The animated version of Rowan Atkinson’s silent slapstick sitcom Mr Bean is to return to television for a fourth series in 2025.
Mr Bean must be one of the most well known comedy characters on the planet. Relying entirely on Rowan Atkinson’s rubber face, slapstick and visual humour, Atkinson first wrote the show with Richard Curtis and Robin Driscoll almost 35 years ago.
Premiering in 1990, Mr Bean ran for just 15 episodes, with stories typically following a formula of the hapless title character trying to accomplish a seemingly simple task and escalating it to farcical levels. Memorable moments include a dangerous diving experience, putting his swimming trunks on without removing his trousers and, perhaps the most iconic sequence from the entire series – getting a turkey stuck on his head. In 1997, the character went to America in the feature film Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie, which was directed by the much missed comedian Mel Smith.
Mr Bean must be one of the most well known comedy characters on the planet. Relying entirely on Rowan Atkinson’s rubber face, slapstick and visual humour, Atkinson first wrote the show with Richard Curtis and Robin Driscoll almost 35 years ago.
Premiering in 1990, Mr Bean ran for just 15 episodes, with stories typically following a formula of the hapless title character trying to accomplish a seemingly simple task and escalating it to farcical levels. Memorable moments include a dangerous diving experience, putting his swimming trunks on without removing his trousers and, perhaps the most iconic sequence from the entire series – getting a turkey stuck on his head. In 1997, the character went to America in the feature film Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie, which was directed by the much missed comedian Mel Smith.
- 1/4/2024
- by Jake Godfrey
- Film Stories
One can often tell a cinephile by the rituals they establish. For my part, I begin every summer by revisiting Jacques Tati’s Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (1953), the feature debut of his most beloved character. I can no longer remember what drew me to this habit outside of a strong association of the season with the smooth jazz theme to the film “Quel temps fait-il à Paris?”, written by Alain Romans. Revisiting the film last summer, I decided for the first time to put on the 1953 version of the movie instead of the 1978 version I usually watch, which is labeled “definitive” by Les Films de Mon Oncle, the foundation responsible for the restoration and rerelease of Tati’s films. Outside of one addition to this later cut, I was unaware of the differences between them, and couldn’t find much information about the original release. Almost immediately, I was shocked to...
- 8/30/2023
- MUBI
Writer, director and actress Rebecca Miller discusses a few of her favorite films with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Personal Velocity: Three Portraits (2002)
The Ballad Of Jack And Rose (2005)
The Private Lives Of Pippa Lee (2009)
Maggie’s Plan (2015)
Explorers (1985)
The Way We Were (1973)
Battleship Potemkin (1925)
Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
Annie Hall (1977)
Repulsion (1965)
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Knife In The Water (1962)
The Tenant (1976)
Cries and Whispers (1972)
Persona (1966)
The Magician (1958)
Hour Of The Wolf (1968)
The Virgin Spring (1960)
The Seventh Seal (1957)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
The Exorcist (1973)
The Shining (1980)
La Dolce Vita (1960)
Regarding Henry (1991)
Angela (1995)
Badlands (1973)
Casino (1995)
On The Waterfront (1954)
My Dinner with Andre (1981)
Jules and Jim (1962)
The Bitter Tears Of Petra von Kant (1972)
Wings Of Desire (1987)
The Killer Inside Me (1976)
The Killer Inside Me (2010)
Married To The Mob (1988)
Blue Velvet (1986)
Dune (1984)
Imitation Of Life (1934)
Imitation Of Life (1959)
Written On The Wind (1956)
Magnificent Obsession (1954)
All That Heaven Allows...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Personal Velocity: Three Portraits (2002)
The Ballad Of Jack And Rose (2005)
The Private Lives Of Pippa Lee (2009)
Maggie’s Plan (2015)
Explorers (1985)
The Way We Were (1973)
Battleship Potemkin (1925)
Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
Annie Hall (1977)
Repulsion (1965)
Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Knife In The Water (1962)
The Tenant (1976)
Cries and Whispers (1972)
Persona (1966)
The Magician (1958)
Hour Of The Wolf (1968)
The Virgin Spring (1960)
The Seventh Seal (1957)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
The Exorcist (1973)
The Shining (1980)
La Dolce Vita (1960)
Regarding Henry (1991)
Angela (1995)
Badlands (1973)
Casino (1995)
On The Waterfront (1954)
My Dinner with Andre (1981)
Jules and Jim (1962)
The Bitter Tears Of Petra von Kant (1972)
Wings Of Desire (1987)
The Killer Inside Me (1976)
The Killer Inside Me (2010)
Married To The Mob (1988)
Blue Velvet (1986)
Dune (1984)
Imitation Of Life (1934)
Imitation Of Life (1959)
Written On The Wind (1956)
Magnificent Obsession (1954)
All That Heaven Allows...
