1) Mad Max: Fury Road
2) Son of Saul
3) Carol
4) Ex Machina
5) It Follows
6) Tangerine
7) Inside Out
8) Victoria
9) The Hateful Eight
9) The Revenant
10) Amy
12) Star Wars: The Force Awakens
13) Steve Jobs
14) Heart of A Dog
15) The Tribe
16) Straight Outta Compton
17) Room
18) Mustang
Thoughts on Inarritu's cinema, more specifcally his visual style
In the last decade he's directed two Oscar-heralded movies ("Birdman" and "The Revenant"), but Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu has been making movies for almost two decades now.
His unique visual style and grim subject matters have made an impact on cinema ever since his astonishing 2000 debut "Amores Perros" (translated to "Love is a Bitch.") He doesn't shy away from making you feel the suffering and emotional of his characters, and boy do they suffer: in "Biutiful" Uxbal (Javier Bardem) is a father of two, with a manic depressive wife, living in a crime-riden Barcelona, that finds out he has terminal cancer. In "21 Grams" Paul (Sean Penn) is a terminally ill mathematician that strikes a friendship with the grieving Cristina (Naomi Watts) who has just lost a child. "Babel" had a Japanese girl dealing with rejection, the death of her mother, and a disability and, of course, last year's "The Revenant" had an Oscar-winning Leonardo Dicaprio getting torturted, mauled, shot, frozen and stabbed. Welcome to Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's world where almost no one can escape the wrath of every day life.
His focus on stark, honest, and frequently brutal side of humanity could be seen as ponderous or even pretentious by some, but Inarritu surrounded it all with an immaculate palette of visual wonder. The gritty, handheld filmmaking that invaded the first half of his career, alongside his four-film partnership with cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto ("Amores Perros," "21 Grams", "Babel" and "Bitutiful") conjured up images that were as ugly as they were beautiful. There was a titilating sense of out of controlness to his camera that lent itself exceptionally well to the content.of the story. His use of color during this time-period was very interesting, with a red-soaked imagery influenced by the magical realism of Latin American literature.
Then came along "Birdman" and "The Revenant", but more importantly, his newly-formed partnership with cinematographer extraordinaire Emmanuel Lubezki. To say this enhanced the visual imagery that Inarritu could convey through his camera would be an understatement. Lubezki brought a whole new level of artistry to Inarritu's art with rhythmic long takes and surrealist imagery. Their use of visual elements mixed with special FX created something horrifying, engaging, and kind of beautiful that also never felt forced. What they created was a new language for cinema, one in which the cinematographer had as much of a role in the creative process as the director.
A well-crafted video edit of the work Inarritu has done these past 16 years was created by Vulgar Efendi Films. It juxtaposes the haunting beauty that comes with the Mexican-born director's work. It's a well-done summation and tribute to a filmmaker that continues to try and break boundaries with his craft and produce one artistic statement after another.
His unique visual style and grim subject matters have made an impact on cinema ever since his astonishing 2000 debut "Amores Perros" (translated to "Love is a Bitch.") He doesn't shy away from making you feel the suffering and emotional of his characters, and boy do they suffer: in "Biutiful" Uxbal (Javier Bardem) is a father of two, with a manic depressive wife, living in a crime-riden Barcelona, that finds out he has terminal cancer. In "21 Grams" Paul (Sean Penn) is a terminally ill mathematician that strikes a friendship with the grieving Cristina (Naomi Watts) who has just lost a child. "Babel" had a Japanese girl dealing with rejection, the death of her mother, and a disability and, of course, last year's "The Revenant" had an Oscar-winning Leonardo Dicaprio getting torturted, mauled, shot, frozen and stabbed. Welcome to Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's world where almost no one can escape the wrath of every day life.
His focus on stark, honest, and frequently brutal side of humanity could be seen as ponderous or even pretentious by some, but Inarritu surrounded it all with an immaculate palette of visual wonder. The gritty, handheld filmmaking that invaded the first half of his career, alongside his four-film partnership with cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto ("Amores Perros," "21 Grams", "Babel" and "Bitutiful") conjured up images that were as ugly as they were beautiful. There was a titilating sense of out of controlness to his camera that lent itself exceptionally well to the content.of the story. His use of color during this time-period was very interesting, with a red-soaked imagery influenced by the magical realism of Latin American literature.
Then came along "Birdman" and "The Revenant", but more importantly, his newly-formed partnership with cinematographer extraordinaire Emmanuel Lubezki. To say this enhanced the visual imagery that Inarritu could convey through his camera would be an understatement. Lubezki brought a whole new level of artistry to Inarritu's art with rhythmic long takes and surrealist imagery. Their use of visual elements mixed with special FX created something horrifying, engaging, and kind of beautiful that also never felt forced. What they created was a new language for cinema, one in which the cinematographer had as much of a role in the creative process as the director.
