NBR Happens Tomorrow / Oscar Predictions Update: Acting Categories / Film Makers Featured

NBR HAPPENS TOMORROW

The national Board of Review drops its list of best films of 2019 tomorrow.  Last year its choice for Best Film, Green Book, went on to Oscar glory winning the Best Picture Oscar.

Expect the organization to announce winners of a number of individual awards in addition to Best Film such as Best Direction, Leading and Supporting performances, adapted and original screenplays and others.  In addition expect a 10 Best list, a Ten Best Independent Films list, a Five Best Documentaries list and a Five Best Foreign Film list.

TFF #46 films that could make their way onto the NBR's various lists include:

The Aeronauts
Beanpole
The Climb
Diego Maradona
Ford v Ferrari
A Hidden Life
Judy
The Kingmaker
Marriage Story
Pain and Glory
Parasite
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
The Report
The Two Popes
Uncut Gems
Varda by Agnes
Waves

I'll have all the NBR/TFF breakdown on Thursday edition of MTFB.


OSCAR PREDICTIONS UPDATE: ACTING

Here's my latest batch of Oscar updates for the acting category nominations.  I last posted acting predictions on Nov. 21.  TFF #46 performances are Bold.

BEST ACTRESS

1) Renee Zellweger/Judy (1)
2) Charlize Theron/Bombshell (2)
3) Scarlett Johansson/Marriage Story (3)
4) Saoirse Ronan/Little Women (4)
5) Cynthia Erivo/Harriet (5)
6) Awkwafina/The Farewell (-)

Other possibles: Lupita Nyong'o/Us, Alfre Woodard/Clemency

BEST ACTOR

1) Joaquin Phoenix/Joker (2)
2) Adam Driver/Marriage Story (1)
3) Jonathan Pryce/The Two Popes (3)
4) Leonardo DiCaprio/Once Upon a Time...(4)
5) Robert DeNiro/The Irishman (-)
6) Antonio Banderas/Pain and Glory (5)

Other possibles: George MacKay/1917, Christian Bale/Ford v Ferrari, Eddie Murphy/Dolemite Is My Name, Taron Egerton/Rocketman, Paul Walter Hauser/Richard Jewell

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1) Laura Dern/Marriage Story (1)
2) Jennifer Lopez/Hustlers (2)
3) Margot Robbie/Bombshell (3)
4) Zhao Shuzhen/The Farewell (6)
5) Kathy Bates/Richard Jewell (-)
6) Scarlett Johansson/Jojo Rabbit (5)

Other possibles: Florence Pugh/Little Women, DaVine Joy Randolph/Dolemite Is My Name, Annette Bening/The Report, Maggie Smith/Downton Abbey

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1) Brad Pitt/Once Upon a Time... (1)
2) Al Pacino/The Irishman (2)
3) Joe Pesci/The Irishman (5)
4) Tom Hanks/A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (3)
5) Anthony Hopkins/The Two Popes (4)
6) Sam Rockwell/Richard Jewell (-)

Other possibles: Willem Dafoe/The Lighthouse, Wesley Snipes/Dolemite Is My Name, Alan Alda/Marriage Story, Shia LaBeouf/Honey Boy, Jamie Foxx/Just Mercy

Notes: The buzz surrounding Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell (releasing Dec. 13) is lifting Kathy Bates, Sam Rockwell and Paul Walter Hauser into the acting conversations.   It will be interesting to see if that sustains over the next couple of weeks.

The same is true for young and virtually unknown George MacKay for his work in 1917.  The Sam Mendes film has huge buzz after some early screenings and has skyrocketed up a number of the charts from the Oscar experts for Best Picture.  Currently Awards Circuit has it at #1.   Awards Daily has it at #1 and Awards Watch has it at #4.


FILM MAKERS FEATURED

Annie Howard talks to The Two Popes Screen writer Anthony McCarten for The Hollywood Reporter here.

Anne Thompson of Indiewire talks to Adam Sandler and The Safdie Brothers about Uncut Gems here.

Joey Moser of Awards Daily talks with composer David Wingo about the music of Motherless Brooklyn.



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Oscar Predictions Update: Director and Screenplays / Interviews with Directors: Baumbach, Norton, Meirelles

OSCAR PREDICTION UPDATES: DIRECTOR AND SCREENPLAYS

Here are my most recent picks for Oscar nominations in the categories of Directing, and Adapted and Original Screenplay.  These categories were last posted on Nov. 18th.  I have indicated the last time I posted them as well as that film's position in that previous posting.  As always all films from TFF #46 are in Bold.

