(Left) Amanda Seyfried as Nina Winchester in ‘The Housemaid’. Photo: Daniel McFadden/Lionsgate. (Center) Tramell Tillman in ‘Severance’, now streaming on Apple TV+. (Right) Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird in ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.’ Photo Credit: Murray Close.
Preview:
Amanda Seyfried, Rachel Zegler and Tramell Tillman will appear in musical adaptation ‘Octet’
Lin-Manuel Miranda is directing the movie.
It follows people struggling with digital dependence.
Going full speed ahead on musical adaptation ‘Octet’, director Lin-Manuel Miranda (no stranger to stage work himself), has found the cast for the movie version.
The New York cast of stage musical ‘Octet’. Photo: Joan Marcus/WNYC Studios.
With a script and score by Dave Malloy, directed by Annie Tippe, the show follows an octet of people struggling with digital dependency, charting their compulsions using only the analog vibrancy of their own voices. With witty lyrics, shimmering harmonies and virtuosic solos, ‘Octet’ sings of connection, redemption, hope — and how we can be truly present with each other.
It opened off-Broadway on May 19, 2019, at the Signature Theatre in New York City, before ending its run on June 30. That was followed by a west coast premiere with a five-week run at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2022.
Here’s Miranda’s statement on tackling the musical for the screen:
“I haven’t stopped thinking about ‘Octet’ since I saw Annie Tippe’s premiere production in November of 2019. Dave Malloy’s score is versatile, brilliant and grows more relevant with each passing year. It won’t leave me alone so here we are.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda will direct a movie version of ‘Octet’.
It’ll be based on Dave Malloy and Annie Tippe’s show.
It follows people struggling with digital dependence.
While off-Broadway musical ‘Octet’ didn’t enjoy the longest run on stage back in 2019 (more on that below), its fortunes certainly appear to have changed on the movie adaptation front.
No less a stage/film icon than ‘Hamilton’ creator/star Lin-Manuel Miranda is attached to direct a film of the show.
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It would mark the talented musician/actor and filmmaker’s second time adapting a musical following his version of Jonathan Larson’s ‘Tick, Tick… Boom!’ in 2021.
The New York cast of stage musical ‘Octet’. Photo: Joan Marcus/WNYC Studios.
With a script and score by Dave Malloy, directed by Annie Tippe, the logline is as follows an octet of people struggling with digital dependency, charting their compulsions using only the analog vibrancy of their own voices. With witty lyrics, shimmering harmonies and virtuosic solos, ‘Octet’ sings of connection, redemption, hope — and how we can be truly present with each other.
It opened off-Broadway on May 19, 2019, at the Signature Theatre in New York City, before ending its run on June 30. That was followed by a west coast premiere with a five-week run at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2022.
‘Octet’: Lin-Manuel Miranda talks
Here’s Miranda’s statement on tackling the musical for the screen:
“I haven’t stopped thinking about ‘Octet’ since I saw Annie Tippe’s premiere production in November of 2019. Dave Malloy’s score is versatile, brilliant and grows more relevant with each passing year. It won’t leave me alone so here we are.”
Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy Of Roadside Attractions.
Based on the musical of the same name, ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman‘ comes exclusively to theaters on October 10th. The film follows a political prisoner named Valentin (Diego Luna) and his new cellmate Molina (Tonatiuh), as they form an unlikely bond. Jennifer Lopez also stars in the film as Ingrid Luna, Aurora, and the Spider Woman.
(L to R) Jennifer Lopez and Tonatiuh in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman.’ Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
At the core of ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’ are three powerful, unforgettable, performances. Jennifer Lopez, Diego Luna, and Tonatiuh are all incredible actors, and if nothing else, this movie is proof of that. They all ooze chemistry with one another, which is important for the story being told. However, there are some issues with the pacing that severaly take away from this, causing it to not hit the potential that it has.
Story and Direction
Bill Condon attends the ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ New York premiere. Credit: Jason Crowley/BFA.
‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’ essentially tells two stories that are often playing off of one another. As Molina explains his favorite movie to Valentin over the course of many days, we find life immitating art. While both of these do have their intriguing and captivating moments, the cuts back and forth often take viewers out of the experience, causing them to struggle to reconnect with the characters when they are re-introduced to them.
That said, director Bill Condon does a wonderful job capturing the feel of an early era movie, as does the production and costuming team.
(L to R) Tonatiuh and Diego Luna in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
One of the biggest issues here is a key plot point that almost comes out of nowhere. Those who know the musical will be waiting for it, and those that do not, well, they will never see it coming. The issue here lies in that there really should be breadcrumbs along the way hinting that this is where things are going. It is almost too jarring and out of left field for viewers who do not know what to expect. This is largely in part, once again, due to the back and forth of the two stories.
