Rumours, 2024.

Written and Directed by Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, and Guy Maddin.
Starring Cate Blanchett, Roy Dupuis, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Charles Dance, Takehiro Hira, Denis Ménochet, Rolando Ravello, Zlatko Burić, and Alicia Vikander.

SYNOPSIS:

The leaders of seven wealthy democracies get lost in the woods while drafting a statement on a global crisis, facing danger as they attempt to find their way out.

Even those not well-versed in film or basic symbolism will get the point Rumours is making and be exhausted long before it’s over. That’s annoying enough, especially since the targets, world leaders getting together for a G7 meeting to collaborate on a statement regarding an unspecified global crisis, are already low-hanging fruit. Then writers/directors Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, and Guy Maddin go a step further, bordering on insulting the viewers, having these world leaders waxing philosophical about how they are less than human and more stand-ins for various beliefs across the political spectrum, much like we aren’t getting to know characters but more so stand-ins for whatever punchline the script wants to make about each country’s leader.

The numerous jokes quickly run their course. However, making matters worse is that these global leaders don’t actually do much, and not much happens in the film, which is the grand joke here. These influential individuals come together and either vent about their romantic relationships, get sexually involved with each other, rant about things they can’t do anymore, bicker, or generally get caught up in their self-absorbed lives. Roughly halfway in, they are interrupted by reanimated masturbating corpses from thousands of years ago, which is naturally intended to be more funny than frightening but also gets old fast, considering there is no real threat being posed. It’s wacky, irreverent, and inspired, but the point of everything is made so bluntly that the film becomes a frustrating, sluggish watch.

The impressive ensemble, which consists of Cate Blanchett as Germany’s Hilda Orlmann, Charles Dance’s US President Edison Wolcott, France’s Sylvain Broulez (Denis Ménochet), British Prime Minister Cardosa Dewindt (Nikki Amuka-Bird), and others admittedly find some humor in the material and bounce dialogue off of each other well enough, but that also doesn’t salvage a film that goes on forever making a rather obvious point about the effectiveness, honesty, and morals of such world leaders.

Denis Ménochet probably shines the most here, possibly because he gets to work with the strangest material; he first encounters one of the zombies, then is unable to walk due to an inexplicable “leg injury,” and then finds himself locked into a hypnotized writing groove while being pushed around a dark forest in a wheelbarrow. Takehiro Hira’s Japanese leader, Tatsuro Iwasaki, also has amusing exchanges with everyone he interacts with, mostly from some of the uneducated, stupid questions he finds himself answering (there’s a funny one about Japanese fans.) 

Speaking of that forest, there are cheesy fog machines and moody lighting, also playing into the idea that this isn’t meant to be scary and that these global leaders are just terrified cowards incapable of dealing with any major crisis.  There is certainly nothing wrong with the film’s aesthetics or visuals, including a giant brain in the middle of the forest that Alica Vikander’s European leader, Celestine Sproul, has a mysterious connection to, conversing using an unknown language. The unabashed weirdness is welcome, but again, it doesn’t necessarily offset how broad and stale the jokes are at the expense of each country’s leader and the more prominent point being made about their uselessness. Rumours is taking the cheap, easy route for what could have been a terrific and scathing timely satire.

Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★

Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=embed/playlist

“The show doesn’t go on because it’s ready,” Lorne Michaels, creator and producer of “Saturday Night Live,” once said. “It goes on because it’s 11:30.”

This same quote is also used to open director Jason Reitman’s new movie, “Saturday Night.” The film follows Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle), as he navigates the 90 minutes leading up to the first episode of “Saturday Night Live,” which aired Oct. 11, 1975.  

Throughout the film, the audience sees how things continuously go wrong for Michaels, as he deals with missing actors, sets falling apart and an overabundance of planned material sure to go past the show’s network-allotted time slot. 

John Papsideria, the film’s casting director, truly hit the nail on the head. Not only do the film’s cast members do a great job at portraying their real-life counterparts, but they physically resemble them as well, something often lost in biographical films.

