Exclusive: Graham Campbell Eyed to Star in Sony’s 'Fake Skating' Movie After Breakout Role in 'The Shards'

Happy Tuesday, folks!

Yesterday was one of those days when everything falls into place. I was magically able to drive across Los Angeles from screening to screening with relative ease because of light traffic due to the Jewish holiday.

In the morning, I saw Cristian Mungiu’s Cannes drama Fjord, a very good movie that was quite effective in making me very angry. It’s about a religious family with conservative values who move from Romania to Norway, where their different approach to child-rearing proves too much to bear for the locals, who sic Child Protective Services on the parents and take their three children into custody.

Obviously, child abuse is a very real, very terrible thing. But spanking your kid on the butt (within reason) when they misbehave is hardly a reason to be forcibly separated from them. Watching this particular situation unfold was absolutely gut-wrenching.

Ultimately, this is a movie about being different, and how those who dare to be different scare people, most of whom want to blend in and be perceived as “normal,” whatever that means.

Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve are both quite good, but they’re also stuck playing the same note over and over during this 2.5-hour movie. It’ll be interesting to see whether the Academy embraces Fjord, which is the kind of movie that keeps you at somewhat of a distance.

I was a big fan, mainly because Mungiu made me feel something, and I found the closing moments of magical realism to be thematically interesting. And yet, Fjord fell just short of true greatness in my book — unlike The Invite, which I rewatched this weekend and totally held up the second time around. Now that is a great movie.

Anyway, after sending Monday’s newsletter, I drove from Santa Monica to Culver City during rush hour to catch a screening of Bassam Tariq’s drama Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, in which two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali plays a Muslim hitman who lives by his own code.

The movie has him driving all over Houston, doing whatever it takes to secure breast milk for his child, whose mother has recently died.

This is Ali’s best role in years, and he really holds the screen here. There’s a reason the man has won two Academy Awards. Really, the entire cast is excellent. This is the kind of movie that should be in the conversation for a Best Casting nomination. I was impressed by Adia and Jahleel Kamara, who play Ali’s children, as well as Abubakr Ali’s supporting turn as a cocky young porn impresario.

I really liked Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, and I’m glad that something positive came out of Tariq’s failed Blade movie with Ali. However, the final reel, which prominently features John Cho as a gold-toothed pastor/gangster, gets a little silly, and I didn’t quite buy the ending, which prevented this B+ movie from being an A-tier thing.

As soon as that movie ended, I rushed from Culver City to the Harmony Gold Theater in Hollywood, where I caught the first three episodes of Jim Cummings and PJ McCabe’s new showbiz-themed series, The Screener, which follows the devastating leak of a screener from a talent agency, and the repercussions that follow.

As someone who recognized all of the character types in this show, from Jon Rudnitsky’s selfish agent to the ambitious mailroom interns, I certainly enjoyed The Screener, and I can’t wait to finish the series and find out if those responsible are brought to justice by Cummings, who plays an alcoholic, sex addicted district attorney.

Cummings gets the best lines here, and Rudnitsky delivers on the potential he showed on SNL, but I was most impressed by B.K. Cannon, who plays Cummings’ right-hand. Also, major agencies may want to keep an eye on Boni Mata, who is currently at Coast to Coast…

The Screener premiered at Sundance, where it sought distribution that, apparently, it didn’t get. Cummings now plans to release it independently. Personally, I think MUBI, which previously picked up Cooper Raiff’s indie TV series Hal & Harper, would be a great home for The Screener. Yes, Hal & Harper had Mark Ruffalo, but the premise never hooked me. The Screener, by contrast, offers a juicy premise I couldn’t ignore, and it features plenty of recognizable actors, from Kumail Nanjiani to The Office alum Creed Bratton.

I don’t know when or where The Screener will debut, but stay tuned to this space for more details, as I promise to keep you posted.

After that screening, I was starving, so I drove a few blocks to Burger King to sample their new chicken nuggets — delicious, in case you were wondering. Then I went home and began watching the new season of Love Is Blind. The best part? It’s set in Boston this year. Nothing can prepare you…

Finally, I want to offer my condolences to the friends and colleagues of veteran film editor Elliot C. Graham, who reportedly took his own life over the weekend. Graham earned an Oscar nod for Gus Van Sant’s Milk and won a BAFTA for the James Bond movie No Time to Die. He also worked with Danny Boyle on Steve Jobs and Aaron Sorkin on Molly’s Game, and cut popular superhero movies such as X2, Superman Returns, and Captain Marvel. Graham recently turned 50 years old. R.I.P.

And now, it’s time for a hot casting scoop about a cold movie — the romantic comedy Fake Skating, which is heating up at Sony.

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