David Yates’s Pain Hustlers puffs itself up as a dynamic epic about the American dream but ends up glorifying some truly grotesque characters. Wells Tower’s script pulls loosely from Evan Hughes’s book about how executives at pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics were convicted in 2019 of conspiring to bribe doctors to overprescribe the fentanyl spray Subsys. The story has every ingredient for gripping melodrama: greed, timeliness, money, drugs, death, betrayal, and an Icarus-like fall. Thomas Jennings’s Frontline episode “Opioids, Inc.” and the second part of Alex Gibney’s The Crime of the Century have already turned the sordid tale into powerful, infuriating nonfiction. But in the course of fictionalizing the Insys story, Yates and Tower lose sight of what made it compelling to begin with.
Though ostensibly about the 2010s’ epidemic of synthetic opioid overdoses, Pain Hustlers really hangs its story on the oh-so American grit and determination...
Though ostensibly about the 2010s’ epidemic of synthetic opioid overdoses, Pain Hustlers really hangs its story on the oh-so American grit and determination...
- 10/26/2023
- by Chris Barsanti
- Slant Magazine
As of last year, over a million people have died of opioid overdoses in the United States. The central culprits, as outlined in Netflix’s latest miniseries, “Painkiller,” are Purdue Pharma and the “non-addictive” prescription drug they marketed to anyone with a pulse and a toothache: OxyContin. It’s a distinctly American tragedy — painful, self-inflicted, motivated by avarice, and, sadly, nowhere near adequately addressed even decades on. There have been plenty of attempts to chart the origins of this crisis on the big and small screens, from documentaries to, fittingly, other prestige streaming miniseries (Hulu’s acclaimed “Dopesick.”) Director Peter Berg’s turn at bat is an overly glib affair that leans a bit too hard into its arch, devious tone to give such apocalyptic material the gravity it deserves.
Continue reading ‘Painkiller’ Review: Peter Berg’s Miniseries With Taylor Kitsch, Matthew Broderick & More Awkwardly Takes On The Opioid Crisis at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘Painkiller’ Review: Peter Berg’s Miniseries With Taylor Kitsch, Matthew Broderick & More Awkwardly Takes On The Opioid Crisis at The Playlist.
- 8/10/2023
- by The Playlist
- The Playlist
Netflix this morning dropped the official trailer for the six-part limited series “Painkiller” starring Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, Taylor Kitsch, Dana Shihabi and West Duchovny that premieres August 10 on the streamer. The scripted series – inspired by real events and based on the book “Pain Killer” by Barry Meier and the New Yorker magazine article “The Family That Built an Empire of Pain” by Patrick Radden Keefe, both of whom are consultants on the series – surrounds America’s opioid crisis and the Sackler family. All six installments are directed by two-time Emmy nominee Pete Berg, who also serves as an executive producer. See the official trailer above.
The series will highlight “the stories of the perpetrators, victims and truth-seekers whose lives are forever altered by the invention of OxyContin.” “Painkillers” also examines “the crime, accountability and the systems that have repeatedly failed hundreds of thousands of Americans.” Writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and...
The series will highlight “the stories of the perpetrators, victims and truth-seekers whose lives are forever altered by the invention of OxyContin.” “Painkillers” also examines “the crime, accountability and the systems that have repeatedly failed hundreds of thousands of Americans.” Writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and...
- 7/11/2023
- by Ray Richmond
- Gold Derby
Painkiller, Netflix’s anticipated and upcoming new limited series about the U.S. opioid crisis, has dropped its first trailer.
The six-episode series releasing Aug. 10 from the EP team of Eric Newman (Narcos, True Story) and director Pete Berg (Friday Night Lights, Spenser Confidential) is inspired by real events amid the country’s opioid crisis and features a cast including Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, Taylor Kitsch (marking a Fnl reunion with Berg), Dina Shihabi, West Duchovny and John Rothman.
Alex Gibney (The Crime of the Century, Going Clear) also executive produces with creators, showrunners and writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood).
The trailer introduces Aduba’s character as Edie, the investigator leading the case against Purdue Pharma, with Broderick playing Richard Sackler, a scion of the billionaire family that controls Purdue and a senior executive at the company.
Sackler explains that human behavior is...
The six-episode series releasing Aug. 10 from the EP team of Eric Newman (Narcos, True Story) and director Pete Berg (Friday Night Lights, Spenser Confidential) is inspired by real events amid the country’s opioid crisis and features a cast including Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, Taylor Kitsch (marking a Fnl reunion with Berg), Dina Shihabi, West Duchovny and John Rothman.
Alex Gibney (The Crime of the Century, Going Clear) also executive produces with creators, showrunners and writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood).
The trailer introduces Aduba’s character as Edie, the investigator leading the case against Purdue Pharma, with Broderick playing Richard Sackler, a scion of the billionaire family that controls Purdue and a senior executive at the company.
Sackler explains that human behavior is...
- 7/11/2023
- by Jackie Strause
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Jigsaw Productions evp of development and production Stacey Offman is leaving the company after 11 years, Jigsaw said Wednesday.
During her time at The Inventor and Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker producer led by documentarian Alex Gibney, the creative executive headed up the launch of company’s television branch and played a significant role in developing Dirty Money, the Netflix series focused on corporate corruption. She also was a prime mover in the development of the Netflix series Salt Fat Acid Heat, based on the Samin Nosrat book, and Showtime’s U.S.-Saudi Arabia doc Kingdom of Silence and Apple TV’s The Line, about a 2018 war crimes case.
Offman is said to be leaving to pursue new opportunities, although she will remain as an executive producer on select Jigsaw projects and is planning on working with Jigsaw as an independent producer going forward.
“I depart Jigsaw with...
