Podcast: First Man, Colette, and A Star is Born

Nathaniel R and Murtada Elfadl talk three new films in theaters.

Index (54 minutes)
00:01 Intro & Festival fatigue
02:00 First Man Nathaniel is pro and Murtada mixed
14:30 We both love A Star is Born (but aren't rooting 4 Gaga to win)
35:00 Backlashes at the Oscars and what happens.. or doesn't
38:00 Best Picture randomness and Roma
42:35 Keira Knightley as Colette
48:20 Please look out for Border and Shoplifters which are opening soon

Referenced in this discussion
• Roma review
• NYFF Reviews
• Best Actress Chart 
• Best Actor Chart

You can listen to the podcast here at the bottom of the post or download from iTunes. Continue the conversations in the comments, won't you? 

Colette, First Man, A Star is Born

What did you see over the weekend?

by Nathaniel R

Venom and A Star is Born remained strong for a second weekend leaving much less to go around for First Man, Goosebumps 2,  and Bad Times at the El Royale though it's still a stronger October at the box office than the past two years have been...

Weekend Box Office (October 12-14)
W I D E 800+ screens	PLATFORM / LIMITED excluding prev. wide
1. 🔺 Venom $35 (cum. $142.1)	1. 🔺 The Hate U Give $1.7 on 248 screens (cum. $2.4)

2. A Star is Born $28.4 (cum. $94.6) Review, Posterized	2. 🔺Gosnell: The Trial of... $1.1  *NEW * on 673 screens

3. 🔺 First Man  $16 NEW  Capsule Review	3. 🔺 Colette $999k on 593 screens  (cum. $2.5) Capsule

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Catch-Up: A Simple Favor, The Children Act, Colette

by Nathaniel R

So as not to get ANY further behind on reviewing and such -- you wouldn't believe my calendar right now -- here are quick takes on four  movies we barely said anything about, the first of which you should absolutely make time to see.

A Simple Favor (Paul Feig)
Synopsis: Mommy vlogger Stephanie's (Anna Kendrick) new best friend, chic enigmatic Emily (Blake Lively) goes missing then turns up dead... or does she?... in this twisty genre mashup. 
Capsule: Half comic thriller. Half campy mystery. Half bad girl dress-up fantasy. The math doesn't add up, I'm aware, but it's all enjoyable. The leading ladies are deliciously inspired, marrying all the disparate tones with as much ease, flair, and detail as the costumes, chic soundtrack, and aspirational production design. Makes a solid case for itself as the year's most delightful surprise...

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What did you see this weekend?

by Nathaniel R

While there were solid debuts in wide and limited release friday (The House with the Clock In Its Walls, Fahrenheit 11/9, Colette, The Sisters Brothers) it was a rough weekend for wide release newbies Assassination Nation and Life Itself, neither of which managed a top ten showing. But the best news was surely the solid hold from Paul Feig's wildly entertaining comic thriller A Simple Favor. You have to see those nutsy bold performances from both Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively for yourself. I had a blast and I'm going again with another friend soon.

Weekend Box Office Estimates (September 21st-23rd)
W I D E 800+ screens	PLATFORM / LIMITED excluding prev. wide
1. 🔺 THE HOUSE WITH THE CLOCK IN ITS WALLS $26.8 *NEW*	1. THE WIFE $975K on 468 screens (cum. $4.9) Review, Poster Blurb, Glenn's Oscar

2. A SIMPLE FAVOR $10.4 (cum. $32.5)	2. 🔺 LIZZIE $256k on 240 screens (cum. $325k) Review

3. THE NUN $10.2 (cum. $100) Nun Movies	3. 🔺 COLETTE $156k on 4 screens *NEW*

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Today's 5: Gigi, Bulworth, and much Cannes mania

Here are you five mood boosting anniversaries from showbiz history. Do these things today and report back on how they made you feel!

May 15th

2015 At the 68th annual Cannes Film Festival Son of Saul, Embrace of the Serpent, and The Lobster, all have their world premieres. All three go on to successful awards runs and arthouse releases.

In their honor: Embrace your singular point of view, however strange it seems at first. So many of the greatest movies over the years did this...

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