- 5/11/2021
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Legendary screenwriter collaborated with scores of filmmakers including Jacques Tati, Luis Buñuel, Milos Foreman and Louis Malle.
French screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière, whose 60-year career spanned more than 150 writer credits and collaborations with Jacques Tati, Luis Buñuel, Milos Foreman and Louis Malle, has died in Paris aged 89.
Born into a family of winegrowers in south-western France, Carrière moved to the outskirts of Paris at the age of 14 when his parents took over the running of a bar.
After obtaining a degree in history and literature, he embarked on a writing career, publishing debut novel Lezard in 1957. Set against the backdrop of a restaurant in the suburbs,...
French screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière, whose 60-year career spanned more than 150 writer credits and collaborations with Jacques Tati, Luis Buñuel, Milos Foreman and Louis Malle, has died in Paris aged 89.
Born into a family of winegrowers in south-western France, Carrière moved to the outskirts of Paris at the age of 14 when his parents took over the running of a bar.
After obtaining a degree in history and literature, he embarked on a writing career, publishing debut novel Lezard in 1957. Set against the backdrop of a restaurant in the suburbs,...
- 2/9/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
NEWSBarry Jenkins' MoonlightThe New York Film Festival has announced its main slate, which among many of the year's better known titles includes new films by Barry Jenkins, Hong Sang-soo and Alison Maclean. The closing night film will be James Gray's The Lost City of Z.Recommended VIEWINGThe teaser for Paul W.S. Anderson's Resident Evil: The Final Chapter. We are notable fans of this too often derided filmmaker.Another future-set teaser: Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi flick Arrival, which is to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.A third teaser, this one for Woody Allen's series for Amazon, Crisis in Six Scenes.Aussie director John Hillcoat made one of the more under-appreciated big budget films this year, Triple 9, and now he returns to the director's seat for a video for Massive Attack, featuring Hope Sandoval and Cate Blanchett.Recommended READINGThe ShallowsIn a moment when any...
- 8/10/2016
- MUBI
Celluloid is alive and kicking at the American Cinematheque this month, where a heavenly program of 35mm films will be presented across the various series happening at the Aero and Egyptian theaters. Friday launches the slate with the unlikely double bill of Pasolini's revelry of human suffering "Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom' and Russ Meyer's exploitation classic "Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!" Throughout the month you can brush up on your Jacques Tati with film prints of "M. Hulot's Holiday," "Mon Oncle," "Traffic" and "Playtime," which looks gorgeous on a big screen. There's also a David Fincher double feature, with "Seven" and "Panic Room," as well as Antonioni's often maligned but visually dazzling "Zabriskie Point," featuring that epic Pink Floyd soundtrack. Read More: Quentin Tarantino Spoils La Cinephiles with New Beverly's June Program Here's the full list of 35mm prints...
- 7/9/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
I am slowly coming out of vacation mode and it's not easy. Christmas and New Year's need to happen on Thursday every year because it really makes taking time off very easy while still allowing time to do a little work here and there. My first press screening of 2015 is still yet to happen as there wasn't a screening of Woman in Black 2 scheduled and I have yet to receive an invite to see Taken 3. The first film I'm scheduled to see is Paddington on Saturday, but there's a little thing called a Seahawks game at the exact same time and I don't think Paddington will be interfering with that. With that, the first movie I actually watched in 2015 was Jacques Tati's Mr. Hulot's Holiday as part of the Criterion Collection set I received for Christmas. It wasn't, however, the first film I watched this week as Tati's...
- 1/4/2015
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
The Guardian has exclusively debuted a rare early short from comedy maestro Jacques Tati, 1947's "The School for Postmen." As usual, the French auteur writes, directs and stars in this witty 16-minute film brimming with the kind of subtly orchestrated slapstick that would come to define his career, from "M. Hulot's Holiday" to "Playtime." "School for Postmen," which is the precursor to Tati's 1949 debut feature "Jour du Fete," can also be seen in glorious Blu-ray on Criterion's heaven-sent Tati box set, which hits shelves October 28.
- 8/11/2014
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Criterion has released their annual New Year teaser image hinting at titles we can expect from the boutique distributor over the course of the new year and the most easily recognizable titles include David Cronenberg's Scanners, an upgraded version of Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock, Howard Hawks' Red River and a box set celebrating Jacques Tati's Monsieur Hulot, which would seem to suggest Blu-ray editions of Mr. Hulot's Holiday and Mon Oncle. I'd say we may be able to expect Daniel Petrie's A Raisin in the Sun and I can't tell if the deer in the bushes suggest The Deer Hunter or not. The beatles in the grass could suggest Richard Lester's A Hard Day's Night and the girl with the long black hair at the picnic could mean Hideo Nakata's Ringu. The red sun seems almost obviously Terence Young's Red Sun...
