When it comes to storytelling, it’s often said that the journey matters more than the destination, and that’s why I think ergodic fiction is so satisfying to read. Exemplified by narrative puzzles like Ryan Hughes’ Xx and Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves, these intricately crafted tales are defined by an intentional difficulty in actually figuring out what’s going on in the story – effectively making the reading itself a part of the creative process.
Unfortunately, when it comes to movies, studio expectations mean that ergodic filmmaking isn’t exactly a hot commodity, with most productions preferring to bet on conventional screenplays with easily understandable stories rather than anything that might turn off potential moviegoers. This isn’t always the case, however, and a great example of a filmmaker attempting to use ergodic storytelling elements on the big screen is David Robert Mitchell’s underrated conspiracy thriller,...
Unfortunately, when it comes to movies, studio expectations mean that ergodic filmmaking isn’t exactly a hot commodity, with most productions preferring to bet on conventional screenplays with easily understandable stories rather than anything that might turn off potential moviegoers. This isn’t always the case, however, and a great example of a filmmaker attempting to use ergodic storytelling elements on the big screen is David Robert Mitchell’s underrated conspiracy thriller,...
- 2/23/2024
- by Luiz H. C.
- bloody-disgusting.com
Vince Staples, the young and talented American rapper and singer, has been making waves in the music industry with his unique style and thought-provoking lyrics. Born Vincent Jamal Staples on July 2, 1993, in Compton, California, he later moved to North Long Beach to escape the high crime rates of his hometown. Growing up in poverty, Staples found solace in music and sports, ultimately paving the way for his successful career in the entertainment industry.
Staples had a challenging upbringing, but he found refuge in academics and extracurricular activities. He attended Optimal Christian Academy during his formative years, where he had a positive and influential experience. However, he moved around frequently, attending several high schools in different cities, such as Jordan High School in Long Beach, Mayfair High School in Lakewood, and Esperanza High School in Anaheim. Staples’ involvement with street gangs during his childhood is well-known, but he has since become...
Staples had a challenging upbringing, but he found refuge in academics and extracurricular activities. He attended Optimal Christian Academy during his formative years, where he had a positive and influential experience. However, he moved around frequently, attending several high schools in different cities, such as Jordan High School in Long Beach, Mayfair High School in Lakewood, and Esperanza High School in Anaheim. Staples’ involvement with street gangs during his childhood is well-known, but he has since become...
- 2/13/2024
- by Penelope H. Fritz
- Martin Cid Music
Life in the wilderness––breathing in the mountain air, basking in the sun, and foraging for the perfect meal––can also be punishing and unforgiving. Particularly if you are a Sasquatch family. This simple premise is the foundation of David and Nathan Zellner’s most experimental gamble yet, Sasquatch Sunset, which captures a year in the Sasquatch way of life. Set in the vast expanse of Northern California––not far from where the infamous Patterson–Gimlin film was shot––we witness the circle of life for these creatures in all their birth, playfulness, territorial drive, fornication, and death. The result is almost exactly what one may expect from the logline––with perhaps a bit more bodily fluids and Sasquatch phalluses––and while it’s impressive that the Zellners stay steadfast in their conceit, one wishes the overall effect added up to something with a bit more impact.
As portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg,...
As portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg,...
- 1/22/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Cinephiles tend to be reluctant to call a new movie a favorite, instead favoring tried and true paradigms, but It Follows is a rare contemporary film that immediately struck a wide swath of viewers — myself included — as a modern classic upon its release in 2014. Comfortingly familiar yet invigoratingly fresh, I’ve only come to appreciate it more since, and Second Sight Films’ new 4K Ultra HD edition proves it hasn’t lost any staying power after nearly a decade.
The plot is deceptively simple: after a sexual encounter, 19-year-old Jay begins being followed by… something. The supernatural force takes a human form but never sticks to one for long; it could be a familiar face, an obscene stranger, or anyone in between. The only recourse seems to be passing it on to someone else via sexual intercourse. Otherwise, it will kill her, then the person who gave it to her,...
The plot is deceptively simple: after a sexual encounter, 19-year-old Jay begins being followed by… something. The supernatural force takes a human form but never sticks to one for long; it could be a familiar face, an obscene stranger, or anyone in between. The only recourse seems to be passing it on to someone else via sexual intercourse. Otherwise, it will kill her, then the person who gave it to her,...
- 10/2/2023
- by Alex DiVincenzo
- bloody-disgusting.com
Care Failure, lead singer of Toronto-based alt-rock band Die Mannequin, has passed away at the age of 36.
On March 31, the Toronto Star published an obituary for the singer and guitarist, whose real name was Caroline Kawa.
“She consistently sought to see the best of the human spirit in all she came across. May we continue to see the best in each other in her memory. May her spirit now soar free of pain,” reads the obituary, which adds that donations can be made in her name to MusiCares.
Read More: Steve Mackey, Bassist For Rock Band Pulp, Dead At 56
Members of Canada’s music and media communities have been taking to social media to pay tribute.
So much respect and admiration for Care Failure @diemannequin The Best Of The Best Forever Donations can be made to honour Care at @MusiCares https://t.co/PvsUaTMdwu https://t.co/m2gQBuICQE pic.
On March 31, the Toronto Star published an obituary for the singer and guitarist, whose real name was Caroline Kawa.
“She consistently sought to see the best of the human spirit in all she came across. May we continue to see the best in each other in her memory. May her spirit now soar free of pain,” reads the obituary, which adds that donations can be made in her name to MusiCares.
Read More: Steve Mackey, Bassist For Rock Band Pulp, Dead At 56
Members of Canada’s music and media communities have been taking to social media to pay tribute.
So much respect and admiration for Care Failure @diemannequin The Best Of The Best Forever Donations can be made to honour Care at @MusiCares https://t.co/PvsUaTMdwu https://t.co/m2gQBuICQE pic.
- 3/31/2023
- by Brent Furdyk
- ET Canada
Though he's only directed three films, Jordan Peele's cineliterate, socially conscious horror movies yield myriad Easter eggs and sometimes call attention to his influences outright. In "Nope," for instance, there's a motorcycle slide that had many "Akira" fans nodding along, thinking, "I understood that reference". The original "Akira" motorcycle was actually inspired by "Tron," so it's as if Peele and his forebears just have their arms linked in a "4,000-mile-long chain" of film homages à la the Hands Across America commercial in "Us."
Like the movie brats of the 1970s, the Oscar-winning "Get Out" writer and director is part of a continuum of auteurs who wear their hyper-referentiality as a badge of honor. Art begets art, and Peele begets "Jaws" references. Steven Spielberg's 1975 film gave rise to a new kind of spectacle, the summer blockbuster, so it should come as no surprise that — as Peele goes into blockbuster...
