Matt writes: The 2023 Cannes Film Festival may have concluded this past weekend, yet there are still a few enticing dispatches that have yet to be published on RogerEbert.com. You can find all of our coverage, both written and in video form, in this table of contents, featuring reports from Chaz Ebert, Ben Kenigsberg, Jason Gorber, Lisa Nesselson, Isaac Feldberg and Robert Daniels. Embedded below is Chaz’s report on this year’s prize-winners led by Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall,” only the third film directed by a woman ever to win the Palme d’Or…
Trailers
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023). Directed by Martin Scorsese. Written by Martin Scorsese and Eric Roth (based on the book by David Grann). Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone. Synopsis: Members of the Osage tribe in the United States are murdered under mysterious circumstances in the 1920s, sparking a major F.B.I. investigation involving J. Edgar Hoover. Debuts in the US on October 20th, 2023.
The Miracle Club (2023). Directed by Thaddeus O’Sullivan. Written by Joshua D. Maurer, Timothy Prager, Jimmy Smallhorne. Starring Laura Linney, Kathy Bates, Maggie Smith. Synopsis: A hard-knocks community in outer Dublin marches to its own beat, rooted in traditions of loyalty, faith and togetherness. There’s just one tantalising dream for the women of Ballyfermot to taste freedom and escape the gauntlet of domestic life: to win a pilgrimage to the sacred French town of Lourdes. Debuts in the US on July 14th, 2023.
The Color Purple (2023). Directed by Blitz Bazawule. Written by Marcus Gardley and Marsha Norman (based on the novel by Alice Walker). Starring Halle Bailey, Colman Domingo, Taraji P. Henson. Synopsis: Musical adaptation of Alice Walker‘s novel about the life-long struggles of an African American woman living in the south during the early 1900s. Debuts in the US on December 25th, 2023.
The Creator (2023). Directed by Gareth Edwards. Written by Gareth Edwards and Chris Weitz. Starring John David Washington, Gemma Chan, Ralph Ineson. Synopsis: Described as a post-apocalyptic thriller involving a future impacted by a war between humans and AI. Debuts in the US on September 29th, 2023.
Problemista (2023). Written and directed by Julio Torres. Starring Julio Torres, Tilda Swinton, RZA. Synopsis: Alejandro is an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in NY. As time runs out on his work visa, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast becomes his only hope to stay in the country. US release date is TBA.
Nimona (2023). Directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane. Written by Robert L. Baird and Lloyd Taylor (based on the graphic novel by Nate Stevenson). Starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Julio Torres, Riz Ahmed. Synopsis: When a knight in a futuristic medieval world is framed for a crime he didn’t commit, the only one who can help him prove his innocence is Nimona — a mischievous teen who happens to be a shapeshifting creature he’s sworn to destroy. Debuts on Netflix on June 30th, 2023.
Unclenching the Fists (2023). Directed by Kira Kovalenko. Written by Kira Kovalenko, Lyubov Mulmenko and Anton Yarush. Starring Milana Aguzarova, Alik Karaev, Soslan Khugaev. Synopsis: Ada is stuck. Living in a dead-end town in North Ossetia, she is caught in the tight grip of the men in her life. But when her older brother returns home and her father suddenly falls ill, Ada finally sees a possible path to freedom. US release date is TBA.
Susie Searches (2023). Directed by Sophie Kargman. Written by William Day Frank. Starring Kiersey Clemons, Alex Wolff, Jim Gaffigan. Synopsis: An awkward college student who seizes the opportunity to bolster her popularity and her under-the-radar true-crime podcast by solving the disappearance of a classmate. US release date is TBA.
Theater Camp (2023). Directed by Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman. Written by Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman, Noah Galvin and Ben Platt. Starring Molly Gordon, Ben Platt, Noah Galvin. Synopsis: The eccentric staff of a rundown theater camp in upstate New York must band together with the beloved founder’s bro-y son to keep the camp afloat. Debuts in the US on July 14th, 2023.
Brooklyn 45 (2023). Written and directed by Ted Geoghegan. Starring Anne Ramsay, Ron E. Rains, Larry Fessenden. Synopsis: Five military veterans, best friends since childhood, gather together to support their troubled host, and the metaphoric ghosts of their past become all-too-literal. Debuts on Shudder on June 9th, 2023.
