Ten Bets #5 / Another Venice Doc Confirmed? / Wonder Wheel Rolls Off the T-ride List / Parsing the Announcements This Week...

Good Friday to you  It's been a busy week for tracking down Telluride films for 44th edition of The SHOW...



TEN BETS #5

Here's your weekly guess at films that will play Telluride this Labor Day weekend.  Last week's list looked like this:

1) Wonderstruck
2) Downsizing
3) Visages/Villages
4) Loveless
5) Battle of the Sexes
6) The Florida Project
7) You Were Never Really Here
8) A Fantastic Woman
9) The Other Side of Hope
10) The Current War


Other possibles: 120 BPM, The Shape of Water, The Rider, Loving Vincent, mother!, Happy End, Redoubtable, The Death of Stalin, Ken Burns Vietnam

With the Toronto and Venice information this week we think these films are probably playing TFF #44:

1) Wonderstruck
2) Downsizing
3) Battle of the Sexes
4) A Fantastic Woman
5) The Shape of Water
6) The Rider
7) Hostiles
8) Lady Bird
9) First They Killed My Father
10) Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool***

Additionally other detective work seems to be indicating Darkest Hour, Loving Vincent, Human Flow (see below) and Wormwood are likely for  Telluride.

Other films that could still play Telluride: Visages/Villages, The Other Side of Hope, Lean on Pete, Mektoub My Love Canto Uno, First Reformed, The Leisure Seeker, Ex Libris, Our Souls at Night, First Reformed, Sweet Country and La Camera Insabbiata, You Were Never Really Here, The Florida Project, Happy End, Loveless, Ken Burns' Vietnam and Mary Magdalene.

***Assuming I have this right on Film Stars, it would almost certainly play without star Annette Bening in attendance as she is presiding over Venice's Golden Lion jury.



ANOTHER VENICE DOC CONFIRMED?


In its coverage of the Venice announcement yesterday Ioncinema confirms that AiWeiwei's documentary,  Human Flow will play Telluride and seems to also indicate that Frederick Wiseman will also play T-ride with Ex Libris: The New York Public Library.

Here's a screenshot of the relevant section:

So add Ex Libris to our growing list of films we're relatively confident about making the journey to southwest Colorado.

The complete Ioncinema article is here.

WONDER WHEEL ROLLS OFF THE T-RIDE LIST

Earlier in the week I had a mild buzz of excitement as news was leaking that Woody Allen's Wonder Wheel would close the New York Film Fest.  The reason for the excitement: no news story about the selection was including the film's premiere status.  That led me to believe that there was the slimmest possibility of a play somewhere else.

Alas, not so much.  Official word came yesterday that the film would indeed close NYFF and that it would be the film's World Premiere.  So endeth the speculation.

The official announcement form NYFF is here.


PARSING THE ANNOUNCEMENTS THIS WEEK...

Variety's Kristopher Tapley wrote yesterday about this week's reveals in terms not only of what's going where but also in his capacity as chief awards guru for that publication.

Tapley also concludes, as I have here, that Battle of the Sexes, First They Killed My Father, Darkest Hour, Lady Bird and Hostiles will play (and first screen) at Telluride.

It's a good look at the general lay of the land as we come to the end of this crazy, crazy week.

Take a look at it here.


That's it for Friday.  Have a great weekend!

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

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Some Business /The Distributors: Open Road Films / Images Tease

Good Tuesday Film Fans.


SOME BUSINESS

Just a quick piece of business here.  Recently I posted a story that upset members of the Telluride Film Festival management.  I was informed of this privately via email and responded accordingly.  In hindsight, the choice to have published the story was unwise.

As a part of my response I privately apologized to members of the Telluride staff.  Now, after allowing some time to pass, I also wanted to apologize publicly and in this space to underscore the sincerity of my remorse.

Now, on to today's regularly scheduled post.


THE DISTRIBUTORS: OPEN ROAD FILMS

Open Road Films has had a short but notable presence in Telluride in just the last few years.  The company first began business in 2011.  In 2014 they brought their first film to Telluride by landing Jon Stewart's directing debut Rosewater.  They followed that in 2015 with Tom McCarthy's Spotlight which won the Best Picture Oscar along with another for original screenplay for McCarthy and Josh Singer.  The film also had four other nominations.

In 2016 Open Road was represented at Telluride by Ben Younger's Bleed for This.

So, three straight years with a film each year at TFF makes you think there is a very good chance that an Open Road film will make the TFF #44 lineup.

Reviewing their catalogue, it seems that four films could fit into a Labor Day schedule:

Marshall, Home Again, LAbyrinth and Finding Steve McQueen.

