Ask any independent producer and they’ll tell you: making movies is a piece of cake. Scouring the Earth for viable, quality material? Wrangling, gracefully, volatile talent egos? Raising stupid amounts of capital and wearily securing every stray element of physical production? Delegating responsibility, absorbing crew complaints and mallet-flattening nonstop whack-a-mole near-disasters? Shrewdly navigating distribution in a broken marketplace and finally—if you’re very lucky!—appropriately proportioning revenue shares under perpetual threat of litigation for the duration of your fleeting mortal existence? Like we said. Easy.
Just kidding. This is some of the hardest goddamn shit you’ll ever try to do. But for 30 years Film Independent has been doing all it can to support filmmakers across every discipline and career level. In theory, of course, producers are everyone else’s best resource—the adult in the room solving problems and providing steady leadership. But who watches the watchmen produces the producers?...
Just kidding. This is some of the hardest goddamn shit you’ll ever try to do. But for 30 years Film Independent has been doing all it can to support filmmakers across every discipline and career level. In theory, of course, producers are everyone else’s best resource—the adult in the room solving problems and providing steady leadership. But who watches the watchmen produces the producers?...
- 3/20/2024
- by Matt Warren
- Film Independent News & More
“Carrie,” the 1976 Cinderella-goes-to-the-bloodbath horror film that gave Piper Laurie, who died Oct. 14 at 91, the role for which she’ll probably be best remembered, is the movie that changed my life. I was 17, home for the Thanksgiving weekend of my freshman year at college. “Carrie” had opened earlier that month, and I went to see it on Friday at our local mall. I knew nothing about it. I was just a naïve budding film geek who saw everything that played in town. But “Carrie,” for me, was the film-geek equivalent of watching the Beatles on “Ed Sullivan.” By the time the movie was over, I was a different person.
During the big shock sequence at the end, when Carrie’s hand pokes up through the earth in front of her grave, I literally stood up out of my seat in terror. That’s how real it all was to me.
During the big shock sequence at the end, when Carrie’s hand pokes up through the earth in front of her grave, I literally stood up out of my seat in terror. That’s how real it all was to me.
- 10/15/2023
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
James Bond is dead. Daniel Craig's version, that is. Buried beneath a hail of ballistics at the end of 2021's "No Time To Die," Craig's 007 was the first in the franchise's more than 60-year run to ever die on-screen (and not the fakeout "You Only Live Twice" kind). If you'd merely heard about, rather than witnessed, such an unprecedented and momentous moment in Bond history, you might think Craig's tenure in the tux was the finest the saga had ever seen, fully justifying longtime Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson in their decision to have England's greatest spy Kia. But you'd be wrong.
The prevailing view of the Craig era goes like this: 2006's "Casino Royale" is one of, if not the best Bond movie ever made, but its follow-up, 2008's "Quantum of Solace" was a historic blunder that nearly derailed the whole enterprise just as it was getting started.
The prevailing view of the Craig era goes like this: 2006's "Casino Royale" is one of, if not the best Bond movie ever made, but its follow-up, 2008's "Quantum of Solace" was a historic blunder that nearly derailed the whole enterprise just as it was getting started.
- 8/17/2023
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
The Walt Disney Company has been synonymous with animation ever since Mickey Mouse's debut in 1928's "Steamboat Willie." Almost 100 years later and Disney is not so much a little mouse but an enormous whale lunging through the media landscape and devouring properties such as Marvel, Pixar, and 20th Century Studios.Disney's holdings are so vast that its catalog ranges from "Bambi" and "A Bug's Life" to "Predator," "Die Hard," "Family Guy," and "The Simpsons," but that doesn't mean the company hasn't tripped up. On the contrary -- many Disney films have been financial blunders, even beloved works such as "Pinocchio," the initial failure of which caused Walt Disney to be, according to his friend and colleague Joe Grant, "very, very depressed."
The fortunes of "Pinocchio" have changed since its release in 1940 -- numerous rereleases pulled its lifetime grosses to over $120 million -- but that can't be said of other Disney productions.
The fortunes of "Pinocchio" have changed since its release in 1940 -- numerous rereleases pulled its lifetime grosses to over $120 million -- but that can't be said of other Disney productions.
- 5/13/2023
- by Jack Hawkins
- Slash Film
Based on a Japanese manga by Garon Tsuchiya Nobuaki Minegishi, Park Chan-wook's 2003 film "Oldboy" is a sensational, harrowing, violent, exhilarating opera of sin, retribution, and tragic twists worthy of Shakespeare. Tapping into a particularly Korean sense of social anxiety, it explores experiences of free-floating guilt and the sense that one might be punished at any moment for a slight you didn't know you committed. It's a panic attack of a film that swings for the walls -- literally, with a hammer -- and thwacks a few skulls in the process. Aggressive, enormous, bloody, and blunt, "Oldboy" may be one of the best films of its decade.
In 2003, Park's film -- the second part of what the filmmaker called a Vengeance Trilogy -- received a lot of attention. It won the Grand Prix at Cannes and dozens of other film awards besides. Quentin Tarantino talked it up immensely, and critics gushed.
In 2003, Park's film -- the second part of what the filmmaker called a Vengeance Trilogy -- received a lot of attention. It won the Grand Prix at Cannes and dozens of other film awards besides. Quentin Tarantino talked it up immensely, and critics gushed.
- 5/11/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
We are only a matter of weeks into 2023, but a strong contender for the title of “scariest movie” in some folks’ minds has already emerged in Skinamarink. The idea of the “scariest movie ever,” i.e. a horror film that generates word-of-mouth buzz, might seem like a modern concept but it actually goes back nearly a century. One of the first examples can be traced back to 1932 and the tastefully titled Freaks, a movie centered around a beautiful trapeze artist who schemes to steal a side-show performer’s inheritance only to be thwarted by his deformed cohorts.
Featuring real life circus performers, the movie was drastically recut by MGM after test screenings in which several terrified audience members “got up and ran out.” Today, those kinds of reports would be worth their weight in gold, but back then they led to the 90-minute running time being slashed to just 64, with...
Featuring real life circus performers, the movie was drastically recut by MGM after test screenings in which several terrified audience members “got up and ran out.” Today, those kinds of reports would be worth their weight in gold, but back then they led to the 90-minute running time being slashed to just 64, with...
- 2/20/2023
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
This July, Road To Perdition turns 20 years old. In honor of the milestone anniversary, we’re taking a look back at this neo-noir crime classic and why it’s worth rewatching all these years later. The film tells the story of Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks), a hitman who is seeking revenge on the men who killed his son. It’s an intense, engrossing drama that is sure to keep you hooked until the very end. The movie was well-regarded during its release, with The Wall Street Journal‘s Joe Morgenstern writing: “What makes the movie pay off is moving pictures of real action and
“Road To Perdition” Turns 20 In 2022...
“Road To Perdition” Turns 20 In 2022...
