In A Quiet Place Part One, we witnessed the aftermath of the alien invasion, with some flashbacks interspersed with the “Death Angels” arrival on the meteorites, emergence and the subsequent non-stop attacks on anything that made even the slightest noise. We came to love the Abbott family and mourned when husband and father Lee Abbott was killed when saving his children from the claws of the monsters.
In A Quiet Place Part II, audiences saw The Abbott family and their little town decimated. As the Abbotts, Evelyn and her children, hunt for any viable refuge from the sounds that draw the omnipresent creatures, they stumble upon an old acquaintance turned into a determined loner whose past makes it difficult for them to trust his true intentions. This is Emmett portrayed by Cillian Murphy. As was briefly referenced in Part II in a conversation between Murphy (Emmett) and Djimon Hounsou (Man...
In A Quiet Place Part II, audiences saw The Abbott family and their little town decimated. As the Abbotts, Evelyn and her children, hunt for any viable refuge from the sounds that draw the omnipresent creatures, they stumble upon an old acquaintance turned into a determined loner whose past makes it difficult for them to trust his true intentions. This is Emmett portrayed by Cillian Murphy. As was briefly referenced in Part II in a conversation between Murphy (Emmett) and Djimon Hounsou (Man...
- 5/30/2024
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Blake Cameron James in We Grown NowImage: Sony Pictures Classics
From its very first shot, Minhal Baig’s masterful We Grown Now grabs you. A still shot of an empty hallway beckons you to discover it, to let the many lives it houses drift through you. We hear scraping. We hear sneakers squeaking.
From its very first shot, Minhal Baig’s masterful We Grown Now grabs you. A still shot of an empty hallway beckons you to discover it, to let the many lives it houses drift through you. We hear scraping. We hear sneakers squeaking.
- 4/16/2024
- by Manuel Betancourt
- avclub.com
Greta Lee and Teo Yoo in ‘Past Lives’ (Photo Credit: Jon Pack / Courtesy of A24)
Past Lives took home top film honors at the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held on February 25th in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica. The film also earned Celine Song the Best Director award, with American Fiction‘s Cord Jefferson and May December‘s Samy Burch earning screenplay honors.
On the television side, The Last of Us collected two awards: Nick Offerman for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series and Keivonn Montreal Woodard for Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series. Beef also netted two wins, with Ali Wong awarded Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series and the show earning the Best New Scripted Series award.
2024 Film Independent Spirit Award Nominations
Best Feature (Award given to the producer.)
All of Us Strangers
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin,...
Past Lives took home top film honors at the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held on February 25th in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica. The film also earned Celine Song the Best Director award, with American Fiction‘s Cord Jefferson and May December‘s Samy Burch earning screenplay honors.
On the television side, The Last of Us collected two awards: Nick Offerman for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series and Keivonn Montreal Woodard for Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series. Beef also netted two wins, with Ali Wong awarded Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series and the show earning the Best New Scripted Series award.
2024 Film Independent Spirit Award Nominations
Best Feature (Award given to the producer.)
All of Us Strangers
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin,...
- 2/26/2024
- by Rebecca Murray
- Showbiz Junkies
Another big award show took place this weekend (in addition to the SAG Awards), the Film Independent Spirit Awards, which celebrates indie film and TV. One thing about this awards show is that their idea of independent sometimes makes me scratch my head a bit, with HBO’s big-budget The Last of Us nominated a whole bunch in the TV category, along with Netflix’s Beef and several other streaming shows, which I’m not sure one could call independent. For films, there’s a $30 million budget cap. For TV, I’m honestly not sure what the benchmark is because Last of Us was notoriously an expensive show to shoot, costing at least $100 million.
Indeed, The Last of Us won some key awards on the TV side, winning Best Supporting Performance (for Nick Offerman) and Best Breakthrough Performance (for Keivonn Montreal Woodard). Over on the film side, American Fiction and...
Indeed, The Last of Us won some key awards on the TV side, winning Best Supporting Performance (for Nick Offerman) and Best Breakthrough Performance (for Keivonn Montreal Woodard). Over on the film side, American Fiction and...
- 2/26/2024
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
The best in independent film and television were honored at the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards!
Plenty of A-List stars were in attendance at the event on Sunday afternoon (February 25) at the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Calif.
