Tribeca2023: Tribeca Festival Highlighting Upcoming Film Releases

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Director John Slattery of ‘Maggie Moore(s).’

NEW YORK, NY – With five days to go, the 22nd Tribeca Festival is in the middle of the festival, with a wild ride of screenings and events. On June 12th, Tribeca hosted the world premiere of “Maggie Moore(s),” a new film featuring Jon Hamm and Tina Fey, and directed by Hamm’s old “Mad Men” co-star John Slattery.

The Tribeca Festival was founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Craig Hatkoff and actor Robert De Niro as a reactive strike back at the September 11th attack in 2001 on New York City and the nearby Tribeca neighborhood.The film category of the 2023 22nd edition will show 109 feature films from 127 filmmakers across 36 countries, and will have screenings and awards for U.S. Narrative Films, World Narrative Films, Short Film Competition, Best Documentary, the Spotlight Competition and Best New Narrative and Documentary Filmmakers, among it’s presentations.

The Slideshow combines the “Maggie Moore(s)” Red Carpet with three Capsule Reviews by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com below, all films releasing in theaters or streaming on June 16th. Click “Next” and “Previous” to scan through the slideshow or jump directly to individual photo with the captioned links below. All photos © Tribeca.com

1. 23TRIBECA1: Jon Hamm is Chief Jordan Sanders in ‘Maggie Moore(s).’
2. 23TRIBECA2: Jon Hamm, Tina Fey and John Slattery of ‘Maggie Moore(s).’
3. 23TRIBECA3: Director John Slattery of ‘Maggie Moore(s).’.
4. 23TRIBECA4: Tina Fey portrays Rita Grace in Maggie Moore(s).
5. 23TRIBECA5: ‘Maggie Moore(s),’ directed by John Slattery.
6. 23TRIBECA6: ‘Stan Lee,’ directed by David Gelb.
7. 23TRIBECA7: ‘The Blackening,’ directed by Tim Story.

Capsule Film Reviews, Tribeca Festival 2023

Maggie Moore(s) A small-town sheriff (Jon Hamm) is baffled when two women with the same name get murdered days apart. Things quickly ratchet up in this comedy that reunites “Mad Men” Hamm and director John Slattery.


CAPSULE REVIEW: This a throwback murder mystery that has a nice twist of two familiar personas playing against type … both Hamm’s low-key-yet-cynical portrayal of a lawman who is a recent widower and Tina Fey as a lonely and confused divorcee. Their relationship becomes as poignant as the investigation of the murders, which has a bit of a Coen Brothers vibe. Director Slattery shows a sure hand in storytelling, and the extreme fates of the two Maggie Moores are wrapped around small town chicanery. Nicely done. 4/5 … In theaters June 16th.

Stan Lee Tracing his life from his upbringing in New York City as Stanley Lieber to the rise of Marvel Comics, the documentary tells the story of Stan Lee’s life, career, and legacy using his own words and personal archival material.


CAPSULE REVIEW: Excelsior! There are a couple things that leapt out from this thorough overview of this comic book legend, a hero who is a real mensch. One, Stan Lee’s life in the comics caught a lucky break as many of the older men in the industry went off to World War II (Stan went later, and there is a amazing story about his war exploits) and he was left as a teenage editor for then Timely Comics (which would become Marvel in the 1960s under Lee’s guidance), And two, his enthusiasm and sheer exhilaration about what he did was not an act. He was the right man at the right time, and the rest is comic book history. Marvel-ous! 4/5 … Streaming on Disney+ beginning June 16th.

The Blackening Based on the viral digital skit, this film rendering tells the story of old friends who reunite in the familiar horror of the “cabin in the woods.” So the fun weekend quickly becomes a fight to survive, and the only way to make it out is to figure out which friend is the “blackest” of them all.


CAPSULE REVIEW: A very funny and multi-layered satire that slays many dragons of horror film idiocy and notions of black characterizations in film. Co-writer Dewayne Perkins (click here for the HollywoodChicago Interview) came up with the concept as a sketch player in an improv group, and the expansion works because of the laughs and chills. The more you know about the historical struggle of the black people in America, the more “The Blackening” becomes a real fun ball buster. 4/5 … In theaters June 16th.

By PATRICK McDONALD Editor and Film Critic/Writer HollywoodChicago.com pat@hollywoodchicago.com