Two years after he leapt to the forefront of the New Hollywood with The Godfather, and just months before he picked up the threads of that operatic crime saga with the magnificent sequel/prequel The Godfather Part II, Francis Ford Coppola released a quiet movie, one in which sound itself — and, more specifically, its surreptitious recording — is the narrative engine. Arriving during a particularly fertile era for American film, The Conversation was not a hit, but it is one of the period’s most subtle and shattering features. Half a century later, it resounds as hauntingly as ever, not merely as a cautionary tale but as a searing portrait of where we are now.
The movie took its New York bow on Coppola’s 35th birthday, April 7, 1974, a few weeks before its Palme d’Or triumph in Cannes. Today the octogenarian writer-director is again preparing to compete on the Croisette,...
The movie took its New York bow on Coppola’s 35th birthday, April 7, 1974, a few weeks before its Palme d’Or triumph in Cannes. Today the octogenarian writer-director is again preparing to compete on the Croisette,...
- 4/17/2024
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Spoiler Alert: The following essay discusses key plot points, including the ending.
Last weekend, I took in “Le Samouraï” for what must have been the sixth or seventh time, relishing the new 4K restoration of Jean-Pierre Melville’s masterpiece (now playing at Laemmle theaters in Los Angeles). As I exited the screening, I discreetly eavesdropped on my fellow audience members. Most seemed impressed. A few were still processing what they’d seen: an existential study of a lone killer, told with radically little dialogue. “That wasn’t at all what I expected,” one woman told her friend. “I thought we were going to see some kind of samurai movie.”
It’s a reasonable assumption, given the film’s title, although the 1967 crime classic takes place half a world away, in Paris, almost exactly a century after Japan’s samurai era came to an end. I first saw “Le Samouraï” in the late ’90s,...
Last weekend, I took in “Le Samouraï” for what must have been the sixth or seventh time, relishing the new 4K restoration of Jean-Pierre Melville’s masterpiece (now playing at Laemmle theaters in Los Angeles). As I exited the screening, I discreetly eavesdropped on my fellow audience members. Most seemed impressed. A few were still processing what they’d seen: an existential study of a lone killer, told with radically little dialogue. “That wasn’t at all what I expected,” one woman told her friend. “I thought we were going to see some kind of samurai movie.”
It’s a reasonable assumption, given the film’s title, although the 1967 crime classic takes place half a world away, in Paris, almost exactly a century after Japan’s samurai era came to an end. I first saw “Le Samouraï” in the late ’90s,...
- 4/9/2024
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
While it was fascinating to see the results of the 2022 Sight & Sound poll, we’re just as curious to see what lies outside the established canon. As part of a comprehensive project at the essential resource They Shoot Pictures, Don’t They?, Ángel González polled nearly 839 critics on the best films that didn’t receive a single vote on the Sight & Sound poll, which they’ve now compiled into a massive Beyond the Sight & Sound Canon, which initially features 1,030 films but expands to a whopping 14,558 total films.
As a preview, we’ve collected the films that received at least 20 votes in this new poll, which is 263. It’s led by Spike Jonze’s Her, and they’ve also noted the directors that were most represented. Fritz Lang leads the pack with eight films mentioned, while François Truffaut has seven, and Anthony Mann, Clint Eastwood, Eric Rohmer, John Ford, Samuel Fuller,...
As a preview, we’ve collected the films that received at least 20 votes in this new poll, which is 263. It’s led by Spike Jonze’s Her, and they’ve also noted the directors that were most represented. Fritz Lang leads the pack with eight films mentioned, while François Truffaut has seven, and Anthony Mann, Clint Eastwood, Eric Rohmer, John Ford, Samuel Fuller,...
- 4/8/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
With “Dune: Part Two” (Warner Bros.), March came in like a lion. With “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” (also Warner Bros.), March is going out, well, as a lion. Leave the lamb for Easter dinner.
With an estimated $80 million (actual totals may be higher), Legendary Entertainment’s second big franchise sequel this month falls just shy of the $82 million debut for “Dune 2.” Warner Bros. now looks near certain to have three $200 million and over films since December — the only distributor to achieve that since July.
This could be the best weekend of the year so far, with a tentative estimate of $136.4 million. That includes four films over $10 million, the first time that’s happened this year. All told, this boosted the 2024 year to date; we’re now down by only six percent.
With “Godzilla x Kong,” “Dune: Part Two,” “Kung Fu Panda 4” (Universal) and “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” (Sony) all opening over $40 million,...
With an estimated $80 million (actual totals may be higher), Legendary Entertainment’s second big franchise sequel this month falls just shy of the $82 million debut for “Dune 2.” Warner Bros. now looks near certain to have three $200 million and over films since December — the only distributor to achieve that since July.
This could be the best weekend of the year so far, with a tentative estimate of $136.4 million. That includes four films over $10 million, the first time that’s happened this year. All told, this boosted the 2024 year to date; we’re now down by only six percent.
With “Godzilla x Kong,” “Dune: Part Two,” “Kung Fu Panda 4” (Universal) and “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” (Sony) all opening over $40 million,...
- 3/31/2024
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. To keep up with our latest features, sign up for the Weekly Edit newsletter and follow us @mubinotebook.NEWSNostalgia.Industry experts warn that digital cinema files are not being properly maintained (“You have an entire era of cinema that’s in severe danger of being lost”), emphasizing the importance of amateur preservation efforts like Rarefilmm, recently profiled on Notebook.After a caucus week of intra-union meetings, negotiations between IATSE and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers continued, with their current contract set to expire on July 31. This week’s discussions focused on specific proposals from each of the 13 West Coast locals, starting with the International Cinematographers Guild, Local 600.Vision du Réel has announced the full program for its 55th edition, running April 12 to 21 in Nyon, Switzerland. The competition slate includes mostly first features.In PRODUCTIONLittle Shop of Horrors.
- 3/20/2024
- MUBI
Alain Delon Has a Job to Execute in Trailer for 4K Restoration of Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï
Whatever the idea of “canonized” suggests, few films of such order are quite so well-liked and perpetually referenced (or just ripped-off) as Le Samouraï, leaving me somewhat surprised we haven’t yet had a 4K treatment in the United States. But it was just a matter of time, and Jean-Pierre Melville’s ice-cold thriller now receives its due: Criterion and Pathé returned to the original 35mm negative for a restoration Film Forum debuts in a two-week run starting March 29.
Ahead of this comes a trailer that, even accounting for streaming compression, suggests the spectacular––Melville’s cool palette luminous as ever, the mono sound punchier than Criterion’s old DVD.
Find the new preview and poster below:
Professional hitman Delon lies fully-clothed in his threadbare monochrome apartment, then goes off to a day at the office: stealing a car, killing a man in a nightclub, setting up an ironclad alibi,...
Ahead of this comes a trailer that, even accounting for streaming compression, suggests the spectacular––Melville’s cool palette luminous as ever, the mono sound punchier than Criterion’s old DVD.
Find the new preview and poster below:
Professional hitman Delon lies fully-clothed in his threadbare monochrome apartment, then goes off to a day at the office: stealing a car, killing a man in a nightclub, setting up an ironclad alibi,...
