Ikon London Digital TIFF Special issue

INTERVIEWS INSIDE! Special Issu e

9/ 2018

FI L MS
The Public

JT LeRoy
What They Had

Fir st Man
Colet t e

A St ar Is Bor n
Ever ybody Knows

Boy Er ased

EDITOR IN CHIEF Dear readers, on our latest issue of Ikon
Joe Alvar ez London Magazine?s digital issue, we
concentrated on the fantastic Toronto Film
@JoeAlvarezUK Fest ival.

I have covered this festival for many years and
after a hiatus for various reasons we were
back with a bang. This is one of the great film
festivals worldwide, a sort of ?boutique?festival
compared to say, Cannes. Going from strength
to strength each year and pulling a huge string
of A list actors, directors and independent film
makers this is one of the top festivals in our
calen d ar .

From film premieres, press conferences and
red carpet interviews we hope you enjoy this
issue.

Visit us online: ikonlondonmagazine.com Follow us: @ikoniclondon @ikoniclondon @ikon lon d on m agazin e

© Ikon London Magazine 2018
www.ikonlondonmagazine.com
Sales: [email protected]

Reproduction in whole or part of any content of Ikon London Magazine without prior permission of the editor is
strictly prohibited.

IKON LONDON
I NT ERVI EWS:

Emilio Est evez

Chr ist ian Slat er FI L MS:
Wash West mor eland
Javier Bar dem A St ar Is Bor n
Denise Gough Boy Er ased
Asghar Far hadi The Public
JT LeRoy

What They Had

Fir st Man

Colet t e

Ever ybody Knows

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 3

A STAR IS BORN DIRECTOR B
COOPER ON SYNCHRONICITY

AND THE CREATIVE PROCES

Pr obably on e of t h e m ost t alk ed abou t f ilm s at t h e Tor on t o Film f est ival ? alon g w it h Fir st M an ?
w as t h e Br adley Cooper ?s dir ect in g debu t r e-m ak e of A St ar Is Bor n . Br adley Cooper sh ar ed w it h

Ik on Lon don M agazin e h is cr eat ive pr ocess at t h e TIFF.

"Ar t is ju st som et h in g
t h at ?s ou t t h er e an d
t h en if you ?r e open it
f low s t h r ou gh you it ?s

not hing t hat you
r eally cr eat e. Th at ?s

t he way it feels
exper ient ially t o m e.?

Who doesn?t love a good remake of the
favourite classic film? This one was a hard
one to top. with previous classics of 1937
and 1954, Bradley gave a new life to the as
old as the hills story A Star is Born. Mr.
Cooper didn?t only direct the film but also
co-wrote it and played the main male
character (Jackson Maine) in it.

Pu sh in g t h e en velope

The Actor-turned-director admitted at the
TIFF press conference that the best part of
directing the film is the casting process. ?You
can cast anyone you want.? And so ?
naturally - he cast one of the most followed
and admired singers of our time Lady Gaga.
With such starry cast, the film doesn?t look
likely to flop.

Nevertheless, Bradley approached the
process with due diligence and even learned
to play guitar and sing. Not willing to cut any
corners, he also shot a scene at Glastonbury

BRADLEY
Y

SS

festival. That hadn?t been done before. byTamaraAOrlova
Although other festivals were also used for PhotographybyJoeAlvarez
locations. But the director admitted that for
him ? as a frequent visitor ? it was important " For Br adley t o lear n t o be a m u sician
to make a film about music in Glastonbury. for t he film role and learn t o play

Br adley Cooper abou t gu it ar an d do all t h ese t h in gs w it h t h e
t h e cr eat ive pr ocess clock r u n n in g - absolu t ely am azin g.?
an d syn ch r on icit y
Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 5
Ikon London Magazine attended the press
conference at the Toronto Film Festival
where we asked Bradley Cooper about
synchronicity and what role it plays in film
m akin g.

The director admitted to us that he believes
the synchronicity plays a large part in life. He
co n t in u ed :

?I think true art can only be created if you're
completely opened for moments to occur.
And I think that's what - I hope - was the fun
that we all had on set every day.?

?You know, I remember Dave [Chapelle] and
I, we would go back in the house. And once

we left that hou
was like we wer
And then we wo
just talk through
and that??and t
large Universe w
going to happen
know that I stay
created. And if

much. I'm dead.

?We were talki
Because really a
out there and t
through you it
create. That's th

to me."

According to Bra
?moments that w
the process. From
the first time
scheduled first
actors, choosing

story line.

Br ad l ey

Lady G

syn ch r o

It might have b
was responsible
Lady Gaga for
chance that the
rapport. We cou
close these t

conference exch

The Editor of Ch
later commente
the press confer

use and sat on that bench. It Bradley Cooper and super model Irina Shayk is Born has a good chance for an Oscar. And
re in this live universe, right. started dating in 2015 and welcomed their the relationship of Lady Gaga with Bradley
ould huddle in between and first child Lea De Seine Shayk Cooper on Cooper... Oh my god... Get a room already.
h stuff. ?What about this idea 21st March 2017. And they love what they did - the role, the
then we'd go back into this film. And for Bradley to learn to be a
where you don't know what's musician for the film role and learn to play
n, you know. And the more I guitar and do all these things with the clock
y open, the more art can be
running - absolutely amazing.?
I'm thinking about it too
? Joe continued, ?Lady Gaga is a kind heart.
Based on what he said at the press
ing about this last night. conference and everything else we know.
art is just something that's She's on the right path from the heart. She
then if you're open it flows
's nothing that you really means well to the universe.
he way it feels experientially
Of course, she is very lucky to do what she's
adley, there were great many done, but she also works like a dog to be
we call synchronicity?during
m hearing Lady Gaga live for where she is - which a lot of people forget.

