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‘Mortal Kombat’ ratchets up the gore, but as a movie, it’s not a winner
(CNN)Any sober analysis of “Mortal Kombat” already risks overthinking it, but even taking this adaptation of the game on its decidedly R-rated terms, the movie offers few of the visceral thrills that might produce a collective audience response, which makes its consumption on HBO Max perfectly adequate. Of course, in that setting, chuckling at the clunky dialogue will also be a less communal event.
iQIYI’s Ultimate Online Cinema Section to Premiere its Second CNY Film “Dreams of Getting Rich” Through PVOD Mode
Directed by and starring Song Xiaobao, the film also features Sha Yi, Ma Li and Zhang Yishan, with guest appearances from Xiao Yang, Allen, Wong Cho-lam and Wei Xiang. It is the second new release scheduled for the 2021 Spring Festival on iQIYI’s Ultimate Online Cinema section following Shaolin Master.
Dreams of Getting Rich is set in the reform and opening up period of the1990s and tells the story about childhood friends accidentally becoming new fathers after moving to Shenzhen from northeastern China, meanwhile an entrepreneur kicks off the bittersweet rags-to-riches journey while starting her own business.
In addition to its star-studded cast, the film also boasts a veteran production team. The film’s executive producer and director of photography Zhao Xiaoding, art director Chen Minzheng, and editor Li Dongquan are all experienced professionals that have been recognized by leading awards in the industry including the Academy Awards, Hong Kong Film Awards and Golden Horse Awards among others.
This film is the first work directed by Song Xiaobao, a famous actor in China. iQIYI is proud to support talents by providing a platform to distribute their works and supporting the development of the ecosystem within the film industry.
In 2014, iQIYI officially launched an online movie model and pioneered a content revenue sharing model based on VIP member views, rapidly stimulating the creative capacity of the film market. By the end of 2020, the number of online movies with shared revenue exceeding RMB 10 million reached 42.
In regard to the online distribution of cinema-quality films, in February 2020 iQIYI became the first streaming platform to adopt the PVOD mode for new releases, catering to users’ needs to watch newly released cinema movies at home. In July 2020, iQIYI launched the Ultimate Online Cinema brand as an effort to build a new release partnership with filmmakers based on the PVOD mode. At the beginning of 2021, the Company extended the PVOD mode to the field of online movies, further generating new potential for outstanding films to generate revenue.
“Whether it’s in cinemas offline or on the Internet, viewers want to watch good movies that are well-made, touching, and positive,” said Song Jia, Vice President of iQIYI and General Manager of iQIYI Film Center. “We hope to build Ultimate Online Cinema into a brand that will be noticed by more filmmakers and loved by users, helping creators realize their dreams and providing our subscribers with more high-quality new films.”
On top of the two new films scheduled for the Chinese New Year on the Ultimate Online Cinema, iQIYI will launch the “Spring Festival Film Fairground”, a section that includes classic box-office hits and overseas Blockbusters. Meanwhile, various paid movies will be provided for free for a limited time, giving the audience a wider range of choices during the Chinese New Year period.
SOURCE iQIYI
Promising Young Woman, Nomadland, Sound Of Metal: How to watch this year’s Oscar nominees
Nomadland, Promising Young Woman, Sound Of Metal – no doubt you’ve heard a lot of buzz about these films following their wins at the BAFTAs and as Hollywood’s biggest night of the year approaches.
However, with cinemas closed for the majority of the last 12 months due to the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, many release dates have been pushed back – so several films that won at the BAFTAs and are in the running for the Oscars are not yet available in the UK, or have only just been released here.
With eligibility for awards relaxed for 2021, films didn’t have to have followed the usual release schedule in cinemas, meaning lots went straight to streaming. You can already watch some from the comfort of your sofa, but you might have to wait a little while to see others.
Here’s where and when you can see this year’s biggest Oscars and BAFTA winners and nominees.
Nomadland
Starring Frances McDormand as a 60-something woman who heads out to find work on the road after losing her job in the recession, this is an exploration of the American West rarely portrayed by Hollywood and has already picked up several gongs so far during awards season. It was the big winner at the BAFTAs, taking home four prizes – best film, leading actress for McDormand, best director for Chloe Zhao, and cinematography – and has also received six Oscar nods.
