Tag: Focus Features

Drive-Away Dolls (2024) | REVIEW

Geraldine Viswanathan and Margaret Qualley in Ethan Coen’s DRIVE-AWAY DOLLS — PHOTO: Focus Features / Universal Pictures (Still image from trailers).

Directed by Ethan Coen — Screenplay by Ethan Coen & Tricia Cooke.

Ethan Coen’s Drive-Away Dolls is set in the late 1990s and the film follows friends Jamie (played by Margaret Qualley) and Marian (played by Geraldine Viswanathan) go on a road trip to Tallahassee, Florida. However, what complicates things is that, due to a misunderstanding, the drive-away car that they are given the keys to a car that three criminals had planned to take and which contains an all-important cargo that they desperately need to get ahold of. As a result, while the more promiscuous Jamie tries to get Marian laid on the way to Tallahassee, criminals are desperately following in their footsteps in an attempt to retrieve what the drive-away car contains.

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The Holdovers (2023) | REVIEW

Paul Giamatti’s Paul Hunham commanding his classroom in Alexander Payne’s THE HOLDOVERS — PHOTO: Focus Features.

Directed by Alexander Payne — Screenplay by David Hemingson.

At least up until now, American filmmaker Alexander Payne reached his current awards-wise zenith with his 2004 effort Sideways (also starring Paul Giamatti), which earned Payne an Oscar, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe award. His positive trend continued with his 2011 and 2013 efforts The Descendants and Nebraska with both being critically acclaimed and the former earning him his second Oscar. That is, however, when he reached his creative nadir as a director with 2017’s Downsizing (starring Matt Damon), which contained an inventive premise about shrinking yourself as a means to combat problems related to overpopulation and global warming. Downsizing was, at best, a mixed bag, and, at worst, a disastrous mess. Despite its strong cast and a fantastic premise, Payne was unable to pull it all together for arguably his most ambitious flick. It makes me happy to be able to report that the latest film in his oeuvre, The Holdovers, is an incredibly charming return to form for the filmmaker in large part thanks to David Hemingson’s sharp writing and the loving performances of three principal cast members.

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Asteroid City (2023) | REVIEW

Jason Schwartzman’s Augie Steenbeck leaning out of a window in Wes Anderson’s ASTEROID CITY — PHOTO: Focus Features / Universal Pictures International.

Directed by Wes Anderson — Screenplay by Wes Anderson — Story by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola.

Everyone who has ever seen one Wes Anderson film knows exactly what a Wes Anderson film looks like. His signature style has made him a lot of fans and admirers over the years, and it has also earned him some notable imitators. Nowadays, with the advent of AI, automatically generated images, and the like, a trend of recreating fake film trailers in the style of Wes Anderson has surfaced. You can now go online and find several videos hyping up fake Wes Anderson-style films with AI-generated images of well-known actors that don’t exactly look right (I even saw one for a fake American adaptation of the iconic Danish Olsen Gang films). With the emergence of such artificiality leading to so many conflicting emotions, might I suggest that you check out the real thing? Asteroid City, Wes Anderson’s eleventh feature-length film, is well worth seeking out. As a matter of fact, I think it might be one of his best. 

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REVIEW: Emma. (2020)

Mia Goth as Harriet Smith (left) and Anya Taylor-Joy as Emma Woodhouse (right) in Autumn de Wilde’s ‘Emma.’ — Photo: Focus Features.

Directed by Autumn de Wilde — Screenplay by Eleanor Catton.

Autumn de Wilde’s feature film directorial debut, Emma., is a romantic-dramedy period piece based on the 1815 Jane Austin novel of the same name, which has been adapted numerous times. Autumn de Wilde’s film takes place in the early 19th Century and it follows its privileged titular character, Emma Woodhouse (played by Anya Taylor-Joy), as she interferes with her friend’s love life. Her friend, the sweet but impressionable Harriet Smith (played by Mia Goth), is attracted to a Mr. Robert Martin (played by Connor Swindells). But, instead, Emma thinks that Harriet should pursue a romantic relationship with the local vicar, Mr. Elton (played by Josh O’Connor), even though it’s clear to everyone except for Emma and Harriet that he is actually attracted to the title character. Continue reading “REVIEW: Emma. (2020)” →

Box Office Predictions – April 2016

Box Office Prediction

MAJOR RELEASES’ OPENING WEEKEND PREDICTIONS:

  • The Jungle Book – Buena Vista / Walt Disney Animation Studios – April 15th, 2016 – $90-110 million
  • The Huntsman: Winter’s War – Universal – April 22nd, 2016 – $35-45 million
  • Keanu – Warner Bros. – April 29th, 2016 – $15-25 million
  • Ratchet & Clank – Focus Features – April 29th, 2016 – $10-18 million

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