FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING
Ximei (Documentary) – Directed by Gaylen Ross and Andy Cohen (Opens in NY November 29)
“Ximei”
Ximei is a young peasant woman from rural Henan Province who contracted AIDS when the local government encouraged farmers to sell their blood plasma for money, literally bleeding people for profit with contaminated equipment. Risking her own life and freedom, she confronts the local authorities head on, demanding that her fellow patients receive medical treatment in the rural areas of her county where hundreds of thousands have been infected. Her courageous actions and fiery character transform the tragedy of Henan’s HIV-infected outcasts into lives of hope and dignity.
Find screening info here.
Feast of the Epiphany – Directed by Farihah Zaman, Michael Koresky, and Jeff Reichert (Opens in NY November 29)
On a weekend day like any other, the simple but lovingly prepared meal a young woman makes for friends takes on unexpected significance. Revelry turns to meditations on mortality, and the tiniest, hard-won gesture of goodness comes from an unexpected party. Night turns to day, and viewers are taken somewhere else entirely – albeit with a lingering dissolve of emotions, ideas, and grace.
Find screening info here.
My Friend the Polish Girl – Written and Directed by Ewa Banaszkiewicz and Mateusz Dymek (Opens November 29) (Also Available on VOD)
“My Friend the Polish Girl”: Warsaw Pact Films
“My Friend the Polish Girl” borrows from cinéma vérité and video bloggers to create a rare naturalism in style and performance. The fiction film watches as an experimental documentary told through the eyes – and lens – of amateur filmmaker Katie (Emma Friedman-Cohen), an American rich kid following Alicja (Aneta Piotrowska), an erratic, unemployed Polish actress. Set in a post-Brexit-vote London, Katie’s colonizing, disruptive presence in Alicja’s life mirrors the treatment of migrants in the UK: welcomed, used, then discarded.
Almost Home – Written and Directed by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen (Opens November 29) (Also Available on VOD)
A teenage girl flees abuse at home to join a strong but troubled young woman that’s been living on the streets. She joins a de facto family of other homeless youth struggling to survive on the streets of Los Angeles.
Cavale – Directed by Virginie Gourmel (Opens November 29) (Also Available on VOD)
After escaping from a psychiatric clinic, three teenage girls hit the road in France, eager to seek out adventure and experience their newfound freedom.
FILMS MADE BY WOMEN OPENING
Queen & Slim – Directed by Melina Matsoukas; Written by Lena Waithe
“Queen & Slim”: Universal Pictures
While on a forgettable first date together in Ohio, a black man (Daniel Kaluuya) and a black woman (Jodie Turner-Smith), are pulled over for a minor traffic infraction. The situation escalates, with sudden and tragic results, when the man kills the police officer in self-defense. Terrified and in fear for their lives, the man, a retail employee, and the woman, a criminal defense lawyer, are forced to go on the run. But the incident is captured on video and goes viral, and the couple unwittingly become a symbol of trauma, terror, grief, and pain for people across the country. As they drive, these two unlikely fugitives will discover themselves and each other in the most dire and desperate of circumstances, and will forge a deep and powerful love that will reveal their shared humanity and shape the rest of their lives.
Find screening info here.
After Parkland (Documentary) – Directed by Emily Taguchi and Jake Lefferman (Opens in NY and LA November 29)
“After Parkland”: Tribeca Film Festival
Millions of parents wave their children into school, placing their trust in the sanctity of a classroom. For much of the country, school shootings remain distant, seen as tragedies that plague faraway towns. The families of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School were no different – until the afternoon of Valentine’s Day 2018, when a gunman walked into the freshman building and opened fire. In the aftermath, filmmakers Emily Taguchi and Jake Lefferman filmed with students and families whose lives were transformed: senior David Hogg, who recorded his class during the attack and became the face of the Never Again movement; freshman Brooke Harrison, who was in the first classroom under attack; Sam Zeif, a senior who was locked down in the same building, texting with his little brother and unsure if they would ever see each other again; Andrew Pollack, the father of 18-year old Meadow, who was killed after being shot nine times; and the loved ones of 17-year-old Joaquin Oliver, including his father Manuel, girlfriend Victoria Gonzalez, and best friend Dillon McCooty.
Find screening info here.
TV PREMIERES
Mythomaniac – Created by Anne Berest and Fabrice Gobert (Premieres November 28 on Netflix)
Burned out and taken for granted, a working mom (Marina Hands) suspects her partner is cheating, so to win back his attentions, she feigns a medical diagnosis.
The Kacey Musgraves Christmas Show (Variety Special) – Written by Cathy Lew and Matt Whitaker (Premieres November 29 on Amazon Prime Video)
This holiday season, join Kacey Musgraves for “The Kacey Musgraves Christmas Show,” a holiday variety show featuring new songs and time-honored classics. Special guests include Camila Cabello, Kendall Jenner, James Corden, Lana Del Rey, the Radio City Rockettes, and many more.
