Michael's Telluride Film Blog : St. Vincent

Showing posts with label St. Vincent. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

New Toronto Titles/Tale of Toronto and "Leviathan" Part 2/New York Times Post Kills Big Titles for TFF

Good Wednesday everyone...

NEW TORONTO TITLES

The Toronto International Film Festival announced its final titles this yesterday and there, again, are conclusions that we can reach. We can't guarantee that these conclusions are 100% correct but we're probably pretty close. Takeaways:

The announcement of " '71" and "The New York Review of Books: The 50 Year Argument" as Canadian Premieres is a good indication that both of those titles are headed to Telluride. We've been thinking that was probably the case the last couple of weeks. I'm particularly excited about " '71" which has a trailer that was associated with its play at the Berlin Film Fest back in February. Here's that trailer:

" '71" trailer via YouTube

Here's the story that The Playlist ran yesterday with the release of the trailer:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/watch-first-trailer-for-berlin-sensation-71-led-by-rising-star-jack-oconnell-20140819

We also found that three films that we had continued to think might be Telluride possibilities will NOT be as they are either World or North American premieres. As reported earlier, "St. Vincent" starring Bill Murray is a World premiere and so will not be in T-ride. TIFF has announced that Sept. 5th will be Bill Murray Day.

Announced as North American premieres were the Cannes Palme d'Or winner "Winter Sleep" and another Cannes standout, "The Tribe". That means neither of those will play in the San Juans. Too bad, especially about "The Tribe" which I have been really intrigued by.

Finally, four titles were announced as International premieres that we may need to consider for Telluride. There is limited screening history information about each of the four which, at least at the moment, leaves them as theoretical Telluride possibilities.

The most intriguing is the filmed version of Julie Taymor's stage production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

Also in play: "Life in a Fishbowl", "The Little Death" and "Senza Nessuna Pieta".

Here's the Variety report on yesterday's Toronto announcement:

http://variety.com/2014/film/news/toronto-film-festival-completes-lineup-1201285802/

TALE OF TORONTO AND LEVIATHAN PART TWO

Over the weekend, I mentioned that a reader had alertly noticed that the TIFF website had listed "Leviathan" as a North American premiere and was asking if that meant no Telluride play. It was a reasonable question. I did some research and source work and couldn't find any explanation for why a film that I was pretty sure had been announced as a Canadian premiere was listed as North American.

I contacted an acquaintance or two that have a way better knowledge of Toronto's workings than I do and they suggested that the "Canadian" designation was probably correct.

Yesterday, I checked back in to the TIFF.net website and someone had changed the designation. So, suffice to say that "Leviathan" IS a Canadian premiere for Toronto and a very likely film for Telluride.

Check this link to "Leviathan's" TIFF page:

http://www.tiff.net/festivals/thefestival/programmes/masters/leviathan-1

NEW YORK TIMES POST KILLS BIG TITLES FOR TFF

The New York Times put up a lengthy post yesterday that dissected the Telluride/Toronto situation. In the course of the story, the Times nukes the notion of three major films making their appearance at Telluride:

David Ayers' "Fury"
Angelina Jolie's "Unbroken" and
Christopher Nolan's "Interstellar"

The Times story says that the three films are, "sitting out the season's opening festivals, according to people briefed on the films, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality rules."

The Times says the reasons range from not being ready to differing marketing and awards season strategies.

Makes me sad to mark them off the prospective list though "Fury" was really gone already and I was always dubious about "Interstellar".

That leaves "Big Eyes" and "Exodus: Gods and Kings" as the biggest fish out there without an announced festival.

Here's the story from the Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/20/movies/in-the-race-for-oscars-toronto-puts-up-a-hurdle.html

More tomorrow...

Follow me on Twitter @Gort2

Monday, August 18, 2014

Tale of Toronto and Leviathan/Update on Some Film's Status as of Today/Toronto Tomorrow/99 Homes But the House Ain't One

Welcome to Monday!

TALE OF TORONTO AND LEVIATHAN

Eagle-eyed follower of the blog and on Twitter @TheDeepPink tweeted to me on Saturday the following:

‏@TheDeepPink

@Gort2 TIFF says NA premiere for LEVIATHAN on its website. So I would guess no Telluride based off that.

