Although it may be hard to believe, summer is picking up speed and heading towards fall and the beginning of Fantastic Fest, taking place September 22nd–29th in Austin, Texas. The first wave of programming for the always entertaining festival has been revealed, and horror fans already have one big event to look forward to, as Don Coscarelli, David Hartman, and several original Phantasm cast members will be on hand for the world premiere of Phantasm: Ravager, along with a special showing of Phantasm: Remastered.
Press Release:Austin, TX – Tuesday, August 2, 2016 – Fantastic Fest announces its first wave of programming for its 12th annual celebration of genre-twisting cinema. This year’s festival sees Tim Burton make a triumphant return for a most peculiar red carpet screening of Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children; the World Premiere of Phantasm: Ravager; an Art House Theater Day special screening of Phantasm: Remastered...
Press Release:Austin, TX – Tuesday, August 2, 2016 – Fantastic Fest announces its first wave of programming for its 12th annual celebration of genre-twisting cinema. This year’s festival sees Tim Burton make a triumphant return for a most peculiar red carpet screening of Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children; the World Premiere of Phantasm: Ravager; an Art House Theater Day special screening of Phantasm: Remastered...
- 8/2/2016
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Today, Fantastic Fest, in association with Alamo Drafthouse, has announced the first wave of programming for its 12th annual celebration of the wild, wonderful, and peculiar in genre-twisting cinema. This year’s festival features a delightful array of films and guests, including Tim Burton for a red carpet screening of “Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children,” a special screening of “Phantasm: Remastered” with director Don Coscarelli and cast in attendance, and Andrea Arnold’s “American Honey,” with star and Texas native Sasha Lane hosting the event.
Read More: 5 Reasons Fantastic Fest Deserves Your Respect
This year’s festival has chosen South Asia for its annual theme, embracing the glorious wonders of Indian cinema. A block of new and repertory Indian features have been carefully programmed to showcase the creative world of the second most populous country. Included is the director’s cut of Anurag Kashyareap’s “Psycho Raman,...
Read More: 5 Reasons Fantastic Fest Deserves Your Respect
This year’s festival has chosen South Asia for its annual theme, embracing the glorious wonders of Indian cinema. A block of new and repertory Indian features have been carefully programmed to showcase the creative world of the second most populous country. Included is the director’s cut of Anurag Kashyareap’s “Psycho Raman,...
- 8/2/2016
- by Vikram Murthi
- Indiewire
Production began earlier this month in France on Julien Leclercq's latest film, Braqeurs. It is his fourth film since his debut Chrysalis caught our eye back in 2007. Since Chrysalis he also directed The Assault and The Informant. Leclercq reunited with Assault scribe Simon Moutaïrou and were joined by Jérôme Pierrat to write the film. Leclercq is also producing. Production company Snd is distributing the film in France and internationally. They produced Lecercq's The Informant in 2013. The producers wish to keep the plot a secret for now but this is what we know from the report over at Cineuropa.(Braqeurs) sees a thief who has just been released from prison re-launch his career with a small gang by stealing new merchandise: passports. However, in seeking to get rid...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 2/26/2015
- Screen Anarchy
I love Paris! Serving on the jury of U.S. in Progress to judge five American independent films in post production, bonding with filmmakers, organizers and the beautiful city itself, being part of a larger festival which featured films I particularly enjoyed like Nina Simone, Love Sorceress… Forever, It Felt Like Love by Eliza Hittman, Umbrellas of Cherbourg, what’s not to love?
The friendly openness of everyone at the festival made the event special. Sophie Dulac, the festival’s founder (and distributor, producer and exhibitor) whom I interviewed last year and again, almost as old friends again this year (see upcoming blog!), the publicist and programmer, Maxine Leonard, the staff, the Us in Progress organizers – Adeline Monzier (now also Us representative for Unifrance), Ula Śniegowska, Artistic Director of Wroclaw, Poland’s American Film Festival and Mobile New Horizons, my fellow jury members for USinP, and of course, the filmmakers themselves created a fun and inspiring event. What a great international film business we are in!
As I write this, the mailman just delivered a book, entitled Titra Film, A Cinematographic and Family Chronicle, sent to me by my fellow jury-member, Isabelle Frilley, who now, along with her children, owns and operates Titra, now called TitraTVS, the sub-titling company founded by her grandparents in 1933 shortly after talkies made subtitling de riguer . Very involved in the world of cinema, and inspired by her literary tastes, Isabelle has also helped develop multi-lingual subtitling for cinema, subtitling for the hearing impaired, and audio-description for the visually impaired. For many years, Isabelle Frilley has been a member of the juries of “Ciné en Construction” (for Latin-American cinema, in Toulouse), of “Cinéma en Mouvement” (for Mediterranean cinema, in San Sebastian), and of the Caméra d’Or in Cannes. She is only one of the illustrious jury among whom I was honored to count myself. Others included Julie Bergeron who runs Cannes Marche’s Producer Network among other things, Europa Distribution Eve Gabereau of Soda Pictures, a London-based indie distributor, Ciné Cinéma’s Bruno Deloye, Firefly’s Philippe Reinaudo, Commune Image’s Michael Werner, Eaux Vives Production’s Xénia Maingot, and Matthias Lavaux, the cofounder of touscoprod, the French crowdfunding website dedicated to movies, launched in January 2009.
1982 by Tommy Oliver
USinP’s winner, Tommy Oliver, whose previous film Kinyarwanda was a favorite of mine at Sundance a couple of years ago which Roger Ebert ranked 6 on his top ten films of 2011, is now in post on 1982 and won Us$60,000 worth of post production services.
Tommy’s directorial debut, 1982, starring Hill Harper, Sharon Leal, La La Anthony, Bokeem Woodbine, Wayne Brady and Ruby Dee, tells the story of a black father whose wife succumbs to a crack cocaine addiction and his efforts to shield their 10-year old daughter from the ill effects of having a drug addicted mother while trying to wean her off of her addiction. It's set in 1982 in Philadelphia at the very onset of the crack cocaine epidemic and ultimately, it's a story about a father doing whatever he can to protect his family. It's semi- autobiographical story and inspired by true events.
He also wrote and produced 1982 which also received a prestigious San Francisco Film Society Krf grant .
Tommy himself is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, a Microsoft alum and founder of Seattle-based interactive media firm Viliv Studios as well as La- based production company Confluential Films, which he started with actor/ author/ speaker Hill Harper.
I can confidently predict that this film will be seen on the festival circuit as it brings a humanity to the issue we’ve seen dozens of time – crack in communities – but never like this. We don’t see the ugly community violated by violence. We see a loving family coping with a personal and private disaster. Hill Harper plays a loving, compassionate good man. Comparisons will be made with Fruitvale Station, another African American “issue” film (police brutally killing an innocent family man) which will be released July 12 by The Weinstein Company. We need more such films to create a consistent pipeline for audiences who will pay to see these films. AFor his film 1982, he has devised a super-sophisticated, break-the-record domestic marketing plan. I am eager to watch the trajectory of this one.
The runner-up film, Bfe was supported with great gusto by its director and producer, Shawn Telford and producer, Mark Carr who brought a special energy to the entire event and were full of fun throughout. Shawn charmed his French hosts with his French. Watch for the film and with it, watch for Shawn!
I Believe In Unicorns is the feature debut of director Leah Meyerhoff. It was nominated for a Calvin Klein grant at the 2012 Gotham Independent Film Awards and stars Natalia Dyer, Peter Vack, Toni Meyerhoff, Julia Garner, Joshua Leonard and Amy Seimetz.
