When the need for certainty is absolute And the odds are deemed impossible The mission falls to him
Tom Cruise is back as Ethan Hunt in the follow-up to 2023’s MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING PART ONE and to start the week, Paramount Pictures has released a first poster and teaser for MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – THE FINAL RECKONING.
Official Synopsis: “Our lives are the sum of our choices. Tom Cruise is Ethan Hunt in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.“
In 2024, Cruise appeared in the Paris 2024 Olympics closing ceremony to promote Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics, by jumping from the roof of the Stade de France stadium in Paris. He took the flag from Mayor Karen Bass and athlete Simone Biles to Hollywood.
As seen in the trailer, Cruise wears the same wardrobe as Ethan Hunt in MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – THE FINAL RECKONING that he did performing the epic stunt on August 11, 2024.
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING PART ONE sits at an impressive 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. The franchise has grossed over $4 billion worldwide, with MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT having the highest ticket sales with $220,159,104.
Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, and produced by Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie, based on the television series created by Bruce Geller, composer Lorne Balfe returns to score the movie.
The film also stars Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Vanessa Kirby, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Mariela Garriga, Henry Czerny, Holt McCallany, Janet McTeer, Nick Offerman, Hannah Waddingham, Angela Bassett, Shea Whigham, Greg Tarzan Davis, Charles Parnell, Frederick Schmidt.
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – THE FINAL RECKONING opens in theaters on MAY 23, 2025.
In it’s third weekend at the number one spot at the box office, director Kelly Marcel’s epic conclusion to VENOM has grossed $394.2 million worldwide.
In VENOM: THE LAST DANCE, Tom Hardy returns as Venom, one of Marvel’s greatest and most complex characters, for the final film in the trilogy. Eddie and Venom are on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced into a devastating decision that will bring the curtains down on Venom and Eddie’s last dance. Venom: The Last Dance stars Tom Hardy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Peggy Lu, Alanna Ubach and Stephen Graham. The film is directed by Kelly Marcel from a screenplay she wrote, based on a story by Hardy and Marcel. The film is produced by Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Amy Pascal, Kelly Marcel, Tom Hardy and Hutch Parker.
VENOM: THE LAST DANCE (ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK) is by composer Dan Deacon. The album features an original score composed by Deacon for the final film in the Sony Pictures Venom trilogy. Combining dynamic, emotional orchestral movements with bold, action-packed electronic sequences, Deacon’s score is the perfect musical accompaniment to the final chapter of the franchise.
In my recent conversation with Deacon, the composer talked about getting into the world of composing, how taking Eddie and Venom on their final journey was a musical dream come true, plus a surprise meeting with director Francis Ford Coppola.
WAMG: Did you have those usual beginnings like most composers… Did you play in the school orchestra or marching band when you were a kid?
Dan Deacon: I played trombone in the school band. And it was fun. I wasn’t particularly good or bad at it. But I really got into music with my dad. He and my mom ran like a small mom and pop business; bought a used computer and had this MIDI program on it called MIDI Songs. And I just fell in love with it. I became completely obsessed with writing music. I started a band. I would write parts for things like the horn section and it was like my absolute obsession. I didn’t like to think about it as anything that I would do other than like a hobby.
I went to college and I was undeclared for two years and I was going to drop out. My friends asked, why would you drop out? You love music, why would you leave the music program? And I said I’m not into music. And it made me think and I got into the composition program and it took off from there. And then I was really into writing Fluxus style chaos music. I was into 20th century minimalism and mostly avant-garde and really loved the more radical performances; like Fluxus pieces.
Not really a thriving market for that, I just thought I would be a poor musician freak. As my studies were focused on quote unquote classical or experimental classical electroacoustic music; I got into writing like fun party music and just as a hobby. I didn’t think anything would come of that. Then a friend said, hey, I’m going to book a tour. Do you want to come on tour? And I thought that would be fun. And completely fell in love with that, made enough money to pay rent on a warehouse place in Baltimore. I thought this could be my job. I could play this like electronic party music. That was it. I was happy to do that. As long as I averaged $70 a show, I could afford to live in this warehouse space. That took off in the underground and I found success there as a recording artist, but I really always wanted to get back into writing for larger ensembles and seemed like the best way to do that, especially if you want to write orchestral music and to try to get into film composing. And I kind of put that out there and I love films and at this point I was doing pretty significant press at the time.
