South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Emmanuel: Message of unity in film
Nathalie Emmanuel believes her new movie about safe-cracking thieves unlocks the right combination of complex characters and a wide-reaching story.
The British actor stars in “Army of Thieves” as one of the likable bandits who come together to break into three intricate vaults mythologized for being practically impenetrable.
The film is a prequel to Zack Snyder’s recent zombie flick, “Army of the Dead,” released in May. Emmanuel appreciates how the new movie again features an international cast of characters.
“There’s people from all over the world, from all different places and different backgrounds, and I think that it’s so easy to connect into that,” Emmanuel said.
“The apocalyptic, zombie thing, and there’s all these different people trying to negotiate it, and they just have to work together to survive . ... I think that’s also true in our little movie,” she said. “Even though it’s a completely different genre, we all have to work together.”
The movie, now on Netflix, is set at the beginning of a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, offering a distraction as the thieves begin their high-stakes mission in Europe.
Emmanuel, 32, portrays the sleek, pick-pocketing jewelry thief Gwendoline, who recruits Ludwig Dieter to be her team’s expert safe cracker.
“I really am drawn to women who are exceptional in my characters,” said Emmanuel, who also played handmaiden and interpreter Missandei on HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”
“I always love women who have a mad skill or
are really smart or have something really impressive about them. What was also great about (Gwendoline), though, is that she was very layered and had a lot of vulnerability, and much more to her than maybe is immediately sort of evident.”
The character of Dieter, who was featured in “Army of the Dead,” is again portrayed by Matthias Schweighofer, who also directed “Army of Thieves.” Snyder is a producer on the new film and co-created the story with screenwriter Shay Hatten.
Emmanuel saw similarities between her new film and the “Fast & Furious” movies, in which she portrays the hacker Ramsey.
“I’m also a part of another franchise that has this whole team dynamic, and we have our leader who we sort of all really look up to and respect,
and we have this sort of family setting in a way,” Emmanuel said. “But this family was a little more dysfunctional, a little bit less connected in the way that the ‘Fast’ movies tend to be.”
The film delves into Gwendoline’s back story, which Emmanuel believes makes her character easy to root for on her bankrobbing journey.
“There’s something about going for those big establishments, those big systems of power, like banks,” Emmanuel said.
Nov. 7 birthdays: Actor Barry Newman is 83. Actor Dakin Matthews is 81. Singer Johnny Rivers is 79. Singer Joni Mitchell is 78. Actor Christopher Knight is 64. Actor Julie Pinson is 54. Actor Michelle Clunie is 52. Actors Jason and Jeremy London is 49. Actor Yunjin Kim is 48. Rapper Tinie Tempah is 33. Singer Lorde is 25.