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20 items from 2012
Free Men
18 May 2012 4:06 PM, PDT | The Guardian - Film News | See recent The Guardian - Film News news »
A Prophet star Tahar Rahim joins the latest resistance movie
For French film-makers, the German occupation of their country between 1940 and 1944 has been, for nearly 70 years now, fertile if painful territory, offering an ocean of stories, a multiplicity of perspectives. The latest entry in the field of the occupation movie is Free Men, which examines the hitherto overlooked story of Muslims from France's north African colonial possessions, involved in the Paris black market and the selling of forged documents, who came to transcend the enmity between Muslims and Jews in order to better aid the latter. It stars Tahar Rahim (A Prophet), as an illiterate Algerian immigrant, blackmailed by the Germans into surveilling his local mosque, who ends up shooting Nazis and collaborators in the streets – all in a war that isn't really his (and yet … as one politically clued-up Muslim co-conspirator advises him: "Today this, tomorrow Algeria"). The film »
- John Patterson
The Matter of Design
4 May 2012 1:57 PM, PDT | MUBI | See recent MUBI news »
Above: The Penn Station set for The Clock.
"Loving evaluation of texture, the screen being filled as a window is dressed in a swank department store." —Orson Welles
If we accept Raymond Durgnat's theory that in cinema, landscape is the equation of the state of the soul and architecture constitutes an X-ray photograph of the heroes'1, then Minnelli's films, especially musicals and melodramas, can be described as full-color X-ray photography of the inner universe of his characters, with a particular interest in artists, daydreamers, painters and dancers.
Minnelli's films generally happen in strange places. In his musicals the absence of modern urban life (unlike Stanley Donen, for instance) is noticeable. The real is recreated by studio-manufactured settings, where also the unreal, the fantasy, takes place. Minnelli's films are the encounter of two worlds, two parallel lines, which in reality never happen to cross each other. Although it is true that »
The Films Of Robert Bresson: A Retrospective
18 April 2012 10:40 AM, PDT | The Playlist | See recent The Playlist news »
“We are still coming to terms with Robert Bresson, and the peculiar power and beauty of his films,” Martin Scorsese said in the 2010 book “A Passion For Film,” describing the often overlooked French filmmaker as “one of the cinema’s greatest artists.”
But while he may be revered by some as the finest French filmmaker bar Jean Renoir, outside hardcore cinephile circles he and his films are virtually unknown (perhaps regarded as too opaque or nebulous). Just consider the fact that almost every definitive book on the elusive director was published during the aughts to feel the full truth of Scorsese's statement about how we're still in the process of appreciating and understanding his life and work. Even Bresson’s actual birthdate is contested, adding further the ambiguities surrounding the director.
“Make visible what, without you, might perhaps never have been seen,” the meticulous Bresson once famously said, hinting at »
- The Playlist
Artist & Muse via Robert Doisneau
14 April 2012 4:22 AM, PDT | FilmExperience | See recent FilmExperience news »
Today marks the centennial of the great French photography Robert Doisneau and though he wasn't a celebrity photographer -- the kind we obviously have the greatest use for as film obsessives -- he did them on occassion. I love this shot of one of the great auteur/muse pairings (both onscreen and off) actor Jean Marais (left) and Jean Cocteau (right).
Here's another of Pablo Picasso and Françoise Gilot.
Remember when Anthony Hopkins and Natasha McElhone pretended to be them? I know I know. No one saw Surviving Picasso (1996)... but I did because Julianne Moore was Dora Maar (another Picasso victim... excuse me, lover!) and with Julianne I martyr myself to completism.
If you could photograph one auteur/muse pairing, who would it be? »
- NATHANIEL R
The Return of Abel Gance's "Napoleon"
27 March 2012 2:45 PM, PDT | MUBI | See recent MUBI news »
"The cinema event of a lifetime," promises that trailer up there. No doubt. It's an event we've been banging the drum for the past couple of weeks — see, first and foremost, Adrian Curry's marvelous collection of posters.
Today and tomorrow, and then again next Saturday and Sunday, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival will present the latest restoration of Abel Gance's epic Napoleon (1927) at the grand Paramount Theater in Oakland. Historian Kevin Brownlow, who's devoted much of his life to reconstructing the original version, has overseen this newest 330-minute version. The original original is believed to have run for nine hours when it first screened in Paris over two days before it was cut down to varying lengths for domestic and international distribution. As Manohla Dargis notes in her must-read piece for the New York Times, MGM cut one of the shortest for the Us: 70 minutes, "a butchering that »
Lesbian & Gay Film Festival Preview – March 23rd to April 1st
19 March 2012 7:20 AM, PDT | Obsessed with Film | See recent Obsessed with Film news »
After the phenomenal success of last year’s twenty fifth anniversary celebrations, the BFI London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival returns this coming week for its twenty sixth instalment, with another internationally flavoured and diverse line-up. Last year defied the recession and saw punters turn out to support the ailing festival which was under threat of being scrapped, luckily its back with a ten day slot devoted to the best new, old and experimental queer filmmaking. With a huge line-up of over sixty screenings and handful of talks and debates there is a lot to be seen, so here I am just going to pick some key highlights and a few personal choices.