In 2009, I was doing this one interview on NPR about musicians and for my album. And some music has this singular privilege that other art forms don’t really seem to have and the privilege is that it could be this perfected, definitive version of the album where it can record the album to the best of their ability in the cutting-edge state of technology and release it as intended to be interpreted and listened to exactly that way again and again. But then they can perform it live and do it differently and however they want. They can cut parts they want, they can add new parts, they can improvise, they can slow it down if the audience is vibing that way or they can speed it up if the audience is ruckus. But a film is locked, it’s set in stone. And when I was a kid I would watch a movie and I would wish this part would just keep going on forever. Or you go to a play and it’s different every single time. You never know what an Oscar Wilde play was like being staged with Oscar Wilde’s involvement, the same way poetry is read or even classical music… we have no idea what the exact tempo Beethoven was going for. There’s a victory in that, but we know exactly what The Who wanted their albums to sound like. We know exactly what Aphex Twin’s records sound like.
I get an email that I think is a scam from Francis Ford Coppola, and in my mind, it’s like the new Nigerian Prince. I don’t believe it. Two weeks go by and it’s from a different email address and it says, “Dan, it’s Francis.” A couple more emails go back and forth and I think he reaches out to my agent for a meeting and it’s actually a friends contact. So I hit him up and he says I heard you’re on NPR about like a breathing media that music has. I’d love to talk more about it, so I fly out to Napa and we just hang out and be nerds who love the stuff that we like. This is like 2011 or ’12 and we hit it off and a couple of months go by and we’re continuing the conversation and then he offers me to be a co-composer on the film Twist. I’ve never scored a song. And in college, even though I went to school for composition, I didn’t study film composing. I was composing strictly for the stage or strictly for the studio. I don’t know what a cue sheet is. I don’t know what a music editor is. I’m way in over my head and luckily, just a co-composer, so I’m getting cues and I’m chopping them up and making new music out of that; sending over like chronic stuff that’s being set in that is chill. Then I realized this is a different set of muscles. This is a different… The way I think about it is like being a recording artist and being a film composer. Not like siblings, it’s cousins but far removed.
I think, I need to learn how to actually do this, but if I really want to do this, I need to learn how to do it and at this point – my recording arts career is still doing well. I’m really enjoying it. But I know it’s going to take me over a decade to get all right at this and I want to start writing new music and different music and music that’s not just centered in my brain, but in a larger story or larger narrative. I also want to collaborate and get involved with other artists. And that to me is what I was missing in my solo project. I always felt like I was alone in the process, even when I would bring in other people. At the end of the day, I always had this ultimate veto power and for better or for worse, sometimes it would be like I would be arrogant about a choice. And looking back, I definitely like it, like getting ready to get back into it in 2016 and I realized I need to start at the same level that I’m as a film composer. I found the Baltimore film scene and I connected with Theo Anthony who is making his feature documentary RAT FILM. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Film
He’s had a couple of successful shorts. He says, I think I’m going to make this weird experimental documentary. Would you want to write some music for it? And I tell him, Yeah, I’d love to. And it starts growing into a feature and I’m totally down to just explore it. We don’t know anything about anything and we figured let’s just make a list of all the songs to put in it. It’s just this fun period of discovery. That’s how I got into music and that’s how I kind of fell into all my hobbies.
Luckily the film was beautiful and it did really well in the festival circuit. That opened me up to a whole new world of people who weren’t familiar with my recording career or were and I could start with that like small scene that I could grow with as it grew and I could learn how to do it without like the pressure of working with someone who’s massive and incredible as Coppola.
