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      Will Ferrell-Harper Steele Documentary Drops on Netflix

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      Will Ferrell and Harper Steele, a former “Saturday Night Live” writer, use a road trip to navigate their relationship now that she is out as a trans woman.The road movie is a time-honored Hollywood genre, and it’s a good format for a documentary, too. Something about getting in a car and driving down the interstate feels quintessentially American and holds the potential for revelation. I’ve seen plenty that serve up only pablum about finding common ground and tolerating each other. But a country so full of contrasts and contradictions is excellent fodder for whoever is holding the camera.“Will & Harper” (streaming on Netflix) is a surprisingly insightful entry into the category. Directed by Josh Greenbaum (who has made comedies like “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” among other things), the documentary begins like any conventional road movie might: Two old friends get in a car on the East Coast and point their headlights west.But these are no ordinary friends. Will is Will Ferrell, the comedian and star. Harper is Harper Steele, one of Ferrell’s oldest friends, dating all the way back to their days at “Saturday Night Live,” where they started the same week in 1995. Ferrell, of course, was a performer. Steele was a writer from 1995 to 2008; for four of those years, she was the show’s head writer.In 2021, Steele sent an email to a close circle of friends, coming out as a trans woman. Ferrell, seeking to support her, proposed they go on a road trip across the country, during which he could navigate his relationship with Steele and they could also explore America. What would they learn? They’d find out.The result, unsurprisingly, is very funny. These are two top comedy minds, and Ferrell, at least, is among America’s most recognizable celebrities, no matter what color the state. Steele, on the other hand, is dealing with a new reality. When she was younger, she. had traveled across America, but as a trans woman she encounters a different landscape. Ferrell is there as a companion and, at some points, a defender. Being a trans woman in America can draw a wide variety of responses from others.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      NewJeans’s Complaints Against Hybe Brings Scrutiny to K-Pop’s New Releases

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      The breakout girl group went public with complaints against its parent company, Hybe, which has just released a new TV series and film about the control it exerts over stars.A huge part of the success of NewJeans — the most creatively promising new K-pop act of the past two years — has been its music videos: stylistically sophisticated, vividly colorful, palpably joyful. Starting with music that deploys top-shelf songwriting buoyed by production savvy about global microtrends, the group developed a singular aesthetic to go with it, drawing equally from high fashion, lived-in nostalgia and contemporary cuteness.So it was striking when, a couple of weeks ago, the group released a video performance unlike any that preceded it. In a live broadcast on a burner YouTube account, the group’s five members — Danielle, Haerin, Hanni, Hyein and Minji — spoke for almost 30 minutes about their dissatisfaction with their parent company, Hybe. They particularly focused on how it had de-emphasized the role of the group’s executive producer, Min Hee-jin, in their work.Here was a group putting its external image and its internal leverage at risk to argue for their creative lives. It is an infrequent scenario at this level in K-pop, a genre and business in which careful choreography — of music, visuals and star behavior — is crucial to the power of the art.This livestream, of course, was as art directed as any of the group’s technicolor music videos. The members dressed largely in black, speaking softly in an anonymous office. Out in the world, NewJeans is vibrant, dynamic and approachably fun; in this clip, which some fans speculated was secretly orchestrated by Min, the members were reduced to spiritless cogs, as if trapped and suffocated by the corporation itself.Min Hee-jin, NewJeans’ executive producer, called a news conference in April to dispute accusations of corporate malfeasance by her employer, Hybe.Chung Sung-Jun/Getty ImagesFor almost as long as K-pop has been a global force, it has been an exemplar of the controversial virtues of top-down control. American pop labels essentially abandoned this mode more than a decade ago, following the boy band and Britney-Christina era. The influence of social media in creating bottom-up hits and stars has all but invalidated the label-knows-best mode of creation. But K-pop’s commitment to that ethic persists, and has made exactitude into an artistic virtue.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘We Will Dance Again’ Review: Remembering Oct. 7