Cast and Performances
(L to R) Tonatiuh and Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
As already discussed earlier in this review, the strongest part of ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’ is the cast. All three leads deliver performances of a lifetime. They connect with each other in unexpected and thrilling ways, always evoking a powerful emotion, no matter who they are opposite with in the scene.
(L to R) Diego Luna and Jennifer Lopez in in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
Jennifer Lopez is not just a great actress, she is known for her singing and dancing, something we see a lot of in this movie. However, audiences will likely find themselves wanting more every time it cuts back to the prison. Still, it is impossible not to appreciate all of the musical performances, no matter how subtle or grandeous.
Final Thoughts
Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy Of Roadside Attractions.
Audiences will be drawn to the screen due to the gorgeous costumes and lead performances in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’, if nothing else. While the overall stories timely and emotional, the back and forth does a disservice to both of them.
There was also no need for the film to be over two hours long. If twenty minutes or so were removed, and if the dual stories were allowed more time to breath rather than rapidly going back and forth, ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’ could have been a masterpiece. Instead, it is a fine enough movie that is worth seeing, if only for Diego Luna, Jennifer Lopez, and Tonatiuh.
‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ receives a score of 65 out of 100.
(L to R) Jennifer Lopez and Tonatiuh in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
What is the plot of ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’?
Valentín, a political prisoner, shares a cell with Molina, a window dresser convicted of public indecency. The two form an unlikely bond as Molina recounts the plot of a Hollywood musical starring his favorite silver screen diva, Ingrid Luna.
Who is in the cast of ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’?
Diego Luna as Valentin Arregui and Armando
Tonatiuh as Luis Molina and Kendall Nesbit
Jennifer Lopez as Aurora, Ingrid Luna, and Spider Woman
(L to R) Bill Condon, Jennifer Lopez, and Tonatiuh attend the ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ New York premiere. Credit: Jason Crowley/BFA.
‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman‘, which is based on the musical of the same name, comes exclusively to theaters on October 10th. It tells the story of two prisoners who form an unlikely bond. Moviefone was in attendance at the press conference in support of the release, which featured Jennifer Lopez (who plays Aurora, Ingrid Luna, and Spider Woman) and Diego Luna (who plays Valentin Arregui and Armando). They shared details about the costumes and choreography, as well as the film’s powerful message.
1) How Jennifer Lopez Crafted Three Separate Characters
(L to R) Jennifer Lopez and Tonatiuh in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
Jennifer Lopez plays not one, not two, but three different characters in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’. Here, she discusses how she crafted all three of them.
Jennifer Lopez: It was three different characters that I got to play. Ingrid Luna, the actress, that Tonatiuh’s character, Molina, idolizes and is in love with. There’s her, and then there’s Aurora, and then there’s the Spider Woman, right? There is the dark and the light. The two sides of somebody. At the end of the day, you look at it and you say, okay, Molina is Aurora. They’re the same person. And then Molina loves Ingrid Luna. For me, it was making them all just a little bit different, but knowing that all of us were the same, in that we were all searching for love. The Spider Woman just wants a kiss. Aurora’s looking for her true love. Molina’s dying to be loved, wanting to be loved, wanting to be seen. For me, playing each one of the three characters, it was about finding little nuances.
2) Jennifer Lopez Took A Lot Of Inspiration From Old Hollywood
Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Photo: Lionsgate.
When talking about the costumes, Jennifer Lopez reveals the old Hollywood actresses and styles that she and director Bill Condon looked to for inspiration.
Jennifer Lopez: It’s the costumes and it’s the hair and makeup, right? It’s all of it because my three characters are so different. [The Costume Designer] Colleen Atwood was very specific about what she wanted. It wasn’t like other costume designers I’ve worked with. She was like, this is the suit that I’m thinking of for this, and she had a sketch of it and she had color swatches. And she was like, what do you think? We kind of honed it down, but it made it very clear for me where I was in each moment because we are not making a whole movie in the musical, right? We’re doing pieces of this movie. It made it very simple for me to understand exactly who I was in that moment. So for me, the costumes are a very big part of understanding the character and making the reality come to life in that way. We talked about Judy Garland [as inspiration] for Ingrid Luna a little bit. We kind of looked at some of her performances for that. When I think of old Hollywood movie stars, I think of Ava Gardner or Rita Hayworth, those type of women. Lana Turner was one that we looked at for the hair for Aurora. Audrey Hepburn for the Spider Woman.
3) Diego Luna Reveals How He Found The Characters Of Valentin & Armando
(L to R) Tonatiuh and Diego Luna in ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
Diego Luna explains how he crafted his ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’ characters and the inspiration behind them.
