Film
TCM’s New Series Examines Problematic Films Like Psycho, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Tarzan Through Modern Lens
Turner Classic Movies has launched a new film series called Reframed: Classic Films In The Rearview Mirror. Taking place every Thursday night during the month of March, the series addresses racism, sexism, and bigotry present in old movies through a modern lens. That means a bunch of iconic flicks — Psycho, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Tarzan, you name it — are being reassessed with nuance and care, and likely prompting a wave of “cancel culture!” fearmongering in the process. Since its formation, TCM has committed itself to preserving the most iconic movies from the beginning of film history and onwards, and most people associate it with the black-and-white flicks their grandparents used to watch. But as our country works towards equality onscreen and off, that means everyone m...
Lola Bunny Gets New Look, Will Be Less Sexualized in Space Jam: A New Legacy
Lola Bunny (photos via Warner Bros. and Entertainment Weekly) Lola Bunny has a new look for the new Space Jam movie. In the long-awaited sequel to the 1996 original, the only female member of the Tune Squad will no longer have a hyper-sexual appearance compared to her male teammates. Earlier today, Entertainment Weekly provided a first look of Space Jam: A New Legacy, which features LeBron James and his Looney buds: Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety Bird, Porky Pig, and Lola Bunny. Along with a handful of promising stills from the upcoming film, EW also spoke with its director, Malcolm D. Lee, about the noticeable alterations to Lola’s character. In Michael Jordan’s version of the film from 25 years ago, Lola was clad in a skimpy two-piece and was basically cast as a sexual obj...
Coming 2 America Is Not 2 Bad: Review
The Pitch: The king has returned! Eddie Murphy is back to check in on his 1988 invention Akeem, the now-ruler of the fictional African nation of Zamunda. As established in Coming to America, Zamunda is both a lavish and antiquated locale: not a lot of TVs, multitudes of rituals and ceremonies, beautiful interior design that would make a real estate mogul blush, all affectionately anachronistic. Akeem’s content with his three daughters and his loving queen Lisa (Shari Headley) by his side. Yet for the sake of kick-starting a sequel, he needs a male heir to avoid war with General Izzi (Wesley Snipes), leader of Nextdoria (you come up with a better fake name). And as it just so happens, Akeem hooked with up a woman named Mary (Leslie Jones) in the ‘80s, and unknown to Akeem, Mary raised his s...
Michael B. Jordan Wages a One-Man War in First Trailer for Without Remorse: Watch
In the first trailer for Without Remorse, masked assassins shoot Michael B. Jordan and leave him for dead, but it’s okay because he’s definitely not coming back to murder them all, right? Right!? Based on the 1993 Tom Clancy book of the same name, Without Remorse provides the origin story for recurring character John Clark, aka John Kelly. This tale of Cold War revenge has been updated to modern times, with conflict in Syria replacing the Vietnam War. But while portions of the book have been given a facelift, the overall structure is the same: Kelly loses his pregnant wife while he himself is shot. Everyone expects him to die, but lo and behold, he survives, and the experience leaves him… well, you’ve seen the title. “There’s something inside of me that I can’t turn off,” Ke...
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run Is a Total Franchise Play: Review
The Pitch: It’s another SpongeBob movie—what do you need, a road map? Actually, maybe: This newest adventure is an underwater road trip, with SpongeBob (Tom Kenny) and his starfish pal Patrick (Bill Faggerbake) on a mission to save Gary, SpongeBob’s beloved pet snail, who’s being used as part of a skincare regimen for King Poseidon (Matt Berry). This snailnapping was engineered by the scheming Plankton (Mr. Lawrence), who wants SpongeBob to stop (inadvertently) interfering with his plans to ruin the Krusty Krab, the restaurant where SpongeBob happily toils away. There are also two different robot assistants, one amusingly voiced by Awkafina. A Brand New Sponge: This is the third SpongeBob film, following 2004’s The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie and 2015’s The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of W...
Hugh Grant to Play Villain in Dungeons and Dragons Movie
Hugh Grant has been cast as the antagonist of Paramount and eOne’s upcoming Dungeons & Dragons film adaptation. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he will play a villain named Forge Fletcher. It actress Sophia Lillis has been added to the big-budget feature, as well, in which she’ll portray a character named Doric. The two actors join a stacked cast for the movie, which is based on the titular fantasy role-playing game. Bridgerton breakout Rege-Jean Page recently joined the production, which also includes Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, and Justice Smith. Game Night co-directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley are helming the film, for which they re-wrote a Dungeons & Dragons script that was based on an original draft from Michael Gilio. Not much is known...
