Clay McLeod Chapman And Andrea Mutti Conjure The New Horror Series “SÉANCE In The Asylum”: "We’re receiving a message from the beyond! Dark Horse Comics presents Séance in the Asylum, a new historical horror series from renowned writer Clay McLeod Chapman and artist Andrea Mutti that will have you questioning what’s real and what’s not. Chapman will write the series and Mutti will illustrate, with Trevor Henderson, Francesco Francavilla, Lukas Ketner, and Jenna Cha rounding out the circle and providing variant cover art on issues #1-4.
“Years back, I uncovered an esoteric text -- The Homeopathic Principle Applied to Insanity: A Proposal to Treat Lunacy by Spiritualism by Dr. James John Garth Wilkinson -- written all the way back in 1857, and I knew within my bones, my blood, that this was destined to be a story,” said Chapman. “As a lifelong acolyte of the Fox Sisters,...
“Years back, I uncovered an esoteric text -- The Homeopathic Principle Applied to Insanity: A Proposal to Treat Lunacy by Spiritualism by Dr. James John Garth Wilkinson -- written all the way back in 1857, and I knew within my bones, my blood, that this was destined to be a story,” said Chapman. “As a lifelong acolyte of the Fox Sisters,...
- 3/15/2024
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
To celebrate the release of Mark Cousins’ new documentary The Storms of Jeremy Thomas, a portrait of the Oscar-winning producer responsible for bringing to life films by David Cronenberg, Jonathan Glazer, Jim Jarmusch, Bernardo Bertolucci, Nagisa Ôshima, Jerzy Skolimowski, and many more, NYC’s Quad Cinema is fittingly paying tribute to his career with a fantastic retrospective.
“Jeremy Thomas Presents” kicks off today and runs through September 28 at Quad Cinema, with The Storms of Jeremy Thomas opening this Friday, September 22. As the retrospective commences, we’re pleased to exclusively share the trailer along with comments directly from Thomas looking back at the making of these iconic films.
Sexy Beast
I was sent a script with a Jonathan Glazer attached, called “Sexy Beast”. It was on a Friday night, and I read it over the weekend. The screenplay was brilliant, and on the Monday I bought it before anyone else could.
“Jeremy Thomas Presents” kicks off today and runs through September 28 at Quad Cinema, with The Storms of Jeremy Thomas opening this Friday, September 22. As the retrospective commences, we’re pleased to exclusively share the trailer along with comments directly from Thomas looking back at the making of these iconic films.
Sexy Beast
I was sent a script with a Jonathan Glazer attached, called “Sexy Beast”. It was on a Friday night, and I read it over the weekend. The screenplay was brilliant, and on the Monday I bought it before anyone else could.
- 9/18/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
To celebrate the release of Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence – available on limited edition Blu-ray 15th June from Arrow Academy – we have a copy up for grabs!
David Bowie stars in Nagisa Oshima’s 1983 Palme d’Or-nominated portrait of resilience, pride, friendship and obsession among four very different men confined in the stifling jungle heat of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in Java during World War II.
Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was the first English-language film by Oshima, a leading light of Japanese New Wave cinema, and provided breakthrough big-screen roles for comedian Takeshi Kitano and musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also composed the film’s hauntingly memorable BAFTA-winning score. This powerful wartime drama was adapted from Laurens van der Post’s autobiographical novel ‘The Seed and the Sower’ (1963) by screenwriter Paul Mayersberg (The Man Who Fell To Earth).
Order today: https://arrowfilms.com/product-detail/merry-christmas-mr-lawrence-blu-ray/FCD2013
To be in with a chance of winning,...
David Bowie stars in Nagisa Oshima’s 1983 Palme d’Or-nominated portrait of resilience, pride, friendship and obsession among four very different men confined in the stifling jungle heat of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in Java during World War II.
Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was the first English-language film by Oshima, a leading light of Japanese New Wave cinema, and provided breakthrough big-screen roles for comedian Takeshi Kitano and musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also composed the film’s hauntingly memorable BAFTA-winning score. This powerful wartime drama was adapted from Laurens van der Post’s autobiographical novel ‘The Seed and the Sower’ (1963) by screenwriter Paul Mayersberg (The Man Who Fell To Earth).
Order today: https://arrowfilms.com/product-detail/merry-christmas-mr-lawrence-blu-ray/FCD2013
To be in with a chance of winning,...
- 6/16/2020
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
To celebrate the release of Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence – available on limited edition Blu-ray 15th June from Arrow Academy – we have a copy up for grabs!
David Bowie stars in Nagisa Oshima’s 1983 Palme d’Or-nominated portrait of resilience, pride, friendship and obsession among four very different men confined in the stifling jungle heat of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in Java during World War II.
Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was the first English-language film by Oshima, a leading light of Japanese New Wave cinema, and provided breakthrough big-screen roles for comedian Takeshi Kitano and musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also composed the film’s hauntingly memorable BAFTA-winning score. This powerful wartime drama was adapted from Laurens van der Post’s autobiographical novel ‘The Seed and the Sower’ (1963) by screenwriter Paul Mayersberg (The Man Who Fell To Earth).
Order today: https://arrowfilms.com/product-detail/merry-christmas-mr-lawrence-blu-ray/FCD2013
Please note: This competition is...
David Bowie stars in Nagisa Oshima’s 1983 Palme d’Or-nominated portrait of resilience, pride, friendship and obsession among four very different men confined in the stifling jungle heat of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in Java during World War II.
Produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was the first English-language film by Oshima, a leading light of Japanese New Wave cinema, and provided breakthrough big-screen roles for comedian Takeshi Kitano and musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also composed the film’s hauntingly memorable BAFTA-winning score. This powerful wartime drama was adapted from Laurens van der Post’s autobiographical novel ‘The Seed and the Sower’ (1963) by screenwriter Paul Mayersberg (The Man Who Fell To Earth).
Order today: https://arrowfilms.com/product-detail/merry-christmas-mr-lawrence-blu-ray/FCD2013
Please note: This competition is...
- 6/10/2020
- by Competitions
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Five years after he had won Best Director at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival for “Empire of Passion” Japanese auteur Nagisa Oshima would return to the cinema with “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence”, a film based on the works “The Seed and the Sower” and “The Night of the New Moon” by Sir Laurens van der Post. In his books, he reflects on his time as a prisoner of war after he had been captured by Japanese forces in 1942, and in Oshima’s, film the character played by Tom Conti bears much resemblance to the author, especially because of his knowledge of the Japanese language and culture. Apart from Conti, Oshima managed to assemble quite an interesting cast for this war drama consisting of musicians David Bowie and Ryuichi Sakamoto along with Takeshi Kitano as Sergeant Hara.
In 1942, Captain Yonoi (Sakamoto) is the commander of a camp of Japanese prisoners of war,...
In 1942, Captain Yonoi (Sakamoto) is the commander of a camp of Japanese prisoners of war,...
- 5/5/2020
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
As part of their release slates for the months June and July 2020 Arrow Academy will release the classic Nagisa Oshima “Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence” starring David Bowie and Hideo Sekigawa’s powerful documentary “Hiroshima”
Synopsis for “Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence”
David Bowie stars in Nagisa Oshima’s 1983 Palme d’Or-nominated portrait of resilience, pride, friendship and obsession among four very different men confined in the stifling jungle heat of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in Java during World War II.
