Scott Turow wrote his first novel, Presumed Innocent, in 1987. Three years later, it was adapted into a movie starring Harrison Ford. Fast-forward over thirty years, and David E. Kelley, known for hit shows like The Practice, Alley McBeal, and Big Little Lies, is adapting the novel to the small screen for Apple TV+. This crime thriller features magnificent twists and turns and two powerful performances by Academy Award nominees Jake Gyllenhaal and Ruth Negga.
Presumed Innocent Plot
Presumed Innocent follows the story of a Chicago Prosecutor who finds himself a suspect in the middle of a horrific murder. The series explores sex, politics, and obsession as Rusty Sabich fights to keep his family and marriage together.
Jake Gyllenhaal and Bill Camp in “Presumed Innocent,” premiering June 12, 2024 on Apple TV+.
The Critique
David E. Kelley, a master of the thriller genre, takes on the challenge of breathing new life into a story we thought we knew.
Presumed Innocent Plot
Presumed Innocent follows the story of a Chicago Prosecutor who finds himself a suspect in the middle of a horrific murder. The series explores sex, politics, and obsession as Rusty Sabich fights to keep his family and marriage together.
Jake Gyllenhaal and Bill Camp in “Presumed Innocent,” premiering June 12, 2024 on Apple TV+.
The Critique
David E. Kelley, a master of the thriller genre, takes on the challenge of breathing new life into a story we thought we knew.
- 6/10/2024
- by Ricky Valero
- FandomWire
Hollywood is bursting with "what if" scenarios -- "Sliding Doors" moments where actors, writers, directors, and craftspeople almost made a certain project, or almost walked away from a job that would become huge for their careers. With the benefit of hindsight, these situations are often fun to think about -- especially if, as in the case in today's example, A) the two people competing for a part were vying for a memorable role in a well-known movie, and B) they both went on to have great careers, so the thought exercise doesn't feel mean-spirited or just plain sad.
In an oral history of "Zoolander" published by Vanity Fair in 2021, "Zoolander" writer, producer, director, and star Ben Stiller explained how Owen Wilson nearly didn't end up playing Hansel, Derek Zoolander's rival-male-model-turned-friend, and identified the surprising actor who almost took the role instead:
"We wrote Hansel for Owen Wilson. But at a certain point,...
In an oral history of "Zoolander" published by Vanity Fair in 2021, "Zoolander" writer, producer, director, and star Ben Stiller explained how Owen Wilson nearly didn't end up playing Hansel, Derek Zoolander's rival-male-model-turned-friend, and identified the surprising actor who almost took the role instead:
"We wrote Hansel for Owen Wilson. But at a certain point,...
- 5/26/2024
- by Ben Pearson
- Slash Film
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. To keep up with our latest features, sign up for the Weekly Edit newsletter and follow us @mubinotebook on Twitter and Instagram.NEWSThe Little Mermaid.A generative AI start-up has been accused of stealing the voices of actors for its subscription service.IATSE expects to schedule additional days of bargaining with AMPTP in June, but has vowed not to extend its contract past July 31.With Incaa defunded by Argentine president Javier Milei, Ventana Sur is in talks to relocate from Buenos Aires to Uruguay for its sixteenth edition.As the Italian film industry continues to wait on a divided government to make production tax credits available, anticipating modest cuts, a new law in the Czech Parliament would more than double the existing cap on their incentives. Meanwhile, industry insiders in Poland urge a newly elected government to increase their rebate...
- 5/22/2024
- MUBI
When it was released in January of 2001, Richard Kelly's bleak time-travel psychological drama "Donnie Darko" caused a notable stir. The title character, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, is a teen struggling with schizophrenia in 1988, a time when Reagan's great Conservative revolution was drawing to a close and adults clung to suburban conformity as it crumbled under them. Donnie is obsessed with time-travel and regularly hallucinates a vicious, strange anthropomorphic rabbit monster named Frank (all while attempting to socialize at school and foster a romance with a classmate played by Jena Malone). Patrick Swayze appears as a cheesy self-self guru, Drew Barrymore plays one of Donnie's teachers, and Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Donnie's sister.
By turns psychedelic and weirdly moving (in a Goth sort of way), "Donnie Darko" quickly became a cult hit and rotated directly into the local midnight movie circuit, attracting a wide swath of misfits and night people.
By turns psychedelic and weirdly moving (in a Goth sort of way), "Donnie Darko" quickly became a cult hit and rotated directly into the local midnight movie circuit, attracting a wide swath of misfits and night people.
- 5/19/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Jake Gyllenhaal is arguably one of the bravest actors of his generation, venturing into different genres and attempting risky projects throughout his career. As a child actor, he gained prominence in the role of Homer Hickam in 1999’s October Sky. The young actor would go on to star in one of the most influential films of the 2000s Donnie Darko.
Jake Gyllenhaal as Homer Hickam in 1999’s October Sky
The complex psychological thriller was directed by Richard Kelly with Gyllenhaal playing the titular role. Most people were blown away by the film’s ambition and were left thinking about the complicated narrative and the ambiguous nature of its ending. Gyllenhaal considers this the biggest achievement of the film which has led to its resonance to this day.
Jake Gyllenhaal is a Big Advocate for The Confusingly Ambiguous Donnie Darko Ending
Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie Darko was one of the most...
Jake Gyllenhaal as Homer Hickam in 1999’s October Sky
The complex psychological thriller was directed by Richard Kelly with Gyllenhaal playing the titular role. Most people were blown away by the film’s ambition and were left thinking about the complicated narrative and the ambiguous nature of its ending. Gyllenhaal considers this the biggest achievement of the film which has led to its resonance to this day.
Jake Gyllenhaal is a Big Advocate for The Confusingly Ambiguous Donnie Darko Ending
Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie Darko was one of the most...
- 5/19/2024
- by Rahul Thokchom
- FandomWire
Jake Gyllenhaal is one of Hollywood’s most versatile actors, and he has pushed his creative limits since he broke into the industry. It was apparent in spades in the psychological thriller, Donnie Darko, with Richard Kelly at its helm, with the role winning him accolades.
Since its release in 2001, the film has become quite popular among film buffs, and it has gained a bit of a cult following. The plot takes the viewers on a ride right off the bat. However, there was one scene, so gruesome, that even the director could not add to the director’s cut.
One scene from the film ended up on the cutting floor (Source: Donnie Darko)
What is Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie Darko about?
The film follows the story of Donald ‘Donnie’ Darko, a troubled teenager. His world is turned upside down when his sleepwalking habit helps him to escape a bizarre accident,...
Since its release in 2001, the film has become quite popular among film buffs, and it has gained a bit of a cult following. The plot takes the viewers on a ride right off the bat. However, there was one scene, so gruesome, that even the director could not add to the director’s cut.
One scene from the film ended up on the cutting floor (Source: Donnie Darko)
What is Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie Darko about?
The film follows the story of Donald ‘Donnie’ Darko, a troubled teenager. His world is turned upside down when his sleepwalking habit helps him to escape a bizarre accident,...
- 4/21/2024
- by Sreshtha Roychowdhury
- FandomWire
The late, great, Patrick Swayze was taken from us far too soon, but left behind a legacy of phenomenal films, performances, and characters to hold near and dear. Before pivoting into a full-time acting career, Swayze was trained in ballet, ice skating, martial arts, and football. Pairing this with his dazzling good looks and acting prowess allowed him to thrive in a variety of film genres, playing fast-dancing heartthrobs and action hunks in equal measure. He had his professional breakthrough as a dancer with the Disney Theatrical Group before taking on the replacement role of Danny Zuko in a Broadway production of "Grease." This put him on the radar of Hollywood, and he made his film debut as Ace in the 1979 film "Skatetown, U.S.A."
