Though this blog platform is usually reserved for writing about movies, Howard Rodman’s novel is totally filmic and he himself has served as President of the Writers Guild of American, so that is close enough. Moreover after spending a total of two years in Berlin in the past three years and going into my next six months here, this ode to Berlin is particularly pleasing to me. This novel is a fictional account of Fritz Lang’s last year in Berlin, in 1933. Not a very good year. He is estranged from his wife — long time collaborator on his best films, M, Metropolis, Doctor Mabuse… Though they still share living quarters, she is having an affair with an American. He is hurt within and is also suffering from a toothache adding to the interior pain in the life of this great German director, son of a Jewish mother who converted the Catholicism and raised him strictly as a Catholic. Taking place in Weimar Berlin, we see the fashion, the glitz, the clubs, the cars, the interior decoration, and as alluded to before, the interior life of Fritz as he watches his friends and colleagues leaving Germany for U.S. and France, and in the case of Bertolt Brecht, his wife Helen Weigel and their son, for Hungary. The kicker is midway in when Fritz Lcang invites his wife Thea to the UFA screening room where Harold Nebenthal and Edward Ulmer, just back from, and about to return to Hollywood, are together and discover that, because of new Jewish laws, The Testament of Dr. Mabuse’s theatrical release at the UFA Palast has been replaced by Wounded Germany This blog is quite expressionistic, beginning with my quoting off the flyleaf of the book cover here as Howard speaks best for himself. Berlin, the last day of February, 1933. The Reichstag lies in smoldering ruins. A new world is about to spring from its ashes. For German filmmakers, there is a choice. To stay, work with the new order, a government which truly believes in the power of film; or to leave, without looking back. Destiny Express is the story of Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou. Together, they made some of the greatest films of all time. M, Metropolis, Doctor Mabuse. Married more than a decade, Lang and von Harbou are the most intimate of friends, the closest of enemies. Now, as day after day is torn from the calendar, they watch, as if paralyzed, as one by one. Bert Brecht, Max Ophuls, Billy Wilder take the next train out. Fritz Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou in their Berlin apartment, in 1923 or 1924 (which is, when the script for Metropolis was prepared). The photograph is from a series about this famous couple. Public Domain. At once exhaustively researched and wildly imagined, Destiny Express follows Lang, von Harbou, a host of real and fictional others — American cafe Surrealist Sam Harrison, novelist-turned-minister-of-culture Joseph Goebbels, Mercedes-racing champ Otto Merz, film star Rudolf Klein-Rogge, a pair of not-so-secret police — as their paths converge, intertwine, separate across the grid of Berlin, from the artificial daylight of the UFA soundstage to the artificial night of Berlin’s most exclusive clubs. Both protagonists have separate personal agendas they are following and they try not to get into each other’s way. As we watch the action, the inner life we witness of Fritz Lang as he weighs his options, thinks about his wife — his love and yet his nemesis — thinks about leaving, wishes they could be together, plays the tough guy; and in the end goes his way as she goes hers; these are the keynotes of the novel. Howard Rodman writes with a flair for visuals and for being able to show us the interior of the minds of creatives as if they were the outward reality. He is also able to reveal inward thoughts which run on separate tracks at the same time. This talent is what gives the novel a special edge. Add the expressionistic elongation of shadows, the sounds of heels clicking on the pavements, as in: On Konigstrasse her heels struck the cobbles with a high, flinty click which came back to her in syncopation from the building frontage. the silent river running through Berlin, cars, clubs, cafes, UFA Studios, Prussian apartments, paintings by Otto Dix…a dynamic Berlin, known in a nostalgic way, comes to life Cars: At once the blacktop rejoined Konigstrasse, and Lang slid the Lancea adeptly into the stream of traffic… Howard reminded me he had not been in Berlin when he wrote this making it all the more extraordinary… Shadows: Midway