It’s 1930s America as seen in the movies, through music, and the evasions of newsreels. Franklin Delano Roosevelt preaches prosperity while James Cagney slugs out the decade as a smart-tongued everyman — in a dozen different roles. Director Philippe Mora investigates what was then a new kind of revisionist info-tainment formula: applying old film footage to new purposes.
Brother Can You Spare a Dime
DVD
The Sprocket Vault
1975 / B&W / 1:33 flat full frame / 106 min. / Street Date ?, 2017 / available through The Sprocket Vault / 14.99 (also available in Blu-ray)
Film Editor: Jeremy Thomas
Research by Michael Barlow, Jennifer E. Ryan, Susan Winslow
Produced by Sanford Lieberson, David Puttnam
Directed by Philippe Mora
Years before he was briefly sidetracked into sequels for The Howling, Philippe Mora was an accomplished artist and documentary filmmaker. Backed by producers Sanford Lieberson and David Puttnam, his 1974 documentary Swastika pulled a controversial switch on the usual historical fare about...
Brother Can You Spare a Dime
DVD
The Sprocket Vault
1975 / B&W / 1:33 flat full frame / 106 min. / Street Date ?, 2017 / available through The Sprocket Vault / 14.99 (also available in Blu-ray)
Film Editor: Jeremy Thomas
Research by Michael Barlow, Jennifer E. Ryan, Susan Winslow
Produced by Sanford Lieberson, David Puttnam
Directed by Philippe Mora
Years before he was briefly sidetracked into sequels for The Howling, Philippe Mora was an accomplished artist and documentary filmmaker. Backed by producers Sanford Lieberson and David Puttnam, his 1974 documentary Swastika pulled a controversial switch on the usual historical fare about...
- 6/19/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Songs On Screen: HitFix recurring feature of tributes by writers to their favorite musical moments from TV and film. Check out all the entries in the series here. There are three great songs from American film, and they are all about rainbows. “Over the Rainbow,” “Moon River” and “The Rainbow Connection” – are the three most quintessentially American songs ever to appear on screen, sung by three quintessentially American characters; and all three stand apart as plaintive cries of lonely souls dreaming of someplace far away..”Waiting round the bend” ”where troubles melt like lemondrops” for “the lovers, the dreamers and me” The things these songs share tell you everything needs to know about the character of 20th Century America. The things they don’t share tell you everything you need to know about how that character changed as the era wore on. Let’s start at the top, and the very top it is.
- 6/26/2015
- by Richard Rushfield
- Hitfix
Philippe Mora, the Australian-u.S. Producer of incredibly Jewish stories which are based on his own family is now showing his film Absolutely Modern on Amazon Instant Video and we think you should tune in. If Sandy Lieberson of Film London says that " Philippe Mora never ceases to surprise, challenge and amuse. He is a one man film industry and satire is his weapon. ” then it’s worth the look.
Philippe is best known in the film world for Brother Can You Spare a Dime (which was produced by Sanford Lieberson and David Puttnam and edited by Jeremy Thomas!) It was a great film, a nostalgic look back at the Great Depression with contemporary archival footage and film clips picturing James Cagney as an American Everyman that Dimension might still have for U.S. Other films he is known for —Mad Dog Morgan (1976),Howling III (1987) and Communion(1989) are just a few on a long, long list of films. Check him out on IMDb or IMDbPro now.
Here are some links to this smart, well reviewed comedy about muses, modernism and the role of sexuality in art as told by the famed art critic Lord Steinway when a football player, 29, confronts Steinway as his long lost son,.
Movie link: Amazon Instant Video
I hope all my film friends don’t ask me to do this, because I am not an advertising agency, but in the case of Philippe (we go back a long way!) I am happy to do this and besides it is a great opportunity to see how modern media can sell using modern technology. Dyi as its best!
And on another note, a documentary film titled Man Made Mora about him is being directed and produced by Alan Goldman and edited by Alex Soler for Blue Plate Productions.
The film is a feature documentary about Artist and Filmmaker Philippe Mora as he takes us on a unique journey into film, art and history, which reveals a tragic family past, but his family's survival and work represents a celebration of life, creativity and art.
Mr. Mora's parents were survivors of the Holocaust and moved to Melbourne, Australia from Paris when he was three years old. In 2010, he was attending a retrospective of his work at the New Horizons Film Festival in Wroclaw. As you probably aware Wroclaw was formerly part of Germany and was known as Breslau prior to the end of World War Two. Before he left for the festival his mother Mirka told him that she remembered his father telling her that his grandfather Max had gotten married there. The archivist said that she would help but needed a couple of days to see what she could find.
Upon his return Philippe was amazed to learn that the archivist had found a lot more than just the marriage certificate. She had unearthed a plethora of Third Reich documents revealing the fate of his great uncle Fritz Morawski, a wealthy businessman and landowner, who had all of his assets and possessions stolen by the Nazis and then, along with his family, he perished in Auschwitz. Mora recently passed the papers over to a lawyer who specializes in these types of claims who stated “this kind of extensive documentation—250 plus items—is extremely unusual because the Nazis destroyed such records.” By searching through the documents Mora has determined that eight of his relatives were murdered at Auschwitz.