Harley Quinn (Premieres November 29 on DC Universe)
“Harley Quinn”
Harley Quinn (Kaley Cuoco) has finally broken things off once and for all with the Joker and attempts to make it on her own as the criminal Queenpin of Gotham City in this half-hour adult animated action-comedy series. The series features Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy (Lake Bell), and a whole cast of heroes and villains, old and new, from the DC Universe.
Baking Christmas (TV Movie) – Written by Rasheeda Garner (Premieres November 29 on OWN)
When their mother decides to retire, her three children organize a Christmas Cake Off to choose which one of them is going to take over the family bakery.
Tiffany Haddish: Black Mitzvah (Comedy Special) – Directed by Linda Mendoza (Premieres December 3 on Netflix)
Haddish: Netflix
She ready… to celebrate! Tiffany Haddish is getting in touch with her Jewish roots in “Black Mitzvah,” taking us on a revealing journey through her life. With her bold and barrier-breaking brand of comedy, Tiffany reflects on fame, receiving her “inheritance,” the valuable lessons you learn when raising yourself, that time she received a jumpsuit from the one and only Beyoncé, her infamous New Year’s Eve set, and more. Mazel Tov!
The Gulf – Written by Paula Boock and Donna Malane (Premieres December 4 on Sundance Now)
A detective’s (Kate Elliott) personal and professional lives start to unravel when she is involved in a fatal car accident and begins to lose her memory.
Ghosting: The Spirit of Christmas (TV Movie) (Premieres December 4 on Freeform)
“Ghosting: The Spirit of Christmas” tells the quirky and heart-warming story of Jess (Aisha Dee), who goes on the greatest first date of her life, but inadvertently “ghosts” Ben (Kendrick Sampson) when she tragically dies in a car accident on the way home. Stuck on Earth, with no idea how to ascend, Jess will need the help of her best friend, Kara (Kimiko Glenn), the only person who can still see and hear her.
Home for Christmas – Directed by Anna Gutto and Per-Olav Sørensen (Premieres December 5 on Netflix)
Tired of the constant comments on her relationship status, perpetually single Johanne (Ida Elise Broch) starts a 24-day hunt for a boyfriend to bring home for Christmas.
Same Time, Next Christmas (TV Movie) – Written by Karen Bloch Morse (Premieres December 5 on ABC)
Olivia Anderson (Lea Michele) is a successful young woman who met her childhood sweetheart during her family’s annual Christmas visit to Hawaii. After being separated by distance and years, the two reunite at the same Hawaiian resort years later, and the old chemistry between them flares up anew — but circumstances conspire to keep them apart.
VOD/STREAMING RELEASES
“To Kid Or Not To Kid”
The Process (Documentary) – Directed by Mitzi Kapture (VOD, November 28)
Abominable – Directed by Jill Culton and Todd Wilderman; Written by Jill Culton (VOD, December 3)
Adam – Written by Ariel Schrag (VOD, December 3)
Before You Know It – Directed by Hannah Pearl Utt; Written by Jen Tullock and Hannah Pearl Utt (VOD, December 3)
Edie – Written by Elizabeth O’Halloran (VOD, December 3)
Freaks (VOD, December 3)
To Kid or Not to Kid (Documentary) – Directed by Maxine Trump (VOD, December 3)
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice (Documentary) (VOD, December 3)
QT8: The First Eight (Documentary) – Directed by Tara Wood (VOD, December 3)
Ready or Not (VOD, December 3)
The Shasta Triangle (VOD, December 3)
The Tokoloshe (VOD, December 3)
WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD IN THE NEWS
The 100 greatest films directed by women (BBC)
JOIN WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD FOR A MEET-UP IN LONDON
Melissa Silverstein will be hosting a meet-up at the Curzon Soho theater on December 4. Please join her and the W&H community for some drinks and conversation!
Details are below. No RSVP needed.
Hope to see you there!
Women and Hollywood London Meet-Up
December 4, 2019
Curzon Soho, Downstairs Alcove
99 Shaftesbury Ave
Soho, London W1D 5DY
6:30-8 p.m.
Cash Bar
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE BLOG
YouTube Premium’s “Impulse” Is the Rare Story That Offers a Nuanced Depiction of Rape
BBC Celebrates the 100 Greatest Films Directed by Women
Quote of the Day: “Harriet” Producer Debra Martin Chase on Telling Stories That Entertain & Inspire
“Frozen II” Earns $350 Million in Record-Breaking Opening Weekend
“One Day at a Time’s” Gloria Calderón Kellett Inks History-Making Overall Deal with Amazon Studios
“Hala” Writer-Director Minhal Baig on Making a Culturally Specific Story with Universal Themes
Writer to Watch: “The End of the F***ing World’s” Charlie Covell
Guest Post: How I Made the Switch from Working in Finance to Producing an Oscar Contender
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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