BEST DIRECTION

1) Quentin Tarantino/Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood (2)
2) Bong Joon-ho/Parasite (1)
3) Martin Scorsese/The Irishman (3)
4) Sam Mendes/1917 (5)
5) Noah Baumbach/Marriage Story (4)
6) Taika Waititi/Jojo Rabbit (6)

Other possibles: Fernando Meirelles/The Two Popes, James Mangold/Ford v Ferrari, Todd Phillips/Joker, Clint Eastwood/Richard Jewell


ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

1) The Two Popes (3)
2) Jojo Rabbit (1)
3) The Irishman (2)
4) Joker (5)
5) Little Women (4)
6) Hustlers (-)

Other possibles; Richard Jewell, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Judy


ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

1) Marriage Story (1)
2) Once Upon a Time... (2)
3) Parasite (3)
4) The Farewell (4)
5) 1917 (-)
6) Bombshell (5)

Other possibles: Dolemite Is My Name, Knives Out, Honey Boy




INTERVIEWS WITH DIRECTORS: NOAH BAUMBACH, EDWARD NORTON AND FERNANDO MEIRELLES

Noah Baumbach photo from Interview

Nadja Sayej talks with Edward Norton about Motherless Brooklyn.  Here's the link to that interview.


Pete Hammond talks to Norton in this interview for Deadline's Contender series.  That is linked here.


Gold Derby's Zach Laws talks to The Two Popes' director Fernando Merirelles.  That is linked here.



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Oscar History and TFF Part Eight / More from Renee Zellweger / Portrait Is Not France's Choice / Motherless Opens Rome

OSCAR HISTORY AND TFF PART EIGHT

Here's the concluding installment of my review of the history of Oscar nominations for films that played as a part of the Telluride Film Festival from its 1974 inception to last year's Oscar ceremony.  Today's installment covers the years from 2015 to the present.  Numbers in parentheses following each year are total number of nominations from TFF films for that year followed by the number of Oscars won by TFF films.


2015 (23/4)

Spotlight- Picture-WON, Original Screenplay-WON, Director- Tom McCarthy, Supporting Actress- Rachel McAdams, Supporting Actor-Mark Ruffalo, Film Editing

Son of Saul-Foreign Language-WON

Room- Actress-Brie Larson-WON, Picture, Director-Lenny Abrahamson, Adapted Screenplay

Carol- Actress-Cate Blanchett, Supporting Actress-Rooney Mara, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Score, Costume

Steve Jobs- Actor-Michael Fassbender, Supporting Actress-Kate Winslet

45 Years- Actress-Charlotte Rampling

Anomalisa- Animated

Winter on Fire- Documentary

The Look of Silence- Documentary


2016 (35/12)

Moonlight-Picture-WON, Supporting Actor-Mahershala Ali-WON, Adapted Screenplay-WON, Supporting Actress-Naomie Harris, Director-Barry Jenkins, Score, Cinematography, Film Editing

La La Land- Actress-Emma Stone-WON, Director-Damien Chazelle-WON, Score-WON, Original Song-WON, Production Design-WON, Cinematography-WON, Picture, Actor-Ryan Gosling, Original Song, Original Screenplay, Film Editing, Costume, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing

Manchester by the Sea- Actor-Casey Affleck-WON, Original Screenplay-WON, Picture, Director-Kenneth Lonergan, Supporting Actor-Lucas Hedges, Supporting Actress-Michelle Williams

Arrival- Sound Editing-WON, Picture, Director-Denis Villenueve, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Production Design, Sound Mixing

Toni Erdmann-Foreign Language

Fire at Sea-Documentary

Sully-Sound Editing


2017 (29/6)

The Shape of Water- Picture-WON, Director-Guillermo Del Toro-WON, Score-WON, Production Design-WON, Actress-Sally Hawkins, Supporting Actor-Richard Jenkins, Supporting Actress-Octavia Spencer, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Costume, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing

Darkest Hour- Actor-Gary Oldman-WON, Makeup-WON, Picture, Cinematography, Production Design, Costume

Lady Bird- Picture, Director-Greta Gerwig, Actress-Saoirse Ronan, Supporting Actress-Laurie Metcalf, Original Screenplay

A Fantastic Woman-Foreign Language

The Insult-Foreign Language

Loveless-Foreign Language

Loving Vincent-Animated

Faces Places-Documentary


2018 (33/6)

Roma- Director-Alfonso Cuaron-WON, Foreign Language-WON, Cinematography-WON, Picture, Actress-Yalitza Aparicio, Supporting Actress-Marina de Tavira, Original Screenplay, Production Design, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing

The Favourite- Actress-Olivia Colman-WON, Picture, Director-Yorgos Lanthimos, Supporting Actress-Emma Stone, Supporting Actress-Rachel Weisz, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Production Design, Costume

First Man-Visual Effects-WON, Production Design, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing

Free Solo- Documentary-WON

Can You Ever Forgive Me?- Actress-Melissa McCarthy, Supporting Actor-Richard E. Grant, Adapted Screenplay

Cold War- Director- Pawel Pawlikowski, Foreign Language, Cinematography

Shoplifters- Foreign Language

Border- Makeup



What will  we add for 2019?



MORE FROM RENEE ZELLWEGER

Rupert Goold's Judy opened this past weekend to middling reviews except in the case of Renee Zellweger's performance in the role of the icon Judy Garland.  Since its bow in Telluride, Zellweger has become the established front runner (along with Marriage Story's Scarlett Johannson) to earn a Best Actress Oscar nomination and win the gold man in early February.

