Cannes 2018: Denis Villeneuve, Ava DuVernay, Kristen Stewart, Léa Seydoux And More Join Competition Jury Led By President Cate Blanchett

Even though Cannes failed, at least according to the IndieWire crowd, to represent women properly with this year's lineup of films, at least the jury that will award the Palme D'Or has "wokeness" and "feminism" written all over it. With president and Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett, the festival has chosen an addition five women and four men, covering seven nationalities and five continents to watch the 19 competing films and award the winners Saturday, May 19 during the Closing Ceremony.

The jury for this year’s fest will include Cate Blanchett, Chang Chen (Chinese actor), Ava DuVernay (American director), Robert Guédiguian (French director), Khadja Nin (Burundian singer), Léa Seydoux (French actress), Kristen Stewart (American actress), Denis Villeneuve (Canadian director) and Andrei Zvyagintsev (Russian director).

Who will replace Chris Evans as Captain America? ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ might have the answer.

"The clues to a potential Cap replacement have been floating around the MCU for years. From the moment former Captain America sidekick Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) became the Winter Soldier (in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”) the speculation has been that Bucky would take on the Captain America mantle. That is what Bucky did in the comic books (back when Captain America was killed — do not worry, he came back) after having his mind rehabilitated and no longer being a brainwashed assassin. Stan signed a nine-film deal with Marvel Studios, and he has only done six that we know of (“Infinity War,” its sequel, the three Captain America movies and “Black Panther.”)"
"If so, another potential Steve Rogers replacement would be his longtime friend Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), who is also in “Infinity War.”
"Marvel Comics just recently wrapped up a long run where Sam, a.k.a. the Falcon, took on the mantle of Captain America. Making him the next Cap would be the ultimate fake-out."

The Death of Cinema: Or How I Actually Bought A Ticket To A Matinee and Quickly Learned Why The Theatrical Experience Is Dying.

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I never understood how movie theater chains, such as AMC, allowed any children under the age of 5 into non-kids films, let alone a damn PG-13 rated movie. Well, that's just what happened this afternoon as I sat in for a matinee of "A Quiet Place," an R-rated horror movie that champions silence and a dialogue-less narrative. Two women, both brought in their respective babies, couldn't be older than 2-years-old each, into the theater and it was then that I knew I was doomed. Suffice to say, I just left the theater half an hour into the film, despite countless attempts to tell both women to leave the theater with their crying tots. I mean, did I even have to mention that the young tykes were going to be crying while watching what was essentially a "monster movie." Jesus, and you then wonder why the theatrical experience is dying and services like Netflix and Amazon are taking over. It's just not worth the headache anymore. Of course, I rarely experience distasteful events such as this afternoon's incident, mostly due to the fact that I have the luxury of watching most of my movies at press screenings and film festivals. Thank the heavens and the Gods. I do buy a movie ticket a half a dozen times a year and they are almost all filled with such annoyances. I sympathize with how the average cinephile has to deal witch such situations, let alone having to deal with an endless barrage of advertisements and trailers, I clocked them here at half an hour. It's only when movie chains come into action and actually prevent such distractions from happening that people might actually want to leave the comfort of their own homes and come back to cinemas.

Shock: Steven Spielberg Set to Direct DC Comics Movie “Blackhawk"

