Movies Update: The legacy of “Last Tango in Paris.”

Plus: Sundance picks a new home.

View in browser|nytimes.com March 28, 2025 By Stephanie Goodman ​Hi, movie fans! It's quiet right now in Hollywood, so it's a good time to dive into film history. The new biopic "Being Maria" examines the life of Maria Schneider, the actress who will forever be known for the sexually explicit 1972 drama "Last Tango in Paris," directed by Bernardo Bertolucci. Though that's decidedly not what she wished to be remembered for. As my colleague Elisabeth Vincentelli explains, the actress was haunted by the scene in which the character played by Marlon Brando forces himself onto his younger lover (Schneider). "I felt humiliated and to be honest, I felt a little raped, both by Marlon and by Bertolucci," the actress later said. In depicting her life, the "Being Maria" director Jessica Palud wrestled with the moral and ethical question of whether to re-enact that scene. In the end, she decided to go ahead — "Everybody I talked to who had known Maria mentioned the trauma caused by that scene, so I just couldn't avoid it" — but staged it from Schneider's point of view. Still, filming was harrowing for the actress who played her, Anamaria Vartolomei: "I couldn't stop crying that day — I think I had completely internalized Maria's anger, the violence of that scene." In reviewing "Being Maria," our critic Beatrice Loayza writes that the scene was "a tough watch," part of a film that "conveys the sense that she's sleepwalking through life — and always fighting to snap out of it." If you're looking for something a little less downbeat, our critics recommend "The Friend," starring Naomi Watts and a very large dog, and the haunting romance "Viet and Nam." Whatever you decide to watch, enjoy the movies! MGM, via Everett Collection 'Last Tango' Derailed Maria Schneider's Life. A New Film Takes Her Side. "Being Maria" uses the actress's own words to show how the star's frank discussion of the experience was an early salvo in the #MeToo movement. By Elisabeth Vincentelli Kristina Bumphrey/Variety, via Getty Images Warner Bros. Chief Vowed to Revive Its Film Studio. It's Not Going Well. David Zaslav promised to revive the storied film studio when he took over Warner Bros. Discovery. That was three years ago. By Brooks Barnes via Sundance Film Festival Sundance Picks Its New Home: Boulder, Colo. The Sundance Institute chose the new location for the movie festival because it had outgrown Park City, Utah, its home for the past 40 years. By Nicole Sperling CRITICS' PICKS Bleecker Street Critic's Pick 'The Friend' Review: The Writer vs. the Great Dane Naomi Watts plays a writer in mourning who is given a formidable gift from a friend in this adaptation of the Sigrid Nunez novel. By Sheri Linden Nicolas Graux/Strand Releasing Critic's Pick 'Viet and Nam' Review: A Soft Kiss Underground Truong Minh Quy's haunting romance between two Vietnamese coal miners contemplates war and loss with pained elegance. By Lisa Kennedy Cozy Cottage Films/Susan Boat Critic's Pick 'Art for Everybody' Review: The Hidden Life of the 'Painter of Light' Thomas Kinkade turned himself into a ubiquitous brand — but there was more to him than that, a new documentary shows. By Alissa Wilkinson Film Movement Critic's Pick 'Julie Keeps Quiet' Review: Coping at Her Own Speed A teenage regional tennis star moves on at her own pace after her ex-coach is dismissed under a cloud of suspicion. By Nicolas Rapold MOVIE REVIEWS Balazs Goldi/A24, via Associated Press 'Death of a Unicorn' Review: Into the Woods (Chomp, Chomp) Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega play a father and daughter who run down a mystical beast and end up running amok with a monstrous brood. By Manohla Dargis Prime Video 'Holland' Review: Nicole Kidman Goes Dutch Set in a Michigan town designed to evoke the Netherlands, this thriller has red herring on the menu. By Ben Kenigsberg Lucia Faraig Ferrando/Sony Pictures Classics 'The Penguin Lessons' Review: A Unique Approach to Teaching Steve Coogan plays Tom Michell, an English teacher in 1970s Argentina, whose small new friend makes his class a hit. By Glenn Kenny Focus Features 'The Ballad of Wallis Island' Review: A Sour Note Carey Mulligan briefly warms this damp, downbeat comedy about two lonely men and their musical obsession. By Jeannette Catsoulis Kino Lorber 'Being Maria' Review: The Muse's Side of the Story Starring Anamaria Vartolomei and Matt Dillon, this French drama chronicles the life of the actress Maria Schneider after her traumatic experience on the set of "Last Tango in Paris." By Beatrice Loayza Dan Smith/Amazon MGM Studios, via Associated Press 'A Working Man' Review: Blue Collar, Bloody Hands Jason Statham plays a construction worker who's as deft at breaking bones as he is at building high-rises. By Glenn Kenny Mubi Critic's Pick 'Grand Tour' Review: A Quiet Knockout The Portuguese filmmaker Miguel Gomes's black-and-white film follows a colonial official on a 20th-century odyssey across Asia, with his fiancée in pursuit. By Natalia Winkelman NEWS & FEATURES Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times How 'No Other Land' Became an Unlikely Box Office Success The Oscar-winning documentary has surpassed $2 million at the box office despite the lack of a traditional distribution deal. By Marc Tracy Jennelle Fong for The New York Times The Original Oscars Blogger Takes on Hollywood as a MAGA Pundit Sasha Stone, who has been covering awards season since the '90s, has recast herself as a voice against what she perceives as the industry's liberal status quo. By Marc Tracy Kouka Webb People Love Studio Ghibli. But Should They Be Able to Recreate It? An update to ChatGPT made it easy to simulate Hayao Miyazaki's style of animation, which has flooded social media with memes. By Madison Malone Kircher Nina Westervelt for The New York Times A Palestinian Director of 'No Other Land' Is Attacked and Detained, Witnesses Say Hamdan Ballal was assaulted by masked attackers in his home village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, witnesses said. The Israeli military said he had been detained for questioning. By Ephrat Livni and Rawan Sheikh Ahmad Ben Hickey Do You Know the Classic Works That Inspired These Popular Family Movies? Try this quiz on beloved literature that was memorably adapted for the screen. By J. D. Biersdorfer STREAMING RECOMMENDATIONS A24 Five Free Movies to Stream Now In films like "First Cow" and "Red Rocket" on Tubi, Plex and PlutoTV, you'll see the arc of a country that bends from opportunity to opportunism. By Brandon Yu Amazon MGM Studios Five Action Movies to Stream Now This month's picks include dead-serious assassins, replicant Keystone Kops, long-simmering revenge and more than one variety of stuffed bear. By Robert Daniels 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. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Movies Update from The New York Times. To stop receiving Movies Update, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. 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