With over 176,000 subscribers and more than 70 million views on its YouTube channel alone, My Damn Channel is one of the internet's more popular destinations for comedy. But now, the studio and network behind such web series innovations and hits as DailyGrace, My Damn Channel Live, You Suck at Photoshop, and Wainy Days hopes to dramatically up those statistics by bringing more quality programming into the fold. Founder/CEO Rob Barnett just announced the launch of the My Damn Channel Comedy Network, a multi-channel (McN) network that will expand Mdc's library to hundreds of comedy programs distributed across several YouTube channels and on MyDamnChannel.com. DailyGrace (aka Grace Helbig) and fellow Mdc personality Beth Hoyt put together a video in which the pair and their characteristically charming personalities help to explain the origins of the network and dish out some basic facts about joining. They also give a quick shout out...
- 1/28/2013
- by Sam Gutelle
- Tubefilter.com
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: Sept. 4, 2012
Price: DVD $39.98, Blu-ray $49.98
Studio: HBO/Warner
Bryan Greenberg and Lake Bell star in How To Make It In America.
The HBO comedy-drama TV series How To Make It In America: Season 2 continues to follow the adventures of Ben (Bryan Greenberg, October Road)) and Cam (Victor Rasuk, Lords of Dogtown), two 20-something friends and entrepreneurs who aspire to making it in the New York City fashion world.
HBO officially cancelled the television show in December, 2011 and will not renew it for a third season.
Still hustling to succeed in the ultra-competitive fashion industry, Season 2 opens with Ben and Cam scouring the NYC downtown scene in search of new business connections that will help get their new Crisp line of T-shirts and hoodies off the ground. But as the stakes get higher, the lovable would-be-moguls encounter new obstacles that will require all their street smarts to overcome.
Price: DVD $39.98, Blu-ray $49.98
Studio: HBO/Warner
Bryan Greenberg and Lake Bell star in How To Make It In America.
The HBO comedy-drama TV series How To Make It In America: Season 2 continues to follow the adventures of Ben (Bryan Greenberg, October Road)) and Cam (Victor Rasuk, Lords of Dogtown), two 20-something friends and entrepreneurs who aspire to making it in the New York City fashion world.
HBO officially cancelled the television show in December, 2011 and will not renew it for a third season.
Still hustling to succeed in the ultra-competitive fashion industry, Season 2 opens with Ben and Cam scouring the NYC downtown scene in search of new business connections that will help get their new Crisp line of T-shirts and hoodies off the ground. But as the stakes get higher, the lovable would-be-moguls encounter new obstacles that will require all their street smarts to overcome.
- 7/11/2012
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
Written by Aasif Mandvi (The Daily Show with Jon Stewart) and Jonathan Bines (writer, Jimmy Kimmel Live!) and starring Mandvi, Today’S Special tells the story of Samir, a sous chef who dreams of becoming the head chef at an upscale Manhattan restaurant. When he is passed over for a promotion he impulsively quits and lets his co-worker, Carrie (Jess Weixler, Teeth), know that he intends to go to Paris and apprentice under a master French chef. Dreams must be put aside, though, after his father Hakim (Harish Patel, Run, Fat Boy, Run) has a heart attack and Samir is forced to take over Tandoori Palace, the nearly bankrupt family restaurant in Jackson Heights, Queens.
Samir’s mother, Farrida (Madhur Jaffrey), is consumed with trying to find a wife for her son, while Samir is trying to master Indian cooking to salvage the family business. Luckily, he crosses paths with Akbar (Naseeruddin Shah,...
Samir’s mother, Farrida (Madhur Jaffrey), is consumed with trying to find a wife for her son, while Samir is trying to master Indian cooking to salvage the family business. Luckily, he crosses paths with Akbar (Naseeruddin Shah,...
- 2/3/2012
- by sheriwetherell
- Foodista
New Video will release the food-filled 2009 comedy movie Today’s Special, starring comic Aasif Mandvi (Funny People) and Jess Weixler (Teeth), on DVD on May 24.
Aasif Mandvi and Jess Weixler put the cooking on hold in Today's Special.
In the independent film, Mandvi plays Samir, a traditionally trained chef who needs to look after the family business — a dingy Indian restaurant in Queens, N.Y. — after his father (Harish Patel) suffers a severe heart attack. Samir has spent years learning to prepare gourmet cuisine, but he hasn’t had much experience making Indian food, and his mother (Madhur Jaffrey, Cotton Mary) is singularly unimpressed with his efforts. In time, Samir learns about the soul of Indian cuisine, along with a few things about himself, as he also makes time for Carrie (Weixler), whom he used to work with at an upscale restaurant in Manhattan.
Directed by David Kaplan and co-written by Mandvi and Jonathan Bines,...
Aasif Mandvi and Jess Weixler put the cooking on hold in Today's Special.
