The episode of Wtf Happened to This Horror Movie? covering Manhunter was Written and Narrated by Mike Holtz, Edited by Joseph Wilson, Produced by Andrew Hatfield and John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.
How cool would it be to wake up in an alternate universe where bizarre versions of your favorite movies existed and you could experience them all over again for the first time? That’s exactly what I can offer to The Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon fans who have never experienced Manhunter (watch it Here). The forgotten and abandoned stepchild of the Hannibal Lecter film series. How in the fava bean f*$& does a movie that has the twisted murder weirdness and fascinating serial killer storytelling of a Silence of the Lambs or Mindhunter paired with the coolness of a movie like Heat and flair of a Nicolas Winding Refn film go this unnoticed?...
How cool would it be to wake up in an alternate universe where bizarre versions of your favorite movies existed and you could experience them all over again for the first time? That’s exactly what I can offer to The Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon fans who have never experienced Manhunter (watch it Here). The forgotten and abandoned stepchild of the Hannibal Lecter film series. How in the fava bean f*$& does a movie that has the twisted murder weirdness and fascinating serial killer storytelling of a Silence of the Lambs or Mindhunter paired with the coolness of a movie like Heat and flair of a Nicolas Winding Refn film go this unnoticed?...
- 4/1/2024
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
In A Shop For Killers, Bale was portrayed as a notorious murderer, who was working as a mercenary in Babylon. The lack of empathy in the character makes him stand out in the segment of evil characters. Bale can be compared to the character of David Carradine, who plays the role of a cold-hearted murderer, Bill, in the film Kill Bill. A similar lack of empathy for their victims was seen in Bale’s emotionless eyes, and he seemed to murder people just for sport. He would go on missions and kill civilians just for his entertainment, which was strongly opposed by Jinman. Will Jinman be able to punish Bale for his deeds? Will Bale try to get back at Jinman at the end of A Shop For Killers? Let’s find out.
Spoilers Ahead
Why Did Bale Murder The Civilians?
While on a mission to escort a renowned businessman safely back to Korea,...
Spoilers Ahead
Why Did Bale Murder The Civilians?
While on a mission to escort a renowned businessman safely back to Korea,...
- 2/7/2024
- by Debjyoti Dey
- Film Fugitives
The idea for “Rain on the Graves” — the latest single from Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson’s upcoming solo album, The Mandrake Project, out March 1 — came to him while visiting the resting place of poet William Wordsworth. He’d been invited to a wedding in England’s Lake District in 2012, and, knowing that Wordsworth wrote a lot of his verses in Grasmere, he decided to visit his stone cottage and the church where his body was interred.
“It was a gloomy day, and there was rain,” he tells Rolling Stone...
“It was a gloomy day, and there was rain,” he tells Rolling Stone...
- 1/25/2024
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
Jeremy Thomas (who Tilda Swinton compares to a pirate and William Blake) on Jim Jarmusch: “There’s no more American independent hero than him. He and Sara Driver have been my friends for years, decades.”
In the second instalment with the free-thinking producer and pirate of the high seas (Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s Kon-Tiki), Jeremy Thomas, we discuss the filming of Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, his “favourite actor” John Hurt, his “very good buddy” Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston and “the great” Mia Wasikowska, and Anton Yelchin “who was such a sweetie”. We also touch upon the opening night of Jeremy Thomas Presents at the Quad Cinema with Jeremy and the Stealing Beauty author Susan Minot, doing a Q&a following the screening of Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Dreamers.
Jim Jarmusch with Tilda Swinton, whom Jeremy Thomas calls “an incredible woman.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Jim...
In the second instalment with the free-thinking producer and pirate of the high seas (Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s Kon-Tiki), Jeremy Thomas, we discuss the filming of Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, his “favourite actor” John Hurt, his “very good buddy” Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston and “the great” Mia Wasikowska, and Anton Yelchin “who was such a sweetie”. We also touch upon the opening night of Jeremy Thomas Presents at the Quad Cinema with Jeremy and the Stealing Beauty author Susan Minot, doing a Q&a following the screening of Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Dreamers.
Jim Jarmusch with Tilda Swinton, whom Jeremy Thomas calls “an incredible woman.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Jim...
- 9/26/2023
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The Red Dragon episode of Wtf Happened to This Horror Movie? was Written by Ric Solomon, Narrated by Adam Walton, Edited by Juan Jimenez, Produced by Andrew Hatfield and John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.
Hannibal Lecter… a name that has been cemented forever in the hearts of horror fans alike. We’ve seen him in some truly gruesome, yet unforgettable films. The most well known is The Silence of the Lambs, which was followed up in 2001 with the mostly disliked, self-titled Hannibal. But the very next year, in 2002, we were treated to somewhat of a redemption story of Hannibal Lecter in the form of Red Dragon (watch it Here). Did you know though, that this wasn’t the first time Red Dragon was made? Did you also know that none other than Brett Ratner, of then Rush Hour fame, directed this psychological thriller? Let’s look back,...
Hannibal Lecter… a name that has been cemented forever in the hearts of horror fans alike. We’ve seen him in some truly gruesome, yet unforgettable films. The most well known is The Silence of the Lambs, which was followed up in 2001 with the mostly disliked, self-titled Hannibal. But the very next year, in 2002, we were treated to somewhat of a redemption story of Hannibal Lecter in the form of Red Dragon (watch it Here). Did you know though, that this wasn’t the first time Red Dragon was made? Did you also know that none other than Brett Ratner, of then Rush Hour fame, directed this psychological thriller? Let’s look back,...
- 8/16/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
Hot Chip have returned with “Fire of Mercy,” a new single featuring Yunè Pinku. Watch the visualizer for the song below.
With inquisitive lyrics like, “Do you ever stop believing/ In the things that make you feel like you?,” the new track shows off Hot Chip’s ability to explore thoughtful themes in a grooving, electronic setting. Beneath an infectious vocal melody, layers of bustling drums and samples create a rhythmic engine, elevating the tune to a cruising altitude of “vibey.”
As for the song’s meaning, the band’s Joe Goddard explained: “‘Fire of Mercy’ relates to the central concept of William Blake’s Songs of Experience — it bemoans the corruption that inevitably comes from adulthood and longs for a return to the purity of childhood.” For her part, Pinku added: “Massive honor to work with Hot Chip, as they’re huge legends within the electronic world. When they...
