Gangster Squad Directed by Ruben Fleischer Written by Will Beall USA, 2013 At some point, an excess of style only serves to emphasize the hollowness of a story. A director like Martin Scorsese knows how to weave a sprawling tale of vice and amorality while juicing up the proceedings with verve and panache. On the …
Some acting careers are made by a single role. Think Brando’s Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), Robert DeNiro’s Johnny Boy in Mean Streets (1973), Leonardo DiCaprio’s Jack in the box office behemoth Titanic (1997). A similar connection can happen on a more personal basis. You watch a movie and an actor — …
I’ve got Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino on my mind these days. It’s a product of the end-of-year hurrahs for Scorsese’s Hugo. The film goes into the Academy Award ceremonies with 11 Oscar nominations – the most of any film this year – including a Best Director nod for Scorsese. Win or lose, Marty’s on …
With the notion of film canonization once again at issue, we thought it might be an appropriate occasion to check in on our staff’s collective opinion of the greatest films of all time. We had no idea what to expect; our contributors come from all over the world and come from vastly different backgrounds and …
Normal School (Escuela Normal) Directed by Celina Murga Written by Celina Murga, Juan Villegas 2012, Argentina Any time a narrative film or documentary, or any art form for that matter, attempts to portray a well-defined social entity, whether it be a community or an institution contained within walls, there can be moments of giddying …
The French gave us the word “demimonde” – literally, half the world. But what it has come to mean in English, or so says Webster, is “a distinct circle or world that is often an isolated part of a larger world.” Storytellers have always held a fascination with the dark side of human nature; that …
Bullhead Written and Directed by Michael R. Roskam Belgium, 2011 In French, it translates to, “me parlez-vous?” In Dutch, it’s “spreekt u aan me?” Set in Belgium, with dialogue in Dutch and French, Michael R. Roskam’s Bullhead is a taut, uncompromising character study and organized crime thriller that masterfully translates Scorsese’s magnum opus quote, ‘are …
Throughout the first half of February, the Sound On Sight staff will take a look at the Academy Awards. By any reckoning, 1980 was an extraordinary year for film. From the sublime to the ridiculous, this was the year that gave the world both Jean Luc Godard’s Sauve Qui Peut and Alan Parker’s …
Acting and directing categories during awards seasons are always the hardest to determine. Who to choose and what for film is a constant battle, not to mention who deserves to be nominated. Between the veteran nominees (Clooney, Streep, Scorcese) to newbies in the awards season (Fassbender, Refn and Oldman (!)), let’s see who deserves a …
One of the greatest American crime films of the 90’s, Goodfellas, a hard-hitting and stylish flick directed by Martin Scorsese is being adapted for the small screen. Over the past year, there has been quite a bit of information dropped on the development of Goodfellas as a television series but there was no official word …
We recently discussed Martin Scorsese’s Hugo to raving reviews on episode 296 of the Sound On Sight podcast. It looks like we are not alone in sharing our love for the film. Today the National Board of Review named Hugo the best film of 2011 and Martin Scorsese best director. Check out the NBR’s full …
Ken Russell, the British director of Women in Love and The Devils, has died at the age of 84. We will be doing a retrospective on Russell throughout the month of December with reviews, articles and one special podcast dedicated to the provocative film maker who passed away peacefully in his sleep on Sunday afternoon. …
Hugo Directed by Martin Scorsese Written by John Logan, based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick USA, 2011 What are the odds that two of the best films of the year would be films about the history of Paris by veteran filmmakers identified strongly – almost chained – to the history …
George Harrison:Living in the Material World Directed by Martin Scorsese USA, 2011 What a day, what a day. Rushing from Queens to Manhattan with only an hour to get going for a nine AM screening in the mist of rush hour, to many city dwellers may seem like the impossible. Topple that with three train …
The Wrap has confirmed that after collaborating on critically lauded and Oscar winning hits such as The Aviator (2004), The Departed (2006) and Gangs of New York (2002); legendary director Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio are set to reunite for the 5th time to bring the bestselling memoir by Jordan Belfort, The Wolf of Wall Street, to the …
By the late 1970s, the tremendous creative license the major studios under a new generation of production chiefs had granted the young tyros of the 1960s – Coppola, Scorsese, et al – had expired as each managed to deliver at least one, major, back-breaking flop. For Scorsese, it had been the grim musical New York, …
Martin Scorsese’s inclusion and admiration for The Rolling Stones has been well documented in his numerous films, most notably the use of ‘Gimmie Shelter’ in Goodfellas, Casino and The Departed and his concert film Shine a Light. By no means did Scorsese give rise to the Stones popularity, nor did he awaken them from a …
Shutter Island does not measure up to Scorsese’s acknowledged directorial capacity. His flair for innovation and the uniqueness of his storytelling are better directed toward a simpler design, not the blockbuster horror epic with its altogether fatuous termination. Shutter Island Directed by Martin Scorsese Shutter Island, Scorsese’s fourth film featuring Leonardo DiCaprio, recounts the unnerving …
Shutter Island definitely begs a second viewing, and while it might not rank up there with earlier Scorsese classics, it remains a masterpiece in my eyes, and a production that has set the new standard for all future psychological thrillers. Shutter Island Directed by Martin Scorsese Before seeing Shutter Island, all I knew about the …
According to Page Six, a documentary surrounding the life of reggae groundbreaker Bob Marley entitled Marley has allegedly lost Silence of the Lambs director Jonathan Demme. He is the second major director to leave the project; apparently Martin Scorsese “dropped out of the project citing ‘scheduling conflicts,’ and Demme was brought on to replace him.” …
Swingers (1996) Directed by Doug Liman It really isn’t hard to see why this film has acquired a cult following. The atmosphere is laid back, the dialogue is some of the best in any 90’s comedy, the characters are appealing and well-drawn, the casting is perfect, the soundtrack is great, and the situations are honest …
Christian Bale demanded rewrite work be done on “Terminator: Salvation” before he took the role of John Connor, a role he insisted on rather than the character the filmmakers had in mind– “…central character Marcus Wright…at a Toronto press conference in January, he (director McG) said, “I went to see him… He reads the script …