Of these, Marshall seems to be the most likely choice.  I had the film's first trailer posted here last week.  It's scheduled for release on  Oct. 13th, right in the thick of prime release territory if you have an eye on awards season.  It's focus on a case from the early career of eventual Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall seems like material that could be a contender.  Give it a 50% chance to play T-ride.

The other three possibilities have a variety of issues that argue against their inclusion in The SHOW.

Home Again stars Reese Witherspoon (directed by Hallie Meyers-Shyre) but its Sept. 8th releases date, though a few days after Telluride's completion, suggests it's unlikely.  It is worth noting, however, that Sully actually followed that exact path last year opening on Sept. 9, 2016.  Chances: 20%.

LAbyrinth directed by Brad Furman and starring Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker in a long gestating project about the investigation into the deaths of Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G.  The film is listed by IMDb as being in post-production since February but it doesn't have a release date beyond the generic 2017.  Chances: 15%.

Finding Steve McQueen:  Directed by Mark Stephen Johnson is listed as being in post-production since last October and feels like a light weight genre piece.  Chances: 15%.



IMAGES TEASE

 I ran across a couple of images over the past few days from two projects that may pique the interest of Telluride watchers.

I commented not long ago that Amazon Studios decision to date Woody Allen's latest film, Wonder Wheel, for Dec.1st might mean that we need to take it seriously as a possible Telluride choice.

Last week, our first image of Kate Winslet in that film emerged via Twitter.  Here she is:

In the same vein, we got a glimpse this week of Jessica Chastain on a poster for Xavier Dolan's The Death and Life of John F. Donovan:

Donovan is expected in 2018.

That's your post for Tuesday.

There's your MTFB for Monday, June 26, 2017.  More tomorrow...

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The Distributors: The Weinstein Company / Annecy Audiences Loved Loving Vincent / Awards Circuit Takes a Stab

Welcome back from the weekend.  Hope all fathers had a nice day yesterday.


THE DISTRIBUTORS: THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY

After having at least one film play at Telluride each year that I have been attending (since 2006) last year was the first in which there was no film on the playlist from The Weinstein Company.  One might have thought (and I did for awhile) that The Founder or Lion might have played but that did not happen.

Here's the recent history of TWC (and before that, Miramax) from 2006 to the present:

2015: Carol
2014: The Imitation Game, Escobar: Paradise Lost, Keep On Keepin'On
2013: The Unknown, Salinger, Tracks
2012: The Sapphires
2011: The Artist, Butter
2010: The King's Speech
2009: The Road
2008: Happy-Go-Lucky
2007: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, My Enemy's Enemy, I'm Not There
2006: Venus, Indigenes

So the question becomes, "Will TWC return to TFF and if so, with what films?"

As I write this on Monday morning, TWC really seems to have on;y two films that are dated appropriately and with enough buzz to be serious Telluride (and for that matter, Venice, Toronto, New York, London) consideration.

The Current War and Mary Magdalene.  Let's breakdown each in terms of its TFF possibility.

The Current War stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon as Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse respectively and focuses on the battle between them to determine which form of electricity, Alternating Current or Direct Current, would dominate American electrical delivery.

The film is directed by Alonso Gomez-Rejon who has worked in the past for Alejandro Inarritu, Martin Scorsese and Ben Affleck.  Gomez-Rejon was a second unit director for Argo and for Babel.

I have heard via a back channel some scuttlebutt from a screening of the film that was less than stellar but, this far out, I don't think that necessarily removes The Current War from the TFF discussion.

Mary Magdalene stars Rooney Mara as Mary and Joaquin Phoenix as Jesus in a film that tells the story of the female follower of Christ.  Garth Davis (Lion) directs.  Additionally, one of the film's producers is Iain Canning who also produced The King's Speech, Shame and Hunger; all of which played Telluride.

My feeling is that it's more likely than not that TWC returns to Telluride in 2017 with one film (as you might note, the average for TWC is 1.6 films per year).  

My guesstimate at the moment is that The Current War has a slightly better chance than Mary Magdalene but that advantage is minuscule.

Chances: The Current War 51%, Mary Magdalene 49%.

Tomorrow, a look at Fox Searchlight.

ANNECY AUDIENCES LOVED LOVING VINCENT

The Annecy International Animated Film Festival concluded at the end of this past week with awards going primarily to Japanese film makers but the audience award went to Loving Vincent which I highlighted here last week.

The film likely gets a boost from the win both for Oscar consideration as well as for a Telluride play.

Check here for Variety's complete report about the awards at the conclusion of the festival.

