The term "nepo baby" tends to carry a negative connotation, but it doesn't have to. Take the Deschanel sisters, Emily and Zooey. Their mother, Mary Jo Deschanel (née Weir), began acting in the 1960s and has dozens of film and TV credits to her name, from "2010: The Year We Make Contact" to "Twin Peaks." Their father, Caleb Deschanel, is likewise a decorated director and cinematographer whose career spans 50 years, having collaborated with filmmakers like Philip Kaufman, Carroll Ballard, William Friedkin, Richard Donner, Roland Emmerich, and Christopher McQuarrie.
In the face of that, "nepo babies" Emily and Zooey Deschanel have emerged as artists fully worthy of admiration on their own merits. On top of forming one-half of the successful indie pop group She & Him, Zooey Deschanel spring-boarded from her early breakout roles in the hits "Almost Famous" and "Elf" into an ongoing career as a movie star, in addition to...
In the face of that, "nepo babies" Emily and Zooey Deschanel have emerged as artists fully worthy of admiration on their own merits. On top of forming one-half of the successful indie pop group She & Him, Zooey Deschanel spring-boarded from her early breakout roles in the hits "Almost Famous" and "Elf" into an ongoing career as a movie star, in addition to...
- 1/1/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Robert Dalva, the film editor who earned an Oscar nomination for his work on the touching family adventure The Black Stallion and collaborated with director Joe Johnston on five films, including Jumanji and Captain America: The First Avenger, has died. He was 80.
Dalva died Jan. 27 of lymphoma in Marin County, California, his son Matthew Dalva told The Hollywood Reporter.
Dalva attended USC film school in the same class with George Lucas, and he went to work with him and Francis Ford Coppola in 1969 as the pair launched their innovative American Zoetrope production company in San Francisco.
The relationship paid off when Lucas hired Dalva to handle second-unit photography — he shot the land speeder going across the desert — on the original Star Wars (1977).
On the Coppola-produced Black Stallion (1979), starring Mickey Rooney in an Oscar-nominated performance, Dalva partnered with director Carroll Ballard, who also did second-unit work on Star Wars.
“We had...
Dalva died Jan. 27 of lymphoma in Marin County, California, his son Matthew Dalva told The Hollywood Reporter.
Dalva attended USC film school in the same class with George Lucas, and he went to work with him and Francis Ford Coppola in 1969 as the pair launched their innovative American Zoetrope production company in San Francisco.
The relationship paid off when Lucas hired Dalva to handle second-unit photography — he shot the land speeder going across the desert — on the original Star Wars (1977).
On the Coppola-produced Black Stallion (1979), starring Mickey Rooney in an Oscar-nominated performance, Dalva partnered with director Carroll Ballard, who also did second-unit work on Star Wars.
“We had...
- 2/6/2023
- by Mike Barnes and Christy Piña
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Writer/Director Joe Cornish discusses a few of his favorite movies with Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Attack The Block (2011)
Rocks (2019)
Poltergeist (1982)
Gremlins (1984)
Avanti! (1972)
Picnic At Hanging Rock (1975)
The Last Wave (1977)
Witness (1985)
Dead Poets Society (1989)
Fearless (1993)
Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World (2003)
Gallipoli (1981)
The Year Of Living Dangerously (1982)
The Cars That Ate Paris (1974)
The Adventures Of Buckaroo Banzai (1984)
Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)
The Man Who Would Be King (1975)
Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
The Rescuers (1977)
Bedknobs And Broomsticks (1971)
The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
Moonraker (1979)
The Adventures Of Tintin (2011)
Bambi (1942)
Dumbo (1941)
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (1977)
Forbidden Planet (1956)
This Island Earth (1955)
Earth Vs. The Flying Saucers (1956)
The Thing From Another World (1951)
Matinee (1993)
The Lord Of The Rings (1978)
The Omen (1976)
Damien: Omen II (1978)
Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981)
Battleship Potemkin (1925)
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exterminator (1980)
Friday The 13th...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Attack The Block (2011)
Rocks (2019)
Poltergeist (1982)
Gremlins (1984)
Avanti! (1972)
Picnic At Hanging Rock (1975)
The Last Wave (1977)
Witness (1985)
Dead Poets Society (1989)
Fearless (1993)
Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World (2003)
Gallipoli (1981)
The Year Of Living Dangerously (1982)
The Cars That Ate Paris (1974)
The Adventures Of Buckaroo Banzai (1984)
Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)
The Man Who Would Be King (1975)
Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
The Rescuers (1977)
Bedknobs And Broomsticks (1971)
The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
Moonraker (1979)
The Adventures Of Tintin (2011)
Bambi (1942)
Dumbo (1941)
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (1977)
Forbidden Planet (1956)
This Island Earth (1955)
Earth Vs. The Flying Saucers (1956)
The Thing From Another World (1951)
Matinee (1993)
The Lord Of The Rings (1978)
The Omen (1976)
Damien: Omen II (1978)
Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981)
Battleship Potemkin (1925)
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exterminator (1980)
Friday The 13th...
- 1/24/2023
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Click here to read the full article.
Joanne Koch, the longtime executive director of the Film Society of Lincoln Center who helped shape the culture of cinema in New York and around the world, has died. She was 92.
Koch died Tuesday in New York, a spokesperson for Film at Lincoln Center, as the organization is now known, told The Hollywood Reporter.
Koch, who worked at the home of the prestigious New York Film Festival from 1971-2003, also served as publisher of the society’s Film Comment magazine and co-produced 19 Chaplin Award galas, which honor a major film artist each spring as a major fundraising event. Her stretch began with Fred Astaire in 1973 and ended with Audrey Hepburn in 1991.
An insatiable lover of movies, Koch was born in Brooklyn on Oct. 19, 1929. She graduated from Goddard College in Vermont with a degree in political science in 1950, then landed a job that year...
Joanne Koch, the longtime executive director of the Film Society of Lincoln Center who helped shape the culture of cinema in New York and around the world, has died. She was 92.
Koch died Tuesday in New York, a spokesperson for Film at Lincoln Center, as the organization is now known, told The Hollywood Reporter.
Koch, who worked at the home of the prestigious New York Film Festival from 1971-2003, also served as publisher of the society’s Film Comment magazine and co-produced 19 Chaplin Award galas, which honor a major film artist each spring as a major fundraising event. Her stretch began with Fred Astaire in 1973 and ended with Audrey Hepburn in 1991.
An insatiable lover of movies, Koch was born in Brooklyn on Oct. 19, 1929. She graduated from Goddard College in Vermont with a degree in political science in 1950, then landed a job that year...
- 8/21/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Cinematographer Stephen H. Burum will be honored at EnergaCamerimage with the festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Set to run in Torun, Poland, on Nov. 12-19, Camerimage, which focuses on films and cinematography, will celebrate its 30th anniversary this year.
Burum is best known for his collaborations with director Brian De Palma, which yielded such classics as “The Untouchables” (1987), a tale of the battle between good and evil; Vietnam War drama “Casualties of War” (1989); ”Carlito’s Way” (1993), which portrayed deep social divides; the iconic “Mission: Impossible” (1996); “Snake Eyes (1998); and “Mission to Mars” (2000).
His body of work also includes Joel Schumacher’s “St. Elmo’s Fire” (1985), Danny DeVito’s “The War of the Roses (1989), and Ken Kwapis’ and Marisa Silver’s “He Said, She Said” (1991).
Born in rural California in 1939 to a family of that owned and worked on several small newspapers, Burum became interested at an early age in film and shot his...
Set to run in Torun, Poland, on Nov. 12-19, Camerimage, which focuses on films and cinematography, will celebrate its 30th anniversary this year.
Burum is best known for his collaborations with director Brian De Palma, which yielded such classics as “The Untouchables” (1987), a tale of the battle between good and evil; Vietnam War drama “Casualties of War” (1989); ”Carlito’s Way” (1993), which portrayed deep social divides; the iconic “Mission: Impossible” (1996); “Snake Eyes (1998); and “Mission to Mars” (2000).
His body of work also includes Joel Schumacher’s “St. Elmo’s Fire” (1985), Danny DeVito’s “The War of the Roses (1989), and Ken Kwapis’ and Marisa Silver’s “He Said, She Said” (1991).