Frequent Spielberg collaborator David Koepp is writing the script.
Whenever I have talked about the fate of Superhero movies and how much this monopolization of the industry through Marvel and DC flicks is affecting us, I always resort back to what Steven Spielberg said in early 2013, about the superhero genre "imploding" like the Western did in the '60s. The actual quote is this:
“We were around when the Western died and there will be a time when the superhero movie goes the way of the Western. It doesn’t mean there won’t be another occasion where the Western comes back and the superhero movie someday returns. Of course, right now the superhero movie is alive and thriving. I’m only saying that these cycles have a finite time in popular culture. There will come a day when the mythological stories are supplanted by some other genre that possibly some young filmmaker is just thinking about discovering for all of us.”
That quote always gives me hope that sunnier days will surely be ahead for Hollywood creativity and artful intentions, but that feeling sunk down to the deepest end of the abyss this afternoon when I learned that, of all people, Spielberg himself is now gonna tackle the superhero genre. I mean, really? 
Spielberg and Amblin Entertainment have teamed up with Warner Bros. Pictures to produce the action adventure “Blackhawk,” which is based on the DC Comics series of the same name.
THR reports that Spielberg is looking to direct "Blackhawk" as well as producing it with WB. 
The Wrap has this on the comic book the film would be based on:
"Blackhawk is the leader of a small team of ace pilots who fight tyranny and oppression — including Axis powers as well as various supervillains –while operating from a hidden base known only as “Blackhawk Island.” The comic book debuted in 1941 and features team members from around the world, with Blackhawk himself generally portrayed as a Polish freedom fighter."
So there is hope as this is less a gimmicky superhero flick and more of a WW2 movie. That's fine with me, but we can expect a PG-13 rating for optimal box-office. 
The screenplay for “Blackhawk” is being written by David Koepp, who also wrote Spielberg's “Jurassic Park,” (good) “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” (meh) “War of the Worlds” (good) and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” (oh, God).
Before he tackles the DC universe, Spielberg is set to go into production and direct the fifth Indiana Jones, with a 75-year-old Harrison Ford, and then a remake of the classic musical “West Side Story.” Spielberg is 71 but has a stacked few years ahead. 
What does this tell me? It basically says Spielberg has all but left the mini Howard Hawkes phase of his career ("Lincoln," "Bridge of Spies," and "The Post") for mass entertainment blockbusters. He was supposed to start shooting the long-delayed "The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara" but that has been put on the back-burner, for now, as "Ready Player One" has put him in a sort of millennial-pleasing mode.

Alden Ehrenreich (Young Han Solo) was discovered by Steven Spielberg at a Bat Mitzvah

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A recent Rolling Stone interview has Alden Ehrenreich stating that it actually was Steven Spielberg that discovered him at, wait for it, a Bat Mitzvah. The famed director saw 14-year-old Ehrenreich in 2003 and, most likely, endorsed him in the industry, which, we assume, led to roles in shows such as "Supernatural" and "CSI" and then, pop course, his star turn in the Coen's "Hail, Caesar," where Ehrenreich played a terrible Hollywood actor. Coincidence that the best performance Ehrenreich has given thus far in his career is as a terrible actor? Who knows, people tend to say it's much harder to play yourself than any fictional character, but there are whispers in the industry that maybe, just maybe, Ehrenreich wasn't the second coming we thought he would be. His reputation took a severe hit during production of the upcoming "Solo: A Star Wars Story" after it was reported that Ehrenreich needed an on-set acting coach due to his struggles with nailing the "spirit" of Han Solo. I won't go further than that but, suffice to say, it does make sense now why Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy would hire the 28-year-old actor as the lead for a major "Star Wars" picture as she and former longtime boss, and mentor, Spielberg go way back. 

Netflix says they have “remorse” and “regret” over Cannes feud

Netflix amd their never-ending war with the Cannes Film Festival seems to have tamed down today. Netflix released a letter to its shareholders and investors expressing remorse, and regret, in their bitter feud with the famous film festival:

“We regret our films not being able to compete at this year’s Cannes film festival,” said a letter to shareholders (ScreenDaily). “The festival adopted a new rule that means if a film is in competition at Cannes, it can not be watched on Netflix in France for the following three years. We would never want to do that to our French members.

“We will continue to celebrate our films and filmmakers at other festivals around the world but unfortunately we will have to sit out Cannes for now so that our growing French membership can continue to enjoy our original films.”

At least they have pinpointed the problem, which is quite valid, the fact that they can't screen their original content in France, if it premieres at Cannes, for THREE YEARS! As I've said before, the 36-month-rule is ridiculous and Camnes is to blame for this.

The letter does seem to indicate that Netflix wants to go to Cannes. In that same letter Netflix did announce a record quarter for the company, which had an impressive increase in membership of almost 8 million subscribers, with almost 6 million of those international (France).

Netflix has 125 million subscribers total, with only 57 million coming from the US. Cannes will no doubt lose this battle.