- 3/13/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
"What kind of man is he?" Janus Films has revealed a brand new trailer for the 4K restoration re-release of an all-timer hitman classic called Le Samouraï. This French noir thriller first opened in France in 1967, only showing up in the US in 1972. It is widely considered one of the best assassin films ever made, and is often referenced by many great filmmakers in terms of style and minimalism. After professional hitman Jef Costello is seen by witnesses, his efforts to provide himself an alibi drive him further into a corner. Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samouraï stars French legend Alain Delon as Costello, a contract killer with samurai instincts. The cast also includes François Périer, Nathalie Delon, and Caty Rosier. Roger Ebert wrote a 4 star review in 1997, stating: "The movie teaches us how action is the enemy of suspense--how action releases tension, instead of building it. Better to wait for...
- 3/13/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Michael Keaton’s Knox Goes Away begins with hired killer John “Aristotle” Knox (Keaton) in his car, cruising through the night to the sound of a mournful saxophone. It seems like we’re gearing up for one of those long, dark nights of the soul that neo-noir thrillers thrive on, but the film proves unwilling to really drive forward into the darkness. In the end, it’s a tale of male alienation that’s a little too afraid of alienating its audience.
Knox lives alone, only interacting with other members of his morbid industry and Annie (Joanna Kulig), the Polish sex worker who comes to visit him once a week. He carries out each of his jobs with cold precision, before then stashing the money he earns with the utmost care. It’s the perfect role for Keaton, given his unique intermingling of intensity and offbeat charm, and he benefits...
Knox lives alone, only interacting with other members of his morbid industry and Annie (Joanna Kulig), the Polish sex worker who comes to visit him once a week. He carries out each of his jobs with cold precision, before then stashing the money he earns with the utmost care. It’s the perfect role for Keaton, given his unique intermingling of intensity and offbeat charm, and he benefits...
- 3/11/2024
- by Ross McIndoe
- Slant Magazine
French mini-major Pathé has acquired Les Films des Tournelles, the production company founded by Anne-Dominique Toussaint whose recent credits include Louis Garrel’s Cesar-winning “The Innocent.”
Besides Garrel, Les Films des Tournelles has worked with a flurry of auteurs on some of their most successful films, including Riad Sattouf’s “The French Kissers,” which won the Cesar for best first film in 2010; Nadine Labaki’s “Caramel”; Emanuele Crialese’s “Respiro”; Valeria Golino’s “Miele”; and Mona Achache’s “The Hedgehog.” “The Innocent” won two prizes at last year’s Cesar Awards and screened at Cannes on the 75th anniversary of the festival.
Toussaint has also worked with Philippe Le Guay and Emmanuel Carrère. Toussaint, whose career spans over three decades, has produced 27 films so far, including iconic French movies such as Martine Dugowson’s “Mina Tannenbaum.”
As part of the deal, Pathé is acquiring Films des Tournelles’ full library while...
Besides Garrel, Les Films des Tournelles has worked with a flurry of auteurs on some of their most successful films, including Riad Sattouf’s “The French Kissers,” which won the Cesar for best first film in 2010; Nadine Labaki’s “Caramel”; Emanuele Crialese’s “Respiro”; Valeria Golino’s “Miele”; and Mona Achache’s “The Hedgehog.” “The Innocent” won two prizes at last year’s Cesar Awards and screened at Cannes on the 75th anniversary of the festival.
Toussaint has also worked with Philippe Le Guay and Emmanuel Carrère. Toussaint, whose career spans over three decades, has produced 27 films so far, including iconic French movies such as Martine Dugowson’s “Mina Tannenbaum.”
As part of the deal, Pathé is acquiring Films des Tournelles’ full library while...
- 1/25/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
With a title that invokes both the specific (cinema of Godard) and the universal (cinema is Godard), Cyril Leuthy’s Godard Cinema finds itself in conversation with another formulation: Everything is Cinema. Richard Brody’s 2008 study of the filmmaker, is beautifully sentenced, dare-ing criticism; one wonders, sometimes, if his honest contrarianism is the result of a theoretical attempt to widen the possibilities for transmission and reception of image and narrative. Such an attempt finds a natural bedfellow in the mercurial cinema of Jean-Luc Godard. Leuthy’s hagiographic documentary, on the other hand, is an awkward fit for Godard’s polyrhythmic image collisions.
That Brody will be on hand to introduce Leuthy’s film to kick off its New York run at Film Forum speaks, perhaps, to the heart and head-felt intentions of Leuthy, a documentary filmmaker who’s worked as a director and editor of several film histories, including a...
That Brody will be on hand to introduce Leuthy’s film to kick off its New York run at Film Forum speaks, perhaps, to the heart and head-felt intentions of Leuthy, a documentary filmmaker who’s worked as a director and editor of several film histories, including a...
- 12/15/2023
- by Frank Falisi
- The Film Stage
Let's be blunt: The current state of action cinema worldwide would not be what it is today without the work of director John Woo. While Woo is hardly the only influential filmmaker when it comes to action movies, he's undeniably one of the biggest figures in shaping the genre. Like any great auteur, Woo's style was developed film by film, working his way through his kung-fu features at Golden Harvest in Hong Kong and adding in more experimental techniques (gleaned from the likes of prior filmmakers such as Sam Peckinpah) until he ended up at his signature magnum opus, 1986's "A Better Tomorrow" and its style, which was dubbed "heroic bloodshed."
Over the next several years in Hong Kong and then through to his transition into Hollywood, Woo expanded his "heroic bloodshed" style, peppering in other influences along the way from some of his other favorite filmmakers like Jean-Pierre Melville and Alfred Hitchcock.
Over the next several years in Hong Kong and then through to his transition into Hollywood, Woo expanded his "heroic bloodshed" style, peppering in other influences along the way from some of his other favorite filmmakers like Jean-Pierre Melville and Alfred Hitchcock.
- 12/2/2023
- by Bill Bria
- Slash Film
From The Killer’s church shootout to Mission: Impossible 2’s motorcycle chase, John Woo’s over-the-top action style has been the stuff of legend for many decades, but now, at 77, the Hong Kong filmmaker has changed up his approach, beginning with the virtually dialogue-free revenge thriller Silent Night.
The Joel Kinnaman-led actioner is Woo’s first American film in two decades, an absence he chalks up to no longer being sent quality scripts. On its surface, Silent Night is a classic tale of vengeance, as Kinnaman’s Brian Godlock stops at nothing to avenge the gang-related death of his 7-year-old son. The quest is made all the more intriguing by Godlock’s inability to speak, having suffered a life-altering injury during his failed attempt to go after the offending gang in the immediate aftermath of his son’s death.
Silent Night moviegoers are undoubtedly going to enjoy plenty of Woo-directed mayhem,...
The Joel Kinnaman-led actioner is Woo’s first American film in two decades, an absence he chalks up to no longer being sent quality scripts. On its surface, Silent Night is a classic tale of vengeance, as Kinnaman’s Brian Godlock stops at nothing to avenge the gang-related death of his 7-year-old son. The quest is made all the more intriguing by Godlock’s inability to speak, having suffered a life-altering injury during his failed attempt to go after the offending gang in the immediate aftermath of his son’s death.
Silent Night moviegoers are undoubtedly going to enjoy plenty of Woo-directed mayhem,...
- 12/1/2023
- by Brian Davids
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
If John Woo had permitted the characters in “Silent Night” to speak, chances are that audiences would laugh them off the screen. Instead, the director gets right down to business, opening with a wordless chase sequence in which a sad dad (Joel Kinnaman) in a corny Christmas sweater sprints after a pair of speeding cars. Inside the vehicles, bad men blast machine guns, while our nameless hero is armed with … just his wits and the jingle bell around his neck.
