Le chinoise.Most serious writing about Jean-Luc Godard tends to be both high-flown and forbidding, rather like the films it’s discussing. Translations from French to English or vice versa can make things even dicier. But according to the literary scholar Fredric Jameson, who contributes an enthusiastic preface and afterword, Reading with Jean-Luc Godard—a compendium of 109 three-page essays by 50 writers from a dozen countries, announced as the first in a series—launches “a new form” and “a new genre.”The brevity of each entry tends to confirm Jameson’s claim. The book can be described as an audience-friendly volume designed to occupy the same space between academia and journalism staked out by Notebook while proposing routes into Godard’s work provided by his eclectic reading—a batch of writers ranged alphabetically and intellectually from Louis Aragon, Robert Ardrey, Hannah Arendt, and Honoré de Balzac to François Truffaut, Paul Valéry,...
- 1/30/2024
- MUBI
The 26th San Francisco Silent Film Festival was another joyous gathering of silent cinema fans, historians, scholars, and all stripes of movie buffs. Launched in 1995, the festival has grown from a single-day event to—excluding two years of Covid shutdowns—an annual, five-day celebration. It’s about the movies, of course, and this year Sfsff presented 20 features and seven shorts. But it’s also about the silent movie experience. All shows were accompanied by live music, from solo piano to small combos to a 10-piece mini-orchestra for the closing-night event, playing both archival music and original scores, many composed for the screenings.
Allan Dwan’s The Iron Mask, from 1929, opened the festival with a bittersweet farewell to the silents. The film, the swashbuckling final silent feature to star Douglas Fairbanks, has added resonance for Sfsff audiences because of the legacy of the Castro Theatre, the festival’s home for its entire 26 years.
Allan Dwan’s The Iron Mask, from 1929, opened the festival with a bittersweet farewell to the silents. The film, the swashbuckling final silent feature to star Douglas Fairbanks, has added resonance for Sfsff audiences because of the legacy of the Castro Theatre, the festival’s home for its entire 26 years.
- 7/24/2023
- by Sean Axmaker
- Slant Magazine
Abel Gance’s first sound film is among the most notorious what-ifs of cinema alongside The Magnificent Ambersons and much of Erich von Stroheim’s filmography. The version that was released in theaters back in 1931 and which survives today represents a tattered remnant of its maker’s original vision: a three-hour opus intended to spread a message of world unity and pacifism as Gance’s final word on the aftershocks and moral lessons of World War I. But producers immediately took out the pruning shears, reducing the film to half its intended length and, in the process, muddying its bold, operatic themes.
Compared to Gance’s towering silent epics, End of the World cannot help but feel like a curio. Still, it’s as if Gance knew the path that the film would take, as the first images of The End of the World consist of the director himself, as protagonist Jean Novalic,...
Compared to Gance’s towering silent epics, End of the World cannot help but feel like a curio. Still, it’s as if Gance knew the path that the film would take, as the first images of The End of the World consist of the director himself, as protagonist Jean Novalic,...
- 7/14/2023
- by Jake Cole
- Slant Magazine
There are obscure treasures and there are holy grails. Of the latter, none is more mythic than the original 131-minute cut of Orson Welles’s The Magnificent Ambersons, believed by many to be lost somewhere in Brazil. All others arguably belong to Erich von Stroheim. Born in Vienna in 1885 into a Jewish household, von Stroheim is mostly remembered for playing evil Germans in films like Jean Renoir’s Grand Illusion. Cinephiles, though, know him as the unluckiest auteur in the history of cinema.
Intended to run anywhere between six and 10 hours, many of von Stroheim’s films, from Greed to the Gloria Swanson vehicle Queen Kelly, were severely bastardized by studio heads upon their release. In this context, the iris shot that opens 1922’s Foolish Wives feels especially poignant. This is no ordinary “fade into” effect, but an entrancing reinforcement of the sinister, insular, and constrictive nature of the film’s milieu.
Intended to run anywhere between six and 10 hours, many of von Stroheim’s films, from Greed to the Gloria Swanson vehicle Queen Kelly, were severely bastardized by studio heads upon their release. In this context, the iris shot that opens 1922’s Foolish Wives feels especially poignant. This is no ordinary “fade into” effect, but an entrancing reinforcement of the sinister, insular, and constrictive nature of the film’s milieu.
- 6/27/2023
- by Ed Gonzalez
- Slant Magazine
As a director, Ben Affleck has proven himself to be a versatile, compelling talent, moving seamlessly from the morally complex “Gone Baby Gone” to the stark crime drama “The Town” to the tense and thrilling best picture winner “Argo.” Even Affleck’s one directorial misstep, the critically panned box office bomb “Live by Night,” has an intriguing gloss and conviction.
That’s why it’s so difficult for many viewers to answer: “Which Affleck-directed joint is your favorite?” Well, that decision may get even harder with the arrival of “Air,” Affleck’s latest feature which premiered as the Closing Night film at the South by Southwest Film Festival earlier this month.
“Air” tells the story of Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon), a marketing executive for the athletic shoe and apparel supplier Nike, Inc., who seeks to strike a deal with rookie basketball player Michael Jordan during the 1980s. Anchored by Damon...
That’s why it’s so difficult for many viewers to answer: “Which Affleck-directed joint is your favorite?” Well, that decision may get even harder with the arrival of “Air,” Affleck’s latest feature which premiered as the Closing Night film at the South by Southwest Film Festival earlier this month.
“Air” tells the story of Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon), a marketing executive for the athletic shoe and apparel supplier Nike, Inc., who seeks to strike a deal with rookie basketball player Michael Jordan during the 1980s. Anchored by Damon...
- 3/27/2023
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
John Huston is one of the most celebrated directors and screenwriters in Hollywood. Born on August 5, 1906, in Nevadaville, Colorado, he was the son of actor Walter Huston and Rhea Gore. He began his career as a journalist and later worked as an amateur boxer before entering movies.
Huston’s movies were often morally ambiguous, with elements of both comedy and tragedy. He rose to fame for movies such as “The Maltese Falcon” (1941), which starred Humphrey Bogart, “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” (1948), starring Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston, and “The African Queen” (1951), starring Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn. He also wrote many movies including “The Asphalt Jungle” (1950) and directed iconic movies such as “The Man Who Would Be King” (1975).
Huston was highly acclaimed by critics for his skillful direction in movies that explored complex themes such as greed and morality. Many of his movies featured actors who had trained under revered director Erich von Stroheim.
Huston’s movies were often morally ambiguous, with elements of both comedy and tragedy. He rose to fame for movies such as “The Maltese Falcon” (1941), which starred Humphrey Bogart, “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” (1948), starring Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston, and “The African Queen” (1951), starring Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn. He also wrote many movies including “The Asphalt Jungle” (1950) and directed iconic movies such as “The Man Who Would Be King” (1975).
Huston was highly acclaimed by critics for his skillful direction in movies that explored complex themes such as greed and morality. Many of his movies featured actors who had trained under revered director Erich von Stroheim.
- 2/19/2023
- by Movies Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
I am by no means a film snob and like my movies in all shapes and sizes. I did my graduate research on Scorsese, and yet I host a B-movie podcast. The point is, every movie is different, and that's a good thing. Some carry important social messages, others are brimming with artistic merit, and sometimes movies are meant to be pure entertainment.
In 2019 Martin Scorsese took Marvel Studios to task in saying, "that's not cinema." His sentiment is nothing new. The art vs. spectacle debate has been happening since the silent era of film. Then, Erich von Stroheim made lengthy, plodding films that were layered in irony and rooted in realism. On the other end of the spectrum, Cecil B. DeMille produced fanciful movies that were more style than substance and made to grab larger audiences.
Not that I'd dare argue movies with Scorsese (so my humble apologies if...