Penelope Cruz and Antonio Banderas Will Star in Next Film From Director Pedro Almodóvar

Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar has announced that his 21st feature film will reunite him with past collaborators Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem.
Reports indicate that Almodóvar will begin production on “Dolor Y Gloria” (or “Pain and Glory”), in July. Cruz has been an Almodovar staple since the '90s ("Live Flesh," "All About My Mother," "Volver," "I'm So Excited") and Banderas since the '80s, ("Women on the Verge of A Nervous Breakdown," "Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down," and "The Skin I Live In.")
The director’s latest film will recount “first loves, second loves, mother, mortality, an actor with whom the director worked, the 60s, the 80s and the present. And the emptiness, the immeasurable emptiness before the impossibility of continuing to make films.”
Cannes will no doubt be in the film's future come next year's edition

Cannes All But Confirms That Lars Von Trier's "The House That Jack Built" Will Be A Late Addition of the Official Competition

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Cannes artistic director Thierry Fremaux all but confirmed that Lars von Trier's "The House That Jack Built" will be part of the competition. As we previously reported to you earlier last week, Fremaux and his committee were split on von Trier's latest endeavor and had decided to offer him a non-competition slot. However, the director had denied the offer and wanted competition instead. 
Fremaux seems to be insinuating that it has to do more with Von Trier's "Persona Non-Grata" status at the festival, which was given to him in 2011 when the Danish provocateur was barred from the festival for sympathetic comments on Hitler and the Nazis. “Pierre Lescure, the president of the Cannes Film Festival, has been working very hard in the last few days for the removal of the persona non grata status which was put in place five years ago, in the belief that it was time to make space for him again as cineaste,” Frémaux said in the interview. 

Cannes’ Director’s Fortnight Lineup Includes Gaspar Noe’s Latest Provocation “Climax”

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Cannes' Directors’ Fortnight has announced their titles  The 50th edition of the festival will include Gaspar Noé's latest provocation picture called “Climax.” The film is about a group of urban dancers in the '90s who are secretly drugged and start to lose their marbles. 

Pajaros De Verano” (“Birds Of Passage”) will open the festival, the latest film by “Embrace Of The Serpent” director Ciro Guerra, is about the Columbian drug trade.

READ MORE: Cannes lineup includes new films by Panahi, Spike Lee, and Godard, but snubs Nemes, Von Trier, Ceylan, De Palma, Leigh, Sorrentino, Hansen-Love, Denis, Guadagnino, Cuaron, Greengrass, Malick, and Welles.

Much to my pleasure, Sundance gems “Mandy,” from director Panos Cosmos and starring Nic Cage,  and Debra Granik‘s great “Leave No Trace” will also be in attendance.

The full lineup of feature films for Directors’ Fortnight:

“Pajaros De Verano” (“Birds Of Passage”), Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra
“Amin,” Philippe Faucon
“Climax,” Gaspar Noé
“Carmen y Lola,” Arantxa Echevarria
“Comprame un Revolver,” Julio Hernandez Cordon
“Les Confins du Monde,” Guillaume Nicloux
“El Motoarrebatador,” Agustin Toscano
“En Liberté,” Pierre Salvadori
“Joueurs,” Marie Monge
“Leave No Trace,” Debra Granik
“Los Silencios,” Beatriz Seigner
“Ming Wang Xing Shi Ke De,” Ming Zhang
“Mandy,” Panos Cosmatos
“Mirai,” Mamoru Hosoda
“Le Monde Est a Toi,” Romain Gavras
“Petra,” Jaime Rosales
“Samouni Road,” Stefano Savona

Box Office: Rampage takes #1 with underwhelming $34.5M

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1. Rampage — $34.5M (Debut)
2. A Quiet Place — $32.6M ($99.6M)
3. Truth or Dare — $19M (Debut)
4. Ready Player One — $11.2M ($114.6M)
5. Blockers — $10.3 ($36.9M)
6. Black Panther — $5.3M ($673.8M)
7. Isle of Dogs — $5M ($18.4M)
8. I Can Only Imagine — $3.8M ($75M)
9. Tyler Perry’s Acrimony — $3.7M ($37.9M)
10. Chappaquiddick— $3M ($11M)

 “Rampage,” performed way below expectations, especially for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's reputation as the most bankable star in Hollywood. With $34.5 million, “Rampage” in its opening weekend, it barely managed to take the top spot away from "A Quiet Place." John Krasinski's horror film continued its surprising run and has now snatched up almost $100M domestically in just two weeks.

 [Reddit]

Source: Yoda to make appearance in Episode IX

According to “sources” verified as legit by New York Daily News, the upcoming ‘Episode IX’ will be by Rey's side for the final showdown.
“The success of the scenes featuring Yoda in ‘The Last Jedi’ were huge,” says the source. “Yoda will again appear as a ghost as he acknowledges Rey’s success and growth as a Jedi. The scenes are due to be put together later this year.”
Yoda appears in "The Last Jedi" as a Force ghost to give Luke Skywalker a final push for his showdown against Kylo Ren. However, this could be a hint as to Luke Skywalker's future in the franchise, and his being really dead. Yoda seems to now be taking over his duties as a mentor for Rey.