The Persian Version (2023). Written and directed by Maryam Keshavarz. Starring Layla Mohammadi, Niousha Noor, Kamand Shafieisabet. Synopsis: When a large Iranian-American family gathers, a family secret is uncovered that catapults the estranged mother and daughter into an exploration of the past, and to discover they are more alike than they know. US release date is TBA.
Five Nights at Freddy’s (2023). Directed by Emma Tammi. Written by Emma Tammi, Scott Cawthon and Seth Cuddeback. Starring Josh Hutcherson, Matthew Lillard, Elizabeth Lail. Synopsis: A troubled security guard begins working at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. During his first night on the job, he realizes that the night shift at Freddy’s won’t be so easy to get through. Debuts in the US on October 27th, 2023.
Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken (2023). Directed by Kirk DeMicco and Faryn Pearl. Written by Kirk DeMicco, Pam Brady, Elliott DiGuiseppi and Brian C. Brown. Starring Lana Condor, Jane Fonda, Toni Collette. Synopsis: A shy adolescent learns that she comes from a fabled royal family of legendary sea krakens and that her destiny lies in the depths of the waters, which is bigger than she could have ever imagined. Debuts in the US on June 30th, 2023.
The Blackening (2023). Directed by Tim Story. Written by Tracy Oliver and Dewayne Perkins. Starring Dewayne Perkins, Antoinette Robertson, Sinqua Walls. Synopsis: Seven black friends who go away for the weekend only to find themselves trapped in a cabin with a killer who has a vendetta. Will their street smarts and knowledge of horror movies help them stay alive? Probably not. Debuts in the US on June 14th, 2023.
No Hard Feelings (2023), red-band trailer. Directed by Gene Stupnitsky. Written by Gene Stupnitsky and John Phillips. Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Andrew Barth Feldman, Natalie Morales. Synopsis: On the brink of losing her home, Maddie finds an intriguing job listing: helicopter parents looking for someone to bring their introverted 19-year-old son out of his shell before college. She has one summer to make him a man or die trying. Debuts in the US on June 23rd, 2023.
The Flash (2023). Directed by Andy Muschietti. Written by Christina Hodson. Starring Ezra Miller, Michael Keaton, Ben Affleck. Synopsis: Barry Allen uses his super speed to change the past, but his attempt to save his family creates a world without super heroes, forcing him to race for his life in order to save the future. Debuts in the US on June 16th, 2023.
Barbie (2023). Directed by Greta Gerwig. Written by Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach. Starring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Will Ferrell. Synopsis: To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you’re a Ken. Debuts in the US on July 21st, 2023.
Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One (2023). Directed by Christopher McQuarrie. Written by Christopher McQuarrie and Erik Jendresen (based on the television series created by Bruce Geller). Starring Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames. Synopsis: Ethan Hunt and his IMF team must track down a dangerous weapon before it falls into the wrong hands. Debuts in the US on July 12th, 2023.
“Twin Peaks” Star George Griffith
Matt writes: I had the great pleasure of interviewing George Griffith, who memorably played Ray Monroe on “Twin Peaks: The Return,” about his superb directorial effort, “From the Head,” which screens tomorrow, May 31st, at The Texas Theatre in Dallas as part of Daniel Knox’s masterfully curated “David Lynch: A Complete Retrospective.” You can read our full conversation here.
R.I.P. Tina Turner (1939-2023)
Matt writes: On May 24th, we lost the Queen of Rock ‘n Roll, Tina Turner, when she passed away at age 83. Don’t miss Brandon David Wilson’s moving tribute, which includes several phenomenal musical performances from the late icon, including the one embedded above.
Free Movies
Blood on the Sun (1945). Directed by Frank Lloyd. Written by Lester Cole and Nathaniel Curtis. Starring James Cagney, Sylvia Sidney, Porter Hall. Synopsis: A dedicated American reporter in 1930s Japan is determined to expose that government’s plan for world domination.
Watch “Blood on the Sun”
The Big Lift (1950). Written and directed by George Seaton. Starring Montgomery Clift, Paul Douglas, Cornell Borchers. Synopsis: Experiences of two Air Force sergeants during the 1948 Berlin Airlift.
Watch “The Big Lift”
Firehouse (1973). Directed by Alex March. Written by Frank Cucci. Starring Richard Roundtree, Michael Lerner, Paul Le Mat. Synopsis: Tensions arise when a previously all-white firehouse gets its first Black fireman.
