Aerosmith Announces Farewell Tour Starting in September https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4304591/aerosmith-announces-farewell-tour-starting-september
Aerosmith Announces Farewell Tour Starting in September
Tom Hamilton, from left, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, John Douglas and Brad Whitford of Aerosmith, perform on Sept. 8, 2022, at Fenway Park in Boston. (AP)
Aerosmith Announces Farewell Tour Starting in September
Tom Hamilton, from left, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, John Douglas and Brad Whitford of Aerosmith, perform on Sept. 8, 2022, at Fenway Park in Boston. (AP)
Aerosmith will be touring a city near you for the last time to celebrate the rock band's 50-plus years together.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band announced Monday the dates for their farewell tour called “Peace Out” starting Sept. 2 in Philadelphia. The 40-date run of shows, which includes a stop in the band’s hometown of Boston on New Year’s Eve, will end Jan. 26 in Montreal.
“I think it’s about time,” guitarist Joe Perry said.
Perry said the group, with frontman Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer and guitarist Brad Whitford, learned from the staging and production from their recent Las Vegas residency shows.
Perry believes the time to say goodbye is now, especially with every founding band member over the age of 70. Tyler, 75, is the oldest in the group.
“It’s kind of a chance to celebrate the 50 years we’ve been out here,” Perry said. “You never know how much longer everybody’s going to be healthy to do this. … It’s been a while since we’ve actually done a real tour. We did that run in Vegas, which was great. It was fun, but (we're) kind of anxious to get back on the road.”
Tyler and Perry said the band is looking forward to digging into their lengthy catalog of the group’s rock classics including “Crazy,” “Janie’s Got a Gun” and “Livin’ on the Edge.”
Over the years, Aerosmith, which formed in 1970, has collected four Grammys. The band broke boundaries intersecting rock and hip-hop with their epic collaboration with Run-DMC for “Walk This Way.”
Aerosmith performed the Super Bowl halftime show in 2001 and even had their own theme park attraction in 1999 at Disney World in Florida and later in Paris with the launch of the “Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith” ride.
“We’re opening up Pandora’s Box one last time to present our fans with the Peace Out tour,” Tyler said in a statement to The Associated Press. His “Pandora's Box” reference calls out Aerosmith's 1991 three-disc compilation album that covered the band's output from the 1970s to the early 1980s.
“Be there or beware as we bring all the toys out of the attic. Get ready,” Tyler added.
The band said Kramer decided to not take part in the current dates on the upcoming tour. He’s still a part of the group, but the drummer has been on leave to “focus his attention on his family and health” since their Vegas residency last year. Drummer John Douglas will continue to play in his place.
Perry called Kramer their brother. The band said his “legendary presence behind the drum kit will be sorely missed.”
Before the 40-date tour wraps, Perry said other cities domestically and internationally could be added.
“It’s the final farewell tour, but I have a feeling it will go on for a while,” he said. “But I don’t know how many times we’ll be coming back to the same cities. It could very possibly be the last time.”
How Cannes Works, from the Standing Ovations to the Juries to the Palm Dog https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5018276-how-cannes-works-standing-ovations-juries-palm-dog%C2%A0
US actress Meryl Streep arrives for the Opening Ceremony and the screening of the film "Le Deuxieme Acte" at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2024. (AFP)
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How Cannes Works, from the Standing Ovations to the Juries to the Palm Dog
US actress Meryl Streep arrives for the Opening Ceremony and the screening of the film "Le Deuxieme Acte" at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2024. (AFP)
The Cannes Film Festival is hallowed ground in cinema but understanding its unique landscape can be confounding.
The Côte d’Azur festival, which kicked off Tuesday, is a 10-day ballet of spectacle and film where even the photographers wear tuxedos, standing ovations are timed with stopwatches and movies tend to be referred to by the names of their directors — “the Almodóvar,” “the Malick,” “the Coppola.”
From the outside, it can seem mad. From the inside, it can be hardly less disorienting. But grasping some of Cannes’ quirks and traditions can help you understand just what is unspooling in the south of France and what, exactly, a Palm Dog is.
WHY DOES CANNES MATTER?
The short answer is that Cannes is the largest and arguably most significant film festival, and few care more deeply about the art of cinema than the French. This is where cinema was born and it’s where it’s most closely guarded. It’s not a coincidence that to enter the Palais des Festivals, the central hub, you must climb 24 red-carpeted steps, as if you’re ascending into some movie nirvana.
