It’s one of the great fallacies that comedy doesn’t need to look good. (Blame years of badly lit Apatow productions and nearly every modern studio release being 4K-shot eye torture.) A strong rebuke might be Criterion releasing Albert Brooks’ Real Life and Mother on 4K in August, a pairing that rings especially strong when placed side-by-side with the month’s other major release, Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor. Few would think to give these three titles the same format, but here we are.
Meanwhile, Martha Coolidge’s recently restored Not a Pretty Picture arrives on Blu-ray alongside two by Kira Muratova: Brief Encounters and The Long Farewell, a pair of lesser-seen works given a handsome package.
Find artwork below and more details at Criterion:
The post The Criterion Collection’s August Lineup Includes Brooks and Bertolucci on 4K first appeared on The Film Stage.
Meanwhile, Martha Coolidge’s recently restored Not a Pretty Picture arrives on Blu-ray alongside two by Kira Muratova: Brief Encounters and The Long Farewell, a pair of lesser-seen works given a handsome package.
Find artwork below and more details at Criterion:
The post The Criterion Collection’s August Lineup Includes Brooks and Bertolucci on 4K first appeared on The Film Stage.
- 5/15/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Concert documentary, “Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus,” directed by Neo Sora, will open in mainland Chinese cinemas on May 31.
The film had its world premiere in official selection at the Venice festival last year. That was followed by an acclaimed run at the New York, London and Camerimage festivals.
Japanese composer Sakamoto, who was awarded an Oscar, a BAFTA, a Grammy and two Golden Globes, had a four-decade career that stretched from techno-pop to Oscar winning scores on films including “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence,” “The Last Emperor,” and “The Revenant.”
Sakamoto died in March last year after a lengthy struggle with cancer. Before his demise, he curated and performed piano at a final concert, comprising 20 pieces of music that he chose and ordered himself.
The concert film includes his popstar Yellow Magic Orchestra period to his iconic “Emperor” film score and meditative final album, “12.” Variety‘s review of the film called it a “glorious final performance.
The film had its world premiere in official selection at the Venice festival last year. That was followed by an acclaimed run at the New York, London and Camerimage festivals.
Japanese composer Sakamoto, who was awarded an Oscar, a BAFTA, a Grammy and two Golden Globes, had a four-decade career that stretched from techno-pop to Oscar winning scores on films including “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence,” “The Last Emperor,” and “The Revenant.”
Sakamoto died in March last year after a lengthy struggle with cancer. Before his demise, he curated and performed piano at a final concert, comprising 20 pieces of music that he chose and ordered himself.
The concert film includes his popstar Yellow Magic Orchestra period to his iconic “Emperor” film score and meditative final album, “12.” Variety‘s review of the film called it a “glorious final performance.
- 5/8/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
As far as superhero films are concerned, the aura of the character is not just in the powers they possess but also in their appearance. The costume, therefore, is a key component that adds to the appeal of these icons from the comic book world. From Marvel’s Spider-Man to DC’s Superman, costume designers in Hollywood have pushed the envelope to bring out the nuances of these characters.
Tobey Maguire in Spider-Man (image credit: Columbia Pictures)
Designer James Acheson has proved that he is the authority in this regard, having designed Tobey Maguire’s 2002 suit for Spider-Man and Henry Cavill’s Man of Steel costume. While Zack Snyder’s chequered relationship with audiences restricted some fans from appreciating the modern Superman suit, the realization that both these outfits were designed by the same person, is making them look at these costumes in a new light.
Netizens Are Reassessing The...
Tobey Maguire in Spider-Man (image credit: Columbia Pictures)
Designer James Acheson has proved that he is the authority in this regard, having designed Tobey Maguire’s 2002 suit for Spider-Man and Henry Cavill’s Man of Steel costume. While Zack Snyder’s chequered relationship with audiences restricted some fans from appreciating the modern Superman suit, the realization that both these outfits were designed by the same person, is making them look at these costumes in a new light.
Netizens Are Reassessing The...
- 4/29/2024
- by Sharanya Sankar
- FandomWire
Clockwise from left: Mica Levi (Dimitrios Vellis/Wikimedia Commons), David Byrne (Shutterstock), Jonny Greenwood (Shutterstock), Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (Shutterstock)Graphic: The A.V. Club
If you plan to see Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers this weekend, be prepared to be knocked on your ass by its propulsive score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.
If you plan to see Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers this weekend, be prepared to be knocked on your ass by its propulsive score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.
- 4/26/2024
- by Cindy White
- avclub.com
Florinda Bolkan (Flavia The Heretic) delivers a masterful, nuanced performance bringing captivating depth to the character of Alice – a young translator grappling with memory loss and struggling to recall three missing days. Tormented by nightmare visions of a sinister scientist deliberately abandoning astronauts to die on the Moon, Alice embarks on a quest to unravel the mystery shrouding her identity and the events of those missing days – a pursuit which culminates in murder and extraordinary surrealism. Director Luigi Bazzoni’s (The Fifth Cord) unique vision is brought to life by three-time Oscar winner Vittorio Storaro’s striking cinematography, delivering haunting visuals and powerful emotional depth, standing as the most visually stunning Giallo you will ever see. Footprints unfolds as a mesmerising exploration of identity and the boundaries of perceived reality, memory, dreams, and existential mysteries, presented here restored from 4K scans of the original camera negative, finally doing justice to...
- 4/22/2024
- by Peter 'Witchfinder' Hopkins
- Horror Asylum
There's an entire generation of movie lovers who first encountered Jackie Chan in the "Rush Hour" films. The actor, director and stuntsman didn't have a huge love for the franchise at the time, perhaps because they barely scratched the surface of what he was capable of as a choreographer. Still, his buddy cop films hold a special place in the hearts of countless action fans, and his rapport with co-star Chris Tucker isn't half bad, either.
The "Rush Hour" trilogy hasn't aged the best in the intervening years, thanks in part to its director, Brett Ratner, who was accused of sexual misconduct in 2017. The film's "East meets West" humor would also never fly today, making the franchise something of a time capsule for irreverent, 2000s humor. Still, we could never get enough of Chan and Tucker — that's why we're all still holding out for that potential "Rush Hour 4." While...
The "Rush Hour" trilogy hasn't aged the best in the intervening years, thanks in part to its director, Brett Ratner, who was accused of sexual misconduct in 2017. The film's "East meets West" humor would also never fly today, making the franchise something of a time capsule for irreverent, 2000s humor. Still, we could never get enough of Chan and Tucker — that's why we're all still holding out for that potential "Rush Hour 4." While...
- 3/31/2024
- by Lyvie Scott
- Slash Film
Icon Film has released a brand new trailer for the 4K restoration of Bernardo Bertolucci’s modern classic ‘The Dreamers’.
When Isabelle and Theo invite Matthew, an American student, to stay with them in their Parisian apartment, what begins as a casual friendship transforms into a sensual voyage of discovery and desire in which nothing is off-limits, and anything is possible…
From Academy Award-winning director Bernardo Bertolucci, the original cut of modern classic The Dreamers has been remastered for its 20th anniversary in stunning 4K. The restoration was completed by Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna under the supervision of director of photography, Fabio Cianchetti.
Set against the tumultuous background of the ’68 Paris student riots, experience this unforgettable love letter to cinema and the French New Wave like never before. Starring Michael Pitt, Louis Garrel (Little Women), and BAFTA winner Eva Green in her daring cinematic debut.
Also in trailers – Teaser trailer...
When Isabelle and Theo invite Matthew, an American student, to stay with them in their Parisian apartment, what begins as a casual friendship transforms into a sensual voyage of discovery and desire in which nothing is off-limits, and anything is possible…
From Academy Award-winning director Bernardo Bertolucci, the original cut of modern classic The Dreamers has been remastered for its 20th anniversary in stunning 4K. The restoration was completed by Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna under the supervision of director of photography, Fabio Cianchetti.
Set against the tumultuous background of the ’68 Paris student riots, experience this unforgettable love letter to cinema and the French New Wave like never before. Starring Michael Pitt, Louis Garrel (Little Women), and BAFTA winner Eva Green in her daring cinematic debut.