Diego Luna: I guess growing up in Mexico and learning about the recent history of Latin America, this film means a lot, you know? There are so many brutal examples of dictatorships in Latin America. I was in Mexico in the 90s where a lot was happening, in 94 particularly. It was a very important year for many things. For social movements and for community work. So, of course that’s there. But I would say that the most important part of my past that I got to play with here is theater. My father was a set designer and this film to me is a homage to the theater, or how much film was theater back then.
4) Jennifer Lopez Says One Of The Film’s Biggest Messages Is That Love Is Love
Jennifer Lopez attends the ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ New York premiere. Credit: Jason Crowley/BFA.
Jennifer Lopez is also an executive producer on ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’. One of the things that drew her to this film is the powerful message that she wants viewers to take away.
Jennifer Lopez: I feel like the story and the message is not done yet. It needed to be told again to this generation. We need to remind people of the humanity of these communities. We need to remind people that love is love. It’s a story that I think will keep being told until everybody gets on board with the fact that we’re all just people and we all should just be loving each other. It doesn’t matter who we are on the outside because you have this cisgendered man who’s a political, tough, revolutionary, and then you have this window dresser who’s on the gender spectrum and we’re not quite clear what it is from that time because it was in the 80s. And you have the two of them just seeing the humanity in each other, realizing they need each other, and falling in love with who the other person is.
5) Jennifer Lopez Has Been Wanting To Do This Type Of Dancing In A Film For A Long Time
(L to R) Diego Luna and Jennifer Lopez in in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
When asked about the choreography for ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’, Jennifer Lopez admits that it is something she has wanted to do for a very long time.
Jennifer Lopez: It was amazing. I do a lot of shows, my own shows, and I do a lot of dancing, but I hadn’t done this type of dancing for years and years and years. That musical theater, jazz, technical style of dancing, Broadway style of dancing. And so it was challenging. It was challenging, but so much fun. Because it was something that I had wanted to do for so long. I just loved it. I loved every minute of it.
Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy Of Roadside Attractions.
What is the plot of ‘Kiss Of The Spider Woman’?
Valentín, a political prisoner, shares a cell with Molina, a window dresser convicted of public indecency. The two form an unlikely bond as Molina recounts the plot of a Hollywood musical starring his favorite silver screen diva, Ingrid Luna.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with filmmaker Bill Condon about his work on ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’, the challenges of adapting the musical for the screen, directing the dance sequences, his visual influences, and what impressed him most about working with Jennifer Lopez.
‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ writer and director Bill Condon.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Condon and Tonatiuh.
Bill Condon attends the ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ New York premiere. Credit: Jason Crowley/BFA.
Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about the challenges of adapting a stage musical for the screen and the process of writing the screenplay?
Bill Condon: The challenge, really, when you love a musical on stage the way I do this, is you must be brutal. You must figure out what works in the different medium. Some of my favorite songs in this show are people singing within prison walls and I just don’t believe in that as a viable way to go when making this into a film. I really thought we had to make a clear delineation between the grittiness and reality of the cell and the fantasy of the musical numbers, which mostly happened in a Hollywood movie and sometimes in Molina’s imagination, or in one case, a morphine induced fever dream. So, I think that’s the big challenge to take this score, for example, which I think is one of John Kander’s greatest. He’s a great lover of opera and I think this is the show in which he came closest to creating an opera. Then having to say goodbye to over half of it. Then because Fred Ebb is no longer with us, and I knew that in creating this movie within the movie, which hadn’t existed before, that there were song slots that he’d be writing if he were here. So, then the challenge, but fun was doing this archaeological dig, all the stuff that Fred and John wrote for this show in the years before it came to Broadway. So, there are three wonderful songs that are unearthed here and heard for the first time.
(L to R) Diego Luna and Jennifer Lopez in in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy of Roadside Attractions.
MF: Can you talk about the dance sequences, the specific way you wanted to shoot them and your visual influences for those scenes?
BC: Well, we wanted to shoot them in the style of the period, which meant longer takes, more full-figured, to show basically that these dancers and Jennifer Lopez are doing every one of those things. You know, she has shots here where she dances with six dancers for over a minute and hits marks and things like that, the way they used to, except for they used to have two weeks to rehearse those shots and we had a day. So that’s just a testament to Jennifer Lopez. But in terms of influences, they’re just countless movies of the period that get referenced in this movie. I really do look forward to the Easter egg commentary on the Blu-ray where we can really point people to the numbers that inspired us.
Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy Of Roadside Attractions.
MF: Finally, what impressed you most about working with Jennifer Lopez and the way she interpreted her role?