But when the 1980s came calling, Swayze exploded in popularity and became a household name. While he certainly hit his peak when I was just a child,...
But when the 1980s came calling, Swayze exploded in popularity and became a household name. While he certainly hit his peak when I was just a child,...
- 4/21/2024
- by BJ Colangelo
- Slash Film
As we continue to explore the best in 2023, today we’re taking a look at the articles that you, our dear readers, enjoyed the most throughout the past twelve months. Spanning reviews, interviews, features, podcasts, news, and trailers, check out the highlights below and return for more year-end coverage as well as a glimpse into 2024.
Most-Read Reviews
1. Body Parts
2. The Exorcist: Believer
3. Barbie
4. Beau Is Afraid
5. Priscilla
6. Suzume
7. Hypnotic
8. No Hard Feelings
9. The Zone of Interest
10. The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Most-Read Interviews
1. Claire Simon on Capturing the Female Body and What Sets Her Apart From Frederick Wiseman
2. “I Don’t Think Directors Should Be Amenable”: Erik Messerschmidt on Shooting The Killer and David Fincher’s Simple Process
3. Richard Kelly on Creative Heartbreak, Political Cinema, and Future Projects
4. Christopher Blauvelt on May December, Formatting for Netflix and 35mm, and Life Lessons from Harris Savides
5. Brandon Cronenberg on Infinity Pool,...
Most-Read Reviews
1. Body Parts
2. The Exorcist: Believer
3. Barbie
4. Beau Is Afraid
5. Priscilla
6. Suzume
7. Hypnotic
8. No Hard Feelings
9. The Zone of Interest
10. The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Most-Read Interviews
1. Claire Simon on Capturing the Female Body and What Sets Her Apart From Frederick Wiseman
2. “I Don’t Think Directors Should Be Amenable”: Erik Messerschmidt on Shooting The Killer and David Fincher’s Simple Process
3. Richard Kelly on Creative Heartbreak, Political Cinema, and Future Projects
4. Christopher Blauvelt on May December, Formatting for Netflix and 35mm, and Life Lessons from Harris Savides
5. Brandon Cronenberg on Infinity Pool,...
- 1/1/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Between 1959 and 1964, there wasn't a more consistently brilliant show on television than Rod Serling's "The Twilight Zone" — an accomplishment that's all the more amazing given its anthology concept. Every episode offered a completely new story, often in a completely different genre, from an occasionally different writer. Sure, the rotating staff was a murderer's row of scribes that included Serling, Richard Matheson, and Charles Beaumont, but, good as they were, they didn't have the safety net of writing for the same characters every time out. All they had was their imagination.
Considering Hollywood's risk-averse nature, it's a little surprising that more "Twilight Zone" episodes haven't been turned into full-blown features — at least, not as official remakes. Obviously, "Poltergeist" owes a massive creative debt to "Little Girl Lost" and it's hard to imagine "Child's Play" without the arsenic-laced genius of "Living Doll," but for straight-up adaptations there's Richard Kelly's "The Box...
Considering Hollywood's risk-averse nature, it's a little surprising that more "Twilight Zone" episodes haven't been turned into full-blown features — at least, not as official remakes. Obviously, "Poltergeist" owes a massive creative debt to "Little Girl Lost" and it's hard to imagine "Child's Play" without the arsenic-laced genius of "Living Doll," but for straight-up adaptations there's Richard Kelly's "The Box...
- 12/28/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Normally, to reach the level of cult status, a film has to gain an underground popularity that breathes new life into a project that may have been otherwise overlooked. But when it comes to "Five Nights at Freddy's," the smash hit gateway horror movie had already become a cult film before it was even released. Thanks to the game's immense popularity, viral reaction videos, and numerous spinoffs, books, and toys, there was already a rabid fan base built in to ensure the "FNaF" phenomenon would translate to box office success on the big screen.
On the other hand, Richard Kelly's mind-bending masterwork "Donnie Darko" became a cult sensation that slowly gained momentum due to its complex plot that combined a teen drama with head-scratching surrealism, time travel, and alternate dimensions. There was also a giant bunny named Frank that would have blended right in among the creepy animatronics located inside Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.
On the other hand, Richard Kelly's mind-bending masterwork "Donnie Darko" became a cult sensation that slowly gained momentum due to its complex plot that combined a teen drama with head-scratching surrealism, time travel, and alternate dimensions. There was also a giant bunny named Frank that would have blended right in among the creepy animatronics located inside Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.
- 11/26/2023
- by Drew Tinnin
- Slash Film
Michele Civetta is the director of feature films “Agony” and “The Gateway” and music videos for Lou Reed, Sean Lennon, and Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros.
We came from a generation…
With aspirations of what cinema is as an art form, what it can do to provoke change, illuminate dreams of individual stories, and propel cultural narratives. Inspired by the American New Wave of Cinema, living under the banner of the Cahiers du Cinema auteur theory, a world where writers, directors, and producers created stories in the emerging screen revolution colliding between world cinema and the 90s independent film boom. Looking inside the cinematic kaleidoscope, imagining how to penetrate the dream factory, Kevin Turen was born to be a maverick as he surmounted this unpaved road for our generation of friends and filmmaking talent. As New York City Kids, we crossed the threshold into our professional years. Kevin helped out...
We came from a generation…
With aspirations of what cinema is as an art form, what it can do to provoke change, illuminate dreams of individual stories, and propel cultural narratives. Inspired by the American New Wave of Cinema, living under the banner of the Cahiers du Cinema auteur theory, a world where writers, directors, and producers created stories in the emerging screen revolution colliding between world cinema and the 90s independent film boom. Looking inside the cinematic kaleidoscope, imagining how to penetrate the dream factory, Kevin Turen was born to be a maverick as he surmounted this unpaved road for our generation of friends and filmmaking talent. As New York City Kids, we crossed the threshold into our professional years. Kevin helped out...
- 11/21/2023
- by Michele Civetta
- Indiewire
Despite what Hollywood wants us to believe, not every movie ever made needs a sequel. This did not stop the studios from trying their hardest to churn them out, leaving movie fans with only one solution: forget the sequel exists. It’s a useful technique, but, ironically, it doesn’t work on the worst films. We can say to each other, for example, that Highlander II: The Quickening never happened all we want. In our broken, battered souls though, we know it exists. And it sucks so much. The memory endures, like a cinematic kidney stone.
Trying to forget works best on sequels so middling, or cynically shoveled out that there’s not much for our memories to grab on to. If we do remember them, it’s with a befuddled “how the hell did that happen?” or a “they got A-list actors for that?” kind of awe. And then we forget about them again.
Trying to forget works best on sequels so middling, or cynically shoveled out that there’s not much for our memories to grab on to. If we do remember them, it’s with a befuddled “how the hell did that happen?” or a “they got A-list actors for that?” kind of awe. And then we forget about them again.
- 11/18/2023
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
Friends, it’s that time of year. The weather is getting colder, the nights are getting spookier, and my watchlist is getting weirder. Among the classics for Halloween movie nights is Richard Kelly’s directorial debut that both shocked attendees of Sundance in 2001, as well as risen to the ranks of the coveted title “Cult Classic” in the more than 20 years since it was made. It’s a movie that resonates with teenagers on a level that few movies have in the past couple of decades and on its own it stands as a crowd-pleasing adventure that is sure to intrigue you as much as it confuses you. I’m talking, of course, about the time traveling, water bending, and deliciously disturbing story of Donnie Darko
Ah, Donnie Darko.
