By Jake Coyle, Film Writer
CANNES, France (AP) --Jeff Nichols' quiet drama about the profound and simple love that toppled interracial marriage restrictions in the United States made its debut at the Cannes Film Festival on Monday.
The film, "Loving," stars Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton as Mildred and Richard Loving, whose marriage got them jailed and exiled from Virginia but ultimately led to a landmark 1967 Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality.
"Loving," which will open theatrically in the heart of awards season in November, is an unconventional civil rights drama in that it doesn't swell with amplified Hollywood moments or a heroic courtroom climax. Instead, it's a straightforward portrait of the couple.
"I wanted to make a movie about two people in love," said Nichols, the Arkansas director of "Mud" and "Midnight Special." ''I truly believe this is one of the most pure love stories in American history."
Nichols said he wanted to make the film outside of politics, though he referenced the story's obvious resonance to today. Lost in the pitched political battles, he said, are the lives of the individuals.
"We can talk about bathroom laws and all of this ridiculousness because it's not attached to people," he told reporters, referring to the North Carolina bill that restricts public facility use by transgender individuals to their biological sex. "It's just these politics ideas and I think that's a waste of time."
The Lovings were humble, reluctant heroes, themselves. Their tender marriage was famously photographed by Life magazine's Grey Villet (Michael Shannon in the film) in 1967 with the headline: "The Crime of Being Married."
For Negga, the Ethiopian-Irish actress of AMC's upcoming "Preacher," the role was a personal and professional culmination.
"It was like being with a friend for two years," she said of Mildred. "I fell deeply in love with Mildred and Richard and their story. I think we all just wanted to do them justice."
"One of the things that struck me while working on this film is, what happens between two individuals is nobody else's business," Edgerton said.
Focus Features will release "Loving" in North America on Nov. 4.
Damien Chazelle, Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons On The Return Of “Whiplash” To Theaters After 10 Years
Ten years after " Whiplash " took the film world by storm, Damien Chazelle's breakthrough feature is returning to theaters nationwide Friday.
In 2014, "Whiplash" was the ultimate indie movie Cinderella story — a Sundance discovery made by a 20-something that that would go on to become both a box office hit and an awards darling: It won three Oscars, including for J.K. Simmons ' portrayal of a semi-sadistic and ever quotable jazz ensemble instructor; launched Chazelle's directing career into the A-list stratosphere; and established Miles Teller as a next generation movie star. Now, audiences will get another chance to experience it on the big screen.
Chazelle, Teller and Simmons spoke recently about the re-release, their memories of the 20-day shoot (including when Teller accidentally broke his co-star's rib) and making something with staying power. Remarks have been edited for clarity and brevity.
Q: What has it been like watching "Whiplash" settle into the culture in the past decade?
CHAZELLE: It's very cool, a little surreal. It doesn't feel like 10 years. It's fun to have a moment like this to relive it a little bit.
SIMMONS: It's sobering to know that I'm 10 years older. It's kind of shocking and kind of awesome that the movie actually holds up. I just saw it a few days ago in Toronto: That's a good piece of cinema.
TELLER: This is the first time I've ever had a movie re-released. I'm still fairly young into my career, but it's an incredible movie. The one thing that's frustrating for me is that people just yell out at me all the time, " not my tempo." So that's stuck around well.
SIMMONS: Maybe if you get the tempo... Read More