Author: dpugh007

“Love is a lesson learnt the hard way.” Film4 in the UK has debuted an official trailer for an indie coming-of-age comedy titled Old Boys, from newcomer director Toby MacDonald. The film is another new updated adaptation of the classic play Cyrano de Bergerac, about a guy who tries to setup his friend with a girl. This film is set at a British boarding school and is about an awkward kid who helps setup the “school-hero” with the daughter of a visiting French teacher. Old Boys stars the talented Alex Lawther (from Freak Show, Ghost Stories, The Imitation Game) as well as Pauline Etienne, Jonah Hauer-King, Joshua McGuire, Denis Menochet, and Nicholas Rowe. This looks amusing and cute, perhaps worth a watch sometime. ›››

Continue Reading First Trailer for British Coming-of-Age Schoolboy Comedy ‘Old Boys’

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“There are different versions of me in the world… I think someone’s trying to kill me.” Gravitas Ventures has released their official trailer for an indie sci-fi film titled 7 Splinters in Time, a new feature made by Gabriel Judet-Weinshel (The Broken Wings of Elijah Footfalls). This very odd, peculiar sci-fi film is a neo-noir about a detective who investigates a murder, only to find that the victim is… himself. Soon, he discovers multiple versions of himself, not all of them friendly. How’s that for a pitch? Alas, the film doesn’t look as good as it sounds in that pitch. The cast includes Edoardo Ballerini as “Darius Lefaux”, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Al Sapienza, and Austin Pendleton. I’m curious about this just because I’m always interested in original sci-fi projects, but I don’t have a good feeling about it from the footage here. Check it out below. ›››

Continue Reading New Trailer for Fascinating Parallel Realities Sci-Fi ‘7 Splinters in Time’

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“I couldn’t look away!” Kino Lorber has debuted an official US trailer for the gritty, French “neo-western” thriller titled Let the Corpses Tan, or Laissez bronzer les cadavres. This premiered at the Locarno and Toronto Film Festivals last year, and is the latest feature from directors Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani (of Amer, The Strange Color of Your Body’s Tears). Here’s the plot: A grizzled thug and his gang head to an island retreat with a haul of 250 kilograms of gold bullion to lay low; however, a bohemian writer, his muse, and a pair of gendarmes further complicate things, as allegiances are put to the test. The cast includes Elina Löwensohn, Stéphane Ferrara, Bernie Bonvoisin, Michelangelo Marchese, and Marc Barbé. The trailer does a better job at introducing this stylish film than any text, so dive in and give it a look. Based on a classic pulp novel by Jean-Patrick Manchette, and featuring music by the master Ennio Morricone. ›››

Continue Reading Official US Trailer for Gritty Thriller ‘Let the Corpses Tan’ from France

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“Don’t worry, we’ll take care of you.” Cleopatra Entertainment has debuted the official US trailer for quirky British coming-of-age drama Pin Cushion, a film about a mother and daughter drifting apart. This is the feature debut of an award-winning shorts filmmaker named Deborah Haywood, and it first premiered at the Venice Film Festival last year. Lily Newmark (also seen in Juliet, Naked and Solo: A Star Wars Story) stars as a young girl raised by her strict, very close, kooky but loving mother. She reaches a point where she feels the need to go out and make new friends, but in the process everything starts to fall apart. Joanna Scanlan stars as her mother, and the cast includes Loris Scarpa and Sacha Cordy-Nice. I saw this film in Venice last year and it’s very weird yet oddly endearing, but a bit too dark and melodramatic for my taste. ›››

Continue Reading Lily Newmark in Official Trailer for Indie Coming-of-Age ‘Pin Cushion’

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“You need an incredibly fast ship, and a brilliant pilot.” Our latest episode of The First Word podcast is a discussion about Ron Howard’s Solo: A Star Wars Story, taking us full circle back to our very first episode last December when we discussed Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Our guest on this Star Wars episode is big-time Star Wars geek and entertainment journalist Germain Lussier from io9, who joins us for this full-on, spoiled-filled discussion about Solo and all the good and bad about it. Even if you didn’t enjoy the movie as much as we did, it’s still worth a listen. Friends Alex Billington (@firstshowing) and Mike Eisenberg (@Eisentower30) team up to bring you a film podcast providing in-depth discussion, analysis, and interviews about the latest movies, and some old ones too. Tune in below to our latest episode. ›››

