SCAD Savannah Film Festival lands stellar lineup
Oct. 10 — Happy Friday! If you’re up for a trip to Savannah this year, have I got a film festival lineup for you! The SCAD Savannah Film Festival, which takes place Oct. 25-Nov. 1, just announced its lineup, and boy, is it a “who’s who” of Oscar hopefuls.
Among so many others, attendees will be able to see Yorgos Lanthimos’ new film “Bugonia,” starring Jesse Plemons and Emma Stone; “Sentimental Value,” the new film from “The Worst Person in the World” director Joachim Trier; “The Testament of Ann Lee,” Mona Fastvold’s musical starring Amanda Seyfried that I am DYING to see; and even some old classics like Jean-Luc Godard’s “Breathless” and Steven Spielberg’s “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial.”
I’m really bummed I’m not going to be able to make it to the festival this year, but this lineup gives me great hope for the years to come. I see a possible trip to Savannah in my future for 2026.
Without further ado … Action!
✍️ The free screening series Off the Wall @ 725 Ponce continues throughout October, with a live drawing from Atlanta artist William Downs on Oct. 17 and 18. Later, on Oct. 22, the series will host a pre-Halloween screening of Henry Selick’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas.”
😂 Dad’s Garage is hosting a grand opening of the facility’s new exterior entryway and patio tomorrow evening.
🎖️ For Georgia Voice, Jim Farmer interviewed Max Parker, one of the stars of the new Netflix series “Boots.” Check it out here.
👻 SCAD is hosting an event called “IN FOCUS: Horror” today, with things kicking off at 2 p.m. at SCADshow.
🍿 The American Black Film Festival Pop Up Tour will make a stop in Atlanta on Nov. 8-9 at AMC Madison Yards.
💻 While the in-person screenings at Out on Film are done, the festival will continue virtually through Oct. 12. Check out the virtual lineup here.
💰 Paramount has officially bought The Free Press and named Bari Weiss, its founder, the editor-in-chief of CBS News.
🏎️ No more familia? I’m sorry to all my “Fast & Furious” heads out there, but reportedly Universal isn’t sure they want to make the next installment unless they can make it for $200 million.
🔥 But, Michael Mann fans, rejoice! “Heat 2” has found a new home at United Artists, with Leonardo DiCaprio circling as the star.
This week’s newsletter features an interview with Del Shores, the playwright and filmmaker behind the cult film “Sordid Lives.” We’ve also got some theater stories this week, including interviews with actress Ann Morrison and Tinashe Kajese-Bolden, who is directing a new play at the Alliance Theatre. Plus, a review of “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” what’s playing at theaters this week, a new edition of Spotlight, and some reading and listening recommendations for your lunch break.
Thanks for reading!
Sammie
🪩 “Xanadu“ the musical rolls into Serenbe Oct. 10-19 at the Wildflower Meadow. Enjoy a disco-fueled night under the stars with live music, glitter, and a VIP experience where you can sit on stage, meet the cast, and win signed skates. More info here. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Celebrating 25 years of ‘Sordid Lives’ with Del Shores
💃 In 2013, playwright and filmmaker Del Shores served as an honorary grand marshal during Atlanta Pride. While he’s written and directed many times over, people along the parade route kept screaming out quotes from one of his films in particular – lines like, “Shoot her, Wardell, shoot her in the head!”
This is a line from Shores’ 2000 film “Sordid Lives,” an eccentric black comedy about a Texas family coming together in the wake of their matriarch’s death. The film is based in part on Shores’ own life, particularly his experience of coming out as gay to his family, and celebrated its 25th anniversary with a screening at Out Front Theatre last night.
All these years later, Shores is always a little surprised at the amount of people who love the film and who can quote lines back at him at the drop of a hat. But watching the film back throughout its 25th anniversary year, what strikes him is how well “Sordid Lives” holds up.
🏳️🌈 I spoke with Shores ahead of last night’s screening. Check out our conversation here.
Taste the flavor and fun of Chamblee
SPONSORED BY DISCOVER DEKALB
✨ A Taste of Chamblee is back for its 16th year with bold flavor, live music, a Wine Down Tent, beer gardens, and two giant LED screens showing ACC and SEC games.
It all kicks off Sat., Oct. 18, from 3-8 p.m. in Downtown Chamblee. Then keep the energy going with our 3rd Spot Watch Party Series at Chamblee City Hall green space. Free admission. Bring your blankets or chairs, and bring the family. Celebrate community, culinary flair, sports fandom, and local culture.
➞ Check schedules. Be present. Join the fun.
Ann Morrison talks stepping into the main role of ‘Kimberly Akimbo’
🎼 When Ann Morrison was 25 years old, she made her Broadway debut as Mary Flynn in the much-maligned (now, reclaimed) Stephen Sondheim musical “Merrily We Roll Along.” Morrison was asked to play a woman in her 40s moving backward through time. Now, at the age of 70, she’s being asked to play a teenager.
Morrison plays the titular role in the national tour of “Kimberly Akimbo,” a show about a teenage girl with a rare genetic condition that makes her age at a much faster rate than her peers. The show comes through the Fox Theatre Oct. 14-19.
As someone who loves “Merrily We Roll Along” and has listened to that original Broadway cast recording who knows how many times, it was such a treat to hear Morrison’s very distinctive voice coming through my telephone. We spoke about her connection to “Kimberly Akimbo,” her relationships with Hal Prince and Stephen Sondheim, and more.
🎭 Check out that conversation here.
Tinashe Kajese-Bolden talks suspense-filled ‘Covenant’ at the Alliance
🎸 Spooky season is in full swing at the Alliance Theatre. “Covenant,” a play from York Walker, runs Oct. 8-Nov. 9 on the Hertz Stage.
