So yeah, this seems like an excessive amount of trailers for a film that's not even coming out this year, but it looks like that may be the only way we'll ever get to see it. Unfortunately, it was confirmed that Maps to the Stars will only be released in Canada on October 31st, with its distributor Focus World set to possibly release the movie on VOD in 2015- which really sucks, because the movie won Julianne Moore the Best Actress award in Cannes, so I just can't imagine it being so bad that they can't even risk releasing it here. Moore does look terrific in it, but luckily, it was just announced that another movie of hers called Still Alice, an indie about a woman suffering from early onset Alzheimers, was just picked up in Toronto (where she got raves from the critics) and will be released this year, which will very likely place Julianne Moore as the Best Actress frontrunner. That would be long overdue for the four-time nominee, but as usual, it's because the Best Actress field is so barren, while Best Actor is as always, way overcrowded with at least ten great performances vying for five slots. Sad state of affairs indeed.
TRAILER: "Serena"
Ok, so this is the mysterious (and practically long-lost at this point) movie from director Susanne Bier, starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, that has been languishing in distribution hell for the last two years, believe it or not. It doesn't look particularly awful, but for some reason no one wanted to pick up this movie, despite it being the third pairing of two of the hottest actors right now, so that can't be a good sign. It's secured a release date this year in the U.K. only, so who knows if we'll ever see it stateside, but here's a look at it for now anyway.
First Look at the New Batmobile
Zack Snyder released an official picture of the Batmobile on his twitter account yesterday:
This happened after a user leaked some grainier pics from Instagram. It looks to me like a combination of the old-school Tim Burton one and the Tumbler that everyone hated in the Nolan movies. Of course, the other alternative would have been coming up with something original, but we can't have that can we?
Toronto Roundup #2: 'Imitation Game' Makes a Splash from Telluride to TIFF
This final Toronto roundup is a combined one for Toronto and Telluride, which happened almost two weeks ago now, but I didn't get to summarize the few films that made their debut there. They did also play Toronto this week though, so we'll start off with the big winner out of Telluride, which was The Imitation Game, another biopic about a British genius, this time telling the little known story (at least here in the U.S.) of Alan Turing, the man who broke the Enigma code in WWII and invented the first computer, before he was prosecuted by the British government for being gay, which was illegal at the time. This movie came roaring out of Telluride and also hit big in Toronto, beloved by audiences across the board and could arguably be declared the one surefire Oscar contender to debut at the fall festivals so far (along with Birdman, which skipped TIFF). Benedict Cumberbatch in particular is being championed for a supposedly incredible performance as Turing and is considered nearly a lock for a Best Actor nomination, so I can't wait to see this when it comes out November 21st. Critics are a little more measured in their praise so far (always distrustful of anything crowdpleasing) but still positive, especially about the acting, and it'll be interesting to see if this will have to battle The Theory of Everything for attention as a rival biopic. But The Imitation Game has The Weinstein Company behind it, so frankly, I'd bet on this one, at least right now.
"Strong, stirring, triumphant and tragic, 'The Imitation Game' may be about a man who changed the world, but it's also about the world that destroyed a man." (Film.com)
"The movie is undeniably strong in its sense of a bright light burned out too soon, and the often undignified fate of those who dare to chafe at society's established norms." (Variety)
"Dominating it all is Cumberbatch, whose charisma- tellingly modulated- and naturalistic array of eccentricities, Sherlockian talent at indicating a mind never at rest, and knack for simultaneously portraying physical oddness and attractiveness combine to create an entirely credible portrait of genius at work." (Hollywood Reporter)
Then there's Wild, the Reese Witherspoon hiking drama based on the memoir of Cheryl Strayed. Wild premiered at Telluride to mixed-negative reviews at first, but seems to have had a much more enthusiastic reception at Toronto, interestingly enough. The movie looks like it will ultimately be well received, and Witherspoon looks almost certain to land her second Best Actress nomination, but any other nods would probably be a surprise (unless the movie ends up taking off at the box office).
"Reese Witherspoon delivers her best performance since she won the Best Actress Oscar for 'Walk the Line' a decade ago." (New York Post)
"The premise sounds corny, but Vallee, in collaboration with screenwriter Nick Hornby, gives the film its energy by pulling the narrative apart." (The Guardian)
"'Wild' never really earns its hard-fought struggle for redemption and personal reinvention." (The Playlist)
The other films out of Toronto were mostly acquisition titles that don't yet have release dates, or even distributors. Jason Reitman's latest film Men, Women & Children was roundly panned (his second miss in a row after last year's Labor Day), while Chris Rock brought a film he wrote and directed to Toronto called Top Five, which got great reviews and was won in a bidding war by Paramount for over $12 million (probably for a 2015 release). Another movie that did get a very good reaction from the festival was Noah Baumbach's While We're Young, a comedy with Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts, but it's also unclear if that film will come out this year or next.