I liked that. I liked being able to like work with other filmmakers that were equally discovering their craft and as it grew over, I guess that’s eight years ago, my profile started to grow there and I started doing just larger projects, still mostly nonfiction at this point. But then luckily I got on Kelly Marcel’s radar. I scored her series The Changeling. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Changeling_(TV_series)
We developed a musical language and vocabulary and had that shorthand. I always thought VENOM was going to be an unreachable thing. I’d never done theatrical, it’s a tentpole superhero movie. It just felt like – no way, so when she asked me to write some demos and let’s see how this goes, it wasn’t lost on me that this was la once in a lifetime opportunity.
WAMG: What was great is your recent Instagram post (instagram.com/dandeacon/) and you had all the Venom comic books collage. And your other post where you are at the premiere, you’re just kind of chilling and you’re kind of like laying down in front of the Venom on the red carpet, which I thought was hilarious. Like most composers you don’t start out to be a film composer. You just fall into it. I was reading how you love comic books and how you really loved Venom – how you would save your money all the time and you would go and buy the comic books.
The attention given to film scores and composers, that’s been a recent thing. People have really started taking notice more than just, this is Star Wars or this is Jaws or this is the music of Titanic. They’ve really started to know the composers and their music. You definitely have a “sound” as with your score for HUSTLE, which had that electronic synthesized atmospheric score, like with VENOM. What and who were some of your inspirations as far as film composers?
DD: That’s a great question. Normally it starts with making a playlist with the director and the editor and what they are listening to. We talk about what the character in the film is, what its roles may be, how it will provide another level of storytelling that isn’t being told visually or through dialogue? And something that I really think resonates with me about Venom and how it’s just augmented, and his physical form. And I kept thinking it would be great to work with really blown out, heavily processed acoustic sounds. Like the whole “Knull suite” is really distorted trombone or really distorted cello. Those are some of the earliest sounds we worked with. Some contemporary legends would be like the Junkie XL scores. I love Mica Levi for Under The Skin, cues like that for the more haunting strings. And then we’d listen to a lot of Penderecki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krzysztof_Penderecki and Iannis Xenakis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iannis_Xenakis for like the more haptic sort of strip classic core sounds or György Ligeti https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gy%C3%B6rgy_Ligeti.
We built up a playlist of references building that shorthand of – we want the wild strings here or we want the whispers here – and we want more drums here and that’s sort of like how we built the playlist but asking, what are we telling the audience without telling them and how do we do it without holding their hand? How do we help their brain revisit a previous scene? Just getting into the subtext and how can we do that musically? So that the audience can be transported back to earlier in the story without having to remember to go there. They can focus on what’s in front of them at all times and to me, I think of film scoring as like an ingredient in a cake.
I think that the score is a very important ingredient, but I don’t want anyone to bite into the cake and notice how overwhelming it is. The whole point is that it becomes a cohesive thing that adds seamlessly. I don’t want anyone to come out of the film, whether it’s so bad they noticed it or it doesn’t fit because it’s trying too hard. I would say this worked a lot with Mixolydian modes to find that sound for Knull to really create something that had this center of gravity pulling towards it that was almost atonal.
WAMG: You’re following Ludwig Göransson’s score from VENOM and Marco Beltrami’s score from LET THERE BE CARNAGE. Did you and Kelly talk about incorporating any of their themes or, as this is the third movie and tying everything up, we’re going down a new path.
DD: It was pretty much the new path. With each film being a different director and different composer; it’s like a fresh palette. Kind of like when the comics change writers and for the illustrators. It takes on a new look and a new feel and a new edge. You’re still working with the same story and there’s still the same back material and canon that you’re working with. Well, it’s got a different look, a different feel, a different vibe.And I never was like, oh, I gotta fill these shoes. It was like, I need to score this film with this director, with this script and this team. It was amazing to follow those two absolute legends, but always felt like its own chapter.
WAMG: I love now that the credits of movies are including a list, the names of the vocals, they’re including the names of the orchestra members. And now that’s a relatively new thing, which I think is just great. They’re finally giving credit to the members of the Symphony, the members of the orchestra. What was your one go-to instrument?
