Directors Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman on Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
There are few musicians as giving as Linda Ronstadt. Throughout her robust career, she gave new life to the songs she covered, from “Blue Bayou” to “Different Drum,” rendering them more heartbreaking and affecting than the previous versions. She gave her blessing to her old band, who went on to form The Eagles, and also their first, “Desperado.” She was happy to give the spotlight to her contemporaries, and collaborated with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris (for the iconic Trio albums),
TIFF 2019: Noah Baumbach’s Devastating Marriage Story
One of the buzziest films at this year’s TIFF was writer/director Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story. Starring Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver as Nicole and Charlie Barber, a couple who have already agreed to divorce by the time our story begins, Baumbach’s latest is a bittersweet gem. The lead performances from Johansson and Driver are as good as you’d both hope and expect. Baumbach’s script offers no villains, no easy outs, and no clean explanations on why,
Hailee Steinfeld may Lead Disney+’s Hawkeye Series
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better person to play Hawkeye‘s protege, Kate Bishop, than Oscar-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld. Variety reports the immensely talented Steinfeld is in talks to join Jeremy Renner in Marvel Studios upcoming Disney+ series. Bishop is the young woman who, in the comics, becomes the new Hawkeye after Clint Barton passes on the mantle to her. Bishop’s Hawkeye ultimately becomes part of the Young Avengers,
TIFF 2019: Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit Makes the Heart Leap
There’s a reason Taika Waititi has become, to film lovers at least, a household name. For longtime followers, his genius hasbeen evident for years. From What We Do in the Shadows (2014) to Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), Waititi’s unique blend of comedy, compassion, and fearlessness has been apparent in spades. Once he deployed his one-of-a-kind sensibility for the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Thor: Ragnarok (2017),
The Man in the High Castle‘s Emmy-Nominated VFX Supervisor on Taking Down Lady Liberty
The third season finale of The Man in the High Castle sees the show’s alternate fascist reality, based on the eponymous Philip K. Dick novel, take a giant leap forward for Nazism in America — surrounded by cheering crowds, the Statue of Liberty is brought down under fireworks, fighter jets, and Himmler’s watch. The episode title, “Jahr Null,” means year zero, the showy start to a new future for America devoid of the country’s history.
TIFF 2019: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite Gets Under Your Skin
There are no gentle super pigs (Okja), jellied roach bars (Snowpiercer), or colossal monsters (The Host), yet writer/director Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite manages to shock and surprise aplenty. There are dastardly deeds, masterful performances, and diabolical twists. The film reminds you that there is a very, very good reason this South Korean auteur is considered one of the best filmmakers alive;
How Killing Eve Showrunner Emerald Fennell Delivered 9 Emmy Nominations
“It’s OK if you feel weird. You just killed someone for the first time. With an ax.” That’s one many deadpan Killing Eve lines crafted by actress-turned-showrunner Emerald Fennell and delivered by psychopath Villanelle (Jodie Comer) to fish-out-of-water spy Eve (Sandra Oh). AMC/BBC America’s British thriller earned nine Emmy nominations for its second season including an Outstanding Writing nod for Fennell, who seemingly came out of nowhere to succeed Killing Eve creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge as the show’s creative boss.
TIFF 2019: The Mad Genius of The Lighthouse
Mythic, surprisingly funny, and gleefully mad, Robert Eggers’ The Lighthouse does for the craggy, wind-blasted island what his first feature, The Witch, did for the New England woods. Man is menaced and made small by nature but is also revealed to be as monstrous and volatile as nature itself. Featuring two go-for-broke performances by Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, The Lighthouse manages to convey a sense of merriment within its misery.
Director Zach Lipovsky on Becoming and Believing in Canadian Filmmakers
Alejandro González Iñárritu’s epic The Revenant about fur trappers in the icy forests of South Dakota and Montana in 19th century was filmed largely in British Colombia and Alberta. Andy Muschietti’s It and It: Chapter Two, set in the fictional Derry, Maine, was filmed largely in Ontario. These films, and many, many other made-in-Canada productions, utilize Canada’s talented local film crews,
Director Nimisha Mukerji is one of Canada’s Many Rising Filmmakers
A rising tide lifts all boats, and the tide of productions in Canada has been rising fairly steadily for years. Many blockbuster productions and popular television series’ are utilizing Canada’s large film crew community, natural splendor, and tax incentives. From the forbidding icy forests of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s The Revenant (filmed largely in British Colombia and Alberta) to the postcard-perfect but deeply sinister setting of Derry for Andy Muschietti’s It and It: Chapter Two,
How SEAL Team’s Emmy-Nominated Stunt Coordinators Bring Accuracy to the Action
CBS’s SEAL Team, renewed for a third season, takes an authentic and awe-inspiring look at the lives of Navy S.E.A.L.S., giving you a sense of how “they train, plan and execute the most dangerous, high-stakes missions.” Behind the scenes helping to ensure such realism are stunt coordinators Peewee Piemonte and Julie Michaels. The Emmy-nominated husband-and-wife team — Piemonte won two and was nominated for a third for Southland and Michaels was nominated for Shameless — are nominees once again,
Composer David Newman Talks Heathers, Serenity, and West Side Story
On August 23rd, Varese Sarabande released a limited edition version of the score of the cult classic Heathers on vinyl in honor of the film’s 30th anniversary. For fans, it’s high time. The original movie score, which was created by composer David Newman, has been surprisingly difficult to access but represents one of the better examples of early electronic-based compositions. Stranger Things, which coincidentally stars Heathers’ Winona Ryder,
Who is Noami Ackie’s Jannah in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker?
