The best moments of Merchant Ivory––a documentary directed by Stephen Soucy concerning the legendary production company––feel like their most-successful pictures: restrained and revealing at the same time. Mostly told chronologically and split into chapters with talking heads to drive the narrative, the film dutifully recounts the agony and ecstasy of Merchant Ivory Productions. Sections are devoted to producer Ismail Merchant, director James Ivory, writer Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, and composer Richard Robbins. Dedicated crew members and stars sing their praises while softly criticizing their methods of madness, most of the latter directed at Merchant. Highlights include recollections of Merchant’s culling together funds for each production, often starting a film before all the money was put together. Or Jhabvala’s brutal judgment: Ivory recalls her dislike of Maurice from pre-production onward, all because the novel wasn’t, in her opinion, up to snuff. Somewhat ironically, Maurice is perhaps the...
- 11/13/2023
- by Dan Mecca
- The Film Stage
The press blurb for “A Cooler Climate,” a 75-minute documentary from veteran director and writer James Ivory, calls it “deeply personal,” but this is a relative term in his case. At 94 years of age, Ivory is an extraordinarily reticent man, and that is partly a result of being born in a certain time and place. There is only so much he can or will reveal about himself before retreating and closing several doors firmly behind him.
The impetus behind “A Cooler Climate” was the chance to showcase color footage that a young Ivory shot in Afghanistan in 1960 with the idea of making a documentary. This was a few years before he made his first narrative feature with his longtime partner and producer Ismail Merchant, with whom he eventually made a series of prestigious literary adaptations in the 1980s and 1990s with screenplays by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala.
Ivory’s literary adaptations...
The impetus behind “A Cooler Climate” was the chance to showcase color footage that a young Ivory shot in Afghanistan in 1960 with the idea of making a documentary. This was a few years before he made his first narrative feature with his longtime partner and producer Ismail Merchant, with whom he eventually made a series of prestigious literary adaptations in the 1980s and 1990s with screenplays by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala.
Ivory’s literary adaptations...
- 10/8/2022
- by Dan Callahan
- The Wrap
Henry James novels have made terrific movies; this precise, strongly-felt adaptation expresses interior feelings that James — the master of ambiguity — may not have intended, yet seem essential to the story. A dynamic young female public speaker transfixes all around her, and is taken in and mentored by an activist for the women’s movement. But will a conventional, confining, repressive romance undo a perfect political relationship? The Merchant-Ivory-Jhabvala combination does a powerful book full justice; Vanessa Redgrave got the awards attention but it’s also one of the best films by Christopher Reeve.
The Bostonians
Blu-ray
Cohen Film Collection
1984 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 122 min. / Street Date May 21, 2019 / 30.98
Starring: Christopher Reeve, Vanessa Redgrave, Jessica Tandy, Madeleine Potter, Nancy Marchand, Wesley Addy, Barbara Bryne, Linda Hunt, Charles McCaughan, Nancy New, Jon Van Ness, Wallace Shawn, Peter Bogyo.
Cinematography: Walter Lassally
Film Editor: Mrk Potter Jr., Katherine Wenning
Original Music: Richard Robbins
Written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala,...
The Bostonians
Blu-ray
Cohen Film Collection
1984 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 122 min. / Street Date May 21, 2019 / 30.98
Starring: Christopher Reeve, Vanessa Redgrave, Jessica Tandy, Madeleine Potter, Nancy Marchand, Wesley Addy, Barbara Bryne, Linda Hunt, Charles McCaughan, Nancy New, Jon Van Ness, Wallace Shawn, Peter Bogyo.
Cinematography: Walter Lassally
Film Editor: Mrk Potter Jr., Katherine Wenning
Original Music: Richard Robbins
Written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala,...