Also in trailers – Teaser trailer...
- 3/29/2024
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Rihanna‘s “Take a Bow” is one of her most underrated songs, which is pretty shocking considering how popular it was back in the 2000s. The track was co-written by an R&b star and it originally had an Asian flavor. The tune shares its title and some of its other attributes with a Madonna song from the 1990s.
Rihanna’s ‘Take a Bow’ was originally inspired by an Asian musician
Stargate is a production duo that gave us hits by Beyoncé, Ne-Yo, Fifth Harmony, Katy Perry, and Rihanna. Oh boy, have they written numerous hits for the “Rude Boy” singer. During a 2010 interview with Sound on Sound, Stargate’s Mikkel S. Eriksen discussed the origin of one of Rihanna’s most popular ballads. “We might change the beat, or the chords, or completely rearrange the song,” he said.
“Like in the song ‘Take a Bow,’ our original track had an almost Asian feel,...
Rihanna’s ‘Take a Bow’ was originally inspired by an Asian musician
Stargate is a production duo that gave us hits by Beyoncé, Ne-Yo, Fifth Harmony, Katy Perry, and Rihanna. Oh boy, have they written numerous hits for the “Rude Boy” singer. During a 2010 interview with Sound on Sound, Stargate’s Mikkel S. Eriksen discussed the origin of one of Rihanna’s most popular ballads. “We might change the beat, or the chords, or completely rearrange the song,” he said.
“Like in the song ‘Take a Bow,’ our original track had an almost Asian feel,...
- 3/21/2024
- by Matthew Trzcinski
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
To call Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus a concert film would be correct and also drastically inadequate. What unfolds onscreen is no mere performance, no mere gesture, but a face-to-face between presence and absence. Beginning its theatrical run just before the one-year anniversary of Sakamoto’s death from cancer, at 71, the handsome film is a testament to the artistic spirit and, above all, an act of love — by the performer, who was facing mortality and thinking of legacy, and by the director, Neo Sora, who is Ryuichi Sakamoto’s son.
The performances captured in Opus were filmed over a week in September 2022, at a studio in Tokyo’s Nhk Broadcasting Center that Sakamoto believed offers the finest acoustics in Japan. He and Sora embarked on this project while Sakamoto was still well enough to perform. Other than the unseen filmmakers, there is no audience. Alone at a Yamaha grand, a bright...
The performances captured in Opus were filmed over a week in September 2022, at a studio in Tokyo’s Nhk Broadcasting Center that Sakamoto believed offers the finest acoustics in Japan. He and Sora embarked on this project while Sakamoto was still well enough to perform. Other than the unseen filmmakers, there is no audience. Alone at a Yamaha grand, a bright...
- 3/16/2024
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Directed by Neo Sora, “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” records the final performance of its namesake composer and musician prior to his death from cancer in March 2023. Per Sora, Sakamoto’s son, “Opus” is less a documentary than a concert film, capturing 20 tracks — electronic, orchestral, and everything in between — from his multifaceted career as they’re played on the piano in crisp black and white, in lighting that transitions from night to day and back to night.
As he explains, it was no small task to chronicle what he knew could be his father’s last artistic gift to the world. But when speaking about the film, Sora maintains a studied objectivity that focuses more on the process of making it than the feelings behind it — much less about his father in general. Even as a fan of Sakamoto’s since the days of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Last Emperor,” it’s...
As he explains, it was no small task to chronicle what he knew could be his father’s last artistic gift to the world. But when speaking about the film, Sora maintains a studied objectivity that focuses more on the process of making it than the feelings behind it — much less about his father in general. Even as a fan of Sakamoto’s since the days of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Last Emperor,” it’s...
- 3/15/2024
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Variety Film + TV
As the expectation of an “Oppenheimer” steamroller at the Academy Awards this coming Sunday rises seemingly by the day, it’s worth looking at some of the Oscar juggernauts of the past and guessing where the film will fall in terms of number of victories. It’s possible the movie could even score a double-digit total, and if it does, that would elevate it into some very rarified air.
While it could conceivably win as many as 13 statuettes based on its 13 nominations, “Oppenheimer” is obviously highly unlikely to sweep every category. It probably won’t, for instance, take home the trophies for costume design or for makeup and hairstyling. When you think of the Father of the Atomic Bomb, after all, you don’t necessarily envision what a sharp dresser he was or how perfectly coiffed. I’m also predicting the film will lose at least one other of the...
While it could conceivably win as many as 13 statuettes based on its 13 nominations, “Oppenheimer” is obviously highly unlikely to sweep every category. It probably won’t, for instance, take home the trophies for costume design or for makeup and hairstyling. When you think of the Father of the Atomic Bomb, after all, you don’t necessarily envision what a sharp dresser he was or how perfectly coiffed. I’m also predicting the film will lose at least one other of the...
- 3/4/2024
- by Ray Richmond
- Gold Derby
Last week, The Hollywood Reporter reported that cinephiles were sharing “samizdat” links to Woody Allen’s latest film Coup de Chance from a French-to-Dutch-to-English translation, and New Yorkers were attending clandestine screenings at an East Village bar/event space. Today, THR can exclusively report that those who wish to see the 88-year-old’s latest project, which debuted at the Venice Film Festival in early September to (mostly) positive reviews, can do so without slinking around or needing secret codes.
MPI Media Group will release the picture, Allen’s 50th theatrically released feature film as a director, for North American markets on April 5, 2024. A digital/VOD release will follow on April 12.
The movie, shot in France in French, stars Lou de Laâge (Respire, The Mad Woman’s Ball) as a self-aware trophy wife who reconnects with an old chum from the Lycée Français in New York, played by Niels Schneider (Heartbeats,...
MPI Media Group will release the picture, Allen’s 50th theatrically released feature film as a director, for North American markets on April 5, 2024. A digital/VOD release will follow on April 12.
The movie, shot in France in French, stars Lou de Laâge (Respire, The Mad Woman’s Ball) as a self-aware trophy wife who reconnects with an old chum from the Lycée Français in New York, played by Niels Schneider (Heartbeats,...
- 2/12/2024
- by Jordan Hoffman
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Deadline is reporting on the new project from Stephen Frears, the director of Dangerous Liasons, The Queen and Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight. Frears is set to make Wilder & Me, which will be a screen adaptation of Jonathan Coe’s popular novel Mr. Wilder and Me. The screenplay for the film will be penned by two-time Oscar winner Christopher Hampton (The Father), with Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) producing the film. Frears has assembled his impressive cast for the film, which will include Christoph Waltz as legendary movie director Billy Wilder, who has helmed such films as Some Like it Hot and The Apartment. Waltz is set to be joined by Maya Hawke, Jon Hamm and John Turturro.
According to Deadline, “The story starts out during a heady Greek summer, and sees Calista fall in love with cinema and life on a journey of self-discovery. Thrilled by her new adventure,...
According to Deadline, “The story starts out during a heady Greek summer, and sees Calista fall in love with cinema and life on a journey of self-discovery. Thrilled by her new adventure,...
- 2/2/2024
- by EJ Tangonan
- JoBlo.com
Exclusive: Two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz (Inglorious Basterds), Stranger Things and Maestro star Maya Hawke, Cannes Best Actor winner John Turturro (Severance), and Emmy winner Jon Hamm (Mad Men) are set to star in Oscar-nominated director Stephen Frears’ (The Queen) Wilder & Me, which will be a buzzy package at this month’s EFM market.
Hawke will play Calista, a young musician whose life takes on a whole new meaning while working on the set of Billy Wilder’s film Fedora. Waltz will play legendary film director Wilder, known for classics including Some Like It Hot, Sunset Boulevard and The Apartment. Turturro will play his lifelong friend and screenwriting partner I.A.L. Diamond. Hamm will play famed actor William Holden.
Described as a “bittersweet drama”, the project has been adapted for the screen by two-time Oscar winner Christopher Hampton (The Father) with Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) producing and shoot scheduled for early 2025 in Greece.
Hawke will play Calista, a young musician whose life takes on a whole new meaning while working on the set of Billy Wilder’s film Fedora. Waltz will play legendary film director Wilder, known for classics including Some Like It Hot, Sunset Boulevard and The Apartment. Turturro will play his lifelong friend and screenwriting partner I.A.L. Diamond. Hamm will play famed actor William Holden.
Described as a “bittersweet drama”, the project has been adapted for the screen by two-time Oscar winner Christopher Hampton (The Father) with Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) producing and shoot scheduled for early 2025 in Greece.
- 2/2/2024
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Yorgos Lanthimos. Christopher Nolan. Justine Triet. Jonathan Glazer.
What do these four directors have in common? They were all among the nominees for this year’s Academy Awards, and none of them were born in the United States. Lanthimos is Greek, Triet is French, and Nolan and Glazer are British. Among the nominees, only New Yorker Martin Scorsese is American-born.
The last time only one American-born director made it to that year’s Best Director lineup was back in 1997, when Miloš Forman (Czech), Scott Hicks (Australian), Mike Leigh and Anthony Minghella (both English) received Oscar nominations. Of course, this is only technically true. Joel Coen was the one American in the category, yet it was due to a guild rule that he received sole credit for directing despite his helming “Fargo” with his brother Ethan, who would’ve been the second American among the nominees.
SEEOscars: Justine Triet is 8th...
What do these four directors have in common? They were all among the nominees for this year’s Academy Awards, and none of them were born in the United States. Lanthimos is Greek, Triet is French, and Nolan and Glazer are British. Among the nominees, only New Yorker Martin Scorsese is American-born.
The last time only one American-born director made it to that year’s Best Director lineup was back in 1997, when Miloš Forman (Czech), Scott Hicks (Australian), Mike Leigh and Anthony Minghella (both English) received Oscar nominations. Of course, this is only technically true. Joel Coen was the one American in the category, yet it was due to a guild rule that he received sole credit for directing despite his helming “Fargo” with his brother Ethan, who would’ve been the second American among the nominees.
SEEOscars: Justine Triet is 8th...
- 1/31/2024
- by Sebastian Ochoa Mendoza
- Gold Derby
“Dìdi,” a coming-of-age drama that won the U.S. dramatic audience award at Sundance, has sold to Focus Features. The semi-autobiographical film was written, produced and directed by Sean Wang in his feature debut.
The film follows a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy in the throes of an awkward adolescence, as he enjoys the last month of summer before high school begins. He experiences the pangs of first love, becomes friends with some skaters (after promising to make videos of them), fights with his older sister and gets a hard-earned understanding of his mom. It is set in 2008, when MySpace was still a thing and TikTok had yet to explode.
Wang says he hopes that audiences will be able to see a version of themselves in the film, which stars Izaac Wang as the filmmaker’s cinematic alter-ego and Joan Chen (“The Last Emperor”) as his onscreen mother.
“’Dìdi (弟弟)’ is...
The film follows a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy in the throes of an awkward adolescence, as he enjoys the last month of summer before high school begins. He experiences the pangs of first love, becomes friends with some skaters (after promising to make videos of them), fights with his older sister and gets a hard-earned understanding of his mom. It is set in 2008, when MySpace was still a thing and TikTok had yet to explode.
Wang says he hopes that audiences will be able to see a version of themselves in the film, which stars Izaac Wang as the filmmaker’s cinematic alter-ego and Joan Chen (“The Last Emperor”) as his onscreen mother.
“’Dìdi (弟弟)’ is...
- 1/31/2024
- by Brent Lang and Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
When the Oscars like you, they really, really like you. Tour our photo gallery above (or click here for direct access) to see the 15 movies that won the most competitive Oscars throughout history. At 11 victories apiece, the current three record-holders are “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” (2003), “Titanic” (1997) and “Ben-Hur” (1959). But where do other Academy Awards favorites like “West Side Story” (1961), “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008) and “Gone with the Wind” (1939) fall on the historic list?
At the upcoming Oscars, “Oppenheimer” (2023) leads all other contenders with a whopping 13 nominations for picture, director (Christopher Nolan), adapted screenplay, actor (Cillian Murphy), supporting actor (Robert Downey Jr.), supporting actress (Emily Blunt), cinematography, costume design, film editing, makeup & hairstyling, production design, score and sound. If it claims 12 or 13 of these trophies on March 10, 2024, “Oppenheimer” will break the record and become the all-time winner at the Academy Awards. Make your Oscar predictions to let...
At the upcoming Oscars, “Oppenheimer” (2023) leads all other contenders with a whopping 13 nominations for picture, director (Christopher Nolan), adapted screenplay, actor (Cillian Murphy), supporting actor (Robert Downey Jr.), supporting actress (Emily Blunt), cinematography, costume design, film editing, makeup & hairstyling, production design, score and sound. If it claims 12 or 13 of these trophies on March 10, 2024, “Oppenheimer” will break the record and become the all-time winner at the Academy Awards. Make your Oscar predictions to let...
- 1/24/2024
- by Marcus James Dixon
- Gold Derby
Norman Jewison, a seven-time Academy Award nominee who directed the 1968 Best Picture Oscar winner “In the Heat of the Night” as well as Oscar winners “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Moonstruck” and numerous other iconic films, is dead. He died peacefully on Saturday at his home.
A filmmaking giant in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s, Jewison was undeniably one of the most prominent producer-directors never to have won an Oscar – though he was honored with the prestigious Irving G. Thalberg Award at the Academy Awards in 1999. He was nominated three times for his directing: “In the Heat of the Night” in ’68 (losing to Mike Nichols for “The Graduate”), “Fiddler on the Roof” in 1972 (William Friedkin won for “The French Connection”) and “Moonstruck” in 1988 (won by Bernardo Bertolucci for “The Last Emperor”). He was also nominated for producing a quartet of Best Picture contenders: “The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming...
A filmmaking giant in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s, Jewison was undeniably one of the most prominent producer-directors never to have won an Oscar – though he was honored with the prestigious Irving G. Thalberg Award at the Academy Awards in 1999. He was nominated three times for his directing: “In the Heat of the Night” in ’68 (losing to Mike Nichols for “The Graduate”), “Fiddler on the Roof” in 1972 (William Friedkin won for “The French Connection”) and “Moonstruck” in 1988 (won by Bernardo Bertolucci for “The Last Emperor”). He was also nominated for producing a quartet of Best Picture contenders: “The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming...
- 1/23/2024
- by Ray Richmond
- Gold Derby
A Prayer For The Dying from UK-France outfit The Bureau and Good Boy, produced by Jeremy Thomas’s Recorded Picture Company, are among the seven international co-productions to receive backing from the UK Global Screen Fund (Ukgsf).
In addition, 23 UK screen content businesses have been awarded funds to boost their international activities.
Ukgsf is financed through the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms) and administered by the British Film Institute (BFI). The latest batch of awards sees over £1.3m being allocated through the international co-production strand and over £2m being allocated through the international business development strand.
In addition, 23 UK screen content businesses have been awarded funds to boost their international activities.
Ukgsf is financed through the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms) and administered by the British Film Institute (BFI). The latest batch of awards sees over £1.3m being allocated through the international co-production strand and over £2m being allocated through the international business development strand.
- 1/17/2024
- by Mona Tabbara
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Signature Entertainment has acquired UK & Ireland and Australia & New Zealand rights to Daniel Brühl (Rush) and Riccardo Scamarcio (John Wick: Chapter 2) rally racing film Race For Glory: Audi vs. Lancia from HanWay Films.
The film follows the true story of the fierce rivalry between Roland Gumpert and Cesare Fiorio, the two respective heads of Audi and Lancia’s motor racing teams, during the 1983 Rally World Championships.
Pic is produced by Scamarcio and Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) and is directed by Stefano Mordini (The Invisible Witness) from a script written by Mordini, Scamarcio and Filippo Bologna (Perfect Strangers).
Also starring are Volker Bruch (The Reader), Haley Bennett (Cyrano) and Katie Clarkson-Hill (Hanna).
