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Cannes: Tilda Swinton Suggests ‘Only Lovers Left Alive’ Could Be A Documentary For The Outsiders Of The World; Jim Jarmusch Won’t Analyze This
6 hours ago
The 66th Annual Cannes Film Festival is quickly coming to a close. In fact the Un Certain Regard winners were just announced a short while ago (you can catch up with them right here). This year’s line-up, unlike years past, positioned a lot of heavyweights near the end of the festival, filmmakers like Roman Polanski, whose “Venus In Fur” screened today and Jim Jarmusch, whose deadpan, odd and deeply enjoyable vampire movie, “Only Lovers Left Alive” screened last night (you can read our review right here.) The film centers on a deeply depressed underground musician (Tom Hiddleston) whose romantic seclusion in Detroit and Tangiers is restored when he is reunited with his strong and enigmatic lover (Tilda Swinton.) Their love has endured several centuries but their debauched existence is soon disrupted by the arrival of the her younger sister (Mia Wasikowska) and her boyfriend (Anton Yelchin). Disenfranchised by the way humanity has evolved, »
- Rodrigo Perez
Cannes Review: Emmanuelle Seigner A Raucous Revelation In Polanski’s Otherwise Stagy, Pointless ‘Venus In Fur’
8 hours ago
Ever had the feeling, when the credits roll and the lights go up, that you’ve been watching a completely different film to everyone else? Welcome to our morning, which was spent at a screening of the last Cannes 2013 competition film, Roman Polanski’s adaptation of the David Ives broadway play “Venus in Fur.” Sure, there were laughs to be had, for which the delightful surprise of leading lady (and Polanski’s wife) Emmanuelle Seigner’s performance was largely to thank, and the witty inventiveness of the first act or so had us quite on board. But the overwrought twists and on-the-nose inversions of the second half, all the bigger for taking place in one contained space, along with the sneaking suspicion that the film thought it was being terribly transgressive and daring when it actually felt facile and not a little skeezy, cooled us considerably. So much so that »
- Jessica Kiang
Watch: Teasers For New Seasons Of HBO's 'The Newsroom' & 'Boardwalk Empire'
10 hours ago
Though the phenomenon of big name stars finding a home on cable television has lost the shock value it once held, it’s still an event that can make us pause and nod our heads thoughtfully. For a long time Cable television has ceased to represent an elephant graveyard where celebrities go in order to disappear into obscurity. Instead it’s a new frontier filled with unlimited possibilities and a chance to break out and try new things, more often minting new stars than retiring old ones. Take, for example, the newest celebrity to find a home on cable television, Billy Crystal. The legendary comedian is teaming up with Matt Nix (creator of “Burn Notice”) and Larry Charles who directed “Borat” and episodes of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” to bring to life a new comedy series. The show, called “The Comedians,” has received a pilot order from FX and Larry Charles is expected to direct it. »
- Jason McDonald
'All Is Lost' Director J.C Chandor Sets Up 'A Most Violent Year,' Star Robert Redford To Helm 3D Doc For Wim Wenders
10 hours ago
Before J.C. Chandor could fully soak in the experience of premiering his sophomore feature “All is Lost” at Cannes this week -- which was met with rapturous praise (read our review here) -- he had already lined up his next project, and it's slated to shoot later this year. His third feature, A Most Violent Year,” is planning to cast a bunch of big names, but none of them have been revealed as of yet. Given the buzz for 'Lost,' however, names may not be so difficult to come by. Plot details are being kept under wraps but considering how well he handled an ensemble cast with his debut film, “Margin Call,” it should be fun to see him working with another top notch cast. [Deadline] Meanwhile, the star of "All Is Lost" -- none other than Robert Redford -- is looking to get back behind the camera himself. He's »
- Ken Guidry
Cannes Review: Droll, Louche & Languidly Playful 'Only Lovers Left Alive' Is Jarmusch At His Most Enjoyable & Accessible
24 May 2013 3:52 PM, PDT
From the very first opening titles, written in a Germanic font that immediately conjures everything from “Triumph of the Will” to images of big-busted ladies screaming in campy close-up in 1970s cheapie horrors (it may be the only time in Cannes that a film got a big laugh for a typeface) it’s perfectly clear that the Jim Jarmusch in whose company we’re about to spend a couple of hours is not the wilfully obscure surrealist of “The Limits of Control,” nor the considered, melancholic philosopher behind “Dead Man,” nor even the oddball ragtag troubadour of “Down By Law." In fact, “Only Lovers Left Alive,” Jarmusch’s take on the vampire myth starring recent muse Tilda Swinton and Tom “fast becoming everyone’s favorite actor” Hiddleston, finds the maverick filmmaker on playful, referential and mischievous form with hugely enjoyable, if not exactly weighty or important, results. It’s an offbeat, »
