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Mohamed Kordofani’s Sudanese title previously opened strongly in Egypt.

Mohamed Kordofani’s Goodbye Julia, which became the first Sudanese feature to ever play at Cannes earlier this year, has achieved another first following its release across the Gulf.

The film has recorded box office of $349,000 from 27,000 admissions following its release by Mad Solutions in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain on December 7 and in the UAE on December 14 across a total of 84 screens. This is a record for a non-Egyptian or non-Saudi arthouse film in the Gcc.

Saudi accounted for 40% of total takings from 37 screens while the UAE represented 30% of revenues from 27 screens.

Lupita Nyong’o has joined Goodbye Julia, Sudan’s entry for this year’s Best International feature race at the Oscars, as an executive producer.

Directed by Sudanese filmmaker Mohamed Kordofani in his feature film debut, the pic explores the events leading up the 2011 split between Sudan’s southern and northern populations. The film made history in Cannes this year as the first Sudanese film to play in the festival after it was selected for Un Certain Regard.

The film’s Cannes premiere took place just weeks after fighting broke out in Khartoum due to a clash between rival generals, which has led to the deaths of 5,000 people and uprooted seven million people.

Since Cannes, the film has also played at Karlovy Vary in its Horizons section and had been set to make its Mena premiere at Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival in October ahead of a theatrical release in...

Oscar-winning actor Lupita Nyong’o is stepping into an executive producer role to support Sudan’s second-ever Academy Award international feature film submission, “Goodbye Julia.”

The timely film, directed by Sudanese filmmaker Mohamed Kordofani, takes place just before the 2011 secession of South Sudan and won the Un Certain Regard section’s Prix de Liberté (Freedom Prize) at Cannes.

“‘Goodbye Julia’ is a powerful representation of the conflict happening in Sudan right now, which affects millions of lives across Eastern Africa,” Nyong’o said in a statement. “Mohamed Kordofani and the filmmakers present the issues in a beautiful, deeply personal way. I’m honored to lend my voice to help bring this film’s message to the world.”

Nyong’o, who played played Nakia in Marvel’s “Black Panther” franchise, will next be seen starring in Paramount’s “A Quiet Place” horror franchise spinoff “A Quiet Place: Day One,” written and directed by Michael Sarnoski.

Mohamed Kordofani’s Khartoum-set drama Goodbye Julia made history at Cannes earlier this year as the first Sudanese feature to play in the festival across its 76 editions.

Six months on, the film is achieving a new first at the Egyptian box office.

The drama took the top slot on its opening day on October 25 on just nine screens, ahead of Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, which was on its second week on release on around 25 screens.

Widening out to some 25 screens, Goodbye Julia drew 13,135 spectators for a gross of $33,650 in its first week, according to locally collated figures.

By comparison, Killers of the Flower Moon went on to take $41,000 in the same week, for a total Egyptian gross of $102,000 by the end of its second week on release.

As of November 6, Goodbye Julia had grossed $56,637 in total.

Exploring the events leading up the 2011 schism between Sudan’s southern and northern populations,...

Sudan has submitted Mohamed Kordofani’s Khartoum-set drama Goodbye Julia for Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards.

The film made history in Cannes this year as the first Sudanese film to play in the festival after it was selected for Un Certain Regard.

Its premiere took place just weeks after fighting broke out in Khartoum due to a clash between rival generals, which has led to the deaths of 5,000 people and uprooted seven million people.

Since Cannes, the film has also played at Karlovy Vary in its Horizons section and will make its Mena premiere at Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival in October ahead of a theatrical release in the country on October 25. It has also been selected for the BFI London Film Festival.

The selection was made by the Sudanese National Committee which is operating in exile.

Alaa Karkouti at Mad Solutions, which is handling world sales,...

Sudanese director Mohamed Kordofani’s feature debut “Goodbye Julia,” a timely morality tale that takes place just before the 2011 secession of South Sudan and won the Un Certain Regard section’s Prix de Liberté (Freedom Prize) at Cannes, has scored a raft of sales following its launch.

The first Sudanese film ever to screen in Cannes official selection, “Goodbye Julia” is the story of two women — one from the North, the other from the South — who are brought together by fate in a complex relationship that attempts to reconcile differences between northern and southern Sudanese communities in the currently war-ravaged country.