Zellweger continued to be highlighted through the end of the past week with profiles and interviews in a number of outlets.  I linked several of those last Wednesday/Thursday and am adding a couple of more of them today:

From Variety

Indiewire



PORTRAIT IS NOT FRANCE'S CHOICE

France announced its choice of film for consideration for the Best International Feature (formerly the Foreign Language Film category) for this year's Oscars and it was not Celine Sciamma's TFF featured Portrait of a Lady on Fire.  In what was thought to be a very tough decision, the French instead chose Ladj Ly's Les Miserable.  Alice Wincour's Proxima was also said to have received serious consideration.

Portrait was the recipient of the Best Screenplay award at Cannes whereas Les Miserables was a Jury Prize winner for that fest.

Complete details of the decision are covered in this story by Zack Sharf linked from Indiewire.


MOTHERLESS OPENS ROME

We also found out over the weekend that Edward Norton's Motherless Brooklyn has been chosen to open the Rome Film Festival.  That fest takes off on Oct. 17th.

The complete Rome Film Fest lineup is set to be revealed on Friday.

I have included this link to the announcement for Motherless Brooklyn from The Hollywood Reporter.



That's today's MTFB.  More on Thursday.

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The People's Telluride / Home Again / The Professionals Telluride

Tuesday...360 Days...

THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

The time has come...to all of you with an interest, for you followers of this space to express your collective evaluation of the films that made an appearance at the Telluride Film Festival.  As most of you know, I'd like you to rate the films you saw this past weekend on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being "Not So Good"  and 5 being "Glorious!"

As a matter of fact, I have several that came in overnight.  The ratings are afoot!

You can deliver your ratings using any of the contact methods listed below.

The cutoff date for submission for The People's Telluride is one week from today...so get those ratings in by Tuesday, Sept. 10th.

HOME AGAIN

As has become my custom, I jetted out of Telluride right after stopping by TFF's Labor Day picnic.  The drive back home runs right at 10 hours with stops along the way for this and that.  We also add the hour back that we gained with the move from Central to Mountain time...so it was a long day and a late night.  I'm a little fried this early morning.

This year's fest was a little different for me.  Mt pass situation was different due to the change in media status.  I knew that would mean I'd get to fewer films and that was the case.  Most years I average 10-11 films, this year I got in eight (in the order I saw them):

The Aeronauts

The Climb

Uncut Gems

The Report

Waves

Motherless Brooklyn

Marriage Story

Parasite

Regrets that I didn't catch Ford v. Ferrari, The Two Popes or A Hidden Life but I'll get them in.

By the end of the weekend, it seemed to me that two films were dominating the buzz and it will interesting to see if The People's Telluride bears out what I was hearing.

Thanks to everyone who was kind enough to say a word or two to me in lines throughout the weekend.  It's always gratifying to hear that this thing is valued by TFF attendees.

THE PROFESSIONALS TELLURIDE

Coming soon.  The Pros have already started sending me their ratings so be looking for their collective response soon.  Additionally, as I've been doing for some time now, the third part of the TFF ratings triad will come with The Composite Telluride when I combine the ratings for both groups.

That'll do for this early Tuesday...more on Thursday!

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Day Three Done...Day Four: TBAs / And Departure / The People's Telluride

DAY THREE DONE ...

Saw both Motherless Brooklyn and Marriage Story as well as catching part of the Netflix Documentary Brunch...shout out to Gary Shapiro who I met and is a funny, warm individual.

MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN...

Edward Norton's dream project is realized and generally well executed.  Minor quibbles with length and pacing.  Production design is gorgeous.  Acting...Norton is the standout.  Alec Baldwin also quite good.

MARRIAGE STORY

For my money the best of the fest so far (and I admit that I haven't caught Ford v. Ferrari or Two Popes both of which are generating great buzz in Telluride lines).  Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver are ridiculously good as the couple whose marriage has disintegrated.  Laura Dern also makes waves in a flashy performance but let me get a word in for Julie Hagerty as Johansson's mother.


DAY FOUR: TBAs

Palm
• 7:30 PM: MARRIAGE STORY, program number 7a, Cinephile

Galaxy
• 4:30 PM: TELL ME WHO I AM, 10, Cinephile

Herzog
• 4:15 PM: WAVES, 6, Cinephile
• 7:30 PM: THE REPORT, 7b, Cinephile

SOH
1:15 PM: THE ASSISTANT, 3, Cinephile
3:15 PM: FIRST COW, 20, Cinephile
8:30 PM: PAIN AND GLORY, 22, Cinephile

Nugget
• 1:00 PM: AUSTRALIAN DREAM plus Q&A with Adam Goodes, 28, Cinephile
• 3:45 PM: HUMAN FACTOR, 17, Cinephile
• 6:00 PM: BRAVE SOULS: THREE SHORTS, 34, Cinephile, FREE
• 7:45 PM: BEANPOLE, 29, Cinephile

