Coming Attractions... / And Now Venice

COMING ATTRACTIONS...

I'll be rolling out the annual rundown of distributors that frequent the Telluride Film Festival and what each of them could/might get selected.  Among them will be Searchlight, Netflix, NEON, A24, Amazon, Focus Features, Sony Pictures Classics and perhaps a few others.  So be on the lookout for those starting on Monday.

AND NOW VENICE...

Now that Cannes has come and gone our attention shifts to what films might double up with screenings in Venice first and then at Telluride a couple of days later. The connection between TFF and Venice has increased in recent years to the point where Venice and Cannes have very nearly the same number of films that double up with a subsequent appearance at The SHOW.

World of Reel's Jordan Ruimy has posted a first wave of possible Venice films a first wave of possible Venice films which gives us a template to work from to attempt some TFF predictions.  From that list, here are what seem to be the most likely TFF possibilities are as follows:

Blitz/Steve McQueen

Queer/Luca Guadagnino

Maria/Pablo Larrain

Hard Truths/Mike Leigh

The Wave/Sebastian Lelio

The End/Joshua Oppenheimer

In the Hands of Dante/Julian Schnabel

I'm Still Here/Walter Salles

A note here:  I'd reallllly...love for Blitz to get to TFF and McQueen has a solid past with the fest, but...given the story is about the blitz of London by the Nazis in WWII, I can see McQueen wanting to hold the World Premiere as a part of the London Film Fest in October.

Keep an eye open!

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Cannes Concludes / Final Critical Appraisal for Cannes / Interviews and Profiles from Cannes: Rasoulof

CANNES CONCLUDES

The 77th Cannes Film Festival came its conclusion Saturday with Sean Baker's Anora winning the Palme d'Or.

Here's the complete list of award winners:

Palme d’Or: “Anora,” Sean Baker

Grand Prix: “All We Imagine as Light,” Payal Kapadia

Director: Miguel Gomes, “Grand Tour”

Actor: Jesse Plemons, “Kinds of Kindness.”

Actresses: “Emilia Pérez”

Jury Prize: “Emilia Pérez”

Special Award (Prix Spécial): Mohammad Rasoulof, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”

Screenplay: Coralie Fargeat, “The Substance”

Next Best Picture's Matt Neglia was all over Cannes this year and posted on X some serious Telluride speculation:

"Films I saw at #Cannes that I think could screen at Telluride:

Anora

The Apprentice

Bird

Emilia Perez

Limonov - The Ballad

Oh, Canada

Parthenope

The Seed Of The Sacred Fig"

All of these save for Limonov have been fairly consistently on my pre-Cannes TFF possibles list.  I am a little less bullish on both Oh, Canada and Parthenope post Cannes because of fairly weak critical response.

FINAL CRTICAL APPRAISAL FOR CANNES #77

Here's top five films from Cannes from a few of the critic panels:

Screen Daily (on a four point scale):

1) The Seed of the Sacred Fig 3.4

2) Anora 3.3

2) All We Imagine as Light 3.3

4) Grand Tour 3.0

5) The Substance 2.7

International Cinephile Society (on a five point scale):

1) Grand Tour 3.88

2) The Seed of the Sacred Fig 3.70

3) All We Imagine as Light 3.63

4) Anora 3.55

5) Caught by the Tides 3.28

Reini Urban's Cannes collective (on a ten point scale):null

1) Anora 8.35

2) The Seed of the Sacred Fig 8.16

3) The Substance 7.70

4) Bird 7.45

5) Emilia Perez 7.43

INTERVIEWS AND PROFILES FROM CANNES: RASOULOF

Mohammad Rasoulof for The Seed of the Sacred Fig from the Associated Press.

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The Critics Past the Cannes Half Way Point / Rasoulof Saga Continues / Deadline Details Film Fest Woes / Interviews and Profiles from Cannes: Gary Oldman

THE CRITICS PAST THE CANNES HALF WAY POINT:

Screen Daily has their top five thus far (on a four point scale):

1) Anora 3.3

2) Grand Tour 3.0

3) The Substance 2.7

4) Caught by the Tides 2.6

5) Emilia Perez 2.5

Link to the Screen Daily chart.

Ioncinema's panel's top five (on a five point scale):

1) Anora 3.5

2) Emilia Perez 3.4

3) Bird 3.0

3) Oh, Canada 3.0

3) Caught by the Tides 3.0

Link to Ioncinema's chart.

The International Cinephile Society's top five (on a four point scale):

1) Anora 3.55

2) Grand Tour 3.50

3) Caught by the Tides 3.28

4) Bird 3.0

5) The Substance 2.79

Link to the ICS chart.

