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Rebecca Clough Jan 20, 2017

As America gets its new President, we look at some excellent political drama films that may have slipped under your radar...

Political dramas can be entertaining, informative and even educational, opening up debates and offering new points of view. (When experiencing a year of tumultuous change like the one we’ve just had, they can also be a comforting reminder that, no matter what your situation, it could always be worse...) With the full whack of corruption, war, and conspiracy, here are 25 political dramas which deserve to be better known.

See related 25 underrated political thrillers 17 new TV shows to watch in 2017 Taboo episode 3 review The Girl On The Train review 25. The Marchers/La Marche (2013)

When teenager Mohamed (Tewfik Jallab) is shot by police, his friends want revenge, but he has a better idea: peaceful protest. Marching from Marseille to Paris, they band together with quite an assortment of characters along the way.

Sean O'Callaghan says film captures 'paranoia and brutality' inside Ira, but Martin McGartland questions its authenticity

Two agents who infiltrated the Ira have offered radically different interpretations of Shadow Dancer, the acclaimed new film about a female informer working for Britain inside the republican terror group.

Sean O'Callaghan, whom a former Irish prime minister described as the Republic's most important agent inside the Provisional Ira, said the movie was a "real and true" portrayal of what life was like for an informer inside a terrorist organisation.

But Martin McGartland, who worked as a British state agent inside the Ira's Belfast Brigade during the late 1980s and early 90s, disputed the film's authenticity.

The pair agreed to review the film for the Guardian drawing on their insider knowledge of the Ira as well as their respective experiences with handlers in the security forces.

The film is based on a novel by...

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

The latest in crazy adventure movies, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs offers a world where weather becomes food, where snowball fights morph into ice cream battles. In his review, Todd Gilchrist wrote: "co-directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller have adapted Ron and Judi Barrett's kids book into a true larger-than-life tale, creating a world that scarcely resembles anything that could or would happen, and manages to be all the more exciting because of it." Buy it on Blu-ray or DVD.

Add to queue at Netflix | Buy at Amazon

The Final Destination

In this formulaic fourth installment, once again: a premonition helps save a group of people, only for them to then die one by one in grotesque ways. Except this time, it's in 3D. In his review, Eric Snider wrote: "You might just as well stay home and watch one of the other three,...

I was amazed by the transformation of Kevin Zegers from teen idol to serious actor. Two feature films should be credited for this amazing transition - Fifty Dead Men Walking and The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll. While Fifty Dead Men gave us a glimpse into Kevin's serious side as an actor, Perfect Age gave us his most important acting vehicle to date.

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- - - In The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll, the story centers on a rock star (Zegers) who retreats to his Long Island hometown after his sophomore album flops. Cinematical was quite skeptical about the casting:

Just what would you expect from a white, cutie student from The Jane Austen Book Club (or the dysfunctional son from Transamerica) and Spike Lee? Believe it or not, Lee is executive producing a new indie film called The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll,...

I was amazed by the transformation of Kevin Zegers from teen idol to serious actor. Two feature films should be credited for this amazing transition - Fifty Dead Men Walking and The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll. While Fifty Dead Men gave us a glimpse into Kevin's serious side as an actor, Perfect Age gave us his most important acting vehicle to date.

- - -

- - - In The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll, the story centers on a rock star (Zegers) who retreats to his Long Island hometown after his sophomore album flops. Cinematical was quite skeptical about the casting:

Just what would you expect from a white, cutie student from The Jane Austen Book Club (or the dysfunctional son from Transamerica) and Spike Lee? Believe it or not, Lee is executive producing a new indie film called The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll,...

I was amazed by the transformation of Kevin Zegers from teen idol to serious actor. Two feature films should be credited for this amazing transition - Fifty Dead Men Walking and The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll. While Fifty Dead Men gave us a glimpse into Kevin's serious side as an actor, Perfect Age gave us his most important acting vehicle to date.

- - -

- - - In The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll, the story centers on a rock star (Zegers) who retreats to his Long Island hometown after his sophomore album flops. Cinematical was quite skeptical about the casting:

Just what would you expect from a white, cutie student from The Jane Austen Book Club (or the dysfunctional son from Transamerica) and Spike Lee? Believe it or not, Lee is executive producing a new indie film called The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll,...

