CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus expects to step down from his post in April of 2024, and will be replaced by David Berson, the president of the unit. McManus will wind up a tenure that had him overseeing some of the most prized sports properties in TV, as well as CBS News for a brief period.
“This is the best time to make the transition,” says McManus in an interview, noting that Berson has been in his role as president for about a decade and that CBS Sports’ rights portfolio is locked in for another ten years. “I think everyone feels really good about it and everyone feels really good about David taking it over.” McManus will get to preside over a unique Super Bowl experience — the company plans to have Nickelodeon offer a kids’ version of the CBS broadcast of Super Bowl Lviii — and one more Masters before stepping down permanently.
“This is the best time to make the transition,” says McManus in an interview, noting that Berson has been in his role as president for about a decade and that CBS Sports’ rights portfolio is locked in for another ten years. “I think everyone feels really good about it and everyone feels really good about David taking it over.” McManus will get to preside over a unique Super Bowl experience — the company plans to have Nickelodeon offer a kids’ version of the CBS broadcast of Super Bowl Lviii — and one more Masters before stepping down permanently.
- 9/26/2023
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel has amassed three dozen Sports Emmys during its 29 seasons, and now its host is getting the career treatment. The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences said today that Bryant Gumbel with receive the 2023 Sports Emmys Lifetime Achievement.
He will be honored at the 44th annual Sports Emmy Awards ceremony on May 22 at Rose Hall in New York.
Related Story 2023 Awards Season Calendar – Dates For Festivals, Emmys & More Related Story Royal Blackman Dies: Former NATAS President & Longtime Entertainment Lawyer Was 99 Related Story Technology & Engineering Emmy Winners Revealed
“Bryant has a storied career, from his start as a sportscaster in Los Angeles to five decades of celebrated work — every bit cementing him as an icon and trailblazer in sports and entertainment,” said Adam Sharp, President & CEO of NATAS. “Bryant‘s incredible resume spanning Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, NBC Sports, NBC News, CBS News, PBS and many...
He will be honored at the 44th annual Sports Emmy Awards ceremony on May 22 at Rose Hall in New York.
Related Story 2023 Awards Season Calendar – Dates For Festivals, Emmys & More Related Story Royal Blackman Dies: Former NATAS President & Longtime Entertainment Lawyer Was 99 Related Story Technology & Engineering Emmy Winners Revealed
“Bryant has a storied career, from his start as a sportscaster in Los Angeles to five decades of celebrated work — every bit cementing him as an icon and trailblazer in sports and entertainment,” said Adam Sharp, President & CEO of NATAS. “Bryant‘s incredible resume spanning Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, NBC Sports, NBC News, CBS News, PBS and many...
- 3/28/2023
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Sports journalist and former “Today” show anchor Bryant Gumbel has been selected to receive a Lifetime Achievement award at the 44th Annual Sports Emmy Awards. The event takes place on Monday, May 22, at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Hall in New York.
The honor was announced Tuesday morning by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which administers the Sports Emmys.
“Bryant has a storied career, from his start as a sportscaster in Los Angeles to five decades of celebrated work — every bit cementing him as an icon and trailblazer in sports and entertainment,” said NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp. “Bryant‘s incredible resume spanning ‘Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,’ NBC Sports, NBC News, CBS News, and many other projects has brought dramatic and human news and sports stories to life for audiences throughout his career making him a clear front runner for this distinct honor.”
Gumbel is...
The honor was announced Tuesday morning by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which administers the Sports Emmys.
“Bryant has a storied career, from his start as a sportscaster in Los Angeles to five decades of celebrated work — every bit cementing him as an icon and trailblazer in sports and entertainment,” said NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp. “Bryant‘s incredible resume spanning ‘Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,’ NBC Sports, NBC News, CBS News, and many other projects has brought dramatic and human news and sports stories to life for audiences throughout his career making him a clear front runner for this distinct honor.”
Gumbel is...
- 3/28/2023
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced today that award-winning journalist Bryant Gumbel will be honored with the lifetime achievement award at the 44th annual Sports Emmy Awards ceremony, which will be held at Lincoln Center’s Rose Hall in New York City on May 22.
“I’m humbled by this announcement and grateful to the folks at NATAS for this prestigious award,” said Gumbel in a statement. “After 50 years in the business, sharing the same honor with men like Jim McKay, Howard Cosell and Vin Scully is heady stuff indeed.”
“Bryant has a storied career, from his start as a sportscaster in Los Angeles to five decades of celebrated work — every bit cementing him as an icon and trailblazer in sports and entertainment,” said Adam Sharp, President & CEO of NATAS. “Bryant‘s incredible resume spanning Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, NBC Sports, NBC News, CBS News and many other...
“I’m humbled by this announcement and grateful to the folks at NATAS for this prestigious award,” said Gumbel in a statement. “After 50 years in the business, sharing the same honor with men like Jim McKay, Howard Cosell and Vin Scully is heady stuff indeed.”
“Bryant has a storied career, from his start as a sportscaster in Los Angeles to five decades of celebrated work — every bit cementing him as an icon and trailblazer in sports and entertainment,” said Adam Sharp, President & CEO of NATAS. “Bryant‘s incredible resume spanning Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, NBC Sports, NBC News, CBS News and many other...
- 3/28/2023
- by Tyler Coates
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The 75th annual Directors Guild of America Awards will announce nominations for the television categories Tuesday, January 10. Voting opened December 9 and runs through Friday, January 6. Awards will be given out Saturday, February 18 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, CA. For more on the film ceremony, head to IndieWire’s Awards Calendar.
With DGA voting underway, clear frontrunners emerge. There are past nominees whose work on ongoing series merits recognition once more, like Bill Hader with “Barry,” Lucia Aniello for “Hacks,” or Donald Glover with “Atlanta”. Then there are directors whose most recent work on new programs has already been honored elsewhere and is likely to be honored again at the DGAs. Popular series like “Abbott Elementary” and “The Bear” will likely earn deserved nominations, as well, but there are more names to consider — names that don’t have a clear peg for awards consideration, whether that’s because...
With DGA voting underway, clear frontrunners emerge. There are past nominees whose work on ongoing series merits recognition once more, like Bill Hader with “Barry,” Lucia Aniello for “Hacks,” or Donald Glover with “Atlanta”. Then there are directors whose most recent work on new programs has already been honored elsewhere and is likely to be honored again at the DGAs. Popular series like “Abbott Elementary” and “The Bear” will likely earn deserved nominations, as well, but there are more names to consider — names that don’t have a clear peg for awards consideration, whether that’s because...
- 1/5/2023
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Verve has made several key promotions this week across the motion picture and television literary teams with Partners Felicia Prinz and Chris Noriega being upped to Co-Heads overseeing the Television Literary Team, Parker Davis and Liz Parker will assume the Co-Head mantle of the Motion Picture Literary Team, and Tyler Reynolds has been promoted to head the Television Director Team. Reynolds will report to Prinz and Noriega. In these newly created positions, Prinz, Noriega, Davis, Parker, and Reynolds will be responsible for the day-to-day management of their respective teams while working alongside the Partnership to streamline decision making, communication and to provide strategic support.
“As Verve continues to scale, we realize that empowering our valuable colleagues is the best way to maintain our unique work culture while providing the best creative representation in the business,” said the Partnership. “Felicia, Chris, Parker, Liz, and Tyler are highly respected by their colleagues,...
“As Verve continues to scale, we realize that empowering our valuable colleagues is the best way to maintain our unique work culture while providing the best creative representation in the business,” said the Partnership. “Felicia, Chris, Parker, Liz, and Tyler are highly respected by their colleagues,...
- 9/22/2022
- by Justin Kroll
- Deadline Film + TV
Dick Ebersol is one of the seminal figures in the past 50 years of broadcast television. He helped create “Saturday Night Live.” He hired Brandon Tartikoff, genius programmer and innovator, to revive NBC’s primetime fortunes. As president of NBC Sports, he oversaw the network’s Olympic strategy for many years. “Sunday Night Football” was his idea.
Ebersol recounts the high (and sometimes low) points of his career in television in a new autobiography, “From Saturday Night to Sunday Night: My Forty Years of Laughter, Tears and Touchdowns in TV,” published this week by Simon & Schuster.
While all of the great moments in his career were at NBC, Ebersol, now 75, started as a researcher at ABC Sports in 1967. Legendary ABC Sports chief Roone Arledge, Ebersol tells Variety, “was the most important figure in my life,” and the executive who eventually took on Ebersol as a trusted associate.
It was also...
Ebersol recounts the high (and sometimes low) points of his career in television in a new autobiography, “From Saturday Night to Sunday Night: My Forty Years of Laughter, Tears and Touchdowns in TV,” published this week by Simon & Schuster.
While all of the great moments in his career were at NBC, Ebersol, now 75, started as a researcher at ABC Sports in 1967. Legendary ABC Sports chief Roone Arledge, Ebersol tells Variety, “was the most important figure in my life,” and the executive who eventually took on Ebersol as a trusted associate.
It was also...
- 9/17/2022
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
The Foundation of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) announced $90K in scholarships to seven college-bound high school students pursuing careers in television.
“This year’s scholarship recipients had a lot in common. They showed tremendous creativity, sterling accomplishments and a never-give-up resiliency during these challenging times,” said Doug Mummert, Chair, Foundation (NATAS).“We are very proud of all our applicants and recipients and especially for the generosity of our donors who support these students on their paths to doing great things in the future of our television industry.”
“The judges were highly impressed with the creativity of our student applicants this year, many of whom faced the additional challenges of interrupted school experiences and limited access to resources that would normally be available to them pre-pandemic,” said Melinda Roeder, Chair, Scholarship Committee (NATAS). “Members of the NATAS Scholarship Committee are pleased that our organization continues to recognize...
