Every New Yorker has a subway story, a tale of culture clash, entitlement, cacophonic calamity, or worse. The subways of New York City are a breeding ground for tension, what with the rush of strangers, the jarring disruptions, and the uncaringly close quarters. For women, it’s even more stressful, as too many men use the claustrophobic enclosure as a means of exploiting a literally captive audience. This is how “Materna” begins, on a subway with one ranting man (Sturgill Simpson) disturbing his fellow passengers.

Continue reading ‘Materna’ Sets Up A Subway Thriller But Refuses To Go Deep [Review] at The Playlist.

Kevin Smith made the political horror-comedy “Red State” in 2011 and when he toured around the country, he outlined his overall vision for the movie as a cross between “Quentin Tarantino movie by way of The Coen Brothers.” While such ambitious aims were noble, Smith fell vastly short in the eyes of most (although, its “Burn After Reading,” close-the-file ending with John Goodman, wherein weed saves the day remains great).

Continue reading ‘Werewolves Within’: Josh Ruben’s Campy Horror Whodunnit Doesn’t Pack Much Satirical Bite [Tribeca Review] at The Playlist.

There are documentarians and then there are storytellers, and Errol Morris firmly fits in the latter category. While the director is best known for efforts like “Gates Of Heaven,” “The Fog Of War,” and “A Brief History Of Time,” his latest effort “Wormwood” probably falls more in line with his docu-drama classic, “The Thin Blue Line.” And Netflix has given the legendary filmmaker six episodes to unfold this fascinating story.

Continue reading ‘Wormwood’ Trailer: Errol Morris Explores The CIA, LSD & Mind Control at The Playlist.

One of today’s foremost purveyors of “mumblecore” cinema – a derisive pigeonholing label for low budget indies which often involve the Duplass Brothers and sonorous dialogue – Joe Swanberg has managed to carve out a special niche for himself with his low-key hangout films, usually made in collaboration with “New Girl” actor Jake Johnson, such as the charming “Drinking Buddies” and “Digging for Fire.” Swanberg and Johnson scored their biggest mainstream success to date with this year’s Netflix original feature “Win It All” starring Johnson as a raffish gambling addict, and Swanberg is carrying on the momentum of his newfound recognition with a second season of his Netflix anthology series “Easy.”

Set in Swanberg’s beloved native Chicago, the first season of “Easy” adhered to a loose template following the sex lives of a disparate collection of couples and singles, with the episodes usually depicting a self-contained misadventure, such as Orlando Bloom and Malin Akerman’s frisky couple trying and failing to organise a threesome with their babysitter Kate Micucci, but some characters also recurred across episodes including Dave Franco and Evan Jonigkeit’s garage brewers.

Continue reading ‘Easy’ Season 2 Trailer: Same City, New Positions at The Playlist.

Given the firm grip Netflix has on true crime stories, it only makes sense that Errol Morris, who delivered the genre defining “The Thin Blue Line,” should come to the streaming service. Indeed, the director is taking a big swing with “Wormwood,” a miniseries based on a true story, and it looks compelling as hell.

Starring Peter Sarsgaard, Christian Camargo, Scott Shepherd, Molly Parker, Jimmi Simpson, Bob Balaban, Tim Blake Nelson, John Doman, Hillary Gardner, Michael Chernus, Jack O’Connell, and Chance Kelly, the six-episode series will tell the untold true story of the CIA LSD experiments, mind control, and the death of a family man.

Continue reading ‘Wormwood’ Trailer: Errol Morris Brings True Story Miniseries To Netflix at The Playlist.

“Apes.” It is high school teacher and avid history scholar Paul Lohman’s preferred term of abuse for his congressman brother Stan (Richard Gere) and his wife Katelyn (Rebecca Hall). And it is spat out by him, as played by a revelatory Steve Coogan, several times over, often to his wife Claire (Laura Linney) in Oren Moverman‘s unfeasibly compelling “The Dinner,” based on Herman Koch‘s bestselling novel.

Continue reading ‘The Dinner’ Is A Savage Satire With Stand-Out Performances From Steve Coogan & Richard Gere [Review] at The Playlist.

“Apes.” It is high school teacher and avid history scholar Paul Lohman’s preferred term of abuse for his congressman brother Stan (Richard Gere) and his wife Katelyn (Rebecca Hall). And it is spat out by him, as played by a revelatory Steve Coogan, several times over, often to his wife Claire (Laura Linney) in Oren Moverman‘s unfeasibly compelling “The Dinner,” based on Herman Koch‘s bestselling novel.

Continue reading Everyone Is Eaten Alive In Savage ‘The Dinner’ With Steve Coogan, Laura Linney, Richard Gere & Rebecca Hall [Berlin Review] at The Playlist.

There was a time when Joe Swanberg was the most indie of indie directors, making no-budget movies with his friends, and mostly existing in a very specific niche of the film world. And while he’s not quite Steven Spielberg, Swanberg’s career has certainly ascended, and sees him able to gather an increasingly impressive array of well known stars for his projects. And for his upcoming anthology series “Easy,” set to be unveiled on Netflix, he’s gathered his most extensive ensemble yet.

Continue reading Relationships Aren’t ‘Easy’ In Trailer For Joe Swanberg’s Netflix Series With Orlando Bloom, Marc Maron, Dave Franco, More at The Playlist.

Dave Franco, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Orlando Bloom, Malin Akerman & More Take It 'Easy' For Joe Swanberg's Netflix Series

Continue reading Dave Franco, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Orlando Bloom, Malin Akerman & More Take It ‘Easy’ For Joe Swanberg’s Netflix Series at The Playlist.

Tribeca Review: ‘Goodbye To All That’ Starring Paul Schneider, Melanie Lynskey, Anna Camp & More

Continue reading Tribeca Review: ‘Goodbye To All That’ Starring Paul Schneider, Melanie Lynskey, Anna Camp & More at The Playlist.

NYFF Review: Paul Greengrass Takes You Hostage In The Desperately Harrowing ‘Captain Phillips’

Continue reading NYFF Review: Paul Greengrass Takes You Hostage In The Desperately Harrowing ‘Captain Phillips’ at The Playlist.