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Florence Pugh returned to her roots with “Oppenheimer.” Despite not having worked with writer/director Christopher Nolan before, the Oscar-nominated actress told the Radio Times (via Daily Mail) that being on set was reminiscent of her early career. “It reminded me of the early days when I was used to a fast-paced way of working — where, if you lost a scene from the day, you would lose it from the movie,” Pugh said. “It’s one of the biggest movies I’ve made. Chris’ approach is similar to indie movie-making.” She added, “When I walked on set, I couldn’t believe there was that similar, incredible adrenaline, which I hadn’t felt on a massive movie for a long time. It’s a wonderful thing to inject into a film set — believing in yourself...

What makes a sex scene sexy? More to the point, what makes a sex scene good? That’s become an especially thorny question in recent years, with detailed accounts of what goes on behind the scenes of movies we love complicating our relationship with their most memorable moments. And though we’re ever so slowly moving away from the male gaze serving as the default perspective on love, sex, and everything between, there’s still a long way to go. That is, if sex scenes still appear in movies at all. They do, but with greater infrequency, certainly in Hollywood studio productions. Though many think-pieces have been written about “the death of the sex scene” there’s still been a lot to celebrate over the last 23 years. A number of...

The 2023 Venice Immersive program has been unveiled. The annual programming features 44 projects from 25 countries, with Singing Chen serving as jury president. The selection of projects for the XR – Extended Reality section will take place during the 80th Venice International Film Festival from August 30 to September 9. The official program is hosted on the Venice Immersive Island (island of Lazzaretto Vecchio), a short distance from the Lido di Venezia. Venice Immersive is entirely devoted to immersive media and includes all XR means of creative expression: 360° videos and XR works of any length, including installations and virtual worlds. Twenty-eight projects are debuting in Competition, with 10 projects Out of Competition which...

Christopher Nolan has been an analog guru and a large-format IMAX advocate since at least “The Dark Knight.” After shooting substantial portions of “Interstellar,” “Dunkirk, and “Tenet” in 15-perf 70mm IMAX, he now brings to theaters the epic “Oppenheimer” in the format, which offers 10 times the resolution of standard projection formats. “IMAX film is the highest resolution film that’s ever been used, but it had never been used in Hollywood films until ‘Dark Knight,’” said Nolan. “I’d seen IMAX films in museums and was fascinated about it as a kid and used the fact that I was doing a [Batman] sequel to negotiate with the studio about using it as a camera.” With “Interstellar,” which began Nolan’s integral collaboration with...

Netflix added 5.89 million global subscribers in the second quarter of 2023, much better than what Wall Street anticipated. (The consensus from media analysts ranged from about +1.8 million subs to +2.2 million, give or take.) The company now has 238.39 million overall subs. Also much better than predicted? The Q2 profit. On a per-share basis, quarterly earnings were $3.29; analysts had forecast $2.86. Overall net income was $1.488 billion. While the growth translated to profit, it did not provide a revenue win. Netflix’s $8.187 billion of revenue from April to June was below Wall Street’s $8.3 billion consensus estimate, which explains why the stock (NFLX) is falling in after-hours trading. Netflix forecasts an even higher profit...

[Editor’s Note: The following review contains spoilers for “Justified: City Primeval” Episode 1, “City Primeval,” and Episode 2, “The Oklahoma Wildman.” For non-spoiler coverage, read our initial review.] “Justified: City Primeval” wastes little time throwing Raylan (Timothy Olyphant) back into the thick of things, which is about the same amount of time it spends pretending all that much has changed. Sure, he’s based in Florida, which is where he was first based when “Justified” (Original Recipe) started; his soulmate, Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins), is locked away in Kentucky, nowhere to be found; and Willa, his daughter (played by Olyphant’s real-life daughter, Vivian Olyphant), is now a teenager. But even as it brings us up to speed...

