More essays have been written about "Citizen Kane" than any other movie (with the possible exceptions of "The Wizard of Oz" and "Star Wars"), so it feels churlish to recount the plot here, but for the uninitiated, however, here's a brief rundown:
A vicious newspaper tycoon named Charles Foster Kane (Welles) has died in bed, locked deep in his massive, palatial mansion. He clutched a snow globe in his hand in his final moments, moved by the sight of the swirling faux weather inside. He enigmatically whispers the word "Rosebud" before perishing. The film then shifts focus to a reporter (William Alland) who spends the film interviewing Kane's associates, wives, and lovers, hoping to get a full portrait of the man. He finds that Kane was a cad ruined by wealth and power. He finds that Kane was possessed of a deep and abiding unhappiness, likely spurred by having to...
A vicious newspaper tycoon named Charles Foster Kane (Welles) has died in bed, locked deep in his massive, palatial mansion. He clutched a snow globe in his hand in his final moments, moved by the sight of the swirling faux weather inside. He enigmatically whispers the word "Rosebud" before perishing. The film then shifts focus to a reporter (William Alland) who spends the film interviewing Kane's associates, wives, and lovers, hoping to get a full portrait of the man. He finds that Kane was a cad ruined by wealth and power. He finds that Kane was possessed of a deep and abiding unhappiness, likely spurred by having to...
- 5/5/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
After making what many people cite as the greatest film ever made, “Citizen Kane” (1941), multi-talented actor, writer, director and producer Orson Welles struggled to live up to the success he achieved when he was just 26 years old. Yet seen today, many of the films he made afterwards have attained a similar acclaim. Let’s take a look back at all 13 of his completed feature films as a director, ranked worst to best.
Born in 1915, Welles first came to prominence as a stage director, mounting groundbreaking productions of “Macbeth,” “Dr. Faustus,” and “The Cradle Will Rock” before forming his own repertory company, The Mercury Theater. In addition to Welles, the Mercury Theater Players included Joseph Cotten, Ray Collins, Agnes Moorhead, Everett Sloane, George Coulouris, Norman Lloyd, Martin Gabel and Paul Stewart, many of whom would go onto appear in the director’s films.
It was the Mercury Theater’s transition into...
Born in 1915, Welles first came to prominence as a stage director, mounting groundbreaking productions of “Macbeth,” “Dr. Faustus,” and “The Cradle Will Rock” before forming his own repertory company, The Mercury Theater. In addition to Welles, the Mercury Theater Players included Joseph Cotten, Ray Collins, Agnes Moorhead, Everett Sloane, George Coulouris, Norman Lloyd, Martin Gabel and Paul Stewart, many of whom would go onto appear in the director’s films.
It was the Mercury Theater’s transition into...
- 5/4/2024
- by Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
"The Billy Crystal Comedy Hour" is likely not remembered by many people, except for Billy Crystal himself. The variety/talk show ran from January 30 through February 27 in 1982, lasting a grand total of five episodes. Crystal was already a successful comedian and beloved figure in the industry thanks to the popularity of his 1970s stand-up work and his role in the 1977 sitcom "Soap," so he had connections. He was able to secure guest appearances from many of his famous comedian friends, including Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, Robin Williams, and John Candy for the debut episode. Subsequent guests included Morgan Fairchild, the Manhattan Transfer, Nell Carter, Shelley Duvall, Cindy Williams, Al Jarreau, and Smokey Robinson.
"The Billy Crystal Comedy Hour" fell right in between "Soap" and "Saturday Night Live" on Crystal's professional timeline, and it might be considered something of a dip in his career. The show was canceled after only two episodes aired,...
"The Billy Crystal Comedy Hour" fell right in between "Soap" and "Saturday Night Live" on Crystal's professional timeline, and it might be considered something of a dip in his career. The show was canceled after only two episodes aired,...
