Tim Miller's 2016 film "Deadpool" was a shot in the arm for the superhero genre. In 2016, superheroes were still standing astride the Earth like a mighty Colossus, and armies of loyal fans were still attending Avengers movies in droves, eagerly taking notes and running off to record podcasts about what might be next in line for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The world took these lightweight power fantasies very, very seriously, and superheroes dominated the conversation unlike any genre before. "Deadpool" was a slapstick spoof of superhero movies, deliberately constructed to take the piss out of the genre. The title character, played by Ryan Reynolds, often talked to the audience directly, happily pointing out the flaws and cliches of the very story he was living through.
Deadpool was an established X-Men supporting player, so the deconstruction was coming from inside the house. "Deadpool" ultimately didn't dismantle the superhero genre's popularity --...
Deadpool was an established X-Men supporting player, so the deconstruction was coming from inside the house. "Deadpool" ultimately didn't dismantle the superhero genre's popularity --...
- 3/18/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Are you ready to accept Wade Wilson as your Lord and Savior? We've come a long way from Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool getting his mouth sewn shut for reasons only "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" director Gavin Hood can fathom (and even he would probably just shrug if you asked him). Now, 15 years after the Merc with a Mouth made his inauspicious live-action debut, the character is officially joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to "Deadpool & Wolverine," a film that sees him reunited with his former costar Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. The latter had ostensibly hung up his claws for good after starring in James Mangold's elegiac "Logan," but the chance for a proper team-up with Reynolds (plus the opportunity to finally don Wolvie's fabled yellow super suit) was just too much for Jackman to pass on. That and Disney surely unloaded a dump truck's worth of money into his driveway.
- 2/19/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Harrison Ford is nominated for best supporting actor in a comedy for his turn on the Apple TV+ series Shrinking at Sunday’s Critics Choice Awards. But even if he doesn’t win, the 81-year-old actor won’t go home empty-handed.
The organization announced Tuesday that Ford will be feted with the Career Achievement Award at the 29th annual event, which will be hosted by Chelsea Handler and broadcast on The CW. The news comes during a busy spell for Ford who also stars opposite Helen Mirren in the Yellowstone spinoff series 1923. He will next be seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World opposite Anthony Mackie and Liv Tyler. Last year, he reprised his role as Indiana Jones in James Mangold’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
That film had a glitzy premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May,...
The organization announced Tuesday that Ford will be feted with the Career Achievement Award at the 29th annual event, which will be hosted by Chelsea Handler and broadcast on The CW. The news comes during a busy spell for Ford who also stars opposite Helen Mirren in the Yellowstone spinoff series 1923. He will next be seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World opposite Anthony Mackie and Liv Tyler. Last year, he reprised his role as Indiana Jones in James Mangold’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
That film had a glitzy premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May,...
- 1/9/2024
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Screen is profiling every submission for best international feature at the 96th Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2024 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
The 96th Academy Awards is set to take place on March 10, 2024 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between December 1, 2022, and October 31, 2023. The deadline...
Entries for the 2024 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
The 96th Academy Awards is set to take place on March 10, 2024 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between December 1, 2022, and October 31, 2023. The deadline...
- 11/10/2023
- by Screen staff¬Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
Screen is profiling every submission for best international feature at the 96th Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2024 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
The 96th Academy Awards is set to take place on March 10, 2024 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between December 1, 2022, and October 31, 2023. The deadline...
Entries for the 2024 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
The 96th Academy Awards is set to take place on March 10, 2024 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between December 1, 2022, and October 31, 2023. The deadline...
- 11/2/2023
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Gavin Hood's superhero flick "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," the fourth film in the X-Men series, was roundly derided upon its release in 2009. While it endeavored to fill in the backstory of the most popular X-Men character — played by Hugh Jackman — it was undone by a bad pace, some corny special effects, and broad characterization that was just a little too cartoonish for a PG-13 audience of nitpicking, adolescent comic book nerds.
One of the more vocal complaints about "Origins: Wolverine" was that the (then) relatively obscure comedy character Deadpool had been drastically altered from his on-page iteration. In the comics, Deadpool was a masked, scarred vigilante who was wholly aware of his status as a drawing on a page. He frequently broke the fourth wall, made crass jokes, and murdered without a second thought. In "Origins: Wolverine," Deadpool was a master swordsman who was subjected to bizarre superpower transfer experiments.
One of the more vocal complaints about "Origins: Wolverine" was that the (then) relatively obscure comedy character Deadpool had been drastically altered from his on-page iteration. In the comics, Deadpool was a masked, scarred vigilante who was wholly aware of his status as a drawing on a page. He frequently broke the fourth wall, made crass jokes, and murdered without a second thought. In "Origins: Wolverine," Deadpool was a master swordsman who was subjected to bizarre superpower transfer experiments.
- 8/27/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Director Gavin Hood's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" was designed to usher in a shiny new era for Fox's "X-Men" films. After the studio's original mutant trilogy came to an ignominious end in 2006 with "X-Men: The Last Stand" (a film that saw alleged sexual harasser Brett Ratner replace alleged sexual predator Bryan Singer at the helm), Fox decided to soft reboot the franchise by making a prequel film about Hugh Jackman's Man With the Adamantium Claws. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" even teed up potential spinoffs by introducing Ryan Reynolds as a pre-Deadpool Wade Wilson and Taylor Kitsch as the Ragin' Cajun himself, the smooth-talking, card-chucking thief Remy LeBeau, better known as Gambit.
Pulling what we'd now call a "Black Adam," Hood's prequel did indeed change the hierarchy of Fox's X-Men Universe ... just not in the way it intended. The film's negative critical response and middling box office turnout led to...
Pulling what we'd now call a "Black Adam," Hood's prequel did indeed change the hierarchy of Fox's X-Men Universe ... just not in the way it intended. The film's negative critical response and middling box office turnout led to...
- 8/27/2023
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
How did we get from the hot mess that is director Gavin Hood's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" to the soulful elegy that is director James Mangold's "Logan?" The answer is Mangold's second entry in the "Wolverine" trilogy, "The Wolverine." Loosely based on Chris Claremont and Frank Miller's limited 1982 comic book arc about Wolvie's adventures in Japan, "The Wolverine" lies precisely at the nexus between Hood's "Wolverine" flick and "Logan." It's more meditative than the former yet less sophisticated and bloody than the latter. It also has some of the CGI beat-em-up silliness that dilutes Hood's film but is absent from Mangold's final chapter in the saga.
Mangold and his leading man, Hugh Jackman, had hoped to make "The Wolverine" the first R-rated "X-Men" film. "I knew that if Hugh and I could get an R, then we'll have the freedom to make an adult film," Mangold told...
Mangold and his leading man, Hugh Jackman, had hoped to make "The Wolverine" the first R-rated "X-Men" film. "I knew that if Hugh and I could get an R, then we'll have the freedom to make an adult film," Mangold told...
- 8/19/2023
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
It can seem like "superhero movie" is an automatic greenlight in Hollywood these days. Yet, the genre is still littered with unrealized projects.
