A few years ago I really got into reading the books of Nick Hornby, however when it came to A Long Way Down it took me a good couple of years to actually read it properly. I ended up borrowing it from the library, not finishing it and finally picking it up over a year later from a Charity Shop. Whilst not one of Hornby's best works of fiction (he has also written non-fiction), A Long Way Down is an intelligently written novel without being patronising towards the situations that the characters are facing.When I heard that actor Johnny Depp had bought the rights to the book - even before the book had been published - I was worried that the film would be an Americanisation of an English-set book, like another of Hornby's books; High fidelity. But, then the whole scene went silent for a really, really, really long time!
Until September 5th when it was announced that filming had finally commenced, whoop! So, this is when we also finally know exactly who has been cast:
Pierce Brosnan as Martin Sharp
Martin Sharp was a big shot television presenter, until a stupid mistake left him serving three months in prison shamed, single and absolutely miserable.When I read the book, I'm not really sure what I had in my mind regarding Martin's appearance, but in hindsight, I think that Brosnan is perfectly cast. He has that goodlooking charm that I can imagine oozing from the type of TV presenter Martin was supposed to be, and I can imagine it completely believable that someone like Brosnan (as in, how I can imagine he will play the character) could make the mistakes Martin made.
I can't imagine anyone else, who I believe, could play Martin Sharp. I'm definitely glad that Johnny Depp didn't take this role as I know a few fans of the book have speculated over the past few years.
Toni Collette as Maureen
Maureen is a 51 year-old parent, single-handedly taking care of her disabled son Matty. Maureen loves Matty more than anything, but there are only so many sacrifices in life before Maureen is tipped slightly over the edge.I'm not going to deny that Toni Collette is not what I imagined for Maureen, in the slightest. I imagined a much older-looking woman, but reading comments from other fans, I think that I must be alone in that, but hey, reading books is all about personal interpretation right? But, Maureen is supposed to be 51, according to IMBd, Collette is 39...I dunno, I really do think that an older actress should have been cast.
I'm not really sure what I think to the casting of Collette, I'm a huge fan of her work in films such as Muriel's Wedding, About a Boy and The Sixth Sense, but I'm unsure how well she'll take to this role.
Aaron Paul as J.J.
J.J. is an American musician who gave up everything for girlfriend Lizzie; his band, his life in America, everything only for her to stamp on his heart and dump him. Now delivering pizzas for a living, J.J.'s life has not gone where he wanted it to, and he can't stand it.Emile Hirsch of Speed Racer and The Girl Next Door was originally cast as J.J., but was apparently forced to pull out due to commitment issues. To be honest, I was a little bit disappointed to find out that Hirsch wasn't going to be J.J., because I think he'd have played the role well. But, I'm not going to dwell on that one too much.
Although he's been in quite a few things, I'm not at all familiar with Aaron Paul or his work, but I'll be intrigued to how he plays the role. He is, at the very least, American, so at least we won't be dealing with a dodgy accent. Personally, I always imagined J.J. to be good-looking but rough around the edges, so if Paul can pull that off (which I think he can), then I think I'll be happy!
Imogen Poots as Jess Crichton
Jess is an eighteen-year-old with a lot of attitude who says the F-word quite a lot (much to Maureen's chagrin). Daughter of a politician and sister to a missing girl, Jess feels that she has a lot to be angry about. Often rude, selfish and completely ignorant to other people's feelings.I've only seen Imogen Poots in one film (28 Weeks Later), so it's hard to pass a real judgement, but whilst I can imagine her exuding a sense of wealth and self-importance, I'm not really sure that it's in the way that I truly imagined for Jess.
To me, Jess is a character that you are not necessarily meant to like, and generally most people probably won't feel like they can empathise with her. But, then you have to remember that the character is young, and at an age when we were all a little full of our own self-importance.
It'll be interesting to see how Poots plays it, but I'm not really sure I'm going to like her one bit!
One other query I have about the film is whether it is going to be set in England (where the book is set), or in America?