- Jessica Kiang
Cannes Review: J.C. Chandor Puts Robert Redford Through Watery Hell In Bruising, Formally Rigorous 'All Is Lost'
24 May 2013 1:31 PM, PDT
It almost feels like J.C. Chandor is showing off. In what is only his second feature film, after the chalk-and-cheese financial collapse movie “Margin Call," he sets himself a kind of exercise in filmmaking rigor, in the bare-bones, one-man survival-at-sea story “All Is Lost” and delivers. From the strong but talky, pointing-at-screens-spouting-financial-mumbo-jumbo of his debut, it’s initially hard to see how we could have predicted the filmmaker’s ability to deliver a much more visceral, physically gruelling, dialogue-free experience. But hindsight is 20/20 and what both movies share is an almost documentary-like immediacy to the material, and a hugely confident filmmaking style, unobstrusive and economical, that belies Chandor’s relative inexperience. Starting with a voiceover of a note he is writing, (really the only time we hear Robert Redford’s voice, aside from a couple of hoarse cries of “Help me!” and Sos calls) we’re introduced to a man, »
- Jessica Kiang
Exclusive: Full Schedule For 5th Annual BAMcinemaFest; 'Peaches Does Herself,' 'William & The Windmill' & More Added
24 May 2013 1:08 PM, PDT
In a few weeks the fifth annual BAMcinemaFest at the Brooklyn Academy of Music kicks off, bringing a wide array of stellar content to New York’s hippest borough. Today, the full line-up has been revealed for the festival, which runs from June 19th to the 28th, which includes the New York premiere of the documentary “Peaches Does Herself” about punky synth pop star Peaches (complete with a live performance by the star) and the New York premiere of “I Used to Be Darker,” the new film by Matthew Porterfield. Get your subway tickets ready: it’s going to be a good one.On Tuesday, June 25th, “Peaches Does Herself” will have its New York premiere. Anyone familiar with the aggressively avant garde pop rocker will undoubtedly want to show up (she’s kind of the best) and the documentary promises a campaign of shock and awe, complete with “cameos »
- Drew Taylor
What Are You Seeing This Weekend? 'Epic' Memorial Day Brings 'Fast & Furious 6,' 'The Hangover Part III' & 'Before Midnight'
24 May 2013 12:51 PM, PDT
There are plenty of traditions associated with Memorial Day: barbecues, the return of white pants, massive sales, and, of course, the release of long-awaited blockbuster flicks. We get two this weekend, both hailing from impressively resilient franchises. Plus, there's the highly anticipated next chapter in the "Before [insert time of day]" series. But maybe you're not a sequel person, in which case you can indulge in a 3D animated feature for the kiddies (in all of us), probing documentaries, dark comedies, and a biopic. Because what's more American than variety? Happy Memorial Day, cinephiles: let us know how you'll be celebrating at the theaters! "Fast & Furious 6." Directed by Justin Lin. Starring Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez, Gina Carano, Luke Evans, Jordana Brewster, Sung Kang, Ludacris, Tyrese Gibson, Gal Gadot, Joe Taslim, and Shea Whigham. Our review: "While there's a lot of fun to be had, 'Furious 6' »
- Emma Bernstein
Watch: Trailer For Powerful Documentary 'The Act Of Killing'
24 May 2013 12:05 PM, PDT
Hailed as an incredible piece of documentary work, Joshua Oppenheimer’s “The Act of Killing” -- after hitting festivals in the past year including Telluride, Toronto, Berlin, Sydney and more -- is on its way to theaters and a brand new trailer has arrived.Presented by Errol Morris and Werner Herzog (no slouches in the field themselves), this imaginative documentary explores the celebrity status of death squad leaders in Indonesia. The film studies the men behind countless killings by presenting them with the task of recreating their killings in the style of the American movies they love so much. It's chilling and powerful stuff, and our own Jessica Kiang saw the film earlier this year and hailed it as "a towering achievement in filmmaking, documentary or otherwise." You can read her full review here -- quoted in the banner for the movie over at Apple -- and it really highlights »
- Jason McDonald
Watch: 4 New Clips From 'Arrested Development'; Mitch Hurwitz Says Show Could Live On Past The Movie
24 May 2013 11:41 AM, PDT
So this weekend brings the the long awaited, highly anticipated return of "Arrested Development," and we're sure you've already got a viewing party marathon session ready to go. But of course, fifteen new episodes just isn't enough, as a movie has always been on the horizon with creator Mitch Hurwitz saying over and over again, that his new season is just a precursor to a feature. But could the show live on past that? "There is a story that I’m leading up to with this show, and it could take the form of a movie, I’m hoping it does. But truthfully, I even have the last beat of the movie, and it definitely is, like, 'Oh, so there’s more.' Without being too George Lucas about it, I would love to continue this," Hurwitz told Av Club. "Jason Bateman used to always say, 'We should do it like the Michael Apted films. »
