Beyond the Sea (2004) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error A swooning study of "Mack the Knife" singer Bobby Darin (Spacey) specifically, and his relationship with his wife Sandra Dee (Bosworth).

Director: From $5.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON TV Lady Gaga Calls Tony Bennett 'Family' During Star-Studded 90th Birthday Concert: 'You Really Changed My Life' 20 December 2016 9:36 PM, -08:00 | Entertainment Tonight Johnny Depp Reveals What Type of Sandwich He Would Be During Hilarious Fan Q&A (Hint: It's Not Fancy) 30 March 2016 1:45 PM, -08:00 | PEOPLE.com a list of 27 titles created 26 Jun 2011 a list of 45 titles created 15 Aug 2011 a list of 28 titles created 25 Mar 2012 a list of 40 titles created 02 Jul 2014 a list of 43 titles created 2 months ago Title: Beyond the Sea (2004) 6.7/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Another 5 nominations. See more awards » Videos An emotionally-beaten man with his young daughter moves to his ancestral home in Newfoundland to reclaim his life. Director: Lasse Hallström A hot shot Washington DC lobbyist and his protégé go down hard as their schemes to peddle influence lead to corruption and murder. Director: George Hickenlooper Unable to cope with a recent personal tragedy, LA's top celebrity shrink turns into a pothead with no concern for his appearance and a creeping sense of his inability to help his patients. Director: Jonas Pate A troubled young man, Li faces pressure at work and problems at home with his moody wife. Chuck, rescues Li from the brink of despair and becomes an unlikely mentor. But who is Chuck really? Director: Dayyan Eng A young, naive Hollywood studio assistant finally turns the tables on his incredibly abusive producer boss. Director: George Huang Brilliant, flamboyant master criminal Michael Lynch is more interested in his image and his posterity than the actual profit from his ill-gotten gains.

Director: Thaddeus O'Sullivan After 8 years in prison, inventor Robert Axle struggles to win over his estranged family and catch up on current technology as he works to once again become the king of the infomercial. Director: Trent Cooper Two veteran salesmen dissect a sales pitch to a particular client, through their young protégé. Director: John Swanbeck A young boy attempts to make the world a better place after his teacher gives him that chance. Director: Mimi Leder Edit Storyline Consummate entertainer Bobby Darin (1936-1973) is making a movie about his life. He's volatile, driven by the love of performing, ambition, perfectionism, and belief that he's living on borrowed time. He begins in the Bronx: a fatherless lad learning music and dance from his mom. His career starts slowly, then "Splish Splash" puts him at the top of the charts and on "Bandstand." He wants to be an entertainer, not a pop star, so he aims for the Copacabana; then it's on to the movies, where he meets and marries Sandra Dee.

After, it's balancing career, health, marriage and family life, balances he doesn't always keep. Throughout, conversations with his boyhood self give him perspective. Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com> BOBBY DARIN . . . in the era of cool he was the soundtrack. See more » Genres: Rated PG-13 for some strong language and a scene of sensuality | See all certifications » Parents Guide: 29 December 2004 (USA) See more » Also Known As: Bobby Darin Biopic See more » Filming Locations: £179,558 (UK) (26 November 2004) Gross: Did You Know? Trivia As research for his role of pop crooner Bobby Darin , Kevin Spacey attended several of Michael Bublé 's performances.

See more » Goofs In the first scene when Bobby sings 'Mack the Knife' he tosses in an ad-lib by throwing a karate kick and shouting 'ah-so, Madame Myook.' This is based on an actual ad-lib which can be heard on a 10 November 1963 recording of 'Mack the Knife' at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas. However, the real Bobby Darin says 'Madame NHU' and not 'Madame Myook.' Madame Nhu was considered the first lady of South Vietnam from 1955-1963. And, she was well known to the American public in the early 1960s because of her notorious political comments, staunch conservatism, and high sense of fashion. See more » Quotes Steve Blauner : Listen you prick, there are four guys around here who can't be fired. And you're not one of them. David Gershenson : He may be an asshole... See more » Crazy Credits During the end credits we see Kevin Spacey performing another song. In the background there are lines moving to the music.

See more » Connections (United States) – See all my reviews For those who cannot "suspend disbelief" in order to enjoy a musical, this movie, and my review, are not for you. For the rest of us, "Beyond the Sea" is a delight. I read critics who said Kevin Spacey is too old to pull off a 20-something Bobby Darin. Wrong! Kevin Spacey's acting captures the essence of BD; after the first ten minutes of the movie it seemed that Kevin Spacey WAS Bobby Darin irrespective of age. I also read critics who said Spacey's dancing was stiff and awkward. Wrong! The production numbers were fabulous. His singing, acting, dancing were awesome, and it's a performance that should not be short-changed in this year's awards' season (although I fear it might be overlooked). Kate Blodgett, too, did a great job of portraying Sandra Dee (but I wish they had kept her hairstyles more true to Sandra Dee of the 1960's). My only disappointment is that so many important details about Bobby Darin's life were quickly glossed over or totally omitted.

For example, there was no mention of his early years in the Pocono's; his unfulfilled romance with Connie Francis; his friendship with Dick Clark; his songwriting collaboration with Don Kirshner; and his subsequent marriage after divorcing Sandra Dee. Nevertheless, I loved "Beyond the Sea" and plan to see it again this week. I'm afraid it won't still be in the theaters next week. It almost appears as though some of Hollywood and the newsprint critics have dissed it with almost a jealousy toward Kevin Spacey's Herculean efforts to bring this to the screen, not to mention his compelling performance. I don't know if it will attract a younger viewing audience; but, if you're a Baby Boomer, this is a must-see. 71 of 102 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes AboutFilm.com - Beyond the Sea (2004) Beyond the Sea USA/Germany/UK, 2004. Rated PG-13. 114 minutes.