I was amazed by the transformation of Kevin Zegers from teen idol to serious actor. Two feature films should be credited for this amazing transition - Fifty Dead Men Walking and The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll. While Fifty Dead Men gave us a glimpse into Kevin's serious side as an actor, Perfect Age gave us his most important acting vehicle to date.

- - -

- - - In The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll, the story centers on a rock star (Zegers) who retreats to his Long Island hometown after his sophomore album flops. Cinematical was quite skeptical about the casting:

Just what would you expect from a white, cutie student from The Jane Austen Book Club (or the dysfunctional son from Transamerica) and Spike Lee? Believe it or not, Lee is executive producing a new indie film called The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll,...

I was amazed by the transformation of Kevin Zegers from teen idol to serious actor. Two feature films should be credited for this amazing transition - Fifty Dead Men Walking and The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll. While Fifty Dead Men gave us a glimpse into Kevin's serious side as an actor, Perfect Age gave us his most important acting vehicle to date.

- - -

- - - In The Perfect Age of Rock and Roll, the story centers on a rock star (Zegers) who retreats to his Long Island hometown after his sophomore album flops. Cinematical was quite skeptical about the casting:

Just what would you expect from a white, cutie student from The Jane Austen Book Club (or the dysfunctional son from Transamerica) and Spike Lee? Believe it or not, Lee is executive producing a new indie film called The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll,...

The Vancouver International Film Festival kicks off in earnest tonight after a few days of panels Vancouver Film and Television Forums. The fest certainly doesn’t have the high profile of Toronto International Film Festival or Festival Du Cannes to be sure but its a growing fest in a beautiful city so who’s complaining.

Whether you are in Vancouver or following along at home, here is a menu of resources to peruse and enjoy (unless of course you are instead watching the Canucks hockey season kick-off tonight instead with the rest of Vancouver except for the people at the Whitecaps vs. Timbers soccer playoffs).

Westender’s Precious Spector

Vancouver’s WestEnder arts and culture magazine provides Movies: Top picks for this year’s Viff.

We tag ‘The Agony and The Ecstasy of Phil Spector‘ saying, “He is, of course, a convicted murderer and the proud owner of many ridiculous wigs.

Good morning Boxwishers, welcome to the start of another week and to another set of new releases. With so much choice at the cinema over the weekend like District 9 and 500 Days of Summer, you might have forgotten about some of these films. But no need to worry as we’re here to remind you, and to show you how you can be inspired by them. New to Blu-Ray today is the epic Ridley Scott drama Gladiator and on DVD we have the swinging-sixties story of The Boat That Rocked. Also new to DVD is teen pop princess Hannah Montana: The Movie and the gritty political thriller Fifty Dead Men Walking.

If you see… Maximus Decimus Meridias (Russell Crowe) as a betrayed Roman soldier out to get revenge for the death of his family in Gladiator, new to Blu-Ray.

Why Not Get to grip with some battle skills yourself with...

Some of the most amazing and beautiful sites on the net are created by fans of movie stars. As a webmaster, I have some idea of how difficult it is to create a website - design and development wise. It is equally important to have dedicated people who will manage the site and update it with fresh, interesting content. In salute to some of the best fansites out there, The Movie-Fanatic is launching its fourth Fansite of the Month.

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- - - JimSturgessOnline is a fansite dedicated to the talented British actor Jim Sturgess. As a fan of the actor himself, I often visit the site for the latest news and updates - what is Jim up to at the moment? Is he joining the cast of a new movie? Are there video clips I could watch featuring the actor? Are there new (even archived) interviews that...

Some of the most amazing and beautiful sites on the net are created by fans of movie stars. As a webmaster, I have some idea of how difficult it is to create a website - design and development wise. It is equally important to have dedicated people who will manage the site and update it with fresh, interesting content. In salute to some of the best fansites out there, The Movie-Fanatic is launching its fourth Fansite of the Month.

- - -

- - - JimSturgessOnline is a fansite dedicated to the talented British actor Jim Sturgess. As a fan of the actor himself, I often visit the site for the latest news and updates - what is Jim up to at the moment? Is he joining the cast of a new movie? Are there video clips I could watch featuring the actor? Are there new (even archived) interviews that...