Cannes is also singularly global, attracting filmmakers, producers and journalists from around the world. It’s a little like an Olympics for film; countries set up their own tents in an international village. Because Cannes is also the largest film market in the world, many who come here are trying to sell their movies or looking to buy up rights. Deal-making, though not quite the frenzy it once was, happens in hotel rooms along the Croisette, aboard yachts docked in the harbor and, yes, on Zoom calls.
But aside from being a beacon to filmmakers and executives, Cannes is a draw for its shimmering French Riviera glamour. Since the days of stars like Grace Kelly and Brigitte Bardot, Cannes has been renowned as a sun-kissed center stage for fashion.
US director and president of the Jury of the 77th Cannes Film Festival Greta Gerwig (C) is applauded by (from L) Italian actor Pierfrancesco Favino, Lebanese director Nadine Labaki, French actor Omar Sy, US actress Lily Gladstone, Turkish writer and photographer Ebru Ceylan, Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda, French actress Eva Green and Spanish director, producer and writer Juan Antonio Bayona during a press conference of the Jury of the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 14, 2024. (AFP)
HOW OLD IS CANNES?
Originally called the International Film Festival, Cannes was born in the lead-up to World War II. Venice had launched the first major film festival in 1932, but in 1938, fascist influence on Venice was pervasive. The French government in 1939 chose the tourist destination of Cannes as the place for a new festival — though because of the war, the first edition wasn’t held until 1946. This year’s festival is the 77th edition.
WHAT IS IT LIKE ON THE GROUND?
The hive of activity is the Palais, a massive complex by the sea full of cinemas with names like Buñuel, Bazin and, the granddaddy, the Grand Théâtre Lumière. This is where the red carpet runs in Cannes, nightly hosting two or three world premieres beneath a glass canopy flanked by rows of photographers. Festival cars ferry stars and directors who are ushered down the carpet and up the steps. Unlike most movie premieres, there are no reporters on the carpet.
Filmmakers and casts instead face questions from the media the day after their premieres, at a press conference preceded by a photo call. The press conferences can be atypically newsy, too; after Danish director Lars von Trier declared “I am a Nazi” at a Cannes press conference in 2011, he was named “persona non grata” by the festival for years.
Interpreters translate live for headphone-wearing reporters. Inside the Palais, bleary-eyed attendees are treated to gratis espresso.
Down the Croisette, the oceanside, palm tree-lined promenade of Cannes, there are regal old hotels like the Carlton and the Martinez from where festival attendees flow in and out, interviews might be happening on balconies as autograph-seeking fans gather outside in throngs. After-parties are typically held in clubs across the Croisette, by the beach.
WHO ATTENDS?
Unlike public festivals like Toronto or SXSW, Cannes is industry-only and largely out of reach for most moviegoers. That doesn’t stop the desperate, tuxedo-clad ticket seekers who hold signs outside the Palais on the chance someone has an extra, or the photo-takers who stand on small ladders near the red carpet.
Cannes is rigorously hierarchical, with a system of color-coded badges regulating access. If you hear about a film being booed at Cannes — even Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver” was famously jeered before winning the Palme d’Or — it’s usually at a press screening.
The premieres, largely attended by industry professionals, are where the prolonged standing ovations take place. But this, like many things at Cannes, is a bit of stagecraft to boost the mythology. After the credits role, a cameraman rushes in, with his footage fed live to the screen. He goes down the aisles, giving the audience a chance to applaud for the director and each star. No one is just cheering for a dark movie screen.
Messi the dog on the red carpet ahead of the "Le Deuxieme Acte" screening and opening ceremony of the 77th annual Cannes Film Festival, in Cannes, France, 14 May 2024. (EPA)
WHAT DOES ‘IN COMPETITION’ MEAN?
Cannes hierarchy is in the lineup, too. Attention focuses most on the films “in competition”: usually around 20 movies competing for the Palme d’Or, the festival’s top award. Past winners include “Apocalypse Now,” “Pulp Fiction,” and “Parasite.” Last year, it went to Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall.” Winners are chosen by a jury of nine that changes every year. This year’s is presided over by Greta Gerwig.
