It’s starting to look like the Cannes Film Festival could see yet another delay as Dutch director Paul Verhoeven suggested last week on a radio interview with NPO Radio 1 (in Dutch) that the event could be delayed to sometime in October. Verhoeven had expected to debut his latest film “Benedetta” at Cannes in July but seems to be under the impression that it will move into the fall. 

Continue reading ‘Benedetta’ Director Paul Verhoeven Suggests That Cannes 2021 May Have A Fallback Date Of October at The Playlist.

[SALANDER] comes to, on her stomach, sees her wrists cuffed to the headboard posts, her ankles secured to the foot posts with silk ties, and scissors slicing her jeans off.

[…]

[BJURMAN] crams a pillow under her stomach and climbs on top of [SALANDER]. She keeps fighting but there’s not much she can do handcuffed. Eventually, she retreats to another place inside herself. She’s had to go here before in her life; it’s the only place to go in such situations.

Continue reading The Long, Problematic History Of Rape Scenes In Film at The Playlist.

The 2017 Independent Spirit Awards kicked off with a hilarious opening monologue from “Oh, Hello” duo Nick Kroll and John Mulaney, and from there the evening was handed over to “Moonlight.”

READ MORE: The 25 Best Films Of 2016

Barry Jenkins‘ celebrated film dominated the show, taking some six prizes, including Best Feature, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing and the Robert Altman award for best ensemble.

Continue reading ‘Moonlight’ Wins Big At The 2017 Independent Spirit Awards at The Playlist.

The weekend of big awards being handed started last night in France with the César Awards, and likely setting the tone for the next two nights, politics stepped into the spotlight. But first, lets get the business part of the equation out of the way.

Winning Best Film was Paul Verhoeven‘s button-pushing “Elle,” and while it only won one other award, it was Best Actress for Isabelle Huppert.

Continue reading ‘Elle’ Wins Best Film At César Awards, Plus Watch George Clooney’s Anti-Trump Speech at The Playlist.

We only have a few more days to wait before we’ll see if any film or person can pull off a major upset (in any category) and beat out “La La Land” which, last time we checked, was tracking to pick up more Oscars on Sunday than there are categories. It seems mathematically impossible, but that’s the magic of the movies for you. One of the most hotly contested, though, is Best Actress — a category which Emma Stone seems to be steamrolling her way through to victory.

Continue reading The 15 Best Oscar-Nominated Performances In Foreign-Language Films at The Playlist.

You might have a bit of nomination fatigue following yesterday’s Oscar nominations, but another sweep of sorts is happening overseas following the 14-nod domination of “La La Land” stateside.

READ MORE: The 2017 Oscar Nominations By The Numbers

Paul Verhoeven‘s “Elle” led France’s César awards with 11 nominations, including nods in major categories Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Continue reading ‘Elle’ & ‘Frantz’ Leads France’s César Awards Nominations at The Playlist.

Ok, we’re done looking back on 2016, but if you have an appetite for more and or missed it, here’s all our Best Of 2016 coverage.

OK, I know, I know. We’re waaaaaay past the sell by date on Top 10 lists, I’m all too painfully aware. My tombstone will read, “Life got in the way,” and life is, again, the reason I’m woefully (embarrassingly?) behind.

Continue reading The Best Movies Of 2016: Rodrigo Perez’s Picks at The Playlist.

As expected, the awards season belongs to “La La Land,” and at the Golden Globes tonight, the picture swept up pretty much everything.

The hit musical won seven awards this evening, including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Actress (all in the Comedy or Musical category), Best Score, Best Original Song, and Best Screenplay. Another little movie that could, “Moonlight,” capped off the evening winning Best Picture, Drama.

Continue reading ‘La La Land’ Dazzles At The 2017 Golden Globe Awards, Full List Of Winners at The Playlist.

I don’t think I’m the only person to have wondered about the usefulness of watching, discussing and writing about film — or any art — when it feels like outside the theater, the sky is falling. Great chunks of catastrophe are raining down from the heavens and I’m pondering crucial issues like the mythology of the “Transformers” cinematic universe and whether there’s any way to use the phrase mise-en-scene without sounding pretentious.

Continue reading Jessica Kiang’s Top 20 Films Of 2016 at The Playlist.

Have you been struggling to type out that script? The one you’ve sat on for the past few months/years or so? Trying to figure out how to make it work? Hell, do you need some help getting it started in the first place? If you want to look for the best of the best of the year, look no further than below. Compiled for the consideration of Oscar voters everywhere, you have the chance to download and read more than 40 of the most acclaimed, sought-after screenplays of the past year.