- 1/1/2014
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
0:00 - Intro 10:40 - Review: Magic Mike 52:15 - Headlines: Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes Call it Quits, Marvel to Announce Guardians of the Galaxy Movie, The Devil’s Knot Casting, Martin Scorsese Going Digital for Good but Not 3D 1:02:20 - Top 5: Best Movies of 2012 So Far 1:06:00 - Other Stuff We Watched: The Avengers, Gray's Anatomy, Walk Away Renee, Ali, Missing in Action, M. Hulot's Holiday, Blade Runner, The Newsroom, Jeff Who Lives at Home, Brave, Ted, Showgirls 1:37:55 - Junk Mail: Perfect and Underrated Sequels, First and Favourite Drive-In Experiences, Blues Brothers and Favourite Intros, Favourite Stammers in Movies, Tony Stark and Shawarma 1:52:15 - This Week's DVD Releases 1:54:10 - Outro 1:56:40 - Spoiler Discussion: Prometheus Revisited
Film Junk Podcast Episode #375: Magic Mike by Filmjunk on Mixcloud
» Download the MP3 (71 Mb) » View the show notes » Rate us on iTunes!
Film Junk Podcast Episode #375: Magic Mike by Filmjunk on Mixcloud
» Download the MP3 (71 Mb) » View the show notes » Rate us on iTunes!
- 7/3/2012
- by Sean
- FilmJunk
Director: Michel Hazanavicius Writer: Michel Hazanavicius Starring: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, James Cromwell, John Goodman, Malcolm McDowell, Penelope Ann Miller, Missi Pyle, Bitsie Tulloch Most of us remember that video killed the radio star, but how often do we ruminate upon the fact that talkies killed the silent film? For those of you who have not brushed up on your film history in a while: Until the 1920s, films were made with no synchronized recorded sound -- this means there is no spoken dialogue. Instead, the "dialogue" of silent films is communicated via facial expressions, body gestures, and title cards. Attempts to create sync-sound films might go back to the Edison lab (circa 1896), but it was not until the 1920s that sound-on-disc and sound-on-film sound formats such as Photokinema (1921), Phonofilm (1923), Vitaphone (1926), Fox Movietone (1927), and RCA Photophone (1928) came into common practice. The Jazz Singer (1927) is often toted as the first commercially successful sound film; and,...
- 10/29/2011
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
Last week, David Bordwell posted "a brief tribute to the volcanic charm of the legend known as Jcc." Brief, maybe, but as always with David Bordwell, necessary in ways you may not have realized until you've read it. Today, as Jean-Claude Carrière — actor, novelist and screenwriter probably best known for his work with Luis Buñuel, though he's also written screenplays for Godard, Oshima, Malle, Forman, Wajda and Jonathan Glazer (and that's just scratching the surface) — turns 80, two paragraphs from this must-read:
Jcc entered cinema under the aegis of Jacques Tati. Tati wanted someone to turn M. Hulot's Holiday and Mon Oncle into novels, and the very young writer seemed the right candidate. But Tati quickly learned that Jcc didn't know how a film was made. So he assigned Pierre Etaix and the editor Suzanne Baron to tutor the lad in the ways of cinema. First lesson: Go through M. Hulot on a flatbed viewer,...
Jcc entered cinema under the aegis of Jacques Tati. Tati wanted someone to turn M. Hulot's Holiday and Mon Oncle into novels, and the very young writer seemed the right candidate. But Tati quickly learned that Jcc didn't know how a film was made. So he assigned Pierre Etaix and the editor Suzanne Baron to tutor the lad in the ways of cinema. First lesson: Go through M. Hulot on a flatbed viewer,...
- 9/17/2011
- MUBI
From time to time, major organizations such as the AFI give us lists of the best movies of all time. There's some kind of grand countdown from 100 to 1 and then we debate for a few days over how low this one was ranked or why was another ranked too high. And most of the time, we rarely get a glimpse behind the process. Time Out London has just released their list of the 100 Best Comedies Of All Time but have done it in a fun and uniquely transparent way. They surveyed over 200 people who work in, with, or around comedy and asked them for their top tens. Then they averaged all those lists together to come up with the top 100. The best part, though, is that all the lists are public. So instead of just listing the 100 best comedies of all time, we can also find out which ten comedies...
