Before Midnight Gets a Poster

Simple, sparse and beautiful...cannot wait!!!!!

After Earth: M. Night Shyamalan

Sony Pictures has announced that one of their big summer offerings, After Earth is moving up a week from June 7th to May 31st.  The news is incidental and may not mean too much.  After all, the futuristic father/son science fiction flick stars Will Smith in his preferred genre alongside his son Jaden, and dates switching is all apart of the tentpole game.  If nothing else it gives the original film, co-written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, another weekend to breathe before Man of Steel presumably takes the world by storm.  What is fascinating is that nearly all of the marketing material is cleverly trying to disguise the fact that Shyamalan is directing this.  Surely, with Will Smith's marquee name and mug, there would be little question that he wouldn't be front and center, but the fall from grace from the Hollywood echelon for Shyamalan is interesting to the point that while critics and fans have continued to throw stones upon his career and not quite living up to the potential he first brought, he is still one of the few filmmakers allowed into the big budget Hollywood circle and continue making pricey films.  Perhaps this is because, despite (or in spite) of the drubbing his films consistently bring, they still make lots of money:

• The Last Airbender (2010)- $319.7 million
• The Happening (2008)- $163.4 million
• The Lady in the Water (2006)- $72.7 million
• The Village (2004)- $256.6 million
• Signs (2002)- $408.2 million
• Unbreakable (2000)- $248.1 million
• The Sixth Sense (1999)- $672.8 million

All figures are worldwide box office totals, which skews the picture slightly and puts more vetted interest in international receipts and their ultimate power on Hollywood product.  In this light, ever one of Shyamalan's films have made their money back-- I'm dismissing his first feature, the 1992 dramedy Wide Awake because it has nil to to with the Shyamalan brand.

Yet it's still a fascination that the man once deemed heir to the Spielberg throne fell so hard and so fast in the cinematic conversation.  Naturally, starting things off with a lightening in a bottle success story like The Sixth Sense would never be an easy act to follow for that film was so huge and so beloved in such a short period of time-- it was one of those genuine once-every-few-years surprise stories that seems to galvanize the culture and jolt it.  Looking back, the film still holds up as a lithe and suspenseful ghost story.  The film earned six Oscar nominations, including two for Shyamalan-- anything that followed would be hard to match.  Some take great offense to Unbreakable, his quickie follow-up which also featured Bruce Willis.  I find it the best film of his career, a corker of originality, suspense and everything in the air finesse-- it's the tightest and most economical film he's made, and showcases sequences worthy of the coined moniker, Hitchcockian, however, in some finicky circles, he was already beginning to lose some of his luster.  In full confession, the twist of The Sixth Sense was ruined for me before I saw the film shortly after it arrived, and that luster hadn't really materialized for me the first go around.

Signs was a big honking success, and was a nice showcase for the directors ability to distill good, natural performances in hooky, Twilight Zone-ish environments, but for the first time (at least for me), it felt like a cheap, gotcha at the audience.  The Village continued that trend but brought it to a more insipid level, despite being beautifully photographed.  Even still, however, Shyamalan seemed a game showman and certain sequences of both films have a flowing magnetism that deserved a better script and richer characters.  There was a sort of rooting interest in them in spite of themselves.  The latter product (The Lady in the Water, The Happening, The Last Airbender) almost feel read like stern middle fingers to Shymalan's detractors.  And yet, the filmmaker seems to in a sense be eating his cake and having it to-- for he's in a metaphoric movie land jail for delivering years of crap product and barely whispered during the marketing of his latest film, but still enjoying the autonomy of making big budget studio films with movie stars and producing films that are turning a profit.

Cannes Film Festival

The line-up for the 2013 Festival de Cannes is currently being announced.

OPENING FILM:

• The Great Gatsby (USA)- directed by Baz Luhrmann- out of competition

IN COMPETITION:

• Behind the Candelabra (USA)- directed by Steven Soderbergh- Soderbergh's HBO film about the relationship between Liberace (Michael Douglas) and his much younger boyfriend (Matt Damon.)  Rumored to be Soderbergh's final film; Soderbergh won the Palme D'Or for his breakout film, sex, lies and videotape.
• Borgman (The Netherlands)- directed by Alex van Warmerdam
• Grigris (France)- directed by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
• Heli (Spain)- directed by Arnat Escalante
• The Immigrant (USA)- directed by James Gray- Gray's romantic drama stars Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Renner and Marion Cotillard and tells the story of an immigrant woman and a dazzling musician.  Gray previously visited Cannes with Two Lovers, also starring Phoenix.
• Inside Llewyn Davis (USA)- directed by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen- The Coen Brothers return to Cannes (their first trip since No Country For Old Men in 2007) with their latest revolving around a 60s-era folk singer.  Stars Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan and Justin Timberlake.  CBS Films picked up the film for a fall release.
• Jeune et Jolie (France)- directed by Francois Ozon- The director of Under the Sand and 8 Women returns to Cannes with his latest, described as a portrait of a 17-year-old girl in four songs and four seasons.  Charlotte Rampling co-stars.
• Jimmy P. (Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian) (USA)- directed by Arnaud Desplechin- Cannes regular and French filmmaker Desplechin (A Christmas Tale) makes his English language debut starring Benicio Del Toro and Mathieu Amalric.
• La Grande Bellezza (France)- directed by Paolo Sorrentino- The story of an aging writer who bitterly recollects about this lost youth.  Sorrentino is no stranger to Cannes with This Must Be the Place (which starred Sean Penn as an aging rock star) and Il Divo, which won the Jury Prize in 2008.
• La Vie D'Adele (France)- directed by Abdellatif Kechiche
• Michael Kohlhass (France)- directed by Arnaud des Pallieres- French period drama starring Mads Mikkelsen.
• Nebraska (USA)- directed by Alexander Payne- Payne returns to Cannes (he previously brought About Schmidt in 2002) with his latest family-strewn drama, this one stars Bruce Dern, Will Forte and Stacey Keach.  Paramount plans to release this film sometime later this year.  Curiously many reported Nebraska wouldn't be ready in time for Cannes.
• Only God Forgives (USA)- directed by Nicolas Winding Refn- Refn's follow-up to Drive, which earned him the Directors Prize at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, is a grisly noir with Ryan Gosling and Kristin Scott Thomas.  The trailer has already elicited fan boy excitement and is due for release stateside, courtesy of Radius/TWC this summer.
• The Past (The Netherlands)- directed by Asghar Farhardi- Farhardi follows-up the Oscar-winning A Separation with another tale of marital strife starring Berenice Bejo and Tahar Rahim.  Coincidentally, Cannes passed on the opportunity to screen A Separation two years ago.
• Shield of Straw (Japan)- directed by Takashi Miike- From the director of 13 Assassins.
• Soshite Chichi Ni Naru (Like Father, Like Son) (Japan)- directed by Hirokazu Koreeda
• Tian Zhy Ding (South Korea)- directed by Khang Ke Jia
• Un Chateau en Italie (France)- directed by Valera Bruni Tedeschi- Drama about a family forced to sell their family home.
• Venus in Fur (France)- directed by Roman Polanski- Drama concerning an actress trying to convince a director she's perfect for a part; based on the play by David Ives.  Polanski won the Palme D'Or in 2002 for The Pianist.

OUT OF COMPETITION:

• All is Lost (USA)- directed by J.C. Chandor- Survival story starring Robert Redford from the writer/director of Margin Call.
• Blood Ties (USA)- directed by Guillaume Canet- Crime drama about two brothers on opposing sides of the law.  Clive Owen, Mila Kunis, Zoe Saldana, and in her second Cannes film of 2013, Marion Cotillard, star.

UN CERTAIN REGARD:

• The Bling Ring (USA)- directed by Sophia Coppola (opener)- Previously reported.
• Anonymous (Iran)- directed by Mohammad Rasoulof
• As I Lay Dying (USA)- directed by James Franco- Franco directs and adapts the William Faulkner novel.
• Bends- directed by Flora Lau
• Death March- directed by Adolfo Alix, Jr.
• Fruitvale Station (USA)- directed by Ryan Coogler- Given an extended title since winning the Sundance Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award and being snapped up by the Weinstein Company, Fruitvale will tour Cannes before entering art house cinemas this summer.
• Grand Central (France)- directed by Rebecca Zlotwski
• La Jaula de Oro (Spain)- directed by Diego Quernada-Diez
• Les Salauds (France)- directed by Claire Denis- The legendary Denis (White Material, Beau Travail) returns to Cannes with her latest.
• L'Image Manquante (France)- directed by Rithy Panh
• L'Inconnu du Lac (France)- directed by Alain Guiraudie
• Miele (Italy)- directed by Valeria Golino
• Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan (The Philippines)- directed by Lav Diaz
• Omar (Israel)- directed by Hany Abu-Assad
• Sarah Prefere La Course (Canada)- directed by Chloe Robichaud