Competition is only one section, though. Many high-profile films might play out of competition, as “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” is this year. Un Certain Regard gathers a lineup of original or daring films. First and second films play in the sidebar Critics’ Week. There are also midnight selections and the recently launched Premiere sidebar, which also takes some overflow for films that didn’t fit into competition. Restorations and documentaries play in Cannes Classics.
And down the Croisette, separate from the official selection, is the Directors’ Fortnight or the Quinzaine, a parallel showcase launched in 1969 by a group of French filmmakers after the 1968 Cannes was canceled.
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE PALM DOG?
There are many other prizes, too, even an unofficial one created by journalists called the Palm Dog (sadly, not the Palme D’Og), for the best canine in Cannes. Last year, that honor went to Messi, the “Anatomy of a Fall” pooch.
Created in 2001, the annual award and its spinoff categories is decided by a jury of reporters. Past winners have included Uggie from “The Artist” (2011) and Sayuri, who played the heroic pit bull in “Once Upon A Time ... In Hollywood” (2019).
As for the reigning champ, Messi captivated the carpet on opening day this year, in town again as a correspawndent of sorts for French television.
Movie Review: Amy Winehouse Story Flattened in Frustrating Biopic ‘Back to Black’ https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5018246-movie-review-amy-winehouse-story-flattened-frustrating-biopic-%E2%80%98back-black%E2%80%99%C2%A0
This image released by Focus Features shows Marisa Abela as Amy Winehouse in a scene from "Back to Black." (Focus Features via AP)
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Movie Review: Amy Winehouse Story Flattened in Frustrating Biopic ‘Back to Black’
This image released by Focus Features shows Marisa Abela as Amy Winehouse in a scene from "Back to Black." (Focus Features via AP)
“Back to Black” as a movie is a tame and mediocre affair. A conventionally told biopic about a talented artist who became famous, struggled with drugs, depression and bulimia, and died early. There are nice performances from gifted actors like Marisa Abela, Jack O’Connell, Eddie Marsan and Lesley Manville, and a soundtrack of hits that helps fill the space.
But as a portrait of Amy Winehouse? It is simply dreadful.
The main problem with any movie about Winehouse is that a defining film already exists — Asif Kapadia’s Oscar-winning documentary “Amy,” released four years after her death from alcohol poisoning at age 27. Told through archival material, home videos and observations from those around her, it felt as intimate and unfiltered as a diary.
“Amy” was a sobering portrait of addiction, fame and complicity that also let you get to know and love the person behind the songs, the eyeliner, the beehive, the bloodied ballet slippers and the invasive paparazzi photos. It was no one’s idea of sensationalistic and she’s doing most of the talking.
“Amy” was also a movie that didn’t sit well with her grieving family. Her father, Mitch Winehouse, said it was misleading and contained “basic untruths.” After it won the Oscar, he doubled down saying that it had no bearing on her life and was manipulative. Kapadia, he said, was more exploitative of his daughter than anyone.
Following her death, Mitch started a foundation in her name to help young people and wrote a book about her and being the father of an addict. Her mother Janis narrated a documentary, “Reclaiming Amy,” released in 2011. And after years of declining to participate in a narrative biopic, the estate decided to allow one with full use of the songs. Like many musical biopics made alongside an estate, it’s hard not to look at “Back to Black” skeptically, wondering whose interests the film is serving.
Sam Taylor-Johnson, who directed, has said that she wanted to take the idea of “blame” out of the equation, that the family had zero input on her cut and would not benefit financially. And yet it also seems like a direct response to Kapadia’s film, depicting more than a few key moments wildly differently. They’re not just shown in a different light — some are telling a completely different story.
The screenplay by Matthew Greenhalgh is empathetic to the ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil (O’Connell) and her father Mitch (Marsan), both of whom have been villainized over the years. In the film, most are just caught up in a whirl of inevitability and the retrospective blur of grief.
There seems to be an excessive amount of rationalizing in the way everyone involved talks about “Back to Black,” over justifying its existence and its choices. But just because everyone keeps telling us that it’s a celebration doesn’t mean that we have to get on board. I’m not sure what is celebratory about dramatizing this tragedy, or helpful, or artful, or particularly revelatory about it either. The media, for example, is reduced mainly to the paparazzi camped outside her place as though that’s where the problem stopped.
