Zack Robidas in Trailer for Virtual Reality Sci-Fi Thriller 'Empathy Inc.'

"Walk a mile in the shoes of the less fortunate, and when you wake up, no matter what problems you have in your real life – feel that much better." Dark Star Pictures has debuted an official trailer for a rad indie sci-fi thriller titled Empathy, Inc., from writer/director Yedidya Gorsetman (of Jammed previously). This first premiered at Cinepocalypse last year, and also played at the Brooklyn Horror Festival, plus Austin and Philadelphia Film Festivals. Empathy, Inc. is about an investor in a VR startup – using a technology called "Xtreme Virtual Reality" – who discovers that the reality the company provides isn't so virtual. Not entirely original, but a cool idea anyway. Starring Zack Robidas, Kathy Searle, Jay Klaitz, Eric Berryman, AJ Cedeno, Charmaine Reedy, Fenton Lawless, Anthony Mangano, and Karen Lynn Gorney. This has such a nifty, lo-fi look and feel – like Pi or Primer, mashed up together with virtual reality and startups.

Here's the official trailer (+ posters) for Yedidya Gorsetman's Empathy Inc., direct from YouTube:

Hotshot venture capitalist Joel has a multimillion-dollar deal go up in smoke, and he and his actress wife Jessica are forced to move in with her parents and start from scratch. At the lowest and most desperate moment in his life, Joel meets old friend Nicolaus and his business partner Lester, who are seeking investors in a new technology known as XVR—Xtreme Virtual Reality—from their company Empathy, Inc., which is said to offer the most realistic and moving experiences for users by placing them in the lives of the less fortunate. Joel gets the startup its funds but soon discovers that the tech's creators have far more sinister uses in store for their creation and that the reality it provides its customers isn't virtual. Empathy Inc. is directed by New York-based filmmaker Yedidya Gorsetman, his second feature film after making Jammed previously. The screenplay is written by Gorsetman and Mark Leidner. This premiered at the Cinepocalypse Film Festival last year. Dark Star Pictures will release Empathy Inc. in select US theaters starting September 13th, then on VOD starting September 24th this fall. Anyone into this? Thoughts?

Read More

First Official Trailer for Craig Zobel's 'The Hunt' Starring Betty Gilpin

"So it's true - we're being hunted." Universal has finally debuted the first full trailer for the new "The Most Dangerous Game"-inspired thriller The Hunt, the latest by clever filmmaker Craig Zobel (of Compliance, Z for Zachariah). This project has been kept secret for a while, even while in production, but now they've revealed what it's about. There's a manor where "elites" go to hunt other humans for sport. However, this time, one of the 12 people being hunted knows the game better than the hunters, and starts to fight back. Betty Gilpin stars as Crystal, with an ensemble cast including Ike Barinholtz, Emma Roberts, Justin Hartley, Glenn Howerton, Amy Madigan, Macon Blair, Steve Coulter, Ethan Suplee, and Hilary Swank. This looks way more humorous, and packed with way more social commentary, than expected but it still looks awesome. Can't wait to watch Gilpin get some sweet, sweet brutal revenge on these rich assholes.

Here's the first full-length trailer for Craig Zobel's The Hunt, direct from Universal's YouTube:

You can view the first "Hunting at the Manor" teaser for The Hunt here, to see that reveal again.

Twelve strangers wake up in a clearing. They don’t know where they are, or how they got there. They don't know they've been chosen… for a very specific purpose… The Hunt. In the shadow of a dark internet conspiracy theory, a group of globalist elites gathers for the very first time at a remote Manor House to hunt humans for sport. But their master plan is about to be derailed because one of the hunted, Crystal (Betty Gilpin), knows The Hunters' game better than they do. She turns the tables on the killers, picking them off, one by one, as she makes her way toward the mysterious woman (Hilary Swank) at the center of it all. The Hunt is directed by American filmmaker Craig Zobel, director of the films Surfacing, Great World of Sound, Compliance, and Z for Zachariah previously. The screenplay is written by Nick Cuse and Damon Lindelof. Produced by Jason Blum, of Blumhouse, along with Damon Lindelof. Universal will release Zobel's The Hunt in theaters everywhere on September 27th this fall. Visit the official website. Who's in?