Philippe is fascinated by the “banality of evil”, a theme flowing through all of his art and films. Although Mora has made four films about the scourge of Nazism, it is too simplistic to categorize him as a filmmaker obsessed with everything to do with the Third Reich. Mora is constantly turning over the rocks of history searching for answers to his questions. Philippe has examined subjects such as Marilyn Monroe’s mysterious death believing that “many important historical artifacts are just hiding in plain sight.” Why the continual search for answers? Is it because he recently discovered that the Nazis murdered eight of his relatives in Auschwitz, or because his father was an important member of the French resistance? Whatever the reasons, he has a desire to continue to question the past through his art, in an attempt to better understand how history has shaped our current day life. In Man Made Mora we will see Philippe tackle that past directly.
We will document Philippe’s journey back to Poland and Germany to find out what happened to his family and their possessions. The journey will serve as a physical and metaphorical means of structuring the film and will result in an intimate portrayal of the man. The audience will get an account of what happened to his family and witness Philippe sharing his own thoughts about their tragic past.
Philippe is best known in the film world for Brother Can You Spare a Dime (which was produced by Sanford Lieberson and David Puttnam and edited by Jeremy Thomas!) It was a great film, a nostalgic look back at the Great Depression with contemporary archival footage and film clips picturing James Cagney as an American Everyman that Dimension might still have for U.S. Other films he is known for —Mad Dog Morgan (1976),Howling III (1987) and Communion(1989) are just a few on a long, long list of films. Check him out on IMDb or IMDbPro now.
Here are some links to this smart, well reviewed comedy about muses, modernism and the role of sexuality in art as told by the famed art critic Lord Steinway when a football player, 29, confronts Steinway as his long lost son,.
Movie link: Amazon Instant Video
I hope all my film friends don’t ask me to do this, because I am not an advertising agency, but in the case of Philippe (we go back a long way!) I am happy to do this and besides it is a great opportunity to see how modern media can sell using modern technology. Dyi as its best!
And on another note, a documentary film titled Man Made Mora about him is being directed and produced by Alan Goldman and edited by Alex Soler for Blue Plate Productions.
The film is a feature documentary about Artist and Filmmaker Philippe Mora as he takes us on a unique journey into film, art and history, which reveals a tragic family past, but his family's survival and work represents a celebration of life, creativity and art.
Mr. Mora's parents were survivors of the Holocaust and moved to Melbourne, Australia from Paris when he was three years old. In 2010, he was attending a retrospective of his work at the New Horizons Film Festival in Wroclaw. As you probably aware Wroclaw was formerly part of Germany and was known as Breslau prior to the end of World War Two. Before he left for the festival his mother Mirka told him that she remembered his father telling her that his grandfather Max had gotten married there. The archivist said that she would help but needed a couple of days to see what she could find.
Upon his return Philippe was amazed to learn that the archivist had found a lot more than just the marriage certificate. She had unearthed a plethora of Third Reich documents revealing the fate of his great uncle Fritz Morawski, a wealthy businessman and landowner, who had all of his assets and possessions stolen by the Nazis and then, along with his family, he perished in Auschwitz. Mora recently passed the papers over to a lawyer who specializes in these types of claims who stated “this kind of extensive documentation—250 plus items—is extremely unusual because the Nazis destroyed such records.” By searching through the documents Mora has determined that eight of his relatives were murdered at Auschwitz.
Philippe is fascinated by the “banality of evil”, a theme flowing through all of his art and films. Although Mora has made four films about the scourge of Nazism, it is too simplistic to categorize him as a filmmaker obsessed with everything to do with the Third Reich. Mora is constantly turning over the rocks of history searching for answers to his questions. Philippe has examined subjects such as Marilyn Monroe’s mysterious death believing that “many important historical artifacts are just hiding in plain sight.” Why the continual search for answers? Is it because he recently discovered that the Nazis murdered eight of his relatives in Auschwitz, or because his father was an important member of the French resistance? Whatever the reasons, he has a desire to continue to question the past through his art, in an attempt to better understand how history has shaped our current day life. In Man Made Mora we will see Philippe tackle that past directly.
We will document Philippe’s journey back to Poland and Germany to find out what happened to his family and their possessions. The journey will serve as a physical and metaphorical means of structuring the film and will result in an intimate portrayal of the man. The audience will get an account of what happened to his family and witness Philippe sharing his own thoughts about their tragic past.
- 4/13/2014
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Out swings Spider-Man, and in swings a giant monkey puppet?
King Kong, a musical spectacle that premiered in June 2013 in Melbourne, Australia, will reportedly go ape on Broadway this December at the Foxwoods Theatre, where the big-budget Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark shuttered earlier this month, according to The New York Times. However, in a statement to EW, producers of King Kong said: “Plans for the Broadway production of King Kong are not confirmed at this time. We hope to have details about the future of the show shortly.”
It’s long been expected that Kong would follow Spidey into the Foxwoods,...
