2014’s Pride, from director Matthew Warchus, is heading back into cinemas in the UK this June: more details here.
Comfortably one of the best British films of the 2010s is the wonderful Pride, an uproariously funny and really moving ensemble film set in the 1980s. Led by George MacKay, Andrew Scott, Ben Schnetzer, Faye Marsay, Dominic West, Imelda Staunton, a sex toy, Paddy Considine, Bill Nighy and Freddie Fox, it felt like a movie out of nowhere when it first arrived.
Telling the story of the miner’s strike in the UK in the 1980s, and the efforts of a bunch of lesbian and gay activists to support them, it still remains something of a one-off. Penned by Stephen Beresford and directed by Matthew Warchus, the modestly-budgeted film hardly set the box office alight on its initial release, but it’s earned a rich and deserved reputation since for a film that’s well,...
Comfortably one of the best British films of the 2010s is the wonderful Pride, an uproariously funny and really moving ensemble film set in the 1980s. Led by George MacKay, Andrew Scott, Ben Schnetzer, Faye Marsay, Dominic West, Imelda Staunton, a sex toy, Paddy Considine, Bill Nighy and Freddie Fox, it felt like a movie out of nowhere when it first arrived.
Telling the story of the miner’s strike in the UK in the 1980s, and the efforts of a bunch of lesbian and gay activists to support them, it still remains something of a one-off. Penned by Stephen Beresford and directed by Matthew Warchus, the modestly-budgeted film hardly set the box office alight on its initial release, but it’s earned a rich and deserved reputation since for a film that’s well,...
- 4/24/2024
- by Simon Brew
- Film Stories
French director Bertrand Bonello is rightly back in the imaginations of U.S. cinephiles, as his new film “The Beast” is now playing stateside. The time-hopping sci-fi romantic drama starring Léa Seydoux and George MacKay as would-be lovers across centuries had the biggest opening weekend yet for distributor Sideshow/Janus Films earlier this month. Now, Bertrand Bonello’s previously undistributed 2022 film “Coma” is finally joining “The Beast” at theaters beginning in May from Film Movement. Watch the trailer for “Coma,” an IndieWire exclusive, below.
Combining live-action and animation, “Coma” centers on a teenage girl in lockdown amid a global health crisis (cough cough) who develops a disturbing relationship with a YouTuber. The cast features Louise Labèque, Julia Faure, Gaspard Ulliel, Laetitia Casta, Vincent Lacoste, Louis Garrel, and Anaïs Demoustier. This was the last film Ulliel worked on before he died in January 2022 after a skiing accident. Ulliel was meant to...
Combining live-action and animation, “Coma” centers on a teenage girl in lockdown amid a global health crisis (cough cough) who develops a disturbing relationship with a YouTuber. The cast features Louise Labèque, Julia Faure, Gaspard Ulliel, Laetitia Casta, Vincent Lacoste, Louis Garrel, and Anaïs Demoustier. This was the last film Ulliel worked on before he died in January 2022 after a skiing accident. Ulliel was meant to...
- 4/18/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Idris and Sabrina Elba have set Halfway, a sci-fi thriller podcast at Audible with Lenny Henry, George Mackay, and Sex Education alum Patricia Allison as voice cast leads.
Written by Imeldha Eloni and Michael Honnah and directed by Holly Reddaway, Halfway examines a world in which AI is used to recreate the personalities of deceased loved ones for profit. The cast is rounded out by Arinzé Kene (Been So Long).
Halfway is the first audio drama executive produced by Idris and Sabrina Elba with S’Able Labs, from the scripted development project between the Elbas and Audible, launched to discover and support underrepresented writers.
The series begins with Florence, played by Patricia Allison, who is consumed by grief following the death of her brother, Mark (Arinzé Kene). A year after being declared missing, Mark is uploaded to Halfway, a service that aims to provide closure, consolation, and comfort to those...
Written by Imeldha Eloni and Michael Honnah and directed by Holly Reddaway, Halfway examines a world in which AI is used to recreate the personalities of deceased loved ones for profit. The cast is rounded out by Arinzé Kene (Been So Long).
Halfway is the first audio drama executive produced by Idris and Sabrina Elba with S’Able Labs, from the scripted development project between the Elbas and Audible, launched to discover and support underrepresented writers.
The series begins with Florence, played by Patricia Allison, who is consumed by grief following the death of her brother, Mark (Arinzé Kene). A year after being declared missing, Mark is uploaded to Halfway, a service that aims to provide closure, consolation, and comfort to those...
- 4/18/2024
- by Zac Ntim and Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Anya Taylor-Joy has become one of the most popular up-and-coming actresses in the past few years. The talented performer has been picking up roles at an exciting rate. In 2024, she will portray the titular character Imperator Furiosa in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
With her dazzling beauty, exceptional grace, and ability to pull off nuanced performances, she’s quickly becoming the talk of Hollywood and beyond.
Anya Taylor-Joy in a white Dior Fall 2022 dress with a gold collar necklace and Tiffany & Co. Schlumberger bracelet, rings, and earrings at the Los Angeles Premiere of “The Northman” at Tcl Chinese Theatre on April 18, 2022, in Hollywood, California (Credit: DFree / Shutterstock)
Although best known for her role in the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit, Anya Taylor-Joy has also had many parts in feature-length films. Today, we’re looking at this young starlet as we count down our 11 favorite Anya Taylor-Joy movies, ranked in order...
With her dazzling beauty, exceptional grace, and ability to pull off nuanced performances, she’s quickly becoming the talk of Hollywood and beyond.
Anya Taylor-Joy in a white Dior Fall 2022 dress with a gold collar necklace and Tiffany & Co. Schlumberger bracelet, rings, and earrings at the Los Angeles Premiere of “The Northman” at Tcl Chinese Theatre on April 18, 2022, in Hollywood, California (Credit: DFree / Shutterstock)
Although best known for her role in the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit, Anya Taylor-Joy has also had many parts in feature-length films. Today, we’re looking at this young starlet as we count down our 11 favorite Anya Taylor-Joy movies, ranked in order...
- 4/17/2024
- by Jan Stromsodd
- Your Next Shoes
Chicago – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review for the U.S. release of “The Beast,” a science fiction film about the inherent psychological/emotional carriage within us all, co-written and directed by Bertrand Bonello. In select theaters now (see local listings). At Chicago’s Music Box Theatre on April 12th.
Rating: 5.0/5.0
The film involves a woman named Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) who in 2044 is about to embark on a “DNA cleansing” to take away the trauma her past lives had endured. While going through the process she meets Louis (George MacKay) who gives her a sense of deja vu. It turns out that this couple has been together in a 1910 sense (Belle Époque Paris) and a 2014 sense (in Los Angeles). As the story of those three encounters play out within her cellular energy, the evolution of Gabrielle seems to have something to do with her connection to Louis.
”The Beast...
Rating: 5.0/5.0
The film involves a woman named Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) who in 2044 is about to embark on a “DNA cleansing” to take away the trauma her past lives had endured. While going through the process she meets Louis (George MacKay) who gives her a sense of deja vu. It turns out that this couple has been together in a 1910 sense (Belle Époque Paris) and a 2014 sense (in Los Angeles). As the story of those three encounters play out within her cellular energy, the evolution of Gabrielle seems to have something to do with her connection to Louis.
”The Beast...
- 4/12/2024
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
George MacKay became one Hollywood’s most sought after young actors after his starring role as a sweet-faced solider in Sam Mendes’ Oscar-winning “1917.”
But he’s looking much different in his latest film, “Femme.” He stars in the queer revenge thriller from directors Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping as a closeted street thug who begins a sexual relationship with Jules (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett), a man he doesn’t realize is the drag queen he once brutally gay-bashed.
For the film, MacKay’s body is ripped and covered in tattoos. His hair is shaved and slicked back. He wears tracksuits and garish gold chains and rings, and his working class accent can be hard to decipher.
It took him about eight weeks of “bulking” to get in shape. Even so, MacKay admits he did a lot of push-ups for scenes where he had to be particularly “big and scary.