Born in rural California in 1939 to a family of that owned and worked on several small newspapers, Burum became interested at an early age in film and shot his...
- 5/5/2022
- by Peter Caranicas
- Variety Film + TV
Decades before UCLA’s school of Theater, Film and Television formally became one of the world’s top-ranking drama departments, the Southern California university’s arts program was synonymous with nurturing artists whose iconic work irrevocably transformed entertainment, and media itself, for the better.
Marking the first time a major university combined the three disciplines under one administration, UCLA Tft was established in 1990, simultaneously building on the history of the school’s storied curriculum, bolstering industry connections to reflect its impact and influence, and developing a network of facilities, instructors and experts to help prepare and accommodate students for a constantly changing entertainment landscape.
Even before 14-time Academy Awards telecast producer Gil Cates became its founding dean, UCLA’s fine arts departments were already part of a considerable legacy, with a list of famous alumni that included James Dean, Steve Martin, Paul Schrader, Francis Ford Coppola, Carroll Ballard, Rob Reiner,...
Marking the first time a major university combined the three disciplines under one administration, UCLA Tft was established in 1990, simultaneously building on the history of the school’s storied curriculum, bolstering industry connections to reflect its impact and influence, and developing a network of facilities, instructors and experts to help prepare and accommodate students for a constantly changing entertainment landscape.
Even before 14-time Academy Awards telecast producer Gil Cates became its founding dean, UCLA’s fine arts departments were already part of a considerable legacy, with a list of famous alumni that included James Dean, Steve Martin, Paul Schrader, Francis Ford Coppola, Carroll Ballard, Rob Reiner,...
- 5/17/2019
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Variety Film + TV
Ira Spiegel on Brian DePalma's Carlito's Way: "A wonderful effects film with a grand shootout in Grand Central Terminal. Sound editors love violence and noise." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
When I met with Aviva Kempner, the director of The Spy Behind Home Plate, at Soundtracks F/T, where she and Martin Scorsese mainstay re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman were putting in the final touches on her documentary, I had the chance to borrow her sound editor Ira Spiegel (Ken Burns's longtime collaborator) for a short while to clue me in on his work in creating the velvety flow of the picture.
Ira Spiegel with Aviva Kempner while re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman works on The Spy Behind Home Plate. Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan and Carroll Ballard's The Black Stallion, executive produced...
When I met with Aviva Kempner, the director of The Spy Behind Home Plate, at Soundtracks F/T, where she and Martin Scorsese mainstay re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman were putting in the final touches on her documentary, I had the chance to borrow her sound editor Ira Spiegel (Ken Burns's longtime collaborator) for a short while to clue me in on his work in creating the velvety flow of the picture.
Ira Spiegel with Aviva Kempner while re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman works on The Spy Behind Home Plate. Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan and Carroll Ballard's The Black Stallion, executive produced...
- 5/3/2019
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Cinema Retro has received the following press release from the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City:
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Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now will celebrate its 40th Anniversary at the Festival with a screening of a new, never-before-seen restored version of the film, entitled Apocalypse Now: Final Cut. Remastered from the original negative in 4K Ultra HD, the film will be brought to life with Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®, delivering spectacular colors and highlights that are up to 40 times brighter and blacks that are 10 times darker, and Dolby Atmos, producing moving audio that flows all around you with breathtaking realism. The Beacon Theatre will also be outfitted for this exclusive occasion with Meyer Sound Vlfc (Very Low Frequency Control), a ground-breaking loudspeaker system engineered to output audio frequencies below the limits of human hearing, giving the audience a truly visceral experience.
Nominated...
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now will celebrate its 40th Anniversary at the Festival with a screening of a new, never-before-seen restored version of the film, entitled Apocalypse Now: Final Cut. Remastered from the original negative in 4K Ultra HD, the film will be brought to life with Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®, delivering spectacular colors and highlights that are up to 40 times brighter and blacks that are 10 times darker, and Dolby Atmos, producing moving audio that flows all around you with breathtaking realism. The Beacon Theatre will also be outfitted for this exclusive occasion with Meyer Sound Vlfc (Very Low Frequency Control), a ground-breaking loudspeaker system engineered to output audio frequencies below the limits of human hearing, giving the audience a truly visceral experience.
Nominated...
- 3/19/2019
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
One of the most unexpected Oscar nominations this year came for a German film in the thick of the foreign-language race that managed to score love elsewhere: Caleb Deschanel’s cinematography notice for Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s “Never Look Away,” a three-hour epic inspired by the life of artist Gerhard Richter.
For Deschanel, a beloved industry veteran with six nominations dating back to 1983’s “The Right Stuff,” it was as much a shock to him as it was to the awards season chattering class.
“You sort of figure, ‘No chance; not enough people have seen the movie,'” Deschanel says, calling from London where he’s in the middle of production on Jon Favreau’s effects-driven remake of “The Lion King,” due out in July. “But I had so many calls from people who loved this movie.”
It’s easy to see why Deschanel’s colleagues in the cinematography branch,...
For Deschanel, a beloved industry veteran with six nominations dating back to 1983’s “The Right Stuff,” it was as much a shock to him as it was to the awards season chattering class.
“You sort of figure, ‘No chance; not enough people have seen the movie,'” Deschanel says, calling from London where he’s in the middle of production on Jon Favreau’s effects-driven remake of “The Lion King,” due out in July. “But I had so many calls from people who loved this movie.”
It’s easy to see why Deschanel’s colleagues in the cinematography branch,...
- 1/29/2019
- by Kristopher Tapley
- Variety Film + TV
Veteran cinematographer Caleb Deschanel last week scored his sixth Oscar nomination, for his work on Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s Never Look Away, one of the three Foreign Language nominees that crossed into other key categories this year. Deschanel, a respected Dp who has surprisingly never won the Academy Award, has such varied credits as Being There, The Black Stallion, The Right Stuff, The Natural, National Treasure, Killer Joe and The Passion Of The Christ. I caught up with him recently from London (where he’s working on this year’s The Lion King for Disney) to discuss his approach to Never Look Away, the mystery of creating art and connecting emotionally through images.
Never Look Away is inspired by the life of artist Gerhard Richter and premiered to much acclaim in Venice. It spans three eras of German history, centering on art student Kurt (Tom Schilling) who escapes post-war...
Never Look Away is inspired by the life of artist Gerhard Richter and premiered to much acclaim in Venice. It spans three eras of German history, centering on art student Kurt (Tom Schilling) who escapes post-war...
- 1/28/2019
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
The 2018 Telluride Film Festival will feature the world premieres of Joel Edgerton’s “Boy Erased,” starring Lucas Hedges and Nicole Kidman; David Lowery’s “The Old Man & the Gun,” featuring a performance that Robert Redford said will be his last; and Yann Demange’s “White Boy Rick,” with Matthew McConaughey and Bruce Dern.
On Thursday, Telluride organizers announced a lineup that includes those films, as well as a number of others that are premiering at the Venice Film Festival, including Damien Chazelle’s “First Man,” Alfonso Cuaron’s “Roma” and Yorgos Lanthimos’ “The Favourite.”
Other films at the festival will include Jason Reitman’s drama about presidential candidate Gary Hart, “The Front Runner”; Marielle Heller’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” with Melissa McCarthy; Karyn Kusama’s “Destroyer,” with Kidman; Mike Leigh’s period drama “Peterloo”; and Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Palme d’Or winner, “Shoplifters.”
Also Read: 'First Man...
On Thursday, Telluride organizers announced a lineup that includes those films, as well as a number of others that are premiering at the Venice Film Festival, including Damien Chazelle’s “First Man,” Alfonso Cuaron’s “Roma” and Yorgos Lanthimos’ “The Favourite.”
Other films at the festival will include Jason Reitman’s drama about presidential candidate Gary Hart, “The Front Runner”; Marielle Heller’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” with Melissa McCarthy; Karyn Kusama’s “Destroyer,” with Kidman; Mike Leigh’s period drama “Peterloo”; and Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Palme d’Or winner, “Shoplifters.”
Also Read: 'First Man...
