If you thought something was off about the office space of Lumon Industries in season one, wait until you see what’s hiding behind the doors in season two of Severance. We still have until next month to see just what happens on the next season of Apple TV+’s Severance, but in the meantime, we at least have the trailer to drop some clues for the Innies.
The trailer for season two of Severance – which arrived out of Comic Con Experience in Brazil – also builds on some of the highlights of the teaser that was released in October, chiefly featuring more footage of some key newcomers, including Bob Balaban and Alia Shawkat, along with Sarah Bock and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson. In addition to them, the sophomore outing will once again include Adam Scott, John Turturro, Christopher Walken, and Patricia Arquette, and more, but it will also add. The supporting cast also includes returners Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Zach Cherry, Jen Tullock, Michael Chernus, and Dichen Lachman.
Here is the official synopsis for Severance season two: “Mark Scout leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure that surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. This daring experiment in “work-life balance” is called into question as Mark finds himself at the center of an unraveling mystery that will force him to confront the true nature of his work… and of himself. In season two, Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe.”
As was the case with the first season, season two of Severance will find Ben Stiller getting behind the camera for a number of episodes, including the premiere episode, which will drop on Apple TV+ on January 17th. The 10-episode season will conclude in late March, as episodes will be released on a weekly basis.
The debut season of Severance was a huge critical hit (you can read our own 9/10 review here), being named as one of the AFI’s top shows of the year, a half dozen Emmy nods and recognition from the top industry guilds. Here’s hoping season two is a worthy follow-up, especially with season three already being kicked around.
What do you think of the trailer for Severance season two? Do you think it can top season one? Clock in and let us know below!
If you thought something was off about the office space of Lumon Industries in season one, wait until you see what’s hiding behind the doors in season two of Severance. We still have until next month to see just what happens on the next season of Apple TV+’s Severance, but in the meantime, we at least have the trailer to drop some clues for the Innies.
The trailer for season two of Severance – which arrived out of Comic Con Experience in Brazil – also builds on some of the highlights of the teaser that was released in October, chiefly featuring more footage of some key newcomers, including Bob Balaban and Alia Shawkat, along with Sarah Bock and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson. In addition to them, the sophomore outing will once again include Adam Scott, John Turturro, Christopher Walken, and Patricia Arquette, and more, but it will also add. The supporting cast also includes returners Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Zach Cherry, Jen Tullock, Michael Chernus, and Dichen Lachman.
Here is the official synopsis for Severance season two: “Mark Scout leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure that surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. This daring experiment in “work-life balance” is called into question as Mark finds himself at the center of an unraveling mystery that will force him to confront the true nature of his work… and of himself. In season two, Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe.”
As was the case with the first season, season two of Severance will find Ben Stiller getting behind the camera for a number of episodes, including the premiere episode, which will drop on Apple TV+ on January 17th. The 10-episode season will conclude in late March, as episodes will be released on a weekly basis.
The debut season of Severance was a huge critical hit (you can read our own 9/10 review here), being named as one of the AFI’s top shows of the year, a half dozen Emmy nods and recognition from the top industry guilds. Here’s hoping season two is a worthy follow-up, especially with season three already being kicked around.
What do you think of the trailer for Severance season two? Do you think it can top season one? Clock in and let us know below!
Scott Derrickson’s The Gorge has had a long jump to screens, first coming to light on the annual Black List (a compiling of that year’s best unproduced screenplays) and not officially moving forward in any capacity until two years later. Now, ahead of its release next year comes the official trailer.
Revealed at this year’s Comic Con Experience in Brazil, the trailer for Scott Derrickson’s (Doctor Strange, The Black Phone) The Gorge looks to give just the sort of hype that the cast and crew would want after such an extensive wait. The movie stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller as “two soldiers who are tasked with guarding a seemingly never-ending gorge with one agent posted on either side.” Sigourney Weaver and William Houston co-star.
As with a lot of movies, the mere inclusion of Zach Dean’s screenplay for The Gorge on the 2020 edition of the Black List helped get it wider attention. Here, it was given the following synopsis, which offers some different details: “A brazen, high-action, genre-bending, love story about two very dangerous young people, who despite the corrupt and lethal world they operate in, find a soulmate in each other.” The movie has officially been rated PG-13 for violence, language and more.
