Movies

After prolonged closures due to the pandemic, movie theaters in the United States and other parts of the world are slowly starting to turn the lights back on, welcome patrons and hear their cash registers ring again. In modern times, opening weekend ticket sales have been the benchmark of success for any given movie. But

“Hold Me Right,” a documentary by first-time Serbian director Danijela Stajnfeld, is certain to shake this year’s Sarajevo Film Festival with its exploration of sexual assault and its impact on survivors. Stajnfeld, a celebrated actress in Serbia, left the country for the U.S. a few years ago after she was sexually assaulted by a powerful

The coronavirus pandemic might have offered an unexpected and unwelcome jolt to the movie business in Southeast Europe, but it’s just the latest in a series of disruptions to the industry whose impact will be felt for years to come. Post-COVID planning, emerging VOD platforms, and the global rethink on theatrical release windows were among

American-made documentary “The Kingmaker” has been banned from screening to audiences in the South of Thailand. The film, about the life of infamous political wife Imelda Marcos, was written and directed by Lauren Greenfield. It debuted at the Venice and Telluride festivals a year ago, before going on to a decent festival career with stops

After tragedy strikes Aliki and her husband Petros, they flee Athens with their young son Panagiotis, seeking refuge in a provincial seaside town. But when Petros finds temporary work as the caretaker of a luxurious villa, the family gradually begins moving in, blurring the line between reality and the fantasy world they increasingly habit. Before

David F. Sandberg, director of the not-yet-filmed “Shazam!” sequel, has shared a spoof trailer for the movie, all thanks to some very early reviews. Sandberg explained on Twitter that there are already reviews for “Shazam! 2” on Letterboxd, a film-focused social network where movie lovers can review, rank and share their favorite projects. Using the

Ash Christian, an Emmy award-winning producer, actor, filmmaker and founder of Cranium Entertainment, died in his sleep on Thursday in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He was 35. Born on Jan. 16, 1985, in Paris, Tex., Christian began writing and directing short films at the age of 14, and moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dreams

Linda Manz, an actor known for her roles in Terrence Malick’s “Days of Heaven” and Dennis Hopper’s “Out of the Blue,” died on Friday. She was 58. Her son, Michael Guthrie, started a GoFundMe fundraiser which announced that she had died after struggling with lung cancer and pneumonia. “Linda passed away August 14 after battling

Tetsuya Watari, the Japanese actor who worked with international cult favorites Seijun Suzuki and Kinji Fukasaku on some of their best-known films, died on Aug.10 of pneumonia at age 78. His death was announced Friday following a private family funeral. Joining the Nikkatsu studio in 1964 after graduating from Aoyama Gakuin University, Watari soon became

In “Apocalypse ’45,” we see images of World War II — the last six months of it, when our forces were engaged in a grisly death-throes battle with the Japanese in the Pacific — that are more colorful, raw, and deeply naturalistic than the images we’re used to seeing. And that footage hits us with

The micro-budget feature “Focus, Grandma” from Bosnian helmer-writer Pjer Žalica is a black comedy set in Sarajevo during the spring of 1992, when members of a dysfunctional family are summoned to the bed of their dying matriarch. As the siblings and their spouses arrive from far-flung parts of Yugoslavia, their squabbles and meanderings down memory

In observance of India’s Independence Day on Aug. 15 we decided to put together an intro to Hindi films for those interested in dipping their toes in one of the largest film industries in the world. We limited it to Hindi films from Mumbai (except “Bombay”) as India produces nearly 2,000 films a year and

As statues to Confederate heroes are torn down around the country, the question of whom to honor in their place poses an intriguing challenge — one that writer-director Mark Amin seems to have anticipated with his abolitionist adventure movie “Emperor.” Essentially a filmic monument to a scarcely documented American hero, “Emperor” tells the virtually unknown

With theaters open in 44 of the 50 states, cinemas are finding something to show — although turnout is still so modest that distributors are still being hesitant about what to release. That means another week in what’s now going on five months of the industry’s pivot to streaming releases, with a fresh batch of

Director Vince Marcello knows fans can not get enough of “The Kissing Booth,” and not long after Netflix released the film’s much-anticipated sequel, “The Kissing Booth 2,” it was announced that a third installment had already been shot. Marcello says, “Although “The Kissing Booth” is a romantic comedy, the heart of it is a coming

