Even the best filmmakers in history take big, ambitious swings and completely miss the mark at times. In the case of Brian De Palma – the supremely talented New Hollywood director behind such all-time great classics as Carrie, Dressed to Kill, Blow Out, Scarface, The Untouchables, Carlito’s Way, and more – many consider his most glaring cinematic blemish to be tone deaf adaptation of The Bonfire of the Vanities in 1990. However, if general moviegoers and De Palma fans knew about the crushing production woes relating to the ending of his uneven 1998 crime thriller Snake Eyes, perhaps they’d reassess their opinion.
Indeed, the original ending of Snake Eyes is so drastically different than what transpires at the end of the theatrical cut that it’s nearly impossible to judge the movie’s intentional merits versus the final product. Of course, the grand irony about the brutally botched ending of Snake Eyes is...
Indeed, the original ending of Snake Eyes is so drastically different than what transpires at the end of the theatrical cut that it’s nearly impossible to judge the movie’s intentional merits versus the final product. Of course, the grand irony about the brutally botched ending of Snake Eyes is...
- 5/28/2024
- by Jake Dee
- JoBlo.com
In 1988, Bruce Willis committed a most grievous offense against entertainment journalists: he proved them wrong. Really wrong. Laughably wrong.
The newly minted star of ABC's "Moonlighting" drew the ire of just about everyone in Hollywood when 20th Century Fox paid him a whopping $5 million to star in the action film "Die Hard." This rankled rival studio executives, who only shelled out that kind of cash for long-established leading men like Warren Beatty and Robert Redford. While Willis might've been a minor media sensation due to "Moonlighting," with his surprise Billboard smash "The Return of Bruno" and his omnipresent Bartles and Jaymes wine cooler commercials, he had yet to prove himself worthy of a $5 million big-screen payday.
Before "Die Hard," Willis had scored a solid theatrical hit with Blake Edwards' dismally unfunny "Blind Date." This was the extent of his motion picture oeuvre when Fox declared him a massive marquee name.
The newly minted star of ABC's "Moonlighting" drew the ire of just about everyone in Hollywood when 20th Century Fox paid him a whopping $5 million to star in the action film "Die Hard." This rankled rival studio executives, who only shelled out that kind of cash for long-established leading men like Warren Beatty and Robert Redford. While Willis might've been a minor media sensation due to "Moonlighting," with his surprise Billboard smash "The Return of Bruno" and his omnipresent Bartles and Jaymes wine cooler commercials, he had yet to prove himself worthy of a $5 million big-screen payday.
Before "Die Hard," Willis had scored a solid theatrical hit with Blake Edwards' dismally unfunny "Blind Date." This was the extent of his motion picture oeuvre when Fox declared him a massive marquee name.
- 5/22/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Exclusive: The novel Next to Heaven hit the market this week. Written by Anonymous, it’s a social satire that is being shopped by WME simultaneously for both a publishing deal and a TV deal. The TV deal has just closed, and the publishing deal will be next.
The rights to turn the book into a TV series were snapped up by former Agbo and Chernin executive Mike Larocca and Michael Schaefer for their as yet-unnamed production venture. They will produce with Entertainment 360’s Guymon Casady (Game of Thrones). Schaefer most recently ran New Regency and produced The Martian.
So, who is Anonymous?
Deadline sniffed out that it is James Frey, known for A Million Little Pieces and many other literary works. Actually, this was not like cracking the case of the Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping. Lit scouts who read the novel quickly deciphered the mystery. Frey has a way...
The rights to turn the book into a TV series were snapped up by former Agbo and Chernin executive Mike Larocca and Michael Schaefer for their as yet-unnamed production venture. They will produce with Entertainment 360’s Guymon Casady (Game of Thrones). Schaefer most recently ran New Regency and produced The Martian.
So, who is Anonymous?
Deadline sniffed out that it is James Frey, known for A Million Little Pieces and many other literary works. Actually, this was not like cracking the case of the Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping. Lit scouts who read the novel quickly deciphered the mystery. Frey has a way...
- 5/16/2024
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
While there are some directors who love the challenge and try to adapt the most difficult novels, not many of them succeed. When writing a story down, the author relies largely on their own descriptions and the reader's imagination to complete the picture. With the imagination factor taken out, it's up to the crew behind the movie to think through the details.
Though many great works of literature have been adapted into screenplays, there are some authors who haven't been so lucky as to get even one successful adaptation. The recent Netflix flop, A Man in Full, puts Tom Wolfe on this list.
Tom Wolfe Adaptations Rating
In addition to A Man in Full, there have been three other attempts to adapt Tom Wolfe's writings. In 1973, the sports drama The Last American Hero was released, based on Wolfe's essay about race car driver Junior Johnson. 10 years later, Philip Kaufman...
Though many great works of literature have been adapted into screenplays, there are some authors who haven't been so lucky as to get even one successful adaptation. The recent Netflix flop, A Man in Full, puts Tom Wolfe on this list.
Tom Wolfe Adaptations Rating
In addition to A Man in Full, there have been three other attempts to adapt Tom Wolfe's writings. In 1973, the sports drama The Last American Hero was released, based on Wolfe's essay about race car driver Junior Johnson. 10 years later, Philip Kaufman...
- 5/10/2024
- by virginia-singh@startefacts.com (Virginia Singh)
- STartefacts.com
Plot: When Atlanta real estate mogul Charlie Croker faces sudden bankruptcy, political and business interests collide as Charlie defends his empire from those attempting to capitalize on his fall from grace. From Showrunner/ Writer/ Executive Producer David E. Kelley, A Man in Full is based on the New York Times bestselling novel by the late Tom Wolfe.
Review: Jeff Daniels has had a career that includes acclaimed performances on stage in Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of To Kill A Mockingbird and on the big screen in dozens of dramas, as well as his iconic turn in the Dumb and Dumber films opposite Jim Carrey. To say the actor has a wide range would be an understatement. To follow up his brilliant turn in Sorkin’s HBO series The Newsroom, Daniels headlines the limited Netflix series A Man In Full, which has him channeling the most nefarious antagonist characters he has ever played.
Review: Jeff Daniels has had a career that includes acclaimed performances on stage in Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of To Kill A Mockingbird and on the big screen in dozens of dramas, as well as his iconic turn in the Dumb and Dumber films opposite Jim Carrey. To say the actor has a wide range would be an understatement. To follow up his brilliant turn in Sorkin’s HBO series The Newsroom, Daniels headlines the limited Netflix series A Man In Full, which has him channeling the most nefarious antagonist characters he has ever played.
- 5/5/2024
- by Alex Maidy
- JoBlo.com
A Man in Full is highly entertaining, which should be no surprise. The series is an adaptation from David E. Kelley, the brilliant mind behind Ally McBeal, Netflix’s The Lincoln Lawyer, and HBO’s Big Little Lies. Kelley has been in the thick of television since the days of Doogie Howser, M.D.
Kelley brings his signature brand of strong characters, a blend of genres, and sharp dialogue that you need to figure out just how deep the cut goes. The bench of actors is deep (and the likes of directors Regina King and Thomas Schlamme) with stars Jeff Daniels and Bill Camp, who turn the whip-smart and clever wordplay into instantly memorable lines that stay with the viewer long after the episode is over.
You wish A Man in Full had taken the time to develop the highly ambitious source material into something that better reflects modern societal dilemmas.
Kelley brings his signature brand of strong characters, a blend of genres, and sharp dialogue that you need to figure out just how deep the cut goes. The bench of actors is deep (and the likes of directors Regina King and Thomas Schlamme) with stars Jeff Daniels and Bill Camp, who turn the whip-smart and clever wordplay into instantly memorable lines that stay with the viewer long after the episode is over.
You wish A Man in Full had taken the time to develop the highly ambitious source material into something that better reflects modern societal dilemmas.
- 5/2/2024
- by M.N. Miller
- FandomWire
Nearly four years ago, Disney+ attempted to adapt Tom Wolfe’s The Right Stuff. There’s no reason for you to remember the series — it wasn’t renewed — because it was the one thing a Tom Wolfe adaptation should never be: wholly forgettable.