A well-crafted video edit of the work Inarritu has done these past 16 years was created by Vulgar Efendi Films. It juxtaposes the haunting beauty that comes with the Mexican-born director's work. It's a well-done summation and tribute to a filmmaker that continues to try and break boundaries with his craft and produce one artistic statement after another.
Thoughts on Malick and how the "Voyage of Time" trailer landed with a bang!
I did suffer through Terrence Malick's "Knight of Cups", after one hour I really wanted mercy, and my final statement on that film is that it is an utter failure on all fronts except the cinematography by Lubeszki. It's a trifle that goes nowhere and yet panders to its audience in such unexpected ways. The self-congratulatory nature of Malick's hand here is disturbingly bad and after "To The Wonder", which was another unwatchable blunder, I think most of us are starting to get worried about Malick. Has he lost his touch? Well considering "Voyage of Time" has been pretty much in the books since 2011, or so, then there's a good chance it could still be very good. He only lost his way starting in 2012 + this looks more like a doc than a fiction film.
Two versions will be released, one a 40 minute IMAX extravaganza narrated by Cate Blanchett, the other a feature length film shot on 35mm an narrated by Brad Pitt.
He also has "Weightless" possibly coming out this fall, Wikipedia describes: Weightless is an upcoming American drama film written and directed by Terrence Malick, starring an ensemble cast including Ryan Gosling,Christian Bale, Natalie Portman, Rooney Mara, Cate Blanchett, Val Kilmer, Clifton Collins Jr., Benicio del Toro, and Michael Fassbender. The film will be released on October 21, 2016 by Broad Green Pictures. Two intersecting love triangles. Obsession and betrayal set against the music scene in Austin, Texas.
Judgement Day for 'Ghostbusters' remake might gave to wait until opening day
Are 'Ghostbusters' Reviews Embargoed Until Opening Day?
7 July 2016, 1:37 pm EDT By Robin Burks Tech Times
The above headline does not help the case for Paul Feig and his much negatively received, just based on trailers, Ghostbusters remake. If you have confidence in your film you will let critics publish their reviews. I missed the press screening that was happening tonight since I am nowhere near NY or L.A, but I do plan on checking it out next Monday. Ive never really been part of the haters that are trashing the film just based on the trailer alone. Thats just not fair. Give it a chance, Paul Feig has a good track record, especially with Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids, The Heat and Spy). I just hope this opening day embargo does not last and there is enough fate in the film to have the critics give their two cents about it come early next week.
Sundance and Cannes gem `Captain Fantastic` is Wes Anderson-inspired fun
I`m surprised that I hadn`t written about this film after having caught it at Sundance and then at Cannes. It`s an entertaining film, nothing more nothing less and I`m perfectly fine with that. Matthew Ross, Gavin Belson in HBO`s Silicon Valley, won Un Certain Regard`s directing award at Cannes. That came as a real shocker to most people, including myself, who attended the ceremony.
Set against a Pacific Northwest backdrop, Captain Fantastic has a father -indelibly played by Viggo Mortensen- devoted to raising his six kids in nature, away from normal society, with his own brand of teachings which include a fervent physical and intellectual education.
The film makes honest and straightforward comments on controversial issues in today's society that are often taboo (mental illness, sex, religion) Ross seems to also be tackling parenting and the difficult choices that must be made in regards to raising children in today's society. That he has to reach towards some cliches and over-played cinematic trappings to get his point doesn`t deter from the fact that you are with him and his characters throughout their adventure, and it`s a kooky one, which feels like Little Miss Sunshine directed by Wes Anderson, but with a straining penchant for sentimentality and self-satisfaction.
What I liked most though is the fact that, until the few minutes, Ross doesn`t tell you which side to be on. Viggo`s father is well-meaning and seems to have raised his kids to be genuinely smart and efficient children (an obvious blow to the flawed American educational system).
15 worthy mid-year 2016 movies
10 Cloverfield Lane (Dan Trachtenberg)
A Bigger Splash (Luca Gudagnino)
Captain America: Civil War (Russo Brothers)
Everybody Wants Some!! (Richard Linklater)A Bigger Splash (Luca Gudagnino)
Captain America: Civil War (Russo Brothers)
Green Room (Jeremy Saulnier)
The Jungle Book (Jon Favreau)
Krisha (Edward Schults)Mountains May Depart (Jia Zhangke)
The Nice Guys (Shane Black)
O.J: Made in America (Ezra Edelman)
Right Now, Wrong Then (Sang-soo Hong)
Sing Street (John Carney)Weiner (Elyse Steinberg/Josh Kriegman)
The Witch (Robert Eggers)
Zootopia (Byron Howard and Rich Moore)
Michael Cimino's Legacy is divisive
It took a little time for me to write something about Cimino's passing mostly because I got married just a couple of days ago, but there was no way I wouldn't comment on it.
