Well Go USA has landed North American rights for Dutch action thriller Invasion about a daring military operation in the wake of a hostile attack on the Caribbean islands of Aruba and Curacao.
25.03.2024 - 19:25 / variety.com
Guy Lodge Film Critic As a general movie rule, when a group of happy weekenders head to a woodland cottage for a bit of rest and relaxation, the great outdoors has some grisly surprises in store for them. In “Who By Fire,” however, the horrors all come from inside the house — or more specifically from the people themselves, many of whose worst impulses and insecurities are unleashed by their tranquil surroundings.
Dramatizing a curious case of cabin fever with keen human observation and patient wrangling of intangible dread, the third narrative feature from Quebecois director Philippe Lesage underlines his ability to carve a semblance of a horror movie from everyday domestic drama — confirming him as a filmmaker of considerable grace and daring. It’s been six years since Lesage’s last film, “Genesis” — a long wait for his admirers, a select club still largely confined to the festival circuit, notwithstanding the polish and rigor of the director’s work.
Despite his gifts, international distributors have yet to embrace Lesage in a big way, while even festival programmers have been circumspect: At this year’s Berlinale, “Who By Fire” premiered in the festival’s lower-profile, youth-oriented Generation 14plus strand, an odd fit for an imposing art film not especially geared toward young audiences, though it did deservedly win the top jury prize there. That might encourage more programmers and buyers to take a chance on Lesage’s latest, if they can get past its hefty but justified 160-minute runtime.
Well Go USA has landed North American rights for Dutch action thriller Invasion about a daring military operation in the wake of a hostile attack on the Caribbean islands of Aruba and Curacao.
Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Leading European distributor Global Screen, part of Telepool, has secured further international sales of high-end drama “Davos 1917” at MipTV. New acquisitions of the six-part thriller include SBS Australia, TVP in Poland and Big Tree Entertainment in India and the subcontinent. “Davos 1917,” which launched at the end of last year on SRF in Switzerland and ARD in Germany, has already been bought by a strong lineup of premium international broadcasters and streamers across North America, Europe and Asia.
Anna Marie de la Fuente Calling all Latino filmmakers, John Travolta wants to work with you. Swinging by Panama to present his 1978 musical rom-com “Grease” at the 12th Panama International Film Festival (IFF Panama), Travolta professed his great love for “Mexico, Central America, South America, all of its parts.” “There is an incredible humanity that prevails and is different from anywhere else in the world,” he told Variety. Surprised to hear that Robert de Niro had starred in the Argentine series “Nada,” Travolta exclaimed: “I would have loved that, I would have enjoyed being lured to South America to play a part for a while.” The closest he’s come to working with a Latino director was with Alfonso Cuarón, who produced the short film streaming on Disney+ “The Shepherd,” based on Frederick Forsyth’s 1975 novella, which follows a young Royal Air Force pilot flying home for Christmas across the North Sea.
Brian Teta, the executive producer of The View, has signed a new contract for the show that will keep him at the often buzzy daytime talker for the next four years.
Ben Croll Questions about the free ad-supported streaming TV services (FAST) model and concerns about AI will take the foreground at the many conference panel sessions and keynotes organized for this year’s MipTV. If both are familiar subjects at the audiovisual market – as last year’s MipTV held a standing-room only FAST summit while the Mipcom “Unlocking AI” summit drew similar attention this past October – the interest they provoke reflects their topicality.
A partial solar eclipse is set to take place across Scottish skies on Monday evening (April 8) and people will be eagerly anticipating this fun phenomenon.
In many ways, “Scoop” is not the movie you think it is. Sure, it’s a behind-the-scenes look at how the BBC television program, er, “programme” “Newsnight” landed a hotly sought-after interview with Prince Andrew in 2019.
Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor Kevin Smith could have bought the Quick Stop market he made famous in his first film, “Clerks.” But when the opportunity arose, the indie director instead put his hard-earned cash into his childhood movie theater in Atlantic Highlands, N.J., reopening it in 2022 as SModcastle Cinemas. Now he’s fighting to keep the 103-year-old theater going, even if “exhibition is in the toilet,” as he likes to say. In other words, local audiences sometimes prefer to watch big hits like “Avatar” in modern multiplexes, and keeping a repertory theater vibrant without the help of a pricey beer and wine license is not for the faint of heart, he has found.
The Dandy Warhols and The Black Angels have announced a UK and European co-headline tour for this autumn – find all the details below.The run of joint dates is set to kick off in Paris on September 21 before the two bands head to Brussels, Den Haag, Utrecht and Berlin ahead of a stop-off at Cannonball Festival in Copenhagen.From there, The Dandy Warhols and The Black Angels will head to the UK and Ireland for concerts in Dublin, Glasgow, Manchester, London and Bristol at the end of September and into early October.Tickets go on general sale at 9am BST this Friday (April 5).
Most people know the story of Vimto and how was created in Manchester over 100-years ago. The vitamin tonic drink was created on Granby Row in 1908 by Blackburn born herbs, spices and medicines dealer, Noel Nichols, as a heath drink - and to cash in on the temperance movement.
ITV's Saturday Night Takeaway viewers all had the same reaction just minutes into the episode. Fans were tuning in to watch the latest antics of Ant and Dec, who not only brought back the popular segment, Ring My Bell, but also introduced this week's guest announcers, Emma and Matt Willis. Fans quickly took to social media to express their joy at seeing the couple on the show.
The Bachelor franchise often teases that each season will boast the “most dramatic” moments audiences have ever witnessed.
EXCLUSIVE: Sources tell us that Regal Theatres VP and Head of Film Andrew Turner is exiting the No. 2 U.S. chain.
Alex Ritman French TV giant Banijay is losing its second C-suite exec in just over a month. The company has confirmed to Variety that COO Peter Langenberg is departing, with his last day set to be March 31. Langenberg will remain with Banijay on a consultancy basis in the ESG (environment, social and governance) space.
Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Dahomey,” the Berlinale Golden Bear-winning film helmed by French-Senegalese director Mati Diop, has been sold to a raft of international territories by Les Films du Losange. Along with being acquired by Mubi in key markets, “Dahomey” has been acquired in Australia & New Zealand (Rialto), China (Hugoeast), Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Nitrato Filmes), Greece (One From the Heart), Scandinavia (NonStop Entertainement), Benelux (Cinéart), Bulgaria (Beta Films), Ex-Yugoslavia (Discovery), Hungary (Mozinet), Czech Republic (Film Europe), Romania (Voodoo), Baltic Countries (Taip Toliau), Poland (New Horizons), Ukraine (Kyivmusicfilm), Taiwan (Joint Entertainment), Indonesia (PT Falcon) and Sudu Connexion in Africa.
EXCLUSIVE: After smashing records in Vietnam, Tran Thanh’s hit romance drama Mai has now set a new milestone for an opening weekend at the international box office, becoming the first Vietnamese title to score a $1M debut outside the home market.
Series Mania was Warner Bros. Discovery’s European roll-out timeline for Max, announced Thursday at the climax of the Series Mania’s Lille Dialogues. The most keenly anticipated session was nearly Series Mania’ Forum first: a Netflix showcase hosted by a confident Larry Tanz who significantly proved the only goal streamer exec to drill down on volume commitment.
The wait for Max‘s European launch is nearly over.
Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent In one of the most anticipated keynotes at Series Mania Festival, JB Perrette, president/CEO of global streaming and games at Warner Bros. Discovery, dropped the launch date for Max across the first nine European countries on May 21.
Megan Thee Stallion has announced UK, European and North American dates for her ‘Hot Girl Summer’ 2024 tour.Stallion’s tour will consist of 32 dates across North America, Europe and the UK set for the spring and summer. The first show will kick off at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.