Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” opens Sept. 27. Filmed in Atlanta from 2022 to 2023, with the city filling in for New York, it’s about an architect (Adam Driver) who sets out to rebuild the metropolis of New Rome after a disaster.
This is a pet project from the Hollywood Walk Hall of Fame director of “The Godfather” series — and he used more than $100 million of his own money to make it. The concept sounds intriguing and the cast is loaded, including Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza, Jon Voight, Shia LaBeouf, Talia Shire and Jason Schwartzman.
Yet, the film’s reception from its Cannes appearance was divided. Some unflattering reports from the set have emerged as well, so it will be interesting to see if distributor Lionsgate can overcome that — particularly after its recent “Borderlands” tanked — and if Coppola’s devoted fan base will show up. — Jim Farmer
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Credit: Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures
Credit: Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures
Decatur-born actor Kyanna Simone adds Georgia flair to screenwriter-director Tina Mabry’s “The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat,” now on Hulu. Based on Edward Kelsey Moore’s 2013 New York Times best-selling novel, the Searchlight Pictures film follows three friends nicknamed the Supremes who bond as teens and go through life together. Their perpetual hangout is a booth at a diner called Earl’s All You Can Eat in Plainview, Indiana.
The teen trio is played by Simone (Odette), Abigail Achiri (Clarice) and Tati Gabrielle (Barbara Jean), with Georgia actors Xavier Mills and Dijon Means cast as boyfriends. The adults, too, are played by an all-star cast: Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (older Odette), Uzo Aduba (older Clarice) and Sanaa Lathan (older Barbara Jean), plus Mekhi Phifer, Julian McMahon, Russell Hornsby and Vondie Curtis-Hall.
While the film is a feel-good, coming-of-age comedy-drama, “The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat” offers a nuanced perspective of strong Black women growing up in the turbulent 1960s. — Carol Badaracco Padgett
Film festivals unspooling this fall
- Hosted by the University of North Georgia at its Gainesville campus Sept. 13-14, the Georgia Film Festival screens films made in Georgia as well as across the Southeast.
- The sixth annual Morehouse College Human Rights Film Festival takes place Sept. 17-21 at Morehouse College and screens documentaries, features and shorts.
- Out on Film celebrates indie films by, for and about LGBTQ+ communities. This year’s 37th festival runs Sept. 26-Oct. 6 at Landmark’s Midtown Art Cinema and Out Front Theatre. ArtsATL Editor at Large Jim Farmer has served as director for 15 years.
- Calling all science fiction nerds! The Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival, founded in 2015, will screen independent science fiction films for free at Peachtree Corners Town Center on Oct. 4-6.
- Watch creepy and gory films galore at the Atlanta Horror Film Festival, featuring more than 200 horror flicks on screen at Limelight Theater on Oct. 13-15 — and, yes, that’s Friday the 13th!
- The Atlanta Indian Film Festival will screen independent Indian cinema Oct. 18-20 at the Tara and introduce Indian directors, actors and producers to the city through corresponding events.
Credit: ArtsATL
Credit: ArtsATL
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