By the time this guy — identified as Brian Godlock in the end credits — catches up to the gang members who murdered his son, “Silent Night” has already demonstrated that Woo has no intention of letting logic get in his way. And why should we expect any different from the director of “Face/Off,” whose title-says-it-all gimmick had two rivals swapping identities via plastic surgery? The movie dedicates a lot of time...
By the time this guy — identified as Brian Godlock in the end credits — catches up to the gang members who murdered his son, “Silent Night” has already demonstrated that Woo has no intention of letting logic get in his way. And why should we expect any different from the director of “Face/Off,” whose title-says-it-all gimmick had two rivals swapping identities via plastic surgery? The movie dedicates a lot of time...
- 11/27/2023
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
Paul Vecchiali’s moody, labyrinthine The Strangler suggests the visual style of Jacques Demy’s Model Shop coupled with the psychosexual fervor of Michael Powell’s Peeping Tom. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say that it’s a queer version of Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï by way of the story machinations of Claude Chabrol’s The Champagne Murders. Either way, it’s clear that Vecchiali’s interests are cinephilic in nature, and that this 1970 psychological thriller was his self-conscious attempt during the waning years of the Nouvelle Vague to take the movement’s genre-defying sensibilities in a new direction.
Throughout, Vecchiali is concerned less with plot than with mood and setting, which he largely establishes by showing people moving around colorful apartments and through the bustling streets of Paris. Take Anna (Eva Simonet), who rushes to a television station fearing for her safety after Simon (Julien Guiomar...
Throughout, Vecchiali is concerned less with plot than with mood and setting, which he largely establishes by showing people moving around colorful apartments and through the bustling streets of Paris. Take Anna (Eva Simonet), who rushes to a television station fearing for her safety after Simon (Julien Guiomar...
- 11/13/2023
- by Clayton Dillard
- Slant Magazine
The stylish killer has long been a staple in crime films, and not just in Hollywood movies like “Collateral” and “Pulp Fiction.” The tradition spans the globe, from England (“Get Carter”) to Hong Kong (John Woo’s “The Killer“) and France (the revisionist noir films of Jean-Pierre Melville and Jean-Luc Godard). Yet for the new Netflix movie “The Killer” (no relation to the Woo film), director David Fincher wanted something different: a killer (Michael Fassbender) whose style was so nonexistent that he could just blend into the background of any city.
“In our initial conversations, David said that he didn’t want Fassbender to look cool, he wanted him to look dorky,” costume designer Cate Adams told IndieWire. “When he’s in Paris, we wanted him to look like a German tourist no one would want to go near.” That idea came from the guiding principle for the killer: Every...
“In our initial conversations, David said that he didn’t want Fassbender to look cool, he wanted him to look dorky,” costume designer Cate Adams told IndieWire. “When he’s in Paris, we wanted him to look like a German tourist no one would want to go near.” That idea came from the guiding principle for the killer: Every...
- 11/10/2023
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
This article contains major spoilers for "The Killer."How often do you think about your job? In terms of your daily duties, upcoming deadlines on your calendar, and other day-to-day issues, probably a fair amount. Yet how often do you consider your job — not just as a checklist but as a vocation — as something you're putting out into the world, as something that defines who you are as a person?
As the imaginary demon of toxic masculinity, Tyler Durden, famously says in David Fincher's "Fight Club," "You are not your job." Of course, Tyler is not to be trusted, and "Fight Club," like a majority of Fincher's filmography, is a pitch-black satire. What if you are your job, and what if your contribution to the world is both minimal and actively negative? What if your job, and all jobs, were this destructively banal, and everyone from sanitation staff...
As the imaginary demon of toxic masculinity, Tyler Durden, famously says in David Fincher's "Fight Club," "You are not your job." Of course, Tyler is not to be trusted, and "Fight Club," like a majority of Fincher's filmography, is a pitch-black satire. What if you are your job, and what if your contribution to the world is both minimal and actively negative? What if your job, and all jobs, were this destructively banal, and everyone from sanitation staff...
- 11/10/2023
- by Bill Bria
- Slash Film
Jean-Pierre Melville in Breathless.The artist’s interview at its best—at its most entertaining and challenging—is a space for self-mythologization. Interviews can give the illusion of intimacy and deepen our understanding of the subject’s work and perspectives, but the exaggerations, contradictions, and omissions that a complex public image affords can frustrate that understanding, add mystique, and set in motion a perhaps knowingly futile pursuit of the artist's "real self." A good interview provides us with more questions than answers. All interviews involve the subject’s negotiation between what to reveal and what to conceal; the result could be called their persona. And if they so desire, everything is costume: the way the artist moves, talks, dresses, holds a cigarette, reacts to the interviewer or audience. Consider Andy Warhol’s masterful inarticulacy from behind his matte, pale mask, dodging the press’s intrusive questions; the way Prince sets...
- 10/19/2023
- MUBI
- 10/3/2023
- by Matt Schimkowitz
- avclub.com
In principle, using the rainy-day, kitchen-sink post-rock of Manchester band The Smiths so prominently in a film like The Killer seems incredibly perverse, given that it’s an exotic, globe-trotting thriller about an American assassin. But in reality, it’s actually a very sound choice indeed: legend has it that the band’s singer, Morrissey, had two reasons for naming his band so, the first being that “Smith” is one of the most common and thus unremarkable surnames in the world. The second, and much more subversive theory, suggests that it’s also a reference to David and Maureen Smith, brother-in-law and sister of ’60s serial killer Myra Hindley, the snappily dressed couple whose testimony blew open the Moors Murderers case and whose beatnik likenesses adorn the cover of Sonic Youth’s 1990 album “Goo”.
There’s a slight chance David Fincher and his creative team may not know these things,...
There’s a slight chance David Fincher and his creative team may not know these things,...
- 9/3/2023
- by Damon Wise
- Deadline Film + TV
Editor’s note: This review was originally published at the 2023 Venice Film Festival. Netflix releases the film in limited theaters on Friday, October 27, with a streaming release to follow on Friday, November 10.
Like the “Jeanne Dielman” of assassin movies, “The Killer” centers on how the self-started glitches in one character’s routine cause their carefully ordered world to fall slowly off its axis. David Fincher’s sleek if small genre exercise plants us into the orbital sockets of an unnamed killer-for-hire, played by Michael Fassbender, whose self-deceptions catch up to him amid a contract job gone just about an inch wrong in Paris.
There are few surprises in this straight-line thriller, well-executed within a millimeter of its life as ever by the “Gone Girl” and “Social Network” director. Here, the perfectionist, you-might-say-control-freak director punches up a nimbly sketched screenplay by “Seven” scribe Andrew Kevin Walker that evokes no sympathy for its protagonist,...
Like the “Jeanne Dielman” of assassin movies, “The Killer” centers on how the self-started glitches in one character’s routine cause their carefully ordered world to fall slowly off its axis. David Fincher’s sleek if small genre exercise plants us into the orbital sockets of an unnamed killer-for-hire, played by Michael Fassbender, whose self-deceptions catch up to him amid a contract job gone just about an inch wrong in Paris.
There are few surprises in this straight-line thriller, well-executed within a millimeter of its life as ever by the “Gone Girl” and “Social Network” director. Here, the perfectionist, you-might-say-control-freak director punches up a nimbly sketched screenplay by “Seven” scribe Andrew Kevin Walker that evokes no sympathy for its protagonist,...
