Notizie

Agnieszka Holland’s refugee drama The Green Border has taken the top prize for best film at the Polish Film Awards. The black-and-white feature, which looks at the inhumane treatment of refugees trying to cross the natural border between Belarus and Poland, premiered to critical acclaim at the Venice Film Festival last year but came under attack from Poland’s far-right government, which called the movie “Nazi propaganda” for its supposedly negative depiction of Polish police and border guards. The political attacks are thought to have influenced the Polish Oscar committee’s decision not to put Green Border forward as Poland’s best international film contender this year, instead selecting Dk and Hugh Welchman’s Hugh animated literary adaptation The Peasants (which did not get nominated).

But a lot has changed in Poland since. Parliamentary elections last October ousted the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, which had ruled for 8 years,...

Whenever we think of femme fatale characters in cinema, perhaps among the top 5 with a bullet is Uma Thurman’s Bride from the Kill Bill franchise. Cold, calculative, and not afraid to spill blood like a fountain to finish her enemies and seek vengeance, the bride’s character has become the gateway for countless such femme fatales. These characters have proven time and again how vicious women can be when given a cause. Nina from Mateusz Rakowicz’s Mother’s Day is no different because she’s not going to stay down when someone she loves is in danger. Starring Agnieszka Grochowska as the protagonist Nina, aka Kikimora, this 2023 action/thriller hammers home that if you mess with a veteran’s son, you find yourself on Nina’s bad side.

From the get-go, Nina isn’t the one to back down from a fight, but she tries to avoid it as much as possible.

Polish movies in the past were used as voices of protest against the harrowing fates of the inhabitants during the Second World War. These days, however, up-and-coming directors realize that the mainstream audience wants fast cars, fast-paced action sequences, and the ability to kick back and enjoy a movie without having to put too much thought into it. Mateusz Rakowicz’s 2023 action thriller Mother’s Day ticks all these boxes, in addition to showcasing just how dangerous a woman on a mission can be. Agnieszka Grochowska stars as Nina, a former soldier who must go through multiple waves of enemies to save her son, but the catch is that he doesn’t know of her existence. With a runtime of 1 hour and 34 minutes, the movie is the perfect thing to watch on Netflix this week if you’re looking for some mindless action and want to watch crazy villains get a good thrashing.

Netflix unveiled its slate of Polish-language series and films due to hit its service in 2023 in a “See What’s Next” event in Warsaw on Tuesday.

Since arriving in Poland in 2016, the platform has steadily ramped up production of local content and has gotten behind 40 original local Polish films and series to date

The 2023 offering is topped by eight Polish features, including four new titles: Kiss, Kiss!, Phenomenon, Soulcatcher and Squared Love Everlasting, as well as three series Absolute Beginners, Infamy and Feedback, about an alcoholic former rock star and adapted from the Polish best-seller of the same name by Jakub Żulczyk.

Spanning romantic comedies, thrillers and sci-fi and coming-of-age dramas, the feature slate taps into a raft of popular local acting talent.

Kiss, Kiss! features top actor Mateusz Kościukiewicz as a womanizer who decides to test his powers of seduction by pursuing a woman who is...

Xavier Henry-Rashid’s London-based sales agency Film Republic has closed deals for multiple territories on “F*cking Bornholm,” a tart comedy of social discomfort. The film had its international premiere in the main competition section of Karlovy Vary Film Festival, where it won the Europa Cinemas Label award.

In his review, Variety’s Guy Lodge commented that Polish writer-director Anna Kazejak‘s “precise, piquant film deserves wider festival exposure and discerning distributor interest.” It has now been acquired by Iceland’s Bio Paradis, Arsenal for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Lithuania’s Garsas, Slovenia’s Rtv, Israel’s Yes and Sweden’s Lucky Dogs. The international trailer has its debut below.

In the film, two couples with kids go away for a short holiday on the Danish island of Bornholm. Each person has different goals and expectations, and each one of them and their relationships will be tested.

It was described by Lodge as a “dark,...

Exclusive: Jason Mitchell (Mudbound) and Bartosz Bielenia (Corpus Christi) have joined Jacek Braciak (Leave No Traces) for historical action title Scarborn, based on the story of Polish general and revolutionary war hero Tadeusz Kościuszko who is best known for fighting at George Washington’s side in the American War of Independence.

The project, which is the directed by Pawel Maślona and has just wrapped its shoot, also stars Robert Wieckiewicz (In Darkness) and Agnieszka Grochowska (Leave No Traces). Daniel Baur’s K5 International has boarded worldwide sales on the project.

Scarborn, which is written by Michał A. Zieliński, sees Kościuszko (Braciak) and his African American friend and former slave Domingo (Mitchell) return to Poland to organize an uprising and fight against the Russian invasion by mobilizing the Polish nobility and peasants. They are followed by a ruthless Russian captain, Dunin (Wieckiewicz) who wants to capture the general at any cost...