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      In this documentary by Yariv Mozer, Israelis who attended the Nova music festival near the Gaza border describe how they survived the attack last year.“We Will Dance Again” reconstructs the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7 from the perspectives of attendees of the Nova music festival. At least 360 people were killed at the event that was near the border with Gaza, according to Israeli authorities. Directed by Yariv Mozer, this documentary opens with an acknowledgment of the fraught subject matter. “The human cost of the Hamas massacre in Israel and the war that followed in Gaza has been catastrophic for both Israelis and Palestinians,” the text says. Citing death tolls from both sides of the conflict, it adds, “This film cannot tell everyone’s story.”That caveat also hints at why assessing “We Will Dance Again” as a movie is so difficult. Impassioned viewers will undoubtedly have their own opinions, and it would be disingenuous to say that a film released in advance of the attack’s anniversary — and in the middle of an active war — could somehow be seen apart from the divisive politics surrounding the region.Through phone videos, interviews with festivalgoers and, eventually, footage attributed to Hamas fighters, “We Will Dance Again” assembles a timeline of how the attack was experienced at the festival, where people had gathered to attend a multiday rave. Some remember spotting rocket fire as the sun rose on the morning of Oct. 7. “Wow, Lali, there’s fireworks!” one interviewee, Liel Shitrit, known as Lali, quotes a friend as saying. “They really went all out this year!” Soon after, over images of streaks in the sky, we hear an off-camera voice speculate that “the drugs are kicking in.”But the interviewees explain how the reality of the situation became clear. As the film’s narrative unfolds, we hear from witnesses like Noa Beer, who recounts a harrowing escape by car and a call to the police, who she says didn’t yet understand the situation. Elinor Gambarian, a single mother, hid inside a refrigerator.Two of the interviewees, Eitan Halley and Ziv Abud, recall a grenade attack on a roadside shelter where they had taken refuge; both commend efforts by Aner Shapira, who was killed, to toss back grenades before they exploded. Halley says he saw Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was taken hostage by Hamas and whose body was later recovered, in the immediate aftermath of the blast.While the fluid editing of such disparate source material is impressive, some of Mozer’s aesthetic choices tend to cheapen the testimonies. (The rave-like electronic scoring as Shitrit describes looking for circling birds to see where gunfire was coming from seems particularly unnecessary.) But if the shock of that day’s violence has faded after a year, “We Will Dance Again” aims to keep it visible, and to memorialize it viscerally.We Will Dance AgainNot rated. In Hebrew, English and Arabic, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes. Watch on Paramount+. More

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      ‘Happy Clothes’ Review: Patricia Field Doc Is Pleasantly Chaotic

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      “Happy Clothes” covers her work on “Emily in Paris” and “Sex and the City,” as well as her time as a tastemaker in the 1970s and ’80s underground.Patricia Field likes, as she puts it, “happy clothes.” If you’ve seen her work, you get it; if you’ve watched TV, you have probably seen her work. The fashion maven is one of the most celebrated and influential costume designers of the past three decades, with “Emily in Paris,” “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Sex and the City” among her credits. Michael Selditch’s new documentary, “Happy Clothes: A Film About Patricia Field” (in theaters and on demand), follows Field as she works on the second season of the Starz comedy “Run the World,” but the feature is really a celebration of her long career.A movie like this can head in a lot of directions, and a possible weakness of “Happy Clothes” is that it tries to go in all of them. There are conversations with Field’s friends and collaborators, including the “Devil Wears Prada” director David Frankel, the “Sex and the City and “Emily in Paris” creator Darren Star, and the actresses Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall and Lily Collins. Field’s work in the past as the owner of a well-known boutique that bears her name comes to life through archival footage and interviews, while observational images show her working with assistants, shopping for pieces and going to sets.There’s just a lot here. But with a subject like Field, the mild chaos feels pleasantly appropriate. Her taste runs toward the conspicuous and bold, and several interviewees — particularly Parker, who became a fashion icon partly because of her willingness to wear anything Field selected — note that her choices can be shocking at first. Prints and patterns, gems and silhouettes, neons and bold accessories: You never really know what you’ll get when you work with Field.But that’s why people love her. Her style, as she says, is happy. “I like clothes that don’t die,” she explains, a statement that reveals she’s always thinking about longevity. Field is amazingly energetic — her 80th birthday approaches as the film begins — and she’s interested only in the future, telling someone at one point that she doesn’t keep an archive because she’s always looking forward.It’s probably ironic, then, that the most illuminating element of “Happy Clothes” is a sequence in which her taste now is linked to her history as a central figure in New York’s underground culture of the 1970s and 1980s. Former employees and customers attest to what it meant to have a place — her store — where they could be unapologetically queer or trans or just interested in fashion, where they didn’t have to hide their identities. Field was ahead of her time in more ways than one, and this history suggests that she has been practicing an exuberant joy her whole career. That, “Happy Clothes” says, is her real legacy. More