- Kevin Jagernauth
Watch: Awesome Trailer For Sundance & Cannes Hit 'Ain't Them Bodies Saints' Starring Rooney Mara & Casey Affleck
24 May 2013 11:04 AM, PDT
fertival By now, you've heard the praise for David Lowery's outlaw tale "Ain't Them Bodies Saints." Premiering at Sundance in January to all sorts of good word and then hitting Cannes to play the Critics' Week sidebar, the movie continues it's march toward the big screen with a brand new trailer that's as beautiful as all get out. The story seems simple enough: After a crime spree leaves an officer wounded, Bob (Casey Affleck) takes the blame and heads to prison, leaving his girl Ruth (Rooney Mara) behind, and pregnant. Four years later, he breaks out and makes his way to back to her to see meet the child he's never seen, but of course, it won't be easy. And the result is a picture that we called a "searing, romantic crime drama and love story...a wholly engrossing and impressive piece of work that the movie world will »
- Kevin Jagernauth
5 Things You May Not Know About 'Return Of The Jedi' & How It Could Have Been Much Cooler
24 May 2013 10:57 AM, PDT
This week George Lucas’ “Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi” turns 30. The conclusion to what was then imagined to be the end of the "Star Wars" saga concerned the Rebellion going up against the evil Galactic Empire, which has constructed a second, planet-destroying Death Star that is about to go online. It had a whole bunch of thrills, chills, and fussy robots, but, as we look back on ‘Return of the Jedi’ (and look forward to whatever J.J. Abrams’ "Star Wars: Episode 7" will be,) it’s interesting to note what the sequel might have contained under different conditions– and how it could have ended up being much, much cooler (This as the companion piece to that ran earlier today btw.) The Ewoks Could Have Been Creepy As originally envisioned, the inhabitants of the forest moon of Endor weren’t the cuddly, ripped-from-Toys-r-Us stuffed animals. Instead, they were creepy little lizard folk, »
- Drew Taylor
Tom Cruise Bails On Guy Ritchie's 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.' To Gear Up 'Mission: Impossible 5' Instead
24 May 2013 10:33 AM, PDT
This is probably not how Warner Bros. wanted to head into the Memorial Day weekend. With the studio seemingly to finally get their long developing "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." movie going, with Guy Ritchie attached to direct and Armie Hammer and Alicia Vikander coming in supporting roles, they've just lost their leading man. That's right, Tom Cruise has bailed on the movie, with Deadline revealing he's focusing on "Mission: Impossible 5" instead. It seems Paramount want 'Impossible' shooting by the end of the year, and Cruise tends to be super involved in every detail of that franchise, so scheduling in 'U.N.C.L.E.' turned out to be an... impossibility! So what's Warner Bros. to do? They will want the movie to shoot this fall but replacing an actor of Cruise's caliber isn't easy at all. An actor who can play to overseas markets the way he can, »
- Kevin Jagernauth
Watch: Michael Douglas Shines In Clip From 'Behind The Candelabra' Plus New Photos
24 May 2013 10:04 AM, PDT
Put the Emmys and Golden Globes on alert, because Michael Douglas is coming. Earlier this week, Steven Soderbergh's "Behind The Candelabra" screened at the Cannes Film Festival and the conversation soon moved on from discussion of it being the director's final feature (for now) to Douglas' standout performance. It's the best thing he's done in probably a decade, if not longer, a completely transformative turn that's really unlike anything he's tackled before, in a movie that we described in our review as "decadently entertaining." Well now you can get a little taste. A new clip has arrived for the film and it gives away a small segment of the great introduction to Liberace, during the opening section of the movie. Liberace's future lover Scott Thorson (Matt Damon) is brought by his friend Bob Black (Scott Bakula) to see the musician and star in action in his Las Vegas show. »
- Kevin Jagernauth
The Coen Brothers Don't Like Sequels, Put Kibosh On Long Rumored 'The Big Lebowski' Followup
24 May 2013 9:29 AM, PDT
If you thought there was a chance you might see Jeff Bridges don his iconic bathrobe one more time we’ve got some troubling news for you. Joel and Ethan Coen are attending the Cannes Film Festival to promote their latest film “Inside Llewyn Davis,” and the duo sat down to answer questions at a press event. Inevitably the conversation turned to their cult classic “The Big Lebowski” and whether or not they would want to take on a sequel. Over the years actors, John Turturro has been leading the charge in making a sequel, one that would center on his character, Jesus Quintanta. Although he's only in 'Lebowski' for a couple of scenes, he's a fan favorite, and he's been pitching the Coens on a followup, and has spoken to the press about it too (read all about it in our feature 5 Things You Might Not Know About The »