Inspired by the myth of Robert Johnson, “Covenant” follows Johnny James, who, after disappearing two years earlier, returns to his small Georgia town a famous and talented blues musician. Johnny’s sudden success sparks rumors that he struck a deal with the devil. Directed by Jennings Hertz Artistic Director Tinashe Kajese-Bolden, the play stars Jade Payton, Brittany Deneen, Deidre Henry, Jemarcus Kilgore, and Alaysia Renay Duncan.
Ahead of opening night, I spoke with Kajese-Bolden about the show, the lure of Southern Gothic stories, and more.
🤝 Check out that interview here.
‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ uses the magic of the movie musical to find deeper truth
WEEKLY FILM REVIEW
💋 Watching “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” one thought kept crossing my mind – why has it taken this long for someone to put Jennifer Lopez in a musical? Thankfully, director Bill Condon has righted this travesty.
“Kiss of the Spider Woman,” based on the 1993 stage musical, which is in turn based on Manuel Puig’s 1976 novel, takes place in two worlds. In one, two Argentinian cellmates – Valentín (Diego Luna), a Marxist political prisoner, and Molina (Tonatiuh), a queer window dresser arrested for public indecency – learn to see eye to eye while Molina regales Valentín with the plot of his favorite classic Hollywood musical. The other half of the story shows us that very movie musical, starring Molina’s favorite actress, Ingrid Luna (Jennifer Lopez) – and it takes place in the colorful, dreamlike world that directors like Vincente Minnelli and Stanley Donen perfected decades ago.
Condon doesn’t shy away from the effervescent color and light that makes those movies so beautiful to watch. But he doesn’t use the color and style of classic movie musicals for aesthetic’s sake. He must necessarily differentiate between the darkness of the prison cell and the world of Molina’s dreams, and uses that tension to arrive at a deeper meaning about truth, performance, and identity.
🇦🇷 Read my full review – including a few quotes from Condon and Tonatiuh – here.
At the Movies!
If you’re looking for a movie to see in theaters this week, here’s what you’ve got to look forward to!
Movies releasing this weekend:
🕷️ “Kiss of the Spider Woman”
🛖 “Roofman” (pictured)
🏍️ “Tron: Ares”
🧊 “The Ice Tower”
👀 “Orwell”
🧚 “Fairyland”
💣 “A House of Dynamite”
Special Events:
👻 “A Chinese Ghost Story” 4K @ The Plaza Theatre (Friday-Wednesday)
🎤 “Perfect Blue” 4K @ The Plaza Theatre (Friday-Thursday)
🇩🇪 “Demons” @ The Plaza Theatre (Saturday-Thursday)
🥪 “Naked Lunch” 4K @ The Tara Theatre (Friday-Tuesday)
🧛 Cineprov: “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” @ The Tara (Saturday)
🏨 “Hotel Transylvania” @ The Springs Cinema & Taphouse (Saturday-Tuesday)
🪩 “Xanadu” the musical rolls into Serenbe Oct. 10-19 at the Wildflower Meadow. Enjoy a disco-fueled night under the stars with live music, glitter, and a VIP experience where you can sit on stage, meet the cast, and win signed skates. More info here. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Spotlight: Chris Sullivan in ‘Presence’
🏠 When I first saw “Presence” back in February, it kind of knocked the wind out of me. It’s not a perfect film by any means, and it has since been usurped by a lot of movies in my ongoing “favorites of the year” list. But, as far as performances go, Chris Sullivan is still up there as one of the best of the year for me.
“Presence” is a ghost story that takes place from the perspective of said ghost. Therefore, the real horror in the film comes from the family drama unfolding in front of the ghost’s (and our) eyes. That family consists of the mother, Rebecca (Lucy Liu), the children, Chloe (Callina Liang) and Tyler (Eddy Maday), and the father, Chris (Sullivan).
I think everyone is great in “Presence,” but my favorite thing about Sullivan’s performance is how understated he is. He is a bear of a man – well over six feet tall and imposing as hell – but he holds such a wealth of warmth in his expression. He moves with the gentleness of someone well aware of his size, particularly around Chloe, the most damaged character in the film, and the one most closely connected with the presence.
The fact that Chris exudes so much warmth toward his children and family makes his moments of anger all the more affecting. I wrote about this in my review, but I think it bears repeating: his anger doesn’t explode out of him in the way you might expect from a family patriarch, but rather slips out in a much quieter and profound way. I think Sullivan’s ability to play up the character’s tenderness, even within his sternness or anger, is what makes the character feel like such a good father, and makes him so indelible in my mind.
Lights, Camera, Action!
🐭 Kerri Russell has been a mainstay in our lives since making her debut on “The All New Mickey Mouse Club” back in 1989. Through “Felicity,” “The Americans,” and now “The Diplomat,” she’s an actress we’re all familiar with – someone who has been on our TV screens and stayed there through thick and thin. In this profile with The New Yorker, Russell discusses her career and her gun-shy feelings about fame.
🍺 Since its release, “One Battle After Another” has garnered rave reviews from critics (including this one). But it has also raised questions about how it treats its Black female characters. I really enjoyed this conversation on “The Big Picture” podcast, which tries to consider the question of representation from all sides.
🔪 If you’re like me, then October is usually a time for catching up on some horror movies that you may have missed over the years. This year, I want to get into some of the franchise sequels – the “Halloweens,” the “Friday the 13ths” – that I’ve never seen. But which ones are the best, and which ones can you skip? For Vulture, Louis Peitzman ranks the “Nightmare on Elm Street” franchise from best to worst.
🖊️ Today’s Scene was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.
