In his 30-year career as a composer, Carter Burwell’s film scores have run the veritable cinematic gamut. From composing for Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation., Where the Wild Things Are) to his work being the best parts of the Twilight saga, Burwell’s résumé is sporadic and unconventional, even for a man who makes film music for …
Joel and Ethan Coen have built a reputation as two of the most visionary and idiosyncratic filmmakers working today. Dabbling in Film Noir to screwball comedy, from off-beat indies to big-budget studio pieces, their films are adored by critics and audiences alike.
Condensing a popular young adult book to its most basic and necessary parts is an unenviable task. No matter how passionate the filmmakers are to the original text, someone’s bound to be disappointed. No film adaptation can satisfy every fan; it doesn’t matter how hard you try. Take out one character or rewrite them to be minimal, and you’re doomed.
Oscar winning actor Jeff Bridges recently won an award from The International Center of Photography for his behind-the-scenes photographs of movies he’s worked on since 1984. Turns out Bridges is a masterful still photographer and these photos are nothing but impressive. If you like what you see, check out his personal website, and this New …
‘True Grit’ 1969, written by Marguerite Roberts and directed by Henry Hathaway. Starring John Wayne, Glen Campbell, Jeff Corey and Kim Darcy. ‘True Grit’ 2010, directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Screenplay by Joel and Ethan Coen, based on True Grit by Charles Portis. Starring Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin and introducing Hailee Steinfeld. …
Trying to get Hollywood to change direction is not unlike trying to steer an elephant by poking it in its thick-hided ass with a matchstick; it doesn’t exactly respond like a Maserati. And that’s a problem because there are some box office signs suggesting the American movie industry needs – may, in fact, desperately need, …
Spoke Art, the team behind the recent Wes Anderson-themed Bad Dads exhibit in San Francisco is heading to New York for their next big film-themed art show titled Quentin vs. Coens. The exhibit will be open from April 7-April 9 at the Bold Hype Gallery in Manhattan and includes work from over 100 artists who …
It was reported a while back that Spike Jonze (Where The Wild Things Are) and screenwriter Charlie Kaufman are teaming up for their third collaboration together after the critically acclaimed hits Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. According to Deadline the project is in negotiations to be picked by Megan Ellison’s Annapurna Pictures, and is “a …
I will leave the discussion of what/who won/didn’t win and why/why not to others. I have only one concern: Did it work? For the now befuddled, let me recap what I laid out back in January when the 2011 Academy Award nominations were announced: A year earlier, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences …
Infused with its own brand of hyper-stylized realism, Dogtooth feels so out of this world that it’s almost impossible to pin down. The winner of the Prix Un Certain Regard at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, the Greek film is twisted and weird enough that the absurd comedy of Todd Solondz seems lucid by comparison. …
The American Cinema Editors handed out their “Eddie Awards” and with no surprise The Social Network was named the best edited feature-length drama. Alice in Wonderland won in the comedy/musical category, Toy Story 3 in the animated category and finally Exit Through the Gift Shop won in the documentary category. Modern Family, The Walking Dead, …
Are you already sick of Oscar coverage? Tough luck, ’cause Justine and Simon have some thoughts on the major categories at this year’s festivities, so if you’re planning an Oscar pool – well, maybe look elsewhere, ’cause frankly Simon’s batting average isn’t all that great. (Just ask his wallet.) Anyway, in this first installment, they’ll …
Wally Pfister has won the top prize at the 2011 American Society of Cinematographers Award ceremony for outstanding in cinematography for his work on Inception. The other nominees in the feature film category were Matthew Libatique, ASC (Black Swan), Danny Cohen, BSC (The King’s Speech), Jeff Cronenweth, ASC (The Social Network), and Roger Deakins, ASC, …
True Grit surprisingly stands as the Coen brother’s biggest box-office success to date. The film opened wider than any Coen brothers film, across 3,047 venues, and yet earned a robust $8,402 per-theater average—a validation of the film’s strength in the marketplace. The film’s success could be attributed to several facts: The simple case of the …
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was not, originally, in the award-awarding business. In fact, the Academy (founded by some of the early Hollywood moguls i.e. Louis Mayer, Douglas Fairbanks, and Jack Warner, among others) didn’t get around to handing out the little gold men until 1929 — two years after AMPAS’ creation. …
The American Society of Cinematographers have nominated five cinematographers for its 25th annual Outstanding Achievement Awards: The five include, Matthew Libatique (Black Swan), Wally Pfister (Inception), Danny Cohen (The King’s Speech), Jeff Cronenweth (The Social Network), and Roger Deakins (True Grit). This is the ninth time Roger Deakins’ has been nominated (his fifth in the …
Rotten Tomatoes has announced their 2010 Golden Tomato Awards. Everyone already knows that Toy Story 3 was the best-reviewed wide-release of 2010, but it is still interesting to see which other nine made the top ten. You can see the list below but first here are a few interesting facts. This marks the fourth year …
True Grit is a wonderfully executed work of love, admiration and respect by the Coen brothers. It’s singular in genre—it is a complete and true western—which may seem odd at first because the Coens are masters of mixing the domains of the real with that of absurdity (The Big Lebowski), idiocy (Fargo), sheer insanity (Burn …
#20 – Valhalla Rising Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn Nicolas Winding Refn, who made the underrated Bronson in England and the striking Pusher series in Denmark creates a brutal, yet thoughtful, re-envisioning of the Viking saga. This Malick/Jodorowsky hybrid is one of the best looking films in recent memory. Its breathtaking digital photography across the …
Before we move on to the top three films of the year, I thought we should list off a few honorable mentions. The following films appeared on some of the top 10 lists from our staff, but didn’t receive enough points to make the final cut. 1- Carnancho 2- Certified Copy 3- Gasland 4- The …
“The Coens once again demonstrate why they are among the very few American filmmakers worth anticipating and they hardly disappoint”. True Grit (2010) Directed by Joel & Ethan Coen Cast: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Josh Brolin and Matt Damon If in some way, No Country for Old Men was about an innocence lost that never …
Fall is now upon us. With Labor Day upon us, that means it’s time to get the rake out and pass on those trick or treats. Football has replaced Baseball, although with the pennant race in full gear, important baseball is still to be played. I am glad I mentioned the word important because that …