With inquisitive lyrics like, “Do you ever stop believing/ In the things that make you feel like you?,” the new track shows off Hot Chip’s ability to explore thoughtful themes in a grooving, electronic setting. Beneath an infectious vocal melody, layers of bustling drums and samples create a rhythmic engine, elevating the tune to a cruising altitude of “vibey.”
As for the song’s meaning, the band’s Joe Goddard explained: “‘Fire of Mercy’ relates to the central concept of William Blake’s Songs of Experience — it bemoans the corruption that inevitably comes from adulthood and longs for a return to the purity of childhood.” For her part, Pinku added: “Massive honor to work with Hot Chip, as they’re huge legends within the electronic world. When they...
- 8/7/2023
- by Jo Vito
- Consequence - Music
Only nine directors have ever won the Palme d’Or twice. Francis Ford Coppola did it in the ’70s with The Conversation and Apocalypse Now. Ruben Östlund joined the club last year after following The Square with Triangle of Sadness. But this year, there is a very real possibility that, at 86, Ken Loach may go above and beyond that by winning a third Palme for his new film, The Old Oak. Loach first won in 2006 with the historical Irish drama The Wind That Shakes the Barley, then doubled up in 2016 with I, Daniel Blake, a caustic study of Britain’s healthcare crisis. After that came Sorry, We Missed You, a no-less withering look at the punitive gig economy. Like the latter two films, The Old Oak is set in the North East of England and completes an unofficial trilogy, this time with a slightly more optimistic bent. Like all of...
- 5/26/2023
- by Damon Wise
- Deadline Film + TV
“Inimitable storyteller” and “mythic storyteller” were a few of the superlatives sung of David Johansen, former New York Dolls frontman turned lounge act Buster Poindexter, at the Metrograph premiere of “Personality Crisis: One Night Only” in New York Tuesday.
But they could easily apply to the film’s co-director, Martin Scorsese, who made the cabaret concert documentary with David Tedeschi, the longtime editor on his past nonfiction music films like “George Harrison: Living in the Material World” and Bob Dylan’s “Rolling Thunder Revue.”
Curiously for an Oscar-winning filmmaker who has made eight music documentaries along with Fran Lebowitz portraits “Pretend It’s a City” and “Public Speaking” and other nonfiction efforts, Scorsese doesn’t exactly subscribe to the term documentary itself. Or differentiate it from his fiction features like “The Irishman” or the upcoming “Killers of the Flower Moon” at all.
“For me, what I’m trying to do is...
But they could easily apply to the film’s co-director, Martin Scorsese, who made the cabaret concert documentary with David Tedeschi, the longtime editor on his past nonfiction music films like “George Harrison: Living in the Material World” and Bob Dylan’s “Rolling Thunder Revue.”
Curiously for an Oscar-winning filmmaker who has made eight music documentaries along with Fran Lebowitz portraits “Pretend It’s a City” and “Public Speaking” and other nonfiction efforts, Scorsese doesn’t exactly subscribe to the term documentary itself. Or differentiate it from his fiction features like “The Irishman” or the upcoming “Killers of the Flower Moon” at all.
“For me, what I’m trying to do is...
- 4/12/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
The notion of creators getting haunted or mentally oppressed by their creations was brilliantly explored in Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”. The legendary English poet William Blake, whom Eric Robert’s character, Detective Dibiasse, appropriately mentions in the movie, too was a victim of his own sensitive and vivid imagination and claimed to have witnessed visions of his creations throughout his lifetime. However, the mention of the visionary bard in director Ezio Messa’s “Alter Ego,” a psychological thriller that is less thrilling than it is hilarious, comes off as blasphemy. Except for Dylan Walsh and Eric Robert’s characters, who seem to be falling victim to bad project choices at the tail ends of their respective careers, the supporting characters come off more as caricatures. Adding to that atrocious screenplay and predictable plot, which make it a really tedious job to finish the movie in the first place, even on a barely one-hour runtime,...
- 4/11/2023
- by Siddhartha Das
- Film Fugitives
The actor answers your questions, from his memorable impersonation of a sloth at Rada to what it was like having to execute one of his son’s best friends
I’ve heard there’s a module at Rada about becoming the embodiment of an animal. Legend has it you were incredible and people would strive to witness it. What animal were you and what process did you go through? spikeboy
I remember I wasn’t that particularly keen on it, so I think I was a sloth so I could just curl up in the corner and pretend I was on a tree and just shift up a bit every 20 minutes. We had a wonderful teacher but I’d had enough of some of the more modern dance stuff, so I used the animal thing as an exercise in having a bit of a kip.
We really enjoyed the Turner and Lowry films.
I’ve heard there’s a module at Rada about becoming the embodiment of an animal. Legend has it you were incredible and people would strive to witness it. What animal were you and what process did you go through? spikeboy
I remember I wasn’t that particularly keen on it, so I think I was a sloth so I could just curl up in the corner and pretend I was on a tree and just shift up a bit every 20 minutes. We had a wonderful teacher but I’d had enough of some of the more modern dance stuff, so I used the animal thing as an exercise in having a bit of a kip.
We really enjoyed the Turner and Lowry films.
- 9/8/2022
- by As told to Rich Pelley
- The Guardian - Film News
Sterlin Harjo, co-creator of FX’s Reservation Dogs, discusses a few of his favorite movies with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Mekko (2015)
Boy (2010)
Cool Hand Luke (1967) – Larry Karaszewski’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
Being There (1979) – Alan Spencer’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s Blu-ray review
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
A Woman Under The Influence (1974)
Husbands (1970) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Stand By Me (1986)
Hamburger: The Motion Picture (1986)
This Is Spinal Tap (1984) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
The Princess Bride (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Friday (1995)
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary
Dead Man (1995)
Powwow Highway (1989)
Airplane! (1980) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai (1999)
Stalker (1979) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Come And See (1985) – Larry Karaszewski’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
A Clockwork Orange...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Mekko (2015)
Boy (2010)
Cool Hand Luke (1967) – Larry Karaszewski’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
Being There (1979) – Alan Spencer’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s Blu-ray review
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
A Woman Under The Influence (1974)
Husbands (1970) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Stand By Me (1986)
Hamburger: The Motion Picture (1986)
This Is Spinal Tap (1984) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
The Princess Bride (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Friday (1995)
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary
Dead Man (1995)
Powwow Highway (1989)
Airplane! (1980) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai (1999)
Stalker (1979) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Come And See (1985) – Larry Karaszewski’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
A Clockwork Orange...
