The Shyamalans are joining the Cronenbergs on making horror and thrillers a family business. While the patriarch, M. Night, has his own new project with the Josh Hartnett suspense film Trap, his daughter Ishana has taken up the mantle of mystery horror in the new film The Watchers. Warner Bros. Discovery has just released the new one-sheet poster for the film, is set to receive a June 7 theatrical release, courtesy of Warner Bros. / New Line Cinema.

The press release from Warner Bros. Discovery reads,
From producer M. Night Shyamalan comes The Watchers, written and directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan and based on the novel by A.M. Shine. The film follows Mina, a 28-year-old artist, who gets stranded in an expansive, untouched forest in western Ireland. When Mina finds shelter, she unknowingly becomes trapped alongside three strangers who are watched and stalked by mysterious creatures each night. You can’t see them, but they see everything.

The Watchers stars Dakota Fanning (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Ocean’s Eight), Georgina Campbell (Barbarian, Suspicion), Oliver Finnegan (Creeped Out, Outlander) and Olwen Fouere (The Northman, The Tourist). The film is produced by M. Night Shyamalan, Ashwin Rajan and Nimitt Mankad. The executive producers are Jo Homewood and Stephen Dembitzer. 

Joining writer/director Shyamalan behind-the-camera are director of photography Eli Arenson (Lamb, Hospitality), production designer Ferdia Murphy (Lola, Finding You), editor Job ter Burg (Benedetta, Elle) and costume design by Frank Gallacher (Sebastian, Aftersun). The music is by Abel Korzeniowski (Till, The Nun).

Speaking about his daughter’s work on Servant last year, M. Night Shyamalan told Entertainment Weekly, “She has slightly more of a fantasy bend than I do. She speaks in bolder colors than I do. The camera is more canted or more grotesque in showing someone scarier. The disadvantage of being an accomplished artist is that your experience starts working against you. I see less options, because I’ve done so many things. She doesn’t see that; for her, everything is possible. There are advantages and disadvantages to the levels of experience that we each have.” 

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The team at FromSoftware is really good at making the most fucked-up creatures imaginable. Some of the stuff that team has fit into its games are utter nightmares ripped out of the deep dark recesses of the human mind. Parts of its catalog, like Bloodborne, have explicitly leaned into that haunting aesthetic more than…

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The team at FromSoftware is really good at making the most fucked-up creatures imaginable. Some of the stuff that team has fit into its games are utter nightmares ripped out of the deep dark recesses of the human mind. Parts of its catalog, like Bloodborne, have explicitly leaned into that haunting aesthetic more than…

Read more…

PLOT: An assassin (Jordi Molla) is hired to kill a deadly adversary.

REVIEW: NOTE – THIS WAS REVIEWED AT TIFF 2023. There’s at least one thing about Harmony Korine‘s Aggro Dr1ft that’s amazing: the fact that being shot in infrared isn’t the most obnoxious thing about this 80-minute endurance test. It’s not much of a film but rather purely experimental fare that Korine could have released online rather than at a major film festival. Many have pointed out that it plays like a cutscene from Grand Theft Auto, where it is directed in infrared by a horny, none-too-bright teenager obsessed with the imagery for nineties gangster rap videos. This is a movie where the bad guy goes on for minutes swinging swords repeating “dance b*tch, dance” over and over (and over) again.

One does have to give Korine some credit for his audacity in that he’s made a film wholly unconcerned with either audience sensitivities (good!) or entertainment/ artistic value (bad). Jordi Molla stars as our hitman hero, who keeps repeating over and over, “I’m an assassin,” who goes on an odyssey to assassinate a demonic drug lord. He’s the only semi-recognizable cast member, other than rapper Travis Scott, who shows up as our hero, BO’s protege, Zion, who once asks BO if Julius Cesar wrote the bible.

It’s an experience that I doubt anyone would seriously call a film. Nothing happens in it besides BO getting hired by some generic bad guys to kill some competition. The entire script likely only runs a few pages, as what little dialogue there is gets repeated ad nauseam. The infrared lensing is experimental, but you get used to it at a certain point, even if Korine never does anything interesting with it. It likely just covers up his threadbare production, making the whole film feel like nothing more than a goof.

There’s really not much more to say about Aggro Dr1ft, as virtually nothing happens. I guess the best way to describe it is what a movie written by James Franco’s character, Alien from Spring Breakers, would have been like. The best thing about it is the sound design and music by Araabmuzik, which is so propulsive that it sometimes covers up how tedious the movie gets. The performance by Jordi Molla can’t really be evaluated, as you never really see his face, thanks to the photography, and the dialogue is intentionally awful. The character is thinly plotted, by design, with him shown to have a family (repeating “I’m a father” over and over), and he seems less bloodthirsty than others in the movie, saving some female slaves in the finale that seems straight out of the old Duke Nukem video game.

