WELCOME TO TOTAL FILM

THE SMARTER MOVIE MAGAZINE

Dialogue

Mail, rants, theories etc

DAVID OYELOWO

From Selma to A United Kingdom, David Oyelowo has a history of shepherding long-gestating passion projects to the screen, and his directorial debut The Water Man is no different. Ahead of its UK debut on Netflix, Oyelowo tells Total Film about representation, four-quadrant storytelling, and why those Bond rumours refuse to go away…

AMERICAN DAD

STILLWATER I Matt Damon teams up with Oscar-winning filmmaker Tom McCarthy for an unpredictable genre-bender

AARON TAYLOR-JOHNSON

HAS THE SONY MARVEL-VERSE IN HIS SIGHTS…

GOOD SIGN

CODA I Siân Heder’s record-breaking Sundance winner explores Deaf culture…

RING CYCLE

SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS I Kevin Feige on the MCU’s new hero

YOU TALKIN’ TO ME?

Film quotes pose as questions. Film stars try to cope

INFERNAL AFFAIRS

DEMONIC I Neill Blomkamp returns with an unholy creature feature

SOUND BYTES

Quotable dialogue from this month’s movies – and their stars

LOST IN TRANSLATION

PEOPLE JUST DO NOTHING: BIG IN JAPAN I The Kurupt FM crew bring Brentford to Tokyo…

KATHRYN NEWTON

IS GETTING HER FREAK ON

AMAZON BUYING MGM

What the blockbuster deal means for Bond and beyond

BJÖRN AGAIN

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BOY IN THE WORLD I Death In Venice’s teen star re-emerges

READY PLAYER LEBRON

SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY I King James rules the court in an expansive sequel…

CANNES GOODS

CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | Five films to make you go ‘Oh là là’…

MAX MADS

RIDERS OF JUSTICE I Mikkelsen re-teams with his gang for an unpredictable genre-defier

IT SHOULDN’T HAPPEN TO A FILM JOURNALIST

Editor-at-Large JAMIE GRAHAM lifts the lid on film journalism

GRIPPING YARN

NIGHT OF THE KINGS I Fact and fantasy collide in a prison movie like no other

FRIGHT KNIGHT

THE GREEN KNIGHT I David Lowery on his thrilling and weird Arthurian epic

FELICITY JONES

The Last Letter From Your Lover star talks puddings and Rogue One boots

BLOODY MAMA

WILDLAND I Danish crime yarn makes you an offer you can’t refuse…

ISLAND LIVING

LIMBO I Ben Sharrock’s deadpan tale brilliantly reframes the refugee crisis…

TEMUERA MORRISON

The Kiwi character actor on his bountiful career

The RIDE Stuff

a crumby-looking passenger boat, La Quila, bobs up

LOVE On The Rocks

AND OTHER DANGEROUS TERRAIN

BETTER TOGETHER?

SURVIVAL CONSULTANT, EXPEDITION LEADER AND PRODUCER MEGAN HINE ON WHETHER TWO HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE IN AN EXTREME SITUATION…  AS TOLD TO MATT MAYTUM

PLAY TIME

Ryan Reynolds and Jodie Comer have all the bantz as gaming avatars in comedy actioner FREE GUY  – so we asked them to use that chemistry to interview each other about the experience of working together on a film they promise is a ‘fastball of joy’.  Here’s Deadpool and Villanelle doing Total Film’s job for us…

BLADE OF HONOUR

TOTAL FILM HEADS TO JAPAN TO VISIT THE SET OF SNAKE EYES, THE EXPLOSIVE NINJA ORIGIN STORY STARRING HENRY GOLDING, WHICH IS SET TO SHAKE UP THE G.I. JOE TOYBOX FOR A WHOLE NEW TAKE ON THE FRANCHISE

COAT TALES

A DIVORCEE WHO WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO ENSURE HIS JACKET IS THE ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD, DEERSKIN IS UNDOUBTEDLY THE YEAR’S COOLEST – AND WEIRDEST – CULT MOVIE. TOTAL FILM HANGS OUT WITH STAR JEAN DUJARDIN AND WRITER-DIRECTOR QUENTIN DUPIEUX TO GET SOME LESSONS IN SARTORIAL ELEGANCE