But he’s looking much different in his latest film, “Femme.” He stars in the queer revenge thriller from directors Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping as a closeted street thug who begins a sexual relationship with Jules (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett), a man he doesn’t realize is the drag queen he once brutally gay-bashed.
For the film, MacKay’s body is ripped and covered in tattoos. His hair is shaved and slicked back. He wears tracksuits and garish gold chains and rings, and his working class accent can be hard to decipher.
It took him about eight weeks of “bulking” to get in shape. Even so, MacKay admits he did a lot of push-ups for scenes where he had to be particularly “big and scary.
- 4/8/2024
- by Marc Malkin
- Variety Film + TV
There’s little precedent for what George MacKay does in The Beast, a multilingual production that required the English star to learn French for extended sequences. It’s one thing if this were a buttoned-up, altogether bland drama that is never seen on North American screens after its obligatory TIFF premiere; it’s quite another to be the new film by Bertrand Bonello which also requires he play, in the film’s central section, a take on the murderous progenitor of modern incel culture. One imagines many offers since ten-time Oscar nominee 1917 were more commercial.
Thus I wanted to get insight into MacKay’s process. As my interviews with Bertrand Bonello and Léa Seydoux cover, respectively, the film’s creation and its star’s personal philosophy, MacKay and I discussed certain of the practical decision-making that went into his appearing here, some newfound possibilities of French-language productions, and The Beast‘s dark paths.
Thus I wanted to get insight into MacKay’s process. As my interviews with Bertrand Bonello and Léa Seydoux cover, respectively, the film’s creation and its star’s personal philosophy, MacKay and I discussed certain of the practical decision-making that went into his appearing here, some newfound possibilities of French-language productions, and The Beast‘s dark paths.
- 4/8/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Sony Pictures Classics’ Wicked Little Letters grossed an estimated $1.5+ million in a big second week expansion for the R-rated British period comedy to 1,000 screens from five. The Thea Sharrock-directed film starring Olivia Colman (also a producer) and Jessie Buckley, no. 8 at the domestic weekend box office, has a $1.6+ million cume.
Colman and Buckley have been out actively promoting the film, based on an actual scandal, about a police investigation into the anonymous author of crude letters sent to the residents of a British seaside town.
The number is on the high end of SPC’s expectations, and the Sunday estimate may be conservative.
Audiences for Wicked Little Letters are 60% female, 40% male, with a range of women age 30-plus, unusual for a period film as they skew older. It’s playing especially well in major cities and college towns but also popping in smaller markets like Seattle. Word of mouths is terrific,...
Colman and Buckley have been out actively promoting the film, based on an actual scandal, about a police investigation into the anonymous author of crude letters sent to the residents of a British seaside town.
The number is on the high end of SPC’s expectations, and the Sunday estimate may be conservative.
Audiences for Wicked Little Letters are 60% female, 40% male, with a range of women age 30-plus, unusual for a period film as they skew older. It’s playing especially well in major cities and college towns but also popping in smaller markets like Seattle. Word of mouths is terrific,...
- 4/7/2024
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
“The present came to a halt,” Bertrand Bonello writes in an ode to his teen daughter in his experimental feature Coma, “leaving us with the past and the future.” Much of this subtitled text refers to the specific circumstances of the film’s creation during the pandemic. Yet the French filmmaker’s follow-up, The Beast, which was developed before Coma but shot afterward, feels like a natural extension of his fascination with the scrambled perception of time in a digital era. In Bonello’s time-warping adaptation of Henry James’s 1903 novella The Beast in the Jungle, the present day is the Paris of 2044, where landscape and character have been warped by advances in artificial intelligence.
What’s evergreen, as a repeated aural motif so often reminds, is the twisted relationship of fear and love between Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) and Louis (George MacKay). Bonello gives us a glance at two of...
What’s evergreen, as a repeated aural motif so often reminds, is the twisted relationship of fear and love between Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) and Louis (George MacKay). Bonello gives us a glance at two of...
- 4/6/2024
- by Marshall Shaffer
- Slant Magazine
At least stateside, audiences will experience Femme and The Beast, both starring George MacKay, as near-simultaneous releases. The 32-year-old British actor has been a presence for over two decades dating back to his film debut as a Lost Boy in 2003’s adaptation of Peter Pan. He grew up on screen in films like 2008’s Defiance, 2014’s Pride, and 2016’s Captain Fantastic. Twenty nineteen proved a breakthrough year for MacKay as a leading man, playing a heroic soldier on a mission in 1917 and delivering a brooding, brutal interpretation of Australian urban legend Ned Kelly in True History of the Kelly Gang.
MacKay’s latest one-two punch features elements familiar from his previous standout roles and elevates them to new heights. In Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s Femme, he’s electric as Preston, a hardened hypebeast in contemporary London who harbors a secret identity. The character is drawn out...
MacKay’s latest one-two punch features elements familiar from his previous standout roles and elevates them to new heights. In Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s Femme, he’s electric as Preston, a hardened hypebeast in contemporary London who harbors a secret identity. The character is drawn out...
- 4/5/2024
- by Marshall Shaffer
- Slant Magazine
The world is heating up out there, but the gusts and erratic temperature swings of early Spring can often be deceiving. One minute it looks sunny and warm, the next you’re stranded on a long walk in just basketball shorts when a sudden chill descends. Or it looks nasty, and all of a sudden you’re overdressed in 80-degree heat. It might be best to stay safely within the confines of your local art house or home theater with some Don’t-Miss Indies instead.
Monkey Man
When You Can Watch: April 5
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Directors: Dev Patel
Cast: Dev Patel, Sharlto Copley, Pitobash, Sobhita Dhulipala
Why We’re Excited: Famous for his lead role in the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, Dev Patel has turned his attention to directing with his debut Monkey Man, which premiered last month at SXSW. Inspired by the Indian legend of Hanuman, Monkey Man...
Monkey Man
When You Can Watch: April 5
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Directors: Dev Patel
Cast: Dev Patel, Sharlto Copley, Pitobash, Sobhita Dhulipala
Why We’re Excited: Famous for his lead role in the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, Dev Patel has turned his attention to directing with his debut Monkey Man, which premiered last month at SXSW. Inspired by the Indian legend of Hanuman, Monkey Man...
- 4/3/2024
- by Su Fang Tham
- Film Independent News & More
It’s too bright, the sunshine is monotonous, it’s very isolating. Those were the reasons why Chloë Sevigny, in a recent viral interview, said she will never live in Los Angeles. Anyone who’s lived there can relate to the loneliness that blankets the fragmented city, a collection of neighborhoods strung together by cars in traffic, where nobody walks or talks to each other. And why does everyone flake on plans? What are we afraid of?
That’s much like the central dilemma in Bertrand Bonello’s “The Beast,” a time-hopping sci-fi epic about the existential terrors of unrequited love, green-screen-acting, incel killers, artificial intelligence, and, oh, yes, Los Angeles. Léa Seydoux and George MacKay play reincarnated almost-lovers across time who can never make it work: first, in fin-de-siècle Paris (she’s married); then, in 2014 Los Angeles (he’s a sociopathic virgin inspired by 2014 Isla Vista shooter Elliot Rodger...
That’s much like the central dilemma in Bertrand Bonello’s “The Beast,” a time-hopping sci-fi epic about the existential terrors of unrequited love, green-screen-acting, incel killers, artificial intelligence, and, oh, yes, Los Angeles. Léa Seydoux and George MacKay play reincarnated almost-lovers across time who can never make it work: first, in fin-de-siècle Paris (she’s married); then, in 2014 Los Angeles (he’s a sociopathic virgin inspired by 2014 Isla Vista shooter Elliot Rodger...
- 4/3/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Easter is behind us, we’re into a new month, and we’re fully into spring … and yet, the box office might be hitting another lull. Read on for Gold Derby’s box office preview.
There aren’t many scenarios where “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” doesn’t win its second weekend at #1. Even with a steep drop from its Easter opening, it should still be able to bring in another $30 million this coming weekend, which will be hard to beat.
