Moviefone Editorial

Tag: Taylour Paige

  • TV Review: ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’

    Bill Skarsgård in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    Bill Skarsgård in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    Arriving on HBO Max on October 22 with its first episode is ‘IT: Welcome to Derry,’ which turns the clock back to 1962 so as to explore more of the dark history of the titular town and the equally titular presence, who feeds on fear and terrorizes the locals.

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    Developed for television by ‘IT’ filmmakers Andy Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti and Jason Fuchs (‘Wonder Woman’), the show stars Taylour Paige, Jovan Adepo, Blake Cameron James and Chris Chalk, with Bill Skarsgård reprising his role as the fearsome Pennywise.

    Related Article: Bill Skarsgård will Return as Pennywise for the ‘It’ TV Prequel

    Initial Thoughts

    (L to R): Mikkal Karim-Fidler, Clara Stack and Jack Molloy Legault in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    (L to R): Mikkal Karim-Fidler, Clara Stack and Jack Molloy Legault
    in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    While prequels have been around for years, it feels like we’ve been besieged by them in recent years, especially as studios and TV networks seek to find new ways to explore established franchises.

    It’s a tough tightrope to walk –– audiences can tire of learning too much about certain characters (‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ is an example), while lazy storytelling can creep in. But refreshingly, ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’ is a worthwhile addition to the canon of a story that began with Stephen King’s 1986 novel and has been most famously adapted into two big screen outings.

    Script and Direction

    Chris Chalk in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    Chris Chalk in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    ‘Welcome to Derry’, thanks to the presence of some of the filmmaking team, faithfully connects to the movies without too many overt references. The show’s plotline and characters are smartly drawn, offering layered approaches to a variety of stories, not the least of which is Taylour Paige and Jovan Adepo as Charlotte and Leroy Hanlon, the latter of whom links the townsfolk with the nearby army base and the military’s attempts to learn more about its dark secret.

    Andy Muschietti, who directed both the more recent movies, gives the show its own signature blend of everyday life and gory, bone-chilling scares.

    Cast and Performances

    Taylour Paige in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    Taylour Paige in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    It’s kudos to both the creators and the rest of the cast that the series doesn’t lean on Skarsgård’s creep-tastic Pennywise to generate its scares, at least not in his actual clown form. Paige and Adepo are both great, but the real winners are among the younger cast (including Amanda Christine and Clara Stack, who offer naturalistic work in the face of some truly terrifying set pieces.

    Final Thoughts

    Blake Cameron James in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    Blake Cameron James in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    ‘Welcome to Derry’ proves to be that rare prequel that works to enhance what has gone before, and finds interesting angles to peek into beyond even Stephen King’s source work.

    Kicking off just before Halloween, it’s ideal creepy viewing for a fall evening.

    ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’ receives 82 out of 100.

    Kimberly Guerrero in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    Kimberly Guerrero in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    What’s the plot of ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’?

    The show is set in 1962, 27 years before the events of ‘IT: Chapter One’ (which updated the book’s 1957 setting to 1988). The show dives into the lore of Pennywise and the town’s horrific history, drawing heavily from the “interludes” in King’s original novel — the eerie flashbacks and historical tragedies Mike Hanlon researched as an adult.

    Who stars in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’?

    • Taylour Paige as Charlotte Hanlon
    • Jovan Adepo as Leroy Hanlon
    • Blake Cameron James as Will Hanlon
    • Chris Chalk as Dick Hallorann
    • James Remar as General Shaw
    • Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise the Clown
    (L to R): Clara Stack, Amanda Christine in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.
    (L to R): Clara Stack, Amanda Christine in ‘IT: Welcome to Derry’. Photo: Brooke Palmer/HBO.

    Other Movies and TV Shows in the ‘It’ Franchise:

    Buy ‘It’ Movies On Amazon

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  • Movie Review: ‘The Toxic Avenger’ (2025)

    Luisa Guerreiro as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger,' a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Luisa Guerreiro as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger,’ a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    Opening in theaters on August 29th is ‘The Toxic Avenger’, which is a reboot of the 1984 cult classic and was directed by Macon Blair (‘Brothers’).

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    The film stars Peter Dinklage (‘Game of Thrones’) in the title role, as well as Jacob Tremblay (‘Room’), Taylour Paige (‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F’), Elijah Wood (‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring’), and Kevin Bacon (‘Footloose’).

    Related Article: San Diego Comic-Con 2025: ‘The Toxic Avenger’ Panel Brings Crazy Action

    Initial Thoughts

    Peter Dinklage as “Winston Gooze” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger', a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Peter Dinklage as “Winston Gooze” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger’, a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    While it’s not going to win any Oscars, ‘The Toxic Avenger’ reboot is the best possible updated version of the 1984 cult classic. Director Macron Blair clearly understood the assignment and delivers over-the-top action, violence, and humor, but also injects the movie with an emotional core that makes you care about the characters.

    Peter Dinklage’s performance as the pre-Toxic Avenger Winston Gooze anchors the film and creates a sympathetic character for the audience to root for. His relationship with his son played by Jacob Tremblay is the emotional heart of the film, and they are joined by hilariously over-the-top performances from the film’s villains, played by Kevin Bacon and Elijah Wood.

    Story and Direction

    Director Macon Blair at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of 'The Toxic Avengers'. Photo: Cineverse.
    Director Macon Blair at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of ‘The Toxic Avengers’. Photo: Cineverse.

    The movie begins by introducing us to Winston Gooze, a down on his luck janitor trying to raise his teenage stepson Wade (Jacob Tremblay), after his wife’s sudden death. Winston works at a factory owned by billionaire health guru Bob Garbinger, who with the help of a crime boss is manufacturing toxic beauty products. We also meet J.J. Doherty (Taylour Paige), an investigative journalist trying to expose Garbinger’s illegal practices after he had her mentor killed.

    With evidence in hand to ruin Garbinger, he sends a group of assassins led by his brother Fritz Garbinger (Elijah Wood) to kill J.J. But they mistakenly kill Gooze instead and dump his body in a pool of chemical waste, transforming him into the hero the Toxic Avenger (played by suit performer Luisa Guerreiro).

    Using his newfound powers, Winston becomes a local hero as the Toxic Avenger and tries to reconnect with Wade. But when Bob discovers his identity, he dispatches Fritz and an army of assassins to capture Wade and lure the Toxic Avenger to his death. Now, Winston must team up with J.J. to save Wade and stop Bob for good.

