From feminist films that stand her alongside film-makers such as Jean-Luc Godard to an enigmatic adaptation of Proust, the Belgian director’s rigour and brilliance survive a fascinating body of work
• Chantal Akerman dies aged 65
David Jenkins: celebrating the exquisite cinematic moments of a tremendous talent
Few directors can truly be described as both artist and film-maker, but the Belgian-born Chantal Akerman – who has died at the age of 65 – is one: someone whose creative vision really does straddle both worlds. Perhaps Jean-Luc Godard, who first inspired Akerman, is a rare example of someone who does the same thing, his work effectively and possibly unwillingly now occupying his own middle ground between cinema and video art.
Related: Chantal Akerman, pioneering Belgian film director and theorist, dies aged 65
Continue reading...
• Chantal Akerman dies aged 65
David Jenkins: celebrating the exquisite cinematic moments of a tremendous talent
Few directors can truly be described as both artist and film-maker, but the Belgian-born Chantal Akerman – who has died at the age of 65 – is one: someone whose creative vision really does straddle both worlds. Perhaps Jean-Luc Godard, who first inspired Akerman, is a rare example of someone who does the same thing, his work effectively and possibly unwillingly now occupying his own middle ground between cinema and video art.
Related: Chantal Akerman, pioneering Belgian film director and theorist, dies aged 65
Continue reading...
- 10/6/2015
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Chantal Akerman, a highly influential voice in experimental and feminist cinema, has died unexpectedly
• Peter Bradshaw’s appreciation
David Jenkins: celebrating the exquisite cinematic moments of a tremendous talent
Chantal Akerman, widely considered a leading light of experimental European cinema, and an important influence on directors such as Gus van Sant, Todd Haynes and Michael Haneke, has died at the age of 65.
The death is unexpected: the film-maker was at the Locarno film festival last month with new film No Home Movie, a video essay about her mother, Natalia, an Auschwitz survivor who died in 2014, and whose anxieties were a perennial concern in Akerman’s work.
Continue reading...
• Peter Bradshaw’s appreciation
David Jenkins: celebrating the exquisite cinematic moments of a tremendous talent
Chantal Akerman, widely considered a leading light of experimental European cinema, and an important influence on directors such as Gus van Sant, Todd Haynes and Michael Haneke, has died at the age of 65.
The death is unexpected: the film-maker was at the Locarno film festival last month with new film No Home Movie, a video essay about her mother, Natalia, an Auschwitz survivor who died in 2014, and whose anxieties were a perennial concern in Akerman’s work.
Continue reading...
- 10/6/2015
- by Catherine Shoard
- The Guardian - Film News
Roland Emmerich has fired back at critics of his new Lgbt drama Stonewall, saying he didn't make the movie "only for gay people".
The Independence Day and 2012 director is making a career side-step with the gay rights film, but has found himself under fire for his handling of the story of 1969's Stonewall Riots.
The Lgbt community has taken issue with Emmerich creating a fictional character - Danny (Jeremy Irvine) - to lead the story, as opposed to the real-life trans women and the ethnically diverse people at the heart of the landmark event.
Critical reviews have also been scathing in the wake of Stonewall's Toronto Film Festival premiere last week.
Variety's Peter Debruge said of the drama: "Disaster maven Roland Emmerich treats a seminal event in the gay pride movement as the mere backdrop to the otherwise vanilla story of a homeless Indiana teen looking for community in New York City.
The Independence Day and 2012 director is making a career side-step with the gay rights film, but has found himself under fire for his handling of the story of 1969's Stonewall Riots.
The Lgbt community has taken issue with Emmerich creating a fictional character - Danny (Jeremy Irvine) - to lead the story, as opposed to the real-life trans women and the ethnically diverse people at the heart of the landmark event.
Critical reviews have also been scathing in the wake of Stonewall's Toronto Film Festival premiere last week.
Variety's Peter Debruge said of the drama: "Disaster maven Roland Emmerich treats a seminal event in the gay pride movement as the mere backdrop to the otherwise vanilla story of a homeless Indiana teen looking for community in New York City.
- 9/23/2015
- Digital Spy
Rockstar Games isn't a fan of BBC's The Gamechangers - the Grand Theft Auto drama that starred Daniel Radcliffe and Bill Paxman - calling it "random, made-up bollocks" in the wake of its airing last night (September 16) - and some critics weren't much kinder.
Reception has been mixed. Mainstream outlets like The Telegraph gave it four stars and praised Radcliffe's "excellent" performance, while Digital Spy said it was a "tense, nostalgic drama" - but on the other hand, specialist gaming press Kotaku branded it a "Titanic disappointment", while Eurogamer called it "weird and meaningless".
Tom Eames - Digital Spy
"Sam Houser is depicted as a Mark Zuckerberg-type producer who becomes blinded by success and seeing his vision through so much that he almost loses everything. Radcliffe has surely almost shaken off the Harry Potter tag by now, as he gives another brilliant performance to follow projects such as What If...
Reception has been mixed. Mainstream outlets like The Telegraph gave it four stars and praised Radcliffe's "excellent" performance, while Digital Spy said it was a "tense, nostalgic drama" - but on the other hand, specialist gaming press Kotaku branded it a "Titanic disappointment", while Eurogamer called it "weird and meaningless".
Tom Eames - Digital Spy
"Sam Houser is depicted as a Mark Zuckerberg-type producer who becomes blinded by success and seeing his vision through so much that he almost loses everything. Radcliffe has surely almost shaken off the Harry Potter tag by now, as he gives another brilliant performance to follow projects such as What If...
- 9/16/2015
- Digital Spy
Miguel Gomes's Arabian Nights "is not a literal adaptation of The Arabian Nights, it merely adopts its structure, its disposition, and—eventually—its sublime perspicacity," writes Little White Lies editor David Jenkins. "It comes across as a cross-processing of Buñuel's Phantom of Liberty, Pasolini's The Gospel According to St. Matthew and the films of inspirational Portuguese filmmakers, Antonio Reis and Margaret Cordeiro. But even that doesn't quite cover it." We've got the trailer and we're collecting reviews of all three volumes. » - David Hudson...
- 5/22/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
Miguel Gomes's Arabian Nights "is not a literal adaptation of The Arabian Nights, it merely adopts its structure, its disposition, and—eventually—its sublime perspicacity," writes Little White Lies editor David Jenkins. "It comes across as a cross-processing of Buñuel's Phantom of Liberty, Pasolini's The Gospel According to St. Matthew and the films of inspirational Portuguese filmmakers, Antonio Reis and Margaret Cordeiro. But even that doesn't quite cover it." We've got the trailer and we're collecting reviews of all three volumes. » - David Hudson...
