Exclusive: Emma Dumont, who stars in Fox’s X-Men based series, The Gifted, has been tapped as the eponymous lead in Razor, a film from director Rob Cohen, which he adapted from the comic book series of the name by Everett Hartsoe. The Crow producer Jeff Most will produce Razor with Grant Cramer (Lone Survivor), Anna Wang, Christopher Milburn (Hunter’s Prayer), and Philip Lee (The Dark Knight).
Dumont will star as Nicole Mitchell, a young woman who, as a ten-year-old, witnesses her cop father’s murder by a gang of upwardly mobile crime figures who seek to thwart his investigation into their nefarious activities. The trauma lands her in a sanitarium for a decade in which time she develops a complex plan of revenge on the murderers.
In the comics, Nicole, in an effort to rid the evil in Chinatown, becomes the superheroine Razor, characterized...
Dumont will star as Nicole Mitchell, a young woman who, as a ten-year-old, witnesses her cop father’s murder by a gang of upwardly mobile crime figures who seek to thwart his investigation into their nefarious activities. The trauma lands her in a sanitarium for a decade in which time she develops a complex plan of revenge on the murderers.
In the comics, Nicole, in an effort to rid the evil in Chinatown, becomes the superheroine Razor, characterized...
- 6/25/2018
- by Amanda N'Duka
- Deadline Film + TV
Daniel Clowes’ Wilson is now playing in theaters across the country and hopefully, those who’ve had a chance to see it still have some questions about how the filmmakers and cast captured the tone of Clowes’ graphic novel so well. (It didn’t hurt that Clowes adapted it into a movie himself.)
It is director Craig Johnson’s third film, following 2009’s True Adolescents and 2014’s The Skeleton Twins, starring Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, which won a screenplay at Sundance that year.
In the movie, Woody Harrelson plays the title character, a cantankerous and unfiltered loner who tries hard to be social but ends up putting those he interacts with off. When he tries to reconnect with his ex-wife Pippy (Laura Dern), he finds out that he had a baby daughter she gave up for adoption. The two of them go look for their now teen daughter Claire...
It is director Craig Johnson’s third film, following 2009’s True Adolescents and 2014’s The Skeleton Twins, starring Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, which won a screenplay at Sundance that year.
In the movie, Woody Harrelson plays the title character, a cantankerous and unfiltered loner who tries hard to be social but ends up putting those he interacts with off. When he tries to reconnect with his ex-wife Pippy (Laura Dern), he finds out that he had a baby daughter she gave up for adoption. The two of them go look for their now teen daughter Claire...
- 3/28/2017
- by Edward Douglas
- LRMonline.com
It seems with each passing year the flood of year end lists are published earlier and earlier, assuring that at least a handful of films deserving a place on any given list are missed due to a lack of time and opportunity. Even here at Ioncinema.com, posting my list after the calender year has actually closed, it feels a little premature writing up a list, knowing there are plenty of films that I’ve yet to see due to a lack of screenings nearby – Mr. Turner, Foxcatcher, Leviathan, Winter Sleep and Selma just to name a few. I should note that it seems there is a lack of international releases on this list as well, but rest assured, of the many I saw this year, most won’t reach a domestic release until sometime in 2015, so films like Christian Petzold’s Phoenix, Tsai Ming-liang’s Journey to the West,...
- 1/5/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
Abandon hope of Stefon and Gilly, all who enter here. Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig will blow you away with the comic and dramatic range of their performances in The Skeleton Twins. But this isn't a series of sketches. This is one from the heart. It's not that The Skeleton Twins isn't funny. At times, it's hilarious, as you'd expect from any movie that teams summa cum laude SNL grads Hader and Wiig. But The Skeleton Twins, directed by Craig Johnson (True Adolescents) from a script he wrote with Mark Heyman...
- 9/11/2014
- Rollingstone.com
Ioncinema.com’s Ioncinephile of the Month feature focuses on an emerging filmmaker from the world of cinema. This September, we put the spotlight on the writer-director of The Skeleton Twins. After exploring the thirtysomething slackerhood with the 2009 SXSW Film Festival preemed True Adolescents, Craig Johnson’s sophomore feature visits a paralleled (re)union of sibling spirits where the pursuit of happiness is challenged by the skeletal remains of what was left in one’s past. An examination of the sometimes vacuous, sometimes endearingly noir phases that the psyche tends to visit, the Sundance U.S. Dramatic Competition Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award winning film mowed down Park City auds with the versatile Kristin Wiig and Bill Hader proving that comedy and drama do mix.
Johnson’s delicate empathetic portrait of the misfits carries some vintage moments, and was instantly picked up by Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions for distribution and is landing in theatres September 12th.
Johnson’s delicate empathetic portrait of the misfits carries some vintage moments, and was instantly picked up by Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions for distribution and is landing in theatres September 12th.
- 9/7/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Having premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, we have heard little more from The Skeleton Twins – until now. The dramedy stars regular collaborators Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader as co-leads, and is written and directed by Craig Johnson (True Adolescents), with Mark Heyman (Black Swan) as co-writer.
After a decade of estrangement, twins Milo and Maggie are thrust back together in unexpected and surprising circumstances. Their respective lives have taken some wrong turns, and they gradually realise that the key to resolving their issues is to repair their relationship with each other. That synopsis – while succinct – does no justice to what is a joyous trailer. Joyous, not for its generally uplifting atmosphere, but because of the perfect showcase it provides for the revelatory Bill Hader.