The innocuously mediocre series served to disabuse me of one of my favorite pet theories — that De Palma’s adaptation of The Bonfire of the Vanities failed not because of incompatibility between story and storyteller, but because his tapestry lacked sufficient scope. De Palma captured a lot of Wolfe’s literary excess with his camera, but just couldn’t capture the narrative excess in two hours, leading me to hope that someday somebody would do Bonfire as a miniseries (attempts to do just that remain ongoing). But Disney+’s The Right Stuff made it pretty clear that the key to adapting Wolfe is capturing the size and tone of his prose,...
The innocuously mediocre series served to disabuse me of one of my favorite pet theories — that De Palma’s adaptation of The Bonfire of the Vanities failed not because of incompatibility between story and storyteller, but because his tapestry lacked sufficient scope. De Palma captured a lot of Wolfe’s literary excess with his camera, but just couldn’t capture the narrative excess in two hours, leading me to hope that someday somebody would do Bonfire as a miniseries (attempts to do just that remain ongoing). But Disney+’s The Right Stuff made it pretty clear that the key to adapting Wolfe is capturing the size and tone of his prose,...
- 5/2/2024
- by Daniel Fienberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The episode of Wtf Happened to This Horror Movie? covering Raising Cain was Written and Narrated by Mike Holtz, Edited by Joseph Wilson, Produced by Andrew Hatfield and John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.
There’s a lot to miss about the ’90s. Video stores. Arcades. Music Television. On and on. One of the many things I miss is the slew of original thrillers that used to grace the big screen. Each one with varying amounts of horror, cheesiness, and sex. Richard Gere and Michael Douglas were involved in more sex and danger in the ’90s than Maureen Prescott’s ghost. But today isn’t about watching the guy from Falling Down rip his expensive and pleated slacks off in a fever of passion. It’s about directing legend Brian De Palma returning to the genre with his very own fever dream Fight Club. A story of split personalities,...
There’s a lot to miss about the ’90s. Video stores. Arcades. Music Television. On and on. One of the many things I miss is the slew of original thrillers that used to grace the big screen. Each one with varying amounts of horror, cheesiness, and sex. Richard Gere and Michael Douglas were involved in more sex and danger in the ’90s than Maureen Prescott’s ghost. But today isn’t about watching the guy from Falling Down rip his expensive and pleated slacks off in a fever of passion. It’s about directing legend Brian De Palma returning to the genre with his very own fever dream Fight Club. A story of split personalities,...
- 4/29/2024
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
John Ford, the iconic director known for such films as Stagecoach, The Grapes of Wrath, My Darling Clementine, The Searchers and much more, will be the subject of the next edition of the TCM podcast The Plot Thickens, it was announced Wednesday.
“Decoding John Ford,” hosted by Ben Mankiewicz, premieres June 6. The fifth season of the podcast, consisting of seven episodes, will feature never-before-heard archival interviews with the likes of John Wayne, Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Woody Strode and Ford himself.
TCM says Mankiewicz will “strip back the mythology to reveal Ford’s brilliance — alongside the often ugly, uncomfortable truths about his life and movies, asking whether we can ever truly separate art from the artist.”
“John Ford is a mercurial figure. Not surprisingly given his stature, the stereotypes about Ford are incomplete,” the host said in a statement. “This is a man defined by contradictions: he revered...
“Decoding John Ford,” hosted by Ben Mankiewicz, premieres June 6. The fifth season of the podcast, consisting of seven episodes, will feature never-before-heard archival interviews with the likes of John Wayne, Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Woody Strode and Ford himself.
TCM says Mankiewicz will “strip back the mythology to reveal Ford’s brilliance — alongside the often ugly, uncomfortable truths about his life and movies, asking whether we can ever truly separate art from the artist.”
“John Ford is a mercurial figure. Not surprisingly given his stature, the stereotypes about Ford are incomplete,” the host said in a statement. “This is a man defined by contradictions: he revered...
- 4/18/2024
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The award-winning Turner Classic Movies podcast “The Plot Thickens” is ready to take on the Manifest Destiny of filmmaker John Ford.
The new fifth season, titled “Decoding John Ford,” centers on the legendary auteur best known for Westerns like “The Searchers.” Host Ben Mankiewicz dives into the mythology behind Ford’s filmography.
The seven-part podcast also examines Ford’s shelved WWII film that was commissioned by the U.S. military in 1944. Host Ben Mankiewicz travels to Europe to trace the mystery of whether the D-Day movie exists. The season debuts on June 6, the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
The season features never-before-heard archival interviews with stars like John Wayne, Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Woody Strode, and director Ford himself.
“John Ford is a mercurial figure. Not surprisingly given his stature, the stereotypes about Ford are incomplete,” TCM Host Ben Mankiewicz said in a release. “This is a man defined...
The new fifth season, titled “Decoding John Ford,” centers on the legendary auteur best known for Westerns like “The Searchers.” Host Ben Mankiewicz dives into the mythology behind Ford’s filmography.
The seven-part podcast also examines Ford’s shelved WWII film that was commissioned by the U.S. military in 1944. Host Ben Mankiewicz travels to Europe to trace the mystery of whether the D-Day movie exists. The season debuts on June 6, the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
The season features never-before-heard archival interviews with stars like John Wayne, Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Woody Strode, and director Ford himself.
“John Ford is a mercurial figure. Not surprisingly given his stature, the stereotypes about Ford are incomplete,” TCM Host Ben Mankiewicz said in a release. “This is a man defined...
- 4/18/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
It turns out that Morgan Freeman’s first big break in show business was just kid’s stuff. After working in a few unmemorable productions, Freeman caught on with PBS’s The Electric Company, a show from the Children’s Television Workshop designed to teach basic reading skills to kids from 7 to 10 years old. The gig ran for six seasons and 780 episodes.
He next grabbed attention in 1980 with performances in Brubaker with Robert Redford and TV movie Attica, he broke out in Street Smart, which earned him the first of five Academy Award nominations. Freeman received Best Actor nominations for Oscar-winning Driving Miss Daisy (1989) and The Shawshank Redemption (1994) before winning for his Best Supporting Actor role in Clint Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby (2004). He also received a Best Actor nomination for his portrayal of Nelson Mandela in Invictius (2009).
While Freeman’s career may have been slow to start, once he...
He next grabbed attention in 1980 with performances in Brubaker with Robert Redford and TV movie Attica, he broke out in Street Smart, which earned him the first of five Academy Award nominations. Freeman received Best Actor nominations for Oscar-winning Driving Miss Daisy (1989) and The Shawshank Redemption (1994) before winning for his Best Supporting Actor role in Clint Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby (2004). He also received a Best Actor nomination for his portrayal of Nelson Mandela in Invictius (2009).
While Freeman’s career may have been slow to start, once he...
- 4/4/2024
- by David Morgan
- Deadline Film + TV
Griffin Dunne and Rosanna Arquette’s night of farce and coincidence is a tale in which strangeness and anxiety loom large, leading to a woozy punchline
Martin Scorsese’s 1985 screwball noir is now on rerelease. It felt at the time – and feels now – like an atypical Scorsese movie, a more generic and less auteurist project he accepted from its producer-star Griffin Dunne while progress on his Last Temptation of Christ had temporarily stalled. Maybe he thought of it as “road work”, but time has lent interest to After Hours; the obviously comic and farcical aspect has receded and its strangeness and anxiety loom larger, in a string of unsexy encounters and chilling coincidences culminating in a desolate close-dance scene to the accompaniment of Peggy Lee’s Is That All There Is? It’s a shaggy dog story leading to a punchline, of sorts, but one that feels woozy and illusory...
Martin Scorsese’s 1985 screwball noir is now on rerelease. It felt at the time – and feels now – like an atypical Scorsese movie, a more generic and less auteurist project he accepted from its producer-star Griffin Dunne while progress on his Last Temptation of Christ had temporarily stalled. Maybe he thought of it as “road work”, but time has lent interest to After Hours; the obviously comic and farcical aspect has receded and its strangeness and anxiety loom larger, in a string of unsexy encounters and chilling coincidences culminating in a desolate close-dance scene to the accompaniment of Peggy Lee’s Is That All There Is? It’s a shaggy dog story leading to a punchline, of sorts, but one that feels woozy and illusory...
