Non-stop Netflix is back with another hard-hitting drama.
While the year is coming to an end Netflix is not looking to stop as just two days ago it released a teaser for an upcoming series ‘Seven Seconds’. The series focuses on the people behind the controversial headlines and their stories. Netflix wrote “Seven Seconds tackles the controversial issues of race relations between law enforcement, the people they serve, and the personal stories of those involved. At its core, the series goes beyond the headlines, examining the impact a tragic accident has on a community and a family’s need for answers and justice.”
‘Seven Seconds’ will be premiering on Netflix on the 23rd of February, 2018.
Big franchisefilms dominated the Box Office this year, however, it was the independent films that most impressed the critics.
With the year coming to close, the team at Our Culture Mag created their lists of their favourite films and we narrowed them down to our top twenty list to see which films resonated most with their viewers.
*Each film on this list share an equal spot*
Baby Driver (Dir. Edgar Wright)
The first film to enter our list is Baby Driver by the exciting Edgar Wright, who has created “memorable scenes” and developed a rather unpredictable film according to our very own Elias Michael. The film has been nominated for one Golden Globe award and several awards for Best Editing, which was done by duo Paul Machliss and Jonathan Amos. ‘Baby Driver’ is definitely a must watch for the car-fuelled action-packed enthusiasts.
Blade Runner 2049 (Dir. Denis Villeneuve)
It was a big year for the fans of original ‘Blade Runner’. Tech-noir ‘Blade Runner 2049’ hit the cinemas in October and amazed its audiences with stunning visuals crafted by Roger Deakins. With the Academy Awards not too long away ‘Blade Runner 2049’ will look to grab some nominations in the visual categories.
Dunkirk (Dir. Christopher Nolan)
Nolan’s ‘Dunkirk’ has managed to gross over $500 million worldwide since its release and from the majority of opinions, it deserved every penny of that. The film by Nolan was ranked highly by the majority of the critics and conveyed the terrors it depicted amazingly. While the film is not made for every audience, it’s a perfect film for those cinema-goers that love waves of unsettling-visuals and tension building soundscapes. Elias Michael wrote, “Nolan opts to tell his story visually with limited dialogue, offering up the exceptional sound to immerse you in the fight and striking visuals to show the horror.”
Ghost Stories (Dir. Andy Nyman & Jeremy Dyson)
According to our critic Christopher Stewardson, ‘Ghost Stories’ is “the best British horror film since Jacques Tourneur’s Night of the Demon (1957)”. Nyman and Dyson gripped the audiences with their masterpiece of a film and currently hold an impressive 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Foxtrot (Dir. Samuel Maoz)
With high praise from many critics like myself, Foxtrot perplexed its audiences with philosophical puzzles and brought out political and cultural themes that are in many ways untalked about today. ‘Foxtrot’ is a genuinely stunning film and without a doubt deservedly well received by the majority of the viewers. With it being the official Israeli entry into the Academy Awards, it is highly likely it will get nominated for the ‘Best Foreign Film’ award.
The Disaster Artist (Dir. James Franco)
One of the more anticipated films this year has been ‘The Disaster Artist’ especially for the fans of ‘The Room’. With great acting from James Franco and well-written comedy, ‘The Disaster Artist’ has truly made an impression that will last with its viewers and thus deserves a spot on this list.
It (Dir. Andrés Muschietti)
The best of year list would be without the biggest horror film of the year. This year we have been treated to ‘It’. A film based on Stephen King’s novel that managed to gross an impressive $698 million at the Box Office. ‘It’ blew most of the Box Office records in its way and currently holds an impressive 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. Our own Christopher Stewardson wrote, “Regardless of misplaced digital effects and a slow pace that emerges toward the middle of the film, It is an effective, immersive, and compelling horror film.”
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos)
Lanthimos came back strong with once again a deeply uneasy film. This year he treated us with ‘The Killing of a Sacred Deer’ which had its UK Premiere at the London Film Festival. Lanthimos’ film truly excelled in many aspects, from the cinematography to its rather bizarre and unsettling themes that make him the favourite of many cinephiles. If you love ‘Lobster’ or ‘Dogtooth’ you will most likely love ‘The Killing of a Sacred Deer’.
