorned by the narrow-minded town citizens, Annie struggles to support herself and her sons by giving psychic readings to eccentric locals, including Valerie (Swank), the wife of town bully, Donnie (Reeves) and car mechanic, Buddy (Ribisi). When Annie is drawn into the police investigation of a high-profile local murder, she finds herself in increasing danger and is left to unravel the town's dark secrets. Her ``gift'' is her only hope to save herself and her family. ``We are very excited to have such a stellar cast, led by Cate Blanchett,'' said Tom Rosenberg, CEO of Lakeshore Entertainment, ``and Sam Raimi is one of today's most inspired filmmakers.'' ``Billy Bob Thorton and Tom Epperson's inventive screenplay delivers the goods. Sam Raimi and his entire team have attracted some of the very best young talent currently working in Hollywood,'' said Paramount Classics co-presidents Ruth Vitale and David Dinerstein. ``We are thrilled to be in business with them.'' The film also stars Kim Dickens (``Mercury Rising,'' the upcoming ``Hollowman''), J. K. Simmons (``The Cider House Rules,'' the upcoming ``Texas Rangers''), Gary Cole (``Office Space,'' ``A Simple Plan''), Michael Jeter (``The Green Mile,'' ``Patch Adams'') and Chelcie Ross (``Primary Colors,'' ``A Simple Plan''). Newcomers include Lynnsee Provence, Hunter McGilvray and David Brannon. ``The Gift'' is currently shooting on location in Savannah, Georgia and is scheduled for release in fall 2000. Paramount Classics is the autonomous specialized division of Paramount Pictures. Upcoming films include Rod Lurie's ``Deterrence,'' Sofia Coppola's ``The Virgin Suicides,'' Alain Berliner's ``Passion of Mind,'' ``Sunshine,'' Patrice Leconte's ``The Girl On The Bridge,'' ``Company Man,'' ``The Gift,'' and ``My First Mister.'' The company's website is www.paramountclassics.com. SOURCE: Paramount Classics
Date:13-Feb-2000 Author:Billy Bob Thornton From Edmonton Sun Filming began last week in Georgia on director Sam Raimi's new psychological drama The Gift. Keanu Reeves plays a wife-beater and Hilary Swank, fresh from her Golden Globe win for best actress in Boys Don't Cry, plays his wife. Giovani Ribisi, who plays a troubled mechanic, says Reeves "looks truly scary and menacing. He's got this long hair and beard and he can make his gaze look so creepy. Keanu is going to surprise a lot of people. "He plays a very convincing redneck." The film about the effect of physical and emotional abuse was co-written by Billy Bob Thornton.
Swank Sweet on 'Gift' Pact Date:January 26,2000 Author:Michael Fleming From Variety (http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000126/re/film_swank_1.html) NEW YORK (Variety) - Fresh from winning the Golden Globe for ``Boys Don't Cry,'' Hilary Swank is nearing a deal to join Keanu Reeves and Cate Blanchett in ``The Gift'' for director Sam Raimi. Swank would play a woman, physically abused by her husband (Reeves), who turns to a psychic (Blanchett) for counsel. Greg Kinnear has replaced Ron Eldard as a school principal who consults the psychic after his wife-to-be (Katie Holmes) disappears. The Paramount Classics film, budgeted at under $10 million, will costar Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Jeter (''The Green Mile''), Gary Cole, J.K. Simmons (''Oz'') and Chelcie Ross (''A Simple Plan''). Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson wrote the script. Kinnear, who landed the role after Eldard dropped out for creative reasons, recently completed ``What Planet Are You From,'' the Mike Nichols-directed comedy with Garry Shandling and Annette Bening, and the Neil LaBute-directed ``Nurse Betty,'' with Renee Zellweger, Morgan Freeman and Chris Rock. Separately, Swank on Tuesday was named ShoWest 2000's female star of tomorrow. The National Assn. of Theater Owners will present Swank with her honor March 9 during its four-day ShoWest confab in Las Vegas. Besides Sunday's Golden Globe win for best actress in a drama, the 25-year-old Swank has nabbed thesp nods from the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn., the Boston Society of Film Critics and the Broadcast Film Critics Assn. Swank's portrayal of real-life Brandon Teena also earned her 1999's breakout performance award from the National Board of Review and a best actress nomination from the Intl. Press Academy. Before ``Boys,'' Swank was best known for her roles on TV's ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' and the 1994 picture ``The Next Karate Kid'' She got her start in the 1992 film ``Buffy the Vampire Slayer.''
