Cannes — There’s a scene right at the beginning of “Chicuarotes,” Gael García Bernal’s second movie as a director, where Cagalera and Moleteco, two teens from the humble San Gregorio Atlapulco district of Mexico City, board a bus in clown’s makeup, and launch into a clumsy comedic sketch.
Maybe because it’s delivered in San Gregorio Atlapulco argot, their effort to beg some money goes totally ignored.
Then Cagalera pulls out a revolver. The passengers duly cough up money, mobiles. Cagalera and Moleteco escape to the bouncy strains of a Spanish-language version of “I Fought the Law.”
That’s the only way to go, pull out a gun, Cagalera tells Moleteco.
Written by Augusto Mendoza in the slang of San Gregorio, where he grew up – “chicuarotes” refers there to both a type of chili and to hardheaded individuals – the film follows Cagalera and Moleteco’s increasingly desperate attempts...
Maybe because it’s delivered in San Gregorio Atlapulco argot, their effort to beg some money goes totally ignored.
Then Cagalera pulls out a revolver. The passengers duly cough up money, mobiles. Cagalera and Moleteco escape to the bouncy strains of a Spanish-language version of “I Fought the Law.”
That’s the only way to go, pull out a gun, Cagalera tells Moleteco.
Written by Augusto Mendoza in the slang of San Gregorio, where he grew up – “chicuarotes” refers there to both a type of chili and to hardheaded individuals – the film follows Cagalera and Moleteco’s increasingly desperate attempts...
- 5/22/2019
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Gael García Bernal and La Corriente del Golfo, his Mexico City production house launched last year with Diego Luna, have unveiled the poster for “Chicuarotes,” directed by the multi-prized Mexican actor-producer and world premiering in Official Selection at next week’s Cannes Film Festival.
Since García Bernal’s feature debut “Deficit,” selected for Cannes’ Critics’ Week in 2007, he has continued to direct: a segment of “Revolución,” for example, an episode of “Mozart in the Jungle,” which won him a Golden Globe as an actor, and the pilot for Fox Networks Group Latin America’s “Here on Earth,” which he showran and which won the inaugural Zurich Series Award last year.
A dramedy, “Chicuarotes” is, however, García Bernal’s second feature as a director.
Playing out of competition at Cannes as a special screening, “Chicuarotes” turns on two teens,Cagalera and Moloteco, from San Gregorio Atlapulco district of Mexico City who,...
Since García Bernal’s feature debut “Deficit,” selected for Cannes’ Critics’ Week in 2007, he has continued to direct: a segment of “Revolución,” for example, an episode of “Mozart in the Jungle,” which won him a Golden Globe as an actor, and the pilot for Fox Networks Group Latin America’s “Here on Earth,” which he showran and which won the inaugural Zurich Series Award last year.
A dramedy, “Chicuarotes” is, however, García Bernal’s second feature as a director.
Playing out of competition at Cannes as a special screening, “Chicuarotes” turns on two teens,Cagalera and Moloteco, from San Gregorio Atlapulco district of Mexico City who,...
- 5/8/2019
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Los Cabos, Mexico — Paula Amor, the former head of communications of Mexico’s Morelia Festival, now has one of the most exciting jobs in Mexico, running La Corriente del Golfo, the new film-tv production shingle launched by Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna in April.
An inevitable major production force, it also marks a pivot in a film-tv company’s range and focus of operations.
At Canana, Luna and García Bernal leveraged their fame as actors to ensure movies got made at a budgetary level which their directors required. Think Pablo Larraín’s “No.” García Bernal once remarked that launching Ambulante, the touring documentary festival, was one of his proudest achievements. They have now applied this leverage in a different sphere with the launch of The Day After.
“The idea is to provide a base for their projects in film, TV, theater, projects with a social impact,” she explained to...
An inevitable major production force, it also marks a pivot in a film-tv company’s range and focus of operations.