As noteworthy as the film is and as talented as Leah is, the producers themselves are also notable and prolific! Allison Anders, Katie Mustard and Heather Rae who also produced the Academy Award nominated film Frozen River, starring Melissa Leo, which won the 2008 Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, opened the New York Film Society’s New Directors/New Film series and was acquired by Sony PicturesClassics. She won the 2008 Independent Spirit Award for her production work on Frozen River. Heather also produced Mosquita Y Mari (Sundance 2012), Backroads (Sundance 2000), Trudell (2005 Sundance Film Festival), Ibid (2008 SXSW), The Dry Land (Sundance 2010), Magic Valley (Tribeca 2011), and is currently in post-production on Five Thirteen (with Tom Sizemore), Ass Backwards (with Alicia Silverstone and Vincent D’Onofrio) and Plastic Jesus (with Paul Schneider and Mackenzie Foy). For six years she was a programmer for the Sundance Film Festival and ran the Native Program at the Sundance Institute and recently joined the Sundance Board of Trustees.
Ping Pong Summer
Michael Tully made his directorial debut, Cocaine Angel, world premiered at the 2006 International Film Festival Rotterdam, Michael Tully (Director) was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. His follow-up, Silver Jew, world premiered at the 2007 South By Southwest Film Festival. In 2011, he wrote, directed, and acted in Septien, which world premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was picked up for distribution by Sundance Selects. He’s currently in post-production on his newest feature, Ping Pong Summer, which he wrote and directed. Since 2008, he has been the head writer/editor of HammerToNail.com, a website devoted to championing ambitious cinema.
Producers: George Rush, Brooke Bernard, Ryan Zacarias, Michael Gottwald, Billy Peterson, Jeff Allard
Main Cast : Susan Sarandon, John Hannah, Leah Thompson, Judah Friedlander, Amy Sedaris
Children
Director : Jaffe Zinn Producer : Jaffe Zinn and Sterling Hoch
Aside from the jury, the films were seen by members of Europa Distribution:
Alpha Violet - Keiko Funato & Virgine Devesa - France - Sales agent Bac Films - Crasset Véronique - France - Sales agent & Distributor Bankside - Alice Ramsey - UK Sales Agent Chrysalis - Camille Lopato - France – Distributor Content - Toby Melling - UK - Sales Agent Coproduction Office - Marina Perales & Philippe Bober - France - Sales Agent Distrib Films - François Scippa-Kohn - France - Distributor Equation - Didier Costet - France - Distributor Eurozoom - Manon Galibert - France - Distributor Film Republic Rashid Xavier UK sales agent Films Boutique - Jean-Christophe Simon - Germany - Sales Agent Hanway - Fabien Westerhoff - UK - Sales Agent Happiness - Isabelle Dubar - France - Distributor Heliotrope - Laurent Aléonard & Goldfain Philippe - France - Distributor Imagine - Bral Tinne - Benelux - Distributor Jour 2 Fête - Sarah Chazelle - France - Distributor K5 Intl - Oda Schäfer - Germany - Sales Agent Kmbo - Grégoire Marchal - France - Distributor Le Pacte - Nathalie Jeung - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Level K - Freja Johanne - Denmark - Sales agent Locarno Film Festival - Aurélie Godet - France - Festival Memento Film - Tanja Meissner & Ram Murali - France - Sales Agent & Distributor MK2 - Emmanuelle de Couesbouc / Juliette Shramek - France - Sales Agent Premium Films - Karwan Kasia - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Reel Suspects - Frederic Gentet - France - Sales Agent Rezo - Sebastien Chesneau - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Sacrebleu - Louise Bellicaud - France - Producer Soda Pictures - Eve Gabereau - UK - Distributor Sophie Dulac Distribution - Eric Vicente - France - Distributor The Works - Steve Bestwick - UK - Sales Agent Tribeca Film Festival - Frédéric Boyer - USA - Festival Trust Nordisk - Silje Glimsdal - Denmark - Sales Agent Urban - Claire Charles-Gervais - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Versatile - Violaine Pichon & Pape Boye - France - Sales Agent Wide Management - Loïc Magneron - France – Sales Agent Wild Bunch - Emmanuelle Fellous - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Zed - Martine Scoupe - France - Distributor...
The friendly openness of everyone at the festival made the event special. Sophie Dulac, the festival’s founder (and distributor, producer and exhibitor) whom I interviewed last year and again, almost as old friends again this year (see upcoming blog!), the publicist and programmer, Maxine Leonard, the staff, the Us in Progress organizers – Adeline Monzier (now also Us representative for Unifrance), Ula Śniegowska, Artistic Director of Wroclaw, Poland’s American Film Festival and Mobile New Horizons, my fellow jury members for USinP, and of course, the filmmakers themselves created a fun and inspiring event. What a great international film business we are in!
As I write this, the mailman just delivered a book, entitled Titra Film, A Cinematographic and Family Chronicle, sent to me by my fellow jury-member, Isabelle Frilley, who now, along with her children, owns and operates Titra, now called TitraTVS, the sub-titling company founded by her grandparents in 1933 shortly after talkies made subtitling de riguer . Very involved in the world of cinema, and inspired by her literary tastes, Isabelle has also helped develop multi-lingual subtitling for cinema, subtitling for the hearing impaired, and audio-description for the visually impaired. For many years, Isabelle Frilley has been a member of the juries of “Ciné en Construction” (for Latin-American cinema, in Toulouse), of “Cinéma en Mouvement” (for Mediterranean cinema, in San Sebastian), and of the Caméra d’Or in Cannes. She is only one of the illustrious jury among whom I was honored to count myself. Others included Julie Bergeron who runs Cannes Marche’s Producer Network among other things, Europa Distribution Eve Gabereau of Soda Pictures, a London-based indie distributor, Ciné Cinéma’s Bruno Deloye, Firefly’s Philippe Reinaudo, Commune Image’s Michael Werner, Eaux Vives Production’s Xénia Maingot, and Matthias Lavaux, the cofounder of touscoprod, the French crowdfunding website dedicated to movies, launched in January 2009.
1982 by Tommy Oliver
USinP’s winner, Tommy Oliver, whose previous film Kinyarwanda was a favorite of mine at Sundance a couple of years ago which Roger Ebert ranked 6 on his top ten films of 2011, is now in post on 1982 and won Us$60,000 worth of post production services.
Tommy’s directorial debut, 1982, starring Hill Harper, Sharon Leal, La La Anthony, Bokeem Woodbine, Wayne Brady and Ruby Dee, tells the story of a black father whose wife succumbs to a crack cocaine addiction and his efforts to shield their 10-year old daughter from the ill effects of having a drug addicted mother while trying to wean her off of her addiction. It's set in 1982 in Philadelphia at the very onset of the crack cocaine epidemic and ultimately, it's a story about a father doing whatever he can to protect his family. It's semi- autobiographical story and inspired by true events.
He also wrote and produced 1982 which also received a prestigious San Francisco Film Society Krf grant .
Tommy himself is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, a Microsoft alum and founder of Seattle-based interactive media firm Viliv Studios as well as La- based production company Confluential Films, which he started with actor/ author/ speaker Hill Harper.
I can confidently predict that this film will be seen on the festival circuit as it brings a humanity to the issue we’ve seen dozens of time – crack in communities – but never like this. We don’t see the ugly community violated by violence. We see a loving family coping with a personal and private disaster. Hill Harper plays a loving, compassionate good man. Comparisons will be made with Fruitvale Station, another African American “issue” film (police brutally killing an innocent family man) which will be released July 12 by The Weinstein Company. We need more such films to create a consistent pipeline for audiences who will pay to see these films. AFor his film 1982, he has devised a super-sophisticated, break-the-record domestic marketing plan. I am eager to watch the trajectory of this one.