- 7/24/2022
- by A.E. Oats
- TVovermind.com
The Harry Potter franchise returns to theaters this week with the release of “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” the third entry in the spinoff series set years before Harry, Ron, and Hermione shook up the Wizarding World.
Unfortunately, for fans of the fantasy series, the third “Fantastic Beasts” film is yet another middling effort, at least according to critics. The film – which has been besieged by controversy, from Johnny Depp and Ezra Miller to co-writer J.K. Rowling – has a 47-grade on Metacritic, owing to numerous mixed reviews.
Lovia Gyarkye of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, “The long-awaited third installment of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World sub-franchise is less clogged with distracting detail than its immediate predecessor, but even a more refined plot can’t save the two-hour-plus film from feeling like an endurance test.”
IndieWire’s Kate Erbland was similarly divided, writing that the film “falls into precisely the same traps as its predecessor,...
Unfortunately, for fans of the fantasy series, the third “Fantastic Beasts” film is yet another middling effort, at least according to critics. The film – which has been besieged by controversy, from Johnny Depp and Ezra Miller to co-writer J.K. Rowling – has a 47-grade on Metacritic, owing to numerous mixed reviews.
Lovia Gyarkye of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, “The long-awaited third installment of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World sub-franchise is less clogged with distracting detail than its immediate predecessor, but even a more refined plot can’t save the two-hour-plus film from feeling like an endurance test.”
IndieWire’s Kate Erbland was similarly divided, writing that the film “falls into precisely the same traps as its predecessor,...
- 4/16/2022
- by Caillou Pettis
- Gold Derby
“Deliver a good entertainment, and the audience will come.” That’s what the venerable director Robert Wise told me after defying Hollywood doubters with his hit musical West Side Story.
Courtly and gracious, Wise also was a tough realist who, following his success, decided to turn to disaster movies like The Hindenburg and The Andromeda Strain. Disasters were safer bets.
Were he around today, I suspect Wise would assess Hollywood’s alleged four-quadrant audience and conclude that three had somehow drifted off to streamer heaven. “Spidey Saves the Day,” heralded the Spider-Man comic, while his youthful adherents have delivered a resounding $800 million worldwide gross for Spider-Man: No Way Home to date.
By contrast, movies aimed at the grown-up quadrant seem gripped in some sort of ‘plex poison: Nightmare Alley, The Last Duel, King Richard or, yes, West Side Story.
The questions loom large: Does streaming represent the only future for “specialty” cinema?...
Courtly and gracious, Wise also was a tough realist who, following his success, decided to turn to disaster movies like The Hindenburg and The Andromeda Strain. Disasters were safer bets.
Were he around today, I suspect Wise would assess Hollywood’s alleged four-quadrant audience and conclude that three had somehow drifted off to streamer heaven. “Spidey Saves the Day,” heralded the Spider-Man comic, while his youthful adherents have delivered a resounding $800 million worldwide gross for Spider-Man: No Way Home to date.
By contrast, movies aimed at the grown-up quadrant seem gripped in some sort of ‘plex poison: Nightmare Alley, The Last Duel, King Richard or, yes, West Side Story.
The questions loom large: Does streaming represent the only future for “specialty” cinema?...
- 12/23/2021
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Based on a 1967 novel by Thomas Savage, Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog follows a couple of brothers in 1920s Montana. Foulmouthed misanthrope and alpha male Phil Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch) has been running a prosperous cattle farm with his brother George (Jesse Plemons) when his soft-spoken sibling decides to marry a local widow, Rose (Kirsten Dunst), forever upsetting the tight-knit fraternity. The psychological warfare Phil wages against Rose as she moves into the Burbanks’ mansion pales before the torments he reserves to her son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee). A gangly, bookish cherub helplessly lost around cows and cowboys, Peter turns into a kind of punching bag Phil and his hyena-like employees continually deride and humiliate. That is, until the boy strikes an unlikely friendship with his persecutor, a camaraderie that calls into question the sort of uber-virile persona Phil has projected through the years. Contemplative in pacing and elliptical in structure,...
- 11/23/2021
- MUBI
Marcia Nasatir was never someone to be ignored, from her days as a young woman in New York publishing in the ’60s through her run as a top Hollywood production executive and her independent producing years. She set a path for many women to follow, and they did. She knew her worth and demanded equal treatment. She died Tuesday at age 95, after moving into the Motion Picture Home.
Even as a young woman, Nasatir was a forceful personality. Critic Joe Morgenstern first met her through their mutual friend Pauline Kael in the mid-1960s, he wrote in an email, “when Marcia was still a literary agent and before she became a studio executive at United Artists and rose to fill the position, with passion and distinction, that prompted her to use ‘firstmogulette’ as her email address. She knew books and loved them, but movies were her greater love, and as...
Even as a young woman, Nasatir was a forceful personality. Critic Joe Morgenstern first met her through their mutual friend Pauline Kael in the mid-1960s, he wrote in an email, “when Marcia was still a literary agent and before she became a studio executive at United Artists and rose to fill the position, with passion and distinction, that prompted her to use ‘firstmogulette’ as her email address. She knew books and loved them, but movies were her greater love, and as...
- 8/4/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Marcia Nasatir was never someone to be ignored, from her days as a young woman in New York publishing in the ’60s through her run as a top Hollywood production executive and her independent producing years. She set a path for many women to follow, and they did. She knew her worth and demanded equal treatment. She died Tuesday at age 95, after moving into the Motion Picture Home.
Even as a young woman, Nasatir was a forceful personality. Critic Joe Morgenstern first met her through their mutual friend Pauline Kael in the mid-1960s, he wrote in an email, “when Marcia was still a literary agent and before she became a studio executive at United Artists and rose to fill the position, with passion and distinction, that prompted her to use ‘firstmogulette’ as her email address. She knew books and loved them, but movies were her greater love, and as...
Even as a young woman, Nasatir was a forceful personality. Critic Joe Morgenstern first met her through their mutual friend Pauline Kael in the mid-1960s, he wrote in an email, “when Marcia was still a literary agent and before she became a studio executive at United Artists and rose to fill the position, with passion and distinction, that prompted her to use ‘firstmogulette’ as her email address. She knew books and loved them, but movies were her greater love, and as...
- 8/4/2021
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
In the 1990s, Jim Carrey was an unstoppable force.
After a stint on “In Living Color,” where he created a rococo list of characters like Fire Marshall Bill and Vera De Milo, the rubber-faced comic seamlessly made the transition to the big screen. Despite a critical drubbing, “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” became a sleeper hit in the spring of 1994, grossing more than $100 million on a $15 million budget. Carrey followed that up with blockbusters like “The Mask,” “Dumb and Dumber,” and “Batman Forever,” assuming the role of the Riddler, a part once earmarked for Robin Williams. As fans flocked to see his latest movies, Carrey’s salary ballooned. When he first played Ace Ventura, Carrey pulled in $450,000, but by the time he was spiking Jeff Daniels’s coffee with ex-lax in “Dumb and Dumber,” the comic earned a cool $7 million for his efforts.
So it made sense that when it came to compensation,...