- 6/11/2019
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Ready for something actually relaxing? Perhaps the Merchant Ivory team's most gentle and pleasant film, this comedy of English manners at home in Surrey and abroad in Italy is a visual and dramatic delight. Society more or less prevents Helena Bonham Carter's opinionated young woman from experiencing the full glory of Florence, but a frowned-on romance blooms anyway. Everybody likes this picture. A Room With a View Blu-ray The Criterion Collection 775 1988 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 117 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date September 29, 2015 / 39.95 Starring Maggie Smith, Helena Bonham Carter, Denholm Elliott, Julian Sands, Simon Callow, Judi Dench, Daniel Day-Lewis, Rosemary Leach, Rupert Graves Cinematography Tony Pierce-Roberts Production Designer Brian Ackland-Snow, Gianni Quaranta Art Direction Elio Altramura, Brian Savegar Film Editor Humphrey Dixon Original Music Richard Robbins Written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala from the novel by E.M. Forster Produced by Ismail Merchant Directed by James Ivory
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson...
- 10/13/2015
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
In 2013, Michael Mendheim tried to bring back one of the most beloved (and wacky) sports titles from the retro era on KickStarter. While the campaign for Mutant Football League ultimately failed, the creators weren't about to give up. Now they've announced the game will be landing on the PS4 and Xbox One, and I got the chance to talk with Michael about the game's return, along with some brand new screenshots from the game. Come inside to check it all out!
The classic 16-bit game is finally making a return! One of my favorite sports titles (pretty impressive considering how much I really don't care for sports games) has always been Mutant League Football, and when the original developer of the game, Michale Mendheim, revealed a reboot of sorts, for the title on Kickstarter, I couldn't back it fast enough. Sadly, the funding never reached it's goal, but gamers shouldn't be disheartened.
The classic 16-bit game is finally making a return! One of my favorite sports titles (pretty impressive considering how much I really don't care for sports games) has always been Mutant League Football, and when the original developer of the game, Michale Mendheim, revealed a reboot of sorts, for the title on Kickstarter, I couldn't back it fast enough. Sadly, the funding never reached it's goal, but gamers shouldn't be disheartened.
- 2/25/2015
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Jordan Maison)
- Cinelinx
Where were Andy Griffith, Larry Hagman and other well-known celebrities in this year's Oscars In Memoriam montage? They were online at Oscar.com.
Every year it's one of the more reliably ridiculous award show controversies: Who didn't make the cut for In Memoriam?
When it comes to the Oscars, these "snubs" are particularly sensitive given the prestige and viewership of the show, and the fact that the montage inevitably leaves out names and faces of recognizable stars -- usually those known far more for their work in television than their work in film, which is the medium that the Academy Awards actually celebrate.
However, the Academy is hip to the annual controversy and this year produced a supplemental slideshow on their website featuring 114 names and photos of entertainers and film craftspeople who passed away in the past year.
Among the late greats included in the slideshow but not on the...
Every year it's one of the more reliably ridiculous award show controversies: Who didn't make the cut for In Memoriam?
When it comes to the Oscars, these "snubs" are particularly sensitive given the prestige and viewership of the show, and the fact that the montage inevitably leaves out names and faces of recognizable stars -- usually those known far more for their work in television than their work in film, which is the medium that the Academy Awards actually celebrate.
However, the Academy is hip to the annual controversy and this year produced a supplemental slideshow on their website featuring 114 names and photos of entertainers and film craftspeople who passed away in the past year.
Among the late greats included in the slideshow but not on the...
- 2/25/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
Even the star power of Henry Winkler, Alicia Silverstone and hunky Cheyenne Jackson wasn't enough to keep The Performers going, and it will close after just 23 previews and seven performances. The reviews I read this week had been pretty savage.
The Hollywood Reporter says that Liz & Dick is pretty awful, but you have to watch, because it sounds so awful it might be wonderful. "It’s an instant classic of unintentional hilarity. Drinking games were made for movies like this. And the best part is that it gets worse as it goes on, so in the right company with the right beverages, Liz & Dick could be unbearably hilarious toward the tail end of the 90-minute running time. By the time Lohan is playing mid-’80s Taylor and it looks like a lost Saturday Night Live skit, your body may be cramped by convulsions."
Between a killer online fundraiser, and a party last weekend,...
The Hollywood Reporter says that Liz & Dick is pretty awful, but you have to watch, because it sounds so awful it might be wonderful. "It’s an instant classic of unintentional hilarity. Drinking games were made for movies like this. And the best part is that it gets worse as it goes on, so in the right company with the right beverages, Liz & Dick could be unbearably hilarious toward the tail end of the 90-minute running time. By the time Lohan is playing mid-’80s Taylor and it looks like a lost Saturday Night Live skit, your body may be cramped by convulsions."