“Mad Max The Wasteland” Delayed Indefinitely Due To Lawsuit Between Miller and Warner Brothers

With all the useless sequels being made these days in cinema, a "Mad Max: Fury Road" sequel is one of the few that would make actual, concrete sense to greenlight. George Miller was apparently in pre-production on "Mad Max: The Wasteland" and even had Tom Hardy signed up to do two more films. That is until Miller sued his studio Warner Bros. for not paying him a bonus that was contractually obligated by contract.

Producer Kennedy Miller Mitchell and the director claim that the WB owes a lot of money to Miller's production company, specifically $7 million for coming in under budget during the production. The WB claims they actually went over budget. I'm sure there are paper documents that can prove the truth, no? The problem is reshoots cost $31 million. However, Miller’s production company says the deal was to not include these costs in the cost of the film, thus the claim of going under-budget.

To be fair, Miller owns the rights to the Mad Max characters. They're his. So, while we might not see any more films, we also won't see any blatant cash grabs banking on the franchise name alone because Miller lost out.  Miller's got two scripts ready to go. "Fury Road" was a massive hit. Warner Brothers are literally sitting on a blockbuster franchise and they won't make it because they're bickering over $7-10 million. At the other end of the argument, you could say Warner Brothers has plenty of franchises, despite the colossal failure of the DCEU. Miller has Mad Max and both he and his cast will be aging irreversibly as those sequels are delayed on and on again as this lawsuit continues. Warner also has to watch out not to set a bad precedent where their producers and directors can sue them quickly into submission every time a contract dispute emerges. So it makes plenty of sense. Both sides have plenty to win if the sequels are made, but plenty to lose if they concede the lawsuit. So the game of chicken is on.

Speaking of chicken, Miller himself ain't no spring chicken, he's 73-years-old, the further these sequels are delayed the more unlikely he would have the stamina and willingness to embark on making a "Mad Max" sequel, which, by all accounts, is a gueling experience. The amount of detail to have to put into these movies is not like, say, John Huston, in his final years, directing a chamber piece via wheelchair ala "Prizzi's Honor" and "The Dead."

“Here You Are All Equally Worthless”


R. Lee Ermey has passed on at the age of 74.

He will always be known as the ex-military seargant that became a legitimate actor after playing the vulgar, loudmouth Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Stanley Kubrick‘s "Full Metal Jacket." Even if you're not a fan of Kubrick's messy war movie, and a case could be made about a weak second half, you could never unsee the brilliance Ermey displayed in the film's first 45 minutes as Hartman. Nothing in his career would ever eclipse the masterclass in vulgar comedy he gave in that movie, but that led to a 33-year period of fruitful acting opportunities in the industry for him. What can you say about a guy that built a career without much experience to begin with, especially in such films as "Mississippi Burning," "Se7en," "Leaving Las Vegas," "Dead Man Walking," and the 2003 remake of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre?" He even voiced Sarge in "Toy Story." 

Sadly, he also claimed to be victimized these last 8 years of his life within the industry, mostly due to his stance against the Obama administration, which consequentially had Hollywood blackball him. Of course, I don't know if there is any truth to that, but his claims no doubt don't seem too far-fetched in the grander scheme of things. 

From Wikipedia:

“On December 10, 2010, Ermey denounced the Obama administration’s economic policies while speaking at a Marine Corps Reserve’s Toys for Tots rally, stating that it was difficult to raise money for the charity because ‘the economy sucks’. He went on to say, ‘We should all rise up, and we should stop this administration from what they’re doing because they’re destroying this country. They’re driving us into bankruptcy so that they can impose socialism on us, and that’s exactly what they’re doing, and I’m sick and damn tired of it and I know you are too.’"

