Best of 2021: Mixing History & Modernity in the Costumes of “The Harder They Fall”

This interview is part of our highly subjective, decidedly non-comprehensive “Best of 2021” year-end list. It was originally published on November 2.

The Harder They Fall, Netflix’s addition to the world of Westerns from director-writer Jeymes Samuel, is not a monochromatic throwback set on the dusty frontier. Honoring the names of historical characters like Nat Love (Jonathan Majors) and Stagecoach Mary (Zazie Beetz) while leaving most of their actual histories behind,

Best of 2021: “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” Breakout Star Meng’er Zhang on her Knockout Debut

This interview is part of our highly subjective, decidedly non-comprehensive “Best of 2021” year-end list. It was originally published on December 1. 

From the second she enters the frame, Xialing radiates a younger sibling’s mixture of hurt and defiance at the brother who abandoned her. Yet Xialing is no longer a little girl, and as the daughter of the crime boss and formidable, superpowered martial arts master Wenwu, she’s become everything her older brother—Shang-Chi—was meant to be.

“A Journal for Jordan” Screenwriter on Adapting This Moving True Story for Denzel Washington

Virgil Williams knows a thing or two about crafting a screenplay based on a previously written work. After all, his script for Netflix’s Mudbound, co-written with director Dee Rees and adapted from the novel by Hillary Jordan, earned him nominations for an Oscar and both Critics Choice and Writers Guild of America awards, among many others.

Now, Williams has tackled a best-selling memoir, and a uniquely moving one at that.

“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” Trailer Reveals Scarlet Witch & an Evil Stephen Strange

“The multiverse is a concept about which we know frighteningly little.” These words, spoken by Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), set the tone for the first trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. We know the good Doctor has already unleashed the multiverse, accidentally, in Spider-Man: No Way Home to spectacular effect. Now, with director Sam Raimi at the helm, Doctor Strange will be plunging into the multiverse in his own adventure.

“Don’t Look Up” Editor Hank Corwin on Cutting The End of the World

Editor Hank Corwin has a natural shorthand with Adam McKay. The duo has worked on a trilogy of films together plating the collapse of the 2008 real estate market in The Big Short, framing the power of Dick Cheney during his White House tenure as VP in Vice, and now with Don’t Look Up, they poignantly question our modern human condition under the guise of an end of the world satire.

“The Matrix Resurrections” Co-Writer David Mitchell On Conjuring a Meta Mind-Blower With Lana Wachowski

The Matrix changed everything in 1999 when it set the bar in Hollywood for mind-twisting science fiction expressed through next-level visual effects. Written and directed by the Wachowski siblings, The Matrix and its two sequels introduced “Bullet Time” and the “Red Pill/Blue Pill” to the popular imagination, merging art and commerce to the tune of $1.6 billion in domestic box office. Now, The Matrix Resurrections (in theaters and streaming on HBO Max now) updates the franchise with Keanu Reeves returning as the heroic Neo.

“The Power of the Dog” Costume Designer Kirsty Cameron on Highlighting Harsh Beauty

There’s a Japanese film from director Hirokazu Koreeda titled Shoplifters about a family that goes to great lengths in order to survive. It sneaks up on you and pulls you in such a profound way that by the end you’re left craving for more. It’s an extraordinary film that is brought together, in part, by the creativity of those behind-the-scenes who shaped a deep, realistic environment that allows viewers to comfortably sink into the world.

“Being the Ricardos” Costume Designer Susan Lyall on Capturing Lucy & Desi’s Many Lives

Being the Ricardos takes us back to the days of I Love Lucy for an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at its stars, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Written and directed by Aaron Sorkin and starring Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem as the iconic TV couple, the film delves into such sensitive subjects as Arnaz’s infidelity, Ball’s pregnancy, and the turmoil that ensues when columnist Walter Winchell alleges that Ball is a communist.

“The Northman” Trailer Reveals Robert Eggers’ New Viking Epic

Director Robert Eggers has made himself into one of the most unpredictable, fiercely singular filmmakers working today. His first two features, The Witch and The Lighthouse, were ferociously unflinching portrayals of madness and the occult, the former set in the wilds of 17th century New England, the second on a blasted spit of land off the New England coast in 19th century New England. His latest, The Northman, 

“Being the Ricardos” Cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth on Blending Period & Modern Techniques

Having photographed The Social Network, cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth knows the writing style of Aaron Sorkin all too well. So when the writer/director said, “You’d make my wish come true if you say yes to this’ during an initial meeting,” it was easy for Cronenweth to jump on board. “This script is classic Sorkin dialogue, packed from one end to the other,” says the Oscar-nominated cinematographer. “It’s extremely clever. It’s emotional.