- 9/15/2011
- by Germain Lussier
- Slash Film
Have you ever wondered what are the films that inspire the next generation of visionary filmmakers? As part of our monthly Ioncinephile profile (read here), we ask the filmmaker the incredibly arduous task of identifying their top ten list of favorite films. This month we feature Aaron Katz [Cold Weather 02.04]. Here are his Top 10 Films of All Time as of February 2011. A Night at the Opera - Sam Wood (1935) My favorite movie. Great scene follows great scene. The state-room, the contract, the Russian aviators, and my all-time favorite, the bed moving scene. From that scene: Detective: You live here all alone? Groucho: Yes. Just me and my memories. I'm practically a hermit. Detective: Oh. A hermit. I notice the table's set for four. Groucho. That's nothing, my alarm clock is set for eight. That doesn't prove a thing. Alien - Ridley Scott (1979) By far my favorite science fiction and my favorite horror movie.
- 2/14/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
I found some good animated films in 2010, but I didn't find ten. And it's likely that only two of them are titles most moviegoers have had the chance to see. My list reflects a growing fact: Animation is no longer considered a form for children and families. In some cases it provides a way to tell stories that can scarcely be imagined in live action. The classic example is the Japanese "Grave of the Fireflies" (left), about two children growing up on their own after the Bomb fall.
The first of my best films, unlike some of the others, was primarily intended for children:
"Despicable Me"
This one begins with the truth that villains are often more fascinating than heroes, and creates a villain named Gru who freeze-dries the people ahead of him in line at Starbucks, and pops children's balloons. Although he's inspired by many a James Bond bad guy,...
The first of my best films, unlike some of the others, was primarily intended for children:
"Despicable Me"
This one begins with the truth that villains are often more fascinating than heroes, and creates a villain named Gru who freeze-dries the people ahead of him in line at Starbucks, and pops children's balloons. Although he's inspired by many a James Bond bad guy,...
- 1/3/2011
- by Roger Ebert
- blogs.suntimes.com/ebert
Splice
DVD & Blu-ray, Optimum
As befits a horror film dealing with genetic terrors, Splice get under your skin (even the veiny opening titles are a bit queasy). Director Vincenzo Natali has for years been creating smart little science fiction movies such as Cube and Cypher, and with its reliable cast of Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, the more healthily budgeted Splice was intended to be his breakthrough. However, Splice failed to connect with the wider audience – despite the best efforts of its producer Guillermo del Toro, a man well used to turning dark, unsettling concepts into commercially viable prospects. Brody and Polley play a couple of scientific whizzkids who, in a film about the dire consequences of smart people doing stupid things, add human DNA to the experimental hybrid creatures they've already created. The result of their morally unsound hubris is Dren; a new humanoid lifeform, expertly played by Delphine Chanéac and assisted by puppets,...
DVD & Blu-ray, Optimum
As befits a horror film dealing with genetic terrors, Splice get under your skin (even the veiny opening titles are a bit queasy). Director Vincenzo Natali has for years been creating smart little science fiction movies such as Cube and Cypher, and with its reliable cast of Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, the more healthily budgeted Splice was intended to be his breakthrough. However, Splice failed to connect with the wider audience – despite the best efforts of its producer Guillermo del Toro, a man well used to turning dark, unsettling concepts into commercially viable prospects. Brody and Polley play a couple of scientific whizzkids who, in a film about the dire consequences of smart people doing stupid things, add human DNA to the experimental hybrid creatures they've already created. The result of their morally unsound hubris is Dren; a new humanoid lifeform, expertly played by Delphine Chanéac and assisted by puppets,...
- 11/27/2010
- by Phelim O'Neill
- The Guardian - Film News
A scene from The Illusionist
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics One of my most anticipated films of the latter half of 2010 was easily Sylvain Chomet's latest animated film, The Illusionist. It's the director's first feature length film since The Triplets of Belleville (a film I initially disliked, but have come to enjoy immensely) was nominated for two Oscars in 2004, including Best Animated Feature. The Illusionist is brought to life in the same hand-drawn animated style he used for Belleville and the script is an adaptation of an unproduced screenplay written by the iconic French comedian and filmmaker Jacques Tati (Mon Oncle). Essentially, what reason would you have to not be interested in this project?
Tati's original screenplay is described as a love letter from a father to a daughter. As innocent as that may sound it becomes a bit more tragic once you learn that while Tati's daughter Sophie was...
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics One of my most anticipated films of the latter half of 2010 was easily Sylvain Chomet's latest animated film, The Illusionist. It's the director's first feature length film since The Triplets of Belleville (a film I initially disliked, but have come to enjoy immensely) was nominated for two Oscars in 2004, including Best Animated Feature. The Illusionist is brought to life in the same hand-drawn animated style he used for Belleville and the script is an adaptation of an unproduced screenplay written by the iconic French comedian and filmmaker Jacques Tati (Mon Oncle). Essentially, what reason would you have to not be interested in this project?