Like the movie brats of the 1970s, the Oscar-winning "Get Out" writer and director is part of a continuum of auteurs who wear their hyper-referentiality as a badge of honor. Art begets art, and Peele begets "Jaws" references. Steven Spielberg's 1975 film gave rise to a new kind of spectacle, the summer blockbuster, so it should come as no surprise that — as Peele goes into blockbuster...
- 9/9/2022
- by Joshua Meyer
- Slash Film
On face value, “Better Call Saul” and “Breaking Bad” Dp Marshall Adams might seem like an unusual choice to shoot episodes of M. Night Shyamalan’s Apple TV+ hit “Servant,” the tightly coiled psychological thriller set mostly in a single location. But that’s not how Shyamalan, the show’s executive producer, saw it. Known for his character-driven horror films that insinuate but rarely explain, Shyamalan, along with creator Tony Basgallop and a rotating team of directors and cinematographers, has successfully translated his (as Adams describes it) “super-contained, film noir” visual style into 20 cohesive half-hour television episodes across two seasons (with a third in the works).
To sustain the tension and energy across so many chapters, however, required more than a compelling visual approach: tight writing, powerful performances, and subtle shifts in perspective all play a role. And Adams’ expressive cinematography for the past five seasons of “Saul,” where camera...
To sustain the tension and energy across so many chapters, however, required more than a compelling visual approach: tight writing, powerful performances, and subtle shifts in perspective all play a role. And Adams’ expressive cinematography for the past five seasons of “Saul,” where camera...
- 8/25/2021
- by Beth Marchant
- Indiewire
M. Night Shyamalan’s “Old” is a family affair, at least behind the scenes.
The film follows a group of tourists staying at a luxury resort who discover that the secluded beach where they are relaxing causes them to rapidly age. At one point, Maddox — the character played by Alexa Swinton and Thomasin McKenzie — sings a song in the film, titled “Remain.” The song was written by Shyamalan’s daughter, Saleka Shyamalan, a singer and songwriter.
The second unit director of the film is his other daughter, Ishana Shyamalan, a recent graduate of New York University. The two had previously collaborated on Shyamalan’s Apple TV Plus series, “Servant.”
Below, she talks about working with her father, learning from him and growing up watching horror films.
How did this job come about for you?
It happened randomly. I was doing work on “Servant,” and he pitched it to me far in advance.
The film follows a group of tourists staying at a luxury resort who discover that the secluded beach where they are relaxing causes them to rapidly age. At one point, Maddox — the character played by Alexa Swinton and Thomasin McKenzie — sings a song in the film, titled “Remain.” The song was written by Shyamalan’s daughter, Saleka Shyamalan, a singer and songwriter.
The second unit director of the film is his other daughter, Ishana Shyamalan, a recent graduate of New York University. The two had previously collaborated on Shyamalan’s Apple TV Plus series, “Servant.”
Below, she talks about working with her father, learning from him and growing up watching horror films.
How did this job come about for you?
It happened randomly. I was doing work on “Servant,” and he pitched it to me far in advance.
- 7/24/2021
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
When it comes to the modern Masters of Horror, I think it’s safe to say that M. Night Shyamalan is easily one of the most debated purveyors of genre fare. To this writer, what that indicates is that Shyamalan isn’t a storyteller looking to make movies that easily fit into widely accepted narrative structures adopted by so many others, which is why I think he can be a challenging filmmaker for some viewers to really get into. Personally, I’ll take a director that takes risks and continually challenges themselves any day of the week over a director that plays it safe and sticks to a tried-and-true formula. That being said, Old is certainly going to be another divisive film from Shyamalan that may alienate some and frustrate others, due to the film’s frenetic pacing and storytelling structure as well as how the performances are staged here.
- 7/23/2021
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Old, the latest thriller from horror auteur M. Night Shyamalan, follows a family vacationing at a luxurious tropical resort. The parents (Gael García Bernal and Vicky Krieps) have loud fights over marital and medical troubles that their children bear but don’t understand. They take a day trip to a remote beach, an environment which has the mysterious effect of rapidly aging them—about the rate of a year per half-hour. In turn, the group of strangers succumb to the ravages of time, unable to leave the beach without blacking out.
But you would have gotten all this information from the trailer, which so thoroughly introduces the conceit—and shows us many of its more troubling repercussions—that even a pedestrian knowledge of medicine makes the outcomes easy to predict. That said, the film moves at such a breakneck pace that any viewer will have very little time to guess.
But you would have gotten all this information from the trailer, which so thoroughly introduces the conceit—and shows us many of its more troubling repercussions—that even a pedestrian knowledge of medicine makes the outcomes easy to predict. That said, the film moves at such a breakneck pace that any viewer will have very little time to guess.
- 7/22/2021
- by Gabrielle Marceau
- The Film Stage
After winning Best Picture earlier this year with Nomadland, Searchlight Pictures have quite a slate lined up this fall including Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch and Guillermo del Toro’s Nightmare Alley, but first out of the gate will be The Eyes of Tammy Faye. Directed by Michael Showalter (The Big Sick), the film follows Jessica Chastain and Andrew Garfield as televangelists Tammy Faye Bakker and Jim Bakker, respectively. Ahead of a September release, the first trailer has arrived.
“I just was so blown away by her and her story,” Chastain told People regarding her character, who passed away at the age of 65 after a bout with cancer. “The thing I loved the most about Tammy is her capacity to love. She knew what it felt like to not feel important, and she didn’t want anyone to experience that.” With a cast also including Cherry Jones and Vincent D’Onofrio,...
“I just was so blown away by her and her story,” Chastain told People regarding her character, who passed away at the age of 65 after a bout with cancer. “The thing I loved the most about Tammy is her capacity to love. She knew what it felt like to not feel important, and she didn’t want anyone to experience that.” With a cast also including Cherry Jones and Vincent D’Onofrio,...
- 6/9/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
A family vacation spirals into a surreal, time-bending nightmare in M. Night Shyamalan’s “Old,” the Academy Award-nominated director’s latest psychological horror film. He directs Gael García Bernal and Vicky Krieps as parents of a brood of children who appear to be aging rapidly for no explicable reason. Watch the latest trailer below for the film, which Universal Pictures opens on July 23.
Inspired by the Pierre Oscar Lévy and Frederik Peeters’ graphic novel “Sandcastle,” “Old” is M. Night Shyamalan’s first film 2019’s “Glass,” which was the followup to 2016’s “Split.” The source material behind “Old” tells an existential horror story about mysterious and rapid aging occurring on a beach, where a group of tourists seem unable to leave.
Shyamalan has assembled a vast international cast which, along with Bernal and “Phantom Thread” breakout Krieps, includes Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Alex Wolff, Vicky Abbey Lee, Embeth Davidtz,...
Inspired by the Pierre Oscar Lévy and Frederik Peeters’ graphic novel “Sandcastle,” “Old” is M. Night Shyamalan’s first film 2019’s “Glass,” which was the followup to 2016’s “Split.” The source material behind “Old” tells an existential horror story about mysterious and rapid aging occurring on a beach, where a group of tourists seem unable to leave.
