More stories

  • in

    ‘Twilight’s Kiss’ Review: A Hidden Romance, Late in Life

    #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main story‘Twilight’s Kiss’ Review: A Hidden Romance, Late in LifeIn this drama, a married taxi driver and a retiree try to find love together.Ben Yuen and Tai Bo in “Twilight’s Kiss.”Credit…Strand ReleasingFeb. 10, 2021, 7:00 a.m. ETTwilight’s KissDirected by Ray YeungDrama1h 32mFind TicketsWhen you purchase a ticket for an independently reviewed film through our site, we earn an affiliate commission.Pak, a 70-year-old Hong Kong taxi driver, fits cruising into his daily routine, away from the eyes of his suspicious wife. Then at a park he meets Hoi, a twinkly-eyed retiree with a dapper mustache, and the two nurture a deeper, tender connection that’s at the heart of “Twilight’s Kiss,” a look at love that comes late and is burdened by a lifetime of hidebound norms.Pak (Tai Bo) and Hoi (Ben Yuen) keep their rendezvous a secret while affectionately fulfilling their duties as fathers and grandfathers. (The film’s original title, “Suk Suk,” is a Cantonese term for older men, or “uncles.”) Instead of pushing for a grand tragic romance, the writer-director, Ray Yeung, lingers on moments of domestic warmth in the men’s lives: whether shopping at the market for a meal at Hoi’s apartment, or separately catching up with their extended families over supper.[embedded content]Pak pulls back from a close relationship because he worries about disturbing the hard-won stability of his family. More open, though also secretive with his family, Hoi finds community at a club for older gay men that’s a place for political advocacy. (The movie was inspired by an oral history about past generations of gay men in Hong Kong.)Handsomely shot but humble in approach, the film can often feel purposeful, laying down groundwork that other stories of queer experience might take for granted. But Tai Bo’s pragmatic momentum as Pak has a way of restoring a succinctness to the movie, which avoids minimizing or exploiting the pains of concealment.Twilight’s KissNot rated. In Cantonese, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 32 minutes. Watch on Film Forum’s Virtual Cinema.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

  • in

    Filmmakers Look at Woody Allen Abuse Allegations in Four-Part Series

    AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyFilmmakers Look at Woody Allen Abuse Allegations in Four-Part SeriesKirby Dick and Amy Ziering are known for films exposing sexual abuse in institutions. Why did they delve into a thorny family tale? “We realized the full story had never gotten out.”Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering spent three years making a documentary that re-examines the allegation that Woody Allen sexually abused his adopted daughter.Credit…Photographs by Rozette Rago for The New York TimesPublished More

  • in

    Viggo Mortensen Spills How Son's Comment About 'X-Men' Script Convinced Him to Turn Down Wolverine

    WENN/Adriana M. Barraza

    During a chat on ‘Happy Sad Confused’ podcast, the ‘Lord of the Rings’ star opens up about his meeting with director Bryan Singer to talk about him taking on the mutant role.

    Feb 10, 2021
    AceShowbiz – “Lord of the Rings” star Viggo Mortensen turned down the chance to play Wolverine in the “X-Men” movies, because he didn’t want to be attached to one character for a decade.
    Mortensen famously met with director Bryan Singer about taking on the role in 2000’s “X-Men”, but admits he came away convinced signing on for multiple movies would be a bad idea.
    “The thing that bothered me at the time was just the commitment of endless movies of that same character over and over,” he told the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast. “I was nervous about that.”
    And Viggo’s comic book-loving son, Henry, helped him make his decision, “I did take Henry to the meeting I had with the director as my sort of good luck charm and guide. In the back of my mind I was thinking he could learn something too, because I did let Henry read the script and he goes, ‘This is wrong, that’s not how it is’.”

      See also…

    Mortensen reveals Singer went out of his way to explain why he was leaving certain things out of the movie, “The rest of the meeting was him explaining in detail to Henry why he was taking certain liberties.”
    And he thinks Henry’s input might have helped in a small way, “There were some things… I mean they straightened most of them out.”
    Viggo has no regrets about passing on the role, because Hugh Jackman picked up the part of Wolverine and the “Eastern Promises” star cannot imagine anyone else doing it better.
    “I think he did great,” he says. “I’m sure no one could imagine anyone doing it better than he did anyway.”
    Jackman played Wolverine in nine movies over 17 years before retiring as the character after 2017’s “Logan”.

    You can share this post!