- 9/3/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
I have seen the future of cinema, and it is “Aggro Dr1ft,” a neon-hued outlaw eyegasm from the director of ”Spring Breakers.” There will likely never be another film like it. Even so, it’s clear that Harmony Korine’s immersive iridescent plunge into the world and psyche of a serial killer points the way down fresh avenues for the medium to explore.
This is the first movie I’ve seen that doesn’t feel like it was meant to be watched; instead, it was designed to wash over you — or maybe just to unspool on one of the many screens illuminated in your field of vision, while your focus ricochets between it and whatever else is competing for your attention. As Brian De Palma’s “Scarface” became a touchstone cultural reference for the immigrant and hip-hop communities, so too could “Aggro Dr1ft” connect with audiences who see themselves (or...
This is the first movie I’ve seen that doesn’t feel like it was meant to be watched; instead, it was designed to wash over you — or maybe just to unspool on one of the many screens illuminated in your field of vision, while your focus ricochets between it and whatever else is competing for your attention. As Brian De Palma’s “Scarface” became a touchstone cultural reference for the immigrant and hip-hop communities, so too could “Aggro Dr1ft” connect with audiences who see themselves (or...
- 9/2/2023
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
Rome, Smoking City: Sollima Languorous Thriller Tiresomely Tests Narrative Cliches
The most apropos element of Stefano Sollima’s Adagio is the title itself, as it’s two-hour-plus running time certainly glides slowly over its intersecting elements in Rome’s underbelly of crooked cops and aging gangsters, desperately converging as wildfires ravage the metropolis. While pacing in a crime thriller doesn’t necessitate high octane frequency, it can be a burden when the narrative is structured on nonsensical motivations and poor character development. Sollima, who is returning to Italy after the meaty sequel Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018) and the clunky Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse (2021), snags two of his country’s most prolific contemporary players for his latest, Pierfrancisco Favino and Toni Servillo, both of whom feel underutilized as plot devices in this toothless thriller.…...
The most apropos element of Stefano Sollima’s Adagio is the title itself, as it’s two-hour-plus running time certainly glides slowly over its intersecting elements in Rome’s underbelly of crooked cops and aging gangsters, desperately converging as wildfires ravage the metropolis. While pacing in a crime thriller doesn’t necessitate high octane frequency, it can be a burden when the narrative is structured on nonsensical motivations and poor character development. Sollima, who is returning to Italy after the meaty sequel Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018) and the clunky Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse (2021), snags two of his country’s most prolific contemporary players for his latest, Pierfrancisco Favino and Toni Servillo, both of whom feel underutilized as plot devices in this toothless thriller.…...
- 9/2/2023
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Weeks ago, John Woo posted on social media that he was recently in Paris for the production of the English-language remake of his classic Hong Kong action film, The Killer, which starred his Scorsese’s “De Niro,” Chow Yun-Fat. The remake of the same name is set to star Nathalie Emmanuel and Omar Sy. There is no word yet on how much the remake will stay close to the original’s plot. There are also minimal details on the project outside of Woo, the two leads, and the location. However, it is said to be planned for an exclusive release for the streaming service Peacock.
Producer Charles Roven, who is a frequent collaborator with Christopher Nolan, and is currently enjoying the success of their latest outing, Oppenheimer, recently spoke with The Hollywood Reporter on a bevy of topics involving his projects and Roven relinquished some details on the John Woo remake.
Producer Charles Roven, who is a frequent collaborator with Christopher Nolan, and is currently enjoying the success of their latest outing, Oppenheimer, recently spoke with The Hollywood Reporter on a bevy of topics involving his projects and Roven relinquished some details on the John Woo remake.
- 8/10/2023
- by EJ Tangonan
- JoBlo.com
It’s not surprising that Breathless remains fresh more than 60 years after its Paris premiere in March 1960—if by “fresh” we mean somehow still in sync with contemporary cultural trends and mores. With its too-cool-for-school bevy of film and literary references, Jean-Luc Godard’s masterpiece both foresaw and helped to launch the now-dominant notion of pop-culture obsession as badge of honor.
We may smile at Michel Poiccard’s (Jean-Paul Belmondo) rapt idolization of Humphrey Bogart, for instance, but it’s more knowing grin than disconnected smirk. Then there’s the ooh-la-la chic of Raoul Cotard’s black-and-white cinematography; the simmering yet self-aware dance of seduction enacted with such arch grace by Michel and Jean Seberg’s Patricia Franchini; the casual fatalism that never seems to go out of style, especially when spoken in French and accompanied by swirls of cigarette smoke. As a source of modish pleasure, Breathless retains its appeal to a remarkable degree.
We may smile at Michel Poiccard’s (Jean-Paul Belmondo) rapt idolization of Humphrey Bogart, for instance, but it’s more knowing grin than disconnected smirk. Then there’s the ooh-la-la chic of Raoul Cotard’s black-and-white cinematography; the simmering yet self-aware dance of seduction enacted with such arch grace by Michel and Jean Seberg’s Patricia Franchini; the casual fatalism that never seems to go out of style, especially when spoken in French and accompanied by swirls of cigarette smoke. As a source of modish pleasure, Breathless retains its appeal to a remarkable degree.
- 7/12/2023
- by Matthew Connolly
- Slant Magazine
The first film in Fernando Di Leo’s so-called Milieu trilogy, Caliber 9 explores the criminal underbelly of Milan, a city more typically associated with the modish institutions of high finance and haute couture. The film’s full Italian title, Milan Caliber 9, emphasizes the centrality of location, while also referring to a collection of stories by crime writer Giorgio Scerbanenco, several of which Di Leo loosely adapted for the film. Generically, Caliber 9 is a fascinating mashup of the gritty poliziotteschi genre and stylish neo-noirs in the vein of Jean-Pierre Melville. Its tight-lipped protagonist certainly seems patterned after Alain Delon’s buttoned-down hitman in Le Samouraï, right down to the brown trench coat.
Di Leo’s film opens with a brilliantly executed pre-credits sequence that details a laundered currency handoff gone wrong, as well as the mob’s violent reprisals, along the way providing a handy cross-section of Milan’s criminal demimonde,...
Di Leo’s film opens with a brilliantly executed pre-credits sequence that details a laundered currency handoff gone wrong, as well as the mob’s violent reprisals, along the way providing a handy cross-section of Milan’s criminal demimonde,...
- 6/14/2023
- by Budd Wilkins
- Slant Magazine
Humor, it seems, has returned to the Main Competition at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. After a few days of mostly serious dramas about Nazis and terrorists and sweatshops, a lighter touch has emerged from a couple of expected sources: first Todd Haynes, a filmmaker with a great range but also a real touch for pulpy material that he shows in “May December,” and now Aki Kaurismäki, the Finnish master of comedy so deadpan that it can take an audience half the movie to figure out that it’s Ok to laugh.
They figured it out when Kaurismaki’s “Fallen Leaves” premiered in Cannes on Monday. With a brisk one-hour-and-21-minute running time, the film is a wry delight whose very restraint is part of the joke. Jonathan Glazer’s Cannes standout “The Zone of Interest” might be a movie without a single closeup, but “Fallen Leaves” is pretty much a...
They figured it out when Kaurismaki’s “Fallen Leaves” premiered in Cannes on Monday. With a brisk one-hour-and-21-minute running time, the film is a wry delight whose very restraint is part of the joke. Jonathan Glazer’s Cannes standout “The Zone of Interest” might be a movie without a single closeup, but “Fallen Leaves” is pretty much a...