- 5/22/2015
- Keyframe
Arnaud Desplechin's My Golden Days (Trois souvenirs de ma jeunesse) is the "marvelously vivid origin story for the hopelessly romantic French academic played by Mathieu Amalric in 1996’s three-hour Gallic gabfest My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument," writes Variety's Justin Chang. All the reviews we've collected so far are positive with extra praise lavished on the leads, newcomers Quentin Dolmaire and Lou Roy-Lecollinet and the "inherently cinematic, the sun-crisped, agile cinematography of Irina Lubtchansky" (David Jenkins, Little White Lies). » - David Hudson...
- 5/16/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
Arnaud Desplechin's My Golden Days (Trois souvenirs de ma jeunesse) is the "marvelously vivid origin story for the hopelessly romantic French academic played by Mathieu Amalric in 1996’s three-hour Gallic gabfest My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument," writes Variety's Justin Chang. All the reviews we've collected so far are positive with extra praise lavished on the leads, newcomers Quentin Dolmaire and Lou Roy-Lecollinet and the "inherently cinematic, the sun-crisped, agile cinematography of Irina Lubtchansky" (David Jenkins, Little White Lies). » - David Hudson...
- 5/16/2015
- Keyframe
"Lurid, lush, and ludicrous," Matteo Garrone's Tale of Tales with Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones and John C. Reilly "works from Giambattista Basile’s 17th century collection of fairy tales of the same name," notes Blake Williams. David Jenkins suggests it's "a gaudy, bawdy descendent to Pier Paolo Pasolini’s trilogy of life." And the Guardian's Peter Bradshaw sees traces of Walerian Borowczyk’s Immoral Tales. "But there’s also a bit of John Boorman’s Excalibur, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Blackadder, The Company of Wolves, the Tenniel illustrations for Alice in Wonderland… and Shrek." We've got more reviews and clips. » - David Hudson...
- 5/14/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
"Lurid, lush, and ludicrous," Matteo Garrone's Tale of Tales with Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones and John C. Reilly "works from Giambattista Basile’s 17th century collection of fairy tales of the same name," notes Blake Williams. David Jenkins suggests it's "a gaudy, bawdy descendent to Pier Paolo Pasolini’s trilogy of life." And the Guardian's Peter Bradshaw sees traces of Walerian Borowczyk’s Immoral Tales. "But there’s also a bit of John Boorman’s Excalibur, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Blackadder, The Company of Wolves, the Tenniel illustrations for Alice in Wonderland… and Shrek." We've got more reviews and clips. » - David Hudson...
- 5/14/2015
- Keyframe
Edited by Adam CookThe first issue of Cinema Scope of 2015 has arrived and with it their annual top ten list, always an endearing straggler. Much of the content is online including an interview with Filipino director Kidlat Tahimik by yours truly and Daniel Kasman, Shelly Kraicer on the cinema of Luo Li, and more. Don Hertzfeldt's latest film, World of Tomorrow, is available on demand via Vimeo. In his latest entry, David Bordwell writes on the "unexpected virtues of long-winded blogging", and shines a spotlight on some of his blog pieces that have found their way into print—as well as some insight into Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Penance:"Penance would be something for young filmmakers to study. It shows how locations can be used elegantly and economically, and how the inability to get extreme long shots in cramped quarters can actually be an advantage. Classrooms, offices, and gymnasiums are used with a sober restraint,...
- 4/1/2015
- by Notebook
- MUBI
In today's roundup of news and views: Joan Didion, half a century ago and more relevant than ever, on Hollywood's diversity problem. Jonathan Romney on "conceptual science fiction" (Chris Marker’s La Jetée, Shane Carruth’s Primer and Upstream Color and, from this year alone, Alex Garland’s Ex Machina, Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig's Predestination and James Ward Byrkit's Coherence). Chuck Bowen ranks the films of David Cronenberg. Daniel Kasman talks with Guy Maddin and co-director Evan Johnson about The Forbidden Room, David Jenkins talks with Jessica Hausner about Amour Fou and Lourdes, and Anne Thompson has a good long talk with Laura Poitras about Citizenfour. » - David Hudson...
- 2/25/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
In today's roundup of news and views: Joan Didion, half a century ago and more relevant than ever, on Hollywood's diversity problem. Jonathan Romney on "conceptual science fiction" (Chris Marker’s La Jetée, Shane Carruth’s Primer and Upstream Color and, from this year alone, Alex Garland’s Ex Machina, Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig's Predestination and James Ward Byrkit's Coherence). Chuck Bowen ranks the films of David Cronenberg. Daniel Kasman talks with Guy Maddin and co-director Evan Johnson about The Forbidden Room, David Jenkins talks with Jessica Hausner about Amour Fou and Lourdes, and Anne Thompson has a good long talk with Laura Poitras about Citizenfour. » - David Hudson...
- 2/25/2015
- Keyframe
An Eric Rohmer season opens today at BFI Southbank and runs through January 27. "Most people know that Rohmer is very French, very chilly, very flat and very static," writes Michael Newton in the Guardian. "However, what most people know is entirely wrong." David Jenkins at Little White Lies argues that The Green Ray (1986) "stands among the headiest pinnacles of modern cinematic art." And Nathan Silver (Exit Elena, Soft in the Head) urges us to catch A Tale of Winter (1992): "We have something here that presents the craziness of love so elegantly and forcefully that it’s necessary viewing for every human interested in matters of the heart (which is most of you, I hope)." » - David Hudson...
- 1/1/2015
- Keyframe
An Eric Rohmer season opens today at BFI Southbank and runs through January 27. "Most people know that Rohmer is very French, very chilly, very flat and very static," writes Michael Newton in the Guardian. "However, what most people know is entirely wrong." David Jenkins at Little White Lies argues that The Green Ray (1986) "stands among the headiest pinnacles of modern cinematic art." And Nathan Silver (Exit Elena, Soft in the Head) urges us to catch A Tale of Winter (1992): "We have something here that presents the craziness of love so elegantly and forcefully that it’s necessary viewing for every human interested in matters of the heart (which is most of you, I hope)." » - David Hudson...
- 1/1/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
Talk about an all-star cast: Kristen Stewart, Michael Fassbender, Daniel Radcliffe, Carey Mulligan, Jake Gyllenhaal, Helen Mirren, Viggo Mortensen, Ryan Gosling and more … all together, between the covers. That is, they share equal billing and page space in What I Love About Movies, a sprightly new compendium that Opus Books is publishing next week, just in time for holiday gift giving. Compiled by David Jenkins, editor of the U.K. movie magazine Little White Lies, and writer-critic Adam Woodward, the book takes one question - "What do you love about movies? - and poses it to 50 different bold-faced names involved in the screen biz.