    Screenwriter/Director Macon Blair on the set of the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger', a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Screenwriter/Director Macon Blair on the set of the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger’, a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    Director Macon Blair, who helmed last year’s ‘Brothers’ and starred in ‘Blue Ruin’ and ‘Green Room’ is one filmmaker that you want to keep your eyes on. Blair has elevated the source material and delivered a script that while incorporating the tone, violence and humor of the original, focuses on the relationship between Winston and Wade, creating an emotional core for the film and forcing you care about what happens to these strange characters.

    Blair’s direction is also impressive, moving the camera in an interesting way, and using practical effects rather than VFX, which helps with the campy tone. Blair accomplishes his goal with ‘Toxic Avenger’, recapturing the strange tone and over-the-top gore and campiness of the original, while creating something new, with a real heart, that audiences can relate to.

    Cast and Performances

    (L to R) Peter Dinklage as “Winston Gooze” and Jacob Tremblay as “Wade” in the action, comedy,horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger', a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    (L to R) Peter Dinklage as “Winston Gooze” and Jacob Tremblay as “Wade” in the action, comedy,horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger’, a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    Peter Dinklage was perfectly cast as Winston Gooze and beings so much heart and sympathy to the role. However, Dinklage’s performance as the Toxic Avenger is a voice role only, but suit performer Luisa Guerreiro does fantastic work and her performance with Dinklage’s added audio works seamlessly.

    Jacob Tremblay, who first came to fame as a child actor in films like ‘Room’ and ‘Wonder’, is now a young man and once you get over that shock, he gives a heartfelt performance as Wade. Tremblay has great chemistry with Dinklage and is at his best in their scenes together early in the film.

    Kevin Bacon as “Bob Garbinger” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger', a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Kevin Bacon as “Bob Garbinger” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger’, a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    The film’s villains are all great, including the over-the-top Kevin Bacon, who seems to be having a lot of fun chewing up the scenery. Julia Davis also gives an excellent evil performance as Bob Garbinger’s love interest and assistant, but its Elijah Wood as Fritz Garbinger that really steals the film, playing the character as a dangerous yet sympathetic villain, who is just looking for his brother’s love and approval.

    Actress Taylour Paige, last seen in ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F’ as Eddie Murphy’s daughter, is fine in her role but ultimately not give enough to do and gets lost in the film’s shocking moments and its various over-the-top characters.

    Final Thoughts

    Elijah Wood as “Fritz Garbinger” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger', a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Elijah Wood as “Fritz Garbinger” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger’, a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    Again, while it’s not going to win any Oscars, ‘The Toxic Avenger’ is exactly what it should be, a gore-filled, campy, over-the-top remake of the original. Director Macon Blair injects the film with enough heart for the audience to truly care about the characters, and the cast is excellent, led by a commanding performance from Peter Dinklage, and wild performances from Kevin Bacon and Elijah Wood. Fans of the original and the genre in general, should be very happy with the new film.

    ‘The Toxic Avenger’ (2025) receives a score of 75 out of 100.

    Luisa Guerreiro as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger,' a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Luisa Guerreiro as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger,’ a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    What is the plot of ‘The Toxic Avenger’?

    When a downtrodden janitor, Winston Gooze (Peter Dinklage), is exposed to a catastrophic toxic accident, he’s transformed into a new kind of hero: The Toxic Avenger. Now, Toxie must rise from outcast to savior, taking on ruthless corporate overlords and corrupt forces who threaten his son (Jacob Tremblay), his friends, and his community. In a world where greed runs rampant… justice is best served radioactive.

    Who is in the cast of ‘The Toxic Avenger’?

    • Peter Dinklage as Winston Gooze / the Toxic Avenger (voice)
    • Luisa Guerreiro as the Toxic Avenger (suit performer)
    • Jacob Tremblay as Wade Gooze
    • Taylour Paige as J.J. Doherty
    • Kevin Bacon as Bob Garbinger
    • Elijah Wood as Fritz Garbinger
    • Sarah Niles as Mayor Togar
    • Julia Davis as Kissy Sturnevan
    • Julian Kostov as Budd Berserk
    • David Yow as Guthrie Stockins
    • Macon Blair as Dennis
    • Rebecca O’Mara as Shelly Gooze
    • Jonny Coyne as Thad Barkabus
    • Jane Levy as Cheerful Insurance Representative (voice)
    Luisa Guerreiro as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger,' a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Luisa Guerreiro as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger,’ a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    List of Movies and TV Shows in ‘The Toxic Avenger’ Franchise:

    Buy Tickets: ‘The Toxic Avenger’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy ‘The Toxic Avenger’ Movies On Amazon

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  • San Diego Comic-Con 2025: ‘The Toxic Avenger’ Panel

    (L to R) Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, Lloyd Kaufman, Macon Blair, Elijah Wood and Jacob Tremblay at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of 'The Toxic Avengers'. Photo: Cineverse.
    (L to R) Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, Lloyd Kaufman, Macon Blair, Elijah Wood and Jacob Tremblay at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of ‘The Toxic Avengers’. Photo: Cineverse.

    Preview:

    • ‘The Toxic Avenger’ landed at this year’s Comic-Con.
    • Director Macon Blair and star Peter Dinklage talked the movie up.
    • Fans were also treated to footage.

    It has taken a few years for the latest version of classic Troma character ‘The Toxic Avenger’ to make it to screens, but what better place than the San Diego Comic-Con for writer/director Macon Blair, star Peter Dinklage and other cast members to hype it up at a raucous panel?

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    Not appearing in person, but certainly there in spirit (and via video) was Kevin Bacon, who even broke into song at one point.

    “Stayin’ at home going to make you blue / You need the movies and the movies need you,” Bacon sang. “Down to the theater, try your luck / ‘Toxic Avenger,’ show the f**k up.”

    Related Article: Peter Dinklage is the Mutated Hero in the First Image of New ‘The Toxic Avenger’ Movie

    What’s the story of ‘The Toxic Avenger’?

    Peter Dinklage as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, 'The Toxic Avenger', a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.
    Peter Dinklage as “Toxie” in the action, comedy, horror film, ‘The Toxic Avenger’, a Cineverse release. Photo courtesy of Yana Blajeva/Legendary Pictures.

