Tag: Lorene Scafaria

Female Filmmakers, Streaming, Women in Film

Prime Viewing: Part 1

Are you climbing up the walls yet? Being in self-isolation is tough, but completely necessary (we can’t emphasis that enough). No fear, we’re here to help make things a little more bearable with some recommendations on films you can catch on Amazon Prime that just so happen to be from a female filmmaker. Hopefully, these films will keep you entertained and we hope there are some featured on here that you aren’t aware of. Let us know some of your recommendations in the comments below. Keep safe, stay indoors and use this time wisely…to catch up on some movies! Continue reading Prime Viewing: Part 1

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Film Reviews, Reviews, Uncategorized, Women in Film

ITOL Top 50 Films of the Decade, Entry No. 23: Hustlers

In “Hustlers”, dancer and den mama Ramona (Jennifer Lopez) posits that New York City—the whole country, really—is one big strip club. “You got people tossing the money, and people doing the dance,” she says.

Writer-director Lorene Scafaria (“The Meddler”, “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World”) never loses sight of who’s doing what throughout this entertaining crime caper, bringing a decidedly female gaze to the world of strip clubs and sex workers that feels fresh because we’ve seen so little of it. Continue reading ITOL Top 50 Films of the Decade, Entry No. 23: Hustlers

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Awards, Film Industry, Women in Film

Gems, Hustlers and Keepers: 2020 Independent Spirit Awards nominations

The 2020 Independent Spirit Awards nominations have recently been announced with Roger Eggers “The Lighthouse” and Benny Safdie and  Josh Safdie‘s “Uncut Gems” being nominated for five awards including Best Director. The other big films to receive multiple nominations also include Alma Har’el‘s “Honey Boy” and Music Box’s comedy “Give Me Liberty”. Out of the six directors nominated for best director, two of the nominees … Continue reading Gems, Hustlers and Keepers: 2020 Independent Spirit Awards nominations

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Directors, Female Characters, Personal Essays, Women in Film

Clowns vs. Strippers: How Joker and Hustlers each pay tribute to the films of Martin Scorsese

People like to say that original movies are in short supply these days, swallowed up by the onslaught of comic book films, remakes/reboots, and live-action adaptations of 80s cartoons based on toys. Whilst there is truth to this observation, its conclusions are flawed. Not only have some incredibly bold and unique recent films come from pre-existing IP like “The Lego Movie”, “Mad Max: Fury Road” and “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”, but so-called “original” films are often just as guilty of recycling and retrofitting the concepts of the past.

Quentin Tarantino and Edgar Wright have made their entire careers out of essentially crafting extended tributes to their childhood favourites, communicating their own perspectives and ideas through the lens of pulp genre cinema. Continue reading Clowns vs. Strippers: How Joker and Hustlers each pay tribute to the films of Martin Scorsese

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Female Filmmaker, Film Reviews, Reviews, Women in Film

Review: Hustlers

Some get hustled, and some know how to hustle, but for the leading ladies of this film, they fall under both brackets as Lorene Scafaria captures the true story behind Jessica Presser’s “The Hustlers at Scores.” Effortlessly crafting the vivaciously strong female cast members, Scafaria was able to create a beautiful relationship between Ramona (Jennifer Lopez) and Destiny (Constance Wu), showcasing the power, toxicity and trust within female relationships; but underneath it all, “Hustlers” is a film about the platonic and undying love between the two leading women. Continue reading Review: Hustlers

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