Tom Cruise made headlines earlier this year with the announcement that he was returning to Warner Bros. after a decade to collaborate on a new project. A while back ago, fans were given the exciting update that Oscar-winning Mexican filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu is helming the film. This makes the new project even more exciting for Tom Cruise as the director’s achievements speak volumes about his films.
Top Gun: Maverick star Tom Cruise has a more exciting film lining up than Top Gun 3
Adding to the excitement, it was reported that the project is being treated as a top secret at David Zaslav’s Warner Bros. Discovery. No plot details are released at this time, except the fact that Iñárritu teamed up with his Oscar-winning Birdman writers for the script of the film.
Alejandro G. Iñárritu Will Helm Tom Cruise’s Mystery WB Project
Mission: Impossible star Tom...
Top Gun: Maverick star Tom Cruise has a more exciting film lining up than Top Gun 3
Adding to the excitement, it was reported that the project is being treated as a top secret at David Zaslav’s Warner Bros. Discovery. No plot details are released at this time, except the fact that Iñárritu teamed up with his Oscar-winning Birdman writers for the script of the film.
Alejandro G. Iñárritu Will Helm Tom Cruise’s Mystery WB Project
Mission: Impossible star Tom...
- 4/3/2024
- by Hashim Asraff
- FandomWire
The Oscar for Best Original Score has been awarded to some of the most memorable pieces of film music of all time, from “Star Wars” to “La La Land.” Many awards are considered precursors to the Oscars, so you would think the Grammy for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media would be pretty accurate, right? After all, there’s surely overlap between the Recording Academy and the music branch of the motion picture academy. And musicians would naturally be more aligned with what other musicians think than with groups of journalists like the Golden Globes Association or Critics Choice Association.
The two awards bodies have overlapped a lot over the years, but they are not afraid to differ. Since 2000 Oscar-winning scores for films like “Babel,” “The Artist,” “Life of Pi” and “The Hateful Eight” have lost the Grammy, sometimes to scores they beat at the Oscars. Other Oscar champs like “Frida,...
The two awards bodies have overlapped a lot over the years, but they are not afraid to differ. Since 2000 Oscar-winning scores for films like “Babel,” “The Artist,” “Life of Pi” and “The Hateful Eight” have lost the Grammy, sometimes to scores they beat at the Oscars. Other Oscar champs like “Frida,...
- 3/3/2024
- by Jaime Rodriguez
- Gold Derby
The urban legend of a woman who died trying to find the fictional “Fargo” suitcase full of cash became an indie drama breakout hit for filmmakers the Zellner Brothers.
The Zellners debuted “Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter” at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, capturing the tale of a Tokyo-based office worker, played by Oscar-nominated “Babel” star Rinko Kikuchi, who trekked to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in search of the money that Steve Buscemi’s character buries in the snow at the end of the Coens’ “Fargo.” The blurring of fact and fiction, reality and film, turned “Kumiko” into a cult classic in the making. And the film has since been notoriously hard to find, as it’s not currently available on streaming platforms.
Now, in honor of the film’s 10-year anniversary, Bleecker Street is re-releasing the feature in theaters and on demand. “Kumiko” is directed by David Zellner from a script he co-wrote with his brother Nathan Zellner.
The Zellners debuted “Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter” at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, capturing the tale of a Tokyo-based office worker, played by Oscar-nominated “Babel” star Rinko Kikuchi, who trekked to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in search of the money that Steve Buscemi’s character buries in the snow at the end of the Coens’ “Fargo.” The blurring of fact and fiction, reality and film, turned “Kumiko” into a cult classic in the making. And the film has since been notoriously hard to find, as it’s not currently available on streaming platforms.
Now, in honor of the film’s 10-year anniversary, Bleecker Street is re-releasing the feature in theaters and on demand. “Kumiko” is directed by David Zellner from a script he co-wrote with his brother Nathan Zellner.
- 2/29/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Here’s some exciting news: Deadline reports that Tom Cruise is set to star in a new movie from Alejandro Iñárritu for Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment. This would be Iñárritu’s first English language movie since The Revenant, which hit theaters nearly a decade ago.
Plot details are being kept under wraps, but it’s said that Iñárritu co-wrote the script last year with Sabina Berman as well as his Birdman co-writers Alexander Dinelaris and Nicolás Giacobone. It was reported yesterday that Tom Cruise was looking to return to more serious, dramatic fare with an award-winning director, and Alejandro Iñárritu certainly fits the bill. The movie will also be the first project that will fall under Cruise’s strategic partnership with Warner Bros.
Related Will Tom Cruise return to more serious dramatic movies under Warner Bros. deal?
According to Deadline’s report, Cruise arranged a meeting with Iñárritu as...
Plot details are being kept under wraps, but it’s said that Iñárritu co-wrote the script last year with Sabina Berman as well as his Birdman co-writers Alexander Dinelaris and Nicolás Giacobone. It was reported yesterday that Tom Cruise was looking to return to more serious, dramatic fare with an award-winning director, and Alejandro Iñárritu certainly fits the bill. The movie will also be the first project that will fall under Cruise’s strategic partnership with Warner Bros.
Related Will Tom Cruise return to more serious dramatic movies under Warner Bros. deal?
According to Deadline’s report, Cruise arranged a meeting with Iñárritu as...
- 2/22/2024
- by Kevin Fraser
- JoBlo.com
The current Oscars crop might be the best list in ages – but which was the best ever year for the movies? Guardian writers present their case
2In three weeks’ time, the credits will roll on the best cinema season in recent memory. Ten films are up for the best picture Oscar on 10 March and not a dud among them. That is unusual. Usually you will find an Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in there somewhere. Or maybe more than one, or even a trio. Often, it’s hard to get jazzed by the awards race; sometimes it’s tricky to feel strongly about any of the big contenders.
This year is different. Not only is the quality elevated; audience engagement has been sky-high. Much of that is down to the Barbenheimer juggernaut, giving brainy blockbusters their post-Covid event movie moment. But the watercooler would have been noisy nonetheless: The Zone of Interest,...
2In three weeks’ time, the credits will roll on the best cinema season in recent memory. Ten films are up for the best picture Oscar on 10 March and not a dud among them. That is unusual. Usually you will find an Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in there somewhere. Or maybe more than one, or even a trio. Often, it’s hard to get jazzed by the awards race; sometimes it’s tricky to feel strongly about any of the big contenders.
This year is different. Not only is the quality elevated; audience engagement has been sky-high. Much of that is down to the Barbenheimer juggernaut, giving brainy blockbusters their post-Covid event movie moment. But the watercooler would have been noisy nonetheless: The Zone of Interest,...
- 2/16/2024
- by Guardian Staff
- The Guardian - Film News
Exclusive: Roadside Attractions has acquired U.S. distribution rights from City Hill Arts to the family adventure, The Penguin & The Fisherman, inspired by the incredible true story and viral sensation of João Perei de Souza (Jeno Reno) and a lost penguin who, after being rescued from an oil spill, transforms the life and soul of a heartbroken fisherman. Also starring Babel‘s Adriana Barraza, the film is set for a late summer/early fall wide release.
Lionsgate is aboard for Home Entertainment, with Fortitude International handling foreign sales.
When The Penguin & The Fisherman begins, De Souza has turned away from the world in the wake of tragedy. But when he discovers a penguin drifting alone in the ocean, drenched in oil from a spill, his first instinct is to help. To the dismay of his wife (Barraza) dismay, he not only rescues the sea creature, but takes the flightless bird under his wing.
Lionsgate is aboard for Home Entertainment, with Fortitude International handling foreign sales.
When The Penguin & The Fisherman begins, De Souza has turned away from the world in the wake of tragedy. But when he discovers a penguin drifting alone in the ocean, drenched in oil from a spill, his first instinct is to help. To the dismay of his wife (Barraza) dismay, he not only rescues the sea creature, but takes the flightless bird under his wing.
- 2/16/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
The star of Tampopo, Babel and The Eel reveals how it felt to share the screen with 17 stunning Tokyo lavatories in this joyously strange, Oscar-tipped film about a cleaner
Not all movie heroes wear capes, it is said, but only the rare, cherished few don rubber gloves and blue overalls. Perfect Days, the gorgeous new drama from the German director Wim Wenders, is about one such man of action: a lone wolf in crowded modern-day Japan. Middle-aged Hirayama is employed by Tokyo Toilet and drives a small van from one public convenience to the next. Like Travis Bickle and Dirty Harry, he’s on a mission to clean up the city. Unlike them, Hirayama means literally: he comes with brushes, squeegees and detergent.
