Untitled Satire From Charlie Kaufman And Spike Jonze Nears Financing Deal OK, we really need to send a giant ‘thank you’ bouquet toMegan Ellison. Her company, Annapurna Pictures, is reportedlyfinancingtwo Paul Thomas Anderson films (The MasterandInherent Vice) and isbackingWong Kar Wai’s new filmThe Grandmastersas well as pictures likeThe Wettest County in the WorldandCogan’s Trade. In short, if you like ambitious, literate films, she and her team are on your side....

Watch The Lovely Trailer For Sylvain Chomet’s Animated The Illusionist I’m about as interested as it is possible to be inSylvain Chomet’s upcomingThe Illusionist. My interest is based on the fact that the film is the intersection of Chomet’s visual sense, somehow both a quaint and fantastic evocation of the everyday as seen inThe Triplets of Belleville, and the storytelling impulse of the lateJacques Tati, which not coincidentally could be described in very similar terms....

Watch: Creating The Unconventional Music Of ‘Becky’, The Indie Thriller Starring Kevin James As A Villain Becky, the new indie thriller from directorsCaryMurnionandJonathan Milott(Bushwick,Cooties), earned lots of attention for casting the frequently goofyKevin James(Paul Blart: Mall Cop,Kevin Can Wait) as a straight-faced, menacing neo-Nazi villain who’s willing to murder a child to get what he wants. But that’s not the only compelling aspect of this film: the score, from composerNima Fakhrara(Detroit: Become Human,Crypto), uses several unconventional instruments, including children’s toys, to bring its music to life....

Will Disney Change The ‘Avengers 4’ Release Date To Save Audiences From Spoilers? Avengers: Infinity Warwas originally set to hit theaters in the United States this past May, about a week after it opened in many international markets, but Disney ended up shifting the superhero sequel’s domestic release date to match the international one. Will they make a similar change to theAvengers 4release date? As of right now,AnthonyandJoe Russo’s still-untitledAvengers 4is scheduled to arrive in theaters in the United Kingdom onApril 26, 2019, a week before it arrives in theaters in North America onMay 3, 2019....

Will There Ever Be A Santa Clause 4? Here’s What We Know (Welcome toWill There Be a Sequel?, a series where we answer that question and explore what comes next.) Tim Allen gave ’90s kids one of that decade’s most defining takes on Saint Nick with “The Santa Clause” in 1994. The film starred Allen as a regular guy who ends up inheriting the duties of being Santaafter the real Santa dies, and it became a huge hit, paving the way for an entire trilogy of holiday flicks....

‘‘Bumblebee’ Spin-Off Casts ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ Actor Jorge Lendeborg Jr. As Male Lead TheBumblebeemovie has found its male lead — who isn’t a yellow Autobot. TheTransformersspin-off has castJorge Lendeborg Jr., who recently appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movieSpider-Man: Homecoming, as the lead alongsideHailee Steinfeld, who will star as a tomboy mechanic who bonds with Bumblebee. Lendeborg Jr. is in talks to play an unnamed young male lead inTransformers Universe:Bumblebee, according toThe Hollywood Reporter, injecting some promising diversity into the film (Steinfeld herself is half Filipino)....

‘Astronaut’ Review: Richard Dreyfuss Barely Saves This Wistful Indie Drama [Fantasia Film Festival] Aside from their exorbitant wealth, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk also share a passion for space travel. They’ve faced much criticism for spending billions of dollars on their space ventures, and one could argue that they’re indulging in childish wish fulfillment that ignores the very real problems on this planet. That’s not to disregard the importance of astro-research, nor the appeal of space travel, but sentimentalizing the journey into space feels more escapist than romantic....

‘Beauty And The Beast’ Reactions & Review: Can A Tale As Old As Time Find New Life? Disney’s live-action-remake obsession continues this month withBeauty and the Beast, and it might be one of the trickiest adaptations they’ve tackled so far. Oh, sure, it’s an easy sell: the 1991 animated feature is one of the most beloved films in the studio’s catalogue, and nostalgia alone would’ve been enough to get some butts in seats....

‘Bellflower’ Is ‘500 Days Of Summer’ For The ‘Jackass’ Hipster Generation [Sundance Review] Bellfloweris an ultra low-budget(500) Days of Summer-like love story for theJackassHipster generation. Written/Directed/co-starring/co-produced/co-edited byEvan Glodell, the movie follows two friends who build flamethrowers and death cars in preparation for the possible global apocalypse. One of them meets a charismatic young woman (played by the promising newcomerJessie Wiseman) who takes him on adventures he never dreamed. But her spontaneous destructive nature might lead to a apocalypse of its own....

‘Blindspotting’ TV Series Trailer Expands The Movie’s Narrative, Keeps The Same Style And Energy Blindspottingwasone of the acclaimed premieresto come out of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. FeaturingHamiltonstarDaveed Diggsin the lead role, the film dealt with some heavy themes, including systemic racism and police brutality, but it did it with some sharp satirical humor and hip-hop musical sequences. The film had a style all its own, and now aBlindspottingTV series will continue in the same vein, but now the main character will be one of the supporting players of the original movie....

‘Daughter Of Smoke And Bone’ Is Universal’s Next YA Gambit We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. AsThe Hunger Games: Catching Firequickly races towards becoming the highest grossing film of 2013, it’s no coincidence studios continue to close deals for similar young adult fare. The latest is Universal,which just signed directorMichael Graceyto directDaughter of Smoke and Bone, the first in a YA trilogy written byLaini Taylor.Stuart Beattie(Pirates of the Caribbean) adapted the screenplay....

‘Deepwater Horizon’ Photos: Mark Wahlberg And Peter Berg Reunite Less than a year after the disastrous BP Oil spill, a film based on the tragic event wasalreadyin the works. Back in 2014, directorJ.C. Chandorwas attached to helmDeepwater Horizon. Unfortunately, theA Most Violent YearandMargin Calldirector walked awayfromthe project, citing “creative differences.“Mark Wahlbergwas already attached to the film at the time, and following Chandor’s departure, the actor might’ve had a hand in bringing aboardLone Survivordirector,Peter Berg, as his replacement....

‘Disenchantment’ Trailer Brings ‘Futurama’-Style Humor To A Fantasy Setting Matt Groening, creator ofThe SimpsonsandFuturama, heads to Netflix withDisenchantment, a very-funny looking new animated series set within a fantasy realm. Groening and his team appear to be creating a series that owes more toFuturamathan it doesThe Simpsons, right down to the voice actors and animation style. Watch the hilarious newDisenchantmenttrailer below. Disenchantment Trailer Well, gosh darn it, this looks like a heck of a lot of fun....