- 3/20/2024
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Many people often blasphemously (and hilariously) joke around that Morgan Freeman is God. Not only because of his pitch perfect casting as God but also due to his smooth, defining and, yes, god-like is Morgan Freeman’s voice that one can’t picture penguins or parts of nature or, yes, God, without hearing the man. One reason could be that we’ve only ever really known Morgan Freeman as an older actor, not striking a chord with mainstream audiences until he was in his 50s.
Soon enough his skills, screen presences and voice had Hollywood calling every time they needed a kind wise grandfather types or a grizzled vet from either side of the the law or any type of narration in any type of film. That persona has marked him as a welcome figure throughout modern cinema – despite the nearly constant cash grabs that pad out the unfortunate bulk of his filmography.
Soon enough his skills, screen presences and voice had Hollywood calling every time they needed a kind wise grandfather types or a grizzled vet from either side of the the law or any type of narration in any type of film. That persona has marked him as a welcome figure throughout modern cinema – despite the nearly constant cash grabs that pad out the unfortunate bulk of his filmography.
- 2/2/2024
- by Mathew Plale
- JoBlo.com
November has arrived, and with it a bevy of exciting, engaging and fresh new movies to stream on your friendly neighborhood streaming service. As fall is in full swing, the tone and tenor of new movies is starting to shift in a more dramatic direction while studios begin to trot out their awards contenders. A few of those arrive this month, including true stories “Nyad” and “Rustin,” but it’s not all serious business — the Awkwafina/Sandra Oh comedy “Quiz Lady” and David Fincher’s take on a B-movie “The Killer” both arrive this month as well.
And that’s not to mention the cornucopia of library titles that are newly streaming this month, including a host of Christmas classics. Whether it’s Netflix, Prime Video, Max, Hulu, Peacock, Paramount+ or Disney+, we’ve got you covered with our curated selection of the best new movies streaming in November 2023 below.
And that’s not to mention the cornucopia of library titles that are newly streaming this month, including a host of Christmas classics. Whether it’s Netflix, Prime Video, Max, Hulu, Peacock, Paramount+ or Disney+, we’ve got you covered with our curated selection of the best new movies streaming in November 2023 below.
- 11/10/2023
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
Bruce Willis burst onto the American entertainment scene as the glib, smart-alecky detective David Addison Jr. opposite Cybill Shepherd’s Maddie Haynes in ABC’s Moonlighting, a show that helped launch the dramedy genre. Willis was not long for the small screen, though, with his his sharp tongue and sarcastic wit destined for bigger things.
More than 90 films and $5.3 billion later, Willis has played a smart-aleck New York detective in the Die Hard series, a smart-aleck oil driller-turned-astronaut in Armageddon, a smart-aleck cop in The Last Boy Scout, a smart-aleck gangster in Last Man Standing, a smart-aleck soldier in Tears of the Sun … well, you get the picture.
When he wasn’t cracking wise, Willis played many other memorable roles in films that included The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990), Billy Bathgate (1991), Color of Night (1994), 12 Monkeys (1995), The Fifth Element (1997), The Sixth Sense (1999) The Story of Us (1999), Looper (2012) and Motherless Brooklyn...
More than 90 films and $5.3 billion later, Willis has played a smart-aleck New York detective in the Die Hard series, a smart-aleck oil driller-turned-astronaut in Armageddon, a smart-aleck cop in The Last Boy Scout, a smart-aleck gangster in Last Man Standing, a smart-aleck soldier in Tears of the Sun … well, you get the picture.
When he wasn’t cracking wise, Willis played many other memorable roles in films that included The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990), Billy Bathgate (1991), Color of Night (1994), 12 Monkeys (1995), The Fifth Element (1997), The Sixth Sense (1999) The Story of Us (1999), Looper (2012) and Motherless Brooklyn...
- 10/16/2023
- by David Morgan
- Deadline Film + TV
While his films have ranged from the sublime to the atrocious, there’s no denying the impact Brian De Palma has had on cinema. Let’s take a look back at 20 of his greatest films, ranked worst to best.
De Palma began his filmmaking career directing underground features shot on a shoestring, many of which starred a young Robert De Niro. He came into his own with the Hitchcock-inspired thriller “Sisters” (1973), starring Margot Kidder as a pair of killer Siamese twins. The Master of Suspense would serve as a muse to De Palma throughout his career, influencing such films as “Obsession” (1976), “Dressed to Kill” (1980), “Blow Out” (1980) and “Body Double” (1984) both in style and substance.
He enjoyed his first box office success with “Carrie” (1976), an adaptation of Stephen King’s chilling novel about a shy teenager (Sissy Spacek) with telekinesis. The film brought Oscar nominations to Spacek and Piper Laurie...
De Palma began his filmmaking career directing underground features shot on a shoestring, many of which starred a young Robert De Niro. He came into his own with the Hitchcock-inspired thriller “Sisters” (1973), starring Margot Kidder as a pair of killer Siamese twins. The Master of Suspense would serve as a muse to De Palma throughout his career, influencing such films as “Obsession” (1976), “Dressed to Kill” (1980), “Blow Out” (1980) and “Body Double” (1984) both in style and substance.
He enjoyed his first box office success with “Carrie” (1976), an adaptation of Stephen King’s chilling novel about a shy teenager (Sissy Spacek) with telekinesis. The film brought Oscar nominations to Spacek and Piper Laurie...
- 9/8/2023
- by Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Bradley Cooper is undoubtedly feeling the Bern. There’s something very endearing about Cooper’s star persona, not least the fact that, of all modern Hollywood leading men, the mere idea of a “star persona” is something he actually earns. He is charismatic, good-looking, talented (also showcasing talent some felt he didn’t have), and has pretty good taste. Though Paul Thomas Anderson hit on something deploying him for an edgier role as one-man hurricane movie producer and cad Jon Peters.
Maestro is not quite “the devil’s candy,” as author Julie Salamon famously described doomed prestige projects in her account of the making of Brian De Palma’s The Bonfire of the Vanities, but it’s undoubtedly a clasp for the brass ring. It’s about one of the greatest homegrown American musical figures, Leonard Bernstein, who made canonical contributions to the classical, musical theatre, and arguably pop worlds; Steven Spielberg himself,...
Maestro is not quite “the devil’s candy,” as author Julie Salamon famously described doomed prestige projects in her account of the making of Brian De Palma’s The Bonfire of the Vanities, but it’s undoubtedly a clasp for the brass ring. It’s about one of the greatest homegrown American musical figures, Leonard Bernstein, who made canonical contributions to the classical, musical theatre, and arguably pop worlds; Steven Spielberg himself,...
- 9/3/2023
- by David Katz
- The Film Stage
"It's not – having or not having compassion, my role is to discover. The truth is always revolutionary." Yep. Kino Lorber has revealed an official trailer for a documentary film titled Radical Wolfe, a compelling profile of the iconic writer / journalist Tom Wolfe. It will be opening in select theaters first in September, in art house cinemas this fall. This looks like a very smart doc! From a beat reporter at the Washington Post, to the leader of the New Journalism movement, Tom was at the forefront of reshaping how American stories are told. Throughout his career, he fused a conservative upbringing in Virginia with a cultural antenna from Yale's American Studies PhD program to write some of the most culturally impactful stories of the 20th century: The Right Stuff, The Bonfire of the Vanities, and A Man in Full. This doc features conversations and interviews with those who knew him best,...
- 8/25/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Few 20th century American writers had the wide-ranging influence of Tom Wolfe. Don’t believe that? Well, here comes a new doc about the writer and New Journalism pioneer that proves that point, and it hits NYC/LA theaters next month before opening wide later this year.
Read More: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2023
Richard Dewey‘s “Radical Wolfe” charts the life and career of Wolfe, including his most famous books like “The Right Stuff,” “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,” and “The Bonfire Of The Vanities.” Dewey bases his doc on the Vanity Fair article by Michael Lewis.
Continue reading ‘Radical Wolfe’ Trailer: Documentary About Iconic Writer & Journalist Tom Wolfe Hits NYC On September 15, LA On September 22 at The Playlist.
Read More: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2023
Richard Dewey‘s “Radical Wolfe” charts the life and career of Wolfe, including his most famous books like “The Right Stuff,” “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,” and “The Bonfire Of The Vanities.” Dewey bases his doc on the Vanity Fair article by Michael Lewis.
