The First "Dune" Trailer is an Exhilarating Mystery

Scene from Dune (2020)

There is a popular notion that "Dune" is an unfilmable book. Even if there is a David Lynch version out there (as well as a fun "could've been" in Jodorowsky's Dune), it remains a cult favorite at best, proving that its towering plot is difficult to pin down into something accessible. And yet there's Denis Villeneuve, eager to take a crack at the source material with his own take. While this should fill the viewer with some skepticism, Villeneuve is a director who has proven himself up to the tasks of at least trying, which in 2020 is more than most filmmakers are willing to try. Come hell or high water, his Dune will be released this winter with a star-studded cast that promises to update everything with more of technical proficiency. If the first trailer is any sign, it's going to be an enjoyable epic the likes of which sci-fi deserves.

Wes Anderson Tells a Winding Story in "The French Dispatch" Trailer

Scene from The French Dispatch

Over his past few films, it feels like director Wes Anderson has perfected the art of getting your hopes up for the next Oscar season. Who could forget how The Grand Budapest Hotel released its first trailer on the heels of the 2015 Academy Awards, or how Isle of Dogs made 2018 feel like it would be a better year for animation? Well, it looks like he's outdone himself by dropping a trailer within the week following this year's ceremony. Just as everyone is wrapping up their thoughts on Parasite's historic win, Anderson is here to remind you that cinema is an evolving art form and that soon there will be a new class to talk about. With The French Dispatch, he adds his name to the 2020 prognostication early, making one excited to see his latest crowded fare look like another masterpiece that's going to dominate the conversation.

How Florence Pugh Got Us to Care About Amy March

Scene from Little Women (2019)

If one was to talk about Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" prior to the Greta Gerwig-directed adaptation, there would be one common refrain: Amy March is the worst March sister. This isn't up for debate. The internet is littered with articles claiming that the youngest sister was somehow a character not worthy of sympathy for a variety of reasons including (but not limited to) burning Jo's manuscript and stealing Laurie away from Jo. It's all a bit vindictive when looked at through Alcott's prose, but what Gerwig has done is something that no other adaptation has been able to do. Not only is it grappling with the themes of women being in charge of their own narrative, but it's also in some ways course-correcting the public conversation around the characters by contemporizing them, adding an emotional depth to the relationships that secretly make it bolder than even the equally beloved 1994 adaptation.

As much attention is once again thrown onto Jo, audiences have become enraptured with Amy this time around, and it's easy to see why. There is something to seeing her played with vulnerability the way that Florence Pugh has, giving layers to a role that's easy to write-off as flat and villainous. After all, she is in some ways piggybacking off of Jo's achievements. She is the least sympathetic role because of this. What Pugh does is add depth to the character by making her decisions not come from a place of malice, but sometimes out of a desire to be a great artist and never getting the respect she deserves. After all, Jo wants it too but thinks "it sounds crass when she says it." Already it's finding ways to take that comment and explore how the public has agreed with that statement, even when they really shouldn't.

Review: "Little Women" Defies Expectations with Brilliant Warmth

Scene from Little Women (2019)

The opening of director Greta Gerwig's adaptation of Little Women may sound familiar to those who know a thing or two about Louisa May Alcott. The writer famously had certain conflicts to resolve when publishing the second half of her best-selling novel about The March Sisters. There had to be certain fulfillments that all contemporary publishings had at the time. The most noteworthy was the choice that all female protagonists needed to be either married or dead, and Alcott wasn't having any of that. Still, it was 1868 and the only way to get her work published was to submit to these wills. As a result, later audiences may be confused by what the final chapters hold for spinster archetype Jo March. While the novel was a masterpiece, it was one representative of its time in these respects, showing that while it was about women finding their own agency, they still had to overcome the male-dominated world, where they decided what passed as socially acceptable.

It's why the choice to open the 2019 film as Jo is submitting to the Weekly Volcano (over halfway through the novel) feels like the right way to go. As Alcott's surrogate, it feels like a moment for Gerwig to finally address something that Alcott couldn't. Within her quietness as Mr. Dashwood (Tracy Letts) edits her story to fit his wants, there's a sense that this was how the real-life author dealt with criticism. No matter what she found interesting, there was a man to tear her down. That is the journey of The March Sisters, and every woman in the 19th century in a time where they couldn't own anything and thus needed to find a reason to live. It is why Little Women resonates as more than adaptation. It's one that openly engages with what the text is saying, and even questions it as it relates to Alcott's personal journey to publishing the book. It's metatextual without being cloying, it's empowering without feeling false, and it's incredible in its small achievements. While there may be more direct adaptations, none have addressed why the book continues to be important over 150 years later quite like Gerwig, who to make this film almost feels like the final act of revolt against Mr. Dashwood's critical eye. Everyone watching is laughing at him, even if the conflict still feels prescient in modern culture. 

