Graphic: Images: IMDb
This list was compiled using data provided by IMDb.
Lost In Translation (2003)
A faded movie star and a neglected young woman form an unlikely bond after crossing paths in Tokyo.
Rating: 7.7/10
Stars: Bill Murray (Bob Harris), Scarlett Johansson (Charlotte), Giovanni Ribisi (John), Anna Faris (Kelly)
The Virgin Suicides...
This list was compiled using data provided by IMDb.
Lost In Translation (2003)
A faded movie star and a neglected young woman form an unlikely bond after crossing paths in Tokyo.
Rating: 7.7/10
Stars: Bill Murray (Bob Harris), Scarlett Johansson (Charlotte), Giovanni Ribisi (John), Anna Faris (Kelly)
The Virgin Suicides...
- 11/2/2023
- avclub.com
Sofia Coppola movies are defined by desolate landscapes, lonely characters, a wry sense of humor, and painterly compositions. For fans of this aesthetic, it’s pretty hard to get it wrong, and Coppola’s nearly 20-year track record attests to the consistency of her talent. From her feature-length debut “The Virgin Suicides” through “Priscilla,” Coppola’s dreamlike visuals and deadpan tone have remained a distinctive voice in American cinema, one filled with gentle, forlorn faces and a world that always seems as though it’s on the verge of devouring them whole.
While Coppola’s career was set in motion to some degree by the influence of a very famous father, her filmmaking capabilities are hardly dictated by Francis’ accomplishments. The tough, masculine sagas of “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now” exist a world away from Sofia Coppola’s intimate portraits — all of which, it must be said, feature strong-willed women.
While Coppola’s career was set in motion to some degree by the influence of a very famous father, her filmmaking capabilities are hardly dictated by Francis’ accomplishments. The tough, masculine sagas of “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now” exist a world away from Sofia Coppola’s intimate portraits — all of which, it must be said, feature strong-willed women.
- 11/2/2023
- by Wilson Chapman and Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
The gleaming color known as rosso corsa, or “racing red,” is the lifeblood of Ferrari, Michael Mann’s dynamic account of the few months over the summer of 1957 when the Italian auto manufacturer was hanging by a financial thread and founder Enzo Ferrari was forced to reckon with the separate lives he had been leading, split between his wife and his mistress. That dazzling shade became synonymous with the lean machines the company built for the race track, their hoods adorned with the prancing black stallion crest. But it also suggests the fierce competitive spirit coursing through the veins of the man himself in the cool command of Adam Driver’s performance.
Scheduled for Dec. 25 release in the U.S. from Neon, Ferrari is as unapologetically masculine as anything Mann has made and also as visceral, never more so than when it’s revving its engines and roaring around the...
Scheduled for Dec. 25 release in the U.S. from Neon, Ferrari is as unapologetically masculine as anything Mann has made and also as visceral, never more so than when it’s revving its engines and roaring around the...
- 8/31/2023
- by David Rooney
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tarak Ben Ammar has big plans for Italy. The Franco-Tunisian film and TV mogul is already a major player in the Italian industry thanks to Eagle Pictures, the production and distribution group he acquired in 2007 that is now Italy’s largest independent distributor due to exclusive distribution deals with Paramount and Sony Pictures for the territory. Ben Ammar joined Tom Cruise on the Rome red carpet for the June 19 world premiere of Paramount’s Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and later introduced Cruise to new Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni. “The meeting [between Cruise and Meloni] was very interesting. The prime minister knows a lot about cinema,” says Ben Ammar about the far-right leader.
Alongside Eagle’s distribution deals, the company has also partnered with Sony to co-produce six films together, including The Equalizer 3, the latest in Antoine Fuqua’s action franchise starring Denzel Washington that was shot entirely in Italy.
Alongside Eagle’s distribution deals, the company has also partnered with Sony to co-produce six films together, including The Equalizer 3, the latest in Antoine Fuqua’s action franchise starring Denzel Washington that was shot entirely in Italy.
- 8/3/2023
- by Pino Gagliardi
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: Christiana Dell’Anna (Gomorrah), John Lithgow (The Crown), David Morse (The Green Mile), Rolando Villazón (La Bohèmme) and more will star in an Untitled Cabrini Film from Alejandro Monteverde.
The film tells the story of Francesca Cabrini, one of the greatest entrepreneurs of the 19th Century, who began with nothing and created the largest multinational charitable empire the world had ever known, her accomplishments equaling those of Vanderbilt and Rockefeller. While Cabrini was faced in her time with the sexism and virulent anti-Italian bigotry of 19th century America, she overcame every obstacle through relentless perseverance and business skill, eventually building schools, orphanages and hospitals that transformed the lives of immigrants worldwide.
The Untitled Cabrini Film also stars Montserrat Espadalé, Romana Maggiora Vergano, Patch Darragh, Jeremy Bobb, Virginia Bocelli, Andrew Polk, and Giampiero Judica.
The Francesca Films pic’s producers include Academy Award and BAFTA Award winner Jonathan Sanger and Leo Severino. Rod Barr wrote the script; he collaborated on the story with TIFF’s People’s Choice Award winner Monteverde.
The film is currently in production in New York; the shoot will wrap up in Rome this fall. The project was the brainchild of financier Eustace Wolfington, whose passion for the story of Francesca Cabrini began over 60 years ago.
“The minute I learned of Cabrini’s life story, I realized this was a story that deserved to be brought to the big screen,” said Wolfington. “As a pioneer of human rights long before today, her story will be an inspiration to today’s pioneers of human rights which makes her story and unprecedented accomplishments as relevant today as ever.”
“As an immigrant myself, I am honored to be able to shine a light on the astonishing story of a true warrior of social justice who transformed the lives of immigrants worldwide,” said Monteverde. “Cabrini was a pioneer of women’s empowerment, making her story as relevant today as in the 1890’s. This picture – like Cabrini herself – is surprising, courageous, gritty… and deeply inspirational.”
“In a time when the achievements of women in every sphere of life have inspired a new generation, it is fascinating to contemplate the work of Francesca Cabrini, an Italian immigrant who came to New York in 1889. She would fit perfectly as a leader in today’s world,” added Sanger.
Christiana Dell’Anna’s film credits include Tensione superficiali, Mr. Happiness and more. She has appeared on the small screen in such series as Gomorrah (HBO Max) and Trust (FX). She’s represented in the U.S. by Cavalry Media, and by Volver Consulenze Artistiche in Italy.
A two-time Oscar nominee, John Lithgow recently earned his 13th Emmy nomination for his supporting turn in HBO’s reimagining of Perry Mason. He’ll next appear in Showtime’s Dexter revival, reprising his role as Arthur Mitchell (aka The Trinity Killer), and in FX’s The Old Man. His recent film credits include Bombshell, Late Night and Pitch Perfect 3. Additional TV credits include The Crown, Trial & Error and 3rd Rock from the Sun. Lithgow is repped by UTA, Anonymous Content and attorney Don Steele at Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller & Gellman.