Cimino was indeed a polarizing cinematic figure. "The Deer Hunter", 1978's scathing indictment of Vietnam via "Russian Roulette", won Best Picture and is widely regarded as a landmark movie of the 1970s. It also was one of the first films to directly confront the Vietnam war. I always thought the film itself was exceptional not necessarily because of Cimino's direction, but the story itself. A game of "Russian Roulette" is any movie is going to up the tension and grab a person's attention. Then again, there are some stylistic choices in the film that work wonders and are all Cimino's doing.
He followed that up with "Heaven's Gate" which was the infamous movie that forced United Artists – the studio formed as a refuge for artists by Charlie Chaplin, D.W. Griffiths, and Mary Pickford – to declare bankruptcy. Michael Cimino was the hottest director in Hollywood after "The Deer Hunter" cleaned up the Oscars in 1978. Then "Heaven’s Gate" happened – another epic, romantic western with an original cut that ran several hours – whose backstage stories are legendary and too many to list, though a crew member once joked that half of the film’s enormous $40 million went to cocaine for the cast.
One of the stories goes that Cimino changed the locks of the editing room so that studio execs wouldn’t interfere. His erratically insane behavior concluded with a 325 minute cut of the film (that’s almost five and a half hours) that Cimino said was a 15 minute cut away from the final version. Even though the 219 minute “Director’s Cut” of the film has garnered a cult following in recent years, the 149 minute cut that was finally released in 1981 garnered terrible reviews and destroyed United Artists.
Before "Heaven's Gate" Hollywood was on a roll in the 1970s with producers granting unlimited artistic immunity to film directors and classic after classic being released from 1970-1979. When "Heaven's Gate" got released, and the horror stories came out, Hollywood would changed forever and refuse to ever trust filmmakers again with the final cut.
Cimino was a capable filmmaker that did what he could to follow his artistic muse, but in most cases it just didn't work. "The Year of the Dragon" is an exception and should definitely be checked out, ditto "The Deer Hunter", but I find Cimino's reputation will likely be that of a filmmaker that ended the maverick 70s. bankrupted an entire studio and could never match the brilliance of "The Deer Hunter" plus he only got weirder by the decade with abysmal plastic surgery procedures and bullying behavior on-set.
The BFG is another Summer 2016 tanker
Are we surprised? The tone of summer 2016 seems to be that everything and anything must fail, with the exception of "Finding Dory" and "Captain America: Civil War", "The BFG" is another casualty. I saw the film in May at Cannes and the reaction was middling enough that you knew something like this was going to happen. I'm not a Spielberg hater, I'm actually quite the opposite. I worship the streak that he was on from 1998- with "Saving Private Ryan", "A.I.", "Minority Report", "Catch Me If You Can", "Munich" and "War of the Worlds" that pretty much sealed it for me that this man was an auteur (notice I didn't put "The Terminal" which is the only misfire of this timespan. Even though each film was different in story and setting he still maintained the themes and styles throughout this run of eclectic cinema.
This is my 3/5 review of "The BFG" -
"It’s a moment etched in Cannes history. Steven Spielberg’s "E.T." premiering in 1982 as the closing night film, the famous bike ride to the moon sequence occurring and the entire audience firing up their lighters in the dark. Goosebumps. Any Cinephile wishes they could have been there for that goosebumps-worthy moment. That was then, this is now.
This is my 3/5 review of "The BFG" -
"It’s a moment etched in Cannes history. Steven Spielberg’s "E.T." premiering in 1982 as the closing night film, the famous bike ride to the moon sequence occurring and the entire audience firing up their lighters in the dark. Goosebumps. Any Cinephile wishes they could have been there for that goosebumps-worthy moment. That was then, this is now.
Spielberg’s "The BFG" got its world première here at Cannes just a couple of hours ago. The lineup to get into the 11:45 am screening, at the famous Grand Theatre Lumiere, was the biggest the fest has seen thus far, but not all got in. Those that did get a chance to catch a screening, saw a film that will only come out on July 1st. Adapting Roal Dahl’s famous children’s book, Spielberg seems to be at home in the first few scenes presenting us Ruby Barnhill as orphan Sophie, who gets snatched away by a Big Friendly Giant (Mark Rylance). The set-up is all money encompassing the camera techniques and use of music that the famous director is so well-known for.