In 1942, British officer Major Jack Celliers (Bowie) is captured by Japanese soldiers, and after a brutal trial sent, physically debilitated but indomitable in mind, to a Pow camp overseen by the zealous Captain Yonoi (Ryuichi Sakamoto). Celliers’ stubbornness sees him locked in a battle of wills with the camp’s new commandant, a man obsessed with discipline and the glory of Imperial Japan who becomes unnaturally preoccupied with the young Major,...
Synopsis for “Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence”
David Bowie stars in Nagisa Oshima’s 1983 Palme d’Or-nominated portrait of resilience, pride, friendship and obsession among four very different men confined in the stifling jungle heat of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in Java during World War II.
In 1942, British officer Major Jack Celliers (Bowie) is captured by Japanese soldiers, and after a brutal trial sent, physically debilitated but indomitable in mind, to a Pow camp overseen by the zealous Captain Yonoi (Ryuichi Sakamoto). Celliers’ stubbornness sees him locked in a battle of wills with the camp’s new commandant, a man obsessed with discipline and the glory of Imperial Japan who becomes unnaturally preoccupied with the young Major,...
- 4/18/2020
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
This (British) trailer goes out of its way to oversell the debuting David Bowie (the best-cast alien since Michael Rennie in Day The Earth Stood Still), but Nic Roeg and Paul Mayersberg’s adaptation of Walter Tevis’ novel faced a rocky reception when producer Paramount Pictures refused to distribute it after its first screening. Picked up by arthouse indie Cinema V, it was brutally cut for its initial Us release but managed to find cult status anyway. It’s since been restored and is a must-see; one of the most intelligent science fiction films ever released.
- 1/12/2018
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Tony Sokol Nov 26, 2018
The Man Who Fell to Earth gains its vision by losing sight of the stars.
The Man Who Fell to Earth isn’t like any other science fiction movie, even though it inspired and continues to pour new life into the genre. It is subtle, ethereal and a wholly human story. Indeed, David Bowie’s Thomas Jerome Newton is the most human character in the film. If not more human, certainly one with more humanity. He is an ideal that the people who betray him, and that’s almost everyone in the film, could only aspire to. Bowie’s alien is an outsider, a visitor suffering from hyperopia who becomes more myopic as he is corrupted by the temptations of his new home. At first he is focused on the plight of his home planet, but that gets hazy through the tunnel vision of the problems of a suspicious and greedy world.
The Man Who Fell to Earth gains its vision by losing sight of the stars.
The Man Who Fell to Earth isn’t like any other science fiction movie, even though it inspired and continues to pour new life into the genre. It is subtle, ethereal and a wholly human story. Indeed, David Bowie’s Thomas Jerome Newton is the most human character in the film. If not more human, certainly one with more humanity. He is an ideal that the people who betray him, and that’s almost everyone in the film, could only aspire to. Bowie’s alien is an outsider, a visitor suffering from hyperopia who becomes more myopic as he is corrupted by the temptations of his new home. At first he is focused on the plight of his home planet, but that gets hazy through the tunnel vision of the problems of a suspicious and greedy world.
- 2/6/2017
- Den of Geek
“Television. The strange thing about television is that it – doesn’t *tell* you everything. It *shows* you everything about life on Earth, but the true mysteries remain. Perhaps it’s in the nature of television. Just waves in space.”
Relive the imaginative cult classic, The Man Who Fell To Earth, starring international icon David Bowie, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
Relive the imaginative and compelling cult classic, The Man Who Fell to Earth, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate. International icon David Bowie stars in his unforgettable debut role as an alien who has ventured to Earth on a mission to save his planet from a catastrophic drought. In honor of David Bowie’s legacy, the limited collector’s edition Blu-ray Combo Pack includes never-before-seen interviews,...
Relive the imaginative cult classic, The Man Who Fell To Earth, starring international icon David Bowie, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
Relive the imaginative and compelling cult classic, The Man Who Fell to Earth, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate. International icon David Bowie stars in his unforgettable debut role as an alien who has ventured to Earth on a mission to save his planet from a catastrophic drought. In honor of David Bowie’s legacy, the limited collector’s edition Blu-ray Combo Pack includes never-before-seen interviews,...
- 1/11/2017
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
“Television. The strange thing about television is that it – doesn’t *tell* you everything. It *shows* you everything about life on Earth, but the true mysteries remain. Perhaps it’s in the nature of television. Just waves in space.”
Relive the imaginative cult classic, The Man Who Fell To Earth, starring international icon David Bowie, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
Relive the imaginative and compelling cult classic, The Man Who Fell to Earth, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate. International icon David Bowie stars in his unforgettable debut role as an alien who has ventured to Earth on a mission to save his planet from a catastrophic drought. In honor of David Bowie’s legacy, the limited collector’s edition Blu-ray Combo Pack includes never-before-seen interviews,...
Relive the imaginative cult classic, The Man Who Fell To Earth, starring international icon David Bowie, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
Relive the imaginative and compelling cult classic, The Man Who Fell to Earth, when the Limited Collector’s Edition arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus Digital HD) January 24 from Lionsgate. International icon David Bowie stars in his unforgettable debut role as an alien who has ventured to Earth on a mission to save his planet from a catastrophic drought. In honor of David Bowie’s legacy, the limited collector’s edition Blu-ray Combo Pack includes never-before-seen interviews,...
- 11/22/2016
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Nicolas Roeg's bizarre blend of high drama, searing sex and over-the-top brutality waited a year, only to be given a tiny American release. It then dropped out of sight. We're now in a better position to appreciate the show's great actors - especially Theresa Russell, the boldest and bravest actress of the 1980s. Eureka Blu-ray Twilight Time Limited Edition Small>1983 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 130 min. / Ship Date May 10, 2016 / available through Twilight Time Movies / 29.95 Starring Gene Hackman, Theresa Russell, Rutger Hauer, Jane Lapotaire, Mickey Rourke, Ed Lauter, Joe Pesci, Helena Kallianiotes, Corin Redgrave, Joe Spinell, Frank Pesce, Timothy Scott. Cinematography Alex Thomson Production Designer Michael Seymour Film Editor Tony Lawson Original Music Stanley Myers Written by Paul Mayersberg from a book by Marshall Houts Produced by Jeremy Thomas Directed by Nicolas Roeg
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
I remember Nicolas Roeg's Eureka as being one of the biggest busts of the 1980s.
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
I remember Nicolas Roeg's Eureka as being one of the biggest busts of the 1980s.
- 5/21/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
David Bowie in 'The Hunger' with Catherine Deneuve. David Bowie movies: Iconic singer memorable as fast-aging vampire in 'The Hunger,' Nikola Tesla in 'The Prestige' Singer and sometime actor David Bowie, one of the iconic figures of the English-language music scene of the second half of the 20th century, died of cancer yesterday, Jan. 10, '16. Bowie (born David Robert Jones in the London suburb of Brixton) had turned 69 on Jan. 8. His son, filmmaker Duncan Jones (Moon), has confirmed Bowie's death on Twitter. Bowie was seen in only a couple of dozen movies during his four-decade show business career. Among his most memorable film roles were those in the titles listed below. The Man Who Fell to Earth Directed by Nicolas Roeg (Walkabout, Don't Look Now) from a screenplay by Paul Mayersberg (based on a novel by Walter Tevis), The Man Who Fell to Earth...