After a stint on “In Living Color,” where he created a rococo list of characters like Fire Marshall Bill and Vera De Milo, the rubber-faced comic seamlessly made the transition to the big screen. Despite a critical drubbing, “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” became a sleeper hit in the spring of 1994, grossing more than $100 million on a $15 million budget. Carrey followed that up with blockbusters like “The Mask,” “Dumb and Dumber,” and “Batman Forever,” assuming the role of the Riddler, a part once earmarked for Robin Williams. As fans flocked to see his latest movies, Carrey’s salary ballooned. When he first played Ace Ventura, Carrey pulled in $450,000, but by the time he was spiking Jeff Daniels’s coffee with ex-lax in “Dumb and Dumber,” the comic earned a cool $7 million for his efforts.
So it made sense that when it came to compensation,...
- 6/14/2021
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Richard Rush, who picked up two Oscar nominations, best director and adapted screenplay, for his extraordinary 1980 film “The Stunt Man,” starring Peter O’Toole, died April 8 in Los Angeles. He was 91.
His wife Claude said he had been suffering from longtime health issues but that he died comfortably at home. She said in a statement, “He will be remembered for a string of landmark films in the 1960s and ’70s, culminating with his 1980 multi-Oscar-nominated classic, ‘The Stunt Man,’ which is widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. To those who were privileged to know and love him, he will be even more warmly remembered, and missed, for his integrity, his loyalty, his endless generosity of spirit and his boundless support and mentorship of other filmmakers, writers or indeed anyone who ever dared to, in the words of his ‘Stunt Man’ hero Eli Cross, ’tilt at a windmill.
His wife Claude said he had been suffering from longtime health issues but that he died comfortably at home. She said in a statement, “He will be remembered for a string of landmark films in the 1960s and ’70s, culminating with his 1980 multi-Oscar-nominated classic, ‘The Stunt Man,’ which is widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. To those who were privileged to know and love him, he will be even more warmly remembered, and missed, for his integrity, his loyalty, his endless generosity of spirit and his boundless support and mentorship of other filmmakers, writers or indeed anyone who ever dared to, in the words of his ‘Stunt Man’ hero Eli Cross, ’tilt at a windmill.
- 4/12/2021
- by Carmel Dagan
- Variety Film + TV
One could have watched the Critics Choice Awards last Sunday and thought they were re-watching the Golden Globes. Same nominees, mostly the same winners, same sweatshirt for Jason Sudeikis. Wait … didn’t the professional entertainment judgers generally blast the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for, well, for being what and who they are?
What happened to early critics’ winners like “First Cow”? How quickly they forget and go with the flow. In fact, this is the time critics — respect or resent them — are currently getting a taste of their own.
Consider “Malcolm and Marie,” the controversial film from Sam Levinson starring John Thomas Washington and Zendaya. It is basically one long argument about whether “that white lady of the L.A. Times” wrote a positive or negative review of Washington’s character’s film, seen through the racial lens. Washington ends his screed by saying he hopes the writer gets “f...
What happened to early critics’ winners like “First Cow”? How quickly they forget and go with the flow. In fact, this is the time critics — respect or resent them — are currently getting a taste of their own.
Consider “Malcolm and Marie,” the controversial film from Sam Levinson starring John Thomas Washington and Zendaya. It is basically one long argument about whether “that white lady of the L.A. Times” wrote a positive or negative review of Washington’s character’s film, seen through the racial lens. Washington ends his screed by saying he hopes the writer gets “f...
- 3/13/2021
- by Michele Willens
- The Wrap
Few were expecting to see the name of newcomer Adarsh Gourav, who stars in the Netflix film “The White Tiger,” among the nominees for Best Actor at the Independent Spirit Awards. He edged out much bigger names to reap a bid at this Oscars precursor and now numbers among the five best male leads in independent cinema along with Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”), Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), Rob Morgan (“Bull”) and Steven Yeun (“Minari”).
The rave reviews for Gourav’s performance in “The White Tiger” should have signalled his recognition by Film Independent. “The White Tiger” is rated 94% fresh by the top critics on Rotten Tomatoes. “The White Tiger” director Ramin Bahrani adapted Aravind Adiga‘s Booker Prize-winning novel of the same name.
“The White Tiger” tells the story of Balram Halwai (Gourav), a young boy from a low Indian caste whose wit and intellect gives promise...
The rave reviews for Gourav’s performance in “The White Tiger” should have signalled his recognition by Film Independent. “The White Tiger” is rated 94% fresh by the top critics on Rotten Tomatoes. “The White Tiger” director Ramin Bahrani adapted Aravind Adiga‘s Booker Prize-winning novel of the same name.
“The White Tiger” tells the story of Balram Halwai (Gourav), a young boy from a low Indian caste whose wit and intellect gives promise...
- 2/5/2021
- by John Benutty
- Gold Derby
Back in 2006 British TV comedian Sacha Baron Cohen took the world by storm when he wrote, produced, and starred in the outlandish mockumentary film “Borat.” The title character, a guileless Kazakh journalist, had already appeared in various projects over the preceding decade, including the HBO series “Da Ali G Show” and the 2002 film “Ali G Indahouse.” It was not until he was given his own film, however, that he truly broke into the zeitgeist and his creator experienced his greatest success.
Though he had a BAFTA Award and four Emmy bids to his name prior to “Borat,” Baron Cohen’s popularity rose to new heights upon the film’s release and his comedic genius attracted widespread acclaim. The film outgrossed “Ali G Indahouse” tenfold and became a serious awards contender in 2007. Baron Cohen ended up winning a Golden Globe for his acting and earned WGA and Oscar nominations for co-writing the screenplay.
Though he had a BAFTA Award and four Emmy bids to his name prior to “Borat,” Baron Cohen’s popularity rose to new heights upon the film’s release and his comedic genius attracted widespread acclaim. The film outgrossed “Ali G Indahouse” tenfold and became a serious awards contender in 2007. Baron Cohen ended up winning a Golden Globe for his acting and earned WGA and Oscar nominations for co-writing the screenplay.
- 2/5/2021
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
“The White Tiger” is poised to leap into awards contention now that it is streaming on Netflix after a limited run in theaters. Critics have already given it a resounding thumbs up, so its wider audience and positive word of mouth should help it break through as a contender in Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay and across the board in both acting and the below the line crafts categories.
“The White Tiger” is on the rise in our combined odds, currently jostling with a bunch of other contenders just outside the main frontrunners group. But with great reviews behind it, the film could capitalize on the academy’s more diverse international membership. If enough of these rookie voters see this film, they might find it hard to resist embracing this exotic, well-received rags-to-riches success story.
The film is adapted by writer/director Ramin Bahrani from acclaimed novelist Aravind Adiga‘s...
“The White Tiger” is on the rise in our combined odds, currently jostling with a bunch of other contenders just outside the main frontrunners group. But with great reviews behind it, the film could capitalize on the academy’s more diverse international membership. If enough of these rookie voters see this film, they might find it hard to resist embracing this exotic, well-received rags-to-riches success story.