Hirayama is played by Kōji Yakusho, a 68-year-old mainstay of Japanese cinema with approximately 100 screen credits to his name. He was the mysterious diner in the 1980s hit Tampopo,...
Not all movie heroes wear capes, it is said, but only the rare, cherished few don rubber gloves and blue overalls. Perfect Days, the gorgeous new drama from the German director Wim Wenders, is about one such man of action: a lone wolf in crowded modern-day Japan. Middle-aged Hirayama is employed by Tokyo Toilet and drives a small van from one public convenience to the next. Like Travis Bickle and Dirty Harry, he’s on a mission to clean up the city. Unlike them, Hirayama means literally: he comes with brushes, squeegees and detergent.
Hirayama is played by Kōji Yakusho, a 68-year-old mainstay of Japanese cinema with approximately 100 screen credits to his name. He was the mysterious diner in the 1980s hit Tampopo,...
- 2/15/2024
- by Xan Brooks
- The Guardian - Film News
You may know Kōji Yakusho as the oyster-slurping mystery man from the noodle-Western extraordinaire Tampopo (1985). Perhaps you remember him as the depressed suburbanite who ballroom dances his blues away in the international feel-good hit Shall We Dance? (1996). He’s the reformed felon in the Cannes-winning character study The Eel (1997), a former muse to filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa in the late Nineties and early aughts, the familiar face who graced Hollywood fare like Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) and Babel (2006), and — if you’ve followed his 40-plus years as a major figure in...
- 2/7/2024
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
Claire Denis, Leox Carax, Jim Sheridan, Atom Egoyan and Martin Hernandez will be the Masters for the 10th edition of Qumra, the Doha Film Institute’s annual incubator event.
The four directors plus sound designer and editor Hernandez will discuss their careers in individual talks with the Qumra delegates.
This year’s Qumra will run from March 1-6, with the 10th edition a key milestone for a Middle Eastern film event.
“As the Arab world’s first-of-its-kind talent incubator, Qumra has served as the preeminent platform for emerging talents to give their projects a distinct advantage through invaluable networking sessions with leading industry professionals,...
The four directors plus sound designer and editor Hernandez will discuss their careers in individual talks with the Qumra delegates.
This year’s Qumra will run from March 1-6, with the 10th edition a key milestone for a Middle Eastern film event.
“As the Arab world’s first-of-its-kind talent incubator, Qumra has served as the preeminent platform for emerging talents to give their projects a distinct advantage through invaluable networking sessions with leading industry professionals,...
- 2/5/2024
- ScreenDaily
The Academy has confirmed to Deadline that this is the first time two international foreign-language movies have been nominated for Best Picture in the same year and the first time that two foreign-language movies have received five Oscar nominations apiece in the same year.
Justine Triet’s contemporary courtroom thriller Anatomy Of A Fall and Jonathan Glazer’s innovative holocaust drama The Zone Of Interest lead the international charge today. The former is a French-language French production, while the latter is a German-language international co-production (with some key U.S. backing).
The two features, which both debuted at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, nabbed five Oscar noms each this morning, including showings in Best Director and their respective screenplay categories: adapted for Glazer and original for Triet and her co-writer Arthur Harari.
The two films also appeared in Best Picture. When you factor in fellow Best Picture contender Past Lives, which is in English and Korean,...
Justine Triet’s contemporary courtroom thriller Anatomy Of A Fall and Jonathan Glazer’s innovative holocaust drama The Zone Of Interest lead the international charge today. The former is a French-language French production, while the latter is a German-language international co-production (with some key U.S. backing).
The two features, which both debuted at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, nabbed five Oscar noms each this morning, including showings in Best Director and their respective screenplay categories: adapted for Glazer and original for Triet and her co-writer Arthur Harari.
The two films also appeared in Best Picture. When you factor in fellow Best Picture contender Past Lives, which is in English and Korean,...
- 1/23/2024
- by Andreas Wiseman and Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
A bio-series about iconic ranchera singer Chavela Vargas starring “La Reina del Sur” lead Kate del Castillo is in the works. Colombia’s Caracol Televisión and indie Miracol Media are co-producing “Chavela,” which will trace the tumultuous life and career of the legendary singer.
Del Castillo will transform into Vargas, the mythical woman in the red poncho, who boldly rejected the conventions of her time, paving the way for a unique and groundbreaking journey in the landscape of Mexican popular music.
Her internal battle with personal demons, heartbreak, and alcoholism propelled her to become a trailblazer, stepping onto the stage to sing Mexican songs in a jorongo, the traditional Mexican poncho, and pants. With a guitar pressed against her heart, a tequila in hand, and a pistol holstered on her belt, she mesmerized audiences, captivating both men and women alike.
“I came out of hell, but I did it singing,...
Del Castillo will transform into Vargas, the mythical woman in the red poncho, who boldly rejected the conventions of her time, paving the way for a unique and groundbreaking journey in the landscape of Mexican popular music.
Her internal battle with personal demons, heartbreak, and alcoholism propelled her to become a trailblazer, stepping onto the stage to sing Mexican songs in a jorongo, the traditional Mexican poncho, and pants. With a guitar pressed against her heart, a tequila in hand, and a pistol holstered on her belt, she mesmerized audiences, captivating both men and women alike.
“I came out of hell, but I did it singing,...
- 1/23/2024
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Maureen “Mo” Henry, the veteran negative cutter and a giant in the postproduction community, died Sunday of complications from liver failure in Los Angeles, her son, Logan, told The Hollywood Reporter. She was 67.
During her half-century in Hollywood, Henry cut negatives on hundreds of films, starting with Jaws (1975). She followed with such movies as Ghost (1990), Heat (1995), Casino (1995), Before Sunrise (1995), From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), The Fifth Element (1997), Starship Troopers (1997), The Big Lebowski (1998), The Iron Giant (1999), The Sixth Sense (1999), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), Million Dollar Baby (2004), Babel (2006), The Blind Side (2009) and Intersteller (2014) and entries in the Matrix, Dark Knight, Shrek and Spider-Man franchises.
Hers was a family business, she explained in a 2020 interview for the Chicago Film Society.
“My family immigrated from Ireland, and my aunt was the oldest of several kids, she’s about 20 years older than my dad,” she said. “When they moved to Hollywood, she just walked up...
During her half-century in Hollywood, Henry cut negatives on hundreds of films, starting with Jaws (1975). She followed with such movies as Ghost (1990), Heat (1995), Casino (1995), Before Sunrise (1995), From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), The Fifth Element (1997), Starship Troopers (1997), The Big Lebowski (1998), The Iron Giant (1999), The Sixth Sense (1999), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), Million Dollar Baby (2004), Babel (2006), The Blind Side (2009) and Intersteller (2014) and entries in the Matrix, Dark Knight, Shrek and Spider-Man franchises.
Hers was a family business, she explained in a 2020 interview for the Chicago Film Society.
“My family immigrated from Ireland, and my aunt was the oldest of several kids, she’s about 20 years older than my dad,” she said. “When they moved to Hollywood, she just walked up...
- 1/18/2024
- by Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Third-ever nomination for Rodrigo Prieto, for ‘Killers Of The Flower Moon’.
The British Society of Cinematographers (Bsc) has selected the nominees for its Cinematography in a Feature Film award for 2024.
The five nominees are: Rodrigo Prieto for Killers Of The Flower Moon; Matthew Libatique for Maestro; Hoyte van Hoytema for Oppenheimer; Robbie Ryan for Poor Things; and Linus Sandgren for Saltburn.
First presented in 1953 and handed out every year since except for 1957 and 2004 (due to ceremony changeovers), the Bsc states that its Feature Film award is the industry’s second-oldest cinematography prize, behind the Academy Award for best cinematography.
The...
The British Society of Cinematographers (Bsc) has selected the nominees for its Cinematography in a Feature Film award for 2024.
The five nominees are: Rodrigo Prieto for Killers Of The Flower Moon; Matthew Libatique for Maestro; Hoyte van Hoytema for Oppenheimer; Robbie Ryan for Poor Things; and Linus Sandgren for Saltburn.
First presented in 1953 and handed out every year since except for 1957 and 2004 (due to ceremony changeovers), the Bsc states that its Feature Film award is the industry’s second-oldest cinematography prize, behind the Academy Award for best cinematography.
The...
- 1/13/2024
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Winning Best Actor at Cannes for Wim Wenders’ “Perfect Days” (Neon) was a surprise for veteran Japanese star Koji Yakusho (“Shall We Dance?”). “I’m a very lucky man,” he told IndieWire on Zoom. And when he and Wenders heard that “Perfect Days,” despite its German director, was submitted by Japan for the Oscar, they cheered over dinner at Telluride “like we had just won the Academy Award,” said Yakusho. “Director Wim thought it would be more of a handicap that he’s not a Japanese director. But for the Japanese people, he knows the culture really well. And he also has spent a lot of time there. We were very proud to have him be selected as Japan’s entry.”
