Despite a cast led by Shia LaBeouf and Vanessa Kirby, the drama Pieces of a Woman has been trending a bit quiet before its premiere in Venice next month. Sometimes, all a movie needs is a high-profile show of support to turn things around, and there are few whose name carries more weight than Martin Scorsese.
BRON has announced that Scorsese has joined Pieces of a Woman as an exec-producer, which is a fancy way for the director to give his stamp of approval.
“It’s lucky to see a movie that takes you by surprise,” said Scorsese. “It’s a privilege to help it find the wide audience it deserves. ‘Pieces of a Woman’ for me was a deep and uniquely moving experience. I was emotionally invested in it from the first scene, and the experience only intensified as I watched, spellbound by the filmmaking and the work of a splendid cast that includes my old colleague Ellen Burstyn. You feel as if you’ve been dropped into the vortex of a family crisis and moral conflict with all its nuances, drawn-out with care and compassion but without judgment. Kornél Mundruczó has a fluid, immersive style with the camera that makes it hard to look away, and impossible not to care.”
The latest film from Mundruczó (director of White God, a must-see) stars LaBeouf and Kirby as a married couple dealing with the aftermath of a failed homebirth caused by the couple’s midwife, played by Molly Parker. The cast includes Ellen Burstyn, Sarah Snook, Uncut Gems co-director Bennie Safdie, Iliza Schlesinger, and Jimmie Fails.
Pieces of a Woman debuts next month at the Venice International Film Festival before heading to TIFF.
Many people consider LeBron James the greatest NBA player ever, or at least the greatest since Michael Jordan. And apparently, that mantle comes with an overwhelming desire to see James star in a sequel to Space Jam, the film His Airness made into a classic when it probably had no right no be. That sequel is happening with Space Jam: A New Legacy, and James has just unveiled the brand new jerseys he and squad of Looney Tunes stars will be rocking.
As part of a charitable Space Jam drive-in event James is hosting called Fam Jam, he has unveiled the Space Jam: A New Legacy jerseys he and the new Tune Squad will wear.
— LeBron James Family Foundation (@LJFamFoundation) August 18, 2020
These are pretty hot. I dig the sky blue color and the prominent Looney Tunes symbol, which goes perfect with the bright orange sneaks. I’m digging it. I can see Bugs and Taz rockin’ these joints on the court.
The psychotic road rage thriller Unhinged will be remembered for two things if anything at all. First is that it’s the biggest major release to hit theaters first during the pandemic. Second: Russell Crowe’s overpowering, sweaty, off-the-handle performance is the kind of blatant overacting only a star of his caliber is allowed to get away with, and pretty much the only reason to plunk down your money. Are you not entertained? Yes, Maximus, I am entertained. Just barely.
Any pretense of deeper meaning in this latest aggrieved white man thriller is thrown out the window early and never returns. Crowe, looking like one of the hulking mob bruisers from The Sopranos, plays Tom Cooper, and the first we see of him is the committing of a double-homicide. After murdering who appears to be his ex-wife and her new lover, he torches the place and drives off. The fire is significant; he’s not trying to hide. He’s calling attention to himself.
Carl Ellsworth’s screenplay probably could’ve left this part out, or let it simmer for later to explain Tom’s murderous actions. Instead, it removes any complexity, any mystery from his encounter with hurried mom Rachel, played by Caren Pistorius. Rachel’s having a tough go of it as a single parent with a shaky job and her self-destructive tendency to be late to everything. Stuck in traffic with her wise-beyond-his-years son Kyle (Gabriel Bateman), the jackass in the truck ahead of her won’t move when the light is green. She’s in no mood. Laying on the horn a bit too much, she zips past the man only to find that he’s right next to her moments later, and he wants an apology. Where was his “courtesy tap”?
“We seem to have developed a fundamental inability to apologize to anyone for anything”, he grumbles.
He’ll go to homicidal lengths to get that apology from her. More than that, he wants her to experience what REALLY having a bad day is like. Everyone she comes in contact with, friends, family, complete strangers at the gas station, become his bloody victims. “Let’s play Russian Roulette with your contacts”, Tom roars, taking control of Rachel’s life like the unseen madman from Steven Spielberg’s Duel.
Director Derrick Borte, who I interviewed years ago for his excellently insightful debut The Joneses, has Tom stack up the body count like cordwood. The discretion shown in the prologue is absent during his rampage. But there’s simply not much else going on here. While a couple of the chase sequences are intense, there’s nothing that compares to the dark energy emanating from Crowe in this flick. He looms like a deadly spectre in every scene, the best in which Tom sits face-to-face with an unsuspecting lawyer friend (Jimmi Simpson) of Rachel’s. Little does he know that Tom isn’t the “old friend” he claims to be, and that he’s got particular hate for divorce attorneys.
That little nugget of info about Tom would’ve been the perfect time to unveil the truth of his murderous past, as it would’ve shown us exactly how far this maniac is willing to go. Instead, we already knew too much and what happens next is never really in doubt. It doesn’t take away from the effectiveness of Crowe, who is convincing as someone who is ready to inflict the same damage on others that life has dealt to him. Or at least, that’s how he sees it in his own mind. Whether it’s true or not doesn’t matter to guys like Tom, and what makes him scary is that they exist in the world.
