Francis Ford Coppola's miraculous 1970s run of "The Godfather," "The Conversation," "The Godfather Part II" and "Apocalypse Now" came crashing to a hubristic halt in 1982 when his backlot musical "One from the Heart," produced at his recently purchased Zoetrope Studios in the heart of Hollywood, bombed upon release. Poor reviews and audience indifference resulted in a paltry $637,000 gross against a $26 million budget, thus killing his dream of an artist-driven mini-community.
The magnitude of the film's failure meant Coppola would have to lower his sights for the time being, and make films with more straightforward commercial appeal as a means of paying off his debts. It was a shockingly precipitous fall, one that left his many admirers worried that he'd become more of a paycheck-to-paycheck director. This happened eventually, but for a time he was able to stoke his creative fire even if he was making movies that weren't as...
The magnitude of the film's failure meant Coppola would have to lower his sights for the time being, and make films with more straightforward commercial appeal as a means of paying off his debts. It was a shockingly precipitous fall, one that left his many admirers worried that he'd become more of a paycheck-to-paycheck director. This happened eventually, but for a time he was able to stoke his creative fire even if he was making movies that weren't as...
- 4/28/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
The red carpet will soon roll out for the 77th Festival de Cannes. The international film festival, playing out May 14-25, has a distinct American voice this year. “Barbie” filmmaker Greta Gerwig is the first U.S. female director name jury president. Many veteran American helmers are heading to the French Rivera resort town. George Lucas, who turns 80 on May 14, will receive an honorary Palme d’Or. Francis Ford Coppola’s much-anticipated “Megalopolis” is screening in competition, as is Paul Schrader’s “Oh Canada.” Kevin Costner’s new Western “Horizon, An American Saga” will premiere out of competition and Oliver Stone’s “Lula” is part of the special screening showcase.
Fifty years ago, Coppola was the toast of the 27th Cannes Film Festival. His brilliant psychological thriller “The Conversation” starring Gene Hackman won the Palme D’Or and well as a Special Mention from the Ecumenical Jury. The film would earn three Oscar nominations: picture,...
Fifty years ago, Coppola was the toast of the 27th Cannes Film Festival. His brilliant psychological thriller “The Conversation” starring Gene Hackman won the Palme D’Or and well as a Special Mention from the Ecumenical Jury. The film would earn three Oscar nominations: picture,...
- 4/25/2024
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
That Time Meryl Streep Was Motivated By Money To Take A TV Role For The Sake Of The Love Of Her Life
Hollywood is not the place you think of first when it comes to stories of true love or long-lasting romantic relationships. But just like in her professional life, famed thespian Meryl Streep bucked the trend with her real-life relationship with the late actor John Cazale. The relationship even made the fastidious Streep break her own rule of doing a role purely for the sake of money.
When Meryl Streep Met John Cazale
Meryl Streep with John Cazale in The Deer Hunter
Cazale was a rising star in Hollywood when he first made Streep’s acquaintance thanks to their joint work in a 1976 stage production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure. Streep was in her 20s, while Cazale was 14 years older and making a name for himself with prominent roles in The Godfather and its sequel, The Conversation, and Dog Day Afternoon.
The couple were head-over-heels in love, but tragedy struck...
When Meryl Streep Met John Cazale
Meryl Streep with John Cazale in The Deer Hunter
Cazale was a rising star in Hollywood when he first made Streep’s acquaintance thanks to their joint work in a 1976 stage production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure. Streep was in her 20s, while Cazale was 14 years older and making a name for himself with prominent roles in The Godfather and its sequel, The Conversation, and Dog Day Afternoon.
The couple were head-over-heels in love, but tragedy struck...
- 4/23/2024
- by Neeraj Chand
- FandomWire
The 2024 Cannes Film Festival lineup was finally revealed at the sliver of dawn on Thursday, April 11. Festival director Thierry Frémaux and president Iris Knobloch unveiled this year’s crop of films across the many sections, from the Competition to Un Certain Regard, during a press conference beginning at 5 a.m. Et. See the full lineup below.
The 77th edition of Cannes comes to the Côte d’Azur May 14 through 25, and a few titles were already confirmed to be in the mix. There’s Francis Ford Coppola’s self-funded epic “Megalopolis,” which has already screened for a rarified few in the United States to much awe and speculation over what distributor might take on Coppola’s experimental vision. For his first feature since 2011’s “Twixt,” Coppola gathered a cast including Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, Shia Labeouf, Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza, and Jason Schwartzman for a sci-fi vision of a ruined NYC-like metropolis.
The 77th edition of Cannes comes to the Côte d’Azur May 14 through 25, and a few titles were already confirmed to be in the mix. There’s Francis Ford Coppola’s self-funded epic “Megalopolis,” which has already screened for a rarified few in the United States to much awe and speculation over what distributor might take on Coppola’s experimental vision. For his first feature since 2011’s “Twixt,” Coppola gathered a cast including Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, Shia Labeouf, Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza, and Jason Schwartzman for a sci-fi vision of a ruined NYC-like metropolis.
- 4/22/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
For his forthcoming one from the heart, Megalopolis, Francis Ford Coppola has once again violated the cardinal rule of the entertainment business: Never invest your own money in the show. Reports are that to bankroll the $120 million epic he has literally mortgaged the farm, or vineyard. The investment is slated to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on May 14.
We — and he — have all been here before. Coppola last went into hock for another long-aborning and cost-overrunning project, which 45 years ago, almost to the day, also premiered at Cannes: the now legendary Apocalypse Now (1979).
At the time, Coppola was bathing in the afterglow of one of the most astonishing back-to-back double, or triple, plays in the industry’s history: The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather: Part II (1974), the operatic two-part saga of mob family business in which organized crime serves less as a metaphor for American capitalism than its purest expression (“Michael,...
We — and he — have all been here before. Coppola last went into hock for another long-aborning and cost-overrunning project, which 45 years ago, almost to the day, also premiered at Cannes: the now legendary Apocalypse Now (1979).
At the time, Coppola was bathing in the afterglow of one of the most astonishing back-to-back double, or triple, plays in the industry’s history: The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather: Part II (1974), the operatic two-part saga of mob family business in which organized crime serves less as a metaphor for American capitalism than its purest expression (“Michael,...
- 4/22/2024
- by Thomas Doherty
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The film industry often comes across people who will never be forgotten for centuries to come. With their expert skills and undeniable charm, these people manage to make a mark on the industry that does not dull with time. The Godfather’s John Cazale was one such extraordinary actor who managed to deliver one great performance after the other.
John Cazale in The Godfather (1972)
Unfortunately, his time in Hollywood was limited as the actor passed away in 1978, just after being a part of six total films. Even though John Cazale doesn’t have an extensive filmography to his name, he holds a record that no actor has been or will be able to break. From his feature film debut in 1972 to his last film in 1978, all five of them have been cinematic masterpieces.
The Godfather’s John Cazale Holds a Unique Record
A still from Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Hollywood has...
John Cazale in The Godfather (1972)
Unfortunately, his time in Hollywood was limited as the actor passed away in 1978, just after being a part of six total films. Even though John Cazale doesn’t have an extensive filmography to his name, he holds a record that no actor has been or will be able to break. From his feature film debut in 1972 to his last film in 1978, all five of them have been cinematic masterpieces.
The Godfather’s John Cazale Holds a Unique Record
A still from Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Hollywood has...
- 4/22/2024
- by Mishkaat Khan
- FandomWire
Francis Ford Coppola is one of the most revered directors in Hollywood. He enjoyed tremendous success with the Godfather franchise, even if the third and final installment polarized the fans. Regardless, the filmmaker won critical acclaim, and it engraved his name in the annals of cinema history.
