Author: Alex Billington

"Who's country are we in? Mine." Sony + Apple have revealed the second official trailer for Napoleon, the next epic Ridley Scott movie about the iconic French emperor. It's still set to open in November, and this is the second actual trailer since the first trailer in July (along with a few featurettes). I'm glad they're not delaying this - we need a big movie to bring us all to theaters again this fall. An Apple Studios production in conjunction with Scott Free Productions, Napoleon is an original & personal look at Napoleon Bonaparte's origins. Along with his swift, ruthless climb to emperor, viewed through the prism of his addictive and volatile relationship with his wife and one true love, Josephine. As she says: "You want to be great. But you are nothing without me." Someone who dares challenge him! Joaquin Phoenix stars as Bonaparte, with Vanessa Kirby as Josephine, plus Ludivine Sagnier, Ben Miles, Tahar Rahim, Catherine Walker, Youssef Kerkour, Paul Rhys, Matthew Needham, & others. This looks like it will be worth the wait! And it should be ...

"All of us are racers... it's our deadly passion, our terrible joy." Neon has unveiled the full official trailer for the Ferrari movie, from iconic director Michael Mann. This premiered at the 2023 Venice Film Festival to mixed reviews, with some praise and plenty of criticism. Ferrari is set in the summer of 1957. Behind the spectacle of Formula 1, ex-racer Enzo Ferrari is now in crisis. Bankruptcy threatens the factory he and his wife, Laura, built from nothing ten years earlier. Their volatile marriage is battered by the loss of their son, Dino. Meanwhile, his drivers' passions to win pushes them to the edge as they launch into the treacherous 1,000-mile race across Italy, the Mille Miglia. Starring Adam Driver as Enzo, Penélope Cruz as Laura Ferrari, Shailene Woodley as Lina Lardi, and Sarah Gordon as Linda Christian, plus Gabriel Leone, Jack O'Connell, Patrick Dempsey, and Gabriel Leone. This one is a much better trailer than the first teaser, setting up the stakes and the intensity of the races, along with the emotions of Enzo and his desire to ...

"You tell me where my money is, and I'll return your daughter to you" Saban Films has revealed an official trailer for an action thriller titled Due Justice, both written and directed by filmmaker Javier Reyna. Yet another of these junk action films getting dumped out on VOD, way too many of them this year. If that title wasn't a hint already, this is obviously about a guy getting "due justice" by going for revenge and going after the people who harmed him. Of course. A very American story. An attorney with a military past hunts down the gang who killed his wife and brother and took his daughter. Filled with shady characters and the Feds and all the usuals. Due Justice stars Kellan Lutz, Jeff Fahey, & Efren Ramirez, with Cynthia Geary, Manu Intiraymi, Chelsea Lopez, and David Jofre. Yeah this movie looks as uninteresting as it sounds. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Javier Reyna's Due Justice, direct from Saban's YouTube: In the heart pounding thriller, Due Justice, former marine Max (Kellan Lutz) experiences a devastating loss when ...

Bring on Estonian kung fu!! There's a badass little film playing on the film festival circuit this fall called The Invisible Fight, the sixth feature directed by Estonian filmmaker Rainer Sarnet. After first premiering at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland, it has also played at Fantastic Fest, in Helsinki, and the Sitges Film Festival in Spain - where I was lucky enough to catch up with it. And yep – The Invisible Fight rocks! A kooky martial arts flick meets Estonian comedy set in the Soviet-era past, where a guy decides to go against the communist system and learn kung fu – just because it's cool. Even if this loses steam in the second half, this film is mega enjoyable because it's so boldly original. Where else can you learn about the temptations of black metal kung fu, taught by Orthodox monks with long beards, who insist on the importance of humility over dexterity. There's a morality tale in here, obviously, but above all it's a damn good time at the cinema. Set in the 1970s when Estonia was still a ...

"I'm a dude in a room talking to a dude in a room." XYZ Films has revealed an official trailer for an indie horror thriller titled Share?, from filmmaker Ira Rosensweig. The indie film is another social experiment game / live stream thriller, playing on the mechanics of social media to create something unsettling. A man awakens alone, stripped of all possessions, trapped in a bare room. Aided solely by a primitive computer, he fights to survive in a new existence where entertainment is the only currency and discover who imprisoned him, why, and if there is any possibility of escape. Melvin Gregg stars as the lead – he's not alone in this streaming prison: Bradley Whitford, Alice Braga, & Danielle Campbell are also stuck in the system, too. They don’t know how to escape or when this game will end. All they can do is keep each other company while entertaining the unseen masses through social media. This looks way better than so many other social media horror films, especially with Soderbergh's approval (according to quote in this trailer) I'm ...