just one day before the It's easy to castigate or diminish and criticize
meeting, to casting other a lot of celebrities. A lot of the times you can
g sets and developing the slag them off and they might even deserve it
but you tend to forget how hard these
Cooper an d people work for these roles. And how their
careers can be destroyed in one hour - hour
Gaga ? t oo
and a half after watching the film.
on ized?
They spent five - six years acting and
been the synchronicity that working hard towards it. Editing and
e for Bradely Cooper casting re-editing and re-shooting. And after a
Premiere your career can be in tatters
the role but it wasn?t by because of a bad review. For me it was weird
ey developed so obvious a to see Lady Gaga 'without the make-up'.
uldn?t help but notice how Because I've always shot her with make-up
two were at the press on as la ?Gaga'. So, I didn't recognise her at
hanging meaningful glances.
f ir st .?
hief of Ikon London Magazine
ed on his impression from It was Lady Gaga?s ?No make-up make-up,?as
rence: ?Yeah, I reckon A Star she admitted at the press conference.
However, you can see Lady Gaga with NO
MAKE-UP in cinemas starting from Thursday,

27 September 2018.

Lady Gaga is a kind heart. Based on what he said at the press
conference and everything else we know. She's on the right

path from the heart. She means well to the universe.

Of course, she is very lucky to do what she's done, but she

also works like a dog to be where she is - which a lot of people

f o r get . Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 7

LADY GAGA 'A STAR

TORONTO FILM

by TamaraA Orlova

Hollyw ood's m ost en du r in g st or y of love an d
am bit ion get s a glor ious reinvent ion in Bradley
Cooper 's A St ar Is Bor n . Th e act or -becom e-dir ect or
pr esen t ed h is m u ch an t icipat ed dir ect or ial debu t
f ilm at t h e Tor on t o In t er n at ion al Film Fest ival.

Drawing deep on the off, he fights an ongoing
pleasures audiences
previously discovered in battle with his own
the 1937, 1954, and
1976 versions, Cooper in t er n al d em on s.
brings the narrative
right up to the present. Speaking of falling in
He takes on the role of
the fame-weary star love, Bradley Cooper
himself and, for the
ingénue with megawatt and Lady Gaga have this
potential, he crafts a
perfect big-screen role u n m ist akeab le
for Lady Gaga.
chemistry about them
Br adley Cooper
that is great to witness
an d Lady Gaga
first hand. A few very
Pu t On a Ver y
w ar m glances,
War m Display
seemingly ?bottomless?
The film tells the story of
a seasoned musician appreciation of Bradley
who discovers ? and
falls in love with ? a and Lady Gaga towards
struggling artist, but,
even as her career takes each other and

'unveiling of the bride' at

the premiere made us

wonder if something

more romantic will come

out of this partnership...

A St ar is Bor n
St or y

Back to the plot, Jackson
Maine lives half his life
on tour and the other

R IS BORN' PREMIERE

M FESTIVAL 20 18

aPhotography by JoeAlvarez

half at the bottom of a experiences. The

bottle. He won rock creative process, it

stardom years ago, and seems was very fluid.

the pressures of fame According to the

have isolated him. His director, some parts of

m u ch -old er brother the scr ip t were

(Sam Elliott) manages developed together with

his career, but no one co-star Lady Gaga

can control his life (Stefani Germanotta) as

offstage. One night well as with David

Jackson wanders into a Chappelle during their

bar looking for another conversations

drink and finds an off-screen. In particular,

amateur performer with the drag characters in

a shockingly beautiful the film were introduced

voice. Ally (Lady Gaga) following Lady Gaga

and Jackson connect sharing her past

instantly. He sees her experience of

promise, she sees his performing at the drag

experience, and they club. ?I wouldn?t be

catch in each other a where I am,? admitted

glimpse of the pain that Stefani at the press

drives them both. As conference, ?if it wasn?t

Jackson nudges Ally onto for the gay and drag

the stage with her own community and how

songs, she's inevitably they lovingly embraced

drawn into the world me and taught me so

that comes with it - much about acceptance

after-parties, private and love.? Indeed, the

jets, and the debilitating drags Shangela and

glare of the spotlight. Willam Belli are

At the press conference, admittedly friends of
the cast shared their Lady Gaga and Bradley

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 9





Cooper. ?The best part terrifying he said-,
of directing,? admitted Cooper pushed the
Cooper, ?is that you get envelope even further
to cast? Half of the crew and also wrote the script
are featured in the film and even took on
t o o .? singing coaching to be
able to perform live for
Speaking of their the film. All songs
personal journeys, it featured were written
seems like the running specifically for the movie
theme for the main cast and, according to the
is the trust. Lady Gaga director, ?every song is
praised Bradley for there for a reason and
trusting in her as an every phrase and word
actor - the career she mean something.?
always wanted to
pursue but gave up The film is a strong
early on. While Bradley
Cooper was grateful to contestant for the main
the cast, and in
particular to Stefani and prize at the TIFF 2018.
David Chapelle for
trusting in him as a As to the critics, the film
d ir ect o r .
received great praise but
As if directing alone is
not hard enough -and the director wouldn?t

know about as,

admittedly, he doesn?t

read the reviews.