AWARDS CIRCUIT TAKES A STAB

Clayton Davis' Circuitbreaker podcast from Awards Circuit was up this past weekend with a number of topics covered in the 1:20 long program.  The last 20 minutes or so beginning at the 55:35 mark starts as a discussion about the selection of Richard Linklater's Last Flag Flying as the opening night film for the New York Film Festival.  That leads to a far ranging discussion about where Davis and his crew think a lot of films will land at fall festivals including Telluride.  Those four titles are electrifying,

The four films that are named as Telluride plays (in order that they're mentioned in the podcast) are:

Woody Allen's Wonder Wheel

Alexander Payne's Downsizing

Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049

Martin McDonagh's Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

The inclusion of Downsizing isn't a surprise but Wonder Wheel, Three Billboards and Blade Runner 2049 would all be surprises.

The complete Circuitbreaker podcast can be found here.

That's a wrap for this Monday.

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Lotta Ins, Lotta Outs Part One: Last Flag, Florida and Another Wonder /the 25th Telluride Film Festival Re-visited

It's Tuesday...


LOTTA INS, LOTTA OUTS PART ONE: LAST FLAG, FLORIDA AND ANOTHER WONDER

Yes.  I'm quoting The Dude.  I'm talkin' The Dude here.  Yesterday saw at least three pieces of news that altered some parts of the fall film scene.

First...an "out".  The New York Film Festival announced that Richard Linklater's Last Flag Flying will be their opening film and that it will be a world premiere on Sept. 28th.

Cranston, Carell and Fishburne in Last Flag Flying (from NYFF and Collider)

That world premiere status means that the film is off the table in as far as a Telluride play is concerned.

Bums me out a bit as it is a film that I would like to have seen make the TFF #44 lineup.  Bryan Cranston and Steve Carell in a "spiritual sequel" to Hal Ashby's classic The Last Detail? I would have been a very receptive viewer.

And though I never have had it high on my mental list of TFF-possibles...its status as an Amazon Studios film kept me from ruling it out completely.

But it's ruled out now.  No Last Flag at T-ride.

Coverage is linked about the NYFF announcement below:

The New York Film Fest Press Release

Variety

Indiewire

Awards Daily

Collider


And while Last Flag Flying was getting booted off my list, a couple of other films were dated for release yesterday which, in one case, made their Telluride case a little better and in the other might move a film onto the periphery of my list.

Sean Baker's The Florida Project was announced with an Oct. 6th release date.  That puts it in very good chronological position for A24 regarding T-ride and Toronto and a possible awards play.

Florida Project news is here from Variety and here from Indiewire.

Also yesterday, Amazon announced that Woody Allen's latest, Wonder Wheel is getting a release on Dec. 1.  It's Allen's first non-summer release in some time and puts it in play for awards season which means that I might have to pay attention to its chances at Telluride.  I think they're small but...it is Amazon and Allen's Sweet and Lowdown played the fest back in 1999.  So never say never.



Wonder Wheel announcement coverage is here from:

Variety

Indiewire

The Playlist



THE 25TH TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL RE-VISITED

Another in my continuing attempt to document, online, a more thorough examination of the history of the Telluride Film Festival.  Today, a big anniversary fest.  #25.

The 25th Telluride Film Festival ran Sept. 3-7, 1998 (an extra fifth day for the anniversary).

Guest Director: Peter Bogdanovich

Tributes:  Meryl Streep, Vittorio Storaro, Susumu Hani

Special Medallion: Stanley Kauffman

SHOWS:

The Apple
August 32nd on Earth
Autumn Tale
Brakhage

Central Station
Claire Dolan
The Crowd
Dance Me to My Song
Dancing at Lughnasa
Dial HISTORY
Directed by John Ford
The Dreamlife of Angels
Endurance
The Fire Within
Frank Lloyd Wright
The General
Head

Happiness
I Stand Alone
I'm Losing You
The Informer
The Inheritors
It Happened Here
Kindness
The Last Command
Life at Any Cost
Love
M
Make Way for Tomorrow
The Man Who Laughs

Night of the Hunter
My Son the Fanatic
Outskirts
The Reckless Moment
Remous
She and He
Smiles of a Summer Night
Strike
Tango
Touch of Evil
We All Loved Each Other So Much
The Wedding March
Xiu Xiu-The Sent Down Girl

Guests:

Laurie Anderson
Rosanna Arquette
Peter Bogdanovich
John Boorman
Ken Burns
Joan Chen
Monte Hellman
Buck Henry
Chuck Jones
Janet Leigh
Norman Lloyd
Terrence Malick
Leonard Maltin
Errol Morris
Gaspar Noe
Bob Rafaelson
Michael Ritchie
Walter Salles
Barbet Schroeder
Todd Solondz
Vittorio Stararo
Meryl Streep
Bertrand Tavernier
Denis Villeneuve


Interesting (to me anyway) notes:

Terrence Malick at TFF for the documentary he produced: Endurance.  Twin Peaks alum Joan Chen directing Xiu Xiu, Denis Villeneuve with his first feature.


And that's Tuesday.  Back on Thursday...


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