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In 2018, Den Of Thieves delivered the goods and was a ballsy attempt to rob the unrobbable Los Angeles Federal Reserve. It did modest but respectable business globally considering its limited ambitions, and that apparently was just enough to justify a sequel. In Den Of Thieves 2: Pantera, Gerard Butler, O’Shea Jackson Jr. and company head to Europe for another brazen robbery, this time at the top-security World Diamond Center in Nice, where the cop and the crook join forces to penetrate a thief-proof vault full of valuable deposit boxes with millions of dollars of jewels including an uber-desirable pink diamond stolen from the Mafia who wants it back. It’s complicated.

Ditching the L.A. locations of the first (actually doubled by Atlanta), this turns into a lush European and more...

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The Penguin is a gritty crime drama series created by Lauren LeFranc. Based on the DC Comics character of the same name created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, the HBO series is set in the world of Matt Reeves‘ The Batman and it follows the story of Oswald “Oz” Cobb aka Penguin a few weeks after the events of The Batman as he tries to gain power after the death of Carmine Falcone, but Carmine’s daughter Sofia Falcone is also thinking of doing the same. The Penguin stars Colin Farrell in the lead role with Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz, Mark Strong, Michael Kelly, Deirdre O’Connell, and Clancy Brown starring in supporting roles. So, if you loved the gritty criminal world, compelling characters, and a thrilling story in The Penguin here are some similar shows you should check out next.

Six months after world-premiering to poor reviews at the Venice Film Festival, Roman Polanski’s latest film “The Palace” has been acquired by a French distribution company, Swashbuckler Films.

The Paris-based banner, which specializes in classic movies, is hoping to release “The Palace” on May 15. The company’s owner, Sebastien Tiveyrat, told Variety he hasn’t yet obtained the exhibition visa from the National Film Board and hasn’t started contacting exhibitors in France to book theaters.

Although Polanski’s inclusion at the Venice festival sparked a controversy due to the fact that he’s still currently facing sexual assault allegations, “The Palace” sold across many territories, including Germany, Russia, Hungary, Estonia, Bulgaria and French-speaking Switzerland where it came out between September and January. The black comedy will next open in Portugal on April 4. Goodfellas handles international sales on the movie.

“The Palace” takes place during New Year’s Eve...

Sky Studios is developing prequel series to Gomorrah and Romanzo Criminale.

The pair of shows are widely regarded to be two of the most successful Italian TV series of all time.

Inspired by Roberto Saviano’s bestseller, the untitled Gomorrah prequel from ITV Studios-backed Cattleya will spotlight the criminal rise of boss Pietro Savastano, from when he was a kid on the streets to becoming the most important and ruthless boss in Naples. Leonardo Fasoli and Maddalena Ravagli will once again work on the screenplay.

Gomorrah ran for five seasons on Sky between 2014 and 2021, totalling 58 episodes, while a 2008 film of the same name was loosely based on the book. The TV show starred the likes of Marco D’Amore, Salvatore Esposito and Fortunato Cerlino.

Meanwhile, Romanzo Criminale – La serie will focus on the years before the rise of the Banda della Magliana criminal organization, as recounted in the two seasons of the original series,...

"The Palace" is a new 'black comedy' feature directed by Roman Polanski ("Chinatown"), starring Oliver Masucci, Fanny Ardant, John Cleese, Joaquim de Almeida, Barbareschi, Milan Peschel, Bronwyn James, Fortunato Cerlino, Michelle Shapa and Mickey Rourke, with a North American theatrical release Tba:

"...the film takes place on 'New Year's Eve' 1999, where a dinner party at the 'Gstaad Palace' takes an unexpected turn.."

Click the images to enlarge...

Roman Polanski’s black comedy “The Palace” was given a tepid three-minutes of applause when it world premiered in the Palazzo del Cinema’s Sala Grande on Saturday night.

Producer Luca Barbareschi, French star Fanny Ardant and other key cast members including German actor Oliver Masucci (“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore”), Portugal’s Joaquim de Almeida and Italy’s Fortunato Cerlino (”Gomorrah”) stood up and took a bow, but the audience’s response seemed to be more polite than exited, though there were occasional bursts of laughter during the screening.

Before the film’s premiere “The Palace” set designer Tonino Zera received Venice’s Campari Passion for Film prize from artistic director Alberto Barbera.

Polanski directed the black comedy from a screenplay he wrote alongside Jerzy Skolimowski and Ewa Piaskowska. “The Palace” takes place during New Year’s Eve in 1999, when a dinner party at Switzerland’s Gstaad Palace hotel takes an unexpected turn.

Exclusive: There has been mystery for weeks over which Hollywood talent will attend the Venice Film Festival amid the two strikes but the clouds are finally starting to lift.

We’ve confirmed with sources that Ferrari star Adam Driver will be on the Lido next week to promote Michael Mann’s anticipated new movie, thus becoming the biggest U.S. actor to date to commit to the festival. The Daily Mail first reported that news.

