Film

Post Malone and Mark Wahlberg brawl in Spenser Confidential trailer: Watch

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Netflix has shared the official trailer for its new action-comedy Spenser Confidential, which boasts a star-studded cast of Mark Wahlberg, Marc Maron, Winston Duke, Alan Arkin, and… Post Malone. The video opens with a messy prison brawl between a character named Spenser (Wahlberg) and a rowdy crew headed up by Posty. As the trailer unfolds, we learn that Spenser, an ex-cop, is about to be released from jail and intends to leave Boston for good. His plans become derailed, however, when his old boxing coach and mentor (Arkin) convinces him to help train a newbie named Hawk (Duke). Things go further awry after two of Spenser’s former colleagues are killed and he tasks himself with bringing the murderers to justice. Murmurs of the Peter Berg-directed flick and its impressive cast started back in 2018. Inspired by Ace Atkins’ book, Robert B. Parker’s Wonderland, the film debuts on Netflix beginning March 6th. (Read: The 50 Most Anticipated Movies of 2020) Though Post Malone’s cameo in the trailer is brief, it still marks one of the first cinematic roles for the rapper. He isn’t dipping out of the music world, though; Posty is actually on tour right now in support of Hollywood’s […]

Rian Johnson working on Knives Out sequel

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Rian Johnson appears ready for another sharp sleuthing story, as he’s working on a sequel to Knives Out. With an A-list ensemble cast, off-kilter humor, and cleverly delivered socio-political commentary, the writer-director’s whodunit was one of the best films of last year. It also racked in a strong $247.5 million on a $40 million budget, alongside a Golden Globe nom for Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical. The idea of the follow-up surely would have Lionsgate ready to spin the grinding wheel again, and Johnson says he’s ready to unsheathe another crime mystery. (Read: Conversations with Consequence: Knives Out’s Rian Johnson and Michael Shannon) Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter at a pre-Globes party on Saturday, Johnson said he’s already developing a sequel focused on Southern detective Benoit Blanc. Producer Ram Bergman added that Daniel Craig, who earned a Golden Globe nod for the role, is down to reprise the character. “Daniel had so much fun doing it, and he wants to do more,” said Berman. Johnson wants to draw the blade on Knives Out 2 quickly, with hopes to get it in front of cameras before the end of the year — but he’ll have to deliver a script first. In the meantime, […]

Cats estimated to lose up to $100 million

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It’s no secret Cats hasn’t gotten off to a good start, but it appears it’s projected to have an equally rough finish. According to Deadline, the Universal/Amblin/Working Title film is estimated to lose at least $71 million dollars after costs– that is if Cats can hit at least $100 million at the box office worldwide. Its box office loss could be even higher — up to $100 million, some rival executives predict — if revenues fall below that worldwide mark. Cats had a production budget of $90 million plus an additional estimated $115 million global P&A costs. That doesn’t count estimated home entertainment costs and global P&A, which could touch down around $226 million. With a star-studded cast including Taylor Swift, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, James Corden, audiences and critics had fairly high hopes for Tom Hooper’s adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s beloved feline-centric musical. But doubts began to surface after the first trailer arrived, then solidified with the second. Then came the critics’ negative reviews, followed by Universal’s attempt to get a new version of the film into theaters. By the time opening weekend was done, the movie had only made $6.5 million, falling far behind other holiday blockbusters like […]

The 10 Best Adaptations of A Christmas Carol

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Page to Screen is a regular free-form column in which Matt Melis explores how either a classic or contemporary work of literature made the sometimes triumphant, often disastrous leap from prose to film. This time, he soars alongside the Ghost of Christmas Past to revisit the very best adaptations of A Christmas Carol. Check your humbugs with the girl at the door. “In everybody, there is a thing that loves children, fears death, and likes sunlight, and this thing enjoys Charles Dickens.” — Gilbert K. Chesterton “Okay, kids. That’s enough Dickens for one day.” — Mr. Garrison, South Park “I’m up to my chestnuts in Dickens.” — Me Most people know the gist of Alice’s tumble down the rabbit hole and are familiar with the basic itinerary of Wendy’s red-eye to Neverland. Thanks to Judy Garland, even more can probably recount Dorothy thumbing her way across Oz with three strangers. However, I’d be surprised if any tale in the Western literary canon has been embedded in our cultural DNA more thoroughly than Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. The phrases “Bah, humbug!” and “God bless us, every one” jokingly pass our lips as shared allusions, and the name Scrooge itself (whose etymology traces back to an obscure verb meaning “to squeeze” or […]

Terry Gilliam rips Black Panther: “I think the people who made it have never been to Africa”

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Terry Gilliam doesn’t think Black Panther is worth the hype. In a recent interview, the former Monty Python member and director said the people behind the film “have never been to Africa” and claimed the movie’s ability to give “young black kids” something to believe in is “bullshit.” IndieWire sat down with Terry Gilliam to interview him about his new film, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. When the subject of Marvel movies came up, he spewed out the above comments. And when they asked him if he thought Black Panther only received that much hype because of its commitment to “identity politics”, Gilliam replied that “it makes my blood boil.” “I hated Black Panther. It makes me crazy. It gives young black kids the idea that this is something to believe in. Bullshit. It’s utter bullshit. I think the people who made it have never been to Africa,” he said. “They went and got some stylist for some African pattern fabrics and things. But I just I hated that movie, partly because the media were going on about the importance of bullshit.” (Read: Top 20 Films of the 2010s by Black Directors) Strong feelings and strong claims! But in actuality, the team […]

