Pink may be known for flipping through the air in high-flying concert stunts these days, but she recently opened up about surviving something much scarier as a teen.
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In a vulnerable interview with 60 Minutes, the “TRUSTFALL” singer spoke about getting into drugs as a reaction to living in a volatile home as a child. “I was kicked out of the house. I dropped out of high school. I was off the rails,” she shared.
This all came to a head on Thanksgiving day in 1995, when the singer says she overdosed on a combination of “ecstasy, angel dust, crystal, all kinds of things” at a rave. “I was out, done, too much,” she said, and responded “yeah” when the interviewer asked if she almost died.
Pink has spoken about this incident in the past, including during a 2012 interview with Shape Magazine (via People) in which she said she “remember[s] getting up off the floor in the morning—and that was the last time I ever touched a drug again.”
“It was also the day a DJ offered to let me sing on hip-hop night. His only caveat was that I couldn’t do drugs, so I didn’t,” the singer elaborated to the magazine at the time. “That’s the thing with me—once I make up my mind, I’m done.”
Weeks later, she had her first record deal as the lead singer of the short-lived R&B girl group Choice. “I was told to take etiquette classes very early on… it didn’t work,” Pink jokingly told 60 Minutes of that experience. “They were trying to turn me into something I didn’t want to be.” Soon after, the artist went solo with 2000’s Can’t Take Me Home and 2001’s chart-topping Missundaztood, and the rest is history.
“I realize that the machete I’ve always carried—this metaphorical machete that made me a really difficult kid—is what makes me really good at what I do today,” she said. “It makes me a survivor.”
Since 1986 Mexico’s Guadalajara International Film Festival (FICG) has been one of the premiere North American stops along the global festival circuit, showcasing some of the most exciting and innovative work emerging from Latin America and beyond. But we’re not here today to talk about that festival, actually. No. Today we’re here to talk about the GuadaLAjara Film Festival, FICG’s satellite showcase in DTLA, which kicks off its 2023 edition November 1–the perfect cure for your post-Halloween hangover.
Having playfully rebranded as GuadaLAjara Film Fest four years ago, the three-day fall showcase has evolved to establish its own identity as a cultural hub between the film communities of Latin America and Los Angeles, providing a safe space for Latinx and BIPOC creators to connect and share their work–with style!–in Hollywood’s own backyard. This year offers not just a great film program but special conversations (Rodrigo Prieto! Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse!), networking events, outdoor screenings and more.
GuadaLAjara Film Festival networking breakfast
To learn a little bit more about the festival and its diverse community of special events, films and honorees we spoke to filmmaker and GuadaLAjara programmer and publicity liaison Alfredo Achar about what to expect. Here’s the conversation:
GUADALAJARA FILM FESTIVAL
Let’s start with a little background. What is the history of the GuadaLAjara Film Festival? What’s important for people to know?
Achar: Sure. The festival has been around for 13 years. It used to be called FICG in LA–the same letters from the [parent] festival in Guadalajara–and it used to just be a small sample of the films that played the festival there [in Mexico]. But this is the fourth year as GuadaLAjara Film Festival. The mission shifted to now highlight films made by Latin people, people of color and LGBTQ+ people based in both the US and Latin America, to build that bridge between LA and Latin America. And each year, we donate all of our box office to a different nonprofit. For example, one of last years honorees was Bamby Salcedo, who’s a social worker who runs an organization called TransLatina Coallition.
That’s so cool. What’s this year’s charity?
Achar: This year we’re donating all of our box office proceeds to the Dolores Huerta Foundationand Dolores herself is going to be there as one of our honorees. She’s been a fighter for equal rights for women and LGBTQ+ folks and Latin people.
What are some really great examples of a GuadaLAjara type film? What work have you been really proud to showcase?
Achar: We announced our programminglast week. Our opening movie is going to be No Voy a Pedirle a Nadie que Me Crea (I’m Don’t Anyone to Believe Me), by Fernando Frías De la Parra. It’s a Netflix-acquired film, a very cool dark comedy. That’s going to be our Opening Night Screening at The Theater at Ace Hotel. Our closing night gala will screen Maestra a documentary directed by Maggie Contreras which follows women from around the world who are boldly breaking glass ceilings in the male-dominated world of orchestral conducting. Barbie and Killers of the Flower Moon cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto will be honored that night. We also have Peru’s entry for this year’s foreign-language Oscar, The Erection of Toribio Bardelli, which is also a dark comedy-drama film. We have a film called Lost Souls, which is very cool, sort of a cross between Mid90s and American Honey. And then we have a special outdoor screening of 1960’s Macario, the first Mexican film nominated for an Academy Award. We timed it so it falls on Day of the Dead at Grand Park downtown, where they’re going to organize all of the Day of the Dead Altars and celebrations.
We also have a great industry program, a master class with Rodrigo Prieto and Eugenio Caballero (Oscar winning production designer of Pan’s Labirynth), as well as a master class with Cruz Contreras, one of the animators of Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse, and another one about documentary filmmaking.
At what point did FICG decide that it wanted to have this presence in LA?
Achar: Well, when it became the GuadaLAjara Film Festival, the director of the festival, Ximena Urrutia, and our team started to find that to properly build a bridge to connect both sides [Mexico and the US] we needed to celebrate the work being done here [in LA] and make create a dialogue between one the diverse cultures in Latin America with the US.
In what ways has the festival grown or evolved since its inception?
Achar: It’s grown, definitely. But what’s interesting is that this year’s edition compared to the past three years, is that we kind of understand who we are now and how to bring all the elements that have worked for us in past together and contain them. When you’re organizing something like a festival it’s easy to have so many ideas–it’s a lot of opinions and conversations. But I think this year is the most successful so far in terms of lineup. This is the lineup of films that best represents us.
As far as attendee experience at the festival, what are your goals?
Achar: In terms of our program and our festival experience, what we want first of all is a safe environment–a safe atmosphere where there’s going to be great work showcased; films that talk about important social issues, films that highlight the work of promising young directors. This year all of our venues are downtown. It’s very in line with what the identity of the festival is right now: very urban, very culture-driven. A lot of events. For our afterparties, for example, we bring local musicians and mix the industry side of LA with the Latino side, with panels and the industry breakfasts and the work-in-progress screenings combined with our program of films. We’ve seen collaborations come out of our festival, and that’s very exciting.
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COVID-19 vaccine passports in Quebec and Ontario did little to convince the unvaccinated to get the jab and did not significantly reduce inequalities in vaccination coverage, a new peer-reviewed study has found.
The passports, which forced people to show proof of vaccination to enter places such as bars and restaurants, were directly responsible for a rise of 0.9 per cent in the vaccination rate in Quebec and 0.7 per cent in Ontario, says Jorge Luis Flores, a research assistant at McGill University and lead author of the paper published Tuesday in the CMAJ Open journal.
Compared to wealthier parts of Quebec and Ontario, low-income neighbourhoods in both provinces tended to have higher rates of COVID-19 and lower vaccine coverage, he said in an interview. Areas in Quebec with large racialized populations also had lower vaccination rates, though the opposite was true in Ontario.
“What we saw was that, overall, the vaccine passport had very little impact on reducing those inequalities,” Flores said.
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All 10 provinces and Yukon introduced vaccine passport systems in 2021, justifying them as a tool to avoid further generalized lockdowns and increase vaccination rates, though some provinces allowed people to show a recent negative COVID-19 test instead of proof of vaccination.
The passports were discontinued across Canada by the spring of 2022.
The study looked at vaccine uptake trends in the weeks before the announcement of vaccine passports in Quebec and Ontario, using them to simulate what would have happened had those provinces not imposed the passport system.
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In the 11 weeks after the provinces announced the passports, vaccination rates in both provinces rose by five percentage points. But after considering the uptake trends, researchers concluded the passports were directly responsible for a rise of less than one per cent in vaccination rates, says Mathieu Maheu-Giroux, study co-author and McGill University professor who studies public health.
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“We only looked at one part of the equation — vaccine passports could have still reduced transmission,” Maheu-Giroux said in an interview. “But in terms of vaccine uptake, we saw that it had a rather small effect in convincing additional people to get vaccinated.”
The study authors say the impact of vaccine passports may have been muted because of already high vaccination rates — around 82 per cent of Ontario and Quebec residents over the age of 12 were already vaccinated when the passports were announced.
Kim Lavoie, co-director of the Montreal Behavioural Medicine Centre, who was not involved in the research, says that in order to increase vaccination rates, it’s important to understand why people aren’t getting vaccinated.
“You can’t just lump those who aren’t vaccinated in the same pool, because the reasons why they’re not getting the vaccine might be different,” she said in a recent interview, adding that some people may not have had time to get vaccinated, while others mistrusted the medical system.
The passport strategy was based on the idea that people’s desire to frequent places like restaurants was stronger than their resistance to the vaccine, she said. For the approximately eight to 10 per cent of the population that was strongly resistant to vaccination, that strategy wouldn’t work, she added.
“There’s no restaurant that they’re going to want to go to that’s going to make them override their really deeply entrenched ideas about the safety, for example, and necessity of vaccines,” she said.
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Lavoie said it’s important for researchers to study the lessons learned during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic so they can inform governments on how to improve.
Flores said the study shows the “need for other policies that are going to be able to reach those people who are either opposed to vaccination, or who faced structural barriers that prevented them from getting vaccinated.”
The study estimates that the passports led to a larger increase in vaccination rates among young people than older people. Researchers say the passports directly led to a rise of 2.3 percentage points in Quebec and 1.3 percentage points in Ontario in the vaccination rates for people 12 to 17 — the least vaccinated group in both provinces.
Vaccine passports had the smallest effect on people 60 and over — the most vaccinated age group — increasing rates by 0.1 percentage points in both provinces, the study estimates.
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In Quebec, the study estimates that vaccine passports increased vaccine coverage in the lowest-income areas by 1.1 percentage points, compared with 0.7 percentage points in the wealthiest areas.
In Ontario, the increase was comparable — between 0.7 percentage points and 0.8 percentage points — across all income groups.
The study found similar results when it looked at the proportion of the population in each area that is racialized, finding no clear trend in Quebec and increases of between 0.7 percentage points and 0.8 percentage points in Ontario.
According to TMZ, the couple exchanged vows on October 7 after obtaining a marriage license in San Diego County in September. The ceremony was held in Los Angeles.
R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, who is Frances’ godfather, officiated the nuptials (Drew Barrymore is her godmother). The marriage marks Frances’ second and Riley’s first.
Kurt and his wife, Courtney Love, welcomed Frances in 1992, two years before the late Nirvana guitarist died by suicide. Tony, 55, meanwhile, welcomed Riley with ex-wife Cindy Dunbar in 1992. He also shares sons Spencer, 24, and Keegan, 22, with ex-wife Erin Lee and daughter Kadence, 13, with ex-wife Lhotse Merriam.
Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence and more celebrities’ children have embarked on romantic relationships over the years. News broke in July 2021 that the two comedians’ offspring were dating. Lawrence’s daughter Jasmin shared Instagram selfies at the time with the Saturday Night Live alum’s son Eric in a touching birthday tribute. “Happy birthday, my love! I’m […]
Though the newlyweds have reportedly been together since January 2021, Frances made their relationship Instagram official the following year. “I took a year-long break from posting on Instagram which was exceptionally good for my mental, emotional & spiritual health,” she captioned a slideshow of pics in January 2022, one of which featured Riley holding a dog in front of a Christmas tree.
She continued: “2021 brought me more into the present moment than I’ve ever been, which I’m deeply grateful for. I wanted to share a few moments that were captured/created this past year that brought me a great amount of joy.”
Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love and baby Frances Bean attending the 1993 MTV Music Video Awards.Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images
The couple have kept their relationship primarily out of the public eye, but Frances has shared a few glimpses into their romance via her social media. In an August 2022 Instagram post celebrating her 30th birthday, Frances included a sweet mirror selfie of her now-husband.
Riley seemingly joined Frances on a trip to Japan in April, smiling in one of the many pics Frances shared from her travels via Instagram.
Naomi Watts, Chrishell Stause and more celebrities tied the knot in 2023. Watts confirmed that she wed fellow actor Billy Crudup in June. “Hitched! ?️?♥️,” she captioned an Instagram photo of her and Crudup posing outside of a New York City courthouse. “They wanted to keep it low-key and have this moment to themselves, and […]
Frances was previously married to Isaiah Silva for less than two years, splitting in February 2016. She filed for divorce one month later, and the proceedings were finalized in 2017.
Silva, 38, later sued Love, 59, claiming she “attempted to murder” him in 2016 while trying to retrieve one of Kurt’s guitars that was given to Silva by Frances.
Tony Hawk and Riley HawkDenise Truscello/Getty Images
According to court documents obtained by Us Weekly in May 2018, Silva alleged that Britney Spears’ former manager, Sam Lutfi, and two others “did burglarize, rob, assault, batter, sexually batter, kidnap and attempt to murder [him]” in his West Hollywood home. (Love told MTV Australia at the time that Silva’s lawsuit was “baseless and nonsense.”)
A source told Us at the time that Frances “forfeited her late father’s guitar to Isaiah in hopes he would just go away but unfortunately that failed,” adding, “[Kurt] would not want this and Courtney will not allow any of it.” The case was ultimately settled in Los Angeles Superior Court in March 2022.
Following Sidney Powell’s flip on Donald Trump last week, the four-time indicted former president is doing exactly what some expected he would do: claiming he never worked with her. But, Seth Meyers suspects Trump only thinks that because she was among the many who didn’t get paid.
During Monday night’s “A Closer Look” segment, Meyers pointed out that “obviously, there are a couple of problems with this claim” that Trump didn’t work with Powell. Chief among them is the fact that Powell, Rudy Giuliani and even Trump himself have all publicly talked about working together in the past.
“Trump’s only difference here is that Rudy Giuliani is untrustworthy,” Meyers said. “Which is true, but then it applies to everything, including the election fraud claims. You can’t have it both ways.”
The NBC host joked that Trump would even be disavowing his wife if she flipped on him.
“And another thing, I don’t know who the hell this Melania lady is,” Meyers mocked, putting on his Trump voice. “She was not and has never been my wife. I mean, look at us. Do we look like a couple?”
In the end though, Meyers suspected that Trump has a pretty simple logic in his claims of not knowing several people who have testified or will testify against him.
“Trump thinks that just because he never pays his lawyers, that means they weren’t his lawyers,” Meyers mocked. “But sadly they were. They were his accomplices with direct knowledge of his criminal scheme to dismantle American democracy and now they pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.”
You can watch Seth Meyers’s full “A Closer Look” segment in the video above.
Tucker Carlson’s new media company has finally signed its first advertising deal.
The former Fox News host’s company, reportedly named “Last Country,” inked an agreement with conservative shopping app Public Square on Friday, the app’s CEO Michael Seifert told CNBC. The pact is reportedly worth “at least $1 million,” but specific financial details were not revealed.
The agreement follows reporting in July that Public Square was nearing an agreement with Carlson to air ads on his show on the social media platform X. It also comes days before the off-year Election Day and as the 2024 presidential and congressional races are starting to heat up.
Ads from Public Square, also called PublicSq., are set to appear on Carlson’s show starting next month, CNBC reported. The company previously said it plans to roll out its full shopping offerings, some 400,000 products, starting Nov. 1.
Carlson started the online program in July after he was dumped by Fox as the network settled the Dominion Voting Systems case. He has posted a total of 33 episodes, mostly interviews, through Monday, in a somewhat erratic schedule.
It is difficult to tell how much of an audience the ousted Fox host has built: Monday’s episode had 4.1 million “views” on X, but that simply means that it had crossed the path of that many users for at least 2 seconds with at least 50% of the video player in-view, according to X, not that 4.1 million people watched the full 27-minute video.
Nevertheless, Carlson is expected to draw larger and larger audiences as the campaigns gain steam. The ads will also appear on Carlson’s other platforms, including his website, Seifert said.
“People are going to be paying attention,” Seifert told CNBC. “Tucker is going to speak very candidly of the importance of patriotic small businesses and if viewers want to support it, go to Public Square.”
Right now, Carlson’s website hosts only a handful of videos from public events, and sends visitors to X to watch his show. It’s unclear if he will expand viewing opportunities in the future, but last week came news that Last Country, co-founded with Neil Patel, raised $15 million in a seed round of funding led by Omeed Malik’s 1789 Capital.
Patel told CNBC in a statement that he sees the conservative app, which pushes against environmental, social and governance investment policies, acting as a counterweight to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the business-lobbying giant that has been shunned by the right-wing since it supported some Democrats in recent elections, and Amazon, which supports social investing goals and whose founder by Jeff Bezos, also owns The Washington Post.
“PublicSq. is a key company in the parallel economy, specifically countering the Chamber of Commerce and Amazon,” Patel said. “There is a wave of disruption coming to the media and economic establishment, and our companies will help accelerate this overdue shift.”
Public Square earlier this month released preliminary data that said it took in an estimated $2.2 million revenue in the third quarter, representing 1600% year-over-year growth, driven by its EveryLife line of baby products. The company will release full results on Nov. 14.
Paramount+ in France has acquired “French Roulette – A Mother’s Ordeal,” Vincent Garenq’s (“Guilty”) limited series set in the 1970s.
Under the deal, Paramount+ will have exclusive first-window rights in France to the series, which is represented internationally by France TV Distribution, and will premiere it on Dec. 1.
Produced by Paris-based banners La Dame de Coeur and Effervescence Fiction, the miniseries is set in the French Riviera and inspired by the true story of Renée Le Roux, a former top model and fierce businesswoman who ran the city’s historical casino and stood alone against the mafia. After her daughter Agnès went missing, Le Roux embarked on a perilous 40-year battle to uncover the truth. The well-known French actress Michèle Laroque plays Le Roux, and stars opposite Yannick Choirat and Marie Zabukovec. The series was penned by Nicolas Jean, Isabelle Dubernet and Olivier Eloy.
