Alex Garland highlights a key scene in Ex Machina where Ava's consciousness is subtly confirmed. The film raises important questions about AI sentience and the ethical treatment of artificial beings. The director says he conveys his own opinion in the film, but doesn't make a point of emphasizing what he thinks, preferring to let the audience make up their own minds.
Director Alex Garland pinpoints one brief Ex Machina scene that answers whether Ava has consciousness. Released in 2015, Garland’s sci-fi drama starred Alicia Vikander as an intelligent android being put to the test by her creator (Oscar Isaac), who wishes to determine whether she possesses true consciousness. Marking Garland’s directorial debut, the film raised powerful philosophical questions about the nature of consciousness, while grappling with deep quandaries about the potential sentience of artificially intelligent beings, and whether they should be treated as moral free agents.
The ambiguous Ex Machina...
Director Alex Garland pinpoints one brief Ex Machina scene that answers whether Ava has consciousness. Released in 2015, Garland’s sci-fi drama starred Alicia Vikander as an intelligent android being put to the test by her creator (Oscar Isaac), who wishes to determine whether she possesses true consciousness. Marking Garland’s directorial debut, the film raised powerful philosophical questions about the nature of consciousness, while grappling with deep quandaries about the potential sentience of artificially intelligent beings, and whether they should be treated as moral free agents.
The ambiguous Ex Machina...
- 3/29/2024
- by Dan Zinski
- ScreenRant.com
HBO Max offers some of the greatest thrillers in cinematic history, tapping into audiences' primal instincts and delivering suspenseful narratives with jaw-dropping twists. The platform's focus on mature releases and access to the Warner Bros. catalog makes it a treasure trove of gripping thrillers that push boundaries and reshape audience expectations. From thought-provoking sci-fi thrillers like Ex Machina to mind-bending mysteries like Gone Girl, HBO Max's collection of thrillers goes beyond the typical action-packed fare, offering intense and suspenseful experiences that leave viewers questioning their own limits.
There are so many thrillers available to watch on streaming services but the best thrillers on HBO Max are among the greatest in history. Thrillers have long been a cornerstone of cinematic storytelling and captivating audiences with suspenseful narratives and jaw-dropping twists. In the current cinematic landscape, the thriller genre is still evolving, pushing boundaries, and reshaping audiences' expectations. The essence of a...
There are so many thrillers available to watch on streaming services but the best thrillers on HBO Max are among the greatest in history. Thrillers have long been a cornerstone of cinematic storytelling and captivating audiences with suspenseful narratives and jaw-dropping twists. In the current cinematic landscape, the thriller genre is still evolving, pushing boundaries, and reshaping audiences' expectations. The essence of a...
- 10/6/2023
- by Stephen Barker
- ScreenRant.com
Running for ten seasons and spotlighted by many different media outlets for its long-lasting entertainment value through the years, the surprisingly fascinating sitcom about six friends living in New York City called Friends became one of the most popular shows of the mid-90s.
Still drawing in new fans to this day, the cast members that were shot to superstardom through the success of this show are instantly recognized whenever their name is attached to a new television production or movie. Playing the always charming but sometimes immensely stubborn Ross Geller, actor David Schwimmer certainly lit up the screen whenever he was featured.
Bouncing out of Friends and into numerous other roles, people will undoubtedly remember his short but iconic role on an award-winning HBO wartime drama that aired in 2001 called Band of Brothers, where the upstanding actor played Captain Herbert Sobel. Showing his formidable acting chops with those two roles alone,...
Still drawing in new fans to this day, the cast members that were shot to superstardom through the success of this show are instantly recognized whenever their name is attached to a new television production or movie. Playing the always charming but sometimes immensely stubborn Ross Geller, actor David Schwimmer certainly lit up the screen whenever he was featured.
Bouncing out of Friends and into numerous other roles, people will undoubtedly remember his short but iconic role on an award-winning HBO wartime drama that aired in 2001 called Band of Brothers, where the upstanding actor played Captain Herbert Sobel. Showing his formidable acting chops with those two roles alone,...
