The Beatles‘ Ringo Starr is one of the most famous drummers who ever lived but he penned very few of the Fab Four’s songs. He was the mind behind a beloved track from Abbey Road. Notably, that tune was a rip-off of another hit song from the 1960s.
Ringo Starr wrote only 2 Beatles songs by himself
Starr wrote two Beatles songs on his own: “Don’t Pass Me By” from The White Album and “Octopus’s Garden” from Abbey Road. Nobody remembers “Don’t Pass Me By.” It’s hard for the simple rock tune to stand out on the same record that gave us instantly memorable tracks like “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Revolution 9.”
Meanwhile, Starr also wrote “Octopus’s Garden” from Abbey Road. “Octopus’s Garden” is far more indelible than “Don’t Pass Me By.” The former is a fascinating combination of children’s music,...
Ringo Starr wrote only 2 Beatles songs by himself
Starr wrote two Beatles songs on his own: “Don’t Pass Me By” from The White Album and “Octopus’s Garden” from Abbey Road. Nobody remembers “Don’t Pass Me By.” It’s hard for the simple rock tune to stand out on the same record that gave us instantly memorable tracks like “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Revolution 9.”
Meanwhile, Starr also wrote “Octopus’s Garden” from Abbey Road. “Octopus’s Garden” is far more indelible than “Don’t Pass Me By.” The former is a fascinating combination of children’s music,...
- 9/25/2024
- by Matthew Trzcinski
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
If you’re in the mood for a classic comedy, Prime Video is a great place to stream. You can get started with a 30-day Free trial, and there’s a lot to love.
30-Day Free Trial $8.99+ / month amazon.com
Classic Comedy Movies on Prime Video
Classic Comedy TV on Prime Video
Add More Comedy with Prime Video Channels
Classic Comedy Movies on Prime Video
For the purposes of this list, we’ll consider “classic comedies” as titles that came out at least 20 years ago.
Death Becomes Her The Big Lebowski Dr. Strangelove Heathers Swingers Galaxy Quest Fargo Billy Madison An American Werewolf in London Sweet Home Alabama Election Army of Darkness Overboard Dirty Rotten Scoundrels American Graffiti Planes, Trains, and Automobiles Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein Bowfinger Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood CB4 Roxanne Sprung Duck Soup Wallace & Gromit: The...
30-Day Free Trial $8.99+ / month amazon.com
Classic Comedy Movies on Prime Video
Classic Comedy TV on Prime Video
Add More Comedy with Prime Video Channels
Classic Comedy Movies on Prime Video
For the purposes of this list, we’ll consider “classic comedies” as titles that came out at least 20 years ago.
Death Becomes Her The Big Lebowski Dr. Strangelove Heathers Swingers Galaxy Quest Fargo Billy Madison An American Werewolf in London Sweet Home Alabama Election Army of Darkness Overboard Dirty Rotten Scoundrels American Graffiti Planes, Trains, and Automobiles Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein Bowfinger Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood CB4 Roxanne Sprung Duck Soup Wallace & Gromit: The...
- 9/12/2024
- by Ben Bowman
- The Streamable
September 8 marks the birthday of actor and comic legend Peter Sellers. The British star had achieved acclaim on the stage, in recordings and most famously on the radio, particularly for the “The Goon Show,” the popular comedy series regularly heard on the BBC.
However, it was in film where Sellers achieved his greatest worldwide success. He was nominated for his first Academy Award in 1959 for co-writing and producing the live-action short “The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film.” Sellers also received two other Oscar nominations, as Best Actor for 1964’s “Dr. Strangelove” (from Stanley Kubrick) as well as for 1979’s “Being There” (from Hal Ashby).
Sellers won the Best Actor Golden Globe for “Being There” and was nominated on five other occasions, including three times for “The Pink Panther” series (from Blake Edwards) in which he portrayed bumbling Inspector Jacques Clouseau, the role for which he will likely be best remembered.
However, it was in film where Sellers achieved his greatest worldwide success. He was nominated for his first Academy Award in 1959 for co-writing and producing the live-action short “The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film.” Sellers also received two other Oscar nominations, as Best Actor for 1964’s “Dr. Strangelove” (from Stanley Kubrick) as well as for 1979’s “Being There” (from Hal Ashby).
Sellers won the Best Actor Golden Globe for “Being There” and was nominated on five other occasions, including three times for “The Pink Panther” series (from Blake Edwards) in which he portrayed bumbling Inspector Jacques Clouseau, the role for which he will likely be best remembered.
- 8/30/2024
- by Tom O'Brien, Misty Holland and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Ian Nathan guides viewers through the 1959 comedy I’m All Right Jack, a satirical take on British industrial life. The film, starring Ian Carmichael, Peter Sellers, Richard Attenborough, and Margaret Rutherford, is the focus of this episode. I’m All Right Jack is a 1959 British comedy film directed and produced by John and Roy Boulting, […]
Classic Movies: The Story of… I’m All Right Jack...
Classic Movies: The Story of… I’m All Right Jack...
- 8/29/2024
- by Izzy Jacobs
- MemorableTV
There really hasn’t been a filmmaker quite like Blake Edwards. He could go from the silly-billy comedy of his “Pink Panther” comedies starring Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau to “Days of Wine and Roses,” a devastating drama dealing with alcoholism to the gender-bender musical comedy “Victor/Victoria” starring his wife Julie Andrews to the underrated Western “The Wild Rovers” with William Holden and Ryan O’Neal. Edwards even turned the diminutive British comedian Dudley Moore into a leading man thanks to his 1979 romantic comedy “10.” And let’s not forget the extraordinary collaboration he had with composer Henry Mancini who earned four Oscars including best song “Moon River” from 1961’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and the title tune from 1962’s “Days of Wine and Roses.”
Still, there was no love lost between Edwards and Hollywood.
In my 2003 Los Angeles Times interview with Edwards, who had personality to spare, said “I have been a...
Still, there was no love lost between Edwards and Hollywood.
In my 2003 Los Angeles Times interview with Edwards, who had personality to spare, said “I have been a...
- 8/27/2024
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Stanley Kubrick's 1964 classic "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" remained depressingly relevant. We live on a planet wherein humans have invented single explosive devices powerful enough to eliminate all life on Earth, and yet they are being handled by whiny, insecure, clownish politicians and violence-obsessed military wonks with impotence and delusions of grandeur. It's telling that one of the biggest hits of 2023, Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," was also about how petty egos tend to take precedence over the profound immoral invention of the nuclear bomb.
1964 was a time when phrases like "balance of power" were bandied about in the news, all while politicians and pundits argued about the moral righteousness of every major global superpower possessing the ability to destroy the world with equal skill. If everyone on Earth can blow up the planet, surely, then, everything is in perfect balance.
Kubrick...
1964 was a time when phrases like "balance of power" were bandied about in the news, all while politicians and pundits argued about the moral righteousness of every major global superpower possessing the ability to destroy the world with equal skill. If everyone on Earth can blow up the planet, surely, then, everything is in perfect balance.
Kubrick...
- 8/26/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Will Forte is a comedy superstar known for a variety of roles within the entertainment industry, but comedy and writing were not always his career path. Following in his father’s footsteps, he graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, and ultimately became a financial broker. Growing up, Will Forte had always shown interest in the comedy world and has referenced comedians such as Peter Sellers, David Letterman, and Steve Martin as some of his comedy idols. However, he had shown interest in comedy. Will Forte never really planned on making it into a career for himself until he convinced himself that being a financial broker was not all life could offer him. While working as a financial broker, Will Forte co-wrote a feature-length script and quickly realized that he had a passion for writing. While attending the University of California, people had encouraged Will Forte to take on comedy.