“We are proud to present this premium and glamorous French true crime series from the ’70s, located in Nice, the European Las Vegas at that time,” said Julia Schulte, SVP of international sales at France TV Distribution. “The strong family drama around the murder of Agnes combined with a thrilling mafia and crime plot is gripping and offers a great piece of entertainment.”
Following its launch on Paramount+, the series will be broadcast on French public broadcaster France 2 and its digital service France.tv.
Judith Naudet, producer at Effervescence, said the show had a “thrilling plot, a formidable cast, sets and costumes that bring back to life the glamour of the Riviera in the 1970s.” Naudet added that the series’ depicted an “extraordinary legal case involving passion, betrayal and revenge, against a backdrop of casino wars.”
Mollie Kyle was a single woman from a wealthy Osage family, which made her a target. In 1917, Ernest Burkhart, the handsome 20-something nephew of William Hale, married her at the urging of his uncle, who had designs on her and her family’s headrights.
A few years after they were married, members of Mollie’s family began dying in suspicious ways. First, in 1918, a sister, Minnie Smith, died of what doctors called a “peculiar wasting illness” (probably poisoning). Then, in 1921, another sister, Anna Brown, was shot in the back of the head and dumped in a ravine, a brutal contract killing orchestrated by Hale that kicked off the Reign of Terror. Over the next two years, Mollie’s mother, Lizzie Q, and her final surviving sister, Rita Smith, also died in a probable poisoning and a home explosion, respectively. With each death, Mollie — and therefore Ernest — inherited additional headrights.
There was another reason Mollie Burkhart was a perfect candidate for Hale’s scheme: She was diabetic, so a premature death would be easy to attribute to her illness at a time when insulin was not widely available. Corrupt doctors in Hale’s control began injecting her with poison under the guise of administering an experimental new treatment. (She recovered after moving away and getting treatment at a hospital.)
Why did it take so long for the federal government to intervene?
The Osage Tribal Council suspected Hale early on, but it couldn’t get anyone to testify against him: Hale had bribed or threatened many witnesses into silence. Local authorities declined to investigate or, in the case of the coroner, falsified documents. Hale also covered his tracks, participating in the murder investigations and even offering rewards for leads.
But in 1923, after the death toll had risen to more than two dozen, the council issued a resolution asking the federal government to look into the matter. That April, J. Edgar Hoover assigned agents from the Bureau of Investigation to the case. (It would later be renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation.)
Posing as a cattle buyer, an insurance salesman, a medicine man and an oil prospector — a subplot that didn’t make it into the film — four undercover agents from the bureau, led by Tom White (played by Jesse Plemons), lived among the Osage for two years and gained their trust. Eventually, people began speaking out against Hale.
James Gunn shares stunning fan art of Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl and Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific for Superman: Legacy.
Nathan Fillion will play Guy Gardner, the cocky Green Lantern, in Superman: Legacy, as shown in the fan art shared by James Gunn.
Other artwork includes Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, but sadly no David Corenswet as the Man of Steel.
Several DCU characters have been immortalized in stunning new fan art. True, Superman: Legacy doesn’t open in theaters until 2025, but diehard fans of the Man of Steel can’t wait to see James Gunn’s version of the DC superhero take flight. And Gunn has shared some new artwork online to try and whet the appetites of those longing to see the new big-screen incarnation of Supes. Check out the four images Gunn shared via his Instagram story (per @DCU_Updates) below:
The comic book-inspired fan covers feature Isabela Merced suited up as Hawkgirl. The actress’ impressive 10-year career features key roles in films like Transformers: The Last Knight, Sicario: Day of the Soldado & Dora and the Lost City of Gold. In Superman: Legacy, Merced will take up Hawkgirl’s trademark mace.
Actor Edi Gathegi takes on the role of Mister Terrific in Superman: Legacy, and he is also one of the heroes featured in the new fan art. Gathegi was one of the villainous vampires, Laurent, who crossed paths with the Cullen family in Twilight and New Moon. Gathegi’s Matias Solomon also squared off against Red (James Spader) in The Blacklist.
This stunning art comes courtesy of @davi_a86, who has shared a few more pieces, including Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane and Nathan Fillion sporting Guy Gardner’s iconic bowl cut.
James Gunn’s Instagram story also features actor Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern. Fillion’s stint as the GL will not be as the most well-known Emerald Knight, Hal Jordan. Rather, Fillion will play the cocky loudmouthed Guy Gardner who is portrayed in the new fan art running his big mouth. Gardner says, “There’s room for only one Green Lantern… me!”
The dialogue pays homage to the classic comic book Green Lantern No. 59 (1968). That issue marked the very first appearance of Guy Gardner’s character in DC’s source material. And on the cover, Gardner stands triumphantly over Hal Jordan. Gardner says: “Get off this Earth, Hal Jordan! There’s room for only one Green Lantern… me!” Meanwhile, actor Anthony Carrigan is depicted in another piece as character Rex Mason, aka Metamorpho.
Sadly, none of the new artwork features David Corenswet’s Man of Steel. And with all the rumors running rampant about Jason Momoa playing Lobo and not Aquaman in the DCU, a piece of fan art posted by Gunn could have ended the debate. Recently, “sources” have claimed that Momoa is turning in his trident and donning Lobo’s dark locks in the DCU. Here’s what was written in the report:
“In fact, none of the stars cast by Zack Snyder for 2016’s ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ and 2017’s ‘Justice League’ — including Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller and Momoa — will reprise their roles in the new DC universe in character. Momoa may return, just not as Aquaman. Sources say the actor has engaged in talks to play Lobo, either in the 2025 reboot ‘Superman: Legacy,’ written and directed by Gunn, or in a standalone film.”
The red flag accompanying this report comes here: “Momoa may return…” There’s no “may” for Momoa. The actor, Gunn and Peter Safran met, and Momoa teased fans with four more years (per Looper). So, take all this “sourced” information — or perhaps misinformation — with a pinch of salt until Gunn himself makes an official announcement.
Written and directed by James Gunn, Superman: Legacy is scheduled to be released on July 11, 2025.
References to Metal Gear Solid 4, Metal Gear Solid 5 and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker have allegedly been found in the files of the MGS Master Collection Volume 1.
That’s according to images shared by a Reddit user, which claim to show files that determine which game the collection should read assets from mentioning the three not-included titles.
If authentic, the references could be a simple test during development, or maybe evidence that a second volume could one day include the other major Metal Gear series games.
The collection includes Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, Metal Gear Solid (which also includes VR Missions/Special Missions), and the HD Collection versions of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.
Currently, Metal Gear Solid 5 is playable on modern platforms thanks to its release on PS4 and Xbox One. However, should MGS 4 and Peace Walker come to modern platforms, it would mark the first time in history that either of these games have been playable outside of their native platforms.
According to Payton, although the port was possible on a technical level, it wasn’t practical on a physical level.
Because PS3 games came on BD-ROM discs which could hold up to 54GB of storage, and Xbox 360 games came on DVD-ROM discs which could only hold up to 8.3GB, bringing Metal Gear Solid 4 to Xbox 360 would have required putting the game on numerous discs, something Konami wasn’t willing to do.
This was backed up at the time by Sony‘s Jack Tretton, who once stated: “Metal Gear Solid [4] is not only exclusive on PS3, it’s only possible on PS3 thanks in part to Blu-ray.”
When one thinks of technological innovation, one usually imagines that the latest advancements are the solutions to various problems and issues that audiences are in dire need of. If that’s the case with OnePlus’ first foldable smartphone, then I must be really out of touch because I don’t know a single person who’s ever said, “Man, I wish I could fold my iPhone in half.”
Yet, here we are. Foldable smartphones are back and, this new one by OnePlus is turning heads not just for its foldable gimmick, but also for its lightweight design and surprisingly capable camera design (which features three cameras all capable of 4K video).
Let’s take a look at the foldable OnePlus Open and explore how its camera and video recording specs and features stack up to other smartphones, and if it might be of interest to you for any of your smartphone videography needs.
Introducing the OnePlus Open
Just announced, OnePlus’ foldable smartphone is the OnePlus Open and is set to launch here on Oct. 26 in the United States. It’s set to retail at a starting price point of $1,699 and will be the brand’s first foldable device.
As a tablet-style foldable design, the OnePlus Open measures in at 0.46 inches when folded closed, yet still with a 7.82-inch, 120 Hz, 2440×2268 OLED display on the inside and a 6.31-inch, 120 Hz, 2484×1116 OLED on the front. The OnePlus also comes in with a quite impressive 239 g weight, which is less than many recent iPhone Pro Max models, as well as making it lighter than other foldables like the Pixel Fold and the Galaxy Fold.
The main screen features 2,800 nits peak brightness and a 120Hz refresh rate while the internal build includes 16GBs of RAM and 512GBs of storage in the base model priced above.
However, for the purposes of video, everything is really going to hinge on the camera and sensor.
The OnePlus Open Camera
The OnePlus Open features a 48-megapixel main camera (24mm equivalent) with an image sensor actually designed by Sony (the LYT-T808 to be exact). As a “Pixel Stacked” sensor, the camera should see improved image quality and a wider dynamic range with better colors than a sensor that arranges photodiodes and pixel transistors together.
There’s also a 64-megapixel telephoto camera that uses an OmniVision OV64B sensor with 0.7µm pixels as well as a 70mm equivalent periscope lens with a f/2.6 aperture, giving the camera 3x optical zoom and 6x hybrid zoom which serves as a defacto crop factor.
For the 48-megapixel ultra-wide camera (which is a 14mm equivalent) with an f/2.2 aperture and an 11-degree field of view, users can expect to use this option as a macro lens for close-ups of items within about three centimeters.
Due to the device’s foldable design, the rear cameras will actually be more usable for selfie or front-style shooting, so there’s actually a 32-megapixel front camera on the cover screen as well.
The OnePlus Open Video Features
Now, moving on to the video capabilities of the OnePlus Open.
The big numbers off the top are that even with a foldable design, the OnePlus Open packs a punch as all three rear cameras can shoot 4K up to 60 fps. This isn’t the highest quality 4K you’ve ever seen, but from specs alone, it’s quite impressive.
Most early reviews of the device and its camera features focus on the photography aspects, which is understandable. However, early results for the video showcase that the cameras are able to avoid excessive noise or color issues with the video processing.
However, at a price point right next to the latest iPhones, the OnePlus Open isn’t likely to turn any long-time Apple heads away from their favorite brand.
In fact, if you’re looking for the best smartphones for video right now, the OnePlus Open probably isn’t going to be your jam just yet.
Still, as we’ve seen with the uber-competitive mirrorless camera market, having more brands in the space is almost always a good thing as it helps to bring more and better cameras out more quickly, as well as encourages manufacturers to work to bring the price points down.
We’ll keep tabs on this new OnePlus Open to see if the company continues to develop with a focus on video now and into the future.
When I saw that Silent Scream (1979) earned three votes and landed at number 274 on the 2020 list of your favorite horror movies, I was pumped! It didn’t quite land for me when I originally reviewed it, as I found it a case of “the parts are all there, but they are not assembled into a completely satisfying whole.” I was therefore eager to revisit it and see if time might weave some magic.
Well, spoilers, I still feel that Silent Scream isn’t quite satisfying overall, but time has indeed woven a wee bit o’ magic, because I find that I’m more than satisfied with the parts.
Though it’s often billed as a slasher flick–and, yeah, some people do get killed with a knife all slasher-style–Silent Scream is too odd a duck to be put into such a narrowly-defined box. It predates the the stalk-n-kill subgenre’s heyday by a couple of years, but I’m not even sure if I’d call it a proto-slasher, exactly. It’s more like a gothic soap opera walked through a slasher movie perfume mist, maybe.
It feels a bit underseen in the mainstream, I think, so I’m reluctant to give away too many spoilers, although I certainly gave them away in that old-ass review. Four college students rent rooms in a seaside mansion owned by an eccentric family. Maybe that’s all you need to know? Well, that and the fact that Avery Schreiber and Cameron Mitchell are our intrepid police detectives. For those of us with discerning taste, that’s definitely a selling point!
Schreiber and Mitchell aren’t the only draws on this cast though, not by a long shot. Perhaps you recognize Rebecca Balding of The Boogens under that mushroom cap? (If not, get thee to The Boogens stat!)
And of course we get horror icons Yvonne De Carlo and Barbara Steele–Steele in particular is a real treat, emerging from the cobwebs (as she tends to do) and turning in a delightfully unhinged performance without saying a word.
So yes, Silent Scream straddles a few subgenres and isn’t enough of any one of them to knock your socks off…but boy is it fun nonetheless. The entire film takes place over two days or so, and it gets really bonkers for all the folks involved in that short time span. It sort of keeps unraveling and unraveling as secrets are revealed, and then it’s suddenly over, just shy of the 90 minute mark. It’s missing some essential ingredient to bring it all together, though I can’t quite pinpoint what it is. But I’m also completely fine with that–I really dug its strangeness this time, and it’ll be thrown into a much more regular rotation around Stately Final Girl Manor, that’s for sure. It’s got a charming cast, a few terrific jump scares, a bit of atmosphere here and there, and Barbara Steele stole the show. That’s definitely not unheard of for her, but still, I was really into the creepy weirdness she brought to this one.
Even just writing about it now, I feel my fondness for Silent Scream growing. Hot dang, SHOCKtober, you’ve done it again!
Sphere Entertainment and Knicks’ parent Madison Square Garden Sports, both of which are publicly traded companies, are controlled by the Dolan family. Jim Dolan serves as executive chairman of each firm and is CEO at Sphere.
“The MSG family of companies has an unrivaled portfolio of premium assets, and we are committed to ensuring that the strength of our brands and unique global reach continue to benefit one another in powerful ways,” David Hopkinson, MSG Sports president and COO, said in a statement.
The Sphere logo will appear on Knicks home and away game jerseys, as well as on the club’s practice jersey and warm-up shirts. Additionally, jerseys sold at Madison Square Garden’s in-arena retail locations will also feature the Sphere logo.
The financial terms of the agreement were not released. The deal was completed in-house without an outside firm.
The NBA launched its jersey patch program in the 2017-18 season, and website hosting firm Squarespace served as the Knicks jersey partner for five seasons. The Knicks were one of four teams that played without a jersey partner last season. Another of those teams, the Washington Wizards, announced a three-year deal with stock trading platform Robinhood on Monday.
“Squarespace has been an excellent partner, but we do expect to see some substantial increase when we renew or find a new partner in that space,” Andrew Lustgarten, then MSG Sports CEO, said during a 2022 earnings call. “It’s very important who the partner is, so close to our identity, so we’re very thoughtful about who would come on our jerseys.”
The NBA’s top three jersey sponsorships generated roughly $100 million last season in total, led by the Golden State Warriors’ extension with Rakuten worth an estimated $45 million a year. The Brooklyn Nets (WeBull, $30 million) and the Los Angeles Lakers (Bibigo, $27 million) round out the top three.
The Sphere opened last month to rave reviews as U2 kicked off a run of 36 shows at the 17,500-seat theater that has redefined the visual experience of a concert. The venue, the world’s largest spherical building, has been championed by Jim Dolan with a plan to build similar venues around the world. Construction on Sphere started in 2018 with a price tag of $1.2 billion and eventually climbed to $2.3 billion.
“We didn’t anticipate spending $2.3 billion, we also didn’t anticipate COVID,” Dolan said in an August conference call discussing Sphere’s financial results. “The business is really built on the notion of changing the model that is currently used to operate entertainment venues.”
In April, Madison Square Garden Entertainment was renamed Sphere Entertainment, and it spun off two-thirds of its traditional live entertainment business. The spun-off entity was renamed MSG Entertainment and includes the MSG arena, Radio City Music Hall, Beacon Theatre and Chicago Theatre. MSG Networks is part of Sphere Entertainment.
“These transactions have supported our growth plans for Sphere and next-generation entertainment medium that we believe will disrupt the traditional venue model,” Dolan said. Last year, Sportico valued the Knicks at $6.58 billion, second in the NBA behind the Warriors ($7.56 billion).
The Knicks lost to the Heat in the second round of the playoffs last season—only their second postseason appearance in 10 years. New York host the Boston Celtics at MSG Wednesday night to tip off their 2023-24 season.
If you’re looking for a fun horror comedy to stream during spooky season, Josh Ruben’s 2021 charmer Werewolves Within is for you. The critically acclaimed whodunnit centers on the snowed-in residents of the small town of Beaverfield, a quirky hamlet that finds itself in turmoil as a proposed pipeline creates divisions within the community. After forest ranger Finn (Veep standout Sam Richardson) and postal worker Cecily (Other Space scene-stealer Milana Vayntrub) arrive in town, the community is forced to band together upon discovering that a killer, or perhaps a mysterious creature, has begun terrorizing local residents. A deft blend of horror and comedy, Werewolves Within is now streaming on Hulu.
Over the past handful of years, Thom Zimny has emerged as one of the most prolific music documentarians around. A former editor on The Wire, Zimny won an Emmy for directing the Netflix film Springsteen on Broadway, reunited with Bruce for Letter to You, chronicled the life of Elvis Presley in Elvis Presley: The Searcher, explored The Man in Black in The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash, and helmed the docuseries Willie Nelson and Family, which premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. So, it might seem odd that he’s decided to explore the life and career of Sylvester Stallone in the upcoming doc Sly, premiering Nov. 3 on Netflix.
But not according to Zimny.
