The Surfer (2024)

 “Don’t live here, don’t surf here”.

Another Nic Cage for Acting president, method of madness award ;)

Australian-Irish The Surfer was Cages first official Cannes fest selection in 34 years (after 1990's Wild at Heart!).

Mandy was in Quinzaine. Also Dog Eat Dog. 

A cross of Wake in Fright with The Wicker Man (one of Cage's most insane films is the remake of the cult British film of 1973), it's a psychedelic drama, unfolding in the Australian surfing territory.

Great score by Francois Tetaz, all reminiscent of Ennio Morricone's sound. 

Written by Thomas Martin, who took a cue from the short story that based 1968's Burt Lancaster's The Swimmer. 

Directed by Lorcan Finnegan who debuted with an interesting curio back in 2019, Vivarium. 

But the most interesting thing in it is Julian Mc Mahon, recently passed away at 56 :( He's the main attraction in the film, as Scally, the macho guru of the beach, dressed all in Red.

Sight and Sound review here. 

8 out of 10 / 4 out of 5 

L'amour Ouf (2024)

L'amour Ouf / Beating Hearts in English, Iubire fara limite in Romanian. In competition (!) at last years' Cannes film festival, French star Gilles Lellouche adaptation of a Neville Thompson novel is in Romanian Cinemas now. 

Great on the big screen (widescreen!), operatic, with a superb score and soundtrack, great cinematography, this is the most American French film in a long time, and that's a good thing imo. In Cannes they kinda hated the film -of course, oh la la), way too commercial for them to enjoy it if it's not made by Tarantino or James Grey...

Epic running time: 2h46. 1st cut was 4 hours though.

It's based (loosely) on the 1997 best-selling Irish novel "Jackie Loves Johnser OK?" by Neville Thompson, whose French title is "L'Amour Ouf" ( a pun on the expression "L'Amour Fou", also a film by Jacques Rivette from 1968).

Uneven, pastiche, but highly energetic and frenetic this is not a prefect film, far from it, but I loved the energy, the musical rhythm (greta songs, from The Cure to Billy Idol, to Sirius by Alan Parsons project, cuts from John Carpenter's from Escape rom New York score, closing on Foreigner-Urgent!!!), from the opening lettering and the pulsing dramatic score by Jon Brion (with whom Lellouche worked on his second film as director, Le grand bain/Sink or swim). 

Shades of Tarantino and Wild at Heart. And of course West Side Story. And Scorsese's touch. And maybe Lelouch too ;)

original poster with announcement of coming out in 2023. 

*Alain Chabat won best suppoting actor at 2025's Cesar awards. 

Anora wins PGA/DGA !

Anora might win best pic and best director at this year's Oscars. 

The Producers Guild of America named Anora the best picture of the year at the 2025 PGA Awards. The surprise win came just an hour after director Sean Baker took home the DGA’s top prize — establishing the Neon film as the official Oscars frontrunner for Best Picture. Anora also won Best Picture at last night’s Critics Choice Awards.

Marcello Mio (2024)

 First good film I've seen in a cinema this year. Also from last year, in the Cannes 77 film fest official selection. A very personal film, una affare di famiglia with everyone playing their own parts. 

Marcello Mio is of course about Marcello Mastroianni, and Chiara Mastroianni, and her mom, Catherine Deneuve. And the buddies, from Fabrice Luchini to Nicole Garcia, Benjamin Biolay (Chira's ex), Melvin Poupaud (un autre Chira's ex ;), all playing themselves. Also Stefania Sandrelli and Marcello MM himself in an excerpt from Pietro Germi's 1961 Divorzio all'italiana/Divorce Italian Style. And Francesca Fialdini, a hot TV host from Rai.  

written and directed by Christophe Honoré (les Chansons d'amour), 

super self referential (meta-meta) and for true cinephiles, including plot points from MM's films, a dog, a soldier, a bridge, a white kitten, and family memoires, this film is not for everyone. But maybe those who see it (of course I was alone in the theater, Monday at 16.45 !!!) should dig further. from the easy clues, 8 1/2  & La Dolce Vita, to the more obscure family references (including Maria Callas, a specific restaurant in Paris, Ginger & Fred, a song about how Marcello makes you laugh, etc.)