Read More

First Trailer for Robert Eggers' Phenomenal B&W Film 'The Lighthouse'

"How long have we been on this rock?" A24 has finally revealed the first trailer for The Lighthouse, the second feture film from acclaimed filmmaker Robert Eggers following his horror debut The Witch. This premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in the Directors' Fortnight section and earned rave reviews, many calling it the best film of the Cannes Film Festival this year (here's my glowing review). Robert Pattinson stars as a young apprentice who goes to remote island to tend to the lighthouse with an older, rugged keeper - played by Willem Dafoe. It's a descent into madness as the two remain stuck, alone, on this island as a storm rages over them. This is truly a phenomenal film, I totally flipped for it at Cannes, and I can't wait for everyone to get a glimpse. A masterpiece - every frame is perfection, and the two incredible performances will be remembered forever. Get a first look at the mad B&W film below. There is enchantment in the light.

Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Robert Eggers' The Lighthouse, direct from A24's YouTube:

A hypnotic and hallucinatory tale of two lighthouse keepers on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s. The Lighthouse is directed by acclaimed American filmmaker Robert Eggers, director of the film The Witch previously, and a few other short films. The screenplay is written by Max Eggers and Robert Eggers. Produced by Youree Henley, Lourenço Sant' Anna, Rodrigo Teixeira, and Jay Van Hoy; co-produced by Jeffrey Penman and Michael Volpe. This first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this year in the Directors' Fortnight section (read our review) and will next play at TIFF coming up. A24 will release Eggers' The Lighthouse in select US theaters starting October 18th this fall. Who's excited to see this film?

Read More

The Mona mysteries: Varda’s VAGABOND on the Criterion Channel

DB here:

The Criterion Channel has just posted the latest in our Observations on Film Art series. In this installment I try to analyze Vagabond‘s shrewd and unsettling use of some traditional plot patterns: the road movie, the mystery investigation, and the network narrative. I argue that the orchestration of these patterns encourages us to think about our life choices.

You can watch the film here, and watch the video essay here.

Vagabond is a film I’ve admired since it came out in 1985, and by now it’s something of a classic. Its the original title, Sans toit ni loi (roughly, “Homeless and Lawless”) follows Varda’s habit of rhyming or punning titles: L’Opéra-mouffe, Daguerreotypes, Mur murs , Les Glaneurs et la glaneuse, Visages et villages. The mixture of playfulness and serious themes (homelessness, women’s rights, the struggles of the poor, the importance of ordinary people) makes her work unique. She respects both the problems of our lives and the possibility of finding something to affirm–if only our efforts to help one another. I was reminded of all these qualities by her last film, Varda par Agnès; seeing Vagabond again reminds me how much we miss her.

 

Several of our entries have been devoted to Varda; see the set here. In my view, Vagabond is her masterpiece, but she’s made many fine films, and a lot of them are available for streaming from Criterion.

---

Our entire Observations series is here. Thanks as ever to the Criterion team, especially Peter Becker, Kim Hendrickson, Grant Delin, and John Magary, who did a bang-up editing job. Thanks as well to Erik Gunneson here at UW–Madison.

I discuss Vagabond as an example of ambivalent narration in the Afterword to “The Art Cinema as a Mode of Film Practice,” in Poetics of Cinema, 166-169.

Vagabond (1985).

Read More

Watch: Funky, Space Fighter Pilots Sci-Fi Short Film 'Alpha Squadron'

"Who's up for a round of space beers?" "Space beer! Space beer!" Here's another funky, fun new sci-fi short film from filmmaker Michael Lukk Litwak. We previously featured his other funky sci-fi short The Life & Death of Tommy Chaos & Stacey Danger in 2014, and he's back again with another cool short film. Alpha Squadron is about a group of fighter pilot friends who start to fall apart after one of them leaves to go to grad school. Sound familiar? That same ol' story of friends growing up and growing apart. Starring Sunita Mani, Griffin Newman, Jordan Carlos, Will Dagger, and Sebastian Conelli. Most of the spaceships are miniatures which is why this is so clunky, but also why it's so cool. Always enjoy this kind of unique vibe.

Thanks to Short of the Week for the tip on this. Brief description: "The story of a fighter pilot trying to keep his group of friends together as they grow apart." Alpha Squadron is written and directed by Brooklyn-based filmmaker Michael Lukk Litwak - visit his official website. The VFX are also by Michael Lukk Litwak. He also made the short film The Life & Death of Tommy Chaos & Stacey Danger released in 2014. Featuring cinematography by Matt Morgan. A Yacht Club and Irving Harvey Production. Produced by Joe DePasquale, Jake Ladehoff, Michael Lukk Litwak, and Matt Morgan. For more info on the short film, visit SOTW. For a behind-the-scenes look at how they made this, visit Litwak's website. For more shorts, click here. Thoughts?