Two-time Emmy nominee David Morse will soon appear in Netflix drama The Chair, opposite Sandra Oh. His recent TV credits include The Good Lord Bird, Blindspot, The Morning Show, The Deuce and Escape at Dannemora. Recent film credits include Thank You for Your Service and Concussion. Morse is repped by UTA, Kipperman Management, Arcieri & Associates, and attorney Diane Golden at Katz Golden Lerner.
Rolando Villazón is an opera singer and director whose credits include Mozart in Prague: Rolando Villazón on Don Giovanni, La Bohèmme and La Traviata. He is repped by Columbia Artists Management.
Monteverde is represented by Sentient Entertainment and attorney Sean A. Marks of Marks Law Group.
The film tells the story of Francesca Cabrini, one of the greatest entrepreneurs of the 19th Century, who began with nothing and created the largest multinational charitable empire the world had ever known, her accomplishments equaling those of Vanderbilt and Rockefeller. While Cabrini was faced in her time with the sexism and virulent anti-Italian bigotry of 19th century America, she overcame every obstacle through relentless perseverance and business skill, eventually building schools, orphanages and hospitals that transformed the lives of immigrants worldwide.
The Untitled Cabrini Film also stars Montserrat Espadalé, Romana Maggiora Vergano, Patch Darragh, Jeremy Bobb, Virginia Bocelli, Andrew Polk, and Giampiero Judica.
The Francesca Films pic’s producers include Academy Award and BAFTA Award winner Jonathan Sanger and Leo Severino. Rod Barr wrote the script; he collaborated on the story with TIFF’s People’s Choice Award winner Monteverde.
The film is currently in production in New York; the shoot will wrap up in Rome this fall. The project was the brainchild of financier Eustace Wolfington, whose passion for the story of Francesca Cabrini began over 60 years ago.
“The minute I learned of Cabrini’s life story, I realized this was a story that deserved to be brought to the big screen,” said Wolfington. “As a pioneer of human rights long before today, her story will be an inspiration to today’s pioneers of human rights which makes her story and unprecedented accomplishments as relevant today as ever.”
“As an immigrant myself, I am honored to be able to shine a light on the astonishing story of a true warrior of social justice who transformed the lives of immigrants worldwide,” said Monteverde. “Cabrini was a pioneer of women’s empowerment, making her story as relevant today as in the 1890’s. This picture – like Cabrini herself – is surprising, courageous, gritty… and deeply inspirational.”
“In a time when the achievements of women in every sphere of life have inspired a new generation, it is fascinating to contemplate the work of Francesca Cabrini, an Italian immigrant who came to New York in 1889. She would fit perfectly as a leader in today’s world,” added Sanger.
Christiana Dell’Anna’s film credits include Tensione superficiali, Mr. Happiness and more. She has appeared on the small screen in such series as Gomorrah (HBO Max) and Trust (FX). She’s represented in the U.S. by Cavalry Media, and by Volver Consulenze Artistiche in Italy.
A two-time Oscar nominee, John Lithgow recently earned his 13th Emmy nomination for his supporting turn in HBO’s reimagining of Perry Mason. He’ll next appear in Showtime’s Dexter revival, reprising his role as Arthur Mitchell (aka The Trinity Killer), and in FX’s The Old Man. His recent film credits include Bombshell, Late Night and Pitch Perfect 3. Additional TV credits include The Crown, Trial & Error and 3rd Rock from the Sun. Lithgow is repped by UTA, Anonymous Content and attorney Don Steele at Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller & Gellman.
Two-time Emmy nominee David Morse will soon appear in Netflix drama The Chair, opposite Sandra Oh. His recent TV credits include The Good Lord Bird, Blindspot, The Morning Show, The Deuce and Escape at Dannemora. Recent film credits include Thank You for Your Service and Concussion. Morse is repped by UTA, Kipperman Management, Arcieri & Associates, and attorney Diane Golden at Katz Golden Lerner.
Rolando Villazón is an opera singer and director whose credits include Mozart in Prague: Rolando Villazón on Don Giovanni, La Bohèmme and La Traviata. He is repped by Columbia Artists Management.
Monteverde is represented by Sentient Entertainment and attorney Sean A. Marks of Marks Law Group.
- 7/15/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
With the pandemic still impeding world travel, the Cannes Film Festival chose five key cities for its satellite events, with Mexico City, Beijing, Melbourne, Seoul and Tokyo screening a selection of titles world premiering at the French event.
From July 8 to 16, Mexico City’s Diana arthouse cinema, of giant exhibition circuit Cinepolis, has hosted a dozen Cannes titles that were not available online.
In a statement, Cannes director general Thierry Fremaux said: “This exceptional year gives us the chance, for the first time, to present the films of the Cannes Selection to Mexican buyers in a theater in Mexico City, while the festival takes place in Cannes. I have no doubt that these screenings will help the films find a distributor.”
“With the realization of this important event, Mexico is confirmed as a vital business platform in the audiovisual industry,” said Cannes en Cdmx producer Daniel de la Vega.
“The...
From July 8 to 16, Mexico City’s Diana arthouse cinema, of giant exhibition circuit Cinepolis, has hosted a dozen Cannes titles that were not available online.
In a statement, Cannes director general Thierry Fremaux said: “This exceptional year gives us the chance, for the first time, to present the films of the Cannes Selection to Mexican buyers in a theater in Mexico City, while the festival takes place in Cannes. I have no doubt that these screenings will help the films find a distributor.”
“With the realization of this important event, Mexico is confirmed as a vital business platform in the audiovisual industry,” said Cannes en Cdmx producer Daniel de la Vega.
“The...
- 7/14/2021
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Dickinson
In the second season of the Apple TV+ series, Emily Dickinson (Hailee Steinfeld) and her family go to the opera in Boston to see La Traviata. “It’s an important episode because Emily conflates the character Violetta with [best friend, sister-in-law and romantic interest] Sue. That became a big production design idea,” explains production designer Neil Patel. “Sue’s set [her parlor at the Evergreens] echoes Violetta’s parlor in La Traviata.”
The ornate set was built in the lobby of Loew’s Jersey Theatre, a movie palace-style theater in Jersey City that opened in 1929. “It was a ...
In the second season of the Apple TV+ series, Emily Dickinson (Hailee Steinfeld) and her family go to the opera in Boston to see La Traviata. “It’s an important episode because Emily conflates the character Violetta with [best friend, sister-in-law and romantic interest] Sue. That became a big production design idea,” explains production designer Neil Patel. “Sue’s set [her parlor at the Evergreens] echoes Violetta’s parlor in La Traviata.”