Beautiful soundtrack, including Isao Tomita's version of Clair de Lune. 

The Substance (2024)

Coraline Fargeat's second feature The Substance (after her thriller Revenge in 2017), won best screenplay in last year's Cannes Film Festival. Should've won best actress for Demi Moore but they gave that for ensemble to Emilia Perez. No comments. But now Demi has won the Golden Globe, will be nominated for an Oscar and I hope she wins, she deserves that totally and More than that.

Note on Jan. 23d: Nominated for 5 Oscars, Coraline Fargeat for Directing and original screenplay, Demi Moore for best actress, make up and hair stilling and Best Picture ! My predictions,  Demi and maybe best screenplay !

Also Margaret Qualley is great in it (and stunning). You've seen her in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Lanthimos' Poor Things, Kinds of Kindness and Drive-Away Dolls. Her future is Bright !

Dennis Quaid plays cartoonlike a caricature of a manager, Ray Liotta was supposed to play this part but he died before the film production. I think Quaid is better, 'cos he played a lot of straight characters, while Liotta was lampooning himself in a lot of his films.

Fargeat's film I found more digerable than Julia Ducournau's exploits, Grave /Raw and Titane, which are overdone and overbearing. Keep in mind, if a male director would've done this film in 2024, no festival would've touch it and he would've been "luggered" (or lapidated).  Anyway, I don't think a man could've done the same kind of approach and message, it's a woman's film about women's condition in the showbiz industry, and not only, about aging and about the compromises you make in order to be noticed. It's a very superficial world and it fades out quickly, but the subject is treated with acidity, irony and black humor. And great body horror gore practical effects. The whole thing could've been summarized in the opening and closing of the film, with the story star on the Hollywood Boulevard (a great short imo). 

The music is by British artist Raffertie (Benjamin but it's more like a sound design, pounding and very effective. Can't be listened separately tho. 

See it in a cinema, for the sound design,  set design, bright costumes (that yellow coat, that pink bodysuit), the cinematography (by Benjamin Kracun)  and the visceral effect. 

Also warning, not for the faint at/of heart, and sensible stomachs !!!

There are many posters for the film, all good, from the B&W to this kaleidoscope puzzle. 

References galore: from Lynch's LA (shot in Cannes and Antibes no less), to David Cronenberg (The Fly is quoted tooth and nail ;), Brian De Palma (Carrie's blood shower),  Kubrick's The Shining, The Elephant Man, Frankenheimer's Seconds, All about Eve, Sunset Blvd., even Zemeckis' Death Becomes Her. 

As Demi Moore described the film: " a blend of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, Death Becomes Her (1992), and a Jane Fonda workout video."

A great and extended making of from Mubi (the worldwide distributor of the film buying it Cannes cos the original backer, Working Title, a division of Universal backed away ):

Update-24 feb. Demi Moore wins SAG award, The "Actor", which is the best barometer for the acting Oscars !

Filmele anului 2024 in Romania, topul meu

 din Culturama de decembrie (cu modificarile de rigoare).  Topul total urmeaza aici (in ingles ;), serialele aici. 

2024: The Good The Bad & The Ugly

Un an de filme bune, filme rele și filme despre care nu îmi pasă (mă refer aici doar la premiere în cinematografele românești).

Un an greu din toate punctele de vedere ;)

Pe scurt, trebuiesc punctate (chez moi:):

Internationale:

Furiosa (George Miller, O saga Mad Max) pentru mine (v Culturama de iunie), e filmul-cult al anului.

