It’s a little frightening at first when you realize you have… other desires, you know? How do you admit something like that to the person that most completes you? But if you cross the line together, and you’re honest with each other, it can bring you closer.”
- Lila

Check out this great HD video clip of Tricia Helfer and co-star Stephen Moyer in a scene from debuting director Andrew Paquin’s home invasion thriller, Open House. Lionsgate will be releasing the film on Region 1 / North American DVD and Blu-Ray August 3.

New Photo Albums:

• Film Work > ‘Open House’ (2010) Screen Captures – Movie Clip 1

Have a look at this great Examiner.com interview with Tricia Helfer from the April Tribeca Film Festival, in which she talks about her most recent onscreen work, including Open House, Dark Blue and A Beginner’s Guide to Endings, and how e.g. Battlestar Galactica has influenced her as an actress. Full article under the cut.

A perfect word to describe Canadian-born actress Tricia Helfer would be ‘versatile’. For looking at the roles she has played, versatile is what’s seen in Helfer’s acting range. Most known for her character in the Battlestar Galatica series, Helfer has played a variety of characters, including portraying the late Farrah Fawcett in the 2004 NBC television film Behind the Camera :The Unauthorized Story of ‘Charlie’s Angels’. The former model has recently joined the cast of Dark Blue for their second season. The way Helfer describes her eclectic new role in the TNT drama once again presents her versatile talent as an actress. She recently discussed with me the fun she’s having with the part, as well as her thoughts on her leading role in the new thriller Open House, which brought her to this year’s Tribeca Film Festival for its premiere.

You’re currently at the Tribeca Film Festival for the premiere of your new film Open House. How is the Film Festival? Is this your first time there?
Tricia – It’s my first time at the festival so it’s quite exciting. The premiere was last night and I think it went over pretty well. I’m just excited to be here in Tribeca. Really looking forward to seeing what happens with Open House.

What most appealed to you about the part of Lila in Open House?
Tricia – What I liked about Lila, what appealed to me in the script was there was more layer to the character than just being evil, seductive serial killer, kind of one note, icy so to speak. I saw when I read as just a real truth, psychosis, to the character and I wanted to try to portray that. You know you don’t expect her to have vulnerabilities but when she’s by herself you do see some glimpses of vulnerabilities in this narcissistic character.

How did this part challenge you differently from any other parts you’ve played?
Tricia – It was great working with Brian Geraghty, he is the playoff between the two of us. We’re playing siblings and his character kept his emotions in and was very reserved in many ways until he lashed out. And it was a very dominate sort of relationship. So I think one of the challenges was playing with him and finding the right balance of the Lila character, who’s very strong and out there and outspoken. Definitely the dominant. And just her having to react to her brother and how she shows love to him but controlling him.

(Continue reading…)

We have a very special, rare treat for you today! We’ve just finished updating the gallery with two small promotional stills as well as 1,017 very rare site-exclusive TV screen captures of Tricia Helfer as Julia “Jules” Carver in the 2009 made-for-TV thriller, Hidden Crimes, co-starring Jonathan Scarfe, Kristen Holden-Ried and James Gallanders. The film, as directed by Philippe Gagnon, debuted on Canadian pay-television already spring last year, but there has since been very little to report on it, news- or media-wise.

Apparently, though, the film has been in circulation in places on European television, and we were therefore able to get our hands on a Russian-language copy of it. However, because the film was dubbed in Russian, there isn’t a lot we can say on the specifics of the movie except that Tricia appears very natural in her role as Julia.

Synopsis from Hallmark Channel:

When Julia Carver receives a letter from her imprisoned brother Max, she soon discovers that it is the first in a series of clues meant to lead her to the nearly $20 million Max stole from a Philadelphia bank. It also places Julia square in the path of Max’s cut-throat accomplices intent on retrieving their money at any cost. They kidnap Max’s son Steven, forcing Julia to engage the help of her brother’s best friend Kurt, as she races to find the hidden millions and save the boy’s life.

Enjoy the new photos!

New Photo Albums:

• Film Work > ‘Hidden Crimes’ (2009) Movie Screen Captures
• Film Work > ‘Hidden Crimes’ (2009) Promotional Stills

More DVD news! Straight.com reports Mark Leiren-Young’s faux-documentary about environmental activism in Canada, The Green Chain, in which Tricia Helfer stars as actress Leila Cole, will be released on Region 1 / North American DVD June 8. You can pre-order your copy via Amazon.ca.

Although The Green Chain was filmed as far back as in 2007, it did not receive a theatrical release until Spring 2009 in Canada. Babz Chula, Jillian Fargey, Brendan Fletcher, Scott McNeil as well as Tricia’s Battlestar Galactica co-star Tahmoh Penikett also star.

According to Amazon.com’s product listings, Andrew Paquin’s home invasion thriller Open House, in which Tricia Helfer stars as Lila opposite Brian Geraghty, Rachel Blanchard, Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin, will be released on Region 1 / North American DVD and Blu-Ray August 3 2010. Both the DVD and Blu-Ray are available for pre-order via their store at $23.99 and $26.99 respectively. As of yet, there is no word on a Region 2 / European release. This means, however, that Open House is going straight to DVD in the U.S.

New Photo Albums:

• Film Work > ‘Open House’ (2010) Posters & Promotional Photography

Check out this lovely little interview Tricia Helfer recently did for Self Magazine’s Self.com, in which she talks a little bit about her work on Dark Blue, Syfy’s Battlestar Galactica as well as her most recent film work. Although nothing particularly new is brought up regarding either project, it’s a cute little interview nonetheless. Have a look:

Check out this first trailer from the Internet Movie Database for writer-director Jonathan Sobol’s feature film debut, A Beginner’s Guide to Endings, in which Tricia Helfer stars opposite Harvey Keitel, Scott Caan, J.K. Simmons and Paulo Costanzo. Although the trailer focuses mainly on the key characters, Tricia is featured in a couple of shots — the first look we’ve had at her in her as-of-yet untitled role.