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      The Life of Chuck’ Wins Toronto Film Festival’s People’s Choice Award

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      This adaptation of a Stephen King novella stars Tom Hiddleston, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Mark Hamill. “The Substance” and a Tragically Hip documentary also won.“The Life of Chuck,” a cosmic story of accounting and life’s mysteries adapted from a Stephen King novella, won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday. Winners often go on to best picture nominations at the Oscars or even, as in the case of “Green Book” and “Nomadland,” to take the top Academy Award.Told in reverse chronological order and closer in tone to the King adaptation “Stand by Me,” “The Life of Chuck” opens as the world seems about to end. Amid phenomena like enormous sinkholes and television blackouts, ads thanking Charles Krantz (Tom Hiddleston) for his service are everywhere, puzzling denizens played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillan and Carl Lumbly. The film, which also stars Mark Hamill and features a much talked about dance sequence with Hiddleston, was written and directed by Mike Flanagan, who’s no stranger to King’s work: “Gerald’s Game” and “Doctor Sleep” are among his credits. “The Life of Chuck” doesn’t have a release date yet.The festival announced other People’s Choice winners on Sunday. In the Midnight Madness section, devoted to genre titles, the prize went to “The Substance,” written and directed by Coralie Fargeat. That horror film, which won best screenplay at Cannes, stars Demi Moore as an aging actress who takes the mysterious elixir of the title, giving birth to a youthful version of herself played by Margaret Qualley. “The Substance” is due in theaters on Sept. 20.In the documentary section, the People’s Choice award went to “The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal,” centered on the Canadian band’s final concert. The docuseries was directed by Mike Downie, brother of the band’s lead singer, Gord Downie, who died at 53 of brain cancer. The series is expected to be released on Amazon Prime Video later in the fall. More

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      39 Movies to See This Fall: ‘Joker’ Sequel, Bob Dylan Biopic and More

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      From the “Joker” sequel and Timothée Chalamet’s Bob Dylan biopic to a handful of festival darlings, it’s a jam-packed season. Plan accordingly.From an outsize Francis Ford Coppola passion project to a “Joker” follow-up that multiplies the madness by two, the fall movie calendar is going big. Reducing it to a select list of noteworthy titles was a daunting task. Alongside major releases, including sequels to “Gladiator” and “Moana,” we’ve included a large number of films that earned acclaim at this year’s festivals. Many other titles haven’t yet settled on release dates. (All dates and platforms are subject to change.)September‘A DIFFERENT MAN’ Sebastian Stan won best lead performance at the Berlin Film Festival for his turn as an actor with a facial disfigurement. As he pines for a new neighbor (Renate Reinsve), a playwright, he undergoes an experimental treatment. Aaron Schimberg directed this offbeat comedy, featuring Adam Pearson as the Stan character’s rival. (Sept. 20; in theaters)‘THE SUBSTANCE’ In what would make an excellent Sept. 20 double feature with “A Different Man,” Demi Moore plays an aging actress reduced to fitness guru-dom who undergoes an experimental treatment of her own. A mysterious injection will divide her into, essentially, two people. Margaret Qualley plays her counterpart. Coralie Fargeat, who wrote and directed, won the screenplay prize at Cannes. (Sept. 20; in theaters)‘WOLFS’ George Clooney and Brad Pitt mastered the art of smooth teamwork over three “Ocean’s” movies, but in this action comedy, their characters — two fixers who wind up on the same job — are initially at loggerheads. Amy Ryan also stars. Jon Watts (“Spider-Man: No Way Home”) wrote and directed. (Sept. 20 in theaters, Sept. 27 on Apple TV+)‘LEE’ The celebrated photojournalist Lee Miller got a shoutout in “Civil War” earlier this year. Now she gets a biopic, with Kate Winslet in the role. Josh O’Connor, Andrea Riseborough and Andy Samberg co-star. Ellen Kuras, best known for her work as a cinematographer, directed. (Sept. 27; in theaters)‘MEGALOPOLIS’ Francis Ford Coppola’s first feature since 2011 is a project he’s been talking up for more than 40 years. In an amalgam of contemporary New York and ancient Rome, Adam Driver plays an urban-planning visionary who at various points evokes Robert Moses, Ayn Rand’s Howard Roark and Coppola himself. (Sept. 27; in theaters)We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Can a Film Say Something New About the U.S.-Mexico Border Crisis?