- 8/11/2024
- by Chelsea Black
- Hollywood Insider - Substance & Meaningful Entertainment
This article contains spoilers for The Boys season 4 episode 8.
Following in the footsteps of the baddie known as “Doppelganger, “it was only a matter of time before Prime Video‘s superhero satire The Boys introduced another shapeshifting character. That moment finally arrived in season 4’s penultimate episode “The Insider,” in which a chameleonic assassin took on the form of Annie January a.k.a. Starlight (Erin Moriarty).
In the finale,* the shapeshifter is thwarted in their mission to take down U.S. President-elect Robert Singer (Jim Beaver) by none other than the real Annie January herself. To put it mildly, embodying two characters involved in the same physical fight would is a bit of an acting challenge. Thankfully, Starlight actress Erin Moriarty knew exactly where to turn for inspiration.
*Following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump on July 13, Prime Video removed the original title of this episode, “Assassination Run,...
Following in the footsteps of the baddie known as “Doppelganger, “it was only a matter of time before Prime Video‘s superhero satire The Boys introduced another shapeshifting character. That moment finally arrived in season 4’s penultimate episode “The Insider,” in which a chameleonic assassin took on the form of Annie January a.k.a. Starlight (Erin Moriarty).
In the finale,* the shapeshifter is thwarted in their mission to take down U.S. President-elect Robert Singer (Jim Beaver) by none other than the real Annie January herself. To put it mildly, embodying two characters involved in the same physical fight would is a bit of an acting challenge. Thankfully, Starlight actress Erin Moriarty knew exactly where to turn for inspiration.
*Following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump on July 13, Prime Video removed the original title of this episode, “Assassination Run,...
- 7/18/2024
- by Alec Bojalad
- Den of Geek
Jason Segel was just 18 when he landed the gig in Judd Apatow’s Freaks and Geeks. He revealed that he didn’t go to college to film the show. When it was canceled, Judd Apatow tried his best to help him out. However, the period after the 1999 series was a dark time for the actor and he almost considered quitting the industry during this depressed state.
Jason Segel and Linda Cardellini in Freaks and Geeks | NBC
However, it was the CBS series, How I Met Your Mother, which saved him from descending into madness. The show ran from 2005 to 2014, giving him a day job when he was struggling. During this time, he also landed some film roles, including Knocked Up and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, that further heightened his career prospects.
How I Met Your Mother Brought Jason Segel Out Of His ‘Cave of Depression’ Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan in...
Jason Segel and Linda Cardellini in Freaks and Geeks | NBC
However, it was the CBS series, How I Met Your Mother, which saved him from descending into madness. The show ran from 2005 to 2014, giving him a day job when he was struggling. During this time, he also landed some film roles, including Knocked Up and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, that further heightened his career prospects.
How I Met Your Mother Brought Jason Segel Out Of His ‘Cave of Depression’ Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan in...
- 7/17/2024
- by Hashim Asraff
- FandomWire
The Overlook Hotel is being revisited in a new “The Shining” documentary, certified by the Stanley Kubrick Film Archive and family estate.
The just-announced documentary, titled “Shine On – The Forgotten ‘Shining’ Location,” will premiere on the official Stanley Kubrick YouTube channel on Friday, July 26 at 11 a.m. Pst/2 p.m. Est to commemorate the late filmmaker’s birthday. The feature captures the location scouting and making of the art direction for the Overlook Hotel at Elstree Studios.
Michael Sheen narrates “Shine On,” which includes interviews with “The Shining” executive producer Jan Harlan, art director Les Tomkins, and Kubrick’s daughter Katharina Kubrick, who worked as a location researcher on the film. The interviewees will “revisit the studio locations and share their memories about a film frequently voted the best horror film of all time,” per the official synopsis.
Almost 50 years after the film’s release, all the Overlook Hotel’s...
The just-announced documentary, titled “Shine On – The Forgotten ‘Shining’ Location,” will premiere on the official Stanley Kubrick YouTube channel on Friday, July 26 at 11 a.m. Pst/2 p.m. Est to commemorate the late filmmaker’s birthday. The feature captures the location scouting and making of the art direction for the Overlook Hotel at Elstree Studios.
Michael Sheen narrates “Shine On,” which includes interviews with “The Shining” executive producer Jan Harlan, art director Les Tomkins, and Kubrick’s daughter Katharina Kubrick, who worked as a location researcher on the film. The interviewees will “revisit the studio locations and share their memories about a film frequently voted the best horror film of all time,” per the official synopsis.
Almost 50 years after the film’s release, all the Overlook Hotel’s...
- 7/17/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
It’s not just Maxime Le Mal, the “Despicable Me 4” villain with the broad accent, that has a distinctly French flavor.
In fact, Universal and Illumination’s animated franchise boasts Gallic DNA throughout all of the hit movies. And even though Chris Renaud, the Oscar-nominated director of the latest “Despicable Me” and two of its predecessors, owes his French-sounding name to his Canadian origins, the helmer says “essentially everybody” working on the films is French. The only exceptions to this geographic over-representation are the writers (Mike White and Ken Daurio) and some of the storyboarder artists who are U.S.-based.
“Everything from what we call the layout, up through the animation, lighting and compositing — almost the entire team is French! The picture that you see is all compiled and created here in France,” says Renaud, who moved to Paris in 2010 to work on the first “Despicable Me” production...
In fact, Universal and Illumination’s animated franchise boasts Gallic DNA throughout all of the hit movies. And even though Chris Renaud, the Oscar-nominated director of the latest “Despicable Me” and two of its predecessors, owes his French-sounding name to his Canadian origins, the helmer says “essentially everybody” working on the films is French. The only exceptions to this geographic over-representation are the writers (Mike White and Ken Daurio) and some of the storyboarder artists who are U.S.-based.
“Everything from what we call the layout, up through the animation, lighting and compositing — almost the entire team is French! The picture that you see is all compiled and created here in France,” says Renaud, who moved to Paris in 2010 to work on the first “Despicable Me” production...
- 7/10/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Let’s salute the 15 greatest depictions of fictional commanders in chief, ranked from worst to best, that have appeared both on TV series and in movies. Known sometimes by the name of Potus (President of the United States), we’ve got a large variety chosen for our photo gallery.
Two of the top characters featured are both from the mind of Oscar and Emmy winner Aaron Sorkin. He wrote the Rob Reiner film “The American President” starring Michael Douglas in the title role and Annette Bening as a potential romance. Not long after, he was one of the creators of “The West Wing,” which starred Martin Sheen as President Jed Bartlet and his dedicated staff, played by Emmy winners Allison Janney, John Spencer, Richard Schiff and Bradley Whitford, plus Emmy champ Stockard Channing as his wife.
Across our gallery, you’ll find dramatic presidents from “24” (Dennis Haysbert), “Deep Impact” (Morgan Freeman...
Two of the top characters featured are both from the mind of Oscar and Emmy winner Aaron Sorkin. He wrote the Rob Reiner film “The American President” starring Michael Douglas in the title role and Annette Bening as a potential romance. Not long after, he was one of the creators of “The West Wing,” which starred Martin Sheen as President Jed Bartlet and his dedicated staff, played by Emmy winners Allison Janney, John Spencer, Richard Schiff and Bradley Whitford, plus Emmy champ Stockard Channing as his wife.
Across our gallery, you’ll find dramatic presidents from “24” (Dennis Haysbert), “Deep Impact” (Morgan Freeman...
- 6/30/2024
- by Susan Wloszczyna, Chris Beachum and Misty Holland
- Gold Derby
Geoffrey Rush is one of the rare few who have achieved the triple crown of acting, meaning he has received an Emmy, Oscar and Tony Award (all three major acting awards) for his work (he refers to it as the Toe while waiting on his Egot).