Continue Reading The First Word Podcast – ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’, feat. Germain Lussier

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“What a father keeps hidden is revealed in the son.” An official international teaser trailer has debuted for the new film from acclaimed Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan, titled The Wild Pear Tree or Ahlat Agaci originally in Turkish. This just premiered at the Cannes Film Festival a few weeks ago, and I just listed it as one of my favorite films of the festival in my wrap-up article. This is much more of a teaser trailer and contains no dialogue, which means you don’t have to speak Turkish to enjoy it, no subtitles are needed. Though it’s odd because Ceylan is a master of dialogue and all of his films rely heavily on very intellectual dialogue, but perhaps that’s why this is a curiously unique trailer for his latest film. It focuses more on the gorgeous cinematography and striking imagery in this film about a young writer named Sinan who returns to his hometown. This is good tease that will hopefully get the attention of a few folks out there. Take a look. ›››

Continue Reading First Teaser Trailer for Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Latest ‘The Wild Pear Tree’

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What are the best films out of this year’s Cannes Film Festival? Which ones should you be taking an interest in? What films should be a priority for you to see? After 12 days at the 71st Cannes Film Festival, after 33 screenings, it’s time to present my 2018 list of my Top 8 Favorite Films. This was my 9th time back to this festival, and I love being there in the middle of all, committing fully to seeing as many films as I can. These eight listed below are the ones that I adore, that connected with me emotionally or intellectually, and I hope everyone plans to check them out when they arrive in their neighborhood. They are worth the wait. There were many outstanding films this year, and this is my final recap of the 2018 festival – see all of these. ›››

Continue Reading From the World – My 8 Favorite Films at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival

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“I was born in the attic / because Mother claimed / brown the more honest name / for beige. They hit her––” This is a short film with a purpose – to help spread awareness and bring attention to the adversity and challenges different people face in society. Every Day is a simple but meaningful short film inspired by a lovely poem by Robin Coste Lewis, first published in the NY Times in 2017. Motionpoems is a non-profit organization that is bringing poems to life, and this short film is their latest offering to the world – directed by up-and-coming filmmaker Ryan Simon. The full poem can be found on their website, and the short film is just a scene set to an impassioned recitation of the poem. It might stir up some feelings inside of you. If you enjoy this short, they have plenty more and are always putting out new poetry-inspired shorts. ›››

Continue Reading Watch: Sublime Poetry-Inspired Short Film ‘Every Day’ by Ryan Simon

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“Can anyone really be overqualified…?” Warner Bros has dropped one more, final trailer for ensemble heist comedy Ocean’s 8, the all-women follow-up to the Ocean’s 11 series from Steven Soderbergh. This hits theaters in just a few weeks. We already know what it’s all about, thanks to two trailers before, and if you need one final push this trailer might not be it. There’s not a lot to this final trailer, but it does look fun. The stellar ensemble of women involved in this NYC heist are: Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Rihanna, Helena Bonham Carter, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Anne Hathaway, and Awkwafina. I’m so down for this just because I want to see how they pull off the fancy Met heist and get away with it. Game on! ›››

Continue Reading One Final Trailer for Heist Comedy ‘Ocean’s 8’ Directed by Gary Ross

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There are not that many comedies that play at the Cannes Film Festival every year, only a few good ones slip in. The World is Yours, titled Le monde est à toi in French, is the latest feature film made by acclaimed music video director Romain Gavras. The film is a comedy about a small-time drug dealer from Paris who as aspirations to get out of the drug world once and for all, and settle down selling Mr. Freeze ice pops in Morocco. The biggest thing in his way – his own mother, who actually is one of the top gangsters in the city, and still has a steady hand on all of his money. This film plays like Snatch meets Spring Breakers with some serious French attitude, a mobster “coming-of-age” for the new age that is so much ludicrous fun. It’s about time Gavras breaks out and gets the attention he deserves as a talented, always-fresh filmmaker with spunk. ›››

Continue Reading Cannes 2018: Romain Gavras’ ‘The World is Yours’ is Ludicrously Fun

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