Continue reading ‘Radical Wolfe’ Trailer: Documentary About Iconic Writer & Journalist Tom Wolfe Hits NYC On September 15, LA On September 22 at The Playlist.
- 8/25/2023
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
For the better part of 50 years, Tom Wolfe occupied an outsized role in American life that no contemporary journalist could hope to match. From providing the spark that launched the New Journalism movement with his essays in the 1960s to captivating the nation with “The Right Stuff” in 1979, Wolfe approached nonfiction writing with a level of creativity that forever blurred the lines between reporting and literature.
Once he had nothing left to prove, he turned his attention to fiction and enjoyed even more success. His Wall Street satire “The Bonfire of the Vanities” is widely regarded as one of the decade-defining novels of the 1980s. The book continued to explore Wolfe’s lifelong fascination with the way the quest for status shapes human ecosystems across socioeconomic classes. While the novel is a distinct product of its time, it remains relevant for introducing phrases like “Masters of the Universe” that never left our collective vocabularies.
Once he had nothing left to prove, he turned his attention to fiction and enjoyed even more success. His Wall Street satire “The Bonfire of the Vanities” is widely regarded as one of the decade-defining novels of the 1980s. The book continued to explore Wolfe’s lifelong fascination with the way the quest for status shapes human ecosystems across socioeconomic classes. While the novel is a distinct product of its time, it remains relevant for introducing phrases like “Masters of the Universe” that never left our collective vocabularies.
- 8/24/2023
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
The Story: Eddie Hawkins (Bruce Willis) aka the Hudson Hawk is a master cat burglar recently released from prison after a long stretch. Determined to go straight, he’s nonetheless blackmailed by the psychotic Darwin (Richard E. Grant) and Minerva Mayflower (Sandra Bernhard) to undertake a series of jobs in Rome involving the components of a machine designed by Leonardo da Vinci that converts lead into gold.
The Players: Starring: Bruce Willis, Andie MacDowell, Danny Aiello, James Coburn, Richard E. Grant and Sandra Bernhard. Directed by Michael Lehman.
The History: With Bruce Willis’s sad health situation forcing him into retirement, it’s worth digging into his filmography to examine some of his less-seen gems. For me, one of the big ones is Hudson Hawk. In 1991, Bruce Willis was arguably at the peak of his fame. “Moonlighting” was done and Die Hard had made him into one of the biggest action stars in town,...
The Players: Starring: Bruce Willis, Andie MacDowell, Danny Aiello, James Coburn, Richard E. Grant and Sandra Bernhard. Directed by Michael Lehman.
The History: With Bruce Willis’s sad health situation forcing him into retirement, it’s worth digging into his filmography to examine some of his less-seen gems. For me, one of the big ones is Hudson Hawk. In 1991, Bruce Willis was arguably at the peak of his fame. “Moonlighting” was done and Die Hard had made him into one of the biggest action stars in town,...
- 8/10/2023
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
Raising Cain, Brian De Palma’s maddening dissociative identity disorder thriller, remains one of the director’s most inscrutable films three decades later.
“Does Carter know what he did?”
“Carter didn’t do anything. Cain did all the killing.”
Brian De Palma is an absolute master visual storyteller and his movies are always cinematically stunning even when they don’t fully work as films. For every Carrie and Blow Out there’s a Snake Eyes and The Black Dahlia, but Snake Eyes still kicks off with a twelve-and-a-half minute unbroken tracking shot and Black Dahlia turns the camera into an airborne omniscient spectator during its dynamic gangland shootout and simultaneous corpse discovery. 1992’s Raising Cain comes at an important period of transition for De Palma. Sandwiched between The Bonfire of the Vanities and Carlito’s Way–ostensibly the two extremes of De Palma’s career–it’s easy for Raising Cain...
“Does Carter know what he did?”
“Carter didn’t do anything. Cain did all the killing.”
Brian De Palma is an absolute master visual storyteller and his movies are always cinematically stunning even when they don’t fully work as films. For every Carrie and Blow Out there’s a Snake Eyes and The Black Dahlia, but Snake Eyes still kicks off with a twelve-and-a-half minute unbroken tracking shot and Black Dahlia turns the camera into an airborne omniscient spectator during its dynamic gangland shootout and simultaneous corpse discovery. 1992’s Raising Cain comes at an important period of transition for De Palma. Sandwiched between The Bonfire of the Vanities and Carlito’s Way–ostensibly the two extremes of De Palma’s career–it’s easy for Raising Cain...
- 8/7/2023
- by Daniel Kurland
- bloody-disgusting.com
In movies, the word “bomb” has always meant two things, generally at the same time. The first and most important definition of bomb is that a movie has lost a disastrous amount of money. Movies, in general, can’t afford to do that — they’re too expensive to produce. Bombs happen, but as a business model they’re not sustainable. A movie that bombs commercially has never been something to write off as a trivial matter.
The second definition of bomb, which is linked to the first (though not automatically), is that a film is spectacularly bad. It is, of course, not axiomatic that a movie that bombs commercially has failed as a work of art. There are movies we think of as classics that crashed and burned at the box office — like “It’s a Wonderful Life” or “Blade Runner” or “Intolerance” or “The Long Goodbye.” It’s become almost...
The second definition of bomb, which is linked to the first (though not automatically), is that a film is spectacularly bad. It is, of course, not axiomatic that a movie that bombs commercially has failed as a work of art. There are movies we think of as classics that crashed and burned at the box office — like “It’s a Wonderful Life” or “Blade Runner” or “Intolerance” or “The Long Goodbye.” It’s become almost...
- 4/22/2023
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Kino Lorber has acquired North American rights to the documentary about “The Right Stuff” and “The Bonfire of the Vanities” writer Tom Wolfe titled “Radical Wolfe,” the company announced on Wednesday.
The documentary is an official adaptation of the 2015 Vanity Fair article “How Tom Wolfe Became … Tom Wolfe” by Michael Lewis, best-selling author of “Moneyball” and “The Big Short” and a longtime personal friend of Wolfe.
Kino Lorber is planning a theatrical release later this year followed by a digital and home video release on all major platforms.
Also Read:
Kino Lorber Hires Former AMC Executives Ed Carroll and Lisa Schwartz to C-Suite
The film is directed by Richard Dewey (“Burden”) and executive produced by David Light and Nathan Epstein and co-produced by Andy Fortenbacher.
The synopsis is as follows: From a beat reporter at the Washington Post, to an overnight sensation as the leader of the New Journalism movement,...
The documentary is an official adaptation of the 2015 Vanity Fair article “How Tom Wolfe Became … Tom Wolfe” by Michael Lewis, best-selling author of “Moneyball” and “The Big Short” and a longtime personal friend of Wolfe.
Kino Lorber is planning a theatrical release later this year followed by a digital and home video release on all major platforms.
Also Read:
Kino Lorber Hires Former AMC Executives Ed Carroll and Lisa Schwartz to C-Suite
The film is directed by Richard Dewey (“Burden”) and executive produced by David Light and Nathan Epstein and co-produced by Andy Fortenbacher.
The synopsis is as follows: From a beat reporter at the Washington Post, to an overnight sensation as the leader of the New Journalism movement,...
- 4/5/2023
- by Umberto Gonzalez
- The Wrap
Exclusive: The Right Stuff and The Bonfire of the Vanities scribe Tom Wolfe is the subject of new documentary Radical Wolfe, an adaptation of a 2015 Vanity Fair article by Moneyball and The Big Short author Michael Lewis who was a longtime personal friend of Wolfe.
Kino Lorber has acquired all North American distribution rights to Richard Dewey’s under-the-radar film, which is currently in post-production and set to be released theatrically later this year.
Talking heads include Michael Lewis, Jann Wenner, Gay Talese, Lynn Nesbit, Terry McDonell, Tom Junod, Christopher Buckley, Niall Ferguson, and Alexandra Wolfe.
From a beat reporter at the Washington Post, to an overnight sensation as the leader of the New Journalism movement, Wolfe is one of America’s most celebrated journalist-turned-novelists of the latter 20th Century. His books included The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, The Right Stuff, The Bonfire Of The Vanities, and A Man in Full.
Kino Lorber has acquired all North American distribution rights to Richard Dewey’s under-the-radar film, which is currently in post-production and set to be released theatrically later this year.