Rush was an acclaimed actor in his native Australia for nearly two decades before the film “Shine” made him a known commodity in the rest of the world. He was 45 years old when suddenly his whole career changed and he was being considered for major roles in various mediums. That film about a pianist dealing with scars from his childhood won Rush the Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and SAG Award for Best Actor. Those awards and acclaim launched him into a highly successful international career. He has since earned even more Oscar nominations, with two as Best Supporting Actor for “Shakespeare in Love” and...
Rush was an acclaimed actor in his native Australia for nearly two decades before the film “Shine” made him a known commodity in the rest of the world. He was 45 years old when suddenly his whole career changed and he was being considered for major roles in various mediums. That film about a pianist dealing with scars from his childhood won Rush the Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and SAG Award for Best Actor. Those awards and acclaim launched him into a highly successful international career. He has since earned even more Oscar nominations, with two as Best Supporting Actor for “Shakespeare in Love” and...
- 6/28/2024
- by Robert Pius, Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
After teaming with Noah Baumbach to direct one of the best-ever documentaries about filmmaking, De Palma, Jake Paltrow is back with a new feature. June Zero is a vividly textured telling of the preparations for the 1962 execution of Adolf Eichmann through a triptych of perspectives––a Jewish Moroccan prison guard, an Israeli police investigator (and Holocaust survivor), and a clever and precocious 13-year-old Libyan immigrant. In advance of the June 28 release from Cohen Media Group, we’re pleased to exclusively reveal a series of influences the director has programmed for NYC’s Quad Cinema.
“Origin Stories: Jake Paltrow’s Notes on June Zero,” which runs June 21-27, features seven films that informed and influenced June Zero, with titles spanning humanist deep-cuts of world cinema from the likes of Miloš Forman and Abbas Kiarostami to underscreened classics of 1970s Israeli cinema. Watch the exclusive trailer for the series below, along with...
“Origin Stories: Jake Paltrow’s Notes on June Zero,” which runs June 21-27, features seven films that informed and influenced June Zero, with titles spanning humanist deep-cuts of world cinema from the likes of Miloš Forman and Abbas Kiarostami to underscreened classics of 1970s Israeli cinema. Watch the exclusive trailer for the series below, along with...
- 6/18/2024
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
In a world where superhero movies reign supreme, a new contender emerged in 2023, as the fifth installment in The Toxic Avenger film series. Well, it’s not your typical caped crusader tale, but Elijah Wood and Peter Dinklage’s film still contained the potential to take the DC Universe by storm.
Peter Dinklage in The Toxic Avenger | Legendary Pictures
Delivering a cocktail of weirdness that even the notorious Batman & Robin would fear to compete with, Macon Blair’s DC-inspired horror comedy The Toxic Avenger garnered a stunning 91% rating, despite its eccentricities. Considering that Blair’s strangest visions become a delightful source of entertainment, let’s dig deeper into the 2023 movie and its DC inspiration.
Macon Blair Reimagined Elijah Wood and Kevin Bacon as DC Villains
Reimagining the 1984 low-budget cult classic, Macon Blair came up with the fifth installment in the franchise – The Toxic Avenger reboot, in 2023. Unlike the inaugural installment...
Peter Dinklage in The Toxic Avenger | Legendary Pictures
Delivering a cocktail of weirdness that even the notorious Batman & Robin would fear to compete with, Macon Blair’s DC-inspired horror comedy The Toxic Avenger garnered a stunning 91% rating, despite its eccentricities. Considering that Blair’s strangest visions become a delightful source of entertainment, let’s dig deeper into the 2023 movie and its DC inspiration.
Macon Blair Reimagined Elijah Wood and Kevin Bacon as DC Villains
Reimagining the 1984 low-budget cult classic, Macon Blair came up with the fifth installment in the franchise – The Toxic Avenger reboot, in 2023. Unlike the inaugural installment...
- 6/14/2024
- by Krittika Mukherjee
- FandomWire
There must be something in the air lately because I have been seeing and reviewing a number of really good and intriguing documentaries on iconic showbiz figures. At Cannes I saw new docus on Faye Dunaway (Faye), Elizabeth Taylor (Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes) and others on Michel LeGrand and Jacques Demy. Currently on Max you can see a wonderful docu on the great Albert Brooks directed by his longtime friend Rob Reiner, Albert Brooks: Defending My Life.
Add to the list of must-sees in this sector Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story, which clearly has the star’s blessing because she is prominently interviewed in it. The focus ultimately on how she became her own person, especially how she managed to navigate the spotlight put on her after mother Judy Garland’s all-too-tragic death caused much speculation that the same thing might happen to her equally talented powerhouse performer of a a daughter.
Add to the list of must-sees in this sector Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story, which clearly has the star’s blessing because she is prominently interviewed in it. The focus ultimately on how she became her own person, especially how she managed to navigate the spotlight put on her after mother Judy Garland’s all-too-tragic death caused much speculation that the same thing might happen to her equally talented powerhouse performer of a a daughter.
- 6/12/2024
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
After a decade and change playing superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe sandbox, Robert Downey Jr. wants to remind everyone there's more to him than Tony Stark. In the years since permanently (?) retiring his MCU alter ego in "Avengers: Endgame," the actor has lined up an ambitious slate of projects. Between getting an Oscar for his supporting role in Christopher Nolan's Best Picture-winning "Oppenheimer" and pulling a Peter Sellers by tackling multiple colorful characters in Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar's "The Sympathizer" miniseries, it's fair to say Rdj the character actor is officially back.
As chance would have it, we're now 10 years removed from the last time Downey tried (but failed) to renew his acting bonafides with "The Judge." Directed by David Dobkin, the 2014 drama stars Downey as Hank Palmer, a big-shot lawyer from Chicago who returns to his podunk hometown in Indiana to attend his mother's funeral.
As chance would have it, we're now 10 years removed from the last time Downey tried (but failed) to renew his acting bonafides with "The Judge." Directed by David Dobkin, the 2014 drama stars Downey as Hank Palmer, a big-shot lawyer from Chicago who returns to his podunk hometown in Indiana to attend his mother's funeral.
- 5/6/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
"The Wicker Man" is the gold standard of occult horror. Police Sergeant Neil Howie (Edward Woodward), a God-fearing Englishman, arrives on the island of Summerisle to investigate the reported disappearance of a young girl. Howie soon discovers the islanders are pagans and spends the movie angrily berating them. Soon, it becomes clear the cultural differences are more sinister than the proper way to worship.
The islanders' crops are failing, so Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee) has plotted a virgin sacrifice to appease their gods. No one ever said the virgin had to be a young girl; no, it's the unmarried Howie, who is burned to death in an excruciating sequence as the Summerisle villagers sing.
Despite being underserved by producer/distributor British Lion Films (to the point where Lee had to promote the film on his own time), "The Wicker Man" is now regarded as a horror classic. 2023 was the 50th anniversary of "The Wicker Man,...
The islanders' crops are failing, so Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee) has plotted a virgin sacrifice to appease their gods. No one ever said the virgin had to be a young girl; no, it's the unmarried Howie, who is burned to death in an excruciating sequence as the Summerisle villagers sing.
Despite being underserved by producer/distributor British Lion Films (to the point where Lee had to promote the film on his own time), "The Wicker Man" is now regarded as a horror classic. 2023 was the 50th anniversary of "The Wicker Man,...
- 5/4/2024
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
Back when he was finishing “Dumb and Dumber To” in 2014, Jeff Daniels was ready to leave show business. “I’m done,” he told Jim Carrey. “You can’t stop man,” Carrey said. “You can’t, you’re creative, you’re going to create something, you’ve got to keep creating. That’s what we do!”