Yakusho knew Wenders’ work when he was asked to play Hiroyama, a public toilet cleaner in Tokyo. “He was always looking for a new challenge in his filmmaking,” the actor said,...
Yakusho knew Wenders’ work when he was asked to play Hiroyama, a public toilet cleaner in Tokyo. “He was always looking for a new challenge in his filmmaking,” the actor said,...
- 11/28/2023
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
In a previous piece for Gold Derby, I referenced how all but one Best Picture Oscar winner since 2008 came from filmmakers who had never directed a Best Picture nominee before. The only exception is Alejandro González Iñárritu‘s “Birdman” in 2014; his prior Best Picture bid was for “Babel” back in 2006. Let’s dig into the last 15 years of winners, shall we?
SEEOscars alert: Watch out for ‘Barbie’ scene-stealers America Ferrera and Rhea Perlman
In 2008 “Slumdog Millionaire” was the juggernaut of the film awards season, winning eight Oscars, which is still more than any film since then. It was directed by Danny Boyle, who at the time only made one other Oscar nominated film, 1996’s “Trainspotting,” which was recognized with a nom for Best Adapted Screenplay.
In 2009 the race famously came down to two films from directors who were previously married: James Cameron‘s “Avatar” and Kathryn Bigelow‘s “The Hurt Locker.
SEEOscars alert: Watch out for ‘Barbie’ scene-stealers America Ferrera and Rhea Perlman
In 2008 “Slumdog Millionaire” was the juggernaut of the film awards season, winning eight Oscars, which is still more than any film since then. It was directed by Danny Boyle, who at the time only made one other Oscar nominated film, 1996’s “Trainspotting,” which was recognized with a nom for Best Adapted Screenplay.
In 2009 the race famously came down to two films from directors who were previously married: James Cameron‘s “Avatar” and Kathryn Bigelow‘s “The Hurt Locker.
- 11/24/2023
- by Jeffrey Kare
- Gold Derby
Indie and art film producer Jon Kilik, unlike many, remains hopeful for the personal, mid-budget movie for grown-ups. “Those are the films directors love to make and audiences still love,” says Kilik, being feted this week at Poland’s Camerimage cinematography festival for work of special visual sensitivity.
Having flown in from a shoot in Rome, Kilik confesses he still loves being on set after a career spanning four decades, including work with Spike Lee, Julian Schnabel, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Jim Jarmusch and Oliver Stone.
His latest project filming in Europe, “In the Hand of Dante,” starring Gal Gadot and Oscar Isaac in a metaphorical journey through hell to paradise, is characteristic of Kilik’s lifelong passion for bringing challenging works of literature and art to the screen.
And he’s proven time and again that such films have an audience and are economically viable, he points out, if handled...
Having flown in from a shoot in Rome, Kilik confesses he still loves being on set after a career spanning four decades, including work with Spike Lee, Julian Schnabel, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Jim Jarmusch and Oliver Stone.
His latest project filming in Europe, “In the Hand of Dante,” starring Gal Gadot and Oscar Isaac in a metaphorical journey through hell to paradise, is characteristic of Kilik’s lifelong passion for bringing challenging works of literature and art to the screen.
And he’s proven time and again that such films have an audience and are economically viable, he points out, if handled...
- 11/19/2023
- by Will Tizard
- Variety Film + TV
There was an emotional start to the 31st EnergaCamerimage cinematography film festival as news spread that John Bailey — the cinematographer behind films such as Ordinary People, The Big Chill and As Good As It Gets, and former president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — died Friday at age 81.
During Saturday’s opening ceremony, festival director Marek Żydowicz gave a heartfelt tribute to the Dp as he opened Camerimage, which is held annually in Toruń, Poland. “It is very difficult for me to talk about it,” he said, introducing a black-and-while clip featuring portions of Bailey’s 2019 speech when he accepted the Camerimage Lifetime Achievement Award. Bailey and his wife, Oscar-nominated editor Carol Littleton, had attended the festival on multiple occasions. Żydowicz also emphasized the bond between Camerimage and the Motion Picture Academy that Bailey helped to strengthen. He said, “John, you will forever be in our hearts.
During Saturday’s opening ceremony, festival director Marek Żydowicz gave a heartfelt tribute to the Dp as he opened Camerimage, which is held annually in Toruń, Poland. “It is very difficult for me to talk about it,” he said, introducing a black-and-while clip featuring portions of Bailey’s 2019 speech when he accepted the Camerimage Lifetime Achievement Award. Bailey and his wife, Oscar-nominated editor Carol Littleton, had attended the festival on multiple occasions. Żydowicz also emphasized the bond between Camerimage and the Motion Picture Academy that Bailey helped to strengthen. He said, “John, you will forever be in our hearts.
- 11/11/2023
- by Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The 49th edition of Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival, Spain’s largest confab for films from Latin America, Spain and Portugal, will honor Mexican star Cecilia Suárez with its City of Huelva Award.
With leading roles in Netflix’s “The House of Flowers” and HBO Latin America’s “Capadocia,” Suárez has also be seen in ABC’s drama “The Promised Land” and has worked on films by as Tommy Lee Jones (“The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”), James L. Brooks (“Spanglish”), Ernesto Contreras (“Párpados azules”), Antonio Serrano and Fernando Colomo (“Cuidado con lo que deseas”).
The new edition of Huelva runs Nov. 10-18.
Andalusia’s oldest film festival, Huelva will also grant a Light Award to Spanish actress Natalia de Molina, a two-time Goya winner, delivering acclaimed performance in films such as David Trueba’s “Living Is Easy with Eyes Closed” and Juan Miguel del Castillo’s “Food and Shelter.”
Another...
With leading roles in Netflix’s “The House of Flowers” and HBO Latin America’s “Capadocia,” Suárez has also be seen in ABC’s drama “The Promised Land” and has worked on films by as Tommy Lee Jones (“The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”), James L. Brooks (“Spanglish”), Ernesto Contreras (“Párpados azules”), Antonio Serrano and Fernando Colomo (“Cuidado con lo que deseas”).
The new edition of Huelva runs Nov. 10-18.
Andalusia’s oldest film festival, Huelva will also grant a Light Award to Spanish actress Natalia de Molina, a two-time Goya winner, delivering acclaimed performance in films such as David Trueba’s “Living Is Easy with Eyes Closed” and Juan Miguel del Castillo’s “Food and Shelter.”
Another...
- 11/10/2023
- by Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
Rodrigo Prieto has been on quite a journey over the past year. In 2022, he spent months on the plains of Oklahoma working in blistering hot weather with Martin Scorsese as Dp of “Killers of the Flower Moon,” a dark retelling of murder and racism from the early 20th century.
Then, immediately after, he flew off to London to help Greta Gerwig create the colorful world of “Barbie.” Making such wildly different films requires differing approaches, but Prieto told TheWrap that his philosophy as a cinematographer connected the two films together.
“As a cinematographer, I tap into my own psyche, into my own inner worlds,” he said. “For ‘Killers of the Flower Moon, it was certainly an exploration of my own darkness, my own conflicts, and then I try to put that on the screen and try to understand what of these characters is in me as well.”
“In the same...
Then, immediately after, he flew off to London to help Greta Gerwig create the colorful world of “Barbie.” Making such wildly different films requires differing approaches, but Prieto told TheWrap that his philosophy as a cinematographer connected the two films together.
“As a cinematographer, I tap into my own psyche, into my own inner worlds,” he said. “For ‘Killers of the Flower Moon, it was certainly an exploration of my own darkness, my own conflicts, and then I try to put that on the screen and try to understand what of these characters is in me as well.”
“In the same...
- 11/3/2023
- by Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
Across a 45-year career in the movies, Koji Yakusho has worked with every major Japanese director of his generation and inhabited over 80 characters, spanning salarymen, samurai, yakuza gangsters, taxi drivers, journalists, cops, killers, heroes, dancers, seducers and everymen of all kinds. But in German filmmaker Wim Wender’s latest feature, the Tokyo-set drama Perfect Days, the 68-year-old actor may have found the most natural vehicle yet for his screen persona’s unique blend of elegance and inward dignity. And he inhabits a humble toilet cleaner.