After being picked up by Arp Sélection for France just ahead of its Cannes world premiere in May, the well-received drama has now been sold by pan-Arab distributor Mad Solutions – which moved into international distribution with this title – to the following territories: Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands (September Film...

CAA Media Finance has come on board to handle sales in North America on Mohamed Kordofani’s “Goodbye Julia,” the first film from Sudan to launch from the Cannes Film Festival.

CAA will be working in tandem with Egypt-based producer Ali El Arabi’s Ambient Light Films, which holds North American rights for the timely drama that premiered on May 21 in Un Certain Regard.

“Goodbye Julia” takes place just before the 2011 secession of South Sudan. It revolves around two women, one from the north, the other from the south, that are brought together by fate in a complex relationship that attempts to reconcile differences between northern and southern Sudanese communities.

in an interview with Variety, Kordofani expressed the hope that his film “can be the start of a movement for reconciliation between all the Sudanese people” in the war-ravaged country.

Produced by fellow Sudanese filmmaker Amjad Abu Alala — director of “You Will Die at 20,...

Exclusive: Egyptian-u.S. company Ambient Light has acquired North American sales rights for Sudanese director Mohamed Kordofani’s Cannes Un Certain Regard title Goodbye Julia, and is teaming with CAA to find North American distribution.

Egyptian producer and director Ali El Arabi’s Cairo and L.A.-based company Ambient Light is one of a number of co-producers on the film alongside lead producer Amjad Abu Alala, who works under the banner of Station Films.

El Arabi is best known internationally for his feature documentary Captains of Za’atari, about two Syrian boys growing up in a refugee camp in Jordan with dreams of becoming soccer stars, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2021.

The film was handled internationally by Dogwoof, which sold the film to Utopia for the U.S.

El Arabi explains that the lessons he learned through the U.S. distribution of Captains of Za’atari...

Paris-based distributor Arp Sélection has snapped up the timely Sudanese drama “Goodbye Julia” for French distribution ahead of its Cannes Un Certain Regard premiere next week.

The film, which is Sudanese director Mohamed Kordofani’s feature debut, marks the first feature from Sudan to bow from the Croisette and takes place just before the 2011 secession of South Sudan. In “Goodbye Julia,” two women — one from the North, the other from the South — are brought together by fate in a complex relationship that attempts to reconcile differences between northern and southern Sudanese communities.

in an interview with Variety, Kordofani expressed the hope that his film “Can be the start of a movement for reconciliation between all the Sudanese people” in the war-ravaged country.

The two central roles are played respectively by Eiman Yousif and Sudanese supermodel Siran Riak (pictured above), making her big-screen acting debut. The cast also includes Nazar Goma and Ger Duany,...

Mohamed Kordofani’s debut feature will premiere in Un Certain Regard.

Pan-Arab outfit Mad Solutions is moving into international sales and has acquired worldwide rights to Mohamed Kordofani’s debut feature Goodbye Julia, the first Sudanese film ever to be selected by the Cannes Film Festival.

The film will receive its world premiere in the Un Certain Regard section of the festival, which announced its lineup today.

Set in Khartoum ahead of Sudan’s division into two separate countries in 2011, the drama explores the differences between their two populations through two women hailing from the north and south of the country.

“The Blind Side” is a true story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized youngster who became an All-American football player and first-round NFL draft pick after being adopted by a loving family of Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy.

Leigh Anne Tuohy takes him in, and with the help of her husband Sean, transformative changes begin to take place in Michael’s life. He learns the value of hard work and education, and he slowly starts to believe in himself.

The Tuohys eventually adopt Michael, and he goes on to attend Ole Miss on a full football scholarship. In the NFL, he becomes one of the league’s top offensive linemen, playing a pivotal role in helping the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl.

“The Blind Side” is a heartwarming tale of hope and redemption that demonstrates the power of family, faith, and love.

For the fans of movies like “The Blind Side,...

Former Sudanese refugee Ger Duany, who's now an actor and appeared in the 2014 film The Good Lie, is familiar with the plight of refugees.