Ferrari secured an interim agreement from SAG a while back so this isn’t hugely surprising but there was still a question over whether SAG actors would feel uncomfortable over the ‘optics’. They may still. But SAG-AFTRA leadership were adamant yesterday that actors in movies with interim agreements should be at festivals to promote them. Their message: this is helpful to independent cinema and the cause. That affirmation from SAG helped a number of actors make up their minds.

Italian production designer Tonino Zera, whose credits include Roman Polanski’s upcoming drama The Palace, will be feted with the Campari Passion Award at the 80th edition of Venice Film Festival, running from August 30 to September 9.

The prize, which was launched at the 75th Venice Film Festival, pays tribute to cinema crafts professionals who have made a “remarkable contribution” to the films on which they have worked.

Previous recipients span U.S. film editor Bob Murawski, Italian cinematographer Luca Bigazzi, U.S. jazz trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard, UK production designer Marcus Rowland, and U.S. artist and costume designer Arianne Phillips.

Zera will be presented with the award on September 2 ahead of the Out of Competition world premiere of The Palace in the Sala Grande.

“To receive the prestigious Campari Passion for Film Award during the Venice Film Festival is not only a personal honor, it is also a...

Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera has shown once again that he is not scared to court controversy.

The festival head has given Roman Polanski a safe festival berth for his new movie The Palace at Venice, in a selection that is likely to spark debate alongside the inclusion of Woody Allen’s Coeur de Chance.

They are among 12 films due to play Out of Competition at the 80th edition running August 30 to September 9.

Barbera told Italian journalists in a Q&a after the main lineup announcement that Polanski, who turns 90 in August, will not make the trip to the Lido, while Woody is down to attend.

Related: Venice Is Still Hopeful That Its Red Carpet Will Be Full Of Stars If Movies Such As ‘Ferrari’, ‘Priscilla’ & More Are Granted SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreements

The Palace will still make for a starry red carpet with its ensemble cast featuring Oliver Masucci,...

Exclusive: Following the successful theatrical run of her latest directorial effort Cocaine Bear, a Uni horror comedy that grossed over $87M worldwide, Elizabeth Banks (Pitch Perfect franchise) has been set to topline Skincare, a new film from Iervolino & Lady Bacardi Entertainment and producers Jonathan Schwartz and Logan Lerman, which wrapped production prior to the writers’ strike.

Starring alongside Banks are Lewis Pullman (Top Gun: Maverick), Michaela Jaé Rodriguez (Pose), Luis Gerardo Méndez (The Resort) and Nathan Fillion (The Rookie).

Directed by Austin Peters, Skincare is described as a vanity thriller set in Hollywood, though specifics as to its plot are under wraps. Peters wrote the script with Deering Regan and Sam Freilich. The film is the third on which Schwartz and Lerman have collaborated on as producers following A24’s The Vanishing of Sidney Hall and Cj Enm’s Press Play. Andrea Iervolino and Lady Monika Bacardi financed and produced...

Italy’s 01 Distribution has announced a September 28 release for Roman Polanski’s new feature The Palace, fueling speculation that the film will world premiere at the upcoming edition of the Venice Film Festival (August 30-September 9).

The distributor, which had previously set an April date for the work which came and went, announced the new release date via its social media accounts on June 7 and revealed the artwork for the film.

È il 31 Dicembre 1999 e al lussuoso The Palace Hotel fervono i preparativi per il Capodanno più atteso di sempre. Ospiti milionari da tutto il mondo si preparano ad entrare nel Nuovo Millennio, tra vezzi, vizi e stravaganze. #ThePalace, di #RomanPolanski, dal 28.09 al cinema. pic.twitter.com/bkSRBtqs1R

— 01Distribution (@01Distribution) June 7, 2023

The move immediately sparked suggestions that the film is headed to Venice, where last film An Officer And A Spy also world premiered in 2019.

Artistic director Alberto Barbera...

Roman Polanski’s “The Palace” has been set for release in Italian theatres in September, prompting speculation that the controversial director’s black comedy set in a posh hotel in the Swiss Alps resort of Gstaad on the eve of the new millennium could be launching from the Venice Film Festival.

Italy’s Rai Cinema, which is a main backer of Polanski’s new film, has slated a September 28 local release date via its 01 Distribuzione unit for “The Palace,” which has an ensemble cast including Mickey Rourke, John Cleese and Fanny Ardant. Other key cast members include German actor Oliver Masucci (“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore”); Portugal’s Joaquin De Almeida; the U.K.’s Bronwyn James (“The Dig”) and Italy’s Fortunato Cerlino (”Gomorrah”).

The Palace/Courtesy Rai Cinema

Besides announcing the release date, production company Eliseo Entertainment and Rai Cinema have also issued a dippy decadent poster...

Britannia will not be returning for a fourth season. The historical fiction drama, which aired on Sky in the UK and Epix (now MGM+) in the United States, has been cancelled, leaving a significant cliffhanger unresolved, per Deadline.