The runner-up film, Bfe was supported with great gusto by its director and producer, Shawn Telford and producer, Mark Carr who brought a special energy to the entire event and were full of fun throughout. Shawn charmed his French hosts with his French. Watch for the film and with it, watch for Shawn!
I Believe In Unicorns is the feature debut of director Leah Meyerhoff. It was nominated for a Calvin Klein grant at the 2012 Gotham Independent Film Awards and stars Natalia Dyer, Peter Vack, Toni Meyerhoff, Julia Garner, Joshua Leonard and Amy Seimetz.
As noteworthy as the film is and as talented as Leah is, the producers themselves are also notable and prolific! Allison Anders, Katie Mustard and Heather Rae who also produced the Academy Award nominated film Frozen River, starring Melissa Leo, which won the 2008 Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, opened the New York Film Society’s New Directors/New Film series and was acquired by Sony PicturesClassics. She won the 2008 Independent Spirit Award for her production work on Frozen River. Heather also produced Mosquita Y Mari (Sundance 2012), Backroads (Sundance 2000), Trudell (2005 Sundance Film Festival), Ibid (2008 SXSW), The Dry Land (Sundance 2010), Magic Valley (Tribeca 2011), and is currently in post-production on Five Thirteen (with Tom Sizemore), Ass Backwards (with Alicia Silverstone and Vincent D’Onofrio) and Plastic Jesus (with Paul Schneider and Mackenzie Foy). For six years she was a programmer for the Sundance Film Festival and ran the Native Program at the Sundance Institute and recently joined the Sundance Board of Trustees.
Ping Pong Summer
Michael Tully made his directorial debut, Cocaine Angel, world premiered at the 2006 International Film Festival Rotterdam, Michael Tully (Director) was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. His follow-up, Silver Jew, world premiered at the 2007 South By Southwest Film Festival. In 2011, he wrote, directed, and acted in Septien, which world premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was picked up for distribution by Sundance Selects. He’s currently in post-production on his newest feature, Ping Pong Summer, which he wrote and directed. Since 2008, he has been the head writer/editor of HammerToNail.com, a website devoted to championing ambitious cinema.
Producers: George Rush, Brooke Bernard, Ryan Zacarias, Michael Gottwald, Billy Peterson, Jeff Allard
Main Cast : Susan Sarandon, John Hannah, Leah Thompson, Judah Friedlander, Amy Sedaris
Children
Director : Jaffe Zinn Producer : Jaffe Zinn and Sterling Hoch
Aside from the jury, the films were seen by members of Europa Distribution:
Alpha Violet - Keiko Funato & Virgine Devesa - France - Sales agent Bac Films - Crasset Véronique - France - Sales agent & Distributor Bankside - Alice Ramsey - UK Sales Agent Chrysalis - Camille Lopato - France – Distributor Content - Toby Melling - UK - Sales Agent Coproduction Office - Marina Perales & Philippe Bober - France - Sales Agent Distrib Films - François Scippa-Kohn - France - Distributor Equation - Didier Costet - France - Distributor Eurozoom - Manon Galibert - France - Distributor Film Republic Rashid Xavier UK sales agent Films Boutique - Jean-Christophe Simon - Germany - Sales Agent Hanway - Fabien Westerhoff - UK - Sales Agent Happiness - Isabelle Dubar - France - Distributor Heliotrope - Laurent Aléonard & Goldfain Philippe - France - Distributor Imagine - Bral Tinne - Benelux - Distributor Jour 2 Fête - Sarah Chazelle - France - Distributor K5 Intl - Oda Schäfer - Germany - Sales Agent Kmbo - Grégoire Marchal - France - Distributor Le Pacte - Nathalie Jeung - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Level K - Freja Johanne - Denmark - Sales agent Locarno Film Festival - Aurélie Godet - France - Festival Memento Film - Tanja Meissner & Ram Murali - France - Sales Agent & Distributor MK2 - Emmanuelle de Couesbouc / Juliette Shramek - France - Sales Agent Premium Films - Karwan Kasia - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Reel Suspects - Frederic Gentet - France - Sales Agent Rezo - Sebastien Chesneau - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Sacrebleu - Louise Bellicaud - France - Producer Soda Pictures - Eve Gabereau - UK - Distributor Sophie Dulac Distribution - Eric Vicente - France - Distributor The Works - Steve Bestwick - UK - Sales Agent Tribeca Film Festival - Frédéric Boyer - USA - Festival Trust Nordisk - Silje Glimsdal - Denmark - Sales Agent Urban - Claire Charles-Gervais - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Versatile - Violaine Pichon & Pape Boye - France - Sales Agent Wide Management - Loïc Magneron - France – Sales Agent Wild Bunch - Emmanuelle Fellous - France - Sales Agent & Distributor Zed - Martine Scoupe - France - Distributor...
- 7/12/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Odd List Aliya Whiteley Feb 19, 2013
Covering 85 years of cinema, Aliya provides her pick of 25 stylish, must-see French movies...
I’m going to kick this off in best New-Wave style by pointing out that we should be praising each great director’s body of work rather than showcasing favourite movies in a list format; after all, France came up with the concept of the auteur filmmaker, stamping their personality on a film, using the camera to portray their version of the world.
Yeah, well, personality is everything. So here’s a highly personal choice, arranged in chronological order, of 25 of the most individualistic French films. They may be long or short, old or new, but they all have one thing in common – they’ve got directorial style. And by that I don’t mean their shoes match their handbags.
The Passion Of Joan Of Arc (1928)
There are no stirring battle scenes,...
Covering 85 years of cinema, Aliya provides her pick of 25 stylish, must-see French movies...
I’m going to kick this off in best New-Wave style by pointing out that we should be praising each great director’s body of work rather than showcasing favourite movies in a list format; after all, France came up with the concept of the auteur filmmaker, stamping their personality on a film, using the camera to portray their version of the world.
Yeah, well, personality is everything. So here’s a highly personal choice, arranged in chronological order, of 25 of the most individualistic French films. They may be long or short, old or new, but they all have one thing in common – they’ve got directorial style. And by that I don’t mean their shoes match their handbags.
The Passion Of Joan Of Arc (1928)
There are no stirring battle scenes,...
- 2/18/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
Gripping hi-jack movie The Assault was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on 6th August.
On December 24, 1994, when four heavily armed terrorists from the Algerian Armed Islamic Group hijacked an Air France plane, Flight 8969, bound for Paris at Algiers’ airport, the 227 passengers on board seemed destined for tragedy. After hours of tireless negotiations the plane was granted permission to leave only to head to Marseille for refueling. Mindfully avoiding politics and emphasizing only the events themselves, The Assault weaves together the violent and claustrophobic onboard drama, with backstories of the tough Swat officer and father Thierry (Vincent Elbaz), the determined jihadist from the slums of Algiers (Aymen Saidi), and an overly ambitious French Interior Ministry worker. Action-savvy director Julien Leclercq (Chrysalis) boldly returns with this taut, real-life thriller that culminates in an explosive gun-wielding standoff, which, at the time, aired live in front of an audience of 21 million television viewers. Leclercq...