    Next article
    Kim Kardashian Shares Artworks Kanye West Did as a Child After Blasting Critics of North’s Painting

    Related Posts More

  • in

    John Legend and Diane Warren Double Up Oscars Nomination Chance With 2 Songs on 2021 Shortlist

    Instagram/Adriana M. Barraza

    The final list of nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards will be unveiled on March 15, while its ceremony is set to take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California on April 25

    Feb 10, 2021
    AceShowbiz – John Legend and Diane Warren have doubled up on their chances of scoring Oscar nominations for Best Original Song after each landing two tracks on the 2021 shortlist.
    Officials at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences released the latest contenders for nine categories on Tuesday (February 09), with Warren’s “lo Si (Seen)” from “The Life Ahead” and “Free” from “The One and Only Ivan” both making the Best Original Song cut – giving the prolific songwriter hope of finally claiming gold after previously snagging 11 nominations.
    “Never Break” from “Giving Voice” and “Make It Work” from “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” earn recognition for Legend, who was previously honoured with an Oscar for “Selma” track “Glory”.
    Meanwhile, Leslie Odom Jr.’s “Speak Now” from “One Night in Miami…”, Mary J. Blige’s “See What You’ve Done” from “Belly of the Beast”, and “Judas and the Black Messiah” tune “Fight for You” by H.E.R., Dernst Emile II and Tiara Thomas are also in the running, as are Sacha Baron Cohen’s “Wuhan Flu” from “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” and “Husavik” from “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga”, penned by Savan Kotecha, Rickard Goransson and Fat Max Gsus, Emile Mosseri’s “Rain Song” from “Minari”, Robert Glasper’s “Show Me Your Soul” from “Mr. Soul!”, “Turntables” by Janelle Monae from “All In: The Fight for Democracy”, Daniel Pemberton and Celeste’s “Hear My Voice” from “The Trial of the Chicago 7”, “Green” by Abraham Marder for “Sound of Metal”, and “Mulan” soundtrack “Loyal Brave True” by Jamie Hartman, Harry Gregson-Williams, Rosi Golan and Billy Crabtree complete the 15-strong list.

      See also…

    Meanwhile, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross are inching closer to Oscar nods this year after their work on “Mank” and “Soul”, with Jon Batiste, were added to the Best Original Score shortlist.
    Also vying to make the final nominations announcement are Emile Mosseri for “Minari”, Ludwig Goransson for “Tenet”, Daniel Pemberton for “The Trial of the Chicago 7”, and Alexandre Desplat for “The Midnight Sky”, with soundtracks for “Da 5 Bloods”, “The Invisible Man”, “Ammonite”, “Blizzard of Souls”, “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey”, “The Little Things”, “Mulan”, “News of the World” and “The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se)” making up the rest of the contenders.

    Members of the Academy will now vote on the entries which will land on the final nominations list, which will be unveiled on March 15, ahead of the ceremony on April 25.

    You can share this post!

    Next article
    Viggo Mortensen Spills How Son’s Comment About ‘X-Men’ Script Convinced Him to Turn Down Wolverine

    Related Posts More

  • in

    Jared Leto's Joker Gets Creepy Makeover in First-Look Pics of Zack Snyder's 'Justice League'

    HBO Max/Zack Snyder

    The director also shares details of the sequence in which the Batman villain will appear and its significance to show the Caped Crusader’s hatred toward the Clown Prince of Crime.

    Feb 10, 2021
    AceShowbiz – After teased by Zack Snyder on his social media page, the first official look at Jared Leto’s Joker in his upcoming version of “Justice League” has been unveiled in full. Courtesy of Vanity Fair, the two pictures reveal the character’s creepy transformation.
    The first of the black-and-white snaps give a close-up look at Joker’s face, which appears to have some scratches on the forehead, below his eye and his chin area. Another image gives an eerie vibe as it shows the Batman villain looking fully insane while sitting in a long, narrow space.

    He sports long hair which is slicked back and left hanging on his shoulders, while wearing a hospital gown, which appears to be badly stained. He also wears surgical gloves while sitting on a stool, which is the only furniture seen in the plain room.