- 5/16/2023
- by Salvatore Cento
- MovieWeb
Documentary Now! is back on IFC and it is set to premiere Season 53 on Wednesday, October 19 at 10 p.m. Et with two new episodes. The titles of the two-part season premiere are “Soldier of Illusion,” written by John Mulaney, and “Trouver Frisson,” which plays tribute to the Agnès Varda films.
Alexander Skarsgard (Big Little Lies), Nicholas Braun (Succession), and August Diehl (Inglorious Bastards) star in the premiere episode titled “Soldier of Illusion,” which was inspired by the Werner Herzog-focused documentary Burden of Dreams. Skarsgard plays a visionary German filmmaker in the 1980s who tries to will his magnum opus into existence while working in the remote, punishing conditions of the Russian Ular mountains.
Deb Hiett returns as narrator in the episode that also stars Kevin Bishop (The Tracey Ullman Show), Gana Bayarsaikhan (Wonder Woman), Matthias Rimpler (Ludzie i Bogowie), and Fred Armisen (SNL).
The second episode of the premiere...
Alexander Skarsgard (Big Little Lies), Nicholas Braun (Succession), and August Diehl (Inglorious Bastards) star in the premiere episode titled “Soldier of Illusion,” which was inspired by the Werner Herzog-focused documentary Burden of Dreams. Skarsgard plays a visionary German filmmaker in the 1980s who tries to will his magnum opus into existence while working in the remote, punishing conditions of the Russian Ular mountains.
Deb Hiett returns as narrator in the episode that also stars Kevin Bishop (The Tracey Ullman Show), Gana Bayarsaikhan (Wonder Woman), Matthias Rimpler (Ludzie i Bogowie), and Fred Armisen (SNL).
The second episode of the premiere...
- 8/7/2022
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Alexander Skarsgård, Nicholas Braun, French actor Liliane Rovère and others have joined the cast for Season 53 of “Documentary Now!,” IFC announced Friday. The channel also released a first look teaser as well as final details for two new episodes to round out the season.
Known for paying homage to the world of documentaries, “Documentary Now!” Season 53 will debut with on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 10 p.m. on IFC and on AMC+ the same day. New episodes will debut weekly on Wednesdays.
The two-part season premiere episode “Soldier of Illusion,” written by John Mulaney and starring Skarsgård, Braun and August Diehl, was inspired by the Werner Herzog-focused documentary “Burden of Dreams.” Set in the early 1980s, the episode follows a visionary German filmmaker (Skarsgård) as he tries to will his magnum opus into existence while working in the remote, punishing conditions of the Russian Ular mountains. Kevin Bishop, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Matthias Rimpler,...
Known for paying homage to the world of documentaries, “Documentary Now!” Season 53 will debut with on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 10 p.m. on IFC and on AMC+ the same day. New episodes will debut weekly on Wednesdays.
The two-part season premiere episode “Soldier of Illusion,” written by John Mulaney and starring Skarsgård, Braun and August Diehl, was inspired by the Werner Herzog-focused documentary “Burden of Dreams.” Set in the early 1980s, the episode follows a visionary German filmmaker (Skarsgård) as he tries to will his magnum opus into existence while working in the remote, punishing conditions of the Russian Ular mountains. Kevin Bishop, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Matthias Rimpler,...
- 8/5/2022
- by Carson Burton
- Variety Film + TV
Taran Killam as Benedict A. Juniper, John Mulaney as Simon Sawyer – Documentary Now! _ Season 3, Episode 3 – Photo Credit: Rhys Thomas/IFC IFC today released a first look teaser and final details from the highly anticipated 53rd season of Documentary Now!. The two-part season premiere episode, “Soldier of Illusion,” written by John Mulaney, and “Trouver Frisson,” paying tribute to the films of Agnes Varda, join previously announced episodes “Two Hairdressers in Bagglyport,” “How They Threw Rocks” and “My Monkey Grifter” to round out the season. Known for lovingly paying homage to the world of documentaries, Documentary Now! Season 53 will debut with a two-episode premiere on Wednesday, October 19 at 10 Pm on IFC, and on AMC+ the same day. New episodes to debut weekly on Wednesdays. The upcoming season of the critically acclaimed comedy, co-created by Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers and Rhys Thomas, executive produced by Lorne Michaels and produced by Broadway Video,...