In the independent film, Mandvi plays Samir, a traditionally trained chef who needs to look after the family business — a dingy Indian restaurant in Queens, N.Y. — after his father (Harish Patel) suffers a severe heart attack. Samir has spent years learning to prepare gourmet cuisine, but he hasn’t had much experience making Indian food, and his mother (Madhur Jaffrey, Cotton Mary) is singularly unimpressed with his efforts. In time, Samir learns about the soul of Indian cuisine, along with a few things about himself, as he also makes time for Carrie (Weixler), whom he used to work with at an upscale restaurant in Manhattan.
Directed by David Kaplan and co-written by Mandvi and Jonathan Bines,...
- 4/6/2011
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
A look at what's new on DVD today:
"Tesis" (1996)
Directed by Alejandro Amenabar
Released by Widowmaker Films
Long out of print, "The Others" director Alejandro Amenabar's debut about a grad student's discovery of a snuff film is being remastered and rereleased by Widowmaker Films.
"Alice in Murderland" (2011)
Directed by Dennis Devine
Released by Brain Damage Films
A year after Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" scared the bejeezus out of kids in multiplexes everywhere, this horror take on Lewis Carroll's classic fairy tale aims to do so intentionally on DVD players around the country.
"America, America" (1963)
Directed by Elia Kazan
Released by Fox Home Entertainment
Elia Kazan's most personal film based on the story of his uncle's immigration to the United States from Turkey, where as a Greek his family is persecuted, was already released as part of last year's Kazan boxed set, but now will be...
"Tesis" (1996)
Directed by Alejandro Amenabar
Released by Widowmaker Films
Long out of print, "The Others" director Alejandro Amenabar's debut about a grad student's discovery of a snuff film is being remastered and rereleased by Widowmaker Films.
"Alice in Murderland" (2011)
Directed by Dennis Devine
Released by Brain Damage Films
A year after Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" scared the bejeezus out of kids in multiplexes everywhere, this horror take on Lewis Carroll's classic fairy tale aims to do so intentionally on DVD players around the country.
"America, America" (1963)
Directed by Elia Kazan
Released by Fox Home Entertainment
Elia Kazan's most personal film based on the story of his uncle's immigration to the United States from Turkey, where as a Greek his family is persecuted, was already released as part of last year's Kazan boxed set, but now will be...
- 2/6/2011
- by Stephen Saito
- ifc.com
“Imagination, Charm, Fantastical Delights” - Jeanette Catsoulis, New York Times
From the Producer of “The Joy Luck Club”
魚 年
Year Of The Fish
Featuring Rotoscoped Digital Painting
Debuts on DVD February 8, 2011 from Gigantic Pictures
Bonus Materials Include Audio Commentaries and Exclusive Footage
Overview: Year Of The Fish is a modern-day adaptation of Cinderella based on a 9th Century Chinese variant of the folk-tale, the oldest known version of the story, recorded some 800 years before the better-known European versions. Hailed by critics as “magical,” “refreshing,” and “shouldn’t be missed,” this award-winning independent feature film was written and directed by first time feature filmmaker David Kaplan and shot entirely on location in New York City’s Chinatown. Using a cutting-edge digital painting technique that transforms live-action video into a beautiful, evocative movie with an animated look and giving the aesthetic effect of a painting brought to life, this unforgettable film...
From the Producer of “The Joy Luck Club”
魚 年
Year Of The Fish
Featuring Rotoscoped Digital Painting
Debuts on DVD February 8, 2011 from Gigantic Pictures
Bonus Materials Include Audio Commentaries and Exclusive Footage
Overview: Year Of The Fish is a modern-day adaptation of Cinderella based on a 9th Century Chinese variant of the folk-tale, the oldest known version of the story, recorded some 800 years before the better-known European versions. Hailed by critics as “magical,” “refreshing,” and “shouldn’t be missed,” this award-winning independent feature film was written and directed by first time feature filmmaker David Kaplan and shot entirely on location in New York City’s Chinatown. Using a cutting-edge digital painting technique that transforms live-action video into a beautiful, evocative movie with an animated look and giving the aesthetic effect of a painting brought to life, this unforgettable film...
- 2/6/2011
- by brians
- GeekTyrant
We all know and love funnyman Aasif Mandvi as a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, but he's also been acting for over 15 years, in projects as diverse as The Siege (1998), Oz (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), The Proposal (2009), and The Last Airbender (2010). In his latest movie, Today's Special, directed by David Kaplan, Mandvi takes a leading role as Samir, a high-powered Manhattan chef who has purposely left his Indian roots behind. As circumstances unfold, Samir is forced to leave his fancy world behind and move back to Jackson Heights, Queens, where his parents - who run a low-key Indian restaurant - need his help, in more ways than one. It's a sweet, feel-good comedy - co-written by Mandvi himself - that intertwines the sumptuousness of Indian cuisine with the second-generation immigrant experience, something with which Mandvi himself is quite familiar. This film also features some big Indian stars, most notably...