The deal was negotiated between Signature Entertainment’s Director of Acquisitions and TV Elizabeth Williams and HanWay Films’ Head of Sales Nicole Mackey.
Signature will release the film in the UK next month from February...
The film follows the true story of the fierce rivalry between Roland Gumpert and Cesare Fiorio, the two respective heads of Audi and Lancia’s motor racing teams, during the 1983 Rally World Championships.
Pic is produced by Scamarcio and Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) and is directed by Stefano Mordini (The Invisible Witness) from a script written by Mordini, Scamarcio and Filippo Bologna (Perfect Strangers).
Also starring are Volker Bruch (The Reader), Haley Bennett (Cyrano) and Katie Clarkson-Hill (Hanna).
The deal was negotiated between Signature Entertainment’s Director of Acquisitions and TV Elizabeth Williams and HanWay Films’ Head of Sales Nicole Mackey.
Signature will release the film in the UK next month from February...
- 1/12/2024
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Since 2012, revered filmmaker Martin Scorsese has belonged to a select group of three-time Best Director Golden Globe winners that grew to include six members when Steven Spielberg took last year’s prize for “The Fabelmans.” Over a decade later, the ever-active octogenarian has a strong chance at rising above his fellow triple champs by achieving another directing victory for “Killers of the Flower Moon,” thus following Elia Kazan as the second quadruple honoree in this category’s 81-year history. Since this would be his 10th time competing here, he would also join Spielberg in the rare distinction of having double-digit directing mentions.
Scorsese earned his first Golden Globe Award in 2003 for “Gangs of New York” (on his sixth bid) and was then further lauded for “The Departed” (2007) and “Hugo” (2012). His remaining half dozen directing notices came for his work on “Raging Bull” (1981), “Goodfellas” (1991), “The Age of Innocence” (1994), “Casino” (1996), “The Aviator...
Scorsese earned his first Golden Globe Award in 2003 for “Gangs of New York” (on his sixth bid) and was then further lauded for “The Departed” (2007) and “Hugo” (2012). His remaining half dozen directing notices came for his work on “Raging Bull” (1981), “Goodfellas” (1991), “The Age of Innocence” (1994), “Casino” (1996), “The Aviator...
- 12/7/2023
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Jeremy Thomas on Martin Scorsese giving gravitas to Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger films: “I mean, The Red Shoes, unbelievable! Of course they’re period, Blimp, very period. And Black Narcissus, which I recently saw restored in a square in Bologna with thousands of people.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
In the third instalment with producer Jeremy Thomas we discuss Nicolas Roeg’s Bad Timing leading to a conversation with David Cronenberg wanting to film William Burroughs’s Naked Lunch; Cronenberg’s adaptation of Jg Ballard’s Crash and the author’s reaction; Martin Scorsese reintroducing us to Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s masterpieces, which include The Red Shoes, The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp, and Black Narcissus.
Jeremy Thomas on David Cronenberg’s adaptation of Naked Lunch by William Burroughs: “It’s magnificent, original work.”
The Cohen Media Group and Posteritati at their gallery hosted a reception for Jeremy...
In the third instalment with producer Jeremy Thomas we discuss Nicolas Roeg’s Bad Timing leading to a conversation with David Cronenberg wanting to film William Burroughs’s Naked Lunch; Cronenberg’s adaptation of Jg Ballard’s Crash and the author’s reaction; Martin Scorsese reintroducing us to Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s masterpieces, which include The Red Shoes, The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp, and Black Narcissus.
Jeremy Thomas on David Cronenberg’s adaptation of Naked Lunch by William Burroughs: “It’s magnificent, original work.”
The Cohen Media Group and Posteritati at their gallery hosted a reception for Jeremy...
- 11/10/2023
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The mystery limited series A Murder at the End of the World (read our review Here) is set to premiere with two episodes on November 14th on FX, and with just a few days to go until that date arrives we have gotten our hands on a new trailer for the show. You can check it out in the embed above.
Created and directed by Brit Marling with Zal Batmanglij, the duo that previously brought us The Oa, this limited series sees Emma Corrin of The Crown and My Policeman taking on the role of a Gen Z amateur sleuth and hacker named Darby Hart. Darby is one of several guests invited to a retreat by a reclusive billionaire. When one of the other guests is found dead, Darby uses all of her skills to prove it was murder against a tide of competing interests and before the killer takes another life.
Created and directed by Brit Marling with Zal Batmanglij, the duo that previously brought us The Oa, this limited series sees Emma Corrin of The Crown and My Policeman taking on the role of a Gen Z amateur sleuth and hacker named Darby Hart. Darby is one of several guests invited to a retreat by a reclusive billionaire. When one of the other guests is found dead, Darby uses all of her skills to prove it was murder against a tide of competing interests and before the killer takes another life.
- 11/10/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
News of the death of Celluloid Dreams CEO Hengameh Panahi has sparked an outpouring of admiration and tributes from the independent film community.
Panahi, a pivotal figure in the global art house scene, died Nov. 5, aged 67. In her decades in the business — as a producer, co-financier and sales agent — Panahi introduced the world to international auteurs from Iran (Jafar Panahi, Marjane Satrapi), Europe (Jacques Audiard, François Ozon, Gaspar Noé, Marco Bellocchio, Aleksandr Sokurov, the Dardenne brothers) and across Asia (Takeshi Kitano, Naomi Kawase, Jia Zanghke, Hirokazu Kore-eda).
“She took films that were challenging, that were difficult to make, to sell, to promote, and she fought for them,” says Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) who knew and worked with Panahi for more than 30 years. “She was a unique part of the film ecosystem. She was really inspirational, with the films that she enabled to be made, and seen.”
Celluloid Dreams,...
Panahi, a pivotal figure in the global art house scene, died Nov. 5, aged 67. In her decades in the business — as a producer, co-financier and sales agent — Panahi introduced the world to international auteurs from Iran (Jafar Panahi, Marjane Satrapi), Europe (Jacques Audiard, François Ozon, Gaspar Noé, Marco Bellocchio, Aleksandr Sokurov, the Dardenne brothers) and across Asia (Takeshi Kitano, Naomi Kawase, Jia Zanghke, Hirokazu Kore-eda).
“She took films that were challenging, that were difficult to make, to sell, to promote, and she fought for them,” says Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) who knew and worked with Panahi for more than 30 years. “She was a unique part of the film ecosystem. She was really inspirational, with the films that she enabled to be made, and seen.”
Celluloid Dreams,...
- 11/10/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Of all the films that have been hawked in the hallways of the American Film Market, certainly one of the most prestigious and celebrated was Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1987 feature The Last Emperor. And so when the AFM unveiled a poster in 1990 to celebrate its 10th anniversary, an image from that film earned a prominent position among a montage of movies that had found responsive buyers at the market over its first decade.
From the beginning, The Last Emperor promised to be unique. Bertolucci won the approval of the Chinese government, which allowed him not only to work in China but also permitted the production to film within Beijing’s Forbidden City palace complex — the director described it to The New York Times as “the set that Hollywood never dared to build.”
The film told the story of Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, who went from being crowned...
From the beginning, The Last Emperor promised to be unique. Bertolucci won the approval of the Chinese government, which allowed him not only to work in China but also permitted the production to film within Beijing’s Forbidden City palace complex — the director described it to The New York Times as “the set that Hollywood never dared to build.”
The film told the story of Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, who went from being crowned...
- 11/3/2023
- by Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Some of Europe’s most acclaimed below-the-line talents will do a deep dive into the artistry of movie magic for In Between Stars and Scars: Masters of Cinema, a new documentary feature being produced by Yi Zhou’s Into the Sun Entertainment.
Triple Oscar-winning cinematographer Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now, The Last Emperor, Reds), three-time production design winner Dante Ferretti (Hugo, Sweeney Todd, The Aviator), Oscar-winning film editor Thom Noble (Witness) and Academy Award-winning make-up artist Giorgio Gregorini (Suicide Squad) will feature in the doc, which was shot during the making of Zhou’s upcoming feature film debut, Stars and Scars, in Rome and Los Angeles.