Obviously the opening and closing night galas are the most hyped and talked about, and this year it would seem, for especially good reasons. Opening the festivities (for a third time) is Canadian-American director Thom Fitzgerald with Cloudburst, »
- Tom Day
Off-Off-Broadway Companies Support Independent Theater Fund
29 February 2012 8:25 AM, PST | backstage.com | See recent Backstage news »
Imagine that you've never heard of Steve Buscemi, John Leguizamo, or even Al Pacino. Forget that the Broadway production of "Urinetown" won three Tony Awards a decade ago. And assume that if early works by European playwrights Bertolt Brecht and Jean Cocteau never made it to the U.S. stage, it would be their loss and not ours. Congratulations. You've successfully created a world without independent and Off-Off-Broadway theater.Economic hardship has forced many theater groups and artists to shut down or move out of New York City in recent years. The experimental artistic spaces left standing, which have long served as a home and training ground for some of the biggest actors, writers, and directors in Hollywood and on Broadway, face a continuing challenge to make ends meet.In the face of that, about 50 members of New York's independent theater community gathered at the Living Theatre on the Lower East Side. »
- help@backstage.com (Daniel Lehman)
Looking back at Ridley Scott's Legend
29 February 2012 3:00 AM, PST | Den of Geek | See recent Den of Geek news »
Director Ridley Scott followed up Blade Runner with the fantastical whimsy of Legend. Michael looks back at Scott’s cult fantasy...
Hindsight is a strange gift. Geek history dictates that the 1980s were a heyday for the fantasy genre; however, few of the decade’s sword ‘n sorcery flicks were outright hits, and many barely made a comfortable profit. Indeed, nostalgia may enshrine the likes of Dark Crystal, Clash Of The Titans and Willow, but even the most successful only just cracked the domestic top 20 for their respective years.
Of the bunch, Ridley Scott’s Legend remains a particularly tricky case. On its theatrical release, it wasn’t just a box office failure, it was that terrible thing: a box office failure that, even after much pre-release tinkering by the studio, still bombed. Various cuts, endings, even soundtracks exist, but nothing that Universal changed attracted the desired audience. In 1985, Legend was pronounced dead on arrival, »
Mondrian SoHo Is The Ultimate Hotel Fantasy In NYC: You’ll Never Want To Leave!
28 February 2012 9:33 AM, PST | HollywoodLife | See recent HollywoodLife news »
This boutique hotel is tucked away on Soho's chic Crosby Street, amidst a canopy of twinkling trees. Whether you're looking for a romantic weekend away or a swanky staycation -- this is the place to be! Trying to pick a hotel in NYC is like shopping on Fifth Avenue, so many amazing options but hard to choose just one! Luckily, HollywoodLife.com stayed at one of the most unbelievable hotels in New York and we want to tell you all about it. First of all, you've never seen such a swanky hotel. When you walk up to the Mondrian SoHo, it's something straight out of a storybook. The hotel was inspired by Jean Cocteau's 1946 film La Belle et la Bête -- yes, the Beauty and the Beast! The oversized chairs and eclectic furniture in the lobby scream fantasy and it's even more evident in the hotel's delicious Imperial No. »
- Chloe Melas
Hollywood's in Love with 'Beauty and the Beast'
14 February 2012 4:39 PM, PST | TheInsider.com | See recent The Insider news »
It's Valentine's Day, so let's talk about love. Hollywood studios love nothing more than a proven concept (Rip, original idea), and it seems like the timeless love story Beauty and the Beast is back on everyone's love-to-do list. But do we really need four new versions of the classic fairytale to love?
Fairytales are hot again, with the box office success of the Shrek series, the Puss in Boots spinoff and films like Tangled and the return of Disney's Beauty and the Beast in 3D. Two competing Snow White fantasies are hitting the big screen in the coming months – Mirror, Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman – and ABC's Once Upon a Time is also a smash.
Lest we forget, Hollywood is a business, first and foremost -- that's why they call it "The Biz" – and studios are much more comfortable gambling on a tried-and-true concept with brand recognition. Which brings us to all the love Beauty and the Beast »
Guillermo Del Toro Will Direct Emma Watson in Beauty & The Beast
14 February 2012 1:40 AM, PST | Obsessed with Film | See recent Obsessed with Film news »
Guillermo del Toro began developing his new take on “Beauty and the Beast” with Harry Potter actress Emma Watson this past July, and now a Variety update informs us that the monsterific Mexican helmer is moving full steam ahead on the fantasy re-imagining, setting it up at Warner Bros.