On December 24, 1994, when four heavily armed terrorists from the Algerian Armed Islamic Group hijacked an Air France plane, Flight 8969, bound for Paris at Algiers’ airport, the 227 passengers on board seemed destined for tragedy. After hours of tireless negotiations the plane was granted permission to leave only to head to Marseille for refueling. Mindfully avoiding politics and emphasizing only the events themselves, The Assault weaves together the violent and claustrophobic onboard drama, with backstories of the tough Swat officer and father Thierry (Vincent Elbaz), the determined jihadist from the slums of Algiers (Aymen Saidi), and an overly ambitious French Interior Ministry worker. Action-savvy director Julien Leclercq (Chrysalis) boldly returns with this taut, real-life thriller that culminates in an explosive gun-wielding standoff, which, at the time, aired live in front of an audience of 21 million television viewers. Leclercq...
- 8/17/2012
- by Matt Holmes
- Obsessed with Film
Based on the true story of Flight 8969, French hijack thriller The Assault comes to DVD and Blu-ray on Monday 6th August. To celebrate we have 3 copies of the Blu-Ray to give away.
On December 24, 1994, when four heavily armed terrorists from the Algerian Armed Islamic Group hijacked an Air France plane, Flight 8969, bound for Paris at Algiers’ airport, the 227 passengers on board seemed destined for tragedy. After hours of tireless negotiations the plane was granted permission to leave only to head to Marseille for refuelling. Mindfully avoiding politics and emphasizing only the events themselves, The Assault weaves together the violent and claustrophobic onboard drama, with backstories of the tough Swat officer and father Thierry (Vincent Elbaz), the determined jihadist from the slums of Algiers (Aymen Saidi), and an overly ambitious French Interior Ministry worker. Action-savvy director Julien Leclercq (Chrysalis) boldly returns with this taut, real-life thriller that culminates in an explosive gun-wielding standoff,...
On December 24, 1994, when four heavily armed terrorists from the Algerian Armed Islamic Group hijacked an Air France plane, Flight 8969, bound for Paris at Algiers’ airport, the 227 passengers on board seemed destined for tragedy. After hours of tireless negotiations the plane was granted permission to leave only to head to Marseille for refuelling. Mindfully avoiding politics and emphasizing only the events themselves, The Assault weaves together the violent and claustrophobic onboard drama, with backstories of the tough Swat officer and father Thierry (Vincent Elbaz), the determined jihadist from the slums of Algiers (Aymen Saidi), and an overly ambitious French Interior Ministry worker. Action-savvy director Julien Leclercq (Chrysalis) boldly returns with this taut, real-life thriller that culminates in an explosive gun-wielding standoff,...
- 7/27/2012
- by Competitions
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
For the record, I think Julien Leclercq is a stellar filmmaker. His style is always visceral and intense, even in quieter moments, and his focus seems always on the internal emotional conflicts if his characters. His last film, the cyber falvoured Chrysalis (review), betrayed the same assured sense of craft, but unfortunately like it, L'Assault falls a little short of engaging the viewer in the ways you'd expect or hope.
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- 4/6/2012
- QuietEarth.us
Well it didn't take much to get me interested in this movie other than the mere mention of Paul Greengrass' United 93, but truth be told, I'm a sucker for almost any hostage crisis on film. The Assault is based on real events that occurred over Christmas in 1994, where four Islamic terrorists hijacked an Air France flight on the runway in Algiers. Their plan was apparently similar to that of the September 11th attacks, aiming to detonate the aircraft over the Eiffel Tower, and it resulted in a tense 48 hour standoff that was televised live around the world. When the plane eventually landed in Marseilles, France's Gign, an elite counter-terrorism paramilitary unit, moved in and the rest is history. The movie is directed by Julien Leclercq, who previously did the sci-fi film Chrysalis. It's hard to tell from the trailer just how valid the United 93 comparisons are, but...
- 3/14/2012
- by Sean
- FilmJunk
“Chrysalis” director Julien Leclercq’s “The Assault” came out in 2011 in his native France, but it’s just now finding its way to the U.S., which in turn gives us this U.S. trailer courtesy of Screen Media Films. The film will arrive in Stateside theaters via limited release on April 6th, 2012, and it looks pretty badass. The whole shebang is apparently based on a true story, so it’s got that going for it, too. Then again, movies with dudes in Swat gear storming airplanes is always A-Okay in my book. An action packed thriller, “The Assault” is the gripping true story of the hijacking of a Paris-bound flight on Christmas Eve 1994, and the 48-hour effort to rescue the passengers. When four heavily armed Islamic terrorists hijack a Paris-bound Air France flight on the runway, 227 innocent lives hang in the balance. Their only chance of rescue is the...
- 3/14/2012
- by Nix
- Beyond Hollywood
Reviewer: James van Maanen
Rating (out of five): ****
A shoo-in to attract foreign film buffs who enjoy arthouse movies of the more mainstream variety, Queen to Play (Joueuse, in the original French) is a smart, small but intensely enjoyable movie -- one that I think would draw the kind of satisfied, word-of-mouth audience that made The Grocer's Son a surprise arthouse hit.
It stars a fine actress -- one who is consistently popular with this particular audience -- Sandrine Bonnaire (Angel of Mine, Intimate Strangers, Vagabond, Her Name is Sabine) and our own Kevin Kline (doing his first full-out French-language role), with help from Jennifer Beals (looking gorgeous in a small but pivotal role) and French hunk Francis Renaud (The Code, Chrysalis), who brings great warmth and humanity to Bonnaire's confused husband. Written and directed by Caroline Bottaro, a newcomer who has previously directed only one 15-minute short, the...
Rating (out of five): ****
A shoo-in to attract foreign film buffs who enjoy arthouse movies of the more mainstream variety, Queen to Play (Joueuse, in the original French) is a smart, small but intensely enjoyable movie -- one that I think would draw the kind of satisfied, word-of-mouth audience that made The Grocer's Son a surprise arthouse hit.
It stars a fine actress -- one who is consistently popular with this particular audience -- Sandrine Bonnaire (Angel of Mine, Intimate Strangers, Vagabond, Her Name is Sabine) and our own Kevin Kline (doing his first full-out French-language role), with help from Jennifer Beals (looking gorgeous in a small but pivotal role) and French hunk Francis Renaud (The Code, Chrysalis), who brings great warmth and humanity to Bonnaire's confused husband. Written and directed by Caroline Bottaro, a newcomer who has previously directed only one 15-minute short, the...
- 8/23/2011
- by weezy
- GreenCine
Year: 2011
Directors: Julien Leclerq
Writers: Simon Moutairou / Julien Leclercq,
IMDb: link
Trailer: link
Review by: Bob Doto
Rating: 5.9 out of 10
Julien Leclercq's The Assault is a guy-drama ostensibly about a family-man caught between his loyalty to the French police force and his wife and daughter, using as its backdrop the events of December 1994 when members of the Gia (Armed Islamic Group) overtook an Air France flight in Algiers and kept two hundred passengers hostage. Family man is pudgy, but still in it to win it. The hijackers are at times conflicted, but ultimately brutal. The high-on-the-hill government is calculative and methodical. Aside from some fairly decent character development, (Yahia [Aymen Saidi] as the head of the Gia operation is believably tortured and acts from the gut), The Assault is ultimately a man-fest, complete with sentimental piano flourishes, dramatic avant-Bedouin soundscapes, and heaps and heaps and heaps of tug-at-the-heart-strings slow-motion cop scenes.