Cast: Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Bob Hoskins, John Goodman, Caroline Aaron, Brenda Blethyn, William Ullrich, Greta Schacchi, Peter Cincotti, Michael Byrne, Matt Rippy, Gary Whelan Writer: Lewis Colick Music: Christipher Slaski (incidental score) Cinematography: Eduardo Serra Producers: Jan Fantl, Arthur E. Friedman, Kevin Spacey Director: Kevin Spacey Grade: C Review by Carlo Cavagna hat has happened to Kevin Spacey? Once known for edgy material like The Usual Suspects, Swimming with Sharks, and LA Confidential , the two-time Oscar winner has gone wildly astray since American Beauty . Consider his four major films since playing Lester Burnham: Pay It Forward, K-PAX , The Shipping News, The Life of David Galeï¿½each performance more sanctimonious, self-satisfied, and (let's face it) boring than the last. Now Spacey takes a huge risk with Beyond the Sea, a biopic about crooner Bobby Darin, who enjoyed a brief reign as a major pop star in the late Fifties and early Sixties. Spacey stars. He directs. He sings.

He dances. Has Spacey moved away from cheap sentimentality and back to more audacious material? No. Spacey's smirking, preening interpretation of Darin in a vanilla film that plays like an extended production number is every bit as smug as his last several performances. By all accounts, Darin was not a modest man, but that doesn't make Spacey's mugging for the camera any more tolerable. Why do we need a Darin biopic anyway? Though an extremely talented singer, Darin is hardly an essential figure in modern music. Darin's cover of ï¿½Mack the Knifeï¿½ from Threepenny Opera spent nine weeks at Number One on the Billboard Pop Singles chart in 1959. He charted a total of thirty-six singles between 1958 and 1967, and one more in 1969. He won two Grammies and was even nominated for an Oscar. He married Hollywood starlet Sandra Dee. Darin did not change the course of music history, though, nor is he an enduring icon. He could be described (perhaps unfairly) as Frank Sinatra Lite. Maybe there was something particularly unusual about Darin's story.

Let's see: he came from a low-income Italian American family, but so did other great singers. He rose to prominence thanks to a silly rock song he wrote himself called ï¿½Splish-Splash,ï¿½ but immediately turned his back on teen idolatry to record classic pop standards. Later on he experimented with folk music and spent the last couple years of his life recording for Motown. That's a bit odd, but is it enough for a movie? There's something else: Darin was born with a rheumatic heart, and though he died young, he still survived twenty years longer than expected. Okay, so we have a star who came from nothing, lived on borrowed time, and made unusual career choices. Kevin Spacey sings showtunes and standards in Beyond the Sea. Does Spacey explore these choices, though? Not really. Mostly he just chronicles the principal events of Darin's life, with a story arc that resembles your average VH1 Behind the Music special. The screenplay glosses over the most interesting bits. How could such a sick, economically disadvantaged boy become an overnight sensation? In the movie, it just seems to happen. What about his relationship with Sandra Dee?

In the movie, it just seems to happen, and the screenplay doesn't even tell you that they divorced in 1967. Most importantly, why was everyone around Darin so devoted to him? He doesn't seem like a pleasant guy. We don't learn the answers to these questions. What we learn is, ï¿½Hey, Spacey can sing!ï¿½ Yes, Spacey is a heck of a singer, and proves it time and again as he runs though Darin's greatest hits. His co-star Kate Bosworth looks surprisingly like Sandra Dee (no Blue Crush surfer chick in evidence), and tries to suggest with her performance that Dee was little more than a child taken in by Darin's games. The film also has a decent sense of humorï¿½the recurring toupee joke, a funny Rock Hudson reference. Finally, the idea that Darin can get away with singing protest songs as long as he's wearing a tux because ï¿½people hear what they seeï¿½ is an interesting observation on human psychology. Less interesting is the irritating post-modern narrative device framing the story.

Spacey opens with Darin heading through the Copacabana club with his entourage (a la Goodfellas ) and emerging on stage. He launches into his big number. Then a kid (ineptly played by William Ullrich) appears. Darin spots him, and interrupts his act. Look, it's not really a stageï¿½it's a movie set! ï¿½That's the kid playing him as a kid!ï¿½ shouts Darin's brother-in-law Charlie (Bob Hoskins, struggling as usual with his American accent). See, Darin is making a movie about himself, and he's searching for the truth. ï¿½You want some truth? I'll give you some truth!ï¿½ exclaims the kid, and takes Darin to the street where he grew up. What is this, A Christmas Carol? To make matters worse, it's the same type of framework used more effectively in this year's other major musician biopic, De-Lovely. Why the film-within-a-film artifice? It does allow screenwriter Lewis Colick to reinforce his weak screenplay with explicative narrative, but that's not it.

The real reason becomes screamingly obvious when a reporter demands (referring to Darin), ï¿½Isn't the real truth he's too old to play this part!?ï¿½ Charlie responds with, ï¿½That's just crap! How can you be too old to play yourself!ï¿½ There you have it: an overt, conspicuously self-conscious attempt to head off criticism that Spacey shouldn't play a guy who became a star at twenty-two and was dead by thirty-seven. We're supposed to accept Spacey because we're watching the older Darin playing himself. Riiiight. No amount of post-modern contortion can get around the fact that the forty-five year old Spacey has paired himself onscreen with twenty-one year old Bosworth. There was less of an age difference between Spacey and his American Beauty co-star Mena Suvari. In American Splendor , the postmodern behind-the-scenes narrative device (which takes you inside the film's production as you watch it) successfully reflected something essential about its cynical, disgruntled protagonist. But Darin isn't disgruntled or cynical. He's old school. He abandons rock in favor of standards because he wants to prove he can sing.

The ungainly structure is inappropriate to the character. No story yearns to be told in Beyond the Sea, so we can only assume that Spacey (born in 1959) made this his pet project because he is a big fan. It's kind of odd to think of a child of the Sixties raptly listening to Darin singing adult-oriented pop and not the Beatles, but I guess some kids will do that. Regardless, the film fails to pay tribute to the most important thingï¿½Darin's voice. Because Spacey sings everything (ostensibly for a more natural effect on screen), Darin's artistry is filtered through Spacey's interpretation, and thus lost. The film winds up being more a celebration of Spacey than Darin. Now we hear that Spacey plans to take a big band on tour to promote the film. Is he promoting the film, or is he promoting himself? Review © December 2004 by AboutFilm.Com and the author. Images ï¿½ 2004 Lions Gate Films. All Rights Reserved.