“This year’s scholarship recipients had a lot in common. They showed tremendous creativity, sterling accomplishments and a never-give-up resiliency during these challenging times,” said Doug Mummert, Chair, Foundation (NATAS).“We are very proud of all our applicants and recipients and especially for the generosity of our donors who support these students on their paths to doing great things in the future of our television industry.”
“The judges were highly impressed with the creativity of our student applicants this year, many of whom faced the additional challenges of interrupted school experiences and limited access to resources that would normally be available to them pre-pandemic,” said Melinda Roeder, Chair, Scholarship Committee (NATAS). “Members of the NATAS Scholarship Committee are pleased that our organization continues to recognize...
- 8/14/2022
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Editor’s Note: This review contains spoilers for “Black Bird” Season 1, Episode 4, “WhatsHerName.”
Last week’s episode was all about bringing our protagonist, Jimmy (Taron Egerton), and possible serial killer, Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser), together. The walls were starting to crumble, and progress was being made. But would Jimmy be able to get a confession from Larry in time, let alone with the knowledge that a prison guard wanted 10,000 from Jimmy or was threatening to blow his cover?
Weirdly enough the episode decides to table that 10,000 for another day, with the guard acting as if he’s willing to give Jimmy a pass. No doubt this could easily pop up in a subsequent episode, but considering the impact it had last week it’s jarring to have it fizzle out completely here. Instead, we’re traveling back to Wabash, Indiana and Kankakee, Illinois in the 1970s to meet the younger,...
Last week’s episode was all about bringing our protagonist, Jimmy (Taron Egerton), and possible serial killer, Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser), together. The walls were starting to crumble, and progress was being made. But would Jimmy be able to get a confession from Larry in time, let alone with the knowledge that a prison guard wanted 10,000 from Jimmy or was threatening to blow his cover?
Weirdly enough the episode decides to table that 10,000 for another day, with the guard acting as if he’s willing to give Jimmy a pass. No doubt this could easily pop up in a subsequent episode, but considering the impact it had last week it’s jarring to have it fizzle out completely here. Instead, we’re traveling back to Wabash, Indiana and Kankakee, Illinois in the 1970s to meet the younger,...
- 7/22/2022
- by Kristen Lopez
- Indiewire
Black Bird WhatsHerName Plot Synopsis and Air Date — Apple TV+‘s Black Bird: Season 1, Episode 4: WhatsHerName plot synopsis and air date have been released. Crew Black Bird stars Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Ray Liotta, Greg Kinnear, Sepideh Moafi, and Robert Diago DoQui. Michaël R. Roskam, Joe Chappelle, and Jim McKay directed the episodes [...]
Continue reading: Black Bird: Season 1, Episode 4: WhatsHerName Plot Synopsis & Air Date [Apple TV+]...
Continue reading: Black Bird: Season 1, Episode 4: WhatsHerName Plot Synopsis & Air Date [Apple TV+]...
- 7/21/2022
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
Life is a series of trials and errors — where, if you’re lucky, you can follow your passions from one interest to the next until you’ve amassed a wealth of experiences. Dennis Lehane, an award-winning novelist, playwright, producer, and screenwriter, has done just that, carving out an enviable career across a wide swath of the entertainment industry. His novels have been adapted into movies; his movies have gone on to critical acclaim; his TV work elevated some of this century’s best shows.
But for years, the next item on Lehane’s to-do list was showrunning. The writer behind episodes of “The Wire” and “Boardwalk Empire” had tried, multiple times, to develop and run his own series, but greater forces kept his dream at a distance.
Now, with the Apple TV+ six-part limited series “Black Bird,” Lehane can add that key credit to his resume — and better yet, even as a first-time showrunner,...
But for years, the next item on Lehane’s to-do list was showrunning. The writer behind episodes of “The Wire” and “Boardwalk Empire” had tried, multiple times, to develop and run his own series, but greater forces kept his dream at a distance.
Now, with the Apple TV+ six-part limited series “Black Bird,” Lehane can add that key credit to his resume — and better yet, even as a first-time showrunner,...
- 7/8/2022
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Click here to read the full article.
Disclaimer: No matter what you may have gathered from film and television, given the opportunity to sit down in a sterile room opposite a manacled serial killer, chances are very poor that you would be able to get him to share intimate details about his crimes and subtextual lessons about life.
Just because you see things done in scripted form doesn’t mean you can execute them in real life, and just because something was done in real life doesn’t mean it’s going to be transferred believably into scripted form. Oh, and just because something real isn’t transferred believably into scripted form doesn’t necessarily mean the result will be bad.
Dennis Lehane’s new six-part drama, Black Bird, is based on James Keene’s memoir In With the Devil: A Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption.
Disclaimer: No matter what you may have gathered from film and television, given the opportunity to sit down in a sterile room opposite a manacled serial killer, chances are very poor that you would be able to get him to share intimate details about his crimes and subtextual lessons about life.
Just because you see things done in scripted form doesn’t mean you can execute them in real life, and just because something was done in real life doesn’t mean it’s going to be transferred believably into scripted form. Oh, and just because something real isn’t transferred believably into scripted form doesn’t necessarily mean the result will be bad.
Dennis Lehane’s new six-part drama, Black Bird, is based on James Keene’s memoir In With the Devil: A Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption.
- 7/7/2022
- by Daniel Fienberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
True Crime has become one of the hottest tickets on TV.
Whether a movie, docuseries, or scripted show, the lure of our darker side persists.
Dennis Lehane is a master of our darker side. As an author and filmmaker, his work looks into what drives people to darkness and how they come back from it.
Lehane's work on the page and screen meld beautifully with Black Bird, an adaptation of In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene.
Jimmy Keene is a successful drug dealer living a lavish lifestyle. He came from humble beginnings, but Jimmy is anything but humble himself. His friends still watch his high school football tapes, and Jimmy relishes the lavish praise and attention he receives.
Larry Hall's beginning was a little less stellar. He, too, came from humble beginnings, and whether it was...
Whether a movie, docuseries, or scripted show, the lure of our darker side persists.
Dennis Lehane is a master of our darker side. As an author and filmmaker, his work looks into what drives people to darkness and how they come back from it.
Lehane's work on the page and screen meld beautifully with Black Bird, an adaptation of In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene.
Jimmy Keene is a successful drug dealer living a lavish lifestyle. He came from humble beginnings, but Jimmy is anything but humble himself. His friends still watch his high school football tapes, and Jimmy relishes the lavish praise and attention he receives.
Larry Hall's beginning was a little less stellar. He, too, came from humble beginnings, and whether it was...
- 7/7/2022
- by Carissa Pavlica
- TVfanatic
Black Bird Trailer — Apple TV+‘s Black Bird (2022) movie trailer has been released. The Black Bird trailer stars Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Ray Liotta, Greg Kinnear, Sepideh Moafi, and Robert Diago DoQui. Crew Michaël R. Roskam, Joe Chappelle, and Jim McKay directed the episodes of Black Bird. Dennis Lehane wrote the screenplay for [...]
Continue reading: Black Bird (2022) TV Show Trailer: Taron Egerton Tries to Elicit a Confession from Killer Paul Walter Hauser...
Continue reading: Black Bird (2022) TV Show Trailer: Taron Egerton Tries to Elicit a Confession from Killer Paul Walter Hauser...
- 6/9/2022
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
Apple TV+ has debuted a trailer for “Black Bird,” the streamer’s upcoming psychological thriller limited series starring Taron Egerton and Ray Liotta. The project is set to premiere on July 8.
The six-episode series follows Jimmy Keene (Egerton), a high school football hero and the son of decorated policeman “Big Jim” (Liotta), who is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison. He is given the choice of a lifetime: enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser) or stay where he is and serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole. “Black Bird” is based on the 2010 true crime memoir “In With the Devil.”
“I never wanted this for you,” Liotta says in the trailer as Big Jim, visiting Keene in prison. “I wanted a totally different life. A steady paycheck. Kids. A family.”
“Dad. Tell me there...
The six-episode series follows Jimmy Keene (Egerton), a high school football hero and the son of decorated policeman “Big Jim” (Liotta), who is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison. He is given the choice of a lifetime: enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser) or stay where he is and serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole. “Black Bird” is based on the 2010 true crime memoir “In With the Devil.”
“I never wanted this for you,” Liotta says in the trailer as Big Jim, visiting Keene in prison. “I wanted a totally different life. A steady paycheck. Kids. A family.”
“Dad. Tell me there...
- 6/8/2022
- by Selome Hailu
- Variety Film + TV
Apple on Wednesday unveiled the trailer for Black Bird, its six-episode original limited series from executive producer Dennis Lehane. The psychological thriller is set to debut globally Apple TV+ on July 8.
Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Greg Kinnear, Sepideh Moafi and Ray Liotta star in the Apple Studios-produced series, which was adapted from the true crime memoir In With the Devil: A Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene and Hillel Levin.
The series represents the last TV work of Liotta, the Goodfellas and Field of Dreams star who died May 26 at age 67. Lehane, the true crime author behind the likes of Mystic River and Live By Night and who developed, wrote and EPs Black Bird, penned a moving tribute to Liotta after the actor died in his sleep while shooting a film on location in the Dominican Republic. The author called...
Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Greg Kinnear, Sepideh Moafi and Ray Liotta star in the Apple Studios-produced series, which was adapted from the true crime memoir In With the Devil: A Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene and Hillel Levin.
The series represents the last TV work of Liotta, the Goodfellas and Field of Dreams star who died May 26 at age 67. Lehane, the true crime author behind the likes of Mystic River and Live By Night and who developed, wrote and EPs Black Bird, penned a moving tribute to Liotta after the actor died in his sleep while shooting a film on location in the Dominican Republic. The author called...
- 6/8/2022
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Taron Egerton is going deep undercover as a snitch in maximum security prison to entice a confession out of a suspected serial killer in a bid for his own early release in the trailer for “Black Bird.”