- 1/11/2016
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
A classy crime thriller, with edgy suspense and twists that can't be predicted. Mike Hodges directs Paul Mayersberg's script about a frustrated writer who returns to casino work to find material for a book. A young Clive Owen shines as the rakish but sensible roulette & blackjack dealer, who documents his own criminal activities. Croupier Blu-ray Hen's Tooth Video 1998 / Color / 1:78 widescreen / 95 min. / Street Date November 3, 2015 / 24.95 Starring Clive Owen, Gina McKee, Kate Hardie, Alex Kingston, Nicholas Ball, Paul Reynolds, Ciro de Chiara, Rhona Mitra, Loretta Parnell. Cinematography Michael Garfath Production Designer Jon Bunker Art Direction Ian Reade-Hill, Alexander Scherer, Gernot Thöndel Film Editor Les Healey Original Music Simon Fisher-Turner Written by Paul Mayersberg Produced by Jonathan Cavendish, Marlow De Mardt, Jake Lloyd, James Mitchell, Brigid Olen, Christine Ruppert Directed by Mike Hodges
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
He: "You're my conscience." She: "Don't you have a conscience of your own?" If...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
He: "You're my conscience." She: "Don't you have a conscience of your own?" If...
- 11/10/2015
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
This (British) trailer goes out of its way to sell David Bowie (the best-cast alien since Michael Rennie in "Day The Earth Stood Still") as The Second Coming, but Nic Roeg and Paul Mayersberg's adaptation of Walter Tevis' novel is one of the finest sci-fi pix ever made. Brutally cut for its initial Us release, it's since been restored and is a must-see.
- 7/15/2015
- by Trailers From Hell
- Thompson on Hollywood
Danish major Nordisk Film, which has not produced a film in Norway since Kon-Tiki in 2012, will rearm its Norwegian production unit and start to make films again.
Aage Aaberge confirmed that he will return as head of Nordisk Film Production, which he ran between 2003-2008. His own production company, Neofilm, will be fused into the new set-up.
“I will move to Egmont House – Nordisk’s headquarters in Nydalen, northern Oslo – at the beginning of May, and first will hire some people,” Aaberge told ScreenDaily.
“And yes – Nordisk both wants to make more films, and bigger films.”
When the group sold TV production company Nordisk Film TV to France’s Banijay Group in 2009, it more or less terminated its involvement in Norwegian film production, mainly children and family pictures.
Nordisk’s only Norwegian feature since 2009 is Kon-Tiki, produced by Aaberge for Nordisk, and UK producer Jeremy Thomas for his Recorded Picture Company.
Directed by [link...
Aage Aaberge confirmed that he will return as head of Nordisk Film Production, which he ran between 2003-2008. His own production company, Neofilm, will be fused into the new set-up.
“I will move to Egmont House – Nordisk’s headquarters in Nydalen, northern Oslo – at the beginning of May, and first will hire some people,” Aaberge told ScreenDaily.
“And yes – Nordisk both wants to make more films, and bigger films.”
When the group sold TV production company Nordisk Film TV to France’s Banijay Group in 2009, it more or less terminated its involvement in Norwegian film production, mainly children and family pictures.
Nordisk’s only Norwegian feature since 2009 is Kon-Tiki, produced by Aaberge for Nordisk, and UK producer Jeremy Thomas for his Recorded Picture Company.
Directed by [link...
- 3/16/2015
- by jornrossing@aol.com (Jorn Rossing Jensen)
- ScreenDaily
Scream Factory gave many classic horror film fans a Halloween treat with the release of The Vincent Price Collection II, and now Arrow Films is looking to sate the viewing appetites of Price fans in England with Six Gothic Tales, due out on December 8th. Comprised of six Roger Corman movies based on Edgar Allan Poe’s works and starring Vincent Price, Arrow Films has unveiled their collection’s special features:
Press Release - “From the Merchant of Menace, Vincent Price, and the King of the B’s, Roger Corman, come six Gothic tales inspired by the pen of Edgar Allan Poe. Arrow Video is thrilled to announce the limited edition release of this Six Gothic Tales box set. Limited to a run of just 2000 copies, this much-anticipated release will include The Fall of the House of Usher, Tales of Terror, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, The Haunted Palace...
Press Release - “From the Merchant of Menace, Vincent Price, and the King of the B’s, Roger Corman, come six Gothic tales inspired by the pen of Edgar Allan Poe. Arrow Video is thrilled to announce the limited edition release of this Six Gothic Tales box set. Limited to a run of just 2000 copies, this much-anticipated release will include The Fall of the House of Usher, Tales of Terror, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, The Haunted Palace...
- 11/20/2014
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Erik Poppe, Paul Mayersberg, Aage Aaberge team on painter biopic.
Erik Poppe is attached to direct a new biopic of Norwegian Expressionist painter Edvard Munch.
Poppe, whose latest drama A Thousand Times Goodnight took the Best Film Prize at this week’s Amanda Awards in Norway, will collaborate on the project with veteran UK writer Paul Mayersberg (The Man Who Fell to Earth, Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence) and Norwegian producer Aage Aaberge (Kon-Tiki).
Aaberge, of Neofilm told ScreenDaily at Haugesund that the film is “a dream project” of his.
“For eight years I have wanted to make a film of Munch, Norway’s greatest artists,” he said. “After all, the latest effort, by UK director Peter Watkins, dates back to 1974.”
“But it was difficult to find the right way to approach the project, until I met writer-director Paul Mayersberg.”
Loosely based on Norwegian author Ketil Bjørnstad’s book, The Story of Edvard Munch, the film will...
Erik Poppe is attached to direct a new biopic of Norwegian Expressionist painter Edvard Munch.
Poppe, whose latest drama A Thousand Times Goodnight took the Best Film Prize at this week’s Amanda Awards in Norway, will collaborate on the project with veteran UK writer Paul Mayersberg (The Man Who Fell to Earth, Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence) and Norwegian producer Aage Aaberge (Kon-Tiki).
Aaberge, of Neofilm told ScreenDaily at Haugesund that the film is “a dream project” of his.
“For eight years I have wanted to make a film of Munch, Norway’s greatest artists,” he said. “After all, the latest effort, by UK director Peter Watkins, dates back to 1974.”
“But it was difficult to find the right way to approach the project, until I met writer-director Paul Mayersberg.”
Loosely based on Norwegian author Ketil Bjørnstad’s book, The Story of Edvard Munch, the film will...
- 8/19/2014
- by jornrossing@aol.com (Jorn Rossing Jensen)
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Dutch producer to resume his long-standing relationship with Peter Greenaway.
Dutch producer Kees Kasander is to resume his long-standing relationship with British director Peter Greenaway – and they already have several new projects together in the pipeline.
Greenaway’s current production - Eisenstein in Guanajuato (sold by Rezo) - is the first film he has made without Kasander for many years. With Kasander unavailable, it was produced instead by fellow Dutch producers Femke Wolting and Bruno Felix of Submarine alongside Cristina Velasco.
Now, Kasander and Greenaway are back in business together and already looking a long way ahead with 15 projects together.
The next film they are making together is Walking To Paris, a biopic about artist Constantin Brancusi. When he was a young man, Brancusi walked all the way from Romania to Paris. Stealth are in talks to handle international sales. The aim is to start shooting in the autumn.
