'Eternity,' 'Kiss of the Spider Woman' among Hamptons Film Festival highlights

Big stars such as Sydney Sweeney, Elizabeth Olsen and Ethan Hawke will join lesser-known filmmakers from around the world at this year’s Hamptons International Film Festival.

It’s another balancing act from the festival, which begins its 33rd edition Friday, as it tries to pull in viewers with sneak peeks of prestige Hollywood titles ("Kiss of the Spider Woman," "Nuremberg"), maintain its awards-season influence and still make room for smaller films that may lack star power and major-studio muscle.

"Hollywood doesn’t really make many films for adults at a sizable budget," said David Nugent, the festival’s chief creative officer, adding that he and his colleagues spend the year looking for such movies in the hopes of bringing them to the Hamptons. These days, he notes, "There are less to choose from, but I think we’re playing an important role in that ecosystem."

Here are some festival highlights.

ETERNITY (6:30 Friday, East Hampton Middle School, 76 Newtown Lane and 7:15 p.m., Regal UA East Hampton, 30 Main St.)

The rare romcom to open the festival stars Elizabeth Olsen as a dead woman who must decide whether to spend the afterlife with her husband (Miles Teller) or her lost first love (Callum Turner). Olsen will take questions after the first screening and introduce the second.

ASK E. JEAN (2:15 p.m. Saturday and 5 p.m. Sunday, Regal UA East Hampton) The story of E. Jean Carroll, the longtime advice columnist who successfully sued Donald Trump for sexual abuse and defamation. She and director Ivy Meeropol are scheduled to speak at both screenings.

KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN (5 p.m. Saturday, East Hampton Middle School and 11 a.m. Sunday, Sag Harbor Cinema, 90 Main St.) Director Bill Condon adapts the stage musical with Jennifer Lopez in the title role alongside Diego Luna and the newly minted actor Tonatiuh, who will accept the festival’s UBS Breakthrough Performer Award at Saturday's screening. "Special guests" are expected for a Q&A Sunday.

ON THE END (5:15 p.m. Saturday, Sag Harbor Cinema and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Regal UA East Hampton)

Tim Blake Nelson plays Tom Ferreira, a Montauk mechanic embroiled in a life-upending legal battle with the wealthy town of East Hampton. Screenwriter Ari Selinger makes his feature directorial debut with this locally filmed, fact-based drama. Nelson, Selinger and others are expected to attend both screenings.

THE SECRETS WE BURY (8 p.m. Saturday and 11:15 a.m. Sunday, Regal UA East Hampton)

A documentary on the chilling case of George Carroll, a Korean War veteran and family man who vanished from his Lake Grove home in 1961 — and whose bones were discovered nearly 60 years buried beneath the basement. Director Patricia Gillespie will speak at both screenings.

NUREMBERG (4:45 p.m. Sunday, East Hampton Middle School and 7:45 p.m. Monday, Regal UA East Hampton) On the eve of the Nuremberg trials, a U.S. Army psychiatrist (Rami Malek) gets a little too close to his subject, Herman Göring (Russell Crowe). Based on a nonfiction book by Jack El-Hai. Director James Vanderbilt and co-star John Slattery are expected to speak on Sunday.

THE VOICE OF HIND RAJAB (8 p.m. Oct. 11 and 5:30 p.m. Oct. 12, Regal UA East Hampton) In war-torn Gaza, a girl trapped in a shelled car pleads by phone with rescuers as they scramble to send an ambulance. The rescuers are played by actors; the phone audio is real. Directed by Kaouther Ben Hania ("Four Daughters"). Filmmakers are expected to speak after both screenings.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG (7:45 p.m. Oct. 12, Guild Hall, 158 Main St., East Hampton and 8:15 p.m., Regal UA East Hampton) Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez star in a Broadway production of Stephen Sondheim’s musical about three friends in the world of show biz. Filmed across multiple performances in July 2024. Mendez and director Maria Friedman are expected to attend both screenings.