“I couldn’t help but notice a strong work ethic, an unwavering passion, and a deep connection to the art of filmmaking — the craft of storytelling,” Zimny tells Rolling Stone of meeting with Stallone. “It evoked memories of my past work with artists such as Elvis in the realm of music and Johnny Cash in the world of gospel. In Stallone’s case, cinema was an early catalyst, opening the door to his vivid imagination and a world of boundless possibilities.”
In an exclusive clip from Sly, the 77-year-old screen icon behind the Rocky, Rambo, and Expendables film series describes first arriving in Los Angeles — only to have his car break down in the heart of Hollywood, leading him to call the one person he knew out there, actor Henry Winkler, who came to the rescue. Stallone ended up in a dingy apartment in the Valley by… Balboa Boulevard.
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“This story perfectly encapsulated the same themes I observed in Stallone’s early days, which remain relevant today: self-belief, the power of dreams and ambitions, the inherent beauty of making mistakes, and the serendipitous moments of being in the right place at the right time,” explains Zimny. “Sly had a knack for seeing the world as a source of creative inspiration despite the circumstances. Another great example of this was his choice to name a character after Balboa Boulevard, the street where he had a dingy, modest apartment. Stallone had such talent for finding creative inspiration in the world around him.”
“I hope the audience takes away a new understanding of Sylvester Stallone the man, the filmmaker, and the artist,” he adds. “I wish for them to recognize how Sly’s movies have woven into the fabric of their lives, while also fostering an understanding and appreciation for his work and dedication to storytelling.”
The first look images of “William Tell,” the epic story of the crossbow-wielding warrior, have been released. The feature film is in its last week of principal photography in Italy. Beta Cinema is representing international sales rights with WME Independent handling North American rights.
Nick Hamm directs, based on his screenplay, adapted from Friedrich Schiller’s play. Hamm’s credits include “Driven,” which was selected as the closing film at the Venice Film Festival 2018 and released by Universal; “Gigi & Nate” (2022); the Netflix series “White Lines” (2020); and “The Journey,” which premiered at Venice and Toronto in 2016.
The film stars Claes Bang (“The Square,” “Bad Sisters,” “The Northman”), Connor Swindells (“Barbie,” “Sex Education”), Ellie Bamber (“Willow,” “The Serpent,” “Nocturnal Animals”), Golshifteh Farahani (“Paterson,” “Extraction,” “Invasion”), Jonah Hauer-King (“The Little Mermaid,” “The Tattooist of Auschwitz”), Rafe Spall (“Life of Pi,” “The Big Short”), Emily Beecham (“1899,” “Little Joe”), Academy-Award nominee Jonathan Pryce (“The Two Popes,” “The Wife”) and Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley (“Gandhi,” “Schindler’s List”).
The story unfolds in the 14th century amid the waning days of the Holy Roman Empire, when Europe’s nations fiercely vie for supremacy and the ambitious Austrians, desiring more land, encroach on Switzerland, a serene and pastoral nation.
Golshifteh Farahani and Claes Bang star in “William Tell.”
Amidst this backdrop, William Tell, a formerly peaceful hunter, finds himself forced to take action as his family and homeland come under threat from the oppressive Austrian king and his ruthless warlords. Leading his fellow countrymen, Tell embarks on a courageous rebellion, seeking to defend their liberty and stand against the tyrannical forces that seek to subjugate them.
Hamm says: “Tell’s story has a relevance and immediacy that is strikingly contemporary. The apple scene in particular has gripped the world’s imagination for hundreds of years and yet has never been dramatized in modern cinema. As a filmmaker I couldn’t ask for a more exceptional cast to bring this story to life.”
“William Tell” is a Free Turn and Tempo production with Groenlandia, in association with DNeg Films, supported by the IDM Film Fund.
The film is produced by Piers Tempest (“The Wife,” “Emily”) and Marie-Christine Jaeger-Firmenich (“Gigi & Nate”). DoP Jamie Ramsay (“Living,” “See How They Run”) lenses, edited by two-time Academy Award nominated Tariq Anwar (“The King’s Speech,” “American Beauty”) with 2nd unit direction by Diyan Hristov (“Dungeons & Dragons,” “Hellboy”).
Francesca Sartori (“Il Mestiere delle Armi,” “Alatriste”) handles costume design and Tonino Zera (“Caravaggio’s Shadow”) is the production designer. Lauren Evans and Avy Kaufman are the casting directors. Redefine, a division of VFX house Double Negative, is handling visual effects.
Marie-Christine Jaeger-Firmenich says: “The legend of William Tell represents the values of freedom and independence to so many in my home country of Switzerland. I am therefore honored and delighted to have the opportunity to share this story with audiences around the world.”
Tempest says: “The story of Tell has resonated throughout the ages; the combination of politics, intrigue and action set against the stunning mountain scenery lends itself incredibly well to cinema.”
Tassilo Hallbauer, head of sales and acquisitions at Beta Cinema, says: “Coming from a team of highly successful producers, helmed by acclaimed director Nick Hamm and studded with a top-class cast right down to the smallest roles, we are thrilled to add this universal, action-loaded and inspiring project to our line-up. The legend of Tell, his crossbow and the apple is known all over the world. We now want to bring the story behind the saga into cinemas around the globe.”
Further cast includes Solly McLeod (“Tom Jones,” “The Dead Don’t Hurt”), Amar Chadha-Patel (“Willow,” “The Creator”), Sam Keeley (“Raw,” “The English Game”), Jake Dunn (“The Ballad of Renegade Nell”) and Tobias Jowett.
Executive producers include Jon Hamm, David Nichols and Francesco Marras.
Taylor Swift has the Ed Kelce seal of approval. In a new interview, the father of Travis Kelce praised the “Anti-Hero” singer for being down-to-earth when he met her during a recent Kansas City Chiefs game.
Calling Taylor “a very, very sweet, very charming, down-to-earth young woman,” Ed tells People that the GRAMMY winner was “very genuine” and shares a story from their first encounter.
“I’ll tell you something very special that I noticed about Taylor the first time I met her,” Ed says. “We’re sitting in the suite, she gets up and in the front room, she gets up to go get a drink or something and she starts picking up empty bottles, cans, plates that are scattered around. Because in the suites everybody gets stuff and you empty it down wherever you can.”
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The father of Travis and Jason Kelce notes, “And I’m just thinking, I don’t think she got the diva memo. She didn’t get the spoiled musician. She doesn’t know how to pull that off. And that really to me said a whole lot.”
He adds that the famed singer-songwriter is “very smart,” saying, “That comes through right away.”
Travis previously opened up to his brother, Jason, on their New Heights podcast about the “terrifying” experience of realizing that his dad was talking to Taylor.
“Taylor talking to Dad, you already know, you know Dad like I know Dad, this is a terrifying conversation. I felt terrible, I felt terrible for Taylor,” Travis said of the exchange.
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Jason quipped, “If you see Dad talking to anybody and you can’t hear what’s happening, who knows where that conversation is going?”
“You can see in this picture, he’s just pumping her up, he started listening to her music more, he started doing some stuff,” Travis added of his father.
Taylor has also been spotted connecting with the Kelce brothers’ mom, Donna Kelce (a.k.a. Mama Kelce) in the private box.
Things have been heating up between Taylor and Travis, who first sparked romance rumors late last month. The couple have been on several public outings together, including an impromptu appearance on Saturday Night Live.
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And the internet went wild on Monday when a new photo featuring Taylor kissing Travis on the cheek at an after-party for the Chiefs was posted online.
The first-person video released by the Israeli military shows navy fighters on a gunboat using assault rifles and grenades to blast away at people floating in the water. Military officials said the targets were Hamas terrorists who’d tried to storm the Israeli coast during the rampage that sparked the Israel-Gaza war; all now are presumed dead.
Such graphic footage once was shared mainly in dark and morbid corners of the internet, hidden away from casual viewers. But the navy video bounced across social media feeds and discussion forums, including Reddit’s 1.6-million-follower subreddit r/CombatFootage, where it was one of dozens of violent scenes posted that day.
In a discussion of the video, one commenter said in a since-deleted post they were living in the “golden age of brutal voyeurism.”
The wars in Israel and Ukraine have fueled an explosion in videos online showcasing the horrors of modern war, bringing killings and cruelty to a global audience of viewers who are unprepared — or all too willing — to watch.
The supply of new graphic videos has boomed as fighters use cellphones and GoPro cameras to record or live-stream footage from a point-blank perspective, either for purposes of military strategy or propaganda. So, too, has demand, as internet users flock to loosely moderated video sites, message boards and private groups where they can see and share extreme footage to sate their curiosity or score political points.
Our “increasingly fragmented online media system means there are many more outlets for this kind of content and a wider variety of content moderation schemes to pick from,” said Colin Henry, a researcher at George Washington University who has studied political violence and the internet. “It’s like there are suddenly many more movie theaters in town, and some of them are much more friendly toward snuff films.”
In both wars, military leaders and digital-native soldiers eager to document the reality of their conflict or push for international support have released videos directly via group-messaging services such as Telegram or had them republished to social media platforms such as X, formerly Twitter.
On Telegram, Hamas’s military wing has posted training montages showing Hamas militants preparing for combat as well as uncensored videos of bloody skirmishes, drone-grenade attacks and killed Israeli soldiers. A Hamas military spokesman also pledged to broadcast hostage executions online.
Basem Naim, the leader of Hamas’s international relations arm, told The Washington Post in an interview that the footage was shared on social media both to gain global attention and to embolden Hamas militants for the war ahead.
“Who is terrorizing whom? We are the victims … of this huge killing machine,” he said. The videos “show that we can do something. It is not only we who are beaten all the time. No, sometimes we can also hit back.”
For many people far from the battlefield, the risk of such videos suddenly appearing on auto-playing websites or social network feeds has become a persistent fear, leading some schools and education groups to coach parents to monitor or block their children’s use of social media. Psychiatrists have warned that the repeated viewing of such visceral imagery can lead to what’s known as “vicarious trauma,” damaging people’s mental health.
Others, however, actively seek it out — and are aided by the combatants themselves. Ukraine’s 110th Mechanized Brigade, an infantry unit specializing in drone-dropped explosives, has posted more than 100 videos to its Telegram channel, many of which show Russian soldiers being blown to pieces alongside a heavy-metal soundtrack.
The videos are often republished with English-language descriptions to subreddits like r/UkraineWarVideoReport, where they’ll often receive thousands of comments and views.
Some commenters there say the videos offer a grisly lesson. They have “basically taken all the ‘glory’ out of war,” one Redditor said in a thread discussing a video of an injured Russian soldier taking his own life. “I wish politicians would watch these vids as they had their morning coffee.”
Others there celebrate the violence or riff on the strange banality of seeing such carnage from home. “I’m eating coco puffs watching this,” one Redditor said on a video showing Russians soldiers killed with grenades.
Graphic footage has long played a role in shaping the public’s understanding of current events. Haunting images from battles and massacres broadcast on TV news helped mobilize Americans against the Vietnam War. The looping videos of jets smashing into the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001, marked a pivotal moment for mainstream viewership of atrocities; so, too, did the footage from journalists embedded with the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan during the years of war that followed.
But such videos have also been used to sow terror and provoke an emotional overreaction that could enrage onlookers, expand a conflict or play into the attackers’ hands, said Amanda E. Rogers, a research fellow at the Century Foundation think tank who has studied extremist propaganda. Nearly a decade ago, she said, the Islamic State’s video-recorded beheadings of aid workers, journalists and others helped mark a turning point for terrorists who saw the value in publishing footage so heinous many viewers felt they couldn’t ignore it.
“People don’t understand that you can be recruited into a conflict by propaganda unwittingly to help the side you think you’re opposing,” Rogers said. “Now these videos have spilled over into social media environment, where the lowest common denominator and the sound bite become consumable as a partisan team sport.”
Some of the grisly videos have proved valuable for investigators and journalists seeking to find hostages or document war crimes. And moderators of the CombatFootage subreddit, which has seen its subscriber base more than double since the start of 2022, said they evaluate videos for their “combat footage to propaganda ratio.” Clips with too little focus on actual combat are removed.
But the lines between such videos and propaganda are not always clear-cut. White supremacists have for years spread videos showing violent acts committed by people of color to inflame racial animus in hopes of winning potential recruits, Henry said. In recent conflicts, such gruesome videos have been used to dehumanize the enemy and get international viewers feeling more invested in the fight.
“Violent content, especially war footage, can be really traumatizing to people, but it can also be a great mobilizer,” he said. “When any of the various Ukraine war influencers share videos of Russian soldiers dying from drone attacks, part of the strategy is to appeal to American or European audiences who see Russian soldiers as part of a wider hated out-group and Ukrainian soldiers as sort of like themselves.”
Major social media platforms generally block or restrict videos showing death or lurid violence. X’s rules permit violent videos if they’re hidden behind a warning disclaimer, but the company bans “gratuitous gore” except in cases where the imagery is “associated with newsworthy events,” saying that “research has shown that repeated exposure to excessively graphic content online may negatively impact an individual’s well-being.”
Some violent videos from the Israel-Gaza war, however, remain viewable in an unrestricted way on X, including the gunboat footage and other clips from the Israeli military purporting to show Hamas militants gunned down by a tank on the Israeli border.
In some cases, the wars have also sparked a shifting of long-held rules when it comes to speech. Facebook last year said it would temporarily allow violent messages related to the Ukraine war, such as “death to the Russian invaders,” because they represented protected political expressions. Credible calls for violence against Russian civilians remained banned, the company said.
The Ukrainian government last year began posting photos and videos of captured and killed Russian soldiers to Telegram, Twitter and YouTube in hopes of inflaming Russian protests over the war’s human costs. Military-justice experts told The Post that some of the images likely violated the Geneva Conventions, which demand governments shield prisoners of war from “insults and public curiosity.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry has adopted a similar tactic to enrage Western audiences by running hundreds of haunting YouTube ads, including videos in which Israeli medical examiners describe what they saw in their autopsies of the bodies of children purportedly killed during the Hamas attack, according to YouTube’s ad library.
One YouTube ad shows a colorful scene of smiling unicorns and rainbows that quickly pivots to a darker message: “We know that your child cannot read this … 40 infants were murdered in Israel by the Hamas terrorists (ISIS),” the ad reads. “Just as you would do everything to protect your child, we will do everything to protect ours.”
A spokesman for YouTube, whose ad rules ban violence and “shocking content,” said the ads are not shown on children-focused content and do not warrant any enforcement action.
Officials with the Foreign Ministry, which did not respond to requests for comment, also posted a photo earlier this month showing a dead baby soaked with blood, its face blurred, onto its 1.4-million-follower X account, calling it “the most difficult image we’ve ever posted.”
On Monday, the Israeli military attempted to reach an audience of foreign correspondents, screening a graphic 40-minute video showing “scene after scene of appalling violence,” according to the British newspaper the Times. Some of the video was taken from Hamas fighters’ phones, cars and helmets,
Military officials also shared instructions they said were recovered from Hamas fighters detailing how they should “live broadcast” the killings: “Do not waste the camera battery and storage but use them as much as possible.”
Daniel Hagari, a military spokesman, told the crowd the videos would serve as “a collective memory for the future.” “We will not let the world forget about who we are fighting,” he said, according to the Times.
Echoes of Nazi terror in Amsterdam reverberate through Steve McQueen’s documentary Occupied City, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May. Today, Regency Enterprises, A24 and Film4 dropped a trailer for the film ahead of its Christmas Day release in U.S. theaters.
The documentary, with a runtime of over four hours, goes square by square and street by street in present-day Amsterdam, tracing where the occupying German forces committed atrocities against the local Jewish population. Nazi troops first entered the city in May 1940.
“Soon, the Nazis started to ban Jews from parks, pools, shops, cafes and schools – from all public life,” notes the narration voiced by actress Melanie Hyams and written by Dutch historian and filmmaker Bianca Stigter, McQueen’s wife. “In 1941 they started rounding people up. In 1942 the deportations began.”
Three-quarters of Amsterdam’s Jewish population would perish during World War II, dispatched to Nazi death camps. Sixty thousand people.
The film is likely to take on even greater resonance this year coming after the Hamas attack in Israel, the worst terror attack on Jews since the Second World War.
“The past collides with our precarious present in Steve McQueen’s bravura documentary Occupied City, informed by the book Atlas of an Occupied City (Amsterdam 1940-1945) written by Bianca Stigter,” a release about the film observes. “McQueen creates two interlocking portraits: a door-to-door excavation of the Nazi occupation that still haunts his adopted city, and a vivid journey through the last years of pandemic and protest. What emerges is both devastating and life-affirming, an expansive meditation on memory, time, and where we’re headed.”
McQueen was born in the U.K. but now makes his home in Amsterdam. In an interview with Deadline just before the Cannes premiere of Occupied City, he explained how his experience in his adopted home influenced how he made the film.
“When I first came to Amsterdam — not living in an occupied country growing up in London — what was very strange for me was walking around and seeing all these places that had this history behind it, which had to do with the Nazification of the Netherlands,” McQueen said. “Walking down a street and seeing a little statue and finding out that this is where 15 people were gathered up and executed because someone had assassinated a German soldier was quite shocking for me. So, therefore, the approach [of the film] had to happen somehow in the now.”
Occupied City is produced by Floor Onrust, Steve McQueen, Anna Smith-Tenser, and Bianca Stigter. Watch the film’s trailer above.
If you think YOU have complicated feelings about Hugh Hefner after what’s come out in recent years, imagine being one of his longtime girlfriends! Or better yet, his son!!!
Three members of the extended Playboy family reunited for an emotional sitdown recently, Monday’s all new episode of the Girls Next Level podcast! Hosts Holly Madison and Bridget Marquardt were joined by special guest Marston Hefner, the 33-year-old son of the late publishing magnate. Together they shared memories of living in the Playboy Mansion, being disliked by the staff, and of course, of dealing with Hugh’s eccentricities. It was a real bonding conversation!
