Welcome to The B-Side, from The Film Stage. Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.
Today we talk about one of the great ones: Martin Scorsese. Who’s better than Marty? Myself, Conor O’Donnell, and guest Jake Kring-Schreifels. Our B-Sides today include Italianamerican, Kundun, Bringing Out the Dead, and Silence.
We talk about a lot in this one. How to pronounce Scorsese! How to pronounce Coppola! Catholicism! Buddhism! Making films about religions in your life! This is an episode with lofty ambitions, not unlike most Scorsese pictures!
In examining Italianamerican we muse on Marty as documentarian, including the mention of an incredibly-underrated Scorsese documentary that’s hard to find: Public Speaking starring Fran Lebowitz. We reflect on the guardedness of memory by older generations. We also recount the Muddy Waters – László Kovács...
Today we talk about one of the great ones: Martin Scorsese. Who’s better than Marty? Myself, Conor O’Donnell, and guest Jake Kring-Schreifels. Our B-Sides today include Italianamerican, Kundun, Bringing Out the Dead, and Silence.
We talk about a lot in this one. How to pronounce Scorsese! How to pronounce Coppola! Catholicism! Buddhism! Making films about religions in your life! This is an episode with lofty ambitions, not unlike most Scorsese pictures!
In examining Italianamerican we muse on Marty as documentarian, including the mention of an incredibly-underrated Scorsese documentary that’s hard to find: Public Speaking starring Fran Lebowitz. We reflect on the guardedness of memory by older generations. We also recount the Muddy Waters – László Kovács...
- 5/31/2024
- by Dan Mecca
- The Film Stage
Premiering way back some 27 months ago at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, we’ve been curious what happened to Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne’s directorial feature debut Am I Ok?. Led by Dakota Johnson, Sonoya Mizuno, Jermaine Fowler, Kiersey Clemons, Molly Gordon, Sean Hayes, and Notaro, Max has now unveiled it’ll arrive on June 6 and has debuted a new trailer.
Here’s the synopsis: “Lucy (Johnson) and Jane (Mizuno) have been best friends for most of their lives and think they know everything there is to know about each other. But when Jane announces she’s moving to London, Lucy reveals a long-held secret. As Jane tries to help Lucy, their friendship is thrown into chaos.”
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “A romantic comedy that functions best as a fable of friendship and self-reflection, Am I Ok? is the kind of lightweight, amiable movie that just barely earns...
Here’s the synopsis: “Lucy (Johnson) and Jane (Mizuno) have been best friends for most of their lives and think they know everything there is to know about each other. But when Jane announces she’s moving to London, Lucy reveals a long-held secret. As Jane tries to help Lucy, their friendship is thrown into chaos.”
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “A romantic comedy that functions best as a fable of friendship and self-reflection, Am I Ok? is the kind of lightweight, amiable movie that just barely earns...
- 5/20/2024
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
After exploring the American frontier in Andrew Haigh’s Lean on Pete, Charlie Plummer returns to the terrain with Luke Gilford’s directorial debut National Anthem. Premiering at last year’s SXSW, the film follows a construction worker who joins a community of queer rodeo performers searching for their own version of the American dream. While working on a ranch in the Southwest, they contend with the undeniable forces of nature, family and love. Also starring Eve Lindley and Mason Alexander Park, the first trailer has now arrived ahead of a June 12 release from Variance Films.
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “National Anthem is an offshoot of Gilford’s 2020 photographic series, which showcased the beauty of America’s Queer Rodeo by foregrounding softly lit and often-hidden subjects against expansive New Mexican vistas. At a time of political polarization and in a space typically reserved for a more traditional, patriarchal idea of a cowboy,...
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “National Anthem is an offshoot of Gilford’s 2020 photographic series, which showcased the beauty of America’s Queer Rodeo by foregrounding softly lit and often-hidden subjects against expansive New Mexican vistas. At a time of political polarization and in a space typically reserved for a more traditional, patriarchal idea of a cowboy,...
- 5/14/2024
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
One of the most purely enjoyable movies to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival found June Squibb on a mission for justice. Josh Margolin’s debut Thelma finds the nonagenarian actor in, shockingly, her first leading role (starring alongside Richard Roundtree in his final role) as a grandma who hunts down a phone scammer who pretended to be her grandson (Fred Hechinger). Also starring Parker Posey, Clark Gregg, and Malcolm McDowell, it’s arriving June 21 and Magnolia Pictures has now debuted the first trailer.
