Paul Schrader has long been known for his gruff personality, but he was in good spirits and slightly nostalgic during the Saturday press conference at the Cannes Film Festival for his latest film, Oh, Canada, where he also revealed his next film.
Schrader’s iconic team-up with Martin Scorsese, Taxi Driver, premiered at the festival, and the filmmaker has had several runs at the French fest since. This year’s Cannes sees the return of not only Schrader, but Francis Ford Coppola with Megalopolis and George Lucas, who will be on hand to receive an honorary Palme d’Or.
When asked if, at the time, he knew that he and the other directors that were dubbed “New Hollywood” were changing film forever, Schrader said bluntly: “Yes.”
He addressed that time of anxiety in the industry that saw many films failing at the box office. “When the late ’60s hit, studios...
Schrader’s iconic team-up with Martin Scorsese, Taxi Driver, premiered at the festival, and the filmmaker has had several runs at the French fest since. This year’s Cannes sees the return of not only Schrader, but Francis Ford Coppola with Megalopolis and George Lucas, who will be on hand to receive an honorary Palme d’Or.
When asked if, at the time, he knew that he and the other directors that were dubbed “New Hollywood” were changing film forever, Schrader said bluntly: “Yes.”
He addressed that time of anxiety in the industry that saw many films failing at the box office. “When the late ’60s hit, studios...
- 5/18/2024
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Oh, Canada debuting this week on the Croisette is high time to see lesser-seen Schrader on the Criterion Channel, who’ll debut an 11-title series including the likes of Touch, The Canyons, and Patty Hearst, while Old Boyfriends (written with his brother Leonard) and his own “Adventures in Moviegoing” are also programmed. Five films by Jean Grémillon, a rather underappreciated figure of French cinema, will be showing
Series-wise, there’s an appreciation of the synth soundtrack stretching all the way back to 1956’s Forbidden Planet while, naturally, finding its glut of titles in the ’70s and ’80s––Argento and Carpenter, obviously, but also Tarkovsky and Peter Weir. A Prince and restorations of films by Bob Odenkirk, Obayashi, John Greyson, and Jacques Rivette (whose Duelle is a masterpiece of the highest order) make streaming debuts. I Am Cuba, Girlfight, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Dazed and Confused are June’s Criterion Editions.
Series-wise, there’s an appreciation of the synth soundtrack stretching all the way back to 1956’s Forbidden Planet while, naturally, finding its glut of titles in the ’70s and ’80s––Argento and Carpenter, obviously, but also Tarkovsky and Peter Weir. A Prince and restorations of films by Bob Odenkirk, Obayashi, John Greyson, and Jacques Rivette (whose Duelle is a masterpiece of the highest order) make streaming debuts. I Am Cuba, Girlfight, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Dazed and Confused are June’s Criterion Editions.
- 5/14/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
This year’s edition of the Toronto International Film Festival is set to take place from September 7th through the 17th, and yesterday they invited film fans to guess which ten movies they’ll be screening in their Midnight Madness lineup this year. The hints were the titles of ten movies that could be compared to the films in the lineup in some way. They were Trey Parker’s Orgazmo, Geoff Murphy’s Under Siege 2: Dark Territory, Jimmy Wang Yu’s Fantasy Mission Force, Charles Martin Smith’s Trick or Treat, Stan Brakhage’s Dog Star Man, Martin Scorsese’s After Hours, Lucio Fulci’s City of the Living Dead, Paul Schrader’s Blue Collar, Ingmar Bergman’s Hour of the Wolf, and Theodore J. Flicker’s Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang. Now TIFF has announced the full lineup for both their Midnight Madness and Discovery programmes, and...
- 8/3/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
Robbie Bachman, the drummer and co-founder of the hit-making 1970s rock band Bachman-Turner Overdrive, has died. He was 69.
His death was announced by brother and bandmate, the guitarist and singer Randy Bachman. A cause of death was not immediately available.
“Another sad departure,” Randy Bachman tweeted last night. “The pounding beat behind Bto, my little brother Robbie has joined Mum, Dad & brother Gary on the other side. Maybe Jeff Beck needs a drummer! He was an integral cog in our rock ‘n’ roll machine and we rocked the world together.”
Playing the drums since childhood, Robin Peter Bachman was recruited at age 18 by his big brother Randy, who had already found international success in the band The Guess Who. After Randy left that group in 1970, he formed a short-lived group called Brave Belt, with 18-year-old Robbie on drums.
Brave Belt, with other members including bassist/singer Fred Turner and a third Bachman brother,...
His death was announced by brother and bandmate, the guitarist and singer Randy Bachman. A cause of death was not immediately available.
“Another sad departure,” Randy Bachman tweeted last night. “The pounding beat behind Bto, my little brother Robbie has joined Mum, Dad & brother Gary on the other side. Maybe Jeff Beck needs a drummer! He was an integral cog in our rock ‘n’ roll machine and we rocked the world together.”
Playing the drums since childhood, Robin Peter Bachman was recruited at age 18 by his big brother Randy, who had already found international success in the band The Guess Who. After Randy left that group in 1970, he formed a short-lived group called Brave Belt, with 18-year-old Robbie on drums.
Brave Belt, with other members including bassist/singer Fred Turner and a third Bachman brother,...
- 1/13/2023
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
If you are a first-time filmmaker keen to have a long career in the motion picture industry, write a part for Harvey Keitel and get it to him Asap.
Over his magnificent 55-year career, Keitel has been a good luck charm for some of the greatest directors in the industry. His auspicious streak kicked off with his very first leading role in Martin Scorsese's very first feature film, "Who's That Knocking at My Door." Scorsese's done fairly well for himself. So had Ridley Scott, who began his big-screen career by directing Keitel in 1977's "The Duelists." A year later, Keitel hooked up with "Taxi Driver" screenwriter Paul Schrader for "Blue Collar." This was evidently a nightmare production for the overwhelmed Schrader, but the raves, many of which singled out Keitel's performance, earned the scribe a reputation as an actor's director. Also in 1978, Keitel dazzled as a prodigious pianist...
Over his magnificent 55-year career, Keitel has been a good luck charm for some of the greatest directors in the industry. His auspicious streak kicked off with his very first leading role in Martin Scorsese's very first feature film, "Who's That Knocking at My Door." Scorsese's done fairly well for himself. So had Ridley Scott, who began his big-screen career by directing Keitel in 1977's "The Duelists." A year later, Keitel hooked up with "Taxi Driver" screenwriter Paul Schrader for "Blue Collar." This was evidently a nightmare production for the overwhelmed Schrader, but the raves, many of which singled out Keitel's performance, earned the scribe a reputation as an actor's director. Also in 1978, Keitel dazzled as a prodigious pianist...
- 9/9/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Editor’s note: This review was originally published at the 2022 Venice Film Festival. Magnolia Pictures releases the film in theaters on Friday, May 19.
Paul Schrader proudly has little concern with how likable he, or his work, is. For his fans, this is part of the joy, finding delight in his prickly Facebook posts and reveling in the black, gnarled heart beating at the center of much of his oeuvre. After the recent existential nightmare of “First Reformed” and last year’s stunningly cruel psychodrama “The Card Counter,” which also premiered on the Lido, Schrader returned to Venice to receive an Honorary Golden Lion award and regale the audience with another gritty tale of redemption. He spoke about “Master Gardener” with his signature nihilist wink and told IndieWire, “This one is going to piss people off. Obama’s not putting it on his top 10 list.”