- 10/30/2014
- by Stephen M. Silverman, @stephenmsilverm
- PEOPLE.com
Talk about an all-star cast: Kristen Stewart, Michael Fassbender, Daniel Radcliffe, Carey Mulligan, Jake Gyllenhaal, Helen Mirren, Viggo Mortensen, Ryan Gosling and more … all together, between the covers. That is, they share equal billing and page space in What I Love About Movies, a sprightly new compendium that Opus Books is publishing next week, just in time for holiday gift giving. Compiled by David Jenkins, editor of the U.K. movie magazine Little White Lies, and writer-critic Adam Woodward, the book takes one question - "What do you love about movies? - and poses it to 50 different bold-faced names involved in the screen biz.
- 10/30/2014
- by Stephen M. Silverman, @stephenmsilverm
- PEOPLE.com
My Darling Clementine
Directed by John Ford
Written by Samuel G. Engel and Winston Miller
USA, 1946
In John Ford’s The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), it is remarked that, “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.” This seems especially apt when it comes to the treatment of the Arizona city Tombstone and the historic western yarn of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, the renowned confrontation between the Clantons on one side and the Earps with John “Doc” Holliday on the other. This famous battle, lasting all of about 30 seconds, took place the afternoon of Oct. 26, 1881, and in recalling this skirmish, multiple variations and interpretations have resulted in a cinematic legend in the making, with repeated appearances of its setting, characters, and actions. When the dust settles, one of the greatest depictions of the event, its decisive individuals, and the surrounding area and occurrences (true or false...
Directed by John Ford
Written by Samuel G. Engel and Winston Miller
USA, 1946
In John Ford’s The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), it is remarked that, “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.” This seems especially apt when it comes to the treatment of the Arizona city Tombstone and the historic western yarn of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, the renowned confrontation between the Clantons on one side and the Earps with John “Doc” Holliday on the other. This famous battle, lasting all of about 30 seconds, took place the afternoon of Oct. 26, 1881, and in recalling this skirmish, multiple variations and interpretations have resulted in a cinematic legend in the making, with repeated appearances of its setting, characters, and actions. When the dust settles, one of the greatest depictions of the event, its decisive individuals, and the surrounding area and occurrences (true or false...
- 10/20/2014
- by Jeremy Carr
- SoundOnSight
John Ford’s My Darling Clementine is a prime example of the Great American Western, embodying all that is good and right and just about this once dominant cinematic genre. Now available in a beautiful new hi-def burn by Criterion, this 70 year old horse opera gleams with new life and luster, preserving in minute detail the sweep and grandeur of Ford’s bedrock moralist visions. My Darling Clementine stands as a testament to Ford’s unique ability to balance the mundane with the monumental in perfectly proportioned tension; his laconic cowpokes equally imperiled by a parched, unforgiving wilderness and the dark designs of its human intruders.
While most scripts strive for reduction, My Darling Clementine is a case study in art of narrative inflation. The film takes a relatively minor incident in American history – a violent misunderstanding between two shady factions popularly known as The Shoot Out at Ok Corral...
While most scripts strive for reduction, My Darling Clementine is a case study in art of narrative inflation. The film takes a relatively minor incident in American history – a violent misunderstanding between two shady factions popularly known as The Shoot Out at Ok Corral...
- 10/14/2014
- by David Anderson
- IONCINEMA.com
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: Oct. 14, 2014
Price: DVD $29.95, Blu-ray $39.95
Studio: Criterion
Henry Ford and Cathy Downs in My Darling Clementine
John Ford (Stagecoach) takes on the legend of the O.K. Corral shoot-out in 1946’s My Darling Clementine, a multi-layered, exceptionally well-constructed western and one of the director’s very best films.
Henry Fonda (Once Upon a Time in the West) cuts an iconic figure as Wyatt Earp, the sturdy lawman who sets about the task of shaping up the disorderly Arizona town of Tombstone, and Victor Mature (Violent Saturday) gives the performance of his career as the boozy, tubercular gambler and gunman Doc Holliday. Though initially at cross-purposes, the pair ultimately team up to confront the violent Clanton gang.
Affecting and stunningly photographed, My Darling Clementine is a story of the triumph of civilization over the Wild West from American cinema’s consummate mythmaker.
Criterion’s Blu-ray and DVD editions...
Price: DVD $29.95, Blu-ray $39.95
Studio: Criterion
Henry Ford and Cathy Downs in My Darling Clementine
John Ford (Stagecoach) takes on the legend of the O.K. Corral shoot-out in 1946’s My Darling Clementine, a multi-layered, exceptionally well-constructed western and one of the director’s very best films.
Henry Fonda (Once Upon a Time in the West) cuts an iconic figure as Wyatt Earp, the sturdy lawman who sets about the task of shaping up the disorderly Arizona town of Tombstone, and Victor Mature (Violent Saturday) gives the performance of his career as the boozy, tubercular gambler and gunman Doc Holliday. Though initially at cross-purposes, the pair ultimately team up to confront the violent Clanton gang.
Affecting and stunningly photographed, My Darling Clementine is a story of the triumph of civilization over the Wild West from American cinema’s consummate mythmaker.
Criterion’s Blu-ray and DVD editions...
- 7/29/2014
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
I stayed in London earlier this month to spend some time in Mubi's UK office. I stayed with David Jenkins of Little White Lies, who got word that Time Out was moving spaces and as a result was trashing their back collection of Sight & Sound issues, the oldest being from the early 60s. David asked me to help, so I agreed, as long as I could film some of the process of bringing the mags to his home. It seemed natural to me to want to capture this cinephilic rescue mission in a sort of tribute to the value of print material, the love for it that continues against odds, and the vital confluence of past and / & present.
Long Voyage Home is an ongoing series by Adam Cook...
Long Voyage Home is an ongoing series by Adam Cook...
- 7/28/2014
- by Adam Cook
- MUBI
Every few days, we'll be rounding up some of the latest buzz and reviews coming from the Croisette—our favorite takes from trusted sources on the latest films to make their debut at the 67th Festival de Cannes.
Of course there is no bigger premiere than that of Jean-Luc Godard's 3D film in competition, Adieu au langage, which is garnering all sorts of emphatic praise. Our own Daniel Kasman has written an incredible piece on the film—but it has also inspired Peter Labuza, Keith Uhlich, and Manohla Dargis, among many others. Below: Godard in conversation (subtitled in English).
Another Cannes old hat, Ken Loach, premiered his new film Jimmy's Hall. The Hollywood Reporter's Neil Young is not too impressed:
"At this late-autumn stage in his career, of course, no one expects Loach -- who recently scuppered bow-out talk by confirming that he could yet make a "smaller scale,...
