When it comes to social injustice in 21st-century France, writer and director Ladj Ly has been on the frontlines of history. A child of the Montfermeil housing projects in the Paris suburbs, he captured the rage of the 2005 riots that engulfed the neighborhood in the 2006 docu short “365 jours à Clichy Montfermeil.” His celebrated feature debut, 2019’s “Les Misérables,” chronicles the abusive relationship between the residents of that town and often resentful police officers who live miles from the area.

Continue reading ‘Les Indésirables’ Review: Ladj Ly Tackles Another Parisian Suburb On The Verge [TIFF] at The Playlist.

TIFF has its share of titles having their world premieres over the next week-plus, but Ladj Ly‘s new film “Les Indésirables” may be one of the most notable internationally. Ly’s follow-up to his previous film “Les Misérables,” which screened at TIFF in 2019 and earned nominations at the César Awards and the Oscars, is another tale of civil unrest in France, told in the director’s signature style.

Continue reading ‘Les Indésirables’ Trailer: Ladj Ly’s Latest Film About Civil Unrest In France Premieres At TIFF Today at The Playlist.

Romain Gavras wastes no time in “Athena” informing the audience of the stakes. There have been three cases of police brutality within two months in the titular majority-minority community. Tensions are already high when law enforcement addresses the controversies in the film’s opening scene – and then a coordinated group of young men from the neighborhood storm and stack the station.

READ MORE: Venice Film Festival Preview: 16 Must-See Films To Watch

Before anyone can catch their breath, Gavras is over ten minutes into “Athena” … and still has yet to have a single cut.

Continue reading ‘Athena’ Review: Romain Gavras’ Police Brutality Thriller Is Positively Electrifying [Venice] at The Playlist.

The deadline for submissions for the International Film Oscar is less than two months away. While some nations’ selections have been announced (South Korea selecting “Decision to Leave“) or are obvious (“Close” for Belgium), others are very up in the air. One major player with a lot to contemplate is France. And a film they might feel compelled to select is “Athena,” a Netflix release.

Continue reading ‘Athena’ Trailer: Romain Gavras & Ladj Ly’s Thriller Tackles A Community Under Seige at The Playlist.

From French filmmaker, Romain Gavras comes chaos like no other, as “Athena” tells the tragic tale of three siblings in unexplained circumstances. Romain Gavras is known for his work on music videos for popular musicians like Kanye West, Jay-Z, and M.I.A. Gavras has also worked on films like “The World is Yours” and “Burke and Hare.”

READ MORE: Netflix Likely To Debut New Films From Andrew Dominik, Noah Baumbach & More At This Year’s Venice Film Festival.

Continue reading ‘Athena’ Teaser: Romain Gavras’ Tragic Tale Of Three Siblings Is Coming To Netflix at The Playlist.

Over the past few months, we’ve seen several filmmakers work on new shorts while in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic. Folks like Spike Lee, Michel Gondry, and David F. Sandberg have created films with no crew, no budget, and only their creativity to guide them. Well, Netflix is taking that idea to the next level with “Homemade.”

READ MORE: ‘Spencer’: Kristen Stewart To Play Princess Diana In Pablo Larraín’s New Film

Instead of one filmmaker creating a new film during lockdown, “Homemade” is a collection of short films from prominent directors all shot in the same circumstances that many people have experienced during the pandemic.

Continue reading ‘Homemade’ Trailer: Netflix Brings Together Pablo Larraín, Kristen Stewart & More For Shorts Made In Quarantine at The Playlist.

Every Tuesday, discriminating viewers are confronted with a flurry of choices: new releases on disc and on-demand, vintage and original movies on any number of streaming platforms, catalog titles making a splash on Blu-ray or 4K. This weekly column sifts through all of those choices to pluck out the movies most worth your time, no matter how you’re watching. 

This week’s new release line-up is particularly packed, with last year’s dual winner of Best Picture and Best International Feature Film, another nominee in the latter category, a new indie drama, a TV comedy classic, and four all-but-forgotten catalog titles worth talking about.

Continue reading The 9 Best Movies To Buy Or Stream This Week: ‘Parasite,’ ‘Les Misérables’ & More at The Playlist.

You might still be mad about the Oscar nominations yesterday. Hey, we get it. People have a love/hate relationship with award shows because, in theory, they are supposed to represent the “best” of us.  Isn’t that what entertainment is? A reflection of our society?  And when it seems these honors don’t, when it seems like they are ignoring a particular group, sex or nationality, it hurts. And it’s justified. Throw in the social media spotlight and whether you’re the Oscars or BAFTA or the Golden Globes or the Grammys or the Emmys, every announcement, nomination, choice or omission is scrutinized with a fine-tooth comb. 

Continue reading Change Is Too Slow For Oscar But Let’s Focus On The Progress Made at The Playlist.

During 2005, Paris and other French cities saw rioting as those of North African and African descent fought back against the Police and the Government, here we look at one of those poorer districts in Paris in “Les Misérables.” The film is directed by Ladj Ly, who is originally from Mali, tackles the riots head-on as well as looks at the high tensions caused by the rioting. The project is also his feature-length debut, having previously worked on a short called “The Pitiful,” which relates directly to “Les Mis.”

READ MORE: Céline Sciamma’s ‘Portrait Of A Lady On Fire’ Is A Searing Love Story [Cannes Review]

The premise is of a young man named Stéphane (played by Damien Bonnard of “Staying Vertical” and “Dunkirk”) joining an anti-crime brigade in Paris, and he soon discovers the tensions that have been created between the different neighborhoods.

Continue reading ‘Les Misérables’ Trailer: Amazon Studios & Ladj Ly’s Portrayal Of The French Riots To Be Oscar Contender at The Playlist.

To the shock and dismay of cinephiles across the Western world, France has chosen its International Film Oscar submission and it is not Céline Sciamma’s acclaimed “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.” Instead, as many insiders suspected, the French committee selected Ladj Ly’s “Les Miserables.” But before you get in an uproar over what you might believe is an omission of disastrious proportions, there are a number of factors at play in the decision.

Continue reading France Picks ‘Les Miserables’ Over ‘Portrait Of A Lady On Fire’ As Official Oscar Submission at The Playlist.

The French Revolution is long since over. But in Ladj Ly’s “Les Misérables,” which premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival, a modern-day revolution takes root in the banlieues of Paris. And rather than disgruntled bread thieves and anti-monarchy rebels, this one galvanizes a fleet of young Afro-Parisians armed with Molotov cocktails and firecrackers. When a police squad tasked with patrolling the streets ventures into Les Bosquets, a notoriously crime-ridden, predominantly Black Muslim neighborhood outside Paris, a violent incident involving a stolen lion cub, a flare gun, and the injury of a civilian (captured on film via drone, no less) detonates a string of riots.

Continue reading Ladj Ly’s Feature Debut ‘Les Misérables’ Modernizes A French Classic [Cannes Review] at The Playlist.