All the involved talents are attached to work on the feature, an English-language sci-fi drama centered on the rare phenomenon known as Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (Hsam), where people can recall an abnormally large number of their life experiences in vivid and extraordinary detail. Christopher Lambert...
Triple Oscar-winning cinematographer Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now, The Last Emperor, Reds), three-time production design winner Dante Ferretti (Hugo, Sweeney Todd, The Aviator), Oscar-winning film editor Thom Noble (Witness) and Academy Award-winning make-up artist Giorgio Gregorini (Suicide Squad) will feature in the doc, which was shot during the making of Zhou’s upcoming feature film debut, Stars and Scars, in Rome and Los Angeles.
All the involved talents are attached to work on the feature, an English-language sci-fi drama centered on the rare phenomenon known as Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (Hsam), where people can recall an abnormally large number of their life experiences in vivid and extraordinary detail. Christopher Lambert...
- 10/31/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tokyo’s International Film Festival returned this evening for its first completely unrestricted, post-covid-19 edition with a well-attended screening of Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days.
Fresh from an appearance at Thierry Frémaux’s Lumière Film Festival in Lyon, Wenders, who is also the head of the competition jury at Tokyo this year, was in attendance and introduced the pic alongside most of his cast, including leading man Koji Yakusho. Yakusho won the best actor award at Cannes for his performance in the pic.
During a comedic opening speech, Wenders told the audience inside Tokyo’s Takarazuka Theatre that he had long dreamt of completing a feature shot entirely in Japan, with Yakusho as the lead actor, and a premiere screening at the Tokyo International Film Festival. However, Wenders said there was one milestone he never thought the film would achieve.
“I didn’t dare dream that it was going to be...
Fresh from an appearance at Thierry Frémaux’s Lumière Film Festival in Lyon, Wenders, who is also the head of the competition jury at Tokyo this year, was in attendance and introduced the pic alongside most of his cast, including leading man Koji Yakusho. Yakusho won the best actor award at Cannes for his performance in the pic.
During a comedic opening speech, Wenders told the audience inside Tokyo’s Takarazuka Theatre that he had long dreamt of completing a feature shot entirely in Japan, with Yakusho as the lead actor, and a premiere screening at the Tokyo International Film Festival. However, Wenders said there was one milestone he never thought the film would achieve.
“I didn’t dare dream that it was going to be...
- 10/23/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Joanna Merlin, who created the role of the daughter Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway and served as a casting director for Stephen Sondheim, Harold Prince and Bernardo Bertolucci, has died. She was 92.
Merlin died Sunday in Los Angeles of complications from myelodysplastic syndrome, a bone marrow disorder, her daughters, documentary filmmaker Rachel Dretzin (Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey) and actress Julie Dretzin (The Handmaid’s Tale), announced.
Merlin also portrayed the dance teacher Miss Berg in Alan Parker’s Fame (1980) and recurred as Judge Lena Petrovsky for more than a decade on NBC’s Law and Order: Svu.
Her acting résumé included the films Hester Street (1975), All That Jazz (1979), Baby It’s You (1983), The Killing Fields (1984), Mystic Pizza (1988), Class Action (1991) and City of Angels (1998) and such TV shows as Naked City, The Defenders, East Side/West Side, Homeland and The Good Wife.
Merlin cast the original Broadway productions of Sondheim’s Company,...
Merlin died Sunday in Los Angeles of complications from myelodysplastic syndrome, a bone marrow disorder, her daughters, documentary filmmaker Rachel Dretzin (Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey) and actress Julie Dretzin (The Handmaid’s Tale), announced.
Merlin also portrayed the dance teacher Miss Berg in Alan Parker’s Fame (1980) and recurred as Judge Lena Petrovsky for more than a decade on NBC’s Law and Order: Svu.
Her acting résumé included the films Hester Street (1975), All That Jazz (1979), Baby It’s You (1983), The Killing Fields (1984), Mystic Pizza (1988), Class Action (1991) and City of Angels (1998) and such TV shows as Naked City, The Defenders, East Side/West Side, Homeland and The Good Wife.
Merlin cast the original Broadway productions of Sondheim’s Company,...
- 10/17/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Many artists appear to discover the power of minimalism in their older age: the beauty of paring their art down to bare essentials, the profundities that come with evoking more by saying less. That appears to be how the late pianist and composer Sakamoto Ryuichi approached his art in the last years of his life before passing earlier this year from throat cancer. The evidence of this can not only be heard in his final studio album, 12—dominated as it is by hauntingly austere piano and electronic textures—but it can also be heard and seen in his son Sora Neo’s concert documentary Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus.
This, though, is no ordinary concert film, beginning with there being no audience. Sakamoto, having by late 2022 sworn off live concerts as a result of his declining health, decided to perform 20 of his works on a piano in Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio in Japan,...
This, though, is no ordinary concert film, beginning with there being no audience. Sakamoto, having by late 2022 sworn off live concerts as a result of his declining health, decided to perform 20 of his works on a piano in Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio in Japan,...
- 10/11/2023
- by Kenji Fujishima
- Slant Magazine
Janus Films has acquired “Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus,” a concert film centered around the late, great performer that premiered recently at the Venice Film Festival and is set to make its North American debut at the New York Film Festival.
Janus Films will release the film theatrically, followed by a streaming premiere on The Criterion Channel and a home video release on the Janus Contemporaries label, a new imprint of Criterion (its first releases come out next month).
Sakamoto was a singular musical force, from his early work with Japanese electronic pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra to his solo work and collaborative albums to his unforgettable work on film scores, from “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” to “The Last Emperor” to Brian De Palma’s “Snake Eyes.” (He also composed the score to “The Revenant” with Alva Noto and The National’s Bryce Dessner.) Sakamoto additionally worked on multiple television shows and video games.
Janus Films will release the film theatrically, followed by a streaming premiere on The Criterion Channel and a home video release on the Janus Contemporaries label, a new imprint of Criterion (its first releases come out next month).
Sakamoto was a singular musical force, from his early work with Japanese electronic pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra to his solo work and collaborative albums to his unforgettable work on film scores, from “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” to “The Last Emperor” to Brian De Palma’s “Snake Eyes.” (He also composed the score to “The Revenant” with Alva Noto and The National’s Bryce Dessner.) Sakamoto additionally worked on multiple television shows and video games.
- 9/25/2023
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
Neo Sora’s concert documentary “Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus,” a standout at the Venice Film Festival, has sold for theatrical distribution in North America to Janus Films ahead of its North American premiere at the New York Film Festival.
The theatrical release will be followed by a Blu-ray Disc release on the “Janus Contemporaries” label.
This is the latest deal inked by London and Paris-based production, finance and sales outfit Film Constellation, following a slew of sales to Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Midas Filmes), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), Baltics (Kino Pavasaris), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will release the film in Japan in 2024.
On March 28, 2023, legendary composer Sakamoto Ryuichi died after his struggle against cancer. In the years leading up to his death, Sakamoto could no longer perform live. Single concerts,...
The theatrical release will be followed by a Blu-ray Disc release on the “Janus Contemporaries” label.
This is the latest deal inked by London and Paris-based production, finance and sales outfit Film Constellation, following a slew of sales to Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Midas Filmes), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), Baltics (Kino Pavasaris), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will release the film in Japan in 2024.
On March 28, 2023, legendary composer Sakamoto Ryuichi died after his struggle against cancer. In the years leading up to his death, Sakamoto could no longer perform live. Single concerts,...
- 9/25/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Jeremy Thomas with Anne-Katrin Titze on his next mission, Christopher Hampton’s adaptation of Jonathan Coe’s Mr. Wilder and Me to be directed by Stephen Frears and starring Christoph Waltz as Billy Wilder: “We’ve got all the locations in Corfu and Paris where the drama is set. Now I’m looking for eight million dollars more …”
In the first instalment with producer extraordinaire Jeremy Thomas we discuss his work and admiration for Nicolas Roeg, Wim Wenders, and Matteo Garrone.
Jeremy Thomas with Glenn Kenny and Michael Almereyda at the Posteritati Gallery reception Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Karel Reisz’s Everybody Wins (written by Arthur Miller) came to Jeremy’s mind; the connection between Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (winning nine Oscars), Paul Bowles and The Sheltering Sky; Jonathan Glazer (Sexy Beast) plus Glazer’s Martin Amis adaption of The Zone Of Interest (a Main Slate selection of...