Of course there is no bigger premiere than that of Jean-Luc Godard's 3D film in competition, Adieu au langage, which is garnering all sorts of emphatic praise. Our own Daniel Kasman has written an incredible piece on the film—but it has also inspired Peter Labuza, Keith Uhlich, and Manohla Dargis, among many others. Below: Godard in conversation (subtitled in English).
Another Cannes old hat, Ken Loach, premiered his new film Jimmy's Hall. The Hollywood Reporter's Neil Young is not too impressed:
"At this late-autumn stage in his career, of course, no one expects Loach -- who recently scuppered bow-out talk by confirming that he could yet make a "smaller scale,...
- 5/23/2014
- by Adam Cook
- MUBI
Nicole Kidman can't seem to catch a break when it comes to the Cannes Film Festival. Two years after she hit the headlines for dousing Zac Efron in The Paperboy, she returns this year with royal biopic Grace of Monaco.
The Grace Kelly film will premiere on the Croisette this evening, but critics have already delivered unanimously scathing reviews for the Olivier Dahan drama ("worse than Diana"). We round up the initial reaction below...
Peter Bradshaw - The Guardian
"It's traditional for Cannes to start with something spectacular. This is certainly no exception. It is a film so awe-inspiringly wooden that it is basically a fire risk. The cringe factor is ionospherically high. A fleet of ambulances may have to be stationed outside the Palais to take tuxed audiences to hospital afterwards to have their toes uncurled under general anaesthetic."
Kate Muir - The Times
"Not so much a turkey as a dodo,...
The Grace Kelly film will premiere on the Croisette this evening, but critics have already delivered unanimously scathing reviews for the Olivier Dahan drama ("worse than Diana"). We round up the initial reaction below...
Peter Bradshaw - The Guardian
"It's traditional for Cannes to start with something spectacular. This is certainly no exception. It is a film so awe-inspiringly wooden that it is basically a fire risk. The cringe factor is ionospherically high. A fleet of ambulances may have to be stationed outside the Palais to take tuxed audiences to hospital afterwards to have their toes uncurled under general anaesthetic."
Kate Muir - The Times
"Not so much a turkey as a dodo,...
- 5/14/2014
- Digital Spy
David Jenkins: Watching Juila Roberts take a year-long romp of global self-discovery, the thing most people miss is that the film is a pin-sharp mockery of Liz Gilbert's bestselling book
More from the guilty pleasures series
Writing a negative review of Eat Pray Love isn't like shooting fish in a barrel. It's like hauling out a fish, placing the barrel of a revolver against its slimy gills, then pulling the trigger while intoning a grave, possibly aquatic-themed, soliloquy. The irony being that Liz Gilbert, the character Julia Roberts plays in the film, would cheerily consume said fish. She would then go on to share some little-known and untranslatable foreign epithet that captures the indefinable feeling of consuming seafood that would have otherwise been destined for the chum bucket. I don't know what the exact term is, but it would probably ends in -delle, or -isimo, or -ante. And...
More from the guilty pleasures series
Writing a negative review of Eat Pray Love isn't like shooting fish in a barrel. It's like hauling out a fish, placing the barrel of a revolver against its slimy gills, then pulling the trigger while intoning a grave, possibly aquatic-themed, soliloquy. The irony being that Liz Gilbert, the character Julia Roberts plays in the film, would cheerily consume said fish. She would then go on to share some little-known and untranslatable foreign epithet that captures the indefinable feeling of consuming seafood that would have otherwise been destined for the chum bucket. I don't know what the exact term is, but it would probably ends in -delle, or -isimo, or -ante. And...
- 4/24/2014
- by David Jenkins
- The Guardian - Film News
News.
Starting this week, filmmaker, editor, critic and Notebook contributor Gina Telaroli will be seeing the premiere of her exquisite short feature Traveling Light, "a small-scale silent (aesthetically “silent”, but with a dense sound mix) charting a trip among friends from New York to Pittsburgh carefully constructed as a string of tiny moments" (Christopher Small), around the world in a variety of venues. The most ambitious on the ground presentation will be at New York's Anthology Film Archives, in whose series "Closely Watched Trains" Traveling Light is showing alongside such other brilliant train cinema as Shanghai Express, Emperor of the North, and The Narrow Margin. For those not in New York, stay tuned for news of the film's online premiere.
As Dave Kehr prepares to take on his new position as Adjunct Curator at MoMA, it has been announced that J. Hoberman will be taking over his video column in...
Starting this week, filmmaker, editor, critic and Notebook contributor Gina Telaroli will be seeing the premiere of her exquisite short feature Traveling Light, "a small-scale silent (aesthetically “silent”, but with a dense sound mix) charting a trip among friends from New York to Pittsburgh carefully constructed as a string of tiny moments" (Christopher Small), around the world in a variety of venues. The most ambitious on the ground presentation will be at New York's Anthology Film Archives, in whose series "Closely Watched Trains" Traveling Light is showing alongside such other brilliant train cinema as Shanghai Express, Emperor of the North, and The Narrow Margin. For those not in New York, stay tuned for news of the film's online premiere.
As Dave Kehr prepares to take on his new position as Adjunct Curator at MoMA, it has been announced that J. Hoberman will be taking over his video column in...
- 11/13/2013
- by Adam Cook
- MUBI
The New York Film Festival began last Friday. It has long been the Notebook's hometown festival, but this year an unusual amount of films in the 2013 lineup our team has seen and written on at festivals throughout the year. We'll hopefully bring you some fresh coverage during and after the festival, but for now you'll find an index, below, of our reviews of, dialogues on, and interviews about films included in the 51st Nyff. The list will be updated new coverage as we publish it.
The Posters of the 51st New York Film Festival
by Adrian Curry
Abuse of Weakness (Catherine Breillat)
by Daniel Kasman
Interview with Catherine Breillat
by Darren Hughes
At Berkeley (Frederick Wiseman)
by Daniel Kasman
Interview with Frederick Wiseman
by Daniel Kasman
Bastards (Claire Denis)
by Daniel Kasman
Interview with Claire Denis
by Daniel Kasman
Gloria (Sebastián Lelio)
by Adam Cook
The Immigrant (James Gray)
Dialogue...
The Posters of the 51st New York Film Festival
by Adrian Curry
Abuse of Weakness (Catherine Breillat)
by Daniel Kasman
Interview with Catherine Breillat
by Darren Hughes
At Berkeley (Frederick Wiseman)
by Daniel Kasman
Interview with Frederick Wiseman
by Daniel Kasman
Bastards (Claire Denis)
by Daniel Kasman
Interview with Claire Denis
by Daniel Kasman
Gloria (Sebastián Lelio)
by Adam Cook
The Immigrant (James Gray)
Dialogue...