Coppola can be credited for adapting the book for the big screen so flawlessly, with each role carefully chosen. However, the production for the third film was mired in problems, accentuated by the fact that Robert Duvall refused to return to complete the trilogy.
Duvall refused to return for the final film (Source: The Godfather)
Why did Robert Duvall turn down Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather 3?
Francis Ford Coppola established himself as an esteemed director quite early on in his career. He put together an incredible lineup that brought Mario Puzo’s novel to life, with Al Pacino and Marlon Brando leading the cast.
Coppola can be credited for adapting the book for the big screen so flawlessly, with each role carefully chosen. However, the production for the third film was mired in problems, accentuated by the fact that Robert Duvall refused to return to complete the trilogy.
Duvall refused to return for the final film (Source: The Godfather)
Why did Robert Duvall turn down Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather 3?
Francis Ford Coppola established himself as an esteemed director quite early on in his career. He put together an incredible lineup that brought Mario Puzo’s novel to life, with Al Pacino and Marlon Brando leading the cast.
- 4/20/2024
- by Sreshtha Roychowdhury
- FandomWire
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
David Anspaugh's 1986 sports drama "Hoosiers" has gone down in history as one of the most influential sports dramas ever made. Partly inspired by the real-life story of the 1954 Indiana state champions Milan High School, "Hoosiers" focuses on formerly-disgraced basketball coach Norman Dale (Gene Hackman), who gets a rare second chance to prove his mettle at Indiana's Hickory High School. The rather tight-knit town of Hickory seems a little too unforgiving towards Norman due to his sketchy past, but redemption finds its way to him via a David vs. Goliath situation that soon transforms into a classic underdog tale about dreaming big and achieving the impossible.
Some of the more saccharine themes in "Hoosiers" might feel a tad corny at times, but it is a film that brandishes sincere authenticity when it comes to the magic of unexpected second chances and the highs and lows of small-town sports. Moreover, a...
Some of the more saccharine themes in "Hoosiers" might feel a tad corny at times, but it is a film that brandishes sincere authenticity when it comes to the magic of unexpected second chances and the highs and lows of small-town sports. Moreover, a...
- 4/13/2024
- by Debopriyaa Dutta
- Slash Film
Eleanor Coppola, who won an Emmy for the Apocalypse Now documentary Hearts of Darkness, directed Paris Can Wait and Love Is Love Is Love and was married to Francis Ford Coppola for 61 years, died Friday at her home in Rutherford, CA. She was 87.
She also is the mother of Oscar-winning filmmaker Sofia Coppola and American Zoetrope president Roman Coppola.
Eleanor Coppola won an Emmy and a DGA Award for helming Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, the 1991 documentary about the making of her husband’s seminal Vietnam War movie Apocalypse Now. The production of that 1979 classic – which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar – was plagued by problems related to budget, casting, script, the weather – a typhoon destroyed much of the set – and even an active insurgency in the Philippines, the battle with which pulled away helicopters on loan from the government.
She also is the mother of Oscar-winning filmmaker Sofia Coppola and American Zoetrope president Roman Coppola.
Eleanor Coppola won an Emmy and a DGA Award for helming Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, the 1991 documentary about the making of her husband’s seminal Vietnam War movie Apocalypse Now. The production of that 1979 classic – which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar – was plagued by problems related to budget, casting, script, the weather – a typhoon destroyed much of the set – and even an active insurgency in the Philippines, the battle with which pulled away helicopters on loan from the government.
- 4/12/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro and Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Acclaimed auteurs Francis Ford Coppola, Yorgos Lanthimos, Paolo Sorrentino and Andrea Arnold are among the filmmakers set to compete for the coveted Palme d’Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival.
A total of 19 features were revealed today (April 11) that will play in Competition at the festival, set to run May 14-25.
Rarely a festival to veer far from familiar names, the Competition line-up is dominated by directors who have been selected multiple times for Cannes.
They include US filmmaker Coppola with sci-fi epic Megalopolis, which stars Adam Driver and is set in a future version of New York City following a disaster.
A total of 19 features were revealed today (April 11) that will play in Competition at the festival, set to run May 14-25.
Rarely a festival to veer far from familiar names, the Competition line-up is dominated by directors who have been selected multiple times for Cannes.
They include US filmmaker Coppola with sci-fi epic Megalopolis, which stars Adam Driver and is set in a future version of New York City following a disaster.
- 4/11/2024
- ScreenDaily
It’ll soon be time to pack your tuxes and/or high heels and wonder “why the heck does it get so hot at 6:30 pm, just when I’m lining up for the 7:15 pm screening?” The eyes of the entertainment world will once again turn toward the French Riviera for the 77th Annual Cannes Film Festival.
The main slate announcement was made early Thursday morning, confirming many suspicions, and offering much excitement for hardcore cinephiles. For those with more mainstream tastes—and an eye toward what will still be in play come next year’s Oscars—here are some highlights.
Certainly, the biggest event screening will be the public’s first look at Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis,” a self-financed behemoth that he’s been dreaming about for decades. The director/vintner is a two-time winner of Cannes’s Palme D’Or—for “The Conversation” in 1974 and “Apocalypse Now...
The main slate announcement was made early Thursday morning, confirming many suspicions, and offering much excitement for hardcore cinephiles. For those with more mainstream tastes—and an eye toward what will still be in play come next year’s Oscars—here are some highlights.
Certainly, the biggest event screening will be the public’s first look at Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis,” a self-financed behemoth that he’s been dreaming about for decades. The director/vintner is a two-time winner of Cannes’s Palme D’Or—for “The Conversation” in 1974 and “Apocalypse Now...
- 4/11/2024
- by Jordan Hoffman
- Gold Derby
The Cannes Film Festival officially announced the selection of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis in Competition at its press conference in Paris on Thursday, confirming Deadline’s scoop from Mike Fleming earlier this week.
Talking with journalists after the press conference, a visibly happy Frémaux expressed his content at having Megalopolis in the festival’s 77th edition.
“Francis Ford Coppola is part of the Cannes family, not only because he got two Palme d’Or, but also he was always quite close to us,” he said in a response to a question from Deadline.
Thierry Frémaux on 'Megalopolis' selection for the Cannes Film Festival: "Francis Ford Coppola is part of the Cannes family" pic.twitter.com/qOtaawHKDi
— Deadline Hollywood (@Deadline) April 11, 2024 Cannes head Thierry Frémaux talks Megalopolis selection
The Cannes delegate general said he had been gently checking in with Coppola over the past year on his progress with Megalopolis.
Talking with journalists after the press conference, a visibly happy Frémaux expressed his content at having Megalopolis in the festival’s 77th edition.
“Francis Ford Coppola is part of the Cannes family, not only because he got two Palme d’Or, but also he was always quite close to us,” he said in a response to a question from Deadline.
Thierry Frémaux on 'Megalopolis' selection for the Cannes Film Festival: "Francis Ford Coppola is part of the Cannes family" pic.twitter.com/qOtaawHKDi
— Deadline Hollywood (@Deadline) April 11, 2024 Cannes head Thierry Frémaux talks Megalopolis selection
The Cannes delegate general said he had been gently checking in with Coppola over the past year on his progress with Megalopolis.
- 4/11/2024
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
This year’s 77th Cannes Film Festival will mark a meeting of the New Hollywood minds in France. Not only is George Lucas receiving the festival’s Honorary Palme d’Or, but filmmakers Francis Ford Coppola and Paul Schrader are in the official Competition for the first time in decades.
While Schrader has gone the route of Venice for his “lonely man in a room” trilogy — “First Reformed,” “The Card Counter,” and “Master Gardener” all premiered in Italy — he’s at Cannes this year with “Oh, Canada.” The lineup was confirmed this morning by Cannes festival director Thierry Frémaux. The contemplative drama about a tortured writer looking back on his years as a leftist who fled to Canada to avoid being drafted into the Vietnam War stars Jacob Elordi, Richard Gere, and Uma Thurman. Cue the flashbulbs for a buzzy Elordi red carpet moment. The “Euphoria” breakout was last seen...