DD: One go-to instrument. I guess it was cello and trombone. We focused a lot on those early on and again, like really distorting them and blowing them out. And I did like the demo process more, working with a cellist and trombone player out here. Um, then I think, you know, if it counts as an instrument, I would say these plugins are cool, particularly the pitch shifter and their distortion. I really use those as more of these timbral modifiers with 100% saturation, 100% completely take sound and bring it to a new place. And again, right now, when Eddie goes from Eddie to Venom, it’s just like a complete gigantic augmentation where the human form is there, but it’s clearly this alien symbiote that’s all encompassing.
WAMG: Scores have just become their own character. You can’t watch JAWS without hearing John Williams score and not think of a shark. You’ve composed the artist installment at the National Aquarium in Baltimore, which is going to debut on the 21st of November and has already sold out. You’re trying to engage guests with musicians and soundscapes and these interactions. Can you tell me about this project?
DD: It’s a two-hour piece that is basically six 20-minute loops. This loop is feeding off of the last one. The theme is feedback. drawing the parallels between electrical and acoustic feedback and natural feedback like within ecosystems. So it’s used for about 50 musicians that are spread out all throughout the entirety of the aquarium and they’ll be playing based upon what they hear from the musicians around them, what’s being broadcast through the House PA system as well as radio broadcasts which are going to be piping in different players throughout the museum.
And then the audience is going to have a sound-based element as well, which is– I think it’s going to work. There’s one or two ways we’re going to do it. One way is very, very elegant and smooth, but the most complicated for us. And the other is funky and insane, but will be very easy for us to make any sense.
But the main thing that we need to consider is animal welfare, because it is still their home – and that’s a major aspect of the piece is making sure that we never break a particular decibel threshold, because if we do, then the eco-cooking goes out of balance, it crumbles, and that’s part of the design as a piece, to making sure that if we do go over that threshold, that falls apart. So there’s a real role the audience plays because all the sound that they make will also contribute to that. I’m very excited to see how it goes. It’s definitely like an experiment, but I think it’s going to be a lot of fun. I like working with big groups and I love something that has a real risk of not working.
It’s really focusing on the fragility of an ecosystem, the fragility of quickly feedback to swell into some chaos, to the point where you need to rip the power out of the speaker. So playing with that and making sure that we’re always on the cusp of homeostasis.
DD: I can’t get into specifics, but I’m working on two films now. I think that’s about as vague as I can get. With a great team and some people I’ve worked with before and some people that are new to me, but that’s. I’m very, very excited about it. That’ll be coming out next year.
And working on, I’ve got a ballet with New York City Ballet that’s premiering with Justin Peck In January.
WAMG: What is that called?
it’s currently still untitled. We had a working title, but I just was on the New York City Ballet website today and I just saw it said, New Ballet. Justin might be playing with the titles.
WAMG: Dan, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us and congratulations on the success of the film. And I really enjoyed your score.
On Saturday at the first-ever Brazil D23 fan event, Marvel Studios debuted a brand-new, special look for “Thunderbolts*,” which opens on May 2, 2025.
David Harbour, who plays Red Guardian in the film, was on hand to debut the new extended trailer for excited fans at the Brazil D23 event.
Marvel Studios and a crew of indie veterans who sold out present “Thunderbolts*,” an irreverent team-up featuring depressed assassin Yelena Belova alongside the MCU’s least anticipated band of misfits.
Harbour talked about the team at the event.
The film stars Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Lewis Pullman, Geraldine Viswanathan, Chris Bauer, Wendell Edward Pierce, with David Harbour, with Hannah John-Kamen, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
Jake Schreier directs “Thunderbolts*” and Kevin Feige is the producer. Louis D’Esposito, Brian Chapek and Jason Tamez serve as executive producers.
Over the weekend, at the first-ever Brazil D23 fan event, Marvel Studios debuted a brand-new trailer and poster for CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD, which opens in theaters on February 14, 2025.
Anthony Mackie, who plays Sam Wilson/Captain America, and Danny Ramirez, who portrays Joaquin Torres/Falcon, were on hand to greet fans before the new trailer was shown to the excited Brazil D23 crowd.
SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – NOVEMBER 09: Captain America stars Anthony Mackie and Danny Ramirez speak during Day 2 of the D23 Brazil: A Disney Experience at Transamerica Expo Center on November 09, 2024 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Ricardo Moreira/Getty Images for Disney)
Marvel Studios’ CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD follows Sam Wilson, who after meeting with newly elected U.S. President Thaddeus Ross, finds himself in the middle of an international incident. He must discover the reason behind a nefarious global plot before the true mastermind has the entire world seeing red.
CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD stars Anthony Mackie, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Xosha Roquemore, Carl Lumbly, with Giancarlo Esposito, Liv Tyler, Tim Blake Nelson, and Harrison Ford. The film is directed by Julius Onah and produced by Kevin Feige and Nate Moore. Louis D’Esposito and Charles Newirth serve as executive producers.
Anthony Mackie Takes Up the Shield on February 14, 2025.
Sypher Studios and Lon Haber & Co announce the AFM World Market Premiere and first-look footage of the new feature documentary, Behind the Lines, based on the New York Times bestselling book of the same name by the renowned historian Andrew Carroll. The film follows Carroll’s decades-long journey, including into active war zones, to find “the most extraordinary war letters ever written” from the American Revolution to the present day. Behind the Lines differs from other war letters-related films in that it includes correspondences from the home front as well as by civilians who are literally “caught in the crossfire.”
Narrated by Annette Bening, the film features on-screen letter-performances by a star-studded cast including Laura Dern, Michael C. Hall, Paul Walter Hauser, Common, DeWanda Wise, Gary Cole, Kelvin Harrison Jr., and many more. Directed by first-time feature director John B. Benitz and written by Andrew Carroll, John B. Benitz, and Bryce Cyrier. Producers include Jason Pamer, Jens Jacob, Bryce Cyrier, John B. Benitz, and Andrew Carroll. Executive producers include Kerry Patton and David Lopez.
The talented, international and diverse star-studded ensemble cast includes, in order of appearance, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Abigail Cowen, Dylan Sprouse, Monique Edwards, Michael C. Hall, Garrett Schweighauser, Gary Cole,Thurn Hoffman, Jay Lee,Laura Dern, Sandra Seacat, Richard T. Jones, Rachel Bloom, Chase Cargill, Paul Walter Hauser, Kathleen Goff, Erick Lopez, Darwin Shaw, Jörg Witte, Takuya Iba, Wes Studi, Eliza Bennett, DeWanda Wise, Piotr Brozda, and Genia Michaela.
Behind the Lines was one of six finalists of the coveted Library of Congress Lavine/Ken Burns Prize for Filmwhich recognizes exemplary documentary films that tell compelling stories about American history.
“We’re thrilled and honored to be working with the stellar cast and crew of Behind the Lines and to be able to introduce such a profoundly meaningful film to the global marketplace at the American Film Market (AFM) at a time when it is essential that stories like these are told. Behind the Lines is a rare gem that offers a first-hand, well-rounded glimpse into the personal dynamics of war and the far-ranging ripple effects it has on everyone, all over the world,” said Lon Haber, Founder of Lon Haber & Co – IPPR, who is presenting the film to buyers at AFM for the very first time. “Behind the Lines is a commercially viable product with heart, that stays true to its artistic and historic integrity, and one to which audiences from every corner of the globe can relate,” Haber continued.
“Instead of merely focusing on the wars, Behind the Lines delves into the humanity of all who serve and those connected to them with first-hand accounts spanning two and half centuries that range from heart-wrenching to heart-warming and even comedic, depicting what it’s like for those on the frontlines and their families at home on a daily basis,” said producer Jason Pamer.
“I couldn’t be more proud of this film and how it emphasizes the service and sacrifice of our troops, our veterans, and their families. And we have so many letters and emails that I think this film could be the kick-off to a whole series in which every episode focuses on a single topic or story,” said writer and film subject Andrew Carroll.
“This personal and emotional journey into the war experience uncovers in stark reality our worst impulses but also the secrets of our shared humanity offering hope, understanding and perhaps even compassion and reconciliation in these divisive times,” said director John B. Benitz.
Sypher Studios is repped by Neil Sacker at Sacker Entertainment Law.
The legendary Alien franchise gives birth to an all-new terrifying sci-fi horror thriller when 20th Century Studios’ Alien: Romulus makes its streaming debut on Hulu on November 21. The film will also be available to stream via Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers.