When I was 13 or 14, my English teacher on this movie on for our class on the last day of school, and...
Ah, Donnie Darko.
When I was 13 or 14, my English teacher on this movie on for our class on the last day of school, and...
- 10/30/2023
- by Kier Gomes
- JoBlo.com
Gore Verbinski's blue-soaked, melancholic "The Ring" incited a wave of J-horror stateside upon its release in 2002. A new century always brings new horror rules, and for the early part of this century, those rules mandated imported ghosties with tragic, complex backstories. Unlike most horror remakes, especially J-horror remakes, Verbinski's "The Ring" is arguably stronger than Hideo Nakata's original, no small feat given Nakata's status as one of this generation's premier Japanese horror auteurs. Post-millennium anxiety, digital unease, and swelling domestic discontent coalesced into more than hospitable conditions for "The Ring" to not just succeed, but succeed remarkably. $249 million worldwide isn't bad by any metric.
Beyond Verbinski's assured control of the material, the cast of new and familiar faces helped augment "The Ring's" most enduring scares. While Naomi Watts might be front and center, Daveigh Chase's contributions as chief baddie Samara Morgan cannot be overstated. With a dense,...
Beyond Verbinski's assured control of the material, the cast of new and familiar faces helped augment "The Ring's" most enduring scares. While Naomi Watts might be front and center, Daveigh Chase's contributions as chief baddie Samara Morgan cannot be overstated. With a dense,...
- 10/14/2023
- by Chad Collins
- Slash Film
Few American filmmakers of the last 40 years await a major rediscovery like Hal Hartley, whose traces in modern movies are either too-minor or entirely unknown. Thus it’s cause for celebration that the Criterion Channel are soon launching a major retrospective: 13 features (which constitutes all but My America) and 17 shorts, a sui generis style and persistent vision running across 30 years. Expect your Halloween party to be aswim in Henry Fool costumes.
Speaking of: there’s a one-month headstart on seasonal programming with the 13-film “High School Horror”––most notable perhaps being a streaming premiere for the uncut version of Suspiria, plus the rare opportunity to see a Robert Rodriguez movie on the Criterion Channel––and a retrospective of Hong Kong vampire movies. A retrospective of ’70s car movies offer chills and thrills of a different sort
Six films by Allan Dwan and 12 “gaslight noirs” round out the main September series; The Eight Mountains,...
Speaking of: there’s a one-month headstart on seasonal programming with the 13-film “High School Horror”––most notable perhaps being a streaming premiere for the uncut version of Suspiria, plus the rare opportunity to see a Robert Rodriguez movie on the Criterion Channel––and a retrospective of Hong Kong vampire movies. A retrospective of ’70s car movies offer chills and thrills of a different sort
Six films by Allan Dwan and 12 “gaslight noirs” round out the main September series; The Eight Mountains,...
- 8/21/2023
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Is there anything scarier than being a teenager? Bd has learned that the Criterion Channel will be launching their 13-film High School Horror collection on September 1!
The streaming service previews, “Relive your high school nightmares with these tales of terror unleashed in classrooms, gyms, locker-lined halls, and cafeterias, where psychotic slashers and supernatural monsters pursue jocks, nerds, and prom queens alike.
“The everyday fears of adolescence—social anxiety! changing bodies!—have inspired some of horror cinema’s most giddily bloodthirsty visions, from VHS-era exploitation shockers like Massacre at Central High and Slumber Party Massacre to ’90s teen-movie touchstones like I Know What You Did Last Summer and The Faculty and cult favorites like Donnie Darko and Battle Royale.”
Of particular note, Dario Argento’s Suspiria will be included in the collection, marking the worldwide streaming premiere of the restored uncut version from Synapse Films!
The full “High School Horror” lineup includes…...
The streaming service previews, “Relive your high school nightmares with these tales of terror unleashed in classrooms, gyms, locker-lined halls, and cafeterias, where psychotic slashers and supernatural monsters pursue jocks, nerds, and prom queens alike.
“The everyday fears of adolescence—social anxiety! changing bodies!—have inspired some of horror cinema’s most giddily bloodthirsty visions, from VHS-era exploitation shockers like Massacre at Central High and Slumber Party Massacre to ’90s teen-movie touchstones like I Know What You Did Last Summer and The Faculty and cult favorites like Donnie Darko and Battle Royale.”
Of particular note, Dario Argento’s Suspiria will be included in the collection, marking the worldwide streaming premiere of the restored uncut version from Synapse Films!
The full “High School Horror” lineup includes…...
- 8/11/2023
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
First things first: I was kindly told not to ask Richard Kelly about any forthcoming projects. It will soon be 14 years since his much-better-than-you-remember The Box, and the writer-director’s cult legend––already considerable by 2009, just eight years since Donnie Darko and two after Southland Tales‘ botched theatrical release (or three from its notorious Cannes debut)––has further bloomed on the basis of what-ifs, almost-weres, the tantalizingly close, and the fear that nothing’s left. But Kelly was perfectly clear he’s working on plenty, just not what, and I wasn’t in any position to disregard wishes of someone who agreed to an interview via Twitter Dm.
Richard Kelly has plenty to say, anyway. If each of his films are much bigger inside than they appear on the surface, three of them offer ample room for conversation and revelation. As we met in New York’s Roxy Hotel, whose...
Richard Kelly has plenty to say, anyway. If each of his films are much bigger inside than they appear on the surface, three of them offer ample room for conversation and revelation. As we met in New York’s Roxy Hotel, whose...
- 7/31/2023
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Ever looked up the ending of a movie after you watched it? Well… you’re definitely not alone.
A formal list of the most confusing movies of all time has been assembled, according to how often the film’s title and “explained” is searched on the internet. After compiling a list of 150 films renowned for their puzzling plots and ambiguous endings, Im-a-puzzle‘s team analyzed searches that include a film title followed by “explained” in an effort to learn which top 15 films confused audiences the most.
Released in 2022, the list spans over six decades, beginning with Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey” with the least amount of searches per month, totaling 4,200 searches. As the searches per month increase on the list, Christopher Nolan’s films land four of the 15 spots — including #1 for his 2020 puzzler “Tenet.” That film introduced the concept of “time inversion” and concerns different physical properties moving in different directions.
A formal list of the most confusing movies of all time has been assembled, according to how often the film’s title and “explained” is searched on the internet. After compiling a list of 150 films renowned for their puzzling plots and ambiguous endings, Im-a-puzzle‘s team analyzed searches that include a film title followed by “explained” in an effort to learn which top 15 films confused audiences the most.
Released in 2022, the list spans over six decades, beginning with Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey” with the least amount of searches per month, totaling 4,200 searches. As the searches per month increase on the list, Christopher Nolan’s films land four of the 15 spots — including #1 for his 2020 puzzler “Tenet.” That film introduced the concept of “time inversion” and concerns different physical properties moving in different directions.
- 6/21/2023
- by Charna Flam
- The Wrap
"Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut" immediately establishes itself as a different viewing experience from the original 2001 film, as Jake Gyllenhaal's teen protagonist rides his bike home in his pajamas to a new soundtrack song. Echo & The Bunnymen's "The Killing Moon" is such a signature needle drop that it feels a little off to hear it replaced by Inxs's "Never Tear Us Apart."
It's as if writer-director Richard Kelly is now cueing the audience through music that it's about to enter a new "Tangent Universe," apart from the Primary Universe, just as Donnie himself does in one interpretation of the film. That interpretation gets a stronger push in "Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut," which introduces those capitalized terms onscreen and pulls another soundtrack switcheroo later when it replaces composer Michael Andrews' recognizable "Liquid Spear Waltz" with a piece of opera music.
