The AFI Film Festival just announced their lineup and, gosh, wouldn’t ya know it, Todd Haynes’ “Dark Waters” and Sam Mendes’ “1917” are nowhere to be found. Those two films now look like they will be the last Oscar contenders to be screened before the year wraps up.
Read moreKen Loach & Fernando Meirelles Join Scorsese In Bashing Marvel: “Cynical Exercise to Make Profits... Made Like Hamburgers"
The recent events based on a group of auteur filmmakers joining forces to attack Marvel feels like some kind of mini cinematic revolution. Led by Martin Scorsese, the list is growing by the day. Just this past weekend Francis Ford Coppola called Marvel movies “despicable.”
Read more‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’ Final Trailer Released
Just as tickets for the film went on sale on Monday night, the eagerly awaited final trailer for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” just premiered on ESPN’s Monday Night Football telecast.
Read more‘The Current War': Edison, Tesla and Westinghouse Have Never Been So Dull [Review]
I was rather unimpressed by Thomas Gomez-Rejon‘s “The Current War” when it played at the 2017 Toronto Film Festival. Yes, that’s right, close to two years after its release, this formerly Weinstein-owned period movie is finally landing into theaters this October.
Read moreMartin Scorsese Says It's “Not Valid" to Criticize the Lack of Female Roles in His Movies
Martin Scorsese is now at the Rome Film Festival, where his Netflix gangster epic “The Irishman” is being screened as the centerpiece selection of the festival. During a press conference (via THR/Kinótico), an Italian journalist asked Scorsese why his filmography is mostly dominated by male characters and how female stories are sparse in his catalog. Scorsese immediately responded by calling the question invalid:
Read moreNadav Lapid's ‘Synonyms' Tackles Israeli Nationalism and Identity [Review]
Israeli director Nadav Lapid was thrust into the global cinematic stage with “The Kindergarten Teacher” and “Policeman.” However, with “Synonyms,” which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival this past January, Lapid should now be considered a formidable force in cinema.
Read moreFirst Reactions for ‘Terminator: Dark Fate’ Praise Sequel as Best in the Franchise Since ‘T2’
The first reactions to “Terminator: Dark Fate” are here and the sequel is being heralded as the best installment of the ‘Terminator’ franchise since “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” Music to my ears, but, since these are Twitter reactions, I will not get too overly excited about these “reviews.”
Read moreOh, Hell No.
The fact that Sony has decided to open the Vin Diesel-starring “Bloodshot” next February is enough for us to worry about the quality of this film. Directed by Dave Wilson, in his first feature film as a director after being the “creative supervisor” behind “Avengers: Age Of Ultron” and director of video game trailers, “Bloodshot” seems to be DOA. I don’t really know who would get excited about such a film, I guess Vin Diesel die-hards? That contingent of fans no doubt exists, just look at the “Fast and the Furious” franchise for proof, but this trailer falls flat.
Read moreBox-Office: ‘Maleficent' Takes Top Spot, But Disappoints; ‘Joker' Now the Seventh Highest-Grossing Movie of 2019
This week at the box office saw Disney’s mini-hiatus end, as they returned atop the box office with “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil”, in a week that also saw “Joker” edging toward yet more R rated milestones, and in which three Oscar hopefuls debuted in limited release.
Read moreJames Gunn Defies Coppola and Scorsese: “You’re Geniuses, But You Don’t Get Marvel"
With Francis Ford Coppola now echoing Martin Scorsese’s criticisms of Marvel films, which the legendary director labeled as “not cinema,” here comes “Guardians of the Galaxy” writer/director James Gunn trying to defend his masters over at Marvel.
Read more‘Jojo Rabbit' Isn't as Important as it Deems Itself to Be
The Case for Frank Darabont
“The Shawshank Redemption” was released in 1994 to good but not great reviews — however, over the last two decades, the Frank Darabont-directed movie has aged like fine wine. Not only is it now one of the most heralded movies in history, having topped the IMDb’s list of highest-rated films for more than a decade now, but it is also a selection in the Library of Congress. That’s how important ‘Shawshank’ is.
Read moreFrancis Ford Coppola Backs Scorsese, Calls Marvel Movies ‘Despicable'
Speaking to press (via Yahoo!), as he was being awarded the prestigious Prix Lumiere in France, Francis Ford Coppola sided with Martin Scorsese's recent criticisms of Marvel movies. In fact, if anything, Coppola went even further than Scorsese by adding that not only were Marvel movies not cinema, but that they were also “despicable.”
Read moreKevin Smith Opens Up About the Highs and Lows of his Career [Interview]
It’s hard to have grown up in the ’90s and not be familiar with Kevin Smith‘s brand of slacker comedy. Between 1994 and 1999, Smith basically became the spokesman for a misfit generation of geeky basement dwellers with his films “Clerks,” “Chasing Amy,” “Mallrats,” and “Dogma.”
Recently, I spoke to Smith about going back to his roots, the constant tackling of new genres, and how Seth Rogen made him become the stoner, he never thought he would be. It was a conversation that was meant to last just 20 minutes, but it stretched out to a full hour. I had to edit down more than half the interview for print, but will post an mp3 of the entire conversation at a later date.
Jared Leto Pressured his Agents to Stop Joaquin Phoenix' ‘Joker’ Movie From Happening
I can only imagine how Jared Leto, the worst Joker in movie history, felt when he heard that Todd Phillips was making “Joker” and that he had cast Joaquin Phoenix in the titular role. Leto is a proudly talented method actor who, we must admit, had a rare hiccup when he portrayed Batman’s arch-nemesis in “Suicide Squad.” Truth be told, it wasn’t necessarily his fault as much as just the whole project being misbegotten from the very start.
Read more‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ Director Benh Zeitlin Returns with ‘Wendy’
Director Benh Zeitlin’s “Wendy” has been confirmed for a release date of February 28th, 2020. The film is purported to be a re-imagining of the classic Peter Pan tale, Here’s the full synopsis:
Read more‘El Camino' Was Watched By 6.5 Million Viewers on Opening Weekend
If “El Camino” were released in theatres last weekend it may have taken the No. 1 spot at the box office.
Read moreDisney Has Accounted for 40% of the US Box-Office in 2019
‘The Batman’ Casts Paul Dano as The Riddler
Paul Dano replaces Jonah Hill, who left the project yesterday.
Read moreDavid Fincher’s ‘Mank’ Adds ‘Mindhunter’ Cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt
A reliable source over at Netflix has confirmed to me that David Fincher’s next feature, “Mank,” has added cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt. Messerschmidt’s credits include both seasons of Fincher’s Netflix’s series “Mindhunter” and FX’s “Legion.”
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Adam Driver is still not over "The Hunt for Ben Solo," but there's a silver lining: Steven Soderbergh has already moved on to a new script, and Driver calls it one of the best things Soderbergh has ever written.