The first thing that is blatantly obvious from this preview is that Kristen Wiig is doing what Kristen Wiig does – again. But...
After a decade of estrangement, twins Milo and Maggie are thrust back together in unexpected and surprising circumstances. Their respective lives have taken some wrong turns, and they gradually realise that the key to resolving their issues is to repair their relationship with each other. That synopsis – while succinct – does no justice to what is a joyous trailer. Joyous, not for its generally uplifting atmosphere, but because of the perfect showcase it provides for the revelatory Bill Hader.
The first thing that is blatantly obvious from this preview is that Kristen Wiig is doing what Kristen Wiig does – again. But...
- 6/30/2014
- by Sarah Myles
- We Got This Covered
Kristen Wiig’s post-Bridesmaids movie career has been a little bumpy: She didn’t have much to do, for instance, in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty or Anchorman 2. But the first trailer for The Skeleton Twins hints that her next film may finally find her in a starring role again.
Wiig appears in the movie alongside Bill Hader. From Sundance, Jeff Labrecque described The Skeleton Twins as “a full-on drama” where Wiig and Hader “play Maggie and Milo, twins who used to be close but now live on different sides of the country. Neither is particular happy with their lives,...
Wiig appears in the movie alongside Bill Hader. From Sundance, Jeff Labrecque described The Skeleton Twins as “a full-on drama” where Wiig and Hader “play Maggie and Milo, twins who used to be close but now live on different sides of the country. Neither is particular happy with their lives,...
- 6/30/2014
- by Jacob Shamsian
- EW - Inside Movies
While Kristen Wiig has already played her breakout role in "Bridesmaids," and has used that opportunity to forge her own path in Hollywood, including lining up a new directorial gig, we've been waiting for her "Saturday Night Live" co-star Bill Hader to get his shot. He's certainly lined up no shortage of small roles in a number of movies (everything from "Superbad" to "The Disappearance Of Eleanor Rigby"), but in "The Skeleton Twins" he co-stars with Wiig with the pair leading the dramedy. Premiering earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival, the movie follows an estranged brother and sister, reunited after ten years, who face the various challenges in their lives. Craig Johnson ("True Adolescents") directs the film, which has a score from Nathan Larson, and while we had mixed feelings on the movie, we noted out of Park City that that the film "proves to be a fine showcase for Wiig and Hader,...
- 6/30/2014
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
I've been here before. This all looks quite familiar. It's not quite deja vu though. The window dressing is different. They've swapped a cute dog for goldfish. I think that's a new couch. But that's the same ottoman.Craig Johnson's The Skeleton Twins, his follow up to the 2009 Mark Duplass starring True Adolescents, is, to put it politely, a safe bet. It checks most of the boxes for what I now know to call a "A Typical Sundance Film". These are usually American made movies with likeable and recognizable actors. Their stories are generally about coming home and facing family; getting over past demons and healing. They are a little sad, no doubt funny, and of course uplifting. They are competently crafted crowd pleasers, derived...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 1/22/2014
- Screen Anarchy
Back in January 2005, Mark Duplass and his brother Jay Duplass debuted their first feature length film, "The Puffy Chair," at the Sundance Film Festival. That fateful night in Park City would spark a career that has seen the duo flourish into two of the most influential names in American independent film. Writing and directing studio projects "Cyrus" (2010) and "Jeff, Who Lives at Home" (2011) as well as executive producing the films of other budding filmmakers, the Duplass Brothers have become a staple at Sundance. Mark has also blossomed into a bona fide leading man in the indie world, starring in recent Sundance hits "Your Sister's Sister" and "Safety Not Guaranteed.” Adding to his ubiquity is a starring role in FX comedy "The League" and his upcoming HBO series "Togetherness," which he created with his brother. This year the filmmaker and actor is coming to Sundance with two new projects. After starring...
- 1/15/2014
- by Robert Cameron Fowler
- Indiewire
Park City -- The Skeleton Twins, starring SNL alums Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, has been acquired by Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group also has acquired all territories outside of the U.S. The film premiered in Sundance's U.S. Dramatic Competition at Library Center Theatre on Jan. 18. The second feature film from director Craig Johnson -- after his True Adolescents, starring Mark Duplass and Melissa Leo, which premiered at the 2009 SXSW Film Festival -- follows two estranged siblings after a crisis forces them to come back to their small town home together. Lionsgate and Roadside are planning a theatrical
read more...
read more...
- 1/14/2014
- by Tatiana Siegel, Borys Kit
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Live. From New York. It’s…Craig Johnson. Another product from the Duplass factory, after breaking out with the micro-budgeted SXSW preemed True Adolescents, Johnson remains in similar dramedy curriculum (read the descriptive journey here) with the help of lead off hitters in SNL’s Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader (they were a delicious combo in Adventureland) alongside thesps Ty Burrell, Luke Wilson and Boyd Holbrook. Round two behind the director’s chair began in November of 2012 with cinematographer Reed Morano (Kill Your Darlings) and Prod. Designer Ola Maslik (May in the Summer) in the Sundance alumni tech crew deck.
Gist: Written by Mark Heyman and Johnson, Wiig and Hader play estranged twins Maggie and Milo, who coincidentally cheat death on the same day, prompting them to reunite and confront how their lives went so wrong. For Maggie, that means re-examining her marriage to sweet “nature frat boy” Lance (Wilson...
Gist: Written by Mark Heyman and Johnson, Wiig and Hader play estranged twins Maggie and Milo, who coincidentally cheat death on the same day, prompting them to reunite and confront how their lives went so wrong. For Maggie, that means re-examining her marriage to sweet “nature frat boy” Lance (Wilson...
