The Official Blog of Laemmle Theatres.

Laemmle Theatres

Film Reviews & Previews

You are here: Home / Monica Film Center

IT’S NEVER OVER, JEFF BUCKLEY opens Friday at the Laemmle Glendale and NoHo with in-person director Q&A’s and rare concert footage.

by Leave a Comment

You may not be familiar with Jeff Buckley’s name. But you almost certainly have heard his haunting cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” a song which was named to Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and has been inducted into the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry.

In her latest documentary, It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley, Oscar-nominated filmmaker Amy Berg explores the singer’s story and impact.

Tragically, Buckley drowned while swimming in the Wolf River in Memphis just as he was about to start work on his second album. But his stature as a singer and songwriter has only grown in the years since his early death at the age of 31. Acclaimed by musicians like Bob Dylan, David Bowie, and Jimmy Page, Buckley’s life and legacy is being given a thoughtful and thorough review in this new documentary — which includes a treasure trove of archival material, candid interviews with the man’s family, friends, lovers and collaborators. We emerge from the film with a greater understanding of the forces that shaped his artistic aspirations and an appreciation for all that he accomplished in his short life.

Ms. Berg will participate in Q&A’s after the 4:00 P.M. screening at the Glendale on August 10 and the 7:00 P.M. screening at the NoHo on August 11. You can also watch or listen to an interview with her on a recent episode of Inside the Arthouse. We will also open the film on August 15 at the Monica Film Center.

All of the screenings in Glendale and North Hollywood will feature special bonus footage. Very few people were fortunate enough to witness Buckley live, but those who did often described it as transcendent, jaw-dropping, and emotionally shattering. As part of the theatrical release of It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley, Magnolia Pictures proudly presents 26 minutes of exclusive, remastered footage from a rare solo performance at The Middle East in Cambridge, MA, filmed on February 19, 1994. This previously unreleased set will screen immediately following the film, offering both longtime fans and newcomers a rare opportunity to experience Buckley’s raw, unfiltered brilliance.

“Pays tribute to one of the greatest singers ever…Buckley hasn’t had a million portraits sketched of him, much to this degree. The singularity of It’s Never Over, along with the access and the candor, makes up for a lot here.” ~ David Fear, Rolling Stone

“The film is a resonant depiction of the gaping holes left by Jeff Buckley’s untimely death.” ~ Chris Barsanti, Slant Magazine

“Offer[s] a unique perspective on the varying music of the 1990s, an experimental time where lonely artists like Buckley could buck the system and create a new brand of music.” ~ Matthew Creith, TheWrap

“As we drink in the majesty of his voice, the film lays bare a paradox about him that isn’t nearly as apparent if you just listen to Grace (1994), the only album he ever released.” ~ Owen Gleiberman, Variety

“A stirring tribute made with a lot of heart.” ~ David Rooney, Hollywood Reporter

Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s new thriller CLOUD, “a cautionary tale of e-commerce — and the summer’s best action movie,” opens Friday at the Laemmle Encino, Glendale and Monica Film Center.

by Leave a Comment

“A master of existential dread, Kurosawa was early to posit a creepy side to online culture… Things have gotten even grimmer in Cloud. The malevolence is not supernatural but human.” ~ John Powers, NPR
*
“Kurosawa inches back toward the knotted-stomach dread of his horror classics Cure and Pulse with Cloud, albeit accented this time with a healthily morbid sense of humour. And, perhaps more surprising, a serious affinity for action movie shoot-outs.” ~ Barry Hertz, Globe and Mail
*
“That tension between modes [of realism and online fantasy] gives Cloud tremendous visceral and intellectual force, plus a persistent air of moral inquiry.” ~ Justin Chang, The New Yorker
*

“Kurosawa’s slow, patient direction throws just enough stones into the stagnant waters of Ryosuke’s life to make the vengeance of those he has harmed seem almost justified.” ~ Richard Whittaker, Austin Chronicle

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's new thriller CLOUD, "a cautionary tale of e-commerce -- and the summer's best action movie," opens Friday at the Laemmle Encino, Glendale and Monica Film Center.