Ultimately, I’m not sure we want Unhinged to be another Falling Down or Changing Lanes. Again, the thing we’re going to remember most is its placement in the world, and for the first movie back in theaters Russell Crowe goes so far outside the lines that boredom isn’t an option.
We’re in the middle of a pandemic that has most people stuck indoors and the majority of film/TV productions on hold. But for the most creative folks out there, it’s turned out to be quite an opportunity, crass as that may sound. We’re seeing a number of projects inspired by the impact of COVID-19, and one that attempts to bring a little levity to the situation is Coastal Elites, an HBO special from Jay Roach that stars Bette Midler, Kaitlyn Dever, Dan Levy, Sarah Paulson, and Issa Rae.
So what does Roach have a cast like this doing? Mostly speaking through Zoom meetings about their struggles in dealing with the world, the pandemic, and a controversial Presidential election. If you’re going to satirize the shit we’re in now, this is the crew you want to do it with.
Roach is no stranger to HBO. While his big break was with the Austin Powers movies, when he was ready to go serious with films like Recount and Game Change, it was with HBO. He most recently directed the Oscar-winning film Bombshell.
Coastal Elites hits HBO on September 12th.
SYNOPSIS: From playwright and screenwriter Paul Rudnick and directed by Jay Roach, HBO’s socially distanced comedy COASTAL ELITES debuts SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 (8:00-9:30 p.m. ET/PT). The comedic satire tells contemporary stories of characters breaking down and breaking through as they grapple with politics, culture, and the pandemic. Bette Midler (Tony Award winner for Hello, Dolly!), Kaitlyn Dever (“Unbelievable”, “Booksmart”), Dan Levy (Emmy nominee for “Schitt’s Creek”), Sarah Paulson (Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award winner for “American Crime Story”) and Issa Rae (Emmy nominee for HBO’s “Insecure”) star in this special presentation that explores our current world of deeply divided politics and the universal pursuit of human connection.
It’s a running gag on all of our assorted podcasts that I’m a die-hard fanboy for Supernatural. I’m not ashamed, the show is SO much fun and endlessly rewatchable. Most of the credit for the shows success is due to it’s leads, Jared Padalecki (who’s tapped to play Walker in the Walker, Texas Ranger reboot) and Jensen Ackles. I’ve been on team Ackles for a LONG time, the guy is old-school cool and the fact that he’s not an A-lister baffles me. He was in the running for Batman, Captain America, and I’m sure a laundry list of other iconic roles. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was a little disappointed that the role he finallly decided to play was that of Soldier Boy, leader of the superhero group Payback in the Amazon series The Boys. Now, I only say disappointed because, if you’ve read the graphic novels the show is based on, Soldier Boy is less then…that’s it, he’s just less then. A fake-me-out Cap who shouts the names of US States while fighting and, literally, ends up pissing himself at one point. The saving grace here is that Ackles has extremely solid comedy chops and will no doubt knock this out of the park. If you have any doubt about that just check out his Instagram post announcing his casting. Big things are coming for this guy, I have no doubt there.
It’s going to be a while until I’m proven right on this, The Boys season 2 premier is still a few weeks away on September 4th, 2020, so we’re at least a year from seeing what Jensen can do. I’ll prepare to take all the flak the PDC can throw at me for my love of all things Winchester until that time.
I’ve always thought Laurence Fishburne was a true class act…something rare in Hollywood. This new revelation just cements that fact. Fishburne’s Morpheus, who is just as iconic to the Matrix mythology as his student Neo, will not be returning for the upcoming fourth installment in the epic sci-fi series. New York Magazine sat down with Fishburne and, when asked about his lack of involvement in Matrix 4, simply said he was not invited and wished them all well. That’s standard Hollywood stuff and not the real story, what touched me was his follow up to that, regarding his legacy and the character of Morpheus Fishburne said:
“It is probably the role that I’ll be best remembered for, which is great; it’s not the only thing I’ll be remembered for, which is better. What I get with him is I’ve got Darth Vader in this hand, and I’ve got Obi-Wan in that hand. I’ve got Bruce Lee, I’ve got Muhammad Ali shuffled in there, and I’ve got kung fu.”
Obviously the guy has love for this character, his breakdown of the character and all the archetypes it encompasses is proof enough of the affect it’s had on his life and his relationship with the mentor of the one. What I’m getting around to is the fact that this must have hurt. The guy doesn’t look a day older then he did in 1999, so it’s nothing along those lines that kept him out. I would just have to imagine that if I was left out of something I was such an integral part of, I would not have been so kind, PR reps be damned.
Thankfully, the powers that be have time to change their mind and bring his gravitas back to the series since the films release has been pushed to spring of 2022.
Considering the state of the world, family dramedies have taken on a very different flavor. Into this climate where many of us are unable to be with the people we love comes the new film, Blackbird, boasting an A-list cast led by Susan Sarandon, Kate Winslet, and Mia Wasikowska in a story that’s all about being there for family in their time of need.
