A4 presents Kagonada’s second feature After Yang in limited release, the latest in the distributor’s varied indie slate ahead of wide-release horror slasher X 3/18 and scifi adventure Everything at Once on 3/25 — which is also opening SXSW Film Festival.
This is a weekend when The BatmanAlthough the moviegoing public casts a long shadow on specialty markets, they are also eager for new content. Moviegoers are demonstrably more open to returning to theaters in person than ever before.
A24 has been a prominent voice in the pandemic-scarred film landscape. Green Knight, Zola C’mon, C’monAs an odd Icelandic horror movie, it helped to drive the indie box-office last year Lamb And porno-themedRed RocketThey became cult favorites. Other releases include Part II: The Humans, The Souvenir Saint Maude. Three Oscar nominations were received by the distributor with Apple TV+ The Tragedy of Macbeth. X as well as A24’s upcoming Bodies Bodies Bodies Marcel The Shell with ShoesSXSW will also be featured.
In YangJodie Turner Smith and Colin Farrell are forced to make a decision about Yang’s fate after they bought a second-hand malfunctioning cyborg to care for their adopted Chinese girl. Farrell told Deadline that the script – written by Kagonada from the short story ‘Saying Goodbye To Yang’ by Alexander Weinstein — was among the most beautiful he’d ever come across. It will be available on 24 screens in 15 top U.S. markets, as well as on Showtime.
Justin Min portrays Yang, the humanoid robotic robot, and Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja plays Mika, the young girl who loves him. Theresa Park produced After YangWith Andrew Goldman and Caroline Kaplan, as well as Paul Mezey.
After Yang, Kagonada’s second film since the well-received 2017 ColumbusThe film, which was world premiered in Cannes in 2021, and screened at Sundance this January, was the first time it had been shown in its entirety. Justin Chon also produced and directed the series. Pachinko to debut on Apple TV+ March 25. That’s an adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s multigenerational story of the same name about a Korean family that immigrates to Japan.
IFC Films releases political thriller Huda’s SalonHany Abu Assad wrote and directed the movie. Premiered at Telluride. Available on digital and 30 screens. It follows Reem, a young mother married to a jealous man, who goes to Huda’s salon in Bethlehem. Reem is put in a humiliating situation by Huda, who blackmails Reem to betray her people for the secret service. Starring Manal Adad and Maisa Elhadi.
Mubi’s theatrical release of drama Great Freedom. Film premiered at Cannes. Read Deadline’s review. Austria’s shortlisted Best International Film submission.
Post WWII, Germany’s liberation by the Allies didn’t mean freedom for everyone. Hans (Franz Rogowski) is found guilty of being gay — grounds for prison under the 19th-century German penal code known as Paragraph 175. He is tracked down and jailed repeatedly over many decades. Hans forms a closer relationship with Viktor (Georg Friedrich), his cellmate and convicted murderer who is currently serving a life sentence.
Greenwich Entertainment presents Dear Mr. Brody. He set off a spiral of events when Michael Brody Jr., a 21 year-old hippie millionaire, decided to give away his $25 million fortune to anyone who needed it. Brody and Renee became instant celebrities. They were surrounded by journalists and viewed closely by the public. 50 years later, a huge cache of these letters is still unopened. In this follow-up to 2016’s TowerDirector Keith Maitland tells the story about Brody and struggling Americans who sought his assistance in a meditation on love, philanthropy, and need. It had been skedded so that it would premiere in Telluride 2020. Last year, it was presented at Tribeca Festival. Read Deadline’s interview with the filmmaker.
Other specialty: Brainstorm Media NightrideThe one-shot, true-time crime thrill set on the streets of Belfast at midnight. Ben Conway wrote the script, and Stephen Fingleton directed it with Joana Ribeiro and Moe Dunford.
Budge, a smalltime drug dealer tries to pull off a last-ditch scam using cash borrowed from a dangerous lender shark. The handover goes horribly wrong and Budge finds himself in a race against the clock trying to find the missing product and find a new buyer before he is tracked down by the loan shark.
A Day To DieVertical Entertainment. Conner Connolly (Kevin Dillon), an ex-military operations officer, must pay $2M to a criminal gang leader in order to free his wife. To repay the money, Connolly recruits his former crew under Brice Mason (Frank Grillo). He also settles a score with Bruce Willis (corrupt police chief). Scott Mallace and Rab Berry wrote the script. Wes Miller directed.
Mockumentary Adventures in SuccessFrom Utopia. An occult, led by a mystical female founder and masquerading itself as a wellness company, settles in Catskills to establish community and practice Jilling Off. They believe that if women are given more pleasure, Mother Earth will be healed. The group is confronted by prejudice and bureaucracy among the local residents and begins to question their motives. Jay Buim and Susan Juvet wrote the script. Buim directed.
Horror sci-fi film about body snatching The ChangedQuiver Distribution. Something has taken control of the minds and hearts of the people. Kim (Clare Foley), Mac (Jason Alan Smith) and Jane (Carlee Avers) try to convince themselves it’s paranoia, but before long the city is besieged by the changed. They realize that an alien intelligence has merged into their neighbor Bill (Tony Todd), and a massed horde is gathering outside their suburban house.
ThrillerAsking for itParamount Pictures and Saban Films. Tribeca was the debut venue. Written and directed by Eamon O’Rourke. Kiersey Clemons, Vanessa Hudgens and Alexandra Shipp are part of a vigilante gang that seeks revenge on a corrupt society.