Movies are only eligible for a Spirit Award if they have a budget of less than $30 million, so there are some awards favorites like Barbie, Oppenheimer, and Killers of the Flower Moon that are not nominated.
American Fiction, May December, and Past Lives lead the pack this year with five nominations each.
Make sure to check out our post with photos of Every celeb who attended the event! Also check out our best dressed list.
Head inside to see the full list of winners…
Keep scrolling to see the full list of winners…
Best Feature (Award given to the producer)
All of Us Strangers
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey
American Fiction
Producers: Cord Jefferson,...
Plenty of A-List stars were in attendance at the event on Sunday afternoon (February 25) at the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Calif.
Movies are only eligible for a Spirit Award if they have a budget of less than $30 million, so there are some awards favorites like Barbie, Oppenheimer, and Killers of the Flower Moon that are not nominated.
American Fiction, May December, and Past Lives lead the pack this year with five nominations each.
Make sure to check out our post with photos of Every celeb who attended the event! Also check out our best dressed list.
Head inside to see the full list of winners…
Keep scrolling to see the full list of winners…
Best Feature (Award given to the producer)
All of Us Strangers
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey
American Fiction
Producers: Cord Jefferson,...
- 2/26/2024
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
The 2024 Independent Spirit Awards took place on Sunday at the traditional Santa Monica beach tent location, with Aidy Bryant hosting. “Past Lives” took home the coveted Best Feature award, with “Beef” being honored as Best New Scripted Series. Check out the full list of winners and nominees below.
Best Feature
“Past Lives”
Producers: David Hinojosa, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon
“All of Us Strangers”
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey
“American Fiction”
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
“May December”
Producers: Jessica Elbaum, Will Ferrell, Grant S. Johnson, Pamela Koffler, Tyler W. Konney, Sophie Mas, Natalie Portman, Christine Vachon
“Passages”
Producers: Michel Merkt, Saïd Ben Saïd
“We Grown Now”
Producers: Minhal Baig, Joe Pirro
Best Lead Performance
Jeffrey Wright, “American Fiction”
Jessica Chastain, “Memory”
Greta Lee, “Past Lives”
Trace Lysette, “Monica”
Natalie Portman, “May December”
Judy Reyes, “Birth/Rebirth”
Franz Rogowski, “Passages”
Andrew Scott, “All of Us Strangers”
Teyana Taylor,...
Best Feature
“Past Lives”
Producers: David Hinojosa, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon
“All of Us Strangers”
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey
“American Fiction”
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
“May December”
Producers: Jessica Elbaum, Will Ferrell, Grant S. Johnson, Pamela Koffler, Tyler W. Konney, Sophie Mas, Natalie Portman, Christine Vachon
“Passages”
Producers: Michel Merkt, Saïd Ben Saïd
“We Grown Now”
Producers: Minhal Baig, Joe Pirro
Best Lead Performance
Jeffrey Wright, “American Fiction”
Jessica Chastain, “Memory”
Greta Lee, “Past Lives”
Trace Lysette, “Monica”
Natalie Portman, “May December”
Judy Reyes, “Birth/Rebirth”
Franz Rogowski, “Passages”
Andrew Scott, “All of Us Strangers”
Teyana Taylor,...
- 2/25/2024
- by William Earl
- Variety Film + TV
While the likes of Oppenheimer, Barbie, and Killers of the Moon will likely battle it out at the Oscars, Film Independent Spirit Awards is putting the spotlight on the indie productions of the year, with budget ranges from $10,000 to $28 million. May December, Past Lives, and American Fiction lead the nominations for the 39th ceremony, each taking five nods.
Other highlights include All of Us Strangers and Passages for Best Feature, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt and Earth Mama for Best First Feature, Kokomo City and The Mother of All Lies for Best Documentary, Glenn Howerton for BlackBerry, Marin Ireland and Anne Hathaway for Eileen, Marshawn Lynch for Bottoms, How to Blow Up a Pipeline for Best Editing, Godland and Tótem for Best International Film, and more.
See the nominations below ahead of the ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024 (a full two weeks before the Oscars), hosted by Aidy Bryant.
Best...
Other highlights include All of Us Strangers and Passages for Best Feature, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt and Earth Mama for Best First Feature, Kokomo City and The Mother of All Lies for Best Documentary, Glenn Howerton for BlackBerry, Marin Ireland and Anne Hathaway for Eileen, Marshawn Lynch for Bottoms, How to Blow Up a Pipeline for Best Editing, Godland and Tótem for Best International Film, and more.