He moved to the United States as a teenager after spending years in an Ethiopian refugee camp. The 38-year-old is now a U.S. citizen living in New York City, and he spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about President Trump's recent immigration ban.

"I'm very distressed about it," said Duany, adding that he thinks people all over the world are upset about Trump's executive order temporarily barring citizens from seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Sudan, from...

PremierComms

To celebrate release of The Good Lie on DVD, available now, we are giving 3 lucky WhatCulture readers the chance to win 1 of 3 copies courtesy of Entertainment One.

The Good Lie features heart-rendering and powerful performances led by; Oscar® winner Reese Witherspoon (Walk The Line, Wild) as strong and independent employment counsellor, Carrie; Corey Stoll (House Of Cards, Non-Stop) as Carrie’s boss and ex-husband, Jack; Arnold Oceng (My Brother The Devil, Adulthood) as ‘The Chief’ orphan, Mamere; Ger Duany (I Heart Huckabees, Isn’t It Delicious) as his orphan brother, Jeremiah; Emmanuel Jal (Africa United, War Child) as his other orphan brother, Paul; Sarah Baker (Tammy, The Campaign) as Carrie’s acquaintance and volunteer, Pamela; and introducing Kuoth Wiel as Abital, the orphan sister of “The Lost Boys”.

They were known simply as “The Lost Boys”. Orphaned during the Sudanese Civil War, a group of young refugees are given...

Director: Philippe Falardeau; Screenwriter: Margaret Nagle; Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Corey Stoll, Sarah Baker, Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal; Running time: 110 mins; Certificate: 12A

You cannot fail to be moved by this story of young Sudanese refugees - and not just to tears either. Director Philippe Falardeau (working in similar territory to his Oscar-nominated Monsieur Lazhar) deftly treads the boundaries between tragedy and comedy to depict major upheaval for three brothers who eventually look to Reese Witherspoon's brassy employment agent to settle them into the American way of life.

The changing tone is marked by bends in a very long road, first leading from a small Sudanese village to a refugee camp in Kenya. Mamere (Brixton-based actor Arnold Oceng), Jeremiah (Ger Duany) and Paul (Emmanuel Jal), along with their sister Abital (Kuoth Wiel) and the eldest, Theo (Femi Ogun), survive a massacre by soldiers in the country's second civil...

At a loss for what to watch this week? From new DVDs and Blu-rays, to what's streaming on Netflix, we've got you covered.

New on DVD and Blu-ray

"The Good Lie"

Although Reese Witherspoon's face is on all the posters, the real stars of "The Good Lie" are the actors who portray young survivors of the brutal civil war in Sudan. Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, and Emmanuel Jal star as the Sudanese "Lost Boys" who start a new life in Kansas City, Mo. Philippe Falardeau ("Monsieur Lazhar") directed the movie, based on a script by Margaret Nagle ("Boardwalk Empire").

"Pride"

Critics loved this crowd-pleasing film based on a true story about two disparate groups who come together in solidarity during Margaret Thatcher's term as Pm. Lgbt activists are trying to raise money to support the families of striking miners, but they're not having any success. Eventually, the group,...

We have added a set pictures from the event Worldwide Orphan’s 10th Annual New York City Gala. Guests included Katie Couric, Sarah Hughes, Deborra-Lee Furness, Ger Duany, Jane Aronson, Danielle Bradbery, Peter Hermann and Andrew Garfield. Photos are copyright by Mj Photos / PRPhotos.com. Katie Couric attending the Worldwide Orphan’s 10th Annual New York City Gala at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City, NY, USA. Photo is copyright by Mj Photos / PRPhotos.com.

The Good Lie

Written by Margaret Nagle

Directed by Philippe Falardeau

Kenya/India/USA, 2014

The Good Lie is an earnest, well-meaning film that overcomes its many flaws to tell a life-affirming story about survival and second chances. No work of fiction could ever convey the atrocities of the Second Sudanese Civil War, but this is an effective glimpse into the lives of a lucky few who escaped. It’s not looking to raise awareness or rabble-rouse. It only wants to show us that as long as there is life, there is hope. On that count, it most certainly succeeds.

Mamere (Arnold Oceng) and his older brother, Theo (Femi Oguns), are like any other young boys; they fight, they test each other’s limits, they play games reciting their familial names down through the generations. To the cattlemen of the Sudan, tribal connections are a source of both history and renewal.

