At the Academy Awards in 1929, Charles Reisner's "The Hollywood Revue of 1929" was nominated for Best Picture. "Revue" is a relative obscurity to modern audiences — even less well-known than that year's Best Picture winner "The Broadway Melody" — and it may even baffle certain viewers. True to its title, "The Hollywood Revue" is a collection of musical numbers, comedic sketches, and dramatic scenes, all played out "live" on a theater stage. A curtain closes and opens in between each number, and two emcees — Jack Benny and Conrad Nagel — introduce each vignette.
Such filmed stage performances may look a little odd to the modern eye, but they were common throughout the '20s and '30s. Few audiences had access to high-end live theater, and Hollywood was happy to step in to provide. Studios would distribute such revues as, essentially, a Broadway substitute, allowing distant viewers to experience the theater events...
Such filmed stage performances may look a little odd to the modern eye, but they were common throughout the '20s and '30s. Few audiences had access to high-end live theater, and Hollywood was happy to step in to provide. Studios would distribute such revues as, essentially, a Broadway substitute, allowing distant viewers to experience the theater events...
- 5/14/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
An exciting new voice has officially entered the action sphere.
Actor Dev Patel had previously dabbled in the action genre by leading the cast of 2018's "The Wedding Guest." But with "Monkey Man," his feature directorial debut which he also co-wrote, produced, and stars in, Patel took a deep dive into the type of visceral, hard-hitting filmmaking that has redefined the genre over the past decade or so. The experience of getting the movie across the finish line wasn't easy -- he suffered a broken bone during filming -- but along the way, he managed to achieve some transcendent moments of action cinema glory that will forever endear him to fans of martial arts films.
Patel plays a mysterious young man who spends his days eking out a living in India by wearing a monkey mask and getting beaten to a pulp in an unregulated fight ring, playing the heel...
Actor Dev Patel had previously dabbled in the action genre by leading the cast of 2018's "The Wedding Guest." But with "Monkey Man," his feature directorial debut which he also co-wrote, produced, and stars in, Patel took a deep dive into the type of visceral, hard-hitting filmmaking that has redefined the genre over the past decade or so. The experience of getting the movie across the finish line wasn't easy -- he suffered a broken bone during filming -- but along the way, he managed to achieve some transcendent moments of action cinema glory that will forever endear him to fans of martial arts films.
Patel plays a mysterious young man who spends his days eking out a living in India by wearing a monkey mask and getting beaten to a pulp in an unregulated fight ring, playing the heel...
- 4/22/2024
- by Ben Pearson
- Slash Film
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Last year, McFarlane Toys resurrected their Movie Maniacs line of collectible figures. As you might have seen in our humongous /Film Holiday Gift Guide, the first waves included the likes of Alan from "The Hangover," Gandalf from "Lord of the Rings," the titular soccer coach from "Ted Lasso," and all four players from "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle," just to name a few. This year, the Movie Maniacs line continues to expand with a variety of collectible figures across several genres.
First up, in honor of the 25th anniversary of "The Matrix," both Neo (Keanu Reeves) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) are getting their own figures in the line. Switching over to the sports arena, there's Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) and his formidable opponent Apollo Creed (the late Carl Weathers). Throwing it back to 1976, Matthew McConaughey has his character David Wooderson immortalized in plastic,...
Last year, McFarlane Toys resurrected their Movie Maniacs line of collectible figures. As you might have seen in our humongous /Film Holiday Gift Guide, the first waves included the likes of Alan from "The Hangover," Gandalf from "Lord of the Rings," the titular soccer coach from "Ted Lasso," and all four players from "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle," just to name a few. This year, the Movie Maniacs line continues to expand with a variety of collectible figures across several genres.
First up, in honor of the 25th anniversary of "The Matrix," both Neo (Keanu Reeves) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) are getting their own figures in the line. Switching over to the sports arena, there's Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) and his formidable opponent Apollo Creed (the late Carl Weathers). Throwing it back to 1976, Matthew McConaughey has his character David Wooderson immortalized in plastic,...
- 4/22/2024
- by Ethan Anderton
- Slash Film
Pop music phenoms come and go, fall in and out of favor and sometimes fade into total obscurity. Very few remain relevant a decade removed from their initial success, and you can count on maybe two hands the number of artists who can knock out a new song or reissue and top the Billboard charts 50-plus years after their debut.