The ornate set was built in the lobby of Loew’s Jersey Theatre, a movie palace-style theater in Jersey City that opened in 1929. “It was a ...
Dickinson
In the second season of the Apple TV+ series, Emily Dickinson (Hailee Steinfeld) and her family go to the opera in Boston to see La Traviata. “It’s an important episode because Emily conflates the character Violetta with [best friend, sister-in-law and romantic interest] Sue. That became a big production design idea,” explains production designer Neil Patel. “Sue’s set [her parlor at the Evergreens] echoes Violetta’s parlor in La Traviata.”
The ornate set was built in the lobby of Loew’s Jersey Theatre, a movie palace-style theater in Jersey City that opened in 1929. “It was a ...
In the second season of the Apple TV+ series, Emily Dickinson (Hailee Steinfeld) and her family go to the opera in Boston to see La Traviata. “It’s an important episode because Emily conflates the character Violetta with [best friend, sister-in-law and romantic interest] Sue. That became a big production design idea,” explains production designer Neil Patel. “Sue’s set [her parlor at the Evergreens] echoes Violetta’s parlor in La Traviata.”
The ornate set was built in the lobby of Loew’s Jersey Theatre, a movie palace-style theater in Jersey City that opened in 1929. “It was a ...
For the second season of “Dickinson,” composers Drum and Lace and Ian Hultquist were given the opportunity to not just write score accompaniment for the Apple TV+ series but also what might be the key musical moment in the entire series thus far.
In episode 6, as Emily (Hailee Steinfeld) continues to grapple with her feelings on fame as well as her relationship with Sue (Ella Hunt), the famed poet imagines her muse taking the stage during an opera to sing a soaring rendition of the poem “Split the Lark.” Performed by Hunt, the resulting track has more than 200,000 streams on Spotify and countless more on YouTube.
“It took us a minute to find the right direction to take it in,” Hultquist says in a new interview with Gold Derby (watch the exclusive video above). “We had to blend coming out of the opera, ‘La Traviata,’ and it had to feel...
In episode 6, as Emily (Hailee Steinfeld) continues to grapple with her feelings on fame as well as her relationship with Sue (Ella Hunt), the famed poet imagines her muse taking the stage during an opera to sing a soaring rendition of the poem “Split the Lark.” Performed by Hunt, the resulting track has more than 200,000 streams on Spotify and countless more on YouTube.
“It took us a minute to find the right direction to take it in,” Hultquist says in a new interview with Gold Derby (watch the exclusive video above). “We had to blend coming out of the opera, ‘La Traviata,’ and it had to feel...
- 5/14/2021
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
On this day, March 6th, in showbiz history...
1853 La Traviata, Verdi's popular opera premieres in Venice. Have you ever seen the 1982 film version by Franco Zeffirelli? My parents took us, if I recall correctly. I wasn't sure what was going on but I remember it being quite beautiful. Oscar voters thought so too nominating in 'the Moulin Rouge! categories' (Costume Design + Art Direction) ...
1853 La Traviata, Verdi's popular opera premieres in Venice. Have you ever seen the 1982 film version by Franco Zeffirelli? My parents took us, if I recall correctly. I wasn't sure what was going on but I remember it being quite beautiful. Oscar voters thought so too nominating in 'the Moulin Rouge! categories' (Costume Design + Art Direction) ...
- 3/6/2021
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
The American Society of Cinematographers will present its 2021 Board of Governors Award to director Sofia Coppola, the Asc announced on Thursday.
The award, the only Asc honor not to go to a cinematographer, is given to a filmmaker who is a champion of cinematographers and has made “significant and indelible” contributions to cinema.
Past winners of the Board of Governors Award have included Werner Herzog, Jeff Bridges, Angelina Jolie, Denzel Washington, Ridley Scott and Barbra Streisand. Coppola’s father, Francis Ford Coppola, received the award in 1998.
Coppola’s feature directing career began in 1999 with “The Virgin Suicides,” “Lost in Translation,” “Marie Antoinette,” “Somewhere,” “The Bling Ring,” “The Beguiled” and the recent “On the Rocks.” She also directed the 2015 Netflix special “A Very Murray Christmas” and a 2017 production of Verdi’s opera “La Traviata” at the Teatro dell’Opera in Rome. She won an Academy Award for her screenplay to “Lost in Translation,...
The award, the only Asc honor not to go to a cinematographer, is given to a filmmaker who is a champion of cinematographers and has made “significant and indelible” contributions to cinema.
Past winners of the Board of Governors Award have included Werner Herzog, Jeff Bridges, Angelina Jolie, Denzel Washington, Ridley Scott and Barbra Streisand. Coppola’s father, Francis Ford Coppola, received the award in 1998.
Coppola’s feature directing career began in 1999 with “The Virgin Suicides,” “Lost in Translation,” “Marie Antoinette,” “Somewhere,” “The Bling Ring,” “The Beguiled” and the recent “On the Rocks.” She also directed the 2015 Netflix special “A Very Murray Christmas” and a 2017 production of Verdi’s opera “La Traviata” at the Teatro dell’Opera in Rome. She won an Academy Award for her screenplay to “Lost in Translation,...
- 2/18/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Remember what it was like to be a teenager, pent up with so much pulsing emotion it felt like it might come gushing forth from your guts at any given moment? Or, then, a twentysomething trying to embrace adulthood without losing your every scrap of raw nerve? “Dickinson” does, with the kind of visceral urgency that’s harder to portray than meets the eye.
The series, now in its second season on Apple TV Plus, casts Hailee Steinfeld as Emily Dickinson, the legendary poet who until recently was as well known for being a recluse as she was for being a writer. “Dickinson” acknowledges her reputation even as it dismantles it. The show’s Dickinson is Emily, a flesh and blood teenage girl brimming over with more feelings than she can process, first. In the first season, “Dickinson” was promising in much the same way as teenage Emily: ambitious and...
The series, now in its second season on Apple TV Plus, casts Hailee Steinfeld as Emily Dickinson, the legendary poet who until recently was as well known for being a recluse as she was for being a writer. “Dickinson” acknowledges her reputation even as it dismantles it. The show’s Dickinson is Emily, a flesh and blood teenage girl brimming over with more feelings than she can process, first. In the first season, “Dickinson” was promising in much the same way as teenage Emily: ambitious and...
- 1/31/2021
- by Caroline Framke
- Variety Film + TV
Four acclaimed film cinematographers will reveal details behind their projects when they join Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Btl Experts” Q&a event with key 2021 guild and Oscar contenders this month. Each person will participate in two video discussions to be published on Tuesday, January 19, at 5:00 p.m. Pt; 8:00 p.m. Et. We’ll have a one-on-one with our senior editor Joyce Eng and a group chat with Joyce and all of them together.