between two lamps Thea cast shadows of equal length before and behind. The shadow in front of her elongated, became more vague, as she approached the next lamp. The echo seemed to come back fractionally later than she’d been anticipating, and she stopped, to see if there were another set of footsteps dogging her own, but there were not. Thoughts running parallel to each other: And finally, as Lang leaves Berlin on the train, “There were fewer tracks. The lines were branching out, each with its specific destination…Then there was just one set of tracks, the one the train was reeling out behnd it. The glow of the train’s rear lights, a dense crimson, did not penetrate to where the rails converged. by raising his eyes a bit, Lang could feel them coming together, as he left all behind. Howard A. Rodman Howard A. Rodman is a screenwriter, novelist, and educator. He was President of Writers Guild of America West 2015–2017; is professor and former chair of the writing division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts; an artistic director of the Sundance Institute Screenwriting Labs; a member of the executive committee of the Writers Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; and a fellow of the Los Angeles Institute for the Humanities. His films include Savage Grace, starring Julianne Moore, — official selection Cannes Film Festival in 2007 — and August with Josh Hartnett, Rip Torn, and David Bowie. Son of Howard Rodman and Dorothy Rodman. Stepson of Norma Connolly. Brother of Adam Rodman. Howard A. Rodman has been married to Mary Beth Heffernan since June 25, 2017. He was previously married to Anne Friedberg (24 June 1990–9 October 2009) ( her death) with whom he had one child. · President, Writers Guild of America West, 2015–2017. · Named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) by the Republic of France, 2013. · Inducted into FinalDraft’s Screenwriters Hall of Fame, 2018. Writer (6 credits) 2008 August (written by) 2007 Savage Grace (screenplay) 2000 Takedown (screenplay) 2000 Joe Gould’s Secret (screenplay) 1997 The Hunger (TV Series) (screenplay — 1 episode — which he also directed!), - The Swords (1997) … (screenplay) 1993–1995 Fallen Angels (TV Series) (teleplay — 3 episodes) - The Professional Man (1995) … (teleplay) - The Frightening Frammis (1993) … (teleplay) - The Quiet Room (1993) … (teleplay) As a writer, Howard has had plenty to live up to as his father’s bio, written by Howard himself attests: Howard Rodman, Sr. was an American writer and story editor of such critically acclaimed series such as Naked City (1958) and Route 66 (1960). A Brooklyn native, the son of immigrant parents, Rodman began his career in the 1950s writing for such noted anthology series as Studio One, Alcoa Theater, and Goodyear Theater. He contributed to Have Gun — Will Travel (1957) and was an associate producer on Peyton Place (1964). In the subsequent decades he won a trio of Writer’s Guild awards for his scripts for Naked City: Today the Man Who Kills Ants Is Coming (1962), Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre: The Game with Glass Pieces (1964), and for the NBC/Universal Television drama, The Neon Ceiling (1971). As a feature writer, he scripted the Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward racing film, Winning (1969), and co-wrote three iconic feature films for director Don Siegel: Madigan (1968), Coogan’s Bluff (1968), and Charley Varrick (1973). Rodman also wrote the teleplay adaptation of Martin Caidin’s novel, ‘The Six Million Dollar Man’, essentially creating the television version of the character as well as supplying the format for the subsequent series. Dissatisfied with the final product he removed his name and substituted his pseudonym Henri Simoun, a frequent practice. Rodman was once quoted as saying, “The script isn’t finished until the name comes off”. Rodman also created the David Janssen private eye series Harry O (1973). In 1976, he was presented with the Writers Guild’s Laurel Award for lifetime achievement in television. His final project was the made-for-tv movie Scandal Sheet (1985), starring Burt Lancaster. He died of complications following heart surgery in Los Angeles at age 65. He was survived by his second wife, actress Norma Connolly, and his children: Howard A. Rodman (a writer), Adam Rodman (a writer), Phillip Rodman, and Tiahna Skye. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Howard A. Rodman #Berlin #Movies #Book Review #Nazis #Cinema...
