Any other result would have been a real surprise/disappointment for the studio I’m sure, but still, it’s good to hear that Sony Pictures Classics is staying in the Asghar Farhadi business. They did quite well with A Separation a few years ago, and now they’ve picked up Farhadi’s new film The Past for U.S. distribution. There’s no word yet on when it’ll come out, but my best guess is that they’ll copy their last strategy and wait until very late in the season to unleash it on us Americans. You can get a refresher on what the movie is out after the jump, but now we at least know that it’s likely hitting theaters in 2013. Read on below… Read more on Sony Pictures Classics Picks Up ‘The Past’…
Brad Brevet at Rope of Silicon previews the Cannes Film Festival by listing the ten films he is anticipating the most. Meanwhile, Pete Hammond at Deadline wonders if this year’s fest will have the same impact on Oscar as the last two. And finally, Scott Beggs at Film School Rejects gives you everything you need to know about the films playing there.
After delighting audiences and critics with his Oscar-winning drama A Separation (2011), Asghar Farhadi’s follow-up film The Past with Tahar Rahim and Berenice Bejo were on the top of many anticipated lists for the year. As the film just played at the Cannes Film Festival, reactions started pouring in with very positive notices.
Judging by the initial reactions, Farhadi might find himself in Screenplay contention once more with possibilities for Picture, Director, and even Actress for Berenice Bejo, the Oscar-nominated actress from Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist (2011). The 41-year-old director (can you believe he’s only 41?) was nominated for Original Screenplay and won Foreign Language Film despite a poorly placed US release that many found problems with. Many believe, a Best Picture contender, the film could have been.
I’m intrigued.
Here are some Twitter Reactions:
Asghar Farhadi’s The Past will be in the mix come awards time. Familial dysfunction at its finest #Cannes2013
Much like last year, since there’s no official Awards Circuit presence over at the Cannes Film Festival, I plan to bring you the initial reactions to some of the high profile movies making their debuts. First up we have Sofia Coppola’s latest film The Bling Ring, which stars Emma Watson and features in its cast folks like Kirsten Dunst, Leslie Mann, and more. So far, it’s opened to a mixed bag of initial reactions on Twitter (along with a few officially posted reviews). You can find a sample of those quick responses after the jump (Thanks to Matt Singer at Criticwire for finding these for his initial report), but stay tuned for much more on The Bling Ring…
Ladies and gentleman, the first business deal of the Cannes Film Festival had gone down, and it doesn’t even involve a film playing at Cannes! Yes, Warner Brothers has stepped up and acquired the writing and directing debut of one Ryan Gosling. The film is called How To Catch a Monster and interestingly enough is still shooting, so the WB must really like what they’re seeing so far. I’m a huge Gosling fan as we all know, so this is very pleasing to me. After the jump you can see what we know about the movie so far, but my guess is this could be one of the studio’s 2014 releases, unless it winds up being a late 2013 awards player. We’ll know more as the festival and year itself progresses.
Ahoy there, readers of The Awards Circuit! I hope your week was lucrative and filled with a ton of movie-related adventures. On our end, our week began in France. Okay…fine, we weren’t that lucky, but we did discuss the Cannes film festival lineup in the latest episode of Power Hour! Announced as well were your ACCA nominations for the 1999 film year! I’m a bit shocked that The Sixth Sense is more beloved than The Matrix, but hey…gotta love that twist! Polls are open so keep voting and your winners will be announced this upcoming weekend! Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 4/28)…
Awards Circuit Power Hour is up and alive again this week with a jammed-packed agenda for all of your listening pleasures. A lot of great stuff to talk about from the past week:
Hello there, Awards Circuit fans! We started things off very ironically by posting the winners of a recent awards show. An awards show this early in the year, you say? Why, yes, the MTV Movie Awards is the red-headed stepchild of the award shows since it airs after the Oscars®, and certainly after everyone’s mostly forgotten about the nominees that had their theatrical run almost a year ago. I will say, however, quality triumphed for once thanks to major wins for The Weinstein’s Silver Linings Playbook and Disney•Marvel’s The Avengers. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 4/21)…
As we all wait for the “official” announcement of the films that will be playing at this year’s prestigious Cannes Film Festival, IndieWire seems to already have the list. They films will officially start being announced at 11:00am, but with the leaked list at hand, some exciting and head-scratching films will be making their bow.