RSVP today to this specific event by clicking here to book your reservation. Or click here to RSVP for our entire ongoing panel series. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.
This “Meet the Btl Experts” panel welcomes the following 2021 guild and Oscar contenders:
“Minari” (A24): Lachlan Milne
Milne’s career has included “Strangers Things,” “Next Goal Wins,” “Love and Monsters,” “Little Monsters” and “Down Under.
RSVP today to this specific event by clicking here to book your reservation. Or click here to RSVP for our entire ongoing panel series. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.
This “Meet the Btl Experts” panel welcomes the following 2021 guild and Oscar contenders:
“Minari” (A24): Lachlan Milne
Milne’s career has included “Strangers Things,” “Next Goal Wins,” “Love and Monsters,” “Little Monsters” and “Down Under.
- 1/11/2021
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Close-Up is a feature that spotlights films now playing on Mubi. Mati Diop's In My Room is now exclusively showing in the Mubi library. Mati Diop’s silhouette stands before five long, narrow windows. She raises the blinds of each one to reveal a cerulean dawn. Diop stops to open the fourth window and manages to knock down the blinds of the fifth one in the process. This scene of an otherwise torpid morning activity sets the tone for her recent short film, In My Room, which the French-Senegalese actress and director shot during the early days of quarantine. It’s the 20th installment of Miu Miu’s “Women’s Tales” series and she joins the likes of Agnès Varda, Lucrecia Martel, Miranda July and other directors, who created idiosyncratic shorts of their own for the fashion house. What’s particularly distinctive about In My Room is that it...
- 10/29/2020
- MUBI
Exclusive: WestEnd Films has scored UK distribution and other key deals for TIFF Selects title Falling For Figaro, from director Ben Lewin (The Sessions) and starring Joanna Lumley (Absolutely Fabulous) and Danielle Macdonald (Patti Cake$).
Entertainment Film Distributors has picked up the romantic comedy for the UK. Rights have also gone to Spain (Twelve Oaks), Benelux (Splendid), China (Huanxi Media Group), Israel (United King), former Yugoslavia (Investacommerce) and Umbrella Entertainment in Australia and New Zealand.
The UK distribution deal was negotiated by Nigel Green at Entertainment and Maya Amsellem at WestEnd, acting on behalf of the filmmakers.
Discussions are said to be ongoing for North America.
The film was screened for the first time to buyers at TIFF as part of the festival’s new Industry Selects section, a curated selection of 30 projects with potential international sales appeal.
Set in the fierce world of opera competitions, and featuring music from The Barber of Seville,...
Entertainment Film Distributors has picked up the romantic comedy for the UK. Rights have also gone to Spain (Twelve Oaks), Benelux (Splendid), China (Huanxi Media Group), Israel (United King), former Yugoslavia (Investacommerce) and Umbrella Entertainment in Australia and New Zealand.
The UK distribution deal was negotiated by Nigel Green at Entertainment and Maya Amsellem at WestEnd, acting on behalf of the filmmakers.
Discussions are said to be ongoing for North America.
The film was screened for the first time to buyers at TIFF as part of the festival’s new Industry Selects section, a curated selection of 30 projects with potential international sales appeal.
Set in the fierce world of opera competitions, and featuring music from The Barber of Seville,...
- 9/24/2020
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Here’s the first image from Falling For Figaro, Ben Lewin’s (The Sessions) upcoming romantic comedy set in the world of opera starring Joanna Lumley and Danielle Macdonald.
Deadline broke the news on the pic back in October. Macdonald will play a young fund manager who decides to leave her unfulfilling job and long-term boyfriend behind to chase her lifelong dream of becoming an opera singer, with Lumley as a former opera diva who becomes her fearsome singing teacher.
WestEnd Films is handling sales on the title and will screen a first promo during the Cannes online market next week.
The movie is an official Australian-uk co-production written by Ben Lewin and Allen Palmer, and produced by Philip Wade, Judi Levine and Arabella Page Croft. Hugh Skinner, Gary Lewis, Shazad Latif and Rebecca Benson round out the cast. It will feature music from The Barber Of Seville, The Marriage Of Figaro,...
Deadline broke the news on the pic back in October. Macdonald will play a young fund manager who decides to leave her unfulfilling job and long-term boyfriend behind to chase her lifelong dream of becoming an opera singer, with Lumley as a former opera diva who becomes her fearsome singing teacher.
WestEnd Films is handling sales on the title and will screen a first promo during the Cannes online market next week.
The movie is an official Australian-uk co-production written by Ben Lewin and Allen Palmer, and produced by Philip Wade, Judi Levine and Arabella Page Croft. Hugh Skinner, Gary Lewis, Shazad Latif and Rebecca Benson round out the cast. It will feature music from The Barber Of Seville, The Marriage Of Figaro,...
- 6/18/2020
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
Two days after apologizing for sexual harassment allegations, opera star Placido Domingo has walked back his statement. “My apology was sincere and wholehearted,” he said. “But I know what I haven’t done, and I will deny it again.”
The reversal occurred as European opera houses were questioning whether Domingo should still appear at performances he has scheduled through summer, according to the New York Times. “I have never behaved aggressively toward anybody, nor have I ever done anything to obstruct or hurt the career of anybody,” he added. “On the contrary,...
The reversal occurred as European opera houses were questioning whether Domingo should still appear at performances he has scheduled through summer, according to the New York Times. “I have never behaved aggressively toward anybody, nor have I ever done anything to obstruct or hurt the career of anybody,” he added. “On the contrary,...
- 2/27/2020
- by Angie Martoccio
- Rollingstone.com
Ann Roth with Carlo Poggioli and Anne-Katrin Titze on the late great costume designer: “Piero Tosi was the god!” Photo: Virginia Cademartori
Oscar and BAFTA-winning costume designer Ann Roth and Carlo Poggioli who shared a BAFTA Best Costume Design nomination with Roth gave me some insight on their work and personal relationship when I met with them last week. Carlo also assisted Ann on The Talented Mr Ripley and The English Patient.
Ann Roth on Ralph Fiennes as Almásy and Kristin Scott Thomas as Katharine in The English Patient: “I don't think Ralph is a man's man, as they say. She on the other hand, women, everybody, loved her.”
Carlo Poggioli who started out with designers Gabriella Pescucci, Piero Tosi and Maurizio Millenotti (Ruppert Everett’s...
Oscar and BAFTA-winning costume designer Ann Roth and Carlo Poggioli who shared a BAFTA Best Costume Design nomination with Roth gave me some insight on their work and personal relationship when I met with them last week. Carlo also assisted Ann on The Talented Mr Ripley and The English Patient.
Ann Roth on Ralph Fiennes as Almásy and Kristin Scott Thomas as Katharine in The English Patient: “I don't think Ralph is a man's man, as they say. She on the other hand, women, everybody, loved her.”