- 3/5/2023
- by Sydney
- Sydney's Buzz
St. Louis Jewish Film Festival
Plaza Frontenac Cinema
Tuesday, June 5 at 7pm
Austria/Israel – In English, German and Hebrew with English subtitles
Director: Amichai Greenberg
Feature: 96 mins.
With introduction by Susan Balk, co-author of “Vienna’s Conscience” and Founding Director of Hate Brakers
In the taut Israeli-Austrian thriller/mystery The Testament, Israeli historian Dr. Yoel Halberstam (Ori Pfeffer) is leading a team from the Jerusalem Holocaust Institute in high-profile court battle to preserve a site where 200 Jewish forced laborers were massacred and buried in Austria in March 1945. But the Israeli preservationists are racing a ticking clock, as the Austrian town of Lendsdorf is demanding proof of a mass grave before halting plans for a new development on the site. Halberstam must find it before the deadline set by the court. Unless the mass grave is found, the building plan will go ahead and the site will be obliterated.
The Israeli...
Plaza Frontenac Cinema
Tuesday, June 5 at 7pm
Austria/Israel – In English, German and Hebrew with English subtitles
Director: Amichai Greenberg
Feature: 96 mins.
With introduction by Susan Balk, co-author of “Vienna’s Conscience” and Founding Director of Hate Brakers
In the taut Israeli-Austrian thriller/mystery The Testament, Israeli historian Dr. Yoel Halberstam (Ori Pfeffer) is leading a team from the Jerusalem Holocaust Institute in high-profile court battle to preserve a site where 200 Jewish forced laborers were massacred and buried in Austria in March 1945. But the Israeli preservationists are racing a ticking clock, as the Austrian town of Lendsdorf is demanding proof of a mass grave before halting plans for a new development on the site. Halberstam must find it before the deadline set by the court. Unless the mass grave is found, the building plan will go ahead and the site will be obliterated.
The Israeli...
- 6/5/2018
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The Marlene Meyerson Jcc Manhattan has set the lineup for its sixth annual Israel Film Center Festival, marking the 70th anniversary of Israel's independence.
The event will open with Eran Riklis' Shelter, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. It will close with Asaf Saban's Outdoors. Other noteworthy films set to screen at this year's edition of New York's leading Israeli film festival include the premiere of Savi Gabizon's Longing as well as screenings of Nir Bergman's Saving Neta, The Testament, Karlovy Vary award winner The Cakemaker and actor Mike Burstyn's directorial debut Azimuth.
The...
The event will open with Eran Riklis' Shelter, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. It will close with Asaf Saban's Outdoors. Other noteworthy films set to screen at this year's edition of New York's leading Israeli film festival include the premiere of Savi Gabizon's Longing as well as screenings of Nir Bergman's Saving Neta, The Testament, Karlovy Vary award winner The Cakemaker and actor Mike Burstyn's directorial debut Azimuth.
The...
- 5/3/2018
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Marlene Meyerson Jcc Manhattan has set the lineup for its sixth annual Israel Film Center Festival, marking the 70th anniversary of Israel's independence.
The event will open with Eran Riklis' <em>Shelter</em>, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. It will close with Asaf Saban's <em>Outdoors</em>. Other noteworthy films set to screen at this year's edition of New York's leading Israeli film festival include the premiere of Savi Gabizon's <em>Longing</em> as well as screenings of Nir Bergman's <em>Saving Neta</em>, <em>The Testament</em>, Karlovy Vary award winner <em>The Cakemaker</em> and actor Mike Burstyn's directorial debut <em>Azimuth</em>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>
The fest will also ...
The event will open with Eran Riklis' <em>Shelter</em>, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. It will close with Asaf Saban's <em>Outdoors</em>. Other noteworthy films set to screen at this year's edition of New York's leading Israeli film festival include the premiere of Savi Gabizon's <em>Longing</em> as well as screenings of Nir Bergman's <em>Saving Neta</em>, <em>The Testament</em>, Karlovy Vary award winner <em>The Cakemaker</em> and actor Mike Burstyn's directorial debut <em>Azimuth</em>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>
The fest will also ...