- 11/17/2010
- TribecaFilm.com
The stars of David Kaplan's comedy "Today's Special," Aasif Mandvi (left), Jess Weixler and Kevin Corrigan, posed at the New York premiere yesterday at the Landmark Sunshine Cinema. Based on Aasif Mandvi's play "Sakina's Restaurant," "Today's Special" follows a Sous Chef who who dreams of becoming a Head Chef, only to find himself back in his parent's home in Jackson Heights, Queens - the "Little India" of NYC. The film opens in theaters November 19. [Photo credit: Dave Allocca]...
- 11/12/2010
- Indiewire
(Warning, Potential Spoilers Ahead) Out Rage is a puzzling film. For one, I can't exactly figure out the reasoning behind its title. If anything, I can already imagine the slew of tacky one liners critics are going to adapt for their quotes on Rotten Tomatoes. "Out Rage is outrageously dull" is the first that comes to mind.
This is yet another film that's sure to place me at opposing odds with other Twitch writers and readers. While many have claimed this to be a return to form for Kitano, I can't help but assume that the majority of positive reviews are largely based on nostalgia. This is Takeshi Kitano's first yakuza film in ten years. And for most, Brother doesn't count. Knowing that a sequel was already in the works for this and being a large fan of Hanabi, Sonatine, and Violent Cop, my expectations were admittingly high, maybe too high.
This is yet another film that's sure to place me at opposing odds with other Twitch writers and readers. While many have claimed this to be a return to form for Kitano, I can't help but assume that the majority of positive reviews are largely based on nostalgia. This is Takeshi Kitano's first yakuza film in ten years. And for most, Brother doesn't count. Knowing that a sequel was already in the works for this and being a large fan of Hanabi, Sonatine, and Violent Cop, my expectations were admittingly high, maybe too high.
- 10/19/2010
- Screen Anarchy
Microsoft has long been a client of AppNexus, a New York company that aids real-time online ad-buying. It must have been getting good service, because Microsoft decided to take part in a $50 million round of funding, it was recently announced. The exact amount Microsoft pitched in is unknown; it joined a number of other investors who had participated in a previous financing round that raised $5 million.
Real-time ad bidding is a trendy idea that's still in its infancy--but it's not hard to see the attraction. Ad buying and selling is still a fairly slow process, often relying on data that is days if not weeks out of date, and using a static bidding system (the advertiser pays a flat fee for each impression). But what if a kind of stock exchange for ads were to emerge, where buyers could bid up or down on how much an ad is worth...
Real-time ad bidding is a trendy idea that's still in its infancy--but it's not hard to see the attraction. Ad buying and selling is still a fairly slow process, often relying on data that is days if not weeks out of date, and using a static bidding system (the advertiser pays a flat fee for each impression). But what if a kind of stock exchange for ads were to emerge, where buyers could bid up or down on how much an ad is worth...
- 10/7/2010
- by David Zax
- Fast Company
The latest film from David Kaplan, “Today’s Special” straddles the fence between Hollywood and Bollywood, inhabiting some strange middle ground full of bad clichés and culinary humor. To wit: The cast includes an Indian cab driver named Akbar, an immigrant busboy who knows how to say only the word “Yes,” and a struggling sous chef who lives in Hell’s Kitchen. Hilarity does not ensue.
Despite (mostly) decent acting and a solid story (based on an award-winning play by “The Daily Show’s” Aasif Mandvi), the terrain here feels all too familiar — sometimes you need to go back to go forward; man plans, God laughs; it’s never too late to discover what’s really important in life; the Lord works in mysterious ways. These are the themes Kaplan’s focused on, only he approaches the material in such a way that it feels more like a plate of...
Despite (mostly) decent acting and a solid story (based on an award-winning play by “The Daily Show’s” Aasif Mandvi), the terrain here feels all too familiar — sometimes you need to go back to go forward; man plans, God laughs; it’s never too late to discover what’s really important in life; the Lord works in mysterious ways. These are the themes Kaplan’s focused on, only he approaches the material in such a way that it feels more like a plate of...
- 10/5/2010
- Moving Pictures Magazine
Mumbai: Reliance MediaWorks has acquired the North American distribution rights of culinary comedy, Today's Special. The movie stars Aasif Mandvi and features Indian actress and cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey. Directed by David Kaplan, the film written by Mandvi and Jonathan Bines, is based on Mandvi's play Sakina's Restaurant in which the actor plays a chef who dreams of opening an upscale Manhattan eatery but is forced to take over his family's tandoori restaurant in the Little India neighborhood of Jackson Heights in Queens. The film was produced by Nimitt Mankad's ...
- 7/24/2010
- BusinessofCinema
Reliance MediaWorks has acquired North American rights to Inimitable Pictures' culinary comedy "Today's Special," starring Aasif Mandvi and featuring Indian actress and cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey.