Carlo Poggioli who started out with designers Gabriella Pescucci, Piero Tosi and Maurizio Millenotti (Ruppert Everett’s...
- 11/7/2019
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Fists in the Pocket
Blu ray
Criterion
1965/ 1.85:1 / 108 min.
Starring Lou Castel, Paola Pitagora
Cinematography by Alberto Marrama
Directed by Marco Bellochio
The split-personality of world cinema was never more evident than in 1965 when Fists in the Pockets and Repulsion debuted alongside The Sound of Music and That Darn Cat. All four films dealt with fantasies of family life but only one suggested smashing the institution altogether. And that film was That Darn Cat (“sarcasm font”).
Hailed as one of the most audacious debuts in film history, director Marco Bellochio’s Fists in the Pocket premiered that summer at the Locarno Film Festival. Both Time and Newsweek raved and even Life Magazine, America’s favorite coffee table prop, confessed they were “stunned but exhilarated.” The movie received a more predictable reception from the usual suspects – The Christian Democrat Party called for its expulsion from the public eye.
Bellochio’s film about a deranged brood,...
Blu ray
Criterion
1965/ 1.85:1 / 108 min.
Starring Lou Castel, Paola Pitagora
Cinematography by Alberto Marrama
Directed by Marco Bellochio
The split-personality of world cinema was never more evident than in 1965 when Fists in the Pockets and Repulsion debuted alongside The Sound of Music and That Darn Cat. All four films dealt with fantasies of family life but only one suggested smashing the institution altogether. And that film was That Darn Cat (“sarcasm font”).
Hailed as one of the most audacious debuts in film history, director Marco Bellochio’s Fists in the Pocket premiered that summer at the Locarno Film Festival. Both Time and Newsweek raved and even Life Magazine, America’s favorite coffee table prop, confessed they were “stunned but exhilarated.” The movie received a more predictable reception from the usual suspects – The Christian Democrat Party called for its expulsion from the public eye.
Bellochio’s film about a deranged brood,...
- 9/7/2019
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
• Variety Rip Piero Tosi one of the great costume designers. His film credits include Death in Venice, La Traviata, La Cage Aux Folles and The Night Porter so he's the one responsible for Charlotte Rampling at her most sexually provocative
• BuzzFeed good piece on Brad Pitt's talent and why he shines in weirder sideline roles as opposed to leads... though we object to any notion that he isn't a leading man in Once Upon a Time... but this battle is already lost since critics keep calling him supporting even before the Oscar campaign does. (sigh)
more after the jump including The Hunt, a fun conversation on Hobbs & Shaw, Tarantino and Almodóvar...
• BuzzFeed good piece on Brad Pitt's talent and why he shines in weirder sideline roles as opposed to leads... though we object to any notion that he isn't a leading man in Once Upon a Time... but this battle is already lost since critics keep calling him supporting even before the Oscar campaign does. (sigh)
more after the jump including The Hunt, a fun conversation on Hobbs & Shaw, Tarantino and Almodóvar...
- 8/11/2019
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Piero Tosi, a famed costume designer who worked on films such as “The Leopard” and “Death in Venice,” died Saturday in Rome, the Franco Zeffirelli Foundation announced on Facebook. He was 92.
Over the course of his 50 year career, Tosi established himself as one of Hollywood’s greatest costume designers, earning five Oscar nominations for costume design and an honorary Oscar in 2013. He also garnered international acclaim for a number of popular films including, “The Damned,” “Ludwig,” “Death in Venice” and “The Leopard,” in which his elaborate, period-piece designs took center stage. Other film credits include “La Cage Aux Folles,” “The Night Porter,” “Toby Dammit” and the Oscar foreign language film-winner “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.”
After growing up in Florence Italy, Tosi landed his first job as a costume assistant on a stage production of “Le chandelier,” before meeting the legendary stage and film director Luchino Visconti. Soon after, Tosi went...
Over the course of his 50 year career, Tosi established himself as one of Hollywood’s greatest costume designers, earning five Oscar nominations for costume design and an honorary Oscar in 2013. He also garnered international acclaim for a number of popular films including, “The Damned,” “Ludwig,” “Death in Venice” and “The Leopard,” in which his elaborate, period-piece designs took center stage. Other film credits include “La Cage Aux Folles,” “The Night Porter,” “Toby Dammit” and the Oscar foreign language film-winner “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.”
After growing up in Florence Italy, Tosi landed his first job as a costume assistant on a stage production of “Le chandelier,” before meeting the legendary stage and film director Luchino Visconti. Soon after, Tosi went...
- 8/10/2019
- by Nate Nickolai
- Variety Film + TV
Devout Catholic was senator in Silvio Berlusconi’s right wing Forza Italia party.
Franco Zeffirelli, the director of extravagant film, theatre, television and opera whose feature credits included Romeo And Juliet, has died in Rome following a long illness. He was 96.
Zeffirelli was born in Florence in 1923. He trained as an architect, and became a set designer and opera director after the Second World War when he established himself as a creator of lavish visuals who would go on to direct renowned adaptations of operas such as La Boheme and Aida.
Critics took note of his film work when he...
Franco Zeffirelli, the director of extravagant film, theatre, television and opera whose feature credits included Romeo And Juliet, has died in Rome following a long illness. He was 96.
Zeffirelli was born in Florence in 1923. He trained as an architect, and became a set designer and opera director after the Second World War when he established himself as a creator of lavish visuals who would go on to direct renowned adaptations of operas such as La Boheme and Aida.
Critics took note of his film work when he...
- 6/15/2019
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Franco Zeffirelli, the Italian director whose visionary interpretation of Romeo and Juliet was nominated for an Academy Award, has died. He was 96 and passed at his residence in Rome.
Zeffirelli was prolific in film, theater and opera over his long career, and was known for his epic scale in his productions. He staged more than 120 operas in his career.
Gianfranco Zeffirelli was born on February 12, 1923 on the outskirts of Florence. He was educated at the Academia di Belle Arti in Florence as an architect, but claimed later that after seeing Laurence Olivier’s Henry V, he decided on a new direction and turned to theater.
After some early acting success, Zeffirelli worked as a set designer at the Teatro della Pergola in Florence. There he met director Luchino Visconti, who became his mentor and passed along his love of opera to his young charge.
Zeffirelli devoted his time to theater...
Zeffirelli was prolific in film, theater and opera over his long career, and was known for his epic scale in his productions. He staged more than 120 operas in his career.
Gianfranco Zeffirelli was born on February 12, 1923 on the outskirts of Florence. He was educated at the Academia di Belle Arti in Florence as an architect, but claimed later that after seeing Laurence Olivier’s Henry V, he decided on a new direction and turned to theater.
