Weekend Preview: 'Moonrise Kingdom' Rules; The Audacious 'Oslo, August 31st' & France's 'Intouchables'

Features

by Sophia Savage
May 24, 2012 1:03 PM
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"Moonrise Kingdom" is the obvious must-see this holiday weekend, following its warm reception as the Cannes opening night film and the slew of delighted reviews that followed. Fans of director Wes Anderson won't be disappointed; this is a film that only he could make. Another easy choice would be the feel-good French fave "The Intouchables," which boasts the performance that bested Jean Dujardin ("The Artist") for last year's Cesar award - by Omar Sy. Not so obvious, but arguably the most audacious film to arrive this weekend is Joachim Trier's "Oslo, August 31st" from Norway. The second feature from Trier (after his impressive 2006 debut, "Reprise") is focused and restrained, and its ache will stay with you. The slow-burning Russian gem "Elena" also arrives in LA after its debut in NYC last weekend. Prefer a mainstream sequel? There's "Men In Black III." Horror? "Chernobyl Diaries."

"Oslo, August 31st"

Reviews, trailers and more below:

"Moonrise Kingdom" Focus Features, US | Dir: Wes Anderson; Cast: Kara Hayward, Jared Gilman, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Bruce Willis, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, Harvey Keital | Take a Tour of the Set with Bill Murray | Our Cannes interview with Anderson | ThePlaylist Declares it A Triumph | A Stellar Reception as Cannes Opening Film | 98% Fresh | NYMag: "It left me bemused instead of moved, but true Andersonites will likely float away in a state of nirvana."

"Oslo, August 31st" Strand Releasing, NOR | Dir: Joachim Trier; Cast: Anders Danielsen Lie, Hans Olav Brenner, Ingrid Olava | Our Exclusive Clip & Interview with Trier | Meredith Brody's SFIFF Review | 95% Fresh | Slant: "The evocation of things ending suffuses the film with melancholy, as Anders increasingly becomes an observant rather than a participant in his own life."

"Elena" Zeitgeist, RUS | Dir: Andrei Zvyagintsev; Cast: Yelena Lyadova, Nadezhda Markina | 89% Fresh | ThePlaylist hails it as a Dramatic Masterwork | New York Times: "a moral vacuum where money rules, the haves are contemptuous of the have-nots, and class resentment simmers."

"The Intouchables"

"The Intouchables" Weinstein Co., FR | Dir: Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano; Cast: Francois Cluzet, Omar Sy, Anne Le Ny, Audrey Fleurot | Takes Unprecendented 2 Prizes at COL-COA | Cesar winning Sy Signs with UTA | A Controversial French Phenomenon | 71% Fresh | The Atlantic: "It's hard to muster much enthusiasm for a movie that leans so heavily on regressive culture-clash shtick and unimaginative stereotypes."

"Chernobyl Diaries" Warner Bros., US | Dir: Bradley Parker; Cast: Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Dimitri Diatchenko, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Devin Kelley, Jesse McCartney | Tomatometer.

"Men In Black III" Columbia, US | Dir: Barry Sonnenfeld; Cast: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Jemaine Clement, Emma Thompson, Michael Stuhlberg | Reviews: Better Than The Second, Still Irrelevant | ThePlaylist calls it Surprisingly Decent | 67% Fresh.