      See also…

    Leto’s Joker also sports a bulletproof vest festooned with grimy law enforcement badges. “He has tons of badges,” according to Snyder, who describes the badges as “his trophies.”
    Speaking to the site, Snyder admits that adding Joker to the movie has always been one of his main obsessions when he’s offered a chance to complete his own take on the 2017 movie. “The Joker is really the only thing that I thought of in retrospect,” he says. “But I will say that it was always my intention to bring Joker into that world.”
    [SPOILER ALERT!] In “The Snyder Cut”, Leto’s Joker will appear in a dream sequence set on a ruined Earth after the alien tyrant Darkseid invades and decimates the planet. It is Bruce Wayne’s (Ben Affleck) dream that reveals what will happen if the superheroes fail to stop the onslaught.
    “The cool thing about the scene is that it’s Joker talking directly to Batman about Batman,” Snyder says of the scene and its significance. “It’s Joker analyzing Batman about who he is and what he is. That’s the thing I also felt like fans deserved from the DC Universe. That is to say, the Jared Leto Joker and the Ben Affleck Batman, they never really got together. It seemed uncool to me that we would make it all the way through this incarnation of Batman and Joker without seeing them come together.”
    He continues, “The scene explains why Bruce had the Joker card taped to his gun that you see in ‘Batman v Superman’,” which suggests Batman’s sidekick Robin’s death at the hands of Joker. While noting that there won’t be another Batman film by him, Snyder says he always wanted to show “how they became like this … how he hurt him in a way that no one has, really. Other than losing his parents, it was probably the most significant personal injury to his life.”
    “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” is set to be released on HBO Max on March 18.

    You can share this post!

    Next article
    Priyanka Chopra ‘Devastated and Hopeless’ Following Her Botched Nose Surgery

    Related Posts More

  • in

    Octavia Spencer Joins Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell in New 'Christmas Carol' Adaptation

    WENN

    The ‘Fruitvale Station’ actress has been added to the cast ensemble of the upcoming big-screen adaptation of the classic holiday story by the famed Charles Dickens.

    Feb 10, 2021
    AceShowbiz – Octavia Spencer is set to join Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell in “Spirited” – a new take on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”.
    The Oscar-winning actress has joined the cast of the Apple TV+ movie, which will update and reimagine the classic story as a musical.
    The project is helmed by Sean Anders and John Morris, who are directing from their own screenplay. The duo have previously collaborated with Will on the 2015 movie “Daddy’s Home”.
    Insiders suggest that Reynolds will play the Scrooge-like lead who receives visits from the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future while Ferrell is expected to play Present.

      See also…

    Spencer is apparently close to a deal to play Ryan’s good-natured co-worker who helps Present teach the man kindness during the festive season. She is expected to do her own singing in the AppleTV+ flick.
    Anders and Morris are producing the movie with Will’s Gloria Sanchez banner, Ryan’s production company Maximum Effort and Mosaic.
    The holiday story has been adapted many times for film, stage, and opera. One comedy movie fronted by Bill Murray came out in 1988 and a musical featuring Colin Baker was released in 2015. There was also a 2009 animated movie starring the likes of Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, and Robin Wright.
    Meanwhile, Octavia Spencer was last seen in movie “The Witches” which is led by Anne Hathaway in 2020. She also lent her voice to Robert Downey Jr.’s “Dolittle”, Tom Holland and Chris Pratt’s “Onward”, and Melissa McCarthy’s “Superintelligence”.
    Her other next movie releases include superhero comedy “Thunder Force” and sci-fi thriller “Invasion”.

    You can share this post!