Well, I thought, that can't be right...so I looked and it was.  Guess what...TIFF.net, as TheDeepPink says, is listed as a North American premiere.  It was here:

http://www.tiff.net/festivals/thefestival/programmes/masters/leviathan-1

"So", I asked myself, "How'd you get this wrong and label it as a Canadian premiere and claim it was likely for Telluride?" So I dug a little. Here's what happened. Toronto labeled it a Canadian premiere on July 29th. All the news outlets I took the time to look up listed it as a Canadian premiere: Deadline.com, IndieWire, Film Threat, Filmmaker Magazine, The Playlist, Ioncinema...

http://deadline.com/2014/07/tiff-adds-frederick-wiseman-ethan-hawke-docus-vanguard-films-midnight-madness-lineup-811575/

http://www.indiewire.com/article/tiff-adds-ethan-hawke-robert-kenner-docs-announces-masters-midnight-madness-and-vanguard-programs-20140729

http://www.filmthreat.com/festivals/79080/

http://filmmakermagazine.com/86936-additions-to-2014-tiff-lineup/#.U--Dj_ldXuI

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/tiff-adds-films-from-kevin-smith-michael-winterbottom-roy-andersson-sion-sono-more-to-2014-lineup-20140729

http://www.ioncinema.com/news/film-festivals/2014-tiff-masters-cannes-venice-items-and-winterbottom-bent-hamer-world-preems

So...how'd we ALL get it wrong? Could be because of the official TIFF Press Release which lists "Leviathan" as a Canadian premiere...Look...

http://d12gbu3zt5gvms.cloudfront.net/docs/lOv53J_Masters_2014_8270103_1408032841.pdf

I have some feelers out to see if the film's status has changed, if the Press Release was wrong or if the TIFF website is wrong. At the end of the weekend, I have a couple of pretty good sources (I mean really good sources) that say that the TIFF.net website is wrong. Stay tuned. I'm feeling confident that it's a Canadian premiere and will be playing Telluride.

UPDATE ON SOME FILM'S STATUS AS OF TODAY

I thought I'd take a quick look at some films that are still a mystery as far as the Telluride and fall film festival lineups are concerned. For example:

Jack O'Connell in " "71" via The Guardian

" '71"...directed by Yann Demange and starring Jack O'Connell. It tells the story of a young Brit soldier accidentally abandoned by his unit in war torn Belfast in 1971.

This film was announced as a "New York" premiere last week for the NYFF. It has previously appeared at four international fests: Berlin, Beune, Karlovy Vary and Jerusalem. Is set to open in England Oct. 17 and three weeks later in France. It is being distributed in the U.S. by Roadside Attractions which also has Xavier Dolan's "Mommy" and Tommy Lee Jones' "The Homesman" (see below re: "The Homesman") as potential Telluride films. Because of its status as a New York premiere, I think it is a very likely selection for Telluride. Metacritic score: 88. T-ride chances 70%

"The Homesman" trailer via YouTube and joblo.com

"The Homesman"...directed by Tommy Lee Jones and starring Jones and Hilary Swank. Set in the late 1800's a pioneer woman rescues a claim jumper and requires that he aids in escorting three women have become insane from Nebraska to Iowa. "Homesman" played Cannes to a mixed critical reception (69 Metacritics score). IMDb lists it as playing Toronto on Sept. 16th...though I can't find that on the TIFF website. Perhaps tomorrow's TIFF announcement will shed some light there. "The Homesman" is scheduled to open in the U.S. in a limited release on Oct. 3. "Homesman" is distributed in the U.S. by Roadside Attractions and Saban Films. Chances of a Telluride play are about 60%...based largely on the distributors, the Cannes play and a Hollywood Reporter piece from July 31.

"A Most Violent Year"

"A Most Violent Year"...directed by J.C. Chandor and starring Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain. An immigrant family deals with living in NYC during the summer of 1981.

This film had been high on my list (and others' lists too) of films expected to play Telluride. Currently it has dropped off the "Ten (Plus) Bets list as it is reportedly still editing (as of two weeks ago). I do know that it was reportedly test screened back in June...which may have been what was the catalyst for continued editing. Chandor could still have it ready in time, but it would be a very tricky thing. Hence its disappearance from the "Ten (Plus) Bets".