    When a downtrodden janitor, Winston Gooze (Dinklage), is exposed to a catastrophic toxic accident, he’s transformed into a new kind of hero: The Toxic Avenger.

    Now, Toxie must rise from outcast to savior, taking on ruthless corporate overlords and corrupt forces who threaten his son, his friends, and his community. In a world where greed runs rampant… justice is best served radioactive.

    Lloyd Kaufman on ‘The Toxic Avenger’s history

    Producer Lloyd Kaufman at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of 'The Toxic Avengers'. Photo: Cineverse.
    Producer Lloyd Kaufman at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of ‘The Toxic Avengers’. Photo: Cineverse.

    Lloyd Kaufman, the boss of Troma studios, who created the original Toxie (for 1984’s movie), talked about the challenges of battling censors over what was allowed.

    He recalled that the MPAA forced the company to cut 20 minutes from the original. But, as he reveals:

    “Eventually, people were able to get the director’s cut with the full head-crushing.”

    That film spawned a franchise and a cult following –– and now, has led to this brand-new take, which Kaufman happily supports.

    This was his comment on the new movie:

    “It’s everything we tried and didn’t quite get there”

    ‘The Toxic Avenger’: The Director and Stars Talk

    Director Macon Blair at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of 'The Toxic Avengers'. Photo: Cineverse.
    Director Macon Blair at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of ‘The Toxic Avengers’. Photo: Cineverse.

    Director Macon Blair and the cast were overjoyed to be anticipating the movie’s release after worrying that it might not see screens at all.

    Blair said he wanted to capture the spirit of the original film without matching its plot beat-for-beat, so he knew the violence had to have the goopy goodness you expect but he also wanted to match what he saw as the warm-hearted nature of the first film.

    For Dinklage, his first exposure to Toxie was via a Betamax video at a friend’s house, joking that “there’s always an older brother!” He was persuaded to take on the role because of his appreciation for Blair’s filmmaking style and the environmental message of the movie.

    And he revealed that more than 70% of his performance “over 70% of my performance” is down to actor Luisa Guerreiro, who wore the full-body suit and makeup once Winston is transformed into the Toxic Avenger.

    Here’s what Dinklage had to say:

    “That was a real exercise in trust, in relinquishing something that was important to me. She does a better me than I do of me.”

    (L to R) Peter Dinklage and Elijah Wood appear in Hall H at 2025 San Diego Comic-Con for 'The Toxic Avenger'. Photo: Cineverse.
    (L to R) Peter Dinklage and Elijah Wood appear in Hall H at 2025 San Diego Comic-Con for ‘The Toxic Avenger’. Photo: Cineverse.

    Elijah Wood, a huge fan of horror –– who has starred in and produced his fair share of the genre –– plays one of the new movie’s villains.

    He admitted e loved how this ‘Toxic Avenger’ is filled to the brim with ideas and fun and playing with the medium. But he singled out the father-son story between Dinklage and Jacob Tremblay’s characters as central to the charm of the movie.

    Finally, Blair discussed what had been added to the movie since its premiere at Fantastic Fest in 2023. But he had to somewhat talk around it for the family-friendly panel requirements:

    “We added really just one VFX shot. I believe this is an all-ages crowd. It involves a depiction of a body part and that’s going to be added for theatrical release. I think you’ll notice it.”

    When will ‘The Toxic Avenger’ be in theaters?

    Toxie will be creating vengeful havoc on big screens from August 29th.

    (L to R) Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, Elijah Wood and Jacob Tremblay at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of 'The Toxic Avengers'. Photo: Cineverse.
    (L to R) Peter Dinklage, Taylour Paige, Elijah Wood and Jacob Tremblay at the San Diego Comic-Con premiere of ‘The Toxic Avengers’. Photo: Cineverse.

    Movies Featuring The Toxic Avenger:

    Buy The Toxic Avenger Movies and TV on Amazon

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  • Movie Review: ‘Magazine Dreams’

    Jonathan Majors stars in 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    Jonathan Majors stars in ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    ‘Magazine Dreams’ receives 7 out of 10 stars.

    Opening in theaters March 21st is ‘Magazine Dreams,’ directed by Elijah Bynum and starring Jonathan Majors, Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige, Harrison Page, Harriet Sansom Harris, and Mike O’Hearn.

    Related Article: Director Michael B. Jordan and Jonathan Majors Talk Sequel ‘Creed III’

    Initial Thoughts

    Jonathan Majors stars in 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    Jonathan Majors stars in ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    ‘Magazine Dreams’ originally premiered more than two years ago at the Sundance Film Festival, following which Searchlight Pictures planned to release the film later in 2023 and build an Oscar campaign about the performance of star Jonathan Majors. But Majors’ subsequent arrest for assaulting his then-girlfriend and conviction on misdemeanor charges of assault and harassment (which also cost him his role as Kang the Conqueror in the Marvel Cinematic Universe) led Searchlight to drop the film, which stayed in limbo until Briarcliff – the small indie also behind the release of last year’s controversial ‘The Apprentice’ – picked it up and is now releasing it.

    On the merits alone, there’s simply no question that Majors’ performance may have sent him home with an Oscar had events turned out differently. While ‘Magazine Dreams’ itself is uneven and begins to break down toward the end, the film is visually arresting and narratively gripping for most of the way. Majors is simply a force of nature in the movie, his work as aspiring bodybuilder Killian Maddox a vortex of physical, emotional, and psychological trauma that’s almost too intense at times. Whatever you think of Majors as a person, ‘Magazine Dreams’ is a powerful testament to his raw talent as an actor.

    Story and Direction

    (L to R) Jonathan Majors and Elijah Bynum on the set of 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    (L to R) Jonathan Majors and Elijah Bynum on the set of ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    Killian Maddux is a young man with, literally, magazine dreams: he aims to land on the cover of bodybuilding magazines and become a celebrity like his idol, Brad Vanderhorn (played by real-life bodybuilder and magazine cover staple Mike O’Hearn). Posters and photos of Vanderhorn – who he writes constant, unanswered letters to — and others cover the walls of Killian’s room in the small house he shares with his grandfather, William (Harrison Page), who is ill and needs Killian to take care of him and the house. As we find out later, Killian has been raised by William following tragic events in the past.

