Venice: Luca Guadagnino's discomfiting "After the Hunt"

Elisa Giudici reporting from Venice

Ayo Edebiri makes an accusation in "AFTER THE HUNT"

Luca Guadagnino has never shied away from controversy, and After the Hunt confirms he’s still unafraid to provoke. A story of sexual assault on a university campus becomes the lens through which he examines the messy, ongoing intergenerational debate around #MeToo, forcing audiences to wrestle with discomfort rather than dodge it.

The film begins with Maggie Price (Ayo Edebiri), a wealthy Black queer student, under the mentorship of Alma (Julia Roberts), a philosophy professor fighting for tenure with the support of her husband Frederick (Michael Stuhlbarg). Across campus is Hank (Andrew Garfield), an assistant professor from a modest background, also seeking to cement his place in academia. When Maggie accuses Hank of harassment, the film pivots on questions of belief, loyalty, and moral authority—questions shaped by race, class, gender, and generational expectation...

Click to read more ...

Emmy Category Analysis: Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

By Abe Friedtanzer

Andrew Garfield in Under the Banner of Heaven

I had fully expected Ben Foster to be here on behalf of the TV movie part of this category for The Survivor, but he’s not, and this race is actually dominated by men from series that didn’t earn a spot in the top race. Only Michael Keaton and Sebastian Stan saw their shows score overall, and both Andrew Garfield and Oscar Isaac represent their series’ only bids. Those statistics make it seem like Keaton wins this in a walk, but these are seriously good performances that are worth considering alongside his. Here are the nominees… 

Click to read more ...

The hot mess of the 'Don't Worry Darling' press tour and other stories...

• Vanity Fair Alfre Woodard takes the Proust Questionnaire
• LA Times on the incredible writing of Manuel Muñoz. If the name sounds familiar that's because you either have very good taste in writers (seriously his work is brilliant) or you've been reading TFE for awhile. Manuel has been on the Smackdown a couple of times and we've also discussed his Psycho-related novel "What You See in the Dark"
• Out After lots of rumors about Kat's diminished role on Euphoria in season 2 and offscreen disputes, actress Barbie Ferraira will not be returning for season 3

That crazy Don't Worry Darling press tour, some Oscar hopefuls in animated short, Elton John twice, Lt Uhura's ashes, and more after the jump...

Click to read more ...

75th Annual Tony Awards in Review

by Nathaniel R

© Theo Wargo/Getty for Tony Awards Production

Ariana DeBose, fresh off her Oscar win, hosted the Tony Awards with enough theater kid energy to make Anne Hathaway blush. No reviews  will be able to claim (in good faith) that she didn't work her ass off to entertain the audience. She was "on" in every moment, pulling faces, doing little dance moves, singing, and engaging with the celebrity audience. She mentioned the 75th Anniversary several times but in truth the show's Diamond anniversary wasn't any different than any other Tony show; they've always mixed a couple "special" reunion-style performances with showcases for the current musicals (the ones that are still open that is). Even the Sondheim tribute -- which we expected to be epic -- was just one number long: Bernadette Peters singing "Children Will Listen" from Into the Woods. 

Best Speech, Ticket-Boosters, A New "EGOT" winner, and more after the jump...

Click to read more ...

Streaming Roulette, June: Martha Marcy May Titanic

We never know which films to cover since there are so many channels so please note that we welcome comments and requests for more in-depth coverage of new-to-streaming titles.  June is looking very strong (nice change of pace) for streaming fun so we'll have so much to discuss.

Okay, time for this month's streaming roulette. You know the rules. We highlight new-to-streaming movies and an occasional TV series by freezing them on the scroll bar at entirely random places and just sharing what pops up. No cheating*!

The hulls not designed to deal with that pressure so what happens [SOUND] she splits, right down to the keel. And the stern falls back level. Then as the bow sinks, it pulls the stern vertical and then finally detaches... 

TITANIC (1997) on Netflix
Do you also forget about the long prologue to Titanic? I do. One of my fondest memories of moviegoing with my family is watching my dad fall in love with this movie...

Click to read more ...