In the first instalment with producer extraordinaire Jeremy Thomas we discuss his work and admiration for Nicolas Roeg, Wim Wenders, and Matteo Garrone.
Jeremy Thomas with Glenn Kenny and Michael Almereyda at the Posteritati Gallery reception Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Karel Reisz’s Everybody Wins (written by Arthur Miller) came to Jeremy’s mind; the connection between Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (winning nine Oscars), Paul Bowles and The Sheltering Sky; Jonathan Glazer (Sexy Beast) plus Glazer’s Martin Amis adaption of The Zone Of Interest (a Main Slate selection of...
- 9/23/2023
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
To celebrate the release of Mark Cousins’ new documentary The Storms of Jeremy Thomas, a portrait of the Oscar-winning producer responsible for bringing to life films by David Cronenberg, Jonathan Glazer, Jim Jarmusch, Bernardo Bertolucci, Nagisa Ôshima, Jerzy Skolimowski, and many more, NYC’s Quad Cinema is fittingly paying tribute to his career with a fantastic retrospective.
“Jeremy Thomas Presents” kicks off today and runs through September 28 at Quad Cinema, with The Storms of Jeremy Thomas opening this Friday, September 22. As the retrospective commences, we’re pleased to exclusively share the trailer along with comments directly from Thomas looking back at the making of these iconic films.
Sexy Beast
I was sent a script with a Jonathan Glazer attached, called “Sexy Beast”. It was on a Friday night, and I read it over the weekend. The screenplay was brilliant, and on the Monday I bought it before anyone else could.
“Jeremy Thomas Presents” kicks off today and runs through September 28 at Quad Cinema, with The Storms of Jeremy Thomas opening this Friday, September 22. As the retrospective commences, we’re pleased to exclusively share the trailer along with comments directly from Thomas looking back at the making of these iconic films.
Sexy Beast
I was sent a script with a Jonathan Glazer attached, called “Sexy Beast”. It was on a Friday night, and I read it over the weekend. The screenplay was brilliant, and on the Monday I bought it before anyone else could.
- 9/18/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
At a Toronto International Film Festival that saw its wattage dimmed by a SAG-AFTRA strike, it took a Talking Heads reunion at the 40th Anniversary of Stop Making Sense to crank up the festival’s volume to an 11 in Spinal Tap-speak.
Talking Heads’ David Byrne in ‘Stop Making Sense,’ 1984
The new A24 re-release of the Jonathan Demme concert film, which moderator Spike Lee billed as “the greatest concert film ever,” is a 4K Imax restoration.
And the night literally lived up to the large format exhibitor’s slogan “Watch a movie, or be part of one” as Talking Heads bandmembers David Byrne, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz and Lee himself got up and danced during such numbers as “Burning Down the House” and “Once in a Lifetime” during the screening. Talk about a cinema-surround show.
Tina Weymouth, Everett Collection
Stop Making Sense played at Toronto’s Scotiabank auditorium No.
Talking Heads’ David Byrne in ‘Stop Making Sense,’ 1984
The new A24 re-release of the Jonathan Demme concert film, which moderator Spike Lee billed as “the greatest concert film ever,” is a 4K Imax restoration.
And the night literally lived up to the large format exhibitor’s slogan “Watch a movie, or be part of one” as Talking Heads bandmembers David Byrne, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz and Lee himself got up and danced during such numbers as “Burning Down the House” and “Once in a Lifetime” during the screening. Talk about a cinema-surround show.
Tina Weymouth, Everett Collection
Stop Making Sense played at Toronto’s Scotiabank auditorium No.
- 9/12/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Kore-eda Hirokazu returns to Japan for his latest film “Monster,” which poses this question to audiences: “Who really is the monster?” While location scouting, the filmmaker was looking down at a lake, dark and almost black, and “I thought of Sakamoto Ryuichi music. He was the only person who could do the music for this film.”
It would mark the first time in years that the legendary composer behind “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant” had worked on a Japanese title
The film opens with Minato, played by Kurokawa Soya, an 11-year-old fifth grader who watches a burning building from afar. Kore-eda returns to this sequence three times, each from a different perspective. Is young Minato the monster? Or is it Mr. Hori (Nahayama Eita), the schoolteacher, or Minato’s mother, Saori (Ando Sakura)? The plot twists and turns in each retelling, as it’s revealed Minato has feelings for...
It would mark the first time in years that the legendary composer behind “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant” had worked on a Japanese title
The film opens with Minato, played by Kurokawa Soya, an 11-year-old fifth grader who watches a burning building from afar. Kore-eda returns to this sequence three times, each from a different perspective. Is young Minato the monster? Or is it Mr. Hori (Nahayama Eita), the schoolteacher, or Minato’s mother, Saori (Ando Sakura)? The plot twists and turns in each retelling, as it’s revealed Minato has feelings for...
- 9/11/2023
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
To capture the breadth and depth of the musical career of Japanese composer and recording artist Ryuichi Sakamoto seems impossible, but somehow “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” almost accomplishes this herculean challenge. A document of Sakamoto’s final performance before his death from cancer last March, the film provides no commentary or context for the enormity of his body of work, yet somehow encompasses it all as he performs a curated set list in a Japanese recording studio for an audience of one — himself. Far more than a showcase of his talent and productivity, “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” lets Sakamoto deliver an elegy, and in the process, an autobiography of his creative journey, as captured through the precision and poetry of director Neo Sora’s camera.
Working from a set list personally selected by Sakamoto from his discography, Sora — Sakamoto’s son — recorded his subject’s performances over the span of a week,...
Working from a set list personally selected by Sakamoto from his discography, Sora — Sakamoto’s son — recorded his subject’s performances over the span of a week,...
- 9/7/2023
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Variety Film + TV
The concert film, directed by Neo Sora, premiered at Venice Film Festival on September 4.
Film Constellation has closed key distribution deals for Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, which captures the final performance of the late Japanese composer and received its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday (September 4).
The London and Paris-based firm has sold the feature to Spain (Filmin), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will handle the release of the film in Japan in...
Film Constellation has closed key distribution deals for Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, which captures the final performance of the late Japanese composer and received its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday (September 4).
The London and Paris-based firm has sold the feature to Spain (Filmin), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will handle the release of the film in Japan in...
- 9/6/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
The profound existential context of “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” lays waste to the usual questions regarding concert documentaries, such as whether there is or is not a visual language to match the music. While there are moments in which one could close their eyes to concentrate on Sakamato’s otherworldly piano stylings and not miss much, there are glimpses of what it has all meant to the maestro that redeem a generally uneven split between sound and vision. Indeed, there are parallels to be made here with David Bowie’s music video for “Lazarus,” due to the mortal shiver of seeing a formidable musician playing himself off into the afterlife.
Sakamoto died aged 71 in March 2023 of a cancer that made touring and performing impossible during his final years. “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda” premiered at Venice Film Festival in 2017, shedding light on the musician’s process and values at a time when he...
Sakamoto died aged 71 in March 2023 of a cancer that made touring and performing impossible during his final years. “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda” premiered at Venice Film Festival in 2017, shedding light on the musician’s process and values at a time when he...
- 9/5/2023
- by Sophie Monks Kaufman
- Indiewire
Late Oscar-winning Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto was celebrated at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday with the Out Of Competition premiere of concert film Opus.
The moving black-and-white work captures Sakamoto delivering his final performance in the months leading up to his death in March after a seven-year battle with cancer.
Alone with his piano on stage, he performs twenty of his compositions, spanning the music of his pop-star Yellow Magic Orchestra period to his first film score for Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence; his Oscar-winning music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor and his final album, 12.
Sakamoto’s filmmaker and artist son Neo Sora, who directed the film, was in Venice to present the work.
“I think he would have really loved that the film plays in Venice. He came to Venice six years ago with for Coda (Ryuichi Sakamoto Coda) so it would have been a full circle for him as well,...