Directed by David Kaplan, the English-language film, written by Mandvi and Jonathan Bines, is based on Mandvi's play "Sakina's Restaurant." The actor plays a sous chef who dreams of opening an upscale Manhattan eatery but is forced to take over his family's tandoori restaurant in the Little India neighborhood of Jackson Heights in Queens.
The film was produced by Nimitt Mankad's Inimitable as the company's first feature and Lillian Lasalle's Sweet 180, which also manages Mandvi, who appears onscreen in "The Last Airbender."
The movie also stars Indian film icon Naseeruddin Shah, Jess Weixler, Kevin Corrigan and Dean Winters.
Reliance, which has been making inroads into the U.S. market with such Hindi-language films as "Raavan" and "3 Idiots," will release "Special" nationwide Oct.
Directed by David Kaplan, the English-language film, written by Mandvi and Jonathan Bines, is based on Mandvi's play "Sakina's Restaurant." The actor plays a sous chef who dreams of opening an upscale Manhattan eatery but is forced to take over his family's tandoori restaurant in the Little India neighborhood of Jackson Heights in Queens.
The film was produced by Nimitt Mankad's Inimitable as the company's first feature and Lillian Lasalle's Sweet 180, which also manages Mandvi, who appears onscreen in "The Last Airbender."
The movie also stars Indian film icon Naseeruddin Shah, Jess Weixler, Kevin Corrigan and Dean Winters.
Reliance, which has been making inroads into the U.S. market with such Hindi-language films as "Raavan" and "3 Idiots," will release "Special" nationwide Oct.
- 7/22/2010
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The staff of New York City's Drama Book Shop assembled this list of inspiring biographies and memoirs of theater and film people. From the legendary Eleonora Duse to the wild-living Jack Nicholson, the subjects of these books offer diverse views of a life in the performing arts."Tennessee Williams in Provincetown" by David Kaplan (Hansen Publishing Group)No matter how much drinking and carousing he indulged in the night before, Tennessee Williams would get up the next morning at the crack of dawn, sit down at his trusty typewriter, and go right to work again. That's how gifted young playwrights become icons, of course, and how titles like "The Glass Menagerie," "A Streetcar Named Desire," and "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" become part of the American cultural vernacular. And that's just one of the many inspiring things I learned about Williams from this concise, fast-moving, and eminently readable book.
- 7/21/2010
- backstage.com
We're never actually in the real world in "Play," a 20-minute short film that's part of the FutureStates series, which asks filmmakers to postulate on aspects of life in the coming decades. Instead, viewers glide through a series of verisimilitudes, peeling away layer after layer of virtuality. "Play," which was directed by David Kaplan, who co-wrote the film with Eric Zimmerman, takes the viewer through some of the most commonly-held tropes of modern video games, but turns them on their ear. So, it's the cute Japanese schoolgirl who's playing the violent urban mayhem game reminiscent of the "Grand Theft Auto" series.
Lots of criticism has cropped up around video games. The medium's been portrayed as a dangerously addictive habit, a seed for societal irresponsibility or the domain of pervy weirdos. It's also been looked as a social connector and as a generator of ethereal interactive landscapes full of possibility. With...
Lots of criticism has cropped up around video games. The medium's been portrayed as a dangerously addictive habit, a seed for societal irresponsibility or the domain of pervy weirdos. It's also been looked as a social connector and as a generator of ethereal interactive landscapes full of possibility. With...
- 4/23/2010
- by Evan Narcisse
- ifc.com
After a run that saw more than half of its 97 screenings sell out, the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival named its jury and audience award winners earlier this week. Twenty-five thousand people, including over 200 filmmakers, actors, and industry guests attended this year's festival. The fest was bookended by Aasif Mandvi and David Kaplan's romantic comedy "Today's Special" and Arvin Chen's "Au Revoir Taipei." Quentin Lee's "The People ...
- 3/26/2010
- Indiewire
How to Make It in America is a show that nearly lost me. Its mediocre second episode, "Crisp," just didn't hold me as well as the pilot episode did. Thankfully, this week's half-hour episode made me look forward to the next week's episode.
The series seems to be moving at a reasonably decent pace; it's slow enough for the story to have emotional resonance with the viewer everytime Ben and Cam experience small successes, but it's fast enough so that, for the most part, the viewer isn't yawning through every subplot.
However, my one qualm with this week's episode was one subplot that didn't seem to fit in with the rest of the stories being told. That subplot was Rachel's story, where she almost quits her job after meeting her missionary friend and realizing how meaningless her life in New York is. While the conclusion of the story thread gave...
The series seems to be moving at a reasonably decent pace; it's slow enough for the story to have emotional resonance with the viewer everytime Ben and Cam experience small successes, but it's fast enough so that, for the most part, the viewer isn't yawning through every subplot.
