Author: Alex Billington

What a strange film this is... In this day and age of extraordinarily unhealthy celebrity obsession, it's hard to shake most people from their mindless fascination with the rich & famous, no matter what anyone says or does. While many films have attempted to address this already, none have ventured this deep into this realm of absolute madness. Modern day celebrity mania has reached full-on cult status - and this is literally what Opus is about. Opus is the feature directorial debut of Mark Anthony Green, who has made a few short films before this and also wrote for GQ in his earlier years. His film features John Malkovich starring as a mega famous, unquestionably loved pop star musician named Alfred Moretti. While there are a few artists he could be referencing, let's say he's probably closest to Michael Jackson or Prince. He's just as eccentric, kooky, and totally ridiculous – which we discover when a group of music journalists get invited to visit his compound to experience his latest album after 30 years. There's much to chew on even if it isn't a great film. Opus seems like it's trying to be like The Menu (one of my favorites) […]

"An outcast who became one of the most famous kings who ever lived..." You know his name. You know the legend. Now experience the journey – if you're ready. Prime Video has unveiled an official trailer for a new Biblical epic series called House of David, telling the iconic David vs. Goliath story (from the Book of Samuel) on screen. We all know this classic fable, which is used often today as a reference for an individual taking on a corporation or government, but this is actually going back to tell the original story from history. The once-mighty King Saul falls victim to his own pride, as an outcast shepherd boy, David is anointed as the second king. This depicts Goliath as an actual giant. Newcomer Michael Iskander, who they cast after months of searching (also seen in Kimberly Akimbo on Broadway), stars as David; along with Ali Suliman as King Saul, Ayelet Zurer as Queen Ahinoam, Stephen Lang as Samuel, Indy Lewis as Mychal, and Martyn Ford as Goliath. It remains religious propaganda, as it's co-directed by Jon Gunn of the religious films The Case for Christ and Ordinary Angels. Can one stone change the course of history? I […]

"It's for the cause! We're helping a gay couple stay together." Bleecker Street has unveiled the teaser for the ensemble comedy called The Wedding Banquet, a brand new modern day remake of the 1993 Ang Lee movie. This teaser is debuting the day after the film's world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival - where it earned a standing ovation after its premiere at Eccles (and I was there - it was amazing!!). This time the story features four people living together: two gay men and two lesbian women in relationships. Korean Min makes a deal with his lesbian friend: a green-card marriage for him, in exchange for IVF treatments for her. But their plans to quietly elope are upended when Min's skeptical grandmother flies in right from Korea unannounced, insisting on an all-out wedding extravaganza. With a pitch-perfect cast of talent that includes Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Han Gi-chan, Bobo Le, Joan Chen, and Academy Award winner Youn Yuh-jung, this fresh reimagining of Ang Lee’s beloved, rom-com teems with humor & heart in a poignant reminder that being part of a family means learning to both accept & forgive. I watched this film at Sundance […]

"The gendarmes on it." "Humans are useless." Kino Lorber has finally revealed an official US trailer for The Empire, the strange French sci-fi film from filmmaker Bruno Dumont. After first being unveiled in 2023 and premiering in early 2024, it's only now getting a US release starting in March 2025 - it already opened in Europe last year and didn't do very well. We also posted the first French trailer for this way back in 2023. Dumont's sci-fi The Empire (called L'Empire in French) is set in a quiet fishing village on the Opal Coast in Northern France, and tells the story of a child who's apparently so unique & peculiar it unleashes a secret war between extraterrestrial forces of good & evil. Starring a very French cast including Virginie Efira, Lily-Rose Depp, Camille Cottin, Lyna Khoudri, Anamaria Vartolomei, & Fabrice Luchini. This received quite a few negative and mixed reviews, apparently it's a bit too kooky and uneven to be a hidden gem. But I gotta say the sci-fi side of this still seems amusing and entertaining – even if it doesn't all work. Here's the official US trailer (+ poster) for Bruno Dumont's The Empire, direct from KL's […]

"Why can't we just celebrate together?" Prime Video has debuted a third and final fun trailer for the goofy comedy You're Cordially Invited, an ensemble wedding bash created and directed by filmmaker Nick Stoller (of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to the Greek, The Five-Year Engagement, Neighbors 1 & 2, Bros). Streaming to watch later this week if anyone wants to drop in on the fun and join the parties (either one!). You're Cordially Invited follows a woman who is planning her sister's wedding, as well as the father of another bride-to-be. They discover that they are double-booked for their fancy destination wedding, so both parties decide to share the venue, but chaos and disaster await, of course. Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon star as the feuding hosts, with a fun cast including Geraldine Viswanathan, Meredith Hagner, Wesley Mann, Jimmy Tatro, Celia Weston, Leanne Morgan, Rory Scovel, and Keyla Monterroso Mejia. This is actually the best trailer yet - saving the best for last! Though I'm not sure why they didn't release this actually-funny trailer any earlier. It finally has plenty of legitimately amusing jokes. Here's the third & final trailer for Nicholas Stoller's You're Cordially Invited, direct from YouTube: […]