And then there's The Beatles.
From the moment they scored their first number one hit in the U.K. with 1963's "From Me to You," The Beatles drew on their multitude of musical influences — blues, country, rockabilly, and the sui generis soul sounds pulsating out of Motown — to create perfectly constructed, infectiously catchy singles that earwormed their way into the fabric of your being. Within three years of breaking big in the U.S., they released the pioneering folk-rock LP "Rubber Soul," flirted with psychedelia and raga on the expansive "Revolver,...
And then there's The Beatles.
From the moment they scored their first number one hit in the U.K. with 1963's "From Me to You," The Beatles drew on their multitude of musical influences — blues, country, rockabilly, and the sui generis soul sounds pulsating out of Motown — to create perfectly constructed, infectiously catchy singles that earwormed their way into the fabric of your being. Within three years of breaking big in the U.S., they released the pioneering folk-rock LP "Rubber Soul," flirted with psychedelia and raga on the expansive "Revolver,...
- 2/21/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
It's a new year, and that means the Oscars are getting closer. The 96th Academy Awards are coming to ABC on March 10, and they're even starting a little earlier this year, slated to begin at 7:00 pm Et/4:00 pm Pt. After all, the ceremony is always far too long, so handing out the little golden guys an hour earlier than usual means Hollywood can get the after-party started sooner, and isn't that what the Oscars are really about?
ABC's late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel will again be hosting the show, which will likely avoid any new controversy out of the Oscars. Surely no one wants to deal with the host getting slapped on live television again. The only slapping that should be happening at the Oscars is slappin' da bass during the performances of the Best Original Song nominees, which will hopefully include Ryan Gosling doing a live...
ABC's late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel will again be hosting the show, which will likely avoid any new controversy out of the Oscars. Surely no one wants to deal with the host getting slapped on live television again. The only slapping that should be happening at the Oscars is slappin' da bass during the performances of the Best Original Song nominees, which will hopefully include Ryan Gosling doing a live...
- 2/13/2024
- by Ethan Anderton
- Slash Film
There was music in the air throughout Super Bowl Lviii. Usher wooed the masses with his singing at the halftime show, and even Ryan Gosling outed himself as a Swiftie in a brand-new trailer for "The Fall Guy." But you know the one place where there wasn't any onscreen singing? The game's first look trailer for "Wicked," "In the Heights" director Jon M. Chu's upcoming two-part film adaptation of one of the most pop-u-lar stage musicals in Broadway history.
Save for a few snippets of off-screen singing (including Cynthia Erivo belting out the show-stopping "Defying Gravity"), the "Wicked' trailer was devoted exclusively to spoken dialogue. This isn't anything new, either. "Wonka," "The Color Purple," and "Mean Girls" were almost single-handedly responsible for keeping theaters afloat in January, yet you might have not realized these films were full of singing and dancing if you went in having only watched their trailers.
Save for a few snippets of off-screen singing (including Cynthia Erivo belting out the show-stopping "Defying Gravity"), the "Wicked' trailer was devoted exclusively to spoken dialogue. This isn't anything new, either. "Wonka," "The Color Purple," and "Mean Girls" were almost single-handedly responsible for keeping theaters afloat in January, yet you might have not realized these films were full of singing and dancing if you went in having only watched their trailers.
- 2/12/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Movie musicals are not only back, they're back with a surprising vengeance. Between Paul King's "Wonka" prequel singing and dancing its way to the top of the box office over the winter holidays, Blitz Bazawule's film version of the "Color Purple" Broadway adaptation enjoying a massive opening on Christmas Day, and now Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr.'s "Mean Girls" movie musical making fetch happen for real, it's fair to say the musical genre has emerged as an unexpected savior for theaters at a time when we're really starting to feel the effects of the AMPTP having dragged out the two-pronged WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes of 2023.
If you've been waiting to get your musical theater on at home (no judgment from us -- you do you), you're in luck! While you'll have to wait a while still for "Wonka" and "Mean Girls" to hit the home market,...
If you've been waiting to get your musical theater on at home (no judgment from us -- you do you), you're in luck! While you'll have to wait a while still for "Wonka" and "Mean Girls" to hit the home market,...