It is with those expectations, and...
Paul Schrader proudly has little concern with how likable he, or his work, is. For his fans, this is part of the joy, finding delight in his prickly Facebook posts and reveling in the black, gnarled heart beating at the center of much of his oeuvre. After the recent existential nightmare of “First Reformed” and last year’s stunningly cruel psychodrama “The Card Counter,” which also premiered on the Lido, Schrader returned to Venice to receive an Honorary Golden Lion award and regale the audience with another gritty tale of redemption. He spoke about “Master Gardener” with his signature nihilist wink and told IndieWire, “This one is going to piss people off. Obama’s not putting it on his top 10 list.”
It is with those expectations, and...
- 9/3/2022
- by Leila Latif
- Indiewire
Click here to read the full article.
Ahead of the world premiere of Paul Schrader’s latest feature, Master Gardener, at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday, the legendary screenwriter and director was nudged into casting a backward glance on his 50-year career in the movies. Next week in Venice, the auteur will receive an honorary Golden Lion for his contributions to cinema.
Early in the press conference, Schrader was asked which of the films he’s directed he thinks best represents him.
“You know, directors like and dislike their children for different reasons,” he replied. “Probably my favorite is Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, just because it’s the damnedest thing. I still can’t believe I ever made that film. The most personal for me is First Reformed or Affliction. The best stylistically, I think, is Comfort of Strangers. Cat People is kind of special. You know,...
Ahead of the world premiere of Paul Schrader’s latest feature, Master Gardener, at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday, the legendary screenwriter and director was nudged into casting a backward glance on his 50-year career in the movies. Next week in Venice, the auteur will receive an honorary Golden Lion for his contributions to cinema.
Early in the press conference, Schrader was asked which of the films he’s directed he thinks best represents him.
“You know, directors like and dislike their children for different reasons,” he replied. “Probably my favorite is Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, just because it’s the damnedest thing. I still can’t believe I ever made that film. The most personal for me is First Reformed or Affliction. The best stylistically, I think, is Comfort of Strangers. Cat People is kind of special. You know,...
- 9/3/2022
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paul Schrader woke up in New Orleans with four days of shooting left on his new movie, “Master Gardener,” when he thought he was going to die. He had severe breathing problems and trouble seeing out of his left eye, so he decided to get up and go to work.
“I knew if I called 911, those bastards would never let me out of the hospital, and the film would not be finished,” Schrader said. “So I lay there in bed and said, ‘Well, maybe I won’t wake up tomorrow — but would I rather not wake up tomorrow or wake up in the hospital room, knowing I can’t finish my film?’ And so I made my decision.”
Schrader still hasn’t figured out the specific cause of those ailments, but the 76-year-old’s commitment to filmmaking at all costs isn’t a surprise. “Master Gardener” is another of Schrader’s man-in-the-room dramas,...
“I knew if I called 911, those bastards would never let me out of the hospital, and the film would not be finished,” Schrader said. “So I lay there in bed and said, ‘Well, maybe I won’t wake up tomorrow — but would I rather not wake up tomorrow or wake up in the hospital room, knowing I can’t finish my film?’ And so I made my decision.”
Schrader still hasn’t figured out the specific cause of those ailments, but the 76-year-old’s commitment to filmmaking at all costs isn’t a surprise. “Master Gardener” is another of Schrader’s man-in-the-room dramas,...
- 9/2/2022
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Stars: Rea Rangaka, Sechaba Ramphele, Kiroshan Naidoo, Greg Viljoen, Stevel Marc, Aimee Ntuli | Written by Gareth Crocker | Directed by Fred Wolmarans, Gareth Crocker
Office Invasion is the latest in a long line of films to use science fiction as a vehicle to poke fun at society. Writer Gareth Crocker and co-director Fred Wolmarans have come up with an idea that not only takes shots at corporate culture and the treatment of workers, but being a South African film also becomes a fairly direct parable about colonialism.
Three friends Sam, Junior (Sechaba Ramphele; Love on Safari), and Prince work for Ami a corporation that mines a rare metal called Zulcanoid for which there is far more demand than supply.
When the company is suddenly sold and the new owners Gregory, Badrick, and Anya (Aimee Ntuli) claim that business is slow and initiate severe austerity measures, including ending medical benefits, something that hits Sam,...
Office Invasion is the latest in a long line of films to use science fiction as a vehicle to poke fun at society. Writer Gareth Crocker and co-director Fred Wolmarans have come up with an idea that not only takes shots at corporate culture and the treatment of workers, but being a South African film also becomes a fairly direct parable about colonialism.
Three friends Sam, Junior (Sechaba Ramphele; Love on Safari), and Prince work for Ami a corporation that mines a rare metal called Zulcanoid for which there is far more demand than supply.
When the company is suddenly sold and the new owners Gregory, Badrick, and Anya (Aimee Ntuli) claim that business is slow and initiate severe austerity measures, including ending medical benefits, something that hits Sam,...
- 8/16/2022
- by Jim Morazzini
- Nerdly
Riverdale Blue Collar Trailer — The CW‘s Riverdale: Season 6, Episode 16: Blue Collar TV show trailer has been released. Cast and crew Riverdale stars K.J. Apa, Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes, Cole Sprouse, Marisol Nichols, Madelaine Petsch, Mark Consuelos, Casey Cott, Skeet Ulrich, Charles Melton, Vanessa Morgan, and Madchen Amick. Based on the characters from [...]
Continue reading: Riverdale: Season 6, Episode 16: Blue Collar TV Show Trailer [The CW]...
Continue reading: Riverdale: Season 6, Episode 16: Blue Collar TV Show Trailer [The CW]...
- 5/23/2022
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
Writer, director and actor Michael Showalter joins hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante to discuss his favorite movies.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021)
The Baxter (2005)
Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015)
Runaway Daughters (1994)
Clueless (1995)
Bagdad Cafe (1987)
Coda (2021)
The Long Goodbye (1973) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Jaws (1975) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
Do The Right Thing (1989)
Sugarbaby (1985)
City Slickers (1991)
Attack! (1956) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Paris, Texas (1984) – Karyn Kusama’s trailer commentary
Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)
Pretty In Pink (1986)
Escape From New York (1981) – Neil Marshall’s trailer commentary
Hamburger: The Motion Picture (1986)
The Warriors (1979)
The Thing (1982) – Jesus Treviño’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Innerspace (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Christine (1983)
Crossing Delancey (1988)
Annie Hall (1977) – Robert Weide’s trailer commentary
When Harry Met Sally… (1989)
The Fugitive (1993)
The Big Sick (2017) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Between The Lines...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021)
The Baxter (2005)
Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015)
Runaway Daughters (1994)
Clueless (1995)
Bagdad Cafe (1987)
Coda (2021)
The Long Goodbye (1973) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Jaws (1975) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary
Do The Right Thing (1989)
Sugarbaby (1985)
City Slickers (1991)
Attack! (1956) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Paris, Texas (1984) – Karyn Kusama’s trailer commentary
Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)
Pretty In Pink (1986)
Escape From New York (1981) – Neil Marshall’s trailer commentary
Hamburger: The Motion Picture (1986)
The Warriors (1979)
The Thing (1982) – Jesus Treviño’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Innerspace (1987) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Christine (1983)
Crossing Delancey (1988)
Annie Hall (1977) – Robert Weide’s trailer commentary
When Harry Met Sally… (1989)
The Fugitive (1993)
The Big Sick (2017) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review
Between The Lines...
