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Alex Garland is a Director, Scriptwriter, Executive Producer and Co-Director born on 26 may 1970 at London (United-kingdom)

Alex Garland

Alex Garland
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Birth name Alexander Medawar Garland
Birth 26 may 1970 (53 years) at London (United-kingdom)

Alexander Medawar "Alex" Garland (born 1 January 1970) is an English novelist, screenwriter and film producer.

Biography

Débuts comme romancier
Alex Garland étudie l'histoire de l'art à l'University College School d'Hampstead, puis à l'université de Manchester.

À partir de son expérience de routard, il écrit un premier roman, La Plage (1996), qui obtient un gros succès et est adapté en 2000 au cinéma sous le même titre par Danny Boyle, avec Leonardo DiCaprio.

Le second roman de Garland, Tesseract est publié en 1999. Le livre raconte en les entrelaçant la vie d'habitants de Manille choisis parmi les gangsters, les femmes au foyer et les enfants des rues qui peuplent la ville. Le titre désigne en anglais un cube à 4 dimensions qui symbolise notre incapacité à appréhender la complexité du monde au-delà de notre propre existence. Ce livre a également été adapté au cinéma par Oxide Pang Chun, sorti en 2003.

En 2002 sort le film de zombies britannique 28 jours plus tard, toujours réalisé par Danny Boyle. Garland est l'auteur du scénario et y officie comme producteur exécutif. Le film connait un large succès critique et commercial surprise.

Le Coma, publié en 2004, raconte l'histoire d'un homme tombé dans le coma après avoir été battu par une bande de jeunes alors qu'il tentait de protéger une jeune femme. Après sa sortie du coma, le héros narrateur tente de remettre de l'ordre dans sa vie en se demandant s'il est vraiment réveillé ou s'il est simplement en train de rêver. Le roman est illustré par des estampes réalisées par Nicholas Garland, le père de l'écrivain. Le roman a été critiqué pour son format plutôt court pour une œuvre vendue aux prix classiquement appliqués pour des ouvrages plus longs. Il a cependant reçu un bon accueil critique, notamment en raison de sa façon élégante de traiter un sujet assez complexe. La brièveté du roman renforce en outre les impressions qu'il engendre et l'ambiance oppressante qui s'en dégage. Par certains côtés, Le Coma se rapproche du fantastique.

Garland se consacre ensuite à sa carrière dans le cinéma.


Carrière hollywoodienne
Danny Boyle et Alex Garland débarquent à Hollywood où ils développent un film de science-fiction, intitulé Sunshine. Là encore, Boyle met en scène un script signé Garland. Doté d'un casting international - Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Rose Byrne, Michelle Yeoh et Cliff Curtis - le film sort en 2007 mais déçoit commercialement. Les critiques sont cependant positives.

La même année sort la suite 28 semaines plus tard, dont la réalisation a été confiée à Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. Garland et Boyle se contentent de produire ce succès critique et commercial, dont la conclusion appelle un dernier chapitre.

Garland entame ensuite une carrière en solo. Il commence par se diversifier : en 2009, il écrit un épisode de la série d'animation Batman : Black & White, et écrit pour des jeux vidéo, comme Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, sorti le 8 octobre 2010.

Il signe une première version du scénario de l'adaptation cinématographique du jeu vidéo Halo, qui n'aboutit pas. Cependant, en 2010, il écrit et produit le drame de science-fiction Auprès de moi toujours. Le long-métrage est réalisé par Mark Romanek, et porté par un trio de jeunes acteur anglais : Keira Knightley, et les valeurs montantes Carey Mulligan et Andrew Garfield.

En 2012, il écrit et produit le thriller de science-fiction Dredd, de Pete Travis. Ce remake à moyen budget du film éponyme connaît une production difficile. Le studio Lionsgate aurait décidé d'écarter Pete Travis, confiant à Garland lui-même le travail de mise en scène et de post-production. Le film n'est pas rentabilisé commercialement, mais les critiques sont très bonnes.

En 2014, Garland signe sa première réalisation officielle avec le thriller psychologique de science-fiction Ex machina, qui révèle au grand public Alicia Vikander.

Il confirme en 2017 avec un autre thriller d'anticipation, intitulé Annihilation, avec Natalie Portman en tête d'affiche, mais disponible exclusivement sur la plateforme Netflix.

Son prochain projet est une série télévisée pour la chaîne FX, intitulée Devs, qui suit une jeune ingénieur informatique enquêtant sur la mystérieuse société spécialisée dans la haute-technologie, qui l'emploie.