Some of the most amazing and beautiful sites on the net are created by fans of movie stars. As a webmaster, I have some idea of how difficult it is to create a website - design and development wise. It is equally important to have dedicated people who will manage the site and update it with fresh, interesting content. In salute to some of the best fansites out there, The Movie-Fanatic is launching its fourth Fansite of the Month.

- - -

- - - JimSturgessOnline is a fansite dedicated to the talented British actor Jim Sturgess. As a fan of the actor himself, I often visit the site for the latest news and updates - what is Jim up to at the moment? Is he joining the cast of a new movie? Are there video clips I could watch featuring the actor? Are there new (even archived) interviews that...

Some of the most amazing and beautiful sites on the net are created by fans of movie stars. As a webmaster, I have some idea of how difficult it is to create a website - design and development wise. It is equally important to have dedicated people who will manage the site and update it with fresh, interesting content. In salute to some of the best fansites out there, The Movie-Fanatic is launching its fourth Fansite of the Month.

- - -

- - - JimSturgessOnline is a fansite dedicated to the talented British actor Jim Sturgess. As a fan of the actor himself, I often visit the site for the latest news and updates - what is Jim up to at the moment? Is he joining the cast of a new movie? Are there video clips I could watch featuring the actor? Are there new (even archived) interviews that...

Although the ranks of great Ira films are swelling rapidly this combination of political history and mystery suspense masterwork is one of the bestWriter/director Kari Skogland makes Sir Ben Kingsley look better than ever in this award winning true story from the book of the same name by Nicholas Davies and Martin McGartland. Screen legend and multi-international award winner Kingsley (.House of Sand and Fog. (2003),.Sexy Beast. (2000), .Bugsy. (1991), .Gandhi. (1982)) is a great choice for this film. It requires a man with both ruthlessness and compassion. Few actors have shown both like Sir Ben.Jim Sturgess starts the film out on a role as small time thief Martin McGartland hustling his latest haul from door to door. The wares...

Fifty Dead Men Walking furthers the legacy of Jim Sheridan and other directors who have made a particular method of depicting the Irish Troubles their forte. With notable verisimilitude and a sizable degree of confidence writer-director Kari Skogland evokes the classical world of covert operations, entangled alliances and brutal bursts of gang violence that comprised life in war torn Northern Ireland for those most heavily involved in the struggles there. What she does not do, to the film’s ultimate detriment, is uncover a unique mode for doing so. Instead, her adaptation of Martin McGartland’s autobiographical novel so thoroughly immerses itself in the mechanics of combat, in the question of who’s betraying whom and the intensity with which Martin (Jim Sturgess) embeds himself in the Ira apparatus that it never offers an adequate emotional outlet into the characters. Too often, it feels more like a facsimile of other more deeply felt movies than a distinct...

Check out the trailer for Phase 4 Films' Jim Sturgess, Ben Kingsley, Kevin Zegers, Rose McGowan, Nathalie Press, Tom Collins and Kris Edlund. Kari Skogland ("The Stone Angel") helms the film as adapting the screenplay from the book written by Nicholas Davies and Martin McGartland. Inspired by an incredible true story, "Fifty Dead Men Walking" is a sweeping and gritty thriller featuring Jim Sturgess (21, Across the Universe) in a star-making performance opposite Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley (The Wackness, Elegy). Set in Belfast in 1980 where the Irish Republican Army is waging an all-out insurgent war against the British occupation, Martin McGartland...

Chicago – Although the name Jim Sturgess might not be recognized, his work in ‘Across the Universe’ and ‘21’ has certainly made him identifiable. He is in a newly released film about the Irish Republican Army, “Fifty Dead Man Walking.”

Rating: 3.5/5.0 Sturgess plays real-life Martin McGartland, a stalwart soldier for the Ira in 1980s Belfast who decides to become an informant for Britain’s Special Branch, who were trying to infiltrate the Ira to quell some of the violence in Northern Ireland.

At first lured by money, McGartland becomes more aware of the lives he is saving (thus the title). With help from his contact, Fergus (Ben Kingsley), the conflicted McGartland tries desperately to do the right thing for himself and his family.