See the nominations below ahead of the ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024 (a full two weeks before the Oscars), hosted by Aidy Bryant.
Best...
- 12/5/2023
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Ceremony to take place on Santa Monica Beach on February 25, 2024.
The 39th Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations have been announced and May December, American Fiction, and Past Lives lead the field with five nods apiece.
The Holdovers earned four and there were three for All Of Us Strangers – winner of seven Bifas at the weekend – as the nominations were announced on Tuesday. A24 leads the studio field with 11 nominations, followed by Netflix on 10.
Andrew Scott for All Of Us Strangers, Jessica Chastain for Memory, Greta Lee for Past Lives, Franz Rogowski for Passages, and Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction are...
The 39th Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations have been announced and May December, American Fiction, and Past Lives lead the field with five nods apiece.
The Holdovers earned four and there were three for All Of Us Strangers – winner of seven Bifas at the weekend – as the nominations were announced on Tuesday. A24 leads the studio field with 11 nominations, followed by Netflix on 10.
Andrew Scott for All Of Us Strangers, Jessica Chastain for Memory, Greta Lee for Past Lives, Franz Rogowski for Passages, and Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction are...
- 12/5/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Ceremony to take place on Santa Monica Beach on February 25, 2024.
The Film Independent 39th Film Independent Spirit Awards have been announced and May December, American Fiction, and Past Lives lead the field with five nods apiece.
The Holdovers earned four and All Of Us Strangers three as the nominations were announced on Tuesday. A24 leads the studio field with 11 nominations, followed by Netflix on 10.
Andrew Scott for All of Us Strangers, Jessica Chastain for Memory, Greta Lee for Past Lives, Franz Rogowski for Passages, and Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction are in the running fort the gender-neutral lead acting category.
The Film Independent 39th Film Independent Spirit Awards have been announced and May December, American Fiction, and Past Lives lead the field with five nods apiece.
The Holdovers earned four and All Of Us Strangers three as the nominations were announced on Tuesday. A24 leads the studio field with 11 nominations, followed by Netflix on 10.
Andrew Scott for All of Us Strangers, Jessica Chastain for Memory, Greta Lee for Past Lives, Franz Rogowski for Passages, and Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction are in the running fort the gender-neutral lead acting category.
- 12/5/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The full list of nominations for the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards has been announced!
Movies are only eligible for a Spirit Award if they have a budget of less than $30 million, so there are some awards favorites like Maestro and Killers of the Flower Moon that are not nominated here.
Aidy Bryant is set to host the 2024 awards ceremony, which will take place on February 25. The event will no longer air on television and will instead stream on YouTube.
American Fiction, May December, and Past Lives lead the pack this year with five nominations each.
Head inside to check out the full list of nominations…
Keep scrolling to see the full list of nominations…
Best Feature (Award given to the producer)
All of Us Strangers
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey
American Fiction
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
May December
Producers: Jessica Elbaum, Will Ferrell,...
Movies are only eligible for a Spirit Award if they have a budget of less than $30 million, so there are some awards favorites like Maestro and Killers of the Flower Moon that are not nominated here.
Aidy Bryant is set to host the 2024 awards ceremony, which will take place on February 25. The event will no longer air on television and will instead stream on YouTube.
American Fiction, May December, and Past Lives lead the pack this year with five nominations each.
Head inside to check out the full list of nominations…
Keep scrolling to see the full list of nominations…
Best Feature (Award given to the producer)
All of Us Strangers
Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey
American Fiction
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
May December
Producers: Jessica Elbaum, Will Ferrell,...
- 12/5/2023
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
“We are here to become human again.” This is the mantra of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program, founded in Sing Sing Correctional Facility, a prison just north of New York City, and the subject of Greg Kwedar’s emotionally restorative new feature. While led by a stellar Colman Domingo with an equally great supporting turn from Paul Raci, the majority of Sing Sing‘s cast knows the program all too well, either as alumni or currently going through it. That authenticity in casting carries through every frame and every line, as if Kwedar has walked these halls and been in these rooms, an observer to the intimate conversations he’s scripted alongside Clint Bentley.