The Testament will screen at Plaza Frontenac Cinema (Lindbergh Blvd. and Clayton Rd, Frontenac, Mo 63131) as part of this year’s St. Louis International Film Festival. Showings are Monday, Nov. 6 at 7pm (purchase tickets Here) and Thursday, Nov. 9 at 2:15pm (purchase tickets Here).
In the taut Israeli-Austrian thriller/mystery The Testament, focuses on Dr. Yoel Halberstam (Ori Pfeffer), an Israeli historian with the Jerusalem Holocaust Institute, who is leading a high-profile court battle to preserve a site in Austria where 200 Jewish forced laborers were massacred and buried in March 1945. But the Israeli team working to preserve the site are racing a ticking clock, as the Austrian town of Lendsdorf is preparing to build on the site and is demanding proof of a mass grave before halting that plan. The problem is that witnesses are few and no one knows the exact location of the mass grave. Halberstam must find...
In the taut Israeli-Austrian thriller/mystery The Testament, focuses on Dr. Yoel Halberstam (Ori Pfeffer), an Israeli historian with the Jerusalem Holocaust Institute, who is leading a high-profile court battle to preserve a site in Austria where 200 Jewish forced laborers were massacred and buried in March 1945. But the Israeli team working to preserve the site are racing a ticking clock, as the Austrian town of Lendsdorf is preparing to build on the site and is demanding proof of a mass grave before halting that plan. The problem is that witnesses are few and no one knows the exact location of the mass grave. Halberstam must find...
- 11/9/2017
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Heard the one about the Holocaust-investigating rabbi who finds out he's actually a goy? This is the situation, rich with comic potential, played out with plodding seriousness in writer-director Amichai Greenberg's frustratingly inert feature debut The Testament (Ha'Edut). Taking as its starting point two notorious real life massacres from the final days of World War II, the Israeli-Austrian coproduction bowed in the Orizzonti section at Venice. Despite its widescreen cinematography, the picture is a distinctly small-screen proposition, one which may play best in educational contexts.
Ori Pfeffer is ennui inducingly low key in the underwritten central role of Yoel, a sadsack fortysomething estranged...
Ori Pfeffer is ennui inducingly low key in the underwritten central role of Yoel, a sadsack fortysomething estranged...
- 9/18/2017
- by Neil Young
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The 2017 Venice Film Festival kicked off on August 30, and for anyone who can’t make it all the way to Italy this year, IndieWire has a solution for you. Between now and Thursday, September 7 at noon Et, IndieWire readers can register using this form to win one of 5 online festival passes, which will give you the opportunity to stream five Venice titles for free online. All of the streaming titles will be from this year’s Orizzonti competition (Horizons), Biennale College and a few other sections. The movies include the following titles:
Endangered Species, by Gilles Bourdos – Online on August 31
Under The Tree, by Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson – Online on August 31
Strange Colours, by Alena Lodkina – Online on August 31
West Of Sunshine, by Jason Raftopoulos – Online on September 1
Martyr, by Mazen Khaled – Online on September 1
Nato A Casal Di Principe, by Bruno Oliviero – Online on September 1
Beautiful Things, by Giorgio Ferrero – Online on September 2
No Date,...
Endangered Species, by Gilles Bourdos – Online on August 31
Under The Tree, by Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson – Online on August 31
Strange Colours, by Alena Lodkina – Online on August 31
West Of Sunshine, by Jason Raftopoulos – Online on September 1
Martyr, by Mazen Khaled – Online on September 1
Nato A Casal Di Principe, by Bruno Oliviero – Online on September 1
Beautiful Things, by Giorgio Ferrero – Online on September 2
No Date,...