"A Most Violent Year" will be distributed in the U.S. by A24. A24 previously had "Under the Skin" and "Ginger and Rosa" as selections to previous Telluride festivals. The film is scheduled to open in Canada on Nov. 18 and in December in England. It has no U.S. release date at this time. Metacritic score: None. T-ride chances-10%

"St. Vincent" trailer via YouTube and Coming Soon

"St. Vincent"...directed by Theodore Melfi and starring Bill Murray. Murray plays a scalawag (yes, a scalawag) that takes on baby sitting his new neighbors 11 year old. Hilarity and life lessons ensue. "St. Vincent" is set to pen domestically on Oct. 24. It has not been announced for any fest as yet and its distributor is The Weinstien Company. With Murray, who, seemed to really have fun at TFF two years back with "Hyde Park on Hudson" and TWC repping (and we're fairly sure TWC is already going to be on the ground in T-ride with "The Imitation Game" and no announced fest date...this seemed like a prime Telluride apple for the picking. But Deadline.com reported last week that a deal for it to appear at Toronto as a world premiere gala is virtually sewn up. Probably means it's done as a Telluride hopeful. We'll probably have that confirmed with tomorrow's Toronto announcement. T-ride chances-10%

"Slow West" via Thompson on Hollywood

"Slow West"...directed by John Maclean and starring Michael Fassbender. Fassbender is a mysterious stranger who aids a 17 year old boy in his search across the American west to find the girl he loves. Fassbender also executive produced the film.

Production companies for "Slow West" include See Saw ("The King's Speech", "Shame" and "Tracks") and Film4 ("Starred Up", "Under the Skin", "12 Years a Slave) but it has no distributor as yet for the U.S. The film is listed as having been in post since late last year. "Slow West" has not been announced for any festival at this point. It'll be interesting if this pops up in Toronto's announcement tomorrow. Chances for Telluride-20%.

"Suffragette" via Rope of Silicon

"Suffragette"...directed by Sarah Gavron and starring Meryl Streep, Helena Bonham Carter and Carey Mulligan. The story of the early feminist movement. The film is listed in post-production since late April. It has announced Australian release date of Dec. 26. "Suffragette" has been announced for no festival as yet. It has no distributor but does have both Film4 (see above for "Slow West") and Pathe ("127 Hours", "The Illusionist") producing. There are rumors that the film's release may be delayed until next year...but as of now IMDb says this year. T-ride chances 20%.

"Kill the Messenger"...directed by Michael Cuesta and starring Jeremy Renner. The true story of a reporter who dug into the CIA's use of drug running for guns in the Nicaraguan civil war in the 1980's. No fest play at this point and a U.S. release date of Oct. 10. The U.S. distributor is Focus Features ("Hyde Park on Hudson", "Into the Wild"). Telluride chances are 15%.

"The Tribe"...directed by Myroslav Sloboshpitsky. The cast is all deaf and the film is told almost exclusively in sign language. It tells the story of a new student trying to fit in a boarding school The film has had a lot of International fest play including Cannes where it was warmly received. Drafthouse Films ("The Act of Killing") is distributing in the U.S. A release in Ukraine is scheduled for Sept. 11. If it had a distributor with more Telluride history, I'd be higher on its chances. As it is, I'm saying it's 30%.

TORONTO TOMORROW

Toronto's announcement tomorrow is said to include a schedule and guest list as well as , according to a Tweet from head man Cameron Bailey..."TIFF Kids, Mavericks, Discovery" and what he calls a "Special Treat"...I'll bet that's the "St. Vincent" announcement.

Nevertheless, there should be some more clues as to what to expect Telluride-way. after we know what TIFF says.

99 HOMES BUT THE HOUSE AIN'T ONE

Garfield and Shannon in "99 Homes"

Eagle-eyed follower of MTFB Ian aka @thin_white_duke dropped me a line last night about a story he had tracked down at thehindu.com. The piece focuses on producer Ashok Amritraj. Amritraj is one of the prodcers of Ramin Bahrani's "99Homes" starring Andrew Garfield, Michael Shannon and Laura Dern. The story confirms "99 Homes" will play Telluride but implies that we won't see Garfield or Shannon in T-ride. I am betting that Ms. Dern is on hand, however.

You can look at the entire story here:

http://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/ashok-amritrajs-latest-production-99-homes-makes-it-to-three-prestigious-film-festivals/article6324273.ece

More tomorrow...