Tati's original screenplay is described as a love letter from a father to a daughter. As innocent as that may sound it becomes a bit more tragic once you learn that while Tati's daughter Sophie was...
- 9/10/2010
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
The Ghent International Film Festival will honor the late French director, actor and comedian Jacques Tati with an exhibition called "In Double Quick Time."
Produced by the Cinematheque Francaise in collaboration with Les Films de Mon Oncle, the exhibition is a collaboration between the fest and the East Flanders Cultural Center. The exhibit will run through Jan. 16.
Tati's body of work from 1949-74 includes numerous classics, beginning with "Jour de Fete." His pointed, off-kilter criticism of modernism was evident in all of his films including "Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot" (1953), "Mon Oncle" (1958), and "Trafic" (1971). The Monsieur Hulot character in "Trafic" was the perfect personification of the Tati touch.
A 310-page catalog will be produced for the exhibition.
The fest also celebrates the 10th anniversary of the World Soundtrack Awards, which will feature 11 top film composers performing with the Belgian Philharmonic Orchestra: Oscar winners Howard Shore (the "Lord of the Rings...
Produced by the Cinematheque Francaise in collaboration with Les Films de Mon Oncle, the exhibition is a collaboration between the fest and the East Flanders Cultural Center. The exhibit will run through Jan. 16.
Tati's body of work from 1949-74 includes numerous classics, beginning with "Jour de Fete." His pointed, off-kilter criticism of modernism was evident in all of his films including "Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot" (1953), "Mon Oncle" (1958), and "Trafic" (1971). The Monsieur Hulot character in "Trafic" was the perfect personification of the Tati touch.
A 310-page catalog will be produced for the exhibition.
The fest also celebrates the 10th anniversary of the World Soundtrack Awards, which will feature 11 top film composers performing with the Belgian Philharmonic Orchestra: Oscar winners Howard Shore (the "Lord of the Rings...
- 6/17/2010
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Today Universal released Get Him to the Greek, a sort-of sequel to 2008's Forgetting Sarah Marshall as it uses Aldous Snow who had a small role in the original. Beyond that, there is only a brief reference to Sarah Marshall, which has me thinking it's not really a sequel as much as it is a spin-off. The same could be said for a movie like Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)... Same characters, but not really a sequel to Clerks, which ended up having its own sequel in 2006.
In a debate with a group of fellow Seattle critics trying to decide if Get Him to the Greek was a sequel to Forgetting Sarah Marshall or not, the topic turned to comedy sequels in general and I was asked to name a great comedy sequel. Should be easy... right?
I started mining my memory banks, and started thinking of movies with...
In a debate with a group of fellow Seattle critics trying to decide if Get Him to the Greek was a sequel to Forgetting Sarah Marshall or not, the topic turned to comedy sequels in general and I was asked to name a great comedy sequel. Should be easy... right?
I started mining my memory banks, and started thinking of movies with...
- 6/4/2010
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
I walked into Cinema Arcades, behind our hotel, for a Cannes market screening of "The Illusionist" and saw the magically melancholy final act of Jacques Tati's career.
Tati of course was the tall Frenchman, bowing from the waist, pipe in mouth, often wearing a trench coat, pants too short, always the center of befuddlements.
If you've seen "Mr. Hulot's Holiday," you know who he was, and if you haven't, it belongs in your holding pattern.
Tati, who died in 1982, wrote the screenplay for this film, but never made it. He intended it for live action. His daughter Sophie Tatischeff still had the script, and handed it to Sylvain Chomet, who made the miraculously funny animated film "The Triplets of Belleville" (2003). He has drawn it with a lightness and beauty worthy of a older, sadder Miyazaki story. Animation suits it. Live action would overwhelm its fancy with realism.
The story...
Tati of course was the tall Frenchman, bowing from the waist, pipe in mouth, often wearing a trench coat, pants too short, always the center of befuddlements.
If you've seen "Mr. Hulot's Holiday," you know who he was, and if you haven't, it belongs in your holding pattern.
Tati, who died in 1982, wrote the screenplay for this film, but never made it. He intended it for live action. His daughter Sophie Tatischeff still had the script, and handed it to Sylvain Chomet, who made the miraculously funny animated film "The Triplets of Belleville" (2003). He has drawn it with a lightness and beauty worthy of a older, sadder Miyazaki story. Animation suits it. Live action would overwhelm its fancy with realism.
The story...
- 5/15/2010
- by Roger Ebert
- blogs.suntimes.com/ebert
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics
Well, not only do I think How to Train Your Dragon can give Pixar's Toy Story 3 competition at the upcoming Oscars, now I'm confident Sylvain Chomet's The Illusionist will. Coming as no real surprise, Sony Pictures Classics has announced they've acquired North American distribution rights to the film based on an unproduced screenplay by Jacques Tati (M. Hulot's Holiday).