Blackbird is a remake of screenwriter Christian Troupe’s Danish film, Silent Heart, about three generations of a family that gather to say goodbye to Lily (Sarandon), as she prepares to end her life early after a long battle with ALS. Of course, these get together never go as planned, with Lily’s daughters, played by Wasikowska and Winslet, dealing with unresolved issues. Sam Neill, Rainn Wilson, Bex Taylor-Klaus, and Lindsay Duncan co-star.
On top of this excellent cast, the film also has Notting Hill director Roger Michell behind the camera. The reviews coming out of its premiere at TIFF were as strong as we would expect from this group.
Blackbird hits VOD and digital on September 18th.
Synopsis: Lily (Susan Sarandon) and Paul (Sam Neill) summon their loved ones to their beach house for one final gathering after Lily decides to end her long battle with ALS on her own terms. The couple is planning a loving weekend complete with holiday traditions, but the mood becomes strained when unresolved issues surface between Lily and her daughters Jennifer (Kate Winslet) and Anna (Mia Wasikowska). Joining the collective farewell are Lily’s son in law (Rainn Wilson), her lifelong friend (Lindsay Duncan), daughter’s partner (Bex Taylor-Klaus) and grandson (Anson Boon). Her story is ultimately one of hope, love and a celebration of life.
Nazis. They sucked before and during WWII, and the modern ones who carry on their legacy are pretty awful, too. Fortunately, we can take some pleasure in the sub-genre of films in which they get their comeuppance, often with extreme prejudice. Now you can add The Secrets We Keep to that list.
Noomi Rapace and Joel Kinnaman, who I think we should remind ourselves are both Swedish and longtime friends, star in the film about a Holocaust survivor looking to put the past behind her. And she might have, if she didn’t run into the man responsible for her trauma, setting her on a path of vengeance.
Also in the cast are Chris Messina, back to normal after playing a homicidal wacko in Birds of Prey, and Kinnaman’s The Killing co-star Amy Seimetz. The film is directed and co-written by Yuval Adler (The Operative), joined by co-writer Ryan Covington.
SYNOPSIS: In post-WWII America, a woman (Noomi Rapace), rebuilding her life in the suburbs with her husband (Chris Messina), kidnaps her neighbor (Joel Kinnaman) and seeks vengeance for the heinous war crimes she believes he committed against her.
The Secrets We Keep hits select theaters on September 16th and VOD on October 16th.
In the pantheon of great holiday comedies, sitting right at the top is Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Showcasing the talents of comedic giants Steve Martin and John Candy, along with the great John Hughes as writer and director, there’s hardly anybody who will admit to not liking it, because very few don’t. It’s one of those films you think probably shouldn’t be messed with. Well, it’s getting messed with. But this new version is going to feature Will Smith and Kevin Hart is the bickering duo who just want to get home.
Deadline reports Ayesha Carr, a writer on Brooklyn 99 and Hulu series Woke, will pen a remake of Planes, Trains and Automobiles that will star Will Smith and Kevin Hart. Both men will produce, as well.
The film centers on two men, one uptight the other a total goober, who must join forces to make it home to Chicago in time for Thanksgiving. Their three-day odyssey involves any number of misadventures. Is there anybody who doesn’t know the “pillows” scene? I mean, come on!
Now, I’m sure my DMs will be flooded with “Why tho?” and “Hollywood is out of ideas!” shit, but let’s be honest and say that a comedy pairing with Smith and Hart is probably going to be funny. And remaking Planes, Trains and Automobiles doesn’t take away from the original at all. You might even like both versions. *gasp*
Netflix is giving us a mystery to solve in the new teaser for Enola Holmes, which features Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown as Sherlock’s kid sister. We had known of a September release date for the adaptation of the popular book series, but here’s how the various Netflix Twitter accounts (which trade banter frequently, I might add) have decided to caption the preview:
I’ll be honest, it’s not an especially difficult puzzle. Just a simple anagram that says “Enola Holmes September TwentyThird”. Taa-daa!
Anyway, Enola Holmes also features Henry Cavill as Sherlock Holmes, Sam Claflin as Mycroft Holmes, and Helena Bonham Carter as matriarch Eudoria Holmes. How would you like that family? The cast includes Fiona Shaw, Adeel Akhtar, Frances De La Tour, and Burn Gorman.
There’s not a lot to this teaser as it’s clearly just meant to announce the movie’s arrival, but it’s enough to set a light-hearted tone and a score that doesn’t mind riffing on Hole’s “Celebrity Skin”. The film is written by the ubiquitous Jack Thorne (The Aeronauts) and helmed by Fleabag director Harry Bradbeer.
The story finds Enola “waking on her 16th birthday to find her mother (Helena Bonham Carter) has vanished. An assortment of gifts have been left behind, but there are no apparent clues to her whereabouts. Now in the care of her two older brothers, who want to ship her off to a finishing school, Enola escapes through London to find her mom.”