Directors: Julien Leclerq
Writers: Simon Moutairou / Julien Leclercq,
IMDb: link
Trailer: link
Review by: Bob Doto
Rating: 5.9 out of 10
Julien Leclercq's The Assault is a guy-drama ostensibly about a family-man caught between his loyalty to the French police force and his wife and daughter, using as its backdrop the events of December 1994 when members of the Gia (Armed Islamic Group) overtook an Air France flight in Algiers and kept two hundred passengers hostage. Family man is pudgy, but still in it to win it. The hijackers are at times conflicted, but ultimately brutal. The high-on-the-hill government is calculative and methodical. Aside from some fairly decent character development, (Yahia [Aymen Saidi] as the head of the Gia operation is believably tortured and acts from the gut), The Assault is ultimately a man-fest, complete with sentimental piano flourishes, dramatic avant-Bedouin soundscapes, and heaps and heaps and heaps of tug-at-the-heart-strings slow-motion cop scenes.
- 4/27/2011
- QuietEarth.us
Recently the Tribeca Film Festival announced it’s lineup for its heavy hitters: Spotlight, Cinemania, and Specials Screening sections. With selections such as Troll Hunters, Let the Bullets Fly, and Point Blank only scratching the surface of the variety and diversity of this year’s slate, Tff 2011 is looking out to be very promising. Check out the lineups by viewing the press release below. The remaining feature films will be announced March 23, with full coverage by the end of April.
10th Tribeca Film Festival Announces Film Selections
For Spotlight And Cinemania Sections And Special Screenings
***
Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival Lineup Also Revealed
New York, NY [March 14, 2011] – The Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), presented by American Express, today announced its feature film selections in the Spotlight and Cinemania sections, as well as Special Screenings and the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival lineup. The 10th edition of the Festival will take place from...
10th Tribeca Film Festival Announces Film Selections
For Spotlight And Cinemania Sections And Special Screenings
***
Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival Lineup Also Revealed
New York, NY [March 14, 2011] – The Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), presented by American Express, today announced its feature film selections in the Spotlight and Cinemania sections, as well as Special Screenings and the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival lineup. The 10th edition of the Festival will take place from...
- 3/16/2011
- by Christopher Clemente
- SoundOnSight
The 2011 Tribeca Film Festival will host thirty-three films this year, beginning April 20th. This one of a kind event that takes place in New York each year and 2011 is a special time for horror and thriller fans. Two dozen thrillers and horror features will show this year, with Rabies, Saint, Trollhunter, and The Bleeding House standing out. Each of these four films will be part of Tribeca's Cinemania feature, which consists of films "that defy categorization from all around the world." Have a closer look at several of the more exciting films to show at the festival, below.
The Assault (L’assaut)
Director: Julien Leclerq, Writers: Simon Moutairou and Julien Leclerq.
(France) – International Premiere, Narrative.
"Christmas Eve, 1994. In war-torn Algiers, four men uniformed as border guards hijack Air France Flight 8969, foreboding doom for all 220 passengers. But on their arrival in Marseilles, the elite French Swat force waits to avert tragedy.
The Assault (L’assaut)
Director: Julien Leclerq, Writers: Simon Moutairou and Julien Leclerq.
(France) – International Premiere, Narrative.
"Christmas Eve, 1994. In war-torn Algiers, four men uniformed as border guards hijack Air France Flight 8969, foreboding doom for all 220 passengers. But on their arrival in Marseilles, the elite French Swat force waits to avert tragedy.
- 3/15/2011
- by Remove28DaysLaterAnalysisThis@gmail.com (Michael Allen)
- 28 Days Later Analysis
Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival Lineup Also Revealed
New York, NY [March 14, 2011] . The Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), presented by American Express, today announced its feature film selections in the Spotlight and Cinemania sections, as well as Special Screenings and the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival lineup. The 10th edition of the Festival will take place from April 20 to May 1 in lower Manhattan.
.Now that the majority of the program has been announced I believe you will see the rich variety and quality of the films and talent that we are presenting at Tribeca this year,. said David Kwok, Director of Programming. .The program is about both discovery and showcasing a broad range of filmmaking to our eclectic and diverse audiences who are passionate about film..
.This year.s Spotlight is a mixture of carefully selected festival favorites from around the globe, highly anticipated releases, a number of new works by high...
New York, NY [March 14, 2011] . The Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), presented by American Express, today announced its feature film selections in the Spotlight and Cinemania sections, as well as Special Screenings and the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival lineup. The 10th edition of the Festival will take place from April 20 to May 1 in lower Manhattan.
.Now that the majority of the program has been announced I believe you will see the rich variety and quality of the films and talent that we are presenting at Tribeca this year,. said David Kwok, Director of Programming. .The program is about both discovery and showcasing a broad range of filmmaking to our eclectic and diverse audiences who are passionate about film..
.This year.s Spotlight is a mixture of carefully selected festival favorites from around the globe, highly anticipated releases, a number of new works by high...
- 3/15/2011
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The 10th Tribeca Film Festival (April 20-May 1) announced Monday its feature film selections in the Spotlight and Cinemania sections, as well as Special Screenings and the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival lineup.
Spotlight is comprised of 33 films, including 16 documentaries and 17 narratives, 16 of which will world premiere at the Festival. The Cinemania section offers an eclectic assortment of eight narrative films that defy categorization from all around the world.
Meanwhile, the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival will feature the world premiere of Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney’s “Catching Hell” as its Centerpiece Gala. The film explores the relationship between Chicago Cubs fans and Steve Bartman following his infamous near-catch of a foul ball in Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series.
The complete list of films selected for Spotlight, Cinemania, and Special Screenings follow, as well as the titles in the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival. Descriptions were provided by the festival.
Spotlight is comprised of 33 films, including 16 documentaries and 17 narratives, 16 of which will world premiere at the Festival. The Cinemania section offers an eclectic assortment of eight narrative films that defy categorization from all around the world.
Meanwhile, the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival will feature the world premiere of Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney’s “Catching Hell” as its Centerpiece Gala. The film explores the relationship between Chicago Cubs fans and Steve Bartman following his infamous near-catch of a foul ball in Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series.
The complete list of films selected for Spotlight, Cinemania, and Special Screenings follow, as well as the titles in the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival. Descriptions were provided by the festival.
- 3/14/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Magazine
The 10th Tribeca Film Festival (April 20-May 1) announced Monday its feature film selections in the Spotlight and Cinemania sections, as well as Special Screenings and the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival lineup.
Spotlight is comprised of 33 films, including 16 documentaries and 17 narratives, 16 of which will world premiere at the Festival. The Cinemania section offers an eclectic assortment of eight narrative films that defy categorization from all around the world.
Meanwhile, the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival will feature the world premiere of Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney’s “Catching Hell” as its Centerpiece Gala. The film explores the relationship between Chicago Cubs fans and Steve Bartman following his infamous near-catch of a foul ball in Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series.
The complete list of films selected for Spotlight, Cinemania, and Special Screenings follow, as well as the titles in the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival. Descriptions were provided by the festival.
Spotlight is comprised of 33 films, including 16 documentaries and 17 narratives, 16 of which will world premiere at the Festival. The Cinemania section offers an eclectic assortment of eight narrative films that defy categorization from all around the world.
Meanwhile, the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival will feature the world premiere of Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney’s “Catching Hell” as its Centerpiece Gala. The film explores the relationship between Chicago Cubs fans and Steve Bartman following his infamous near-catch of a foul ball in Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series.
The complete list of films selected for Spotlight, Cinemania, and Special Screenings follow, as well as the titles in the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival. Descriptions were provided by the festival.
- 3/14/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Network
The Tribeca Film Festival announced today the films selected for the Spotlight, Cinemania, Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Festival and Special Screenings sections for their 10th edition, which takes place April 20 – May 1.