Kasander is producing...
Dutch producer Kees Kasander is to resume his long-standing relationship with British director Peter Greenaway – and they already have several new projects together in the pipeline.
Greenaway’s current production - Eisenstein in Guanajuato (sold by Rezo) - is the first film he has made without Kasander for many years. With Kasander unavailable, it was produced instead by fellow Dutch producers Femke Wolting and Bruno Felix of Submarine alongside Cristina Velasco.
Now, Kasander and Greenaway are back in business together and already looking a long way ahead with 15 projects together.
The next film they are making together is Walking To Paris, a biopic about artist Constantin Brancusi. When he was a young man, Brancusi walked all the way from Romania to Paris. Stealth are in talks to handle international sales. The aim is to start shooting in the autumn.
Kasander is producing...
- 5/15/2014
- by geoffrey@macnab.demon.co.uk (Geoffrey Macnab)
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Dutch producer to resume his long-standing relationship with Peter Greenaway.
Dutch producer Kees Kasander is to resume his long-standing relationship with British director Peter Greenaway – and they already have several new projects together in the pipeline.
Greenaway’s current production - Eisenstein in Guanajuato (sold by Rezo) - is the first film he has made without Kasander for many years. With Kasander unavailable, it was produced instead by fellow Dutch producers Femke Wolting and Bruno Felix of Submarine alongside Cristina Velasco.
Now, Kasander and Greenaway are back in business together and already looking a long way ahead with 15 projects together.
The next film they are making together is Walking To Paris, a biopic about artist Constantin Brancusi. When he was a young man, Brancusi walked all the way from Romania to Paris. Stealth are in talks to handle international sales. The aim is to start shooting in the autumn.
Kasander is producing...
Dutch producer Kees Kasander is to resume his long-standing relationship with British director Peter Greenaway – and they already have several new projects together in the pipeline.
Greenaway’s current production - Eisenstein in Guanajuato (sold by Rezo) - is the first film he has made without Kasander for many years. With Kasander unavailable, it was produced instead by fellow Dutch producers Femke Wolting and Bruno Felix of Submarine alongside Cristina Velasco.
Now, Kasander and Greenaway are back in business together and already looking a long way ahead with 15 projects together.
The next film they are making together is Walking To Paris, a biopic about artist Constantin Brancusi. When he was a young man, Brancusi walked all the way from Romania to Paris. Stealth are in talks to handle international sales. The aim is to start shooting in the autumn.
Kasander is producing...
- 5/15/2014
- by geoffrey@macnab.demon.co.uk (Geoffrey Macnab)
- ScreenDaily
Veteran Australian producer Al Clark will receive the Aacta Raymond Longford Award in recognition of his three-decade career which has included iconic films such as Chopper and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
Clark, who emigrated from the UK in the 1980s after representing music acts such as the Sex Pistols and Phil Collins, has produced or executive produced 19 feature films. He has also served on the board of the Australian Film Commission (1989-1992) and participated in official juries of several international film festivals, including the San Sebastian and Valladolid Film Festivals.
..With a love of films that always transcends the frustrations of getting them made, I.ve tried to choose distinctive projects, to navigate them soundly, to find gifted people to work with, and to bring out the best in their considerable talents," Clark said after being told of the award. "I.m grateful to Aacta for...
Clark, who emigrated from the UK in the 1980s after representing music acts such as the Sex Pistols and Phil Collins, has produced or executive produced 19 feature films. He has also served on the board of the Australian Film Commission (1989-1992) and participated in official juries of several international film festivals, including the San Sebastian and Valladolid Film Festivals.
..With a love of films that always transcends the frustrations of getting them made, I.ve tried to choose distinctive projects, to navigate them soundly, to find gifted people to work with, and to bring out the best in their considerable talents," Clark said after being told of the award. "I.m grateful to Aacta for...
- 11/20/2012
- by Brendan Swift
- IF.com.au
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
A flood of sympathy and tributes greeted the news of the death of writer and director Nora Ephron early on Wednesday morning – very quickly you got the impression that here was someone genuinely liked and admired by her Hollywood peers, and who connected in a very unusual way with the wider world. Possibly because of her own background as a reporter in 60s New York, journalists considered her one of their own, outside the gilded cage rather than cowering inside it. More than that, she inspired a generation of women with her clever, witty take on popular culture and a persistent refusal to be defeated by Hollywood's male-centric culture.
As a film-maker, she was undeniably influential, virtually creating the template for the modern romantic comedy and providing a string of high profile roles for the likes of Meg Ryan,...
The big story
A flood of sympathy and tributes greeted the news of the death of writer and director Nora Ephron early on Wednesday morning – very quickly you got the impression that here was someone genuinely liked and admired by her Hollywood peers, and who connected in a very unusual way with the wider world. Possibly because of her own background as a reporter in 60s New York, journalists considered her one of their own, outside the gilded cage rather than cowering inside it. More than that, she inspired a generation of women with her clever, witty take on popular culture and a persistent refusal to be defeated by Hollywood's male-centric culture.
As a film-maker, she was undeniably influential, virtually creating the template for the modern romantic comedy and providing a string of high profile roles for the likes of Meg Ryan,...
- 6/28/2012
- The Guardian - Film News
'We had pig's blood lined up for a surgery scene but Bowie objected – so we used mine'
Paul Mayersberg, screenwriter
We started working on the script, an adaptation of the book by Walter Tevis, in 1974. At one point, a TV company had wanted to turn Tevis's story into something like The Fugitive: an alien on the run who would have a different adventure each week. Instead, we wanted to show what the world – or America, at any rate – would look like from the point of view of an alien who crashlands on Earth. Certain things hadn't been dealt with in cinema, notably the rise of conglomerates and their closeness to government. Political thrillers were big in the 1970s, The Parallax View and so on, but this was another way of looking at things.
David Bowie wasn't our first thought as Newton, the alien. Nic Roeg, the director, who'd just had...
Paul Mayersberg, screenwriter
We started working on the script, an adaptation of the book by Walter Tevis, in 1974. At one point, a TV company had wanted to turn Tevis's story into something like The Fugitive: an alien on the run who would have a different adventure each week. Instead, we wanted to show what the world – or America, at any rate – would look like from the point of view of an alien who crashlands on Earth. Certain things hadn't been dealt with in cinema, notably the rise of conglomerates and their closeness to government. Political thrillers were big in the 1970s, The Parallax View and so on, but this was another way of looking at things.
David Bowie wasn't our first thought as Newton, the alien. Nic Roeg, the director, who'd just had...
- 6/26/2012
- by Phil Hoad
- The Guardian - Film News
As part of our coverage of StudioCanal and the Independent Cinema Office’s Made In Britain season, Joe Utichi sat down with Paul Mayersberg, the writer of Nicolas Roeg’s 1976 sci-fi stunner The Man Who Fell to Earth…
You were working with Nic Roeg on other projects; how did The Man Who Fell To Earth come up?
Nic had a deal, after the success of Don’T Look Now, to develop three pictures for Columbia in America. The first he wanted to do was Out Of Africa, the second was Julia, and the third and littlest was The Man Who Fell To Earth. He’d been shown it by a friend; we hadn’t read it before. It was a paperback original which came and went in the 1960s. I think somebody did own it before; they thought of making it into a TV series like The Fugitive. Each week...