Follow me on Twitter @Gort2

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Bad News on the "St. Vincent" and "Violent Year" Fronts/New Interstellar Trailer/More from France

Good Thursday to All...

BAD NEWS ON THE ST. VINCENT AND VIOLENT YEAR FRONTS

"St. Vincent" photo via yahoo.com

Deadline.com reported yesterday that a Toronto World Premiere Gala is all but a done deal for "St. Vincent" starring Bill Murray. I have been holding out some hope that it and Murray would make the trip to Telluride but if the Mark Fleming, Jr. report is accurate...it looks unlikely now.

Read the story from Deadline.com here:

http://m.deadline.com/2014/07/mr-bill-murray-toronto-st-vincent-gala-but-cannot-find-you/

And speaking of bad news...there's some buzz that J.C. Chandor's "A Most Violent Year" which I was thinking was a pretty good Telluride bet (and I was hoping would make the trip as well) may not be ready in time for the festival.

Gotta say that I'm bummed if both of these films miss the fest.

NEW INTERSTELLAR TRAILER

Much was made of the reveal at Comic Con last week by Christopher Nolan of a new trailer for his "Interstellar". The film remains a way way outside possibility for Telluride, although I've become all but convinced that it won't happen. Nevertheless, the new trailer can be accessed at the official Interstellar website by typing in the access code 7201969...the date U.S. astronauts landed on the moon. Here's the site:

http://www.interstellarmovie.com/

It's a cool trailer too.

MORE FROM FRANCE

I'm continuing to look at the French production houses that have had a Telluride Film Fest history and their current connections to films to attempt to uncover some of the other films that are possibles for a screening in the San Juans.

FRANCE 3 CINEMA

2003: Dogville, The Tripletts of Belleville
2004:
2005: Lemming, Live and Become, Cache
2006: The Page Turner, Indigenes
2007: The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, Persepolis
2008: I've Loved You So Long
2009: The White Ribbon
2010: The Illusionist, The Princess of Montpensier, Of Gods and Men
2011: The Artist
2012: Superstar, Amour
2013: The Past

Though France3 has had a larger profile than France2 at Telluride over the past few years, their pool of films this year seems thin with no one film standing out as a likely suspect.

Perhaps "Le Temps des Aveux" or, more likely "Caricaturistes, fantassins de la démocratie" the documentary about cartoonists and democracy that played at Cannes.

ARTE FRANCE CINEMA

Another Franco production outfit that has had persistent presence in Telluride is arte France Cinema. Their track record looks like this:

2003: Dogville
2004: The Weeping Meadow
2005: The Child, Cache, Paradise Now
2006: Day Night Day Night
2008: O'Horten
2011: Le Havre, Goodbye First Love
2012: No films at Telluride
2013: Le Maison de la Radio, The Lunchbox

After no Telluride presence in 2012, arte France Cinema came back in 2013 fairly strong. In 2014 their best chance at playing Telluride is the yet unannounced for any fall fest, Olivier Assayas' Cannes competition piece "Clouds of Sils Maria" starring Juliette Binoche, Kristen Stewart and Chloe Grace Moretz.

As we haven't seen it in Toronto's list yet, I am inching a little closer to thinking that it could actually play at Telluride and, perhaps a Juliette Binoche tribute?

CINECINEMA/CINE+

CineCinema changed over to Cine+ within the last three years or so but it's all the same. This production company has often been represented at Telluride over the last few years:

2005: Lemming, Live and Become
2006: The Page Turner, Indigenes
2007: The Diving Bell and The Butterfly
2008: With a Little Help from Myself
2009: Farewell, Coco Before Chanel, A Prophet, Inferno
2010: The Illusionist, The Princess of Montpensier, Of Gods and Men
2011: Goodbye First Love, The Kid with a Bike, Le Havre, The Artist
2012: Rust and Bone, Superstar, The Attack, Amour
2013: The Past, Blue is the Warmest Color, Le Maison de la Radio

Cine+ has four projects that they're involved in that could well make the Telluride playlist: "The Blue Room", "Bird People", "Two Days, One Night" and "Clouds of Sils Maria".

More tomorrow including this year's "Unified Clooney Theory"

Follow me on Twitter @Gort2

Monday, July 14, 2014

Weinstein's at Telluride/Wild Makes an Appearance/Pixar's Short Lava

Good Monday everyone. I'm back in the Oklahoma Panhandle after 2 1/2 weeks on the road and some fantastic lifetime memories...