Unfortunately, the video can’t be embedded here at this point, so please head over to the Internet Movie Database to watch it. A couple of screen captures of Tricia’s shots have also been uploaded to the gallery — big thanks to Roberta @ Kate Winslet Fan for her help with these.

In related news, another one of Tricia’s upcoming films, Phase One, which was announced as far back as in November 2009, has at last gotten an Internet Movie Database-page. Although the page doesn’t provide us with a lot of information that we didn’t already know, Tricia’s character does now have a name – “Dr. Wilcox”.

Neither film has yet to our knowledge an exact release date.

New Photo Albums:

• Film Work > ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Endings’ (2010) Trailer Screen Captures

Just as we received the news that Open House has landed a U.S. distribution deal (which, however, looks to be a straight-to-DVD release, if the trailer credits are anything to go by), we get the first trailer for the film. As most of you will know, Tricia Helfer stars in the Andrew Paquin-directed and penned thriller as Lila, the second half of a pair of vicious killers, and this is the first proper look we’ve had at her in the film. Check it out below:

The gallery has of course been updated with screen caps from the trailer, as well as with a new promotional still and behind-the-scenes shot of Tricia in the movie. Be sure to have a look at them as well!

New & Updated Photo Albums:

• Film Work > ‘Open House’ (2010) On Set – Unsorted Dates
• Film Work > ‘Open House’ (2010) Promotional Stills
• Film Work > ‘Open House’ (2010) Trailer Screen Captures

Variety reports writer-director Andrew Paquin’s home invasion thriller Open House has landed a U.S. distribution deal. The indie production starring Tricia Helfer as Lila opposite Brian Geraghty and Rachel Blanchard has been looking for distribution since its April world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. From Variety:

Grindstone Entertainment has picked up all domestic distribution rights to Open House starring Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer and Rachel Blanchard, Brian Geraghty and Tricia Helfer.

The pic is helmed by Pacquin’s brother, Andrew, and is about a woman played by Blanchard who is kidnapped and held captive in her own home by two sociopaths played by Geraghty and Helfer during an open house event.

Since Saturday’s Open House world premiere at the 9th Annual Tribeca Film Festival, Cinematical is the first movie blog to post a festival review on the film on their website. Although very insightful and detailed a review per se, unfortunately for us, it isn’t very positive.

Although Cinematical critic Christopher Campbell seems to himself have enjoyed some of what the film has to offer, according to him “a lot of people walked out of the press screening,” which doesn’t really bode well for the film, especially when it’s looking for distribution. He furthermore brings up lead actors Brian Geraghty and Tricia Helfer as the “talents” of the film, but at the same time makes a point of the similarities between Tricia’s Lila and Battlestar Galactica’s seductive Six.

Read the review in full at Cinematical, excerpts follow:

I hear a whole lot of people walked out of the press screening for Open House, which I find very surprising. Maybe it’s just that I am not a regular viewer of — nor a fan of, really — the home invasion subgenre, but compared to what I have seen (including the original Funny Games, The Strangers and I guess Panic Room counts?), it wasn’t that much worse. In fact, there’s plenty that I enjoyed in Open House, including the creepy performance by Brian Geraghty (The Hurt Locker), the refreshingly minimal amount of torture/abuse and the slow, suspenseful pacing of the familiar yet nonetheless mysterious plot.

Written and directed by Andrew Paquin (brother of Anna, who appears briefly, as does her True Blood co-star and fiancee, Stephen Moyer), the thriller takes us exclusively into the setting of an on-the-market L.A. home — including the hot tub in the backyard — which has been hijacked by a couple of killers (Geraghty and Tricia Helfer). David arrives first, slashing a house guest before abducting the home owner, Alice (Rachel Blanchard), and hiding her away in a basement crawl space. Soon, his female accomplice, Lila, joins him in taking over the residence and murdering any friends, house cleaners or whomever else decides to or is invited to drop by.

During the day, Lila goes off to someplace (work? the mall?) as David writes from home. He brings Alice out of her prison and allows her to sit in the room while he works, and he tells her that if Lila finds out she’s not dead, she will be. Why has David kept her alive? That’s one of the film’s many mysteries, some of which are disappointingly never explained. There are also a few too many unanswered questions in the form of plot holes, but isn’t that to be expected with horror thrillers these days? In his directorial debut, Paquin is certainly not the second-coming of Hitchcock, whose films were the biggest inspiration for Open House (he also cited American Beauty as an influence at the premiere’s post-screening Q&A).

The film mostly functions as a centerpiece for the talents of Geraghty and Helfer, though the latter gives a carbon copy of her performance as Six on Battlestar Galactica (at least in the first season, which is all I’ve seen). She’s domineering and manipulative, basically unlikeable in every way save for her beauty, which she uses for a few just-before-the-kill seductions. David, on the other hand, is your typical shy, quiet, could-be-sympathized-with serial killer who Alice attempts to turn good — or at least good enough to turn on his partner. And Geraghty plays him terrifically as a mix of Norman Bates and Crispin Glover, with a little bit of Rolf from The Sound of Music for that Aryan boy look. [...]

Home invasion thriller Open House is the directorial debut of True Blood actress Anna Paquin’s brother Andrew, and stars Tricia Helfer as Lila opposite Brian Geraghty and Rachel Blanchard.