In 2019 Martin Scorsese took Marvel Studios to task in saying, "that's not cinema." His sentiment is nothing new. The art vs. spectacle debate has been happening since the silent era of film. Then, Erich von Stroheim made lengthy, plodding films that were layered in irony and rooted in realism. On the other end of the spectrum, Cecil B. DeMille produced fanciful movies that were more style than substance and made to grab larger audiences.
Not that I'd dare argue movies with Scorsese (so my humble apologies if...
- 1/22/2023
- by Travis Yates
- Slash Film
What are we to make of “Babylon”? The signs are conflicting. Early word out of preview screenings for what filmmaker Damien Chazelle describes as an “insane early Hollywood vision” was mixed, from “hot mess,” to “sensational celebration of cinema.” (Both are true.) The newly constituted Golden Globes gave the movie five nominations including Best Drama, while the more Oscar predictive Critics Choice Awards went with nine, including Best Picture, Director Chazelle, and Actress Margot Robbie.
Having invested some 78 million (estimates rise to 100-110 million) in Chazelle’s opus, Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins doubled down on the ambitious three-hour-nine-minute epic ahead of its wide opening on December 23 (changed from the originally-planned limited release), announcing a first-look directing and producing deal with the filmmaker.
What are the comps? On the one hand, in 2011 Martin Scorsese’s lavish 180-million period fantasy “Hugo” wound up at 73 million domestic plus five craft Oscars. On the other,...
Having invested some 78 million (estimates rise to 100-110 million) in Chazelle’s opus, Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins doubled down on the ambitious three-hour-nine-minute epic ahead of its wide opening on December 23 (changed from the originally-planned limited release), announcing a first-look directing and producing deal with the filmmaker.
What are the comps? On the one hand, in 2011 Martin Scorsese’s lavish 180-million period fantasy “Hugo” wound up at 73 million domestic plus five craft Oscars. On the other,...
- 12/18/2022
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
IFFKAs part of the International Film Festival of Kerala, films from across the world will be screened simultaneously on fourteen screens in Thiruvananthapuram from December 9 to 16.Don PalatharaA still from the Lav Diaz film 'When The Waves are Gone'The International Film Festival of Kerala (Iffk) is a mammoth event, not only in terms of the number of attendees, but also the number of films screened there each year. Films from across the world will be screened simultaneously on fourteen screens in Kerala’s capital city of Thiruvananthapuram for six days, excluding the opening and closing days. The 27th edition of the festival, scheduled to be held from December 9 to 16, is special to me for several reasons. Even though I am attending the festival with a professional obligation, many of the films being screened this time are from filmmakers whose works I admire and look up to. By now, I have...
- 12/8/2022
- by LakshmiP
- The News Minute
Director Don Siegel started his filmmaking career back in the 1940s, directing montages for high-profile studio pictures like "Now, Voyager" and "Casablanca." He eventually made a name for himself in the 1950s with hard-boiled crime dramas like "The Verdict" and "Riot in Cell Block 11" as well as the indelible sci-fi classic "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." Siegel would also become notable for the five feature films he made with Clint Eastwood — "Coogan's Bluff," "Two Mules for Sister Sara," "The Beguiled," "Escape from Alcatraz," and, most popular, the 1971 classic "Dirty Harry."
Film director Sergio Leone also began his career in the 1940s, working as an assistant director or a writer on dozens of features in his native Italy. He would begin directing in 1959 with "The Last Days of Pompeii," but his reputation as an auteur would be cemented with his famed five-film cycle of Spaghetti Westerns, so-called for their country of origin.
Film director Sergio Leone also began his career in the 1940s, working as an assistant director or a writer on dozens of features in his native Italy. He would begin directing in 1959 with "The Last Days of Pompeii," but his reputation as an auteur would be cemented with his famed five-film cycle of Spaghetti Westerns, so-called for their country of origin.
- 12/5/2022
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Mubi is exclusively streaming restored versions of Lars von Trier's The Kingdom I (1994) and The Kingdom II (1997), and will be premiering episodes of The Kingdom: Exodus (2022) beginning November 27, 2022.The Notebook Primer introduces readers to some of the most important figures, films, genres, and movements in film history.Lars von Trier. Photo by Peter Hjorth.While many may proclaim the death of the author, and even more acknowledge that cinema is an art far more collaborative than the idea of a film's auteur suggests, there are nevertheless certain directors whose name on a film carries undeniable connotations. Among contemporary filmmakers, Danish provocateur Lars von Trier is one of the hardest to ignore. But this is not to say one knows exactly what one is getting with every von Trier picture. On the contrary, not only are his stylistic tendencies extensive and varied, but the stories he tells, even those ostensibly contained within thematic trilogies,...
- 12/1/2022
- MUBI
Do you know when the first movie premiere in Hollywood history was held?
On Oct. 18. 1922 Sid Grauman opened his movie palace the Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. with superstar Douglas Fairbank’s latest swashbuckler “Robin Hood.” The red carpet was rolled out for Fairbanks, his wife Mary Pickford and their good friend (and partner in United Artists) Charlie Chaplin. It cost 5 to attend the premiere. And the movie, which was the top box office draw, played there exclusively for several months. The Egyptian cost 800,000 to build and took 18 months to complete for Grauman and real estate developer Charles E. Toberman. It is currently being renovated by Netflix in cooperation with the American Cinematheque.
“Robin Hood,” directed by Allan Dwan, was one of the most expensive movies of the silent era, costing just under 1 million. The castle was the biggest set ever made for a silent movie. Some scenes feature over 1,200 extras.
On Oct. 18. 1922 Sid Grauman opened his movie palace the Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. with superstar Douglas Fairbank’s latest swashbuckler “Robin Hood.” The red carpet was rolled out for Fairbanks, his wife Mary Pickford and their good friend (and partner in United Artists) Charlie Chaplin. It cost 5 to attend the premiere. And the movie, which was the top box office draw, played there exclusively for several months. The Egyptian cost 800,000 to build and took 18 months to complete for Grauman and real estate developer Charles E. Toberman. It is currently being renovated by Netflix in cooperation with the American Cinematheque.
“Robin Hood,” directed by Allan Dwan, was one of the most expensive movies of the silent era, costing just under 1 million. The castle was the biggest set ever made for a silent movie. Some scenes feature over 1,200 extras.
- 10/25/2022
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
About 43 minutes into the 1933 pre-code horror classic “King Kong,” aspiring actress Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) finds herself on a remote island struggling to free herself from the two stone pillars she’s tied to as an offering for the giant ape its inhabitants worship. The trees rustle, and then we see him. Kong. The camera quickly cuts to Wray, who instantly freezes, holding in her breath as if her life depended on it. The camera zooms in on the ape’s face, his eyes growing wide, then suddenly cuts back to Wray, who lets out the most iconic blood-curdling scream in cinema history.
And thus, the scream queen was born.
“I’d become Hollywood’s scream queen without even realizing it,” Wray told journalist James Bawden in a 1989 interview. After the film wrapped, Wray recorded what she called an “Aria of Agonies” — screams and moans for the editors to use as they pleased.
And thus, the scream queen was born.
“I’d become Hollywood’s scream queen without even realizing it,” Wray told journalist James Bawden in a 1989 interview. After the film wrapped, Wray recorded what she called an “Aria of Agonies” — screams and moans for the editors to use as they pleased.