During her time at The Inventor and Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker producer led by documentarian Alex Gibney, the creative executive headed up the launch of company’s television branch and played a significant role in developing Dirty Money, the Netflix series focused on corporate corruption. She also was a prime mover in the development of the Netflix series Salt Fat Acid Heat, based on the Samin Nosrat book, and Showtime’s U.S.-Saudi Arabia doc Kingdom of Silence and Apple TV’s The Line, about a 2018 war crimes case.
Offman is said to be leaving to pursue new opportunities, although she will remain as an executive producer on select Jigsaw projects and is planning on working with Jigsaw as an independent producer going forward.
“I depart Jigsaw with...
- 5/17/2023
- by Katie Kilkenny
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Musk, Alex Gibney’s doc about the tech giant Elon Musk, has landed at HBO Documentary Films in North America.
Musk has been described as a “definitive and unvarnished examination” of the controversial and headline-making CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and Twitter. (When the doc was first announced, in characteristic fashion, Musk made a comment on Twitter, writing, “It’s a hit piece.”) Gibney, who earned an Oscar for the 2008 film Taxi to the Dark Side, is no stranger to controversial figures, having produced docs on Scientology, Wikileaks and Enron.
Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions produced the film alongside Closer Media, Anonymous Content and Double Agent, which is also financed the project.
HBO and Gibney have a long working relationship, which includes films about the opioid crisis The Crime of the Century, Elisabeth Homes doc The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley and Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief.
Musk has been described as a “definitive and unvarnished examination” of the controversial and headline-making CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and Twitter. (When the doc was first announced, in characteristic fashion, Musk made a comment on Twitter, writing, “It’s a hit piece.”) Gibney, who earned an Oscar for the 2008 film Taxi to the Dark Side, is no stranger to controversial figures, having produced docs on Scientology, Wikileaks and Enron.
Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions produced the film alongside Closer Media, Anonymous Content and Double Agent, which is also financed the project.
HBO and Gibney have a long working relationship, which includes films about the opioid crisis The Crime of the Century, Elisabeth Homes doc The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley and Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief.
- 5/11/2023
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Netflix six-part limited series “Painkiller” starring Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, Taylor Kitsch, Dana Shihabi and West Duchovny will premiere August 10 on the streamer, it was announced this morning. The scripted series – inspired by real events and based on the book “Pain Killer” by Barry Meier and the New Yorker magazine article “The Family That Built an Empire of Pain” by Patrick Radden Keefe, both of whom are consultants on the series – surrounds America’s opioid epidemic and the Sackler family. All six installments are directed by two-time Emmy nominee Peter Berg, who also serves as an executive producer.
The series will highlight “the stories of the perpetrators, victims and truth-seekers whose lives are forever altered by the invention of OxyContin.” “Painkillers” also examines “the crime, accountability and the systems that have repeatedly failed hundreds of thousands of Americans.” Writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster are the creators/showrunners, while...
The series will highlight “the stories of the perpetrators, victims and truth-seekers whose lives are forever altered by the invention of OxyContin.” “Painkillers” also examines “the crime, accountability and the systems that have repeatedly failed hundreds of thousands of Americans.” Writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster are the creators/showrunners, while...
- 5/8/2023
- by Ray Richmond
- Gold Derby
Camerimage, a film festival focused on cinematography, will honor the documentary director Alex Gibney during its 30th edition. The investigative filmmaker will be present at the event in Toruń, Poland, which runs Nov. 12-19, to accept the award for outstanding achievements in documentary filmmaking.
Gibney’s films include “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room,” exposing the greed and corruption of one of the most influential U.S. corporations; Oscar-winning “Taxi to the Dark Side,” with a harrowing tale of inhumane practices during the early years of the war in Afghanistan; and “Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God,” providing a horrifying account of the decades of sexual abuse and pedophilia in the Catholic Church.
His “Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson” put the focus on an unusual journalist and his disputed methods, while “We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks” portrayed those behind...
Gibney’s films include “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room,” exposing the greed and corruption of one of the most influential U.S. corporations; Oscar-winning “Taxi to the Dark Side,” with a harrowing tale of inhumane practices during the early years of the war in Afghanistan; and “Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God,” providing a horrifying account of the decades of sexual abuse and pedophilia in the Catholic Church.
His “Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson” put the focus on an unusual journalist and his disputed methods, while “We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks” portrayed those behind...
- 9/22/2022
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
In “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed,” the photographer Nan Goldin tells a woeful, revealing, and in its way rather funny anecdote about how in the 1980s, when she first gathered up her photographs — casually transgressive images of her and her friends, who were often drag queens and addicts, along with shots of the assorted other people and situations she experienced as part of the hummingly squalid East Village New York subculture — and tried to shop them around to galleries and museums, they were roundly rejected, because the arbiters of taste, who were inevitably men, favored photographs that were black-and-white and composed in elegant meticulous ways. Goldin’s photographs were in garish verité color, set in environments that were so scruffy that it looked, to the gallery mavens, like there was no visual organization to them, no art.
This, with 40 years’ hindsight, is telling, because what you see now is...
This, with 40 years’ hindsight, is telling, because what you see now is...
- 9/3/2022
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Without awaiting word on a date for the Golden Globe Awards or even if they will be proceeding on NBC (which is reportedly still in discussions with the HFPA), the Critics Choice Association today has not only staked their flag for the 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards, but also their 7th Documentary awards and a fast growing series of “Celebrations” focusing on Black, Latino and now Asian Pacific achievements in movies and television.
The 2023 Critics Choice Awards will be held Sunday January 15 at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, airing live on the CW. The date is associated with where the ceremony had traditionally been parked pre-pandemic. The 27th awards event, also at the Fairmont had to be moved to March of this year due to Covid concerns and featured a live hookup from the Savoy in London for those nominees who also were attending the BAFTA awards,...
