Movies

For many, Harriet Tubman’s journey is one we’re taught about in school. We know she’s a heroine, an abolitionist who led slaves to their freedom via the underground railroad. Unless you’ve read the books by Kate Clifford Larson or Beverly Lowry, “We didn’t receive the whole story,” says costume designer Paul Tazewell. Until now. Kasi

Fred Rogers may be America’s favorite next-door neighbor, but the actor who portrays him, Tom Hanks, received praise of his own during a special screening of “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” on Sunday at the Henry R. Luce Auditorium in New York City. “It was a special experience, and I think we knew we

November 18, 2019 1:00PM PT Idris Elba will star alongside Jonathan Majors in “The Harder They Fall,” a Netflix movie that will be produced by Jay-Z. The film follows outlaw Nat Love (Majors), who discovers that the man (Elba) who killed his parents two decades ago is being released from prison and decides to reunite

Laverne Cox has officially earned her wings, scoring a role in “Charlie’s Angels” — though she revealed her cameo almost didn’t happen. When the Emmy-nominee heard that Elizabeth Banks was directing the film, the longtime fan of the franchise (and of Banks herself) reached out about being part of the project. “We’ve worked together before

BARCELONA – Yanick Létourneau’s Quebec-based production house Peripheria has teamed with lead producer Samuel  Chauvin’s Promenades Films in France, as well as Haiti’s Muska Group and Canal Plus Antilles to co-produce comedic-thriller “Kidnapping Inc.,” the sophomore feature of French director Bruno Mourral (“Kafou”). France’s CNC National Film Board, French-language TV channel TV5 Monde and the

Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver will receive the performers of the year award from the Santa Barbara International Film Festival on Jan. 17. The duo is being saluted in a ceremony at the Arlington Theatre for their work in Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story.” The festival has become a key stop for filmmakers during awards season.

Variety has been given the first-look image for the film “Havel,” which has wrapped 30 years to the day after the start of the Velvet Revolution – a series of protests that led to the end of Communist control of Czechoslovakia and the rebirth of democracy in the country. Viktor Dvorak stars in the biopic

When pressed to pick a favorite among “Little Women’s” iconic March sisters, one sibling is usually rarely chosen … the youngest. “I always hated Amy,” Beanie Feldstein revealed to Florence Pugh, who plays the divisive character in Greta Gerwig’s recent adaptation. “Then, miss, I watched this film and I was so blown away by your

Chris Aronson has been tapped as president of domestic theatrical distribution at Paramount Pictures, a hire that reunites him with studio chief Jim Gianopulos. Both men worked together at 20th Century Fox for decades. Aronson is known for his wit, blunt talk, and deep ties to the exhibition industry. He was pushed out from his

November 18, 2019 10:00AM PT Beanie Feldstein recently signed on to portray Monica Lewinsky in “Impeachment: American Crime Story” — a role she called “daunting” — but the “Booksmart” actress may be more excited about the fact she gets to co-star opposite Sarah Paulson. Feldstein gushed about the opportunity to work with Paulson to “Little

LOS CABOS  —  An eight-year-old girl, Ana, looks into a hairdresser’s mirror as a woman, standing behind her, cuts her hair. “The doctor’s really scared,” the hairdresser says to the girl’s mother. “Aren’t you going to close?” the mother asks the hairdresser. “No, I pay to be here. I’m protected,” the woman replies. Still looking

For those who discovered Chadwick Boseman in the role of “Black Panther,” it’s about time the actor showed audiences what else he’s capable of. Sure, Boseman was back on the big screen a few months later in “Avengers: Infinity War” — but Marvel obviously underestimated his potential, giving Boseman far too little to do, then

LOS CABOS  —  Netflix is proving a boon to documentary creation in Mexico. That boon has not yet yielded a fully-fledged boom. The U.S. streaming giant has just released the first results of  its documentary drive. The build in cinematic standard non-fiction works in, however, palpable, the biggest case in point to date, Diego Osorno’s

LevelK has acquired international sales rights to Lisa Aschan’s new film “Call Mom!”, a sequel to her well-received feature debut, “She Monkeys.” Produced by Anna-Maria Kantarius (“Amateurs”) at Garagefilm Intl., “Call Mom!” follows Niki, a 35-year-old who lives like she’s 25 and is forced to come to grips with all of her relationships and past

In 2017, Luciana Kaplan’s globe-spanning documentary feature “Rush Hour” was selected as the best in competition at that year’s Morelia Intl. Film Festival – only one of many such plaudits for the film – and the director returned to the festival Impulso section for pix-in-post with her next latest, “The Spokeswoman,” taking three of the