After some early acting success, Zeffirelli worked as a set designer at the Teatro della Pergola in Florence. There he met director Luchino Visconti, who became his mentor and passed along his love of opera to his young charge.
Zeffirelli devoted his time to theater...
- 6/15/2019
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Italian director Franco Zeffirelli, a two-time Oscar nominee best known for his 1968 big-screen version of “Romeo and Juliet,” died on Saturday at age 96.
Zeffirelli’s son Luciano told the Associated Press that his father died at home in Rome.
He earned two Oscar nominations, the first for directing the lush adaptation of “Romeo and Juliet” starring a then-unknown Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey, which grossed more than $52 million in the U.S. on a $1.5 million budget, according to the AP. He earned a second nomination for art and set decoration on his filmed version of the opera “La Traviata” starring Placido Domingo and Teresa Stratas.
Also Read: Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2019 (Photos)
Zeffirelli was also widely acclaimed as a director of theater and opera in his native Italy and won two Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on PBS’ “Great Performances” productions of the operas “Pagliacci” in 1985 and “Cavalleria Rusticana...
Zeffirelli’s son Luciano told the Associated Press that his father died at home in Rome.
He earned two Oscar nominations, the first for directing the lush adaptation of “Romeo and Juliet” starring a then-unknown Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey, which grossed more than $52 million in the U.S. on a $1.5 million budget, according to the AP. He earned a second nomination for art and set decoration on his filmed version of the opera “La Traviata” starring Placido Domingo and Teresa Stratas.
Also Read: Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2019 (Photos)
Zeffirelli was also widely acclaimed as a director of theater and opera in his native Italy and won two Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on PBS’ “Great Performances” productions of the operas “Pagliacci” in 1985 and “Cavalleria Rusticana...
- 6/15/2019
- by Thom Geier
- The Wrap
Legendary Italian filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli has passed away at the age of 96. His son Luciano told The Sun his father died at home at noon on Saturday. He said, “He had suffered for a while, but he left in a peaceful way.”
The excess-loving Zeffirelli was best known in the states for his work on such lush Shakespearean adaptations as his debut feature, the 1967 take on “The Taming of the Shrew,” starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, which he followed with his popular 1968 version of “Romeo and Juliet,” which starred Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey and was nominated for Best Director and Best Picture.
After the success of his first two films, Zeffirelli moved into more religious work, including the St. Francis of Assisi-centric “Brother Sun, Sister Moon” and his still-popular mini-series “Jesus of Nazareth.” He directed more than two dozen films, and frequently worked with majors stars Elizabeth Taylor,...
The excess-loving Zeffirelli was best known in the states for his work on such lush Shakespearean adaptations as his debut feature, the 1967 take on “The Taming of the Shrew,” starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, which he followed with his popular 1968 version of “Romeo and Juliet,” which starred Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey and was nominated for Best Director and Best Picture.
After the success of his first two films, Zeffirelli moved into more religious work, including the St. Francis of Assisi-centric “Brother Sun, Sister Moon” and his still-popular mini-series “Jesus of Nazareth.” He directed more than two dozen films, and frequently worked with majors stars Elizabeth Taylor,...
- 6/15/2019
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Franco Zeffirelli, the stylish and sometimes controversial theater, opera and film director, has died. He was 96.
Zeffirelli, who was Oscar-nominated for his 1968 version of “Romeo and Juliet,” died at his home in Rome at noon on Saturday, his son Luciano told the Associated Press. “He had suffered for a while, but he left in a peaceful way,” Luciano said.
While Zeffirelli was fond of making films with literary antecedents such as “Romeo and Juliet,” “Hamlet,” “Taming of the Shrew” and “Jane Eyre,” his legacy as director of extravagant opera and theater productions is probably more consistent and long-lasting.
He directed, co-wrote and co-produced the 1966 production of “Taming of the Shrew,” starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, one of the twice-married celebrated pair’s most successful co-starring assignments. Spirited and amusing, it paved the way for a youthful and sexy “Romeo and Juliet,” which was a major box office success in the U.
Zeffirelli, who was Oscar-nominated for his 1968 version of “Romeo and Juliet,” died at his home in Rome at noon on Saturday, his son Luciano told the Associated Press. “He had suffered for a while, but he left in a peaceful way,” Luciano said.
While Zeffirelli was fond of making films with literary antecedents such as “Romeo and Juliet,” “Hamlet,” “Taming of the Shrew” and “Jane Eyre,” his legacy as director of extravagant opera and theater productions is probably more consistent and long-lasting.
He directed, co-wrote and co-produced the 1966 production of “Taming of the Shrew,” starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, one of the twice-married celebrated pair’s most successful co-starring assignments. Spirited and amusing, it paved the way for a youthful and sexy “Romeo and Juliet,” which was a major box office success in the U.
- 6/15/2019
- by Richard Natale
- Variety Film + TV
Maria Callas. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics
In many ways, American-born soprano Maria Callas’ life was operatic, with plenty of triumph and tragedy. Early in Maria By Callas, we see Maria Callas being interviewed by television host David Frost, as she describes her life being divided into two parts, a professional self she calls Callas and a personal self she calls Maria. Maria Callas was a fabulously famous opera star and icon of the mid-20th century who embodied the word diva, and also an intriguing international celebrity avidly covered by tabloid media. Maria By Callas allows the singer herself to set the record straight on personal and professional gossip.
Maria Callas was the most acclaimed soprano of her time but she was nothing like the stereotype of an opera singer – you know, the heavy woman in elaborate costume standing stiffly while singing. Tall, slim, with large eyes and strong regal features,...
In many ways, American-born soprano Maria Callas’ life was operatic, with plenty of triumph and tragedy. Early in Maria By Callas, we see Maria Callas being interviewed by television host David Frost, as she describes her life being divided into two parts, a professional self she calls Callas and a personal self she calls Maria. Maria Callas was a fabulously famous opera star and icon of the mid-20th century who embodied the word diva, and also an intriguing international celebrity avidly covered by tabloid media. Maria By Callas allows the singer herself to set the record straight on personal and professional gossip.
Maria Callas was the most acclaimed soprano of her time but she was nothing like the stereotype of an opera singer – you know, the heavy woman in elaborate costume standing stiffly while singing. Tall, slim, with large eyes and strong regal features,...
- 11/30/2018
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
There was once a more mysterious version of celebrity. The wall that separated a famous artist’s performance from that same artist’s private life was more difficult to scale. Popular singers didn’t routinely executive produce advertorials stuffed with behind-the-scenes footage of themselves: no rehearsal time laid bare, no banal shopping trips, no nervous visit to their personal ear, nose, and throat specialist. Fans didn’t have the immediate access provided by the internet; a star was more or less allowed to keep the public at arm’s length.