Things get a bit rocky once Sophie catches a glimpse of the BFG and, worried she might tattle-tale his existence, he forces her to come with him to his homeland. The ensuing scenes are rocky, as they try to forcefully explain the do’s and don’ts of the BFG’s homeland and his passion for dream-making. That part of the film could have easily been trimmed down in half, but Spielberg is just too in love with the visually colorful world he’s created and doesn’t let go. Things do get a bit better in the mid-way mark as the action picks up with Sophie and the BFG facing mean, hungry giants and then having to go visit-no joke-the Queen of England.
It’s all good-natured fun and if "The BFG" didn’t have Spielberg at the helm, it might have garnered far more enthusiastic words from this critic. It is an adamantly well-done action adventure yarn that boasts top-notch special effects and real heart, but it’s Spielberg and it’s Cannes and expectations are too high. The film is no classic, but it’s also no "Hook", Spielberg has matured and leaned out his errors since the time of his misbegotten 1991 film."
It’s all good-natured fun and if "The BFG" didn’t have Spielberg at the helm, it might have garnered far more enthusiastic words from this critic. It is an adamantly well-done action adventure yarn that boasts top-notch special effects and real heart, but it’s Spielberg and it’s Cannes and expectations are too high. The film is no classic, but it’s also no "Hook", Spielberg has matured and leaned out his errors since the time of his misbegotten 1991 film."
Thoughts on "Sully" Dir. by Clint Eastwood and starring Tom Hanks
We'll have to wait until September 9th to watch Clint Eastwood's Sully, I presume it stands a good shot at being chosen for the Telluride film festival. The date is too close to TIFF's opener on the 8th to really get into that fest. Eastwood has been very streaky of late. He had a phenomenal phase between 2003-2008 where he just killed it with classic after classic ("Mystic River", "Million Dollar Baby", "Letters From Iwo Jima", "Changeling", "Gran Torino") then he went on a bit of a rut after that, I mean what else do you call "Invictus", "Hereafter", "J. Edgar" and "Jersey Boys". It sucks, because we all love him, but he lost his touch. His Oscar-nominated "American Sniper" was a good indicator that he still had it in him though. Forget all about the Left vs Right debate that surrounded the movie, that was just a damn fine movie about war and its PTSD effect on the soldiers.
The story of American pilot "Sully" Sullenberger, who landed the troubled US Airways Flight 1549 full of passengers on the Hudson River on January 15, 2009, is well known and was one of those feel-good stories that really just made you happy that something good actually happened in the news. Sully is a hero, he saved many lives on that day, but is it enough to make a feature-length movie out of it? Well, I think, judging by the trailer, that Eastwood's focus will very much be on the aftermath investigation and the backlash that occurred on Sullenberger. Supposedly, and I don't know if the film actually touches on this, Sullenberger's pension benefits were terminated just a month after the event and his salary cut by more than 40 percent. Supposedly airlines were hiring less experienced, but cheaper pilots and were cutting down on the Sully types. Now THAT could definitely make for an interesting movie if Eastwood can delve into this part of the aftermath.
Don't listen to the haters, Kristen Stewart can act
Earlier this month I posted about Personal Shopper and how refreshing it was to see K-Stew finally carrying an entire movie all by herself. In "Cafe Society" she doesn't necessarily carry as much as just splash herself in Vito Storaro's lush, colorful photography, but she nevertheless churns out another beauty of a performance.
Stewart's sad eyes, throaty delivery and slightly heartbreaking aura make her interesting in every frame, ad an easy chemistry between her and her third-time co-star Jesse Eisenberg and he fits perfectly into his role while she simply overflows the screen. It's a real charmer of a flick that I will possibly delve deeper into come its release date a couple of weeks from now.
Stewart's career has been fascinating to watch. She basically started it in a David Fincher film ("Panic Room"), but then had the fortune (or is it misfortune?) of being cast in the "Twilight" films, which I'm not a fan of, but if they hadn't existed we would probably not be talking about Stewart today. But also she could have just coasted along after those films and taken on another franchise film series and made boatloads of money, but no, Stewart wanted to raise her art and I do respect that tremendously. Whatever you think of her as actress she is an exemplary performer that has shown what can come out of a backlash, because there definitely was a backlash towards her acting skills in "Twilight". I even got into an argument over her performing merits with more than a few people. They just don't get it, but I know I'll clearly have the last laugh when she wins that inevitable Oscar.