Chicago – “The Good Lie” is a honorable film overview of the Sudanese “Lost Boys,” who were refugees from a horrific civil war in that African country. Many of those boys came to America, and producer Molly Smith (“The Blind Side”), with actors Ger Duany and Emmanuel Jal, were part of the team that brought the film to life.

Ger Duany, Arnold Oceng and Emmanuel Jal in ‘The Good Lie’

Photo credit: Warner Bros.

The feature film is inspired by many stories of survival, both in Sudan and America. Jal and Duany portray the adult refugees, trying to make it in America, where everything is different. Reese Witherspoon also stars as a facilitator for these newborns to the U.S., and gives a passionate performance without overshadowing the main story of the boy’s plight. Producer Molly Smith is used to interpreting these stories of inspiration, as she previously was Executive...

The Good Lie gets its title from a classroom discussion of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that takes place halfway through the narrative. Mamere (Arnold Oceng), a twenty-something Sudanese refugee at a Kansas City night school, raises his hand enthusiastically to explain the concept. A “good lie” is told with good intentions, such as when Huck fibs to protect Jim, so that the latter will not be sold back into slavery. Mamere knows all about good lies: many years earlier, during an 800-mile walk from war-ravaged South Sudan to a refugee camp in Kenya, his older brother, Theo, told a good lie. Theo stood up to a pair of soldiers approaching Mamere and his pals, and gave himself up, explaining that there was nobody else with him.

As a result of that “good lie,” the South Sudan orphans could evade capture and continue their walk. It is powerful, poignant moments...

The Good Lie Warner Bros Reviewed for Shockya by Harvey Karten. Data-based on Rotten Tomatoes Grade: B+ Director: Philippe Falardeau Screenplay: Margaret Nagle Cast: Corey Stoll, Reese Witherspoon, Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal, Corey Stoll, Kuoth Wiel, Femi Oguns, Lindsay Garrett Screened at: Lincoln Square, NYC, 10/1/14 Opens: October 3, 2014 You jumped the turnstile at the #4 train at Grand Central Station and the police are on your trail. You read about Riker’s Detention Center in a recent issue of New York magazine, and you’re not going to Rikers. You toss a dart at a map of the world. It lands on London. No good. Toss another and [ Read More ]

The post The Good Lie Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

"The Good Lie" opened on October 3 in limited release following a September bow at the Toronto Film Festival. It features Reese Witherspoon as an American woman who helps four Sudanese refugees – among more than 20,000 children known as the Lost Boys of Sudan – adjust to life in the United States, but the real stars of the film are the Lost Boys themselves. Actors Emmanuel Jal, Ger Duany, and Kuoth Wiel were among the real Lost Boys, and Arnold Oceng, in a noteworthy breakthrough performance, is a British-raised son of a Sudanese man. -Break- Oscars: Black Performers--Filmmakers After a screening on September 30, the Us ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, made sure to remind the audience that the violence and displacement that plagued the nation aren't finished. South Sudan broke off from Sudan in 2011 after a long fight for independence, but it erupted into another civil war in 2013. Of the film,...

Don’t be fooled by The Good Lie’s poster, in which Reese Witherspoon appears to be at the center of the film. Director Philippe Falardeau and writer Margaret Nagle have managed to pull off something rather remarkable here, and that is that they’ve managed to tell the story of a group of South Sudanese refugees in the U.S. from their perspective rather than from a western one.

After making it out of their war-torn homeland, the four refugees (played by Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal and Kuoth Wiel) are given the chance to live in Kansas City and find work – with the help of Carrie (Witherspoon), an employment officer. Among those aiding there adjustment to their new lives are Carrie’s compassionate boss (Corey Stoll) and a spunky charity worker (Sarah Baker). In the end, two vastly different worlds come together to tell a single heartbreaking...

Reese Witherspoon may be the most famous face in The Good Lie, but the film's real stars are the actors who play the four Sudanese immigrants at the heart of the story: Arnold Oceng, Ger ­Duany, Emmanuel Jal, and Kuoth Wiel. Set during the Second Sudanese Civil War, which raged from 1983 to 2005, the film follows four children who survive the slaughter and then walk 800 miles to a refugee camp in Kenya. Though only two are biologically related, they ­become the only family any of them know, and 13 years later, they immigrate to the U.S. as part of the group...