- 8/2/2022
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
When one thinks of classic poetry, one does not expect to encounter horror. No, this is space for romance, for musing, for political diatribes, for art. Maybe this makes it even more exciting when one comes across the macabre and the depraved, in classic writing. There are plenty of dark poems throughout history: Poe’s entire oeuvre, Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” and Goethe’s Faust are just a few. But few poets went so far as to create their own religion through poetry. Not everyone can be as rebellious and wild as William Blake.
My first encounter with Blake was in high school, and it left a bland taste (not that my palate was developed in any regard at that point). That level of academia focuses on his earlier work. Blake’s most oft-taught poem might be “The Tyger,” an ingeniously phrased rhyme examining a fearsome tiger in the jungle.
My first encounter with Blake was in high school, and it left a bland taste (not that my palate was developed in any regard at that point). That level of academia focuses on his earlier work. Blake’s most oft-taught poem might be “The Tyger,” an ingeniously phrased rhyme examining a fearsome tiger in the jungle.
- 8/4/2017
- by Ben Larned
- DailyDead
Denis Lavant as Louis-Ferdinand Céline with Bébert
Paolo Sorrentino begins his Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza) with a quote about imaginary travel from Louis-Ferdinand Céline's Journey To The End Of The Night. Céline's novels changed French literature forever and influenced writers all over the world since the early 1930s. Is it possible, Emmanuel Bourdieu's probing film asks, to reconcile the literary genius with his anti-Semitic pamphlets and statements?
Céline and Lucette (Géraldine Pailhas) with Milton Hindus (Philip Desmeules)
In the green room at the Film Society of Lincoln Center's Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, the director of Louis-Ferdinand Céline and I discussed the terror of a genius, the score by Grégoire Hetzel, casting Denis Lavant of Léos Carax's Holy Motors fame, creating a tune for a William Blake poem, how Géraldine Pailhas helped with the costumes, bird sounds, and Bébert, the cat.
Paolo Sorrentino begins his Best Foreign Language Film Oscar winner The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza) with a quote about imaginary travel from Louis-Ferdinand Céline's Journey To The End Of The Night. Céline's novels changed French literature forever and influenced writers all over the world since the early 1930s. Is it possible, Emmanuel Bourdieu's probing film asks, to reconcile the literary genius with his anti-Semitic pamphlets and statements?
Céline and Lucette (Géraldine Pailhas) with Milton Hindus (Philip Desmeules)
In the green room at the Film Society of Lincoln Center's Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, the director of Louis-Ferdinand Céline and I discussed the terror of a genius, the score by Grégoire Hetzel, casting Denis Lavant of Léos Carax's Holy Motors fame, creating a tune for a William Blake poem, how Géraldine Pailhas helped with the costumes, bird sounds, and Bébert, the cat.
- 1/30/2017
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
“There’s a love in the marvelous that intertwines in all my projects.” —Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”
“What is a ghost? A tragedy doomed to repeat itself time and time again? An instant of pain, perhaps. Something dead which still seems to be alive. An emotion, suspended in time. Like a blurred photograph. Like an insect trapped in amber.” — “The Devil’s Backbone”
Guillermo del Toro has trouble saying no. On the verge of starting production in Toronto on Fox Searchlight’s Cold War fantasy “The Shape of Water” and flying in to promote the opening of his Los Angeles Museum of Art exhibition “At Home with Monsters,” the Mexican filmmaker got on the phone with IndieWire. “I’m exhausted,” he admitted, “but this is light for me!”
Culled by Lacma curator Britt Salvesen from Del Toro’s extensive and eclectic home collection, which he calls Bleak House (after Charles Dickens...
“What is a ghost? A tragedy doomed to repeat itself time and time again? An instant of pain, perhaps. Something dead which still seems to be alive. An emotion, suspended in time. Like a blurred photograph. Like an insect trapped in amber.” — “The Devil’s Backbone”
Guillermo del Toro has trouble saying no. On the verge of starting production in Toronto on Fox Searchlight’s Cold War fantasy “The Shape of Water” and flying in to promote the opening of his Los Angeles Museum of Art exhibition “At Home with Monsters,” the Mexican filmmaker got on the phone with IndieWire. “I’m exhausted,” he admitted, “but this is light for me!”
Culled by Lacma curator Britt Salvesen from Del Toro’s extensive and eclectic home collection, which he calls Bleak House (after Charles Dickens...
- 8/8/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
“There’s a love in the marvelous that intertwines in all my projects.” —Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”
“What is a ghost? A tragedy doomed to repeat itself time and time again? An instant of pain, perhaps. Something dead which still seems to be alive. An emotion, suspended in time. Like a blurred photograph. Like an insect trapped in amber.” — “The Devil’s Backbone”
Guillermo del Toro has trouble saying no. On the verge of starting production in Toronto on Fox Searchlight’s Cold War fantasy “The Shape of Water” and flying in to promote the opening of his Los Angeles Museum of Art exhibition “At Home with Monsters,” the Mexican filmmaker got on the phone with IndieWire. “I’m exhausted,” he admitted, “but this is light for me!”
Culled by Lacma curator Britt Salvesen from Del Toro’s extensive and eclectic home collection, which he calls Bleak House (after Charles Dickens...
“What is a ghost? A tragedy doomed to repeat itself time and time again? An instant of pain, perhaps. Something dead which still seems to be alive. An emotion, suspended in time. Like a blurred photograph. Like an insect trapped in amber.” — “The Devil’s Backbone”
Guillermo del Toro has trouble saying no. On the verge of starting production in Toronto on Fox Searchlight’s Cold War fantasy “The Shape of Water” and flying in to promote the opening of his Los Angeles Museum of Art exhibition “At Home with Monsters,” the Mexican filmmaker got on the phone with IndieWire. “I’m exhausted,” he admitted, “but this is light for me!”
Culled by Lacma curator Britt Salvesen from Del Toro’s extensive and eclectic home collection, which he calls Bleak House (after Charles Dickens...