The 2023 Critics Choice Awards will be held Sunday January 15 at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, airing live on the CW. The date is associated with where the ceremony had traditionally been parked pre-pandemic. The 27th awards event, also at the Fairmont had to be moved to March of this year due to Covid concerns and featured a live hookup from the Savoy in London for those nominees who also were attending the BAFTA awards,...
- 7/19/2022
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Writer, director and award-winning journalist Julian Rubinstein’s anti-gang war documentary The Holly has tapped Oscar-winning filmmaker and Hyperobject Industries founder Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up) and Emmy-nominated filmmaker Todd Schulman (Borat) as executive producers ahead of its world premiere next month at Telluride’s Mountainfilm.
Executive producing alongside McKay and Schulman are Trygve Myhren, Kayvan Khalatbari, Chad Asarch, and K. Nicole Robinson Asarch, along with co-executive producer David Sirota (Don’t Look Up). The film is produced by filmmaker and theater company founder Donnie l. Betts (Music Is My Life), Sarah Dowland (The Crime of the Century) and Dia Sokol Savage (Finding Kendrick Johnson).
“I was completely blown away after seeing the rough cut of The Holly,” McKay said. “From income inequality, race, gun violence and corruption, this film is the macro of America in the micro.”
Based on Rubinstein’s New York Times Editor’s Choice pick The Holly: Five Bullets,...
Executive producing alongside McKay and Schulman are Trygve Myhren, Kayvan Khalatbari, Chad Asarch, and K. Nicole Robinson Asarch, along with co-executive producer David Sirota (Don’t Look Up). The film is produced by filmmaker and theater company founder Donnie l. Betts (Music Is My Life), Sarah Dowland (The Crime of the Century) and Dia Sokol Savage (Finding Kendrick Johnson).
“I was completely blown away after seeing the rough cut of The Holly,” McKay said. “From income inequality, race, gun violence and corruption, this film is the macro of America in the micro.”
Based on Rubinstein’s New York Times Editor’s Choice pick The Holly: Five Bullets,...
- 4/29/2022
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Storied Media Group continues to expand its executive ranks with four new key hires across its Content & Client Partnerships, StoryScout Editorial and Business Affairs divisions.
Sara Barkan and Justine Taylor have joined the company’s Content & Client Partnerships division, Cherie Rodgers will point the company’s Business Affairs, and Jennifer Johnson has joined as Senior Editor, StoryScout. The new hires and recent promotions of Kevin Fernandes, Shayna Lyga, Jonny Harris and Ben Rosen come amid the explosive growth of the company’s IP software service StoryScout.
Prior to joining Storied Media Group, Barkan was a literary agent representing IP, writers, directors and production companies for television and film at A3 Artists Agency. Previously, Barkan had also been a producer of development and original programming at TruTV. She began her career at both CAA and UTA, followed by her time working for Steve Golin as a Creative Executive at Propaganda Films.
Sara Barkan and Justine Taylor have joined the company’s Content & Client Partnerships division, Cherie Rodgers will point the company’s Business Affairs, and Jennifer Johnson has joined as Senior Editor, StoryScout. The new hires and recent promotions of Kevin Fernandes, Shayna Lyga, Jonny Harris and Ben Rosen come amid the explosive growth of the company’s IP software service StoryScout.
Prior to joining Storied Media Group, Barkan was a literary agent representing IP, writers, directors and production companies for television and film at A3 Artists Agency. Previously, Barkan had also been a producer of development and original programming at TruTV. She began her career at both CAA and UTA, followed by her time working for Steve Golin as a Creative Executive at Propaganda Films.
- 3/16/2022
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
It’s that time of year again. While some directors annually share their favorite films of the year, Steven Soderbergh lists everything he consumed, media-wise. For 2021––another year in which he not only released a new film, but shot another (and produced the Oscars)––he still got plenty of watching in.
Along with catching up on 2021’s new releases, he took in plenty of classics, including Jaws, Citizen Kane, Metropolis, The French Connection, and Lubitsch’s Ninotchka and Design For Living. Early last year, he also saw a cut of Channing Tatum’s Dog, which doesn’t arrive until next month. He also, of course, screened his latest movies while in post-production, with three viewings of No Sudden Move and three viewings of Kimi, which arrives on February 10 on HBO Max and the first look of which can be seen below.
Check out the list below via his official site.
Along with catching up on 2021’s new releases, he took in plenty of classics, including Jaws, Citizen Kane, Metropolis, The French Connection, and Lubitsch’s Ninotchka and Design For Living. Early last year, he also saw a cut of Channing Tatum’s Dog, which doesn’t arrive until next month. He also, of course, screened his latest movies while in post-production, with three viewings of No Sudden Move and three viewings of Kimi, which arrives on February 10 on HBO Max and the first look of which can be seen below.
Check out the list below via his official site.
- 1/5/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
"Something more aggressive had to be done." This is scary! HBO has revealed the official trailer for The Forever Prisoner, yet another new documentary film made by acclaimed director Alex Gibney. He also released The Crime of the Century this year, helped produced The First Wave, and also released Crazy, Not Insane last year. The Forever Prisoner is an HBO original documentary film that takes viewers, for the first time, behind the architects of America's torture program. The doc focuses on the story of Abu Zubaydah, the first high-value detainee subjected to the CIA's program of Enhanced Interrogation Techniques (EITs), later identified as torture by those outside the agency. The film digs deep into the provocative question: "Are we prepared to abandon our principles in order to defend them?" I think too many might actually say "yes"... This looks at Guantanamo Bay and how torture was happening there for years.
- 11/26/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Onyx Collective and Searchlights’s acquisition Summer of Soul from Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson took several prizes at the sixth annual Critics Choices Documentary Awards on Sunday, including Best Documentary Feature, Best Director (a tie), Best First Documentary Feature, Best Editing, Best Archival Documentary and Best Music Documentary.
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin also took Best Director for The Rescue, in addition to Best Cinematography and Best Score.