- 8/5/2022
- by Hollywood Outbreak
- HollywoodOutbreak.com
IFC on Friday released a first look teaser of the 4th season of “Documentary Now!” — or in the show’s parody universe, the 53rd season — which finds Alexander Skarsgård as a Werner Herzog-inspired filmmaker slogging through the Russian mountains in the two-part season that premieres on IFC and AMC+ on October 9.
Skarsgård is joined by “Succession” star Nicholas Braun and August Diehl of “Inglourious Basterds” in the John Mulaney-penned ode to Herzog’s “Burden of Dreams.” Kevin Bishop, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Matthias Rimpler, and, series co-creator Fred Armisen will also star.
The new season also spoofs beloved late director Agnès Varda in “Trouver Frisson,” in which French actor Liliane Rovère stars as filmmaker Ida Leos, who is searching for “frisson,” the goosebumps that have always been her guide. Written by series producers Matt Pacult and Tamsin Rawady and co-directed by Micah Gardner, the episode also stars “Documentary Now!” alumni Gary Kraus.
Skarsgård is joined by “Succession” star Nicholas Braun and August Diehl of “Inglourious Basterds” in the John Mulaney-penned ode to Herzog’s “Burden of Dreams.” Kevin Bishop, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Matthias Rimpler, and, series co-creator Fred Armisen will also star.
The new season also spoofs beloved late director Agnès Varda in “Trouver Frisson,” in which French actor Liliane Rovère stars as filmmaker Ida Leos, who is searching for “frisson,” the goosebumps that have always been her guide. Written by series producers Matt Pacult and Tamsin Rawady and co-directed by Micah Gardner, the episode also stars “Documentary Now!” alumni Gary Kraus.
- 8/5/2022
- by Sharon Knolle
- The Wrap
Italy’s Iervolino Entertainment is boasting a slew of international sales on Ciro Guerra-directed drama “Waiting for the Barbarians,” toplining Johnny Depp and starring Robert Pattinson, Mark Rylance, Gana Bayarsaikhan and Greta Scacchi.
The adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s prize-winning novel, which launched from Venice last year, has been sold by Iervolino’s Ambi Distribution unit to Germany (Constantin Film), France (Snd), Cis (Paradise), Middle East (Falcon Films), Cee (Vertical), Taiwan (Cai Chang International), Australia (Defiant), Latin America (Dreamgold), Turkey (Filmarti), and Scandinavia and Iceland, among other territories.
Ambi is now looking to close more deals during the Toronto Film Festival, which kicks off Thursday.
The film, which is an allegory of the war between oppressor and oppressed and sees Depp play the reactionary Colonel Joll, was originally slated by Samuel Goldwyn Films for a theatrical release in the U.S. However, due to Covid-19, it instead went out...
The adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s prize-winning novel, which launched from Venice last year, has been sold by Iervolino’s Ambi Distribution unit to Germany (Constantin Film), France (Snd), Cis (Paradise), Middle East (Falcon Films), Cee (Vertical), Taiwan (Cai Chang International), Australia (Defiant), Latin America (Dreamgold), Turkey (Filmarti), and Scandinavia and Iceland, among other territories.
Ambi is now looking to close more deals during the Toronto Film Festival, which kicks off Thursday.
The film, which is an allegory of the war between oppressor and oppressed and sees Depp play the reactionary Colonel Joll, was originally slated by Samuel Goldwyn Films for a theatrical release in the U.S. However, due to Covid-19, it instead went out...
- 9/10/2020
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Germany, Australia, France among territories sold
Ciro Guerra’s Waiting For The Barbarians starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson has secured a raft of key international sales through Ambi Distribution.
Iervolino Entertainment announced the sales as the TIFF virtual market gets underway.
Rights to the drama have gone in Germany (Constantin Film), France (Snd), Australia (Defiant), Italy (Iervolino Entertainment S.p.A.), Scandinavia & Iceland (Non Stop), Middle East (Falcon Films), Cee (Vertical), and Taiwan (Cai Chang International).
Deals also closed in Latin America (Dreamgold), Cis (Paradise), Turkey (Filmarti), Mongolia (Black Stallion), Indonesia (Artist View), Benelux (One2See), and...
