Center Theatre Group presented the North American premiere of Matthew Bourne’s Romeo + Juliet on Wednesday evening, and when it ended, the entire Ahmanson Theatre audience was on its feet offering a standing ovation. After the dance company had taken final bows — with Paris Fitzpatrick’s Romeo and Monique Jonas’ Juliet receiving the love while covered in (spoiler alert!) blood-drenched white ensembles — Melissa McCarthy and Adam Shankman sat back down in their orchestra seats in row F.
The good friends, who arrived together, proceeded to stay seated for another 10 minutes or so to process what they’d seen through tear-filled eyes. “I just love a comedy,” Shankman said to The Hollywood Reporter in the lobby moments later. He was kidding, of course, as the show offers a surprising, dramatic and somewhat violent twist to the classic story of star-crossed lovers.
“It was magnificent,” continued Shankman, who broke out as...
The good friends, who arrived together, proceeded to stay seated for another 10 minutes or so to process what they’d seen through tear-filled eyes. “I just love a comedy,” Shankman said to The Hollywood Reporter in the lobby moments later. He was kidding, of course, as the show offers a surprising, dramatic and somewhat violent twist to the classic story of star-crossed lovers.
“It was magnificent,” continued Shankman, who broke out as...
- 2/2/2024
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
U2 frontman Bono co-wrote a whodunnit film way back in 2000 called "The Million Dollar Hotel," but 23 years later, he has made his return to the world of movies -- and the result is unexpectedly gorgeous.
This past October, Max released a short film called "Peter and the Wolf," a new adaptation of Sergei Prokofiev's symphonic classic which Bono not only wrote, but he also created the artwork on which the film was based. Not bad for a rock star. This story has been adapted for the screen numerous times, but it's never looked as striking as it does here. The broad strokes of the narrative are the same as you might remember, and composer/narrator Gavin Friday's musical riff on the familiar motifs may whisk you back to hearing these tunes in your childhood, but the visuals are what stand out the most here.
Shot using practical miniature...
This past October, Max released a short film called "Peter and the Wolf," a new adaptation of Sergei Prokofiev's symphonic classic which Bono not only wrote, but he also created the artwork on which the film was based. Not bad for a rock star. This story has been adapted for the screen numerous times, but it's never looked as striking as it does here. The broad strokes of the narrative are the same as you might remember, and composer/narrator Gavin Friday's musical riff on the familiar motifs may whisk you back to hearing these tunes in your childhood, but the visuals are what stand out the most here.
Shot using practical miniature...
- 12/22/2023
- by Ben Pearson
- Slash Film
Max’s new animated short, “Peter & the Wolf” (now streaming), turns the beloved folktale and Sergei Prokofiev symphony into a Gothic re-invention about grief and environmental protection. It’s about 12-year-old Peter who lives with his grandfather and explores a vast meadow and forest to find a wolf — with the help of some animals — while fending off hunters.
Based on the 2003 book by Irish musician/composer Gavin Friday (with illustrations by Bono) and accompanying CD with The Friday-Seezer Ensemble, the 30-minute black-and-white short animates the characters in 2D. They contain a rough, hand-of-the-artist aesthetic, bolstered by miniature sets to complete the monochromatic, hybrid look.
It’s produced by Adriana Piasek-Wanski for BMG and Blink Industries and directed by Elliot Dear and Stephen McNally. Coinciding with the short, there’s a new edition of the book along with a new release of the score and a theme song by Friday...
Based on the 2003 book by Irish musician/composer Gavin Friday (with illustrations by Bono) and accompanying CD with The Friday-Seezer Ensemble, the 30-minute black-and-white short animates the characters in 2D. They contain a rough, hand-of-the-artist aesthetic, bolstered by miniature sets to complete the monochromatic, hybrid look.
It’s produced by Adriana Piasek-Wanski for BMG and Blink Industries and directed by Elliot Dear and Stephen McNally. Coinciding with the short, there’s a new edition of the book along with a new release of the score and a theme song by Friday...
- 10/19/2023
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Facing tight budgets and continued uncertainty in the entertainment sector, buyers at this year’s MipJunior are expected to largely stick to tried and true IP, but many still see opportunities for exciting original content.
In addition to presenting the hottest new kids’ shows from around the globe, MipJunior, which runs Oct. 13-15, will examine the latest developments and trends that are redefining the market, such as the state of co-production and financing amid audience fragmentation, consumer use of multi-platform media, the growing role of gaming and the emergence of disruptive technologies like AI.
“Given the current uncertainties in the sector around streamers and broadcasters, we see less appetite for risk and thus more interest in established brands and IP with built-in audiences,” says Bernd Wendeln, COO of Munich-based Your Family Entertainment (Yfe).
A subsidiary of Beverly Hills- based Kartoon Studios, Yfe’s recent hit titles include “Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten,...
In addition to presenting the hottest new kids’ shows from around the globe, MipJunior, which runs Oct. 13-15, will examine the latest developments and trends that are redefining the market, such as the state of co-production and financing amid audience fragmentation, consumer use of multi-platform media, the growing role of gaming and the emergence of disruptive technologies like AI.
“Given the current uncertainties in the sector around streamers and broadcasters, we see less appetite for risk and thus more interest in established brands and IP with built-in audiences,” says Bernd Wendeln, COO of Munich-based Your Family Entertainment (Yfe).
A subsidiary of Beverly Hills- based Kartoon Studios, Yfe’s recent hit titles include “Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten,...
- 10/13/2023
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
"If we look closer, what we find in the darkness might surprise us..." Max has unveiled an official trailer for an animated short film streaming this fall called Peter and The Wolf. Yes, another version of this classic story, this time coming from the mind of U2's Bono. Featuring music and narration by Gavin Friday, and artwork based on original illustrations by Bono. After the success of Apple's The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse, everyone is trying to make more films like this. The short transforms Sergei Prokofiev's classic symphony into a film that touches on themes of growing up, loss, courage, and our relationship with nature. The project was originally developed back in 2003 by Gavin Friday and Bono in support of Irish Hospice Foundation (Ihf), a national charity supporting those facing dying, death and bereavement. 30 years later they've got a final version ready.
- 9/27/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Max and Cartoon Network have greenlit an animated rendition of the beloved classic tale Peter & The Wolf featuring music and narration by Gavin Friday, and artwork based on original illustrations by Bono. The special transforms Sergei Prokofiev’s much-loved symphony into an enchanting and contemporary visual masterpiece that touches on themes of growing up, loss, courage, transformation, and our relationship with nature. The animated short film is scheduled to premiere later this year and is part of an ongoing relationship with Irish Hospice Foundation.
The uniquely creative project is led by musician and composer Gavin Friday and saw him narrate the reimagined classic tale with The Friday Seezer Ensemble performing Prokofiev score, newly arranged by Maurice Seezer and Gavin Friday.
The artwork seen throughout the film is based on original illustrations by Gavin Friday’s longtime friend and collaborator, Bono, from his book of the same name.
Featuring a...
The uniquely creative project is led by musician and composer Gavin Friday and saw him narrate the reimagined classic tale with The Friday Seezer Ensemble performing Prokofiev score, newly arranged by Maurice Seezer and Gavin Friday.
The artwork seen throughout the film is based on original illustrations by Gavin Friday’s longtime friend and collaborator, Bono, from his book of the same name.
Featuring a...
- 4/12/2023
- by TV Shows Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid - TV
Max and Cartoon Network have greenlit an animated take on the classic tale Peter & the Wolf, featuring music and narration by Gavin Friday, and artwork based on original illustrations by Bono. The short film, slated to premiere later this year, transforms Sergei Prokofiev’s symphony into a contemporary piece that touches on themes of growing up, loss, courage, transformation, and our relationship with nature. The project was originally developed in 2003 by Gavin Friday and Bono in support of Irish Hospice Foundation, a national charity supporting those facing dying, death and bereavement.
The greenlight follows a recent pullback in kids/family animated original content by HBO Max. The special was announced during the Max presentation Wednesday where executive stressed a focus on families and kids for the combined HBO Max-Discovery+ platform.
Peter & the Wolf is led by musician and composer Friday who is narrating the reimagined classic tale with...
The greenlight follows a recent pullback in kids/family animated original content by HBO Max. The special was announced during the Max presentation Wednesday where executive stressed a focus on families and kids for the combined HBO Max-Discovery+ platform.
Peter & the Wolf is led by musician and composer Friday who is narrating the reimagined classic tale with...
- 4/12/2023
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
Sergei Prokofiev was one of the preeminent late 19th and early 20th century classical composers. He is highly regarded for his innovative, unique approach to music that blends traditional classical music with modern, contemporary elements.
Prokofiev’s musical genius is evident in his works, from his ballets and operas to his symphonies and concertos. His works are characterized by their use of driving rhythms, dissonance, atonality and a great sense of drama that draws the listener in. His use of experimentation makes his music stand out from the traditional classical repertoire.