- 8/8/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
While the rest of his cohort have fallen by the wayside or been absorbed into the Hollywood system, the film-maker has stayed weird, as his new movie of erudite vampire love reveals
The word "hipster" invariably crops up in discussions about American film-maker Jim Jarmusch, not least because he looks the part. He is tall, lean, often wears shades and has a famous shock of hair that started turning silvery grey in his teens; his basso drawl completes the uncanny resemblance to a certain Hollywood great, which inspired Jarmusch to found a jokey secret society, The Sons of Lee Marvin.
Jarmusch is without a doubt the most rock'n'roll of film-makers – although he obliges you to define the term. He has worked with a lot of musicians, either as composers or as actors – Neil Young, Tom Waits, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, hip-hop producer RZA. But if you look at the breadth of Jarmusch's references,...
The word "hipster" invariably crops up in discussions about American film-maker Jim Jarmusch, not least because he looks the part. He is tall, lean, often wears shades and has a famous shock of hair that started turning silvery grey in his teens; his basso drawl completes the uncanny resemblance to a certain Hollywood great, which inspired Jarmusch to found a jokey secret society, The Sons of Lee Marvin.
Jarmusch is without a doubt the most rock'n'roll of film-makers – although he obliges you to define the term. He has worked with a lot of musicians, either as composers or as actors – Neil Young, Tom Waits, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, hip-hop producer RZA. But if you look at the breadth of Jarmusch's references,...
- 2/23/2014
- by Jonathan Romney
- The Guardian - Film News
[Warning: The following story contains major spoilers from Sunday's episode of The Mentalist. Read at your own risk.]
Be careful what you wish for. The Mentalist's Patrick Jane finally got his revenge on the man who slaughtered his wife and daughter — the sardonic, William Blake spouting serial killer Red John. But now what? TV Guide Magazine had a chat with Simon Baker, who plays the crime-busting Jane, about where the show and his character will go from here. Will Red John's death really help Jane deal with his grief? Can he move on with his life and maybe even find love again?
Read More >...
Be careful what you wish for. The Mentalist's Patrick Jane finally got his revenge on the man who slaughtered his wife and daughter — the sardonic, William Blake spouting serial killer Red John. But now what? TV Guide Magazine had a chat with Simon Baker, who plays the crime-busting Jane, about where the show and his character will go from here. Will Red John's death really help Jane deal with his grief? Can he move on with his life and maybe even find love again?
Read More >...
- 11/25/2013
- by Michael Logan
- TVGuide - Breaking News
It was Rebecca that made me pay attention to The Mentalist. I had never seen the CBS crime drama starring Simon Baker until the eighth episode of season 2. “His Red Right Hand” was the one where a secretary in the Sacramento offices of the California Bureau of Investigation shot Sam Bosco (Terry Kinney) and two other agents on behalf of a serial killer — Red John, a brilliant phantom with a blood-drawn smiley face insignia, powerful influence and connections, and a scores of similarly brain-sick and unnervingly gleeful devotees.
In the last act, an assassin — presumably Red John himself; we never...
In the last act, an assassin — presumably Red John himself; we never...
- 11/24/2013
- by Jeff Jensen
- EW - Inside TV
Bates Motel, Season 1, Episode 2: “Nice Town You Picked Norma”
Written by
Directed by Tucker Gates
Airs Mondays at 10pm Et on A&E
In 1960, Alfred Hitchcock was already famous as the screen’s master of suspense, but when he released Psycho he forever changed the shape and tone of the screen thriller. Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre, Psycho is perhaps Hitchcock’s most famous film, and his most influential. Hitchcock didn’t just create modern horror, he popularized it. So it is no surprise that many people decided to write off Bates Motel long before the series even premiered. It takes a lot of courage to create a prequel to a movie that is both a landmark in film history as well as a monument of moviemaking. After 52 years, is there anything left to say about Norman Bates? Showrunners Carlton Cuse...
Written by
Directed by Tucker Gates
Airs Mondays at 10pm Et on A&E
In 1960, Alfred Hitchcock was already famous as the screen’s master of suspense, but when he released Psycho he forever changed the shape and tone of the screen thriller. Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre, Psycho is perhaps Hitchcock’s most famous film, and his most influential. Hitchcock didn’t just create modern horror, he popularized it. So it is no surprise that many people decided to write off Bates Motel long before the series even premiered. It takes a lot of courage to create a prequel to a movie that is both a landmark in film history as well as a monument of moviemaking. After 52 years, is there anything left to say about Norman Bates? Showrunners Carlton Cuse...
- 3/26/2013
- by Ricky da Conceição
- SoundOnSight
He’s one of the hottest, most successful actors in the industry, and Bradley Cooper is actually relieved he didn’t win an Oscar for “Silver Linings Playbook” at the 85th Academy Awards last month.
In the April 2013 issue of British GQ (accompanied by a Brigitte Lacombe-shot spread), the “Limitless” hunk explained, “I don’t want to win an Oscar. It would change nothing. Nothing. The things in my life that aren’t fulfilled would not be fulfilled. Career-wise, right now, it’s better that I don’t win one. I don’t want to win. I don’t.”
Cooper added that losing his father in 2011 put everything in perspective. “I watched him dying and I was there by his bed watching him, breathing with him, and then I saw his last breath and he was gone. I experienced the whole thing. And that was a watershed moment that I was privileged to experience.
In the April 2013 issue of British GQ (accompanied by a Brigitte Lacombe-shot spread), the “Limitless” hunk explained, “I don’t want to win an Oscar. It would change nothing. Nothing. The things in my life that aren’t fulfilled would not be fulfilled. Career-wise, right now, it’s better that I don’t win one. I don’t want to win. I don’t.”
Cooper added that losing his father in 2011 put everything in perspective. “I watched him dying and I was there by his bed watching him, breathing with him, and then I saw his last breath and he was gone. I experienced the whole thing. And that was a watershed moment that I was privileged to experience.
- 3/4/2013
- GossipCenter
Bradley Cooper has said that he did not want to win the Oscar he was nominated for at last month's Academy Awards.
Cooper was up for the 'Best Actor' accolade for his role in Silver Linings Playbook, but has said that winning an award no longer matters to him following his father's death, Metro reports.
In an interview with GQ magazine, Cooper reflected on the loss of his father two years ago and added that he will not "sweat s**t" about awards after he witnessed his dad's final moments.
"Death became very real. And very tangible. Because my father - someone who had been in my life for 36 years is just f**king gone," Cooper said.