“Kurosawa films the descent into kill-or-be-killed mayhem with his typically masterful visual proficiency — any given frame of Yasuyuki Sasaki’s no-nonsense cinematography can quickly go from bland to ominous.” ~ Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times

“For all of his genre-bending on display, Kurosawa is interested in something more real and more dark about humanity’s capacity for greed and bitterness, and the quiet ways that the internet can further mutate those diseases in us.” ~ Brandon Yu, New York Times

“Cloud is a portrait of merciless 21st-century commerce and social cruelty that’s filtered through various genre lenses.” ~ Nick Schager, The Daily Beast

“Kurosawa films psychological torment with real gravity, and he films physical cruelty with humorous detachment. The absurdity of his vision matches our topsy-turvy reality.” ~ Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture

“A brisk film that leaves one pondering its themes, especially what it means to live in an era when nothing is real.” ~ Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com
*

“Unfolding at a hauntingly subdued register before unleashing its pent-up tension during its final act, director Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Cloud skewers the anonymity that characterizes our presence in online spaces.” ~ Zachary Lee, Chicago Reader

“Kurosawa Kiyoshi is an empathetic yet pitiless poet of the modern void.” ~ Chuck Bowen, Slant Magazine

“Cloud is a sophisticated send-up of social commerce culture.” ~ Adam Nayman, The Ringer

“Gut-wrenching.” “Harrowing.” “Groundbreaking.” “Haunting.” “Absolutely essential.” 2000 METERS TO ANDRIIKA opens Friday at the Monica Film Center.

by Leave a Comment

The war in Ukraine may no longer dominate the U.S. headlines, but the brutal fight for freedom continues — and brave filmmakers are risking everything to tell the world what’s really happening on the front lines.

Oscar-winning Ukrainian filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov, who won Best Documentary Feature for his 2023 Academy Award-winning film 20 Days in Mariupol, returns with his powerful new documentary 2000 Meters to Andriivka. This gripping film captures the intense 2023 battle to drive Russian forces out of the small village of Andriivka, Ukraine.

Listen to an interview with Chernov on Inside the Arthouse. He will also participate in an in-person Q&A after the 7:10 P.M. screening at the Monica Film Center on July 30. Writer-director Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton, Andor) will moderate.

Using raw body cam footage, immersive drone shots, and frontline cinematography, Chernov delivers an unflinching look at the courage, sacrifice, and reality of Ukraine’s ongoing fight for survival. Masterful editing transforms chaotic combat into a clear, deeply human story that demands to be seen — and felt.

As difficult as it can be to watch at times, 2000 Meters to Andriivka reminds us why frontline documentaries are more vital now than ever, leaving us wiser and more inspired from the experience.

“The Ukrainian photojournalist and film-maker Mstyslav Chernov stunned us with his eyewitness documentary 20 Days in Mariupol… His new film is if anything more visceral, with waking-nightmare images captured in pin-sharp 4K digital clarity.” ~ Peter Bradshaw, Guardian

“Regardless of its wider effect, it’s probably the most powerful film that will be seen in cinemas this year, and for that reason alone is absolutely essential viewing.” ~ Nick Howells, London Evening Standard

“Chernov asks us to simply observe, and know that these men aren’t just characters on a screen or pawns in a story. He wants us to see what they saw.” ~ Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times

“A groundbreaking view of the horror and pity of war, I can’t remember a cinematic experience quite like it. It’s devastating and extraordinary.” ~ Philip De Semlyen, Time Out

“War is hell, it says, and we’re all doomed. It might be the year’s most important film.” ~ Kevin Maher, The Times (UK)

“Andriivka is a less tersely journalistic and more pensively devastating work than Mariupol: a film of its moment, and an agonizingly extended moment at that.” ~ Guy Lodge, Variety

“Chernov’s gut-wrenching doc is a reminder of the heroics and cost of this brutal war.” Peter Howell, Toronto Star

“A harrowing first-person view of a ceaseless nightmare, defined by both blistering immediacy and crushing sadness.” ~ Nick Schager, The Daily Beast

“2000 Meters to Andriivka is perhaps less instantly harrowing than 20 Days in Mariupol. But its haunting impact may go further toward reshaping viewer perceptions of the ongoing conflict.” ~ Daniel Fienberg, Hollywood Reporter

Repertory Cinema Lives! Bruce Goldstein on Film Forum, Rialto Pictures & restoring movie history.

by Leave a Comment

The latest episode of Inside the Arthouse features a luminary of the American indie, art house, and repertory exhibition scene, Bruce Goldstein. From the ITA website:

At Inside the Arthouse, we love discovering bold new voices and emerging filmmakers. But there’s something uniquely rewarding about revisiting a classic—whether it’s an old favorite or a legendary film you’ve always meant to watch. And seeing these films on the big screen in a real movie theater is the way they were meant to be experienced.