While Schrader has gone the route of Venice for his “lonely man in a room” trilogy — “First Reformed,” “The Card Counter,” and “Master Gardener” all premiered in Italy — he’s at Cannes this year with “Oh, Canada.” The lineup was confirmed this morning by Cannes festival director Thierry Frémaux. The contemplative drama about a tortured writer looking back on his years as a leftist who fled to Canada to avoid being drafted into the Vietnam War stars Jacob Elordi, Richard Gere, and Uma Thurman. Cue the flashbulbs for a buzzy Elordi red carpet moment. The “Euphoria” breakout was last seen...
- 4/11/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Francis Ford Coppola’s long-awaited “Megalopolis” will have its world premiere at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, IndieWire has confirmed.
While the full festival lineup will be announced April 10, Deadline first reported that the epic has received the gala premiere slot at Cannes for a May 17 debut and that it will play in competition.
However, “Megalopolis” still has not secured distribution, IndieWire understands. Coppola’s attorney Barry Hirsch is working on selling the film, and he previously told IndieWire the film was unlikely to debut at a festival until it landed distribution.
The feature will be Coppola’s return to Cannes following his respective Palme d’Or wins for “The Conversation” and “Apocalypse Now.” His other Cannes film was “Tetro,” which screened in Directors Fortnight.
“Megalopolis” centers on the destruction of a utopian society that struggles with adapting to the future. Cesar, an architectural idealist played by Adam Driver, clashes with...
While the full festival lineup will be announced April 10, Deadline first reported that the epic has received the gala premiere slot at Cannes for a May 17 debut and that it will play in competition.
However, “Megalopolis” still has not secured distribution, IndieWire understands. Coppola’s attorney Barry Hirsch is working on selling the film, and he previously told IndieWire the film was unlikely to debut at a festival until it landed distribution.
The feature will be Coppola’s return to Cannes following his respective Palme d’Or wins for “The Conversation” and “Apocalypse Now.” His other Cannes film was “Tetro,” which screened in Directors Fortnight.
“Megalopolis” centers on the destruction of a utopian society that struggles with adapting to the future. Cesar, an architectural idealist played by Adam Driver, clashes with...
- 4/9/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Exclusive: After a feverish courtship of Francis Coppola between the organizers of the Cannes, Venice and Toronto film festivals, Megalopolis has been locked into a gala premiere slot on the Palais on Friday evening May 17, I’m told. The film will premiere in competition at the 77th Cannes Film Festival.
Cannes chief Thierry Fremaux wins the day on this one, on the eve of a full festival slate announcement Thursday. It comes shortly after a movie concept that had been eating at Coppola for 20 years was shown to buyers for the first time at the Universal CityWalk Imax Theater on March 28. Coppola’s longtime attorney Barry Hirsch is still in talks to secure a distribution partner for a film that will reach audiences in the fall, with an emphasis on Imax theaters.
While the safest bet would have been to premiere the film in Venice, Telluride or Toronto, Coppola has...
Cannes chief Thierry Fremaux wins the day on this one, on the eve of a full festival slate announcement Thursday. It comes shortly after a movie concept that had been eating at Coppola for 20 years was shown to buyers for the first time at the Universal CityWalk Imax Theater on March 28. Coppola’s longtime attorney Barry Hirsch is still in talks to secure a distribution partner for a film that will reach audiences in the fall, with an emphasis on Imax theaters.
While the safest bet would have been to premiere the film in Venice, Telluride or Toronto, Coppola has...
- 4/9/2024
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
There was perhaps no movie director more in demand in the 1970s than Francis Ford Coppola, who was leading the New Hollywood film movement with epics like “The Godfather” (1972), “The Godfather Part II” (1974) and “Apocalypse Now” (1979). But fewer viewers remember his quiet neo-noir drama “The Conversation,” a complete turnaround in production scale and arguably his only intimate, simple dramatic film. While it was not as financially successful as the previously aforementioned grander classics, the mystery thriller was just as acclaimed and lauded, earning three Oscar nominations and winning the Palme d’Or at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival. Now on its 50th anniversary, let’s look back at one of Coppola’s overlooked films, “The Conversation,” which was released on April 7, 1974.
The picture stars Gene Hackman as Harry Caul, a top surveillance expert who stumbles upon an ambiguous comment – that may lead to a potential murder – while recording for one of...
The picture stars Gene Hackman as Harry Caul, a top surveillance expert who stumbles upon an ambiguous comment – that may lead to a potential murder – while recording for one of...
- 4/9/2024
- by Christopher Tsang
- Gold Derby
Until recently, if one were asked to name some of the best films of preeminent 1970s filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, it would be easy to pick the big hits. “The Godfather” (1972), “The Godfather II” (1974) and “Apocalypse Now” (1979) are definitely his most iconic and respected films. You’d also be hard-pressed to find a person aged 25-50 who isn’t keenly aware of his adaption of S.E. Hinton’s mandatory high school assigned “The Outsiders” (1983) or his classics “Peggy Sue Got Married” (1986) and maybe even “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” (1988). Yet lately, Coppola’s “The Conversation” (1974) has entered the chat as a somewhat under the radar, low-key masterpiece from the filmmaker, and this year the film celebrates its 50th birthday.
After honing his directorial chops on films like the Roger Corman-produced horror film “Dementia 13” (1963) and fledgling films like “You’re a Big Boy Now” (1966), “Finian’s Rainbow” (1968) and “The Rain People...
After honing his directorial chops on films like the Roger Corman-produced horror film “Dementia 13” (1963) and fledgling films like “You’re a Big Boy Now” (1966), “Finian’s Rainbow” (1968) and “The Rain People...
- 4/8/2024
- by Don Lewis
- Indiewire
by Cláudio Alves
This past weekend, Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation celebrated its 50th anniversary. Originally released in 1974, the film represents the peak of the paranoia thriller craze of that decade, encapsulating a cultural zeitgeist along with the creative zeal of New Hollywood. And yet, it's usually overshadowed by the director's other release that year – Best Picture winner The Godfather Part II. Thankfully, at The Film Experience, we've regularly showered praise on The Conversation, whether in Cannes at Home musings or Hit Me With Your Best Shot analysis. That said, one element remains under-discussed, a facet of this masterpiece so essential that, without it, the entire project would fall apart. It's Gene Hackman, of course…...
This past weekend, Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation celebrated its 50th anniversary. Originally released in 1974, the film represents the peak of the paranoia thriller craze of that decade, encapsulating a cultural zeitgeist along with the creative zeal of New Hollywood. And yet, it's usually overshadowed by the director's other release that year – Best Picture winner The Godfather Part II. Thankfully, at The Film Experience, we've regularly showered praise on The Conversation, whether in Cannes at Home musings or Hit Me With Your Best Shot analysis. That said, one element remains under-discussed, a facet of this masterpiece so essential that, without it, the entire project would fall apart. It's Gene Hackman, of course…...
- 4/8/2024
- by Cláudio Alves
- FilmExperience
The 1974 suspense thriller smartly predicted the increasing importance of technology and lack of privacy in our lives
In the 50 years since Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation was released in theaters, the evolution of technology and the devolution of political culture have combined to make it seem both prescient and quaint. The film’s hero, Harry Caul, fears the future his job as a professional wiretapper helps to create, one in which surveillance threatens to encroach on everyday life and anti-government paranoia runs so rampant that truth seem as graspable as sand through your fingers. What would Harry make of a world where small cameras are ubiquitous in public spaces and people voluntarily give away information about themselves on social media or ice cream apps?
Consider Harry’s 44th birthday, which he celebrates by changing his mailing address to a Po Box and breaking up with a sometime girlfriend he...
