Taking inspiration from the slapstick brilliance of the silent-era of cinema, filmmaking friends Mike Cheslik and Ryland Brickson Cole Tews came up with the concept for their surrealist comedy Hundreds of Beavers whilst, unsurprisingly, at a bar. With the former directing, editing, and on visual effects duty and the latter acting in the leading role, the pair wrote and produced the DIY passion project together.
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A student of the ‘gonzo’ approach to journalism pioneered by Hunter S. Thompson, photographer Danny Lyon immersed himself into the notoriously non-conformist motorcycle subculture in the 1960s and even became a fully-fledged member of a Midwestern gang for a couple of years. His findings were published in a photo-book that has been adapted for the screen by writer and director Jeff Nichols.
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Almost as old as cinema itself, the classic Western has evolved over the years into its own subgenres and many styles. The latest take on the Wild West comes from actor-turned-filmmaker Viggo Mortensen who not only directs but has written the screenplay, composed the score, and starred in his latest work. The Dead Don’t Hurt is set in the 1860s and follows Vivienne Le Coudy (Vicky Krieps) who falls in love with Holger Olsen (Mortensen), a Danish immigrant plying his trade as a carpenter. Much to her dismay, her husband leaves their Nevada home to fight in the American Civil War while she gets a job behind the bar of a saloon.
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We’re in a time where artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming part of our day-to-day conversations, so we should expect a reaction to this cultural moment from the world of cinema. French auteur Bertrand Bonello is making his statement on the matter by loosely adapting the 1903 novella The Beast in the Jungle by Henry James. Simply titled La Bête, the science fiction drama follows Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux) across three separate narrative strands, exploring her connection to acquaintance Louis (George MacKay) in each.
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It has been almost ten years since filmmaker George Miller revived his post-apocalyptic franchise with Fury Road and the latest instalment is a prequel to that, delving into the origin tale of a warrior that quickly became iconic to fans of the series. Starring Anya Taylor-Joy and Alyla Browne as younger versions of the titular character, adventure epic Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga sees her being abducted from her family as a child by Dr. Dementus (Chris Hemsworth), a wicked gang leader. Years later, a savage rivalry begins between her captors and an army led by Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme), and Furiosa desperately tries to find a way home.
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Known for her work on television shows such as Feel Good, The Great, and Shrill, writer and director Ally Pankiw has shifted to the big screen for her feature debut, I Used to be Funny. Set in Toronto, the comedy drama centres around twenty-something au pair and stand-up performer Sam (Rachel Sennott) who is suffering from PTSD and depression. When Brooke (Olga Petsa), the teenager she used to nanny goes missing, she takes it upon herself to track her down, and in doing so she revisits her trauma.
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When studying cinema, we so often discuss the work from the point-of-view of the director, writer, or the actors on screen. French artist Hélène Louvart has been the cinematographer on many excellent pictures for over thirty years, with modern examples including The Lost Daughter, Never Rarely Sometimes Always and La Chimera. Her new film Nezouh is a beautifully told magical-realism drama, and it is written and directed by Soudade Kaadan. The Syria-based story centres around a young girl called Zeina (Hala Zein) who must decide whether or not to flee her hometown after a bomb attack almost completely destroys their house. I was lucky enough to sit down with Hélène to discuss this piece as well as her craft in general.
Nezouh takes a very different look at the Syrian war-torn landscape as the story is told through the perspective of young Zeina. How did you approach illustrating this in the style of the film?
You know, it was the point of view of the girl, but it’s a mix between her gaze and also the point of view, in the storytelling of course, from Soudade [Kaadan, the director]. We are not doing a documentary, but it is important to understand the context for the girl. If it was only her point of view perhaps it would be slightly too naive so it was a mix with Soudade as she knows exactly the situation. She left there, her parents are still there. For her it’s not a dream, it’s a reality but in the girl’s point of view she brought some magic moments.
Continue reading “Nezouh Interview: Hélène Louvart – ‘It’s like visual poetry. Suddenly her world is colourful’.”
Italian director Luca Guadagnino is well known for his sensual depictions of complex romantic relationships and has brought his distinctive brand of emotional messiness to the tennis court for his latest feature. Challengers revolves around player-turned-mentor Tashi Duncan (Zendaya) who, after being forced to retire early through injury, now coaches her husband Art (Mike Faist) on the circuit. Following a string of confidence-knocking defeats, she enters him into a lower-tier tournament to get his career back on track. Tensions run high when he is drawn against his old friend and doubles partner Patrick (Josh O’Connor), and the film then takes us back in time to explore the chequered history between the three main characters.
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After working for years as an editor and a screenwriter, filmmaker Will Gilbey has sat in the director chair for his feature debut Jericho Ridge. An intense survival thriller, the film stars Nikki Amuka-Bird as police deputy Tabby Temple who comes under attack at a remote Sheriff’s office.
Ahead of its UK premiere at Glasgow Film Festival 2024, I sat down with Will Gilbey and supporting actor Chris Reilly to chat about their experience… (Mild spoiler alert towards the end for Slow Horses S3)
You’ve got huge experience in the industry as an editor and a writer. What was it about this script that made you think it was time to direct a feature?
WG – You’re always sort of trying to think when you’re trying to do a film. Your first one out the gate is going to be pretty low budget and you’re just looking for something which you can control. When you’re going to be in one place for as much as possible, you can spend time concentrating on shooting it as well as you can.
Continue reading “Jericho Ridge Interview: Will Gilbey & Chris Reilly – ‘I’d never worked on an independent film that got so much bang for its buck’.”
Writer-director Milad Alami grapples with heavyweight themes in his sophomore feature Opponent. The social-realist style thriller centres around mild-mannered Olympic wrestler Iman (Payman Maadi) who enjoys a quiet life his wife Maryam (Marall Nasiri) and their daughters Asal (Nicole Mehrbod) and Sahar (Diana Farzami). After he is outed as a homosexual by one of his close friends from the local gym, he is forced to flee his home. As this carries a penalty of execution in his native Iran, he desperately escapes to Scandinavia to start afresh, leaving his life behind and reluctantly turning his back on the sport. However, when it proves too difficult to seek asylum without the promise of a steady career, he returns to the ring to compete for the Swedish national team.
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Cinema Perspective 