?Th e best par t of
direct ing,? adm it t ed
Cooper , ?is t h at you get t o
cast ? Half of t h e cr ew ar e
f eat ured in t he f ilm t oo.?

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 13



PENELOPE CRUZ
& JAVIER BARDEM

AT TORONTO
PREMIERE OF

EVERYBODY
KNOWS

Loved u p cou ple Pen elope Cr u z an d Javier
Bardem graced t he red car pet at t he
Tor on t o Film Fest ival t o pr om ot e t h eir

lat est f lick Ever ybody Kn ow s dir ect ed by
t h e gr eat Asgh ar Far h adi.

With two Academy kin. (Bardem), who now runs
Awards already under his a nearby vineyard, might
belt, Asghar Farhadi has Ever ybody Kn ow s trouble the waters
nothing left to prove, but Pl o t f u r t h er .
the writer and director of
A Separation and The Laura (Cruz) travels with Still, everybody gathers
Salesman keeps pushing
in new directions. her teenage daughter and to celebrate the wedding

With Everybody Knows, he young son to the village at a big village party,
shifts location from his
native Iran to sun-kissed where she grew up to when the power cuts
Spain, and casts three of
the most electric actors in attend her sister 's out... and Laura's
Spanish-language cinema.
Javier Bardem, Penélope wedding. She's left her d au gh t er d isap p ear s.
Cruz, and Ricardo Darín
are at their very best in husband Alejandro Farhadi builds this setup
this captivating tale of
suspicion, money, and (Darín) back in Argentina beautifully but he's

and is free to plunge into interested most in what

the simple pleasures of happens when the shine

her youth. But tensions of the idyllic setting fades.

run just under the surface Tightening the screws of

with Laura's family, and his thriller plot, he reveals

the stray feelings she has the events and betrayals

for her old boyfriend Paco that might have led

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 15

someone to kidnap
Laura's daughter.

As in his previous films,

Farhadi shows an eye for

the telling social detail -

the way a man can carry

his peasant past with him

even as he becomes a

landowner, or a woman

can become a foreigner

to her family just by

moving abroad. Rich in

in sigh t , com p let ely

engrossing, and graced by

dazzling, m ovie-st ar

performances, Everybody

Knows is a pure pleasure

to watch.



ALEC BAL
PUBLIC' FILM

AT TOR
FES

A sit -in by pat r on s at a pu blic libr ar y escalat es in t o a police st an dof f an d a
m edia sidesh ow , in Em ilio Est evez's ar r est in g dr am a t h at explor es issu es

su r r ou n din g h om elessn ess, m en t al h ealt h , an d com m u n it y. Feat u r in g
Est evez, Alec Baldw in , Taylor Sch illin g, Jef f r ey Wr igh t , Jen a M alon e,
Gabr ielle Un ion , Ch r ist ian Slat er , an d M ich ael K. William s.

Th e Pu blic Plot Cincinnati library on a

The United States was winter 's day. Stuart (Estevez)
founded on organized
rebellion, its First and Myra (Jena Malone) do
Amendment celebrating "the
right of the people peaceably their best to manage the
to assemble." But what
happens when the outcasts daily assortment of
of American society
assemble in the very home of knowledge seeker s,
free expression? Drawing on
the clash of perspectives now loiterers, and homeless Wit h t h is t er r if ic cast ,
galvanizing America and Th e Pu blic lays ou t t h e
beyond, Emilio Estevez has people who frequent their
crafted a drama that returns conflict s bet w een
politics to a human level. The branch. It's freezing outside. r ight s and
Publicis a story of resistance
for right now. As closing time draws near, r espon sibilit ies,
em pat hy, and
It begins quietly enough in a Jackson (The Wire 's Michael
aut horit y.
K. Williams) sparks an act of

civil disobedience among

his fellow library patrons

who have nowhere to sleep.

They refuse to leave, defying
first the entreaties of the
library staff, then a local
political operative (Christian
Slater), and soon a team of

LDWIN 'THE
M PREMIERE
RONTO FILM
STIVAL 20 18

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 19

riot police led by Detective Estevez. Christian Slater
told Ikon that he plays a
Ramstead (Alec Baldwin), a character who is not an
open-hearted as you would
hard-charging cr isis like him to be. ?He is
definitely the guy who feels
negotiator. Outside, a TV this is all a mess and he is a
law and order politician. He
reporter (Gabrielle Union) is, hopefully, the kind of
guy you want to hate.?
juices up the story for the
When challenged on the
wider world. ?reclusiveness of some
homeless people? by our
With this terrific cast, The Editor in Chief Joe Alvarez,
Emilio Esteves admitted
Public lays out the conflicts that he ?get it?. ?when you
have mental health issues,
between rights and as some homeless people
do, they don?t feel like they
responsibilities, empathy, want to go to the centres
on their own, give their
and authority. Baldwin and name, to get processed. All
that stuff pushes back of
Slater play characters course. So, I understand
that. In fact, some of the
working for powerful characters in the film talk
about freedom of being on
interests, but they give their the street? ?

roles shades of

complicating nuance. The

always-stellar Jeffrey Wright

turns up as an

administrator trying to walk

an ethical fine line. And

Estevez himself, playing a

man with integrity and a

hidden past, embodies the

intractable nature of this

st r u ggle.

