Review: ‘The Apprentice’ stirs the hornet’s nest with Trump portrayal
Updated 03 June 2024
Gautaman Bhaskaran
CANNES: Iranian Danish director Ali Abassi's Cannes Film Festival competition entry “The Apprentice” was one of the most talked about films at the recent event.
The movie caused a stir largely because it zeroes in on a hardly known aspect of the man, played by US Romanian actor Sebastian Stan. We first meet Trump as a young man in the early 1970s while he was working for his cold and condescending father Fred (Martin Donovan).
Enter Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong), a notoriously vicious lawyer who mentors the young Trump and imparts his three rules for success: Always attack, never admit to any wrongdoing, and never admit defeat.
With a screenplay by political journalist Gabriel Sherman, the film depicts an eager apprentice being tutored by Cohn to override humane notions of morality and ethics. While a disclaimer says that some artistic licence has been taken, it hasn’t stopped the film from stirring the hornet’s nest — in fact, two weeks on from the premiere and an eight-minute standing ovation the film still does not have a US distributor.
The movie goes further than a mere biographical sketch of Trump and Cohn by chronicling the dirty days of the Nixon era and the corporate greed that fuelled the Reagan years. The second half of “The Apprentice” focuses less on the mentor-mentee relationship and more on Trump himself, with his first wife Ivana essayed in the film by the savvy and self-aware Maria Bakalova.
The film has a grainy texture which portrays the 1970s and 1980s in all its tacky authenticity and Aleks Marinkovich’s production design highlights some of the vulgarity that the era is famous for.
Some will say the film is too harsh, while many will say its not harsh enough and Stan’s performance as an almost gentle young man is so at odds with the character we know today that it is a little jarring.
Saudi Arabia unveils major film production hub in Riyadh
Al-Hisn Big Time Studios to boost local, regional content creation with advanced production resources
Project area covers 300,000 sq. meters and includes a production village with metalworking and carpentry workshops, as well as costume design facilities
Updated 05 November 2024
Rahaf Jambi
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia unveiled Al-Hisn Big Time Studios in Riyadh, a groundbreaking facility aimed at boosting the television and film production industry across the Middle East.
Chairman of the General Entertainment Authority Turki Al-Sheikh inaugurated the facility west of the Saudi capital.
Al-Hisn Big Time Studios, built in a remarkably short period of 120 days, features seven studio buildings covering an area of 10,500 sq. meters.
The total project area covers 300,000 sq. meters and includes a production village with metalworking and carpentry workshops, as well as costume design facilities.
Additional amenities include luxurious suites for VIPs, offices for film production, and fully equipped editing rooms, all creating an ideal work environment that enhances production efficiency.
Al-Sheikh said: “Al-Hisn Big Time Studios will become a stronghold for producing Arab and international content, particularly Saudi productions.”
He further emphasized the importance of local content consumption, saying: “Approximately 65 percent of the content consumed in the region is from Saudi Arabia.”
Al-Sheikh also highlighted the collaborative nature of the project, mentioning that productions will take place at various locations, including Diriyah Jax, Sony Studios, AlUla, and MBC Studios in Al-Nargis.
He added: “We constructed these state-of-the-art facilities in just four months, showcasing our commitment to rapid development.”
Minister of Information Salman Al-Dossary remarked on the opportunities presented by Al-Hisn Big Time Studios, saying: “You will not find a better place than this in the Arab world.”
He praised the integration of government agencies, stating: “Our collective efforts ensure the success of the project, positioning it as a beacon for the film industry.”
The studios aim to provide a comprehensive platform for film and television production, offering creative resources in one location.
“This integration will not only reduce costs and save time but also provide access to cutting-edge global technologies,” Al-Sheikh said, highlighting the studio’s potential to enhance competitiveness in the international market.
In the studios, visitors can explore a museum featuring vintage cameras alongside films shot with them. There are also costume rooms where fashion designers craft outfits for various productions.
Additionally, a dedicated building is set aside for pre-production work. The facility has several production studios, with many Saudi companies collaborating on site, from camera manufacturers to actors, all working together to bring creative visions to life.
Nawaf Almutairi, a founding partner of One Shot drone company, is one of the industry professionals using the studios. He expressed enthusiasm about the opportunities presented by Al-Hisn, saying: “This facility allows us to push the boundaries of aerial photography and filmmaking.”
His company has completed various projects in Saudi Arabia, notably contributing to the third installment of the film “Welad Rizk” with their custom-built drones.
Almutairi said: “We are excited to create innovative content that showcases the beauty of our country."
Abdulrahman Alnafisah, general manager and co-founder of Nebras Films, said: “Saudi Arabia has seen significant advancements in the media and film production sector, fostering growth both locally and regionally. In this transformative landscape, Nebras Films played a key role in the launch of Al-Hisn Big Time Studios, marking a pivotal moment in the evolution of Saudi cinema.
“This initiative underscores Nebras Films’ commitment to bolstering the Saudi film industry and nurturing local talent by creating a professional environment that aligns with international standards.”