Jim Sturgess as Martin McGartland in ‘Fifty Dead Men Walking’

Photo credit: Phase 4 Films HollywoodChicago.com interviewed lead actor Jim Sturgess. In his spirited perspective, he talks about the...

British actor Jim Sturgess broke onto these shores with the one-two punch of starring in two high-profile studio movies, Julie Taymor's Beatles musical Across the Universe and the Vegas blackjack thriller 21 , the latter a huge breakout hit. It might have been surprising to some when he chose to next tackle a much lower budgeted indie project, that being Canadian filmmaker Kari Skogland's Irish thriller Fifty Dead Men Walking ( watch exclusive Red Band trailer ). In the real-life thriller, Sturgess plays Martin McGartland, a street hustler in Belfast who was recruited by British Intelligence to infiltrate the Irish Republican Army (Ira) in order to help prevent more deaths on both sides of the bloody war. Sir Ben Kingsley plays "Fergus," the agent who brings Martin...

The title Fifty Dead Men Walking refers to the number of lives Martin McGartland is said to have saved by informing on the Ira -- a real-life story, now fictionalized with Jim Sturgess as McGartland and Sir Ben Kingsley as the British intelligence agent (code name: Fergus) who handled him. Kingsley breaks down the dangerous game the two men play. Q: Just to get it out of the way...

Another monster release slate this week finds, amongst other things, interpretations of the Irish troubles, both real and imagined. Also, we meet the real life Mad Men, Qt's Basterds and the godfather of African-American indie film as a bearded ten-year-old boy.

Download this in audio form (MP3: 15:35 minutes, 14.3 Mb) Subscribe to the In Theaters podcast: [Xml] [iTunes]

"Art & Copy"

Filmmaker Doug Pray ("Surfwise") goes inside the advertising industry to uncover the creative minds behind such iconic slogans as "Got Milk?" and "Just Do It," encountering a multitude of contrasting viewpoints, from those who feel they have whored themselves out in the name of commerce to those hopelessly addicted to the rush of satisfying the constantly changing needs of the modern world. Don Draper, eat your heart out.

Opens in New York.

"The Baader Meinhof Complex"

This year's German nominee for the best foreign-language film Oscar, Uli Edel's adaptation of...

Every year there is that one (or two) particular performance that makes you exclaim- what fine acting! While Hollywood's big studios can come up with the most expensive sets and CGI effects and put one of their top filmmakers for the next big summer blockbuster, there is always that independent filmmaker who will come up with what really matters - an unforgettable movie with equally unforgettable performances - Ryan Gosling's Dan Dune, the idealistic history teacher and crack addict, in Half Nelson is a fine example. Of course, Joseph Gordon-Levitt's tragic but defiant portrayal of Neil, the teenage hustler in Mysterious Skin also comes to mind. James McAvoy's naive, adventurous and sympathetic Dr. Nicholas Garrigan in The Last King of Scotland and Brian Jackson, the working class student in Starter for 10 are two other examples of such enduring performances.

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This year,...

Every year there is that one (or two) particular performance that makes you exclaim- what fine acting! While Hollywood's big studios can come up with the most expensive sets and CGI effects and put one of their top filmmakers for the next big summer blockbuster, there is always that independent filmmaker who will come up with what really matters - an unforgettable movie with equally unforgettable performances - Ryan Gosling's Dan Dune, the idealistic history teacher and crack addict, in Half Nelson is a fine example. Of course, Joseph Gordon-Levitt's tragic but defiant portrayal of Neil, the teenage hustler in Mysterious Skin also comes to mind. James McAvoy's naive, adventurous and sympathetic Dr. Nicholas Garrigan in The Last King of Scotland and Brian Jackson, the working class student in Starter for 10 are two other examples of such enduring performances.

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This year,...

Every year there is that one (or two) particular performance that makes you exclaim- what fine acting! While Hollywood's big studios can come up with the most expensive sets and CGI effects and put one of their top filmmakers for the next big summer blockbuster, there is always that independent filmmaker who will come up with what really matters - an unforgettable movie with equally unforgettable performances - Ryan Gosling's Dan Dune, the idealistic history teacher and crack addict, in Half Nelson is a fine example. Of course, Joseph Gordon-Levitt's tragic but defiant portrayal of Neil, the teenage hustler in Mysterious Skin also comes to mind. James McAvoy's naive, adventurous and sympathetic Dr. Nicholas Garrigan in The Last King of Scotland and Brian Jackson, the working class student in Starter for 10 are two other examples of such enduring performances.