- 11/21/2013
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Casting Net: Sean Penn eyeing thriller 'Prone Gunman.' Plus: John Hawkes, George Clooney, Ty Burrell
• Sean Penn is in talks to star in the action thriller Prone Gunman, based on the novel by the late French author Jean-Patrick Manchette about an international assassin who runs afoul of the organization that hires him after he says he wants out of the business. (Silly assassin; shadowy global organizations are never keen on quiet retirement.) Peter Travis adapted the screenplay; there is no director yet attached. [THR]
• John Hawkes, lately winning Oscar buzz for The Sessions, has signed on for Low Down, a biopic of jazz pianist Joe Albany. He replaces Mark Ruffalo, who had originally been attached to...
• John Hawkes, lately winning Oscar buzz for The Sessions, has signed on for Low Down, a biopic of jazz pianist Joe Albany. He replaces Mark Ruffalo, who had originally been attached to...
- 11/13/2012
- by Adam B. Vary
- EW - Inside Movies
Kristen Wiig and and her former SNL co-star Bill Hader are attached to star in the indie comedy "The Skeleton Twins," which will be co-produced by brothers Mark and Jay Duplass and the financier, Venture Forth. "Black Swan" scribe Mark Heyman wrote the script, which will be directed by Craig Johnson ("True Adolescents"). Luke Wilson is also set to star in the film, which centers on estranged twins Maggie (Wiig) and Milo (Hader) who happen to both cheat death on the same day, causing Maggie to question her marriage to Lance (Wilson), and Milo to return to an ex-lover. Wiig stars in the upcoming "Imogene," which debuted at the Toronto Film Festival. She also will star opposite Guy Pierce in "Hateship, Friendship." Hader will be in "The To Do List," which releases in February 2013. This isn't the first big-screen outing in which Hader and Wiig have been cast together; they played goofy husband-and-wife park.
- 11/8/2012
- by Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
Kristen Wiig & Bill Hader – what a perfect combination! I guess that director Craig Johnson (man who stands behind True Adolescents, by the way) shares my opinion, because we’ve just learned that both Wiig and Hader are now on board to star in his upcoming indie project titled The Skeleton Twins! And yes, of course it’s going to be a comedy!
Yeah, it looks that Wiig and Hader are attached to play characters named Maggie and Milo, estranged twins who coincidentally cheat death on the same day, prompting them to reunite and confront how their lives went so wrong.
Thanks to Variety, we have even more plot details:
For Maggie, that means re-examining her marriage to sweet “nature frat boy” Lance while her gay brother Milo revisits his old flame Rich, a former teacher with a past he’d rather keep quiet. As the twins’ reunion reinvigorates them both,...
Yeah, it looks that Wiig and Hader are attached to play characters named Maggie and Milo, estranged twins who coincidentally cheat death on the same day, prompting them to reunite and confront how their lives went so wrong.
Thanks to Variety, we have even more plot details:
For Maggie, that means re-examining her marriage to sweet “nature frat boy” Lance while her gay brother Milo revisits his old flame Rich, a former teacher with a past he’d rather keep quiet. As the twins’ reunion reinvigorates them both,...
- 11/8/2012
- by Jeanne Standal
- Filmofilia
After giving up on it for years, I started watching "Saturday Night Live" again this season and can now confirm what longtime fans have known for years: Bill Hader is officially awesome. Variety reports that Hader, who is still going strong on the late night NBC show, will star alongside "SNL" alum and former star Kristen Wiig in a new comedy called The Skeleton Twins for up-and-coming director Craig Johnson (True Adolescents). Johnson and Mark Heyman (Black Swan) co-wrote the screenplay, and indie stalwarts Mark and Jay Duplass' production company is teaming with Venture Forth to produce and bring this to life. The story follows two estranged twins (being played by Hader and Wiig) who cheat death on the same day and are reunited to figure out how their lives got off track. Wiig's character Maggie takes a hard look at her marriage to her "nature frat boy" husband,...
- 11/8/2012
- by Ben Pearson
- firstshowing.net
• Tim Robbins will star in and direct the dramedy Man Under, with Michelle Pfeiffer and Chloe Moretz on board to play members of a family who deal with the repercussions of a photograph of them getting displayed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Though he recently directed a couple episodes of HBO’s Treme, this will be Robbins’ first time helming a feature film since 1999′s Cradle Will Rock. Ann Cherkis penned the script. [Variety]
• Gemma Arterton (Clash of the Titans) has joined, and Benedict Cumberbatch (i.e. Benny Batch) is in talks to join, Absolutely Anything,...
• Gemma Arterton (Clash of the Titans) has joined, and Benedict Cumberbatch (i.e. Benny Batch) is in talks to join, Absolutely Anything,...
- 11/8/2012
- by Adam B. Vary
- EW - Inside Movies
With thanks to the good folks at Kickstarter, today we debut our curated page on the crowdfunding platform. At Filmmaker Magazine on Kickstarter you’ll always find a half dozen or so projects that we believe deserve your support. These will be projects by filmmakers we support through the magazine or site (like, for example, those from our annual “25 New Faces” list), those whose work has impressed us in the past, or perhaps just those whose project descriptions are particularly compelling. And while film and video projects will, naturally, comprise the bulk of our recommendations, I hope to sprinkle in projects in other areas like technology, music and publishing. There will always be a short blurb explaining why we’ve made the pick.