Shyamalan has assembled a vast international cast which, along with Bernal and “Phantom Thread” breakout Krieps, includes Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Alex Wolff, Vicky Abbey Lee, Embeth Davidtz,...
- 5/27/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
M. Night Shyamalan served up a first trailer for his upcoming thriller “Old,” his latest film since 2019’s “Glass,” during the Super Bowl game on Sunday. Inspired by the Pierre Oscar Lévy and Frederik Peeters’ graphic novel “Sandcastle,” “Old” is set to be released on July 23 from Universal Pictures.
The source material tells an existential horror story about mysterious and rapid aging occurring on a beach, where a group of tourists seem unable to leave. Shyamalan has assembled a great international cast, including Gael García Bernal, Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Alex Wolff, Vicky Krieps, Abbey Lee, Embeth Davidtz, and Rufus Sewell. The film shot around the Dominican Republic (a first for Shyamalan), and was originally set to release February 26 before the pandemic led to a delay.
As details trickle in for the plot, here’s the “Sandcastle” synopsis, courtesy of Booklist:
By a tidal pool near a small...
The source material tells an existential horror story about mysterious and rapid aging occurring on a beach, where a group of tourists seem unable to leave. Shyamalan has assembled a great international cast, including Gael García Bernal, Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Alex Wolff, Vicky Krieps, Abbey Lee, Embeth Davidtz, and Rufus Sewell. The film shot around the Dominican Republic (a first for Shyamalan), and was originally set to release February 26 before the pandemic led to a delay.
As details trickle in for the plot, here’s the “Sandcastle” synopsis, courtesy of Booklist:
By a tidal pool near a small...
- 2/7/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
This year has already featured some standout work when it comes to cinematography. From the nerve-wracking shadows of Jordan Peele’s “Us” (Mike Gioulakis) to the vibrant 35mm photography of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, 2019 has been a visual knockout at the movies and things are only set to get more eye-popping as the fall movie season begins. From major Hollywood tentpoles like “Doctor Sleep,” “1917,” and “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” to indie awards hopefuls such as “Jojo Rabbit” and “Uncut Gems” and foreign titles “Parasite” and “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” there is an overwhelming amount of visually-appealing cinema set to hit fall festivals and movie theaters this season. Even better, the fall awards season marks the return of such cinematography heavyweights as Roger Deakins, Rachel Morrison, Darius Khondji, Hoyte van Hoytema, and more.
As the fall awards season gets started with the major festivals,...
As the fall awards season gets started with the major festivals,...
- 8/28/2019
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
In Jordan Peele’s Us, a middle class family returns home from a day at the beach to find themselves under siege by murderous doppelgängers clad in red jumpsuits and wielding scissors. Instead of leaning primarily on face replacements, compositing and other post production tricks, cinematographer Mike Gioulakis emphasized clever camera placement and the use of doubles to create the illusion of Lupita Nyong’o and her clan battling their alter egos. With Us hitting Blu-ray and other home entertainment platforms last week, Gioulakis walked Filmmaker through some of the film’s most memorable shots. Filmmaker: Since we spoke for It Follows, you’ve shot two M. Night […]...
- 6/24/2019
- by Matt Mulcahey
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
In Jordan Peele’s Us, a middle class family returns home from a day at the beach to find themselves under siege by murderous doppelgängers clad in red jumpsuits and wielding scissors. Instead of leaning primarily on face replacements, compositing and other post production tricks, cinematographer Mike Gioulakis emphasized clever camera placement and the use of doubles to create the illusion of Lupita Nyong’o and her clan battling their alter egos. With Us hitting Blu-ray and other home entertainment platforms last week, Gioulakis walked Filmmaker through some of the film’s most memorable shots. Filmmaker: Since we spoke for It Follows, you’ve shot two M. Night […]...
- 6/24/2019
- by Matt Mulcahey
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Filmmaker David Robert Mitchell blew me away a few years ago with his sophomore feature It Follows. That made anticipation high for his follow up, which turned out to be the noir crime dramedy Under the Silver Lake. Making its debut last year at the Cannes Film Festival, the movie was met with a mixed reception, which led to a release delay by A24. Now, almost twelve months later, the film finally hits theaters this week. Under the Silver Lake may have puzzled audiences and pundits in the south of France back in 2018, but here in 2019 I’m a big fan. It’s unique and unlike anything else out in the cinematic world. Under the Silver Lake is a mystery set within a slightly off center version of Los Angeles. A plot synopsis is hard to do, and sort of besides the point here. The joy is in the discovery.
- 4/17/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Us movie review is here. Written and directed by comedian-turned-horror-maestro Jordan Peele (brilliantly thought provoking Oscar winner for best original screenplay Get Out - his debut). Starring Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan Alex, Elisabeth Moss, and Tim Heidecker, the movie has opened with rave reviews in America. Us hits the Indian screens this Friday ? 29?th March 2019. Is Us worth the hype, let?s find out in Us movie review.
Immediate reaction when the end credits of Us roll
Us is beyond any doubt a modern day horror classic, the genius of Jordan Peele in this historic event in American mainstream horror cinema that witnesses a nucleus of African-American characters, is such an uncanny horror movie that tempts you to have multiple viewings. Repeated haunts are guaranteed for those who make a revisit and every visit promises a new revelation.
(Also read:?Kesari Movie Review: A roaring tale of extraordinary bravery,...
Immediate reaction when the end credits of Us roll
Us is beyond any doubt a modern day horror classic, the genius of Jordan Peele in this historic event in American mainstream horror cinema that witnesses a nucleus of African-American characters, is such an uncanny horror movie that tempts you to have multiple viewings. Repeated haunts are guaranteed for those who make a revisit and every visit promises a new revelation.
(Also read:?Kesari Movie Review: A roaring tale of extraordinary bravery,...
- 3/26/2019
- GlamSham
"Once upon a time there was a girl, and she had a shadow."It’s 1987: a child version of Lupita Nyong’o’s Adelaide (played by Madison Currie) watches a commercial for then-President Ronald Reagan’s racial tension appeasement stunt known as the “Hands Across America” initiative. Like the beginning of Gaspar Noé’s Climax, the TV set is flanked by rows of VHS tapes that make transparent the film’s influences: A Nightmare on Elm Street, C.H.U.D, The Goonies. Adelaide here sees her reflection upon the saturated blue skies of the broadcast, then again in more disturbing circumstances towards the end of this prologue, in the fun-house mirrors of a beachside carnival. In both cases, there is something discomfiting about the act of self-confrontation.So begins Jordan Peele’s intrepid new horror picture, Us. Though bedazzled with nods to the great American suspense films, Peele...