A deceptively simple character study of slowly accumulating emotional heft, Perfect Days features Yakusho in nearly every frame of its 123-minute runtime. He plays Hirayama, a man who would appear to have dropped out of life if he didn’t take such palpable pleasure in his modest daily routines. Hirayama works as the devoted cleaner of architecturally distinctive public restrooms in Tokyo’s city parks...
A deceptively simple character study of slowly accumulating emotional heft, Perfect Days features Yakusho in nearly every frame of its 123-minute runtime. He plays Hirayama, a man who would appear to have dropped out of life if he didn’t take such palpable pleasure in his modest daily routines. Hirayama works as the devoted cleaner of architecturally distinctive public restrooms in Tokyo’s city parks...
- 10/25/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: Gael García Bernal will be honored with the inaugural Premio Vida y Legado (Life and Legacy Award) at the annual Día de Muertos celebration to be held on November 1 at the Hollywood Forever Cemetary in Los Angeles.
Now in its third year, the event is a tribute to Latino culture and the Mexican tradition of honoring family who have passed and bringing together family who are chosen.
“I’m honored to present the inaugural Día de Muertos Award to Gael García Bernal, a true cinematic icon whose brilliant work as both a producer and actor has brought Latino stories to life and given them a space in mainstream culture,” Carlos Eric Lopez, the Mexican-American fine art and celebrity photographer who hosts the yearly dinner, told Deadline in a statement.
Día de Muertos celebration in 2022 with guests that included Diego Boneta, Miguel, Xochitl Gomez and Jessica Alba.
Now in its third year, the event is a tribute to Latino culture and the Mexican tradition of honoring family who have passed and bringing together family who are chosen.
“I’m honored to present the inaugural Día de Muertos Award to Gael García Bernal, a true cinematic icon whose brilliant work as both a producer and actor has brought Latino stories to life and given them a space in mainstream culture,” Carlos Eric Lopez, the Mexican-American fine art and celebrity photographer who hosts the yearly dinner, told Deadline in a statement.
Día de Muertos celebration in 2022 with guests that included Diego Boneta, Miguel, Xochitl Gomez and Jessica Alba.
- 10/25/2023
- by Rosy Cordero
- Deadline Film + TV
The medium is the message in Agnieszka Holland’s Green Border, a piece of political cinema so freshly ripped from the headlines that you can still feel the jagged edges. Holland shot the film, which chronicles the wide ripple effects of a 2021 surge of asylum seekers along the Polish-Belarusian border, in just 23 days in March of this year and had it ready for fall festivals mere months later. In the end, her sense of propulsive, incandescent outrage is both the project’s reason for existence and its strongest attribute.
Holland, directing in collaboration with Kamila Tarabura and Katarzyna Warzecha, resists the impulse for urgency to trump all aesthetic considerations. Green Border moves beyond documentary-style realism as a shorthand for authenticity, and it’s at its most gut-wrenching when Tomek Naumiuk’s agile camerawork captures bodies in frequent, frightening motion, as well as the illusory sense of security that those bodies feel in moments of rest.
Holland, directing in collaboration with Kamila Tarabura and Katarzyna Warzecha, resists the impulse for urgency to trump all aesthetic considerations. Green Border moves beyond documentary-style realism as a shorthand for authenticity, and it’s at its most gut-wrenching when Tomek Naumiuk’s agile camerawork captures bodies in frequent, frightening motion, as well as the illusory sense of security that those bodies feel in moments of rest.
- 10/9/2023
- by Marshall Shaffer
- Slant Magazine
A middle-aged woman forced to return home after 20 years following the death of her father. A service that provides elderly call girls to socialize with lonely Japanese seniors. A grimly hilarious look at the pressures faced by Japanese women, itself a rebuttal to the post-covid social issue films that dare not flash a smile. These three films, “Yoko,” “Tea Friends” and “Ripples” are universal in their messaging while challenging taboos about Japanese culture and society.
TheWrap hosted a three-night film festival spotlighting emerging voices in Japanese cinema. “Yoko” director Kazuyoshi Kumakiri made an in-person appearance for the post-screening Q&a while “Tea Friends” director Bunji Sotoyama and “Ripples” filmmaker Naoko Ogigami participated via Zoom. All three shared, with the assistance of translator David Neptune, poignant insights and personal stories.
‘Tea Friends’ trailer Inspirations for art
The conversations around all three films began with inquiries as to what made the filmmakers...
TheWrap hosted a three-night film festival spotlighting emerging voices in Japanese cinema. “Yoko” director Kazuyoshi Kumakiri made an in-person appearance for the post-screening Q&a while “Tea Friends” director Bunji Sotoyama and “Ripples” filmmaker Naoko Ogigami participated via Zoom. All three shared, with the assistance of translator David Neptune, poignant insights and personal stories.
‘Tea Friends’ trailer Inspirations for art
The conversations around all three films began with inquiries as to what made the filmmakers...
- 9/29/2023
- by Scott Mendelson
- The Wrap
In my opinion, the two greatest directors to emerge from the nexus of international cinema in the 1990s were both Scandinavian. One of them, Lars von Trier, became quite famous, for reasons both good and bad. The other director I’m speaking of never got famous, and his movies, even during his brief heyday, didn’t become art-house sensations. Yet for a time, Sweden’s Lukas Moodysson burned with an intoxicating flame.
He made three films of astonishing organic craft and humanistic purity: “Show Me Love” (1998), a shockingly lyrical love story about two high-school girls who fall for each other in a small town that didn’t look very tolerantly upon them; “Together” (2000), an ensemble comedy set in a sharehome commune in Stockholm in 1975 that is one of the only films that totally gets the counterculture; and “Lilya 4-ever” (2002), a haunting tragedy about a wayward girl in the former Soviet...
He made three films of astonishing organic craft and humanistic purity: “Show Me Love” (1998), a shockingly lyrical love story about two high-school girls who fall for each other in a small town that didn’t look very tolerantly upon them; “Together” (2000), an ensemble comedy set in a sharehome commune in Stockholm in 1975 that is one of the only films that totally gets the counterculture; and “Lilya 4-ever” (2002), a haunting tragedy about a wayward girl in the former Soviet...
- 9/24/2023
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Ava DuVernay’s latest film, Origin, followed its Sept. 6 world premiere at the Venice Film Festival — where DuVernay became the first African American filmmaker to have a film play in competition, and where Neon acquired its U.S. distribution rights — with its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival’s Roy Thomson Hall on Monday.
As with much of DuVernay’s work, including but not limited to the narrative feature Selma (2014), the documentary feature 13th (2016) and the limited series When They See Us (2019), Origin is a project about race — or, as its protagonist Isabel Wilkerson (played by the gifted actress Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, who was Oscar-nominated for 2021’s King Richard) sees it, caste.
The scale and ambition of Origin, though, is arguably greater than any of DuVernay’s earlier efforts: it explores the story behind — and the history/continent-hopping story recounted within — Wilkerson’s 2020 bestselling book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent.
As with much of DuVernay’s work, including but not limited to the narrative feature Selma (2014), the documentary feature 13th (2016) and the limited series When They See Us (2019), Origin is a project about race — or, as its protagonist Isabel Wilkerson (played by the gifted actress Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, who was Oscar-nominated for 2021’s King Richard) sees it, caste.
The scale and ambition of Origin, though, is arguably greater than any of DuVernay’s earlier efforts: it explores the story behind — and the history/continent-hopping story recounted within — Wilkerson’s 2020 bestselling book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent.
- 9/12/2023
- by Scott Feinberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Japanese actor Koji Yakusho, winner of Cannes’ best actor prize this year for his universally acclaimed performance in Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days, has been selected 2023 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival’s filmmaker in focus.
Yakusho will attend the Taiwanese festival in person and present a selection of seven of his films during the event’s 17-day duration. The titles shown will include Perfect Days and the erotic classic Lost Paradise (1997), as well as five titles selected by Yakusho himself, including Kamikaze Taxi (1995), Shall We Dance (1996), Cure (1997), Eureka (2000) and The Woodsman and the Rain (2011).
“With these seven films, cinephiles will be able to witness the charm and versatile acting of a legendary actor,” Taipei’s organizers said in a statement.
Across his four-decade career, Yakusho has been nominated for the Japan Academy of Film Prize 23 times, including seven consecutive nominations in the best leading actor category, which he has won three times,...
Yakusho will attend the Taiwanese festival in person and present a selection of seven of his films during the event’s 17-day duration. The titles shown will include Perfect Days and the erotic classic Lost Paradise (1997), as well as five titles selected by Yakusho himself, including Kamikaze Taxi (1995), Shall We Dance (1996), Cure (1997), Eureka (2000) and The Woodsman and the Rain (2011).
