Posted on Tuesday, May 21st, 2013 by Germain Lussier
Briefly: The countdown to one of our most highly anticipated films of the year can now begin. Spike Jonze‘s latest film, Her, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams and Rooney Mara, will be released on a limited basis November 20. The film follows a lonely writer (Phoenix) who falls in love with his computer’s latest operating system. Jonze also wrote the screenplay. [ERC]
Posted on Monday, May 20th, 2013 by Russ Fischer
The work of Joel and Ethan Coen owes much to many who went before them, but they have few equals. There is no body of work quite like theirs in the post-1980 film landscape. Even in the decades prior, only a handful of directors — Billy Wilder and Preston Sturges prominent among them — can rival the wellspring combination of humor, humanism, and pure verve that the Coens seem able to tap into almost at will. When all is said and done, the Coens will likely stand as two of the very best filmmakers, period. And we get to be around as they release new films every couple years. What a joy that is.
The Coens’ new film, Inside Llewyn Davis, premiered at Cannes this past weekend. Immediately it became the toast of the festival (so far), with effusive reviews praising its tone, humor, and performances. We’ve rounded up a few below, just to give you a hint of what’s being said, some of which helps put footage from the trailer into more context. Read More »
Posted on Monday, May 20th, 2013 by Russ Fischer
A new film from indie mainstay Jim Jarmusch is always an event, even if he makes films that are much smaller than “event” really suggests. His new picture, his first in four years, is called Only Lovers Left Alive. It stars Tom Hiddleston, Tilda Swinton, Mia Wasikowska and Anton Yelchin in a genre-influenced story featuring vampires and music.
Hiddleston has described the film as a “love story,” and the bare bones of the plot are that “an underground musician (Hiddleston), deeply depressed by the direction of human activities, reunites with his resilient and enigmatic lover (Swinton).” The trick is that both characters are centuries old.
The press book from Cannes gives us a full synopsis of the film, but even better also offers a statement from Jarmusch about the film. In addition, we’ve got photos from the press book, along with two clips that surfaced not long ago. Read More »
Posted on Monday, May 20th, 2013 by Germain Lussier
Briefly: Good news for anyone anticipating Jason Reitman‘s latest film, Labor Day. Paramount has enough confidence in it to give the film a date primed for awards consideration. Labor Day will be released Christmas Day, expand on January 10 then go wide January 31.
Labor Day Gattlin Griffith as a young boy whose life is turned upside down when his single mother (Kate Winslet) aids an escaped convict (Josh Brolin). Reitman adapted the screenplay from a Joyce Maynard novel and it co-stars Tobey Maguire, J.K. Simmons and James Van Der Beek. [Deadline]
Posted on Friday, May 17th, 2013 by Angie Han
David O. Russell‘s got a knack for attracting great actors, but his next project could come with prominent A-listers already attached. Russell will reportedly write and direct the JFK assassination pic Legacy of Secrecy, featuring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook star Robert De Niro. The conspiracy drama posits that mafioso Carlos Marcello was behind the murder. Hit the jump for more details.
DiCaprio has been set to produce and star in the pic since 2010, while De Niro is a more recent addition. Based on the book of the same title by Lamar Waldron and Thom Hartmann, Legacy of Secrets hinges on mob kingpin Marcello’s confession to FBI informant Jack van Laningham that he was the one to order the killing.
David Lowery‘s film Ain’t Them Bodies Saints was one of the best films of this year’s Sundance Film Festival. IFC will bring it to theaters in August, and the film is screening in Cannes this weekend. Along with that screening we’ve got a new teaser poster for the film, painted by the director’s brother.
The poster, by Benjamin Lowery, shows the film’s central couple, Bob Muldoon (Casey Affleck) and Ruth Guthrie (Rooney Mara). They live together as outlaws, but Bob takes the blame for one of Ruth’s actions during a shootout with cops and goes to prison. Four years later, Bob escapes and makes his way back to Ruth and their daughter.
Ben Foster and Keith Carradine also star, but for right now we’ll keep the focus on Bob and Ruth, with Ruth rightly taking prominence on the poster. See the image after the break. Read More »
Posted on Thursday, May 16th, 2013 by Russ Fischer
Lars von Trier may have been banned (or “banned”) from Cannes two years ago for statements made while promoting Melancholia, but that hasn’t stopped him from having a presence at the fest this year. His new film(s), the two-part Nymphomaniac, weren’t finished in time for the fest, but the release of a new image (above) and a press release are keeping Trier in the global cinema conversation as Cannes kicks off this year.
Click the pic above for a larger version and you’ll be able to see actors such as Shia LaBeouf, Jamie Bell, Udo Kier, Uma Thurman, Sophie Kennedy Clark, Willem Dafoe, Mia Goth, Stellan Skarsgård, Christian Slater, and star Charlotte Gainsbourg, as well as the director. And hit the jump for a press release from Trier’s producer, announcing a Christmas Day opening in Denmark. Magnolia has the film in the US, and hasn’t announced a release date yet. Read More »
Posted on Thursday, May 16th, 2013 by Angie Han
Having just come off of one actor’s feature directorial debut, Scarlett Johansson is now preparing to make her own. And she’s starting with a property that has some pedigree: Summer Crossing, a “lost” Truman Capote novel about a young debutante in New York City.
The move is hardly an unexpected one. The project’s been brewing for a couple of years already, and prior to that Johansson took her first stab at directing with a short film starring Kevin Bacon. More details on her new movie after the jump.