Și #1, far from the madding crowd ;)

Anora (Sean Baker) e cel mai bun film și totodată cea mai bună comedie, Palme d'or la Cannes și va fi la Oscaruri la greu, 

dar se va lupta cu:

Emilia Perez de Jaques Audiard, premiul Juriului și de interpretare (colectiv) la Cannes , un muzical risque cu carteluri mexicane și schimbare de sex, votat drept filmul european al anului, cinci premii EFA și favoritul la premiul pentru cela mi bun film străin (sure bet!) .

Civil War/ Războicivil-un film politic, cam anti-american și nihilist de Alex Garland.

Joker: Folie a Deux (Todd Phillips) -muzicalul anului și totodată cel mai ciudățel și non-climatic sequel făcut vreodată.

The Apprentice: Sebastian Stan este e impecabil ca un june Donald Trump, școlit de ”avocatul diavolului”, Roy Cohn (un excepțional Jeremy Strong): Biopicul care trebuia să ia premiul de interpretare la Cannes, boicotat pe cît se poate de Trump & co.

The Bikeriders, deși flawed, filmul lui Jeff Nichols documentează minuțios o epocă pierdută și va deveni un film-cult. 

Horror: MadS/Noapte decoșmar, pentru mine (Franța, s/r: David Moreau)

Interesante au fost și Blink Twice, Sting, Oddity, Never Let Go, chiar si Longlegs și Heretic (Eretic: Labirintul morții) 

-(despre Nosferatu din 2025 aici).

-iar The Substance nu a intrat decit in ianuarie 2025, de vazut in cinema pentru cei "curajosi", aici. 

fun sequel (& musical): Beetlejuice Beetlejuice 

Indie art-house: Love Lies Bleeding (Dragoste, minciuni și sînge), de Rose Glass./ acum pe max/

Al doilea Lanthimos al anului, Kinds of Kindness/Forme de bunătate, de la Cannes, unde a luat premiul de interpretare masculină (Jesse Plemons).

Danezul Bastarden/Bastardul/Promised Land (Nikolj Arcel), cu un excepțional Mads Mikkelsen, dar e de anul trecut.

Tot de anul trecut (v. topul meu total aici!):

PoorThings / Sărmane creaturi(Yorgos Lanthimos, 4 premii Oscar din 11 nominalizări, via Veneția), Perfect Days/Zile perfecte (Wim Wenders, cel mai bun actor la Cannes),                                              The Zone of Interest/ Zona deinteres (Jonathan Glazer, Oscar pentru cel mai bun film străin și cel mai bun Sunet).

Cele mai ”ciudate” premiere (toate cu an de producție 2023):

Francezul Vincent doit mourir/ Să moară Vincent !, de Stephane Castang.

italiano-elvețianul LaChimera de Alice Rohrwatcher

chinezul He bian de cuo wu /Râul ucigaș, de Wei Shujun

canadianul Les ChambresRouges/Camera roșie, de Pascal Plante

și teutonul Die Theorie von Allem/Teoria universală de Timm Kroger, care a luat premiu la Veneția și la Sitges, un thriller stilizat alb-negru despre Multivers și fizică cuantică

România.

Filmul românesc al anului (și nu numai): Anul nou care nu a fost -premiii de la Veneția la Cairo, Frankfurt, etc, peste 100.000 de spectatori în cinema ! V. interviu în numarul trecut din Culturama cu Bogdan Mureșanu, regizor, scenarist și producător. Vești bune pentru ce care nu l-au văzut (și cei care vor să îl revadă): un nou Cadou de Crăciun (re: scurt metrajul său premiat din 2018, care, după cum am mai scris poate fi văzut pe canalul Cinepub de pe youtube), de pe 22 decembrie ANCNF intră pe streaming pe Netflix.

Trei kilometri pînă la capătul lumii, filmul lui Emanuel Pârvu, propunerea României la Oscar, via Cannes și Queer Palm, premiul Universităților europene la EFA (European Film Awards). Deocmadată nu e pe streaming.

Pe listele criticilor de film anglo-americani (Sight & Sound, BFI, New York Times, etc.) se regăsește filmul lui Radu Jude despre care am scris deja (ca la majoritatea titlurilor, v. blogul meu sau arhiva Culturama), Nu te aștepta prea mult de la sfîrșitul lumii, care a ieșit în toamna lui 2023. Poate fi văzut pe max (HBO max).