- 10/13/2022
- by Marya E. Gates
- Indiewire
Actor / Filmmaker Alex Winter joins Josh Olson and Joe Dante to discuss movies featuring a cog in the machine – the individual struggling to exist within the system.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) – Alex Kirschenbaum’s Bill and Ted character power rankings
Bill And Ted’s Bogus Journey (1991)
Bill And Ted Face The Music (2020)
The Game (1997)
Showbiz Kids (2020)
The Panama Papers (2018)
Zappa (2020)
200 Motels (1971)
Modern Times (1936)
Metropolis (1927) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Avatar (2009)
Things To Come (1936) – Jesus Trevino’s trailer commentary
M (1931)
M (1951)
The Last Laugh (1924) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Brazil (1985)
Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review, Tfh’s Mogwai Madness
City Lights (1931)
Goin’ Down The Road (1970)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
The Young And The Damned (1950)
Shock Corridor (1963) – Katt Shea’s trailer commentary
The Naked Kiss (1964)
Stroszek (1977)
Even Dwarves Started Small (1970)
Ikiru (1952) – Glenn Erickson’s trailer...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) – Alex Kirschenbaum’s Bill and Ted character power rankings
Bill And Ted’s Bogus Journey (1991)
Bill And Ted Face The Music (2020)
The Game (1997)
Showbiz Kids (2020)
The Panama Papers (2018)
Zappa (2020)
200 Motels (1971)
Modern Times (1936)
Metropolis (1927) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Avatar (2009)
Things To Come (1936) – Jesus Trevino’s trailer commentary
M (1931)
M (1951)
The Last Laugh (1924) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Brazil (1985)
Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review, Tfh’s Mogwai Madness
City Lights (1931)
Goin’ Down The Road (1970)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
The Young And The Damned (1950)
Shock Corridor (1963) – Katt Shea’s trailer commentary
The Naked Kiss (1964)
Stroszek (1977)
Even Dwarves Started Small (1970)
Ikiru (1952) – Glenn Erickson’s trailer...
- 10/11/2022
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
I started my new essay film, It’s a Zabriskie, Zabriskie, Zabriskie, Zabriskie Point, with an attractive if patently absurd proposition. I was convinced that one could seamlessly edit together Antonioni’s Zabriskie Point with Stanley Kramer’s It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Imagine situating Daria Halprin, Mark Frechette, and their “dirty hippie” friends in California desert landscapes next to Milton Berle, Ethel Merman, Jonathan Winters, Buddy Hackett, Mickey Rooney, and the rest of that legendary cast.
One narrative universe, with just a little editing room hocus-pocus!
There are lots of highlights, but to whet your appetite: University radical Mark Frechette flies his stolen aircraft right past the one piloted by Mickey Rooney and Buddy Hackett as they spin out of control. Daria Halprin ignores a hitchhiking Jonathan Winters. Milton Berle leaps right into a cascade of amorous sand-covered bodies. Spencer Tracy and Daria Halprin in a torrid extramarital affair.
One narrative universe, with just a little editing room hocus-pocus!
There are lots of highlights, but to whet your appetite: University radical Mark Frechette flies his stolen aircraft right past the one piloted by Mickey Rooney and Buddy Hackett as they spin out of control. Daria Halprin ignores a hitchhiking Jonathan Winters. Milton Berle leaps right into a cascade of amorous sand-covered bodies. Spencer Tracy and Daria Halprin in a torrid extramarital affair.
- 7/7/2022
- by Daniel Kremer
- Trailers from Hell
I’m going to start by setting a scene. The head of the Moving Image Section at the Library of Congress, Mike Mashon, takes the stage at the Castro Theater to introduce a screening of Erich Von Stroheim’s ambitious debut Blind Husbands (1919) at the 25th San Francisco Silent Film Festival. It’s a full house and that’s certainly not unusual for this event. “Recently, I was watching a conversation on the Criterion Channel,” Mashon tells the crowd. “Critic/curator Dave Kehr and historian Farran Smith Nehme were discussing Raoul Walsh and one of them said that Walsh was one of the least intellectual directors. He didn’t have a pretentious bone in his body; he was just a straight-ahead guy.” Mashon pauses, timing the silence for comic impact. “So… Erich Von Stroheim.” He need say nothing more. The entire audience erupts in laughter. Mashon smiles, saying, “You know,...
- 5/18/2022
- by Daniel Kremer
- Trailers from Hell
Writer/director Guillermo del Toro discusses a few of his favorite movies with Josh and Joe.
Show Notes:
Movies Referenced In This Episode
Nightmare Alley (2021)
Nightmare Alley (1947) – Stuart Gordon’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Drive My Car (2021)
Wicked Woman (1953) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)
Modern Times (1936)
City Lights (1931)
The Great Dictator (1940)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s review, Dennis Cozzalio’s Muriel Awards capsule review
Vertigo (1958) – Dan Ireland’s trailer commentary, Brian Trenchard-Smith’s review
The Man Who Would Be King (1975) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
Lawrence Of Arabia (1962)
The Young And The Damned (1950)
Gone With The Wind (1939)
The Golem (1920) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Sunrise: A Song Of Two Humans (1927)
Alucarda (1977)
Greed (1924) – Dennis Cozzalio’s Muriel Awards capsule review
Taxi Driver (1976) – Rod Lurie’s trailer commentary
District 9 (2009) – John Sayles...
Show Notes:
Movies Referenced In This Episode
Nightmare Alley (2021)
Nightmare Alley (1947) – Stuart Gordon’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Drive My Car (2021)
Wicked Woman (1953) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)
Modern Times (1936)
City Lights (1931)
The Great Dictator (1940)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s review, Dennis Cozzalio’s Muriel Awards capsule review
Vertigo (1958) – Dan Ireland’s trailer commentary, Brian Trenchard-Smith’s review
The Man Who Would Be King (1975) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
Lawrence Of Arabia (1962)
The Young And The Damned (1950)
Gone With The Wind (1939)
The Golem (1920) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Sunrise: A Song Of Two Humans (1927)
Alucarda (1977)
Greed (1924) – Dennis Cozzalio’s Muriel Awards capsule review
Taxi Driver (1976) – Rod Lurie’s trailer commentary
District 9 (2009) – John Sayles...
- 1/25/2022
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Something wicked this way comes to theaters on Christmas Day: Joel Coen’s “The Tragedy of Macbeth.”. The latest interpretation of Shakespeare’s 1606 Scottish play stars Oscar-winners Denzel Washington as Macbeth, a brave general who hears a prophecy from a trio of witches that he will become king, and Frances McDormand as Lady Macbeth, the general’s ambitious wife, who goads him into killing the King.
It’s the first film the Oscar-winning Coen has done without his brother Ethan. Coen directed his wife McDormand (they married in 1984) to the first of her three Oscars with 1996’s “Fargo.’ Could this film bag her a 4th?
Even though the play is considered “cursed” that hasn’t stopped directors and actors from tackling the powerful tragedy. The last screen version starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard and directed by Justin Kurzel was released in 2015. Reviews were generally good; the box office wasn’t.
It’s the first film the Oscar-winning Coen has done without his brother Ethan. Coen directed his wife McDormand (they married in 1984) to the first of her three Oscars with 1996’s “Fargo.’ Could this film bag her a 4th?
Even though the play is considered “cursed” that hasn’t stopped directors and actors from tackling the powerful tragedy. The last screen version starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard and directed by Justin Kurzel was released in 2015. Reviews were generally good; the box office wasn’t.
- 12/5/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will be taking a trip to Vienna for a six-week programming initiative including a symposium and film series with a distinct cinematic connection to that fabled Austrian city.
The museum announced today the series launch on December 10 and running through January 31. It is designed to explore what the museum describes as the “large community of predominately Jewish, Austrian-born film artists and professionals who helped shape the films and industry of classical era Hollywood.” Titled “Vienna in Hollywood: Emigres and Exiles in the Studio System,” the series is presented in collaboration with the USC Libraries and the USC Max Kade Institute. The Austrian Consulate General in L.A. also is offering support.
