An Interview with Donald Rosenfeld

Dakota Fanning in EFFIE GRAY
Courtesy of Adopt Films

AN INTERVIEW WITH 

DONALD ROSENFELD

By Joshua Handler

Last month, I had the chance to sit down with producer Donald Rosenfeld about his new film, Effie Gray, which was released in theaters earlier this year. The film is an Emma Thompson-scripted period drama about Effie Gray, a teenager (Dakota Fanning) who gets into a love triangle in Victorian England. Rosenfeld is the former president of the acclaimed Merchant Ivory Productions and has been the executive producer of such well-loved films as The Tree of Life and Jodorowsky's Dune.

Below, you can listen to the interview in full. Because we were in a hotel next to the restaurant, there is some disruptive background noise, but that shouldn't impede on your comprehension of the interview.

BREAKING: STEVE JOBS is NYFF Centerpiece

NYFF CENTERPIECE TO BE 

DANNY BOYLE'S STEVE JOBS

By Joshua Handler

Robert Zemeckis' The Walk is opening the 53rd New York Film Festival, and Don Cheadle's Miles Ahead is closing. Now, Danny Boyle's Steve Jobs is the centerpiece. The following is the press release from the Film Society of Lincoln Center:

THE FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER ANNOUNCED TODAY THE SELECTION OF STEVE JOBS AS CENTERPIECE OF THE 53RD NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL 

New York, NY (July 27, 2015) – The Film Society of Lincoln Center announced today the selection of Steve Jobs, written by Academy Award® winner Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network, Charlie Wilson’s War) and directed by Academy Award® winner Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours), as the Centerpiece of the upcoming 53rd New York Film Festival (September 25 – October 11), to screen on Saturday, October 3.

Boyle and Sorkin joined forces to create this film about the brilliant man at the epicenter of the digital revolution, working from Walter Isaacson’s best-selling biography. Steve Jobs stars Michael Fassbender in the title role, Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman, Seth Rogen as Steve Wozniak, Jeff Daniels as John Sculley, Michael Stuhlbarg as Andy Hertzfeld, and Katherine Waterston as Chrisann Brennan.

New York Film Festival Director and Selection Committee Chair Kent Jones said: “You hear that a bio of Steve Jobs is being produced, and of course you see multiple possible movies in your head . . . but not this one. Steve Jobs is dramatically concentrated, yet beautifully expansive; it’s extremely sharp; it’s wildly entertaining, and the actors just soar—you can feel their joy as they bite into their material.”

“I am honored that our film has been selected as the Centrepiece of this year's festival,” said Boyle. “And thrilled and terrified too, unlike the subject of our film, who would have taken the whole thing very much in his stride. Steve Jobs was a thoroughly contradictory and complex character who forged our digital age. He’s the kind of brilliant, flawed character that Shakespeare would have relished writing about, and storytellers of all kinds will be fashioning and re-fashioning the mythology of the digital revolution for generations to come. I hope that festivalgoers enjoy our take.”

Sorkin and Boyle have created a dynamically character-driven portrait of the co-founder of Apple, weaving the multiple threads of their protagonist’s life into three daringly extended backstage scenes, as Jobs prepares to launch the first Macintosh, the NeXT workstation, and the iMac. The film is a dazzlingly executed cross-hatched portrait of Jobs, set against the changing fortunes and circumstances of the home computer industry and the ascendancy of branding, of products, and of oneself.

Steve Jobs is directed by Danny Boyle and written by Aaron Sorkin working from Walter Isaacson’s best-selling biography of the Apple founder. The producers are Mark Gordon, Guymon Casady, Scott Rudin, Boyle, and Christian Colson.