In the 50 years since Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation was released in theaters, the evolution of technology and the devolution of political culture have combined to make it seem both prescient and quaint. The film’s hero, Harry Caul, fears the future his job as a professional wiretapper helps to create, one in which surveillance threatens to encroach on everyday life and anti-government paranoia runs so rampant that truth seem as graspable as sand through your fingers. What would Harry make of a world where small cameras are ubiquitous in public spaces and people voluntarily give away information about themselves on social media or ice cream apps?
Consider Harry’s 44th birthday, which he celebrates by changing his mailing address to a Po Box and breaking up with a sometime girlfriend he...
- 4/7/2024
- by Scott Tobias
- The Guardian - Film News
Superhero movies were nearing their maximalist peak in 2017 — "Avengers: Infinity War" was a year away, while the DC Extended Universe was self-destructively racing toward "Justice League" without a roadmap or significant audience buy-in — when James Mangold quietly, confidently subverted the genre with "Logan." There had been attempts at revisionist superhero films before, but they were mostly based on/influenced by explicitly revisionist graphic novels (e.g. Zack Snyder's "Watchmen" and Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy). Josh Trank's "Chronicle" was probably the boldest of the bunch, but that was a top-to-bottom original.
Mangold's "Logan" was different. It used Hugh Jackman, the man who'd been playing Wolverine for 17 years, to tell an X-Men tale that branched out from the film franchise's narrative to depict a Logan in physical decline. Nothing lasts forever — not even, apparently, Wolverine's mutant healing process. He is in unremitting pain, and each altercation plunges him deeper into agony.
Mangold's "Logan" was different. It used Hugh Jackman, the man who'd been playing Wolverine for 17 years, to tell an X-Men tale that branched out from the film franchise's narrative to depict a Logan in physical decline. Nothing lasts forever — not even, apparently, Wolverine's mutant healing process. He is in unremitting pain, and each altercation plunges him deeper into agony.
- 4/7/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Return to Oz, Disney’s 1985 dark take on Dorothy Gale (played by a then-9-year-old Fairuza Balk), shares its creative DNA with Star Wars. Not only that, George Lucas saved writer-director Walter Murch’s job after Disney fired Murch from the Oz shoot.
Lucas and Murch were old friends and collaborators, having met in the film department of the University of Southern California in the mid-1960s.
“My first memory of him was a shadowy figure behind me in the photograph developing room,” says Murch about Lucas on The Hollywood Reporter’s podcast It Happened in Hollywood. “I was trying unsuccessfully to develop one of the photographs that I had taken for an exercise, and there was this voice behind me that said, ‘You’re doing it wrong.’ And I turned around and I said, ‘Who is this guy?’ Of course, it turns out he was right. I was doing it wrong.
Lucas and Murch were old friends and collaborators, having met in the film department of the University of Southern California in the mid-1960s.
“My first memory of him was a shadowy figure behind me in the photograph developing room,” says Murch about Lucas on The Hollywood Reporter’s podcast It Happened in Hollywood. “I was trying unsuccessfully to develop one of the photographs that I had taken for an exercise, and there was this voice behind me that said, ‘You’re doing it wrong.’ And I turned around and I said, ‘Who is this guy?’ Of course, it turns out he was right. I was doing it wrong.
- 4/4/2024
- by Seth Abramovitch
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Ella Al-Shamahi and Datshiane Navanayagam are the new hosts of The Conversation, the BBC World Service English programme dedicated to highlighting and discussing incredible women and their experiences.
The Conversation hears from women in different countries across the globe as they share first-hand their personal experiences and some of their most intimate insights, from what it’s like to be a woman in the music industry, to promoting women’s rights through sport, or working with local communities to fight climate change.
In the upcoming series of The Conversation, Ella meets two women taking part in the legendary Dakar race, a gruelling off-road endurance rally, which since its inception in 1978 only one woman has won. Meanwhile, Datshiane speaks to two women from East Timor and Finland who are fighting to eradicate homelessness.
Ella Al-Shamahi is an explorer, palaeoanthropologist, evolutionary biologist and stand-up comic who has fronted science and archaeology programmes on the BBC and beyond,...
The Conversation hears from women in different countries across the globe as they share first-hand their personal experiences and some of their most intimate insights, from what it’s like to be a woman in the music industry, to promoting women’s rights through sport, or working with local communities to fight climate change.
In the upcoming series of The Conversation, Ella meets two women taking part in the legendary Dakar race, a gruelling off-road endurance rally, which since its inception in 1978 only one woman has won. Meanwhile, Datshiane speaks to two women from East Timor and Finland who are fighting to eradicate homelessness.
Ella Al-Shamahi is an explorer, palaeoanthropologist, evolutionary biologist and stand-up comic who has fronted science and archaeology programmes on the BBC and beyond,...
- 4/3/2024
- Podnews.net
After the March 28 friends, family, and industry screening for Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” at Universal’s CityWalk AMC in IMAX, reactions were wild. Some said it was his most ambitious film since “Apocalypse Now;” another described it to Puck as “batshit crazy.” Made for $120 million and bankrolled entirely by Coppola through the sale of one of his vineyards, it incorporates new VFX techniques — ones, the filmmakers hope, will be seen on the biggest screens possible.
For that to happen, it will need a major theatrical deal and the filmmakers are now in talks with distributors and major studios. However, those entities have been particularly risk averse these days — and while Coppola is a legend, he hasn’t made a commercial success in three decades.
The film’s stars include Adam Driver, Aubrey Plaza, and Giancarlo Esposito; maybe, say, Paramount or Universal want to be back in the Coppola business.
For that to happen, it will need a major theatrical deal and the filmmakers are now in talks with distributors and major studios. However, those entities have been particularly risk averse these days — and while Coppola is a legend, he hasn’t made a commercial success in three decades.
The film’s stars include Adam Driver, Aubrey Plaza, and Giancarlo Esposito; maybe, say, Paramount or Universal want to be back in the Coppola business.
- 4/2/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
Break out the acid-washed jeans and don’t forget the shoulder pads, because Milestone Movies: The Anniversary Collection is heading to the ’80s.
After launching in January to celebrate films marking major anniversaries this year — award winners, guilty pleasures, and cult classics among them — Netflix is keeping the anniversary festivities going with a packed slate of 1984 movies that are turning the big 4-0 in 2024. The films now streaming in the US include A Nightmare on Elm Street, Sixteen Candles, and Beverly Hills Cop(which is perfectly timed for a rewatch before Beverly Hills Cop: Alex Farrives this summer).
The first round of Milestone Movies highlighted films released in 1974, which all turn 50 this year, including Blazing Saddles, Chinatown,and The Conversation. The festivities are set to continue in July with movies from 1994, which turn 30 this year — and in October with films that debuted in 2004,...
After launching in January to celebrate films marking major anniversaries this year — award winners, guilty pleasures, and cult classics among them — Netflix is keeping the anniversary festivities going with a packed slate of 1984 movies that are turning the big 4-0 in 2024. The films now streaming in the US include A Nightmare on Elm Street, Sixteen Candles, and Beverly Hills Cop(which is perfectly timed for a rewatch before Beverly Hills Cop: Alex Farrives this summer).
The first round of Milestone Movies highlighted films released in 1974, which all turn 50 this year, including Blazing Saddles, Chinatown,and The Conversation. The festivities are set to continue in July with movies from 1994, which turn 30 this year — and in October with films that debuted in 2004,...
- 4/1/2024
- by Jessica Derschowitz
- Tudum - Netflix
Writer/director/producer/composer and vintner Francis Ford Coppola has spent over five decades making movies, becoming a cultural force that few else have proven to be in our lifetimes. His film career has been filled with peaks and valleys, and from making several of the greatest films ever made to flops that have bankrupted him (“One From the Heart”), Coppola has never been hesitant about swinging for the fences in his film projects.