Bill Kramer, director and president of the Academy Museum, said: “During the classical Hollywood era, so many beloved films and so many components of the movie industry were developed and shaped by Austrian émigrés,...
The museum announced today the series launch on December 10 and running through January 31. It is designed to explore what the museum describes as the “large community of predominately Jewish, Austrian-born film artists and professionals who helped shape the films and industry of classical era Hollywood.” Titled “Vienna in Hollywood: Emigres and Exiles in the Studio System,” the series is presented in collaboration with the USC Libraries and the USC Max Kade Institute. The Austrian Consulate General in L.A. also is offering support.
Bill Kramer, director and president of the Academy Museum, said: “During the classical Hollywood era, so many beloved films and so many components of the movie industry were developed and shaped by Austrian émigrés,...
- 10/25/2021
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures announced Vienna in Hollywood, a new six-week program launching on Dec. 10 that explores the history of the predominantly Jewish, Austrian-born community of filmmakers and professionals who helped shape the classical era of Hollywood.
Jewish immigrants from Eastern and Central Europe including actor-director Erich von Stroheim and composer Max Steiner were major players in the early establishment of the American film industry in the 1920s. Due to Nazi persecution, a larger wave came in the ‘30s and ‘40s, bringing in talent such as the directors Billy Wilder and Fritz Lang; actors Hedy Lamarr and Peter Lorre; producers Eric Pleskow and Sam Spiegel; screenwriters Vicki Baum and Gina Kaus; and composers Erich Wolfgang Korngold and Ernest Gold. With a symposium and film series, Vienna in Hollywood will pay tribute to these artists and many more.
The two-day symposium is titled Vienna in Hollywood: The Influence and...
Jewish immigrants from Eastern and Central Europe including actor-director Erich von Stroheim and composer Max Steiner were major players in the early establishment of the American film industry in the 1920s. Due to Nazi persecution, a larger wave came in the ‘30s and ‘40s, bringing in talent such as the directors Billy Wilder and Fritz Lang; actors Hedy Lamarr and Peter Lorre; producers Eric Pleskow and Sam Spiegel; screenwriters Vicki Baum and Gina Kaus; and composers Erich Wolfgang Korngold and Ernest Gold. With a symposium and film series, Vienna in Hollywood will pay tribute to these artists and many more.
The two-day symposium is titled Vienna in Hollywood: The Influence and...
- 10/25/2021
- by Selome Hailu
- Variety Film + TV
Swedish cult film streaming service Cultpix, which launched in April, continues to beef up its catalogue while expanding deals with distribution partners.
Company co-founders Rickard Gramfors and Patrick von Sychowski will be attending the Lumière Festival’s International Classic Film Market (Mfic) in Lyon, France, where they will be on the lookout for new acquisitions.
“This is the first time that either of us are attending and we are already in discussions via email with other market participants,” von Sychowski said. “We are hugely impressed by the caliber of companies attending Mfic and the rights libraries that they represent and we are confidant about making several deals there.”
Cultpix has increased its offering from an initial 400 titles when it went online to some 600 films and TV shows, adding an average of five to six new titles a week, von Sychowski said.
Specializing in classic genre and vintage cult films and TV shows,...
Company co-founders Rickard Gramfors and Patrick von Sychowski will be attending the Lumière Festival’s International Classic Film Market (Mfic) in Lyon, France, where they will be on the lookout for new acquisitions.
“This is the first time that either of us are attending and we are already in discussions via email with other market participants,” von Sychowski said. “We are hugely impressed by the caliber of companies attending Mfic and the rights libraries that they represent and we are confidant about making several deals there.”
Cultpix has increased its offering from an initial 400 titles when it went online to some 600 films and TV shows, adding an average of five to six new titles a week, von Sychowski said.
Specializing in classic genre and vintage cult films and TV shows,...
- 10/9/2021
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSFilmmaker Bertrand Mandico has illustrated the 70th anniversary cover of Cahier du Cinéma, entitled "Gloria, angel of the history of the cinema." The Museum of Modern Art and Film at Lincoln Center have announced the lineup for the 50th edition of New Directors/New Films. Screenings will take place from April 28-May 8 through the MoMA and Flc virtual cinemas, and in-person screenings at Flc through May 13. The lineup of 27 features and 11 shorts includes Theo Anthony's All Light, Everywhere, Andreas Fontana's Azor, Alice Diop's We (Nous), and Jane Schoenbrun's We’re All Going to the World’s Fair. Recommended VIEWINGAnother Gaze's free streaming project, Another Screen, has announced two new programmes: Hands Tied, about hands, and Eating the Other, about gendered notions of eating. The first official trailer for Mamoru Hosoda's Belle, which...
- 4/6/2021
- MUBI
There’s a good chance that “Mank,” David Fincher’s stylish black-and-white chronicle of veteran Hollywood screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz’ struggle to write the screenplay for Orson Welles’ 1941 masterpiece “Citizen Kane,” will dominate the Oscar nominations on March 15. Our Oscar experts are predicting the Netflix release could garner has many has 13 nominations including picture, director, screenplay for Fincher’s latest father Jack Fincher, actor for Gary Oldman and supporting actress for Amanda Seyfried.
Exactly 70 years ago Mank’s brother, writer/director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, dominated the Academy Awards. His “All About Eve,” a sophisticated and sharp drama starring Bette Davis as aging theater actress Margo Channing who mistakenly befriends and mentors an ambitious young actress Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), earned 14 Oscar nominations. “All About Eve” actually broke all records for Oscar nominations besting 1939’s “Gone with the Wind” lucky 13 bids.
The younger Mank’s masterpiece went on to win six...
Exactly 70 years ago Mank’s brother, writer/director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, dominated the Academy Awards. His “All About Eve,” a sophisticated and sharp drama starring Bette Davis as aging theater actress Margo Channing who mistakenly befriends and mentors an ambitious young actress Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), earned 14 Oscar nominations. “All About Eve” actually broke all records for Oscar nominations besting 1939’s “Gone with the Wind” lucky 13 bids.
The younger Mank’s masterpiece went on to win six...
- 3/12/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Review: Billy Wilder's "Five Graves To Cairo" (1943) Starring Franchot Tone; Blu-ray Special Edition
By Raymond Benson
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“Billy Wilder Goes To War”
By Raymond Benson
In 1943, Hollywood churned out dozens of war films in support of the U.S. involvement in the global conflict raging at the time. Many were cheaply made rush jobs, others were good “B” pictures, and a select group were “A” level, excellent pieces of celluloid that are now classics. All were essentially propaganda pictures made to lift the spirits of the American people and the troops who were able to see them. Rah Rah, Let’s Go Get ‘Em!
Billy Wilder, an Austrian Jew who had fled Germany as the Nazis gained power, settled in Hollywood in 1933 after a brief stint in France. He immediately found work as a talented screenwriter, ultimately earning his first Oscar nomination for co-writing Ninotchka (1939). As war heated up in the 1940s, Wilder then became, after the likes of Preston Sturges,...
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
“Billy Wilder Goes To War”
By Raymond Benson
In 1943, Hollywood churned out dozens of war films in support of the U.S. involvement in the global conflict raging at the time. Many were cheaply made rush jobs, others were good “B” pictures, and a select group were “A” level, excellent pieces of celluloid that are now classics. All were essentially propaganda pictures made to lift the spirits of the American people and the troops who were able to see them. Rah Rah, Let’s Go Get ‘Em!
Billy Wilder, an Austrian Jew who had fled Germany as the Nazis gained power, settled in Hollywood in 1933 after a brief stint in France. He immediately found work as a talented screenwriter, ultimately earning his first Oscar nomination for co-writing Ninotchka (1939). As war heated up in the 1940s, Wilder then became, after the likes of Preston Sturges,...