Polish helmer Anna Kazejak – fresh off showing “Fucking Bornholm” at the Karlovy Vary Intl. Film Festival – is now focusing on her upcoming movie “Symmetry of the Island,” based on a fragment of Nobel Prize winner Olga Tokarczuk’s ‘Flights.’

Currently in development and eyeing a 2023 autumn shoot, it will be produced by Warsaw-based Friends With Benefits Studio and co-produced by Yorgos Tsourgiannis’ Horsefly Productions, also behind “Dogtooth” and “A Tale of Three Sisters.”

“We want to make it as soon as possible and with an international cast,” says Kazejak, who has already worked with the acclaimed writer on the Netflix anthology movie “Erotica 2022.” She will co-write the script with Filip Kasperaszek, in collaboration with Tokarczuk. At the moment, the film’s set to be shot in English.

The story will see a middle-aged man going on a foreign vacation with his wife and son when suddenly both of them disappear.

In the movies, as a rule, family vacations go wrong far more often than they go right: We may crave rest and relaxation when we travel, but it’s less interesting to watch others do the same. Rarely, however, have a few days at the beach degenerated quite so tensely and toxically as they do in “Fucking Bornholm,” a dark, distinctly unrelaxing comedy from Poland that mines male abuse, entitlement and ennui for laughs that all come with an accompanying wince — whilst aligning its sympathies firmly with a put-upon wife and mother, superbly played by Agnieszka Grochowska, trying and sometimes failing to keep it all together. A less abrasive provocation than its confrontational title might suggest, writer-director Anna Kazejak’s precise, piquant film deserves wider festival exposure and discerning distributor interest following its international premiere in the main Karlovy Vary competition.

With its coolly arch comic tone, neat formal composure...

There’s nothing like a family camping and caravanning holiday with children in tow in a remote yet idyllic setting to kindle domestic strife and undercurrents.

Director Anna Kazejak uses such a mundane starting point to explore relationships in two sets of couples, both with energetic and demanding children who have their own particular problems.

The island is Bornholm, reached by ferry from the Danish mainland which lends itself to stunning seascapes and a sense of isolation in which lurking issues away from hearth and home can become heightened.

The two sets of couples are in their forties, wrestling with the trials and tribulations of parenting while trying to keep their own relationships alive and loving.

One of the women (played by Agnieszka Grochowska) seems constantly on the verge of a nervous breakdown, ground down by the demands of family and the daily grind. She manages to seek solace and intimacy elsewhere as.

Xavier Henry-Rashid’s sales agency Film Republic has acquired Anna Kazejak’s “Fucking Bornholm,” ahead of its international premiere Saturday in the Crystal Globe competition of the Karlovy Vary Film Festival.

The Polish comedy drama potrays the generation of today’s 40-year-olds from the perspective of a woman who is in need of profound changes in her life.

Two couples with kids go away for a short holiday on the Danish island of Bornholm. Each person has different goals and expectations, and each one of them and their relationships will be tested. Each one of them has a problem to be revealed.

Henry-Rashid said: ” ‘Fucking Bornholm’ is a wonderful, fun and psychologically tormenting couples ‘melee a quatre.’ ”

The film stars Agnieszka Grochowska, Maciej Stuhr, Grzegorz Damięcki, Jasmina Polak and Magus Krepper.

It is produced by Marta Lewandowska, and the screenplay was written by Filip Kasperaszek and Kazejak. The production company...

Warning: contains spoilers for Harlan Coben’s The Woods on Netflix.

Though Harlan Coben thrillers generally take place in the same recognisably middle class world of Range Rovers, gated communities and marble kitchen islands, his inter-connected Myron Bolitar series excluded, they’re not set in a shared fictional universe. The plots are standalone and aside from the odd cameo, the characters don’t as a rule cross over from one story to the next. Until now.

Netflix’s two Polish Harlan Coben series – 2020’s The Woods and 2022’s Hold Tight, adapted from the 2007 and 2008 novels of the same names – both feature the character of Pawel Kopinski (Grzegorz Damiecki), the lead in The Woods. Pawel is adapted from the original US character of Paul Copeland and appears in Hold Tight as a member of the supporting cast. His teenage daughter Kaja is the girlfriend of the boy who goes missing in Hold Tight’s first episode.

Nine films and nine series among streamer’s latest Polish commissions.

Netflix has unveiled a slate of 18 titles that it has greenlit in Poland, spanning nine films and nine series.

See full list of titles below

News of the commissions comes just weeks after the streamer announced it is opening an office in the country’s capital of Warsaw later this year, which will function as a central hub for Netflix’s Central and Eastern Europe (Cee) productions.

Netflix has previously enjoyed success with Polish erotic thriller 365 Days, which was a top 10 hit for the streamer in over 90 countries.

