Ryuhei Kitamura ( 北村龍平 , Kitamura Ryūhei , May 30, 1969) is a Japanese film director, producer, and screenwriter. Kitamura relocated to Sydney , Australia at age 17 and attended a school for visual arts for two years. In 1997, Kitamura directed and produced the short film Down to Hell , which received a positive response from students, teachers, and an award which motivated Kitamura to seriously pursue a film career. He went on to independently finance and direct his feature film debut Versus (2000). The film proved to be successful within the film festival circuit and opened doors for Kitamura to direct more high-profile films such as Alive (2002), Sky High (2003), Godzilla: Final Wars (2004), The Midnight Meat Train (2008), No One Lives (2012), the live-action adaptation of Lupin the 3rd (2014), and several other Japanese and Hollywood productions.
59-599: Ryuhei Kitamura was born in Osaka Prefecture , Japan. Kitamura spent more of his adolescent years at the cinema than school. At the age of 16, he chose to become a filmmaker since he figured he "loved watching movies." The following year, Kitamura dropped out of high school, directly telling his teacher and walking out during class, and moved to Australia a week later. Kitamura chose Australia because most of his influences are Australian, such as George Miller , Russel Mulcahy , Peter Weir , and INXS . Kitamura attended
118-463: A creative consultant during scripting. In total, the writing process of Kitamura's film took two-and-a-half years. According to Kitamura, creative tensions between himself and Yamamoto were high during development; the director noted that the producer/writer "want[ed] to go in all different directions", and considered removing the comedic elements of Lupin III from the film. He also expressed that there
177-430: A crime lord in secret. Zenigata wants Lupin to 'steal' the items that they intend to sell to each other for the police so that he can arrest them; in exchange, Lupin's criminal record will be erased. Lupin begrudgingly accepts, and enlists Goemon Ishikawa XIII into the gang. Fujiko meets with Michael, who explains that Edward Lam was a member of The Works and a father figure to them both, but after helping Dawson find
236-495: A Kitamura piece and, crucially, a satisfying live-action Lupin the 3rd film”, panning the costumes, the characters of Michael Lee (and his role as the film’s source of drama and conflict), Pierre and Joseph, the unmemorable music, and the derivative heist film set pieces. Schley also stated that “it's not as if those involved couldn't figure out how to replicate the spirit of Lupin in live action form - it's more like they never even tried”. Paul Bramhall of Cityonfire.com rated
295-525: A big action movie." In November, 2013, the project was revealed to be Lupin III , a modern adaptation of the iconic manga by Monkey Punch . The film was released in Japan on August 30, 2014. Kitamura's 2017 thriller film, Downrange , was announced to premiere at Toronto International Film Festival in September 2017. The film follows a group of people on a road trip who are trapped on a country road by
354-435: A city designated by government ordinance on April 1, 2006, and was divided into seven wards. In 2000, Fusae Ota became Japan's first female governor when she replaced Knock Yokoyama , who resigned after prosecution for sexual harassment . Tōru Hashimoto , previously famous as a counselor on television, was elected in 2008 at the age of 38, becoming the youngest governor in Japan. On June 18, 2018, an earthquake struck
413-437: A geographic area of 1,905 square kilometres (736 sq mi ). Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nara Prefecture to the southeast, and Wakayama Prefecture to the south. Osaka is the capital and largest city of Osaka Prefecture, and the third-largest city in Japan, with other major cities including Sakai , Higashiōsaka , and Hirakata . Osaka Prefecture
472-559: A necklace commissioned by Mark Antony to symbolize his love for the Queen of the Nile. However, a ruby of Cleopatra's intended to complete the necklace is missing. A trio of thugs led by Michael - Royal, Saber and Maria - steal the necklace and kill Jiro and Dawson, apparently in revenge for "Edward Lam", resulting in the disbanding of The Works. Devastated by Dawson's murder, Lupin, Fujiko, Pierre and Daisuke Jigen join forces to find Michael and
531-497: A new screenplay with him and direct the film. Over "three or four months", the pair extensively studied the franchise by reading the manga and watching the anime adaptations before deciding that their film would not be directly based on any of them, and would serve as a modernized origin story for the Lupin Gang. They also decided that the adaptation would be a heist film , and considered a variety of artefacts that could serve as