- 5/22/2023
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Indian auteur Anurag Kashyap is back in Cannes with thriller “Kennedy,” starring Rahul Bhat in the title role.
The film, which also stars Sunny Leone, will play in the Midnight Screenings strand of the festival. Several films directed by Kashyap have played at Cannes, including “Psycho Raman” (2016), “Ugly” (2013), “Bombay Talkies” (2013) and “Gangs of Wasseypur” (2012). In addition, several films produced by him have made it to the Croisette, including “Masaan” (2015), “The Lunchbox” (2013), “Monsoon Shootout” (2013), “The Congress” (2013) and “Udaan” (2010).
The plot of “Kennedy” is being kept under wraps at the moment. “Kennedy is a ghost in the system looking for redemption,” is how Kashyap describes the film to Variety.
The filmmaker says that the character of Kennedy has been an obsession with him for years and was born when fellow Indian filmmaker Sudhir Mishra hired him to write a cop story set in the 1980s. That film never got made but the character stayed with Kashyap.
The film, which also stars Sunny Leone, will play in the Midnight Screenings strand of the festival. Several films directed by Kashyap have played at Cannes, including “Psycho Raman” (2016), “Ugly” (2013), “Bombay Talkies” (2013) and “Gangs of Wasseypur” (2012). In addition, several films produced by him have made it to the Croisette, including “Masaan” (2015), “The Lunchbox” (2013), “Monsoon Shootout” (2013), “The Congress” (2013) and “Udaan” (2010).
The plot of “Kennedy” is being kept under wraps at the moment. “Kennedy is a ghost in the system looking for redemption,” is how Kashyap describes the film to Variety.
The filmmaker says that the character of Kennedy has been an obsession with him for years and was born when fellow Indian filmmaker Sudhir Mishra hired him to write a cop story set in the 1980s. That film never got made but the character stayed with Kashyap.
- 4/24/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
French actor Alain Delon has been a revolutionary presence in the film industry for decades.
From his early work in the ‘60s to more recent films like The Professional, Alain Delon has challenged ideas about acting and storytelling. He has created a unique style of performance that is both powerful and subtle. He is also credited with popularizing the ‘anti-hero’ type of character – a morally ambiguous figure who often exists outside traditional violence or justice systems.
Delon’s influence on filmmaking has been immense, but it’s not just about his individual performances: his work was also driven by philosophy and activism. Throughout his career, he became an outspoken advocate for gay rights and gender equality – two issues that were not widely discussed at the time.
In this article, we’ll explore Delon’s revolutionary impact on cinema and culture, looking at his career highlights, acting styles and philosophies.
Alain...
From his early work in the ‘60s to more recent films like The Professional, Alain Delon has challenged ideas about acting and storytelling. He has created a unique style of performance that is both powerful and subtle. He is also credited with popularizing the ‘anti-hero’ type of character – a morally ambiguous figure who often exists outside traditional violence or justice systems.
Delon’s influence on filmmaking has been immense, but it’s not just about his individual performances: his work was also driven by philosophy and activism. Throughout his career, he became an outspoken advocate for gay rights and gender equality – two issues that were not widely discussed at the time.
In this article, we’ll explore Delon’s revolutionary impact on cinema and culture, looking at his career highlights, acting styles and philosophies.
Alain...
- 4/4/2023
- by Movies Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
Hungry for those wet Parisian streets, the city lights, and cadavres en lambeaux in the pale moonlight? Enter three highly atmospheric, star-studded Crime Noirs, one of which is a stealth classic of Gallic Pulp. Stars Jean Gabin, Jeanne Moreau, Lino Ventura, Marcel Bozzuffi, Gérard Oury, Sandra Milo, and Annie Girardot bring the tales of à sang froid malice and mayhem to life. The films featured are Gilles Grangier’s Speaking of Murder (Le rouge est mis) and Édouard Molinaro’s Back to the Wall (Le dos au mur) and Witness in the City (Un Témoin dans la ville). Beware of French husbands when cucklolded — they show no pity. Bonne chance, victimes!
French Noir Collection
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1957-59 / B&w / 1:66 widescreen, 1:37 Academy / 265 minutes / Street Date November 29, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 49.95
Starring: Jean Gabin, Jeanne Moreau, Lino Ventura, Marcel Bozzuffi, Gérard Oury, Sandra Milo, Annie Girardot, Paul Frankeur,...
French Noir Collection
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1957-59 / B&w / 1:66 widescreen, 1:37 Academy / 265 minutes / Street Date November 29, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 49.95
Starring: Jean Gabin, Jeanne Moreau, Lino Ventura, Marcel Bozzuffi, Gérard Oury, Sandra Milo, Annie Girardot, Paul Frankeur,...
- 11/19/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Before he was a superstar auteur, a Royale-with-Cheese rock star, the divisive and worshiped motormouth who launched a thousand dissertations and 10 times as many Film Twitter flame wars, Quentin Tarantino was a movie fanatic.
It pays to remember this fact — not that the raconteur would ever let you forget it. Read those early interviews, right as Reservoir Dogs was beginning to establish him as one of the exciting (and the most excitable) filmmakers of the 1990s, and you’ll hear him wax poetic about John Woo and Jean-Pierre Melville, Rio Bravo...
It pays to remember this fact — not that the raconteur would ever let you forget it. Read those early interviews, right as Reservoir Dogs was beginning to establish him as one of the exciting (and the most excitable) filmmakers of the 1990s, and you’ll hear him wax poetic about John Woo and Jean-Pierre Melville, Rio Bravo...
- 11/6/2022
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
If you were an action fan in the 1970s, ’80s, or ’90s, one of the great pleasures of filmgoing was the experience, every year or two, of a new Walter Hill movie. No one else was really making movies like him, and no one had before; although his morally and philosophically oriented genre pictures owed something to the Westerns of Howard Hawks and the existential crime films of Jean-Pierre Melville, they weren’t really the same. Films like “The Driver,” “The Warriors,” and “48 Hours” were somehow both more heightened in their mythological resonances and more realistic in their behavior than the works of the American and European stylists on whose shoulders Hill stood.
Starting with “Hard Times” in 1975 and continuing on through masterpieces like “Southern Comfort,” “Streets of Fire,” “Johnny Handsome” and “Trespass,” Hill created a body of work that spoke to American culture both past and present, subtly...
Starting with “Hard Times” in 1975 and continuing on through masterpieces like “Southern Comfort,” “Streets of Fire,” “Johnny Handsome” and “Trespass,” Hill created a body of work that spoke to American culture both past and present, subtly...
- 10/8/2022
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
"Cowboy Bebop" may be the most classically cinematic anime out there. The gun-toting, cigarette-smoking main character resembles hard-boiled noir stars like Humphrey Bogart and Western icons like John Wayne. But those weren't the only classic film genres that inspired the creators of "Cowboy Bebop." The 20th episode of the series, "Pierrot le Fou," was named after the 1965 film from French New Wave director Jean-luc Godard. The episode also pays tribute to the films of Jean-Pierre Melville, specifically "Le Samouraï" and "Le Cercle Rouge," among other French New Wave classics.
Episode 20 was always my favorite "Bebop" episode. The villain is a superhuman assassin that has regressed to a child-like mental state. He is impossible to kill but, once wounded, devolves into hysterics. "Episode 20 is a weird one to like," the series director Shinichiro Watanabe admitted (via SakuraBlog). "I guess French people live up to their reputation of being odd." Watanabe concedes...
