- Title: Director Steve McQueen said "Widows" not just a heist movie
- Date: 6th November 2018
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (OCTOBER 11, 2018) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS, MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ, SAYING: ''So then I saw how Steve created a metaphor for contemporary urban subterfuge, economic subterfuge in Chicago and then he divides that pyramid from you know local law officials corrupt in the quest for power between males and females - the quest for survival in that in that realm and I was like wait a minute you back all this depth and create all these symbols and icons and metaphors for reality in two hours of a film. For me I left wild-eyed. I left wild-eyed - like the first time I'd ever seen a movie because I always thought you had to sacrifice one for the other. And here he is proving to me that you don't. I was blown away. I was like - that's awesome dude.''
- Embargoed: 20th November 2018 10:48
- Keywords: Steve McQueen Widows Michelle Rodriguez Viola Davies heist oscar drama film
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK / VARIOUS FILM LOCATIONS
- City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK / VARIOUS FILM LOCATIONS
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment,Film
- Reuters ID: LVA00695D9FM5
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: At first glance, Steve McQueen's latest film "Widows" may appear to be a fast-paced heist movie but the award-winning British director says he wanted his Chicago-set movie to take a deeper look at the current political and social-economic climate.
Adapted from a 1980s television series by British crime writer Lynda La Plante, "Widows" follows a group of women who plan a heist to pay off a large debt left by their dead husbands criminal activities.
Gender, race, crime and politics are all subjects touched on in the movie, which stars Oscar winner Viola Davis, "Fast and Furious" star Michelle Rodriguez and "The Night Manager" actress Elizabeth Debicki.
"The whole idea of having this rollercoaster ride of a heist was ...to engage with that whole idea of escapism and ... the whole of that aspect of a thriller but not negate the political and the current ... social economical environment that we live in today," McQueen told Reuters in an interview.
The London-born filmmaker, known for "12 Years a Slave" and "Shame", said he decided the set the movie "in ... a heightened contemporary western city", picking Chicago, the third largest city in the United States.
"I want to take ... this fiction and staple it into reality of our every day," he said.
"First, foremost my job is to entertain ... Secondly you're hoping it will enlighten, you are hoping it will shed light on things which are happening every day which some people can actually recognise and be aware of."
"I can only hope that this film could do that, even if it's just one person." - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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