Film
Damien Chazelle’s Babylon Proves He Loves and Hates the Art of Cinema: Review
The Pitch: It’s 1926, and the movie business is a-boomin’. If you’re on top, you ride along with big-time movie producers to glittery bacchanals out in the California desert, uninhibited orgies stuffed with ticker tape, booze, cocaine, and elephants trudging through the masses of people. If you’re not, well, you sneak in anyway and hope for your big shot. It’s at one of these parties that we meet six figures who represent the end of one era and the beginning of another: Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt), a silent film star whose shine is wearing off after decades in the biz; Nellie LaRoy (Margot Robbie), a hard-partying Jersey girl desperate to make it in the pictures; and Manny Torres (Diego Calva), a hustling assistant climbing the ladder one ludicrous favor at a time. There’s also Elinor St....
Jane Fonda Says Her Cancer Is in Remission: “Best Birthday Present Ever”
Jane Fonda is celebrating the “best birthday present ever” after learning that her cancer is in remission. The iconic actor will turn 85 on December 21st. She shared her lymphoma diagnosis in September and underwent several rounds of chemotherapy, but in a new Instagram post, she was able to add a happy update to the story. “Last week I was told by my oncologist that my cancer is in remission and I can discontinue chemo,” she wrote. “I am feeling so blessed, so fortunate. I thank all of you who prayed and sent good thoughts my way. I am confident that it played a role in the good news. I’m especially happy because while my first 4 chemo treatments were rather easy for me, only a few days of being tired, the last chemo session was rough and lasted 2 weeks making it hard to accompl...
Daisy Edgar-Jones Cast as Carole King in Musical Biopic Beautiful
Daisy Edgar-Jones can soon cross off biopic on her acting bucket list, because Variety reports that the Normal People star has been cast as Carole King in Sony’s upcoming film adaptation of Beautiful, the jukebox stage musical about the early life and career of the legendary singer-songwriter. An on-screen version of Beautiful has been in the works for quite a while now, with Sony having purchased the rights to it over seven years ago. The stage show, which starred a Tony-winning Jessie Mueller as King, ran on Broadway for five years until it closed in October 2019. It played 60 previews and 2,418 regular performances. “Daisy has a spirit and energy that I recognized as myself when I was younger,” King said in a statement to Variety. “She’s a tremendous t...
Secrets Are Fatal in New Trailer for Women Talking: Watch
Orion Pictures and Plan B Entertainment have today shared a new trailer for Women Talking, the upcoming drama film based on Miriam Toews’ 2018 novel of the same name and inspired by harrowing real-life events. Though the costumes wouldn’t suggest so, Women Talking takes place in 2010, following a group of women who live in an isolated Mennonite colony. When the women realize that the men in their colony have been sexually abusing them for years, they must reckon with their strict Anabaptist views within their harsh new reality. “We know that we’ve not imagined these attacks,” one of the women, Salome (Claire Foy), says tearily in the trailer. “We know that we are bruised and infected and pregnant and some of us are dead.” Another woman, Ona (Rooney Mara), concurs: “We c...
Henry Cavill Will No Longer Play Superman As James Gunn Begins Work on New Film
Despite announcing his return as Superman in October, Henry Cavill has revealed that he will no longer reprise his role as the hero. Instead, new DCEU head James Gunn is moving forward with a new film focusing on a younger version of the character that he himself is writing. “After being told by the studio to announce my return back in October, prior to their hire, this news isn’t the easiest, but that’s life,” Cavill said in an Instagram post on Wednesday night. “This changing of the guard is something that happens. I respect that. James and Peter [Safran] have a universe to build. I wish them and all involved with the new universe the best of luck, and the happiest of fortunes.” Gunn also confirmed Cavill’s exit on Twitter. “In the initial stages” of the film, he explained, “our story wi...
Ghostface Stalks Jenna Ortega in Scream 6 Trailer: Watch
Before Jenna Ortega starred as the unflappable Wednesday Addams, she survived Ghostface in the Scream “requel.” She’s set to reprise her role as Tara Carpenter in Scream 6, and judging by the teaser trailer, moving to New York City wasn’t enough to start a fresh chapter. The slasher flick naturally takes place on Halloween, when Tara is on the subway with her friends and half-sister Sara (Melissa Barrera). As a Ghostface mask-wearing figure approaches, the lights go out, and so the action begins. Watch the full Scream 6 teaser trailer and see the movie poster below. Though Scream veteran Courteney Cox is returning as Gale Weathers for the latest installment, Neve Campbell won’t be appearing in Scream 6. Back in June, Campbell revealed that she received and turned d...
