“That character was basically more me than Bebe Buell or Pennie Trumbull. She looked way more like me.” Barres says, noting her issue was with Crowe never consulting her about the project. Barres says Penny Lane was “stolen” and “ripped off” from her considering Hudson told her she read her book, “I’m With the Band,” for research and hung up photos of Des Barres in her dressing room. Des Barres wrote a film script based on her life but “Almost Famous” and Penny Lane’s popularity “made it impossible for me to sell my film....

That’s very much by design. Inaugural poets are not a requisite of the ceremony. Including Gorman, only six such wordsmiths have read during U.S. Presidential Inaugurations, and only four presidents have heard them. (President Obama and President Clinton had different poets at each of their ceremonies, while John F. Kennedy was the first to invite a poet, Robert Frost, to share words.) President Joe Biden’s ceremony mirrored Obama’s in many ways when it came to incorporating the poet laureate....

“American Horror Stories” is a weekly anthology series that will feature a different horror story each episode. The cast for the spin-off includes Kevin McHale (“Glee”), Dyllón Burnside (“Pose”), Charles Melton (“Riverdale”), and Nico Greetham (“The Prom”). Deadline reported on June 3 that Danny Trejo had also been cast in the series. The show is executive produced by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Alexis Martin Woodall, John J. Gray, and Manny Coto and is produced by 20th Television....

Before “Annette” dives into 140-odd minutes of moody songs and swooning tragicomic twists, director Leos Carax takes charge. In a grumbling voiceover, he advises his viewers to “hold you breath until the very end of the show.” It’s exactly the sort of impossible request that makes sense for this mind-blowing musical fantasia: “Annette” doesn’t just take your breath away; it keeps your breath hostage until the credits roll. Combining the energizing compositions of Sparks with Carax’s ever-enigmatic creativity, “Annette” powers through its expressive rock opera conceit with a propulsive Adam Driver at its center....

Suffice to say that Veronica and Eden intersect (to get into deeper detail would spoil the film), and while they are bonded by a litany of shared problems, none feel as immediate as the evil Elizabeth. It’s the kind of role that seems scary for a performer: Not only is she such a monster, but “Antebellum” also doesn’t shy from inserting that monster into the current culture. The racist ideology of a late-18th century plantation mistress is here and now, and as terrifying as ever....

Mundorff offered his thoughts during a panel titled “The Future of Distribution is Now: New Paradigms,” posted online this week as part of the ongoing Film Independent Forum. While he said he’s optimistic about the return of the theatrical experience and its future importance to the industry, he offered a blunt assessment on the current state of affairs. “Indie films are, I think, the films that are most vulnerable right now,” he said....

The American myth-making machine’s love for pumping out heroes, like so many cape-wearing sausages, finds its antithesis in “Argentina, 1985,” an entertaining biopic about recent Argentine history that takes the baton from Shakespeare’s idea that “some men have greatness thrust upon them.” This is very much the case for Julio Strassera (Ricardo Darín), a family man who is aghast at his appointment as lead prosecutor in what became known as “The Trial of the Juntas....