Netflix has revealed a slate of nine films and nine series that it has commissioned in Poland. Scroll down for the full list.

The series include Detective Forst, from noted Polish writer Remigiusz Mroz, which revolves around a crime-solving journey across the Polish Tatra Mountains. Jakub Żulczyk’s novel Feedback is also being adapted for a series starring Arkadiusz Jakubik, which will be helmed by Leszek Dawid.

On the film side, Anna Szczypczyńska’s romance novel Tonight You Are Sleeping With Me will be adapted for a feature helmed by Robert Wichrowski, while the famed Polish novel Mr. Car & The Knights Templar is also getting the film treatment, with Rafał Skalski directing and Matylda damięcka, Lena Góra, and Aleksandra Domańska starring.

On the genre side, the film Hellhole, directed by Bartosz M. Kowalski, promises to be a play on horror, focusing on the nightmare of a monk who has lost...

"He's involved in something, I can feel it..." Netflix has debuted a full-length official trailer for their Polish mystery thriller series Hold Tight, streaming starting later in April. Magdalena Boczarska and Leszek Lichota will play the main roles in this Polish adaptation of a Harlan Coben book. They star as a couple in a happy marriage. Based on the novel by Harlan Coben, Hold Tight tells a story about residents of a peaceful neighborhood in Warsaw's suburbs, whose idyllic life comes to an abrupt end when teenager Adam vanishes into thin air and parents find answers to questions they never wanted to ask. Agnieszka Grochowska and Grzegorz Damięcki, known from a different Polish adaptation of a Harlan Coben book, The Woods, will also appear in this. The series features Polish actors Krzysztof Oleksyn, Agata Labno, Mirosław Zbrojewicz, Jacek Poniedziałek, Justyna Wasilewska, Wiktoria Gorodeckaja and Bartłomiej Topa. This is an intense trailer,...

Netflix has revealed a teaser trailer for their Polish mystery thriller series Hold Tight, arriving on Netflix sometime later in 2022. This sounds pretty cool? Magdalena Boczarska and Leszek Lichota will play the main roles in the Polish original - the second adaptation of a Harlan Coben book. They star as a couple in a happy marriage, Anna and Michał Barczyk. Their son, Adam, will be played by Krzysztof Oleksyn. Affluent Warsaw suburbs, close-knit residents living an idyllic life. All hell breaks loose when an eighteen-year-old Adam vanishes into thin air. Then violence escalates when parents try to protect their adolescent children who take matters into their own hands. Both Agnieszka Grochowska and Grzegorz Damięcki, known from the previous Polish adaptation of Harlan Coben, The Woods, will also return to their roles. The series will also feature Jacek Poniedziałek, Justyna Wasilewska, Wiktoria Gorodeckaja and Bartłomiej Topa. This is a nifty first look teaser without any dialogue,...

New Europe Film Sales has closed several deals for “Leave No Traces,” from Polish director Jan P. Matuszyński (“The Last Family”), which has its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival. Variety has been given exclusive access to the film’s trailer.

Produced by Aurum Film, the production house behind Jan Komasa’s Oscar-nominated “Corpus Christi,” pic has sold to Imagine Film Distribution for Benelux and Scanorama for Lithuania. As previously announced, the film was also picked up by Memento Films Distribution for France.

Set in Warsaw in the 1980s, “Leave No Traces” is based on the real-life story of a young man (Tomasz Ziętek) who witnesses the fatal beating of his friend (Mateusz Górski) by the police. Determined to testify about the killing in court, he must stand up to the full force of a communist regime that employs the secret service, the police force, the media...

Wanda (Agnieszka Grochowska) returns to Switzerland on a bus. It's full of similarly dressed, similarly laden Polish women, probably on their way to do similar work for wealthy Swiss families whilst - as she has done - leaving their own at home. 70-year-old Josef (André Jung) is relieved to have her back. He complains about insulting treatment received from his interim carer. Wanda is considerate and efficient, respecting that despite his disability he's still a human being and because of it he actually needs the help she's giving. His wife Elsa (Marthe Keller) really doesn't need the help around the house for which she offers an insultingly low additional sum, but she's lost her Portuguese housekeeper and it doesn't occur to her to ask another Swiss person, so Wanda can bargain.

Outside the periphery of these arrangements lies another service which Josef sometimes finds himself wanting in the middle of he.

Money can buy outside help, opportunity and material possessions, but not happiness in “My Wonderful Wanda,” a punchy satire from Swiss auteur Bettina Oberli (“Late Bloomers”). Taking a wry but empathetic approach to the phenomenon of care migration, Oberli and her co-writer Cooky Ziesche focus on the changing relationship between one privileged Swiss family and their financially fragile Polish home-care worker over nine months. Naturalistically shot and structured as three chapters and an epilogue, it’s an engaging, mostly well-acted tale, full of surprising twists, even if some seem a bit too on the nose. Opening in theaters and virtual cinemas on April 23, this Zeitgeist Films release should segue from international film festival favorite to modest art-house hit.

