julie taymor – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

AWFJ Presents: Julie Taymor’s A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM – Review by Joan Amenn

November 18, 2022November 18, 2022 Joan Amenn A Midsummer Night’s Dream, awfj presents, David Harewood, Film Movement, jake horowitz, julie taymor, Kathryn Hunter, Lilly Englert, Mandi Masden, Zach Appelman

Anyone who found themselves uninspired by their high school English classes might remember that there was a small spark of fun to look forward to, if they were lucky. Should your instructor assign you to read, or better yet, watch a performance of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, you could anticipate some magical entertainment. Julie Taymor staged her own version of the classic in 2014 and fortunately, it was captured on film because it is astonishing.

Reviews

AWFJ Presents: Julie Taymor’s A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM – Review by Joan Amenn

June 3, 2022June 3, 2022 Joan Amenn A Midsummer Night’s Dream, awfj presents, David Harewood, Film Movement, jake horowitz, julie taymor, Kathryn Hunter, Lilly Englert, Mandi Masden, Zach Appelman

Movie of the Week Reviews

MOVIE OF THE WEEK October 9, 2020: THE GLORIAS

October 4, 2020October 11, 2020 Jennifer Merin 0 Comments alicia vikander, betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, gloria steinem, jennifer merin, julianne moore, julie taymor, leslie combemale, liz whittemore, loren king, Lulu Wilson, maryann johanson, motw, Movie of the Week, nell minow, nikki baughan, Pam Grady, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, sandie angulo chen, susas wloszczyna, the glorias

Modern feminism owes a lot to Gloria Steinem, and director Julie Taymor revels in explaining why in The Glorias, her creative biopic about a woman who has fought tirelessly throughout her life for the rights of all women. Taking the title of Steinem’s autobiography — My Life on the Road — literally, Taymor centers her story on a bus on which primary passengers are Steinem at different ages: child (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), young teen (Lulu Wilson), young woman (Alicia Vikander), and mature activist (Julianne Moore).

Reviews

THE GLORIAS – Review by Loren King

October 2, 2020October 4, 2020 Loren King 0 Comments alicia vikander, gloria steinem, julianne moore, julie taymor, Lulu Wilson, motw, Movie of the Week, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, the glorias

Even if you’ve traveled through much of Gloria Steinem’s life already — whether by her book My Life on the Road; the play Gloria: A Life written by Emily Mann and directed by Diane Paulus; or the recent Hulu series Mrs. America —Julie Taymor’s inventive, sometimes fantastical, movie The Glorias is a worthwhile trip. Written by Taymor and playwright Sarah Ruhl, much of the material is familiar but no less eye-opening as Taymor follows the feminist trailblazer at different stages of her life, when she is played by four different actresses.

Reviews

THE GLORIAS – Review by Susan Wloszczyna

October 2, 2020October 2, 2020 Susan Wloszczyna 0 Comments alicia vikander, gloria steinem, julianne moore, julie taymor, Lulu Wilson, motw, Movie of the Week, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, the glorias

The good news about The Glorias is that Julie Taymor tries to avoid biopic clichés as she employs four actresses at different ages to tell the story of feminist icon Gloria Steinem’s life. But while indulging in her usual visual panache on screen, the director is almost too ambitious in trying to bring this notable legend to life.

Interviews

Gloria Steinem on THE GLORIAS, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Women’s Right’s Now – Gill Pringle interviews

September 29, 2020September 30, 2020 Gill Pringle (Archived Contributor) 0 Comments alicia vikander, gloria steinem, julianne moore, julie taymor, Lulu Wilson, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, the glorias

Gloria Steinem was still numb with disbelief when we spoke just hours after the death of her old friend, Ruth Bader Ginsberg. The purpose of our chat was for a very different and joyous reason – to talk about Julie Taymor’s adaptation of Steinem’s memoir, My Life on the Road, into a dazzling feature film starring Julianne Moore and Alicia Vikander. “I was so moved that they wanted to do it,” she says of the illustrious actors playing the activist at various ages in The Glorias.

Interviews

Julie Taymor on THE GLORIAS and Female Collectivity – Leslie Combemale interviews

September 29, 2020September 30, 2020 Leslie Combemale 0 Comments alicia vikander, gloria steinem, julianne moore, julie taymor, Lulu Wilson, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, the glorias

Julie Taymor has been making films in Hollywood since way before the recent uptick of (finally) hiring female filmmakers, so she knows a thing or two about fighting, or perhaps better to say, subverting the patriarchy. Her new film The Glorias takes audiences through the life (so far) of political activist, writer, and feminist organizer Gloria Steinem. Given the p*ssy-grabbing hot mess America has become in the last 4 years, the film is landing right on time.

Reviews

THE GLORIAS – Review by Martha K Baker

September 29, 2020September 30, 2020 Martha K. Baker 0 Comments alicia vikander, gloria steinem, julianne moore, julie taymor, Lulu Wilson, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, the glorias

Twin a feminist icon with a theater icon, and you produce one remarkable film. Director Julie Taymor (The Lion King on stage and screen) based her screenplay for The Glorias on Gloria Steinem’s 2015 memoir, My Life on the Road. As a theatrical director, she knows the power of metaphor, of design, of production.

Commentaries

20 Femme-Helmers in the 2020 Oscars Pipeline – Susan Wloszczyna reports

September 11, 2020September 14, 2020 Susan Wloszczyna 0 Comments ampas, autumn de wilde, Cate shortland, chloe zhao, Clea Duvall, Gina Prince-Bythewood, halle berry, jane campion, julie taymor, Liesl Tommy, Lila Neugebaur, mary Harron, oscars, Philippa Lowthorpe, rebecca hall, regina king, robin wright, sally potter, sia, sofia coppola

One upside to this topsy-turvy season is the release of superb femme-centric, femme-helmed titles that are solid Oscars contenders that could easily make the Best Picture and Best Director cut. There are at least five actresses making their directing debuts, a pop star going behind the camera, old-school directors, new-school directors, blockbuster overseers and at least two former competitors in the category. Here is what might be the best of an encouragingly large batch.

Festivals News

Women At Sundance 2020: Cause for Celebration – Leslie Combemale reports

January 28, 2020January 28, 2020 Leslie Combemale 0 Comments aisha harris, amy emmerich, gloria steinem, hilary clinton, julie taymor, keri putnam, pat mitchell, radha blank, sundance film festival, women at sundance

The Women at Sundance Celebration will be one of the highlights of my festival. I’m sure that’s true for many of those who attended it. It highlighted not only the work of two American icons, it celebrated new voices of all ages, backgrounds, and cultures, and it did so in the spirit of collaboration and cooperation. That is the essence of the female gaze.