Andy Serkis's Directorial Debut Arrives This Year
Monday, July 3, 2017 at 10:00PM 
Chris here. With War for the Planet of the Apes arriving in theatres next weekend, we're already seeing the reawakened thinkpieces about an honorary Oscar for Andy Serkis that comes with what seems every motion capture performance from the actor. But now we can add another level to his multi-hyphenate talent as the risk-taker is now taking up the directing reigns with this fall's Breathe.
The true story tragic romance stars recent Oscar nominee Andrew Garfield as the polio-stricken Robin Cavendish, with The Crown's Claire Foy as his wife Diana. This is technically Serkis's second directorial effort, with his take on The Jungle Book filmed prior and now in CGI-heavy post-production. Jungle is maybe a more expected journey for the motion capture virtuoso, so Breathe makes a somewhat more intriguing choice despite it's quite familiar plot. Perhaps it's the film's spirit of innovation that calls to him, as Cavendish helped create a wheelchair equipped with a respirator.
Breathe will open the London Film Festival and open stateside on October 13. Take a look at the trailer and tell us your thoughts in the comments!
Reader Comments (8)
The Theory of Everything 2
I am standing behind Andrew Garfield in that cricket scene and have literally just been cut off in the YouTube thumbnail. It's almost insulting.
I am here for Andrew I was really disappointed he was nominated for the wrong performance this year and the genuine shafting of Silence.
I wish every beat weren't so predictable. Still, it looks like everything turns on the performances, and I trust both these actors.
It's like Serkis has made a bet with someone that he can make the schmaltziest movie ever. The trailer makes A Theory of Everything seem positively gritty.
Theory of everything also has references of other movies like the scenes of alphabet (the diving bell and the butterfly), script (away from her) and the end with retrospect (several movies). I hope they had put theses scenes as marketing and the movie would have diferent ways of tell the story apart from theory of everything.
i haven't heard an accent so posh since the days of noel coward, darling
Gena: That's EXACTLY what I suspected would happen. The producer on this is the guy's son, so it's playing up the sentiment as hard as possible. And sorry, but between Silence, Hacksaw Ridge and now this? We probably didn't need Andrew Garfield back from the franchise bog quite yet.