‘Rifkin’s Festival’ Film Review: Woody Allen Returns to Spain, and a Very Dry Well, for His 49th Feature

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentAmber Heard (“Aquaman”) and Spain’s Eduardo Noriega (“Vantage Point”) will star in 19th century-set supernatural thriller “In the Fire.”The film, which will shoot in Italy, is directed by Conor Allyn (“No Man’s Land”).Principal photography is set to start Feb. 21 in Italy’s Apulia region.

Emmerdale's Moira Dingle has become a favourite of the soap since she came onto the scenes in 2009.

Javier Bardem at Saturday’s Goya prize ceremony. The prizes marked both Leon and Bardem’s seventh Goya wins. Produced by El Reposado and The Mediapro Studio, and a workplace dramedy skewering the abuse of power practised by a seemingly benign factory owner, “The Good Boss” also won best director and original screenplay for León, as well as best score and editing.Blanca Portillo beat out “Parallel Mothers’” Oscar-nominated Penélope Cruz, thanks to Portillo’s powerful performance as Maixabel Lasa, the real life widow of former Basque Country governor Juan Mari Jauregui who agreed in 2011 to meet one of his ETA killers. Her forgiveness, and Portillo’s portrait, has touched a large nerve in Spain.

Tomoko (Muneaki Kitsukawa) — the young daughter of his host family — the real song drops on the soundtrack, a moment of excessive underlining. Another moment, where Smith reflects on rejecting a bribe from a Chisso executive, is complicated by unnecessarily non-linear storytelling and some aggressive scoring from composer Ryuichi Sakamoto.Cinematographer Benoît Delhomme (“At Eternity’s Gate) crafts a naturalistic look with practical lighting and a fluid camera, rendering the film with a dark beauty, but Levitas also incorporates archival and recreated footage of the protests at Chisso, as well as capturing the photographic process with slow, almost completely still black-and-white sequences.

Woody Allen’s decade-long downward spiral began after making “Midnight in Paris” in 2011 and following it up with a series of movies ranging from bad to worse to worse than that: “Irrational Man,” “Wonder Wheel,” “Cafe Society,” “A Rainy Day in New York.” At least we have the minor gift of “Blue Jasmine,” a comparatively fine movie according to the pathetic standard set by the rest, to counterpoint the nearly annual stream of Allen’s shrugging dross, but the emphasis is on “minor.” What a difference a change in era made for one of American cinema’s most influential directors.

this — this insipid, hackneyed, laughable joke of a motion picture — is actually really cool. And the weirdest part of all is, they’re kind of right.

EXCLUSIVE: Ernie Hudson (Grace and Frankie, Ghostbusters: Afterlife) is the final addition to the cast of Champions, the recently-wrapped Special Olympics film that Bobby Farrelly (Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary) directed for Focus Features and Gold Circle Entertainment.

they all find it to reduce each other to writhing heaps. Though you will surely wonder why Jason Acuña (“Wee Man”) would allow himself to be tied down and covered with raw meat as an offering to a hungry vulture, “Jackass Forever” is not for questioning.

“Rifkin’s Festival” is bombing at the box office.The comedy flick starring Gina Gershon and Wallace Shawn has the lowest opening of the 86-year-old filmmaker’s long career, which tanked after he was accused of molesting his his adopted daughter Dylan Farrow.“Rifkin’s Festival” is Allen’s 49th film to date and only made $24,000 on Friday and Saturday from 26 theaters, according to the Wrap. Landmark Theaters owns many of the cinemas that the movie is being screened at.

EXCLUSIVE: Oscar nominee and Emmy winner Woody Harrelson (True Detective, Zombieland), Emmy nominee Kaitlin Olson (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Hacks), Grammy nominee Cheech Marin (Born in East L.A, From Dusk Till Dawn) and Matt Cook (Man With a Plan, The Comeback) will lead Champions, a recently-wrapped film that Bobby Farrelly (Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary) directed for Focus Features and Gold Circle Entertainment.

Most of the theaters screening the film are owned by Landmark Theaters, whose flagship Los Angeles location posted the highest single theater total for the film with $2,300. Other theaters outside of Landmark’s circuit screening the film include the Quad Theatre in New York City, where the film grossed $1,600 over two days.By comparison, Allen’s previous film “Wonder Wheel” earned approximately $125,000 from five screens on its 3-day opening weekend in 2017, when the rise of the #MeToo movement brought long-standing allegations by actress Dylan Farrow against Allen — her adoptive father — returned to the public eye.

Editors note: When we think of Robert De Niro and Italy, it’s easiest to focus on the Sicilian town of Corleone, because of his Oscar-winning turn in The Godfather: Part II. But De Niro wanted to focus on Naples, which director Paolo Sorrentino brought to life in The Hand of God. De Niro was so moved, he wrote a guest column for Deadline on why the film touched him so dearly.

EXCLUSIVE: Saban Films has acquired North American and other overseas territory rights to The Old Way, the Western from director Brett Donowho that stars Nicolas Cage. The distributor is targeting a theatrical and VOD release for the pic sometime during the fourth quarter of 2022.

Hiding underwater to escape her vicious aggressors, a rush of terror washes over Sara (Laura Galán), a large-bodied teenager target of incessant insults, and worse, about her weight. The callousness of the bullying perpetrated against her one summery afternoon won’t go unpunished but will place the victim in a conundrum fluctuating between guilt and a warranted desire for retribution.

Wilson Chapman editorThe Miami Film Festival has announced its opening and closing titles for its upcoming 39th edition.The festival, which showcases works from filmmaker’s in the Ibero-American diaspora, will premiere and end with two films listed on the Oscar shortlist for international feature film. “The Good Boss” (El Buen Patrón), a comedy written and directed by Spain’s Fernando León de Aranoa, will open the festival, which will close with “Plaza Catedral,” the sophomore narrative feature of Panamanian director Abner Benaim.“The Good Boss” stars Javier Bardem as Blanco, the owner of a family business up for consideration for a local award for business excellence. Determined to win the award, Blanco begins meddling in the lives of his employees, setting off a chain of events that leads to shocking repercussions.