International Women’s Day Profile: Director Tan Chui Mui
Pioneering Malaysian New Wave director Tan Chui Mui was on the final recce of her latest film, Barbarian Invasion, in a remote fishing village when the national lockdown news broke in mid-March last year following the World Health Organization’s declaration of the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. Her shoot was about to start in early April, which would be after the end of the supposedly two-week lockdown. But Tan was fully aware of the severity of the situation in China.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Top of Mind at the Berlin Film Festival
There are no live audiences aside from the judges at this year’s 71st Berlinale and obviously no parties or red carpets to speak of, but in one way or another, the show goes on. The Motion Picture Association and the entertainment law firm Greenberg Traurig hewed to joint tradition and held their industry panel discussion, bringing their speakers and audience together over video conference instead of Greenberg Traurig’s premises perched above the Berlin cityscape.
“A Quiet Place Part II” Release Bumped Up to Memorial Day
Chalk this up as some good news to start your Friday. Paramount has announced that they’ll be releasing John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place Part II earlier than we’d thought. They’ve pushed up the release date to Memorial Day, making Krasinski’s hotly-anticipated sequel our official summer kickoff film. What’s not to love about this?
Krasinski took to Twitter to share the news. The new release date means that the writer/director’s follow-up will have now been delayed well over a year from its original March 20 release date.
Here Are The Six Chapter Titles For “Zack Snyder’s Justice League”
We’re almost at the long-awaited premiere date for Zack Snyder’s Justice League on HBO Max. The official Twitter page for Snyder’s upcoming film has revealed its six chapter titles, giving us at least a broad outline of how the four-hour film will be broken up narratively.
You’ll note that three of those chapters appear to be actual quotes from the film. For example, the very first chapter sounds like something Jason Momoa’s Aquaman says to Ben Affleck’s Batman when he’s asked to join the fledgling super-group.
Makeup Artist Angie Wells on Remaking Carey Mulligan in “Promising Young Woman”
Writer/director Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman delivers a deliciously punchy twist on the revenge narrative. Carey Mulligan stars as Cassie, short for Cassandra, which happens to be the name of the priestess in Greek mythology who was cursed to speak true prophecies that were never believed. Mulligan’s Cassie, however, is a woman who eschews speaking prophecies for becoming them. She’s on a personal mission, fueled by a tragic event in her past, to teach every would-be date rapist a lesson they’ll never forget.
“Thunder Force” Trailer Reveals Melissa McCarthy & Octavia Spencer’s Superhero Film
One of Netflix’s big releases this year is the Ben Falcone written and directed Thunder Force, starring Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer as estranged childhood best friends who band together to take on a surfeit of supervillains. The superstar duo was on hand on The Ellen Show where the trailer for their upcoming comedy appeared, giving us a glimpse of what they’ve got cooking here.
You’ll note right from the jump that the Thunder Force trailer is going to create a Pavlovian response in superhero film fans.
Makeup Artist Laini Thompson on Helping Transform Andra Day Into Billie Holiday
For Billie Holiday’s listeners, her music is eternal, but her life story may be less so. Directed by Lee Daniels, The United States vs. Billie Holiday (now streaming on Hulu) envelops itself in both aspects of the star’s biography, opening on Billie (Andra Day) on stage, glamorous, impeccable, and singing “Strange Fruit,” the most political ballad in her oeuvre. Eerie and heartbreaking, “Strange Fruit” was first published in 1937 as a poem by Russian-Jewish schoolteacher Abel Meeropol,
Writer/Director Anna Kerrigan & Jillian Bell on Making the Modern-Day Western “Cowboys”
A stirring, “stay with you” drama about family, tolerance, and rescue, Cowboys centers on the disparate reactions from newly separated parents Sally and Troy (Jillian Bell and Steve Zahn) upon learning their child, Joe (newcomer Sasha Knight), is transgender. While Sally remains in denial, Troy is determined to allow Joe to live authentically and runs off with him into the wilderness of Montana, with authorities not far behind. Ann Dowd plays the detective assigned to the case,
Golden Globes 2021: Chadwick Boseman, Chloé Zhao, “Nomadland,” “The Crown” & More Win Big
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosted the bi-coastal, virtual 78th annual Golden Globes last night, wringing some laughs and joy out of a very unusual setup, following a very sad, unusual year.