We’ve launched the page with the following projects:
* Fourplay. Kyle Henry made our 25 New Faces list following his eerie, assured independent feature, Room. For the last...
We’ve launched the page with the following projects:
* Fourplay. Kyle Henry made our 25 New Faces list following his eerie, assured independent feature, Room. For the last...
- 1/15/2012
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The responsibility-impaired hipsters of mumblecore bear a distinct spiritual kinship to the equally irresponsible protagonists of ’80s snobs-vs.-slobs comedies; they’re just exponentially more likely to be in shitty indie-rock bands, read Pitchfork, or start ’zines. In the winning 2009 comedy-drama True Adolescents, star Mark Duplass splits the difference between ’80s slob-vs.-snobs comedy and indie-film earnestness by channeling his inner Bill Murray for a coming-of-age comedy-drama that suggests a surprisingly palatable mumblecore Meatballs. As on the perpetually underachieving FX show The League, Duplass isn’t afraid to go big and goofy for laughs, even if that means sacrificing ...
- 8/31/2011
- avclub.com
There’s something inherently depressing about a coming of age film with a protagonist over thirty, or at least there should be. I have no desire to condemn everyone beyond their twenties, in a band and having trouble making rent. Yet if someone makes a movie about a thirtysomething rocker with no obvious prospects I don’t want it to be a cheery whimsical romp through empty record stores and the dive bars of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, or Portland, Oregon. Instead I want to see something like Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents.” Our antihero is Sam, an aspiring Seattle rocker with a failing relationship…...
- 8/3/2011
- Spout
They say that directing is 90% casting. But that must mean that casting is a hefty percentage of acting too -- knowing how to place yourself in roles where you have the best chance to succeed. I'm not sure that Mark Duplass is a world-class actor but he's a genius at casting. He's good in everything in part because he understands his strengths an actor and plays to them. His character in "True Adolescents," Sam, isn't that far removed from the likable, aimless early thirtysomethings he played in films like "The Puffy Chair" or "Humpday." But Duplass is his generation's foremost likable, aimless early thirtysomething, and it's always fun to see him to riff on that persona.
Sam lives in Seattle and works (sort of) as a struggling musician. His scruffy, scuffling rock band has the symbolism-infused name The Effort; Sam thinks they're right on the verge of a record deal,...
Sam lives in Seattle and works (sort of) as a struggling musician. His scruffy, scuffling rock band has the symbolism-infused name The Effort; Sam thinks they're right on the verge of a record deal,...
- 7/29/2011
- by Matt Singer
- ifc.com
Is there a place in the Indie Film Eco-system for a good story well told? Artist strive for this goal, but can audiences unite around something not built around a big concept, big cast, or controversial element? Perhaps the bigger question is can a filmmaker even take the risk of trying to answer this question?True Adolescents (starring Mark Duplass & Melissa Leo--two of the most watchable folks out there) opens today in NYC and got a good NY Times Review to boost it. Writer/Director Craig Johnson guests today about why and how he took that dare. In her SXSW festival…...
- 7/29/2011
- Hope for Film
Aubrey Plaza is without fail turning in outstanding work on Parks and Recreation and has now joined up with Safety Not Guaranteed, the new indie film centered on an Internet meme. Jake Johnson (Ceremony) and Mark Duplass (True Adolescents) joined Plaza in the story inspired by real life of three magazine employees sent to investigate [...] Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass & Jake Johnson Join Safety not Guaranteed is a post from: www.FilmoFilia.com...
- 5/13/2011
- by Nikola Mraovic
- Filmofilia
Santosh's Sivan's "Tahaan" won the Golden Reel for Best Children's Film at the 9th Tuboron International Film Festival in the USA. The winners of the Golden Reel Award were announced during a ceremony on Friday, March 26, 2010 in Tiburon. Here is a complete list of winners.
Best Film: A Step Into the Darkness by Atil Inac [Turkey]
Best Director: Ryszard Bugajski for General Nil [Poland]
Best Actor: Olgierd Lukaszewicz for General Nil [Poland]
Best Actress: Leonor Manso for Luisa [Spain]
Best Documentary: Petition by Zhao Liang [China]
Best Cinematography: The Red Baron by Klaus Merkel [Czech Republic]
Humanitarian Award: Under Rich Earth by Malcolm Rogge [Ecuador/Us]
Best Musical: Hipsters by Valery Todorovsky [Russia]
Best Short: Ana's Playground by Eric D. Howell [Us]
Best Music Video: City of Noise by Mitch Barany [Canada]
Best Dance Short Film: Waterfront Access? by Floanne Ankah [Us]
Best Animation: The Magistical by Rebecca Jones [Us]
Best Short Animation: The Offering by Michael Zachary Huber [Us] & Solitude by Mehrdad Sheikhan [Iran]
Best...
Best Film: A Step Into the Darkness by Atil Inac [Turkey]
Best Director: Ryszard Bugajski for General Nil [Poland]
Best Actor: Olgierd Lukaszewicz for General Nil [Poland]
Best Actress: Leonor Manso for Luisa [Spain]
Best Documentary: Petition by Zhao Liang [China]
Best Cinematography: The Red Baron by Klaus Merkel [Czech Republic]
Humanitarian Award: Under Rich Earth by Malcolm Rogge [Ecuador/Us]
Best Musical: Hipsters by Valery Todorovsky [Russia]
Best Short: Ana's Playground by Eric D. Howell [Us]
Best Music Video: City of Noise by Mitch Barany [Canada]
Best Dance Short Film: Waterfront Access? by Floanne Ankah [Us]
Best Animation: The Magistical by Rebecca Jones [Us]
Best Short Animation: The Offering by Michael Zachary Huber [Us] & Solitude by Mehrdad Sheikhan [Iran]
Best...