"I watched him dying and I was there by his bed watching him, breathing with him, and then I saw his last breath and he was gone.
"I experienced the whole thing. And...
Cooper was up for the 'Best Actor' accolade for his role in Silver Linings Playbook, but has said that winning an award no longer matters to him following his father's death, Metro reports.
In an interview with GQ magazine, Cooper reflected on the loss of his father two years ago and added that he will not "sweat s**t" about awards after he witnessed his dad's final moments.
"Death became very real. And very tangible. Because my father - someone who had been in my life for 36 years is just f**king gone," Cooper said.
"I watched him dying and I was there by his bed watching him, breathing with him, and then I saw his last breath and he was gone.
"I experienced the whole thing. And...
- 3/4/2013
- Digital Spy
After enjoying four years as a cult hero in France, the former Libertine is still battling with addiction and unable – or unwilling – to escape his notorious past
In a Paris attic apartment decorated like a 19th-century dandy's den, a rottweiler snores on a velvet couch and dozens of candles give out a half-light. Pete Doherty kicks an apple core round the living room rug and chats in broken French to a friend on his cracked iPhone. Balzac novels are stacked high on the window ledge.
This is Paris Pete, the rocker who now sings solo as Peter Doherty, writes poetry, paints and has made his debut as a French arthouse-cinema actor. For years, the Libertines and Babyshambles frontman was London's most notorious rock-star addict. The baby-faced, sallow-skinned, tabloid whipping-boy was kicked out of his first band, served three stints in prison for drug possession and breaking into bandmate Carl Barat's home,...
In a Paris attic apartment decorated like a 19th-century dandy's den, a rottweiler snores on a velvet couch and dozens of candles give out a half-light. Pete Doherty kicks an apple core round the living room rug and chats in broken French to a friend on his cracked iPhone. Balzac novels are stacked high on the window ledge.
This is Paris Pete, the rocker who now sings solo as Peter Doherty, writes poetry, paints and has made his debut as a French arthouse-cinema actor. For years, the Libertines and Babyshambles frontman was London's most notorious rock-star addict. The baby-faced, sallow-skinned, tabloid whipping-boy was kicked out of his first band, served three stints in prison for drug possession and breaking into bandmate Carl Barat's home,...
- 12/3/2012
- by Angelique Chrisafis
- The Guardian - Film News
Cocking a snook at the Olympic torch procession two men have plotted their own epic journey – along the waterways from Hastings to east London in a giant fibreglass swan
'Ahoy there!" shouts film-maker Andrew Kötting to a dredging vessel on the Lee Navigation canal, just outside London's Olympic Park. The man on the boat gives us a grudging wave. Kötting explains that the same man wouldn't let him pass any further up the canal yesterday. Nor would the Gurkhas who guard the Olympic site.
This could have something to do with our mode of transport. I am sitting beside Kötting in a two-person fibreglass pedalo in the shape of a giant swan. Or it could have something to do with my co-pilot: Kötting is wearing mirrored shades and a shabby, dark blue suit on top of a cardigan embroidered with swans. He hasn't washed the suit for the past month,...
'Ahoy there!" shouts film-maker Andrew Kötting to a dredging vessel on the Lee Navigation canal, just outside London's Olympic Park. The man on the boat gives us a grudging wave. Kötting explains that the same man wouldn't let him pass any further up the canal yesterday. Nor would the Gurkhas who guard the Olympic site.
This could have something to do with our mode of transport. I am sitting beside Kötting in a two-person fibreglass pedalo in the shape of a giant swan. Or it could have something to do with my co-pilot: Kötting is wearing mirrored shades and a shabby, dark blue suit on top of a cardigan embroidered with swans. He hasn't washed the suit for the past month,...
- 7/20/2012
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
More Dickens and even more Shakespeare, but also new novels from Toni Morrison, Hilary Mantel, Zadie Smith, plus exciting new voices – 2012's literary highlights
January
10 Charles Dickens's The Mystery of Edwin Drood, starring Matthew Rhys and Tamzin Merchant, begins – and, unlike the book, ends – on BBC2.
13 Michael Morpurgo's much-loved children's novel War Horse, a long-running favourite at the National and on Broadway, gets the Hollywood treatment. A tearjerking saga about a young soldier and his horse – it was only a matter of time before it was Spielberged.
16 Ts Eliot prize. Despite withdrawals from the shortlist over objections to a hedge fund's sponsorship of the prize, the Eliot remains the UK's premier poetry award, and its eve-of-event reading is always a treat. This year's shortlist includes Daljit Nagra, Carol Ann Duffy and John Burnside.
20 Release of film of Coriolanus, an Orson Wellesian effort directed by and starring Ralph Fiennes,...
January
10 Charles Dickens's The Mystery of Edwin Drood, starring Matthew Rhys and Tamzin Merchant, begins – and, unlike the book, ends – on BBC2.
13 Michael Morpurgo's much-loved children's novel War Horse, a long-running favourite at the National and on Broadway, gets the Hollywood treatment. A tearjerking saga about a young soldier and his horse – it was only a matter of time before it was Spielberged.
16 Ts Eliot prize. Despite withdrawals from the shortlist over objections to a hedge fund's sponsorship of the prize, the Eliot remains the UK's premier poetry award, and its eve-of-event reading is always a treat. This year's shortlist includes Daljit Nagra, Carol Ann Duffy and John Burnside.
20 Release of film of Coriolanus, an Orson Wellesian effort directed by and starring Ralph Fiennes,...
- 1/6/2012
- The Guardian - Film News
Director: Carlos Brooks.
Writers: Christine Coyle Johnson, Julie Prendiville Roux, and David Higgins.
Burning Bright was loosely created from William Blake's 18th Century poem called "The Tyger," which begins " Tyger! Tyger! burning bright/ In the forests of the night,/ What immortal hand or eye/ Could frame thy fearful symmetry?" Just as symmetrical is Briana Evigan as Kelly who tries to survive a night with a tiger on the loose. If that was enough, then a hurricane brings further terror in this exciting but repetitive popcorn flick from Lionsgate (2010).
Kelly has just lost her mother to a suspicious suicide and now she must help with her brother Tom (Charlie Tahan) who is autistic. Kelly must also deal with a greedy and manipulative stepfather who already has a series of plans for his ex-wife's inheritance. Strange how his plans go into effect right after her death with no period of grief.