Director Fede Alvarez takes the phenomenally successful Alien franchise back to its iconic roots in the next jaw-dropping installment heralded by critics as “sheer terror” (Brian Truitt, USA Today) and “utterly breathtaking” (Andrew J. Salazar, Discussing Film). Alien: Romulus is Certified-Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes™ and has already thrilled audiences at the global box office, becoming the second highest grossing film in the Alien franchise.
Alien: Romulus is the start of a new chapter with a brand-new story unlike any other Alien movie that came before it, featuring all-new creatures and characters that are “tense enough to grab you by the throat” (Owen Gleiberman, Variety). And fans can dive deeper into the iconic franchise by binge watching every Alien movie now on Hulu including Alien, Aliens, Alien 3, Alien Resurrection, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant.
This truly terrifying sci-fi horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful Alien franchise back to its iconic roots. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young colonizers come face-to-face with the most relentless and deadly life form in the universe. Starring Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn and Aileen Wu, Alien: Romulus is directed by horror master Fede Alvarez from a screenplay by Alvarez and frequent collaborator Rodo Sayagues based on characters created by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett. Ridley Scott — who directed the original Alien and the series entries Prometheus and Alien: Covenant — produces with Michael Pruss and Walter Hill.
After Santa Claus – Code Name: RED ONE – is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with the world’s most infamous bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a globe-trotting, action-packed mission to save Christmas. Directed by Jake Kasdan, the film also features Lucy Liu, Kiernan Shipka, Bonnie Hunt, Kristofer Hivju, Nick Kroll, Wesley Kimmel and J.K. Simmons.
Amazon MGM Studios will release RED ONE theatrically in the US on November 15, 2024.
Samuli Edelmann as Sameli in the Finnish TV series “Reindeer Mafia.” Courtesy of MHz Choice
The title of this Finnish crime dramedy series, “Reindeer Mafia (Poromafia),” is a bit misleading. It’s not a major crime syndicate on the tundra. It’s a small club of guys wearing vests with their Wolverine logo (not the Hugh Jackman kind), hanging out in their clubhouse, and dabbling in petty crimes. The eponymous nickname is a tongue-in-cheek choice. The setting is a rural area, in which the strictly protected reindeer provide a significant part of the economic base.
The eight-episode season begins as their leader, Sameli (Samuli Edelmann) is returning from a stretch in prison for a manslaughter he may not have committed. His mother, Brita (Rea Mauranen) has just died after a long bout with cancer. She was the area’s biggest landowner, and the disposition of her estate becomes the central plot-driving element. Her assholish husband Rouku (Aake Kalliala) had big secret plans for developing the property that are frustrated when she leaves it all to her two sons and the daughter of the man who Sameli (presumably) killed, who also happened to be his fiancée Sara’s (Anna-Maija Tuokko) pappy. But the three heirs lack the big chunk of dough needed to pay the inheritance tax within a short window of time, leading to a scramble of plots and countermeasures to keep Rouku from having his way.
As one may expect from Scandinavian productions, everything is covered with snow, and mostly dark in hue and tenor. The first three episodes unfold so slowly that I considered letting it drop. But I’m glad I was patient (or stubborn) enough to persevere. Characters, backstories and plot threads start becoming clearer in the fourth, and the pace picks up for the rest of the way. It’s more of a suspenseful character drama than an action flick, but there are enough twists to keep one curious. Bad guys abound. Rouku is a stunningly loathsome figure, reeking of Machiavellian villainy. Plus, there’s a crooked cop and a sadistic drug dealer soiling the pristine landscape, along with several other questionable characters.
The comedy side of the dramedy is rather sparse until the latter half of the season. Between the plot, several quirky characters and the stark wintry environs, the production is somewhat reminiscent of our “Fargo” series, though either shorter on humor, or less amusing to a US viewer than it was to Finns. The proceedings are complex enough to make bingeing advisable, but not essential.
“Reindeer Mafia,” mostly in Finnish with English subtitles, streams on MHzChoice beginning Nov. 5, 2024.
