Harmony Korine has announced his next two films, setting up his anime debut “The Trap,” and an untitled motion capture comedy.
Described as “Oldboy” set in a hip-hop world, the long-gestating “The Trap” is a gangster film, following an ex-con newly released from prison and dead-set on revenge once he learns that his former accomplice has become a top-selling rapper.
“The Trap” was originally a live-action film, set up by Annapurna, starring Jamie Foxx and Benecio del Toro. Now, Korine has decided to turn it into an anime, with his EDGLRD design collective and the help of Japanese producing partners.
Meanwhile, the aforementioned Korine-directed comedy — based on an earlier script — will build on in-house experiments with motion capture tech and virtual creation.
In the meantime, it has been confirmed that Korine’s “Baby Invasion,” a home invasion thriller, filmed as a first-person shooter, uses technology to swap invaders’ faces with those of babies. Variety is reporting that the upcoming feature is said to “make “Aggro Dr1ft” look tame by comparison” The film is eyeing a world premiere at Venice.
“It’s close to a horror film in some ways, and close to a first-person shooter game, mostly told through GoPros and security-cam footage,” Korine had told ArtNews in November. Will this one, much like his last one, “Aggro Dr1ft,” fail to find any distribution and resort to strip club screenings?
Yes, Korine’s visionary “Aggro Dr1ft” recently concluded its “experimental tour,” the first few stops were at Los Angeles strip clubs this past February. It’s definitely a peculiar way to screen the film, but then again, Korine has never really adhered to mainstream thinking.
Korine, known for transgressive, taboo-busting films, helped shape American indie cinema in the ‘90s. Korine’s ubiquitous style, an eschewing of traditional form and narrative, was highly influential and even had Jean-Luc Godard as a major fan.
Some of his earlier films were hallmarks of the ‘90s indie underground scene, I’m thinking particularly of his 1995 script for “Kids,” “Gummo,” and “Julien Donkey-Boy.” His latter-day films, including the wonderful “Spring Breakers,” broke the mold for A24 to break out as a major distributor of arthouse American cinema.
The short version: "Woman Unknown" was a compromise. The jury deadlocked over "Possible Love" and "NAZA," not able to com to terms, fell back on their #3, May el-Toukhy's film.