Exclusive: Fundamental Films chairman Mark Gao and his CEO Ivy Hua are in Cannes to reconnect with the international industry as part of the Shanghai-based company’s return to international acquisitions and production.
One of the biggest and longest-established Chinese buyers before the pandemic, Fundamental is also an investor in Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp and has a long-standing output deal to release the French studio’s films in China – it will soon release Weekend In Taipei, directed by George Huang and starring Luke Evans and Gwei Lun-mei. It also was also recently signed by UTA for representation across production, distribution and investment opportunities.
Chinese buyers have been a rare sight on the Croisette in recent years, a consequence of travel restrictions during the pandemic and a slowdown in censorship approvals, but now the borders are wide open, and Gao thinks the time is right to step back into the international market.
One of the biggest and longest-established Chinese buyers before the pandemic, Fundamental is also an investor in Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp and has a long-standing output deal to release the French studio’s films in China – it will soon release Weekend In Taipei, directed by George Huang and starring Luke Evans and Gwei Lun-mei. It also was also recently signed by UTA for representation across production, distribution and investment opportunities.
Chinese buyers have been a rare sight on the Croisette in recent years, a consequence of travel restrictions during the pandemic and a slowdown in censorship approvals, but now the borders are wide open, and Gao thinks the time is right to step back into the international market.
- 5/18/2024
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: UTA has signed Shanghai and Los Angeles-based production, distribution and investment company Fundamental Films for representation.
Founded by Mark Gao in 2008, Fundamental Films was one of China’s biggest buyers before the pandemic, releasing films including American Hustle, Limitless, Lucy and the Taken and Transporter franchises.
The company acquired a significant minority share in Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp in 2016, releasing the French studio’s titles in China, as well as co-producing films, including the reboot of the Transporter series and fantasy epic, Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets.
UTA will provide strategic support in expanding Fundamental’s partnerships across film production and distribution, as well as identifying global IP, new business and technology investment opportunities.
Fundamental is releasing EuropaCorp’s upcoming action thriller, A Weekend In Taipei (aka Weekend Escape Project), starring Luke Evans and Gwei Lun-mei, in China this summer.
Commenting on the partnership with UTA,...
Founded by Mark Gao in 2008, Fundamental Films was one of China’s biggest buyers before the pandemic, releasing films including American Hustle, Limitless, Lucy and the Taken and Transporter franchises.
The company acquired a significant minority share in Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp in 2016, releasing the French studio’s titles in China, as well as co-producing films, including the reboot of the Transporter series and fantasy epic, Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets.
UTA will provide strategic support in expanding Fundamental’s partnerships across film production and distribution, as well as identifying global IP, new business and technology investment opportunities.
Fundamental is releasing EuropaCorp’s upcoming action thriller, A Weekend In Taipei (aka Weekend Escape Project), starring Luke Evans and Gwei Lun-mei, in China this summer.
Commenting on the partnership with UTA,...
- 5/2/2024
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.
Asphalt City (Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire)
I entered Asphalt City at last year’s EnergaCAMERIMAGE festival with nothing but morbid curiosity. Having engendered some rank responses from its Cannes premiere and not secured any known U.S. distributor, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s film had the right kind of bad-object energy one needs at the jetlagged start to their week in a small Polish city. (Or just the comfort I personally get from a Brooklyn-shot feature featuring two Club Random guests.) I walked away boasting complicated, fascinated enthusiasm: nearly every second is ridiculous and never boring, and it doesn’t not deserve to play at a cinematography festival––having the most cinematography counts for something. Starting and ending with a blatant homage to The New World...
Asphalt City (Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire)
I entered Asphalt City at last year’s EnergaCAMERIMAGE festival with nothing but morbid curiosity. Having engendered some rank responses from its Cannes premiere and not secured any known U.S. distributor, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s film had the right kind of bad-object energy one needs at the jetlagged start to their week in a small Polish city. (Or just the comfort I personally get from a Brooklyn-shot feature featuring two Club Random guests.) I walked away boasting complicated, fascinated enthusiasm: nearly every second is ridiculous and never boring, and it doesn’t not deserve to play at a cinematography festival––having the most cinematography counts for something. Starting and ending with a blatant homage to The New World...
- 4/19/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
In this week’s episode of The Discourse, host Mike DeAngelo digs into the film “DogMan” with writer/director Luc Besson (“The Fifth Element,” “Leon: The Professional,” “Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets.”). The film follows Doug (Caleb Landry Jones), a young, crippled, abandoned man, beaten down by a tough life who has a supernatural connection to his canine companions.
Continue reading ‘DogMan’: Luc Besson On His Divisive Dog-Eat-Dog Drama, Gary Oldman’s “Genius” & More ‘Valerian’ [The Discourse Podcast] at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘DogMan’: Luc Besson On His Divisive Dog-Eat-Dog Drama, Gary Oldman’s “Genius” & More ‘Valerian’ [The Discourse Podcast] at The Playlist.
- 4/1/2024
- by Mike DeAngelo
- The Playlist
This is truly terrifying. Witness the shocking aftermath of the devastating wildfire that destroyed Cara Delevingne’s luxurious $7 million Los Angeles residence. Indeed, the entire Los Angeles home that belonged to the London-born model-actress was gutted in a fire on Friday.
Currently making her stage debut as Sally Bowles in the West End musical Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club (Playhouse Theatre), Delevingne, 31, was not staying at her LA residence at the time of the dramatic fire. According to the public information officer, they found that a “heavy fire” had started around the back of the building and had “consumed one of the rooms”.
Cara Delevingne in Paper Towns
A few hours later, the Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets actress posted a message about the devastating event on her Instagram Story.
Cara Delevingne’s $7 Million LA House in Ruins
The home, which was formerly opulent and lavish,...
Currently making her stage debut as Sally Bowles in the West End musical Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club (Playhouse Theatre), Delevingne, 31, was not staying at her LA residence at the time of the dramatic fire. According to the public information officer, they found that a “heavy fire” had started around the back of the building and had “consumed one of the rooms”.
Cara Delevingne in Paper Towns
A few hours later, the Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets actress posted a message about the devastating event on her Instagram Story.
Cara Delevingne’s $7 Million LA House in Ruins
The home, which was formerly opulent and lavish,...
- 3/16/2024
- by Siddhika Prajapati
- FandomWire
Historically, the relationship between Hollywood and European comic books has been fraught with mutual distrust and cultural dissonance. Not to disparage Steven Spielberg — one of our national treasures — but his 2011 adaptation of The Adventures of Tintin was a bit of a disaster. And when La Femme Nikita director Luc Besson fulfilled a childhood fantasy in 2017 by bankrolling Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets out of his own pocket, the most expensive independent movie ever made landed with the thud of a global box office bomb.
But there’s hope on the horizon. European comic books — specifically, the Franco-Belgian school spearheaded by the Tintin character and his creator Hergé — are both a multimillion Euro industry and a sumptuous art form with dozens of successful franchises waiting to be developed. N
ow that the offerings of Marvel and DC are beginning to feel a tad fatigued, to say the least,...
But there’s hope on the horizon. European comic books — specifically, the Franco-Belgian school spearheaded by the Tintin character and his creator Hergé — are both a multimillion Euro industry and a sumptuous art form with dozens of successful franchises waiting to be developed. N
ow that the offerings of Marvel and DC are beginning to feel a tad fatigued, to say the least,...