The awards recognize the year’s finest achievements in documentaries released in theaters, on TV and on major digital platforms, as determined by the voting of qualified Cca members.
“We are proud to be able to recognize such outstanding work at this year’s awards gala, in our return to a live event,” said Christopher Campbell, president of the Critics Choice Association Documentary Branch. “It was a wonderful night of showcasing and honoring the...
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin also took Best Director for The Rescue, in addition to Best Cinematography and Best Score.
The awards recognize the year’s finest achievements in documentaries released in theaters, on TV and on major digital platforms, as determined by the voting of qualified Cca members.
“We are proud to be able to recognize such outstanding work at this year’s awards gala, in our return to a live event,” said Christopher Campbell, president of the Critics Choice Association Documentary Branch. “It was a wonderful night of showcasing and honoring the...
- 11/15/2021
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
The Critics Choice Association awarded “Summer of Soul” the top prize at the sixth annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards, which honors the best achievements in nonfiction released in theaters, on TV, or on major digital platforms. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s look at the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival took home the most awards of any film, with five in total.
This year’s nominees were led by “Ascension” and “Summer of Soul,” two films by first-time documentarians. Each had six nominations. But “Ascension,” Jessica Kingdon’s look at the pursuit of the Chinese dream, failed to score any prizes November 14.
“Summer of Soul,” which won the top documentary prize and an Audience Award following its Sundance premiere earlier this year, won five of the six awards it was nominated for at the critics awards: Best Documentary Feature, Best First Documentary Feature, Best Editing, Best Archival Documentary, and Best Director, a prize Thompson...
This year’s nominees were led by “Ascension” and “Summer of Soul,” two films by first-time documentarians. Each had six nominations. But “Ascension,” Jessica Kingdon’s look at the pursuit of the Chinese dream, failed to score any prizes November 14.
“Summer of Soul,” which won the top documentary prize and an Audience Award following its Sundance premiere earlier this year, won five of the six awards it was nominated for at the critics awards: Best Documentary Feature, Best First Documentary Feature, Best Editing, Best Archival Documentary, and Best Director, a prize Thompson...
- 11/15/2021
- by Chris Lindahl
- Indiewire
The Critics Choice Association has announced nominees for the sixth annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards.
The awards cover documentaries released in theaters, on TV and on major digital platforms. The awards gala takes place Nov. 14 in Brooklyn, N.Y.
“Ascension” and “Summer of Soul, both from first-time documentarians, led the nominations with six each. “Becoming Cousteau” and “The Rescue” both received five nods each.
“This has been and continues to be a fantastic year for documentary storytelling. And the number of first-time feature documentarians in the mix of nominees, alongside proven veterans, shows that nonfiction cinema continues to have a very bright future,” said Christopher Campbell, President of the Critics Choice Association Documentary Branch. “Our world, from its most amazing wonders to its greatest challenges, is being reflected back on the screen so immediately and creatively by today’s filmmakers, and it’s a tremendous honor for us to recognize all of their achievements.
The awards cover documentaries released in theaters, on TV and on major digital platforms. The awards gala takes place Nov. 14 in Brooklyn, N.Y.
“Ascension” and “Summer of Soul, both from first-time documentarians, led the nominations with six each. “Becoming Cousteau” and “The Rescue” both received five nods each.
“This has been and continues to be a fantastic year for documentary storytelling. And the number of first-time feature documentarians in the mix of nominees, alongside proven veterans, shows that nonfiction cinema continues to have a very bright future,” said Christopher Campbell, President of the Critics Choice Association Documentary Branch. “Our world, from its most amazing wonders to its greatest challenges, is being reflected back on the screen so immediately and creatively by today’s filmmakers, and it’s a tremendous honor for us to recognize all of their achievements.
- 10/18/2021
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
Notably leading the pack of nominees revealed Monday for the sixth annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards are a pair of films from directors making their debut as documentarians. Ascension’s Jessica Kingdon and Summer of Soul’s Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson pulled off the impressive feat, with both films receiving six nods apiece. On their tails however are a pair of docus from Nat Geo with five nods each: The Rescue. whose directors Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi took the Oscar for their previous effort Free Solo; and Becoming Cousteau, whose director Liz Garbus is also a docu veteran with two Oscar nominations and two Emmys to her credit.
All will compete in the Best Documentary Feature and Best Director categories, with Thompson and Kingdon also facing off for Best First Documentary Feature along with such indie film giants as Todd Haynes and Edgar Wright.
All will compete in the Best Documentary Feature and Best Director categories, with Thompson and Kingdon also facing off for Best First Documentary Feature along with such indie film giants as Todd Haynes and Edgar Wright.
- 10/18/2021
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
The Critics Choice Association (Cca) has announced the nominees for the sixth annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards (Ccda). This year’s winners will be revealed at a gala on Sunday, November 14, 2021, in Brooklyn, NY. The awards honor the best achievements in nonfiction released in theaters, on TV, or on major digital platforms.
Both films by first-time documentarians, “Ascension” and “Summer of Soul” lead this year’s nominations with six each. “Ascension,” a look at the Chinese dream across social classes, is also up for Documentary Feature, Director (Jessica Kingdon), First Feature, Cinematography, Editing, and Score. Meanwhile, “Summer of Soul” is up for Documentary Feature, Best Director (Ahmir “Questlove’ Thompson), First Documentary, Editing, Archival Documentary, and Music Documentary.
“Becoming Cousteau” and “The Rescue” also picked up five nominations each.
Last year, “Dick Johnson Is Dead” took home the Cca’s top award for Best Documentary as well as the Best Director award for Kirsten Johnson.
Both films by first-time documentarians, “Ascension” and “Summer of Soul” lead this year’s nominations with six each. “Ascension,” a look at the Chinese dream across social classes, is also up for Documentary Feature, Director (Jessica Kingdon), First Feature, Cinematography, Editing, and Score. Meanwhile, “Summer of Soul” is up for Documentary Feature, Best Director (Ahmir “Questlove’ Thompson), First Documentary, Editing, Archival Documentary, and Music Documentary.