- 4/30/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
George Lucas Nearly Cast a Different Actor as Darth Vader Changing the Flow of the Franchise Forever
Darth Vader is undeniably one of the most iconic fictional characters, known for his menacing black suit and distinctive voice. Many other works of fiction and art make reference to the character, making it a familiar presence.
But, did you know that the role of Vader nearly went to a different actor? One who, at the time, might have been even more preferred than James Earl Jones given the circumstances?
During the late 1970s, while filming ‘A New Hope’ in London, David Prowse, who portrayed Darth Vader physically, delivered all of Vader’s lines from behind the mask. However, the mask muffled his speech, necessitating dubbing in post-production. Prowse initially expected to dub his own lines, but logistical issues and concerns about his accent prompted George Lucas to seek another voice. Lucas sought a deep, distinguished voice befitting the enigmatic Darth Vader. Ultimately, James Earl Jones, then a relatively unknown actor,...
But, did you know that the role of Vader nearly went to a different actor? One who, at the time, might have been even more preferred than James Earl Jones given the circumstances?
During the late 1970s, while filming ‘A New Hope’ in London, David Prowse, who portrayed Darth Vader physically, delivered all of Vader’s lines from behind the mask. However, the mask muffled his speech, necessitating dubbing in post-production. Prowse initially expected to dub his own lines, but logistical issues and concerns about his accent prompted George Lucas to seek another voice. Lucas sought a deep, distinguished voice befitting the enigmatic Darth Vader. Ultimately, James Earl Jones, then a relatively unknown actor,...
- 4/25/2024
- by Valentina Kraljik
- Fiction Horizon
Darth Vader is without a doubt one of the most iconic fictional characters, recognized by his ominous black suit and his voice. Plenty of other works of fiction and art reference the character, and it’s one of those references we can always easily spot.
But, did you know that the iconic role almost went to a completely different actor? The one that at the time would be perhaps even favored above James Earl Jones under the circumstances?
While filming ‘A New Hope’ in London during the late 1970s, David Prowse, the actor behind Darth Vader’s physical performance, spoke all of Vader’s lines from behind the mask. However, due to the mask muffling his speech, his lines had to be dubbed over in post-production. Prowse assumed he would do the dubbing himself, but logistical and accent concerns led George Lucas to search for another voice. Lucas sought a deep,...
But, did you know that the iconic role almost went to a completely different actor? The one that at the time would be perhaps even favored above James Earl Jones under the circumstances?
While filming ‘A New Hope’ in London during the late 1970s, David Prowse, the actor behind Darth Vader’s physical performance, spoke all of Vader’s lines from behind the mask. However, due to the mask muffling his speech, his lines had to be dubbed over in post-production. Prowse assumed he would do the dubbing himself, but logistical and accent concerns led George Lucas to search for another voice. Lucas sought a deep,...
- 4/25/2024
- by Valentina Kraljik
- Comic Basics
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
I am of that age that still thinks the 80s was 30 years ago and that the 90s just happened. Strange as that logic is, there’s nothing like movie anniversaries to pull me back into reality. Last episode we looked at In the Mouth of Madness and its impact now going strong 30 years later. That flick though, like most of John Carpenter’s catalogue, was something that was already out when I started my movie journey. I had already seen it on VHS and on TV from time to time which puts it in another category altogether. Move ahead just 5 short years to 1999, one of the greatest years in cinema history, and we start getting that 25 years of existence that puts that nice existential crisis right into my gut. Today we are going to look at one of those movies that probably isn’t considered a traditional horror movie but is absolutely horrific in nature.
- 3/28/2024
- by Andrew Hatfield
- JoBlo.com
A special piece of cinema history has been unveiled. Seven years before Orson Welles would embark on the production of his legendary directorial debut Citizen Kane, he shot one of his earliest short films, capturing his production of William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. The year was 1933 and Welles, only 17 years old, returned to his alma mater, the Todd Seminary for Boys, an independent school in Woodstock, Illinois. Under the tutelage of headmaster and mentor Roger Hill, who encouraged Welles to freely experiment with theatrical and radio productions, he mounted the project.