Taylor-Johnson has said she didn’t want to glamorize depression, addiction or bulimia either, but the latter, which she struggled with before she was famous, is barely even acknowledged. Depiction of eating disorders is inherently fraught, but there had to have been a way to address such a large part of her life and self-image more directly.
Though linear, the story is also oddly confusing, assuming that the audience knows many details of her life (like, say, the bulimia) and the people in it. The film rushes through major career moments in montage, seeming to slow down only for a few things: A performance, Amy’s face in various forms of drunken distress and agony or scenes with her and Blake. Was it attempting a freewheeling jazz form, or is it just messy?
In some ways, this portrait of Amy Winehouse makes her immense talent the sideshow and her obsession/romance/heartache over Blake the defining story of her adult life. This is at least somewhat redeemed by the chemistry between Abela and O’Connell, who look far too glowing and healthy to be believable as heroin addicts.
But the greatest failing is how shockingly cliche the ending is. For all of “Back to Black’s” tiptoeing around delicate subjects, its romantically photographed sendoff to Amy is perhaps the most dangerously glamorized shot in the film. It doesn’t even fade to black after a title card announces her death. Before anyone can feel anything, they’ve cut to Amy telling the audience that all she wants is for her songs to make people forget about their troubles for a bit.
By this point, it reads more like a closing statement for a film that never wanted to challenge, offend or move anyone. Mission accomplished.
What Is the Celebrity ‘Blockout’ Over the War in Gaza? https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5018056-what-celebrity-%E2%80%98blockout%E2%80%99-over-war-gaza%C2%A0
NYPD officers block off pro-Palestinian demonstrators near the Met Gala being held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. (AFP via Getty Images)
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What Is the Celebrity ‘Blockout’ Over the War in Gaza?
NYPD officers block off pro-Palestinian demonstrators near the Met Gala being held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. (AFP via Getty Images)
Some social media users are calling out celebrities for what they say is inaction in the face of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza — and they've taken to a “blockout” to pressure the stars to take a stand.
For the blockout, users put a block on seeing any and all content from the accounts of certain celebrities on social media platforms including X, TikTok and Instagram. Some have posted about the celebrities they've blocked, using a hashtag such as #blockout, #blockout2024, or #celebrityblockout, while others have shared posts from users lambasting attendees of high-glamour events like the Met Gala and contrasting it with the situation in Gaza.
Blockout participants say it's a protest because the celebrities either haven’t spoken up or haven't said enough against Israel’s actions in Gaza during its war with Hamas. Since the war erupted Oct. 7 with Hamas' deadly attacks, Israel’s military has killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants.
HOW DOES THE BLOCKOUT WORK? On social media platforms, users see content from people they follow, as well as from those chosen for them by algorithms. In both instances, users can select options to mute or block a person or account.
Blocking the accounts of celebrities or influencers means not seeing any of the content they produce on social media — no posts, no photos or videos, no collaborations with sponsors. The number of people interacting with content brings in money, so the blocks are meant to affect views, engagement and — ultimately — paychecks.
The blockout also is meant to target celebrities' brands by taking eyeballs and attention away from their content.
WHO IS BEING BLOCKED? There is no single organized list of celebrities being blocked. Some users are offering celebrity suggestions, while others are deciding on their own. Celebrities in the US and beyond have been named in the blockout.
Blocking is up to each social media user. And every celebrity, influencer or content creator must be blocked individually on each platform.
HOW DID THE BLOCKOUT START? Protests around the Israel-Hamas war have grown, with encampments on college campuses around the country. Amid those movements, attention to what celebrities and influencers were, or weren't, saying got a boost after the Met Gala last week.
The annual party draws a host of famous faces from the worlds of fashion, movies, music, sports and more. It's known for its over-the-top arrivals carpet and the elaborate outfits celebrities wear. This year, the gala was circled by protesters for much of the evening.
Social media was flooded with images from the star-studded event. Around the same time, images circulated as Israel launched a military operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. That led to some users calling out the contrast between the gala's celebrity opulence and the situation in Gaza — using images from both - and condemning celebrities for not using their platforms to speak up for those who are suffering.
WILL THE BLOCKOUT BE EFFECTIVE? The effectiveness and staying power of the blockade are yet to be seen, said Beth Fossen, assistant professor of marketing at Indiana University. It might depend on the celebrity and what they’re known for — a famous person whose “brand” is tied to humanitarian causes may be more affected than one known primarily for talent, she added.