Attractive, capable, 30-something single mother Wanda arrives in Switzerland on a bus packed with Polish women who work for rich families eager to outsource the mundane tasks of everyday life. Like Wanda,...

As a cinematographer, if you spend the bulk of your career shooting classy big-budget productions for Hollywood heavyweights, it’s conceivable that you might occasionally get a B-movie hankering: Even gourmet chefs crave the sloppy pleasures of a Big Mac now and then. Janusz Kaminski gets the urge rarely, it seems, but when it strikes, he takes to the director’s chair. Back in 2000, Steven Spielberg’s trusty Dp made an ignominious helming debut with “Lost Souls,” an incoherent occult horror that wasn’t even the tasty kind of trash. Two decades later, things haven’t overly improved with “American Dream,” the noble-sounding title of which does little to dignify the dingy exploitation exercise lurking below: a thriller in which the American pursuit of happiness is no match for the dogged chase given by ticked-off Russian mobsters.

The relative novelty of Kaminski’s attachment in this capacity superficially distinguishes “American...

American Dream Official Trailer — Janusz Kaminski‘s American Dream (2021) movie trailer has been released Lionsgate and stars Michiel Huisman, Luke Bracey, Nick Stahl, Agnieszka Grochowska, Elya Baskin, Samantha Ressler, Mark Kubr, Kelly Mantle, Lindsay Seim, Mike Jerome Putnam, and Jeanne Simpson. Crew Duncan Brantley and Mark Wheaton wrote the screenplay for American Dream. [...]

Continue reading: American Dream (2021) Movie Trailer: Michiel Huisman & Luke Bracey borrow money from vicious Lone Shark Nick Stahl...

"It's a proof of love." Zeitgeist Films has released a new official US trailer for a Swiss indie drama titled My Wonderful Wanda, which was initially part of the Tribeca Film Festival line-up earlier this year (before it was cancelled). The film is the latest from Swiss filmmaker Bettina Oberli, and is still seeking international distribution. Agnieszka Grochowska stars as the titular Wanda, a Polish immigrant working as a carer in Switzerland. She works as a nurse for the aging patriarch of the wealthy Wegmeister-Gloor family. When she surprisingly becomes pregnant, family secrets come to light and arrangements are soon made to try and appease everyone in this biting family drama. Sounds like a more serious Swiss version of Knives Out. Also starring Gottfried Breitfuss, André Jung, Marthe Keller, Birgit Minichmayr, Bruno Rajski, Iwo Rajski, & Anatole Taubman. This looks like a very complex, poignant drama about family and honesty. Here's...

"You want me to kill Him?" Lionsgate has revealed an official trailer for a crime thriller titled American Dream, arriving on VOD at the beginning of January. This is actually the feature directorial debut of Oscar-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, who was still is Steven Spielberg's regular cinematographer for years and years (he even recently filmed West Side Story with him). Strange we've never heard of this before now! The film is about two young American entrepreneurs who face a Russian mobster's vengeance after they cut him out of a business deal. American Dream stars Luke Bracey and Michiel Huisman, with Nick Stahl, Agnieszka Grochowska, Samantha Ressler, Ed Metzger, and Kathleen Gati. This doesn't look particularly unique, another mobster vs entrepreneurs story with all the usual tropes. Fire it up. Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Janusz Kaminski's American Dream, direct from YouTube: Academy Award winning cinematographer Janusz...

Passion River Films and 8 Above are teaming on the U.S. release of The Disrupted, the feature documentary debut of Sarah Colt, the Emmy-winning director of PBS’ American Experience docs about Walt Disney and Henry Ford, as well as The Polio Crusade and the Native American series We Shall Remain.

The Disrupted, a look at rising income inequality in the U.S. that follows a farmer, a factory worker and an Uber driver, is now set to hit 20 virtual cinemas on September 25, followed by a digital bow October 13.

“No matter what race, ethnicity, sex, or creed you come from, the subjects from The Disrupted represent all of us who have ever needed to make our own living in America,” Passion River’s Mat Levy said. “There has never been a more crucial and timely film about the compound struggles we are all facing to achieve the ‘American Dream.’ We are...

The Match Factory handles international sales.

Zeitgeist Films in association with Kino Lorber has acquired North American rights from The Match Factory to Swiss director Bettina Oberli’s comedy My Wonderful Wanda.

The film is scheduled to open in early spring 2021 and stars Agnieszka Grochowska as a Polish home care attendant to the patriarch of a wealthy family as old family secrets surface.

My Wonderful Wanda premiered at the virtual Tribeca Film Festival this year, where it received a special jury mention in the Nora Ephron Award category.

Zeitgeist Films co-Presidents Nancy Gerstman and Emily Russo negotiated the deal with...

