Fortune rarely smiles on Alan Clay (Tom Hanks), an IT businessman who arrives in Saudi Arabia to present the hottest new teleconferencing system to the king. Although the clash of cultures is an obvious trope, legendary director Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run) pulls off the humor with nuanced aplomb.
Tom Hanks is without doubt one of Hollywood’s very brightest stars, and in A Hologram for the King he once again shows why such praise is richly deserved. He stars as Alan Clay, an IT businessman whose life has become rather complicated: His wife recently divorced him, he doesn’t have the money to pay for his daughter’s tuition, and, above all, he’s trying to jumpstart a washed-up career. To this end, Alan heads for the Arabian Peninsula to present a revolutionary teleconferencing system to the King of Saudi Arabia – and perhaps the only thing that can save him now is a long-ago acquaintance who happens to be the monarch’s nephew. Seasoned director Tom Tykwer demonstrates that the old “American businessman in the Middle East” premise can yield much more than a series of picaresque situations. In his new movie, the clash of cultures is staked out with tasteful, cultivated humor and a pleasing dose of melancholy. The adaptation of Dave Egger’s eponymous novel rewards lovers of breathtaking exotic scenery, and will satisfy everyone looking for an upbeat show that doesn’t insult their intelligence.
Karel Och
99 min / Color, DCP
Director Tom Tykwer
/ Screenplay Tom Tykwer podle stejnojmenné knihy / based on the novel of the same name by Dave Eggers
/ Dir. of Photography Frank Griebe
/ Music Johnny Klimek
/ Editor Alexander Berner
/ Art Director Daniel Chour
/ Producer Uwe Schott, Stefan Arndt, Arcadiy Golubovich, Tim O'Hair, Gary Goetzman
/ Production Playtone, Primeridian Entertainment, X-Filme Creative Pool
/ Coproduction Vingt Deux Heures Vingt Deux, WS Film
/ Cast Tom Hanks, Alexander Black, Sarita Choudhury
/ Distributor Falcon a.s.
German director, screenwriter, producer, and film music composer Tom Tykwer (b. 1965, Wuppertal, German) gained traction with the early feature Deadly Maria (Die tödliche Maria, 1993). Four years later he came out with the highly regarded Winters Sleepers (Winterschläfer). He established his reputation with his next film, the hit Run Lola Run (Lola rennt, 1998) starring Franka Potente, which earned him Best Foreign Film at the Independent Spirit Awards and the Audience Award at Sundance. In addition to The Princess & the Warrior (Der Krieger und die Kaiserin, 2000), his filmography also includes the big-budget pictures Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006) and Cloud Atlas (2012).
Falcon a.s.
Radlická 3185/1c, 150 00, Praha 5
Czech Republic
Phone: +420 224 422 222
E-mail: [email protected]
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