Read More

Ben Kinglsey is an Agent in First Trailer for Spy Film 'Spider in the Web'

"There are a lot of people out there who'd do anything to stop me from exposing the truth." Vertical Ent. has unveiled an official trailer for spy drama Spider in the Web, the latest film from Israeli filmmaker Eran Riklis (The Syrian Bride, Lemon Tree, Zaytoun, Shelter). This "riveting new spy drama in the vein of John Le Carré" stars Sir Ben Kingsley as an aging Mossad agent struggling to maintain his relevance. His bond with a younger operative sent to monitor him while he's on a secret mission in the heart of a troubled Europe is a reflection on human relationships as well as "on the Europe of today – fragile, troubled, under constant threats from the outside and in turmoil on the inside." Also starring Monica Bellucci, Makram Khoury, Filip Peeters, and Itay Tiran. This looks like a solid, action-y spy thriller with some big twists, but it also looks rather derivative without anything new to offer. Not much about this seems that interesting.

Here's the first official US trailer for Eran Riklis' Spider in the Web, direct from Vertical's YouTube:

Adereth (Sir Ben Kinsgley), a once-lauded but aging field agent of the Israeli Mossad, is deemed past his prime by his superiors. Convinced that he’s been fabricating intelligence to maintain his relevance, they send a young operative, Daniel (Itay Tiran), to ensure that Adereth does not deviate from his mission to deliver crucial information he claims is waiting for him regarding a chemical weapons sale to a Middle Eastern dictatorship. That tip leads to the enigmatic Angela (Monica Bellucci), who is a target. A lover. An enemy. All? Neither? As the lines of trust are blurred, Adereth realizes the hunter may become the hunted in a world of mirrors and deceit. Spider in the Web is directed by veteran Israeli filmmaker Eran Riklis, of the films Zohar, Vulcan Junction, Pituy, The Syrian Bride, Lemon Tree, The Human Resources Manager, Dancing Arabs, Playoff, Zaytoun, and Shelter previously. The screenplay is by Gidon Maron and Emmanuel Naccache. Vertical will release Riklis' Spider in the Web in select theaters + on VOD starting August 30th.

Read More

Official US Trailer for Mexican Horror Fairytale 'Tigers Are Not Afraid'

"We forget who we are… when things from outside come to get us." Shudder has released a new official US trailer for Mexican horror fairytale film Tigers Are Not Afraid, which first premiered at Fantastic Fest in 2017 and is finally getting a theatrical release this August. The film is both written & directed by Mexican filmmaker Issa López (follow her @IssitaLopez) and she has earned the respect of Guillermo del Toro and Stephen King. "López creates a world that recalls the early films of del Toro, imbued with her own gritty urban spin on magical realism to conjure a wholly unique experience that audiences will not soon forget." It's about a gang of five children trying to survive the horrific violence of the cartels and the ghosts created by the drug war. Starring Paola Lara, Juan Ramón López, and Hanssel Casillas. A worthy discovery.

Here's the official US trailer (+ poster) for Issa López's Tigers Are Not Afraid, direct from YouTube:

A haunting horror fairytale set against the backdrop of Mexico's devastating drug wars, Tigers Are Not Afraid follows a group of orphaned children armed with three magical wishes, running from the ghosts that haunt them and the cartel that murdered their parents. Tigers Are Not Afraid, also known as Vuelven or Siempre vuelven in Spanish, is both written and directed by Mexican filmmaker Issa López, director of the films Efectos secundarios, Casi divas, and Todo Mal previously. This first premiered at Fantastic Fest, Screamfest, and the Morbido Film Fest back in late 2017. Shudder will finally release López's Tigers Are Not Afraid in select US theaters starting August 23rd coming up soon. Worth the wait? Who's still interested?

Read More

Drew Fonteiro in New Trailer for Flipped Ghost Story 'Every Time I Die'

"It's okay! This has happened before." Gravitas has debuted a new trailer for the indie horror film Every Time I Die, which premiered at the Cinquest Film Festival earlier this year. We originally featured a trailer back then, but the film is opening in just a few weeks and they've cooked up another one to watch. The film is a twisted time loop thriller, about a disturbed young man with a mysterious past whose tragic death is just the beginning of his troubles. The big flip with this is that it's told from the perspective of a guy who's dead but appears inside other people, and tries to stop his killer from striking again. Drew Fonteiro stars, with an indie cast including Marc Menchaca, Lia Johnson, Michelle Macedo, and Melissa Macedo. This looks like a cool twist on the usual murder mystery horror films, and it seems like it might be worth a watch.

