Explore Blue Moon (2025), Linklater's poignant film on art, loss, and time, featuring Ethan Hawke's career-defining portrayal of Lorenz Hart.
Richard Linklater is known for his temporal distortions, which he often varies over the course of decades, as in the Before trilogy or Boyhood. But in his 2025 magnum opus, Blue Moon, he does something radically different. He condenses the crushing burden of an entire career going down the tubes into a single confining night in the bowels of Sardi’s restaurant.
This movie is not simply a biopic, it’s a chamber piece on the brutal architecture of artistic mourning. It is March 31, 1943, and with these words the film memorializes the end of the Jazz Age, which was immediately supplanted by the “golden age” of the musical theater.
The setup is ruinously straightforward. Lorenz “Larry” Hart (an electric Ethan Hawke), the brilliant, jaded lyricist half of the legendary Rodgers and Hart team, is holding up the bar at Sardi’s.
Just across the street, his one-time soul mate and partner, Richard Rodgers, is debuting Oklahoma! with another partner, Oscar Hammerstein II. Hart must wait in the limbo of the restaurant, the muted applause he can hear is the sound of him being made redundant.
Linklater has said the film “Deals with a trauma that is, in a way, two-fold.”
This is not just a business split, it’s an artistic divorce between two men who defined an era together. Rodgers, the practical puppet master, had to change in order to live, to detach himself from Hart’s chaotic alcoholism and revue-style wit to something more formal and honest. Hart, the poetic soul of the roaring twenties, was just abandoned.
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The brilliance of Blue Moon is that it knows how to wait. According to The Guardian, Linklater and Hawke had been thinking about this film for more than ten years. Linklater famously told Hawke years ago,
“I’ll wait 10 years,”
Knowing the actor had to age into the role. To play the battered, gnome-like figure of the 47-year-old Hart, a guy worn down by drink and depression, he had to lose his youthful boyishness.
That prolonged timeline gives the film a deep, lived-in sadness. We see Hart desperately go through the motions of his old self — flirting, quipping, drinking trying to drown out the scary fact that the society he helped shape has no use for him anymore. He derides the “corny” nostalgia of Oklahoma! and cannot understand why the audience’s preference has moved away from his urbane sophistication to simple country sweetness.
“We all think we’re gonna run the table forever but tastes can change,” Linklater says in the production notes.
That is the film’s haunting thesis. Blue Moon is a monument to the “loser” of historical change. It’s a beautiful, sad recognition that sometimes even the most brilliant cultural architects find themselves trapped in the past, watching the future being built just down the street without them.
Blue Moon isn’t merely a movie — it’s an elegy. Linklater creates a haunting reflection on change, mourning and the slow brutality of time. The film, anchored by Ethan Hawke’s brilliant performance, reminds us that even the most brilliant creative minds can quickly become relics. It’s a masterwork of stillness, sorrow and storytelling: a paean to those who made the past even as they watched the future speed by.
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Explore the career of Marie-Sophie Nélisse, the versatile actress known for The Book Thief and Yellowjackets, and her rise to fame in Hollywood.
Marie-Sophie Nélisse was born on March 27, 2000. She is from Windsor, Ontario, Canada. She is a talented Canadian actress. People admire her for her powerful performances. She acts in both movies and television. She started her career at a young age. She has gained many fans over the years. Her acting skills are impressive. She has received praise from critics. She is known for her versatility.
Sophie Nélisse was born to French-Canadian parents. When she was four, her family moved to Montréal, Québec. She grew up in a bilingual home. She speaks both English and French fluently. This helped her become a flexible actress. As a child, she trained in gymnastics. She dreamed of competing in the Olympics. But acting became her main passion. She found it hard to balance both. She decided to fully focus on acting.
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Sophie Nélisse started acting at seven. She first appeared in commercials and small TV roles. Her big break came in 2011. She played Alice L’Écuyer in Monsieur Lazhar. The movie received great reviews. Her role won her the Genie Award for Best Supporting Actress. This made her a rising star in Canada.
In 2013, she became internationally famous. She played Liesel Meminger in The Book Thief. The film was based on a famous novel. Her role showed her deep emotions. People loved her performance. She got several award nominations.
She continued acting in different roles. In 2015, she played Gilly in The Great Gilly Hopkins. In 2016, she starred in Mean Dreams. The thriller premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Her performance was mature and intense. Critics praised her work. She proved she could play different characters. She remains one of the most talented young actresses today.
In 2020, Sophie Nélisse starred in The Kid Detective. She played Caroline, a teenager searching for answers. She sought help from a former child detective. The movie mixed dark comedy and mystery. It gave her a chance to play a deep and complex role.