Now, nearly a century later, around 10 minutes of surviving color footage with sound has been digitized, graciously released by Wellesnet, who acquired it from Roger Hill’s granddaughter Wendy Hill and her cousin Todd Tarbox, who holds the copyright. “My father, Hascy, was cast as Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and my mother, Joanne, played Viola,” Tarbox told Wellesnet. “This production...
Now, nearly a century later, around 10 minutes of surviving color footage with sound has been digitized, graciously released by Wellesnet, who acquired it from Roger Hill’s granddaughter Wendy Hill and her cousin Todd Tarbox, who holds the copyright. “My father, Hascy, was cast as Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and my mother, Joanne, played Viola,” Tarbox told Wellesnet. “This production...
- 3/27/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
There were movies about the Holocaust long before "Schindler's List." Superb movies. George Stevens' "The Diary of Anne Frank," Stanley Kramer's "Judgment at Nuremberg," Alan J. Pakula's "Sophie's Choice," and Paul Mazursky's "Enemies, a Love Story" (to name but a few) grappled with this staggeringly evil, carefully coordinated campaign of genocide so that moviegoers could, hopefully, comprehend how ordinary people could become bigoted, bloodthirsty monsters. The answers weren't comforting, but we couldn't move forward as a species without them.
Aside from the "how," there was another agonizing question that needed to be answered, one that was not as easy to dramatize: why didn't more people step up to stop this?
It doesn't take a great deal of research to realize that most good people were paralyzed by a mixture of cowardice and self-preservation. And while it is vital that we keep hammering home this observation for future generations,...
Aside from the "how," there was another agonizing question that needed to be answered, one that was not as easy to dramatize: why didn't more people step up to stop this?
It doesn't take a great deal of research to realize that most good people were paralyzed by a mixture of cowardice and self-preservation. And while it is vital that we keep hammering home this observation for future generations,...
- 3/5/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
The glut of movie podcasts makes it hard to prioritize any single show. But there’s been unique pleasure in One Handshake Away, which allows directors to reflect on titans of yesteryear who host Peter Bogdanovich once interviewed––supplemented by audio of those decades-old conversations and creating a wild bridge in film history. Drawing direct paths from Alfred Hitchcock to Guillermo del Toro, Orson Welles to Rian Johnson, Don Siegel to Quentin Tarantino, it emphasizes just how quickly cinema history could be collapsed by a figure of Bogdanovich’s experience and just how much was lost with his passing.
The latest episode picks up from Bogdanovich’s passing. Guillermo del Toro’s now on hosting duties and his guest is Greta Gerwig, who discusses the films of Howard Hawks and their influence on her work––particularly the John Barrymore and Barbara Stanwyck performances that informed Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie in Barbie.
The latest episode picks up from Bogdanovich’s passing. Guillermo del Toro’s now on hosting duties and his guest is Greta Gerwig, who discusses the films of Howard Hawks and their influence on her work––particularly the John Barrymore and Barbara Stanwyck performances that informed Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie in Barbie.
- 2/29/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Le chinoise.Most serious writing about Jean-Luc Godard tends to be both high-flown and forbidding, rather like the films it’s discussing. Translations from French to English or vice versa can make things even dicier. But according to the literary scholar Fredric Jameson, who contributes an enthusiastic preface and afterword, Reading with Jean-Luc Godard—a compendium of 109 three-page essays by 50 writers from a dozen countries, announced as the first in a series—launches “a new form” and “a new genre.”The brevity of each entry tends to confirm Jameson’s claim. The book can be described as an audience-friendly volume designed to occupy the same space between academia and journalism staked out by Notebook while proposing routes into Godard’s work provided by his eclectic reading—a batch of writers ranged alphabetically and intellectually from Louis Aragon, Robert Ardrey, Hannah Arendt, and Honoré de Balzac to François Truffaut, Paul Valéry,...