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “At the beginning of Thelma––a loveable, low-stakes joyride from director Josh Margolin––the movie’s eponymous 93-year-old grandmother sits on the couch with her grandson Daniel and marvels at Tom Cruise. They’re watching a recent Mission: Impossible sequel on her tiny television and can’t fathom Cruise’s running and jumping daredevil-ism at his weathered age. Thelma may live alone,...
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “At the beginning of Thelma––a loveable, low-stakes joyride from director Josh Margolin––the movie’s eponymous 93-year-old grandmother sits on the couch with her grandson Daniel and marvels at Tom Cruise. They’re watching a recent Mission: Impossible sequel on her tiny television and can’t fathom Cruise’s running and jumping daredevil-ism at his weathered age. Thelma may live alone,...
- 5/10/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
While her performance in Bottoms may have gotten the most buzz out of South by Southwest Film Festival last year, Rachel Sennott also brought a dramedy to the festival. Ally Pankiw’s debut I Used to Be Funny follows that actor as an aspiring stand-up who struggles with attempting to search for a missing teenager she used to nanny. Also starring Olga Pesta, Jason Jones, Sabrina Jalees, Caleb Hearon, and Ennis Esmer, the first trailer has now arrived ahead of a June 7 release from Utopia.
Here’s the synopsis: “I Used To Be Funny is a dark dramedy that follows Sam Cowell (Rachel Sennott), an aspiring stand-up comedian and au pair struggling with Ptsd, as she decides whether or not to join the search for Brooke (Olga Petsa), a missing teenage girl she used to nanny. The story exists between the present, where Sam tries to recover from her trauma and get back on stage,...
Here’s the synopsis: “I Used To Be Funny is a dark dramedy that follows Sam Cowell (Rachel Sennott), an aspiring stand-up comedian and au pair struggling with Ptsd, as she decides whether or not to join the search for Brooke (Olga Petsa), a missing teenage girl she used to nanny. The story exists between the present, where Sam tries to recover from her trauma and get back on stage,...
- 4/12/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The nearly year-long span from discovering Janet Planet‘s existence to seeing a single frame was fraught with worry. What if the extraordinarily talented Annie Baker fumbled her transition into filmmaking? Nothing catastrophic, surely––no sane person’s faulting Michael Jordan for his minor-league stint––but to paraphrase Kent Jones on John Carpenter: America doesn’t have so many great directors to spare that it can afford Annie Baker failing.
From frame one it was clear no such thing would happen. Janet Planet‘s a case study in a genius trying a new medium––base understanding of its what and how and why, but lack of precedent or traditional method yielding something rather new. Ahead of the film’s June 21 limited release, A24 have released a first trailer, albeit one that sells a different movie: scored by the Roches’ “Hammond Song” and cut to emphasize some wittier dialogue, it...
From frame one it was clear no such thing would happen. Janet Planet‘s a case study in a genius trying a new medium––base understanding of its what and how and why, but lack of precedent or traditional method yielding something rather new. Ahead of the film’s June 21 limited release, A24 have released a first trailer, albeit one that sells a different movie: scored by the Roches’ “Hammond Song” and cut to emphasize some wittier dialogue, it...
- 4/4/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
If the only April release was my top pick of the month it would be one of the finest lineups of the years, but thankfully there’s more to recommend. Featuring films about cinephilic obsession, subversive superhero tales, and what is sure to be at least one divisive big-screen near-future adventure, check out the list of must-sees below.
12 & 11. Kim’s Video (David Redmon and Ashley Sabin; April 5) and I Like Movies (Chandler Levack; April 8)
Anyone interested in physical media will appreciate a pair of films this month. Kim’s Video explores the strange story of the East Village establishment that housed around 55,000 DVDs while I Like Movies is a Canadian coming-of-age tale about a video store clerk who has bigger dreams in life, and is chockfull of cinephile-related humor that rang quite a familiar bell for this writer. John Fink said in his review of the former, “A sweeping documentary...
