FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING
Share – Written and Directed by Pippa Bianco (Premieres July 27 on HBO)
“Share,” written and directed by Pippa Bianco, feels in some ways like a horror film. It’s the story of 16-year-old Mandy (played by Rhianne Barreto), who wakes up on the lawn outside her house one morning with no memory of how she got there and a large, mysterious bruise on her back. She knows something happened to her but has no idea what. As the movie unfolds, Mandy is shown every girl’s worst nightmare: a video of her passed out at a party. She attempts to figure out what happened and her life begins to unravel. Her parents get involved. The police and the school get involved. She becomes ostracized at school. In short, it’s hell. Parents of teenagers, both boys and girls, should watch this film together and talk about it. This is a cautionary tale with so much opportunity for discussion. That would be its greatest gift. (Melissa Silverstein)
For Sama (Documentary) – Directed by Waad Al-Kateab and Edward Watts (Opens in NY, LA, and SF)
“For Sama”
“For Sama” is a groundbreaking documentary. First, it gives us the war in Aleppo from a woman’s perspective. Co-director Waad Al-Kateab is literally holding the camera, showing us what she is seeing and experiencing for five years in Aleppo, Syria — and it is not pretty. This doc is about the civilians who are on the ground, fighting for their country and their city and their lives. It is also about the doctors and what a war against a population looks like. Even though war and death are an all day, every day routine, life goes on. Waad falls in love, marries, and gives birth to a daughter, Sama. You see her hold Sama on her lap as she films her apartment being shelled. You see Sama scream from the noise and impact. It is heartbreaking and you can’t take your eyes off of it. Waad makes the difficult decision to escape Aleppo and smuggles out 15 hard drives of footage, which would eventually become this film. She is a truth teller in a way we have not seen before. (MS)
Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Waad Al-Kateab.
Find screening info here.
Honeyland (Documentary) – Directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov (Opens in NY)
“Honeyland”
The most awarded film at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, “Honeyland” tells the story of Hatidze Muratova, a wild beekeeper living in remote Macedonia. Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov’s documentary offers an intimate look into Hatidze’s life with her half-blind, bedridden mother, Nazife, and her occasional trips into Skopje, the country’s capital, where she sells honey. Hatidze’s life takes an unexpected turn when a family moves nearby. The father, Hussein Sam, expresses interest in getting into the honey business, and Hatidze willingly shares advice — advice that is ultimately ignored. “Take half, leave half”: this is the principle guiding Hatidze’s work. She never takes more than half of the bees’ honey. Desperate for a short-term solution to his family’s financial trouble, Hussein ignores Hatidze’s words of wisdom, with terrible consequences for all. (Laura Berger)
Find screening info here.
The Ground Beneath My Feet – Written and Directed by Marie Kreutzer (Opens in NY; Opens in LA August 2)
“The Ground Beneath My Feet”: Juhani Zebra
Lola (Valerie Pachner) is a jetsetting business consultant who excels at the aggressive tactics and nonstop work her job requires. She travels back and forth from Vienna, where her tasteful apartment serves more as mailbox and laundromat than home, to the headquarters of the latest corporation she’s restructuring. Her routine is one of late nights at the office, fancy client dinners, and brief nights of sleep in sterile hotel rooms. Lola manages her personal life with the same ruthless efficiency she uses to optimize profit margins. She keeps her relationship with her boss Elise (Mavie Hörbiger) secret, as well as the existence of her older sister Conny (Pia Hierzegger), who has a long history of mental illness. But when she receives the news that Conny has attempted suicide, Lola’s secrets threaten to explode into the open. As she tries to do what’s best for her sister without jeopardizing all she’s worked so hard for, Lola slowly finds her own grip on reality slipping away.
Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a Story (Documentary) – Written by Kathy Griffin (Screening in Select Theaters July 31 Only)
“Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a Story”
On May 30, 2017 an image of Kathy Griffin holding a mask that resembled the severed head of President Trump was released. The image went global, and everything she had worked for in her life vanished overnight.
Find screening info here.
Girls with Balls (Available on Netflix)
Stranded in the woods and eyeballed by twisted hunters, members of a women’s volleyball team bump it up in the most dangerous game of their lives.
FILMS MADE BY WOMEN OPENING
Astronaut – Written and Directed by Shelagh McLeod
Angus (Richard Dreyfuss), a lonely widower, has his long-extinguished dream to become an astronaut reignited when a national competition is announced. The prize? One ticket for a trip to space! Way over the age-limit, Angus alters his birthdate so he can enter the competition. Against all odds, but with help coming from his dysfunctional family, he must battle against preconceptions, ill health, and time to win the ticket and take the trip of his dreams.