Starring Kelly Reilly, David Morrissey, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Liana Cornell, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Mackenzie Crook, Barry Ward, Stanley Weber, Joe Armstrong, Fortunato Cerlino, Callie Cooke, Aaron Pierre, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Zoë Wanamaker, Ian McDiarmid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Hugo Speer, Daniel Caltagirone, Zaqi Ismail, and Annabel Schol, the Britannia series is set in the year 43 Ad as the Romans invade Britain.

Read More…...

Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend is a movie written and directed by Robert Moresco, starring Frank Grillo and Mira Sorvino.

A standard biopic that, true enough, revitalizes an era, but does not give us much more than a glimpse of the 50’s and 60’s Italy.

Frank Grillo does, though, offer us a very good portrayal in a role that fits him like a glove.

Premise

Ferruccio Lamborghini start was in tractor manufacturing. Once World War II started, he turned to the manufacture of military vehicles, which ultimately led him to become the designer of the high end Lamborghini cars. The company took another turn in 1963 dedicating its capacities to the manufacture of sports cars Automobili Lamborghini.

Movie Review

Most of us know the Brand, and now we are offered a chronicle of the history behind high end sports cars. It is interesting, but does not shine on a dramatic and artistic level.

The cars are the stars in “Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend,” a pamphletized biopic that does the easy thing — beautifying Italy and vintage automobiles — but stalls with everything involving humans.

Starring Frank Grillo as the titular engineer and carmaker in middle age, writer-director Bobby Moresco’s admiring portrait is a gauzy, stuffy showroom piece that romanticizes everything from piazzas and vineyards to factory floors and car engines but never gets out of first gear in dramatizing a dreamer’s achievement or — when it came to upsetting the dominance of Ferrari in the auto world — a competitor’s drive.

The latter element is tritely illustrated by the recurring use of an imagined nighttime drag race in which Grillo, behind the wheel of his character’s famous ‘70s Countach design, squares off on a lonely road against Ferrari (Gabriel Byrne) in one of his ‘80s-era models. But no matter how many...

There was a time, not so long ago, when Roman Polanski was the toast of the film industry in France, where the director has been living since 1978, when he fled the United States before sentencing after pleading guilty to having unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl.

Despite the scandal and ongoing legal issues, the veteran auteur has flourished as a filmmaker in his adopted country, celebrated as a lifelong member of France’s illustrious Academie des Beaux Arts (Academy of Fine Arts) and showered with a half-dozen César Awards, the latest three of which, including best director, are for his 2019 drama “An Officer and a Spy.”

But things are changing. The director’s latest César win, combined with more recent allegations of sexual misconduct, sparked outrage from French feminist groups and led to the 21-member board of the organization that oversees the Césars to resign en masse. Polanski has denied the more recent misconduct allegations.

Happy Friday readers, Tom here steering the International Insider ship, read on for the week’s top headlines.

UK Broadcaster Shake-Up

Cracking down: The UK government unveiled a landmark White Paper this week that addressed everything from regulation of the global streamers operating in the country to the future of Channel 4. The SVoD services will be hit with fines of up to 5 of their local revenues if they are found to be guilty of showcasing harmful content, according to the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. The rules still need to get the okay from Parliament and will likely come into force in 2024, meaning Netflix and co still have a few years to push the government’s buttons without fear of reprimand – should they wish. Max had the lowdown, along with analysis of several other elements of the government’s vision.

Channel 4 on the block: The government’s...

Exclusive: Monty Python star John Cleese and Gomorrah actor Fortunato Cerlino have been confirmed to us as among supporting cast for Roman Polanski’s new movie The Palace, which is in production in Switzerland.

German actor Oliver Masucci and French actress Fanny Ardant lead cast in the movie, which Wild Bunch is handling for sales. Mickey Rourke also stars.

The drama, set on New Year’s Eve 1999 in a luxurious hotel, sees the lives of hotel workers and various guests intertwine. Script comes from Polanski and fellow Polish veteran Jerzy Skolimowsk while crew includes Polanski’s regular cinematographer Pawel Edelman.

The project was first announced last year by Italian broadcaster Rai as part of their slate. Italian actor-producer Luca Barbareschi is lead producer via his Eliseo Entertainment company. Cab Productions is the Swiss co-producer with Polish outfit Lucky Bob also aboard.

Polanski, director of films including The Pianist, Chinatown and Rosemary’s Baby,...

With a madcap plot and dodgy Michael Madsen cameo, Alessio Della Valle’s crime caper feels like a risible, though not irredeemable, Tarantino replica

Erotic body painting, deadly scorpions, Italian futurism, a ninja stuntman, a Warholian MacGuffin, the singer Anastacia, not one organised-crime faction but four: incorporating all the above and more, this art world-set thriller told non-linear-style believes it’s a scrambled cubist masterpiece. But in truth it is closer to an abstract expressionist hot mess, as writer-director Alessio Della Valle splatters his canvas with everything he can lay his hands on and sees what sticks.