Logan (Dir. James Mangold)
Regarded as the best Wolverine yet. Logan truly hit the mark with its intentions. With its emotional and gripping story and beautiful execution, this film truly made itself a step above any Wolverine or X-Men film ever made. A must watch for those love the X-Men franchise.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Dir. Rian Johnson)
The latest film in the Star Wars franchise ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ had some critics split, many arguing that the film struggled with its comedy or that the overall feel and structure of the film was off. However, we feel it is yet of one better Star Wars films and stands well amongst the best films of 2017. Our very own Christopher Stewardson wrote, “Despite the weakness of some of its subplots, The Last Jedi is a welcome and necessary next step for the Star Wars saga.”
Get Out (Dir. Jordan Peele)
With two Golden Globe nominations and high praise from critics ‘Get Out’ has managed to become one of the more provocative and thrilling horror films of 2017. Peele’s ‘Get Out’ seems to have created a new wave of horror cinema, one that will look to expand in the years to come. ‘Get Out’ has been nominated for two Golden Globes.
War for the Planet of the Apes (Dir. Matt Reeves)
The Planet of the Apes’ latest film ‘War for the Planet of the Apes’ was quite the addition to the franchise. With its cinematic war driven visuals and some terrific performances, the film blew some viewers expectations as Reeves managed to deliver the hoped-for product. Elias Michael wrote, “War for the Planet of the Apes is one of the strongest films of the year; Matt Reeves has done exceptionally well in his direction of creating a visually stunning epic and it is refreshing to see a great conclusion to a trilogy.”
mother! (Dir. Darren Aronofsky)
With mixed bag reviews ‘mother!’ is not seen as a major success by many critics, some critiquing the acting of Jennifer Lawrence and several others challenging the visuals and feel of the film that Aronofsky presented. However, with its unique feel and expressiveness, it belongs on this list as one of the best films of 2017. Elias Michael wrote, “Overwhelmingly disturbing and completely nuts this film can be interpreted as many ways as people have seen it.”
The Death of Stalin (Dir. Armando Iannucci)
Iannucci’s political satire comedy ‘The Death of Stalin’ deservedly entered this list with its witty and dark comedy, that will keep you wanting for more. Unsurprisingly, Iannucci’s satire won four awards the British Independent Awards and looks to get more as the awards season opens up.
The Shape of Water (Dir. Guillermo del Toro)
Guillermo del Toro returned this year with his fantasy drama ‘The Shape of Water’. With fantastic visuals and simply thrilling storyline, this film delivered just what we had hoped for. ‘Shape of Water’ to no surprise managed to take seven Golden Globe nominations and will look to do well at the Academy Awards too.
Okja (Dir. Bong Joon-ho)
Joon-ho’s adventurous ‘Okja’ embarked on the themes of environmentalism and political satire. ‘Okja’ was so successful that it even competed for the prestigious Palme d’Or at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival and thus battled the criticism Netflix was receiving over their content being eligible for respected awards due to their strategies in distribution. Our critic James Carpenter wrote, “Okja earns the higher age rating with its controversial topic and themes but it also displays some fresh material for its wonderful cast and proves to be one of the most relevant and influential pieces of film to be seen in a long time.”
T2 Trainspotting (Dir. Danny Boyle)
The sequel to Trainspotting had to come and it did. Once again, British director Danny Boyle took us on a rollercoaster of a journey with his deeply immersive drama that brings back the nostalgic world its predecessor was set in.
Only The Brave (Dir. Joseph Kosinski)
Kosinski’s action film moves its audience with its gripping story that follows an elite crew of firefighters, who fought against a fatal enemy. ‘Only The Brave’ is based on the firefighters from the Yarnell Hill Fire and depicts the events well with splendid acting and structure.
The Lego Batman Movie (Dir. Chris McKay)
Fun, exciting and engaging is a couple of ways to describe ‘The Lego Batman Movie’. While this film is not part of the main Batman franchise it stands as one of the better Batman films ever made. A genuinely well-made animated comedy that currently holds 91% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Big Sick (Dir. Michael Showalter)
Showalter’s ‘The Big Sick’ drama comedy wowed its viewers with its dynamic comedy and a layer of realism that came with it. Most of its power came through the performances of the actors, who were recognised by several film critic award bodies including San Francisco Film Critics Circle, Houston Film Critics Society Awards and Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards. Our very own Elias Michael wrote, “Kumails battles, values and choices are all told wonderfully mixed in with the brilliant humour and heartfelt scenes.”
