Pretenders[a] is a 2018 American drama film directed by James Franco from a screenplay by Josh Boone. It stars Jack Kilmer, Jane Levy, Shameik Moore, Juno Temple, Brian Cox, Dennis Quaid and Franco.
| Pretenders | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | James Franco |
| Written by | Josh Boone |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Peter Zeitlinger |
| Music by | Mark Kozelek |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Cleopatra Entertainment |
Release dates |
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Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
It had its world premiere at the Torino Film Festival on November 24, 2018. It was released on September 27, 2019, by Cleopatra Entertainment.
Cast
edit- Jack Kilmer as Terry
- Jane Levy as Catherine
- Shameik Moore as Phil
- Juno Temple as Victoria
- Brian Cox as Henry
- Dennis Quaid as Joe
- James Franco as Maxwell
- Mustafa Shakir as Mr. Stanish
- Danielle Burgess as Madeline
- Jacqueline Honulik as Kim
- Antoni Porowski as Antoni
- Tyler Alvarez as Doug
Production
editIn November 2016, it was announced James Franco would direct the film, from a screenplay by Josh Boone, with Franco, Jack Kilmer, Shameik Moore, Jane Levy, Brian Cox and Juno Temple joining the cast of the film. Vince Jolivette, Jay Davis, Shaun Sanghani, Jordan Yale Levine, Scott Levenson and Katie Leary served as producers on the film under their Rabbit Bandini Productions, SSS Entertainment and Yale Productions banners, respectively.[1]
Release
editThe film had its world premiere at the Torino Film Festival on November 24, 2018.[2] Shortly after, Cleopatra Entertainment acquired distribution rights to the film,[3] which they re-titled Pretenders.[4] The first trailer was released in late August 2019,[5][6] with a theatrical premier on October 4, 2019 and a VOD release on November 5, 2019,[7] although some theaters began showing the film on September 27, 2019.[8] It was released on DVD on November 12, 2019.[7]
Reception
editOn review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 20% of 10 reviews are positive, and the average rating is 4.3/10.[9] On Metacritic — which assigns a weighted mean score — the film has a score of 14 out of 100 based on 5 critics, indicating "overwhelming dislike".[10] While Variety's review praised "standout efforts from its three up-and-coming stars",[11] the Los Angeles Times review called it "pretentious nonsense"[12] and The New York Times said it "indulges in a distasteful brand of nostalgia".[13]
Notes
edit- ^ The most definitive title of the film appears per official poster is "Pretenders" while some sources in maintaining English language article status adds 'The'.
References
edit- ^ Ford, Rebecca (November 17, 2016). "James Franco to Direct 'The Pretenders' With Trio of Rising Stars (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- ^ "The Pretenders". Torino Film Festival. Retrieved March 24, 2019.[permanent dead link]
- ^ N'Duka, Amanda (March 24, 2019). "James Franco's 'The Pretenders' Lands At Cleopatra Entertainment". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- ^ Billington, Alex (23 August 2019). "First Full Trailer for James Franco's Love Triangle Film 'Pretenders'". firstshowing.net. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ Scott, Ryan (23 August 2019). "Pretenders Trailer Pulls James Franco & Dennis Quaid Into a Wicked Love Triangle". MovieWeb. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ Russian, Ale (22 August 2019). "Val Kilmer's Son Jack Stars in New Movie Directed by James Franco — Watch Pretenders Trailer". People. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ a b "Pretenders". Cleopatra Entertainment. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ "Pretenders". Village East Cinema. Archived from the original on 15 July 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
- ^ "The Pretenders". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ^ "The Pretenders Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ^ Keizer, Mark (27 June 2019). "Film Review: 'Pretenders'". Variety. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ Walsh, Katie (3 October 2019). "Review: James Franco's starry 'Pretenders' puts its pretentious nonsense right there in the title". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ Kenny, Glenn (3 October 2019). "'Pretenders' Review: A Little New Wave Love, a Lot of Misogyny". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 June 2024.