Wh at Ch r ist ian
Slat er an d Em ilio
Est evez t old Ik on
Lo n d o n
M agazin e

Ikon London Magazine
attended the premiere at
the Roy Thompson Hall,
Toronto and spoke to
Christian Slater and Emilio

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 21

'WIDOWS' FILM
PREMIERE AND PRESS
CONFERENCE AT TIFF

20 18

A h eavyw eigh t cast ? in clu din g Viola Davis, Dan iel Kalu u ya,
Liam Neeson , Jack i Weaver , Colin Far r ell, an d M ich elle

Rodr igu ez ? pr opels St eve M cQu een?s w h it e-k n u ck le t h r iller
(co-w r it t en by Gon e Gir l?s Gillian Flyn n ) abou t f ou r w om en
left in a deadly lurch w hen t heir cr im inally connect ed
h u sban ds ar e all k illed.

Steve McQueen has won the ensconced in the loving arms Rodriguez, Cynthia Erivo, an
art world's Turner Prize and of her partner, Rawlins (Liam Elizabeth Debicki, the latte
the film world's Academy Neeson), and in their also at the Festival in Vita an
Award. But can McQueen luxurious condo. But Rawlins Virginia) become linked b
blow stuff up? Can he yank bought that cushy life robbing their money trouble, children
audiences to the edge of their people. When a job with his and the men that constrai
seats with a state-of-the-art gang goes fatally wrong, them. A politician running fo
heist movie? The answer, Veronica's life falls to pieces. office on his family's dynasty
dear viewer, is hell yes. The With a local crime lord (Brian Tom Mulligan (Colin Farrel
director of the Academy Tyree Henry) and his muscle exerts a power both withi
Award-winning 12 Years a (Daniel Kaluuya) pressing her and beyond the law. Th
Slave continues to astound to pay Rawlins's debt, result is a big, twisty
with what looks at first like a Veronica sees only one option: satisfying thriller.
complete left turn into round up the three other
commercial action. But women who've slept for years Adapted from a 1980s-er
Widows serves up much next to these seasoned British TV series by McQuee
more than jolts. criminals, and make a plan to and Gone Girlauthor Gillia
win their lives back. Flynn, Widows crackles wit
With Viola Davis at its core, intelligence. Veronica and th
McQueen's latest digs deeper, Adapted from a 1980s-era other three widows (Michell
revealing the heartbreak, the British TV series by McQueen Rodriguez, Cynthia Erivo, an
politics, and the mixed and Gone Girlauthor Gillian Elizabeth Debicki, the latte
emotions behind the action. Flynn, Widows crackles with also at the Festival in Vita an
Veronica (Davis) lives an intelligence. Veronica and the Virginia) become linked b
idyllic life in Chicago, other three widows (Michelle their money trouble, children

nd
er
nd
by
n,
in
or
y,
ll)
in
he
y,

ra
en
an
th
he
le
nd
er
nd
by
n, Oct ober 2018 - Ikon Lon don M agazin e - 23

and the men that constrain
them. A politician running for
office on his family's dynasty,
Tom Mulligan (Colin Farrell)
exerts a power both within
and beyond the law. The
result is a big, twisty,
satisfying thriller.

Widow s Pr es
Con f er en ce
Highlight s

Speaking at the press
conference of the TIFF, the
cast discussed their roles and
how they found playing these
characters. Viola Davis
admitted that she thoroughly
enjoyed playing 'badass?
Veronica: ?I love surpassing
expectations. I love when
people underestimate me. I
think it?s only when you are in
dire circumstances, that you
see really what you are made
of.? The actor admitted
enjoying 'kicking ass.? ?I love
carrying the gun on me - not
in real life of course. I carry
this power in my own life.?

Whereas Michelle Rodriguez

admitted she was utterly

u n com f or t ab le playing

'strengths in vulnerability?. ?I

gotta say, it was tough. I had

to pretty much murder my

ego to play in this movie.

There was a side of femininity

that I guess I didn?t truly

respect. The kind of femininity
that I would find in my own
mother. It was painful for me
to play a character like that.
As to the director and what
determined his choice in
making this film, McQueen
admitted that when he saw
the original TV series growing
as a child, he found their
circumstances similar to his
and ?it spoke to him straight
away?. The award-winning
director was seemingly
?completely thrown off ?by the
question from the audience
about ?women in his life who
inspired him and who he
draws his characters from?
After a long pause, the
director admitted: ?It?s just I?ve
been so privileged to be
friends with, to have a
partner, mother, daughter
who are great people who just
happens to have vaginas. And
I just feel like? you know?
great. And, arm, that?s it
really? And I have a willy?. Too
much information Steve but
we get you.

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 25

K EI RA
K NI GHT L EY

COL ET T E
PREMI ERE

IN
TORONTO

Keir a Kn igh t ley st ar s in t h is h ist or ical dr am a abou t t h e
epon ym ou s Fr en ch n ovelist , w h ose pr ovocat ive debu t ?
f alsely cr edit ed t o h er h u sban d ? becom es t h e t oast of Par is,
t r igger in g yet an ot h er -yep you gu essed it - bat t le f or iden t it y,
equ alit y, an d self -det er m in at ion at t h e daw n of t h e 'f em in ist '

age.

Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, with Willy (Dominic West), a his "factory" authors - or
celebrated French writer charming but much older ghost writers, as we call them
and 'gay icon', was not your Parisian publisher. When now - and the fruits of her
average early-20th-century she joins him in the city as labour, the Claudine books,
woman. And Colette is not his bride, Colette begins to quickly become a literary
your average period drama. turn heads. Ripe for sensation. There's only one
Like the subject herself, adventure and unafraid of problem: though Claudine is
Wash Westmoreland's film her desires, Colette Colette, she also belongs to
is energetic, fearless, and challenges the social and Willy. Whether they're having
unapologetically feminist. gender conventions, and sex, arguing about who
sexual taboos, of Belle they're having sex with, or
We meet Colette (Keira Époque Paris. Willy is all in - debating Colette's writing,
Knightley) as a teenage girl at first. He even encourages Knightley and West's
in the Burgundian Colette to write as one of chemistry leaps off the
countryside, infatuated

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 27

screen, capturing the
attraction and the scandal at
the heart of a tumultuous
r elat io n sh ip .

Last at the Festival with Still

Alice, writing duo

Westmoreland and the late

Richard Glatzer, here

working with writer Rebecca

Lenkiewicz, capture Colette

and her world with an

intelligence, passion, and wit

worthy of the writer herself.

Though the film's period

details are exquisite, under

Westmoreland's elegant

d ir ect io n t h ey are

background to the woman

at the centre of this story.

Colette's battle to have her

voice heard in a patriarchal

society is less relevant today

than it was more than 100

years ago. She didn't let

them win; neither should

we.

At the press conference,

attended by Ikon London

Magazine, director Wash

Westmoreland, admitted

that the film was written

back in 2001 together with

his late husband Richard. It

took a long seventeen years

to bring this project to life.

Not least because of Keira

Kn igh t ley 's other

commitments - the filming

was postponed by a year

due to Keira's small baby girl

Edie who was just 1 year old

when the cast got
confirmed. Aged just two,
Edie was an integral part of
Keira's life on set. Keira told
Ikon Magazine: "I am so
lucky to have such a
wonderful husband who
put his life on hold so that I
can work. He travels with
me and looks after Eddie
while I am on set. And when
he is not around, my mum
will join me to look after my
baby girl." The actor added:
"There is a saying: it takes a
village to raise a child and it
does but it also takes a
village to keep woman at
work. But if she should be
at work and there are
people to support her, then
this will work."

Ikon London Magazine
spoke to the cast at the
premiere of Colette at the
Princes Wales Theatre.
Denise Gough, who plays
Colette's lesbian partner -
after separation with Willy -
explained: " I am playing
Mathilde de Morny, a
French noble woman. She
was one of the first women
to present herself as a man.
She was wearing trousers
when women were not
allowed to wear trousers.
She was also in 7-years
relationship with Colette.
She was the very person
who encouraged Colette to

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 29

take the ownership of her m an y LGBTQ Burgundian village to the
work and step in her
p ow er ." representatives who took lit er ar y salons of

part, plus we have one black turn-of-the-century Paris.

Speaking of what made actor playing a character (The four are published in

Missy special for Colette, the who historically was white English as Claudine at

Irish actress commented: and an Asian person who is School, Claudine in Paris,

"Willy is like a very definition also playing a white Claudine Married, and

of toxic masculinity. What character." The director Claudine and Annie). The

we have in Missy is the admitted to the Ikon team story they tell is

opposite masculinity. Very that he wasn't aware of the semi-autobiographical, but

progressive, ver y diversity targets set by BFI: "I not entirely. Most striking

empowering. And if I had a just enjoyed breaking the difference is that Claudine,

choice between a toxic man rules. Since the character of unlike Colette, is motherless.

and a progressive one, I Colette is so controversial Willy, fourteen years older
than his wife and one of the
would choose the for the early twentieth most notorious libertines in
Paris, introduced Colette
progressive one for sure." century, I decided it would into avant-garde intellectual
and artistic circles while
be appropriate to not to engaging in sexual affairs
and encouraging her own
The London premiere of the follow the rules." lesbian alliances.
film will take place at the
London Film Festival. Wh o w as Colet t e
Admittedly, it will be the first
time Keira Knightley's Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette.
mother -who is a big fan of
Colette's novels - will see the Ph o t o cr ed it :
film. As to the director, Wash
Westmoreland, his father Wikip ed ia[ / cap t io n ] Colette later said that she
"will be delighted to attend would never have become a
the London premiere."The Colette (Sidonie-Gabrielle writer if it had not been for
film-maker continued, "my Colette, 28 January 1873 ? 3 Willy. Nevertheless, when
father taught me a lot about August 1954) was a French Colette wished to have her
film-making and it was with novelist nominated for the name associated with her
him that I started making my Nobel Prize in Literature in work as it became widely
first home movies at the age 1948. known, Willy resisted and
of nine. So it will mean a "locked her in her room until
world for him. He will travel In 1893 she married Henry she produced enough pages
especially from Liverpool for to suit him."
t h at ." Gauthier-Villars (1859?1931)

or "Willy" a well-known

author and publisher.

Colette?s first four novels Colette and Willy separated
in 1906, although it was not
appeared under his name. until 1910 that the divorce
became final. She had no
They chart the coming of access to the sizable
earnings of the Claudine
The film has strong chances age of their heroine, books ? the copyright
to collect a few awards. Not
least BAFTA's due to the Claudine, from an
diversity on set. "We have so
u n co n ven t io n al

fifteen-year-old in a

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 31



belonged to Willy ? and until de Jouvenel, nicknamed Claudine books. Soon after
1912 she followed a stage
career in music halls across Bel-Gazou, was born in that, Willy?s son appealed the
France, sometimes playing
Claudine in sketches from 1913. During the war, she decision and won. This meant
her own novels, earning
barely enough to survive devoted herself to that Claudine?s name had to
and often hungry and
unwell. journalism, but marriage appear next to Willy?s again.