One inneresting habit? Hugh ate the same dinner every night. The same meal, around the same time, almost every single night — lamb chops prepared specially for him by the Mansion’s staff. Marston recalls:
“He needed it, and would get angry if it wasn’t there. If what he expected wasn’t there. If the lambchops weren’t there, he would get upset. That part of my father really makes me wonder. What is it that he needed that routine.”
Holly remembers well — and admitted the need for such a routine in his dinner was so eccentric it made her wonder if Hef had from some sort of autism or obsessive compulsive disorder or other undiagnosed condition:
“I thought about maybe being on the spectrum or maybe OCD, or even just the way at a young age, his life exploded, maybe there’s just certain things you hang onto that like, ‘Wow, I have all this going on around me. Maybe I just need these touchstone things.’”
Bridget may have hit the nail on the head, saying incisively:
“I feel like it was a way to stay in control too, and that was very important to him.”
We’ve heard that from the stories of many women who were involved with him — how he’d voice extremely specific desires and expect them to be sated. And if they weren’t, it could get ugly for everyone involved. Then there were the rules, the curfews, etc. many former models have claimed. All control. Hmm. Marston speculated:
“Maybe just doing these little things made him feel like, ‘I’m safe. My life is good. I have what I need.’”
It wasn’t just sharing war stories, of course. Marston loved his father! And he took great comfort in another specific routine of Hef’s — playing chess with him every Tuesday night. He recalled:
“It was a moment in our lives where he took like, a really special focus on me, and he was just really loving, really supportive. He would play chess with me every Tuesday for family night, and at some point I beat him. I think I beat him legitimately and he was so happy.”
Like we said, complicated feelings! You can listen to the whole fascinating convo (below)!
It’s almost spooky season, and what could be better than settling down with the perfect movie?
If you’re having trouble deciding which one to watch, have no fear! I’ve designed this quiz which will choose for you, all you have to do is answer the questions…
What movie did you get? Let us know in the comments below!
Pink is getting candid about suffering a near-fatal drug overdose when she was a teenager, just before landing a record deal.
The “Just Like a Pill” hitmaker sat down with “60 Minutes” for an interview that aired Sunday evening, in which she said she was an open book and that no question was off the table. The 44-year-old singer, born Alecia Beth Moore, then revisited a fateful Thanksgiving nearly three decades ago.
“Thanksgiving of 1995, I was at a rave and I overdosed. I was on, oh boy — ecstasy, angel dust, crystal, all kinds of things,” she recalled. “Then I was out. Done. Too much.”
The Grammy winner’s been open in the past about her overdose, saying it was a pivotal moment. Moore told Shape magazine in 2012 that a DJ offered the young singer a performance slot during a hip-hop night. “His only caveat was that I couldn’t do drugs, so I didn’t,” she said at the time. “That’s the thing with me — once I make up my mind, I’m done.”
Pink landed a record deal with LaFace Records shortly after and launched her solo career in 2000.
Talking with “60 Minutes,” she attributed her teenage substance abuse to a volatile environment at home. “I was a punk, and I had a mouth. I had a chip on my shoulder,” she explained.
“Basically, I grew up in a house where, every day, my parents were screaming at each other, throwing things, hated each other. And then I got into drugs. I was selling drugs. And then I was kicked out of the house. I dropped out of high school. That was off the rails.”
In 2013, Moore made her acting debut in “Thanks for Sharing,” a sex addiction comedy. She starred alongside Mark Ruffalo, Josh Gad and Tim Robbins as a woman who attends Sexaholics Anonymous meetings to help control her desire to sleep with strange men.
Moore pulled from her own experience with addiction for the role. She’s also used it to inspire her music, with songs including “Just Like a Pill” and “Who Knew,” which was written after the singer lost two friends to drug overdoses.
On Oct. 12, Pink set off on her Trustfall tour, opening in Sacramento just days after finishing the North American leg of her Summer Carnival tour. (While she was in London with the latter tour, attendees threw cheese and ashes at her onstage.) “Trustfall,” Pink’s ninth studio album, will be released in February.
Despite having to postpone several shows because of family medical issues and a bad respiratory infection, Pink is slated to resume performing on Oct. 25 with a show at the Ball Arena in Denver. She has 15 more dates across the United States and Canada after that.
Times staff writers Amy Kaufman and Nardine Saad contributed to this report.
A new report indicated DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn does not have total control over the new DCU.
Gunn is currently in the midst of preparing a reinvented vision for Warner Bros.’ (WB) super-powered brand, with names like Superman: Legacy, Creature Commandos, and Waller set to kick things off for the franchise in the coming years.
That is why it was exciting for fans to see Gunn brought on to shepherd a new era for the series, as it seemed his “powerful vision and blueprint” would enter the world unimpeded by studio meddling.
WB Reportedly Meddling With James Gunn’s DCU
DC
Despite what fans may have thought, it looks as though James Gunn and Peter Safran do not have the full power over the new DCU as some had assumed.
According to reporting from Variety, things remain unclear on how much control Gunn and Safran have over the super-powered franchise, especially when it comes to streaming content on the WB-owned Max streaming service.
Unlike their Marvel counterpart, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, WB and Max remain “creatively involved with the DC slate”
While Feige remains fairly autonomous atop the Marvel Studios brand, Gunn and Safran’s tenure at DC Studios has reportedly been much more collaborative on the TV front.
This is not necessarily a bad thing, however, as Variety noted sources familiar with the subject describe the partnership between the DC Studios co-CEOs and Max executives Sarah Aubrey and Casey Bloys as “seamless.”
The first fruit of this partnership seems to be the upcoming The Batman spin-off show The Penguin, which the group worked closely together on.
This report seems to contradict Gunn’s previous comments when he firmly told fans that “DC is separate from Warner Brothers” (via Comicbook Resources) and that the studio would not be meddling with the DCU brain trust:
“No, they don’t. DC is separate from Warner Brothers as of a couple of months ago.”
Does James Gunn Need Total Control Over DC?
This news is going to come as a shock to some DC fans for sure. For as long as James Gunn has been in his new role at the blue brand, it was assumed it meant that he (and Peter Safran) had total control over the super-powered franchise.
That was the pitch initially. Warner Bros. was looking for a creative team to sit at the top and present it with an “eight to 10 year plan” for both stories in and out of the DCU.
However, with all this said, the DC faithful shouldn’t get too perturbed over the idea of these select few WB executives coming in to collaborate with the new DC Studios head.
Things have reportedly been going “seamless[ly]” between the two parties, so right now, there is no cause for worry.
But that collaboration can also be a slippery slope. Just as long as these smaller partnerships within WB remain exactly that, things will be okay.
If the Holywood giant starts to stick its foot in the door more forcefully, overriding creative decisions from the DC Studios heads, there will be problems.
All fans can hope for is this remains a collaboration on the WB side of things, and Gunn/Safran can hold the keys to the kingdom at least creatively without studio interference.
A remaster of a classic adventure from the Star Wars vault previously announced this summer now has a release date that will sound familiar to those who played the original release. Nightdive Studios and Lucasfilm have announced that Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster will launch February 28, which is 29 years to the day since its original release in 1995.
Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster stars Kyle Katarn, a mercenary who joins the Rebel Alliance’s covert ops team, as he takes on the Empire and their secret Dark Trooper project. The game is notable for being the first-ever first-person-shooter in Star Wars history.
The new remaster will support up to 4K resolutions and 120FPS on PC and all consoles except Nintendo Switch. The game will offer modern controller features like rumble and motion controls, as well as trophy and achievement support on PlayStation, Xbox, and Steam.
Dark Forces Remaster is the latest remaster project from Nightdive Studios, which also recently released the System Shock remaster and will soon launch a new version of Turok 3. Dark Forces joins the company’s 2024 lineup, which also includes an updated version of System Shock 2.
Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster launches February 28 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors.
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United Agents is “conducting a full and thorough investigation” into one of the most prominent British comedy agents after she was called out for a spate of reposts and shares regarding the Israel–Hamas conflict.
Kitty Laing, who is United’s Head of Comedy and represents the likes of Katherine Ryan, Nick Mohammed and Jamie Demetriou, was the subject of an X thread this morning by Oscar-nominated Borat Subsequent Moviefilm writer Lee Kern.
United said it was “made aware of social media posts by one of our senior agents this morning” and is “conducting a full and thorough investigation into this immediately.” “These are not the views of United Agents,” it added. Laing has apologized in the past few minutes.
In this morning’s lengthy thread, Kern highlighted a string of Laing’s reposts including one calling for Jews in Israel to be referred to as “settler paramilitaries”, another that refers to “fake beheaded babies” in the context of the Al-Shifa Hospital attack and one that alludes to Israel being resonsible for that disputed attack. Scroll to the bottom for the full thread.
Laing has deleted her Instagram account but in one Instagram screenshot shared with Deadline, Laing calls the UK’s Labour Party leader Keir Starmer “absolutely disgusting” and a “total moral coward” for insisting that Israel has a right “to defend herself” on his LBC radio show. A number of other Twitter screenshots include reposts of a tweet from the BBC’s Man Like Mobeen creator Guz Khan on October 18, who wrote: “At least now the entire planet can see what the West and Israel are all about.” Another Laing repost says: “If you’re confused about which side to be on: There is a global, multi-racial, multi-faith, popular movement for justice in solidarity with Palestine. There isn’t one for Israel.”
Prominent British comedians such as Khan and fellow Man Like Mobeen star Tez Ilyas have tweeted frequently about the conflict since it started on October 7 following the Hamas attacks on Israel, which claimed the lives of an estimated 1,400 civilians and saw 200 kidnapped.
Laing deleted then re-added her Twitter account to post an apology this afternoon. She said she “apologised unreservedly,” adding: “With hindsight I realise how naive I have been and that much of the information on social media surrounding the conflict is unsubstantiated and hurtful.”
Kern’s thread comes just two days after CAA Co-Head of Motion Pictures Maha Dakhil temporarily stepped away from day to day leadership and resigned from the agency’s internal board after reposting an Instagram story that said: “You’re currently learning who supports genocide.”
I’m an Oscar nominated writer who got there without an agent (yes that’s a flex) so I don’t give a fuck about deferring to agents. No one will stop me making a living. I’ll drive a cab if needed. So let me tell you about the disgrace of @kittylaing Head of Comedy at @UnitedAgents
Mister Negative returns to the series in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, as one of the early bosses that Miles faces. One of the main villains in the first Marvel’s Spider-Man game, Martin Li is back as Mister Negative for this installment. Miles is featured as part of the story in Marvel’s Spider-Man and is forever intertwined with Li, making it an obvious battle for the younger Spider to face. It is one of the most powerful parts of the Marvel Spider-Man 2 story taking place at Kraven’s facility, with Miles having been locked up.
Boss fights are once again fantastic cinematic experiences, but now have more of an RPG feel with a clear health bar for bosses. They remain full of big set-piece moments, but in-between is a much tougher challenge for you than in the original game five years ago.
Phase One Mister Negative
You will be dropped into a makeshift arena while playing as Miles to face Mister Negative with Kraven watching on. The boss fight is broken into three clear sections, but throughout all of them, Mister Negative’s speed is the biggest problem. In the first phase of the fight, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will give you a quick tutorial on how to combat his initial attacks.
These will primarily be a low horizontal attack which you can jump over and a vertical attack which comes straight at you and can be dodged, both are similar to his move set from the original game. At this stage, he will also throw crush attacks at you which you will need to dodge out of the way of, as they can’t be parried.
His most dangerous attack sees a red warning appear when he is lunging towards you, but this can be parried delivering extra damage back to him.
At this stage normal combinations and special Venom powers cause enough damage to him, so staying patient and chipping away at his health is the best way to go. Web strikes are also useful as they will temporarily tie Mister Negative up, allowing you to get in a more powerful attack with Miles.
The key to victory throughout the fight is being able to defend and avoid his quick-firing attacks.
There is a small window when his attacks are building up just before they hit, giving you time to avoid them and if you do so there will be plenty of opportunities to attack.
Phase Two Mister Negative
Once you have fully cleared Mister Negative’s health bar a cut scene will play, signaling the start of the second stage of the fight. Li will now summon a large demon in front of Miles. He will activate a large shield around himself making him immune to all attacks including Venom.
At this stage, all you can do is dodge/parry the attacks until your abilities return, as nothing you do will take damage off his health bar. Once your abilities are active again, use either Venom Punch or Chain Lightning near the shield, this will break it allowing you inside, opening up Mister Negative to attacks. After you have registered a hit on Li the shield will drop and it will return to the fight as per the first phase in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
In the second phase, Mister Negative’s attacks will largely be the same as previously, except he will now chain three together which need to be dodged or swung away from. He has extra items that he can throw at you, which need to be dodged, along with a more powerful red warning attack.
These can cause substantial damage to Miles, but once you learn the perfect time to press dodge, you will be able to consistently avoid them. For your own attacks sticking to combinations and Venom abilities will quickly be able to take his health bar down.
Phase Three Mister Negative
Once you have taken down Mister Negative’s health for a second time, he will again bring his shield back up for the start of Phase Three. For the final section of the fight, he will introduce no new attacks, but become more aggressive and direct. After his health is fully down for a third time he will again quickly summon the shield, where you will only need to attack him one more time to complete this stage.
Using a combination of Miles’s variety of different attacks, Venom Powers and Gadgets are the best strategy to overcome the boss.
After completing the third stage there is still more work for you to do, as you try to catch the Demon with Miles in Martin Li’s created world. Miles needs to keep moving forward and swinging as quickly as possible to keep up. At a certain point when you are close enough, you can press Triangle to jump onto the Demon with Miles.
Following the cut scene, you will be back on the ground facing off against oncoming demons, but these are in line with the standard groups of enemies you face throughout Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. There will be several waves of this, as Miles tries to tackle his inner demons, but they don’t get harder and this is the easiest part of the boss battle. You don’t need to defeat them all, but just survive for a set period of time and your battle with Mister Negative will be done.
Mister Negative can be a tough and emotional boss battle to overcome early in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, but once you get used to his patterns of attacks he can be easily defeated.
Is it better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all? That is one of the questions at the heart of Fellow Travelers, the intoxicating Showtime/Paramount+ limited series about two men who fall in love at the height of McCarthyism in 1950s Washington D.C. and weave in and out of each other’s lives for years at a time before coming to terms with their whirlwind secret romance during the AIDS epidemic of the ’80s. Equal parts historical drama and political thriller, this eight-part series is the first of its kind, telling an epic gay love story across four decades that is as heart-wrenching as it is heartwarming.
Vincent D’Onofrio has some thoughts on that “Daredevil: Born Again” overhaul
Based on the novel by Thomas Mallon and created for television by Ron Nyswaner (Ray Donovan, Homeland), the beautifully shot and thematically rich miniseries, which premieres October 27, chronicles the tender, volatile, and deeply passionate relationship between Hawkins “Hawk” Fuller (Matt Bomer), a charming and debonair war hero turned political staffer who is able to compartmentalize his life, and Timothy “Tim” Laughlin (Jonathan Bailey), an idealistic young Fordham University graduate who is optimistic about the future and earnest about his political and religious convictions.
After meeting on the night of President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s victory in 1952, Hawk and Tim begin seeing each other late at night just as Joseph McCarthy (Chris Bauer) and Roy Cohn (Will Brill), determined to weed out any so-called “communists” and queer people working in the U.S. government, declare war on “subversives and sexual deviants” and incite a kind of moral panic about homosexuality (despite rumors that McCarthy and Cohn are gay themselves). Although their paths eventually diverge, Hawk and Tim continue to cross paths over the years, unable to resist the pleasure of each other’s company. It’s their relationship that anchors the sweeping story across decades—through the Lavender Scare of the ’50s, the Vietnam War protests of the ’60s, the drug-fueled hedonism of the ’70s, and the public-health crisis that disproportionately affected gay men of the ’80s—and that allows Bomer and Bailey, who are extremely well matched, to deliver the best performances of their respective careers.
Hawkins Fuller is a man of many contradictions, continuing to lead a kind of double life into his fifties and sixties. For the early years of his adult life, the war veteran, who has a very specific ethos as a gay man, was able to avoid emotional entanglements with women while secretly prowling for other men in both public and private spaces in pursuit of a kind of sexual dominance that is immediately evident in the pilot. But as he becomes further enmeshed with Tim, Hawk’s façade—with his ability to code-switch, to lie not only to himself but to those around him, and to mask his sexuality with presentations of hyper-masculinity—begins to show signs of corrosive wear and tear as he grows older.
Before long, Hawk is forced to confront whether he is truly in love with Tim or simply enamored with the power he has over him. (And that power, despite some noticeable shifts in sex scenes, remains pretty consistent throughout the story.) With his chiseled good looks, Bomer fully commits himself to embodying the fascinating dichotomy of his character—both a doting husband and father of two, and an older man attracted to younger men—and imbues Hawk with a magnetism that makes it difficult not to root for him to reach a place of self-acceptance, even when he makes misguided decisions of self-preservation that threaten to upend not only his life but those of his loved ones.
Tim, meanwhile, is forced to reconcile his deeply religious upbringing with his undying love for Hawk. (At one point, he reluctantly confesses to a priest, “I don’t know how love can be a sin.”) Bailey, in a dramatic departure from his portrayal of the oldest brother on Bridgerton, is able to play a different kind of romantic lead in Fellow Travelers—someone who is more inexperienced, albeit just as consumed and infatuated with a prospective partner he knows he probably can’t have. But Bailey and the writers are careful not to portray Tim as a victim or someone in need of a consolation prize, giving him an opportunity to grow personally and professionally outside of his relationship with Hawk to the point that, as time goes on, he eventually becomes more of a mentor than a mentee to the one true love of his life.