As if he’s force-feeding us the whole of Pulp Fiction in the first 15 minutes, Della Valle initially hops between three characters homing in on the botched exchange of a stolen print of Andy Warhol’s Pink Marilyn: a failed stuntman and would-be courier (Jeremy Piven), his high-class art dealer brother (Jonathan Rhys Meyers...

Exclusive: Biopic Lamborghini has added Northern Rescue actress Eliana Jones.

Frank Grillo (Captain America), Gabriel Byrne (Hereditary), Mira Sorvino (Impeachment: American Crime Story), Giorgio Cantarini (Life Is Beautiful) and Fortunato Cerlino (Gomorrah) lead cast in the movie about Italian sports car founder Ferruccio Lamborghini.

Oscar winner Bobby Moresco (Crash) wrote the screenplay for the long-gestating project and is directing. Filming has been taking place in Emilia Romagna and Rome, Italy.

The film is based on Tonino Lamborghini’s biography of his dad Ferruccio Lamborghini: La Storia Ufficiale (The Official Story). It will chart the long life of the celebrated entrepreneur from the manufacturing of tractors at the start of his career to creating military vehicles during World War II and then on to designing and building the iconic Lamborghini luxury sports cars that ultimately defined his legacy. One the wealthiest men in Italy, Lamborghini had a different car for each...

Exclusive: Gabriel Byrne (Hereditary) and Oscar winner Mira Sorvino (Impeachment: American Crime Story) have joined feature biopic Lamborghini, about Italian sports car founder Ferruccio Lamborghini.

Filming is underway in Italy on the movie, which will star Frank Grillo (Captain America) as Lamborghini. Byrne will play Enzo Ferrari, Lamborghini’s rival. Sorvino plays Annita, Lamborghini’s second wife.

Oscar winner Bobby Moresco (Crash) wrote the screenplay for the long-gestating project and is directing. Filming is underway in Emilia Romagna and Rome.

Supporting cast includes Giorgio Cantarini (Life Is Beautiful) and Fortunato Cerlino (Gomorrah).

The film, which is based on Ferruccio Lamborghini: La Storia Ufficiale (The Official Story), the biography written by his son Tonino Lamborghini, will chart the long life of the celebrated entrepreneur from the manufacturing of tractors at the start of his career to creating military vehicles during World War II and then on to designing and building the...

American Night Trailer Alessio Della Valle‘s American Night (2021) movie trailer has been released by Saban Films. The American Night stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Emile Hirsch, Paz Vega, Michael Madsen, Jeremy Piven, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Andy Warhol, Fortunato Cerlino, Manal El-Feitury, Anastacia, and Marco Leonardi. Crew Alessio Della Valle wrote the screenplay for American Night. [...]

Continue reading: American Night (2021) Movie Trailer: Jonathan Rhys Meyers & Emile Hirsch star in Alessio Della Valle’s Neo-noir Thriller...

ICM Partners represents US rights.

Voltage Pictures continues to grow its virtual Cannes market slate and has acquired international sales rights to art heist thriller American Night Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Emile Hirsch, Paz Vega, and Jeremy Piven.

Alessio Della Valle wrote and directed the story about a New York mob boss (Hirsch) with aspirations to become an artist who crosses paths with an art dealer (Meyers) when Andy Warhol’s ’Pink Marilyn’ is stolen.

Meyers and Piven are shown in the first-look still from the film.

Fortunato Cerlino, Michael Madsen, Annabelle Belmondo and the pop star Anastacia round out the key cast on American Night,...

From launch, critics dogged HBO Max about its higher pricing, the lack of access via Roku — and most of all, the apparent dearth of must-see shows that would make the streamer essential instead of one more platform among so many. Last summer, the complaints were still fresh when HBO Max announced a slate of international acquisitions: There, next to “The Great Pottery Throw Down,” was “Gomorrah.” All four seasons, companion movie “The Immortal,” and a fifth season to come. An Italian mafia drama didn’t get much attention; it wasn’t the stuff of corporate strategy.

But “Gomorrah” is much more than a quirky streamer pickup. For its Italian producer, Cattleya, “Gomorrah” sparked a trend in gritty, real-world storytelling that reshaped Italian TV. Beta Film — a company founded to exploit Federico Fellini’s “La Strada” — licensed “Gomorrah” in nearly 200 countries, and it became one of the most successful properties in its history.

Filming has kicked off on this “Italian genre film of international ambition”, an Italian-Brazilian co-production steered by Minerva Pictures and starring Marco Bocci and Fortunato Cerlino. Shooting kicked off yesterday in Fiumicino - to be continued in Rome and other Lazio-based locations - on A Bunch of Bastards, a thriller directed by 41-year-old director Gabriele Albanesi and produced by Minerva Pictures and Rai Cinema. Already the author of two horror films, Il bosco fuori and Ubaldo Terzani Horror Show, both of which co-produced by Manetti Bros., Albanesi is drawing inspiration from the works of Tarantino for this his third feature film, which sees a criminal barely released from prison make his way to a mountain chalet to pick up some high-value stolen goods, before holding the owners hostage so as to take the booty for himself. Leading the cast of A Bunch of Bastards, written by Albanesi himself in league.