At Canana, Luna and García Bernal leveraged their fame as actors to ensure movies got made at a budgetary level which their directors required. Think Pablo Larraín’s “No.” García Bernal once remarked that launching Ambulante, the touring documentary festival, was one of his proudest achievements. They have now applied this leverage in a different sphere with the launch of The Day After.
“The idea is to provide a base for their projects in film, TV, theater, projects with a social impact,” she explained to...
- 11/12/2018
- by John Hopewell and Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Cinepolis Distribution, the distribution arm of Mexican exhibition giant Cinepolis, has picked up all Latin American rights to “Chicuarotes,” the second feature helmed by award-winning multi hyphenate Gael Garcia Bernal.
The film, described as a dark comedy, is produced by Garcia Bernal via his new shingle with partner Diego Luna, La Corriente del Golfo, along with Marta Núñez Puerto of Cinematográfica Amaranto.
Thomas Benski for Pulse Films and Isaac Lee for Televisa Alternative Originals (Tao) serve as co-producers. (Lee has since left his position as chief content officer of Televisa-Univision to start his own company, Exile Content)
Penned by Augusto Mendoza who also wrote Luna’s “Mr. Pig and “Abel,” “Chicuarotes” tracks two teens from Mexico City who, in their desperation to improve their lives, end up entangled in the criminal underworld.
The film stars Benny Emmanuel, Leidi Gutiérrez, Dolores Heredia and Daniel Giménez Cacho, along with a cast of non-professional actors.
The film, described as a dark comedy, is produced by Garcia Bernal via his new shingle with partner Diego Luna, La Corriente del Golfo, along with Marta Núñez Puerto of Cinematográfica Amaranto.
Thomas Benski for Pulse Films and Isaac Lee for Televisa Alternative Originals (Tao) serve as co-producers. (Lee has since left his position as chief content officer of Televisa-Univision to start his own company, Exile Content)
Penned by Augusto Mendoza who also wrote Luna’s “Mr. Pig and “Abel,” “Chicuarotes” tracks two teens from Mexico City who, in their desperation to improve their lives, end up entangled in the criminal underworld.
The film stars Benny Emmanuel, Leidi Gutiérrez, Dolores Heredia and Daniel Giménez Cacho, along with a cast of non-professional actors.
- 10/19/2018
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Mexican multi-hyphenates Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna are launching film and TV production firm La Corriente del Golfo now that they have split from Canana, the firm they co-founded with producer Pablo Cruz 14 years ago.
The duo’s new Mexico City-based outfit will be run by Paula Amor, who previously served as Director of Media and Institutional Relations at the Morelia International Film Festival, and as Director of Communications at the Fenix Film Awards. First projects include Chicuarotes, a film directed by García Bernal, and Canneseries-bound thriller Aquí En La Tierra, by Gael García Bernal and Kyzza Terrazas.
Chicuarotes is the second feature directed by The Motorcycle Diaries star García Bernal. Scripted by Augusto Mendoza, the Spanish-language movie is currently in post after wrapping earlier this year in Mexico City. It follows two young friends who, in their desperation to leave the pueblo, get caught up in the nefarious activities of adults.
The duo’s new Mexico City-based outfit will be run by Paula Amor, who previously served as Director of Media and Institutional Relations at the Morelia International Film Festival, and as Director of Communications at the Fenix Film Awards. First projects include Chicuarotes, a film directed by García Bernal, and Canneseries-bound thriller Aquí En La Tierra, by Gael García Bernal and Kyzza Terrazas.
Chicuarotes is the second feature directed by The Motorcycle Diaries star García Bernal. Scripted by Augusto Mendoza, the Spanish-language movie is currently in post after wrapping earlier this year in Mexico City. It follows two young friends who, in their desperation to leave the pueblo, get caught up in the nefarious activities of adults.