Some of the highlights include Sundance favorites Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, The Guard starring Don Cheadle and Brendan Gleeson, and Higher Ground which is starred and directed by Vera Farmiga. There’s also Revenge of the Electric Car, the follow-up to Chris Paine‘s doc Who Killed the Electric Car?, and Tribeca regular Alex Gibney returns with Catching Hell. Chosen as the Gala film in the Tribeca/Espn section, it looks at the most hated man in Chicago: Cubs fan Steve Bartman.
Complete titles are below.
Spotlight
· The Assault (L’assaut), directed by Julien Leclerq, written by Simon Moutairou and Julien Leclerq. (France) – International Premiere, Narrative. Christmas Eve, 1994. In war-torn Algiers, four men...
Some of the highlights include Sundance favorites Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, The Guard starring Don Cheadle and Brendan Gleeson, and Higher Ground which is starred and directed by Vera Farmiga. There’s also Revenge of the Electric Car, the follow-up to Chris Paine‘s doc Who Killed the Electric Car?, and Tribeca regular Alex Gibney returns with Catching Hell. Chosen as the Gala film in the Tribeca/Espn section, it looks at the most hated man in Chicago: Cubs fan Steve Bartman.
Complete titles are below.
Spotlight
· The Assault (L’assaut), directed by Julien Leclerq, written by Simon Moutairou and Julien Leclerq. (France) – International Premiere, Narrative. Christmas Eve, 1994. In war-torn Algiers, four men...
- 3/14/2011
- by Jason Guerrasio
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
This year’s Tribeca will be running from Wednesday, April 20 to Sunday, May 1, so its close start date means that the lineup of movies are coming in fast. We’ve already gotten the World Narrative and World Documentary categories, and the next batch of movies have just been revealed.
Thanks to Deadline, we now have movies in the Spotlight, Cinemania, Special Screening and Sports categories. The list isn’t half bad; the one I’m looking forward to the most is The Guard, which got very strong reviews at Sundance earlier this year. All the categories seem to have solid picks, and I’d say this is shaping up to be a good year. Tfs will be there (including me!), so many of these movies will have reviews up on the site when the festival runs. Take a look at it below:
Spotlight
· The Assault (L’assaut), directed by Julien Leclerq,...
Thanks to Deadline, we now have movies in the Spotlight, Cinemania, Special Screening and Sports categories. The list isn’t half bad; the one I’m looking forward to the most is The Guard, which got very strong reviews at Sundance earlier this year. All the categories seem to have solid picks, and I’d say this is shaping up to be a good year. Tfs will be there (including me!), so many of these movies will have reviews up on the site when the festival runs. Take a look at it below:
Spotlight
· The Assault (L’assaut), directed by Julien Leclerq,...
- 3/14/2011
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Well, congratulations New Yorkers, because you’ll get to see at least 2 films I saw at Sundance in January, when they screen at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, which just announced the second half of its festival lineup – the Spotlight, Cinemania, and Special Screening sections, most notably.
The films I’m referring to are Michael Rapaport’s Tribe Called Quest documentary, Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, and The Guard, which Don Cheadle co-stars in, as an FBI agent (or is it CIA).
I’m still planning on going through the full list of entries to spotlight any titles worthy of this website, and I’ll do that in coming days/weeks… definitely before the festival begins next month – a festival I plan to attend, since it’s right in my backyard.
Worth noting is that Rapaport’s doc will be making its New York premiere, the...
The films I’m referring to are Michael Rapaport’s Tribe Called Quest documentary, Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, and The Guard, which Don Cheadle co-stars in, as an FBI agent (or is it CIA).
I’m still planning on going through the full list of entries to spotlight any titles worthy of this website, and I’ll do that in coming days/weeks… definitely before the festival begins next month – a festival I plan to attend, since it’s right in my backyard.
Worth noting is that Rapaport’s doc will be making its New York premiere, the...
- 3/14/2011
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
The 2011 Tribeca Film Festival has released the second leg of its festival slate, unveiling the Spotlight, Cinemania and Special Screening Sections, as well as the premiere of the Tribeca/Espn Sports Film Fest. There are some more films to be announced March 23, and I hope they're good because so far, it feels like South By Southwest (going on now) has hotter titles. A lot of the selection below will be familiar to those who've attended other festivals. Tribeca begins April 20 and runs through May 1. The festival already set its World Narrative and Documentary categories. Spotlight · The Assault (L’assaut), directed by Julien Leclerq, written by Simon Moutairou and Julien Leclerq. (France) – International Premiere, Narrative. Christmas Eve, 1994. In war-torn Algiers, four men uniformed as border guards hijack Air France Flight 8969, foreboding doom for all 220 passengers. But on their arrival in Marseilles, the elite French Swat force waits to avert tragedy…. Based...
- 3/14/2011
- by MIKE FLEMING
- Deadline
The French have been pumping out some of the best slices of genre cinema in recent years, and The Horde (or La horde in its native language) is no exception. Now, courtesy of Momentum Pictures we have three copies of the brand new DVD to give away!
Synopsis:
‘Assault On Precinct 13’ meets ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ in The Horde, the latest addition to the ever-rising wave of superlative French horror cinema. Winner of the International Fantasy Film Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography at the 2010 Fantasporto International Film Festival, this impressive debut feature from writing-directing team Yannick Dahan and Benjamin Rocher is a must-see for zombie movie fans, not least because it features some of the most awesome edge-of-your-seat, close-combat human versus zombie beat-downs ever committed to film.
When a high-ranking and well-respected police detective is found murdered by a gang of homicidal mobsters, a small group of...
Synopsis:
‘Assault On Precinct 13’ meets ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ in The Horde, the latest addition to the ever-rising wave of superlative French horror cinema. Winner of the International Fantasy Film Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography at the 2010 Fantasporto International Film Festival, this impressive debut feature from writing-directing team Yannick Dahan and Benjamin Rocher is a must-see for zombie movie fans, not least because it features some of the most awesome edge-of-your-seat, close-combat human versus zombie beat-downs ever committed to film.
When a high-ranking and well-respected police detective is found murdered by a gang of homicidal mobsters, a small group of...
- 9/17/2010
- by Pestilence
- DreadCentral.com
With co-directors Yannick Dahan and Benjamin Rocher’s zombietastic action-horror La Horde (The Horde) slated for a September 17th theatrical release in the UK (with DVD to follow on the 20th), we’ve gotten our hands on a slightly early peek at the UK-exclusive trailer. Chow down!
From the Press Release:
‘Assault On Precinct 13’ meets ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ in The Horde, the latest addition to the ever-rising wave of superlative French horror cinema. Winner of the International Fantasy Film Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography at the 2010 Fantasporto International Film Festival, this impressive debut feature from writing-directing team Yannick Dahan and Benjamin Rocher is a must-see for zombie movie fans, not least because it features some of the most awesome edge-of-your-seat, close-combat human versus zombie beat-downs ever committed to film.
When a high-ranking and well-respected police detective is found murdered by a gang of homicidal mobsters, a...
From the Press Release:
‘Assault On Precinct 13’ meets ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ in The Horde, the latest addition to the ever-rising wave of superlative French horror cinema. Winner of the International Fantasy Film Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography at the 2010 Fantasporto International Film Festival, this impressive debut feature from writing-directing team Yannick Dahan and Benjamin Rocher is a must-see for zombie movie fans, not least because it features some of the most awesome edge-of-your-seat, close-combat human versus zombie beat-downs ever committed to film.
When a high-ranking and well-respected police detective is found murdered by a gang of homicidal mobsters, a...
- 8/24/2010
- by Pestilence
- DreadCentral.com
"Alternate Realities" from Anchor Bay Entertainment Canada, is a new, classic science fiction film collection, to be released on several DVDs, beginning April 6.