Here's the latest official trailer (+ poster) for Robi Michael's Every Time I Die, direct from YouTube:

You can still watch the first promo trailer for Michael's Every Time I Die here, to see even more footage.

When Sam (Drew Fonteiro) is murdered in a remote lake, his consciousness begins to travel through the bodies of his friends in an effort to protect them from his killer. This dark passage leads him on a greater journey - discovering his own true identity. Every Time I Die is directed by filmmaker Robi Michael, an editor and producer now making his feature directorial debut with this feature after directing a few other short films previously. The screenplay is written by Gal Katzir and Robi Michael. This initially premiered at the 2019 Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival earlier this year. Gravitas Ventures will debut Michael's Every Time I Die in select theaters + on VOD starting August 9th coming up soon. Who wants to watch this film?

Read More

First Trailer for Stuck-in-a-Cinema Romantic Comedy 'One Last Night'

"Do you think we'll ever get out of here?" "Hopefully not…" ASA Pictures has unveiled an official trailer for a strange indie romantic comedy titled One Last Night, which is the feature directorial debut of filmmaker Anthony Sabet. The film premiered at the Santa Barbara Film Festival last year, though it's only now finally getting a small theatrical + VOD release at the end of this summer. The film is about two people, Alex and Zoe, out on a first date together at the movie theater. But after it's over and they try to leave, they discover they're locked in. Starring Rachele Schank and Luke Brandon Field as the couple. The official synopsis makes it sound like there's something nefarious, but this trailer makes it look super cute and adorable and a little cheesy, as expected. Also starring Brian Baumgartner, Ali Cobrin, & Kelly Stables. Have a look.

Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Anthony Sabet's One Last Night, direct from YouTube:

On their first date, Alex and Zoe (Luke Brandon Field and Rachele Schank) venture out to see a movie at a local movie theater. The film ends and the two become so engaged in a heated discussion that they do not notice the theater closing, leaving them locked inside. Their adventure starts out light and comical as they search for an escape and quickly find themselves falling for one another. Suddenly, a secret is revealed about Alex that abruptly changes Zoe’s perception of the night. Perhaps, their escape room experience was not as accidental as she initially thought. One Last Night is both written and directed by filmmaker Anthony Sabet, making his feature directorial debut after a number of short films previously. This initially premiered at the Santa Barbara Film Festival last year. ASA Pictures will release Sabet's One Last Night in select theaters starting August 16th, then on VOD starting August 20th coming up. Is anyone interested?

Read More

‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ Box Office: Quentin Tarantino Scores His Second Best Opening

Everyone is talking about Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but is everyone seeing Once Upon a Time in Hollywood? The movie opened in second place over the weekend, grossing less than half of its reported production budget and falling short of early expectations. Still, it’s one of Quentin Tarantino‘s best debuts, attendance-wise, even if under the shadow of The Lion King‘s continued dominance at the box office.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood drew about 4.5 million people to its 3,659 locations across America in its first three days. That’s almost as good as Inglourious Basterds a decade ago. Tarantino’s World War II fantasy opened in August 2009 with an audience of 5.1 million folks. Both Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown had better debuts when you consider their per-screen averages given their relatively minimal distribution to just over 1,000 locations.

Here are all of Tarantino’s movies ranked by opening-weekend (or first wide-release opening*) domestic ticket sales:

1. Inglourious Basterds (2009): 5.1 million
2. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019): 4.5 million 
3. Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004): 4 million
4. Django Unchained (2012): 3.74 million
5. Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003): 3.66 million
6. Pulp Fiction (1994): 2.2 million
7. Jackie Brown (1997): 2 million
8. The Hateful Eight (2015): 1.8 million*
9. Death Proof [via Grindhouse] (2007): 1.7 million
10. The Man from Hollywood [via Four Rooms] (1995): 0.1 million
11. Reservoir Dogs (1992): 0.03 million

Neither Four Rooms nor Tarantino’s debut feature, Reservoir Dogs, went wide in their release, while The Hateful Eight began limited then expanded quickly. Pulp Fiction, of course, went on to become the filmmaker’s reigning all-time hit (with total gross adjusted for inflation). And despite being his fourth-best opener, Django Unchained became Tarantino’s second-best domestic success and is number one for his worldwide grosses.