- 4/6/2018
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
In an anticipated move following their recent split from Canana, the shingle they co-founded with Pablo Cruz, Mexican multi-hyphenates Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna have launched a new film-tv company, La Corriente del Golfo (Gulfstream in English).
The new shingle aims to first serve as an independent production company for theatrical film and television projects and secondly, to develop a variety of community-oriented projects. Bernal and Luna are still collaborating on initiatives like Ambulante, a documentary film festival in Mexico that they co-founded 14 years ago.
“La Corriente del Golfo is an ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and travels all the way to the North Atlantic, allowing for a temperate climate – and, without which, there’d be Arctic tundra,” said Garcia Bernal, adding: “We take up the symbol of this global current to emphasize that liberty – in all its meanings –should flow as freely as an ocean current.
The new shingle aims to first serve as an independent production company for theatrical film and television projects and secondly, to develop a variety of community-oriented projects. Bernal and Luna are still collaborating on initiatives like Ambulante, a documentary film festival in Mexico that they co-founded 14 years ago.
“La Corriente del Golfo is an ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and travels all the way to the North Atlantic, allowing for a temperate climate – and, without which, there’d be Arctic tundra,” said Garcia Bernal, adding: “We take up the symbol of this global current to emphasize that liberty – in all its meanings –should flow as freely as an ocean current.
- 4/5/2018
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
As far as road trip movies in which two estranged characters reconnect go, Diego Luna’s fourth directorial effort, “Mr. Pig,” is not concerned with eliminating or altering the emotional tropes associated with the works of its kind. On the contrary, the famed actor-turned-filmmaker embraces them with a refreshing cultural outlook in a film that is as much about modernity overshadowing tradition as it is about the sheer magic of an experience rather than its outcome.
Financially devastated, probably because of his diligent rejection of current farming practices though it’s never specified, Ambrose (Danny Glover) a 75-year-old African American hog farmer from California, heads to Mexico to find his best friend, an imposing dark pig named Howie, a new home and to make some money in return. The man-hog friendship is endearing, but it also points at the profound loneliness Ambrose is struggling with. Howie doesn’t judge or question him and, like good friends should, they both accept their inherent shortcomings – the plump pig hates showers and Ambrose has a drinking problem. It's an odd dynamic, but it seems to comfort the aging and defeated man.
Enduring a few bumps along the road, Ambrose and his beloved animal make it to the Mexican state of Jalisco where he meets with his best friend’s son (played by Mexican actor José María Yazpik), now in charge of the family’s hog business after his father’s passing, to discuss Howie’s future and reminisce about happier times. Noticing that his hog’s destiny in such a modern farm will be one of confinement and isolation, Ambrose reconsiders. While he accepts the fact that their purpose is to feed mankind, he despises the idea of seeing Howie as disposable merchandise.
Soon, Ambrose’s deteriorating health prompts his daughter Eunice (Maya Rudolph) to come down to look after him. Reluctantly she joins the mission to sell Howie to someone that can give him a life that measures up to Ambrose's standards, while also hoping to get to know her father beyond his charismatic front. Two strangers in a strange land that proves not to be so strange after all.
Leaving behind recent supporting roles that don’t capitalize on the veteran thespian’s abilities, Danny Glover commands the film with masculine fragility. He is not a rigid man on the surface and is particularly tender with Howie, but has managed to selfishly avoid his past failures as a self-defense mechanism. Also granted a prime opportunity to step away from her familiar comical performances, Maya Rudolph takes on a character of whom we know very little except for her desire to seek resolution regarding her father’s abandonment.
Luna has stated that “Mr. Pig” came into existence as a way to honor his father and that of his co-writer Augusto Mendoza. That initial desire to scrutinize the difficulties of parenthood and to build a cinematic bridge between him and his father is absolutely palpable in "Mr. Pig." However, he has also pointed out that this film is a love letter to Mexico, and that it is that second part of his motivation that places the film on a higher ground beyond merely being a touching dramedy about people desperately searching for meaning.