Writers: Christine Coyle Johnson, Julie Prendiville Roux, and David Higgins.
Burning Bright was loosely created from William Blake's 18th Century poem called "The Tyger," which begins " Tyger! Tyger! burning bright/ In the forests of the night,/ What immortal hand or eye/ Could frame thy fearful symmetry?" Just as symmetrical is Briana Evigan as Kelly who tries to survive a night with a tiger on the loose. If that was enough, then a hurricane brings further terror in this exciting but repetitive popcorn flick from Lionsgate (2010).
Kelly has just lost her mother to a suspicious suicide and now she must help with her brother Tom (Charlie Tahan) who is autistic. Kelly must also deal with a greedy and manipulative stepfather who already has a series of plans for his ex-wife's inheritance. Strange how his plans go into effect right after her death with no period of grief.
- 11/13/2011
- by noreply@blogger.com (Michael Allen)
- 28 Days Later Analysis
Netflix has revolutionized the home movie experience for fans of film with its instant streaming technology. Netflix Nuggets is my way of spreading the word about independent, classic and foreign films made available by Netflix for instant streaming.
Sorry, folks… there are simply too many great films streaming this week to post an image for them all, but that’s a good thing, eh? You’ve got your movie watching work cut out for you, due in great part to Miramax releasing damn near their entire catalog of films on one day!
B. Monkey (1999)
Streaming Available: 05/01/2011
Director: Michael Radford
Synopsis: Good-hearted schoolteacher Alan Furnace (Jared Harris) desperately wants some excitement in his life — and he may just get some. One lonely night at a London bar, Alan spies the raven-haired beauty Beatrice (Asia Argento) arguing with two friends, Paul (Rupert Everett) and Bruno (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers). Beatrice quickly befriends Alan and...
Sorry, folks… there are simply too many great films streaming this week to post an image for them all, but that’s a good thing, eh? You’ve got your movie watching work cut out for you, due in great part to Miramax releasing damn near their entire catalog of films on one day!
B. Monkey (1999)
Streaming Available: 05/01/2011
Director: Michael Radford
Synopsis: Good-hearted schoolteacher Alan Furnace (Jared Harris) desperately wants some excitement in his life — and he may just get some. One lonely night at a London bar, Alan spies the raven-haired beauty Beatrice (Asia Argento) arguing with two friends, Paul (Rupert Everett) and Bruno (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers). Beatrice quickly befriends Alan and...
- 4/29/2011
- by Travis Keune
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Burning Bright is about a young woman trapped in a big, old, boarded up house. In the middle of nowhere. In her undies. With a Bengal tiger that hasn’t been fed for two weeks. And an autistic brother to protect. That she can’t touch. During a hurricane. For realsies. Hit the jump to see what I thought.
Tiger, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
The title is taken from William Blake’s poem The Tyger and I guess if it was called Tiger, Tiger people would have thought it was about a bar full of footballers and ex-Big Brother contestants.
Anyhoo, this tiger-centric tale is triggered when Johnny (Garret Dillahunt – The Last House on the Left and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles *blubs*) buys the Bengal beast from a bitch tits-less Meatloaf in a shady roadside deal.
Tiger, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
The title is taken from William Blake’s poem The Tyger and I guess if it was called Tiger, Tiger people would have thought it was about a bar full of footballers and ex-Big Brother contestants.
Anyhoo, this tiger-centric tale is triggered when Johnny (Garret Dillahunt – The Last House on the Left and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles *blubs*) buys the Bengal beast from a bitch tits-less Meatloaf in a shady roadside deal.
- 8/9/2010
- by Alan Simmons
- FilmShaft.com
Inspired by William Blake's famous poem "The Tyger," this great little short uses puppetry, illustration, photography and CGI to tell a visually magical tale of the tyger roaming through an urban jungle. Directed by Brazillian filmmaker Guilherme Marcondes.
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Today's Short is a feature on JustPressPlay showcasing wonderful short films found all around the web. If you have suggestions, hit us up.
{youtube}6LsMoUtBlDk{/youtube}
Today's Short is a feature on JustPressPlay showcasing wonderful short films found all around the web. If you have suggestions, hit us up.
- 4/28/2009
- by Arya Ponto
- JustPressPlay.net
Year: 2008
Director: Rory Kindersley & Jason Noto
Writers: Rory Kindersley & Jason Noto
IMDb: link
Trailer: link
Review by: cyberhal
Rating: 9 out of 10
New England in 1699, a boy and a girl and a big wooden house in the woods. Beautifully shot in pastels and muted colors. Butcher's Hill is a simple story, brilliantly executed, with a wonderfully bloody and unhappy ending. I loved it.
The children dare to enter the inviting empty house and in the kitchen, there's a table overflowing with delicious sugar sprinkled cakes and pastries. The hungry kids plow in. Hello Hansel and Gretel. There's a cauldron boiling on the kitchen fire and that witch has got to be somewhere. It's about now that the little girl discovers something like the end of a human finger in her jam pastry. Mmm.
An average fairy tale? Yes, until the moment when the leper like creature in rags bursts on the...
Director: Rory Kindersley & Jason Noto
Writers: Rory Kindersley & Jason Noto
IMDb: link
Trailer: link
Review by: cyberhal
Rating: 9 out of 10
New England in 1699, a boy and a girl and a big wooden house in the woods. Beautifully shot in pastels and muted colors. Butcher's Hill is a simple story, brilliantly executed, with a wonderfully bloody and unhappy ending. I loved it.
The children dare to enter the inviting empty house and in the kitchen, there's a table overflowing with delicious sugar sprinkled cakes and pastries. The hungry kids plow in. Hello Hansel and Gretel. There's a cauldron boiling on the kitchen fire and that witch has got to be somewhere. It's about now that the little girl discovers something like the end of a human finger in her jam pastry. Mmm.
An average fairy tale? Yes, until the moment when the leper like creature in rags bursts on the...
- 10/19/2008
- QuietEarth.us
Fashion photographer Ste ven Sebring first met Patti Smith at a Spin magazine shoot in 1995.
They must have hit it off, because for the next 11 years Sebring followed her around the world, candidly filming "the godmother of punk" in grainy, 16mm black and white, with occasional bursts of color.