590-518: A passenger and air hostess respectively on Lupin and Jigen's flight from Japan to Thailand. In 2003, Schindler’s List and Minority Report producer Gerald R. Molen , through his production company WhiteLight Entertainment, purchased the live-action film adaptation rights to the Lupin III franchise . Molen noted that the five main characters would be featured in an upcoming film, and that some creative licence would have to be taken to "make
649-543: A prequel to the popular Japanese television drama . He collaborated with director Yukihiko Tsutsumi in the Duel Project, in which the two challenged one another to produce the best dueling movie with minimal production time and budget, with Aragami being Kitamura's contribution. Also in 2003, Kitamura served as producer for the film Battlefield Baseball , the directorial debut of Versus co-writer Yūdai Yamaguchi . Kitamura directed 2004's Godzilla: Final Wars ,
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#1732793514191708-461: A school for visual arts in Sydney for two years, after he directly asked the principal to simply let him in, "he thought that I was a funny guy, so he let me in." After graduating, he returned to Japan to establish Napalm Films, his independent production studio. His featurettes Down to Hell and Heat after Dark were successful in film festivals, and he soon found his first mainstream success with
767-441: A sniper. In 2018, Kitamura directed a segment in the anthology horror film Nightmare Cinema . Kitamura is set to direct the slasher film Black Friday 3D , based on a screenplay by Joe Knetter. He is also attached to direct Marble City , a revenge film written by Tom Sjolund, as well as Gun Monkeys , from a screenplay by Lee Goldberg based on the novel by Victor Gischler . In May 2013, Kitamura confirmed that he has written
826-471: A unique MacGuffin , such as a " cursed diamond from the Smithsonian " and an "ancient Soviet tank with a giant treasure". Kitamura later hired Los Angeles-based journalist Joseph "Joey" O’Bryan – who he described as his "strongest weapon" – to co-write the screenplay with him. O’Bryan and Kitamura wrote three separate drafts, which were compiled by Yamamoto into a complete script. Monkey Punch acted as
885-507: Is a 2014 Japanese heist film directed by Ryuhei Kitamura and based on the 1967–69 manga series of the same name by Monkey Punch . The film stars an ensemble cast featuring Shun Oguri , Jerry Yan , Tetsuji Tamayama , Gō Ayano , Meisa Kuroki and Tadanobu Asano . It is the second live action film adaptation of the manga, following Lupin III: Strange Psychokinetic Strategy (1974). The film
944-440: Is an origin story that presents its characters in a modernized context, and follows the title character as he forms his thieving gang to steal a Cleopatran necklace while facing opposition from Michael Lee, his rival, and Pramuk, a crime boss . Lupin the 3rd premiered in Japan on August 30, 2014, and made its international premiere at LA EigaFest 2014. Although financially successful, critical and audience opinions of
1003-738: Is based in Osaka. There are many electrical, chemical, pharmaceutical, heavy industry, food, and housing companies in Osaka Prefecture. According to the 2005 Population Census of Japan, Osaka prefecture has a population of 8,817,166, an increase of 12,085, or 0.14%, since the Census of year 2000. As of 2022 this prefecture has about 93,000 ethnic Korean persons , the largest such population of any prefecture in Japan. Osaka City . As of 2013 most ethnic Korean children attend ordinary Japanese public schools, although some Korean schools operated by
1062-518: Is cool at all. The minute you try to make everything ‘cool,’ everything becomes cheap instead.” Maeda also criticized the film for lacking the franchise’s spirit, stating “[...] Lupin the Third has almost none of the ‘Lupin-ishness’ found in previous pieces [of the franchise]. If you give a big budget to people without any sense, you end up with an outlandish movie. This is a good example of that”. Writing for Kotaku , Richard Eisenbeis described Lupin
1121-490: Is located on the western coast of the Kii Peninsula , forming the western is open to Osaka Bay . Osaka Prefecture is the third-most-populous prefecture, but by geographic area the second-smallest; at 4,600 inhabitants per square kilometre (12,000/sq mi) it is the second-most densely populated , below only Tokyo . Osaka Prefecture is one of Japan's two " urban prefectures " using the designation fu (府) rather than