Episode 20 was always my favorite "Bebop" episode. The villain is a superhuman assassin that has regressed to a child-like mental state. He is impossible to kill but, once wounded, devolves into hysterics. "Episode 20 is a weird one to like," the series director Shinichiro Watanabe admitted (via SakuraBlog). "I guess French people live up to their reputation of being odd." Watanabe concedes...
- 9/26/2022
- by Shae Sennett
- Slash Film
Prodded on by Jean Seberg’s Patricia, halfway through Breathless, a director played by Jean-Pierre Melville says his greatest ambition is “to become immortal, and then die.” It’s a line that might as well sum up the extraordinary career of Breathless’s own helmer and French New Wave doyen, Jean-Luc Godard, who died of assisted suicide at his home in Rolle, Switzerland, on September 13. He was 91. His longtime lawyer told The New York Times the director suffered from “multiple disabling pathologies,” while a relative told the press he “was not sick—he was simply exhausted.” The tributes that have since poured in from all corners of the world are as gargantuan and scholarly as his output. But though “the practice of honoring our artistic giants is one that thrives on analysis,” Justin Chang notes at the L.A. Times, “what feels more fitting to offer at this still-early moment...
- 9/22/2022
- MUBI
Director/Tfh Guru Allan Arkush discusses his favorite year in film, 1975, with Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Rules of the Game (1939)
Le Boucher (1970)
Last Year At Marienbad (1961)
Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid (1982)
Topaz (1969)
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
Hollywood Boulevard (1976) – Jon Davison’s trailer commentary
The Innocents (1961) – Joe Dante’s trailer commentary
The Earrings of Madame De… (1953)
Rope (1948) – Darren Bousman’s trailer commentary
Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
The Awful Truth (1937) – Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Duck Soup (1933) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Going My Way (1944)
Nashville (1975) – Larry Karaszewski’s trailer commentary, Dan Perri’s trailer commentary
M*A*S*H (1970)
Shampoo (1975) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Bonnie And Clyde (1967) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
The Nada Gang (1975)
Get Crazy (1983) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Night Moves (1975) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Dog Day Afternoon (1975) – Katt Shea’s trailer...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Rules of the Game (1939)
Le Boucher (1970)
Last Year At Marienbad (1961)
Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid (1982)
Topaz (1969)
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
Hollywood Boulevard (1976) – Jon Davison’s trailer commentary
The Innocents (1961) – Joe Dante’s trailer commentary
The Earrings of Madame De… (1953)
Rope (1948) – Darren Bousman’s trailer commentary
Make Way For Tomorrow (1937)
The Awful Truth (1937) – Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Duck Soup (1933) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Going My Way (1944)
Nashville (1975) – Larry Karaszewski’s trailer commentary, Dan Perri’s trailer commentary
M*A*S*H (1970)
Shampoo (1975) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Bonnie And Clyde (1967) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
The Nada Gang (1975)
Get Crazy (1983) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Night Moves (1975) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Dog Day Afternoon (1975) – Katt Shea’s trailer...
- 9/20/2022
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Jean Luc-Godard, who died Tuesday at the age of 91, was widely known as the King of the French New Wave. Since coming onto the scene in the 1960s, his seminal films such as “Breathless,” “Masculin, Feminin” and “Pierrot Le Fou,” introduced avante-garde techniques that have been since been replicated by innumerable filmmakers in the following decades.
In addition to a scathing intellectualism and stubborn stance against “the establishment”, the Franco-Swiss director was best known for changing the rules of cinema — his use of long-takes, jump-cuts and actor asides are just a few of the innovative practices he employed in his films that are still used to this day.
Thankfully, Godard left behind dozens of unforgettable films, many of which have been restored on Criterion. Below, check out some of Godard’s best films to celebrate the late director:
‘Pierrot le fou’ Courtesy of Amazon
Godard perfects the Pop Art color...
In addition to a scathing intellectualism and stubborn stance against “the establishment”, the Franco-Swiss director was best known for changing the rules of cinema — his use of long-takes, jump-cuts and actor asides are just a few of the innovative practices he employed in his films that are still used to this day.
Thankfully, Godard left behind dozens of unforgettable films, many of which have been restored on Criterion. Below, check out some of Godard’s best films to celebrate the late director:
‘Pierrot le fou’ Courtesy of Amazon
Godard perfects the Pop Art color...
- 9/14/2022
- by Anna Tingley
- Variety Film + TV
The tough guys in Yves Boisset’s crime drama answer revenge with revenge, and Michel Bouquet’s rogue cop commits outrageous acts of lawlessness to nail his partner’s killer. The French censors were up at arms over Boisset’s slight to police honor, yet the subject isn’t corruption — everything is ‘honor and decency.’ A fine gallery of Gallic thugs fills out the cast; both they and the attitude toward law and order are a step beyond Jean-Pierre Melville, but not an improvement. With standout work from Michel Constantin, Théo Sarapo, Henri Garcin and Bernard Fresson.
The Cop aka Un condé
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1970 / B&w / 1:66 widescreen / 98 min. / Street Date September 6, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Michel Bouquet, Françoise Fabian, Gianni Garko, Michel Constantin, Théo Sarapo, Henri Garcin, Anne Carrère, Bernard Fresson, Pierre Massimi, Roger Lumont.
Cinematography: Jean-Marc Ripert
Film Editor: Albert Jurgenson, Vincenzo Tomassi
Original Music:...
The Cop aka Un condé
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1970 / B&w / 1:66 widescreen / 98 min. / Street Date September 6, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Michel Bouquet, Françoise Fabian, Gianni Garko, Michel Constantin, Théo Sarapo, Henri Garcin, Anne Carrère, Bernard Fresson, Pierre Massimi, Roger Lumont.
Cinematography: Jean-Marc Ripert
Film Editor: Albert Jurgenson, Vincenzo Tomassi
Original Music:...
- 9/13/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Jean-Pierre Melville’s film is a harrowing look at life in the French resistance during World War II. Starring legendary actors Lino Ventura, Simone Signoret, and Jean-Pierre Cassel, the film was a political football during its initial release in 1969, but has been reappraised and, more importantly, restored for safekeeping.
The post Army of Shadows appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Army of Shadows appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 8/15/2022
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
Last year, Ben Stykuc wrote in his review of “Three Days of a Blind Girl”: “In retrospect, Anthony Wong is the only actor I know that could outNicolasCage Nicolas Cage”, and his comment could not have been more spot on. Having build his career with secondary roles and first roles in Cat III films, Wong eventually managed to become one of the most respected character actors in the industry with a string of awards and outstanding performances to his credit. Just his presence is frequently enough by itself to elevate the films he participates in, with him portraying rather different characters throughout his career, with equal artistry and much gusto. To celebrate this wonderful actor, we present 16 of his best performances, in alphabetical order, focusing on a diversity of roles that have him play from a a priest to rapist, from a cop to a sadistic killer, and anything between.
- 8/10/2022
- by AMP Group
- AsianMoviePulse
As Brad Pitt’s new thriller Bullet Train arrives in cinemas, Guardian writers have picked their most exciting action films of all time
When John Woo’s 1989 breakthrough The Killer started slipping into repertory houses and cult video stores, it was the beginning of a revolution, like an adrenalized marriage between the cool of Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï and the operatic bloodletting of Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch. But The Killer turned out to be a mere throat-clearing for Woo’s follow-up, Hard Boiled, which kicks off with a shootout in a teahouse filled with birdcages (bullets and feathers go flying) and builds to 40 minutes of pyrotechnics at a hospital that swings unforgettably through the nursery.
