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2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2001
1-20 of 62 items from 2012 « Prev | Next »
Ken Burns Film Stuns Cannes Film Festival
25 May 2012 10:30 AM, PDT | Studio Briefing - Film News | See recent Studio Briefing - Film News news »
PBS
Arguably the most powerful film presented at this year’s Cannes Film Festival was screened with virtually no promotion and out of competition Thursday night. The film, The Central Park Five, by Ken Burns, America’s leading documentary filmmaker (The Civil War, Baseball, The War) and his daughter Sara and son-in-law David McMahon, tells the story of the five teenagers who were arrested following the Central Park jogger attack in 1989 and how New York police and prosecutors employed manipulative interrogation to crack them, coerce their confessions, and send them to prison. Their convictions were overturned only after they had served their lengthy sentences, when the actual attacker, Matias Reyes, already serving time for multiple rapes, confessed and DNA evidence established his guilt. “I hope you will find this film unsettling,” Burns told the audience before the screening. And there can be little doubt that it must have raised disturbing questions about America’s criminal justice system among the international audience in attendance. It is Burns’s first feature-length documentary dealing with a contemporary controversy, and perhaps his most affecting — especially as it shines a glaring spotlight on the often racial politics of American justice and the lynch mentality of some right-wing extremists that fuels it. Reviewer David Rooney concluded in the Hollywood Reporter: “As a dense procedural, this is fascinating stuff; its miscarriage of justice stokes righteous anger and its account of lost youth and irreparably damaged lives is conveyed with moving solemnity.” The film ends on a particularly rankling note. A decade after they were exonerated, it alleges, the five have received no apology — indeed police and prosecutors continue to contend that they were guilty — and no restitution. »
- admin
Cannes 2012 - Watch 3 Clips From Ken Burns "The Central Park Five" Doc
24 May 2012 8:45 AM, PDT | ShadowAndAct | See recent ShadowAndAct news »
Sergio already sang the praises of this documentary last week, so I'll just summarize what he said before sending you over to the clips. It's a new film from Ken Burns, titled, The Central Park Five, which Burns co-directed with his daughter Sarah Burns, and his son-in-law David McMahon. The documentary examines the case of the Central Park rape, in the late 1980s, that triggered strong emotions in New Yorkers, and the sensational media storm across the Us that followed. It turned out to be a tale of racial injustice. Five black and Latino teenagers were arrested and convicted for the brutal rape and assault of Tricia Meili, only to be »
- Courtney
Blu-ray Review: Ken Burns Uses His Amazing Skill to Chronicle ‘The War’
21 May 2012 12:20 PM, PDT | HollywoodChicago.com | See recent HollywoodChicago.com news »
Chicago – Ken Burns is one of the most important, influential, and talented filmmakers alive. His long-form documentaries for PBS — “Baseball,” “The Civil War,” and “Jazz” — are all must-sees (and he’s working on pieces on “The Dust Bowl” and “Vietnam”). One of his most accomplished works, “The War,” has been released on Blu-ray just in time for Father’s Day and would make a perfect gift for anyone interested in World War II.
Blu-ray Rating: 5.0/5.0
One needs to make a commitment to a Ken Burns documentary. “The War” is fifteen hours long and approaches its subject matter with an exhaustive yet personal touch. Burns chose four cities across the United States and focused on how they were personally impacted by the combat in Europe and Asia. The impact of WWII on not just people but entire communities has never been more expertly chronicled. Burns has always had an amazing way »
- adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
Dan Harmon Expelled from NBC’s ‘Community’
21 May 2012 8:07 AM, PDT | newsinfilm.com | See recent newsinfilm news »
Dan Harmon is no longer executive producer and showrunner of “Community.” Sony Television and NBC executives have officially replaced him with former “Happy Endings” writers Moses Port and David Guarascio. The series that launched countless animated GIFs, regular episode recaps, and references to “the darkest timeline” will be something different entirely when season four starts on Friday nights. Harmon was the creative force who resisted mainstream appeal, so it stands to reason that the new showrunners, hand-picked from Sony’s stable, are the more cooperative alternative. In other words: change (Chang) is coming to Greendale.
