Last night I Tweeted the first image from David Cronenberg’s upcoming “Crimes of the Future.” This is the Canadian director’s first movie since 2014’s “Map of the Stars.”
Cronenberg may have been hinting at retirement these last six years, but the legendary 78-year-old director is not done with cinema. He’s teaming up with an incredible cast that includes Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux, Kristen Stewart, Scott Speedman, Welket Bungué, Don McKellar, Lihi Kornowski, Tanaya Beatty, Nadia Litz, and Yorgos Karamichos.
Although this new movie borrows the same name as Cronenberg’s 1970 feature it will have a different plot altogether. Could ”Crimes of the Future” be the Netflix/Cronenberg collaboration rumored last year? If you remember, I asked Cronenberg, as he was presenting a 4k restoration of his 1995 film, ‘Crash,” at Montreal’s Festival du Nouveau Cinema, what he was up to these days and he revealed tentative plans to write and direct a Netflix original.
Extended Synopsis:
“Taking a deep dive into the not-so-distant future where humankind is learning to adapt to its synthetic surroundings. This evolution moves humans beyond their natural state and into a metamorphosis, altering their biological makeup. While some embrace the limitless potential of trans-humanism, others attempt to police it. Either way, ‘Accelerated Evolution Syndrome’ is spreading fast. Saul Tenser is a beloved performance artist who has embraced Accelerated Evolution Syndrome, sprouting new and unexpected organs in his body. Along with his partner Caprice, Tenser has turned the removal of these organs into a spectacle for his loyal followers to marvel at in real time theatre. But with both the government and a strange subculture taking note, Tenser is forced to consider what would be his most shocking performance of all.”
That might just be the most Cronenberg-esque plot ever written.
Filming for “Crimes of the Future” is currently underway in Greece and is set to wrap up by the end of the summer. One would surely have to expect this one to premiere at Cannes 2022
Paul Greengrass’ "The Uprising," starring Andrew Garfield, opened to $3.2M from 2,068 theaters this weekend. Yikes. The budget hasn’t been disclosed, but is said to be in the $20-$30M range.