Universal Pictures and Legendary Pictures present—A Scott Rudin/Mark Gordon Company/Entertainment 360/Decibel Films/Cloud Eight Films production of a Danny Boyle film: Michael Fassbender in Steve Jobs, starring Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Katherine Waterston.  The music is by Daniel Pemberton, and the costume designer is Suttirat Larlarb.  The film’s editor is Elliot Graham, ACE, and its production designer is Guy Hendrix Dyas. Steve Jobs’ director of photography is Alwin Küchler, BSC, and its executive producer is Bernard Bellew.  The drama’s producers are Mark Gordon, Guymon Casady, Scott Rudin, Danny Boyle, Christian Colson, and it is based on the book by Walter Isaacson.  The film’s screenplay is by Aaron Sorkin, and it is directed by Danny Boyle.  ©2015 Universal Studios.  www.stevejobsthefilm.com

The 17-day New York Film Festival highlights the best in world cinema, featuring top films from celebrated filmmakers as well as fresh new talent. The selection committee, chaired by Jones, also includes Dennis Lim, FSLC Director of Programming; Marian Masone, FSLC Senior Programming Advisor; Gavin Smith, Editor-in-Chief, Film Comment; and Amy Taubin, Contributing Editor, Film Comment and Sight & Sound.

NYFF previously announced Robert Zemeckis’s The Walk as Opening Night, Don Cheadle’s Miles Ahead as Closing Night and Luminous Intimacy: The Cinema of Nathaniel Dorsky and Jerome Hiler, the first-ever complete dual retrospective of the experimental filmmakers.

Tickets for the 53rd New York Film Festival will go on sale in early September. Becoming a Film Society Member at the Film Buff Level or above provides early ticket access to festival screenings and events ahead of the general public, along with the exclusive member ticket discount! Join by August 7 to receive these NYFF benefits. Learn more atfilmlinc.com/membership.

For even more access, VIP Passes and Subscription Packages give buyers one of the earliest opportunities to purchase tickets and secure seats at some of the festival's biggest events including Opening, Centerpiece, and Closing Nights. VIP passes also provide access to many exciting events including the invitation-only Opening Night party, “ An Evening With…” Dinner, Filmmaker Brunch, and VIP Lounge. Benefits vary based on the pass or package type purchased. VIP Passes and Subscription Packages are on sale now.  For information about purchasing Subscription Packages and VIP Passes, go to filmlinc.com/NYFF. 

BREAKING: NYFF53 Closing Night Selection Announced!

Courtesy of the Film Society of Lincoln Center

BREAKING: DON CHEADLE'S 

MILES AHEAD TO CLOSE NYFF53

By Joshua Handler

Continuing the trend of selecting potential awards contenders to premiere at the New York Film Festival, the Film Society of Lincoln Center announced today that Don Cheadle's directorial debut, Miles Ahead, a biopic of musician Miles Davis, will close NYFF53 this fall. The past few years of NYFF closers were the New York premiere of Birdman, which went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture, the world premiere of Her, which went on to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, and the world premiere of Flight, which went on to be nominated for two major Oscars. Given the NYFF's track record for closing with films that go on to be major awards contenders, this bodes well for Miles Ahead. 

Below is the full press release from the Film Society of Lincoln Center:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THE FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER ANNOUNCED TODAY THE WORLD PREMIERE OF DON CHEADLE’S DIRECTORIAL DEBUT MILES AHEAD AS THE CLOSING NIGHT SELECTION FOR THE53rd NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL

             
New York, NY (July 22, 2015) – The Film Society of Lincoln Center announced today that Don Cheadle’s directorial debut Miles Ahead will make its World Premiere as the Closing Night selection of the upcoming 53rd New York Film Festival (September 25 – October 11). Cheadle, who co-wrote the script, stars as the legendary musician opposite Emayatzy Corinealdi and Ewan McGregor. 

New York Film Festival Director and Selection Committee Chair Kent Jones said: “I admire Don’s film because of all the intelligent decisions he’s made about how to deal with Miles, but I was moved—deeply moved—by Miles Ahead for other reasons. Don knows, as an actor, a writer, a director, and a lover of Miles’ music, that intelligent decisions and well-planned strategies only get you so far, that finally it’s your own commitment and attention to every moment and every detail that brings a movie to life. ‘There is no longer much else but ourselves, in the place given us,’ wrote the poet Robert Creeley. ‘To make that present, and actual … is not an embarrassment, but love.’ That’s the core of art. Miles Davis knew it, and Don Cheadle knows it.”