- 8/31/2017
- by Jamie Righetti
- Indiewire
ZamaThe programme for the 2017 edition of the Venice Film Festival has been unveiled, and includes new films from Darren Aronofsky, Lucrecia Martel, Frederick Wiseman, Alexander Payne, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Abdellatif Kechiche, Takeshi Kitano and many more.COMPETITIONmother! (Darren Aronofsky)First Reformed (Paul Schrader)Sweet Country (Warwick Thornton)The Leisure Seeker (Paolo Virzi)Una Famiglia (Sebastiano Riso)Ex Libris - The New York Public Library (Frederick Wiseman)Angels Wear White (Vivian Qu)The Whale (Andrea Pallaoro)Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Martin McDonagh)Foxtrot (Samuel Maoz)Ammore e malavita (Manetti Brothers)Jusqu'a la garde (Xavier Legrand)The Third Murder (Hirokazu Kore-eda)Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno (Abdellatif Kechiche)Lean on Pete (Andrew Haigh)L'insulte (Ziad Doueiri)La Villa (Robert Guediguian)The Shape of Water (Guillermo del Toro)Suburbicon (George Clooney)Human Flow (Ai Weiwei)Downsizing (Alexander Payne)Out Of COMPETITIONFeaturesOur Souls at Night (Ritesh Batra)Il Signor Rotpeter (Antonietta de Lillo)Victoria...
- 7/27/2017
- MUBI
On the heels of the Toronto International Film Festival announcement earlier this week, Venice Film Festival have now delivered their full lineup and while there’s no Terrence Malick as rumored, there’s a plethora of highly-anticipated titles. Along with the previously-announced opener Downsizing and the expected Suburbicon, mother!, The Shape of Water, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, there’s Lucrecia Martel’s Zama, Andrew Haigh’s Lean on Pete, Abdellatif Kechiche’s Blue is the Warmest Color follow-up Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno, and Brawl In Cell Block 99, the latest film from Bone Tomahawk director S. Craig Zahler.
Also in the lineup is Errol Morris’s Netflix crime drama Wormwood, Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, Frederick Wiseman’s Ex Libris – New York Public Library, Hirokazu Koreeda’s The Third Murder, Takeshi Kitano’s closing night film Outrage Coda, Michaël R. Roskam’s Racer and The Jailbird, the Kirsten Dunst-led Woodshock,...
Also in the lineup is Errol Morris’s Netflix crime drama Wormwood, Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, Frederick Wiseman’s Ex Libris – New York Public Library, Hirokazu Koreeda’s The Third Murder, Takeshi Kitano’s closing night film Outrage Coda, Michaël R. Roskam’s Racer and The Jailbird, the Kirsten Dunst-led Woodshock,...
- 7/27/2017
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Venice Announces 2017 Lineup, Including ‘The Shape of Water,’ ‘Suburbicon,’ ‘mother!,’ and Many More
Will 2017 be the year that Venice gets its king-making mojo back? After a steady run of debuting recent best picture winners — from “Spotlight” to “Birdman” — the festival missed out on last year’s big winner, “Moonlight,” which bowed at Telluride. This year’s lineup is a promising one, and while it’s still very early in the process, it’s difficult not to pick through today’s announcement of the festival’s slate and not search for the big contenders.
As was previously announced, the festival will open with Alexander Payne’s social satire “Downsizing,” starring Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig. The festival will also play home to the premiere of the Netflix original “Our Souls at Night,” as part of their planned tribute to stars Robert Redford and Jane Fonda. Annette Bening will lead the competition jury, ending an 11-year succession of male jury chiefs.
Read MoreIndieWire Fall Film...
As was previously announced, the festival will open with Alexander Payne’s social satire “Downsizing,” starring Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig. The festival will also play home to the premiere of the Netflix original “Our Souls at Night,” as part of their planned tribute to stars Robert Redford and Jane Fonda. Annette Bening will lead the competition jury, ending an 11-year succession of male jury chiefs.
Read MoreIndieWire Fall Film...
- 7/27/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.