"The most hilarious Woody Allen film in years is directed by Noah Baumbach, with Ben Stiller as basically an updated version of the idealistic documentary filmmaker the Woodman played in 'Crimes and Misdemeanors.'" (New York Post)
"'While We're Young is a mostly enjoyable movie, but what it's trying for is wisdom, and that's a quality that Baumbach doesn't earn." (BBC.com)
So, from Telluride and Toronto (and Venice), I think what we're looking at so far in terms of major fall movies are Birdman, The Imitation Game and Foxcatcher, which continued to receive outstanding critical notices for Steve Carell and Channing Tatum as it bowed here in the states. Outside contenders could maybe include Wild and The Theory of Everything, but we'll see how it plays out, because there's still more to come as the fall season rolls on. Next up is the New York Film Fest (starting Sept 26th) where we'll get to hear about two highly anticipated films, David Fincher's Gone Girl and Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice. Stay tuned.
FINAL POSTER: "The Hunger Games- Mockingjay, Part 1"
Well, here's the last poster for the movie's marketing campaign, the one that finally reveals Katniss as the people's hero. To be honest, my interest in The Hunger Games at this point comes down to my curiosity about how Jennifer Lawrence is going to handle all the inevitable questions about the celebrity nude scandal when she has to promote the movie in November. Laugh it off or ban interviewers from bringing it up? Take my advice Jen, the coolest thing to do would be to laugh it off and pretend like you don't care, because that's all they're going to want to ask you about.
Toronto Roundup #1: 'Theory of Everything' Excites in an Underwhelming Field
The first week of Toronto has been fairly underwhelming, with only a handful of talked about films emerging from the fest so far, while some of the more hyped entries have disappointed. In terms of Oscar contenders (fair or not, the fall festivals always serve as a starting point for critics to point out what's likely to last through winter), there seems to be some possibility for The Theory of Everything, the Stephen Hawking biopic, which was very well received by audiences there, and garnered buzz mostly for its two leads, Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones. I can't tell if this will be a major contender or not- while the audience reaction was great, the actual reviews have been more on the respectful side, ranging from mixed to positive. My guess right now would be that it's a play for the two actors mostly, in the vein of Dallas Buyers Club, but hey, that ended up getting in for Best Picture as well, so I guess we ought to at least keep our eye on it.
"Hawking's innovations and refusal to subscribe to outdated modes of thinking merely underscore the utter conventionality of his film biography." (The Wrap)
"A stirring and bittersweet love story, inflected with tasteful good humour..." (Variety)
"A solid, duly moving account of their complicated relationship, spanning roughly 25 years, and made with impeccable polish." (Hollywood Reporter)
Another standout seemed to be Jake Gyllenhaal's Nightcrawler, a dark thriller that drew comparisons to everything from Taxi Driver and Network to Drive (which I hated, so it doesn't exactly make me excited to see this). Most of the buzz also expressed that it probably won't be an awards contender though, aside from a possible screenplay nod, although Gyllenhaal was highly praised in the leading role.
"Gyllenhaal's performance is so dedicated, and Gilroy's world so determinedly realized that is forces its way to originality." (Observer UK)
"A fantastic, sleek and fun satire." (Film.com)
Now for the disappointments. Robert Downey Jr.'s The Judge turned out to be exactly what it was advertized as in those trailers. A sappy, overly sentimental tearjerker that already seems to be being written off by major critics, even as some remark that it could still be a hit with audiences (and the leads in RDJ and Robert Duvall praised overall). I couldn't really expect much, considering the director David Dobkin's best movie is Wedding Crashers.
"'Expendables 3' has fewer nauseating cliches than 'The Judge.'" (Film.com)
"An engrossing, unwieldy hurricane of a movie that plays like a small-town courtroom thriller by way of a testosterone-fueld remake of 'August: Osage County.'" (Variety)
Finally, St. Vincent, a vehicle for the great Bill Murray in his first starring role in a while, seemed to get another mixed-positive reaction (there's been lots of those this year) as Murray stars as a cranky old man who befriends a 12-year-old kid. It frankly sounds unbearable, but some think it could get enough attention to land Murray an Oscar nomination (his first since Lost in Translation). I sort of doubt it, because Best Actor is, as always, incredibly crowded and usually depends on the correlation between actor and picture- and this movie's coming nowhere near Best Picture. But it might be fun to check out for Bill Murray alone.