In this blog post, we will explore some of Prokofiev’s work, providing insight into the life of this master composer and how he revolutionized modern classical music. We will discuss his works in detail, as well as the musical techniques he used to create such incredible compositions.
Early Life and Education of Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev was born...
Prokofiev’s musical genius is evident in his works, from his ballets and operas to his symphonies and concertos. His works are characterized by their use of driving rhythms, dissonance, atonality and a great sense of drama that draws the listener in. His use of experimentation makes his music stand out from the traditional classical repertoire.
In this blog post, we will explore some of Prokofiev’s work, providing insight into the life of this master composer and how he revolutionized modern classical music. We will discuss his works in detail, as well as the musical techniques he used to create such incredible compositions.
Early Life and Education of Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev was born...
- 3/20/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Prokofiev’s opera War & Peace is presented on 28 January 2023 by the internationally renowned Catalan opera director Calixto Bieito in a joint production between the Hungarian State Opera and the Grand Théâtre de Genève. The cast featuring 28 soloists is led by Andrea Brassói-Jőrös, Szabolcs Brickner and Csaba Szegedi, the Opera Orchestra and Chorus are conducted by Alan Buribayev.
The will to live of the physically and mentally broken Andrei Bolkonsky, wishing to die, is restored by his budding love for the young and cheerful Natasha Rostova in vain as the warm-hearted girl and her family are cruelly and harshly rejected by Andrei’s father, the elderly Prince Bolkonsky. As a result of Andrei’s obedience, Natasha falls into the net of the married Anatole Kuragin, but his elopement with the girl is eventually prevented by Natasha’s cousin, Sonya. The humiliated Natasha attempts suicide in her despair, unsuccessfully. As a result of the events,...
The will to live of the physically and mentally broken Andrei Bolkonsky, wishing to die, is restored by his budding love for the young and cheerful Natasha Rostova in vain as the warm-hearted girl and her family are cruelly and harshly rejected by Andrei’s father, the elderly Prince Bolkonsky. As a result of Andrei’s obedience, Natasha falls into the net of the married Anatole Kuragin, but his elopement with the girl is eventually prevented by Natasha’s cousin, Sonya. The humiliated Natasha attempts suicide in her despair, unsuccessfully. As a result of the events,...
- 1/24/2023
- by Music Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Works & Process at the Guggenheim announces the long await return of Peter & the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev with Isaac Mizrahi. Tickets available now at www.worksandprocess.org.
Peter & the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev with Isaac Mizrahi
Saturday, December 10 & Sunday, December 11, 2022 at 1 pm, 2:30 pm & 4 pm
Tickets 35, Choose What You Pay
Isaac Mizrahi narrates and directs Sergei Prokofiev’s charming children’s classic, accompanied by Ensemble Connect conducted by Michael P. Atkinson, Associate Conductor, The Knights. The cast, wearing costumes by Mizrahi, performs choreography by John Heginbotham, bringing the 30-minute story to life for the young and young at heart.
No matter how tall or small, everyone needs a ticket.
Works & Process At The Guggenheim
1071 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10128
Isaac Mizrahi (libra) has directed numerous theatrical productions and operas including a 2014 production of The Magic Flute at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Mizrahi has worked extensively in the theater both...
Peter & the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev with Isaac Mizrahi
Saturday, December 10 & Sunday, December 11, 2022 at 1 pm, 2:30 pm & 4 pm
Tickets 35, Choose What You Pay
Isaac Mizrahi narrates and directs Sergei Prokofiev’s charming children’s classic, accompanied by Ensemble Connect conducted by Michael P. Atkinson, Associate Conductor, The Knights. The cast, wearing costumes by Mizrahi, performs choreography by John Heginbotham, bringing the 30-minute story to life for the young and young at heart.
No matter how tall or small, everyone needs a ticket.
Works & Process At The Guggenheim
1071 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10128
Isaac Mizrahi (libra) has directed numerous theatrical productions and operas including a 2014 production of The Magic Flute at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Mizrahi has worked extensively in the theater both...
- 10/22/2022
- by Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Music
Hollywood Bowl Unveils Lineup For Summer Season: Viola Davis, Cynthia Erivo, H.E.R. & More Appearing
Updated, 5:38 Pm: On Tuesday, the Hollywood Bowl announced the starry lineup for its first summer season since the pandemic shutdown, which kicks off on July 3 at 67% capacity.
Viola Davis will appear alongside Gustavo Dudamel and the LA Phil on July 15, on the heels of her Best Actress Oscar nomination for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, serving as the narrator of Sergei Prokofiev’s symphonic fairy tale, Peter and the Wolf. She’ll be followed, on July 16 and 17, by five-time Grammy winner Christina Aguilera.
Cynthia Erivo, who recently starred as Aretha Franklin in Nat Geo’s Genius: Aretha, is set to appear on July 30, performing tunes by Franklin, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and others, in addition to selections from her forthcoming debut album. Meanwhile, recent Oscar winner H.E.R. (who penned Judas and the Black Messiah‘s original song “Fight For You”) will perform her first-ever concerts with an...
Viola Davis will appear alongside Gustavo Dudamel and the LA Phil on July 15, on the heels of her Best Actress Oscar nomination for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, serving as the narrator of Sergei Prokofiev’s symphonic fairy tale, Peter and the Wolf. She’ll be followed, on July 16 and 17, by five-time Grammy winner Christina Aguilera.
Cynthia Erivo, who recently starred as Aretha Franklin in Nat Geo’s Genius: Aretha, is set to appear on July 30, performing tunes by Franklin, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and others, in addition to selections from her forthcoming debut album. Meanwhile, recent Oscar winner H.E.R. (who penned Judas and the Black Messiah‘s original song “Fight For You”) will perform her first-ever concerts with an...
- 5/12/2021
- by Erik Pedersen and Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
“Who the hell is Bruce Springsteen?” I thought. Dashing out the stage door of a late-night Broadway show to beat the blundering crowds back in 2019, violin case in hand, I stepped onto the uptown C train for a swift escape out of midtown Manhattan. As I scrolled mindlessly through email, a message caught my attention: My colleague was requesting musicians to record with Bruce Springsteen — later to be disclosed as a live album recording of Western Stars. Not recognizing the all-American legend and turned off by the Jersey shoot location,...
- 3/8/2021
- by Emma Sutton-Williams
- Rollingstone.com
Wes Anderson selected Suzie Templeton’s Oscar-winning Peter & The Wolf to screen in the Animation First Festival in New York
Suzie Templeton’s 2008 Oscar-winning Animated Short Peter & The Wolf is a timeless masterpiece. Selected by Wes Anderson, the first American Special Guest at the French Institute Alliance Française fourth annual Animation First Festival in New York it screens along with three other animated films that inspired him: David Hand’s Bambi, and two shorts, Martin Rosen’s The Plague Dogs (1982) and Garry Trudeau’s A Doonesbury Special (1977), co-directed by Faith Hubley and John Hubley. Templeton’s short Dog won Best New British Animation at the Edinburgh...
Suzie Templeton’s 2008 Oscar-winning Animated Short Peter & The Wolf is a timeless masterpiece. Selected by Wes Anderson, the first American Special Guest at the French Institute Alliance Française fourth annual Animation First Festival in New York it screens along with three other animated films that inspired him: David Hand’s Bambi, and two shorts, Martin Rosen’s The Plague Dogs (1982) and Garry Trudeau’s A Doonesbury Special (1977), co-directed by Faith Hubley and John Hubley. Templeton’s short Dog won Best New British Animation at the Edinburgh...
- 2/12/2021
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Rolling Stone interview series Unknown Legends features long-form conversations between senior writer Andy Greene and veteran musicians who have toured and recorded alongside icons for years, if not decades. All are renowned in the business, but some are less well known to the general public. Here, these artists tell their complete stories, giving an up-close look at life on music’s A list. This edition features guitarist Steve Hunter.
In May 2011, guitarist Steve Hunter walked onstage with Alice Cooper to kick off a seven-month world tour when he was hit...
In May 2011, guitarist Steve Hunter walked onstage with Alice Cooper to kick off a seven-month world tour when he was hit...
- 11/11/2020
- by Andy Greene
- Rollingstone.com
For one night only, Metallica fans will soon be able to witness the combined forces of the world’s most famous heavy metal quartet and the San Francisco Symphony on the big screen.
The concert film “S&M2,” scheduled to hit theaters on October 9, will take viewers inside San Francisco’s Chase Center (now home to the Golden State Warriors) for the high-octane marriage of strings and metal that occurred on September 6. Coinciding with the twentieth anniversary of the original “S&m’” the concert made further history by serving as Chase Center’s inaugural event.
Though the change of venue meant the intimacy captured in Metallica’s first “S&m” — performed and recorded at the comparatively cozy Berkeley Community Theatre in 1999 — might be gone, the absence did not leave a void. Instead, as fans will soon experience, the atmosphere was palpably buzzing with excitement. Traveling from across the world, the crowd...