In the hands of a director without a personal connection to Mexico and an understanding of its relationship to its neighbor to the north, the country and its people could have been the victims of insensitive cheap mockery for the amusement of American audiences. Films depicting Americans traveling to exotic or remote locations tend to highlight the cultural divide between what’s considered modern and acceptable and what they see as archaic or less sophisticated lifestyles. Instead, Luna focuses on the similarities between the two countries on a human level by never alienating its two foreign protagonists and much less his homeland
By the same token, the two American leads are far from the images of Americans we often see in Mexican films and television. These are not the white and ignorant gringos that make racist remarks or patronize the locals and who are always outsmarted by crooked Mexicans. Ambrose and Eunice never show fear or mistrust towards the Mexican citizens they encounter along the road. There is never a comment referencing negative aspects of each country, but the film is rather permeated with mutual appreciation.
Mexico is not depicted as this overly colorful almost caricatured land that’s incomprehensible to Americans. Captured by cinematographer Damian Garcia ("Güeros"), astounding landscapes away from the cities are blended with everyday people in everyday neighborhoods selling food, working at hotels, hospitals, or simply lending these two people a hand without taking into account who they are or where they are from. Using Howie’s inability to return to the United States because he is not legally allowed, Luna makes a subtle commentary on immigration and the ridiculous perspective on borders that countries have which overlook real life beyond politics.
Although “Mr. Pig” leaves some elements and subplots unexplored, such as that of Ambrose's relationship with a Mexican woman in his youth, it also contains several morsels of wisdom related to our search for definite answers or certainty when it comes to interpersonal relationships. Eunice might never have that touching moment she yearns for with Ambrose, but in the quest for it, she might get something much better – his true self. Camilo Froideval quietly affecting score enhances the unfolding family drama on the road with his lighthearted melodies.
A film with such specifically calibrated cultural observations without exhaustive explanation of them could only come from a director with a vision forged on both sides of the dreaded border. Underneath its conventional premise, Luna has taken a step forward in his evolution as a writer-director with a compassionate film that, while not groundbreaking and with some loose pieces along the way in terms of exposition, uses its intimate qualities to speak of humanity at large based on undeniable similarities. If all films about Mexico and the United States could channel a slight portion of the tolerance and sympathy in "Mr. Pig," our distinct traits would be cause for admiration and not fear.
"Mr. Pig" premiered on January 26, 2016 at the Eccles Theater during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Its international sales agent is Im Global/ Mundial and it is being represented for U.S. by Kevin Iwashina's Preferred Content.
Financially devastated, probably because of his diligent rejection of current farming practices though it’s never specified, Ambrose (Danny Glover) a 75-year-old African American hog farmer from California, heads to Mexico to find his best friend, an imposing dark pig named Howie, a new home and to make some money in return. The man-hog friendship is endearing, but it also points at the profound loneliness Ambrose is struggling with. Howie doesn’t judge or question him and, like good friends should, they both accept their inherent shortcomings – the plump pig hates showers and Ambrose has a drinking problem. It's an odd dynamic, but it seems to comfort the aging and defeated man.
Enduring a few bumps along the road, Ambrose and his beloved animal make it to the Mexican state of Jalisco where he meets with his best friend’s son (played by Mexican actor José María Yazpik), now in charge of the family’s hog business after his father’s passing, to discuss Howie’s future and reminisce about happier times. Noticing that his hog’s destiny in such a modern farm will be one of confinement and isolation, Ambrose reconsiders. While he accepts the fact that their purpose is to feed mankind, he despises the idea of seeing Howie as disposable merchandise.
Soon, Ambrose’s deteriorating health prompts his daughter Eunice (Maya Rudolph) to come down to look after him. Reluctantly she joins the mission to sell Howie to someone that can give him a life that measures up to Ambrose's standards, while also hoping to get to know her father beyond his charismatic front. Two strangers in a strange land that proves not to be so strange after all.