Vulture Watch

Has Rome prevailed? Is the Britannia TV show cancelled or renewed for a second season on Amazon? The television vulture is watching all the latest TV cancellation and renewal news, so this page is the place to track the status of Britannia, season two. Bookmark it, or subscribe for the latest updates. Remember, the television vulture is watching your shows. Are you?   

What's This TV Show About?

An Amazon Prime Video historical drama, Britannia stars Kelly Reilly, David Morrissey, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Liana Cornell, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Mackenzie Crook, Barry Ward, Stanley Weber, Joe Armstrong, Fortunato Cerlino, Callie Cooke, Aaron Pierre, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Zoë Wanamaker, Ian McDiarmid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Hugo Speer, Daniel Caltagirone, Zaqi Ismail, and Annabel Scholey. A century prior, even Julius Caesar failed to conquer Britannia. Now, in 43Ad, Emperor Claudius has dispatched General Aulus (Morrissey) with 400 ships bringing 20,000 men to...

Golden Globe-winner Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Emile Hirsch, Paz Vega, and Golden Globe and Emmy-winner Jeremy Piven will star in American Night, a neo-noir thriller helmed by first-time film director Alessio Jim Della Valle.

Written by Della Valle, the plot follows Michael Rubino (Hirsch) who has just become the Don of the New York Mafia, but his greatest dream is to devote his life to painting and become a great artist. John Kaplan (Meyers), an art dealer, may feel like his life is in shambles, but he still has the best eye for spotting fakes in the world. Their paths, apparently distant, cross when Andy Warhol’s Pink Marilyn is stolen, setting off a series of unexpected events that upend their lives.

Vega will play Sarah,...

Kenneth Mercken makes his feature directorial debut with cycling drama starring Niels Willaerts and Koen De Graeve.

Screen can exclusively reveal the trailer for Coureur, a Belgian drama that will have its international premiere in the Limelight section at Rotterdam.

Kenneth Mercken makes his feature directorial debut with Coureur, which follows Felix, a Flemish cyclist who is willing to risk his lifeto win, and to please his demanding father. Mercken, a former cyclingchampion himself, also wrote the script with Monica Stan. Eurydice Gysel and Koen Mortier produce for Brussels-based Czar Film & TV. Co-producers are Belgium’s Climax Films and Italy’s Kino Produzioni.

Kenneth Mercken makes his feature directorial debut with cycling drama.

Screen can exclusively reveal the trailer for Coureur, a Belgian drama that will have its international premiere in the Limelight section at Rotterdam.

Kenneth Mercken makes his feature directorial debut with Coureur, which follows Felix, a Flemish cyclist who is willing to risk his lifeto win, and to please his demanding father. Mercken, a former cyclingchampion himself, also wrote the script with Monica Stan. Eurydice Gysel and Koen Mortier produce for Brussels-based Czar Film & TV. Co-producers are Belgium’s Climax Films and Italy’s Kino Produzioni.

The cast includes Niels Willaerts,...

The Britannia TV show has been renewed for a second season on Sky Atlantic, as well as Sky's streaming service Now TV, which services UK and Ireland. Sky Vision handles the international distribution rights -- excluding the United States. The first season of Britannia was an Amazon Prime Original in the Us and was the first co-production between Sky and Amazon Studios. We've reached out to inquire as to whether Amazon has renewed Britannia for season two, as well. When we know more, you will, too. A historical drama, the first season of Britannia on Sky Atlantic and Amazon stars Kelly Reilly, David Morrissey, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Liana Cornell, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Mackenzie Crook, Barry Ward, Stanley Weber, Joe Armstrong, Fortunato Cerlino, Callie Cooke, Aaron Pierre, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Zoë Wanamaker, Ian McDiarmid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Hugo Speer, Daniel Caltagirone, Zaqi Ismail,...

Author: Competitions

To mark the release of Gomorrah – The Series: Season 1-3 Box Set on 12th March, we’ve been given 5 copies to give away on Blu-ray.

Gomorrah is the inside story of fierce Neapolitan crime organisation the Camorra, as seen through the eyes of Ciro (Marco D Amore), the obedient and self-confident right-hand man of the clan s godfather, Pietro Savastano (Fortunato Cerlino), whose loyalty is tested to its limits over twelve blood-drenched episodes.

Ciro knows better than anyone what it means to be a loyal clan member. But when Pietro decides to sacrifice many of his own only to make a blood-drenched statement to rival clan boss Salvatore Conte, something dies in Ciro for one of the many victims of the bloodshed is his foster father Attilio, himself an ever-loyal clan member.