    Killian’s daily routine otherwise consists of painful, lengthy, extensive workouts that leave him clutching his abdomen in agony while every muscle pops out in emulation of the inhuman standards set by this most bizarre of competitions. He works out maniacally, competes in local bodybuilding contests with hopes of ascending to national meets, and posts what he thinks are inspirational videos online that draw comments like “Why hasn’t this guy killed himself yet?” and “Hella incel vibes.”

    It’s clear from the start that Killian is lonely, isolated, psychologically scarred and emotionally stunted; his interactions with the customers at the supermarket where he works are awkward and socially inept, and his attraction to checkout girl Jessie (Haley Bennett) leads to a date that the word “disastrous” doesn’t really do justice to. But Killian’s other interactions with the world, unfortunately, end up in much worse places than his date slipping out the back on the pretense of going to the bathroom: after a dismissive phone call with a paint shop that refuses to come back to the house for some touch-ups, Killian heads there and promptly destroys the storefront, literally hurling himself through the glass windows in a senseless rage that can only be described as primal.

    Jonathan Majors stars in 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    Jonathan Majors stars in ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    As we find out from the doctor that treats Killian after that incident (which oddly – in one of the movie’s strange lapses of logic – does not end up with Killian behind bars for even one night), he is wrecking his body with the steroids he takes to achieve his physical goals (he’s obsessed with the size of his deltoids, which one judge a while back told him were too small). He’s also decimating his mind: “I control my emotions, my emotions don’t control me,” he tells himself at one point, which is about as far away from the truth as even his delusional imagination can handle.

    But Killian is clearly a figure who also deserves our empathy: as a large Black man who can clearly intimidate people, he’s already isolated from normal social interaction to a certain extent, which writer-director Elijah Bynum emphasizes in subtle yet pointed ways (one customer in the supermarket apologizes to him for no discernible reason after she catches him glancing at her). On top of that, his haunted past, his search for human connection of any kind – which leads him to both his labored attempt at romance and his obsession with fame and celebrity culture – and the punishment he puts himself through all lead him down the same dark path we’ve seen in films like ‘Taxi Driver, ‘You Were Never Really Here,’ and ‘Nightcrawler.’

    (L to R) Jonathan Majors and Elijah Bynum on the set of 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    (L to R) Jonathan Majors and Elijah Bynum on the set of ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    Bynum’s film doesn’t quite travel to the same conclusions as any of those, and as ‘Magazine Dreams’ rolls on, there’s a certain repetitive nature to the narrative that kicks in. The repercussions of some of Killian’s actions are never made quite clear, and during the movie’s third act we begin to wonder how much of what’s happening is real and how much is occurring in his head. After the excruciatingly intense realism of the earlier parts of the film, this more surreal final stretch isn’t quite as effective, and the ambiguous way in which ‘Magazine Dreams’ ends doesn’t match the power of the rest of the film.

    Despite its flawed structure, this is still a provocative film to watch, and a striking one as well: Bynum and cinematographer Adam Arkapaw have crafted a beautiful succession of images, often casting Killian in deep blues and reds to indicate his emotional wavelength while capturing every gleaming striation of the formidable physiques of him and other bodybuilders. Jason Hill’s original score complements this quite well, as do the passages of both classical music and screaming death metal that accentuate certain scenes – the latter effectively deployed as Killian races in his car to enact his wrath on the paint shop. The production design also captures the drab, rundown nature of Killian’s world, from the empty, staring windows of defunct businesses to the sweaty, kaleidoscopic club at which Killian finds himself one night, dancing frenziedly among others who have no idea of the human timebomb in their midst.

    Cast and Performances

    (L to R) Haley Bennett and Jonathan Majors in 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    (L to R) Haley Bennett and Jonathan Majors in ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    The supporting cast here is effective in what are truly minor roles: Haley Bennett brings a tentative grace to the role of Jessie, while Harrison Page delivers an exhausted, wounded dignity to William – a scene in which he gives some long-overdue comfort to his grandson stands out for its vulnerability. Elsewhere, Harriet Sansom Harris is a natural as the therapist that Killian sees, listening to him and encouraging him even as she knows he’s probably lying to her, while Taylour Paige is more or less wasted as a sex worker with whom Killian has an ultimately pointless encounter.

    But let’s face it: this movie is pretty much a one-hander, and Majors – for whom this movie would have followed earlier triumphs like ‘Creed III,’ ‘Lovecraft Country,’ and ‘The Harder They Fall’ – dominates the screen for the entire two-hour running time, much of which he spends alone. Not only did the actor clearly sculpt his own body into the tortured form that passes for excellence in bodybuilding, but he brings an intensity to Killian’s volatile nature that is often as frightening and unpredictable as it is uncomfortable to watch. He’s in many ways a truly tragic figure, and Majors also brings his pain, loneliness, and sadness to light in a way that is both electrifying and moving. While ‘Magazine Dreams’ and Majors’ portrayal are both extreme in many ways, Killian’s broken nature is not.

    Final Thoughts

    Jonathan Majors stars in 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    Jonathan Majors stars in ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    The release of ‘Magazine Dreams’ brings up a question that has bedeviled society for almost a decade in the wake of #MeToo and its cultural impact: can people pay their debt to society, be forgiven as a result, and resume their lives and careers? There’s no definitive answer to that, and in a way, the movie itself echoes those concerns: can a person climb out of an abyss that’s at least partially self-imposed, achieve peace, and find a way to flourish in the world?

    The resolution is ultimately as uncertain for Killian Maddox as it is for the actor who portrays him, and on a moviegoing level, the age-old dilemma of separating the art from the artist is fully in play here. But if you can do that, ‘Magazine Dreams’ is a flawed, somewhat shaky, yet spellbinding experience that encapsulates the loneliness of living in a world where aspirations, connection, and serenity often elude our grasp.

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    What is the plot of ‘Magazine Dreams’?

    A lonely, deeply troubled aspiring bodybuilder (Jonathan Majors) pursues his dreams of fame and celebrity while also looking for human connection. But the damage he’s doing to both his body and psyche soon lead him to spiral down a dark, rage-fueled path.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Magazine Dreams’?

    • Jonathan Majors as Killian Maddox
    • Haley Bennett as Jessie
    • Harrison Page as William Lattimore
    • Harriet Sansom Harris as Patricia Waldron
    • Taylour Paige as Pink Coat
    • Mike O’Hearn as Brad Vanderhorn
    Jonathan Majors stars in 'Magazine Dreams'. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.
    Jonathan Majors stars in ‘Magazine Dreams’. Photo: Briarcliff Entertainment.