Again, this is more of an experiment than anything else, and it’s possible that Aggro Dr1ft completely vanishes or drops online following its TIFF debut. At least Korine keeps the movie short; if you watch this stoned, it might be more fun. It was a mighty (but occasionally interesting) chore for someone that’s stone-cold sober.

TIFF

NOT GOOD

4

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Jon M. Chu is ready to cast a spell on audiences when Wicked: Part One follows a yellow brick road into theater in November, and today, he’s sharing some behind-the-scenes magic in a new featurette. In the footage, we see an exclusive look at the sets, characters, and songs of the upcoming musical adaptation Broadway fans have been impatiently waiting for.

The Wicked featurette chronicles Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s journey toward playing Elphaba Thropp (the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda Upland (Glinda the Good Witch), two sisters growing up together while at different ends of the enchanted kingdom of Oz. Oz is a magical place, though it’s not free from prejudice, and Elphaba is struggling to find her way in a world that doesn’t want her.

In the new featurette, Erivo and Grande explain how it’s been a dream to play their iconic Wicked characters in Chu’s latest film. Both women understand the expectations set upon them by playing the legendary witch sisters in Maguire’s best-selling story, and neither takes the responsibility lightly.

In addition to sharing a birds-eye view of the elaborate sets, the featurette teases Jeff Goldblum’s Wizard of Oz, the cast’s gorgeous costumes, and meticulously choreographed dance numbers.

Universal has been working on a Wicked film adaptation since 2004. Stephen Daldry was initially attached to direct but left the project due to scheduling conflicts. The movie’s original release was December 22, 2021, but fate threw a bucket of water on that plan. In addition to Covid casting a production hex, Chu went back and forth about dividing the story into two captivating presentations. Wicked: Part One will cast a spell in cinemas on November 27, 2024.

The three-time Tony Award-winning stage musical was adapted from Gregory Maguire’s bestselling novel by writer Winnie Holzman and composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz, who collaborated on the screenplay adaptation. The story explains how a green-skinned woman framed by the Wizard of Oz becomes the Wicked Witch of the West. Maguire’s yarn is the ultimate fairy tale origin story and could have you rooting for the villain by the time it’s all over.

While I’m not typically one for musicals, I love Maguire’s Wicked, and Chu’s upcoming film is near the top of my list for this year’s releases. I hope the film is everything hardcore fans want it to be. Are you excited about Wicked coming to theaters? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Last month, Bethesda released a “next-gen” update for Fallout 4 across all platforms intended to improve the aging RPG. Instead, it broke tons of popular mods and made the game buggier for some players, too. To fix that, Bethesda has released another update. The reaction from fans has mostly been negative, with people…

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Last month, Bethesda released a “next-gen” update for Fallout 4 across all platforms intended to improve the aging RPG. Instead, it broke tons of popular mods and made the game buggier for some players, too. To fix that, Bethesda has released another update. The reaction from fans has mostly been negative, with people…

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Shudder has proven itself to be the haven of innovative horror movies. Their recent Late Night with the Devil has amassed critical and audience praise. Their partnership with AMC continues to bring in new content, like the upcoming announced thriller The Cycle, which has just tapped Daredevil’s Deborah Ann Woll to be the lead. The horror streaming service has now brought us the trailer for The Demon Disorder, which they have acquired with AMC networks. The film comes from special effects master Steven Boyle (THE MATRIX Trilogy, THE HOBBIT Trilogy, KING KONG). The streamer also released the trailer for the highly anticipated film, which marks Boyle’s feature directorial debut. Starring John Noble (THE LORD OF THE RINGS Trilogy), Charles Cottier, Christian Willis, and Dirk Hunter, the film will make its exclusive streaming debut on Shudder in Fall 2024. 

The official plot synopsis reads,
“The Australian demonic family drama centers on Graham, a man haunted by his past since the death of his father and the estrangement from his two brothers. Jake, the middle brother, contacts Graham claiming that something is horribly wrong: their youngest brother Phillip is possessed by their deceased father. Graham reluctantly agrees to go and see for himself. With the three brothers back together, they soon realize they are unprepared for the forces against them and learn that the sins of their past will not stay hidden. But how do you defeat a presence that knows you inside and out? An anger so powerful it refuses to stay dead?”

