AFI FEST 2009: Heath Ledger, PRECIOUS, FANTASTIC MR. FOX

Fantastic Mr. Fox by Wes Anderson (top); Gabourey Sidibe in Precious (middle); Heath Ledger in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (bottom)

AFI FEST 2009, the AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival, kicks off next Friday, Oct. 30, with a screening of Wes Anderson’s animated feature Fantastic Mr. Fox, featuring the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, and Owen Wilson, among others.
Other gala presentations include Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, starring Christopher Plummer — who’ll be the recipient of this year’s AFI FEST Lifetime Achievement Award — and featuring Heath Ledger’s last performance; Kirk Jones‘ Everybody’s Fine, starring Robert De Niro in this remake of Giuseppe Tornatore’s melodrama about a widower on his way to meet his family; and Sundance [...]

George Clooney, Wes Anderson, Bill Murray: London 2009

Wes Anderson and Bill Murray attend the Fantastic Mr Fox press conference at The 2009 Times BFI London Film Festival held at the Dorchester Hotel on October 14.
Photos: Ian Gavan/Getty Images
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George Clooney, Bill Murray

George Clooney, Jarvis Cocker

George Clooney, Jason Schwartzman

THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU – Bill Murray, Owen Wilson

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
Direction: Wes Anderson
Screenplay: Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach
Cast: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Michael Gambon, Noah Taylor, Bud Cort, Seu Jorge, Robyn Cohen, Seymour Cassel
 

 

AT SEA WITH BILL ENNUI
Those who roll in the aisles laughing whenever Bill Murray raises a tired eyebrow, or when he indicates boredom through sideway glances, or when he sighs with the air of someone who’s seen it all, will love Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. On the other hand, those of us who find Bill Murray’s chronic ennui contagious might consider looking for entertainment elsewhere.
The story of oceanographer-cum-TV-personality Steve Zissou’s quest for revenge against a mythical shark that [...]