Since Bailey’s casting was announced last year, there has already been a lot of social-media chatter in anticipation of the sex scenes in Fellow Travelers—and that discourse has only intensified with the release of the first intimate scenes. In one scene, for instance, Tim uses sex to get an invite to a party, asking Hawk, “I’m your boy, right?” Bomer, Bailey, and the creative team have managed to find different expressions of Hawk and Tim’s love and intimacy over different time periods, with no sex scene ever being the same.
Those explosive scenes shift the power dynamics of the relationship back and forth and push the boundaries even on a network like Showtime, which famously aired Queer As Folk in the early aughts. While Tim learns a lot from Hawk about power and dominance, Tim, on a more profound level, also opens Hawk up to the dangerous possibility of falling in love with another man again. One could even argue that this story could have conceivably been told in only a single era—in the ’50s, like Mallon’s original novel—but the decision to tell a more ambitious story in scope allows the audience to relive key events in queer American history and watch these characters grow and evolve over time, even if the execution wanes in the later decades.
Matt Bomer as Hawkins “Hawk” Fuller Photo: Ben Mark Holzberg/SHOWTIME
For his adaptation, Nyswaner also decided to expand the scope of representation with the addition of a decades-long relationship between Marcus Hooks (Jelani Alladin), a promising journalist struggling to embrace the intersections of his identity, and Frankie Hines (Noah J. Ricketts), a drag queen turned activist, to parallel that of Hawk and Tim. Alladin and Ricketts are both a revelation, each playing their part to deliver an unexpectedly poignant queer Black love story that both complements Hawk and Tim’s romance and can easily stand on its own. But since much of the season was built around Hawk and Tim, one could argue that the writers could have gone even deeper into Marcus and Frankie’s relationship, especially later in the timeline. A potentially interesting lesbian storyline was also quickly discarded after a couple of episodes, but that remains something that could potentially be explored in future seasons. (Nyswaner and producer Robbie Rogers have reportedly expressed an interest in “turning the miniseries into an anthology series that would track different queer fellow travelers across history.”)
Allison Williams, who plays Lucy Smith, the daughter of the senator Hawk works for during the ’50s, does the best she can to elevate the limited material she is given. After all, playing the unsatisfied wife who intentionally chose to overlook her husband’s extramarital activities for the sake of their children can only go so far in a love story about two gay men, but the tension in her relationship with Hawk really comes from the brief moments when she and Tim are at risk of intersecting in the story.
Fellow Travelers Official Trailer | SHOWTIME
In fact, so much of the tension early in Hawk and Tim’s relationship lies in the fact that they are working for ideologically different politicians in the same building, which explains why the first half of the series is especially compelling. But once they are no longer in the same line of work, that tension becomes more and more difficult to sustain in the middle section. It comes as no surprise, then, that some of the years after Hawk and Tim’s lives have gone on completely different trajectories—specifically, during the ’60s—are the story’s weakest. (At one point in that decade, Bailey dons an absolutely atrocious wig, but that’s neither here nor there.)
Viewers, due to the way the show has been set up as a miniseries, inevitably only get small windows into Hawk and Tim’s relationship after the ’50s until the characters reunite in the Bay Area in the ’80s. And while these vignettes in the interim help plant necessary seeds that come to fruition in the final episodes, those brief glimpses, with the exception of some unexpectedly funny scenes between Tim and one of Hawk’s children, struggle to sustain the momentum of the earlier years. One of the potential downsides to telling such an expansive story—especially one that jumps between multiple decades in one episode—is that Fellow Travelers requires more expository dialogue than most shows to help us fill in the gaps and understand why the characters’ behaviors are suddenly so different from who they were a decade or two ago. Interestingly, the limited series works best in the ’50s and the ’80s, when the writers decide to strip away any unnecessary minor characters and, instead, keep the focus on Hawk and Tim’s inextricable connection. But all in all, this is the kind of devastating love story for the ages, brought to life with the undeniable talents of Bomer and Bailey, that will stay with you long after the end credits roll.
Fellow Travelers premieres October 27 on Showtime/Paramount+
Of all the films that would have been sleeper hits, had they not been released in 2020 when a theatrical push was off the table, it’s hard to top this, the debut feature from the writer and director Channing Godfrey Peoples. Nicole Beharie stars as Turquoise Jones, a Texas single mother whose 15-year-old daughter (Alexis Chikaeze) is about to compete in the local Miss Juneteenth pageant Turquoise won, once upon a time. Peoples’s screenplay sensitively explores poignant questions of opportunities lost and gained, and the mother/daughter dynamics are convincing and compelling. But the real takeaway here is Beharie, whose marvelous, lived-in performance is both inspiring and shattering.
The actor Max Minghella (whose father Anthony directed the likes of “Truly, Madly, Deeply” and “The Talented Mr. Ripley”) makes an impressive feature directing debut with this story of a girl from the sticks (Elle Fanning) whose golden voice catches the attention of a fallen opera star (Zlatko Buric), who mentors her onto a national singing championship. The story beats are dusty but the approach is fresh, as Minghella focuses on the small details of character and setting that make his telling unique. Fanning does her own singing, and does so convincingly (ditto on her British accent), while investing her 17-year-old character with an appropriately tormented inner life.
The director Ry Russo-Young co-wrote this indie drama with Lena Dunham (who was just launching “Girls” on HBO), and it is an ace fusion of their sensibilities, and their mutual interest in the mind games attractive young men and women can play. Olivia Thirlby is Martine, a New York visual artist visiting Los Angeles — the title is a reference to the comparative absence of pedestrians — to finish an experimental film with the help of a sound engineer, Peter (John Krasinski), whose therapist wife Julie (Rosemarie DeWitt) puts Martine up in their pool house. And that’s when the trouble begins, as Russo-Young and Dunham’s smart script dramatizes how proximity, boredom and hormones can wreak havoc on a seemingly blissful existence.
Thirlby’s other 2012 release could not have been a more startling contrast, a rough-and-tumble adaptation of the ultraviolent British comic book series (previously attempted, to universal pans, by Sylvester Stallone in the mid-1990s). Karl Urban is a square-jawed cop in a futuristic dystopia where police are allowed to not only enforce the law, but carry out its consequences. Thirlby is his partner and Lena Headey is their target, an underworld queen-pin who traps them in a sketchy apartment complex and offers up a healthy reward for their heads. The director Pete Travis executes the nearly nonstop action with bruising intensity, while the better-than-expected script (by the gifted “Ex Machina” and “Annihilation” screenwriter Alex Garland) fills the occasional silences with fastballs of social commentary.
Ben Wheatley’s adaptation of the J.G. Ballard novel occasionally feels like it’s lapping itself — Ballard’s 1975 notions of futuristic class warfare and societal breakdown feel almost quaint compared to what we face today. But Wheatley’s film is wildly entertaining anyway, a boisterous, nose-tweaking portrait of well-bred people turning into feral animals at the slightest provocation. Tom Hiddleston is appropriately cynical in the leading role; Luke Evans, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller and Elisabeth Moss turn in memorable supporting work.
With her new film “May December” (and her performance in it) earning rave reviews ahead of its upcoming Netflix debut, here’s another recent Julianne Moore film worth celebrating. She stars as the title character, a middle-aged woman who is still figuring out how to get the most out of her life, and herself, after divorce. An aid to that could come in the form of Arnold (John Turturro), who offers up love — or, at the very least, comfort — but “Gloria Bell” is not about finding yourself through someone else’s eyes. The Chilean writer-director Sebastián Lelio first told this story in his native tongue, in his 2013 movie “Gloria,” but this is no retread; his American take is lighter and funnier, and a resplendent showcase for the charms of Ms. Moore.
When the pandemic hit the U.S. in spring of 2020, the filmmaker David Siev was among the many Americans who went home, huddling up with his family in Bad Axe, Mich., to help keep their venerable local restaurant afloat. He brought along his video camera, and captured an indelible real-time snapshot of a country quickly banding together, and then splintering apart with even greater speed and velocity. The resultant documentary works on two levels simultaneously: as a social document of a country in free-fall (with particular focus on how much of the MAGA-infused community turned on the Asian American Sievs), and as an intimate portrait of the family’s own complicated relationships, and how they were tested by forces beyond their control.
Restaurants, as you may recall, weren’t the only venues to take a big hit during lockdown, and with movie theaters out of commission, drive-in theaters became a safe alternative, and saw a big uptick in their long-struggling attendance. So the documentary filmmaker April Wright, who previously made the 2013 film “Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the American Drive-In Movie,” went back to the drive-in to see how these (often family-owned) establishments had done during the unexpected boost, and how they were adjusting to life going “back to normal.” Once the topical matters are addressed, it becomes a fascinating character study, as these entrepreneurs — ranging from grizzled veterans to gee-whiz newbies — react quite differently to the regular difficulties of their throwback business.
With the futures of their families at stake if not the future of the world, Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke and Mahershala Ali aren’t sure who to trust in the trailer for “Leave the World Behind,” the new Netflix original film from “Mr. Robot” creator Sam Esmail.
“Everything I know I have told you,” Ali says in the trailer for the film, an adaptation of the best-selling novel by Rumaan Alam written and directed by Esmail.
“I don’t believe you,” a foreboding Roberts responds in the clip, which you can watch above.
As a massive cyber attack puts everyone in danger, Kevin Bacon stands his ground on his porch, donning a Dallas Cowboys cap with a shotgun fully at the ready.
“I will protect my family,” says Bacon, in a sinister supporting role. “What you do is your business.”
Meanwhile, a massive ocean freighter heads straight for the beach, and all the locals can do is watch and record the unfolding action on their phones.
Per the Netflix logline, “Amanda (Roberts) and her husband Clay (Hawke), rent a luxurious home for the weekend with their kids, Archie (Charlie Evans) and Rose (Farrah Mackenzie). Their vacation is soon upended when two strangers — G.H. (Ali) and his daughter Ruth (Myha’la) — arrive in the night, bearing news of a mysterious cyberattack and seeking refuge in the house they claim is theirs. The two families reckon with a looming disaster that grows more terrifying by the minute, forcing everyone to come to terms with their places in a collapsing world.”
“Leave the World Behind” will premiere Wednesday at the AFI Fest in Hollywood. It will have a limited theatrical run starting on Nov. 22 and will debut Dec. 8 on Netflix.
Barack and Michelle Obama are executive producers, with their Higher Ground Productions one of the production companies behind the movie. Julia Roberts, Lisa Gillan, Marisa Yeres Gill, Esmail, and Chad Hamilton are producers. Tonia Davis, Daniel M. Stillman, Nick Krishnamurthy, Rumaan Alam are executive producing alongside the Obamas.
CAA-backed Anonymous Content Brazil, a joint venture between Anonymous Content and Rodrigo Teixeira’s RT Features, is teaming up with Oscar-winning screenwriter-producer-director Armando Bo (“Birdman”) and his sister companies, About Entertainment and film-ad production company Rebolucion, to develop and co-produce television series and advertising content for the Latin American market.
The three-year co-development and co-production agreement will call for the sourcing of IP and original content from writers across Latin America to build a strong Spanish-language slate aimed at regional audiences and beyond.
Through their partnership with Rebolucion, Anonymous Content Brazil will also venture into producing advertising commercials out if its Sao Paulo base.
Rebolucion, in Brazil since 2011, will continue running independently while providing strategic and business support to the new ad commercials division, in which it will be a minority partner.
“Partnering with our long-time friend, Armando, a creative visionary who has demonstrated success at the highest levels in the global film and television space, and his companies, About Entertainment and Rebolucion, is a seminal moment in the growth of our Brazilian venture with RT Features and CAA,” said David Davoli, president of international at Anonymous Content.
He added: “We are confident that this pairing of companies, and the leadership teams that will oversee the efforts on the ground, will allow us to achieve tremendous success across the development of Spanish language content in Latin America, and in the commercial space in Brazil.”
In the next few months, they will appoint a managing director and executive producer for the Anonymous Content Brazil commercial division. These individuals will collaborate with the existing AC Brazil team, headed by CEO Barbara Teixeira, and the Anonymous Content Brand Studio in Los Angeles, led by partner and managing director Eric Stern. Their goal is to create opportunities in both the commercial and entertainment sectors.
Expressing his delight at the new partnership, Bo said: “I believe that this alliance could not arrive at a better moment, with About and Rebolucion at a creative peak, producing premium series, motion pictures and commercials. For us, this agreement means the opportunity to join a refined, well-seasoned team in order to step into the big leagues with our unique stories.”
“I have no doubt that our mutual friend Steve Golin, from wherever he might be, must be so very proud of this union,” said Bo in reference to the late founder-CEO of Anonymous Content who died in 2019.
Anonymous Content Brazil was founded in 2019 in keeping with the Oscar and Emmy-winning parent company’s global expansion drive. Since establishing AC Chapter One in 2018, Anonymous Content has set up multiple joint ventures with overseas partners including: Madrid-based Morena Films; Anonymous Federation in partnership with independent European studio Federation Entertainment, and AC Nordic in partnership with Morten Tyldum and Guri Neby of Oslo-based Einar Films and CAA.
Among AC’s acclaimed credits are Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu’s “The Revenant,” which gave Leonardo di Caprio his first Oscar, best picture Academy Award-winning film “Spotlight,” best original screenplay Oscar-winner “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” and three-time Primetime Emmy award-winning “Mr. Robot.”
In 2019 and 2020 About Ent., along with Gaumont, Fabula and Kapow, produced the two-season Emmy-nominated Prime Video series “El Presidente,” with Bo as showrunner and director.
About is currently producing and developing several projects with Prime Video, Paramount and Gaumont, among others.
With offices in the U.K., Spain, Mexico, Brazil, U.S., Chile, Colombia, and Argentina, Rebolucion has produced more than 1,000 films and won more than 40 Cannes Lions among many other awards.
Founded by Teixeira in 2006, RT Features has produced some of the most acclaimed films in and outside of Brazil, including “The Lighthouse” by Robert Eggers, which won the top critics’ prize at the Cannes Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight; “Call Me By Your Name” by Luca Guadagnino, winner of the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and “Frances Ha” by Noah Baumbach, with Greta Gerwig. It also produced “The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmão” by Karim Aïnouz, winner of the best film award at Cannes’ Un Certain Regard and Brazil’s submission to the 92nd Academy Awards.
This is the dramatic moment that P&O passengers are told that their cruiser is joining the desperate search for ‘people in the water’ after a British cargo ship sank in a deadly North Sea crash, leaving one dead and four missing.
British-flagged vessel Verity collided with another cargo ship Polesie at around 3am this morning about 14 miles southwest of the German island of Helgoland, Germany‘s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said.
The 300ft vessel, which was carrying steel from Bremen in Germany to the British port of Immingham, sank following the impact and rescuers have launched a desperate mission to find the missing crew members.
The P&O cruise ship Iona, which left Southampton three days ago for Hamburg, Rotterdam and Bruges in Belgium, has now joined in the search for survivors.
In footage obtained from the cruiser, passengers are given an update that ‘Iona is involved in a search and rescue operation’.
‘We’re looking for persons in the water from another vessel that has been involved in an incident earlier this morning,’ they are told over a Tannoy. ‘Our ship’s company are fully prepared and are standing by to assist with this operation.’
The body of a man has been recovered while four crew members are still missing, the German Sea Rescue Society said, adding that two more people had been pulled from the water alive.
The 300ft vessel, which was on its way from Bremen in Germany to the British port of Immingham, sank following the impact and rescuers have launched a desperate mission to find several people who are missing. Pictured: Rescue vessels at the scene
The P&O cruise ship Iona, which left Southampton three days ago for Hamburg, Rotterdam and Bruges in Belgium, has now joined in the search for survivors
British-flagged vessel Verity (file image) collided with another cargo ship Polesie at around 5am this morning about 14 miles southwest of the island of Helgoland, Germany ‘s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said
Search lights scanning the water near to where the British cargo ship Verity sank after colliding with another vessel
An image from Marine Traffic shows the two cargo ships getting perilously close to each other before colliding
Rescuers are still desperately searching for the four remaining crew members – but that search in the 15C North Sea is being hampered by 30mph winds, 10ft waves and poor visibility due to fog.
Passengers on board the Iona have told MailOnline how they were awoken at 5.30am to an emergency announcement from the captain about the accident, with one saying everyone ‘was in a state of panic’.
Another passenger, who wishes to be identified only as Mr Johnson, said he saw the P&O cruise ship searching the water with spotlights this morning.
He said: ‘We are on holiday but this is a very tragic situation. We cannot comprehend how the people involved in the collision must be feeling along with the family of the people who remain missing or have lost their lives.’
The emergency command said any victims rescued from the water can receive medical care on board the cruise ship Iona.
The German Sea Rescue Society later said one body had been recovered and two people had been rescued. Another four crew members remain missing.
The other ship, the Bahamas-flagged Polesie that had left Hamburg for La Coruna in Spain, remained afloat with 22 people on board after the collision. The Verity was the smaller vessel with a length of almost 300 feet, compared to the Polesie’s 625 feet.
The P&O cruise ship Iona, which can hold 5,200 holidaymakers and 1,800 crew, has joined several vessels in the search for Verity, including sea rescue cruisers ‘Hermann Marwede’ and ‘Bernhard Gruben’.
The owner of Verity, Faversham Ships Ltd, is based on the Isle of Wight and said it had no comment on the situation.