In today’s Global Bulletin, the Zurich festival opens with “My Wonderful Wanda,” Philip Garrel, Tsai Ming-liang and Hong Sang-soo are contenders at San Sebastian, a new talent agency launches with “The Crown” actor Emma Corrin, WaZabi picks up Toronto title “Beans,” and the U.K. celebrates returning to cinemas.

Bettina Oberli’s “My Wonderful Wanda” will open the 16th Zurich film festival on Sept. 24, the first time the event is opening with a film by a female director.

The film was supposed to bow at Tribeca, until the coronavirus pandemic forced its postponement to 2021. Consequently, it will have its world premiere at Zurich.

“My Wonderful Wanda” tells the story of Polish-born Wanda who looks after patriarch and post-stroke patient Josef at his lakeside family villa. The work is poorly paid, but Wanda needs the money to support her own family back in Poland. As a live-in caregiver, she gains...

Bettina Oberli’s film would have played at Tribeca, which was cancelled in April.

The Zurich Film Festival is to open with the world premiere of Bettina Oberli’s My Wonderful Wanda, marking the first time a female-directed feature has opened the event.

The Swiss tragi-comedy was originally set to debut at Tribeca in April but those plans were abandoned when the festival was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and has subsequently been cancelled.

It will now open the 16th Zff, which is pressing ahead as a physical event and due to run September 24 to October 4.

The film centres on Wanda,...

"Don't leave me to those lunatics." The Match Factory has released an official promo trailer for a Swiss indie drama titled My Wonderful Wanda, which was part of the Tribeca Film Festival line-up earlier this year. The film is the latest from Swiss filmmaker Bettina Oberli, and is still seeking international distribution. Agnieszka Grochowska stars as the titular Wanda, a Polish immigrant working as a carer in Switzerland. She nurses the aging patriarch of the wealthy Wegmeister-Gloor family. When an unexpected complication arises, family secrets come to light and arrangements are made to try and appease everyone in this biting family drama. Sounds like a more serious Swiss version of Knives Out. Also starring Gottfried Breitfuss, André Jung, Marthe Keller, Birgit Minichmayr, Bruno Rajski, Iwo Rajski, & Anatole Taubman. This looks like an emotionally resonant drama about how money warps minds, especially family members. Here's the first promo trailer (+ poster) for Bettina Oberli's My Wonderful Wanda,...

My Wonderful Wanda The Match Box Reviewed for Shockya.com & BigAppleReviews.net linked from Rotten Tomatoes by: Harvey Karten Director: Bettina Oberli Screenwriter: Cooky Ziesche, Bettina Oberli Cast: Agnieszka Grochowska, Marthe Keller, Birgit Minichmayr, Jacob Matschenz, André Jung, Anatole Taubman Screened at: Critics’ link, NYC, 4/15/20 Opens: Tbd at Tribeca Film Festival in […]

The post My Wonderful Wanda Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

Bettina Oberli’s latest film ‘My Wonderful Wanda,’ starring Agnieszka Grochowska and Marthe Keller, world-premiered at Tribeca where it won a special jury mention in the Nora Ephron Award category. It will screening during Cannes’ Marché du Film Online, with The Match Factory handling worldwide sales.

Oberli is one of Switzerland’s leading directors. She has directed an eclectic mix of commercially- and artistically-successful films, including her award-winning debut feature, “North Wind” and her second feature, the comedy “Late Bloomers,” which clocked up almost 1 million admissions in Europe, with 560,000 admissions in Switzerland alone, released by Walt Disney. Her penultimate film, her first French-language pic, “With The Wind,” won the Variety Piazza Grande Award at the Locarno Film Festival.

“Wanda,” – penned by Cooky Ziesche and Oberli and produced by Lukas Hobi and Reto Schaerli for Switzerland’s Zodiac Pictures – is a dramedy about Wanda, who leaves her children in Poland to...

American crime writer Harlan Coben has a 14 book deal with Netflix which has already resulted in buzzy shows The Stranger and Safe, both set in Britain even though the novels were not. For his next Netflix outing Coben’s novel of the same name is transported to Poland, where county Prosecutor Pawel Kopinski (Grzegorz Damiecki) hunts for answers surrounding his sister’s disappearance 25 years earlier. A six part series, with each ep running just under an hour, The Woods is twisty right up to the final moments. Some might say even too twisty, with certain motives oblique and plot threads left untied by the end. The Woods requires full attention, and not just because it’s Polish and subtitled, but once you’re hooked, like Pawel, you’ll be dying to find out what happened all those years ago.

It’s 1994, and teenage Pawel is a chaperone at a Polish summer camp.

The Match Factory, one of the world’s leading arthouse film sales companies, has revealed its slate for the Cannes Film Market, which runs June 22-26. Its lineup includes three market premieres: one new film, “Ballad for a Pierced Heart,” and two films that won jury awards at the online Tribeca Film Festival recently – “Kokoloko” and “My Wonderful Wanda.”