After the separation from allowed her to devote her But not for long. Claudine
Willy, Colette went to work
in the music halls of Paris, time to writing. then appealed again and
under the wing of Mathilde
de Morny, the Marquise de Th e copyr ight won... again. And the original
Belbeuf, known as Missy, manuscripts played a large
with whom she became
romantically involved. In issu es role in establishing the
1907, the two performed co pyr igh t s.?
together in a pantomime When Colette and Willy
entitled Rêve d'Égypte at the divorced in 1909, Colette Cost u m e Design
Moulin Rouge. During this
period, she embarked on a was acknoledged as the The costumes of Colette were
series of relationships with ?moral? author of the not created for the film, as is
other women, notably with novels, while her husband usual within the industry.
Mathilde de Morny, was free to sell the According to the cast
Marquise de Belbeuf publication rights and (Knightley and Goug), the
("Missy"), with whom she benefit from sales without costumes were all original.
sometimes shared the her consent. They admitted at the Toronto
stage. On January 3, 1907, Notably, French copyright Film Festival press
an onstage kiss between law remained unrevised conference that ?the
Missy and Colette in a until 1957. This meant that costumes were falling apart
pantomime entitled Rêve women couldn?t publish on them? because they were
d'Égypte caused a near-riot, books under their names. all original.
and as a result, they were But even the revised law of
no longer able to live 1957 upheld the doctrine of The director of the film, Wash
together openly, although the husband?s consent as Westmoreland added that
their relationship continued necessary to publication by they even incorporated some
for another five years. a married woman. blemishes in costumes in
their scenes. ?One scene is
In 1912 she married Henry According to the director of built around the toothpaste
de Jouvenel, the editor of Le Colette (2018), Wash stains on the dress and these
Matin. A daughter, Colette Westmoreland, Colette was were the actual stains, which
ultimately able to reclaim we decided to acknowledge
her property rights to the in the film to create more
novels. But not before she credible characters and
engaged in numerous court story?. Later, at the premiere,
cases. Denise Gough admitted that
she is enjoying wearing 'nice
?Colette won the initial clothes' again now that the
court case after which only film is over.
her name appeared on the

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 33



RYAN GOSLING
'FIRST MAN'

TORONTO FILM
FEST I VAL

Th e Academ y Aw ar d-w in n in g t eam of
dir ect or Dam ien Ch azelle an d st ar Ryan

Goslin g (La La Lan d) r eu n it es f or t h is
biopic on t he advent ures and life of Neil

Ar m st r on g, f r om h is en t r y in t o NASA's
ast r on au t pr ogr am in 1961 t o h is

epoch -m ak in g w alk on t h e m oon eigh t
years lat er.

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 35

There are at least two ways (Lukas Haas) to join NASA's "Damien really allowed
to look at a hero. You can Apollo 11 mission to the us all enough time to
stand back and gaze moon, Armstrong bears down form these friendships
upwards, or you can draw for what might be the ultimate
closer and see heroic acts glory? or the ultimate before the filming
through the hero's eyes. sacr if ice. start," commented Foy
Maintaining the impressive at the conference. "So
pace that saw ? over the Acad em y Award-winning when the first day of
course of two years ? both
Whiplash and La La Land screenwriter Josh Singer filming started, it
capture wide audience and wasn't stressful at all. It
award attention, director (Spotlight) adapted James R. was like a continuation
Damien Chazelle is back to
tell the story of one of Hansen's book about and Damien allowed
America's great heroes, our friendship 'bleed
Neil Armstrong. And he Armstrong, and gets the through' onto the set."
puts us right there with
him. texture of his world and

First Man throws us details of his character spot
immediately into the
cockpit with Armstrong on. Chazelle takes that
(Ryan Gosling) and his
fellow test pilots as they material and makes it
break record after record,
hurtling beyond the viscerally cinematic, keeping
stratosphere in shaky
metal prototypes that can the camera close and often
barely take the strain. Each
time they take off they risk using natural light. His eye
death, which bonds them
in a camaraderie that can gives every moment an
be both noble and steely.
At home, Armstrong urgency, even if you recall the
maintains the taciturn logic
that keeps him alive as a events of the time. With
pilot, but it tears at his
relationship with his wife, Gosling, Foy, and the rest of
Janet (Claire Foy), and sons.
When he's called on with the cast working at the top of
Buzz Aldrin (Corey Stoll,
also at the Festival in their game, First Man inspires
Driven) and Mike Collins
real awe at this story of

heroism that is epic, majestic,

and true.