Continue reading Download Over 40 Oscar-Contending Screenplays: ‘Silence,’ ‘Moonlight,’ ’20th Century Women’ ‘Arrival’ & More at The Playlist.

We are joined this week by Variety’s Chief Film Critic Peter Debruge and just in time to talk top 10s.  There was a lot of crossover with both of our lists, but even when we agreed it got…interesting. But, don’t worry. We’re still friends. It’s just a passionate debate between two friends who probably know way to much about what they are talking about.

But, it’s fun.

READ MORE: Gregory Ellwood’s Top 10 Movies Of 2016

Couple of quick corrections since this was recorded last week.

Continue reading 4 Quadrant Podcast Ep 7: Top 10 Movies Of 2016 With Peter Debruge at The Playlist.

2016 needs to end for so many reasons. Frankly, I’m not convinced 2017 will actually be better, but at least there is always the hope great new movies will distract us from the authoritarian government that is quickly swooping into power. Keep hope alive, right?

As we enter the annual the “best of” season many have commented on “what a great year for movies” 2016 was. This writer thinks that hot take may exaggerating the overall mediocrity of the past 12 months.

Continue reading Gregory Ellwood’s Top 10 Movies of 2016: ‘Moonlight,’ ‘Personal Shopper,’ ‘Rogue One’ at The Playlist.

In one of the biggest snubs in Oscar history, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the nine-short listed films for the 2017 Foreign Language Film Oscar and Paul Verhoeven’s “Elle” was not on the list.

The French submitted drama stars Isabelle Huppert in an Oscar-worthy performance and has earned raves since it debuted at Cannes in May. It’s also one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year (89 on both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic) and a staple of year-end top ten lists (including The Playlist’s own).

Continue reading Shocker: ‘Elle’ Becomes One Of Greatest Oscar Foreign Language Film Snubs Of All-Time at The Playlist.

The year-end love keeps coming for “Toni Erdmann.” Maren Ade‘s breakout film topped best of lists from Cahiers du Cinema and Sight & Sound, and recently swept the European Film Awards, and was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the Golden Globes. And now the film has another honor as 2016 winds down.

Film Comment has released their Best Of 2016, and yep, “Toni Erdmann” has come out on top. 

Continue reading ‘Toni Erdmann’ Tops Film Comment’s Best Films Of 2016 at The Playlist.

Those of us who call it home can kind of take it for granted, but it’s an honor and a pleasure to be part of a collective effort like The Playlist, and that’s never made more abundantly clear than when we compile our official annual Best Films ranking. As in recent years, we’ve collated our rankings of films from a wide sample of individual top ten lists (this year, 20 of our contributors submitted lists for consideration), and once again we could not be prouder of the results, or more convinced of how well they represent the blog’s eclectic, broadminded and passionate cinematic taste.

Continue reading The 25 Best Films Of 2016 at The Playlist.

MARRAKECH, MOROCCO: Between receiving his first-ever tribute, here in Marrakech, and holding a Masterclass, Paul Verhoeven, the director of such modern-day cult classics as “Basic Instinct,” “Robocop” and “Showgirls,” discussed both the comedy of being gifted Sharon Stone‘s knickers, and the tragedy of rape in his latest film, “Elle.”

Born in the Netherlands, Verhoeven actually studied math and physics, but he soon found his way into the film world, courtesy of the Navy, where he made documentaries, before jumping into TV.

Continue reading Paul Verhoeven Talks ‘Elle,’ ‘RoboCop’ As Jesus Metaphor, The Infamous Scene In ‘Basic Instinct’ & More [Interview] at The Playlist.

It’s been something of a mixed year for movies in some ways — a fairly sparse first half of the year, including the worst blockbuster season in living memory, followed by an absolutely rammed fall season that, even more than most, has seen a wealth of pleasures in movie theaters. But one thing for sure is that it’s been a really great year for music and the movies (and yes, .)

READ MORE: 11-Minute Video Essay Listens To The Power Of A Film’s Score

Perhaps appropriately for a year where a musical looks to be the Oscar front-runner, we’ve had all kinds of wonderful scores and soundtracks, from a young composer turning the biopic on its head to an instantly iconic Netflix synthpop score, from a blast of original hip-hop from a little-seen indie to some unusually convincing comedy songs from some ex-SNLers.

Continue reading The 30 Best Film Scores & Soundtracks Of 2016 at The Playlist.