- 2/17/2024
- by Ernesto Lechner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: One of the last big European Film Market pre-sales projects to be revealed is one of the most intriguing as SAG winner Caleb Landry Jones (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri) has been set to star with two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds) in Dracula – A Love Tale, a big-budget reimagining of the Dracula story from Lucy filmmaker and Taken creator Luc Besson.
Based on Bram Stoker’s iconic novel, sources close to the production confirm to us that the project will be Besson’s next movie and mark his own take on the vampire classic about the dark Prince who is condemned to eternal life.
We hear this has an origin story element to it exploring in a little more depth the gothic romance between Prince Vladimir and his wife whose loss turns him to forsake God and become a vampire. Buyers familiar with Besson’s script tell...
Based on Bram Stoker’s iconic novel, sources close to the production confirm to us that the project will be Besson’s next movie and mark his own take on the vampire classic about the dark Prince who is condemned to eternal life.
We hear this has an origin story element to it exploring in a little more depth the gothic romance between Prince Vladimir and his wife whose loss turns him to forsake God and become a vampire. Buyers familiar with Besson’s script tell...
- 2/17/2024
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: French VFX experts Franck Lambertz and Sophie Leclerc have spent most of their careers working outside of their native France.
Lambertz was with Mpc for 18 years, helping to set up its L.A. hub in 2008, followed by Amsterdam in 2013 and Paris in 2015 as well as spending time at its London HQ.
Leclerc worked as a freelance visual effects producer in L.A. for more than two decades for studios including Universal, Warner Bros, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, EuropaCorp and Newline.
The pair have recently returned to France to co-head the new Paris studio of leading Montreal-based VFX firm Rodeo FX, the credits of which include Stranger Things, The Witcher, The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power, John Wick: Chapter 4, Dune and Blue Beetle, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, and Zack Snyder’s Rebel.
The Paris studio marks the first French hub for Rodeo FX, which now employs...
Lambertz was with Mpc for 18 years, helping to set up its L.A. hub in 2008, followed by Amsterdam in 2013 and Paris in 2015 as well as spending time at its London HQ.
Leclerc worked as a freelance visual effects producer in L.A. for more than two decades for studios including Universal, Warner Bros, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, EuropaCorp and Newline.
The pair have recently returned to France to co-head the new Paris studio of leading Montreal-based VFX firm Rodeo FX, the credits of which include Stranger Things, The Witcher, The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power, John Wick: Chapter 4, Dune and Blue Beetle, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, and Zack Snyder’s Rebel.
The Paris studio marks the first French hub for Rodeo FX, which now employs...
- 2/15/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Throwback Picture Of Cara Delevingne In A S*xy Atelier Outfit (Picture Credit: Instagram)
Actress Cara Delevingne is blessed with gorgeous blue eyes and a splendid sense of styling. She rules the ramp and the red carpet equally, and today, we have brought you a throwback look at the actress at the premiere of Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets premiere in Mexico City. She gave a futuristic spin to her red carpet appearance in an exquisite strapless number. Keep scrolling for more.
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets was released in 2017, and it was a space opera film by Luc Besson based on the French sci-fi comics series Valerian and Laureline. The movie also featured Clive Owen, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Herbie Hancock, and others in pivotal roles.
Cara Delevingne rocks every outfit she puts on, and it was nothing different when she sported a strapless outfit for her film tour.
Actress Cara Delevingne is blessed with gorgeous blue eyes and a splendid sense of styling. She rules the ramp and the red carpet equally, and today, we have brought you a throwback look at the actress at the premiere of Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets premiere in Mexico City. She gave a futuristic spin to her red carpet appearance in an exquisite strapless number. Keep scrolling for more.
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets was released in 2017, and it was a space opera film by Luc Besson based on the French sci-fi comics series Valerian and Laureline. The movie also featured Clive Owen, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Herbie Hancock, and others in pivotal roles.
Cara Delevingne rocks every outfit she puts on, and it was nothing different when she sported a strapless outfit for her film tour.
- 1/31/2024
- by Esita Mallik
- KoiMoi
Exclusive: Primetime Emmy award-winning VFX expert Sophie Leclerc is returning to France after more than two decades in L.A. to co-head Rodeo FX’s new Paris office in the role of executive producer.
She will join VFX expert Franck Lambertz whose arrival at the new European studio in the role of VFX Supervisor and Head was announced last week.
Montreal-based creative company Rodeo FX – known for its visual effects work on Stranger Things, Game of Thrones, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and John Wick: Chapter 4 – opened the Paris office in 2023.
The company said Leclerc will jointly lead the new company overseeing all aspects of production, with the aim of creating a dynamic presence in Europe and participating in innovative film projects that push the boundaries of visual creativity.
Leclerc began her career in the U.S. when she pursued her studies in film and obtained...
She will join VFX expert Franck Lambertz whose arrival at the new European studio in the role of VFX Supervisor and Head was announced last week.
Montreal-based creative company Rodeo FX – known for its visual effects work on Stranger Things, Game of Thrones, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and John Wick: Chapter 4 – opened the Paris office in 2023.
The company said Leclerc will jointly lead the new company overseeing all aspects of production, with the aim of creating a dynamic presence in Europe and participating in innovative film projects that push the boundaries of visual creativity.
Leclerc began her career in the U.S. when she pursued her studies in film and obtained...
- 1/16/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Universal Pictures wants more people to witness the majesty of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer while in the throes of Oscar season by bringing the film to Peacock on February 16. Oppenheimer’s streaming date is a boon for Peacock subscribers who’ve yet to purchase the film digitally or physically (per Nolan’s recommendation).
Nolan is already running out of room on shelves to house his awards for Oppenheimer. The fan-favorite director recently won five Golden Globe awards, including the prizes for Best Director, Best Feature Drama, Best Actor Drama Cillian Murphy, Best Supporting Actor Robert Downey Jr, and Best Original Score for composer Ludwig Göransson.
Speaking of awards, Oppenheimer is nominated for 13 Critics Choice Awards categories this weekend, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Supporting Actress Emily Blunt, Best Supporting Actor Downey Jr., Best Actor Cillian Murphy, Best Score, Production Design, Editing,...
Nolan is already running out of room on shelves to house his awards for Oppenheimer. The fan-favorite director recently won five Golden Globe awards, including the prizes for Best Director, Best Feature Drama, Best Actor Drama Cillian Murphy, Best Supporting Actor Robert Downey Jr, and Best Original Score for composer Ludwig Göransson.
Speaking of awards, Oppenheimer is nominated for 13 Critics Choice Awards categories this weekend, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Supporting Actress Emily Blunt, Best Supporting Actor Downey Jr., Best Actor Cillian Murphy, Best Score, Production Design, Editing,...
- 1/12/2024
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Oppenheimer, one of the year’s most significant box office bangers, will return to IMAX theaters in 70mm in early 2024. The film’s third theatrical release happens in January, with the premium screening format treating cinephiles to the ultimate Oppenheimer screening.
Oppenheimer is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist, and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar-winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and...
Oppenheimer is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist, and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar-winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and...
- 12/22/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Writer-director Luc Besson’s Dogman will arrive in U.S. cinemas this spring, Briarcliff Entertainment announced Tuesday.
The dark thriller, starring Caleb Landry Jones, will open in select cinemas on March 15 and then expands on March 22.