George Lucas famously changed a song at the end...
It's as if writer-director Richard Kelly is now cueing the audience through music that it's about to enter a new "Tangent Universe," apart from the Primary Universe, just as Donnie himself does in one interpretation of the film. That interpretation gets a stronger push in "Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut," which introduces those capitalized terms onscreen and pulls another soundtrack switcheroo later when it replaces composer Michael Andrews' recognizable "Liquid Spear Waltz" with a piece of opera music.
George Lucas famously changed a song at the end...
- 6/4/2023
- by Joshua Meyer
- Slash Film
Welcome to the mind-bending world of surreal horror movies, where the boundaries of reality are shattered, and nightmares come alive. In this list, we delve into ten captivating films that defy conventions and transport audiences into a realm where dreams and nightmares intertwine. From twisted narratives to mesmerizing visuals, these surreal horror movies will challenge your perception of what is possible and leave an indelible mark on your psyche.
Libra Films International Eraserhead (1977) A Nightmarish Descent into Madness
Enter the surreal and unsettling universe created by visionary filmmaker David Lynch. Eraserhead immerses viewers in the disturbing journey of Henry Spencer, a man trapped in a nightmarish existence. Lynch’s masterful use of dreamlike imagery and a haunting industrial soundscape turns ordinary experiences into harrowing nightmares.
International Classics Suspiria (1977) A Dance of Darkness and Witchcraft
Dive into the vibrant and atmospheric world of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, where an aspiring dancer...
Libra Films International Eraserhead (1977) A Nightmarish Descent into Madness
Enter the surreal and unsettling universe created by visionary filmmaker David Lynch. Eraserhead immerses viewers in the disturbing journey of Henry Spencer, a man trapped in a nightmarish existence. Lynch’s masterful use of dreamlike imagery and a haunting industrial soundscape turns ordinary experiences into harrowing nightmares.
International Classics Suspiria (1977) A Dance of Darkness and Witchcraft
Dive into the vibrant and atmospheric world of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, where an aspiring dancer...
- 5/26/2023
- by Kimberley Elizabeth
Welcome to the mind-bending world of surreal horror movies, where the boundaries of reality are shattered, and nightmares come alive. In this list, we delve into ten captivating films that defy conventions and transport audiences into a realm where dreams and nightmares intertwine. From twisted narratives to mesmerizing visuals, these surreal horror movies will challenge your perception of what is possible and leave an indelible mark on your psyche.
Libra Films International Eraserhead (1977) A Nightmarish Descent into Madness
Enter the surreal and unsettling universe created by visionary filmmaker David Lynch. Eraserhead immerses viewers in the disturbing journey of Henry Spencer, a man trapped in a nightmarish existence. Lynch’s masterful use of dreamlike imagery and a haunting industrial soundscape turns ordinary experiences into harrowing nightmares.
International Classics Suspiria (1977) A Dance of Darkness and Witchcraft
Dive into the vibrant and atmospheric world of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, where an aspiring dancer...
Libra Films International Eraserhead (1977) A Nightmarish Descent into Madness
Enter the surreal and unsettling universe created by visionary filmmaker David Lynch. Eraserhead immerses viewers in the disturbing journey of Henry Spencer, a man trapped in a nightmarish existence. Lynch’s masterful use of dreamlike imagery and a haunting industrial soundscape turns ordinary experiences into harrowing nightmares.
International Classics Suspiria (1977) A Dance of Darkness and Witchcraft
Dive into the vibrant and atmospheric world of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, where an aspiring dancer...
- 5/26/2023
- by Kimberley Elizabeth
Prepare to embark on a harrowing journey into the depths of psychological thrillers and mind-bending horror. These ten twisted films will take you on a rollercoaster ride of unraveling minds, unreliable narrators, and unsettling realities.
These 10 films are expertly crafted, and always ahead of the audience. Just don’t google them before you watch. You’ve been warned.
Fox Searchlight Pictures Black Swan (2010)
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Black Swan follows Nina, a talented ballerina whose pursuit of perfection leads her into a dark and obsessive descent. As the pressure mounts, she begins to lose touch with reality, blurring the line between her own identity and the character she portrays. With stunning visuals and a mesmerizing performance by Natalie Portman, this film delves into the depths of the human psyche like a twisted dance.
Why it messes with your mind: Black Swan expertly blurs the line between fantasy and reality. As the...
These 10 films are expertly crafted, and always ahead of the audience. Just don’t google them before you watch. You’ve been warned.
Fox Searchlight Pictures Black Swan (2010)
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Black Swan follows Nina, a talented ballerina whose pursuit of perfection leads her into a dark and obsessive descent. As the pressure mounts, she begins to lose touch with reality, blurring the line between her own identity and the character she portrays. With stunning visuals and a mesmerizing performance by Natalie Portman, this film delves into the depths of the human psyche like a twisted dance.
Why it messes with your mind: Black Swan expertly blurs the line between fantasy and reality. As the...
- 5/20/2023
- by Kimberley Elizabeth
Ari Aster’s first two films, 2018’s “Hereditary” and 2019’s “Midsommar,” cultivated the young director enough cachet for A24 to hand him a blank check for “Beau is Afraid,” his “Jewish ‘Lord of the Rings’” about the psychological horror of visiting your mother. The three-hour horror-comedy epic is the indie studio’s most expensive movie to date. Starring Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix as the stunted and anxiety-ridden Beau of the title, the movie defies easy categorization and is, expectedly, inspiring awe and disgust in nearly equal measure – often within individual viewers.
Beau lives in an urban hellscape that approximates what “New York City looked like in the mind of Travis Bickle and Bernhard Goetz” and is in a persistent state of waiting for the other shoe to drop. When it finally does, it’s a chandelier on top of his mother’s head (it wouldn’t be an Aster film...
Beau lives in an urban hellscape that approximates what “New York City looked like in the mind of Travis Bickle and Bernhard Goetz” and is in a persistent state of waiting for the other shoe to drop. When it finally does, it’s a chandelier on top of his mother’s head (it wouldn’t be an Aster film...
- 4/14/2023
- by Ronald Meyer
- Gold Derby
In 2001, writer/director Richard Kelly's genre-busting rookie feature Donnie Darko crashed and burned at the box office. But it almost immediately rose from the ashes to become one of the first cult hits of the 21st century...and it took the music of ’80s band Tears for Fears along for the ride.Host Rico Gagliano tells this twisty tale with the help of Kelly, star Jena Malone (The Hunger Games), and the film’s composer Michael Andrews—whose stripped-down cover of Tears’s "Mad World" became maybe the most unlikely smash hit in UK history.The third season of the Mubi Podcast, titled “Needle on the Record,” dives into the unifying power of movie music and tells the stories behind some of cinema’s most renowned “needle drops”—moments where filmmakers deployed pre-existing music instead of an original score. Each episode explores an iconic marriage of song and image...
- 4/12/2023
- MUBI
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI, and sign up for our weekly email newsletter by clicking here.Newsa new short from Pedro Almodóvar, Strange Way of Life, will make its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. The film—coming soon to Mubi in Italy and Latin America—is a “western shot in the south of Spain” and stars Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal. Keep an eye on Notebook tomorrow for more Cannes updates as the festival unveils its official selection.In production news, Paul Schrader has finished writing an adaptation of a novel by Russell Banks; he plans to shoot it this summer with Richard Gere. (The full profile in Curbed is worth a read.)According to Ioncinema, Kiyoshi Kurosawa begins shooting a French-language remake of his 1998 film Serpent’s Path in May.Recommended VIEWINGSink into this two-hour interview with Béla Tarr,...