- 3/27/2010
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Tacoma - Who could imagine making a documentary about dolphins could lead to so much trouble. When director Louie Psihoyos exposed what the Japanese locals were doing to dolphins in Taiji, Japan in The Cove, he found himself a wanted man. This sea-side community celebrates their relationship with the dolphin. But there’s a darkside when they herd dolphins into a cove, sell the prized ones to aquariums for $150,000 each. The remaining dolphins are slaughtered and given to school kids as whale meat. He found himself wanted by the Japanese law for various charges including videotaping undercover police officers.
Certain folks have defended this slaughter as cultural dining. How dare Americans protest what the Japanese eat. The falsely labeled dolphin meat has toxic levels of mercury. Remember that this is the same Japan that will shut off imports of American agriculture and livestock with the rumor of something being amiss.
Certain folks have defended this slaughter as cultural dining. How dare Americans protest what the Japanese eat. The falsely labeled dolphin meat has toxic levels of mercury. Remember that this is the same Japan that will shut off imports of American agriculture and livestock with the rumor of something being amiss.
- 12/17/2009
- by UncaScroogeMcD
This weekend is gay gay gay what with Brüno opening wide (finally -- doesn't it seem like that should've opened for the holiday weekend? Or earlier? Too much hype) and the most interesting limited release being Humpday starring Joshua Leonard (The Blair Witch Project) and Mark Duplass (Hannah Takes The Stairs) as straight best friends who decide to get it on (together) for the camera.
Here's my Towleroad article on this weekend's movies. Comment there if you feel so moved.
So as not to bog down that article in festival minutiae, I neglected to mention that Duplass, the lead actor who has been making a name for himself headlining these micro indries was also in a tiny film I saw at Nashville called True Adolescents (see previous post) That film was also about a straight guy dealing with identity crises and gay stuff. What an odd twofer. Duplass is talented...
Here's my Towleroad article on this weekend's movies. Comment there if you feel so moved.
So as not to bog down that article in festival minutiae, I neglected to mention that Duplass, the lead actor who has been making a name for himself headlining these micro indries was also in a tiny film I saw at Nashville called True Adolescents (see previous post) That film was also about a straight guy dealing with identity crises and gay stuff. What an odd twofer. Duplass is talented...
- 7/10/2009
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
This week my Towleroad article is gauging the amount of heat in the room (or subway) for one Channing Tatum since Fighting opened today. Don't you love that Tatum's extending his pinky in the screengrab? It only makes me love him more. This article also covers the gay bits (there weren't many) from the Nashville festival.
After I wrote the piece I saw one more film that could have figured in. It was called True Adolescents. The movie was about a 30something rocker (Mark Duplass) with more than a little of the Peter Pan syndrome. His aunt (Melissa Leo) convinces him to take her son and her son's friend on a camping trip. The movie starts out all slackerish and obnoxious but as it develops it becomes unexpectedly sensitive, especially in regards to the subject of adolescent sexual confusion. Not a gay film but gayish. It's uneven but it redeemed...
After I wrote the piece I saw one more film that could have figured in. It was called True Adolescents. The movie was about a 30something rocker (Mark Duplass) with more than a little of the Peter Pan syndrome. His aunt (Melissa Leo) convinces him to take her son and her son's friend on a camping trip. The movie starts out all slackerish and obnoxious but as it develops it becomes unexpectedly sensitive, especially in regards to the subject of adolescent sexual confusion. Not a gay film but gayish. It's uneven but it redeemed...
- 4/24/2009
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Editor’s Note: The following are links to snapshot reviews from film critic Eric Kohn, offering a first look at the films screening at the 2009 SXSW Festival. SXSW Snapshot: Joe Swanberg’s “Alexander The Last” SXSW Snapshot: Michael Paul Stephenson’s “Best Worst Movie” SXSW Snapshot: What Zombies? Bruce McDonald’s “Pontypool” SXSW Snapshot: Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents” SXSW Snapshot: Gary Hustwit’s “Objectified” SXSW Snapshot: Daryl Wein’s “Breaking Upwards” SXSW Snapshot: Sam Raimi’s “Drag …...
- 3/21/2009
- Indiewire
Editor’s Note: The following are links to snapshot reviews from film critic Eric Kohn, offering a first look at the films screening at the 2009 SXSW Festival. SXSW Snapshot: Joe Swanberg’s “Alexander The Last” SXSW Snapshot: Michael Paul Stephenson’s “Best Worst Movie” SXSW Snapshot: What Zombies? Bruce McDonald’s “Pontypool” SXSW Snapshot: Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents” SXSW Snapshot: Gary Hustwit’s “Objectified” SXSW Snapshot: Daryl Wein’s “Breaking Upwards” SXSW Snapshot: Sam Raimi’s “Drag …...
- 3/20/2009
- Indiewire
Editor’s Note: The following are links to snapshot reviews from film critic Eric Kohn, offering a first look at the films screening at the 2009 SXSW Festival. SXSW Snapshot: Joe Swanberg’s “Alexander The Last” SXSW Snapshot: Michael Paul Stephenson’s “Best Worst Movie” SXSW Snapshot: What Zombies? Bruce McDonald’s “Pontypool” SXSW Snapshot: Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents” SXSW Snapshot: Gary Hustwit’s “Objectified” SXSW Snapshot: Daryl Wein’s “Breaking Upwards” SXSW Snapshot: Sam Raimi’s “Drag …...