- 4/5/2022
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Ghostbusters: Afterlife director Jason Reitman takes hosts Joe Dante and Josh Olson on a journey through some of his favorite cinematic tonal shifts.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
Thank You For Smoking (2006)
Up In The Air (2009)
Juno (2007)
Young Adult (2011)
Citizen Kane (1941) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Seven Samurai (1954) Brian Trenchard-Smith’s trailer commentary
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Rififi (1955)
Titane (2021)
Cannibal Girls (1973)
Raw (2016)
Hellraiser (1987)
A Serbian Film (2010)
Cast Away (2000)
What Lies Beneath (2000)
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Downhill Racer (1968) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Breaking Away (1979)
Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
The Great Waldo Pepper (1975)
Psycho (1960) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
Psycho (1998) – Ti West’s trailer commentary
Last Night In Soho (2021)
Funny Games (1997)
Funny Games (2008)
The Piano Teacher (2001) – Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray
I, The Jury (1982)
Mother! (2017)
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Tully (2018)
Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s 4K Blu-ray review, Tfh’s 30th anniversary links...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
Thank You For Smoking (2006)
Up In The Air (2009)
Juno (2007)
Young Adult (2011)
Citizen Kane (1941) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Seven Samurai (1954) Brian Trenchard-Smith’s trailer commentary
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Rififi (1955)
Titane (2021)
Cannibal Girls (1973)
Raw (2016)
Hellraiser (1987)
A Serbian Film (2010)
Cast Away (2000)
What Lies Beneath (2000)
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Downhill Racer (1968) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Breaking Away (1979)
Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
The Great Waldo Pepper (1975)
Psycho (1960) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings
Psycho (1998) – Ti West’s trailer commentary
Last Night In Soho (2021)
Funny Games (1997)
Funny Games (2008)
The Piano Teacher (2001) – Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray
I, The Jury (1982)
Mother! (2017)
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Tully (2018)
Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s 4K Blu-ray review, Tfh’s 30th anniversary links...
- 11/23/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Celebrating the release of his new memoir, multi-hyphenate Steven Van Zandt joins hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante to discuss a few of his favorite movies.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Elevator To The Gallows (1958) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Breathless (1960) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Angels With Dirty Faces (1938)
The Fisher King (1991)
Tony Rome (1967)
Lady In Cement (1968)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)
The Killer (1989)
True Romance (1993)
True Lies (1994)
Get Shorty (1995) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Point Blank (1967) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Catch Us If You Can a.k.a. Sweet Memories (1965)
Double Trouble (1967)
Performance (1970) – Mark Goldblatt’s trailer commentary
The Driver (1978)
A Hard Day’s Night (1964) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Tfh’s Don’t Knock The Rock piece
Help! (1965) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s review
Blue Collar (1978) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Elevator To The Gallows (1958) – Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review
Breathless (1960) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Angels With Dirty Faces (1938)
The Fisher King (1991)
Tony Rome (1967)
Lady In Cement (1968)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)
The Killer (1989)
True Romance (1993)
True Lies (1994)
Get Shorty (1995) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary
Point Blank (1967) – John Landis’s trailer commentary
Catch Us If You Can a.k.a. Sweet Memories (1965)
Double Trouble (1967)
Performance (1970) – Mark Goldblatt’s trailer commentary
The Driver (1978)
A Hard Day’s Night (1964) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Tfh’s Don’t Knock The Rock piece
Help! (1965) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s review
Blue Collar (1978) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s...
- 9/28/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Robin French, a talent agent who worked with legends including Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor and later headed production at Paramount Pictures in the late 1970s, has died. His family said he had been in declining health for the past few months and died September 6 in Palm Desert, CA.
“Dad left knowing that we love him so much, and that we are all safe and secure thanks in large part to his fierce devotion to us,” his children said in a statement. “He was so smart, funny, loyal, friendly, grumpy, opinionated and just a one-of-a-kind guy. We will all miss him forever, but feel so lucky that he was our Dad.”
French began his career as an agent at Chartwell, working with his father, Hugh French — a former actor who become an agent whose clients in the 1950s and ’60s included Brando, Taylor and Richard Burton — and Jerry Perenchio.
During his agenting days,...
“Dad left knowing that we love him so much, and that we are all safe and secure thanks in large part to his fierce devotion to us,” his children said in a statement. “He was so smart, funny, loyal, friendly, grumpy, opinionated and just a one-of-a-kind guy. We will all miss him forever, but feel so lucky that he was our Dad.”
French began his career as an agent at Chartwell, working with his father, Hugh French — a former actor who become an agent whose clients in the 1950s and ’60s included Brando, Taylor and Richard Burton — and Jerry Perenchio.
During his agenting days,...
- 9/14/2021
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
“I have decided to keep a journal. Not in a word program or digital file, but in longhand, writing every word out so that every inflection of penmanship, every word chosen, scratched out, revised, is recorded. To set down all my thoughts and the simple events of my day factually and without hiding anything. When writing about oneself, one should show no mercy. I will keep this diary for one year; 12 months. And at the end of that time, it will be destroyed. Shredded, then burnt. The experiment will be over.” Searching narration binds Paul Schrader’s work, the lone ranger facing a crisis of faith, unable to shake off the past. The above dialogue introduces Ethan Hawke’s Reverend Ernst Toller at the beginning of First Reformed (2017). Schrader’s characters share their own folklore and throughout this mix their tales come and go. The lyrics take on the form of character too,...
- 9/9/2021
- MUBI
Since 1976’s “Taxi Driver,” filmmaker Paul Schrader says he has been looking for certain problems that he could place within a metaphor. In that case, he says, “It was a young man’s sense of loneliness, and the yellow taxi car was the metaphor. And I’d put the two together to create sparks and see what happens.”
He does it again in his latest movie, “The Card Counter,” which bows at the Venice Film Festival Sept. 2. This time, he wanted to do the story of someone in purgatory — the casino circuit was the perfect setting. “When was the last time you saw someone laughing there?” he asks. The film follows William (Oscar Issac), a veteran who served at Abu Ghraib. He is also a lonely and tortured soul.
“I discovered when I put the metaphor and a problem next to each other that this was a man who would...
He does it again in his latest movie, “The Card Counter,” which bows at the Venice Film Festival Sept. 2. This time, he wanted to do the story of someone in purgatory — the casino circuit was the perfect setting. “When was the last time you saw someone laughing there?” he asks. The film follows William (Oscar Issac), a veteran who served at Abu Ghraib. He is also a lonely and tortured soul.
“I discovered when I put the metaphor and a problem next to each other that this was a man who would...
- 9/1/2021
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
After a hiatus where New York’s theaters closed during the pandemic, we’re delighted to announce the return of NYC Weekend Watch, our weekly round-up of repertory offerings. While many theaters are still focused on a selection of new releases, a handful of worthwhile repertory screenings are taking place.
Film at Lincoln Center
Jia Zhangke’s Xiao Wu plays through the weekend, while Raúl Ruiz’s The Tango of the Widower screens this Saturday.
Museum of the Moving Image
2001 plays on Sunday.
Film Forum
The huge Humphrey Bogart series continues, still stacked with great films, as do La Piscine and Blue Collar.
IFC Center
World of Wong Kar-wai has been extended, while Miyazaki’s debut Lupin the 3rd begins its run.
