James McAvoy

Arthur Christmas

Jolly enough, but lacking usual Aardman Animation wit and charm

14 Nov 2011

(U) 97mins In over two decades since Wallace and Gromit’s A Grand Day Out, Aardman Animation have become a byword for family entertainment, but Arthur Christmas, their latest attempt at a blockbuster, never reaches the same lovable heights. As he…

X-Men: First Class

Latest in franchise makes clever use of Cold War-era setting

30 Jun 2011

(12A) 132min The novelty of the Hollywood franchise reboot has worn thin, but this re-launch of the initially excellent adaptations of the Marvel comic book benefits from a canny central concept that takes the mutant superhero team back to their…

The Conspirator

Mixed results from Robert Redford courtroom drama on shooting of Abraham Lincoln

17 Jun 2011

(12A) 122min Have you ever wondered about the true story of Mary Surratt, the woman charged alongside John Wilkes Booth – the man who shot Abraham Lincoln – and his co-conspirators in 1865? Robert Redford’s courtroom drama supposes that you have and…

Gnomeo & Juliet's British cast add charm despite pop culture references

Shrek 2 director's animation big on visual jokes but lacks standout sequence

2 Feb 2011

(U) 84min The idea of turning William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet into an animated movie featuring gnomes sounds like a tragedy in its own right, but thanks to a star studded British voice cast and some fun visual jokes, Gnomeo & Juliet almost…

The Last Station

17 Feb 2010

(15) 112min It’s 1910 and the great Russian writer and aristocrat Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer) has become a cult dissenting voice in Tsarist Russia. His writings and teachings on non violent resistance, state and property rights, chastity and…

Weedy hero James McAvoy

Celebrity Gossip

8 Feb 2010

James McAvoy is not a leading man. The 'Last Station' star - whose wife Anne-Marie Duff is currently pregnant with their first child - is aware he doesn't look like a typical action hero but hopes his talents can help him win bigger Hollywood…

James McAvoy to be a dad

Celebrity Gossip

26 Jan 2010

James McAvoy is going to become a father. The 'Wanted' star and his actress wife Anne-Marie Duff - who first met on the set of British TV series 'Shameless' in 2003 - are expecting their first child together, it was announced today (26.01.10).

The Hot 100 2008

11 Dec 2008

It’s been a helluva year. 2008 has been a time of significant global change, socially, politically and culturally, with Scotland no exception. So here, for your delectation, is The List’s pick of the 100 people, places and things that rocked our world…

James McAvoy's villain love

Celebrity Gossip

9 Jul 2008

James McAvoy loves playing "d***s" in movies. The actor - who can currently be seen starring alongside Angelina Jolie in assassin movie 'Wanted' - admits he prefers playing unlikeable characters to lovable ones. He said: "I like romantic comedies.

James McAvoy's toilet anger

Celebrity Gossip

3 Jul 2008

James McAvoy hates it when fans interrupt him when he is using the toilet. The 'Wanted' star is often approached by men in public conveniences who attempt to talk to him or shake his hand while he's relieving himself. He said: "People are never…

James McAvoy's gun trouble

Celebrity Gossip

26 Jun 2008

James McAvoy is terrible with guns. The actor says he dislikes handling firearms, despite them featuring heavily in his latest movie, 'Wanted', in which he plays an assassin. He said: "In 'Band of Brothers', I shot my rifle three times and hit…

Wanted

19 Jun 2008

THRILLER/ACTION (18) 111min Scottish comic book writer Mark Millar's ultra-violent graphic novel gets the Hollywood blockbuster treatment in this sfx-heavy actioner that benefits from the skewered perspective of Russian director Timur Bekmambetov, who…

Hobbit James McAvoy

Celebrity Gossip

29 May 2008

James McAvoy is set to play Bilbo Baggins in 'The Hobbit'. Film bosses are rumoured to be close to signing McAvoy - who played the faun Mr. Tumnus in 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe' - to play the fantasy hero in the…

Summer Film Special - Best of the rest

22 May 2008

The Incredible Hulk The big angry green killing machine gets another bite at the superhero film franchise cherry (after the box office disaster of Ang Lee’s Hulk). This version is adapted by the folk behind the X-Men films, directed by Louis Leterrier…

McAvoy to make a movie with his wife

10 Apr 2008

Mirren and Plummer also star in The Last Station in Germany Atonement star James McAvoy will begin filming the Leo Tolstoy biopic The Last Station in Germany this week alongside wife and fellow actor Anne-Marie Duff. Rumour has it that the film’s…

Scottish Stars Asked to Make Nominations for the Robert Burns Humanitarian Award

28 Feb 2008

The final call has gone out for nominations for the Robert Burns Humanitarian Award. Charitable stars, such as James McAvoy, Ewan McGregor, KT Tunstall, Angelina Jolie (pictured) and David Beckham have all been invited to nominate a charity or…

Celebrities urged to nominate for Scottish humanitarian award

Robert Burns Humanitarian Award

21 Feb 2008

James McAvoy, Ewan McGregor, KT Tunstall, Midge Ure, Johnny Depp, Bob Dylan, Angelina Jolie, David Beckham, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, JK Rowling, Lord Richard Attenborough, Sienna Miller and Bob Geldof are among the celebrities who have been…

Penelope

(U) 89min

31 Jan 2008

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away from self-conscious satire, there lived a girl named Penelope (Christina Ricci). With her moneyed background, good sense of humour and French language skills, Penelope should be a bit of a catch. Sadly, Penelope…

Atonement

6 Sep 2007

There’s a visually astounding set-piece at the centre of this adaptation of novelist Ian McEwan’s superb tragic romance set before, during and after World War II. It’s a lengthy tracking shot of the beach at Dunkirk during the Allied troop withdrawal…

Knightley’s Atonement opens Venice festival

30 Aug 2007

The curtain raised on the Venice Film Festival yesterday, opening with British film Atonement starring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy. The film, which is based on the best-selling novel by Ian McEwan, is only the second feature film from director…

Becoming Jane

(PG) 120min

27 Feb 2007

BIOPIC/DRAMA/ROMANCE As the occasionally inspired Boston Globe film critic Mark Feeney pointed out: ‘Once the implicit aim of biography was to uplift now it is to unveil.’ And so it is that we reach the point where it seems OK to release a film about…

Kevin Mcdonald profile

Profile

3 Jan 2007

Name Kevin Macdonald Born 28 October 1967, Glasgow, Scotland. Background Celluloid runs like blood through Macdonald’s veins. He’s the grandson of legendary writer/director Emeric Pressburger and younger brother of Trainspotting producer Andrew…

The Last King of Scotland

3 Jan 2007

The only similarity that the Nicholas Garrigan of this film has with his namesake in Giles Foden’s book is, indeed, his name. The Garrigan of the book is a dull-witted, slightly ignorant and rather un-endearing Scot, whereas in the movie James McAvoy…