Dogman is the embattled filmmaker’s first movie to arrive in theaters after he was cleared of rape charges by a French court last summer, weeks before Besson’s new film made its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. And it’s also his first directorial effort since 2019’s Anna.
Briarcliff, an indie distributor, picked up U.S. rights to the movie following its debut at Venice, where it was a major curiosity factor. The drama stars Jones as a tortured young man who finds salvation through the love of his dogs.
Besson has rebuked the notion that the movie is his comeback. “It’s really hard when you get to 60, because you...
The dark thriller, starring Caleb Landry Jones, will open in select cinemas on March 15 and then expands on March 22.
Dogman is the embattled filmmaker’s first movie to arrive in theaters after he was cleared of rape charges by a French court last summer, weeks before Besson’s new film made its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. And it’s also his first directorial effort since 2019’s Anna.
Briarcliff, an indie distributor, picked up U.S. rights to the movie following its debut at Venice, where it was a major curiosity factor. The drama stars Jones as a tortured young man who finds salvation through the love of his dogs.
Besson has rebuked the notion that the movie is his comeback. “It’s really hard when you get to 60, because you...
- 12/19/2023
- by Pamela McClintock
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Luc Besson, the award-winning writer, director and producer who founded Paris-based studio EuropaCorp in 1999, is returning as interim CEO after the company’s chief executive Axel Duroux resigned.
Besson took over the top spot earlier this week, the company announced Thursday, saying that the board of directors had accepted Duroux’s resignation effective Tuesday. Duroux was also an EuropaCorp director.
“Axel Duroux, who will remain a shareholder, will continue to work closely with EuropaCorp as special advisor to the Chairman until mid-May in order to ensure the best possible handover to the new management team,” the company statement said. “Luc Besson will act as interim Chief Executive Officer, for a limited period, from 13 December 2023.”
Besson became artistic director and non-executive chairman after Duroux joined the company at CEO in August 2020. That move came as EuropaCorp, which produced Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets and the Taken, Taxi and Transporter franchises,...
Besson took over the top spot earlier this week, the company announced Thursday, saying that the board of directors had accepted Duroux’s resignation effective Tuesday. Duroux was also an EuropaCorp director.
“Axel Duroux, who will remain a shareholder, will continue to work closely with EuropaCorp as special advisor to the Chairman until mid-May in order to ensure the best possible handover to the new management team,” the company statement said. “Luc Besson will act as interim Chief Executive Officer, for a limited period, from 13 December 2023.”
Besson became artistic director and non-executive chairman after Duroux joined the company at CEO in August 2020. That move came as EuropaCorp, which produced Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets and the Taken, Taxi and Transporter franchises,...
- 12/15/2023
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Prepare to get blown away again when Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer returns to IMAX theatres on November 3! This special presentation only lasts one week, with special showtimes assigned to 70mm screenings of the director’s explosive drama starring Cillian Murphy as the Father of the Atom Bomb, J. Robert Oppenheimer. This limited-time event happens globally in IMAX Theatres, with six exclusive IMAX 70mm locations, including:
AMC CityWalk Stadium 19 IMAX(Hollywood, CA) AMC Irvine Spectrum AMC Lincoln Square IMAX AMC Metreon 16 IMAX BFI IMAX London (UK) Melbourne Museum IMAX (Australia)
Tickets are on sale now. For more information, check your local listings.
Oppenheimer is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer...
AMC CityWalk Stadium 19 IMAX(Hollywood, CA) AMC Irvine Spectrum AMC Lincoln Square IMAX AMC Metreon 16 IMAX BFI IMAX London (UK) Melbourne Museum IMAX (Australia)
Tickets are on sale now. For more information, check your local listings.
Oppenheimer is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer...
- 10/31/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Exclusive: Briarcliff Entertainment has closed a deal for U.S. distribution rights to DogMan, the Luc Besson-directed revenge thriller that stars Caleb Landry Jones. A first quarter 2024 theatrical release is the plan for a film that made its world premiere this fall at the Venice Film Festival.
Besson wrote the script and Jones stars as an unusual man named Douglas who, having just been arrested, opens his heart to tell the moving story of his life. As a survivor of childhood trauma at the hands of a violent father who forced him to live in the family kennel, Douglas develops a bond with dogs that defies understanding. Out of this hell, he grows to discover love, theatre, and cabaret, but also the injustice and disillusionment of the human world. In a life that’s been broken a thousand times, only the love of his dogs can bring salvation. That...
Besson wrote the script and Jones stars as an unusual man named Douglas who, having just been arrested, opens his heart to tell the moving story of his life. As a survivor of childhood trauma at the hands of a violent father who forced him to live in the family kennel, Douglas develops a bond with dogs that defies understanding. Out of this hell, he grows to discover love, theatre, and cabaret, but also the injustice and disillusionment of the human world. In a life that’s been broken a thousand times, only the love of his dogs can bring salvation. That...
- 10/26/2023
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Luc Besson's "The Fifth Element" might be the daffiest Hollywood sci-fi flick ever made (at least until Besson made the even daffier "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" 20 years later). The film had movie-star insurance in Bruce Willis, and the trailers promised a surfeit of futuristic eye candy, but what exactly was this zany-looking movie about?
The film may be visually cluttered, but its premise is fairly simple. Every 5,000 years, a force of tremendous evil emerges out of space and tries to destroy Earth. Fortunately, an alien race known as the Mondoshawns and a clandestine religious order are in possession of the only weapon that can repel this evil. This weapon consists of four stones which represent the five classical elements of earth, wind, fire, water, and Philip Bailey. Actually, the fifth element is a humanoid named Leelo, and, as embodied by Milla Jovovich, she is a lethal warrior,...
The film may be visually cluttered, but its premise is fairly simple. Every 5,000 years, a force of tremendous evil emerges out of space and tries to destroy Earth. Fortunately, an alien race known as the Mondoshawns and a clandestine religious order are in possession of the only weapon that can repel this evil. This weapon consists of four stones which represent the five classical elements of earth, wind, fire, water, and Philip Bailey. Actually, the fifth element is a humanoid named Leelo, and, as embodied by Milla Jovovich, she is a lethal warrior,...
- 9/20/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Sheryl Lee Ralph delivered an impassioned speech that evoked Rihanna during a rally for striking writers and actors Wednesday in Los Angeles.
“You know why we’re here. You know what we deserve. And in the words of one of our SAG members, ‘Pay us what you owe us. Don’t act like you forgot. Shot shot shot,'” Ralph said, paraphrasing Rihanna’s 2015 hit “Bitch Better Have My Money.”
(Rihanna, as an actress in films like Battleship, Oceans 8, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, is...
“You know why we’re here. You know what we deserve. And in the words of one of our SAG members, ‘Pay us what you owe us. Don’t act like you forgot. Shot shot shot,'” Ralph said, paraphrasing Rihanna’s 2015 hit “Bitch Better Have My Money.”
(Rihanna, as an actress in films like Battleship, Oceans 8, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, is...
- 9/14/2023
- by Daniel Kreps
- Rollingstone.com
“Judge the art, not the artist.” That is the mantra we hear each and every time someone in the entertainment world is accused of heinous behavior, and it’s one that was repeated by artistic director Alberto Barbera prior to this year’s Venice Film Festival.