Today, I conclude my look at U.S. distributors that have films that could play Telluride with one of the biggest players in that field....The Weinstein Company:

WEINSTEIN'S AT TELLURIDE

Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob have had a fairly common presence at the Telluride Film Festival over the years. Their current incarnation is as The Weinstein Company. Previously they were Miramax.

Tracking both companies as distributors at Telluride for the past decade shows us that they've been a part of The SHOW for a good long while. Here's their Telluride slate as Miramax or The Weinstein Company since 2006:

2006: Venus
2007: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, My Enemy's Enemy, I'm Not There
2008: Happy-Go-Lucky
2009: The Road
2010: The King's Speech
2011: The Artist, Butter
2012: The Sapphires (also was represented during the Marion Cotillard tribute by James Gray and 5 min. of The Immigrant)
2013: The Unknown Known, Salinger, Tracks

So over 8 years...13 films. 1.6 per year and TWC has been repped at TFF consistently each year since 2006. So what's in TWC's stable this year that has a chance to play in T-ride?

"MacBeth"
"St. Vincent"
"The Imitation Game"
"Suite Francaise"
"Big Eyes"

And from TWC's Radius arm, the best chance is Cannes film "It Follows".

What seems likely here? Because you have to believe that TWC will want to play. Maybe more than any other distributor, the Toronto/Telluride show down may have its greatest effect here. I believe that their decision will be propelled by their analysis about which fest and what platforming of films in which places will do them the most good.

It seemed pretty clear last year that TWC placed more faith in Toronto when they made the last minute switch from "Philomena" as a Monday TBA to "Salinger". But Harvey and company also can't ignore that their greatest successes in recent years: "The Artist" and "The King's Speech" both played Telluride on their way to Oscar glory. Another factor is that I don't really see a slam dunk Best Picture player here. All of them could be but none of them are perceived as having an inside track to a nomination for BP at this point (as, for example. "Unbroken" or "Foxcatcher" seem to have at this point).

Bottom line is that I expect a two or three of these films to make the Telluride lineup but discerning, at least at this point, which are the most likely is really difficult.

I'm personally campaigning to see Morten Tyldum's "The Imitation Game" with Benedict Cumberbatch telling the true story of British genius and hero Alan Turing but it may actually be the least likely choice insofar as Telluride is concerned. Almost everyone that guesses at this sort of stuff thinks it's headed to Toronto. Tim Buton's "Big Eyes" also seems fairly unlikely...my bet is that it goes to New York. That leaves "Suite Francaise", "MacBeth" and "St. Vincent" for Telluride. I'd be pretty happy with any or all of them. At this point, Murray's "St. Vincent" might actually be the most likely.

WILD MAKES AN APPEARANCE

Jean Marc Vallee's follow up to "Dallas Buyers Club" is "Wild' starring Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon.
Over the last few days we have seen a new poster appear as well as a trailer for the film. Here's the trailer:

"Wild" Trailer via YouTube

and the poster:

Friend of MTFB Kris Tapley, writing at HitFix, seems to think that "Wild" could be a Telluride choice as you'll see when you read this post from the weekend:

http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/wild-trailer-reveals-a-de-glammed-reese-witherspoon-hiking-the-pain-away

Here is a another post about the trailer:

http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=877035

PIXAR'S SHORT LAVA

Pixar's new animated short film is entitled "Lava" and will precede their feature "Inside Out" in the summer of 2015. I wouldn't be all that surprised to see it pop up somewhere in Telluride's program over Labor Day. Read about it here:

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/first-look-pixars-lava-new-short-film-coming-2015/

More to come on Tuesday...including our annual look at "The Usual Suspects"...not the film...

Saturday, July 5, 2014

Oscar at the Half/Best of the Week: SPC, Sundance Selects and IFC, Foxcatcher Poster and Trailer, Fassbender's Western, St. Vincent and The Tribe

Good Saturday to All...

OSCAR AT THE HALF

Both Kris Tapley at HitFix and Scott Feinberg at The Hollywood Reporter took the opportunity this past week to take a look at the awards landscape as we moved past the half way point on the 2014 calendar. As you might expect, both fellows suggest that the bulk of films that are likely to contend are still to come. I have linked both Kris' and Scott's posts here:

http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/off-the-carpet-its-half-time-in-the-2014-2015-oscar-race

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/oscars-2015-standout-films-halfway-715729

BEST OF THE WEEK

Here's the best from Michael's Tellluride Film Blog from this past week...