It was announced weeks ago that Baz Luhrmann’sThe Great Gatsby would be the opening film but it won’t be the only high-profile film at hand. James Gray’s film “Lowlife” seems to have received a title change to join Ryan Coogler’s Fruitvale Station and David O. Russell’s American Hustle as name changes for the week. The film looks to now be titled The Immigrant and stars Jeremy Renner, Marion Cotillard, and Joaquin Phoenix.
With the first domino of the Cannes Film Festival having just fallen and The Great Gatsby debuting, why not ponder what else could play at the fest? I’ve done that since the announcement, and while it’s truly a fool’s errand to try to accurately predict what will actually unspool at Cannes, I’ve opted to take a crack at it anyway. It’s something I actually do every year around this time. It’ll be a bit until the official word comes down on what movies are tapped, but until then we can play the guessing game while hoping that an Oscar player winds up making a grand entrance over in France. With that in mind, here’s what I’ve come up with…
First of all, there apparently will be no debuting of Pedro Almodovar’s new movie I’m So Excited or Lars Von Trier’s potentially pornographic Nymphomaniac, so I haven’t included them in the list below. Instead, here are ten films that have decently good odds of winding up at Cannes. Behold:
Here’s what I’m thinking, in alphabetical order:
All Is Lost (directed by J.C. Chandor and starring Robert Redford)
The Bling Ring (directed by Sofia Coppola and starring Emma Watson)
Goodbye To Language (directed by the legendaryJean-Luc Godard)
Inside Llewelyn Davis (written by the Coen Brothers and starring Oscar Isaac)
Lowlife (directed by James Gray and starring Marion Cotillard)
Nebraska (directed by Alexander Payne and starring Bruce Dern)
Only God Forgives (directed by Nicolas Winding Refn and starring Ryan Gosling)
Only Lovers Left Alive (directed by Jim Jarmusch and starring Tilda Swinton)
The Past (directed by AsgharFarhadi and starring BéréniceBejo)
Twelve Years a Slave (directed by Steve McQueen and starring ChiwetelEjiofor).
He wasn’t able to win his third Best Director Oscar last weekend, but Steven Spielberg has been chosen to head up the 66th annual Cannes Film Festival Competition Jury as a nice consolation prize. Spielberg competed for the Palme d’Or with his first film, The Sugarland Express, in 1974. That was the only time Spielberg competed at Cannes, but he also debuted E.T. the Extra Terrestrial outside of the competition at the fest back in 1982.
As saddened as I am by this, I must report that Canne’s recent Palme d’Or recipient, Michael Haneke’s Amour, is one of the most disappointing efforts of the year, especially considering all the hype surrounding its greatness. I realize I am alone here — Editor-in-Chief Clayton Davisand staff writer/film historian John H. Foote have called it the best film of the year so far. Staff writers Joey Magidson and Daniel Ashtiany spoke positively about the film but also admitted to being more than a little underwhelmed. This mixed response proves to me that your fondness or distaste for this film will ultimately come down to Haneke’s style, and whether or not you feel that style enriches the film’s central title and theme, or cheapens it. As you’ll notice from my score, I am in the latter camp. Where Haneke’s previous effort — and Palme d’Or winner, as well — The White Ribbon astounded me with its haunting atmosphere and enigmatic beauty, Amour is an arduous process that seeks emotion in rather disingenuous ways. Read more on AFI Fest: Amour (**½)…
The first major Academy Award™ contender is officially upon us with Benh Zeitlin’s hypnotically spellbinding Beasts of the Southern Wild. The hype for this film has been building following the huge responses it received from the Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals, so anything less than what we’ve heard to be true would be one massive letdown. I’m not one who buys into hype or goes into a film screening expecting certain emotions to be attained — I simply come at each film as if it’s one untouched, pure and innocent child that I see grow before my eyes. This is why I tend to avoid trailers and plot synopses before checking out a movie. For me, a film’s beauty lies in its organic unfolding, letting your eyes and your mind reap all that is streaming before you, completely unfiltered and without taint. I am very thankful I stuck to my guns before watching Beasts of the Southern Wild. The less you know, the greater you’ll appreciate. I’ll even take it a step further: this is one of those masterpieces that hits you so hard and so fast, it’s nearly impossible to control the urge to immediately re-watch the film. Brimming with speed, ferocity, and performances that will make your eyes turn into miniscule waterfalls, Beasts of the Southern Wild has the potential to take the globe by storm in the same all-encompassing manner as Danny Boyle’s Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire. It’s just that powerful. Read more on Beasts of the Southern Wild (****)…