Special screenings:

• Otdat Konci – Taisia Igumentseva
  
• Seduced and Abandoned – James Toback
  
• Week of a Champion – Roman Polanski
  
• Stop the Pounding Heart – Roberto Minervini
  
• Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight – Stephen Frears
  
• Max Rose – Daniel Noa

Midnight screenings:

• Blind Detective – Johnnie To
  
• Monsoon Shootout – Amit Kumar

CLOSING FILM:

• Zulu (France)- directed by Jerome Salle 

The Bling Ring to Premiere at Cannes

It is being reported that Sophia Coppola's The Bling Ring will open the Un Certain Regard sidebar at this years Cannes Film Festival.  Coppola is no stranger to Cannes as Marie Antoinette debuted (rather infamously) in competition at the 2006 film festival.  This promises to be one of the bigger American presences at the film festival which will unveil its entire line-up tomorrow.  Curiously, The Bling Ring- which stars Emma Watson as a member of fashionistas who steal from the rich and famous, won't be included in the regular competition line-up, as one would suspect a filmmaker of Coppola's name and international respect would be deemed worthy of such, especially in light of last years controversial lack of a strong female presence at the festival.  The film will open in the U.S. this June.

Musings & Stuff's Snarky Summer Movie Preview Part 1

The summer movie season is nearly underway.  A time where brain cells are freed and lulled in a state of submission.  Where the big movie studios offer their biggest, their noisiest, and more expensive offerings.  Like all franchises, I will put this is installments to make it easier to read, write, and with the hopeful intrigue for further visits.  Let's peruse the slate of this years selection:

MAY

MAY 3rd

Typically, a big title opens up the summer movie season in an attempt to start the battle of the numbers game in the right direction.  Last summers The Avengers was the opener of the season and like magical, tick-tocking clockwork, Iron Man 3 gets the mantle this year.  Picking up on the adventures of Tony Stark, following the mega-spectacle events he experienced as part of The Avengers, Iron Man 3 will certainly be one of the biggies of the year.  Director Shane Black (Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang) takes over director duties from Jon Favreau (who helmed the first two installments.)  The teasers and full-tilt media blitz campaign underway seem to highlight a darker turn for the hero, once and again portrayed by Robert Downey, Jr.  This time he's sparring against The Mandarian (Ben Kingsley.)  Guy Pearce and Rebecca Hall join the franchise alongside returning co-conspirators Gwyneth Paltrow (as love interest Pepper Potts) and Don Cheadle (as James Rhodes / War Machine.)  While the last Iron Man left something to be desired as it more than anything else felt like a soggy cog in the glut of the construction of The Avengers-- an ailment of sorts that plagued all the Marvel productions-- there's a certain interest that perhaps the third installment will get back to the frothy star vehicle charms that made the first Iron Man refreshing in its slippery self awareness.  

Black seems like a novel choice for tentpole captain.  After a successful screenwriting career in the early 1990s (Lethal Weapon), his star faded out in light of his bombastic offerings only to be redeemed with the indie satire Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, which happened to also revive Downey, Jr.'s career.  That oddball, off-kilter match worked wonders the first time out, hopefully it can remain even under the less irony-filled machinations of comic book blockbustering.  Then again, this being the first film after the ultimate mega-ness that was The Avengers, there's a nagging thought that the entire Marvel universe may not have a plan of its own on a micro-character level or a macro-universe level.  Each offering since Iron Man 2 (including The Avengers) have felt similarly like elongated commercials for the next thing...where, exactly is it all heading?  I suppose there won't be a definitive answer until the disparate franchises start to dwindle in popularity.  Both Iron Man films prior have grossed north of $300 million so finality may a long way in coming.

Also opening: Things We Lost in the Fire and Oscar-winning In a Better World director Susanne Bier debuts Love Is All You Need, her romantic comedy starring Pierce Brosnan.  Olivier Assasyas (Carlos) has Something in the Air, a French drama that made the film festival rounds last year.  Finally, What Maisie Knew, a family drama starring Julianne Moore, Alexander Skarsgard and Steve Coogan, a modern adaptation of the Henry James novella of the same name opens from the directors of The Deep End, Scott McGehee and David Siegel.