The Apple TV+ series, which debuts with two episodes on July 8, finds Egerton playing Jimmy Keene, a decorated policeman’s son (Ray Liotta), who is sentenced to 10 years behind bars. But, with the authorities needing help in solving a series of gruesome murders, and suspect Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser) in supermax, Keene is offered the opportunity to go to the prison for the criminally insane, and elicit a confession.
Things get hairy for Egerton’s Keene as the trailer shows, as he deals with violence, the mentally ill and solitary confinement.
New episodes of the six-episode psychological thriller will drop every Friday though August 5.
Also Read:
Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser...
The Apple TV+ series, which debuts with two episodes on July 8, finds Egerton playing Jimmy Keene, a decorated policeman’s son (Ray Liotta), who is sentenced to 10 years behind bars. But, with the authorities needing help in solving a series of gruesome murders, and suspect Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser) in supermax, Keene is offered the opportunity to go to the prison for the criminally insane, and elicit a confession.
Things get hairy for Egerton’s Keene as the trailer shows, as he deals with violence, the mentally ill and solitary confinement.
New episodes of the six-episode psychological thriller will drop every Friday though August 5.
Also Read:
Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser...
- 6/8/2022
- by Jolie Lash
- The Wrap
Ray Liotta had recently wrapped shooting Apple’s upcoming series Black Bird, his final completed television series, shortly before his death. In a heartfelt remembrance Thursday, series creator Dennis Lehane fondly remembered Liotta as “the most electric American actor of his generation.” Lehane revealed that it “was the culmination of a lifelong dream” to work with Liotta and that he wrote the role of Big Jim Keene specifically for the Emmy-winning actor, describing his performance as a “master class.” Lehane also shares their funny and poignant interactions on set. You can read his entire tribute below.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
The upcoming limited series, set for premiere July 8 on Apple TV+, marked Liotta’s return to series television as a lead opposite Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser. An adaptation of James Keene and Hillel Levin’s true-crime memoir, In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer,...
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
The upcoming limited series, set for premiere July 8 on Apple TV+, marked Liotta’s return to series television as a lead opposite Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser. An adaptation of James Keene and Hillel Levin’s true-crime memoir, In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer,...
- 5/26/2022
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
“Black Bird,” a limited series starring Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser, will premiere on Apple TV Plus this July 8, the streamer announced Thursday.
Based on James Keene and Hillel Levin’s true crime memoir “In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption,” “Black Bird” stars Egerton as Keene, a police officer’s son who is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison for drug dealing. While serving his sentence, he is offered a chance for early parole, on the condition that he move to a prison for the criminally insane and befriend serial killer Larry Hall (Hauser). Keene reluctantly agrees to the unusual case, and develops a complicated relationship with Hall as he attempts to discover the truth behind the murders the convict is suspected of committing. In addition to Egerton and Hauser, the series also stars Sepideh Moafi, Greg Kinnear and Ray Liotta.
Based on James Keene and Hillel Levin’s true crime memoir “In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption,” “Black Bird” stars Egerton as Keene, a police officer’s son who is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison for drug dealing. While serving his sentence, he is offered a chance for early parole, on the condition that he move to a prison for the criminally insane and befriend serial killer Larry Hall (Hauser). Keene reluctantly agrees to the unusual case, and develops a complicated relationship with Hall as he attempts to discover the truth behind the murders the convict is suspected of committing. In addition to Egerton and Hauser, the series also stars Sepideh Moafi, Greg Kinnear and Ray Liotta.
- 3/31/2022
- by Wilson Chapman and Sasha Urban
- Variety Film + TV
Apple released two first-look photos on Thursday of Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser in the psychological thriller “Black Bird.”
The six-episode series, which is developed and executive produced by “Mystic River” author Dennis Lehane, will premiere the first two episodes globally on Friday, July 8, with a new episode available each Friday. It’s is adapted from the true crime memoir “In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption” by James Keene and Hillel Levin.
Egerton stars as Jimmy Keene, a high school football hero and decorated policeman’s son who’s convicted of dealing drugs. When he’s sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison, he is given a choice: enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Hauser), or serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole. Keene opts to try...
The six-episode series, which is developed and executive produced by “Mystic River” author Dennis Lehane, will premiere the first two episodes globally on Friday, July 8, with a new episode available each Friday. It’s is adapted from the true crime memoir “In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption” by James Keene and Hillel Levin.
Egerton stars as Jimmy Keene, a high school football hero and decorated policeman’s son who’s convicted of dealing drugs. When he’s sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison, he is given a choice: enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Hauser), or serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole. Keene opts to try...
- 3/31/2022
- by Sharon Knolle
- The Wrap
Exclusive: Inside Amy Schumer co-creator Daniel Powell and Alex Bach’s Irony Point production banner is expanding its relationship with Netflix as the streaming giant bolsters its comedy slate. The company has signed a multi-year production commitment overall deal with the streamer, with a first-look component for projects developed by Irony Point, encompassing stand-up comedy, sketch, variety, alternative formats and more. Irony Point co-Presidents Powell and Bach will serve as executive producers on all projects.
Netflix and Irony Point have previously partnered on series including I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, which launches its second season later this year, and specials such as Sarah Cooper: Everything’s Fine, among others. As part of the deal, Irony Point will render its production services for specials, series and various comedy formats for its own projects and select original Netflix productions in those genres. Ayesha Rokadia will continue to produce for Irony...
Netflix and Irony Point have previously partnered on series including I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, which launches its second season later this year, and specials such as Sarah Cooper: Everything’s Fine, among others. As part of the deal, Irony Point will render its production services for specials, series and various comedy formats for its own projects and select original Netflix productions in those genres. Ayesha Rokadia will continue to produce for Irony...
- 5/12/2021
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Verve talent agency is bolstering its roster with a number of high-level executive producers and directors from Dick Wolf’s camp, including Arthur Forney, Fred Berner, Reza Tabrizi, Jim McKay, Michael Pressman, as well as consultant Connie Rice. The additions follow Verve’s acquisition of Paul Alan Smith’s New Deal Mfg. Co. last month.
Forney has been an integral player in the Wolf Camp, overseeing all post-production. Since joining Wolf in 1990 with the launch of Law & Order, Forney has since been an executive producer on FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, Chicago P.D., Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, Law & Order: Svu, currently airing its 22nd season, and the recently debuted Law & Order: Organized Crime, starring Christopher Meloni, who returns as fan favorite Elliot Stabler.
Also joining Verve is Berner, who recently directed and executive produced the pilot of Law & Order: Organized Crime, which premiered last...
Forney has been an integral player in the Wolf Camp, overseeing all post-production. Since joining Wolf in 1990 with the launch of Law & Order, Forney has since been an executive producer on FBI, FBI: Most Wanted, Chicago P.D., Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, Law & Order: Svu, currently airing its 22nd season, and the recently debuted Law & Order: Organized Crime, starring Christopher Meloni, who returns as fan favorite Elliot Stabler.
Also joining Verve is Berner, who recently directed and executive produced the pilot of Law & Order: Organized Crime, which premiered last...
- 4/6/2021
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
If you read Heather Wixson's 4-star review or you listened to our Sundance episode of Corpse Club featuring director Natalie Erika James, then you know that we can't wait for Daily Dead readers to see her new horror film Relic. Before it comes to theaters and Digital/VOD on July 10th, IFC will release Relic in drive-in theaters early beginning July 3rd, just in time for the Fourth of July weekend:
Press Release: New York, NY: Ahead of its July 10th theatrical and Digital/VOD date, IFC Films is bringing Relic to drive-in theaters only as an advance week-run beginning July 3rd as studios delay new releases to later in the summer. With a current score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, Relic is one of the year’s most highly anticipated genre films of the Summer.
Recently heralded as one of Indiewire’s ‘20 Rising Women Directors You Need to Know...
Press Release: New York, NY: Ahead of its July 10th theatrical and Digital/VOD date, IFC Films is bringing Relic to drive-in theaters only as an advance week-run beginning July 3rd as studios delay new releases to later in the summer. With a current score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, Relic is one of the year’s most highly anticipated genre films of the Summer.
Recently heralded as one of Indiewire’s ‘20 Rising Women Directors You Need to Know...
- 6/18/2020
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
10 Great ‘Small’ Movies You Might Have Missed in the 2010s, From ‘Manakamana’ to ‘The Fits’ (Photos)
The films on this admittedly non-comprehensive list were not distributed by major studios, but by smaller specialty companies. They played for a couple of weeks (or less) in big cities, maybe even just one night in a museum. They weren’t on the multiplex radar at all. But to adventurous film audiences, they were a vital part of any discussion about cinema. They told complex stories ignored by major studios. The dug deeper into abstraction or discomfort. And they pushed at the edges of filmmaking practice in ways that will influence the mainstream in the future.
“Cemetery of Splendor” (2015)
A makeshift hospital on an ancient royal burial ground houses soldiers overcome with a mysterious sleeping sickness. Then they begin psychically communicating with the women who work there. Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s oblique, delicate story of historical memory and collective awakening that plays out like a dream.
“Did You Wonder Who Fired The Gun?...
“Cemetery of Splendor” (2015)
A makeshift hospital on an ancient royal burial ground houses soldiers overcome with a mysterious sleeping sickness. Then they begin psychically communicating with the women who work there. Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s oblique, delicate story of historical memory and collective awakening that plays out like a dream.
“Did You Wonder Who Fired The Gun?...
- 12/11/2019
- by Dave White
- The Wrap
Hey, "Evil" fans. We are back to deliver up to you guys the new set of spoiler teasers for the upcoming episode 7, which is due out next week. Thanks to CBS and their official episode 7 press release, we do have a main plotline teaser description for it, a title and a few other details. So, we're just going to get right into it. For starters, episode 7 has been officially named/titled, "Vatican III." It sounds like episode 7 will feature some very intense, intriguing and possible dramatic scenes. In the new episode 7, a female guest character named Bridget will have a very serious moment in tis episode. At some point, this Bridget lady is actually going to confess to killing someone during one of her exorcisms! In light of this very tragic revelation, recurring character Monsignor Korecki will enlist David, Kristen and Ben to investigate the details of Bridget's crazy story...