Along the way, Coppola has received 14 Academy Award nominations, winning five Oscars. He is only one of six individuals who have won Oscars for producing, directing and screenplay. Coppola has also been nominated for 16 Golden Globe Awards, winning three. Quite a haul.
His next film, “Megalopolis,” focuses on an architect who has been asked to rebuild New York City after a colossal disaster nearly destroys it, and Coppola plans it to be a film set on an epic scale.
Along the way, Coppola has received 14 Academy Award nominations, winning five Oscars. He is only one of six individuals who have won Oscars for producing, directing and screenplay. Coppola has also been nominated for 16 Golden Globe Awards, winning three. Quite a haul.
His next film, “Megalopolis,” focuses on an architect who has been asked to rebuild New York City after a colossal disaster nearly destroys it, and Coppola plans it to be a film set on an epic scale.
- 3/30/2024
- by Tom O'Brien, Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Francis Ford Coppola is considered one of the leading figures of the New Hollywood film movement in the 1960s and ’70s. After graduating from the UCLA Film School, he worked on several projects in the early 1960s and made his first feature-length film, Dementia 13 in 1963.
Francis Ford Coppola and Marlon Brando on the sets of The Godfather
There have been numerous instances in the industry when filmmakers have struggled to bring their ideas to the big screen because the studios did not like them. Copolla was no exception. Long before he gained acclaim with The Godfather in 1972, the legendary director was determined to debase the studio system which often tended to suppress his visions for cinema.
Luckily, he has finally achieved that with his self-funded film Megalopolis, and viewers are moved to the core after watching it.
Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis’ First Screening Has Awed Viewers
Francis Ford...
Francis Ford Coppola and Marlon Brando on the sets of The Godfather
There have been numerous instances in the industry when filmmakers have struggled to bring their ideas to the big screen because the studios did not like them. Copolla was no exception. Long before he gained acclaim with The Godfather in 1972, the legendary director was determined to debase the studio system which often tended to suppress his visions for cinema.
Luckily, he has finally achieved that with his self-funded film Megalopolis, and viewers are moved to the core after watching it.
Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis’ First Screening Has Awed Viewers
Francis Ford...
- 3/29/2024
- by Ankita
- FandomWire
Francis Ford Coppola's "The Conversation" is his masterpiece in between masterpieces. The legendary filmmaker wrapped principal photography in late February 1973, just one month before he would win the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars for "The Godfather" (Albert Ruddy took home the Best Picture Oscar as the mafia classic's producer). Had Paramount released the film that year, it almost certainly would've received nominations for Best Picture and Director (over the wholly forgotten "A Touch of Class"), giving Coppola three consecutive nods in the latter category, a feat only accomplished once in Academy Awards history (by William Wyler). Instead, he wound up competing against himself a year later, when he added three more Oscars to his trophy case with "The Godfather Part II."
While "The Godfather" movies placed him atop Hollywood's director A-list for the rest of the decade, some cinephiles believe "The Conversation" is the superior film. The...
While "The Godfather" movies placed him atop Hollywood's director A-list for the rest of the decade, some cinephiles believe "The Conversation" is the superior film. The...
- 3/24/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Tiffany Haddish has revealed that she’s been sober for more than two months.
The actress-comedian said on Friday’s episode of Amanda de Cadnet’s The Conversation podcast, “I haven’t drank any alcohol, smoked any weed or anything in, like, 72 days.”
After de Cadnet congratulated her, Haddish added, “It’s not hard. It’s not that hard for me, ’cause it wasn’t really, like, my main thing anyways.” The Girls Trip actress proceeded to note that she struggles more with eating healthy amounts of meat and candy.
In November 2023, Haddish was arrested for the second time for suspicion of driving under the influence after she fell asleep at the wheel of her car in Beverly Hills. She was previously arrested on suspicion of a DUI in Georgia in January 2022.
The DUI charges were later dismissed in the November case, but she pleaded no contest to a vehicle code violation.
The actress-comedian said on Friday’s episode of Amanda de Cadnet’s The Conversation podcast, “I haven’t drank any alcohol, smoked any weed or anything in, like, 72 days.”
After de Cadnet congratulated her, Haddish added, “It’s not hard. It’s not that hard for me, ’cause it wasn’t really, like, my main thing anyways.” The Girls Trip actress proceeded to note that she struggles more with eating healthy amounts of meat and candy.
In November 2023, Haddish was arrested for the second time for suspicion of driving under the influence after she fell asleep at the wheel of her car in Beverly Hills. She was previously arrested on suspicion of a DUI in Georgia in January 2022.
The DUI charges were later dismissed in the November case, but she pleaded no contest to a vehicle code violation.
- 3/24/2024
- by Carly Thomas
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Six 8mm shorts by Bill Douglas were shown at the opening Gala of 2024's Glasgow Short Film Festival. Many had not been seen since the late 1960s when they were made, though clips from some do appear in Bill Douglas: My Best Friend.
By now Bill Douglas indulges in play with this from Bijou Productions, cutout characters making opening credits. Gerard Black's score is full of synthesiser bubbles and stabs, a later dreamlike aerial shot revealed in subsequent Q&a to be a treasure from trespass. A box of items is marked Black Magic because it's recycled from the chocolates, but its role seems perilously close to wizardry if not voodoo.
There are hints, entirely coincidental, of The Conversation, but that mixture of paranoia and surveillance is a heady one. So too the circling and revelation, as uncertainty is drawn to different poles like a malfunctioning compass. The live score at times.
By now Bill Douglas indulges in play with this from Bijou Productions, cutout characters making opening credits. Gerard Black's score is full of synthesiser bubbles and stabs, a later dreamlike aerial shot revealed in subsequent Q&a to be a treasure from trespass. A box of items is marked Black Magic because it's recycled from the chocolates, but its role seems perilously close to wizardry if not voodoo.
There are hints, entirely coincidental, of The Conversation, but that mixture of paranoia and surveillance is a heady one. So too the circling and revelation, as uncertainty is drawn to different poles like a malfunctioning compass. The live score at times.
- 3/23/2024
- by Andrew Robertson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Once more, and with feeling…
Roxy Cinema
Our 35mm print of Bertrand Bonello’s House of Tolerance has a final screening on Sunday; Spike Lee’s He Got Game and Hoosiers play on prints, while Blonde Ambition screens this Sunday.
Anthology Film Archives
The films of Med Hondo play in a massive retrospective.
Film Forum
Hondo’s West Indies begins screening in a 4K restoration; the Belmondo-led Classe tous risques begins playing in a new 4K restoration; Buster Keaton’s The Cameraman plays with live music on Sunday.
Film at Lincoln Center
The films of Wojciech Has are highlighted in a new series.
Paris Theater
A new retrospective shows just how incredible a year 1974 was: Chinatown, Badlands, Amarcord, California Split, The Conversation, Kiarostami’s The Traveler and more screen, many on 35mm.
Museum of the Moving Image
The Red Shoes screens on Saturday and Sunday.
Museum of Modern Art
The...
Roxy Cinema
Our 35mm print of Bertrand Bonello’s House of Tolerance has a final screening on Sunday; Spike Lee’s He Got Game and Hoosiers play on prints, while Blonde Ambition screens this Sunday.
Anthology Film Archives
The films of Med Hondo play in a massive retrospective.
Film Forum
Hondo’s West Indies begins screening in a 4K restoration; the Belmondo-led Classe tous risques begins playing in a new 4K restoration; Buster Keaton’s The Cameraman plays with live music on Sunday.
Film at Lincoln Center
The films of Wojciech Has are highlighted in a new series.
Paris Theater
A new retrospective shows just how incredible a year 1974 was: Chinatown, Badlands, Amarcord, California Split, The Conversation, Kiarostami’s The Traveler and more screen, many on 35mm.