This year’s winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival may not have been an unexpected one, but by almost all accounts Michael Haneke’s new film ‘Amour’ is a truly deserving one. Those of you who are like me are anxious to take a look at it and assess its Oscar chances, but according to The Playlist (here), we’ll have to wait until the thick of awards season, as it’s scheduled for a U.S. debut on December 19th. After the jump you can get a quick refresher on what the flick is about, but I know I can’t wait. Hanekse is always an interesting filmmaker, and this seems like something very different from him…
Now that the Cannes Film Festival has come to a close, we can take a breath and look at just how the films that played In Competition at the fest were received. Screen Daily came up with a handy graph that you can see in full after the jump, but keep in mind…this isn’t the be all/end all in terms of how the flicks did. A lot of films have a higher average on the chart than the actual reviews would suggest, so simply remember this is a small gathering of critics. Just something to chew on as you take a gander at it. Anyhow, give it a look and see what you think…
The 65th Cannes Film Festival has ended and the jury have announced their prizes. The Palme d’Or was awarded to Amour directed by Michael Haneke, his 2nd Palme d’Or win making him the first director ever to win back to back Palme d’Or prizes. American director Behn Zeitlin picked up the Camera d’Or for his first film Beasts of the Southern Wild. The full list available after the jump.
And so the most prestigious film festival in the world comes to an end, with the “awards season” taking a vague shape right behind it. Cannes, usually to its credit, has almost always been far outside of Oscar’s wheelhouse, opting for indie and world cinema superstars over Hollywood royalty that make the cinema snobs raise their pinkies in solidarity. However, recently the spotlight has increased on the festival in recent years as more and more of their darlings have been getting some love from the Academy as well. Earlier this year we saw no less than five films from Cannes receive Oscar nominations, including opener Midnight in Paris, Palme d’Or champ The Tree of Life and eventual Best Picture winner The Artist. Going back further sees Oscar nominees from the likes of Biutiful, Inglourious Basterds, The White Ribbon and Waltz with Bashir. Read more on Predicting the 2012 Cannes Film Festival Winners…
Over at Cannes both David Cronenberg and his son Brandon have debuted new film, and apparently the son is following in his father’s footsteps. Brandon Cronenberg has a body horror film called ‘Antiviral’ that’s gotten some nice, if reserved, word so far. As for the elder Cronenberg, his highly anticipated flick ‘Cosmopolis’ has been seen, and the early reviews are incredibly mixed. Some thing it’s a return to form of sorts for the director, while others were rather disappointed. After the jump you can see what some of the reactions have been, but I don’t think this is surprising at all (Cronenberg is always divisive). What’s somewhat surprising is that Brandon’s film has been slightly better received overall than David’s. Anyway, check out the festival buzz on ‘Cosmopolis’ below…
I’m not a Lee Daniels fan at all, having not cared for either of his first two films, and finding his direction to be distracting and often porous. That all being said, I’m always open to a filmmaker surprising me. ‘The Paperboy’ has an intriguing cast (including John Cusack Zac Efron, Nicole Kidman, and Matthew McConaughey) and plot, so I was hopeful that Daniels could finally sway me here. The early word from critics is incredibly divided, though most agree that the film is trashy and not especially great…they’re just undecided on how intentional that is (they also are rather obsessed over a certain scene I won’t mention here involving Efron and Kidman). After the jump I’ll share some reviews with you, but it doesn’t look like Daniels has another date with Oscar. Take a gander below…