    List of Jonathan Majors Movies:

    Buy Tickets: ‘Magazine Dreams’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Jonathan Majors Movies on Amazon

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  • First Look at New ‘The Toxic Avenger’

    Peter Dinklage in 'The Toxic Avenger.'
    Peter Dinklage in ‘The Toxic Avenger.’ Credit: Legendary Pictures.

    Peter Dinklage is probably still best known as Tyrion Lannister in TV mega-hit ‘Game of Thrones’. But he’s taken on a character that has a chance to become just as recognizable –– especially since it has cult status.

    In the first picture released by Legendary in honor of the movie’s planned debut at next month’s Fantastic Fest, we see Dinklage play ‘The Toxic Avenger,’ mop in hand.

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    What’s the story of ‘The Toxic Avenger‘?

    Exactly how the new movie will update the story remains to be seen, but the 1984 original follows struggling everyman janitor Melvin, who is pushed into a vat of toxic waste. He’s transformed into a mutant freak who must go from shunned outcast to underdog hero as he races to save his son, his friends and his community from the forces of corruption and greed.

    It’s not necessarily the sort of character and concept you might expect to enjoy evergreen status, but spoofing superhero tropes, it became a flagship brand for low budget studio Troma, spawning sequels, a stage musical, a comic and a kids’ cartoon series.

    All we really know at this point is the latest movie is a reimagining, with Dinklage’s character called Winston Gooze. That’s one to stick in the memory.

    Who else is in the new movie?

    Kevin Bacon as Fred Snr. in 'One Way.'
    Kevin Bacon as Fred Snr. in ‘One Way.’

    With Macon Blair writing and directing, the cast also includes Jacob Tremblay, Elijah Wood, Julia Davis, Taylour Paige and Kevin Bacon.

    Related Article: Peter Dinklage Joins the ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel

    Dinklage talks the character and movie

    Haley Bennett as Roxanne, and Peter Dinklage as Cyrano in Joe Wright’s 'Cyrano.'
    (L to R) Haley Bennett as Roxanne, and Peter Dinklage as Cyrano in Joe Wright’s
    ‘Cyrano,’a Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures film. Photo credit: Peter Mountain. © 2021 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved.

    Star Peter Dinklage explained to Empire in 2021 why he decided to take the role:

    “It’s a lot of fun. I just wanted to do something that I’ve never done before. So why not be a monster in an over-the-top, crazy movie? “It’s not a remake. I just like guerrilla filmmaking. Those movies –– they just made them, no matter what. They just did it because they love doing it. Some of them are not the best, but some are so much fun. When you make movies too clean, it can distance the audience. They want to feel the dirt under their fingernails. I think those Troma films definitely dipped the audience in toxic waste.”

    How can I see the movie’s debut?

    Fantastic Fest will take place in Austin, Texas on September 21st - September 28th.
    Fantastic Fest will take place in Austin, Texas on September 21st – September 28th. Photo courtesy of fantasticfest.com.

    Along with many other titles, ‘The Toxic Avenger’ will debut at Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas. It’ll serve as the opening night movie.

    The genre-heavy festival runs between September 21st and 28th this year and you can get badges to attend via this link.

    This new ‘The Toxic Avenger’ doesn’t yet have a theatrical release date.

    A scene from 1984's 'The Toxic Avenger.'
    A scene from 1984’s ‘The Toxic Avenger.’ Photo courtesy of Troma Entertainment.

    Other Movies Similar to ‘The Toxic Avenger’:

    Buy Peter Dinklage Movies On Amazon

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  • Classic Cast Returning For ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley’

    Eddie Murphy as Detective Axel Foley in 1994's 'Beverly Hills Cop III.'
    Eddie Murphy as Detective Axel Foley in 1994’s ‘Beverly Hills Cop III.’

    Though paparazzi set pictures had already leaked their return, it’s good to be able to report that original ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ cast members Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser and Bronson Pinchot are all returning for the long-delayed latest entry, ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley’.

    Reinhold is back as Detective Billy Rosewood, while Ashton returns to play Sgt. Taggart, both of whom were sidekick cops to Murphy’s wisecracking Foley character. Reiser was Foley’s Detroit cop partner, Jeffrey Friedman, in the first two movies. Pinchot, meanwhile, was sassy art gallery salesman Serge in the first and third.

    The fourth movie is something that originated back in the 1990s when Murphy set up a version at original studio home Paramount via his production company. It never got past the development stage but pinged the radar again in 2006 when Jerry Bruckheimer – who produced the first three – announced that he was trying to get the fourth made.

    Fellow super-producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura stepped in after that, and the project went through a variety of script re-writes, including work from Michael Brandt and Derek Haas.

    Yet nothing seemed to be solved on the writing side, and in 2011, the announcement came that the movie was being thrust back into development jail in favor of a spin-off TV series for CBS that would have seen ‘Percy Jackson’ actor Brandon T. Jackson play Axel Foley’s son, Aaron.

    ‘The Shield’s Shawn Ryan came aboard to produce the show, which cast Kevin Pollak and David Denman, with Barry Sonnenfeld agreeing to direct the pilot.

    Sadly, for the small screen version, CBS passed on the pilot, and it returned to the ether.

    Eddie Murphy in 'Beverly Hills Cop III.'
    Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley in 1994’s ‘Beverly Hills Cop III.’

    After that flame-out, Paramount pushed ahead with the movie again, bringing Brett Ratner back in and having Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec write a new script draft. Though it got as close as securing tax credits for shooting in Detroit and landing a March 25, 2016, release date, it was shut down because of script concerns and Ratner left.

    But Paramount remained committed, hiring ‘Bad Boys for Life’ co-directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (though this was on the back of their indie movie work and before they made the latest ‘Bad Boys’), pushing the movie back into pre-production.

    Murphy announced that the movie would shoot once he finished work on ‘Coming 2 America’, but it never materialized.

    In 2019, Paramount licensed the movie to Netflix, intending to have the streaming service make the fourth and a potential fifth entry. El Arbi and Fallah left post-‘Bad Boys’ to focus on ‘Batgirl’ and the potential movie sat on the shelf once more.

    Commercials director Mark Molloy came aboard in April this year, and the movie has progressed well since then, with cameras currently rolling and the cast expanding to include Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige and Michael Camp.