Ciro Guerra’s Waiting For The Barbarians starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson has secured a raft of key international sales through Ambi Distribution.
Iervolino Entertainment announced the sales as the TIFF virtual market gets underway.
Rights to the drama have gone in Germany (Constantin Film), France (Snd), Australia (Defiant), Italy (Iervolino Entertainment S.p.A.), Scandinavia & Iceland (Non Stop), Middle East (Falcon Films), Cee (Vertical), and Taiwan (Cai Chang International).
Deals also closed in Latin America (Dreamgold), Cis (Paradise), Turkey (Filmarti), Mongolia (Black Stallion), Indonesia (Artist View), Benelux (One2See), and...
- 9/10/2020
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Germany, Australia, France among territories sold
Ciro Guerra’s Waiting For The Barbarians starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson has secured a raft of key international sales through Ambi Distribution.
Iervolino Entertainment announced the sales as the TIFF virtual market gets underway.
Rights to the drama have gone in Germany (Constantin Film), France (Snd), Australia (Defiant), Italy (Iervolino Entertainment S.p.A.), Scandinavia & Iceland (Non Stop), Middle East (Falcon Films), Cee (Vertical), and Taiwan (Cai Chang International).
Deals also closed in Latin America (Dreamgold), Cis (Paradise), Turkey (Filmarti), Mongolia (Black Stallion), Indonesia (Artist View), Benelux (One2See), and...
Ciro Guerra’s Waiting For The Barbarians starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson has secured a raft of key international sales through Ambi Distribution.
Iervolino Entertainment announced the sales as the TIFF virtual market gets underway.
Rights to the drama have gone in Germany (Constantin Film), France (Snd), Australia (Defiant), Italy (Iervolino Entertainment S.p.A.), Scandinavia & Iceland (Non Stop), Middle East (Falcon Films), Cee (Vertical), and Taiwan (Cai Chang International).
Deals also closed in Latin America (Dreamgold), Cis (Paradise), Turkey (Filmarti), Mongolia (Black Stallion), Indonesia (Artist View), Benelux (One2See), and...
- 9/10/2020
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
You expect fireworks when you cast Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson and Mark Rylance in a political allegory about a nameless empire that savagely exploits the indigenous people in its desert colony. That the sparks fly only intermittently in Waiting for the Barbarians may be due to the heavy lifting required by the great Colombian director Ciro Guerra (Embrace of the Serpent, Birds of Passage) as he adapts South African author J.M. Coetzee’s 1980 novel to the screen with a first-time script by the Nobel laureate himself. In his first film in English,...
- 8/6/2020
- by Peter Travers
- Rollingstone.com
At the core of Waiting for the Barbarians, a surprisingly star-studded new independent release, is a concept that’s worthy of top-tier cinematic execution. Unfortunately, despite solid performances, great cinematography, and strong themes that should resonate, the emotion of it all is held too much at arm’s length. Being an intellectual exercise is all well and good, but if it’s not compelling, what’s the point? Sadly, this one comes up short due to a failure to turn these good ingredients into an enjoyable meal. There are certainly worse options out this week, but there are far better ones, as well, so except this to get lost in the shuffle. The movie is a drama about an officer at an outpost beginning to question his loyalty to the empire. This Magistrate (Mark Rylance) runs an isolated frontier settlement on the border of an unnamed empire with relative ease.
- 8/5/2020
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
David Schwimmer is bringing a heavy dose of American arrogance across the pond in Peacock’s new UK import Intelligence — but did this goofy workplace comedy earn a full-time gig on your watchlist?
Schwimmer stars as brash Nsa agent Jerry Bernstein, who arrives in the UK to serve as a liaison with the British cyber crime division — a collection of geeky misfits including the eager-to-please Joseph (played by writer/creator Nick Mohammed), former hacker Tuva (Peaky Blinders‘ Gana Bayarsaikhan) and bedraggled cat lady Mary (Sally4Ever‘s Jane Stanness). Joseph spends his days snooping into Matthew McConaughey’s browsing history (“it’s lawn mowers,...