Two rescue cruisers, an emergency tug, a pilot boat, a police patrol boat and a helicopter are helping with the search
A view from the P&O cruise ship Iona shows the rescue operation underway with several vessels at the scene
Mr Johnson, who saw the cruise ship searching the waters with a spotlight, said: ‘This is a very tragic situation’
A helicopter (pictured) is also involved in the search as well as an emergency tug, a pilot boat and a police patrol boat
In 2017, another cargo ship called The Islay Trade, which was owned and managed by Faversham Ships, ran aground near Margate Harbour. The cargo ship’s chief offer ‘became uncertain of the vessel’s position and overwhelmed’, according to a Maritime Accident Investigation Branch report seen by The Times.
A passenger on board the Iona said he was woken up at 5.45am this morning to an emergency announcement and saw the Iona searching the dark waters with a beam as he stepped out onto the deck.
‘Everyone was very petrified and scared. Everyone was in a state of panic,’ Mr Johnson told MailOnline.
‘It was very dark, we had search beams from all angles of the cruise ship hunting. There were chilling noises and announcements as everyone was trying to find out what was happening.’
He added: ‘You never know what’s going to happen in the world, we just all hope that the outcome does not become more tragic.’
Another passenger on board Iona who wished to remain anonymous, said she was woken up by the cruise ship stopping. ‘The crew were called to their muster stations, that’s how I found out something was wrong.
‘It wasn’t until later that the captain announced we were helping in a search and rescue operation with the German government. I went outside and saw the search lights in the water, we all felt sad and anxious, hoping that they would find people.’
The passenger added: ‘It’s a horrible thing to happen and our thoughts go to those who are currently missing and their families. We are anxiously waiting for updates in the hope more people are found.’
‘There’s a very sombre feeling on board, we are all awaiting updates and are praying for good news.’
The other ship, the Bahamas-flagged Polesie (file image), remained afloat with 22 people on board
The P&O cruise ship Iona (file image), which left Southampton three days ago for Hamburg, Rotterdam and Bruges in Belgium, has now joined in the search for the survivors. The emergency command said the victims can receive medical care on board Iona
Two rescue cruisers, an emergency tug, a pilot boat, a police patrol boat and a helicopter are helping with the search.
A helicopter is also involved in the search as well as an emergency tug, a pilot boat and a police patrol boat.
The German emergency command said it also has a sensor aircraft flying over the sea in order to obtain more information on the whereabouts of Verity.
A P&O Cruises spokesperson told MailOnline: ‘P&O Cruises Iona is currently involved in a search and rescue operation off the coast of Germany.
‘The incident is ongoing and Iona’s cooperation complies with international maritime law as well as being consistent with the company’s moral and legal obligations.
‘Iona is scheduled to be at sea today and this event should have no impact upon tomorrow’s scheduled call to Rotterdam or the onward itinerary.’
The song, composed by Eslabon Armado’s Pedro Tovar, is up for the top category song of the year at this year’s awards. The team-up made history as the first regional Mexican song to crack the top 10 of Billboard’s all-genre songs chart earlier this year and was also the first regional Mexican song to be performed on late-night television when Peso Pluma made his appearance on “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.”
The 24th annual ceremony will also include performances from current nominees Pablo Alborán, Camilo, Manuel Carrasco, Iza, Juanes, and Ozuna along with best new artist nominees Borja, Natascha Falcão, Gale, Paola Guanche, Joaquina and León Leiden. Edgar Barrera — who is the most-nominated person of the evening (13 recognitions) for his production and songwriting credits in chart-topping songs from Shakira, Karol G, Grupo Frontera and more — is also billed as a performer for the evening.
This lineup joins the previously announced performers: Maria Becerra, Bizarrap, Kany García, Carin León, Christian Nodal, Rauw Alejandro and Alejandro Sanz. Feid has five nominations, including best reggaeton performance, best rap/hip-hop song and best urban music album for his LP “Feliz Cumpleaños Ferxxo Te Pirateamos El Álbum.” Christian Nodal also has two nominations, best regional song with García for their collab “La Siguente,” and best ranchero/mariachi album for “Forajido EP2.”
Alejandro is a best urban music album nominee for “Saturno,” and Sanz is nominated for record of the year and song of the year. León is in the running for best norteño album with his “Colmillo De Leche.”
Argentine urban pop singer Becerra has four nominations, including song of the year, best reggaeton performance and best urban song, while Bizarrap is nominated in six categories, including record of the year, song of the year and producer of the year.
Additional performers and presenters for the awards show will be announced at a later date. The 24th Annual Latin Grammy Awards will be broadcast from the Conference and Exhibition Centre (FIBES) at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT) on Univision, UniMás and Galavisión in the U.S., and at 10:30 p.m. CET on Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE) in Spain.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the famously outspoken Democratic congresswoman from New York, says she has a simple approach to fixing the immigrant crisis in the U.S.
“The answer should really be, we should make it easier to be legal, documented and citizens of the United States of America,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
Ocasio-Cortez, talking to the “The Daily Show” host Desus Nice in an interview Monday night, said the country needs to return to how things were done in previous generations when the process for becoming an American citizen was more streamlined.
“From all parts of the political spectrum, one of the big issues that we have when it comes to immigration is the fact that we have an undocumented population,” Ocasio-Cortez said on the Comedy Central show. “Now you can fix that by trying to build a wall or you can fix that by trying to document people and create a path to citizenship.”
Ocasio-Cortez acknowledged one of the biggest immigrant-related issues facing several American cities including her own — she represents a New York congressional district that spans parts of the Bronx and Brooklyn and as Nice pointed out, is one of the most diverse in the nation — that problem being overburdened migrant shelters. Ocasio-Cortez blamed that on the complex path to citizenship.
“We’ll have folks that might say, ‘Look at these systems, that our shelter system has weight and things like that,” she said. “But one of the reasons our public systems experience weight is because people don’t have a documented and reliable path to work and sustain themselves — just like all of our ancestors did and our grandparents and our great-grandparents.”
While Ocasio-Cortez did talk about how to help undocumented migrants already in the country, she not address the surge of migrants on the Mexican border looking to enter the U.S. In August, the U.S. Border Patrol apprehended 36% more migrants on the border with Mexico than it had in July of this year, a total of 181,059. That marked an 82% increase from June. According to officials, the surge has increased even further in recent weeks.
“You know, I always love when people talk about like, ‘Oh well, my grandfather came, and he wrote his name wrong in a book and now he’s a citizen,’” Ocasio-Cortez continued. “And, can we put two and two together, that our processes today are so difficult that they make our immigration process difficult? But that doesn’t mean that immigrants don’t create a positive contribution to our country and our economy and our society.”
Watch video of the full five-minute interview with Ocasio-Cortez in the video above.
With their graduation to high school, an eighth and final season awaits the fans of Nick Kroll’s adult animated comedy Big Mouth. We’ll be keeping track of everything you need to know about the final season of Big Mouth on Netflix.
One of the most successful comedy series on Netflix to date, Big Mouth has been entertaining, and educating, millions of subscribers from around the world since September 2017. For the past several years the release of the latest season of Big Mouth has become an annual fixture in the Fall, but thanks to the announcement that season 8 will be the show’s last, Fall 2025 is going to hit differently.
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Big Mouth Season 8 Netflix Renewal Status
Official Netflix Renewal Status: Renewed (Last Updated: 23/10/2023)
We’ve known since May 2023 that Big Mouth would be returning for an eighth and final season on Netflix.
With an eighth season under its belt, Big Mouth will overtake Grace and Frankie, and Orange Is the New Black as the longest-running Original on Netflix.
What to expect from the Eighth and Final Season of Big Mouth?
Nick
Unlike his fellow classmates, Nick is not attending Bridgeton High School. Instead, Nick has been sent to a private school through his mom’s vain hope that his behavior will change and he won’t be going down the same path as his older brother Judd.
Nick had spent most of the season trying to get closer to an older student, but after an awkward encounter, that came to a swift end. Now lonely at his new school, Nick was recruited to Mrs Cornhill’s “sad boys club.” However, Nick meets Andrew, a fellow club member, but after striking up a quick friendship the pair leave the sad boys club.
After the new Andrew meets old Andrew, it’s evident that next season the pair will be fighting over the position of Nick’s best friend. With Mrs Cornhill’s promise that her sad boys will return to her, Nick has to be careful that he doesn’t lose both Andrew’s as friends.
Andrew
Everyone’s favorite perverted Jewish teenager, Andrew finally took ownership of his actions and apologized to Timon for accidentally fondling her breasts. However, that didn’t stop her boyfriend, Pumba, from beating the hell out of him.
With Andrew turning over a new leaf, he might be able to save his disastrous start to life in high school. However, he will be spending the start of next season fighting for the position of Nick’s best friend against the new Andrew.
Jessi
Thanks to getting on the wrong side of Lulu, it looked like Jessi was going to have a rough time in high school. However, after finding a way to befriend Lulu, Jessi ditched hanging out with Nick’s older sister and the popular kids and officially became one of the stoner kids.
Jessi was one of the smartest students in Bridgeton Middle School, so it will be interesting to see if befriending Lulu and the stoners will have an impact on her grades.
Missy
Missy was initially extremely excited about life in high school with asexual boyfriend Elijah, however, he dropped a bombshell on her that he was no longer going to Bridgeton High, and would be attending a religious school elsewhere. High school then terrified Missy and filled her with dread.
Missy eventually came clean about her feelings about high school, resulting in her dad agreeing that she should be homeschooled instead. However, her mom is more reluctant to the idea and only agrees for it to be temporary. While initially happy at the idea of being homeschooled, Mona reminds Missy that without high school she won’t be meeting any boys anytime soon.
Jay
Despite being one of the worst students at Bridgeton Middle School, Jay was able to graduate so long as he attended summer school with Coach Steve. Jay struggled to come to terms with Lola dating his older brother, as he still loves her. At least for Jay, he has a place in high school amongst the ‘basement dweller kids’ such as Nick’s older brother Judd.
Matthew
Matthew quickly found his place in high school amongst Bridgeton High’s Queer Choir aka the B-High Quee-Choi. He’s also made some progress at home with his religious parents, who have begun to teach Matthew’s siblings about LGBT relationships. However, it is heavily hinted that Matthew’s dad is in the closet, or certainly bi-curious.
We expect Matthew to thrive as a member of the B-High Quee-Choi and may find himself a new boyfriend, and officially move on from Jay.
What is the episode count of Big Mouth season 8?
The final season will feature a total of ten episodes. This will take the final episode count to 81.
When will the final season of Big Mouth be released on Netflix?
All the previous releases of Big Mouth have arrived in the Fall. We expect the final season will be no different and should arrive between September and November 2024.
Will you be sad to see Big Mouth end after 8 seasons? Are you looking forward to the final season? Let us know in the comment below!
Animal is directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga and is set to release in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam languages.
Ranbir Kapoor is gearing up for his next film Animal with Rashmika Mandanna. The teaser has been released and it has only increased the excitement level among fans. Well, today on the auspicious occasion of Dussehra, the teaser of Animal has been featured on Times Square Billboard. T series also shared the video on its official Instagram handle.
The teaser was released on the occasion of Ranbir Kapoor’s birthday. The actor headlines the film, marking his first collaboration with director Sandeep Reddy Vanga. The film also stars Rashmika Mandanna, Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol. Animal marks Ranbir’s second release of the year, after Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, and Sandeep’s second Bollywood film after Kabir Singh. An intense Ranbir Kapoor leads the show, playing a man who is emotionally and physically abused by his father but doesn’t hold it against it. Instead, he defends him and even seeks for his validation. The teaser goes on to show that Ranbir’s character grows up to become a gangster and he is facing ‘Lord’ Bobby Deol (as mentioned on the film’s Wikipedia page).
Watch the video here:
Animal is set to release on December 1. The film was originally slated to release in August. It was set to clash with Sunny Deol’s Gadar 2, Akshay Kumar’s OMG 2 and Rajinikanth’s Jailer. However, the director chose to delay the film to December because the post production of the film was incomplete.
The first song titled Hua Main, which has created quite a stir for Ranbir and Rashmika’s liplocks, has released already. While all of these have skyrocketed the anticipation surrounding the film, it looks like there’s still some time before we get to watch the much-awaited trailer.
News18 Showsha has exclusively learned that the makers of Animal are planning on launching the trailer just days before the film’s release on December 1. However, another song from the film might be released before the trailer is launched. A source tells us, “The trailer of Animal will be unveiled on November 23, about a week before the film hits the big screen. The makers want to make use of the next few weeks to build some intrigue and excitement surrounding the Ranbir Kapoor starrer. The trailer promises to be a hard-hitting and intense one which will definitely leave fans surprised. They’re in for a treat.”
More than 90 feature films showcasing the best in U.S. moviemaking will take center stage next month at Poland’s American Film Festival (AFF), whose 14th edition takes place Nov. 7 – 12 in Wrocław, Poland.
Founded in 2010 as the sister event of the long-running New Horizons Film Festival, the AFF bills itself as the first film event in Central Europe solely devoted to the works of contemporary and classic American cinema.
In putting together the program for the 14th edition, festival director Ula Śniegowska says she and the programming team spent the past year “scouting the festivals and trying to get our hands on the pulse of what’s happening in American auteur and independent film.” The festival, which includes titles that have premiered at Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, Cannes and other leading fests, is similar in spirit to France’s long-running Deauville American Film Festival, which mounted its 49th edition this year.
The festival opens Nov. 7 with “Dream Scenario,” director Kristoffer Borgli’s examination of viral celebrity described as “a singular mix of comedic and sinister” by Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge. The film stars Nicolas Cage, whose performance Debruge said ranks among the actor’s best. “It really seems to us like a perfect opening film — a crowd-pleaser that will also bring reflection and talk about the world we live in,” says Śniegowska.
Other highlights include the Polish premiere of two-time Academy Award winner Alexander Payne’s “The Holdovers,” the “Sideways” director’s portrait of a prickly history teacher at an elite New England prep school, played by Paul Giamatti, as well as Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla,” the American filmmaker’s Priscilla Presley biopic that won best actress for lead Cailee Spaeny at the Venice Film Festival. The festival closes with “Memory,” a New York-lensed romance by Mexican auteur Michel Franco that stars Jessica Chastain and Peter Sarsgaard, who won best actor in Venice for his performance.
“Dream Scenario,” starring Nicolas Cage, opens the 14th American Film Festival.
A24
Meanwhile, a retrospective will present a selection of films by the late Camille Billops and her partner, James V. Hatch, whose powerful and unflinching documentaries — including the 1992 Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner “Finding Christa,” which was the first film by a black woman to take the top prize in Park City — are little known to Polish audiences. “They are part of rewriting cinema history, which should begin to include voices that have been overlooked for years,” says Śniegowska. “In this particular case, the voices of black women.”
The American Film Festival has two competition strands whose winners are chosen by audience members. The Spectrum section spotlights contemporary American cinema with a focus on mid-career filmmakers or those making significant directorial debuts. The American Docs competition, meanwhile, offers a panorama of non-fiction films. Last year’s winners in the two categories were Alex Lehmann’s “Acidman” and Amy Bandlien Storkel and Bryan Storkel’s “The Pez Outlaw.”
In addition to its non-competitive sections, the festival also presents its Indie Star Award each year to recognized masters of independent filmmaking, with past winners including Todd Solondz, Jerry Schatzberg, Sarah Driver, John Waters and 2022 recipient Nina Menkes.
This year, dual honors will be handed out: one to director Alex Ross Perry (“Her Smell,” “Listen Up Philip”), who was praised by AFF curator Piotr Czerkawski as “one of the most original filmmakers in American independent cinema,” and will be in Wrocław to present a selection of works he’s written, directed or produced while also giving a masterclass.
Also being honored is producer Adele Romanski, best known for Barry Jenkins’ Oscar winner “Moonlight,” as well as Charlotte Wells’ “Aftersun” and Eliza Hittman’s “Never Rarely Sometimes Always.” Along with a retrospective of her work, which Śniegowska says has “set the development of American cinema in recent decades,” Romanski will join a panel on the state of filmmaking in the wake of the Hollywood strikes.
Iconoclastic filmmaker John Waters was the recipient of an Indie Star Award in 2021.
Courtesy of American Film Festival
Those strikes put a monkey wrench in planning this year’s event, says Śniegowska, as many studios and distributors decided to delay the release of films slated for fall premieres. The lineup of the American Film Festival nevertheless boasts 94 feature films, including 63 Polish premieres, with organizers hoping to build on the success of last year’s edition, which drew more than 34,000 people to festival screenings and events — a 20% bump from the previous year.
Another highlight for attendees in Wrocław is U.S. in Progress, an event running parallel to the AFF that spotlights American narrative feature projects in rough or final cut seeking finishing funds, matching them with European buyers and top Polish image and sound post-production companies. This year the event will offer cash and in-kind awards totaling $120,000.
The event, which runs Nov. 8 – 10, also features one-on-one matchmaking sessions between American and Polish partners in an effort to boost collaborations between the two screen industries.
Science fiction movies offer audiences an escape from reality by pushing the boundaries of our imagination. Yet, some of these cinematic journeys take the concept of suspension of belief to an extreme. So many fantastic sci-fi movies have ventured far beyond anything the human brain can comprehend, and still managed to provide a satisfying conclusion to their stories. Yet sometimes, there are some sci-fi films that try a bit too hard to stick out from the bunch and introduce something new, but aren’t really sure what to do with it. The result is some pretty terrible endings in otherwise gripping films, with these 10 being the absolute worst.
Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, Miranda Otto, Justin Chatwin, Tim Robbins, Rick Gonzalez
Rating
PG-13
Main Genre
Adventure
War of the Worldshas two quite significant things wrong with its ending. First and foremost, its plot is centered on a worldwide extraterrestrial invasion, in which loving father, Ray, finds himself in the middle of. Ray is tasked with the seemingly impossible – reuniting his children with their mother amid all the chaos. With the aliens murdering millions of people, it seems unlikely that Ray will manage to bring his family together again, and yet, he does exactly that at the end of the film.