Set in 2005, when the film’s inspiration from John H. Richardson’s Esquire article “The Sing Sing Follies” was published, the film follows a theater troupe attempting to mount their latest production, an ambitious (semi-)original work involving Egyptians,...
Set in 2005, when the film’s inspiration from John H. Richardson’s Esquire article “The Sing Sing Follies” was published, the film follows a theater troupe attempting to mount their latest production, an ambitious (semi-)original work involving Egyptians,...
- 9/18/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
‘Sing Sing’ Review: Colman Domingo and a Cast of Ex-Criminals Demonstrate How Art Can Heal in Prison
Cages can’t contain the sheer amount of imagination on offer in “Sing Sing” — not just in the way director Greg Kwedar and his writing and producing partner Clint Bentley conceived of the prison-set drama, but also as an animating force among its characters. Apart from Colman Domingo and a few others, most of the cast are formerly incarcerated alumni of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program, which stages theatrical productions at New York’s Sing Sing Correctional Facility. While inside the walls of a penitentiary, the amateur thespians are afforded the opportunity to step outside their worst offenses and simply inhabit another character for a change, someone who is likely to be more revealing of who they really are than their jail-issued fatigues will allow.
Drawing from their experience as volunteer teachers at correctional facilities, Kwedar and Bentley are conscious of the raw power of seeing these men transform...
Drawing from their experience as volunteer teachers at correctional facilities, Kwedar and Bentley are conscious of the raw power of seeing these men transform...
- 9/12/2023
- by Stephen Saito
- Variety Film + TV
Pig Review Video — Pig (2021) Video Movie Review, a movie directed by Michael Sarnoski, written by Alexis Grapsas and Philip Klein, and starring Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin, Nina Belforte, Gretchen Corbett, Julia Bray, Darius Pierce, Davis King, Tom Walton, Sean Tarjyoto, Brian Sutherland, David Knell, and Elijah Ungvary. Crew Patrick Scola created the [...]
Continue reading: Video Movie Review: Pig (2021): In Michael Sarnoski’s film, Cage hasn’t been This Good in Years...
Continue reading: Video Movie Review: Pig (2021): In Michael Sarnoski’s film, Cage hasn’t been This Good in Years...
- 10/20/2021
- by Thomas Duffy
- Film-Book
Stars: Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin, Cassandra Violet, Gretchen Corbett, Darius Pierce, Kevin Michael Moore, Davis King | Written by Michael Sarnoski, Vanessa Block | Directed by Michael Sarnoski
Nicolas Cage has well and truly become one of those bankable stars once again. Don’t get me wrong though I don’t mean bankable as in he can bring in the box office dollars, I simply mean that you can always bank on going into a Nicolas Cage movie with little to no clue what kind of performance he is about to put in or even what the hell type of flick your about to watch. I mean seriously, the last three Cage movies I have watched saw him go from being a master Jiu Jitsu alien fighting badass; to a janitor; to a pig-owning chef. Nobody checks boxes quite like our man Nic Cage!
All of a sudden though people...
Nicolas Cage has well and truly become one of those bankable stars once again. Don’t get me wrong though I don’t mean bankable as in he can bring in the box office dollars, I simply mean that you can always bank on going into a Nicolas Cage movie with little to no clue what kind of performance he is about to put in or even what the hell type of flick your about to watch. I mean seriously, the last three Cage movies I have watched saw him go from being a master Jiu Jitsu alien fighting badass; to a janitor; to a pig-owning chef. Nobody checks boxes quite like our man Nic Cage!
All of a sudden though people...
- 8/9/2021
- by Kevin Haldon
- Nerdly
Dig beneath the surface-level tagline of writer-director Michael Sarnoski’s, Pig, and you’ll soon discover riches profound, plaintive and punishing. Sold, no doubt, to studios and audiences alike on the quirky premise of Nicolas Cage as a gruff, surly woodsman on a quest to recover his stolen porcine companion, this feature debut offers, and delivers, far greater rewards.
Just as the cow of Kelly Reichardt’s beloved 2019 film represented so much more than the mere physical means for Cookie and King-Lu to make their famed ‘oily cakes’, so does the all-important truffle-hunting pig here, sole company for reclusive former chef Robin (Cage), out in the Oregon backwoods. A pared-back, off-the-grid existence, in a ramshackle hut amid the towering pines, and the simple joys – photographed wonderfully by Dp Patrick Scola – of living off the land may seem idyllic. But the bubbling undertow of a nearby brook and cassette...
