"The Last Jedi" Trailer Arrives!

Chris here. A full trailer for The Last Jedi is finally here! Now before anyone complains about long waits or lack of plot details, allow me to remind that the limited information for the new Star Wars films has been refreshing compared to other franchises. Which is good, because now officially starts a likely three month period of Star Wars invading conversation and consciousness with relentless vigor. Luckily, it looks like director Rian Johnson has created a thrilling and singular entry into the beloved franchise that even the indifferent can get excited about.

But the thing you will all be lamenting is that we get no glimpse of Laura Dern's mauve-haired Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo. I'll give you a moment to let out that frustration before we dive in to the trailer. Inhale. Vent. Exhale. Very good. Shall we begin?

No need to give this one a Yes No Maybe So treatment, because we've already bought our tickets! Take a look at the trailer (if you haven't devoured it a dozen times already) and I'll give some ecstatic notes after the jump...

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"Orient Express" Teaser Trailer Arrives!

Chris here. We've been obsessively tracking the developments of Kenneth Branagh's Murder on the Orient Express here at The Film Experience, so of course we have to share the first trailer. 

One of the open questions for the film we've had about the film was tone - would this be a campy lighthearted romp full of famous faces or a more morbid serious-minded mystery true to Agatha Christie's text? From the look of this first teaser we'll be served something in between. And with plenty of attention paid to each star of this massive ensemble, even if our eyes naturally wander to Michelle Pfeiffer. 

In a nifty bit of character introduction, Branagh takes us through the train car and the various characters in one take before giving the big reveal to his Poirot. We're already sold on the film, so we won't do the full Yes No Maybe So. But TAG YOURSELF as one of the passengers in the comments based on your response to this teaser - I'm Daisy Ridley's mildly concerned Governess (that rock anthem coda has me a little worried, friends).

Cannes Sales: Actress Titles in Development

by Seán McGovern

As Le Festival de Cannes begins and films in and out of competition are set to sparkle or explode, some are generating heat without even being made yet, as Variety reports. Scattered among some the hottest titles for sale are actresses who are always deserving of a big hit or Oscar buzz.

Tomei and Gershon having a wonderful time in 2004

Shotgun
Directors: Hannah Marks and Joey Power
Cast: Maika Monroe, Jeremy Allen White, Marisa Tomei, Gina Gershon

A cancer dramedy starring Maika Monroe (It Follows). The names that stand out are Gina Gershon and Marisa Tomei, no doubt somehow aunts or mothers to the youngsters in the lead...

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Teasing "The Last Jedi"

Click to see the poster largeStar Wars: The Last Jedi opens this December to once again hog all the media attention and all the box office and probably 3 or so Oscar nominations, too. (Here is the new poster to the left.)

The hilariously drama queen thing about the title and Luke Skywalker's pronouncement at the end of the new teaser is that we (i.e. everyone on the planet with any sense) know there will never be a "last" Jedi. Not with literally billions to be made every single year from milking this franchise until no one cares anymore ... an event that surely won't occur in our lifetimes. 

Exhausting as it can be sometimes to live inside a film culture that wants the exact same things annually: two Marvels, two DCs scattered from spring to Fall, a Star Wars movie each Christmas, at least 15 concurrent bi-annual franchises and a few ever-discussed franchises that are infrequent (James Bond for one), Disney has done a bang-up job stoking the fire for annual Star Wars adventures, a fire that would burn bright without any stoking whatsoever!

But they stoke well you must admit. Here is the excellent teaser for The Last Jedi, which is mostly focused on Luke and Rey with a few key shots reminding us of the other players. 

What'cha think? 

On this day: Titanic sets sail, Newsies debuts, 3-D Begins...

On this day in history as it relates to showbiz...

1868 George Arliss, who won the Oscar for Disraeli (1929) born

1912 RMS Titanic set sail on this day from England on her first and last voyage. The rest is the subject of history, lore, and several plays and movies, most famously James Cameron's Oscar devouring Titanic (1997)

1925 The Great Gatsby is published. The classic novel failed at first but after F Scott Fitzgerald's death it became an indisputable classic, lateradapted to plays and movies and so on...

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