Best films

The Beach (2000)
(Novel)
Ex Machina (2015)
(Director)

Usually with

Ian Tapp
Ian Tapp
(5 films)
Danny Boyle
Danny Boyle
(4 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Alex Garland (10 films)

Display filmography as list

Director

Annihilation, 1h55
Directed by Alex Garland
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller, Fantasy, Adventure, Horror
Themes Films based on science fiction novels, Films about extraterrestrial life, Alien invasions in films
Actors Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez-LoCicero, Oscar Isaac, Tessa Thompson, Tuva Novotny
Rating67% 3.395543.395543.395543.395543.39554
Lena, biologiste et ancienne militaire, participe à une mission d'exploration destinée à comprendre ce qui est arrivé à son mari dans une zone géographique où un mystérieux et sinistre phénomène se propage le long des côtes américaines. Une fois sur place, les membres de l’expédition découvrent que paysages et créatures ont subi des mutations, et malgré la beauté des lieux, le danger règne et menace leur vie, mais aussi leur intégrité mentale.
Ex Machina
Ex Machina (2015)
, 1h48
Directed by Alex Garland
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller
Themes Films about computing, Robot films
Actors Oscar Isaac, Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Corey Johnson, Sonoya Mizuno, Deborah Rosan
Rating76% 3.84863.84863.84863.84863.8486
Caleb is a programmer for Bluebook, the world's most popular search engine. He wins a one-week visit to the secluded high-security home of the company's CEO, Nathan. The only other person there is Kyoko, a housemaid who does not speak; Nathan says that for security reasons he hired someone who knows no English.
Dredd
Dredd (2012)
, 1h35
Directed by Alex Garland, Pete Travis, Andrew Macdonald
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Science fiction, Action
Themes L'action se déroule en une journée, Films about computing, Medical-themed films, Post-apocalyptic films, Films about drugs, Films set in the future, Superhero films, Political films, Cyberpunk films, Dystopian films
Actors Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Wood Harris, Lena Headey, Domhnall Gleeson, DeObia Oparei
Rating70% 3.5477453.5477453.5477453.5477453.547745
The future United States is a dystopic irradiated wasteland known as the Cursed Earth. On the east coast lies Mega-City One, a violent metropolis with 800 million residents and 17,000 crimes reported daily. The only force for order are the Judges, who act as judge, jury and executioner. Judge Dredd is tasked by the Chief Judge with evaluating new recruit Cassandra Anderson, a powerful psychic who failed the aptitude tests to be a Judge.