BC: I think what impressed me most, the work ethic I’d heard about, so it was thrilling, but not a surprise. But what impressed me most is that she really connected to the idea that the character Aurora that she’s playing in this movie is Molina’s ideal version of himself. So, she really wanted to layer in things, emotions that he was feeling into that performance and translate it into the style of the period. It’s remarkable, and it’s so subtle, I think people might not even notice it, but it’s an incredible feat of, in her case, immersion in the style, and then layering in within that. When she realizes, “Oh, my God, I’ve been cursed. This is why I can’t love,” which is how Molina feels about himself. She does it in the style of the period, but she brings it this extra kind of little bit of grit that connects to what Molina is up to.
Jennifer Lopez in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’. Courtesy Of Roadside Attractions.
What is the plot of ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’?
Valentín (Diego Luna), a political prisoner, shares a cell with Molina (Tonatiuh), a window dresser convicted of public indecency. The two form an unlikely bond as Molina recounts the plot of a Hollywood musical starring his favorite silver screen diva, Ingrid Luna (Jennifer Lopez).
Who is in the cast of ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’?
Jennifer Lopez as Ingrid Luna/Aurora/The Spider Woman
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Michael Shannon about his work in the film, in which he plays the patriarch of a well-off family who have retreated to a luxurious underground bunker after climate change has brought about the end of human civilization.
Shannon’s character, simply known as ‘Father,’ may have contributed to the collapse of the Earth’s ecosystem as head of a fossil fuel conglomerate. Despite its bleak subject matter, ‘The End’ is a full-blown musical featuring 13 original songs all performed by the members of the cast.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview with Michael Shannon.
Michael Shannon talks ‘The End’. Photo: Mubi.
Moviefone: Had you seen Joshua’s two documentaries [‘The Act of Killing’ and ‘The Look of Silence,’ both about the mass murder of Indonesian citizens by a brutal far-right regime in the mid-1960s] and having seen those, was finding out what he wanted to do with this kind of a curveball in a way?
Michael Shannon: When I first met with Josh, I had not seen the documentaries. I had heard about them, they’re rather legendary, but I hadn’t actually seen them. So I had a pretty fresh palette going into it. All I had to go on was our conversation and then reading the script. But after I signed on, I watched both of the films, and found them exquisite and painful and all the things that everybody else probably has, and I didn’t really find it to be a curveball. Josh talks about these three films, ‘The Act of Killing,’ ‘Look of Silence,’ and ‘The End’ as being a triptych. He actually got the idea to make ‘The End’ based on the time that he spent in Southeast Asia and meeting a wealthy entrepreneur who was building an underground bunker. So I guess he could have made a documentary about that guy, I don’t know. But he decided instead to make his first narrative film.
MF: What was your reaction reading the script and learning that it was a musical combined with a post-apocalyptic drama?
MS: I was thrilled. I am really disinterested in doing something that’s been done before. I think there’s probably too many movies and TV shows in general, and that people spend too much time watching them. But if you’re going to go through the trouble of making something — and it is trouble, trust me, because he devoted years of his life to making this movie. It wasn’t easy, and it took a small village to get the thing financed. But if you’re going to go through all that, then you better make something that’s unique, and I definitely feel like he’s accomplished that.
Tilda Swinton in ‘The End’. Photo: Mubi.
MF: When you do look at a script, do you have an immediate reaction? Do you have to keep turning the pages, and become aware that you want to be involved in it, or on the other hand, do you read 10 pages and are like, “No, this is not for me”?
MS: Yeah, it’s pretty quick. I don’t like reading screenplays anyway. I don’t know when that happened — it used to be that when anybody thought to send me a screenplay, I was overwhelmingly excited to see it. But I guess just through the years as you read stacks and stacks of them, they become less and less appealing. But yeah, you usually know pretty quick. But this film is about things that are really important to me, and I could tell that basically from the get-go. So this was a very easy script for me to get through.
MF: Do you see a parallel with the story in ‘The End’ to the political moment that we’re in now?
MS: A parallel? Well, it’s interesting, because I guess that’s where your mind is inclined to head, but it’s important to remember that this problem existed before Trump was elected. Even if Kamala Harris got elected or Jill Stein or whoever, it’s been a problem. It’s been a problem since the ‘60s, we’ve known about this for decades and we haven’t done enough to fix it or solve it because, frankly, we’re delusional. Not everybody on an individual basis is delusional. There are a lot of people that are aware of the problem and want to do something about it as individuals, but as a society, I feel like within the United States, there are all different kinds of people obviously, but the United States of America as a country, as a collective country, is mentally ill. It’s like a crazy person that needs treatment, and I don’t know who’s going to give us this treatment. I’m pretty sure it won’t be Donald Trump, but we need some serious time away in a clinic somewhere with a bunch of people saying, “Let’s get to the bottom of this, because you’re clearly very dysfunctional.”
(L to R) Tilda Swinton and Michael Shannon in ‘The End’. Photo: Mubi.
MF: Father starts off as kind of empathetic and congenial, and then you learn more about him and his dark side starts to come out. What was your approach to playing him?