The film is adapted by writer/director Ramin Bahrani from acclaimed novelist Aravind Adiga‘s...
- 2/3/2021
- by Rob Licuria
- Gold Derby
Tom Hanks has more than enough charismatic giddy-up in his first-ever Western, “News of the World,” as a Civil War veteran and widower Jefferson Kyle Kidd in 1870 Texas who makes a living by going from town to town and reading aloud stories from newspapers. But his 12-year-old co-star, Helena Zengel, is also earning critical praise as a 10-year-old German girl, Johanna Leonberger, who prefers to be called Cicada. She was taken from her family by the Kiowa tribe four years earlier and was raised as one of their own. The upstanding Kidd volunteers to deliver the girl to her German relatives near San Antonio. Along the way, these two broken loners slowly but surely create a bond together as they share a harrowing journey.
SEEJodie Foster movies: 15 greatest films ranked from worst to best
If she gets nominated as a supporting actress, she would join an elite club of 20 acting contenders aged 18 and younger,...
SEEJodie Foster movies: 15 greatest films ranked from worst to best
If she gets nominated as a supporting actress, she would join an elite club of 20 acting contenders aged 18 and younger,...
- 1/13/2021
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
Tom Hanks has more than enough charismatic giddy-up in his first-ever Western, “News of the World,” as a Civil War veteran and widower Jefferson Kyle Kidd in 1870 Texas who makes a living by going from town to town and reading aloud stories from newspapers. But his 12-year-old co-star, Helena Zengel, is also earning critical praise as a 10-year-old German girl, Johanna Leonberger, who prefers to be called Cicada. She was taken from her family by the Kiowa tribe four years earlier and was raised as one of their own. The upstanding Kidd volunteers to deliver the girl to her German relatives near San Antonio. Along the way, these two broken loners slowly but surely create a bond together as they share a harrowing journey.
If she gets nominated as a supporting actress, she would join an elite club of 20 acting contenders aged 18 and younger, who competed for Tinseltown’s highest honor.
If she gets nominated as a supporting actress, she would join an elite club of 20 acting contenders aged 18 and younger, who competed for Tinseltown’s highest honor.
- 1/11/2021
- by Susan Wloszczyna, Chris Beachum and Misty Holland
- Gold Derby
There are horror stories chronicling the difficulties trying to cast a film. Practically every actress of a certain age in Hollywood auditioned for the pivotal role of Scarlett O’Hara in 1939’s “Gone with the Wind” before producer David O. Selznick selected the British actress Vivien Leigh. And more recently, Sacha Baron Cohen went on an exhaustive search for the perfect actress to play his teenage daughter Tutar in “Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm” before he found Bulgarian actress Maria Bakalova.
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Paul Greengrass (2005’s “Flight 93”) knew his biggest problem with his new film, Universal’s “News of the World,” was finding a child actress to play Johanna, a German émigré in Texas in 1870 who had been kidnapped by the Kiowa as a child. Not only did he need a young German actress, Greengrass needed one strong enough to hold her own opposite the film’s star Tom Hanks, who plays Captain Jason Kidd,...
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Paul Greengrass (2005’s “Flight 93”) knew his biggest problem with his new film, Universal’s “News of the World,” was finding a child actress to play Johanna, a German émigré in Texas in 1870 who had been kidnapped by the Kiowa as a child. Not only did he need a young German actress, Greengrass needed one strong enough to hold her own opposite the film’s star Tom Hanks, who plays Captain Jason Kidd,...
- 1/5/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
While the Oscars and other awards bodies have all pushed events back on their calendar and expanded eligibility for what movies can be considered, the New York Film Critics Circle will only consider movies released in the 2020 calendar year for its annual awards.
The Nyfcc announced Friday it will vote for its 2020 awards on Dec. 18 and that only movies released in theaters or on digital platforms between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2020, will be considered.
Further, the date for the group’s annual Gala Awards dinner is still to be announced, and membership for 2020 members will be frozen this year, with all current members still eligible to vote, even as many critics’ jobs have been affected by Covid-19. No new members will be voted in this year.
“This is a year unlike any other in our lifetimes. But the world of movies hasn’t stopped, and already, even in this very strange year,...
The Nyfcc announced Friday it will vote for its 2020 awards on Dec. 18 and that only movies released in theaters or on digital platforms between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2020, will be considered.
Further, the date for the group’s annual Gala Awards dinner is still to be announced, and membership for 2020 members will be frozen this year, with all current members still eligible to vote, even as many critics’ jobs have been affected by Covid-19. No new members will be voted in this year.
“This is a year unlike any other in our lifetimes. But the world of movies hasn’t stopped, and already, even in this very strange year,...
- 9/11/2020
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Are film critics extinct? Two of the most prominent practitioners, Ken Turan and Todd McCarthy, abruptly posted their “fade out” notices last week. They were well timed, because the movie marketplace is a black hole that defies coverage at the moment.
But consider this: A veritable torrent of films will hit theaters in the fall – festival films that have lost their festivals and summer tentpole films that have lost their summers. Hence, thoughtful, informed voices are needed to guide us through the cinematic tsunami and overcome the tyranny of the Tomatoes.
And the media must figure out how to cope: The New York Times last week gave its prime space to a review of Ernst Lubitsch’s 1931 comedy The Smiling Lieutenant, and buried its brief slam of Netflix’s high-profile action film Extraction, which drew most attention from viewers.
Turan and McCarthy have faithfully served filmgoers and filmmakers over the years,...
But consider this: A veritable torrent of films will hit theaters in the fall – festival films that have lost their festivals and summer tentpole films that have lost their summers. Hence, thoughtful, informed voices are needed to guide us through the cinematic tsunami and overcome the tyranny of the Tomatoes.
And the media must figure out how to cope: The New York Times last week gave its prime space to a review of Ernst Lubitsch’s 1931 comedy The Smiling Lieutenant, and buried its brief slam of Netflix’s high-profile action film Extraction, which drew most attention from viewers.
Turan and McCarthy have faithfully served filmgoers and filmmakers over the years,...
- 4/30/2020
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
“I have some big news,” the Los Angeles Times lead film critic Kenneth Turan tweeted on Wednesday. “After close to 30 years in the most exciting and rewarding of jobs, I am stepping away from being a daily film critic for the Los Angeles Times. I will keep writing about film but at a different pace. To quote Ecclesiastes, ‘To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.’ Looking forward to what’s to come.”
The outpouring of praise for Turan, who is 73, was intense and immediate. “The maestro takes a bow,” responded The New York Times lead film critic A.O. Scott on Twitter, who himself stepped down from full-time daily criticism on March 15 for one year, leaving that task to his fellow lead critic Manohla Dargis. In his case, taking the title of Critic at Large as he writes “bigger, cross-topic essays,” per The Nyt,...
The outpouring of praise for Turan, who is 73, was intense and immediate. “The maestro takes a bow,” responded The New York Times lead film critic A.O. Scott on Twitter, who himself stepped down from full-time daily criticism on March 15 for one year, leaving that task to his fellow lead critic Manohla Dargis. In his case, taking the title of Critic at Large as he writes “bigger, cross-topic essays,” per The Nyt,...