Review: Apple TV’s ‘Before’ is a showcase for Billy Crystal
Creepy drama gives the famed comic a chance to show his serious side
Updated 31 October 2024
Matt Ross
LONDON: There are many unsettling things about Apple’s new psychological drama “Before”, but first among them is the sight of star Billy Crystal playing it absolutely straight — and not, as you might suspect, in a way that would enable the iconic funnyman to play it so seriously that it’s almost funny.
Here, Crystal is child psychologist Eli Adler, a gifted doctor struggling to come to terms with the recent suicide of his wife, Lynn. Not many laughs there, you’ll agree. While Eli is dealing with visions of Lynn, and recurring nightmares of hurling himself into an empty swimming pool, he finds a troubled young boy who won’t speak, scratching his hands bloody attempting to break into Eli’s house.
Eli’s colleague Gail (Sakina Jaffrey) has been trying to convince him to take on a new case — one of a troubled young boy who won’t speak and is plagued by horrifying visions. Before you can say “contrived coincidence,” we learn the two boys are, in fact, one and the same. What are the chances?
As Eli begins to investigate what led Noah (Jacobi Jupe) to stop speaking and start drawing creepy pictures of an abandoned barn — the same barn Eli finds in a picture among his wife’s things — the as-yet-unrevealed link between the two begins to solidify. With two episodes broadcast (of the 10 scheduled), the story behind whatever brought Eli and Noah together looks set to be eked out across the limited series, but writer/creator Sarah Thorp doesn’t hold out on audiences too much. So while there’s still a lot of hinting at seemingly unconnected elements — Noah’s visions of water leaking into his reality, his unnerving tendency to lapse into 17th-century Dutch, the often-sinister nature of Eli’s visions of Lynn — there’s enough dangled threads weaving together all of the above that viewers can feel like figuring out the mystery is achievable.
And, wonderfully, the cherry on the top is Crystal, demonstrating a gift for drama that few of his numerous roles ever hinted at. Eli is believably grief-stricken, world-weary and simply exhausted at the strangeness of what’s going on around him. Whatever the mystery at the heart of “Before” ends up being, the real gem here is the discovery of how effective a serious Billy Crystal can be.
Highlights from this year’s ‘Festival Favorites’ at RSIFF
Updated 31 October 2024
Arab News
JEDDAH: The category’s movies are ‘films that stay with the viewer long after the fall of the curtain,’ says RSIFF’s Antoine Khalife
‘Agora’
Director: Ala Eddine Slim
Starring: Majd Mastoura, Neji Kanawati, Bilel Slatnia
The Tunisian filmmaker’s third feature, which was backed by Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Fund, has already proven to be a winner. At the Locarno Film Festival in August it picked up the Pardo Verde Award, which is “given to a film that best reflects an environmental theme and is unafraid of asking difficult questions.” It centers on a small town where a series of disturbing events that seem to bridge the world of the living and the dead — including the return of three missing people who don’t appear to be quite themselves any longer — has attracted the attention of the authorities. Or, at least, of people claiming to be the authorities.
‘Black Dog’
Director: Guan Hu
Starring: Eddie Peng, Tong Liya, Xin the dog
The winner of the Un Certain Regard prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival is, according to The Observer in one of many favorable reviews from the international press, a “heartfelt tale of outcast redemption.” Set in the Gobi desert in the northwest of China prior to the 2008 Beijing Olympics — a time when the country was undergoing rapid redevelopment — it follows Lang, a recently released ex-convict (and former stuntman and musician) returning to his hometown, which he finds many people have left and is now home to a large community of stray dogs. One of them — the ‘black dog’ of the title — is rumored to have rabies, and there’s a bounty on its head which Lang decides he will try to collect. But when he actually encounters the dog, his plans change.
British-Indian documentary maker Sandhya Suri’s feature debut — a Hindi-language crime drama — is the UK’s entry for next year’s Oscars and has already received critical acclaim following its showing in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes this year. It’s a police procedural set in northern India and follows the title character, a young widow, who has taken over her late husband’s job as a police constable. Her newfound independence and power is somewhat negated by her discovery of the institutional corruption and sexism of law enforcement in the area.
‘East of Noon’
Director: Hala Elkoussy
Starring: Menha El-Batroui, Ahmed Kamal, Omar Rozeik
Screen Daily called this — Elkoussy’s second feature — “a sumptuous piece of filmmaking.” It’s a surrealist fable about a teenage musician, Abdo and his partner Nunna, who are looking for a way out of their impoverished town, which offers few prospects of a bright future. But the corrupt elders have other ideas, seeking to crush not just their rebellious dreams, but their spirits.
‘Eephus’
Director: Carson Lund
Starring: Keith William Richards, Frederick Wiseman, Cliff Blake
Set in a small Massachusetts town in the Nineties, “Eephus” follows an team of out-of-shape middle-aged men who play for the Adler’s Paint baseball team as they prepare to face their fiercest rivals in one final game before their stadium is demolished to make way for a new school. Variety called Lund’s movie an “adorably existential, off-kilter take on the sports movie.”