TEN BETS 2014 #2

Here's your second edition of "Ten Bets" for films that I expect to appear at the 41st Telluride Film Festival. Last weeks list looked like this:

10) Salt of the Earth (Wenders)
9) Winter Sleep (Ceylan)
8) Red Army (Polsky)
7) Coming Home (Yimou)
6) Foxcatcher (Miller)
5) The Roosevelts (Burns)
4) Leviathan (Zvyagintsev)
3) Birdman (Inarritu)
2) Two Days, One Night (Dardennes)
1) Mr. Turner (Leigh)

After a week of tracking any Telluride news/rumors, here's your new "Ten Bets" (also, see the next story below):

10) Coming Home

9) Winter Sleep

8) Red Army

7) The Roosevelts

6) Queen of the Desert

5) Foxcatcher

4) Leviathan

3) Two Days, One Night

2) Mr. Turner

1) Birdman

NEWS FROM WELLS

"Birdman" trailer via YouTube

Jeffrey Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere posted a Telluride piece on Wednesday. He claims that Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's "Birdman" is a Telluride lock...which I have suspected for over a year. Also a lock, according to Wells: Werner Herzog's "Queen of the Desert" which has also been anticipated here, as long as it was finished. Wells also says that Paul Thomas Anderson's "Inherent Vice" and David Fincher's "Gone Girl" are locked for the New York Fest and necessarily pre-empted for T-ride.

The really interesting tidbit is the possibility of a Telluride presentation of Christopher Nolan's "Interstellar". Up until last year, I would have thought this unlikely in the extreme but with the success of Telluride landing Alfonso Cuaron's "Gravity" last year...I could believe this. I'm not there yet...but I don't rule it out either.

Wells also has a couple of comments about the Toronto Film Fests ultimatum vis-a-vis Telluride and you can find the entire piece here:

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/2014/07/50534/#more-50534

RUDDERLESS RELEASE IS SET

Well, you know, if you read this space with any regularity, I have been following, rather obsessively, the progress of William H. Macy's Sundance hit "Rudderless". I've been privy to a lot of the backstage machinations on the film for more than five years and it's with great pleasure that I can pass on this news. "Rudderless" will be released in the U.S. on Oct. 17th. That info comes via a tweet from Macy himself who said yesterday:

"Gentle Folk,
RUDDERLESS opens in theaters Oct 17th. Good lord I'm jacked up about this movie. More later. Macy"

Though I haven't seen this tidbit anywhere in the media...I'm pretty sure that Macy's got his dates right. No news as to how wide a release the Oct. 17th date will be as yet so I'll keep an eye out on that. So, I suppose that makes this an "exclusive". Or, at any rate, an exclusive for those of us who follow Macy on Twitter.

LOOKING AT THE SONY PICTURES CLASSICS SLATE

No distributor has historically had a stronger presence at the Telluride Film Festival than Sony Pictures Classics. Fest hondos usually tell people that they program between 24 and 30 feature films each year. For the last ten years, SPC has averaged 4.6 films per festival...or somewhere in the neighborhood of 18% of the T-ride slate each year comes from the SPC stable.

Here's what SPC has shown in Telluride in the last 11 years :

2013: The Invisible Woman, The Lunchbox, The Past, Tim's Vermeer and Jodorowsky's Dune.
2012: The Gatekeepers, At Any Price, Rust and Bone, No, Wadjda, Amour
2011: A Dangerous Method, In Darkness, Footnote, A Separation
2010: Incendies, Of Gods and Men, Tamara Drewe, Another Year, The Illusionist, Inside Job
2009: The Last Station, The White Ribbon, Coco Before Chanel, A Prophet, An Education
2008: Waltz with Bashir, I've Loved You So Long, O'Horten
2007: Brick Lane, When Did You Last See Your Father, Persepolis, The Band's Visit, The Counterfeiters
2006: Jindabyne, The Lives of Others, Volver, The Italian
2005: Breakfast on Pluto, Capote, Cache, The Child
2004: Being Julia, House of Flying Daggers, Bad Education, Merchant of Venice, Up and Down, Yes
2003: The Fog of War, My Life Without Me, The Triplets of Belleville, Young Adam