“Becoming Cousteau” and “The Rescue” also picked up five nominations each.
Last year, “Dick Johnson Is Dead” took home the Cca’s top award for Best Documentary as well as the Best Director award for Kirsten Johnson.
- 10/18/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
It’s important enough to understand the origins and realities of America’s opioid epidemic that I’m hesitant to wholly dismiss Hulu’s occasionally informative, less frequently entertaining new limited series Dopesick. Not everybody has the time to read books on the epidemic or watch in-depth documentaries like Alex Gibney’s The Crime of the Century or even to watch the myriad condemnations of Big Pharma on every comedy-news hybrid program now airing. So if the presence of cinema’s best Batman in a scripted series is what it’s going to take to open some eyes to a national crisis,...
- 10/6/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
It’s important enough to understand the origins and realities of America’s opioid epidemic that I’m hesitant to wholly dismiss Hulu’s occasionally informative, less frequently entertaining new limited series Dopesick. Not everybody has the time to read books on the epidemic or watch in-depth documentaries like Alex Gibney’s The Crime of the Century or even to watch the myriad condemnations of Big Pharma on every comedy-news hybrid program now airing. So if the presence of cinema’s best Batman in a scripted series is what it’s going to take to open some eyes to a national crisis,...
- 10/6/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Taylor Kitsch has joined the cast of Netflix’s opioid crisis drama Painkiller.
The Waco and Friday Night Lights star is one of eight actors to come aboard the series from showrunners Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood) and Narcos executive producer Eric Newman. John Ales, Sam Anderson, Carolina Bartczak, Jack Mulhern, Ana Cruz Kayne, Ron Lea and Tyler Ritter have also joined the series.
The show’s previously announced cast includes Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, West Duchovny, Dina Shihabi and John Rothman.
Painkiller is a reunion for Kitsch and director and executive producer Peter Berg. The two worked together on Friday Night Lights and Battleship.
Painkiller will dramatize the origins of the opioid crisis with a focus on Oxycontin maker Purdue Pharma. The show is based on Patrick Radden Keefe’s New Yorker article “The Family That Built an Empire of Pain” and Barry Meier...
The Waco and Friday Night Lights star is one of eight actors to come aboard the series from showrunners Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood) and Narcos executive producer Eric Newman. John Ales, Sam Anderson, Carolina Bartczak, Jack Mulhern, Ana Cruz Kayne, Ron Lea and Tyler Ritter have also joined the series.
The show’s previously announced cast includes Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, West Duchovny, Dina Shihabi and John Rothman.
Painkiller is a reunion for Kitsch and director and executive producer Peter Berg. The two worked together on Friday Night Lights and Battleship.
Painkiller will dramatize the origins of the opioid crisis with a focus on Oxycontin maker Purdue Pharma. The show is based on Patrick Radden Keefe’s New Yorker article “The Family That Built an Empire of Pain” and Barry Meier...
- 10/4/2021
- by Rick Porter
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Emmy Predictions: Best Documentary or Nonfiction Series — A Wide Array of Docs, but Only One Can Win
Last Year’s Winner: “The Last Dance”
Still Eligible: No.
Hot Streak: Netflix saw its two-year hot streak interrupted when ESPN’s “The Last Dance” docuseries took home the Emmy in 2020 — however, Jason Hehir’s documentary series was released by Netflix internationally, as well as in the U.S. prior to the Emmys, so the streamer can take some credit for its viewership, and thus, its victory. Call it a “two-and-a-half year hot streak.”
Fun Fact: Since receiving its first two nominations in 2016, Netflix has been nominated every year since, including two nominations in every Emmy cycle save for 2020, and winning three of the last five competitions. The streamer’s heavy investment in docuseries, as well as the service’s general ubiquity, has certainly helped it make an immediate impact on the documentary world at large.
Notable Ineligible Series: “The Crime of the Century” (HBO’s two-part documentary is eligible...
Still Eligible: No.
Hot Streak: Netflix saw its two-year hot streak interrupted when ESPN’s “The Last Dance” docuseries took home the Emmy in 2020 — however, Jason Hehir’s documentary series was released by Netflix internationally, as well as in the U.S. prior to the Emmys, so the streamer can take some credit for its viewership, and thus, its victory. Call it a “two-and-a-half year hot streak.”
Fun Fact: Since receiving its first two nominations in 2016, Netflix has been nominated every year since, including two nominations in every Emmy cycle save for 2020, and winning three of the last five competitions. The streamer’s heavy investment in docuseries, as well as the service’s general ubiquity, has certainly helped it make an immediate impact on the documentary world at large.
Notable Ineligible Series: “The Crime of the Century” (HBO’s two-part documentary is eligible...
- 8/2/2021
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
It doesn’t take much to get Alex Gibney to describe how sickening it was to view how prescription drug companies were neglecting the safety of patients to make more money with the sale of opioids. “The willful denial, in the service of profit really made me ill,” he tells us in our recent webchat about his newest documentary, “The Crime of the Century” (watch the exclusive video above). The pursuit of profit that Purdue Pharma brought to Gibney’s mind the title of one of his previous documentaries about Jack Abramoff, “Casino Jack and the United States of Money.” “I kept hearing that subtitle in the background here. That says all and then when you see the staggering amount of suffering involved and death, I mean, it really makes your head spin.”
“The Crime of the Century,” which is currently available to stream on HBO Max looks into the...
“The Crime of the Century,” which is currently available to stream on HBO Max looks into the...
- 6/11/2021
- by Charles Bright
- Gold Derby
Premiering mere months after the October release of his Covid-19 documentary Totally Under Control, Alex Gibney’s The Crime of the Century takes a close look at the opioid crisis in America. Here, Gibney tells THR why the epidemic deserves our attention.