- 3/25/2019
- MUBI
Not that anyone expected it, but Jordan Peele did not suffer a sophomore slump here. After making a highly praised and Oscar winning debut with Get Out, he’s back with another horror outing in Us. The success of the former was no fluke, ladies in gentlemen, as the latter is the real deal. At the same time, can a film be wildly overpraised and also be rather terrific? In this case, that’s what I found Us to be. Despite not sticking the landing, Peele shows us he’s an emerging genre master. The Academy Award chatter can wait for another day, but hitting release today, Us is a jolt of thought provoking horror. Us is a horror/thriller, though one with a lot on its mind. After an introduction to Adelaide Wilson as a child during a formative moment, we meet her again in the present day. Adelaide...
- 3/22/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Stars: Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Elisabeth Moss, Tim Heidecker, Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan Alex, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Anna Diop, Cali Sheldon, Noelle Sheldon, Madison Curry, Ashley Mckoy, Napiera Groves, Lon Gowan | Written and Directed by Jordan Peele
Us is Jordan Peele’s second directorial feature after his highly successful and critical acclaimed Academy Award-winning directorial debut Get Out released in 2016. His latest, and miraculously only second, directing effort undoubtedly cements Peele as a true horror connoisseur in the same vein as Alfred Hitchcock, but to compare the two would be a travesty to the ever-evolving talents of Peele. His latest is a perfect combination of filmmaker evolution and understanding of the genre that he crafts so well, with a screenplay from the writer/director that is outrageously effective with leading actress Lupita Nyong’o putting in possibly the best performance we’ll be honoured to see this year, as...
Us is Jordan Peele’s second directorial feature after his highly successful and critical acclaimed Academy Award-winning directorial debut Get Out released in 2016. His latest, and miraculously only second, directing effort undoubtedly cements Peele as a true horror connoisseur in the same vein as Alfred Hitchcock, but to compare the two would be a travesty to the ever-evolving talents of Peele. His latest is a perfect combination of filmmaker evolution and understanding of the genre that he crafts so well, with a screenplay from the writer/director that is outrageously effective with leading actress Lupita Nyong’o putting in possibly the best performance we’ll be honoured to see this year, as...
- 3/22/2019
- by Jak-Luke Sharp
- Nerdly
What is the difference between the lines that divide us and connect us? A line can be a form of communication or it can be a separation between two sides. It can be a line in the sand that you can’t cross or it can be a line that connects two points. It’s a word with multiple implications that represents the duality of the very things it connects or divides. In Jordan Peele’s Us, lines and duality are echoed through the inclusion of two ordinary items: mirrors and scissors. One creates a connection between the self and the reflection, the other serves to separate one item from another. And yet, the mirror can break and the reflection splits, and the scissors only function when two halves come together. Like the line, both represent division and connection simultaneously.
Jordan Peele already held a mirror up to the cultured,...
Jordan Peele already held a mirror up to the cultured,...
- 3/22/2019
- by Michael Haffner
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
It’s scary as hell, and that’s just for starters. But Us, the new mesmerizing mindbender from writer-director-producer Jordan Peele, also carries the weight of expectation. Get Out, Peele’s smashing debut from 2017, was a brilliantly caustic satire of race division in America that won Peele an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (he’s the first African-American to triumph in that category) and became a phenom with critics and audiences. How can Peele top that? Short answer: he can’t and doesn’t. In interviews, Peele insists that Us is a straight-up horror show.
- 3/20/2019
- by Peter Travers
- Rollingstone.com
David Robert Mitchell's Under the Silver Lake (2018) is having its exclusive online premiere on Mubi in the United Kingdom. It is showing from March 15 - April 13, 2019.I first saw Under the Silver Lake at its late-night Cannes Film Festival premiere, thinking that would be the logical time for it: sight unseen, the third feature from David Robert Mitchell's radiated the sexy, angular strangeness of a midnight movie in the making. Strange it is, though in a louche, breezy way; it's the stuff of inebriated daydreams rather than outright nightmares. It's as much a midday trip as it is a midnight one: as I emerged from the inappropriately tuxedoed premiere for this rumpled, T-shirted detective odyssey, the film's hazy, zonked afterglow was in a separate dimension from the crisp, inky atmosphere of the Côte d'Azur after dark. Suddenly, the sky outside the Cannes Palais looked wrong: all deep-navy velvet where...
- 3/15/2019
- MUBI
“Us,” Jordan Peele’s second outing as a director, following his 2017 critical and box office success “Get Out,” revisits similar psychological horror-thriller territory. But this time the stakes are, well, doubled.
In the new film, to be released by Universal on March 21, Adelaide Wilson, played by Lupita Nyong’o, returns to her childhood beachside home with her husband (Winston Duke) and their two children (Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex). Suddenly they find themselves clawing to stay alive, as four people who look just like them seem hell-bent on killing them.
The main challenge for the film’s below-the-line team was to keep the story grounded in realism while escalating the horror — and keeping the characters and their doppelgängers well defined.
For production designer Ruth De Jong, “Us” represented a collision of two worlds she previously created: the tragic reality of “Manchester by the Sea” and the strange uneasiness of “Twin Peaks.
In the new film, to be released by Universal on March 21, Adelaide Wilson, played by Lupita Nyong’o, returns to her childhood beachside home with her husband (Winston Duke) and their two children (Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex). Suddenly they find themselves clawing to stay alive, as four people who look just like them seem hell-bent on killing them.
The main challenge for the film’s below-the-line team was to keep the story grounded in realism while escalating the horror — and keeping the characters and their doppelgängers well defined.
For production designer Ruth De Jong, “Us” represented a collision of two worlds she previously created: the tragic reality of “Manchester by the Sea” and the strange uneasiness of “Twin Peaks.
- 3/13/2019
- by Daron James
- Variety Film + TV
Last night, over at the South by Southwest Film Festival, Jordan Peele’s latest movie Us had its first screening. SXSW represents the launching pad for this late March release, which hopes to be as big a critical, cultural, and financial smash as Peele’s debut Get Out turned out to be. Well, at least one part of the equation seems to be taken care of, as the word out of SXSW is that it’s a real winner. I won’t be seeing the flick for another week or two, but judging by the festival word, it’s an early year must see for cinephiles. As a reminder, up until now, the only hints about what this film was about came from the vague plot description. This is that synopsis, via IMDb: “A mother and father take their kids to their beach house, expecting to enjoy time with friends,...
- 3/9/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Jordan Peele's second film, Us, is more horrific and ambitious than Get Out and one of the most evocative horror movies in memory.
Sophomore efforts can be difficult for filmmakers who hit it out of the park the first time. And Jordan Peele did not just bat a home run when he wrote and directed Get Out—the pop culture-seizing and box office-smashing horror film that netted Peele a screenplay Oscar and the attention of every type of moviegoer, from genre to prestige—he hit it into a quarter billion-dollar orbit. Whereas other directors in similar situations would go on to resist trying to expand on the themes of their first effort, Peele uses them as a foundation for something far grander and more audacious in Us.