Watch: On Disney+ from 30 April, and cinemas when they reopen (17 May TBC)
Promising Young Woman
A darkly comic revenge tale starring British actress Carey Mulligan as Cassie, a woman who lives a double life by night in order to right the wrongs of the past. It is up for five Oscars, with a record Academy Awards nomination for writer and director Emerald Fennell, who becomes the first British woman to be shortlisted in the directing category, and picked up BAFTAs for best original screenplay and outstanding British film.
Watch: On Sky Cinema and NOW TV from 16 April
Sound Of Metal
Sound Of Metal stars British-Pakistani actor Riz Ahmed as a punk-metal drummer and former addict who very abruptly loses his hearing, and follows his journey trying to find acceptance. Paul Raci, whose parents were both deaf, co-stars as the veteran leader of a centre helping deaf addicts. It picked up two awards at the BAFTAs, for editing and sound, and is in the running for six Oscars, including best film, best actor and best supporting actor.
Watch: On Amazon Prime Video now, and cinemas when they reopen (17 May TBC)
The Father
Starring British heavyweights Sir Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman as a father and daughter dealing with his dementia, The Father saw Sir Anthony win this year’s leading actor BAFTA, which had widely been expected to go posthumously to the late Chadwick Boseman. It is also nominated for six Oscars, including best actor, best supporting actress and best film.
Watch: In cinemas, as long as they are open, from 11 June
Rocks
The story of the BAFTAs leading up to the awards, this British coming-of-age film starring a group of young women who had never acted before, which is also directed and produced by women, tied with Nomadland for the most nominations – including leading actress for Bukky Bakray, supporting actress for Kosar Ali, outstanding British film, and best director for Sarah Gavron. It won the BAFTA for best casting, while Bakray received the rising star award, voted for by the public.
Watch: On Netflix now
Judas And The Black Messiah
British star Daniel Kaluuya has already won numerous awards, including the best supporting actor BAFTA, for his portrayal of civil rights activist and Black Panther deputy chairman Fred Hampton in Judas And The Black Messiah. It’s a story which has been little known up to now, filmmaker Shaka King told Sky News in an interview, “because it would contradict everything America represents”. The film is also up for five Oscars, with Kaluuya the favourite to win there, too.
Watch: Now on various video on demand (VOD) platforms
Minari
This is the story of a South Korean family pursuing the American dream, starting a farm in 1980s Arkansas. It has received six Oscar, including best director for Lee Isaac Chung, while 73-year-old actress Youn Yuh-jung was named best supporting actress at the BAFTAs – jokingly thanking the “snobbish” Brits in her acceptance speech.
Watch: At minari.film
The Trial Of The Chicago 7
A historical legal drama starring an ensemble cast including Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmayne, Jeremy Strong, Yaha Abdul-Mateen II and Mark Rylance, the film follows the Chicago 7, a group of anti-Vietnam War protesters charged with conspiracy and crossing state lines with the intention of inciting riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. It missed out at the BAFTAs but is up for five Oscars, including best film.
Watch: On Netflix now
The Mauritanian
A legal drama based on the 2015 memoir Guantanamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Salahi, about his experiences of being held without charge for 14 years. The film missed out on any nods at the Oscars but was in the running for best film and other awards at the BAFTAs, while star Jodie Foster picked up the best supporting actress Golden Globe.
Watch: On Amazon Prime Video now
Pieces Of A Woman
Vanessa Kirby stars as Martha, a mother-to-be whose life is changed irrevocably when a home birth ends in unimaginable tragedy, in a searing story of a woman learning to live alongside her loss. Kirby was nominated for best actress at the BAFTAs and is up for the same prize at the Oscars.
Watch: On Netflix now
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
The late Chadwick Boseman’s final film made before he died tells the story of an afternoon recording session in 1920s Chicago as a band of musicians await trailblazing performer, the legendary Mother of the Blues, Ma Rainey (Viola Davis). Boseman plays ambitious musician Levee and is nominated posthumously for best actor at the Oscars. Davis, who described Boseman as “a character actor trapped in a leading man’s body”, is also up for best actress.