- 3/20/2009
- Indiewire
“True Adolescents” Director/Screenwriter: Craig Johnson Cast: Mark Duplass, Melissa Leo, Bret Loehr, Carr Thompson, Linas Philips, Davie-Blue Synopsis [courtesy of SXSW]: This coming of age story stars Mark Duplass as Sam Bryant, an aging Seattle rocker with no job, no record deal, and no place to stay until he finds some room at his aunt’s house in the suburbs. He’s also the last guy anyone would pick to take two teens …...
- 3/20/2009
- indieWIRE - People
Editor’s Note: This is one of a series of interviews, conducted via email, with directors whose films are screening at the 2009 SXSW Film Festival. “True Adolescents” Director/Screenwriter: Craig Johnson Cast: Mark Duplass, Melissa Leo, Bret Loehr, Carr Thompson, Linas Philips, Davie-Blue Synopsis [courtesy of SXSW]: This coming of age story stars Mark Duplass as Sam Bryant, an aging Seattle rocker with no job, no record deal, and no place to …...
- 3/20/2009
- indieWIRE - People
Editor’s Note: The following is a list of links to interviews, conducted via email, with directors whose films are screening at the 2009 SXSW Film Festival. SXSW Interview: “The Overbrook Brothers” Director John Bryant SXSW Interview: “Bomber” Director Paul Cotter SXSW Interview: “Trimpin” Director Peter Esmonde SXSW Interview: “The Way We Get By” Director Aron Gaudet SXSW Interview: “Garbage Dreams” Director Mai Iskander SXSW Interview: “True Adolescents” Director Craig Johnson A …...
- 3/20/2009
- indieWIRE - People
I returned home from Austin yesterday and am still suffering from SXSW Separation Anxiety. Shawn Levy of The Oregonian sums it up well: "Frankly, music people are nuts compared to the film people (who are nuts compared to the interactive people). And as Austin seems genuinely nuts itself, the whole thing works out nicely."
SXSW kept rolling along, even without me and Shawn. While downtown streets were filled with crowds and music, the film venues had somewhat lighter attendance, making it easier for out of town visitors and local residents to catch up with repeat screenings of buzz titles like Alexander the Last, Goodbye Solo, My Suicide, Made in China, and Humpday.
Tonight, an attendee exulted over getting into the Playboy party and seeing Jane's Addiction, while a film critic observed "people in pirate gear blasting 'Kickstart My Heart' in front of [the] Austin Hilton," and another writer "accidentally had another five-movie day.
SXSW kept rolling along, even without me and Shawn. While downtown streets were filled with crowds and music, the film venues had somewhat lighter attendance, making it easier for out of town visitors and local residents to catch up with repeat screenings of buzz titles like Alexander the Last, Goodbye Solo, My Suicide, Made in China, and Humpday.
Tonight, an attendee exulted over getting into the Playboy party and seeing Jane's Addiction, while a film critic observed "people in pirate gear blasting 'Kickstart My Heart' in front of [the] Austin Hilton," and another writer "accidentally had another five-movie day.
- 3/20/2009
- by Peter Martin
- Cinematical
The genre of comedies about scruffy, directionless 30-year-old man-boys has occasionally produced a sub-genre where those men are pitted against actual young people, either as contrast (when the teenagers are more mature than the adults) or so they can wallow in their juvenile behavior together. We got a big-studio taste of that with last year's Role Models, and now here's True Adolescents, the indie version, which means it has more contemplative moments and a lot of mumbling.
Mark Duplass, already a recognizable face in the so-called mumblecore movement, stars as Sam, a Seattle slacker whose rock band is, at least in his mind, always on the verge of hitting it big. To an impartial observer, it's more like he's unemployed. After his girlfriend throws him out, he crashes with his aunt Sharon (Melissa Leo), who's sympathetic but realistic about Sam's need to grow up and get serious.
Sharon is divorced...
Mark Duplass, already a recognizable face in the so-called mumblecore movement, stars as Sam, a Seattle slacker whose rock band is, at least in his mind, always on the verge of hitting it big. To an impartial observer, it's more like he's unemployed. After his girlfriend throws him out, he crashes with his aunt Sharon (Melissa Leo), who's sympathetic but realistic about Sam's need to grow up and get serious.
Sharon is divorced...
- 3/20/2009
- by Eric D. Snider
- Cinematical
Editor’s Note: The following are links to snapshot reviews from film critic Eric Kohn, offering a first look at the films screening at the 2009 SXSW Festival. SXSW Snapshot: Joe Swanberg’s “Alexander The Last” SXSW Snapshot: Michael Paul Stephenson’s “Best Worst Movie” SXSW Snapshot: What Zombies? Bruce McDonald’s “Pontypool” SXSW Snapshot: Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents” SXSW Snapshot: Gary Hustwit’s “Objectified” SXSW Snapshot: Daryl Wein’s “Breaking Upwards” SXSW Snapshot: Sam Raimi’s “Drag …...
- 3/19/2009
- Indiewire
Editor’s Note: The following are links to snapshot reviews from film critic Eric Kohn, offering a first look at the films screening at the 2009 SXSW Festival. SXSW Snapshot: Joe Swanberg’s “Alexander The Last” SXSW Snapshot: Michael Paul Stephenson’s “Best Worst Movie” SXSW Snapshot: What Zombies? Bruce McDonald’s “Pontypool” SXSW Snapshot: Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents” SXSW Snapshot: Gary Hustwit’s “Objectified” SXSW Snapshot: Daryl Wein’s “Breaking Upwards” SXSW Snapshot: Sam Raimi’s “Drag …...