Norman Reedus Joins Cast of John Wick Spinoff Ballerina
The John Wick spinoff Ballerina now has some Walking Dead flair to it, because, per Deadline, Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) has joined the cast of the film. Little plot details are known about Ballerina, which was written by Shay Hatten and directed by Len Wiseman. What we do know is that Ana de Armas stars, and Reedus joins Anjelica Huston, Lance Reddick, and Catalina Sandino Moreno in the cast. What’s more, Ian McShane will return as Winston Scott, and Keanu Reeves himself has a part of unknown size as John Wick himself. Filming is underway in Prague. In addition to Ballerina, a John Wick prequel series called The Continental is in the works at Peacock. That show is set in 1975 and follows a young Winston Scott. Additionally, a fourth proper John Wic...
Angelo Badalamenti, Twin Peaks Composer, Dead at 85
Angelo Badalamenti, the renowned composer known for his work on Twin Peaks and several other David Lynch projects, has died at the age of 85. According to the fan site Welcome to Twin Peaks, several of Badalamenti’s family members confirmed his passing on Monday, December 12th. A cause of death was not immediately disclosed. The Brooklyn native began working with Lynch after being brought on as a singing coach for Isabella Rossellini on the 1986 film Blue Velvet. He ended up serving multiple roles on Blue Velvet, including composing its score, serving as the music supervisor, and appearing in the film as a jazz lounge pianist. Advertisement Related Video Badalamenti soon became Lynch’s go-to composer, creating the music for Twin Peaks, Lost Highway, and Mulholland Drive. For his work on Tw...
Anna Konkle Can’t Get a Grip on Motherhood in Trailer for New Movie The Drop: Watch
Nothing makes you question your potential parenting skills like dropping your best friend’s baby. That’s the premise of the upcoming Hulu film The Drop, which coincidentally just dropped its first trailer. Watch the clip below. Directed by Sarah Adina Smith and written by Smith and Joshua Leonard, The Drop stars Anna Konkle (PEN15) and Jermaine Fowler (Sorry to Bother You, Coming 2 America) as Lex and Mani, a couple who choose their friend’s destination wedding as the perfect time to conceive their first child. When Lex drops another friend’s baby, however, the group starts to question their decision to procreate. “Are you sure you’re actually wanting to have a baby?” Jillian Bell asks in the trailer. “You know it’s like suicide?” As the video progresses, “paradise beco...
New Clip for Super Mario Bros. Movie Offers Tantalizing Preview (Chris Pratt Notwithstanding): Watch
Thus far, the trailers for the animated Super Mario Bros. movie have avoided highlighting Chris Pratt’s Mario voice, but the first extended clip somewhat changes all that. In between a lot of huffing and puffing, we get to hear a bit more of the maligned actor’s portrayal of the heroic plumber as Toad (Keegan-Michael Key) leads him through an awe-inspiring tour of Mushroom Kingdom. “This guy’s brother is going to die imminently!” Toad exclaims while clearing a path. Soon enough, the duo hit an elevator platform. “Whoa! Okay, so these bricks are just floatin’ here?” Pratt exclaims in a faux New Yawk accent, his voice cracking in the process. Mario gets even more confused when Toad tells him to hop into a warp pipe. “It’s the only way to fly,” Toad explains. “Oh wow, love these pipes,” ...
Bam Margera Hospitalized and Placed on Ventilator
Bam Margera, the mercurial former star of the Jackass franchise, has been hospitalized and placed on a ventilator, TMZ reports. Margera was reportedly admitted to a hospital in San Diego earlier this week, where he subsequently tested positive for COVID-19. His condition includes a serious case of pneumonia, and his oxygen levels deteriorated to the point where he had to be placed on a ventilator. He remains in the Intensive Care Unit, but sources close to Margera believe he is stable. Earlier this year, Margera completed a one-year substance abuse program as part of a court-mandated rehab following his dismissal from Jackass Forever. Since then, he’s been in and out of different rehab programs, and his health has become the subject of conspiracy theories, whi...
Reese Witherspoon to Star in Election Sequel Tracy Flick Can’t Win
Reese Witherspoon is going back to high school to star in Tracy Flick Can’t Win, a sequel to 1999’s Election that will find the indomitable Flick as a stressed-out but still ambitious assistant principal. As Variety reports, the film is based on Tom Perrotta’s book of the same name, which he published earlier this year as a follow-up to his own novel, 1998’s Election. The new movie is set to debut on Paramount+, and will be directed by Election filmmaker Alexander Payne, who will co-write the script with Jim Taylor. Election proved that Witherspoon was a rising star and established Payne as an in-demand actor’s director, paving the way for such films as About Schmidt and Sideways. It followed the Type-A Tracy as she...