Just as the cow of Kelly Reichardt’s beloved 2019 film represented so much more than the mere physical means for Cookie and King-Lu to make their famed ‘oily cakes’, so does the all-important truffle-hunting pig here, sole company for reclusive former chef Robin (Cage), out in the Oregon backwoods. A pared-back, off-the-grid existence, in a ramshackle hut amid the towering pines, and the simple joys – photographed wonderfully by Dp Patrick Scola – of living off the land may seem idyllic. But the bubbling undertow of a nearby brook and cassette...
- 8/8/2021
- by Matthew Anderson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
It’s the pig’s terrified squeals that get you. Pig, written and directed by Michael Sarnoski and starring Nicolas Cage as a man named Rob, opens with one man’s idea of an ideal life: isolated, routine, divorced from the facades of everyday life among others. He lives in middle-of-nowhere Oregon, out in the woods, off the grid but for a man named Amir (Alex Wolff), a buyer who’s occasional visits are Rob’s only contact with civilization — if Amir, with his slick hair, bright yellow whip, and...
- 7/16/2021
- by K. Austin Collins
- Rollingstone.com
‘Pig’ Review: Nicolas Cage Goes Against Type as a Zen Truffle Hunter Not Hell-Bent on Bloody Revenge
Given Nicolas Cage’s penchant for playing destructive, retribution-seeking lunatics, you wouldn’t be remiss for thinking “Pig” to be yet another vehicle for the actor to seek hell-raising vengeance. But alas, . This gentle, soulful drama (spiked with a few thriller elements and a couple of scenes of harrowing violence) is a gust of fresh wind in the long and recent lineup of Nicolas Cage films where the actor pushes himself to the brink of physical and emotional extremes. Instead, this is a patient, tender, and musing philosophical film about an isolated woodsman and his beloved pig.
You know you’re in calm hands as the opening credits fade in and out without pageantry across the chilly backdrop of the Pacific Northwestern woods, where Rob (Nicolas Cage) lives on the land with his pig. His only interaction (and ostensibly his only source of income) is with Amir (Alex Wolff), a...
You know you’re in calm hands as the opening credits fade in and out without pageantry across the chilly backdrop of the Pacific Northwestern woods, where Rob (Nicolas Cage) lives on the land with his pig. His only interaction (and ostensibly his only source of income) is with Amir (Alex Wolff), a...
- 7/16/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
From Pig starring Nicolas Cage, Writer/Director Michael Sarnoski and Writer/Producer Vanessa Block join Josh and Joe to discuss the movies that inspired them during the creation of their film.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Nobody (2021)
Infested (2002)
The Big Chill (1983)
A History of Violence (2005)
Pig (2021)
Mandy (2018)
John Wick (2014)
The Testimony (2015)
No Country For Old Men (2007) [Both] – John Badham’s trailer commentary
The Maltese Falcon (1941) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Blood Simple (1984) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review, Dennis Cozzaliio’s review
Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
Raising Arizona (1987)
Moonstruck (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s trailer commentary
Joe (2013)
Witness For The Prosecution (1957) [Vanessa Block] – Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary
Easter Parade (1948)
Titanic (1997)
Never Been Kissed (1999)
Abbott And Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
The Crow (1994)
Jurassic Park (1993)
Midnight Cowboy (1969) [Michael Sarnoski] – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Nobody (2021)
Infested (2002)
The Big Chill (1983)
A History of Violence (2005)
Pig (2021)
Mandy (2018)
John Wick (2014)
The Testimony (2015)
No Country For Old Men (2007) [Both] – John Badham’s trailer commentary
The Maltese Falcon (1941) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Blood Simple (1984) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review, Dennis Cozzaliio’s review
Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
Raising Arizona (1987)
Moonstruck (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s trailer commentary
Joe (2013)
Witness For The Prosecution (1957) [Vanessa Block] – Larry Cohen’s trailer commentary
Easter Parade (1948)
Titanic (1997)
Never Been Kissed (1999)
Abbott And Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
The Crow (1994)
Jurassic Park (1993)
Midnight Cowboy (1969) [Michael Sarnoski] – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion...