- 10/5/2013
- by Notebook
- MUBI
Marking Alfonso Cuaron's much-anticipated return to the big screen following a seven-year absence, his sci-fi thriller Gravity holds its world premiere tonight at the Venice Film Festival.
Sandra Bullock and George Clooney star as a pair of astronauts who are left stranded in space after their shuttle is hit by debris during a routine mission.
The first reviews are in, and the early buzz is effusive, with critics praising Cuaron's command of the outer space setting and Bullock's haunted lead performance.
Digital Spy rounds up the major critical opinion so far below.
Justin Chang - Variety
"Suspending viewers alongside Bullock for a taut, transporting 91 minutes (with George Clooney in a sly supporting turn), the director's long-overdue follow-up to Children of Men is at once a nervy experiment in blockbuster minimalism and a film of robust movie-movie thrills, restoring a sense of wonder, terror and possibility to the big screen...
Sandra Bullock and George Clooney star as a pair of astronauts who are left stranded in space after their shuttle is hit by debris during a routine mission.
The first reviews are in, and the early buzz is effusive, with critics praising Cuaron's command of the outer space setting and Bullock's haunted lead performance.
Digital Spy rounds up the major critical opinion so far below.
Justin Chang - Variety
"Suspending viewers alongside Bullock for a taut, transporting 91 minutes (with George Clooney in a sly supporting turn), the director's long-overdue follow-up to Children of Men is at once a nervy experiment in blockbuster minimalism and a film of robust movie-movie thrills, restoring a sense of wonder, terror and possibility to the big screen...
- 8/28/2013
- Digital Spy
Brandy tried to bring her act to South Africa last weekend, but it almost didn't count.
The "Boy is Mine" singer took the stage at the 90,000-capacity Fnb Stadium to a crowd of merely 40 people. Brandy was intended as a surprise performer during the music portion of the Nelson Mandela Sport and Culture Day, but the surprise element didn't work out in her favor. Attendees didn't know to expect the singer, and they poured out of the stadium after a series of performers -- David Jenkins, Elvis Blue, Salif Keita and D'Banj -- played sets before Brandy.
South African singer Kabomo witnessed the travesty and had this to report:
@SizweDhlomo Brandy performed to an empty stadium. With the stadium lights on. She sulked after two songs and walked off.
— Kabomo (@Kabomo) August 17, 2013
Not only did Brandy not have viewers in the stadium, but she was snubbed on TV as well.
The "Boy is Mine" singer took the stage at the 90,000-capacity Fnb Stadium to a crowd of merely 40 people. Brandy was intended as a surprise performer during the music portion of the Nelson Mandela Sport and Culture Day, but the surprise element didn't work out in her favor. Attendees didn't know to expect the singer, and they poured out of the stadium after a series of performers -- David Jenkins, Elvis Blue, Salif Keita and D'Banj -- played sets before Brandy.
South African singer Kabomo witnessed the travesty and had this to report:
@SizweDhlomo Brandy performed to an empty stadium. With the stadium lights on. She sulked after two songs and walked off.
— Kabomo (@Kabomo) August 17, 2013
Not only did Brandy not have viewers in the stadium, but she was snubbed on TV as well.
- 8/22/2013
- by Matthew Jacobs
- Huffington Post
Below you will find our total coverage of the 2013 Festival de Cannes by Adam Cook, Daniel Kasman, and Marie-Pierre Duhamel.
Films
A Touch of Sin (Jia Zhangke) (1, 2)
Stranger by the Lake (Alain Guiraudie)
Bends (Flora Lau)
The Missing Picture (Rithy Panh)
Ilo Ilo (Anthony Chen)
Tip Top (Serge Bozon)
We Are What We Are (Jim Mickle)
Only God Forgives (Nicolas Winding Refn)
The Last of the Unjust (Claude Lanzmann)
Bastards (Claire Denis)
Shield of Straw (Takashi Miike)
North, the End of History (Lav Diaz)
Les trois désastres (Jean-Luc Godard)
Interviews
Alain Guiraudie (by David Jenkins)
Takashi Miike
Lav Diaz
Dialogues
Between Adam Cook & Daniel Kasman
On Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring
On Johnnie To's Blind Detective
On Steven Soderbergh's Behind the Candelabra
On James Gray's The Immigrant
Passing Shots
Daniel Kasman
On Asghar Farhadi's The Past, Hirokazu Kore-eda's Like Father, Like Son, Anurag Kashyap's Ugly,...
Films
A Touch of Sin (Jia Zhangke) (1, 2)
Stranger by the Lake (Alain Guiraudie)
Bends (Flora Lau)
The Missing Picture (Rithy Panh)
Ilo Ilo (Anthony Chen)
Tip Top (Serge Bozon)
We Are What We Are (Jim Mickle)
Only God Forgives (Nicolas Winding Refn)
The Last of the Unjust (Claude Lanzmann)
Bastards (Claire Denis)
Shield of Straw (Takashi Miike)
North, the End of History (Lav Diaz)
Les trois désastres (Jean-Luc Godard)
Interviews
Alain Guiraudie (by David Jenkins)
Takashi Miike
Lav Diaz
Dialogues
Between Adam Cook & Daniel Kasman
On Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring
On Johnnie To's Blind Detective
On Steven Soderbergh's Behind the Candelabra
On James Gray's The Immigrant
Passing Shots
Daniel Kasman
On Asghar Farhadi's The Past, Hirokazu Kore-eda's Like Father, Like Son, Anurag Kashyap's Ugly,...
- 5/27/2013
- by Notebook
- MUBI
Alain Guiraudie's Stranger by the Lake, which played in the Un Certain Regard section at the 66th Cannes Film Festival and which Mubi's Adam Cook has written about here, remains one of the early stand-out titles. Set in and around a southern French gay cruising spot that's situated on the banks of a lake, the film charts the romantic intrigues of a disparate group of men whose rampant lust and desire transport them to strange and dangerous places. Recalling Jarman and Fassbinder as much as more classical French dramatists such as Éric Rohmer, this is Guiraudie's sixth feature film.
David Jenkins: What were the literary and cinematic inspirations for Stranger by the Lake?
Alain Guiraudie: I'm not sure I had any direct cinematic influences, but before I wrote it I re-read Jean Genet's Querelle and also re-watched the film by Fassbinder. It was more to make...
David Jenkins: What were the literary and cinematic inspirations for Stranger by the Lake?
Alain Guiraudie: I'm not sure I had any direct cinematic influences, but before I wrote it I re-read Jean Genet's Querelle and also re-watched the film by Fassbinder. It was more to make...