Talking heads include Michael Lewis, Jann Wenner, Gay Talese, Lynn Nesbit, Terry McDonell, Tom Junod, Christopher Buckley, Niall Ferguson, and Alexandra Wolfe.
From a beat reporter at the Washington Post, to an overnight sensation as the leader of the New Journalism movement, Wolfe is one of America’s most celebrated journalist-turned-novelists of the latter 20th Century. His books included The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, The Right Stuff, The Bonfire Of The Vanities, and A Man in Full.
- 4/5/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Actor Bruce Willis is best known for starring in the Die Hard movie franchise. He played the character John McClane from 1988 until 2013. How much was Willis paid for Die Hard? Here’s what we know.
Bruce Willis’ movie and TV career Bruce Willis | Sean Gallup/Getty Images
One of Willis’ early acting roles was in a 1984 episode of Miami Vice titled “No Exit.” He played the character Tony Amato. The following year, Willis starred in Moonlighting alongside Cybill Shepherd. Willis remained on the series for 66 episodes until it ended in 1989.
In 1987, Willis secured his first major film role. He played the character Walter Davis in Blind Date alongside Kim Basinger. Willis established himself as an action movie star the following year when he played John McClane in Die Hard.
In 1989, Willis voiced Mikey in Look Who’s Talking and the 1990 sequel Look Who’s Talking Too. Some of Willis’ other acting appearances include roles in Armageddon,...
Bruce Willis’ movie and TV career Bruce Willis | Sean Gallup/Getty Images
One of Willis’ early acting roles was in a 1984 episode of Miami Vice titled “No Exit.” He played the character Tony Amato. The following year, Willis starred in Moonlighting alongside Cybill Shepherd. Willis remained on the series for 66 episodes until it ended in 1989.
In 1987, Willis secured his first major film role. He played the character Walter Davis in Blind Date alongside Kim Basinger. Willis established himself as an action movie star the following year when he played John McClane in Die Hard.
In 1989, Willis voiced Mikey in Look Who’s Talking and the 1990 sequel Look Who’s Talking Too. Some of Willis’ other acting appearances include roles in Armageddon,...
- 3/19/2023
- by Sheiresa Ngo
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Bruce Willis became a household name in 1985 after starring in the TV show Moonlighting alongside Cybill Shepherd. Willis played investigator David Addison and Shepherd played former model Maddie Hayes. Why was Moonlighting canceled? Here’s what we know Willis and Shepherd’s show.
Bruce Willis’ movies and TV shows Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis | ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
One of Willis’ early acting roles was an appearance in a 1984 episode of Miami Vice titled “No Exit.” He played the character Tony Amato. Willis also spent some time off-Broadway, starring in Sam Shepherd’s Fool for Love. He starred in the hit series Moonlighting alongside actor Cybill Shepherd the following year. Willis remained on the series for 66 episodes until it ended in 1989.
In 1987, Willis had one of his first major film roles. He played Walter Davis in Blind Date alongside Kim Basinger. Willis established himself...
Bruce Willis’ movies and TV shows Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis | ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
One of Willis’ early acting roles was an appearance in a 1984 episode of Miami Vice titled “No Exit.” He played the character Tony Amato. Willis also spent some time off-Broadway, starring in Sam Shepherd’s Fool for Love. He starred in the hit series Moonlighting alongside actor Cybill Shepherd the following year. Willis remained on the series for 66 episodes until it ended in 1989.
In 1987, Willis had one of his first major film roles. He played Walter Davis in Blind Date alongside Kim Basinger. Willis established himself...
- 3/14/2023
- by Sheiresa Ngo
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Morgan Freeman is one of the most iconic actors of our time.
He has been in countless movies, television shows, and plays, and his voice is instantly recognizable to millions of fans around the world. But what makes him stand out from the rest is how he never ceases to inspire others.
He has played a variety of roles, from a wise sage to a wisecracking villain, and his genuine enthusiasm for every character he inhabits is infectious. His career as an actor has spanned over six decades and seen him work with some of the biggest names in Hollywood. He’s earned accolades for his work and been nominated for numerous awards.
This article will explore Morgan Freeman’s iconic career, with examples of some of his greatest work. It’s an exploration of how he has used his passion and talent to inspire generations of moviegoers everywhere.
Morgan Freeman.
He has been in countless movies, television shows, and plays, and his voice is instantly recognizable to millions of fans around the world. But what makes him stand out from the rest is how he never ceases to inspire others.
He has played a variety of roles, from a wise sage to a wisecracking villain, and his genuine enthusiasm for every character he inhabits is infectious. His career as an actor has spanned over six decades and seen him work with some of the biggest names in Hollywood. He’s earned accolades for his work and been nominated for numerous awards.
This article will explore Morgan Freeman’s iconic career, with examples of some of his greatest work. It’s an exploration of how he has used his passion and talent to inspire generations of moviegoers everywhere.
Morgan Freeman.
- 3/11/2023
- by Movies Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
Richard Belzer, a comedian whose stone-faced demeanor later made him a star on TV's Law & Order, has died. He was 78.
"I'm so sad to hear of Richard Belzer's passing," wrote original Saturday Night Live cast member Laraine Newman, who first reported news of his death, wrote on twitter. "I loved this guy so much. He was one of my first friends when I got to New York to do SNL. We used to go out to dinner every week at Sheepshead Bay for lobster. One of the funniest people ever. A master at crowd work. Rip dearest."
Belzer was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut in 1944. After high school, Belzer worked as a reporter for the Bridgeport Post. He moved to New York to find work as a stand-up comedian. Belzer was the audience warm-up comedian for SNL in its first season and made three guest appearances on the show. He...
"I'm so sad to hear of Richard Belzer's passing," wrote original Saturday Night Live cast member Laraine Newman, who first reported news of his death, wrote on twitter. "I loved this guy so much. He was one of my first friends when I got to New York to do SNL. We used to go out to dinner every week at Sheepshead Bay for lobster. One of the funniest people ever. A master at crowd work. Rip dearest."
Belzer was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut in 1944. After high school, Belzer worked as a reporter for the Bridgeport Post. He moved to New York to find work as a stand-up comedian. Belzer was the audience warm-up comedian for SNL in its first season and made three guest appearances on the show. He...
- 2/20/2023
- by James White
- Empire - TV
Early in 1987, producers Larry Gordon and Joel Silver were on the hunt for an action hero. They were working on a rollercoaster tale about terrorists hijacking a high-rise tower in Los Angeles and the script called for a muscle-bound bruiser.
For contractual reasons, Frank Sinatra was top of the list for Die Hard. Ol’ Blue Eyes had first refusal as he’d been the star of 1968’s The Detective, which like Die Hard was based on author Roderick Thorp’s thriller novels.
When the 70-year-old crooner confirmed his terrorist-fighting days were long behind him, producers went straight to the most obvious candidate: Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Terminator, Commando and Predator star said no, preferring to try his hand at comedy alongside Danny DeVito in Twins. The rejections kept coming: Richard Gere, Burt Reynolds, Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone, Nick Nolte, Don Johnson and Mel Gibson all passed.
Way down the list was Bruce Willis.
For contractual reasons, Frank Sinatra was top of the list for Die Hard. Ol’ Blue Eyes had first refusal as he’d been the star of 1968’s The Detective, which like Die Hard was based on author Roderick Thorp’s thriller novels.
When the 70-year-old crooner confirmed his terrorist-fighting days were long behind him, producers went straight to the most obvious candidate: Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Terminator, Commando and Predator star said no, preferring to try his hand at comedy alongside Danny DeVito in Twins. The rejections kept coming: Richard Gere, Burt Reynolds, Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone, Nick Nolte, Don Johnson and Mel Gibson all passed.
Way down the list was Bruce Willis.
- 2/17/2023
- by Kevin E G Perry
- The Independent - Film
Hollywood stars are sending their love to Bruce Willis and his family after revealing more details about his condition.
On Thursday (16 February), the Die Hard star’s family provided an update, almost a year after revealing he had been diagnosed with aphasia.
They said that Willis’s condition has progressed, and he has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, which is known as Ftd.
“Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce, 67, faces,” his family shared in a joint statement, adding: “While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.”
Calling it a “cruel disease”, they went on to say that “Ftd is the most common form of dementia, and because getting the diagnosis can take years, Ftd is likely much more prevalent than we know”.
