Best Shot: Queen Margot (1994)

Hit Me With Your Best Shot: Queen Margot (1994)
Director: Patrice Chereau. Cinematography: Phillipe Rousselot. 
Starring: Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Vincent Perez, Jean-Hugues Anglade, and Virna Lisi 
Awards: 2 Cannes jury prizes, 5 César Awards, 1 Oscar nomination.

They say that death always takes your lovers..."

When I was young and extremely sexually naive, let's say hypothetically in High School French class, I was startled to discover that the French phrase "La petite mort," which translates literally to 'the little death' referred to a sexual orgasm. I had no idea why these two towers of Human Obsession, Sex and Death, would be linked up like twins. But the movies, ever the personal tutor for young cinephiles, kept forcing the connections.

Which brings us to the decadent, opulent, erotic, violent and visceral 16th century French epic Queen Margot, this week's Best Shot subject. (The shot choices are after the jump due to the graphic nature of the film...)

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10 questions for your new home viewing adventures

I expect honest answers in the comments! 

Newish to DVD/BluRay
• The Boy -have you ever been scared of a doll? 
• Deadpool - What did you think of that junkyard finale?
• Dirty Grandpa - Do you think Robert de Niro feels any shame about his filmography or just laughs all the way to the bank? 
• Janis: Little Girl Blue - Will Amy Adams will ever actually make that Janis Joplin bio and how many movies do we really need about the singer anyway? 
• The Program - Ben Foster. Scary or sexy?
• The Witch - Wouldst thou live deliciously?

Also new: Where to Invade Next, Captive, War & Peace (series), Theeb, Orange is the New Black Season 3

I am a boxer for the freedom of cinematic expression!
-Sergei Eisenstein (in Eisenstein in Guatanjuato)

Streaming
• 99 Homes - Was Michael Shannon robbed of an Oscar nom?
• Eisenstein in Guanajuato - Have you ever seen a Peter Greenaway movie? (They're so bonkers and, nowadays at least, underappreciated. Including this one)
• Hot Pursuit- Should Reese make more comedies or pursue Oscar #2 with more Wilds?
• Humans S1 - Would you feel bad about having sex with a robot programmed to serve you since they can't really give consent? 

Also new: Tell Me You Love Me (S1), Regression, Kindergarten Cop 2, Goosebumps

Doc Corner: Revisiting 'Fahrenheit 9/11' and It's Cannes Influence

Glenn here. Each Tuesday we bring you reviews and features on documentaries from theatres, festivals, and on demand. In celebration of not just the Cannes Film Festival, which is underway right now, but also the release of my book Cannes Film Festival: 70 Years out now through Wilkinson Publishing, we're looking at only the second documentary to win the Palme d'Or. The book is a glossy trip through history, looking at the festival's beginnings, the films, the moviestars, the fashions and the controversies. You better believe I convinced my editors on a double-page Nicole Kidman spread!

Just earlier this year I said of Michael Moore’s most recent film, Where to Invade Next?, that it was “utterly disgraceful” and that it was bound to “truly be one of the year’s worst movies.” That film was on my mind as I sat down to rewatch the director’s 2004 Palme d’Or winning documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11. Would the impact of that initial viewing of Fahrenheit 9/11 remain all these years later now that my eyes and mind are much wider? It’s a little bit of yes and a little bit of no. ...more after the jump.

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Black Mamba & Cottonmouth

And the Season 8 Drag Race Winner is...

Last night, our favorite reality not-so-guilty pleasure wrapped up it's eighth season. RuPaul's Drag Race definitely came back strong this season after the underwhelming seventh stumbled. This crop of queens was among the most talented and dynamic, resulting in the show's best top three ever. Whether the eventual winner would be the boisterous Bob the Drag Queen, the heartwarming and inventive Kim Chi, or the glamazon Naomi Smalls, we the adoring audience could hardly complain.

After each of them performed fun lipsyncs to original tracks (available on iTunes *wink*), their individual interviews provided the night's best entertainment: Bob got a video message from Carol Channing praising her Snatch Game win to Bob's aghast tears; Kim dished on her relationship with her mother (who still has no knowledge of Kim's success) and delivered the night's best read aimed at the Pit Crew; Naomi gushed about the approval from her idol Naomi Campbell and shared hugs with her giant family.

But which queen is America's Next Drag Superstar? We'll avoid spoilers (if you haven't yet watched) and save the crowning for after the jump!...

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