You were working with Nic Roeg on other projects; how did The Man Who Fell To Earth come up?
Nic had a deal, after the success of Don’T Look Now, to develop three pictures for Columbia in America. The first he wanted to do was Out Of Africa, the second was Julia, and the third and littlest was The Man Who Fell To Earth. He’d been shown it by a friend; we hadn’t read it before. It was a paperback original which came and went in the 1960s. I think somebody did own it before; they thought of making it into a TV series like The Fugitive. Each week...
- 6/19/2012
- by Phil
- Nerdly
David Bowie is perfect in the lead role of Nic Roeg's prescient stranded-alien tale
Alan Yentob was responsible for getting David Bowie his proper first feature-film gig, after director Nicolas Roeg watched his legendary 1974 documentary Cracked Actor; Bowie stepped seamlessly from one outsider's odyssey across the American mindscape into another. He is like Et's spindly, sexy older brother as stranded alien Thomas Jerome Newton, seeking to transport water back to his parched planet. Bowie's skewed affect was a clean fit for the role, and it's not clear how much acting is on display; the musician, apparently up to his eyeballs in medicinal-strength cocaine, wasn't sure either. The wry playfulness of Paul Mayersberg's script offsets Bowie's imperial detachment, and keeps Tmwfte grounded as Newton's quest dissipates. Roeg surfs the delirium throughout, finding stratospheric poetic imagery in the New Mexico locations and peering towards the horizons of present-day America: immigrant marginalisation,...
Alan Yentob was responsible for getting David Bowie his proper first feature-film gig, after director Nicolas Roeg watched his legendary 1974 documentary Cracked Actor; Bowie stepped seamlessly from one outsider's odyssey across the American mindscape into another. He is like Et's spindly, sexy older brother as stranded alien Thomas Jerome Newton, seeking to transport water back to his parched planet. Bowie's skewed affect was a clean fit for the role, and it's not clear how much acting is on display; the musician, apparently up to his eyeballs in medicinal-strength cocaine, wasn't sure either. The wry playfulness of Paul Mayersberg's script offsets Bowie's imperial detachment, and keeps Tmwfte grounded as Newton's quest dissipates. Roeg surfs the delirium throughout, finding stratospheric poetic imagery in the New Mexico locations and peering towards the horizons of present-day America: immigrant marginalisation,...
- 6/15/2012
- by Phil Hoad
- The Guardian - Film News
Casino
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Screenplay by Nicholas Pileggi and Martin Scorsese
1995, USA
Based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese (the two previously collaborated on the 1990 hit film Goodfellas); Casino
marks the eighth and (to date) final collaboration between director Scorsese and Robert de Niro.
The legendary American director presents a fascinating insider’s perspective of what goes on behind-the-scenes in the world’s gambling mecca. Starring Hollywood icons Robert DeNiro, Sharon Stone and Joe Pesci, Casino excels with rich dialogue, fantastic sets, a great cast, excellent cinematography and well-drawn characters. Despite the three hour long running time and a somewhat scattered script, Casino nevertheless remains a smart, entertaining spectacle that is populated with significant themes of betrayal, greed, money and the mob’s decline.
Hard Eight (Sydney)
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Screenplay by...
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Screenplay by Nicholas Pileggi and Martin Scorsese
1995, USA
Based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese (the two previously collaborated on the 1990 hit film Goodfellas); Casino
marks the eighth and (to date) final collaboration between director Scorsese and Robert de Niro.
The legendary American director presents a fascinating insider’s perspective of what goes on behind-the-scenes in the world’s gambling mecca. Starring Hollywood icons Robert DeNiro, Sharon Stone and Joe Pesci, Casino excels with rich dialogue, fantastic sets, a great cast, excellent cinematography and well-drawn characters. Despite the three hour long running time and a somewhat scattered script, Casino nevertheless remains a smart, entertaining spectacle that is populated with significant themes of betrayal, greed, money and the mob’s decline.
Hard Eight (Sydney)
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Screenplay by...
- 6/8/2012
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Now that our new house is settling, we wanted to bring back our weekly DVD & Blu-Ray Releases posts. We are calling this weekly post “Home Invasion”. If you plan on purchasing these items via Amazon, all you need to do is click on the buttons provided or on the artwork and not only do you get the same price you normally would with Amazon, but you help us out a little bit as well – which is all we ask because this list does take some time to put together.
All Descriptions are from Amazon.com unless otherwise noted. We have excluded the Netflix code on this particular post. This is due to all of the changes with Netflix and their DVD mailing program. If you want us to include the code in future Home Invasion posts, where you just click a button to add it to your queue, leave us a comment below.
All Descriptions are from Amazon.com unless otherwise noted. We have excluded the Netflix code on this particular post. This is due to all of the changes with Netflix and their DVD mailing program. If you want us to include the code in future Home Invasion posts, where you just click a button to add it to your queue, leave us a comment below.
- 9/26/2011
- by Andy Triefenbach
- Destroy the Brain
Criterion will release The Phantom Carriage (or Körkarlen in its native Swedish), the 1920 silent film by the acknowledged father of Swedish cinema, Victor Sjöström, on Blu-ray and DVD on Sept. 27.
Death's chariot awaits at the stroke of midnight in The Phantom Carriage.
Mixing drama, fantasy and horror, the movie concerns an abusive alcoholic (portrayed by Sjöström himself) who takes to heart a legend that claims that the last person to die on New Year’s Eve before the clock strikes twelve is doomed to take the reins of Death’s chariot and work to collect fresh souls for the next year.
Based on a novel by Nobel Prize winner Selma Lagerlöf, the innovative silent classic is filled with groundbreaking-for-their-time special effects. It’s also reportedly the film that inspired Ingmar Bergman to get into the business of making movies (which worked out pretty well for him).
Featuring a new digital...
Death's chariot awaits at the stroke of midnight in The Phantom Carriage.
Mixing drama, fantasy and horror, the movie concerns an abusive alcoholic (portrayed by Sjöström himself) who takes to heart a legend that claims that the last person to die on New Year’s Eve before the clock strikes twelve is doomed to take the reins of Death’s chariot and work to collect fresh souls for the next year.
Based on a novel by Nobel Prize winner Selma Lagerlöf, the innovative silent classic is filled with groundbreaking-for-their-time special effects. It’s also reportedly the film that inspired Ingmar Bergman to get into the business of making movies (which worked out pretty well for him).
Featuring a new digital...
- 6/15/2011
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
The Man Who Fell To Earth, Nicolas Roeg’s 1976 slice of sci-fi lyricism that contains a classic performance from David Bowie, is out now on Blu-Ray and Owf’s Ed Whitfield devoured the 1080p transfer last week and gave it a huge thumbs up. We can’t recommend the release highly enough and we’re now offering you the chance to win one of three Blu-Ray discs.
Crash landing on Earth from his dying planet, an alien humanoid traveling by the name of Thomas Jerome Newton (Bowie) uses his superior intelligence to build a vast business empire. As he takes on, and beats, every major Us corporation, people can only guess his true purpose – to save his dying world from drought. Newton’s ageless fall from grace, as he becomes prey to lust, alcohol, business rivals and the Us Government makes The Man Who Fell To Earth not only a...
