Ann Telnaes, Washington Post:

Bong Joon-ho is the new Terry Gilliam, and I’m shuddering at the prospect. I say this knowing I’ll have to sit through this effing thing. You think it won’t be a miserable experience? Think again.

Owen Gleiberman’s Variety review shoves a blade between the ribs of Blitz.

Sasha Stone deleted the torch-carrying natives, added the heads of the Kodak Theatre swells. It just has to be up-rezzed, cleaned up.

In a brief summary posted this morning by CNN’s Jamie Gangel, Jeremy Herb and Elizabeth Stuart, it’s revealed that Bob Woodward’s “War” contains several juicy, profane quotes, many if not most of them spoken by President Biden.

One excerpt quotes Biden describing former President Trump as “that fucking asshole.”

Another stand-out excerpt is a privately conveyed judgment by Biden that former President Obama’s weak response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Crimea in 2014 motivated Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in early ‘22.

Mark Frenden’s GATE CRASHERS logo and title treatment is 90% satisfying. Because the red title is off-balance and a bit oddball— it doesn’t quite stand up to the big funny ape. And we don’t really need the Oscar statuette. Am I wrong?

This is one of those photos that people will be contemplating for decades to come. I saw it on Facebook yesterday. Somewhere in western North Carolina. Your heart breaks, and I don’t care if it’s AI.

So it’s reasonable to presume that some kind of feisty slap-around might happen from time to time. Presumably Walz has prepared some zingers a la Lloyd Bentsen to Dan Quayle (“Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy”), and I mean something more here-and-now than just calling Vance “weird.” Vance will lie his ass off, of course.

Barring a limo trip to JFK or LGA, HE expects to live-blog this evening’s 9 pm debate, airing on CBS and coming from the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street (between 10th and 11th avenues).

(More…)

I fell into a yeah-whatever, low-energy chat with a couple of Zoomer women (early to mid 20s) earlier today. We mainly discussed 2024 NYFF flicks vs. recent Cannes and Telluride headliners.

One of them resembled the young Anne Bancroft, except her hair was longish (close to the length of Bancroft’s Mrs. Robinson) and blonde instead of gray-streaked. She didn’t have Bancroft’s Bronx accent but kind of a tough-but-bruised Italian-girl vibe. I was struck by her penetrating, drill-bit eyes and a slightly arched Bancroft-y nose. She wasn’t a dead ringer for Mel Brooks’ wife of 41 years, but the resemblance was certainly there.

I wasn’t going to say anything but then I blurted it out. Does she get the Bancroft resemblance thing now and then?

She didn’t know who Bancroft was. She’d never heard the name. I mentioned The Graduate, and she’d never heard of that either. Her friend chimed in — “Wait, I know The Graduate…I think.” I recited the basic plot — college grad falls into a lackluster affair with wife of his father’s business partner, and then falls seriously in love with their college-aged daughter.

“So you’re kind of a movie buff, buying film festival tickets ,” I started to say.

“I’m a fake movie person,” she replied.

“Okay but you should probably watch The Graduate some day…you’ll see what I mean.”

“Thanks for telling me,” she said.

I asked them both if they’re planning to see the Bob Dylan movie with Timothee Chalamet. They hadn’t heard of A Complete Unknown but know who Chalamet is and had possibly heard of Dylan, but I didn’t want to grill them.

I’d overheard Bancroft Jr. mentioning Lady Gaga to her friend, so I asked if she was looking forward to Joker: Folie a Deux. She hadn’t heard of it.

It’s one thing if a 20something who’s vaguely into movies hasn’t seen The Graduate, but to have never even heard of it?