One is "X-Men Origins: Magneto." True to its title, it would've chronicled the early years of the X-Men's arch-foe. If any Marvel villain could sustain an origin movie, it's Magneto, who has one of the boldest backstories in superhero comics. In the 1980s, "X-Men" comic writer Chris Claremont desired to revitalize Magneto, to make him "a more credible adversary, but also a more credible person." That meant offering a reason for why he believed in mutant supremacy. Claremont considered what was known about Magneto and struck upon brilliance:
"Magneto had to have come to adolescence, and possibly come of age, in the Second World War. And he certainly looked European. And what would have given him such an extreme attitude toward mutant-human relations? [...] The next corollary was,...
One is "X-Men Origins: Magneto." True to its title, it would've chronicled the early years of the X-Men's arch-foe. If any Marvel villain could sustain an origin movie, it's Magneto, who has one of the boldest backstories in superhero comics. In the 1980s, "X-Men" comic writer Chris Claremont desired to revitalize Magneto, to make him "a more credible adversary, but also a more credible person." That meant offering a reason for why he believed in mutant supremacy. Claremont considered what was known about Magneto and struck upon brilliance:
"Magneto had to have come to adolescence, and possibly come of age, in the Second World War. And he certainly looked European. And what would have given him such an extreme attitude toward mutant-human relations? [...] The next corollary was,...
- 8/13/2023
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
Keria Knightley in Official Secrets
Official Secrets, 10.40pm, BBC1, Tuesday, March 21
Keira Knightley gives a compellingly stripped back and unfussy performance at the heart of Gavin Hood's drama, which tells the true story of British Intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun. Hood keeps things tight on Gun as she faces tough moral choices after receiving an email that is looking to weight a Un vote towards going to war. Gun's choice to speak out carries real personal risk, not least because her husband Yasar (Adam Bakri) was an asylum seeker at the time. The film keeps up a smart pace as it digs into the aftermath of Gun's actions, showing a woman determined to do the right thing no matter what the cost.
Goat, 1.25am, Film4, Wednesday, March 22
The psychological underpinnings and drivers of frat house behaviour and hazing are explored in this tense drama that gave musician Nick Jonas a...
Official Secrets, 10.40pm, BBC1, Tuesday, March 21
Keira Knightley gives a compellingly stripped back and unfussy performance at the heart of Gavin Hood's drama, which tells the true story of British Intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun. Hood keeps things tight on Gun as she faces tough moral choices after receiving an email that is looking to weight a Un vote towards going to war. Gun's choice to speak out carries real personal risk, not least because her husband Yasar (Adam Bakri) was an asylum seeker at the time. The film keeps up a smart pace as it digs into the aftermath of Gun's actions, showing a woman determined to do the right thing no matter what the cost.
Goat, 1.25am, Film4, Wednesday, March 22
The psychological underpinnings and drivers of frat house behaviour and hazing are explored in this tense drama that gave musician Nick Jonas a...
- 3/20/2023
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
If you are looking for a perfect mix of humor, action, and cold savagery, then you should consider watching the Deadpool movies in order. Owing to the brilliant execution of the character by Ryan Reynolds and the great chemistry shared by him with his costar Morena Baccarin, the movie series has become almost a household name.
As a part of 20th Century Fox’s X-men series, the Deadpool film series began with the release of “Deadpool.”
Deadpool’s first film was released in 2016 and is based on the Marvel Comic character of the same name. Being one of the important parts of the X-men franchise, it was produced with an estimated budget of 58 million and earned a gross of 782.6 million worldwide.
You will be surprised to see how unabashedly funny the action movie “Deadpool” is. The love story twist in this superhero film gives the movie a solid emotional core.
As a part of 20th Century Fox’s X-men series, the Deadpool film series began with the release of “Deadpool.”
Deadpool’s first film was released in 2016 and is based on the Marvel Comic character of the same name. Being one of the important parts of the X-men franchise, it was produced with an estimated budget of 58 million and earned a gross of 782.6 million worldwide.
You will be surprised to see how unabashedly funny the action movie “Deadpool” is. The love story twist in this superhero film gives the movie a solid emotional core.
- 12/22/2022
- by Israr
- buddytv.com
Updated: South African filmmakers are shocked, angry and disappointed after the country failed to submit a film for the international feature Oscar race for the first time in 15 years, with one producer slamming the selection committee for what he says are unfounded concerns about his film’s depiction of marginalized groups, and comparing the opaque selection process to the dark days of apartheid.
Nine films were submitted to South Africa’s National Film & Video Foundation (Nfvf) for consideration for the 95th Academy Awards, which will be held March 12 at the Dolby Theatre. Ultimately, none were put forward.
In a letter sent to the snubbed filmmakers, a copy of which was obtained by Variety, the Nfvf said that the nine films were rejected by the selection committee “due to either non-compliance with the [Academy’s] selection criteria and/or a concern regarding the representation of marginalized communities.” The controversy was first reported by the Afrikaans-language website Maroela Media.
Nine films were submitted to South Africa’s National Film & Video Foundation (Nfvf) for consideration for the 95th Academy Awards, which will be held March 12 at the Dolby Theatre. Ultimately, none were put forward.
In a letter sent to the snubbed filmmakers, a copy of which was obtained by Variety, the Nfvf said that the nine films were rejected by the selection committee “due to either non-compliance with the [Academy’s] selection criteria and/or a concern regarding the representation of marginalized communities.” The controversy was first reported by the Afrikaans-language website Maroela Media.
- 12/21/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Uganda has submitted its first-ever film for the Oscars, putting forward Morris Mugisha’s Tembele as its contender for the 2023 Academy Awards in the best international feature category.
The drama follows Tembele (Patriq Nkakalukanyi), a garbage man in Kampala suffering from mental illness who begins to lose his grip on reality after the death of his infant son. Ronah Soledad Ninsiima and Cosmas Serubogo co-star.
“In Africa, men are told to hide their feelings, and never to show weakness because they will be thought feeble,” Mugisha said in a statement accompanying the submission announcement. “Tembele suggests otherwise: that it is Ok for a man to cry and vulnerability is no crime especially if you’re hurting. This is a film of hope, love and brotherhood.”
Tembele premiered in Uganda this summer and swept the Uganda Film Festival Awards, winning best film, best actor and best supporting actor honors.
Uganda has submitted its first-ever film for the Oscars, putting forward Morris Mugisha’s Tembele as its contender for the 2023 Academy Awards in the best international feature category.
The drama follows Tembele (Patriq Nkakalukanyi), a garbage man in Kampala suffering from mental illness who begins to lose his grip on reality after the death of his infant son. Ronah Soledad Ninsiima and Cosmas Serubogo co-star.
“In Africa, men are told to hide their feelings, and never to show weakness because they will be thought feeble,” Mugisha said in a statement accompanying the submission announcement. “Tembele suggests otherwise: that it is Ok for a man to cry and vulnerability is no crime especially if you’re hurting. This is a film of hope, love and brotherhood.”
Tembele premiered in Uganda this summer and swept the Uganda Film Festival Awards, winning best film, best actor and best supporting actor honors.
