I am currently scheduled to catch Ang Lee’s “Gemini Man” on October 8th, just two days before the film is released in theaters. A bad sign. Usually, the more confident a studio is with their movie, the more likely it’ll screen a week or more in advance. It doesn’t help that the embargo has been lifted for the very few that actually caught its L.A. screening earlier this week and the reviews, suffice to say, are atrocious.
Lee's upcoming film is another major studio project for the Taiwanese-born filmmaker. It stars Will Smith and will be using Industrial Light and Magic "de-aging" on Smith. It doesn’t seem like Lee has regained his artistic footing with "Gemini Man.” A real shame, if you ask me, as American cinema could sure use him at the summit of his powers right about now. Maybe opportunities for actual humane drama in the industry have just rendered him to become a paycheck guy.
I wrote this earlier in the year about Ang Lee:
“Ang Lee's career has been a rather odd one. Of course, the greatness of his peak years (1994-2005) can never be underestimated: "Sense and Sensibility," "The Ice Storm," "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," and "Brokeback Mountain." Post-2005? It's been a little more up and down. I really liked "Lust, Caution" but many felt it was the beginning of Lee's dip into lower quality cinema. I can't say I disagree with that assessment, especially when it comes to "Taking Woodstock," "Life of Pi," (which I liked) and "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk," all major studio films that had Lee's poetic style stripped for more mainstream affairs.”
Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim's "You Can See Everything" has been in theaters for, what, three days? And it's already the highest-rated feature film of all time on Letterboxd.