- 1/30/2024
- MUBI
“Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within…and whatever walked there, walked alone.” – Shirley Jackson, The Haunting of Hill House (1959).
Of all the subgenres of horror, the haunted house story has provided the most opportunities for slow and subtle terror that creeps and crawls its way under the skin and into the psyche. The Old Dark House (1932), The Uninvited (1944), The Innocents (1961), Burnt Offerings (1976), and The Changeling (1980) stand among the best that not only the haunted house film, but all of horror have to offer. For many, the absolute pinnacle of these films is Robert Wise’s 1963 masterpiece of suggestive horror The Haunting. Based on the novel The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, the film owes much to the influences of the past while still carving a way toward the future, is populated by rich and relatable characters, and is a deeply felt...
Of all the subgenres of horror, the haunted house story has provided the most opportunities for slow and subtle terror that creeps and crawls its way under the skin and into the psyche. The Old Dark House (1932), The Uninvited (1944), The Innocents (1961), Burnt Offerings (1976), and The Changeling (1980) stand among the best that not only the haunted house film, but all of horror have to offer. For many, the absolute pinnacle of these films is Robert Wise’s 1963 masterpiece of suggestive horror The Haunting. Based on the novel The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, the film owes much to the influences of the past while still carving a way toward the future, is populated by rich and relatable characters, and is a deeply felt...
- 11/28/2023
- by Brian Keiper
- bloody-disgusting.com
Top: Napoleon (Gaumont), Middle: Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure (Orion Pictures), Bottom: Napoleon Bunny-Part (Warner Bros. Pictures)Graphic: The A.V. Club
Napoleon Bonaparte died on May 21, 1821, but the iconic French emperor has lived on (and on and on) in numerous movies and television shows. Esteemed director Ridley Scott, who...
Napoleon Bonaparte died on May 21, 1821, but the iconic French emperor has lived on (and on and on) in numerous movies and television shows. Esteemed director Ridley Scott, who...
- 11/24/2023
- by Ian Spelling
- avclub.com
Adapted from Larry McMurtry’s bittersweet 1966 novel of the same name by McMurtry and director Peter Bogdanovich, The Last Picture Show delineates the quiet, desperate lives of the citizens of Anarene, Texas, from November 1951 to October 1952. The film is a pure Janus-headed product of the New Hollywood. Bogdanovich pours the new wine of sexual frankness available to filmmakers after the inauguration of the MPAA ratings system into old bottles borrowed from the cellars of classic Hollywood cinema, namely those older films’ expressive visual grammar and obliquely suggestive dialogue.
As an erstwhile film critic and historian, Bogdanovich drew formal and technical inspiration from his years spent programming films from Hollywood’s Golden Age at MoMA. He also solicited advice from houseguest Orson Welles when it came to shooting the film in black and white, and employing long, unbroken takes rather than break up important scenes. As Welles reportedly put it:...
As an erstwhile film critic and historian, Bogdanovich drew formal and technical inspiration from his years spent programming films from Hollywood’s Golden Age at MoMA. He also solicited advice from houseguest Orson Welles when it came to shooting the film in black and white, and employing long, unbroken takes rather than break up important scenes. As Welles reportedly put it:...
- 11/15/2023
- by Budd Wilkins
- Slant Magazine
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It was only a few days ago that the Criterion Collection had a surprise flash sale. The home video company’s entire catalog was slashed down to 50% off list prices. While that sale only lasted for 24 hours, there are a number of titles that are still on sale for half-off at Amazon.
We rounded up the best deals on Criterion Collection releases, including Spike Lee’s “Do The Right Thing,” Dennis Hopper’s “Easy Rider,” Whit Stillman’s “The Last Days of Disco” and much more. In fact, even a few boxed sets are half off, such as Krzysztof Kieślowski’s “The Dekalog” and Steve McQueen’s “Small Axe” anthology.