She visits the graves of poets William Blake and Percy Bysshe Shelley; drops in on her talkative parents in their modest suburban home; fondles Robert Mapplethorpe's ashes, which she keeps in an urn; jams with onetime lover Sam Shepard...
They must have hit it off, because for the next 11 years Sebring followed her around the world, candidly filming "the godmother of punk" in grainy, 16mm black and white, with occasional bursts of color.
She visits the graves of poets William Blake and Percy Bysshe Shelley; drops in on her talkative parents in their modest suburban home; fondles Robert Mapplethorpe's ashes, which she keeps in an urn; jams with onetime lover Sam Shepard...
- 8/8/2008
- by By V.A. MUSETTO
- NYPost.com
Sundance Film Festival
PARK CITY -- Twelve years in the making, Patti Smith: Dream of Life is a unique record of an artist's journey.
The first film by fashion photographer Steven Sebring, it stitches together layer upon layer of human experience to paint a portrait of the artist as a tireless and dynamic worker for music, poetry, peace, family and friends.
A knowledge of Smith's landmark contribution as a rock 'n' roll pioneer is not essential, and the film should be a joy for anyone interested in pop culture of the past 40 years.
Sebring does not take a conventional route here, which is fitting for his subject. The long gestation period for the film has afforded an intimacy and ease that allows him to penetrate Smith's inner and outer worlds, weaving back and forth in time from her arrival in New York in the late 1960s to raising her two children in Detroit with husband Fred Sonic Smith to her triumphant return to performing in the mid-'90s. Structure is anchored in the bedroom of Smith's cluttered New York apartment and jumps around from there as she reflects on her life and art.
First stop is a poignant visit to the lived-in house she shared with her husband and kids in Detroit until his death in 1994. In fact, much of the film deals with friends who are no longer alive, but the tone is elegiac, not morbid. So when she pulls out a vial of Robert Mapplethorpe's ashes or talks about William Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, she is just honoring their influence. When she visits the graves of her mentors, William Blake and Arthur Rimbaud, she sees herself as part of a living tradition of poetry.
"We all have a voice", she says, "and the responsibility to use it."
New York is central to her life and the film, and there is some wonderful archival footage from the early '70s, where she talks about how she had to leave her childhood home, across from a square dance hall in South Jersey, and venture to the big city to discover her voice. Later she reads her poem, Prayer for New York.
Although there are some classic scenes of her onstage in the heyday of the Manhattan punk club CBGB, this is not a performance film; it's more meditative and musing than about her music. There are no big, show-stopping moments, but there are some lovely, smaller ones.
In one scene, she and her old friend and lover Sam Shepard sit in the corner of her apartment playing vintage guitars, singing the blues tune Sitting on Top of the World as Sebring focuses on their feet tapping time in unison. Later, when Smith visits her elderly and entertaining parents in New Jersey, there is a shot held for several seconds of the couple holding hands, and in the background we hear the sound of a ticking clock as if it's counting off their time together.
Sebring follows Smith around the world as she visits the Middle East and listens to the music of Muslims and Jews praying, Buddhist monks chanting in Japan and speeches at a peace rally in Washington. He shot most of the footage himself in 16 millimeter, some in color, some in black and white, and the varied looks and textures help give the film character. Skillful editing by Angelo Corrao and Lin Polito pull the divergent threads together from what was obviously a massive amount of material.
Throughout, Smith's approachability keeps it real. When a fan steps onto an elevator with her, she laughs when she's called a rock icon. That's for Mount Rushmore. She's a working artist, and like another one of her heroes, Walt Whitman, she's writing for young poets who years from now may be inspired by this beautiful record of her life's work.
PATTI SMITH: DREAM OF LIFE
Clean Socks and Thirteen/WNET New York
Credits:
Director: Steven Sebring
Producers: Steven Sebring, Martha Smilow, Scott Vogel
Director of cinematography: Phillip Hunt, Steven Sebring
Editor: Angelo Corrao, Lin Polito
Running time -- 109 minutes
No MPAA rating...
PARK CITY -- Twelve years in the making, Patti Smith: Dream of Life is a unique record of an artist's journey.
The first film by fashion photographer Steven Sebring, it stitches together layer upon layer of human experience to paint a portrait of the artist as a tireless and dynamic worker for music, poetry, peace, family and friends.
A knowledge of Smith's landmark contribution as a rock 'n' roll pioneer is not essential, and the film should be a joy for anyone interested in pop culture of the past 40 years.
Sebring does not take a conventional route here, which is fitting for his subject. The long gestation period for the film has afforded an intimacy and ease that allows him to penetrate Smith's inner and outer worlds, weaving back and forth in time from her arrival in New York in the late 1960s to raising her two children in Detroit with husband Fred Sonic Smith to her triumphant return to performing in the mid-'90s. Structure is anchored in the bedroom of Smith's cluttered New York apartment and jumps around from there as she reflects on her life and art.
First stop is a poignant visit to the lived-in house she shared with her husband and kids in Detroit until his death in 1994. In fact, much of the film deals with friends who are no longer alive, but the tone is elegiac, not morbid. So when she pulls out a vial of Robert Mapplethorpe's ashes or talks about William Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, she is just honoring their influence. When she visits the graves of her mentors, William Blake and Arthur Rimbaud, she sees herself as part of a living tradition of poetry.
"We all have a voice", she says, "and the responsibility to use it."
New York is central to her life and the film, and there is some wonderful archival footage from the early '70s, where she talks about how she had to leave her childhood home, across from a square dance hall in South Jersey, and venture to the big city to discover her voice. Later she reads her poem, Prayer for New York.
Although there are some classic scenes of her onstage in the heyday of the Manhattan punk club CBGB, this is not a performance film; it's more meditative and musing than about her music. There are no big, show-stopping moments, but there are some lovely, smaller ones.
In one scene, she and her old friend and lover Sam Shepard sit in the corner of her apartment playing vintage guitars, singing the blues tune Sitting on Top of the World as Sebring focuses on their feet tapping time in unison. Later, when Smith visits her elderly and entertaining parents in New Jersey, there is a shot held for several seconds of the couple holding hands, and in the background we hear the sound of a ticking clock as if it's counting off their time together.