- 3/17/2009
- Indiewire
Editor’s Note: The following is a list of links to interviews, conducted via email, with directors whose films are screening at the 2009 SXSW Film Festival. SXSW Interview: “The Overbrook Brothers” Director John Bryant SXSW Interview: “Bomber” Director Paul Cotter SXSW Interview: “Trimpin” Director Peter Esmonde SXSW Interview: “The Way We Get By” Director Aron Gaudet SXSW Interview: “Garbage Dreams” Director Mai Iskander SXSW Interview: “True Adolescents” Director Craig Johnson A …...
- 3/17/2009
- indieWIRE - People
Editor’s Note: The following are links to snapshot reviews from film critic Eric Kohn, offering a first look at the films screening at the 2009 SXSW Festival. SXSW Snapshot: Joe Swanberg’s “Alexander The Last” SXSW Snapshot: Michael Paul Stephenson’s “Best Worst Movie” SXSW Snapshot: What Zombies? Bruce McDonald’s “Pontypool” SXSW Snapshot: Craig Johnson’s “True Adolescents” SXSW Snapshot: Gary Hustwit’s “Objectified” SXSW Snapshot: Daryl Wein’s “Breaking Upwards” SXSW Snapshot: Sam Raimi’s “Drag …...
- 3/17/2009
- Indiewire
South By Southwest (SXSW), the yearly music, film and interactive festival in Austin, Texas, is gradually becoming a more relevant festival for filmmakers to debut their films. Several big-name and indie films will premiere there this year.
Last year at SXSW, according to the Hollywood Reporter, "Humboldt County," a high school politics documentary "Frontrunners" and two documentaries, "They Killed Sister Dorothy" and "One Minute to Nine," were shown. All films were picked up by distributors; HBO picked up the docs, Magnolia took "Humbolt County," and Oscilloscope took "Frontrunners."
As for big-name films, last year Columbia premiered the blackjack drama "21" at SXSW. New Line Cinemas debuted "Harold and Kumar: Escape From Guantanamo Bay."
"In the last few years, South By [aka SXSW] is breaking out of the impression people have had of it as a regional event and is become a tastemaking festival," Producer Thomas Woodrow told the Hollywood Reporter. Woodrow chose to debut his movie,...
Last year at SXSW, according to the Hollywood Reporter, "Humboldt County," a high school politics documentary "Frontrunners" and two documentaries, "They Killed Sister Dorothy" and "One Minute to Nine," were shown. All films were picked up by distributors; HBO picked up the docs, Magnolia took "Humbolt County," and Oscilloscope took "Frontrunners."
As for big-name films, last year Columbia premiered the blackjack drama "21" at SXSW. New Line Cinemas debuted "Harold and Kumar: Escape From Guantanamo Bay."
"In the last few years, South By [aka SXSW] is breaking out of the impression people have had of it as a regional event and is become a tastemaking festival," Producer Thomas Woodrow told the Hollywood Reporter. Woodrow chose to debut his movie,...
- 3/17/2009
- icelebz.com
As filmmakers, Mark and Jay Duplass make naturalistic, character-based comedies that use laughs almost as a part of a bait-and-switch to distract from how far they’re burrowing under the skin. The acting style that makes this method work, embodied by Mark’s starring performance in The Puffy Chair, has been a natural fit for films with similar methods, if different aims; as an actor, it makes sense that Duplass would pop up in lo-fi, highly improvised films like Hannah Takes the Stairs and Humpday. Craig Johnson's True Adolescents is an example of how that type of closely-observed, behavioral comedy can be wrangled into a comparatively conventional, crowd-pleasing indie film of higher-gloss variety. The result may not be mind-blowingly insightful or particularly creatively inspired, but it’s faced-paced and fun, and it’ll definitely p ...
- 3/15/2009
- by Karina Longworth
- Spout
With “True Adolescents,” Mark Duplass stars in what must be the most conventional recent project on his resume. Putting on his best Jack Black impression, the “Puffy Chair” co-director (and “Humpday” star) plays moody, unkempt Seattle rock musician Sam, a crude character unable to pull his aimless life into focus. After another frustrated roommate kicks him to the curb, Sam winds up crashing with his settled aunt (Melisso Leo, in hardly …...
- 3/14/2009
- Indiewire
With “True Adolescents,” Mark Duplass stars in what must be the most conventional recent project on his resume. Putting on his best Jack Black impression, the “Puffy Chair” co-director (and “Humpday” star) plays moody, unkempt Seattle rock musician Sam, a crude character unable to pull his aimless life into focus. After another frustrated roommate kicks him to the curb, Sam winds up crashing with his settled aunt (Melisso Leo, in hardly …...
- 3/14/2009
- Indiewire
When producer Thomas Woodrow began debating the ideal launchpad for his movie "True Adolescents," he ran through the usual festival suspects: Sundance, Cannes, Toronto and Telluride.
But Woodrow decided to premiere his $1 million comedy featuring Oscar nominee Melissa Leo at South by Southwest, a fest that until recently was known as an afterthought to the powerhouse music event that runs alongside it.
Sure, "Adolescents" is music-oriented, aimed at the same young, hip audience that flocks to Austin each March, and its star, Mark Duplass, is well-known locally.
But more importantly, "the fact a golden handful of distributors who are potential partners are certainly going to be there made it the obvious choice," Woodrow says.