- 11/8/2019
- by Derek Smith
- OnTheFlix
Exclusive: Paul Alan Smith is revamping his ESArtists (Equitable Stewardship for Artists). A unique hybrid, operating as an agency and management company since its 2013 launch, ESArtists has been rebranded as Equitable Mgmt and will function solely as a management firm.
The company has expanded its leadership team as Smith and his partner Lee Rosenbaum are being joined by four newly minted partners: Tyler Reynolds, Neda Niroumand, Varun Monga and Sonia Gambaro. Each will have a stake/ownership in the company, and the six partners will have equal say in all decision making.
Smith, a veteran TV lit rep, decided to change the makeup of his company after taking a close look at the top ranks of Hollywood agencies and management companies and being struck by the lack of diversity, especially when it comes to women in leadership positions.
“My first step was to make my immediate colleagues my equals,” Smith said.
The company has expanded its leadership team as Smith and his partner Lee Rosenbaum are being joined by four newly minted partners: Tyler Reynolds, Neda Niroumand, Varun Monga and Sonia Gambaro. Each will have a stake/ownership in the company, and the six partners will have equal say in all decision making.
Smith, a veteran TV lit rep, decided to change the makeup of his company after taking a close look at the top ranks of Hollywood agencies and management companies and being struck by the lack of diversity, especially when it comes to women in leadership positions.
“My first step was to make my immediate colleagues my equals,” Smith said.
- 7/9/2019
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
From VancouverFilm.Net, here is the Vancouver Film Production Update for April 2019, including "Alive", "The Terror", "The Lost Boys" and a whole lot more:
Feature Film
Little Fish
Local Production Company: Little Fish Pictures Inc.
Director: Chad Hartigan
Producer: Chris Ferguson, Jesse Savath, Jj Dubois
Mar 11/19 - Apr 12/19
To All The Boys 2
Local Production Company: All The Boys Productions Inc.
Director: Susan Johnson
Producer: Chris Foss
Mar 25/19 - May 06/19
Windfall
Local Production Company: Windfallen Productions Ltd.
Apr 02/19 - May 17/19
TV Pilot
Chad
Local Production Company: Freshman Year Productions Inc.
Director: Rhys ThomaSMar 25/10 - Apr 2/19
Alive (Frankenstein)
Local Production Company: Vbc Pilot Productions Inc.
Director: Uta Briesewitz
Mar 19/19 - Apr 05/19
Next
Local Production Company: Next Television Productions Limited
Director: John Requa, Glenn Ficarra
Mar 26/19 - Apr 11/19
The Haunting Of Nancy Drew
Local Production Company: Vbc Pilot Productions Inc.
Director: Larry Teng
Producer: Grace Gilroy
Mar 25/19 - Apr 09/19
The Lost Boys
Local...
Feature Film
Little Fish
Local Production Company: Little Fish Pictures Inc.
Director: Chad Hartigan
Producer: Chris Ferguson, Jesse Savath, Jj Dubois
Mar 11/19 - Apr 12/19
To All The Boys 2
Local Production Company: All The Boys Productions Inc.
Director: Susan Johnson
Producer: Chris Foss
Mar 25/19 - May 06/19
Windfall
Local Production Company: Windfallen Productions Ltd.
Apr 02/19 - May 17/19
TV Pilot
Chad
Local Production Company: Freshman Year Productions Inc.
Director: Rhys ThomaSMar 25/10 - Apr 2/19
Alive (Frankenstein)
Local Production Company: Vbc Pilot Productions Inc.
Director: Uta Briesewitz
Mar 19/19 - Apr 05/19
Next
Local Production Company: Next Television Productions Limited
Director: John Requa, Glenn Ficarra
Mar 26/19 - Apr 11/19
The Haunting Of Nancy Drew
Local Production Company: Vbc Pilot Productions Inc.
Director: Larry Teng
Producer: Grace Gilroy
Mar 25/19 - Apr 09/19
The Lost Boys
Local...
- 3/29/2019
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
New York-based independent distributor Cinema Guild has snapped up North American rights to “The Wandering Soap Opera (“La Telenovela Errante”) by the late Chilean filmmaker, Raul Ruiz. The film screens at Guadalajara (Ficg) where Chile is the country guest of honor.
The company has also acquired U.S. distribution rights to topical documentary “I’m Leaving Now” (“Ya Me Voy”) by New York-based Mexican filmmakers Armando Croda and Lindsey Cordero.
“Wandering Soap Opera” debuted at Switzerland’s Locarno Festival and had its U.S. premiere at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, which held a retrospective of Ruiz’s work last year. It will open at the Anthology Film Archives on May 17 before expanding to theaters across the U.S.
“The opportunity to distribute another film by Raúl Ruiz is an unexpected gift and an opportunity we couldn’t pass up,” said Peter Kelly, distribution head of Cinema Guild, which...
The company has also acquired U.S. distribution rights to topical documentary “I’m Leaving Now” (“Ya Me Voy”) by New York-based Mexican filmmakers Armando Croda and Lindsey Cordero.
“Wandering Soap Opera” debuted at Switzerland’s Locarno Festival and had its U.S. premiere at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, which held a retrospective of Ruiz’s work last year. It will open at the Anthology Film Archives on May 17 before expanding to theaters across the U.S.
“The opportunity to distribute another film by Raúl Ruiz is an unexpected gift and an opportunity we couldn’t pass up,” said Peter Kelly, distribution head of Cinema Guild, which...
- 3/7/2019
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
From VancouverFilm.Net, here is the Vancouver Film Production Update for March 2019, including "Batwoman", "Frankenstein", "The Lost Boys" and a whole lot more:
Feature Film
Little Fish
Local Production Company: Little Fish Pictures Inc.
Director: Chad Hartigan
Producer: Chris Ferguson, Jesse Savath, Jj Dubois
Mar 11/19 - Apr 12/19
Playing With Fire
Local Production Company: Formula M Productions Inc.
Director: Andrew Fickman
Producer: Todd Garner, Sean Robins, Matt Dines
Feb 04/19 - Mar 29/19
The Boy II
Local Production Company: The Boy Film Productions Inc.
Director: William Brent Bell
Producer: Tom Rosenberg, Richard Wright, Gary Lucchesi
Jan 28/19 - Mar 08/19
To All The Boys 2
Local Production Company: All The Boys Productions Inc.
Director: Susan Johnson
Producer: Chris Foss
Mar 25/19 - May 06/19
TV Pilot
Batwoman
Local Production Company: Renraw Production Services Inc.
Director: Marcos Siega
Producer: Jae Marchant
Mar 04/19 - Mar 25/19
Frankenstein
Local Production Company: Vbc Pilot Productions Inc.
Director: Uta Briesewitz
Mar 19/19 - Apr 05/19
Next...
Feature Film
Little Fish
Local Production Company: Little Fish Pictures Inc.
Director: Chad Hartigan
Producer: Chris Ferguson, Jesse Savath, Jj Dubois
Mar 11/19 - Apr 12/19
Playing With Fire
Local Production Company: Formula M Productions Inc.
Director: Andrew Fickman
Producer: Todd Garner, Sean Robins, Matt Dines
Feb 04/19 - Mar 29/19
The Boy II
Local Production Company: The Boy Film Productions Inc.
Director: William Brent Bell
Producer: Tom Rosenberg, Richard Wright, Gary Lucchesi
Jan 28/19 - Mar 08/19
To All The Boys 2
Local Production Company: All The Boys Productions Inc.
Director: Susan Johnson
Producer: Chris Foss
Mar 25/19 - May 06/19
TV Pilot
Batwoman
Local Production Company: Renraw Production Services Inc.
Director: Marcos Siega
Producer: Jae Marchant
Mar 04/19 - Mar 25/19
Frankenstein
Local Production Company: Vbc Pilot Productions Inc.
Director: Uta Briesewitz
Mar 19/19 - Apr 05/19
Next...
- 3/1/2019
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options — not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves — we’re highlighting the noteworthy titles that have recently hit platforms. Check out this week’s selections below and an archive of past round-ups here.
Avengers: Infinity War
After toying with the mortality of its ensemble in every single film across its now 10-year franchise, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has finally reached a point of no return. Another decade’s worth of teases would only further dilute each life-threatening set piece, and so just as the sweet kiss of death will come for us all, it, too, must come for our costume-donning stars. This being a Kevin Feige/Russo brothers production, however, it’s not all grimace-laden battle cries and dour squabbles. Rather, Infinity War, with its now meme-famous descriptor as the “most ambitious crossover event in movie history,” offers ample space...
Avengers: Infinity War
After toying with the mortality of its ensemble in every single film across its now 10-year franchise, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has finally reached a point of no return. Another decade’s worth of teases would only further dilute each life-threatening set piece, and so just as the sweet kiss of death will come for us all, it, too, must come for our costume-donning stars. This being a Kevin Feige/Russo brothers production, however, it’s not all grimace-laden battle cries and dour squabbles. Rather, Infinity War, with its now meme-famous descriptor as the “most ambitious crossover event in movie history,” offers ample space...
- 12/28/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Despite a filmography that includes over 20 features, it’s only been in recent years that prolific South Korean director Hong Sangsoo has gotten his due in terms of U.S. distribution. This can be greatly attributed to Cinema Guild, who have released all three of his 2017 features: On the Beach at Night Alone, Claire’s Camera, and The Day After. We’re thrilled to now exclusively announce that the company has picked up Grass following its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival earlier this year. Set for a release in 2019, read their synopsis below.
For his 22nd feature as director, Hong delivers a delicious cinematic riddle only he could concoct. In the corner of a small café, Areum (Kim Minhee) sits typing on her laptop. At the tables around her, other customers enact the various dramas of their lives. A young couple charge each other with serious crimes, an...