- 10/17/2020
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
It’s smart, it’s funny, it has a touch of romance… it’s Billy Wilder & Charles Brackett’s entertaining espionage thriller set between the battle lines of the North Africa campaign. Franchot Tone must impersonate a double agent, when the command staff of General Rommel (Erich von Stroheim!) takes over a half-bombed hotel run by the forlorn Akim Tamiroff. Anne Baxter is the French maid desperate to make a deal, with whichever side will help her get what she wants. Even the title of this winner has a clever special meaning.
Five Graves to Cairo
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1943 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 96 min. / Street Date September 29, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Franchot Tone, Anne Baxter, Akim Tamiroff, Erich von Stroheim, Peter van Eyck, Fortunio Bonanova.
Cinematography: John F. Seitz
Film Editor: Doane Harrison
Original Music: Miklos Rozsa
Written by Billy Wilder, Charles Brackett from a play by Lajos Biró...
Five Graves to Cairo
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1943 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 96 min. / Street Date September 29, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Franchot Tone, Anne Baxter, Akim Tamiroff, Erich von Stroheim, Peter van Eyck, Fortunio Bonanova.
Cinematography: John F. Seitz
Film Editor: Doane Harrison
Original Music: Miklos Rozsa
Written by Billy Wilder, Charles Brackett from a play by Lajos Biró...
- 9/15/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Mubi's double bill Renoir, Beginnings and Endings is showing September 15 - October 15, 2020 in the United States.Above: NanaJean Renoir, one of the greatest French filmmakers, if not the greatest, was a passionate raconteur. Not only did he write his expansionist memoir, My Life and My Films (1974), and rendered some of his life in prose in his late novels, but, according to his biographer, Pascal Merigeau, he also had a prodigious talent for molding fact into myth.Renoir’s dramatic story begins with his second feature, Nana (1927). Renoir adapted the tale about a striving actress from Émile Zola’s novel, to launch the career of his wife, Catherine Hessling. Hessling dreamed of Hollywood, as eventually did Renoir. Some ten years later, he moved to Los Angeles, where he lived till his death, in 1979. The film’s Nana plays hussies but dreams of a tragic role. When a theater director humiliates her,...
- 9/11/2020
- MUBI
A never ending mission to save the world featuring Ron Perlman, Peter Ramsey, James Adomian, Will Menaker, and Blaire Bercy from the Hollywood Food Coalition.
Please support the Hollywood Food Coalition. Text “Give” to 323.402.5704 or visit https://hofoco.org/donate!
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Karado: The Kung Fu Flash a.k.a. Karado: The Kung Fu Cat a.k.a. The Super Kung Fu Kid (1974)
Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
The Best Years Of Our Lives (1946)
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939)
Nobody’s Fool (1994)
The Hustler (1961)
Elmer Gantry (1960)
Mean Dog Blues (1978)
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018)
Mona Lisa (1986)
The Crying Game (1992)
The Hairdresser’s Husband (1990)
Ridicule (1996)
Man on the Train (2002)
The Girl on the Bridge (1999)
Pale Flower (1964)
Out of the Past (1947)
The Lunchbox (2013)
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
The Last Boy Scout (1991)
Raw Deal (1986)
Commando (1985)
The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
The Last Man On Earth (1964)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers...
Please support the Hollywood Food Coalition. Text “Give” to 323.402.5704 or visit https://hofoco.org/donate!
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Karado: The Kung Fu Flash a.k.a. Karado: The Kung Fu Cat a.k.a. The Super Kung Fu Kid (1974)
Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
The Best Years Of Our Lives (1946)
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939)
Nobody’s Fool (1994)
The Hustler (1961)
Elmer Gantry (1960)
Mean Dog Blues (1978)
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018)
Mona Lisa (1986)
The Crying Game (1992)
The Hairdresser’s Husband (1990)
Ridicule (1996)
Man on the Train (2002)
The Girl on the Bridge (1999)
Pale Flower (1964)
Out of the Past (1947)
The Lunchbox (2013)
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
The Last Boy Scout (1991)
Raw Deal (1986)
Commando (1985)
The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
The Last Man On Earth (1964)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers...
- 4/24/2020
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
So the title of this new comedy refers to one of the “seven deadly sins” as labeled in most Christian teachings. In these times the word’s a bit more complicated. After all, fictional real estate mogul Gordon Geeko, in an Oscar-winning performance by Michael Douglas, proclaimed that it is “good” in one of the most quoted scenes from Oliver Stone’s 1987 classic Wall Street. Another take on that word now comes from two-thirds of the trio responsible for a delightful series of comedic travelogues that began ten years ago with The Trip. But they’re not going after Stone’s street, rather they’re taking aim at Great Britain’s avenue of haughty fashion retail shops, High Street. And as you might have guessed, this isn’t a remake of the Erich von Stroheim silent 1924 epic. The sin’s much the same, but this is a completely different take on Greed.
- 3/8/2020
- by Jim Batts
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
“Marriage Story” looks like the only Oscar contender this season with a plausible shot at earning nominations in all four acting races, in large part because it’s one of the few films in the conversation with male and female co-leads. Only 15 other movies have accomplished that feat, which would make “Marriage” the 16th. But it’s even more impressive when you consider that it has only happened twice in the last 37 years.
According to the combined predictions of Gold Derby users, “Marriage Story” is a reasonably safe bet for Best Actress (Scarlett Johansson as an actress filing for divorce), Best Actor (Adam Driver as her husband fighting to retain custody of their son) and Best Supporting Actress (Laura Dern as Johansson’s lawyer). That leaves Best Supporting Actor, where Alan Alda is a contender for playing Driver’s kindly but out-of-his-depth attorney, but he’s an underdog according to...
According to the combined predictions of Gold Derby users, “Marriage Story” is a reasonably safe bet for Best Actress (Scarlett Johansson as an actress filing for divorce), Best Actor (Adam Driver as her husband fighting to retain custody of their son) and Best Supporting Actress (Laura Dern as Johansson’s lawyer). That leaves Best Supporting Actor, where Alan Alda is a contender for playing Driver’s kindly but out-of-his-depth attorney, but he’s an underdog according to...
- 12/18/2019
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
An amazing Blu-ray year is capped by a genuine favorite, rescued by its filmmaker and set aside for almost twenty years. Wim Wenders was forced to make a shortened version of what he hoped would be his greatest success, following Wings of Desire: but he cleverly saved his 4.5-hour uncut version, making its Blu-ray debut on December 10. Longform video is currently the rage, so perhaps the time has finally come for the uncut Bis ans Ende der Welt. The music soundtrack is nothing less than fantastic, not to be missed.
Until the End of the World
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 1007
1991 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 158, 181, 287 min. / Bis ans Ende der Welt / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date December 10, 2019 / 39.95
Starring: Solveig Dommartin, William Hurt, Sam Neill, Rüdiger Vogler, Jeanne Moreau, Max von Sydow, Chishu Ryu, Kuniko Miyake, Allen Garfield, David Gulpilil, Ernie Dingo, Lois Chiles, Adelle Lutz, Chick Ortega, Eddy Mitchell,...
Until the End of the World
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 1007
1991 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 158, 181, 287 min. / Bis ans Ende der Welt / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date December 10, 2019 / 39.95
Starring: Solveig Dommartin, William Hurt, Sam Neill, Rüdiger Vogler, Jeanne Moreau, Max von Sydow, Chishu Ryu, Kuniko Miyake, Allen Garfield, David Gulpilil, Ernie Dingo, Lois Chiles, Adelle Lutz, Chick Ortega, Eddy Mitchell,...