1180-554: Is the Astro-Technology SOHLA, with its artificial satellite project. Having originally started from a gathering of Higashiosaka based SMEs, Astro-Technology SOHLA has not only grown into a Kansai region-wide group but has also won support from the government, through technology and material support from Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and financial support from NEDO. The Osaka Securities Exchange , specializing in derivatives such as Nikkei 225 Futures,
1239-537: The Chongryon and classes for ethnic Koreans had opened in the prefecture. During the Japanese rule of Korea many ethnic Koreans came to the Osaka area to look for work. Many people from Jeju came to the Osaka area after a 1922 ferry line between Osaka and Jeju opened. During World War II Japanese authorities forced additional ethnic Koreans to move to the Osaka area. Public elementary and junior high schools in
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#17327935141911298-538: The cult film Versus . The film launched the career of stars Tak Sakaguchi and Hideo Sakaki , and brought Kitamura international recognition when it was released on DVD outside Japan in 2004. In 2002, Kitamura directed the short film The Messenger: Requiem for the Dead as part of the Jam Films project, as well as Alive . In 2003, he directed a feature film adaptation of the manga Azumi , and Sky High ,
1357-591: The 28th installment in the renowned kaiju franchise. The film was the first of Kitamura's projects to hold its premiere in Hollywood. In 2006, Kitmura directed LoveDeath , before relocating to Los Angeles, California . In 2003, he directed the in-game cutscenes for Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes , a remake of the iconic Metal Gear Solid for the GameCube . Unlike previous titles in the series, The Twin Snakes
1416-516: The 33 cities include two designated major cities , seven core cities and two (transitional) special case cities (after legal abolition in 2015, to be replaced with the core city system in the 2020s). After the modern reactivation of districts in 1878/79, Osaka, including Sakai which was only merged into Osaka in 1881, consisted of 5 urban districts (-ku) and 27 rural districts (-gun) , excluding 15 districts in Yamato Province which
1475-466: The 3rd as “an enjoyable time to be had to the whole family”, while others viewed it as part of a “terrible live-action adaptation trend that has been going on through the years”. Film critic Yuichi Maeda rated the film 3 out of 100 in an online review, writing “The exhibitionism of the movie, ‘Isn’t this action cool?’, ‘Isn’t this pose cool?’, ‘This line’, ‘This costume’, ‘This (etc)’ all feels extremely forced. And more importantly, not one of these things
1534-411: The 3rd as “both a Terrible Adaptation and a Horrible Film”, criticizing the script’s numerous plot holes (namely the absurdity behind the buy/sell auction between Michael and Pramuk, in which a live studio audience becomes a “room full of witnesses for illegal dealings”), Kitamura’s “nauseating” direction of the action scenes, and the impractical costumes worn by Lupin, Saber and Maria. He also described
1593-514: The Crimson Heart and the accompanying ruby in Egypt , Dawson betrayed and killed him, and Pramuk stole the ruby. Michael intends to buy the ruby to complete the necklace. Lupin, who has been spying on the pair, tells Michael that no matter who wins the auction, he will steal the necklace. At the auction, Michael and Pramuk prepare to sell each other the necklace and the ruby respectively. During
1652-416: The Crimson Heart as evidence. Zenigata then discovers too late that the necklace and ruby given to him by Lupin were fakes. Later, Lupin unsuccessfully tries to get Fujiko to wear the Crimson Heart, and Zenigata returns to pursue them. Fujiko takes the necklace and escapes while Lupin and Jigen escape together in their Fiat 500 . Monkey Punch and Yu Yamada (Shun Oguri's wife) make cameo appearances as
1711-472: The Kinki region. The per capita income was ¥3.0 million, seventh in the nation. Commercial sales the same year was ¥60.1 trillion. Overshadowed by such globally renowned electronics giants as Panasonic and Sharp , the other side of Osaka's economy can be characterized by its Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) activities. The number of SMEs based in Osaka in 2006 was 330,737, accounting for 99.6% of
1770-539: The action scenes as “the Hallmark Channel versions of the back seat car fight from The Raid 2 , the Donnie Yen vs. Wu Jing fight from Sha Po Lang , and the car chase from The Matrix Reloaded ”, lamenting that Japan’s need for its mainstream films to be shown on television as holiday specials frequently results in derivative and diluted productions. Ryuhei Kitamura has stated in 2014 that