Keanu Goes Bad, for Less(January 4) From Mr Showbiz Keanu Reeves isn't quite on Tom Cruise's level yet, but now that The Matrix has made him a bona fide movie star worth $15 million a pic, his making another indie film, in which he'll take a small role for much less than $15 mil, is news. Especially newsworthy is the type of role Keanu will play, that of a vicious, wife-beating murder suspect, akin to Cruise's sleazy turn in the indie flick Magnolia, notes Variety. The film is The Gift, which will mark a return to low-budget filmmaking for Evil Dead director Sam Raimi after this year's mainstream outing For Love of the Game. The pic is budgeted at under $10 million and stars Cate Blanchett, Katie Holmes, Giovanni Ribisi, and Ron Eldard (ER). Billy Bob Thornton, who starred in Raimi's neo-noir A Simple Plan, co-wrote the script with One False Move's Tom Epperson. Blanchett stars as a woman with "the gift" of clairvoyance who becomes involved in a murder investigation in a small Southern town. Reeves will play a violent redneck who becomes the prime murder suspect and who threatens Blanchett's life after she counsels his battered wife. Quite a change of pace from the stars' respective turns as savior-hacker Neo and Queen Elizabeth. Ribisi, who'd rather be remembered for Saving Private Ryan than the ill-fated Mod Squad, will play a troubled youth with a past who becomes "an important ally" to Blanchett. Reeves will do The Gift, which starts shooting Feb. 7, before tackling the remake of the romantic drama Sweet November at Warner Bros.
Keanu will get his now-usual salary to star in November, to play a Then, it's (hurrah) on to the Matrix sequels, with a mammoth back-to-back 250-day shoot. Reeves Takes Pay Cut for 'Gift'(January 2 10:48 PM ET )From Variety By Michael Fleming NEW YORK (Variety) - Keanu Reeves has committed to the supporting role of a vicious, wife-beating murder suspect in ''The Gift,'' a low-budget drama with a high-profile cast. Giovanni Ribisi (''Saving Private Ryan'') has also been set for the film, which stars Cate Blanchett, Katie Holmes and Ron Eldard. Sam Raimi (''For Love of the Game'') will direct the Paramount Classics project, which is budgeted at under $10 million. Reeves' commitment is akin to Tom Cruise joining the ensemble of New Line's ``Magnolia,'' in that he took a pay cut to work with a noted director (Paul Thomas Anderson) and play a part far from his usual heroic mode. Reeves, who usually gets a $15 million advance against 15% of the gross, will work for scale. The drama, written by Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson (''One False Move''), concerns a clairvoyant woman from a small Southern town who becomes enmeshed in a murder investigation. Reeves will play a redneck who becomes the prime suspect in that murder and who threatens the psychic's life after she counsels his battered wife. Ribisi, also known for his recurring role as Phoebe's dim brother in ``Friends,'' will play a troubled youth with a scarred past who turns to the clairvoyant for support and proves an important ally to her. Shooting will begin Feb. 7, giving Reeves time to make that film before stepping into ``Circle of Friends'' director Pat O'Connor's remake of ``Sweet November'' at Warner Bros. Reeves will be paid his usual salary to star in ''November,'' his first romance since 1995's ``A Walk in the Clouds,'' portraying a tycoon who falls in love with a dying woman who wants no part of a long commitment.
He will most likely follow ``Sweet November'' by stepping back into action
hero mode and an ambitious 250-day shoot of back-to-back ``Matrix'' sequels
with Larry and Andy Wachowski. Reeves will be paid a $30 million advance
against 15% of the combined gross for the two ``Matrix'' films.
NEW YORK - Keanu Reeves has committed to the supporting role of a vicious, wife-beating murder suspect in “The Gift,” the Sam Raimi-directed drama from Lakeshore Entertainment that’s slated for release by Paramount Classics. Giovanni Ribisi has also been set for the film, which stars Cate Blanchett, Katie Holmes and Ron Eldard. With the addition of Reeves and Ribisi and several roles yet to be finalized, “The Gift” is shaping up as a pic with an exceptionally strong cast given its budget of less than $10 million. Reeves’ commitment is akin to Tom Cruise joining the ensemble of New Line’s “Magnolia,” in that he took a pay cut to work with a noted director and play a part far from his usual heroic mode. Reeves jumped at the chance to work with Raimi and, without the burden of carrying the movie, play a part far different than any he’s tried before. Reeves, who usually gets $15 million against 15% of the gross, will work for scale. The drama, scripted by Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson, concerns a clairvoyant woman from a small Southern town who becomes enmeshed in a murder investigation. Reeves will play a redneck who becomes the prime suspect in that murder and who threatens the psychic’s life after she counsels his battered wife. Ribisi, who’ll next be seen in New Line’s upcoming drama “The Boiler Room,” will play a troubled youth with a scarred past who turns to the clairvoyant for support and proves an important ally to her as well. Alphaville’s Jim Jacks, Lakeshore’s Tom Rosenberg and Rob Tapert, Raimi’s partner in Renaissance Pictures, are producing “The Gift.” Exec producers are Gary Lucchesi and Sean Daniel. Lensing will begin Feb. 7, giving Reeves time to make that film before stepping into the Warner Bros./Bel Air remake of “Sweet November,” to be directed by Pat O’Connor (“Circle of Friends”). Reeves will be paid his usual salary to star in “November,” his first romance since “A Walk in the Clouds,” portraying a tycoon who falls in love with a dying woman who wants no part of a long commitment. Though he may squeeze in yet another film before, Reeves will most likely follow “Sweet November” by stepping back into action hero mode and an ambitious 250-day shoot of back-to-back “Matrix” sequels with Larry and Andy Wachowski for Warner Bros., Village Roadshow Pictures and producer Joel Silver. Reeves will be paid a combined $30 million against 15% for the two “Matrix” films. Reeves is repped by 3 Arts and CAA; Ribisi by William Morris
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