Harmon was acclaimed by critics and fans for the series’ authorial voice, praising him among the upper echelon of current TV creators. The distinction put Harmon in a league with the much-discussed Matthew Weiner (“Mad Men”), Vince Gilligan (“Breaking Bad”), Lena Dunham (“Girls”), and Louis Ck (“Louie”), among others. Writers that have been granted the »
- Jeff Leins
Ken Burns Explains His Storytelling Philosophy of Acceptable Manipulation [Video]
18 May 2012 8:00 AM, PDT | FilmSchoolRejects.com | See recent FilmSchoolRejects news »
One plus one equals three. It’s a fascinating idea in its simplicity and in its wrongness, but it’s the key to Ken Burns‘s work. According to the iconic documentary filmmaker (and sometimes Community homage subject), that’s the math that adds up to his storytelling success. The director is now the subject of a short documentary (because art has a sense of humor) from Sarah Klein and Tom Mason called Ken Burns: On Story (via The Atlantic). In it, they ask the central question of storytelling’s nature, and he answers with a little fuzzy math. Check it out for yourself: An interest in always complicating things. This guy is a genius. Plus, it’s great to hear a documentarian talk about lying and manipulation. “An emotional truth is something you have to build.” Fantastic. What do you think? »
- Cole Abaius
Cannes 2012: Ken Burns' New Documentary "The Central Park Five"
16 May 2012 3:58 PM, PDT | ShadowAndAct | See recent ShadowAndAct news »
I'm an unabashed admirer of the work of doumentary filmmaker Ken Burns. His PBS extensive muti-part documentaries which chronicle the culture and history of America such Jazz, Frank Lloyd Wright, The Civil War and most recently last fall, Prohibition are amazing examples of documentary filmmaking at its most compelliing. Let's put it this way. Any filmmaker who can take a subject which bores me to tears, like baseball (which Bill Cosby once accurately called "nine guys standing out in field doing nothing") as a subject for a nine part, 18 and half hour long documentary mini-series that had me spellbound and riveted to my seat for every single minute, is one hell of a »
- Sergio
Memorial Day 2012 programming
16 May 2012 9:51 AM, PDT | ChannelGuideMag | See recent ChannelGuideMag news »
Here’s a look at the various specials and movies airing on and around this Memorial Day, which remember those who have served in the military, and particularly those who were lost. All times are Eastern. Programming subject to updates; check back for changes and additions. My Vietnam Your Iraq (encore) – PBS, May (check local listings). Vietnam War veterans who have children who served in Iraq tell their stories. The program showcases the pride and fear a family shares when one is deployed. The War (encore) – PBS, May (check local listings). Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s epic, seven-part 2007 [...] »
- Jeff Pfeiffer
Conflicted Feelings Over Ken Burns' Documentary Series "The War"
16 May 2012 7:43 AM, PDT | JustPressPlay.net | See recent JustPressPlay news »
The union of Ken Burns and the second World War feels like such a natural, it's almost surprising that it took so long to happen. Burns has made a career out of producing respectfully inoffensive documentaries about topics so broad they would seem to defy cohesion (The Civil War, baseball), while World War Two is so steeped in iconography that only the bravest souls would attempt to condense it to any length (even this series' ultimate 15 hours). The man here has done no worse than anyone would have expected him to, and The War is nothing if not an impressive achievement in synthesizing information, but by producing something that so carefully evokes a portrait of America so long since accepted, he manages to push the actions even further into the past than they already were. In a world where discussion is defined more or less by Godwin's Law, World War »
- Anders Nelson
PBS Fall Schedule: ‘Midwife,’ ‘Dustbowl’ And Politics Showcased On Sundays
15 May 2012 1:45 PM, PDT | Deadline TV | See recent Deadline TV news »
PBS is playing to its strengths — British dramas, Ken Burns documentaries and plenty of political insight — with its just-announced fall schedule. As is custom with the public broadcaster, the emphasis is on Sunday night programming. With the success of Season 2 of Downton Abbey still fresh, PBS will air the UK hit miniseries Call The Midwife, debuting Sunday, September 30. Following Call The Midwife for most of the run is Season 2 of the new Upstairs Downstairs, airing Sundays Oct. 7 to Nov. 11. The latest documentary from Ken Burns, The Dust Bowl, airs Sunday November 18 and Monday November 19. In addition, PBS will repeat its well-received American Masters documentary on Dust Bowl folk hero Woody Guthrie on Thursday, November 16. With the political season heating up, PBS is ramping up its election coverage, once again airing “The Choice,” a politics-focused edition of the long-running Frontline on Tuesday, October 9. The public broadcaster will also air three Presidential »
- THE DEADLINE TEAM
Billy Eichner Talks "Billy on the Street," Joan Rivers, and Infuriating Spike Lee
10 May 2012 10:26 AM, PDT | AfterElton.com | See recent AfterElton.com news »
Comedian Billy Eichner's pedestrian-attacking presence on the Fuse's Billy on the Street is not just funny, it's constantly jarring -- and extraordinary and life-affirming that way.
The gonzo game show combines Eichner's abrupt comic timing, love of pop culture, and tiny cash prizes. It capitalizes on his signature stage delirium, the style that the The New York Times once called "a theatrical phenomenon" in reviewing his 2005 fake late night talk show Creation Nation. Since then, his "Man on the Street" Q&As joined Funny Or Die's clip roster, and that recognition earned him his Fuse show. Since he's still shooting the show's new season, we thought we'd catch up with the delirious comic and discuss his friend Joan Rivers, his new enemy Spike Lee, and what it feels like to bombard Super Bowl-winning football players with questions about Madonna. Follow him on Twitter at @billyeichner and watch Billy on »
- virtel
Get The War on Blu-ray!