Sebring follows Smith around the world as she visits the Middle East and listens to the music of Muslims and Jews praying, Buddhist monks chanting in Japan and speeches at a peace rally in Washington. He shot most of the footage himself in 16 millimeter, some in color, some in black and white, and the varied looks and textures help give the film character. Skillful editing by Angelo Corrao and Lin Polito pull the divergent threads together from what was obviously a massive amount of material.
Throughout, Smith's approachability keeps it real. When a fan steps onto an elevator with her, she laughs when she's called a rock icon. That's for Mount Rushmore. She's a working artist, and like another one of her heroes, Walt Whitman, she's writing for young poets who years from now may be inspired by this beautiful record of her life's work.
PATTI SMITH: DREAM OF LIFE
Clean Socks and Thirteen/WNET New York
Credits:
Director: Steven Sebring
Producers: Steven Sebring, Martha Smilow, Scott Vogel
Director of cinematography: Phillip Hunt, Steven Sebring
Editor: Angelo Corrao, Lin Polito
Running time -- 109 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 1/23/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
LONDON -- Actor Ray Winstone and business partner Michael Wiggs said Tuesday that they are finalizing plans for a movie based on the life of artist-poet William Blake. The movie, Jerusalem, will mark the film production debut for Winstone (Cold Mountain) and Wiggs' production label Flicks Prods. Winstone and former agent Wiggs founded the production company about six months ago and plan to produce Jerusalem as their first film in October. The movie has artist and short filmmaker Sam Taylor-Wood attached to direct from a script written by Philippa Goslett (The Long Hot Summer). Also on board is director of photography Seamus McGarvey (The Hours), who worked with Winstone on Tim Roth's The War Zone.
- 12/10/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
"A Texas Funeral" earns points for including sights one doesn't encounter often -- mostly entailing sequences with camels or ears -- but, overall, it's a giant story squeezed into the confines of a low-budget indie film with mixed results. Writer-director W. Blake Herron's semiautobiographical work is a higher-profile entry in the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and boasts a cast of known actors including Martin Sheen, Joanne Whalley, Robert Patrick and Jane Adams.
There's plenty of family lore and dirty laundry in the Whit clan, and most of it comes out during the gathering for the 1960s funeral of Grandpa Sparta (Sheen). The impressionable lead character is his grandson, 6-year-old Little Sparta (Quinton Jones), a shy kid who has stopped talking in the way of tentative souls not sure who to trust. His father is recovering macho Zach (Patrick), contemplating a big family move, while Mom (Adams) is a no-
nonsense soul running out of patience.
Rounding out the Whits proper is Zach's superior-minded cousin Clinton (Chris Noth) and his religious wife Charlotte (Olivia D'Abo), Little Sparta's wild, institutionalized Aunt Miranda (Whalley) and eccentric Grandma Murtis (Grace Zabriskie), who leads the cult of women seduced by the "Whit ear". Also arriving for the reading of the will is Walter (Isaiah Washington), the son of Grandpa Sparta's former servant.
With Grandpa's favorite camel Robert E. also ready to pass on, Little Sparta is faced with certain manly rites and gets help from the beyond. Grandpa's ghost is joined by other Whits from the past, and the story of where the family camels originated is related in a full-blown flashback. Later on, a dark incident in the family's past is relived with consequences still being felt. Eventually, the will is read, leading to all-around emotional responses and a moderately messy series of upbeat resolutions.
While technically the film is more than adequate and the performances convincing, the script flops about in an attempt to give everyone their due, and the pieces don't always fit together smoothly, let alone decisively.
A TEXAS FUNERAL
Dragon Pictures
Credits: Screenwriter-director: William Blake Herron; Producers: Damian Jones, Graham Broadbent; Executive producers: Julia Palau, Matthew Payne; Director of photography: Mike Bonvillain; Production designer: Jaymes Hinkle; Editor: Paul Trejo; Costume designer: Marie France; Music: James Legg; Cast: Zach: Robert Patrick; Mary Joan: Jane Adams; Walter: Isaiah Washington; Clinton: Chris Noth; Charlotte: Olivia D'Abo; Aunt Miranda: Joanne Whalley; Grandma Murtis: Grace Zabriskie; Grandpa Sparta: Martin Sheen. MPAA rating: R. Color/stereo. Running time -- 100 minutes.
There's plenty of family lore and dirty laundry in the Whit clan, and most of it comes out during the gathering for the 1960s funeral of Grandpa Sparta (Sheen). The impressionable lead character is his grandson, 6-year-old Little Sparta (Quinton Jones), a shy kid who has stopped talking in the way of tentative souls not sure who to trust. His father is recovering macho Zach (Patrick), contemplating a big family move, while Mom (Adams) is a no-
nonsense soul running out of patience.
Rounding out the Whits proper is Zach's superior-minded cousin Clinton (Chris Noth) and his religious wife Charlotte (Olivia D'Abo), Little Sparta's wild, institutionalized Aunt Miranda (Whalley) and eccentric Grandma Murtis (Grace Zabriskie), who leads the cult of women seduced by the "Whit ear". Also arriving for the reading of the will is Walter (Isaiah Washington), the son of Grandpa Sparta's former servant.
With Grandpa's favorite camel Robert E. also ready to pass on, Little Sparta is faced with certain manly rites and gets help from the beyond. Grandpa's ghost is joined by other Whits from the past, and the story of where the family camels originated is related in a full-blown flashback. Later on, a dark incident in the family's past is relived with consequences still being felt. Eventually, the will is read, leading to all-around emotional responses and a moderately messy series of upbeat resolutions.
While technically the film is more than adequate and the performances convincing, the script flops about in an attempt to give everyone their due, and the pieces don't always fit together smoothly, let alone decisively.
A TEXAS FUNERAL
Dragon Pictures
Credits: Screenwriter-director: William Blake Herron; Producers: Damian Jones, Graham Broadbent; Executive producers: Julia Palau, Matthew Payne; Director of photography: Mike Bonvillain; Production designer: Jaymes Hinkle; Editor: Paul Trejo; Costume designer: Marie France; Music: James Legg; Cast: Zach: Robert Patrick; Mary Joan: Jane Adams; Walter: Isaiah Washington; Clinton: Chris Noth; Charlotte: Olivia D'Abo; Aunt Miranda: Joanne Whalley; Grandma Murtis: Grace Zabriskie; Grandpa Sparta: Martin Sheen. MPAA rating: R. Color/stereo. Running time -- 100 minutes.
- 4/18/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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