Movies

Straight out of Tollywood: “RRR,” a bigger-than-life and bolder-than-mainstream action-adventure epic, is performing mightily in international release as audiences marvel at its spectacle, embrace its emotions, and sway to its music while being repeatedly gobsmacked by its unfettered audacity. Propelled by the Telugu Cinema triumvirate of superstars N.T. Rama Rao Jr. and Ram Charan and

The union representing film and TV directors in British Columbia called for a strike authorization vote on Monday, after negotiations with the studios broke down. The Directors Guild of Canada represents about 1,700 workers in British Columbia, including directors, second unit directors, location managers and production assistants. The union has been in talks for the

Bodies sway to a beat we cannot hear. Instead a hushed, disembodied voice (Bhumisuta Das) murmurs over flickering black and white images that look soft to the touch, like a love letter turned velvety with repeated reading. A film is being projected behind the dancers. Sometimes one of them will strut into the beam and

Are comic book movies bulletproof at the box office? After Sony’s antihero adventure “Morbius” managed to pull in $39.1 million over the weekend despite terrible reviews, the answer is… sorta? There are a few ways to slice the opening weekend revenues for “Morbius,” a $75 million-budgeted superhero tentpole from Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters. Ticket

“Squid Game” director Hwang Dong-hyuk said he’s developing “Killing Old People Club,” a new film inspired by a novel penned by Umberto Eco, the revered Italian intellectual and essayist. Speaking during a session at MipTV along with his producer Jun Young Jang at February Films, Dong-hyuk revealed he has already penned a 25-page treatment about

Huma Qureshi, one of the stars of Zack Snyder’s Netflix film “Army of the Dead,” has wrapped the shoot of anti-body-shaming film “Double XL.” Qureshi, who stars in the film alongside Sonakshi Sinha, also debuts as a producer via her company Elemen3. Satram Ramani (“Helmet”) directs. “In all cultures there are ways in which we

Lithuanian film director and academic Mantas Kvedaravicius, who captured the escalating conflict in Ukraine in several powerful works, has been reported dead in Mariupol, the Ukrainian city that was the subject of his doc “Mariupolis” that premiered in Berlin. “While (he was) trying to leave Mariupol, Russian occupiers killed Lithuanian director Mantas Kvedaravicius,” the Ukrainian

Indian star Ram Charan is revelling in the success of S.S. Rajamouli’s period action drama “RRR” (“Rise Roar Revolt”). The film released March 25 worldwide and scored a $65 million opening weekend, debuting in third place in the U.S. and second in the U.K. and Ireland. Produced on budget of approximately $73 million by D.

Cinema box office in mainland China crumbled to its lowest weekend total this year as the film industry was once again hit by the impact of anti-coronavirus lockdowns. Nationwide, cinemas recorded just $12.6 million of business. Virus infections are spiking sharply upwards in some parts of the country, caused by the spread of the highly

Six new films were released in South Korea in the past week, including Sony’s Marvel franchise title “Morbius,” but none were able to relieve the current malaise afflicting the Korean theatrical industry. “Morbius” was released on Wednesday and ran off with more than half of the nationwide business, according to data from Kobis, the tracking

This June, acclaimed singer-songwriter Yola will be making her film acting debut in Baz Luhrmann’s hotly anticipated “Elvis” biopic. On the Grammys red carpet, Yola discussed her excitement about portraying Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the Godmother of Rock and Roll, in the film. “It’s just the privilege I have to speak her name, and to speak

You could say, going back to Hitchcock or the silent-film era, that the thriller is the quintessential form of cinema. You could also say that the quintessential moment of a thriller is one that makes you go “Oh. My. God.” When that happens (kind of a rare occurrence these days), it’s a privileged and intoxicating

“Morbius,” the latest comic book adventure from Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters, opened in first place at the domestic box office, though ticket sales were considerably softer than recent superhero blockbusters. Dinged by comically terrible reviews, “Morbius” sunk its teeth into $39.1 million from 4,268 North American theaters in its first weekend of release. That

On the heels of a rare public gaffe for The Walt Disney Co. — regarding the media giant’s silence over Florida’s incendiary “Don’t Say Gay” law — the GLAAD Media Awards used its annual Los Angeles show to caution the rest of Hollywood about the perils of ignoring the LGBT community. “Don’t wait until you’re

Though embattled by a staff and talent revolt over its stance on incendiary policies toward trans youth, the Walt Disney Company pulled off a significant win at the 2022 GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday. The entertainment giant’s Marvel Studios division won the media watchdog’s prize for outstanding wide release film, for Chloé Zhao’s “Eternals.”  As