Repertory cinema in the U.S. has faced its share of challenges, from the rise of home video and streaming to rising urban real estate costs. Many iconic rep theaters have closed. But in recent years, there’s been a revival of interest in classic and cult films, shown theatrically in new restorations and 35mm prints.

One of the most influential figures in this movement is Bruce Goldstein, longtime repertory programmer at Film Forum in New York City and founder of Rialto Pictures. For over 50 years, Bruce has been a champion of film history—curating, restoring, and re-releasing cinematic landmarks. In early 2025, Rialto re-released Claude Lelouch’s A Man and a Woman, and coming soon is Forbidden Games, brand-new 4K restorations of Jean-Jacques Beineix’s Diva, [and, from Janus Films, The Lovers on the Bridge].

We sat down with Bruce Goldstein in New York to talk about the past, present, and future of repertory film programming in the U.S.—and how he’s helped shape what American audiences get to see on the big screen.

“Even if she does do crazy things, it’s not out of nowhere: He’s kind of leading her down this road to craziness.” Sophie Brooks on her new film, OH, HI!, opening Friday.

by Leave a Comment

Sophie Brooks’s subversive new romantic comedy Oh, Hi!, co-written with lead actress Molly Gordon, follows a new couple (Gordon and Logan Lerman) whose weekend road trip takes a crazy turn. Drew Taylor of The Wrap wrote that the film “zigs where you think it’ll zag, weaponizing that knowledge and using it to subvert expectations.” Kristy Puchko of Mashable called the film a “comedy as current and enthralling as it is outrageous. And by rights, it should prove Gordon is a star.”

Inverse just posted the following interview with Brooks headlined “How Oh, Hi! Finds the Humanity in Millennial Misery.”

Q: This film came together in the thick of COVID. Walk me through how it all began — what sparked the first seed of the idea?

A: It was May or June of 2020, and I had another project that I’d been working on for a couple of years, and that was kind of falling apart — as so many things did during COVID. I was on the phone with my agent just expressing my fears about my career and life in the moment, and she challenged me to come up with an idea that I could shoot during COVID: limited locations and limited actors. After that phone call — I would say truly five minutes off that phone call — I came up with the seed of the idea: “A couple takes trip away together; he breaks up with her; she holds him captive.”

Molly Gordon and I have been friends for years. We were in a pod together during COVID, and I told her the idea, not fully knowing what it was, and she loved it. We decided to develop the story together. Then I wrote the first draft alone in my childhood bedroom. I was truly in a kind of cabin-fever-dream situation. I wrote the first draft in under three weeks.

Q: How did you go about casting Isaac? What were you looking for, and why was Logan Lerman the perfect choice?

A: I mean, gosh, Logan is such a delight, and such a good actor. I think it was really important to have an actor who had the balance of… How do I say this correctly? Of looking like the hot guy but also being a real sweetie. Logan is. He’s gorgeous, but he also describes himself as an Iris. He’s engaged and a very devoted partner. I think having an actor who is so not a f*ckboi, it kind of freed us up, because we could really lean into everything without him overthinking it. He’s also a proper, proper actor and hadn’t done a ton of comedy before this. I think it felt like an exciting opportunity for him, and for me, to work with someone who has this really lovely commitment to his craft, but also was down to improvise and down to have fun.

Q: The big comparison for this film coming out of Sundance was “millennial Misery.” Were you actively trying to homage that story, or was it more about riffing on the stereotype of a “hysterical” woman?

A: I definitely watched Misery again when I was writing it, and it was something that Molly and I talked about in the story-building process. It was definitely a conscious reference, but obviously in that movie, it’s very dark, and she is truly unhinged. This is the comedic version, I think… I hope. There were other movies that I certainly kind of always call on: Classic rom-coms are something I’m eternally inspired by. I really wanted the movie to start off feeling like a rom-com and a romance, so that when we have the shift into more absurdity and comedy, it feels like we’d established them enough as a couple and as real people. For me, those filmmakers are Nora Ephron, Noah Baumbach, and Nicole Holofcener — people who really have a great grasp on character.