- 11/30/2019
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Critics compare this sophisticated spy thriller to Carol Reed’s earlier Triumph set in Vienna with Joseph Cotten and Orson Welles — but it’s a different story altogether, not about black-market evil but the perils of moral compromise in a divided Berlin. James Mason and Claire Bloom are stunningly good together, in a moody suspense that’s completely serious — no comic relief or ‘fun’ jeopardy to distract from the fascinating, you-are-there setting, a Berlin trying to rebuild itself. With Hildegard Knef, and an extended, beautifully filmed nighttime chase that seals an unlikely romance.
The Man Between
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1953 / B&w / 1:37 flat Academy / 102 min. / Street Date November 5, 2019 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: James Mason, Claire Bloom, Hildegard Knef, Geoffrey Toone, Aribert Wäscher, Ernst Schróder, Dieter Krause, Hilde Sessak, Karl John, Ljuba Welitsch, Reinhard Kolldehoff.
Cinematography: Desmond Dickinson
Film Editor: Bert Bates
Original Music: John Addison
Written by Harry Kurnitz,...
The Man Between
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1953 / B&w / 1:37 flat Academy / 102 min. / Street Date November 5, 2019 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: James Mason, Claire Bloom, Hildegard Knef, Geoffrey Toone, Aribert Wäscher, Ernst Schróder, Dieter Krause, Hilde Sessak, Karl John, Ljuba Welitsch, Reinhard Kolldehoff.
Cinematography: Desmond Dickinson
Film Editor: Bert Bates
Original Music: John Addison
Written by Harry Kurnitz,...
- 11/9/2019
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Above: Us one sheet for Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice. Two weeks ago, as the 57th New York Film Festival kicked off, I griped about the uninspiring quality of the posters for the films in the festival’s main slate. 50 years ago it was a very different story. The posters I have found for the 19 films in the 1969 main selection make up a dazzling collection of illustration and forward thinking graphic design, even, or especially, the type-only poster for the only studio film in the festival: Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice which was the opening night film on September 16 (notably a Tuesday evening).Of course, many of these posters might have been made months or even a year after the festival, since we’re looking back with half a century of hindsight, and many of this year’s designs will no doubt be updated, but this was also the era in which...
- 10/11/2019
- MUBI
The Notebook is covering Tiff with an on-going correspondence between critics Fernando F. Croce Kelley Dong, and editor Daniel Kasman.The Wild Goose LakeDear Kelley and Danny,When this dispatch reaches you, I shall be back in my Californian abode, exhausted and slightly under the weather and elated to have been able to have spent the last ten days immersed in movies and friends. I’ll keep the sentiment short so we can get more quickly to my final viewings, but do know that I wait all year to be at Tiff with you, and that I happily carry your kindness and cinephiliac knowledge and passion with me home.I absolutely get what you mean about that much-needed jolt during the festival, Danny. For me, that came in the form of Diao Yinan's The Wild Goose Lake, an invigorating dive into the Chinese underworld that at times plays like Carol Reed...
- 9/16/2019
- MUBI
A Straub-Huillet Companion is a series of short essays on the films of Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet, subject of a Mubi retrospective. Straub-Huillet's Machorka-Muff (1963) is showing on Mubi from April 24 – May 23, 2019.The history of Straub-Huillet’s first three films is the history of the long-gestating project that would—as I discussed in the first entry of this series—become their third, Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach (1968). In one form or another, they had been trying to raise funds for the project since they met in 1954. At the start of 1959, while Jean-Marie toured seven towns in the German Democratic Republic (visiting all the historical locations at which he hoped to film), the Straubs came close to making their Bach film. Huillet was in Paris, negotiating with money men for enough of a budget to make the film for the amount they both agreed was necessary. In the end, Huillet secured...
- 4/24/2019
- MUBI
When you speak to Kevin Brownlow, you have a direct link to some of the greatest silent film directors who ever lived. The British film historian, now 80, interviewed and befriended many early film veterans when he was just in his twenties. He then spearheaded early efforts to preserve and restore silent films at a time when silent film was often derided. To say Brownlow has some stories about those early directors would be an understatement.
“King Vidor would say to me, ‘Every time I saw a Cecil B. DeMille picture, it made me want to quit the business,’” Brownlow said during a phone interview with IndieWire from his home in London — a sentiment about the “Ten Commandments” filmmaker Brownlow disagrees with. In the 1960s, he also encountered Josef von Sternberg, Allan Dwan, and Abel Gance, whose 1927 epic “Napoleon” Brownlow spent over 12 years restoring before debuting a reconstituted print of the...
“King Vidor would say to me, ‘Every time I saw a Cecil B. DeMille picture, it made me want to quit the business,’” Brownlow said during a phone interview with IndieWire from his home in London — a sentiment about the “Ten Commandments” filmmaker Brownlow disagrees with. In the 1960s, he also encountered Josef von Sternberg, Allan Dwan, and Abel Gance, whose 1927 epic “Napoleon” Brownlow spent over 12 years restoring before debuting a reconstituted print of the...
- 4/20/2019
- by Christian Blauvelt
- Indiewire
Since any New York City cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.
Museum of the Moving Image
Two essential collaborations between Bruno Ganz and Wim Wenders can be seen.
In tribute to Jonas Mekas, Guns of the Trees screens this weekend.
Creature from the Black Lagoon plays in 3D on Saturday.
Metrograph
A young Björk proves the highlight of The Juniper Tree, a film absolutely worth your time.
Museum of the Moving Image
Two essential collaborations between Bruno Ganz and Wim Wenders can be seen.
In tribute to Jonas Mekas, Guns of the Trees screens this weekend.
Creature from the Black Lagoon plays in 3D on Saturday.
Metrograph
A young Björk proves the highlight of The Juniper Tree, a film absolutely worth your time.
- 3/15/2019
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Italy-based The Open Reel has taken all international rights to Ricardo Calil’s “Cinema Morocco,” a documentary competition entry at the Guadalajara Int’l Film Festival (Ficg), which March 8 -15.
“Cinema Morocco” world premiered at the Dok Leipzig documentary and animation festival winning the Golden Dove Next Masters Award. The feature screened at Guadalajara on Sunday 10.
The Open Reel has scored its first sale on “Cinema Morocco” to Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera for its Al Jazeera English global channel.
Calil’s third documentary portrays the now abandoned Sao Paolo’s Cine Marrocos, once among the most glamorous picture palaces in Latin America, hosting the International Film Festival of Brazil in 1954, attended by Irene Dunne, Erich von Stroheim and Abel Gance.
For the past six years, the Cine Marrocos has become a home for the Sem-Teto help-the-homeless movement.
In the feature, Latin American immigrants, African refugees and Brazilian homeless attend a...
“Cinema Morocco” world premiered at the Dok Leipzig documentary and animation festival winning the Golden Dove Next Masters Award. The feature screened at Guadalajara on Sunday 10.
The Open Reel has scored its first sale on “Cinema Morocco” to Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera for its Al Jazeera English global channel.
Calil’s third documentary portrays the now abandoned Sao Paolo’s Cine Marrocos, once among the most glamorous picture palaces in Latin America, hosting the International Film Festival of Brazil in 1954, attended by Irene Dunne, Erich von Stroheim and Abel Gance.
For the past six years, the Cine Marrocos has become a home for the Sem-Teto help-the-homeless movement.
In the feature, Latin American immigrants, African refugees and Brazilian homeless attend a...
- 3/11/2019
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Hollywood has never been a forgiving place for artists, least of all directors.
D.W. Griffith, who pretty much invented film grammar, couldn't rebound from the disaster of 1916's Intolerance. He died in 1948, impoverished and alcoholic, occasionally visited by his adoring muse, Lillian Gish, but unable to land a gig even as a second-unit director on Gone With the Wind, for which David O. Selznick briefly considered him, only to think better of the idea.