In an interview with The Guardian, Barbera discussed his decision to include films by Roman Polanski, Woody Allen, and Luc Besson in the 2023 festival program — Polanski’s The Palace, a class comedy about a dinner party at a luxury Swiss hotel on the eve...
In an interview with The Guardian, Barbera discussed his decision to include films by Roman Polanski, Woody Allen, and Luc Besson in the 2023 festival program — Polanski’s The Palace, a class comedy about a dinner party at a luxury Swiss hotel on the eve...
- 9/5/2023
- by Marlow Stern
- Rollingstone.com
Of all the movies screening in Venice, the one that probably had its filmmakers waiting more nervously than others for the press reaction after the first press screening was Luc Besson’s Dogman. Labelled by the media as the director’s “comeback” film, the dark thriller — starring Caleb Landry Jones (and roughly 70 dogs) —is his first feature behind the camera since 2019’s Anna and the first after his career took a detour following rape accusations, which last year were cleared by a French judge. Not that Besson sees Dogman that way.
“You don’t think like this,” he told THR when asked if Dogman was his comeback movie, claiming that he merely keeps working in the hope that what he writes is good enough to keep getting made into films.
“It’s really hard when you get to 60, because you never know your juice is over. A sport guys knows — he has a Chronometer.
“You don’t think like this,” he told THR when asked if Dogman was his comeback movie, claiming that he merely keeps working in the hope that what he writes is good enough to keep getting made into films.
“It’s really hard when you get to 60, because you never know your juice is over. A sport guys knows — he has a Chronometer.
- 9/1/2023
- by Alex Ritman
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Luc Besson’s Dogman had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Thursday night, scoring a nearly six-minute standing ovation from the crowd inside the Palazzo del Cinema.
Caleb Landry Jones stars in the Bessonian action thriller, which already has gotten a rave review from Deadline. He was in attendance along with co-star Jojo T. Gibbs.
The film marked Besson’s comeback movie of sorts, coming after a past few years that included the disappointment of his 2017 tentpole Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, the demise of his French studio EuropaCorp and a long-running legal entanglement relating to a rape allegation, of which he was recently cleared.
Related: Venice Film Festival 2023: All Of Deadline’s Movie Reviews
During tonight’s ovation, Besson appeared to wipe away tears as he took a bow for the crowd inside the theater, hugging his wife Virginie Besson-Silla as well...
Caleb Landry Jones stars in the Bessonian action thriller, which already has gotten a rave review from Deadline. He was in attendance along with co-star Jojo T. Gibbs.
The film marked Besson’s comeback movie of sorts, coming after a past few years that included the disappointment of his 2017 tentpole Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, the demise of his French studio EuropaCorp and a long-running legal entanglement relating to a rape allegation, of which he was recently cleared.
Related: Venice Film Festival 2023: All Of Deadline’s Movie Reviews
During tonight’s ovation, Besson appeared to wipe away tears as he took a bow for the crowd inside the theater, hugging his wife Virginie Besson-Silla as well...
- 8/31/2023
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
“Dogman” director Luc Besson might be a newcomer to Venice, but following his film’s warm reception on Thursday, he’s likely to come back.
Though Besson’s Golden Lion contender polarized critics, with Variety’s Jessica Kiang sparing few words by calling it a “numbskulled nonsense movie,” audience members at the film’s gala premiere opted to spread the love at its world premiere, showering the film and filmmakers with six minutes of sustained applause. That tied the six-minute ovation Venice audiences gave Michael Mann’s “Ferrari” earlier in the evening on the second night of the prestigious festival.
If Besson offered no closing thoughts, the director nevertheless appeared visibly moved, beaming under the spotlight and embracing his cast with bear hugs. Besson shared a particularly tender moment with star Caleb Landry Jones, with whom he developed and honed the central role over the course of a full year before the cameras ever rolled.
Though Besson’s Golden Lion contender polarized critics, with Variety’s Jessica Kiang sparing few words by calling it a “numbskulled nonsense movie,” audience members at the film’s gala premiere opted to spread the love at its world premiere, showering the film and filmmakers with six minutes of sustained applause. That tied the six-minute ovation Venice audiences gave Michael Mann’s “Ferrari” earlier in the evening on the second night of the prestigious festival.
If Besson offered no closing thoughts, the director nevertheless appeared visibly moved, beaming under the spotlight and embracing his cast with bear hugs. Besson shared a particularly tender moment with star Caleb Landry Jones, with whom he developed and honed the central role over the course of a full year before the cameras ever rolled.
- 8/31/2023
- by Ben Croll, Ellise Shafer and Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
Luc Besson let the dogs out in Venice Thursday night, premiering his potential comeback vehicle, Dogman. Besson and the cast were showered with howls of approval from the audience.
The cast, including lead Caleb Landry Jones, Jojo T Gibbs and Clemens Schick, were visibly moved by the response to the film, with the audience rising to their feet for a good six minutes. Jones stood up, undid his braid and shook his hair out, before taking off his bow tie, looking relieved. Besson embraced his cast before returning to his seat, wiping away tears.
Besson’s 21st feature, which sold widely ahead of its Venice debut, is being closely watched as a possible return to directorial form for the maker of Lucy and The Fifth Element. The past half-decade has been a tumultuous period for both Besson’s business and reputation, following the flop of his mega-budget sci-fi Valerian (2017), the...
The cast, including lead Caleb Landry Jones, Jojo T Gibbs and Clemens Schick, were visibly moved by the response to the film, with the audience rising to their feet for a good six minutes. Jones stood up, undid his braid and shook his hair out, before taking off his bow tie, looking relieved. Besson embraced his cast before returning to his seat, wiping away tears.
Besson’s 21st feature, which sold widely ahead of its Venice debut, is being closely watched as a possible return to directorial form for the maker of Lucy and The Fifth Element. The past half-decade has been a tumultuous period for both Besson’s business and reputation, following the flop of his mega-budget sci-fi Valerian (2017), the...
- 8/31/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Whatever one may think of Luc Besson’s oeuvre, his films work best when they live up to their trashy potential. The director’s cinema is littered with all-out demented interludes and comic-book exaggerations. Think of Rihanna quoting Paul Verlaine’s poem “A Poor Young Shepherd” while gyrating on a stripper pole in his intergalactic romp Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets; or, more recently, Russian supermodel Sasha Luss mowing down throngs of thugs inside a restaurant in Anna. Besson’s always been particularly fluent in the art of the unreal, and Dogman, his latest, is engineered as one such tale: a pulpy story of an outcast who turns a whole pack of dogs into loyal allies in his fight against injustice. But the film never owns up to its deranged premise, and a staid, predetermined script sands off its most shamelessly ridiculous moments––the only moments when Dogman truly comes to life.
- 8/31/2023
- by Leonardo Goi
- The Film Stage
No animals were harmed in the making of Luc Besson’s new thriller, Dogman, but plenty of people get mauled, bitten, robbed and attacked, and one guy has his junk put into a serious vice grip, by a pack of extremely well-trained canines.
That being said, the director’s first film since his 2019 femme-driven assasin flick, Anna, is actually one of his least violent movies to date when it comes to bullets and bodies depicted on screen. If there’s violence, it’s predominantly of the domestic and psychological kind, in a story that follows a young man whose childhood traumas transform him into a very unusual sort of superhero: a paralyzed vigilante who dresses in drag, performs incredible lip-syncs of classic European ballads, and rules over a small, fierce army of obedient pups, as if the Joker and Ace Ventura were somehow merged into a single character. Also, he lives in New Jersey.