In 2021, she gained more fame on television. She played young Shauna in Yellowjackets. The Showtime series combined drama and psychological thriller. Critics praised its strong cast and detailed storytelling. Nélisse’s performance was powerful and real. She played a character with a troubled past. Viewers loved her emotional depth. Her role proved her talent once again.
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Marie Sophie Nélisse has stayed humble despite her success. She keeps her personal life private. She does not share much about her experiences. She has a deep love for books. She often credits The Book Thief for inspiring her.
Sophie Nelisse still lives in Montréal. She enjoys spending time with her family. Her sister, Isabelle Nélisse, is also an actress, known for her roles in Mama and HBO’s The Tale. The sisters appeared together in Mirador, Wait Till Helen Comes, and Worst Case, We Get Married.
Marie-Sophie Nélisse has played many amazing roles in films. She has shown her talent in different genres.
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Marie-Sophie Nélisse has also worked in television. She has played different roles in many popular series.
Marie-Sophie Nélisse has won many awards. She has been recognized for her outstanding performances.
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She is best known for playing Liesel Meminger in The Book Thief (2013) and young Shauna in Yellowjackets (2021–present).
Both roles earned her critical acclaim.
She began acting at age seven, appearing in commercials and small TV roles. Her breakthrough came in Monsieur Lazhar (2011), which won her a Genie Award.
She speaks both English and French fluently. Growing up in a bilingual household in Montréal helped her develop her language skills.
Yes, she has won several awards, including a Satellite Award for The Book Thief (2014) and a Genie Award for Monsieur Lazhar (2011). She has also received multiple nominations.
Marie-Sophie Nélisse is a talented actress. She has played incredible roles in movies and TV shows. Her performances in The Book Thief and Yellowjackets have earned her praise. She continues to impress audiences with her talent. Fans eagerly wait for her next projects.
Amazon takes over James Bond after Daniel Craig’s exit. Who will be the next 007? Rumors swirl around Idris Elba, Henry Cavill, Aaron Taylor-Johnson & more.
The global franchise is shifting to a refreshing storyline and new characters as the real owner of the James Bond films Barbara Broccoli and Michael G is handing over to Amazon MGM studios. James Bond is a crime thriller movie based on the Ian Fleming novel that grabs global fans over the years. The end of Daniel Craige era with his last performance in ‘No Time To Die’, fans waited so long that after this news online speculation buzzed about who would be the next James Bond?
Lee Child expressed that the Bond franchise is overdue for rejuvenation, highlighting its deep connection to post-war Britain. He also stated that Bond portraying a character who could resolve any challenge and compensate for the country’s diminished real-world power is not that hard task for him. However, he feels this is an outdated concept, we need some fresh concepts and pointed out that those previously in charge of the series seem exhausted. He suggests in Collider reports that new energy and perspective could benefit the franchise greatly.
Amazon has revealed its plan to assume creative control of the highly profitable James Bond movie franchise, the series is poised for transition. This franchise owner Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, after making outstanding movies for years and now they hand over to Amazon for $8.45 billion back in 2021. But they didn’t get creative control.
As MSN reported, Amazon head, Mike Hopkins expressed appreciation for the legacy of James Bond in a statement. He acknowledged the franchise first creator late Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman to introduce Bond to global audience, and later continued the legacy by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli to their fans worldwide. Hopkins emphasized the honor of having this heritage and shared his excitement to the media about guiding the iconic 007 character into its next chapter for worldwide fans.
We have seen Daniel Craige as James Bond in the last James Bond film “No Time To Die”, now the question is, who will step into the iconic role?
Deadline mentioned that the creator Ian Fleming novel needed a British accent male actor, should play this role. speculation has produced a diverse mix of contenders including Theo James, Aaron Taylor Johnson, James Norton, Idris Elba. While Taylor is spreading rumours that he’s been signed for this role officially but without any confirmation it just seems like idle chatter.
Meanwhile, Elba is considered to be a top choice and he consistently distancing himself from the possibility. However, the recent announcement that Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson handing creative control to MGM Studios sparks speculation about changes to the franchise’s traditional drama. Jeff Bezos, the real-life Bond villain behind Amazon, now calls the shots for 007’s future. Fans are suggesting it would turn the movie into a full blown media world like Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The James Bond new movies will be produced under the Amazon MGM studios while Reacher’s showrunner Lee Child suggests the franchise needs a refreshing storyline and perspective rather than the traditional reboots. However, 007 is portrayed by Daniel Craige amazingly, who will acquire this character to take this worldwide loved franchise to the next-level. The online speculations are circling around its fans who would be the perfect James Bond, people are suggesting Henry Cavill could be the perfect match.
