Ari Aster’s “Beau Is Afraid” opens at the Imax in NY/LA, with Martin Scorsese in the house – Specialty Preview

Ari Aster, the horror maestro behind it heir to the throne And midsummeris out with Beau is scared across four screens, while A24 will present the film in LA (AMC Century City and Burbank) and New York (AMC Lincoln Square, Alamo Brooklyn) at Imax on both coasts, followed by a local Imax expansion and a broader national launch on April 21 April next week.

The film is getting some love from Martin Scorsese, who will be speaking with Aster on Monday night after an Imax screening in NYC. The opening weekend features Q&A with Aster and the cast, including Nathan Lane, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Patti LuPone, Amy Ryan and Parker Posey.

The director has a loyal following which is invaluable in breaking into the relatively cautious specialist market Super Mario Bros-big kickback from the wider box office. The pre-sale indicates a strong debut.

Deadline’s review is this star’s biggest swing yet. It is not an abomination. Here is the troubled main character (Phoenix), a paranoid man who embarks on an epic odyssey to return to his horrified mother.

Other special openings: Utopia presents black comedy sick of me by Kristoffer Borgli in NY/LA at the IFC Center and NuArt, before Chicago’s Gene Siskel on April 21 and a nationwide expansion the following week.

Premiere in Cannes last year, Deadline Review here.

With the directors’ Q&A nearly sold out at both IFC and NuArt, Utopia is seeing “excitement about the release and strong support from exhibitors,” including Landmark Cinemas and Alamo Drafthouse, according to Utopia. As part of an unconventional promotional stunt, the Norwegian director released a short interview conducted by fellow filmmaker Al Warren (dog leg).

Kristine Kujath Thorp plays Signe, who fakes an illness to gain sympathy and distract her artist friend (Eirik Sæther).

The Cinema Guild opens Helen Wittmann’s elemental Ode to the Sea Human flowers made of flesh at the Metrograph in NYC, followed by limited expansion. Stars Angeliki Papoulia (dog tooth) as Ida, captain of a ship with a crew of five, none of whom speak the same language. In Marseille, she becomes aware of the mysterious world of the French Foreign Legion and decides to follow their footsteps across the Mediterranean. Sailing via Corsica to the Legion’s historic headquarters in Algeria, borders blur and life at sea creates a special kind of mutual understanding. Wittmann’s follow-up drive played at the Locarno and New York film festivals.

The Cohen Media Group presents the by François Ozon Everything went well today in the Quad and add the Laemmle LA next weekend before we expand. The film by the French director (8 women, Swimming pool) premiered at Cannes in 2021. See Deadline Review. When André (André Dussollier) suffers a massive stroke and asks his daughter Emmanuèle (Sophie Marceau) to help him die with dignity, she is faced with a painful decision. Based on the memoir by Emmanuèle Bernheim, with a guest appearance by Charlotte Rampling as André’s ex-wife. CMG led the opening of the Quad this week with a mini Ozone retrospective.

IFC Films presents Rare objects, the Katie Holmes-directed drama about recovery and addiction, day and night on 24 screens. An adaptation of Kathleen Tessaro’s novel, it stars Julia Mayorga as Benita, a young woman who regains her own confidence through a journey of discovery that brings a new job, new friends and healing. Holmes plays along.

From Drafthouse Movies, Pick & Steale, the comedy documentary by Ben Steinbauer and Berndt Mader (Winnebago guy) follows friends and comedians (and Found Footage Festival founders) Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher, known for mocking local news channels on live TV, as the fake power duo Chop & Steele. They find themselves in federal court with a vengeful media conglomerate after their latest morning show stunt goes viral. The film is touring the country as a double feature at the Alamo Drafthouses A life on the farm by Oscar Harding, also of Drafthouse Films. It follows the life of an eccentric farmer in the English countryside whose bizarre home movies have become a cult phenomenon.

Both played at Fantastic Fest 2022 and are part of Alamo’s Fantastic Fest Presents series. Q&A with the directors and some live comedy performances by Pickett and Prueher after the screenings.