- 8/30/2018
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode features panel conversations and 1:1 interviews offering insights on movies that premiered in a particular season of a year in the past, which were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by William Remmers, Josh Hornbeck, Jason Beamish and Aaron West to discuss a selection of short films released in 1969. Titles include: Carroll Ballard’s Rodeo and The Perils of Priscilla; Paul Bartel’s Naughty Nurse; Les Blank’s The Sun’s Gonna Shine; Octavio Cortázar’s For the First Time; Hollis Frampton’s Carrots and Peas and Lemon; and Clu Gulager’s A Day with the Boys.
Episode Time Markers Introduction: 0:00:00 – 0:04:51 The Sun’s Gonna Shine: 0:04:52 – 0:17:58 For...
Episode Time Markers Introduction: 0:00:00 – 0:04:51 The Sun’s Gonna Shine: 0:04:52 – 0:17:58 For...
- 2/8/2018
- by David Blakeslee
- CriterionCast
Cinematographer John Toll — who holds the rare distinction of having won consecutive Oscars, for Legends of the Fall in 1995 and Braveheart in 1996 — will receive the Camerimage Lifetime Achievement Award during the upcoming 25th Camerimage International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography, which will be held Nov. 11-18 in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
Over his four decades working in film and television, Toll has collaborated with such filmmakers as The Wachowskis, Ang Lee, Mel Gibson, Francis Ford Coppola, Terrence Malick, Carroll Ballard, Cameron Crowe, Edward Zwick and Vince Gilligan.
“When working on epic Hollywood films, [Toll] used light, shadow and camera movement to create...
Over his four decades working in film and television, Toll has collaborated with such filmmakers as The Wachowskis, Ang Lee, Mel Gibson, Francis Ford Coppola, Terrence Malick, Carroll Ballard, Cameron Crowe, Edward Zwick and Vince Gilligan.
“When working on epic Hollywood films, [Toll] used light, shadow and camera movement to create...
- 7/18/2017
- by Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“Before I said I was going to do Finian’s Rainbow I should have read the book.”Finian’s Rainbow (1968)
Commentator: Francis Ford Coppola (director)
1. Regarding the film’s opening frame featuring the word “overture” onscreen, he says it’s because this was what was referred to as a roadshow production. “They were like a night at the theater. You were given a program, it was an event, and as you came to your seat there was an overture playing.” It’s a long absent format, but Quentin Tarantino recently revived it for some screenings of The Hateful Eight.
2. He says a benefit of 70mm productions was that “the soundtrack would be in six-track magnetic stereophonic sound and was very high quality.”
3. The Warner Bros/Seven Arts logo reminds him of his time spent at the latter company working as a staff writer when they bought WB. “It was quite a coincidence related to my directing this...
Commentator: Francis Ford Coppola (director)
1. Regarding the film’s opening frame featuring the word “overture” onscreen, he says it’s because this was what was referred to as a roadshow production. “They were like a night at the theater. You were given a program, it was an event, and as you came to your seat there was an overture playing.” It’s a long absent format, but Quentin Tarantino recently revived it for some screenings of The Hateful Eight.
2. He says a benefit of 70mm productions was that “the soundtrack would be in six-track magnetic stereophonic sound and was very high quality.”
3. The Warner Bros/Seven Arts logo reminds him of his time spent at the latter company working as a staff writer when they bought WB. “It was quite a coincidence related to my directing this...
- 3/15/2017
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Ryan Lambie Dec 7, 2016
Space horror in The Black Hole. Animated death in The Black Cauldron. Ryan looks back at a unique period in Disney's filmmaking history...
When George Lucas started writing Star Wars in the early 70s, the space saga was intended to fill a void left behind by westerns, pirate movies and the sci-fi fantasy of old matinee serials. "Disney had abdicated its rein over the children's market," Lucas once said, according to Peter Biskind's book, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, "and nothing had replaced it."
See related Close To The Enemy episode 4 review Close To The Enemy episode 3 review Close To The Enemy episode 2 review Close To The Enemy episode 1 review
Indeed, Disney was one of many Hollywood studios that Lucas had approached with Star Wars and they, just like Universal, United Artists and everyone other than 20th Century Fox boss Alan Ladd Jr, had turned it down flat.
Space horror in The Black Hole. Animated death in The Black Cauldron. Ryan looks back at a unique period in Disney's filmmaking history...
When George Lucas started writing Star Wars in the early 70s, the space saga was intended to fill a void left behind by westerns, pirate movies and the sci-fi fantasy of old matinee serials. "Disney had abdicated its rein over the children's market," Lucas once said, according to Peter Biskind's book, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, "and nothing had replaced it."
See related Close To The Enemy episode 4 review Close To The Enemy episode 3 review Close To The Enemy episode 2 review Close To The Enemy episode 1 review
Indeed, Disney was one of many Hollywood studios that Lucas had approached with Star Wars and they, just like Universal, United Artists and everyone other than 20th Century Fox boss Alan Ladd Jr, had turned it down flat.
- 12/6/2016
- Den of Geek
Curtis Hanson--Confidentially
By
Alex Simon
Curtis Hanson was my first interview with a fellow film buff and film journalist. He was nice enough to sit down with me twice, first at the Rose Cafe in Venice, then at a lunch spot in the Marina, the name of which has been lost to time. He was then kind enough to invite me to the world premiere of "L.A. Confidential" at the Chinese Theater as his guest, my first time on the red carpet at a real-life Hollywood premiere, and called me after this piece ran to thank me personally. A nice man. Hanson, and co-writer Brian Helgeland, would go on to win Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars for "L.A. Confidential."
Years later, I ran into Hanson at a book signing party for Pat York that was held in Westwood. I approached him and reminded him of our interview a decade or so earlier.
By
Alex Simon
Curtis Hanson was my first interview with a fellow film buff and film journalist. He was nice enough to sit down with me twice, first at the Rose Cafe in Venice, then at a lunch spot in the Marina, the name of which has been lost to time. He was then kind enough to invite me to the world premiere of "L.A. Confidential" at the Chinese Theater as his guest, my first time on the red carpet at a real-life Hollywood premiere, and called me after this piece ran to thank me personally. A nice man. Hanson, and co-writer Brian Helgeland, would go on to win Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars for "L.A. Confidential."
Years later, I ran into Hanson at a book signing party for Pat York that was held in Westwood. I approached him and reminded him of our interview a decade or so earlier.
- 9/21/2016
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Writer and academic W.G. Sebald once said: “Men and animals regard each other across a gulf of mutual incomprehension.” In truth, an animal understands nothing of its place in the world, their mind focused merely on food and the prospect of comfort, if available. In cinema, there is an old actor’s adage that states: “Never work with children or animals. They will always upstage you.” When an animal performs successfully in a film, it’s undeniably captivating because we know that animal is unaware of its role in the overall story. The camera has recorded some beautiful cosmic miracle, appearing from the outside to somehow defy Sebald’s words.
Whether fictional friend or foe, the relationship between humans and animals in cinema has always captured our imaginations. These sometimes expand beyond the borders of the normal, and, beyond the Bourgeoisie pooper-scoopers and barked-out cry conveying that some hapless child has fallen down a well,...
Whether fictional friend or foe, the relationship between humans and animals in cinema has always captured our imaginations. These sometimes expand beyond the borders of the normal, and, beyond the Bourgeoisie pooper-scoopers and barked-out cry conveying that some hapless child has fallen down a well,...
- 6/23/2016
- by Tony Hinds
- The Film Stage
Though 2015 brought an absurd bounty of great television, not to mention the proclamation that we had entered the era of #PeakTV, there’s absolutely no reason to think that 2016 will let up. At all. In the first few months of the year alone, there are a whole host of great returning series gearing back up, as well as a wide variety of new ones. There are so many, in fact, that it took some difficulty to narrow them down to under 30. But here we are.
So please note that this is by no means a comprehensive list – for those so inclined, by all means, get excited for Legends of Tomorrow, American Crime Story, The Magicians, Lucifer, and, sure, why not, Fuller House. The list below are just a few that seemed, for one reason or another, to be especially noteworthy. (In at least one instance, “noteworthy” is not necessarily a compliment.