Why did you first get interested in the opioid crisis?
There was a sense that this was not something that just happened, that there was a series of interlocking crimes here. And that was interesting to me, because it seemed that what was missing about understanding and fixing the opioid crisis was redefining it so it wasn’t just a natural event ...
Why did you first get interested in the opioid crisis?
There was a sense that this was not something that just happened, that there was a series of interlocking crimes here. And that was interesting to me, because it seemed that what was missing about understanding and fixing the opioid crisis was redefining it so it wasn’t just a natural event ...
- 6/10/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Premiering mere months after the October release of his Covid-19 documentary Totally Under Control, Alex Gibney’s The Crime of the Century takes a close look at the opioid crisis in America. Here, Gibney tells THR why the epidemic deserves our attention.
Why did you first get interested in the opioid crisis?
There was a sense that this was not something that just happened, that there was a series of interlocking crimes here. And that was interesting to me, because it seemed that what was missing about understanding and fixing the opioid crisis was redefining it, so it wasn’t just a natural event ...
Why did you first get interested in the opioid crisis?
There was a sense that this was not something that just happened, that there was a series of interlocking crimes here. And that was interesting to me, because it seemed that what was missing about understanding and fixing the opioid crisis was redefining it, so it wasn’t just a natural event ...
- 6/10/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
By Glenn Dunks
Hey look, Alex Gibney is back! It was only last October that the prolific American filmmaker was releasing his rush-produced Covid-19 documentary, Totally Under Control, in time for the U.S. elections. Now he has a two-part HBO documentary about America’s opioid epidemic and its origins in crime. It's boldly titled The Crime of the Century. Given what we see unfold, and with 500,000 dead since 2000, that title is somewhat apt.
Naturally, it all comes down to capitalistic greed. You probably didn’t need me—or Gibney for that matter—to tell you that. But it does bear repeating. And over its four-hour runtime there are certainly plenty of opportunities to do so...
Hey look, Alex Gibney is back! It was only last October that the prolific American filmmaker was releasing his rush-produced Covid-19 documentary, Totally Under Control, in time for the U.S. elections. Now he has a two-part HBO documentary about America’s opioid epidemic and its origins in crime. It's boldly titled The Crime of the Century. Given what we see unfold, and with 500,000 dead since 2000, that title is somewhat apt.
Naturally, it all comes down to capitalistic greed. You probably didn’t need me—or Gibney for that matter—to tell you that. But it does bear repeating. And over its four-hour runtime there are certainly plenty of opportunities to do so...
- 5/19/2021
- by Glenn Dunks
- FilmExperience
Producers, showrunners, APs and other freelance employees at Jigsaw Productions, the producer behind such recent documentaries as Totally Under Control, The Crime of the Century and Generation Hustle, have voted to unionize with the Writers Guild of America, East.
The Jigsaw Organizing Committee broke the news on social media today, writing: “Our goal is to work with the Wgae to negotiate a contract with Jigsaw Productions that addresses our concerns about compensation, crediting, diversity, and creates a more sustainable, equitable work environment. We fundamentally believe in what Jigsaw represents as a global brand. It’s that very ethos of telling difficult truths that inspires us to organize and align Jigsaw towards an equitable future. We believe that Jigsaw can be the catalyst for long overdue industry-wide change in nonfiction storytelling.”
The company’s nonfiction credits also include docuseries Dirty Money, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room and Going Clear: Scientology & the Prison of Belief,...
The Jigsaw Organizing Committee broke the news on social media today, writing: “Our goal is to work with the Wgae to negotiate a contract with Jigsaw Productions that addresses our concerns about compensation, crediting, diversity, and creates a more sustainable, equitable work environment. We fundamentally believe in what Jigsaw represents as a global brand. It’s that very ethos of telling difficult truths that inspires us to organize and align Jigsaw towards an equitable future. We believe that Jigsaw can be the catalyst for long overdue industry-wide change in nonfiction storytelling.”
The company’s nonfiction credits also include docuseries Dirty Money, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room and Going Clear: Scientology & the Prison of Belief,...
- 5/12/2021
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Over 500,000 Americans have died from opioid overdoses since 2000. This tragedy is often referred to as a crisis, which is a term that Alex Gibney dismisses early in “The Crime of the Century,” his latest HBO documentary. A crisis is typically something that happens unexpectedly and can’t be prepared for — and there is nothing random about the surge of opioids in the United States over the last two decades. It was a deliberate tactic designed by pharmaceutical companies to boost their profit margins, and the situation spiraled out of control when the doctors and politicians that could’ve pushed back chose to aid and abet Big Pharma.
Time and time again, “The Crime of the Century” lays bare how the United States’ opioid epidemic was anything but accidental. The four-hour documentary, which is split into two parts and will air over two nights, makes ample use of its runtime to...
Time and time again, “The Crime of the Century” lays bare how the United States’ opioid epidemic was anything but accidental. The four-hour documentary, which is split into two parts and will air over two nights, makes ample use of its runtime to...
- 5/10/2021
- by Tyler Hersko
- Indiewire
The statistics are staggering. Over half-a-million Americans have died of opioid overdoses triggered by controlled-release Oxycontin. So, the big question is how did this happen?
“The Crime of the Century,” HBO’s new two-part, four hour-documentary airing May 10-11 from the Oscar and Emmy-winning Alex Gibney and produced in association with the Washington Post, is a disturbing deep dive into how Big Pharma, political operatives and government regulations helped cause this massive health crisis. The first part looks at the origins of the crisis while part two explores the marketing of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl. Recently, the Washington Post hosted a zoom conversation between Gibney and Post reporters Sari Horwitz and Scott Higham who have investigated the drug crisis for several years.
“The Crime of the Century” was three years in the making. Gibney was drawn to the subject matter after a conversation with the investigative unit at the Post.
