Arthouse streaming service MUBI will be the first to show the latest Paul Thomas Anderson (aka PTA) effort, a documentary called Junun. The film, which is the first feature-length documentary from PTA, will premier on the service October 9, after showing at the New York Film Festival the previous day.
Junun follows Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood and musician/poet Shye Ben Tzur on a trip to India, where they made an album in a 15th century fort in Rajasthan, which Greenwood and friends turned into a makeshift recording studio. The music was recorded by Greenwood and Ben Tzur, as well as a cast of local Indian musicians.
Anderson first gained commercial success for his mid ’90s film Boogie Nights. And while the director is adept at crafting critically acclaimed films that also appeal to broader audiences, his eclectic take often creates an aesthetic better suited to Sundance than the popcorn-crunching mobs. His most recent film, Inherent Vice, is a notoriously difficult film to follow, though it was nominated for the the best adapted screenplay Oscar, shyly losing out to The Imitation Game at last year’s ceremony.
Best known for his his progressive solos and old-school synthesizer magic on Radiohead albums like Kid A and OK Computer, Greenwood has previously worked for Anderson behind the scenes, composing the soundtracks to the monumental films There Will Be Blood, and The Master.
As far as streaming services go, MUBI is a good choice for such a release. The company doesn’t want the mass-server use or huge blockbuster titles that would force it to compete with giants like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon. Instead, MUBI focuses on releasing films for cinephiles, with a well-curated list of films that includes everything from well-established classics to newer, rarer, film releases such as Junun.
For those looking to check out Junun, and MUBI’s other titles, a one month membership costs a Netflix-beating $5 per month, $40 for a year. Streamers can use iOS or Android apps to access it when they aren’t at a computer, or look for new titles through Samsung Smart TVs, Amazon Fire TV, or Playstations 3 and 4.