So please note that this is by no means a comprehensive list – for those so inclined, by all means, get excited for Legends of Tomorrow, American Crime Story, The Magicians, Lucifer, and, sure, why not, Fuller House. The list below are just a few that seemed, for one reason or another, to be especially noteworthy. (In at least one instance, “noteworthy” is not necessarily a compliment.
- 1/17/2016
- by Simon Howell
- SoundOnSight
Best Foreign Language Film Oscar 2016: 'Viva' with Héctor Medina. Multicultural Best Foreign Language Film Oscar 2016 submissions Nearly ten years ago, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences changed a key rule regarding entries for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar;* since then, things have gotten quite colorful. Just yesterday, Sept. 16, '15, Ireland submitted Paddy Breathnach's Viva – a Cuban-set drama spoken in Spanish. And why not? To name a couple more “multicultural and multinational” entries this year alone: China's submission, with dialogue in Mandarin and Mongolian, is Wolf Totem, directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud – a Frenchman. And Germany's entry, Labyrinth of Lies, was directed by Giulio Ricciarelli, who happens to be a German-based, Italian-born stage and TV actor. 'Viva': Sexual identity in 21st-century Cuba Executive produced by Best Supporting Actor Academy Award winner Benicio Del Toro (Traffic), Viva tells the story of an 18-year-old Havana drag-club worker,...
- 9/17/2015
- by Steve Montgomery
- Alt Film Guide
It was a winner right out of the starting gate, an instant classic that's still a pleasure for the eyes and ears. Carroll Ballard and Caleb Deschanel's marvel of a storybook movie has yet to be surpassed, with a boy-horse story that seems to be taking place in The Garden of Eden. The Black Stallion Blu-ray The Criterion Collection 765 1979 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 117 min. / Street Date July 14, 2015 / 39.95 Starring Kelly Reno, Mickey Rooney, Teri Garr, Clarence Muse, Hoyt Axton, Michael Higgins, Ed McNamara, Doghmi Larbi, John Karlsen, Leopoldo Trieste, Marne Maitland, Cass-Olé. Cinematography Caleb Deschanel Film Editor Robert Dalva Supervising Sound Editor Alan Splet Original Music Carmine Coppola Written by Melissa Mathison, Jeanne Rosenberg, William D. Wittliff from the novel by Walter Farley Produced by Fred Roos, Tom Sternberg Directed by Carroll Ballard
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Francis Coppola divided audiences with his war epic Apocalypse Now, but in the same...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Francis Coppola divided audiences with his war epic Apocalypse Now, but in the same...
- 9/15/2015
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson on the Oscars' Red Carpet Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson at the Academy Awards Eli Wallach and wife Anne Jackson are seen above arriving at the 2011 Academy Awards ceremony, held on Sunday, Feb. 27, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. The 95-year-old Wallach had received an Honorary Oscar at the Governors Awards in November 2010. See also: "Doris Day Inexplicably Snubbed by Academy," "Maureen O'Hara Honorary Oscar," "Honorary Oscars: Mary Pickford, Greta Garbo Among Rare Women Recipients," and "Hayao Miyazaki Getting Honorary Oscar." Delayed film debut The Actors Studio-trained Eli Wallach was to have made his film debut in Fred Zinnemann's Academy Award-winning 1953 blockbuster From Here to Eternity. Ultimately, however, Frank Sinatra – then a has-been following a string of box office duds – was cast for a pittance, getting beaten to a pulp by a pre-stardom Ernest Borgnine. For his bloodied efforts, Sinatra went on...
- 4/24/2015
- by D. Zhea
- Alt Film Guide
Summer is coming, and of all of Wes Anderson's films, there is perhaps one no better suited to the sense of adventure the season brings with it than "Moonrise Kingdom." And it's the leadoff film for another great slate of titles from The Criterion Collection, who have revealed their lineup for July. Yes, you probably already own the film, but as always, Criterion is upping the ante. Their package contains more extras, most notably, an audio commentary with Wes Anderson. Plus there will be a "restored" 2K digital transfer (weird, considering the movie was released three years ago), audition footage, storyboards, home movies, and a lot more. Keeping in line with movies that are acceptable for family viewing is Carroll Ballard's "Black Stallion." The movie will most notably be coming with five short films by Ballard, an interview with Dp Caleb Deschanel (who also supervised the new 4K transfer) and lots more.
- 4/16/2015
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
Criterion has announced their July 2015 line-up of releases and it's a rather impressive one with the most notable title being a brand new release of the Alain Resnais' classic Hiroshima mon amour (July 14), a film I have never seen and there's a small bit of shame in that fact considering its influence on so many filmmakers and its importance in establishing what is now referred to as the French New Wave. The release is not without new features as Criterion gives it the Blu-ray upgrade: New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray Audio commentary by film historian Peter Cowie Interviews with director Alain Resnais from 1961 and 1980 Interviews with actor Emmanuelle Riva from 1959 and 2003 New interview with film scholar Fran?ois Thomas, author of L'atelier d'Alain Resnais New interview with music scholar Tim Page about the film's score Revoir Hiroshima . . . , a 2013 program about the film's restoration...
- 4/15/2015
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Edited by Adam Cook
The lineup for this year's New Directors/New Films, "presented jointly by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Museum of Modern Art," has been announced. "For the Birds": Richard Brody picks on the Academy Awards. There's an intriguing new film journal on the scene: "The Completist," authored by Rumsey Taylor. Head over to the site to read his "Statement of Intentions". Described as being "roughly quarterly", we're looking forward to future instalments. In Film Comment, Tanner Tafelski writes on the films of John Korty:
"Carroll Ballard, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Philip Kaufman, and Michael Ritchie all are, or were, San Francisco–based filmmakers. Yet none of these people seem to be Bay Area filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, Abel Ferrara, or Spike Lee are New York filmmakers. Avant-garde cinema, on the other hand, has a rich history with the West Coast in general,...
The lineup for this year's New Directors/New Films, "presented jointly by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Museum of Modern Art," has been announced. "For the Birds": Richard Brody picks on the Academy Awards. There's an intriguing new film journal on the scene: "The Completist," authored by Rumsey Taylor. Head over to the site to read his "Statement of Intentions". Described as being "roughly quarterly", we're looking forward to future instalments. In Film Comment, Tanner Tafelski writes on the films of John Korty:
"Carroll Ballard, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Philip Kaufman, and Michael Ritchie all are, or were, San Francisco–based filmmakers. Yet none of these people seem to be Bay Area filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, Abel Ferrara, or Spike Lee are New York filmmakers. Avant-garde cinema, on the other hand, has a rich history with the West Coast in general,...
- 2/25/2015
- by Notebook
- MUBI
Main programme includes Birdman, Foxcatcher, The Imitation Game and Rosewater.
The Telluride Film Festival (Aug 29 - Sept 1) has revealed the line-up for its 41st edition, packed with films tipped for awards season.
The festival will include 85 features, short films and revivals representing 28 countries, along with special artist tributes, conversations, panels and education programmes.
The main programme includes Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman, starring Michael Keaton, which opened the Venice Film Festival to rave reviews yesterday.
The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, The Homesman, directed by Tommy Lee Jones, and Jon Stewart’s directorial debut Rosewater are all generating awards buzz.
There are also several titles that picked up prizes in Cannes earlier this year including Foxcatcher, which won Bennett Miller best director; Russian drama Leviathan, winner of best screenplay; Mike Leigh’s Mr. Turner, which saw Timothy Spall win best actor; and jury prize winner Mommy from Xavier Dolan.
The 50 Year Argument (d. Martin Scorsese, [link...
The Telluride Film Festival (Aug 29 - Sept 1) has revealed the line-up for its 41st edition, packed with films tipped for awards season.
The festival will include 85 features, short films and revivals representing 28 countries, along with special artist tributes, conversations, panels and education programmes.
The main programme includes Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman, starring Michael Keaton, which opened the Venice Film Festival to rave reviews yesterday.
The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, The Homesman, directed by Tommy Lee Jones, and Jon Stewart’s directorial debut Rosewater are all generating awards buzz.
There are also several titles that picked up prizes in Cannes earlier this year including Foxcatcher, which won Bennett Miller best director; Russian drama Leviathan, winner of best screenplay; Mike Leigh’s Mr. Turner, which saw Timothy Spall win best actor; and jury prize winner Mommy from Xavier Dolan.