Crash landing on Earth from his dying planet, an alien humanoid traveling by the name of Thomas Jerome Newton (Bowie) uses his superior intelligence to build a vast business empire. As he takes on, and beats, every major Us corporation, people can only guess his true purpose – to save his dying world from drought. Newton’s ageless fall from grace, as he becomes prey to lust, alcohol, business rivals and the Us Government makes The Man Who Fell To Earth not only a...
- 4/7/2011
- by Matt Holmes
- Obsessed with Film
With a catalogue of songs that includes the likes of “Life on Mars”, “Starman” and “Space Oddity” David Bowie is hardly a stranger to the outer reaches of our galaxy. Yet it was British director Nic Roeg, hot off the success of “Don’t Look Now”, who allowed The Thin White Duke to fully embrace his inner alien when he cast him as one Thomas Jerome Newton (Mick Jagger, Peter O’Toole and Michael Crichton were all initially considered) in the 1976 film “The Man Who Fell To Earth”.
Adapted from the 1963 novel of the same name by American novelist and short story writer Walter Tevis (who also wrote the novels “The Hustler” and “The Color of Money”) Roeg’s film follows Newton as he arrives on Earth seeking a way to bring water back home to his dying planet, Anthea, and is slowly corrupted by the unholy trinity of sex,...
Adapted from the 1963 novel of the same name by American novelist and short story writer Walter Tevis (who also wrote the novels “The Hustler” and “The Color of Money”) Roeg’s film follows Newton as he arrives on Earth seeking a way to bring water back home to his dying planet, Anthea, and is slowly corrupted by the unholy trinity of sex,...
- 4/4/2011
- by Nick Turk
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Nicolas Roeg is perhaps the quintessential British auteur. His work celebrates the eccentric, the askew; he’s the madman with the movie camera. Those that celebrate his style, as realised most vividly in his three bone fide classics, Performance (with Donald Cammell), Don’t Look Now and his 1976 slice of sci-fi lyricism, The Man Who Fell to Earth, enjoy the obfuscation, the challenge to an audience often spoon fed meaning, asked to extract their own. They embrace the movies’ artistic playfulness, the avant garde attitude with a home counties accent and the rewards that come from repeated viewings. Roeg’s best films are substantial and difficult but never less than mesmerising.
Quoting Voltaire, Roeg is said to be fond of the legend “I’m not interested in the triumph of the immediate” and that’s just as well as something like The Man Who Fell to Earth, with its withdrawn protagonist and fractured,...
Quoting Voltaire, Roeg is said to be fond of the legend “I’m not interested in the triumph of the immediate” and that’s just as well as something like The Man Who Fell to Earth, with its withdrawn protagonist and fractured,...
- 3/28/2011
- by Ed Whitfield
- Obsessed with Film
Optimum Releasing have been in touch and given us three copies of their new movie, The Man Who Fell to Earth on Blu-ray to give away.
The film is Directed by Nicolas Roeg and stars David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clarck, Buck Henry and is released in UK stores, 4th April.
Synopsis: Crash landing on Earth from his dying planet, an alien humanoid traveling by the name of Thomas Jerome Newton (Bowie) uses his superior intelligence to build a vast business empire. As he takes on, and beats, every major Us corporation, people can only guess his true purpose – to save his dying world from drought. Newton’s ageless fall from grace, as he becomes prey to lust, alcohol, business rivals and the Us Government makes The Man Who Fell To Earth not only a bitingly caustic indictment of the modern world but also a poignant commentary on the loneliness of the outsider.
The film is Directed by Nicolas Roeg and stars David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clarck, Buck Henry and is released in UK stores, 4th April.
Synopsis: Crash landing on Earth from his dying planet, an alien humanoid traveling by the name of Thomas Jerome Newton (Bowie) uses his superior intelligence to build a vast business empire. As he takes on, and beats, every major Us corporation, people can only guess his true purpose – to save his dying world from drought. Newton’s ageless fall from grace, as he becomes prey to lust, alcohol, business rivals and the Us Government makes The Man Who Fell To Earth not only a bitingly caustic indictment of the modern world but also a poignant commentary on the loneliness of the outsider.
- 3/27/2011
- by Competitons
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Eureka
Directed by Nicolas Roeg
Written by Paul Mayersberg
Australia, 1983
In his introductory remarks presaging a rare screening of his little known 1982 film Eureka director Nicolas Roeg confessed that the film suffered from Bad Timing, released as it was during the inception of the capitalist resurgence led by Thatcher and Regan, and nervous producers shelved the film for half a decade. In recent times the film has undergone a modest re-appraisal, it’s resonance with classics such as Citizen Kane and the more recently successful There Will Be Blood are apparent in the motif of power drunk capitalist scions descending into a deadly mania, a lunacy that takes their family and friends down with them, resulting in a lonely death as absolute power corrupts absolutely – not exactly the most receptive ethos to transmit in the early eighties.
One element that Eureka has going for it is its refreshing cast – aggressive...
Directed by Nicolas Roeg
Written by Paul Mayersberg
Australia, 1983
In his introductory remarks presaging a rare screening of his little known 1982 film Eureka director Nicolas Roeg confessed that the film suffered from Bad Timing, released as it was during the inception of the capitalist resurgence led by Thatcher and Regan, and nervous producers shelved the film for half a decade. In recent times the film has undergone a modest re-appraisal, it’s resonance with classics such as Citizen Kane and the more recently successful There Will Be Blood are apparent in the motif of power drunk capitalist scions descending into a deadly mania, a lunacy that takes their family and friends down with them, resulting in a lonely death as absolute power corrupts absolutely – not exactly the most receptive ethos to transmit in the early eighties.
One element that Eureka has going for it is its refreshing cast – aggressive...
- 3/11/2011
- by John
- SoundOnSight
What is Page 2? Page 2 is a compilation of stories and news tidbits, which for whatever reason, didn’t make the front page of /Film. After the jump we’ve included 30 different items, fun images, videos, casting tidbits, articles of interest and more. It’s like a mystery grab bag of movie web related goodness. If you have any interesting items that we might've missed that you think should go in /Film's Page 2 - email us [1]! Katie Cook [2] created this cute Star Wars-themed Valentine's Day card. [geektyrant [3]] StarWars.com [4] has a great compilation of Star Wars-related Valentine's Day festivities around the web. Watch David OReilly's (who created the animated sequences in Son of Rambow) award winning short film The External World, which premiered at the 67th Venice Film Festival and played at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. [ultraculture [5]] Black and Blue Films Gearing up for a movie titled Strippers vs Werewolves. Best title since Alien vs.
- 2/15/2011
- by Peter Sciretta
- Slash Film
Jeremy Irons, Kim Cattrall and Tom Sturridge have joined $10 million thriller "The Treehouse" for Transcorda Filmproduktion and Groundswell Productions says The Hollywood Reporter
Based on the novel by Eduard von Keyserling and adapted by Paul Mayersberg, the story is set in pre-World War I Germany detailing the story of a failed student, his glamorous cousin, her mother and the student's father.
The project was originally titled "The Master of Farnow". Lajos Koltai is set to direct.
Based on the novel by Eduard von Keyserling and adapted by Paul Mayersberg, the story is set in pre-World War I Germany detailing the story of a failed student, his glamorous cousin, her mother and the student's father.
The project was originally titled "The Master of Farnow". Lajos Koltai is set to direct.