1829-513: The cast were released on April 9. The first teaser for the film was released online on April 25, 2014, while the full trailer was uploaded on June 25. The full trailer features the theme song, "Trick Attack -Theme of Lupin the Third", which was written and performed by Tomoyasu Hotei . Upon release, the film reached second place at the Japanese box office. It then made its International release at LA EigaFest 2014 on September 15, 2015. It
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1888-570: The construction of Kansai International Airport , Osaka was the smallest prefecture in Japan. The artificial island on which the airport was built added enough area to make it slightly larger than Kagawa Prefecture . As of 1 April 2012, 11% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks , namely Kongō-Ikoma-Kisen and Meiji no Mori Minō Quasi-National Parks and Hokusetsu and Hannan-Misaki Prefectural Natural Parks. Since 2005, Osaka consists of 43 municipalities : 33 cities , nine towns and one village . As of 2021,
1947-562: The film Swallowtail Butterfly is "the best Japanese movie ever made." He has stated that his "dream project" would be to direct an installment in the Mad Max film franchise. Osaka Prefecture Osaka Prefecture ( 大阪府 , Ōsaka-fu , pronounced [oːsaka ɸɯ] ) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu . Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 (as of 1 April 2022 ) and has
2006-425: The film 3/10, and described it as “a poorly executed retread of the 2012 Korean film The Thieves ", noting that Kitamura’s film “steals” plot elements and character motivations from Choi Dong-hoon 's film more than it does from Monkey Punch's manga. Bramhall criticized the inclusion of Goemon, “for no other reason than he’s obviously also from the manga”, the convoluted and exposition -heavy storyline, and described
2065-592: The film were mixed to negative, with criticism frequently focusing on the film's derivative and convoluted narrative. Other areas of the production, such as the cast's delivery of the screenplay's largely English dialogue , were also frequently targeted for criticism. Lupin the 3rd , grandson of the legendary gentleman thief Arsène Lupin , is a member of the international thieves' guild "The Works", which specializes in stealing valuable objects from wealthy owners. Lupin beats his fellow Works members Fujiko Mine (his would-be lover), Pierre (a computer genius) and Jiro to
2124-468: The film’s soundtrack as “ porno music” and disliked the incorporation of Pierre and Joseph as members of Lupin’s gang. Eisenbeis concluded his review by describing Lupin the 3rd as “nothing but a schlock action movie; and while 20 years ago it might have been acceptable among the horde of similar films, that boat has long since set sail”. Matt Schley of Otaku USA called the film “a cookie-cutter , movie-by-committee 2+ hour yawner that fails as both as
2183-621: The film’s supporting characters, screenplay, cinematography and editing (especially in the action scenes), costume design and soundtrack. The film was also criticized for having most of its dialogue performed in English (resulting in poor delivery and intonation of numerous lines by its Asian cast members), and for overall squandering its potential as an adaptation of Monkey Punch 's manga. Oguri, Tamayama, Ayano, Kuroki and Asano were, however, frequently seen as well-cast in their roles. Opinions from Japanese audiences were mixed, with some viewing Lupin
2242-491: The necklace. Within a year, Lupin and Jigen have established themselves as accomplished thieves, but Jigen grows weary of following Fujiko's false leads. While meeting with her, Lupin is turned in to the police in Thailand . He then meets Interpol Inspector Koichi Zenigata , who informs him that Michael, using the alias Georgio Zhang, is arranging a major auction with Momrachiao Pramuk, the chairman of Navarone Security and
2301-624: The northern region of the prefecture. It killed 4 people and caused minor damage across Greater Osaka . In 2010, the Osaka Restoration Association was created with backing by Governor Tōru Hashimoto, with hopes of reforming Osaka Prefecture into the Osaka Metropolis and merging with the City of Osaka. In the 2011 local elections, the association was able to win the majority of the prefectural seats and Hashimoto