The family said that “as Bruce’s condition advances, we hope that any media attention can...
On Thursday (16 February), the Die Hard star’s family provided an update, almost a year after revealing he had been diagnosed with aphasia.
They said that Willis’s condition has progressed, and he has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, which is known as Ftd.
“Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce, 67, faces,” his family shared in a joint statement, adding: “While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.”
Calling it a “cruel disease”, they went on to say that “Ftd is the most common form of dementia, and because getting the diagnosis can take years, Ftd is likely much more prevalent than we know”.
The family said that “as Bruce’s condition advances, we hope that any media attention can...
- 2/17/2023
- by Jacob Stolworthy
- The Independent - Film
With Tom Hanks’ recent film A Man Called Otto continuing to pull in solid numbers at the box office, we wanted to know what your favorite film by the legendary actor is. We have compiled a pretty comprehensive list, but if by chance you don’t see your favorite listed, please let us know in the comments.
Favorite Tom Hanks MovieA Man Called Otto (2022)Pinocchio (2022)Elvis (2022)Finch (2021)News of the World (2020)Greyhound (2020)A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)Toy Story 4 (2019)The Post (2017)The Circle (2017)Inferno (2016)Sully (2016)A Hologram for the King (2016)Bridge of Spies (2015)Saving Mr. Banks (2013)Captain Phillips (2013)Cloud Atlas (2012)Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)Larry Crowne (2011)Toy Story 3 (2010)Angels & Demons (2009)The Great Buck Howard (2009)The Simpsons Movie (2007)Charlie Wilson's War (2007)The Da Vinci Code (2006)The Polar Express (2004)The Terminal (2004)The Ladykillers (2004)Catch Me if You Can (2002)Road to Perdition (2002)Cast Away (2000)The Green Mile (1999)Toy Story 2...
Favorite Tom Hanks MovieA Man Called Otto (2022)Pinocchio (2022)Elvis (2022)Finch (2021)News of the World (2020)Greyhound (2020)A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)Toy Story 4 (2019)The Post (2017)The Circle (2017)Inferno (2016)Sully (2016)A Hologram for the King (2016)Bridge of Spies (2015)Saving Mr. Banks (2013)Captain Phillips (2013)Cloud Atlas (2012)Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)Larry Crowne (2011)Toy Story 3 (2010)Angels & Demons (2009)The Great Buck Howard (2009)The Simpsons Movie (2007)Charlie Wilson's War (2007)The Da Vinci Code (2006)The Polar Express (2004)The Terminal (2004)The Ladykillers (2004)Catch Me if You Can (2002)Road to Perdition (2002)Cast Away (2000)The Green Mile (1999)Toy Story 2...
- 1/29/2023
- by Brad Hamerly
- JoBlo.com
In 1982, Tom Hanks landed his first leading role in a film with "Mazes and Monsters." Hanks stars in the made-for-tv movie as a college student who suffers a psychotic break from playing the titular role-playing game, a thinly-veiled fictional stand-in for real-life fantasy roleplaying games like "Dungeons & Dragons." It's "Reefer Madness" for RPGs, a laughably terrible propaganda piece based on a 1981 book that itself was inspired by inaccurate media stories trying to establish a non-existent link between mental health and a love of rolling "Nat 20s."
Thankfully, things only went up for Hanks from there. He would spend the rest of the '80s making his primary living as a comedic actor, starring in now-classic titles like "Splash" and "Big" in-between less successful comedy movies and his early attempts at drama in films like "Every Time We Say Goodbye." In time, however, Hanks would hit another low-point with his...
Thankfully, things only went up for Hanks from there. He would spend the rest of the '80s making his primary living as a comedic actor, starring in now-classic titles like "Splash" and "Big" in-between less successful comedy movies and his early attempts at drama in films like "Every Time We Say Goodbye." In time, however, Hanks would hit another low-point with his...
- 9/6/2022
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Nothing screams "must-see" quite like a new Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks collaboration. They're the dream duo of modern American cinema, the closest thing we have to a Frank Capra-James Stewart tandem. They've made five films together, and all but one ("The Terminal") are legitimately great.
The only baffling element of their creative partnership is that it didn't happen sooner. Hanks was in his 40s and Spielberg in his 50s when they came together for 1998's devastating World War II epic "Saving Private Ryan." If you're wondering what took so long, Spielberg is right there with you. If the two-time Academy Award-winning filmmaker had been able to swing it, he would've loved to direct Hanks in 1993's "Philadelphia."
Hanks Finally Proves His Worth As A Dramatic Actor
The Jonathan Demme-directed drama about Andrew Beckett (Hanks), a gay corporate lawyer who teams up with an initially homophobic prosecutor,...
The only baffling element of their creative partnership is that it didn't happen sooner. Hanks was in his 40s and Spielberg in his 50s when they came together for 1998's devastating World War II epic "Saving Private Ryan." If you're wondering what took so long, Spielberg is right there with you. If the two-time Academy Award-winning filmmaker had been able to swing it, he would've loved to direct Hanks in 1993's "Philadelphia."
Hanks Finally Proves His Worth As A Dramatic Actor
The Jonathan Demme-directed drama about Andrew Beckett (Hanks), a gay corporate lawyer who teams up with an initially homophobic prosecutor,...
- 9/2/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
When Neil Gaiman's "Sandman," one of the most stirring and enveloping sagas I've ever experienced in any medium, at long last found safe harbor at Netflix, I was relieved. Even if the live-action adaptation of arguably the greatest comic book series ever written fell short of my fevered imagination, it would at least be realized on the author's terms. And this was important to me not only because I adore the work, but because I know how very, very wrong it could've gone had Warner Bros. moved forward with William Farmer's rewrite of Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's screenplay adaptation in 1998.
Everything I just said about "Sandman" as a comic book? The extreme opposite goes for Farmer's script. We've seen great works of fiction travestied by misguided screenplays: Brian De Palma's "The Bonfire of the Vanities" is a miscast gutter-ball that veers from satire to caricature...
Everything I just said about "Sandman" as a comic book? The extreme opposite goes for Farmer's script. We've seen great works of fiction travestied by misguided screenplays: Brian De Palma's "The Bonfire of the Vanities" is a miscast gutter-ball that veers from satire to caricature...
- 8/26/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSDavid Warner in The Wars of the Roses.David Warner, who died earlier this week, is warmly paid tribute to by artist and filmmaker Tacita Dean in the Guardian. In the piece, Dean talks about her admiration for the actor's performance in Alain Resnais' Providence and how she convinced him to star in her own film of the same name.Mary Alice also passed away this week, aged 85. A Tony- and Emmy-winning actor, Alice was known for her roles in Charles Burnett’s To Sleep With Anger, Brian De Palma’s The Bonfire of the Vanities, and Penny Marshall's Awakenings, among many other performances on both stage and screen.As part of a series of events investigating "the new languages of the contemporary," the Locarno Film Festival will host a 24-hour-long talk titled "The Future of Attention,...
- 8/3/2022
- MUBI
Click here to read the full article.
Mary Alice, the Tony- and Emmy-winning actress who starred in the original Broadway production of Fences, portrayed the mother of three singing daughters in Sparkle and appeared as The Oracle in The Matrix Revolutions, has died. She was 85.
Alice died Wednesday in her Manhattan apartment, an NYPD spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter.
In 1990 films, Alice played Nurse Margaret opposite Robin Williams and Robert De Niro in Awakenings, directed by Penny Marshall; the family matriarch dealing with a disruptive guest (Danny Glover) in Charles Burnett’s To Sleep With Anger; and a woman whose son was struck by a car in the South Bronx in Brian De Palma’s The Bonfire of the Vanities.
The onetime Chicago schoolteacher received back-to-back Emmy nominations in 1992 and ’93 — winning in the second year — for her supporting turn as Marguerite Peck, whose child is murdered, on the Atlanta-set NBC legal drama I’ll Fly Away,...
Mary Alice, the Tony- and Emmy-winning actress who starred in the original Broadway production of Fences, portrayed the mother of three singing daughters in Sparkle and appeared as The Oracle in The Matrix Revolutions, has died. She was 85.
Alice died Wednesday in her Manhattan apartment, an NYPD spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter.