Patrick Wilson has only watched himself in “Watchmen” onscreen. The “Insidious: The Red Door” actor, who makes his directorial debut with the horror franchise installment, revealed that the 2009 Zack Snyder film is the only movie he’s starred in that he’s watched since its premiere. “[It’s] the only movie of mine that I have watched front to back since a premiere,” Wilson said during the “ReelBlend” podcast. “I just wanted to look at it as an older guy, as a filmmaker.” Wilson starred alongside Malin Akerman, Jackie Earle Haley, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Carla Gugino in the adaptation of Alan Moore’s graphic novel. The film received mixed reviews and the source material was later reimagined by Damon...

SAG-AFTRA has released a list of an initial batch of independent film projects that have signed the guild’s interim agreement, which will allow those movies to continue filming or imminently start filming even as the actors strike against the studios carries on. Among the titles to obtain waivers is “Mother Mary,” which is an A24 and Topic Studios project from David Lowery starring Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel, and “The Rivals of Amziah King,” a crime thriller that stars Matthew McConaughey. “Death of a Unicorn,” another A24 title starring Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega, also signed the interim agreement. A24 is not an AMPTP member. Some others of note: “Flight Risk” directed by Mel Gibson and starring Mark Wahlberg, “Dust Bunny” with...

As actors speak out amid the strike with allegations the studios have taken advantage of them, actor Devon Sawa is sharing how his “Final Destination” image was once used without his permission. The original “Final Destination” franchise lead shared in a since-deleted tweet that the studios behind “Final Destination 5” used his image for the 2011 sequel without informing him or paying Sawa at all. “I never got paid a cent for ‘Final Destination 5.’ They didn’t even tell me I was in it when they invited me to the premiere,” Sawa wrote. “In the first contract for part one there was a section that stated they owned the footage and could use it in the future. I assumed for press. I was wrong.” Sawa added, “This has nothing to do with the...

For a very select number of very independent productions, Tuesday July 18 will be a day to celebrate: That’s when SAG-AFTRA will give its blessing to a small but undetermined number of film shoots via interim agreements, or “waivers.” Indie producers who spoke to IndieWire are grateful for the support. Eric B. Fleischman (“Sleight”), a producer with The Wonder Company, praised the guild’s swiftness in addressing the issue. “They don’t want all of their members not working,” he said. “They’re obviously fighting for the cause, but at the same time, people need to work, so I think it’s brilliant for them to find a way to have a sector of the industry… on a project-by-project basis to move forward.” However, the only movies that will get...

Mark Ruffalo is looking to return to his indie roots during the SAG-AFTRA strike. For the first time since 1980, the actors’ union has issued a work stoppage order against studios after the union did not reach an agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). “The Kids Are All Right” actor and Marvel star Ruffalo took to Twitter to encourage fellow stars to prioritize indie filmmaking over allegedly mishandled mega-studio productions that drive the wealth disparity in Hollywood. “How about we all jump into indies now?” Ruffalo wrote. “Content creators create a film & TV-making system alongside the studio & streaming networks? So there is actual competition. Then we just do what we always do — create...

[Editor’s note: The following interview was conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike began on July 14, 2023.] Rebecca Ferguson is ready for a break. She’s finished her A.D.R. (additional dialogue) on “Dune: Part Two,” the promotion chores on “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One” (her third in the series), and is on her way home to hang with her 16-year-old son and still-friendly first husband in Sweden. She was prepared to go back to England’s Hoddesdon Studios to shoot the second season of “Silo,” the most popular series on AppleTV+, returning her to the lead role of Sheriff. Not necessary, as the day after we spoke, July 13, SAG-AFTRA announced they were going on strike. “The percentage of people fortunate enough to have a...

Hayao Miyazaki released his first film in 10 years and Japanese critics are calling the animated feature well worth the wait. Studio Ghibli co-founder Miyazaki came out of retirement to helm “The Boy and the Heron,” also titled “How Do You Live?” in Japan, which opened in the country July 14. The film will be released internationally in late 2023. “The Boy and the Heron” is an original story inspired by Yoshino Genzaburo’s 1937 story about a young boy who comes of age while living with his uncle after the death of his father. Miyazaki dedicated the film to his own grandson. Miyazaki last directed 2013’s “The Wind Rises” and has become a vocal champion for hand-drawn animation over CGI. While Studio Ghibli opted to not promote “The...