Wonder Woman 1984 trailer rides in on lightning: Watch

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It’s been two years since we last saw Gal Gadot wearing Diana Prince’s tiara. After the film was pushed back more than half a year to give it summer tentpole status, we’re finally getting a solid look at Wonder Woman 1984 with the first trailer. The sequel to 2017’s Wonder Woman moves the action from World War I to the Cold War. Now, an Amazonian goddess making it 66 years without so much as a wrinkle is one thing, but how in the world did Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) survive an exploding airplane and six decades without a single scratch? And on top of that mystery, Wonder Woman has a pair of dangerous new adversaries to face in archaeologist/Cheetah goddess Barbara Ann Minerva (Kristen Wiig) and the devious business man Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal). The trailer also reveals a hyper-vibrant new look for Wonder Woman to go along with her impressive powers — like using her lasso of truth to swing from actual freakin’ lightning. Take a look below. (Read: Top 25 Comic Book Movies of the 2010s) Directed once more by Patty Jenkins from a script she co-wrote with Geoff Johns and David Callaham, Wonder Woman 1984 also stars Connie Nielsen […]

Film Review: In Fabric Perversely Challenges Our Habits, Routines, and Desires

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The Pitch.There’s something profoundly gratifying about watching a film take off into some uncharted part of the imagination and wondering, Did that just happen? Did this film really just do that? And when you see it happening over and over again—a director’s purest surreal impulses steering the car, taking you with them, unworried about shock, disturbance, bafflement, anything—you may feel, once the film is over, that your mind has been truly, as the cliché goes, bent. Such is the experience of watching In Fabric, the new film from Peter Strickland, purveyor of such previous oddities as The Duke of Burgundy. Ostensibly about a red dress that has a distinctly unpleasant effect on its wearers, often bringing violence or worse on them, it’s not really about a dress. But the movie isn’t a metaphor, either; it’s more a philosophical character study of the dress’ purchasers, a who-how-why-dunit in which you have the answer to begin with, after which many larger questions start. Is the film perverse? At the least, yes. At the same time, though, it’s intimate, and real, and sad, even when one could claim some of its parts, by themselves, are unbelievable. It’s a Bargain, in More Ways Than One: The film […]

Film Review: Disney+’s Lady and the Tramp Feels Neutered

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The Pitch: One Christmas morning in a quaint Midwestern town in 1909, Jim Dear (Thomas Mann) gifts his wife Darling (Kiersey Clemons) with an adorable Cocker spaniel she names Lady (voiced by Tessa Thompson). After a few years as the Dears’ loyal, sophisticated housepet, though, Lady senses that the impending arrival of Darling’s new child will leave her without a home. One terrifying dogsitting stint from nosy cat lover Aunt Sarah (Yvette Nicole Brown) later, and Lady’s out on the street with nowhere to go; luckily for her, she runs into a cocky mutt with no name (voiced by Justin Theroux) and an equally independent perspective on life. Sparks fly, dogs kiss over noodles, you know the rest. Isle of Dogs: As Disney remakes go, Lady and the Tramp is certainly one of the more inoffensive of the bunch. It’s fitting that it’s headed straight for streaming (as part of Disney+’s opening slate), since everything about Charlie Bean’s remake of the 1955 original screams a kind of warm, gentle safeness. It’s a warm blanket disguised as a motion picture, focus-tested and guaranteed to not ruffle feathers (or fur) while making sure children don’t lose the script. It feels made for TV, for lack […]

Joker is the most profitable comic book movie of all time

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Put on a happy face, because Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker is the most profitable comic book movie of all time. The villainous origin story had a modest (by studio standards) budget of $62.5 million, and a global gross of $957 million as of Friday evening, according to Forbes. That means it has made more than 15-times its budget, surpassing the record previously held by Jim Carrey’s The Mask ($351 million from a $23 million budget). Currently, the third-most profitable comic book movie is Venom, the fourth is Batman, and the fifth is Deadpool.  Of course, this news somewhat depends on how you define ‘profitable.’ For instance, the highest-grossing comic book movie of all time is Avengers: Endgame. But with a bloated budget of $356 million, and a mere $2.798 billion in box office, Endgame only made 7.9-times as much as it cost. According to the way Forbes defines ‘profitable’ — in terms of return on investment — that makes Endgame only about half as profitable as Joker. The Avengers will no doubt be crying into their billions. (Read: Who’s the Better Joker: Heath Ledger or Joaquin Phoenix?) During its record-breaking run, Joker has had the kind of wild promotional cycle that would make Kanye West proud. From Joaquin Phoenix’s stormy interview, the concerned letter […]

Game of Thrones’ David Benioff and D.B. Weiss scrap plans for Star Wars film

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Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss are no longer developing a Star Wars film trilogy. In a statement released late Monday, the pair cited their recent overall deal with Netflix as the reason for their exit. “We love Star Wars. When George Lucas built it, he built us too. Getting to talk about Star Wars with him and the current Star Wars team was the thrill of a lifetime, and we will always be indebted to the saga that changed everything. But there are only so many hours in the day, and we felt we could not do justice to both Star Wars and our Netflix projects. So we are regretfully stepping away.” In her own statement, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy remarked, “David Benioff and Dan Weiss are incredible storytellers. We hope to include them in the journey forward when they are able to step away from their busy schedule to focus on Star Wars.” In 2018, prior to the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones going into production, Benioff and Weiss signed a deal with Disney to develop a new series of films. Some fans and critics of GoT subsequently blamed the deal for the […]