Scriptwriter

Annihilation, 1h55
Directed by Alex Garland
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller, Fantasy, Adventure, Horror
Themes Films based on science fiction novels, Films about extraterrestrial life, Alien invasions in films
Actors Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez-LoCicero, Oscar Isaac, Tessa Thompson, Tuva Novotny
Rating67% 3.395543.395543.395543.395543.39554
Lena, biologiste et ancienne militaire, participe à une mission d'exploration destinée à comprendre ce qui est arrivé à son mari dans une zone géographique où un mystérieux et sinistre phénomène se propage le long des côtes américaines. Une fois sur place, les membres de l’expédition découvrent que paysages et créatures ont subi des mutations, et malgré la beauté des lieux, le danger règne et menace leur vie, mais aussi leur intégrité mentale.
Ex Machina
Ex Machina (2015)
, 1h48
Directed by Alex Garland
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller
Themes Films about computing, Robot films
Actors Oscar Isaac, Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Corey Johnson, Sonoya Mizuno, Deborah Rosan
Roles Writer
Rating76% 3.84863.84863.84863.84863.8486
Caleb is a programmer for Bluebook, the world's most popular search engine. He wins a one-week visit to the secluded high-security home of the company's CEO, Nathan. The only other person there is Kyoko, a housemaid who does not speak; Nathan says that for security reasons he hired someone who knows no English.
Dredd
Dredd (2012)
, 1h35
Directed by Alex Garland, Pete Travis, Andrew Macdonald
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Science fiction, Action
Themes L'action se déroule en une journée, Films about computing, Medical-themed films, Post-apocalyptic films, Films about drugs, Films set in the future, Superhero films, Political films, Cyberpunk films, Dystopian films
Actors Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Wood Harris, Lena Headey, Domhnall Gleeson, DeObia Oparei
Rating70% 3.5477453.5477453.5477453.5477453.547745
The future United States is a dystopic irradiated wasteland known as the Cursed Earth. On the east coast lies Mega-City One, a violent metropolis with 800 million residents and 17,000 crimes reported daily. The only force for order are the Judges, who act as judge, jury and executioner. Judge Dredd is tasked by the Chief Judge with evaluating new recruit Cassandra Anderson, a powerful psychic who failed the aptitude tests to be a Judge.
Never Let Me Go, 1h43
Directed by Mark Romanek
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller, Romance
Themes Clonage, Political films, Dystopian films, Alternate history films
Actors Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield, Izzy Meikle-Small, Élisabeth Ventura, Sally Hawkins
Rating70% 3.5481953.5481953.5481953.5481953.548195
The film begins with on-screen captions explaining that a medical breakthrough in 1952 has permitted the human lifespan to be extended beyond 100 years. It is narrated by 28-year-old Kathy H (Carey Mulligan) as she reminisces about her childhood at a boarding school called Hailsham, as well as her adult life after leaving the school. The first act of the film depicts the young Kathy (Izzy Meikle-Small), along with her friends Tommy (Charlie Rowe) and Ruth (Ella Purnell), spending their childhood at Hailsham in the late 1970s. The students are encouraged to create artwork, and their best work gets into The Gallery run by a mysterious woman known only as Madame (Nathalie Richard). One day, a new teacher, Miss Lucy (Sally Hawkins) quietly informs the students of their fate; they are destined to be organ donors and will die, or "complete", in their early adulthood. Shortly afterward she is sacked by the headmistress (Charlotte Rampling) for her revelation. As time passes, Kathy falls in love with Tommy, but Ruth and Tommy begin a relationship and stay together throughout the rest of their time at Hailsham.
Sunshine
Sunshine (2007)
, 1h47
Directed by Danny Boyle
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller, Adventure, Horror
Themes Space adventure films, Films about religion, Dans l'espace, Films set in the future, Space opera
Actors Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Rose Byrne, Michelle Yeoh, Cliff Curtis, Troy Garity
Rating71% 3.5983153.5983153.5983153.5983153.598315
In 2057, the failure of the sun starts a solar winter and threatens Earth. Humanity, in an attempt to reignite it, loads a massive stellar bomb onto a spaceship named Icarus II. The ship is the second and final attempt to save mankind, as the first mission, the Icarus I, was lost seven years previously for reasons unknown.
The Tesseract, 1h32
Directed by Oxide Pang et Danny Pang
Genres Drama, Thriller
Actors Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Saskia Reeves, Alexander Rendell, Carlo Monni
Roles Novel
Rating52% 2.603422.603422.603422.603422.60342
Sean, a runner for a drug gang, has checked into room 303 at the seedy, rundown Heaven Hotel in Bangkok, to await arrival of a package of heroin. Another guest is Rosa, psychologist who is researching slum children, on the floor below (room 202). In the next room, 203, is Lita, a female assassin who is waiting to intercept the package Sean is waiting for. Tying them all together, is the 13-year-old bellboy, Wit, a streetwise, light-fingered kid.
28 Days Later, 1h53
Directed by Danny Boyle
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Science fiction, Thriller, Horror, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction
Themes La fin du monde, Medical-themed films, Post-apocalyptic films, Films about religion, Films about terrorism, Films set in the future, Zombie films, Films about viral outbreaks, Catastrophe épidémiologique, Political films, Dystopian films, Children's films, Disaster films, Eco-terrorism in fiction
Actors Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, Christopher Dunne
Roles Story
Rating74% 3.747943.747943.747943.747943.74794
In Cambridge, three animal liberation activists break into a medical research laboratory with the intent of freeing captive chimpanzees. They are interrupted by a scientist, who desperately warns them that the chimps are infected with a highly contagious rage-inducing virus that is spread through blood and saliva. Ignoring the scientist's pleas, the activists release a chimpanzee, who attacks one of them and immediately infects her — leading her to attack and infect everyone else present.
The Beach
The Beach (2000)
, 1h55
Directed by Danny Boyle
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Thriller, Action, Adventure, Romance
Themes Medical-themed films, Seafaring films, Films about drugs, Transport films, Le thème des vacances, Road movies, Children's films
Actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Virginie Ledoyen, Guillaume Canet, Robert Carlyle, Tilda Swinton, Paterson Joseph
Roles Novel
Rating65% 3.298913.298913.298913.298913.29891
Richard (Leonardo DiCaprio), a young American man with a love of world travel, arrives in Bangkok, Thailand in search of adventure. At his guesthouse he briefly meets Daffy (Robert Carlyle), a mentally disturbed Scottish traveler who tells him of a pristine island in the Gulf of Thailand, uninhabited and forbidden, on which there lies a beautiful hidden beach and lagoon - walled in by cliffs and untouched by the tourist industry. He explains in vague terms that he settled there in secret with a group of others, but that difficulties arose and he chose to leave. Later, Richard finds a hand-drawn map showing the island's location left for him; he then enters Daffy's room to find him dead by suicide.