“With these seven films, cinephiles will be able to witness the charm and versatile acting of a legendary actor,” Taipei’s organizers said in a statement.
Across his four-decade career, Yakusho has been nominated for the Japan Academy of Film Prize 23 times, including seven consecutive nominations in the best leading actor category, which he has won three times,...
- 9/12/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan (Aca) is sponsoring the seventh Aca Cinema Project — Emerging Japanese Films — as the cornerstone of its Japan Overseas Expansion Enhancement Project. Visual Industry Promotion Organization (Vipo) serves as the steward for the encore of this distinguished screening series. Three recently released, prestigious theatrical titles headline the event, which runs from Tuesday, September 26, through Thursday, September 28, at the Linwood Dunn Theater, Hollywood. Festivities are free of charge for accredited entertainment industry professionals.
Launching the Aca Cinema Project on September 26 at 7:00 p.m. is the stateside debut of Kazuyoshi Kumakiri‘s quirky, character-driven, road trip drama Yoko (2022; Trt: 113 minutes). Yoko represents the longtime professional reunion of director Kumakiri and Oscar®-nominated actress Rinko Kikuchi (Tokyo Vice, Babel). Yoko marks the 20-year follow-up to their initial collaboration, 2001 Rotterdam International Film Festival Fipresci Prize winner Hole in the Sky.
Aca Cinema Project offers two...
Launching the Aca Cinema Project on September 26 at 7:00 p.m. is the stateside debut of Kazuyoshi Kumakiri‘s quirky, character-driven, road trip drama Yoko (2022; Trt: 113 minutes). Yoko represents the longtime professional reunion of director Kumakiri and Oscar®-nominated actress Rinko Kikuchi (Tokyo Vice, Babel). Yoko marks the 20-year follow-up to their initial collaboration, 2001 Rotterdam International Film Festival Fipresci Prize winner Hole in the Sky.
Aca Cinema Project offers two...
- 9/11/2023
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
Yakusho Koji, the Japanese star who was named best actor at Cannes this year in Wim Wenders’ “Perfect Days,” is set as the subject of a seven-title showcase at the upcoming Golden Horse Film Festival in Taiwan.
Among the septet are classic erotic film “Lost Paradise” from 1997, this year’s “Perfect Days” and 1996 film “Shall We Dance,” which was later remade in Hollywood.
Yakusho Koji (Photo: Courtesy of the Golden Horse Film Festival.)
A former civil servant who first ventured into Taiga drama (long-running TV series broadcast by Nhk), then played in several films by Kurosawa Akira, Yakusho became a major 1990s star in Asia as a result of “Shall We Dance?,” in which he portrayed a ball room dancer, and “Lost Paradise.” He also starred in Itami Juzo’s “Tampopo.”
Directed by Morita Yoshimitsu, “Lost Paradise” is a tale of a man and a woman whose marriages no longer make them happy,...
Among the septet are classic erotic film “Lost Paradise” from 1997, this year’s “Perfect Days” and 1996 film “Shall We Dance,” which was later remade in Hollywood.
Yakusho Koji (Photo: Courtesy of the Golden Horse Film Festival.)
A former civil servant who first ventured into Taiga drama (long-running TV series broadcast by Nhk), then played in several films by Kurosawa Akira, Yakusho became a major 1990s star in Asia as a result of “Shall We Dance?,” in which he portrayed a ball room dancer, and “Lost Paradise.” He also starred in Itami Juzo’s “Tampopo.”
Directed by Morita Yoshimitsu, “Lost Paradise” is a tale of a man and a woman whose marriages no longer make them happy,...
- 9/11/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Japan has selected Perfect Days, the Tokyo-based fiction feature from German filmmaker Wim Wenders, as its entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2024 Oscars.
The pic, which debuted in competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, was picked by the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. The decision marks the first time a non-Japanese filmmaker has been chosen to lead the country’s Oscars push. Wenders’ Perfect Days is likely to have beat out Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy And The Heron for the spot.
The film’s official synopsis reads: Hirayama seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his very structured everyday routine, he enjoys his passion for music and books. He loves trees and takes photos of them. A series of unexpected encounters gradually reveals more of his past.
Starring are Koji Yakusho (Babel), newcomer Arisa Nakano,...
The pic, which debuted in competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, was picked by the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. The decision marks the first time a non-Japanese filmmaker has been chosen to lead the country’s Oscars push. Wenders’ Perfect Days is likely to have beat out Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy And The Heron for the spot.
The film’s official synopsis reads: Hirayama seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his very structured everyday routine, he enjoys his passion for music and books. He loves trees and takes photos of them. A series of unexpected encounters gradually reveals more of his past.
Starring are Koji Yakusho (Babel), newcomer Arisa Nakano,...
- 9/4/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
In the debut feature of Mexican filmmaker-siblings Mariana and Santiago Arriaga, revenge is indeed a dish best served cold. Competing at the Venice Film Festival’s Orizzonti sidebar, the coming-of-age road movie “A Cielo Abierto” turns on two teen brothers who are bent on avenging the death of their father in a road accident. They are joined by their new stepsister who, unaware of their intentions at first, later becomes a willing accomplice. As they pause and deliberate on what to do with their prey, what follows helps the brothers come to terms with the deep pain of their loss.
Based on the first original screenplay by their Oscar-nominated father, Guillermo Arriaga, “A Cielo Abierto” (“Upon Open Sky”) takes place in the arid region of Northern Mexico, specifically in the Coahuila desert, where, as children, the siblings would go on many hunting trips with their father. “Much more than the films we’ve seen,...
Based on the first original screenplay by their Oscar-nominated father, Guillermo Arriaga, “A Cielo Abierto” (“Upon Open Sky”) takes place in the arid region of Northern Mexico, specifically in the Coahuila desert, where, as children, the siblings would go on many hunting trips with their father. “Much more than the films we’ve seen,...
- 9/2/2023
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Mexican novelist, screenwriter and occasional director Guillermo Arriaga made his name in the film realm penning multi-threaded dramas about the ripple effects of tragic incidents. “Amores Perros” and “Babel” stand out among them. Now the scribe’s cinematic legacy turns into a family affair with his children Mariana and Santiago Arriaga making their feature directorial debut via a searing coming-of-age road trip movie their father wrote.
But don’t expect the breezy sexiness of something like Alfonso Cuarón’s “Y Tu Mamá También.” Despite featuring adolescent protagonists, this journey into maturity holds major emotional stakes but few flutters of careless abandon. As is common in Arriaga’s scripts, the tale finds its potency in the intricate moral grays of the human condition, here portrayed through a collection of strikingly incisive performances by the young cast.
Set in early 1990s Mexico, “Upon Open Sky” begins on an empty desert highway. Twelve-year-old...
But don’t expect the breezy sexiness of something like Alfonso Cuarón’s “Y Tu Mamá También.” Despite featuring adolescent protagonists, this journey into maturity holds major emotional stakes but few flutters of careless abandon. As is common in Arriaga’s scripts, the tale finds its potency in the intricate moral grays of the human condition, here portrayed through a collection of strikingly incisive performances by the young cast.
Set in early 1990s Mexico, “Upon Open Sky” begins on an empty desert highway. Twelve-year-old...
- 8/31/2023
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Variety Film + TV
When you think of a modern-day Mozart, you may picture a complex, classically trained, strictly disciplined persona whose compositions render a series of intricate masterpieces. Few might hold the image of a native Argentinian who can’t read or write music. Yet, there is Gustavo Santaolalla — a musician, producer and composer who boasts 17 Latin Grammy Awards and two Academy Awards for best original score for Brokeback Mountain and Babel. His riveting story from starting a band at the tender age of 16 to being jailed numerous times for his political beliefs, reads more like the movies he has composed scores for than real life. Nevertheless, Santaolalla is one of the most prolific, highly acclaimed musicians in the world.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Santaolalla — who earned an Emmy nomination for scoring the third episode of HBO’s The Last of Us, titled “Long, Long Time” — digs deeper into his incredible journey overcoming adversity,...
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Santaolalla — who earned an Emmy nomination for scoring the third episode of HBO’s The Last of Us, titled “Long, Long Time” — digs deeper into his incredible journey overcoming adversity,...
- 8/28/2023
- by Ashley Foster
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Give the waning days of the old era of DC movies at Warner Bros some credit for going out in style. I might have been something of a dissenting voice, but I thought June’s big-screen The Flash, despite disappointing some fanboys and at the box office, was a winning affair, a step above most superhero fare. And now I can say the same for the first cinematic attempt at bringing Blue Beetle to life, a much better movie than its August 18 release date might indicate.