Please note: This competition is open to UK residents only

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The Small Print...

Is the Roman invasion a success in the first season of the Britannia TV show on Amazon? As we all know, the Nielsen ratings typically play a big role in determining whether TV shows are cancelled or renewed. Amazon and other streaming platforms, however, collect their own data. If you've been watching this TV series, we'd love to know how you feel about the Britannia season one episodes. We invite you to rate them for us, below. An Amazon historical drama, Britannia stars Kelly Reilly, David Morrissey, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Liana Cornell, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Mackenzie Crook, Barry Ward, Stanley Weber, Joe Armstrong, Fortunato Cerlino, Callie Cooke, Aaron Pierre, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Zoë Wanamaker, Ian McDiarmid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Hugo Speer, Daniel Caltagirone, Zaqi Ismail, and Annabel Scholey. A century prior, even Julius Caesar failed to conquer Britannia. Now, in 43Ad, Emperor...

Network: Amazon. Episodes: Ongoing (hour). Seasons: Ongoing. TV show dates: January 26, 2018 — present. Series status: Has not been cancelled. Performers include: Kelly Reilly, David Morrissey, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Liana Cornell, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Mackenzie Crook, Barry Ward, Stanley Weber, Joe Armstrong, Fortunato Cerlino, Callie Cooke, Aaron Pierre, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Zoë Wanamaker, Ian McDiarmid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Hugo Speer, Daniel Caltagirone, Zaqi Ismail, and Annabel Scholey. TV show description: From creators Jez Butterworth and Tom Butterworth, the Britannia TV show is a British historical drama, which airs on Sky Atlantic in UK. The story kicks off in the year 43Ad, at the far reaches of the Roman Empire. A century earlier, even Julius Caesar was been unable to subdue the wild land of...

In the age of branding and franchises, every existing story has added value. But not every film is fit for TV.

The challenge of adapting movies to a new medium is a tricky one with no clear-cut way to do it. Many new series credit “Fargo” as their benchmark, citing its tone and setting as inspiration for creating a new world around the best parts of what came before. That’s all well and good, but there are as many failed attempts to replicate Noah Hawley’s strategy as successes.

Similarly, some carbon copies — using the same characters and plot points as the preceding movie — are just as good, if not better than their cinematic predecessors. Because any way can work, many various attempts have been made. There’s no right way to do it, but there are a lot of wrong ways; as evidenced by the growing pile of canceled shows based on movies.

“Gomorrah” is returning to SundanceTV this April for a 12-episode second season. A new trailer for season 2 of Italy’s most popular crime drama teases new car chases, explosions, killings and lots of gunfire.

Read More: ‘American Gods’ Trailer: Neil Gaiman’s Best-Seller Comes to the Small Screen — Watch

Season 2 picks up moments after the end of the first season: Don Pietro Savastano (Fortunato Cerlino) has escaped from the prison van. Genny’s boys have been killed by rival Conte, and Ciro di Marzio (Marco D’Amore) has shot Genny (Salvatore Esposito). The new season sees Ciro, Genny and Savastano fighting (and killing) for absolute domination over organized crime in the Italian city of Naples.

“Gomorrah” is based on Roberto Saviano’s 2006 non-fiction bestseller of the same name. The book was adapted for the big screen and won the Grand Prix prize at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival.

Read More: ‘The...

It's a new year and SundanceTV has some new seasons in store. Today, the network announced the new seasons of Hap and Leonard and Gomorrah will debut this spring.Based on the books by Joe R. Lansdale, Hap and Leonard follows two best friends (James Purefoy and Michael Kenneth Williams) entangled in a murder case in 1980s East Texas. Set in the suburbs of Naples, Gomorrah tells the inside story of the Camorra, the fierce Neapolitan crime organization. The cast includes Marco D’Amore and Fortunato Cerlino.Read More…...

“Gomorrah,” an Italian crime series imported by SundanceTV after finding much success overseas, is largely set at night. That darkness may be the first — and possibly most significant — change that fans of the 2008 film notice.

Matteo Garrone’s original feature used light to boldly depict the violence overwhelming his home country. But the series from Leonardo Fasoli, Giovanni Bianconi, Stefano Bises, Ludovica Rampoldi and Roberto Saviano (yes, they’re all credited as creators) uses shadows to its advantage, providing stark contrast between the hidden lifestyle of a mafia family and the stark realities of its results.

It’s not the only change from the Cannes Grand Jury Prize winner, but the shift affects more than just the challenge of watching in daylight. The serialized take on “Gomorrah” — which has aired two seasons already in Italy, with two more on the way — feels like a much more straightforward crime story; one...