- 1/16/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Was 2023 a good year for movies? The end of each moviegoing year always raises that age-old question and, as always, the ultimate answer remains squarely in the eye of the beholder. For most, that tends to come down to the most populist theatrical offerings. If the latest superhero sequels and nostalgic remakes and most highly-anticipated blockbusters failed to live up to their crowd-pleasing billing, well, at least there's always next year. But for those of us who spend entirely too much time and effort on the hunt for hidden gems beneath the surface, international cinema from the most exciting talent around the globe, and overlooked indies that didn't have millions of marketing dollars to throw around, that turns out to be the wrong question to ask in the first place.
What we should be talking about is whether we've caught up on all the undeniably great movies readily available to us,...
What we should be talking about is whether we've caught up on all the undeniably great movies readily available to us,...
- 12/22/2023
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
After months of speculation related to two of Hollywood's biggest media companies, it seems that a huge, landscape-altering deal could be on the horizon. Warner Bros. Discovery is reportedly in talks to merge with Paramount, as reported by Axios. While it's cautioned that things are preliminary, Wbd CEO David Zaslav did recently meet with Paramount CEO Bob Bakish to discuss a possible deal, which would potentially happen sometime next year. This would further alter the movie and TV business as we know it.
Zaslav is said to have spoken with Shari Redstone, who owns Paramount's parent company, National Amusements Inc., about a possible deal. This is also not the only talk we've heard lately regarding a possible takeover of Paramount, with Puck recently reporting that Skydance Media and RedBird Capital Partners were eyeing a potential deal to buy a majority stake in Nai. Talk of a potential sale of Paramount...
Zaslav is said to have spoken with Shari Redstone, who owns Paramount's parent company, National Amusements Inc., about a possible deal. This is also not the only talk we've heard lately regarding a possible takeover of Paramount, with Puck recently reporting that Skydance Media and RedBird Capital Partners were eyeing a potential deal to buy a majority stake in Nai. Talk of a potential sale of Paramount...
- 12/20/2023
- by Ryan Scott
- Slash Film
His predictive sci-fi action film "Minority Report" was still several years away, but in 1997, Steven Spielberg could already see the future.
At that time, Spielberg was an executive producer of "The Mask of Zorro," and during production, he sensed something in the air. In an interview earlier this year, "Zorro" star Antonio Banderas recounted what the famed filmmaker told him:
"Steven Spielberg said to me once when we were shooting, 'This is probably going to be one of the last Westerns shot in the way the Westerns were shot in the old days, with real scenes and real horses, where everything is real, real sword fighting, no CGI.' Everything was practical. And he said, 'But things are going to change. They're going to change and they're gonna change fast. And so you should be proud of this movie.' And I am, probably even more now than at the...
At that time, Spielberg was an executive producer of "The Mask of Zorro," and during production, he sensed something in the air. In an interview earlier this year, "Zorro" star Antonio Banderas recounted what the famed filmmaker told him:
"Steven Spielberg said to me once when we were shooting, 'This is probably going to be one of the last Westerns shot in the way the Westerns were shot in the old days, with real scenes and real horses, where everything is real, real sword fighting, no CGI.' Everything was practical. And he said, 'But things are going to change. They're going to change and they're gonna change fast. And so you should be proud of this movie.' And I am, probably even more now than at the...
- 12/11/2023
- by Ben Pearson
- Slash Film
This article contains major spoilers for "May December."
As far back as the Middle Ages, springtime months were frequently depicted in literature as young women, while the later, winter months as old men. The great Geoffrey Chaucer even included a couple in "The Canterbury Tales" named Miss May and Mr. January who were depicted as a young woman and a graying old man. This was written before the Gregorian calendar was accepted which established December as the last month of the year, so updated versions often change his name to "Mr. December." And thus, the expression "May December" was born, a shorthand expression to indicate a large age gap between romantic couples. This is the source of the title of Todd Haynes' latest film, "May December," a delicious melodrama about humanity and boundaries inspired by the real-life scandal and subsequent marriage of 34-year-old Mary Kay Letourneau and her 12-year-old student,...