- 3/26/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
“I have some big news,” the Los Angeles Times lead film critic Kenneth Turan tweeted on Wednesday. “After close to 30 years in the most exciting and rewarding of jobs, I am stepping away from being a daily film critic for the Los Angeles Times. I will keep writing about film but at a different pace. To quote Ecclesiastes, ‘To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.’ Looking forward to what’s to come.”
The outpouring of praise for Turan, who is 73, was intense and immediate. “The maestro takes a bow,” responded The New York Times lead film critic A.O. Scott on Twitter, who himself stepped down from full-time daily criticism on March 15 for one year, leaving that task to his fellow lead critic Manohla Dargis. In his case, taking the title of Critic at Large as he writes “bigger, cross-topic essays,” per The Nyt,...
The outpouring of praise for Turan, who is 73, was intense and immediate. “The maestro takes a bow,” responded The New York Times lead film critic A.O. Scott on Twitter, who himself stepped down from full-time daily criticism on March 15 for one year, leaving that task to his fellow lead critic Manohla Dargis. In his case, taking the title of Critic at Large as he writes “bigger, cross-topic essays,” per The Nyt,...
- 3/26/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
What She Said: The Art Of Pauline Kael screens at Webster University ‘s Moor Auditorium (470 E Lockwood Ave) screens Friday February 21st, Saturday February 22nd, and Sunday February 23rd. The film begins each evening at at 7:00pm. A Facebook event can be found Here
Regarded by Roger Ebert as having “a more positive influence on the climate for film in America than any other single person over the last three decades,” film critic Pauline Kael reigned, from the late 60s to the early 90s, as one of the most well-known, clever, and controversial figures in the industry. Having been one of the few female critics in a sea of men, unapologetic about her (often scathing) opinions, and underpaid for the influential work she did, Kael fought endlessly to preserve her title.
Pauline Kael, the New Yorker film critic for 25 years until the early 1990s, was a lightning rod of American culture.
Regarded by Roger Ebert as having “a more positive influence on the climate for film in America than any other single person over the last three decades,” film critic Pauline Kael reigned, from the late 60s to the early 90s, as one of the most well-known, clever, and controversial figures in the industry. Having been one of the few female critics in a sea of men, unapologetic about her (often scathing) opinions, and underpaid for the influential work she did, Kael fought endlessly to preserve her title.
Pauline Kael, the New Yorker film critic for 25 years until the early 1990s, was a lightning rod of American culture.
- 2/18/2020
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Bong Joon Ho‘s “Parasite” won Best Picture from the National Society of Film Critics, which met at the Film Society of Lincoln Center in New York City on Saturday to choose its winners for the 54th time. The South Korean drama also won Best Screenplay from the group.
The society recognized two indies for the top acting prizes: Mary Kay Place for “Diane” and Antonio Banderas for Pedro Almodóvar’s “Pain and Glory.” The supporting acting honors went to Brad Pitt for “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” and Laura Dern for her work in both “Marriage Story” and “Little Women.”
The National Society of Film Critics was established in 1966, with its co-founders including Pauline Kael, Joe Morgenstern and Richard Schickel. The group currently has 60 active members. Members who have not seen most or all of the contending films can disqualify themselves from voting.
Also Read: New York Film...
The society recognized two indies for the top acting prizes: Mary Kay Place for “Diane” and Antonio Banderas for Pedro Almodóvar’s “Pain and Glory.” The supporting acting honors went to Brad Pitt for “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” and Laura Dern for her work in both “Marriage Story” and “Little Women.”
The National Society of Film Critics was established in 1966, with its co-founders including Pauline Kael, Joe Morgenstern and Richard Schickel. The group currently has 60 active members. Members who have not seen most or all of the contending films can disqualify themselves from voting.
Also Read: New York Film...
- 1/4/2020
- by Steve Pond and Thom Geier
- The Wrap
It’s hard to believe with all the divergent opinions floating around today about movies on Twitter, Facebook, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and dozens of other outlets, that there was a time when a handful of influential film critics wielded the power to make or break a movie.
And the most powerful of those critics was Pauline Kael, who held sway with a sharp tongue and corrosive wit at the New Yorker from 1967 to 1989. To see Rob Garver’s affectionate documentary about her career, “What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael,” is to be once again swept away by the excitement of cinema as she experienced it.
Born on a chicken farm in Northern California and raised in San Francisco, Kael was an outsider to the New York art scene, and that otherness gave her the temperament and cocksure confidence to find her own voice. She desperately wanted to be an artist,...
And the most powerful of those critics was Pauline Kael, who held sway with a sharp tongue and corrosive wit at the New Yorker from 1967 to 1989. To see Rob Garver’s affectionate documentary about her career, “What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael,” is to be once again swept away by the excitement of cinema as she experienced it.
Born on a chicken farm in Northern California and raised in San Francisco, Kael was an outsider to the New York art scene, and that otherness gave her the temperament and cocksure confidence to find her own voice. She desperately wanted to be an artist,...
- 12/13/2019
- by James Greenberg
- The Wrap
Could Antonio Banderas finally be on his way to his first Oscar nomination — and maybe even a win? The Spanish actor has often been overlooked as a heartthrob, but his performance in “Pain and Glory,” which reunites him with director Pedro Almodovar to play a semi-autobiographical version of the filmmaker, might just do the trick. The film opened on October 4, and the reviews have mostly been glowing.
As of this writing the film has a MetaCritic score of 85 based on 25 reviews counted thus far: 22 positive, 3 somewhat mixed. On Rotten Tomatoes, which rates films strictly on a pass/fail basis, it has a freshness rating of 96% based on 132 reviews: 127 positive and only 5 negative. The Rt critics’ consensus says, “‘Pain and Glory’ finds writer-director Pedro Almodóvar drawing on his own life to rewarding effect — and honoring his craft as only a master filmmaker can.”
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As of this writing the film has a MetaCritic score of 85 based on 25 reviews counted thus far: 22 positive, 3 somewhat mixed. On Rotten Tomatoes, which rates films strictly on a pass/fail basis, it has a freshness rating of 96% based on 132 reviews: 127 positive and only 5 negative. The Rt critics’ consensus says, “‘Pain and Glory’ finds writer-director Pedro Almodóvar drawing on his own life to rewarding effect — and honoring his craft as only a master filmmaker can.”
Sign UPfor Gold Derby’s free newsletter with...
- 10/4/2019
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
The well-crafted What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael is a fascinating tribute to a maverick film critic who celebrated high and low art indiscriminately, and was also quick to point out in her reviews–even to the point of controversy–what she viewed as extreme pretensions. It’s no doubt that Kael influenced Roger Ebert’s primary rule of film criticism when she panned Claude Lanzmann’s universally acclaimed nine-hour Holocaust documentary Shoah, in which she received blowback for her scathing but not unfair words about the picture.
