I don’t really want to waste too much ink on Rob Letterman’s “Detectve Pikachu.” It does adhere to diehards of Pokemon, despite the comedic voicework of Ryan Reynolds as the titular private eye.
Read moreNo Press Screenings For Joe Carnahan's ‘El Chicano'
I wouldn’t mind seeing Joe Carnahan’s “El Chicano,” despite its 38% Rotten score. I’ve always found Carnahan to be a decent pulp-influenced director -- In fact, he's been amassing quite an amount of fans these last few years. Good on him; His style is strongly influenced by both Tarantino and Michael Bay, but he still manages to bring out his own voice to the mix. He’s almost like a 21st century version of Peckinpah but injected with a mass amount of steroids. The Peckinpah similarities do get enhanced once you learn that Carnahan also describes himself as a " functioning alcoholic." His debut feature “Narc,” starring Ray Liotta and Jason Patric, is still his best movie, followed closely by the Liam Neeson wolf movie “The Grey.” I wouldn’t put anything else he’s done in a category with those, but there are minor merits to be had in Carnahan-directed movies as “Smokin’ Aces” “Stretch,” and “The A-Team.”
Read moreSome Are Not Happy That Alain Delon Is Receiving An Honorary Palme D'or at Cannes
So what can actually happen in the case of Alain Delon and Cannes honoring the legendary French actor in two weeks? Absolutely nothing. But, of course, there is resentment, among a fringe in the U.S, that Delon, who is 83, does not deserve to receive an honorary Palme d’Or at the forthcoming edition of the Festival.
Read moreA New Jane Campion Movie Starring Elizabeth Moss and Benedict Cumberbatch? Sign Me Up.
Legendary writer-director Jane Campion hasn’t directed a movie since 2009’s “Bright Star,” since then, she’s mostly dabbled in creating the TV series “Top of the Lake,” which was quite wonderful, but didn’t come close to the landmarks Campion had created over her illustrious 25 year career. Those landmarks are, as far as I’m concerned, “The Piano,” “Sweetie,” and “An Angel at My Table.” I also have great respect for “The Portrait of A Lady,” and the now, thanks to gender studies classes in film schools nationwide , feminist classic, “In the Cut” (a wildly uneven B-movie that is as fascinating as it is messy and frustrating).
Read moreRaimi's ‘Spider-Man 2' Is Still the Best Spidey Movie Ever Made
“Spider-Man: Far From Home” will be the 7th Spider-Man film we’ve gotten since 2002’s “Spider-Man.” ‘Far From Home’ is set to swing into theaters on July 5, 2019. It will be another MCU mega-hit, no doubt about it. I’ve had more than enough with these constant rebootings of “Spider-Man,” it does seem that Tom Holland is here to stay, he embodies Peter Parker in ways Andrew Garfield just couldn’t, but my excitement for a new Spider-Man movie has been on a downward spiral ever since I heard Raimi was gone and it was being rebooted, before this new reboot with Holland.
And yet, “Spider-Man 2" is still, far and away, the best webslinger movie ever. It may also be the most perfect superhero movie ever made - Its director Raimi was the guy that came closest to pouring Stan Lee's brains onto the screen.
Read moreJames Gray and Brad Pitt’s ‘Ad Astra’ Not Opening May 24 — Delayed Yet Again
What exactly is going on with James Gray’s “Ad Astra”?
Read moreScott Z Burns' ‘The Report' Will Be Released On September 20, 2019.
It does look like Scott Z. Burns’ “The Report” will be released by Amazon on September 20th, 2019 [Source]. That is most definitely not a very Oscar-friendly release date, to say the least. The movie was slightly overpraised back in January at Sundance, but I was a fan, by saying it was “a brutal and unforgiving journey into the deepest pits of governmental corruption.” Knowing what’s going on right now with the FBI/CIA abuses being uncovered, I would think this is a fairly relevant movie to watch, especially a few months from now …
It does look like the September release date will mostly just coincide with TIFF, and then be swept away into oblivion in the chaotic fervor of ensuing Oscar season months, but “The Report” could still make a mark, it’s as relevant as any movie likely to be released this year.
I wrote this on AW earlier this weekend:
It started off very slow but the second half is strong. It's not worthy of any awards, but it works, for the most part. Driver is excellent. Ditto Benning as Feinstein. The villain of the whole thing is Obama's former CIA director John Brennan, as played by Ted Levine. It helps that it is very of-the-moment, but I can't see anyone going gaga over this one. It's a very distancing piece of work from Burns, he really goes for ice-cold detachment, which will alienate many.
‘Ask Dr. Ruth’: America’s Most Famous Sex Therapist Gets RBG treatment in Entertaining New Doc [Review]
When we think of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, we think of sex. After all, she brought it to the forefront of the American conversation back in the ‘80s. But after watching Ryan White’s “Ask Dr. Ruth,” the most comprehensive documentary about her life and times, you start to realize it’s the least interesting thing about her.
Read moreBrad Pitt’s Brother Decided to Recreate the Ending of ‘Seven' For Commercial Ad
Mother Brewer’s Company, a Springfield ,Missouri company, which happens to be Brad Pitt’s hometown. They recently had the ingenious, and quite laughable, idea of casting Pitt’s own brother, and fellow Springfield resident, Doug Pitt in a commercial to play, well, Brad Pitt. In it, Doug tries to recreate his own brother’s “what’s in the box?!” freak-out, a scene from Fincher’s iconic “Se7en.” A rather tense moment, which has Pitt’s Detective Mills slowly, but very surely, realizing that his wife is dead and that her dismembered head is in a box riiiight next to him. Suffice to say, Doug, actually holds his own and, at times, shares rather strikingly reminds us of his much-more-famous brother.