Steven Boyle expresses his excitement in bringing this new twist on possession to life, “We are thrilled that THE DEMON DISORDER has reached its final resting place with our friends at Shudder. It’s a community and fanbase that we hold in the highest esteem and we couldn’t be happier to be on this journey with them!” Samuel Zimmerman, the Head of Programming for Shudder also adds, “After years of a creating a range of elaborate visual experiences through his work as a special effects designer on iconic films, we’re thrilled to give Steven Boyle a platform for his feature length directorial debut with THE DEMON DISORDER. Full of impressive body horror that fans have come to expect from this master of effects, Boyle’s film is an engrossing story about breaking generational curses that viewers will find both unsettling and amusing.” 

Written and directed by Boyle, along with Toby Osborne (PINDAM) as writer, THE DEMON DISORDER is produced by Boyle and Ally Muller and executive produced by Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig.

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While in the middle of filming his latest mystery film, Fountain of Youth, Guy Ritchie is revealing another film project, Wife and Dog. Ritchie’s 18th feature hails from Black Bear, who launches Wife and Dog at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival event. Plot details about Wife and Dog remain a mystery, though Variety hears Ritchie is returning to the shady world of British Aristocracy for this anticipated feature. Cameras roll for Wife and Dog in October, with top-tier Hollywood actors negotiating for starring roles.

Like many of Ritchie’s film projects, he’s writing the screenplay and producing alongside his production partner, Ivan Atkinson, and Black Bear’s John Friedberg. Teddy Schwarzman and Michael Heimler of Black Bear executive produce.

As Cannes revs up for another competitive year, Ritchie is rolling cameras for Fountain of Youth, a mystery written by James Vanderbilt (Zodiac, Scream, Basic), starring Eiza González (The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, 3 Body Problem), Natalie Portman (Annihilation, Lucy in the Sky), John Krasinski (A Quiet Place, Jack Ryan, The Office), Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina, Anna Karenina), Laz Alonso (Avatar, Jarhead), and Carmen Ejogo (Selma, It Comes at Night). Ritchie directs Fountain of Youth, focusing on two estranged siblings who join forces to seek the legendary Fountain of Youth. Using historical clues, they embark on an epic quest filled with adventure. If successful, the mythical fountain could grant them immortality.

Another of Ritchie’s film projects, In the Grey, is in post-production. The action film stars Eiza González (The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, 3 Body Problem), Henry Cavill (The Witcher, Argylle), Jake Gyllenhaal (Road House, Ambulance), and Rosamund Pike (Saltburn, Gone Girl, I Care a Lot). In the Grey revolves around two extraction specialists who have to designate a route of escape for a senior female negotiator.

Are you excited about Guy Ritchie’s return to the world of British Aristocracy, or would you prefer he tell stories in a different venue? If you look at his film catalog, you’ll see that Ritchie is fearless in conquering new territory. Plus, who doesn’t like to poke a little fun at the elite? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

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Daredevil: Born Again may have been retooling, but from what is known, Deborah Ann Woll is set to return. It can be assumed that even with the revamped production, she will be playing a part of it, but the True Blood actress will also be starring in the upcoming horror film The Cycle. The press release from The Exchange for The Cycle has revealed that the thriller is set to be directed by Jordan Downey (The Head Hunter) and written by Downey and Kevin Stewart (The Head Hunter).

The plot synopsis reads,
In the film, when the body of a man missing for thirty-six years is discovered at the scene of a horrific crime, it’s up to his estranged daughter to unravel his dark past.

The film is produced by James Harris and Mark Lane of Tea Shop Productions (The Fall, The Surfer), with The Exchange executive producing and handling international sales at the upcoming Marché du Film at Cannes. Shudder, AMC Networks’ premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural, will be handling distribution in the US and Canada, UK and Ireland, and Australia/New Zealand. The film is in pre-production and looking to shoot later this year.

James Harris of Tea Shop has expressed his enthusiasm for the project, “We are so excited about The Cycle, Jordan has crafted such an original story that is gonna excite audiences. For us he has the ability to be the next great genre film maker and we can wait to make the movie.”

Deborah Ann Woll has been recognized for her versatility and depth on both the big and small screens. Rising to fame as the fiery Jessica Hamby in the HBO series True Blood, Woll further impressed audiences with her portrayal of Karen Page in Marvel’s Daredevil series, displaying a compelling blend of vulnerability and strength. Woll’s film credits include roles in Escape Room, Ruby Sparks, and Mother’s Day, solidifying her status as a dynamic talent in the entertainment industry.

Current titles from The Exchange include FRUITCAKE, starring Jennifer Garner, Rose Byrne and Octavia Spencer’s TOW, Orlando Bloom’s THE CUT, Anna Faris’ I, OBJECT, Peter Dinklage’s THE THICKET, Milla Jovovich and Luke Evan’s WORLD BREAKER, the recent Hot Doc’s participant THE WHITE MOUNTAIN, and horror TV series TALES FROM THE VOID.

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