Kael’s far-reaching influence extended into the mainstreams of cinema and film criticism even as she continued to rally against the “sugar-coated lie” at the core of popular films that were consumer products of the era like The Sound of Music. The influential New Yorker critic typically held back, waiting for a consensus to build before launching her attack or support.
Kael’s far-reaching influence extended into the mainstreams of cinema and film criticism even as she continued to rally against the “sugar-coated lie” at the core of popular films that were consumer products of the era like The Sound of Music. The influential New Yorker critic typically held back, waiting for a consensus to build before launching her attack or support.
- 5/9/2019
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
Hey, Marvel Movie fans. The huge, new Marvel "Avengers: Endgame" movie officially hit theaters nationwide today, April 26, 2019, and a lot of the reviews are in from the top movie critics in the country. After skimming over a few of them, I can already see that most of them are quite positive. It got an overall 77 out of a possible 100 score over on the Metacritic.com site. In this article, we're going to reveal what a few of the top critics had to say. To get things started, Michael O'Sullivan from the Washington Post gave it a perfect 100 score, and he said Endgame is about acceptance and moving on. He stated, "If “Infinity War” was about failure, “Endgame” is, ironically, all about acceptance and moving on. After 11 long years, the Infinity Saga is finally, fulfillingly over. There is no post-credit scene. But oh, what a going-away party these old friends have thrown for themselves.
- 4/27/2019
- by Andre Braddox
- OnTheFlix
Chloé Zhao's The Rider has been named the best film of 2018 by the National Society of Film Critics, which met in New York City on Saturday to choose its winners for the 53rd time. Roma and Burning were the two next runners-up.
- 1/5/2019
- by Steve Pond and Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Exclusive: Sony Pictures Worldwide has just taken most international territories to Bo Burnham’s Sundance Film Festival indie feature Eighth Grade, which in the wake of a fantastic Rotten Tomatoes score of 98% certified is being primed for awards season by A24.
The Scott Rudin-Eli Bush-produced movie, which marks 27-year old comedian Burnham’s foray into feature film directing counts $13.5M at the domestic box office, and was one of the few fiction indie mainstays at the summer’s specialty box office which was dominated by documentary films. While awards and big box office are always wonderful to go hand in hand, Eighth Grade is a reminder of how prestige matters more in the awards race than ticket sales. The pic, which was shot over roughly 30 days, surpassed such Oscar-nominated Sundance faves as Fox Searchlight’s Beasts of the Southern Wild ($12.7M), another summer breakout from six years ago.
The Scott Rudin-Eli Bush-produced movie, which marks 27-year old comedian Burnham’s foray into feature film directing counts $13.5M at the domestic box office, and was one of the few fiction indie mainstays at the summer’s specialty box office which was dominated by documentary films. While awards and big box office are always wonderful to go hand in hand, Eighth Grade is a reminder of how prestige matters more in the awards race than ticket sales. The pic, which was shot over roughly 30 days, surpassed such Oscar-nominated Sundance faves as Fox Searchlight’s Beasts of the Southern Wild ($12.7M), another summer breakout from six years ago.
- 9/26/2018
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Tom Cruise has a right to gloat this week. I will grant him that because, precisely ten years ago, all he wanted to do was hide. Cruise once confided to me that one of his abiding rules was to “stay resilient,” and he’s proved his point..
The mega success of his sixth Mission: Impossible elevates Cruise to the status of a sort of business superhero. He’s a star who can create, finance and promote a franchise that challenges the numbers of the spandex crowd without emulating their dopey wardrobe.
Still, in August a decade ago, Cruise assumed a different guise: he’d been forced to step down from his dream role as studio chief of fabled United Artists, the company founded by Mary Pickford and Charlie Chaplin. In doing so, he’d admitted his inability, after two years, to mobilize a tenable program of films. Cruise had felt...
The mega success of his sixth Mission: Impossible elevates Cruise to the status of a sort of business superhero. He’s a star who can create, finance and promote a franchise that challenges the numbers of the spandex crowd without emulating their dopey wardrobe.
Still, in August a decade ago, Cruise assumed a different guise: he’d been forced to step down from his dream role as studio chief of fabled United Artists, the company founded by Mary Pickford and Charlie Chaplin. In doing so, he’d admitted his inability, after two years, to mobilize a tenable program of films. Cruise had felt...
- 8/2/2018
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
The New York Film Critics Circle announced today that 8 new members will join the group, bringing the total number of members to 42, the largest membership since the group was founded in 1935. The new members include The Ringer’s Kameron Austin Collins, IndieWire’s own David Ehrlich, The National Catholic Register’s Steven Greydanus, BBC’s Caryn James, Film Comment’s Violet Lucca, RogerEbert.com’s Sheila O’Malley, The Atlantic’s David Sims and Vox’s Alissa Wilkinson. Additionally, the group formally voted in Alison Willmore from Buzzfeed as their Vice Chair.
“We are thrilled to welcome so many strong voices from a variety of publications into the group this year,” said Nyfcc Chair Eric Kohn of IndieWire. “Our group is now at its largest number in history, illustrating the ongoing vitality of film criticism in New York and the range of voices keeping it relevant. While we plan to...
“We are thrilled to welcome so many strong voices from a variety of publications into the group this year,” said Nyfcc Chair Eric Kohn of IndieWire. “Our group is now at its largest number in history, illustrating the ongoing vitality of film criticism in New York and the range of voices keeping it relevant. While we plan to...
- 10/27/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Simon Brew Sep 28, 2017
Meet the film reviewer who gave Warner Bros a review even better than a five star rave...
The late 1960s were widely regarded as a turning point for American cinema, and this was thrown into focus by the nominees for the 40th Academy Awards. Held on April 10th 1968, and celebrating films released in 1967, the line-up of five Best Picture candidates notably had only one film that could be bracketed as traditional Hollywood. Even then, the bloated Doctor Dolittle, featuring Rex Harrison gamely trying to belt out a few tunes across the best part of three hours, was disregarded pretty much the minute the nominees were read out. Instead, the focus turned to the other four contenders.
In The Heat Of The Night took home Best Picture gold in the end, beating out The Graduate and Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner. But also in the mix was...
Meet the film reviewer who gave Warner Bros a review even better than a five star rave...
The late 1960s were widely regarded as a turning point for American cinema, and this was thrown into focus by the nominees for the 40th Academy Awards. Held on April 10th 1968, and celebrating films released in 1967, the line-up of five Best Picture candidates notably had only one film that could be bracketed as traditional Hollywood. Even then, the bloated Doctor Dolittle, featuring Rex Harrison gamely trying to belt out a few tunes across the best part of three hours, was disregarded pretty much the minute the nominees were read out. Instead, the focus turned to the other four contenders.
In The Heat Of The Night took home Best Picture gold in the end, beating out The Graduate and Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner. But also in the mix was...