‘Familiar Touch’
Director: Sarah Friedland
Starring: H. Jon Benjamin, Kathleen Chalfant, London Garcia
Friedland’s intensely moving feature debut won the Lion of the Future at this year’s Venice Film Festival. It centers on a beautiful performance by Chalfant as Ruth, an octogenarian who is dealing with cognitive decline while transitioning to assisted living at a care facility.
‘Freedom Way’
Director: Afolabi Olalekan
Starring: Adebowale Adedayo, Mike Afolarin, Bimbo Akintola
In Olalekan’s fast-paced thriller, three young co-founders of a startup in Lagos struggle to keep their entrepreneurial dreams alive amid corruption, police violence and extortion that affects both them and their customers.
‘The Inevitable Journey to Find a Wedding Dress’
Director: Jaylan Auf
Starring: Yasmin Raeis, Asmaa Galal, Salwa Mohamed Ali
Egyptian social drama. On the eve of her wedding, Warda’s wedding dress is accidentally ruined leading her on a frantic trip around Cairo to find a replacement, accompanied by her best friend. It turns into a journey of self-discovery for Warda — one that causes her to reassess her relationship with the city.
DUBAI: Hia Hub, Saudi Arabia’s fashion, beauty and lifestyle conference, returns for its fourth edition in Riyad’s JAX District.
Taking place from Oct. 30 to Nov. 3, the event will feature discussions, masterclasses, workshops, interactive exhibitions and live performances.
Tunisian actress Dorra Zarrouk will host a meet-and-greet on Oct. 31, while on Nov. 2 Egyptian actress Yasmine Sabri will talk about her career, challenges within the entertainment industry, and her personal development.
Iraqi YouTuber and content creator Noor Naeem, known as Noor Stars, will present a talk titled “Redefining Digital Success” on Oct. 31, where she will discuss achieving success in the digital world. The session will cover her methods for engaging with followers, balancing creativity with practical business strategies, and her experiences collaborating with major global brands.
Egyptian dancer and actress Fifi Abdou will join a discussion on Nov. 3 titled “Fifi Abdou on Redesigning Arab Entertainment,” where attendees can learn about her career path, contributions to the arts, and her role in Arab entertainment.
Also on Nov. 3, Saudi influencer Yara Al-Namlah, founder of Saudi skincare brand Treat, will host a session with her mother to discuss the personal experiences and family rituals that have shaped their skincare routines.
Masterclasses will include Lebanese celebrity makeup artist Bassam Fattouh, who will share tips and tricks; Maria Tash, who will offer insights on the art of piercing and fine jewelry design; Oscar de la Renta creative directors Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia, who will discuss couture craftsmanship; and a skincare masterclass with Inge Theron, founder of FaceGym.
International brands such as Benefit, YSL Beauty, Dior, Clinique, The Ordinary, Hublot, Shiseido, Guerlain and more will offer opportunities to connect with professionals and engage in hands-on learning through a series of workshops.
Sally Rooney, Hisham Matar and Arundhati Roy call for boycott of Israeli cultural institutions
Updated 29 October 2024
Arab News
DUBAI: Leading authors from around the world are calling for a boycott of Israeli cultural institutions.
More than 1,000 writers and publishing professionals have signed a letter pledging to boycott Israeli cultural institutions that “are complicit or have remained silent observers of the overwhelming oppression of Palestinians.”
Popular authors who have signed the letter include Irish author Sally Rooney, known for novels like “Conversations with Friends,” “Normal People” and, most recently, “Intermezzo”; Pulitzer Prize-winning American-Libyan novelist Hisham Matar; Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen; Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy; Mohsin Hamid, author of “The Reluctant Fundamentalist”; and Booker Prize-nominated Avni Doshi, who is based in Dubai.
The authors pledged to not work with Israeli publishers, festivals, literary agencies and publications that are “complicit in violating Palestinian rights,” including operating “discriminatory policies and practices” or “whitewashing and justifying Israel’s occupation, apartheid or genocide.”
Institutions that have never publicly recognized the “inalienable rights of the Palestinian people as enshrined in international law” will also be boycotted.
The campaign was organized by the Palestine Festival of Literature (also known as PalFest), which runs annually with free public events in cities across Palestine.
“We, as writers, publishers, literary festival workers, and other book workers, publish this letter as we face the most profound moral, political and cultural crisis of the 21st century,” begins the statement, which goes on to say that Israel has killed “at the very least 43,362” Palestinians in Gaza since last October and that this follows “75 years of displacement, ethnic cleansing and apartheid.”
Culture “has played an integral role in normalizing these injustices,” it says. Israeli cultural institutions, “often working directly with the state, have been crucial in obfuscating, disguising and art-washing the dispossession and oppression of millions of Palestinians for decades.”
Industry workers have a “role to play,” states the pledge. “We cannot in good conscience engage with Israeli institutions without interrogating their relationship to apartheid and displacement,” it reads, noting that “countless authors” took the same position against apartheid in South Africa.
The letter ends with a call to the signatories’ peers to join the pledge.