MS: Of course he’s congenial, that’s how he got through life. I don’t think many people get to be CEOs or run corporate entities by being complete dickheads. Charm is the name of the game. Is he a sociopath? I don’t know. Sociopaths are very charming. I do believe that he does have a sense of morality ultimately, that he’s not a sociopath per se. But I thought about it, the potential or the possibility for it. But I think ultimately he’s just a man dealing with a profound amount of guilt, which I can relate to. I think guilt is a pretty universal feeling, I would hope. I don’t want people to be afflicted by it, but there are some things, like I mentioned earlier, that perhaps people should have a small amount of guilty feelings about. But I think what you see in the process of the film and the process of the story is a reawakening in him. It starts with Son inspiring him to really try and remember how he and Mother met, and it’s like a thawing of sorts. Like in order to cope with this experience that they’re having, he’s created this persona that he’s perpetuating just out of survival mode, but it’s not actually who he is if he really stops to think about it. But that’s the thing, in the aquarium that they’re all stuck in, self-examination can be a very dangerous thing. You would think, “Oh, I have all this time now, I am just going to get to know myself, and journal and all these things.” But that can lead you to some dark corners or some questions that you don’t know how to answer, and I feel like that’s what happens to Father in the movie.
MF: You’ve sang onstage in a band, but this is the first time that you’ve sang on film, correct?
MS: Well, I did a miniseries called ‘George and Tammy,’ where I played George Jones, and I sang quite a bit in that. But in terms of cinema, yeah, it’s been a long road, but yes, I don’t think I’ve sang in a movie before.
(L to R) Michael Shannon, George MacKay and Tilda Swinton in ‘The End’. Photo: Mubi.
MF: The cast sang mostly live on set. Was that a challenge in any way?
MS: Well, we rehearsed quite a bit before we started filming, we had three weeks of intensive singing rehearsals and a little bit of dancing rehearsals, and also table work with the script, blocking the scenes. The challenging part about a lot of the musical numbers that involved the whole group is that Josh had something very specific in mind about how he wanted it to move and flow and look. It’s always hard when you’ve got an ensemble of people all in frame at the same time and camera movement and all that. Some of those shots took a lot of takes to get them just the way that Josh saw them in his head.
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What is the plot of ‘The End’?
A wealthy family has lived in a vast underground bunker for 20 years while the world above has become uninhabitable and humankind has all but gone extinct. Their carefully controlled life and routines are disrupted by the arrival of a young woman from above who leads them to question everything.
In theaters on December 25th, ‘The Color Purple’ represents just the latest adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book following Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-nominated 1985 drama and the 2004 stage play musical from which this new movie draws its inspiration.
Both the first movie and the stage musical are tough acts to follow, to say nothing of the impactful original novel. But, under the direction of Blitz Bazawule, the new film proves to be a powerful story driven by some excellent performances.
Though it has a lot to live up to, ‘The Color Purple’ does indeed work, breathing fresh, impressive life into the story as it did on stage.
It doesn’t hurt that the cast offer memorable performances, successfully selling the music side while also delivering on the dramatics. This is, at times an uncomfortable film to watch –– by design, since it tells the story of women facing horrific repression and racism while managing to push through.
Produced by Oprah Winfrey (who co-starred in the original), the latest take on the tale will have you reaching for the tissues and punching the air, sometimes at the same time.
While Marcus Gardley’s script makes some tweaks to both| Alice Walker’s novel and Marsha Norman’s musical book, they make sense for this merging of two formats and keep the new musical movie feeling of a piece with both previous versions.
You’ll be gripped by Celie’s story as she deals with an unwanted forced marriage to man who effectively treats her like a servant while satisfying himself elsewhere to separation from her beloved sister and all the other indignities loaded upon her.
Yet, aside from a couple of bravura sequences (one which takes place on a giant gramophone record is particularly effective and creative), the direction from Blitz Bazawule –– whose previous work includes thriller ‘The Burial of Kojo’ and Beyoncé’s ‘Black is King’ visual album –– is largely standard, which lets the performers shine.
It must be said, though, that the visual directorial side of the movie is the weakest aspect, largely rescued by the commitment of the people on screen. The big dance numbers are ably directed, but they don’t feel special in general.
As mentioned, this is a collection of veterans doing excellent work and star-making performances for some of the newer faces.
Prime among them is Fantasia Barrino, who makes her movie debut after success in the music and on stage, where she took over the Celie role in the musical. She’s fantastic here, bringing believable grief, pain, joy and resilience to the screen, her character’s journey giving her plenty to work with.