The concert film “S&M2,” scheduled to hit theaters on October 9, will take viewers inside San Francisco’s Chase Center (now home to the Golden State Warriors) for the high-octane marriage of strings and metal that occurred on September 6. Coinciding with the twentieth anniversary of the original “S&m’” the concert made further history by serving as Chase Center’s inaugural event.
Though the change of venue meant the intimacy captured in Metallica’s first “S&m” — performed and recorded at the comparatively cozy Berkeley Community Theatre in 1999 — might be gone, the absence did not leave a void. Instead, as fans will soon experience, the atmosphere was palpably buzzing with excitement. Traveling from across the world, the crowd...
- 10/2/2019
- by Zack Ruskin
- Variety Film + TV
If you’re gonna step in front of 18,000 diehard Metallica fans and lecture them on the history of classical music, you better have something interesting to say. Luckily for Michael Tilson Thomas, music director for the San Francisco Symphony, the act of winning over the crowd Friday night was easy. Metallica, after all, were on his side.
After explaining how the 20th Century art movement “futurism” was inspired by the musical age, he introduced a piece by Russian composer Alexander Mosolov, Iron Foundry, and welcomed the Bay Area thrashers to join the orchestra.
After explaining how the 20th Century art movement “futurism” was inspired by the musical age, he introduced a piece by Russian composer Alexander Mosolov, Iron Foundry, and welcomed the Bay Area thrashers to join the orchestra.
- 9/7/2019
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
In the series Carbon Copy, we give you trivia on the connecting dots between many countries’ music. This week, we look at how father and son lifted Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev's work for Raampur Ka Lakshman and Talaash
The post How S.D. Burman Interlude And An R.D. Burman Bhajan Both Originated From A Russian Song appeared first on Film Companion.
The post How S.D. Burman Interlude And An R.D. Burman Bhajan Both Originated From A Russian Song appeared first on Film Companion.
- 12/11/2018
- by Karthik Srinivasan
- Film Companion
In Season 3 of the acclaimed “Fargo” FX anthology series, showrunner Noah Hawley continued to play by the Coen brothers’ rules, but got more ambitious and flexible with a present-day crime drama. It’s still about good and evil, only now in cordial Minnesota, with plenty of parables, strong women and weak men. Yet the result was more satisfying in its craftiness and empathy in trying to bring order out of chaos.
And for its efforts, “Fargo” grabbed another 10 craft nominations (cinematography, which it won last year, three for editing, hairstyling, makeup, music score, sound editing, which it also won last year, and mixing). The work seemed more confident and daring, as it focused on various character pairings. It was about mistaken identities, being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and lots of suffering.
As the murders mounted, however, so did the confusion. Sleazy businessman Varga (nominated David Thewlis) prayed on feuding brothers,...
And for its efforts, “Fargo” grabbed another 10 craft nominations (cinematography, which it won last year, three for editing, hairstyling, makeup, music score, sound editing, which it also won last year, and mixing). The work seemed more confident and daring, as it focused on various character pairings. It was about mistaken identities, being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and lots of suffering.
As the murders mounted, however, so did the confusion. Sleazy businessman Varga (nominated David Thewlis) prayed on feuding brothers,...
- 8/3/2017
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Sam Glover May 25, 2017
Stuck for an alternative to the usual viewing for young kids? Then these streaming recommendations may be of use...
The wonderful world wide web (including this very site) has looked in detail at Netflix; the hits, the misses, the hidden gems, the ones to miss and so on. This said, Netflix Originals has another area where it operates. And this is where my three-year-old son comes in.
See related American Gods episode 4 review: Git Gone American Gods episode 3 review: Head Full Of Snow American Gods episode 2 review: The Secret Of Spoons
Thanks to Nick Jnr and Channel 5’s Milkshake, we’re generally okay in our house should children’s television (Aka award-winning parenting) be required. Netflix takes it to another level. There are the well-known shows (Peppa Pig, Paw Patrol etc.), the slightly lesser-known programmes (Pocoyo being my personal favourite) and then there are Netflix’s own productions.
Stuck for an alternative to the usual viewing for young kids? Then these streaming recommendations may be of use...
The wonderful world wide web (including this very site) has looked in detail at Netflix; the hits, the misses, the hidden gems, the ones to miss and so on. This said, Netflix Originals has another area where it operates. And this is where my three-year-old son comes in.
See related American Gods episode 4 review: Git Gone American Gods episode 3 review: Head Full Of Snow American Gods episode 2 review: The Secret Of Spoons
Thanks to Nick Jnr and Channel 5’s Milkshake, we’re generally okay in our house should children’s television (Aka award-winning parenting) be required. Netflix takes it to another level. There are the well-known shows (Peppa Pig, Paw Patrol etc.), the slightly lesser-known programmes (Pocoyo being my personal favourite) and then there are Netflix’s own productions.
- 5/18/2017
- Den of Geek
[Editor’s Note: The review below contains spoilers for “Fargo” Season 3, Episode 4, “The Narrow Escape Problem.”]
Immediate Reaction
The powder keg is lit. Time to explode.
We’ve been waiting for Ex-Chief Gloria Burgle (Carrie Coon) to connect the dots between Step-Father Stussey’s murder and the Stussey brothers for the past four weeks, and now she’s caught up. It took a trip to L.A. and a lot of time pissing off her new boss, but Gloria is ready to make things right; to find justice for the deceased; to protect the innocent from the wicked.
So why are we so terrified?
Part of it can certainly be attributed to the ominous musical and verbal allusions created by this week’s surprise narrator, Billy Bob Thornton. We’ve outlined them below — as well as their connection to Sergei Prokofiev’s “symphonic fairy tale for children,” “Peter and the Wolf” — for anyone with a touchy memory, but imagining the ghost of Lorne Malvo (Thornton’s...
Immediate Reaction
The powder keg is lit. Time to explode.
We’ve been waiting for Ex-Chief Gloria Burgle (Carrie Coon) to connect the dots between Step-Father Stussey’s murder and the Stussey brothers for the past four weeks, and now she’s caught up. It took a trip to L.A. and a lot of time pissing off her new boss, but Gloria is ready to make things right; to find justice for the deceased; to protect the innocent from the wicked.
So why are we so terrified?
Part of it can certainly be attributed to the ominous musical and verbal allusions created by this week’s surprise narrator, Billy Bob Thornton. We’ve outlined them below — as well as their connection to Sergei Prokofiev’s “symphonic fairy tale for children,” “Peter and the Wolf” — for anyone with a touchy memory, but imagining the ghost of Lorne Malvo (Thornton’s...
- 5/11/2017
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Every so often, Fargo drops a reference to a character, location or plot-point from the Coen brothers-based source material – a satchel full of Carl Showalter's loot here, a namedropping of Stan Grossman there. But more than anything, what the TV show's taken from the film are its ideas. Each season has followed the interconnected lives of three main types: a sweet-natured, capable cop; a weaselly businessman who deals with the wrong people; and a darkly powerful nemesis with a well-articulated philosophy of amorality. This is life in and around icy Minnesota,...
- 5/11/2017
- Rollingstone.com
Another one of our favorite shows is back this week, as the whole of Master of None’s Season 2 hits Netflix, and one of the most hopeful new series of the year, Amazon’s I Love Dick, makes its leap from pilot to full first season the same day. There’s also the end of the first season of Riverdale, more Fargo and Better Call Saul, a must-see installment of Saturday Night Live, reason to check out the new sitcom Great News, and why we’re paying attention to the MTV Movie Awards this year.
To help you keep track of the most important programs over the next seven days, here’s our guide to everything worth watching, whether it’s on broadcast, cable, or streaming for May 7–13 (all times Eastern):
SUNDAY2017 MTV Movie and TV Awards (MTV, 8pm)
Yeah, it’s MTV, and yes they still have awards like “Best Kiss,” but...
To help you keep track of the most important programs over the next seven days, here’s our guide to everything worth watching, whether it’s on broadcast, cable, or streaming for May 7–13 (all times Eastern):
SUNDAY2017 MTV Movie and TV Awards (MTV, 8pm)
Yeah, it’s MTV, and yes they still have awards like “Best Kiss,” but...
- 5/7/2017
- by Christopher Campbell
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Greg Lake, the pioneering prog rocker known for his work with King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, passed away Tuesday at the age of 69. Lake’s career spanned a wide chunk of 20th century, and he was active through many major — and important — phases of rock and roll and pop music. Let’s take a look at how his artistry evolved.
1. The Shame, “Don’t Go Away Little Girl” (1967)
Lake picked up the guitar at 12 and played through school, after which he joined The Shame and was featured prominently on their single “Don’t Go Away Little Girl,” which was...
1. The Shame, “Don’t Go Away Little Girl” (1967)
Lake picked up the guitar at 12 and played through school, after which he joined The Shame and was featured prominently on their single “Don’t Go Away Little Girl,” which was...