Masons
• 4:15 PM: OLIVER SACKS: HIS OWN LIFE, 31, Cinephile
• 6:30 PM: GREAT EXPECTATIONS with Q&A, 43, Cinephile, FREE
• 8:30 PM: THOSE WHO REMAINED, 30, Cinephile

Pierre
• 1:00 PM: WOMEN MAKE FILM: A NEW ROAD MOVIE THROUGH CINEMA with Q&A, 2, Cinephile
• 6:45 PM: THE KINGMAKER, 25, Cinephile

Backlot
• 9:00 AM: LINDA RONSTADT: THE SOUND OF MY VOICE, E
• 12:30 PM: SOROS, D
• 2:45 PM: 63 UP, A
• 6:00 PM: THE GIFT: THE JOURNEY OF JOHNNY CASH, F

Noon Seminar, Town Park FREE

Sponsored by Participant Media

Why and how do filmmakers reshape real events or people?
With Scott Z. Burns, Felicity Jones, Fernando Meirelles, Dror Moreh, Eddie Redmayne
Moderated by Annette Insdorf.

AND DEPARTURE

The plan is to catch Parasite this morning, hit the picnic/social and hit the road back to No Man's Land.  Thanks to all of you fine folks who were kind enough to say hello to me on line this weekend.  Now, this space turns to its second function...following the Oscar race and the TFF #46 films and individuals who make an impact in that race over the next six months.

Onward...

THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

For the eighth consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".

Report your ratings with any of the following contact methods:

EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

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COMMENT TO THE BLOG

Day Two Done...Day Three on the Way... / Sunday TBAs / And a Note...

DAY TWO DONE...

Got into Uncut Gems, The Report and Waves on Saturday...

My favorite film of the day turned out to be Uncut Gems...which shocks me a bit as I have never been a big Adam Sandler fan.  But credit due....Sandler is great in the Safdie Brothers film. 

The Report worked well enough for me.  It's a sturdy and competently made reveal of how willing the  U.S. was to torture in the wake of 9-11.

Waves is an earnest but overly long exploration of the potential destruction of a family.



DAY THREE ON THE WAY...

I know we're going to try to do Motherless Brooklyn on Sunday morning...and then Marriage Story on Sunday night.  Between the two...I don't know. 


SUNDAY TBAs

Sunday TBAs - September 1, 2019
Galaxy

• 10:15 PM: THE CLIMB, program number 27, Cinephile

Sheridan Opera House

• 10:00 PM: 63 UP, A, Cinephile

Nugget

• 4:15 PM: LINDA RONSTADT: THE SOUND OF MY VOICE with Q&A, E, Cinephile

• 9:45 PM: FIRST COW, 20, Cinephile

Masons

• 9:15 PM: STUDENT PRINTS with Q&A, 41, Cinephile

Pierre

• 9:30 PM: PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE, 12, Cinephile

Noon Seminar, Elks Park FREE

Sponsored by Participant Media

Moderated by Annette Insdorf

What are the challenges of cinematic adaptation?

With Dan Friedkin, Philip Kaufman, Edward Norton, Barnabás Tóth


AND A NOTE...

Thanks to so many of you who have been kind enough to say a word or two to me in lines the last couple of days.  Also a special shout out to staff folk who follow this space.  You guys and gals are fantastic!  And via my brother...Hey Mercury!

See you around tomorrow!

SPECIAL POST!!! BREAKING NEWS....25 Bets...the Final Stab! / Tribute Clues / So...What Do I Want to See? / The People's Telluride

SPECIAL POST!!! BREAKING NEWS...


25 BETS- THE FINAL STAB!

Here it is...the final list of 25 films/programs that I expect to play the 46th Telluride Film Festival.  The actual announcement should come sometime tomorrow morning and, of course, I'll have it here for you before I take off for the San Juans myself.  I expect to be in T-ride around 10 MDT tomorrow night.  In alphabetical order...Here we go...

1) The Aeronauts

2) Beanpole

3) The Climb

4) Country Music

5) Family Romance LLC

6) First Cow
7) Ford v Ferrari

8) A Hidden Life
9) Inside Bill's Brain: Decoding Bill Gates

10) Judy
11) The Kingmaker
12) Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice

13) Lyrebird

14) Marriage Story

15) Motherless Brooklyn

16) Pain and Glory

17) Parasite

18) Portrait of a Lady on Fire

19) The Report
20) The Truth
21) The Two Popes

22 ) Uncut Gems

23) Varda by Agnes
24) Verdict
25) Waves


Other Possibles: The Assistant, The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash, Dark Waters, Little Women, The Good Liar, Nomadland, Ad Astra, Molly, Matthias and Maxime, 1917, Bombshell, Wasp Network, Chicuarotes, No One Left Behind, Gemini Man, Mr. Jones, Antlers.