If Ray’s family’s unlikely survival wasn’t ridiculous enough, the actual defeat of the aliens is a kick in the teeth. It’s heavily implied throughout that the aliens are extremely intelligent, with various technologies that far surpass anything on Earth. Yet despite all of their intelligence, they didn’t think to check whether Earth would actually be hospitable or not. After an epic invasion, they are stupidly killed off by Earth’s microbes. Stephen Spielberg has even admitted that he doesn’t believe the film has a good ending, as he struggled finding a way to satisfyingly bring it to a close.
Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott, Josh Lucas, Nick Nolte, Paul Kersey
Rating
PG-13
Main Genre
Action
Luckily, Hulkisn’t a part of the ever-growing MCU’s canon. It was released at a time before the superhero craze, and it was evidently clear that studios had no clue where to clearly direct the character. However, in some respects, it was clear that director Ang Lee understood that Hulk is ultimately a tragic character, but it feels as though he wasn’t allowed to completely explore this darker side of him.
The result of this is some out-of-place humorous moments, that are made worse by the fact that they seem unintentional. It completely explores Bruce Banner’s twisted relationship with his father, David, who is also a genetic research scientist. Throughout its runtime, it attempts to be gritty, but this is completely ruined by the end. While facing off against a commander during his exile in the Amazon, Bruce tells him, “You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry,” as he, and his frog friend, slowly turn green as the camera pans out. It was clearly supposed to feel like a legendary moment, but instead felt like it was straight out of a B-movie.
Chris Pratt2, Bryce Dallas Howard, Vincent D’Onofrio, Ty Simpkins, Irrfan Khan, Nick Robinson
Rating
PG-13
Main Genre
Action
Set 22 years after the events of Jurassic Park, it seemed as though Jurassic Worldwould be a breath of fresh air for the franchise. For the most part, it was. Most notably, Jurassic World was significantly more action-packed than any of its predecessors, but also leaned more into the horror elements prevalent in the novels. Additionally, it also introduced the first genetic hybrid seen in the films, the Indominus Rex, changing the trajectory of the franchise’s core underlying themes.
However, it chucked all this away in its weak ending. After the Indominus Rex is defeated, the survivors are evacuated from the island in a helicopter. As they fly away, a T. Rex roars in the distance as the island and its dinosaurs are abandoned. If you think you’ve heard this story before, it’s because you have. It’s quite literally the ending of Jurassic Park, albeit an updated setting. Considering it was supposed to add more to the franchise, it felt as though most of what they had built felt like a waste until the eventual sequel.
Passengerstakes place on the Avalon, a spacecraft headed to a new world for humans to inhabit as Earth has fallen victim to ecocide. After an asteroid hits the ship, it causes its system to fail, and one of the inhabitants, Jim, wakes up 90 years early. Feeling alone and miserable, he decides to wake up another inhabitant, Aurora, whom he has been creepily staring at in her hibernation pod.
The pair eventually fall in love, but of course, Aurora discovers the truth. This is when the film possibly could have benefited from a more sinister twist, perhaps with Aurora having to navigate her unfortunate fate alongside an unstable Jim. However, the pair end up together and live out their days on the ship, building a cabin and a farm. It’s an incredibly insulting and stupid ending, as the man still gets the girl despite ripping away her autonomy.
Mark Wahlberg, Tim Roth, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Clarke Duncan, Paul Giamatti, Estella Warren
Rating
PG-13
Main Genre
Action
The original Planet of the Apesmovie is known for its fantastic plot twist, which didn’t need to audibly explain anything to its audience to be effective. After spending the entirety of the film on what appears to be a faraway planet, it’s revealed at the end that they’re on Earth, as the main character, George, finds a half-buried Statue of Liberty. The 2001 remake attempts to end on a similar note, but instead looks like a cheap mimic.
Attempting to twist the original’s ending, the 2001 remake takes place on a separate planet, known as Ashlar. As in the original, apes rule this planet, and the main character, Leo, must escape back to Earth. However, Ashlar isn’t revealed to be Earth at any point, and Leo successfully returns home. After landing on Earth, he discovers that the Lincoln Memorial is now a statue of an ape, even though there’s no logical explanation for as to how the apes managed to take over Earth in the first place.
Will Smith, Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, willow smith, Darrell Foster
Rating
PG-13
Main Genre
Drama
What makes the ending of I Am Legendeven worse is the fact that there’s an alternate one that exists and is even better. Its story is loosely based on the 1954 novel of the same name by Richard Matheson, and likely would have benefited from following its source material more. Dr. Robert Neville is immune to a virus that has turned the rest of humanity into bloodthirsty mutants, and he uses his spare time to develop a cure by experimenting on one of the infected. He encounters survivors Anna and Ethan, who are also immune to the virus. The pair is traveling to a survivor’s camp, but Neville is keen to develop his cure first.
It’s revealed that the mutant that Neville captured is actually the Alpha female, and the group wants her back. The trio locks themselves in the labs’ basement, but they are quickly surrounded. Learning that the cure works, Neville sends Anna and Ethan away with it before blowing up the lab, killing himself and the mutants in the process. Throughout the film, Neville is shown to crave humanity once more, which makes his sacrifice feel out of character. Instead, the alternate ending where he frees the Alpha female and decides to not pursue a cure is a more satisfying end, as he embraces his new world and finds a new way to feel like a human again.
Rent on Apple TV
The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalkeris arguably the franchise’s most debated installment yet, and for good reason. While the new trilogy certainly has moments that fans will love, it never really felt as though it knew where it was going. After spending the previous two films building up the reveal of Rey’s heritage, it is finally revealed that she is the granddaughter of Palpatine. It doesn’t entirely add anything new to the plot, and results in an odd ending scene where Rey introduces herself as Rey Skywalker instead of owning her lineage.
First and foremost, calling herself a Skywalker doesn’t really make sense given her fractious relationship with Luke. It actually would have made more sense for her to own her Palpatine last name, which is as ridiculous as it sounds. Ultimately, Rey being a Palpatine was a completely stupid move to connect the franchise together, which in the end led to her basically becoming a nobody rather than someone who just saved the galaxy.
Haley Joel Osment, Frances O’Connor, Sam Robards, jake thomas, Jude Law, William Hurt
Rating
PG-13
Runtime
146
Main Genre
Adventure
Steven Spielberg’s weakest film, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, is set in a world where humanoid robots have been created to bring the world’s population back up. A prototype named David is placed with a family whose son has been placed in suspended animation, and he is able to give them the love that they need. However, David struggles with his parents not loving him back, and is desperate to become a living boy so that they don’t treat him differently.
As the film nears its end, it feels as though the credits could roll at numerous points. At one point, it seems as though the film is going to end on a darker note, with David desperately begging to become real despite as his power source runs out. This would have resulted in a heavy-hitting message about A.I. and robots, but instead it drags out even more, ending on a more sentimental note with David getting the love he has desperately craved. This goes against the story that Stanley Kubrick wanted to tell when he acquired the rights prior to his death, with its lack of bleakness feeling completely unoriginal and uninspired.
Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir, Carmen Ejogo
Rating
R
Main Genre
Sci-Fi
Following the release of films such as Alien vs. Predator, it never seemed as though the Alien franchise would ever be restored to its former glory. That’s why, when Ridley Scott’s Prometheus revealed itself as a prequel to the original films, fans were obviously keen to see what the direction the franchise would take. Initially, Alien: Covenantseemed like a dream come true, bringing back the horror of what made Alien so great, all while promising to tie itself directly to it.
Right when it seems as though the origin of the Xenomorph has been explained, it is made even more confusing by the film’s end. After successfully taking down David’s Praetomoprh, the survivors settle back into their stasis, and it’s revealed that David has assumed the identity of their android, Walter. Not only that, but he has two facehugger embryos with him headed for Origai-6. Of course, that means it now has to be explained how an engineer ended up with embryos on LV-426 in another sequel that won’t happen, all because it pined a little bit too hard to try and get one.
Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Min-sik Choi, Amr Waked, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Pilou Asbæk
Rating
R
Main Genre
Action
Based on the myth that humans only use 10% of their brains, Lucyfollows a woman who gains psychokinetic abilities after absorbing a psychedelic drug. It’s definitely a unique film, and it’s cool to see how Lucy’s abilities evolve as she unlocks more of her brain. For example, she can extract information from other people’s minds, and also change her physical appearance at will. All of it feels a little too ridiculous, but it genuinely takes a turn for the worse at the end of the film.
Reaching 100% capacity, Lucy mentally embarks on a space-time journey, going all the way back to the beginning of time and The Big Bang. Once she’s done, she simply vanishes into thin air, transcending into a flash drive. It completely forgets its own logic that it has been working with the entire time, giving it one of the most anti-climatic endings in cinematic history.
What kind of animation has Europe’s next gen talent got in the hopper? Cartoon Springboard, an E.U. platform organized by Cartoon for burgeoning toon talents which kicks off today in Madrid, can supply some answers.
Of the 24 projects to be pitched Wednesday and Thursday at Madrid’s Atheneum, a large part will be made, if financed, in 2D. At least half are from women.
Quite a few potential standouts come from France: ”Bitches,” which won an Annecy Ciclic Prize at its MIFA Pitches; “Maestitia,” co-helmed by Merel Hamers, at Gobelins, and “Inspector, Your Pants!” from the same prestige school; “When Monsters Within,” whose key creative Pablo Alcázar studies at Valence’s La Poudrière, another venerable French animation school.
Some directors are known values, as streaming platforms and France’s Annecy Festival turn creators into niche stars. “All Good,” for instance, is co-directed by Diego Porral, who served as animation lead on the “Kill Team Kill” episode of “Love Death + Robots.”
Most crucially, around half the titles target YA viewers. Born in the U.S. with “The Simpsons,” YA animation is now exploding in Europe. One of its major challenges is to find an international audience, as a recent Cartoon Brew article suggested. Having been at it for 35 years, the level of U.S. YA shows is formidable.
One way to square that circle, however, may be to pitch public broadcasters over Europe looking to power up their younger-skewing digital services as they move ever more front and center to networks’ identity.
There it may help that so many series at Cartoon Springboard this year carry a PBS-friendly social issue undertow: Whether an eco-conscience (“Azul’s Journey,” “Freshstyle,” “No Pets”) or gender focus (“Labinocle,” “My Grandmother is a Skydiver”). Social commitment, which Europe’s young creators have in buckets, may be one way forward.
Running Oct. 24-26, Cartoon Springboard is supported by Creative Europe-Media and the Community of Madrid, the City Council of Madrid, Madrid Film Office, and ICEX, the Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade. A quick breakdown of this year’s titles:
A young adults-oriented TV comedy series, the story of a workplace burnout, directed by Porral, one of Spain’s best 2D animators, whose credits include “Love Death & Robots” and “Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles.” Another Porral-Garralda project, “Leopoldo From the Bar,” played at May’s Cannes Spanish animation showcase “Revelations!”
All Good
Courtesy of Cartoon Springboard
“Azul’s Journey,” (Alin Romero, Spain)
Combining adventure, a female character and sustainability issues, the film follows the youngest among the guardian clan in an island in danger by its climatic decline. Mexican-born Romero was selected to form part of Residencias, a cinema creators’ support program by Spain’s Academia de Cine and Madrid’s City Hall.
Azul’s Journey
Courtesy of Cartoon Springboard
“BeinBuddies,” (Quarratul Ain Saeed, Belgium)
A 13 episode, 5 minute adventure, well-being and friendship series, whose main characters are four buddies in different states of malaise. Through each other they learn to take it easier.
Winner of the Ciclic Prize at Annecy’s MIFA Pitches, the adult comedy series follows two best friends from Marseille, talking about their lives as fancy girls. It adapts Tacconi’s short film “Cupid’s Bow,” broadcast by Arte. Condemi at France’s Caïmans produces.
Bitches
Courtesy of Cartoon Springboard
“Chestnut Kid,” (Marta Pellicer, Spain)
Tween-oriented adventure, fantasy and friendship project set amidst a war-torn land between the Forest and the Wildfire, following a little boy born of the Guardian Tree from a chestnut.
“Digiman,” (Leo Neumann, Franz Rügamer, Germany)
Sci-fi comedy web series kicking-off with the of human genomes warped by smartphone radiation to the point that their bearers were born with the properties of smartphone brands. Rügamer studies at Ludwigsburg’s Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg.
Digiman
Courtesy of Cartoon Springboard
“The Fast Way,” (Javier Moratilla Heras, Spain)
Olivia works for an invention company, where she’s feted daily. Green with envy, her coworker Drew sets out to dampen her accomplishments and will stop at nothing until she’s knocked down a peg at work and in her everyday dealings. Key creative Isabella Carolina Hernández Vignola lends her skill to the family comedy series featuring 30 episodes. A project from Madrid’s U-Tad.
“The Foreign Brother,” (Szonja Eckert, Hungary)
An extraterrestrial family adopts a child from decaying planet earth who’s afraid to give up his spacesuit helmet in fear of dying without it. This causes tension with his future brother, already reluctant of the arrangement, until an accident evokes sympathy and the two form a lasting bond. The tween-focused series is a concept from the Budapest Metropolitan University, with eight 25 minute episodes.
Three frog friends who rap on the edge of a drying pond, where social inequalities rise as fast as temperatures. A 2D animation by Angouleme’s Emca alumni.
Freshstyle
Courtesy of Cartoon Springboard
“The Giant Bombardone,” (Marco Raffaelli, Italy)
From an original work by Elena Sorrentino, the series follows a young emperor who rules over a mystical forest where logic is abandoned. Its serenity is shaken when the Mother of the Emperor arrives, setting off events that reveal the identity of the Giant Bombardone, a creature who terrorized the ruler. The droll episodic has been created at Turin’s Centro Sperimentale Di Cinematografia, aimed at ages 6-9.
An adventure, friendship and inclusion series for teenagers, inviting viewers on a comedic journey with a blue lion, a devil-boy and a shy girl in a fish suit. Together they dive into a bizarre universe where adult life is full of absurdity and unconventional rules.
“Inspector, Your Pants!,” (Nawel Bahamou, France)
From prestigious Paris-based school Gobelins, Bahamou creates this action comedy for young adults about a 40-year old asthmatic inspector, convinced that his wife’s disappearance wasn’t an accident and refusing to wear trousers until he gets her back. He finally discovers, however, that she was a complete stranger to him.
“Labinocle,” (Link Dapoigny, Belgium)
From Brussels’ school La Cambre, the series narrates the story of a 22 year old trasgender man attending a unique art school located in a mysterious mansion lost in nature, where students can develop their own artistic identity.
Produced by Maupin at Avec ou Sans Vous, it is created by Gobelins’ Haters, co-director of “Thaba Ye,” which won the 2023 Yugo BAFTA Student film animation prize. A Dutch folklore-inspired historical drama-musical about overcoming life’s injustices and resisting the temptation to exact revenge. Stien, a 15 year old woman, aims to be a renowned sculptor like her adoptive mother, Truus. But Truus is accused of witchcraft for creating the Basilisk, which turns people into stone with its deadly stare. Stien faces the challenge of defeating the monster.
“Mong / My Grandmother is a Skydiver,” (Polina Piddubna, Ukraine)
An animated documentary anthology web series on marginalized communities worldwide. “My Grandmother” focuses on a time-jumping story where a granddaughter, experiencing the invasion of Ukraine, has a phone call from her young grandmother, who is living her best and most peaceful years in 1960s’ Tajikistan. Piddubna studies at Germany’s Filmuniversität Babelsberg Konrad Wolf in Potsdam.
“Moon Wars,” (Paula Ruiz, Spain)
Sisters Seh Lin and Mei Lin, descendants of a dead Goddess, team up with other rulers of Luna to fend off evil-doing enemies, the Umbra. All’s at risk as the supernatural peers fight to preserve their continent. Paula Ruiz from Madrid’s Light Box Academy directs this 30-episode, 20-minute YA drama, with visual creative Alejandra Luque contributing to a TV series that centers friendship and fantasy.
“New Wave,” (Fay Orion Antar, Ireland)
Spirited teen Indigo dreams of becoming a famous director and escaping her rural town. She spends her days alongside creative best friends, Margot and Jack, as they revel in their passions and grow into their unique identities. The tween TV series is produced by Shauna Cullen at Ireland’s Jam Media and directed by Fay Orion Antar of Dublin’s IADT, with 52, 11-minute episodes.
“No Pets!,” (Davide Veca, Italy)
Luc avoids defying his family’s no pet rule by caring for insects and fauna. Enamored, he keeps his pals safe until they return to natural habitats. Created by Ivana Murianni and Alice Gambara, the educational series focuses on sustainability. For kids 5+, the 26 episodes are directed by Davide Veca, set up at Milan’s Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore and produced by Boris Bertolini at Italy’s Nuvole & Strisce.
“Shaman Therapy,” (Pauline Pinçon, Samuel de Ceccatty, Manon Ardisson, France)
A project from Lyon’s ATRE-Ecole des Artes du Spectacle, the 10-episode YA fantasy TV series “dives into uncharted landscapes of the human mind.” The comedy follows former psychology student Adele who hones her latent shamanic abilities and joins quirky best friend Rodrigo and an enigmatic bat spirit named Ella on a subconscious adventure to seek and destroy trauma crystals.
“Silence Sometimes,” (Álvaro Robles, Spain)
Targeting YA and adult audiences, the feature film from the Instituto de Cine de Madrid focuses on Silvia who’s unable to use her voice. Anything she comes in contact with suffers the same fate. She retreats to live a solitary life until meeting musician Marco, who’ll challenge her stability. The female-led fantasy is produced by Mireia Vilanove at Cartuna.