Documentar: 

NASTY , de Tudor Giurgiu, Tudor T. Popescu, Cristian Pascariu.

Mrs. Buică (Eugene Buică-din2023, dar l-am văzut în 2024

ALICE ON & OFF / Isabela Tent

Dezamăgirile anului- (top 3)

Morometii 3, absolut nenecesar si neinspirat (uninvolving)

Megalopolis (Coppola magnum opus propriu finanțat), 

și cel mai trist ”cash-in” , Gladiator II.

Megalopolis (2024)

Megalopolis is kinda Miniopolis...

I went with my fingers crossed but no, hey, got the intentions but great filmmaking this not iz (Yoda said)

Coppola's dream project for over 30 years, inspired by Ann Raynd's The Fountainhead, Rome's & ancient Greece republics, architecture and philosophers, Goethe's Hold the Time, and a lot of Shakespeare, as well as New York's dirty townhall politics an construction shenanigans.

The Baddies:

-too pretentious

-too literary

-too naive too

-too megalo

-too Shakesperian, but like bad Shakespeare, done by juvenile people

-a teenager film done by a very old man, lecturing about the world

-lost plots (the Russian satellite, the megalon subplot)

-philosophy on the screen-does not work (talking in quotes certainly sucks)

-Adam Driver doing Hamlet

-some of the effects -really bad- statues doing stuff, backgrounds and such (there is a budgetary reason)

-Dustin Hoffman character wasted (James Caan was supposed to play this...)

-not impressed by the cinematography which I expected to be brilliant, sorry Mihai Malaimare jr...(his fourth film with il suo Maestro. Francis "discovered" him in Romania in 2006, giving him the chance to do Youth Without Youth, then he took him to Argentina to do Tetro, then kept him for Twixt). Meanwhile MM jr made a career in Hollywood (A Walk Among the Tombstones, The Master, The Harder They Fall, Jojo Rabbit !!!).

-the score (again by Osvaldo Golijov, his 4th film with FF Coppola) 

ok, the goodies:

the ending

the message

Jon Voight (Crassus) -The "Robin Hood" scene

the editing & the montage

-the Tryptich (Homage a Abel Gance ?)

-the Metropolis & other German expressionism influences in the Caesar's trip on the Madison Sq G banquet

-the Theda Bara homage (Aubrey Plaza)

-the sex scene with Auntie Wow (Platinum) & Shia 

-Nathalie Emmanuel looking hot & fresh (half the film was wondering what's her name and where I saw here before, oh yes, John Woo's The Killer remake)

-The end song -The The -Lonely Planet (from Dusk -1993)

2 1/2 out of 5, 5 out of 10 !!!

-Flawed as it isit needs to be seen in a cinema, on the big screen !!!

----------------------------------------------

& a wonderful Coppola interview on the film, the meaning of life and cinema. If only his film would've been like this ...:(

Anora (2024)

Anora is in Romanian Cinemas starting Today. So, run to the theaters, 'til it's there...

Absolutely Fabulous ! One of the year's best if not The One (haven't seen yet all the Cannes fares). Fresh, raw, relentless (act one just sets up the film, so bare for the first thirty minutes). 

The stripper Ani aka Anora (Mikey Madison) meets Ivan, the half-baked young son of a Russsian Oligargh and thinks she struck gold. Cos' he wants to marry her. Und they did ! But then the family finds out about this....trouble ensures.

Palme d'Or -the first American film to win this since 2011's The Tree of Life ! 

And certainly one of the top favorites for the Awards Season. Mikey Madison deserves an Oscar !

Note on Jan 23d 2025: Anora is nominated for 6 Oscars, including Best Picture, best director, best (original screenplay), Actress and supporting actor: Yura Borisov !

I was thinking all the time where did I see her before, and yes, Mikey was Sadie in Once Upon A Time in Hollywood.