These days, Carrey’s off in Hawaii painting. And when Daniels is not acting, he’s writing songs and plays, which he mounts at his Michigan hometown’s Purple Rose Theatre Company. “It’s what keeps me going,” Daniels told me on Zoom. “It keeps me alive. It’s what I’m supposed to do. It’s helped me between the phone calls for the acting jobs. Because you can go insane staring at that phone. They’ll call you when they need you. And so I’ve always battled whatever depression or fear might...
These days, Carrey’s off in Hawaii painting. And when Daniels is not acting, he’s writing songs and plays, which he mounts at his Michigan hometown’s Purple Rose Theatre Company. “It’s what keeps me going,” Daniels told me on Zoom. “It keeps me alive. It’s what I’m supposed to do. It’s helped me between the phone calls for the acting jobs. Because you can go insane staring at that phone. They’ll call you when they need you. And so I’ve always battled whatever depression or fear might...
- 5/2/2024
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Jeremy Strong was a relatively successful working actor before he joined the cast of HBO’s “Succession,” but his turn as the neurotic, pathetic Kendall Roy won him an Emmy Award and established him as a genuine star. Now, in a new interview, Strong opened up about the stress of moving on from the pivotal role after the series concluded its four-season run.
“There was a moment when the show ended where I felt a profound sense of, ‘Was this the thing? Was this the event of my life?” Strong said in an interview with The New York Times Magazine (via Variety). And then a great determination to achieve exit velocity from it so I could attempt to do more.”
Among that “more” may be a bit of comedy. You read that right.
While “Succession” won Strong a legion of fans and admirers of his work, stories about his Method...
“There was a moment when the show ended where I felt a profound sense of, ‘Was this the thing? Was this the event of my life?” Strong said in an interview with The New York Times Magazine (via Variety). And then a great determination to achieve exit velocity from it so I could attempt to do more.”
Among that “more” may be a bit of comedy. You read that right.
While “Succession” won Strong a legion of fans and admirers of his work, stories about his Method...
- 3/12/2024
- by Wilson Chapman
- Indiewire
While starring on the Emmy Award-winning HBO series “Succession,” Emmy winner Jeremy Strong developed a reputation as an actor who takes himself and his craft incredibly seriously, perhaps overly so. There was a controversial New Yorker profile, and critical comments from his co-star Brian Cox that suggested some frustration with Strong’s methods. Strong famously could not understand why people thought “Succession” was a comedy, even though it was hilarious. Even when his fellow actors were playing it as a comedy, he was always deadly serious.
In a new interview with The New York Times, Strong reflected on his reputation for humorlessness, and it sounds like he might be lightening up. Just a little bit.
Asked if he’s interested in comedy, he acknowledged that “Succession” was “wickedly funny,” which is a change from how he used to talk about the show. “I don’t know that that show can be put into any box,...
In a new interview with The New York Times, Strong reflected on his reputation for humorlessness, and it sounds like he might be lightening up. Just a little bit.
Asked if he’s interested in comedy, he acknowledged that “Succession” was “wickedly funny,” which is a change from how he used to talk about the show. “I don’t know that that show can be put into any box,...
- 3/12/2024
- by Liam Mathews
- Gold Derby
Jeremy Strong’s Emmy-winning tenure as Kendall Roy on HBO’s “Succession” is over, and he told The New York Times Magazine in a recent interview that “there was a moment when the show ended where I felt a profound sense of, ‘Was this the thing? Was this the event of my life?’ And then a great determination to achieve exit velocity from it so I could attempt to do more.”
That “more” is now coming into focus. Strong is currently on Broadway headlining the play “Enemy of the People” alongside Michael Imperioli and Victoria Pedretti. He’s also set to play Roy Cohn in the upcoming biographical drama “The Apprentice,” which features Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump and Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump.
Strong told the publication that “I haven’t spent much time worrying about” whether he’ll be able to distance himself from the career-defining role of Kendall Roy.
That “more” is now coming into focus. Strong is currently on Broadway headlining the play “Enemy of the People” alongside Michael Imperioli and Victoria Pedretti. He’s also set to play Roy Cohn in the upcoming biographical drama “The Apprentice,” which features Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump and Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump.
Strong told the publication that “I haven’t spent much time worrying about” whether he’ll be able to distance himself from the career-defining role of Kendall Roy.
- 3/12/2024
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
Wellness, self-help and “woo woo” culture are the backbone of Nora Turato’s new exhibition so, naturally, it brings the contemporary artist to Los Angeles for her first West Coast outing. Hosted by Wilshire Boulevard gallery Sprüth Magers, it’s not true!!! stop lying! runs from Feb. 28-April 27, and finds Turato playing with words and phrases by pulling text from about anywhere she finds inspiration — social media posts, commercials, movies, billboards and viral trends. She then places the text across enamel panels or paints them extra-large on walls. The former graphic designer even created a custom font for the pieces.
One wall features the word “authenticity” and another “haha” in supersized letters. The enamel pieces showcase phrases like “speaking my Truth!!!”, “become pointless,” “Sleep / it’s good for you! and “this isn’t me / I need some healing.” The Croatia-born artist who is based in Amsterdam also zeroed in on...
One wall features the word “authenticity” and another “haha” in supersized letters. The enamel pieces showcase phrases like “speaking my Truth!!!”, “become pointless,” “Sleep / it’s good for you! and “this isn’t me / I need some healing.” The Croatia-born artist who is based in Amsterdam also zeroed in on...
- 2/26/2024
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tom Priestley, the British film editor whose work assembling the dueling-banjos sequence and hellish “squeal like a pig” attack in John Boorman’s Deliverance landed him an Oscar nomination, has died. He was 91.
His death on Christmas Day was only recently revealed.
Priestley also cut two other movies helmed by Boorman: Leo the Last (1970), which won the best director award at the Cannes Film Festival, and Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977).
He also edited The Great Gatsby (1974); Blake Edwards’ The Return of the Pink Panther (1975); That Lucky Touch (1975), starring Roger Moore; Voyage of the Damned (1976), featuring an all-star cast; and Roman Polanski’s Tess (1979).
Priestley was the only son of renowned British novelist and playwright J.B. Priestley, who wrote the classic 1945 drama An Inspector Calls for the theater and served as a BBC Radio broadcaster during the Dunkirk evacuation of World War II.
Upon its release in 1972, Deliverance became the...
His death on Christmas Day was only recently revealed.
Priestley also cut two other movies helmed by Boorman: Leo the Last (1970), which won the best director award at the Cannes Film Festival, and Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977).
He also edited The Great Gatsby (1974); Blake Edwards’ The Return of the Pink Panther (1975); That Lucky Touch (1975), starring Roger Moore; Voyage of the Damned (1976), featuring an all-star cast; and Roman Polanski’s Tess (1979).
Priestley was the only son of renowned British novelist and playwright J.B. Priestley, who wrote the classic 1945 drama An Inspector Calls for the theater and served as a BBC Radio broadcaster during the Dunkirk evacuation of World War II.
Upon its release in 1972, Deliverance became the...
- 2/19/2024
- by Rhett Bartlett
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
George Harrison appeared in a handful of films and even opened his own production company. He loved movies, but there was one film he simply couldn’t get behind. In the 1960s, he watched a screening of a much-loved Western while on LSD. He couldn’t stand the movie, referring to it as a “load of baloney shite.” Here’s the movie that aggravated him so deeply.
George Harrison was not a fan of a much-loved film
In the 1960s, The Beatles were in Los Angeles and decided to take LSD. They spent their afternoon swimming in a pool with Peter Fonda and members of The Byrds. Later in the day, they attended a screening of the film Cat Ballou.
“Later on that day, we were all tripping out and they brought several starlets in and set up a movie for us to watch in the house,” he said in The Beatles Anthology.
George Harrison was not a fan of a much-loved film
In the 1960s, The Beatles were in Los Angeles and decided to take LSD. They spent their afternoon swimming in a pool with Peter Fonda and members of The Byrds. Later in the day, they attended a screening of the film Cat Ballou.