Under the assured direction of Angel Manuel Soto, it features a sharp cast of Latino actors led by the appealing Xolo Mariduena in the title role aka college student Jaime Reyes, who comes home to his tightknit family only to have things go crazy when he becomes the chosen one to carry the tradition of the Blue Beetle, a reluctant superhero whose powers know no limits.
Under the assured direction of Angel Manuel Soto, it features a sharp cast of Latino actors led by the appealing Xolo Mariduena in the title role aka college student Jaime Reyes, who comes home to his tightknit family only to have things go crazy when he becomes the chosen one to carry the tradition of the Blue Beetle, a reluctant superhero whose powers know no limits.
- 8/16/2023
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Renowned composer Gustavo Santaolalla has been exploring a certain human quality in his music for years. “That melancholy of life,” describes the musician, “It’s the bittersweet aspects of life that can make you smile with a tear.” He has recently paired his signature evocative sound with the first season of HBO’s adaptation of “The Last of Us.” Santaolalla earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Music Composition for excavating the humanity on display within the show’s apocalyptic world. Watch the exclusive video interview above.
Viewers are bound to pick up on the haunting, somber strings which form the heart of Santaolalla’s “The Last of Us” score. There are several instruments at play here, most notably a guitar and a smaller roncoco, but the composer focuses on playing all of them with a string plucking technique. These types of string instruments have sat at the core of Santaolalla’s work for years.
Viewers are bound to pick up on the haunting, somber strings which form the heart of Santaolalla’s “The Last of Us” score. There are several instruments at play here, most notably a guitar and a smaller roncoco, but the composer focuses on playing all of them with a string plucking technique. These types of string instruments have sat at the core of Santaolalla’s work for years.
- 8/8/2023
- by Sam Eckmann
- Gold Derby
He’s received two Academy Awards, two BAFTA awards, two Grammys, 19 Latin Grammys, and is an Emmy nominee for his work on HBO’s “The Last of Us.”
All of the hardware is even more amazing when you consider Gustavo Santaolalla can’t read or write music.
The Latin Grammys is next in line for honors, as it will bestow the composer with a Lifetime Achievement Trustees Award in November. The award honors his music legacy and is conferred on individuals who have made significant contributions to Latin music during their careers in ways other than performance.
He will receive the honor during a private event as part of Latin GRAMMy Week on Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in the Teatro Lope de Vega in Sevilla, Spain.
In addition, Santaolalla will perform at Eric Clapton’s 2023 Crossroads Festival in Los Angeles. The event is being held Sept. 24 at the Crypto Arena. Clapton gathers past,...
All of the hardware is even more amazing when you consider Gustavo Santaolalla can’t read or write music.
The Latin Grammys is next in line for honors, as it will bestow the composer with a Lifetime Achievement Trustees Award in November. The award honors his music legacy and is conferred on individuals who have made significant contributions to Latin music during their careers in ways other than performance.
He will receive the honor during a private event as part of Latin GRAMMy Week on Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in the Teatro Lope de Vega in Sevilla, Spain.
In addition, Santaolalla will perform at Eric Clapton’s 2023 Crossroads Festival in Los Angeles. The event is being held Sept. 24 at the Crypto Arena. Clapton gathers past,...
- 8/5/2023
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
“Blue Beetle” director Ángel Manuel Soto is an eternal optimist.
It was January 2020 when Soto’s coming-of-age story “Charm City Kings” debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, winning the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Prize for ensemble acting. Sony Pictures Classics planned to release the film on April 10, which would have come after its intended bow at South by Southwest on March 15. Yet, as for so many movies, a global pandemic changed those plans. It eventually ended up in the hands of HBO Max ahead of its rebrand, but if anyone visits Max, it’s not available, as it was one of the movies that was quietly removed from the platform.
And here Soto is again, sitting in a hotel room on Zoom amid his travels without his actors and writers to promote the film, which opens Aug. 18. He’s going at it alone due to the ongoing Hollywood strikes,...
It was January 2020 when Soto’s coming-of-age story “Charm City Kings” debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, winning the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Prize for ensemble acting. Sony Pictures Classics planned to release the film on April 10, which would have come after its intended bow at South by Southwest on March 15. Yet, as for so many movies, a global pandemic changed those plans. It eventually ended up in the hands of HBO Max ahead of its rebrand, but if anyone visits Max, it’s not available, as it was one of the movies that was quietly removed from the platform.
And here Soto is again, sitting in a hotel room on Zoom amid his travels without his actors and writers to promote the film, which opens Aug. 18. He’s going at it alone due to the ongoing Hollywood strikes,...
- 8/2/2023
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
by Paweł Mizgalewicz
If we assume that films, like people, can be called „half-Asian”, then „Perfect Days” could be placed in such category. Of course, it takes place in Japan. It seems to be based on Japanese stories, the characters are Japanese, all the actors are Japanese, and they speak in Japanese (not that there is a lot of talking at all). But you can probably also feel at various points that the film's director, cinematographer and the post-production crew were European. It is quite obviously a Tokyo Story, influenced by Yasujiro Ozu strongly. It triumphs as a love letter to Ozu, and generally to what is often described as a wonder of Japanese culture. They're so humble! It's also a must-see for anyone fascinated with Tokyo, maintaining the “man, I love this city” vibe basically throughout the whole thing. But there is a reason why a love letter is...
If we assume that films, like people, can be called „half-Asian”, then „Perfect Days” could be placed in such category. Of course, it takes place in Japan. It seems to be based on Japanese stories, the characters are Japanese, all the actors are Japanese, and they speak in Japanese (not that there is a lot of talking at all). But you can probably also feel at various points that the film's director, cinematographer and the post-production crew were European. It is quite obviously a Tokyo Story, influenced by Yasujiro Ozu strongly. It triumphs as a love letter to Ozu, and generally to what is often described as a wonder of Japanese culture. They're so humble! It's also a must-see for anyone fascinated with Tokyo, maintaining the “man, I love this city” vibe basically throughout the whole thing. But there is a reason why a love letter is...
- 7/28/2023
- by Guest Writer
- AsianMoviePulse
Actress Cate Blanchett, poses for the Armani floral fragrance 'Sì', photographed by Tom Munro:
"The definition of iconic holiday elegance, Cate Blanchett captivates in the gold and red 'Armani' beauty holiday universe..."
Blanchett came to international attention portraying 'Elizabeth I' in the drama feature "Elizabeth" (1998). Her portrayal of 'Katharine Hepburn' in Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator" (2004) earned her the 'Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress'. She won a second Oscar for the comedy-drama "Blue Jasmine" (2013). Her other Oscar-nominated roles include "Notes on a Scandal" (2006), "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (2007), "I'm Not There" (2007), and "Carol" (2015).
Blanchett's films include "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999), Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy (2001–2003), "The Hobbit" trilogy (2012–2014), "Babel" (2006), "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008), "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008), the "How to Train Your Dragon" film trilogy (2014–2019), "Cinderella" (2015), "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017) and "Ocean's 8" (2018).
Click the images to enlarge.
"The definition of iconic holiday elegance, Cate Blanchett captivates in the gold and red 'Armani' beauty holiday universe..."
Blanchett came to international attention portraying 'Elizabeth I' in the drama feature "Elizabeth" (1998). Her portrayal of 'Katharine Hepburn' in Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator" (2004) earned her the 'Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress'. She won a second Oscar for the comedy-drama "Blue Jasmine" (2013). Her other Oscar-nominated roles include "Notes on a Scandal" (2006), "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (2007), "I'm Not There" (2007), and "Carol" (2015).
Blanchett's films include "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999), Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy (2001–2003), "The Hobbit" trilogy (2012–2014), "Babel" (2006), "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008), "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008), the "How to Train Your Dragon" film trilogy (2014–2019), "Cinderella" (2015), "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017) and "Ocean's 8" (2018).
Click the images to enlarge.
- 7/23/2023
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
Welcome to The B-Side, from The Film Stage. Here we talk about movie stars! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.
Today we talk about one of the prettiest actors in the world: Orlando Bloom!
Our guest is Roxana Hadadi, TV Critic for Vulture and fellow lover of Kingdom of Heaven: The Director’s Cut.
Our B-Sides today are: Ned Kelly, Haven, and Kingdom of Heaven.
We talk with Hadadi about Bloom’s growth as an actor, as evidenced in the 2-season Amazon Prime show Carnival Row. We discuss all the ways the Director’s Cut of Kingdom of Heaven is superior to the Theatrical Cut, Eva Green included.
Additional fun tidbits include: Bloom was one of the victims of the infamous “Bling Ring;” he got solid notices for his Romeo on Broadway in 2013; he’s the best...