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This year,...

In a story from Variety Fifty Dead Men Walking has been picked up by Phase 4 Films.

The film was directed by Kari Skogland and will be released August. 21.

The film stars Jim Sturgess (21) and Ben Kingsley and is inspired by Martin McGartland and his work as a spy against the Ira. One day he is exposed, captured and tortured to within an inch of his life. He escaped dramatically by throwing himself from a tower block window and is still in hiding today.

The trailer for Fifty Dead Men Walking from Canadian filmmaker Kari Skogland has been released by Tva Films (its Canadian distributor) today. This indie first premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last year but I missed seeing it there and still haven't had the chance to catch it. This trailer makes me feel like I shouldn't have missed it, as it looks like a good drama. Fifty Dead Men Walking stars Jim Sturgess, Ben Kingsley, and Rose McGowan (even though you don't really see her in the trailer). It seems like it has a good cast and great story, but I never heard many positive reviews from Toronto, so I'm not sure what to think. Watch the trailer for Kari Skogland's Fifty Dead Men Walking: [flv:http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/fiftydeadmenwalking_h640w.flv http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/fiftydeadmenwalking_h640w.jpg 598 336] In the 1980s when the Irish civil conflict was at its most dangerous, 22-year-old Martin McGartland (Jim Sturgess) from west Belfast was recruited...

Director Kari Skogland talks to Iftn ahead of the release of the new thriller 'Fifty Dead Men Walking'. The Canadian helmer chats about why she was attracted to the story of real life Ira infiltrator Martin McGartland and her experience of filming in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The film's title 'Fifty Dead Men Walking' refers to the fifty men that Martin McGartland, played by Brit actor Jim Strugess (21, The Other Boyelyn Girl), is thought to have saved during the Troubles during the late 1980's. McGartland was recruited by a British Special Branch Officer (Sir Ben Kingsley - Gandhi, Schindler's List) to spy on the Ira and subsequently spoiled numerous murder plans against the British army. After being discovered, McGartland has since had to live his life on the run. The distinguished cast features supporting international talents; Kevin Zegers (Transamerica), Natalie Press (My Summer of Love), Rose McGowan...

Inspired by the real life story of Martin McGartland’s recruitment as a police informant to spy on the Ira in late 80s Belfast, Fifty Dead Men Walking charts his path from exuberant youth to paranoid recluse under the increasingly watchful eye of ageing British policeman, Fergus (Ben Kingsley). Martin (Jim Sturgess) rapidly gets deeply involved in the Ira’s affairs putting his whole family at risk as suspicions come to a head.

Told in flashback with a portentous voice-over from Kingsley, Kari Skogland’s film starts snappily before launching into a terrible, patronising explanation of the long running conflict. Presumably designed for an international audience unfamiliar with this recent piece of history, it jars with the rest of the film and sets things off poorly. Fortunately, things pick up and a pretty solid thriller develops.

Here’s the trailer for the British film “Fifty Dead Men Walking” from Kari Skogland (”Riverworld”, “Chicks with Sticks”), starring Jim Sturgess as a British intelligence mole in 1980s Northern Ireland, and Ben Kingsley as his government handler. Rose McGowan is also in there somewhere, although I don’t think I saw her in the trailer. The film is based on the biography of Martin McGartland, which means it’s a true story. Inspired by Martin McGartlands incredible autobiography, Fifty Dead Men Walking is the stunning new action thriller by Kari Skogland about a secret agent working undercover for British security services in Northern Ireland in the late eighties. Over the course of four years, until his betrayal and subsequent discovery, it was estimated that McGartland was responsible for saving the lives of up to fifty men. Starring Ben Kingsley, Jim Sturgess, Kevin Zegers, Natalie Press, Rose McGowan, Tom Collins,...

London -- Indie distributor Metrodome Distribution has snared U.K. and Irish distribution rights to Kari Skogland's "Fifty Dead Men Walking" in a deal with co-producer and sales banner HandMade Films International.

The deal, announced Thursday, was signed by HandMade's Guy Collins and Metrodome's Peter Urie after negotiations that started following its screening at the Toronto International Film Festival.