That being said, the director’s first film since his 2019 femme-driven assasin flick, Anna, is actually one of his least violent movies to date when it comes to bullets and bodies depicted on screen. If there’s violence, it’s predominantly of the domestic and psychological kind, in a story that follows a young man whose childhood traumas transform him into a very unusual sort of superhero: a paralyzed vigilante who dresses in drag, performs incredible lip-syncs of classic European ballads, and rules over a small, fierce army of obedient pups, as if the Joker and Ace Ventura were somehow merged into a single character. Also, he lives in New Jersey.
- 8/31/2023
- by Jordan Mintzer
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Editor’s Note: This review was originally published at the 2023 Venice Film Festival. Briarcliff Entertainment will release “Dogman” in select theaters on Friday, March 15 before expanding on March 22.
Caleb Landry Jones graduates from menacing oddball character actor to sympathetic show-stopping lead in Luc Besson’s “Dogman.” But the French genre filmmaker’s first feature effort since 2019 assassin thriller “Anna” — and his second since 2017’s catastrophic space opera “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” — unfortunately doesn’t deliver the goods to match Landry Jones’ giddily unrestrained turn as a traumatized dog collector turned drag cabaret act turned … well-heeled shooter and avenger of capitalist greed and domestic abuse?
That’s nothing against the 33-year-old American actor’s Method-level dedication to the role. Landry Jones has stamped himself as indie film’s consummate weirdo, playing charmingly raffish outsiders or scary psychos. His Douglas in “Dogman” is a little bit of both,...
Caleb Landry Jones graduates from menacing oddball character actor to sympathetic show-stopping lead in Luc Besson’s “Dogman.” But the French genre filmmaker’s first feature effort since 2019 assassin thriller “Anna” — and his second since 2017’s catastrophic space opera “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” — unfortunately doesn’t deliver the goods to match Landry Jones’ giddily unrestrained turn as a traumatized dog collector turned drag cabaret act turned … well-heeled shooter and avenger of capitalist greed and domestic abuse?
That’s nothing against the 33-year-old American actor’s Method-level dedication to the role. Landry Jones has stamped himself as indie film’s consummate weirdo, playing charmingly raffish outsiders or scary psychos. His Douglas in “Dogman” is a little bit of both,...
- 8/31/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
An emotional Luc Besson and his actors Caleb Landry Jones and Jojo T. Gibbs got a rapturous reception at the press conference for their Venice Film Festival movie DogMan.
The filmmaker and lead Landry Jones were applauded on multiple occasions, with one journalist moved to tears when asking her question.
The film is being billed by some as a comeback movie for Fifth Element, Lucy and Leon director Besson who has had a tumultuous five years after the high-profile box office failure of Valerian, the demise of his French studio EuropaCorp and a long-running legal entanglement relating to a rape allegation, of which he was recently cleared.
“The only two things that can save you are love and art, definitely not money. When you have both you’re lucky,” the filmmaker told the audience.
At one stage, the director thanked his actors and producer wife Virginie Besson-Silla before himself fighting back tears.
The filmmaker and lead Landry Jones were applauded on multiple occasions, with one journalist moved to tears when asking her question.
The film is being billed by some as a comeback movie for Fifth Element, Lucy and Leon director Besson who has had a tumultuous five years after the high-profile box office failure of Valerian, the demise of his French studio EuropaCorp and a long-running legal entanglement relating to a rape allegation, of which he was recently cleared.
“The only two things that can save you are love and art, definitely not money. When you have both you’re lucky,” the filmmaker told the audience.
At one stage, the director thanked his actors and producer wife Virginie Besson-Silla before himself fighting back tears.
- 8/31/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Luc Besson, the onetime A-list director who rose to the top of the box office with his kinetic action films, had his career derailed by rape allegations leveled against him in 2018 by Sand Van Roy, an actress on his film “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.” The ensuing legal battle consumed five years of Besson’s life, but after being cleared last June of all charges by the Cour de Cassation, the French equivalent to the Supreme Court, he’s re-emerging at this year’s Venice Film Festival with the indie drama “Dogman.”
But will the industry work with Besson? That’s one of the questions that we discuss during a lengthy interview at the Plaza Athénée Hotel in Paris on the eve of his big premiere. Besson is evasive about the matter, preferring to talk up his latest effort, the story of a bruised man who faces...
But will the industry work with Besson? That’s one of the questions that we discuss during a lengthy interview at the Plaza Athénée Hotel in Paris on the eve of his big premiere. Besson is evasive about the matter, preferring to talk up his latest effort, the story of a bruised man who faces...
- 8/31/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Zack Snyder has finally unveiled his "decades in the making" sci-fi epic "Rebel Moon," the galaxy-spanning drama heavily inspired by "Star Wars." The two-part epic follows Sofia Boutella as Kora, a former soldier for the Imperium who now seeks redemption by rallying warriors on the eponymous moon colony as she faces her destiny and achieves greatness — and kicks a lot of Imperial ass along the way.
The film is full of stunning imagery and hints at intricate world-building and an expansive mythology, something like a more serious "Jupiter Ascending" — which is always a good thing. And the "Star Wars" influence is clear, not just in the fascist-looking Empire, but also in what looks to be two flaming swords that look suspiciously like lightsabers.
Speaking with Vanity Fair earlier this year, Zack Snyder discussed the flaming laser words wielded by South Korean actor Doona Bae, who plays Nemesis. "These swords are...
The film is full of stunning imagery and hints at intricate world-building and an expansive mythology, something like a more serious "Jupiter Ascending" — which is always a good thing. And the "Star Wars" influence is clear, not just in the fascist-looking Empire, but also in what looks to be two flaming swords that look suspiciously like lightsabers.
Speaking with Vanity Fair earlier this year, Zack Snyder discussed the flaming laser words wielded by South Korean actor Doona Bae, who plays Nemesis. "These swords are...
- 8/22/2023
- by Rafael Motamayor
- Slash Film
At 180 minutes, it’s not improbable to think there are no deleted scenes for Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Sometimes, fans look forward to home release materials getting packed with extras, but Cillian Murphy is here to burst the bubble, saying what you see is what you get when it comes to Nolan’s latest opus.
Speaking with Collider, Murphy said there’s a meticulous method to Nolan’s madness, leaving no opportunity for scenes to fall onto the cutting room floor. “There’s no deleted scenes in Chris Nolan movies,” Murphy commented. “That’s why there are no DVD extras on his movies because the script is the movie. He knows exactly what’s going to end up – he’s not fiddling around with it trying to change the story. That is the movie.”
Murphy’s well-versed in Nolan’s ways after teaming up with the acclaimed director on multiple feature-length projects.
Speaking with Collider, Murphy said there’s a meticulous method to Nolan’s madness, leaving no opportunity for scenes to fall onto the cutting room floor. “There’s no deleted scenes in Chris Nolan movies,” Murphy commented. “That’s why there are no DVD extras on his movies because the script is the movie. He knows exactly what’s going to end up – he’s not fiddling around with it trying to change the story. That is the movie.”
Murphy’s well-versed in Nolan’s ways after teaming up with the acclaimed director on multiple feature-length projects.