It’s not just her show, though: Danielle Brooks (of ‘Orange is the New Black’ and ‘Peacemaker’) also does great work as Sofia, making a complicated character (she’s initially presented as a verbally abusive loudmouth, but is given other shades to play as we dig into her story also) soar and fully making the role her own in a movie where there are a host of great turns. A sequence where the consequence of her actions turns out to be particularly tough is a real experience.
Taraji P. Henson, who sang to previously memorable effect in ‘Hustle and Flow’, is here blues singer Shug Avery, the vivacious subject of Mister’s (Colman Domingo) affection but soon becomes even more important to Celie in terms of inspiration and freedom.
The younger Celie and her sister Nettie are brought to winning life by Phylicia Pearl Mpasi and ‘The Little Mermaid’s Halle Bailey, and while their screentime is relatively short, they wring every ounce out of it, setting the foundation upon which Barrino builds.
Around the lead characters orbits a rogue’s gallery and men and others, especially Domingo as Celie’s wayward, dismissive husband, who is more than just a villain –– he has his own issues, including pressure from his father.
Corey Hawkins, as Sofia’s first husband, a man with dreams of opening a juke joint (for music and drinking), is a likeable presence among some much more troublesome male figures. Be under no illusion, though: this is the women’s’ film through and through.
Balancing the traumatic side of the story with redemption and elation, ‘The Color Purple’ will surely be a player in the awards season, particularly for its lead cast. It manages to tread the line between the original book, the first movie and the stage musical, this is a successful blend of the three and its own thing at the same time.
Is it the best musical of the season? We’ve a feeling the sheer inventiveness of ‘Wonka’ presents a challenge, but for classic old-school belted songs sharing space with deep drama and historical perspective, this one is hard to beat.
‘The Color Purple’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.
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What’s the story of ‘The Color Purple’?
‘The Color Purple’ is a decades-spanning tale of love and resilience and of one woman’s journey to independence.
Celie (Fantasia Barrino) faces many hardships in her life, but ultimately finds extraordinary strength and hope in the unbreakable bonds of sisterhood.
Who else is in ‘The Color Purple’?
The movie’s cast also includes Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman, Corey Hawkins, H.E.R., Halle Bailey and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor.
Jennifer Lopez attends the Tribeca Festival Opening Night & World Premiere of Netflix’s ‘Halftime’ on June 08, 2022 in New York City. Photo: Monica Schipper/Getty Images.
Preview:
Jennifer Lopez has boarded a musical movie adaptation of ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’
‘Dreamgirls’ Bill Condon will direct.
The film’s producers are looking for an unknown to play the other lead role.
Given the rapidly expanding universe of Marvel-based Spider-people that Sony has been bringing to the screen, news of Jennifer Lopez starring in a project called ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ might make you think she’ll be next to play a super-powered arachnid-influenced character.
Instead, she’s boarded a new movie musical, which adapts both the1976 novel by Argentine writer Manuel Puig and the 1993 Broadway musical that it spawned.
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What’s the story of ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’?
William Hurt in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman.’ Photo: FilmDallas Pictures.
The musical is set in an Argentinian prison in 1981. Lopez would play the titular role, a fantasy woman named Aurora created by Luis Molina, a gay hairdresser serving an eight-year sentence for allegedly corrupting a minor.
To escape the horrors of his imprisonment, Molina imagines movies starring Aurora as a classic silver screen diva, including a role of the spider woman, who kills her prey with a kiss. Molina’s life is upended when a Marxist, Valentin Arregui Paz, is brought into his cell, and the two form an unlikely bond.
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Who else appears in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’?
(L to R) William Hurt and Raul Julia in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman.’ Photo: FilmDallas Pictures.
As of right now, there is no other cast attached. According to Variety’s sources, the filmmaking team is currently searching for an unknown to play Molina. In a casting breakdown obtained by the trade magazine, the role “presents as an openly queer and effeminate gay man but may be on the non-binary/trans femme spectrum.”
Rehearsals would start in February with a plan to begin filming in April in New Jersey.
The role has some storied history –– in the 1985 non-musical movie adaptation, William Hurt took the Molina part and won the Best Actor Oscar.
And the musical won seven Tony Awards, including for best musical and for all three performers: Chita Rivera, Brent Carver and Anthony Crivello. So there’s certainly scope for trophy time here if the movie turns out well.
(L to R) Actor Ian McKellen, actress Laura Linney (center) and director Bill Condon attend the Academy’s 7th Annual Governors Awards in The Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, CA, on Saturday, November 14, 2015.
Director Bill Condon, who has plenty of form making musical movies, is at the helm of this one.
He’ll be working with music by legends John Kander and Fred Ebb, and the book of the musical by Terrence McNally.
Lopez, who has a new album due next year, is aboard to produce the film via her Nuyorican Productions company.
When will ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ be in theaters?