Producer

Big Game
Big Game (2015)
, 1h50
Directed by Jalmari Helander
Origin Finlande
Genres Thriller, Action, Adventure
Themes La fin du monde, Films about terrorism, Political films, Disaster films, Films about aviation accidents or incidents
Actors Samuel L. Jackson, Ray Stevenson, Ted Levine, Jim Broadbent, Victor Garber, Felicity Huffman
Roles Executive Producer
Rating54% 2.70162.70162.70162.70162.7016
When Air Force One is shot down by terrorists leaving the President of the United States William Allan Moore (Samuel L. Jackson) stranded in the wilderness of Finland, there is only one person around who can save him: a 13-year-old boy called Oskari (Onni Tommila). In the forest on a hunting mission to prove his maturity to his kinsfolk, Oskari had been planning to track down a deer, but instead discovers the most powerful man on the planet in an escape pod. With the terrorists closing in to capture their own "Big Game" prize while Pentagon officials watch on satellite broadcast—including the Vice President (Victor Garber), the CIA director (Felicity Huffman), and former CIA field operative Herbert (Jim Broadbent), brought in as a consultant—the unlikely duo must team up to escape their hunters.
Dredd
Dredd (2012)
, 1h35
Directed by Alex Garland, Pete Travis, Andrew Macdonald
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Science fiction, Action
Themes L'action se déroule en une journée, Films about computing, Medical-themed films, Post-apocalyptic films, Films about drugs, Films set in the future, Superhero films, Political films, Cyberpunk films, Dystopian films
Actors Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Wood Harris, Lena Headey, Domhnall Gleeson, DeObia Oparei
Roles Producer
Rating70% 3.5477453.5477453.5477453.5477453.547745
The future United States is a dystopic irradiated wasteland known as the Cursed Earth. On the east coast lies Mega-City One, a violent metropolis with 800 million residents and 17,000 crimes reported daily. The only force for order are the Judges, who act as judge, jury and executioner. Judge Dredd is tasked by the Chief Judge with evaluating new recruit Cassandra Anderson, a powerful psychic who failed the aptitude tests to be a Judge.
Never Let Me Go, 1h43
Directed by Mark Romanek
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller, Romance
Themes Clonage, Political films, Dystopian films, Alternate history films
Actors Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield, Izzy Meikle-Small, Élisabeth Ventura, Sally Hawkins
Roles Executive Producer
Rating70% 3.5481953.5481953.5481953.5481953.548195
The film begins with on-screen captions explaining that a medical breakthrough in 1952 has permitted the human lifespan to be extended beyond 100 years. It is narrated by 28-year-old Kathy H (Carey Mulligan) as she reminisces about her childhood at a boarding school called Hailsham, as well as her adult life after leaving the school. The first act of the film depicts the young Kathy (Izzy Meikle-Small), along with her friends Tommy (Charlie Rowe) and Ruth (Ella Purnell), spending their childhood at Hailsham in the late 1970s. The students are encouraged to create artwork, and their best work gets into The Gallery run by a mysterious woman known only as Madame (Nathalie Richard). One day, a new teacher, Miss Lucy (Sally Hawkins) quietly informs the students of their fate; they are destined to be organ donors and will die, or "complete", in their early adulthood. Shortly afterward she is sacked by the headmistress (Charlotte Rampling) for her revelation. As time passes, Kathy falls in love with Tommy, but Ruth and Tommy begin a relationship and stay together throughout the rest of their time at Hailsham.
28 Weeks Later, 1h31
Directed by Danny Boyle, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, Andrew Macdonald
Origin Espagne
Genres Science fiction, Thriller, Action, Horror, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction
Themes La fin du monde, Medical-themed films, Post-apocalyptic films, Films about religion, Films set in the future, Zombie films, Films about viral outbreaks, Catastrophe épidémiologique, Political films, Dystopian films, Children's films, Disaster films
Actors Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Lee Renner, Harold Perrineau, Jr., Garfield Morgan, Catherine McCormack
Roles Executive Producer
Rating68% 3.447823.447823.447823.447823.44782
During the original outbreak of the Rage Virus, Don, his wife Alice, and four other survivors hide in a barricaded cottage on the outskirts of London. They hear a terrified boy pounding at their door, and let him in. A few minutes later, they discover that the infected have followed the boy to them. The infected attack and kill most of the survivors, while Don, Alice, and the boy are chased upstairs. Don is separated from Alice and when the boy is seen hiding in the closet. Alice rushes to get the boy, while Don tells her to just leave him. Soon the infected break into the room and after Alice pleading with Don to "help us", he decides to leave, abandoning them. Don desperately sprints to a nearby motorboat and narrowly escapes.