His decision to go with South by Southwest (SXSW or "South By," as it is known) reflects the increasing relevance of the fest heading into its 16th go-round, which begins today and runs through March 21.
Although hardly a busy acquisitions market,...
But Woodrow decided to premiere his $1 million comedy featuring Oscar nominee Melissa Leo at South by Southwest, a fest that until recently was known as an afterthought to the powerhouse music event that runs alongside it.
Sure, "Adolescents" is music-oriented, aimed at the same young, hip audience that flocks to Austin each March, and its star, Mark Duplass, is well-known locally.
But more importantly, "the fact a golden handful of distributors who are potential partners are certainly going to be there made it the obvious choice," Woodrow says.
His decision to go with South by Southwest (SXSW or "South By," as it is known) reflects the increasing relevance of the fest heading into its 16th go-round, which begins today and runs through March 21.
Although hardly a busy acquisitions market,...
- 3/12/2009
- by By Alex Ben Block
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
We have so many SXSW previews to get through in the next week leading up to the fesitival that some days, you just might get two. Today we'll first take a look at Craig Johnson's Narrative Competition entry True Adolescents, which is notable on paper for two reasons: it co-stars recently Oscar-nominated Melissa Leo, and it's the film on which Mark Duplass and Lynn Shelton first discussed working on the film that would become Humpday. Answering The 5 Questions We Ask Everyone, Johnson marvels at comparisons to Kelly Reichardt, makes a blow job joke about Joe Swanberg, and names the ...
- 3/6/2009
- by Karina Longworth
- Spout
SXSW is one of my favorite festivals of the year as it showcases some of the best and most innovative real independent films, and with this host of world premiers, it's also playing alot of Sundance material as well as genre fare from all over the world, many of which we've covered heavily in these pages.
From the Sundance lineup, we have films like Moon, The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle, You Won't Miss Me, Grace, and Humpday, among others.
For the world genre material we've covered, there's Lake Mungo, The Square, Zift, and Awaydays.
I think you get the point that lots of great looking film will be playing. I'll leave a bit of the exploration to you..
Lineup after the break.
Narrative Features Competition
Artois the Goat
Director: Kyle Bogart. Writer: Cliff and Kyle Bogart
Lab technician Virgil Gurdies embarks on an epic quest to craft the greatest...
From the Sundance lineup, we have films like Moon, The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle, You Won't Miss Me, Grace, and Humpday, among others.
For the world genre material we've covered, there's Lake Mungo, The Square, Zift, and Awaydays.
I think you get the point that lots of great looking film will be playing. I'll leave a bit of the exploration to you..
Lineup after the break.
Narrative Features Competition
Artois the Goat
Director: Kyle Bogart. Writer: Cliff and Kyle Bogart
Lab technician Virgil Gurdies embarks on an epic quest to craft the greatest...
- 2/2/2009
- QuietEarth.us
Spike Lee, Sebastian Gutierrez, Kathryn Bigelow and Greg Mottola will be representin' at this year's South by Southwest film festival in Austin.
The complete lineup of 108 movies includes an even split of world premieres and films already barnstorming the fest circuit. Lee's documentary "Passing Strange," which premiered at Sundance, will screen at the nine-day fest along with Gutierrez's "Women in Trouble," Bigelow's "Hurt Locker" and Mottola's "Adventureland."
Cary Fukunaga's "Sin Nombre," Duncan Jones' "Moon" and Lynn Shelton's "Humpday" -- all recent Sundance screeners -- will show at SXSW as well.
Already announced are John Hamburg's latest comedy, "I Love You, Man," which will open the festival, and Jody Hill's "Observe and Report," which will play as the festival's centerpiece screening.
Eight films each will compete for the grand jury prize in of the festival's main competition categories: narrative features and documentary features. Among the narrative entrants are "Artois the Goat,...
The complete lineup of 108 movies includes an even split of world premieres and films already barnstorming the fest circuit. Lee's documentary "Passing Strange," which premiered at Sundance, will screen at the nine-day fest along with Gutierrez's "Women in Trouble," Bigelow's "Hurt Locker" and Mottola's "Adventureland."
Cary Fukunaga's "Sin Nombre," Duncan Jones' "Moon" and Lynn Shelton's "Humpday" -- all recent Sundance screeners -- will show at SXSW as well.
Already announced are John Hamburg's latest comedy, "I Love You, Man," which will open the festival, and Jody Hill's "Observe and Report," which will play as the festival's centerpiece screening.
Eight films each will compete for the grand jury prize in of the festival's main competition categories: narrative features and documentary features. Among the narrative entrants are "Artois the Goat,...
- 2/1/2009
- by By Jay A. Fernandez
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Robert Siegel Writer-director, Big Fan Robert Siegel admits that Big Fan is the first script he wrote that "didn't suck." The dark comedy-drama focuses on nerdy New York Giants fan Paul Aufiero (Patton Oswalt), a parking garage attendant whose obsession leads him into danger. Siegel, who makes his directorial debut with the film, was inspired by his childhood days of sports geekdom. "I grew up on Long Island and I would listen to sports radio a lot as a kid," he says. "I would lie in bed and listen to these late-night callers, and I didn't think of it this way at the time, but it was kind of like an indie movie. The characters were these weird, flawed people calling in to rant and rave about something that happened at the Mets game that night." Siegel, who was editor-in-chief of the satirical newspaper The Onion before transitioning into screenwriting,...
- 1/29/2009
- backstage.com
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