“If your identity is really tied to promoting something that is key to the boycotting, then this could potentially have really serious consequences for you,” Fossen said. “There might be some influencers that gain their fame by sort of promoting peace and then they’re being silent on this issue — followers may not forgive them.”
IS THERE BLOCKOUT BACKLASH? There has been criticism of the blockout, with some saying the focus on celebrities takes attention away from what's happening on the ground in Gaza. Others question what the parameters are for judging whether someone should be blocked — and what would constitute a well-known person speaking out or doing enough.
Comcast to Unveil Netflix, Apple TV+, Peacock Streaming Bundlehttps://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5017201-comcast-unveil-netflix-apple-tv-peacock-streaming-bundle
FILE - This Jan. 29, 2010, file photo shows the company logo and view of Netflix headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)
Comcast to Unveil Netflix, Apple TV+, Peacock Streaming Bundle
FILE - This Jan. 29, 2010, file photo shows the company logo and view of Netflix headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)
Comcast is set to launch a streaming bundle combining its Peacock service with Netflix and Apple TV+, as the media and broadband company looks to retain subscribers in the face of stiff competition.
The new bundle, StreamSaver, will be available to all its broadband, TV and mobile subscribers and at a "vastly reduced price to anything in the market today", Comcast CEO Brian Roberts told the MoffettNathanson Media, Internet & Communications Conference on Tuesday.
The tie-up follows a similar one announced last week between Warner Bros Discovery and Walt Disney - to offer a bundle of the Disney+, Hulu and Max streaming services.
"We've been bundling video successfully and creatively for 60 years. And so this is the latest iteration of that, and I think this will be a pretty compelling package," Roberts said, Reuters reported.
Broadband subscriber loss has been a sore point for Comcast as it faces intense competition from telecom firms such as T-Mobile and Verizon. The trend is expected to continue with the end of a federal internet subsidy program this month.
Churn - the percentage of customers who have stopped using a company's services - has also long been one of the key problems facing the streaming industry, with more companies turning to bundling to combat subscriber losses and to better compete with industry leader Netflix.
Peacock, the streaming service of Comcast's unit NBCUniversal, reported 34 million subscribers at the end of the first quarter, compared with Netflix's 269.60 million subscribers and 117.6 million at Disney+, excluding Hotstar.
In an effort to attract more customers, Comcast in April launched a low-cost prepaid service plan called "Now" for broadband, TV and mobile, with flexible monthly options.
More details about the Comcast streaming bundle are expected to be released later this month.
George Clooney to Make His Broadway Debut in Play Version of Movie ‘Good Night, and Good Luck’ https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5016296-george-clooney-make-his-broadway-debut-play-version-movie-%E2%80%98good-night-and
George Clooney attends a special screening of "The Boys in the Boat" in New York on Dec. 13, 2023. (AP)
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George Clooney to Make His Broadway Debut in Play Version of Movie ‘Good Night, and Good Luck’
George Clooney attends a special screening of "The Boys in the Boat" in New York on Dec. 13, 2023. (AP)
George Clooney will make his Broadway acting debut next year in a familiar project for the Hollywood star: “Good Night, and Good Luck.”
Clooney will play legendary TV journalist Edward R. Murrow in a stage adaptation of the 2005 movie that earned him directing and writing Oscar nominations and was among the best picture contenders.
“I am honored, after all these years, to be coming back to the stage and especially, to Broadway, the art form and the venue that every actor aspires to,” Clooney said in a statement.
The play “Good Night, and Good Luck” — with David Cromer directing — will premiere on Broadway in spring 2025 at a Shubert Theatre to be announced. It will be again co-written by Clooney and Grant Heslov.
The 90-minute black-and-white film starred David Strathairn as Murrow and is a natural to be turned into a play: The dialogue-heavy action unfolds on handful of sets. The title comes from Murrow’s signoff on the TV series “See It Now.”
A key part of Clooney’s film portrayed Murrow’s struggle to maintain support from CBS executives for critical reporting on Republican Sen. Joseph McCarthy, known for accusing government employees of disloyalty. Clooney played “See It Now” co-creator Fred Friendly, who resisted intense pressure and ensured the reports got to air.