The moving black-and-white work captures Sakamoto delivering his final performance in the months leading up to his death in March after a seven-year battle with cancer.
Alone with his piano on stage, he performs twenty of his compositions, spanning the music of his pop-star Yellow Magic Orchestra period to his first film score for Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence; his Oscar-winning music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor and his final album, 12.
Sakamoto’s filmmaker and artist son Neo Sora, who directed the film, was in Venice to present the work.
“I think he would have really loved that the film plays in Venice. He came to Venice six years ago with for Coda (Ryuichi Sakamoto Coda) so it would have been a full circle for him as well,...
- 9/5/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
While our massive, 60-film fall movie preview gives a hint at what to expect this season, it’s time to dive deeper into September. With films from Ethan Coen, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Luca Guadagnino being ripped off the month’s release calendar because studios don’t want to pay actors and writers fairly, it means the fall’s first offerings are a bit lighter––thankfully giving some truly independent productions further room to shine.
12. The Storms of Jeremy Thomas (Mark Cousins; Sept. 22 in theaters)
What do films like David Cronenberg’s Crash, Jonathan Glazer’s Sexy Beast, Jerzy Skolimowski’s Eo, Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor, Nagisa Ôshima’s Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, and (many) more have in common? They were produced by Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas. A new documentary by cinephile Mark Cousins, The Storms of Jeremy Thomas, explores the making of his most notable films.
12. The Storms of Jeremy Thomas (Mark Cousins; Sept. 22 in theaters)
What do films like David Cronenberg’s Crash, Jonathan Glazer’s Sexy Beast, Jerzy Skolimowski’s Eo, Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor, Nagisa Ôshima’s Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, and (many) more have in common? They were produced by Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas. A new documentary by cinephile Mark Cousins, The Storms of Jeremy Thomas, explores the making of his most notable films.
- 8/31/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Oscar-winning Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto’s final performance is captured in posthumous documentary “Opus,” directed by his son Neo Sora.
Sakamoto, who was behind the scores of films like “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant,” died in March at age 71 after a years-long battle with cancer. His last piano performance was staged for “Opus,” which is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
In the concert film, Sakamoto performs 20 compositions; the teaser trailer shows Sakamoto playing the score of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Sheltering Sky.”
Sakamoto issued a statement about “Opus” prior to his passing, saying that the film was “conceived as a way to record my performances — while I was still able to perform — in a way that is worth preserving for the future.”
“Opus” is filmed at the Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio, which Sakamoto said had the “finest acoustics in Japan.” Cinematographer Bill Kirstein shot the film using three 4K cameras,...
Sakamoto, who was behind the scores of films like “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant,” died in March at age 71 after a years-long battle with cancer. His last piano performance was staged for “Opus,” which is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
In the concert film, Sakamoto performs 20 compositions; the teaser trailer shows Sakamoto playing the score of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Sheltering Sky.”
Sakamoto issued a statement about “Opus” prior to his passing, saying that the film was “conceived as a way to record my performances — while I was still able to perform — in a way that is worth preserving for the future.”
“Opus” is filmed at the Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio, which Sakamoto said had the “finest acoustics in Japan.” Cinematographer Bill Kirstein shot the film using three 4K cameras,...
- 8/29/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
What do films like David Cronenberg’s Crash, Jonathan Glazer’s Sexy Beast, Jerzy Skolimowski’s Sexy Beast, Jerzy Skolimowski’s Eo, Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor, Nagisa Ôshima’s Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, and more have in common? They were produced by Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas. A new documentary by cinephile Mark Cousins, The Storms of Jeremy Thomas, now explores the making of many of his most notable films. Ahead of a release on September 22 the first trailer has now landed.
Here’s the synopsis: “Jeremy Thomas, the Oscar-winning producer of films like Eo and The Last Emperor, is joined by documentarian Mark Cousins on his annual pilgrimage to the Cannes Film Festival, to give an intimate glimpse into the life of the legendary icon behind some of the most acclaimed and controversial films of all time. Featuring insights into a life lived just off-frame,...
Here’s the synopsis: “Jeremy Thomas, the Oscar-winning producer of films like Eo and The Last Emperor, is joined by documentarian Mark Cousins on his annual pilgrimage to the Cannes Film Festival, to give an intimate glimpse into the life of the legendary icon behind some of the most acclaimed and controversial films of all time. Featuring insights into a life lived just off-frame,...
- 8/29/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Ryuichi Sakamoto’s final performance before passing in late March was captured for a concert film titled Opus, set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 5th.
Recorded without an audience in December 2022, the film solely features the late Japanese composer and electronic music pioneer on his piano as he plays 20 handpicked pieces spanning his entire career, from his initial success as co-founder of Yellow Magic Orchestra to his film scores for The Last Emperor to his final album, 12. Sakamoto performs several works as solo piano performances for the first time, including The Wuthering Heights, Ichimei — Small Happiness, and a new arrangement of the 1978 Yellow Magic Orchestra track “Tong Poo.”
Watch a teaser from the film of Sakamoto performing a selection from his music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1990 romantic drama The Sheltering Sky over at Deadline.
In a posthumous statement about the concert film, Sakamoto said, “The...
Recorded without an audience in December 2022, the film solely features the late Japanese composer and electronic music pioneer on his piano as he plays 20 handpicked pieces spanning his entire career, from his initial success as co-founder of Yellow Magic Orchestra to his film scores for The Last Emperor to his final album, 12. Sakamoto performs several works as solo piano performances for the first time, including The Wuthering Heights, Ichimei — Small Happiness, and a new arrangement of the 1978 Yellow Magic Orchestra track “Tong Poo.”
Watch a teaser from the film of Sakamoto performing a selection from his music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1990 romantic drama The Sheltering Sky over at Deadline.
In a posthumous statement about the concert film, Sakamoto said, “The...
- 8/28/2023
- by Eddie Fu
- Consequence - Music
Ryuichi Sakamoto’s final performance before passing in late March was captured for a concert film titled Opus, set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 5th.
Recorded without an audience in December 2022, the film solely features the late Japanese composer and electronic music pioneer on his piano as he plays 20 handpicked pieces spanning his entire career, from his initial success as co-founder of Yellow Magic Orchestra to his film scores for The Last Emperor to his final album, 12. Sakamoto performs several works as solo piano performances for the first time, including The Wuthering Heights, Ichimei — Small Happiness, and a new arrangement of the 1978 Yellow Magic Orchestra track “Tong Poo.”
Watch a teaser from the film of Sakamoto performing a selection from his music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1990 romantic drama The Sheltering Sky over at Deadline.
In a posthumous statement about the concert film, Sakamoto said, “The...
Recorded without an audience in December 2022, the film solely features the late Japanese composer and electronic music pioneer on his piano as he plays 20 handpicked pieces spanning his entire career, from his initial success as co-founder of Yellow Magic Orchestra to his film scores for The Last Emperor to his final album, 12. Sakamoto performs several works as solo piano performances for the first time, including The Wuthering Heights, Ichimei — Small Happiness, and a new arrangement of the 1978 Yellow Magic Orchestra track “Tong Poo.”
Watch a teaser from the film of Sakamoto performing a selection from his music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1990 romantic drama The Sheltering Sky over at Deadline.
In a posthumous statement about the concert film, Sakamoto said, “The...
- 8/28/2023
- by Eddie Fu
- Consequence - Film News
From the Nc-17 ménage à trois of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Dreamers” to James Spader having intercourse with Rosanna Arquette’s leg wound in David Cronenberg’s “Crash,” producer Jeremy Thomas loves a controversy onscreen.
Cinema raconteur Mark Cousins pays homage to the Oscar-winning producer in his 2021 Cannes Classics selection, “The Storms of Jeremy Thomas.” The film follows Cousins on Thomas’ annual pilgrimage to the Cannes Film Festival — literally, the producer drove for decades from England to the fest — and a five-day road movie through France. Together, they remember Thomas’ most acclaimed and provocative films as a producer, from his Oscar-winning “The Last Emperor” to “Crash” and its scandalous opening at the festival in 1996, Nicolas Roeg’s “Bad Timing,” Jerzy Skolimowski’s “Eo,” plus Cronenberg’s “Naked Lunch,” Jonathan Glazer’s “Sexy Beast,” and Terry Gilliam’s reviled child abuse fairy tale, “Tideland.”