Filmmaker Tom Volf reaches into the past to change that in “Maria by Callas,” a lovingly assembled documentary about the life and career of American opera legend Maria Callas, whose voice is considered to be among the greatest of the 20th century. Here, the private Callas is made public.
Curated from live performance footage, television interviews, the singer’s own...
Filmmaker Tom Volf reaches into the past to change that in “Maria by Callas,” a lovingly assembled documentary about the life and career of American opera legend Maria Callas, whose voice is considered to be among the greatest of the 20th century. Here, the private Callas is made public.
Curated from live performance footage, television interviews, the singer’s own...
- 11/2/2018
- by Dave White
- The Wrap
Much to fans’ delight, Pretty Woman: The Musical stays true to the 1990 original movie!
The rags-to-riches story of Vivian Ward falling in love with wealthy businessman Edward Lewis hits the Big Apple in August with Samantha Barks stepping into the vinyl boots of Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts while Andy Karl suits up to play the wealthy businessman previously portrayed by Richard Gere.
People has an exclusive look of just how similar the upcoming production is to the Garry Marshall-directed rom-com — and these three juxtaposed fan-favorite scenes will stop you from saying, “Big mistake. Big. Huge.”
Meet Cute
Bark transforms...
The rags-to-riches story of Vivian Ward falling in love with wealthy businessman Edward Lewis hits the Big Apple in August with Samantha Barks stepping into the vinyl boots of Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts while Andy Karl suits up to play the wealthy businessman previously portrayed by Richard Gere.
People has an exclusive look of just how similar the upcoming production is to the Garry Marshall-directed rom-com — and these three juxtaposed fan-favorite scenes will stop you from saying, “Big mistake. Big. Huge.”
Meet Cute
Bark transforms...
- 8/8/2018
- by Karen Mizoguchi
- PEOPLE.com
Opera star Marina Rebeka will be profiled in a new one-off documentary that London-based Starline will sell internationally. “Marina Rebeka: Blessings of Will and Talent” tells the story of the Latvian soprano hailed as “stupendous” by Placido Domingo and who has performed at La Scala in Italy, London’s Royal Opera House, and the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall in New York.
Domingo features in the show, as do Rebeka’s friends and contemporaries, including conductors Marco Armiliato and Fabrizio Maria Carminati, tenor Juan Diego Flórez and Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani.
“While Marina Rebeka’s leading roles in ‘Norma,’ ‘La Traviata’ and ‘La Boheme,’ to name a few, have won the highest praise from taste setters like The New York Times and Opera Today, this hugely enjoyable doc brings us up close up and personal to an extraordinary talent, whose down-to-earth warmth and humor completely shatter the common ‘diva’ stereotype,...
Domingo features in the show, as do Rebeka’s friends and contemporaries, including conductors Marco Armiliato and Fabrizio Maria Carminati, tenor Juan Diego Flórez and Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani.
“While Marina Rebeka’s leading roles in ‘Norma,’ ‘La Traviata’ and ‘La Boheme,’ to name a few, have won the highest praise from taste setters like The New York Times and Opera Today, this hugely enjoyable doc brings us up close up and personal to an extraordinary talent, whose down-to-earth warmth and humor completely shatter the common ‘diva’ stereotype,...
- 5/22/2018
- by Stewart Clarke
- Variety Film + TV
Rose McGowan is sending her “love and support” to her former costar Johnathon Schaech, who claims he was sexually harassed and abused by a director in the early ’90s.
“I love and support you, @JonathanShaech,” the actress, who appeared with Schaech in 1995’s The Doom Generation tweeted. “I now understand why you were so angry when we worked together, it is because you were stolen. Hijacked. We need to start calling it Life Theft because these predators do, they steal lives. Enough! Time for truth.”
I love and support you,
@JonathanShaech. I now understand why you were so angry when we worked together,...
“I love and support you, @JonathanShaech,” the actress, who appeared with Schaech in 1995’s The Doom Generation tweeted. “I now understand why you were so angry when we worked together, it is because you were stolen. Hijacked. We need to start calling it Life Theft because these predators do, they steal lives. Enough! Time for truth.”
I love and support you,
@JonathanShaech. I now understand why you were so angry when we worked together,...
- 1/18/2018
- by Mike Miller
- PEOPLE.com
Johnathon Schaech was 22 when acclaimed director Franco Zeffirelli cast him as the lead in his movie Sparrow. It was 1992, and the newcomer was thrilled to work with the Italian filmmaker, famed for films such as The Champ, La Traviata and Romeo and Juliet, for which he earned a 1969 Oscar nod for best director. But Schaech says Zeffirelli harassed and sexually abused him during the shoot, a trauma he’s kept secret for 25 years. Hopeful his story can help make positive change, the Ray Donovan actor, now 48, who rose to fame in That Thing You Do!, shared this first-person account with People’s Elizabeth Leonard.
- 1/11/2018
- by Johnathon Schaech
- PEOPLE.com
Some fairy tales don’t come true. Back in 2014, Oscar-winning filmmaker Sofia Coppola was attached to a Universal Pictures and Working Title production of “The Little Mermaid,” a live-action version of the classic (and, let’s be honest, pretty heartbreaking fairy tale) that didn’t pan out for a variety of reasons.
Coppola left the project in June of 2015 after being attached to it for over a year, eventually loading up her slate with such varied offerings as this week’s big release “The Beguiled,” her Netflix special “A Very Murray Christmas,” and even a filmed version of the classic opera “La Traviata,” but she still seems to be compelled by the reasons that pushed her to exit the feature, one that sounds like it would have been quite ambitious in its scope and creativity.
Read More: With ‘The Beguiled,’ Sofia Coppola Seeks Cannes Redemption with a Southern-Gothic Remake
At a special event at New York City’s Film Society of Lincoln Center on Tuesday night — tantalizingly billed as “An Evening with Sofia Coppola” — the filmmaker engaged in a free-flowing and career-spanning chat with Fslc Deputy Director Eugene Hernandez, including an honest assessment of why she left the long-gestating “Little Mermaid,” and how choices like that continue to inform her filmmaking.
“It wasn’t the Disney version, it was actually the original fairy tale, which is much darker,” Coppola said. “I thought it would be fun to do a fairy tale, I’ve always loved fairy tales, so I was curious about doing that.”
Earlier this year, Coppola told Variety that she left the project simply because it was getting too big for her tastes. “I would have liked to have done that [film],” she told the outlet. “We couldn’t agree on some elements. When it’s smaller, you can have exactly what you have in mind. For me, it wasn’t a good fit.”
That was a theme she expanded on during the Fslc chat, offering up a clearer explanation of why she couldn’t make the Hans Christian Andersen adaptation work.
“It became too big of a scale,” Coppola said. “I wanted to shoot it really underwater, which would have been a nightmare. But underwater photography is so beautiful. We even did some tests. It was not very realistic, that approach. But it was interesting to think about.”