For his 22nd feature as director, Hong delivers a delicious cinematic riddle only he could concoct. In the corner of a small café, Areum (Kim Minhee) sits typing on her laptop. At the tables around her, other customers enact the various dramas of their lives. A young couple charge each other with serious crimes, an...
- 8/2/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Cinema Guild has bought U.S. distribution rights to Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s “The Wild Pear Tree,” a month after it premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival.
Cinema Guild will release the film in theaters in early 2019. It’s the eighth feature film from the Turkish filmmaker, who won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2014 for “Winter Sleep.”
“The Wild Pear Tree” follows an aspiring writer (played by Doğu Demirkol) who returns home after college, hoping to scrape together enough money to publish his first novel. But as he wanders the town, encountering old flames and obstinate gatekeepers, he finds his youthful ambition increasingly at odds with the deferred dreams of his gambling-addict father (portrayed by Murat Cemcir). As his own fantasies mingle with reality, he grapples with the people and the place that have made him who he is.
“The Wild Pear Tree” will mark the...
Cinema Guild will release the film in theaters in early 2019. It’s the eighth feature film from the Turkish filmmaker, who won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2014 for “Winter Sleep.”
“The Wild Pear Tree” follows an aspiring writer (played by Doğu Demirkol) who returns home after college, hoping to scrape together enough money to publish his first novel. But as he wanders the town, encountering old flames and obstinate gatekeepers, he finds his youthful ambition increasingly at odds with the deferred dreams of his gambling-addict father (portrayed by Murat Cemcir). As his own fantasies mingle with reality, he grapples with the people and the place that have made him who he is.
“The Wild Pear Tree” will mark the...
- 6/27/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
The following interview with director Jim McKay was published during last year’s BAMcinemafest and is being rerun today as his feature En el Séptimo Día is in release from Cinema Guild. The film can currently be seen at the IFC Center in New York and the Laemmle Music Hall in L.A. Many other cities are scheduled over the next two months, including, on Friday, the Roxie in San Francisco. Jim McKay, whose early, mid ’90s/early-aughts features were empathetic and involving New York dramas suffused with a love of neighborhood and feeling for […]...
- 6/18/2018
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
The following interview with director Jim McKay was published during last year’s BAMcinemafest and is being rerun today as his feature En el Séptimo Día is in release from Cinema Guild. The film can currently be seen at the IFC Center in New York and the Laemmle Music Hall in L.A. Many other cities are scheduled over the next two months, including, on Friday, the Roxie in San Francisco. Jim McKay, whose early, mid ’90s/early-aughts features were empathetic and involving New York dramas suffused with a love of neighborhood and feeling for […]...
- 6/18/2018
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Although the back half of the year is inevitably loaded with ambitious awards contenders and treasures from Sundance and Cannes (audiences have such festival breakouts as “Blindspotting” and “BlacKkKlansman” still to look forward to), 2018 has already brought a wealth of great movies, covering a wide range of genres and styles. Variety chief critics Owen Gleiberman and Peter Debruge look back at the most remarkable releases from the past six months, championing everything from well-meaning micro-indies to a pair of exceptionally well-made superhero tentpoles, to reveal that 2018 is off to a great start. How many of these cinematic marvels have you seen?
Annihilation Paramount Pictures
Dressed like Ghostbusters, Natalie Portman and a brave quartet of women venture deep into an area infected by some kind of mutant extraterrestrial lifeform in a science-fiction thriller that Paramount (rightly) assumed was too cerebral for average moviegoers. Rather than hatching a more creative marketing campaign to support this tense,...
Annihilation Paramount Pictures
Dressed like Ghostbusters, Natalie Portman and a brave quartet of women venture deep into an area infected by some kind of mutant extraterrestrial lifeform in a science-fiction thriller that Paramount (rightly) assumed was too cerebral for average moviegoers. Rather than hatching a more creative marketing campaign to support this tense,...
- 6/8/2018
- by Variety Staff
- Variety Film + TV
At first blush, Jim McKay may not seem like the poster child for diverse filmmaking: He’s a white guy who has spent the bulk of his career directing other people’s TV shows, from “Law & Order” to “The Good Wife.” But the New York filmmaker has consistently delivered astute dramas about the daily lives of underrepresented Americans long before widespread calls for inclusivity hit Hollywood. His new feature, the low budget crowdpleaser “En El Séptimo Día,” is just the latest example.
After his 1996 debut “Girls Town,” McKay won acclaim at Sundance for 2000’s “Our Song,” a Brooklyn-set coming-of-age story starring a young Kerry Washington and others as members of a community marching band in a low-income neighborhood. For his next projects, McKay went straight to television long before the era of Netflix Originals, directing the working class ensemble piece “Everyday People” and the social worker drama “Angel Rodriguez” for HBO.
After his 1996 debut “Girls Town,” McKay won acclaim at Sundance for 2000’s “Our Song,” a Brooklyn-set coming-of-age story starring a young Kerry Washington and others as members of a community marching band in a low-income neighborhood. For his next projects, McKay went straight to television long before the era of Netflix Originals, directing the working class ensemble piece “Everyday People” and the social worker drama “Angel Rodriguez” for HBO.
- 6/8/2018
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
A week ahead of Fathers Day weekend, Gunpowder & Sky is opening Hearts Beat Loud starring Nick Offerman and Kiersey Clemons as a dad/daughter musical duo. Also featuring Ted Danson and Toni Colette, the title will open in New York and L.A. before expanding next week. Focus Features is opening Mr. Rogers Sundance fest doc Won’t You Be My Neighbor? in what will very likely be a formidable contender for documentary kudos come Awards season. The title is heading to over two dozen theaters in a dozen markets Friday.
Going out to theaters with a bit more contention is fellow Sundance doc Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist from Greenwich Entertainment. The company acknowledged it has been hamstrung at least somewhat by the woman at the center of the story, fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood. It opens in New York before heading to L.A. next week. And after...
Going out to theaters with a bit more contention is fellow Sundance doc Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist from Greenwich Entertainment. The company acknowledged it has been hamstrung at least somewhat by the woman at the center of the story, fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood. It opens in New York before heading to L.A. next week. And after...
- 6/8/2018
- by Brian Brooks
- Deadline Film + TV
En El SÉPTIMO DÍA (On the Seventh Day) Cinema Guild Reviewed by: Harvey Karten Director: Jim McKay Screenwriter: Jim McKay Cast: Fernando Cardona, Gilberto Jimenez Núñez, Abel Perez, Genoel Ramírez, Alfonso Velazquez Screened at: Critics’ link, NYC, 5/29/18 Opens: June 8, 2018 On the seventh day God rested, never worrying that a boss would tell […]
The post On The Seventh Day (En El Septimo Dia) Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post On The Seventh Day (En El Septimo Dia) Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 6/4/2018
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
"You're in a very tough situation, José." Cinema Guild has debuted an official trailer for an indie drama film titled En El Séptimo Día, which translates to On the Seventh Day. The latest film by Jim McKay, this indie drama is a compelling look at immigrants in America and the work they do for us. The film follows a group of undocumented Mexican immigrants who work long hours six days a week, and then savor their day of rest on Sundays on the soccer fields of Brooklyn. It has been described in reviews as "an ode to those who fight for that glimmer of hope this country claims," giving us a look at the lives of these immigrants and how hard they work for the chance to have the most basic lives, with their brief freedom to play soccer bringing them the most joy. Fernando Cardona stars as José. This...
- 5/27/2018
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
In a time when there are powerful people spewing dangerous and hateful words about immigrants and building walls, it’s important to remember what their lives are really like. Enter Jim McKay’s latest film, “En El Séptimo Día” (On the Seventh Day). For his first feature in over a decade, McKay wrote and directed a story about the everyday lives of a group of undocumented immigrants living in New York.
- 5/24/2018
- by Erica Bahrenburg
- The Playlist
“En la comunidad hay poder. En los números hay fuerza.” Translated to English, this line means “There’s power in community. There’s strength in numbers.” Spoken in first trailer for En el Séptimo Día, this sentiment embodies the essence of Jim McKay’s newest film. Having spent the past few years directing various high-profile television shows like The Good Wife and Mr. Robot, McKay has finally returned to independent filmmaking for the first time since 2005 – and what better time than now to craft a film that speaks to the importance of community within minority groups.
En el Séptimo Día tells the story of a group of undocumented immigrants as they navigate their full-time jobs throughout the week – ultimately leading to Sunday, the day they spend together playing soccer in Sunset Park. When team captain José (Fernando Cardona) is scheduled to work on the upcoming championship Sunday, both he and...
En el Séptimo Día tells the story of a group of undocumented immigrants as they navigate their full-time jobs throughout the week – ultimately leading to Sunday, the day they spend together playing soccer in Sunset Park. When team captain José (Fernando Cardona) is scheduled to work on the upcoming championship Sunday, both he and...
- 5/24/2018
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
Jim McKay’s first feature film in over a decade takes a slice of life approach to a timely subject: the lives, hopes, dreams, and daily existences of undocumented immigrants in Brooklyn, all playing out over the course of seven days. “En El Séptimo Dia” (“On the Seventh Day”) follows a group of bicycle delivery guys, construction workers, dishwashers, deli workers, and cotton candy vendors, all of whom work six days a week and look forward to their seventh day — a Sunday spent on the soccer fields of Sunset Park.
McKay’s film centers on team captain José, whose initial joy over getting into the final round of a big tournament is thrown for a loop when his boss tells him he needs to work on that pivotal Sunday. It’s a no-win situation, and McKay and his cast handle it with grace and generosity. Shot in the neighborhoods of Sunset Park,...
McKay’s film centers on team captain José, whose initial joy over getting into the final round of a big tournament is thrown for a loop when his boss tells him he needs to work on that pivotal Sunday. It’s a no-win situation, and McKay and his cast handle it with grace and generosity. Shot in the neighborhoods of Sunset Park,...