- 9/27/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
2019’s Best Picture winner, Parasite, became the first non-English language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. It turned the world’s attention to international films that had long been underrated and placed second fiddle to Hollywood films. Not only did Parasite win Best Picture, but it also won Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature, therefore sweeping four awards at the 92nd Academy Awards ceremony. This article will find five similar films you can watch if you like “Parasite.” 5. Tsotsi (2005) Gavin Hood’s Tsotsi tells the story of a young orphan boy nicknamed Tsotsi who
5 International Feature Films To Watch If You Liked “Parasite...
5 International Feature Films To Watch If You Liked “Parasite...
- 9/26/2022
- by Couch and The Potato
- TVovermind.com
Chris Rock makes a stop at the 2022 Venice Film Festival thanks to Sally Potter’s short film, “Look at Me.”
The 16-minute film stars Rock as a gala organizer who tries to rein in a stubborn drummer (Javier Bardem) ahead of the on-stage performance. Tap dancer Savion Glover also stars. “Look at Me” premieres Out of Competition at Venice.
Director Potter originally conceived the concept of the film as a short story to be featured in her 2020 film “The Roads Not Taken,” starring Bardem as a writer in the early stages of dementia. “Look at Me” was filmed in 2019 over the course of five days in London and New York. The short film is produced by Christopher Sheppard.
“When I got into the cutting room, I saw how dynamic these titans of the entertainment world are together, their volatile, fiery on-screen relationship offset by the rhythms of the brilliant tap dancer Savion Glover,...
The 16-minute film stars Rock as a gala organizer who tries to rein in a stubborn drummer (Javier Bardem) ahead of the on-stage performance. Tap dancer Savion Glover also stars. “Look at Me” premieres Out of Competition at Venice.
Director Potter originally conceived the concept of the film as a short story to be featured in her 2020 film “The Roads Not Taken,” starring Bardem as a writer in the early stages of dementia. “Look at Me” was filmed in 2019 over the course of five days in London and New York. The short film is produced by Christopher Sheppard.
“When I got into the cutting room, I saw how dynamic these titans of the entertainment world are together, their volatile, fiery on-screen relationship offset by the rhythms of the brilliant tap dancer Savion Glover,...
- 8/31/2022
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
When Wolfgang Petersen burst onto the scene with his WWII submarine masterpiece "Das Boot," Hollywood came calling. Any director who could pin audiences to their seats for two-and-a-half hours with a film that rarely leaves the interior of a U-boat surely had the skills to enthrall viewers with a mainstream blockbuster. While Petersen proved more than reliable with smashes like "In the Line of Fire," "Outbreak," "Air Force One," and "The Perfect Storm," he occasionally found himself attached to ambitious projects that, for one reason or another, failed to launch or launched without him at the helm.
Petersen, who died on August 12, 2022, at the age of 81, left behind a litany of what-ifs. He was in the mix on several tantalizing projects that could've changed the complexion of superhero and YA filmmaking; there's an alternate universe in which Petersen revived the DC universe with a Batman and Superman mash-up in the early 2000s.
Petersen, who died on August 12, 2022, at the age of 81, left behind a litany of what-ifs. He was in the mix on several tantalizing projects that could've changed the complexion of superhero and YA filmmaking; there's an alternate universe in which Petersen revived the DC universe with a Batman and Superman mash-up in the early 2000s.
- 8/17/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Movies like “Ready Player One” are becoming increasingly popular as the world becomes increasingly technologically advanced.
“Ready Player One” is a thrilling science fiction adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg that takes audiences on the journey of a virtual world. Set in 2045, the film follows Wade Watts as he tries to win a contest that will give him ownership of the Oasis, a virtual reality game world that has become a refuge for humanity.
With the help of his allies, Wade has to race against time to complete the contest before an evil corporation can get its hands on the Oasis. Full of excitement, suspense, and visual effects, “Ready Player One” is a must-see film for all fans of sci-fi movies.
If you’re looking for other movies like “Ready Player One,” you’ve come to the right place. There are no shortages of pop culture references in the film.
“Ready Player One” is a thrilling science fiction adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg that takes audiences on the journey of a virtual world. Set in 2045, the film follows Wade Watts as he tries to win a contest that will give him ownership of the Oasis, a virtual reality game world that has become a refuge for humanity.
With the help of his allies, Wade has to race against time to complete the contest before an evil corporation can get its hands on the Oasis. Full of excitement, suspense, and visual effects, “Ready Player One” is a must-see film for all fans of sci-fi movies.
If you’re looking for other movies like “Ready Player One,” you’ve come to the right place. There are no shortages of pop culture references in the film.
- 6/21/2022
- by Israr
- buddytv.com
Exclusive: Tyler Dean Flores (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier), Imani Lewis (First Kill), Christian Vunipola (Queenpins), Suraj Partha (Modern Family) and Raúl Castillo (Cha Cha Real Smooth) will star in Miguel Wants to Fight, a coming-of-age comedy that American High is producing for Hulu, which has entered production.
The film centers on Miguel (Flores), a 17-year-old who asks his three best friends to help him get in his first fight ever before he moves to a new city. It stems from Hulu’s partnership with American High, which has also seen the release of titles including Big Time Adolescence, Plan B, Crush and The Binge.
Emmy winner Oz Rodriguez (Kenan) is directing from a script by Jason Concepcion and Shea Serrano.
The film centers on Miguel (Flores), a 17-year-old who asks his three best friends to help him get in his first fight ever before he moves to a new city. It stems from Hulu’s partnership with American High, which has also seen the release of titles including Big Time Adolescence, Plan B, Crush and The Binge.
Emmy winner Oz Rodriguez (Kenan) is directing from a script by Jason Concepcion and Shea Serrano.
- 5/23/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Official Secrets Photo: Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival Official Secrets, 10pm, BBC2, Monday, April 18
Keira Knightley gives a compellingly stripped back and unfussy performance at the heart of Gavin Hood's drama, which tells the true story of British Intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun. Hood keeps things tight on Gun as she faces tough moral choices after receiving an email that is looking to weight a Un vote towards war. Gun's choice to speak out carries real personal risk, not least because her husband Yasar (Adam Bakri) was an asylum seeker at the time. The film keeps up a smart pace as it digs into the aftermath of Gun's actions, showing a woman determined to do the right thing no matter what the cost.
Hot Fuzz, 1.35am, ITV2, Tuesday, April 19
A much more light-hearted view of the law is presented by Edgar Wright's equally pacy comedy, which continued the impressive...
Keira Knightley gives a compellingly stripped back and unfussy performance at the heart of Gavin Hood's drama, which tells the true story of British Intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun. Hood keeps things tight on Gun as she faces tough moral choices after receiving an email that is looking to weight a Un vote towards war. Gun's choice to speak out carries real personal risk, not least because her husband Yasar (Adam Bakri) was an asylum seeker at the time. The film keeps up a smart pace as it digs into the aftermath of Gun's actions, showing a woman determined to do the right thing no matter what the cost.
Hot Fuzz, 1.35am, ITV2, Tuesday, April 19
A much more light-hearted view of the law is presented by Edgar Wright's equally pacy comedy, which continued the impressive...