Keeping his promise that the next film would not technically be about race in America, Peele instead has crafted a horror movie...
Sophomore efforts can be difficult for filmmakers who hit it out of the park the first time. And Jordan Peele did not just bat a home run when he wrote and directed Get Out—the pop culture-seizing and box office-smashing horror film that netted Peele a screenplay Oscar and the attention of every type of moviegoer, from genre to prestige—he hit it into a quarter billion-dollar orbit. Whereas other directors in similar situations would go on to resist trying to expand on the themes of their first effort, Peele uses them as a foundation for something far grander and more audacious in Us.
Keeping his promise that the next film would not technically be about race in America, Peele instead has crafted a horror movie...
- 3/9/2019
- Den of Geek
Not many filmmakers are, in and of themselves, a brand name. To be certain, M. Night Shyamalan is one. You have a certain expectation when you go into one of his movies. Sometimes, he meets them, while at others, he falls well below them. Two years ago, Split was heralded as a return to form for him, while also connecting to one of Shyamalan’s most well regarded previous works, Unbreakable. Well, hitting theaters this week is Glass, the follow up that brings together both of those flicks. Unfortunately, it’s a total letdown and a mess. This is hardly on par with Unbreakable. Sadly, it’s closer to Lady in the Water than anything else, and that’s not a compliment. The film is a follow up to Split, also functioning as a long in the making sequel to Unbreakable. At the outset, David Dunn (Bruce Willis) is on...
- 1/15/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Back on Christmas morning, a cinematic gift was left under the tree for film fans. It was, as you might have guessed, the first Trailer for Jordan Peele’s follow up to his Academy Award winning Get Out. This movie, called Us, shows him again making a unique horror flick, one quite possibly filled to the brim with social commentary and satire. Last time around, his directorial debut won him an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. Whether or not this one does the same remains to be seen, but it’s undeniable that this is one of the movies to most look forward to during the first part of 2019. You can see the Trailer at the end of this post, but first…let’s talk about it a little bit! Up until now, the only hints about what this film was about came from the vague plot description. This is that synopsis,...
- 12/27/2018
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
In his film debut, Duke Nicholson, the grandson of acting legend Jack Nicholson, has joined the supporting cast of “Us,” the new thriller from director and Academy Award-winner Jordan Peele.
He joins a cast that already includes Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Emmy-winner Elisabeth Moss, and Tim Heidecker.
Plot details are being kept under wraps.
The movie is the first project under Peele’s first-look deal with Universal Pictures, which he signed with his Monkeypaw Productions last spring. “Get Out” opened No. 1 at the domestic box office last year on its way to grossing $255.5 million worldwide. It scored glowing reviews and an Oscar best picture nomination, with Peele winning the best original screenplay Academy Award for the thriller.
Peele will write and direct the pic, in addition to producing it for Monkeypaw Productions alongside Sean McKittrick and Jason Blum. Monkeypaw’s Ian Cooper is also producing “Us.”
Universal has already...
He joins a cast that already includes Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Emmy-winner Elisabeth Moss, and Tim Heidecker.
Plot details are being kept under wraps.
The movie is the first project under Peele’s first-look deal with Universal Pictures, which he signed with his Monkeypaw Productions last spring. “Get Out” opened No. 1 at the domestic box office last year on its way to grossing $255.5 million worldwide. It scored glowing reviews and an Oscar best picture nomination, with Peele winning the best original screenplay Academy Award for the thriller.
Peele will write and direct the pic, in addition to producing it for Monkeypaw Productions alongside Sean McKittrick and Jason Blum. Monkeypaw’s Ian Cooper is also producing “Us.”
Universal has already...
- 9/14/2018
- by Justin Kroll
- Variety Film + TV
Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan Alex, Madison Curry, Cali Sheldon, and Noelle Sheldon have rounded out the cast of Jordan Peele’s next film, “Us.”
They join Lupita Nyong’o, Elisabeth Moss, Winston Duke, Tim Heidecker, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Anna Diop in the Universal pic.
The movie is the first project under Peele’s first-look deal with Universal Pictures, which he signed with his Monkeypaw Productions last spring. “Get Out” opened No. 1 at the domestic box office last year on its way to grossing $255.5 million worldwide. It scored glowing reviews and an Oscar best picture nomination, with Peele winning the best original screenplay Academy Award for the thriller.
Peele will write and direct the pic, in addition to producing it for Monkeypaw Productions alongside Sean McKittrick and Jason Blum. Monkeypaw’s Ian Cooper is also producing “Us.”
Universal has already dated the film for March 15, 2019.
Production is currently underway. Peele...
They join Lupita Nyong’o, Elisabeth Moss, Winston Duke, Tim Heidecker, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Anna Diop in the Universal pic.
The movie is the first project under Peele’s first-look deal with Universal Pictures, which he signed with his Monkeypaw Productions last spring. “Get Out” opened No. 1 at the domestic box office last year on its way to grossing $255.5 million worldwide. It scored glowing reviews and an Oscar best picture nomination, with Peele winning the best original screenplay Academy Award for the thriller.
Peele will write and direct the pic, in addition to producing it for Monkeypaw Productions alongside Sean McKittrick and Jason Blum. Monkeypaw’s Ian Cooper is also producing “Us.”
Universal has already dated the film for March 15, 2019.
Production is currently underway. Peele...
- 7/30/2018
- by Justin Kroll
- Variety Film + TV
Jordan Peele’s social thriller Us begins production today with young castmembers Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan Alex, Madison Curry, Cali Sheldon and Noelle Sheldon joining alongside Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Anna Diop. The already announced cast includes Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Elisabeth Moss and Tim Heidecker.
The pic, which Peele also wrote, opens on March 15, 2019. Us will be shot entirely in California with a portion of production occurring on the Universal Studios backlot. Joseph is the voice of the young Nala in Disney’s upcoming live-remake of The Lion King while Mateen can next be seen in Aquaman.
Peele won the best original screenplay Oscar for Get Out. Peele produces through his Monkeypaw Productions, alongside Sean McKittrick and Jason Blum. Also serving in this capacity is Monkeypaw’s Ian Cooper.
The filmmaker is joined by a talented creative team that includes cinematographer Mike Gioulakis, production designer Ruth De Jong,...
The pic, which Peele also wrote, opens on March 15, 2019. Us will be shot entirely in California with a portion of production occurring on the Universal Studios backlot. Joseph is the voice of the young Nala in Disney’s upcoming live-remake of The Lion King while Mateen can next be seen in Aquaman.
Peele won the best original screenplay Oscar for Get Out. Peele produces through his Monkeypaw Productions, alongside Sean McKittrick and Jason Blum. Also serving in this capacity is Monkeypaw’s Ian Cooper.
