To celebrate the release of Drive, starring Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan, finally hitting UK cinema screens today, WhatCulture.com thought it would be the perfect time to run down the 10 Greatest Cinematic Car Chases!
#9. Unknown (2011)
This Hitchcockian style thriller is an absorbing watch that features a dramatic and suspenseful chase sequence in the middle of the narrative. Liam Neeson and Diane Kruger have been thrown together through an earlier car crash and here they escape Kruger’s flat with an assassin in hot pursuit. With Neeson behind the wheel of the car – a man who’s identity is being denied by his own wife – the scene is relatively realistic, as he attempts to dodge the hired killer and his VW SUV in a Mercedes taxi. As the assassin dodges and weaves through traffic, Neeson is forced to drive like he’s never driven before, as his everyman character has to take on heroic and super-skilled driving abilities.
I’ve added screen captures from the 2011 thriller, Unknown which stars Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger and January Jones. Unknown is currently available on DVD and Blu-ray, so make sure you pick yourself up a copy. Head over to the gallery for the latest additions!
Gallery Links:
- Home > Film Productions > Unknown (2011) > Screen Captures
Diane Kruger reckons starring in Inglourious Basterds made Hollywood realise she is a tough girl. The German born ex-model said her role in the Quentin Tarantino World War II film – where she plays a straight talking German actress secretly working with the Allies – has helped her avoid being typecast as a romantic interest for male leads.
Speaking about her latest role as a Bosnian taxi driver in action film Unknown, she said:
“I feel like before ‘Inglourious Basterds’, in America, they would’ve probably offered me the part played by January Jones in the film, because that’s a more obvious part for me to play. So I loved it that they offered me this. It’s cool to think they said, ‘Illegal Bosnian immigrant taxi driver – let’s get Diane Kruger!’ I’m not sure that would’ve been the obvious thing before. I think I was perceived as such a European, dainty, pretty actress.”
Diane also revealed her character – who helps co-star Liam Neeson’s character when he wakes up after an accident to realize no-one recognizes him and his identity has been stolen – has had a traumatic past.
She added to Britain’s Independent newspaper: “Obviously, this is not the kind of movie that is going to go into any deep detail. But we learn that she’s watched her entire family be assassinated. And I just thought it was interesting in a movie like this – a genre film – to have a little bit of a social background.”
When German born actress Diane Kruger discovered that her latest film, Unknown, was going to be shot entirely in her native county, there was no hesitation on her part about getting involved. In the film, Liam Neeson plays a man who awakens from a coma, only to discover that someone has stolen his identity and that no one, not even his wife, believes him. With the help of a young woman (Kruger), he sets out to prove who he is.
www.Tribute.ca spoke with Diane in Los Angeles about working on the action packed film, being an honorary Canadian, and how much she enjoyed working with Liam Neeson.
The Liam Neeson action-thriller Unknown overtook the Alex Pettyfer sci-fi adventure I Am Number Four at the Friday box office, grossing $6.7 million from 3,043 theaters for Warner Bros. and Joel Silver’s Dark Castle.
I Am Number Four, from DreamWorks and Touchstone, grossed an estimated $6.2 million from 3,154 theaters. Pic is the first DreamWorks title to be distributed by Touchstone under Disney’s output deal with Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider’s company.
Box office observers aren’t ready to call the weekend race between Unknown and Number Four, since bad weather on the West Coast affected Friday’s grosses, although some are now betting on Unknown, which should open in the mid $20 millions over the four day President’s Day weekend.
Heading into the holiday, tracking showed Number Four in the lead. Unknown’s strong showing is similar to Neeson’s Taken, which was a sleeper box office hit.
Elsewhere at the box office on Friday, Sony’s Adam Sandler-Jennifer Aniston romantic comedy Just Go With It came in No. 3, falling only 44% from the previous Friday to an estimated $5.3 million for a cume of $47.9 million.
Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son, from 20th Century Fox and New Regency, opened at No. 4, grossing an estimated $4.8 million from 2,821 theaters.
Disney’s Gnomeo & Juliet beat Paramount’s Justin Bieber: Never Say Never to come in No. 5, grossing an estimated $4.3 million from 3,014 theaters for a cume of $35.3 million.
Never Say Never had a big fall in its second week, as expected. The movie fell 69% to an estimated $3.8 million from 3,118 theaters for a cume of $38.7 million.
The Weinstein Co.’s The King’s Speech will jump the $100 million mark at the domestic box office this weekend. The awards contender grossed an estimated $1.5 million on Friday for a cume of $98.2 million. (Source)
Diane continues her promotion of Unknown in Berlin, Germany. Diane attended the 61th Berlin Film Festival for the “Unknown” photocall and premiere. Just a reminder, “Unknown” is now in theatres! Head over to the gallery for the latest additions.
Just a quick reminder to all the Diane Kruger, January Jones and Liam Neeson fans out there: Unknown is now in theatres! Make sure you check your local listings and go see the movie!
Diane is back in Los Angeles promoting her upcoming film Unknown. Diane was on hand at the movie press conference with co-stars Liam Neeson and January Jones. Head over to the gallery for the latest additions.
Three TV spots have been released for the upcoming movie, Unknown staring Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Bruno Ganz, Frank Langella, and Aidan Quinn. The movie is due out in theaters February 18, 2011.
New promotional production stills from the upcoming film, Unknown have been released! “Unknown” is released in theatres February 18th and also stars Liam Neeson and January Jones. Head over to the gallery for the latest additions.
Gallery Links:
- Home > Film Productions > Unknown (2011) > Production Stills
"The reason I stopped modeling was because I was not pleased with trying to portray something that is impossible to reach. Even when I do photo shoots now for films, I am just not interested in trying to look my best all the time anymore. That pursuit of an impossible perfection seems ridiculous to me now. I would rather show my vulnerabilities or my doubts than try to be something that no one is." - Diane Kruger
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