VENICE — George Clooney, Angelina Jolie, Lady Gaga, Brad Pitt and other Hollywood’s biggest stars are preparing to descend on the Venice Film Festival this week.
But while the A-listers’ gathering in the picturesque harbor is a welcome return to a festival that was slumped by last year’s strike, it’s their movies that will be the center of attention. Along with Cannes, the Venice Film Festival, which runs from August 28 to September 7, is one of the most glamorous launch pads for awards season, and films that do well at the Lido will likely dominate the conversation leading up to the Oscars in March.
This year’s lineup includes a host of Hollywood blockbusters (from Beetlejuice and Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 2 to The Wolves) as well as some interesting films from directors around the world. It’s best to go into a film festival with an open mind and see as much as you can; you never know what’s going to be a hit. But in the meantime, here are 10 films to look forward to at Venice.
“Joker: Folie à Deux” (September 4th)
Regardless of where you stood on the Joker debate five years ago, there’s hope that all involved will bring the sequel back to Venice to screen in competition. After all, Joker: Folie à Deux doesn’t need festival buzz; the first film grossed more than $1 billion and was nominated for 11 Oscars. Venice head Alberto Barbera told Deadline that the completely different dystopian musical is “one of the most daring, brave and creative films in recent American cinema” and “confirms that Todd Phillips is one of the most creative directors working today.” It hits theaters on October 4th.
“Maria” (August 29th)
Chilean director Pablo Larraín, whose films tell the tragic stories of famous women (see Spencer, Jackie), are a force to be reckoned with. Now he’s teamed up with screenwriter Steven Knight (Peaky Blinders) and Jolie to bring opera singer Maria Callas to life in Maria. The soprano was a regular in the tabloids, perhaps best known for her affair with Aristotle Onassis, who would eventually end up with Larraín’s tragic woman, Jacqueline Kennedy. Callas died in 1977 at age 53, but remains one of classical music’s best-selling artists. Maria is screening in competition and is seeking distribution.
“Queer” (September 3rd)
Luca Guadagnino returns to Venice with Queer, an adaptation of the William S. Burroughs novel. It stars Daniel Craig, whose performance Barbera called “career-defining.” The story follows an American who emigrates to Mexico City in search of drugs. There, he encounters characters and becomes obsessed with a young man. The novel was written in the early 1950s and was a sort of sister work to Junkie, but wasn’t published until 1985. Previous attempts at adapting the novel have included Steve Buscemi and Oren Moverman. Queer is also in the process of being considered for distribution.
“The Room Next Door” (September 2nd)
Pedro Almodóvar’s English-language debut starring Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton? It hardly needs any explanation to get you excited. The details are vague, and maybe that’s a good thing. According to Almodóvar, it’s a story about an imperfect mother and a resentful daughter who are estranged due to a “deep misunderstanding.” In addition to tackling themes of war, death, friendship and sexual pleasure, Almodóvar said, “It also talks about the joy of waking up to birds bringing in a new day in a house built in a New England nature preserve.” The film will also make a stop at the New York Film Festival before its release in December.
“Baby Girl” (August 30)
Dutch director Halina Rijn made the highly entertaining Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, so I’m especially curious to see what Babygirl is about. The erotic thriller stars Nicole Kidman (who came to Venice 25 years ago in Eyes Wide Shut) as a powerful CEO who begins an affair with a younger intern, played by Harris Dickinson (The Man Who Was Sad, The Iron Claw). Antonio Banderas also co-stars. A24 plans for it to be released in theaters in December.
“The Brutalist” (September 1st)
This three-and-a-half-hour drama from director Brady Corbet follows the decades-long journey of architect László Toth (Adrien Brody) and his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) as they flee Europe after World War II and try to start a life in America. There, their lives change for better and for worse when Toth meets industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce) and is commissioned to design a modernist architectural monument. Corbet (Vox Lux) isn’t always a universally popular director, but he’s always interesting. The film will be distributed by Focus Features and Universal, but no release date has yet been set.
“Youth (Returning Home)” (September 6th)
In the nonfiction category, there are plenty of groundbreaking works, including Errol Morris’ Separated, about the Trump administration’s border policy, Asif Kapadia’s futuristic 2073, Alex Ross Perry’s hybrid documentary Pavements about Stephen Malkmus’ band, and Andres Veyer’s Riefenstahl. But only one has made it into the main competition: Wang Bing’s Youth (Homecoming), the final instalment of a three-part vérité documentary series that follows migrant workers in Zhili, a Chinese textile factory, over the course of five years, and which is still seeking distribution.
“April” (September 5th)
Georgian director Dea Kulumbegashvili’s second film tells the story of Nina, a gynecologist working in rural Georgia who also performs abortions, despite the country’s laws. When a newborn dies under Nina’s care, an investigation sparks rumors about Nina’s morality and professionalism. Three years after her abortion drama “The Happening” won top prize at the Venice Film Festival, rumors are spreading that this film will be a breakout hit. Kulumbegashvili’s debut feature, “The Beginning,” about a Jehovah’s Witness church bombing, made waves at festivals in 2020. “April,” which is looking for a U.S. distributor, will also screen at TIFF and the New York Film Festival.
“The Order” (August 31)
Jude Law produced and stars in the crime thriller, set in the 1980s, as an FBI agent who suspects a white supremacist group is behind a series of crimes in the Pacific Northwest. Directed by Justin Kurzel, the film also stars Nicholas Hoult as the group’s charismatic leader, and hits theaters in December.
“Harvest” (September 3rd)
Athina Rachel Tsangari, director of Attenberg and Chevalier, returns to the main competition with Harvest, an adaptation of a Jim Crace novel. Set in a medieval English village, the locals make three newcomers scapegoats for their economic turmoil. That’s probably why star Caleb Landry Jones did press for Dog Man last year in a Scottish accent. Mubi has distribution rights in several European territories, but no dates or U.S. plans have been announced.
Bonus: “Disclaimer” (August 29th)
While it’s not a movie, the series, which will be available on AppleTV+ on October 11th, is from Alfonso Cuarón, who wrote and directed the seven-episode psychological thriller starring Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline. Blanchett plays a journalist who finds herself a character in a novel that exposes her own dark secrets.
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