Griffith's onetime assistant, Erich von Stroheim, fared little better. The silent-era master, responsible for 1922's Foolish Wives and 1925's Greed, was relegated to ...
D.W. Griffith, who pretty much invented film grammar, couldn't rebound from the disaster of 1916's Intolerance. He died in 1948, impoverished and alcoholic, occasionally visited by his adoring muse, Lillian Gish, but unable to land a gig even as a second-unit director on Gone With the Wind, for which David O. Selznick briefly considered him, only to think better of the idea.
Griffith's onetime assistant, Erich von Stroheim, fared little better. The silent-era master, responsible for 1922's Foolish Wives and 1925's Greed, was relegated to ...
Hollywood has never been a forgiving place for artists, least of all directors.
D.W. Griffith, who pretty much invented film grammar, couldn't rebound from the disaster of 1916's Intolerance. He died in 1948, impoverished and alcoholic, occasionally visited by his adoring muse, Lillian Gish, but unable to land a gig even as a second-unit director on Gone With the Wind, for which David O. Selznick briefly considered him, only to think better of the idea.
Griffith's onetime assistant, Erich von Stroheim, fared little better. The silent-era master, responsible for 1922's Foolish Wives and 1925's Greed, was relegated to ...
D.W. Griffith, who pretty much invented film grammar, couldn't rebound from the disaster of 1916's Intolerance. He died in 1948, impoverished and alcoholic, occasionally visited by his adoring muse, Lillian Gish, but unable to land a gig even as a second-unit director on Gone With the Wind, for which David O. Selznick briefly considered him, only to think better of the idea.
Griffith's onetime assistant, Erich von Stroheim, fared little better. The silent-era master, responsible for 1922's Foolish Wives and 1925's Greed, was relegated to ...
In December 1954, Jonas Mekas and his brother Adolfas published the first issue of Film Culture magazine. Initially hostile to American avant-garde filmmaking, the magazine eventually evolved into the avant-garde’s greatest champion in print.
Sources vary on the publication date of the first issue, with some placing it in 1955, and others in 1954. While the cover carries a publication date of January 1955, in an interview with Amy Taubin, Jonas clearly states that the first issue was published in December 1954. You can watch the interview with Jonas where he states this below.
The cover also lists many of the articles that appeared in this first issue. These are:
Erich von Stroheim: “Queen Kelly: Walking Down Broadway”
Orson Welles: “For a Universal Cinema”
Hans Richter: “Film as an Original Art Form”
Edouard L. De Laurot: “Towards a Theory of Dynamic Realism”
Herman G. Weinberg: “The New Films”
George N.
Sources vary on the publication date of the first issue, with some placing it in 1955, and others in 1954. While the cover carries a publication date of January 1955, in an interview with Amy Taubin, Jonas clearly states that the first issue was published in December 1954. You can watch the interview with Jonas where he states this below.
The cover also lists many of the articles that appeared in this first issue. These are:
Erich von Stroheim: “Queen Kelly: Walking Down Broadway”
Orson Welles: “For a Universal Cinema”
Hans Richter: “Film as an Original Art Form”
Edouard L. De Laurot: “Towards a Theory of Dynamic Realism”
Herman G. Weinberg: “The New Films”
George N.
- 12/30/2018
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
San Sebastian — Scenes Isabel Coixet’s romantic, historical drama “Elisa & Marcela” were sneak peeked at the San Sebastian Festival on Tuesday, along with further details,. The feature will be released by Netflix in 2019.
A Netflix original – produced by Barcelona-based Rodar y Rodar, A Coruña’s Zenit TV and Córdoba’s Lanube Películas in co-production with regional broadcasters TV3 in Catalonia and Galicia’s Tvg – “Elisa & Marcela” portrays a lesbian relationship in late 19th century Galicia between Elisa Sánchez Loriga and Marcela Gracia Ibeas, ending in the first-ever recorded marriage between two women.
The nearly five-minute sneak peek offered B&W scenes fragments selected by the director and edited by Bernat Aragonés (“The Bookshop”). The shown images exude a large tenderness hinting at a rigorous, richly-textured recreation of Galician life and manners at that time.
Marcela met Elisa in A Coruña in 1885 on their first day of school, founding a deep friendship between the two.
A Netflix original – produced by Barcelona-based Rodar y Rodar, A Coruña’s Zenit TV and Córdoba’s Lanube Películas in co-production with regional broadcasters TV3 in Catalonia and Galicia’s Tvg – “Elisa & Marcela” portrays a lesbian relationship in late 19th century Galicia between Elisa Sánchez Loriga and Marcela Gracia Ibeas, ending in the first-ever recorded marriage between two women.
The nearly five-minute sneak peek offered B&W scenes fragments selected by the director and edited by Bernat Aragonés (“The Bookshop”). The shown images exude a large tenderness hinting at a rigorous, richly-textured recreation of Galician life and manners at that time.
Marcela met Elisa in A Coruña in 1885 on their first day of school, founding a deep friendship between the two.
- 9/27/2018
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
“We didn’t need dialogue. We had faces!”
Cast aside by an industry that no longer sees her as youthful or desirable, a once-glamorous movie star plots an unlikely comeback in Billy Wilder’s darkly mesmerizing Sunset Boulevard – a movie that remains as mysterious, compelling and surprisingly relevant today as when it was released nearly 70 years ago.
On Sunday, May 13, and Wednesday, May 16, the TCM Big Screen Classics series from Fathom Events presents this haunting look at the dark side of fame, starring Gloria Swanson, William Holden, Erich von Stroheim and Nancy Olson. Named one of the greatest American films ever made by the American Film Institute, Sunset Boulevard will be presented with newly produced commentary by TCM Primetime Host Ben Mankiewicz, which will play before and after each screening.
Fearless, innovative and unafraid to indict the very industry that made it, Sunset Boulevard is presented in a digitally restored...
Cast aside by an industry that no longer sees her as youthful or desirable, a once-glamorous movie star plots an unlikely comeback in Billy Wilder’s darkly mesmerizing Sunset Boulevard – a movie that remains as mysterious, compelling and surprisingly relevant today as when it was released nearly 70 years ago.
On Sunday, May 13, and Wednesday, May 16, the TCM Big Screen Classics series from Fathom Events presents this haunting look at the dark side of fame, starring Gloria Swanson, William Holden, Erich von Stroheim and Nancy Olson. Named one of the greatest American films ever made by the American Film Institute, Sunset Boulevard will be presented with newly produced commentary by TCM Primetime Host Ben Mankiewicz, which will play before and after each screening.
Fearless, innovative and unafraid to indict the very industry that made it, Sunset Boulevard is presented in a digitally restored...
- 4/18/2018
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Since any New York City cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.
Film Society of Lincoln Center
A retrospective of the great, perpetually underseen Raúl Ruiz winds down its second part.
Anthology Film Archives
Films by Elaine May, Albert Brooks, Pialat, and Zulowski play in “Valentine’s Day Massacre.”
Erich von Stroheim’s Greed will play on Saturday and Sunday.
Metrograph
Retrospectives Alex Ross Perry and St.
Film Society of Lincoln Center
A retrospective of the great, perpetually underseen Raúl Ruiz winds down its second part.
Anthology Film Archives
Films by Elaine May, Albert Brooks, Pialat, and Zulowski play in “Valentine’s Day Massacre.”
Erich von Stroheim’s Greed will play on Saturday and Sunday.
Metrograph
Retrospectives Alex Ross Perry and St.