Ahead, check out the best Criterion Blu-ray discs currently on sale for 50% off at Amazon:
‘Do the Right Thing...
It was only a few days ago that the Criterion Collection had a surprise flash sale. The home video company’s entire catalog was slashed down to 50% off list prices. While that sale only lasted for 24 hours, there are a number of titles that are still on sale for half-off at Amazon.
We rounded up the best deals on Criterion Collection releases, including Spike Lee’s “Do The Right Thing,” Dennis Hopper’s “Easy Rider,” Whit Stillman’s “The Last Days of Disco” and much more. In fact, even a few boxed sets are half off, such as Krzysztof Kieślowski’s “The Dekalog” and Steve McQueen’s “Small Axe” anthology.
Ahead, check out the best Criterion Blu-ray discs currently on sale for 50% off at Amazon:
‘Do the Right Thing...
- 10/20/2023
- by Anna Tingley and Rudie Obias
- Variety Film + TV
Franz Kafka’s The Trial seems straightforward enough as you read it, and yet the words don’t quite seem to take you anywhere. There’s an effect in the novel of dense nothingness: Kafka’s brilliance was for a pared-down prose with complex resonances that deliberately strand the reader. In a 1998 English translation issued by Schocken Books Inc., the translator in his preface discusses the thorniness of recreating in English from German how the word “assault” is used in various tenses to link the protagonist’s slander, his arrest, and his relationship to a typist. One could spend years attempting to parse the bottomless intricacies of The Trial, and people have. Kafka achieved a prose that deconstructs the convoluted legalese that societies adapt in an effort to divorce situations from common sense and decency via labyrinths of language, and thus controlling the populace.
Orson Welles is a counterintuitive fit for The Trial,...
Orson Welles is a counterintuitive fit for The Trial,...
- 9/20/2023
- by Chuck Bowen
- Slant Magazine
Surprise! Legendary director Barbet Schroeder, in Locarno to introduce his latest doc “Ricardo and Painting,” was greeted with a Special Tribute Award before the screening.
“Is this for the film?” Shroeder, a modest man, asked on stage. “No,” said Locarno festival director Giona Nazzaro. “It’s for being Barbet Schroeder.”
Despite focusing on harsher subjects in his previous documentaries, “General Idi Amin Dada: A Self Portrait,” “Terror’s Advocate” or “The Venerable W.,” this time Schroeder decided to follow painter Ricardo Cavallo.
“I have already done my ‘Trilogy of Evil.’ I could continue: the world is full of bad people. But then there was this friend of mine, who I thought was such a good person,” he tells Variety.
Cavallo, convinced that “true life exists in creation,” could teach anyone how to change their way of seeing, claims Schroeder, sacrificing everything for his art.
“I am always interested in my characters,...
“Is this for the film?” Shroeder, a modest man, asked on stage. “No,” said Locarno festival director Giona Nazzaro. “It’s for being Barbet Schroeder.”
Despite focusing on harsher subjects in his previous documentaries, “General Idi Amin Dada: A Self Portrait,” “Terror’s Advocate” or “The Venerable W.,” this time Schroeder decided to follow painter Ricardo Cavallo.
“I have already done my ‘Trilogy of Evil.’ I could continue: the world is full of bad people. But then there was this friend of mine, who I thought was such a good person,” he tells Variety.
Cavallo, convinced that “true life exists in creation,” could teach anyone how to change their way of seeing, claims Schroeder, sacrificing everything for his art.
“I am always interested in my characters,...
- 8/5/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: The hammer just went down over the weekend on the one and only Oscar win for Citizen Kane, a 1941 movie many still consider the crown jewel of Hollywood, the greatest ever made.
In a Heritage Auctioneers “Hollywood Entertainment” auction that among many other items featured several from the career of Kane’s star, director and co-writer Orson Welles, the prize get was his 1941 Oscar for Original Screenplay that he shared with Herman Mankiewicz. Of the film’s nine nominations including Picture, Director and Actor for Welles, it was the single victory for the movie (How Green Was My Valley won Best Picture). The Welles statuette had a starting bid of $250,000 and sold to an unknown bidder for $645,000 (inclusive of buyer’s premium).