Today we talk about one of the prettiest actors in the world: Orlando Bloom!
Our guest is Roxana Hadadi, TV Critic for Vulture and fellow lover of Kingdom of Heaven: The Director’s Cut.
Our B-Sides today are: Ned Kelly, Haven, and Kingdom of Heaven.
We talk with Hadadi about Bloom’s growth as an actor, as evidenced in the 2-season Amazon Prime show Carnival Row. We discuss all the ways the Director’s Cut of Kingdom of Heaven is superior to the Theatrical Cut, Eva Green included.
Additional fun tidbits include: Bloom was one of the victims of the infamous “Bling Ring;” he got solid notices for his Romeo on Broadway in 2013; he’s the best...
- 7/7/2023
- by Dan Mecca
- The Film Stage
New York, NY (7/1/23) – On the opening day of Anime Expo 2023, Yen Press, LLC announced the acquisition of sixteen new titles at its industry panel, including eight mangaand seven novels (Durarara!! Side Stories?!; Re:zero Short Story Collection; The Contract of the Phantom and His Servant; Babel; Playing Death Games to Put Food on the Table; Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Astrarea Record; The Kept Man of the Princess Knight).
Along with these fifteen titles, Yen Press announced the print publication of the Blade & Bastard novel under its Jnc imprint.
Beastrings
By Shikaku Yamamoto
Welcome to the city of Juso! The hero who once saved the city serves as mayor—now he and his two secretaries are hard at work running Juso. Elsewhere, a young elf and her wolfman butler live out a rom-com plot, and a dragon and a bard form an unlikely musical duo.
Along with these fifteen titles, Yen Press announced the print publication of the Blade & Bastard novel under its Jnc imprint.
Beastrings
By Shikaku Yamamoto
Welcome to the city of Juso! The hero who once saved the city serves as mayor—now he and his two secretaries are hard at work running Juso. Elsewhere, a young elf and her wolfman butler live out a rom-com plot, and a dragon and a bard form an unlikely musical duo.
- 7/3/2023
- by Adam Symchuk
- AsianMoviePulse
Going simply by the awards handed out, the 25th Shanghai International Film Festival delivered on its promise to celebrate the emerging stars of both Asian and Chinese cinema.
There were Golden Goblet wins for established markets Japan and China, and those less known, including Uzbekistan. And there were some scene-stealing emotions shared up on stage at the Shanghai Grand Theater, including the moments when two of China’s biggest stars, Hu Ge and Da Peng, were jointly awarded the festival’s best actor prize and then shared memories of their long-lasting friendship.
Japanese director Kazuyoshi Kumakiri was certainly swept up by the occasion, as China’s major festival event marked a return to normalcy — and a return of international guests — after the travel restrictions and assorted uncertainties of the global pandemic.
Kumakiri’s Yoko picked up the festival’s best feature film, best actress and best screenplay awards in the...
There were Golden Goblet wins for established markets Japan and China, and those less known, including Uzbekistan. And there were some scene-stealing emotions shared up on stage at the Shanghai Grand Theater, including the moments when two of China’s biggest stars, Hu Ge and Da Peng, were jointly awarded the festival’s best actor prize and then shared memories of their long-lasting friendship.
Japanese director Kazuyoshi Kumakiri was certainly swept up by the occasion, as China’s major festival event marked a return to normalcy — and a return of international guests — after the travel restrictions and assorted uncertainties of the global pandemic.
Kumakiri’s Yoko picked up the festival’s best feature film, best actress and best screenplay awards in the...
- 6/25/2023
- by Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“Yoko No Tabi” directed by Kazuyoshi Kumakiri (“Manhole”) was crowned winner of Best Feature Film of the the 25th Shanghai International Film Festival, one of the leading festivals in East Asia, during the awards ceremony on Saturday.The film also bagged an award for Best Actress and one for Best Screenplay.
A human drama directed by Kazuyoshi Kumakiri (Mukoku) and headlined by Rinko Kikuchi. Other cast members include Pistol Takehara, Asuka Kurosawa, Jun Fubuki and Joe Odagiri. Kikuchi was recently nominated for best supporting actress in “Babel” at the 2007 Academy Awards.
Synopsis:
Given up her dream and life long ago, Yoko has been socially isolated for years and barely leaves her tiny apartment. When she receives the news of her estranged father's death, she is forced to leave the room and ride with her cousin to return home for the first time in 20 years. However, Yoko ends up left alone in the highway rest stop…...
A human drama directed by Kazuyoshi Kumakiri (Mukoku) and headlined by Rinko Kikuchi. Other cast members include Pistol Takehara, Asuka Kurosawa, Jun Fubuki and Joe Odagiri. Kikuchi was recently nominated for best supporting actress in “Babel” at the 2007 Academy Awards.
Synopsis:
Given up her dream and life long ago, Yoko has been socially isolated for years and barely leaves her tiny apartment. When she receives the news of her estranged father's death, she is forced to leave the room and ride with her cousin to return home for the first time in 20 years. However, Yoko ends up left alone in the highway rest stop…...
- 6/19/2023
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Further winners included Spanish documentary ‘Muyeres’.
Kazuyoshi Kumakiri’s Japanese drama Yoko scored a hat-trick of prizes at the Shanghai International Film Festival’s (Siff) Golden Goblet Awards including best film.
The film’s Japanese lead Rinko Kikuchi was named best actress for her performance of Yoko, a 42-year-old single woman who embarks on long journey to her hometown after the death of her estranged father. The film also won the best screenplay prize.
Scroll down for full list of winners
Kikuchi previously received an Oscar nomination for 2006’s Babel and worked with director Kumakiri on Hole In The Sky...
Kazuyoshi Kumakiri’s Japanese drama Yoko scored a hat-trick of prizes at the Shanghai International Film Festival’s (Siff) Golden Goblet Awards including best film.
The film’s Japanese lead Rinko Kikuchi was named best actress for her performance of Yoko, a 42-year-old single woman who embarks on long journey to her hometown after the death of her estranged father. The film also won the best screenplay prize.
Scroll down for full list of winners
Kikuchi previously received an Oscar nomination for 2006’s Babel and worked with director Kumakiri on Hole In The Sky...
- 6/19/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Further winners included Spanish documentary ‘Muyeres’.
Kazuyoshi Kumakiri’s Japanese drama Yoko scored a hat-trick of prizes at the Shanghai International Film Festival’s (Siff) Golden Goblet Awards including best film.
The film’s Japanese lead Rinko Kikuchi was named best actress for her performance of Yoko, a 42-year-old single woman who embarks on long journey to her hometown after the death of her estranged father. The film also won the best screenplay prize.
Scroll down for full list of winners
Kikuchi previously received an Oscar nomination for 2006’s Babel and worked with director Kumakiri on Hole In The Sky...
Kazuyoshi Kumakiri’s Japanese drama Yoko scored a hat-trick of prizes at the Shanghai International Film Festival’s (Siff) Golden Goblet Awards including best film.
The film’s Japanese lead Rinko Kikuchi was named best actress for her performance of Yoko, a 42-year-old single woman who embarks on long journey to her hometown after the death of her estranged father. The film also won the best screenplay prize.
Scroll down for full list of winners
Kikuchi previously received an Oscar nomination for 2006’s Babel and worked with director Kumakiri on Hole In The Sky...
- 6/19/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Japanese drama feature “Yoko” won the Golden Goblet best picture award at the Shanghai International Film Festival.
The jury Grand Prix was awarded to Spain’s “Muyeres” with China’s Liu Jin winning the best director prize. The trio also collected additional prizes making them the only multiple winners in a ceremony that sprinkled its awards widely.
“Yoko,” directed by Kumakiri Kazuyoshi, who earlier this year saw melodramatic “#Manhole” play in Berlin, takes the structure of a road-movie and is a journey of self-discovery of a woman who had been socially isolated in her apartment for many years. Portrayed by global star Rinko Kikuchi, the woman is forced to confront the real world, and herself, when she takes a 658 kilometre cross-country journey to her father’s funeral. Without a cell phone or the money for public transport, she finds herself having to hitch hike. Kikuchi also earned the best actress award.
The jury Grand Prix was awarded to Spain’s “Muyeres” with China’s Liu Jin winning the best director prize. The trio also collected additional prizes making them the only multiple winners in a ceremony that sprinkled its awards widely.
