Directing the Big Guns

Wellington-born director Andrew Dominik, 45, who has lived in Australia most of his life, said it took 45 minutes via text message to hammer out a deal with Brad Pitt to produce their latest collaboration Killing Them Softly. “Andrew’s become an old friend,” Pitt said. “I am a big believer in his work. And he pulled out this old crime novel, like he did for [The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford], and had this take on America, which I thought was interesting, especially with him being Australian and an outsider.” The film is about a group of thugs – played by Pitt, [Sopranos star] James Gandolfini and Ray Liotta – jockeying for position in a gritty and purposely ambiguous Anytown, U.S.A. Killing Them Softly is based on a1974 crime novel by George V. Higgins.


Tags: Andrew Dominik  Brad Pitt  he Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford  Killing Them Softly  Wall Street Journal (The)  

Amy Brown’s New Novel Inspired by Women and Art

Amy Brown’s New Novel Inspired by Women and Art

Like many writers before her, New Zealand-born Amy Brown takes inspiration from the Australian feminist icon Stella Maria Miles Franklin in her captivating debut novel My Brilliant Sister – but instead…