Museum of the Moving Image
The Red Shoes screens on Saturday and Sunday.
Museum of Modern Art
The...
- 3/22/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
[Editor’s note: this list was originally published in July 2023 and has since been updated].
America. The land of the free, and the home of buck wild political thrillers. That’s not to take anything away from the ample international political thrillers in existence. But there is something about the United States that seems to make it an ideal setting for suspense built around corruption and conspiracy. Maybe it’s the country’s (misguided) sense of triumph and greatness: when a country is founded on ideals of democracy and liberty, a great yarn about the darkness behind its government is harder to resist. Whatever the case, the country has a great history of political thrillers, some of which stand as all time greats.
As a genre, political thrillers unquestionably hit their peak in the mid-‘70s, thanks to a combination of the JFK assassination, renewed cynicism against the federal government against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, and an honest-to-god conspiracy theory in the form of Watergate.
America. The land of the free, and the home of buck wild political thrillers. That’s not to take anything away from the ample international political thrillers in existence. But there is something about the United States that seems to make it an ideal setting for suspense built around corruption and conspiracy. Maybe it’s the country’s (misguided) sense of triumph and greatness: when a country is founded on ideals of democracy and liberty, a great yarn about the darkness behind its government is harder to resist. Whatever the case, the country has a great history of political thrillers, some of which stand as all time greats.
As a genre, political thrillers unquestionably hit their peak in the mid-‘70s, thanks to a combination of the JFK assassination, renewed cynicism against the federal government against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, and an honest-to-god conspiracy theory in the form of Watergate.
- 3/15/2024
- by Wilson Chapman, Alison Foreman and Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
From its first frames, “Dead Mail” feels dangerous.
Grainy footage shows a chained man desperately crawling out of a house to a mailbox, trying to mail a blood-soaked letter alerting someone to his address. Hazy synth notes dot the soundtrack. As he flees in terror, the film looks grainy and warm, something you’d stumble on in an insomniac haze on the high-numbered cable channels.
That nostalgic vibe was what inspired filmmakers Kyle McConaghy and Joe DeBoer, who wrote and directed “Dead Mail.” Despite the nightmarish opening, the action then moves to the titular department inside a Midwest post office, with a set that looks pulled straight from the ’80s. But this isn’t the neon-drenched ’80s that filmmakers often fetishize, but an era filled with neutral tones, drab interiors and carpets that look saturated with cigarette smoke.
“The big thing was finding locations that felt right, props that we...
Grainy footage shows a chained man desperately crawling out of a house to a mailbox, trying to mail a blood-soaked letter alerting someone to his address. Hazy synth notes dot the soundtrack. As he flees in terror, the film looks grainy and warm, something you’d stumble on in an insomniac haze on the high-numbered cable channels.
That nostalgic vibe was what inspired filmmakers Kyle McConaghy and Joe DeBoer, who wrote and directed “Dead Mail.” Despite the nightmarish opening, the action then moves to the titular department inside a Midwest post office, with a set that looks pulled straight from the ’80s. But this isn’t the neon-drenched ’80s that filmmakers often fetishize, but an era filled with neutral tones, drab interiors and carpets that look saturated with cigarette smoke.
“The big thing was finding locations that felt right, props that we...
- 3/9/2024
- by William Earl
- Variety Film + TV
Netflix is bringing 1974 back to theaters thanks to rare archival prints, restorations, and select 35mm screenings of the curated “Milestone Movies” streaming collection.
The streaming platform debuts a slew of classic films across its trio of theaters in Los Angeles and New York City. The rarely screened archival prints for Martin Scorsese’s “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” and John Cassavetes’ “A Woman Under the Influence” are among the selected titles, as well as the premiere of the Dcp restoration of iconic Blaxploitation film “Foxy Brown” starring Pam Grier.
The screening series marks the 50th anniversaries of the 1974 films, which were unveiled as part of Netflix’s inaugural (and Criterion Channel-esque) curation channel “Milestone Movies: The Anniversary Collection,” which was unveiled in January 2024. Fifteen films will screen at the Paris Theater in New York from March 22 through 28, as 12 films screen at the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles from March 11 through...
The streaming platform debuts a slew of classic films across its trio of theaters in Los Angeles and New York City. The rarely screened archival prints for Martin Scorsese’s “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” and John Cassavetes’ “A Woman Under the Influence” are among the selected titles, as well as the premiere of the Dcp restoration of iconic Blaxploitation film “Foxy Brown” starring Pam Grier.
The screening series marks the 50th anniversaries of the 1974 films, which were unveiled as part of Netflix’s inaugural (and Criterion Channel-esque) curation channel “Milestone Movies: The Anniversary Collection,” which was unveiled in January 2024. Fifteen films will screen at the Paris Theater in New York from March 22 through 28, as 12 films screen at the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles from March 11 through...
- 2/20/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
One of the greatest crime movies of all time, "The French Connection" is William Friedkin's gritty drama based on a true story. Gene Hackman stars as Detective Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle, a no-nonsense, rule-breaking cop who gets caught up investigating a case in which the Italian mob is bringing drugs into America with the help of a French heroin-smuggling syndicate. But this isn't an open-and-shut case. The lawmen are seemingly foiled at every turn, and things end on a shocking, bleak note. It's an amazing movie with one of the best chase sequences ever captured on film. "The French Connection" was released nearly 53 years ago, which means many of its cast members have left us, along with director Friedkin, who died last year. But a few are still around. So here are the only major actors still alive from "The French Connection."
Read more: The 20 Best Detective Movies Ranked
Gene...
Read more: The 20 Best Detective Movies Ranked
Gene...
- 2/17/2024
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
Francis Ford Coppola‘s 1974 masterpiece “The Conversation” will be remade as a TV series, with “Margin Call” and “All Is Lost” filmmaker J.C. Chandor attached to both write and direct the series, IndieWire has confirmed.
Chandor will direct via his CounterNarrative Films banner alongside Temple Hill, producer Adam Fishbach, and executive produced by Coppola’s American Zoetrope. Erin Levy, known for her work on “Mad Men” and “Mindhunter,” will be the showrunner on “The Conversation” remake.
MRC is the studio behind the series, and the company optioned the TV remake rights directly from the Coppola estate.
Despite a rumor that Aubrey Plaza was attached to star, no cast is involved at this stage, as a source close to the project tells IndieWire. Other media reports suggested it would be a limited series and that it was set up at a network, but it is being envisioned as an ongoing series,...
Chandor will direct via his CounterNarrative Films banner alongside Temple Hill, producer Adam Fishbach, and executive produced by Coppola’s American Zoetrope. Erin Levy, known for her work on “Mad Men” and “Mindhunter,” will be the showrunner on “The Conversation” remake.
MRC is the studio behind the series, and the company optioned the TV remake rights directly from the Coppola estate.
Despite a rumor that Aubrey Plaza was attached to star, no cast is involved at this stage, as a source close to the project tells IndieWire. Other media reports suggested it would be a limited series and that it was set up at a network, but it is being envisioned as an ongoing series,...
- 2/2/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
Updated: “The Offer,” Paramount’s limited series about the making of Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather,” came and went in 2022 to barely any fanfare. But instead of another making-of series, Indiewire confirms reports that MRC, the studio behind the series, wants to do a series remake of Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Conversation.” What’s more, there’s a director attached, J.C.
Continue reading Jc Chandor Is Remaking Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘The Conversation’ Into A Series at The Playlist.
Continue reading Jc Chandor Is Remaking Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘The Conversation’ Into A Series at The Playlist.