- 7/16/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Two-thirds of the way into “Pig,” the offbeat feature debut from director Michael Sarnoski, Nicolas Cage sits at a prestigious restaurant in Portland, bloodied and in rags. It’s the kind of eatery that earns awards and praise, an establishment that prides itself in its outrageously overpriced micro-creations and deconstructions only a few a can afford, and even fewer can pronounce, but whose status make patrons near and far salivate for a reservation.
Playing Robin Feld, a venerated chef that quit the culinary business 15 years ago to live in the forest, Cage harshly judges such food as nothing more than pretentious, nourishing neither soul nor senses but feeding into a vicious cycle of false appearances. With contained authority, his imputation forces the man behind the dish to reconsider his path.
That scene serves as the main dish of a three-course cinematic meal that’s as unexpected as it’s a strangely poignant.
Playing Robin Feld, a venerated chef that quit the culinary business 15 years ago to live in the forest, Cage harshly judges such food as nothing more than pretentious, nourishing neither soul nor senses but feeding into a vicious cycle of false appearances. With contained authority, his imputation forces the man behind the dish to reconsider his path.
That scene serves as the main dish of a three-course cinematic meal that’s as unexpected as it’s a strangely poignant.
- 7/15/2021
- by Carlos Aguilar
- The Wrap
The premise of Michael Sarnoski’s Pig is deceptively straightforward. A truffle hunter, played by none other than Nicolas Cage, lives in isolation in the Oregonian wilderness. His only companion is his beloved foraging pig. When his pig is snatched by poachers, the man makes a desperate return to society and his complex past to search for her.
This story of an unlikely friendship is just the surface of all that Pig has to offer. Wrapped within this search for a pig is the bizarre underbelly of the culinary elite, insight on loss and the natural human craving for connection, and a complex bouquet of stark contrasts. The result is a totally unexpected, but utterly fascinating film. Whatever you think you know about Pig going in, discard it entirely.
The film begins on the disarming note of the quiet pastoral. Pig’s first few scenes are eerily quiet as Rob...
This story of an unlikely friendship is just the surface of all that Pig has to offer. Wrapped within this search for a pig is the bizarre underbelly of the culinary elite, insight on loss and the natural human craving for connection, and a complex bouquet of stark contrasts. The result is a totally unexpected, but utterly fascinating film. Whatever you think you know about Pig going in, discard it entirely.
The film begins on the disarming note of the quiet pastoral. Pig’s first few scenes are eerily quiet as Rob...
- 7/14/2021
- by Caitlin Kennedy
- DailyDead
Following the fourth season of HBO’s Ballers and an Oscar-buzzed role in Spike Lee’s BlackKklansman, John David Washington — the talented son of Denzel — steps up with another forceful, socially relevant performance in Monsters and Men. In a striking debut feature, writer-director Reinaldo Marcus Green uses three perspectives to examine the shooting of an unarmed black man by a white cop in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. The victim is Darius Larson, a.k.a. Big D (Samel Edwards), a local who sells loose cigarettes outside a Bed-Stuy deli And...
- 9/27/2018
- by Peter Travers
- Rollingstone.com
Watching Reinaldo Marcus Green’s debut feature “Monsters and Men,” about three different persons of color in Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy neighborhood, one senses that this is the kind of serious, small-bore drama that Hollywood stopped caring about a while ago; it’s about real people in unglamorous situations, making do and struggling to move forward when they find themselves at a crossroads.
But when you take into account Green’s catalytic, section-binding incident — the suspicious killing of a black man at the hands of cops — you realize that this is the kind of movie Hollywood needs to be making. Though “Monsters and Men” isn’t the most fully realized work, its innate intelligence and matter-of-fact sensitivity are the kinds of storytelling assets we need more of, especially when the fabric of life for many continues to fray and tear in ways that demand a larger societal reassessing.
That’s certainly...
But when you take into account Green’s catalytic, section-binding incident — the suspicious killing of a black man at the hands of cops — you realize that this is the kind of movie Hollywood needs to be making. Though “Monsters and Men” isn’t the most fully realized work, its innate intelligence and matter-of-fact sensitivity are the kinds of storytelling assets we need more of, especially when the fabric of life for many continues to fray and tear in ways that demand a larger societal reassessing.
That’s certainly...