American pop culture is filled with stories of organized crime. From “The Godfather” to “The Sopranos,” many acclaimed films and TV shows have portrayed the inherent drama in mafia subculture. Now, American audiences have another compelling mob story to hold their interest, and this time it’s actually from Italy. The Italian crime drama “Gomorrah” follows Neapolitan organized crime and the complex interpersonal relationships between gangsters and ordinary citizens trying to live their lives. The series’ protagonist is Ciro (Marco D’Amore), or “The Immortal,” the right-hand man to feared crime boss Don Pietro Savastano (Fortunato Cerlino), who instigates a violent turf war between two rival factions. Watch an exclusive clip from the series below featuring Don Peitro accusing a subordinate of ratting him out to the cops.

Read More: Looking For the Next Great Mob Drama? It Might Be Italy’s ‘Gomorrah’

The series is based on Roberto Saviano...

The Italian mob drama Gomorrah was first described to me as "Italy's The Wire." That's an unfair label to hang on any new show, and one that for the most part doesn't even really fit, as Gomorrah is a much more traditional crime show, without most of the larger sociological interests that made The Wire one of the best series in TV history. But as I watched the early installments of the series, which makes its American debut tonight at 10 on Sundance with back-to-back episodes, I experienced the same two feelings I often hear of from people watching The Wire for the first time: 1)I'm having a hard time keeping track of who anyone is and what their role is in this world. 2)I don't see what the fuss is yet, and I hope this is all adding up to something. With The Wire, I generally tell people to give...

Almost since storytelling began, audiences have been enthralled by the dark side of human nature. In the world of modern entertainment, that fascination has often taken the shape of stories centering on organized crime and the criminal underworld in general. Film and television have been marked by several beloved takes on this particular subject matter, from The Godfather to The Sopranos. So some may wonder if there’s really any new ground to break with regards to mafia-set tales of honor, retaliation and family. Gomorrah proves that there is still dramatic potential in the world of organized crime as well as an opportunity to bring something surprisingly fresh to viewers.

Based on the book by Roberto Saviano, the Italian TV series debuted in 2014 to critical acclaim and quickly drew comparisons to American dramas like The Wire that take a similarly street-level look at crime and the society that supports it in many ways.

[caption id="attachment_48393" align="aligncenter" width="579"] Fortunato Cerlino and Maria Pia Calzone. Photo credit: Emanuela Scarpa./caption]

Acclaimed Italian crime series, Gomorrah, premieres in the Us, Wednesday, August 24th at 10:00pm Et, on SundanceTV. The Gomorrah TV show is based on the best-selling book by journalist Roberto Saviano.

Set in the suburbs of Naples, Gomorrah tells the inside story of the Camorra, the fierce Neapolitan crime organization. Gomorrah is told through the eyes of Ciro Di Marzio (Marco D'Amore), the right hand of the clan’s godfather, Pietro Savastanno (Fortunato Cerlino).

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Exclusive: Gangster drama features stars of Gomorrah, The Young Montalbano and Suburra.

Italian outfit Minerva Pictures is launching sales on Toni D’Angelo’s [pictured] Naples-set gangster melodrama Falchi, taking inspiration from the Southern Italian city’s real-life special police unit known as the “falchi”, or falcons, which is focused on fighting organised crime.

“It’s a powerful gangster-crime melodrama which we’re describing as Johnnie To meets Michael Mann. It mixes an auteur element with action,” said Minerva Pictures chief Gianluca Curti who is producing the film alongside Gaetano Di Vaio of Bronx Film.

Fortunato Cerlino, best-known internationally for his role as mafia clan chief Pietro Savastano in Stefano Sollima’s Gomorrah, and Michele Riondino, of The Young Montalbano fame, will play Peppe and Francesco, two flawed but dedicated officers who work closely in the falcon squad.

Other cast members include Claudio Amendola, seen most recently in Sollima’s Suburra, who will play...

“To the misfortune of the snail.”

“Birds eat thousands of snails every day,” Chiyo tells us at the episode’s opening. “Some of those snails survive digestion, and they emerge to find they’ve traveled the world.” It’s an unearthly image, a story of mindless astronauts propelled into a boundless unknown, and it bears similarities to Will’s symbolic descent into death in pursuit of Hannibal. It even layers the simple act of consuming snails as food with the mythic idea that those snails could survive, that they are edible stories unto themselves. But great television doesn’t live just in a journey’s outwardly incredible qualities. The interior, the rules of the world, should reflect and amplify the exterior, the flow of events and actions constituting the story. ‘Contorno’ is a misfortune of snails, a beautiful thing achieved by confusing and sometimes awkward means.

Even in a show...

Mads Mikkelsen in "Hannibal"Photo: NBC Wait... so she really did throw him from the trainc The fifth episode of this third season of "Hannibal", titled "Contorno", was a weird one for me. For one I appreciate the fact we're all caught up, but at the same time I don't feel as if aspects of what we're dealing with entirely work. That said, once Hannibal (Mads Mikkelsen) gets rolling it's impossible to say anything negative about this show, as you'd much rather just sit back and watch. This week's episode begins with Will (Hugh Dancy) and Chiyo (Tao Okamoto) heading to Florence to hunt Hannibal. Their scenes are overly dramatic and begin spelling things out we are already more than aware of. Chiyo says to Will, "If you don't kill him, you are worried you are going to become him." Is anyone not clear on this yetc In fact, scratch that,...