This is best seen with Cory Michael Smith, who portrays comedian and actor Chevy Chase in the film. In fact, Smith portrays Chase so well it felt like it was really Chase on the big screen. 

Not only do the two actors look similar, but Smith executes Chase’s mannerisms perfectly. 

Chase is known for being a difficult actor to work with, especially regarding scandals involving racial slurs, physical altercations and aggressiveness — something “Saturday Night” touches on a bit. In a particular scene, Chase gets into a physical altercation with John Belushi (Matt Wood) over a hurtful comment Chase made about Belushi’s weight. 

Other familiar faces, including Rachel Sennott, Dylan O’Brien, J.K Simmons and Willem Dafoe, are also enjoyable to watch on the big screen. Each actor does a fantastic job at portraying the person they were tasked to play, depicting them in a light that contributes to the overall chaos of the story.

In the end, though, it’s LaBelle who truly steals the show. According to an article from Forbes, LaBelle spent considerable time preparing for his role as Michaels, and it shows.

“I watched the whole first season just to get an idea of the style of comedy, who the guest hosts were, and what would have been in their heads on that first night,” LaBelle said in the article. “I read a lot of books about how Lorne got to know everyone, formed the show, and what his earlier career was like to understand how these relationships developed.”

In the film, Michaels is conveyed as resilient, despite dealing with the chaos. However, the hectic atmosphere and disorganized situations are what make the film so fun to watch.

Another contributor to the movie’s immersiveness was its use of sound. For example, when tensions were rising in a scene, upbeat and rather unsettling music would play in the background of the scene.

In a particular scene, when Michaels’ cousin and assistant Neil Levy, portrayed by Andrew Barth Feldman, is stressed out about trying to find a missing actor, he is encouraged to take a hit of weed. As Levy continues walking around in search of the actor, the audience gets to see how the hit of this substance is affecting him. 

The audience begins to hear everything in slow motion, as if hearing Levy’s surroundings from his perspective. To top this stressful scene off, there is an uprising drumbeat playing in the background, adding to the buildup throughout the scene.

“Saturday Night” allows viewers to be completely enthralled with every event that happens throughout the movie, and with a cast of quirky personalities, the film leaves audiences wanting to see more of every character. Whether watching with friends or alone, it is impossible not to laugh out loud.

Rating: 4.5/5

Now is the time to seize the day — and vote.

Such is the message of a timely and galvanizing “Newsies” short film from Broadway Votes, the national theater industry’s nonpartisan get-out-the-vote initiative formed to promote the importance of voter participation.

The music video — directed by Kenny Ortega, who helmed the 1992 movie musical — features a bit of script and updated versions of “Carrying the Banner” and “Seize the Day.” These revisions were done by the Disney title’s original composer, Alan Menken, and lyricist Jack Feldman, as well as Harvey Fierstein, who wrote the book for the hit stage show that debuted on Broadway in 2012.

Filmed Sept. 30 at New York’s Connelly Theater, the short re-creates the story’s rally scene, but rather than gathering to kick off the newsboys’ strike of 1899, this assembly is all about reminding people why voting matters.

“We’ll be out there, carrying the message far and wide / Don’t just sit there, leaving it for others to decide,” the company sings during the new “Carrying the Banner.”

Most notably, the short doesn’t just star young male actors, as “Newsies” productions traditionally do. Instead, it prominently features actors of all gender identities, racial backgrounds and abilities — a visual representation of how voting is a privilege that hasn’t always been granted to all.

“Think of tomorrow, seize today; voting protects us as it connects us to our history of hard-won liberty,” go the new lyrics of “Seize the Day,” just before its signature acrobatic dance break.