Leaving behind recent supporting roles that don’t capitalize on the veteran thespian’s abilities, Danny Glover commands the film with masculine fragility. He is not a rigid man on the surface and is particularly tender with Howie, but has managed to selfishly avoid his past failures as a self-defense mechanism. Also granted a prime opportunity to step away from her familiar comical performances, Maya Rudolph takes on a character of whom we know very little except for her desire to seek resolution regarding her father’s abandonment.
Luna has stated that “Mr. Pig” came into existence as a way to honor his father and that of his co-writer Augusto Mendoza. That initial desire to scrutinize the difficulties of parenthood and to build a cinematic bridge between him and his father is absolutely palpable in "Mr. Pig." However, he has also pointed out that this film is a love letter to Mexico, and that it is that second part of his motivation that places the film on a higher ground beyond merely being a touching dramedy about people desperately searching for meaning.
In the hands of a director without a personal connection to Mexico and an understanding of its relationship to its neighbor to the north, the country and its people could have been the victims of insensitive cheap mockery for the amusement of American audiences. Films depicting Americans traveling to exotic or remote locations tend to highlight the cultural divide between what’s considered modern and acceptable and what they see as archaic or less sophisticated lifestyles. Instead, Luna focuses on the similarities between the two countries on a human level by never alienating its two foreign protagonists and much less his homeland
By the same token, the two American leads are far from the images of Americans we often see in Mexican films and television. These are not the white and ignorant gringos that make racist remarks or patronize the locals and who are always outsmarted by crooked Mexicans. Ambrose and Eunice never show fear or mistrust towards the Mexican citizens they encounter along the road. There is never a comment referencing negative aspects of each country, but the film is rather permeated with mutual appreciation.
Mexico is not depicted as this overly colorful almost caricatured land that’s incomprehensible to Americans. Captured by cinematographer Damian Garcia ("Güeros"), astounding landscapes away from the cities are blended with everyday people in everyday neighborhoods selling food, working at hotels, hospitals, or simply lending these two people a hand without taking into account who they are or where they are from. Using Howie’s inability to return to the United States because he is not legally allowed, Luna makes a subtle commentary on immigration and the ridiculous perspective on borders that countries have which overlook real life beyond politics.
Although “Mr. Pig” leaves some elements and subplots unexplored, such as that of Ambrose's relationship with a Mexican woman in his youth, it also contains several morsels of wisdom related to our search for definite answers or certainty when it comes to interpersonal relationships. Eunice might never have that touching moment she yearns for with Ambrose, but in the quest for it, she might get something much better – his true self. Camilo Froideval quietly affecting score enhances the unfolding family drama on the road with his lighthearted melodies.
A film with such specifically calibrated cultural observations without exhaustive explanation of them could only come from a director with a vision forged on both sides of the dreaded border. Underneath its conventional premise, Luna has taken a step forward in his evolution as a writer-director with a compassionate film that, while not groundbreaking and with some loose pieces along the way in terms of exposition, uses its intimate qualities to speak of humanity at large based on undeniable similarities. If all films about Mexico and the United States could channel a slight portion of the tolerance and sympathy in "Mr. Pig," our distinct traits would be cause for admiration and not fear.
"Mr. Pig" premiered on January 26, 2016 at the Eccles Theater during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Its international sales agent is Im Global/ Mundial and it is being represented for U.S. by Kevin Iwashina's Preferred Content.
- 1/27/2016
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Exclusive: With its world premiere on January 26 at the Sundance Film Festival, Mr. Pig is the third feature Diego Luna has directed – but it might be the one closest to his heart. "I spent five years working again with writer Augusto Mendoza to create a very personal story about fatherhood, our relationship with animals and Mexico," the Rogue One: A Star Wars Story actor told me about his film. "Mr. Pig is a love letter to our parents, and our take on the road trip story…...