Roxy Cinema
The natural pairing of L’Avventura and Body Double run this weekend.
The post NYC Weekend Watch: Raúl Ruiz, The Big Sleep, L'Avventura & More first appeared on The Film Stage.
Film at Lincoln Center
Jia Zhangke’s Xiao Wu plays through the weekend, while Raúl Ruiz’s The Tango of the Widower screens this Saturday.
Museum of the Moving Image
2001 plays on Sunday.
Film Forum
The huge Humphrey Bogart series continues, still stacked with great films, as do La Piscine and Blue Collar.
IFC Center
World of Wong Kar-wai has been extended, while Miyazaki’s debut Lupin the 3rd begins its run.
Roxy Cinema
The natural pairing of L’Avventura and Body Double run this weekend.
The post NYC Weekend Watch: Raúl Ruiz, The Big Sleep, L'Avventura & More first appeared on The Film Stage.
- 7/29/2021
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
After a hiatus as theaters in New York City and beyond closed their doors during the pandemic, we’re delighted to announce the return of NYC Weekend Watch, our weekly round-up of repertory offerings. While many theaters are still focused on a selection of new releases, there’s a handful of worthwhile repertory screenings taking place.
Museum of the Moving Image
Prints of 2001 (on 70mm), Full Metal Jacket, and The Right Stuff have screenings; The Young Girls of Rochefort has a matinee screening on Friday, while Thief plays Sunday to kick off this year’s Caan Film Festival.
Film at Lincoln Center
The restoration of Hou Hsiao-hsien’s masterpiece Flowers of Shanghai continues, while the great Simone Barbes or Virtue shows through the weekend.
Film Forum
Le Cercle Rouge La Piscine, and 8½ continue, while a print of Paul Schrader’s Blue Collar begins a week-long run; Kent Jones will conduct a Q & A on Friday.
Museum of the Moving Image
Prints of 2001 (on 70mm), Full Metal Jacket, and The Right Stuff have screenings; The Young Girls of Rochefort has a matinee screening on Friday, while Thief plays Sunday to kick off this year’s Caan Film Festival.
Film at Lincoln Center
The restoration of Hou Hsiao-hsien’s masterpiece Flowers of Shanghai continues, while the great Simone Barbes or Virtue shows through the weekend.
Film Forum
Le Cercle Rouge La Piscine, and 8½ continue, while a print of Paul Schrader’s Blue Collar begins a week-long run; Kent Jones will conduct a Q & A on Friday.
- 7/8/2021
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Paul Schrader’s post-Taxi Driver rust belt auto worker directorial debut was shot in Kalamazoo, Michigan with three lead actors who hated each other and sometimes resorted to on-set fist fights. Nonetheless, each provides brilliant moments, none more so than Richard Pryor in what may be his greatest performance.
The post Blue Collar appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Blue Collar appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 3/24/2021
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSAbove: David Fincher and Gary Oldman on the set of Mank (2020). David Fincher's Mank leads this year's nominations for the Academy Awards. A complete list of all nominations can be found here.Legendary actor Yaphet Kotto, best known for his charismatic presence in films like Alien, Blue Collar, and Live and Let Die has died.Spike Lee will be leading the 2021 Cannes Film Festival Jury, promising to return after the cancellation of last year's festival: "Book my flight now, my wife and I are coming!" After a months-long hiatus, Film Comment has announced its return, marked by a new weekly letter and two new episodes of the Film Comment podcast. Recommended VIEWINGAbove: Mark Rappaport's The Stendhal Syndrome or My Dinner with Turhan Bey. Today's the last day to watch two new essay films...
- 3/17/2021
- MUBI
Yaphet Kotto, an actor known for his performances in “Alien,” the James Bond film “Live and Let Die” and the television series “Homicide: Life on the Street,” has died, his agent Ryan Goldhar confirmed to Variety. He was 81.
Kotto’s wife, Tessie Sinahon, first posted about Kotto’s death on Facebook Monday night.
“I’m saddened and still in shocked of the passing of my husband Yaphet of 24 years. He died last night around 10:30pm Philippine time,” sge wrote. “…You played a villain on some of your movies but for me you’re a real hero and to a lot of people also. A good man, a good father, a good husband and a decent human being, very rare to find. One of the best actor in Hollywood a Legend. Rest in Peace Honey, I’m gonna miss you everyday, my bestfriend, my rock.”
In 1973’s “Live and Let Die,...
Kotto’s wife, Tessie Sinahon, first posted about Kotto’s death on Facebook Monday night.
“I’m saddened and still in shocked of the passing of my husband Yaphet of 24 years. He died last night around 10:30pm Philippine time,” sge wrote. “…You played a villain on some of your movies but for me you’re a real hero and to a lot of people also. A good man, a good father, a good husband and a decent human being, very rare to find. One of the best actor in Hollywood a Legend. Rest in Peace Honey, I’m gonna miss you everyday, my bestfriend, my rock.”
In 1973’s “Live and Let Die,...
- 3/16/2021
- by Ellise Shafer
- Variety Film + TV
Actress Carrie Coon joins Josh and Joe to discuss the Best of what she’s been watching during the pandemic.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
The Nest (2020)
Gone Girl (2014)
The Philadelphia Story (1940)
Sabrina (1954)
The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957)
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Opening Night (1977)
Husbands (1971)
Too Late Blues (1961)
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Faces (1968)
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)
Gloria (1980)
Mephisto (1981)
The Cremator (1969)
Zama (2017)
Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts (2017)
Wanda (1970)
Blue Collar (1978)
The Lunchbox (2013)
63 Up (2019)
To Sleep With Anger (1990)
Killer of Sheep (1978)
The Glass Shield (1994)
My Brother’s Wedding (1983)
Rita, Sue and Bob Too (1987)
Rio Bravo (1959)
Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979)
Cutter’s Way (1981)
Scenes From A Marriage (1973)
The Magician (1958)
The Silence (1963)
The Magic Flute (1975)
The Last House on the Left (1972)
The Virgin Spring (1963)
Summer with Monika (1953)
The Seventh Seal (1957)
Wings of Desire (1987)
Black Girl (1966)
Fat Girl (2001)
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
Parasite (2019)
Jesus of Montreal (1989)
Other Notable Items...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
The Nest (2020)
Gone Girl (2014)
The Philadelphia Story (1940)
Sabrina (1954)
The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957)
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Opening Night (1977)
Husbands (1971)
Too Late Blues (1961)
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Faces (1968)
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)
Gloria (1980)
Mephisto (1981)
The Cremator (1969)
Zama (2017)
Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts (2017)
Wanda (1970)
Blue Collar (1978)
The Lunchbox (2013)
63 Up (2019)
To Sleep With Anger (1990)
Killer of Sheep (1978)
The Glass Shield (1994)
My Brother’s Wedding (1983)
Rita, Sue and Bob Too (1987)
Rio Bravo (1959)
Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979)
Cutter’s Way (1981)
Scenes From A Marriage (1973)
The Magician (1958)
The Silence (1963)
The Magic Flute (1975)
The Last House on the Left (1972)
The Virgin Spring (1963)
Summer with Monika (1953)
The Seventh Seal (1957)
Wings of Desire (1987)
Black Girl (1966)
Fat Girl (2001)
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
Parasite (2019)
Jesus of Montreal (1989)
Other Notable Items...