However, my one qualm with this week's episode was one subplot that didn't seem to fit in with the rest of the stories being told. That subplot was Rachel's story, where she almost quits her job after meeting her missionary friend and realizing how meaningless her life in New York is. While the conclusion of the story thread gave...
- 3/1/2010
- by Sam McPherson
- TVovermind.com
Nevada (Us), Feb 22 – Twelve Indian or India related films will form part of ‘28th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival’ (Sfiaaff) to be held from March 11 to 21.
It will include: Today’s Special (David Kaplan), Love Aaj Kal (Imtiaz Ali), Cooking With Stella (Dilip Mehta), Diana (Aleem Khan), Scene 32 (Shambhavi Kaul), Talentime (Yasmin Ahmad), and Flying (Kirthi Nath). In addition, following Indian or India related shorts will participate: Narmeen (Dipti Gogna), Clap Clap (Tanuj Chopra),.
It will include: Today’s Special (David Kaplan), Love Aaj Kal (Imtiaz Ali), Cooking With Stella (Dilip Mehta), Diana (Aleem Khan), Scene 32 (Shambhavi Kaul), Talentime (Yasmin Ahmad), and Flying (Kirthi Nath). In addition, following Indian or India related shorts will participate: Narmeen (Dipti Gogna), Clap Clap (Tanuj Chopra),.
- 2/22/2010
- by News
- RealBollywood.com
I wasn't sure what to expect going into the first episode of How to Make It in America. I guess I was looking for a sort of Entourage-like series that it was being marketed as. And it was. Dozens of similarities could be drawn between How to Make It in America and Entourage, but here's the difference: lack of Ari Gold notwithstanding, America is funnier than Entourage.
Why is that? The answer's doesn't lie with the characters; while they're memorable, they're all a little too stereotypical and underdeveloped, which is normal for a first episode. The answer lies in the fact that, unlike Entourage, the show itself seems to be winking at the audience. While watching it, I often thought of Arrested Development, especially in the jump-cuts to inanimate objects that made Ad so memorable. For example, in How to Make It in America, the character Cam learns that his gangster cousin Rene (Luis Guzman,...
Why is that? The answer's doesn't lie with the characters; while they're memorable, they're all a little too stereotypical and underdeveloped, which is normal for a first episode. The answer lies in the fact that, unlike Entourage, the show itself seems to be winking at the audience. While watching it, I often thought of Arrested Development, especially in the jump-cuts to inanimate objects that made Ad so memorable. For example, in How to Make It in America, the character Cam learns that his gangster cousin Rene (Luis Guzman,...
- 2/15/2010
- by Sam McPherson
- TVovermind.com
Chicago—A full house greeted the 41st annual Joseph Jefferson Awards Oct. 19 at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie. The awards for excellence in Chicago-area Equity theater brought few surprises, but the expected winners were wildly popular in an evening dedicated to December's 50th anniversary of The Second City.Veteran diva E. Faye Butler took the Jeff Award for principal actress-musical for "Caroline, or Change" (Court Theatre) which also won production-musical, director-musical (Charles Newell) and music direction (Doug Peck). Principal actor-musical went to veteran Joseph Anthony Foronda as The Engineer in "Miss Saigon" (Drury Lane Oakbrook) which also won sound design. The Jeffs for musical supporting actress and actor went to first-time winners Summer Smart and Max Quinlan as the lovers in "The Light in the Piazza" (Marriott Theatre).Saidah Arrika Ekulora won principal actress-play for the world premiere of "Ruined" (Goodman Theatre), which also won production-play,...
- 10/20/2009
- backstage.com
The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, in association with the Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theater Festival, is pleased to present an evening of poetry, theater and reminiscences in honor of the induction of Tennessee Williams into the Cathedral's Poets' Corner. On Thursday, November 5th at 7:00pm, theatre luminaries, friends of Mr. Williams and people who were inspired by his life work, will take part in the historic celebration. Participants include Eli Wallach & Anne Jackson, Vanessa Redgrave, Marian Seldes, John Guare, Olympia Dukakis, John Patrick Shanley, Gregory Mosher, Sylvia Miles, William Jay Smith, Lenya Rideout, Jeremy Lawrence, Wyatt Prunty, David Kaplan, Thomas Keith, Mitch Douglas, and current Cathedral Poet-in-Residence Charles F. Martin. It is expected that additional friends and colleagues of Mr. Williams will also be taking part in the evening.
- 10/15/2009
- BroadwayWorld.com
The Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council (Miaac) Film Festival has announced the opening, closing & centerpiece films for its 9th Annual Festival in New York City. Following hot on the success of the 2008 festival, which saw a stellar line up of films and talent including the NY premiere of Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire, this year's opening film is Today's Special. Director David Kaplan's film written by and starring Comedy Central star Aasif Mandvi accompanied by renowned Indian actor Naseerudin Shah as well as author and actor Madhur Jaffrey. Tennis celebrity ...