The filmmaker is joined by a talented creative team that includes cinematographer Mike Gioulakis, production designer Ruth De Jong,...
- 7/30/2018
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Three years after the release of “It Follows,” director David Robert Mitchell is finally ready to return to the big screen. A24 has announced that Mitchell’s neo-noir crime thriller “Under the Silver Lake” will debut in select New York and Los Angeles theaters June 22, followed by a nationwide expansion in the following weeks.
The film stars Andrew Garfield, Riley Keough, and Topher Grace.
The June 2018 release date makes “Under the Silver Lake” a major contender to debut at the Cannes Film Festival. “It Follows” premiered at Cannes in 2014 in the International Critics’ Week sidebar. “Silver Lake” could find Mitchell in the Cannes competition lineup for the first time. A24 took a similar approach with “Good Time” last year. The Safdie Brothers’ film competed for the Palme d’Or last May before opening over the summer in August.
“Under the Silver Lake” currently has no rating from the MPAA. Similar to “It Follows,...
The film stars Andrew Garfield, Riley Keough, and Topher Grace.
The June 2018 release date makes “Under the Silver Lake” a major contender to debut at the Cannes Film Festival. “It Follows” premiered at Cannes in 2014 in the International Critics’ Week sidebar. “Silver Lake” could find Mitchell in the Cannes competition lineup for the first time. A24 took a similar approach with “Good Time” last year. The Safdie Brothers’ film competed for the Palme d’Or last May before opening over the summer in August.
“Under the Silver Lake” currently has no rating from the MPAA. Similar to “It Follows,...
- 3/1/2018
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Below is a strictly personal, unapologetically idiosyncratic list of the twenty films I'm most looking forward to in 2018 and which have so far yet to be seen by any paying audiences. Among those seriously considered but ultimately excluded on the basis that they're more likely to be ready next year are Ad Astra (James Gray), Blessed Virgin (Paul Verhoeven), The Fire Next Time (Mati Diop), Late Spring (Michelangelo Frammartino), the particularly-dynamite-on-paper Martin Eden (Pietro Marcello), Mektoub, My Love: Canto Due (Abdellatif Kechiche) and Motorboats (Yuri Ancarani). I also reluctantly discarded a couple of highly tantalising projects whose status, at the time of writing, was frustratingly unclear, namely Tijuana Bible (Jean-Charles Hue) and the worryingly long-in-gestation You Can't Win (Robinson Devor). Omitted because they're made primarily for TV rather than cinemas: Martin Scorsese's The Irishman (Netflix) and Bruno Dumont's Coincoin and the Extra-Humans (Arté). Finally, Joanna Hogg's The Souvenir: Part I...
- 1/16/2018
- MUBI
The Beast can awaken in your living room, as Universal Pictures Home Entertainment will unleash M. Night Shyamalan's Split on Digital HD on April 4th, followed by a Blu-ray, DVD, and VOD release on April 18th, with special features including an alternate ending and deleted scenes.
Press Release: Universal City, California, March 1, 2017 – Writer and Director M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, The Visit) delivers his most gripping film yet with Split, an original psychological thriller available on Digital HD on April 4, 2017 and on Blu-ray™, DVD and On Demand on April 18, 2017, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Jason Blum (Insidious, Ouija, The Visit, The Purge series) returns to collaborate with Shyamalan in the box-office hit, starring James McAvoy (X-Men: Apocalypse, Victor Frankenstein). The frightening thriller Split delves into the mysterious depths of one man’s fractured mind as a terror unlike the world has seen prepares to be unleashed.
Press Release: Universal City, California, March 1, 2017 – Writer and Director M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, The Visit) delivers his most gripping film yet with Split, an original psychological thriller available on Digital HD on April 4, 2017 and on Blu-ray™, DVD and On Demand on April 18, 2017, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Jason Blum (Insidious, Ouija, The Visit, The Purge series) returns to collaborate with Shyamalan in the box-office hit, starring James McAvoy (X-Men: Apocalypse, Victor Frankenstein). The frightening thriller Split delves into the mysterious depths of one man’s fractured mind as a terror unlike the world has seen prepares to be unleashed.
- 3/1/2017
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
In Mike Ott’s California Dreams (which I reviewed here), five aspiring actors are shown giving auditions and later acting out scenes in a film-within-the-film. Although this nested film is supposed to be a fiction, and also looks like one thanks to the gorgeous work of cinematographer Mike Gioulakis, the script is drawn – or appears to be drawn – directly from the actors’ biographies. One of the fascinating aspects of California Dreams is that Ott never allows you to know for certain how much is real and how much is fabricated. It was therefore a pleasure to be able to […]...
- 2/15/2017
- by Giovanni Marchini Camia
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
From The Sixth Sense (1999) onward, writer-director M. Night Shyamalan has been popularly and critically typecast as the champion of “plot twists.” This label probably plays into the unusually intensive scrutiny undergone by his films. Specifically, the scrutiny likely stems from Shyamalan’s tendency to design narratives around the selective doling out of information, which lends itself to unusually plot-focused viewing. There is something to be said for the fact that a plot twist, on some level, deceives its viewers, leading them to believe something before abruptly unfurling that belief. Reviewing his latest film Split, I would like to mostly dispense with this emphasis on “twists.” By stressing one specific element of his storytelling process, one runs the risk of neglecting to address his commitment to storytelling itself. That is, it’s worth noting that Shyamalan sees cathartic possibilities (often profoundly affirming ones) embedded in the very notion of story. Take,...
- 1/22/2017
- MUBI
At last, M. Night Shyamalan has decided to let his freak flag fly, and made the sort of unapologetic B-movie one always suspected he had pent up inside of him; it swerves from dark comedy to 1970s-esque psycho-horror as the irresistibly preposterous script struggles for attention against a delirious lead performance by James McAvoy. Split is funnier, campier, and more freewheeling than anything its writer-director has done—slightly overlong, but reminiscent of Brian De Palma films like The Fury and Femme Fatale in its refusal to be boring. Shyamalan pulls out one ingenious camera move after another with the help of Michael Gioulakis, the cinematographer of It Follows, echoing Split’s subterranean setting and subconscious concerns through creative and formalist thrills. Self-reflexive, maybe even therapeutic, it twists the themes of fate and trauma that have been his stock-in-trade since The Sixth Sense into a very entertaining genre exercise—some of...
- 1/19/2017
- by Ignatiy Vishnevetsky
- avclub.com
Photo by Donnacha Kenny"Congratulations, Tom; you're one of the lucky eight per cent!" —Stir of Echoes (1999)Joliet, Illinois is probably the American city which more people have dreamed more fervently of escaping than any other. But after spending four hours in 'Prison Town'—long synonymous far and wide with incarceration—I was sad to leave; I'll be glad one day to return. Fortunately, such matters are questions of personal choice. Many of the area's residents, including those not serving custodial sentences, have little realistic option but to remain—trapped by personal, social and/or economic circumstances that can feel as confining as any 6-by-8 cell. "Joliet, or "J-Town", is racially diverse and is known as a crime-ridden city, although the area has shown much improvement since the 1990's... The east side is generally known as the ghetto side and the west side is known as middle class, even though...