Given the filming plan, we wouldn’t expect this one before 2025 at the earliest. And since it’s an independent movie, it’ll also likely need to lock down distribution.
William Hurt in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman.’ Photo: FilmDallas Pictures.
Ariel (Halle Bailey), the youngest daughter of the kingdom Atlantica’s ruler King Triton (Javier Bardem), is fascinated with the human world but mermaids are forbidden to explore it. After saving Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) from a shipwreck and falling in love with him, she becomes determined to be with him in the world above water. These actions lead to a confrontation with her father and an encounter with the conniving sea witch Ursula (Melissa McCarthy), making a deal with her to trade her beautiful voice for human legs so she can discover the world above water and impress Eric. However, this ultimately places her life (and her father’s crown) in jeopardy.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Halle Bailey and Jonah Hauer-King about their work on ‘The Little Mermaid,’ what audiences can expect from the new movie, shooting the underwater scenes, and working with the puppeteers.
(L to R) Jonah Hauer-King and Halle Bailey at the London premiere of ‘The Little Mermaid.’
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Bailey, Hauer-King, Javier Bardem, and Melissa McCarthy, as well as director Rob Marshall and producer John DeLuca.
Moviefone: To begin with, Halle, what would you say to moviegoers to prepare them for this live-action version of ‘The Little Mermaid?’
Halle Bailey: I would definitely say to moviegoers who are excited to see the film, be prepared for a fun, joyful, exciting, magical, emotional journey that we take you on in this film. Rob Marshall is a visionary and has done such a beautiful job with directing this film, and everyone has worked collectively so hard to just make everyone happy. We hope that they love it ultimately.
MF: Jonah, what would you say to moviegoers to prepare them for the theatrical experience they are about to have?
Jonah Hauer-King: Yeah, exactly that. It’s a huge, big epic adventure, but I think it’s really grounded in human stories, and mermaid stories, about what it means to relate to one another, and what it means to fall in love. I think it feels grounded in reality despite how big and epic the scale is.
MF: Halle, I understand that for some of your underwater scenes you actually did not perform them in water, but rather on wires without water. What was that process like for you?
HB: Yes, so it was really beautiful because I had kind of split time between the blue-screen work, which is what you see when we’re doing the underwater scenes and the dialogue, like me and Javier or me and Flounder and Sebastian, which was me harnessed in the air in a swimming position, simulating the iconic Ariel swim. Then when it gets to the shipwreck scenes or when I’m saving Eric, that was in water, in real water in the tank at Pinewood, which is this huge beautiful tank. So I feel like I had the best of both worlds and it was really cool for me because it was a lot of physicality, but I was able to just have fun with it, and we had so much fun.
MF: But Jonah, you were actually in the water for a lot of your scenes, how challenging were those sequences for you to shoot?
JHK: What was crazy though was that when we were in the water together, I could interact with water like a human would, which is fine. So when the storms go in, it’s okay, I can just be drowning and that’s all right. She had to look like she actually was a mermaid. So that was insane, but I think she pulled it off pretty well.
MF: Halle, which was more difficult for you, actually being in the water, or pretending to swim while on wires?
HB: The wires were a bit harder because it was a lot of core strength that you had to hold yourself up with. Then we had this beautiful stunt team that would hold my legs together basically, and then I would be kind of just suspended in the air on my side. So it was a lot of oblique work and trying not to look like I’m shaking while I’m doing the dialogue and singing. So I think that was maybe the more difficult. Whereas the water, you can just let it take you and it’d be fine.
MF: Finally, Halle, I also understand that characters like Scuttle, Flounder and Sebastian were actually performed by puppeteers on set. What was it like for you performing with the puppeteers?
HB: Yes, so we had a really awesome preparation period. Rob Marshall is a perfectionist, and he’s prepared. So before we actually started filming, we had three months of rehearsals with the cast, getting to know each other, bonding, and getting that connection that ultimately we needed to be able to play with these characters. We had already rehearsed a lot with Jacob, Daveed, and Awkwafina. So by the time it got to actually filming for me, they were no longer on set, but I would hear them in my ears. We had already built that connection and bond, and I was left with these amazing puppeteers, so they would kind of hold them in place for my eye-line before we started shooting. Then when we had to film, they took them away and I would literally just be talking to nothing, talking to air, looking like a crazy person before they’re added it in after. Then when it was added after, it’s like, “Okay, great.” It looks like I’m actually talking to them and they’re actually there.
(L to R) Jonah Hauer-King and Halle Bailey star in ‘The Little Mermaid.’
‘The Little Mermaid’ is produced by Walt Disney Pictures, Lucamar Productions, and Marc Platt Productions. It is set to release in theaters on May 26th, 2023.
Premiering on Paramount+ beginning April 6th is the new series ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies,’ which is a prequel to the 1978 film ‘Grease.’