Yura Borisov as Igor is a blast ! Also Karren Karagulian (who's been in every Sean Baker film, and that's his eight !) is extraordinary as Toros. I am following Baker since The Florida Project which was OK, wasn't impressed by his previous, Tangerine (2015), but Red Rocket was one of my top films of 2021 (I think it streams on Netflix these days/& nights;). Anyway, this is Baker in Major League now, bigger, better, more ambitious in scope and story. Up to now Baker's characters are misfits, low-lifes, prostitutes, strippers, pimps, white-trash and junkies, destitute people who in his view get a warm personality and a glow. A peripheral Americana micro-cosm of its own.

For me it was like Cassavetes and some early Jarmusch (but in vivid colors and widescreen), directed and shot a la Safdie bros. (Good Time, Uncut Gems). And a bit of After Hours (Scorsese, 1984). 

And the Billy Wider Touch. I felt so much starting act two, from all the losers getting 2nd hand shots (The Apartment, Kiss Me Stupid, Irma la Douce-she 's a prostitute, see -oups, a sex worker, etc.)

Though Sean Baker dedicates his film to Jess Franco & Soledad Miranda (his actress that died in an accident at 27) !!? He also mentions Fellini's Notte di Cabiria as an inspiration for Ani/Anora. 

Only Incidental music in the soundtrack (songs that is...)

9 out of 10/ 4.5 out of Five 

('cos it's too long like 99 % of the films 2day, 2h18 min. !!!), but totally Tuș ;)

-but all in all, could be the most Fun Palme d'Or (also Triangle of Sadness is close as fun factor ;)

I predict it will be nominated for a lot of Oscars (editing & cinematography too), Mickey Madison & Karren Karagulian. I sure hope it wins also, maybe too Indie to its core and not very mainstream.

*Great interview with Sean Baker on his favourite films on Video Konbini. You'll be surprised what kinds of films the guy likes ;) like, it's the first time I heard about Miami Connection (1987) !!! A alot in common with Tarantino too. 

Kinds of Kindness (2024)

“Some of them want to abuse you / Some of them want to be abused” 

(Eurythmics-Sweet Dreams -Are Made of These-1983), the song that starts the film and was used on the promotion (trailer, etc, very misleading or?)

                                                  (Brand New B*tch)

The new film by Yorgos Lanthimos (after the Awards darling Poor Things), the leader of the Greek "Weird Wave", Kinds of Kindness, premiered in Cannes this year in the Official Competition.

It's his longest film 2date, at 2h44 mins. A tryptich played by the same actors in different parts (Emma Stone, Margaret Qualley, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Hong Chau, Mamodou Athie ), except the mysterious R.M.F. (Yorgos Stefanakos). It's bleak, it's surreal and it's almost sadistic -especially on the characters, but on the viewers too. Black comedy in the vein of Roy Andersson, with nods to Bunuel and Kubrick (esp. Eyes Wide Shut, from where Jerskin Fendrix takes his music cues-a discordant piano, a tragedic chorus). On the end credits he has a vocal song, "King Lear", ('cause he had three daughters???;), where he reminded me of Nick Cage and Leonard Cohen. 

Closer to Lanhimos' debut, Kynodontas (Dogtooth)-"the dogs treat us good", Alps, and to the mood and atmosphere of  Killing of a Sacred Deer. The director says he was inspired by Albert Camus' Caligula and the relations of power-Trust, Love & Death. 

Jesse Plemons (Fargo, Killers of the Flower Moon) won Best Actor in Cannes. 

Shot again (after The Favourite and Poor Things, another Three;) by Irishman Robbie Ryan in color and black & white in anamorphic widescreen (2.29:1).

Also, wtf is Ronnie James Dio song Rainbow in the Dark doing in here?

Drive-Away Dolls (2024)

1st film directed by Ethan without his brother Joel, Coen that is.

Ethan was credited as a producer but the brothers directed together, that's what they say.