Watch: On Netflix now
Another Round
A Danish tragicomedy starring Mads Mikkelsen, Another Round is the story of four friends, all teachers, who test a theory that they will improve their lives by maintaining a constant level of alcohol in their blood. Thomas Vinterberg is nominated for best director at the Oscars, and the movie is also shortlisted for best international feature film. At the BAFTAs, it won the award for best film not in the English language, with Vinterberg making a moving speech in tribute to his teenage daughter, who died in a car accident.
Watch: In cinemas, as long as they are open, on 25 June
Mank
Hollywood loves a movie about itself, which is probably why Mank is the Oscars frontrunner with 10 nominations. Starring Gary Oldman as social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J Mankiewicz, it’s a black-and-white picture of golden age La La Land, telling the story of the writing of Citizen Kane.
Watch: On Netflix now
The White Tiger
Based on the New York Times bestseller and 2008 Man Booker Prize-winning novel, The White Tiger tells the story of Balram Halwai (played by newcomer Adarsh Gourav), who narrates his humorous but dark rise from poor villager to successful entrepreneur in modern India. It has been nominated for best adapted screenplay at the Oscars, while Gourav was also in the running for best actor at the BAFTAs.
Watch: On Netflix now
Da 5 Bloods
Directed by Spike Lee, this is the story of four African-American veterans who return to Vietnam, searching for the remains of their fallen squad leader (another role for the late Boseman) and the promise of buried treasure. It is nominated for best original score at the Oscars, while Clarke Peters was up for best supporting actor at the BAFTAs.
Watch: On Netflix now
Hillbilly Elegy
Based on a bestselling memoir about an Appalachian family and the social problems they faced in Middletown, Ohio, Hillbilly Elegy sees Glenn Close and Amy Adams teaming up to play real mother-daughter pair “Mamaw” and Beverley. Close, who has now been nominated for an Oscar eight times but never won, is shortlisted in the best supporting actress category.
Watch: On Netflix now
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Journalist Borat Sagdiyev is back – and this time, he has a daughter, Tutar (Maria Bakalova). Even if you’ve not seen it yet, you’ll probably already know of the now infamous scene with Donald Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani. Bakalova missed out at the BAFTAs but is nominated for best supporting actress at the Oscars, where the film is also in the running for best adapted screenplay.
Watch: Now on Amazon Prime Video
Soul
After landing the gig of a lifetime, a New York jazz pianist suddenly finds himself trapped in a strange land between Earth and the afterlife. Starring the voices of Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey and Graham Norton, it picked up the best animated film and best score awards at the BAFTAs and is also nominated for three Oscars.
Watch: On Disney+ now
The United States vs Billie Holiday
In her debut acting role, singer Andra Day takes on the role of the legendary Billie Holiday, one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time – and has won a Golden Globe and been nominated for an Oscar, no less. The film tells the story of how the government targeted Holiday in the 1940s, ultimately aiming to stop her from singing her controversial ballad, Strange Fruit.
Watch: On Sky Cinema now
News Of The World
Set five years after the end of the Civil War in the US, Tom Hanks stars as veteran Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd. He is moving from town to town sharing true stories from around the world, but ends up travelling with 10-year-old Johanna (Helena Zengel). While Hanks isn’t nominated this time round, the film is up for several Oscars, including best cinematography.
Watch: On Netflix now
One Night In Miami…
Regina King is already an Oscar-winning actress, but in 2020 she made her directorial debut, too. One Night In Miami… is a fictional account of a night that sees icons Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown gathering to discuss their roles in the civil rights movement and cultural upheaval of the 1960s.
Watch: On Amazon Prime Video now
His House
A truly original British horror, Sope Dirisu and Wunmi Mosaku play refugees from South Sudan, whose new start in England takes a terrifying turn when the house they’re made to stay in takes on a demonic spirit. Mosaku and director Remi Weekes have already picked up British Independent Film Awards gongs, and the film won at the BAFTAs, too – named this year’s outstanding debut, for Weekes.
Watch: On Netflix now
The Dig
Starring Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes, The Dig is an archaeological film revealing the treasures of Sutton Hoo – the real-life discovery of an Anglo-Saxon “ghost ship” filled with riches, weaponry and armour in Suffolk back in 1939 – to the world. It was nominated for five BAFTAs, including outstanding British film.