Beyond the Sea (2004): Disappointing Biopic of Bobby Darin Starring Kevin Spacey | Emanuel Levy Beyond the Sea (2004): Disappointing Biopic of Bobby Darin Starring Kevin Spacey December 18, 2004 by EmanuelLevy Leave a Comment A vanity project, Beyond the Sea is more about Kevin Spacey, the producer, director, writer, star, and even singer, than about its nominal subject, the late singer-actor Bobby Darin. This is a chutzpah project, an ego-trip that made Spacey so high that he has even taken to live performances of Darin’s music. Structurally, this biopicture is a train wreck of massive proportions, a film that throws into its mix randomly chosen events from Darin’s life. The end result is a series of arbitrary vignettes tied together by an extremely loose narrative. For a number of reasons, it’s debatable whether Darin deserves a comprehensive, full-length biopicture. First and foremost, Darin’s life was short–he died of heart attack in 1973 at the age of 37.

Second, as projected onscreen, Darin’s life feels like a standard rags-to-riches sage, yet another version of a poor boy who achieves fame and success at a young age only to lose both quickly (even before his untimely death). One of the ground rules of the biographical genre, whether accurate and faithful to the actual life, is that it should illuminate its subject’s life and art. But, alas, Beyond the Sea doesn’t tell you anything you did know about Darin from other sources. Nor does it offer any fresh insights about already-known facts. The big mystery is why did Darin and Sandra Dee’s son, Dodd, give his support and approval to a project that presents both of his parents in a negative light. Darin comes across as a mildly talented but arrogant and self-aggrandizing artist, and it really trivializes and diminishes Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth) as an actress and woman. Actors who turn to film direction tend to favor performance over story, logic, coherence, and other important properties. Just look at the movie made by Mel Gibson, Tim Robbins, John Turturro, and Sean Penn.

Spacey follows this pattern, and because he’s the writer-star, he favors himself over any other element in the film, or the real story upon which it is based. As much as I disliked De-Lovely, the biopicture about Cole Porter that’s also shallow and disjointed, Beyond the Sea is inferior to it in every respect. At least Irwin Winkler found an original way to present the music; he also coaxed an excellent performance from Kevin Kline as Porter. Unfortunately, in the first part of the movie, Spacey looks too old to play Darin the young man. And it doesn’t help that in the course of the film, Spacey hardly ages at all. So much for credibility. The film has a fake, theatrical look. Though many acts are set in a nightclub, Beyond the Sea lacks the stylized theatricality of a movie musical like Cabaret. Inexcusably, the movie was shot in Berlin’s Babelsberg Studios, which means it lacks verisimilitude and authenticity. Why not take advantage of the real locations: New York’s Bronx, where the story begins, and Los Angeles, where most of it is set.

Spacey has surrounded himself with top-notch craftsmen: cinematographer Eduardo Serra (who shot last year’s The Girl With a Pearl Earring), production designer Andrew Laws, and costume designer Ruth Myers. Since all of them have done excellent work in the past for other directors, my conclusion is that they were misguided by Spacey, the creator of this train wreck. Gimmicky, Beyond the Sea unfolds as a film-within-film, with Darin making a movie about him. In the first scene, Darin is at the Cocoanut Grove, celebrating his tenth anniversary in showbiz. He interrupts his performance to tell the audience (in the club and the movie house as well) that he’s making a movie about himself. Cut to the young Darin, who’s watching the older Darin from behind the curtain. The action then switches to Bronx, New York, and Bobby’s childhood. The young Bobby lives with his mom, Polly (an over-the-top Brenda Blethyn), his much older sister Nina (Woody Allen’s regular Caroline Aaron), and brother-in-law Charlie (Brit Bob Hoskins). If this version is to be believed, Bobby nearly died as an adolescent, when he suffered from rheumatic fever.

Miraculously, he survives. Soon, he sets his goal high, wishing to become the next Sinatra, if not bigger. With the patience and support of his friend and manager Steve Blauner (John Goodman) and musical director Dick Behrke (Peter Cincotti), Darin overcomes obstacles and a few flops, before making it big, first as a popular teen with the tune Splish, Splash and other bubblegum numbers, like Queen of the Hop. However, he really hits the jackpot when he begins to perform songs like the jazz-influenced Mack the Knife, his smash hit, which became his signature piece, and Somewhere Beyond the Sea. The film’s dialogue is banal. For example, upset by her daughter’s engagement to Darin, Dee’s mother, Mary (a miscast Greta Scacchi), a stage mom a la Gypsy, tells Dee, You should have concentrated more on Rock Hudson. Darin, Dee, Hudson and Gina Lollobrigida appeared together in the popular 1961 romantic comedy, Come September.

Sandra Dee, a bigger star than Darin in the late 1950s and early 1960s, as a result of such movies as Imitation of Life, Gidget, and A Summer’s Place, comes across as an insecure, masochistic woman. She repeatedly tells Darin that she’s aware of their intellectual incompatibility, that she lacks his intelligence, sophistication, and style. The film’s worst, most clichd scene depicts Darin’s losing the Supporting Actor Oscar, for Captain Newman, M.D. (1963), a seriocomic WWII melodrama in which played a shell-shocked soldier treated by army psychiatrist Gregory Peck. Utterly hysterical, he throws a tantrum. Never mind that the winner that year, the far superior actor Melvyn Douglas, who won for Hud, deserved to win.

