This weekend, “Screen Talk” co-hosts Ryan and Anne are heading for Cannes after cramming in a bunch of preview screenings and links. And now that the official program is out, everyone is figuring out their crowded schedules.
But before we report to you from the Croisette, we look at what we might want to see from the summer movie lineup, debate the merits of provocative new indie “Blue Film,” and parse what Netflix is up to as it seems to be altering its release model with Greta Gerwig’s “Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew.”
Ryan and the rest of the team put together a list of 40 summer movies to check out. On the podcast, we lay out a few that we most want to see, which may not line up with the expected biggest grossers. Yes, we want theaters to kick ass this summer, but we are sniffing out pleasure and quality and fun, as opposed to sheer action mayhem. Predictably, Anne leans toward Hollywood fare from Nolan and Spielberg, while Ryan reflects his more eclectic tastes, including the violent “The Death of Robin Hood,” starring Hugh Jackman in Logan mode.
We suspect that Netflix chief Ted Sarandos, having looked under the distribution hood at Warner bros,, is now more open to experimenting with the theatrical model. “Narnia,” which had to push back from Thanksgiving to Easter, will be his guinea pig for what happens with a wide release with a 45-day window.
Getting a much smaller release is “Blue Film,” which was not booked by any major film festivals, presumably due to its pedophile subject, but hits theaters this weekend. Both Ryan and I found much to admire in this two-hander starring veteran Reed Birney and revelatory newcomer Kieron Moore.
We also welcome special guests to the podcast, multi-tasker writer/producer/director Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio, who co-directed the two-part HBO Mel Brooks docuseries “Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!,” a very funny doc about a very funny man. I’ve interviewed Apatow before for some of his movies, which include “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and “Knocked Up.” And I know Ryan was raised on “Freaks and Geeks,” as my daughter was. And writer/director/producer/cinematographer Bonfliglio won Emmys, along with Apatow, for his docs on the comedians Michael Shandling and George Carlin. They also collaborated on “May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers.”
Needless to say Brooks, who is now 99 years old, was a barrel of laughs in conversation, but digging into his feelings was a tougher challenge, Apatow said. The late Rob Reiner, in one of his last interviews, helped to reveal Brooks’ deep relationship with father-figure Carl Reiner, who wasn’t much older. And Apatow reminded us that Brooks not only directed the comedy hits “Young Frankenstein,” “Blazing Saddles,” and “Spaceballs,” but was a tastemaker producer on such films as David Cronenberg’s “The Fly” and Oscar nominee “The Elephant Man,” hiring David Lynch to direct.
Apatow also talks about how he has nurtured younger talents over the years, from Seth Rogen to Lena Dunham, who was 24 when she wrote the pilot for HBO’s hit series “Girls” and took on the job of showrunner and lead actress.
Next up: Apatow is currently prepping “The Comeback King” with Glenn Powell and Christine Miloti.
Listen to the episode below or on your preferred podcast platform.