- 9/27/2017
- Den of Geek
The New York Film Critics Circle has announced the date for its annual vote on the best films and performances of the year, taking place this year on Thursday, November 30, 2017, followed by its annual Gala Awards dinner on Wednesday, January 3, 2018. As is the organization’s tradition, winners will be announced on Twitter during the annual meeting. New members will be announced in October, after their annual meeting on October 20.
Only a handful of other voting bodies go before the Nyfcc, including the Gotham Awards (November 27) and the National Board of Review (November 28). The Nyfcc is typically the first critics-led organization to announce its winners, getting a major jump on the season and helping set the stage for the weeks to come. IndieWire’s own Deputy Editor and Chief Critic Eric Kohn serves as this year’s Chairman, with Buzzfeed’s Alison Wilmore serving as Vice Chair and Marshall Fine continuing on as General Manager.
Only a handful of other voting bodies go before the Nyfcc, including the Gotham Awards (November 27) and the National Board of Review (November 28). The Nyfcc is typically the first critics-led organization to announce its winners, getting a major jump on the season and helping set the stage for the weeks to come. IndieWire’s own Deputy Editor and Chief Critic Eric Kohn serves as this year’s Chairman, with Buzzfeed’s Alison Wilmore serving as Vice Chair and Marshall Fine continuing on as General Manager.
- 9/18/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
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
Simon Brew Mar 21, 2017
How many of us revisit a film, if it didn't work for us first time around?
A bit of clickbait avoidance. The answer to the question posed in the title is: it clearly depends on the film. But I think there’s a bit more to it than that. Hence this article.
Let’s start, then, with Stephen Fry. In his relatively recent memoir More Fool Me, he spends a welcome chunk of the opening section discussing books, and how memories of books can leak over time. He ties it into Guy Pearce’s character in Memento, thus earning a few extra geek points from the jar.
But there’s a sentence he writes, on page 15, that struck me at the time, and has struck me regularly since. For he simply recalls that “A friend of mine pointed out recently how absurd it was that people reread...
How many of us revisit a film, if it didn't work for us first time around?
A bit of clickbait avoidance. The answer to the question posed in the title is: it clearly depends on the film. But I think there’s a bit more to it than that. Hence this article.
Let’s start, then, with Stephen Fry. In his relatively recent memoir More Fool Me, he spends a welcome chunk of the opening section discussing books, and how memories of books can leak over time. He ties it into Guy Pearce’s character in Memento, thus earning a few extra geek points from the jar.
But there’s a sentence he writes, on page 15, that struck me at the time, and has struck me regularly since. For he simply recalls that “A friend of mine pointed out recently how absurd it was that people reread...
- 3/20/2017
- Den of Geek
A Wall Street Journal review for Lion mixed up star Dev Patel with actor Kal Penn, a swap that did not go unnoticed on social media.
In his Friday review for the upcoming drama, film critic Joe Morgenstern referenced a past performance by Designated Survivor's Penn when describing Slumdog Millionaire star Patel.
"Saroo is played dazzlingly by Dev Patel, who gives his richest performance since The Namesake," Morganstern wrote. Lion — which The Hollywood Reporter's awards analyst Scott Feinberg predicts will be a major Oscar player — tells the true story of Saroo Brierley and his quest to find the...
In his Friday review for the upcoming drama, film critic Joe Morgenstern referenced a past performance by Designated Survivor's Penn when describing Slumdog Millionaire star Patel.
"Saroo is played dazzlingly by Dev Patel, who gives his richest performance since The Namesake," Morganstern wrote. Lion — which The Hollywood Reporter's awards analyst Scott Feinberg predicts will be a major Oscar player — tells the true story of Saroo Brierley and his quest to find the...
- 11/26/2016
- by THR Staff
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Friday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal saw the paper’s award-winning film critic, Joe Morgenstern, mistake Dev Patel for Kal Penn — two actors of Indian heritage — in his review of “Lion”. The article describes Patel’s performance in the drama as his best since 2006’s “The Namesake”, however, as one reader pointed out on […]...
- 11/25/2016
- by Sylvia Ogweng
- ET Canada
With 16 scores of 100, Kenneth Lonergan’s masterful portrait of grief and sorrow, Manchester by the Sea as yet has no negatives. Not a single negative review and only praise. That...
- 11/18/2016
- by Sasha Stone
- AwardsDaily.com
The prestigious New York Film Critics Circle, founded in 1935, is always a force in the early awards conversation.
But there is often some debate about how early they can reasonably vote for the year’s best films. Traditionally, they like to set the tone for the awards season (while protesting that it has no bearing on how they vote). Will they be able to see all the late-breaking entries by their voting date December 1? They’ve insisted on voting around the same time for the last five years.
While they will likely catch Ben Affleck’s “Live By Night” and Denzel Washington’s “Fences” in time, the film they are most likely to miss is Martin Scorsese’s “Silence.” He’s working with Paramount on a last-minute marketing campaign for the period film set in Japan, but there are concerns about when that movie starring Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson...
But there is often some debate about how early they can reasonably vote for the year’s best films. Traditionally, they like to set the tone for the awards season (while protesting that it has no bearing on how they vote). Will they be able to see all the late-breaking entries by their voting date December 1? They’ve insisted on voting around the same time for the last five years.
While they will likely catch Ben Affleck’s “Live By Night” and Denzel Washington’s “Fences” in time, the film they are most likely to miss is Martin Scorsese’s “Silence.” He’s working with Paramount on a last-minute marketing campaign for the period film set in Japan, but there are concerns about when that movie starring Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson...
- 10/27/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
The prestigious New York Film Critics Circle, founded in 1935, is always a force in the early awards conversation.
But there is always some debate about how early they can reasonably vote for the year’s best films. Traditionally, they like to set the tone for the awards season (while protesting that it has no bearing on how they vote). Will they be able to see all the late-breaking entries by their voting date December 1? They’ve insisted on voting around the same time for the last five years.
While they will likely catch Ben Affleck’s “Live By Night” and Denzel Washington’s “Fences” in time, the film they are most likely to miss is Martin Scorsese’s “Silence.” He’s working with Paramount on a last-minute marketing campaign for the period film set in Japan, but there are concerns about when that movie starring Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson...
But there is always some debate about how early they can reasonably vote for the year’s best films. Traditionally, they like to set the tone for the awards season (while protesting that it has no bearing on how they vote). Will they be able to see all the late-breaking entries by their voting date December 1? They’ve insisted on voting around the same time for the last five years.
While they will likely catch Ben Affleck’s “Live By Night” and Denzel Washington’s “Fences” in time, the film they are most likely to miss is Martin Scorsese’s “Silence.” He’s working with Paramount on a last-minute marketing campaign for the period film set in Japan, but there are concerns about when that movie starring Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson...
- 10/27/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Piper Laurie Keeps Her Chin Up
By Alex Simon
Few living actors can claim to have experienced the Hollywood machine in all its iterations more than three-time Oscar nominee Piper Laurie. Signed by Universal Pictures at 17, their youngest contract player in years, she was in the last generation that were part of the Hollywood “factory,” pushed into “cheesecake” roles that accented physical attributes, as opposed to talent. It was the beginning of a journey.