Gradually, the movie’s ebullient tone changes into anger and bitterness, when Sandra Dee becomes a has-been in Hollywood, a victim of changes tastes in movies and stars, and Darin himself realizes that his career has suddenly become, to use his own words, “irrelevant.” There’s very little fun to be had in this picture, and I don’t want to be too much of a spoiler and reveal the biggest secret of the film–and Darin’s life. As a movie, Beyond the Sea goes from being earnest to being wacky and tacky. The only side benefit of this film is that Darin’s great songs will be re-released and reach new appreciative audiences. It’s too bad that the picture is such a mess for Beyond the Sea could have thrown light on an interesting, transitional era in American music history, revolving around the teen idol Darin who was a contemporary of Elvis Presley and Pat Boone, just before the Beatles forever changed the musical scene. The quicker Beyond the Sea is forgotten, the better off Kevin Spacey and we viewers are.

Share this: Kevin Spacey - News NEWS Kevin Spacey More at IMDbPro » Connect with IMDb 24 December 2004 | WENN | See recent WENN news » Actor Kevin Spacey has developed such an obsession with singer Bobby Darin , he's commissioned six oil portraits of himself playing the singer in his latest movie. The Hollywood star - who brings the crooner back to life in Beyond The Sea - modeled for the paintings for over half a year, which ultimately cost him $90,000. Artist William Quigley says, "He sat for me for over six months. Kevin was very intense as a model. We started off just doing two canvases, one with an open collar and the other in black tie. But then the project mushroomed." » 29 November 2004 | WENN | See recent WENN news » Hollywood star Kevin Spacey is considering quitting movie acting, to concentrate on his musical career. The Oscar winner, who plays fifties crooner Bobby Darin in the Beyond The Sea , is keen to return to his roots and concentrate on living the life of a singer-songwriter.

The actor has already planned to tour with Beyond The Sea co-stars, The John Wilson Orchestra, in America. Spacey explains, "My background was on stage and in musicals so it's a case of going back to my roots. If this all goes well - the tour and the movie - I have a good mind to jack in all the acting things and just live the life of a singer-songwriter. Sounds good, right? Well, you'll just have to wait and see." » 30 September 2004 | WENN | See recent WENN news » British actor Joseph Fiennes has accused Kevin Spacey of encouraging dull, formal theatres - by criticizing noisy audiences. The American Beauty star, who is currently artistic director of the Old Vic theatre, launched a scathing attack on theatre-goers who didn't switch off their mobile phones, or opened sweet packets during performances. The Enemy At The Gates star counters, "I think that it is sad that anything as minimal as crushing sweet papers has been picked up on. Here at the Young Vic, we are against that sort of arch, slightly bourgeois environment, with expensive seating and that sense of formality.

We want to be more than that." David Lan, Spacey's counterpart at the Young Vic, adds, "Basically, we think exactly the opposite of Spacey. We would like audiences to be made up of people coming who don't normally go to the theatre. We want to put on big, difficult productions. We don't mind noisy audiences." » 24 September 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » The 2004 edition of the AFI Fest will feature gala showings of Kevin Spacey 's Beyond the Sea , Michael Radford 's The Merchant of Venice , Zhang Yimou 's House of Flying Daggers , Pedro Almodovar 's Bad Education and Alejandro Amenabar 's The Sea Inside . However, when the films unspool at the event -- scheduled for Nov. 4-14 at the ArcLight Cinemas in Hollywood -- the festival will be known under a different name, AFI Fest 2004 presented by Audi.

The luxury automobile-maker has signed on with AFI to become the festival's premier sponsor, making them the first car manufacturer to be a lead sponsor for a major film festival and one of the largest single sponsors of a film festival outside of American Express' involvement with the Tribeca Film Festival. The pact between Audi and AFI also includes AFI's extended year-round film programming activities at ArcLight Hollywood. The weekly program of film series and special events will now be known as AFI at ArcLight presented by Audi. » 22 September 2004 | WENN | See recent WENN news » Hollywood star Kevin Spacey has hit out at audiences at London's Old Vic theater, insisting they need to learn to behave in a proper manner. The American Beauty star - who is artistic director at the historic playhouse - has become so incensed by the disruption caused by ringing mobile phones and the opening of sweet packets during performances, he now personally issues a warning to audiences. Spacey argues, "I don't think people take those things seriously. That's why mobile phones go off in the theater, and that's why people open candy bars thinking if they open it slowly it will be less annoying than if they open it fast.

My answer is that I say to each audience 'Don't!' You have to respect the fact there is some degree of behavior that we expect in the theater and we're going to demand it at the Old Vic. It's a phone-free zone. We don't want them ringing and we certainly don't want them ringing and people ignoring them pretending that it's not theirs." The Oscar winner is currently making his directorial debut at the Old Vic with the play Cloaca. » 8 September 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » Trigger Street partners Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti have partnered with filmmaker brothers Adam and Mark Kassen to form Trigger Street Independent, a fully financed production company that plans to produce three or more digital features per year. The newly launched New York-based outfit is headed by the Kassens and already has strategic partnerships lined up with Technicolor, Goldcrest Post Production, ZGC and Panasonic. The alliances, which offer discounted rates on equipment and services, will allow Trigger Street Independent to make a series of digital or HD features on a budget of about $1 million or less per film.

Also unique to the company is a business model that Will Grant profit participation to cast and crew who work on Trigger Street Independent projects. Although not unprecedented, the rare model is catching on in Hollywood with other companies, like Serenade Films, and productions, like Rodrigo Garcia 's Nine Lives , also employing the profit-sharing system. » 26 August 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » Rhys Ifans is a character actor par excellence, a skilled scene-stealer who has lifted from the likes of Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts ( Notting Hill ), Tim Robbins ( Human Nature ), Kevin Spacey ( The Shipping News ) and Adam Sandler ( Little Nicky ). In the warm, sparkling character comedy Danny Deckchair , the Welsh actor moves to center stage, but it has taken a trip to Australia to get him there. With its engaging performances, left-of-center humor, winning sense of warmth and the presence of Ifans, Danny Deckchair may just float its way to some low-key art house success. A fable-like quality is often difficult to catch, but debut feature director Jeff Balsmeyer (an American living in Sydney) has done just that.