Watch: On Netflix now
• This year’s BAFTAs ceremony took place on Sunday 11 April, while the Oscars is overnight UK time on Sunday 25 April.
Photo credits: Searchlight Pictures, Amazon Studios, Focus Features, Lionsgate, Netflix, Warner Bros, Minari/Melissa Lukenbaugh/A24, AP, paramount Pictures Corporation/Sky UK, Altitude, STX, Disney +
Where to watch Oscar-nominated movies in Canada and who has the best price
The 93rd Academy Awards came to a close on Sunday night, offering a slightly long — and definitely unique — showcase of the past year’s biggest films.
But with theatre closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in parts of the world, many bigger productions decided to push their release dates from 2020 into 2021 and beyond. That left a slate of films many audiences hadn’t previously heard of and confusion in many cases over where to watch them.
To help, CBC compiled a list of the award show’s major nominees, where you can stream or rent them in Canada and who has the cheapest options.
Nomadland
Where to watch: Available to stream on Disney+
Chloé Zhao’s film about an itinerant Amazon worker who lives in her van won top prizes at the Academy Awards, taking home best picture, best actress for Frances McDormand and best director.
The Father
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon Prime, Google Play, Cineplex, YouTube, TIFF
The Father was adapted from French writer Florian Zeller’s 2012 play of the same name and earned Anthony Hopkins a best actor Oscar. It’s available for rent from various streamers, but the price can be high. Currently, Amazon is offering it for the lowest price at $14.99.
The Trial of the Chicago 7
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Although Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7 has been in the works for years and pulled in six nominations, it left the Oscars with zero trophies.
Judas and the Black Messiah
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube
Both Daniel Kaluuya and LaKeith Stanfield, the film’s two stars, received best supporting actor nominations for their role in this biopic, with Kaluuya taking home the honour. At $24.99, it is currently one of the most expensive of the selections.
Minari
Where to watch: Available to rent on Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube, Amazon Prime, TIFF
Minari‘s Yuh-jung Youn, nominated for best supporting actress, became the first Korean actor to win an Academy Award. She gave an endearing shout-out in her acceptance speech to Brad Pitt, who presented the award and was a co-producer of the film, which is currently renting for a pricey $19.99.
Promising Young Woman
Where to watch: Available to rent on Cineplex, Google Play, Apple TV, YouTube
Promising Young Woman, a risqué genre-blending story about revenge, is one of the cheaper options on the list. Cineplex currently has it for the lowest price, at $4.99.
Sound of Metal
Where to watch: Available to stream on Hoopla; available to rent on Apple TV, Google Play, Cineplex, YouTube, TIFF
Riz Ahmed’s turn as a deaf drummer took home both best editing and best sound awards. It’s available to stream for free from Hoopla — which works through participating libraries — and to rent on various platforms. Google Play and YouTube offer the film for $4.99, though for $1 more, TIFF and Apple TV offer it in high-definition.
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom only managed to snag wins for best makeup and hairstyling and best costume design, despite being up for acting awards — including Viola Davis and the late Chadwick Boseman. The film is available for streaming on Netflix.
Another Round
Where to watch: Available to stream on Hoopla; available to rent on Cineplex, Apple TV, TIFF, Google Play, YouTube
Thomas Vinterberg’s comedy won best international feature film, and the director said he made it as a “monument” to his daughter, who died just days before filming began. At $4.99, Cineplex has the lowest rental price. Google Play and YouTube are the most expensive at $6.99, though they are high-definition options.
Pieces of a Woman
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix.
Pieces of a Woman was another disappointing showing for Netflix, going without a single award. Still, the film saw strong reviews last year at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Venice International Film Festival, where star Vanessa Kirby won the Volpi Cup for best actress.
My Octopus Teacher
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
It wasn’t all bad for Netflix. Despite missing out on some of the more prominent awards, the streaming giant was awarded more trophies than any other studio — with My Octopus Teacher one of those winners. The film, about an unlikely relationship between a cephalopod and a human, took 10 years to make and ended up winning best documentary feature.