Following his cutting-edge “Stratos,” which played in Berlinale Competition in 2014, Yannis Economides is back with the gangster black comedy “Ballad for a Pierced Heart.” The story follows Olga, an attractive woman who decides to leave her husband, a businessman, for a nightclub owner and former pop singer. And as if this was not enough, she takes a million euros with her. While her husband becomes paranoid and vows to take revenge, the underworld in the small provincial town is in turmoil over the adulterous couple.

“Kokoloko,” directed by Mexico’s Gerardo Naranjo,...

The company works with director Bettina Oberli for the second time.

German sales company The Match Factory has boarded My Wonderful Wanda, the upcoming feature from Swiss director Bettina Oberli.

Working with Oberli for the second time after 2009’s The Murder Farm, The Match Factory will conduct sales to the international industry at this week’s European Film Market. The film is scheduled for an April 2020 premiere.

Lukas Hobi and Reto Schaerli produce for Zodiac Pictures, in co-production with Srf, Srg Ssr and Teleclub.

The film centres on Wanda, a Polish carer for an elderly man in his lakeside villa.

Chicago – For most of us, music literally becomes the soundtrack to our lives. They become a reflection of our mood, innermost thoughts, and even our fears. Sometimes they are just a pick me up, the same way Cardi B is currently soundtracking the writing of this review. Certain, well-placed songs can even tell our life story without us having to utter a single word, much like Teen Spirit.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

Max Minghella writes and directs this ode to youth and chasing your dreams. Most recently known for his role as Nick in the bleak, near-future parable “The Handmaid’s Tale”, he too follows his dreams with this film, but with mixed success. “Teen Spirit” follows the journey of Violet (Elle Fanning) as competes in a singing competition to win a record deal and to finally be able to leave her small hometown and religious household. That’s it, that’s all...

Women and music are at the center of two new Specialty releases this weekend. Ld Entertainment/Bleecker Street is taking Elle Fanning starrer Teen Spirit by Max Minghella to New York and L.A. before a fairly wide expansion next weekend, while Gunpowder & Sky is opening Alex Ross Perry’s punk drama Her Smell with Elisabeth Moss in New York and Toronto. The titles join a fairly packed group of new limited releases this weekend. Molly Shannon stars as Emily Dickinson in Greenwich Entertainment’s Wild Nights with Emily by Madeleine Olnek which launches in New York and L.A. before heading to 50 markets in the coming weeks. In the wake of its lucrative if controversial opening in China, Kino Lorber is opening Bi Gan’s Cannes debut Long Day’s Journey Into Night. Also from China is Well Go USA’s Master Z: Ip Man Legacy, launching in 20 North American markets.

Some singers start young, before they have a clue about how the music business can chew up their talent and package it for mass consumption. Take Violet, the 17-year-old dreamer played with shy loveliness and a tough core by the luminous Elle Fanning. Violet lives in a tight squeeze on the Isle of Wight, where she’s mocked by schoolmates for singing for drunks at a local pub and berated by her Polish immigrant mother (Agnieszka Grochowska) for believing in fantasies that pay off in heartbreak. Then a British singing...

Enter here for your chance to win a pair of tickets to an advance screening of Teen Spirit.

For your chance to receive a pair of complimentary passes to see the new film Teen Spirit starring Elle Fanning on Wednesday, April 17th at 7:00 Pm at the Mjr Grand Digital Cinema Troy in Troy, Michigan, just look for the “Enter the Contest” box further down on this page. But hurry because the contest ends soon and there are only a limited number of passes available and when they’re gone, they’re gone. We’ll be drawing the winners before the screening, so expect to hear back from us after that if you’re one of our lucky winners. As always, no purchase necessary to enter!

About The Film

Teen Spirit: Violet (Elle Fanning) is a shy teenager who dreams of escaping her small town and pursuing her passion to sing.

Writer / Director Max Minghella & Producer Jamie Bell are interviewed by DaniElle DeLaite for their movie Teen Spirit which stars Elle Fanning. The modern take on the Cinderella story has all the America’s Got Talent drama of a local singing competition winner who pop superstardom goes global.

This film marks the directorial debut of Max Minghella, and alongside Elle Fanning the film stars Agnieszka Grochowska, Archie Madekwe, Zlatko Buric, Millie Brady, Vivian Oparah, Ria Zmitrowicz and Olive Gray.

Plot:

Violet is a shy teenager who dreams of escaping her small town and pursuing her passion to sing. With the help of an unlikely mentor, she enters a local singing competition that will test her integrity, talent and ambition. Driven by a pop-fuelled soundtrack, Teen Spirit is a visceral and stylish spin on the Cinderella story.