The cast of "The Good Lie" came by the HitFix studios this week so we could sit down to discuss the work they did in the film, and the way the movie manages to avoid some of Hollywood's most irritating bad habits. First up, I spoke with Arnold Oceng and Kuoth Wiel. Oceng is the film's ostensible lead, although I think it's a fairly balanced movie overall in terms of the way it treats its ensemble cast. He's also the one cast member of the four main refugees with the most acting experience, and unsurprisingly, he was fairly poised in our interview. Both Ger Duany and Emmanuel Jal have made documentaries about their experiences as Sudanese refugees, and they've built careers for themselves as artists as well. Jal is a rapper and musician, and Duany's been in other films, including "I Heart Huckabees." Anyone who can survive being a child...

The Good Lie is titled after the lies in Huckleberry Finn, the type of lie that is a lie for the greater good, even if lying is wrong. The Good Lie, the movie, has a small opening this weekend in under 500 theaters and will hopefully begin to slowly expand to more theaters with it’s poster of smiling Reese Witherspoon’s head miraculously floating over an African desert. The poster for The Good Lie and the trailer for The Good Lie are, themselves, actual good lies because what looks like The Blind Side but with Reese Witherspoon is not, instead it’s one of those movies that will be shown to our children in school.

You remember the type of movie I’m talking about: you have a substitute or your teacher got a little ahead in the lesson plan or you have a half-holiday day so the class gets...

Reese Witherspoon is the most famous star in the movie The Good Lie - but the real scene-stealers are her castmates. The drama, inspired by true events, recounts Sudan's second civil war and the stories of a few of the thousands of children it orphaned and displaced, who became known as the "Lost Boys." The Good Lie follows four refugees (played by Arnold Oceng, 28, Ger Duany, 35, Emmanuel Jal, 34, and Kuoth Wiel, 25) as they flee soldiers, walk hundreds of miles to a refugee camp and eventually relocate to the United States, where they struggle to reconcile their tragic pasts with a...

Reese Witherspoon is the most famous star in the movie The Good Lie - but the real scene-stealers are her castmates. The drama, inspired by true events, recounts Sudan's second civil war and the stories of a few of the thousands of children it orphaned and displaced, who became known as the "Lost Boys." The Good Lie follows four refugees (played by Arnold Oceng, 28, Ger Duany, 35, Emmanuel Jal, 34, and Kuoth Wiel, 25) as they flee soldiers, walk hundreds of miles to a refugee camp and eventually relocate to the United States, where they struggle to reconcile their tragic pasts with a...

The Good Lie discussion moderated by Pen American Center president Peter Godwin Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Joanna Coles, Peter Godwin, Dr. Amanda Foreman, Gayle King, Diane Sawyer, Mike Nichols, George Stephanopoulos, Fareed Zakaria, Tina Brown and Sir Harold Evans with the Us Fund for Unicef, and Samantha Power, Us Ambassador to the United Nations, hosted a special screening of Philippe Falardeau's The Good Lie starring Reese Witherspoon, Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal and Kuoth Wiel with a screenplay by Margaret Nagle.

Soon-Yi Previn, Molly Smith, Trent Luckinbill, Karen Sherwood, Nile Rodgers, Lynn Stratford, John Prendergast, Chuck Scarborough, Ed Lloyd, Angelina Jacob, Jennifer Duneier, Felicia Taylor, Jill Martin, Bill Blakemore and Phyllis Lee were among those joining in with our hosts for the Warner Bros. screening at Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle near Central Park.

Screenwriter Margaret Nagle with The Good Lie star Kuoth Wiel: "And suddenly I hear,...

As the temps continue to fall, the studios inch closer to serious film time (and Oscar season) by releasing another movie with the nebulous ad line “inspired by true events”. That phrase has been attached to everything from the Nicholas Sparks adapted weeper The Vow to sports flicks such as Million Dollar Arm, often basing the story on just part of an incident. But for this new release the phrase could be amended to “inspired by ongoing true events”. Like 2011′s Machine Gun Preacher, this new film concerns the ongoing conflicts in the Sudan in North Africa. Now the title of this new film is somewhat ironic. It refers to a literary work read by one of the characters, but the title could also be a comment on the film’s marketing, which we’ll discuss a bit later. First let’s explore The Good Lie.

