NYFF: Margaret Qualley anchors ‘Stars at Noon’ from Claire Denis

By Abe Friedtanzer

At the NYFF introduction of Stars at Noon, the most recent work by Claire Denis,  it was noted that the acclaimed auteur doesn’t have a consistent style or preferred genre in her filmmaking. Recent works like High Life and Let the Sunshine In, both of which screened at NYFF and featured her frequent collaborator Juliette Binoche, are not at all indicative of her two 2022 films (the other is Both Sides of the Blade). Stars at Noon is another about face. It's a romance mired in political mystery, a puzzle that never truly feels like it needs to be solved.

Stars at Noon is based on the 1986 book by Denis Johnson that's set during the then-recent Nicaraguan War. Denis has updated the material to the present, and centered it on Trish (Margaret Qualley), an American journalist who has clearly outstayed her welcome and is struggling to find the big story that will get her back on track...

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Cannes at Home: Days 8 & 9 – Women in Red, the War on Drugs & French Colonialism

by Cláudio Alves

The 75th Cannes Film Festival is almost over! If there's any hope of finishing Cannes at Home before the closing ceremony, it's critical to pick up speed. So, here go two days' worth of auteurs in one go. 

The Dardennes showed their latest, Tori and Lokita, to some acclaim. However, after The Unknown Girl and Young Ahmed, I'm skeptical about the Belgian duo's tackling of immigrant stories. Mario Martone also returned to the competition, and his Nostalgia could see Perfrancesco Favino winning the festival's Best Actor trophy. In contrast, Saeed Roustayi is competing for the Palme for the first time with Leila's Brothers. All that being said, the big story from these latest festival days was surely Claire Denis' Stars at Noon. Most critics seem to hate it – some even jokingly calling for the director's retirement – while a scattering of ardent fans provides a contrarian takes. For sure, hers seems to be the most divisive film at the Croisette.

Today's Cannes at Home selection includes the Dardennes' first Palme d'Or honoree Rosetta, Martone's L'Amore Molesto, Roustayi's acclaimed Just 6.5, and Denis' debut feature Chocolat…

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Cannes Diary #9: Rock n' Sex on the Croisette

by Elisa Giudici

Two disappointing movies for me today. But at least they're the kind of disappointments that spark intense discussion among cinephiles. I was not blown away either by Claire Denis Stars at Noon or Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, but there has been a wide range of interesting opinions on both in the press room today in Cannes; The audience will be the final judge...

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Berlinale Prize Winners: Claire Denis, Carla Simón, and Isabelle Huppert

by Nathaniel R

The annual Berlinale proved to be yet another excellent film festival for female filmmakers. France's legendary auteur Claire Denis (Beau Travail, White Material, 35 Shots of Run) took Best Director for her latest Both Sides of the Blade (pictured above) which stars two incredible French titans of acting, Vincent Lindon and Juliette Binoche. This is Denis' very first prize at one of the Big Three European festivals if you can believe it. The top prize of the festival, the Golden Bear, went to rising Catalan filmmaker Carla Simón (Summer 1993) for her ensemble drama Alcaras about a family who may lose their farm.  

Complete list of winners after the jump and we do expect at least a couple of them to pop up in next year's International Feature Film Oscar race since the buzz often starts at Berlin for some entries to that category...

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A peek at what's playing at the 72nd annual Berlinale

please welcome new contributor John Lynn-Fernandez

M Night Shyamalan, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, and Connie Nielsen are on the jury

The Berlin Film Festival kicked off last night. It's the second of the "Big Five" film festivals each year (after Sundance, before Cannes). In this preview, some films that stand out as potential highlights of the festival. But, of course, you never know which discoveries or films will emerge as the triumphs until audiences are watching them...

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