- 4/18/2022
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
In terms of international recognition, this week, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced feature films eligible for consideration in the International Feature Film category for the 94th Academy Awards. Since the African continent first submitted a film for Oscar consideration in 1958, with Egyptian director Youssef Chahine’s “Cairo Station,” the number of African submissions for Best International Film Oscar consideration seems to be stabilizing at an average of around 10 annually. Eight films were submitted for the 2019 awards; 10 for 2020; and 12 for 2021, which marked a record. Ten submissions are in consideration for the upcoming 2022 ceremony.
The history of cinema on the African continent is expectedly complex and brief — unlike other artforms including music and literature, of which there are decades, if not centuries of rich history.
Due to restrictive colonialist structures and a Francophone/Anglophone divide, Africans weren’t always in a position to tell their own stories on film.
The history of cinema on the African continent is expectedly complex and brief — unlike other artforms including music and literature, of which there are decades, if not centuries of rich history.
Due to restrictive colonialist structures and a Francophone/Anglophone divide, Africans weren’t always in a position to tell their own stories on film.
- 12/9/2021
- by Tambay Obenson
- Indiewire
Official Secrets Photo: Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival Welcome to this week's Stay-At-Home Seven. If you're looking for more inspiration, we're shining our Streaming Spotlight on Palme d'Or winners this week, as Cannes kicks off tomorrow in France.
Official Secrets, Netflix
Kiera Knightly puts in a stripped back performance as real-life whistleblower Katharine Gun in Gavin Hood's film, which considers the personal risks Gun and her asylum seeker husband (Adam Bakri) took in the name of the truth. Hood goes at the complex material - surrounding a memo which basically urges the gathering of information by British intelligence services that could be used to blackmail smaller nations into voting for war in Iraq - at a brisk pace. In doing so he keeps the focus on the moral quandary Gun found herself while ratcheting up the tension via subplots involving a journalist (Matt Smith) working to confirm Gun's story...
Official Secrets, Netflix
Kiera Knightly puts in a stripped back performance as real-life whistleblower Katharine Gun in Gavin Hood's film, which considers the personal risks Gun and her asylum seeker husband (Adam Bakri) took in the name of the truth. Hood goes at the complex material - surrounding a memo which basically urges the gathering of information by British intelligence services that could be used to blackmail smaller nations into voting for war in Iraq - at a brisk pace. In doing so he keeps the focus on the moral quandary Gun found herself while ratcheting up the tension via subplots involving a journalist (Matt Smith) working to confirm Gun's story...
- 7/5/2021
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Pablo Larrain directs the feature that stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana.
Pablo Larrain’s Spencer has cast Poldark star Jack Farthing as Prince Charles, as the shoot moves to the UK for the final stretch of filming.
The film, which stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, has been shooting in Germany since January 28 at the Schloss Marquardt in Potsdam, a castle which is doubling as Sandringham Estate. But the production has now moved to the UK for the remainder of filming and is shooting on location in Norfolk.
Farthing is a London-born actor who played George Warleggan in all...
Pablo Larrain’s Spencer has cast Poldark star Jack Farthing as Prince Charles, as the shoot moves to the UK for the final stretch of filming.
The film, which stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, has been shooting in Germany since January 28 at the Schloss Marquardt in Potsdam, a castle which is doubling as Sandringham Estate. But the production has now moved to the UK for the remainder of filming and is shooting on location in Norfolk.
Farthing is a London-born actor who played George Warleggan in all...
- 3/25/2021
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Organizations that give awards think every category is important. The American public, on the other hand, seems to only care about best picture, actor and actress.
However, to millions of people around the world, the most important category is the one devoted to movies that are not in the English language — what the Oscars call international feature film and what the Globes call foreign language.
For them, it’s not just about validation for one movie. Brillante Ma Mendoza, director of this year’s Philippines Oscar submission “Mindanao,” says, “An Oscar is more than a trophy,” adding that a nomination or win would be proof that “the whole Philippine film industry can stand with the best.”
Poland has been nominated three times in the past five years, including one win. Director Małgorzata Szumowska hopes the momentum carries to her film this year, “Never Gonna Snow Again.” After the award to Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Ida,...
However, to millions of people around the world, the most important category is the one devoted to movies that are not in the English language — what the Oscars call international feature film and what the Globes call foreign language.
For them, it’s not just about validation for one movie. Brillante Ma Mendoza, director of this year’s Philippines Oscar submission “Mindanao,” says, “An Oscar is more than a trophy,” adding that a nomination or win would be proof that “the whole Philippine film industry can stand with the best.”
Poland has been nominated three times in the past five years, including one win. Director Małgorzata Szumowska hopes the momentum carries to her film this year, “Never Gonna Snow Again.” After the award to Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Ida,...
- 1/27/2021
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
India’s Oscar entry is screening from Jan 27, 3pm UK time.
Screen International has partnered with film market platform Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The upcoming screenings are listed below, with more titles set to be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available for 24 hours after the start time.
Click here to RSVP or fill out the form below
For more...
Screen International has partnered with film market platform Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The upcoming screenings are listed below, with more titles set to be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available for 24 hours after the start time.
Click here to RSVP or fill out the form below
For more...
- 1/25/2021
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
India’s Oscar entry is screening from Jan 27, 3pm UK time.
Screen International has partnered with film market platform Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The upcoming screenings are listed below, with more titles set to be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available for 24 hours after the start time.
Click here to RSVP or fill out the form below
For more...
Screen International has partnered with film market platform Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The upcoming screenings are listed below, with more titles set to be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available for 24 hours after the start time.
Click here to RSVP or fill out the form below
For more...
- 1/24/2021
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Nigeria’s Oscar entry is screening from Jan 22, 3pm UK time.
Screen International has partnered with film market platform Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The first screenings in the programme are the Oscar entries for India (Jallikattu); Latvia (Blizzard Of Souls); Nigeria (The Milkmaid); and South Africa (Toorbos). More titles will be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available for 24 hours after the start time.
Screen International has partnered with film market platform Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The first screenings in the programme are the Oscar entries for India (Jallikattu); Latvia (Blizzard Of Souls); Nigeria (The Milkmaid); and South Africa (Toorbos). More titles will be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available for 24 hours after the start time.
- 1/20/2021
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
The first titles are the Oscar entries for India, Latvia, Nigeria, and South Africa.
Screen International has partnered with film market Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The first screenings in the programme are the Oscar entries for India (Jallikattu); Latvia (Blizzard Of Souls); Nigeria (The Milkmaid); and South Africa (Toorbos). More titles will be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available...
Screen International has partnered with film market Archipel Market on an exclusive series of screenings focused on the international feature awards race.
This initiative is designed to enable each country to organise an event around their submission.
The first screenings in the programme are the Oscar entries for India (Jallikattu); Latvia (Blizzard Of Souls); Nigeria (The Milkmaid); and South Africa (Toorbos). More titles will be added during this year’s awards season.
The screenings are open to awards voters and industry professionals and will be available...