TRIBUTE CLUES


                  


I got a number of anonymous tips over the past few days which told me that the pre-fest screenings in Elks Park have been revealed in Telluride.  As many of you know, those films usually offer clues about who is probably being tributed at The SHOW.  The two key films are Bridget Jones' Diary and Star Wars:The Last Jedi.  The informative flyer also confirms that there will be some screening of Ken Burns' Country Music documentary will take place this weekend as well.

The free screenings suggest that two of your tributes this year will go to Renee Zellweger- who's Judy is sure to be screening and also Adam Driver who has both Marriage Story and The Report set to be part of The SHOW.

As to the third probable tribute...I have heard on background conflicting suggestions about that and consequently don't have a good enough handle on it to make any bold prediction.

LATE BREAKING...  It appears the third tribute is for Philip Kaufman according to the Telluride Daily Planet:

Also note the "Special Screening" on Saturday night.

SOOOO....WHAT DO I WANT TO SEE?

The Aeronauts
Ford v. Ferrari
The Climb
Parasite
The Report
Motherless Brooklyn
Marriage Story
A Hidden Life
Waves
The Two Popes


Full lineup revealed tomorrow morning and I'll have it here.

THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

For the eighth consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".

Report your ratings with any of the following contact methods:

EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

FACEBOOK Message me on FB MTFB's Facebook Page

COMMENT TO THE BLOG

Twenty Bets / More Trailers for Films Playing TFF #46 / Mr. Jones...Still in the Convo / The People's Telluride

Friday...one week...just one more week...

TWENTY BETS

Here's the next to last wagers about films that I believe are likely to make an appearance next week at the 46th Telluride Film Festival.  First, though, a reminder of what I had last week:

10) The Aeronauts
9) Ford v. Ferrari
8) The Two Popes
7) Judy
6) Pain and Glory
5) Uncut Gems
4) Portrait of a Lady on Fire
3) Motherless Brooklyn
2) Marriage Story
1) Parasite


Bonus Bets:

Bonus 1) Varda by Agnes
Bonus 2) First Cow
Bonus 3) A Hidden Life
Bonus 4) The Report
Bonus 5) The Kingmaker
Bonus 6) The Climb
Bonus 7) Waves
Bonus 8) Lyrebird
Bonus 9) Verdict

The Truth and Beanpole drop out of the Bonus Bets as Toronto lists them both as North American premieres...but...I can tell you that there is some background noise that one or both might still be mis-identified in terms of that premiere status and that there is still some outside possibility that either one of them could still screen at Telluride.

And the remaining list of other possibles gets smaller:

Family Romance LLC, Country Music, Little Women, The Good Liar, Untitled Todd Haynes Project (Dry Run/Dark Water), Nomadland, Ad Astra, Molly, Matthias and Maxime, 1917.

Now, here is this week's latest Ten (20) Bets.  This week in alphabetical order:

The Aeronauts

1) The Aeronauts

2) Beanpole

3) The Climb

4) Country Music

5) Family Romance LLC

6) First Cow

Ford v. Ferrari

7) Ford v Ferrari

8) A Hidden Life

9) Judy
10) The Kingmaker

11) Lyrebird

12) Marriage Story

13) Motherless Brooklyn

14) Pain and Glory

15) Parasite

16) Portrait of a Lady on Fire

17) The Report

The Two Popes

18) The Two Popes

19 ) Uncut Gems

20) Varda by Agnes

Other possibilities that could land at T-ride:

Waves, Verdict, Little Women, The Good Liar, Untitled Todd Haynes Project (Dry Run/Dark Water), Nomadland, Ad Astra, Molly, Matthias and Maxime, 1917, Bombshell, Wasp Network, Chicuarotes, No One Left Behind, Mr. Jones.

The final Bets for TFF #46 will be posted Wednesday morning!

MORE TRAILERS FOR FILMS PLAYING TFF #46

From YouTube, new trailers for Motherless Brooklyn and The Report:


MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN

THE REPORT

MR. JONES...STILL IN THE CONVO

Variety reported yesterday that Agnieszka Holland's Mr. Jones has been acquired by Samuel Goldwyn Films for U.S. distribution.  The film premiered originally in competition at the Berlin Festival in February and has played an additional half dozen international festivals since that time.

Since it has yet played in the U.S. nor has it been announced for Toronto... and considering that Holland has had a Telluride presence in the past (In Darkness, Burning Bush), Mr. Jones could still show up next Thursday when the TFF #46 lineup is released.

Mr. Jones is described at IMDb as being about:

 "A Welsh journalist breaks the news in the western media of the famine in the Soviet Union in the early 1930s."

  

The film is scheduled for its non-festival debut in Poland on Oct. 25th.

I have linked the Variety story about the acquisition here.

THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

For the eighth consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".

Report your ratings with any of the following contact methods:

EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

FACEBOOK Message me on FB MTFB's Facebook Page

COMMENT TO THE BLOG

Beanpole Back In? / Motherless Blitz Is On / Varda Has a Date / IMDb Reveals ? / Current Bets

Tuesday...One Week...3 Days...