The 50 Year Argument (d. Martin Scorsese, [link...
- 8/28/2014
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
There are a lot of familiar faces in the just announced 2014 Telluride Film Festival line-up, but as much as this fest is about what's officially announced, it's also about what's not mentioned as secret screenings are pretty much what makes Telluride such a buzzy fest, though this year a little bit of snow may also be part of the conversation. As for the titles announced so far you have Venice early standout Birdman, Jon Stewart's Rosewater, The Imitation Game and Jean-Marc Vallee's Wild along with a Ton of Cannes crossover pics including Foxcatcher, The Homesman, Leviathan, Mommy, Mr. Turner, Red Army, Wild Tales and Two Days, One Night. There is plenty of Toronto crossover with many of this pics as well, which also includes Ramin Bahrani's 99 Homes, the new Martin Scorsese documentary The 50 Year Argument, Joshua Oppenheimer's The Look of Silence and Ethan Hawke's Seymour among others.
- 8/28/2014
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Telluride — With all the reindeer games going on in the fall festival world, a lot of the drama and mystery surrounding Telluride's perennially on-the-lowdown program began to seep out like a steadily deflating balloon this year. Toronto, Venice and New York notations of "World Premiere," "Canada Premiere," "New York Premiere" or "International Premiere" and the like made it all rather obvious which films were heading to the San Juans for the 41st edition of the tiny mining village's cinephile gathering, and which were not. But the fact is, if you're in it just for the surprises — or certainly, for the awards-baiting heavies — you're never going to be fully satisfied by the Telluride experience. That having been said, this year's program might just be the most exciting one in my six years of attending. Starting with all of the stuff we were expecting, indeed, Cannes players "Foxcatcher," "Mr. Turner" and "Leviathan...
- 8/28/2014
- by Kristopher Tapley
- Hitfix
Mickey Rooney was earliest surviving Best Actor Oscar nominee (photo: Mickey Rooney and Spencer Tracy in ‘Boys Town’) (See previous post: “Mickey Rooney Dead at 93: MGM’s Andy Hardy Series’ Hero and Judy Garland Frequent Co-Star Had Longest Film Career Ever?”) Mickey Rooney was the earliest surviving Best Actor Academy Award nominee — Babes in Arms, 1939; The Human Comedy, 1943 — and the last surviving male acting Oscar nominee of the 1930s. Rooney lost the Best Actor Oscar to two considerably more “prestigious” — albeit less popular — stars: Robert Donat for Sam Wood’s Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) and Paul Lukas for Herman Shumlin’s Watch on the Rhine (1943). Following Mickey Rooney’s death, there are only two acting Academy Award nominees from the ’30s still alive: two-time Best Actress winner Luise Rainer, 104 (for Robert Z. Leonard’s The Great Ziegfeld, 1936, and Sidney Franklin’s The Good Earth, 1937), and Best Supporting Actress nominee Olivia de Havilland,...
- 4/9/2014
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Oscar statuette - Gordon E. Sawyer Award 2014 - for ‘Godzilla,’ ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ visual effects artist Peter Anderson The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that visual effects supervisor and director of photography Peter W. Anderson will receive the Gordon E. Sawyer Award (an Oscar statuette) "for technological contributions that have brought credit to the industry" at the Academy’s Scientific and Technical Awards Presentation on Saturday, February 15, 2014, at the Beverly Hills Hotel in, where else, Beverly Hills. Portions of the presentation will be included in the Oscar 2014 telecast to be hosted by Ellen DeGeneres. Listed on the IMDb as Peter Anderson, the next Gordon E. Sawyer Award recipient has been in the film business for nearly four decades. His earliest IMDb film credit is for the visual effects in Berry Gordy and Jack Wormser’s 1975 romantic drama Mahogany, starring Diana Ross, Billy Dee Williams,...
- 1/9/2014
- by Steve Montgomery
- Alt Film Guide
The other night, My Mary and I were looking for something to watch on the tube. She had recorded Fly Away Home, the 1996 film by Carroll Ballard, starring Jeff Daniels, Dana Delaney, Anna Pacquin and Terry Kinney. We’ve watched it many times and I think we even own a copy of it. It’s wonderfully acted and beautifully shot; if you ever watch it, try to see it in wide screen. Some of the shots of Canadian Geese flying are breathtaking.
One of the things that struck me (again) was Mark Isham’s soundtrack and the haunting song that opens and closes the film, 10,000 Miles, sung by Mary Chapin Carpenter. (You can find it on YouTube, along with the lyrics.) It was one of the pieces of music that I played over and over again during that year of grieving after my wife, Kim Yale, died. Music was, and is,...
One of the things that struck me (again) was Mark Isham’s soundtrack and the haunting song that opens and closes the film, 10,000 Miles, sung by Mary Chapin Carpenter. (You can find it on YouTube, along with the lyrics.) It was one of the pieces of music that I played over and over again during that year of grieving after my wife, Kim Yale, died. Music was, and is,...
- 11/10/2013
- by John Ostrander
- Comicmix.com
Odd List Ryan Lambie Simon Brew 31 Oct 2013 - 07:01
We train our sights on the year 1996, and the 25 underappreciated films it has to offer...
Independence Day managed to revive both the alien invasion movie and the disaster flick in 1996, and just about every other mainstream picture released that year lived in its saucer-shaped shadow.
Yet beyond the aerial battles of Independence Day, the flying cows in Twister, and the high-wire antics of Tom Cruise in Brian De Palma's Mission: Impossible, there sat an entire library of lesser-known and underappreciated movies.
As part of our attempts to highlight the unsung greats of the 90s, here's our selection of 25 such films from 1996 - the year chess champion Garry Kasparov lost to the might of the computer Deep Blue, and the year comedy star Jim Carrey starred in an unexpectedly dark tale of obsession...
25. The Cable Guy
We can't sit here and...
We train our sights on the year 1996, and the 25 underappreciated films it has to offer...
Independence Day managed to revive both the alien invasion movie and the disaster flick in 1996, and just about every other mainstream picture released that year lived in its saucer-shaped shadow.
Yet beyond the aerial battles of Independence Day, the flying cows in Twister, and the high-wire antics of Tom Cruise in Brian De Palma's Mission: Impossible, there sat an entire library of lesser-known and underappreciated movies.
As part of our attempts to highlight the unsung greats of the 90s, here's our selection of 25 such films from 1996 - the year chess champion Garry Kasparov lost to the might of the computer Deep Blue, and the year comedy star Jim Carrey starred in an unexpectedly dark tale of obsession...
25. The Cable Guy
We can't sit here and...
- 10/30/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
The far-from prolific Jack Clayton has the right to be considered a great filmmaker purely on the basis of The Innocents, The Pumpkin Eater and The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne, but only the first of these is well-known, and the rest of his scattershot career shows little of the thematic consistency beloved of auteurists. His nature was to be interested in a wide range of things, and he didn't make enough movies to tie them all together into an artistic personality coherent enough to suit critics. But interested parties should check out Neil Sinyard's excellent study of the filmmaker.
The Disney Corporation was going through a somewhat incoherent spell itself in the early eighties, commissioning unusually sombre, bizarre, scary or adult movies which it then didn't know how to sell: Altman's Popeye, Carroll Ballard's Never Cry Wolf, Dragonslayer (in which the Disney Princess gets eaten by baby dragons), Tron,...
The Disney Corporation was going through a somewhat incoherent spell itself in the early eighties, commissioning unusually sombre, bizarre, scary or adult movies which it then didn't know how to sell: Altman's Popeye, Carroll Ballard's Never Cry Wolf, Dragonslayer (in which the Disney Princess gets eaten by baby dragons), Tron,...
- 10/25/2012
- by David Cairns
- MUBI
The Movie Pool gets in the holiday spirit with the Nutcracker: The Motion Picture DVD!
The Set-up
Tchaikovsky's classic ballet comes to life, thanks to the Pacific Northwest Ballet Company.
