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First Looks at New Films from Bertrand Bonello, Kiyoshi Kurosawa, and Tran Anh Hung
14 hours ago
It is just ten days until what is perhaps the most exciting cinematic event of every year comes to bear: an announcement of the Cannes Film Festival lineup. We’ve featured glimpses of some of titles that might make their way to southern France next month, and today we’ve collected first looks at three more, all of which are greatly anticipated. How anticipated? So anticipated, in fact, that just an image warrants a post.
The first, from Wild Bunch, showcases Bertrand Bonello‘s Paris Is Happening — now being referred to as Nocturama in the native tongue — a picture about youths who take it upon themselves to sabotage the city of love with a series of explosions. Yes, even the writer-director is uncomfortable with that level of relevance — especially the writer-director, actually — as he told me back in December. Combine this tension and the fact that his last film was »
- Nick Newman
Alex Gibney and ‘Goodnight Mommy’ Filmmakers Set Up New Projects
15 hours ago
Given the rate at which he produces them, it sometimes seems as if nobody enjoys documentaries quite as much as Alex Gibney — but perhaps the man has finally run out of subjects to cover. Whatever the case may be, he’s gone to fiction with a new project: Deadline report on The Action, a ’70s-set political thriller scripted by Scott Z. Burns (Contagion, The Informant!) that concerns the Citizens Commission to Investigate the FBI, “eight anti-war activists who stole and made public classified FBI documents that exposed J. Edgar Hoover’s campaign of spying on and blackmailing troublemakers.”
Spoiler alert: they were never caught, but brought to light in 2014 when The Washington Post‘s Betty Medsger wrote The Burglary: The Discovery Of J. Edgar Hoover’s Secret FBI. The general story all sounds like the basis for a documentary he’d have ready by the fall, yet here we »
- Nick Newman
Trailer for D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus’ ‘Unlocking the Cage’ Confronts Animal Rights
16 hours ago
The great D.A. Pennebaker and his spouse / frequent collaborator Chris Hegedus have made something of a splash with Unlocking the Cage, the rare animal-rights documentary that a) is receiving positive notices and b) seems to earn said notices on the basis of its filmmaking, not merely a consideration of social issues. And this is among the strangest animals-rights stories in some time — potentially the most significant and deserving of a documentary. A preview of what’s to come has arrived ahead of the picture’s May release.
We were positive on the film when seeing it at Sundance, albeit ambivalent about its structure. As we said there, “Though Unlocking the Cage walks the nonfiction filmmakers’ traditional path, shepherding its story along mostly through interviews, the sophistication of Hegedus and Pennebaker’s craft is subtly present. A less adept director would take the all-too-common route of rushing through each plot point, »
- Nick Newman
Giveaway: Win Collectible Figures From Quentin Tarantino’s ‘The Hateful Eight’
16 hours ago
Recently arriving on Blu-ray, Quentin Tarantino‘s western The Hateful Eight was named one of our favorite films of 2015. We now have a special opportunity, as we’ve teamed with Fun.com to give away a pair of Neca collectible action figures from the film (see the full set here). One winner will receive one Marquis Warren figure and one winner will win one Daisy Domergue figure. See how to enter below, and all entries must be received by 11:59 Pm Est on Sunday, April 10.
To enter, follow the first two steps; 3, 4, and 5 each count as an entry into the contest.
1. Like The Film Stage on Facebook
2. Follow The Film Stage on Twitter
Follow @TheFilmStage
3. Comment in the box on Facebook with your favorite character in a western.
What’s your favorite character in a western?Comment for a chance to win a collectible figure from #TheHatefulEight. See more details here: http://bit. »
- TFS Staff
Structure of ‘La Haine,’ Don Cheadle Analyzes ‘Miles Ahead,’ Searching For Women-Directed Films, and More
18 hours ago
Dailies is a round-up of essential film writing, news bits, videos, and other highlights from across the Internet. If you’d like to submit a piece for consideration, get in touch with us in the comments below or on Twitter at @TheFilmStage.
NYC’s IFC Center has plans to expand, and they could use your help to let city officials know you support it.
Watch Don Cheadle analyze a scene from Miles Ahead:
Xavier Dolan‘s The Death and Life of John F. Donovan begins shooting on July 9th, Le Journal de Quebec reports.
Cinematographer Jeff Cutter discusses shooting 10 Cloverfield Lane with Filmmaker Magazine:
Anamorphic lenses just have a feeling that reminded Dan and I of what it used to be like watching these great widescreen movies when we were kids that were shot anamorphic. It just makes it feel like a big movie and that was something that we really, »
- TFS Staff
Posterized April 2016: ‘Green Room,’ ‘Tale of Tales,’ ‘Louder Than Bombs,’ and More
19 hours ago
“Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover” is a proverb whose simple existence proves the fact impressionable souls will do so without fail. This monthly column focuses on the film industry’s willingness to capitalize on this truth, releasing one-sheets to serve as not representations of what audiences are to expect, but as propaganda to fill seats. Oftentimes they fail miserably.
Spring is bringing some Tiff 2015 holdovers and a couple Hollywood hopefuls to take down the juggernaut that is Batman v Superman despite its bad reviews (I proudly hold firm on thinking it fun). Disney may have a hit on their hands with one of their old properties turned new (the one that isn’t pretending it isn’t connected to the film it’s a prequel of), but the success of the rest is up in the air.
Except for Barbershop: The Next Cut (April 15) and the aforementioned Disney rehash, »
- Jared Mobarak
Paul Dano Brings Daniel Radcliffe to Life in First Trailer For ‘Swiss Army Man’
22 hours ago
Sure, we haven’t seen the majority of films from 2016 yet, but we’ll make any bet that you won’t witness any other one like Swiss Army Man in this calendar year — or any other, for that matter. Affectionally dubbed the “farting corpse drama” at Sundance this year, it finds Hank (Paul Dano) on a remote island by himself after a boating trip stranded him. Seconds away from ending this desolate existence by hanging himself, he spots a washed up body on the beach, “played” by Daniel Radcliffe. What follows is a wholly one-of-a-kind experience, and if you want a sneak peek, the first trailer and poster have landed today ahead of a summer release by A24.
I said in my review, “This set-up could easily make for one of the silliest, off-putting films that has ever graced Sundance — in U.S. Dramatic competition, no less — yet the directing »
- Jordan Raup
Mel Gibson Protects His Daughter in First Trailer For ‘Blood Father’
22 hours ago
It’s been four years since Mel Gibson last led a feature with 2012’s Get the Gringo, but he’s back this year on both sides of the camera. Later this year we expect his first directorial effort in a decade, the Andrew Garfield-led WWII drama Hacksaw Ridge, to arrive, but first we have Blood Father, an actioner directed by Jean-François Richet (Mesrine).
The first trailer has now landed today thanks to its Australian distributors, where it’ll arrive there in late August (it is still awaiting a U.S. release date from Lionsgate). The story concerns an ex-convict father who tracks down and protects his daughter from danger, and judging from the previews, there’s a good amount of action to be had. Also starring William H. Macy, Diego Luna, Michael Parks, and Richard Cabral, check out the trailer below.
After her drug kingpin boyfriend frames her for »
- Jordan Raup
8 articles