10 May 2012 8:10 AM, PDT | Monsters and Critics | See recent Monsters and Critics news »
Ken Burns and Lynn Novick.s award-winning monumental documentary The War debuts on Blu-ray May 15th from PBS Distribution and Paramount Home Media Distribution. M&C is celebrating the release by giving away three copies of the Blu-ray . which arrives loaded with bonus material including commentary by Burns and Novick. Six years in the making, the epic, seven-part film directed and produced by Burns and Novick explores the history and horror of the Second World War from an American perspective through the personal accounts of men and women from four quintessentially American towns. Revealing the most intimate human dimensions of a worldwide catastrophe, the 15-hour documentary paints a vivid portrait of how the war touched the lives of »
- Patrick Luce
PBS WIll Air New Documentary On Latinos
2 May 2012 3:10 PM, PDT | Huffington Post | See recent Huffington Post news »
New York — PBS said Wednesday it is preparing a six-hour documentary series on the history of Latinos in the United States, set to air in the fall of 2013.
English and Spanish-language versions are being produced for the project, which will air across three days. The supervising producer is Adriana Bosch, a Cuban-American who recently did a documentary for PBS on Latin music.
Bosch said she began meeting with officials at Weta, the PBS station in Washington, in 2008 about the project. They spent nearly three years putting funding together before starting with the filming.
It was in 2007 that Hispanic organizations criticized PBS and filmmaker Ken Burns for inadequately representing the contributions of Latinos in his 15-hour documentary on World War II.
"I thought this was a story whose time had come, had come a long time ago. I was surprised that it hadn't been done," said Bosch, who recalled similar series on the experiences of African-Americans, »
- AP
PBS WIll Air New Documentary On Latinos
2 May 2012 1:11 PM, PDT | Aol TV. | See recent Aol TV. news »
New York — PBS said Wednesday it is preparing a six-hour documentary series on the history of Latinos in the United States, set to air in the fall of 2013.
English and Spanish-language versions are being produced for the project, which will air across three days. The supervising producer is Adriana Bosch, a Cuban-American who recently did a documentary for PBS on Latin music.
Bosch said she began meeting with officials at Weta, the PBS station in Washington, in 2008 about the project. They spent nearly three years putting funding together before starting with the filming.
It was in 2007 that Hispanic organizations criticized PBS and filmmaker Ken Burns for inadequately representing the contributions of Latinos in his 15-hour documentary on World War II.
"I thought this was a story whose time had come, had come a long time ago. I was surprised that it hadn't been done," said Bosch, who recalled similar series on the experiences of African-Americans, »
- AP
Jazz Starter Kit - 50 Albums
30 April 2012 6:56 AM, PDT | www.culturecatch.com | See recent CultureCatch news »
Monday, April 30, is International Jazz Day, proclaimed by Unesco goodwill ambassador Herbie Hancock. There will be streaming concerts and much more on jazzday.com. It seems like an apt time for a solid historical overview of jazz. Over the years, people have asked me, "I've just started listening to jazz, what should I get?" and "What jazz albums do you think everyone should have in their collection?" Here are my top recommendations to provide a broad foundation for understanding jazz through classic performances that have stood the test of time.
By putting the essential albums in chronological order, the development of jazz is outlined. Usually I recommend just one album per artist, but there are three among them who tower over the history of jazz so monumentally that they are represented by multiple albums: Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, and John Coltrane. Figures as protean as these three cannot be represented »
- SteveHoltje
Exclusive: Inside the New Ken Burns Documentary The Central Park Five
24 April 2012 6:49 AM, PDT | TVGuide - Breaking News | See recent TVGuide - Breaking News news »
Renowned for his epic PBS documentaries, Ken Burns is aiming for his first proper theatrical release in 27 years with a controversial new feature. The filmmaker, his daughter Sarah Burns, and her husband, David McMahon, have jointly produced and directed The Central Park Five, a two-hour documentary about five New York teenagers whose convictions in the infamous 1989 Central Park jogger rape case were overturned after years spent in prison, and their current search for justice.