Murrow, who died in 1965, is considered one of the architects of US broadcast news.
“Edward R. Murrow operated from a kind of moral clarity that feels vanishingly rare in today’s media landscape. There was an immediacy in those early live television broadcasts that today can only be effectively captured on stage, in front of a live audience,” Cromer said in a statement.
The Clooneys are boosters of journalism. Clooney’s father, Nick Clooney, worked as a TV news anchor and host in a variety of cities including Cincinnati, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. He also wrote a newspaper column in Cincinnati and taught journalism students at American University.
At the time the movie came out, Clooney said his family took pride in how journalists held the government accountable during the paranoia of the 1950s communist threat. Clooney said he wanted to make a movie to let people hear some “really well-written words about the fourth estate again.”
Meryl Streep: Hollywood’s Peerless Star https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5016126-meryl-streep-hollywood%E2%80%99s-peerless-star%C2%A0
Meryl Streep gestures during the iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, California, US, April 1, 2024. (Reuters)
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Meryl Streep: Hollywood’s Peerless Star
Meryl Streep gestures during the iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, California, US, April 1, 2024. (Reuters)
There is a strong case to be made that Meryl Streep, who picks up a lifetime achievement award at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday, is the most respected actor of her generation.
Streep, 74, has amassed a record haul of awards and built a filmography of modern classics that stretches across six decades, from dramas such as "The Deer Hunter", "The French Lieutenant's Woman" and "Kramer vs. Kramer", to family favorites like "Mamma Mia!" and "The Devil Wears Prada".
It is her vocal skills that have often set her apart -- from the Danish drawl in "Out of Africa" to her note-perfect impersonation of Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady", to learning Polish so well for "Sophie's Choice" that locals believed she was one of them.
She has picked up other skills along the way, practicing six hours a day for eight weeks to learn the violin for "Music of the Heart".
Streep has admitted her efforts could sometimes go too far.
She took a method acting approach to her turn as a fashion magazine boss in "The Devil Wears Prada", maintaining her icy facade even off-camera, but later said that it was a "horrible" experience and vowed never to do it again.
But her dedication has paid off time and again.
She has a record 21 Oscar nominations and three wins, a record eight Golden Globes, two BAFTAs and many other prizes.
And unlike many of her contemporaries, she has remarkably few duds among her 60-plus appearances, still scoring regular critical acclaim with recent films such as "The Post", "The Laundromat" and "Don't Look Up".
Surprisingly, she has been at Cannes only once before -- though she did manage to win best actress that year -- for 1989's "A Cry in the Dark".
"Because she has spanned almost 50 years of cinema and embodied countless masterpieces, Meryl Streep is part of our collective imagination, our shared love of cinema," the festival organizers said in a statement.
Streep said in a statement that she was "immeasurably honored" to be receiving the honorary Palme d'Or award at the festival's opening ceremony.
"To stand in the shadow of those who have previously been honored is humbling and thrilling in equal part," she said in a statement.
- 'Family comes first' -
Streep has never been one to get carried away by the trappings of fame, preferring to live as anonymously as possible at her home, where she has raised her four children.
"Being famous gets in the way of a lot of things," she once said. "My family really does come first. It always did and always will."
Born Mary Louise Streep in June 1949 to a New Jersey pharmaceutical executive and a commercial artist mother, Streep went to an exclusive school where she became a cheerleader and began acting in plays.
She continued acting at the historic Vassar liberal arts college, where she studied English and drama, before winning a drama scholarship to Yale, where she graduated in 1975.
Her Broadway debut came the same year with "Trelawny of the Wells," for which she won rave reviews, making her film debut two years later with the World War II drama "Julia".
Her career went stellar with three lauded films over the next two years, "The Deer Hunter", "Kramer vs. Kramer" and Woody Allen's "Manhattan".
Cannes Kicks off with Greta Gerwig's Jury and a Palme d'Or for Meryl Streephttps://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5016031-cannes-kicks-greta-gerwigs-jury-and-palme-dor-meryl-streep
A person walks past the Cannes film festival logo during preparations for the 77th international film festival, Cannes, southern France, Monday, May 13, 2024. The Cannes film festival runs from May 14 until May 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cannes Kicks off with Greta Gerwig's Jury and a Palme d'Or for Meryl Streep
A person walks past the Cannes film festival logo during preparations for the 77th international film festival, Cannes, southern France, Monday, May 13, 2024. The Cannes film festival runs from May 14 until May 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
The Cannes Film Festival opens Tuesday with the unveiling of Greta Gerwig's jury and the presentation of an honorary Palme d'Or for Meryl Streep, as the French Riviera spectacular kicks off a potentially volatile 77th edition.