- 11/17/2020
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
In our 100th episode, Edgar Wright takes us on a musical journey through some of his favorite cinematic needle drops.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls (1970)
Baby Driver (2017)
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Vanishing Point (1971)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Deja Vu (2006)
Man On Fire (2004)
The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
Alien (1979)
The Mexican (2001)
Gremlins (1984)
American Graffiti (1973)
Star Wars (1977)
Jaws (1975)
The Exorcist (1973)
Halloween (1978)
The Amityville Horror (1979)
Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Deep Red (1976)
Suspiria (1977)
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Monty Python And The Holy Grail (1975)
An American Werewolf In London (1981)
The Long Goodbye (1973)
The Evil Dead (1983)
Face/Off (1997)
The Wizard Of Oz (1939)
Mandy (2018)
The Hallow (2015)
The Nun (2018)
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Christine (1983)
Blue Collar (1978)
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
Mauvais Sang (1986)
Frances Ha (2012)
The Lovers On The Bridge (1991)
Holy Motors (2012)
Annette (Tbd)
Goodfellas (1990)
Mean Streets (1973)
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974)
Raging Bull (1980)
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Mad Max (1979)
Babe (1995)
Happy Feet (2006)
Dr. Strangelove...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls (1970)
Baby Driver (2017)
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Vanishing Point (1971)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Deja Vu (2006)
Man On Fire (2004)
The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
Alien (1979)
The Mexican (2001)
Gremlins (1984)
American Graffiti (1973)
Star Wars (1977)
Jaws (1975)
The Exorcist (1973)
Halloween (1978)
The Amityville Horror (1979)
Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Deep Red (1976)
Suspiria (1977)
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Monty Python And The Holy Grail (1975)
An American Werewolf In London (1981)
The Long Goodbye (1973)
The Evil Dead (1983)
Face/Off (1997)
The Wizard Of Oz (1939)
Mandy (2018)
The Hallow (2015)
The Nun (2018)
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Christine (1983)
Blue Collar (1978)
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
Mauvais Sang (1986)
Frances Ha (2012)
The Lovers On The Bridge (1991)
Holy Motors (2012)
Annette (Tbd)
Goodfellas (1990)
Mean Streets (1973)
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974)
Raging Bull (1980)
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Mad Max (1979)
Babe (1995)
Happy Feet (2006)
Dr. Strangelove...
- 6/30/2020
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Paul Schrader’s early career is a mix of seminal classics and underappreciated gems. While he began as a screenwriter, penning a thorny trifecta of grimly masculine and formidably troubled characters for Sydney Pollack, Martin Scorsese and Brian De Palma, Schrader began his own directorial career with the unfortunately underseen Blue Collar, a 1978 dramatic thriller which starred Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto as a trio of auto workers who decide to rob their own union office only to discover the consequences far outweigh their gain.
A grueling shoot, partially due to the trenchant discord amongst the three leads, which led to a highly publicized incident wherein Pryor threatened Schrader with a gun, eventually leading to Schrader having a reported nervous breakdown.…...
A grueling shoot, partially due to the trenchant discord amongst the three leads, which led to a highly publicized incident wherein Pryor threatened Schrader with a gun, eventually leading to Schrader having a reported nervous breakdown.…...
- 1/9/2020
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Lawrence G. Paull, a production designer and art director whose work on the science fiction classic Blade Runner earned him an Oscar nomination and won a BAFTA Award, died Sunday in La Jolla, Calif. He was 81. No cause of death was given.
Paull had a long history in Hollywood, designing for such films as Robert Zemeckis’ Back to the Future (1985) and Romancing the Stone (1984) and Ron Underwood’s City Slickers (1991).
Blade Runner was a groundbreaking visual effort, winning Paull an Academy Award nomination for production design in 1982. The Oscar went to the creators of Gandhi, but Paull later won a BAFTA together with futurist Syd Mead and VFX inventor Douglas Trumbull. Three years later, Paull again was nominated for a BAFTA for his work on Back to the Future.
Born in Chicago in 1938, Paull graduated from the University of Arizona. He soon discovered that architecture was too conservative for him,...
Paull had a long history in Hollywood, designing for such films as Robert Zemeckis’ Back to the Future (1985) and Romancing the Stone (1984) and Ron Underwood’s City Slickers (1991).
Blade Runner was a groundbreaking visual effort, winning Paull an Academy Award nomination for production design in 1982. The Oscar went to the creators of Gandhi, but Paull later won a BAFTA together with futurist Syd Mead and VFX inventor Douglas Trumbull. Three years later, Paull again was nominated for a BAFTA for his work on Back to the Future.
Born in Chicago in 1938, Paull graduated from the University of Arizona. He soon discovered that architecture was too conservative for him,...
- 11/15/2019
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
RelaxerThere is no clear, direct film comparison to provide for Joel Potrykus’s Relaxer. It can feel like a blender of one director’s proclivities and tastes. That speaks well for Potrykus’s imagination, one who alchemizes and is inspired by polar opposite film sensibilities, as there are times Relaxer looks and goes in directions uncharted by current American independent cinema. In its play-like staging, gross-out humor, and signifiers of the end of the century that tease an alternative reality, Relaxer is a gnarly, minimalist tour de force, Sartre’s No Exit for the Y2K period slacker. Slackerdom is hardly the new exploration in American indies. Richard Linklater built his career on such character types. His slackers, however, carried an air of pretension to occupy themselves, like reading the classics or deep-diving into conspiracy theories. Even with Linklater’s Rohmerian style of centering philosophical conversations, his works had an...
- 4/17/2019
- MUBI
Hilary Winston is staying put at Sony TV.
The comedy writer, whose credits include Marry Me and Bad Teacher, has inked a new two-year overall deal to remain with the indie studio. Sources say the pact is valued in the eight-figure range.
When the new agreement ends, Winston will have been with Sony TV for an impressive 15 years. She has worked on a number of the studio's comedies, including Community and Dr. Ken and counts shows like Happy Endings, My Name Is Earl and Blue Collar TV among her impressive list of credits.
Winston is the latest ...
The comedy writer, whose credits include Marry Me and Bad Teacher, has inked a new two-year overall deal to remain with the indie studio. Sources say the pact is valued in the eight-figure range.
When the new agreement ends, Winston will have been with Sony TV for an impressive 15 years. She has worked on a number of the studio's comedies, including Community and Dr. Ken and counts shows like Happy Endings, My Name Is Earl and Blue Collar TV among her impressive list of credits.
Winston is the latest ...
- 4/12/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
This article about Ethan Hawke first appeared in the TheWrap Magazine’s Oscar Nominations Preview issue.
They knew it on the first day of rehearsal. Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Philip Ettinger and Cedric Kyles had gathered to run through the script of “First Reformed” when they all noticed something about their writer-director, Paul Schrader.
“We read through the script, and Paul was trembling,” said Hawke, who plays a minister struggling with a crisis of faith after his son is killed in Iraq. “He was trembling the way a young artist trembles with anticipation, anxiety, fear, electrical current. He’s 71 and he’s made a ton of movies, and he was trembling.
“And we all looked at each other and went, ‘Wow, this is extremely important to this man.’ And that’s the way it felt on the set. He would forget to say hello, he would forget to say goodbye.
They knew it on the first day of rehearsal. Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Philip Ettinger and Cedric Kyles had gathered to run through the script of “First Reformed” when they all noticed something about their writer-director, Paul Schrader.