The post Exclusive: Max Minghella & Jamie Bell on Elle Fanning’s new film Teen Spirit appeared first on HeyUGuys.

Elle Fanning had an exciting Tuesday night as she attended the premiere for her upcoming film, Teen Spirit, and guess who was there to support her? Her big sister, Dakota, of course! At the Hollywood screening, the 25-year-old and 20-year-old actresses sweetly posed together before heading into the theater to watch Elle rock the stage onscreen as a pop star. Naturally, Dakota and Elle served glamorous sibling looks at the event. While the older Fanning actress wore a simple black dress, the younger stunned in a magenta floral gown.

Teen Spirit also stars Agnieszka Grochowska, Rebecca Hall, and Archie Madekwe, and centers around a teenage girl named Violet (Elle), who dreams of making it big as a performer. With the help of a mentor, she enters a local singing competition to reach her goal. The film hits theaters on April 12!

Related: Elle Fanning's Cover of "Dancing on My Own" Will...

"Teen Spirit", is the new Bit musical drama, directed by Max Minghella, starring Elle Fanning, Rebecca Hall and Zlatko Burić, opening April 12, 2019:

"....'Violet', a shy teenager living in a small European town, dreams of pop stardom as an escape from her dismal surroundings and shattered family life. With the help of an unlikely mentor, Violet enters an international singing competition that will test her integrity, talent and ambition..."

Cast also includes Rebecca Hall as 'Jules', Agnieszka Grochowska as 'Marla' and Clara Rugaard as 'Roxy'.

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "Teen Spirit"...

Elle Fanning makes a convincing pop star in this pleasant, if very familiar, narrative of a talent being discovered.

It is said the trick to performing is to act like no one’s looking. The invisible distance between mental freedom and physical exactness can be as wide as a chasm, but if you bridge it, then there’s a lovely place to build a career—or set a movie like Teen Spirit. A traditional and even by the numbers yarn about musical self-discovery, the picture still knows what poppy charms lie in the space between illusion and reality, reverie and business acumen. It is Elle Fanning dancing by herself in a bedroom and singing to no one in particular, even as she actually stands rigidly on a stage, recalling that glorious memory of idleness and attempting to manufacture that euphoria again.

In its best moments, Teen Spirit is a snapshot...

Bleecker Street has launched the first trailer for ‘Teen Spirit’ in which Elle Fanning performs songs by Robyn.

Written and directed by Max Minghella – who makes his directorial debut – the film stars Rebecca Hall, Zlatko Buric, and Agnieszka Grochowska alongside Fanning.

Also in trailers – New trailer arrives for Joe Cornish’s ‘The Kid Who Would Be King’

The film is set to be released on April 5 in the U.S., with a UK date to be announced. Here’s the trailer,

Teen Spirit Synopsis

Violet is a shy teenager who dreams of escaping her small town and pursuing her passion to sing. With the help of an unlikely mentor, she enters a local singing competition that will test her integrity, talent and ambition. Driven by a pop-fueled soundtrack, Teen Spirit is a visceral and stylish spin on the Cinderella story.

The post Elle Fanning aspires to be the next big...

Elle Fanning might have made a name for herself as one of her generation's most talented actresses, but now the 20-year-old is giving singing a try. Well, at least in her newest film, Teen Spirit.

In the electric first trailer for the drama - which features Fanning belting out well-known hits from Robyn, Tegan and Sara, Carly Rae Jepsen, Annie Lennox, Ellie Goulding, and more - we see Fanning's Violet, an initially shy teenager, escape her small town by entering a local singing competition. Once she gets there, though, she realizes that her integrity and talent will be put to the test as she vys for stardom.

The film is written and directed by The Handmaid's Tale's Max Minghella, and also stars Rebecca Hall, Zlatko Buric, and Agnieszka Grochowska. Watch the pop-filled trailer above before it hits theaters on April 5!

Trailer 1:...

"A lot of people like to sing. You Can sing. But... you're an inexperienced performer." Bleecker Street has debuted the third official trailer for the thrilling film Teen Spirit, yet another young pop star origin story, this time starring Elle Fanning as a girl named Violet. This first premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last fall, and is set for release in April. Set in the world of modern pop music, Max Minghella's Teen Spirit is a universally inspiring story about growing up, dreaming big, and finding your voice. Violet is a shy teenager from the Isle of Wight who dreams of pop stardom as an escape from her small town and shattered family life. Also starring Zlatko Buric, Agnieszka Grochowska, Clara Rugaard, Archie Madekwe, Ursula Holliday, Jordan Stephens, Millie Brady, and Rebecca Hall. This looks like the flashier, extra glossy, non-horror version of Refn's The Neon Demon -...

Sneak Peek new footage from the musical drama "Teen Spirit", directed by Max Minghella, starring Elle Fanning, Rebecca Hall and Zlatko Burić, opening April 5, 2019:

"...'Violet Valenski' (Fanning), a shy teenager living in a small European town, dreams of pop stardom as an escape from her dismal surroundings and shattered family life. With the help of an unlikely mentor, Violet enters an international singing competition that will test her charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent..."