- 1/12/2021
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Bookmark this page for all the latest international feature submissions.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2021 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
Scroll down for the full list
The 93rd Academy Awards is set to take place on April 25, 2021. It was originally set to be held on February 28, before both the ceremony and eligibility period were postponed for two months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Submitted films must have been released in their respective countries between the expanded dates of October 1, 2019, and December 31, 2020. (Last year it was October-September.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2021 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
Scroll down for the full list
The 93rd Academy Awards is set to take place on April 25, 2021. It was originally set to be held on February 28, before both the ceremony and eligibility period were postponed for two months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Submitted films must have been released in their respective countries between the expanded dates of October 1, 2019, and December 31, 2020. (Last year it was October-September.
- 11/17/2020
- by Ben Dalton¬Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
There isn’t much to recommend about X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which took the franchise’s most popular character and made him the star of one of its weakest movies. There are many glaring and major flaws with Gavin Hood’s prequel, but perhaps the single most egregious one was how Ryan Reynolds’ live-action debut as Deadpool was handled.
The actor had already spent five years trying to get a solo film for the Merc with a Mouth off the ground by 2009, so he inevitably jumped at the chance to suit up on the big screen. And after a sterling introduction in an early action sequence, the bizarre decision was made to sew the character’s mouth shut and resurrect him as a hairless villain that bore absolutely no resemblance to his comic book counterpart.
Most fans and Reynolds himself would much rather pretend that it never even happened, but we...
The actor had already spent five years trying to get a solo film for the Merc with a Mouth off the ground by 2009, so he inevitably jumped at the chance to suit up on the big screen. And after a sterling introduction in an early action sequence, the bizarre decision was made to sew the character’s mouth shut and resurrect him as a hairless villain that bore absolutely no resemblance to his comic book counterpart.
Most fans and Reynolds himself would much rather pretend that it never even happened, but we...
- 10/20/2020
- by Scott Campbell
- We Got This Covered
John Boyega has his next project lined-up. He’ll star in The Test for director Gavin Hood, described as a “contained thriller” about a behavioral psychologist and an immigrant dealing with a terrorist group in an “authoritarian near-future.” It’s an adaptation of the Sylvain Neuvel book of the same name. More John Boyega is never […]
The post ‘The Test’: John Boyega Will Star in the New “Contained Thriller” From Director Gavin Hood appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘The Test’: John Boyega Will Star in the New “Contained Thriller” From Director Gavin Hood appeared first on /Film.
- 9/18/2020
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
According to Deadline, Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker's John Boyega is slated to star in a The Test, a new drama/thriller from director Gavin Hood (X-men Origins: Wolverine). [Seemore] Like many of the films being developed right now, The Test is set to be a contained thriller that will also star Payman Maadi (Westworld) as a soft-spoken immigrant taking a citizen evaluation test.…...
- 9/18/2020
- by Kevin Fraser
- JoBlo.com
Though John Boyega’s most recognizable role, so far in his career, has been as Finn in the new “Star Wars” films, the actor has recently made a name for himself as a vocal activist supporting the Black Lives Matter protests and systemic racism in our society. And it appears that he’s willing to tackle those issues head-on with his upcoming film, “The Test.”
Read More: Jamie Foxx And Teyonah Parris Join John Boyega In Sci-Fi Mystery ‘They Cloned Tyrone’
According to Deadline, Boyega is set to star opposite Payman Maadi in a new political thriller from writer-director Gavin Hood, titled “The Test.” The film is based on the novella of the same name from author Sylvain Neuvel and tells the story of an immigrant (Maadi) that has to take a citizen evaluation test, moderated by a brilliant psychologist (Boyega).
Continue reading John Boyega To Take On Far-Right Extremists...
Read More: Jamie Foxx And Teyonah Parris Join John Boyega In Sci-Fi Mystery ‘They Cloned Tyrone’
According to Deadline, Boyega is set to star opposite Payman Maadi in a new political thriller from writer-director Gavin Hood, titled “The Test.” The film is based on the novella of the same name from author Sylvain Neuvel and tells the story of an immigrant (Maadi) that has to take a citizen evaluation test, moderated by a brilliant psychologist (Boyega).
Continue reading John Boyega To Take On Far-Right Extremists...
- 9/18/2020
- by Charles Barfield
- The Playlist
Exclusive: Entertainment One is soon taking out a package, an adaptation of the Sylvain Neuvel novella The Test. John Boyega and Payman Maadi star in the Gavin Hood-drama about a soft-spoken immigrant (Maadi) taking a citizen evaluation test, and a brilliant young behavioral psychologist (Boyega) supervising “the test” confront a terrorist group lead by a far-right fanatic. Hood, who directed Tsotsi and more recently the tense drone drama Eye In The Sky and Official Secrets. He wrote the script. Erwin Stoff will produce with Zev Foreman and Ilda Diffley overseeing for eOne.
The film is a contained thriller, like many films being assembled to shoot during the pandemic. It’s a two-hander and the hope is to secure this as the next slot for Boyega, who makes a strong turn in the upcoming Red, White and Blue, a segment of the Steve McQueen-directed anthology Small Axe that will...
The film is a contained thriller, like many films being assembled to shoot during the pandemic. It’s a two-hander and the hope is to secure this as the next slot for Boyega, who makes a strong turn in the upcoming Red, White and Blue, a segment of the Steve McQueen-directed anthology Small Axe that will...
- 9/18/2020
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Moonyeenn Lee, the acclaimed South African agent and casting director who cast films such as the foreign-language Oscar winner “Tsotsi” and Oscar-nominated “Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom,” died in Johannesburg on Saturday due to coronavirus-related complications. She was 76.
Lee’s company, Moonyeenn Lee & Associates, announced the news in a statement on its Facebook page on Sunday. “It is with great sadness that we announce the death of the legendary South African agent and casting director, Moonyeenn Lee,” reads the statement.
“Moonyeenn’s passion for South African stories and local talent was well known. Over the years, she would travel around the world introducing producers and directors to South African actors. She would always do everything in her power to convince them to rather cast local actors over foreign actors. Her dedication eventually paid off as many international productions trusted her to cast locally.”
It continued: “Moonyeenn helped shape the lives of many actors,...
Lee’s company, Moonyeenn Lee & Associates, announced the news in a statement on its Facebook page on Sunday. “It is with great sadness that we announce the death of the legendary South African agent and casting director, Moonyeenn Lee,” reads the statement.
“Moonyeenn’s passion for South African stories and local talent was well known. Over the years, she would travel around the world introducing producers and directors to South African actors. She would always do everything in her power to convince them to rather cast local actors over foreign actors. Her dedication eventually paid off as many international productions trusted her to cast locally.”
It continued: “Moonyeenn helped shape the lives of many actors,...
- 7/20/2020
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
The story of a gay conscript in the army in the 80s gave one critic a panic attack – but its director says it sheds light on the nation’s toxic masculinity
From an outside perspective, South African cinema tends to announce itself through occasional breakout films rather than consistently visible directorial careers. Back in the 1980s, The Gods Must Be Crazy was a global hit that didn’t do much to raise the profile of its director, Jamie Uys. Fourteen years ago, gritty township fable Tsotsi won the country one of its first Oscars, only to send director Gavin Hood directly into a proficient but culturally anonymous Hollywood career.
