Black Comedy ‘Holy Sh-t!’ Nabbed in Major Territories Ahead of Frightfest (EXCLUSIVE)

[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]

Haute cuisine — the worst, right? Minuscule portions, inscrutable foams, and spheres scattered across gigantic plates festooned with equally baffling smears and powders, prices not to be looked upon by those with documented cardiac conditions. Worst of all is the pomposity, the highfalutin puffing-up of dinner from a source of sustenance and joy into a dense text meant to be pondered, analyzed, and described more than savored.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Following the world premiere of “My Neighbor Adolf” on the Piazza Grande in Locarno, Beta Cinema has sold the dark comedy to Vendetta Films, which will bring the Udo Kier and David Hayman starrer to cinemas across Australia and New Zealand in the first quarter of next year.  Prior to Locarno, Beta Cinema sold the film to Hungary (Cinetel) and Switzerland (Praesens Film), while deals for North America (Cohen Media Group), U.K. and Ireland (Signature Entertainment), Italy (I Wonder), South Korea (Lumix Media) and Japan (Tohokushinsha Film) had been revealed before. The film is set in Colombia in 1960, just a few days after the Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann was caught by Mossad agents in Argentina. Polsky, played by Hayman, is a lonely and grumpy old man, living in the remote Colombian countryside. He is a survivor of the Holocaust. He spends his days playing chess and tending his beloved rosebushes. One day, a mysterious old German man – played by Kier – moves in next door, and Polsky suspects that his new neighbor is… Adolf Hitler. Since nobody believes him, he embarks on a mission to uncover the evidence. In order to gather it, however, he will need to come closer to his neighbor than he would like – so close that the two could almost become friends.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The Exchange has acquired the sales rights for North America, Europe, Latin America, Australia, New Zealand and other remaining territories for superhero movie “Shin Ultraman,” a blockbuster hit in Japan when it was released on May 13. The Exchange is introducing the movie to buyers at the Toronto Film Festival. The release of the movie, produced by Tsuburaya Productions, Toho and Khara, marked the 55th anniversary of the original “Ultraman” TV series. It grossed $31.2 million in Japan. The movie was directed by Shinji Higuchi (“The Floating Castle,” “Attack on Titan”) and was written by director and screenwriter Hideaki Anno (“Shin Godzilla,” “Neon Genesis Evangelion”), who also acted as producer alongside Takayuki Tsukagoshi and Minami Ichikawa.

There’s something depressing in watching talented comedians struggle to get laughs from weak screenwriting. This repeatedly happens in the first three-to-four episodes of Hulu’s “Reboot,” a show with a great cast and even a clever idea but faulty comic timing and clichéd joke writing.

EXCLUSIVE: Dan Ahdoot, who has starred in series such as Cobrai Kai, and Vali Chandrasekaran, an exec producer on Modern Family are behind a new Muslim-American comedy that is in development at ABC.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Reservoir Docs has acquired documentary “The Other Fellow,” which is about several men named James Bond, like the movie’s hero. It has debuted the trailer (below). The comedy-thriller premiered and won an award at Doc Edge New Zealand, and gets its European premiere in Dinard at the British Film Festival in France. In Jamaica in 1952, author Ian Fleming needs a name for his suave, sophisticated secret agent, so he steals one from an unaware birdwatcher and creates a pop-culture phenomenon about the ultimate fictional alpha-male. In 2022, the year of 007’s 60th anniversary onscreen, Australian filmmaker Matthew Bauer is on a global mission to discover the lasting, contrasting and very personal impacts of sharing such an identity with James Bond.

