It’s the festival’s 50th edition, and there are a lot of things happening to commemorate it. They’ve been replaying the big hits that debuted in their fifty years, and will continue to bring in new movies from A-listers. There are the Cannes winners, including It Was Just An Accident and Sentimental Value, as well as the main gala releases. Colin Hanks’ documentary on comedian John Candy opens the festival, with films by Brian Cox (in his directorial debut), Scarlett Johansson, Paul Greengrass, Rian Johnson (the third Knives Out film), and Aziz Ansari all coming out as well. These are the films that Oscar players come to and make their mark and put their place on the radar. Here are a few of them.
Ballad Of A Small Player – Dir. Edward Burger
One year after appearing with Conclave, Burger is already back with his next film, a story about a big-time gambler (Colin Farrell) who goes to Macau to avoid his growing debts back home. Pretending to be a British aristocrat, the runaway con-artist finds solace with a woman. Adapted from Lawrence Osbourne’s novel, this psychological thriller, also featuring Tilda Swinton, brings back Burger’s DP from All Quiet On The Western Front, James Friend, and again ups the ante on what can be another entertaining film by Burger. Conclave was my favorite film of 2024, so I’m very intrigued.
Dead Man’s Wire – Dir. Gus Van Sant
It’s his first film in seven years, so it is a thrill to see Van Sant returning and coming with a true story crime drama about one of the most shocking photos in history. Bill Skarsgard plays a man, believing his mortgage broker (Dacre Montgomery) is conspiring against him to take back his home, who decides to hold the broker hostage and publicly shows everyone he will shoot him on TV if not given his ransom demands. This stranger-than-fiction event, also showing at the Venice Film Festival, has Colman Domingo, Cary Elwes, and Al Pacino in a very ‘70s story that feels like Van Sant’s own version of Dog Day Afternoon.
Hamnet – Dir. Chloe Zhao
After her one-shot at a Marvel film didn’t work out, Zhao is back with a lush drama closer to what we saw in Nomadland. In adapting Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, Hamnet tells a historical fictional version of William (Paul Mescal) and Agnes Shakespeare (Jessie Buckley) and the death of their only child. Through the eyes of Agnes, William struggles with the grief of their loss and can only channel it with his writing. Joe Alwyn and Emily Watson co-star with Sam Mendes and Steven Spielberg as part of the producing team, which lends the movie some extra oversight.
Roofman – Dir. Derek Cianfrance
He’s been gone for a while, but the director of Blue Valentine and The Place Beyond The Pines is back with a crime comedy – itself, a true story – about an unusual robber. Channing Tatum plays an Army officer who goes through the roofs of buildings to steal money at night and hides in the walls of Toys R’ Us stores. Kristen Dunst plays his love interest, whom he tries to keep up with while hiding his illegal vice, with Ben Mendelsohn, Peter Dinklage, Juno Temple, and Uzo Aduba co-starring in this criminally bizarre and darkly funny film.
The Testament of Ann Lee – Mona Fastvold
After the massive success of The Brutalist, Fastvold, Brady Corbet’s co-writer and real-life partner, is taking her third round behind the camera with this historical musical of a religious sect in the 18th century. It’s a movie they made fairly quickly without fanfare, but the anticipation is high with Amanda Seyfried in the titular role, the founder of the sect known as the Shakers. Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, and Tim Blake Nelson co-star in what looks like a unique, musically-infused drama in the same vein as Corbet’s Vox Lux. Being also played in Venice, just like The Brutalist, certainly will have people paying attention.