In director Aaron Lipstadt's 1982 feature "Android", starring Klaus Kinski, Bree Howard and Norbert Weisser:
"...Somewhere on the outskirts of deep space, orbits 'Ulz-53', a forgotten research station manned only by intense scientist 'Dr. Daniel' (Kinski) and his lonely android assistant 'Max 404' (Don Keith Opper). When three escaped convicts-including a beautiful woman- arrive aboard, Dr. Daniel finds the missing element to his outlawed experiments while Max discovers his own forbidden urges. Can a turned-on robot turn off his human insticnts and still get down to earth?..."
In "Astro Boy Greatest Astro Adventures", directed by creator Osamu Tezuka :
"...In the first ever 'Astro Boy' series created in full color, brilliant robot engineer 'Doctor Boynton' loses his son 'Toby' in an accident. The dedicated.
In director Aaron Lipstadt's 1982 feature "Android", starring Klaus Kinski, Bree Howard and Norbert Weisser:
"...Somewhere on the outskirts of deep space, orbits 'Ulz-53', a forgotten research station manned only by intense scientist 'Dr. Daniel' (Kinski) and his lonely android assistant 'Max 404' (Don Keith Opper). When three escaped convicts-including a beautiful woman- arrive aboard, Dr. Daniel finds the missing element to his outlawed experiments while Max discovers his own forbidden urges. Can a turned-on robot turn off his human insticnts and still get down to earth?..."
In "Astro Boy Greatest Astro Adventures", directed by creator Osamu Tezuka :
"...In the first ever 'Astro Boy' series created in full color, brilliant robot engineer 'Doctor Boynton' loses his son 'Toby' in an accident. The dedicated.
- 4/5/2010
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
Alternate Realities from Anchor Bay Entertainment Canada, is a new, classic science fiction film collection, to be released on several DVDs, beginning April 6. In director Aaron Lipstadt's 1982 feature Android, starring Klaus Kinski, Bree Howard and Norbert Weisser: "...Somewhere on the outskirts of deep space, orbits 'Ulz-53', a forgotten research station manned only by intense scientist 'Dr. Daniel' (Kinski) and his lonely android assistant 'Max 404' (Don Keith Opper). When three escaped convicts-including a beautiful woman- arrive aboard, Dr. Daniel finds the missing element to his outlawed experiments while Max discovers his own forbidden urges. Can a turned-on robot turn off his human insticnts and still get down to earth?..." In Astro Boy Greatest Astro Adventures, directed by creator Osamu Tezuka : "...In the first ever 'Astro Boy' series created in full colour, brilliant robot engineer 'Doctor Boynton' loses his son 'Toby' in an accident. The dedicated.
- 4/5/2010
- HollywoodNorthReport.com
Between Dimensions [1] is a continuing feature that examines science-fiction on the screen in all of its forms: big or small, good or bad. The recent Bruce Willis film Surrogates reminded me of a French film called Chrysalis. Their shared idea – what makes up our identity – can play out many ways. (All the films based on Pkd stories are testament to that). My advice? Just skip Surrogates. Rent Chrysalis. Julien Leclercq has directed a smoothly styled film noir (more correctly, un very slick filme bleu-noire) of French cops searching for the abductors of young women who, as illegal aliens, are highly vulnerable to exploitation. Expertly threaded into this somewhat generic story is a dramatic neurological breakthrough. It gives the film its energy by spinning in and out of the basic cops and crooks with inventiveness and a lot of visual elan. The backbone of Chrysalis’ story is tough-minded cops doing their job in a futuristic Paris.
- 10/29/2009
- by Curt
- FilmJunk
[Editor's Note: While this review is fairly spoiler-free it does contain lengthy excerpts directly from the screenplay.]
Imagine for a minute, sitting down to watch a film where the gene-perfect world of Gattaca, mixes with the crime free, pristine techno-utopia of Minority Report and throws in some gritty, gun-heavy action set pieces the likes of which we haven't seen since the first Matrix. Sounds like an amazing f#$&king movie doesn't it? Now, image all that science fiction perfection wrapped around a twisted and bloody serial killer mystery featuring the most horrifying and inventive murderer since "John Doe" stalked victims in Se7en. How does that grab you now? Yeah, I thought so. I'd line up for that s#!% too. Screw that, I'd buy that baby on double-disc special edition DVD and throw a party.
So when can we see the film? Unfortunately it's up in the air. In brief, Siphon was a hot script back in 2005 and then went into development hell. We've heard that the...
Imagine for a minute, sitting down to watch a film where the gene-perfect world of Gattaca, mixes with the crime free, pristine techno-utopia of Minority Report and throws in some gritty, gun-heavy action set pieces the likes of which we haven't seen since the first Matrix. Sounds like an amazing f#$&king movie doesn't it? Now, image all that science fiction perfection wrapped around a twisted and bloody serial killer mystery featuring the most horrifying and inventive murderer since "John Doe" stalked victims in Se7en. How does that grab you now? Yeah, I thought so. I'd line up for that s#!% too. Screw that, I'd buy that baby on double-disc special edition DVD and throw a party.
So when can we see the film? Unfortunately it's up in the air. In brief, Siphon was a hot script back in 2005 and then went into development hell. We've heard that the...
- 6/30/2009
- QuietEarth.us
Though it didn’t receive the same level of attention as Inside or Frontiere(s) - also debut films from fresh French directors - I am a big fan of Julien Leclerq’s Chrysalis, an icily precise sci-fi noir film with Albert Dupontel (Irreversible) and fight sequences from Bourne Identity choreographer Alain Figlarz. And now, thanks to the fine people at Anchor Bay Canada I’ve got five copies of the upcoming DVD to give away to the Twitch faithful. Want it? Just - the day the DVD releases - and name the unusual fight style employed by Figlarz in the film. The answer lies somewhere within the pages of Twitch ... good luck!
- 4/24/2009
- by Todd Brown
- Screen Anarchy
Not much out this week but, hooray, Julien Leclercq's cyberpunk cop thriller, Chrysalis (review here) is finally getting a DVD release in America and Canada from the fine folks at Anchor Bay. This flick has really grown on me over the past year and I'm glad to see that it's finally available.
Also out from Anchor Bay this week is the Mischa Barton starrer Walled In which looks like a pretty decent horror mystery.
Lastly we've got the release of a Shaw Brothers film from 1981 called Lost Souls which is being billed as "the most shocking film ever from the director of the shocking cult classic, "Men Behind the Sun."" It's also never been seen before by American audiences (doubtful) but I've hear it's a pretty jaw-dropping exploitation "masterpiece" so I'm going to check it out.
Trailers and stuff after the break.
Chrysalis
Purchase from Amazon
Paris 2020, a high...
Also out from Anchor Bay this week is the Mischa Barton starrer Walled In which looks like a pretty decent horror mystery.
Lastly we've got the release of a Shaw Brothers film from 1981 called Lost Souls which is being billed as "the most shocking film ever from the director of the shocking cult classic, "Men Behind the Sun."" It's also never been seen before by American audiences (doubtful) but I've hear it's a pretty jaw-dropping exploitation "masterpiece" so I'm going to check it out.
Trailers and stuff after the break.
Chrysalis
Purchase from Amazon
Paris 2020, a high...
- 3/17/2009
- QuietEarth.us
Trailer for Jeremy Alter's The Perfect Sleep which is set "against the backdrop of a noirish dreamscape, a tortured man returns to the city he swore he would never return to, in order to save the woman he has always loved yet can never have"
The screeplay is by Anton Pardoe who also stars along with Roselyn Sanchez (Without a Trace), Patrick Bauchau (Chrysalis, Carnivàle), Peter J. Lucas (Inland Empire)
www.theperfectsleep.com
Read More
tags: action, drama, film noir, martial arts, thriller...