2360-506: The number of municipalities in Osaka had already dropped to 149 by 1953. The Great Shōwa mergers of the 1950s reduced the total to 47 by 1961, including 26 cities by then. The current total of 43 was reached during the Great Heisei mergers in 2005. The gross prefecture product of Osaka for the fiscal year 2004 was ¥38.7 trillion, second after Tokyo with an increase of 0.9% from the previous year. This represented approximately 48% of
2419-579: The prefecture are operated by the municipalities. Public high schools are operated by the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education . Osaka Prefecture has sister region relationships with: The sports teams listed below are based in Osaka. The symbol of Osaka Prefecture, called the sennari byōtan or "thousand gourds", was originally the crest of Toyotomi Hideyoshi , the feudal lord of Osaka Castle . Lupin III (film) Lupin III ( Japanese : ルパン三世 , Hepburn : Rupan Sansei )
Ryuhei Kitamura - Misplaced Pages Continue
2478-475: The process, while Lupin and Michael, aided by Pierre and Joseph (a hacker ), along with prior research made by Goemon, penetrate the security defenses protecting the Crimson Heart. Pramuk traps the pair in the vault, intending to suffocate them. Michael places Lupin in the vault's safe and blows the vault door up, killing himself but saving Lupin. Lupin and the others are handed over by Pramuk to Zenigata and Narong, but they instead arrest Pramuk for his crimes, using
2537-455: The production companies on the pretext that they were using the funds to make films that were never produced, including Lupin III . Lupin's basically a " superman ". He's wiser than everyone and he’s always ten steps ahead. So [Mataichirō Yamamoto] thought — and this part I agree with — it's extremely hard to make drama around [Lupin] because there’s not much struggle. He's always right and he always wins. But we still need somebody who can drive
2596-404: The same name. The film (starring Bradley Cooper , Vinnie Jones , and Brooke Shields ) was distributed by Lionsgate , and released directly to the secondary market on August 1, 2008. Despite receiving positive reviews from critics, the film was a box office failure. Kitamura's next directorial venture did not come until 2012 with No One Lives , starring Luke Evans and Adelaide Clemens . It
2655-499: The script for Versus 2 , and that Tak Sakaguchi would likely reprise his role from the original film. In September 2015, it was announced that Kitamura will direct the supernatural thriller Vessels for Ubiquity Studios, set to be filmed in early 2016. Kitamura speaks English fluently. His favorite Godzilla film is Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974), and his favourite kaiju is King Caesar . He has expressed admiration for fellow Japanese director Shunji Iwai , asserting that
2714-623: The standard ken for prefectures, along with Kyoto Prefecture. Osaka Prefecture forms the center of the Keihanshin metropolitan area, the second-most-populated urban region in Japan after the Greater Tokyo area and one of the world's most productive regions by GDP . Prior to the Meiji Restoration, the modern-day area of Osaka Prefecture was split between Kawachi , Izumi , and Settsu provinces. Osaka Prefecture
2773-610: The story work". Monkey Punch , the creator of the original manga , expressed no desire in being involved in the production of the film. A year later, David Ranes and Chet Thomas were named as the film’s screenwriters, and the release date was set as being late spring 2006. This release date was later pushed back to 2009, by which point the film had still not formally entered production. In late 2009, ex-astronaut Buzz Aldrin , along with his then-wife Lois Cannon and daughter Lisa Cannon, sued WhiteLight and Guardian Pictures for breach of contract and fraud , as he had invested $ 200,000 into
2832-432: The story. That's why we came up with the idea of this enemy character Michael Lee but then the problem was we're not making Michael Lee , we're making Lupin the Third . It's just a matter of balance. —Kitamura on the creation of Michael Lee In 2011, Japanese producer Mataichirō Yamamoto acquired the adaptation rights, and hired Ryuhei Kitamura , with whom he had previously collaborated with on Azumi , to co-write
2891-537: The theft of an ancient Olympic medal in Singapore , but is forced to surrender it to his rival, Michael Lee, when he threatens to kill him and Fujiko. At a meeting of The Works, Fujiko is hailed as the culprit behind the theft (thanks to her machinations), and Thomas Dawson, the leader of the organization and Lupin's mentor, shows them the most valuable item in The Works' possession: the Crimson Heart of Cleopatra ,