This begins a couple...

Halloween, pumpkin spice everything, and fall foliage (on the east coast) have descended upon us. But aside from those delights, other things to look forward to this fall season are great films! Here are 10 you might want to check out! “Annabelle,” Oct. 3“Before the conjuring, there was Annabelle.” As the prequel/spin-off to last year’s wildly successful horror film “The Conjuring,” director John R. Leonetti has taken the bone-chilling demonic doll in the movie and given her the spotlight. “Annabelle” hits theaters Oct. 3. “Gone Girl,” Oct. 3Directed by David Fincher, “Gone Girl”—based on the novel by Gillian Flynn—stars Ben Affleck, Neil Patrick Harris, Rosamund Pike, and Tyler Perry in a film about a man accused of having a hand in his wife’s disappearance and hits theaters Oct. 3. “The Good Lie,” Oct. 3“The Good Lie” tells the story of three Sudanese refugees (Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, and...

Arnold Oceng (Mamere), scriptwriter Margaret Nagle, and Kuoth Wiel (Abital) were in high spirits for the press junket of .The Good Lie. in Nashville. They are all proud of the film starring Reese Witherspoon. In this interview, we talked about the inspiration in writing .The Good Lie,. how Oceng got the part, and Kuoth.s passion to helping refugees. .The Good Lie. opens nationwide on Friday, October 3rd.

Official Synopis:

.The Good Lie.

They were known simply as "The Lost Boys." Orphaned by the brutal Civil war in Sudan that began in 1983, these young victims traveled as many as a thousand miles on foot in search of safety. Fifteen years later, a humanitarian effort would bring 3600 lost boys and girls to America. In "The Good Lie," Philippe Falardeau, (writer and director of the Oscar(R)- nominated Foreign Language film "Monsieur Lazhar") brings the story of their survival and triumph to life.

.The Good Lie. is a powerful movie about the strength of the human spirit. Reese Witherspoon is front and center in the film but the breakout stars are the Sudanese actors like Ger Duany playing the role of Jeremiah. Sitting next to him is comedienne Sarah Baker with Corey Stoll right beside her. In this interview, we talked about their interest in making the movie, Duany.s personal story, and what they want viewers to feel after watching the movie.

Even movie stars have regrets.

Et spent the weekend with Reese Witherspoon in her hometown of Nashville talking about her new movie The Good Lie, and she kept it real about some of her past red carpet moments.

Pic: Was Lea Michele's Dress a Bold Choice or Big Mistake?

"I was super into my shoes," Witherspoon said when confronted with a photo of herself at the Fear premiere in 1996. "Combat boots was like my thing."

Witherspoon has come a long way since then, as she went with a classic Dior number for The Good Lie premiere.

Witherspoon stars alongside Sudanese actors Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal and Nyakuoth Weil in The Good Lie, which tells the story of "The Lost Boys" -- children that were orphaned by the civil war in Sudan that began in 1983, forcing these young victims to travel as many as one thousand miles on foot in search of safety. Fifteen years later...

With two big films at the Toronto International Film Festival, it would be easy for that to get to your head, butReese Witherspoon was conscious that her film, The Good Lie, was bigger than herself: "This has nothing to do with you, Reese."

 

At the press conference for the film, French-Canadian director Philippe Falardeau (Monsieur Lazhar) agreed, and Witherspoon recalled a conversation where the director said, "I really like you and respect you, Reese, but this movie has nothing to do with that."

It's about the Lost Boys and Girls of South Sudan.

In The Good Lie, Witherspoon plays an American who is assigned to help four young Sudanese refugees (Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Kuoth Wiel, and Emmanuel Jal) who are relocating to the United States. The film also stars Corey Stoll (Midnight In Paris, "House of Cards"), and is produced by Ron Howard and Brian Glazer -- both of...