This is co-written and co-produced with his wife, Tricia Cooke. Also editor.

Drive-Away Dolls it's an UFO of sorts, noir spoof, lesbian comedy, pop stuff, mostly an acquired taste, very much a hit and miss. Nevertheless fascinating, cos' the gimmick of the suitcase in the trunk (started with Kiss Me Deadly, through Repo Men into Pulp Fiction) is here copious to say the least.

Margaret Qualley is irresistible as the boyish Jamie, loved her in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and in Poor Things, and I think she's in for a great career-coming up Kinds of Kindness and The Substance, both Cannes 2024 fares.

Cameos galore, from Pedro Pascal to Bill Camp, Matt Damon and even Miley Cyrus ;)

                                       Dedicated to Cynthia "Plaster Caster" (1947-2022)
                                                                     "We Remember" ;)

Cannes 77 -The Winners !

***But the best is the Honorary Palme d'Or ceremony, Francis Coppola gives it to his "younger Brother", George Lucas. Nice speech too. 

And the Romanians got a Queer Palm now- 3 Kilometri pina la capatul lumii.

Congrats Emi Parvu & all involved !PALMares Cannes @77

Feature Films Palme d'or ANORA Sean Baker Grand Prix ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT Payal Kapadia Jury Prize EMILIA PÉREZ Jacques Audiard Best Director MIGUEL GOMES for Grand Tour Special Award MOHAMMAD RASOULOF for The Seed of the Sacred Fig Best Performance by an Actor JESSE PLEMONS in Kinds of Kindness directed by Yórgos Lánthimos Best Performance by an Actress ADRIANA PAZ in Emilia Pérez directed by Jacques Audiard ZOE SALDAÑA in Emilia Pérez directed by Jacques Audiard KARLA SOFÍA GASCÓN in Emilia Pérez directed by Jacques Audiard SELENA GOMEZ in Emilia Pérez directed by Jacques Audiard Best Screenplay THE SUBSTANCE Coralie Fargeat Short Films Palme d'or THE MAN WHO COULD NOT REMAIN SILENT Nebojša Slijepčević Special Mention BAD FOR A MOMENT Daniel Soares Un Certain Regard Un Certain Regard Prize BLACK DOG by Guan Hu Jury Prize L'HISTOIRE DE SOULEYMANE by Boris Lojkine Best Director Prize ex-aequo ROBERTO MINERVINI for The Damned RUNGANO NYONI for On Becoming a Guinea Fowl Best Performance by an Actress ANASUYA SENGUPTA in The Shameless Best Performance by an Actor ABOU SANGARÉ in L’Histoire de Souleymane Youth Award HOLY COW by Louise Courvoisier 1st film Special Mention NORAH by Tawfik Alzaidi 1st film Caméra d'or ARMAND Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel Un Certain Regard Special Mention MONGREL Wei Liang Chiang & You Qiao Yin La Cinef First Prize SUNFLOWERS WERE THE FIRST ONES TO KNOW…  Chidananda S Naik Joint Second Prize OUT THE WINDOW THROUGH THE WALL Asya Segalovich THE CHAOS SHE LEFT BEHIND Nikos Kolioukos Third Prize BUNNYHOOD  Mansi Maheshwari The Higher Technical Commission for Sound and Images  The 2024 jury of the CST Artist-Technician prize awarded the prize to Daria d'Antonio, cinematographer on Paolo Sorrentino's Parthenope. Daria d'Antonio's images give Parthenope perfect cinematography with grace and beauty. The 2024 jury of the CST Young technician Prize is proud to award this year's prize to Evgenia Alexandrova, cinematographer on Noémie Merlant's The Balconettes, for the quality of her photography, with its saturated colors and assertive lighting direction that transports us from comedy to genre film.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

 #furiosa

"Do you Think you have it in you to make it EPIC?"

Yes, they do. Und they did;) And what an Epic. Oh, what a lovely day continues...