- 5/23/2018
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Rooftop Films released the first round of titles screening in its popular summer series, including Robert Pattinson in David and Nathan Zellner’s “Damsel,” which will make its New York premiere in Brooklyn’s Green-Wood cemetery. The series features a slew of the year’s most highly-anticipated festival favorites, including Bart Layton’s “American Animals,” and Crystal Moselle’s “Skate Kitchen,” and a sneak preview of Carlos López Estrada’s “Blindspotting,” starring “Hamilton” actor Daveed Diggs.
“Rooftop Films is famous for creating fun, custom-curated, large-scale events that augment the
experience of watching our favorite new films,” said Dan Nuxoll, Artistic Director of Rooftop Films. “This year we have put extra effort into adding exciting components to every event, including a performance from the vivacious Arkansas drag queens from Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher’s ‘The Gospel of Eureka.'”
Rooftop is introducing two new venues this year: Brooklyn Army Terminal and Green-Wood Cemetery,...
“Rooftop Films is famous for creating fun, custom-curated, large-scale events that augment the
experience of watching our favorite new films,” said Dan Nuxoll, Artistic Director of Rooftop Films. “This year we have put extra effort into adding exciting components to every event, including a performance from the vivacious Arkansas drag queens from Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher’s ‘The Gospel of Eureka.'”
Rooftop is introducing two new venues this year: Brooklyn Army Terminal and Green-Wood Cemetery,...
- 4/30/2018
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
The following essay was produced as part of the 2017 Locarno Critics Academy, a workshop for aspiring film critics that took place during the 70th edition of the Locarno Film Festival.
The term “independent film” is vaguer than ever, but film festivals are the best place to look for its evolving definition. While American independent film has developed a unique identity thanks to Sundance and other North American showcases, it takes on a very different profile when these films travel abroad.
The Locarno Film Festival has developed something of a reputation for enabling European festival-goers to discover the best of American independent film, its visitors relying on the festival’s programmers to delve through the material sold as independent to find the films that deserve the label. Here’s a look at four highlights from this year’s lineup that were well-received by the festival’s audiences.
“Good Time”
Though it...
The term “independent film” is vaguer than ever, but film festivals are the best place to look for its evolving definition. While American independent film has developed a unique identity thanks to Sundance and other North American showcases, it takes on a very different profile when these films travel abroad.
The Locarno Film Festival has developed something of a reputation for enabling European festival-goers to discover the best of American independent film, its visitors relying on the festival’s programmers to delve through the material sold as independent to find the films that deserve the label. Here’s a look at four highlights from this year’s lineup that were well-received by the festival’s audiences.
“Good Time”
Though it...
- 8/23/2017
- by Matt Turner
- Indiewire
The summer movie season may start winding down by early August, but for cinephiles, that’s when the real fun begins. While the fall season festivals — epitomized by the trio of awards season influencers Telluride, Toronto and New York — are a massive platform for major prestige titles at the end of the year, the Locarno Film Festival has the jump on all of them, and provides the most diverse range of cinema you’ll see anywhere in the world.
The 70th edition, announced this week, provides the latest example. No festival embodies the “something for everyone” philosophy better than Locarno, which complements its cinephile-oriented sections with another one exclusively designed for wider audiences. That would be the Piazza Grande, where 16 features screen outdoors for an audience of 8,000 people. But rather than simply showcasing the same summer blockbusters that have dominated the box office, the Piazza features international efforts well suited to pleasing massive crowds,...
The 70th edition, announced this week, provides the latest example. No festival embodies the “something for everyone” philosophy better than Locarno, which complements its cinephile-oriented sections with another one exclusively designed for wider audiences. That would be the Piazza Grande, where 16 features screen outdoors for an audience of 8,000 people. But rather than simply showcasing the same summer blockbusters that have dominated the box office, the Piazza features international efforts well suited to pleasing massive crowds,...
- 7/15/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Ben & Joshua Safdie's Good TimeThe lineup for the 2017 festival has been revealed, including new films by Wang Bing, Radu Jude, Raúl Ruiz and others, alongside retrospectives and tributes dedicated to Jean-Marie Straub, Jacques Tourneur and much more.Piazza GRANDEAmori che non sonno stare al mondo (Francesca Comencini, Italy)Atomic Blonde (David Leitch, USA)Chien (Samuel Benchetrit, France/Belgium)Demain et tous les autres jours (Noémie Lvovsky, France)Drei Zinnen (Jan Zabeil, Germany/Italy)Good Time (Ben & Joshua Safdie, USA)Gotthard - One Life, One Soul (Kevin Merz, Switzerland)I Walked with a Zombie (Jacques Tourneur, USA)Iceman (Felix Randau, Germany/Italy/Austria)Laissez bronzer les cadavres (Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani, Belgium/France)Lola Pater (Nadir Moknèche, France/Belgium)Sicilia! (Jean-Marie Straub & Danièle Huillet, Italy/France/Germany)Sparring (Samuel Jouy, France)The Big Sick (Michael Showalter, USA)The Song of Scorpions (Anup Singh, Switzerland/France/Singapore)What Happed to Monday (Tommy Wirkola,...
- 7/12/2017
- MUBI
Back at the indie helm after a decade-plus of directing gigs for high-profile TV dramas, Jim McKay demonstrates with En el Septimo Día (On the Seventh Day) that his gifts as a filmmaker are as vital as ever. As with Girls Town and Our Song (which marked the feature debut of Kerry Washington), the day-to-day lives of working-class New Yorkers are the writer-director's concern, but this time he turns his focus from teen girls to a thoroughly engaging group of men, immigrants from Mexico who work six days a week and hit the soccer field Sundays. They're played by a...
- 6/30/2017
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
‘Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press’ Review: Hulk Hogan’s Gawker Trial Gets a Big, Scary Context
Well, let me tell you something, brother: Hulk Hogan always goes over in the end. The result of last year’s tabloid-friendly trial between Hogan (real name Terry Bollea, as Jenny Slate kindly reminded us in “Obvious Child”) and Gawker may have been less surprising to pro-wrestling fans than it was to everyone else, but its long-term impact will likely be even more consequential than the Hulkster body-slamming Andre the Giant in front of 93,000 screaming Hulkamaniacs.
Read More: ‘Nobody Speak’ Trailer: Hulk Hogan and Gawker Go to War in the Court Room
“Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press” isn’t as indulgent with wrestling references as that last paragraph, which is probably to its credit. Brian Knappenberger’s documentary is compelling and slickly produced in the way that timely Sundance documentaries often are, with no shortage of talking heads and trial footage assuring us that there’s nothing normal about the new normal in which we all find ourselves. Also like a lot of similar movies, the subject itself is more engaging than the filmmaking.
The plaintiff in the trial was a lifelong showman whose fame and fortune are a direct result of his ability work an audience, whether it be in an open-air arena or an intimate courtroom; one of the defendants made a massively ill-advised joke about child sex tapes. To say that Hogan acquitted himself well and his opponent did not would be an understatement.
But however self-inflicted Gawker’s wounds may have been — they chose a questionable hill to die on, and die they did — the implications of that trial are troubling, to say the least. What other casualties might follow suit in the future? This concern is put best by a First Amendment attorney interviewed here: “The reason to save Gawker is not because Gawker was worth saving,” he says. “The reason to save it is that we don’t pick and choose what sort of publications are permissible, because once we do, it empowers the government to limit speech in a way that ought to be impermissible.”
The reading of the verdict and $140 million in damages comes halfway through the film, and it’s then that “Nobody Speak” pivots to its ultimate focus: Peter Thiel and other billionaires who seek to muzzle the press. Lawyers are expensive, and litigants with deep war chests tend to win. Knappenberger presents his case with all the passion of a trial lawyer who knows that his case be unwinnable but presses on anyway.
Read More: Netflix Close to Acquiring Hulk Hogan Doc ‘Nobody Speak’ — Sundance 2017
It was Thiel who financed Hogan’s lawsuit and considered doing so a philanthropic act. He’d been outed by Gawker nearly a decade earlier. The potential danger is obvious: Other millionaires and billionaires could follow suit and use their vast financial resources to sue journalistic outlets they don’t like as a means of score-settling.
Knappenberger links this to Donald Trump’s promise to “open up libel laws” and his rabid supporters’ violent threats toward journalists at rallies, not least because Thiel was an early supporter of then-candidate Trump. These conclusions are persuasive, frightening and (one hopes) a little alarmist — surging background music and other theatrics have a tendency to detract from the film’s arguments rather than enhancing it. A film about the vital importance of speaking truth to power needn’t be so concerned with dressing up its own frightful truths, but “Nobody Speak” still compels as an opening statement on journalism’s dubious future.
Grade: B-
“Nobody Speak” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. It’s available to stream on Netflix as of June 23.
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Related stories'Transformers: The Last Knight' Review: Here's the Most Ridiculous Hollywood Movie of the YearJ. Hoberman's Best Movies of the 21st Century'En El Séptimo Dia' Review: Jim McKay's First Movie in a Decade is the Summer's Surprise Crowdpleaser...
Read More: ‘Nobody Speak’ Trailer: Hulk Hogan and Gawker Go to War in the Court Room
“Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press” isn’t as indulgent with wrestling references as that last paragraph, which is probably to its credit. Brian Knappenberger’s documentary is compelling and slickly produced in the way that timely Sundance documentaries often are, with no shortage of talking heads and trial footage assuring us that there’s nothing normal about the new normal in which we all find ourselves. Also like a lot of similar movies, the subject itself is more engaging than the filmmaking.
The plaintiff in the trial was a lifelong showman whose fame and fortune are a direct result of his ability work an audience, whether it be in an open-air arena or an intimate courtroom; one of the defendants made a massively ill-advised joke about child sex tapes. To say that Hogan acquitted himself well and his opponent did not would be an understatement.