While the town of Clarence is grounded in reality, there's just enough magic about it to suggest that this all might be a figment of Danny's imagination. As well as capturing the elusive glow of magic realism, Balsmeyer also succeeds in drawing fine performances out of his cast. Ifans is all charm and sturdy sweetness as Danny, while Otto (about as far away from her icily dignified turn in "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" as you could get) is the perfect foil, equally sweet but with an earthier verve. Clarke is superb as Trudy, giving her character enough levels to make her so much more interesting than the garden-variety villain that she could have been. The only real problem with Danny Deckchair is that writer-director Balsmeyer fails to set up the changes that Danny will undergo when he arrives in Clarence. We are shown nothing of his real potential in the early stages of the film, so his sudden transformation (where he has advice for everyone and even moves into small-town politics) comes out of nowhere. DANNY DECKCHAIR The Cobalt Media Group and Macquarie Film Corp.

in association with Crusader Entertainment presents a City Production Credits: 25 August 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » TORONTO -- Looking to become a bastion of heavyweight, star-filled indie cinema, the Toronto International Film Festival unveiled Tuesday a 328-film lineup that includes 100 world premieres and 81 North American premieres. Among the 20 high-profile films to receive red-carpet treatment at Roy Thomson Hall are Mike Barker 's A Good Woman , a Beyond Films comedy about Americans in Italy that stars Helen Hunt and Scarlett Johansson , and Kevin Spacey 's second film, Lions Gate Films' Beyond the Sea , in which Spacey stars as Bobby Darin . Elsewhere, the festival is hosting the world premiere of Oliver Hirschbiegel 's Downfall , a German thriller about Adolf Hitler 's final hours that stars Bruno Ganz , and a matinee gala for John Stephenson 's Five Children and It , a kids' tale that stars Kenneth Branagh and Tara Fitzgerald .

» 24 August 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » TORONTO -- Looking to become a bastion of heavyweight, star-filled indie cinema, the Toronto International Film Festival unveiled Tuesday a 328-film lineup that includes 100 world premieres and 81 North American premieres. Among the 20 high-profile films to receive red-carpet treatment at Roy Thomson Hall are Mike Barker 's A Good Woman , a Beyond Films comedy about Americans in Italy that stars Helen Hunt and Scarlett Johansson , and Kevin Spacey 's second film, Lions Gate Films' Beyond the Sea , in which Spacey stars as Bobby Darin . Elsewhere, the festival is hosting the world premiere of Oliver Hirschbiegel 's Downfall , a German thriller about Adolf Hitler 's final hours that stars Bruno Ganz , and a matinee gala for John Stephenson 's Five Children and It , a kids' tale that stars Kenneth Branagh and Tara Fitzgerald .

» 24 August 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » TORONTO -- Looking to become a bastion of heavyweight, star-filled indie cinema, the Toronto International Film Festival unveiled Tuesday a 328-film lineup that includes 100 world premieres and 81 North American premieres. Among the 20 high-profile films to receive red-carpet treatment at Roy Thomson Hall are Mike Barker 's A Good Woman , a Beyond Films comedy about Americans in Italy that stars Helen Hunt and Scarlett Johansson , and Kevin Spacey 's second film, Lions Gate Films' Beyond the Sea , in which Spacey stars as Bobby Darin . Elsewhere, the festival is hosting the world premiere of Oliver Hirschbiegel 's Downfall , a German thriller about Adolf Hitler 's final hours that stars Bruno Ganz , and a matinee gala for John Stephenson 's Five Children and It , a kids' tale that stars Kenneth Branagh and Tara Fitzgerald .

» 24 August 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » TORONTO -- Looking to become a bastion of heavyweight, star-filled indie cinema, the Toronto International Film Festival unveiled Tuesday a 328-film lineup that includes 100 world premieres and 81 North American premieres. Among the 20 high-profile films to receive red-carpet treatment at Roy Thomson Hall are Mike Barker 's A Good Woman , a Beyond Films comedy about Americans in Italy that stars Helen Hunt and Scarlett Johansson , and Kevin Spacey 's second film, Lions Gate Films' Beyond the Sea , in which Spacey stars as Bobby Darin . Elsewhere, the festival is hosting the world premiere of Oliver Hirschbiegel 's Downfall , a German thriller about Adolf Hitler 's final hours that stars Bruno Ganz , and a matinee gala for John Stephenson 's Five Children and It , a kids' tale that stars Kenneth Branagh and Tara Fitzgerald .

» 2 August 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » 20th Century Fox has picked up an untitled adventure project from screenwriter Christian Forte that Mikkel Bondesen will produce. The story is described as a lighthearted caper about a group of men in prison who use their incarceration as the perfect alibi when they conspire to steal a stash of diamonds. Robby Brenner is the studio executive on the project. Forte's credits include writing Albino Alligator for Miramax. Alligator was directed by Kevin Spacey and starred Matt Dillon , Faye Dunaway , Gary Sinise and Viggo Mortensen . Forte is repped by Endeavor, manager Bondesen and attorney Carlos Goodman. » 25 July 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » COLOGNE, Germany -- Lew Horwitz , founder and former head of veteran financing group LHO, has signed on as an adviser to leading independent German film fund VIP, VIP co-head Andreas Schmid has said.

A 24-year film financing veteran, Horwitz helped source backing for such films as Nine 1/2 Weeks , My Big Fat Greek Wedding and The Devil and Daniel Webster . He also has plenty of experience with the German film fund scene, having worked with various funds on projects spanning FearDotCom , Undisputed and Patty Jenkins ' Monster , which was co-financed by VIP. Horwitz will advise VIP on contract negotiations with independent producers and studios as well as future projects. Munich-based VIP, Germany's largest independent film fund, has raised hundreds of millions of dollars in private investor capital to back big-budget features like The Punisher and independent fare like The I Inside . Upcoming projects include the Adrien Brody-Keira Knightley thriller The Jacket and Havoc , starring Kevin Spacey , Morgan Freeman and Justin Timberlake . VIP's latest fund has so far raised about $150 million, and the company expects to top $200 million by year's end. » 7 May 2004 | WENN | See recent WENN news » Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey 's older brother Randall Fowler has unveiled a dark harrowing past, where he was sexually abused by their Nazi-obsessed father.

