Cannes at Home: Days 5 & 6 – Stories of Women

by Cláudio Alves

The festival is past its midpoint, and it's looking like this'll be a banner year. At least, that's the general tenor of the international coverage. The films of the moment offer a wide variety of cinematic approaches. Ramata-Toulaye Sy's debut feature Banel & Adama is being lauded for its rich visuals, while many have declared Todd Hayes's May December as a return to form with juicy acting across the board. And yet, one feels that the Cannes Best Actress frontrunner is neither Portman nor Moore, but Sandra Hüller, who dazzled viewers in Justine Triet's Anatomy of a Fall. Finally, Karim Aïnouz's first English-language feature Firebrand (starring Alicia Vikander and Jude Law) is an outlier earning harsh reviews.

For this Cannes at Home chapter, we consider Our Lady of the Nile which is not directed by Sy, but she co-wrote the script with the director. Then, let's explore Haynes' first Moore movie Safe, Triet's main competition debut Sibyl, and Aïnouz's sensual Love for Sale. They all tell stories about the feminine experience, from imperiled schoolgirls to sexually liberated women…

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A Sigourney Weaver Top Ten

by Cláudio Alves

Back in April, Nathaniel wrote about Sigourney Weaver, arguing that her legendary career more than deserves Oscar gold. Maybe it's time for the Academy to give her an Honorary award since they don't seem especially keen on recognizing her recent output. Regardless, you can't argue that Weaver has significantly faltered in her craft, for the thespian's excellence is as apparent today as it was in her 1980s heyday. Indeed, both that article and its comment section were full of recommendations for those eager to explore the star's filmography. Inspired by them and the release of Paul Schrader's Master Gardener in theaters, I decided to do just that, enjoying a SigWeavie marathon that doubled as research for this actress-y top ten.

Continuing the tradition established with the Nicolas Cage top ten, I shall exclude Weaver's Oscar-anointed work because there's plenty written about them already. In each case, she delivered superior work to the Academy's chosen victor, showcasing the sheer range of her talents as she did so...

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Cannes: Scorsese triumphs again with "Killers of the Flower Moon"

Elisa Giudici reporting from Cannes

Leonardo DiCaprio & Lily Gladstone in "Killers of the Flower Moon"

Dear Martin Scorsese, why did you shy away from the main competition for the Palm d’Or? Needless to say, someone with your career and pedigree has almost nothing to lose even when pitted against younger, eager colleagues at a festival. And Killers of the Flower Moon is exactly the kind of movie that is sure to impress. First of all, it is carried with the energy and politics you would expect from someone younger than Scorsese. His trademark intensity is present again. He's ardent to share the forgotten history of how a group of white men in the 1920s orchestrated a slow genocide of the Osage tribe -- at attempt to eradicate them from a land filled with oil. It is not a war but a vicious scheme because the Osage tribe was given the land before its real value was discovered.

As a result, the young USA decides to play nice with the native people, at first, making them immensely wealthy...

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Weekend Box Office: "Fast X" Starts Slow

By Ben Miller

Surprising absolutely no one, the 10th entry in the Fast and the Furious series Fast X won the box office weekend.  What was surprising was the muted opening box office of only $67.5 million.  That's the lowest opening for that series since Tokyo Drift in 2006 (unless you count Hobbs and Shaw which opened with $60 million in 2019).  Comparatively, these films make the same amount of domestic money, so you can expect anywhere from $170-$200 million total.  Worldwide is where these films really make their paydays, so keep expecting these things to keep being made.  In fact, each film since Fast Five has made over $500 million outside of North America...

Weekend Box Office (actuals) May 19th-21st 🔺 = new or expanding /  ★ = Recommended
WIDE (Over 800 Screens)	LIMITED / PLATFORM
FAST X	SANCTUARY
1 🔺 FAST X $67 *NEW* 4046 screens	1 BLACKBERRY $288k (cum. $1.0) 374 screens

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Cannes at Home: Day 4 – Once Upon a Time In...

by Cláudio Alves

The competition continues to heat up at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, with various contenders staking their claim on the Palme. It may be time for Nuri Bilge Ceylan to win his second. About Dry Grass is his seventh competition feature, including 2014's grand champion Winter Sleep. Then again, the critics have reached a consensus so far, with the favorite film being Jonathan Glazer's return to feature filmmaking after a decade-long pause, The Zone of Interest. Kaouther Ben Hania's follow-up to the Oscar-nominated The Man Who Sold His Skin is less acclaimed but might yet prove an awards contender. Four Daughters is one of two documentaries in competition.

For this 'Cannes at Home' adventure, let's look at some of these directors' past successes, their best films according to yours. There's Ceylan's Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, Glazer's Under the Skin, and Ben Hania's Beauty and the Dogs…

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