King Kong, a musical spectacle that premiered in June 2013 in Melbourne, Australia, will reportedly go ape on Broadway this December at the Foxwoods Theatre, where the big-budget Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark shuttered earlier this month, according to The New York Times. However, in a statement to EW, producers of King Kong said: “Plans for the Broadway production of King Kong are not confirmed at this time. We hope to have details about the future of the show shortly.”
It’s long been expected that Kong would follow Spidey into the Foxwoods,...
- 1/28/2014
- by Marc Snetiker
- EW.com - PopWatch
This story told by Director Phlippe Mora is strangely like The Flat in that two people on the opposite sides of a racial divide are still able to find pleasure in one another's company.
Philippe Mora and musician Harald Grosskopf met in Berlin in 2009, discovering that their German fathers were on opposite sides in WW2. This finished documentary is now available on Amazon Instant Video.
For Mora and Grosskopf the most interesting question is the analysis of the overall public silence of German society about the war period. Only after the youth rebellions, and “counterculture” of 1968 did the subject become public and the subject of discussion.
German Sons
Genre DocumentaryYear2010 Director Philippe MoraScreenplay Philippe Mora, Harald GrosskopfLength88 min
Can two men from widely differing backgrounds, who would be regarded as sworn enemies, find a way towards a reconciliation? Both Harald Grosskopf and Philippe Mora were born in Germany, Harald the son of a soldier who was a member of the Nazi Party, while Philippe is the son of a Jewish artistic family. They both met in Berlin in 2009, and Philippe immediately decided to make a documentary about this encounter, and their reflections on their incredibly disparate upbringing. Highly-regarded international filmmaker Mora uses a great deal of research, archival footage, interviews, split screen observations of contemporary Berlin, and rare photographs to weave a portrait of two people impacted by the Hitler years. The men find a way to explore and repudiate the past, whilst finding artistic expression in their own lives to deal with. This is personal documentary filmmaking at the highest level, replete with insightful observations and rare footage of key locations in Berlin.
Philippe Mora was born in Paris in 1949 but moved to Melbourne with his parents in 1951. As a young man he went to London and became a successful artist. Trouble in Molopolis (1969) was one of his first movies and many more should follow including documentaries, dramas, science fiction and historical films. A selection of his work includes Brother Can You Spare a Dime (1975) and Mad Dog (1976).
Philippe Mora and musician Harald Grosskopf met in Berlin in 2009, discovering that their German fathers were on opposite sides in WW2. This finished documentary is now available on Amazon Instant Video.
For Mora and Grosskopf the most interesting question is the analysis of the overall public silence of German society about the war period. Only after the youth rebellions, and “counterculture” of 1968 did the subject become public and the subject of discussion.
German Sons
Genre DocumentaryYear2010 Director Philippe MoraScreenplay Philippe Mora, Harald GrosskopfLength88 min
Can two men from widely differing backgrounds, who would be regarded as sworn enemies, find a way towards a reconciliation? Both Harald Grosskopf and Philippe Mora were born in Germany, Harald the son of a soldier who was a member of the Nazi Party, while Philippe is the son of a Jewish artistic family. They both met in Berlin in 2009, and Philippe immediately decided to make a documentary about this encounter, and their reflections on their incredibly disparate upbringing. Highly-regarded international filmmaker Mora uses a great deal of research, archival footage, interviews, split screen observations of contemporary Berlin, and rare photographs to weave a portrait of two people impacted by the Hitler years. The men find a way to explore and repudiate the past, whilst finding artistic expression in their own lives to deal with. This is personal documentary filmmaking at the highest level, replete with insightful observations and rare footage of key locations in Berlin.
Philippe Mora was born in Paris in 1949 but moved to Melbourne with his parents in 1951. As a young man he went to London and became a successful artist. Trouble in Molopolis (1969) was one of his first movies and many more should follow including documentaries, dramas, science fiction and historical films. A selection of his work includes Brother Can You Spare a Dime (1975) and Mad Dog (1976).
- 4/5/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
You know when you’ve been playing tennis for ages and someone comes along and tightens your strings, so the ball pings around like it’s meant to? Or you finally refill that lukewarm water bottle you’ve been carrying around with from a piping hot kettle, and you realise what you’ve been missing?
George Michael has had his strings tightened
That’s how it felt watching George Michael return to the stage on Sunday evening for his first full-length UK concert since falling unwell with a near-fatal bout of pneumonia last year.
I saw George in action last year at the Royal Albert Hall, and was convinced something wasn’t quite right. The voice wasn’t just being preserved, it was being taxidermised as he struggled through the evening. Sure enough, the next day brought a press release announcing the onset of a bad chest, an infection that...
George Michael has had his strings tightened
That’s how it felt watching George Michael return to the stage on Sunday evening for his first full-length UK concert since falling unwell with a near-fatal bout of pneumonia last year.
I saw George in action last year at the Royal Albert Hall, and was convinced something wasn’t quite right. The voice wasn’t just being preserved, it was being taxidermised as he struggled through the evening. Sure enough, the next day brought a press release announcing the onset of a bad chest, an infection that...
- 9/17/2012
- by Caroline Frost
- Huffington Post
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