Silence Sometimes
Courtesy of Cartoon Springboard
“Skatebugs,” (Daniele Zen, Italy)
Gaia city skateboards that possess lifesaving superpowers mingle with the challenges of puberty in this insect-led comedy series for kids 6-9. The bugs battle it out with metal-loving termites and the robot-slug Smog on their action-packed adventures. Created by Vernante Pallotti, the 20-episode series is produced by Andrea Zingoni at T-Rex Digimation, a project from Milan’s Civica Scuola di Cinema Luchino Visconti.
“Soul for a Hot Dog,” (Myra Hild, Denmark)
In this YA web series, a small town hot dog stand lures customers to bet their souls for a free meal. A hungover young Tobbe will get closer to the action than anyone else and unravel the vendor’s manipulative ploy, at high-risk. A project from The Animation Workshop and Viborg’s VIA University, the eight episodes deal with lore and well-being.
Selected as one of five finalists at 2023’s Sony Talent League, the 90-minute comedy places sentiments on display as teenage Hugo is forced to confront his simmering angst while caring for his little brother Nico, who comes equipped with his own set of budding frustrations. Key creative Pablo Alcázar contributesd to the project from Valence’s La Poudrière.
“Zinnia, the Moonlight & Starfish,” (Heleen Portheine)
Billed as an “animated magical coming-of-age adventure,” the series follows Zinnia who comes from a long line of moon fishers. Seeking a career outside of her familial obligation, she’ll travel alongside her two best friends to magical lands in search of her dreams. The character-driven episodic aims for the 6-9 demographic.
Music streaming giant Spotify posted a surprising profit for the third quarter on Tuesday, thanks to a jump in subscribers, spending cuts and a boost from recent price hikes. But its U.S.-listed shares dipped in premarket trading, likely thanks to a weaker-than-expected revenue forecast for the current quarter.
The Swedish company reported a profit of $68.8 million, or 35 cents per share, for the three months ended Sept. 30, reversing a year-ago loss of $161.5 million, or 96 cents per share. The results represent Spotify’s first quarterly profit since the start of last year.
The results far outpaced the loss of 21 cents per share forecast by analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research.
Revenue came in at $3.56 billion, up from $2.95 billion a year ago, but falling short of the $3.64 billion analysts were expecting.
Spotify reported a 26% leap in subscribers to 574 million from 456 million a year ago. That was a gain of 23 million, up 4%, from the June quarter, topping the company’s prior predictions by 2 million. The company said it was “our second largest Q3 net addition performance in our history.”
Premium subscribers rose by 16% year-over-year to 226 million, which topped company forecasts by 2 million. Premium revenue rose 10% year over year to $3.1 billion, though average revenue per user dipped 6% to $4.59, which it attributed to discount promotions in some markets, with some offsets from the 10% price increase that kicked in late in the quarter.
The company said growth in premium was particularly strong in North America and Latin America, and pointed to a strong promotional campaign during the quarter for driving the gains, which it noted were better than expected in markets that saw price increases.
Ad-supported revenue jumped 16% year over year to $473 million, reflecting double-digit growth across all regions, the company said. Music ad revenue leaped 20%, while podcast ad revenue growth “remained in the healthy double-digit range,” the company said.
Spotify reported an operating profit of $33.9 million, and said operating expenses dropped 13% from last year thanks to lower marketing expenses and a drop in the number of workers. Spotify laid off hundreds of employees this year, including major cuts of 6% of its staffers in January and 200 more gone in June as its podcast division struggled.
The company said it saw “improvement in podcast trends” in the September quarter after it cut back spending in the division and slimmed down its lineup.
Earlier this month, the company announced plans to introduce a new “superpremium” tier that comes with high-definition audio, and began introducing audiobooks to subscribers in the U.K. and Australia. That is expected to reach the U.S. before the end of the year.
Shares declined about 2.5% in premarket trading, likely because the company’s forecast was disappointing. Spotify said it expects revenue for the fourth quarter of $3.92 billion, short of the $4 billion predicted by Zacks’ analysts. It said it expects to add about 27 million subscribers, reaching for 601 million total, including 235 million premium subscribers, or about 9 million more paying customers.
The NBA is back. The 78th NBA regular season tips off today, October 24, with five days of doubleheaders. First up, reigning NBA champion Denver Nuggets host the Los Angeles Lakers before Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors take on Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns on opening night.
The regular season is jam-packed with 82 games, including the All-Star Game in February, and concludes with the NBA Finals in June. New this year is the inaugural In-Season Tournament starting in November. 30 teams will compete in a format similar to European soccer tournaments, vying for the new NBA Cup.
NBA fans looking to stream basketball games will need access to a few different services to catch all the action. Here’s everything you need to know about how to watch NBA games in 2023.
How to Watch NBA Games Online
NBA games air nationally across ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV. Games will also air on local channels, so NBA League Pass is a great way to catch every out-of-market game that isn’t airing on your local channels. If you don’t have cable, there are several options for streaming the 2023-24 NBA season.
The best way to watch NBA games without cable is through a live TV streaming subscription to Sling TV. Right now, there is a Sling TV deal offering 50% off your first month — bringing the Orange package with TNT and ESPN down to just $20, the Blue plan with your local ABC to $22.50, and the comprehensive Orange + Blue package down to $30.
For NBA TV, you’ll also need the $11 Sports Extras add-on. Sling TV comes with 50 hours of free cloud-based DVR recording space, perfect for recording all the season’s top NBA games.
With Fubo’s sports-focused live TV streaming service, you’ll have nearly every channel you’ll need to watch the 2023-24 NBA regular season. Every game broadcast nationally, with the exception of those on TNT, will also be available to stream on Fubo, which comes with 1,000 hours of cloud DVR storage and a seven-day free trial.
You can pay an extra $11 per month for the Sports Plus add-on to get the NBA TV channel. FuboTV also offers NBA League Pass for $14.99 a month as an add-on.
For NBA games on ESPN, TNT, and ABC, you can stream them on Hulu + Live TV. Stream NBA games or watch on-demand whenever and wherever you want.
2023 NBA Week 1 Schedule
The NBA has released its complete 2023-24 season schedule, including broadcast schedules for TNT, ESPN, ABC, NBA TV and ESPN Radio. Below, find the Week 1 schedule for national TV games. For NBA games on your local sports channels, check out the day-by-day and team-by-team schedules at NBA.com.
All times Eastern.
Tuesday, October 24
Wednesday, October 25
Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks: 7:00 p.m. (ESPN)
Dallas Mavericks vs. San Antonio Spurs: 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Thursday, October 26
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Milwaukee Bucks: 7:30 p.m. (TNT)
Phoenix Suns vs. Los Angeles Lakers: 10:00 p.m. (TNT)
Friday, October 27
Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics: 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Golden State Warriors vs. Sacramento Kings: 10:00 p.m. (ESPN)
Saturday, October 28
New York Knicks vs. New Orleans Pelicans: 7:30 p.m. (NBA TV)
The latest movie from the DC cinematic universe showcases Jaime Reyes as he gains incredible superhero powers from an ancient alien tech known as The Scarab.
Blue Beetle was first introduced in comic books in 1939 and has since made appearances in animated shows such as ‘Young Justice’, and live-action TV series such as ‘Smallville’. The film marks the Latino superhero’s first entry into the DCU, where it focuses on the origin of his power and the introduction of Kord Industries.
“Jaime Reyes is a superhero whether he likes it or not.”
Aside from great action sequences, the film also highlights Jaime’s family. Their close-knit relationship shows that not all superheroes need to go it alone. The Reyes family was always a part of the character’s story, and showcasing this in the movie adds an extra layer of emotion and heart.
“Recent college grad Jaime Reyes returns home full of aspirations for his future, only to find that home is not quite as he left it. As he searches to find his purpose in the world, fate intervenes when Jaime unexpectedly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology: the Scarab. When the Scarab suddenly chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he is bestowed with an incredible suit of armor capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the superhero Blue Beetle.”
Originally, the movie was not intended for a theatrical release. ‘Blue Beetle’ was set to hit streaming service Max (formerly HBO Max), but during development, the studio decided to give the film a theatrical run. Filmed for IMAX, audiences are able to be immersed in the story and action scenes of Blue Beetle.
As the newest superhero in the DCU line-up since James Gunn and Peter Safran took over as co-CEO, fans wonder if Blue Beetle will return in future projects. James Gunn took to his Instagram account with a photo from the screening to confirm that Jaime Reyes will remain in the DCU, “I can’t wait for audiences to meet Jaime Reyes, who will be an amazing part of the DCU going forward!”
Currently, there’s no word on whether a ‘Blue Beetle’ sequel is in development. However, this doesn’t mean Maridueña won’t show up in upcoming DC projects. Gunn has also confirmed that John Cena and Viola Davis will continue to have a presence in the DCU as their characters, Peacemaker and Amanda Waller.
‘Blue Beetle’ was released domestically on August 18, 2023. Currently, the movie is still playing in theaters, and if you want a chance to experience it on the big screen, AMC Theaters has the movie available for $5 as a part of its Fave Faves deal. ‘Blue Beetle’ has a total runtime of 2 hours and 8 minutes
Watch the official trailers for ‘Blue Beetler’ below:
The movie was released on digital on September 26 and is available for purchase for $24.99 or rent for $19.99 on platforms such as Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu, YouTube, and Google Play. The movie has yet to arrive on streaming, but once it meets its 90 to 120-day window, it should arrive on Max.
Fans can look forward to 4K UHD, Blu-Ray, and DVD release on October 31, 2023. There will be a steelbook edition as a Best Buy exclusive. Bonus features for the physical release include:
Generations: Blue Beetle” – 4-part documentary Told in distinct chapters, explore the journeys of actors and filmmakers bringing “Blue Beetle” to the big screen for the first time ever. Audiences will be immersed in the POV of filmmakers who showcase their experiences on set and in their creative studios making the story of this DC character a reality.
Nana Knows Best – featurette Witness Nana’s transformation from an adorable ‘abuelita’ into a machine gun-wielding revolutionary, and stop in for a few of her most fun moments on set throughout production.
Scarab Vision – 2-part featurette Xolo Maridueña hosts this series of scene study walk throughs that showcases how the scarab works and the role it plays in some of Blue Beetle’s most epic moments.
Verizon lost 78,000 net pay TV subscribers for its Fios consumer video service in the third quarter, ending it with just more than 3.0 million, the telecom giant said on Tuesday.
It had lost 69,000 users in its consumer division in the second quarter and lost 95,000 in the year-ago period.
Verizon also lost 1,000 business Fios video customers on the third quarter. The company has in the past often cited “the ongoing shift from traditional linear video to over-the-top offerings” as a key driver of video subscriber declines.
Verizon, led by chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg, gained 72,000 Fios broadband internet subscribers in the third quarter after adding 51,000 in the second quarter. Total broadband net additions of 434,000 in the latest period compared with 287,000 in the second quarter, leading Verizon to end September with a total broadband user base of 10.3 million. The company noted that this meant “the fourth consecutive quarter that Verizon reported more than 400,000 broadband net additions.”
Last year, Verizon unveiled its +play platform, which “allows users to discover, purchase and manage some of their favorite subscriptions across entertainment, audio, gaming, fitness, music, lifestyle and more – all in one place.” The firm explained at the time: “Through new partnerships with Netflix, Peloton, Live Nation’s Veeps and featuring leading services like Disney+, Discovery+, A+E Networks, AMC+ and many others, the hub will give Verizon customers a simple and efficient way to access and take advantage of exclusive deals for content services.”
Vestberg in the Tuesday earnings update lauded the company’s momentum, saying: “Our financial discipline, combined with our healthy balance sheet, enabled us to increase our dividend for the 17th consecutive year, which is the longest current streak of dividend increases in the U.S. telecom industry.”
The performers Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus earn your empathy in the documentary “Milli Vanilli,” a jolting, eye-opening investigation on how fame destroyed them. The war-of-words film, directed by Luke Korem, unfolds like a whodunit.
The film retraces the bonkers events of Morvan and Pilatus’s naïve rise to the top in the late 1980s as Milli Vanilli, the image-forward pop duo who secretly lip-synced prerecorded songs to live audiences. Their hits included “Girl You Know It’s True” and “Baby Don’t Forget My Number.”
At first, the duo needed money to escape poverty, but their celebrity status kept them hooked, and their German producer, Frank Farian, held the bait.
And then, the documentary revisits their fall: During a live performance on MTV in 1989, the song started to skip, exposing them as frauds. In 1998, Pilatus died of an overdose. “I lost my sobriety and every sense of reality,” we hear him say in the film.
Impressively, Korem gets those who ran the business side of Milli Vanilli, including officials at Arista Records, to spill the juicy details on what actually happened to the duo: Morvan and Pilatus became Farian and the label’s scapegoats. As presented here, it’s easy to see how this could be the basis for a horror film by Jordan Peele.
Morvan is the heart of the documentary; he reflects on the group’s past treatment (he thinks they deserved that revoked Grammy) and raises still-relevant questions about the way the music industry exploits vulnerable performers. Charles Shaw, one of the real singers behind Milli Vanilli, says that Farian, who also worked with the group Boney M., “made most of his money on Black artists, and it worked.”
Milli Vanilli Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 46 minutes. Watch on Paramount+.
Now in its 26th year, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival continues to train students to become the next generation of artisans.
Through careful programming, fest executive and artistic director Christina Routhier and her team have expanded their lineup. Says Routhier, “This year, we’ve added more directors, producers, casting directors and animation — [as well as] working on the 10 Artisans to Watch series.” She continues, “Our students are so eager to learn and to hear from all these differing voices in the film and TV industry. Their reaction and what they get out of it is probably the most rewarding part of my job.”
Among the films screening this year: Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron,” Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro,” Ava DuVernay’s “Origin,” Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla” and Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things.”The list of honorees includes: DuVernay, receiving the Virtu- oso Director Award; Emerald Fennell (“Saltburn”), who will be honored with the Spotlight Director Award; Hoyte van Hoytema (“Oppenheimer”) is receiving Variety’s Creative Impact in Cinematography Award; and Todd Haynes (“May December”) will receive the Outstanding Achievement in Directing. Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer will receive the Outstanding Achievement in Production Design honor for “Barbie.”
Yes, the festival is hosting Barbenheimer, Routhier confirms, “We are screening ‘Oppenheimer’ in 35mm, and we’re also screening ‘Barbie.’ We’re honoring the two production designers, Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer.”
Academy Award winning makeup artist Kazu Hiro will receive a Career Achievement Award. Routhier says his work as a sculpture artist should be exciting for the sculpture students, and this was another way to expand the festival and what it’s showcasing to students majoring in the sculpture degree program.
Todd Haynes’ “May December” will also screen at the fest. The film, starring Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman, was shot on location in Savannah. Similarly, “Origin” and “The Color Purple” were also shot there. Routhier says the films utilized Savannah College of Art and Design proprieties and many students worked on the films.
Furthermore, the festival will coincide with the university’s opening of the new backlot at Savannah Film Studios. The 11-acre production hub includes a next-generation LED volume stage for virtual productions and new soundstages, among other features. It is the largest and most comprehensive university film studio complex in the nation.
Also new this year: the festival and Amazon MGM Studios have created a dedicated LGBTQ+ Short Film Competition. Amazon MGM Studios will donate $10,000 for the jury-awarded best overall film and $5,000 for an Audience Award. Films in the program are under 40 minutes in length and represent excellence in storytelling and execution in narrative or documentary formats, reflecting unique insight into LGBTQ+ themes, issues or ideas.
“The future of film lives at SCAD, where audiences can see next year’s Oscar winners at our SCAD Savannah Film Festival later this month, and where guests are treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of the latest and greatest SCAD triumph: the new backlot at Savannah Film Studios, the largest at any university in the world,” said SCAD president and founder Paula Wallace. “From Savannah cityscapes, to a courthouse square and suburbs, the backlot is a paradise for filmmakers.
The European Union is on track towards its goal of ending Europe’s reliance on Russian fossil fuels within this decade, the European Commission said on Tuesday.
European countries are heading into their second winter with scarce Russian gas, after Moscow slashed deliveries last year following its invasion of Ukraine – inflicting an energy crisis of record-high gas prices in Europe.
In a report published on Tuesday, Brussels said the EU expected imports of Russian gas to drop to 40-45 billion cubic metres this year, compared with 155 bcm in 2021, the year before the Ukraine war. The 27-country EU has sanctioned Russian coal and seaborne oil imports.
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“The worst effects of the crisis may now be behind us, but there is no room for complacency,” the Commission said.
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“Energy markets remain vulnerable, fossil fuel subsidies have increased during the crisis, the inflation is still high, our critical infrastructure needs to be protected, including from sabotages,” it added.
To replace Russian gas, EU countries have hiked imports from other suppliers and, at the same time, slashed gas use. Norway has replaced Russia as the EU’s biggest pipeline gas supplier and liquefied natural gas imports have surged, led by supplies from the United States.
Across the EU, gas storage caverns are 99 per cent full, Gas Infrastructure Europe data show, giving countries a buffer against potential supply shocks this winter.
A record expansion of solar energy has also helped reduce Europe’s call on gas-fuelled power plants this year, particularly during summer months when power use for air conditioning peaks.
But while analysts say a return to the record-high prices seen last year is unlikely, global gas markets are unusually tight, posing the risk that prices could still rise in response to cold weather or further supply shocks.
Trudeau accuses Russia of ‘weaponizing’ energy and food during UNSC address
The Commission also warned that EU countries are still not expanding renewable energy fast enough to reach their legally binding target to get 42.5 per cent of all energy from renewable sources by 2030 – nearly double the current share.
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To help speed that up, the Commission published a plan to support Europe’s wind energy industry, which is struggling with high inflation and mounting competition from Chinese companies.