- 1/20/2016
- Deadline
Sundance 2016 is fast approaching. Last week we posted the movie lineup of Midnight and Competition film selections. We now have the complete lineup for the premieres in both the feature film and documentary categories. We also have their selections for the Spotlight and Kid films. I've also included a list of special events.
There are a lot of great films on this list that I'm excited about seeing because of the incredible talent involved. Viggo Mortensen and Frank Langella star in Captain Fantastic; Laura Dern, Kristen Stewart, Michelle Williams star in Certain Women; Rachel Weisz, Michael Shannon, Kathy Bates and Danny Glover star in Complete Unknown; Paul Rudd and Selena Gomez star in The Fundamentals of Caring; John Krasinski directed a film called The Hollars which he stars in with Anna Kendrick, Margo Martindale, Richard Jenkins, Sharlto Copley, and Charlie Day; Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi has made a new...
There are a lot of great films on this list that I'm excited about seeing because of the incredible talent involved. Viggo Mortensen and Frank Langella star in Captain Fantastic; Laura Dern, Kristen Stewart, Michelle Williams star in Certain Women; Rachel Weisz, Michael Shannon, Kathy Bates and Danny Glover star in Complete Unknown; Paul Rudd and Selena Gomez star in The Fundamentals of Caring; John Krasinski directed a film called The Hollars which he stars in with Anna Kendrick, Margo Martindale, Richard Jenkins, Sharlto Copley, and Charlie Day; Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi has made a new...
- 12/13/2015
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Sundance programmers have unveiled what is a jaw-dropping, savoury Premieres line-up. With names such as Asif Kapadia (Ali & Nino), Kelly Reichardt (Certain Women), Joshua Marston (Complete Unknown), Ira Sachs (Little Men), Whit Stillman (Love & Friendship), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), Todd Solondz (Wiener-Dog) and James Schamus’ directorial debut (Indignation), the 2016 edition could be considered a “gold” level edition that in the decade plus years we’ve been covering the fest easily rivals what we might find in the Main Comp in Cannes later that year. In addition to titan auteurs names mentioned above, the fest also have faves in Anne Fontaine, Taika Waititi, John Carney and Diego Luna on tap plus will showcase work from Matthew Ross (directorial debut – Frank & Lola) and Matt Ross (sophomore film – Captain Fantastic). Here is the Premieres line-up.
Agnus Dei / France, Poland (Director: Anne Fontaine, Screenwriters: Sabrina N. Karine, Alice Vial, Pascal Bonitzer) — 1945 Poland: Mathilde,...
Agnus Dei / France, Poland (Director: Anne Fontaine, Screenwriters: Sabrina N. Karine, Alice Vial, Pascal Bonitzer) — 1945 Poland: Mathilde,...
- 12/7/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Kate Plays ChristineThe lineup for the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, taking place between January 21 -31, has been announced.U.S. Dramatic COMPETITIONAs You Are (Miles Joris-Peyrafitte, USA): As You Are is the telling and retelling of a relationship between three teenagers as it traces the course of their friendship through a construction of disparate memories prompted by a police investigation. Cast: Owen Campbell, Charlie Heaton, Amandla Stenberg, John Scurti, Scott Cohen, Mary Stuart Masterson. World Premiere The Birth of a Nation (Nate Parker, USA): Set against the antebellum South, this story follows Nat Turner, a literate slave and preacher whose financially strained owner, Samuel Turner, accepts an offer to use Nat’s preaching to subdue unruly slaves. After witnessing countless atrocities against fellow slaves, Nat devises a plan to lead his people to freedom. Cast: Nate Parker, Armie Hammer, Aja Naomi King, Jackie Earle Haley, Gabrielle Union, Mark Boone Jr. World PremiereChristine (Antonio Campos,...