Fowler, who earns his money as a Rod Stewart look-alike, is currently working on a book called I'm Spacey's Brother Whether He Likes It Or Not, in which he plans to expose an array of buried family secrets - including his own abuse by his would-be writer father Geoff, who died in 1992 at the age of 68. According to Fowler, his father was an ultra right-wing, perverted sadist and a member of the American Nazi party who trimmed his moustache to resemble his idol Adolf Hitler . And while he claims his father regularly beat Kevin and their sister Julie, Randall says he was put through the horror of sexual molestation. He says, "I constantly threatened my father that if he ever touched (Kevin) I'd confront my mother with what was going on and that would destroy the family. I really felt I was sacrificing myself for the sake of my little bother. (Kevin) was so determined to avoid the whippings, that he just minded his Ps and Qs until there was nothing inside.

He had no feelings." Spacey's spokesperson Staci Wolfe tells America's Star magazine, "(Randall's) claim against his father is a very serious one and has been a difficult personal family matter. The family all feel deeply for his situation. Kevin has not experienced any of the distress his brother describes - he has never been a victim of abuse. He can only sympathize with him." Randall claims that in 1987, he confronted Spacey about his sexuality, to which the actor responded, "I don't consider myself heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual - just sexual." Randall adds, "To the best of my knowledge, Kevin has never had a real relationship with anyone except our mother. He's an empty vessel. Neither of us had a chance, growing up with two such damaged parents." » 23 April 2004 | The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News | See recent The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News news » LONDON -- Kevin Spacey said Thursday that he will stage four plays in his first season as artistic director of the Old Vic Theatre Co., directing one and starring in two, including the first British performance of Philip Barry's The Philadelphia Story.

The two-time Oscar-winning actor, now fully based in the United Kingdom, said he will take the Cary Grant role of C.K. Dexter-Haven in Philadelphia Story, but said the remainder of the cast would not be chosen until a director has been selected. "It could be a big star or a complete unknown," said Spacey, who was named to the Old Vic position more than a year ago. Spacey joined producer David Liddiment in a news conference in the 180-year-old theater Thursday to detail the four productions of the Old Vic Company's £2 million ($3.5 million) season. » 23 April 2004 | WENN | See recent WENN news » Hollywood star Kevin Spacey has laughed off his supposed mugging in London last weekend, claiming he was paid to keep soccer star David Beckham off newspaper front pages. The Oscar-winner claimed he was robbed of his mobile phone in south London park at 4.30am on Saturday morning, before later confessing he was actually the victim of a con artist.

Now Spacey - whose actions have prompted further speculation about his sexuality - has joked that the whole incident was a cunning plan to divert attention from Beckham's alleged infidelity, a story that has dominated the British media in recent weeks. The actor - currently artistic director of London's Old Vic theatre - said at the launch of the theatre's new season yesterday, "I would like to put to rest a rumor that has been spreading about town for the past two days that I think is entirely unfair. That is that David Beckham would donate £100,000 to the Old Vic if I would take him off the front pages for a few days.

In fact I am going to text David myself if someone will let me replace my mobile phone - I seem to have misplaced mine." » 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 1-20 of 32 items from 2004 « Prev | Next » IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.

Beyond the Sea | Film from RadioTimes Our Score by Adam Smith This is very much a labour of love for Kevin Spacey, who, as well as taking the all-singing, all-dancing lead, co-wrote and directed this biopic of crooner Bobby Darin. It charts the singer's astonishing life from an illness-ridden childhood (he was told he wouldn't survive adolescence) to his death at the tragically young age of 37, taking in Darin's recording triumphs, marriage to Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth), success in Vegas and Hollywood and a career-damaging flirtation with Vietnam-era protest songs. Spacey is outstanding as Darin, delivering a note-perfect re-creation of the singer's style and hoofing his way through the dance numbers with aplomb. But the film's structure - a strange blend of flashbacks and fantasy heavily influenced by Fellini's 8½, which makes it unclear as to whether Darin is actually dead - will prove too odd for some viewers.

Summary Musical biopic of singer Bobby Darin, exploring his formative years, during which he develops his love of music, his subsequent success as a rock 'n' roller and a lounge singer, and his struggle to maintain popularity during the 1960s. Kevin Spacey directs and stars, alongside Bob Hoskins, John Goodman and Kate Bosworth. Cast & Crew Film - Beyond The Sea - Into Film Beyond The Sea Beyond The Sea © LIONSGATE ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Year Home | Films | Explore Films | Beyond The Sea (2004) Kevin Spacey directs and stars in this polished film biography of Bobby Darin, an American singer who rose to fame in the late 1950s, especially popular with teenaged girls. At the time of the film's release many critics complained the middle-aged Spacey was too old to play Darin, who was in twenties during his heyday. They have a point, but the recreation of the trappings of 50s and 60s show business is stylishly done, and Spacey has a fine singing voice. Clubs provide opportunities to watch, review and make films.

Start a film club today Director/s Beyond the Sea **** (2004, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Greta Scacchi) Classic Movie Review 1329 | Derek Winnert This article was written on 15 Jun 2014, and is filled under Reviews . Current post is tagged Beyond the Sea **** (2004, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Greta Scacchi) Classic Movie Review 1329 Writer-director Kevin Spacey’s 2004 movie is his second as director, following 1996’s Albino Alligator. They couldn’t be more different films. That one was a set-bound, ensemble thriller with no appearance by the star. This one is a glossy musical biopic, a showy star showcase, with that firecracker actor Spacey as the star in question. And he’s a sensation – pulling off a bravura acting-singing-dancing turn, as Bobby Darin, Fifties teen idol, Sixties crooner and Vietnam War protest singer.