KENDAL    “Climbing Blind,” from Alastair Lee, took the Grand Prize at the 2019 Kendal Mountain Festival on Saturday. Detailing the ascent of a vertical rock pillar, the film revealed how a blind mountaineer led the climb, assisted only by a sight-partner a rope length below. The film had particular significance for a British audience,

November 17, 2019 7:01PM PT President Trump will present actor Jon Voight, musician Allison Krauss, and mystery writer James Patterson with the national medal of arts. Voight is one of few in Hollywood who has been vocal about his support of President Trump in the past, calling him “the greatest president of this century.” The

November 17, 2019 4:39PM PT Zack Snyder, Gal Gadot, and Ben Affleck have taken to social media to request that Warner Bros. release the Snyder cut of “Justice League.” Snyder, who helmed “Man of Steel” and “Batman v Superman” and was “Justice League’s” original director, had to leave production on the film partway through after

Do we choose sides when we watch “Marriage Story,” Noah Baumbach’s brilliant and wrenching drama of divorce? The question, on the face of it, sounds facile in a dozen ways the movie isn’t. Rarely are there winners in divorce, and there are two sides to every breakup. “Marriage Story” is a movie that reflects that

Variety has been given access to the trailer for Kenyan documentary “The Letter,” by producer-director duo Christopher King and Maia Lekow, which world premieres Nov. 23 at IDFA. The film follows a young man who travels to his grandmother’s rural home when he learns she’s been accused of witchcraft. He soon discovers that the threatening letter she

When Warner Bros. was crafting its 2019 slate, the studio took pains to offer more than just superhero movies. To be sure, there were lots of masked vigilantes too, but more than any of its big studio brethren, Warner Bros. was willing to take a risk on the kinds of thrillers, adult dramas, coming-of-age stories,

November 17, 2019 11:30AM PT Despite her leading role, Constance Wu has never seen “Hustlers” and, spoiler alert, it’s very unlikely that she will. Wu explained why she doesn’t want to watch the film to Mindy Kaling (“Late Night”) during a conversation for “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors.” “This is crazy,” Kaling said in the

Disney and 20th Century Fox’s “Ford v Ferrari” sped ahead of fellow new release, Sony’s “Charlie’s Angels,” at the international box office. Director James Mangold’s racing drama collected $21.4 million from 41 foreign markets, representing 67% of its overseas rollout. “Ford v Ferrari” also kicked off with $31 million in North America, bringing its global

Constance Wu (“Hustlers”) and Mindy Kaling (“Late Night”) discussed the importance of women directors during a conversation for “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors.” Kaling began the interview by acknowledging how having female directors on “Hustlers” and “Late Night” benefited the films. “[‘Hustlers’ director Lorene Scafaria] doesn’t come from a place of, ‘Oh, let’s humanize this

Mindy Kaling (“Late Night”) and Constance Wu (“Hustlers”) sat down for a chat for “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors.” For more, click here. Mindy Kaling hit big screens this year with “Late Night,” a film that played off her winsome ambition. As an aspirant writer lending a new attitude to an aging show, Kaling reinforced

“Ford v Ferrari” left its box office competitors in the dust as the historical sports drama from Disney and 20th Century Fox sped its way to $31 million in North America. Directed by James Mangold and starring Christian Bale and Matt Damon, “Ford v Ferrari” debuted ahead of expectations thanks to strong word-of-mouth from moviegoers.

In Edward Norton’s “Motherless Brooklyn,” the ‘50s-set New York noir detective story he produced, directed, wrote and stars in, politics are never far from the surface. But they’re not the obvious parallels to any racist autocrats from New York of modern times, but instead focus on more timeless politics – the way disabled people and

LOS CABOS  —  “The Twentieth Century,” Matthew Rankin’s crazed retelling of Canadian history, won the main Los Cabos Competition this Saturday, beating out a prestige lineup of some of the most notable festival standouts of the year. The win at Los Cabos, whose competition is focused on movies from the U.S., Mexico and Canada, adds

“Joker” cinematographer Lawrence Sher’s bid, along with director Todd Phillips, to try something “perhaps even a bit artful” won big Saturday in Torun, Poland as he took the top prize at the EnergaCamerimage Intl. Film Festival. The Golden Frog for cinematography, along with the audience prize, went to his work filming Joaquin Phoenix in the

A Netflix requirement that cinematographers capture films in HDR, or high dynamic range, has taken many by surprise, filmmakers say, but those at the 27th EnergaCamerimage festival in Poland seem increasingly accepting of the change. DP Roberto Schaefer, whose “Red Sea Diving Resort” screened at the cinematography fest in the historic city of Torun, said