Coppola also balked at the more business-minded elements of the film, concerns that came part and parcel with the larger-scale project that “The Little Mermaid” seemed to be turning into.
“For me, when a movie has a really large budget like that, it just becomes more about business, or business becomes a bigger element than art,” she said. “When it’s smaller, there’s less people involved, it’s not so much at risk, business-wise.”
Read More: Sofia Coppola Has No Interest in Making a Blockbuster or a Sequel
At the time of Coppola’s departure, Deadline noted that “Universal and Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner are pressing ahead, with a Caroline Thompson rewrite on the story.” Earlier drafts of the script were written by Kelly Marcel and Abi Morgan, and other directors like Joe Wright and Rebecca Thomas were rumored to direct at various points.
Although Chloe Grace Moretz was cast as the eponymous mermaid in 2015 after Coppola’s exit, there’s been little other forward movement since that news. As of now, IMDbPro does list Thomas as the film’s director, with Richard Curtis on deck as credited screenwriter (the “Love, Actually” filmmaker joined the project post-Coppola).
Focus Features will release “The Beguiled” in select theaters June 23, with additional cities to follow a week later.
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Related stories'The Beguiled' Exclusive: Here's What It's Like to Work On A Sofia Coppola Set -- WatchSofia Coppola Movies Ranked Worst to BestSofia Coppola On Female Sexuality In 'The Beguiled' And Why She Hopes Gay Men Find Colin Farrell Sexy...
Coppola left the project in June of 2015 after being attached to it for over a year, eventually loading up her slate with such varied offerings as this week’s big release “The Beguiled,” her Netflix special “A Very Murray Christmas,” and even a filmed version of the classic opera “La Traviata,” but she still seems to be compelled by the reasons that pushed her to exit the feature, one that sounds like it would have been quite ambitious in its scope and creativity.
Read More: With ‘The Beguiled,’ Sofia Coppola Seeks Cannes Redemption with a Southern-Gothic Remake
At a special event at New York City’s Film Society of Lincoln Center on Tuesday night — tantalizingly billed as “An Evening with Sofia Coppola” — the filmmaker engaged in a free-flowing and career-spanning chat with Fslc Deputy Director Eugene Hernandez, including an honest assessment of why she left the long-gestating “Little Mermaid,” and how choices like that continue to inform her filmmaking.
“It wasn’t the Disney version, it was actually the original fairy tale, which is much darker,” Coppola said. “I thought it would be fun to do a fairy tale, I’ve always loved fairy tales, so I was curious about doing that.”
Earlier this year, Coppola told Variety that she left the project simply because it was getting too big for her tastes. “I would have liked to have done that [film],” she told the outlet. “We couldn’t agree on some elements. When it’s smaller, you can have exactly what you have in mind. For me, it wasn’t a good fit.”
That was a theme she expanded on during the Fslc chat, offering up a clearer explanation of why she couldn’t make the Hans Christian Andersen adaptation work.
“It became too big of a scale,” Coppola said. “I wanted to shoot it really underwater, which would have been a nightmare. But underwater photography is so beautiful. We even did some tests. It was not very realistic, that approach. But it was interesting to think about.”
Coppola also balked at the more business-minded elements of the film, concerns that came part and parcel with the larger-scale project that “The Little Mermaid” seemed to be turning into.
“For me, when a movie has a really large budget like that, it just becomes more about business, or business becomes a bigger element than art,” she said. “When it’s smaller, there’s less people involved, it’s not so much at risk, business-wise.”
Read More: Sofia Coppola Has No Interest in Making a Blockbuster or a Sequel
At the time of Coppola’s departure, Deadline noted that “Universal and Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner are pressing ahead, with a Caroline Thompson rewrite on the story.” Earlier drafts of the script were written by Kelly Marcel and Abi Morgan, and other directors like Joe Wright and Rebecca Thomas were rumored to direct at various points.
Although Chloe Grace Moretz was cast as the eponymous mermaid in 2015 after Coppola’s exit, there’s been little other forward movement since that news. As of now, IMDbPro does list Thomas as the film’s director, with Richard Curtis on deck as credited screenwriter (the “Love, Actually” filmmaker joined the project post-Coppola).
Focus Features will release “The Beguiled” in select theaters June 23, with additional cities to follow a week later.
Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
Related stories'The Beguiled' Exclusive: Here's What It's Like to Work On A Sofia Coppola Set -- WatchSofia Coppola Movies Ranked Worst to BestSofia Coppola On Female Sexuality In 'The Beguiled' And Why She Hopes Gay Men Find Colin Farrell Sexy...
- 6/21/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Sofia Coppola movies are defined by desolate landscapes, lonely characters, a wry sense of humor, and painterly compositions. For fans of this aesthetic, it’s pretty hard to get it wrong, and Coppola’s nearly 20-year track record attests to the consistency of her talent. From her feature-length debut “The Virgin Suicides” through her latest endeavor, “The Beguiled,” Coppola’s dreamlike visuals and deadpan tone have remained a distinctive voice in American cinema, one filled with gentle, forlorn faces and a world that always seems as though it’s on on the verge of devouring them whole. (If there isn’t already a Reddit forum theorizing that all Coppola movies exist in a single universe governed by the laws of sadness, someone should kick it up.)
While Coppola’s career was set in motion to some degree by the influence of a very famous father, her filmmaking capabilities are hardly dictated by Francis’ accomplishments.
While Coppola’s career was set in motion to some degree by the influence of a very famous father, her filmmaking capabilities are hardly dictated by Francis’ accomplishments.
- 6/19/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Picking the best movies of any century is hard, but it’s especially challenging when dealing with a century of cinema as boundary-pushing as the 21st. IndieWire critics Eric Kohn and David Ehrlich made their own top 10 picks last summer, with Leos Carax’s “Holy Motors” and Sofia Coppola’s “Lost in Translation” taking the top spots, and now some of the best filmmakers in the business have weighed in with their own choices in a new survey from The New York Times.
Read More: Sofia Coppola Has No Interest in Making a Blockbuster or a Sequel
The newspaper reached out to the likes of Coppola, Denis Villeneuve, Antoine Fuqua, Alex Gibney and more to pick their brains on what is the best cinema has been over the last 17 years, and their answers are as expected (of course “No Country for Old Men” and “There Will Be Blood” have a...
Read More: Sofia Coppola Has No Interest in Making a Blockbuster or a Sequel
The newspaper reached out to the likes of Coppola, Denis Villeneuve, Antoine Fuqua, Alex Gibney and more to pick their brains on what is the best cinema has been over the last 17 years, and their answers are as expected (of course “No Country for Old Men” and “There Will Be Blood” have a...
- 6/9/2017
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
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