- 2/2/2024
- by Ned Booth
- The Playlist
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For regular updates, sign up for our weekly email newsletter and follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSEvil Does Not Exist.We are saddened to learn that Issue 97 will be Cinema Scope’s last in its current form. To “do something valuable in this field,” editor and publisher Mark Peranson writes, “one needs creative freedom.” This is exactly what, for twenty-five years and just under 100 issues, Cinema Scope was able to provide, offering a space that allowed, per Peranson, “a certain kind of filmmaker’s work to be treated with the intellect and respect they deserve.” The print issue is on its way to subscribers now, and its entire contents—including interviews with Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Rodrigo Moreno, and Alex Ross Perry—can also be read online.Sandra Milo has died at the age of 90. She starred in Federico Fellini’s 8½ (1963) and Juliet of the Spirits...
- 1/31/2024
- MUBI
Gene Hackman is one of the most versatile and accomplished character actors on film and is appreciated by critics and audiences for his clean, no-nonsense style of acting. In his film work, Hackman was famed for the every-man quality to his work with which audiences of all types could identify which he demonstrated in the more than 80 films in which he appeared.
Throughout his film career which lasted more than half a century, Hackman’s subtle work has been showered with honors. He has won two Academy Awards (for 1971’s “The French Connection” with William Friedkin and 1992’s “Unforgiven” with Clint Eastwood) from five nominations. He has been given an honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes, while winning three competitive Globes from eight total nominations and is a Screen Actors Guild Award winner from his two nominations.
After appearing in 2004’s “Welcome to Mooseport,” Hackman announced that...
Throughout his film career which lasted more than half a century, Hackman’s subtle work has been showered with honors. He has won two Academy Awards (for 1971’s “The French Connection” with William Friedkin and 1992’s “Unforgiven” with Clint Eastwood) from five nominations. He has been given an honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes, while winning three competitive Globes from eight total nominations and is a Screen Actors Guild Award winner from his two nominations.
After appearing in 2004’s “Welcome to Mooseport,” Hackman announced that...
- 1/26/2024
- by Tom O'Brien, Misty Holland and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Warning: contains plot spoilers for The Boy and the Heron.
The English-language title of Hayao Miyazaki’s latest feature at Studio Ghibli is misleadingly simple. The Boy and the Heron suggests an Aesop-like fable in the vein of The Ant and the Grasshopper or The Hare and the Fox. The film itself has nothing like the clarity of a fable. It’s crowded, at times to the point of narrative incoherence, with enchanting but mystifying episodes that elude a single reading.
It’s the story of Mahito, a boy in 1940s Tokyo who loses his mother in a wartime fire. A year later, his father remarries her sister and starts a new family, moving them out to the aunt’s childhood countryside home. There, Mahito is plagued by a menacing heron who lures him to a mysterious tower built by his grand-uncle with the promise of seeing his mother alive.
The English-language title of Hayao Miyazaki’s latest feature at Studio Ghibli is misleadingly simple. The Boy and the Heron suggests an Aesop-like fable in the vein of The Ant and the Grasshopper or The Hare and the Fox. The film itself has nothing like the clarity of a fable. It’s crowded, at times to the point of narrative incoherence, with enchanting but mystifying episodes that elude a single reading.
It’s the story of Mahito, a boy in 1940s Tokyo who loses his mother in a wartime fire. A year later, his father remarries her sister and starts a new family, moving them out to the aunt’s childhood countryside home. There, Mahito is plagued by a menacing heron who lures him to a mysterious tower built by his grand-uncle with the promise of seeing his mother alive.
- 1/19/2024
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
1974 was quite a year for cinema; 50 years later, Netflix (of all places) is celebrating the golden jubilee.
In recognition of the anniversary, the streamer on Wednesday launched a new, dedicated content row (and direct URL link) with the first films being honored under its new “Milestone Movies: The Anniversary Collection” banner. Each of the 14 films came to Netflix this month by way of Warner Bros., Paramount, or Sony — the distributors that license content to Netflix.
The 1974 collection includes “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” “Black Belt Jones,” “Blazing Saddles,” “California Split,” “Chinatown,” “The Conversation,” “Death Wish,” “The Gambler,” “The Great Gatsby,” “It’s Alive,” “The Little Prince,” “The Lords of Flatbush,” “The Parallax View,” and “The Street Fighter” (“Gekitotsu! Satsujin ken”).
Netflix doesn’t plan to stop with disco’s heyday. In April, the streaming service will do the same for films from 1984 (turning 40); July will celebrate 1994 movies (turning 30); and in October...
In recognition of the anniversary, the streamer on Wednesday launched a new, dedicated content row (and direct URL link) with the first films being honored under its new “Milestone Movies: The Anniversary Collection” banner. Each of the 14 films came to Netflix this month by way of Warner Bros., Paramount, or Sony — the distributors that license content to Netflix.
The 1974 collection includes “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” “Black Belt Jones,” “Blazing Saddles,” “California Split,” “Chinatown,” “The Conversation,” “Death Wish,” “The Gambler,” “The Great Gatsby,” “It’s Alive,” “The Little Prince,” “The Lords of Flatbush,” “The Parallax View,” and “The Street Fighter” (“Gekitotsu! Satsujin ken”).
Netflix doesn’t plan to stop with disco’s heyday. In April, the streaming service will do the same for films from 1984 (turning 40); July will celebrate 1994 movies (turning 30); and in October...
- 1/17/2024
- by Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
Harrison Ford in “Shrinking,” now streaming on Apple TV+. The Critics Choice Association (Cca) announced today that legendary actor Harrison Ford will receive the Career Achievement Award at the 29th annual Critics Choice Awards. The awards show, hosted by Chelsea Handler, will broadcast Live on The CW on Sunday, January 14, 2024. Ford currently stars in Apple TV+’s comedy series Shrinking for which he earned a Critics Choice Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series this year, and stars opposite Helen Mirren in the Yellowstone spinoff series 1923. Ford will next be seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World, alongside Anthony Mackie and Liv Tyler. Harrison Ford has starred in many of the most successful and acclaimed films in cinema history, including the landmark Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises and a total of eight Best Picture Oscar®-nominated movies.
- 1/10/2024
- by Hollywood Outbreak
- HollywoodOutbreak.com
Pictures: Universal Pictures
Netflix kickstarted the year as normal by rotating its library of movies. Among the movies that came to Netflix on December 31st and January 1st were 15 movies from the 1970s considered classics. Here’s a rundown of all those movies that dropped.
The movies seem to come to Netflix through a range of different distributors, including Paramount and Universal Pictures. It comes as Netflix has seemingly been getting greater access to some of the biggest Hollywood studios’ back library of IPs as of late. We’ve seen almost all providers step up their licensing to Netflix in various forms, whether that be through licensing newer movies, older movies like the ones below, or titles from their vast TV catalog.
In alphabetical order, then, here’s a rundown of all the new movies that recently touched down that were first released in the 1970s. Descriptions of each movie...
Netflix kickstarted the year as normal by rotating its library of movies. Among the movies that came to Netflix on December 31st and January 1st were 15 movies from the 1970s considered classics. Here’s a rundown of all those movies that dropped.
The movies seem to come to Netflix through a range of different distributors, including Paramount and Universal Pictures. It comes as Netflix has seemingly been getting greater access to some of the biggest Hollywood studios’ back library of IPs as of late. We’ve seen almost all providers step up their licensing to Netflix in various forms, whether that be through licensing newer movies, older movies like the ones below, or titles from their vast TV catalog.
In alphabetical order, then, here’s a rundown of all the new movies that recently touched down that were first released in the 1970s. Descriptions of each movie...
- 1/3/2024
- by Kasey Moore
- Whats-on-Netflix
Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird" is about as quintessentially American as a classic book can get. The 1960 novel, which is still commonly read in schools today, follows young Alabaman girl Scout Finch as she endures the trials and tribulations of her pre-teen years -- and witnesses the grim realities of the Jim Crow-era South. Some aspects of "To Kill A Mockingbird" haven't aged perfectly, but the book remains beloved for good reason. It's funny, sharp, and emotional, full of wisdom and harsh truth, and builds a world that's vividly alive.