The producers of The Good Lie have established the Good Lie Fund, named for the upcoming feature drama from Alcon Entertainment, Imagine Entertainment, Black Label Media and Warner Bros. Pictures. The film is based upon the harrowing and inspirational real-life experiences of thousands of children impacted by war in Sudan.

The Good Lie Fund (www.thegoodliefund.org) was created to support the humanitarian and educational needs of those who have come to be universally known as the Lost Boys and Girls, uprooted and orphaned by the Sudanese Civil War that began in 1983. Its initial focus will be the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, which came into being to meet the first wave of survivors of the conflict—the majority of them children, alone, and on foot—and which currently houses thousands of refugees fleeing from continuing violence and unrest.

The Fund will also seek to raise worldwide awareness of the...

The 39th Toronto International Film Festival has announced its initial slate of galas and special presentations, which includes 37 world premieres and several films with Oscar ambitions. The Judge, which stars Robert Downey Jr. as a big-city lawyer who reluctantly returns home and ends up defending his revered father (Robert Duvall) against criminal charges, will have its world premiere in Toronto. His Avengers pal, Chris Evans, will unveil his own directorial debut in Toronto, titled Before We Go.

Also noteworthy: James Gandolfini’s final film, The Drop, which also stars Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace; another Jason Reitman Toronto world premiere,...

The Toronto International Film Festival announced its initial wave of 2014 premieres and galas this morning and it features some familiar awards titles, some big stars and some unexpected studio titles. Among the major studio films, David Dobkin's "The Judge" with Robert Downey Jr. and Antoine Fuqua's "The Equalizer" each received gala slots and should premiere over the festival's opening weekend. Other announced galas so far include Bennett Miller's acclaimed "Foxcatcher," which debuted at Cannes, and Mike Binder's "Black and White" starring Kevin Costner, Octavia Spencer and Anthony Mackie. Toronto has also scheduled special gala screenings for David Cronenberg's "Map to the Stars" with Julianne Moore and Robert Pattinson, François Ozon's "The New Girlfriend," Ed Zwick's "Pawn Sacrifice" with Tobey Maguire, Lone Scherfig's "The Riot Club," Jean-Marc Vallée's "Wild," Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano's "Samba" and Shawn Levy's "This is Where I Leave You...

For "The Good Lie," Academy Award-nominated director Philippe Falardeau ("Monsieur Lazhar") brings to the big screen the story of Sudanese "Lost Boys," escapees from the brutal civil war in Sudan who came to America. Starring Reese Witherspoon and Corey Stoll as the American hosts and Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal, Nyakouth Weil as the Sudanese orphans, "The Good Lie" is slated to hit theaters on October 3. An October release is, of course, a prime spot for an awards hopeful. Witherspoon has already won an Oscar (for Best Actress in "Walk The Line"), and Stoll earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination for his turn as Ernest Hemingway in "Midnight in Paris." Think this stands a chance of going the distance based on the trailer?...

With Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice, memoir adaptation Wild and drama The Good Lie all on the way this year, Reese Witherspoon’s message to Hollywood seems pretty simple: Oscar, please. And though Wild is shaping up to be her best chance of snagging a Best Actress nomination, The Good Lie is definitely the most blatantly obvious attempt to pull at voters’ heartstrings.

In the first trailer for the movie, Witherspoon, her hair dyed brown, plays a fiery woman who takes in three Sudanese refugees (played by Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany and Emmanuel Jal) and attempts to reunite them with their sister (Nyakuoth Weil). Though her character is less than knowledgable about the backgrounds of the trio, actually mixing up her African countries, she eventually learns some life lessons from helping the refugees.

It’s all blandly inspirational stuff, and I’m worried that The Good Lie will turn...

Reese Witherspoon stars in the feel good film on the fall – The Good Lie. Produced by Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, the movie opens in theaters on October 3rd.

They were known simply as “The Lost Boys.”

Orphaned by the brutal Civil war in Sudan that began in 1983, these young victims traveled as many as a thousand miles on foot in search of safety. Fifteen years later, a humanitarian effort would bring 3600 lost boys and girls to America.

In The Good Lie, Philippe Falardeau, (writer and director of the Oscar- nominated Foreign Language film “Monsieur Lazhar”) brings the story of their survival and triumph to life. Academy Award winner Reese Witherspoon (“Walk the Line”) stars alongside Sudanese actors Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal, and newcomer Nyakuoth Weil, many of whom were also children of war.