- 12/8/2016
- by alexheigl
- PEOPLE.com
Greg Lake, the progressive rock icon best known as a member of King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, has died at the age of 69.
Lake – originally from Poole in Dorset, southern England – passed away on Tuesday after “a long and stubborn battle with cancer,” according to his manager Stewart Young.
“Greg Lake will stay in my heart for ever, as he has always been,” Young added in a Facebook post. “His family would be grateful for privacy during this time of their grief.”
Lake first shot to fame as a member of King Crimson in the late ’60s. The bassist...
Lake – originally from Poole in Dorset, southern England – passed away on Tuesday after “a long and stubborn battle with cancer,” according to his manager Stewart Young.
“Greg Lake will stay in my heart for ever, as he has always been,” Young added in a Facebook post. “His family would be grateful for privacy during this time of their grief.”
Lake first shot to fame as a member of King Crimson in the late ’60s. The bassist...
- 12/8/2016
- by Jordan Runtagh
- PEOPLE.com
Every week, IndieWire asks a select handful of film and TV critics two questions and publishes the results on Monday. (The answer to the second, “What is the best film in theaters right now?”, can be found at the end of this post.)
This week’s question:
Last Friday saw the release of Garth Davis’ “Lion,” the musical score for which is the gorgeous result of a collaboration between two giants of the neo-classical movement, Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka. It’s just the latest indication that we’re living in a fascinating, vibrant time for movie music, and December boasts a number of films that will only add more fuel to that fire. With that in mind, we asked our panel of critics to name their favorite film score of the 21st Century.
Tasha Robinson (@TashaRobinson), The Verge
There are some really striking contenders out there, topped by Susumu Hirasawa’s manic,...
This week’s question:
Last Friday saw the release of Garth Davis’ “Lion,” the musical score for which is the gorgeous result of a collaboration between two giants of the neo-classical movement, Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka. It’s just the latest indication that we’re living in a fascinating, vibrant time for movie music, and December boasts a number of films that will only add more fuel to that fire. With that in mind, we asked our panel of critics to name their favorite film score of the 21st Century.
Tasha Robinson (@TashaRobinson), The Verge
There are some really striking contenders out there, topped by Susumu Hirasawa’s manic,...
- 11/28/2016
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
Many consider Dmitri Shostakovich the greatest composer of the 20th century. Born September 25, 1906, he might not have lived past his teens if he hadn't been talented. During the famines of the Revolutionary period in Russia, Alexander Glazunov, director of the Petrograd (later Leningrad) Conservatory, arranged for the poor and malnourished Shostakovich's food ration to be increased. Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1, his graduation exercise for Maximilian Steinberg's composition course at the Conservatory, was completed in 1925 at age 19 and was an immediate success worldwide. He was The Party's poster boy; his Second and Third Symphonies unabashedly subtitled, respectively, "To October". (celebrating the Revolution) and "The First of May". (International Workers' Day).
His highly emotional harmonic language is simultaneously tough yet communicative, but his expansion of Mahlerian symphonic structure, dissonances, sardonic irony, and dark moods eventually clashed with the conservative edicts of Communist Party officials. In 1936 he was viciously denounced by Pravda...
His highly emotional harmonic language is simultaneously tough yet communicative, but his expansion of Mahlerian symphonic structure, dissonances, sardonic irony, and dark moods eventually clashed with the conservative edicts of Communist Party officials. In 1936 he was viciously denounced by Pravda...
- 9/26/2016
- by SteveHoltje
- www.culturecatch.com
As I struggled, as every year, to get my end-of-year lists finished in a reasonably timely fashion, it occurred to me that I could publish half of the classical list earlier if I could find a reasonable way to split it into categories. Thus the non-contemporary/contemporary divide this year. The newer composers' work requires more listening; that's the only reason the older repertoire comes first.
1. Ivan Moravec Twelfth Night Recital Prague 1987 (Supraphon) Supposedly this release of a previously unissued concert recording was approved by the pianist shortly before his passing in July 2015. Certainly it's hard to hear anything of significance that he wouldn't have liked about it, because it is a magnificent testament to everything that made him one of the greatest pianists who ever lived: one of the most beautiful piano tones ever heard, allied to liquid phrasing that gave him one of the greatest legato touches ever recorded.
1. Ivan Moravec Twelfth Night Recital Prague 1987 (Supraphon) Supposedly this release of a previously unissued concert recording was approved by the pianist shortly before his passing in July 2015. Certainly it's hard to hear anything of significance that he wouldn't have liked about it, because it is a magnificent testament to everything that made him one of the greatest pianists who ever lived: one of the most beautiful piano tones ever heard, allied to liquid phrasing that gave him one of the greatest legato touches ever recorded.
- 1/6/2016
- by SteveHoltje
- www.culturecatch.com
It's been half a decade since we last heard from Uruguayan director Federico Veiroj. In 2010 he followed his feature debut Acné with the small, elegiac and lovely A Useful Life, about an aging cinematheque programmer in Montevideo. If you, like myself, have often wondered when we’d get another cinematic novella from this observant, sensitive filmmaker, the answer is now: the director has returned with The Apostate, another modest and deceptively tidy character study of an out-of-sorts, out-of-time man. Gonzalo Tamayo, played with a sleepy-eyed, disheveled and lax handsomeness by non-professional Alvaro Ogalla, decides to apostatize from the Spanish Catholic church. After being raised (involuntarily, Gonzalo says) Catholic by his parents, failing at seemingly every stage of his education, pining for his beautiful cousin who’s already in a relationship, and running vaguely illicit-seeming errands for his never-seen father, Gonzalo seems sick of it all—and his act of rebellion...
- 10/24/2015
- by Daniel Kasman
- MUBI
Dear Fernando,Minotaur is the kind of film we’re able to see at such a big festival as Toronto only because adventurous programming strands like Wavelengths have the patience to present their unique tempo within the hectic atmosphere of the surrounding festivities. And its tempo is indeed unique, evoked through the opiated, satin haze of its digital photography. Two young men and a young woman, bohemian occupants of a Mexico City apartment, lounge, inactive and increasingly beset by a crushing sleepiness. Long takes in widescreen fragment their flat, making its space mysterious and jagged. The few other people who interact with this somnolent trio are all helpers, servants or delivery men, the dialog almost all functional, except for excerpts of a book read out loud periodically about a misremembered or perhaps never-happened meeting. You feel echoes of Last Year in Marienbad and also perhaps Marguerite Duras’s India Song,...
- 9/18/2015
- by Daniel Kasman
- MUBI
What if "Gotham" was not the TV series that so many of us thought we needed back in the fall, but what if Bruno Heller's twisty comic book drama has become the TV series we deserve now? Look, if you're going to get hung up on Batman mythology, I'm powerless to tell you that "Gotham" became or ever will become a show that will make you happy. It's a prequel that almost cannot possibly ever line up with the version of the Caped Crusader that we know from either DC Comics, from the Christopher Nolan films or the early Tim Burton films. And that's frustrating. I can't tell you that it isn't. The Penguin is rising! The Riddler is cracking! Somebody who may or may not be The Joker is becoming dangerously unhinged! Even Harvey Dent looks to be a couple bum coin flips away from dementia. And Bruce...
- 5/5/2015
- by Daniel Fienberg
- Hitfix
Ballet adds a surreal, creepy quality to many films and tv shows. Here are 12 of the most unsettling...
Warning - This article contains spoilers for The Cabin In The Woods, The Twilight Zone, Black Swan and The Red Shoes.
Ballet is not natural. Dancers perform exhausting routines with legs and feet turned out to bizarre angles, arms held just to the point where they really start to hurt (that’s when you know you’re doing it right), backs bending to angles of 90° and more, limbs held stock still while balancing on their toes, in bodies mathematically maintained in a state that contains absolutely not an ounce of fat but can sustain two or three hours of jumping and running around.
And then the female dancers add to all this by putting their entire weight on the points of their toes, feet bruising and bleeding, nails cracking, and the male...
Warning - This article contains spoilers for The Cabin In The Woods, The Twilight Zone, Black Swan and The Red Shoes.
Ballet is not natural. Dancers perform exhausting routines with legs and feet turned out to bizarre angles, arms held just to the point where they really start to hurt (that’s when you know you’re doing it right), backs bending to angles of 90° and more, limbs held stock still while balancing on their toes, in bodies mathematically maintained in a state that contains absolutely not an ounce of fat but can sustain two or three hours of jumping and running around.
And then the female dancers add to all this by putting their entire weight on the points of their toes, feet bruising and bleeding, nails cracking, and the male...
- 2/23/2015
- by simonbrew
- Den of Geek
Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2014 discoveries”…
Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum: Plants Can Hear. Atmos. Stumbling Stones in Potsdam.