- 4/12/2023
- MUBI
Plot: A middle-aged man with severe mommy issues tries to return home.
Review: Beau is Afraid is the kind of movie that only gets made when a studio gives a director carte-blanche. These highly distinctive, one might even say pretentious, epics seem like something every horror auteur needs to get out of their system, with it cut from the same cloth as Richard Kelly’s Southland Tales and David Robert Mitchell’s Under the Silver Lake. Running a punishing three hours, it’s the kind of movie many will hate but some will love, and indeed, for this critic, it was a very mixed bag. Director Ari Aster is a genius, and the filmmaking is often stunning, but it’s almost too much to take in on a single viewing. I would say it’s the perfect midnight movie, but given the length, even this might be a bit of a tall order.
Review: Beau is Afraid is the kind of movie that only gets made when a studio gives a director carte-blanche. These highly distinctive, one might even say pretentious, epics seem like something every horror auteur needs to get out of their system, with it cut from the same cloth as Richard Kelly’s Southland Tales and David Robert Mitchell’s Under the Silver Lake. Running a punishing three hours, it’s the kind of movie many will hate but some will love, and indeed, for this critic, it was a very mixed bag. Director Ari Aster is a genius, and the filmmaking is often stunning, but it’s almost too much to take in on a single viewing. I would say it’s the perfect midnight movie, but given the length, even this might be a bit of a tall order.
- 4/11/2023
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
This three-plus-hour tale of Oedipal misery sees Phoenix on uncharacteristically boring form and ultimately collapses into silliness
Having given us two classic scary movies with Hereditary and Midsommar, film-maker Ari Aster now unfortunately beckons us down the rabbit hole for a giant and epically pointless odyssey of hipster non-horror. Running at over three hours, Beau Is Afraid is a colossal recovered memory of mock Oedipal agony which is scary, boring and sad in approximate proportions of 1 to 4 to 2. It’s a movie in which Aster has surrendered some of his own originality and distinction for an indulgent, derivative flourish that seems to pastiche Charlie Kaufman or Darren Aronofsky’s crazy Mother! or maybe even Richard Kelly’s much controverted Southland Tales.
Joaquin Phoenix is on really uninteresting form, playing to his weaknesses as an actor as he gives a narcissistic performance of pain, sporting a permanently zonked expression of anxiety...
Having given us two classic scary movies with Hereditary and Midsommar, film-maker Ari Aster now unfortunately beckons us down the rabbit hole for a giant and epically pointless odyssey of hipster non-horror. Running at over three hours, Beau Is Afraid is a colossal recovered memory of mock Oedipal agony which is scary, boring and sad in approximate proportions of 1 to 4 to 2. It’s a movie in which Aster has surrendered some of his own originality and distinction for an indulgent, derivative flourish that seems to pastiche Charlie Kaufman or Darren Aronofsky’s crazy Mother! or maybe even Richard Kelly’s much controverted Southland Tales.
Joaquin Phoenix is on really uninteresting form, playing to his weaknesses as an actor as he gives a narcissistic performance of pain, sporting a permanently zonked expression of anxiety...
- 4/11/2023
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Long before “Stranger Things” led to the rediscovery of “Running Up That Hill” and “The Last of Us” brought audiences back to a “Long Long Time” ago, cinema has hinged on famous needle drops throughout history.
Now, distributor and streaming platform Mubi’s award-winning audio-documentary series “Mubi Podcast” tunes into the best needle drops throughout film. Titled “Needle on the Record,” Season 3 dives into the unifying power of movie music and tells the stories behind some of cinema’s most renowned “needle drops,” defined as moments where filmmakers deployed pre-existing music instead of an original score. The third season premieres March 30, with new episodes releasing every Thursday.
Podcast host Rico Gagliano discusses famed needle drops with Noel Hogan of The Cranberries, Richard Kelly (“Donnie Darko”), Jena Malone (“The Hunger Games“), and iconic music supervisor Randall Poster (“The Wolf of Wall Street”), among other interviewees.
Per the official synopsis of the season,...
Now, distributor and streaming platform Mubi’s award-winning audio-documentary series “Mubi Podcast” tunes into the best needle drops throughout film. Titled “Needle on the Record,” Season 3 dives into the unifying power of movie music and tells the stories behind some of cinema’s most renowned “needle drops,” defined as moments where filmmakers deployed pre-existing music instead of an original score. The third season premieres March 30, with new episodes releasing every Thursday.
Podcast host Rico Gagliano discusses famed needle drops with Noel Hogan of The Cranberries, Richard Kelly (“Donnie Darko”), Jena Malone (“The Hunger Games“), and iconic music supervisor Randall Poster (“The Wolf of Wall Street”), among other interviewees.
Per the official synopsis of the season,...
- 3/16/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
If we lived in an alternate universe where Bill Nye never got his big break, relegated to shooting his lo-fi children’s show from his garage and submitting tapes to a local affiliate in hopes he’d advance to a prime Sunday morning slot, it would look something like the one Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan) occupies. As his marriage is also on the brink of collapse, his midlife crisis conveniently dovetails with an old Russian rocket falling in his backyard. Edwin decides to make the most of the opportunity and attempt to fulfill his dreams of being an astronaut. An effective concoction of cosmic mystery and earnest emotion to elevate its small-scale, homespun design, Colin West’s Linoleum evolves into a nifty, heartfelt sci-drama.
Though initially drawing, liberally, from Donnie Darko, with its aerial disaster phenomenon and dreamy slow-motion introduction to a sunny high school recalling the “Head Over Heels” montage,...
Though initially drawing, liberally, from Donnie Darko, with its aerial disaster phenomenon and dreamy slow-motion introduction to a sunny high school recalling the “Head Over Heels” montage,...
- 2/21/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
These interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
If you’re drawn to creepy and unsettling imagery like I am, odds are you have likely come across and fallen down the rabbit hole of images online known as “liminal spaces.” These images often portray typically bustling places—streets, malls, schools, sprawling corridors—in their most desolate states, uncharacteristically empty and isolated to the point of being unsettling. The public’s fascination with liminal spaces has been growing in recent years, but the term liminality itself first surfaced in the field of anthropology through the early-to-mid 20th-century work of scholars like Arnold van Gennep and Victor Turner in their study of rituals. Put as simply as can be, liminality describes a state of transition, where someone or something is neither here nor there, connected to what was before and what is to come, but not fully planted in either.
It...
If you’re drawn to creepy and unsettling imagery like I am, odds are you have likely come across and fallen down the rabbit hole of images online known as “liminal spaces.” These images often portray typically bustling places—streets, malls, schools, sprawling corridors—in their most desolate states, uncharacteristically empty and isolated to the point of being unsettling. The public’s fascination with liminal spaces has been growing in recent years, but the term liminality itself first surfaced in the field of anthropology through the early-to-mid 20th-century work of scholars like Arnold van Gennep and Victor Turner in their study of rituals. Put as simply as can be, liminality describes a state of transition, where someone or something is neither here nor there, connected to what was before and what is to come, but not fully planted in either.
It...
- 1/17/2023
- by Ari Drew
- bloody-disgusting.com
"Donnie Darko," the 2001 Richard Kelly-directed mind-bender of a movie about time travel, death, and the dreadfully existential experience that is high school is memorable for many reasons. Today, if you so much as mention the cult film, images of Frank the rabbit and his shot-out eye immediately come to mind. Frank is the stuff of nightmares, enhancing the movie's atmosphere with his mysterious and ominous presence in the title character's life. However, Frank's creepiness is only one part — albeit a big one — of the film's peculiarities, none of which would be anywhere near as effective if it weren't for one major thing: the music.