Here are my previous two posts on FURIOSA, 1st one when the trailer came out on Dec. 1st last year, then when on 21st March 2024 was announced to be in Cannes (as I surely expected). Six to seven minutes of standing ovation, depending on who you read ;)

Now, I just saw it and not only IT ROCKS, it also ROLLS. As a in a Rolls Royce of a film. Well, more like a Harley ;)

Film of the year and one of the best of this decade, scout's honor (film scout that is ;)

*

Furiosa Is ‘David Lean, But With Motorbikes Instead Of Camels’ 

Says New Immortan Joe, Lachy Hulme who took over from Hugh Keays-Byne (d. 2020-Vale)

Mithologically this is also based on the Word Burgers of the History Men and eyewitness accounts of those who survived."
Actually The History Man also appears in this one. Played by George Shevtov. And it's his voiceover. 

The film is told in Five epic chapters, very different than all the other films. And it's basically about a Peach ;) Also it has an epic length, 2h28 min, which went so fast, I personally wished to be longer. 

Fifth installment of the Mad Max Universe, born 45 years ago in Oz (Australia). As Mad Max: Fury Road happened in sequence, in 3 days and nights, this one happens over the timeline of 18 years.  

Also Fury Road took over 20 years to be made and 15 years of changes in the script, this one took 9 years in the Max Universe, but much less in terms of development and production (Miller did his Three Thousand Years of Longing in the meanwhile). George Miller is 79 now, so even for his terrific shape, I would hold my fingers crossed for a Sixth film, as I guess both Furiosa and Max have ended their character arcs). Heard in a Miller interview he has also the story of Max's year before the events in Fury Road. I would love to see that, with Tom Hardy. There's even a page and a title for this (The Wasteland). Surely WB would milk this cow forever and there's comic books and so on, but this is Miller's verse and vision, and I don't think anyone can follow up. But this is not the issue at hand. Haters and detractors will go on about sloppy CGI (really????), 'Woman Power' concessions and length, but it's their loss (as it always is and will B.)

*

The casting of Anya Taylor Joy came into the production of Three Thousand and the pandemic and is due to Edgar Wright who showed Miller a rough cut of Last Night in Soho (playing now on netflix, stream it now !). It worried me at first but now, seeing the film I think she's great !  Great eyes, also very few lines, physical acting (she's got to drive a lot and the actrees didn't drive at all!)

Also it worried me a bit that Chris Hemsworth is given such a heavy burden, being a villain, a nemesis and a mad father figure (Dementus, aptly named). And he's great too. The Teddy Bear surely helps. And the makeup, Oh, what a nose (Charlton Heston's Ben Hur?). He plays like a cross between Peter O'Toole in Lawrence, a mad messianic biker in a chariot of bikes in a Roman swords & sandals epic, and every Mad Gary Oldman performance of your choice. "oh what a day, what a deal, what a day"...

And then there's Brit Tom Burke as Praetorian Jack, who played Orson Welles in Mank (my faved film of 2020), looking like a young Stacy Keach. 

And a fabulous child Furiosa, played by Aussie Alyla Browne. 

And Angus Sampson returns as The Organic Mechanic as John Howard does as The People Eater.

Plus Rictus Erectus is here again (Nathan Jones) ;) - and so is his bro, Scabrous Scrotus (Josh Helman), who played a different part in 2015's MM: FR.

More infos on Mad Max Fandom wiki.

**

"There were 264 women and men on that stunt department. One of the sequences took 79 days to shoot. Every day, you're subjected to bad weather, covid, and exhaustion. Our one priority, led by George, is not to injure anybody. The second is to make the film that we enjoyed" (producer Doug Mitchell)

***

The music score is a revision on Fury Road score, done also by Tom Holkenborg (formerly Junkie XL), more emotion and drama and a diggeridou. And a duduk (which gets it closer to the sound of Gladiator).

The cinematography in magnificent scope is by new zeelander Simon Duggan (Live Free or Die Hard, The Great Gatsby, Hacksaw Ridge), who took over from Aussie Johan Seale, who came out of retirement to make Fury Road (& then Longing).

