Fukada Koji Talks Venice Competition Film ‘Love Life,’ Loneliness and Bitter Little Ironies

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Chinese-owned video streamer iQiyi has confirmed that it has blocked access in Singapore to ten gay-themed TV series. But it says that the move is temporary. “The content was temporarily removed in compliance with the Infocomm Media Development Authority’s guidance towards R21 content,” a company spokesman told Variety by email. R21 restricts viewing to people aged over 21. The shows blocked include iQiyi’s Thai-language original “KinnPorsche and “Until We Met Again” that fall into the ‘Boys Love’ or BL genre. Soft-core romances between (mostly young and handsome) men have become hugely popular in Southeast Asia. And much of the audience for them is adult and female.

Kacey Musgraves is on the cover of Wonderland magazine’s Autumn/Fall 2022 issue and the photo spread is an homage to the Baz Luhrmann movie Romeo + Juliet.

Naman Ramachandran For India in general and the Sikh community in particular, 1984 is a particularly emotive year, including for musician and actor Diljit Dosanjh, the star of Netflix film “Jogi.” In June 1984, the then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered an army operation against separatist militants at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, a holy location for Sikhs, that was criticized by many in the community. In October, Gandhi’s Sikh bodyguards assassinated her, leading to ant-Sikh riots across northern India, with the country’s capital Delhi as its epicenter. The happenings of 1984 left deep and enduring scars on the Sikh community and the events have been depicted in film and television over the years. In “Jogi,” directed by Ali Abbas Zafar (“Sultan”), Dosanjh plays the titular Jogi who takes it upon himself to heroically save his family and neighbors as politically-backed riot mobs in Delhi, including childhood friends from other communities, systematically target Sikhs during the 1984 riots.

Emily Longeretta MTV is kicking off its first-ever relationship mystery competition series. “Love at First Lie,” hosted by Tori Spelling, will premiere on MTV in the US and in more than 170 countries around the world on Wednesday, Oct. 12, at 9:30 p.m. The reality show will consist of 12 episodes as the viewers try to figure out who is in real relationships and which pairs are faking it. MTV’s official logline reads, “Power games test their relationships and give insight into who could be telling the truth or lying through their teeth. At the end of each episode, during the Truth Ceremony, the couples must eliminate who they think is lying about their love from the competition. If they guess correctly and kick out liars, they add $25,000 to the prize fund each time. Only one couple can win and take home the entire prize pot, but will they be lovers, or will they be liars?”

EXCLUSIVE: Marcus Dunstan, the writer of Saw 3D and Saw VI, is set to direct the horror flick All My Friends Are Dead. Film Mode Entertainment and Roundtable Entertainment will launch sales on the project at the Toronto Film Festival.

No movie has been a bigger node of controversy in recent weeks than Olivia Wilde‘s sophomore feature, “Don’t Worry Darling.” And now that its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival has come and gone, let’s hope that the drama surrounding this film finally dissipates. Critics didn’t love it, nothing juicy happened on the red carpet or at the screening, and it’s time for everyone to move on.   READ MORE: Olivia Wilde Address All Of The ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ Gossip …Again That appears to be the tactic Shia LaBeouf wants to take now.

Harry Styles spit on his costar, Chris Pine. It all started at the Don’t Worry Darling premiere, which has proven to be one of the most dramatic releases in Hollywood.There were people on both sides of the theory arguing for hours with internet detectives finding different angles, and slowing down the footage.

Not aging well? Amid the offscreen Don’t Worry Darling drama, a resurfaced clip of Florence Pugh gushing about Olivia Wilde is making its rounds on social media.

Korea’s Busan International Film Festival (October 5-14) has announced its full line-up, including opening film Scent Of Wind, directed by Iran’s Hadi Mohaghegh, while Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-Wai will be honoured as Asian Filmmaker Of The Year.