- 2/29/2016
- by Neil Young
- MUBI
Yay! My favorite film of 2015 was the big winner at the recently concluded Film Independent Spirit Awards taking home the best feature, director (Tom McCarthy), screenplay, and editing. It was previously announced that the film was the winner of the prestigious Robert Altman Award (ensemble) as well.
Oh and kudos to the Film Independent Spirit Awards for bestowing their Best Supporting Actress Award to Mya Taylor for "Tangerine!" Taylor becomes the first transgender performer to receive major acting award! See her acceptance speech right here.
Let's see if this will continue with tonight's Oscars. See my full Oscar predictions right here.
Here's the complete list of winners of the Film Independent Spirit Awards:
Best Feature
Award given to the Producer; Executive Producers are not awarded.
"Anomalisa"
"Beasts of No Nation"
"Carol"
*** "Spotlight" (Winner)
"Tangerine"
Best Director
Cary Joji Fukunaga, "Beasts of No Nation"
Charlie Kaufman & Duke Johnson, "Anomalisa"
David Robert Mitchell,...
Oh and kudos to the Film Independent Spirit Awards for bestowing their Best Supporting Actress Award to Mya Taylor for "Tangerine!" Taylor becomes the first transgender performer to receive major acting award! See her acceptance speech right here.
Let's see if this will continue with tonight's Oscars. See my full Oscar predictions right here.
Here's the complete list of winners of the Film Independent Spirit Awards:
Best Feature
Award given to the Producer; Executive Producers are not awarded.
"Anomalisa"
"Beasts of No Nation"
"Carol"
*** "Spotlight" (Winner)
"Tangerine"
Best Director
Cary Joji Fukunaga, "Beasts of No Nation"
Charlie Kaufman & Duke Johnson, "Anomalisa"
David Robert Mitchell,...
- 2/28/2016
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
The 31st Independent Spirt Awards took place this Saturday, February 27 with the fiendishly talented and hilarious Kate McKinnon & Kumail Nanjiani co-hosting the event. Take a look at their parody of one of this year’s best films Room below. The show, as in years past, aligned with the Academy Awards in some moments, but also served to do what the Oscars can’t, or won’t in others. Perhaps that’s just as it should be. Brie Larson won for Best Female Lead for Room, and is very likely to win the Academy Award for Best Actress tomorrow night. However, Spotlight, which won Best Feature, Director, and Screenplay at the Spirit Awards is in a three way race with The Revenant and The Big Short for the top prize at the Oscars. Though it’s likely to take Best Screenplay there as well. Typically, the Academy favors flashier films, so...
- 2/28/2016
- by Roth Cornet
- Hitfix
In the week that saw Brian Golden Davis’ documentary secure a distribution deal with Discovery Communications’ Animal Planet and Lionsgate, the film also left Park City with two top awards.
The Million Dollar Duck won the narrative jury and audience awards for best documentary feature on Thursday night.
Paul Taylor’s Driftwood claimed the juried narrative feature awards while Honey Buddies by Alex Simmons took the audience award.
“Congratulations to all of the filmmakers this year. Outside of winning a Sparky, as a collective they showed us the power of real independent film and how much it enriches our lives,” said Slamdance president and co-founder Peter Baxter.
Audience Awards
Narrative Feature
Honey Buddies, dir Alex Simmons
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir Brian Golden Davis
Jury Awards
Narrative Feature
Driftwood, dir Paul Taylor
Honourable Mention for Acting
Tomas Pais and Edouard Holdener in Hunky Dory, dir Michael Curtis Johnson
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir [link=nm...
The Million Dollar Duck won the narrative jury and audience awards for best documentary feature on Thursday night.
Paul Taylor’s Driftwood claimed the juried narrative feature awards while Honey Buddies by Alex Simmons took the audience award.
“Congratulations to all of the filmmakers this year. Outside of winning a Sparky, as a collective they showed us the power of real independent film and how much it enriches our lives,” said Slamdance president and co-founder Peter Baxter.
Audience Awards
Narrative Feature
Honey Buddies, dir Alex Simmons
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir Brian Golden Davis
Jury Awards
Narrative Feature
Driftwood, dir Paul Taylor
Honourable Mention for Acting
Tomas Pais and Edouard Holdener in Hunky Dory, dir Michael Curtis Johnson
Documentary
The Million Dollar Duck, dir [link=nm...
- 1/29/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
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Our number 10 film of 2015? That'd be the excellent, creepy horror, It Follows...
Over the past few weeks, Den of Geek writers have been voting for their films of the year. In 10th place? The terrific It Follows. Here's why....
10. It Follows
Since it was released near the start of 2015, plenty of people have dissected It Follows. David Robert Mitchell's horror thriller, starring Maika Monroe, seems to have inspired umpteen think pieces - some of which are very good - and has also attracted feedback from Quentin Tarantino, who naturally enough thought he could have done it better.
Maybe he could have done. But for me, what David Robert Mitchell put on the screen caught me completely off guard. Horror rarely manages to get under my skin, but there was something about It Follows that I found desperately unsettling. I still do.
It wasn't the metaphor, either.
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Our number 10 film of 2015? That'd be the excellent, creepy horror, It Follows...
Over the past few weeks, Den of Geek writers have been voting for their films of the year. In 10th place? The terrific It Follows. Here's why....
10. It Follows
Since it was released near the start of 2015, plenty of people have dissected It Follows. David Robert Mitchell's horror thriller, starring Maika Monroe, seems to have inspired umpteen think pieces - some of which are very good - and has also attracted feedback from Quentin Tarantino, who naturally enough thought he could have done it better.
Maybe he could have done. But for me, what David Robert Mitchell put on the screen caught me completely off guard. Horror rarely manages to get under my skin, but there was something about It Follows that I found desperately unsettling. I still do.
It wasn't the metaphor, either.
- 12/22/2015
- by simonbrew
- Den of Geek
Currently up on Filmmaker‘s curated Kickstarter page is Nicole Riegel’s short film, Holler. Readers will remember Riegel from the ’14 25 New Faces list, where I wrote about the screenwriter-turned-director’s military background and its relationship to the tough, character-based scripts she’s made her mark with since. Riegel has assembled a great team, including It Follows Dp Mike Gioulakis, and she’s currently just shy three grand or so of her goal. In this final fundraising stretch Riegel has released a toaster, which you can check out above. And consider supporting her film here at the link.