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      “Borderland: The Line Within” takes a surprisingly multidisciplinary approach fueled by both personal history and government data.Some of the devastating information presented in the new film “Borderland: The Line Within” (in theaters) is familiar from recent documentaries. Filmmakers concerned with the humanitarian crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border understand how the camera can draw attention to what news reports and punditry miss: the human cost of government policies and law enforcement practices. Putting faces on abstract numbers activates empathy in a way no speech ever really can.“Borderland: The Line Within” examines this terrain a little differently. The director Pamela Yates does focus on individuals — two in particular. The first is Kaxh Mura’l, a Mayan man whom Yates knew from a previous documentary set in Guatemala. As the film opens, Mura’l is receiving death threats for his environmental activism there. If he can make it to the United States, he will qualify for legal asylum. But as the film shows, he struggles to be permitted due to obstructive border enforcement practices. His is a Kafka-esque tale with urgent and crucial stakes.The other subject is Gabriela Castañeda, an undocumented immigrant and mother whose status as a Dreamer under the DACA program was suddenly revoked. Castañeda is certain that the move is related to her activism on behalf of the Border Network for Human Rights. If she were detained, it would mean leaving her children alone.Seeing Mura’l and Castañeda’s stories unfold is powerful and often infuriating. But what really bolsters the film’s argument are the other figures in the documentary. In one sequence, hidden cameras capture immigration enforcement agents destroying gallons of water left in the desert by humanitarian groups like No More Deaths. Videos can’t show us everything, but the image of smiling agents kicking jugs and pouring out water certainly adds new dimensions.Yet what I found most fascinating in “Borderland” was, oddly enough, the more scientific part. Three participants in the film — Manan Ahmed, Alex Gil and Roopika Risam — are digital humanists at Columbia University, meaning they use data to inform their scholarly work in the humanities. All three have personal histories that intersect with U.S. immigration. Together, they use government data to spot patterns in public spending that tell a story about where, and how, taxpayer money is spent at the border. Their models also trace the flow of money toward politicians on all sides of the issue and directly connect to how immigration policy is made.Woven into the personal narratives, the data visualizations — and the scholars’ explanation of why they matter — make the message land even harder. If video footage provides a damning perspective, this data offers an expansive one, allowing “Borderland” to explore the crisis as both individual and systemic. The issue is bigger than any one person. “Borderland” comes at it from more than one direction, and is more effective for it. More

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      Fashion True Crime Documentaries to Stream

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      Four picks across television, film and podcasting that examine dark stories about some of the most trendy clothing brands.In recent years, several popular apparel brands have made news for troubling reasons. Most often, they have been accused of corporate greed, having predatory practices that exploit young women, and propagating abusive systems at all levels of production, promotion and distribution. These headlines have, in turn, inspired a string of documentaries, docuseries and podcasts.Here are four picks that explore the stories of such companies, all of which have been marred by corrupt leadership or sudden tragedy.Documentary“Brandy Hellville & The Cult of Fast Fashion”Having barely heard of the Brandy Melville brand, I wasn’t particularly eager to watch this documentary that was released in April on Max. But as it turns out, that is kind of the point. This film from director Eva Orner not only is a searing examination of the toxic culture at this Gen Z-targeted, social media-fueled label, but it also manages to expose the many unethical systems endemic to the global fast-fashion industry. Footage from Ghana, where mountains of clothing waste from the United States blanket towns and shorelines, chilled me to the bone.As for Brandy Melville itself — maybe most famous for selling only tiny clothing with disingenuous “one size fits most” labels — the film highlights many of the takeaways from the journalist Kate Taylor’s Business Insider investigation, including scores of allegations of racism and of widespread predatory practices by the brand’s shadowy leaders, Silvio and Stephan Marsan. It all becomes that much more grim with a rape allegation against a manager by an employee.Documentary Series“Victoria’s Secret: Angels and Demons”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More