"Do you know where the wind comes from...? They howl at the top of their lungs to wake the wind..." The Sundance Film Festival is supposed to be a festival of discovery, where first-time filmmakers have a chance to share their films and be discovered. While the festival drifted off course in the 2010s, it's back on course in the 2020s, focusing on discoveries and little films from unknown filmmakers. Where the Wind Comes From is a Tunisian indie film made by a Tunisian filmmaker named Amel Guellaty 🇹🇳, making her feature directorial debut with this feature along with prolific work as a photographer in France and beyond. It's a charming, entertaining little indie flick that deserves to find an audience outside of Sundance with viewers from any country. Where the Wind Comes From is a road trip comedy following two Tunisian youngsters desperate to escape the country any way they really can - following as they drive to an art contest on Djerba. Where the Wind Comes From is written and directed by Tunisian filmmaker Amel Guellaty, making her first feature after two other award-winning shorts. It follows two rebellious Tunisians: 19-year-old Alyssa (played by Eya Bellagha) & shy […]

Landing on Earth – this summer. FX on Hulu has revealed a second teaser for the spin-off series Alien: Earth. This teaser debuted during the big football game this past weekend, and still doesn't really contain much actual footage from the series (just like the first teaser from last year). Aiming for a release sometime in summer 2025 - though still no final date confirmed yet. When a mysterious space vessel crash-lands on Earth, a young woman (Sydney Chandler) and a ragtag group of tactical soldiers make a fateful discovery that puts them face-to-face with the planet's greatest threat in FX's new sci-fi series Alien: Earth. Created & directed by Noah Hawley. Lead by Chandler, the full ensemble cast also includes Alex Lawther, Timothy Olyphant, Essie Davis, Samuel Blenkin, Babou Ceesay, David Rysdahl, Adrian Edmondson, Adarsh Gourav, Moe Bar-El, Diem Camille, Jonathan Ajayi, Lily Newmark, and Erana James. This teaser for the prequel series features a facehugger POV jumping through the ship before we see Earth in the window. Which is pretty freaky! Still curious to see more real footage from this TV series - watch out. Here's the "Destination" teaser trailer (+ poster) for Noah Hawley's series Alien: Earth […]

A brand new British folk horror creation has revealed itself at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Rabbit Trap is the feature directorial debut of up-and-coming British-Australian filmmaker Bryn Chainey, who both wrote and directed this film. Yet another extremely personal project based on his own worst fears and experiences, like many filmmakers trying to work through them by making a film about them. Rabbit Trap is set in 1976 and follows a young married couple who live out in the wilderness in rural England in a little cabin. While living out there alone, trying to make unique music and record natural sounds, they end up encountering some strange supernatural forces. This sends them into a tizzy as they attempt to make sense of what is going on – and it gets especially weird when a mysterious kid randomly shows up and works his/her way into their life. There are some intriguing ideas in this but it never amounts to much in the end, and the finale is rather lackluster. But I am enchanted by most of it anyway and I cannot write off the entire film. Bryn Chainey's Rabbit Trap features two main characters: an avant-garde musician named Daphne, played […]

"Mr. Prime Minister, something has to be done... we're going covert." Well Go USA has revealed an official trailer for an action movie called Invasion, also known as Invasie in Dutch. This is made by a filmmaker named Bobby Boermans from the Netherlands. It's a very jingostic film about the Dutch military trying to deal with an attack on one of its territories. Way too many films like this these days – almost if they're trying to condition people into thinking this is the only way to respond. When neighboring rogue country Veragua suddenly attacks Curaçao & Aruba, the Dutch government is taken totally by surprise. The conflict escalates rapidly. Three young Dutch Corps recruits must figure out what is the right thing to do. Will they be able to save the day? The action cast includes Tarikh Janssen, Gijs Blom, Ortál Vriend, Jasha Rudge, Fedja Van Huêt, Gijs Scholten Van Aschat, and Raymond Thiry. This looks like a movie made for military junkies to get off on, all about how a skilled covert ops team can use their big weapons to defend their land. Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Bobby Boermans' action movie Invasion, direct from YouTube: When […]

Every once in a while you come across a film that is so perfectly made to connect deeply with you and your soul, so wonderfully crafted that your emotions reach a boiling point the moment it starts, so exciting in its majesty that you can't help but fall instantly in love with it. Folktales is one of those film – for me, and hopefully for many others who take the time to watch it. Folktales is the latest documentary film from the incredible filmmaking duo Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady, who have been to Sundance many times before with many great films including Jesus Camp, 12th & Delaware, Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You, One of Us, Dogs, and the narrative feature film I Carry You with Me. This time they travel up to Norway where they film teens spending a year at a rural folk school above the Arctic Circle. Here, various students learn skills like dog sledding and other solo survival skills which, even if they don't be come dog-sledders after, helps them learn to grow as people and develop themselves in unexpected ways. It's amazing to watch. Folktales, co-directed by master doc filmmakers Heidi Ewing & […]