Directed by: Carroll Ballard
The Delivery
Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker ballet is an absolute Christmas classic, but I do not remember it being this creepy. Director Caroll Ballard (The Black Stallion) delivers a faithful cinematic presentation of a staged performance of the ballet, which can be a good and bad thing. Seeing the ballet performed onstage is nice, but by keeping faithful to the original story, it highlights the fact that Drosselmeier, the toymaker/magician/godfather who inspires the tale, acts like a child predator the entre film. A number of times in the film, he openly leers at the young Clara, so much so that she gets uncomfortable and moves away from him, and even other characters look at...
The Set-up
Tchaikovsky's classic ballet comes to life, thanks to the Pacific Northwest Ballet Company.
Directed by: Carroll Ballard
The Delivery
Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker ballet is an absolute Christmas classic, but I do not remember it being this creepy. Director Caroll Ballard (The Black Stallion) delivers a faithful cinematic presentation of a staged performance of the ballet, which can be a good and bad thing. Seeing the ballet performed onstage is nice, but by keeping faithful to the original story, it highlights the fact that Drosselmeier, the toymaker/magician/godfather who inspires the tale, acts like a child predator the entre film. A number of times in the film, he openly leers at the young Clara, so much so that she gets uncomfortable and moves away from him, and even other characters look at...
- 3/6/2012
- by feeds@themoviepool.com (Victor Medina)
- Cinelinx
If there had been no Zoetrope, the film studio founded by Francis Coppola and George Lucas in San Francisco in 1969, there would be no Star Wars, argues John Patterson
In April 1979, Francis Ford Coppola threw a characteristically grandiose bash to celebrate the completion of Apocalypse Now, the picture that had threatened to become his Waterloo. It was at the apogee of the 1970s Hollywood renaissance, whose directors were suspended in that delightfully rarified moment after their biggest blockbusters and before their flops – and they all had at least one gargantuan flop ahead of them.
Coppola, as usual, was ahead of the game, or so it seemed. Apocalypse Now's chequered production history had produced wild press rumours of directorial overindulgence, perhaps even of a full swandive into film-making insanity, and the film's subsequent lofty place in the cinematic firmament was then far from secure. The film historian Peter Biskind, in his book Easy Riders,...
In April 1979, Francis Ford Coppola threw a characteristically grandiose bash to celebrate the completion of Apocalypse Now, the picture that had threatened to become his Waterloo. It was at the apogee of the 1970s Hollywood renaissance, whose directors were suspended in that delightfully rarified moment after their biggest blockbusters and before their flops – and they all had at least one gargantuan flop ahead of them.
Coppola, as usual, was ahead of the game, or so it seemed. Apocalypse Now's chequered production history had produced wild press rumours of directorial overindulgence, perhaps even of a full swandive into film-making insanity, and the film's subsequent lofty place in the cinematic firmament was then far from secure. The film historian Peter Biskind, in his book Easy Riders,...
- 11/18/2011
- by John Patterson
- The Guardian - Film News
Dolphin Tale, release in UK cinemas on October 14th, is inspired by the amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to save her life and features a great cast including Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jnr, and Ashley Judd alongside many wonderful animals. But the real star is “Winter”, who plays herself in the film, and today serves as a symbol of courage, perseverance and hope to millions of people.
In advance of the release, we caught up with director Charles Martin Smith (pictured below with Ashley Judd) and asked about his experiences working on Dolphin Tale.
When you said, ‘I’ve got to have Kris Kristofferson in this. We worked in Pat Garrett and the Billy and the Kid,’ what did people say to you?
Charles Martin Smith: Well, it was one of those things that came up in meetings, like with Andrew Broderick,...
In advance of the release, we caught up with director Charles Martin Smith (pictured below with Ashley Judd) and asked about his experiences working on Dolphin Tale.
When you said, ‘I’ve got to have Kris Kristofferson in this. We worked in Pat Garrett and the Billy and the Kid,’ what did people say to you?
Charles Martin Smith: Well, it was one of those things that came up in meetings, like with Andrew Broderick,...
- 10/7/2011
- by Phil
- Nerdly
Chicago – Charles Martin Smith has had a varied career as an actor and a director. He was one of the famous ensemble cast members of “American Graffiti,” directed by George Lucas, and broke out himself as a director in the mid-1980s. His latest work as a filmmaker was one of last week’s big box office hits, “Dolphin Tale.”
“Dolphin Tale” is the based-on-truth story of Winter (who plays herself), a female dolphin who lost her tail as a result of a fisherman’s trap. In the film she is discovered by a young boy (Nathan Gamble), is nursed back to health by a marine institute headed by Dr. Clay (Harry Connick Jr.) and fitted for a prosthetic tale by Dr. Cameron McCarthy (Morgan Freeman). The ensemble cast also includes Ashley Judd, Kris Kristofferson and Frances Sternhagen.
Charles Martin Smith, Director of ‘Dolphin Tale’
Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.
“Dolphin Tale” is the based-on-truth story of Winter (who plays herself), a female dolphin who lost her tail as a result of a fisherman’s trap. In the film she is discovered by a young boy (Nathan Gamble), is nursed back to health by a marine institute headed by Dr. Clay (Harry Connick Jr.) and fitted for a prosthetic tale by Dr. Cameron McCarthy (Morgan Freeman). The ensemble cast also includes Ashley Judd, Kris Kristofferson and Frances Sternhagen.
Charles Martin Smith, Director of ‘Dolphin Tale’
Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.
- 9/29/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Filed under: Features, Movie News, Family Film Guide, New Releases
For some filmmakers, the idea of working with children and animals -- not to mention the entire family film genre, for that matter -- is an abhorrent proposition. But 'Dolphin Tale' director Charlies Martin Smith says he learned from the best -- from the likes of George Lucas and Carroll Ballard. Thanks to those influences and Smith's familiarity with animal-centered stories (he directed Disney's franchise-setting 'Air Bud'), 'Dolphin Tale' is one of the rare live-action PG films to score rare reviews.
Continue Reading...
For some filmmakers, the idea of working with children and animals -- not to mention the entire family film genre, for that matter -- is an abhorrent proposition. But 'Dolphin Tale' director Charlies Martin Smith says he learned from the best -- from the likes of George Lucas and Carroll Ballard. Thanks to those influences and Smith's familiarity with animal-centered stories (he directed Disney's franchise-setting 'Air Bud'), 'Dolphin Tale' is one of the rare live-action PG films to score rare reviews.
Continue Reading...
- 9/24/2011
- by Sandie Angulo Chen
- Moviefone
Outdoor cinema, London
Let the open-air cinema season commence (and all the traditional meteorological uncertainties that go with it). The British summer now has its regular outdoor cinema fixtures, most of which get going in July and August, but some new additions to the calendar kick off this week. Best of the bunch is the Nomad pop-up cinema, which roams across London's royal parks, and occasionally beyond, from now until September. And it's not just endless reruns of Dirty Dancing; this one has some quality cinema. On Sunday, it's got Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert under a big top in Mile End Park – not technically outdoors, admittedly – then next Saturday it's Casablanca in Dulwich park, and over the coming months it's showing choice titles such as The Life Aquatic, The Wicker Man, Black Cat White Cat and kids' films Wall-e and The Goonies. There's also a pop-up cinema in Ravenscourt...
Let the open-air cinema season commence (and all the traditional meteorological uncertainties that go with it). The British summer now has its regular outdoor cinema fixtures, most of which get going in July and August, but some new additions to the calendar kick off this week. Best of the bunch is the Nomad pop-up cinema, which roams across London's royal parks, and occasionally beyond, from now until September. And it's not just endless reruns of Dirty Dancing; this one has some quality cinema. On Sunday, it's got Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert under a big top in Mile End Park – not technically outdoors, admittedly – then next Saturday it's Casablanca in Dulwich park, and over the coming months it's showing choice titles such as The Life Aquatic, The Wicker Man, Black Cat White Cat and kids' films Wall-e and The Goonies. There's also a pop-up cinema in Ravenscourt...