That world made the leap from the page to the big screen in 1962, when director Robert Mulligan and playwright Horton Foote adapted "To Kill A Mockingbird" as a film. The movie version is indelible in its own right. It's anchored by a precise performance from Gregory Peck, who plays compassionate defense attorney Atticus Finch. In the 60 years since...
That world made the leap from the page to the big screen in 1962, when director Robert Mulligan and playwright Horton Foote adapted "To Kill A Mockingbird" as a film. The movie version is indelible in its own right. It's anchored by a precise performance from Gregory Peck, who plays compassionate defense attorney Atticus Finch. In the 60 years since...
- 12/26/2023
- by Valerie Ettenhofer
- Slash Film
A favorite parlor game for film buffs is to pick Hollywood’s greatest year and then argue. The obvious answer — 1939, the certified Golden Year — always gets the most votes, but a few eccentrics make the case for a dark horse. 1928 was Peter Bogdanovich’s choice, the year that saw the apotheosis of silent film aesthetics before synchronized sound ruined everything. 1974 — Chinatown, Godfather II, The Conversation, et al — draws a lot of ballots. Media critic Brian Raftery emphatically declared 1999 “the Best. Movie. Year. Ever.” in a book with the same title and punctuation. Nothing much past 1999 gets a mandate outside of the more outré precincts of the internet.
But what about Hollywood’s worst year — its annus horribilis maximus? And what are the criteria to measure the depths of badness? The dismal quality of the films? The profit margins of the studios? The level of contempt hurled at Hollywood for being,...
But what about Hollywood’s worst year — its annus horribilis maximus? And what are the criteria to measure the depths of badness? The dismal quality of the films? The profit margins of the studios? The level of contempt hurled at Hollywood for being,...
- 12/23/2023
- by Thomas Doherty
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Renowned three-time Oscar-winning editor Walter Murch — known for films including Apocalypse Now, The Godfather Part II and The English Patient — and respected documentary editor Kate Amend — who cut Academy Award-winning docs Into the Arms of Strangers and The Long Way Home — will receive career achievement awards at the 74th American Cinema Editors Eddie Awards.
During the ceremony, which will be held March 3 at UCLA’s Royce Hall, Ace will also honor Stephen Lovejoy with its Heritage Award for his commitment to advancing the image of the film editor and dedication to the organization.
Murch’s legendary 55-year career as a film editor, sound designer, writer and director began in 1969 when he worked on the sound for Francis Ford Coppola’s The Rain People. His credits include American Graffiti and The Godfather Part II, and he won his first Oscar for the sound in Apocalypse Now, for which he was also nominated as an editor.
During the ceremony, which will be held March 3 at UCLA’s Royce Hall, Ace will also honor Stephen Lovejoy with its Heritage Award for his commitment to advancing the image of the film editor and dedication to the organization.
Murch’s legendary 55-year career as a film editor, sound designer, writer and director began in 1969 when he worked on the sound for Francis Ford Coppola’s The Rain People. His credits include American Graffiti and The Godfather Part II, and he won his first Oscar for the sound in Apocalypse Now, for which he was also nominated as an editor.
- 12/19/2023
- by Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Francis Ford Coppola's bleak Vietnam War picture "Apocalypse Now" is not only one of the best films of 1979, but is handily one of the finest, most important films of its decade. Using Joseph Conrad's 1899 novella "Heart of Darkness" as a template, Copolla transposed the book's action from the late 1800s Congo to the jungles of Cambodia, and, in so doing, exposed the madness and horror of the Vietnam War in harrowing, soul-hollowing terms. As Captain Willars (Martin Sheen) treks deeper and deeper into the chaos of the natural world -- drifting ever closer to the insane, cult-founding rogue Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando) -- reality begins to dissipate. Eventually, madness and violence are all that remain, and war is reduced to its base function: brazen, meaningless destruction and cruelty. "Apocalypse Now" is a great, great film.
Curiously, a lot of war enthusiasts love "Apocalypse Now," seemingly ignoring the film's...
Curiously, a lot of war enthusiasts love "Apocalypse Now," seemingly ignoring the film's...
- 12/18/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
At the time of its 1978 release, "Superman" was one of the most expensive films ever made, boasting a $55 million budget. To tell the story of the famous Man of Steel — an out-of-this-world superhero of immense strength that stood for American values — director Richard Donner's film had to be larger-than-life. The colors were vivid, the airborne special effects were (at the time) groundbreaking, and it had an outstanding cast that truly brought these beloved comic book characters to life and treated them as dynamic individuals.
Christopher Reeve, especially, gives a spectacular performance in the lead role. What he does best is clearly mark the differences and tension between his naive, dweeby alter ego Clark Kent and the formidable Superman. You can literally see and hear the changes in his persona through the way he carries himself and uses his voice. Margot Kidder is his perfect romantic foil as the spunky Lois Lane,...
Christopher Reeve, especially, gives a spectacular performance in the lead role. What he does best is clearly mark the differences and tension between his naive, dweeby alter ego Clark Kent and the formidable Superman. You can literally see and hear the changes in his persona through the way he carries himself and uses his voice. Margot Kidder is his perfect romantic foil as the spunky Lois Lane,...
- 11/30/2023
- by Caroline Madden
- Slash Film
The Conversation
The Conversation, 11.15pm, BBC2, Monday, November 13
Francis Ford Coppola was enjoying a purple patch when he made this gripping psychological thriller between his Oscar-winning Godfathers - and it’s worth remembering that in addition to winning the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar in 1975 for Godfather II, he was also nominated for Best Original Screenplay for this, losing out to Chinatown. The Conversation’s subject of surveillance is ever-green, while its anti-hero Harry Caul is also one for the ages. From the opening slow zoom sequence on the conversation of the title to the sound design from Walter Murch and the jazz-inflected score from David Shire, the craft is classy all round. Look out for Harrison Ford in an early role as a slimeball and a small and uncredited but...
The Conversation, 11.15pm, BBC2, Monday, November 13
Francis Ford Coppola was enjoying a purple patch when he made this gripping psychological thriller between his Oscar-winning Godfathers - and it’s worth remembering that in addition to winning the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar in 1975 for Godfather II, he was also nominated for Best Original Screenplay for this, losing out to Chinatown. The Conversation’s subject of surveillance is ever-green, while its anti-hero Harry Caul is also one for the ages. From the opening slow zoom sequence on the conversation of the title to the sound design from Walter Murch and the jazz-inflected score from David Shire, the craft is classy all round. Look out for Harrison Ford in an early role as a slimeball and a small and uncredited but...
- 11/13/2023
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Sofia Coppola's new film "Priscilla" is a biography of Priscilla Presley, based on her own 1985 book "Elvis & Me," which she wrote with Sandra Harmon. Cailee Spaeny plays Priscilla, while Jacob Elordi plays Elvis Presley, the rock star to whom she was married from 1967 to 1973. Infamously, the pair began dating when Priscilla was 14 years old and Elvis was 24. According to /Film's review of "Priscilla," written by Shae Sennett, Coppola is careful to both celebrate their romance while also criticizing Elvis' lascivious behavior. The film seems to look at the high-profile romance between Elvis and Priscilla with extreme ambivalence, incorporating both the exhilaration of dating a handsome rock star at age 14, while acknowledging the unsavory age gap between the two and the demands on Priscilla Presley to maintain a particular public image.
The criticism of Elvis was not taken very well by the late Lisa Marie Presley, Priscilla and Elvis'...
The criticism of Elvis was not taken very well by the late Lisa Marie Presley, Priscilla and Elvis'...
- 11/4/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
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