Don Cheadle added: “I am happy that the selection committee saw fit to invite us to the dance. It’s very gratifying that all the hard work that went into the making of this film, from every person on the team, has brought us here. Miles’ music is all-encompassing, forward-leaning, and expansive. He changed the game time after time, and New York is really where it all took off for him. Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center... feels very ‘right place, right time.’ Very exciting.”

Miles Davis was one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. And how do you make a movie about him? You get to know the man inside and out and then you reveal him in full, which is exactly what Don Cheadle does as a director, a writer, and an actor with this remarkable portrait of Davis, refracted through his crazy days in the late-70s. Holed up in his Manhattan apartment, wracked with pain from a variety of ailments and fiending for the next check from his record company, dodging sycophants and industry executives, he is haunted by memories of old glories and humiliations and of his years with his great love Frances Taylor (Emayatzy Corinealdi). Every second of Cheadle’s cinematic mosaic is passionately engaged with its subject: this is, truly, one of the finest films ever made about the life of an artist. With Ewan McGregor as Dave Brill, the “reporter” who cons his way into Miles’ apartment. The film was produced by Don Cheadle, Pamela Hirsch, Lenore Zerman. Along with Daniel Wagner, Robert Barnum, Vince Willburn and Daryl Porter. 

The 17-day New York Film Festival highlights the best in world cinema, featuring top films from celebrated filmmakers as well as fresh new talent. The selection committee, chaired by Jones, also includes Dennis Lim, FSLC Director of Programming; Marian Masone, FSLC Senior Programming Advisor; Gavin Smith, Editor-in-Chief, Film Comment; and Amy Taubin, Contributing Editor, Film Comment and Sight & Sound.
 
NYFF previously announced Robert Zemeckis’s The Walk as the Opening Night selection and Luminous Intimacy: The Cinema of Nathaniel Dorsky and Jerome Hiler, the first-ever complete dual retrospective of the experimental filmmakers.
 
Tickets for the 53rd New York Film Festival will go on sale in early September. Becoming a Film Society Member at the Film Buff Level or above provides early ticket access to festival screenings and events ahead of the general public, along with the exclusive member ticket discount! To find out how to become a Film Society member, visitfilmlinc.com/membership.

For even more access, VIP Passes and Subscription Packages give buyers one of the earliest opportunities to purchase tickets and secure seats at some of the festival's biggest events including Opening, Centerpiece, and Closing Nights. VIP passes also provide access to many exciting events including the invitation-only Opening Night party, “ An Evening With…” Dinner, Filmmaker Brunch, and VIP Lounge. Benefits vary based on the pass or package type purchased. VIP Passes and Subscription Packages are on sale now.  For information about purchasing Subscription Packages and VIP Passes, go to filmlinc.com/NYFF. 
 

THE CHINESE MAYOR: Rooftop Films Review

THE CHINESE MAYOR

Rooftop Films Summer Series

2015, 86 minutes

Not Rated

Review by Joshua Handler

This film was shown through the Rooftop Films Summer Series on Saturday, July 18. Producer Zhao Qi was in attendance for a Q&A.

Hao Zhou's The Chinese Mayor is a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the Chinese government through the eyes of Geng Yanbo, the mayor of Datong, the most polluted city in China. Geng wants to reinvigorate Datong by making it a cultural city. This involves rebuilding much of the city, which means relocating many of its inhabitants. This divides the people of the city, some supporting him, some deeply against him. Geng believes he is doing good and wants to make his city a better place, but the all-powerful Communist Party gets in the way.

The film won the Sundance Film Festival's Special Jury Prize for Unparalleled Access, and it's not hard to see why. Zhou's access to Geng and the citizens of Datong is virtually unlimited, and it's a minor miracle that this film even got made. As a distinctly unflattering look at the Chinese government, this film could have easily been shut down by the government, but for some reason, it wasn't. Rarely do we get a look inside a system like China's and even more rarely is it this intimate. What this film vividly reveals is a broken system, one in which everyone serves the bureaucracy, and no one wins.

What's admirable about Zhou's film is that it doesn't make Geng out to be good or bad. It's a very even portrait of a very complicated man. Because of this, The Chinese Mayor is an excellent conversation-starter, one that could cause hours of post-screening debate. 

