Into the Mind of Christopher Nolan Life has certainly changed for Christopher Nolan. He has come from being the weedy, bullied film nerd through to multi-millionaire, making billion dollar Hollywood blockbusters. From using his father’s Super 8 camera to being on sets, using million dollar rigs and set ups. So, how did he get to where he is? The film business started off very slowly for 7-year old Christopher Nolan. He had not yet developed a passion his heart lay in botany. But soon enough, Nolan found his father’s Super 8 camera and he began working on short films, often collaborating with his brother, Jonathan. By the time Nolan reached high school, he was filming movies with friends and family and at college, he joined forces with some of his fellow students and it was there he created his first feature film, Following, a story about a writer who has an obsession with following random people. It was reached with very positive reviews and Nolan was noticed by recognised photographer Wally Pfister, who worked with Nolan on his next project, the Oscar-winning Memento, the story of Leonard Shelby, a man who, after suffering severe head injuries, is unable to create new memories. It was praised for its innovativeness and new way of storytelling (starting at the end, and moving to the start as the film progresses). Although it was not a box-office hit, it has since developed a cult following. That was when people started to notice Christopher Nolan.
After the success of Memento, multiple Hollywood stars, including Al Pacino and Robin Williams, all wanted to work with the next big thing. Nolan had to make his next film incredible and it was: Insomnia. It tells the story of two detectives investigating the methodical murder of a teenager. It was dark, chillingly and beautifully twisted and it also brought some fantastic performances out of its leads, Pacino and Williams. It won critical acclaim left, right and centre and it has gone on to become a classic of modern film. After the disappointing box office performance of Batman and Robin, Warner Bros. Studio placed the trust in Christopher Nolan to successfully revamp the Batman franchise. But instead of the dark comediennes that the franchise had become known for, Nolan took a darker, more sinister and route and the product; Batman Begins. It chronicled Bruce Wayne’s journey from spoiled rich kid to crime-stopping vigilante. It was a major success and it proved that Nolan could also direct the big budgeted Hollywood blockbusters as well as the indie-cult hits. Many top critics claimed that
Guy Pierce as Leonard Shelby in Memento
to his roots and direct another gripping drama and with that in mind, he cast the star of Batman Begins Christian Bale and also Hugh Jackman, who both played opposing magicians in The Prestige. It boasted Nolan’s brilliant storytelling and his uncanny ability to make you believe everything that happens. It wasn’t a major box office success (making only $113,714,830 worldwide), but it casts a spell over everybody who has seen it.
After the success of Batman Begins, Warner Bros. again offered Nolan the chance to make a new Batman film and after the brilliant ending of his previous Batman, Nolan could not refuse. After two years of strenuous filming, The Dark Knight was released to the world. It was the highest grossing film of 2008 and it narrowly lost the ‘Best Picture’ Academy Award race to Slumdog Millionaire. It featured a dark, compelling crime story, along with Nolan’s signature plot twists. It also contained an incredible performance from Heath Ledger, who played The Joker. The Academy Award for ‘Best Supporting Actor” was obviously going to go to Ledger, but when the Australian Star overdosed on sleeping pills and was killed, the film world was in mourning. Along with many stirring tributes on the night of the Oscars, Ledger also posthumously won the ‘Best Sup-
described what it was like to work on set with somebody as talented as Heath Ledger. After the release of The Dark Knight, Nolan was the biggest director in the world, even trumping the likes of George Lucas and James Cameron. Although he was getting dozens of offers to direct multimillion dollar films, the one that caught his eye was a psychological action thriller called Inception. It was about a corporate espionage agent named Dom Cobb, who got his employers their secrets by infiltrating the world of the dream. It featured Nolan’s best special effects yet and many argue it is his greatest film to date. But with many upcoming projects (including the next film in his Batman saga, The Dark Knight Rises and a new Superman revamp, Man of Steel) we will all just have to wait and see.
Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight..
Christopher Nolan:
Following (1998) Memento (2000 Insomnia (2002) Batman Begins (2005) The Prestige (2006) The Dark Knight (2008) Inception (2010) Upcoming Projects Man of Steel (Superman remake) The Dark Knight Rises
Hugh Jackman and Christopher Nolan on the set of The Prestige
“ The best actors instinctively feel out what the other actors need, and they just accommodate that.” Christopher Nolan
What is the best genre of movie?
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Managing Director of M
Madman Entertainment
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magine walking down a street, any street, and you see man wearing board shorts, thongs and hair that looks like it has never seen of gel in its life. He seems the typical Aussie bloke. But would you suspect that he is a multi-millionaire film distributor who single -handedly brought anime and manga to Australia? No, you would not. But that is the exactly the kind of man that is Paul Wiegard, Managing Director of Madman Entertainment.
A er borrowing money off family and friends, Anderson and Wiegard started buying licenses for Japanese anime and manga series’, which they believed were about to take off. A er a few successes and failures, the pair decided to stop buying licenses and start distribu!ng anime and manga films. And the first film they bought for distribu!on was Akira. “Akira is about a secret military project that endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a member of a biker gang into a raging telepathic psychopath that only two kids can stop.” Wiegard described. Akira was one of the movies that popularised anime in the west along with another one of Madman’s films, Ghost in the Shell. Both were met with very posi!ve reviews, some claiming that they are the two greatest anime films of all !me.