It might be a coin flip on which of the other two new wide releases might do better, but I have to give a slight edge to “The First Omen,” 20th Century’s prequel to a horror franchise that began all the way back in 1976 with the horror film, “The Omen,” directed by Richard Donner pre-“Superman.” That led to two sequels in 1978 and 1981, even though the original...
There aren’t many scenarios where “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” doesn’t win its second weekend at #1. Even with a steep drop from its Easter opening, it should still be able to bring in another $30 million this coming weekend, which will be hard to beat.
It might be a coin flip on which of the other two new wide releases might do better, but I have to give a slight edge to “The First Omen,” 20th Century’s prequel to a horror franchise that began all the way back in 1976 with the horror film, “The Omen,” directed by Richard Donner pre-“Superman.” That led to two sequels in 1978 and 1981, even though the original...
- 4/3/2024
- by Edward Douglas
- Gold Derby
As most connoisseurs of cinema already know, the end credit roll is a relatively recent addition to the medium. The reasons for this are too lengthy to go into here, but suffice to say that films used to end very definitively and, at least for those of us raised in a world where end credits were already a thing, quite abruptly, sending audiences out of the theater with a brusqueness not unlike a train disembarking.
Ever since end credit rolls became commonplace, filmmakers have experimented with finding ways of extending the cinematic experience throughout their duration rather than treating them the way so many moviegoers tend to: as mere legally-mandated appendages to a movie. While even the most basic film includes music during the end credits so as to help keep the roll a part of the movie, some go above and beyond that, including deleted material, bloopers, or entire...
Ever since end credit rolls became commonplace, filmmakers have experimented with finding ways of extending the cinematic experience throughout their duration rather than treating them the way so many moviegoers tend to: as mere legally-mandated appendages to a movie. While even the most basic film includes music during the end credits so as to help keep the roll a part of the movie, some go above and beyond that, including deleted material, bloopers, or entire...
- 4/1/2024
- by Bill Bria
- Slash Film
Léa Seydoux was originally meant to star opposite Gaspard Ulliel in Bertrand Bonello’s audacious sci-fi love story “The Beast.” But the beloved César-winning French actor died at age 37 in January 2022 after a skiing accident while the film was still in pre-production, and he was posthumously replaced by George MacKay.
Seydoux previously starred alongside Ulliel, revered for roles in movies including Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s “A Very Long Engagement” and Bonello’s own “Saint Laurent,” in Xavier Dolan’s 2016 Cannes winner “It’s Only the End of the World.” Seydoux, who recently spoke with IndieWire about her multiple roles in “The Beast” as a woman confronted across centuries by a devastating impossible romance, did not get the chance to talk to Ulliel about “The Beast” before filming. He did, however, leave her a WhatsApp voice message praising her turn in Bruno Dumont’s media satire “France,” a box office hit in France...
Seydoux previously starred alongside Ulliel, revered for roles in movies including Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s “A Very Long Engagement” and Bonello’s own “Saint Laurent,” in Xavier Dolan’s 2016 Cannes winner “It’s Only the End of the World.” Seydoux, who recently spoke with IndieWire about her multiple roles in “The Beast” as a woman confronted across centuries by a devastating impossible romance, did not get the chance to talk to Ulliel about “The Beast” before filming. He did, however, leave her a WhatsApp voice message praising her turn in Bruno Dumont’s media satire “France,” a box office hit in France...
- 3/31/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
“The Beast” is a new science fiction romance, directed by Bertrand Bonello, starring Léa Seydoux, George MacKay, Guslagie Malanda, Dasha Nekrasova, Martin Scalia and Elina Löwensohn, opening April 5, 2024 in theaters:
“…in 2044, ‘AI’ has evolved and determined human emotion as a threat.
“As ‘Gabrielle’ is about to go through a process to ‘purify’ her ‘DNA’ and disconnect from those emotions - she does so by living through past lives.
“But when she begins to connect with a man named ‘Louis’ across history, she realizes her emotions are much stronger than she could anticipate…”
Click the images to enlarge…...
“…in 2044, ‘AI’ has evolved and determined human emotion as a threat.
“As ‘Gabrielle’ is about to go through a process to ‘purify’ her ‘DNA’ and disconnect from those emotions - she does so by living through past lives.
“But when she begins to connect with a man named ‘Louis’ across history, she realizes her emotions are much stronger than she could anticipate…”
Click the images to enlarge…...
- 3/29/2024
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
You know the gifted actor George MacKay from films like 1917 or True History of The Kelly Gang. Now he has given us two absolutely incredible performances in Femme (in select theaters now) and The Beast (out on April 5th). On this episode, he takes us into his process of inhabiting these two extremely different characters. He explains why context is becoming more and more important to him in his preparation, talks about the actor as storyteller, the secret to appearing truly menacing, those sex scenes in Femme, a lesson about respect that he learned from Eddie Marsan, and much […]
The post “All You Can Do is Give Your Offering” George MacKay, Back To One, Episode 284 first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “All You Can Do is Give Your Offering” George MacKay, Back To One, Episode 284 first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 3/26/2024
- by Peter Rinaldi
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
You know the gifted actor George MacKay from films like 1917 or True History of The Kelly Gang. Now he has given us two absolutely incredible performances in Femme (in select theaters now) and The Beast (out on April 5th). On this episode, he takes us into his process of inhabiting these two extremely different characters. He explains why context is becoming more and more important to him in his preparation, talks about the actor as storyteller, the secret to appearing truly menacing, those sex scenes in Femme, a lesson about respect that he learned from Eddie Marsan, and much […]
The post “All You Can Do is Give Your Offering” George MacKay, Back To One, Episode 284 first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “All You Can Do is Give Your Offering” George MacKay, Back To One, Episode 284 first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 3/26/2024
- by Peter Rinaldi
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
Following its premiere at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival last year, “Femme” is finally set for theatrical release in the United States on March 22 in New York and March 29 in Los Angeles. The British thriller from Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping is adapted from their 2021 BAFTA-nominated short and stars Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George MacKay. Utopia has acquired stateside distribution rights.
“Femme” follows Jules (Stewart-Jarrett), who is targeted in a horrific homophobic attack, destroying his life and career. Some time after that event he encounters Preston (MacKay), one of his attackers, in a gay sauna. He wants revenge.
With a critics consensus that reads, “Sexually charged and riddled with tension, Femme redresses the noir genre and may leave audiences biting their nails to the nub,” the movie holds fresh at 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. Read our full review round-up below.
See ‘Furiosa’ to premiere at 2024 Cannes Film Festival
Alexandra Heller-Nicholas of AWFJ.
“Femme” follows Jules (Stewart-Jarrett), who is targeted in a horrific homophobic attack, destroying his life and career. Some time after that event he encounters Preston (MacKay), one of his attackers, in a gay sauna. He wants revenge.
With a critics consensus that reads, “Sexually charged and riddled with tension, Femme redresses the noir genre and may leave audiences biting their nails to the nub,” the movie holds fresh at 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. Read our full review round-up below.
See ‘Furiosa’ to premiere at 2024 Cannes Film Festival
Alexandra Heller-Nicholas of AWFJ.
- 3/25/2024
- by Vincent Mandile
- Gold Derby
IFC’s Late Night With The Devil has scared up the distributor’s largest opening weekend ever with an estimated $2.8+ million on 1.043 screens, coming in at no. 6 at the domestic box office.
Prior to this weekend, Watcher was IFC’s top opening film at $827k, followed by Skinamarink with $819k and Blackberry at $801k. Late Night was IFC’s widest opening since The D Train, the distributor said, noting it was IFC’s highest opening day ($437k) since Skinamakink, and its highest Thursday pre-show ($317k). The film by Australian duo Colin and Cameron Cairnes unfolds almost in real-time on the set of a 1977 late-night talk show broadcast that unexpectedly transforms from amusing to sinister, unleashing evil into the nation’s living rooms. Stars David Dastmalchian as talk show host Jack Delroy.