“Later on that day, we were all tripping out and they brought several starlets in and set up a movie for us to watch in the house,” he said in The Beatles Anthology.
- 2/17/2024
- by Emma McKee
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
The BBC is celebrating the art of the literary adaptation by screening a variety of classics on BBC Four. More details here.
The BBC is quite rightly celebrated for its rich history of book to screen adaptations, such as the iconic 1995 version of Jane Austen’a Pride And Prejudice to Cbbc’s hugely successful adaptation of Dame Jacqueline Wilson’s Tracy Beaker series.
It has now put together a season of 14 adaptations from the BBC archive, some of which have rarely been seen since their original broadcast.
The dramas are:
The Great Gatsby
Toby Stephens, Mira Sorvino and Paul Rudd lead the cast in this 2000 BBC adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel on the American dream in the jazz age.
Small Island
Naomie Harris, Ruth Wilson, David Oyelowo, Benedict Cumberbatch and Ashley Walters star in this 2009 TV version of Andrea Levy’s novel focusing on the lives and...
The BBC is quite rightly celebrated for its rich history of book to screen adaptations, such as the iconic 1995 version of Jane Austen’a Pride And Prejudice to Cbbc’s hugely successful adaptation of Dame Jacqueline Wilson’s Tracy Beaker series.
It has now put together a season of 14 adaptations from the BBC archive, some of which have rarely been seen since their original broadcast.
The dramas are:
The Great Gatsby
Toby Stephens, Mira Sorvino and Paul Rudd lead the cast in this 2000 BBC adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel on the American dream in the jazz age.
Small Island
Naomie Harris, Ruth Wilson, David Oyelowo, Benedict Cumberbatch and Ashley Walters star in this 2009 TV version of Andrea Levy’s novel focusing on the lives and...
- 2/6/2024
- by Jake Godfrey
- Film Stories
In 1969, George Harrison temporarily left The Beatles. He had long been growing discontent with his role in the band and he finally decided he’d had enough. He eventually returned to the group, but his bandmates didn’t seem too concerned about the fact that he’d quit. When Harrison walked out, they began jamming together.
The Beatles began jamming when George Harrison quit the band
While The Beatles were recording Let It Be, George Harrison decided he’d had enough of the band.
“It was a very, very difficult, stressful time, and being filmed having a row was terrible,” he said in The Beatles Anthology. “I got up and I thought, ‘I’m not doing this anymore. I’m out of here.’ So I got my guitar and went home and that afternoon wrote ‘Wah Wah.’”
According to Ringo Starr, the rest of the band didn’t even realize Harrison had left.
The Beatles began jamming when George Harrison quit the band
While The Beatles were recording Let It Be, George Harrison decided he’d had enough of the band.
“It was a very, very difficult, stressful time, and being filmed having a row was terrible,” he said in The Beatles Anthology. “I got up and I thought, ‘I’m not doing this anymore. I’m out of here.’ So I got my guitar and went home and that afternoon wrote ‘Wah Wah.’”
According to Ringo Starr, the rest of the band didn’t even realize Harrison had left.
- 1/19/2024
- by Emma McKee
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Noé Debré, the co-writer of “Dheepan” and “Stillwater” and creator of the European Parliament sendup series “Parlement,” marks his feature directorial debut with the bittersweet comedy “A Nice Jewish Boy.”
Produced by Moonshaker, sold by Charades and making its world market premiere at this year’s Unifrance Rendez-Vous in Paris, the freewheeling film follows a 27-year-old man-child Bellisha (Michael Zindel) and his ailing mother, Giselle (Agnès Jaoui), who together make up the last remaining Jews living in a working class neighborhood that all of their friends and family have long since fled.
At first that’s just as well for the easy-going Bellisha, but health concerns, prejudice and most of all an acute sense of alienation soon begin to creep in. Below, Variety catches up with Debré at this year’s Rendez-Vous.
How did this feature idea come about?
I saw a short film called “Masel Tov Cocktail,” about a Russian-Jewish teenager living in Germany.
Produced by Moonshaker, sold by Charades and making its world market premiere at this year’s Unifrance Rendez-Vous in Paris, the freewheeling film follows a 27-year-old man-child Bellisha (Michael Zindel) and his ailing mother, Giselle (Agnès Jaoui), who together make up the last remaining Jews living in a working class neighborhood that all of their friends and family have long since fled.
At first that’s just as well for the easy-going Bellisha, but health concerns, prejudice and most of all an acute sense of alienation soon begin to creep in. Below, Variety catches up with Debré at this year’s Rendez-Vous.
How did this feature idea come about?
I saw a short film called “Masel Tov Cocktail,” about a Russian-Jewish teenager living in Germany.
- 1/18/2024
- by Ben Croll
- Variety Film + TV
“Going into making the film, I always had in my head that it would be great to get to represent the country and help it have more of a voice in terms of world cinema,” says Michael A. Goorjian, the writer, director and star of “Amerikatsi,” Armenia’s submission for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards. “Not a lot of films have been made in Armenia, partially because it’s a post-Soviet country, and when the Soviet Union collapsed, a lot of the infrastructure for film fell away. It was one of our goals with the film to help showcase what’s possible in Armenia. I’m very excited about it.” Watch the exclusive video interview above.
The film follows Charlie (Goorjian), who escapes the Armenian genocide as a boy by fleeing to the United States. When he returns as an adult and is arrested, he watches an...
The film follows Charlie (Goorjian), who escapes the Armenian genocide as a boy by fleeing to the United States. When he returns as an adult and is arrested, he watches an...
- 1/5/2024
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
Rod Serling was famous for a lot of things. He was one of the most acclaimed television writers of the mid-20th century, the creator of the genre-defining anthology series "The Twilight Zone," he co-wrote the screenplay to the original "Planet of the Apes," and he even helped give Steven Spielberg his big break. But even though he's famous for a lot of things, he was a prolific writer and even some of his best and most fascinating projects have been largely forgotten by the public over time. Like, for example, an adaptation of one of the most popular Christmas stories ever told, transformed into one of the most politically charged Christmas movies ever filmed.
Serling was no stranger to Christmas stories. After all, he wrote the classic yuletide episode "Night of the Meek," a hopeful story about an alcoholic department store Santa who stumbles across a magical sack that...
Serling was no stranger to Christmas stories. After all, he wrote the classic yuletide episode "Night of the Meek," a hopeful story about an alcoholic department store Santa who stumbles across a magical sack that...
- 12/22/2023
- by William Bibbiani
- Slash Film
The Shape is back! Well, of course he is. He can't be killed, after all, and the "Halloween" franchise must go on to ensure that Michael Myers will still be terrorizing the fine folks in Haddonfield for generations to come. "Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers" continued the trend established in "Halloween 4" and "Halloween 5" of weirdly copying the sequel titles of the "Pink Panther" movies starring Peter Sellers. There was "The Return," then "The Revenge" and now it was time to dive a little deeper into "Halloween" lore, for better or worse.
Honestly, it was something of a miracle that "Halloween 6" even got made at all. After becoming the first in the series to actually premiere on Friday the 13th, "Halloween 5" was the lowest grossing movie of the franchise when it opened in October of 1989. After the development for "Halloween 6" stalled multiple times due to legal issues,...
Honestly, it was something of a miracle that "Halloween 6" even got made at all. After becoming the first in the series to actually premiere on Friday the 13th, "Halloween 5" was the lowest grossing movie of the franchise when it opened in October of 1989. After the development for "Halloween 6" stalled multiple times due to legal issues,...