Paul Wiegard
Madman’s Akira
“There isn’t a typical day at Madman. Everyday is different.” Paul Wiegard
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fter the success of Akira, Madman began distributing many more animes, but they had also turned their attention to independent films, especially Australian ones and this tradition has continued to today, with the results being films such as Kenny, Snowtown and The Loved Ones, all of them met with a raving reception. But Madman still distributes T.V shows, with their most successful program being the powerhouse Ben 10.
Madman’s powerhouse production, Ben 10.
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adman is still at large throughout the DVD and more recently, Blu-ray distribution with Australian films and T.V shows, as well as Japanese animes and mangas. In fact, 97% of animes in Australia have been distributed by, you guessed it, Madman Entertainment. They have become one of the most successful companies in Australia and it has turned Paul Wiegard from average Joe to multi-
Madman Entertainment’s logo
Madman’s Kenny
Explosions and gunplay have beac!on movies have never failed to come one of the main a,rac!ons entertain. And here are some of at the cinema over the last couple the very best! of decades. While there have been some adrenalin-pumping heartstoppers, there have also been some movies that use explosions as make-up, to hide their terrible, unsightly visage. From the uberviolence of the 80’s, through to the eects-driven romps of the 2000’s,
10 300 (2006) Possibly the most macho film ever made, 300 tells the story of King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and his force of 300 Spartans as they attempt to defeat the entire Persian Empire. With some spectacular slow-motion battle scenes and some memorable quotes (‘Tonight we dine in Hell!’ This is where we fight! This is where they die!’), 300 serves as an incredibly entertaining history epic.
9 District 9 (2009) This sci-fi alien romp through the slums of Johannesburg also packs an emotional punch. Although it slumps to a B-grade shooter during its second act, ‘9’ is a film that may change your views on many things.
8 Speed (1990) There is a bomb on a bus. Once the bus reaches 50 mph, the bomb arms. If the bus drops below 50 mph, it explodes. This is the predicament faced by young cop Jack Traven (Keaunu Reeves) in this fast-paced action spectacular. With cameos from a young Sandra Bullock, Jeff Daniels and the late Dennis Hopper (who puts in a nice turn as the killer), Speed is a must watch.
7 Gladiator (2000) Russell Crowe puts in an Oscar-winning performance as Maximus, a Roman General who is betrayed by a corrupt prince and left for dead in a small town in Italy. Full of blood, gore and severed heads, this epic revenge drama cannot be missed.
6 First Blood (1982) First Blood is the stereotypical 80’s action blockbuster. Sylvester Stallone is John Rambo, a Vietnam vet who is struggling to adjust to modern life. After a traumatising run in with local British Columbian police, he escapes from his police cell into the expansive forest and starts a one-man war on the police and the army. Complete with guns, explosions and impossibly tough guys saying impossibly tough things, First Blood is a classic.
5 Terminator 2: Judgement Day T2 is the second in the time-travelling Terminator trilogy, chronicling the lives of Sarah Connor and her son, John, who is going to become the leader of the resistance in the future. But Terminators, sent back by the evil Skynet Corporation, travel back in time to kill John and therefore wipe out all resistance in the humans war against the machines. A truly mesmerising film from start to finish, Judge-
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Achieve impossible
4 Inception (2010) Dom Cobb is an extractor. He goes into dreams and extracts secrets. He is the best in the business. But he is also a family man who cannot get home after he was framed for the murder of his wife. So when a job is offered that could get him home, Cobb accepts. But the mission is impossible: inception. With some breath-taking special effects (including a zero gravity fight scene), and plot with more twists than a bowl of spiral pasta, Inception will leave your mind in a shambles.
3 The Dark Knight (2009) Not only the best superhero movie ever, but also a richly thrilling crime saga, The Dark Knight continues the crime fighting story of Bruce Wayne/ Batman , billionaire playboy by day, masked vigilante by night, who falls victim to rising criminal mastermind, The Joker (played by Heath Ledger, who won the ‘Best Supporting Actor Oscar posthumously). Dark, grim and frighteningly realistic, The Dark Knight casts a spell over all those who see it.
2 Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Harrison Ford is Indiana Jones, a puzzle-solving, grave-robbing archaeologist who is trying to stop the Nazis from finding the Ark of Covenant, which Hitler believes will make his army invincible. Full of puzzles, whips and memorable sword fights, Indiana Jones is the greatest adventure movie ever.
1 Die Hard (1988) John McClane is a LAPD cop who, while attending his wife’s work’s Christmas party, is instead the leader of a rebellion against a group of German terrorists, who have taken McClane’s wife and her co-workers hostage. Having to use modern guerrilla tactics against his cunning foes, McClane and a cop on the outside of the building wage war on the evil terrorists. An edge-of-your-seat thrill ride from start to finish, Die Hard lives strong!