When John Woo’s 1989 breakthrough The Killer started slipping into repertory houses and cult video stores, it was the beginning of a revolution, like an adrenalized marriage between the cool of Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï and the operatic bloodletting of Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch. But The Killer turned out to be a mere throat-clearing for Woo’s follow-up, Hard Boiled, which kicks off with a shootout in a teahouse filled with birdcages (bullets and feathers go flying) and builds to 40 minutes of pyrotechnics at a hospital that swings unforgettably through the nursery.
- 8/2/2022
- by Scott Tobias, Charles Bramesco, Jesse Hassenger, Adrian Horton, Veronica Esposito, Andrew Pulver, Benjamin Lee, Radheyan Simonpillai, Lisa Wong Macabasco, AA Dowd and Andrew Lawrence
- The Guardian - Film News
The 14th Annual Robert Classic French Film Festival — sponsored by Jane M. & Bruce P. Robert Charitable Foundation — celebrates St. Louis’ Gallic heritage and France’s cinematic legacy. This year’s featured films span the decades from the 1920s through the 1990s, offering a revealing overview of French cinema.
The festival takes place Aug. 5-7, 12-14, and 19-21.
The fest annually includes significant restorations, and this year features seven such works, including a brand-new restoration of Luis Bunuel’s “The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie,” which is part of our year-long Golden Anniversaries programming, which features films celebrating their 50th anniversaries.
In honor of St. Louis’ own Josephine Baker and her installation in France’s Panthéon on Nov. 30 of last year, the fest will present her silent film debut, “Siren of the Tropics,” with an original score and live accompaniment by the Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra.
https://www.cinemastlouis.org...
The festival takes place Aug. 5-7, 12-14, and 19-21.
The fest annually includes significant restorations, and this year features seven such works, including a brand-new restoration of Luis Bunuel’s “The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie,” which is part of our year-long Golden Anniversaries programming, which features films celebrating their 50th anniversaries.
In honor of St. Louis’ own Josephine Baker and her installation in France’s Panthéon on Nov. 30 of last year, the fest will present her silent film debut, “Siren of the Tropics,” with an original score and live accompaniment by the Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra.
https://www.cinemastlouis.org...
- 7/21/2022
- by Michelle Hannett
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Angus MacLane, animation veteran and director of the new Pixar adventure Lightyear, discusses his favorite movies with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Taking Off (1971)
Reign of Terror (1949)
Kiss Me Deadly (1955) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s review
Lightyear (2022)
Toy Story (1995)
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) – Brian Trenchard-Smith’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s Beyond Furious series, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Innerspace (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Mars Attacks! (1996)
The ’Burbs (1989) – Ti West’s trailer commentary, ’Burbs Mania at Tfh
Alive (1993)
Star Wars (1977)
Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1937)
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
The Matrix (1999)
Alien (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing
Aliens (1986) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Tron (1982)
The Blues Brothers (1980) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary
Howard The Duck (1986) – Alex Kirschenbaum’s review
Wall-e (2008)
Predator 2 (1990)
Alien vs. Predator...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Taking Off (1971)
Reign of Terror (1949)
Kiss Me Deadly (1955) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s review
Lightyear (2022)
Toy Story (1995)
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) – Brian Trenchard-Smith’s trailer commentary, Dennis Cozzalio’s Beyond Furious series, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Innerspace (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Mars Attacks! (1996)
The ’Burbs (1989) – Ti West’s trailer commentary, ’Burbs Mania at Tfh
Alive (1993)
Star Wars (1977)
Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1937)
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
The Matrix (1999)
Alien (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing
Aliens (1986) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Tron (1982)
The Blues Brothers (1980) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary
Howard The Duck (1986) – Alex Kirschenbaum’s review
Wall-e (2008)
Predator 2 (1990)
Alien vs. Predator...
- 6/7/2022
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Tori and Lokita, the latest from the eerily consistent Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, pulls you in opposite directions when assessing it. It is as consummately made and passionately intended as anything they’ve done, but the filmmakers, as is apparent in less-successful films, can really undermine themselves with choices in plotting. I’ll never forget viewing my first, The Son, as a student in undergrad, both marveling and being almost perturbed at what a simple, elemental conflict—a man forgiving the murderer of his child—drove the entire film and generated all its tension. As in Lorna’s Silence and The Unknown Girl, this story can’t move without plot streaming out of every corner, contrivances piling upon contrivances, the way the tape could peel out of an old analog cassette or VHS.
Comparing the Dardennes to Ken Loach, one of their most profound influences, is significant too. Film critics can...
Comparing the Dardennes to Ken Loach, one of their most profound influences, is significant too. Film critics can...
- 6/2/2022
- by David Katz
- The Film Stage
Marc Recha, director of “Pau and His Brother,” which played in Cannes competition, is initiating post-production on “Wild Road,” a thriller produced by Barcelona-based director label Parallamps.
Heaed by Montse Germán, a star in Cesc Gay’s “Fiction” and Sergi López” (“Pan’s Labyrinth”), “Wild Road” follows 50-year Ona, who is about to fulfill her dream of piloting a light aircraft. Then a chance encounter with some Serb ex-combatants will change her life and that of her loved ones, forcing her to face up to her own past.
A Locarno Fipresci prize winner for “The Cherry Tree,” in “Wild Road” Recha aims for a “cinema d’auteur for a wider audience. It’s a disturbing thriller but full of humanity,” producer Ana Stanič told Variety announcing “strong interest for the film in Spain, Central and Eastern Europe and further abroad.”
A sales agent deal is close to being closed.
The move...
Heaed by Montse Germán, a star in Cesc Gay’s “Fiction” and Sergi López” (“Pan’s Labyrinth”), “Wild Road” follows 50-year Ona, who is about to fulfill her dream of piloting a light aircraft. Then a chance encounter with some Serb ex-combatants will change her life and that of her loved ones, forcing her to face up to her own past.
A Locarno Fipresci prize winner for “The Cherry Tree,” in “Wild Road” Recha aims for a “cinema d’auteur for a wider audience. It’s a disturbing thriller but full of humanity,” producer Ana Stanič told Variety announcing “strong interest for the film in Spain, Central and Eastern Europe and further abroad.”
A sales agent deal is close to being closed.
The move...
- 5/23/2022
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Paris-based Luxbox has shared in exclusivity with Variety a first trailer for Manuela Martelli’s “1976,” one of Chile –and indeed Latin America’s – most anticipated feature debuts of the year which world premieres at Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight.
“1976” is produced by two of Chile’s most go-ahead outfits – Cinestación headed by director-producer Domingo Sotomayor (“Too Late to Die Young”) and Wood Productions, founded by Andrés Wood whose “Machuca” starred both Martelli and Aline Kuppenheim, the absolute protagonist of “1976.”
The film is set, as its title implies, in 1976, one of the bloodiest years of Augusto Pinochet’s hugely bloody dictatorship. It tells, as can be seen in the trailer. Kuppenheim plays Carmen, the wife of a Santiago de Chile doctor who heads off to her beach house to supervise its renovation during the holidays.
Carmen has all the accoutrements of a well-heeled middle-class wife and mother, sporting in the trailer a pearl necklace,...