"Amusing enough as long as Bill Murray sticks to his mean and ornery act but ultimately reveals its true self as a film equivalent of the gooey 1971 Ray Stevens song 'Everything is Beautiful.'" (Hollywood Reporter)
"It plays out like a best-of album: safe, fun, but inessential if you're already familiar with the back catalogue." (Guardian)
I'll be back on Thursday with a second roundup that will examine some of the movies that came to Toronto but already played at Telluride, since I didn't get around to a summary of that three day fest from last week. Until then!
Blu-Ray Pick of the Week: "Young Frankenstein" (1974)
Coincidentally, our blu-ray choice this week happens to be one of our Halloween picks for the month of October (see the Creature Features page), but hey, you can never have enough Mel Brooks in your life, so here's the 40th anniversary blu-ray edition to commemorate a classic spoof. Gene Wilder is awesome (as always) as Dr. "Fronk-en-steen," Teri Garr is memorably hilarious as the lab assistant, and Brooks faithful Madeline Kahn hams it up as the scorned fiance who falls for the monster (Peter Boyle). A timeless comedy (even if you don't know the Frankenstein story) and always a raucous good time.
Original 1974 Trailer:
TRAILER #2: "Fury"
By far the best trailer for Brad Pitt's new movie Fury, coming out in October. This one showcases newbie Logan Lerman and gives us much more of the actual story, set amidst the tank warfare during WWII. The studio chose not to premiere this at any of the film festivals, which I'm not sure is a good sign or not- it could be that they think it's more of a commercial than awards play, but considering the subject matter (anything WWII-related is Oscar catnip) they might have at least made a try for it.
BOX OFFICE 9/05-9/07: 'Guardians' Tops Another Sleepy Weekend
Not a whole lot to say about the box office this week, as Guardians of the Galaxy came in at No. 1 with just $10 million to show for it. It nears closer to the $300 million mark, while the new release this weekend, the faith-based The Identical, flopped with just under $2 million. The rest is holdovers, as these really are the dog days of box office, with no exciting new releases on the horizon. Basically, there are plans for two seasons at the movies during the year- summer blockbuster season and Oscar season. Oscar season hasn't quite kicked off yet, with a lot of the films premiering at the early festivals right now, and blockbuster season is pretty much over and done with at this point.
Maybe the international box office is more interesting right now, as we try to see all these various movies will end up. Guardians already has $586 million worldwide, which surpasses the first time entries of all the other Marvel franchises, so that continues to exceed expectations. The rest of the top five were filled out by the Ninja Turtles, If I Stay, Let's Be Cops and The November Man, all of which came in with under $7 million for the weekend.
Top 5:
- Guardians of the Galaxy- $10.2 million
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles- $6.5 million
- If I Stay- $5.8 million
- Let's Be Cops- $5.4 million
- The November Man- $4.2 million
In the limited release release movies, Boyhood has now passed $20 million with more to go, a big success for the independent film looking to hang on all through Oscar season. Next week it's another slow one, with just Dolphin Tale 2, the Idris Elba thriller No Good Deed, and the arthouse indie The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, starring Jessica Chastain and James McAvoy.
TRAILER: "Horrible Bosses 2"
Here's the full trailer for the Horrible Bosses sequel, and it actually made me chuckle a few times, but trailers can be deceiving (especially with comedies). It's pretty easy to push all the good laughs into a two minute compilation. Nice to see Star Trek's Chris Pine doing something different here. The movie comes out November 26th.
TRAILER #2: "Mr. Turner"
A new U.S. trailer for Mike Leigh's Mr. Turner has dropped. The movie got great reviews in Cannes and even won Timothy Spall the best actor prize, but it debuted at Telluride last week to a slightly more muted reaction. I can't wait to see this, since it's Mike Leigh and all (plus it looks gorgeous- the landscape shots themselves look like paintings), but I have a feeling it's going to get totally overshadowed this fall by all the other Oscar movies. A limited stateside release date of December 19th doesn't do it any favors either.
Kennedy Center Honorees Announced
The annual Kennedy Center Honors will be taped in early December and are set to tribute Tom Hanks, Lily Tomlin, Al Green, Sting and Patricia McBride for 2014. Quite the group this year, huh? Tom Hanks I believe will be one of the youngest people ever honored, at just 58, but I think his body of work is enough to warrant it, don't you? I mean, if ten years from now he still had just the filmography he has now he'd be plenty deserving, so I think it's alright that he's under 60. The show will be broadcast on CBS December 30th.