As far back as the Middle Ages, springtime months were frequently depicted in literature as young women, while the later, winter months as old men. The great Geoffrey Chaucer even included a couple in "The Canterbury Tales" named Miss May and Mr. January who were depicted as a young woman and a graying old man. This was written before the Gregorian calendar was accepted which established December as the last month of the year, so updated versions often change his name to "Mr. December." And thus, the expression "May December" was born, a shorthand expression to indicate a large age gap between romantic couples. This is the source of the title of Todd Haynes' latest film, "May December," a delicious melodrama about humanity and boundaries inspired by the real-life scandal and subsequent marriage of 34-year-old Mary Kay Letourneau and her 12-year-old student,...
- 12/1/2023
- by BJ Colangelo
- Slash Film
It's not quite reached a crisis point yet, but the way the art of editing is talked about online is approaching drastic levels of ignorance, with seemingly every social media pundit shouting cries of "bad editing" and "this could've had 20 minutes cut out of it" in conversations about film. Even when editing or an editor is praised, it's either because they're a well-established master of it (like Thelma Schoonmaker) or because the style of the film is deliberately show-y.
This is why it's been such a joy to see editor Jennifer Lame begin to get more street cred recently. Her style has been honed over the past decade and change, beginning with her collaboration with Noah Baumbach and continuing on through other auteur filmmakers like Ari Aster and, most recently, Christopher Nolan. In films like "Frances Ha," "Hereditary," and "Tenet," Lame has demonstrated a keen sense of rhythm, drama, and tension,...
This is why it's been such a joy to see editor Jennifer Lame begin to get more street cred recently. Her style has been honed over the past decade and change, beginning with her collaboration with Noah Baumbach and continuing on through other auteur filmmakers like Ari Aster and, most recently, Christopher Nolan. In films like "Frances Ha," "Hereditary," and "Tenet," Lame has demonstrated a keen sense of rhythm, drama, and tension,...
- 11/20/2023
- by Bill Bria
- Slash Film
Both the WGA strike and most recently the SAG-AFTRA strike may be officially over, but I hope you didn't think that meant the studios would be finished with their nonsense just yet. Many will remember that Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav made himself public enemy #1 earlier this year with some particularly poorly-considered remarks (although Disney's Bob Iger subsequently waded into the fray and did everything he could to vie for the crown himself). Well, believe me, it's my deepest displeasure to report that Zaslav is, unfortunately, at it once more.
Barely a year after Warner Bros. incited all sorts of outrage over shelving high-profile productions such as "Batgirl" and "Scoob 2" for a tax write-off, dismissing the tireless work of countless artists with the flick of a wrist and preventing anyone from actually seeing the fruit of their labor, the studio has gone and done it all over again. This time,...
Barely a year after Warner Bros. incited all sorts of outrage over shelving high-profile productions such as "Batgirl" and "Scoob 2" for a tax write-off, dismissing the tireless work of countless artists with the flick of a wrist and preventing anyone from actually seeing the fruit of their labor, the studio has gone and done it all over again. This time,...
- 11/9/2023
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
Robert Altman's "M*A*S*H" was one of the most pivotal films of the New Hollywood revolution. It approached its tale of carousing Korean War medics with a loose (one might say "stoned") counterculture sensibility. Altman, who got his start in 1950s and '60s television, filled his widescreen frame with shambling activity; actors wandered about -- sometimes purposefully, occasionally confusedly -- while constantly speaking over each other. This was the establishment of the shaggy Altman style, and it meshed perfectly with the politically addled times.
What it did not do, however, was agree with the film's stars.
Donald Sutherland and Elliott Gould were classically trained actors. At this juncture of their careers, their preferred mode of film performing was to learn their lines, hit their marks, and, after a few months, move on to the next gig. They didn't do a lot of improvising, and had zero tolerance for being...
What it did not do, however, was agree with the film's stars.
Donald Sutherland and Elliott Gould were classically trained actors. At this juncture of their careers, their preferred mode of film performing was to learn their lines, hit their marks, and, after a few months, move on to the next gig. They didn't do a lot of improvising, and had zero tolerance for being...
- 10/28/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Welcome to Cardboard Cinema, an ongoing series where we look at board games inspired by or connected to our favorite media.
It's spooky season, so what better way to celebrate Halloween than with a handful of spooky board game adaptations for your 2024 wishlist? This month's standouts include a competitive "Saw" game and the much-anticipated adaptation of DC Comics's "DCeased" series. We also look at a few pieces of big news in the tabletop community. Did you know that Zack Snyder was sort-of secretly working on a tabletop adaptation of "Rebel Moon"? You'll have to read on to find out how that went sideways!