Between a killer online fundraiser, and a party last weekend,...
- 11/18/2012
- by lostinmiami
- The Backlot
Composer who scored nearly every Merchant Ivory film from The Europeans onwards and was an integral part of the brand
The Guinness Book of Records notes that the 44-year collaboration between the Indian producer Ismail Merchant and the American director James Ivory was the longest in the history of cinema. They might equally have added the screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, who joined the duo from the start. And a member of Merchant Ivory Productions for almost as long was the composer Richard Robbins, who has died after suffering from Parkinson's disease, aged 71.
The Ivory-Robbins working partnership, which lasted over three decades, outdid in longevity such celebrated director-composer unions as Federico Fellini-Nino Rota, Michelangelo Antonioni-Giovanni Fusco and Alfred Hitchcock-Bernard Herrmann. Robbins scored nearly every Merchant Ivory production from The Europeans (1979) onwards, and was an integral part of the film company's brand.
The reason for the...
The Guinness Book of Records notes that the 44-year collaboration between the Indian producer Ismail Merchant and the American director James Ivory was the longest in the history of cinema. They might equally have added the screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, who joined the duo from the start. And a member of Merchant Ivory Productions for almost as long was the composer Richard Robbins, who has died after suffering from Parkinson's disease, aged 71.
The Ivory-Robbins working partnership, which lasted over three decades, outdid in longevity such celebrated director-composer unions as Federico Fellini-Nino Rota, Michelangelo Antonioni-Giovanni Fusco and Alfred Hitchcock-Bernard Herrmann. Robbins scored nearly every Merchant Ivory production from The Europeans (1979) onwards, and was an integral part of the film company's brand.
The reason for the...
- 11/13/2012
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
Howards End composer Richard Robbins has died Richard Robbins, two-time Academy Award-nominated composer and frequent James Ivory / Ismail Merchant collaborator, died on Nov. 7 in Rhinebeck, N.Y. Robbins, who was 71, had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease. (Photo: Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson Howards End.) Richard Robbins movies Born on December 4, 1940, in South Weymouth, Massachusetts, and trained for a time in Vienna, Richard Robbins began composing scores for feature films in 1979. After having been introduced to Ivory and Merchant by another of [...]...
- 11/13/2012
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Richard Robbins, a two-time Oscar nominated composer who scored most of Merchant Ivory’s films over a quarter-century, died Nov. 7 of Parkinson’s disease at his home in Rhinebeck, N.Y. He was 71. His compositional style combined lavish orchestrations with synthesized minimalist cues, evoking the dramatic complexity of each film and the psychology of its characters. “I know when that moment arrives that the hard part of writing the score is over because I know how I feel about a character,” he told Chris Terrio in an interview posted on the Merchant Ivory website. “That's a great
read more...
read more...
- 11/12/2012
- by Erik Pedersen
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
CNN has announced that it is starting a new division to make feature-length documentaries for release both theatrically and on television.
The first film off the rank, "Girl Rising," tells the story of several girls fighting tough odds to achieve their dreams. The film will premiere next spring.
Richard Robbins ("Operation Homecoming") directs the project which will feature the voice talents of Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington and Selena Gomez.
The first film off the rank, "Girl Rising," tells the story of several girls fighting tough odds to achieve their dreams. The film will premiere next spring.
Richard Robbins ("Operation Homecoming") directs the project which will feature the voice talents of Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington and Selena Gomez.
- 10/8/2012
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
New York -- CNN says it is starting a new unit to make feature-length documentaries to show both on television and in movies theaters.
Its first project, "Girl Rising," tells the story of several girls fighting tough odds to achieve their dreams. It features voiceovers by Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington and Selena Gomez. Richard Robbins, who made the wartime documentary "Operation Homecoming," will direct it.
CNN said Monday that "Girl Rising" will premiere next spring.
The network, which is searching for ideas to turn around flagging ratings, said the films will air several times on CNN and be accompanied by on-air discussions.
