The Top 13 Films I'm Excited to See at Venice
Venice kicks off the Awards Season (I think we have to capitalize it now by law) in a big way every year. There are always at least two major films that premiere on the Lido and this year is no exception. There's a full lineup listing here but these 13 captured my attention the most.
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- DirectorAlexander PayneStarsMatt DamonChristoph WaltzHong ChauA social satire in which a man realizes he would have a better life if he were to shrink himself to five inches tall, allowing him to live in wealth and splendor.An extended scene was shown at Cinema-Con and, to be honest, it didn't work. What does work is Payne, and Damon and everyone involved in this film. Plus it's opening the festival. La La Land opened the festival last year. Birdman two years before that. So, there's a track record here.
- DirectorGuillermo del ToroStarsSally HawkinsOctavia SpencerMichael ShannonAt a top secret research facility in the 1960s, a lonely janitor forms a unique relationship with an amphibious creature that is being held in captivity.A terrific trailer suggests that Del Toro is in the fertile field of the monstrous and the sublime that served him so well in Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy II: The Golden Army (heck, even Blade II). Too bad this guy wasn't allowed to steer Universal's Gods and Monsters Dark Universe.
- DirectorMichaël R. RoskamStarsMatthias SchoenaertsAdèle ExarchopoulosEric De StaerckeSet against the background of a brutal crime gang in Brussels, a tragic love story between Gigi, a high-flying gangster, and Bibi, a young racing driver with very upper-class roots.
- DirectorDarren AronofskyStarsJennifer LawrenceJavier BardemEd HarrisA couple's relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence.Don't watch the trailer. It feels like it gives everything away. I'm a big fan of Lawrence and cherish her ability to really transform her very appearance according the role. Does this look a bit like Gaslight and the Oscar-nominated The Wicker Man? Does to me.
- DirectorGeorge ClooneyStarsMatt DamonJulianne MooreOscar IsaacAs a 1950s suburban community self-destructs, a home invasion has sinister consequences for one seemingly normal family.Actually, don't watch this trailer either. It might dissuade you from seeing it. Written by the Coens and directed by Clooney gives all kinds of street cred to the project but this is a hard, hard line to walk. I hope they can do it.
- DirectorAndrew HaighStarsCharlie PlummerAmy SeimetzTravis FimmelA teenager gets a summer job working for a horse trainer and befriends the fading racehorse, Lean on Pete.The plot may seem like something out of a straight-to-DVD family film but Haigh directed the stunning 45 Years so put those thoughts right out of your head.
- DirectorAbdellatif KechicheStarsShaïn BoumedineOphélie BauSalim KechioucheA teen boy comes back to his hometown during summer vacation in 1994, searching for love.Sure, it's a pretentious title but so is Blue Is the Warmest Color which Kechiche also directed. Adèle Exarchopoulos's character, Adele, was one of the strongest female roles I've seen in a good long time with one of the best exits in recent cinema history.
- DirectorIvan CappielloMarino GuarnieriAlessandro RakStarsMassimiliano GalloMaria Pia CalzoneAlessandro GassmannCenerentola struggles to escape the shadow and evil schemes of her stepmother and six stepsisters who all live aboard the Megaride, a ship stuck in the port of a decaying future Naples.The team that created the award-wiinning L'arte Della Fellicita return to Venice (where they also took home some prizes) with this intriguing tale. It sounds like Cinderella on crack for a reason.
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsMasaharu FukuyamaKoji YakushoSuzu HiroseA courtroom drama centered around the murder of a factory president.Koreeda is a Cannes staple so it's interesting to see him on the Lido. His films have been in Competition for the Palme d'Or four times and Koreeda won the Jury Prize for his direction of
Like Father, Like Son. The poster does make Murder seems a little like a genre pander...it will be intriguing to see what comes of this. - DirectorPaul SchraderStarsEthan HawkeAmanda SeyfriedCedric The EntertainerA minister of a small congregation in upstate New York grapples with mounting despair brought on by tragedy, worldly concerns and a tormented past.Venice is known for giving old Hollywood lions at chance to roar once more even if they can't utter above a growl. In 2014 they showed She's Funny That Way, a sweet, sometimes hilarious, mess of a film from one-time legend. Peter Bogdanovich.
Schrader, among many of his amazing credits, wrote Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and the adaptation of The Mosquito Coast. - DirectorPaolo VirzìStarsHelen MirrenDonald SutherlandChristian McKayA runaway couple go on an unforgettable journey in the faithful old RV they call "The Leisure Seeker".One of two silver-maned romances starring formidable Hollywood stars. This is the one in competition.
- DirectorRitesh BatraStarsRobert RedfordJane FondaMatthias SchoenaertsFonda and Redford star as Addie Moore and Louis Waters, a widow and widower who've lived next to each other for years. The pair have almost no relationship, but that all changes when Addie tries to make a connection with her neighbor....and this is the one Out of Competition. Directed by Ritesh Batra, who directed a movie I adore, The Lunch Box. One begins to think of On Golden Pond.
- DirectorJames TobackStarsSienna MillerAlec BaldwinCharles GrodinAn actress's nightmare about killing her ex-boyfriend somehow becomes a reality.See comment on First Reformed.