    The script for the film – which took a page from ‘Top Gun: Maverick’s playbook with its legacy-referencing title – comes from Will Beall, Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec.

    We don’t yet know the plot for this one, and ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley’ doesn’t have a release date (be it in theaters or straight to Netflix) just yet. At least it’s happening!

    Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop
    Eddie Murphy in 1984’s ‘Beverly Hills Cop.’
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  • Joseph Gordon-Levitt Recruited for the New ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ Movie

    Joseph Gordon-Levitt in 'Project Power.'
    Joseph Gordon-Levitt in ‘Project Power.’ Cr. Skip Bolen/Netflix © 2020.

    Though it seemed like a fourth ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ movie may never make it out of development jail, Netflix appears to have cracked it, with shooting now underway.

    Eddie Murphy is returning to star as Axel Foley and the movie, taking a page out of ‘Top Gun: Maverick’s flight instruction manual, is now called ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley’. Clearly, Netflix is hoping this legacy sequel will share the same level of success as ‘Maverick’.

    And the cast for the new ‘Cop’ is growing as, per Deadline, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and ‘Zola’s Taylour Paige are aboard in undisclosed roles.

    Mark Molloy is directing this one, working from a script by Will Beall, while longstanding producer Jerry Bruckheimer (who also had a hand in ‘Maverick’) is overseeing things.

    The fourth movie is something that originated back in the 1990s when Murphy set up a version at original studio home Paramount via his production company. It never got past the development stage but pinged the radar again in 2006 when Bruckheimer – who produced the first three – announced that he was trying to get the fourth made.

    Fellow super-producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura stepped in after that, and the project went through a variety of script re-writes, including work from Michael Brandt and Derek Haas.

    Yet nothing seemed to be solved on the writing side, and in 2011, the announcement came that the movie was being thrust back into development limbo in favor of a spin-off TV series for CBS that would have seen ‘Percy Jackson’ actor Brandon T. Jackson play Axel Foley’s son, Aaron.

    ‘The Shield’s Shawn Ryan came aboard to produce the show, which cast Kevin Pollak and David Denman, with Barry Sonnenfeld agreeing to direct the pilot.

    Sadly, for the small screen version, CBS passed on the pilot, and it returned to the ether.

    Eddie Murphy in 'Beverly Hills Cop III.'
    Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley in 1994’s ‘Beverly Hills Cop III.’

    After that flame-out, Paramount pushed ahead with the movie again, bringing Brett Ratner back in and having Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec write a new script draft. Though it got as close as securing tax credits for shooting in Detroit and landing a March 25, 2016, release date, it was shut down because of script concerns and Ratner left it like a sinking ship.

    But Paramount remained committed, hiring ‘Bad Boys for Life’ co-directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (though this was on the back of their indie movie work and before they made the latest ‘Bad Boys’), pushing the movie back into pre-production.

    Murphy announced that the movie would shoot once he finished work on ‘Coming 2 America’, but it never materialised.

    In 2019, Paramount licensed the movie to Netflix, intending to have the streaming service make the fourth and a potential fifth entry. El Arbi and Fallah left post-‘Bad Boys’ to focus on other work and the potential movie sat on the shelf once more.

    Now, though, with Molloy aboard and the cameras rolling, we may finally, actually see this one on screens.

    In related Gordon-Levitt news, that’s not the only movie he’s attached to. Variety reports that the busy actor will co-star in sci-fi thriller ‘Ash’ alongside ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’s Tessa Thompson. Musician and director Steven Ellison (who works under the name Flying Lotus) is on to make the movie.

    The story for ‘Ash’ sees a woman (Thompson) awakening on a distant planet to discover the crew of her space station viciously killed. She must then decide if she can trust the man (Gordon-Levitt) sent to rescue her. But as their investigation into what happened sets in motion a terrifying chain of events, he begins to wonder how innocent she really is…

    Should you be worried about a schedule clash somehow derailing that new ‘Beverly Hills Cop’, you’ll be relieved to learn that ‘Ash’ won’t go into production until next year in New Zealand.

    Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop
    Eddie Murphy in 1984’s ‘Beverly Hills Cop.’
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  • Taylour Paige on ‘Zola’ and Her “Wizard of Oz trip to Hell”

    Taylour Paige on ‘Zola’ and Her “Wizard of Oz trip to Hell”

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    “Y’all wanna hear a story about why me and this b*tch fell out???????? It’s kinda long, but it’s full of suspense” So started the infamous 2015 Twitter thread that’s been adapted into a movie, directed by Janicza Bravo, and starring Taylour Paige and Riley Keough. The director and the movie’s cast recently sat down with Moviefone to talk about their new film.

    Moviefone: Taylour, what was the preparation like for you for this role?

    Taylour Paige: The preparation was life experiences and ghetto ass twenties. And I worked at Crazy Girls for four weeks before I left. And I worked with this guy Miles, he goes by @youngpolemaster. I did two privates with him. Talked to, made some friends at the strip club, shout out to Savage, her name Savage, aka Valencia, and yeah. And Tashina the Warrior in Tampa. She helped me with the pole and yeah.

    MF: And for you, Riley, you’re doing some racial appropriation in this movie. So what was that preparation like for you?

    Riley Keough: Well, she was very clearly written on the page, so I had wonderful source material to work with. So the way that she looked, the way that she spoke was Janicza and Jeremy had very much fleshed out this character. So for my prep, it was literally a lot of mostly dialect coaching and talking to Janicza, figuring out how far we wanted to go with it. Janicza was very interested in making it as offensive as possible and as horrible as possible. So that was sort of the direction. And that was in my dialect, in my hairstyle and my actions, all of it was sort of dictated by making her this inappropriate demon.

    MF: Taylour, why does Zola agree to go on this trip?

    Paige: I mean, wouldn’t you between 19 and 22 go on a road trip where you can make maybe $5,000 a night? I mean, look, I’ve had a lot of odd jobs… I’ve cleaned toilets, I’ve nannied, I’ve done concierge at Barry’s Bootcamp, I’ve worked at a weed dispensary, I’ve taught kids acting, I’ve done all kinds of retail and restaurant jobs, and it’s hard to pay the bills and survive and make your dreams pop. So I think the idea of making $5,000 a night is a no-brainer.