"Hell or High Water" will stir up a dull, uneventful Summer 2016 with powerful artistry
"One thing about the Cannes film festival is that you watch so many noteworthy films that you are bound to lost track of some. Case in point David Mackenzie’s "Hell or High Water" which screened as part of the Un Certain Regard program. Mackenzie’s previous film, Starred Up, showed real promise for tightly knit action and suspense. It also featured a stellar performance from then up and coming Jack O’Connel."
"Hell or High Water" stars Chris Pine, Ben Foster and Jeff Bridges. It’s a heist movie that can also be interpreted as a meditative western. Pine plays a divorced dad that, with the participation of his ex-con brother played by Foster, concocts a desperate scheme to save his family farm, which just so it happens has discovered richly abundant petroleum. They both hit Midlands banks across the state, one after another. Meanwhile, Bridges plays Marcus a Deputy Sheriff that is about to retire, but is sucked right back in along with his half-Comanche partner Alberto (Gil Birmingham)."
"On paper it sounds trivial and almost too clichéd to work, yet Marcus is a crowd pleaser, a man with so much wisdom and no-bulls thoughts that Bridges’ performance turns almost transcendentally comic. The bank-robbing scenes are impressively shot and choreographed and rank among the very best the genre can offer. Mackenzie is about to hit the big time with this one as Hollywood will no doubt be knocking at his door with a lot more opportunities."
"The film was written by Taylor Sheridan, who wrote last year’s similarly constructed "Sicario". Oddly enough this film gets itself into similar structural issues as the former film. The talky final scene is, although well thought-out, unnecessarily prolonged and by the mid-way point a few oddball narrative choices get made that do the film a disservice. Those are minor complaints for a film that is very much the kind that Andrew Dominik tried to make four years ago with "Killing Them Softly". This one works in spades, that one sadly did not." Cannes Review. 5.18.16
"Hell or High Water" stars Chris Pine, Ben Foster and Jeff Bridges. It’s a heist movie that can also be interpreted as a meditative western. Pine plays a divorced dad that, with the participation of his ex-con brother played by Foster, concocts a desperate scheme to save his family farm, which just so it happens has discovered richly abundant petroleum. They both hit Midlands banks across the state, one after another. Meanwhile, Bridges plays Marcus a Deputy Sheriff that is about to retire, but is sucked right back in along with his half-Comanche partner Alberto (Gil Birmingham)."
"On paper it sounds trivial and almost too clichéd to work, yet Marcus is a crowd pleaser, a man with so much wisdom and no-bulls thoughts that Bridges’ performance turns almost transcendentally comic. The bank-robbing scenes are impressively shot and choreographed and rank among the very best the genre can offer. Mackenzie is about to hit the big time with this one as Hollywood will no doubt be knocking at his door with a lot more opportunities."
"The film was written by Taylor Sheridan, who wrote last year’s similarly constructed "Sicario". Oddly enough this film gets itself into similar structural issues as the former film. The talky final scene is, although well thought-out, unnecessarily prolonged and by the mid-way point a few oddball narrative choices get made that do the film a disservice. Those are minor complaints for a film that is very much the kind that Andrew Dominik tried to make four years ago with "Killing Them Softly". This one works in spades, that one sadly did not." Cannes Review. 5.18.16
Xavier Dolan and his ego - Trailer for "It's Only the End of the World" hits web
I thought "Mommy" was fantastic despite its overlength. That's the problem with Dolan, he's so into himself that he just doesn't know when to stop. Snip off 30 minutes from that film and it's one of the best of 2014.
"It's Only the End of the World", based on Jean-Luc Lagarce’s play of the same name, stars Gaspard Ulliel as a terminally ill writer who decides to return home after a long absence to tell his quirky, dysfunctional family that he is going to die. Dolan’s love for the play is obvious, so much so that he banked on this adaptation amidst skyrocketed post-“Mommy” expectations.
It's narcissistic filmmaking at its very worse. He doesn't even give his actors the time to act or breath life into their roles because his camera seems to always be constantly moving in every direction. Also, don't get me started on the editing - one of the worst examples of editing I have seen in a movie. The dialogue is also incoherent with a lot of pauses and "umms" thrown in for good measure.
I was born and raised in Montreal before moving to the states and so I have met Dolan quite a few times in my days. I have long advocated the fact that, although many of his films like "Mommy" and "Laurence Anyways" are quite good, he needs a stinker to snap him out of the volatile narcissism and bring him back down to earth a little. He is not god, but he acts like it. It seems that even though this film was completely panned at Cannes and was about to be named by most critics as the worst film in competition, that is until Sean Penn's horrendous "The Last Face" screened, the fact that the jury gave Dolan the Grand Jury Prize will not deter him one bit and he will continue to make high brow, pompous and self-indulgent cinema until he addresses the problems that lay in his filmmaking.