- 2/14/2011
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983) Direction: Nagisa Oshima Screenplay: Nagisa Oshima, Paul Mayersberg; from Laurens Van der Post's novel The Seed and the Sower Cast: David Bowie, Tom Conti, Ryuishi Sakamoto, Takeshi Kitano, Jack Thompson, Johnny Okura David Bowie, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence He stands in the courtroom, fully inhabiting his allotted space behind the bar, clad in fatigues and a rakish scarf, radiating a self-possession that goes beyond mere military bearing. Ladies and gentlemen, playing the part of Maj. Jack Celliers, David Bowie! The year is 1942, and Celliers stands accused by a Japanese military tribunal of illegal conduct in his guerrilla fight against that country's sweep of the island of Java. He faces Captain Yonoi (Ryuichi Sakamoto, himself a Japanese rock star and composer of Merry Christmas's score). Stiff, arrogant and sporting exaggerated eye make-up – a detail that seems absurd at first viewing, but which supplementary documentaries insist is [...]...
- 11/11/2010
- by Dan Erdman
- Alt Film Guide
This week’s DVD and Blu-ray releases are truly some bankruptcy inducing titles. With two truly epic Blu-ray’s from Criterion to talk about, as well as a slew of new releases and catalog titles from various distributors, you’ll have to choose wisely, or perhaps just take out a loan on your house to pay for them all.
I know, I know. Tuesday was days ago, and we’re almost upon Tuesday again, where we’ll see a whole list of new titles. As those who follow me on Twitter know, I had a rather large event happen on Wednesday, which threw a wrench into my blogging plans. Nevertheless, I wanted to get these titles up, as I think they are incredibly important, and should be considered if you’re looking to drop some cash on DVDs and Blu-rays.
Before I get into this week’s new releases, I...
I know, I know. Tuesday was days ago, and we’re almost upon Tuesday again, where we’ll see a whole list of new titles. As those who follow me on Twitter know, I had a rather large event happen on Wednesday, which threw a wrench into my blogging plans. Nevertheless, I wanted to get these titles up, as I think they are incredibly important, and should be considered if you’re looking to drop some cash on DVDs and Blu-rays.
Before I get into this week’s new releases, I...
- 10/4/2010
- by Ryan Gallagher
- CriterionCast
Nagisa Oshima's Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983), which is based on an autobiographical novel by the South African adventurer-soldier Laurens van der Post, is a homo-erotic culture clash set in a World War 2 internment camp. This film's international rock-star casting and multi-lingual dialog reflects an obvious attempt by Oshima and his producer Jeremy Thomas to reach a broader international audience. This experiment in commerciality isn't entirely successful. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is good, but it falls short of the high bar set by the Oshima's prior works.
The film is set in Java in 1942. Captain Yonoi (Ryuichi Sakamoto) is a colonel in the Japanese army who, along with brutal Sergeant Gengo Hara (a young pre-accident Takeshi Kitano), lords over a P.O.W. camp. Life in the camp, which is mostly filed with British soldiers, is a daily struggle against death, torture, starvation, and the sexual allure of sweaty men packed together in dismal conditions.
The film is set in Java in 1942. Captain Yonoi (Ryuichi Sakamoto) is a colonel in the Japanese army who, along with brutal Sergeant Gengo Hara (a young pre-accident Takeshi Kitano), lords over a P.O.W. camp. Life in the camp, which is mostly filed with British soldiers, is a daily struggle against death, torture, starvation, and the sexual allure of sweaty men packed together in dismal conditions.
- 10/3/2010
- Screen Anarchy
It’s your gods. It’s your bloody, awful, stinking gods. They made you what you are. May they rot away in the filthy hell they came from!
A film dealing with cultural and identity conflicts between POWs in a Japanese internment camp during World War II, when done well, would be a worthy addition to any director’s career. But with Nagisa Oshima’s career already being an amazing array of risks (and always proud to take them), his 1983 film Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is just one more notch on the belt of a varied film maker.
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, an adaptation of Laurens van der Post’s two books dealing with his experiences in World War II as a prisoner of war (The Seed and the Flower and The Night of the Moon) tells the story of the relationships between four men in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.
A film dealing with cultural and identity conflicts between POWs in a Japanese internment camp during World War II, when done well, would be a worthy addition to any director’s career. But with Nagisa Oshima’s career already being an amazing array of risks (and always proud to take them), his 1983 film Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is just one more notch on the belt of a varied film maker.
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, an adaptation of Laurens van der Post’s two books dealing with his experiences in World War II as a prisoner of war (The Seed and the Flower and The Night of the Moon) tells the story of the relationships between four men in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.
- 10/1/2010
- by James McCormick
- CriterionCast
Reviewer: Jeffrey M. Anderson
Rating (out of 5): ***
The great Japanese director Nagisa Oshima is known for shaking up the quiet, stately Japanese cinema of the 1960s with his stories of youth, social realism, social critique, and even a bit of surrealism. His most notable titles from this period are arguably Boy (1969) and The Ceremony (1971), though none of his early films is well known in the West. Instead, Oshima is best known here for his pair of 1970s erotic arthouse hits, In the Realm of the Senses (1976) and Empire of Passion (1978). Though these movies put Oshima on the world map, many early fans consider them a diversion from Oshima's true talent.
This leads us to Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983), Oshima's follow-up to Empire of Passion, newly released via Criterion Collection. With the world's attention, he turned to this international production, based on an autobiographical novel by Afrikaner Laurens van der Post,...
Rating (out of 5): ***
The great Japanese director Nagisa Oshima is known for shaking up the quiet, stately Japanese cinema of the 1960s with his stories of youth, social realism, social critique, and even a bit of surrealism. His most notable titles from this period are arguably Boy (1969) and The Ceremony (1971), though none of his early films is well known in the West. Instead, Oshima is best known here for his pair of 1970s erotic arthouse hits, In the Realm of the Senses (1976) and Empire of Passion (1978). Though these movies put Oshima on the world map, many early fans consider them a diversion from Oshima's true talent.
This leads us to Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983), Oshima's follow-up to Empire of Passion, newly released via Criterion Collection. With the world's attention, he turned to this international production, based on an autobiographical novel by Afrikaner Laurens van der Post,...
- 9/29/2010
- by underdog
- GreenCine
Here we are, another 15th of the month, another group of amazing releases from the Criterion Collection announced on schedule. Being so obsessively attached to rumors and gossip on Twitter and forums and the like, many of these titles have been hinted at in one form or another.
Way back in March, we got a somewhat obvious clue in the monthly Criterion Collection e-mail newsletter, in the form of a thin, red lion, and after some back and forth as to which movie it was referring to, many came to the conclusion it was in fact Terrance Malick’s The Thin Red Line. Criterion’s recent Blu-ray release of Malick’s Days of Heaven was an incredible production, with a transfer that cannot be beaten. The Thin Red Line was also teased at in a twitter picture post that Criterion sent out back in March, giving further proof to the...
Way back in March, we got a somewhat obvious clue in the monthly Criterion Collection e-mail newsletter, in the form of a thin, red lion, and after some back and forth as to which movie it was referring to, many came to the conclusion it was in fact Terrance Malick’s The Thin Red Line. Criterion’s recent Blu-ray release of Malick’s Days of Heaven was an incredible production, with a transfer that cannot be beaten. The Thin Red Line was also teased at in a twitter picture post that Criterion sent out back in March, giving further proof to the...