“1976” is produced by two of Chile’s most go-ahead outfits – Cinestación headed by director-producer Domingo Sotomayor (“Too Late to Die Young”) and Wood Productions, founded by Andrés Wood whose “Machuca” starred both Martelli and Aline Kuppenheim, the absolute protagonist of “1976.”
The film is set, as its title implies, in 1976, one of the bloodiest years of Augusto Pinochet’s hugely bloody dictatorship. It tells, as can be seen in the trailer. Kuppenheim plays Carmen, the wife of a Santiago de Chile doctor who heads off to her beach house to supervise its renovation during the holidays.
Carmen has all the accoutrements of a well-heeled middle-class wife and mother, sporting in the trailer a pearl necklace,...
- 5/16/2022
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
One Shot is a series that seeks to find an essence of cinema history in one single image of a movie. Jean-Pierre Melville’s Army of Shadows (1969) welcomes the unhappy memories of Vichy France. The movie unfolds like a living diary, mostly from the perspective of the sturdy Phillipe Gerbier (Lino Ventura), a member of the French resistance. It puts before us, among other things, the individual costs that are meant to be paid to the collective. Paul Dounat (Alain Libolt) is a traitor who is to be punished for his treachery. On the face of it this punishment is a righteous act performed by the committed heroic forces. But his murder by the resistance sequence flips that notion. When La Masque (Claude Mann), a young member of the execution party, berates the traitor for his actions we realize that Dounat is but a kid who hardly fits his coat.
- 4/4/2022
- MUBI
Mubi has unveiled its streaming offerings this April in the U.S. and leading the pack is a special spotlight on Franz Rogowski, star of their recent theatrical release Great Freedom. Selections include Christian Petzold’s Transit as well as a pair of underseen offerings, Luzifer and Aisles.
Also in the lineup are a number of recent releases, including Dominik Graf’s Fabian: Going to the Dogs, Alice Rohrwacher, Francesco Munzi, and Pietro Marcello’s Futura, Mario Furloni and Kate McLean’s Freeland, and Sion Sono’s Red Post On Escher Street. Timed with her new documentary Cow, a trio of shorts by Andrea Arnold will also arrive.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
April 1 | Battle Royale | Kinji Fukasaku
April 2 | Mood Indigo | Michel Gondry
April 3 | Army of Shadows | Jean-Pierre Melville
April 4 | Wasp | Andrea Arnold | Three Shorts by Andrea Arnold
April 5 | Tracks | Henry Jaglom | Method in the...
Also in the lineup are a number of recent releases, including Dominik Graf’s Fabian: Going to the Dogs, Alice Rohrwacher, Francesco Munzi, and Pietro Marcello’s Futura, Mario Furloni and Kate McLean’s Freeland, and Sion Sono’s Red Post On Escher Street. Timed with her new documentary Cow, a trio of shorts by Andrea Arnold will also arrive.
Check out the lineup below and get 30 days free here.
April 1 | Battle Royale | Kinji Fukasaku
April 2 | Mood Indigo | Michel Gondry
April 3 | Army of Shadows | Jean-Pierre Melville
April 4 | Wasp | Andrea Arnold | Three Shorts by Andrea Arnold
April 5 | Tracks | Henry Jaglom | Method in the...
- 3/31/2022
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Jean-Pierre Melville in 4K? That’s an inviting idea. All of Melville crime pictures are memorable, and this is one of his best-remembered, a traditional caper drama with a wordless heist scene that lasts almost half an hour. The color production stars three big French actors and one Italian. Alain Delon and Gian Maria Volonté are the career thieves, joined by the conflicted Yves Montand as an alcoholic ex-cop. Comedian Bourvil is enlisted in a surprise role as the completely serious and less-than-ethical police inspector on their trail. We have to admire producer-writer-director Melville’s skill — he achieves a high-budget sheen with a minimum of production resources.
Le cercle rouge
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 218
1970 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 140 min. / The Red Circle / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date March 15, 2022 / 49.95
Starring: Alain Delon, Bourvil, Gian Maria Volonté, Yves Montand, Francois Périer, Ana Douking, Paul Crauchet, Paul Amiot, Pierre Collet,...
Le cercle rouge
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 218
1970 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 140 min. / The Red Circle / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date March 15, 2022 / 49.95
Starring: Alain Delon, Bourvil, Gian Maria Volonté, Yves Montand, Francois Périer, Ana Douking, Paul Crauchet, Paul Amiot, Pierre Collet,...
- 3/26/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Whether it's disreputable exploitation films or Western TV shows or classic Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino's filmography is littered with tributes. His movies traffic in allusions and references and shots and scenes mainlined directly from the whole of cinematic history. That goes back to his first feature (which he's even thought about remaking), "Reservoir Dogs," which drew liberally from gangster movies for its taut, nonlinear telling of a heist gone wrong. For Tarantino, his primary influence was in the work of French neo-noir filmmaker Jean-Pierre Melville, specifically his 1962 film, "Le Doulos."
When he was on the press trail for 1994's "Pulp Fiction," quickly rising to become a...
The post The French Neo-Noir Classic that Inspired Reservoir Dogs appeared first on /Film.
When he was on the press trail for 1994's "Pulp Fiction," quickly rising to become a...
The post The French Neo-Noir Classic that Inspired Reservoir Dogs appeared first on /Film.
- 2/11/2022
- by Anthony Crislip
- Slash Film
Mediawan Rights doc arm previously enjoyed festival success with Kubrick By Kubrick in 2020.
Mediawan Rights has acquired international rights to bio-doc Godard Cinema, exploring the life and work of iconic French-Swiss director Jean-Luc Godard, via its documentary arm which will launch sales on the title at the EFM running February 10-17.
It marks the first title in a slate of feature documentaries suitable for theatrical release being pulled together by Arianna Castoldi, head of documentary sales for all formats within Mediawan Rights, the sales arm of burgeoning Paris-based international film and TV group Mediawan.
“Unlike the TV catalogue, which is vast,...
Mediawan Rights has acquired international rights to bio-doc Godard Cinema, exploring the life and work of iconic French-Swiss director Jean-Luc Godard, via its documentary arm which will launch sales on the title at the EFM running February 10-17.
It marks the first title in a slate of feature documentaries suitable for theatrical release being pulled together by Arianna Castoldi, head of documentary sales for all formats within Mediawan Rights, the sales arm of burgeoning Paris-based international film and TV group Mediawan.
“Unlike the TV catalogue, which is vast,...
- 2/3/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
The CrewElite soldiers and seasoned criminals know how to breathe under pressure in the cinema of Julien Leclercq. It’s what separates them from everyday citizens and inexperienced combatants who cross their paths in a gunfight or heist. Moments of measured calm preceding volatile action becomes a visual motif for the talented French filmmaker. One incredible example stands out in Leclercq’s oeuvre: Seconds before strapping a pillow to his chest and playing vehicular chicken with an armored truck in The Crew (2015), master thief Yanis (Sami Bouajila) exhales deeply while staring ahead with the keen focus of a shark. The shot seems to last forever.Honoring the cool-as-a-cucumber tradition of French crime cinema perfected by Jacques Becker and Jean-Pierre Melville, Leclercq’s films are kinetic portraits of professional specialists with personal blind spots. No matter how much firepower or experience they bring into conflict, individual vulnerabilities get exposed. Family members are used as bargaining chips,...
- 1/19/2022
- MUBI
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.