Overall, The Chinese Mayor is an eye-opener that's unlike any other documentary I've seen. It's insightful, even-handed, and powerful. What's disconcerting, though, is the fact that it is without, at this point, US distribution. A film like this cannot be ignored, and especially with all of the unworthy docs that get US distribution, it seems absurd that an acclaimed Sundance-winner with a timely subject such as this one hasn't been bought. If marketed to the right audience, The Chinese Mayor could have impact. 

3.5/4

TRAINWRECK Review

Amy Schumer and Bill Hader in TRAINWRECK
Courtesy of Universal Pictures

TRAINWRECK

2015, 122 minutes

Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, language, and some drug use

Review by Joshua Handler

Trainwreck had its world premiere last Tuesday at the Film Society of Lincoln Center as the closing to their retrospective of Judd Apatow's work. The Film Society was kind enough to have me at this event to review the film. 

It's been a few years since Judd Apatow made a film, the last one being 2012's undisciplined, yet amusing This is 40. That film didn't have nearly the charm or hilarity of The 40 Year-Old Virgin or Knocked Up, two of the finest comedies of the past 15 years, but had the humane Apatow touch. With Trainwreck, Apatow is back, but this film isn't as much a showcase for him as it is his writer and star, Amy Schumer, who proves herself to be every bit the force of nature we all expected her to be on the big screen.

The film follows the exploits of Amy (Schumer), a sexpot who lives life caring more for herself than anyone else and falls for Aaron (Bill Hader), a sports doctor she's assigned to write a piece on for the magazine she works for.

Trainwreck works mostly because of Schumer. Her charisma, everyday-woman-that-you'd-see-walking-down-the-NYC-street charm, and perfect comedic timing make it a huge treat to watch. Her supporting cast isn't too horrible either, as it includes Bill Hader, Brie Larson, Mike Birbiglia, Colin Quinn, Tilda Swinton, LeBron James, Ezra Miller, John Cena, Vanessa Bayer, and countless others. Schumer is extremely confident onscreen and with her delivery, most jokes land. So many jokes land hard that it becomes shocking when the occasional one doesn't. 

Schumer's screenplay, while in many ways conventional, is truly insightful about modern-day relationships and nails the details. She understands what it's like to be in a relationship now, and by honing in on people's quirks, mannerisms, and the like, she has created a comedy that feels authentic and honest. The film can be nasty and mean, but that doesn't mean that there isn't a huge heart beneath it. It's obvious that Schumer put her all into this screenplay. While her comedic writing skills are sharp, she's also quite good at drama, crafting a few genuinely touching scenes that take the movie from being an unusually good R-rated sex comedy to being a truly impressive overall film.

Apatow gives every member of his supporting cast the chance to shine. LeBron James is very funny and a surprisingly natural actor. Colin Quinn gives a hilarious performance as Amy's father, Gordon. Brie Larson is touching as usual as Amy's sister. But, the MVP is Tilda Swinton in a role that can be compared to Tom Cruise's in Tropic Thunder. Swinton is unrecognizable as Amy's bitchy boss, Dianna, and shows once again that she is one of the finest actresses working today. In addition to being one of the most committed dramatic actresses out there, she's now proven herself to be an adept comedienne. 

As the male romantic lead, Bill Hader is warm, charming, and the perfect foil to Schumer. Hader and Schumer have great chemistry, which makes their romance completely believable. Hader has never been given the chance to be a romantic lead like this before, so this was a very risky casting decision, but he rises to the challenge, owning this character and giving the film a needed dose of sweetness.

Comedies now have become cold-hearted and mean. It's frequently refreshing to see a comedy that goes for a relentless and uncompromising approach, but what's disconcerting is the lack of respect and love for humanity that many of these films have. Judd Apatow has a love for humanity that shows through all of the crude sex jokes. His films are inherently warm and good-hearted. Amy is a flawed woman. Most other movies would make her the butt of every joke to make chastise her character for living the kind of life that she does. Instead, Apatow acknowledges that Amy is flawed...and moves on. He doesn't care because he sees the good in her. Even Colin Quinn's character, Gordon, a womanizing misanthrope, is given the benefit of the doubt by Apatow. It's this love that would cause me to mention his name in the same sentence as Woody Allen and Billy Wilder. While those two are two of the greatest ever, I would say that Apatow is a modern-day Billy Wilder of sorts in terms of the humanity that he puts into his comedy and the distinct touch that he infuses it with.

