This is interesting.
Paul Schrader has never been one to hold back, and in a new conversation with Interview Magazine he confirms that his latest film, “The Basics of Philosophy,” was rejected by Telluride, Toronto and New York. Three festivals that have historically embraced his work.
I was told in the case of both Telluride and Toronto that it was about subject matter.
That subject matter? Spoiler alert, but the film's professor is revealed to be a pedophile. Jack Huston plays Dr. John Jorissen, a philosophy professor caught between the future he's trying to build, and a past he can't shake.
Asked whether it's harder to make provocative work today, Schrader didn't hold back: "I think people are more easily offended today than they used to be."
The film didn't go unseen, of course. It premiered out of competition at Venice, then only recently had its U.S. premiere at The Downtown Festival, which his interviewer, Sherman-Myntti, programmed. Why did New York reject the film? They have programmed most of Schrader’s films this century. Was it really the subject matter?
Cinema has always gone to dark places, and festivals that only program what's comfortable aren't doing their job, but let's also not ignore the elephant in the room. In April 2025, Schrader was accused of sexual assault and harassment by a former assistant, and by June he had started production on this film. Festival programmers aren't operating in a vacuum, and it's naive to think that context played zero role in those decisions, whatever reason was given.
There's also the matter of quality. The reviews out of Venice, including mine, were rough. RogerEbert suggested it might be the worst film of Schrader's career, while Time Out called it a dreary effort. The result is 54 on Metacritic. This is a very divisive film, and programmers had cover to pass on it without saying the quiet part out loud.
Either way, Schrader at 80 is still out here poking the bear, aiming to provoke. You don't have to like the movie to find that admirable.
Paul Schrader has never been one to hold back, and in a new conversation, he confirms that his latest film, “The Basics of Philosophy,” was turned away by Telluride, Toronto and New York.