Updated every Friday 12:00 PM
March&08 - March 14

APPLE TV
Apple has a surprise for fans of Japanese manga and the always-stimulating, neo-noir cinema of Takashi Miike — a 19-minute short film made by the filmmaker using only an iPhone 15 Pro. Titled Midnight, the mini-movie is an adaptation of a lesser-known work by legendary Japanese manga artist Osamu Tezuka. Much of the film takes place in neon-lit Tokyo at night, including a thrilling car chase sequence — a deliberate exercise on Apple’s part to showcase their device’s video capture capabilities in low lighting...

Zack Snyder has been doing his sums, and believes that more people have watched Rebel Moon on Netflix than went to see Barbie in theaters. "You think about Netflix, for instance, where you push a button. ‘Rebel Moon,’ right? Say right now it’s almost at 90 million views, right? 80 or 90 million accounts turned it on, give or take. They assume two viewers per screening, right? That’s the kind of math. So you think if that movie was in the theater as a distribution model, that’s like 160,000,000 people supposedly watching based on that math. 160,000,000 people at $10 a ticket would be…what is that math? I don’t know. 160,000,000 times ten. That’s 1.6 billion. So more people probably saw ‘Rebel Moon’ than saw ‘Barbie’ in the theater, right?” Snyder stresses that what makes the platform so impressive is that it's a machine that allows viewers to watch their content whenever and wherever they want...

Nikon aims to expand its reach in the cinematography business. The company revealed that it entered into an agreement to acquire cinematography camera maker Red, which would become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nikon. Terms and value of the deal weren’t disclosed. “Nikon will leverage this acquisition to expand the fast-growing professional digital cinema camera market, building on both companies’ business foundations and networks, promising an exciting future of product development that will continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in film and video production,” the company said in the announcement. “Nikon’s expertise in product development, exceptional reliability, and know-how in image processing, as well as optical technology and user interface along with Red’s knowledge in cinema cameras, including unique image compression technology and color science...

The annual Academy Awards derby has been a long been a subject of interest for Las Vegas oddsmakers. But since 2019, more than half a dozen states have enacted legislation around sports betting that opened the door to legal wagering on Hollywood’s glitziest annual race. Gambling experts say there are more states to come in the near future, including Alabama. But California, home of the film business, isn’t likely to join New Jersey, Massachusetts, Michigan, Colorado, Arizona and Kansas any time soon. The data so far indicates that Oscar gambles are handled much like sports bets — very close to the event. The popularity of buzzy titles this year including frontrunner “Oppenheimer” and box office darling “Barbie” bodes well for an overall uptick in fans risking a few bucks on key races...

Turner Classic Movies’ latest limited series “Two for One” features curated double features coupled with commentary from select guest programmers like Martin Scorsese, Paul Thomas Anderson, Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, and more. The upcoming TCM series is hosted by Ben Mankiewicz, who will interview each director about why they chose to highlight their two chosen films. “Two for One” will feature 12 nights of double features, beginning April 6. With the logline “two films, one filmmaker, countless perspectives,” the series is set to span all of cinematic history. Directors will offer commentary on the double feature’s cultural significance, its influence on other films, behind-the-scenes stories, and their own personal reflections....

The blockbuster Dune: Part Two is nearly three hours long, but it could have been even longer. And director Denis Villeneuve says that any cut scenes will not be seen by the public.“I’m a strong believer that when it’s not in the movie, it’s dead,” the director said when asked if he will release deleted scenes from the film for its upcoming Blu-ray release. “Sometimes I remove shots and I say, ‘I cannot believe I’m cutting this out. I feel like a samurai opening my gut. It’s painful, so I cannot go back after that and create a Frankenstein and try to reanimate things that I killed. It’s too painful. When it’s dead, it’s dead, and it’s dead for a reason. But yes, it is a painful project, but it is my job. The movie prevails. I’m very severe in the editing room. I’m not thinking about my ego, I’m thinking about the movie … I kill darlings, and it’s painful for me...

Jutsu Kaisen Season 2 was the big winner at Crunchyroll’s Anime Awards in Tokyo over the weekend, taking the top-prize anime of the year honor and triumphing in 10 additional categories, including best director, best character design, best action and best cinematography. The best film prize went to Mokoto Shinkai’s anime blockbuster Suzume, while Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc won several key categories, such as best animation and best fantasy. The annual awards show, now in its eighth year, selects leading achievements in Japanese animation across a broad range of categories and picks the winners via a global popular vote. The show aired live on Crunchyroll, the anime specialty streamer owned by Sony Group, with a replay later released over the brand’s YouTube and Twitch channels. Japanese entertainer Jon Kabira and voice actress Sally Amaki hosted the show...