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” Swings To Record Opening Weekend

Update: Spider-Man: No Way Home soared to a massive $260 million U.S. opening this weekend, and a stunning $587.2 million globally. Director Jon Watts and star Tom Holland’s third film together is now the second-biggest domestic debut of all time (it was third when we first published this piece), behind only Avengers: Endgame ($357 million) and having just nudged past Avengers: Infinity War ($257.6m). These are numbers that are in line with pre-pandemic moviegoing,

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” Co-Writers Talk Villains, Peter Parker & Changing the Script

Reviewers raved, Twitter went berserk with anticipation and spoilers went (mostly) unleaked as Spider-Man: No Way Home hit theaters this past weekend, making box office history in the process. Third in the trilogy of Tom Holland-headlining Marvel films directed by Jon Watts, No Way Home picks up where Far From Home left off 18 months earlier, with Peter Parker trying to cope with the consequences of vengeful Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) revealing his secret superhero identity to the world.

“Nightmare Alley” Cinematographer & VFX Supervisor on Creating Guillermo del Toro’s Carnival Noir

Most of the films coming out now – whether award contenders, tent poles, or any combination thereof – share similar stories apart from whatever genre the movie itself belongs to: namely, the story of the Covid delay, and how it affected production.

So it was for Guillermo del Toro’s version of Nightmare Alley, another rendering of the novel by the ill-fated William Lindsay Graham, whose work originally inspired Tyrone Power’s memorable,

“The Matrix Resurrections” Early Reactions: A Bold, Irreverent, Vividly Personal Head Trip

The first reactions for Lana Wachowski’s The Matrix Resurrections are hitting our very own Matrix and multiplying rapidly online. While there are quibbles here and there, the consensus that’s building is that Wachowski has created something vividly personal in Resurrections that has surpassed the previous two films in the installment, Reloaded and Revolutions, by every conceivable margin. Many early reactions cite the joyous irreverence of this film,

“The Lost City of D” Trailer Reveals the Sandra Bullock & Channing Tatum Adventure You’ve Been Waiting For

If you had Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum as your stars of a fun adventure flick, you’d be set, right? Of course you would. Bullock and Tatum star in The Lost City of D, which follows the adventure of romance novelist Loretta Sage (Bullock) and her cover model (Tatum) who get entangled in an actual exotic adventure in the jungle. With these two stars, would you need any more big names? You would not,

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” & The Character Sharing Deal That Lets Spidey Swing From Sony to Marvel

With the reviews out for Spider-Man: No Way Home and the resultant excitement and buzz from all the good news they’ve generated, a helpful bit of explanation was offered by Sony Pictures chairman and CEO Tom Rothman about both Tom Holland’s future as Peter Parker and the Sony/Marvel Studios crossover situation. For those of you who haven’t been keeping tabs on the confusing corporate legalities that make it feel as if Spider-Man’s place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is always hanging by a thread (apologies),

“Nightmare Alley” Production Designer Tamara Deverell on Creating a Carnival of Creepy Delights

Director Guillermo del Toro pulls back the curtain of a 1930s traveling carnival in a love story that gets downright creepy in Nightmare Alley.

Bradley Cooper is Stanton Carlisle, a quiet drifter who finds himself working for a carnival to make ends meet. After falling for a fellow carny, Molly (Rooney Mara), who quite literally electrifies the crowd, he transforms himself into one of the greatest mind-readers,

“Red Rocket” Writer/Director Sean Baker & His Cast On Their Charmingly Offbeat Comedy

Sean Baker, indie writer/director of award winners Tangerine and The Florida Project, has been very successful in creating narratives that feel authentic. Determined to always film on location, never on a soundstage, and a champion of hiring locals and newcomers in featured roles, he has employed guerrilla filmmaking and made more than one career for his performers. You can never see a Sean Baker movie coming,

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” Review Round-Up: Most Thrilling Marvel Film Since “Avengers: Endgame”

If you’re curious how the experience of seeing Spider-Man: No Way Home in the theater has been for many folks, this tweet from the editor of The Hollywood Reporter‘s Heatvision blog sums it up nicely. For a film that has broken records for advance ticket sales, it makes sense that the experience in the theater has been likened to the film that set that record to begin with. Multiple critics have compared the emotional experience of watching No Way Home in the theater to watching Avengers: Endgame back in 2019.

“Being The Ricardos” Hair Department Head Teressa Hill on Wigs Done Right

Being the Ricardos (in theaters now) faced a Russian Doll challenge when writer-director Aaron Sorkin decided to make a movie about the off-stage drama surrounding I Love Lucy. The fifties-era sitcom drew 60 million viewers every week and made Lucille Ball the most famous redhead in America. Portrayed by Nicole Kidman, Ball starred as daffy housewife Lucy Ricardo. She’s married in the show to bandleader Ricky Ricardo, played by her real-life husband Desi Arnaz,