Dolan is already working on his follow-up to “It’s Only the End of the World,” which will also be his American directorial debut. “The Life of John F. Donovan,” starring Jessica Chastain, Kit Harington, Taylor Kitsch, Kathy Bates, Susan Sarandon, Natalie Portman, Nicholas Hoult, and Thandie Newton is gearing up to shoot this summer.
"Swiss Army Man" directors want to remake White Chicks? Game on!
I shared my thoughts on "Swiss Army Man" back in January while at the Sundance Film Festival. By now you've probably seen or, at the very least, heard about this film, which people dubbed "the Harry Potter farting corpse movie", which I firstly walked out of at Sundance and then gave it another shot just a few days later. Second viewing was a little better, I didn't the film as seriously and just went along for the ride. This is not high art, just tell yourself that as you enter the theater, but the last third of the film is really surprising. I won't divulge anything else. Just got along with it, we will likely not remember this film 5,10 years from now, but at least we have an original and daring indie film out there this summer.
"(The Birth of a Nation's Nate) Parker surprisingly didn’t win the directing award that instead went to the directing duo behind the most polarizing film of the fest Swiss Army Man. Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert won the award for a movie that Twitch Film’s Jason Gorber called “The Citizen Kane of fart joke movies.” If that doesn’t interest you at all then steer far away from this movie starring Daniel Radcliffe as a dead, farting corpse and Paul Dano as a distraught man stranded in the middle of a dessert Island. They somehow form a friendship and learn to help each other in the process. Radcliffe’s corpse is used as a jet ski ride whenever he farts, on the other hand Dano tries to teach his compadre about the joy of life by dressing up like a a girl and putting the moves on good ol’ Harry Potter. Not much else can be said, just sit back and let the ridiculousness of this movie drop your jaw down to the floor."
The Daniels (that's what they want to be called) are not done with their crazy ideas. I've been touting the Wayans Brothers seriously bad, but highly enjoyable White Chicks for a few years now and it seems like the "Swiss Army Man" duo is looking to remake the film .... as a drama! Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter:
"Oh! One of my dreams is to make White Chicks as a hard-R, Oscar-worthy drama, starring the original cast. It would be about gender and race relations in the 21st century, starring the Wayans Brothers. I don't know if you have seen White Chicks lately, but it has a lot of meat to it and explores everything, like class, gender, race, the handicapped, age, but it explores it in the worst way possible. "
The whole interview can be found HERE
"(The Birth of a Nation's Nate) Parker surprisingly didn’t win the directing award that instead went to the directing duo behind the most polarizing film of the fest Swiss Army Man. Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert won the award for a movie that Twitch Film’s Jason Gorber called “The Citizen Kane of fart joke movies.” If that doesn’t interest you at all then steer far away from this movie starring Daniel Radcliffe as a dead, farting corpse and Paul Dano as a distraught man stranded in the middle of a dessert Island. They somehow form a friendship and learn to help each other in the process. Radcliffe’s corpse is used as a jet ski ride whenever he farts, on the other hand Dano tries to teach his compadre about the joy of life by dressing up like a a girl and putting the moves on good ol’ Harry Potter. Not much else can be said, just sit back and let the ridiculousness of this movie drop your jaw down to the floor."
The Daniels (that's what they want to be called) are not done with their crazy ideas. I've been touting the Wayans Brothers seriously bad, but highly enjoyable White Chicks for a few years now and it seems like the "Swiss Army Man" duo is looking to remake the film .... as a drama! Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter:
"Oh! One of my dreams is to make White Chicks as a hard-R, Oscar-worthy drama, starring the original cast. It would be about gender and race relations in the 21st century, starring the Wayans Brothers. I don't know if you have seen White Chicks lately, but it has a lot of meat to it and explores everything, like class, gender, race, the handicapped, age, but it explores it in the worst way possible. "
The whole interview can be found HERE
"Star Wars: Rogue One" trailer works despite the advanced toxic buzz
Susan Sarandon deserves an Oscar nod for "The Meddler"
When I saw The Meddler last year I was convinced it would actually nab an Oscar nom for Sarandon, but it never got released! Here`s hoping she has some kind of shot this year. An excerpt I wrote for AwardsDaily about the film:
"The Meddler is Susan Sarandon’s best performance in 20+ years. You heard me right. Sarandon’s performance as a middle aged, eccentric, neurotic, Jersey mom that moves to L.A. is hilariously spot on. The premiere had many industry people eating up every line delivered by Sarandon. When was the last time you can truly say she’s had a role that fit her immeasurable talents? 1995’s Dead Man Walking — in which she was directed by then husband Tim Robbins — comes to mind. That was 20 years ago, but this performance is bound to get some heads turning if handled properly and Sony Pictures Classics knows what kind of brilliant performance they have here. The character study that director Lorne Scafaria deftly handles with comical hand-held shots is an all out showcase for Sarandon. The film has just been screened today for the press and is expected to have a 2016 release, that is unless the studio decides to gives Sarandon the much-needed awards push this year."