- 5/21/2013
- by David Jenkins
- MUBI
Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring has its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival today (May 16), playing in the Un Certain Regard section.
Emma Watson stars in the satirical drama as one of a real-life group of fame-obsessed Hollywood teenagers who robbed the homes of celebrities including Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan between 2008 and 2009.
Digital Spy rounds up the critical verdict so far below:
Screen Daily (Mark Adams)
"An impressively mannered and vividly evocative delve into the glossily vacuous side of fame-obsessed Los Angeles, Sofia Coppola's Un Certain Regard opener The Bling Ring is a cool and smart look at the antics of young teens who stole from the rich and famous, but frustratingly lacks the drama and narrative drive to grip audiences, despite the impressive efforts of the young cast."
The Hollywood Reporter (Todd McCarthy)
"Sofia Coppola's too-cool-for-school portrait of fame-seeking miscreants is beautifully shot but light on social commentary.
Emma Watson stars in the satirical drama as one of a real-life group of fame-obsessed Hollywood teenagers who robbed the homes of celebrities including Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan between 2008 and 2009.
Digital Spy rounds up the critical verdict so far below:
Screen Daily (Mark Adams)
"An impressively mannered and vividly evocative delve into the glossily vacuous side of fame-obsessed Los Angeles, Sofia Coppola's Un Certain Regard opener The Bling Ring is a cool and smart look at the antics of young teens who stole from the rich and famous, but frustratingly lacks the drama and narrative drive to grip audiences, despite the impressive efforts of the young cast."
The Hollywood Reporter (Todd McCarthy)
"Sofia Coppola's too-cool-for-school portrait of fame-seeking miscreants is beautifully shot but light on social commentary.
- 5/16/2013
- Digital Spy
Dappy has responded to being found guilty of affray and assault earlier today (January 17), declaring on Twitter that the verdict "ain't right". The N-Dubz rapper was deemed to have committed the offences during a petrol station fight in Surrey last February which allegedly left three men with serious facial injuries. Dappy - real name Costadinos Contostavlos - was cleared of two counts of common assault against 19-year-olds Grace Cochran and Serena Burton at Guildford Crown Court, but was found guilty of assaulting bystander David Jenkins by beating him and spitting at him. Having been released on unconditional bail until his sentencing on February 15, Dappy took to Twitter shortly after the verdict to insist that he had acted in self defence. "Not guilty For spitting at the Females but Guilty for defending my self from the 3 Males!!!! #ThisAintRight," (more)...
- 1/17/2013
- by By Daniel Sperling
- Digital Spy
Dappy has been found guilty of affray and one count of assault by beating after an altercation at a Surrey petrol station on February 28 last year. The musician was cleared of two other counts of common assault when the verdict was read out at Guildford Crown Court today (January 17). The 25-year-old - real name Costadinos Contostavlos - had been accused of spitting in the direction of 19-year-olds Grace Cochran and Serena Burton on the Shell forecourt on Woodbridge Road, Guilford before an altercation with bystander David Jenkins, who had intervened. The rapper was charged with two counts of common assault on Cochran and Burton, one count of assaulting Jenkins by beating - which involved him spitting at him - and one charge of affray. The N-Dubz star was cleared of the charges of assault against the two women, but guilty of the latter two offences. The case was adjourned (more...
- 1/17/2013
- by By Mayer Nissim
- Digital Spy
N-Dubz star Dappy believes he was 'victimised' for being famous during a petrol station brawl last year. The 25-year-old rapper told Guildford Crown Court in Surrey, South East England, yesterday (10.01.13) he was simply trying to promote his solo single to then 18-year-old's Grace Cochran and Serena Burton when onlooker David Jenkins stepped in - who Dappy punched and put into a headlock. Dappy told the jury: 'I think I have been victimised. They realised it was me and just wanted to mess me up because I'm famous.' He explained he wanted to 'prove' to the girls that Queen guitarist Brian May would be on one of his singles after they had laughed off the idea. Dappy continued: 'You and...
- 1/11/2013
- Monsters and Critics
N-Dubz star Dappy believes he was ''victimised'' for being famous during a petrol station brawl last year. The 25-year-old rapper told Guildford Crown Court in Surrey, South East England, yesterday (10.01.13) he was simply trying to promote his solo single to then 18-year-old's Grace Cochran and Serena Burton when onlooker David Jenkins stepped in - who Dappy punched and put into a headlock. Dappy told the jury: ''I think I have been victimised. They realised it was me and just wanted to mess me up because I'm famous.'' He explained he wanted to ''prove'' to the girls that Queen guitarist Brian May would...
- 1/11/2013
- Virgin Media - Celebrity
Saliva found on a victim's T-shirt's after a fight involving N-Dubz star Dappy has a 'billion-to-one' chance of not being his, a court has heard. The 'Bad Intentions' rapper has been appearing at Guildford Crown Court in Surrey, South East England, this week regarding a 'mob attack' last February - during which he is accused of insulting and spitting at two girls before proceeding to hit onlooker David Jenkins. Although the spittle missed the two 18-year-old girls, forensic scientist in the case Carolyn Smith told the court that saliva belonging to Dappy - whose real name is Costadinos Contostavlos - had been detected on David's top. She explained : 'We estimated the probability of getting this DNA profile from another...
- 1/10/2013
- Monsters and Critics
Saliva found on a victim's T-shirt's after a fight involving N-Dubz star Dappy has a ''billion-to-one'' chance of not being his, a court has heard. The 'Bad Intentions' rapper has been appearing at Guildford Crown Court in Surrey, South East England, this week regarding a ''mob attack'' last February - during which he is accused of insulting and spitting at two girls before proceeding to hit onlooker David Jenkins. Although the spittle missed the two 18-year-old girls, forensic scientist in the case Carolyn Smith told the court that saliva belonging to Dappy - whose real name is Costadinos Contostavlos - had been...
- 1/10/2013
- Virgin Media - Celebrity
Dappy has been accused of spitting at two girls and joining in the beating of a man at a petrol station. The N-Dubz star is alleged to have spat in the direction of 18-year-olds Grace Cochran and Serena Burton and called one "ugly" when they refused to get into his Mercedes at a petrol station in Guildford, Surrey. "They were not interested in him and so his attitude changed. Instead of being polite he became rude," prosecutor Brian Stork told Guildford Crown Court. Bystander David Jenkins reportedly then went to the women's defence, putting Dappy - real name Costadinos Contostavlos - in a headlock, prompting Dappy's companions to beat him. Dappy is accused of joining in the attack, during which Jenkins lost several teeth, after getting free. Stork described the incident as a "mob-handed, utterly unlawful and aggressive (more)...