The Image Nation Abu Dhabi and Spooky Pictures pic premiered at SXSW and has since played Fantasia Festival in Montreal,...
Prior to this weekend, Watcher was IFC’s top opening film at $827k, followed by Skinamarink with $819k and Blackberry at $801k. Late Night was IFC’s widest opening since The D Train, the distributor said, noting it was IFC’s highest opening day ($437k) since Skinamakink, and its highest Thursday pre-show ($317k). The film by Australian duo Colin and Cameron Cairnes unfolds almost in real-time on the set of a 1977 late-night talk show broadcast that unexpectedly transforms from amusing to sinister, unleashing evil into the nation’s living rooms. Stars David Dastmalchian as talk show host Jack Delroy.
The Image Nation Abu Dhabi and Spooky Pictures pic premiered at SXSW and has since played Fantasia Festival in Montreal,...
- 3/24/2024
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
An empathy-for-all approach to a queer revenge thriller about the attraction that forms between a Black drag queen and his white attacker after a homophobic assault? That’s the slippery thrust of queer British filmmakers Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s “Femme,” starring Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George MacKay as East Londoners who share a perverse romantic connection founded on revenge. It’s a movie in revenge noir drag of its own, concealing a sinister love story.
As “Femme” begins, Jules is coming off the high of another fabulous performance under the drag persona Aphrodite Banks. Still in full garb, he stops at a convenience store where he’s at first cruised by Preston, a tatted-up criminal cutting an alluring figure under a streetlamp. But Preston soon after brutally beats Jules to impress his rabbling macho band of friends, leaving Jules naked and collapsed in the street.
But cut to some time later,...
As “Femme” begins, Jules is coming off the high of another fabulous performance under the drag persona Aphrodite Banks. Still in full garb, he stops at a convenience store where he’s at first cruised by Preston, a tatted-up criminal cutting an alluring figure under a streetlamp. But Preston soon after brutally beats Jules to impress his rabbling macho band of friends, leaving Jules naked and collapsed in the street.
But cut to some time later,...
- 3/22/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Constantin Film and Big Light Productions has tapped Christian Schwochow, whose credits include “The Crown,” “Munich: The Edge of War” and “Bad Banks,” to direct its upcoming high-profile drama series “Nuremberg,” based on the Nuremberg Trials. The show will be written by Frank Spotnitz, whose credits include “The Man in the High Castle,” “Ransom” and “Leonardo.”
The series follows young survivors of World War II who go to work for Allied prosecutors trying Nazi criminals in Nuremberg, only to find their quest for justice undermined by secret efforts to build a new world order based on power, not principle.
Schwochow said: “The Nuremberg Trials marked a pivotal moment in human history, ushering in a new age of responsibility and justice. This is a story of humanity grappling with its deepest shadows. Its relevance has never been greater, and I am filled with a humble sense of duty to tell this story faithfully.
The series follows young survivors of World War II who go to work for Allied prosecutors trying Nazi criminals in Nuremberg, only to find their quest for justice undermined by secret efforts to build a new world order based on power, not principle.
Schwochow said: “The Nuremberg Trials marked a pivotal moment in human history, ushering in a new age of responsibility and justice. This is a story of humanity grappling with its deepest shadows. Its relevance has never been greater, and I am filled with a humble sense of duty to tell this story faithfully.
- 3/20/2024
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
In our cancel-happy times, there’s hardly room for an empathy-for-all approach to identity-based violence and abuse. Enter Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s “Femme,” a bruiser of a British queer revenge thriller that plunges straight into the gray areas that can form between attacker and victim.
Retrofitting the pages of ‘90s erotic suspense films to a 2023 sensibility, “Femme” stars Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (breakout of “Culprits”) as a Black drag queen who, after being assaulted by a white, closeted street thug played by George MacKay, reaps revenge by seducing his attacker, who later doesn’t recognize him out of drag. But in the process, fraught tenderness and attraction form between Jules (Stewart-Jarrett) and Preston (MacKay), making Jules’ calculated act of vengeance — and the film itself — that much more complicated.
Unfolding almost entirely at night against the neon-dappled backdrop of the East London underground, “Femme” near-fully pulls off its devastating...
Retrofitting the pages of ‘90s erotic suspense films to a 2023 sensibility, “Femme” stars Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (breakout of “Culprits”) as a Black drag queen who, after being assaulted by a white, closeted street thug played by George MacKay, reaps revenge by seducing his attacker, who later doesn’t recognize him out of drag. But in the process, fraught tenderness and attraction form between Jules (Stewart-Jarrett) and Preston (MacKay), making Jules’ calculated act of vengeance — and the film itself — that much more complicated.
Unfolding almost entirely at night against the neon-dappled backdrop of the East London underground, “Femme” near-fully pulls off its devastating...
- 3/19/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Applications are now open for the 21st edition of Screen International’s Screen Stars of Tomorrow, our annual portfolio of new talent from the UK and Ireland.
The submissions window is open for one month, from March 6 to April 5, 2024.
Applications are open to UK and Irish citizens and long-term residents of either country. There is no upper or lower age limit, but applicants should be at an early stage in their film career, demonstrate exceptional promise and be ready to progress to the next level.
Applicants should use this Google Form and need to attach a brief bio, a headshot...
The submissions window is open for one month, from March 6 to April 5, 2024.
Applications are open to UK and Irish citizens and long-term residents of either country. There is no upper or lower age limit, but applicants should be at an early stage in their film career, demonstrate exceptional promise and be ready to progress to the next level.
Applicants should use this Google Form and need to attach a brief bio, a headshot...
- 3/6/2024
- ScreenDaily
It’s Oscar month. And that means Best Picture alt-poster time.
Four of my favorites are below, courtesy of the usual suspects. I love that some (George Grey and Eileen Steinbach) use a consistent theme to connect their line-up while others (Haley Turnbull and Matt Needle) create whatever that title inspires in them. There’s obviously no wrong direction to head and, regardless of which they choose, we get to enjoy the spoils of extra art long past the actual marketing campaigns.
And despite those nominees not necessarily needing the added boost, it is nice for us to receive another in-road to talk about them again. Because, as is usually the case, the morning after the Oscars unofficially moves everyone’s attention towards next year’s hopefuls (if Sundance praise hasn’t done so already).
Artists: George Grey (Killers of the Flower Moon), Haley Turnbull (Poor Things), Eileen Steinbach (The Zone of Interest...
Four of my favorites are below, courtesy of the usual suspects. I love that some (George Grey and Eileen Steinbach) use a consistent theme to connect their line-up while others (Haley Turnbull and Matt Needle) create whatever that title inspires in them. There’s obviously no wrong direction to head and, regardless of which they choose, we get to enjoy the spoils of extra art long past the actual marketing campaigns.
And despite those nominees not necessarily needing the added boost, it is nice for us to receive another in-road to talk about them again. Because, as is usually the case, the morning after the Oscars unofficially moves everyone’s attention towards next year’s hopefuls (if Sundance praise hasn’t done so already).
Artists: George Grey (Killers of the Flower Moon), Haley Turnbull (Poor Things), Eileen Steinbach (The Zone of Interest...
- 3/1/2024
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
Raine Allen Miller’s debut feature Rye Lane, Adjani Salmon’s Dreaming Whilst Black, and Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical were among the top winners at the sixth edition of the CDG Casting Awards. Scross down for the full list of winners.
Kharmel Cochrane picked up the Best Casting in an Independent Film award for her work on Rye Lane. Dreaming Whilst Black landed the Best Casting in a TV Comedy Series award for Heather Basten, Peter Noden, and Fran Cattaneo, and Louise Kiely won Best Casting in a Film for The Banshees of Inisherin.
High-profile titles that missed out on honors include Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, which was nominated for Best Casting in a Film alongside Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn. Kharmel Cochrane cast Saltburn and also popped in the noms for Best Casting in a Commercial for her work on Vanish ‘Me, My Autism & I.
The awards were...