It's often the case with comedies that cinematography is left to the side. Not with Trainwreck. Apatow wisely chose acclaimed cinematographer Jody Lee Lipes (Martha Marcy May Marlene, Tiny Furniture) to serve as director of photography for the film. It appears that Lipes shot the film on 35mm film, making Trainwreck feel cinematic and rich. Many of the sight gags work brilliantly and many of the more emotional moments have great impact because of Lipes' particular attention to framing. Fun side note: in the scene when Schumer and John Cena go to the movie theater, a film Lipes directed and shot, Ballet 422, is on the marquee as a nod to him. The film was released earlier this year by Magnolia Pictures after premiering in April 2014 at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Overall, Trainwreck is a perfect marriage of director and writer/star. While too long and clichéd in the third act, the film is so much fun to watch and so consistently perceptive that the length and clichés become irrelevant. I've now seen Trainwreck three times, and each time I discover something new that I love or appreciate about it. Schumer is a unique comedic talent, and if this is any indication of what is to come, she's going to have a very long career.

4/4

CARTEL LAND Review

Autodefensa member standing guard in Michoacán, Mexico, from CARTEL LAND, a film by Matthew Heineman Photographer: Matthew Heineman

CARTEL LAND

2015, 98 minutes

Not Rated

Review by Joshua Handler

This review was originally published on April 26, 2015 out of the Tribeca Film Festival. Cartel Land hits U.S. theaters today.

Dangerous doesn't even begin to describe Matthew Heineman's Sundance double prize-winner, Cartel Land. Miraculous and death-defying might be the more apt adjectives. To create his thorough, personal, and multi-dimensional look into the U.S.-Mexico Drug War, Heineman literally risked his life. To make this film, Heineman got caught in the middle of shootouts and followed vigilantes as they hunted drug cartel members. Thus, Cartel Land is riveting filmmaking, putting any other narrative drama on the drug war to shame with its heart-stopping action sequences and life-or-death circumstances.

Cartel Land is an unflinching and utterly hopeless look at a war with no end in sight. Heineman refuses to sugar coat anything. He shows this drug war in all of its brutality. Much of Cartel Land is hard to watch, but it's impossible to turn away. 

With this film, Heineman makes the drug war personal. By following citizens fighting drug cartels on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border, Heineman shows the effects this drug war has on people's lives. The intensity of the trauma described and depicted is indescribably disturbing, and Heineman doesn't shy away from the horrors.

Most importantly, Cartel Land is a ruthless exposé of the Mexican government's involvement in and inability to control the drug war. The American government doesn't get a pass from this film, but it's mainly the Mexican government that is targeted by it and for good reason. This war will never end if people involved in the Mexican government keep supporting the drug cartels.

Overall, Cartel Land accomplishes the impossible: it manages to create a portrait of one of the most complex conflicts of today in 98 minutes. While ultimately too long, every second of this film is compelling, rendering the overlong running time unimportant. With twists and turns that could only happen in real life, Cartel Land is yet another example of the truth being far stranger than fiction. 

4/4

An Interview with Debra Granik

Courtesy of Still Rolling Productions

AN INTERVIEW WITH DEBRA GRANIK

By Joshua Handler

Debra Granik is best known for her 2010 Best Picture-nominee and Sundance-winner, Winter's Bone, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Winter's Bone launched Jennifer Lawrence's career, but unfortunately not Granik's, despite the film's success. Granik's previous feature, Down to the Bone, also received major critical acclaim and launched now-Oscar-nominee Vera Farmiga's career and won Granik the Sundance Directing Prize. Granik's latest film is Stray Dog, a loving and moving documentary about Ron "Stray Dog" Hall, a PTSD-affected motorcyclist in rural Missouri. A stereotype-smasher and an intimate portrait of a fascinating figure, Stray Dog deserves to be seen (it opens today, July 3, in theaters). Below you can listen to an interview I conducted with Ms. Granik about the film.