It, uh, gets a little complicated from there.
Heritage Auctions
This is not the original Oscar statuette that Welles — who didn’t even attend the actual ceremony — won.
In a Heritage Auctioneers “Hollywood Entertainment” auction that among many other items featured several from the career of Kane’s star, director and co-writer Orson Welles, the prize get was his 1941 Oscar for Original Screenplay that he shared with Herman Mankiewicz. Of the film’s nine nominations including Picture, Director and Actor for Welles, it was the single victory for the movie (How Green Was My Valley won Best Picture). The Welles statuette had a starting bid of $250,000 and sold to an unknown bidder for $645,000 (inclusive of buyer’s premium).
It, uh, gets a little complicated from there.
Heritage Auctions
This is not the original Oscar statuette that Welles — who didn’t even attend the actual ceremony — won.
- 7/30/2023
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Christopher Nolan is one of the most acclaimed and influential filmmakers of our time. His movies are known for their complex narratives, stunning visuals, and innovative use of sound and music. But what are the movies that inspire and influence him? In this article, we will explore some of the films that Nolan has recommended or praised in various interviews and podcasts. Whether you are a fan of his work or just curious about his cinematic tastes, this article will help you discover some great movies that you may not have seen before.
There Will Be Blood (2007) There will be Blood Source : Mubi
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, this epic drama tells the story of a ruthless oil tycoon (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his conflict with a charismatic preacher (Paul Dano) in early 20th century California. Nolan said that this is “an excellent film” and “Paul’s best”, referring to the director.
There Will Be Blood (2007) There will be Blood Source : Mubi
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, this epic drama tells the story of a ruthless oil tycoon (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his conflict with a charismatic preacher (Paul Dano) in early 20th century California. Nolan said that this is “an excellent film” and “Paul’s best”, referring to the director.
- 7/23/2023
- by amalprasadappu
- https://thecinemanews.online/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/IMG_4649
The Venice Film Festival will pay tribute to late Italian icon Gina Lollobrigida, who died in January, with a pre-opening event featuring a double bill of freshly restored works in which she stars.
The Lido’s annual pre-opening event on Aug. 29 will feature a 27-minute short by Orson Welles titled “Portrait of Gina.” In 1968, Welles interviewed Lollobrigida in her villa on the Appian Way as the pilot for an ABC TV series — a U.S. version of “Around the World With Orson Welles”– that ABC rejected.
Welles’ portrait of the diva remained in the vaults until 1986, when it was screened at the Venice Film Festival one year after Orson Welles’ death. This piece has been defined by Welles as a “personal essay” on Lollobrigida. Interestingly, when Lollobrigida saw “Portrait of Gina” in Venice in 1986, she reportedly tried to have it banned. The short’s restoration was done by the Munich...
The Lido’s annual pre-opening event on Aug. 29 will feature a 27-minute short by Orson Welles titled “Portrait of Gina.” In 1968, Welles interviewed Lollobrigida in her villa on the Appian Way as the pilot for an ABC TV series — a U.S. version of “Around the World With Orson Welles”– that ABC rejected.
Welles’ portrait of the diva remained in the vaults until 1986, when it was screened at the Venice Film Festival one year after Orson Welles’ death. This piece has been defined by Welles as a “personal essay” on Lollobrigida. Interestingly, when Lollobrigida saw “Portrait of Gina” in Venice in 1986, she reportedly tried to have it banned. The short’s restoration was done by the Munich...