The score for "Donnie Darko" is perhaps just as memorable as Frank, that pesky jet engine, the incredible finale, and that one uncomfortable scene in Donnie's (Jake Gyllenhaal) therapist's office. It is the thing that sets the tone for the entire movie, kicking things off...
The score for "Donnie Darko" is perhaps just as memorable as Frank, that pesky jet engine, the incredible finale, and that one uncomfortable scene in Donnie's (Jake Gyllenhaal) therapist's office. It is the thing that sets the tone for the entire movie, kicking things off...
- 1/9/2023
- by Miyako Pleines
- Slash Film
At first glance, Cherita Chen might seem like the kind of character you put into a movie just for laughs. Played by Jolene Purdy, Cherita is the less-than-popular outcast that goes to the same high school as Donnie (Jake Gyllenhaal) in the 2001 film, "Donnie Darko." Fans will most likely remember her for constantly telling anyone who bothers or makes fun of her to "Chut up!". However, her role in "Donnie Darko" extends far beyond comedic relief.
Search the internet for fan theories on Cherita's purpose and you will find everything from speculation that she was sent here by aliens to spy on Donnie to more meta ideas that she is actually the one writing the very movie we are watching. Her presence in the film is so minimal that it's easy to come up with seemingly limitless possibilities for her significance, though probably the most logical is that her character...
Search the internet for fan theories on Cherita's purpose and you will find everything from speculation that she was sent here by aliens to spy on Donnie to more meta ideas that she is actually the one writing the very movie we are watching. Her presence in the film is so minimal that it's easy to come up with seemingly limitless possibilities for her significance, though probably the most logical is that her character...
- 1/8/2023
- by Miyako Pleines
- Slash Film
Richard Kelly, who was only 25 while directing his genre-hybrid, deliciously ominous "Donnie Darko," had been inspired to pen the screenplay after hearing a news report while growing up in Richmond, Virginia. Per this news report, a chunk of ice had fallen off a plane and crashed into a boy's bedroom. This image haunted Kelly for years, as the incident could symbolize myriad things for the boy who had evaded near death, including questions about the meaning of existence and the concept of deus ex machina. These speculations took shape in the story of Donnie (Jake Gyllenhaal), a troubled boy who narrowly evades death, and goes on to unlock the powers of time travel to prevent the collapse of the primary universe. While being mired in teenage angst and existential dread, Donnie is plagued by visions of a man in a rabbit suit, who plays a seminal role in Donnie's heartbreaking journey.
- 1/7/2023
- by Debopriyaa Dutta
- Slash Film
Donnie Darko is your typical moody teenage boy. He also happens to frequently converse with a giant bunny rabbit named Frank (James Duval) and thinks the world is going to end in approximately 28 days — just read his forearm! He is also pretty sure that time travel is real, and that the crazy old lady who the neighborhood kids have nicknamed "Grandma Death" (Patience Cleveland) somehow holds the key to understanding all of this.
As the main character of Richard Kelly's 2001 film "Donnie Darko," Donnie's psyche is on full display as viewers watch him struggle to understand his true purpose in life after a gigantic jet engine falls off a plane and smashes into his room one night while he's out sleepwalking. When it was first released, the movie bombed at the box office — it only made a little over 500,000 against a 4 million budget (ouch) — but it has gone on...
As the main character of Richard Kelly's 2001 film "Donnie Darko," Donnie's psyche is on full display as viewers watch him struggle to understand his true purpose in life after a gigantic jet engine falls off a plane and smashes into his room one night while he's out sleepwalking. When it was first released, the movie bombed at the box office — it only made a little over 500,000 against a 4 million budget (ouch) — but it has gone on...
- 1/4/2023
- by Miyako Pleines
- Slash Film
The soundtrack to "Donnie Darko" is among my all-time favorite movie soundtracks, and I'm surely not alone in this. Not only is the score by Michael Andrews hauntingly beautiful, but the licensed songs played throughout are New Wave gems. Seriously, what other movie soundtrack has The Church, Oingo Boingo, and Joy Division on it?
However, the most memorable inclusion on the "Donnie Darko" soundtrack had to be not one, but two songs from English pop duo Tears for Fears -- one was the famous Andrews and Gary Jules cover of "Mad World," while the other was the studio version of "Head Over Heels." It's hard to separate either song from the film anymore, and the way they are both integrated into the film shows how carefully constructed each element of Richard Kelly's movie is.
That being said, both the "Mad World" cover and "Head Over Heels" could have easily...
However, the most memorable inclusion on the "Donnie Darko" soundtrack had to be not one, but two songs from English pop duo Tears for Fears -- one was the famous Andrews and Gary Jules cover of "Mad World," while the other was the studio version of "Head Over Heels." It's hard to separate either song from the film anymore, and the way they are both integrated into the film shows how carefully constructed each element of Richard Kelly's movie is.
That being said, both the "Mad World" cover and "Head Over Heels" could have easily...
- 1/3/2023
- by Erin Brady
- Slash Film
Richard Kelly’s Donnie Darko is a true cult film. Having premiered at Sundance back in 2001, it was released to theatres via a small company called Newmarket Films, and given that it opened in the wake of 9/11, it came and went with nary a trace. In fact, the company came close to sending it direct-to-video, but in the end, Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas, who had made Memento for the company, pushed them to give it a release. While it barely made any money in theaters, something interesting happened once it hit VHS/DVD – it started to sell – a lot. People would rent the movie, lured in by the intriguing cover art and the presence of Drew Barrymore and Jake Gyllenhaal (then best known for October Sky and Bubble Boy), and watch it over and over. Indeed, word began to spread through college campuses and online about this weird sci-fi flick set in the 80s,...
- 10/19/2022
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
Given its acclaim (no. 2 on Empire's "50 Greatest Independent Films list) and its rabid fanbase, it's a bit surprising to note that "Donnie Darko" has mostly escaped any kind of franchise treatment. You would think fans would be more interested in digging into the strange, sprawling universe introduced in 2001 with writer-director Richard Kelly's original film. If the reaction to the 2009 sequel "S. Darko" is any indication, you would be wrong.
Even after the years of difficulty "Donnie Darko" underwent before it came to theaters in 2001, it didn't take long for it to find a cult following. It was one of many...
The post Why the 2009 Donnie Darko Sequel Was Such a Mess appeared first on /Film.
Even after the years of difficulty "Donnie Darko" underwent before it came to theaters in 2001, it didn't take long for it to find a cult following. It was one of many...
The post Why the 2009 Donnie Darko Sequel Was Such a Mess appeared first on /Film.
- 2/8/2022
- by Anthony Crislip
- Slash Film
Lady Gaga is a big “Donnie Darko” fan, and she made sure to let Jake Gyllenhaal know when the two sat down to interview each other as part of Variety’s “Actors on Actors” series, presented by Amazon Studios. Gaga named “Donnie Darko” as a movie that inspired her when she was growing up.
“I don’t want to lie and tell you I haven’t seen it so many times,” Gaga told Gyllenhaal. “In the world of music, but in fashion as well, ‘Donnie Darko,’ it’s religion. It really is. And if you know your shit, you know ‘Donnie Darko.'”
“Donnie Darko” stars Gyllenhaal as a troubled teenager who has visions of a rabbit that tells him the world is going to end in just 28 days. The film, directed by Richard Kelly, was a box office bomb at the time of its 2001 release, but went on to become an enduring cult classic.