Read moreA Week Too Late ...
‘Avengers: Endgame' becomes the fifth movie to pass $2B worldwide
“Avengers: Endgame” earned another $145.8M domestically this weekend and is estimated to have reached $2.188 billion worldwide, — this means it has now officially surpassed “Titanic” as the second highest-grossing movie worldwide. Of that tally, $619.7 million came from the US alone. Endgame’ will most likely become the 4th highest-grossing movie domestically next weekend, maybe even the third, if it can make $81M between now and next Sunday, which, I believe, will more than likely happen.
Read moreWoody Allen's ‘Rainy Day In New York' Rumored to Premiere at Venice Film Festival
Good news for Woody Allen’s currently-in-limbo “Rainy Day in New York.” It has been confirmed that an October 3rd Italian release date has been stamped on the film [via Italy’s Lucky Red]. This has led to speculation about a potential Venice Film Festival premiere, which happens a month before the Italian ‘Rainy Day’ release date. This could potentially be a seismic-like, earth-shaking event for the movie world, as Allen has been, by all accounts, unfairly, blacklisted in Hollywood due to Mia and Ronan Farrow taking advantage of the #MeToo movement to exact the revenge they’ve always wanted to perpetrate on Allen. If Venice head Alberto Barbera has the guts to defend Woody Allen, there wouldn’t be a better defense than having “Rainy Day in New York” play at Venice. This isn’t a far-fetched theory either — Variety’s Nick Vivarelli has also mentioned this theory in his piece about the newly announced Italian release date.
Director Alex Ross Perry Says ‘Avengers: Endgame' Deserves to Win Best Picture Oscar
American film director Alex Ross Perry loved “Avengers: Endgame” so damn much that he’s decided to write an op-ed, about its deserving of a Best Picture Oscar nomination, for IndieWire. This is an attempt to, I presume, bridge the gap between the Indie world and Hollywood. An uneasy marriage between two fairly different cinematic mindsets.
Read moreAnjelica Huston Defends Woody Allen and Roman Polanski In Raw, Outrageous, Interview
The interview Anjelica Huston recently gave to Vulture's Andrew Goldman should really be deemed an all-timer. This was all part of the press rounds the actress is conducting for her upcoming Keanu Reeves-led action film, “John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum.”
Read moreIFFBoston Brought Forth Some Noteworthy Surprises This Year
The IFFBoston is always a great place for me to catch up with titles I may have missed at Sundance, SXSW and Toronto. A film festival that celebrates the art of Independent cinema, especially from the United States, the five-day fest takes place in three locations, The Brattle Theatre at Harvard Square, the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline and the Somerville Theatre. Hosting a combined 100+ films each year, this makes it the largest film festival in New England.
Read more‘Endgame' Director Says Robert Downey Jr. Deserves An Oscar “More Than Anyone In The Last 40 Years”
“Avengers: Endgame” director Joe Russo thinks Robert Downey Jr. deserves an Oscar for playing Tony Stark. Downey, Jr. launched the MCU by starring in 2008’s “Iron Man”. He is an important part of the very roots of Marvel’s mega, 22-movie plan which culminated, just last week, with the above-average “Avengers: Endgame.” .
Read moreA 2010s Twitter Poll: Vive Denis Villeneuve!
I also conducted a Twitter Poll, on the best of the 2010s . A lot more Nolan and a clear-cut love Denis Villeneuve. “Mad Max: Fury Road” also finished first in this poll. It will be interesting to see if all the other will be topped by George Miller’s masterpiece. This is American-heavy stuff.
Read moreThe Unfair Public Shunning of Woody Allen
I haven't spoken about Woody Allen in quite some time now. You know by now how I feel about the way the venerable writer-director has been treated on social media. All but shunned, with his future as a filmmaker now being questioned. The bad press he has gotten has resulted in his latest film, the Amazon-produced “A Rainy Day in New York,” being stuck in post-production limbo with no release date in sight.
Read moreTerrence Malick's Latest Should Not Be Taken For Granted
We should take Terrence Malick’s latest film seriously. There are whispers here and there that the Cannes committee was absolutely floored by “A Hidden Life.” This could spell a return to form for Malick. The filmmaker mentioned late last year that he was actually using a script while shooting “A Hidden Life,” — something that he hasn't done since, probably, "The Tree of Life."
Cannes 2019: Abdelatif Kechiche's New Movie May Prove to Be Controversial In More Ways Than One
The news that Abdelatif Kechiche’s “Mektoub: Intermezzo” was chosen today as part of the Cannes lineup was not surprising. I don’t think many in France are complaining about it, but, yeah, it will not doubt be a point of contention here in the U.S. since Kechiche has a serious, year-old sexual assault investigation that was levelled against him.What I have been told is that this latest film features a 25 minute cunnilingus scene. This film is, no doubt, meant to provoke reaction. Cannes will, supposedly, be screening it the last day of the fest, when most American journos are already gone. Then again, would our current-day, social media culture even care about an Abdelatif Kechiche? Probably not. The “uncultured American” has very much turned into an epidemic in the states. You can just see it in the kinds of movies that make the big bucks nowawdays