BEANPOLE BACK IN?

If you've been reading this space closely the last few days, you know that there has been some confusion concerning whether either Beanpole or The Truth might play Telluride after both films were listed as North American premieres last week in an announcement of films for the Toronto International Film Fest.

I'd had Beanpole as fairly certain for TFF #46 as a result of its status as "New York" premieres in the NYFF announcement of their lineup back on Aug. 8th.

Now Jeff Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere says Beanpole is in for Telluride after all.  Here's a screenshot from his site that he posted last night:

So...Beanpole goes back on the Bonus Bets list on Friday and I am still thinking The Truth has a real shot to be at TFF #46 after it opens the Venice Fest next week.

Well's complete post is linked here.

MOTHERLESS BLITZ IS ON

I'm morally certain that Edward Norton's Motherless Brooklyn will screen in Telluride next week.  The film is known to be set to screen at Toronto (where it is listed as an International Premiere) and New York.  Clearly as a run up to what will be its first public screening at TFF #46, the film was all over the P.R. trail yesterday.

Katey rich writing for Vanity Fair talked to director/screen writer and star of the film Edward Norton.  That article was posted yesterday by VF and you can find it linked here.  Included in that article are the first looks of the period set film that IMDb lists as a Crime/Drama.

The IMDb logline tells us that the film focuses on a private detective who has Tourette's Syndrome and is striving to solve the murder of his partner.  Also starring in the film are Willem Dafoe, Alec Baldwin, Bruce Willis and Leslie Mann.

Both The Playlist and Indiewire piggy-backed on the Vanity Fair story (as I'm doing).  You can find their added reportage linked here:

Indiewire

The Playlist

In addition to the photo above, VF also included these stills from the film:

Motherless Brooklyn is set to be released on Nov. 1st.

VARDA HAS A DATE

Janus Pictures has acquired the U.S. rights to distribute the final film of Agnes Varda's career-Varda by Agnes- and have announced that the film...which will be playing Telluride (he says authoritatively-based on its status for the New York Film Fest as a "New York" premiere)...will open in the U.S. on Nov. 22nd in New York.  The film will then expand nationally in the following weeks.

Janus also announced that a massive retrospective of Varda's career will be launched at Lincoln Center in NYC on Dec. 20th.

Coverage of the date announcement was provided yesterday from The Hollywood Reporter and The Playlist.

IMDB REVEALS...

Yesterday an eagle eyed follower of MTFB pointed out to me that some films have a Telluride date included in there IMDb release date profile.  The initial discovery was on IMDb Pro but after some skulking about, I found that it was also discernible on the more easily accessed IMDb website.  

The specific film that the reader was pointing to was Ford v. Ferrari.  I was able to find the same TFF conformation for Marriage Story, The Two Popes and Uncut Gems.  

I also ran through every film that I have currently in the latest Ten Bets and Bonus Bets but only these four came up with Telluride listed in their release plans.

Suffice it to say that I'll keep going back to this source over the next few days to find out if it will reveal any more TFF #46 information.

Check date info for yourself as follows:

Ford v. Ferrari

Uncut Gems

Marriage Story

The Two Popes

CURRENT TEN BETS AND BONUS BETS

10) The Aeronauts
9) Ford v. Ferrari
8) The Two Popes
7) Judy
6) Pain and Glory
5) Uncut Gems
4) Portrait of a Lady on Fire
3) Motherless Brooklyn
2) Marriage Story
1) Parasite


Bonus Bets:

Bonus 1) Varda by Agnes
Bonus 2) First Cow
Bonus 3) A Hidden Life
Bonus 4) The Report
Bonus 5) The Kingmaker
Bonus 6) The Climb
Bonus 7) Waves
Bonus 8) Lyrebird
Bonus 9) Verdict


THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

For the eighth consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".


Report your ratings with any of the following contact methods:


EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

FACEBOOK Message me on FB MTFB's Facebook Page

COMMENT TO THE BLOG

TFF #46 Ten Bets #8 (And Bonus Bets) / Gerwig Talks Little Women / World of Reel: T-ride Predix and Non-Fest Films / Teasing The People's Telluride

Friday...Two Weeks...


TFF #46 TEN BETS #8 (AND BONUS BETS)

Toronto announcements with premiere designation uncertainty, Venice scheduling revelations and the appearance of trailers this week all had an effect on the latest Ten Bets for TFF #46. 

Last week's Ten Bets (and Bonus Bets) as well as "other possible" films looked like this:

10) The Aeronauts
9) Ford v. Ferrari
8) The Two Popes
7) Pain and Glory
6) Uncut Gems
5) Judy
4) Motherless Brooklyn
3) Marriage Story
2) Portrait of a Lady on Fire
1) Parasite

Bonus 1) The Truth
Bonus 2) Varda by Agnes
Bonus 3) First Cow
Bonus 4) A Hidden Life
Bonus 5) The Report
Bonus 6) Beanpole
Bonus 7) The Kingmaker

Still on the list of Other Possibilities:

Family Romance LLC, Country Music, The Climb, Little Women, The Good Liar, Untitled Todd Haynes Project (Dry Run/Dark Water), Nomadland, Ad Astra, Molly, Lucy in the Sky, Seberg, The King, Matthias and Maxime, 1917.