Sony Classics distributed Chomet's The Triplets of Belleville in 2003 and it then went on to be nominated for two Oscars, including Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song ("Belleville Rendez-Vous"). Triplets ended up losing to Finding Nemo that year setting up an interesting bit of competition.
I have brought you a variety of assets from The Illusionist already so you should be well aware of the film, which details the story of a dying breed of stage entertainer whose thunder is being stolen by emerging rock stars.
Well, not only do I think How to Train Your Dragon can give Pixar's Toy Story 3 competition at the upcoming Oscars, now I'm confident Sylvain Chomet's The Illusionist will. Coming as no real surprise, Sony Pictures Classics has announced they've acquired North American distribution rights to the film based on an unproduced screenplay by Jacques Tati (M. Hulot's Holiday).
Sony Classics distributed Chomet's The Triplets of Belleville in 2003 and it then went on to be nominated for two Oscars, including Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song ("Belleville Rendez-Vous"). Triplets ended up losing to Finding Nemo that year setting up an interesting bit of competition.
I have brought you a variety of assets from The Illusionist already so you should be well aware of the film, which details the story of a dying breed of stage entertainer whose thunder is being stolen by emerging rock stars.
- 4/26/2010
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
St Marc sur Mer, on France's Atlantic coast, has scarcely changed since Monsieur Hulot immortalised the charming little town over half a century ago
The spur for my first-ever trip round France was Jacques Tati's classic comedy Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot, filmed in 1953 on the beach in St Marc sur Mer in the Loire-Atlantique.
I'd seen the film as a child and the other-worldliness of this little resort and its fictional inhabitants made a deep impression on me. The world conjured up by Tati was so very different from Britain: hot, elegant, timeless and languid. Now, 40 years on, I was determined to see the place.
This region of western France is often overlooked, and I was unsure what I might find. In any case, visiting iconic film locations can often prove a disappointing experience. It was late and pitch black by the time I arrived at Hulot's holiday base,...
The spur for my first-ever trip round France was Jacques Tati's classic comedy Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot, filmed in 1953 on the beach in St Marc sur Mer in the Loire-Atlantique.
I'd seen the film as a child and the other-worldliness of this little resort and its fictional inhabitants made a deep impression on me. The world conjured up by Tati was so very different from Britain: hot, elegant, timeless and languid. Now, 40 years on, I was determined to see the place.
This region of western France is often overlooked, and I was unsure what I might find. In any case, visiting iconic film locations can often prove a disappointing experience. It was late and pitch black by the time I arrived at Hulot's holiday base,...
- 4/23/2010
- by Michael Simkins
- The Guardian - Film News
Today's two films are a pair of films from my Essential Art House: 50 Years of Janus Films collection from Criterion, which I bought way back at the end of 2008 when Criterion was having a huge sale. Looking over the list of 50 films I still have 21 to watch that I have not yet seen, which is actually one of the reasons I love owning it so much. There's always something new to watch.
Unfortunately, this week I brought these two films on a little vacation from the home office so I don't have the 240-page book that accompanies the set on hand so I can't read the brief essays for these two films. Something to look forward to I guess. Nevertheless, no more babbling... to the movies...
Floating Weeds (1959) Quick Thoughts: At the beginning of Floating Weeds it felt like it was going to be a comedy due to the jovial...
Unfortunately, this week I brought these two films on a little vacation from the home office so I don't have the 240-page book that accompanies the set on hand so I can't read the brief essays for these two films. Something to look forward to I guess. Nevertheless, no more babbling... to the movies...
Floating Weeds (1959) Quick Thoughts: At the beginning of Floating Weeds it felt like it was going to be a comedy due to the jovial...
- 3/28/2010
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Photo: Pathe Sylvain Chomet's The Illusionist debuted at the 2010 Berlin Film Festival and marks the director's first feature animation since the Oscar-nominated The Triplets of Belleville in 2003 and it received loads of positivity out of the festival.
At Variety, Leslie Felperin says audiences "who don't expect animation to be aimed squarely at kids or to feature the latest technology will be utterly entranced by The Illusionist's old-school magic, but less adventurous viewers may need some persuading."
In Contention reviewer Guy Lodge gave it four-out-of-four stars calling it a "masterpiece" and "a rare case of one of the fest's most eagerly awaited titles managing to meet, and even subvert, expectations."
Kirk Honeycutt at The Hollywood Reporter is probably the least affectionate, but even his review is positive saying, "It's a mood piece, and that mood is melancholy," and that it "looks like a more rarefied adult cartoon that will...