- 1/9/2013
- by By Mayer Nissim
- Digital Spy
N-Dubz star Dappy has denied three charges of assault in court. The 25-year-old rapper appeared in Guildford Crown Court, Surrey, yesterday (07.01.13), wearing a woolly hat with the title of his album 'Bad Intentions' on it, over a fight that took place at a Shell petrol station last February. He is accused of attacking Grace Elizabeth Cochran, 18, and Serena Burton, 18, and beat David Jenkins, 23, at the garage before another group of men arrived - leading to an altercation in which the man along with the girls received facial injuries. Dappy - whose real name is Costadinos Contostavlos - denied all charges against him when speaking in the dock. The other men in the dock, dad-of-two Kieran Patrick...
- 1/8/2013
- Monsters and Critics
N-Dubz star Dappy has denied three charges of assault in court. The 25-year-old rapper appeared in Guildford Crown Court, Surrey, yesterday (07.01.13), wearing a woolly hat with the title of his album 'Bad Intentions' on it, over a fight that took place at a Shell petrol station last February. He is accused of attacking Grace Elizabeth Cochran, 18, and Serena Burton, 18, and beat David Jenkins, 23, at the garage before another group of men arrived - leading to an altercation in which the man along with the girls received facial injuries. Dappy - whose real name is Costadinos Contostavlos - denied all...
- 1/8/2013
- Virgin Media - Celebrity
News Ryan Lambie Jan 7, 2013
In spite of some damning reviews, Texas Chainsaw 3D has managed to knock The Hobbit off the number one spot in the Us...
"A clunky, lumbering sequel that, like its masked protagonist, has no redeeming features," read Kim Newman's review for Empire. "As pointless as one feared it might be," Nigel Floyd's review for Time Out sighed. Little White Lies' David Jenkins summed up his reaction with a simple, "Oh dear lord, no."
As the above sample indicates, the critical reaction for Texas Chainsaw 3D hasn't been too positive, and at the time of writing, this slasher movie sort-of-remake, sort-of-sequel directed by John Luessenhop has amassed a dismal aggregate score of just 21 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.
In spite of those reviews, Texas Chainsaw 3D has fared surprisingly well at this weekend's Us box office, and even succeeded in frightening The Hobbit from its...
In spite of some damning reviews, Texas Chainsaw 3D has managed to knock The Hobbit off the number one spot in the Us...
"A clunky, lumbering sequel that, like its masked protagonist, has no redeeming features," read Kim Newman's review for Empire. "As pointless as one feared it might be," Nigel Floyd's review for Time Out sighed. Little White Lies' David Jenkins summed up his reaction with a simple, "Oh dear lord, no."
As the above sample indicates, the critical reaction for Texas Chainsaw 3D hasn't been too positive, and at the time of writing, this slasher movie sort-of-remake, sort-of-sequel directed by John Luessenhop has amassed a dismal aggregate score of just 21 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.
In spite of those reviews, Texas Chainsaw 3D has fared surprisingly well at this weekend's Us box office, and even succeeded in frightening The Hobbit from its...
- 1/7/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
Close-Up is a column that spotlights films now playing on Mubi. The Green Ray is playing on Mubi UK starting today through December 5.
Smitten by a viewing of Eric Rohmer's 1972 film, Love in the Afternoon, French actress and filmmaker Marie Rivière felt compelled to write the director a letter expressing her fondness of the film and offering her professional services. By 1978, she had been given a small role in Perceval, the director's minimalist take on Chrétien de Troyes's 12 century romantic text. Rivière was later given an expanded role in 1981's The Aviator's Wife, the first entry in Rohmer's six-film cycle of Comedies & Proverbs. By 1986, Rivière was called upon to play Delphine in the director's semi-improvised masterpiece, The Green Ray, a film whose form and content innovatively draws upon the actor's personal experiences and fragile emotional state at the time. Such was her connection with Rohmer and his work,...
Smitten by a viewing of Eric Rohmer's 1972 film, Love in the Afternoon, French actress and filmmaker Marie Rivière felt compelled to write the director a letter expressing her fondness of the film and offering her professional services. By 1978, she had been given a small role in Perceval, the director's minimalist take on Chrétien de Troyes's 12 century romantic text. Rivière was later given an expanded role in 1981's The Aviator's Wife, the first entry in Rohmer's six-film cycle of Comedies & Proverbs. By 1986, Rivière was called upon to play Delphine in the director's semi-improvised masterpiece, The Green Ray, a film whose form and content innovatively draws upon the actor's personal experiences and fragile emotional state at the time. Such was her connection with Rohmer and his work,...
- 11/5/2012
- by David Jenkins
- MUBI
Non-profit theater company Page 73 Productions announced the 2013 semi-finalists for their developmental programs and an increase in their annual Fellowship grant. Page 73 Productions provides various developmental programs for early-career playwrights each year, helping them craft their first-drafts into production-ready scripts. Along with producing a New York or world premiere of a new production, Page 73 offers programs including the P73 Playwriting Fellowship, the Interstate 73 writing group, the Page 2 workshop, and a summer residency program at Yale University. Out of 330 applications, 31 semi-finalists were chosen for the various, highly competitive Page 73 development programs. Those selected include Alexander Borinsky, Andy Bragen, George Brant, Stephen Brown, Mia Chung, Philip Dawkins, Gabriel Jason Dean, Meghan Deans, Ryan Dowler, Cory Finley, Nick Gandiello, Peter Gil-Sheridan, Mary Elizabeth Hamilton, Paul Cameron Hardy, David Jenkins, Sukari Jones, Meghan Kennedy, Kait Kerrigan, Gordon Leary, Kimber Lee, Jc Lee, Em Lewis, Tim J. Lord, Caroline V. McGraw, Julia Meinwald, Dominic Orlando, Brian Otaño,...
- 9/27/2012
- backstage.com
All the news, reviews, comment and buzz from the Croisette on day six of the Cannes film festival
10.31am: Hello again: Cannes 2012 day six rolls round – after a very good weekend for the competition which we saw a wonderfully well reviewed Michael Haneke film, and good notices for two missing-in-action auteurs, Cristian Mungiu and Thomas Vinterberg, with Beyond the Hills and The Hunt (Jagten) respectively.
Outside the Palme d'Or nominees, things were a tad less rosy. "Pasty" Pete Doherty showed up for a screening of his acting debut, Confession of a Child of the Century: reaction, to be honest, was not good. Catherine will be filing a review later on – the word "catastrophic" was used. Brandon "son of David" Cronenberg debuted Antiviral: again, word was iffy; we'll have Peter's review launched fairly soon. And Henry appears to be giving girl group yarn The Sapphires a qualified thumbs-up: "sugary" would be the key concept here,...
