Bold, outrageous, and funny THE DEB is an Australian musical about two very different teenage cousins who initially clash but ultimately join forces at their town’s annual debutante ball.

It follows lovable farm girl and high-school outcast Taylah Simpkins, who is certain the upcoming Debutante Ball, “the Deb,” is her one chance to redefine herself. But when her cynical city cousin Maeve is exiled to Taylah’s drought-stricken town of Dunburn, Maeve dismisses the ball as a “heteronormative shit-show” and immediately disrupts the status quo.

In their search for the spotlight, the two girls dig deep to find self-acceptance and a date to the Deb. Directed by Rebel Wilson and starring Charlotte MacInnes, Natalie Abbott, Stevie Jean, Shane Jacobson, Tara Morice and Rebel Wilson herself, THE DEB will release in Australian cinemas from April 9 through Rialto Distribution.
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Directed by TV actor/director Paul Feig and produced in part by Judd Apatow, Bridesmaids tries to deliver a raucous ride and succeeds for the most part. The cast is excellent and building a film around Kristen Wiig (who is also one of the film’s writers) is never a bad thing as she is a comic heavyweight, it’s just that it’s not always believable seeing women act as stupid and self-involved as men.

This out of character activity leads to some very funny moments but a lot of the bawdy behaviour feels forced and rather slapstick. Building the action around the upcoming nuptials also sends the film down a well-worn path and some of the gags feel quite recycled but then what modern road movie doesn’t elicit a number of those same responses?

In answer to a segment of the market that is virtually ignored or given very sub-standard product (the abomination that was Sex and The City 2 anyone?) Bridesmaids should be applauded and its better than expected gate receipts show that there is an audience out there. Even if the film isn’t as good as it should or could be, it might still mark the start of something good.

Rob Hudson
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Using Christine Leunens’s novel Caging Skies as the nucleus for his project JoJo Rabbit finds the Kiwi in great form. Leunens’s book about a Hitler youth who finds out his mother is harbouring a young Jewish girl in their house provides the basis for a Waititi screenplay that is rich in humour and subtext.

It’s a wild ride that jumps from being uproariously funny to being heartbreakingly sad without missing a beat. The emotions feel real and are never less than meaningful. In contrast, it makes so much of what passes today as cinema humour feel empty and almost fraudulent.

In a period of hate that was as intense as any time in human history, it seems incredulous for someone to attempt to make a comic statement about it. But the life reaffirming nature of laughter is never more necessary than when faced with the horrors of the dark side of human nature.

Rob Hudson
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Oddest choice of all is not utilising the current state of the art for cinema sound with its amazing ability for massive soundscapes. Instead we often get thin eighties sounding synth line based music. Also very few of the cast members have strong voices, with the exception of Jennifer Hudson who gets to belt out the thrice repeated hit, Memories.

Keeping things very stagy, most of the cast is adapt at the sinuous physicality and dance movements needed to ply the boards and bright lights. There is also a reliance on keeping the action of the large cast to a minimum number of sets. To highlight where the film’s main priorities lie is the casting of Francesca Hayward, a Royal Ballet Principal Ballerina as the female lead, Victoria. Her on-screen gracefulness is something to behold.

This generation’s film version of Cats is indeed an irregular one. From the bordering on creepy rendition of our fury friends to adhering to a simpler Broadway mentality with regards to staging and sound design. Where this fits in with current movie trends remains to be seen and the challenge will be for it to find a place in today’s multiplicitous society.

Rob Hudson
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The epic will be produced by Hooper and Working Title’s Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, as well as fellow Les Misérables producer Debra Hayward—who brought the idea to Working Title. CATS will be produced by Working Title Films in association with Monumental Pictures and The Really Useful Group and executive produced by Lloyd Webber, Angela Morrison and Jo Burn. Hooper and Lee Hall (Billy Elliott, War Horse) have adapted the story for the screen.

One of the longest-running shows in West End and Broadway history, “Cats” received its world premiere at the New London Theatre in 1981—where it played for 21 record-breaking years and almost 9,000 performances. The groundbreaking production based on T.S. Eliot’s “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” was the winner of the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Musical. In 1983 the Broadway production became the recipient of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and ran for an extraordinary 18 years.

Cats will be released in Australian cinemas this Boxing Day!
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Cats, in Australian cinemas December 26, is directed by Oscar®-winning filmmaker Tom Hooper (Les Misérables, The King’s Speech), and stars Swift, James Corden, Judi Dench, Jason Derulo, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Ian McKellen, Rebel Wilson and Royal Ballet principal dancer Francesca Hayward.