“We read through the script, and Paul was trembling,” said Hawke, who plays a minister struggling with a crisis of faith after his son is killed in Iraq. “He was trembling the way a young artist trembles with anticipation, anxiety, fear, electrical current. He’s 71 and he’s made a ton of movies, and he was trembling.
“And we all looked at each other and went, ‘Wow, this is extremely important to this man.’ And that’s the way it felt on the set. He would forget to say hello, he would forget to say goodbye.
- 1/7/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Every Friday, we’re recommending an older movie available to stream or download and worth seeing again through the lens of our current moment. We’re calling the series “Revisiting Hours” — consider this Rolling Stone’s unofficial film club. This week’s edition: Alex Pappademas on Paul Schrader’s 1978 working-class raunchcom/working-man’s crime drama Blue Collar.
Two Detroit auto-plant workers are meeting up for a substance-fueled orgy at the home of a third. Zeke (Richard Pryor) and Jerry (Harvey Keitel) are both married; their host is Smokey (Yaphet Kotto), who isn’t.
Two Detroit auto-plant workers are meeting up for a substance-fueled orgy at the home of a third. Zeke (Richard Pryor) and Jerry (Harvey Keitel) are both married; their host is Smokey (Yaphet Kotto), who isn’t.
- 12/7/2018
- by Alex Pappademas
- Rollingstone.com
“One Dollar” is not a show that has an easy, recent analogue to anything in the film and TV world. For the director behind the CBS All Access drama, that was both an exciting prospect and a bit of an indictment of the kinds of stories that have made it to screens in recent decades.
“When we started referencing other movies that are telling a story like this, they’re all like ‘Norma Rae,’ ‘Blue Collar.’ They’re all ’70s stories. People haven’t been making very many stories in that culture in a while actually,” director Craig Zobel told IndieWire.
What came from the process was a 10-episode season set in the western Pennsylvania town of Braden. Set against the backdrop of a mysterious death at a steel mill, the resulting story winds its way through a factory town kaleidoscope of individuals, all via the path of a single dollar bill.
“When we started referencing other movies that are telling a story like this, they’re all like ‘Norma Rae,’ ‘Blue Collar.’ They’re all ’70s stories. People haven’t been making very many stories in that culture in a while actually,” director Craig Zobel told IndieWire.
What came from the process was a 10-episode season set in the western Pennsylvania town of Braden. Set against the backdrop of a mysterious death at a steel mill, the resulting story winds its way through a factory town kaleidoscope of individuals, all via the path of a single dollar bill.
- 11/1/2018
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
Stars: Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Cedric the Entertainer, Victoria Hill, Philip Ettinger, Michael Gaston, Bill Hoag, Kristin Villanueva | Written and Directed by Paul Schrader
Infamous writer and director Paul Schrader returns to cinema screens after a desolate and toxic decade fighting against studio interference and the ideals of an auteur’s final cut. Spending a large amount of his career being the backbone and spine to many utterly outstanding and defining films in American cinema and masters at the helm, notably writing four Martin Scorsese features: Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Last Temptation of Christ and as of 1999, Bringing Out the Dead, while also the screenplay for NYC alumni Brian De Palma’s cult classic Obsession. First Reformed is his latest effort as an artist devastating his white canvas in a slow, artistic, impact of torturous stoic emotional grievance and psychological abuse that haunts the screen hours after the fact.
Infamous writer and director Paul Schrader returns to cinema screens after a desolate and toxic decade fighting against studio interference and the ideals of an auteur’s final cut. Spending a large amount of his career being the backbone and spine to many utterly outstanding and defining films in American cinema and masters at the helm, notably writing four Martin Scorsese features: Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Last Temptation of Christ and as of 1999, Bringing Out the Dead, while also the screenplay for NYC alumni Brian De Palma’s cult classic Obsession. First Reformed is his latest effort as an artist devastating his white canvas in a slow, artistic, impact of torturous stoic emotional grievance and psychological abuse that haunts the screen hours after the fact.
- 9/27/2018
- by Jak-Luke Sharp
- Nerdly
Close-Up is a feature that spotlights films now playing on Mubi. Paul Schrader's The Canyons (2013) is showing July 14 - August 13, 2018 in the United Kingdom.Dyspeptic and sleazy and often as thick-headed as the selfish, solipsistic assholes around which its languid narrative unfurls, Paul Schrader’s The Canyons presents an unprecedented and unmitigated perspective on Hollywood’s toxic affluence, as judgmental as it is enamored of the iniquitous lives it depicts. It is a mess, certainly, but a fascinating, sometimes brilliant one, and necessary—a bizarre coalescence of influences and talents representative of and germane to the obsessions of its progenitors. Directed by Schrader and written by Bret Easton Ellis, the film has at its core a generational dichotomy, an insider’s sense of debasement filmed with a surveyor's inquisitiveness. (Few are as deft as Ellis at disemboweling the bilious lives of the Hollywood elite.) This tension between artists pervades the film,...
- 7/14/2018
- MUBI
Throughout a long and diverse career Paul Schrader has penned scripts for iconic films such as Taxi Driver and The Last Temptation of Christ alongside directing crime classics Blue Collar and American Gigolo. But in more recent years, Schrader has faced the toughest period in his career. His newest trio of films The Canyons, The Dying of the Light and Dog Eat Dog, all received largely negative reviews and little box office return. First Reformed feels like a culmination of all Schrader’s best work and sees the renowned writer-director return to form in the most spectacular fashion.
Toller (Ethan Hawke), a former military chaplain, is minister of a Dutch Reformed church in upstate New York with an ever-dwindling congregation. The church itself has become more of a tourist attraction than a place of worship, having once given refuge to slaves navigating the Underground Railroad in the 19th century, Toller...
Toller (Ethan Hawke), a former military chaplain, is minister of a Dutch Reformed church in upstate New York with an ever-dwindling congregation. The church itself has become more of a tourist attraction than a place of worship, having once given refuge to slaves navigating the Underground Railroad in the 19th century, Toller...
- 6/4/2018
- by Luke Channell
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Chicago – Paul Schrader can absolutely claim the title of Cinema Icon with his 40 plus years of influence and involvement as writer or director in memorable films such as “Taxi Driver,” “American Gigolo,” “Raging Bull” and “Auto Focus.” His latest written-and-directed-by film is “First Reformed,” featuring Ethan Hawke.
“First Reformed” centers on Reverend Toller (Hawke), whose past includes a role as a military chaplain, and later as a father of a soldier who dies in battle. He ministers at a First Reformed Christian church, but the ministry is carried out mostly through historical tours (the church was a prominent stop for the Underground Railroad of the American Civil War era) and less through church membership. Toller’s life is altered when the wife (Amanda Seyfried) of a troubled environmentalist (Phillip Ettinger) seeks counseling for her husband. The results of that counsel upends all their lives, especially the minister who suddenly cannot face his own difficult circumstances.
“First Reformed” centers on Reverend Toller (Hawke), whose past includes a role as a military chaplain, and later as a father of a soldier who dies in battle. He ministers at a First Reformed Christian church, but the ministry is carried out mostly through historical tours (the church was a prominent stop for the Underground Railroad of the American Civil War era) and less through church membership. Toller’s life is altered when the wife (Amanda Seyfried) of a troubled environmentalist (Phillip Ettinger) seeks counseling for her husband. The results of that counsel upends all their lives, especially the minister who suddenly cannot face his own difficult circumstances.
