The round-up returns once again! With so many independent releases hitting theaters here in early September, it’s almost impossible not to have to play catch-up like this. Today, we’ve got five new films to give a quick take on, including …
It’s hard to find the right tone when telling a terminal illness tale. Over at the Toronto International Film Festival, The Friend was one of the world premieres and offers up a different way of telling a cancer drama. In part, by not focusing a…
When is a concert film not just a concert film? Why, when it’s co-directed by Bruce Springsteen, of course! Having just debuted this evening at the Toronto International Film Festival, I’m no longer under embargo and can report that Wester…
New York City has a musical quality to all of its chaos. Stand in the right spot in Manhattan and you can hear it. The Sound of Silence knows and embraces this. An independent drama that contains a wholly lived in feel, there’s a vibe her that g…
For years, strippers have been depicted cinematically as damsels needing to be saved. In fact, movies have almost exclusively looked at sex workers as damaged individuals. Awards wise, it’s catnip for voters, by and large. The features themselve…
Over the weekend, something rather shocking happened at the Venice Film Festival. Yes, more shocking than a Grand Jury Prize going to Roman Polanski and his largely panned movie An Officer and a Spy (and even more surprising than another special prize…
Science fiction on a budget can be tricky sometimes to properly pull off. There are countless instances where not having the required resources can compromise an otherwise extravagant vision. However, there are also plenty of times where working witho…
Welcome back to the weekly box office report! As is always the case, each and every Sunday you can expect a look at what made the most money in theaters, as well as just how all of the new releases fared. This week, the blockbuster horror sequel It: C…
With such a busy week now behind us, it’s time to catch up on a few reviews, so you all know what that means…the review round-up is back! Yes, today we’ve got a pair of films to discuss that I wanted to make sure didn’t get ign…
With the Toronto International Film Festival upon us, as well as the Telluride Film Festival and Venice Film Festival in our rearview mirror (not to mention the New York Film Festival coming soon), the awards season is here, hot and heavy. As such, ne…
I swear, 2019 is just flying by! As we have now wrapped up August and are more than a few days into the month of September, I wanted to once again put a bow on everything that’s come before the next stage of the fall festival season. That way, it coul…
I was one of the few not to go over the moon for It. That first installment, which ran two hours and fifteen minutes, felt incredibly padded out to me. Here, with It: Chapter Two, it’s over a half hour longer and all of the issues there are doub…
Folks, here we go once again. As you might have guessed, it’s time to dive into another category. Today, one more Oscar field will get a somewhat in depth look at what/who its top contenders might be. I’ve gone over what this is a number of times, but…
With the social media airwaves filled with buzz about potential Academy Award contenders out of the Telluride Film Festival and Venice Film Festival, it’s clear we’ve reached the month of September. The summer is over. Today, we’ll be look…
Welcome back to the weekly box office report! As is always the case, each and every Sunday you can expect a look at what made the most money in theaters, as well as just how all of the new releases fared. This week, the horror outing Don’t Let G…
It’s fall film festival time! Yes, the next few days will see a deluge of raves and pans hit for many of the 2019 Oscar hopefuls. For the past 48 hours or so, the Venice Film Festival has been putting forth a few Academy Award contenders like Ad Astra and especially Marriage Story. Yesterday, the Telluride Film Festival got underway with titles like Ford v Ferrari, Judy, Uncut Gems, and Waves. Today, Joker screened at Venice. Suffice to say, it’s a busy time. Here, we’ll try and share some of the reactions to a number of titles, giving you sense of what’s going on at the fests.
*Be sure to check back as this post is updated throughout the day with further reactions*
First up, some of the raves for Marriage Story, which played both festivals:
“#MarriageStory is the Noah Baumbach movie we’ve been waiting for. It’s better than good; it’s more than just accomplished… This, at long last, is Baumbach’s breakthrough into the dramatic stratosphere” https://t.co/uqCeUmbDoF pic.twitter.com/9KhxSFanQo
— Variety (@Variety) August 29, 2019
Baumbach!! Baumbach!! Baumbach!! Baumbach!!!!!!!!!! There are two amazing scenes in Marriage Story that I wanted to give an instant standing ovation to. God WHAT A FILM. What a film.
— Alex Billington @ Venice (@firstshowing) August 29, 2019
World premiere at Venice: MARRIAGE STORY is a knockout. Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson marvelous in Noah Baumbach’s fully felt chronicle of a long-distance breakup and the child in the middle. Plus Driver performs a tip-top rendition of Sondheim’s “Being Alive.” #Venezia76
— Michael Phillips (@phillipstribune) August 29, 2019
I’m biased but MARRIAGE STORY is Noah Baumbach’s best film. Full stop. Deeply human story, rich and refined visual language, perfect performances across the board — I keep swooning. I’ve spent quite some time with the film already and I look forward to going back again and again.
— Kris Tapley (@kristapley) August 29, 2019
From Venice: When movie-star faces show suffering, it can hit hard. Why Johansson & Driver are so terrific in MARRIAGE STORY: https://t.co/At0dQoUs5C
— Stephanie Zacharek (@szacharek) August 30, 2019
Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver’s emotional new film #MarriageStory debuted at the #VeniceFilmFestival. Read the review: https://t.co/D0juhHFyJ4
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) August 30, 2019
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Next, we have some of the takes on Ad Astra:
Brad Pitt toplines director James Gray’s first foray into science fiction, #AdAstra. Read the review: https://t.co/FXz26srEMN
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) August 29, 2019
AD ASTRA is incredible.
my #Venezia76 review: https://t.co/4nsABAbzVi pic.twitter.com/EP7G8lX6gg
— david ehrlich (@davidehrlich) August 29, 2019
Well worth the […]