The reviews have been fairly solid and the buzz has been cautious, respectful, but amicably acclaimed. Kris Tapley, a well-regarded Oscar Pundit at Variety, just gave Sarandon a boost by saying she was the Best Actress of the first half of 2016. I can agree with that actually.
"Sarandon delivers one of her greatest performances yet as the title character in Lorene Scarfaria’s sweet dramedy about a well-intentioned mother who moves to Los Angeles to be closer to her daughter (Rose Byrne) after the death of her husband. Whether playing the effects of scarfing down a bag of weed or being romanced by the wonderful J.K. Simmons, Sarandon is sublime. But more than that, the performance is one of the most accurate portrayals of grief seen on film in recent years."
"The Meddler is Susan Sarandon’s best performance in 20+ years. You heard me right. Sarandon’s performance as a middle aged, eccentric, neurotic, Jersey mom that moves to L.A. is hilariously spot on. The premiere had many industry people eating up every line delivered by Sarandon. When was the last time you can truly say she’s had a role that fit her immeasurable talents? 1995’s Dead Man Walking — in which she was directed by then husband Tim Robbins — comes to mind. That was 20 years ago, but this performance is bound to get some heads turning if handled properly and Sony Pictures Classics knows what kind of brilliant performance they have here. The character study that director Lorne Scafaria deftly handles with comical hand-held shots is an all out showcase for Sarandon. The film has just been screened today for the press and is expected to have a 2016 release, that is unless the studio decides to gives Sarandon the much-needed awards push this year."
The reviews have been fairly solid and the buzz has been cautious, respectful, but amicably acclaimed. Kris Tapley, a well-regarded Oscar Pundit at Variety, just gave Sarandon a boost by saying she was the Best Actress of the first half of 2016. I can agree with that actually.
"Sarandon delivers one of her greatest performances yet as the title character in Lorene Scarfaria’s sweet dramedy about a well-intentioned mother who moves to Los Angeles to be closer to her daughter (Rose Byrne) after the death of her husband. Whether playing the effects of scarfing down a bag of weed or being romanced by the wonderful J.K. Simmons, Sarandon is sublime. But more than that, the performance is one of the most accurate portrayals of grief seen on film in recent years."
May 12, 2016
The beauty of The Meddler is in its insistence that grief passes - even if you can't buy your way to happiness.
Full Review | Original Score: 3/4
April 29, 2016
What seems cringe-worthy at first in The Meddler winds up as a warm, forgiving embrace -- of the movie's characters and audience, as well.
Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4
April 29, 2016
Taken as a whole, Sarandon's performance is something to behold.
Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4
April 28, 2016
We've seen these types of characters before, but not played by these particular and highly skilled actresses.
Full Review | Original Score: 3/4
April 22, 2016
April 22, 2016
Susan Sarandon is a star shining on her highest beams in a movie that the gifted writer-director Lorene Scafaria turns into something far less clichéd and more nuanced than the anatomy of a bossypants. -
Full Review | Original Score: 3/4
Free State of Jones is a Gary Ross strikeout
I will say I was very much looking forward to Gary Ross' Free State of Jones. Ross has always been a filmmaker that delivered what was asked of him in such a professional and gracious manner: Pleasantville, Seabiscuit and The Hunger Games all consummate and entertaining Hollywood vehicles. Judging from these early reviews though Free State of Jones will likely not make it 4 for 4. I skipped this morning's press screening, I had a few things to attend to, but it seems like I didn't miss much as these reviews have been horrendous. I presume that Warner Bros. now has second thoughts about giving this guy the reigns to its all-female Ocean's movie. Again, I haven't seen this new Matthew McConaughey film, but it looks like a complete strike out by the hints of it. I'll be catching a screening on Friday afternoon.
Nate Parker's flawed, but sometimes thought-provoking "The Birth of a Nation" gets a trailer
Recounting the story of Nat Turner, an African American Slave that lead a rebellion in 1831 to free African-Americans in Virgina. There’s blood soaked, sweat induced, passion in every frame of Nate Parker’s flawed film. You can never discount this kind of brazingly ferocious filmmaking, even when it’s by a first-time filmmaker still learning his narrative steps. The aptly titled film is bound to cause a stir when it gets released later this year, choosing the title of D.W Griffith’s grand, but very racist, 1915 masterpiece is a sign that the times might be in fact changing. Winning the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award is a sign that this movie is about to take Hollywood by storm. It was made to piss people off and get them out of their seats shouting, what more could you ask for in a movie?