“The Crime of the Century,” HBO’s new two-part, four hour-documentary airing May 10-11 from the Oscar and Emmy-winning Alex Gibney and produced in association with the Washington Post, is a disturbing deep dive into how Big Pharma, political operatives and government regulations helped cause this massive health crisis. The first part looks at the origins of the crisis while part two explores the marketing of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl. Recently, the Washington Post hosted a zoom conversation between Gibney and Post reporters Sari Horwitz and Scott Higham who have investigated the drug crisis for several years.
“The Crime of the Century” was three years in the making. Gibney was drawn to the subject matter after a conversation with the investigative unit at the Post.
- 5/10/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
One of the final shots of The Crime of the Century, the new two-part documentary series on America’s opioid crisis helmed by Alex Gibney, depicts a graveyard with a view of Purdue Pharma’s headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. It’s a compact visual metaphor for one of the film’s main arguments: that by aggressively working to expand the audience for its blockbuster drug OxyContin and ignoring mounting evidence of its abuse, Purdue helped to fuel a crisis that killed nearly 500,000 people between 1999 and 2019.
The film, whose first part debuts on Monday on HBO, traces how the ...
The film, whose first part debuts on Monday on HBO, traces how the ...
- 5/10/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
One of the final shots of The Crime of the Century, the new two-part documentary series on America’s opioid crisis helmed by Alex Gibney, depicts a graveyard with a view of Purdue Pharma’s headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. It’s a compact visual metaphor for one of the film’s main arguments: that by aggressively working to expand the audience for its blockbuster drug OxyContin and ignoring mounting evidence of its abuse, Purdue helped to fuel a crisis that killed nearly 500,000 people between 1999 and 2019.
The film, whose first part debuts on Monday on HBO, traces how the ...
The film, whose first part debuts on Monday on HBO, traces how the ...
- 5/10/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
This weekly feature is in addition to TVLine’s daily What to Watch listings and monthly guide to What’s on Streaming.
With nearly 500 scripted shows now airing across broadcast, cable and streaming, it’s easy to forget that a favorite comedy is returning, or that the new “prestige drama” you anticipated is about to debut. So consider this our reminder to set your DVR, order a Season Pass, pop a fresh Memorex into the Vcr… however it is you roll.
More from TVLineWhen Calls the Heart Renewed for Season 9 at Hallmark ChannelMom Sneak Peek: Two and a Half Men's...
With nearly 500 scripted shows now airing across broadcast, cable and streaming, it’s easy to forget that a favorite comedy is returning, or that the new “prestige drama” you anticipated is about to debut. So consider this our reminder to set your DVR, order a Season Pass, pop a fresh Memorex into the Vcr… however it is you roll.
More from TVLineWhen Calls the Heart Renewed for Season 9 at Hallmark ChannelMom Sneak Peek: Two and a Half Men's...
- 5/8/2021
- by Ryan Schwartz
- TVLine.com
Ultra-prolific documentarian Alex Gibney really needs to slow down his output. He may be a machine, but I’m but a man incapable of generating five-to-10 Gibney-specific review ledes per year.
Alternatively, ultra-prolific documentarian Alex Gibney really needs to speed up his output. Like seemingly everybody else these days, Gibney is steadliy finding things to take umbrage at, but even at his outrageous current pace, there’s a real risk of even typically thorough Gibney productions feeling like nourishing-but-reheated leftovers.
Welcome to Gibney’s The Crime of the Century, a four-hour HBO documentary chronicling the deepening morass of the opioid crisis in ...
Alternatively, ultra-prolific documentarian Alex Gibney really needs to speed up his output. Like seemingly everybody else these days, Gibney is steadliy finding things to take umbrage at, but even at his outrageous current pace, there’s a real risk of even typically thorough Gibney productions feeling like nourishing-but-reheated leftovers.
Welcome to Gibney’s The Crime of the Century, a four-hour HBO documentary chronicling the deepening morass of the opioid crisis in ...
Ultra-prolific documentarian Alex Gibney really needs to slow down his output. He may be a machine, but I’m but a man incapable of generating five-to-10 Gibney-specific review ledes per year.
Alternatively, ultra-prolific documentarian Alex Gibney really needs to speed up his output. Like seemingly everybody else these days, Gibney is steadliy finding things to take umbrage at, but even at his outrageous current pace, there’s a real risk of even typically thorough Gibney productions feeling like nourishing-but-reheated leftovers.
Welcome to Gibney’s The Crime of the Century, a four-hour HBO documentary chronicling the deepening morass of the opioid crisis in ...
Alternatively, ultra-prolific documentarian Alex Gibney really needs to speed up his output. Like seemingly everybody else these days, Gibney is steadliy finding things to take umbrage at, but even at his outrageous current pace, there’s a real risk of even typically thorough Gibney productions feeling like nourishing-but-reheated leftovers.
Welcome to Gibney’s The Crime of the Century, a four-hour HBO documentary chronicling the deepening morass of the opioid crisis in ...
When you hear the phrase “the opioid crisis,” it can sound like it’s referring to a natural disaster with a beginning and an end. But as Alex Gibney’s shattering two-part, four-hour HBO documentary “The Crime of the Century” makes devastatingly clear, the opioid crisis is more than a human tragedy that has claimed half a million lives. It’s part of what America has become. We’re a nation of addicts, fueled by scuzzy alternating currents of pleasure and despair; a nation of corporate malfeasance; of doctors who knowingly trash the credo of “do no harm”; of regulatory agencies that no longer function as they were designed to; of politicians who allow laws to be written for them. “The Crime of the Century” is a saga of addiction that could have been entitled “What We Did for Greed.”
Gibney is our most avid and deep-drilling documentary muckraker, and...
Gibney is our most avid and deep-drilling documentary muckraker, and...
