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The Zurich Film Festival has set the first crop of its gala titles for this year’s event, which runs from September 25 to October 5.

Titles include Benny Safdie’s latest feature, The Smashing Machine, starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson. The Rock is Mma fighter Mark Kerr. The film’s synopsis reads: Kerr, an icon of the early UFC era, stands at the peak of his career while teetering on the edge of destruction – a life caught between fame and self-destruction. Former Playboy model and Kerr’s wife, Dawn Staples, played by Emily Blunt, tries to support him through all the setbacks, but finds herself pushed to her own limits.

Also screening is Hedda, the latest film from Nia DaCosta. The film is described as a provocative, modern reimagining of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play. Hedda (Tessa Thompson) finds herself torn between the lingering ache of a past love and the...

Bavaria Media and Beta Film have joined forces on Mozart Mozart, a six-hour drama that reimagines the legacy of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart through the eyes of his (real-life) sister, Maria Anna Mozart.

The series, from the creators of German costume drama hit Sisi, has received a first-season commission from German public broadcaster Ard and Austria’s Orf.

Set in the late 18th century, the series centers on Amadeus’s sister, Maria Anna Mozart, portrayed by Havana Joy (Love Sucks), who steps into her brother’s shoes after his dismissal from the Salzburg court threatens the family’s future. When Wolfgang, played by Eren M. Güvercin (Druck, Eldorado), proves too volatile to secure favor at the court of Emperor Joseph II, Maria Anna disguises herself as her brother, captivating Vienna’s elite and drawing the envy of Mozart’s rival, Antonio Salieri. Her deception grows increasingly complex as she attempts to maintain the ruse,...

Following last week’s lineup announcement, the Berlinale 2025 has now fleshed out its slate with the Competition, Special, and Perspectives sections. Highlights include the world premieres of Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon starring Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale, and Andrew Scott; Radu Jude’s Kontinental ’25; Hong Sangsoo’s What Does that Nature Say to You; Michel Franco’s Dreams starring Jessica Chastain; Lucile Hadžihalilović’s The Ice Tower starring Marion Cotillard; and Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s Hot Milk with Emma Mackey, Fiona Shaw, and Vicky Krieps.

The festival will also include international premieres from Julia Loktev, Mary Bronstein, Kahlil Joseph, and more. In terms of omissions for films that potentially could have been a strong fit: there’s no Steven Soderberg’s Black Bag, Wes Anderson’s German production The Phoenician Scheme, nor Berlinale regular Christian Petzold, who wrapped Miroirs No. 3 only a few months ago.

Check out the lineup...

Exclusive: Anonymous Content’s sales and finance division AC Independent and France’s Goodfellas are joining forces to handle global sales on Burhan Qurbani’s upcoming feature No Beast. So Fierce.

The drama is described as a fresh interpretation of Shakespeare’s play Richard III, with a present-day female Arabic gangster boss in a role inspired by the scheming, power-hungry king.

Shooting is underway with Germany-based Syrian actress Kenda Hmeidan, whose credits include the refugee boat drama mini-series Liberame : Nach dem Sturm, in the lead role.

Further cast members include Verena Altenberger, Hiam Abbass, Mona Zarreh Hoshyari Khah, Mehdi Nebbou, Meriam Abbas and Banafshe Hourmazdi.

No Beast. So Fierce will be the fifth feature of German-born Qurbani, who is the son of political refugees from Afghanistan, and follows his Berlinale 2020 Golden Bear contender Berlin Alexanderplatz.

His other credits include 20xBrandenburg (2010), and We Are Young, We Are Strong (2014).

The German-Polish-French...

Following up one of last year’s finest (and most overlooked) films, Benediction, Terence Davies has been prepping his next project for some time. First announcing it two years ago, the English director has written an adaptation of Stefan Zweig’s novel The Post Office Girl, published posthumously in 1982. One of Wes Anderson’s inspirations for The Grand Budapest Hotel, the book is set in post-wwi and follows a female post-office clerk who lives outside Vienna.