POP ART

EDGAR WRIGHT’S SMASH-HIT DOCUMENTARY THE SPARKS BROTHERS IS THE PERFECT MATCH OF FILMMAKER AND SUBJECT – FIZZY AND FUNNY. TOTAL FILM MEETS WITH THE DIRECTOR AND THE BROTHERS TO LEARN ALL ABOUT THE GREATEST BAND YOU’VE MAYBE NEVER HEARD OF…

TOP OF THE POPS

Edgar picks his five fave Sparks albums…

FIN-TASTIC BEASTS

From Bruce in JAWS to King Shark in THE SUICIDE SQUAD, we’ve always been captivated – and terrified – by the ocean’s apex predators. Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, TOTAL FILM  goes swimming with sharks…

HOW TO... SURVIVE A SHARK ATTACK

Listen closely to James Wright, senior curator at Sea Life London Aquarium. What he says could save your life…

cena evil

DIESEL-POWERED SEQUEL PUTS FAST BACK IN FIFTH GEAR…

SWEAT TBC

FILM ★★★★☆ OUT 25 JUNE CINEMAS, CURZON HOME CINEMA S

NOWHERE SPECIAL TBC

FILM ★★★★☆ OUT 16 JULY CINEMAS J ames

MARTIN EDEN 15

FILM ★★★★☆ OUT 9 JULY CINEMAS L uca

blood on the tracks

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH ROW RECORDS…

wave culture

PIXAR’S LATEST: BOUY STORY, OR MONSTERS SINK?

SWAP CHOP

A HORROR-COMEDY THAT CUTS BOTH WAYS…

prehistory lesson

HOW TO EVOLVE A FRANCHISE…

drunken masters

TEACHERS TEST A THEORY. EXPECT HICCUPS…

two for the road

FIRTH AND TUCCI DRIVE A MOVING STAR VEHICLE…

grand designers

TWO EMMAS BATTLE IT OUT IN STYLE…

zing street

DESPITE STUMBLES, A BUNDLE OF DANCE ENERGY…

star vehicle

SPIELBERG’S DEBUT WILL STILL TRUCK YOU UP…

hidden depths

THE SCARIEST HORROR YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF…

return to power

KEVIN SMITH SHARES SECRETS OF MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: REVELATION…

well tuned

HOW MUSICAL COMEDY SCHMIGADOON! FINDS THE RIGHT KEY…

growing gains

TALKING TEENHOOD WITH THE STAR OF NEVER HAVE I EVER S2

beasts in show

WHAT’S ON THE ITINERARY FOR DISNEY’S MONSTERS AT WORK…

raising wells

THE ALIEN APOCALYPSE INTENSIFIES IN WAR OF THE WORLDS S2…

fresh spin

TF scores the latest soundtracks…

drive

VARIOUS/CLIFF MARTINEZ | LAKESHORE

scare package

CAPCOM DELIVERS A FESTIVAL OF FRIGHTS…

two more

Recent thumbtwiddlers…

two more

Of Sith and symbiotes…

BOOKS

TITAN, SPHERE, FABER & FABER, SONY YEARBOOK BOOK ★★★★☆

IS IT BOLLOCKS?

Film Buff investigates the facts behind outlandish movie plots

ALTERNATIVE BOX OFFICE

THE BIGGEST MOVIES… 

ON LOCATION

REEL SPOTS BEHIND THE CAMERA

TOP GATES

Indomitable ingresses…

JONAH HEX

Subject to infamous reshoots, Warner Bros’ adaptation of the DC comic book needed a clearer push at the outset…

OR IS THE LAST BOY SCOUT BRUCE WILLIS’ BEST FILM?

BOOSTING YOUR MOVIE GENIUS TO GOD-LIKE PROPORTIONS Wayans

COCO

Brings back memories…

ISAO TAKAHATA

Detail man…

ROMEO + JULIET’S POOL SCENE

One of the titular teenagers’ most famous scenes

THE TF BRAIN

JUNGLE MOVIES