For the curious, here are opening-weekend domestic ticket sales for movies involving Tarantino as a screenwriter but not director:

True Romance (1994): 1 million
Natural Born Killers (1994): 2.7 million
Crimson Tide (1995): 4.3 million
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996): 2.3 million

How did his latest perform compared to how it was tracking? Box Office Pro forecast a better opening for OUATIH back in May, reporting that the “highly anticipated” “ninth film” from Tarantino could make somewhere between $40 – 60 million with a mid-range guess of the equivalent of 5.5 million tickets sold. The reality was at the bottom of that range, which Box Office Pro got closer to last week with a prediction for somewhere between $30 – 50 million and guess of the equivalent of 4.4 million tickets.

Does OUATIH have a chance at a leggy run in theaters? While it’s the talk of the town this week, Tarantino’s latest might not be as hot moving forward. Critical reception averaged very well but still on the lower end of the spectrum for his work. Its score on Rotten Tomatoes (85%) is below those of (in order) Pulp Fiction (92%), Reservoir Dogs (91%), Inglourious Basterds (88%), Jackie Brown (87%), and Django Unchained (86%).

The movie only received a B grade from fans on its opening night via CinemaScore polling. The only movie with a lesser reception from moviegoers was Four Rooms, which wasn’t likely Tarantino’s part’s fault. Both Jackie Brown and The Hateful Eight, which were said to disappoint many fans, also received B grades. Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill Vol. 1, and even Grindhouse got a B+ while Kill Bill Vol. 2, Inglourious Basterds, and Django Unchained got an A-, his highest grade.

Common complaints from people seeing OUATIH over the weekend apparently regard its length, slow spots, and an assumption from Tarantino that everyone knows how the Manson Family murders went down 50 years ago (just check out our explanation of the ending for help). The movie is one of the few Tarantino features to have a lower audience score on Rotten Tomatoes than critic score (Jackie Brown and Kill Bill Vol. 1 are the others), but it also currently has the best IMDb rating after Pulp Fiction and the combined singular cut of Kill Bill.

Where OUATIH might do well is on return viewings by its more satisfied audience members as well as by some of the less certain crowd. Many fans are already seeing the movie multiple times to continue to appreciate its nuances in new ways. Those who aren’t sure what they think and those that return after checking out some of the background and analysis out there will be seeing if they like it better on the second try. A lot of them may wait for later for a revisit, though.

In other box office news, Spider-Man: Far From Home became the first Spider-Man movie to gross more than a billion dollars worldwide (not that Sam Raimi’s trilogy of films isn’t comparable if adjusted for inflation, especially Spider-Man 3). The best thing about that news is that the movie reportedly had to reach that milestone in order for Sony to continue working with Marvel Studios on their Spidey franchise.

The best per-screen average for a new movie was achieved by the beekeeping documentary Honeyland, which also had the best average overall after The Lion King, selling about 3,300 tickets across just two locations. Fellow new docs Mike Wallace is Here and For Sama also debuted well on just a few screens each, while another documentary, Maiden, became the latest nonfiction release to cross the $1 million mark.

Sundance sensation The Farewell continued to perform very well, entering the weekend top 10 for the first time in the family comedy’s third week of release. And still only on fewer than 150 screens. That’s especially noteworthy at a time when the only movies that don’t seem to be falling in time are Disney live-action reimaginings. In addition to The Lion King, Aladdin also held its spot from last weekend and Dumbo actually climbed from 43rd place to 33rd in its 18th week.

Here are the weekend’s top 12 domestic release titles by the estimated number of tickets sold with new and newly wide titles in bold and totals in parentheses:

1. The Lion King – 8.4 million (38.9 million)
2. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood – 4.5 million (4.5 million)
3. Spider-Man: Far From Home – 1.4 million (38.2 million)
4. Toy Story 4 – 1.1 million (43.9 million)
5. Crawl – 0.4 million (3.5 million)
6. Yesterday – 0.33 million (7 million)
7. Aladdin – 0.31 million (38.4 million)
8. Stuber – 0.19 million (2.2 million)
9. Annabelle Comes Home – 0.1731 million (7.7 million)
10. The Farewell – 0.1725 million (0.4 million)
11. The Secret Life of Pets 2 – 0.098 million (17.1 million)
12. Avengers: Endgame – 0.092 million (95.1 million)

All non-forecast box office figures via Box Office Mojo.

The post ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ Box Office: Quentin Tarantino Scores His Second Best Opening appeared first on Film School Rejects.

Read More