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Gregg Turkington in "Entertainment" (courtesy Magnolia Pictures)
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John C. Reilly in "Entertainment" (courtesy Magnolia Pictures)
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Tye Sheridan in "Entertainment" (courtesy Magnolia Pictures)
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Gregg Turkington in "Entertainment" (courtesy Magnolia Pictures)
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"I can make this solid guarantee about Entertainment," says James Parrish of the Bijou Film Center, which is presenting the latest effort by Richmond-based filmmaker Rick Alverson in advance of its New York premiere, due to Alverson’s connection to the city and the Bijou’s effort to create a repertory film art house. "You'll either love it or hate it. Either way, you'll be uncomfortable."
Filmmaker Rick Alverson (photo by Susan Worsham, courtesy Magnolia Pictures)
Alverson’s previous films, The Builder, New Jerusalem and The Comedy, feature pro/antagonists who are isolated, attempting to find rungs to grasp ahold of, whose psyches are blasted to bits and they are either unsuccessfully self-piecing themselves back together or seeking for assistance in so doing, whether they even know it or not. The Comedy, about entitled New Yorkers avoiding adulthood, was a form of horror movie. Alverson’s films aren’t about pleasant or customary subjects. His work takes the society of the spectacle and shakes it like a snow globe. Alverson was recognized in 2013 as the film honoree in the Theresa Pollak Prizes for Excellence in the Arts.
Entertainment's main character, The Comedian, meanders through California desert towns, gigging at bottom-level venues in an ostensible quest to reunite with his estranged daughter. Along the way, he meets characters portrayed by John C. Reilly (Boogie Nights, Guardians of the Galaxy), Michael Cera (Juno, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) and Amy Seimetz (The Killing). The film also features young Tye Sheridan, who will be in The Yellow Birds, a film based on the novel by Richmonder Kevin Powers.*
A Q&A session with Alverson and lead actor Gregg Turkington (known by his stage persona Neil Hamburger) will take place after the 6:30 p.m. screening on Nov. 8 at the Byrd Theatre. $10 ($7 in advance). bijoufilmcenter.org. If you're in Charlottesville for the Virginia Film Festival, you can also catch it on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 3:45 p.m. at Violet Crown theater on the Downtown Mall, followed by a discussion with Alverson.
*Powers told us recently that filming for The Yellow Birds was expected to begin soon in Morocco, with Jennifer Aniston cast as the mother of young soldier Daniel Murphy (played by Sheridan), and Jack Huston (grandson of actor/director John Huston, nephew of Anjelica) as Sgt. Sterling. It's being directed by Alexandre Moors and produced by Jeff Sharpe of Story Mining & Supply Co., and Cinelou, with the screenplay written by David Lowery. Powers says, "Everyone involved is extraordinarily talented, and though I don't have a direct role in the production, they've made a point of including me in various conversations that have taken place along the way, which I've appreciated."