RATING: 2.5 out of 4 stars
(L-R) Samuli Edelmann as Sameli and Anna-Maija Tuokko as Sara, in “Reindeer Mafia.” Courtesy of MHzChoice
The magical world of Oz, where you can expect the unexpected.
After two decades as one of the most beloved and enduring musicals on the stage, WICKED makes its long-awaited journey to the big screen as a spectacular, generation-defining cinematic event this holiday season.
Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars Emmy, Grammy and Tony winning powerhouse Cynthia Erivo (Harriet, Broadway’s The Color Purple) as Elphaba, a young woman, misunderstood because of her unusual green skin, who has yet to discover her true power, and Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and global superstar Ariana Grande as Glinda, a popular young woman, gilded by privilege and ambition, who has yet to discover her true heart.
The two meet as students at Shiz University in the fantastical Land of Oz and forge an unlikely but profound friendship. Following an encounter with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads and their lives take very different paths. Glinda’s unflinching desire for popularity sees her seduced by power, while Elphaba’s determination to remain true to herself, and to those around her, will have unexpected and shocking consequences on her future. Their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately see them fulfill their destinies as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.
The film also stars Oscar® winner Michelle Yeoh as Shiz University’s regal headmistress Madame Morrible; Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton, Fellow Travelers) as Fiyero, a roguish and carefree prince; Tony nominee Ethan Slater (Broadway’s Spongebob Squarepants, Fosse/Verdon) as Boq, an altruistic Munchkin student; Marissa Bode in her feature-film debut as Nessarose, Elphaba’s favored sister; and pop culture icon Jeff Goldblum as the legendary Wizard of Oz.
The cast of characters includes Pfannee and ShenShen, two conniving compatriots of Glinda played by Emmy nominee Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live) and Bronwyn James (Harlots), and a new character created for the film, Miss Coddle, played by Tony nominee Keala Settle (The Greatest Showman).
Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights), Wicked is the first chapter of a two-part immersive, cultural celebration. Wicked Part Two is scheduled to arrive in theaters on November 26, 2025.
Wicked is produced by Marc Platt (La La Land, The Little Mermaid), whose films, television shows and stage productions have earned a combined 46 Oscar® nominations, 58 Emmy nominations and 36 Tony nominations, and by multiple Tony winner David Stone (Kimberly Akimbo, Next to Normal), with whom Platt produced the blockbuster Wicked stage musical.
The executive producers are David Nicksay, Stephen Schwartz and Jared LeBoff. Based on the bestselling novel by Gregory Maguire, Wicked is adapted for the screen by the stage production’s book writer Winnie Holzman and by legendary Grammy and Oscar® winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz. The Broadway stage musical is produced by Universal Stage Productions, Marc Platt, the Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.
Mismatched cousins David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the odd-couple’s old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history.
Searchlight Pictures presents A REAL PAIN, directed and written by Academy Award® nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Zombieland). The film stars Eisenberg alongside Emmy® and Golden Globe® winner Kieran Culkin (“Succession,” Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), with a cast rounded out by BAFTA winner and Emmy® nominee Will Sharpe (“The White Lotus”), Golden Globe® nominee Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing), Kurt Egyiawan (Beasts of No Nation), Liza Sadovy (“A Small Light”), and Daniel Oreskes (The Thomas Crown Affair, “Only Murders in the Building”). Producers are Dave McCary (“Saturday Night Live,” I Saw the TV Glow), Ali Herting, p.g.a., (Bodies Bodies Bodies, “The Curse”), Emma Stone (Poor Things, Cruella), Eisenberg, Jennifer Semler (Theater Camp), and Ewa Puszczyńska (The Zone of Interest, Cold War).
A REAL PAIN opens exclusively in St. Louis movie theaters on November 15, 2024.
Rated R for language throughout and some drug use.
Behind the camera are the works of director of photography Michał Dymek (EO), production designer Mela Melak (Lipstick on the Glass), costume designer Małgorzata Fudala (The Girl with the Needle), makeup department head Olga Nejbauer (Milosc na pierwsza strone), editor Robert Nassau (The Big Sick), and casting by Jessica Kelly (X, Midsommar).