Jeremy Saulnier on Netflix vs Cannes

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Jeremy Saulnier's new film was supposed to premiere at Cannes, but French laws about theatrical releases being streamed only three years after release prevented that from happening. Those same laws also prevented Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma,' and Orson Welles' "The Other Side of the Wind" from going to the Croisette. The debate will live on until a compromise is surely reached between fest and streaming giant.
Saulnier, whose films I've championed, especially his masterwork 2014 debut “Blue Ruin,” and his sophomore effort, the viscerally brilliant "Green Room," was recently asked by IndieWire about the Netflix/Cannes debacle, and, suffice to say, he didn't hold back on his words, saying it was a “shame.” He continued, “I respect Netflix for carving new paths that bypass traditional methods of distribution to directly connect with a humungous audience. But both entities are evolving, and I think eventually they’ll work out their differences.” 
As for people like director Steven Spielberg who believe that Netflix movies should be considered “TV movies,” well, Saulnier has a message for them:
“With new distribution platforms and release strategies on the rise, I hear a lot of volleying back and forth in the trades as to what constitutes a movie,” Saulnier said. “I’ll happily stay out of that debate as long as I can keep telling narrative stories with other people’s money. Oscar versus Emmy? Not concerned.”
“But if anyone tries to tell me any of my modest movies aren’t actually movies they can kindly go stab themselves in the face several times and set themselves on fire,” concluded the filmmaker.
Of course, we are not doubting that Saulnier's latest is a real movie, but a question that I keep asking myself, and that begs to be asked more often, is this: Will Netflix movies stand the test of time in the same way theatrical movies would? 

 Take for example last year's two Netflix movies that appeared at Cannes: Bong Joon-Ho's "Okja" and Noah Baumbach's "The Meyerowitz Stories." A decade from now, when they still won't be available on physical media, and you won't be able to catch them on TV, and they will just be buried in Netflix' neverending catalog of tens of thousands of movies, will they be remembered?  There are merits for filmmakers to do theatrical instead of streaming, but I do understand that the American studio system is right now in a dire state for originally told stories, so both sides have their merits.

  “Hold the Dark” should be released on Netflix this fall.

Friedkin vs. Refn



Keep an eye out for that look Friedkin gives to the camera after Refn continues to defend "Only God Forgives." PRICELESS. No creator should ever call anything they've created themselves a "masterpiece," that is not for them to decide, by definition. 

“Iron Man 3" is The Most Underrated Movie of the Marvel Cinematic Universe

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It's kind of a funny thing when you think about Robert Downey Jr's story. The drugs, the sex, the crazy partying, the meltdowns - it all led to an insanely triumphant comeback and him becoming, of all things,  an action star by playing Iron Man in three highly successful movies. He is, more or less, the star of the MCU, or, at least, alongside Chris Evans' Captain America, its face.

Downey made a career of memorable roles before his personal life went out of control due to a severe bout with cocaine and heroine addiction, but "Iron Man" staged the most incredible comeback in, qute possibly, Hollywood history. He went from a black-listed actor that nobody wanted near their productions to the highest-paid actor in Hollywood. 

The comeback, contrary to what some might think, didn't start with "Iron Man" but instead with 2006's indie "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" which was written and directed by a guy that was also deemed "washed-up," a "has-been" by the industry: Shane Black. A noir, murdery-mystery comedy, the film also kickstarted an acting style Downey Jr. would mimic in the "Iron Man" and "Sherlock Holmes" films. 

READ MORE:  'Marvel Cinematic Universe' Movies RANKED

Black started his career as a whiz-kid screenwriter. At the age of 27 he wrote "Lethal Weapon" and became the hottest screenwriter in town, he followed that up with cult classics such as "The Last Boy Scout," "The Last Action Hero" and "The Long Kiss Goodnight." However, none of the aforementioned films even came near the box-office success of "Lethal Weapon." After "The Long Kiss Good Night" in 1996 Black disappeared from the spotlight only to return with "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang."

The partnership, and consequential friendship, between Black and Downey Jr. would lead the latter to vouch and fight for the former to helm "Iron Man 3." Black would eventually take over Jon Favreau's duties as director. 

If "Iron Man 2" was a total and utter disappointment, the third installment felt fresh, unique and unlike anything we had previously seen from the MCU. It, of course, was a drastically different film from the 2008 original, a benchmark for the MCU. "Iron Man 3" felt fresh, innovative and just downright satirical about the superhero genre. 

The screenplay approach to the film was somewhat unusual and still is an anomaly in the genre. Black tried to sidestep cliches by infusing his own auteur voice to the mix. The recognizable writing style and themes that he sculpted since 1987's "Lethal Wepon" were there in spades: Male bonding, the trade of witty dialogue, labyrinthine crime plots and, most importantly, the Christmas setting, all rendered the film a uniqueness that would never be greenlit in today's safer, by-the-books MCU. In other words, the movie was filled with what we've come to know as "Shane Blackisms."