In 1990 films, Alice played Nurse Margaret opposite Robin Williams and Robert De Niro in Awakenings, directed by Penny Marshall; the family matriarch dealing with a disruptive guest (Danny Glover) in Charles Burnett’s To Sleep With Anger; and a woman whose son was struck by a car in the South Bronx in Brian De Palma’s The Bonfire of the Vanities.
The onetime Chicago schoolteacher received back-to-back Emmy nominations in 1992 and ’93 — winning in the second year — for her supporting turn as Marguerite Peck, whose child is murdered, on the Atlanta-set NBC legal drama I’ll Fly Away,...
- 7/28/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Mary Alice, an Emmy-winning actor for I’ll Fly Away and a Tony winner for her performance in 1987’s Broadway production of August Wilson’s Fences, died yesterday in New York City.
Her age has been variously reported as 80, 84 and 86. Her death was confirmed to Deadline by the New York Police Department. No additional details were immediately available.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
“A shoulder we all stood on,” tweeted actor Colman Domingo today.
A prolific character actor on screen and stage, and a pioneer in the representation of Black actors on the Off Broadway and Broadway scenes, Alice is perhaps most widely known to TV audiences for her two-season run as a main character on NBC’s Cosby Show spin-off A Different World, in which she played dorm director Leticia “Lettie” Bostic. In 2003, she featured prominently in The Matrix Revolutions, portraying The Oracle, who imparts words of wisdom to Keanu Reeves’ Neo.
Her age has been variously reported as 80, 84 and 86. Her death was confirmed to Deadline by the New York Police Department. No additional details were immediately available.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
“A shoulder we all stood on,” tweeted actor Colman Domingo today.
A prolific character actor on screen and stage, and a pioneer in the representation of Black actors on the Off Broadway and Broadway scenes, Alice is perhaps most widely known to TV audiences for her two-season run as a main character on NBC’s Cosby Show spin-off A Different World, in which she played dorm director Leticia “Lettie” Bostic. In 2003, she featured prominently in The Matrix Revolutions, portraying The Oracle, who imparts words of wisdom to Keanu Reeves’ Neo.
- 7/28/2022
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Emmy-winning actress Mary Alice, known for her roles as Leticia “Lettie” Bostic on NBC‘s “A Different World” and as Effie Williams in the 1976 musical drama “Sparkle,” died Wednesday in New York City, according to the NYPD. Her birth year had been reported both as 1936 and 1941 in various sources.
In “The Matrix Revolutions,” she played the Oracle and also played the role in the video game “Enter the Matrix.”
She appeared in “A Different World” for two seasons, and also played Ellie Grant Hubbard on “All My Children” in the 1980s.
In films, she appeared in “Malcolm X,” “The Inkwell,” “Down in the Delta,” “Beat Street,” “To Sleep With Anger,” “Awakenings,” “The Bonfire of the Vanities” and “Sunshine State,” among many others.
Born Mary Alice Smith in Indianola, Miss., she pursued acting at a very early age, starting her stage career in her hometown. After a brief stint as an elementary school teacher,...
In “The Matrix Revolutions,” she played the Oracle and also played the role in the video game “Enter the Matrix.”
She appeared in “A Different World” for two seasons, and also played Ellie Grant Hubbard on “All My Children” in the 1980s.
In films, she appeared in “Malcolm X,” “The Inkwell,” “Down in the Delta,” “Beat Street,” “To Sleep With Anger,” “Awakenings,” “The Bonfire of the Vanities” and “Sunshine State,” among many others.
Born Mary Alice Smith in Indianola, Miss., she pursued acting at a very early age, starting her stage career in her hometown. After a brief stint as an elementary school teacher,...
- 7/28/2022
- by EJ Panaligan
- Variety Film + TV
There’s something inherently seductive about the glitz and glamour of Old Hollywood. Perhaps it’s the backstage intrigue and the tawdry tales of showbusiness hedonism that draws us in again and again. Or maybe it’s the romanticized image of smokey rooms, silken gowns and stylish fedoras that we find so endlessly alluring. For many, however, it’s the larger-than-life figures from silver screen history that remain irresistible decades later.
Whatever the reason, films, books and television shows about Hollywood’s Golden Age continue to captivate new generations year after year. Look no further than Oscar-winners like “The Artist,” bestsellers like Shawn Levy’s “The Castle on Sunset,” acclaimed documentaries like “Tab Hunter Confidential,” and a host of recent TV series from Ryan Murphy if you have any doubt. Each of these attempt, in some way, to simultaneously celebrate the era while pulling back the curtain on the studio system.
Whatever the reason, films, books and television shows about Hollywood’s Golden Age continue to captivate new generations year after year. Look no further than Oscar-winners like “The Artist,” bestsellers like Shawn Levy’s “The Castle on Sunset,” acclaimed documentaries like “Tab Hunter Confidential,” and a host of recent TV series from Ryan Murphy if you have any doubt. Each of these attempt, in some way, to simultaneously celebrate the era while pulling back the curtain on the studio system.
- 11/16/2021
- by Matthew Chernov
- Variety Film + TV
"Now this seems absurd, right? ... Why would you spend $80,000 of your budget just for this one image?" What do you think is "the most difficult shot in movie history?" It's probably not the one you're thinking of, not any of Stanley Kubrick's shots, not any of the Lumière Brothers' shots. Nah, it's a shot from one of Brian De Palma's films. And it was a flop. The film is The Bonfire of the Vanities, a 1990 adult drama about a Wall Street hotshot played by Tom Hanks, whose life begins to unravel after his mistress runs over a teen. Now, why is there an interesting $80,000 shot in this? Editor / filmmaker Patrick H. Willems got caught up learning about the making of this epic flop and the story of the iconic Concorde jet landing at JFK shot that cost so much. He put together a 20 minute video essay not only examining the shot itself,...
- 9/27/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
TV had the run of the place for awhile there during the pandemic. But now that vaccinations are speeding up and the weather is warming, it’s film’s time to shine. At least that’s the conclusion that can be drawn from HBO Max’s list of new releases for June 2021.
There are no real original TV series of note coming this month, which is highly unusual for HBO and HBO Max. In their place, however, are some really impressive film offerings. Major Warner Bros. titles like The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (June 4) and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In the Heights (June 11) both arrive this month. So too do some interesting documentaries like Revolutionary Rent on June 15 and Lfg on June 24. The former deals with the staging of the musical Rent in Cuba and the latter follows the U.S. women’s soccer team’s fight for equal pay.
There are no real original TV series of note coming this month, which is highly unusual for HBO and HBO Max. In their place, however, are some really impressive film offerings. Major Warner Bros. titles like The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (June 4) and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In the Heights (June 11) both arrive this month. So too do some interesting documentaries like Revolutionary Rent on June 15 and Lfg on June 24. The former deals with the staging of the musical Rent in Cuba and the latter follows the U.S. women’s soccer team’s fight for equal pay.
- 5/31/2021
- by Alec Bojalad
- Den of Geek
Thirty years on, why was Brian De Palma’s star-studded adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s novel such a flop?
In the opening minutes of the film adaptation of The Bonfire of the Vanities, Bruce Willis’s journalist Peter Fallow arrives in an inebriated state to the launch of his new book. Through a glorious, unbroken tracking shot, Fallow indulges in the excesses of celebrity while being fawned over by the New York socialite and intellectual scene. His writing is said to be as vital to literature as Anna Karenina. Once a washed-up has-been, Fallow is now admired by those who detested him. If only the same could be said for Brian De Palma’s film.
Tom Wolfe published the novel The Bonfire of the Vanities in 1987. In it, smarmy Wall Street bond trader Sherman McCoy becomes lost in the Bronx during a rendezvous with his mistress, Maria Ruskin, and runs...
In the opening minutes of the film adaptation of The Bonfire of the Vanities, Bruce Willis’s journalist Peter Fallow arrives in an inebriated state to the launch of his new book. Through a glorious, unbroken tracking shot, Fallow indulges in the excesses of celebrity while being fawned over by the New York socialite and intellectual scene. His writing is said to be as vital to literature as Anna Karenina. Once a washed-up has-been, Fallow is now admired by those who detested him. If only the same could be said for Brian De Palma’s film.
