The Film Stage

AFI Fest Review: My Favourite Cake Finds an Autumnal Romance Blooming Under Iranian Authoritarianism
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Autumnal romance blooms in My Favourite Cake, a film about seeking passion in life and being bold enough to act when opportunities arise. The directors are Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha, a duo whose previous work, Ballad of a White...
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Lance Oppenheim Will Direct Primetime for A24 and Robert Pattinson; Sydney Sweeney to Play Kim Novak for Colman Domingo’s Scandalous
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The rise of Lance Oppenheim continues unabated: within 12 months of Spermworld and Ren Faire comes the news he’ll be directing Primetime, a feature backed by A24 and Robert Pattinson’s Icki Eneo Arlo. Per sources (including some from which this...
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NYFF Review: On Becoming a Guinea Fowl is a Powerfully Enraging, Surreally Comedic Look at Zambian Tradition
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With her second feature film, Zambian-Welsh director Rungano Nyoni looks at the pain, memory, and absurdity of familial Zambian tradition. On Becoming a Guinea Fowl follows Shula (Susan Chardy), who finds her uncle dead in the middle of the road...
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The Brutalist Trailer: Brady Corbet Builds an Epic Charting the American Dream
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As one can tell from our feature wrapping up the best premieres on the fall circuit, no film has earned more discussion these last few months than Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist. Led by Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Joe...
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The Making of the Indian Sci-Fi Box-Office Sensation Kalki 2898 AD
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Each year the Busan International Film Festival screens movies at its outdoor stage. Among the titles this year was Kalki 2898 AD, a sci-fi box-office sensation from India. The story pits superhero gods against each other in a dystopian future...
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All 2024 Films Having Awards-Qualifying, One-Week Releases
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As we get closer to the end of 2024 and various critics and voting bodies collate their year-end lists and ballots, the question of what is eligible for such selection often crops up. It’s become common practice for distributors to...
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Michelangelo Antonioni’s Early Triumph Il Grido Receives New Restoration and Trailer
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Whatever acclaim––nay, outright-legendary status––is foisted upon Michelangelo Antonioni typically comes from a small selection of films produced in the 1960s. While I continue awaiting just desserts for Mystery of Oberwald and Beyond the Clouds, we can now cross off Il...
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“100 Clichés Move Us”: Rumours Directors Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson & Galen Johnson on Finding Humor in a World in Crisis
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Canadian director Guy Maddin embraces absurdity. Along with his co-writers and directors Evan and Galen Johnson, Maddin has added to his surrealist oeuvre with Rumours, a comedy satirizing the G7 Summit. Bringing together a lauded cast led by Cate Blanchett...
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Pedro Almodóvar Plans Early 2025 Shoot for Next Feature Bitter Christmas
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Although his illustrious career has been ongoing for decades, this year marks quite a major milestone for Pedro Almodóvar. He premiered his very first English-language feature The Room Next Door, starring Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton, at Venice Film Festival...
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BFI London Review: Charlie McDowell’s The Summer Book is a Clunky Drama Connecting Landscape and Soul
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In Charlie McDowell’s last feature, Windfall, the ambitious (though largely unsuccessful) idea was to put the audience in a stressful situation (à la Hitchcock) and then quickly vent the pressure with a few violent set pieces (à la Tarantino). By...
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