- 8/4/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
A couple weeks ago, we got our hands on the trailer for Dogman, the latest film from Luc Besson – whose previous credits include The Big Blue, La Femme Nikita, Leon: The Professional, The Fifth Element, The Family, Lucy, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Besson’s most recent film was the 2019 assassin thriller Anna. Dogman will be having its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival (which is set to run from August 30th through September 9th), and is set to receive a theatrical release in France on September 27th. With those dates drawing near, a poster for the film has arrived online, and you can check it out at the bottom of this article.
Dogman is described as being the incredible story of a child, bruised by life, who finds his salvation through the love of his dogs. According to Deadline, the Dogman himself is...
Dogman is described as being the incredible story of a child, bruised by life, who finds his salvation through the love of his dogs. According to Deadline, the Dogman himself is...
- 7/26/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
With Thursday Preview Screenings for Barbie and Oppenheimer officially underway, now is the perfect time to drop a creative trailer for the mash-up event of the summer – Barbenheimer! The geniuses at the Dumb Drum YouTube channel are breaking out the toy box to recreate Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer trailer, featuring a cast of Barbie dolls! The blonde bombshell herself steps into the role of J. Robert Oppenheimer, played by Cillian Murphy, in the riveting new drama. In the Barbenheimer trailer, Barbie and the gang contemplate their actions while building the most terrifying weapon known to humankind.
Using a cast of Barbie dolls, everyday household items, and visual effects, Dumb Drum recreates the tension of Christopher Nolan’s latest opus. The Barbeheimer trailer includes black-and-white footage mixed with colored scenes. Still, the deep cuts don’t stop there. The trailer features a section of Barbie’s Dreamhouse as the facility where...
Using a cast of Barbie dolls, everyday household items, and visual effects, Dumb Drum recreates the tension of Christopher Nolan’s latest opus. The Barbeheimer trailer includes black-and-white footage mixed with colored scenes. Still, the deep cuts don’t stop there. The trailer features a section of Barbie’s Dreamhouse as the facility where...
- 7/20/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
We present interviews from the premieres of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
Oppenheimer also stars Oscar® winner Rami Malek and reunites Nolan with eight-time Oscar® nominated actor, writer and filmmaker Kenneth Branagh.
The cast includes Dane DeHaan (Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets), Dylan Arnold (Halloween franchise), David Krumholtz (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs), Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story) and Matthew Modine (The Dark Knight Rises...
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
Oppenheimer also stars Oscar® winner Rami Malek and reunites Nolan with eight-time Oscar® nominated actor, writer and filmmaker Kenneth Branagh.
The cast includes Dane DeHaan (Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets), Dylan Arnold (Halloween franchise), David Krumholtz (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs), Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story) and Matthew Modine (The Dark Knight Rises...
- 7/14/2023
- by Jon Lyus
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer detonates in cinemas in one week, marking the arrival of another epic from the director of Tenet, Inception, Memento, and more. Opening alongside Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, the 3-hour opus explores the work of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the Father of the Atomic Bomb. Universal Pictures dropped an “Opening Look” at Oppenheimer on Thursday, teasing the nail-biting drama of the U.S. government’s race to build a weapon of mass destruction before the Nazis. The Oppenheimer Opening Look introduces a montage of scenes spanning the film, depicting the science, heartache, and paranoia of building a device that could destroy the world.
The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan,...
The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan,...
- 7/13/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
The advance screening is Tuesday, July 18th at 7Pm at The Marcus Ronnie’s. Please arrive before 6pm to secure seats.
Enter Here: http://gofobo.com/yQupj73734
No purchase necessary. Rated R for some sexuality, nudity and language.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
The advance screening is Tuesday, July 18th at 7Pm at The Marcus Ronnie’s. Please arrive before 6pm to secure seats.
Enter Here: http://gofobo.com/yQupj73734
No purchase necessary. Rated R for some sexuality, nudity and language.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
- 7/10/2023
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
There was a chance that when they pushed that button, they’d destroy the world.
Get a behind-the-scenes, six minute look at Oppenheimer with Christopher Nolan, the cast and filmmakers.
Experience the movie on the largest screen possible July 21.
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays...
Get a behind-the-scenes, six minute look at Oppenheimer with Christopher Nolan, the cast and filmmakers.
Experience the movie on the largest screen possible July 21.
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays...
- 7/10/2023
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Luc Besson is back in the director’s chair.
The French filmmaker, who was recently cleared of all charges in a 2018 rape case, helms upcoming drama “DogMan” which will premiere during this year’s fall festival circuit. “DogMan” is described as an incredible story of a child, bruised by life, who finds his salvation through the love of his dogs. The feature is Besson’s latest film since 2019’s “Anna.”
Caleb Landry Jones plays Douglas, a man who was abused as a child by his father and found solace in the friendship of dogs. Douglas later transitions to a woman and further explores his love of canines. Jojo T. Gibbs also stars alongside Cannes Best Actor winner Jones, who took home the prize in 2021 for “Nitram.”
Director Besson wrote “DogMan” and is producing the film under his Lbp EuropaCorp banner. Paris-based Kinology will handle international market sales, with Apollo Films releasing the film in France.
The French filmmaker, who was recently cleared of all charges in a 2018 rape case, helms upcoming drama “DogMan” which will premiere during this year’s fall festival circuit. “DogMan” is described as an incredible story of a child, bruised by life, who finds his salvation through the love of his dogs. The feature is Besson’s latest film since 2019’s “Anna.”
Caleb Landry Jones plays Douglas, a man who was abused as a child by his father and found solace in the friendship of dogs. Douglas later transitions to a woman and further explores his love of canines. Jojo T. Gibbs also stars alongside Cannes Best Actor winner Jones, who took home the prize in 2021 for “Nitram.”
Director Besson wrote “DogMan” and is producing the film under his Lbp EuropaCorp banner. Paris-based Kinology will handle international market sales, with Apollo Films releasing the film in France.
- 7/10/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
A trailer has just been unveiled for Dogman, the latest film from Luc Besson – whose previous credits include The Big Blue, La Femme Nikita, Leon: The Professional, The Fifth Element, The Family, Lucy, and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Besson’s most recent film was the 2019 assassin thriller Anna. Dogman is expected to make its world premiere on the festival circuit this fall, and you can watch its trailer in the embed above.
According to Deadline, Dogman is described as being the incredible story of a child, bruised by life, who finds his salvation through the love of his dogs. The Dogman himself is said to be “a fragile yet resilient protagonist who bends societal rules as he makes his own way.”
Caleb Landry Jones of Nitram, Get Out, and American Made plays the lead character – and for most of the trailer, it looks like Dogman is...
According to Deadline, Dogman is described as being the incredible story of a child, bruised by life, who finds his salvation through the love of his dogs. The Dogman himself is said to be “a fragile yet resilient protagonist who bends societal rules as he makes his own way.”
Caleb Landry Jones of Nitram, Get Out, and American Made plays the lead character – and for most of the trailer, it looks like Dogman is...
- 7/10/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
The hottest film event of the summer is fast approaching! That’s right, folks! Two film industry titans, Barbie and Oppenheimer, will soon battle it out for box office supremacy! Before you bet on who wins the top spot on the charts, see what analysts predict for the July 21-23 weekend.
Tracking for both films is interesting, to say the least. Great Gerwig‘s Barbie could open to a peppy $70 million-$80 million, with an opportunity to make more. Warner Bros, who’s licking its wounds after The Flash underperformed, is holding out for $60M, just to be cautious.