Clayton Davis If Colin Farrell doesn’t get an Oscar nom this year for “The Banshees of Inisherin,” he never will. That was all I could think after watching his work in Martin McDonagh’s latest dark comedy. And who would have thought that Farrell and Brendan Gleeson would become the perfect comedic duo of our day? I thought the pair’s magic in “In Bruges” (2008) was a one-hit wonder, but with “The Banshees of Inisherin,” the two men have recaptured their old alchemy. The latest pitch black romp from “Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri” director and scribe McDonagh harnesses the simplest premise in recent memory: a man tries to understand why his best friend doesn’t want to talk to him anymore. What unfolds within that premise are moral complexities and refreshing takes on love and forgiveness.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Venice Film Festival title “Music for Black Pigeons,” directed by Danish filmmakers Jørgen Leth, best known for “The Five Obstructions,” and “The Lost Leonardo” helmer Andreas Koefoed, has debuted its trailer with Variety. The documentary, which premieres on Tuesday in Venice’s Out of Competition section, explores the lives and processes of some of the world’s most renowned and prolific jazz musicians, including Jakob Bro, Bill Frisell, Lee Konitz, Paul Motian and Midori Takada. Leth, who has directed more than 40 films including landmark works such as “A Sunday in Hell” (1977) and the surrealist short “The Perfect Human” (1968), returns to Venice after his feature documentary “The Five Obstructions,” which he co-directed with Lars von Trier, screened on the Lido in 2003.

EXCLUSIVE: ABC is developing Worst House on the Block, a half-hour comedy series from 20th Television.

Manori Ravindran International Editor Cohen Media Group has acquired producer Jeremy Thomas’ prestigious international sales company HanWay Films in a major deal. Cohen Media Group owns Landmark Theatres in the U.S. and British distributor-exhibitor Curzon. HanWay Films was founded by “The Last Emperor” producer Thomas and is co-owned with his partner Peter Watson. Under the deal, HanWay Films will continue to be branded as an independent label selling theatrical titles to its distribution partners worldwide. It’s still unclear how much an exclusive tie-in there will be to parent company-owned Curzon.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Italy’s I Wonder Pictures has boarded Finnish comedy “The Player” as a co-producer ahead of its bow at Haugesund’s industry sidebar New Nordic Films.  The company will also handle local distribution. The project is directed by Teemu Nikki and produced by It’s Alive Films’ Jani Pösö.  “I consider Teemu Nikki as one of the best European directors. He is brilliant, prolific and always surprising,” Andrea Romeo, I Wonder Pictures’ general manager and head of acquisitions, told Variety.  “I think that his cinema will be increasingly appreciated in the world, as well as in Italy. His movies always talk about important issues, keeping a perfect balance between black comedy and auteur cinema. It’s also a great pleasure for us to work with a producer like Jani and a company as prestigious as It’s Alive Films.”

Trace Adkins has dozens of Top 40 singles under his belt, and a collection of greatest hits and studio albums that have been certified by the Recording Industry Association of America. He also has a host of Academy of Country Music Awards, in addition to Grammy Award nominations.  But the "You're Gonna Miss This" singer admitted he was a little intimidated to work with legendary actress Susan Sarandon in their upcoming country music drama about a dynasty of singers in "Monarch." Adkins portrays Albie Roman alongside Sarandon, who plays Dottie Cantrell Roman, in the series, which is set to debut in September on FOX, and marks his first starring role.  He told Fox News Digital that working with Sarandon was "terrifying," but he knew he was learning the ropes from a true icon.

Major U.S. studios, streamers and British broadcasters have combined to launch a Statement of Commitment Against Bullying, Harassment and Inappropriate Behaviour in TV.

I want to explain why Black Pride is essential to our community’s health. As a white person, I probably have no business attempting this, but humor me. I will, as always, proceed elliptically.

Bad Sisters. But trust me, it’s not as malicious as it sounds because it’s entirely obvious the only way Eve could murder you is with a good time, fueled by Guinness…unlike her latest character, who would actually murder you. “The first episode is when you have to introduce the characters, introduce the world, and blah blah blah, but it gets so bonkers as it goes on. There were so many days where we were almost peeing our pants laughing,” she adds, speaking to me via Zoom from her New York abode.Bonkers is the tone of the day, in fact.

A popular standup TV franchise is making a comeback. Scott Koondel’s Sox Entertainment has acquired global rights to Caroline’s Comedy Hour, which ran on A&E Network from 1989-96. Koondel, former CBS Chief Content and Licensing Officer, plans to produce new installments, which he will shop alongside 100 library episodes from the show’s original run as a lower-cost comedy programming alternative for cable networks and streamers.