- 7/18/2023
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
In this critically agile film, Hitchcock supposedly narrates from beyond the grave, using movie clips to reveal techniques and meanings in his work
Only a cinephile as passionate as Mark Cousins could have got away with this film, in all its hilarious presumption and cheek. It is a study of Alfred Hitchcock’s work, illustrated with clips chosen with tremendous insight and connoisseurship – and supposedly narrated from beyond the grave by Hitchcock himself, pointing out techniques, resonances, images, meanings and occasionally breaking off to check something with Cousins who will answer, off-mic: “Yes Mr Hitchcock.”
However, the script is Cousins’ own and the master himself is faked by the comic Alistair McGowan, whose vocal impersonation is just so eerily good that after a while I thought Cousins really had made this by sitting alone in some darkened Edwardian parlour with his tape recorder and Ouija board. But of course the...
Only a cinephile as passionate as Mark Cousins could have got away with this film, in all its hilarious presumption and cheek. It is a study of Alfred Hitchcock’s work, illustrated with clips chosen with tremendous insight and connoisseurship – and supposedly narrated from beyond the grave by Hitchcock himself, pointing out techniques, resonances, images, meanings and occasionally breaking off to check something with Cousins who will answer, off-mic: “Yes Mr Hitchcock.”
However, the script is Cousins’ own and the master himself is faked by the comic Alistair McGowan, whose vocal impersonation is just so eerily good that after a while I thought Cousins really had made this by sitting alone in some darkened Edwardian parlour with his tape recorder and Ouija board. But of course the...
- 7/18/2023
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
This post contains spoilers for "Succession" season 4, episode 9, "Church and State."
A funeral can be a last chance for closure. In the penultimate episode of "Succession," the series finally answered a lingering question about Logan Roy (Brian Cox).
Logan was not the type of man to open up, but since season 2, episode 8, "Dundee," we've known that he once had a little sister named Rose. Some of sort tragedy befell her and Logan blamed himself for it. Logan's brother Ewan, (James Cromwell), feels that his brother's feelings of responsibility were misplaced; Rose's death is one of the few things that Ewan doesn't hold against Logan. And now, we know that Logan's will included a request that he be buried with a picture of Rose in his coat pocket.
Fans of "Succession" had latched onto the mystery of what happened to Rose, and how it might have shaped the Logan we've come to know.
A funeral can be a last chance for closure. In the penultimate episode of "Succession," the series finally answered a lingering question about Logan Roy (Brian Cox).
Logan was not the type of man to open up, but since season 2, episode 8, "Dundee," we've known that he once had a little sister named Rose. Some of sort tragedy befell her and Logan blamed himself for it. Logan's brother Ewan, (James Cromwell), feels that his brother's feelings of responsibility were misplaced; Rose's death is one of the few things that Ewan doesn't hold against Logan. And now, we know that Logan's will included a request that he be buried with a picture of Rose in his coat pocket.
Fans of "Succession" had latched onto the mystery of what happened to Rose, and how it might have shaped the Logan we've come to know.
- 5/22/2023
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
Have you ever been in awe of a masterful feat of storytelling? Orson Welles was an artist like no other when it came to captivating his audience with his movies and plays. If you love film and theater, then you will want to learn about the life and legacy of the incredible Orson Welles.
In this article, we’ll take a look at the career of this great director, actor, writer and producer who left behind a timeless legacy. We’ll explore his works, delve into the context that inspired them and discuss the continued relevance of his art today.
From ‘Citizen Kane’ to ‘The War of the Worlds’, this is your comprehensive guide to understanding why Orson Welles is still remembered as one of the greats in entertainment history.
Who Was Orson Welles?
Who was Orson Welles? He was an American actor, director and screenwriter. He’s best known...
In this article, we’ll take a look at the career of this great director, actor, writer and producer who left behind a timeless legacy. We’ll explore his works, delve into the context that inspired them and discuss the continued relevance of his art today.
From ‘Citizen Kane’ to ‘The War of the Worlds’, this is your comprehensive guide to understanding why Orson Welles is still remembered as one of the greats in entertainment history.
Who Was Orson Welles?
Who was Orson Welles? He was an American actor, director and screenwriter. He’s best known...