HandMade also said it has sold the film to a host of countries including Australia (Village Roadshow), Scandinavia (Svenske), Germany and Austria (Ard Degeto), Spain (Festival Films), Russia (Paradise) and Benelux (Efp).

HandMade is working with William Morris to close a U.S. rights deal.

Co-produced by Handmade, Future Films and Canada's Brightlight Pictures with backing from Northern Ireland Screen and Telefilm Canada, "Fifty Dead Men Walking" was also written by Skogland.

The film stars Jim Sturgess as real-life former Ira infiltrator Martin McGartland, Ben Kingsley as a British Special...

Every week, tMF gives you a rundown on who's making the biggest buzz among the current crop of young talents, based on the hottest news about upcoming movies, awards and nominations, magazine covers and interviews, and special appearances on festivals, talk shows and upcoming TV series or just from anything that makes fans more excited about movies! Here's our latest top 3: - - - Grabbing the third spot for the first time is French rising star Gaspard Ulliel. The Buzz: With the anticipation building on his upcoming movie, The Vintner's Luck (http://themovie-fanatic.com/film_focus/indies/vintners_luck/), the young French hearthrob is busy with two other feature movies- Le Premier cercle (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1130993/) (The First Circle), a thriller about a family in organized crime, and is directed and written by Laurent Tuel and stars Ulliel, Jean Reno, Vahina Giocante and Sami Bouajila, and...

Political thrillers are always controversial and Fifty Dead Men Walking (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1097643/) is not an exception. Before its scheduled premiere at the recent Toronto Film Fest, it already hugged the headlines when its central character, Martin McGartland, filed legal action to block its showing. While the movie tells the story of one man, it actually raises the issue of armed conflict- in this case Northern Ireland. The problem when movies take on such delicate issues is that, most often, they failed to show both sides. However, it is apparent that these filmmakers wanted a balanced view and went out of their way to present an accurate picture of the events that transpired during those violent times. - - - - - - Filmmaker Kari Skogland said it perfectly about the universality of today's armed conflicts: I think if I could leave with anybody the message of this film,...

On the Cutting Edge tMF Spotlights one of the UK’s most exciting and talented young actors, Jim Sturgess! British actors come at acting from a slightly different angle, Sturgess says. Because a lot of the films are cast out there, they are so used to the angle, from which the Americans, and certainly the young guys from La, are coming at it, that I think it's interesting for them to find these English actors who maybe approach acting from a different place. That’s Jim Sturgess (http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film-and-tv/features/the-britpack--our-new-generation-of-movie-stars-takes-tinseltown-841199.html) for you. - - - - - - If there’s one actor who has captured the imagination of Hollywood with such intensity, then it’s Jim Sturgess. The 27-year old British actor just recently celebrated the win of his latest movie, Fifty Dead Men Walking (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1097643/) at the Vancouver Film Festival.

An ex-British spy has criticised the director of Fifty Dead Men Walking for her approach to the movie. Kari Skogland allegedly consulted with former IRA volunteers to get tips on how the film's authenticity could be improved. Martin McGartland hit out at Skogland for taking advice on bomb-making and torture techniques, as well as making concessions to former members of the movement. He said: "[Skogland] should certainly not have been negotiating (more)...

A former spy who was the inspiration behind IRA movie Fifty Dead Men Walking has blasted the film's director Kari Skogland for allowing the terrorist organisation's former members to provide creative input on-set.

Martin McGartland, who infiltrated the infamous Irish Republican Army (IRA), hit out after it emerged former IRA volunteers had given the crew tips on how to boost the film's authenticity - allegedly including advice on bomb-making and torture.

McGartland says, "(Skogland) should certainly not have been negotiating with the IRA to be able to film in certain areas of Belfast and she should never have allowed former IRA terrorists to be on set while filming."

Earlier this week (begs15Sep08) the movie's producers apologised after the film's star Rose McGowan said she would have joined the IRA if she had grown up in Northern Ireland during the troubles.

I guess when you make a movie about the Irish Republican Army and Northern Ireland's infamous "Troubles," you're bound to court some controversy. Fifty Dead Men Walking, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival despite legal threats from the man whose life it's based on (he has since dropped his suit), has now drawn more fire because of comments made by one of its stars, Rose McGowan.