10.31am: Hello again: Cannes 2012 day six rolls round – after a very good weekend for the competition which we saw a wonderfully well reviewed Michael Haneke film, and good notices for two missing-in-action auteurs, Cristian Mungiu and Thomas Vinterberg, with Beyond the Hills and The Hunt (Jagten) respectively.
Outside the Palme d'Or nominees, things were a tad less rosy. "Pasty" Pete Doherty showed up for a screening of his acting debut, Confession of a Child of the Century: reaction, to be honest, was not good. Catherine will be filing a review later on – the word "catastrophic" was used. Brandon "son of David" Cronenberg debuted Antiviral: again, word was iffy; we'll have Peter's review launched fairly soon. And Henry appears to be giving girl group yarn The Sapphires a qualified thumbs-up: "sugary" would be the key concept here,...
- 5/21/2012
- by Andrew Pulver
- The Guardian - Film News
"In 1962 Pier Paolo Pasolini received a suspended sentence for his allegedly blasphemous contribution to the portmanteau film Rogopag, a brilliant sketch satirizing biblical movies," writes Philip French in his brief review of the new Masters of Cinema release of The Gospel According to St Matthew in today's Observer. "Two years later the gay, Marxist atheist showed the world how a life of Christ should be made, and it is a magnificent achievement, far superior to Scorsese's or Gibson's films."
David Jenkins in Little White Lies: "Essentially a 'straight' retelling of the life of Christ (who is played with fervent intensity by Enrique Irazoqui), which, on its surface, seldom editorializes or strays towards controversy, the film was fully embraced by the religious community to the extent that a colorized version was made to capitalize on the Bible belt buck. General familiarity of with the text makes this one of Pasolini's most easily approachable films,...
David Jenkins in Little White Lies: "Essentially a 'straight' retelling of the life of Christ (who is played with fervent intensity by Enrique Irazoqui), which, on its surface, seldom editorializes or strays towards controversy, the film was fully embraced by the religious community to the extent that a colorized version was made to capitalize on the Bible belt buck. General familiarity of with the text makes this one of Pasolini's most easily approachable films,...
- 4/8/2012
- MUBI
In 2009, the best film in Competition at the Berlinale was Maren Ade's Everyone Else (Fwiw, it came away with 1.5 Silver Bears, the 1 for Best Actress Birgit Minichmayr, the .5 for tying with Adrián Biniez's Gigante for the Jury Grand Prix; the Golden Bear that year went to Claudia Llosa's The Milk of Sorrow). Three years on (!), the trio that made Everyone Else worth talking up to this day (see, for example, Kevin B Lee's new video essay on a key scene at Fandor; see, too, Mike D'Angelo on the same scene a year ago at the Av Club) is back in Competition, albeit in three different films. Lars Eidinger has drawn the shortest straw, taking on the lead in Hans-Christian Schmid's rather dismal Home for the Weekend. Minichmayr's fared better opposite Jürgen Vogel in Matthias Glasner's new film, though I seriously doubt many of us will...
- 2/18/2012
- MUBI
Columbia Pictures A scene from Columbia Pictures’ Ghost Rider Spirit Of Vengeance.
If you’re planning on hitting the multiplex over Presidents’ Day weekend, you’ve got a few new options. We’ve got a combustible biker (“Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance,” starring Nicolas Cage and Idris Elba), lovestruck spies (“This Means War,” starring Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine), and a very little girl (“The Secret World of Arrietty,” with voice work from Bridgit Mendler and Amy Poehler). Find out...
If you’re planning on hitting the multiplex over Presidents’ Day weekend, you’ve got a few new options. We’ve got a combustible biker (“Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance,” starring Nicolas Cage and Idris Elba), lovestruck spies (“This Means War,” starring Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine), and a very little girl (“The Secret World of Arrietty,” with voice work from Bridgit Mendler and Amy Poehler). Find out...
- 2/17/2012
- by WSJ Staff
- Speakeasy/Wall Street Journal
I've placed this clip right at the top of this entry because it's taken from the first few minutes of Captive, just after armed terrorists have stormed what appears to be a small town or encampment on the beach somewhere out there in the Pacific, nabbed whoever's available and forced them at gunpoint onto boats waiting in the harbor. Because you know you're watching a film by Brillante Mendoza, you assume all this is taking place in the Philippines. Otherwise, unless you've Googled "Abu Sayyaf" and learned that it's "one of several military Islamist separatist groups based in and around the southern Philippines" or read the program notes ("The attack was intended to target employees of the World Bank, but they have already left the resort. The abductees are tourists and Christian missionaries who are now forced on a grueling foot march through the Philippine jungle"), you'll be disoriented as...
- 2/14/2012
- MUBI
Just ten days ago, we were pointing to an interview in which a lively-sounding Theo Angelopoulos was telling David Jenkins in Sight & Sound about his plans for his next film, The Other Sea. Now word comes via, among others, Kevin Jagernauth at the Playlist that the 77-year-old filmmaker was struck by a motorcycle near the set not far from Athens' main port of Piraeus and has died of his injuries. At the moment, the AP has only a few other details on the accident.
Acquarello in Senses of Cinema in 2003: "From the absence of the conventional word 'End' at the conclusion of his films to his penchant for interweaving variations of episodes from his earlier films (which, in turn, are often culled from personal experience) to create interconnected 'chapters' of a continuous, unfinished work, Angelopoulos's cinema is both intimately autobiographical and culturally allegorical and, like the children of Landscape...
Acquarello in Senses of Cinema in 2003: "From the absence of the conventional word 'End' at the conclusion of his films to his penchant for interweaving variations of episodes from his earlier films (which, in turn, are often culled from personal experience) to create interconnected 'chapters' of a continuous, unfinished work, Angelopoulos's cinema is both intimately autobiographical and culturally allegorical and, like the children of Landscape...
- 1/24/2012
- MUBI
"Haywire reunites director Steven Soderbergh with screenwriter Lem Dobbs," begins Josef Braun. "Though not as revelatory or formally engaged as The Limey, the pair's 1999 sleeper, which marked a comeback for its star, Terrence Stamp, Haywire is nevertheless, like The Limey, a smart, playful vamp on old tropes: lone wolf hired muscle takes a gig that turns out to be a double-cross; she becomes a loose end; corrupt former employer now seeks to eliminate her... you know the tune. Like The Limey, Haywire is also a film unusually concerned with geographical coherence, thus we get chase scenes that work up quite a sweat ensuring that we understand exactly how we got onto the fourth floor of this particular building or down that particular alleyway — there's even a pair of demonstrative scenes in which our heroine, Mallory Kane (Gina Carano), carefully consults a covert Gps device. Soderbergh, as always, operating as his own cinematographer,...
- 1/20/2012
- MUBI
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