The film includes Thomas’ stories of movie stars like Marlon Brando,...
Cinema raconteur Mark Cousins pays homage to the Oscar-winning producer in his 2021 Cannes Classics selection, “The Storms of Jeremy Thomas.” The film follows Cousins on Thomas’ annual pilgrimage to the Cannes Film Festival — literally, the producer drove for decades from England to the fest — and a five-day road movie through France. Together, they remember Thomas’ most acclaimed and provocative films as a producer, from his Oscar-winning “The Last Emperor” to “Crash” and its scandalous opening at the festival in 1996, Nicolas Roeg’s “Bad Timing,” Jerzy Skolimowski’s “Eo,” plus Cronenberg’s “Naked Lunch,” Jonathan Glazer’s “Sexy Beast,” and Terry Gilliam’s reviled child abuse fairy tale, “Tideland.”
The film includes Thomas’ stories of movie stars like Marlon Brando,...
- 8/24/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Fresh off his appearance on IndieWire’s Best Performances of the 80s list, David Byrne will be bringing down the house — hopefully packed movie theater houses.
A24 is gearing up for its re-release of Jonathan Demme’s adored Talking Heads concert documentary “Stop Making Sense” at TIFF and in a Global IMAX Live event on September 11, with the film rolling out to the general public in the weeks after. Watch the trailer below.
The distributor had previously released a 40-second teaser that showed Byrne picking up his laundry and getting back… the big suit! The comically oversized, boxy suit the buttoned-down singer/songwriter wears during the latter part of the concert during songs like “Girlfriend Is Better.” In that teaser, he put it on again and did his trademark wiggle, the awkward-chic moves that, along with many other things, have endeared him to audiences the past four decades.
This is a 4K restoration,...
A24 is gearing up for its re-release of Jonathan Demme’s adored Talking Heads concert documentary “Stop Making Sense” at TIFF and in a Global IMAX Live event on September 11, with the film rolling out to the general public in the weeks after. Watch the trailer below.
The distributor had previously released a 40-second teaser that showed Byrne picking up his laundry and getting back… the big suit! The comically oversized, boxy suit the buttoned-down singer/songwriter wears during the latter part of the concert during songs like “Girlfriend Is Better.” In that teaser, he put it on again and did his trademark wiggle, the awkward-chic moves that, along with many other things, have endeared him to audiences the past four decades.
This is a 4K restoration,...
- 8/17/2023
- by Christian Blauvelt
- Indiewire
This concert film chronicles the final performance of the Oscar-winning Japanese composer of ‘The Last Emperor’ and ‘Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence’.
London and Paris-based outfit Film Constellation has boarded world sales on Neo Sora’s Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, ahead of its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
The concert film chronicles the final performance of Sakamoto, the Oscar-winning Japanese composer of The Last Emperor and Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, who died on March 28 aged 71. It will premiere out of competition at Venice on September 5. A first-look image from the film can be seen above.
Featuring just Sakamoto and his piano,...
London and Paris-based outfit Film Constellation has boarded world sales on Neo Sora’s Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, ahead of its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
The concert film chronicles the final performance of Sakamoto, the Oscar-winning Japanese composer of The Last Emperor and Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, who died on March 28 aged 71. It will premiere out of competition at Venice on September 5. A first-look image from the film can be seen above.
Featuring just Sakamoto and his piano,...
- 8/17/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
In the end, it was always going to come down to those youngsters.
China’s First International Film Festival, which has now 17 editions, prided itself on providing a platform on which the county’s next generation of filmmakers can reveal their talent. Fittingly, then, the event is attended by a predominantly young audience. They travel in large numbers to the city of Xining, set in China’s mountainous central region, fringing the Tibetan Plateau, and they really do feast on the program of independent films.
There were 98 films screened across the festival’s nine-day run, 27 features and 71 shorts among them. There were Q&a sessions with the audience that often ran well into overtime, such was the enthusiasm shown for everything from a gritty but life-affirming three-hour drama about a migrant woman trying to forge a life in a big city (Qin Tian’s Fate of the Moonlight) to a...
China’s First International Film Festival, which has now 17 editions, prided itself on providing a platform on which the county’s next generation of filmmakers can reveal their talent. Fittingly, then, the event is attended by a predominantly young audience. They travel in large numbers to the city of Xining, set in China’s mountainous central region, fringing the Tibetan Plateau, and they really do feast on the program of independent films.
There were 98 films screened across the festival’s nine-day run, 27 features and 71 shorts among them. There were Q&a sessions with the audience that often ran well into overtime, such was the enthusiasm shown for everything from a gritty but life-affirming three-hour drama about a migrant woman trying to forge a life in a big city (Qin Tian’s Fate of the Moonlight) to a...
- 7/31/2023
- by Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Chinese-American actress Joan Chen has spent the last week watching China’s “brave” and “refreshing” independent cinema, but she cautioned young filmmakers against what she sees as a current wave of “correctness” that she believes is stifling the art of filmmaking.
Describing the movement as “the enemy of art,” Chen said she believed conformity to what society currently believes is “correct” has resulted in the scope of creativity and subject matter becoming “narrower and narrower.”
“It’s happening in the U.S.,” said Chen. “But I want [young filmmakers] to forget about what is correct and just tell us what they want to tell us.”
Chen was speaking on the sidelines of the 17th First International Film Festival, hosted by the central highland city of Xining, where she has taken on the role of jury head.
The festival — which ends on August 1 — is the leading event of its kind for independent Chinese cinema.
Describing the movement as “the enemy of art,” Chen said she believed conformity to what society currently believes is “correct” has resulted in the scope of creativity and subject matter becoming “narrower and narrower.”
“It’s happening in the U.S.,” said Chen. “But I want [young filmmakers] to forget about what is correct and just tell us what they want to tell us.”
Chen was speaking on the sidelines of the 17th First International Film Festival, hosted by the central highland city of Xining, where she has taken on the role of jury head.
The festival — which ends on August 1 — is the leading event of its kind for independent Chinese cinema.
- 7/31/2023
- by Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Choirs Of Angels
Sakamoto Ryuichi, the Japanese film composer and music supervisor who died in March, has been posthumously named as the recipient of the Jecheon Film Music Award at the 19th Jecheon International Music & Film Festival (Aug. 10-15). Sakamoto won Academy Awards and Golden Globes for his score for “The Last Emperor” and has other credits including “The Sheltering Sky,” “Railroad Man,” “The Revenant,” “Call Me By Your Name” and “The Fortress.”
Abrai Joji from Commons the music label established jointly with Sakamoto, and Yutaka Toyama from Promax, which had produced Sakamoto’s concerts since 1986, will visit the festival. Additionally, a tribute concert will be held on Aug. 12 at the Jecheon Stadium.
Sports Production Fund
U.K. pay TV operator Sky has launched the New Focus Fund, designed to uncover fresh talent in sports content creation. Developed in recognition that traditional routes into sports media can be limited, and often attract narrow talent pools,...
Sakamoto Ryuichi, the Japanese film composer and music supervisor who died in March, has been posthumously named as the recipient of the Jecheon Film Music Award at the 19th Jecheon International Music & Film Festival (Aug. 10-15). Sakamoto won Academy Awards and Golden Globes for his score for “The Last Emperor” and has other credits including “The Sheltering Sky,” “Railroad Man,” “The Revenant,” “Call Me By Your Name” and “The Fortress.”
Abrai Joji from Commons the music label established jointly with Sakamoto, and Yutaka Toyama from Promax, which had produced Sakamoto’s concerts since 1986, will visit the festival. Additionally, a tribute concert will be held on Aug. 12 at the Jecheon Stadium.
Sports Production Fund
U.K. pay TV operator Sky has launched the New Focus Fund, designed to uncover fresh talent in sports content creation. Developed in recognition that traditional routes into sports media can be limited, and often attract narrow talent pools,...
- 7/13/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
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