Should I say something about the set design, costumes, art, the VFX, the stunts, the amazing craft. No. Just Kudos. Exceptional. 

Miller wrote this with Nick Lathouris (same as Fury Road), but there are seven story contributors, including Action designer and 2nd unit director Guy Norris.

****

-The best prequel ever (Godfather 2 included !), no s*it...

As Mad Max: Fury Road (whose prequel to the key this is), is one of the best films ever made-and surely I have seen in this century and millennium !

Also helps it's Rated R.

*****

5 stars+=Eleven out of Ten -yes,this one goes to Eleven ;)

Empire 5 star review here.

Trei kilometri până la capătul lumii acum la Cannes-live- !!!

Emi Pârvu și echipa filmului său Trei kilometri până la capătul lumii, urcă acum în Palais Lumiere !

Proiecția oficială a singurului film românesc din Competitia Oficială a Festivalului de la Cannes de anul acesta !

Merde !!!

Megalopolis @Cannes 77

World Event du jour (16 mai 2024) -the world premiere of Francis Ford Coppola's MEGALOPOLIS (over 40 years in the making, and finally produced on his own dime-and 120 million $ of it !!!, sold half of his vineyards they say), at the 77th Festival de Cannes. Coppola is 85 now and won double time -deux fois la Palme d'Or, for The Conversation in 1974 and for Apocalypse Now in 1979 (ex aqueo with Schlondorff's Blechtrommel/The Tin Drum). Now he's nominated for a Third Palme (third time's a charm syndrome, well, Merde! :)

Great teaser for the film (or First Look clip) shattered the internet views 12 days ago, and then the trailer is on now, 2 days before the Cannes screening. French distributor is Le Pacte and I know for fact il will be distributed in Thaeters in Romania. Interesting enough, no US distributor yet, but surely this will be of passé composé demain ;) Update-yes, sold to Lionsgate immediately !

Cannes TV du 1er rang just showed the end of the screening, the applause and the ending photo call of Coppola and his family & Team. Adam Driver, the lead of the film, Talia Shire (Francis' sister), Aubrey Plaza, Nathalie Emmanuel, Laurence Fishburne, Giancarlo Esposito, Jon Voight (85 as well !!!) and a bearded almost unrecognizable Shia LaBeuf in Palais Lumiere and on the Red Carpet (here's the Red Carpet before the seance). 

                       Here are the whole 22 mins of this Historical Event (yep, wish i was there...)

                                                                 c'est Cannes, c'est beau...c'est vieux ;)

Update> 8 Nov. 2024, I saw the film today...my thoughts here

https://aldmovieland.blogspot.com/2024/11/megalopolis-2024.html

:( not Megalopolis at all, so flawed, proof of good intentions don't make great films ..;(

Les Roumains: Nasty & Emi Pirvu @Cannes 77 !!!

 Cannes 77 completions/Les Complements

APRIL 22, 2024 As announced at the press conference on April 11, here are the films that complete the Official Selection 2024.

UN CERTAIN REGARD WHEN THE LIGHT BREAKS Rúnar Rúnarsson NIKI Céline Sallette 1st film FLOW Gints Zilbalodis When the light breaks by Rúnar Rúnarsson will open the Certain Regard section on Wednesday May 15.

CANNES PREMIERE VIVRE, MOURIR, RENAITRE Gaël Morel MARIA Jessica Palud

SPECIAL SCREENINGS SPECTATEURS Arnaud Desplechin NASTY Tudor Giurgiu LULA Oliver Stone AN UNFINISHED FILM Lou Ye

OUT OF COMPETITION LE COMTE DE MONTE-CRISTO Alexandre De La Patellière et Matthieu Delaporte

COMPETITION LA PLUS PRÉCIEUSE DES MARCHANDISES Michel Hazanavicius TREI KILOMETRI PANA LA CAPATUL LUMII (Trois kilomètres jusqu’à la fin du monde) Emanuel Parvu THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG Mohammad Rasoulof