It has been described as a “nightmare comedy”.
In recent years, director Ari Aster has really made a name for himself in the world of horror.
Now, after a three-year-break, he’s back with a brand new movie starring Academy-Award winning actor Joaquin Phoenix – and it’s undoubtedly going to be a terrifying tale.
His first two films, Hereditary and Midsommar, are easily two of the biggest movies in to come out of the horror genre in recent years – both earning Aster a cult following.
Hereditary, a melodramatic horror about a family who is torn apart by evil spirits following their grandmother’s death, was a massive critical success, raking $81 million at the box office. It remains A24’s highest-grossing movie of all time.
Meanwhile, Midsommar was also hugely successful, plummeting its lead actress Florence Pugh to global stardom. It follows Dani (Pugh) who experiences a tragedy in her family and goes on a trip to a Swedish commune for its Midsummer festivities. It’s not long before she finds out things at the commune exactly aren’t as innocent as they seem.
So, it’s safe to say we have high expectations.
The new film, titled Disappointment Blvd, is shrouded in mystery. Little is known about it, other than the fact that Aster described it as a “nightmare comedy”, which sounds utterly bizarre. Then again, bizarre is what he does best.
The only information about the plot is that it revolves around “an intimate, decades-spanning portrait of one of the most successful entrepreneurs of all time”. Very vague.
Aster will reunite with cinematographer Pawel Pogorzelski for a third time, so audiences are sure to be met with plenty of chilling yet hauntingly beautiful imagery.
The movie was supposed to premiere at Cannes Film Festival last month but it did not go ahead. Apparently, this is due to the three-and-a-half-hour run time, which Aster refuses to cut down.
There’s no release date for the film yet but it looks like we can expect it later this year – fingers crossed it will be in time for Halloween.