See You Soon – Written by Jenia Tanaeva and Mike Cestari (Also Available on VOD)
A U.S. soccer star (Liam McIntyre) suffers a career-threatening injury in the run-up to the World Cup, and during his recovery, embarks on an epic romance with a Russian single mom (Jenia Tanaeva).
TV PREMIERES
“Orange Is the New Black”: JoJo Whilden/Netflix
Orange Is the New Black – Created by Jenji Kohan (Season 7 Premieres July 26 on Netflix)
Throughout its run, “Orange Is the New Black” has been the rare show that inspires audiences to laugh, cry, and think in equal measure. It is also a series that — for betteror worse, depending on your perspective — grants each of its characters a degree of humanity. There are villains and there are heroes, but everyone is nuanced and complicated. Institutions themselves are the only true evil to be found in Netflix’s flagship series. This aspect is probably what I’ll miss most about “OITNB.” Its seventh season is its last and, crucially, takes aim at the cruelty of ICE and our country’s immigration policies. Those storylines are just as stomach-churning as you’re imagining, and so, so important. As much as I prefer my favorite shows end on high notes, a part of me wants “OITNB” to keep going forever, to keep addressing our failing institutions with its trademark humor and rage. The world of Litchfield is as compelling and agonizing as ever — and I don’t want to say good-bye. (Rachel Montpelier)
Passing: A Family in Black and White (Docuseries) – Created by Robin Cloud (Premieres July 26 on Topic.com)
Filmmaker Robin Cloud reaches out to her long lost Nebraska cousins — who unbeknownst to them were passing for white — in an attempt to bring them back into her family. (Tribeca Film Festival)
Deadly Dispatch (TV Movie) – Directed by Morenike Joela Evans; Written by Sade Sellers (Premieres July 28 on TV One)
After her best friend is tragically murdered in an apparent robbery gone wrong, Tiffany Jackson (Tamala Jones) takes justice in her own hands to find his killer.
Inventing Tomorrow (Documentary) – Directed by Laura Nix (Premieres July 29 on PBS)
“Inventing Tomorrow”
Passionate teenage innovators from around the globe create cutting-edge solutions to confront the world’s environmental threats — found right in their own backyards — while navigating the doubts and insecurities that mark adolescence. These inspiring teens prepare their projects for the largest convening of high school scientists in the world: the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair.
Read Women and Hollywood’s interview with Laura Nix.
Whitney Cummings: Can I Touch It? (Comedy Special) – Written by Whitney Cummings (Premieres July 30 on Netflix)
In her fourth stand-up special, Whitney Cummings returns to her hometown of Washington, D.C., and riffs on modern feminism, technology, and more.
Four Weddings and a Funeral – Created by Mindy Kaling and Matt Warburton (Premieres July 31 on Hulu)
“Four Weddings and a Funeral”: Jay Maidment/Hulu
Maya (Nathalie Emmanuel), the young communications director for a New York senatorial campaign, receives a wedding invitation from her college schoolmate now living in London. She leaves her professional and personal life behind, in favor of traveling to England and reconnecting with old friends and ends up in the midst of their personal crises. Relationships are forged and broken, political scandals exposed, London social life lampooned, love affairs ignited and doused, and of course, there are four weddings… and a funeral.
VOD/STREAMING RELEASES
“Body at Brighton Rock”
Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché (Documentary) – Directed by Pamela B. Green; Written by Pamela B. Green and Joan Simon (VOD, Available Now)
Body at Brighton Rock – Written and Directed by Roxanne Benjamin (VOD, July 30)
Holy Lands – Written and Directed by Amanda Sthers (VOD, July 30)
Long Shot – Written by Liz Hannah and Dan Sterling (VOD, July 30)
UglyDolls – Written by Alison Peck (VOD, July 30)
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE BLOG
“Bombay Rose”
Just Two Women-Directed Features Will Screen in Competition at Venice 2019
Feminist Artist Judy Chicago to Receive First Retrospective in 2020
Venice Days Competition Lineup Includes Offerings from Isabel Sandoval and Fabienne Berthaud
TIFF’s 2019 Gala Lineup Is 50 Percent Women-Directed
Marvel Drops New Details About “Black Widow,” Chloé Zhao’s “The Eternals,” & More at SDCC
Women Under the Influence Announces Inaugural Film Festival Lineup
Submit Now: Issa Rae and Paul Feig’s Teen Movie Contest
Study: Just 14% of Past Decade’s Sci-Fi and Superhero Films Featured Solo Female Leads
Venice Critics’ Week Lineup to Open with Gitanjali Rao’s “Bombay Rose”
Winter Miller Discusses the Political Relevance of Her New Play “No One Is Forgotten”
Note: All descriptions are from press materials, unless otherwise noted.
Follow Women and Hollywood on Twitter @WomenaHollywood and Melissa Silverstein @melsil.
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