- 9/23/2009
- BusinessofCinema
The Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival, which runs from Nov. 11-15 in New York, will kick off with the opening night film "Today's Special," directed by David Kaplan and starring Aasif Mandvi.
Santosh Sivan's "Tahaan" will serve as the film's centerpiece screening.
The closing night film is Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's "Antaheen -- The Endless Wait," starring Sharmila Tagore and Aparna Sen.
Santosh Sivan's "Tahaan" will serve as the film's centerpiece screening.
The closing night film is Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's "Antaheen -- The Endless Wait," starring Sharmila Tagore and Aparna Sen.
- 9/20/2009
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
What are the chances that on a given day you can see performances by American theater masters influenced by the Japanese arts? On Sunday afternoon, a little known, experimental work by Tennessee Williams, The Day a Man Died, was performed at East Hampton's Ross School. Forget the romantic reveries of Glass Menagerie, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and Streetcar Named Desire -- the plays on which Williams' iconic legacy is based. Part of the Tennessee Williams Festival that also revived Sweet Bird of Youth in Provincetown earlier this summer, the one-act play features a painter inspired by Jackson Pollock in a final swoon. According to director David Kaplan, "Williams seems to have been aware of and appropriated the effects of the Japanese Gutai artists, who crawled in the mud, painted with their feet, shot paint from guns, crashed through...
- 8/11/2009
- by Regina Weinreich
- Huffington Post
If you haven’t already realized from the existence of this blog, I love short films. I love watching them, I love making them, I love reading about them, I love everything about them. I truly believe that they are the more difficult to make than their feature-length brethren; they have to tell a complete story in under an hour, and in many cases less than a quarter of that. This is why I am always thrilled when directors feature their (or others’) shorts among the DVD supplements of their movies. Below you’ll find a few of my favorites.
Criticized (on the Seed DVD)
Yes, I agree that Uwe Boll is the Ed Wood of our time, but like Wood, he has excellent taste in other people’s films. When he chose to include Richard Gale’s Criticized, one of the best genre shorts ever, on his Seed disc,...
Criticized (on the Seed DVD)
Yes, I agree that Uwe Boll is the Ed Wood of our time, but like Wood, he has excellent taste in other people’s films. When he chose to include Richard Gale’s Criticized, one of the best genre shorts ever, on his Seed disc,...
- 7/14/2009
- by no-reply@fangoria.com (Logan DeSisto)
- Fangoria
With phrases like empowering to women, German expressionism and erotic thrown around about this cult 11 minute short by David Kaplan, I can say I'm greatly looking forward to seeing it. Having premiered at Sundance in 1997, it's finally getting a release with a collection of other short films on DVD today.
An erotic adaptation of the classical story which provides an unruly exploration of an adolescent girl's sexual flirtation on a special visit to her grandmother's house in the forest.
Purchase the DVD here
Trailer after the break.
An erotic adaptation of the classical story which provides an unruly exploration of an adolescent girl's sexual flirtation on a special visit to her grandmother's house in the forest.
Purchase the DVD here
Trailer after the break.
- 6/16/2009
- QuietEarth.us
In a version of our Videolog column that began in 1982, Starlog now posts information Tuesdays on the genre titles being released (or re-released) on DVD and Blu-ray. Prices listed are Msrp, though the clickable links lead to Amazon where the savings is significant. Here’s what’s out this week (mostly today):
DVD Releases for June 16, 2009
The Cell 2 (Warner, DVD $27.98; Blu-ray $35.99): Tessie Santiago takes over for Jennifer Lopez and Tim Iacofano steps in for director Tarsem Singh in this sequel to the 2000 film. This time “The Cusp” is the serial killer causing mayhem.
Family Guy: Volume Seven (20th Century Fox, $39.98): If you have 499 minutes of free time and are a Family Guy fan, then this three-disc collection of Seth MacFarlane’s animated series is for you. Thirteen episodes from the sixth and seventh seasons accompany audio commentaries, animatics and other bonus material.
Friday The 13th (New Line,...
DVD Releases for June 16, 2009
The Cell 2 (Warner, DVD $27.98; Blu-ray $35.99): Tessie Santiago takes over for Jennifer Lopez and Tim Iacofano steps in for director Tarsem Singh in this sequel to the 2000 film. This time “The Cusp” is the serial killer causing mayhem.
Family Guy: Volume Seven (20th Century Fox, $39.98): If you have 499 minutes of free time and are a Family Guy fan, then this three-disc collection of Seth MacFarlane’s animated series is for you. Thirteen episodes from the sixth and seventh seasons accompany audio commentaries, animatics and other bonus material.
Friday The 13th (New Line,...