The teaming of Teller and director Derrickson seems like a natural fit, but it’s actually Teller and Joy that has a little bit more history to it, with the actress previously noting, “We’re all good friends, but we’ve been wanting to work together for a really long time.” Joy also made mention of the original story, which is something Derrickson really hasn’t had a whole lot of experience with. As he told The Playlist, “The Gorge’ is not I.P., it’s totally original, and when you eventually see the film, you’ll see that it’s just not like anything that’s been made, it’s a very unique movie, and I like that…”
The Gorge comes to Apple TV+ on February 14th.
What did you think of the trailer for Scott Derrickson’s The Gorge? Will you be checking it out when it releases? Let us know in the comments below.
Scott Derrickson’s The Gorge has had a long jump to screens, first coming to light on the annual Black List (a compiling of that year’s best unproduced screenplays) and not officially moving forward in any capacity until two years later. Now, ahead of its release next year comes the official trailer.
Revealed at this year’s Comic Con Experience in Brazil, the trailer for Scott Derrickson’s (Doctor Strange, The Black Phone) The Gorge looks to give just the sort of hype that the cast and crew would want after such an extensive wait. The movie stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller as “two soldiers who are tasked with guarding a seemingly never-ending gorge with one agent posted on either side.” Sigourney Weaver and William Houston co-star.
As with a lot of movies, the mere inclusion of Zach Dean’s screenplay for The Gorge on the 2020 edition of the Black List helped get it wider attention. Here, it was given the following synopsis, which offers some different details: “A brazen, high-action, genre-bending, love story about two very dangerous young people, who despite the corrupt and lethal world they operate in, find a soulmate in each other.” The movie has officially been rated PG-13 for violence, language and more.
The teaming of Teller and director Derrickson seems like a natural fit, but it’s actually Teller and Joy that has a little bit more history to it, with the actress previously noting, “We’re all good friends, but we’ve been wanting to work together for a really long time.” Joy also made mention of the original story, which is something Derrickson really hasn’t had a whole lot of experience with. As he told The Playlist, “The Gorge’ is not I.P., it’s totally original, and when you eventually see the film, you’ll see that it’s just not like anything that’s been made, it’s a very unique movie, and I like that…”
The Gorge comes to Apple TV+ on February 14th.
What did you think of the trailer for Scott Derrickson’s The Gorge? Will you be checking it out when it releases? Let us know in the comments below.
Variety’s annual Actors on Actors series is usually a great opportunity to hear some of our favorite stars chat about the craft. But this year has been more problematic that ever before. First Sebastian Stan said he couldn’t participate because nobody wanted to talk politics; now, Ryan Reynolds has been forced to defend an entire genre because of some outcry over the drama over comedy hierarchy.
Ryan Reynolds joined Andrew Garfield – who recently starred in drama We Live in Time – for an installment, which you’d think would be a fun chance to get Deadpool and Spider-Man in the same room but ended up causing issues with at least one online loudmouth. While the user’s X post is inaccessible now, Variety noted that it read, “Andrew Garfield talking about playing a husband and father who’s wife decides to forgo cancer treatment and Ryan Reynolds talking about playing Deadpool.”
With this, Ryan Reynolds came not only to the defense of Andrew Garfield but the comedy genre as a whole. Replying directly to the user, he wrote: “Correct. Andrew’s a genius. He and Florence are magic together in, WE LIVE IN TIME. They’re heartbreaking and charming and spend the entire film in a high-wire act of humanity and constraint. And yes I am Deadpool BUT I will take a second and speak up in defense of comedy. Dramatic work is difficult. And we’re also meant to SEE it’s difficult which is one of the reasons it feels visceral and effective. Comedy is also very difficult. But has an added dimension in that it’s meant to look and feel effortless. You intentionally hide the stitching and unstitching.”
Correct. Andrew’s a genius. He and Florence are magic together in, WE LIVE IN TIME. They’re heartbreaking and charming and spend the entire film in a high-wire act of humanity and constraint. And yes I am Deadpool BUT I will take a second and speak up in defense of comedy.…
Ryan Reynolds continued his post by demonstrating that not only is comedy often misunderstood as an artform but it’s also entirely a matter of taste. “I think both disciplines are beautiful. And both work beautifully together. Comedy and drama subsist on tension. Both thrive when subverting expectation. Both thrive backstopped by real emotion. And both are deeply subjective. Your favourite comedy might be Anchorman. Mine might be Lars Von Trier’s, Melancholia.” Now that’s subjective!