Del Toro will now not only produce but he will also direct (awesome!), with scribe Andrew Davies (“The Three Musketeers”, “Bridget Jones’s Diary”) set away to write a script from Del Toro’s treatment.
Based on the beloved Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve fairy tale that has already been adapted a thousand times with at least two classic productions (the Disney animated musical of the early 90′s and the 40′s Jean Cocteau directed French B&W magical film) that tells the story of Belle, the innocent young girl who finds herself trapped in the grotesque palace of a hideous beast, who »
- Matt Holmes
Guillermo del Toro to Direct 'Beauty and the Beast' with Harry Potter's Emma Watson to Star
13 February 2012 3:26 PM, PST | Rope of Silicon | See recent Rope Of Silicon news »
This could turn into an interesting development as Guillermo del Toro is now reportedly set to direct a new adaptation of the classic tale Beauty and the Beast for Warner Bros. with Harry Potter star Emma Watson in final negotiations to star as Belle. Andrew Davies, who co-wrote the recent The Three Musketeers adaptation with Alex Litvak is set to write the screenplay based on a treatment del Toro will write himself. There's no word on whether or not del Toro will go to Beauty and the Beast once he completes work on his upcoming monster film Pacific Rim, which won't hit theaters until May 10, 2013, but one can assume. Then again, one could also assume this project will never see the light of day as del Toro has a long run of attaching himself to projects that never get off the ground, not to mention he has plenty of films »
- Brad Brevet
‘Space: 1999′ reboot, ‘Wolverine 2′ & more ‘Who’ writers announced
10 February 2012 12:26 PM, PST | doorQ.com | See recent doorQ.com news »
Two more writers have been confirmed for season seven of Doctor Who, joining the previously announced Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss, and John Fay. First up is Being Human (UK) creator Toby Whithouse, whose previous episodes include School Reunion, Vampires of Venice, and The God Complex. The second writer is Chris Chibnall, who wrote the underrated David Tennant episode 42. There might be another writer or two who still hasn’t been announced, possibly including Gareth Roberts, who might end up writing a third Craig Owens episode with James Corden, something that has been rumored a few times.
Terry O’Quinn has snagged a 2 episode appearance on TNT’s Falling Skies. The big hit from last summer returns with further alien aggression. O’Quinn will guest star in the final two episodes of the season.
20Th Century Fox has set July 26, 2013 for the release of The Wolverine, the sequel to 2009’s X Men Origins: Wolverine. »
- spaced-odyssey
Lea Seydoux Is ‘Beauty’ to Vincent Cassel’s ‘Beast’ for ‘Brotherhood of the Wolf’ Director Christophe Gans
10 February 2012 11:57 AM, PST | The Film Stage | See recent The Film Stage news »
This doesn’t happen often, but this have an instance where I look at an actor being cast in a certain role, and simply go, “Well, yeah. That’s perfect.”
ThePlaylist reports that Lea Seydoux and Vincent Cassel have set themselves for the respective, titular roles in Beauty and the Beast, a new iteration of the story from Brotherhood of the Wolf helmer Christophe Gans. That, personally speaking, is the only real information I need to commence hype, so take this quote from the director as an added bonus:
“With this picture, I want to unleash my imagination. Although I will keep to a form of storytelling of this timeless fairy tale that is in keeping with the same pace and characters as the original, I will surprise the audience by creating a completely new visual universe never experienced before and produce images of an unparalleled quality. Every single one »
- jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
Cassel Cast In "Beauty and the Beast"
10 February 2012 8:40 AM, PST | SneakPeek | See recent SneakPeek news »
Director Christophe Gans ("Brotherhood of the Wolf") confirms that he will direct a new adaptation of "Beauty and the Beast", starring Vincent Cassel ("Black Swan") and Lea Seydoux.
"Although I will keep to a form of storytelling of this timeless fairy tale that is in keeping with the same pace and characters as the original," said Gans, "I will surprise the audience by creating a completely new visual universe never experienced before and produce images of an unparalleled quality."
"Every single one of my movies has presented me with a challenge but this one is, by far, the most exciting and rewarding."
"Beauty and the Beast" (French: "La Belle et la Bête"), a traditional fairy tale, about a prince supernaturally changed into a 'beast', was first published in 1740. The best-known written version was published in 1756 by Jeanne-Marie Le Prince de Beaumont. The first English translation appeared in 1757.