RASOULOF SAGA CONTINUES

The latest wrinkle in the saga of Mohammad Rasoulof, his film, the government of Iran and Cannes is that the film maker will attend the 77th edition of the prestigious fest.

Multiple sources are reporting Rasoulof will be in Cannes in person for the screening of his The Seed of the Scared Fig.  Here's the story from Indiewire and The Hollywood Reporter.

The film is set to premiere tomorrow.

DEADLINE DETAIILS FILM FEST WOES

Deadline's Matthew Carey contributed to an article on Film Fests and their current tribulations that was published on Tuesday, May 21st.  The article focuses on European and North American fests and details some of the challenges facing a number of major festival including Telluride.

In the North American section of the story Carey writes of TFF :

"Both Sundance and the Telluride Film Festival benefit from the allure of their exclusive mountain settings, but the high price of travel and lodging have made it increasingly difficult for industry to attend.

“Telluride is really under pressure for the cost to house their own programmers and just to house the people who work for the festival,” says a senior sales agent and veteran Telluride attendee. “We feel that, just attending the festival alone. It is so high and it’s getting higher.”

The complete Deadline article is here.

INTERVIEWS AND PROFILES FROM CANNES

Gary Oldman on Parthenope from The Hollywood Reporter.

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Cannes Critics for Week One / More on Rasoulof's Seed / Interviews and Profiles for Cannes Films

CANNES CRITICS FOR WEEK ONE

As of this morning here are what some of the critical polls from Cannes are showing from among the Palme d'Or contenders that have already screened:

Screen Daily has their top five thus far (on a four point scale):

1) Caught by the Tides 2.6

2) Emilia Perez 2.5

3) Kinds of Kindness 2.4

4) Bird 2.3

4) Three Kilometers from the End of the World

Link to the Screen Daily chart.

Ioncinema's panel's top five (on a five point scale):

1) Emilia Perez 3.7

2) Caught by the Tides 3.5

3) Oh, Canada 3.1

4) Bird 2.9

5) The Girl with the Needle 2.8

Link to Ioncinema's chart.

The International Cinephile Society's top five (on a four point scale):

1) Caught by the Tides 3.28

2) Bird 3.00

3) Oh, Canada 2.70

4) The Substance 2.69

5) The Girl with the Needle 2.65

5) Three Kilometers from the End of the World 2.65

The link to the ICS chart.

Normally I would have Reini Urban's massive Cannes list accessible but the link to that has been broken for a couple of days now.  Perhaps by Thursday's post it will be available.

MORE ON RASOULOF'S SEED

A new note this week on the continuing journey for Mohammad Rasoulof''s The Seed of the Sacred Fig.  NEON has picked up the film on Friday ahead of its premiere Cannes scheduled as the next to last film to screen in the Palme d'Or competition.  The acquisition probably bolsters the chances that the Rasoulof film makes it into the TFF #51 lineup as their presence at Telluride in recent years has been substantial.

Rasoulof is currently in hiding somewhere in Europe after fleeing Iran to escape from an eight year prison sentence.

The acquisition news is covered here by Indiewire.

PROFILES AND INTERVIEWS

Of Cannes films that might be a TFF contender:

Jeremy Strong for The Apprentice from The Playlist.

Andrea Arnold for Bird from The Hollywood Reporter.

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Megalopolis Teaser / Rasoulof Escapes from Iran / New Bikeriders Trailer for the U.K. / Critics from Cannes

MEGALOPOLIS TEASER

As Francis Ford Coppola nears premiering his latest and self-financed epic at Cannes, he released a teaser trailer on Tuesday.  It looks impressive.  Here it is from YouTube:

RASOULOF ESCAPES FROM IRAN

We've been following the latest travails of Iranian film maker Mohammad Rasoulof for the past few weeks.  Rasoulof has a number of films screen at Telluride (Manuscripts Don't Burn, A Man of Integrity) and has another film set to bow at Cannes on May 24th that could well be a TFF #51 possibility.

We reported recently that Rasoulof had been sentenced to an eight year prison term as well as other punishments as the Iranian regime seeks to silence him and stifle the release of his films.

Now comes word from multiple sources that Rasoulof has managed to get out of Iran and is in hiding somewhere in Europe.

Rasoulof did release a statement regarding the escape:

"I arrived in Europe a few days ago after a long and complicated journey.

About a month ago, my lawyers informed me that my eight-year prison sentence was confirmed in the court of appeal and would be implemented on short notice. Knowing that the news of my new film would be revealed very soon, I knew that without a doubt, a new sentence would be added to these eight years. I didn’t have much time to make a decision. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. With a heavy heart, I chose exile. The Islamic Republic confiscated my passport in September 2017. Therefore, I had to leave Iran secretly."