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie introduces several Barbie and Ken variants, each with a different personality, background, and status in a bizarre world of partying, shopping, beachside brawls, and feeble attempts at flirtation. The footage piles on the strange as Barbie and Ken seemingly travel to the real world, where everything becomes more unhinged than it was before.
Tracking for both films is interesting, to say the least. Great Gerwig‘s Barbie could open to a peppy $70 million-$80 million, with an opportunity to make more. Warner Bros, who’s licking its wounds after The Flash underperformed, is holding out for $60M, just to be cautious.
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie introduces several Barbie and Ken variants, each with a different personality, background, and status in a bizarre world of partying, shopping, beachside brawls, and feeble attempts at flirtation. The footage piles on the strange as Barbie and Ken seemingly travel to the real world, where everything becomes more unhinged than it was before.
- 6/29/2023
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Stars: Sasha Luss, Isabelle Fuhrman, Wallis Day, Skai Jackson, Jack Kesy | Written and Directed by Jordan Gertner
Sheroes, the writing and directing debut of producer Jordan Gertner begins with a look into the lives of its four leads Diamond, Ezra, Ryder and Daisy.
Their lives are so hard that all of them end up exclaiming “This is such fucking bullshit” at the misery of private yoga lessons by the pool, selling art in an upscale gallery, being an actress or a professional skateboarder. You really feel bad for these poor young ladies and totally understand their need to jump on Diamond’s father’s private jet and fly to his villa in Thailand for a booze and drug-fueled vacation.
Complications and cliches ensue when one of their suitcases is accidentally switched with one full of cocaine. Which they proceed to snort the hell out of only to wake up the...
Sheroes, the writing and directing debut of producer Jordan Gertner begins with a look into the lives of its four leads Diamond, Ezra, Ryder and Daisy.
Their lives are so hard that all of them end up exclaiming “This is such fucking bullshit” at the misery of private yoga lessons by the pool, selling art in an upscale gallery, being an actress or a professional skateboarder. You really feel bad for these poor young ladies and totally understand their need to jump on Diamond’s father’s private jet and fly to his villa in Thailand for a booze and drug-fueled vacation.
Complications and cliches ensue when one of their suitcases is accidentally switched with one full of cocaine. Which they proceed to snort the hell out of only to wake up the...
- 6/29/2023
- by Jim Morazzini
- Nerdly
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, this summer’s Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it. Sounds pretty intense, yeah? Well according to Nolan himself in a new chat with Wired, it’s “kind of a horror movie.”
“Some people leave the movie absolutely devastated,” Nolan tells the outlet. “They can’t speak. I mean, there’s an element of fear that’s there in the history and there in the underpinnings. But the love of the characters, the love of the relationships, is as strong as I’ve ever done.”
Nolan continues…
“It is an intense experience, because it’s an intense story. I showed Oppenheimer to a filmmaker recently who said it’s kind of a horror movie. I don’t disagree.”
Oppenheimer opens in theaters nationwide July 21 from Universal Pictures.
“Some people leave the movie absolutely devastated,” Nolan tells the outlet. “They can’t speak. I mean, there’s an element of fear that’s there in the history and there in the underpinnings. But the love of the characters, the love of the relationships, is as strong as I’ve ever done.”
Nolan continues…
“It is an intense experience, because it’s an intense story. I showed Oppenheimer to a filmmaker recently who said it’s kind of a horror movie. I don’t disagree.”
Oppenheimer opens in theaters nationwide July 21 from Universal Pictures.
- 6/26/2023
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Luc Besson — the French filmmaker behind The Professional, The Fifth Element, and La Femme Nikita — has been cleared of all charges in the alleged rape of actress Sand Van Roy.
According to legal documents acquired by Rolling Stone, the ruling came Wednesday via the French high court the Cour de Cassation, who declared that “after examining the admissibility of the appeal and the files from the instruction, the Cour de Cassation has determined that there doesn’t exist, at present, any means to allow for the admission of the appeal.
According to legal documents acquired by Rolling Stone, the ruling came Wednesday via the French high court the Cour de Cassation, who declared that “after examining the admissibility of the appeal and the files from the instruction, the Cour de Cassation has determined that there doesn’t exist, at present, any means to allow for the admission of the appeal.
- 6/21/2023
- by Brenna Ehrlich
- Rollingstone.com
Luc Besson has been cleared of rape accusations leveled by an actress with whom he had an intimate relationship after a French court rejected her final appeals.
“This decision confirms the dismissal in favor of Luc Besson and confirms all the decisions of the last five years which have found him not guilty,” his lawyer, Thierry Marembert, said in a statement to TheWrap.
A French court initially dismissed the accusation in 2019. Marembert said the latest decision, from France’s highest appeals court, finally puts the matter to rest.
“It therefore puts a definitive end to this procedure initiated in 2018, during which Luc Besson was systematically cleared by all the magistrates who examined the case,” the statement said. “As a lawyer, I welcome this exemplary procedure, which has allowed the manifestation of the truth which is that Luc Besson is innocent.”
The Paris court rejected an appeal filed by Belgian-Dutch actress Sand Van Roy,...
“This decision confirms the dismissal in favor of Luc Besson and confirms all the decisions of the last five years which have found him not guilty,” his lawyer, Thierry Marembert, said in a statement to TheWrap.
A French court initially dismissed the accusation in 2019. Marembert said the latest decision, from France’s highest appeals court, finally puts the matter to rest.
“It therefore puts a definitive end to this procedure initiated in 2018, during which Luc Besson was systematically cleared by all the magistrates who examined the case,” the statement said. “As a lawyer, I welcome this exemplary procedure, which has allowed the manifestation of the truth which is that Luc Besson is innocent.”
The Paris court rejected an appeal filed by Belgian-Dutch actress Sand Van Roy,...
- 6/21/2023
- by Josh Dickey
- The Wrap
Luc Besson has been cleared of all rape charges from a 2018 case involving actress Sand Van Roy.
The “Léon, the Professional” director was accused of raping the Dutch-Belgian actress multiple times over the course of two years. The Van Roy case against Besson was dismissed in 2021 after an investigation, but the legal charges are now officially dropped by the highest court in France as of June 21, 2023.
“This decision confirms the dismissal in favor of Luc Besson and confirms all the decisions of the last five years which have found him not guilty,” Besson’s attorney Thierry Marambert said in a statement to IndieWire. “It therefore puts a definitive end to this procedure initiated in 2018, during which Luc Besson was systematically cleared by all the magistrates who examined the case. As a lawyer, I welcome this exemplary procedure, which has allowed the manifestation of the truth which is that Luc Besson is innocent.
The “Léon, the Professional” director was accused of raping the Dutch-Belgian actress multiple times over the course of two years. The Van Roy case against Besson was dismissed in 2021 after an investigation, but the legal charges are now officially dropped by the highest court in France as of June 21, 2023.
“This decision confirms the dismissal in favor of Luc Besson and confirms all the decisions of the last five years which have found him not guilty,” Besson’s attorney Thierry Marambert said in a statement to IndieWire. “It therefore puts a definitive end to this procedure initiated in 2018, during which Luc Besson was systematically cleared by all the magistrates who examined the case. As a lawyer, I welcome this exemplary procedure, which has allowed the manifestation of the truth which is that Luc Besson is innocent.