Review: "The King" Finds Chalamet as a Mediocre Ruler

Scene from The King (2019)

For those with a Netflix subscription, this Oscar season has been extremely fun to witness from your home. This season has lead to some exciting results, whether The Laundromat, the Breaking Bad film El Camino, or the Eddie Murphy comeback vehicle Dolemite is My Name. If there's a box that needs to be checked off, the streaming service has one. In their latest Oscar-push, director David Michod's The King, the studio tackles the historical drama by focusing on the exploits of King "Hal" Henry V (Timothee Chalamet), a young leader without a strong grasp on leadership. The film focuses on him taking on France in an effort for expanding his power, and the film manages to be a bit of a slog in the process. It' s a decent period piece, but far from the most entertaining film that Netflix has released in the past few weeks. 

A24 A-to-Z: #70. "Hot Summer Nights" (2018)

Scene from Hot Summer Nights

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for years to come.

The Trailer for "Little Women" (2019) Sets Its Sights on Oscar Glory

Scene from Little Women (2019)

In 2017, Greta Gerwig made a significant breakthrough in her career from the world of indie cinema to Oscar darling with the teen comedy Lady Bird. It was a touching story that also became one of A4's highest grossing movies and set the bar for future Saoirse Ronan performances as well as making Gerwig the first female Best Director nominee since 2009's Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker). It raised a question as to how she would follow-up her critically acclaimed film. Well, it turned out to be the Oscar play that many would clamor for, as she's become the latest person to adapt Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" to the big screen with some of the best young actresses of the modern era. After much anticipation, the trailer is here, and there's plenty to love about the Christmas season already.

Review: "Beautiful Boy" Opens a Conversation About Drug Addiction in Powerfully Real Ways

Scene from Beautiful Boy

The subject of addiction is something that has greatly impacted America over the years, which makes it strange how little cinema has decided to address it. For those who know someone, or are themselves, there is a certain pain the experience of watching something pure become diluted, floating away from the innocence that you once assumed them to have. At its core, director Felix van Groeningen's Beautiful Boy not only captures a story that has a horrifying reality to a teenager stumbling in and out of sobriety, but it also has the impact he leaves on his family, especially a father who cares too much. There's a desperation to both performances that ratchets up the emotion in a way that creates one of the most eye-opening, emotional dramas of 2018 and allows for an entry point for people not only to understand addiction, but to even empathize with their struggles. 

A24 A-to-Z: #58. "Lady Bird" (2017)

Scene from Lady Bird

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Call Me By Your Name" (2017)

Scene from Call Me By Your Name

As awards seasons pick up, so do the campaigns to make your film have the best chances at the Best Picture race. However, like a drunken stupor, sometimes these efforts come off as trying too hard and leave behind a trailer of ridiculous flamboyance. Join me on every other Saturday for a highlight of the failed campaigns that make this season as much about prestige as it does about train wrecks. Come for the Harvey Weinstein comments and stay for the history. It's going to be a fun time as I explore cinema's rich history of attempting to matter.

"Beautiful Boy" Opens With Amazon Studios' Best Per-Screen Average to Date

Scene from Beautiful Boy

What has been exciting about the month of October so far has been the fact of how well it has ushered in Oscar season more directly. There was of course the phenomenon that greeted A Star is Born. Even First Man was met with a lot of favorable reviews, asking audiences to please see it in IMAX. However, the indie releases are starting to shape up with some promising numbers. After all, this is where most of the contenders come from, such as 2016's Best Picture winner Moonlight. It's in the limited release numbers that films tend to prove their merit, and director Felix Van Groeningen's Beautiful Boy has more than done a decent job of proving that it was more than a film festival hit. With this past weekend's opening in four theaters, it has officially become Amazon Studios' highest grossing per-screen average to date. Are Oscars not too far behind?

With "A Rainy Day in New York" Being Shelved, is this the End of Woody Allen's Career?

Woody Allen

Whether or not you like him, there is one thing apparent: Woody Allen is one of the most prolific filmmakers of the past 50 years. With limited exceptions, he has stuck a movie-a-year release schedule since the 1970's and has earned four Oscars for his writing and a Best Picture win for the romantic comedy Annie Hall. With all of this said, he has once again fallen under fire for an old scandal regarding sexual allegations against his daughter Dylan Farrow. With the Me Too and Time's Up movements causing The Academy to kick out other members with notorious reputations Harvey Weinstein and Roman Polanski, one has to wonder if Allen's days are numbered. Considering that Amazon has shelved his next film, A Rainy Day in New York, and his previous film, Wonder Wheel, was a legitimate Failed Oscar Campaign contender, it does seem like maybe just maybe this is the end of his career.

A24 A-to-Z: #33. "The Adderall Diaries" (2016)

Scene from The Adderall Diaries

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

Review: "Call Me By Your Name" is the Best Love Story of 2017

It starts with a stare. Elio (Timothee Chalamet) looks down as house guest Oliver (Armie Hammer) arrives. He is one of many men that have come to the countryside to stay with his father (Michael Stuhlbarg). However, there is something that goes unspoken; something that shines in the antagonistic play between these two young men who constantly try to impress each other. Director Luca Guadagnino's Call Me By Your Name is a confident love story that tackles a different kind of LGBT story. It's one of the bisexual, eager to make the most of his first major love. It's rarely spoken, but found in the stares that Elio and Oliver share throughout the film. It may be a relatively simple story, but it's also one of the truest of the year. Love is difficult not because of what's said, but what's felt.