Schwimmer stars as brash Nsa agent Jerry Bernstein, who arrives in the UK to serve as a liaison with the British cyber crime division — a collection of geeky misfits including the eager-to-please Joseph (played by writer/creator Nick Mohammed), former hacker Tuva (Peaky Blinders‘ Gana Bayarsaikhan) and bedraggled cat lady Mary (Sally4Ever‘s Jane Stanness). Joseph spends his days snooping into Matthew McConaughey’s browsing history (“it’s lawn mowers,...
- 7/15/2020
- by Dave Nemetz
- TVLine.com
No matter your opinion of Ross Geller, the actor behind him is an objectively deft comic performer. David Schwimmer only got better during his decade-long, career-making time on “Friends,” and that we haven’t seen him starring in a half-hour comedy since 2004 speaks more to the artist’s varying interests than anything else (be it a collective dislike of the character forever tied to his image or a personal disinterest in the genre).
Enter “Intelligence,” Schwimmer’s return to TV comedy via NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, Peacock. It’s not exactly an orchestrated comeback. The six-episode first season was originally made for the U.K.’s Sky One and already aired overseas in February, making it less Schwimmer’s version of “Cougar Town” or “Mr. Sunshine” — big ticket broadcast series billed as the star’s return to network sitcoms — than a smaller series befitting the actor’s ever-widening focus.
Enter “Intelligence,” Schwimmer’s return to TV comedy via NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, Peacock. It’s not exactly an orchestrated comeback. The six-episode first season was originally made for the U.K.’s Sky One and already aired overseas in February, making it less Schwimmer’s version of “Cougar Town” or “Mr. Sunshine” — big ticket broadcast series billed as the star’s return to network sitcoms — than a smaller series befitting the actor’s ever-widening focus.
- 7/15/2020
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Stop me when you’ve heard this one before: a baseline functional workplace full of well-meaning misfits gets a jolt from a hotheaded new guy, hijinks ensue, lather, rinse, repeat. When using such a formula that’s served dozens of sitcoms well over the years, it’s down to a show’s execution to make itself more compelling than the basics of its premise. “Intelligence,” created by British comic actor Nick Mohammed, occasionally finds moments of intrigue, but is more often content to plug along in its lane.
Even the much higher stakes environment in which “Intelligence” takes place — a windowless cybercrime unit in a London suburb — doesn’t especially up the urgency. Joseph (Mohammed) is a B-minus lackey scraping by under the watchful eye of his fearsome boss, Christine (Sylvestra Le Touzel), while nursing a small crush on their extraordinarily cool in-house hacker, Tuva (Gana Bayarsaikhan). Rounding out their...
Even the much higher stakes environment in which “Intelligence” takes place — a windowless cybercrime unit in a London suburb — doesn’t especially up the urgency. Joseph (Mohammed) is a B-minus lackey scraping by under the watchful eye of his fearsome boss, Christine (Sylvestra Le Touzel), while nursing a small crush on their extraordinarily cool in-house hacker, Tuva (Gana Bayarsaikhan). Rounding out their...
- 7/10/2020
- by Caroline Framke
- Variety Film + TV
Samuel Goldwyn Films has debuted the first trailer for ‘Waiting for the Barbarians’ starring Mark Rylance, Robert Pattinson and Johnny Depp.
Based on Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee’s novel of the same name, Rylance plays The Magistrate of an isolated frontier settlement on the border of an unnamed empire who looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of Colonel Joll (Depp).
Joll’s task is to report on the activities of the ‘barbarians’ and on the security situation on the border. Joll conducts a series of ruthless interrogations, which leads the Magistrate to question his loyalty to the empire.
Directed by Ciro Guerra, the film also stars Greta Scacchi, David Dencik, Sam Reid, Harry Melling, Gana Bayarsaikhan, and Bill Milner.
Also in trailers – Netflix delves into bizarre unexplained cases of ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ in new trailer
The film is set for an On-Demand and on digital platform release on August 7th.
Based on Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee’s novel of the same name, Rylance plays The Magistrate of an isolated frontier settlement on the border of an unnamed empire who looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of Colonel Joll (Depp).
Joll’s task is to report on the activities of the ‘barbarians’ and on the security situation on the border. Joll conducts a series of ruthless interrogations, which leads the Magistrate to question his loyalty to the empire.