Kharmel Cochrane picked up the Best Casting in an Independent Film award for her work on Rye Lane. Dreaming Whilst Black landed the Best Casting in a TV Comedy Series award for Heather Basten, Peter Noden, and Fran Cattaneo, and Louise Kiely won Best Casting in a Film for The Banshees of Inisherin.
High-profile titles that missed out on honors include Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, which was nominated for Best Casting in a Film alongside Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn. Kharmel Cochrane cast Saltburn and also popped in the noms for Best Casting in a Commercial for her work on Vanish ‘Me, My Autism & I.
The awards were...
- 2/22/2024
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Pete Davidson Horror ‘The Home’ from ‘The Purge’ Director James DeMonaco Bought for U.K. (Exclusive)
Signature Entertainment has acquired the U.K. and Ireland rights to the Pete Davidson (“The King of Staten Island”) horror film ”The Home” from Miramax.
The feature was produced by Bill Block (“Halloween Kills”) and Sébastian K. Lemercier (“The First Purge”) and is directed by James DeMonaco (“The Purge” franchise) from a script co-written by DeMonaco and Adam Cantor. Last year Lionsgate bought the film for the U.S. after it screened for buyers outside of competition at the Toronto Film Festival.
“The Home” follows former foster child Max, who begins working at a retirement home, where he quickly discovers that its residents and caretakers are harboring sinister secrets.
The deal was negotiated between Signature chief commercial officer Elizabeth Williams and Miramax’s senior vice president of international production and distribution Yvette Zhuang.
“We’re big fans of horror at Signature Entertainment and after seeing ‘The Home,’ we knew this...
The feature was produced by Bill Block (“Halloween Kills”) and Sébastian K. Lemercier (“The First Purge”) and is directed by James DeMonaco (“The Purge” franchise) from a script co-written by DeMonaco and Adam Cantor. Last year Lionsgate bought the film for the U.S. after it screened for buyers outside of competition at the Toronto Film Festival.
“The Home” follows former foster child Max, who begins working at a retirement home, where he quickly discovers that its residents and caretakers are harboring sinister secrets.
The deal was negotiated between Signature chief commercial officer Elizabeth Williams and Miramax’s senior vice president of international production and distribution Yvette Zhuang.
“We’re big fans of horror at Signature Entertainment and after seeing ‘The Home,’ we knew this...
- 2/19/2024
- by Alex Ritman
- Variety Film + TV
Signature Entertainment has acquired the U.K. and Irish rights to the family adventure animation film Butterfly Tale from sales company Pink Parrot. Its voice cast features Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black, She-Hulk), Mena Massoud (Aladdin, Star Wars: Ahsoka) and Tristan D. Lalla (Long Shot).
Butterfly Tale tells the story of Patrick (voiced by Massoud), “a gutsy and loveable, yet inept one-winged butterfly, who stows away in a milkweed trailer in order to be part of the migration journey of a lifetime,” according to a plot description. “Along with his best friend, a goofy caterpillar named Marty, and Jennifer (Maslany), a butterfly who is afraid of heights, Patrick will become an unlikely hero.”
The movie, produced by Marie-Claude Beauchamp (The Legend of Sarila) and Emely Christians (All Creatures Big and Small), was directed by Sophie Roy (Double Dribble) from a script written by Heidi Foss (Pup Academy) and Lienne Sawatsky (The Guava Juice Show...
Butterfly Tale tells the story of Patrick (voiced by Massoud), “a gutsy and loveable, yet inept one-winged butterfly, who stows away in a milkweed trailer in order to be part of the migration journey of a lifetime,” according to a plot description. “Along with his best friend, a goofy caterpillar named Marty, and Jennifer (Maslany), a butterfly who is afraid of heights, Patrick will become an unlikely hero.”
The movie, produced by Marie-Claude Beauchamp (The Legend of Sarila) and Emely Christians (All Creatures Big and Small), was directed by Sophie Roy (Double Dribble) from a script written by Heidi Foss (Pup Academy) and Lienne Sawatsky (The Guava Juice Show...
- 2/19/2024
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig, Caitriona Balfe & More Stars Attend Chanel's Pre-bafta Party in London!
Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig and Caitriona Balfe are celebrating with Chanel!
The stars attended the Chanel and Charles Finch Pre-bafta Party on Saturday night (February 17) in London, England.
Chanel and Charles Finch held their 24th annual pre-bafta party at the Georgian townhouse 5 Hertford Street, a private members club in London’s Mayfair.
Keep reading to find out more…
Throughout the evening, a host of international guests from the worlds of film, fashion, design, art and music like Carey Mulligan, Emma Mackey, Sandra Huller, Justine Triet, Lucy Boynton and Bel Powley gathered for dinner to celebrate the 2024 BAFTAs, which is happening on Sunday (February 18).
Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Ellie Bamber, Nico Parker, Teo Yoo, Savanah Leaf, Lily Allen, Antonia Desplat, Gala Gordon, Alexa Chung, Vivian Oparah, George Mackay, Poppy Delevingne, Marisa Abela, Gwendoline Christie, Greta Bellamacina and Laura Bailey were all among the star-studded attendees.
Find out who is nominated for the 2024 BAFTAs!
The stars attended the Chanel and Charles Finch Pre-bafta Party on Saturday night (February 17) in London, England.
Chanel and Charles Finch held their 24th annual pre-bafta party at the Georgian townhouse 5 Hertford Street, a private members club in London’s Mayfair.
Keep reading to find out more…
Throughout the evening, a host of international guests from the worlds of film, fashion, design, art and music like Carey Mulligan, Emma Mackey, Sandra Huller, Justine Triet, Lucy Boynton and Bel Powley gathered for dinner to celebrate the 2024 BAFTAs, which is happening on Sunday (February 18).
Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Ellie Bamber, Nico Parker, Teo Yoo, Savanah Leaf, Lily Allen, Antonia Desplat, Gala Gordon, Alexa Chung, Vivian Oparah, George Mackay, Poppy Delevingne, Marisa Abela, Gwendoline Christie, Greta Bellamacina and Laura Bailey were all among the star-studded attendees.
Find out who is nominated for the 2024 BAFTAs!
- 2/18/2024
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
A Korean adaptation of psychological thriller Marrowbone is in production and being introduced to buyers at the EFM by K-Movie Entertainment.
The Secret House (working title) is based on the 2017 English-language Spanish film by Sergio G. Sanchez, which starred Anya Taylor-Joy, George MacKay, Charlie Heaton and Mia Goth, and premiered at Toronto. Sanchez is also known for writing J.A. Bayona’s The Orphanage and The Impossible.
The Korean version will mark the second feature of director Park Sang-min, whose satirical comedy I Haven’t Done Anything played New York Asian Film Festival and Tallinn in 2022.
The cast is led by...
The Secret House (working title) is based on the 2017 English-language Spanish film by Sergio G. Sanchez, which starred Anya Taylor-Joy, George MacKay, Charlie Heaton and Mia Goth, and premiered at Toronto. Sanchez is also known for writing J.A. Bayona’s The Orphanage and The Impossible.
The Korean version will mark the second feature of director Park Sang-min, whose satirical comedy I Haven’t Done Anything played New York Asian Film Festival and Tallinn in 2022.
The cast is led by...
- 2/17/2024
- ScreenDaily
"I'm a private person." "Are you now?" Utopia has unveiled a second trailer for the edgy new film Femme, which first premiered at the 2023 Berlin Film Festival (here's my review) last year. One year later - they're giving this another push before it hits US theaters. It's a remarkably powerful look at the dynamic between a gay man & closeted "tough guy" in London. Jules' life as a drag queen is destroyed by a homophobic attack. But when he re-encounters his attacker, the deeply-closeted Preston in a sauna, he is now presented with a chance to exact revenge. Unrecognizable out of his wig and make-up, Jules infiltrates Preston’s life, and in doing so, discovers power in a different kind of drag. A provocative contemporary thriller. Starring George MacKay as Preston & Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Jules, with a cast including Aaron Heffernan, John McCrea, Nima Taleghani, Antonia Clarke, and Moe Bar-El. I...