The United States vs. Billie Holiday
Where to watch: Available to rent on Google Play, Cineplex, YouTube
The United States vs. Billie Holiday, which was shot in Montreal, didn’t come away with any Oscars. Still, it is one of the cheaper options on the list, and is available to rent from multiple sources, all with the price point of $4.99.
One Night in Miami …
Where to watch: Available to stream on Amazon Prime
Regina King’s adapted One Night in Miami … — about a fictional meeting between Malcolm X, Cassius Clay, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke — sold to Amazon shortly before it made its TIFF premiere. It stars Canadian actor Eli Goree as Clay, before the legendary boxer changed his name to Muhammad Ali.
Hillbilly Elegy
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
One more Netflix film failed to deliver on expectations. Hillbilly Elegy did not deliver star Glenn Close her Oscar after eight nominations. Close is now the most Oscar-nominated woman to never win, although she did have a viral moment doing “Da Butt” dance at the evening’s awards.
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Where to watch: Available to stream on Amazon Prime
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm didn’t manage to turn its nominations — best adapted screenplay and best supporting actress for breakout star Maria Bakalova — into wins, but it did break another record. According to the Guinness World Records, it is the film with the longest title to be nominated for an Oscar, with 110 characters. To her credit, Oscars presenter Regina King managed to get through most of the name without stumbling.
Over the Moon
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Over the Moon, a collaboration between Pearl Studio, Netflix Animation and Sony Pictures, went somewhat under the radar in this year’s awards season. It had stiff competition in the best animated feature film category, despite being heralded by Variety as a “dazzling” film that honours Chinese culture.
Soul
Where to watch: Available to stream on Disney+
Pixar’s long-awaited Soul ended up capturing the trophy for best animated feature film — alongside best original score.
Wolfwalkers
Where to watch: Available to stream on Apple TV
Wolfwalkers, another nominee in the animated feature film category, is the hand-drawn spiritual sequel to Song of the Sea and The Secret of Kells — the final instalment in an “Irish folklore trilogy,” directed by Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart.
Onward
Where to watch: Available to stream on Disney+; available to rent on Google Play, Cineplex, YouTube, Amazon Prime
Onward, starring Tom Holland and Chris Pratt, was Pixar’s second entry in the animated feature film category. While it’s available to stream on Disney+, those without a subscription have lots of other options for renting — virtually all for the same price of $4.99, though Vidéotron users (for both French and English language versions of the movie) can pay 50 cents less.
A Concerto is a Conversation
Where to watch: Available for free from NYT, Breakwater Studios
Canada’s big entry at the 93rd Academy Awards didn’t win its category of short documentary, but co-director Ben Proudfoot said that wasn’t the point. In an interview with CBC, Halifax-raised Proudfoot said the nomination alone was evidence that audiences were connecting with the story. That, he said, was like a “ray of sunshine” into his life in what was otherwise a dark year.
Tom Hanks Believes COVID-19 Has Forced An Important ‘Sea Change’ In The Movie Theater Industry
Throughout the year, the COVID-19 pandemic has left many of us across the globe without a lot of places to go other than our couches. With that reality, many of us have been able to keep up our movie and television viewing intact, but have missed going out and seeing a movie on the big screen with an audience full of people, and so have struggling theaters. The circumstances have caused quite a bit of shifts, to which News of the Worlds’ Tom Hanks is now putting his two cents in.
RSS actively supporting community during COVID-19, says Australian envoy
Australian High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farell met the chief Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday and said the organisation has been actively supporting the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also read: RSS is a mass movement, part of Indian ‘mosaic’: German envoy Walter Lindner
“The @RSSorg has been actively supporting the community during COVID19. I met with Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat who shared the relief measures the organisation has adopted across India during these challenging times,” Mr. O’Farrell tweeted.
He also tweeted pictures of the meeting which took place at Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Nagpur.
Last year, a meeting was held between Mr. Bhagwat and German ambassador Walter J Lindner. The RSS keeps having such meetings in keeping with its outreach initiatives.
Gregory’s Girl: ‘The affection for it overwhelms me’
The film, which was made for just £200,000, was shot entirely on location in the new town of Cumbernauld, north of Glasgow, and was different to many previous Scottish films in that it showed an up-to-date and modern version of the country.