- 6/16/2009
- by no-reply@starlog.com (ALLAN DART)
- Starlog
DVD Playhouse—June 2009
By
Allen Gardner
The International (Sony) An Interpol agent (Clive Owen) joins forces with a Manhattan D.A. (Naomi Watts) to bring down an arms dealing ring and a corrupt global banking cartel that’s funding them. Superlative thriller was oddly ignored by critics and audiences alike, but expertly blends intelligence (courtesy screenwriter Eric Warren Singer’s masterfully-crafted script) and full-throttle action (director Tom Tykwer stages one of the great film shoot-outs in New York’s iconic Guggenheim Museum), making this dynamite thriller reminiscent of the best work from masters such as John Frankenheimer and Robert Aldrich. Armin Mueller-Stahl is wonderful as a world-weary covert op. Bonuses: Extended scene; Featurettes; Trailer. Widescreen. Dolby 5.1 surround.
The Jack Lemmon Film Collection(Sony) Five films from the two-time Oscar winning actor, focusing on his early career: Phfft! is a zippy comedy from 1954, one of Lemmon’s earliest films, in which...
By
Allen Gardner
The International (Sony) An Interpol agent (Clive Owen) joins forces with a Manhattan D.A. (Naomi Watts) to bring down an arms dealing ring and a corrupt global banking cartel that’s funding them. Superlative thriller was oddly ignored by critics and audiences alike, but expertly blends intelligence (courtesy screenwriter Eric Warren Singer’s masterfully-crafted script) and full-throttle action (director Tom Tykwer stages one of the great film shoot-outs in New York’s iconic Guggenheim Museum), making this dynamite thriller reminiscent of the best work from masters such as John Frankenheimer and Robert Aldrich. Armin Mueller-Stahl is wonderful as a world-weary covert op. Bonuses: Extended scene; Featurettes; Trailer. Widescreen. Dolby 5.1 surround.
The Jack Lemmon Film Collection(Sony) Five films from the two-time Oscar winning actor, focusing on his early career: Phfft! is a zippy comedy from 1954, one of Lemmon’s earliest films, in which...
- 6/3/2009
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Some time ago Christina Ricci ( Sleepy Hollow ) starred in a short film adaptation of "Little Red Riding Hood" for director David Kaplan . It's coming to DVD on June 16th, packaged with Kaplan's other shorts "Little Suck-a-Thumb" and "The Frog King." Bonus features include audio commentaries by David Kaplan and folklore scholar Jack Zipes. "Little Red Riding Hood" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and went on to screen in over fifty international film festivals where it received several awards including the Silver Hugo Award at the Chicago International Film Festival and the Prix Panavision for Best U.S. Short Film at the Avignon Film Festival. Check out this funky lil' trailer.
- 5/8/2009
- shocktillyoudrop.com
In David Kaplan’s short and scary 1997 film, Christina Ricci plays the not-so-innocent Little Red Riding Hood in a twisted take on the children’s story. Narrated by Quentin Crisp, the film is both provocative and eerie, combining childhood fiction with mature fantasy. Little Red Riding Hood is part of a collection of short films available on DVD on June 16, 2009. Check out the trailer and read on for more info...
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- 5/6/2009
- by Superheidi
- Planet Fury
• Fango got the scoop on street dates for a trio of horror titles coming to DVD in late summer/fall. Dark Sky Films revealed when you’ll be able to pick up Marcel Sarmiento and Gadi Harel’s fest-acclaimed Deadgirl and Gregory Mandry’s Brit shocker Gnaw, while Genius Products has announced its slot for Philippe Martinez’s The Chaos Experiment.
Deadgirl, which begins with a couple of teenaged guys discovering a naked, chained, apparently undead young woman in an abandoned mental facility—and one deciding to have his way with her—arrives September 15, while Gnaw, about vacationers who stumble upon a house full of cannibals (see previous item here), arrives August 11. Chaos Experiment, about a psychotic professor (Val Kilmer) attempting to prove his global-warming theories by imprisoning six people in a steam room (see first set report here), is coming August 4. Stay tuned for full disc details and cover art on all of these,...
Deadgirl, which begins with a couple of teenaged guys discovering a naked, chained, apparently undead young woman in an abandoned mental facility—and one deciding to have his way with her—arrives September 15, while Gnaw, about vacationers who stumble upon a house full of cannibals (see previous item here), arrives August 11. Chaos Experiment, about a psychotic professor (Val Kilmer) attempting to prove his global-warming theories by imprisoning six people in a steam room (see first set report here), is coming August 4. Stay tuned for full disc details and cover art on all of these,...
- 5/5/2009
- Fangoria
By Aaron Hillis
38-year-old New York actor Ken Leung ("Rush Hour," "Saw," "The Squid and the Whale") may have only gigged on a single episode of "The Sopranos" (as Junior Soprano's violent protégé in a psychiatric hospital), but it was enough to inspire producers to write him into another TV pop phenomenon, "Lost." As brooding spiritualist Miles Straume, one of the elusive strangers to parachute onto the island, Leung brings to the role both quiet menace and caustic wisecracks.