    Keough: Not to mention that they sort of have this moment where they fall in love with each other, and you meet this girl, and you’re like, “Ooh, why not?” Yeah, this sounds like a fun time and relationship. And I think there’s that moment that Janicza and Taylour talk about, which is that sort of fish tank moment in Romeo and Juliet where you’re like, “I see you. And I see you.” And this kind of wild lustful collision that she doesn’t know is going to end up in being Hell.

    MF: It absolutely does turn into that. That weekend turns into a colossal mess, but Zola really turns out to be the heroine of the story.

    Paige: Yeah. She’s definitely the heart and brains of this Wizard of Oz to Hell. Yeah, I think her mentality is like, “Look, no one’s looking out for me, but look, if we’re going to do this, let’s do it right.” And yeah, I think symbolically I feel like I had mentioned this, throughout the movie she has all these bags and no one asks how heavy they are, if anyone can help her with them. And Stephanie, Riley’s character, has a trash bag and a small bag that can’t even fit anything, but maybe lip gloss in it. And you just think about the symbolism of the bags that I think black women carry or that they’re assumed to carry, and no one really asks how heavy they are or what’s in them.

    Director Janicza Bravo also talked about the movie.

    Moviefone: What was it about this story that was so interesting to you?

    Janicza Bravo: The voice. There’s just so much agency. This was written by a 19-year-old girl, and if I had had one shred of the confidence and the power that she had at 19, I can’t imagine the woman I would be today.

    MF: Let’s talk about where she wrote this story.

    Bravo: She wrote it in Detroit. She wrote it in Detroit, on Twitter. This was her third time writing the story. She had written it first on Tumblr. The second time she wrote it was on Twitter, and this was her third draft. The one that I read was the third draft, which was much more humored. It started in a more morose place, and then the farther she got away from the experience, the more she was able to process and exorcise it, and the funnier it got for her.

    MF:This could be very uncomfortable for a lot of people, this subject matter. So, talking about sex trafficking using some humor is helpful.

    Bravo: I think that if the film or if the source material had not woven humor throughout, I don’t know that I would have been the right director for it, because I consider myself a comedy director. I consider myself a director of stressful comedy, specifically. And so I feel I was the right person for it, because it was in my wheelhouse, so to speak. And what I thought was such a triumph of the piece was that it was using humor around subject matter that had been very much devoid of humor because it should be, but she had used humor to get us to the end, and that you walk out of this movie being able to have a conversation on subject matter that people are too uncomfortable to engage with, that many of us probably have an arms’ length distance to, about a group of people, women specifically, that it’s easy for us to shut the door on.

    So I hope that the film brings us a little bit closer. I hope that the humor invites the audience in and allows us to engage on subject matter that we feel has nothing to do with us.

    MF: What kind of conversations did you have with your two lead actresses, Taylour Paige, and Riley Keough, about their character and especially Riley, because she’s really playing a character that is a little inappropriate?

    Bravo: With both of them, I said, “I want to approach this like I would a classic comedy. And that is to say, one of you is a straight man and the other is the buffoon.” So we have a straight man and a clown, Taylour being the straight man, our heart, our narrator, and Riley being the clown, or the menace. And that was where we started was, that’s the approach to this. One of you is a demon. The other of you is more angelic and there is humor through and through.

    Lastly, Colman Domingo and Nicholas Braun talked about the movie with us.

    Moviefone: Nicholas, were you aware of the series of tweets before signing on to this movie?

    Nicholas Braun: I was not. I was not aware, I had not read them. They just didn’t land on my radar because I’m not on Twitter very much. I’m not very good at Twitter. I would say I’m not concise. So yeah, they sent me the script, and they sent the tweet thread along alongside it. And so I read that first, then I read the script and the script just extended and fleshed out and made sort of fully realized what the tweets were.

    MF: How about you, Domingo? Were you aware of the thread first?

    Colman Domingo: No, not at all. But I read the script first more than anything. And then I went back to the tweets as a source material, and I was just blown away by the writing. I mean, who can write that in a Twitter feed? I think that she’s a very talented writer and a great thinker, I think it’s awesome.

    MF: And I think she had more freedom in that format than if it were been somewhere else.

    Domingo: Absolutely because she just got straight to it, and it was just concise. So she understood, it actually was in a new generation of writers. People who can only write with what was 140 characters and it has to be concise, and you have to be very, very meticulous with your language. I think she’s supposed to be a modern day Shakespeare.

    MF: This story is certainly outrageous. Nicholas, why is Derek on this 48-hour trip?

    Braun: Not a question he asked himself, for sure. He really just wanted to follow his girlfriend, and she’s making him believe that she’s done sleeping with men for money. She’s done a good job convincing him of that. So he goes just to help her make some money stripping and be her loyal puppy dog, and support her and tell her ‘girl, you’re a good dancer’ and so he’s just there to support her goal of making money, and maybe he’ll get a cut of it. I think.

    MF: He has issues himself.

    (Domingo laughs.)

    Braun: Yes.

    Domingo: It’s a little like judgment. That sounds a little judgey I think!

    MF: It seems as if he’s….

    Domingo: Special?

    Braun: Trouble.

    MF: Special. That’s a good word.

    (Domingo laughs again.)

    Braun: I think when I read the script, he says in the tweets and in the movie, I don’t know if it’s stayed in the movie, but he says ‘I’m bipolar, my whole family is bipolar’. I looked up bipolar, he’s not bipolar. He’s actually borderline personality disorder. So he doesn’t eat, he’s never been checked out. He’s not a guy who goes to a therapist or anybody like that. So he is borderline. So he does all these compulsive things, and he’s afraid of getting abandoned, and he threatened suicide in order to make somebody stay with them, all of these symptoms of borderline personality disorder. He is troubled in that way.

    MF: X kind of surprised me because at first, when they first take off on this journey down to Florida, he seemed like a different person than he ended up being in the end.

    Domingo: What do you mean? Did he seem like a very loving, warm and generous… (laughing)

    MF: I felt more that Stephanie was in charge, and he was…

    Domingo: He was a little bit of a Machiavellian in a way. I did a lot of research about pimp culture and about mind control. And how do you manipulate people? How do you get people? How do you always have the upper hand? And I think that that was exactly what he was showing from the very beginning. I think those who may know people like this will understand it immediately. You know what I mean? But I think what I love is what Janicza did with this film, it shows you how you can get caught up in something like that.