Q: There’s another great homage in this to Practical Magic. Was that another intentional choice?

A: That was very intentional. I just feel like this movie was a fun opportunity to lean into all of the tropes about women and the idea of women being witches. There was actually a scene in the movie that we ended up having to shorten, but kind of exploring the origin of witches and — this is true — there being a correlation to single women with cats because the single women with cats weren’t dying during the plague because the cats were scaring off the rodents that were carrying the plague. And I just love the idea that the origin of witches is basically just single women and how we’re so scared of them.

Q: Right. From the time you’re 16, everyone’s like, “Why don’t you have a boyfriend?” I’m a baby. Why are you instilling this in me so early?

A: Yeah. I also think that we live in a culture where a man wanting love is viewed as romantic and sweet and a woman wanting it is considered desperate. I think that’s really unfair. I’m incredibly romantic and hopeful, and Iris is a very romantic person who really wants love — and I just wanted to show that you can want those things and it doesn’t make you desperate or crazy. Even if she does do crazy things, it’s not out of nowhere: He’s kind of leading her down this road to craziness. She, in her mind, is really just fighting for love.

Q: I really appreciated the way that you show us both perspectives from Iris and Isaac. We understand exactly where they’re coming from. Did you encounter any struggles in balancing those two perspectives?

A: I never wanted the film in any way to be sh*tting on men or painting a broad brush that all men are like this. I don’t think that’s true at all. Even my relationships with men who have inspired this in certain ways, I still see the humanity in them. I have so much compassion for Isaac because he is just a wounded kid like the rest of us. I think Isaac is someone who really wants love too but has certain hang-ups and certain limitations. A lot of us sabotage our own desires. It’s a very human thing to want things and also fear the things we want because if you get them, then you can lose them.

I think if you don’t have that balance in this movie, for me, it feels more shallow. I want the movie to be hyper-entertaining and funny, but I do also want it to feel relatable and honest. That’s also a huge part of wanting John Reynolds’ character, and his relationship with Geraldine’s, in the movie. He’s the most committed and in love and obsessed with his girlfriend — and he’s also a real person. There is not this one-dimensional male figure for us to fear. I hope that the takeaway is actually that we are all responsible for our own standards and walking away when something isn’t being met. And I hope that women relate to that and find what Iris finds, which is her self-worth. You should never have to convince a man to like you.

 

“LITTLE, BIG, AND FAR was sparked by the gift of a meteorite.” Jem Cohen’s new film opens Friday at the Laemmle Monica Film Center and Glendale.

by Leave a Comment

Little, Big and Far follows an Austrian astronomer as he begins reevaluating his life and work. He ascends a Greek mountaintop in search of a sky dark enough to reconnect with the stars.

“Jem Cohen’s wondrous, expansive Little, Big, and Far…. A reminder to seize solitude amid the bustle of everyday existence, to be quiet and still, to look up and consider the universe.” ~ Isaac Feldberg, RogerEbert.com

“Jem Cohen brings the same meditative elegance and intellectual curiosity he did to Museum Hours (2012) with his stargazing new feature, again using the cinematic form to patiently interrogate ways of seeing and being.” ~ New York Film Festival

“Moments of sheer beauty… By broadening his imagery to include those obtained from actual outer space, and placing it within the tapestry of his feature, Cohen suggests that modern cinema, unshackled from genre, is more powerful than we may give it credit for.” ~ Conor Williams, Reverse Shot

Director’s Statement: “Little, Big and Far was sparked by the gift of a meteorite. With woefully little background in science, I was stunned to discover that the object in my palm was probably 4.5 billion years old. Wondering how its age was determined and amazed by how far it might have traveled, I embarked on a 7-year exhilarating plunge into scientific curiosity and ways of bringing it into a film. As my new son grew up with the project, he became a “research companion” through his natural love for scientific inquiry. (He spontaneously narrates an unscripted scene about the moon, and our trip to film the eclipse and his reaction to it was vital to the film.)

"LITTLE, BIG, AND FAR was sparked by the gift of a meteorite." Jem Cohen's new film opens Friday at the Laemmle Monica Film Center and Glendale.

