Super-sized set pieces, sharp one-liners and surprising deaths abound in the Russo brothers? colossal and utterly confident comic-book movie mash-upNot infinity perhaps, but a really really big finity war. Colossal, cataclysmic, delirious, preposterous ? and always surreally entertaining in the now well established Marvel movie tradition. It?s a gigantic showdown between a force of cosmic wickedness and a chaotically assembled super team of Marvel superheroes made more complicated by Doctor Strange?s tendency to multiclone himself in moments of battle stress. There are some very unexpected family relationships that we had no idea about ? potentially compromising unity in the face of encroaching evil. There are also some very surprising deaths ? of which of course the less said the better. There are moreover some surprising omissions in the cast list. Or are there? Continue reading...
The Exorcist director returns to his demonic roots with a new documentary, but he?s not interested in discussing your skepticismA video clip featuring William Friedkin recently experienced a small level of virality among online film circles, in which the film-maker dresses down Nicolas Winding Refn after the younger director declares his own film Only God Forgives to be a masterpiece. Friedkin repeatedly calls for a medic, compares Refn?s film unfavorably to Citizen Kane, and most memorably, uses a vivid metaphor that puts the ?anal? in ?analogy?. Friedkin, speaking on a drizzly afternoon in his suite at New York?s Carlyle Hotel, wants to make it clear that he bears no ill will to Refn. ?I like him! He?s a nice guy. I like him very much.? But the larger truth underlying their charged exchange persists: William Friedkin simply does not give a damn. Continue reading...
Local film producer led campaign to bring film to NSW town after learning its cinema will not screen it ? Sign up to receive the top stories in Australia every day at noon The filmmaker Warwick Thornton will hand-deliver a copy of his critically acclaimed western, Sweet Country, to the community of Dubbo this Friday, following a months-long campaign to bring the film to the regional New South Wales city.More than 400 tickets have been sold to a one-off screening at the Dubbo Regional Theatre & Convention Centre, to be held on 27 April. The screening will be followed by a Q&A session with Thornton. Continue reading...
Still No 1 despite a 55% drop from last week, the monster movie is still running amok in the hiatus ahead of Marvel?s Avengers: Infinity WarA combination of sunny skies and a relatively weak set of new releases ahead of Marvel?s Avengers: Infinity War combined to lay waste to the UK box office. Takings overall tumbled 55% from the previous frame, delivering the third-worst weekend of the past 12 months in the UK market, and the worst since early December. Apart from A Quiet Place, which fell 46%, and Black Panther, which fell 48%, every film in the Top 25 fell by at least 50% from the weekend before. Top title Rampage fell 55%, earning Ł1.41m in its second session for a Ł6.48m total. With kids back at school after the Easter holidays, family films fell particularly hard, with Peter Rabbit, for example, dropping by 76%. Thursday, and Infinity War, can?t come soon enough for cinema operators. Continue reading...
The role of the aggressive, biddable pet in the Austin Powers films did huge damage to the dwarfism community and our struggle for respect I have dwarfism. I was 13 when Verne Troyer hit our screens as Mini-Me in Austin Powers sequel The Spy Who Shagged Me. The character was a compound of stereotypes of people with dwarfism. He was hypersexual, unintelligent and aggressive. He was not even a character in his own right but a replica of another, average height role. Like dwarf performers in circuses of days past, his character only existed in contrast to others. In one scene, Mini-Me appears in a sling strapped to Mike Myers? chest, like an infant. In the follow-up film, Goldmember, another character threatens to eat him because he ?looks like a baby?. Throughout the series he serves as Dr Evil?s biddable pet. I imagine few who watched it know that in the past aristocrats and monarchs often ?kept? dwarf people like this ? abusing, ridiculing, and, sometimes, even killing them. Continue reading...
Packed with names such as Annette Bening, Elisabeth Moss and Saoirse Ronan, this adaptation of the classic play is brisk and funny Taking in the night, Dr Dorn (Jon Tenney) looks at poor lovesick Masha (Elisabeth Moss), pauses, then sagely sighs: ?The spells cast by this lake.? This new version of Anton Chekhov?s The Seagull, as adapted by Stephen Karam, seems populated by characters who know they are in a Chekhov play. I don?t mean that there are any arch, meta-textual tricks, more that the comedy inherent in the play is amplified, the ?woe-is-me? mopery is kept to a minimum, and the woodland grounds and its samovar-laden patios are gorgeous.While this is not director Michael Mayer?s first film, he is far better known for his work on Broadway and in the West End (he won a Tony award in 2007 for Spring Awakening). Despite his background and The Seagull?s old war horse status on the boards, Mayer takes pains to ensure everything is as cinematic as possible. At first one might fear he has overcorrected, but after a prologue (the beginning of Act IV appears first before we flip back to page one) the rhythm settles in. The editing is brisk, the camera placement is creative (especially during a conversation on a rowboat) and each actor gets their closeup. Continue reading...
Family announces death on social media sitesStatement: ?Verne was an extremely caring individual?The actor Verne Troyer has died, according to a statement posted to his social media pages on Saturday. He was 49. Related: Verne Troyer: a cult star who sustained a career with dignity and good humour | Peter Bradshaw Continue reading...
Despite the fickle British weather, ticket sales to watch films in the open air have tripled in three years? Sign up for Film Today and get our film team?s highlights of the dayBritain is in the middle of a boom in outdoor cinema, as people brave the unpredictable British climate to watch films ?on location? in castles, aircraft hangars and even beach huts.George Wood, founder of Britain?s biggest outdoor film company, the Luna Cinema, says ticket sales have tripled in the past three years. ?You strike gold when you can actually pair the film to the venue,? said Wood. Continue reading...
Verne Troyer, who at 2ft 8in was one of the world?s shortest men, racked up 30 film credits in a career spanning 24 yearsActor who played Mini-Me in Austin Powers films dies age 49 Continue reading...
Jerusalem-born actor was due to receive 2018 Genesis prize but cancels saying she ?cannot in good conscience? attend ceremony ? Sign up for Film Today and get our film team?s highlights of the dayNatalie Portman has pulled out of a major award ceremony due to take place in Israel, citing her ?distress? at recent events in the country.Portman, who was born in Jerusalem and holds dual Israeli and US citizenship, was named in November as the recipient of the 2018 Genesis award, a yearly prize for ?outstanding achievement by individuals who have attained excellence and international renown in their chosen professional fields [who] embody the character of the Jewish people?. Continue reading...
The scene that Disney chose to show as part of its presentation is an integral one in the relationship between Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) and Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover).
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is covering the Spidey mythology on the animated front, and while Miles Morales is the star of the show, we've learned who is voicing Peter Parker.
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