- 2/15/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
The stars are stepping out ahead of the 2024 BAFTAs!
Joe Alwyn joined Bridgerton stars Phoebe Dynevor and Rege-Jean Page at the 2024 Pre-bafta Filmmakers Dinner & Party hosted by Dunhill and Bsbp on Tuesday night (February 13) held at the Bourbon House in London, England.
The event was held to celebrate the British film culture and community ahead of the BAFTAs, which takes place on Sunday, Feb. 18. Check out the full list of nominations here.
Since the guestlist was so stacked, we pulled together pics of so many of the stars arriving at the party!
Click inside to see photos of the stars at the party…
Scroll through photos of so many stars who attended the pre-BAFTAs dinner…
Adjoa Andoh
Alfie Allen
Alison Oliver
Aml Ameen
Anthony Boyle
Anthony Welsh
Archie Madekwe
Fyi: Archie Madekwe is wearing a suit by Dunhill.
Asa Butterfield
Ashley Thomas
Ben Radcliffe
Billie Piper
Brian Cox & wife Nicole Ansari...
Joe Alwyn joined Bridgerton stars Phoebe Dynevor and Rege-Jean Page at the 2024 Pre-bafta Filmmakers Dinner & Party hosted by Dunhill and Bsbp on Tuesday night (February 13) held at the Bourbon House in London, England.
The event was held to celebrate the British film culture and community ahead of the BAFTAs, which takes place on Sunday, Feb. 18. Check out the full list of nominations here.
Since the guestlist was so stacked, we pulled together pics of so many of the stars arriving at the party!
Click inside to see photos of the stars at the party…
Scroll through photos of so many stars who attended the pre-BAFTAs dinner…
Adjoa Andoh
Alfie Allen
Alison Oliver
Aml Ameen
Anthony Boyle
Anthony Welsh
Archie Madekwe
Fyi: Archie Madekwe is wearing a suit by Dunhill.
Asa Butterfield
Ashley Thomas
Ben Radcliffe
Billie Piper
Brian Cox & wife Nicole Ansari...
- 2/15/2024
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
31-year-old actor George MacKay has really moved up in the world ever since Sam Mendes cast him in as the lead in “1917,” but the young actor (also known for “The Beast” and “Wolf”) pulls off one of his most challenging roles in the upcoming, so-called “queer thriller,” “Femme.” The British film was written and directed by Sam H.
Continue reading ‘Femme’ Trailer: George MacKay Stars In A Provocative Queer Revenge Thriller Arriving In March at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘Femme’ Trailer: George MacKay Stars In A Provocative Queer Revenge Thriller Arriving In March at The Playlist.
- 2/14/2024
- by Edward Davis
- The Playlist
Bertrand Bonello’s The Beast isn’t George MacKay’s only film arriving this spring. Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s thriller Femme, for which MacKay picked up Best Joint Lead Performance with co-star Nathan Stewart-Jarrett at British Independent Film Awards, will get a release from Utopia this March and now the new trailer has arrived.
Here’s the synopsis for the Berlinale selection: “With his performances as Aphrodite Banks, Jules has a place among London’s celebrated drag artists. One night after a show, he steps out to get some cigarettes and is brutally attacked by a man, out with a gang of his friends. Although Jules is able to recover physically, he withdraws from the outside world, traumatized. Months later, he recognizes his attacker by chance in a gay sauna. Without make-up and wrapped only in a towel, Jules is able to approach the other man...
Here’s the synopsis for the Berlinale selection: “With his performances as Aphrodite Banks, Jules has a place among London’s celebrated drag artists. One night after a show, he steps out to get some cigarettes and is brutally attacked by a man, out with a gang of his friends. Although Jules is able to recover physically, he withdraws from the outside world, traumatized. Months later, he recognizes his attacker by chance in a gay sauna. Without make-up and wrapped only in a towel, Jules is able to approach the other man...
- 2/14/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
How would you handle coming face to face with your attacker? Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s “Femme” takes that very question — and the revenge story that follows — to a new level, as it follows a lauded drag artist (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) who crosses paths with his homophobic assaulter (George MacKay) in a gay bathhouse months after his terrible attack. What transpires is an unexpected tale of forgiveness, empathy, and yes, even violence.
The official synopsis for the film reads: “With his performances as Aphrodite Banks, Jules (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) has a place among London’s celebrated drag artists. One night after a show, he steps out to get some cigarettes and is brutally attacked by a man (George MacKay) out with a gang of his friends. Although Jules is able to recover physically, he withdraws from the outside world, traumatized. Months later, he recognizes his attacker by chance in a gay sauna.
The official synopsis for the film reads: “With his performances as Aphrodite Banks, Jules (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) has a place among London’s celebrated drag artists. One night after a show, he steps out to get some cigarettes and is brutally attacked by a man (George MacKay) out with a gang of his friends. Although Jules is able to recover physically, he withdraws from the outside world, traumatized. Months later, he recognizes his attacker by chance in a gay sauna.
- 2/14/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Atténtion! Atténtion! The latest Vidéo Club video is out and this one features French actress Léa Seydoux! The French YouTube channel Konbini posted their latest "Vidéo Club" promo following a celebrity through one of Paris' last video rental shops as they peruse the DVDs/Blu-rays and chat about their favorites. Léa Seydoux stops by this time as part of a promotion for her new French sci-fi romance film The Beast (watch the trailer) in which she co-stars with George MacKay. She's so passionate about all this great cinema! It's refreshing to hear! And I am glad she is also a fan of Xavier Dolan. Other films discussed: The Kid (1921), A Place in the Sun (1951), On Dangerous Ground (1951), Zazie dans le Métro (1960), Cronenberg's Naked Lunch (1991), Miyazaki's The Wind Rises (2013), and also defends the first Brian De Palma Mission: Impossible (1996) - which I also think is a great film. View below. // Continue...
- 2/14/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
"I'm afraid of no longer feeling things..." Janus Films has revealed the full official US trailer for the indie French sci-fi romantic thriller The Beast, the latest unique creation from filmmaker Bertrand Bonello. This initially premiered at last year's Venice Film Festival in the fall, with additional festival stops at New York, London and Toronto as well. It's hard to properly describe or even try to explain this film, as it's a peculiar mix of ideas spanning multiple timelines. The plot is set partly in a near future in which A.I. is in control of everyone's lives and emotions are perceived as a threat. To get rid of them, Gabrielle must purify her DNA by going back into her past lives. There, she reunites with Louis, her great love. But she's overcome by fear, a premonition that catastrophe is on the way. The Beast stars French actor Léa Seydoux...
- 2/13/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Bertrand Bonello’s sensual epic love story “The Beast” is finally landing stateside. The French-Italian film stars Léa Seydoux and George MacKay as two lovers who find one another across centuries, in different times, places, and lives.
“The Beast” premiered at the 2023 Venice Film Festival and went on to screen at last year’s NYFF. Director Bonello told IndieWire’s Ryan Lattanzio at Venice that the film was rejected from the Cannes Film Festival, saying that the festival “didn’t like it.” “The best place for a film is where the film is wanted, and now we are doing, with this film, a huge fall release, so Venice, then Toronto, New York, Busan, stuff like that, so maybe it’s what’s best for the film,” Bonello said at the time.
Loosely inspired by the 1910 Henry James story “The Beast in the Jungle,” the official synopsis for “The Beast” is...
“The Beast” premiered at the 2023 Venice Film Festival and went on to screen at last year’s NYFF. Director Bonello told IndieWire’s Ryan Lattanzio at Venice that the film was rejected from the Cannes Film Festival, saying that the festival “didn’t like it.” “The best place for a film is where the film is wanted, and now we are doing, with this film, a huge fall release, so Venice, then Toronto, New York, Busan, stuff like that, so maybe it’s what’s best for the film,” Bonello said at the time.
Loosely inspired by the 1910 Henry James story “The Beast in the Jungle,” the official synopsis for “The Beast” is...
