2022 is turning out to be a busy year for independent entertainment studio A24. The company behind hits such as Ex Machina and Hereditary only recently released the 70s-style slasher X and genre-hopping Everything Everywhere All At Once, and they aren't done yet.
Other A24 movies set to be released this year include Bodies Bodies Bodies, a slasher about a back-stabbing group of friends; Marcell the Shell with Shoes On, a comedy animation starring Jenny Slate; and The Stars at Noon, a romance thriller shrouded in mystery. With the latter's premiere on the horizon, here's a look at what to expect from the movie, detailing what is known so far about its plot, cast, and crew.
The Plot
Based on the 1986 Denis Johnson novel of the same name, The Stars at Noon is a romance thriller set in 1984 Nicaragua during Sandinista rule. The movie follows two strangers turned lovers: Trish, a young and struggling American journalist stranded in Nicaragua, and Daniel, a secretive English businessman new to the area.
Striking up a passionate romance, the two become entangled in conspiracies and sinister plots, and must band together to escape the increasingly dangerous country. In talks with Variety, the director of the movie, Claire Denis, describes The Stars at Noon as "[a story] about the fear and the terror of love, the fear of failure."
The Cast
The movie stars Margaret Qualley as leading lady Trish and Joe Alwyn as leading man Daniel. Initially, Robert Pattinson was set to play Daniel but left the project due to scheduling conflicts. Kingsman actor Taron Egerton was then supposed to replace him but stepped out for personal reasons.
Margaret Qualley began her career in 2013 playing Raquel, a minor role, in Gia Coppola's teen drama Palo Alto. Since then, she has gone on to star in several critically acclaimed movies and series, including The Nice Guys, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and Maid, the latter of which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. Actor Joe Alwyn is (perhaps unfairly) best known as Taylor Swift's boyfriend, but has also starred in some great movies, including The Favourite, Mary Queen of Scots, and Boy Erased. Alwyn can currently be seen playing Nick Conway in the BBC adaptation of Sally Rooney's Conversations with Friends.
Joining Qualley and Alwyn are actors Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems, Licorice Pizza), John C. Reilly (Hard Eight, Step Brothers), and Danny Ramirez (The Gifted, On My Block). According to French distributor Ad Vitam, Safdie plays a CIA agent, Reilly plays an American boss, and Ramirez plays a Costa Rican police officer. To see just what roles these characters have in the film's plot, audiences will have to wait and see for themselves.
The Crew
The Stars at Noon is directed by French director Claire Denis and co-written by Denis, Léa Mysius, and Andrew Litvack. Denis is known for the French movies Chocolat, Beau Travail, and Trouble Every Day, as well as for her English-language debut, High Life: a sci-fi adventure starring Robert Pattinson as a convict turned astronaut who is sent along with other criminals on a doomed space mission. High Life is an A24 production, making The Stars at Noon Denis' second movie with the studio.
Common themes in Denis' movies include race, estrangement, and colonialism, though the director never limits herself to one genre. Earlier this year, she released the French romantic drama Both Sides of the Blade, starring Juliette Binoche as a woman embroiled in a passionate love triangle. The movie was well-received by audiences and currently has a score of 88% on Rotten Tomatoes. The title of Both Sides of the Blade is derived from the Tindersticks' song of the same name; Denis has a long-standing relationship with the band who have composed many of her movies, including the upcoming The Stars at Noon. For this movie, Denis will also reunite with Éric Gautier, director of photography for Both Sides of the Blade.
Release Date
The Stars at Noon will be distributed by A24, Ad Vitam, and Wild Bunch, and will have its premiere on 25 May at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. Four other A24 movies will premiere at the same festival: Ethan Coen's Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in Mind, Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer's God Creatures, Alex Garland's Men, and Kelly Reichardt’s Showing Up.
At the 75th instalment of the international cinema showcase, The Stars at Noon will compete against Showing Up and many other movies for the festival's most prestigious Palme d'Or award. Both Denis and A24 have come close to the prize before. In 1988, Denis' feature film debut, Chocolat, lost out to Billie August's Pelle the Conqueror, and only last year, A24's movie Red Rocket lost out to Julia Ducournau's Titane. Whether 2022 is the year they take home the title remains to be seen.