A 10-day stream of stars will begin flowing down Cannes' famous red carpet beginning with the opening night film, “The Second Act,” a French comedy starring Lea Seydoux, Vincent Lindon, Louis Garrel and Raphaël Quenard. During the opening ceremony, Streep will be given an honorary Palme, The Associated Press said.
In the days to come, Cannes will premiere George Miller's “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga," Francis Ford Coppola's self-financed “Megalopolis” and anticipated new movies from Paolo Sorrentino, Yorgos Lanthimos, Andrea Arnold and Kevin Costner.
But much of the drama surrounding this year's Cannes has been off screen.
After French actor Judith Godrèche earlier this year accused two film directors of rape and sexual abuse when she was a teenager, the French film industry has been dealing with arguably its defining #MeToo moment. On Wednesday, Godrèche will premiere her short “Moi Aussi.”
Festival workers, fed up with short-term contracts that leave them unqualified for unemployment benefits in between festivals, have threatened to strike.
And on Monday, the Iranian filmmaker Mohammed Rasoulof, whose film “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” is premiering next week in competition in Cannes, said he had fled Iran after being sentenced to eight years in prison and flogging. The film is said to be a critical depiction of the Iranian regime.
Many, though, will be focused on the stars parading Cannes' carpet. They'll include Emma Stone, Anya Taylor-Joy, Demi Moore, Selena Gomez, Nicolas Cage and Barry Keoghan. At the closing ceremony on May 25, George Lucas is to receive an honorary Palme d'Or.
Regardless, the 77th Cannes will have a lot to live up to. Last year's festival, widely celebrated for its robust lineup, produced three Oscar best picture nominees: “Anatomy of a Fall," “The Zone of Interest” and “Killers of the Flower Moon.” To help rekindle last year's spirit, Messi, the canine star of “Anatomy of a Fall,” is back in Cannes for a series of brief French TV spots.
A good Cannes will help France keep the global spotlight through the summer. The festival will be followed by the French Open, the Tour de France and, most notably, the summer Olympics in Paris. On May 21 in Cannes, the Olympic flame will be carried up the steps to the festival's hub, the Palais des Festivals.
‘Downton Abbey’ to Return with a Third Moviehttps://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5015386-%E2%80%98downton-abbey%E2%80%99-return-third-movie
Cast members Elizabeth McGovern and Hugh Bonneville arrive for the world premiere of "Downton Abbey: A New Era" in London, Britain, April 25, 2022. (Reuters)
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‘Downton Abbey’ to Return with a Third Movie
Cast members Elizabeth McGovern and Hugh Bonneville arrive for the world premiere of "Downton Abbey: A New Era" in London, Britain, April 25, 2022. (Reuters)
The fictitious Crawley family and their servants running a sprawling English country estate in the early 20th century are returning for a third "Downton Abbey" movie, which will feature old and new faces.
The award-winning "Downton Abbey" gained a huge following in Britain and the United States after it first aired as a television series in 2010. It went on for six seasons and was followed by two films, released in 2019 and 2022.
In a statement on Monday, Universal Pictures, Focus Features and Carnival Films said series creator Julian Fellowes had written the third film in the "Downton Abbey" franchise and that many original cast members, including Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern - who play patriarch Robert Crawley and his wife Cora, respectively - would return for the new movie.
"The Holdovers" actor and Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti and Joely Richardson, most recently seen in Netflix series "The Gentlemen", join the cast with the former playing Cora's brother Harold Levinson, the statement added. Giamatti played the character in a Christmas special.
"The Crown" star Dominic West, who played actor Guy Dexter in the 2022 film " Downton Abbey: A New Era", will reprise the role in the new movie.
Simon Curtis will also return as director after helming the second movie.
‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ Reigns at Box Office with $56.5 Million Opening https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5014526-%E2%80%98kingdom-planet-apes%E2%80%99-reigns-box-office-565-million-opening%C2%A0
This image released by 20th Century Studios shows Raka, played by Peter Macon, in a scene from "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes." (20th Century Studios via AP)
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‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ Reigns at Box Office with $56.5 Million Opening
This image released by 20th Century Studios shows Raka, played by Peter Macon, in a scene from "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes." (20th Century Studios via AP)
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” reigned over the weekend box office with a $56.5 million North American opening, according to studio estimates Sunday, giving a needed surge to an uncertain season in theaters.
The film from 20th Century Studios and Disney that built on the rebooted “Apes” trilogy of the 2010s had the third highest opening of the year, after the $81.5 million debut of “Dune: Part Two” in early March and the $58.3 million domestic opening of “Kung Fu Panda 4” a week later.
The strong performance for “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” — it played even better internationally with a global total of $129 million — comes a week after a tepid start for Ryan Gosling’s “The Fall Guy” signaled that the summer of 2024 is likely to see a major drop-off after the “Barbenheimer” magic of 2023.
“Planet of the Apes” easily made more than the rest of the top 10 combined.
“The Fall Guy” fell to No. 2 with a $13.7 million weekend and a two-week total of $49.7 million for Universal Pictures.
Zendaya’s “Challengers” was third with $4.7 million and has earned $38 million in three weeks for Amazon MGM studios.
The opening for “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” helmed by “Maze Runner” director Wes Ball, was the second best in the series, after the $72 million opening weekend of 2014’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.”
It’s the 10th movie in the “Planet of the Apes” franchise that began in 1968 with the Charlton Heston original with a twist ending.
“This franchise has never been allowed to lose its momentum,” said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. “There are very few franchises that have this kind of longevity.”
And it really is the property itself. The new film shares no central actors or characters with its predecessors.
“There’s just this love for the way it melds sci-fi with social commentary and straight-up popcorn entertainment,” Dergarabedian said.
“Kingdom” came with strong reviews and positive buzz (80% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and a “B” CinemaScore). It was especially praised for its visual effects and the way its CGI has caught up with its primates-on-horseback aesthetic even since the last film, 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes.”
Mark Kennedy of The Associated Press called it “thrilling” and “visually stunning.”
The shot in the arm is welcome for the movie business, but there is little certainty in the forthcoming summer.
The year so far, lacking an early Marvel movie like 2023’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” is running 21% of last year’s mid-May total.
While there are potential blockbusters that feel like safe bets including “Despicable Me 4” and “Deadpool & Wolverine” in July, others like “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” later this month and “Twisters” later in the summer feel like they could break either way.
Pixar once brought almost guaranteed hits, but June’s “Inside Out 2” may not thrive like the 2015 original.
“There used to be sure bets we cannot necessarily bank on anymore,” Dergarabedian said. “It is going to be a bit of a hit-or-miss slate.”
Actor Steve Buscemi Is OK After Being Punched in the Face in New York City https://english.aawsat.com/entertainment/5014501-actor-steve-buscemi-ok-after-being-punched-face-new-york-city%C2%A0
Actor Steve Buscemi attends the premiere of "The Dead Don't Die" at the Museum of Modern Art, June 10, 2019, in New York. (AP)
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Actor Steve Buscemi Is OK After Being Punched in the Face in New York City
Actor Steve Buscemi attends the premiere of "The Dead Don't Die" at the Museum of Modern Art, June 10, 2019, in New York. (AP)
Actor Steve Buscemi is OK after he was punched in the face by a man on a New York City street, his publicist said Sunday.
The 66-year-old star of “Fargo” and “Boardwalk Empire” was assaulted late Wednesday morning in Manhattan and taken to a nearby hospital with bruising, swelling and bleeding to his left eye.
“Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Mid-Town Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city,” according to a statement Sunday from his publicist. “He is ok and appreciates everyone’s well wishes.”
The assault was first reported by the New York Post.
The New York Police Department put out a nameless statement on the assault Wednesday. Buscemi’s representative confirmed Sunday that the unidentified assault victim in the police statement was the actor.
The police department said there were no arrests and the investigation was continuing.
Buscemi’s “Boardwalk Empire” co-star Michael Stuhlbarg was hit in the back of the neck with a rock while walking in Manhattan’s Central Park on March 31. Stuhlbarg chased his attacker, who was taken into custody outside the park.
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