After premiering at this year’s Sundance festival, Sony Pictures Classics has revealed an official teaser trailer for the film Living, which is an English-language remake of the Japanese auteur Akira Kurosawa film, “Ikiru” from 1952.
The trailer showcases an inspiring experience for viewers despite the dark subject matter with uplifting soundtrack and gorgeous cinematography that sets the scene for what’s to come.
Set against a post-World War 2 London, “Living“ centers on Williams played by Bill Nighy, a grumpy, curmudgeonly government office worker who’s empty and meaningless takes a turn after he’s diagnosed with terminal cancer. He realizes he hasn’t really be “living” and goes about trying to change that.
Our writer Abe had a chance to review this film at the Sundance, “Nighy is a terrific actor equally capable of drama and comedy. This role relies heavily on the former, reminiscent of his recent turns in films like Hope Gap and The Bookshop. His facial expressions do most of the talking, but audiences are also treated to Nighy’s singing, which is a sincere improvement on his purposely humorous “Christmas Is All Around” from Love Actually. There is a genuine, raw roughness to the way in which he sings, and it comes across as very emotional and haunting.
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Along with “Ikiru,” Living is adapted from Leo Tolstoy‘s The Death of Ivan Ilyich. The screenplay is written by Kazuo Ishiguro and directed by Oliver Hermanus. Additional creative team members include costume design by Sandy Powell, music by Emelie Levienaise-Farrouch, cinematography by Jamie D. Ramsay SASC, and production design by Helen Scott. Aimee Lou Wood, Alex Sharp, and Tom Burke also star.
“Living” will release in theaters on December 23. Check out the teaser trailer below: