New York City can get very cold in winter. Just ask Colin Farrell, filming his (probably) soon to be released supernatural drama, Winter’s Tale, as he takes a plunge in the Gowanus Canal, Red Hook, Brooklyn, shortly after Hurricane Sandy ravaged the area. Winter’s Tale has been adapted from the 1983 novel of the same name, by Akiva Goldsman.
Akiva Goldsman’s career has been multi-faceted, with plenty of ups and downs. In the late 1990’s he wrote the screenplay for Batman and Robin, winning him a worst film Razzie Award. In 2001, he adapted the screenplay for A Beautiful Mind, and won an Oscar for best adapted screenplay. Since then he has adapted The DaVinci Code, Cinderella Man, I Am Legend, and produced Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which brought Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt together. Winter’s Tale is Goldsman’s directorial debut, and it hasn’t been without it’s share of difficulties.
Shortly after shooting began, the $75 million budget was reduced to $46 million. The film features an A-List cast, including Colin Farrell, Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Jessica Brown Findlay, William Hurt, and a cameo by Will Smith, which should help with marketing, but it also means much of the budget was already tied up when the nearly $30 million drop hit. It remains to be seen wheter Goldsman was able to afford the high-level camera work, set decoration, and special effects needed to portray the book’s 700 pages of surreal fantasy and beauty, including a flying horse.
The story revolves around Colin Farrell’s character, Peter Lake, a middle-aged Irish burglar and master mechanic in a 1916 New York City winter. When he breaks into what he thinks is an empty fortress-like mansion on the upper West side, he is surprised to find a bed-ridden Beverly Penn (Jessica Brown Findlay, who competed with Lilly Collins for the role). He falls in love with the dying Beverly, and is driven to stop time and bring back the dead.
Pursuing Farrell is Pearly Soames (Russell Crowe as a debonair villain), and his gang of thugs, but the real star of the show is Athansor, a mysterious Andalusian white stallion who becomes Farrell’s guardian angel.
The musical score is by the multiple Academy Award winner Hans Zimmer. The film is currently in post production. No release date has been announced, but as shooting wrapped up this past February it seems likely producer/distributor Warner Bros. is eyeing a release late this year.
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