Look, we know Ryan Reynolds has his haters who think he’s just a one-trick pony (at least he’s not as scary as the We Live in Time one!) and whose comedy may be growing tired, but the guy has a point here. What’s the reason for even bothering to compare two entirely different performances in two entirely different movies in this sort of setting? Drama, comedy, whatever it is, let’s all just be grateful that the actors are taking part. You can see their episode on December 9th.
Variety’s annual Actors on Actors series is usually a great opportunity to hear some of our favorite stars chat about the craft. But this year has been more problematic that ever before. First Sebastian Stan said he couldn’t participate because nobody wanted to talk politics; now, Ryan Reynolds has been forced to defend an entire genre because of some outcry over the drama over comedy hierarchy.
Ryan Reynolds joined Andrew Garfield – who recently starred in drama We Live in Time – for an installment, which you’d think would be a fun chance to get Deadpool and Spider-Man in the same room but ended up causing issues with at least one online loudmouth. While the user’s X post is inaccessible now, Variety noted that it read, “Andrew Garfield talking about playing a husband and father who’s wife decides to forgo cancer treatment and Ryan Reynolds talking about playing Deadpool.”
With this, Ryan Reynolds came not only to the defense of Andrew Garfield but the comedy genre as a whole. Replying directly to the user, he wrote: “Correct. Andrew’s a genius. He and Florence are magic together in, WE LIVE IN TIME. They’re heartbreaking and charming and spend the entire film in a high-wire act of humanity and constraint. And yes I am Deadpool BUT I will take a second and speak up in defense of comedy. Dramatic work is difficult. And we’re also meant to SEE it’s difficult which is one of the reasons it feels visceral and effective. Comedy is also very difficult. But has an added dimension in that it’s meant to look and feel effortless. You intentionally hide the stitching and unstitching.”
Correct. Andrew’s a genius. He and Florence are magic together in, WE LIVE IN TIME. They’re heartbreaking and charming and spend the entire film in a high-wire act of humanity and constraint. And yes I am Deadpool BUT I will take a second and speak up in defense of comedy.…
Ryan Reynolds continued his post by demonstrating that not only is comedy often misunderstood as an artform but it’s also entirely a matter of taste. “I think both disciplines are beautiful. And both work beautifully together. Comedy and drama subsist on tension. Both thrive when subverting expectation. Both thrive backstopped by real emotion. And both are deeply subjective. Your favourite comedy might be Anchorman. Mine might be Lars Von Trier’s, Melancholia.” Now that’s subjective!
Look, we know Ryan Reynolds has his haters who think he’s just a one-trick pony (at least he’s not as scary as the We Live in Time one!) and whose comedy may be growing tired, but the guy has a point here. What’s the reason for even bothering to compare two entirely different performances in two entirely different movies in this sort of setting? Drama, comedy, whatever it is, let’s all just be grateful that the actors are taking part. You can see their episode on December 9th.
It’s that time again; Holiday Gift Guide time! We kicked off things with Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals and we will also feature guides on Blu-ray, Box Sets, Collectibles and Toys! But first, here is our list of the best books to buy for the movie fan in your life! Please keep in mind that prices can shift dramatically during this time, so make sure to scoop up the best deal as soon as you can.
The below list is a series of cool items that tie closely to the year we’ve had in movies and TV, from Jurassic World to ET and beyond, including some awesome nostalgia-related items, you can surely find something for that special someone that loves and appreciates some of the finer things that geekdom has to offer. Happy Shopping!
DISCLAIMER: These prices can be fickle, so there’s no telling if and when a money-saving opportunity might end or if the price may change. So if you want something – snap that shit up quickly! Don’t wait, only to have Festivus roll around and discover you’ve nothing to give or the price suddenly changed and you no longer have the bread. Remember that if you want to support JoBlo.com, please use our links below for your purchases. We thank you in advance!