Lavallee: We read Nikole Beckwith’s Stockholm, Pennsylvania as psychological warfare —— what was the approach in audibly depicting Leia’s longing?
Kroll-Rosenbaum: Stockholm is a nuanced portrait of an incredibly complex situation. The music is full of possibility and openness. It comes in waves and breathes. It was important that the music leave room for interpretation, so that the audience could experience discovery along with Leia. Nikole paints in very clear and purposeful strokes, and the music is designed to be transparent in its motivation.
Kroll-Rosenbaum: There is a range of different kinds of music in the score. There is music that is about the outside, literally and figuratively. I built a harmonic structure out of two chords that sits somewhere between resolution and forward motion. I thought about ancient music,...
Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum: Plants Can Hear. Atmos. Stumbling Stones in Potsdam.
Lavallee: We read Nikole Beckwith’s Stockholm, Pennsylvania as psychological warfare —— what was the approach in audibly depicting Leia’s longing?
Kroll-Rosenbaum: Stockholm is a nuanced portrait of an incredibly complex situation. The music is full of possibility and openness. It comes in waves and breathes. It was important that the music leave room for interpretation, so that the audience could experience discovery along with Leia. Nikole paints in very clear and purposeful strokes, and the music is designed to be transparent in its motivation.
Kroll-Rosenbaum: There is a range of different kinds of music in the score. There is music that is about the outside, literally and figuratively. I built a harmonic structure out of two chords that sits somewhere between resolution and forward motion. I thought about ancient music,...
- 2/5/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
It's Christmas!! To celebrate, we've been counting down the days by posting five fun facts about our favorite festive flicks.And the season just wouldn't be complete without an all-day marathon of "A Christmas Story."1. While the movie takes place in Indiana, the real house from the film is located in Cleveland, Ohio -- 3159 W. 11th Street, to be exact. Check it out on Google Maps -- if you zoom in, you can even see the leg lamp in the window!2. When Flick (Scott Schwartz) is triple-dog-dared to lick the icy flagpole, a vacuum sucked his tongue in place to make it look like he was frozen to the pole.3. Ralphie's (Peter Billingsley) mumbling and grumbling while fighting with Scut Farkus (Zack Ward) might sound like ad libbed nonsense, but the rant was scripted word for word. 4. The song that plays when we're first introduced to Farkus is "Peter and the Wolf" by Sergei Prokofiev.
- 12/25/2014
- by tooFab Staff
- TooFab
From a range of eras and genres, here's Jenny and Alex's light-hearted pick of 50 great opening title sequences from the movies...
Odd List
We don’t go to the cinema much, because we hate people. We also don’t go because there’s always the risk of accidentally going to see the wrong film. It's not helped by the fact that there's no way of telling until it’s too late, because there are no bloody opening credits on lots of modern films. And by the time you do realise, you’ve eaten all your popcorn and you can’t be bothered to move.
The movies on this list won’t give you that problem. These opening credits are perfect scene setters for the movies that follow, so you won’t have to worry about awkward popcorn wasting moments. It's not a top 50, rather a selection of 50 interesting credits sequences,...
Odd List
We don’t go to the cinema much, because we hate people. We also don’t go because there’s always the risk of accidentally going to see the wrong film. It's not helped by the fact that there's no way of telling until it’s too late, because there are no bloody opening credits on lots of modern films. And by the time you do realise, you’ve eaten all your popcorn and you can’t be bothered to move.
The movies on this list won’t give you that problem. These opening credits are perfect scene setters for the movies that follow, so you won’t have to worry about awkward popcorn wasting moments. It's not a top 50, rather a selection of 50 interesting credits sequences,...
- 6/25/2014
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
The revered path to Carnegie Hall normally doesn't veer through homelessness. But when Florida college student James Matthews, 24, takes the stage of the famed venue's Weill Recital Hall later this month, he will look back on struggles - specifically the recent year and a half when he had no roof of his own - through which he says his love for the piano kept him going. "It's always been my escape," he told the Pensacola News-Journal. "I decided if I never gave up, it would get me through life, and it has. I don't know where I'd be if it wasn't for music.
- 4/4/2014
- by Jeff Truesdell
- PEOPLE.com
Opening night’s screening was the debut film of Mexican filmmaker ---- The Amazing Catfish (Los Insolitos Peces Gato) the debut feature of Claudia Sainte Luce. It is close to autobiographical as it tells of 22-year-old Claudia living alone in a big city in Mexico. One night, she ends up in the emergency room with signs of appendicitis. There she meets Martha, lying on the bed next to her. 46-year-old Martha has 4 children and endless lust for life, in spite of her illness. Moved by the lonely young woman, Martha invites Claudia to come and live with her when she leaves the hospital. At first, Claudia is bewildered by the somewhat chaotic organization of the household, but soon she finds her place in the tribe. And while Martha is getting weaker, Claudia's bond with each member of the family gets stronger day by day. The director’s honest vulnerability touched me as much as the movie.
During the Toronto Film Festival, Claudia told the interviewer at Twitch:
“The character Claudia has the obsession of cutting out funny newspaper notes. Before the filming began, I read a note about the appearance of some catfishes in an American city. The catfishes always live in family so I thought it was curious. Having cut the titular ("los insólitos peces gato"), I pasted it on the fish bowl. In the movie, Claudia begins sleeping in Armando's bedroom and pastes that sticker.
She (the mother) had eight years to think what she wanted to say to their children. For eight years her death was imminent. She had a lot of time of think what to say but maybe not what to do.
I think every member of the family is amazing and their force is staying together. That's why I called the film The Amazing Catfish.”
Claudia said more to me about the autobiographical part (the rest is fiction):
“I made this movie to thank this family that gave me a sense of belonging. The more I helped Martha in her dying process and living the additional time Death was giving her, I understood that you have to live with the Death by your side every day to value your own life. They saw me; when someone sees you, you become alive, you exist and that's what they gave me, existence.’
This film which premiered in Locarno where it won the Young Jury Award went on to Toronto 2013 where it won the Fipresci Critics’ Discovery Award. The next month it played at the Morelia Film Festival. At the Baja Film Fest it won the Mexico Primero Award. It also played at the Rotterdam and the Belgrade Film Festivals. This Mexican-French coproduction was sold by France’s premiere international sales agent Pyramide. Knowing the head of Pyramide International’s Eric Lagesse, the filmmaker can feel secure that she is in good hands and that the film will play to a broad and international range of audiences as it deals with a dysfunctional family, having both funny and sensitive parts.
It has already sold to Strand Releasing for U.S , Austria went to Polyfilm, Belgium – Imagine, France – Pyramide, Germany – Arsenal, Japan - Bitters End, Latin America - Palmera International, Mexico – Canibal, Netherlands - Imagine , Switzerland – Cineworx, Taiwan - Swallow Wings Films.
The next day we saw Eco de la montaña (Echo form the Mountain), Nicolas Echevarria’s documentary about an indigenous artist of the Wixarika people in Jalisco whose traditional mural, made of millions of small beads, was installed (incorrectly) in the Paris metro station Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre in 1977 at a grand ceremony by the French and Mexican Presidents who failed to invite him. Since then Santos de la Torre has lived forgotten and isolated in his village in the Sierra Madre Mountains. As the film follows him and his family on their yearly peyote ritual and pilgrimage to Wirikuta and other Wixarika sacred places and as he creates a fourth mural is unfolded in such a modern way that I think it should open discussions of how the artistic taps into the higher sources of creativity among the selected guests of this festival. The producer Michael Fitzgerald was here with his wife, in from Taos where they live. Michael Fitzgerald produced such films as Malcolm Loewry’s Under the Volcano and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, another film Arriagas wrote, Bruce Beresford’s Mr. Johnson. Such illustrious company!
Gary Meyer and I sat together during the outdoor screening in the plaza. Of Horses and Men (Isa: Filmsharks), a wonderfully droll film from first time filmmaker and Iceland’s submission for this year’s Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film was just covered in my blog on Indiewire. It was a perfect film for showing here with its magnificent landscapes where horses are part of the villagers’ lives as they are in many part of Mexican culture. For a review and an interview with its director, click here for the interview and here for the review on SydneysBuzz.
Seeing Iceland reminded me of Jim Stark, as did the Zellner Brothers' Kumiko, Treasure Hunter (Isa: Submarine), the sleeper of Sundance. This film of a young Japanese woman’s trip to Fargo, Minnesota in search of the money Steve Buscemi buried in the movie Fargo, with its large snowy landscapes and cold snow which could not be more the opposite of this lush tropical paradise reminded me of Jim Stark’s Cold Fever which was also about a Japanese fish-out-of-water in the freezing Icelandic climates, though David Zellner was not aware of that film until after his own was finished. When we went upstairs for cocktails, how surprised I was to see that Jim Stark himself is also there, as Marina’s guest, giving master classes to the young Mexican filmmakers. He is working on at least two features now with Mexican directors and has bought a house in Mexico City just as he did in Iceland when he was active there.