- 5/20/2011
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Francis Ford Coppola, Eleanor Coppola Eleanor Coppola and Francis Ford Coppola arrive at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Francis Ford Coppola was the recipient of the Irving G. Thalberg Award at a ceremony held in November 2010. The Thalberg Award, a bust of the MGM producer/executive who died in 1936, is given to "a creative producer whose body of work reflects a consistently high quality of motion picture production." Among Coppola's credits as a producer or executive producer are The Conversation, The Godfather Part II, Apocalypse Now, Rumble Fish, The Godfather Part III; George Lucas' American Graffiti; Carroll Ballard's The Black Stallion; Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow; Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation, Marie Antoinette, and Somewhere; Robert De Niro's The Good Shepherd; Bill Condon's Kinsey; and Walter Salles' upcoming On the Road, starring Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart, Sam Riley,...
- 3/6/2011
- by D. Zhea
- Alt Film Guide
Carroll Ballard (no relation to your humble correspondent) is one of the finest examples of a maker of pure cinema that I know of. He can tell almost an entire story through image and sound. Let's look at his film, "The Black Stallion." Adapted from the children's book by Walter Farley, it is about a friendship forged between a young boy and a horse while stranded on a desert island. In the movie, with the exception of an important exchange between father and son, the first forty-five minutes is without any significant dialogue. Watching versus...
- 10/16/2010
- by Michael Ballard, Long Beach Classic Movies Examiner
- Examiner Movies Channel
HollywoodNews.com: The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted last night to present the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer-director Francis Ford Coppola and Honorary Awards to historian and preservationist Kevin Brownlow, director Jean-Luc Godard and actor Eli Wallach. All four awards will be presented at the Academy’s 2nd Annual Governors Awards dinner on Saturday, November 13, at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center®.
“Each of these honorees has touched movie audiences worldwide and influenced the motion picture industry through their work,” said Academy President Tom Sherak. “It will be an honor to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and contributions at the Governors Awards.”
Brownlow is widely regarded as the preeminent historian of the silent film era as well as a preservationist. Among his many silent film restoration projects are Abel Gance’s 1927 epic “Napoleon,” Rex Ingram’s “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse...
“Each of these honorees has touched movie audiences worldwide and influenced the motion picture industry through their work,” said Academy President Tom Sherak. “It will be an honor to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and contributions at the Governors Awards.”
Brownlow is widely regarded as the preeminent historian of the silent film era as well as a preservationist. Among his many silent film restoration projects are Abel Gance’s 1927 epic “Napoleon,” Rex Ingram’s “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse...
- 8/25/2010
- by HollywoodNews.com
- Hollywoodnews.com
The honorees for the upcoming 2010 Governors Awards were selected by the Academy’s Board of Governors at a specially convened meeting last night on August 24.
The official press release from AMPAS:
Beverly Hills, CA . The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted last night to present the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer-director Francis Ford Coppola and Honorary Awards to historian and preservationist Kevin Brownlow, director Jean-Luc Godard and actor Eli Wallach. All four awards will be presented at the Academy.s 2nd Annual Governors Awards dinner on Saturday, November 13, at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center®.
.Each of these honorees has touched movie audiences worldwide and influenced the motion picture industry through their work,. said Academy President Tom Sherak. .It will be an honor to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and contributions at the Governors Awards..
Brownlow is widely regarded as the...
The official press release from AMPAS:
Beverly Hills, CA . The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted last night to present the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer-director Francis Ford Coppola and Honorary Awards to historian and preservationist Kevin Brownlow, director Jean-Luc Godard and actor Eli Wallach. All four awards will be presented at the Academy.s 2nd Annual Governors Awards dinner on Saturday, November 13, at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center®.
.Each of these honorees has touched movie audiences worldwide and influenced the motion picture industry through their work,. said Academy President Tom Sherak. .It will be an honor to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and contributions at the Governors Awards..
Brownlow is widely regarded as the...
- 8/25/2010
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted last night to present the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer-director Francis Ford Coppola and Honorary Awards to historian and preservationist Kevin Brownlow, director Jean-Luc Godard and actor Eli Wallach. All four awards will be presented at the Academy’s 2nd Annual Governors Awards dinner on Saturday, November 13, at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center.
“Each of these honorees has touched movie audiences worldwide and influenced the motion picture industry through their work,” said Academy President Tom Sherak. “It will be an honor to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and contributions at the Governors Awards.”
Brownlow is widely regarded as the preeminent historian of the silent film era as well as a preservationist. Among his many silent film restoration projects are Abel Gance’s 1927 epic “Napoleon,” Rex Ingram’s “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse...
“Each of these honorees has touched movie audiences worldwide and influenced the motion picture industry through their work,” said Academy President Tom Sherak. “It will be an honor to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and contributions at the Governors Awards.”
Brownlow is widely regarded as the preeminent historian of the silent film era as well as a preservationist. Among his many silent film restoration projects are Abel Gance’s 1927 epic “Napoleon,” Rex Ingram’s “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse...
- 8/25/2010
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Buysoundtrax Records has announced a new limited edition CD (1500 copies) presenting two scores by the late Basil Poledouris: Wind (the 1992 Americas Cup action drama directed by Carroll Ballard) and A Whale for the Killing (one of Poledouris’ earliest scores, written for the 1981 tv movie by Richard T. Heffron). Both scores have been remastered, A Whale for the Killing is a world premiere recording while Wind has been ...
- 11/12/2009
- by Mikael Carlsson
- MovieScore Magazine
Filmmaker Spike Jonze has always flirted around at the outskirts of the mainstream. Ehhhh... maybe more like the mainstream's suburbs. He made an effortless transition from music videos -- including Beastie Boys' "Sabotage" and Weezer's "Buddy Holly" -- to Hollywood features like "Being John Malkovich" and "Adaptation." He was also a writer and producer on the "Jackass" TV series and subsequent movies. For all of that, Jonze has never quite breached into "household name" territory.
This fall's re-envisioning of Maurice Sendak's classic children's book "Where the Wild Things Are" could very well change all of that. That's probably why Jonze will be honored by New York City's Museum of Modern Art in a 10 day career retrospective, ending just two days after "Wild Things" hits theaters. The exhibit will showcase "Malkovich," "Adaptation," "Jackass: The Movie," the documentary "Heavy Metal in Baghdad" and a range of music videos and short films.
This fall's re-envisioning of Maurice Sendak's classic children's book "Where the Wild Things Are" could very well change all of that. That's probably why Jonze will be honored by New York City's Museum of Modern Art in a 10 day career retrospective, ending just two days after "Wild Things" hits theaters. The exhibit will showcase "Malkovich," "Adaptation," "Jackass: The Movie," the documentary "Heavy Metal in Baghdad" and a range of music videos and short films.
- 8/28/2009
- by Adam Rosenberg
- MTV Movies Blog
Over three evenings from Sept. 9-11, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present a program about motion picture formats titled "Behind the Motion Picture Canvas: Film Formats through the 21st Century."
The program willl include screenings of "Manhattan" on Sept. 10 and "The Black Stallion" on Sept. 11 at the Sameul Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.
Academy Science and Technology Council member Rob Hummel will host each evening.
Filmmakers will discuss how film formats shape creative decisions, the technical constraints and the artistic opportunities that accompany the choice of format. The program also will examine the role that emerging technology has played in the evolution of film formats, and how the technical choices made by Thomas Edison and William Dickson at the dawn of the film era continue to influence movies today.
Woody Allen's "Manhattan" was filmed in Panavision with Eastman B&W negative. It was released in...
The program willl include screenings of "Manhattan" on Sept. 10 and "The Black Stallion" on Sept. 11 at the Sameul Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.
Academy Science and Technology Council member Rob Hummel will host each evening.
Filmmakers will discuss how film formats shape creative decisions, the technical constraints and the artistic opportunities that accompany the choice of format. The program also will examine the role that emerging technology has played in the evolution of film formats, and how the technical choices made by Thomas Edison and William Dickson at the dawn of the film era continue to influence movies today.
Woody Allen's "Manhattan" was filmed in Panavision with Eastman B&W negative. It was released in...
- 8/23/2009
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Arnold Schwarzenegger has earned a spot in the halls of Washington, but not because of his political career.
Instead, the former actor's turn as a robot from the future was enshrined in the Library of Congress as the National Film Registry announced Tuesday that "The Terminator" is among the 25 films that have been selected for preservation in the Registry in 2008.