It’s strange how the movies you see as a child tend to stick with you throughout the years. Odder still are the movies that have a profound personal impact on you because of one specific scene. Over the years, I’ve written about plenty of them for this long-running feature I’ve done on JoBlo called The Best Movie You Never Saw. For me, one such movie is the 1991 thriller Dead Again, which was directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also co-stars along with his then-wife, Emma Thompson, Derek Jacobi, Andy Garcia and the late, great Robin Williams (in an unbilled role). I saw this at ten years old on the Canadian equivalent of HBO, First Choice, and it had a profound impact on me for one specific reason I’ll get to shortly.
But first, some background on this often overlooked film. In the late eighties, many considered Kenneth Branagh, who received dual best actor and best director nominations for his film of Henry V, the heir apparent of Laurence Olivier. Having been a star at RADA, and one of the bright lights of the London stage before moving on to film, his ascendency was quick, but Branagh seemingly bristled at being typecast in upper-crust English parts. While adapting Shakespeare’s works for the screen has arguably been his life’s work, he clearly relished the opportunity to branch out a bit with the noir-inspired Dead Again, which was written by the great Scott Frank (The Lookout, Little Man Tate, Get Shorty, Out of Sight & Logan).
In it, Branagh plays a wisecracking Los Angeles private eye named Mike Church. An orphan, he’s recruited by the church he was raised in to help identify a beautiful amnesiac (Emma Thompson) who turned up on their doorstep. With the help of an antiques dealer/ hypnotist (Derek Jacobi), the woman, who Church calls Grace, reveals she’s the reincarnation of a concert pianist who was murdered by her famous composer husband, Roman Strauss back in 1949. Branagh and Thompson, who were married at the time, play dual roles, as Church/Roman, and Grace/Margaret.
Riding high off a wave of strong reviews, Dead Again proved to be a word-of-mouth hit in the fall of 1991. Opening at number one at the box office and staying there for several weeks, it grossed $38 million (a lot in 1991 dollars) and was a much-rented tape in those Blockbuster Video days. Even still, in the thirty-three years since it was released, Dead Again sunk into minor obscurity and is often overlooked when discussing the careers of anyone involved, even Branagh, despite it being the film that broke him and Thompson through to an American audience.
A love letter to film noir, Dead Again takes place in two distinct periods, 1940s L.A (shot in gorgeous black and white) and the “modern-day” equivalent. The flashbacks are done in an eccentric noir style, while the latter scenes opt for the high style of an Alfred Hitchcock movie. The mystery is quite gripping, and the romantic subplot between Branagh’s detective and Thompson’s amnesiac works well. The two had great chemistry, and both make pretty admirable attempts at American accents. Andy Garcia also steals scenes as a dissolute party-hound in the forties section, only to be laid low by time in the modern section. Branagh’s stage mentor, Derek Jacobi, also looks to be having the time of his life as an antique dealer/ hypnotist drawn into the mystery – it’s the type of role Claude Rains would have played in a 1940’s version.
Given Branagh’s anointing by Hollywood as the “next big thing”, he was able to recruit a lot of popular actors for small parts, including karate-kick throwing Campbell Scott (riding high off Dying Young and Singles) and the late, great Robin Williams, who plays a disgraced psychiatrist reduced to working as a supermarket stock boy. Williams took no billing, but his part is an important one, with him delivering the central thesis of the movie in his big scene with Branagh and Thompson, and he more than holds his own opposite them. Yet another reminder of how much we lost when he passed away.
So, what was it about this film that stayed with me? Beyond the fact that I always thought it was a fun thriller (even if it was only about ten years old when I first saw it), there’s a scene that scarred me in it toward the end. As the mystery deepens, Branagh’s Church interviews Andy Garcia’s Gray Baker, who was a reporter in love with Margaret in the forties section of the film. One of the movie’s recurring gags is that Church is trying to quit smoking, and when he meets the 1991 version of Baker, he notices that the man has had his larynx removed. There’s a bit where Garcia smokes a cigarette through a hole in his throat that absolutely repulsed me as a kid and made me vow to never take up smoking.
Fast-forward to 2021, when Branagh was making the rounds on the awards-circuit for his film Belfast. I was invited to the Los Angeles premiere of the film, and was lucky enough to meet Branagh at a party. Branagh, who likes to be called Ken despite his knighting, was a super nice guy, and when we were chatting, I casually mentioned to him how I never started smoking because of this scene, and he got a huge laugh out of it.