And yet another coincidence: the star of Kumiko is Rinko Kikuchi who played an important role in Arriaga’s Babel. And, just to throw in one more coincidence, Babel's director, Alejandro González Iñárritu will be one of the special guests at the next festival I am about to go to, Cartagena Colombia's Ficci (Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias).
Continuing the tradition of ArteCareyes showcasing emerging talent, eight young filmmakers showed their shorts after which we all had lunch and discussed their films and their plans with them. The filmmakers will be ones you will hear more about in the near future, so here are their names:
. Manuel Camacho Bustillo (Blackout, Chapter 4: Calling Neverland), a film Gary Meyer particularly liked
. Sofia Carrillo (The Sad House), a film Jarrett and I loved.
. Erik de Luna Fors (Home Appliance). Everyone liked this darkly humorous animation
. Amaury Vergara Z (Tide). We called him over to discuss this dreamy, mysterious story of a young man of the land.
. Indira Velasco (Music for the ultimate dream). This film was a marvelous study of music and life
. Lubianca Duran (Supermodern times). Wonderful tug-of-war between Kodak and Digital. Very funny old-fashioned silent take on modern times.
. Ricardo Torres Castro (Dry Land). Animation with a message. Well done 7 minutes.
. Dalia Huerta Cano (The End of the Existence of Things). How a boy fasses the loss of a great sadness. Really libertating.
I was sorry that I had to miss the closing night film ¡Que viva Mexico! Partially filmed 1931 by the master Sergei Eisenstein shortly after the Mexican Revolution but never edited and show by the great Dp Gabriel Figueroa (whose show at Los Angeles County Museum of Art was extraordinary). The 1931 uncredited version editor was Kenneth Anger. Also uncredited technical advisors for foreign locations are the great muralists Orozco, Rivera and Siquieros (who coincidently has a mural newly restored on Los Angeles' Olvera Street). Completed finally in the 1970s based on Eisenstein’s writings and his own memories, three sements were shown with live accompaniment commissioned by ArteCareyes based on a guiding score Eisenstein worked on with Sergei Prokofiev by the Ensemble Cine Mudo.
On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this event as a 12. It is an event matched only by the million dollar trip to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Petershof and the set of Stalingrad which 25 U.S. Distributors, Anne Thompson, Peter and I were invited to by Rosskino in 2012 when our Italianate Eleonora Granata was the Russian Film Commissioner in L.A.
This work in progress shows a promise reaching beyond this event. The practical idealism and magic of the location and the timing of such an Arts & Film event, together with the other elements in this magnificent venue are thrilling. I will always be grateful to Steven, John and Filippo for including me.
During the Toronto Film Festival, Claudia told the interviewer at Twitch:
“The character Claudia has the obsession of cutting out funny newspaper notes. Before the filming began, I read a note about the appearance of some catfishes in an American city. The catfishes always live in family so I thought it was curious. Having cut the titular ("los insólitos peces gato"), I pasted it on the fish bowl. In the movie, Claudia begins sleeping in Armando's bedroom and pastes that sticker.
She (the mother) had eight years to think what she wanted to say to their children. For eight years her death was imminent. She had a lot of time of think what to say but maybe not what to do.
I think every member of the family is amazing and their force is staying together. That's why I called the film The Amazing Catfish.”
Claudia said more to me about the autobiographical part (the rest is fiction):
“I made this movie to thank this family that gave me a sense of belonging. The more I helped Martha in her dying process and living the additional time Death was giving her, I understood that you have to live with the Death by your side every day to value your own life. They saw me; when someone sees you, you become alive, you exist and that's what they gave me, existence.’
This film which premiered in Locarno where it won the Young Jury Award went on to Toronto 2013 where it won the Fipresci Critics’ Discovery Award. The next month it played at the Morelia Film Festival. At the Baja Film Fest it won the Mexico Primero Award. It also played at the Rotterdam and the Belgrade Film Festivals. This Mexican-French coproduction was sold by France’s premiere international sales agent Pyramide. Knowing the head of Pyramide International’s Eric Lagesse, the filmmaker can feel secure that she is in good hands and that the film will play to a broad and international range of audiences as it deals with a dysfunctional family, having both funny and sensitive parts.
It has already sold to Strand Releasing for U.S , Austria went to Polyfilm, Belgium – Imagine, France – Pyramide, Germany – Arsenal, Japan - Bitters End, Latin America - Palmera International, Mexico – Canibal, Netherlands - Imagine , Switzerland – Cineworx, Taiwan - Swallow Wings Films.
The next day we saw Eco de la montaña (Echo form the Mountain), Nicolas Echevarria’s documentary about an indigenous artist of the Wixarika people in Jalisco whose traditional mural, made of millions of small beads, was installed (incorrectly) in the Paris metro station Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre in 1977 at a grand ceremony by the French and Mexican Presidents who failed to invite him. Since then Santos de la Torre has lived forgotten and isolated in his village in the Sierra Madre Mountains. As the film follows him and his family on their yearly peyote ritual and pilgrimage to Wirikuta and other Wixarika sacred places and as he creates a fourth mural is unfolded in such a modern way that I think it should open discussions of how the artistic taps into the higher sources of creativity among the selected guests of this festival. The producer Michael Fitzgerald was here with his wife, in from Taos where they live. Michael Fitzgerald produced such films as Malcolm Loewry’s Under the Volcano and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, another film Arriagas wrote, Bruce Beresford’s Mr. Johnson. Such illustrious company!
Gary Meyer and I sat together during the outdoor screening in the plaza. Of Horses and Men (Isa: Filmsharks), a wonderfully droll film from first time filmmaker and Iceland’s submission for this year’s Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film was just covered in my blog on Indiewire. It was a perfect film for showing here with its magnificent landscapes where horses are part of the villagers’ lives as they are in many part of Mexican culture. For a review and an interview with its director, click here for the interview and here for the review on SydneysBuzz.
Seeing Iceland reminded me of Jim Stark, as did the Zellner Brothers' Kumiko, Treasure Hunter (Isa: Submarine), the sleeper of Sundance. This film of a young Japanese woman’s trip to Fargo, Minnesota in search of the money Steve Buscemi buried in the movie Fargo, with its large snowy landscapes and cold snow which could not be more the opposite of this lush tropical paradise reminded me of Jim Stark’s Cold Fever which was also about a Japanese fish-out-of-water in the freezing Icelandic climates, though David Zellner was not aware of that film until after his own was finished. When we went upstairs for cocktails, how surprised I was to see that Jim Stark himself is also there, as Marina’s guest, giving master classes to the young Mexican filmmakers. He is working on at least two features now with Mexican directors and has bought a house in Mexico City just as he did in Iceland when he was active there.
And yet another coincidence: the star of Kumiko is Rinko Kikuchi who played an important role in Arriaga’s Babel. And, just to throw in one more coincidence, Babel's director, Alejandro González Iñárritu will be one of the special guests at the next festival I am about to go to, Cartagena Colombia's Ficci (Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias).
Continuing the tradition of ArteCareyes showcasing emerging talent, eight young filmmakers showed their shorts after which we all had lunch and discussed their films and their plans with them. The filmmakers will be ones you will hear more about in the near future, so here are their names:
. Manuel Camacho Bustillo (Blackout, Chapter 4: Calling Neverland), a film Gary Meyer particularly liked
. Sofia Carrillo (The Sad House), a film Jarrett and I loved.
. Erik de Luna Fors (Home Appliance). Everyone liked this darkly humorous animation
. Amaury Vergara Z (Tide). We called him over to discuss this dreamy, mysterious story of a young man of the land.
. Indira Velasco (Music for the ultimate dream). This film was a marvelous study of music and life
. Lubianca Duran (Supermodern times). Wonderful tug-of-war between Kodak and Digital. Very funny old-fashioned silent take on modern times.
. Ricardo Torres Castro (Dry Land). Animation with a message. Well done 7 minutes.
. Dalia Huerta Cano (The End of the Existence of Things). How a boy fasses the loss of a great sadness. Really libertating.
I was sorry that I had to miss the closing night film ¡Que viva Mexico! Partially filmed 1931 by the master Sergei Eisenstein shortly after the Mexican Revolution but never edited and show by the great Dp Gabriel Figueroa (whose show at Los Angeles County Museum of Art was extraordinary). The 1931 uncredited version editor was Kenneth Anger. Also uncredited technical advisors for foreign locations are the great muralists Orozco, Rivera and Siquieros (who coincidently has a mural newly restored on Los Angeles' Olvera Street). Completed finally in the 1970s based on Eisenstein’s writings and his own memories, three sements were shown with live accompaniment commissioned by ArteCareyes based on a guiding score Eisenstein worked on with Sergei Prokofiev by the Ensemble Cine Mudo.