After this past week's events...here's your new Ten Bets plus Bonus Bets:

10) The Aeronauts

9) Ford v. Ferrari
8) The Two Popes
7) Judy
6) Pain and Glory

5) Uncut Gems
4) Portrait of a Lady on Fire
3) Motherless Brooklyn
2) Marriage Story
1) Parasite


Bonus Bets:

Bonus 1) Varda by Agnes
Bonus 2) First Cow
Bonus 3) A Hidden Life
Bonus 4) The Report
Bonus 5) The Kingmaker
Bonus 6) The Climb
Bonus 7) Waves
Bonus 8) Lyrebird
Bonus 9) Verdict

The Truth and Beanpole drop out of the Bonus Bets as Toronto lists them both as North American premieres...but...I can tell you that there is some background noise that one or both might still be mis-identified in terms of that premiere status and that there is still some outside possibility that either one of them could still screen at Telluride.

And the remaining list of other possibles gets smaller:

Family Romance LLC, Country Music, Little Women, The Good Liar, Untitled Todd Haynes Project (Dry Run/Dark Water), Nomadland, Ad Astra, Molly, Matthias and Maxime, 1917.

On a couple of side notes...

I'm on the case of another film that could be screening at Telluride but i haven't put together enough info to pass it along.  Suffice to say the title hasn't been mentioned AT ALL in this space as yet and may not if I can't dig up enough corroboration.

And...I've had a bunch of good guesses come my way about Tributes...and no one has landed on any of the recipients as yet.  It's kind of fun.  Of course, I could be wrong.


Last note...there are only a couple of Ten Bets left before The SHOW.  I'll post #9  a week from today and #10 will go up on Wednesday, Aug. 28th...the day before the Telluride lineup is expected to drop.


GERWIG TALKS LITTLE WOMEN

Entertainment Weekly's Mary Sollosi put together that outlet's coverage of the release of the trailer for Greta Gerwig's Little Women.  That story included fresh responses from the director/writer herself focused on the casting of the film.  Indiewire picked up on that and provided an expanded story by Ryan Lattanzio.

I'm still cogitating about the chances that the film could be a surprise at T-ride.  Believe me, it's a far-fetched notion as my background voices range from "it's not playing" to 'it's probably not playing".  Honestly, I haven't run across anyone in the biz who has anything like the same notion that I have.  So, everyone, as I have said before, the chance for a T-ride play for this sits at 2%.

Still, the timing of the trailer and these stories makes me wonder...

The EW story is linked here.

Indiewire's expansion is linked here.



WORLD OF REEL: T-RIDE PREDIX AND NON-FEST FILMS

Jordan Ruimy continues to crank out good stuff about festival season including a new Telluride prediction update on Wednesday that mirrors much of what you see here and who also continues to include kind words about MTFB.  That latest update from World of Reel is linked here.

World of Reel's Theo Fisher also posted a list of ten films that he says are not going to film fests that by and large seem on point to me. 

Of note are Queen and Slim...which I have seen in at least one place as a prediction for Telluride.  Sam Mendes 1917 and Little Women (see what I mean).  Though there is this line in the text of the paragraph about the Gerwig project appearing at a fall festival "is highly unlikely".  But, hey, it's not definitive.

Here's the link to the entire article and list of ten films.



TEASING THE PEOPLE'S TELLURIDE

For the eighth consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".


Report your ratings with any of the following contact methods:


EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

FACEBOOK Message me on FB MTFB's Facebook Page

COMMENT TO THE BLOG

2019 Ten Bets #7 (Plus Bonus Bets) / More from Toronto / Lucy in the Sky Has a Date for Lift Off / The People's Telluride: It's Time to Plan Your Participation

Friday...Three Weeks...



2019 TEN BETS #7 (PLUS BONUS BETS)

Time for the weekly update of MTFB's Ten Bets for the 46th Telluride Film Festival (plus some Bonus Bets).

Here were your Ten Bets and Bonuses from last week along with "Other Possibilities":


10) The Aeronauts
9) Ford v. Ferrari
8) The Two Popes
7) Pain and Glory
6) Uncut Gems
5) Judy
4) Motherless Brooklyn
3) Marriage Story
2) Portrait of a Lady on Fire
1) Parasite


This week, I add some "Bonus Bets":

Bonus 1) The Truth
Bonus 2) Varda by Agnes
Bonus 3) First Cow
Bonus 4) Family Romance LLC
Bonus 5) Country Music

Other possibilities (in no particular order):

The Climb, Little Women, The Good Liar, Untitled Todd Haynes Project (Dry Run?), Atlantics, Nomadland, Synonyms, Ad Astra, Molly, Lucy in the Sky, Seberg, Wasp Network, The King, A Hidden Life, Matthias and Maxime, 1917.


