Happy Friday to all the film fans out there. The day started off on a bad note with the reminder that Dune: Part Two was supposed to come out. That realization sucked. We were so close to having a repeat of 2010 where we got new Fincher, Scorsese, Nolan and Villenueve. But because the big wigs didn’t want to pay writers and actors a fair wage, Dune: Part Two got pushed.
While I was in my sorrows scrolling Twitter, my day got better for two reasons. The first reason was because I watched the new trailer for Wes Ball’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Ape. It rocks. I know trailers can be deceiving at times, but this trailer raised my expectations. So that made me happy and then I saw that the Barnes and Noble Criterion Collection sale was on from November 3rd to December 4th. Is that necessarily a good thing for my wallet? Absolutely not. Nevertheless, being able to add to my collection is always exciting.
November 3rd, AKA Almost Dune: Part Two Day
Today was supposed to be the day. The day where cinephiles alike packed into Cinemark’s, AMC’s, Regal’s, and independent theaters to watch the highly anticipated Denis Villenueve film, Dune: Part Two. The sequel to his 2021 science fiction drama was set to release today, but due to the SAG AFTRA strike, Villenueve and company opted to push the films release from November 3rd to March 15th of 2024. It’s bitter sweet — but more bitter than sweet. I commend Villenueve for standing with the actors and writers in their battle for fair wages. It just stinks that as a fan, we have to wait nearly five months for the film.
Where a lot of my disappointment stems from is that the cast for Dune: Part Two had me amped. Obviously the great Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Dave Bautista, and Josh Brolin were back, but it was the new faces that enticed me. Just the idea of Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, and Léa Seydoux being added to this already loaded cast is exhilarating. Pair that with another Hans Zimmer score and I would’ve been first in line at Regal Mashpee tonight.
I guess the silver lining with the wait for Dune: Part Two is that our anticipation builds. The absence of this film only makes our hearts grow fonder and expectations rise. But then again, could this almost raise our expectations too much? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
The First Trailer For Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Is Awesome
I recently wrote about my most anticipated 2024 films and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes was a focal point of the blog. My initial thoughts were concern. I’ve grown an affection towards the recent Planet of the Apes trilogy and felt like a new film in the ACU (Ape Cinematic Universe) could bastardize the great work in the past years from Matt Reeves and Rupert Wyatt.
Then I saw the trailer.
I am all the way in. This looks like everything I’d want Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes to be. It appears to be apes fighting apes, apes fighting humans, and the discovery of technology paired with a power struggle. What also grabbed me in the trailer is the quick shot of the apes on the beach. Sort of a wink and nod at the original Planet of the Apes films which is cool. The action looks awesome, I’m hooked by the CGI, and the plot line not fully being given is a plus. A lot of the time, trailers give away too much of the plot. That doesn’t seem to be the case here.
Along with the trailer getting me riled up, I’m confident with the team of writers who put the script together. Josh Friedman worked on Avatar: The Way of Water and War of the Worlds, which are two awesome adventure films. Rick Jaffa was attached as a writer and producer to the recent Planet of the Apes trilogy and can ensure Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes mirrors the good from that trilogy. Amanda Silver was also a writer on the recent trilogy and Patrick Aison is relatively new. He did co-wrote the script for Prey, which I didn’t love, but shows his aptitude for this genre.
Letterboxd Possibly Reveals Fincher’s Next Project
While most of America hasn’t seen The Killer yet due to its limited theatrical release and it hitting Netflix on November 10th, we might have (very) limited information about Fincher’s next film. According to the directors Letterboxd page, the film is titled Strangers and the only person attached to said film is Fincher as the director. No writers, producers, or actors. Just Fincher. The supposed plot for Strangers is “A murder plot hatched by two men who meet on a train is considered to be a joke by one of them, and a dangerously real plan by the other.”
Now this may be a new revelation on Letterboxd, it isn’t a new idea for Fincher. In 2015, Fincher had a project in the works titled Strangers On A Real Train — a remake of an Alfred Hitchcock film, Strangers On A Train. At the time, this would’ve reunited Ben Affleck and Fincher after working together on Gone Girl in 2014.
Like many dead projects though, Strangers On A Real Train met an unfortunate demise that stemmed from those involved being invested in other projects. Gillian Flynn, who wrote the novel and screenplay for Gone Girl was supposed to pen the script for Strangers On A Real Train, but was working with Steve Mcqueen on a series. Affleck had the DC universe to tend to and Fincher was working on an HBO series. The long and the short of it is that the stars didn’t align. But now, Strangers On A Real Train could be back in the works. Maybe it’s a Letterboxd pump fake, but I’m excited regardless.
Barnes and Noble Criterion Sale Is Back
A lot of people like to say, “This is like Christmas before Christmas” when referring to something that’s great, but nothing feels more like Christmas before Christmas than the Barnes and Noble Criterion Collection sale. For those who don’t know, the Criterion Collection is a collection of some of the greatest and most influential films of all time that get released on disc form. On the surface, it might seem like just a regular DVD. But that’s where you’d be wrong my friend! It’s crafted by Criterion around the film maker with extra content and is molded the way the film maker intended. There’s many fun elements to the Criterion DVDs and Blu-ray’s, but I adore the covers the most. The creative covers of these films make buying them feel like a novelty.
After giving you the cliff notes of the collection, it’s important to know that these films are traditionally priced around $40 to $60 dollars. However, during two months of the year, Barnes and Noble marks all of them down to 50% off. This is obviously the best time to buy and their second sale of the year just started. From November 3rd to December 4th, all of their Criterion films are 50% off.
I myself have begun a collection. I’ve snagged great films like Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing, Brian De Palma’s Blow Out, and David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me. With 14 films in my collection, I’m scouring more this sale month. My eyes are turned towards Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha, Steven Soderbergh’s Sex, Lies and Videotapes and Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth. Whether you plan to buy or not, it’s always cool to check out what’s in the collection — but it is fun to buy.