2950-615: The theft to Zenigata's frustration. Disheartened, Michael offers to join Lupin's gang to steal back the Crimson Heart and ruby from the Ark, Pramuk's stronghold, and is accepted. Lupin and Michael enter the Ark disguised as Zenigata and Commander Narong of the Thai Army , and upload a virus into the Ark's networks in the guise of a calling card from Lupin. Jigen, Goemon and Fujiko attack the Ark's main defenses, defeating Royal, Saber and Maria in
3009-499: The total number of businesses in the prefecture. While this proportion is similar to other prefectures (the average nationwide was 99.7%), the manufactured output of the SMEs amounted to 65.4% of the total within the prefecture, a rate significantly higher than Tokyo's 55.5%, or Kanagawa 's 38.4%. One model from Osaka of serving the public interest and restimulating the regional economy, combined with industry-education cooperation efforts,
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#17327935141913068-500: The transaction, Pramuk tells Michael that he was a former member of The Works, and killed Lam while trying to kill Dawson. Michael attempts to kill himself and Pramuk before the latter can buy the necklace, but Pramuk reveals that Royal, who (along with Saber and Maria) now works for him, disarmed the explosives. Pramuk buys the ruby for $ 200 million, and Michael destroys his reward cheque in defeat. Lupin, having listened to Michael and Pramuk's exchange via lip reading technology, calls off
3127-462: Was created on June 21, 1868, at the very beginning of the Meiji era . During the instigation of Fuhanken Sanchisei in 1868, the prefecture received its suffix fu , designating it as a prefecture. On September 1, 1956, the city of Osaka was promoted to a city designated by government ordinance and thereby divided into 24 wards . Sakai became the second city in the prefecture to be promoted to
3186-568: Was developed by Silicon Knights and produced by Konami . The game featured similar mechanics to Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty due to having been made on the same engine. Kitamura's direction of the cutscenes was viewed as controversial, criticism leveled at its Matrix -like action tone and unrealistic stunts performed by the characters. Regardless, it went on to receive positive reviews from video game review sites. In 2008, Kitamura made his American filmmaking debut with Midnight Meat Train based on Clive Barker 's short horror story of
3245-634: Was difficulty in having Lupin being clearly defined as the film’s protagonist instead of Michael Lee, a character who was created for the film to "drive the story". Kitamura did, however, express that Yamamoto gave him full creative freedom when filming began. Filming began on October 3, 2013, and included scenes shot in Japan , Hong Kong , Singapore , and the Philippines , before moving to Thailand for two months. Principal photography concluded on December 26, 2013. The film's first promotional images of
3304-399: Was elected as mayor of Osaka. A referendum on the issue was held in 2015 and was defeated with 50.38% of voters opposed to the plan. A second referendum in 2020 was rejected by 50.6% of voters. Osaka Prefecture neighbors the prefectures of Hyōgo and Kyoto in the north, Nara in the east and Wakayama in the south. The Yodo and Yamato Rivers flow through the prefecture. Prior to
3363-406: Was later separated from Osaka as Nara Prefecture in 1887. When the prefectures were subdivided into modern municipalities in 1889, the five urban districts were turned into two district-independent cities: Osaka City and Sakai City, and Osaka's [rural] districts were subdivided into 12 towns and 310 villages. After Osaka City had absorbed many surrounding municipalities in the interwar/Taishō period,
3422-493: Was released in Japan on DVD and Blu-ray on February 18, 2015 with a collector's edition. Madman Entertainment released their Blu-ray and DVD of the film in Australia on 24 June 2015 under their Asian film moniker, Eastern Eye. Critical reception of Lupin the 3rd was generally negative among Japanese and Western film critics, especially following the film’s showing at LA EigaFest. Areas frequently targeted for criticism were
3481-474: Was shown as part of the Midnight Madness portion of the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival , and received a limited theatrical release on May 10, 2013. While promoting No One Lives , Kitamura announced that he was working on his "comeback" film in Japan, stating in an interview, "It’s a completely different role than what I’ve done before. It’s also not a bloody movie, not a horror movie. It’s
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