At Variety, Leslie Felperin says audiences "who don't expect animation to be aimed squarely at kids or to feature the latest technology will be utterly entranced by The Illusionist's old-school magic, but less adventurous viewers may need some persuading."
In Contention reviewer Guy Lodge gave it four-out-of-four stars calling it a "masterpiece" and "a rare case of one of the fest's most eagerly awaited titles managing to meet, and even subvert, expectations."
Kirk Honeycutt at The Hollywood Reporter is probably the least affectionate, but even his review is positive saying, "It's a mood piece, and that mood is melancholy," and that it "looks like a more rarefied adult cartoon that will...
- 3/22/2010
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
"The Museum of Modern Art's retrospective of the French screenwriter, director, and actor Jacques Tati (born Jacques Tatischeff, 1907–1982) features newly struck, gloriously restored 35mm prints of his six feature films," brags the Museum, and well they should: "Monsieur Hulot's Holiday, Playtime, Mon Oncle, his long-dreamed-of colorized version of Jour de fête, the revelatory Traffic, and the little-seen Parade - along with three short sketch films." The series runs through January 2 and Jordan Hruska (T Magazine) notes that, architecturally, "MoMA is a perfect venue" for it, while Nicolas Rapold (Voice) notes that it follows "the huge Cinémathèque Française exhibition" and: "Besides a 1936 René Clément short with gangly Tati as a farm boy recruited for sparring (sports-based routines were initially his specialty), MoMA also shows the delightful Cours du soir (1966), shot during Playtime downtime, in which Tati presides at a night school for pratfalls and mime. It's quite an education, but then,...
- 12/22/2009
- MUBI
Jacques Tati was a master of burlesque. Emilie Bickerton on a French revolutionary
If you told Jacques Tati that his flight was delayed, he'd say terrific – and settle down to watch what he considered "the best movie of the year": people passing by. Observation gave the director all the material he needed for the four films he made over three decades. Tati liked to call himself "the Don Quixote of cinema", which captures his combination of idealism, imagination and generosity. Monsieur Hulot, his charming, self-effacing but out-of-synch comic creation, is the character with whom he is most often, and fondly, associated. But Tati's work cannot be reduced to the man with the too-short trousers. His films – from the early burlesque of Jour de fête in 1949 to the highly stylised modernism of Play Time in 1967 – might not have an intellectual message, but they are delightful witnesses to the second half...
If you told Jacques Tati that his flight was delayed, he'd say terrific – and settle down to watch what he considered "the best movie of the year": people passing by. Observation gave the director all the material he needed for the four films he made over three decades. Tati liked to call himself "the Don Quixote of cinema", which captures his combination of idealism, imagination and generosity. Monsieur Hulot, his charming, self-effacing but out-of-synch comic creation, is the character with whom he is most often, and fondly, associated. But Tati's work cannot be reduced to the man with the too-short trousers. His films – from the early burlesque of Jour de fête in 1949 to the highly stylised modernism of Play Time in 1967 – might not have an intellectual message, but they are delightful witnesses to the second half...
- 12/5/2009
- The Guardian - Film News
Tati (1907-1982) was the screen's most fastidious director of comedy and the greatest visual humorist since the silent days of Chaplin, Keaton and Lloyd whom he revered, and this comic cornucopia contains all his feature films except Trafic (1971). The first four are increasingly ambitious masterpieces generally using onomatopoeic sound rather than dialogue. The last, Parade (1974), is an anthology of his stage mimes performed as in a circus and made for Swedish TV. Tati burst on the world as a moustachioed rural postman in Jour de fête (1949), then adopted the screen persona of the accident-prone, neo-Luddite Monsieur Hulot whose slouch hat, raincoat, pipe, ankle-length trousers and umbrella made him as recognisable as Chaplin's tramp. In the black-and-white Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (1953), he disrupts a holiday resort; in Mon oncle (1957), beautifully designed and shot in colour, he leaves a trail of disasters in a gadget-laden Paris suburb. The satire on soulless, conformist modernity...
- 11/22/2009
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
Tim Burton invades New York, New Italian Cinema hits Los Angeles, Harold and Kumar spread holiday cheer in Austin and everywhere you look, they're celebrating All Tomorrow's Parties -- just some of the holiday film fun you can have this winter at your local repertory theater.
More Holiday Preview: [Theatrical Calendar]
[Repertory Calendar] [Anywhere But a Movie Theater]
New York
92YTribeca
In November, the 92YTribeca Screening Room will have some special guests in the house when it hosts the already sold out "A Conversation with Wes Anderson and Jason Schwartzman" on November 10th, with the two longtime collaborators discussing their latest film "Fantastic Mr. Fox." But tickets are still available for the night before (Nov. 9th), when actor Ben Foster and director Oren Moverman will screen their acclaimed new post-war drama "The Messenger". Much of the rest of the month is devoted to Cinema Tropical's Ten Years of New Argentine Cinema series with screenings of Adrián Caetano's immigration...