Recently, NBC delivered the new,official synopsis/spoilers for their upcoming "Hannibal" episode 6 of season 3. The episode is entitled, "Dolce," and it turns out that we're going to see some pretty interesting stuff as Will and Jack reunite. Hannibal plans his final stand, and more. In the new, 6th episode press release: Will And Jack Renew Their Alliance As Hannibal Sets The Table For His Last Supper In Florence. Press release number 2: Sensing their time in Florence is coming to an end, Bedelia Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson) and Hannibal (Mads Mikkelsen) are going to consider their parting as Hannibal plans for his final stand. In the meantime, Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) and Jack Crawford (Jack Crawford) will reunite, but Jack will remain uncertain about Will's true loyalty. Back in the States, Mason Verger (guest star Joe Anderson) is going to hungrily make plans for Hannibal's capture while Alana Bloom...

Gina Torres and Lawrence Fishburne in "Hannibal"Photo: Brooke Palmer / NBC It felt like tonight's episode of "Hannibal" would have been better served as the first or second episode in the season, not the fourth as most everything it covered was pretty much well established to this point. It wasn't a bad episode by any means, it merely seemed to stop the season in its tracks. Perhaps, however, that's a good thing, offering anyone that wasn't up-to-date a chance to play catch up while offering fans (or #Fannibals as has become the popular Twitter hashtag following the show's cancellation at NBC) an emotionally charged episode as Jack (Lawrence Fishburne) finally must say goodbye to Bella (Gina Torres) and Alana Bloom (Caroline Dhavernas) makes a strong first appearance in this third season. Serving as a prequel to everything that's taken place so far this year, the fourth episode of this third season,...

Recently, NBC served up the new, official synopsis/spoilers for their upcoming "Hannibal" episode 5 of season 3. The episode is entitled, "Contorno," and it turns out that we're going to see some pretty drama-filled and intriguing stuff go down as Chiyoh and Will start butting heads over what exactly it is they wish to achieve when it's all said and done, and more! In the new, 5th episode press release: The Search For Hannibal Intensifies. Press release number 2: Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) and Inspector Pazzi (guest star Fortunato Cerlino) are going to search for clues that will lead them closer to Hannibal Lecter's (Mads Mikkelsen) location in Florence, but the promise of riches offered by Mason Verger (guest star Joe Anderson) will threaten to corrupt Pazzi's quest for redemption. In the meantime, Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) and Chiyoh (Tao Okamoto) will travel to Florence, both on a mission to find Hannibal,...

Mads Mikkelsen in "Hannibal"Photo: Brooke Palmer / NBC I can't be certain on this, but was last week's episode the first episode of "Hannibal" to not include someone's deathc I only ask because this week's episode, titled "Secondo" made up for that missing aspect of last week's episode as not one, but two characters find themselves on the wrong side of pointy objects. This marks the third episode of this third season to be directed by Vincenzo Natali and he's toned down his visual flair here, though he's still fond of reflections, be they in knives or liquid, using them to move from one scene to the next. Though, can we all agree the best scene transition was from the cutting of a bird's leg to the chopping of a human hand as Hannibal prepares the forearm of the late professor Sogliato (Rinaldo Rocco) into a delectable carpaccio(c) to...

Last week's season three premiere episode of "Hannibal" ended with the image of what appeared to be Anthony Dimmond's bloody torso on display opposite the imagery of Hannibal (Mads Mikkelsen) folding Leonardo Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man into the shape of a human heart. In the second episode of season three, titled "Primavera", we get a closer look at what exactly Hannibal has done as Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) arrives in Italy, for reasons, and argue, even he isn't entirely sure of. But I don't want to get too far ahead, let's circle back to the very beginning of the episode. "Primavera" dedicates it's first seven-and-a-half minutes to the season two finale, after which we find Will in the hospital, presumably four months or so after the bloody events that took place at Hannibal's and I have to admit, as soon as I saw Abigail (Kacey Rohl) walk into...

Hannibal, Season 3, Episode 2, “Primavera”

Written by Jeff Vlaming and Bryan Fuller

Directed by Vincenzo Natali

Airs Thursdays at 10pm (Et) on NBC

A far cry from the sweeping romance of “Antipasto”, “Primavera” returns viewers to Will Graham and the horror of the Red Dinner, which he relives as he lies in his hospital bed. Beginning the episode with a full five to six minutes of footage directly from “Mizumono” is an odd choice by writers Jeff Vlaming and Bryan Fuller. Though the score is dramatically different—more on this in Kate’s Classical Corner—the scene that opens “Primavera” matches the season two finale almost exactly, with only a handful of shots edited differently to emphasize Will and Abigail’s experiences over Hannibal’s. On first watch, this is frustrating; we want to see what comes next, not spend an eighth of the episode on a scene that’s already emblazoned in our memory.