- 6/21/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
France’s highest appeals court, the court of cassation, on Wednesday dismissed rape accusations leveled at director and producer Luc Besson (Lucy, The Fifth Element) by Belgian-Dutch actress Sand Van Roy.
The Paris court rejected an appeal lodged by Von Roy after her initial claimant alleging she had been sexually assaulted by Besson was dismissed in 2021. In May 2018, Van Roy alleged she had been raped by Besson at the Le Bristol luxury hotel in Paris. The Belgian-Dutch actress has had small roles in Besson’s Taxi 5 and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, and had been in an intimate relationship with the director for two years.
In a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter, Besson’s lawyer, Thierry Marembert said the ruling “confirms the dismissal in favor of Luc Besson and confirms all the decisions of the last five years which have found him not guilty. It...
The Paris court rejected an appeal lodged by Von Roy after her initial claimant alleging she had been sexually assaulted by Besson was dismissed in 2021. In May 2018, Van Roy alleged she had been raped by Besson at the Le Bristol luxury hotel in Paris. The Belgian-Dutch actress has had small roles in Besson’s Taxi 5 and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, and had been in an intimate relationship with the director for two years.
In a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter, Besson’s lawyer, Thierry Marembert said the ruling “confirms the dismissal in favor of Luc Besson and confirms all the decisions of the last five years which have found him not guilty. It...
- 6/21/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
French filmmaker Luc Besson has been definitively cleared of all charges in the rape case involving the Belgian-Dutch female actor Sand Van Roy.
The ruling was issued on Wednesday (June 21) by the Cour de Cassation, the French equivalent to the Supreme Court. The court document, obtained by Variety, says that “after examining the admissibility of the appeal and the files from the instruction, the Cour de Cassation has determined that there doesn’t exist, at present, any means to allow for the admission of the appeal.” As part of the ruling, Van Roy has been ordered to pay Besson €2,500.
It marks the fourth and final judicial instruction in this case. The legal battle started with Van Roy’s police complaints filed in May and July 2018. The case was dismissed by the Paris prosecutor after a nine-month investigation in February 2019, citing a lack of evidence. Van Roy then filed a civil...
The ruling was issued on Wednesday (June 21) by the Cour de Cassation, the French equivalent to the Supreme Court. The court document, obtained by Variety, says that “after examining the admissibility of the appeal and the files from the instruction, the Cour de Cassation has determined that there doesn’t exist, at present, any means to allow for the admission of the appeal.” As part of the ruling, Van Roy has been ordered to pay Besson €2,500.
It marks the fourth and final judicial instruction in this case. The legal battle started with Van Roy’s police complaints filed in May and July 2018. The case was dismissed by the Paris prosecutor after a nine-month investigation in February 2019, citing a lack of evidence. Van Roy then filed a civil...
- 6/21/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Universal Pictures has launched a new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s IMAX®– shot epic thriller ‘Oppenheimer.’
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, the film thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
Oppenheimer also stars Oscar® winner Rami Malek and reunites Nolan with eight-time Oscar® nominated actor, writer and filmmaker Kenneth Branagh.
The cast includes...
Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, the film thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
Academy Award® nominee Florence Pugh plays psychiatrist Jean Tatlock, Benny Safdie plays theoretical physicist Edward Teller, Michael Angarano plays Robert Serber and Josh Hartnett plays pioneering American nuclear scientist Ernest Lawrence.
Oppenheimer also stars Oscar® winner Rami Malek and reunites Nolan with eight-time Oscar® nominated actor, writer and filmmaker Kenneth Branagh.
The cast includes...
- 5/9/2023
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
If you got to see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 over this past weekend, you might have gotten to see the new Oppenheimer trailer. The forever supporter of the cinema-going experience, Christopher Nolan, will usually unveil sneak peeks of his films at screenings before they show up online. Last night, the newest trailer for the world-changing event film dropped courtesy of Universal and builds the tension to a new world order as the titular character dedicates his life to one of the greatest regrets the world has ever known.
The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. It features an all-star cast that stars Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey, Jr., Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Florence Pugh, Benny Safdie, Michael Angarano, Josh Hartnett and Kenneth Branagh. The cast also...
The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. It features an all-star cast that stars Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey, Jr., Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Florence Pugh, Benny Safdie, Michael Angarano, Josh Hartnett and Kenneth Branagh. The cast also...
- 5/8/2023
- by EJ Tangonan
- JoBlo.com
Rihanna will star as Smurfette in an upcoming untitled Smurfs animated movie from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies, the artist announced at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 27th.
In addition to the voice role, Rihanna will write and perform original music for the film, which she will also produce. “I tried to get the Papa Smurf role, but it didn’t work out,” she joked on stage (via Variety).
Not much else is known about the movie besides its release date of February 14th, 2025. However, Paramount Animation head Ramsey Naito said it will explore themes of identity and ask the central question, “What is a Smurf?”
The Chris Miller-directed movie is based on Belgian artist Peyo’s comic books and will be co-directed by Matt Landon. Pam Brady wrote the script. Besides Rihanna, Jay Brown, Tyran “Ty-Ty” Smith, and Ryan Harris will serve as producers.
Rihanna previously lent her voice...
In addition to the voice role, Rihanna will write and perform original music for the film, which she will also produce. “I tried to get the Papa Smurf role, but it didn’t work out,” she joked on stage (via Variety).
Not much else is known about the movie besides its release date of February 14th, 2025. However, Paramount Animation head Ramsey Naito said it will explore themes of identity and ask the central question, “What is a Smurf?”
The Chris Miller-directed movie is based on Belgian artist Peyo’s comic books and will be co-directed by Matt Landon. Pam Brady wrote the script. Besides Rihanna, Jay Brown, Tyran “Ty-Ty” Smith, and Ryan Harris will serve as producers.
Rihanna previously lent her voice...
- 4/27/2023
- by Eddie Fu
- Consequence - Film News
Rihanna will star as Smurfette in an upcoming untitled Smurfs animated movie from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies, the artist announced at CinemaCon on Thursday, April 27th.
In addition to the voice role, Rihanna will write and perform original music for the film, which she will also produce. “I tried to get the Papa Smurf role, but it didn’t work out,” she joked on stage (via Variety).
Not much else is known about the movie besides its release date of February 14th, 2025. However, Paramount Animation head Ramsey Naito said it will explore themes of identity and ask the central question, “What is a Smurf?”
The Chris Miller-directed movie is based on Belgian artist Peyo’s comic books and will be co-directed by Matt Landon. Pam Brady wrote the script. Besides Rihanna, Jay Brown, Tyran “Ty-Ty” Smith, and Ryan Harris will serve as producers.
Rihanna previously lent her voice...
In addition to the voice role, Rihanna will write and perform original music for the film, which she will also produce. “I tried to get the Papa Smurf role, but it didn’t work out,” she joked on stage (via Variety).
Not much else is known about the movie besides its release date of February 14th, 2025. However, Paramount Animation head Ramsey Naito said it will explore themes of identity and ask the central question, “What is a Smurf?”
The Chris Miller-directed movie is based on Belgian artist Peyo’s comic books and will be co-directed by Matt Landon. Pam Brady wrote the script. Besides Rihanna, Jay Brown, Tyran “Ty-Ty” Smith, and Ryan Harris will serve as producers.
Rihanna previously lent her voice...
- 4/27/2023
- by Eddie Fu
- Consequence - Music
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