Naman Ramachandran A first trailer has been unveiled for Toronto selection “Salt Lake,” Kasia Rosłaniec’s exploration of late-life desire and emancipation. In the film, 64-year-old Helena announces her intention to pursue sexual experiences with other men – much to the shock of her husband of 40 years. The cast includes Katarzyna Butowtt, Krzysztof Stelmaszyk, Adam Ferency, Dorota Kolak, Dagmara Krasowska, Judyta Paradzińska and Jacek Poniedziałek. The film will screen at Toronto as part of Industry Selects – 10 titles chosen by festival programmers for their sales potential. It is produced by Warsaw-based Mañana in co-production with Common Ground Pictures from Gothenburg, Sweden, the partners behind “United States of Love,” which won a Silver Bear at Berlin in 2016. The project was presented at the Berlinale coproduction market 2020, received a Creative Europe – MEDIA development grant and Polish Film Institute production support. “Salt Lake” will be released in Poland in spring 2023.

Julianne Moore sparkles her way down the red carpet for her latest appearance at the 2022 Venice Film Festival.

Reviews of Olivia Wilde’s psychological drama “Don’t Worry Darling” premiering at the Venice Film Festival are now out. And while it’s a little too early to land on a consensus (our review is mixed), unless you’ve been living under a rock, the film and the spectacle surrounding it have threatened to become one of the biggest, nosiest dramas of the year.

The tragedy at the center of “Love Life,” the new film from Japanese director Kōji Fukada which premieres in Competition at this year’s Venice Film Festival, does not come to disrupt a perfectly happy family. Cracks are visible in the facade of the life shared by Taeko (Fumino Kimura) and Jiro (Kento Nagayama) even before the fatal accident that claims the life of Keita (Tetta Shimada), her young son from a previous marriage.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent MK2 Films has scored key territory deals on Japanese director Koji Fukada’s “Love Life,” which makes its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival. Set in contemporary Japan, “Love Life” is a character-driven film revolving around Taeko and her husband, Jiro, who are living a peaceful existence with her young son, Keita. When a tragic accident brings the boy’s long-lost father, Park, back into her life, Taeko throws herself into helping this deaf and homeless man to cope with the pain and guilt. Popular Japanese actress Fumino Kimura (“The Fable: The Killer Who Doesn’t Kill”) headlines the film. MK2 Films has now sold the movie to Teodora (Italy), Imagine (Benelux), Leopardo (Portugal), Demiurg (Ex Yugoslavia), New Cinema (Israel), Swallow Wings (Taiwan), Edko (Hong Kong), Impact Films (India) and Encore Inflight (Airlines).

J. Kim Murphy Although Florence Pugh will be attending the Venice Film Festival for the premiere of “Don’t Worry Darling,” the star is limiting her promotional activities at the festival. After arriving in Venice by private jet, Pugh will attend Monday’s red carpet premiere of “Don’t Worry Darling.” However, the actress will not be participating in the press conference for the film, which is set to take place on the same day. Pugh’s plans for Venice were confirmed to Variety by festival representatives. Pugh leads “Don’t Worry Darling” alongside an ensemble that includes Harry Styles, Chris Pine, Gemma Chan, Kiki Layne, Nick Kroll and Olivia Wilde, who also directs the thriller. Wilde and Styles reportedly arrived in Venice on Sunday, one day ahead of the premiere.

Trace Lysette arrives at the premiere of her new film Monica at the 2022 Venice Film Festival on Saturday (September 3) in Venice, Italy.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Cairo-based film marketing and distribution outfit MAD Solutions has acquired rights for Arab territories to Venice competition entry “Les Miens” (“Our Ties”), directed by French actor and filmmaker of Moroccan descent Roschdy Zem. “Our Ties” is co-written by Zem with actor/director Maïwenn (“Polisse,” “Mon Roi”), who co-stars. Zem is a French cinema fixture, having starred in pics including “Other People’s Children” and directed several films including 2019’s “Persona Non Grata.” “Ties” is a drama about family dynamics centered around a man played by Sami Bouajila whose personality changes radically after he suffers a head injury. Zem plays his TV presenter brother.