At this point it is not known whether Rasoulof will attempt to make a live appearance for the premiere of his Cannes competition film The Seed of the Sacred Fig. 

NEW BIKERIDERS TRAILER FOR THE U.K.

Late last week Universal and Focus Features released a third trailer for Jeff Nichols The Bikeriders for consumption in the U.K.  Here it is from YouTube:

The Bikeriders opens in the U.S. on June 21st.

CRITICS FROM CANNES

Now that the 77th Cannes Film Festival is underway you can expect to see MTFB's usual compilation of critical responses coming your way beginning with Monday's post.  I'll be following multiple collections of critical response in order to get a sense of what films are capturing the moment in Cannes and as a way to assess TFF potential.  One of those sources will be, again, the massive critical collection from Reini Urban.  Last year TFF films that appeared at Cannes first had these ratings from Urban's list using a ten point scale:

The Zone of Interest 8.16

Perfect Days 7.91

Anatomy of a Fall 7.90

La Chimera 7.46

Fallen Leaves 7.46

The Taste of Things 7.01

Occupied City 6.97

Anselm 6.41

Little Girl Blue 6.21

Room 999 also played Cannes then Telluride last year but is nowhere to be found on Urban's list.

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Roger Corman 1926-2024 / Last Word on Cannes Before It Launches

 ROGER CORMAN 1926-2024

Film pioneer and legend Roger Corman died on Saturday.  Among other things, Corman was a Telluride tribute recipient in 2012.  That afforded me the opportunity to meet him and express my appreciation for what he had done for the universe of film.  It was a brief exchange and he graciously accepted my gratitude.  

I'm sure most of the readers of this space are abundantly aware of Corman's legacy in film.  The film Stage listed the following as film folk to whom Corman "helped to launch:

Martin Scorsese
Francis Ford Coppola
Jack Nicholson
Robert De Niro
James Cameron
Jonathan Demme
Peter Bogdanovich
John Sayles
Dennis Hopper
Joe Dante
Ron Howard
Bruce Dern
Sylvester Stallone
William Shatner

Here's my photo of meeting Corman in 2012 just outside the Galaxy:

The eulogies and remembrances have been all over social media.  They have strongly reminded us of the legacy that Corman leaves behind.  You could make the argument that ne was as responsible as anyone for the greatness of the films of the 1970s.

A titan.

Here are Corman obituaries from:

Variety

The Hollywood Reporter

Indiewire

LAST WORD ON CANNES BEFORE IT LAUNCHES

Both The Playlist and The Film Stage have posted lists of Cannes films they regard as most anticipated and so as we head into the two week fest which traditionally crosses over around an average of eight films to TFF each year.

And so, with one more eye toward that here are the films that each source listed that, to me, feel like possibilities for The SHOW.

From both lists (including "Honorable Mentions":

Bird (Arnold)

Emilia Perez (Audiard)

Oh, Canada (Schrader)

The Apprentice (Abassi)

Megalopolis (Coppola)

Parthenope (Sorrentino)

Rumours (Maddin and Johnsons)

Additionally from The Playlist:

Meeting with Pol Pot (Panh) 

The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Rasoulof)

The Most Precious of Cargoes (Hazanavicius)

Additionally from The Film Stage:

Napoleon (Gance)

Here are the complete posts from:

The Playlist

The Film Stage

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Is Cannes #77 in Trouble? / Views from The Bikeriders / More on Rasoulof

IS CANNES #77 IN TROUBLE?

And the root of that question stems from a threatened strike by a collective of 200 or so film festival workers who have called for a strike of the fest.  With the festival set to start on May 14th, it seems like there would be some sense of urgency on the part of Cannes organizers.

An open letter to Deadline.com from the collective says, in part:

"Our warnings and demands have been received with polite consideration so far, but no concrete measure has been offered by the CNC or the Ministry of Culture. That is why the upcoming opening of the Cannes Festival is leaving us with a bitter taste.

In a context of extreme vulnerability and absolute emergency to protect our work, and after consultation and vote of the members of the collective, we call for a strike of all employees of the Cannes Film Festival and of its sidebars."

Here's the story from Deadline.

Variety reported yesterday that Cannes officials had responded with a statement of their own:

“We wish to emphasize that they are aware of the difficulties faced by some of their staff who, working on strings of contracts for film festivals, are affected by the reform of the French unemployment insurance scheme, and must grapple with a drop in their benefits.

Faced with this situation, we hope that solutions will be found, and are prepared to set up lasting dialogue conditions to support them.