- 5/21/2018
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Before he wrote and directed movies, Paul Schrader was a film critic, best known for his book “Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer.” Director Robert Bresson’s “Diary of a Country Priest” has always been a key film for Schrader, with Bresson’s ascetic Catholicism mirroring Schrader’s fully-absorbed Calvinism. And now Schrader has made “First Reformed,” a film that even freshman film students will be able to easily connect to this influential earlier movie.
“First Reformed” is about a country priest, and he keeps a diary. And, like the hero of Bresson’s film (and the Georges Bernanos novel on which it is based), he’s got stomach cancer.
There’s more than homage going on here, though. As Schrader’s hero takes a bleaker look at life, and considers committing an extreme act as a desperate attempt to find resonance and morality in the world, he stands...
“First Reformed” is about a country priest, and he keeps a diary. And, like the hero of Bresson’s film (and the Georges Bernanos novel on which it is based), he’s got stomach cancer.
There’s more than homage going on here, though. As Schrader’s hero takes a bleaker look at life, and considers committing an extreme act as a desperate attempt to find resonance and morality in the world, he stands...
- 5/16/2018
- by Alonso Duralde
- The Wrap
Paul Schrader might be one of the great American writer/directors of all time with a slew of classics under his belt like penning Martin Scorsese pictures like “Taxi Driver,” The Last Temptation of Christ.” “Bringing Out the Dead” and helming “Blue Collar,” “Hardcore” and the crime drama “American Gigolo,” but let’s face it, his career has been terribly uneven in the aggregate.
- 3/29/2018
- by Reese Conner
- The Playlist
In September 2014, veteran filmmaker Paul Schrader was livid. He had recently directed “Dying of the Light,” a grim thriller starring Nicolas Cage as CIA agent Evan Lake, who obsesses over tracking terrorists while suffering from a brain disease and losing his mind. The movie’s financiers wanted a more conventional espionage thriller than Schrader’s experimental, subjective narrative, so they took the movie away from Schrader, who sent an email explaining the conundrum to Cage. The actor struck a note or resignation.
“The unfortunate aspect to my having had so many careers in so many genres is that they can make a case to put me in box b instead of box a for money’s sake,” Cage wrote, in an email shared with IndieWire years later.
Schrader could relate. “Dying of the Light” arrived nearly 40 years after Schrader catapulted to fame with his screenplay for “Taxi Driver” and maintained...
“The unfortunate aspect to my having had so many careers in so many genres is that they can make a case to put me in box b instead of box a for money’s sake,” Cage wrote, in an email shared with IndieWire years later.
Schrader could relate. “Dying of the Light” arrived nearly 40 years after Schrader catapulted to fame with his screenplay for “Taxi Driver” and maintained...
- 12/11/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Next to Universal, few studios have had such a big impact on horror than Rko Radio Pictures. Started in 1927, Rko was the first studio founded to make exclusively sound films, a then-brand-new invention that served as a major draw for the studio. Rko’s life was relatively short (it was killed just 30 years after forming), but during their time, they put out a seriously impressive number of classics, including Top Hat, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Informer, and most notably, Citizen Kane.
Of course, Rko didn’t shy away from horror. While their output wasn’t nearly as prolific as, say, Universal’s, it was still quite impressive, boasting some of the most formative and important horror films of old Hollywood. Rko saw the release of a few all-time classics, including I Walked With a Zombie, The Thing From Another World, King Kong, and the topic of today’s Crypt,...
Of course, Rko didn’t shy away from horror. While their output wasn’t nearly as prolific as, say, Universal’s, it was still quite impressive, boasting some of the most formative and important horror films of old Hollywood. Rko saw the release of a few all-time classics, including I Walked With a Zombie, The Thing From Another World, King Kong, and the topic of today’s Crypt,...
- 11/17/2017
- by Perry Ruhland
- DailyDead
Caro Danny,I share your admiration for First Reformed, certainly one of the best films I’ve seen at this year’s Tiff and Paul Schrader’s most concentrated work in ages. From the very first shot—an adagio dolly-in on a severely framed chapel—we’re in familiar territory for the veteran filmmaker, yet in the presence of a fierce new lucidity. “Even a pastor needs pastoring,” someone tells the ecclesiastical protagonist (Ethan Hawke, harrowed like one of Beckett’s aged photographs), but his midnight-of-the-soul juncture is something he must sort through alone. Contemplating the paltry church attendance from the pulpit, grimacing at other people’s earthy jokes, and growing agitated at the planet’s ecological ruination, he struggles with a cancerous body and a nauseous soul. Still, the feeling is not one of hopelessness, due to the priest’s stirrings of resolve and desire and also to Schrader’s stylistic vehemence,...
- 9/16/2017
- MUBI
On paper, Sierra Dawn-Thomas seemed to have Lady Luck in her corner, rooting for her and cheering her on throughout this unpredictable “Game Changers” season. During her first “Survivor” season, she mainly stayed under the radar, staying loyal to the Blue Collar tribe in a quiet strategy that carried her through to the final five. When it […]...
- 5/12/2017
- by Brent Furdyk
- ET Canada
Brexit of Champions: Loach’s Unadorned Blue Collar Melodrama Rages against the Machine
As he has been doing since he became an auteur of note in the late 1960s with docudrama shorts and the features Poor Cow (1967) and Kes (1969), Ken Loach continues to explore the precarious state of existence within the confines of social realism with I, Daniel Blake.
Continue reading...
As he has been doing since he became an auteur of note in the late 1960s with docudrama shorts and the features Poor Cow (1967) and Kes (1969), Ken Loach continues to explore the precarious state of existence within the confines of social realism with I, Daniel Blake.
Continue reading...
- 12/23/2016
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Wil Jones Nov 15, 2016
Paul Schrader chats to us about Dog Eat Dog, working with Nicolas Cage, Richard Pryor, and Taxi Driver...
Paul Schrader’s place in film history is assured, just for the fact that he wrote Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. But to only remember him for those two Martin Scorsese movies would be ignoring a nearly 30 year directing career.
From his brilliant 1978 debut movie Blue Collar - starring Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto as Detroit auto workers planning to rob a union boss - he has never shied away from controversy, both on screen and behind the scenes. All the way from Blue Collar, which had a notoriously racially-charged atmosphere on set, all the way through to 2013’s infamous Lindsay Lohan-starring The Canyons, the stories behind his movies have often been as interesting as the films themselves.
And despite turning 70 this year, he doesn’t...
Paul Schrader chats to us about Dog Eat Dog, working with Nicolas Cage, Richard Pryor, and Taxi Driver...
Paul Schrader’s place in film history is assured, just for the fact that he wrote Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. But to only remember him for those two Martin Scorsese movies would be ignoring a nearly 30 year directing career.
From his brilliant 1978 debut movie Blue Collar - starring Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto as Detroit auto workers planning to rob a union boss - he has never shied away from controversy, both on screen and behind the scenes. All the way from Blue Collar, which had a notoriously racially-charged atmosphere on set, all the way through to 2013’s infamous Lindsay Lohan-starring The Canyons, the stories behind his movies have often been as interesting as the films themselves.
And despite turning 70 this year, he doesn’t...
- 11/7/2016
- Den of Geek
Paul Schrader has the outsized personality of a cigar-chomping studio mogul, the soul of a cinephile, and the Diy filmmaking ethos of a millennial. His career stretches back decades, but he never stops living in the moment.