But however self-inflicted Gawker’s wounds may have been — they chose a questionable hill to die on, and die they did — the implications of that trial are troubling, to say the least. What other casualties might follow suit in the future? This concern is put best by a First Amendment attorney interviewed here: “The reason to save Gawker is not because Gawker was worth saving,” he says. “The reason to save it is that we don’t pick and choose what sort of publications are permissible, because once we do, it empowers the government to limit speech in a way that ought to be impermissible.”
The reading of the verdict and $140 million in damages comes halfway through the film, and it’s then that “Nobody Speak” pivots to its ultimate focus: Peter Thiel and other billionaires who seek to muzzle the press. Lawyers are expensive, and litigants with deep war chests tend to win. Knappenberger presents his case with all the passion of a trial lawyer who knows that his case be unwinnable but presses on anyway.
Read More: Netflix Close to Acquiring Hulk Hogan Doc ‘Nobody Speak’ — Sundance 2017
It was Thiel who financed Hogan’s lawsuit and considered doing so a philanthropic act. He’d been outed by Gawker nearly a decade earlier. The potential danger is obvious: Other millionaires and billionaires could follow suit and use their vast financial resources to sue journalistic outlets they don’t like as a means of score-settling.
Knappenberger links this to Donald Trump’s promise to “open up libel laws” and his rabid supporters’ violent threats toward journalists at rallies, not least because Thiel was an early supporter of then-candidate Trump. These conclusions are persuasive, frightening and (one hopes) a little alarmist — surging background music and other theatrics have a tendency to detract from the film’s arguments rather than enhancing it. A film about the vital importance of speaking truth to power needn’t be so concerned with dressing up its own frightful truths, but “Nobody Speak” still compels as an opening statement on journalism’s dubious future.
Grade: B-
“Nobody Speak” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. It’s available to stream on Netflix as of June 23.
Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
Related stories'Transformers: The Last Knight' Review: Here's the Most Ridiculous Hollywood Movie of the YearJ. Hoberman's Best Movies of the 21st Century'En El Séptimo Dia' Review: Jim McKay's First Movie in a Decade is the Summer's Surprise Crowdpleaser...
- 6/22/2017
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
Discussing the ways in which fiction films shift between their linear, wholly narrative impulses and something approaching ethnography is among the most illuminating aspects of movies so deeply tied to a specific time and milieu. En el Séptimo Día, written and directed by Jim McKay, is particularly upfront about this. Near the beginning of the film, a set of onscreen text locates the events of the narrative as Sunset Park, Brooklyn in the summer of 2016, discretely divided into the days of a single week (beginning on Sunday) and the following Monday. With the sole exception of one shot — a cybercafé in Mexico — the movie never leaves this setting, exploring the seemingly endless maze of streets and the establishments and restaurants just off the beaten path with careful detail and an almost unerring eye.
The viewer’s guide and focal character is José (Fernando Cardona), a Mexican immigrant and avid soccer player who, over the course of the week, attempts to juggle his responsibility as captain of his football team, which is due to play in their league’s finals on Sunday, and his job as a bicycle delivery-person for a somewhat upscale Mexican restaurant. This latter occupation forms much of the backbone of En el Séptimo Día, as a good deal of time is spent observing José as he pedals around the borough making deliveries, often waiting for lackadaisical customers or various other impediments – one day prominently features torrential rain which he must fend off using only a poncho.
Through all of this, there is a certain veneer of repeated indignities inflicted upon him due to his social status as a lower-class worker, primarily – but not solely – by his boss, the most prominent non-Spanish speaker in the film (all English dialogue is also subtitled in Spanish as well, in an intriguing bit of alignment with the viewpoint of the immigrants). José is never discriminated against specifically because of his race per se, but there is an undeniable and continual feeling of uncaring disdain that emanates from almost every character that isn’t friends with him, and indeed they exist on a certain continuum of helpfulness or unhelpfulness that McKay manages to conjure without ever creating a straw-man that can be simply tossed aside.
The idea of Mexican heritage and community as being worthy of celebration in spite of the surrounding culture is repeatedly emphasized, both in the soccer league – at one point it is remarked that only people of Mexican descent can play in the league, and José’s team seems to be named after Puebla F.C. – and in the more “important,” mundane concerns. Much of the central conflict lies in the choice that José must make between working on Sunday, and therefore missing the final that his team will likely lose without his skill, or playing and thus losing his job. An additional wrinkle is thrown in by the imminent birth of his daughter: unless he keeps his job, he cannot go on vacation in a month to bring his wife to America so that his child can obtain U.S. citizenship.
It is to McKay’s credit that these weighty concerns only rarely dominate En el Séptimo Día, which derives much more of its interest from the small, tossed-off interactions of a Skype call, or the banter between the teammates that share a cramped apartment. Even the technical aspects have a lightness to them, as almost all of the film is conveyed through shot/reverse-shot and quick, clean pans, deploying handheld on only a few occasions. In a way, this reflects a certain ethos on the part of the cast and crew: En el Séptimo Día aims not for a glorified, glamorized version of an existence only slightly above poverty nor an excessive grittiness with pretenses towards “realism.” Rather, it seeks to portray a certain way of life with compassion, vitality, and above all fidelity, aims that are deeply felt and executed throughout this remarkable, vigorous film.
En el Séptimo Día premiered at BAMcinemaFest.
The viewer’s guide and focal character is José (Fernando Cardona), a Mexican immigrant and avid soccer player who, over the course of the week, attempts to juggle his responsibility as captain of his football team, which is due to play in their league’s finals on Sunday, and his job as a bicycle delivery-person for a somewhat upscale Mexican restaurant. This latter occupation forms much of the backbone of En el Séptimo Día, as a good deal of time is spent observing José as he pedals around the borough making deliveries, often waiting for lackadaisical customers or various other impediments – one day prominently features torrential rain which he must fend off using only a poncho.
Through all of this, there is a certain veneer of repeated indignities inflicted upon him due to his social status as a lower-class worker, primarily – but not solely – by his boss, the most prominent non-Spanish speaker in the film (all English dialogue is also subtitled in Spanish as well, in an intriguing bit of alignment with the viewpoint of the immigrants). José is never discriminated against specifically because of his race per se, but there is an undeniable and continual feeling of uncaring disdain that emanates from almost every character that isn’t friends with him, and indeed they exist on a certain continuum of helpfulness or unhelpfulness that McKay manages to conjure without ever creating a straw-man that can be simply tossed aside.
The idea of Mexican heritage and community as being worthy of celebration in spite of the surrounding culture is repeatedly emphasized, both in the soccer league – at one point it is remarked that only people of Mexican descent can play in the league, and José’s team seems to be named after Puebla F.C. – and in the more “important,” mundane concerns. Much of the central conflict lies in the choice that José must make between working on Sunday, and therefore missing the final that his team will likely lose without his skill, or playing and thus losing his job. An additional wrinkle is thrown in by the imminent birth of his daughter: unless he keeps his job, he cannot go on vacation in a month to bring his wife to America so that his child can obtain U.S. citizenship.
It is to McKay’s credit that these weighty concerns only rarely dominate En el Séptimo Día, which derives much more of its interest from the small, tossed-off interactions of a Skype call, or the banter between the teammates that share a cramped apartment. Even the technical aspects have a lightness to them, as almost all of the film is conveyed through shot/reverse-shot and quick, clean pans, deploying handheld on only a few occasions. In a way, this reflects a certain ethos on the part of the cast and crew: En el Séptimo Día aims not for a glorified, glamorized version of an existence only slightly above poverty nor an excessive grittiness with pretenses towards “realism.” Rather, it seeks to portray a certain way of life with compassion, vitality, and above all fidelity, aims that are deeply felt and executed throughout this remarkable, vigorous film.
En el Séptimo Día premiered at BAMcinemaFest.
- 6/22/2017
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
“Transformers: The Last Knight” opens in medieval times with a drunken Merlin (Stanley Tucci) and closes with a futuristic man-versus-aliens showdown set in Stonehenge. In between those ludicrous scenarios, director Michael Bay’s fifth entry in the most overproduced movie franchise of the 21st century stuffs in a new love interest for Mark Wahlberg, a deep space journey to a robotic villainess intent on destroying mankind, and a robotic British butler with martial arts skills operating at the whims of Anthony Hopkins. It’s an unabashed freewheeling mess of CGI explosions, fast-talking strategies and shiny metal monstrosities clashing in epic battles. And it’s actually kind of fun, in an infuriating sort of way, to watch the most ridiculous Hollywood movie of the year do its thing.
Here’s the thing about the “Transformers” movies. Bay managed to drag a nostalgia-laden franchise best known for the toys it inspired into the 21st century in part by not taking the premise too seriously. That changed after the success of the first live action installment 10 years ago; “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” and “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” turned the playfulness of the earlier entries into a gleaming mass of commercial showmanship; each runs well over two and a half hours, and “The Last Knight” is no exception.
But the craziest thing about the movie is that it practically dares audiences to grow anxious while watching its restless, bloated contents, and keeps tossing out shiny nuggets of entertainment to cloak from the overwhelming ridiculousness in spectacle. The closest thing in American movies to an epic, Bollywood-style genre mashup, “The Last Knight” continues the trend of the series in borrowing liberally from every filmic tradition possible in the quest to crush all competition and leave viewers with the sense that they don’t need to see anything else, ever. That underlying implication is made all the more infuriating because Bay excels at the aesthetic of distraction, with the masculine intensity of a jock and the soothing words of a hypnotist: Sit back, relax, and enjoy the stupid ride. What, you don’t like fun movies?
Bay’s craftsmanship is impeccable, but per usual, the real stars of the show remain the wizards at Industrial Light & Magic responsible for the range of special effects. The degree of visual information crammed into every frame never ceases to amaze, particularly when enjoyed on an IMAX screen capable of conveying the full scale. It helps that the ongoing story has gotten to the point where Transformers have blossomed around the globe, providing an excuse to unleash so many dazzling images the brain can’t possibly process them all at once.