“I’ve spent over 30 years doing truly independent “hybrid” films made possible via unorthodox long-term, low-budget production strategies. These include using actors (or carefully selected non-actors) placed in uncontrolled real-world environments and filmed in such a way that
passersby are often unaware a film is being made. As I write, direct, edit and serve as primary cinematographer, crews are small and flexible, encouraging a radical approach to cinema made outside of industry modes. As with Museum Hours, my feature about art’s role in daily life, the new film is a fiction/non-fiction hybrid which insists on placing characters, ideas, environments, and political engagement on resolutely equal footing. Astronomy and physics are interwoven throughout, not just as subjects but through textures, sounds, and light, the very fabric of cinema. As my work has always been based on close observation, I sought to embody scientific principles in surroundings I film on a daily basis; snow swirling under a streetlight, rainbows refracted through a chandelier and ocean mist, etc. The combination of guerrilla filmmaking with a wide-eyed, open-minded appreciation of science has led to a highly unusual film that is at once down-to-earth, politically engaged, and aesthetically bold. It is a character study of scientists navigating a troubled new world and a celebration of curiosity and wonder as primal human impulses.”

A winning portrait of New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern, PRIME MINISTER screens this weekend at the Laemmle Claremont, Glendale, Monica Film Center, Newhall, and Town Center.

by Leave a Comment

In August 2017, in the lead-up to national elections, Jacinda Ardern unexpectedly became New Zealand’s opposition party leader. She had just turned 37. Two frenetic months later, she was Prime Minister. Just before the final vote was in, she discovered she was pregnant. She would become only the second head of state in history to give birth while in office.

Ardern quickly became one of the most recognizable leaders in the world. She drew global attention from people craving a sensitive and compassionate approach to the critical issues of our time. In private, she struggled with being a mother and proving herself to a public skeptical of women’s leadership. A series of crises – the Christchurch massacre, pandemic lockdowns, and disinformation-fueled protests outside Parliament – would test that leadership and the feminine touch she brought to it. She resigned from office in January 2023, shocking her supporters and critics alike.

Going behind the scenes of her administration and her private life, PRIME MINISTER follows Jacinda for seven years as she is catapulted to the top of New Zealand politics, becomes a feminist political icon, resigns suddenly from office and continues to champion the fight against isolationism, fear, and the distortion of truth. Intimate home footage shot by her husband and audio interviews that Jacinda did while in office give us unparalleled access. Along with in-depth contemporaneous interviews, these form the emotional backbone of the story, giving viewers an unfiltered window into her years in power.

The world is at a perilous political crossroads. Trust in institutions, expertise, and liberal democracy itself are under dire strain. Which direction will we go? PRIME MINISTER leaves viewers wondering what the world might be like with more Jacindas at the helm.

“The qualities that endeared Ardern to the world and — for her first term, at least — to her country were a directness, intelligence, drive and unglamorous charm that PRIME MINISTER convincingly presents as entirely unmanufactured.” ~ Ty Burr, Washington Post

“In many ways, the documentary is as unprecedented as Ardern’s career.” ~ Sheila O’Malley, RogerEbert.com

“PRIME MINISTER’s portrait of Ardern is so persuasive it might make you wish you could vote for her.” ~ Caryn James, The Hollywood Reporter

“World leaders have rarely been captured with as much intimacy.” ~ Siddhant Adlakha, Variety

Allison Janney & Bryan Cranston in EVERYTHING’S GOING TO BE GREAT ~ “Buy One, Get One Free” Father’s Day Screenings!

by Leave a Comment

Lions Gate Films and Laemmle Theatres are pleased to present the new comedy-drama from the writer and producer of I, Tonya, Everything’s Going to Be Great.

In honor of Father’s Day, be the first to see Everything’s Going to Be Great starring Bryan Cranston and Allison Janney on June 15 at the Monica Film Center and Town Center. The 3:20 P.M. screening in Santa Monica and the 3:00 P.M. screening in Encino are “Buy One, Get One Free” screenings. Offer good online and in person at the box offices.

ABOUT THE FILM: There’s no business like show business — for Buddy and Macy Smart (Emmy-winner Bryan Cranston and Oscar-winner Allison Janney) that means an unpredictable life in regional theater while trying to raise their radically different sons, Lester and Derrick. Through it all, Buddy pursues his unstoppable dreams, and Macy is left to pull it all together and keep the family afloat. As the family grapples with identity and belonging, they share a funny, heartfelt journey of self-discovery and learning the power of owning your spotlight, no matter what stage of life you’re in.