- 12/2/2015
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Currently up on Filmmaker‘s curated Kickstarter page is Nicole Riegel’s short film, Holler. Readers will remember Riegel from the ’14 25 New Faces list, where I wrote about the screenwriter-turned-director’s military background and its relationship to the tough, character-based scripts she’s made her mark with since. Riegel has assembled a great team, including It Follows Dp Mike Gioulakis, and she’s currently just shy three grand or so of her goal. In this final fundraising stretch Riegel has released a toaster, which you can check out above. And consider supporting her film here at the link.
- 12/2/2015
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Todd Haynes is in the running for best director and both Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara are in contention for best female lead alongside Room’s Brie Larson as Carol earned six 2016 Film Independent Spirit Award nominations in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
Close behind were Spotlight and Beasts Of No Nation on five apiece, followed by indie darling Tangerine and Anomalisa on four each.
Not even a glitch that saw the list of nominees temporarily appear on the Film Independent website prior to the official announcement could spoil what turned out by and large to be a recognition of independent film in its myriad forms.
Besides the more predictable contenders like Carol, Spotlight and Room, there was plenty of love for Tangerine, shot on an iPhone, and Beasts Of No Nation from Netflix, whose day-and-date release (and what that portends) infuriated large swathes of the exhibition sector but has clearly impressed critics.
Magnolia Pictures earned...
Close behind were Spotlight and Beasts Of No Nation on five apiece, followed by indie darling Tangerine and Anomalisa on four each.
Not even a glitch that saw the list of nominees temporarily appear on the Film Independent website prior to the official announcement could spoil what turned out by and large to be a recognition of independent film in its myriad forms.
Besides the more predictable contenders like Carol, Spotlight and Room, there was plenty of love for Tangerine, shot on an iPhone, and Beasts Of No Nation from Netflix, whose day-and-date release (and what that portends) infuriated large swathes of the exhibition sector but has clearly impressed critics.
Magnolia Pictures earned...
- 11/24/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization that produces the Film Independent Spirit Awards, the La Film Festival and Film Independent at Lacma, announced nominations for the 2016 Spirit Awards this morning. Film Independent President Josh Welsh presided over the press conference held at W Hollywood, with actors John Boyega and Elizabeth Olsen presenting the nominations.
Nominees for Best Feature included Anomalisa, Beasts of No Nation, Carol, Spotlight and Tangerine.
“This year’s nominees are a testament to the strength, vitality and diversity of independent, artist-driven filmmaking,” said Film Independent President Josh Welsh. “It’s an astonishingly strong group of films and performances this year and we look forward to celebrating them all at the Spirit Awards.”
Spotlight was selected to receive the Robert Altman Award, which is bestowed upon one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast. The Altman Award was created in 2008 in honor of legendary director Robert Altman...
Nominees for Best Feature included Anomalisa, Beasts of No Nation, Carol, Spotlight and Tangerine.
“This year’s nominees are a testament to the strength, vitality and diversity of independent, artist-driven filmmaking,” said Film Independent President Josh Welsh. “It’s an astonishingly strong group of films and performances this year and we look forward to celebrating them all at the Spirit Awards.”
Spotlight was selected to receive the Robert Altman Award, which is bestowed upon one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast. The Altman Award was created in 2008 in honor of legendary director Robert Altman...
- 11/24/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Todd Haynes' "Carol" is shaping up to be the movie to beat this awards season. Based on Patricia Highsmith's The Price of Salt, the romantic drama stars Cate Blanchett as an older, married woman who is developing some strong feelings towards a seasonal shopgirl played by Rooney Mara. And the actresses may have to prepare their acceptance speeches! "Carol" leads the pack of nominees for the 31st Independent Spirit Awards!
I'm also very happy that "Tangerine" by Sean Baker received 4 nods for Best Feature, Director, Female Lead (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez), and Supporting Female for Mya Taylor. shot mostly on iPhone, this small-budget wonder is truly what the Independent Spirit is all about!
Some of my few gripes are not a whole lot of love for the fantastic "Room" (just screenplay, female lead for Brie Larson, and editing -- what about the awesome child actor Jason Tremblay?), and that...
I'm also very happy that "Tangerine" by Sean Baker received 4 nods for Best Feature, Director, Female Lead (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez), and Supporting Female for Mya Taylor. shot mostly on iPhone, this small-budget wonder is truly what the Independent Spirit is all about!
Some of my few gripes are not a whole lot of love for the fantastic "Room" (just screenplay, female lead for Brie Larson, and editing -- what about the awesome child actor Jason Tremblay?), and that...
- 11/24/2015
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
In its 31st year, the Film Independent Spirt Awards showcase the best that modest (and, occasionally, lower budget) filmmaking has to offer annually. This year, it’s little surprise the the stellar Carol is leading the pack with six nominations, while Spotlight and Beasts of No Nation are close behind with five each. On the actual smaller scale of productions, the iPhone-shot drama Tangerine picked up a heft four nominations, a film that, alongside Anomalisa and the aforementioned titles, rounds out their Best Feature category.
Ahead of a ceremony on Saturday, February 27, 2016 at 5Pm Est, check out the full list of nominations below, which also recognize It Follows, Bone Tomahawk, The End of the Tour, Room, The Mend, James White, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Heaven Knows What, and more.
Best Feature
Award given to the Producer; Executive Producers are not awarded.
“Anomalisa”
“Beasts of No Nation”
“Carol”
“Spotlight...
Ahead of a ceremony on Saturday, February 27, 2016 at 5Pm Est, check out the full list of nominations below, which also recognize It Follows, Bone Tomahawk, The End of the Tour, Room, The Mend, James White, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Heaven Knows What, and more.
Best Feature
Award given to the Producer; Executive Producers are not awarded.
“Anomalisa”
“Beasts of No Nation”
“Carol”
“Spotlight...
- 11/24/2015
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
It shouldn’t be a surprise to any of our readers that we here at PopOptiq love horror movies. All month long we’ve been counting down the 200 greatest horror films ever made alongside our 31 Days of Horror marathon. And every year just before Halloween, our staff bands together to decide what our favourite horror films of the past year are. It’s never an easy feat since we don’t always agree but as with every list, nobody will. That said, here are the 17 best horror films of 2015 according to our writers.
Note: We didn’t bother to list them in any order but we recommend them all!
****
A Christmas Horror Story
A Christmas Horror Story offers five interwoven tales of terror set on Christmas Eve, as executed by three Canadian filmmakers, Grant Harvey, Bret Sullivan and veteran genre producer Steven Hoban making his feature directorial debut. Much like Trick ‘r Treat,...
Note: We didn’t bother to list them in any order but we recommend them all!
****
A Christmas Horror Story
A Christmas Horror Story offers five interwoven tales of terror set on Christmas Eve, as executed by three Canadian filmmakers, Grant Harvey, Bret Sullivan and veteran genre producer Steven Hoban making his feature directorial debut. Much like Trick ‘r Treat,...
- 10/30/2015
- by Ricky Fernandes
- SoundOnSight
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