- 6/16/2010
- by Ryan Gallagher
- CriterionCast
Publisher of Movie magazine and books on cinema and art
Ian Cameron, who has died aged 72 from a virulent form of lung disease, had a long and enterprising career as an independent producer of books, notably on cinema and art, and of an influential film magazine, Movie. Producer is the best word, since he was variously author, editor, photographer, designer and publisher. The flair and commitment that he brought to the last four of these roles came to overshadow his own writing, but in his 20s he was a sharp and articulate film critic, a dominant voice in the debates that were transforming attitudes to cinema in Britain in the 1960s.
His childhood had been unsettled. Born in London, he was only five when his mother died and his Scottish father sent him to live for a year with maiden aunts in Inverness; on returning, he found he now had a stepmother.
Ian Cameron, who has died aged 72 from a virulent form of lung disease, had a long and enterprising career as an independent producer of books, notably on cinema and art, and of an influential film magazine, Movie. Producer is the best word, since he was variously author, editor, photographer, designer and publisher. The flair and commitment that he brought to the last four of these roles came to overshadow his own writing, but in his 20s he was a sharp and articulate film critic, a dominant voice in the debates that were transforming attitudes to cinema in Britain in the 1960s.
His childhood had been unsettled. Born in London, he was only five when his mother died and his Scottish father sent him to live for a year with maiden aunts in Inverness; on returning, he found he now had a stepmother.
- 3/14/2010
- The Guardian - Film News
I never would have watched The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) had I not been sent the Blu-ray for review. Of the first four Blu-rays released by Criterion it is the one title I wouldn't have actually shelled out money for even though I was intrigued after watching the trailer. However, first impressions aren't always everything but after watching the film itself, listening to the accompanying audio commentary and watching the group of supplements included with this release I can still say it is a film I would never buy, but not necessarily because it is a bad film as much as it just isn't my kind of film. Reading the accompanying essay written by critic Graham Fuller the recognition of director Nicolas Roeg as an experimentalist pretty much says it all. In my experience experimental films are going to be a hit or miss with audiences (most often miss...
- 12/29/2008
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Late last week Criterion announced the first five titles they will release on Blu-ray high-definition discs and they will come loaded with bonus features and are already available for pre-order on Criterion's site. The first five titles include The Third Man and The Man Who Fell to Earth on November 18 and The Last Emperor, Bottle Rocket and Chungking Express the following week on November 25. I have included the specs and special features below as well as the cover art for three of the titles. The Third Man (1949) Will feature a restored high definition transfer in 1.37:1, and an uncompressed mono soundtrack. Video introduction by writer-director Peter Bogdanovich Two audio commentaries: one by filmmaker Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Tony Gilroy, and one by by film scholar Dana Polan Shadowing "The Third Man" (2005), a ninety-minute feature documentary on the making of the film Abridged recording of Graham Greene's treatment, read by...
- 8/18/2008
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
This (British) trailer goes out of its way to sell David Bowie (the best-cast alien since Michael Rennie in Day The Earth Stood Still) as The Second Coming, but Nic Roeg and Paul Mayersberg's adaptation of Walter Tevis' novel is one of the finest sci-fi pix ever made. Brutally cut for its initial Us release, it's since been restored and is a must-see.
- 7/14/2008
- Trailers from Hell
Belatedly receiving an American release as part of the enterprising Shooting Gallery indie series, this film from British director Mike Hodges ("Get Carter") has many fine things to recommend it, most notably an intense and minimalist performance by Clive Owen and Hodges' gloomily atmospheric direction.
Even though it is ultimately less effective in terms of plotting than mood, "Croupier" is nonetheless a welcome return to form for a filmmaker who has been far too inactive.
Owen plays Jack Manfred, a novelist struggling with writer's block who, at the urging of his wayward father, takes a job as a casino croupier in order to gain some much-needed inspiration. Totally contemptuous of gambling and the people who indulge in it, the taciturn Jack soon discovers that, thanks to his powers of observation, he's quite adept at his newfound profession.
Despite the fact that he has a live-in girlfriend, he becomes sexually involved with a co-worker and also begins a flirtatious relationship with a beautiful South African woman (Alex Kingston of "ER") who soon reveals her true motive: She wants him to be the inside man on a scheme to rob the casino.
"Croupier", written by Paul Mayersberg ("The Man Who Fell to Earth"), is the sort of cerebral thriller that relies more on densely layered characterizations and provocative dialogue than on conventional action sequences. The film's literary tone is well established by the extensive use of voice-over narration, a device that often falls resoundingly flat but here gives us vital insights into the emotionally reticent central character's psyche.
Although the narrative is too meandering and diffuse to satisfy a mass audience, the film has style to spare. As the quietly amoral antihero, Owen delivers an awesomely assured performance, and Kingston provides intriguing sultriness as his partner in crime.
CROUPIER
The Shooting Gallery
Credits: Director: Mike Hodges; Screenwriter: Paul Mayersberg; Producer: Jonathan Cavendish; Executive producer: James Mitchell; Director of photography: Mike Garfath; Editor: Leo Healey; Composer: Simon Fisher Turner; Production designer: Jon Bunker. Cast: Jack Manfred: Clive Owen; Marion Neil: Gina McKee; Jani de Villiers: Alex Kingston; David Reynolds: Alexander Morton; Bella: Kate Hardie; Matt: Paul Reynolds. No MPAA rating. Color/stereo. Running time -- 89 minutes.
Even though it is ultimately less effective in terms of plotting than mood, "Croupier" is nonetheless a welcome return to form for a filmmaker who has been far too inactive.
Owen plays Jack Manfred, a novelist struggling with writer's block who, at the urging of his wayward father, takes a job as a casino croupier in order to gain some much-needed inspiration. Totally contemptuous of gambling and the people who indulge in it, the taciturn Jack soon discovers that, thanks to his powers of observation, he's quite adept at his newfound profession.
Despite the fact that he has a live-in girlfriend, he becomes sexually involved with a co-worker and also begins a flirtatious relationship with a beautiful South African woman (Alex Kingston of "ER") who soon reveals her true motive: She wants him to be the inside man on a scheme to rob the casino.
"Croupier", written by Paul Mayersberg ("The Man Who Fell to Earth"), is the sort of cerebral thriller that relies more on densely layered characterizations and provocative dialogue than on conventional action sequences. The film's literary tone is well established by the extensive use of voice-over narration, a device that often falls resoundingly flat but here gives us vital insights into the emotionally reticent central character's psyche.
Although the narrative is too meandering and diffuse to satisfy a mass audience, the film has style to spare. As the quietly amoral antihero, Owen delivers an awesomely assured performance, and Kingston provides intriguing sultriness as his partner in crime.
CROUPIER
The Shooting Gallery
Credits: Director: Mike Hodges; Screenwriter: Paul Mayersberg; Producer: Jonathan Cavendish; Executive producer: James Mitchell; Director of photography: Mike Garfath; Editor: Leo Healey; Composer: Simon Fisher Turner; Production designer: Jon Bunker. Cast: Jack Manfred: Clive Owen; Marion Neil: Gina McKee; Jani de Villiers: Alex Kingston; David Reynolds: Alexander Morton; Bella: Kate Hardie; Matt: Paul Reynolds. No MPAA rating. Color/stereo. Running time -- 89 minutes.
- 4/25/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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