    Next article
    Westlife Leaves Record Label as They Announce New Album More

  • in

    ‘Eurovision Song Contest’ and ‘Borat’ Advance to the Oscar Shortlist

    #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }Awards SeasonNetflix’s First Winner?Our Best Movie PicksNew Diversity RulesOscar-Winning DocumentariesAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main story‘Eurovision Song Contest’ and ‘Borat’ Advance to the Oscar ShortlistThe films’ tunes made the cut for original song. Shortlists for documentary, international feature and six other categories were also released.The original song category includes “Husavik,” from the Rachel McAdams-Will Ferrell comedy,  “Eurovision Song Contest.”Credit…John Wilson/NetflixFeb. 9, 2021, 6:00 p.m. ET“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” and “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga” inched one step closer to being Oscar nominees on Tuesday when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced its shortlists for nine categories.“Wuhan Flu,” from the “Borat” sequel, and “Husavik,” from the Will Ferrell comedy about the European contest, advanced in the original song category along with 13 other tunes. Some 92 songs, including “Just Sing” from “Trolls World Tour,” didn’t make the cut.Members of the various branches will vote March 5-9 to determine the final five nominees. Oscar nominations will be announced on March 15.In the documentary feature category, 238 films in contention were whittled down to 15. Favorites still in the mix include Netflix’s “Dick Johnson Is Dead” “Crip Camp” and “My Octopus Teacher.” Also, in contention are Amazon’s “All In: The Fight for Democracy” and “MLK/FBI.” Neither Netflix’s popular “The Social Dilemma” nor Bryan Fogel’s “The Dissident,” about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, made the list.In the international feature category, 93 countries submitted films, the most ever, but only 15 now remain. “Another Round,” from Denmark, has been an early favorite and made narrowed list. The film, from director Thomas Vinterberg, stars Mads Mikkelsen as a high school teacher in the midst of a midlife crisis. Also popular is the Polish director Agnieszka Holland’s “Charlatan,” which was submitted by the Czech Republic.Voters from all branches of the academy are eligible to vote on the international feature category but are required to meet a minimum viewing requirement to do so. The group chose films from around the world, including the Ivory Coast (“Night of the Kings”), Guatemala (“La Llorona”) and Tunisia (“The Man Who Sold His Skin”).The academy also released shortlists for the short film categories, hair and makeup, visual effects and original score. For those contenders, go to oscars.org. Here are the shortlists for original song, documentary feature and international feature.Original Song“Turntables” (from “All In: The Fight for Democracy”)“See What You’ve Done” (“Belly of the Beast”)“Wuhan Flu” (“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”)“Husavik” (“Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga”)“Never Break” (“Giving Voice”)“Make It Work” (“Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey”)“Fight For You” (“Judas and the Black Messiah”)“Lo Sì (Seen)” (“The Life Ahead”)“Rain Song” (“Minari”)“Show Me Your Soul” (“Mr. Soul!”)“Loyal Brave True” (“Mulan”)“Free” (“The One and Only Ivan”)“Speak Now” (“One Night in Miami”)“Green” (“Sound of Metal”)“Hear My Voice” (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”)Documentary Feature“All In: The Fight for Democracy”“Boys State”“Collective”“Crip Camp”“Dick Johnson Is Dead”“Gunda”“MLK/FBI”“The Mole Agent”“My Octopus Teacher”“Notturno”“The Painter and the Thief”“76 Days”“Time”“The Truffle Hunters”“Welcome to Chechnya”International FeatureBosnia and Herzegovina, “Quo Vadis, Aida?”Chile, “The Mole Agent”Czech Republic, “Charlatan”Denmark, “Another Round”France, “Two of Us”Guatemala, “La Llorona”Hong Kong, “Better Days”Iran, “Sun Children”Ivory Coast, “Night of the Kings”Mexico, “I’m No Longer Here”Norway, “Hope”Romania, “Collective”Russia, “Dear Comrades!”Taiwan, “A Sun”Tunisia, “The Man Who Sold His Skin”AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

  • in

    Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz Gave Up Oscar Nomination for 'The Favourite' Co-Star Olivia Colman

    Fox Searchlight Pictures

    According to Olivia Colman, her co-stars in the 2018 royal movie declined being nominated for Best Actress at the 2019 Academy Awards because they felt she deserved the nod.

    Feb 10, 2021
    AceShowbiz – Olivia Colman’s “The Favourite” co-stars Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz secretly declined being nominated for a Best Actress Oscar because they felt she deserved the trophy.
    The three actresses starred together in the 2018 drama, and although they were all leading ladies, only Olivia received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress – which she won for her role as Queen Anne – whilst both Emma and Rachel, who played Abigail Masham and Lady Sarah Churchill respectively, were put up for Best Supporting Actress.
    And now, Olivia has revealed her co-stars – who both lost out in the Best Supporting Actress category – actively chose not to put themselves forward for a Best Actress nomination because they believed Olivia deserved the gong the most.
    She told Total Film magazine, “What I didn’t realise for the Oscars was that you are meant to say what category you want to go up for. I went: ‘No, that’s rude. I’m not doing that.’ ”
    “And also because I felt that we were all three equal people – Emma, me and Rachel were three equals. I said: ‘If they can’t change it so that we can all be equals, then I don’t want to do it, because it’s not right.’ ”

      See also…

    “So I refused to say it. I said: ‘We can either all go up for lead, or all go up for supporting.’ ”
    Explaining the kind deed her co-stars had done in secret, she then explained, “But then what I didn’t realise … someone let slip that Emma and Rachel had both decided – which makes me feel quite emotional – that they would go supporting to make me go lead, because they said they’d both had it, so it was my turn.”
    “Isn’t that amazing? That’s two incredible friends. I said I was not doing it unless we could all be equal. So they ignored me, and did something selfless and charitable.”
    Rachel had previously taken home an Oscar in 2006 for Best Supporting Actress in “The Constant Gardener” while Emma won Best Actress for “La La Land” in 2017.
    And this year could see another big win for 47-year-old Olivia, who is up for two Golden Globes and two SAG Awards for her work in Netflix hit “The Crown” – in which she plays Queen Elizabeth II – and “The Father”.
    The Academy are set to announce the nominees for the 2021 Oscars ceremony on March 15.

    You can share this post!

    Next article
    ‘Bridgerton’ Author Hopes for More Racy Scenes Between Phoebe Dynevor and Rege-Jean Page in Season 2

    Related Posts More