Thompson on Hollywood

After Years in Shadow, '20 Feet From Stardom' Lets Backup Singers Take Center Stage

Features

"20 Feet from Stardom" may be "the most prayed-over documentary in history," says director Morgan Neville, anxiously eyeing the clouds gathering over Manhattan. He had flown in to New York that Saturday afternoon for the New York premiere of his new music documentary. But the planned venue was outside, on the rooftop of New Design High School on the Lower East Side -- and open to the elements.

By Jacob Combs
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June 13, 2013 12:37 PM
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'Dirty Wars': Glimpse Into Shadow World of U.S. Counterterrorism Via Tenacious Reporter

Features

"Dirty Wars," the riveting new documentary by journalist Jeremy Scahill and director Rick Rowley that probes the shadowy world of U.S. paramilitary operations, almost didn't get made. Or rather, it almost didn't become the film that premiered at Sundance in January to critical plaudits and hit theaters on June 7, via IFC Sundance Selects.

By Jacob Combs
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June 12, 2013 12:41 PM
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Open Road to Release 'jOBS,' Starring Ashton Kutcher, on August 16 UPDATED

News

Open Road will release "jOBS," starring Ashton Kutcher as the Apple visionary Steve Jobs, nationwide on August 16.

By Beth Hanna
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June 12, 2013 12:10 PM
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WATCH: 'Fruitvale Station' Trailer Highlights Michael B. Jordan's Performance

Video

"Fruitvale Station," the Sundance favorite well-known for making everyone cry, has a trailer. The clips showcase Michael B. Jordan's performance at the center of the film (spoilers in that link). In this based-on-a-true-story movie, Jordan plays Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old who finds himself entangled with police and street violence on New Years Eve in 2009. Fruitvale Station is a stop in the Bay Area's subway system, the BART.

By Maggie Lange
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May 11, 2013 1:54 PM
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Trailer Watch: Brit Marling and Ellen Page Lead All-Star Cast in Sundance Spy Thriller 'The East'

Video

Zal Batmanglij and Brit Marling team up for the second time in the espionage thriller "The East," which stars Marling, Ellen Page, Patricia Clarkson and Alexander Skarsgard. The pair previously collaborated on the screenplay for Batmanglij's debut film "Sound of My Voice," in which Marling also starred as a bewitching cult leader.

By Ryan Lattanzio
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April 26, 2013 1:08 PM
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Trailer Watch: Sundance Hit 'The Way, Way Back' Stars Carell, Janney, Rudolph, Collette and Rockwell in Coming-of-Age Comedy

Video

The trailer for Sundance smash "The Way, Way Back" has arrived. Written and directed by comedian Nat Faxon and Oscar winner Jim Rash (best adapted screenplay in 2012 for "The Descendants"), the wincingly funny comedy stars Steve Carell, Allison Janney, Maya Rudolph, Toni Collette and Sam Rockwell and centers on teenage Duncan (Lian James), who takes a summer job at a water park and forms a few unlikely bonds.

By Ryan Lattanzio
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April 12, 2013 12:01 PM
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Watch: 'Voice' Contestant Judith Hill Talks Singing with Michael Jackson in Sundance Hit 'Twenty Feet From Stardom'

Video

Check out this clip from must-see Sundance documentary "Twenty Feet From Stardom," in which Judith Hill (a breakout from the most recent season of "The Voice") discusses her experience working onstage with Michael Jackson. Morgan Neville's film --which hits theaters 14 via June RadiusTWC-- spotlights the true stories of gifted talents who tried to build careers but stayed within arm's reach of the spotlight: backup singers.

By Anne Thompson and Beth Hanna
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March 29, 2013 1:57 PM
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Now and Then: Quentin Dupieux's 'Wrong' Exposes the Limits of Surrealism

Reviews

Drafthouse Films, the distributor of Quentin Dupieux's bizarre new film, "Wrong," describes the French director and electronic musician (stage name: Mr. Oizo) as "one of the world’s most fearless cinematic surrealists." The surreal does indeed seem to be Dupieux's preferred register, but this leads me to a trickier question. Should we care?

By Matt Brennan
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March 26, 2013 3:21 PM
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Kristen Bell Is On a Roll: Focus World, Screen Media Slate 'The Lifeguard' for Summer

News

It's a good year so far for Kristen Bell, as the Kickstarter campaign to reboot "Veronica Mars" reached its goal last week. Focus Features' alternative distribution outlet Focus World has partnered with Screen Media Films in acquire U.S. rights to Sundance entry "The Lifeguard."

By Ryan Lattanzio
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March 23, 2013 4:11 PM
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Eagles, Lake Bell and Peaches Head for Second April London Sundance Film and Music Fest

Festivals

The second annual Sundance London film and music festival, programmed by the same folks who mount January's Sundance Film Festival and including many of that fest's top prize-winners, will be held on April 25-28 April at The O2. Among the artists expected to attend Sundance London are Lake Bell, Mike Birbiglia, Jimmy Carr, the Eagles, Barbara Kopple and Peaches, as well as Sundance Institute President & Founder Robert Redford.