'The Irishman' is Friday Centerpiece at this year's Hamptons International Film Festival
Ray Ramano (Bill Bufalino) Al Pacino (Jimmy Hoffa) and Robert De Niro (Frank Sheeran) in Martin Scorsese's "The Irishman." Credit: NETFLIX/Niko Tavernise
Martin Scorsese's "The Irishman" will be the Friday Centerpiece selection for this year's Hamptons International Film Festival. Starring Robert De Niro as the real-life figure Frank Sheeran, a labor union official and alleged mobster who claimed to have killed Jimmy Hoffa in 1975, "The Irishman" was shot in several Long Island locations, including Lawrence, Huntington Station, Mineola and Shirley.
It's one of two high-profile Netflix films playing at the HIFF. The other is "Marriage Story," Noah Baumbach's drama about a couple (Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson) going through a divorce. Both films are getting Netflix's pre-Oscars treatment, playing at film festivals and receiving theatrical releases that will qualify them for Academy Awards.
The festival also announced several Spotlight films, including "Jojo Rabbit," a comedy from director Taika Waititi ("Thor: Ragnarok") about a German boy whose imaginary friend is an eccentric Adolf Hitler. The film, billed as "an anti-hate satire," features Scarlett Johansson, Rebel Wilson and Sam Rockwell. Another Spotlight film, Terrence Malick’s "A Hidden Life," provides a more serious take on World War II with the story of an Austrian farmer (August Diehl) who becomes a conscientious objector. It features the late Bruno Ganz ("Wings of Desire," "The Reader") and Michael Nyqvist (the Swedish "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" film series) in their final performances.
The 27th annual Hamptons International Film Festival runs Oct. 10 through 14. For more information visit hamptonsfilmfest.org.