He wrote “Taxi Driver” 40 years ago, kickstarting a collaborating with Martin Scorsese that continued with “Raging Bull,” “The Last Temptation of Christ,” and “Bringing Out the Dead.” The former film critic also has forged his own path as a director, with seminal portraits of intense masculinity like “American Gigolo,” “Affliction” and the astonishing epic “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters.” He’s never really slowed down.
His latest movie, “Dog Eat Dog,” might not look like the work of a veteran director. A wacky, discursive adaptation of Eddie Bunker’s 1995 novel (scripted by Matthew David Wilder), it takes the elements of a grimy heist movie and turns them inside out.
Read More: ‘Dog Eat Dog...
He wrote “Taxi Driver” 40 years ago, kickstarting a collaborating with Martin Scorsese that continued with “Raging Bull,” “The Last Temptation of Christ,” and “Bringing Out the Dead.” The former film critic also has forged his own path as a director, with seminal portraits of intense masculinity like “American Gigolo,” “Affliction” and the astonishing epic “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters.” He’s never really slowed down.
His latest movie, “Dog Eat Dog,” might not look like the work of a veteran director. A wacky, discursive adaptation of Eddie Bunker’s 1995 novel (scripted by Matthew David Wilder), it takes the elements of a grimy heist movie and turns them inside out.
Read More: ‘Dog Eat Dog...
- 11/5/2016
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
While still best-known for his screenwriting collaborations with Martin Scorsese (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and The Last Temptation of Christ), Paul Schrader has carved out a long, not entirely consistent, endlessly fascinating directorial career, the highlights of which include American Gigolo, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, and Light Sleeper — not to mention his delirious, Bruckheimer-produced Cat People remake. His latest — the “film of a free man,” so to speak — is Dog Eat Dog, whose ostentatious nihilism and political incorrectness may seem like a relic of the post-Pulp Fiction quirky-crime-film boom, but by the time it seemingly homages Seijun Suzuki in its finale, you know you’re in the hands of a pro.
In Toronto for the North American premiere, Schrader sat down with us to discuss the making of the film, the changing industry, and, of course, Nicolas Cage.
The Film Stage: Going into this festival, there were all these pieces,...
In Toronto for the North American premiere, Schrader sat down with us to discuss the making of the film, the changing industry, and, of course, Nicolas Cage.
The Film Stage: Going into this festival, there were all these pieces,...
- 11/2/2016
- by Ethan Vestby
- The Film Stage
Raised in a strict Calvinist household, Paul Schrader didn’t see his first film until he was 17 years old, a late and inauspicious start (the movie in question was The Absent-Minded Professor) to what would become a lifelong obsession. Under the mentorship of Pauline Kael, Schrader became a film critic before shifting his attention to screenwriting. The seminal Taxi Driver proved to be a breakthrough for both Schrader and director Martin Scorsese, and the two would collaborate again on Raging Bull, The Last Temptation Of Christ, and Bringing Out The Dead.
Since making his debut with Blue Collar, Schrader has built up a wide-ranging body of work as a director, which includes everything from personal projects like American Gigolo and Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters to oddball one-offs like the made-for-hbo supernatural gumshoe riff Witch Hunt and the music video for Bob Dylan’s “Tight Connection To My ...
Since making his debut with Blue Collar, Schrader has built up a wide-ranging body of work as a director, which includes everything from personal projects like American Gigolo and Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters to oddball one-offs like the made-for-hbo supernatural gumshoe riff Witch Hunt and the music video for Bob Dylan’s “Tight Connection To My ...
- 11/2/2016
- by Ignatiy Vishnevetsky
- avclub.com
If you are a Paul Schrader fan and happen to be in the New York area this coming weekend then the stars have aligned specifically for you. There is a retrospective program playing at The Metrograph this coming weekend, October 29th through November 1st. The program features Schrader's films Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters, Dog Eat Dog, American Gigalo, Patty Hearst, Blue Collar and Affliction. Schrader will be at the screening of Dog Eat Dog and will participate in a Q&A afterwards. You will find all the information you need about each film and tickets at the event page here. As an influential film critic, screenwriter, and director, Paul Schrader has always gone his own way, whether picking fights with auteurist...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 10/25/2016
- Screen Anarchy
Hollywood is filled with movies honoring working people and labor unions. I like labor unions but not everyone does – and well, labor unions (or union leaders) haven’t always been perfect. On Labor Day, we ran a pro-labor list but to reflect that other viewpoint, this edition of Throwback Thursday focuses on a Labor Behaving Badly list – films about bad or crooked union bosses, strikes gone wrong, workers behaving badly, and even a few anti-union films.
On The Waterfront (1954)
This excellent drama from director Elia Kazan is the gold standard of this kind of film, with a corrupt union boss (Lee J. Cobb) who have become a virtual dictator, treating the union like his own little army to do his bidding. One man, Terry Malone (Marlon Brando), stands up to him and breaks the power of the boss. Bad behavior indeed, and one heck of a good movie.
Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989)
Union corruption,...
On The Waterfront (1954)
This excellent drama from director Elia Kazan is the gold standard of this kind of film, with a corrupt union boss (Lee J. Cobb) who have become a virtual dictator, treating the union like his own little army to do his bidding. One man, Terry Malone (Marlon Brando), stands up to him and breaks the power of the boss. Bad behavior indeed, and one heck of a good movie.
Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989)
Union corruption,...
- 10/20/2016
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
In my seven years of doing this, I can count on one hand the number of times I've inadvertently deleted or otherwise lost audio from an interview -- literally one of the worst things that can happen to a journalist. Unfortunately, I was forced to tick off one of those fingers just last week, when I settled in to transcribe my chat with Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton -- the longtime creative partners who collaborated on a total of four entries in the Saw franchise and two films in their Collector series -- and discovered that our nearly 30-minute chat had been wiped out entirely. Luckily, Dunstan was kind and understanding enough to respond to a set of emailed questions in the aftermath, and while I lament that our much more extensive previous conversation will never see the light of day -- among other things, you better believe I dug...
- 9/16/2016
- by Chris Eggertsen
- Hitfix
Creative partners Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton -- who co-wrote a total of four Saw sequels -- are back once again with The Neighbor, a new thriller that marks Dunstan's third directorial effort after 2009's The Collector and its 2012 sequel The Collection. Set in Mississippi, the film stars Josh Stewart (Criminal Minds) and Alex Essoe (so memorable as the fame-hungry actress in Starry Eyes) as a couple who uncover the horrifying truth about their next door neighbor (stand-up comedian-turned-actor Bill Engvall of Blue Collar Comedy fame). You can watch an ultra-tense scene from the film in the HitFix-exclusive clip above. The Neighbor is out this week on DVD, Digital HD and VOD.
- 9/9/2016
- by Chris Eggertsen
- Hitfix
Jeff Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy are unapologetically Southern, American, and lowest denominator straight-shooters in the comedy world. Not sarcastic, certainly not rapid-fire loquacious nor veiled in pretention or sophistication. No, sir. They are the fried funnel cake of mirth, the corn dogs of comedy and they do not disappoint their core audience in their mini-reunion of sorts. Netflix brings a comedy special long awaited by the fans of the Blue Collar Comedy tour. Without their Blue Collar peers Ron White (on Showtime’s Roadies) and Bill Engvall, Foxworthy and Larry (Dan Whitney) are showing their age as they cover...read more...
- 8/26/2016
- by April Neale
- Monsters and Critics
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