"I will not accept defeat!" Swim on, Nyad, swim on. Netflix has debuted a behind-the-scenes featurette for Nyad, which is set for both a theatrical and streaming release this week. This first premiered at the 2023 Telluride Film Festival, with stops at London and TIFF in the fall festival season. Annette Bening, Jodie Foster, and Rhys Ifans all star in NYAD to tell a remarkable true story of athlete Diana Nyad who, at the age of 60 and with the help of her best friend & coach, commits to achieving her life-long dream: a 110-mile open ocean swim from Cuba to Florida. It really happened! It's also the first narrative feature made by the Oscar-winning documentary filmmakers Jimmy Chin & Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, known for Meru, Free Solo, The Rescue, and this year's Wild Life (all great films). This featurette dives into the making of the film, mainly focusing on casting Annette & Jodie and their experience working with Jimmy & Chai on their first narrative feature after many docs before. Check it out - and watch for the film ...

"All we can focus on is the rehabilitation of our congregation." PBS has unveiled an official trailer for a documentary series called A Town Called Victoria, made by the filmmaker Li Lu, who grew up in Sugar Land, Texas. It's set for release in November as a three-part doc series, streaming soon after its TV premiere on PBS this fall. It recently premiered at the 2023 Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival this month. When the local mosque is burned to the ground in an apparent hate crime, the town of Victoria, TX, must overcome its age-old political, racial, economic divides to find the right way forward. Some will remember hearing about this in the news - the fire occurred in early 2017. "After a mosque is burned to the ground in a small Texas town, residents rally to support the local Muslim community... But is this an inspiring news story or something far more nuanced and complicated? This intricately woven, fascinating 3-part docuseries tells the full story." Another story about America confronting its inherent xenophobia and hate. View below. Here's the ...

"You really think you're a normal person? I bet you have brilliant dreams..." Neon has unveiled an official trailer for Eileen, an indie psychological crime thriller from filmmaker William Oldroyd (Lady Macbeth) that first premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. This got mostly dismal reviews out of Sundance, with many saying it was one of their least favorite films from the fest, however Neon snatched it up and will release it this fall anyway. Set during a bitter 1964 Massachusetts winter, young secretary Eileen becomes enchanted by the glamorous new counselor at the prison where she works. Their budding friendship takes a twisted turn when Rebecca reveals a dark secret — throwing Eileen onto a sinister path... It's based on the book of the same name written by Ottessa Moshfegh, to give you an idea of what you're getting into with this story. Thomasin McKenzie stars as the titular Eileen in this story, joined by Anne Hathaway, Shea Whigham, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, and Owen Teague. Not only is the story just a bit too off-putting, the film itself is ...

"You keep this side of your life completely separate..." Utopia has revealed the official trailer for an indie film titled Femme, yet another of our favorite festival discoveries this year. The film premiered at the 2023 Berlin Film Festival (here's my review) and went on to play at the Fantasia, Melbourne, Helsinki, Zurich, Denver, and Athens Film Festivals. It's a remarkably powerful look at the dynamic between a gay man and a closest tough guy. Jules' life and career as a drag queen is destroyed by a homophobic attack. But when he re-encounters his attacker, the deeply-closeted Preston, in a gay sauna, he is now presented with a chance to exact revenge. Unrecognizable out of his wig and make-up, Jules infiltrates Preston’s life, and in doing so, discovers power in a different kind of drag... A very provocative contemporary thriller. Starring George MacKay as Preston & Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Jules, with a cast including Aaron Heffernan, John McCrea, Nima Taleghani, Antonia Clarke, and Moe Bar-El. I stated in my review that, "this is what modern filmmaking is all about" telling ...

"This is going to lead to real changes in sex between men and women." "Is there any danger in that...?" Yes indeed there is... IFC Films has revealed the first official trailer for an outstanding documentary film called The Disappearance of Shere Hite, from the award-winning doc filmmaker Nicole Newnham. This first premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, and it was one of my favorite discoveries of the fest. A thrilling portrait of groundbreaking sex researcher Shere Hite, her explosive rise to fame and notoriety, and her mysterious retreat from the public eye. It is executive produced by Dakota Johnson, who also stars as the voice of Shere in the film. Her findings in her infamous 1976 book rocked the American establishment & presaged current conversations about gender, sexuality, and bodily autonomy. So how did Shere Hite disappear? Digging into exclusive archives, as well as Hite’s personal journals and the original survey responses, this doc film transports viewers back to a time of great societal transformation around sexuality. I'm happy to be quoted in this new ...