- 2/15/2018
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Close-Up is a feature that spotlights films now playing on Mubi. Grand Illusion (1937) is showing July 27 - August 26, 2017 in the United States as part of the retrospective Jean Renoir.Considering Jean Renoir's Grand Illusion today in no small part involves an awareness of status and stature, the most prominent (or maybe just the most intimidating) aspect of which surely being the cherished status the film continues to enjoy in the canon of film history. To this day, it remains a singular achievement, not only as one of Renoir's foundational masterpieces, but also as a film of its time whose contents have remained timeless. Released in 1937 to great acclaim, it bid farewell to one era of European history and warfare as another, far darker one was about to begin; thus, more than the grimly comical The Rules of the Game (made and released two years closer to the brink...
- 7/27/2017
- MUBI
On January 14, 1933, Hollywood astrologer Paul Branchard predicted an annus mirabilis for his gifted if mercurial client, Erich von Stroheim.
“The Sun is slowly (by progression) pulling in to parallel to the birth position of Neptune, and will become manifest in about two years,” he wrote, as quoted by Richard Koszarski in his biography The Man You Loved to Hate: Erich von Stroheim and Hollywood. “In my thirty years of study and practice with this science, I do not recall having ever seen so many fortunate influences, all operating at one time in a horoscope.”
Branchard may have had 30...
“The Sun is slowly (by progression) pulling in to parallel to the birth position of Neptune, and will become manifest in about two years,” he wrote, as quoted by Richard Koszarski in his biography The Man You Loved to Hate: Erich von Stroheim and Hollywood. “In my thirty years of study and practice with this science, I do not recall having ever seen so many fortunate influences, all operating at one time in a horoscope.”
Branchard may have had 30...
- 6/27/2017
- by Stephen Galloway
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Each month, the fine folks at FilmStruck and the Criterion Collection spend countless hours crafting their channels to highlight the many different types of films that they have in their streaming library. This July will feature an exciting assortment of films, as noted below.
To sign up for a free two-week trial here.
Saturday, July 1 Changing Faces
What does a face tell us even when it’s disguised or disfigured? And what does it conceal? Guest curator Imogen Sara Smith, a critic and author of the book In Lonely Places: Film Noir Beyond the City, assembles a series of films that revolve around enigmatic faces transformed by masks, scars, and surgery, including Georges Franju’s Eyes Without a Face (1960) and Hiroshi Teshigahara’s The Face of Another (1966).
Tuesday, July 4 Tuesday’s Short + Feature: Premature* and Ten*
Come hitch a ride with Norwegian director Gunhild Enger and the late Iranian master...
To sign up for a free two-week trial here.
Saturday, July 1 Changing Faces
What does a face tell us even when it’s disguised or disfigured? And what does it conceal? Guest curator Imogen Sara Smith, a critic and author of the book In Lonely Places: Film Noir Beyond the City, assembles a series of films that revolve around enigmatic faces transformed by masks, scars, and surgery, including Georges Franju’s Eyes Without a Face (1960) and Hiroshi Teshigahara’s The Face of Another (1966).
Tuesday, July 4 Tuesday’s Short + Feature: Premature* and Ten*
Come hitch a ride with Norwegian director Gunhild Enger and the late Iranian master...
- 6/26/2017
- by Ryan Gallagher
- CriterionCast
Twin Peaks Recap is a weekly column by Keith Uhlich covering David Lynch and Mark Frost's limited, 18-episode continuation of the Twin Peaks television series.A man walks into a bar—after cursing out Gene Kelly (because most of the time we don't feel like singin' in the rain). The bar, by the way, is named "Max Von's," surely after Erich von Stroheim's rabidly devoted butler Max von Mayerling from Sunset Blvd (1950). Of his employer, silent-film diva Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), Max once said, "Madame is the greatest star of them all." No more proper locale, then, for a star entrance: "Diane," says FBI forensics specialist Albert Rosenfield (Miguel Ferrer) to a platinum blond beauty nursing martini and cigarette. Around turns Diane Evans, the heretofore unseen confidante of FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan), and played (of course, how could there be any doubt?) by Laura Dern.
- 6/15/2017
- MUBI
“I spent a lot of time reviewing the silent films for crowd scenes –the way extras move, evolve, how the space is staged and how the cameras capture it, the views used,” Nolan said earlier this year when it came to the creation of his WWII epic Dunkirk, referencing films such as Intolerance, Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, and Greed, as well as the films of Robert Bresson.
Throughout the entire month of July, if you’re in the U.K., you are lucky enough to witness a selection of these influences in a program at BFI Southbank. Featuring all screenings in 35mm or 70mm — including a preview of Dunkirk over a week before it hits theaters — there’s classics such as Greed, Sunrise, and The Wages of Fear, as well as Alien, Speed, and even Tony Scott’s final film.
Check out Nolan’s introduction below, followed by...
Throughout the entire month of July, if you’re in the U.K., you are lucky enough to witness a selection of these influences in a program at BFI Southbank. Featuring all screenings in 35mm or 70mm — including a preview of Dunkirk over a week before it hits theaters — there’s classics such as Greed, Sunrise, and The Wages of Fear, as well as Alien, Speed, and even Tony Scott’s final film.
Check out Nolan’s introduction below, followed by...
- 5/25/2017
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Running from 1-31 July, BFI Southbank are delighted to present a season of films which have inspired director Christopher Nolan’s new feature Dunkirk (2017), released in cinemas across the UK on Friday 21 July.
Christopher Nolan Presents has been personally curated by the award-winning director and will offer audiences unique insight into the films which influenced his hotly anticipated take on one of the key moments of WWII.
The season will include a special preview screening of Dunkirk on Thursday 13 July, which will be presented in 70mm and include an introduction from the director himself.
Christopher Nolan is a passionate advocate for the importance of seeing films projected on film, and as one of the few cinemas in the UK that still shows a vast amount of celluloid film, BFI Southbank will screen all the films in the season on 35mm or 70mm.
In 2015 Nolan appeared on stage alongside visual artist...
Christopher Nolan Presents has been personally curated by the award-winning director and will offer audiences unique insight into the films which influenced his hotly anticipated take on one of the key moments of WWII.
The season will include a special preview screening of Dunkirk on Thursday 13 July, which will be presented in 70mm and include an introduction from the director himself.
Christopher Nolan is a passionate advocate for the importance of seeing films projected on film, and as one of the few cinemas in the UK that still shows a vast amount of celluloid film, BFI Southbank will screen all the films in the season on 35mm or 70mm.
In 2015 Nolan appeared on stage alongside visual artist...
- 5/24/2017
- by Michelle Hannett
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The silent French film Au Bonheur Des Dames (1930 – aka Ladies’ Paradise) screens Saturday May 6th at 11am at The St. Louis Art Museum (Forest Park, 1 Fine Arts Dr, St. Louis, Mo). The film will be accompanied by Elsie Parker and The Poor People of Paris. Tickets for this event are $15 general admission and $10 for museum members. Tickets can be purchased in advance from Metrotix or by calling 314.534.1111.
Julien Duvivier’s final silent film is a modern retelling of Emile Zola’s panoramic chronicle of mid-19th-century Parisian society, centering on a small fabric shop struggling to survive in the shadow of a luxury department store. With expressionistic shades of Erich von Stroheim and G.W. Pabst, the film captures the rhythms of urban life and creates a stinging portrait of capitalist ruthlessness, class tensions, and sexual competition. Scott Foundas in the Village Voice calls the film “an orgy of pure cinema,...
Julien Duvivier’s final silent film is a modern retelling of Emile Zola’s panoramic chronicle of mid-19th-century Parisian society, centering on a small fabric shop struggling to survive in the shadow of a luxury department store. With expressionistic shades of Erich von Stroheim and G.W. Pabst, the film captures the rhythms of urban life and creates a stinging portrait of capitalist ruthlessness, class tensions, and sexual competition. Scott Foundas in the Village Voice calls the film “an orgy of pure cinema,...
- 4/28/2017
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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