In Oliver Hermanus, however, the country has produced its most significant auteur in several generations. The 36-year-old Capetonian studied at the London Film School, but returned home for his art. His 2009 graduation film Shirley Adams, a tough-minded mother-son portrait set on the Cape Flats,...
From an outside perspective, South African cinema tends to announce itself through occasional breakout films rather than consistently visible directorial careers. Back in the 1980s, The Gods Must Be Crazy was a global hit that didn’t do much to raise the profile of its director, Jamie Uys. Fourteen years ago, gritty township fable Tsotsi won the country one of its first Oscars, only to send director Gavin Hood directly into a proficient but culturally anonymous Hollywood career.
In Oliver Hermanus, however, the country has produced its most significant auteur in several generations. The 36-year-old Capetonian studied at the London Film School, but returned home for his art. His 2009 graduation film Shirley Adams, a tough-minded mother-son portrait set on the Cape Flats,...
- 4/15/2020
- by Guy Lodge
- The Guardian - Film News
The company is run by Ged Doherty and Colin Firth.
Colin Firth’s Raindog Films is moving into high-end TV drama and documentaries after securing investment from the UK Creative Content Eis Fund, launched last year in association with the BFI.
Firth co-founded Raindog with former Sony Music CEO Ged Doherty in 2012 and has produced projects including Gavin Hood’s Official Secrets, starring Keira Knightley, Jeff Nichols’ Loving, which earned Ruth Negga an Oscar nomination, and Eye in the Sky, directed by Hood and starring Helen Mirren and Aaron Paul.
The undisclosed investment will see the indie move into TV drama,...
Colin Firth’s Raindog Films is moving into high-end TV drama and documentaries after securing investment from the UK Creative Content Eis Fund, launched last year in association with the BFI.
Firth co-founded Raindog with former Sony Music CEO Ged Doherty in 2012 and has produced projects including Gavin Hood’s Official Secrets, starring Keira Knightley, Jeff Nichols’ Loving, which earned Ruth Negga an Oscar nomination, and Eye in the Sky, directed by Hood and starring Helen Mirren and Aaron Paul.
The undisclosed investment will see the indie move into TV drama,...
- 3/9/2020
- by 1100453¦Michael Rosser¦9¦
- ScreenDaily
Raindog Films, the U.K. production company co-founded by actor Colin Firth and music industry veteran Ged Doherty, is to expand into TV drama, music content and documentaries after winning investment from the U.K. Creative Content Eis Fund.
The U.K. Creative Content Eis Fund is run by private equity house Calculus Capital, with film and TV finance specialists Stargrove Pictures. It was launched last year in association with the British Film Institute (BFI).
Writer-producer and researcher Trish D. Chetty is joining Raindog to help identify new writing, directing and production talent.
As part of the deal, Stargrove Pictures CEO Stephen Fuss will join the board of Raindog Films.
Stephen Fuss, CEO of Stargrove Pictures, said: “What’s exciting about this deal for us is the expansion into TV and the plans to leverage Ged’s music industry experience and Trish’s ability to seek out and tell strong factual stories.
The U.K. Creative Content Eis Fund is run by private equity house Calculus Capital, with film and TV finance specialists Stargrove Pictures. It was launched last year in association with the British Film Institute (BFI).
Writer-producer and researcher Trish D. Chetty is joining Raindog to help identify new writing, directing and production talent.
As part of the deal, Stargrove Pictures CEO Stephen Fuss will join the board of Raindog Films.
Stephen Fuss, CEO of Stargrove Pictures, said: “What’s exciting about this deal for us is the expansion into TV and the plans to leverage Ged’s music industry experience and Trish’s ability to seek out and tell strong factual stories.
- 3/9/2020
- by Tim Dams
- Variety Film + TV
Raindog Films, the UK-based production company co-founded by Colin Firth and music industry veteran Ged Doherty, is moving into TV, hiring writer and producer Trish D Chetty.
“I have always admired the films that Raindog make, each one of their films is bold and ambitious and the diversity of their work speaks for itself. I am excited to be joining Colin and Ged at this key stage of the company’s development,” said Trish D Chetty, who will oversee the expansion into high-end series, music content and documentaries.
The company has received backing from the UK Creative Content Eis Fund, which launched last summer to raise capital to back UK indie companies. Eis, or ‘Enterprise Investment Scheme’, is a government-backed program that allows emerging companies to raise capital from investors whose financial commitment is offset by tax relief. The scheme was created to encourage the economy of startup ventures but...
“I have always admired the films that Raindog make, each one of their films is bold and ambitious and the diversity of their work speaks for itself. I am excited to be joining Colin and Ged at this key stage of the company’s development,” said Trish D Chetty, who will oversee the expansion into high-end series, music content and documentaries.
The company has received backing from the UK Creative Content Eis Fund, which launched last summer to raise capital to back UK indie companies. Eis, or ‘Enterprise Investment Scheme’, is a government-backed program that allows emerging companies to raise capital from investors whose financial commitment is offset by tax relief. The scheme was created to encourage the economy of startup ventures but...
- 3/9/2020
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Kelvin Harrison Jr. is the ultimate breakout story. The 25-year-old New Orleans native is nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his wrenching performance in “Luce,” where plays an adopted teen contending with his heritage, while acclaim for his other performance as a troubled teen in Trey Shults’ fall festival sensation “Waves” further cemented 2019 as his big year.
All of that comes on the heels of a dense five-year period in which the actor was plucked from obscurity, scoring bit parts in everything from “Ender’s Game” to “12 Years a Slave” before finding his footing as a young lead in the past year. Nevertheless, he said in a recent interview that he still feels like an outsider.
The charismatic star, whose recent credits also include Epix’s “Godfather of Harlem,” has received nothing but reverence from his veteran co-stars — but the actor said his entire life has been a fish-out-water...
All of that comes on the heels of a dense five-year period in which the actor was plucked from obscurity, scoring bit parts in everything from “Ender’s Game” to “12 Years a Slave” before finding his footing as a young lead in the past year. Nevertheless, he said in a recent interview that he still feels like an outsider.
The charismatic star, whose recent credits also include Epix’s “Godfather of Harlem,” has received nothing but reverence from his veteran co-stars — but the actor said his entire life has been a fish-out-water...
- 1/3/2020
- by Tambay Obenson
- Indiewire
The decision by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in November to disqualify Genevieve Nnaji’s “Lionheart” from the international feature Oscar race marred an otherwise promising awards season for Africa, which still saw its total number of submissions reach a record-breaking nine. The ensuing controversy brought filmmakers, including Ava DuVernay, into the fray, and prompted the Academy to defend its decision on the grounds that entries must be mostly filmed in a language other than English, Nigeria’s official language.
But the dust-up also served to underscore broader structural challenges for African filmmakers dreaming of Oscar glory. Production across the continent has been steadily rising, with such debutantes as Niger, Malawi and Mozambique recently entering the awards race. Yet most countries lack either the financial resources to mobilize a selection committee — an often expensive proposition — or the political resolve to pursue an award that many perceive as...