She was born Rosetta Jacobs in Detroit, Michigan, on January 22, 1932, to immigrant parents of Polish and Russian Jewish descent. When she was still five, the family sent her and her sister to a children’s sanatorium in the mountains to see if her sister’s asthma could be cured. Three years later after being reunited with her family she decided she wanted to become an actress and studied with Benno and Betomi Schneider for several years...
By Alex Simon
Few living actors can claim to have experienced the Hollywood machine in all its iterations more than three-time Oscar nominee Piper Laurie. Signed by Universal Pictures at 17, their youngest contract player in years, she was in the last generation that were part of the Hollywood “factory,” pushed into “cheesecake” roles that accented physical attributes, as opposed to talent. It was the beginning of a journey.
She was born Rosetta Jacobs in Detroit, Michigan, on January 22, 1932, to immigrant parents of Polish and Russian Jewish descent. When she was still five, the family sent her and her sister to a children’s sanatorium in the mountains to see if her sister’s asthma could be cured. Three years later after being reunited with her family she decided she wanted to become an actress and studied with Benno and Betomi Schneider for several years...
- 6/9/2016
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Burbank, CA, March 29, 2016 – The classic beloved animated tale The Iron Giant returns to home screens when The Iron Giant: Signature Edition is released for the first time on Blu-ray on September 6. Also available on September 6 will be an Ultimate Collectors Edition. The 1999 film directed by Brad Bird (The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Tomorrowland) has been fully remastered and enhanced with two all-new scenes.
When The Iron Giant arrived in theaters, it was hailed as an “instant classic” (Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal). “Imagine E.T.as a towering metal man, that’s the appeal of this enchanting animated feature” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times). And the world soon learned another “giant” had arrived as well: filmmaker Brad Bird, who made his stunning directorial debut with this film and has gone on to win two Oscars®, as well as worldwide acclaim for his work on both animated and live-action features.
When The Iron Giant arrived in theaters, it was hailed as an “instant classic” (Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal). “Imagine E.T.as a towering metal man, that’s the appeal of this enchanting animated feature” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times). And the world soon learned another “giant” had arrived as well: filmmaker Brad Bird, who made his stunning directorial debut with this film and has gone on to win two Oscars®, as well as worldwide acclaim for his work on both animated and live-action features.
- 3/30/2016
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
Brad Bird's much beloved (and rightfully so) The iron Giant is finally making it's way to the high definition format, along with some brand new bonus features for fans to delve into. Come inside for all the info!
In the year 2016 it seems inexplicable that such an iconic and amazing movie like The Iron Giant hasn't made its way to blu-ray. Well, here we are, and somehow it's happened. Thankfully, Warner Bros. is now remedying this, and bringing the film out on September 6, 2016. Best of all, it comes with an all new bonus documentary!
The classic beloved animated tale “The Iron Giant” returns to home screens when “The Iron Giant: Signature Edition” is released for the first time on Blu-ray on September 6. Also available on September 6 will be an “Ultimate Collectors Edition.” The 1999 film directed by Brad Bird (“The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille,” “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” “Tomorrowland”) has been...
In the year 2016 it seems inexplicable that such an iconic and amazing movie like The Iron Giant hasn't made its way to blu-ray. Well, here we are, and somehow it's happened. Thankfully, Warner Bros. is now remedying this, and bringing the film out on September 6, 2016. Best of all, it comes with an all new bonus documentary!
The classic beloved animated tale “The Iron Giant” returns to home screens when “The Iron Giant: Signature Edition” is released for the first time on Blu-ray on September 6. Also available on September 6 will be an “Ultimate Collectors Edition.” The 1999 film directed by Brad Bird (“The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille,” “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” “Tomorrowland”) has been...
- 3/29/2016
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Jordan Maison)
- Cinelinx
Paramount Pictures dropped their new comedy movie, "Zoolander 2," into theaters today, February 12th, 2016, and all the reviews have been turned in from the big gun movie critics, and most of them had major problems with his flick, awarding it just an overall 35 score out of a possible 100 across 34 reviews at the Metacritic.com site. The film features: Ben Stiller, Kristen Wiig, Owen Wilson, Penélope Cruz and Will Ferrell. We've added comments from a couple of the critics, below. Stephen Holden over at The New York Times, gave it a 30 score. He stated: "Zoolander 2 has enough plots for several movies. They are so jammed together that they more or less cancel each other out." Justin Chang from Variety, gave it a 30 score as well, saying: "The results may delight those who believe recycled gags and endless cameos to be the very essence of great screen comedy, but everyone else will...
- 2/12/2016
- by Derek
- OnTheFlix
Walt Disney Studios delivered their new sci-fi/action movie, "Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens" into theaters this weekend, and all the major, top movie critics have served up their reviews, and it looks like most of them were quite p[leased with it, giving it an overall 81 score out of a possible 100 across 51 reviews at the Metacritic.com site. The film stars: Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher, Daisy Ridley, Domhnall Gleeson, Harrison Ford, John Boyega, Mark Hamill and Oscar Isaac. We've posted comments from a couple of the critics,below. Joe Morgenstern from the Wall Street Journal, gave it a perfect 100 score. He stated: "Rarely have age and shining youth been juxtaposed more affectingly, but that’s only one of many moments of grace in a movie that mines its resonant mythology while moving its story ever forward." Brian Truitt at USA Today, gave it a 100 score as well, stating: "The Force Awakens reveals surprising connections, begins a few bromances, solves mysteries while digging up others, and sets a strong...
- 12/19/2015
- by Andre Braddox
- OnTheFlix
The New York Film Critics Circle voted today at the Film Society of Lincoln Center for their 2015 awards winners. The awards will be handed out during their annual ceremony on Monday, January 4th at Tao Downtown.
Carol was awarded Best Picture and Todd Haynes was named Best Director. Saoirse Ronan was selected as Best Actress for her role in Brooklyn, and Michael Keaton was chosen as Best Actor for Spotlight.
Carol
Two Special Awards were given, honoring the legacy of William Becker and Janus Films and Ennio Morricone for his extraordinary contribution to the language of cinema. Full list of winners below.
Says 2015 Nyfcc Chairman, Star Magazine’s Marshall Fine, “This group is known for inserting films into the awards conversation and this year was no different. I’m particularly pleased at how New York-centric so many of the films are, representing many parts of the city, as well as several different eras.
Carol was awarded Best Picture and Todd Haynes was named Best Director. Saoirse Ronan was selected as Best Actress for her role in Brooklyn, and Michael Keaton was chosen as Best Actor for Spotlight.
Carol
Two Special Awards were given, honoring the legacy of William Becker and Janus Films and Ennio Morricone for his extraordinary contribution to the language of cinema. Full list of winners below.
Says 2015 Nyfcc Chairman, Star Magazine’s Marshall Fine, “This group is known for inserting films into the awards conversation and this year was no different. I’m particularly pleased at how New York-centric so many of the films are, representing many parts of the city, as well as several different eras.
- 12/2/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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