Directed by Ciro Guerra, the film also stars Greta Scacchi, David Dencik, Sam Reid, Harry Melling, Gana Bayarsaikhan, and Bill Milner.
Also in trailers – Netflix delves into bizarre unexplained cases of ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ in new trailer
The film is set for an On-Demand and on digital platform release on August 7th.
- 6/25/2020
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
"This is their land - they know every inch of it, you do not." Samuel Goldwyn Films has unveiled the first official trailer for Waiting for the Barbarians, which initially premiered at the Venice Film Festival last year (and at the Zurich & London Film Festivals). The film marks the first English-language feature made by acclaimed, award-winning Colombia filmmaker Ciro Guerra (of both Embrace of the Serpent and Birds of Passage). Adapted from a novel by J.M. Coetzee, the vague story is about a Magistrate working in a distant outpost who begins to question his loyalty to the "empire" when an asshole Colonel shows up demanding changes. It's a metaphorically vague story that represents colonialism and white men controlling the world. It was filmed in Morocco, but a location is never named. Mark Rylance stars as the Magistrate, along with Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Greta Scacchi, David Dencik, Sam Reid,...
- 6/24/2020
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
In today’s film news roundup, “Waiting for the Barbarians,” “Don’t Tell a Soul” and “Daddy Issues” get distribution and the African American Film Critics Association is launching a virtual Strong Summer 2020 programming slate.
Acquisitions
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to Ciro Guerra’s feature film “Waiting for the Barbarians,” starring Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, Mark Rylance, Gana Bayarsaikhan, and Greta Scacchi.
Goldwyn said the film was originally slated for a theatrical release, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it will be released on cable on-demand and digital platforms in August.
Rylance plays a magistrate in an isolated frontier settlement on the border of a large empire who looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of a colonel (portrayed by Depp), whose task it is to report on the activities of the “barbarians” and the security situation on the border. The colonel’s ruthless interrogations...
Acquisitions
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to Ciro Guerra’s feature film “Waiting for the Barbarians,” starring Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, Mark Rylance, Gana Bayarsaikhan, and Greta Scacchi.
Goldwyn said the film was originally slated for a theatrical release, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it will be released on cable on-demand and digital platforms in August.
Rylance plays a magistrate in an isolated frontier settlement on the border of a large empire who looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of a colonel (portrayed by Depp), whose task it is to report on the activities of the “barbarians” and the security situation on the border. The colonel’s ruthless interrogations...
- 5/21/2020
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Drama premiered in Venice Film Festival 2019.
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to Ciro Guerra’s Waiting For The Barbarians starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp, and Robert Pattinson and will release on digital platforms in August.
The J.M. Coetzee adaptation had been intended to launch theatrically, however the decision was taken to release on VoD and digital first given uncertainty amid the coronavirus pandemic as to when theatres might reopen.
Gana Bayarsaikhan and Greta Scacchi also star in the period drama about a magistrate (Rylance) in the frontier of an unnamed empire whose retirement plans are scuppered when...
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to Ciro Guerra’s Waiting For The Barbarians starring Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp, and Robert Pattinson and will release on digital platforms in August.
The J.M. Coetzee adaptation had been intended to launch theatrically, however the decision was taken to release on VoD and digital first given uncertainty amid the coronavirus pandemic as to when theatres might reopen.
Gana Bayarsaikhan and Greta Scacchi also star in the period drama about a magistrate (Rylance) in the frontier of an unnamed empire whose retirement plans are scuppered when...
- 5/20/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to the Ciro Guerra-directed feature, Waiting for the Barbarians, which stars Oscar winner Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies), Oscar nominee Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise), newly minted Batman Robert Pattinson (The Lighthouse), Gana Bayarsaikhan (Ex Machina), and Greta Scacchi (The Girl in the Fog). Originally slated for a theatrical release, the pic will now be available on digital platforms this August.
The drama is based on the novel by Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee, who also adapted the screenplay. It follows a Magistrate (Rylance) of an isolated frontier settlement on the border of an unnamed empire who looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of Colonel Joll (Depp), whose task it is to report on the activities of the ‘barbarians’ and on the security situation on the border. Joll conducts a series of ruthless interrogations, which...
