Would you rather?

Okay so we had the roughest night of insomnia ever (which is saying a lot) followed by crashing which is why we're so slow today. While we prep more Cannes posting, a daydream about celebrities. Would you rather...?

• rock climb with Dominic Cooper?
• try a new mirror affirmation with Shailene Woodley?
• protest the Supreme Court's support of Forced Birth legislation with Cyndi Lauper and Laura Dern?
• join a pole dancing workout class with Brie Larson?
• go see Pamela Anderson in Chicago with Miley Cyrus?
• read Selma's Blair "Mean Baby" with Michelle Pfeiffer?
• learn how to shuck oysters with Lupita Nyong'o?
• try a pole dancing workout class with Brie Larson?
• smell the flowers with Anne Hathaway?
• do the splits with Chris Meloni (or just admire them)?
• drink wine with Glen Powell at Cannes?
• take a day off with Ana de Armas?
• eat hot dogs with "everything" with Florence Pugh?

Pictures are after the jump to help you decide...

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John Waters @ 75: A Dirty Shame (2004)

Team Experience has been celebrating John Waters for his 75th birthday.

By Ben Miller

I like to think John Waters had enough of what people have been expecting from him.  Following a slightly more conventionally commercial run of films with Hairspray onward, Waters returned to his sex-addled farcical roots with 2004’s A Dirty Shame.  I love the idea of a fan of Cry-Baby showing up to this film expecting something along the same lines, only to be presented with something much closer to Desperate Living.

A Dirty Shame follows the residents of Hartford Road as either "neuters", a group of puritanical sex haters, or "perverts", a group of sex addicts with unique fetishes brought on by accidental concussions...

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SXSW: Hysterical, Potato Dreams of America, Introducing Selma Blair, and Broadcast Signal Intrusion

by Christopher James

There’s a lot that the pandemic has made harder. The one thing it has made easier has been attending film festivals from all around the country. Pre-pandemic, covering SXSW would’ve required a flight to Austin, Texas, inflated lodging costs and lots of pre-planning. Now, the only lines festival goers have to battle are online. Food is just an arms reach away in the kitchen (no more popcorn dinners). 

Last year, SXSW was one of the first things cancelled as COVID-19 spread across the country. The festival is very different this year, but the quality of content is still great. The Film Experience will be covering the fest through the weekend.  Here are a four takes from Day One. One comedy doc, an intimate celebrity piece, a noir, and a Russian comedy... 

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would you rather?

It's time for our silly celeb-fantasy game courtesy of instagram 

...growl at Halle Berry and Pedro Pascal?
...look as fab as Anya Taylor Joy despite a hangover?
...visit Mallorca with Rossy de Palma?
... hit the museum of ice cream with Selma Blair?
... go broom-shopping with Lauren Weedman?
... get sandwiched by Janelle Monae and Tessa Thompson?

Pictures are after the jump to help you decide.

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The Boy From Hell Turns Ten

Amir here, to celebrate the tenth birthday of Guillermo Del Toro’s red devil child, Hellboy.

Writing a piece for the anniversary of a superhero film is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the rate at which we get new entries to the pantheon of the genre seems ever increasing to the point of complete satiation – this year alone, we have Captain America, Spider-man and X-Men films awaiting release. These films have become narrower in variety than films of any other genre, perhaps as a result of the culture and industry that cultivates them. Each film gets multiple sequels and reboots, with streamlined, thematically “universal” narratives that maximize profitability across the globe and minimize cinematic character. Hence, a mere ten-year distance from the release date doesn’t appear to warrant any sense of nostalgia.

On the other hand, the frequency of these superhero treats means that their place in the cultural landscape has dramatically changed since 2004. The range of filmmakers and actors who have tackled the superhero universe has expanded, so novelties like the involvement of a lesser known Del Toro and Ron Perlman, Hollywood’s unlikeliest superhero are rarities. [More...] 

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