Dailies is a round-up of essential film writing, news bits, and other highlights from our colleagues across the Internet — and, occasionally, our own writers. If you’d like to submit a piece for consideration, get in touch with us in the comments below or on Twitter at @TheFilmStage.
Watch Dennis Hopper discuss Easy Rider, released 45 years ago today, on The Merv Griffin Show in 1971:
On the latest episode of The Cinephiliacs, Peter Labuza talks to J. Hoberman.
At To Be Cont’d, Nick Newman begins a conversation on the contradictions and half-truths in the films of Todd Haynes:
There are many places one might start with the work of Todd Haynes, and though there are numerous overlaps between works, no title could fit into any traditional category. In spite of how clear-headed and assured he seems as both a formalist and storyteller, what we have is a filmography built on contradictions and half-truths, often propelled by the unease of what cannot be known. There’s too much empathy and deeply felt pain to pin him as some overly clever, game-playing sort, yet much of the dramatic action in his films is either instigated by or concludes with an unresolved matter. To name just a few: who is Brian Slade, the elusive rocker played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers in Haynes’ 1998 film Velvet Goldmine? Why must Carol White, a housewife played by Julianne Moore in 1995’s Safe, endure an overwhelming sickness? And can Bob Dylan, the central figure of 2007’s I’m Not There, ever be understood?
Watch the debut teaser for Studio Ghibli’s first animated series, Ronia the Robber’s Daughter:
At Vulture, Kyle Buchanan on how Belle became the summer movie season’s secret hit:
It’s been more than okay for Asante since Belle earned the coveted stamp of approval from the mighty O: This past week, the movie (released in the U.S. on May 2) crossed the $10 million mark, solidifying its status as a summer sleeper hit. Remarkably, Belle earned that eye-popping gross on no more than 525 screens at its peak, and when it comes to specialty releases this year, only The Grand Budapest Hotel and Chef have done better. Indie entries like Under the Skin, Veronica Mars, Obvious Child, and The Rover may have gotten more ink, but when it comes to theatrical runs, Belle has now outgrossed all four of those movies combined.