Back in 2013 I had this to say about the film: 

"Shane Black, has taken over Jon Favreau's duties as director of the newest Iron Man. If Iron Man 2 was a total and utter disappointment, this newest installment seems fresh and newly invigorated. It helps that Iron Man 3's screenplay is written in a way that goes against the narratives we are used to now with the MCU movies, much kudos must be given to Shane Black and Drew Pearce who collaborated on the screenplay. In Iron Man 3 the baddies are played by capably brilliant actors -Ben Kingsley and Guy Pierce- that bring a real nice touch to a film that could have easily steered the wrong way. This is a film that doesn't take itself so seriously and that's possibly the best approach to have in making these kinds of movies. As an added bonus, this has he potential to be a Christmas classic." 

five years after its release, it seems like we will likely never again have the risk-taking of "Iron Man 3," espeially with Marvel and Disney upping the restraints on filmmakers as the films become more and more popular. 

Lars Von Trier’s “The House That Jack Built” Was Offered a Non-Competition Slot At Cannes But The Director Refused The Invite — He Wants Competition

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A new Von Trier usually has cinephiles intrigued, you can't really discount the writer-director of "Breaking the Waves," "Dancer in the Dark," "Melancholia," and "Dogville," despite the fact that the last few years he's kind of lost a touch of himself with bouts of schizophrenia and depression which led to manic press conferences at Cannes in which he showed compassion for Hitler and insulted Nicolas Windig Refn. Also, despite the buzz that came before its release, "Nymphomaniac" was just not that good.

His latest endeavor into madness is "The House That Jack Built," a Matt Dillon-starring serial killer drama which I said last year "will surely be Cannes-bound." Well, the lineup for the 71st edition of the festival was announced earlier this week and "The House That Jack Built" was nowehere to be found.

I was told that the film perplexed the Cannes committee, headed by Festival Director Thierry Fremuax. They really didn't know what to do with the film, even if Von Trier has become a staple of the festival with every film he's released since "Dancer in the Dark" won the Palme D'Or back in 2000.

A report by French media Wask pictures a frantic Cannes committee offering Von Trier's latest film an "out-of-competition" slot, which was categorically refused by the director. According to the report, Von Trier is still trying to convince the general delegates of the fest to let him be part of the competition. 

Von Trier told The Guardian earlier last year that 'The House That Jack Built," was inspired by Donald Trump: “'The House That Jack Built’ celebrates the idea that life is evil and soulless, which is sadly proven by the recent rise of the Homo trumpus – the rat king,”

The Official Synopsis:

Set in Washington during the ’70s and ’80s, and stretching out across twelve years, the story will be told from the point of view of Jack (played by Matt Dillon), and chronicle his development into a serial killer, all while he tries to finish his “masterpiece” as he eludes capture. So far, the only other cast member is Bruno Ganz, but there are four prominent female roles that are yet to be cast, and hopefully we’ll hear about those soon.

Milos Forman (1932-2018)

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Milos Forman has passed away at age 86. A legendary, Czech-born director that had an incredible streak of Hollywood flms from 1975 to 1999.
His adaptation of  Ken Kesey’s "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" will forever be known as his masterpiece. A time-capsule film that, no doubt, represented one of the peaks of '70s maverick cinema. Not too far behind it would be his triumphant "Amadeus," a beautifully-rendered Best Picture winner about the rivarly between Mozart and Salieri. The film was, of course, driven by F. Murray Abraham‘s Oscar-winning performance as Salieri. Forman also won Best Director.
I "like" 1979's "Hair," a light, breezy film that took advantage of Warren Beatty's star-power and charisma. The film, was critically acclaimed but a box-office failure. His adaptation of  "Ragtime" in 1981 was no doubt honorable in its wild ambitions and it was a film that felt like it should have been made in the '70s instead and would have, no doubt, had more creative freedom in the process. The E.L. Doctorow book was a hard cinematic adaptation to pull of, but I found Forman did a decent job of conveying some of the episodic nature of it. Especially the story of Coalhouse Walker (Howard Rollings, Jr.) and the racially-provoked standoff he had with authorities. [Ava DuVernay seems to have been gravely affected by the film. ]