Man-tis! is in the last stage of crowdfunding and is looking for your help!
Short film ‘Man-tis!’ is now preparing for filming and is looking for backers to make the film happen. With a few days to go, any small or big donation would help the film happen. Man-tis! is being crowdfunded through Indiegogo.
Man-tis! is a short science-fiction comedy. Drawing influence from such classic creature features as ‘The Fly’ (1958) and mixing it with the comedy of Edgar Wright’s ‘Spaced’ (1999 – 2001) series.
The film follows a nervous wreck, Tim Blaisdell, is about to have the interview of his life with the top architectural firm in London. The morning of, however, Tim finds his head and hands transformed into those of a giant praying mantis. Tim’s roommate, Alex, a witty, sarcastic, lovable scamp, doesn’t quite see the problem, but does see how panicked Tim is. Reluctantly, Tim agrees to let Alex take him to his interview. A praying mantis head isn’t ideal, but maybe Tim’s interview will have a better outcome than he’s expecting.
You can join the film by becoming a backer here! and follow their website & social media for further updates on this exciting project.
Legendary Trance duo Cosmic Gate have released their latest single ‘Fall Into You’ with three-time Grammy Nominated singer and songwriter JES.
It’s always exciting when Cosmic Gate share something new and this time we have not been disappointed with their latest single ‘Fall Into You’, which comes in collaboration with the very talented and powerful vocal-driven JES.
Over the years, Cosmic Gate created quite the status for themselves having worked with similarly big names such as Armin van Buuren, Markus Schulz, and Ferry Corsten. While they have worked with some of the biggest names in the world of music, they have still managed to maintain their true sound of Trance, which what earned them the status of Legends in the world of Trance music.
JES is also a fearless musician who has worked with tonnes of big names in the world of music such as Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren and Above & Beyond. She has been also nominated for three Grammy awards and has had two #1 singles on Billboard, which on our lists would deem her as a top artist.
‘Fall Into You’ is part of Cosmic Gate’s album ‘Materia’ which you can download here.
Our friends at DocAlliance have announced their best films of 2017.
With the year wrapping up it is now the perfect time for evaluation and retrospection. Our great friends at DAFilms provide their viewers with over 1600 documentaries and have selected their best films of 2017, based on viewership, festival selections and DocAlliance’s own team opinions on which films should make the cut.
Best films of 2017 from DocAlliance
David Redmon, Ashley Sabin: ‘Do Donkeys Act?’
Ognjen Glavonić: ‘Depth Two’
Sherng-Lee Huang, Livia Ungur: ‘Hotel Dallas’
Salome Jashi: ‘The Dazzling Light of Sunset’
Anna Roussillon: ‘I Am the People’
Pavel Cuzuioc: ‘Secondo Me’
Chris Marker: ‘Letter from Siberia’
Gianfranco Rosi: ‘El Sicario – Room 164’
Agnés Varda: Women Reply: ‘Our Bodies, Our Sex’
Deborah Stratman: ‘Illinois Parables’
Zosya Rodkevich: ‘My Friend Boris Nemtsov’
Marek Olexa, Francesca Scalisi: ‘Half-Life in Fukushima’
Ryuji Otsuka: ‘Beijing Ants’
Zoe Beloff: ‘A Model Family in a Model Home’
Bill Morrison: ‘The Great Flood’
Petr Václav: ‘The Way Out’
Věra Chytilová: ‘Looking for Ester’
Jane Gillooly: ‘Suitcase of Love and Shame’
Victor Kossakovsky: ‘The Belovs’
Star Wars: The Last Jedi dominated the weekend Box Office, as it delivered the second largest opening weekend ever.
The latest film in the Star Wars journey ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ hit its expectations well as according to Box Office Mojo it grossed $220 million at the weekend Box Office. If the figures are true, ‘The Last Jedi’ is officially in second place with its opening weekend, only behind to ‘The Force Awakens’ which managed to gross a humongous $247.9 million at its opening weekend. ‘The Last Jedi’ is also holding up well in the reviews with 94% on the Rotten Tomatoes.