Chazelle, it seems, enjoys
going an extra mile for his
works. The cast commented at
the press conference attended
by Ikon London Magazine, on
the attention to details the
director demonstrated at
every stage of the process.
From the extremely accurate,
according to Armstrong's sons
who were also at the
conference, to Neil's favourite
music (Moon Rapsody), to the
team building at the NASA
facilities in Huston to Neil's

(Ryan Gosling) and Janet's onto the set." everyone dies to know
(Claire Foy) 'household whether the astronauts saw
bonding'. Admittedly, the Prominently featured in the the aliens, the 'elephant in the
director wanted to show more film - within the first five room' was just left hanging
humane side of our heroes minutes into the film - is the there.
and their wives. And loss of Neil's and Janet's
according to critics, he's hit daughter, which, it is implied, The London premiere of the
the bullseye. "Damien really is one of the reasons Neil First Man will take place on
allowed us all enough time to Armstrong seeks to 'get away' 30th October 2018 after
form these friendships before and find some solitude. From which, all fans will be able to
the filming start," commented Mark Armstrong's words, their watch the film on a big screen.
Foy at the conference. "So sister died on the day of his
when the first day of filming parents anniversary, "so they
started, it wasn't stressful at never celebrated it. And it was
all. It was like a continuation one subject we never spoke
and Damien allowed our about in the family."
friendship 'bleed through'
And, while we are sure,

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 37



NICOLE KIDMAN AT
BOY ERASED

TORONTO PREMIERE

Th e pr em ier e of Boy Er ased t ook place t h is w eek at
t h e Pr in ces of Wales Th eat r e in Tor on t o an d Nicole
Kidm an look exqu isit e in a black gow n on t h e r ed

car pet .

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 39

The teenager son of a Baptist
pastor is forced into a
gay-conversion program by his
parents, in actor-director Joel
Edgerton?s emotive drama
starring Nicole Kidman, Russell
Crowe, and Lucas Hedges.

Everyone wants to belong ? but

what good is belonging if you

can't be yourself? Starring Oscar

nominee Lucas Hedges (also at

the Festival in Mid90s and Ben is

Back) and Oscar winners Nicole

Kidman (at the Festival in

Destroyer) and Russell Crowe,

actor Joel Edgerton's second

feature as writer-director plunges

us into the cloistered world of

conversion therapy and tracks a

young man's uphill journey from

o st r acizat io n t ow ar d

self -accep t an ce.

Jared (Hedges) belongs to a
loving middle-class Arkansas
family, with his mother, Nancy
(Kidman), and Baptist minister
father, Marshall (Crowe). Jared
gets good grades, plays
basketball, and is in a steady ?
but chaste ? relationship with a
girl from school. Everything in his
life is going according to plan,
until a college friend outs Jared
as gay. Yes, another gay story.

Surprised, but attempting to be
supportive in their own way,
Jared's parents send him to
Refuge, a church-supported
program predicated on the
notion that homosexuality is an
affliction, curable through

confession, and the
reinforcement of gender
stereotypes. Overseen by Victor
Sykes (Edgerton, in a superbly
cagey performance), the
program's bullying and bigotry
fosters an environment that is
anything but a refuge. Though
Jared begins the program
desperate to be healed, he
begins to wonder if it's really
others who need healing.

Boy Erased, which is based on

Garrard Conley's eponymous

memoir, doesn't take pot-shots

at religious conservatives.

Bolstered by uniformly

superlative performances ?

including m em or ab le

supporting turns from Flea and

Xavier Dolan ? the film

considers what it means to

reconcile one's upbringing with

one's own self-respect and

moral truths. In so doing,

Edgerton contributes to a larger

conversation that's been going

on for a while now. Touching

upon the issues of sexuality and

the issue of sex and

self-identification is hardly new

in cinema but it doesn't mean

Joel Edgerton didn't have to

make this film. This flick is

intense and far more fast-paced

than, say, Danish Girl.

The London Premiere of Boy
Erased will take place on 26
September 2018.

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 41

HILARY SWANK

PREMIERE TORONTO
FILM FESTIVAL

Hilar y Sw an k , Blyt h e Dan n er , Rober t For st er , an d M ich ael Sh an n on st ar in
'Wh at Th ey Had' - an in t im at e f am ily dr am a abou t a w om an w h o r et u r n s
h om e t o h elp h er Alzh eim er 's-af f lict ed m ot h er , w h ile also gr applin g w it h h er

ow n past .

Why do families continue to threatens to tear it apart. mother, but it gnaws at the
fascinate on the big screen? family's already-tenuous
Maybe because, amid the Bridget (two-time connections nonetheless.
superheroes and fantasies Oscar-winner Hilary Swank)
that dazzle us, great films is forced to fly back home Chomko perfectly captures
about family mirror our own when her mother 's cognitive the rhythm of this group ?
lives, illuminating us at our decline leads to life- the roles each has come to
best while reassuring us threatening actions. As she play, the conversations
about our imperfections. falls deeper into Alzheimer 's carried on in shorthand, the
Elizabeth Chomko disease, Ruth (the brilliant resentments and loyalties
contributes something new Blythe Danner) recedes from that define who each is to
and valuable to the canon everyday matters; she is one another. Certain scenes
with What They Had. Based fragile, but never fails to cut look, sound, and feel
on her own screenplay, to the quick of what counts. transported from real life. In
which won a coveted Nicholl Bridget's brother Nicky addition to the rich,
Fellowship from the (Michael Shannon) refuses to authentic sibling dynamic
Academy of Motion Picture indulge any sentiment about that Swank and Shannon
Arts and Sciences, this is a Ruth's illness. His hard create, supporting
story of a family drawing pragmatism may just be his performances from Robert
closer even as illness way of masking his pain at Forster and Taissa Farmiga
the thought of losing his deepen the story as Ruth's

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 43

behaviour pushes her family
to a breaking point. For
anyone who has lived, loved,
suffered, and grown among
family, What They Had offers
many rewards.