In the film, the song is performed by Hayward, who stars in the role of Victoria. The version of the song performed by Swift, who plays Bombalurina in the film, will play over the end titles.

As part of the announcement, Universal today also released an exclusive, behind-the-scenes video documenting the creation and recording of the song and including an interview with Swift, Lloyd Webber and Hooper. The video can be seen here.

One of the longest-running shows in West End and Broadway history, the stage musical “Cats” includes some of Lloyd Webber’s most indelible songs, including “Memory.” Lloyd Webber, Swift and the filmmakers were excited at the idea of introducing a new song for the film adaptation.

Lloyd Webber saw an opportunity to create a new signature song for Victoria, whose character has been expanded for the film. “When I first read the screenplay, the first thing I said was, ‘We have to have a song for Victoria,’” Lloyd Webber says. “Beautiful Ghosts,” he says, is now, “an incredibly important and central part of the whole film.”

For director Tom Hooper, the song exceeded even his high expectations. “What I couldn’t believe was the extraordinary beauty of these lyrics that Taylor had written,” Hooper says. “It was as if someone had come into the film I was in the middle of making and … had reflected back to me a profound understanding of what we are trying to do with the movie. It was utterly thrilling.”
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The epic will be produced by Hooper and Working Title’s Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, as well as fellow Les Misérables producer Debra Hayward—who brought the idea to Working Title. CATS will be produced by Working Title Films in association with Monumental Pictures and The Really Useful Group and executive produced by Lloyd Webber, Angela Morrison and Jo Burn. Hooper and Lee Hall (Billy Elliott, War Horse) have adapted the story for the screen.

One of the longest-running shows in West End and Broadway history, “Cats” received its world premiere at the New London Theatre in 1981—where it played for 21 record-breaking years and almost 9,000 performances. The groundbreaking production based on T.S. Eliot’s “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” was the winner of the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Musical. In 1983 the Broadway production became the recipient of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and ran for an extraordinary 18 years.

Cats is coming soon – December 2019!
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Rebel Wilson carries a lot of momentum into her comic roles and she is given the majority of the humorous bits but the script gives Anne Hathaway little to do. Her crazy foreign accents while funny at first, loose their appeal rather quickly and other than that, she becomes mere eye candy.

In the first half of the film, the two work together on a con that becomes a bit repetitive before they then play against each other in a cinematic version of the con wars. This con involves a mark that is sympathetic to the audience but offers little more than that.

The film relies heavily on you buying into Rebel Wilson’s shtick of physical comedy. If you do, it will make enjoying The Hustle much easier. Also in the glorious tradition of a con being perpetrated on the audience as well as the on-screen victims, things are not over until they are over.

Rob Hudson
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The Hustle is a remake of the 1988 comedy, ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’, in which two down-and-out con artists engage in a “loser leaves town” contest.

The Hustle will be in Australian cinemas May 9!
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Many have wondered how Cats will appear on screen, and the Tom Hooper-directed production is using a new technology to transform cast members into a vivid new vision of their characters.

Hooper adapted with Lee Hall (Billy Elliot), and is producing with Working Title’s Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, as well as Debra Hayward, who brought the idea to Working Title. Monumental Pictures and The Really Useful Group are also producing with Steven Spielberg, Lloyd Webber and Angela Morrison (Les Misérables) and Jo Burn (Annihilation) serving as EPs.

Prior to the first day of shooting, the cast have been rehearsing at Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire, UK. Overseeing the dancing in Cats is three-time Tony-winning choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler (Hamilton: An American Musical, In the Heights, Bandstand), who also choreographed the 2016 stage revival of Cats. The pic’s cast features hip hop dance sensation Larry and Laurent Bourgeiois (aka Les Twins); former principal dancer for the New York City Ballet and Tony-nominated actor Robbie Fairchild (An American In Paris); former soloist of The Royal Ballet Eric Underwood; Mëtte Towley, a member of Pharrell Williams’ acclaimed dance troupe The Baes; Steven McRae, principal of The Royal Ballet.

The below-the-line team includes Oscar-nominated production designer Eve Stewart (The King’s Speech), cinematographer Christopher Ross (Terminal, Room), Oscar-nominated costume designer Paco Delgado (The Danish Girl), Oscar-winning sound mixer Simon Hayes (Les Misérables), BAFTA-winning executive music producer Marius De Vries (Moulin Rouge, Romeo + Juliet) and renowned casting director Lucy Bevan (Ready Player One, Murder on the Orient Express).

Cats hits theaters on Dec. 20 next year.