Darin rises from his lower class Italian-American roots to become one of the most popular rock ‘n roll and big band performers of all time, but dies at 37 from blood poisoning after surgery to repair his mechanical heart valve. Using his own sweet singing voice in an uncanny imitation of Darin for the musical numbers, Spacey trills Splish Splash, Mack the Knife and Beyond the Sea in high style. Excellent lookalike Kate Bosworth strikes sparks as Darin’s unhappy movie star actress wife Sandra Dee, while Greta Scacchi has a fine old as her bitchy mother. Gleefully blending showbiz gossip, camp value, musical numbers, personal drama and social comment, this is a total treat, stirred up to near perfection by Spacey as director and screenwriter in what’s clearly a labour of love. So what if he’s a bit too old for the part? He convinces and entertains. And that’s what matters. The end is very touching, as after his death Darin meets his younger self and the two duet on ‘As Long As I’m Singing’.

Bob Hoskins plays Charlie Cassotto Maffia, a father figure who considers Darin to be his son, Brenda Blethyn plays Polly Cassotto, Darin’s maternal grandmother who teaches him music, and John Goodman plays Stephen Blauner, Bobby’s manager. Filmed in Germany, Beyond the Sea of course takes its title from Darin’s hit version of the song. Sadly, it was not a hit, but Darin’s son Dodd, Sandra Dee and Steve Blauner spoke highly of Spacey’s work. Critics praised Spacey’s performance, especially the use of his own singing voice, and he earned Golden Globe and Grammy nominations. After all the hard work, it cost $25million and earned only $8.45 million. In 1997 Spacey by coincidence had performed a cover version of Darin’s ‘That Old Black Magic’ for the soundtrack of his film Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. In 2004 Spacey did a 12-city United States concert tour titled An Evening Celebrating the Music of Bobby Darin, performing with a 19-piece band.

(C) Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 1329 Link to Derek Winnert’s home page for more film reviews: Bobby Darin, Fifties teen idol, Sixties crooner. SCREEN IT! ARTISTIC REVIEW: BEYOND THE SEA Drama: A famous singer looks back at his unlikely life and varied musical career. PLOT: Bobby Darin (KEVIN SPACEY) is a famous singer who's creating a self-portrait film about his life and career in which he's playing himself. At a young age, Little Bobby (WILLIAM ULLRICH) is still reeling from the effects of rheumatic fever that have left him weakened and not expected to live past his teens. With the encouragement of his former vaudeville performer mom, Polly Cassotto (BRENDA BLETHYN), older sister, Nina Cassotto Maffia (CAROLINE AARON), and her husband, Charlie (BOB HOSKINS), however, he not only does that, but also develops quite a musical talent.

As a young adult, he becomes a success, singing various pop songs such as "Splish Splash." Yet, he's unhappy and wants to be a serious performer, like Frank Sinatra. With the aid of his manager, Steve Blauner (JOHN GOODMAN), and musical arranger, Dick Behrke (PETER CINCOTTI), he bucks the odds and becomes just that. He also manages to meet and fall for Sandra Dee (KATE BOSWORTH) while appearing in a movie with her, much to the chagrin of Sandra's ambitious and overly protective mother, Mary Duvan (GRETA SCACCHI). Nevertheless, the two eventually marry and have a child. The demands of their professions, their resultant time spent apart, Bobby's growing unrest with his music, and his involvement with politics, however, soon puts a strain on their relationship as well as Bobby's status as a legendary performer. OUR TAKE: 5 out of 10 "Ya know when that shark bites, with his teeth, babe...Scarlet billows start to spread" --Bobby Darin, "Mack the Knife" Kevin Spacey looks alternately fatigued and awkward as Bobby Darin.

Outfitted with a time-period-perfected array of toupees, golf sweaters, and tuxedos, the actor's efforts toward putting together his longtime pet project (some have called it a vanity project) are visible in most every frame of "Beyond the Sea." Given at least one of the film's premises -- that singing and dancing is actual work -- the existence of its full-on musical numbers, with folks bursting into song and dancing in the street, all done up in vibrant costumes and waving their arms exuberantly, makes charming sense. Such flights of fancy are rendered here as labor, even as they are magically transformed into (welcome) breaks from the plot, all gonzo energy and luscious choreography, against fall-away sets and featuring moderately acrobatic dancers. The craning camera, booming orchestra, and brightly smiling performers all go to show the extraordinariness of the very concept of a musical. And so it is that, amid all this happy production and excitement, Spacey's Darin is something of anomaly: sickly, fretful, angry, extremely competitive, in particular with his boyhood idol, Frank Sinatra.

If he does nothing else, he insists even as a child, Bobby will perform at the Copacabana, and outsell Sinatra to boot. He's helped along in this endeavor by the usual biopic figures -- the harried, supportive mom Polly (Brenda Blethyn); the endlessly loyal and endlessly working class sister Nina (Caroline Aaron) and brother-in-law Charlie (Bob Hoskins); and the devoted, strangely wise manager Steve (John Goodman). Alternately buoyed and battered by his supporting cast, Bobby struggles to find his own voice, to determine who he wants to be. Born Walden Robert Cassotto, the story goes, Darin suffered as a child with rheumatic fever, which damaged his heart (he died in 1973 at age 37), but instilled in him a crucial ambition and work ethic. He's inspired in large part by his mother, who insists that he listen to great (pop) music and learn to play the piano. Following his first pop charts triumph with "Splish Splash," he figures out how to make hits, and the value of pedestrian formula.

Seeking stardom, he works in television and nightclubs, the sort of performing that privileges the "latest thing" (which is really the same thing, repackaged) over invention, politics, and self-expression. Still, he's smart enough to cover "Mack the Knife" in 1959 and then writes and performs "Beyond the Sea" in 1960, both songs that have become identified with his synthetic persona. Though he revels in his success, Bobby also feels frustrated by industry impositions and fickle audiences, eventually distrusting not only his own instincts, but also the encouragement of his family and friends. He seeks support elsewhere, specifically, in intricate embodiments of the industry he both adores and despises, including the prettiest girl star (Sandra Dee, perfectly played by Kate Bosworth), with whom he costars -- as second lead to Rock Hudson -- in "Come September" (1961).