Mamere and Theo are sons of the Chief in their village in Southern Sudan.

Warner Brothers released the first trailer and poster for “The Good Lie” with Reese Witherspoon.

Here’s the synopsis:

They were known simply as “The Lost Boys.”Orphaned by the brutal Civil war in Sudan that began in 1983, these young victims traveled as many as a thousand miles on foot in search of safety. Fifteen years later, a humanitarian effort would bring 3600 lost boys and girls to America.

Sudanese actors Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal and Nyakouth Weil star alongside Witherspoon and Corey Stoll.

The director is Philippe Falardeau.

“The Good Lie” will be in theaters on October 3.

Check out the poster and trailer below.

Reese Witherspoon anchors the cast of true-story drama The Good Lie, about three Sudanese orphans who attempt to start new lives in the U.S. with the help of a brash American woman. Real-life Sudanese “Lost Boys” Ger Duany and Emmanuel Jal and Brit Arnold Oceng star opposite Witherspoon and Corey Stoll in director Philippe Falardeau’s pic from Alcon Entertainment, Imagine Entertainment and Black Label Media. Margaret Nagle wrote the screenplay beginning work on it ten years ago , seeing it hit the Blacklist, sit at Paramount for five years before finding life at Imagine and further financing at Alcon/ Black […]...

It's almost amazing how jaded we can become when we see a movie with a very heartwarming story and how it can almost turn us completely against it with how heavy-handed and stereotypical the story being told is. Here we have The Good Lie, which is essentially Reese Witherspoon taking the Sandra Bullock role in The Blind Side and instead of saving a troubled American teen, she's saving Sudanese refugees. It's all wonderful stuff, this is what we should all be doing, but when it's presented in such a glossy manner from the Hollywood machine it turns our stomachs a little bit. Now, whether you liked The Blind Side or not, I think most of us will admit it wasn't nearly as unpalatable as we expected it to be and the same might be said for The Good Lie, though they are certainly doing their best to hit your emotional core pretty hard,...

Warner Bros just unveiled the trailer for "The Good Lie," starring Reese Witherspoon and Corey Stoll, as well as Sudanese actors Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal, and Nyakuoth Weil, many of whom were children of war. Check out the trailer below. Plot: They were known simply as "The Lost Boys." Orphaned by the brutal Civil war in Sudan that began in 1983, these young victims traveled as many as a thousand miles on foot in search of safety. Fifteen years later, a humanitarian effort would bring 3,600 lost boys and girls to America. The new movie is directed by Philippe Falardeau, the writer and director of "Monsieur Lazhar," which was nominated for a Best Foreign Film Oscar. It's set to hit theaters on October 3rd. Trailer:...

Bounced around development after “Boardwalk Empire” writer Margaret Nagle turned in a buzzworthy script, the based-on-true-events drama “The Good Lie” is finally making its way to fruition, and with some further pedigree attached. “Monsieur Lazhar” director Philippe Falardeau will helm the pic with Reese Witherspoon in the lead, and now you can count two more noteworthy names toward the cast. Corey Stoll, fresh off an excellent turn as Congressman Peter Russo on “House of Cards,” has joined actress Sarah Baker (“The Campaign”) as the newest additions to the drama, which follows a young Sudanese refugee (Arnold Oceng) who, alongside three other boys, wins a chance for relocation to the U.S. While Baker's part has not yet been announced, Stoll will play the head of the employment agency set on helping the Sudanese boys in the States. Falardeau has also placed a host of new faces to play the Sudanese refugees -- Ger Duany,...

A documentary she's apparently been working on for about 2 years now, but I'm only just now learning about it... Kenyan director Wanuri Kahiu (probably known mostly for her Focus Features Africa First sci-fi short film Pumzi) is in post-production on a documentary titled Ger: To Be Separate, which chronicles South Sudanese actor, model and social activist, Ger Duany's journey from child soldier, to refugee, to Hollywood actor, and international model, and his amazing journey back home as he votes for the first time for a new Sudan and celebrates its division. The release of the documentary will mark the beginning of Ger’s mission to help rebuild his country,...