- 2/13/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Battered by disappointing markets at Toronto and AFM, both of which were held under the shadow of the actors strike, buyers and sellers are looking to Berlin’s European Film Market (EFM), which runs Feb. 15-21, to re-energize the indie business. The outlook, coming out of Sundance, is good.
“The difference in Sundance from last year to this was extreme, there were a lot more deals being down, both by distributors and streamers,” says Janina Vislmaier, head of sales at Protagonist Pictures, which screened The Outrun with Saoirse Ronan and Sasquatch Sunset with Riley Keough and Jesse Eisenberg in Park City, both of which will screen at the EFM. “Everyone is really excited ahead of Berlin, especially because all the buyers are back, including from Asia, which is a really good sign.”
The end of the SAG and WGA strikes hasn’t, yet, delivered the flood of new projects and packages many had predicted,...
“The difference in Sundance from last year to this was extreme, there were a lot more deals being down, both by distributors and streamers,” says Janina Vislmaier, head of sales at Protagonist Pictures, which screened The Outrun with Saoirse Ronan and Sasquatch Sunset with Riley Keough and Jesse Eisenberg in Park City, both of which will screen at the EFM. “Everyone is really excited ahead of Berlin, especially because all the buyers are back, including from Asia, which is a really good sign.”
The end of the SAG and WGA strikes hasn’t, yet, delivered the flood of new projects and packages many had predicted,...
- 2/13/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Opening in select cities on April 5, Crimes of the Future actress Léa Seydoux leads the cast of The Beast, and Janus Films has debuted the trailer through Vulture this morning.
The mind-bending sci-fi drama comes from French director Bertrand Bonello.
“The year is 2044: artificial intelligence controls all facets of a stoic society as humans routinely “erase” their feelings. Hoping to eliminate pain caused by their past-life romances, Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) continually falls in love with different incarnations of Louis (George MacKay).
“Set first in Belle Époque-era Paris Louis is a British man who woos her away from a cold husband, then in early 21st Century Los Angeles, he is a disturbed American bent on delivering violent “retribution.” Will the process allow Gabrielle to fully connect with Louis in the present, or are the two doomed to repeat their previous fates?”
Janus Films previews, “Visually audacious director Bertrand Bonello fashions...
The mind-bending sci-fi drama comes from French director Bertrand Bonello.
“The year is 2044: artificial intelligence controls all facets of a stoic society as humans routinely “erase” their feelings. Hoping to eliminate pain caused by their past-life romances, Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) continually falls in love with different incarnations of Louis (George MacKay).
“Set first in Belle Époque-era Paris Louis is a British man who woos her away from a cold husband, then in early 21st Century Los Angeles, he is a disturbed American bent on delivering violent “retribution.” Will the process allow Gabrielle to fully connect with Louis in the present, or are the two doomed to repeat their previous fates?”
Janus Films previews, “Visually audacious director Bertrand Bonello fashions...
- 2/13/2024
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Probably you’ve noticed our enthusiasm over Bertrand Bonello’s The Beast, a major evolution in genre and ambition for one of the world’s greatest filmmakers. There’s Léa Seydoux’s potentially career-best work; George MacKay vaulting above just about anyone of his generation with a bilingual, multi-headed turn; Bonello’s characteristically great soundtrack; and a final, terrifying stretch leaving me to wonder how who else is pushing images and montage to this director’s extent. What’s not to like? First-viewing reservations largely melted away on a second look, and my third can’t come sooner. Ahead of its April 5 release from Janus and Sideshow, the U.S. trailer is here.
David Katz was duly impressed out of Venice, writing, “Where to begin with Bertrand Bonello’s wonderful The Beast? It’s been so gratifying to see the initial reaction to the French filmmaker’s tenth feature, after...
David Katz was duly impressed out of Venice, writing, “Where to begin with Bertrand Bonello’s wonderful The Beast? It’s been so gratifying to see the initial reaction to the French filmmaker’s tenth feature, after...
- 2/13/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Sure, we’ve been told Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) is going to ruin society. Most of the time, the fears are either that A.I.-fueled robots are going to take over the world and eradicate humanity or generative A.I. is going to destroy creative industries and lead us into a society filled with shitty content. Well, “The Beast” posits a different A.I.-dominated future.
Read More: ‘The Beast’ Review: Léa Seydoux Leads Bertrand Bonello’s Epic, Time-Spanning Sci-Fi Warning About A.I.
Continue reading ‘The Beast’ Trailer: Léa Seydoux & George MacKay Star In Bertrand Bonello’s New Sci-Fi Drama at The Playlist.
Read More: ‘The Beast’ Review: Léa Seydoux Leads Bertrand Bonello’s Epic, Time-Spanning Sci-Fi Warning About A.I.
Continue reading ‘The Beast’ Trailer: Léa Seydoux & George MacKay Star In Bertrand Bonello’s New Sci-Fi Drama at The Playlist.
- 2/13/2024
- by Charles Barfield
- The Playlist
Director and author Christian Schwochow has signed with CAA for representation, Variety has learned.
Schwochow continues to be repped by Curtis Brown in the U.K. and Players Agentur Management in Germany.
The journalist turned auteur recently served as lead director and executive producer on the sixth and final season of “The Crown,” which starred Imelda Staunton, Dominic West and Elizabeth Debicki.
His episodes focused on Princess Diana’s final, tragic months in the lead-up to her fatal 1997 car crash alongside her sometime boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed. Last month Debicki won a Golden Globe award for best TV supporting actress for her portrayal of the princess.
Schwochow also directed multiple episodes of “The Crown” Season 3, which starred Olivia Coleman as Queen Elizabeth II, and Season 5 as well as Netflix series “Munich ’38 (The Edge of War),” produced by Turbine Films and starred Jeremy Irons, George MacKay, and Alex Jennings. Variety’s...
Schwochow continues to be repped by Curtis Brown in the U.K. and Players Agentur Management in Germany.
The journalist turned auteur recently served as lead director and executive producer on the sixth and final season of “The Crown,” which starred Imelda Staunton, Dominic West and Elizabeth Debicki.
His episodes focused on Princess Diana’s final, tragic months in the lead-up to her fatal 1997 car crash alongside her sometime boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed. Last month Debicki won a Golden Globe award for best TV supporting actress for her portrayal of the princess.
Schwochow also directed multiple episodes of “The Crown” Season 3, which starred Olivia Coleman as Queen Elizabeth II, and Season 5 as well as Netflix series “Munich ’38 (The Edge of War),” produced by Turbine Films and starred Jeremy Irons, George MacKay, and Alex Jennings. Variety’s...
- 2/13/2024
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
Veteran German film and TV executive Dirk Schweitzer has left his position as CEO of producer/distributor Splendid Medien and has taken over as CEO of Mmc Group, the parent company of Cologne’s Mmc Studios.
Björn Siecken, former CFO at Splendid, will join Schweitzer as CFO of Mmc. Nico Roden will stay on as managing director of Mmc Studios, who run the Cologne backlot, and Bastie Griese will remain managing director of production division Mmc Movies, working together with Schweitzer to expand the company’s film and TV operations nationally and internationally.
Former Splendid boss Andreas Klein, son of company founder Albert E. Klein, has returned to run the company as CEO. Schweitzer took over operations at Splendid from Klein in 2020, with Klein continuing as an advisor to the company. Schweizer joined Splendid in 2013 from producer/distributor Tele-München Group, where he was managing director. Before that, he spent 10 years...
Björn Siecken, former CFO at Splendid, will join Schweitzer as CFO of Mmc. Nico Roden will stay on as managing director of Mmc Studios, who run the Cologne backlot, and Bastie Griese will remain managing director of production division Mmc Movies, working together with Schweitzer to expand the company’s film and TV operations nationally and internationally.
Former Splendid boss Andreas Klein, son of company founder Albert E. Klein, has returned to run the company as CEO. Schweitzer took over operations at Splendid from Klein in 2020, with Klein continuing as an advisor to the company. Schweizer joined Splendid in 2013 from producer/distributor Tele-München Group, where he was managing director. Before that, he spent 10 years...