- 3/22/2023
- by Movies Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
NYC Weekend Watch is our weekly round-up of repertory offerings.
Roxy Cinema
Dressed to Kill and Chabrol’s The Champagne Murders have 35mm showings; Mary Bronstein’s Yeast, starring a young Greta Gerwig, screens on Friday.
Film Forum
A Jeanne Moreau retrospective brings films by Antonioni, Fassbinder, Truffaut, Welles and more; Lou Ye’s Suzhou River and Una Vita Difficile continue showing in a 4K restorations while The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T plays this Sunday.
Museum of the Moving Image
A series on snubs brings films by David Lynch, Todd Haynes, the Safdies, and Rebecca Hall.
Film at Lincoln Center
Claire Denis’ masterful first feature Chocolat has been restored in 4K and continues its run.
IFC Center
Fight Club, Cruel Intentions, and Jaws have screenings, while Body of Evidence plays on 35mm.
The post NYC Weekend Watch: Dressed to Kill, La Notte, Safe & More first appeared on The Film Stage.
Roxy Cinema
Dressed to Kill and Chabrol’s The Champagne Murders have 35mm showings; Mary Bronstein’s Yeast, starring a young Greta Gerwig, screens on Friday.
Film Forum
A Jeanne Moreau retrospective brings films by Antonioni, Fassbinder, Truffaut, Welles and more; Lou Ye’s Suzhou River and Una Vita Difficile continue showing in a 4K restorations while The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T plays this Sunday.
Museum of the Moving Image
A series on snubs brings films by David Lynch, Todd Haynes, the Safdies, and Rebecca Hall.
Film at Lincoln Center
Claire Denis’ masterful first feature Chocolat has been restored in 4K and continues its run.
IFC Center
Fight Club, Cruel Intentions, and Jaws have screenings, while Body of Evidence plays on 35mm.
The post NYC Weekend Watch: Dressed to Kill, La Notte, Safe & More first appeared on The Film Stage.
- 3/10/2023
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Bert I. Gordon, the sci-fi director who aimed to terrify drive-in denizens of the 1950s and ’60s with low-budget films featuring colossal creatures, shrinking humans and radioactive monsters, has died. He was 100.
Gordon died Wednesday in Los Angeles of complications from a fall in his Beverly Hills home, his daughter Patricia Gordon told The Hollywood Reporter.
Highlights (lowlights?) on his B-movie résumé include The Cyclops (1957), The Amazing Colossal Man (1957), Beginning of the End (1957), Earth vs. the Spider (1958), Attack of the Puppet People (1958), Tormented (1960), The Boy and the Pirates (1960) and Picture Mommy Dead (1966).
In the ’70s, Gordon directed Vince Edwards and Chuck Connors in The Police Connection (1973) and wrote and directed How to Succeed With Sex (1970), Necromancy (1972), The Food of the Gods (1976) and, starring Joan Collins in the muck, Empire of the Ants (1977).
Perhaps as a way to keep costs down, Gordon’s films often were family affairs: His late wife,...
Gordon died Wednesday in Los Angeles of complications from a fall in his Beverly Hills home, his daughter Patricia Gordon told The Hollywood Reporter.
Highlights (lowlights?) on his B-movie résumé include The Cyclops (1957), The Amazing Colossal Man (1957), Beginning of the End (1957), Earth vs. the Spider (1958), Attack of the Puppet People (1958), Tormented (1960), The Boy and the Pirates (1960) and Picture Mommy Dead (1966).
In the ’70s, Gordon directed Vince Edwards and Chuck Connors in The Police Connection (1973) and wrote and directed How to Succeed With Sex (1970), Necromancy (1972), The Food of the Gods (1976) and, starring Joan Collins in the muck, Empire of the Ants (1977).
Perhaps as a way to keep costs down, Gordon’s films often were family affairs: His late wife,...
- 3/9/2023
- by Rhett Bartlett
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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