Comedian Tig Notaro is replacing Chris D’Elia in Zack Snyder’s zombie movie “Army of the Dead,” Variety has confirmed. News of the recasting comes following allegations that D’Elia sexually harassed underage girls. Multiple women, some as young as 16, accused D’Elia of misconduct, including sending them inappropriate and explicit messages online. In wake of the allegations,

Focus Features executive Robert Walak is exiting his position as president and will move into an advisory role at the company. There is currently no plan to replace his position. Walak was appointed president of Focus Features, the specialty studio owned by Universal, in February 2016. Before moving to Los Angeles two years ago, he

An industry as overtly image-based as fashion design is always going to produce instantly recognizable stars. But as proven by Reiner Holzemer’s intelligent, enjoyable if uncritical “Martin Margiela: In His Own Words,” in those cases, the figure of the designer can eclipse the design. Think of Vivienne Westwood, and we think of her Elizabeth-I-safety-pinned-to-Sid-Vicious vibe;

There’s something inherently terrifying about space – maybe because of the loneliness and isolation, or perhaps because it’s an unknown landscape to most of us. But it makes great fodder for films and over the decades there have been many takes on the space horror genre. This week sees the release of “Sputnik,” a Russian

Idris Elba and Simon Kinberg have teamed up for a yet-to-be-titled spy film, which after an intense bidding war, has landed at Apple. Elba will star and produce the film, which is described as a “spy movie with romance” set in Africa. Kingberg and Audrey Chon, president of Kinberg’s Genre Films will produce. The film’s

In Bo Derek’s new Reelz documentary, “In My Own Words,” the actress and former model admits, “I don’t care if anybody remembers me. I’ve never had the need to leave my mark on the world.” That may be so. But Derek, now 63, will forever be remembered for her shot to stardom when she played

Bosnian director Pjer Žalica recently found himself standing before Sarajevo’s National Theater, which in less troubled times would have hosted the world premiere of his comic drama “Focus, Grandma”—the opening film of the 26th edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival. “In front of the theater, there is this red carpet and nothing else,” Žalica told

Chile’s Cineteca Nacional, established in 2006, is working on a new restoration of Pedro Sienna’s “El húsar de la muerte” (1925), considered the most important silent feature film in Chilean history, the portrait of Chilean freedom fighter Manuel Rodríguez (1785-1818), a key figure in Chile’s War of Independence against the Spanish crown. First restored by

Locarno SwissBiz panel, a round-table featuring five local industry professionals that takes an often critical and always self aware look at the state of affairs in Switzerland’s film industry, was always going to be a bit different this year. But, while the COVID-19 situation was a key talking point, it served primarily to highlight existing

ViacomCBS shares were up more than 5% in trading Friday, reflecting renewed investor interest in the company following the death earlier this week of chairman emeritus Sumner Redstone. The movement for ViacomCBS shares comes on a down day overall so far for the NASDAQ index. News of the Redstone’s death on Aug. 11 at the

Brazilian filmmaker Juliana Rojas’ last Locarno experience was one to remember, culminating in a Special Jury Prize for her 2017 feature “Good Manners,” which played in competition. This time around her situation is less enviable, as the filmmaker presents “Cidade; Campo” (City; Country) in Locarno’s The Films After Tomorrow competition for productions halted by COVID-19

The Vue cinema chain is on the verge of securing an additional £100 million ($131.2 million) in debt financing, in order to stave off the impact of the coronavirus crisis, according to a report by Sky News. Variety reached out to Vue for confirmation, but the company declined to comment. In June 2019, Vue successfully

Switzerland’s Tristan Aymon, director of short film “Black Hole” (“Trou Noir”), the only title to win two prizes at the 2020 Locarno Festival – a Pardino d’Argento in Swiss Competition and a Youth Jury best Swiss short – is preparing “Skate,” his feature debut. Written by Aymon and Marianne Brun, his co-screenwriter on “Black Hole,”

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, the Danish actor best known for playing the conflicted, sardonic Jaime Lannister on HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” was eager for his latest film to premiere at South by Southwest last March. In “The Silencing,” Coster-Waldau portrays a solitary hunter who lives in the woods, grappling with the disappearance — and likely murder —

In today’s Global Bulletin, BFI Distribution gets Riz Ahmed’s “Mogul Mowgli,” London’s Dagenham neighborhood gets go-ahead to build new world-class film studios, Banijay Nordics confirms its CEO, Zinc Media Group promotes from within, Endemol Shine Germany sells new singing format, and Koch Films buys Sola Media. DISTRIBUTION “Mogul Mowgli,” co-written, starring and produced by Riz