During an interview in Toronto last week, McGowan, who plays an IRA operative in the film and whose father is Irish, said: "I imagine, had I grown up in Belfast, I would 100 percent have been in the IRA.... My heart just broke for the cause. Violence is not to be played out daily and provide an answer to problems, but I understand it."

This has caused a bit of a hullabaloo in that part of the world, where the IRA was officially classified as a terrorist group.

Toronto -- A former British spy said Thursday that producers of "Fifty Dead Men Walking" only raised more questions about IRA involvement in the making of their indie film when they distanced themselves from co-star Rose McGowan's pro-ira statements.

On Wednesday, "Fifty" producers Future Films, Handmade International and Brightlight Pictures said that comments made last week by McGowan were her own and not those of anyone else associated with the film. Speaking at a Toronto Film Festival news conference, McGowan had indicated she would have joined the Irish Republican Army had she lived in Belfast during the Troubles.

But Martin McGartland, a former Ira infiltrator whose story inspired the script for "Fifty," said that director Kari Skogland should never have allowed former Ira volunteers to provide security and creative input during last year's Belfast shoot.

"(Skogland) should certainly not have been negotiating with the Ira to be able to...

Rose McGowan is in hot water with her producers of the new film Fifty Dead Men Walking. While the film was making the rounds in Toronto last week, McGowan told reporters that she would have joined the Irish Republican Army if she had been in Belfast at that time. Rose added that she understands why many in Northern Ireland resorted to violence during their conflict with England.

Fifty Dead Men Walking depicts Martin McGartland's infiltration into the IRA in the late 1980s and also his torture at the hands of the group once his cover was blown. Because these things run deep, McGartland is still in hiding, having escaped from IRA capture in 1991. He was later shot multiple times, allegedly by the IRA, in 1999, before being relocated again.

So you could see why producers of a film that calls itself "an even, nonjudgmental" account of those events might feel...

London -- The producers of Toronto International Film Festival entry "Fifty Dead Men Walking" have taken the unusual step of distancing themselves from comments made by the film's star, Rose McGowan.

McGowan caused a widely reported controversy last week when she said that she would have joined the Irish Republican Army had she lived in Belfast during the Troubles. She said she could understand why people turned to violence during that time in Northern Ireland.

In a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter, producers said they oppose the comments made by McGowan during a Toronto news conference for the film.

The backers "regret any distress" that McGowan's comments may have caused "to people of Northern Ireland and particularly those who were victims of or caught up in the shocking events that existed during the conflict."

The statement goes on: "Ms. McGowan's views were private ones, and as such they greatly saddened the film's producers.

Every Monday, tMF gives you a rundown on who's making the biggest buzz among the current crop of young talents, based on the hottest news about upcoming movies, awards and nominations, magazine covers and interviews, and special appearances on festivals, talk shows and upcoming TV series or just from anything that make fans more excited about movies! Quite a hectic week for tMF, as we have to narrow down the list to three, when there are so many young stars in the news: Michael Cera goes romantic comedy in Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (http://themovie-fanatic.com/film_reviews/current/nick-and-norahs-infinite-playlist/), Dominic Cooper makes waves in The Duchess and Jamie Bell's Hallam Foe (http://themovie-fanatic.com/film_focus/indies/hallam_foe/) (aka Mr. Foe) will hit the moviehouses next week. Not to mention the young talents making waves in Toronto - Paul Dano, Zac Efron, the Culkin brothers (Rory and Keiran) and Anton Yelchin.

Updates! Screen Daily (http://www.screendaily.com/ScreenDailyArticle.aspx?intStoryID=40720) reports that Martin McGartland has settled his case and will not pursue any legal actions anymore: I have today been given a copy of the film, which I have also viewed. As a result, I can now confirm that I am happy with the film. Furthermore I have today entered into a confidential agreement, with filmmakers (and other third parties), and I have also waived my moral rights.” “The matter is now concluded and no further statements will be made by me on the matter, nor will any of the parties disclosed any further details concerning the agreement. - - - Last time, we reported that Jim Sturgess is one of Hollywood's most sought-after young actors. This time, his latest movie - Fifty Dead Men Walking and reportedly, his finest performance yet - may encounter a hitch as a lawsuit...