Tom Wolfe published the novel The Bonfire of the Vanities in 1987. In it, smarmy Wall Street bond trader Sherman McCoy becomes lost in the Bronx during a rendezvous with his mistress, Maria Ruskin, and runs...
- 4/2/2021
- by Oliver Macnaughton
- The Guardian - Film News
Lynn Stalmaster, who was the first casting director to receive an Academy Award, died today at home in Los Angeles. He was 93 and his death was confirmed by Laura Adler of the Casting Society of America.
Stalmaster had a legendary vision for casting. He is credited with moving Dustin Hoffman into The Graduate, Christopher Reeve as Superman, and tabbing the young John Travolta for TV comedy classic Welcome Back, Kotter, among many others.
The November 2016 Governors Awards saw Stalmaster become the first casting director to receive an Academy Award. The honorary Oscar recognized his long and meritorious career.
Stalmaster also had another notable achievement: on Norman Jewison’s 1968 film The Thomas Crown Affair Stalmaster became the first casting director to receive a single-card credit in the titles.
Stalmaster has more than 400 casting credits among them such classics as Inherit the Wind (1960), The Great Escape (1963), In the Heat of the Night (1967), They Shoot Horses,...
Stalmaster had a legendary vision for casting. He is credited with moving Dustin Hoffman into The Graduate, Christopher Reeve as Superman, and tabbing the young John Travolta for TV comedy classic Welcome Back, Kotter, among many others.
The November 2016 Governors Awards saw Stalmaster become the first casting director to receive an Academy Award. The honorary Oscar recognized his long and meritorious career.
Stalmaster also had another notable achievement: on Norman Jewison’s 1968 film The Thomas Crown Affair Stalmaster became the first casting director to receive a single-card credit in the titles.
Stalmaster has more than 400 casting credits among them such classics as Inherit the Wind (1960), The Great Escape (1963), In the Heat of the Night (1967), They Shoot Horses,...
- 2/13/2021
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Else Blangsted, a Holocaust survivor who went on to a 35-year career as a film music editor who worked with some of the industry’s most successful directors, producers and composers – Robert Redford, Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones, Dave Grusin, Sydney Pollack, among others – died Friday, May 1, from natural causes at her home in Los Angeles. She was 99.
Blangsted’s death, which occurred just three weeks short of her 100th birthday, was confirmed by her cousin, the Oscar–winning filmmaker and producer Deborah Oppenheimer.
Though she occasionally worked in TV throughout the years – Hazel, Dennis the Menace, Apple’s Way and the 1976 miniseries Helter Skelter, among others – it was in film that Blangsted left her most indelible professional mark. A partial roster of her film credits, spanning 1955’s Picnic to 1990’s The Bonfire of the Vanities, includes On Golden Pond, The Great Santini, Ordinary People, The Color Purple, The Goonies, In Cold Blood,...
Blangsted’s death, which occurred just three weeks short of her 100th birthday, was confirmed by her cousin, the Oscar–winning filmmaker and producer Deborah Oppenheimer.
Though she occasionally worked in TV throughout the years – Hazel, Dennis the Menace, Apple’s Way and the 1976 miniseries Helter Skelter, among others – it was in film that Blangsted left her most indelible professional mark. A partial roster of her film credits, spanning 1955’s Picnic to 1990’s The Bonfire of the Vanities, includes On Golden Pond, The Great Santini, Ordinary People, The Color Purple, The Goonies, In Cold Blood,...
- 5/5/2020
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Michael Cristofer hasn't stepped behind the camera in nearly twenty years but the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer/director/playwright and actor is back with a new original work: The Night Clerk.
Tye Sheridan stars as Bart Bromley, a socially challenged hotel clerk who witnesses a murder and ends up as the number one suspect in the case.
Along with Sheridan, the movie also stars John Leguizamo, Helen Hunt and Ana de Armas.
Cristofer is most recognized for his writing work, including the scripts for The Witches of Eatwick, The Bonfire of the Vanities and Gia which he also directed and features a very young Angelina Jolie as 70s fashion icon Gia Carangi.
I'm always a...
Tye Sheridan stars as Bart Bromley, a socially challenged hotel clerk who witnesses a murder and ends up as the number one suspect in the case.
Along with Sheridan, the movie also stars John Leguizamo, Helen Hunt and Ana de Armas.
Cristofer is most recognized for his writing work, including the scripts for The Witches of Eatwick, The Bonfire of the Vanities and Gia which he also directed and features a very young Angelina Jolie as 70s fashion icon Gia Carangi.
I'm always a...
- 1/17/2020
- QuietEarth.us
When Tom Hanks jogged onto screen in his feature film debut in the 1980 slasher pic “He Knows You’re Alone,” one probably couldn’t have predicted he would go on to become one of the most successful and beloved actors of all time. Playing a psychology student who postulates about the appeal of fear, Hanks makes manages to the most of his few minutes of screen time. And even though it’s brief, you can catch some of the hallmarks of what would later become a Tom Hanks performance — charismatic but a little goofy, handsome but non-threatening, and able to make any line sound like it has a handful of meanings.
It’s been a long journey from that low-budget horror movie to two-time Academy Award-winning actor, Emmy-award winning producer and Hollywood’s Nicest Guy. On Jan. 5, the eight-time Golden Globe winner will receive the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn.’s special honor,...
It’s been a long journey from that low-budget horror movie to two-time Academy Award-winning actor, Emmy-award winning producer and Hollywood’s Nicest Guy. On Jan. 5, the eight-time Golden Globe winner will receive the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn.’s special honor,...
- 1/3/2020
- by Jenelle Riley
- Variety Film + TV
Remember that story about how Mr. Rogers? The one about how he was actually the most prolific sniper in the history of the Marines? (Or was it the Navy Seals?) He killed 25 (or 150) people in Vietnam and wore long sleeves to cover the tattoos adorning his arms. It wasn’t true, of course, but wouldn't that be something? We want our nice guys to have dark sides because nice guys seem mendacious. Behind that veneer of joviality something sinister must lurk. That’s what Tom Junod wanted when he was assigned to interview Mr. Rogers for Esquire in 1998; instead, the journalist, an acerbic, unsentimental writer, was startled to find out that Mr. Rogers was seemingly the real deal. Fred Rogers is portrayed by Tom Hanks in Marielle Heller’s A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, which chronicles Junod’s (here called Lloyd Vogel) revelatory encounter with the beloved television personality,...
- 12/9/2019
- MUBI
To the list of great books mangled by Hollywood — F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities, and, Omg, Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged — add Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch. This cinematic assault on Tartt’s 2014 Pulitzer prize-winning novel would seem to have everything going for it: a classy cast (Nicole Kidman, Ansel Elgort, Luke Wilson, Jeffrey Wright, Sarah Paulson); the acclaimed Irish film and theater director John Crowley, fresh off his Best Picture nominee Brooklyn; Oscar-nominated screenwriter Peter Straughan (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy...
- 9/12/2019
- by Peter Travers
- Rollingstone.com
Welcome to The B-Side, from The Film Stage. Here we explore movies from established stars that flopped at the box office, have been forgotten by time, or remain hidden gems. These aren’t the films that made them famous or kept them famous. These are the other ones.
Today, we get animated! Ahead of The Film Stage Show’s Toy Story 4 review, we dive into the B-Sides of the voices behind Woody and Buzz, Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. Conor O’Donnell and myself talk The Man With One Red Shoe, Joe Versus The Volcano, Big Trouble, and Redbelt. It’s a wide variety that speaks to the diversity of these two talented performers. As always, much more is covered and referenced.
Click here for some interesting perspective on the philosophy behind Joe Versus The Volcano, or here for the book The Devil’s Candy: The Anatomy Of A Hollywood Fiasco,...
Today, we get animated! Ahead of The Film Stage Show’s Toy Story 4 review, we dive into the B-Sides of the voices behind Woody and Buzz, Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. Conor O’Donnell and myself talk The Man With One Red Shoe, Joe Versus The Volcano, Big Trouble, and Redbelt. It’s a wide variety that speaks to the diversity of these two talented performers. As always, much more is covered and referenced.
Click here for some interesting perspective on the philosophy behind Joe Versus The Volcano, or here for the book The Devil’s Candy: The Anatomy Of A Hollywood Fiasco,...
- 6/26/2019
- by Dan Mecca
- The Film Stage
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