Estelle Harris, who memorably played George’s mother Estelle Costanza on “Seinfeld” and was the indelible voice of Mrs. Potato Head in the “Toy Story” franchise, has died at 93 years old, her representative Michael Eisenstadt confirmed to Variety. Harris was best known for her distinctive voice and comedic timing, forever cemented by her role as

UCLA’s latest Hollywood Diversity Report found some improvement in 2022 in regards to hiring women and people of color, but activist group FWD-Doc is demanding that UCLA address other overlooked groups such as LGBTQIA+ individuals and the “invisible minority” — disabled people — in the industry. Jim LeBrecht, co-founder of FWD-Doc and co-director of the

Netflix has slowed development on its upcoming action-thriller “Fast and Loose,” which Will Smith has been attached to star in. The project has been moved to the streamer’s back burner in the days following the 2022 Oscars ceremony, during which Smith walked onstage and slapped Chris Rock after the comedian made a joke about the

They say that a person should never invite a vampire into one’s house, but what about a vampire inviting a person into a movie theater? It seems that a modest amount of viewers are accepting that request, as Columbia Pictures’ “Morbius,” starring Jared Leto, is sinking its teeth into the domestic box office’s top spot

After consoling Will Smith after Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars, Denzel Washington has now spoken publicly about what happened at last Sunday’s awards show. Washington attended author and bishop T.D. Jakes’ leadership summit on Saturday morning for a discussion about his career and faith when Jakes asked him about what happened between Smith

With U.S. streamers still driving local market growth, TV producers in continental Europe are juggling between the Hollywood studio business model — under which Netflix and the likes get all rights in return for full-financing plus a fee — and the pre-existing European model based on co-productions that leave indie producers with backend and give

Walter Coblenz, who was Oscar-nominated for producing “All the President’s Men” and also produced “The Candidate” and “The Onion Field,” died March 16. He was 93. Coblenz also produced the Emmy-nominated Joseph Wambaugh TV mini-series adaptation “The Blue Knight.” After serving as assistant director and production manager on Robert Redford’s “Downhill Racer,” he went on

On Friday afternoon, Will Smith announced in a statement that he was resigning from the Academy after he slapped Chris Rock during last Sunday’s Oscars telecast. The Academy plans to forge ahead and conduct a formal investigation and disciplinary process on April 18, at which time the organization could impose further sanctions or punishment in

SPOILER WARNING: Do not read if you have not seen “Morbius,” currently playing in theaters. This story discusses movie’s post-credits scenes. After nearly two years of pandemic delays, “Morbius” has finally opened in theaters, expanding Sony’s universe of Marvel characters and growing the web of Spider-Man villains getting their own origin stories. “Morbius” — starring

Will Smith, facing possible expulsion or suspension after he assaulted Chris Rock during last Sunday’s Oscars telecast, has instead resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. The move comes as the actor is embroiled in the gravest crisis of his career and as the organization behind the Academy Awards has struggled in

“The Eclipse” by Nataša Urban has picked up the top Dox:Award at Copenhagen Intl. Documentary Film Festival. It was awarded at a ceremony in the Danish capital, which opened with a homage to Ukraine – where fest organizers announced they would be screening Daniel Roher’s “Navalny” in theaters across the nation immediately after the festival

Judd Apatow’s impact on modern comedy is immeasurable. He began writing, directing and producing several cult TV comedy classics such as “The Ben Stiller Show,” “The Larry Sanders Show,” “Freaks and Geeks” and “Undeclared.” His feature work was more limited until the mid-aughts, when his directorial debut, “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” because a runaway hit and

There were several beautiful, gratifying moments at the 94th Academy Awards. But you would not necessarily know that by watching the viral videos circulating social media that emerged in the immediate aftermath of the ceremony, which focus on one particular distasteful incident. Today, it is time to let the dust settle on the so-called “slap

On April 29, Bruce Willis’ storied filmography adds another credit with the release of “Fortress: Sniper’s Eye.” The action-thriller starring Willis, Jesse Metcalfe and Chad Michael Murray is a sequel to 2021’s “Fortress” and is set to be released in select theaters, as well as on digital platforms and VOD. It’s just one of about

Franchises are set to have a big month this April with the theatrical releases of “Morbius,” “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” and “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” but perhaps the most significant movie event of the month is going to take place on streaming. With Matt Reeves’ comic book tentpole “The Batman” completing its 45-day