Aware of the sounding board that the Cannes Festival and its parallel selections represent, we understand the timeliness of these demands. But in order to undertake a constructive reflection aimed at reforming the status of these workers, all the festivals concerned, the institutions and the unions need to come together around the bargaining table. This is the work that must now be undertaken collectively.”

The complete story from Variety is here.

More as it develops...

VIEWS FROM THE BIKERIDERS

As the release date approaches for TFF #50 film The Bikeriders from director Jeff Nichols, we're seeing an increase in P.R. moves.  Including recent releases of a new trailer as well as a new poster.  Now comes two separate posts from Variety and Entertainment Weekly focusing on behind-the-scenes photos from the film.

Take a look at the photos...

From Variety.

From Entertainment Weekly.

The Bikeriders opens June 21st.

MORE ON RASOULOF

We've been following news of Mohammad Rasoulof for a bit now as Iran Has been pressuring him and others to withdraw his film The Seed of the Sacred Fig from the Cannes competition lineup.  Now Indiewire is reporting that the Iranians have sentenced Rasoulof to eight years in prison, flogging as well as confiscation of property and a fine.

Rasoulof;s films have been a frequent selection at Telluride and could possibly be again this year with this new film.

The Indiewire story is here.

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Megalopolis Trailer / Third Trailer for The Bikeriders / Parthenope Has a Home

MEGALOPOLIS TRAILER

Just this weekend American Zoetrope released an initial trailer for Francis ford Coppola's anticipated Megalopolis.  The film is set to debut at Cannes.  I have wondering (hoping?) if it might be a TFF #51 selection.  

Here's the trailer from YouTube and JoBlo:

THIRD TRAILER FOR THE BIKERIDERS

This past week we got a new poster for Jeff Nichol's The Bikeriders which world premiered at Telluride in September.  A day or so later Focus Features dropped a third teaser/trailer for the film .  Here that is from YouTube and JoBlo Upcoming Movies:

The Bikeriders opens June 21st.

PARTHENOPE HAS A HOME

Many of the early Oscar predictions and looks at "Most Anticipated" lists that I have been looking at to get a sense of what films might be in line for a T-ride berth have included Paolo Sorrentino's Parthenope.  The case for a possible screening at TFF #51 may have been strengthened this week as the film was picked by A24 for U.S. distribution ahead of its premiere screening in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in a couple of weeks.

A24 has become a consistent presence at Telluride in recent years including screening of The Zone of Interest (2023). Aftersun (2022) and Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2021) among many others.

The acquisition of Parthenope by A24 doesn't guarantee anything, but it also doesn't hurt.

Here are the details from Deadline.com.

Parthenope is described as follows (from the Deadline article):

"The movie follows Parthenope, who born in the sea of Naples in 1950, searches for happiness over the long summers of her youth, falling in love with her home city and its many memorable characters." 

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Rasoulof Difficulties / The Bikeriders New Official Poster / Nickel Boys Has a Release Date

RASOULOF DIFFICULTIES

(Rasoulof photo via IMDb)

A week ago I wrote that among the titles that had just been added to the lineup for the 77th Cannes Film Festival that Mohammad Rasoulof's The Seed of the Sacred Fig was  a film worth watching as a possible selection for TFF #51.

Now, Jordan Ruimy/World of Reel reports and not surprisingly, authorities in Iran (Rasoulof's home country) are putting pressure on producers and cast members of the film to keep the film from being screened at the Fest.  A number of people connected to the film have been banned from leaving Iran.  Rasoulof himself has been banned from leaving the country since 2017.

Rasoulof has previously screened a number of films at Telluride including There Is No Evil and Manuscripts Don't Burn but a successful push to keep this new film from screening at Cannes might also portend no play at TFF.  

Ruimy's complete post is here.

THE BIKERIDERS NEW OFFICIAL POSTER

Focus Features has released an official poster for Jeff Nichols The Bikeriders.  The film screened at last year's 50th TFF and though responses seemed mixed at the time I quite enjoyed the film.  Currently the film sits at 73 on Metacritic and 83 on Rotten Tomatoes.

Here's the poster:

The Bikeriders will be in theaters on June 21st.

NICKEL BOYS HAS A RELEASE DATE

Deadline.com and other outlets reported this week that RaMell Rosses Nickel Boys will be released on Oct. 25th.  The adaptation of Colson Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize winning novel is now positioned to be a possible inclusion for Telluride, Venice, Toronto and/or New York.

The film's distributor-Amazon/MGM doesn't hurt its chances at a TFF #51 berth either.  Keep an eye on this one.

The Deadline post is here.

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