On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this event as a 12. It is an event matched only by the million dollar trip to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Petershof and the set of Stalingrad which 25 U.S. Distributors, Anne Thompson, Peter and I were invited to by Rosskino in 2012 when our Italianate Eleonora Granata was the Russian Film Commissioner in L.A.
This work in progress shows a promise reaching beyond this event. The practical idealism and magic of the location and the timing of such an Arts & Film event, together with the other elements in this magnificent venue are thrilling. I will always be grateful to Steven, John and Filippo for including me.
- 3/14/2014
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Derek Jarman is remembered as an innovative film-maker and artist but his stage work is key to his career – even his own residence was a performance
Derek Jarman wandered into theatre, as he did into much of his creative life. The stage design department at the Slade School of Art in 1963 was casually structured, and, for the era, an uncloseted zone of gaiety. He'd previously slapped a distemper brush on scenes for Lorca's Blood Wedding and other plays put on by fellow students at King's College, London. He had not seen much theatre, as movies – even concerts – came cheaper; the first production that really excited him was Peter Brook's short and gory staging of Antonin Artaud's Spurt of Blood in the RSC's 1964 Theatre of Cruelty season.
Jarman put a lot of effort into his design course, outlining a surreal play, The Billboard Promised Land (a mashup of The Wizard of Oz...
Derek Jarman wandered into theatre, as he did into much of his creative life. The stage design department at the Slade School of Art in 1963 was casually structured, and, for the era, an uncloseted zone of gaiety. He'd previously slapped a distemper brush on scenes for Lorca's Blood Wedding and other plays put on by fellow students at King's College, London. He had not seen much theatre, as movies – even concerts – came cheaper; the first production that really excited him was Peter Brook's short and gory staging of Antonin Artaud's Spurt of Blood in the RSC's 1964 Theatre of Cruelty season.
Jarman put a lot of effort into his design course, outlining a surreal play, The Billboard Promised Land (a mashup of The Wizard of Oz...
- 3/9/2014
- by Veronica Horwell
- The Guardian - Film News
Happy 70th birthday to the legendary singer/songwriter/painter/soul of Saskatoon/Parisian free man Joni Mitchell. Props to the woman for years of candor about the music business and her own restless musical evolution. When both Charles Mingus and Prince care to toast your work, you might be awesome.
In the age of The Kids Are All Right, emotional Joni Mitchell covers may seem a tad trite, but let me remind you: The woman’s songs are unbelievable, and it’s often wonderful to hear him them sung and reinterpreted by other artists. It can also be a jarring experience as you’ll hear with a couple of entries on this list, but let’s explore: 10 Joni Mitchell covers worth hearing.
1. Diana Krall, “A Case of You”
Well, that’s awesome. Mrs. Elvis Costello is still on her feet (or sitting on that piano bench?) after a remarkable version...
In the age of The Kids Are All Right, emotional Joni Mitchell covers may seem a tad trite, but let me remind you: The woman’s songs are unbelievable, and it’s often wonderful to hear him them sung and reinterpreted by other artists. It can also be a jarring experience as you’ll hear with a couple of entries on this list, but let’s explore: 10 Joni Mitchell covers worth hearing.
1. Diana Krall, “A Case of You”
Well, that’s awesome. Mrs. Elvis Costello is still on her feet (or sitting on that piano bench?) after a remarkable version...
- 11/7/2013
- by Louis Virtel
- The Backlot
Feature Ivan Radford 30 Sep 2013 - 07:03
Ivan gives the soundtrack from Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine a listen, and provides a rundown of the filmmaker's 10 best music moments...
You can tell immediately when you're watching a Woody Allen movie. Not just from the opening credits (Windsor Light Condensed on black title cards) but from the music. Woody loves the stuff - he'd rather play clarinet with his band than go to the Oscars. He loves it so much that he joins the list of directors such as Quentin Tarantino and Martin Scorsese who are known for using popular, pre-existing music in their soundtracks. The man has directed an astonishing 43 films in his career. Just seven of those have original scores.
Allen started his career with none other than Marvin Hamlisch, who would go on to score The Spy Who Loved Me. Working on Bananas after Take The Money And Run,...
Ivan gives the soundtrack from Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine a listen, and provides a rundown of the filmmaker's 10 best music moments...
You can tell immediately when you're watching a Woody Allen movie. Not just from the opening credits (Windsor Light Condensed on black title cards) but from the music. Woody loves the stuff - he'd rather play clarinet with his band than go to the Oscars. He loves it so much that he joins the list of directors such as Quentin Tarantino and Martin Scorsese who are known for using popular, pre-existing music in their soundtracks. The man has directed an astonishing 43 films in his career. Just seven of those have original scores.
Allen started his career with none other than Marvin Hamlisch, who would go on to score The Spy Who Loved Me. Working on Bananas after Take The Money And Run,...
- 9/27/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
What chilled most about murder mystery Mayday was the claim of an ancestral right to wear green man makeup
You'd naturally think Aidan Gillen killed Hattie, the 14-year-old May Queen, in the woods above the village. Ever since he played transgressive super-hottie Stuart in Queer as Folk, he's worked sneering lips and leering eyes as a series of reptiles, chancers and scumbags – dodgy mayor in The Wire, slimy counsellor in Game of Thrones, venal banker in credit-crunch drama Freefall. Why not add murderer to the list?
In Mayday (BBC1), he's similarly sinister: a bad dad who thumps his son for nothing and buries his grief over his dead wife in video game marathons. Plus he has a mysterious bag locked in a cupboard. Could it be a body-bag full of May Queen? Possibly. Harold Pinter called Gillen "dangerous" when he was in The Caretaker, which is damning evidence. The prosecution rests,...
You'd naturally think Aidan Gillen killed Hattie, the 14-year-old May Queen, in the woods above the village. Ever since he played transgressive super-hottie Stuart in Queer as Folk, he's worked sneering lips and leering eyes as a series of reptiles, chancers and scumbags – dodgy mayor in The Wire, slimy counsellor in Game of Thrones, venal banker in credit-crunch drama Freefall. Why not add murderer to the list?
In Mayday (BBC1), he's similarly sinister: a bad dad who thumps his son for nothing and buries his grief over his dead wife in video game marathons. Plus he has a mysterious bag locked in a cupboard. Could it be a body-bag full of May Queen? Possibly. Harold Pinter called Gillen "dangerous" when he was in The Caretaker, which is damning evidence. The prosecution rests,...
- 3/4/2013
- by Stuart Jeffries
- The Guardian - Film News
Photography by Bruce Gilbert, Provincetown International Film Festival[Editor's Note: Leslye Headland, whose debut film 'Bachelorette' opens on September 7th is today's very special guest blogger. I'm loving this memoir -Nathaniel R]
When preparing for this guest blog, I thought about what I would’ve written about if I were guest blogging seven years ago as my blogger alter ego, Arden. Most likely I would’ve wanted to get super nerdy and introspective so here we go:
If you’re like me, movies are your life. They cheer you up. They bring you down. They connect you to people. They alienate you from others. You develop passionate arguments about the state of film today. You rehearse those arguments in your head then unleash them upon unsuspecting acquaintances during an otherwise friendly gathering. They can get you a job. (I truly believe my first assistant gig was secured by my encyclopedic knowledge of Star Wars). They can get you laid. (My number one turn-on in bed? Oscar trivia.)
As Truffaut said, we are sick people.
When preparing for this guest blog, I thought about what I would’ve written about if I were guest blogging seven years ago as my blogger alter ego, Arden. Most likely I would’ve wanted to get super nerdy and introspective so here we go:
If you’re like me, movies are your life. They cheer you up. They bring you down. They connect you to people. They alienate you from others. You develop passionate arguments about the state of film today. You rehearse those arguments in your head then unleash them upon unsuspecting acquaintances during an otherwise friendly gathering. They can get you a job. (I truly believe my first assistant gig was secured by my encyclopedic knowledge of Star Wars). They can get you laid. (My number one turn-on in bed? Oscar trivia.)
As Truffaut said, we are sick people.
- 8/25/2012
- by SPECIAL GUEST STAR
- FilmExperience
When it comes to film scoring, size definitely does matter. The trend in big-budget Hollywood films has been toward a bigger and bigger sound—enormous string and brass sections and 20-person percussion ensembles, all backed by massive beds of synths and samples. But often, especially with indie projects, what’s required is a much smaller, more intimate sound. Even a modestly sized orchestra might be far too large for a quiet drama about a family, a couple or a child.
It’s important for a film composer to know how to match what’s happening onscreen not just musically, but also in terms of size, feel and scope. Scoring The Avengers with just acoustic guitar and flute would clearly be wrong, just as using the orchestra from Pirates of the Carribean to score Juno would have also been a mistake. In this set of posts I’ll explore various ways...
It’s important for a film composer to know how to match what’s happening onscreen not just musically, but also in terms of size, feel and scope. Scoring The Avengers with just acoustic guitar and flute would clearly be wrong, just as using the orchestra from Pirates of the Carribean to score Juno would have also been a mistake. In this set of posts I’ll explore various ways...