'Wh at Th ey Had'

cast an d dir ect or

int er view w it h

Ikon London

M agazin e[caption

id ="at t ach m en t _10384"
align ="align r igh t "
width="493"] Michael
Sh an n o n [ / cap t io n ]

The International premiere
took place at the Roy
Thompson Hall, Toronto
where cast and director were
in attendance. Ikon London
Magazine learned about how
engaged Robert Forster felt
about his role. It almost felt
like he was still in the
character. With intensity and
conviction, Robert said on
the record: "The job of Burt
is to care for his wife and I
want to care for her myself.
She can't get a better care
from anyone else than she is
going to get from me. And
this is my position and the
kids can go jump in the lake.
She is coming with me; I am
not going to let her into an
in st it u t io n ."

The first-time director
Elizabeth Chomko, also

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 45

spoke to Ikon London
Magazine: "It was a long
process. It was almost eight
years from the conception
until today. But it was a very
personal story that sparked
for me and then it was about
getting that confidence to
follow that voice, which is
something that is hard - to
take that space." Speaking of
what gave her the
confidence, Elizabeth told
Ikon London Magazine that it
was "a sense of connecting
with something greater." A
message that resembles
Bradley Coopers' answer at
the press conference when
he remarked that "the art is
somewhere there. We don't
create art, we just connect to
it and channel it".
Congratulations to Elizabeth
for staying focused and
following through.

As to the newly-wed Hilary
Swank, she was radiant on
the red carpet accompanied
by her other half. The film is
coming to London and was
picked for the worldwide
distribution, Chomko
confirmed, so all Swank fans
will have a chance to see her
in all her A-list glory soon.

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 47

It w as Kr ist en St ew ar t ?s t u r n t o gr ace t h e r ed car pet of t h e Tor on t o Film
Fest ival w it h Jer em iah " Ter m in at or ? LeRoy. In t h is capt ivat in g t r u e st or y, a

you n g w om an (Kr ist en St ew ar t ) spen ds year s playin g t h e pu blic r ole of
Jer em iah " Ter m in at or " LeRoy, an en igm at ic an d celebr at ed lit er ar y
per son a cr eat ed by h er sist er -in -law (Lau r a Der n ).

In a stroke of dream under a pseudonym, JT of human experience.
casting, filmmaker Justin LeRoy. Her JT is not just a Readers love it. The media
Kelly brings together pen name but a whole loves it. They love it so
Kristen Stewart and Laura persona, a teenage boy much that they begin to
Dern to tell a story that's from West Virginia living a demand JT in person. As
stranger than fiction, wilder dangerous life as a truck journalists press for
than fact, and full of the stop sex worker. Laura was interviews with JT, turmoil
drama we need right now. born in Brooklyn a mounts with Laura's
Jeremiah Terminator LeRoy generation earlier, and grew husband Geoffrey (Jim
is a delicious dive into the up in New York's punk Sturgess) and sister-in-law
hubris, risk-taking, and scene. Writing books such Savannah (Stewart). Partly
jealousy that so often as The Heart is Deceitful from desperation, partly for
surrounds great talent. Above All Things as JT gives kicks, they conspire to have
her complete freedom to Savannah don a wig and
Laura Albert (Dern) writes explore the darker regions sunglasses, adjust her
tough, insightful fiction

KRISTEN STEWART
'JEREMI AH

T ERMI NAT OR
LEROY' WORLD

PREMI ERE
TORONTO FILM

FEST I VAL

Oct ober 2018 - Ik on Lon don M agazin e - 49

voice, and become the bought it and decided it
teenage boy author.
would make a great film."
A former protégé of Gus
Van Sant's, Kelly graduated Acknowledging the
from music videos to
directing the acclaimed financing issue for indie
independent films I Am
Michael and Welcome the films, the director
Stranger. Here, he invites
his audience along on what continued, "And we were
may look like a very strange
ride. Layers of artist lucky enough to find a
masquerade? Yes. Gender
fluid everything? Naturally. financier who backed us up
Queer looks? Of course.
Stewart and Dern, who've a hundred percent. And
long proved their ability to
make creative leaps look now we are here.
perfectly normal, are at
their best here. As Savannah, head to toe in
everyone's persona begins Rick Owens, approved our
to bleed a little around the remark of the story being a
edges, it just makes the mother of all PR stunts with
world that much more a smile. Seemingly
exciting. True story. overwhelmed with the
premiere and the attention
Ikon Magazine asked the of the press, former
director - Justin Kelly - what impersonator admitted that
inspired him to pick this the memoir covers her
story for his next film. "I story from the age of 18
was following the story until 25, when she was
from the beginning. I was a "discovering herself and
big fan of Jeremiah coming to terms with the
Terminator LeRoy books way she is".
myself and then when the
truth came out, I always Kirsten Stewart was in great Savan n ah Kapoor adm
wondered how did they spirits as she arrived at the t hat t he m em oir cove
manage to pull it off and, premiere - wearing white st or y f r om t h e age of
most importantly, why. So, sequin dress-jumper. She
when Savannah's memoir posed for photos with the 25, w h en sh e w a
came out I, of course, cast and spoke to the press "discover in g h er self
before being rushed to the com ing t o t er m s w it h
screening.
sh e is" .
The distribution deal for TJ
Leroy has not yet been
confirmed so stay tuned for
further news.