Talk about a hero shot. This new image of Naomie Ackie’s Jannah, who has a significant role in J.J. Abrams Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is, in a word, commanding. What we know about Jannah could maybe fill a thimble. Ackie was on hand at the recent Star Wars Celebration in Chicago, where moderator Stephen Colbert asked her to verify or deny a rumor that Jannah was the daughter of Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams).
Will Poulter Cast in Amazon’s Mysterious Lord of the Rings Series
Will Poulter has a knack for picking interesting projects. He was dynamite as Bridger, the young, in-over-his-head fur trapper in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s The Revenant. In David Slade and Charlie Brooker’s mind-blowing Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, Poulter stole every scene he was in as the coding genius Colin Ritman. This summer, he starred in Ari Aster’s gleefully bizarre horror film Midsommar. Now Variety reports that Poulter has nabbed a major role in one of the most mysterious projects in Hollywood—he’ll be in Amazon’s Lord of the Ring series.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s Emmy-Nominated Hair & Makeup Team on Reimagining the 1950s
Amy Sherman-Palladino’s 1950s-era follow-up to Gilmore Girls, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, has been a hit for Amazon, beloved by viewers and a heavyweight at last year’s Emmys. In its second season, the show further explores Midge’s (Rachel Brosnahan) uptown-downtown life as a budding comedian, moderately dutiful daughter, and young single mother getting back into dating. Set in an era that just preceded Manhattan’s most idolized decades,
The Mandalorian Will Reveal the First Order’s Rise to Power
Now that we’ve gotten a glimpse at The Mandalorian‘s trailer and learned a bit more courtesy Disney’s D23 Expo, a clearer picture of the first-ever live-action Star Wars series is coming into focus. Jon Favreau’s series has been kept under wraps until recently, so it’s nice to see the Sarlacc pit of Secrecy finally start to cough up some juicy tidbits. In a conversation with Entertainment Weekly,
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are Back in First Bad Boys for Life Trailer
Folks, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are back for Bad Boys for Life, the third and seemingly final installment in their Miami-set action series. Mike Lowery (Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Lawrence) know a thing or three about causing trouble (and driving Joe Pantoliano’s Captain Howard bananas) and stopping even worse trouble (mostly the villainy kind). Sony has released the first trailer for directing duo’s Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah’s upcoming film,
Michael B. Jordan is Trailblazing Civil Rights Attorney Bryan Stevenson in Just Mercy Trailer
A stellar cast, an incredible true story, and a super talented co-writer and director? Such are the ingredients of Destin Daniel Cretton‘s Just Mercy, which stars Michael B. Jordan as civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson (the film is adapted from Stevenson’s book “Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption”), as he tries to free a death row inmate who had been sentenced for a murder that he didn’t commit.
It: Chapter Two Featurette Teases Final Battle With Pennywise
“This is the end of It,” director Andy Muschietti promises us at the start of this featurette, appropriate titled “It Ends.” You know that Muschietti, his screenwriter Gary Dauberman, and the cast and crew have pulled off something special in their two-part adaptation of Stephen King’s iconic novel when King himself has become not only a fan but (spoiler alert) makes a small cameo in Chapter Two. King’s also on hand in this featurette,
HBO’s Watchmen Premiere Date Announced in Very Watchmen Way
There could be no other way to finally, officially announce the premiere date for HBO’s Watchmen. The adaptation of the iconic graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons has taken one of the most memorable motifs in Watchmen’s world—the Doomsday Clock—and used it to reveal when the series would finally appear on HBO:
10/20. Tick Tock. #WatchmenHBO pic.twitter.com/RsEq8Fh3es
— Watchmen (@watchmen) September 3,