Here are SPC's films listed by IMDb as of today:

"Leviathan"

"Jimmy's Hall"

"The Salt of the Earth"

"Foxcatcher"

"Wild Tales"

"Saint Laurent"

"Coming Home"

"Red Army"

"Mr. Turner"

"Aloft"

Six of these films were listed on last week's first "Ten Bets" list. (Those six are: "Leviathan", "The Salt of the Earth", "Foxcatcher", "Coming Home", "Red Army" and "Mr. Turner"). At this point the other four: "Jimmy's Hall", "Wild Tales", "Saint Laurent" and "Aloft" are less likely to my way of thinking, but none of these ten are impossible for TFF.

SUNDANCE SELECTS TELLURIDE POSSIBLES

Only a player in distribution for just a few years, Sundance Selects has been present at the Telluride Film Festival for the last four fests at various levels of involvement.

2010: The Princess of Montpensier, Tabloid
2011: The Forgiveness of Blood, The Kid with a Bike, Goodbye First Love and Into the Abyss
2012: The Central Park Five, Everyday

2013: Blue is the Warmest Color

So you can expect one or possibly two of their films to make the grade Labor Day weekend. Currently Sundance Selects has two Cannes films that could be programmed at Telluride: Mathieu Amalric's "The Blue Room" and the almost 100% lock that is the Dardennes Brothers' "Two Days, One Night" with Marion Cotillard.

I'm at the point, and have been for a long time, that "Two Days" is a virtual TFF #41 certainty. Amalric's "Blue Room" is a "could be" that I'd estimate at a 30% chance of making the T-ride program.

IFC FILMS AND TFF #41

IFC films has been a fairly substantial presence at Telluride over the past several years. The firms highlight year probably was 2008 (the writer's strike year) when it was represented by 5 films. IFC Films sometimes partners with Sundance Selects.

Here's the film record for IFC Films at Telluride for the past ten years:

2003: Touching the Void, Intermission
2004: Nobody Knows
2005: Three Times
2006: Deep Water, Indigenes
2007: Secret Sunshine, 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, Jar City
2008: Hunger, Gomorrah, Flame and Citron, Everlasting Moments, The Good, the Bad and the Weird
2009: Fish Tank, Red Riding Trilogy, Life During Wartime, Vincere
2010: The Princess of Montpensier, Carlos
2011: Into the Abyss, Pina
2012: Frances Ha
2013: No Show

IFC Films averages 2.3 films per year at the Telluride Film Festival over the last decade. So...what's in the IFC pipeline that has Telluride implications?

The one that seems most likely is Olivier Assayas' "Clouds of Sils Maria" which also played Cannes. After that there is also "Bird People", "The Salvation" and "Welcome to New York". It seems to me that "The Salvation" might be the next most likely film but any of these four or none of them could make the T-ride lineup.

THE PLAYLIST SEEKS FALL FEST CLARITY

IndieWire blog The Playlist posted "The Fall Festival 50: Our Wish list for the Venice, Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals" yesterday and there is a LOT to digest from the lengthy list of films (which actually edges over the 50 mark when "other possibilities" are included.

The Playlist specifically mentions Telluride in connection with six films: "Unbroken", "While We're Young", "Men, Women and Children", "99 Homes", "True Story" and "Kill the Messenger". Of that list, I'd agree on the Noah Baumbach "While We're Young". All of the others have "issues" that may work against their inclusion. I would love to see "Unbroken" make the trip to the San Juans though.

Four films that I think have some Telluride potential are listed in the article without any specific guess as to where they might end up: "Carol", "Suite Francais", "A Most Violent Year" and "Queen of the Desert"...though, if "Queen" is ready and doesn't play Telluride, I'll be stunned.

The post also suggests that Jon Stewart's "Rosewater" seems to be lock for Toronto and unlikely for Telluride. It also says "The Imitation Game" is likely for TIFF and though they don't specifically rule out Telluride, an early slot for the Benedict Cumberbatch starrer at TIFF would close the door. Finally, the Playlist Staff suggests that both Alejandro Inarritu's "Birdman" and Paul Thomas Anderson's "Inherent Vice" are probably headed to Venice which doesn't preclude a Telluride play. As regular readers of this space know, I'm high on "Birdman's" chances and less bullish on "Vice".