What is the plot of ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies?’
‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies’ is a new musical series that takes place four years before the events of the original “Grease.” In 1954, before rock ‘n’ roll ruled, before the T-Birds were the coolest in the school, four fed-up outcasts dare to have fun on their own terms, sparking a moral panic that will change Rydell High forever.
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Who is in the cast of ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies?’
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Marisa Davila and Cheyenne Isabel Wells about their work on ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies,’ the legacy of the franchise, and bringing life to these new characters.
(L to R) Marisa Davila and Cheyenne Isabel Wells star in Paramount+’s ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies.’
You can read our full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Davila, Wells, Ari Notartomaso, Tricia Fukuhara, Jason Schmidt, Madison Thompson, Shanel Bailey, Maxwell Whittington-Cooper, Nicholas McDonough, as well as Executive Music Producer Justin Tranter and Choreographer/Director Jamal Sims.
Moviefone: To begin with, Marisa, can you tell us where on the ‘Grease’ franchise timeline this new series takes place?
Marisa Davila: ‘Rise of The Pink Ladies’ takes place in 1954. So it’s four years before the original film. We’ve backed up a little bit, and this happens when the T-Birds weren’t exactly ruling the school just yet. They’re making their name and The Pink Ladies didn’t exist. We’re just a gang that hadn’t been formed yet, so we see the origin story of everything.
(L to R) Tricia Fukuhara as Nancy Nakagawa, Marisa Davila as Jane Facciano, Cheyenne Wells as Olivia Valdovinos and Ari Notartomaso as Cynthia Zdunowski in ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies’ streaming on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Eduardo Araquel/ Paramount+.
MF: Cheyenne, can you talk about how the Pink Ladies form?
Cheyenne Isabel Wells: I mean, I think our characters are all in different places. We are all kind of outcast. We’re not finding our place at Rydell. There’s a lot of cliques. Everybody has friends, but we are all just alone. So once we find each other, it’s amazing. We’re all so different, but we’re able to bring that all together and build this huge friendship that rules the school.
Marisa Davila as Jane Facciano in ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies’ streaming on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Eduardo Araquel/ Paramount+.
MF: In the series, Rydell is having a school election and Jane is running for office. Marisa, what is Jane’s platform?
MD: Well, it’s opposite of the incumbent for sure. There’s something really stiff and old school about the traditional ways of going through how the school has handled different dynamics so far and certain events that they’re trying to uphold. In doing so, they end up leaving people out in the process. Jane’s like, “What? To heck with that.” I think we do represent even more characters in the school that you might not get the chance to see, but can relate to our characters as well. We’re a voice for the underdogs.
(L to R) Madison Thompson as Susan, Charlotte Kavanagh as Rosemary, Ari Notartomaso as Cynthia Zdunowski, Cheyenne Wells as Olivia Valdovinos, Josette Halpert as Dot, Tricia Fukuhara as Nancy Nakagawa, Kallie Hu as Peg and Marisa Davila as Jane Facciano in ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies’ streaming on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Eduardo Araquel/ Paramount+.
MF: Cheyenne, can you talk about all the singing and dancing you do in this series? What was that experience like for you?
CIW: Oh, it’s so much fun. I mean, we have Justin Tranter who wrote 30 original songs for the show, and they are all hits, every single one of them is amazing. Then Jamal Sims, who choreographed beautiful numbers that, literally, you can watch over and over again and find something new with a different character, or a different person. It’s just cinematically beautiful.
(L to R) Marisa Davila as Jane Facciano and Jason Schmidt as Buddy in ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies’ streaming on Paramount+. Photo Credit: Eduardo Araquel/ Paramount+.
MF: Finally, Marisa, can you talk about Jane’s relationship with Buddy?
MD: That’s a funny question because when we meet her, she goes, “I know how this goes. You and I don’t go together. And that’s okay.” She’s trying to brace herself for that heartbreak. But I think that when he’s actually, “No, we could.” She’s like, “What?” This is a version of myself I didn’t know that I knew, and that I could be associated with something like that. Then the foot comes down and it’s like, oh wow, this is a lot. A lot more than I was expecting and it’s also not what signed up for. I mean, with both of the love interests we have It’s hard to describe. I get all gushy when I’m talking about the boys. It’s typical. What’s so funny is I remember being like, “Wasn’t I just talking to Buddy and now I’m talking to Richie?” I’m like, things move fast in high school. It was always moving very fast.
(L to R) Tricia Fukuhara as Nancy Nakagawa, Marisa Davila as Jane Facciano, Cheyenne Wells as Olivia Valdovinos and Ari Notartomaso as Cynthia Zdunowski in ‘Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies’ streaming on Paramount +. Photo Credit: Eduardo Araquel/ Paramount+.
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