- 12/19/2023
- by Drew Tinnin
- Slash Film
1964's "The Pink Panther" is not a complex film. There is little to suggest a full-fledged film series in its story of a jewel with the shape of a panther buried deep within. Somehow, that premise resulted in a series of films lasting decades, with eleven unique (or mostly unique) live-action entries. And the cartoon character who showed up in the title sequence, dancing to Henry Mancini's iconic theme music? There was a Saturday morning series starring him that ran in various incarnations from 1969 to 1980.
When writer Maurice Richlin pursued director Blake Edwards with an idea for a film about a jewel thief, neither man could have predicted the surprising longevity of that idea. Certainly, they couldn't have predicted that the extremely thin premise of "The Pink Panther" would result in a series of films running into the 1990s. Nor could they have predicted that the protagonist would be...
When writer Maurice Richlin pursued director Blake Edwards with an idea for a film about a jewel thief, neither man could have predicted the surprising longevity of that idea. Certainly, they couldn't have predicted that the extremely thin premise of "The Pink Panther" would result in a series of films running into the 1990s. Nor could they have predicted that the protagonist would be...
- 12/16/2023
- by Anthony Crislip
- Slash Film
“Poor Things” marks a radical shift for Yorgos Lanthimos. The director gained global acclaim with the microbudget “Dogtooth” in 2009; by 2018, he scored 10 Oscar nominations and one win for star Olivia Colman with the $15 million “The Favourite” ($95 million worldwide). With Venice Golden Lion winner “Poor Things,” he has a $35 million budget, critical acclaim, and another crack at multiple Oscars.
Based on the 1992 novel by Scottish artist and author Alisdair Gray, screenwriter Tony McNamara (“The Favourite”) focused the narrative on young Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a woman reanimated by scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) who placed her own baby’s brain into her skull.
Lanthimos loved Gray’s book and in 2009 traveled to Scotland to meet the author and plead his case for adaptation. Around 2015, Irish producers Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe of Element Pictures optioned the rights with Film4, Lanthimos’ longtime backer.
“We were all in. Yorgos was so passionate about it,...
Based on the 1992 novel by Scottish artist and author Alisdair Gray, screenwriter Tony McNamara (“The Favourite”) focused the narrative on young Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a woman reanimated by scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe) who placed her own baby’s brain into her skull.
Lanthimos loved Gray’s book and in 2009 traveled to Scotland to meet the author and plead his case for adaptation. Around 2015, Irish producers Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe of Element Pictures optioned the rights with Film4, Lanthimos’ longtime backer.
“We were all in. Yorgos was so passionate about it,...
- 12/4/2023
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
The 80s. It has given us so much in pop culture. From the best Saturday Morning Cartoons, the greatest action figure series of all time, and some of the most quotable movies. You can’t talk about 80s films without thinking of movies like Back To The Future or The Breakfast Club. If someone says, “Goonies never say die,” then you know it’s someone you can hold a conversation with.
The flip side of this is that over the last 40 years (gulp!), society has changed. Somewhat for the better, but there are still downsides. Now, when you look back at some of your favorite 80s films, you might find that maybe they haven’t aged as well as you had hoped. What childhood memories can we ruin by figuring out which 80s movies haven’t aged well?
(Editor’s note – this article is meant to entertain. If you still...
The flip side of this is that over the last 40 years (gulp!), society has changed. Somewhat for the better, but there are still downsides. Now, when you look back at some of your favorite 80s films, you might find that maybe they haven’t aged as well as you had hoped. What childhood memories can we ruin by figuring out which 80s movies haven’t aged well?
(Editor’s note – this article is meant to entertain. If you still...
- 12/3/2023
- by Bryan Wolford
- JoBlo.com
Just before he reaches the age of 28, Timothée Chalamet will very likely achieve his third Golden Globe (and first Best Comedy/Musical Actor) nomination for “Wonka.” Following his previous bids for “Call Me By Your Name” and “Beautiful Boy”, this notice would make him the youngest man to have ever vied for all three possible film Golden Globes, smashing a record set by 35-year-old James Caan in 1976. He would also make history due to the fact that he would be the third actor recognized by this organization for playing Willy Wonka, thus putting the fictional chocolatier on a very short list of film characters that have inspired at least three Golden Globe nominations.
Directed and co-written by Paul King (“Paddington”), “Wonka” serves as an origin story for its title character, who was first introduced in the 1964 Roald Dahl book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” Chalamet puts a relatively youthful spin...
Directed and co-written by Paul King (“Paddington”), “Wonka” serves as an origin story for its title character, who was first introduced in the 1964 Roald Dahl book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” Chalamet puts a relatively youthful spin...
- 11/22/2023
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Armando Iannucci and Steve Coogan will collaborate once again for a stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove. The play is set to premiere at London’s Noel Coward Theatre on October 8th, 2024.
Marking the first-ever adaptation of a Kubrick film, Iannucci is teaming with Sean Foley, who will co-direct the production. Like Peter Sellers did in the 1964 movie, Coogan will portray multiple roles in the play. Known in full as Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Kubrick’s Cold War satire follows an Air Force general who orders a preemptive nuclear attack on the Soviet Union.
Sellers played three roles in the film: Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, fictional President Merkin Muffley, and Dr. Strangelove, the former Nazi who serves as Muffley’s scientific advisor. Both Sellers and Kubrick were nominated for Academy Awards for the landmark black comedy.
Iannucci’s take...
Marking the first-ever adaptation of a Kubrick film, Iannucci is teaming with Sean Foley, who will co-direct the production. Like Peter Sellers did in the 1964 movie, Coogan will portray multiple roles in the play. Known in full as Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Kubrick’s Cold War satire follows an Air Force general who orders a preemptive nuclear attack on the Soviet Union.
Sellers played three roles in the film: Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, fictional President Merkin Muffley, and Dr. Strangelove, the former Nazi who serves as Muffley’s scientific advisor. Both Sellers and Kubrick were nominated for Academy Awards for the landmark black comedy.
Iannucci’s take...
- 9/27/2023
- by Carys Anderson
- Consequence - Film News
Steve Coogan, Armando Iannucci and Sean Foley are teaming for a West End stage production of Stanley Kubrick’s classic 1964 war satire, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.
Billed as the first-ever adaptation of a Kubrick work, Dr. Strangelove will star Coogan in multiple roles at London’s Noel Coward Theatre for a limited run from October 8, 2024-December 21, 2024.
The adaptation hails from Veep creator and Coogan’s Alan Partridge collaborator Iannucci, and Olivier Award-winner Foley. Foley will also direct.
The original Oscar-nominated film about a rogue U.S. General who triggers a nuclear crisis, starred Peter Sellers, George C Scott, Sterling Hayden and Slim Pickens, among others. Sellers memorably played more than one character, scoring an Oscar nomination in the process.
Said Coogan, “The idea of putting Dr. Strangelove on stage is daunting. A huge responsibility. It’s also an exciting challenge, an...
Billed as the first-ever adaptation of a Kubrick work, Dr. Strangelove will star Coogan in multiple roles at London’s Noel Coward Theatre for a limited run from October 8, 2024-December 21, 2024.
The adaptation hails from Veep creator and Coogan’s Alan Partridge collaborator Iannucci, and Olivier Award-winner Foley. Foley will also direct.
The original Oscar-nominated film about a rogue U.S. General who triggers a nuclear crisis, starred Peter Sellers, George C Scott, Sterling Hayden and Slim Pickens, among others. Sellers memorably played more than one character, scoring an Oscar nomination in the process.
Said Coogan, “The idea of putting Dr. Strangelove on stage is daunting. A huge responsibility. It’s also an exciting challenge, an...
- 9/26/2023
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Steve Coogan is going full Peter Sellers. The Alan Partridge and Philomena star has signed on for a British stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s seminal nuclear war satire Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, with Coogan set to play multiple roles, as Sellers did in the 1964 feature film.