The whole Playlist post is here:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/the-fall-festival-50-our-wishlist-for-the-venice-telluride-and-toronto-film-festivals-20140630

FOXCATCHER POSTER FEATURES TATUM

It was all over the Twitterverse yesterday. A new poster for Bennett Miller's "Foxcatcher" (#6 on last week's "Ten Bets" list) featuring Channing Tatum. You see it above. Below are a smattering of the posts from various sources with the poster from yesterday.

Awards Daily:

http://www.awardsdaily.com/blog/new-foxcatcher-poster-puts-channing-tatum-out-front/

Rope of Silicon:

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/channing-tatum-stares-us-first-domestic-foxcatcher-poster/

People:

http://www.people.com/article/channing-tatum-foxcatcher-trailer-photo-steve-carell-mark-ruffalo-oscar-buzz?

IndieWire:

http://www.indiewire.com/article/youll-take-channing-tatum-seriously-in-this-teaser-poster-for-oscar-bait-foxcatcher-20140630

The Playlist:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/channing-tatum-stares-you-down-in-first-poster-for-bennett-millers-foxcatcher-20140630

FASSBENDER'S WESTERN

"Slow West" photo from Thompson on Hollywood

I have made several mentions of Justin Kurzel's "MacBeth" starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard. I've even suggested that we could have a Cotillard "Twofer" along with "Two Days, One Night". But Fassbender could be a "Twofer" on his own as well. Fassbender stars in "Slow West" along with Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road). Anne Thompson posted a look at the new film and a hint at the outset that it's a likely going to show at either Telluride or Toronto. Look at Anne's story here:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/first-look-michael-fassbender-in-frontier-western-slow-west-20140629

Anne points out in the article that the film is produced by the team that was behind "A King's Speech", "Shame" and "Tracks". It's got both See Saw films and Film4 behind it and both have had a good past relationship with Telluride. All this leads me to believe that I need to really think about "Slow West" as a very real possibility.

TEASERS AND TRAILERS

Two new view of films that might be in the mix for Telluride. First, a new trailer for Bennett Miller's "Foxcatcher". I just get more excited every time I see something new about the film. Here's the trailer via YouTube:

And an accompanying story from The Dissolve:

http://thedissolve.com/news/2636-heres-a-terrifying-new-teaser-trailer-for-foxcatch/

Meanwhile, I'm warming to the idea that the latest Bill Murray flick could be in the T-ride mix. "St. Vincent" stars Murray in full irresponsibility mode as an adult that develops a relationship with an adolescent. It's in The Weinstein Company wheelhouse and could conceivably be a better shot at Oscar consideration than "Hyde Park on Hudson". Additionally, I got the feeling that Murray really enjoyed his Telluride visit with "Hyde Park" two years ago. Here's that trailer also from YouTube:

And, again, an accompanying story from The Dissolve:

http://thedissolve.com/news/2628-bill-murray-makes-the-world-better-in-his-own-way-/

COULD "THE TRIBE" MAKE NOISE IN TELLURIDE?

Alex Billington of FirstShowing.net reports that Drafthouse Films has acquired U.S. distribution for "The Tribe". The film is told completely with sign language and without subtitles and was quite the buzz producer at Cannes in May.

Drafthouse was represented at Telluride in 2012 with Joshua Oppenheimer's "The Act of Killing"...By the way, I fully expect Oppenhiemer's sequel to screen at TFF #41, "The Look of Silence".

Here's the link to the Billington post that includes a slightly NSFW trailer:

http://www.firstshowing.net/2014/see-the-trailer-for-drafthouses-new-cannes-acquisition-the-tribe/

Thursday, July 3, 2014

LATE BREAKING: RIP LOUIS ZAMPERINI/IFC Films and TFF #41/Teasers and Trailers/Could "The Tribe" Make Noise in Telluride/

LATE BREAKING: RIP LOUIS ZAMPERINI

Overnight we got reports that American hero, Olympian and the focus of the upcoming film "Unbroken" Louis Zamperini has died. Zamperini was 97 and will has been something of a presence in the media these last few months as the P.R. machine began to crank up for the Angelina Jolie film. I have linked the Awards Daily coverage of Zamperini's passing:

http://www.awardsdaily.com/blog/r-i-p-louis-zamperini-olympian-and-wwii-hero/

IFC FILMS AND TFF #41