“I don’t want to lie and tell you I haven’t seen it so many times,” Gaga told Gyllenhaal. “In the world of music, but in fashion as well, ‘Donnie Darko,’ it’s religion. It really is. And if you know your shit, you know ‘Donnie Darko.'”
“Donnie Darko” stars Gyllenhaal as a troubled teenager who has visions of a rabbit that tells him the world is going to end in just 28 days. The film, directed by Richard Kelly, was a box office bomb at the time of its 2001 release, but went on to become an enduring cult classic.
- 1/26/2022
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
"28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes, and 12 seconds... That is when the world will end." It's wild to think that "Donnie Darko" just celebrated its 20th anniversary. Written and directed by Richard Kelly, the movie is still sparking discussion amongst viewers two decades after its release. The film made a little splash at the box office, but did very well on DVD, and in the years since its release, "Donnie Darko" has gone on to become a much-debated cult classic.
Set in 1988, the story centers on the titular character played by Jake Gyllenhaal as he attempts to navigate the tricky waters of adolescence. These are...
The post Why Donnie Darko Almost Didn't Make It To Theaters appeared first on /Film.
Set in 1988, the story centers on the titular character played by Jake Gyllenhaal as he attempts to navigate the tricky waters of adolescence. These are...
The post Why Donnie Darko Almost Didn't Make It To Theaters appeared first on /Film.
- 12/15/2021
- by Jamie Gerber
- Slash Film
Articulating why it’s easy to agree with writer-director Adam McKay’s politics while disliking his films isn’t so hard. Though a smart man who can hold his own riffing with Felix Biederman on a Chapo Trap House guest appearance—and also responsible for some of the funniest movies of the past 20 years—there still seems some limitation to The Big Short and Vice as both satire and political tracts. If it bears the fault of preaching to the choir’s anger more than offering real structural critique, one has to begrudgingly admire some qualities of his newest film, even as being annoyed for a good portion of the runtime is still expected.
The first of his new era neither based on nor inspired by a true story, Don’t Look Up takes place in an unspecified year within the current socio-political hellscape where, one night within Michigan State’s astronomy department,...
The first of his new era neither based on nor inspired by a true story, Don’t Look Up takes place in an unspecified year within the current socio-political hellscape where, one night within Michigan State’s astronomy department,...
- 12/8/2021
- by Ethan Vestby
- The Film Stage
Kim Maxime Baglieri on In Order To Escort Her: “I wanted to work on a story that would be healing for everyone, or at least help bridge the cultural divides in family alone.”
In the third in a series of Doc NYC conversations with filmmakers from the Hunter College Mfa Program in Integrated Media Arts (see Neville Elder on his Anamnesis [Part One] and Lidiya Kan on Morkovcha (Korean Carrot Salad)), I discussed with Kim Maxime Baglieri the influence of Aleph director Iva Radivojevic, Michael Gitlin, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Kidlat Tahimik, and Richard Kelly’s Donnie Darko, the impact of migration and family separation, generational storytelling, resilience, hope and magic, belief in the supernatural, the malunggay plant, and the mysterious nature of her title In Order To Escort Her. Kim brought up that she watched Brett Morgen’s documentary Jane on Jane Goodall while in the process of making her film.
Kim Maxime...
In the third in a series of Doc NYC conversations with filmmakers from the Hunter College Mfa Program in Integrated Media Arts (see Neville Elder on his Anamnesis [Part One] and Lidiya Kan on Morkovcha (Korean Carrot Salad)), I discussed with Kim Maxime Baglieri the influence of Aleph director Iva Radivojevic, Michael Gitlin, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Kidlat Tahimik, and Richard Kelly’s Donnie Darko, the impact of migration and family separation, generational storytelling, resilience, hope and magic, belief in the supernatural, the malunggay plant, and the mysterious nature of her title In Order To Escort Her. Kim brought up that she watched Brett Morgen’s documentary Jane on Jane Goodall while in the process of making her film.
Kim Maxime...
- 11/27/2021
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Exclusive: Mia Kaplan (Smilf), Rainn Wilson (Jerry and Marge Go Large), Missi Pyle (Y: The Last Man), newcomer Jemima Yevu and Jolene Purdy (The White Lotus) have signed on to star in Empire Waist, a body-positive, coming-of-age dramedy from writer-director Claire Ayoub and Wayfarer Studios, which is currently in production in New York.
Ayoub’s first feature centers on a group of teens who overcome societal bias and celebrate self-acceptance through inclusive fashion design and friendship. Kaplan plays the lead role of Lenore, a teen deeply insecure about her weight. Hiding her passion for fashion design, Lenore tries to make herself invisible in her day-to-day life to avoid being bullied — both by her classmates and image-conscious mother (Pyle). Meanwhile her best friend Kayla (Yevu) is confident, funny, outgoing, and proud of her plus-sized body.
Wilson will play Lenore’s father, Mark, who is his daughter’s biggest cheerleader, with Purdy as Ms.
Ayoub’s first feature centers on a group of teens who overcome societal bias and celebrate self-acceptance through inclusive fashion design and friendship. Kaplan plays the lead role of Lenore, a teen deeply insecure about her weight. Hiding her passion for fashion design, Lenore tries to make herself invisible in her day-to-day life to avoid being bullied — both by her classmates and image-conscious mother (Pyle). Meanwhile her best friend Kayla (Yevu) is confident, funny, outgoing, and proud of her plus-sized body.
Wilson will play Lenore’s father, Mark, who is his daughter’s biggest cheerleader, with Purdy as Ms.
- 11/1/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Richard Kelly’s unusual sci-fi drama made a star of Jake Gyllenhaal and introduced emo teens to a brave new world
Midway through Donnie Darko, a creative young English teacher played by Drew Barrymore repeats the old maxim – recycled over the years by linguists, scholars and writers including Jrr Tolkien – that the simple, banal phrase “cellar door” is the most purely, pleasingly harmonious combination of words in the English language. There’s something to be said for that, but one wonders if writer-director Richard Kelly was offering a challenge to the claim by naming his protagonist Donnie Darko – an irresistible, perfectly ridiculous name for an ordinary suburban schoolboy that nonetheless encapsulates his fey, eccentric aura. His new girlfriend says the name aloud, lolling it like a mint in her mouth, before observing that it makes him sound like “some kind of superhero”. “What makes you think I’m not?” he replies,...
Midway through Donnie Darko, a creative young English teacher played by Drew Barrymore repeats the old maxim – recycled over the years by linguists, scholars and writers including Jrr Tolkien – that the simple, banal phrase “cellar door” is the most purely, pleasingly harmonious combination of words in the English language. There’s something to be said for that, but one wonders if writer-director Richard Kelly was offering a challenge to the claim by naming his protagonist Donnie Darko – an irresistible, perfectly ridiculous name for an ordinary suburban schoolboy that nonetheless encapsulates his fey, eccentric aura. His new girlfriend says the name aloud, lolling it like a mint in her mouth, before observing that it makes him sound like “some kind of superhero”. “What makes you think I’m not?” he replies,...
- 10/26/2021
- by Guy Lodge
- The Guardian - Film News
Munich-based Koch Films has struck a deal with Studiocanal Germany to take over the distributor’s entire sales and logistics activities for all physical home entertainment activities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Studiocanal’s extensive portfolio comprises new releases, series and classic catalog titles such as Francis Ford Coppola’s newly restored 1983 teen drama “The Outsiders” and David Lynch’s “Mulholland Drive” as well as works by the likes of Jean-Luc Godard, Wim Wenders, Jim Jarmusch and Margarethe von Trotta.
The agreement pools Studiocanal and Koch Films’ strengths and bolsters their market position in the home entertainment sector over the long term, the companies said.