- 5/21/2012
- by Jeff Tolbert
- SCOREcastOnline.com
Ken Russell, who has died aged 84, was so often called rude names – the wild man of British cinema, the apostle of excess, the oldest angry young man in the business – that he gave up denying it all quite early in his career. Indeed, he often seemed to court the very publicity that emphasised only the crudest assessment of his work. He gave the impression that he cared not a damn. Those who knew him better, however, knew that he did. Underneath all the showbiz bluster, he was an old softie. Or, perhaps as accurately, a talented boy who never quite grew up.
It has, of course, to be said that he was capable of almost any enormity in the careless rapture he brought to making his films. He could be dreadfully cruel to his undoubted talent,...
It has, of course, to be said that he was capable of almost any enormity in the careless rapture he brought to making his films. He could be dreadfully cruel to his undoubted talent,...
- 11/28/2011
- by Derek Malcolm
- The Guardian - Film News
Read our top-rated entries to the Guardian's annual competition to find the best young talent in arts writing
Overall Winner
Visual art, under 14
Freddie Holker, 12 – Homage to Lucian Freud, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Disgusting. That's what I'm thinking; that's my gut instinct. It's reminiscent of the swimming-pool changing rooms back at school, where I'm scared to look at anything in case it offends someone. This is the Homage to Lucian Freud, one of Britain's best modern artists, who died on 20 July 2011. Seventeen paintings by Freud are displayed. I'm standing in an eerily plain room in the Metropolitan Museum of Art 3,000 miles away from where I'm comfortable.
The only painting I can easily look at is, funnily enough, Naked Man, Back View. The only one that doesn't contain full-frontal nudity offers full dorsal nudity. It shows a fat man plonked on a footstool. His sitting position pushing out roll...
Overall Winner
Visual art, under 14
Freddie Holker, 12 – Homage to Lucian Freud, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Disgusting. That's what I'm thinking; that's my gut instinct. It's reminiscent of the swimming-pool changing rooms back at school, where I'm scared to look at anything in case it offends someone. This is the Homage to Lucian Freud, one of Britain's best modern artists, who died on 20 July 2011. Seventeen paintings by Freud are displayed. I'm standing in an eerily plain room in the Metropolitan Museum of Art 3,000 miles away from where I'm comfortable.
The only painting I can easily look at is, funnily enough, Naked Man, Back View. The only one that doesn't contain full-frontal nudity offers full dorsal nudity. It shows a fat man plonked on a footstool. His sitting position pushing out roll...
- 10/12/2011
- The Guardian - Film News
George Clooney, Pierre Étaix and Tilda Swinton
to receive Silver Medallion Awards Over twenty-five new features plus revival programs
and unique programming from Guest Director Caetano Veloso will be presented as part of the 2011 exhibition
Telluride, Co (September 1, 2011) . Telluride Film Festival (September 2-5, 2011), presented by the National Film Preserve, announces its program for the 38th Telluride Film Festival. Featuring diverse programming from around the globe, Tff once again sets the stage for some of the year.s most highly anticipated films.
Tff opens its 38th year with over twenty-five new feature films plus special artist tributes, Guest Director programs selected by Caetano Veloso, Backlot programs, classics and restorations, shorts, student films, seminars and conversations, each introduced or proceeded with a Q&A by its filmmaker, actors, writer or producer. Telluride Film Festival opens Friday, September 2 and runs through Labor Day, Monday, September 5.
The .Show.
38th Telluride Film Festival is proud...
to receive Silver Medallion Awards Over twenty-five new features plus revival programs
and unique programming from Guest Director Caetano Veloso will be presented as part of the 2011 exhibition
Telluride, Co (September 1, 2011) . Telluride Film Festival (September 2-5, 2011), presented by the National Film Preserve, announces its program for the 38th Telluride Film Festival. Featuring diverse programming from around the globe, Tff once again sets the stage for some of the year.s most highly anticipated films.
Tff opens its 38th year with over twenty-five new feature films plus special artist tributes, Guest Director programs selected by Caetano Veloso, Backlot programs, classics and restorations, shorts, student films, seminars and conversations, each introduced or proceeded with a Q&A by its filmmaker, actors, writer or producer. Telluride Film Festival opens Friday, September 2 and runs through Labor Day, Monday, September 5.
The .Show.
38th Telluride Film Festival is proud...
- 9/1/2011
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
"Take a close look at the lineup the Telluride Film Festival," advises Eugene Hernandez at indieWIRE. "These are films you’ll be hearing a lot about over the next few weeks during a fall festival swing that begins in Venice, travels to Telluride and continues through to big-city fests in Toronto and then New York. For many movies on the roster, the journey even dates back to Cannes in May."
The festival opens tomorrow and runs through Labor Day; meantime, here's the Show:
Viviana García Besné's Perdida, a look at the Calderon family, a cinema dynasty in Mexico.
Dr. Biju's The Way Home. See the description from the London Indian Film Festival.
Joseph Cedar's Footnote. See the Cannes roundup.
Mark Cousins's The Story of Film: An Odyssey. Trailer (scroll down about halfway).
David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method. Premieres tomorrow (Friday) in Venice.
Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne's The Kid with a Bike.
The festival opens tomorrow and runs through Labor Day; meantime, here's the Show:
Viviana García Besné's Perdida, a look at the Calderon family, a cinema dynasty in Mexico.
Dr. Biju's The Way Home. See the description from the London Indian Film Festival.
Joseph Cedar's Footnote. See the Cannes roundup.
Mark Cousins's The Story of Film: An Odyssey. Trailer (scroll down about halfway).
David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method. Premieres tomorrow (Friday) in Venice.
Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne's The Kid with a Bike.
- 9/1/2011
- MUBI
Sergei Prokofiev's Russian fairy tale from 1936 Peter and the Wolf is next to get the modern treatment, and as any true fan of fairy tales can tell you, they are certainly not the kind of bedtime fodder you would want your kids diggin' on. Unless of course you're like us and want to bring your buggers up the right way by letting them cut their teeth on the macabre!
According to Bloody Disgusting the good folks behind The Invasion and Blood Creek, Madhouse Entertainment, are currently working up a new telling of the classic tale that will definitely be spending its time exploring the darker avenues of the story.
"In order to save the love of his life and confront his own past, Peter, with the help of two very unlikely allies, sets out to trap a cunning serial killer who has returned to the college town he once terrorized.
According to Bloody Disgusting the good folks behind The Invasion and Blood Creek, Madhouse Entertainment, are currently working up a new telling of the classic tale that will definitely be spending its time exploring the darker avenues of the story.
"In order to save the love of his life and confront his own past, Peter, with the help of two very unlikely allies, sets out to trap a cunning serial killer who has returned to the college town he once terrorized.
- 6/1/2010
- by Uncle Creepy
- DreadCentral.com
The ability to suspend disbelief has always been the operagoer's stock-in-trade. You have to be able to squint just right to imagine that the 40-something soprano who could best you at arm wrestling is a callow, put-upon waif.Or that the wooden tenor with the spindly legs has the charm to make those comely village girls swoon in their dirndls. Sometimes the magnificence of the voice alone will prime your imagination. But sometimes, beautiful notes are not enough.The opera world surely felt vindicated, then, when Brazilian-born baritone Paulo Szot won the 2008 Tony Award for best actor in a musical for his performance as Emile de Becque in the Lincoln Center revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific." Like Szot, many of today's opera stars pride themselves on being fluid, believable actors. Back Stage spoke recently with Szot and others about how they have developed the acting side of their craft,...
- 5/20/2010
- backstage.com
Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at the Music Center welcomes the return of American Ballet Theatre (Abt), America?s National Ballet Company®, led by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie, to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, July 16-19, with its full-evening production of Sir Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet. MacMillan's masterful interpretation of Shakespeare's enduring romantic tragedy entered American Ballet Theatre?s repertoire in 1985 and has since become one of the Company?s signature productions. Against the sumptuous setting of Renaissance Italy, MacMillan weaves a dance tapestry rich in character nuance and sensuality, and Sergei Prokofiev's stirring music underscores the lyric beauty and passion of this beloved ballet's star-crossed lovers.
- 6/25/2009
- BroadwayWorld.com
Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at the Music Center welcomes the return of American Ballet Theatre (Abt), America?s National Ballet Company®, led by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie, to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, July 16-19, with its full-evening production of Sir Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet. MacMillan's masterful interpretation of Shakespeare's enduring romantic tragedy entered American Ballet Theatre?s repertoire in 1985 and has since become one of the Company?s signature productions. Against the sumptuous setting of Renaissance Italy, MacMillan weaves a dance tapestry rich in character nuance and sensuality, and Sergei Prokofiev's stirring music underscores the lyric beauty and passion of this beloved ballet's star-crossed lovers.
- 4/14/2009
- BroadwayWorld.com
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