THE SCREEN WATCHING INTERVIEW: RENATE REINSVE

Norwegian director Joachim Trier knew from her one line reading in his 2011 film Oslo, August 31 that Renate Reinsve was leading lady material, a star n the waiting. But ten years later, the star had yet to rise, so Trier wrote a film for her.

THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD is the story of 'Julie', a young woman dealing with the expectations of life - romance, parenthood, work, peace of mind - and what happens if they take a bit of time to figure out.

Renate Reinsve embodies Julie in a performance that is so naturally warm and winning, it won her the Best Actress Award at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. She is now the star that Trier envisioned she would be, with Oscar buzz generating and the international film world at her feet.

From her home in Norway, Screen Watching's Simon Foster spoke with Renate Reinsve about the decade it took for her to be an overnight success, why 'Julie' is connecting with audiences all over the world and her vision for a Norwegian film industry renaissance...

IN AUSTRALIAN CINEMAS FROM DECEMBER 26

SCREEN WATCHING EPISODE 41

THAT PHOTO ASIDE, IT'S 'HAPPY WEEK' HERE AT SCREEN WATCHING! 

EPISODE 41 IS HERE

Between bottle warming and nappy changes, new dad Dan and ‘Unky Sime’ produce a podcast classic. We review a fresh spin on the Star Wars universe; an Air B’n’B horror story; a prestige sci-fi offering from AppleTV; and, new pics from Mark Wahlberg and Nicholas Cage. Plus we remember those great screen moments when man and animal were as one (a step down for animals, let’s face it…) Like/share/follow...Enjoy!

REVIEWS (03.41)
STAR WARS: VISIONS (Disney+); JOE BELL (in cinemas); DAN BROWN’S THE LOST SYMBOL (Paramount+); SUPERHOST (via Shudder); FOUNDATION (Apple TV+); PIG (in cinemas now)

The SCREEN WATCHING MIDDLE BIT (39.40)
THE BEST HUMAN/ANIMAL CO-STARS: Not for the first time, we’ve been inspired by Nicholas Cage. He does his best work in years opposite a pig in PIG, which got us thinking...who are the best human/animal on-screen co-stars in film/TV history? 

The WEEK AHEAD (54.43)
The return of Jon Stewart; NCIS goes to Hawaii; where to watch a ‘90s sports comedy classic; we remember the passing of a Hollywood icon; and, which LA power couple share the same birthday...25 years apart!?!

PLUS LOTS MORE!

SCREEN WATCHING EPISODE 40

IN EPISODE 40, WE REMAKE INGMAR BERGMAN’S 1973 PODCAST, SCREEN WATCHING.

LISTEN HERE

From their rock-solid relationship base, Dan & Simon cast a judgey eye over this week’s water-cooler TV content, Scenes From a Marriage; check out the new issues-based anthology series, The Premise; and go deep into the South American jungle, with Ainbo. Simon speaks with actress/director Mélanie Laurent about her new Amazon Prime feature, The Mad Women’s Ball. And the lads are overcome with ambivalence while guessing this week’s Emmy honorees. Enjoy!

REVIEWS (01:55)
Scenes From a Marriage (US: HBO | AUS: Foxtel/Binge); The Premise (US: FX | AUS: Foxtel/Binge); AINBO: Spirit of The Amazon (in cinemas now).

THE SCREEN WATCHING MIDDLE BIT (21:32)  
MELANIE LAURENT (Dir: The Mad Women's Ball)
Mélanie Laurent has been a superstar actress, acclaimed theatre director and filmmaking force for two decades in Europe, with occasional Hollywood forays for directors Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds, 2009), Denis Villeneuve (Enemy, 2013) and Michael Bay (6 Underground, 2019). Her latest project is as writer, director and co-star of Amazon Prime's adaptation of the Victoria Mas bestseller, THE MAD WOMEN'S BALL. On the eve of her film's World Premiere at the Toronto Film Festival, Mélanie Laurent spoke with Simon about the relevance of her historical narrative in today's world, the bond she shares with her star Lou de Laâge and embracing the spiritual in a place of madness...

THE WEEK AHEAD (31:19)
Amazon Prime’s fresh take on an Australian TV favourite; AppleTV+ launches Season 2 of star-heavy flagship, The Morning Show; and, we dance ‘The Batusi’ in celebration of this week’s birthday boys…

PLUS LOTS MORE!

THE SCREEN WATCHING INTERVIEW: MELANIE LAURENT

Mélanie Laurent has been a superstar actress, acclaimed theatre director and fierce filmmaking force for two decades in Europe, with occasional forays into Hollywood for such directors as Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds, 2009), Denis Villeneuve (Enemy, 2013) and Michael Bay (6 Underground, 2019).

WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW + TRAILER HERE

Her latest project is as writer, director and co-star of Amazon Prime's THE MAD WOMEN'S BALL, the story of Eugenie, a young woman living a well-to-do life in 19th century France whose gift is hearing the dead. After her family discovers her secret, she is taken to La Pitié Salpétrière Hospital, her destiny becoming entwined with that of Laurent's Geneviève, a nurse struggling with her own inner madness.

On the eve of her film's World Premiere at the Toronto Film Festival, and with the September 17 global launch on Amazon Prime just days away, Mélanie Laurent spoke with SCREEN WATCHING's Simon Foster about the relevance of her historical narrative in today's world, the bond she shares with her star Lou de Laâge and embracing the spiritual in a place of madness...

SCREEN WATCHING EPISODE 39

EPISODE 39 FEATURES INTERNS, TRUE CRIME, UFOS AND TEENAGE DOCTORS. NOW THAT'S PODCASTING!

LISTEN HERE

We welcome back a TV favourite with Disney’s gender-swap Hawaiian romp, Doogie Kamealoha M.D. (listen and laugh at Dan’s attempts to pronounce that!); recall that very 90s moment when a US President did not have sexual relations with a young intern; ask the question, “Are we alone?’, with J.J. Abrams’s new series, UFO; plus, this week in film/TV history, celeb birthdays, and some moustache talk. Yeah, that’s right. Enjoy!

REVIEWS (01:55):

AMERICAN CRIME STORY: IMPEACHMENT (Foxtel/Binge); KATE (Netflix); DOOGIE KAMEALOHA, M.D. (Disney+); UFO (Paramount+); Y: THE LAST MAN (Binge)

The MIDDLE BIT (25:08):

OUR FAVOURITE MOVIES & TV SHOWS BASED ON TRUE CRIME: His success with the American Crime Story franchise has made Ryan Murphy the King of True Crime Adaptations, but he’s hardly the first showrunner/producer to dip into real-life felony and misdemeanours to tell a good story…

THE WEEK AHEAD (38:27):

Where to watch the MTV Video Music Awards (hint: on MTV); Dan finds some late night thrills watching The Voyeurs; Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival and Sydney Underground Film Festival go online; and, a happy birthday to the handsome, charismatic, widely adored Friday Night Lights star, who many say looks a lot like Simon…

PLUS LOTS MORE!