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But the editorial objective from the outset was finding the sweet spot between the right amount of chess and the emphasis on Taylor-Joy’s beguiling face. In fact, after cutting Netflix’s acclaimed western “Godless” with writer-director Scott Frank, Tesoro was particularly conscious of pacing on “The Queen’s Gambit.” “We had a lot of conversations about pacing after I read two drafts of the script, because I remember feeling that, although a lot of people like ‘Godless,’ there were episodes that were quite long and might’ve felt too slow to some people,” she said....

Directed by Florian Zeller, who adapted his play with co-writer Christopher Hampton, “The Son” stars Jackson as Peter, a successful lawyer whose eldest son Nicholas (newcomer Zen McGrath) suffers from severe depression. After failing to attend school for three months, Nicholas leaves his mother Kate’s (Laura Dern) home to live permanently with Peter, his younger partner Beth (Vanessa Kirby), and their infant child. Although Peter attempts to be supportive of his son, the new arrangement soon causes tension in his relationship with Beth, and his inability to understand Nicholas’ demons causes the teen to drift further away from him....

Kennedy directs and produces the film, which screened at AFI and DOC NYC ahead of the three-year anniversary of the tragic natural disaster that claimed 22 lives. Kennedy tracks the minute-by-minute unfolding of the eruption. The official synopsis reads: During a routine sightseeing day-trip to a remote volcanic island, 47 tourists and guides were trapped in the epicenter of a boiling pyroclastic surge of toxic dust and ash. Both terrifying and inspiring, the film uses first-hand accounts to convey the experience of living through such a lethal eruption....

Based on the real-life all-women Agojie warriors who defended the West African kingdom Dahomey (present-day Benin) during the 18th and 19th centuries, “The Woman King” centers on General Nanisca (Davis) and her military regime. Davis and her fellow warrior co-stars — Thuso Mbedu, Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, and Adrienne Warren — underwent intense strength training, weightlifting, sprinting, and high-intensity workouts to transform into muscular fighters. Each actress additionally had two hours of weapons training with stunt coordinators....

Tom Cruise waited until they could do it right. Tom Cruise labored for years figuring out the right script (maybe with some help from mssrs. Christopher McQuarrie, Eric Warren Singer, and Ehren Kruger?), as well as the best time and place to execute. (By the way, the movie is a riveting, taut, and hugely entertaining E-ride.) And of course, Cruise insisted that the studio wait to release the movie in theaters....

Tom Holland, one third of the Spider-Men featured in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” adorably recalled to Deadline that he asked co-star (and real-life girlfriend) Zendaya to accompany him when first meeting “Spider-Man” legends Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. “It was very daunting,” Holland explained in the first trio press interview with Maguire and Garfield. “We were a long way into shooting before you guys showed up, maybe three months into principal photography....

The two films share high expectations — make that sky-high expectations. “Maverick” projections hope for a $250-300 million domestic take — and more than double that for “Avatar 2.” If either went higher few would be surprised — each is a sequel to a title that was the best-grossing film of its year — but does success have a freshness-by date? “Top Gun” was the #1 film of 1986 — 36 years ago....