Cast also includes Agnieszka Grochowska, Clara Rugaard, Millie Brady, Olivia Gray, Ruairi O'Connor, Archie Madekwe, Jordan Stephens and Ursula Hollida.

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "Teen Spirit"...

The first trailer for the upcoming Ld Entertainment and Bleeker Street film “Teen Spirit” has just been released. You can check it out below:

Violet (Elle Fanning) is a shy teenager who dreams of escaping her small town and pursuing her passion to sing. With the help of an unlikely mentor, she enters a local singing competition that will test her integrity, talent and ambition. Driven by a pop-fueled soundtrack, Teen Spirit is a visceral and stylish spin on the Cinderella story.

Featuring performances of and music written by Robyn, Ellie Goulding, Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, Tegan & Sara, Jack Antonoff, Carly Rae Jepsen, Annie Lennox, Orbital, Alice DeeJay, The Undertones, Major Lazer, Grimes, Whitfield, and Sigrid

Written/Directed by: Max Minghella

Starring: Elle Fanning, Rebecca Hall, Zlatko Buric, Agnieszka Grochowska

Produced by: Fred Berger (La La Land)

For more info:

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"Life comes down to these moments, Violet..." Bleecker Street Films has released a new 60-second trailer for an indie coming-of-age titled Teen Spirit, yet another young pop star origin story, this time starring Elle Fanning as a teen named Violet. This originally premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, and is currently set for release in April coming up. Set in the world of pop music, Max Minghella's Teen Spirit is a universally heartwarming story about growing up, dreaming big, and finding your voice. Violet is a shy teenager living in the Isle of Wight who dreams of pop stardom as an escape from her small town and shattered family life. The cast includes Zlatko Buric, Agnieszka Grochowska, Clara Rugaard, Archie Madekwe, Ursula Holliday, Jordan Stephens, Millie Brady, and Rebecca Hall. After Vox Lux, it's harder to watch this and not feel uncomfortable seeing the same exact innocent-rise-to-fame story we've seen many times before.

“This world is extremely competitive,” one adult tells the aspiring singer in Teen Spirit. “You’ll be up against some of the best singers in the country.” Says another: “Life comes down to these moments, Violet. Don’t take them for granted.”

They are advising Violet (Elle Fanning), a shy teenager living on the Isle of Wight who dreams of pop stardom as an escape from her dismal surroundings and shattered family life. With the help of an unlikely mentor and would-be manager (Zlatko Buric), she enters an ‘Idol’-ized international singing competition that will test her integrity, talent and ambition. Rebecca Hall and Agnieszka Grochowska also star.

The Handmaid’s Tale actor Max Minghella wrote and makes his directorial debut with the film, which premiered at Toronto. Deadline’s Pete Hammond wrote then that Teen Spirit “is reminiscent of a new-age Flashdance, only with the emphasis on singing instead of dancing.

The first trailer for Max Minghella's directorial debut, Teen Spirit, was released on Thursday.

The musical drama follows Violet (Elle Fanning), a shy teenage girl from a small European town, who dreams of making it big as a pop singer. With the help of an unlikely mentor (Zlatko Buric), Violet enters an international singing competition. The experience tests her integrity, talent and ambition.

The cast also includes Rebecca Hall, Agnieszka Grochowska, Clara Rugaard, Millie Brady, Olive Gray and Jordan Stephens.

The trailer opens with brief clips that show Violet's everyday life: working at a restaurant, moving bales ...

The first trailer for Max Minghella's directorial debut, Teen Spirit, was released on Thursday.

The musical drama follows Violet (Elle Fanning), a shy teenage girl from a small European town, who dreams of making it big as a pop singer. With the help of an unlikely mentor (Zlatko Buric), Violet enters an international singing competition. The experience tests her integrity, talent and ambition.

The cast also includes Rebecca Hall, Agnieszka Grochowska, Clara Rugaard, Millie Brady, Olive Gray and Jordan Stephens.

The trailer opens with brief clips that show Violet's everyday life: working at a restaurant, moving bales ...

Mister Smith handles international ales on recent Toronto world premiere.

Bleecker Street has partnered with Ld Entertainment on Us rights to Max Minghella’s directorial debut Teen Spirit starring Elle Fanning.

The companies are planning a 2019 release on the film about a shy teenager in Europe who befriends an unlikely mentor as she sets out to become a pop star. Rebecca Hall, Zlatko Buric, and Agnieszka Grochowska round out the key cast.

Fred Berger produced Teen Spirit, which premiered in Toronto in September. Jamie Bell, who starred in Toronto premiere Skin, served as executive producer.

Interscope Records co-produced with Automatik and Blank Tape,...