Under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act, each year the Librarian of Congress names 25 films to the Registry that are "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant. The choices aren't necessarily considered the best American films; they are chosen by Librarian of Congress James H. Billington on the advice of the Film Preservation Board and the library's motion picture staff because the selections possess "enduring significance to American culture."
James Cameron's 1984 "Terminator," in which the future governor of California's cyborg utters the classic line, "I'll be back," was cited for "blending an ingenious,...
Instead, the former actor's turn as a robot from the future was enshrined in the Library of Congress as the National Film Registry announced Tuesday that "The Terminator" is among the 25 films that have been selected for preservation in the Registry in 2008.
Under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act, each year the Librarian of Congress names 25 films to the Registry that are "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant. The choices aren't necessarily considered the best American films; they are chosen by Librarian of Congress James H. Billington on the advice of the Film Preservation Board and the library's motion picture staff because the selections possess "enduring significance to American culture."
James Cameron's 1984 "Terminator," in which the future governor of California's cyborg utters the classic line, "I'll be back," was cited for "blending an ingenious,...
- 12/30/2008
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
This review was written for the festival screening of "Fog City Mavericks".San Francisco International Film Festival
SAN FRANCISCO -- Gary Leva's entertaining if overly reverent celebration of Northern California filmmakers, "Fog City Mavericks", had its world premiere here as it played to an enthusiastic hometown crowd. The documentary is more a catalogue of admiring portraits and reminiscences than a structured, objective documentary. Leva, the man behind numerous film-related docus, surveys more than 130 years of San Francisco film history from Eadweard Muybridge to Sofia Coppola, favoring inclusiveness over depth.
Although some of the personal and professional backstories likely will be familiar to film buffs -- especially those concerning Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas -- the old photographs, behind-the-scenes footage, pristine film clips and amusing stories -- not to mention an impressive lineup of talking heads -- should give the docu a long run on the festival circuit. With Starz holding the TV rights, "Fog" will have an extended life on cable.
Lucas, Coppola, Saul Zaentz, Robin Williams, Philip Kaufman, Clint Eastwood and Walter Murch, among 30 others, trade anecdotes and volunteer nary a negative word about one another, reserving their ridicule and disdain instead for Hollywood. (Milos Forman's puckish humor is one of the film's delights.) They point out that working at home keeps them a safe distance away from the long arms of studio hacks.
The scenic footage shot by Ron Fricke makes the case for the seductiveness of the Bay Area, which has been a magnet for iconoclasts and creative renegades. It should be said that these mavericks, all of them male with the notable exception of Ms. Coppola, have had enough success to afford the option of living outside of Los Angeles, and most arrived in San Francisco when the city and its environs were still affordable for artists.
The film might have worked better if it had concentrated on the 1970s; Leva's material on this period is particularly strong. The main problem is that the film, attempting to cover a lot of ground, is overstuffed. Bronco Billy, Charles Chaplin, Bruce Conner, Pixar and "The Black Stallion" are a lot to pour into a single movie.
Some of Leva's choices are downright puzzling. Maverick is not the first word that comes to mind when thinking of Chris Columbus. It would have been interesting to hear more from the reclusive Carroll Ballard, the brilliant sound designer Ben Burtt or indie pioneer John Korty. Williams is brought in for comic relief and delivers, but his career is left unexplored.
Coppola's home movies of his parents are a treat, but Lucas' car accident when he was a teenager and Coppola's bout with childhood polio are recounted with undue gravity. This grave tone often finds its way into the script. The lofty narration, voiced by the dependable Peter Coyote, is by turns inordinately solemn or effusive and with music swelling on the soundtrack contributes to an inadvertent self-congratulatory air that permeates this project. "Fog" is most engaging when Leva lets the filmmakers speak for themselves.
FOG CITY MAVERICKS
Lucasfilm Ltd./Starz Originals, Leva Filmworks, Inc., Handcrafted Entertainment
Credits: Director-writer-producer-editor: Gary Leva
Running time -- 120 minutes
No MPAA rating...
SAN FRANCISCO -- Gary Leva's entertaining if overly reverent celebration of Northern California filmmakers, "Fog City Mavericks", had its world premiere here as it played to an enthusiastic hometown crowd. The documentary is more a catalogue of admiring portraits and reminiscences than a structured, objective documentary. Leva, the man behind numerous film-related docus, surveys more than 130 years of San Francisco film history from Eadweard Muybridge to Sofia Coppola, favoring inclusiveness over depth.
Although some of the personal and professional backstories likely will be familiar to film buffs -- especially those concerning Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas -- the old photographs, behind-the-scenes footage, pristine film clips and amusing stories -- not to mention an impressive lineup of talking heads -- should give the docu a long run on the festival circuit. With Starz holding the TV rights, "Fog" will have an extended life on cable.
Lucas, Coppola, Saul Zaentz, Robin Williams, Philip Kaufman, Clint Eastwood and Walter Murch, among 30 others, trade anecdotes and volunteer nary a negative word about one another, reserving their ridicule and disdain instead for Hollywood. (Milos Forman's puckish humor is one of the film's delights.) They point out that working at home keeps them a safe distance away from the long arms of studio hacks.
The scenic footage shot by Ron Fricke makes the case for the seductiveness of the Bay Area, which has been a magnet for iconoclasts and creative renegades. It should be said that these mavericks, all of them male with the notable exception of Ms. Coppola, have had enough success to afford the option of living outside of Los Angeles, and most arrived in San Francisco when the city and its environs were still affordable for artists.
The film might have worked better if it had concentrated on the 1970s; Leva's material on this period is particularly strong. The main problem is that the film, attempting to cover a lot of ground, is overstuffed. Bronco Billy, Charles Chaplin, Bruce Conner, Pixar and "The Black Stallion" are a lot to pour into a single movie.
Some of Leva's choices are downright puzzling. Maverick is not the first word that comes to mind when thinking of Chris Columbus. It would have been interesting to hear more from the reclusive Carroll Ballard, the brilliant sound designer Ben Burtt or indie pioneer John Korty. Williams is brought in for comic relief and delivers, but his career is left unexplored.
Coppola's home movies of his parents are a treat, but Lucas' car accident when he was a teenager and Coppola's bout with childhood polio are recounted with undue gravity. This grave tone often finds its way into the script. The lofty narration, voiced by the dependable Peter Coyote, is by turns inordinately solemn or effusive and with music swelling on the soundtrack contributes to an inadvertent self-congratulatory air that permeates this project. "Fog" is most engaging when Leva lets the filmmakers speak for themselves.
FOG CITY MAVERICKS
Lucasfilm Ltd./Starz Originals, Leva Filmworks, Inc., Handcrafted Entertainment
Credits: Director-writer-producer-editor: Gary Leva
Running time -- 120 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 5/22/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Carroll Ballard, who most recently directed the 1996 feature Fly Away Home, has come aboard to helm How It Was With Dooms for Warner Bros. Pictures' Gaylord Films/Pandora and John Wells Prods. A spring start in Africa is being planned. The project is based on the book How It Was With Dooms: A True Story From Africa, by Carol Cawthra Hopcraft and Xan Hopcraft. It follows a young boy living in Nairobi, Kenya, and the special relationship he enjoys with an orphaned cheetah named Dooms, who becomes the family pet. The story is told through the boy's eyes. Carol Flint adapted the screenplay, with a rewrite by Karen Janszen and a production polish to be done by Mark St. Germain. Producing the project are John Wells and Hunt Lowry. Stacy Cohen and Kristin Harms are executive producing.
- 11/19/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Carroll Ballard, who most recently directed the 1996 feature Fly Away Home, has come aboard to helm How It Was With Dooms for Warner Bros. Pictures' Gaylord Films/Pandora and John Wells Prods. A spring start in Africa is being planned. The project is based on the book How It Was With Dooms: A True Story From Africa, by Carol Cawthra Hopcraft and Xan Hopcraft. It follows a young boy living in Nairobi, Kenya, and the special relationship he enjoys with an orphaned cheetah named Dooms, who becomes the family pet. The story is told through the boy's eyes. Carol Flint adapted the screenplay, with a rewrite by Karen Janszen and a production polish to be done by Mark St. Germain. Producing the project are John Wells and Hunt Lowry. Stacy Cohen and Kristin Harms are executive producing.
- 11/19/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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