- 2/12/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Black Dog, the debut feature of Screen Star of Tomorrow George Jaques, has been acquired for UK-Ireland distribution by Vertigo Releasing.
Vertigo acquired the film from Independent Entertainment, and will set a theatrical release for later in 2024.
Black Dog was written by Jaques with fellow 2022 Star Jamie Flatters. Flatters stars in the film alongside newcomer Keenan Munn-Francis, in the story of two teenage boys from different London backgrounds, who open up to each other while on a road trip up to the north of England.
The film is produced by Jaques, Flatters, Ken Petrie and Ian Sharp; and executive produced by David Parfitt.
Vertigo acquired the film from Independent Entertainment, and will set a theatrical release for later in 2024.
Black Dog was written by Jaques with fellow 2022 Star Jamie Flatters. Flatters stars in the film alongside newcomer Keenan Munn-Francis, in the story of two teenage boys from different London backgrounds, who open up to each other while on a road trip up to the north of England.
The film is produced by Jaques, Flatters, Ken Petrie and Ian Sharp; and executive produced by David Parfitt.
- 2/5/2024
- ScreenDaily
French filmmaker Bertrand Bonello has been on the scene since the late ’90s and has been a staple at Cannes since his second feature film, “The Pornographer,” won the Fipresci prize in 2001. But his career arguably started picking up a second wind around 2014 with “Saint Laurent,” and it’s kind of been nothing but up since then with many acclaimed films under his belt, including “Nocturama” (2016) and “Zombi Child” (2019).
Continue reading ‘The Beast’ Trailer: Léa Seydoux & George MacKay Star In Bertrand Bonello Sci-Fi Romance at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Beast’ Trailer: Léa Seydoux & George MacKay Star In Bertrand Bonello Sci-Fi Romance at The Playlist.
- 1/31/2024
- by Edward Davis
- The Playlist
Screen shines a light on 30 European titles that look set to grab the attention of festival directors in 2023, including new features by Tom Tykwer, Paz Vega, Paolo Sorrentino, Cecilia Verheyden and Baltasar Kormakur.
For our separate list of French festival hopefuls for 2024, click here.
Ariel (Sp-Por)
Dir. Lois Patiño
Patiño won the Encounters special jury prize at Berlin last year for Samsara and picked up the emerging director prize at Locarno in 2013 with Coast Of Death. His latest is a free adaptation of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, shot in Galicia and The Azores islands. Ariel stars Goya winner Irene Escolar...
For our separate list of French festival hopefuls for 2024, click here.
Ariel (Sp-Por)
Dir. Lois Patiño
Patiño won the Encounters special jury prize at Berlin last year for Samsara and picked up the emerging director prize at Locarno in 2013 with Coast Of Death. His latest is a free adaptation of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, shot in Galicia and The Azores islands. Ariel stars Goya winner Irene Escolar...
- 1/22/2024
- ScreenDaily
Signature Entertainment presents thriller Femme on Digital Platforms including Amazon Prime Video.
This neo-noir revenge thriller will get your heart pounding. Jules’ life and career as a drag queen is destroyed by a homophobic attack, but when he re-encounters his attacker in a gay sauna, he is presented with a chance to exact revenge.
Starring George MacKay (1917), Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (Misfits), John McCrea (Cabaret), Nima Taleghani (Heartstopper), Aaron Heffernan (Brassic), and Antonia Clarke (The Serpent Queen). With music composed by Adam Janota Bzowski (Saint Maud) and cinematography by James Rhodes (Adele: One Night Only). Femme is produced by Myles Payne (Beast), Sam Ritzenberg, executive produced by Marnie Podos and Eva Yates (The End We Start From) of BBC Films, co-produced by Hayley Williams and written and directed by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping based on their 2021 BIFA-winning and BAFTA-nominated short of the same name.
The post Signature Entertainment presents...
This neo-noir revenge thriller will get your heart pounding. Jules’ life and career as a drag queen is destroyed by a homophobic attack, but when he re-encounters his attacker in a gay sauna, he is presented with a chance to exact revenge.
Starring George MacKay (1917), Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (Misfits), John McCrea (Cabaret), Nima Taleghani (Heartstopper), Aaron Heffernan (Brassic), and Antonia Clarke (The Serpent Queen). With music composed by Adam Janota Bzowski (Saint Maud) and cinematography by James Rhodes (Adele: One Night Only). Femme is produced by Myles Payne (Beast), Sam Ritzenberg, executive produced by Marnie Podos and Eva Yates (The End We Start From) of BBC Films, co-produced by Hayley Williams and written and directed by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping based on their 2021 BIFA-winning and BAFTA-nominated short of the same name.
The post Signature Entertainment presents...
- 1/18/2024
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
Our predictions for the 2024 BAFTA nominations were thrown for a loop by the new jury system that determined the final contenders in many of the key categories. We feel bad that we encouraged some famous folk to set their alarms early on Thursday morning, only to find out that they did not number among the nominees despite appearing on the BAFTA longlists.
Scroll down for our list of the top 16 biggest BAFTA Awards snubs in the four acting races, and check out the BAFTA nominations list and the top 16 biggest BAFTA Awards snubs in movies, directing and screenwriting.
Not Best Actor
Andrew Scott, “All of Us Strangers”
George MacKay, “Femme”
Jeffrey Wright, “American Fiction”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Killers of The Flower Moon”
Not Best Actress
Annette Bening, “Nyad”
Greta Lee, “Past Lives”
Lily Gladstone, “Killers of The Flower Moon”
Mia McKenna-Bruce, “How to Have Sex”
Not Best Supporting Actor
Anthony Hopkins,...
Scroll down for our list of the top 16 biggest BAFTA Awards snubs in the four acting races, and check out the BAFTA nominations list and the top 16 biggest BAFTA Awards snubs in movies, directing and screenwriting.
Not Best Actor
Andrew Scott, “All of Us Strangers”
George MacKay, “Femme”
Jeffrey Wright, “American Fiction”
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Killers of The Flower Moon”
Not Best Actress
Annette Bening, “Nyad”
Greta Lee, “Past Lives”
Lily Gladstone, “Killers of The Flower Moon”
Mia McKenna-Bruce, “How to Have Sex”
Not Best Supporting Actor
Anthony Hopkins,...
- 1/18/2024
- by Paul Sheehan and Jacob Sarkisian
- Gold Derby
Christopher Nolan’s biographical epic Oppenheimer is leading the pack of the 2024 BAFTA film awards nominees, unveiled on Thursday, with 13 nominations, with Yorgos Lanthimos’ black-comedy science fantasy Poor Things earning 11.
Oppenheimer, which had earned 15 mentions on the BAFTA longlists unveiled earlier this month, is competing for British Academy honors in such categories as best film, director (for Nolan), adapted screenplay, as well as for best leading actor (Cillian Murphy), best supporting actress (Emily Blunt) and best supporting actor (Robert Downey Jr.), among others.
Poor Things is nominated for such honors as best film, outstanding British film (for Lanthimos and others), best adapted screenplay, as well as best leading actress (Emma Stone).
After getting 15 longlist mentions, Martin Scorsese’s Western crime drama Killers of the Flower Moon received nine BAFTA nominations, including for best film and best supporting actor (Robert De Niro), tying with Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest,...
Oppenheimer, which had earned 15 mentions on the BAFTA longlists unveiled earlier this month, is competing for British Academy honors in such categories as best film, director (for Nolan), adapted screenplay, as well as for best leading actor (Cillian Murphy), best supporting actress (Emily Blunt) and best supporting actor (Robert Downey Jr.), among others.
Poor Things is nominated for such honors as best film, outstanding British film (for Lanthimos and others), best adapted screenplay, as well as best leading actress (Emma Stone).
After getting 15 longlist mentions, Martin Scorsese’s Western crime drama Killers of the Flower Moon received nine BAFTA nominations, including for best film and best supporting actor (Robert De Niro), tying with Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest,...
- 1/18/2024
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.