Last year the director told us, “We’ve been on this three years now. The script is written and we’re raising the money. But, you know, it will be a co-production, which means if one domino does fall, then everything collapses. It’s the same thing. You know, it took six years to get Benediction onto the screen, and that’s a long time. It’s a long time. And you begin to...

Picture Tree Intl. has taken global sales rights for “The Peacock” by Lutz Heineking Jr. The black comedy is based on the best-selling novel of the same title by German author Isabel Bogdan, which has been published in key European territories. Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer (below).

The film’s cast is filled with German stars including Lavinia Wilson, Tom Schilling, David Kross and Jürgen Vogel. Tobis Film releases the film in Germany on March 9.

When investment banker Linda Bachmann and her team arrive at the country estate of Lord and Lady McIntosh for a team building seminar, the prospects for having a relaxing weekend in Scotland are not good: the annual balance sheet is lousy, the team is keeping a suspicious eye on each other and their boss, and there are rumors that a compliance officer will soon be restructuring the department.

To make matters worse,...

Urban love story is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

Screen can reveal the first trailer of Chris Raiber’s First Snow Of Summer, which has just been boarded for international sales by Picture Tree International (Pti).

The urban love story world premieres on Tuesday (January 31) at the Göteborg Film Festival and is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

It’s the story of a young man, Alexander, who is determined never to fall in love until he meets the beautiful and vivacious Caro in her small subway hatter store.

The film’s Austrian cast includes Verena Altenberger...

Urban love story is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

Screen can reveal the first trailer of Chris Raiber’s Snow Of Summer, which has just been boarded for international sales by Picture Tree International (Pti).

The urban love story world premieres on Tuesday (January 31) at the Göteborg Film Festival and is the debut feature of the Austrian director.

It’s the story of a young man, Alexander, who is determined never to fall in love until he meets the beautiful and vivacious Caro in her small subway hatter store.

The film’s Austrian cast includes Verena Altenberger (The...

Selection includes TV series from UK, Sweden, Austria, France, Germany, Israel and Denmark.

The Berlin International Film Festival (February 7 – 17) has unveiled the seven TV titles set to be screened in this year’s Berlinale Series programme.

Among the line-up is Amazon’s Hanna written by David Farr, who co-wrote the 2011 film of the same name. It is directed by Sarah Adina Smith, whose film credits include Buster Mal’s Heart, which starred Rami Malek. Hanna stars Esmé Creed-Miles, Joel Kinnaman and Mireille Enos. NBCUniversal International Studios is producing alongside Working Title Television.

Also in the selection is Netflix’s first Swedish original series Quicksand,...

Cold Hell (Die hölle) Reviewed by: Harvey Karten Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky Screenwriter: Martin Ambrosch Cast: Violetta Schurawlow, Tobias Moretti, Robert Palfrader, Sammy Sheik, Verena Altenberger, Friedrich von Thun, Elif Nisa Uyar, Murathan Muslu Screened at: Critics’ link, NYC, 3/6/18 Opens: Exclusively on Shudder 3/15/18 Given the way that some Daca immigrants are shall we […]

The post Cold Hell Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

Qiao Liang’s drama wins top prize at Moscow fest.

Chinese director Qiao Liang’s Crested Ibis has been named the winner of the Golden George Prize for best film at the 39th Moscow International Film Festival (June 22-29).

The award was handed out at a gala ceremony in the Russian capital’s Rossiya Cinema on Thursday evening (June 29).

Having its world premiere in Moscow, the drama, which follows a Beijing journalist who goes back to his hometown to report on the sighting of a rare bird, also puts a spotlight on the living conditions of rural China and the dilemmas faced by humanity.

The main competition’s international jury was headed by Iranian filmmaker Reza Mirkarimi and also included Italian actress Ornella Muti, German funding consultant Brigitta Manthey and Catalan director Albert Serra.

They also awarded a special jury prize to veteran Russian director Rustam Khamdamov’s The Bottomless Bag, based on Ryunosuke...