Now, after this week's digging and sleuthing...your new Ten Bets and Bonus Bets:

10) The Aeronauts
9) Ford v. Ferrari
8) The Two Popes
7) Pain and Glory
6) Uncut Gems
5) Judy
4) Motherless Brooklyn
3) Marriage Story
2) Portrait of a Lady on Fire
1) Parasite

Bonus 1) The Truth
Bonus 2) Varda by Agnes
Bonus 3) First Cow
Bonus 4) A Hidden Life
Bonus 5) The Report
Bonus 6) Beanpole
Bonus 7) The Kingmaker

Gone from the list of "Other Possibilities"- Wasp Network, Atlantics, Synonyms.  Also gone that I had given some serious thought to: The Traitor, Bacurau and Young Ahmed.

Still on the list of Other Possibilities:

Family Romance LLC, Country Music, The Climb, Little Women, The Good Liar, Untitled Todd Haynes Project (Dry Run/Dark Water), Nomadland, Ad Astra, Molly, Lucy in the Sky, Seberg, The King, Matthias and Maxime, 1917.


MORE FROM TORONTO

The Toronto International Film Festival announced a slew more of films for their soiree that traditionally takes off the weekend after Telluride.  They added films for their Discovery, Midnight Madness and Docs sections.  Here's what those new announcements tell us for Labor Day weekend:

It looks as if Laura Greenfield's documentary about former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos is probable for Telluride as TIFF lists it as a Canadian Premiere and I can't find a trace of it having screened anywhere else.

And that seems like the only TFF addition we make from yesterday's TIFF news.  All other films added to the three sections are listed as either World Premieres, North American Premieres, International Premieres-none of which are listed as American films -and the only other Canadian Premiere listed is such because it screened earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Fest.

Among notable docs that are listed as World Premiere's that I thought might have been a Telluride consideration:

Alex Gibney's Citizen K
Bryce Dallas Howard's Dads
Gabe Polsky's Red Penguins
Ellen Page's There's Something in the Water
Mark Cousins' Women Make Film
Fisher Stevens' And We Go Green

Toronto still has more to reveal over the next couple of weeks.

Here's the complete list of films announced yesterday from Variety.


LUCY IN THE SKY HAS A DATE FOR LIFTOFF

Multiple sources revealed that Fox Searchlight's Lucy in the Sky starring Natalie Portman has been dated for release in a limited fashion on Oct. 4th. 

That means that we could still see it added to lineups for NYFF or TIFF.  Even Venice.  And it certainly remains a TFF #46 potential title.

The Noah Hawley film is loosely based on the true story of an astronaut's return from space and her personal difficulties upon that return.

Some news outlets suggest that a fall film presence is still possible and perhaps likely.

Here's coverage from

The Playlist

Indiewire

Entertainment Weekly 

The Wrap



IT'S TIME TO PLAN YOUR PARTICIPATION

Yes indeed.

For the eighth consecutive year MTFB is soliciting your input for The People's Telluride.  All you have to do is watch films during the fest and then, when it's all over, report to me your assessment of each film on a 1-5 scale with 1 being "UGH!" and 5 being "GREAT".

Each year the level of participation has grown and I'd like to keep that increasing.

Here are the top three People's results from each year we've done it:

2012:

1) Stories We Tell (4.80)
2) Argo  (4.75)
3) The Attack (4.70)

2013:

1) Tim's Vermeer (4.67)
2) 12 Years a Slave (4.55)
3) Gravity (4.40)

2014:

1) The Imitation Game (4.73)
2) Birdman (4.46)
3) Wild Tales (4.23)

2015:

1) Room (4.47)
2) Spotlight (4.45)
3) Beasts of No Nation (4.35)

2016:

1) Moonlight (4.37)
2) La La Land (4.33)
3) Maudie (4.29)

2017:

1) Lady Bird (4.38)
2) The Shape of Water (4.22)
3) Darkest Hour (4.04)


2018:

1) Roma (4.47)
2) First Man (4.34)
3) Shoplifters (4.29)


The all time People's Top Ten going into the 2019 Telluride Film Festival are:

1) Stories We Tell (4.80) (12)
2) Argo (4.75) (12)
3) The Imitation Game (4.73) (14)
4) The Attack (4.70) (12)
5) Tim's Vermeer (4.67) (13)
6) 12 Years a Slave (4.55) (13)
7) Roma (tie-4.47) (18)
7) Room (tie-4.47) (15)
9) Birdman (4.46) (14)
10) Spotlight (4.45) (15)


When the time comes, you can send those ratings to me in any of the following ways listed as contact info for me listed below.


EMAIL:  mpgort@gmail.com OR michael_speech@hotmail.com

TWITTER @Gort2 (and follow me there as well)

FACEBOOK Message me on FB MTFB's Facebook Page

COMMENT TO THE BLOG