12 & 11. Kim’s Video (David Redmon and Ashley Sabin; April 5) and I Like Movies (Chandler Levack; April 8)
Anyone interested in physical media will appreciate a pair of films this month. Kim’s Video explores the strange story of the East Village establishment that housed around 55,000 DVDs while I Like Movies is a Canadian coming-of-age tale about a video store clerk who has bigger dreams in life, and is chockfull of cinephile-related humor that rang quite a familiar bell for this writer. John Fink said in his review of the former, “A sweeping documentary...
- 4/2/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Four years ago, just before the pandemic was in full force, Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss’ Boys State picked up the U.S. Documentary Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival. Well-timed with the election year, it captured a week-long leadership program, sponsored annually by the American Legion and held in nearly every state, chronicling several-hundred Texas high school students gathering to form and choose a mock government. With another election year upon us, the directors are now back for a gender-swapped sequel Girls State, this time taking place in Missouri. Ahead of an April 5 release on Apple TV+, the first trailer has arrived.
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “Four years later, McBain and Moss have returned to Sundance with Girls State, the proverbial, gender-swapped sequel that attempts to achieve likeminded goals. Perhaps because Boys State didn’t acknowledge this parallel sister program, Girls State is at once a chance to redeem that oversight,...
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his review, “Four years later, McBain and Moss have returned to Sundance with Girls State, the proverbial, gender-swapped sequel that attempts to achieve likeminded goals. Perhaps because Boys State didn’t acknowledge this parallel sister program, Girls State is at once a chance to redeem that oversight,...
- 3/14/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The spice must flow, and take over most theaters. While Denis Villeneuve’s gargantuan-sized blockbuster will suck up much of the oxygen when it comes to discussions around March’s releases, there’s plenty more to uncover. From adventurous festival favorites to micro-sized productions to a would-be blockbuster relegated to streaming, here are my picks for what to see next month.
15. Road House (Doug Liman; March 21)
While his recent output hasn’t touched the entertainment value of Edge of Tomorrow, The Bourne Identity, or Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Doug Liman seems quite confident in the crowdpleaser appeal of his Jake Gyllenhaal-led Road House remake. While he won’t be getting the theatrical release he believes he deserves, those at SXSW will at least be able to experience it in a crowd before it lands on Prime Video soon after.
14. Yuni (Kamila Andini; March 22)
One of our favorite undistributed films...
15. Road House (Doug Liman; March 21)
While his recent output hasn’t touched the entertainment value of Edge of Tomorrow, The Bourne Identity, or Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Doug Liman seems quite confident in the crowdpleaser appeal of his Jake Gyllenhaal-led Road House remake. While he won’t be getting the theatrical release he believes he deserves, those at SXSW will at least be able to experience it in a crowd before it lands on Prime Video soon after.
14. Yuni (Kamila Andini; March 22)
One of our favorite undistributed films...
- 2/28/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
One of the most purely entertaining viewing experiences at Sundance Film Festival this year was Rose Glass’ Love Lies Bleeding, which is quite a level up in terms of ideas from her debut Saint Maud. Starring Kristen Stewart, Katy O’Brian, Jena Malone, Anna Baryshnikov, Dave Franco, and Ed Harris, the lesbian bodybuilding neo-noir now has a new trailer from A24 ahead of a March 8 release.
Here’s the synopsis: “From Director Rose Glass comes an electric new love story; reclusive gym manager Lou falls hard for Jackie, an ambitious bodybuilder headed through town to Vegas in pursuit of her dream. But their love ignites violence, pulling them deep into the web of Lou’s criminal family.”
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his Sundance review, “Near the end of Love Lies Bleeding, someone eats a large black beetle. It happens in a moment of abrupt anger, and it’s bitten into so...
Here’s the synopsis: “From Director Rose Glass comes an electric new love story; reclusive gym manager Lou falls hard for Jackie, an ambitious bodybuilder headed through town to Vegas in pursuit of her dream. But their love ignites violence, pulling them deep into the web of Lou’s criminal family.”
Jake Kring-Schreifels said in his Sundance review, “Near the end of Love Lies Bleeding, someone eats a large black beetle. It happens in a moment of abrupt anger, and it’s bitten into so...
- 2/7/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
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