More Holiday Preview: [Theatrical Calendar]
[Repertory Calendar] [Anywhere But a Movie Theater]
New York
92YTribeca
In November, the 92YTribeca Screening Room will have some special guests in the house when it hosts the already sold out "A Conversation with Wes Anderson and Jason Schwartzman" on November 10th, with the two longtime collaborators discussing their latest film "Fantastic Mr. Fox." But tickets are still available for the night before (Nov. 9th), when actor Ben Foster and director Oren Moverman will screen their acclaimed new post-war drama "The Messenger". Much of the rest of the month is devoted to Cinema Tropical's Ten Years of New Argentine Cinema series with screenings of Adrián Caetano's immigration...
- 11/3/2009
- by Stephen Saito
- ifc.com
Now that Ben Lyons has gotten the boot from At the Movies, we no longer need to yell, "You lie!" at our TV screens each week. And with summer behind us, let's see what's shaking this week on the big screen.
Opening on 9/9/09 was, of course, 9, a bleak but beautiful animated feature about doll-like creatures — they're already calling the style of this stop-motion animated feature "stitchpunk" — fighting for survival in a bleak post-apocalyptic landscape.
While the storyline didn't thrill me, I was taken by director Shane Acker's stunning visuals and by his ability to create distinct personalities for his lead characters (who all have names such as 9, 2 and 6).
He's helped greatly with the latter by a terrific cast of actors, including Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly, Martin Landau, Christopher Plummer, Jennifer Connelly and Crispin Glover. 9 is way, way too bleak and disturbing for little kids — who should totally see...
Opening on 9/9/09 was, of course, 9, a bleak but beautiful animated feature about doll-like creatures — they're already calling the style of this stop-motion animated feature "stitchpunk" — fighting for survival in a bleak post-apocalyptic landscape.
While the storyline didn't thrill me, I was taken by director Shane Acker's stunning visuals and by his ability to create distinct personalities for his lead characters (who all have names such as 9, 2 and 6).
He's helped greatly with the latter by a terrific cast of actors, including Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly, Martin Landau, Christopher Plummer, Jennifer Connelly and Crispin Glover. 9 is way, way too bleak and disturbing for little kids — who should totally see...
- 9/11/2009
- by ADuralde
- The Backlot
I like to think I have a normal sense of humor, but when it comes to movies my opinion on comedy changes dramatically. While I laugh at many of today's comedies my opinion of them is minor. To make us laugh is one thing, but to truly be funny and to make us laugh over and over again is another. Comedies that depend on people getting hit in the crotch with stray objects or the appearance of a penis do very little for me. Even if I laugh once there is no way to laugh at those same situations again making the movie a one-time indulgence. Films like this have their place in the zeitgeist, but when it comes to purchasing movies for home viewing what good is a one-time laugh? It's definitely not worth your hard-earned dollar. I am not saying Jacques Tati's Play Time is a film...
- 8/18/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
It's time to take a look back at seven films I watched at home this past week outside of the six I saw in theaters. Hmmmm, 13 films in one week isn't too bad? Considering I watched four Mariner games and Tiger at the Bridgestone Invitational I would say that's pretty good, and I am going to make it an even 14 after I publish this piece, but not sure which one that will be... gonna have to wait until next weekend to find out. As for this past week, I caught up on a couple of Paul Newman features from my recently purchased Newman collection, a silent classic I had yet to see, a Jane Campion Oscar-winner I had never seen and along with that one, a second film that featured full-frontal nudity from Harvey Keitel. What are the odds on that coincidence? After checking out what I watched, add your...
- 8/9/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Jacques Tati had an astonishing run of success in the '40s and '50s with his puckish comedies Jour De Fête, Mr. Hulot's Holiday, and Mon Oncle, each of which reduced everyday human behavior to a set of clockwork actions, easily gummed up. Then Tati gambled all his goodwill—and most of his personal savings—on the 1967 comedy Playtime, for which he built an elaborate set meant to replicate the sterile, officious city he felt Paris had become. Playtime is Tati's crowning achievement, simultaneously bleak, beautiful, and stunningly choreographed. But it was a little too clean and reactionary for the shaggy '60s, and its financial failure left Tati unable to work on such a grand scale again. The same critics and cineastes who were initially cool to Playtime were equally indifferent to Trafic, a more modest 1971 comedy featuring Tati's signature character Mr. Hulot as an automotive engineer embarking on a.
- 7/16/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
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