Its first project, "Girl Rising," tells the story of several girls fighting tough odds to achieve their dreams. It features voiceovers by Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington and Selena Gomez. Richard Robbins, who made the wartime documentary "Operation Homecoming," will direct it.
CNN said Monday that "Girl Rising" will premiere next spring.
The network, which is searching for ideas to turn around flagging ratings, said the films will air several times on CNN and be accompanied by on-air discussions.
- 10/8/2012
- by AP
- Huffington Post
This one is coming up late, due to Criterion jam packing a ton of releases on Friday, right while I was finishing up the original post. I think they wanted to mess with me, which is very funny. But being the premier (and only) site that gives you the best coverage of Hulu Plus movies, I don’t mind taking the time at all. I’m hoping it has nothing to do with the recent shake-up going on that Josh just reported on the other day (here), and with Hulu wanting to be bought because of financial problems stemming from multiple sources, this makes one wonder what’s going to happen to the Criterion Collection and their deal with Hulu. I’m crossing my fingers that whoever buys the service, be it Amazon, Google or Yahoo (who is the frontrunner), it doesn’t ruin the deal in place for Criterion and its films.
- 6/26/2011
- by James McCormick
- CriterionCast
Sir Anthony Hopkins needs no introduction as an actor. Even if he seems to be recycling the same performance lately, he stands as a giant among his peers, Richard Burton incarnate with less late career turkeys (so far). Lesser known is that he has also been dabbling in music, playing piano and composing. Thus far he's composed three scores, all for films he also directed.
Hopkins will be presenting these compositions at concerts for the first time this summer in the UK, THR reports. The music will be performed by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and will include compositions Hopkins wrote for the films "August" and "Slipstream."
Hopkins' most recent foray into music for film was a piece he wrote and performed called "Venetian Medley" for 2010's "The City of Your Final Destination," which had a marvelous score by guitarist/composer Jorge Drexler.
The Birmingham orchestra, lead by conductor by Michael Seal,...
Hopkins will be presenting these compositions at concerts for the first time this summer in the UK, THR reports. The music will be performed by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and will include compositions Hopkins wrote for the films "August" and "Slipstream."
Hopkins' most recent foray into music for film was a piece he wrote and performed called "Venetian Medley" for 2010's "The City of Your Final Destination," which had a marvelous score by guitarist/composer Jorge Drexler.
The Birmingham orchestra, lead by conductor by Michael Seal,...
- 2/25/2011
- by Brandon Kim
- ifc.com
My experience with Merchant/Ivory Productions is limited to say the least as Howards End now marks the second film of theirs I have seen, with A Room With a View being the other. While elegantly made, A Room With a View didn't move me that much, but I can say Howards End did a lot to squelch my fears it too would bore me more than engage me. Criterion brings Howards End to Blu-ray following their previous two-disc DVD release back in 2005, and while the only new feature is a video appreciation of the late producer Ismail Merchant by director James Ivory, this is a film ripe for high definition.
Based on the novel by E.M. Forster, Howards End takes a look at class divisions in Edwardian England and the inheritance of England by the working/lower class. The film centers on the well-to-do Wilcox family and the relationship...
Based on the novel by E.M. Forster, Howards End takes a look at class divisions in Edwardian England and the inheritance of England by the working/lower class. The film centers on the well-to-do Wilcox family and the relationship...
- 11/3/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
- After Riding with Giants and Dog Town and Z-Boys, Sony Pictures Classics returns to the extreme sports docu genre of film picking up the rights to the doc that slid into the Tribeca film fest back in April. Variety reports that Mark Obenhaus' docu on extreme skiiing was picked up and will play for audiences come holiday time. Produced by High Ground Prods. in association with the Documentary Group, a nonfiction shingle run by Peter Jennings' widow, Kayce Jennings, and award-winning news producers Yellin and Richard Robbins. Steep is a feature documentary about bold adventure, exquisite athleticism and the pursuit of a perfect moment on skis. It is the story of big mountain skiing, a sport that barely existed 35 years ago.It started in the 1970s in the mountains above Chamonix, France, where skiers began to attempt ski descents so extreme that they appeared almost suicidal. Men
- 6/29/2007
- IONCINEMA.com
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