Veep and Death of Stalin director Armando Iannucci is adapting Kubrick’s film for the stage together with Sean Foley. Foley, who has had West End success with such adaptations as The Painkiller starring Kenneth Branagh and Ben Elton’s The Upstart Crow, will also direct the play, which is set to premiere at London’s Noel Coward Theatre on Oct. 8, 2024.
The official Stanley Kubrick account on X, formerly known as Twitter, made the Coogan casting announcement on Tuesday.
Breaking News – Steve Coogan named as lead in the stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s dark comedy Dr. Strangelove.
Veep and Death of Stalin director Armando Iannucci is adapting Kubrick’s film for the stage together with Sean Foley. Foley, who has had West End success with such adaptations as The Painkiller starring Kenneth Branagh and Ben Elton’s The Upstart Crow, will also direct the play, which is set to premiere at London’s Noel Coward Theatre on Oct. 8, 2024.
The official Stanley Kubrick account on X, formerly known as Twitter, made the Coogan casting announcement on Tuesday.
Breaking News – Steve Coogan named as lead in the stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s dark comedy Dr. Strangelove.
- 9/26/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
From left: Peter Sellers in The Pink Panther Strikes Again (Keystone/Getty Images), Angela Lansbury in The Mirror Crack’d (YouTube screenshot), Albert Finney in Murder On The Orient Express (Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images), Denzel Washington in Devil In A Blue Dress (D Stevens/Tri Star/Kobal/Shutterstock), Daniel Craig...
- 9/17/2023
- by Jorge Molina
- avclub.com
Netflix typically refuses to release its actual viewership numbers to the public, making its weekly top-10 lists a fascinating peek into how streaming services actually operate. Netflix may pour millions into their original programs, but their ten most popular films or TV tend to (at least partly) be 25-year-old movies experiencing a seemingly random renaissance. Case in point: one of the hottest films on Netflix right now is Danny DeVito's 1996 family film "Matilda" based on the 1988 novel by Roald Dahl.
"Matilda," critically acclaimed upon its release, is about the titular young girl (Mara Wilson) who lives with caustic, greedy, tacky, and abusive parents. Her new school is a bleak, Dickensian nightmare overseen by the bestial, cruel Mrs. Trunchbull (Pam Ferris). The only person who treats Matilda with kindness is the put-upon Miss Honey (Embeth Davidtz) who sees how bright and gentle Matilda is.
Matilda sees little respite from her...
"Matilda," critically acclaimed upon its release, is about the titular young girl (Mara Wilson) who lives with caustic, greedy, tacky, and abusive parents. Her new school is a bleak, Dickensian nightmare overseen by the bestial, cruel Mrs. Trunchbull (Pam Ferris). The only person who treats Matilda with kindness is the put-upon Miss Honey (Embeth Davidtz) who sees how bright and gentle Matilda is.
Matilda sees little respite from her...
- 9/16/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
There’s no shortage of brilliant detectives in novels, film and television, but one of the greatest — or at least the one with the fanciest facial hair — is Hercule Poirot. The Belgian investigator, created by Agatha Christie, has appeared 33 novels, more than 50 short stories, and has been played by a variety of iconic actors.
But for whatever reason, Poirot has only sporadically appeared on the big screen, with many of his earliest movie appearances being lost to time, while some of his other noteworthy adventures were rewritten as vehicles for Christie’s other beloved creation, Miss Marple.
Here we take a look at the various theatrically-released adventures of Hercule Poirot, from the 1930s to today, and see which of his mysteries were truly worth solving.
Photo credit: Columbia
Honorable Mention: “Murder By Death” (1976)
Neil Simon’s wacky spoof of the supersleuth genre, directed by Robert Moore, features an all-star cast...
But for whatever reason, Poirot has only sporadically appeared on the big screen, with many of his earliest movie appearances being lost to time, while some of his other noteworthy adventures were rewritten as vehicles for Christie’s other beloved creation, Miss Marple.
Here we take a look at the various theatrically-released adventures of Hercule Poirot, from the 1930s to today, and see which of his mysteries were truly worth solving.
Photo credit: Columbia
Honorable Mention: “Murder By Death” (1976)
Neil Simon’s wacky spoof of the supersleuth genre, directed by Robert Moore, features an all-star cast...
- 9/15/2023
- by William Bibbiani
- The Wrap
Everyone’s gone to the festivals. But here on the home front, one thing still leads to another.
Last Saturday, I picked up a slightly tattered copy of an old crime biography, Frank Costello: Prime Minister of the Underworld, at one of those sidewalk libraries.
Published in 1974, the year after mob boss Costello died at the age of 82, the book was written by his long-time lawyer George Wolf with co-writer Joseph Dimona.
As lawyer books go, it wasn’t bad. Lots of first-hand anecdotes. Not too much ax-grinding. And a reasonably clear re-telling of an oft-told saga about what they used to call “The Syndicate,” from tawdry roots in New York’s Italian ghettos, through the Italo-Jewish alliance of bootlegging gangs, to political machinations, over-throw of the old Sicilian crime lords, Murder Inc., Bugsy Siegel, Las Vegas, the Kefauver hearings and beyond.
You’ve been there many times in many movies,...
Last Saturday, I picked up a slightly tattered copy of an old crime biography, Frank Costello: Prime Minister of the Underworld, at one of those sidewalk libraries.
Published in 1974, the year after mob boss Costello died at the age of 82, the book was written by his long-time lawyer George Wolf with co-writer Joseph Dimona.
As lawyer books go, it wasn’t bad. Lots of first-hand anecdotes. Not too much ax-grinding. And a reasonably clear re-telling of an oft-told saga about what they used to call “The Syndicate,” from tawdry roots in New York’s Italian ghettos, through the Italo-Jewish alliance of bootlegging gangs, to political machinations, over-throw of the old Sicilian crime lords, Murder Inc., Bugsy Siegel, Las Vegas, the Kefauver hearings and beyond.
You’ve been there many times in many movies,...
- 9/9/2023
- by Michael Cieply
- Deadline Film + TV
It was 22 years ago that Skip Hollandsworth wrote a Texas Monthly article about Gary Johnson, a school teacher who moonlights as a hit man who doesn’t kill people. Now if that doesn’t sound like the formula for a hit movie, you may understand why it has taken so long for Gary’s story to make it to the silver screen — so long in fact that its subject passed away before he could hit the red carpet of the Venice Film Festival, where the film is having its world premiere tonight.
Nevertheless, Glen Powell never forgot the story and has teamed with Richard Linklater to finally tell it, though it is only “loosely” based on the original article. Certain details in the screenplay co-written by Linklater and Powell are made up, and those are the details that actually help make this a hilarious winner, as well as perhaps Linklater...
Nevertheless, Glen Powell never forgot the story and has teamed with Richard Linklater to finally tell it, though it is only “loosely” based on the original article. Certain details in the screenplay co-written by Linklater and Powell are made up, and those are the details that actually help make this a hilarious winner, as well as perhaps Linklater...
- 9/5/2023
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Dang, September is just over a week away. Why are the final weeks of summer always the fastest? I suppose it is time to look ahead to next month's programming from our friends at Arrow. They've got the cure for the end-of-summer blues with a selection of films from the legendary Joe Dante. There are two docs, one each for the equally legendary comic actor Peter Sellers and actor/musician Kris Kristofferson. There are two programs for Japanese icon, Shinya Tsukamoto and American contemoprary Jim Cummings. Speaking of J-Horror you would be foolish to miss out on the 4K restoration of the first Ringu film. And if you're looking to spice things up or make due on a lonely night (waves pointed finger...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 8/23/2023
- Screen Anarchy
(Welcome to Did They Get It Right?, a series where we look at Oscars categories from yesteryear and examine whether the Academy's winners stand the test of time.)