The pursuit of this new Hollywood identity entails winning over Sandy's intimidating stage mom Mary Duvan (Greta Scacchi), a process that brings to the forefront the class schisms between Bobby's past (Charlie and Nina chew loudly at dinner) and the future he wants -- or thinks he wants -- so badly. The couple looks doomed ("I'm married to Tammy!"), and yet it lasts (in real life, legend has it, Sandra Dee has remained dedicated to his memory). Their first night as man and wife makes for one of the film's oddest, most disturbing, and most compelling scenes, as she fears for her virginity and he agrees never to touch her until she asks, literally placing a sword across the middle of their bed to mark their sides and, no small thing, to dramatize his decency. Bobby is above all else, a fabulous self-promoter. "Beyond the Sea" is all about staging. It opens with Darin walking through the back halls and kitchen of the Copa -- the camera tracking "Goodfellas"style -- as a PA announces, "We're walking." The film goes so far as to remark on its own clever artifice within, quite ineffectively.

Partly structured as a film that Bobby's making about his own life, it includes an early moment when someone notes that he is, after all, too old to "play himself" (Spacey being near 50, this is manifest throughout, especially when he plays the artist as a young man). While Charlie has the right answer-question for this curmudgeon ("How can you be too old to play yourself?"), the note has been struck: the movie can't quite get out from under its first self-consciousness about this seeming problem. But while the age business might be mildly diverting, it's nothing compared to the film's most off-putting and tired device, Bobby's exchanges with a little boy version of himself (William Ullrich). Cute and talented, the kid is nonetheless an interruption, advising Bobby on how to make the film, and contending that he "knows" him better than anyone. While the youthful, na�ve Bobby is surely resilient and admirable, he's also annoying.

For all the Bobbys, the show is all that matters; Darin is advised and comes to believe that "People hear what they see" (a good if inadvertent lesson, perhaps, for today's lip-syncers). This realization hits home for the movie's Darin after a series of career and personal crises that leave him feeling emotionally and spiritually stranded and quite unsure how to "come back." He decides to reinvent himself as a folk singer, disillusioned by the assassination of Bobby Kennedy (for whom he campaigned) and wanting to protest the war in Vietnam, he conjures a terrifically bad idea of a Vegas show -- the newly earnest "Bob" Darin on acoustic guitar and a black gospel choir behind him. The term "tone deaf" doesn't begin to describe it. "Beyond the Sea" rates as a 5 out of 10.

Reviewed November 15, 2004 / Posted December 29, 2004 If You're Ready to Find Out Exactly What's in the Movies Your Kids are Watching, Click the Add to Cart button below and join the Screen It family for just $7.95/month or $47/year Beyond the Sea (3/10) Movie CLIP - Beyond the Sea (2004) HD - YouTube Beyond the Sea (3/10) Movie CLIP - Beyond the Sea (2004) HD Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Mar 23, 2015 Beyond the Sea movie clips: BUY THE MOVIE: Don't miss the HOTTEST NEW TRAILERS: CLIP DESCRIPTION: Bobby Darin (Kevin Spacey) courts the hand of Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth) to a montage of his classic hit song "Beyond the Sea".

FILM DESCRIPTION: Kevin Spacey serves as both director and star for this biopic based on the life and career of legendary entertainer Bobby Darin, which moves back and forth between his childhood and adult selves to tell the tale of his remarkable life. Born Bobby Cassotto and raised in the Bronx, young Bobby (played as a child by William Ullrich) was raised by his mother, Polly (Brenda Blethyn), his brother-in-law, Charlie (Bob Hoskins), and his sister, Nina (Caroline Aaron). At the age of 15, Bobby contracted a severe case of rheumatic fever, which was expected to take his life; while it left him with a weak heart, Bobby beat the odds and survived. Buoyed by a love of music passed along by his mother, Bobby learned to play several instruments and began singing as he recovered. Displaying a confidence and drive which stopped just short of arrogance, he adopted the stage name Bobby Darin and set his sights on becoming a star.

After a string of hits as a rock & roll singer, Darin (played as an adult by Kevin Spacey) takes another gamble, and with the help of manager Steve Blauner (John Goodman) he reinvents himself as a supper-club vocalist in the manner of Frank Sinatra. All the more remarkably, he succeeds, and his swinging version of "Mack the Knife" tops the charts. Now a major singing star, Darin decides to take up acting; on the set of his first movie, he woos his female co-star Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth), and despite the stern objections of her mother (Greta Scacchi), Bobby and Sandra wed. But after a string of successful movies for Dee and hit records and an Oscar nomination for Darin, the shifting tastes of the 1960s throw their careers off-track. Bobby cautiously embraces the new sounds of the day, but his old fans don't want to hear him cover Bob Dylan or the Rolling Stones, while the younger audience isn't interested in his new sound, leaving Darin in a difficult place to make his way back to stardom.

Kevin Spacey did his own singing for Beyond the Sea, recreating Bobby Darin's vocal style with uncanny accuracy. CREDITS: Cast: Harvey Friedman, Kate Bosworth, Kevin Spacey Director: Kevin Spacey Producers: Dana Brunetti, Anna Campeau, Mark Damon, Jan Fantl, Jason Constantine, Joanne Horowitz, Christian Frohn, Douglas Hansen, Andy Paterson, Henning Molfenter, Thierry Potok, Kevin Spacey, Jim Reeve, Guy Tannahill, Jeremy Whelehan, Michael Burns, Steve Robbins, Peter Block, Arthur Friedman Screenwriters: Lewis Colick, Kevin Spacey WHO ARE WE? The MOVIECLIPS channel is the largest collection of licensed movie clips on the web. Here you will find unforgettable moments, scenes and lines from all your favorite films. Made by movie fans, for movie fans. SUBSCRIBE TO OUR MOVIE CHANNELS:

Question: In the 2004 film biopic Beyond the Sea, Kevin Spacey plays which 1960s singer?
Answer: Bobby Darin