Hi, movie fans!
With the Cannes Film Festival in full swing, it's a busy week on the film desk. The headlines have centered on "Furiosa," the "Mad Max" prequel that debuted out of competition, and "Megalopolis," the Francis Ford Coppola passion project that is in the running for the Palme d'Or.
Both premiered to standing ovations (it's Cannes, after all), but the reactions were pretty different. "Furiosa," George Miller's follow-up to his 2015 "Fury Road," has received largely positive reviews, including the one by our chief critic, Manohla Dargis, who called it both an "exciting, kinetic movie" and "terribly sad."
Meanwhile, the response to "Megalopolis" has been very mixed, ranging from Dargis's more positive take (she said its "sincerity is finally as moving as its unbounded artistic ambition") to The Hollywood Reporter's limited pan ("Is it a good movie? Not by a long stretch," David Rooney wrote. "But it's not one that can be easily dismissed, either"). At Vulture, Bilge Ebiri was more blunt: "'Megalopolis' might be the craziest thing I've ever seen," he concluded, but then added that he'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy every second of it.
This all left me with a lot of questions that my colleague Kyle Buchanan was game to answer though even he was a little stumped, writing, "Any attempt to sum up 'Megalopolis' will impose more narrative onto this movie than it actually contains." OK!
He was also in Cannes to report on "Furiosa" and came away with some fascinating behind-the-scenes details about the arduous shoot, like the fact that one sequence took 78 days to film, longer than it takes to shoot some entire movies. He also learned that another prequel might be in the works, "following Max a year before he crosses paths with Furiosa as he helps a young mother whose daughter is being held captive in an underground city." Whether it gets made depends on how "Furiosa" does at the box office when it opens in the United States next week. We'll be watching closely.
For now, whatever you decide to watch, enjoy the movies!
|
 | | Warner Bros. |
Critic's Pick 'Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga' Review: A Lonely AvengerThe fifth installment of George Miller's series delivers an origin story of Furiosa, the hard-bitten driver played here by Anya Taylor-Joy. By Manohla Dargis |
 | | Dean Rogers/Focus Features |
'Back to Black' Review: No, No, NoThe facts get softened and shuffled for an Amy Winehouse biopic that leaves her perspective at the edges. By Alissa Wilkinson |
 | | Gwen Capistran/Neon |
'Babes' Review: Adulting, With BabiesIlana Glazer and Michelle Buteau star in Pamela Adlon's pregnancy comedy, but it never quite lands. By Alissa Wilkinson |
|
|
STREAMING RECOMMENDATIONS |
|
|
|
How are we doing?
We'd love your feedback on this newsletter. Please email thoughts and suggestions to moviesupdate@nytimes.com.
Like this email?
Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up here.