- 9/26/2018
- by Robert Abele
- The Wrap
One of Filmmaker‘s 25 New Faces of Independent Film in 2015, Reinaldo Marcus Green makes his feature debut as a writer/director with Monsters and Men. The film tells the story of a police shooting and its aftermath in the community of Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. Green hired cinematographer Patrick Scola (Southside with You) to shoot the film, which screens in competition at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Ahead of the film’s premiere, Scola spoke with Filmmaker about how he sought to blend both “naturalism” and “heightened reality” in the film’s visual approach. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your […]...
- 1/22/2018
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Acerbic isn’t a strong enough word to explain the singular attitude and outlook of author Maya Dardel. The gravelly-voiced has-been (well, maybe) is first introduced to the audience of Zachary Cotler and Magdalena Zyzak’s “A Critically Endangered Species” by way of a rambling NPR interview that caps off with Maya (an electric Lena Olin) announcing her intention to off herself, and that’s before the opening credits are even over. Maya is plain-spoken about her plan, only really mentioning it to tout her desire to find an heir and executor to take over her life and work (and money and house and fame and whatever else she has) after she does the deed.
Sarcastic, biting, and wholly unsentimental, Maya explains that “death’s lucrative” and she’s simply eager to get her affairs in order before shuffling off this mortal coil. She’s looking for a male author...
Sarcastic, biting, and wholly unsentimental, Maya explains that “death’s lucrative” and she’s simply eager to get her affairs in order before shuffling off this mortal coil. She’s looking for a male author...
- 3/12/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Arriving just in time for the end of the Obama era, Southside With You depicts a history-changing summer afternoon in 1989 in which our future national leader took Michelle Robinson out on what would become their first date. Barack Obama (Parker Sawyers), working at a corporate law farm as an associate from Harvard Law, persuades his co-worker Michelle (Tika Sumpter, also a producer here) to attend a community meeting, which is not a date, according to her. What follows is certainly one, as we can see in the first trailer, which arrived today ahead of an August release.
We said in our review, “Writer-director Richard Tanne understands that this would be difficult to pull off if it didn’t work as a romantic drama first and foremost. Injecting personality and flair with a soulful soundtrack and warm cinematography form Patrick Scola, Southside With You impresses with its vision of a lower-class...
We said in our review, “Writer-director Richard Tanne understands that this would be difficult to pull off if it didn’t work as a romantic drama first and foremost. Injecting personality and flair with a soulful soundtrack and warm cinematography form Patrick Scola, Southside With You impresses with its vision of a lower-class...
- 4/28/2016
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Arriving just in time for the end of the Obama era, Southside With You depicts a history-changing summer afternoon in 1989 in which our future national leader took Michelle Robinson out on what would become their first date. Barack Obama (a convincing Parker Sawyers), working at a corporate law farm as an associate from Harvard Law, persuades his co-worker Michelle (Tika Sumpter, also a producer here) to attend a community meeting, which is not a date, according to her.
Writer-director Richard Tanne understands that this would be difficult to pull off if it didn’t work as a romantic drama first and foremost. Injecting personality and flair with a soulful soundtrack and warm cinematography form Patrick Scola, Southside With You impresses with its vision of a lower-class Chicago and a sincere emotional center. Even with a known outcome, it’s compelling to see the burgeoning relationship between these individuals as they sport authentic chemistry.
Writer-director Richard Tanne understands that this would be difficult to pull off if it didn’t work as a romantic drama first and foremost. Injecting personality and flair with a soulful soundtrack and warm cinematography form Patrick Scola, Southside With You impresses with its vision of a lower-class Chicago and a sincere emotional center. Even with a known outcome, it’s compelling to see the burgeoning relationship between these individuals as they sport authentic chemistry.
- 1/27/2016
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Here's your daily dose of an indie film in progress; at the end of the week, you'll have the chance to vote for your favorite. In the meantime: Is this a movie you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments. "Revision" Tweetable Logline: Find the benefits in forgetting family. Elevator Pitch: When a New York based writer wakes from a coma, he realizes his memory gone as well as the context for every one of his relationships. But, he and his grandmother's broken relationship begins to mend when she's diagnosed with alzheimer's. These two family members finds a new dialogue in the absence of history. Production Team:Writer & Director - Garrett Johnston Producer - Ryan Decker Cinematographer - Pat Scola Production Designer - Jen Dunlap James (Lead) - Nathaniel Ryan Estelle - Flossie Bennet About the Production: "Family and memory are at the core of this story, but neither...
- 5/6/2013
- by Indiewire
- Indiewire
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