Continuing our pseudo-coverage of the Cannes Film Festival, we now can report on the first reviews for ‘On the Road’, a film that we at The Awards Circuit have been keeping an eye on for years now. Perhaps not surprisingly, the film is getting a mixed response from critics (also as noted by Pete Hammond on Deadlinehere), with some falling under its spell and others being left rather cold overall. Clayton and myself are certainly looking forward to seeing this one and deciding for ourselves (though he’s slightly more skeptical of its Oscar hopes than I am…not that either of us are predicting an awards powerhouse), but after the jump you all can see what the early word is on the flick. It’s probably going to be a rather divisive one in general release, and so far that’s been the case over in Europe as well. Check out what some of the reviews said below…
Not only has Andrew Dominik’s film ‘Killing Them Softly’ been going over fairly well so far at Cannes, it’s also been the first flick to stir up some controversy. Star Brad Pitt has had to defend the film against the perception that it’s anti President Obama, according to The Hollywood Reporterhere. Apparently, the crime story we all know it to be is also peppered with a number of campaign speeches of Obama’s during the 2008 election season, leading some to insinuate that the story is a critique of that. Pitt says otherwise (and from what I’ve read it seems to go either way), but I suppose we’ll just have to decide for ourselves in a few months. As for the film itself, the reviews have been on the positive side so far, and after the jump I’ll share a few with you, but we might just have a bigger Awards contender on our hands than previously expected (I know I was mildly skeptical of its chances in my Awards Profile of it here one the site). Check out the early word below…
In a news cycle thas been plagues with remake news, it’s great when news of an interesting original project arrives, and starring two great actors at that. According to Variety, James McAvoy will team up with Jessica Chastain for companion films The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: His and The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Hers. The films, written by Ned Benson, will chronicle a New York City couple’s relationship during a difficult time in their marriage from the perspectives of the restaurant-owner husband and of the wife, who goes back to college. Benson is expected to direct the double feature, with each film being a stand alone movie.
Those lucky enough to be at the Cannes Film Festival got a nice preview of three of Harvey Weinstein’s big Oscar contenders this year. Select audiences saw a few minutes of ‘The Master’, basically a trailer for ‘The Silver Linings Playbook’, and around 7 minutes of ‘Django Unchained’. While the early word on the two former films has been positive (with ‘The Master’ getting the more effusive praise), it’s the latter flick that’s gotten the most write-up so far. There have been a number of initial responses about Quentin Tarantino’s western, and after the jump you can read a few of the Django specific-ones, courtesy of a piece by Criticwirehere. I know we’re all excited about the flick, and as a tease…apparently it’s vintage Tarantino. Read more below!
It’s good to be at the Cannes Film Festival for many reasons, but at the top of the list right now has got to be the fact that right about as you’re reading this (or slightly before/after, depending) The Weinstein Company is showing footage from three of their biggest 2012 releases, according to The Playlisthere. They’ve got bits of ‘Django Unchained’, and ‘The Silver Linings Playbook’ to show off, along with a full screening of ‘The Master’. After the jump I’ll get into what this means for the films, but consider me jealous of those in France (or at least more so than usual) right now…
Any other result would have been a real surprise/disappointment for the studio I’m sure, but still, it’s good to hear that Sony Pictures Classics is staying in the Asghar Farhadi business. They did quite well with A Separation a few years ago, and now they’ve picked up Farhadi’s new film The Past for U.S. distribution. There’s no word yet on when it’ll come out, but my best guess is that they’ll copy their last strategy and wait until very late in the season to unleash it on us Americans. You can get a refresher on what the movie is out after the jump, but now we at least know that it’s likely hitting theaters in 2013. Read on below…
Ladies and gentleman, the first business deal of the Cannes Film Festival had gone down, and it doesn’t even involve a film playing at Cannes! Yes, Warner Brothers has stepped up and acquired the writing and directing debut of one Ryan Gosling. The film is called How To Catch a Monster and interestingly enough is still shooting, so the WB must really like what they’re seeing so far. I’m a huge Gosling fan as we all know, so this is very pleasing to me. After the jump you can see what we know about the movie so far, but my guess is this could be one of the studio’s 2014 releases, unless it winds up being a late 2013 awards player. We’ll know more as the festival and year itself progresses.