Although not as celebrated as his peak years of 1975-1984, the '90s were nevertheless quite fruitful for the director. "The People vs. Larry Flynt" and "Man on the Moon" are both films that have aged like fine wine over the years. The former using Hustler magazine bigwig Larry Flynt's story as the backdrop for censorship and freedom of speech in American society and the the latter which used Jim Carrey's impeccable turn as Andy Kaufman to become a thoughtful rumination on reality and fiction, a topic that is no-doubt even more relevant today than it was back in the day, what with the on-going spike of fake news. Forman's dissection of truths being twisted into lies and lies being twisted into truth, until you just don't know which is which anymore, will likely only heighten his legacy in the years to come.
Ever since "Man on the Moon" he's been on a sort of hiatus, only coming back for 2006's "Goya's Ghosts," which would sadly be the last film he ever made. 



Tony Gilroy attempts to defend his 'Beirut' screenplay


I'll hand it to Hannah Jewell, writer for The Washington Post, she was clearly upfront,, honest and critical of "Beirut" screenwriter-producer Tony Gilroy when she interviewed him about the film earlier this week. "Beirut" has been criticized as racist by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee’s Abed Ayoub. Why, you ask? Well part of it has to do with there being no Lebanese characters. 
The interview above, between Jewell and Gilroy, is no doubt cringe-worthy in its discomfort. Gilroy stands his ground when grilled by Jewell and as she recounts her time spent in Lebanon. She clearly thinks she has the right to tell Gilroy, to his face no less, how repulsed she was by his film. Girl's got guts, I'll give her that.
Of course, ethnic representation advocate Jen Yamato seems to have taken a liking to Jewell's stance, alas welcome to 2018!
Gilroy: “To anyone who spent time in Beirut in its heyday, it has really become Paradise Lost. I understand the sorrow but there are no Lebanese character in the film. There’s nobody in this film who is Lebanese. Everyone is an interloper. The PLO are invaders, teh Americans are invaders, the Israelis are invaders. The movie’s about Jon Hamm‘s character. He’s an Arabist, he’s married to a Lebanese woman, sponsoring a Lebanese boy. Jewell: Why is it called Beirut then? Gilroy: “Because it’s a good title, and it takes place there. Nobody speaks Mandarin in Chinatown.”
Gilroy to Jewell: “Did you feel [the film] was anti-Arab?” Jewell: “I have to say that there were moments in it that felt like it was written in 1991, and that certain [aspects and observations] have become cliches in talking about Lebanon, and to make a movie about that country without some [natives] in it seems like a huge push.” Gilroy: Story-telling, in a two-hour experience…everything takes a back seat to telling a good story. Would I be interested in inserting a scene that might satisfy…what would be the sequence or scene be that would satisfy this need and not stop [the movie] in its tracks…if we do a movie about Florida, should only Floridians play in it?…we have to protect everybody, you say…but the definition of who needs to be protected could be debated ad nauseum.”

Cannes head Thierry Fremaux says he almost lost his job last year after screening two Netflix movies.

Screendaily interviewed Cannes head Thierry Fremaux this morning for an in-depth interview and, of course, the topic of Netflix was talked about. Fremaux admitted being  “heavily criticized” by his superiors and that he was almost fired last year for programming two Netflix films, "Okja" and "The Meyerowitz Stories." He described the dispute with his superiors as “very violent.” All of this because Netflix didn't adhere to the ridiculous French law that states a film has to wait three years after its theatrical release to stream online.
Fremaux says he pleaded with Netflix to let them screen Alfonso Cuaron‘s "Roma" and Orson Welles‘ "The Other Side of the Wind" at this year's upcoming edition. The streaming giant, of course, didn't budge.
“I am asking them to accept that rule,” Fremaux relates. “They show dozens and dozens of films each year on Netflix. Could they not release just one film a year theatrically in France in order for it to come to Cannes?”
“The consequence of the chronology means [Roma and The Other Side of the Wind would] come out three years later,” Fremaux explains. “Sure, it’s absurd. On a personal level, I think it’s time to change it, but for now, in 2018, we are where we are. If they accepted to bring out the film, to give it to a distributor and to say, ‘Look, we also financed Orson Welles’s The Other Side Of The Wind, they would be heroes and it would be fabulous for their image.”

 Fremaux has been quite vocal about his love for Cuaron's movie, he mentioned to Variety that he's seen "Roma" "several times" and that "it’s a marvelous film [that] we wanted to have it in competition."