Read more: Here's Why Movie Dialogue Has Gotten More Difficult To Understand (And Three Ways To Fix It)
Dimension 20 Leans Into Our Saddest Cartoons
After recently celebrating its five-year anniversary, internet streaming service Dropout has proven itself a mover and shaker in the tabletop space.
It's spooky season, so what better way to celebrate Halloween than with a handful of spooky board game adaptations for your 2024 wishlist? This month's standouts include a competitive "Saw" game and the much-anticipated adaptation of DC Comics's "DCeased" series. We also look at a few pieces of big news in the tabletop community. Did you know that Zack Snyder was sort-of secretly working on a tabletop adaptation of "Rebel Moon"? You'll have to read on to find out how that went sideways!
Read more: Here's Why Movie Dialogue Has Gotten More Difficult To Understand (And Three Ways To Fix It)
Dimension 20 Leans Into Our Saddest Cartoons
After recently celebrating its five-year anniversary, internet streaming service Dropout has proven itself a mover and shaker in the tabletop space.
- 10/9/2023
- by Matthew Monagle
- Slash Film
Sheldon Harnick, the nimble lyricist who partnered with composer Jerry Bock to create the songs for some of Broadway’s greatest musicals, including Fiddler on the Roof, Fiorello! and She Loves Me, has died Friday. He was 99.
Harnick died of natural causes at his apartment overlooking Central Park on the Upper West Side, spokesperson Sean Katz told The Hollywood Reporter.
Harnick, who credited actress Charlotte Rae for inspiring him to become a Broadway lyricist, had an uncanny knack of making it sound as if the singer were having a conversation with the audience. His lyrics for such tunes as “If I Were a Rich Man,” “Sunrise, Sunset,” “She Loves Me” and “Little Tin Box” were simple and straightforward yet deeply moving at the same time.
“A theater lyricist is a playwright who writes short plays in verse that have to be set to music,” Harnick said in a 2016 interview with the Los Angeles Times.
Harnick died of natural causes at his apartment overlooking Central Park on the Upper West Side, spokesperson Sean Katz told The Hollywood Reporter.
Harnick, who credited actress Charlotte Rae for inspiring him to become a Broadway lyricist, had an uncanny knack of making it sound as if the singer were having a conversation with the audience. His lyrics for such tunes as “If I Were a Rich Man,” “Sunrise, Sunset,” “She Loves Me” and “Little Tin Box” were simple and straightforward yet deeply moving at the same time.
“A theater lyricist is a playwright who writes short plays in verse that have to be set to music,” Harnick said in a 2016 interview with the Los Angeles Times.
- 6/23/2023
- by Chris Koseluk
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Emmy-winning journalist Kelley L. Carter has signed a multi-year deal with ABC, elevating the ESPN Andscape senior entertainment reporter to a new role as entertainment reporter for all shows under the ABC and ABC News umbrella, including “Good Morning America,” “GMA3” and “ABC News Live.”
In addition to her new duties, Carter will continue her work at ESPN Andscape — a media platform dedicated to creating, highlighting, and uplifting the diverse stories of Black identity — where she currently hosts the celebrity interview series “Another Act.” Recent guests include Queen Latifah, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Viola Davis, Zoe Saldaña and Keke Palmer. She also interviewed the creators and the original Broadway production of “Hamilton” in the special program “Hamilton In-Depth with Kelley Carter,” which coincided with the premiere of Hamilton on Disney+.
“I’m really excited to continue with Andscape,” Carter tells Variety. “It feels like we are still just in the beginning of...
In addition to her new duties, Carter will continue her work at ESPN Andscape — a media platform dedicated to creating, highlighting, and uplifting the diverse stories of Black identity — where she currently hosts the celebrity interview series “Another Act.” Recent guests include Queen Latifah, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Viola Davis, Zoe Saldaña and Keke Palmer. She also interviewed the creators and the original Broadway production of “Hamilton” in the special program “Hamilton In-Depth with Kelley Carter,” which coincided with the premiere of Hamilton on Disney+.
“I’m really excited to continue with Andscape,” Carter tells Variety. “It feels like we are still just in the beginning of...
- 2/27/2023
- by Julia MacCary
- Variety Film + TV
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