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s Cannabis Brand, Houseplant, Comes to the US
Two years ago, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg launched their mid-century modern cannabis line, Houseplant, in their native Canada. Now, the brand is officially crossing the border, as it will soon be available in the United States. Well, at least one part of the US. California residents will soon be able to purchase the company’s three strains of marijuana flower — indica, sativa, and hybrid — via the to-be-launched Houseplant website. Each varietal is named after weather patterns, like the 33% THC (that’s a lot!) sativa strain Pancake Ice. No word yet on when or if the brand’s pre-rolled joints, soft-gel capsules, and two flavors of carbonated beverage (grapefruit and lemon) will follow suit. While the actual weed will only be available in Cali to start, Houseplant’s new home good...
Amy Poehler’s Moxie Unites a New Generation of Rebel Girls: Review
The Pitch: High school junior Vivian (Hadley Robinson) is struggling to find her voice. In response to rampant misogyny and lack of support from her school’s administration, she takes inspiration from her mother’s Riot Grrrl past and creates an anonymous zine called Moxie, attempting to unite students under a banner of feminism. But like many before her, Vivian learns that effective feminist activism requires more than buzzwords and good intentions. Director Amy Poehler attempts to pass the torch from third to fourth wave feminism and delivers an empowering and cathartic look at the complexities of Girl Power. Adapted from Jennifer Mathieu’s inspirational novel, Moxie is a love letter to young people struggling to find their own voices and create the changes they want to see in the world. ...
T.I. Dropped from Ant-Man 3 Amid Sexual Abuse Accusations
T.I. in Ant-Man Earlier today, a lawyer representing 11 people filed criminal inquiries into T.I. and his wife, Tameka “Tiny” Harris, for alleged abuses that include sexual assault, kidnapping, drugging, and false imprisonment. Now, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that the 40-year-old rapper will not be returning in Marvel’s Ant-Man 3. In both the 2015 Ant-Man feature and its 2018 sequel Ant-Man and The Wasp, the rapper and actor born Clifford Harris had a supporting role as a character named Dave who assisted Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang (aka Ant-Man) in his superhero exploits. THR has learned that T.I. not part of the cast of the series’ third installment, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, but it’s unclear if his departure is related to the recent accusation...
Jeff Buckley Biopic in the Works with Full Approval of Musician’s Estate
A new biopic about Jeff Buckley in development with the full support of the late musician’s estate. It’s titled Everybody Here Wants You and will star Reeve Carney in the lead role. Orian Williams will helm the project, marking his directorial debut. Carney is perhaps best known for playing Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the Broadway staging of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. He also had a reoccurring role in the Showtime series Penny Dreadful. Williams, meanwhile, is an Oscar and Golden Globe-nominated producer, who previously helped bring the story of Joy Division’s Ian Curtis to the screen with the 2007 film Control. This will mark his first in the director’s chair, however. According to Variety, Everybody Here Wants You has the full support of Jeff Buckley’s estate and will have access...
Andra Day is First Black Best Actress Winner at Golden Globes in 35 Years
Andra Day is the first Black Best Actress winner at the Golden Globes in over 35 years thanks to her excellent performance in The United States vs. Billie Holiday. During Sunday night’s ceremony, Day became the second Black woman in history to ever take home the coveted award for Best Actress – Drama. The only person to have claimed the prize prior was Whoopi Goldberg for The Color Purple back in 1986. In between, seven other Black women have been nominated for the award, including Halle Berry, Viola Davis, and Ruth Negga. Day was understandably shocked to hear her name announced at the virtual Golden Globes event as friends and family embraced her while cheering. This was her first-ever lead role in a feature film and her third acting credit overall, following some voice acting in Ca...
Ed Burns on What He Learned from Steven Spielberg
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google | Stitcher | Overcast | Pocket Casts | Radio Public | RSS Their obsession. Their words. Someone else’s movie. Hosted by Paul Davidson, The Side Track interviews filmmakers, producers, writers, actors, and film fanatics, then hands them the mic to present their own personal feature-length audio commentaries of the movies that moved them and made them who they are today. In the Season 2 premiere, writer, director, and producer Edward Burns (The Brothers McMullen, She’s the One) explains how he broke into Hollywood with a micro-budget indie smash, what he learned from Steven Spielberg, his new EPIX series Bridge and Tunnel, how Sarah McLachlan wrote a song just for him and w...