Few directors hold as large a place in the hearts of cinephiles as Stanley Kubrick. The mythology of the director as this reclusive, micromanaging perfectionist who would drive people insane by doing 100 takes of a scene has become the stuff of legend. Some people stand in awe of what he was able to accomplish throughout his career on such a grand scale, and some, naturally, want to take him down a peg because of his godlike status amongst a certain sector of film fans. I don't hold Kubrick up as god. He wouldn't be on my Mt. Rushmore of directors. But the man did direct some of the best films ever made. That's a little difficult to deny.
Because of this revered status,...
Few directors hold as large a place in the hearts of cinephiles as Stanley Kubrick. The mythology of the director as this reclusive, micromanaging perfectionist who would drive people insane by doing 100 takes of a scene has become the stuff of legend. Some people stand in awe of what he was able to accomplish throughout his career on such a grand scale, and some, naturally, want to take him down a peg because of his godlike status amongst a certain sector of film fans. I don't hold Kubrick up as god. He wouldn't be on my Mt. Rushmore of directors. But the man did direct some of the best films ever made. That's a little difficult to deny.
Because of this revered status,...
- 8/20/2023
- by Mike Shutt
- Slash Film
Tl;Dr:
The Beatles loved a Peter Sellers film that was helmed by a famous director. Paul McCartney felt the band members’ enjoyment of the movie said a lot about them. The director had an incredible impact on The Beatles’ career.
The Beatles were huge fans of a Peter Sellers movie that Paul McCartney called “zany.” The movie went on to inspire one of The Beatles’ most famous films. In addition, The Beatles worked with Sellers’ director multiple times.
Paul McCartney said The Beatles’ love of 1 Peter Sellers movie gave them ‘a personality’
During a 2020 interview with GQ, Paul discussed The Beatles’ tastes. “We liked people such as Stanley Unwin; we liked mad things,” he said. For context, Unwin was a comic actor known for creating his own language.
In addition, the members of the Fab Four enjoyed a short film that starred Sellers. “Like there was a little film...
The Beatles loved a Peter Sellers film that was helmed by a famous director. Paul McCartney felt the band members’ enjoyment of the movie said a lot about them. The director had an incredible impact on The Beatles’ career.
The Beatles were huge fans of a Peter Sellers movie that Paul McCartney called “zany.” The movie went on to inspire one of The Beatles’ most famous films. In addition, The Beatles worked with Sellers’ director multiple times.
Paul McCartney said The Beatles’ love of 1 Peter Sellers movie gave them ‘a personality’
During a 2020 interview with GQ, Paul discussed The Beatles’ tastes. “We liked people such as Stanley Unwin; we liked mad things,” he said. For context, Unwin was a comic actor known for creating his own language.
In addition, the members of the Fab Four enjoyed a short film that starred Sellers. “Like there was a little film...
- 8/15/2023
- by Matthew Trzcinski
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
The Beatles‘ A Hard Day’s Night came out the same year as an iconic Elvis Presley movie. Elvis’ vehicle was the bigger hit. Subsequently, Paul McCartney revealed what he thought about A Hard Day’s Night.
The Beatles’ ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ didn’t end Elvis Presley’s time in the limelight
The 1964 film A Hard Day’s Night has a lot to offer: decent comedy, interesting locations, and some of the best pop songs ever written. Elvis’ Viva Las Vegas has a lot of the same things. Apparently, the latter connected more with audiences at the time.
The 2019 book The Mighty Elvis: A Graphic Biography reports Viva Las Vegas outranked A Hard Day’s Night at the box office. The usual narrative surrounding Elvis’ career is that it went downhill once The Beatles broke through in the United States. Viva Las Vegas proves he was still relevant after the Fab Four made...
The Beatles’ ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ didn’t end Elvis Presley’s time in the limelight
The 1964 film A Hard Day’s Night has a lot to offer: decent comedy, interesting locations, and some of the best pop songs ever written. Elvis’ Viva Las Vegas has a lot of the same things. Apparently, the latter connected more with audiences at the time.
The 2019 book The Mighty Elvis: A Graphic Biography reports Viva Las Vegas outranked A Hard Day’s Night at the box office. The usual narrative surrounding Elvis’ career is that it went downhill once The Beatles broke through in the United States. Viva Las Vegas proves he was still relevant after the Fab Four made...
- 8/12/2023
- by Matthew Trzcinski
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
As we approach another anniversary of August 9, those who participated in “the decision” are all but gone.
But the reminders are with us, thanks to a new book by Evan Thomas, “Road to Surrender,” the forward for which reads “To save lives, it was necessary to take lives — possibly hundreds of thousands of them.” And, of course, Christopher Nolan’s epic portrait of the man who was never allowed to forget, Robert Oppenheimer.
We can’t hide under our desks anymore, but we can view ten other works that scared the hell out of us.
“On the Beach” (United Artists)
“On the Beach” (1959)
As a little girl in 1959, I found my parents watching this black and white film on TV. Excited, I asked if it was the latest with Annette and Frankie Avalon. Uh, no. They allowed me to stay, and two hours later, I was shaken to the core.
But the reminders are with us, thanks to a new book by Evan Thomas, “Road to Surrender,” the forward for which reads “To save lives, it was necessary to take lives — possibly hundreds of thousands of them.” And, of course, Christopher Nolan’s epic portrait of the man who was never allowed to forget, Robert Oppenheimer.
We can’t hide under our desks anymore, but we can view ten other works that scared the hell out of us.
“On the Beach” (United Artists)
“On the Beach” (1959)
As a little girl in 1959, I found my parents watching this black and white film on TV. Excited, I asked if it was the latest with Annette and Frankie Avalon. Uh, no. They allowed me to stay, and two hours later, I was shaken to the core.
- 8/9/2023
- by Michele Wilens
- The Wrap
A24 is having a moment right now. For starters, the indie studio and 21st century tastemaker is actually able to produce movies during the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes due to its separation from the major Hollywood studios. So bring on that movie where Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega are responsible for killing a unicorn! More impressive though, A24 just picked up its second Best Picture Oscar in six years, and for a movie that walked away with a staggering seven Oscar wins overall in March.
Not bad for a company that’s barely a decade old, and which is still generally regarded in the zeitgeist for putting out strange, and yet often entrancing work. That, indeed, could be used to describe most of their horror output, which has had a bigger hand in shaping the genre in the 2010s than any other studio or production company not named Blumhouse. Whether...
Not bad for a company that’s barely a decade old, and which is still generally regarded in the zeitgeist for putting out strange, and yet often entrancing work. That, indeed, could be used to describe most of their horror output, which has had a bigger hand in shaping the genre in the 2010s than any other studio or production company not named Blumhouse. Whether...
- 8/4/2023
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
Ever since movies began, filmmakers have depicted the end of the world of the world on screen whether it be from floods, asteroids, comets, alien invasion and even Zombies. But cinema went nuclear after the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August, 1945. The arrival of the nuclear age heralded the introduction of a new sub-genre: destruction by atomic bomb. And with the release July 21 of Christopher Nolan’s lauded “Oppenheimer,” which domestically earned some $70 million in its opening weekend, let’s look at some of the vintage flicks of the genre.
Nuclear destruction of London is stopped at the last moment in the taut 1950 British film “Seven Days to Noon,” directed by John and Roy Boulting and winners of the original story Oscar, stars veteran character actor Barry Jones as a brilliant scientist working at an atomic research center in London who steals an A-bomb that...
Nuclear destruction of London is stopped at the last moment in the taut 1950 British film “Seven Days to Noon,” directed by John and Roy Boulting and winners of the original story Oscar, stars veteran character actor Barry Jones as a brilliant scientist working at an atomic research center in London who steals an A-bomb that...
- 7/25/2023
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.