Gans' "Beauty and the Beast »
- Michael Stevens
Vincent Cassel & Lea Seydoux Are Beauty & The Beast For Christophe Gans
10 February 2012 4:30 AM, PST | Obsessed with Film | See recent Obsessed with Film news »
Vincent Cassel and Lea Seydoux are teaming together to star in a new take on Beauty & The Beast, a French/English production from atmospheric helmer Christophe Gans (Brotherhood of the Wolf, Silent Hill). Production will kick off in October.
Details are particularly scarce for the Eskward/Pathre production and we don’t yet know whether it will be in the French language (I’m thinking it will, but can’t say for sure) or whether it will be a period or contemporary version, but if I had to guess given Gans’ love to create visually stunning worlds, I think it will be the latter. Certainly Gans’ comments on the announcement back that idea up;
“With this picture, I want to unleash my imagination. Although I will keep to a form of storytelling of this timeless fairy tale that is in keeping with the same pace and characters as the original, »
- Matt Holmes
Vincent Cassel & Lea Seydoux To Star In 'Beauty & The Beast' From Director Christophe Gans
9 February 2012 9:01 PM, PST | The Playlist | See recent The Playlist news »
As you already know, fairy tale films are the new hot thing. We've already had "Red Riding Hood" test the waters, and this year we'll see "Mirror Mirror" and "Snow White and the Huntsman," followed by "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters" and "Jack The Giant Killer" in 2013. While those are all interesting for various reasons, this latest announcement has shot a new fairy tale movie right to the top of our list. Vincent Cassel ("Black Swan," "Mesrine") and Lea Seydoux ("Midnight In Paris," "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol") will be starring in "Beauty and the Beast." The tale has been brought to the big screen more than once, most notably in Jean Cocteau's gorgeous "La Belle et la bête" and of course, to blockbuster acclaim in Disney's recently re-released in 3D animated version. But the ingredient which promises to shake things up is director »
This week's new film events
20 January 2012 4:07 PM, PST | The Guardian - Film News | See recent The Guardian - Film News news »
London Comedy Film Festival
A quick burst of winter blues-banishing, with comedies old (1960s heist comedy Go To Blazes), new (a preview of the new Muppets movie) and both old and new (a "world premiere" read-through of The Day Off, a movie written for Tony Hancock by Galton and Simpson, which was never made). Guest of honour is Edgar Wright, who introduces a double bill: Shaun Of The Dead and Mike Leigh's Life Is Sweet, with guests and a Q&A; and there are discoveries to be made in anarchic French movie The Fairy and a secret new British comedy.
BFI Southbank, SE1, Thu to 29 Jan
Steven Severin: Vampyr, Nationwide
Following the success of his spooky live soundtrack to Jean Cocteau's avant-garde 1932 film The Blood Of A Poet last year, the former Siouxsie And The Banshees bassist embarks on a tour with another freshly rescored classic. This »
- Steve Rose
Extended Thoughts on Beauty and the Beast
5 January 2012 8:06 PM, PST | SoundOnSight | See recent SoundOnSight news »
There is an inexorable, inexplicable quality about some great movies, as there is about great art in general. Sometimes, yes, we can pinpoint exactly what makes a movie work so well, why it becomes one of our favorites, why it wins awards, why critics love it, or why it makes millions of dollars at the box office. The script is insightful, the direction is incredible, the visuals are eye-popping, the performances are immense powerhouses of talent. These are easy ways to calculate what makes a movie work, but sometimes, we see a movie and we just like it. Sometimes, you can’t put your finger on one element about a movie that burrows itself under your skin, but you love it all the same.
Now, don’t get me wrong: Beauty and the Beast has a lot of clearly standout aspects to it, but I don’t know that I »
- Josh Spiegel
The Best Blu-ray Discs of 2011
2 January 2012 6:07 PM, PST | Dark Horizons | See recent Dark Horizons news »
Best Contemporary Titles
Winner: "The Tree of Life"
Runner-up: "Black Swan"
Love it or hate it, Terrence Malick's "The Tree of Life" is visually the most luscious film of the year and Blu-ray transfer recreates this in perfect detail. No digital artifacts or enhancements are done here, there is a bit of grain but that's expected with the photography on offer, while the IMAX 65mm sequences are true visual wonders.
Coming in second is my favourite film of last year, Darren Aronofsky's psychological thriller "Black Swan". Here is a challenge of a different sort, a film shot on both 16mm film and off the shelf Dslr video cameras. The result is a deliberately soft and grainy handheld-style image which lends a realistic documentary feel to proceedings and could look terrible if the Blu-ray transfer was handled poorly. Full kudos to Fox for a high quality presentation lacking in »
- Garth Franklin
2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2004 | 2003
20 items from 2012
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