But the dust-up also served to underscore broader structural challenges for African filmmakers dreaming of Oscar glory. Production across the continent has been steadily rising, with such debutantes as Niger, Malawi and Mozambique recently entering the awards race. Yet most countries lack either the financial resources to mobilize a selection committee — an often expensive proposition — or the political resolve to pursue an award that many perceive as...
- 12/5/2019
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
‘Knives Out.’
Disney’s Frozen 2 dominated the cinema business last weekend without matching its stellar Us results while Studiocanal’s crime caper Knives Out proved to be effective counter-programming.
Meanwhile Rialto launched Adrian Noble’s Mrs Lowry & Son on 43 screens, ringing up $48,000 and a decent $184,000 including revenues from festivals. The English comedy stars Timothy Spall as the artist L.S. Lowry and Vanessa Redgrave as his overbearing mother.
Selina Miles’ feature documentary Martha: A Picture Story, an alternate content release which profiles intrepid American photojournalist Martha Cooper, clocked $15,000 from limited sessions plus $29,000 from festivals for Umbrella Entertainment.
The winner of the Sydney Film Festival Documentary Audience Award, the film follows Cooper as she roams around Berlin, New York and Baltimore and her adventures come to life with archival footage and tales from subjects and peers.
The Aacta Awards to be announced on Wednesday are unlikely to give any box office momentum to the victors,...
Disney’s Frozen 2 dominated the cinema business last weekend without matching its stellar Us results while Studiocanal’s crime caper Knives Out proved to be effective counter-programming.
Meanwhile Rialto launched Adrian Noble’s Mrs Lowry & Son on 43 screens, ringing up $48,000 and a decent $184,000 including revenues from festivals. The English comedy stars Timothy Spall as the artist L.S. Lowry and Vanessa Redgrave as his overbearing mother.
Selina Miles’ feature documentary Martha: A Picture Story, an alternate content release which profiles intrepid American photojournalist Martha Cooper, clocked $15,000 from limited sessions plus $29,000 from festivals for Umbrella Entertainment.
The winner of the Sydney Film Festival Documentary Audience Award, the film follows Cooper as she roams around Berlin, New York and Baltimore and her adventures come to life with archival footage and tales from subjects and peers.
The Aacta Awards to be announced on Wednesday are unlikely to give any box office momentum to the victors,...
- 12/1/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Knightley stars as the Gchq translator who leaked a classified memo to the Observer exposing the Us plot to spy on the Un shortly before the 2003 invasion of Iraq
Iraq war whistleblower Katharine Gun: ‘Truth always matters’
“Just because you’re the prime minister doesn’t mean you get to make up your own facts.” So says Keira Knightley’s whistleblower in Gavin Hood’s “based on true events” drama, an on-the-nose revisiting of the run-up to the Iraq war that draws clear parallels with the “alternative facts” rhetoric of modern politics. While Us and UK intelligence agencies conspire to engineer a justification for invasion, Gchq translator Katharine Gun (whose real-life bravery deserves celebration) follows her conscience and alerts the media to their dirty-tricks campaign, throwing her quiet life into turmoil, putting her work, marriage and freedom at risk.
Related: Keira Knightley: ‘Iraq was the first time I’d been politically engaged’
Continue reading.
Iraq war whistleblower Katharine Gun: ‘Truth always matters’
“Just because you’re the prime minister doesn’t mean you get to make up your own facts.” So says Keira Knightley’s whistleblower in Gavin Hood’s “based on true events” drama, an on-the-nose revisiting of the run-up to the Iraq war that draws clear parallels with the “alternative facts” rhetoric of modern politics. While Us and UK intelligence agencies conspire to engineer a justification for invasion, Gchq translator Katharine Gun (whose real-life bravery deserves celebration) follows her conscience and alerts the media to their dirty-tricks campaign, throwing her quiet life into turmoil, putting her work, marriage and freedom at risk.
Related: Keira Knightley: ‘Iraq was the first time I’d been politically engaged’
Continue reading.
- 10/20/2019
- by Mark Kermode, Observer film critic
- The Guardian - Film News
Knightley gives a sympathetic performance as Iraq war whistleblower Katharine Gun in this shrewd and relevant spy drama
• Keira Knightley: ‘Iraq was the first time I’d been politically engaged’
There’s something interestingly tough and forthright about this slow-burner from director and co-writer Gavin Hood. It is a beady-eyed spy drama that has shrewd things to say about the British establishment’s tendency to spite under pressure, about the eternal duality of cockup and conspiracy, about the Kafkaesque problems involved in defending yourself legally against a treason charge, and, importantly, about the kind of young, vulnerable people that we end up depending on to tell us how we are governed.
Official Secrets shows that spy dramas from real life are very often not action thrillers such as Bond or Bourne or Homeland – or indeed Hood’s last movie, Eye in the Sky, from 2015 – but something more like nuclear-level office politics.
• Keira Knightley: ‘Iraq was the first time I’d been politically engaged’
There’s something interestingly tough and forthright about this slow-burner from director and co-writer Gavin Hood. It is a beady-eyed spy drama that has shrewd things to say about the British establishment’s tendency to spite under pressure, about the eternal duality of cockup and conspiracy, about the Kafkaesque problems involved in defending yourself legally against a treason charge, and, importantly, about the kind of young, vulnerable people that we end up depending on to tell us how we are governed.
Official Secrets shows that spy dramas from real life are very often not action thrillers such as Bond or Bourne or Homeland – or indeed Hood’s last movie, Eye in the Sky, from 2015 – but something more like nuclear-level office politics.
- 10/18/2019
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Other new openers include ‘Zombieland: Double Tap’ and ‘A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon’.
Villains will battle at the UK box office this weekend as Disney sequel Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil looks to topple the Clown Prince of Crime, Joker, from the top spot.
The follow-up to 2014’s Maleficent sees Angelina Jolie return as the titular sorceress as she and her goddaughter Aurora (Elle Fanning) begin to question the complex family ties that bind them.
The first title opened to £6.6m in May 2014, although £2.8m of that came from previews and an opening on the Wednesday prior to its first weekend.
Villains will battle at the UK box office this weekend as Disney sequel Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil looks to topple the Clown Prince of Crime, Joker, from the top spot.
The follow-up to 2014’s Maleficent sees Angelina Jolie return as the titular sorceress as she and her goddaughter Aurora (Elle Fanning) begin to question the complex family ties that bind them.
The first title opened to £6.6m in May 2014, although £2.8m of that came from previews and an opening on the Wednesday prior to its first weekend.
- 10/18/2019
- by 1101321¦Ben Dalton¦26¦
- ScreenDaily
Earlier this month, the Academy announced that 93 countries submitted films for its International Feature Film category at the 92nd Academy Awards. Ten of these came from Africa, a new record for the continent.
It remains to be seen whether any of these titles will be shortlisted in order to make the final list of five nominees. Of the 10 films, Senegal’s “Atlantics,” Mati Diop’s 2019 Cannes Grand Prix winner acquired by Netflix, probably has the strongest chance.
The last time a film representing an African country won this category was South Africa’s “Tsotsi,” by Gavin Hood, at the 78th Oscars in 2006. It’s one of just three wins from African countries, which also include Algeria’s “Z” by Costa-Gavras in 1969 and the Ivory Coast’s “Black and White in Color” (“La Victoire en chantant”) by Jean-Jacques Annaud in 1976.
