Behemoth!

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Pedro Pascal gives the performance of his career so far as Alex, a cellist picking up the pieces of a fractured life, in this American drama of uncommon intelligence, humor, and grace from Academy Award–nominated writer-director Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton). A former child prodigy living in the shadow of a storied musical family, Alex has left his position with an orchestra in Chicago—fleeing a soured relationship with a manic ex (a piledriving Olivia Wilde)—and returned to Los Angeles to record Hollywood film scores and resolve unfinished family business. Using a deft flashback structure to weave in and out of his adult life, while cleverly employing a panoply of original movie compositions to both accompany and comment upon them (in a soundtrack featuring nine of the industry’s leading musicians), Gilroy turns Alex’s desire for stability, meaning, and redemption into a sophisticated drama of the highest order. Behemoth! is a thundering, savvy tribute to the power of music that builds to an emotional wallop of a climax, also featuring stellar supporting work from Eva Victor, Alexa Swinton, Kaya Ralls, Erik Griffin, JoBeth Williams, and Margarita Levieva, with Hank Azaria and Will Arnett. A Searchlight Pictures release.

“I have been orbiting NYFF for the great majority of my life. I was baptized by Fitzcarraldo. I was tending bar across the street and a customer tipped me a single ticket. It was a bad seat to the most remarkable screening I’d ever attended. There were many memorable nights to follow. The Centerpiece invitation is a fantasy I’ve conjured more times than I care to admit. NYFF has always been the benchmark for me; the opportunity to premiere a film I cannot wait to show, in that hall, to that audience, feels every bit as thrilling as I’d imagined. I’m honored.” —Tony Gilroy

“We are delighted to present the world premiere of Tony Gilroy’s anticipated return to the big screen as this year’s NYFF Centerpiece. There is so much to savor in this immaculately crafted film, from its creative use of music to its note-perfect ensemble cast. Holding it all together is a tour de force by Pedro Pascal, one of the performances of the year from one of our true movie stars.” —NYFF Artistic Director Dennis Lim