SXSW: Andrea Riseborough Shines in ‘To Leslie’

By Abe Friedtanzer

 

It's an unwritten rule that every festival must include at least one movie starring Andrea Riseborough, sometimes as many as four (that was Sundance 2018). While I’ll note that I haven’t seen one of her more recent entries – Brandon Cronenberg’s Possessor – most of her turns in the past few years have been very subdued in lackluster films like Nancy, Luxor, and Here Before. I fondly remember her standout performances even with minimal roles in Birdman and The Death of Stalin, and I’m pleased to report that her latest effort, To Leslie, gives her a superb platform again in a leading part…

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SXSW: Exploring Volcanoes in ‘Fire of Love’

By Abe Friedtanzer 

I’m grateful that SXSW includes a “Festival Favorites” section that includes titles that have played elsewhere and been popular since it’s often not until a festival has ended or all of its screenings have concluded that I hear about something I’m told I have to see. Fortunately, the documentary Fire of Love which was acquired by National Geographic (for quite a sum), meaning that those without access to film festivals will be able to see this inventive and visually striking film soon enough…

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Winners of the 4th annual Meihodo Festival

by Nathaniel R

You may recall that in January we shared the news that Michael Douglas was the guest of honor at this year's "Meihodo International Youth Visual Media Festival". (That's quite a mouthful of a title to try to say. Perhaps they need an acronym or nickname?) But their core team this year actually had three Oscar winners on it, Douglas, Binoche, and composer Tan Dun. This year the festivalhad 2431 contestants from 110 countries. The winners (which were unfortunately awarded in crypto and NFTs -- agh stop the madness) are after the jump...

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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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