Nolan Performs a Timely Stealth Mission with the Official "Tenet" Trailer

Scene from Tenet (2020)

In case you haven't been to the theaters in the past six months, you'll be surprised to know that Christopher Nolan has a new movie coming out next year. In a move that's largely unprecedented, the first teaser for Tenet premiered in theaters and miraculously avoided any official version on the internet. Even if it didn't generate a consistent buzz, it at least managed to create a need to be at a certain place at a certain time and wonder in ways that most movie marketing won't allow in this day and age. After months of guessing what this movie is about, it's finally revealed an official trailer on the internet. The issue is that while some questions about what Tenet is have been answered, several more have only begun to surface. It's a Nolan trailer, and that means you'll want to watch this a few times before making up your mind on what's going on.

R.I.P. Joseph Bologna (1934-2017)

Joseph Bologna

On August 13, 2017, actor and writer Joseph Bologna died in Duarte, California at the age of 82 from pancreatic cancer. He has had a lengthy career starring in movies and TV for over 40 years. Among his most recognized work is My Favorite Year: a comedy that parodied the real life shenanigans of Errol Flynn. He also wrote the script, which earned him an Oscar nomination. Beyond that, he remained active wherever he could, finding interesting projects to keep him busy. No matter what he did, he brought his own personal spin to things, and cinema was always better for it. He will be missed but never forgotten.

"45 Years" Star Charlotte Rampling Has a Controversial Take on "Oscars So White"

Charlotte Rampling in 45 Years

It has been quite a week for the Oscars So White movement. What started with Jada Pinkett Smith's promise of boycotting (her husband Will wasn't too far behind) and even the potential absence of Mark Ruffalo, has evolved into a circus of everyone's own personal racial views. While it is nice to hear the conversation leaning more towards progressive views, one cannot disqualify some shocking comments that go against the grain, as is the case with Charlotte Rampling. After achieving a much deserved Best Actress Oscar nomination for her role in director Andrew Haigh's 45 Years, she has added her voice to the movement, and it doesn't go the way that almost everyone else this week has. In fact, you'll be forgiven for actually turning against her once you read her comments.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Dark Knight Rises" (2012)

Christian Bale in The Dark Knight Rises

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.

The First Trailer for "Youth" Explores the Speculative Beauty of Life

Scene from Youth

In 2013, director Paolo Sorrentino won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film with The Great Beauty. It was a film that swept awards season with its moving portrait of artists in Italy and the study of its significance. Two years later, he returns to cinema with a film that received rave reviews from Cannes and has already followed in similar reputation to that of its predecessor. Youth is a film that, as its title suggests, plans to explore the mesmerizing qualities of youth. While it is unsure if the film will be as acclaimed or as successful as its predecessor, the first trailer has hit the web, and it at least looks to be a very powerful study of aging.

Review: "Interstellar" is a Heady Trip Through Space with a Few Bumps Along the Way

There is a moment in the first hour of director Christopher Nolan's space epic Interstellar that achieves something awe-inspiring. It is the enviable quality to overwhelm the senses while transgressing story and creating something beautiful. As Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) drives away from his family, who he may never see again, there's focus on him driving away spliced with scenes of his fate, a space shuttle, taking off. The symbolism is rich and covers so much ground without telling too much about Cooper's psyche. The moment is replicated a few minutes later as scientist Professor Brand (Michael Caine) reads a Dylan Thomas piece over the vast empty wasteland of space. Despite a slow beginning and an arbitrary plot progression, the moments became warranted quickly with some of the most beautiful, artistic directions that Nolan has ever gone in. It felt that for a moment like he would make the ultimate space epic, at least since 2001: A Space Odyssey (though probably more lowbrow). The issue is that once the film hit this high, it failed to maintain it and by the conclusion, it turned into something of a mess. The lofty goals that were laid out now served as ridiculous themes unable to be worked out logically. Interstellar is a flawed epic full of wonderful moments that tragically lose sight in the final 40 minutes.

"Interstellar" is Set to Be Nolan's Longest Movie Yet

After the warm-up from September, next week marks the official launch of Oscar season with Gone Girl. It is an exciting time to be preparing for an intense movie season in which the big shots come out to play (but don't forget about The Boxtrolls tomorrow). Among them is a familiar name of a director who has had quite a career that in many ways makes many consider him a potential Steven Spielberg or Stanley Kubrick of this generation (I'm not as high on hyperbole about him). I am talking about director Christopher Nolan's Interstellar, which is probably his most ambitious film to date. With gorgeous trailers that look straight out of the TV series Cosmos, one can only hope that this film delivers. However, there is one thing for sure. Regardless on quality, this will be his longest film to date.

The "Interstellar" Trailer Shows the Return of the Mysterious, Exciting Nolan

If there is one truth to be made, I am a huge fan of director Christopher Nolan. While I admit that The Dark Knight Rises was a conflicting conclusion to the trilogy, he knows how to execute an engrossing story. After two years from the scene and free from dealing with Batman, we have his follow-up: Interstellar. Up until last week, very little was known about the film except of Matthew McConaughey driving through a corn field. With the launch of the trailer, we have definitive ideas of what to expect this Fall from the director, and it looks great.