Leung can also be seen in writer/director David Kaplan's rotoscope-animated indie "Year of the Fish," a contemporary retelling of the Cinderella fairytale set in a seedy massage parlor and the streets of Chinatown. Leung costars as Johnny, an accordion player who may also be the Prince Charming to disillusioned immigrant Ye Xian (An Nguyen). Notoriously shy, Leung graciously offered up a phone interview from Hawaii while preparing to shoot...
38-year-old New York actor Ken Leung ("Rush Hour," "Saw," "The Squid and the Whale") may have only gigged on a single episode of "The Sopranos" (as Junior Soprano's violent protégé in a psychiatric hospital), but it was enough to inspire producers to write him into another TV pop phenomenon, "Lost." As brooding spiritualist Miles Straume, one of the elusive strangers to parachute onto the island, Leung brings to the role both quiet menace and caustic wisecracks.
Leung can also be seen in writer/director David Kaplan's rotoscope-animated indie "Year of the Fish," a contemporary retelling of the Cinderella fairytale set in a seedy massage parlor and the streets of Chinatown. Leung costars as Johnny, an accordion player who may also be the Prince Charming to disillusioned immigrant Ye Xian (An Nguyen). Notoriously shy, Leung graciously offered up a phone interview from Hawaii while preparing to shoot...
- 8/27/2008
- by Aaron Hillis
- ifc.com
- Year of the Fish is a film of simple ambitions. A Cinderella story by way of Chinatown, the pic is an unabashed fairytale told with a straight forward, modern-day charm in lieu of a meta-deconstruction approach – A Princess Bride or Amelie this is not. The film follows Ye Xian, a fresh-off-the-boat Chinese immigrant who arrives in the Big Apple with dreams of making a life for herself. Of course, little does she know the job opportunity arranged for her is at a “massage” parlor where she is expected to service the male clientele with a smile. Unwilling to debase herself, the Evil Aunt proprietor makes Ye Xian her whipping girl tasked with doing the parlor’s grunt work. It is in this capacity that she meets Johnny, an accordion-playing grandma’s boy with his own problems. Along the way she also crosses paths with a collection of fantastical characters
- 8/27/2008
- IONCINEMA.com
By Neil Pedley
This week's new films include the Western going Eastern, a couple of exotic music docs, Cinderella stories for girls and for boys and Vin Diesel attempting to walk, chew gum and shoot people -- all at the same time.
"Babylon A.D."
Second chances all around in this stylish cyberpunk romp that sees "La Haine" director Mathieu Kassovitz take another bite at the mainstream cherry after stumbling with his last detour into Hollywood, the Halle Berry clunker "Gothika." Vin Diesel, who passed on "Hitman" for this, also gets another shot at a potential franchise after eliciting a collective yawn with his Neo-lite performance in "The Chronicles of Riddick." After a troubled shoot fraught with budget overruns and uncooperative weather, Diesel has the bigger challenge on his hands as Toorop, a mercenary charged with trying to save the world with a snowboard while escorting a genetically altered young woman...
This week's new films include the Western going Eastern, a couple of exotic music docs, Cinderella stories for girls and for boys and Vin Diesel attempting to walk, chew gum and shoot people -- all at the same time.
"Babylon A.D."
Second chances all around in this stylish cyberpunk romp that sees "La Haine" director Mathieu Kassovitz take another bite at the mainstream cherry after stumbling with his last detour into Hollywood, the Halle Berry clunker "Gothika." Vin Diesel, who passed on "Hitman" for this, also gets another shot at a potential franchise after eliciting a collective yawn with his Neo-lite performance in "The Chronicles of Riddick." After a troubled shoot fraught with budget overruns and uncooperative weather, Diesel has the bigger challenge on his hands as Toorop, a mercenary charged with trying to save the world with a snowboard while escorting a genetically altered young woman...
- 8/25/2008
- by Neil Pedley
- ifc.com
NEW YORK -- ABC News' Nightline on Wednesday was handed the Overseas Press Club's David Kaplan Award for spot news reporting for the program's Spotlight on Darfur. The program focused on the crisis in Darfur, a section of Sudan, that has cost thousands of lives and made refugees of millions of people. The Overseas Press Club Award names host Ted Koppel, correspondent David Wright, former executive producer Leroy Sievers, camera operator Rick Bennet and producer-editor Almin Karamehmedovic. It was Koppel's 10th award from the Overseas Press Club, making him the most honored journalist in OPC's history. With this year's Kaplan Award, he passes former CBS News correspondent Edward R. Murrow, the broadcast journalism pioneer who won nine in his career. Koppel won his first OPC award in 1970 when he was ABC News' Hong Kong bureau chief.
- 4/28/2005
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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