Read More > »
- Gregg Goldstein
Tribeca Review: 'Alekesam' Feels Less Like A Short Doc And More Like An Overlong Album Promo For Sal Masekela
23 April 2012 3:02 PM, PDT | The Playlist | See recent The Playlist news »
At 35 minutes, "Alekesam" is a short documentary with a subject that could probably fill a Ken Burns-style PBS miniseries, full of political unrest, social uprisings, and jazz music: Hugh Masekela, a musician and activist who fought against apartheid (he was exiled from South Africa for more than 30 years), struggles to reconnect with his son Sal Masekela, a current Espn commentator who is just now embarking on his own musical career. But while the doc tries to focus on the tenuous emotional connection between a distant father and a resistant son, it ends up coming across more as a fluffy promotional piece for Sal's new album than anything genuinely probing or insightful.
Hugh Masekela has had an amazing life and an even more amazing career. A jazz trumpet player who incorporated African rhythms, he was exiled from South Africa for standing up to apartheid but found himself accepted by artists »
- Drew Taylor
Community’s Best Episode Explores Empathy
20 April 2012 11:47 AM, PDT | Boomtron | See recent Boomtron news »
I’ve been hearing about “Virtual Systems Analysis” for some time, with creator Dan Harmon essentially describing it as either the most brilliant episode of Community, or the worst. In that way, you could compare it to last year’s “Critical Film Studies,” the Dinner with Andre episode. Both were trying something different, and both had a heavy focus on Abed and one other member of the study group. Harmon had similar misgivings regarding “Film Studies,” but as it turned out it was one of the most celebrated episodes of the second season. Knowing that puts some added pressure to “Virtual Systems Analysis,” as if it didn’t have enough already. Any episode of Community has a certain level of expectation to it. So how did it do? Did “Virtual Systems Analysis” turn out to be the best thing or the worst thing ever?
The answer is quite simple: it was a phenomenal episode. »
- Brody Gibson
Cannes 2012: line-up announced
19 April 2012 9:53 AM, PDT | The Guardian - Film News | See recent The Guardian - Film News news »
New films by Michael Haneke, Jacques Audiard, Lee Daniels, Abbas Kiarostami, Ken Loach and Wes Anderson are in competition at this year's festival
Cannes 2012 is shaping up to be an auteurs' reunion, with new films from old Croisette stagers such as Jacques Audiard, Ken Loach and Michael Haneke vying for this year's top honour, the Palme d'Or. Joining them in competiton are the likes of Walter Salles, Leos Carax, David Cronenberg, Thomas Vinterberg, Lee Daniels and Wes Anderson, whose Moonrise Kingdom is the first opening night film to be also in competition since 2008's Blindness.
Rust and Bone, the latest from Audiard, whose A Prophet won the Grand Prix in 2009, was long a shoo-in for a competition spot; ditto Haneke with Love, which reunites him with Piano Teacher Isabelle Huppert, and Abbas Kiarostami with Like Someone in Love. Matteo Garrone's followup to Gommorah is another welcome inclusion. Loach returns with The Angels' Share, »
- Catherine Shoard
Happy 65th Anniversary Cannes Film Festival! Check Out the Official Selection List! Is There An "Artist" in the Making?
19 April 2012 9:07 AM, PDT | Manny the Movie Guy | See recent Manny the Movie Guy news »
1,779 films were submitted to be included as an Official Selection of the 2012 Cannes Film Festival but in the end, only 54 films made it. From competition to Un Certain Regard to midnight screenings (I especially want to see Dario Argento's "Dracula" from the midnight screening category), here's your full list!
The Cannes Film Festival is taking place from May 16th to the 27th. Last year, "Drive," "We Need to Talk About Kevin," "Melancholia," "The Artist," and "The Tree of Life" all wowed festival attendees and ultimately made an impact on the year-end award-giving bodies (with "The Artist" ultimately taking the grand prize of them all -- the Best Picture Oscar). We'll see if the latest crop of Cannes films will have the same staying power as Michel Hazanavicius' "The Artist." (visit the official Festival de Cannes site right here)
2012 Cannes Film Festival Official Selection
Competition:
Moonrise Kingdom, dir: Wes Anderson
Rust & Bone, »
- Manny
Cannes 2012. Lineup
19 April 2012 8:36 AM, PDT | MUBI | See recent MUBI news »
So we've known for some time now that Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom will be opening the Cannes Film Festival (site) on May 16. Yesterday, the Festival announced that Thérèse Desqueyroux, Claude Miller's final film, will close this year's edition on May 27. Miller's adaptation of François Mauriac's novel Thérèse Desqueyroux features Audrey Tautou in the title role as well as Gilles Lellouche and Anaïs Demoustier.
And lineups for the Short Films Competition and the Cinéfondation Selection were unveiled on Tuesday. Jean-Pierre Dardenne will preside over the Jury.
Today, the Festival's announced the full lineup for the Official Selection of its 65th anniversary edition. This is a roundup-in-progress, obviously.
Competition
Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom. The synopsis at the official site: "Set on an island off the coast of New England in the summer of 1965, Moonrise Kingdom tells the story of two 12-year-olds who fall in love, make a secret pact, »
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