“Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon”
Establishing herself as one of the most singular artists in all of cinema with her Vampire Spaghetti Western “A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night,” Ana Lily Amirpour hasn’t treated audiences with a feature film since 2016’s “The Bad Batch,” which stars Keanu Reeves as a post-apocalyptic cannibal guru. Her third feature, “Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon,” is a twisted urban fantasy about an escaped mental patient (Jeon Jong-seo) with untamed power and potential. Also starring Kate Hudson and Craig Robinson, Amirpour’s style is the definition of expressive authenticity. Her New Orleans-set latest looks to tap into her DJ David-Lynch side more so than ever.
“Parallel Mothers”
Opening Venice with his latest, “Parallel Mothers,” following the ethereal delicacy of 2019’s “Pain and Glory,” Pedro Almodóvar again reunites with his artistic muse, Penélope Cruz. As the title suggests, ‘Mothers’ follows two women sharing a hospital room, waiting to give birth. Both women are single and did not plan on their pregnancies, though they are decades apart in age and experience. Returning to the setting of disquieting medical corridors a la “Talk To Her,” Almodóvar is one of the rare filmmakers of the world operating on a wholly original artistic level, and it should be captivating to watch him tackle such a prevalent topic with his particular aesthetic.
“The Power of the Dog”
Believe it or not, Jane Campion has not directed a theatrical feature since 2009’s “Bright Star,” instead helming the “Top of the Lake” miniseries. This makes sense, given she recently expressed the belief that making films is “complicated now… In a way, it’s not as daring as series-making.” Adapted from Thomas Savage’s novel, “The Power of the Dog,” stars Benedict Cumberbatch as intimidating rancher Phil Burbank, who starts menacing his brother alongside his new wife and son when they enter his life. Also featuring Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemmons, Thomas McKenzie—wow, is she in everything these days (not complaining!)—and Keith Carradine, Campion is a powerhouse filmmaker in a league of her own, and her first movie in over a decade will fittingly be released by Netflix, following its festival circuit.
“Scenes From A Marriage”
From “The Intouchables,” to “Toni Erdmann,” and now “Parasite,” Hollywood loves to ape from acclaimed international films, so much so that HBO is now going back to the Ingmar Bergman “IP” catalog. Starring Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain (okay, so maybe that piques our interest a bit), director Hagai Levi (“The Affair”) adapts the 1973 miniseries, which featured Liv Ullman and Erland Josephson. Bergman’s original version consisted of 6 episodes; reportedly, HBO condensed that down to 5 hours. Already having proven their acting chops in disintegrating/domestic relationship dramas such as “A Most Violent Year” and “The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby,” it’ll be more than tough to top Bergman’s classic, but we’d watch anything where these talented performers share a room together.
“Spencer”
Is Film Twitter ready for the ‘who wore Princess Diana better wars?’ For an entire generation, following the life of Diana, Princess of Wales was like reading a fairy tale; in the hands of a director like Pablo Larraín, however—who already dispelled notions of typical biopic bereavement with “Jackie”—one can expect a sharp subversion of pop culture worship. Dramatically re-imagining the disintegration of Princess Diana and Prince Charles’ marriage (Kristen Stewart and Jack Farthing) pre-divorce, “Spencer” is set during the Christmas of 1991, purporting what games may have occurred during said festivities. With Elizabeth Debicki also set to portray Diane in Season 5 of “The Crown,” there’s little shortage of Princess Diana “content” around the corner, but Larraín’s track record has our interest’s piqued.
Honorable Mention
That’s obviously not all Venice has to offer. There’s also Michel Franco’s “Sundown” starring Tim Roth, now doubly interesting thanks to the big reception of Franco’s previous film, “New Order,” only released a year ago; Penélope Cruz and Antonio Banderas star in Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn’s film festival satire Competition Official,” which could be a lot of fun; Vincent Lindon stars in Stéphane Brizé’s “Un Autre Monde” and that’s an actor always worth paying attention to; Isabelle Huppert stars in Thomas Kruithof‘s “Les Promesses” and well, all eyes are always on Huppert and the amazing performances she can always deliver; “Old Henry” stars Tim Blake Nelson, Scott Haze, Trace Adkins, and Stephen Dorff, and that sounds like an ensemble worth keeping an eye on; Ruth Wilson, Tom Burke, Hayley Squires star in “True Things” so that’s also likely another one to keep tabs on.
Documentary-wise there’s a lot of compelling film in the line-up as well, including “Becoming Led Zeppelin” on the titular British rockers, Giuseppe Tornatore’s doc portrait of his friend and constant collaborator, the late genius legend composer Ennio Morricone, titled “Ennio,” and “Django & Django” which features Quentin Tarantino, Franco Nero and ruminates on Sergio Corbucci’s Django films and Tarantino’s “Django Unchained,” and Daniel Geller and Dayna Goldfine’s Leonard Cohen doc, “Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song.”
Follow along with our full coverage from the 2021 Venice Film Festival here.