    So it’s not just people being stupid, but people aren’t thinking, and they’re not seeing the clues. They’ve already laid out. People tell you who they are when they first show you, but you don’t, if you don’t hear it, you’re not listening, and you just go blindly. And the next thing you know, you’re caught up in something. So I think that was hopefully the intention, you don’t know who he is immediately, but if you’re actually really listening, listen to his first line, he says to Zola, ‘Hey big Zola’, he calls you this? He doesn’t know you. So he’s telling you how he’s going to play with you and demean you and immediately in the first night.

    ‘Zola’ is now in theaters.

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  • How ‘American Honey’ Hinted at Riley Keough’s Work in ‘Zola’

    How ‘American Honey’ Hinted at Riley Keough’s Work in ‘Zola’

    Zola – directed by Janicza Bravo

    'Zola' stars Taylour Paige and Riley Keough on set with director Janicza Bravo
    ‘Zola’ stars Taylour Paige and Riley Keough on set with director Janicza Bravo

    Director of one of this year’s most buzzed titles, Janicza Bravo is poised for a breakout year. I wrote about her debut film ‘Lemon’ a few weeks back, but there is never enough space to praise Bravo’s singular artistic vision.

    Along with ‘Lemon’ and a cadre of short films, she also directed the much-lauded ‘Juneteenth’ episode of Donald Glover’s FX show ‘Atlanta’. Bravo was brought on to direct ‘Zola’ after James Franco exited the project amidst a sex misconduct scandal. The film had its world premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, but its release was pushed back a year due to the ongoing pandemic.

    The original 148-tweet thread from Aziah “Zola” King was turned into an article by Rolling Stone’s David Kushner in 2015. This was then used as the basis for the first draft of the screenplay by Andrew Neel and Mike Roberts. After Bravo signed on to direct, she re-wrote the script with playwright Jeremy O. Harris.

    Bravo described King’s original tweets as “like the intersection of Cardi B’s ‘Bodak Yellow’ and David Lynch‘s ‘Blue Velvet.’ The text was enigmatic, energized, raw and unfiltered. It seemed to exist on a planet that was just next to ours, somewhere larger than life and deeply saturated.”

    The opening of the thread was instantly iconic: “Y’all wanna hear a story about why me & this bitch here fell out???? It’s kind of long, but full of suspense.” What unfolded was a harrowing yet hilarious story that included pole dancing, strip clubs, seedy motels, drugs, attempted suicide, and eventually sex trafficking, all told through King’s sharp sense of humor.

    King told Kushner, “The humor made [readers] want to dig deeper into the story, and they realized it’s something that could happen in their backyard — I was their waitress. I was the girl they walked past in the grocery store or hotel lobby.”

    Bravo’s take on the story stars Taylour Paige as the titular Zola who meets a sex worker named Stefani (Riley Keough) at the diner where she works. The two immediately hit it off, and Stefani invites Zola on a trip to Tampa to make stacks of cash at a swanky strip joint. When Stefani arrives at Zola’s home at the start of their trip, a man named X (Colman Domingo) is at the wheel.

    Despite her own better judgment, Zola goes off with this motley crew of relative strangers and finds herself deeply entrenched in some serious drama. Shot on 16 mm, Bravo captures the garishness and glamour of Florida at night. Paige is masterful as Zola, her face capable of every emotion in the book. For every crazy thing that comes out of Keough’s mouth, Paige’s reactions say more than words ever could.

    Keough herself has proven time and again an actress of immense range, often walking a tightrope between genius and bad taste. Domingo is as ominous as he is hilarious, adding layers to X beyond that of a clichéd pimp. ‘Zola’ proves that even when truth is stranger than fiction, when a story is this good it works in any medium.

    ‘Zola’ is in theaters now.

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    American Honey – directed by Andrea Arnold

    Riley Keough and Shia LaBeouf in 'American Honey'
    Riley Keough and Shia LaBeouf in ‘American Honey’

    Riley Keough, granddaughter of the King himself, Elvis Presley, is no stranger to road trip movies. One of her early breakout roles was in director Andrea Arnold’s 2016 epic ‘American Honey’. Arnold first broke out with her short film ‘Wasp’ for which she won an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film in 2005.

    Three of her four feature films have premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival: ‘Red Road’, ‘Fish Tank’, and ‘American Honey,’ where all three went on to win the Jury Prize. Most recently, Arnold directed all seven episodes of the second season of HBO’s ‘Big Little Lies’.

    Shot by Robbie Ryan in a tight 4:3 aspect ratio, ‘American Honey’ follows teenager Star (Sasha Lane) as she meets charismatic Jake (Shia LaBeouf) one day in a Kmart. Star is stuck in a dead end town in Oklahoma, caring for her younger siblings and fending off the abusive advances of her father.

    Jake offers her an escape in the form of a magazine crew. Jake and several other young people travel together in a van selling subscriptions to magazines, a mysterious and somewhat dubious enterprise. The crew is run by the domineering Krystal (Riley Keough), and what starts out as a freewheeling adventure eventually devolves into its own kind of drama.

    Inspired by a New York Times investigative piece she read about magazine crews, Arnold impulsively took a road trip from California to Miami, Florida before starting work on the script. Most of the cast was found in parking lots, construction sites, streets, and state fairs in order to capture the authentic makeup of these magazine crews.

    Scouted while on spring break, Sasha Lane told The Guardian she “felt Arnold’s vibe and decided to trust Arnold for an audition.” Landing the lead role, Lane has since starred in several films, including Desiree Akhavan’s ‘The Miseducation of Cameron Post,’ and she’s recently appeared in ‘Loki’ on Disney +.

    Since making her debut in Floria Sigismondi’s ‘The Runaways (2010), Riley Keough has acted in 25 films, six of which were directed by women. For her beguiling turn as Krystal in ‘American Honey’ she received a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the Independent Spirit Awards.

    This year, Andrea Arnold is returning to Cannes, though not with a film. She will serve as the President of Un Certain Regard, which runs parallel to the main competition. In contrast to the Palme d’Or, which tends to favor more established filmmakers, the Prix Un Certain Regard was introduced to the festival in 1998 to recognize younger talent and encourage innovative and daring works.

    Seven out of the 20 films competing for the Prix Un Certain Regard this year are directed by women, as opposed to the mere 4 out of 24 that are competing for the Palme d’Or. Jane Campion’s ‘The Piano’ remains the only film directed by a woman to win the top award at the festival.

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