The shoot reunited original “Newsies” Broadway cast members Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Ben Fankhauser, Kara Lindsay and Tommy Bracco, alongside Josh Strobl, Taylor Iman Jones, Jelani Alladin, Izzy McCalla, Justin David Sullivan, Jordan Donica, Nikki M. James, John Behlmann, Oyoyo Joi, Antonio Cipriano, Nyseli Vega, Jenna Bainbridge, Ally Bonino, Nadia Dandashi, Laila Drew, Chessa Metz, Khori Petinaud, Derek Piquette and Clay Rice-Thomson, among others.

The company of Broadway Votes’ “Newsies” music video.

(Jenny Anderson)

The “Newsies” video came to be after Broadway Votes co-founders Catherine Markowitz and Nelini Stamp wrapped up an informational call with Menken with an open call to work together on something, someday.

Weeks later, “An email showed up in our inbox, and attached was a demo, with the lyrics completely rewritten and even a little script,” recalled Markowitz. “He had gotten together with Jack Feldman and Harvey Fierstein, and the three of them wrote an entire medley just about voting. It was such a gift.”

The two then reached out to Ortega about directing a potential short film, which was cast, rehearsed and recorded within the span of a month (with Disney’s approval). The video was choreographed by Sergio Trujillo, shot by Luke Geissbühler and edited by Julian Gomez and features numerous actors in shows currently running on Broadway who participated in the daylong shoot on their single day off for the week.

“These talented actors are used to having lyrics thrown in front of them at the last second during previews and having to go onstage and deliver,” said Ortega. “It was because of the masters who showed up to be a part of this, these incredible dancers and singers and actors, that made it possible.”

Director Kenny Ortega, third from right, and the company on the set of Broadway Votes’ “Newsies” music video.

(Jenny Anderson)

What made the shoot especially tough was the news of actor Gavin Creel’s death. “His death was announced as we were entering our lunch break,” said Markowitz.

“Gavin was one of the first people who signed up for Broadway Votes when we started gathering interest in the spring, and a lot of people in our company had worked with Gavin and were close with him. We decided to dedicate the music video to him, because if he hadn’t been sick, he would have been there on set with us.”

The video’s creators hope “Newsies” fans feel seen in the beloved Disney property, possibly for the first time. “As a ‘Newsies’ fan myself, I used to imagine myself as a newsboy, singing and dancing as my own character,” said Stamp.

“I’m part of that fandom, and fandoms are organized communities that can use their love of something to do a lot of good in the world. We want ‘Newsies’ fans to carry the banner and get out and vote on Nov. 5. It’s part of a long-term model that we need to continue to meet people where they’re at.”

Tommy Bracco, center, and the company of Broadway Votes’ “Newsies” music video.

(Jenny Anderson)

Ortega hopes that “Newsies” fans, who tend to be younger than the average theatergoer, are “entertained, excited and enlightened, like Spot Conlon is in the video.”

“He doesn’t feel like his voice matters, but it does, especially now,” Ortega added. “Maybe this just gives them that little boost to get out that door to register and vote.”

Since launching earlier this year, Broadway Votes has spurred curtain-call speeches, program inserts, registration drives and pop-up concerts, all to encourage voter education and enthusiasm for civic engagement nationwide.

Although efforts in the coming weeks will be focused on the presidential election Nov. 5 — especially since so many productions nationwide purposely do not perform on election day — the vision for the initiative goes well beyond this upcoming balloting.

Broadway Votes co-founders Nelini Stamp, left, and Catherine Markowitz on the set of the “Newsies” music video.

(Jenny Anderson)

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“We’ll still be here on Nov. 6. We’re not going anywhere,” said Markowitz. “There are elections multiple times a year, focusing on propositions and local representation and, here in New York, next year’s mayoral race.

“We know that voter turnout leaves a lot to be desired in America, so our whole focus is meeting fans where they are, meeting industry folks where they are and figuring out how to leverage what people are already doing to remind people of the importance of voting.

“We want people to feel empowered, motivated and educated when they’re going into the polls, so that people have a better chance of representing themselves and understanding the impact these elections have on individuals and their communities at large.”