- Jason McDonald
How 'Return Of The Jedi' Ruined 'Star Wars' Forever
24 May 2013 9:00 AM, PDT
Imagine it: you've taken off from school and waited in line all day to see "Star Wars: Return of the Jedi," the last installment (ever!) in the "Star Wars" saga. You're wearing your favorite "Star Wars" shirt, have your bucket of popcorn and jumbo-sized soda, and a primo seat in the auditorium, the best possible vantage point from which to watch the end of the trilogy unfold. No more than twenty minutes into the movie the lovable rogue Han Solo (Harrison Ford) dies fighting the evil Galactic Empire, sacrificing himself for the good of the Rebellion. The shockwaves from his death ripple through the audience and a very clear warning is issued from the filmmakers: no one is safe. Co-screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan fought for this to be a reality. So did Ford, who had grown weary of the character. But series overlord George Lucas said no. As Harrison Ford put »
- Drew Taylor
5 Things You'll Learn From 'Jodorowsky's Dune' From Nicolas Winding Refn's Thoughts, The Original Cast & More
24 May 2013 8:40 AM, PDT
The fact that Alejandro Jodorowsky -- coming off the double whammy of 1970s cult favorite mind benders "El Topo" and "The Holy Mountain" -- even got near bringing Frank Hebert's "Dune" to the big screen perhaps speaks to the wackiness of the 1970s movie world. That it actually got as far as it did, hiring an insane set of collaborators, an equally ambitious cast and actually reaching the stage where sets were going to be built, is even more miraculous. But alas, the production fell apart and has gone on to become one of the great unmade movie stories in cinema history. The mind still reels at what it could have resulted in, but the new documentary "Jodorowsky's Dune" gives a pretty good insight into what could have been a game changing sci-fi epic. Playing in Cannes Directors' Fortnight, the movie let's the man himself tell the saga of what happened, »
- Kevin Jagernauth
Watch: Short Film 'Gregory Go Boom' Starring Michael Cera
24 May 2013 8:20 AM, PDT
Want to see Michael Cera troll YouTube’s Comedy Week? I don’t want to say too much about his latest project from Jash, the YouTube comedy channel he co-founded with Reggie Watts, Tim & Eric, and Sarah Silverman, but you can check it out below. Written and directed by Janicza Bravo, "Gregory Go Boom" stars Michael Cera as a paraplegic looking for love, and also features Sarah Burns and Brett Gelman. While the premise might be a bit misleading, keep in mind; this was released specifically for YouTube’s Comedy Week. It has a little awkward comedy to get you started, but things take a pretty wild turn towards the end. I have to believe this whole thing is some kind of ironic statement...right? Check it out and let us know what you think. »
- Jason McDonald
Yes, George Lucas Was Already Talking About 'Star Wars' Prequels In 1981
24 May 2013 8:00 AM, PDT
Believe it or not, “Return of the Jedi” turns 30 this year. Now before you start to think about how old you are, why not enjoy this interesting little nugget? Author J.W. Rinzler’s book “The Making of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” comes out later this year and The Huffington Post has gotten their hands on a little excerpt that will definitely perk the interest of any "Star Wars" fan. The excerpt is from a “Revenge of the Jedi Story Conference” that was attended by George Lucas, writer Lawrence Kasdan, director Richard Marquand, and producer Howard Kazanjian. In discussion story details regarding the third film of the original trilogy, Lucas unearths the backstory of Darth Vader as well as Luke and Leia Skywalker and it’s pretty fascinating to see how much of the story winds up in the prequels. Even more fascinating, perhaps, is what didn’t wind up in the prequel. »
- Ken Guidry
Cannes: New Clip From ‘The Immigrant’; James Gray Talks Title Changes, Working With Joaquin Phoenix, Marion Cotillard & More
24 May 2013 7:35 AM, PDT
James Gray’s long-awaited period drama, “The Immigrant,” finally screened in Cannes early this morning. Featuring the excellent cast of Joaquin Phoenix, Marion Cotillard and Jeremy Renner, “The Immigrant” centers on a conniving pimp (Phoenix) who manipulates a destitute Polish immigrant (Cotillard) into a life of prostitution. Saddled with a sick sister, she works to pay for her medicine and her dismal life seems hopeless until a curious magician (Renner) enters it. Our reviewer called the film “carefully poised and slowly building to a resonant climax,” and that sounds like a James Gray film alright. Mostly unappreciated at home in the United States (but beloved in France), Gray generally makes melodramatic family tragedies disguised as crime dramas (“Little Odessa,” “The Yards,” “We Own The Night”), but “The Immigrant” is somewhat of a gear shift, with its 1920s period setting and having a woman as the lead character. While Joaquin Phoenix »
- Rodrigo Perez
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