Tag: Musical

TEEN SPIRIT (2019)

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teen-spirit

Written & Directed By: Max Minghella
Cinematography: Autumn Durald
Editor: Cam McLauchlin 


Cast: Elle Fanning, Agnieszka Grochowska, Archie Madekwe, Zlatko Buric, Millie Brady, Vivian Oparah, Rebecca Hall 


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.

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FUNNY FACE (1957)

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Funny Face review_600

Directed By: Stanley Donen
Written By: Leonard Gershe
Choreography By: Ray June
Editor: Frank Bacht
Costumes By: Edith Head 

Cast: Frank Astaire, Audrey Hepburn, Kay Thompson, Dovima, Ruta Lee

Fashion photographer Dick Avery, in search for an intellectual backdrop for an air-headed model, expropriates a Greenwich Village bookstore. When the photo session is over the store is left in a shambles, much to salesgirl Jo Stockton’s dismay. Avery stays behind to help her clean up. Later, he examines the photos taken there and sees Jo in the background of one shot. He is intrigued by her unique appearance, as is Maggie Prescott, the editor of a leading fashion magazine. They offer Jo a modeling contract, which she reluctantly accepts only because it includes a trip to Paris. Eventually, her snobbish attitude toward the job softens, and Jo begins to enjoy the work and the company of her handsome photographer.

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VELVET GOLDMINE (1998)

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Written &  Directed By: Todd Haynes
Story By: Todd Haynes & James Lyons
Cinematography: Maryse Alberti
Editor:James Lyons 

Cast: Christian Bale, Ewan McGregor, Jonathan Rhys Myers, Toni Collette, Eddie Izzard, Emily Woof, Michael Feast 

1971: Glamrock explodes all over the world and challenges the seriousness within the flower power generation by means of glitter and brutal music. Brian Slade, a young rock star, inspires numerous teenage boys and girls to paint their nails and explore their own sexuality. In the end Slade destroys himself. Unable to escape the character role of “Maxwell Demon” that he created, he plots his own murder. When fans discover the murder is not real, his star falls abruptly and he is quickly forgotten about. 1984: Arthur, a journalist working for a New York newspaper, gets assigned the tenth anniversary story about the fake murder of Brian Slade. When Arthur was young and growing up in Manchester, he was more than a fan of Slade. Reluctantly he accepts the assignment and starts to investigate what happened to his old glam rock hero.

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INTO THE WOODS (2014)

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Directed By: Rob Marshall
Written By: James Lapine
Based On The Musical, Music & Lyrics By: Stephen Sondheim & James LaPine
Cinematography By: Dion Beebe
Editor: Wyatt Smith 


Cast: Meryl Streep, James Corden, Emily Blunt, Anna Kendrick, Tracy Ullman, Chris Pine, Johnny Depp, Christine Baranski, Tammy Blanchard, Lucy Punch, Daniel Huttlestone, Lilla Crawford, Billy Magnussen, Mackenzie Mauzy, Simon Russel Beale 

Into the Woods is a modern twist on the beloved Brothers Grimm fairy tales in a musical format that follows the classic tales of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Rapunzel-all tied together by an original story involving a baker and his wife, their wish to begin a family and their interaction with the witch who has put a curse on them.

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ANNA AND THE APOCALYPSE (2018)

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Directed By: John McPhail
Written By: Alan MacDonald & Ryan McHenry
Cinematography: Sara Deane
Editor: Mark Hermida 


Cast: Ella Hunt, Malcolm Cumming, Sarah Swire, Christopher Leveaux, Marli Siu, Ben Wiggins, Mark Benton, Paul Kaye, Ella Jarvis 


When the zombie apocalypse hits the sleepy town of Little Haven – at Christmas – teenager Anna and her high school friends have to fight, sing and dance to survive, with the undead horde all around them. Teaming up with her best friend John, Anna has to fight her way through zombified snowmen, Santas, elves and Christmas shoppers to get across town to the high school, where they’ll be safe. But they soon discover that being a teenager is just as difficult as staying alive, even at the end of the world.

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GOD HELP THE GIRL (2014)

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GODHELP

Written & Directed By: Stuart Murdoch
Cinematography By: Giles Nuttgens
Editor: David Arthur 

Cast: Emily Browning, Hannah Murray, Olly Alexander, Pierre Boulanger, Cora Bisset

Set in Glasgow, Scotland, the film is about a girl called Eve who is in the hospital dealing with some emotional problems and starts writing songs as a way of getting better. Songwriting becomes her way forward, leading her to the City where she meets James and Cassie, two musicians each at crossroads of their own. What follows is a story of renaissance over the course of a long, dream-like Summer. While I can admit that this film isn’t for everyone. It charmed me from the beginning. Then Again this was a film I looked forward to and met all my criteria. It is a sensitive film that might be too soft for some out there. It was perfect to me.

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CRY BABY (1990)

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cry-4

 

Written & Directed By: John Waters
Cinematography By: David Insely
Editor: Janice Hampton 


Cast: Johnny Depp, Amy Locane, Polly Bergen, Ricki Lake, Traci Lords, Susan Tyrrell, Troy Donahue, Willem Dafoe, Patricia Hearst, Iggy Pop, Joe Dellasandro, Darren E. Burrows, Mink Stole, Joey Heatherton, Kim McGuire, Stephen Mailer, Kim Webb, Alan J. Wendl, David Nelson

Allison is a “square” good girl who has decided she wants to be bad and falls hard for Cry-Baby Walker, a Greaser (or “Drape” in John Waters parlance). Spoofing Elvis movies and Juvenile Delinquency scare films of the ’50s, this movie follows the adventures of Cry-Baby who, though he is sent to juvie, is determined to cross class (and taste) boundaries to get Allison back.

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