The screeplay is by Anton Pardoe who also stars along with Roselyn Sanchez (Without a Trace), Patrick Bauchau (Chrysalis, Carnivàle), Peter J. Lucas (Inland Empire)
www.theperfectsleep.com
Read More
tags: action, drama, film noir, martial arts, thriller...
- 3/17/2009
- by Leigh
- Latemag.com/film
Chrysalis
PARIS -- Chrysalis from debuting director Julien Leclercq is a sci-fi thriller in the tradition of Blade Runner with plenty of action, not all of it comprehensible, and impressive visuals. The plot is tortuous and larded with cliches, but there are enough compensatory pleasures for the movie to appeal to young audiences.
Chrysalis is the name given to an ingenious piece of cyber-technology in 2025 that can read a person's memories and download them onto a chip. The criminal underworld, in the shape of Bulgarian hoodlums, are determined to seize Chrysalis for their own nefarious purposes. Hard-boiled Eurocop David Hoffman (Albert Dupontel), whose wife, a fellow officer, has died in a shoot-out with the Bulgarians, has been called in to sort things out. He soon finds himself pitted against the villainous Dimitri Nikolov (Alain Figlarz).
However, Leclercq withholds the crucial information about Chrysalis until we're an hour into the film. What's more, the main action is interwoven with the story of Manon (Melanie Thierry), a teenager who has been badly disfigured in a car crash. She is undergoing surgery at a clinic run by her mother, Professor Brugen (Marthe Keller), all of which makes the early sequences difficult to decipher.
The trail leads Hoffman and his able sidekick Marie Becker (Marie Guillard) to the clinic where it turns out that Professor Burgen is a ruthless operator who has a stake in the memory game, too. She also appears to be involved in Nikolov's human trafficking scam. After the showdown with Nikolov -- the second of two brilliantly orchestrated hand-to-hand fight scenes -- Hoffman is able to stride off into the sunset.
Except there is no sunset because in Leclercq's vision, Paris -- the City of Light -- has become a grim, gray dystopia where the sun rarely shines. Filming in near-monochrome -- blue, with the palest of flesh tints -- the director creates a claustrophobic world in which technology has suppressed feeling. Jean-Philippe Moreaux's sets and Thomas Hardmeier's cinematography are superb. Moreaux in particular has taken great pains to imagine what the world of tomorrow might look like, and his research into hyper-communication mechanisms, home automation and intelligent-space technology has paid off handsomely onscreen.
Movie buffs will enjoy picking out references to (or borrowings from) other movies -- A Clockwork Orange, Minority Report and Matrix are in the mix -- and the mother-and-daughter surgical subplot forms an intended tribute to Georges Franju's 1960 horror classic Eyes Without a Face.
Dupontel is watchable as the cold-eyed action hero who only at the end allows himself a wan smile. The stylized fight scenes blocked out by Figlarz -- who also worked on The Bourne Identity -- are terrific.
CHRYSALIS
Gaumont
Credits:
Director: Julien Leclercq
Screenwriters: Julien Leclercq, Franck Philippon
Producer: Franck Chorot
Executive producer: Jean-Philippe Blime
Director of photography: Thomas Hardmeier
Production designer: Jean-Philippe Moreaux
Music: Jean-Jacques Hertz, Francois Roy
Costume designer: Fabienne Katany
Editor: Thierry Hoss
Cast:
Hoffman: Albert Dupontel
Marie: Marie Guillard
Professor Brugen: Marthe Keller
Manon Brugen: Melanie Thierry
Clara: Estelle Lefebure
Dimitri Nikolov: Alain Figlarz
Miller Claude Perron
Running time -- 91 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Chrysalis is the name given to an ingenious piece of cyber-technology in 2025 that can read a person's memories and download them onto a chip. The criminal underworld, in the shape of Bulgarian hoodlums, are determined to seize Chrysalis for their own nefarious purposes. Hard-boiled Eurocop David Hoffman (Albert Dupontel), whose wife, a fellow officer, has died in a shoot-out with the Bulgarians, has been called in to sort things out. He soon finds himself pitted against the villainous Dimitri Nikolov (Alain Figlarz).
However, Leclercq withholds the crucial information about Chrysalis until we're an hour into the film. What's more, the main action is interwoven with the story of Manon (Melanie Thierry), a teenager who has been badly disfigured in a car crash. She is undergoing surgery at a clinic run by her mother, Professor Brugen (Marthe Keller), all of which makes the early sequences difficult to decipher.
The trail leads Hoffman and his able sidekick Marie Becker (Marie Guillard) to the clinic where it turns out that Professor Burgen is a ruthless operator who has a stake in the memory game, too. She also appears to be involved in Nikolov's human trafficking scam. After the showdown with Nikolov -- the second of two brilliantly orchestrated hand-to-hand fight scenes -- Hoffman is able to stride off into the sunset.
Except there is no sunset because in Leclercq's vision, Paris -- the City of Light -- has become a grim, gray dystopia where the sun rarely shines. Filming in near-monochrome -- blue, with the palest of flesh tints -- the director creates a claustrophobic world in which technology has suppressed feeling. Jean-Philippe Moreaux's sets and Thomas Hardmeier's cinematography are superb. Moreaux in particular has taken great pains to imagine what the world of tomorrow might look like, and his research into hyper-communication mechanisms, home automation and intelligent-space technology has paid off handsomely onscreen.
Movie buffs will enjoy picking out references to (or borrowings from) other movies -- A Clockwork Orange, Minority Report and Matrix are in the mix -- and the mother-and-daughter surgical subplot forms an intended tribute to Georges Franju's 1960 horror classic Eyes Without a Face.
Dupontel is watchable as the cold-eyed action hero who only at the end allows himself a wan smile. The stylized fight scenes blocked out by Figlarz -- who also worked on The Bourne Identity -- are terrific.
CHRYSALIS
Gaumont
Credits:
Director: Julien Leclercq
Screenwriters: Julien Leclercq, Franck Philippon
Producer: Franck Chorot
Executive producer: Jean-Philippe Blime
Director of photography: Thomas Hardmeier
Production designer: Jean-Philippe Moreaux
Music: Jean-Jacques Hertz, Francois Roy
Costume designer: Fabienne Katany
Editor: Thierry Hoss
Cast:
Hoffman: Albert Dupontel
Marie: Marie Guillard
Professor Brugen: Marthe Keller
Manon Brugen: Melanie Thierry
Clara: Estelle Lefebure
Dimitri Nikolov: Alain Figlarz
Miller Claude Perron
Running time -- 91 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 12/7/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
- Today’s Tiff Vanguard section add-ons are primarily comprised of Cannes selections, directorial debuts (girls watch out for a certain Mexican actor turned director) and international fair that defy easy categorization and have reaped some awards along the way. Also added to the Midnight Madness section are the highly awaited films from Dario Argento and Takashi Miike – both titles will be high up on the Ioncinema coverage list. Here are the added titles along with descriptions. Vanguard Titlesparanoid Park Gus Van Sant, FranceAlex (Gabe Nevins), a teenaged skateboarder, is at the centre of a criminal investigation after a security guard is killed near a skate park. Through non-linear fragments of action, voiced memories, skating scenes and Alex's inner conflict, his connection to the case is made clear. Like Van Sant's recent trilogy (Gerry, Elephant and Last Days) the sophisticated Paranoid Park, based on the novel by Blake Nelson, is
- 7/31/2007
- IONCINEMA.com
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