In 2018, eight submissions included African first-timers Mozambique (“The Train of Salt...
It remains to be seen whether any of these titles will be shortlisted in order to make the final list of five nominees. Of the 10 films, Senegal’s “Atlantics,” Mati Diop’s 2019 Cannes Grand Prix winner acquired by Netflix, probably has the strongest chance.
The last time a film representing an African country won this category was South Africa’s “Tsotsi,” by Gavin Hood, at the 78th Oscars in 2006. It’s one of just three wins from African countries, which also include Algeria’s “Z” by Costa-Gavras in 1969 and the Ivory Coast’s “Black and White in Color” (“La Victoire en chantant”) by Jean-Jacques Annaud in 1976.
In 2018, eight submissions included African first-timers Mozambique (“The Train of Salt...
- 10/12/2019
- by Tambay Obenson
- Indiewire
The post-war romance picked up two awards.
Marcus H. Rosenmuller’s The Keeper, about acclaimed German prisoner of war-turned-footballer Bert Trautmann and his romance with an English woman, won the Golden Hitchcock for best film at the Dinard Film Festival on Saturday, September 28.
The film also picked up the audience award at the festival, which showcases UK films to French audiences.
The Keeper is produced by Chris Curling for Zephyr Films, Steve Milne for British Film Company (both UK operations), and Robert Marciniak for Germany’s Lieblingsfilm.
It tells the story of Bert Trautmann, a German prisoner of war in...
Marcus H. Rosenmuller’s The Keeper, about acclaimed German prisoner of war-turned-footballer Bert Trautmann and his romance with an English woman, won the Golden Hitchcock for best film at the Dinard Film Festival on Saturday, September 28.
The film also picked up the audience award at the festival, which showcases UK films to French audiences.
The Keeper is produced by Chris Curling for Zephyr Films, Steve Milne for British Film Company (both UK operations), and Robert Marciniak for Germany’s Lieblingsfilm.
It tells the story of Bert Trautmann, a German prisoner of war in...
- 9/30/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Films about young Africans trying to fulfill their dreams in the face of war, poverty, tradition and other forms of adversity have been submitted for Oscar consideration by three East African nations.
The selections by Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda to compete in the international feature film category reflect the relative youth of filmmaking in the region, which has never received an Academy Award nomination.
Ethiopia has chosen Jan Philipp Weyl’s “Running Against the Wind,” the story of two brothers whose lives take very different paths when they decide to follow their dreams – one to become an Olympic runner, the other a photographer. It features a cameo by gold medal-winning distance runner Haile Gebrselassie.
Shot in Ethiopia’s native language, Amharic, which Weyl speaks, the movie is an Ethiopian-German Co-Production produced by Negarit Film Academy & Productions and AC Independent Film in association with R&b Film. It’s Ethiopia’s...
The selections by Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda to compete in the international feature film category reflect the relative youth of filmmaking in the region, which has never received an Academy Award nomination.
Ethiopia has chosen Jan Philipp Weyl’s “Running Against the Wind,” the story of two brothers whose lives take very different paths when they decide to follow their dreams – one to become an Olympic runner, the other a photographer. It features a cameo by gold medal-winning distance runner Haile Gebrselassie.
Shot in Ethiopia’s native language, Amharic, which Weyl speaks, the movie is an Ethiopian-German Co-Production produced by Negarit Film Academy & Productions and AC Independent Film in association with R&b Film. It’s Ethiopia’s...
- 9/17/2019
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Keira Knightley as “Katharine Gun” in Gavin Hood’s Official Secrets. Photo credit: Nick Wall. Courtesy of IFC Films. An IFC Films Release.
Keira Knightley takes a break from period costumes to star in the true-story based political thriller Official Secrets, about a British intelligence specialist turns whistle-blower in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq.
South African writer/director Gavin Hood has built a reputation for thoughtful dramas focused on timely topics with ethical complexities, starting with the Oscar-winning Tsotsi. Hood has also directed action films like X_MEN Origins: Wolverine but he has recently offered up drama with serious subjects but featuring big enough stars to get the subject wide audience attention. In the Helen Mirren-starring Eye In The Sky, Hood spotlighted the complex human and ethical issues underlying drone strikes. This time Hood focuses on the case of a British intelligence analyst who decided the public...
Keira Knightley takes a break from period costumes to star in the true-story based political thriller Official Secrets, about a British intelligence specialist turns whistle-blower in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq.
South African writer/director Gavin Hood has built a reputation for thoughtful dramas focused on timely topics with ethical complexities, starting with the Oscar-winning Tsotsi. Hood has also directed action films like X_MEN Origins: Wolverine but he has recently offered up drama with serious subjects but featuring big enough stars to get the subject wide audience attention. In the Helen Mirren-starring Eye In The Sky, Hood spotlighted the complex human and ethical issues underlying drone strikes. This time Hood focuses on the case of a British intelligence analyst who decided the public...
- 9/13/2019
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Updated with additional titles: A pair of premieres brought in solid numbers the weekend after the Labor day holiday and amidst the hustle and bustle of the Toronto International Film Festival. Oscilloscope Laboratories latest family drama Ms. Purple from filmmaker Justin Chon managed to bring in solid numbers with its exclusive single theater bow at Los Angeles’ the Nuart. The Sundance favorite and follow up to Chon’s critically acclaimed Gook netted an estimated weekend debut of $18,650, which is NuArt’s best opening in over a year and second-best opening in five years. The film will expand next weekend to the Quad in New York as well as more L.A. Locations.
Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman documentary Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice hit a high note with its debut. The docu from Greenwich Entertainment and 1091 which chronicles the life of the iconic singer opened in seven locations across New York,...
Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman documentary Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice hit a high note with its debut. The docu from Greenwich Entertainment and 1091 which chronicles the life of the iconic singer opened in seven locations across New York,...
- 9/8/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
From “Doctor Who” to “The Crown,” Matt Smith has enjoyed an enviable career on the small screen. But he makes a powerful impression on the big screen in Gavin Hood’s “Official Secrets,” where he plays real-life English whistleblowing reporter Martin Bright. “Official Secrets,” which is currently expanding throughout the U.S., also stars Keira Knightley as British intelligence whiz Katharine Gun who, in the lead-up to the Iraq War, leaked damning intel on Britain’s attempt to blackmail U.N. council members into voting in favor of the invasion.
In dealing with the still-unspooling fallout of the Iraq War, “Official Secrets” takes audiences to an uncomfortable and all-too-recent place that most generations will remember acutely. “In our recent history, there’s a lot we can be proud of and a great deal we are ashamed of as well,” Smith told IndieWire in a recent phone interview. “Whatever your take on this movie,...
In dealing with the still-unspooling fallout of the Iraq War, “Official Secrets” takes audiences to an uncomfortable and all-too-recent place that most generations will remember acutely. “In our recent history, there’s a lot we can be proud of and a great deal we are ashamed of as well,” Smith told IndieWire in a recent phone interview. “Whatever your take on this movie,...
- 9/7/2019
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.