- 12/7/2015
- by Notebook
- MUBI
Sundance Institute today announces the remainder of its feature film lineup for the 2016 Sundance Film Festival - narratives, documentaries, episodic work and events in the Premieres, Documentary Premieres, Spotlight, Sundance Kids and Special Events sections. Of note, given this blog's interests, are: - "Mr. Pig" from director Diego Luna, based on a script he co-wrote with Augusto Mendoza, starring Danny Glover, Maya Rudolph, José María Yazpik, Joel Murray, Angélica Aragón, and Gabriela Araujo. Synopsis: On a mission to sell his last remaining prize hog and reunite with old friends, an aging farmer abandons his foreclosed farm and journeys to...
- 12/7/2015
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
After unveiling what’s sure to be a great many discoveries with their competition, Next line-up, and more, Sundance Film Festival 2016 have now revealed their premieres line-up. “Many of our selections this year reveal that what resides at the core of captivating stories are fascinating, and at times heroic, characters,” programming director Trevor Groth says. “In shining light on these people, independent filmmakers are doing what they’ve always done best: connecting the dots of human existence with a deeply charged emotional current.”
Featuring new films from Kenneth Lonergan, Werner Herzog, Kelly Reichardt, Todd Solondz, Taika Waititi, Ira Sachs, Whit Stillman, and more, check out the line-ups below, along with images where available.
Premieres
A showcase of world premieres of some of the most highly anticipated narrative films of the coming year.
Agnus Dei / France, Poland (Director: Anne Fontaine, Screenwriters: Sabrina N. Karine, Alice Vial, Pascal Bonitzer) — 1945 Poland: Mathilde, a young French doctor,...
Featuring new films from Kenneth Lonergan, Werner Herzog, Kelly Reichardt, Todd Solondz, Taika Waititi, Ira Sachs, Whit Stillman, and more, check out the line-ups below, along with images where available.
Premieres
A showcase of world premieres of some of the most highly anticipated narrative films of the coming year.
Agnus Dei / France, Poland (Director: Anne Fontaine, Screenwriters: Sabrina N. Karine, Alice Vial, Pascal Bonitzer) — 1945 Poland: Mathilde, a young French doctor,...
- 12/7/2015
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Danny Glover and Maya Rudolph have been cast in Diego Luna's Mr Pig, an English-language road movie set in Mexico.
The film focuses on a farm-worker, played by Lethal Weapon actor Glover, who travels from the Us to Mexico accompanied by a pig, with which he strikes up a type of friendship.
Bridesmaids actress Rudolph's role is not yet known, reports Variety.
The film is written by Luna and Augusto Mendoza, who worked together on Luna's previous project Abel. It will be produced by Canana, the Mexico City/La production house which Luna founded with Gael Garcia Bernal and Pablo Cruz.
Producer Cruz said: "Mr Pig is a beautiful road movie, and a chance to talk about love for Mexico through the eyes of an American.
"It has a Us appeal because of Danny and its English language. It obviously has a Mexican appeal because of Diego and other Mexican actors involved.
The film focuses on a farm-worker, played by Lethal Weapon actor Glover, who travels from the Us to Mexico accompanied by a pig, with which he strikes up a type of friendship.
Bridesmaids actress Rudolph's role is not yet known, reports Variety.
The film is written by Luna and Augusto Mendoza, who worked together on Luna's previous project Abel. It will be produced by Canana, the Mexico City/La production house which Luna founded with Gael Garcia Bernal and Pablo Cruz.
Producer Cruz said: "Mr Pig is a beautiful road movie, and a chance to talk about love for Mexico through the eyes of an American.
"It has a Us appeal because of Danny and its English language. It obviously has a Mexican appeal because of Diego and other Mexican actors involved.
- 9/30/2014
- Digital Spy
• Keegan-Michael Key and Regina Hall have signed on for New Line's Vacation reboot, joining Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Chris Hemsworth, and Leslie Mann. John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein are directing, marking their directorial debut. They also wrote the script. The film will tell the story of a grown-up Rusty Griswold (Helms) who takes his wife (Applegate) on a cross-country road trip, similar to one he took as a kid. Their destination is Walley World, an amusement park. Key and Hall will play family friends to the Griswolds. David Dobkin is producing through his David Dobkin Productions alongside Chris Bender.
