Film festival premieres make for promising movie season
Spring is in the air — that means you should go inside a movie theater and see these upcoming films.
“The Company You Keep” (April 5)
Robert Redford directs and stars in this political thriller, which premiered at last year’s Venice Film Festival. Based on the novel by Neil Gordan, the movie harkens back to political films of the ’60s and ’70s such as “All the President’s Men” (1976), also starring Redford. “The Company You Keep” features an esteemed cast that includes Oscar winners Susan Sarandon, Julie Christie and Chris Cooper and Oscar nominees Anna Kendrick, Terrence Howard, Richard Jenkins, Nick Nolte and Stanley Tucci, as well as Shia LaBeouf and Brendan Gleeson,
“Trance” (April 5)
Danny Boyle, the Oscar-winning director of “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008), teamed up with screenwriter John Hodge — whom he worked with on “Shallow Grave” (1994), “Trainspotting” (1996) and “The Beach” (2000) — for this bonzo thriller involving hypnotism and the art world. “Trance” stars James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson and Vincent Cassel. Expect a wild, frenetic puzzle that might need repeated viewings.
“Upstream Color” (scheduled to start screening at the Nickelodeon Theatre April 22)
Shane Carruth made his first feature film “Primer” (2004) for only $7,000. Nine years later, his second film arrived at the Sundance Film Festival and has created lots of buzz. He serves as director, writer, producer, actor, cinematographer, editor and composer for “Upstream Color.” Walk into the film knowing nothing about the plot. Then walk out not knowing what you just saw.
“The Angels’ Share” (April 12)
The 76-year-old English director Ken Loach has been directing films for more than 45 years, and his newest premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year. “The Angels’ Share” is a comedy/drama about a young Glaswegian father who narrowly avoids a prison sentence and then goes to a whiskey distillery with some local townspeople. Loach specializes in capturing everyday life and the working class.
“Antiviral” (April 12)
David Cronenberg, director of “Videodrome” (1983) and “The Fly (1986),” hasn’t spawned a new film, but rather a new filmmaker. His son Brandon Cronenberg has made his directorial debut with this icky piece of body horror, which premiered at last year’s Cannes Film Festival. In the vein (excuse the pun) of the director’s father, “Antiviral” promises blood and gore with an intellectual core.
“To the Wonder” (April 12)
Terrence Malick — those are the only two words you need to know in order to run out and see this movie. “To the Wonder” is only the director’s sixth film in 40 years. His most recent, “The Tree of Life” (2011), received almost universal praise. His newest, a romantic drama starring Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Olga Kurylenko and Javier Bardem, premiered last year at the Venice Film Festival to a much more mixed response, but even a lesser film by Malick is still a must-see.
“In the House” (April 19)
François Ozon, known for “8 Women” (2002) “Swimming Pool” (2003), directs this twisty tale of seduction, obsession and sexual fantasies. Or are they real? The fabulous Kristin Scott Thomas stars in this drama, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival last year.
“Kon-Tiki” (April 19)
This Norwegian historical drama, one of this year’s Oscar nominees for Best Foreign Language Film, tells the unbelievable true story of explorer Thor Heyerdahl, who sailed 4,300 miles across the Pacific Ocean on a raft made of balsa wood in 1947. Think of “Kon-Tiki” as the Norwegian “Life of Pi.”
“The Lords of Salem” (April 19)
Rob Zombie may have only directed one good film in the past, “The Devil’s Rejects” (2005), but it is one of the best horror films of the past decade. It’s truly a twisted, grisly film. His latest directorial endeavor, “The Lords of Salem,” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and looks to be his most ambitious film yet, for better or worse. The director’s wife, Sheri Moon Zombie, stars as a radio DJ who gets pulled into all sorts of evil and debauchery. Rob Zombie has said he was influenced by the films of Stanley Kubrick, Ken Russell and Roman Polanski when making the film.
“Mud” (April 26)
Matthew McConaughey has been in more good films in the past two years than he had in the previous decade. With works like “Bernie (2011),” “Killer Joe” (2011) and “Magic Mike” (2012), he has shown he is not just a pretty boy for romantic comedy drivel. He stars in “Mud” along with Reese Witherspoon and Michael Shannon. It is directed by Jeff Nichols, whose previous film “Take Shelter” was one of the best of 2011.