In the second place, came 20th Century Fox’s ‘Ferdinand’ which managed to gross $13.3 million domestically. It looks to be a rather slow start for the animated film as it expected a bigger start, but with ‘The Last Jedi’ dominating the cinemas it looks like it will have to stay calm till the storm clears up.
Sadly, for ‘The Disaster Artist’ the weekend did not look great, as the film dropped from fourth to eighth place since the last weekend. ‘The Disaster Artist’ managed to gross $2.63 million this past weekend domestically and has grossed $15.5 million worldwide since it began screening.
Barrett Wissman, Chairman of IMG Artists, has become a mentor for creatives and celebrities who want to build their own brands.
In an article with Entrepreneur, Barrett Wissman stated that his company Two Pillar Management “is here to advise them on how to build their overall brands as celebrities, entrepreneurs and philanthropists”.
Wissman has created quite the portfolio for himself working with clients such as Jay Alvarrez, Sazan Hendrix and Ray Diaz. He has developed strategies and campaigns that have attracted millions of followers to his clients. As of this moment, his clients reach over 50 million people worldwide. He recently partnered as well with Robert Earl in Two Pillar to help build companies that will develop and promote celebrities’ brands. Earl founded Planet Hollywood and has a long history of bringing value to stars and celebrities. For both of them, social media and the social media influencer is the new frontier.
Furthermore, Wissman has developed and directed an investment which IMG Artists made in the Global Philanthropy Group. The goal of the company is to advise celebrities, public figures, brands and philanthropists on their own philanthropic strategies. Some of the clients are Brad Pitt, Madonna, Angelina Jolie, Shakira, John Legend, Gucci, Miley Cyrus, Clinique and lots of others. With this growth and new collaboration, Wissman hopes to build social media stars’ philanthropic profiles, while also expanding their own image and brands as well.
Lola Dupre a UK based artist creates incredible collages manipulating its subjects in an enticing and humorous way.
We may usually expect this kind of creative editing to happen through digital mediums but the artist’s commitment to traditional techniques and collage add a layer thrilling energy and value to the work. Here is a selection of her works featuring animals from various years and projects.
Man-tis! A short Sci-fi Comedy short is looking for backers.
Man-tis! is a short science-fiction comedy. Drawing influence from such classic creature features as The Fly (1958) and mixing it with the comedy of Edgar Wright’s Spaced (1999 – 2001) series, Man-tis! tells the story of a young man who wakes up to find his head transformed into that of a giant praying mantis – on the day of a major job interview, no less.
The film follows a nervous wreck, Tim Blaisdell, is about to have the interview of his life with the top architectural firm in London. The morning of, however, Tim finds his head and hands transformed into those of a giant praying mantis. Tim’s roommate, Alex, a witty, sarcastic, lovable scamp, doesn’t quite see the problem, but does see how panicked Tim is. Reluctantly, Tim agrees to let Alex take him to his interview. A praying mantis head isn’t ideal, but maybe Tim’s interview will have a better outcome than he’s expecting.
When talking to Our Culture Mag, the director of the film Christopher Stewardson said a few things about the influences that made the idea come together “Kurt Neumann’s 1958 version of The Fly and Joe Dante’s Matinee are really the primary influences of Man-tis! I love how affectionate Matinee is toward 1950s science fiction and horror pictures – it really relishes with how fantastic those films were. With Man-tis! I really want to emulate that sense of affection for the plethora of monster movies from the 50s that I loved as a child – and still do!”
You can join the film by becoming a backer here! and follow their website & social media for further updates on this exciting project.
Disney’s Coco has managed to maintain its top spot at the weekend box office, whilst The Disaster Artist soared up the ranks with terrific critic reviews coming in.
To no surprise, Disney’s and Pixar’s ‘Coco’ has managed to keep its top spot at the weekend Box Office as it grossed an estimated $18.3 million. In the second place, came the unmoved from the previous week ‘Justice League with a modest $9.59 million. Additionally, unmoved in the third place came ‘Wonder’ which managed to gross an estimated $8.45 million.
While the top three managed to sustain their spots, the big mover this week was ‘The Disaster Artist’ by A24. James Franco’s film managed to go from twelfth to the fourth spot as it grew by +431.3 percent in gross since the last weekend with 821 new cinemas screening the film. The film has also managed to do well critically, as it has been currently awarded 93% on Rotten Tomatoes and 4/5 on The Guardian.