Studiocanal’s Arthaus label includes such recently restored films as Federico Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita”; Ousmane Sembène’s 1968 Senegalese classic “Mandabi”; and Richard Kelly’s “Donnie Darko” as well as German titles like Reinhard Hauff’s 1975 drama “The Brutalization of Franz Blum,” featuring Jürgen Prochnow...
Studiocanal’s extensive portfolio comprises new releases, series and classic catalog titles such as Francis Ford Coppola’s newly restored 1983 teen drama “The Outsiders” and David Lynch’s “Mulholland Drive” as well as works by the likes of Jean-Luc Godard, Wim Wenders, Jim Jarmusch and Margarethe von Trotta.
The agreement pools Studiocanal and Koch Films’ strengths and bolsters their market position in the home entertainment sector over the long term, the companies said.
Studiocanal’s Arthaus label includes such recently restored films as Federico Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita”; Ousmane Sembène’s 1968 Senegalese classic “Mandabi”; and Richard Kelly’s “Donnie Darko” as well as German titles like Reinhard Hauff’s 1975 drama “The Brutalization of Franz Blum,” featuring Jürgen Prochnow...
- 10/8/2021
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
In the early 2000s, when the era of J-horror was reaching its peak, there were already many features which changed the formula or diverted from the tropes of a genre which, by that time, had become a little too predictable. Whereas the works of Kiyoshi Kurosawa had been known for their uniqueness, showing strange worlds and characters instead of being “only” horror movies, there were also odd entries such as “Uzumaki, directed by Akihiro Higuchi, better known as Higuchinsky. With regard to the original manga by Junji Ito, the director explained how he was much more interested in the changed the uzumaki (“spiral”) ignited in people and places, turning a familiar environment into something quite strange and weird, which is precisely the atmosphere we wanted to capture in his adaption. As a result, “Uzumaki” is a true oddity within J-horror, with a focus on atmosphere rather than scares, making it...
- 8/20/2021
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
The North Bend Film Festival has announced the lineup for its upcoming 2021 hybrid edition, and it includes a 20th-anniversary celebration of Donnie Darko with director Richard Kelly on hand to talk about the film. All in-person screenings will be held in strict accordance with state and federal guidelines regarding safety through the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, and […]
The post North Bend Film Festival 2021 Announces Hybrid Lineup, Including 20th Anniversary Celebration of ‘Donnie Darko’ with Director Richard Kelly appeared first on /Film.
The post North Bend Film Festival 2021 Announces Hybrid Lineup, Including 20th Anniversary Celebration of ‘Donnie Darko’ with Director Richard Kelly appeared first on /Film.
- 6/17/2021
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
The North Bend Film Festival is back this July with a hybrid edition that will have a mix of in-person programming, along with virtual screenings and special events. Here's a look at the festival's extensive offering, including a screening of The Blazing World, a conversation with Richard Kelly, and much, much more:
The North Bend Film Festival returns this summer with a hybrid festival taking place July 15-18, 2021. The in-person portion of the fest returns audience members to the historic art deco North Bend Theatre for a curated offering of feature film and short screenings, while both the virtual and physical programs will be complemented by special events, conversations with filmmakers, and immersive experiences. The majority of titles will be exclusive either to physical or virtual programs, with only a few overlaps making for a unique festival experience however you choose to attend.
This year's festival will open with the in-person screening of Swan Song,...
The North Bend Film Festival returns this summer with a hybrid festival taking place July 15-18, 2021. The in-person portion of the fest returns audience members to the historic art deco North Bend Theatre for a curated offering of feature film and short screenings, while both the virtual and physical programs will be complemented by special events, conversations with filmmakers, and immersive experiences. The majority of titles will be exclusive either to physical or virtual programs, with only a few overlaps making for a unique festival experience however you choose to attend.
This year's festival will open with the in-person screening of Swan Song,...
- 6/16/2021
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
The 4K Ultra HD crowd has a treat in store, for Donnie Boy is back for theatrical quality home screenings. Richard Kelly’s dreamy/morbid teen fantasy has gained in stature in the twenty years (gasp) since the nasty bunny-man ‘Frank’ raised his ugly chrome head… and young Donald’s psychic sci-fi ordeal seems more relevant than ever. Arrow’s 4K-only release shows the label once again proving its mettle in the hard media video biz, with full-res encodings of both the theatrical and director’s extended cuts.
Donnie Darko 4K
4k Ultra HD
Arrow Academy
2001 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 113, 133 min. / Street Date April 27, 2021 / Available from Mvd Entertainment Group
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Holmes Osborne, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Mary McDonnell, Patrick Swayze, Jena Malone, Noah Wyle, Drew Barrymore, Katharine Ross, Beth Grant.
Cinematography: Steven Poster.
Production Design: Alexander Hammond
Film Editors: Sam Bauer, Eric Strand
Original Music: Michael Andrews
Produced by Adam Fields,...
Donnie Darko 4K
4k Ultra HD
Arrow Academy
2001 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 113, 133 min. / Street Date April 27, 2021 / Available from Mvd Entertainment Group
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Holmes Osborne, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Mary McDonnell, Patrick Swayze, Jena Malone, Noah Wyle, Drew Barrymore, Katharine Ross, Beth Grant.
Cinematography: Steven Poster.
Production Design: Alexander Hammond
Film Editors: Sam Bauer, Eric Strand
Original Music: Michael Andrews
Produced by Adam Fields,...
- 5/11/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
As we get ready to bid farewell to the month of April, we have one last slate of home media releases this week to look forward to, and there are some really fun titles headed home that genre fans do not want to miss out on. Arrow is showing Donnie Darko some love this Tuesday in 4K with their 2-Disc Limited Edition Collector’s Set, and they’ve also put together a Steelbook edition for Elvira: Mistress of the Dark as well.
Severin Films is also keeping busy with their release of Joe D’Amato’s Deep Blood and Vinegar Syndrome is resurrecting both Rush Week and Last Gasp in HD as well. Other releases for April 27th include Werewolves on Wheels, Murder Bury Win, The Time Travelers, Beware the Children, Berserkers, Bad Witch and Pipeline.
Deep Blood
In a career that forever raised the bar for everything from hookers, cannibals and necrophiles to Ator,...
Severin Films is also keeping busy with their release of Joe D’Amato’s Deep Blood and Vinegar Syndrome is resurrecting both Rush Week and Last Gasp in HD as well. Other releases for April 27th include Werewolves on Wheels, Murder Bury Win, The Time Travelers, Beware the Children, Berserkers, Bad Witch and Pipeline.
Deep Blood
In a career that forever raised the bar for everything from hookers, cannibals and necrophiles to Ator,...
- 4/26/2021
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSFilmmaker Bertrand Mandico has illustrated the 70th anniversary cover of Cahier du Cinéma, entitled "Gloria, angel of the history of the cinema." The Museum of Modern Art and Film at Lincoln Center have announced the lineup for the 50th edition of New Directors/New Films. Screenings will take place from April 28-May 8 through the MoMA and Flc virtual cinemas, and in-person screenings at Flc through May 13. The lineup of 27 features and 11 shorts includes Theo Anthony's All Light, Everywhere, Andreas Fontana's Azor, Alice Diop's We (Nous), and Jane Schoenbrun's We’re All Going to the World’s Fair. Recommended VIEWINGAnother Gaze's free streaming project, Another Screen, has announced two new programmes: Hands Tied, about hands, and Eating the Other, about gendered notions of eating. The first official trailer for Mamoru Hosoda's Belle, which...
- 4/6/2021
- MUBI
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