- 9/29/2014
- by C. Molly Smith
- EW - Inside Movies
Mexican director Diego Luna’s Abel (2010), a beguiling comedy-drama about a strange young boy, throws up many more questions than answers. For a while it appears that young Abel might be both catatonic and possessed of telekinetic powers, such is the effect of his brooding presence on household objects. Later, I wondered whether the story was veering off into the territory of a body-swap comedy. One thing is clear, though: Luna’s film is a heartfelt depiction of a devoted mother who is determined to do right by her troubled son.
The face of nine-year-old Abel (Christopher Ruíz Esparza) is first seen in huge close-ups as he watches a snail crawling along his finger. After two years in the psychiatric ward of a local hospital, doctors now want to transfer him to Mexico City. His mother Cecilia (Karina Gidi) can’t bear the idea of a further separation and hopes...
The face of nine-year-old Abel (Christopher Ruíz Esparza) is first seen in huge close-ups as he watches a snail crawling along his finger. After two years in the psychiatric ward of a local hospital, doctors now want to transfer him to Mexico City. His mother Cecilia (Karina Gidi) can’t bear the idea of a further separation and hopes...
- 1/12/2011
- by Cine-Vue
- CineVue
Abel is the excellent feature debut of actor Diego Luna which is, surprisingly, much softer and heart-warming than its surrealist premise makes out. A withdrawn and perhaps disturbed nine year old boy has spent two years in at a mental hospital and one day returns home to become the man of the house – a role he takes to with full commitment.
Instead of becoming a fractious and domineering tyrant young Abel actually brings the family closer together and makes it run like clockwork. He’s stern but loving towards his sister, becomes a good friend to his brother Paul and cares for his mother. For a while you’ll be thinking it isn’t such a strange set up after all, but with the acceptance comes a growing sense of unease.
Abel might be crackers but he’s a tragic sort and even the inevitable amorous advances he makes to...
Instead of becoming a fractious and domineering tyrant young Abel actually brings the family closer together and makes it run like clockwork. He’s stern but loving towards his sister, becomes a good friend to his brother Paul and cares for his mother. For a while you’ll be thinking it isn’t such a strange set up after all, but with the acceptance comes a growing sense of unease.
Abel might be crackers but he’s a tragic sort and even the inevitable amorous advances he makes to...
- 1/6/2011
- by Martyn Conterio
- FilmShaft.com
Mexican actor, Diego Luna's fascinating directional debut, Abel, tells the story of a mentally ill nine year-old boy who becomes convinced he's the man of the house when he returns from the hospital for a trial week at home.
No longer able to stay in the women's ward, Abel's mother is distraught when told he might need treatment further afield in Mexico City Hospital. Convinced his mother's love and the reassuring natural presence of his brother, Paul, and sister, Selene, will cure him, she's given a week to see if his new surroundings will prompt an improvement. Within a day, Abel is miraculously talking again, but what he utters is rather puzzling.
Initial signs of Abel's deluded belief that he's the man of the house afford moments of surreal light comedy as he fixes the toilet; takes up the good parent's nightly rounds of putting the children...
No longer able to stay in the women's ward, Abel's mother is distraught when told he might need treatment further afield in Mexico City Hospital. Convinced his mother's love and the reassuring natural presence of his brother, Paul, and sister, Selene, will cure him, she's given a week to see if his new surroundings will prompt an improvement. Within a day, Abel is miraculously talking again, but what he utters is rather puzzling.
Initial signs of Abel's deluded belief that he's the man of the house afford moments of surreal light comedy as he fixes the toilet; takes up the good parent's nightly rounds of putting the children...
- 12/30/2010
- Shadowlocked
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