So, in a way, Kenneth Branagh and Andy Garcia are largely responsible for the fact that I’ve never been a smoker (incidentally – Garcia was at the same party and Branagh told me I should tell him my story- but it turns out he bailed on the party early and I missed my chance). That little tidbit aside, DeadAgain is a really fun thriller (with a great score by Patrick Doyle) that’s worth checking out. You can find it on DVD/Blu-ray, and it’s also available on streaming (but no 4K yet). Give it a shot!
Kenny B got a laugh out of my Dead Again smoking story
John Waters’ annual top 10 movies list is always an eclectic one, filled with movies on the fringe that we may have never even heard of, ever a champion for the maligned. But the most interesting addition this year is one that got a lot of attention this year – just for all the wrong reasons.
Taking the #6 spot on his list of the top 10 movies of 2024 for Vulture, John Waters picked Todd Phillips’ much-derided Joker: Folie à Deux, which had all of the hype possible behind it but flopped with critics and audiences. In his write-up, Waters told us just what worked for him: “Finally, a love story I can relate to. So insane, so well thought out, so well directed, so much smoking! It’s Jailhouse Rock meets Busby Berkeley with a 9/11 That’s Entertainment! ending that will make you shake your head in cinematic astonishment. Stupid critics. Gaga so good. Joker so right. Die, dumbbells, die!”
Supporters of Joker: Folie à Deux are few and far (we gave it a 5/10 in our review), but John Waters naming it to his top 10 of 2024 does put him in the company of Quentin Tarantino, who absolutely loved it and said Joaquin Phoenix’s performances is one of the best he’s ever seen. What, you think Tarantino is ever hyperbolic?
Joining the Joker sequel on John Waters’ top 10 list would be Rose Glass’ Love Lies Bleeding at #1, Luda Guadagnino’s Queer at #2, Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist at #3, Mike Leigh’s Hard Truth at #4, Alexi Wasser’s Messy at #5, Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s Femme at #7, Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez at #8, Halina Reijn’s Babygirl at #9, and Truong Minh Quy’s Viet and Nam at the bottom. In 2019, Waters put Joker in the #10 spot, while last year he picked Beau Is Afraid as his favorite film, so Waters is most definitely a fan of Joaquin Phoenix.
For those that skipped Joker: Folie à Deux in theaters – and there were a lot of us, as the sequel made about a sixth of the first – it will be hitting Max on December 13th.
John Waters’ annual top 10 movies list is always an eclectic one, filled with movies on the fringe that we may have never even heard of, ever a champion for the maligned. But the most interesting addition this year is one that got a lot of attention this year – just for all the wrong reasons.
Taking the #6 spot on his list of the top 10 movies of 2024 for Vulture, John Waters picked Todd Phillips’ much-derided Joker: Folie à Deux, which had all of the hype possible behind it but flopped with critics and audiences. In his write-up, Waters told us just what worked for him: “Finally, a love story I can relate to. So insane, so well thought out, so well directed, so much smoking! It’s Jailhouse Rock meets Busby Berkeley with a 9/11 That’s Entertainment! ending that will make you shake your head in cinematic astonishment. Stupid critics. Gaga so good. Joker so right. Die, dumbbells, die!”
Supporters of Joker: Folie à Deux are few and far (we gave it a 5/10 in our review), but John Waters naming it to his top 10 of 2024 does put him in the company of Quentin Tarantino, who absolutely loved it and said Joaquin Phoenix’s performances is one of the best he’s ever seen. What, you think Tarantino is ever hyperbolic?
Joining the Joker sequel on John Waters’ top 10 list would be Rose Glass’ Love Lies Bleeding at #1, Luda Guadagnino’s Queer at #2, Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist at #3, Mike Leigh’s Hard Truth at #4, Alexi Wasser’s Messy at #5, Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s Femme at #7, Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez at #8, Halina Reijn’s Babygirl at #9, and Truong Minh Quy’s Viet and Nam at the bottom. In 2019, Waters put Joker in the #10 spot, while last year he picked Beau Is Afraid as his favorite film, so Waters is most definitely a fan of Joaquin Phoenix.
For those that skipped Joker: Folie à Deux in theaters – and there were a lot of us, as the sequel made about a sixth of the first – it will be hitting Max on December 13th.