At the end of the third movie, Transformers leader Optimus Prime left Earth for a mysterious journey back to his home planet, leaving Earth at odds with the remaining Transformers inhabitants as they hid from the law while defending the planet from an onslaught of Decepticons. In other words, we’ve gone beyond the “Age of Extinction” singled out in the 2014 movie and headed into post-apocalyptic territory: Since defending Transformers has been outlawed, rascally inventor Cade Yeager (Wahlberg) hides out in a junkyard with the usual motley gang of tower-sized defenders, including the ever-endearing Bumblebee (still eager to find a new voice box).
Bay’s mastered the art of showcasing these beings and their colorful personalities so well that he could easily craft a digitally-enhanced comedy about passive-aggressive Transformers with roommate problems and call it a day. But bigger things are at stake! Or, at least, more plot is necessary to drive the ongoing perception that this giant mass of moving images deserves your 20 bucks.
Summarizing a Transformers movie is a good way to fall prey to its traps, but here goes: At some point while running from the law, Cade is kidnapped by the mysterious Sir Edmund Burton (Anthony Hopkins, doing a kooky riff on his “Westworld” character), who maintains a group of aging robots stretching back millennia and belongs to a secret society of humans who have protected the secret of the Transformers’ existence. (These include Da Vinci, Shakespeare and Harriet Tubman, all of whom might have provided more ambitious fodder for a framing device than Tucci’s Merlin, but hey, there’s plenty of time for more sequels.)
In any case, Cade saved a medieval Transformer space traveler who gifted the human with a protective amulet dating back to Merlin’s days, so now the inventor’s a genuine superhero. He’s paired with spicy British academic Vivian Wembley (Laura Haddock), a Merlin descendant whose knowledge of the lore informs her understanding of Wahlberg’s qualifications to save Merlin’s magical wand from an incoming alien invasion. Bay’s flimsy capacity for directing substantial women roles gets especially dicey here, with a cardboard cutout version of a brainy academic who ultimately melts into Wahlberg’s arms. Make no mistake: These movies are the most sensationalistic illustrations of the male gaze in history.
They’re also terribly reductive. When Cade and Vivian aren’t scrambling, “Indiana Jones”-style, to comprehend an Arthurian legend, a neurotic scientist played by “Veep” funnyman Tony Hale urges the government to do something about the invaders from space. As if this watered-down “Independence Day” scenario weren’t enough, the movie keeps veering off in jagged directions. At one point, we meet a range of Decepticon villains released from jail to take down the Transformers, a robotic Suicide Squad with names like Nitro Zeus and Dread bot who vanish almost as quickly as they’re introduced.
But, you know, who cares? It’s a “Transformers” movie! More coherent than “Age of Extinction,” the third act of which took place in Beijing for no other apparent reason than to outsource the production to China, “The Last Night” lands a lot of good laughs with its cartoonish robots and equally over-the-top chemistry between its two leads. Hopkins’ character is even helped along by a senile robot named Cogman, an unapologetic C-3Po ripoff whose very existence proves that Bay thinks nothing is sacred in his plundering of cinematic traditions. In these transparent times, when the ills of capitalism are no longer hidden under the guise of moral superiority, the sheer absurd cash grab of “The Last Knight” feels like more than just a commercial coup. It’s the zeitgeist. Just go with it.
Or don’t. In 2007, audiences keen on “Transformers” counterprogramming went to see “The Hurt Locker.” This time, “Transformers: The Last Knight” opens the same weekend as “The Big Sick,” a smart and intimate romcom that transforms those formulaic traditions into a more personal story about the travails of an interracial couple. As summer crowdpleasers go, it’s a lot more credible than “The Last Knight” — and the contrast between the two movies couldn’t be more extreme. One carries the implication that the modern world is a complex place in which the process of discovering new people and ideas leads to bountiful rewards. The other rejects all that and implores you to settle for a flashier version of the same old thing.
Grade: C
“Transformers: The Last Knight” opens nationwide on June 20, 2017.
Related storiesJ. Hoberman's Best Movies of the 21st Century'En El Séptimo Dia' Review: Jim McKay's First Movie in a Decade is the Summer's Surprise Crowdpleaser'All Eyez on Me' Review: Tupac Shakur's Complicated Life Deserves More Than This Sprawling Biopic...
Here’s the thing about the “Transformers” movies. Bay managed to drag a nostalgia-laden franchise best known for the toys it inspired into the 21st century in part by not taking the premise too seriously. That changed after the success of the first live action installment 10 years ago; “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” and “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” turned the playfulness of the earlier entries into a gleaming mass of commercial showmanship; each runs well over two and a half hours, and “The Last Knight” is no exception.
But the craziest thing about the movie is that it practically dares audiences to grow anxious while watching its restless, bloated contents, and keeps tossing out shiny nuggets of entertainment to cloak from the overwhelming ridiculousness in spectacle. The closest thing in American movies to an epic, Bollywood-style genre mashup, “The Last Knight” continues the trend of the series in borrowing liberally from every filmic tradition possible in the quest to crush all competition and leave viewers with the sense that they don’t need to see anything else, ever. That underlying implication is made all the more infuriating because Bay excels at the aesthetic of distraction, with the masculine intensity of a jock and the soothing words of a hypnotist: Sit back, relax, and enjoy the stupid ride. What, you don’t like fun movies?
Bay’s craftsmanship is impeccable, but per usual, the real stars of the show remain the wizards at Industrial Light & Magic responsible for the range of special effects. The degree of visual information crammed into every frame never ceases to amaze, particularly when enjoyed on an IMAX screen capable of conveying the full scale. It helps that the ongoing story has gotten to the point where Transformers have blossomed around the globe, providing an excuse to unleash so many dazzling images the brain can’t possibly process them all at once.
At the end of the third movie, Transformers leader Optimus Prime left Earth for a mysterious journey back to his home planet, leaving Earth at odds with the remaining Transformers inhabitants as they hid from the law while defending the planet from an onslaught of Decepticons. In other words, we’ve gone beyond the “Age of Extinction” singled out in the 2014 movie and headed into post-apocalyptic territory: Since defending Transformers has been outlawed, rascally inventor Cade Yeager (Wahlberg) hides out in a junkyard with the usual motley gang of tower-sized defenders, including the ever-endearing Bumblebee (still eager to find a new voice box).
Bay’s mastered the art of showcasing these beings and their colorful personalities so well that he could easily craft a digitally-enhanced comedy about passive-aggressive Transformers with roommate problems and call it a day. But bigger things are at stake! Or, at least, more plot is necessary to drive the ongoing perception that this giant mass of moving images deserves your 20 bucks.
Summarizing a Transformers movie is a good way to fall prey to its traps, but here goes: At some point while running from the law, Cade is kidnapped by the mysterious Sir Edmund Burton (Anthony Hopkins, doing a kooky riff on his “Westworld” character), who maintains a group of aging robots stretching back millennia and belongs to a secret society of humans who have protected the secret of the Transformers’ existence. (These include Da Vinci, Shakespeare and Harriet Tubman, all of whom might have provided more ambitious fodder for a framing device than Tucci’s Merlin, but hey, there’s plenty of time for more sequels.)
In any case, Cade saved a medieval Transformer space traveler who gifted the human with a protective amulet dating back to Merlin’s days, so now the inventor’s a genuine superhero. He’s paired with spicy British academic Vivian Wembley (Laura Haddock), a Merlin descendant whose knowledge of the lore informs her understanding of Wahlberg’s qualifications to save Merlin’s magical wand from an incoming alien invasion. Bay’s flimsy capacity for directing substantial women roles gets especially dicey here, with a cardboard cutout version of a brainy academic who ultimately melts into Wahlberg’s arms. Make no mistake: These movies are the most sensationalistic illustrations of the male gaze in history.
They’re also terribly reductive. When Cade and Vivian aren’t scrambling, “Indiana Jones”-style, to comprehend an Arthurian legend, a neurotic scientist played by “Veep” funnyman Tony Hale urges the government to do something about the invaders from space. As if this watered-down “Independence Day” scenario weren’t enough, the movie keeps veering off in jagged directions. At one point, we meet a range of Decepticon villains released from jail to take down the Transformers, a robotic Suicide Squad with names like Nitro Zeus and Dread bot who vanish almost as quickly as they’re introduced.
But, you know, who cares? It’s a “Transformers” movie! More coherent than “Age of Extinction,” the third act of which took place in Beijing for no other apparent reason than to outsource the production to China, “The Last Night” lands a lot of good laughs with its cartoonish robots and equally over-the-top chemistry between its two leads. Hopkins’ character is even helped along by a senile robot named Cogman, an unapologetic C-3Po ripoff whose very existence proves that Bay thinks nothing is sacred in his plundering of cinematic traditions. In these transparent times, when the ills of capitalism are no longer hidden under the guise of moral superiority, the sheer absurd cash grab of “The Last Knight” feels like more than just a commercial coup. It’s the zeitgeist. Just go with it.
Or don’t. In 2007, audiences keen on “Transformers” counterprogramming went to see “The Hurt Locker.” This time, “Transformers: The Last Knight” opens the same weekend as “The Big Sick,” a smart and intimate romcom that transforms those formulaic traditions into a more personal story about the travails of an interracial couple. As summer crowdpleasers go, it’s a lot more credible than “The Last Knight” — and the contrast between the two movies couldn’t be more extreme. One carries the implication that the modern world is a complex place in which the process of discovering new people and ideas leads to bountiful rewards. The other rejects all that and implores you to settle for a flashier version of the same old thing.
Grade: C
“Transformers: The Last Knight” opens nationwide on June 20, 2017.
Related storiesJ. Hoberman's Best Movies of the 21st Century'En El Séptimo Dia' Review: Jim McKay's First Movie in a Decade is the Summer's Surprise Crowdpleaser'All Eyez on Me' Review: Tupac Shakur's Complicated Life Deserves More Than This Sprawling Biopic...
- 6/20/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
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