“Yoko,” directed by Kumakiri Kazuyoshi, who earlier this year saw melodramatic “#Manhole” play in Berlin, takes the structure of a road-movie and is a journey of self-discovery of a woman who had been socially isolated in her apartment for many years. Portrayed by global star Rinko Kikuchi, the woman is forced to confront the real world, and herself, when she takes a 658 kilometre cross-country journey to her father’s funeral. Without a cell phone or the money for public transport, she finds herself having to hitch hike. Kikuchi also earned the best actress award.
- 6/18/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Actress Cate Blanchett, poses for the Armani floral fragrance 'Sì', photographed by Tom Munro:
"The definition of iconic holiday elegance, Cate Blanchett captivates in the gold and red 'Armani' beauty holiday universe..."
Blanchett came to international attention portraying 'Elizabeth I' in the drama feature "Elizabeth" (1998). Her portrayal of 'Katharine Hepburn' in Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator" (2004) earned her the 'Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress'. She won a second Oscar for the comedy-drama "Blue Jasmine" (2013). Her other Oscar-nominated roles include "Notes on a Scandal" (2006), "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (2007), "I'm Not There" (2007), and "Carol" (2015).
Blanchett's films include "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999), Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy (2001–2003), "The Hobbit" trilogy (2012–2014), "Babel" (2006), "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008), "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008), the "How to Train Your Dragon" film trilogy (2014–2019), "Cinderella" (2015), "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017) and "Ocean's 8" (2018).
Click the images to enlarge.
"The definition of iconic holiday elegance, Cate Blanchett captivates in the gold and red 'Armani' beauty holiday universe..."
Blanchett came to international attention portraying 'Elizabeth I' in the drama feature "Elizabeth" (1998). Her portrayal of 'Katharine Hepburn' in Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator" (2004) earned her the 'Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress'. She won a second Oscar for the comedy-drama "Blue Jasmine" (2013). Her other Oscar-nominated roles include "Notes on a Scandal" (2006), "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (2007), "I'm Not There" (2007), and "Carol" (2015).
Blanchett's films include "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999), Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy (2001–2003), "The Hobbit" trilogy (2012–2014), "Babel" (2006), "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008), "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008), the "How to Train Your Dragon" film trilogy (2014–2019), "Cinderella" (2015), "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017) and "Ocean's 8" (2018).
Click the images to enlarge.
- 5/31/2023
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
Wim Wenders’ Tokyo-based Cannes Competition title Perfect Days has clocked a series of international deals for The Match Factory.
Deals reported include UK/Ireland/Latam/Turkey (Mubi), Australia/New Zealand (Madman), Benelux (Paradiso), China (DDDream), Italy (Lucky Red), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Dcm), Baltics (A-One Baltics), Bulgaria (Art Fest), Cis (A-One), Czech Republic and Slovakia (Aerofilms), Former Yugoslavia (McF), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), Hong Kong (Edko Films), Hungary (Cirko), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Poland (Gutek), Portugal (Alambique), Romania (Bad Unicorn), Scandinavia (Future Film) and Taiwan (Applause).
North American rights were previously sold to Neon, while France went to Haut et Court.
The official synopsis for the movie reads: Hirayama seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his very structured everyday routine he enjoys his passion for music and for books. And he loves trees and takes photos of them. A series of unexpected...
Deals reported include UK/Ireland/Latam/Turkey (Mubi), Australia/New Zealand (Madman), Benelux (Paradiso), China (DDDream), Italy (Lucky Red), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Dcm), Baltics (A-One Baltics), Bulgaria (Art Fest), Cis (A-One), Czech Republic and Slovakia (Aerofilms), Former Yugoslavia (McF), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), Hong Kong (Edko Films), Hungary (Cirko), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Poland (Gutek), Portugal (Alambique), Romania (Bad Unicorn), Scandinavia (Future Film) and Taiwan (Applause).
North American rights were previously sold to Neon, while France went to Haut et Court.
The official synopsis for the movie reads: Hirayama seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his very structured everyday routine he enjoys his passion for music and for books. And he loves trees and takes photos of them. A series of unexpected...
- 5/31/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Wim Wenders’ “Perfect Days,” which won the best actor award for Koji Yakusho at the Cannes Film Festival, has sold out worldwide. The Match Factory is handling international sales. (Read our interview with Wim Wenders here.)
As previously announced, North American rights went to Neon and France went to Haut et Court.
Further sales included U.K./Ireland/Latin America/Turkey (Mubi), Australia/New Zealand (Madman), Benelux (Paradiso), China (DDDream), Italy (Lucky Red), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Dcm), Baltics (A-One Baltics), Bulgaria (Art Fest), Cis (A-One), Czech Republic and Slovakia (Aerofilms), Former Yugoslavia (McF), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), Hong Kong (Edko Films), Hungary (Cirko), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Poland (Gutek), Portugal (Alambique), Romania (Bad Unicorn), Scandinavia (Future Film) and Taiwan (Applause).
The film is a deeply moving and poetic reflection on finding beauty in the everyday world around us. It follows Hirayama, who seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo.
As previously announced, North American rights went to Neon and France went to Haut et Court.
Further sales included U.K./Ireland/Latin America/Turkey (Mubi), Australia/New Zealand (Madman), Benelux (Paradiso), China (DDDream), Italy (Lucky Red), Spain (A Contracorriente), Switzerland (Dcm), Baltics (A-One Baltics), Bulgaria (Art Fest), Cis (A-One), Czech Republic and Slovakia (Aerofilms), Former Yugoslavia (McF), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), Hong Kong (Edko Films), Hungary (Cirko), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Poland (Gutek), Portugal (Alambique), Romania (Bad Unicorn), Scandinavia (Future Film) and Taiwan (Applause).
The film is a deeply moving and poetic reflection on finding beauty in the everyday world around us. It follows Hirayama, who seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo.
- 5/31/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” (Universal) has grossed triple what “John Wick: Chapter 4” (Lionsgate) has in theaters. But for home viewers, the latest Keunu Reeves action sequel booted the Nintendo game animated film out of all #1 VOD rankings after only one week.
Impressively, this was not only on iTunes and Google Play (which rank by number of transactions) but also Vudu, which tallies by revenue. “Wick” costs the standard $19.99 to view, while “Smb” is $24.99 ($29.99 to own). That suggests at that site at least it had a clear lead for the week. Meantime, “Smb” is a unanimous #2.
At Netflix, the success of recent Sony titles continues to be seen among their most viewed movies. The studio, lacking its own streaming site, now regularly sends its films there a few months after release. “Missing” continues at #1, but the surprise this week has been the success of “The Son.”
“The Son”Sony Pictures Classics...
Impressively, this was not only on iTunes and Google Play (which rank by number of transactions) but also Vudu, which tallies by revenue. “Wick” costs the standard $19.99 to view, while “Smb” is $24.99 ($29.99 to own). That suggests at that site at least it had a clear lead for the week. Meantime, “Smb” is a unanimous #2.
At Netflix, the success of recent Sony titles continues to be seen among their most viewed movies. The studio, lacking its own streaming site, now regularly sends its films there a few months after release. “Missing” continues at #1, but the surprise this week has been the success of “The Son.”
“The Son”Sony Pictures Classics...
- 5/29/2023
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Neon is nearing a deal for North American rights to Cannes competition entry Perfect Days from The Match Factory in a deal pegged in the mid-to-high six figures.
The parties declined to comment.
Wim Wenders’ well-received Japan-set movie debuted today on the Croisette. The official synopsis for the movie reads: Hirayama seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his very structured everyday routine he enjoys his passion for music and for books. And he loves trees and takes photos of them. A series of unexpected encounters gradually reveal more of his past.
Starring are Koji Yakusho (Babel), newcomer Arisa Nakano, Tokio Emoto (Norwegian Wood), Yumi Aso (Carnation), Sayuri Ishikawa, Tomokazu Miura (Adrift in Tokyo), Aoi Yamada (Netflix series First Love) and veteran actor and dancer Min Tanaka (The Twilight Samurai).
Related: Cannes Film Festival 2023: All...
The parties declined to comment.
Wim Wenders’ well-received Japan-set movie debuted today on the Croisette. The official synopsis for the movie reads: Hirayama seems utterly content with his simple life as a cleaner of toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his very structured everyday routine he enjoys his passion for music and for books. And he loves trees and takes photos of them. A series of unexpected encounters gradually reveal more of his past.
Starring are Koji Yakusho (Babel), newcomer Arisa Nakano, Tokio Emoto (Norwegian Wood), Yumi Aso (Carnation), Sayuri Ishikawa, Tomokazu Miura (Adrift in Tokyo), Aoi Yamada (Netflix series First Love) and veteran actor and dancer Min Tanaka (The Twilight Samurai).
Related: Cannes Film Festival 2023: All...
- 5/25/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman and Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
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