- 5/3/2021
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Do not adjust your WiFi settings. No, you are not experiencing a severe case of Deja Streaming-vu. HBO Max’s list of new releases for May 2021 are indeed highlighted by two very recent WarnerMedia hits.
For starters, Tenet finally makes its long-awaited HBO Max this month. Mark your calendars as May 1 is the day that you can finally watch Christopher Nolan’s latest cerebral thriller. Of course, Tenet already had its theatrical release, but obviously that was not really an option for many of us. In addition to Tenet, Wonder Woman 1984 makes its triumphant return to HBO Max this month on May 13. The Wonder Woman sequel already premiered on HBO Max this past December, now it’s getting a second run on the streamer.
In terms of newer originals, May is relatively light for HBO Max. The Jean Smart-starring comedy Hacks premieres on May 13. The latest Adventure Time...
For starters, Tenet finally makes its long-awaited HBO Max this month. Mark your calendars as May 1 is the day that you can finally watch Christopher Nolan’s latest cerebral thriller. Of course, Tenet already had its theatrical release, but obviously that was not really an option for many of us. In addition to Tenet, Wonder Woman 1984 makes its triumphant return to HBO Max this month on May 13. The Wonder Woman sequel already premiered on HBO Max this past December, now it’s getting a second run on the streamer.
In terms of newer originals, May is relatively light for HBO Max. The Jean Smart-starring comedy Hacks premieres on May 13. The latest Adventure Time...
- 5/1/2021
- by Alec Bojalad
- Den of Geek
HBO has released a trailer for the upcoming two-part documentary, The Crime of the Century, which examines Big Pharma and the opioid crisis. Part One of the Alex Gibney-directed film premieres via HBO Max on May 10th, with Part Two airing the following night. The HBO original documentary is presented in association with The Washington Post.
The new clip features patients, medical professionals, journalists, authors, whistleblowers, investigators, insiders and others. Together they detail how Big Pharma used its considerable money, marketing might and political influence to keep their prescription opioids over-produced,...
The new clip features patients, medical professionals, journalists, authors, whistleblowers, investigators, insiders and others. Together they detail how Big Pharma used its considerable money, marketing might and political influence to keep their prescription opioids over-produced,...
- 4/21/2021
- by Althea Legaspi
- Rollingstone.com
The ever-prolific Alex Gibney is back with yet another documentary. The Crime of the Century is a two-part HBO doc that “exposes the billions of dollars gained and thousands of lives lost due to the opioid crisis.” The documentary features never-before-seen company videos from Purdue Pharma and Insys Therapeutics; exclusive interviews with former pharma sales reps who […]
The post ‘The Crime of the Century’ Trailer: Alex Gibney Examines the Opioid Crisis appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘The Crime of the Century’ Trailer: Alex Gibney Examines the Opioid Crisis appeared first on /Film.
- 4/21/2021
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
"This was a new drug cartel... They were drug dealers wearing suits and lab coats." HBO has unveiled the official trailer for the next searing new Alex Gibney documentary titled The Crime of the Century, a major investigation into Big Pharma's involvement in the opioid epidemic. This is premiering at a two-part series on HBO coming up in May, and it looks like it hits hard on the truth - exposing "the billions of dollars gained and thousands of lives lost due to the opioid crisis." Time to put this into the spotlight. "Big Pharma sold America a lie and made a killing." An indictment of Big Pharma and the political cohorts & government regulations that enable over-production, reckless distribution and abuse of synthetic opiates. There's a lot covered in this 2.5 minute trailer and it's quite damning, with plenty of confessions and revelations about how complex this drug game is. This...
- 4/20/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
HBO released a trailer for the upcoming two-part documentary “The Crime of the Century,” which premieres on May 10.
Written and directed by Alex Gibney, the film exposes the billions of dollars gained and thousands of lives lost due to the opioid crisis. It reveals the secrets behind Big Pharma, political operatives and government regulations that enabled over-production, reckless distribution and abuse of synthetic opiates.
Gibney served as a producer alongside Sarah Dowland and Svetlana Zill. Stacey Offman, Richard Perello, Todd Hoffman, and Aaron Fishman, senior Tina Nguyen, Nancy Abraham and Lisa Heller served as executive producers.
Also in today’s TV news roundup…
First Looks
Netflix released a trailer for “The Upshaws,” which premieres on May 12. Created by Regina Hicks and Wanda Sykes, the series follows the head of a Black working-class family in Indianapolis struggling to step up and take care of his family without a blueprint for success.
Written and directed by Alex Gibney, the film exposes the billions of dollars gained and thousands of lives lost due to the opioid crisis. It reveals the secrets behind Big Pharma, political operatives and government regulations that enabled over-production, reckless distribution and abuse of synthetic opiates.
Gibney served as a producer alongside Sarah Dowland and Svetlana Zill. Stacey Offman, Richard Perello, Todd Hoffman, and Aaron Fishman, senior Tina Nguyen, Nancy Abraham and Lisa Heller served as executive producers.
Also in today’s TV news roundup…
First Looks
Netflix released a trailer for “The Upshaws,” which premieres on May 12. Created by Regina Hicks and Wanda Sykes, the series follows the head of a Black working-class family in Indianapolis struggling to step up and take care of his family without a blueprint for success.
- 4/20/2021
- by Antonio Ferme
- Variety Film + TV
Connecting a dollar value to integrity, ethics, and morality is abhorrent to most until the money is laid out on the table for those that are being sucked into the business, yes, the Business, of taking care of people. It sounds cruel and churlish to say such a thing and to realize that it’s how people look at the opioid crisis that was perpetrated by so many that were seeking a living and didn’t care if it came at the expense of those who were in dire need of the medication that was being abused to such a horrendous degree.
Why We’ll be Watching Opioid Crisis Film “The Crime of the Century”...
Why We’ll be Watching Opioid Crisis Film “The Crime of the Century”...
- 4/19/2021
- by Tom
- TVovermind.com
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