“La La Land” dominated the 22nd Critics Choice Awards winning eight awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay (tie). “Manchester by the Sea” won three honors including Best Original Screenplay (tie), Best Actor (Casey Affleck), and Lucas Hedges took Best Young Actor/Actress. “Jackie’s” Natalie Portman won Best Actress and Pablo Larrain’s biopic also won for Costumes and Make-Up and Hair.

Continue reading ‘La La Land’ Wins Eight 2017 Critics Choice Awards – Complete List Of Winners at The Playlist.

MARRAKECH, MOROCCO — Tipped for potential, and unexpected, awards-season success (keep your eyes on the Golden Globes), Isabelle Huppert attended this month’s Marrakech International Film Festival with the controversial film “Elle” and the tragicomic feature “Souvenir,” in which she plays a singer making a comeback.

Huppert spoke in Marrakech about the difference between directors Michael Haneke and “Elle” helmer Paul Verhoeven, sharing Orson Welles‘ acting theories, and trying to do nothing in her downtime.

Continue reading Isabelle Huppert Talks The Layers Of ‘Elle,’ Strong Roles For Women, Working With Paul Verhoeven & More at The Playlist.

If you’re looking for a year end list that marries the high brow choices of Cahiers Du Cinema with some mainstream fare, then Sight & Sounds top 20 films of 2016 will be a real treat. Their list is arthouse heavy, but isn’t afraid to acknowledge genuinely well-made multiplex fare.

Topping the list is Maren Ade‘s “Toni Erdmann,” a movie that made a huge impact at Cannes, and looks like it’s going to remembered very well in the month ahead as critics and publications make their annual tallies.

Continue reading Sight & Sound’s Top 20 Films Of 2016 Topped By ‘Toni Erdmann,’ Includes ‘La La Land,’ ‘Manchester By The Sea’ & More at The Playlist.

If the Cahiers Du Cinema offers the years snootiest top ten list, John Waters always has the most fun with his. Each year he shares the best films he saw with Artforum, and the choices are truly driven by his particular tastes, and not the pressure of popular consensus.

That’s why in 2016, Trey Edward Shults‘ “Krisha” made the top slot with Waters saying that “other people’s hell can sometimes be so much fun” in this dysfunctional family drama.

Continue reading John Waters’ Top 10 Films Of 2016 Includes ‘Krisha,’ ‘Elle’ & ‘Everybody Wants Some!!’ at The Playlist.

December is almost here, which means top ten lists are going to start coming hard, but few of the them will be as eclectic as the one from Cahiers du Cinema. The cinephile publication always goes its own way (Nanni Moretti‘s “Mia Madre” was their best film of 2015, for example), but this year, few will disagree or question their top pick.

Maren Ade‘s critically acclaimed “Toni Erdmann” came out victorious, and hopefully that will put the movie on a few more radars as it gears up to open in limited release next month.

Continue reading Cahiers Du Cinema’s Top 10 Films Of 2016 at The Playlist.

Director Paul Verhoeven doesn’t do anything halfway, and so it goes with “Elle,” his first feature film in a decade. The filmmaker’s playfully provocative spirit hasn’t diminished, while his new film’s star Isabelle Huppert is already prompting Oscar talk for her performance. Those are two names that have worked out a winning collaboration on the film, and we want some lucky readers to put the duo likenesses on their wall, courtesy of a poster for “Elle” signed by Verhoeven and Huppert.

Continue reading Contest: Win A Poster For ‘Elle’ Signed by Paul Verhoeven & Isabelle Huppert at The Playlist.

It’s been a helluva week, and audiences clearly needed an escape and went to the multiplex in droves. Films that opened last weekend showed strong holds headed into week two, while others opened bigger than expected. Maybe the Trump years will at least be good for getting people to go to the movies….

“Doctor Strange” stayed on top of the box office, conjuring another $43 million domestically, and $60 million overseas.

Continue reading ‘Doctor Strange’ Stays Magical In Top Spot, ‘Arrival’ Lands Strong [Box Office] at The Playlist.

This is a reprint of our review from the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.

You just can’t do what Paul Verhoeven just did with “Elle“: it’s just not done. His first feature film in a decade, it’s a comedy about rape, a psychological thriller about impossible psychology, and a perverse comment on female sexuality and patriarchy that comes from a male writer (David Birke) and a male director — the list of the film’s transgressions against the culturally acceptable is almost gratuitously long.

Continue reading The Cinema Of The #Problematic May Have Just Found Its ‘Citizen Kane’ In Paul Verhoeven’s ‘Elle’ Starring Isabelle Huppert [Review] at The Playlist.