The big winners this year included the late, great Chadwick Boseman, who was awarded for Best Actor in a Drama for his sizzling performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Chloé Zhao had a major night, taking home the Best Director award (in a year that featured three female nominees in the Director category) and seeing her Nomadland win Best Motion Picture,
Writer/Director Tiller Russell on his Real-Life Crime Drama “Silk Road”
Writer/director Tiller Russell was ideally suited to take on the crime thriller Silk Road. As the director of The Last Narc and Netflix’s Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer, Russell is no stranger to looking squarely at the darker corners of the human soul. For Silk Road, which was inspired by David Kushner’s Rolling Stone article “Dead End on Silk Road: Internet Crime Kingpin Ross Ulbricht’s Big Fall,”
The First Teaser for Zack Snyder’s “Army of the Dead” is Here
Most of the buzz around Zack Snyder these days has been about his upcoming Justice League refresh. Snyder’s second crack at DC’s biggest superhero film has understandably garnered a lot of attention, but he’s got another big movie coming out for Netflix, and it’s worth paying attention to. Behold, the first teaser for Snyder’s zombie flick Army of the Dead, which mashes two beloved cinematic genres into one epic—it’s a zombie heist movie.
Your Official “Spider-Man 3” Title is Here
And now we have an official title for Spider-Man 3, and it turns out, one of those fake titles we wrote about this morning was closer to the truth than we realized. Tom Holland, Jacob Batalon, and Zendaya all shared absurd titles on social media, but the one Holland offered was somewhat close to reality. So no, Spider-Man: 3 is not Spider-Man: Phone Home, but it is…
First “Spider-Man 3” Images Revealed—Along With Absurd Titles
We’ve got our first look at the still-untitled Spider-Man 3 (more on the title in a moment), revealing the dynamic trio of Peter Parker (Tom Holland), Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon), and MJ (Zendaya). The follow-up to Spider-Man: Far From Home is set to be the biggest film in the Tom Holland-led trilogy yet.
We’ve shared all the news up to this point that has made Spider-Man 3 sound like something director Jon Watts and his writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers have been dreaming about for years.
“Minari” Editor Harry Yoon on Shaping the Film He Was “Born to Edit”
Minari is a moving portrait of a young family setting out on a new life in the Ozarks. It will invite you in with its photography (the work of Lachlan Milne) and production design (by Yong Ok Lee), pull at your heartstrings with its “sensitive and uplifting” score, and keep you wholly absorbed in the world of the Yis thanks to masterful editing by Harry Yoon.
Yoon spoke to us about how he approached cutting this film,
Writer/Director Jon Alston on His Impactful and Timely Short “Augustus”
Although it’s a short film, director Jon Alston’s Augustus tackles a monumental subject: human rights and the centuries-long injustice and racism faced by the Black community. Alston, a former record-setting linebacker in the NFL, served as an executive producer as well, along with the film’s writer and lead actor, Ayinde Howell.
The film plays from the point of view of Frederick Douglass, the noted abolitionist who escaped slavery. As Douglass suffers from nightmares depicting the death of his son,
Daniel Kaluuya on Honoring Fred Hampton’s Legacy in “Judas and the Black Messiah”
Daniel Kaluuya is such a comedian it’s hard to imagine he’s made a career out of acting in some of the most profound dramas of the past five years—a fact that he too, seems to frequently forget.
“A lot of times it surprises me,” Kaluuya said. “I was driving around LA and I saw myself on a poster and I was like, ‘Oh sh*t!’ I thought I was just acting and I’m on a poster!
How the DP & Production Designer Behind “The United States vs. Billie Holiday” Met the Moment
It’s not often there’s a Golden Globe nomination for an African American actress playing a famous blues or jazz singer. This year, there are two of them.
One is for Viola Davis, going chop-to-chop with the late, great Chadwick Boseman in the Netflix adaptation of August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, playing the titular character. The other is for singer and actress Andra Day,
“Black is King” Producer Jason Baum on Beyoncé & the World of Visual Albums
Black is King, Beyoncé’s 2020 musical film that doubled as a visual companion to The Lion King, was lauded as dazzling, seductive, and, well, regal. Directed in tandem by Beyoncé and the directors Ibra Ake, Blitz the Ambassador, Emmanuel Adjei, and Kwasi Fordjour, the visual album dropped on Disney+ with very little fanfare, typical of the star’s preferred announcement style, or lack thereof.
Filmmaker Noah Hutton on his Slyly Scorching Feature Debut “Lapsis”
Writer/director Noah Hutton was due to make his narrative feature debut with his sci-fi film Lapsis at SXSW in March of 2020. You know how that turned out. Nearly a year later, Hutton’s slyly lacerating debut is now available on Virtual Cinema, VOD, and Digital. His low-budget feature debut is an impressive feat of world-building, cinematic wit, and a darkly funny critique of late-stage capitalism, specifically corporate greed and the exploitation of workers.
Director Fran Kranz & Editor Yang-Hua Hu on Their Heartbreaking Film “Mass”
Mass, which recently premiered to much acclaim at Sundance, is the screenwriting and directorial debut of actor Fran Kranz. It’s a tense, claustrophobic, dialogue-driven film that explores the long-term aftermath of a school shooting, and essentially takes place in one room. Its success rests heavily on the shoulders of the cast, and Jason Isaacs, Martha Plimpton, Reed Birney, and Ann Dowd, who form the quartet at the center of the story,