"American Honey" -one of the year's best movies- finally gets a trailer
Andrea Arnold's American Honey finally gets a trailer. I saw it at Cannes and, suffice to say, was quite impressed by its loose, structure-free narrative. It's a pummeling 160 minutes, but has moments of sheer beauty in its inner and outer contours. I don't think there is much awards hope for this one as it is too "out-there" for the academy to consider, but a push by critics for their awards is inevitable. It's a love it/hate it movie, but consider me with the former as I dis find its take on 21st century Americana quite breathtaking.
"Andrea Arnold’s American Honey was an even more polarizing film. A 160 minute road trip to Americana hell, if you will. An On the Road for and about millennials. Cannes is not the last we’ll hear about this movie and I’m perfectly fine with that. No one should dismiss it, for it has so many great moments in its scattered running time that one might have to look through a bit of rambling incoherence to find them.
Non-professional actress Sasha Lane plays Star, a lost American soul that decides to hop onboard a bus full of Magazine-selling kids that go cross country to make money and sell magazine subscriptions. On the way they listen to pop radio and have sing alongs. Those sing-alongs end up taking up the full-length of a song. Some are quite exceptionally moving and exciting, whereas others meander. It’s just that kind of a movie, either you go with its flow or you just don’t. I did.
It’s not just singalongs. There’s an admirable sense of free-wheeling going on here. Arnold is depicting an American society of millennials that are disconnected and disconcerted with the American way. They’d rather sell their bodies than live in a capitalist-run society trying to live the “American dream”. As the film jogs along we get a fuller sense of the dynamics at play here. The structure, which is infuriating at times, runs constant repetitive circles, and yet we are fully engaged with much of what we see. There’s an overall sense of unimaginable freedom in Arnold’s filmmaking. It’s a vital, great movie that could probably use a trim."
Personal Shopper > The Conjuring 2
Over at Hollywood Elsewhere Jeffrey Wells is pondering how The Conjuring 2 is getting well-reviewed and, yet, Personal Shopper's reviews have been mixed so far. You can read the post HERE.
Yes, I'll agree the latter is an above average chill-inducing stunner that will deserve all the love and support come its release this fall season. The Conjuring 2 seems to be repeating the usual tropes that have made the horror genre go down the drain these last couple of years. Of course James Wan is a talented "horror" filmmaker, but he doesn't even come close to having the artistic chops of an Assayas or even a John Carpenter at his peak. The Malaysian born filmmaker is a competent and well-informed filmmaker that can carry a film to a certain extent, but not further enough to make great art.
This is an excerpt from my Cannes review:
"This is top-notch filmmaking with an impeccable performance by Stewart, who hasn’t really had to carry a full movie on her own until this one. She is alone in many scenes throughout the picture and does an admirable job leaving you in a state of hypnosis with her mannerisms and quirks. Assayas, a great director, quite clearly wanted to create a supernatural atmosphere, with much influence on the 1960 classic The Haunting. As far as those kind of movies go, there is nothing wrong in putting Personal Shopper next to them. The film is meant to be absorbed for what it is: A taut, terrific venture into the unknown."
"O.J: Made in America" is better than almost any 2016 movie I've seen so far
"O.J: Made in America" is better than almost any 2016 movie. I've been to Sundance and Cannes as well, almost nothing comes close to the gripping, assaultive nature of this 464 minute documentary. I found it was more engrossing than its FX counterpart, which, by the way, was pretty great, because it meticulously fleshes out the larger picture as compared to the aforementioned mini-series which had to balance informative content with dramatic obligations. The fact that this documentary splits the screen time between the racial issues in Los Angeles and O.J. Simpson's story is a decision of sheer genius and, really, the definitive way to tell this story. All this to say that it is a towering achievement for director Ezra Edelman whose only other work as a director came from ESPN sports docs. He does have one hell of a story to tell though, one that is both tragic and hilarious. I'll update this post later on with more thoughts on the film. I'll leave you with a quote from the L.A. Times review of the film "Historically meticulous, thematically compelling and deeply human, O.J.: Made in America is a masterwork of scholarship, journalism and cinematic art."
Who's "they," exactly? The Illuminati? The Deep State? Hard to say. The film premiered at Italy's Matera Film Festival on November 10. No reviews have trickled in yet.