The drama is based on the novel by Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee, who also adapted the screenplay. It follows a Magistrate (Rylance) of an isolated frontier settlement on the border of an unnamed empire who looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of Colonel Joll (Depp), whose task it is to report on the activities of the ‘barbarians’ and on the security situation on the border. Joll conducts a series of ruthless interrogations, which...
- 5/20/2020
- by Amanda N'Duka
- Deadline Film + TV
With only four features under his belt, Ciro Guerra has already established himself as one of Colombia’s most important filmmakers and earned the country’s first-ever Oscar nod for 2015’s “Embrace of the Serpent.”
Guerra’s latest feature, and the first in English, is the cinematic adaptation of the same-named J.M. Coetzee novel “Waiting for Barbarians,” which world premiered on Friday at the 67th Venice Film Festival.
In the film, Oscar-winning actor Mark Rylance plays an imperial magistrate in the throes of a crisis of conscious after witnessing the inhumane torture of an indigenous woman (Gana Bayarsaikhan) on the frontier he is meant to be protecting.
After helping the woman escape, the magistrate is captured and replaced by a younger officer, played by Robert Pattinson, and charged with treason. Johnny Depp plays a colonel tasked with leading a special forces unit dedicated to the capture and often public torture of the “barbarians.
Guerra’s latest feature, and the first in English, is the cinematic adaptation of the same-named J.M. Coetzee novel “Waiting for Barbarians,” which world premiered on Friday at the 67th Venice Film Festival.
In the film, Oscar-winning actor Mark Rylance plays an imperial magistrate in the throes of a crisis of conscious after witnessing the inhumane torture of an indigenous woman (Gana Bayarsaikhan) on the frontier he is meant to be protecting.
After helping the woman escape, the magistrate is captured and replaced by a younger officer, played by Robert Pattinson, and charged with treason. Johnny Depp plays a colonel tasked with leading a special forces unit dedicated to the capture and often public torture of the “barbarians.
- 9/7/2019
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
The time feels right for a film adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s “Waiting for the Barbarians,” inasmuch as the undertaking is possible at all. Nearly 40 years after its publication, the South African writer’s slim but scorching allegory for imperialist denial and defeat feels grimly pertinent to a current political milieu in which the hubris of white supremacy is all too prominent. Colombian director Ciro Guerra, meanwhile, is a canny choice of filmmaker to take on the project, scripted by Coetzee himself in the Nobel laureate’s first stab at screenwriting: Guerra’s 2015 breakout film “Embrace of the Serpent” was an anti-colonialist odyssey of eerie, head-scrambling power, with a command of burrowing metaphor and Conradian brink-of-madness atmosphere very much worthy of Coetzee’s novel.
If the across-continents meeting of these two artists — aptly enough, for a story itself set in an indeterminate desert nation that could exist in many a...
If the across-continents meeting of these two artists — aptly enough, for a story itself set in an indeterminate desert nation that could exist in many a...
- 9/6/2019
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Though he’s worked steadily since the turn of the century, Ciro Guerra only ascended into the upper tiers of contemporary world cinema quite recently. With 2015’s “Embrace of the Serpent” and last year’s “Birds of Passage,” the Colombian filmmaker announced and subsequently confirmed himself on the global stage with works that focused on the violent collisions between modernity and tradition in Aboriginal Colombian communities, and then tracked the aftershocks through an often hallucinatory lens.
By way of scale and star-power, “Waiting for the Barbarians” — which stars Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp, and Robert Pattinson, claims a Nobel laureate as screenwriter, and premiered in competition in Venice — marks his biggest step forward to date. In terms of artistic success, however, it’s at best a lateral move.
Guerra’s English-language debut finds the filmmaker working in a more subdued register, foregoing the oneiric flourishes of his most recent output for...
By way of scale and star-power, “Waiting for the Barbarians” — which stars Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp, and Robert Pattinson, claims a Nobel laureate as screenwriter, and premiered in competition in Venice — marks his biggest step forward to date. In terms of artistic success, however, it’s at best a lateral move.
Guerra’s English-language debut finds the filmmaker working in a more subdued register, foregoing the oneiric flourishes of his most recent output for...
- 9/6/2019
- by Ben Croll
- Indiewire
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