Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, and Harold Lloyd were the clown jewels of silent comedy. Chaplin was off the screen in 1924; he was a year away from the release of one of his feature masterpieces “The Gold Rush.” Lloyd followed the blockbuster success of 1923’s “Safety Last!” in 1924 with the gems “Girl Shy” and “Hot Water.” And Keaton dazzled critics and audiences with the innovative “Sherlock Jr.” and the riotous “The Navigator.”
“Sherlock Jr.”, which opened in May 1924, was just Keaton’s third feature. Running a brisk 45 minutes, “Sherlock Jr” pushed the cinematic envelope. The stoic, deadpan comic plays a projectionist and janitor at a small-town movie theater who dreams, literally, of becoming a detective. He also discovers that he has a slick rival (Ward Crane) for his sweet girl (Kathryn McGuire). The slick even steals the pocket watch of the girl’s father and puts the blame on Buster. Banished from the house,...
“Sherlock Jr.”, which opened in May 1924, was just Keaton’s third feature. Running a brisk 45 minutes, “Sherlock Jr” pushed the cinematic envelope. The stoic, deadpan comic plays a projectionist and janitor at a small-town movie theater who dreams, literally, of becoming a detective. He also discovers that he has a slick rival (Ward Crane) for his sweet girl (Kathryn McGuire). The slick even steals the pocket watch of the girl’s father and puts the blame on Buster. Banished from the house,...
- 5/14/2024
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
One week before Alynda Segarra’s father died, he mailed them a package. It was a box of all the music Segarra had sent him over the span of nearly 20 years, ever since they’d left their childhood home in the Bronx to travel the country. Everything they’d recorded, from burned CDs for street and jazz bands they’d played in, to records from Segarra’s own band of more than a decade, Hurray for the Riff Raff, was in there.
“He had absolutely every single thing I’d given him since,...
“He had absolutely every single thing I’d given him since,...
- 3/1/2024
- by Jeff Gage
- Rollingstone.com
It’s been a decade of reinvention for Hurray for the Riff Raff, the recording moniker of singer-songwriter Alynda Segarra. After years of street-busking and self-releasing acoustic records, Segarra cemented their status as an old-timey roots standard-bearer on 2014 Small Town Heroes. But over the course of their past two albums–2017’s The Navigator and 2021’s Life On Earth–Segarra chipped away at that artistic identity by exploring other musical lineages (everything from alt-pop to punk to Nuyorican folk-poetry) while carving out a truer artistic self. Their new album, The Past Is Still Alive,...
- 2/21/2024
- by Jonathan Bernstein
- Rollingstone.com
“Alibi,” the opening track of Hurray for the Riff Raff’s The Past Is Still Alive, embraces the sense of invincibility that comes from facing down the very worst that life can throw at you. “You don’t have to die if you don’t wanna die/You can take it all back in the nick of time,” Alynda Segarra sings. The arrangement, featuring organ and bursts of tambourine, imbues the song with a sense of resilience and liberation—a relentlessly forward-moving spirit that recalls the music of Lucinda Williams, Gillian Welch, and Waxahatchee.
The rest of The Past Is Still Alive is likewise informed by recollections of both a friend’s addiction and the passing of Segarra’s father, charting a determined, if sometimes uneasy, journey to make peace with uncomfortable truths. “Snake Plant” alternates between pleasantly mundane memories to direct addresses to a friend battling addiction (“I know...
The rest of The Past Is Still Alive is likewise informed by recollections of both a friend’s addiction and the passing of Segarra’s father, charting a determined, if sometimes uneasy, journey to make peace with uncomfortable truths. “Snake Plant” alternates between pleasantly mundane memories to direct addresses to a friend battling addiction (“I know...
- 2/19/2024
- by Tom Williams
- Slant Magazine
Buster Keaton was one of the most prolific filmmakers of the silent era, comparable only to his contemporaries Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd. Unlike Lloyd with his distinctive spectacles or Chaplin with his signature stache, Keaton was identified by the emotionless expression he wore while enduring some of the most painful, dangerous, and hilarious bits of physical comedy the world has ever seen.
The filmmaker grew up as a vaudeville actor and took the stage as early as age four, where he first honed his slapstick skills in an act with his father. He was always known for taking hard falls without so much as a wince, which is how he earned his nickname, Buster, as an infant. As Keaton told it, legendary illusionist Harry Houdini gave him the nickname after an infant Keaton fell down a full flight of stairs without crying (a "buster" was a slang term for...
The filmmaker grew up as a vaudeville actor and took the stage as early as age four, where he first honed his slapstick skills in an act with his father. He was always known for taking hard falls without so much as a wince, which is how he earned his nickname, Buster, as an infant. As Keaton told it, legendary illusionist Harry Houdini gave him the nickname after an infant Keaton fell down a full flight of stairs without crying (a "buster" was a slang term for...
- 2/11/2024
- by Shae Sennett
- Slash Film
Buster Keaton’s landmark career gets further exploration from Cohen Film Collection with the July 9 release of Sherlock Jr. and The Navigator on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital.
The two films, featured in The Buster Keaton Collection Volume 2, underwent a 4K restoration and contain modern orchestra scores by Timothy Brock and Robert Israel. Cohen Film Collection’s [...]
The post Buster Keaton Classics ‘Sherlock Jr.’ And ‘The Navigator’ Land July Release On Blu-Ray appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.
The two films, featured in The Buster Keaton Collection Volume 2, underwent a 4K restoration and contain modern orchestra scores by Timothy Brock and Robert Israel. Cohen Film Collection’s [...]
The post Buster Keaton Classics ‘Sherlock Jr.’ And ‘The Navigator’ Land July Release On Blu-Ray appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.
- 6/12/2019
- by Hollywood Outbreak
- HollywoodOutbreak.com
(Welcome to The Movies That Made Star Wars, a series where we explore the films and television properties that inspired George Lucas’s iconic universe. In this edition: Buster Keaton’s The Navigator.) Buster Keaton’s 1924 film The Navigator isn’t spoken of as often or as lovingly as the much more known The General from 1926, but […]
The post What ‘The Phantom Menace’ Borrows From a Classic Buster Keaton Comedy appeared first on /Film.
The post What ‘The Phantom Menace’ Borrows From a Classic Buster Keaton Comedy appeared first on /Film.
- 3/22/2019
- by Bryan Young
- Slash Film
Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park, Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining and D.A. Pennebaker’s concert film Monterey Pop were among the 25 films added to the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry, which recognizes motion pictures that are “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said Thursday. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
“It was for us a vast undertaking,...
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said Thursday. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
“It was for us a vast undertaking,...
- 12/12/2018
- by Daniel Kreps
- Rollingstone.com
The Library of Congress has announced the 25 films joining the National Film Registry in 2018. The most well-known titles in this year’s group include Ang Lee’s “Brokeback Mountain,” Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining,” Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rebecca,” Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park,” and James L. Brooks’ “Broadcast News.” Films that make the cut have been deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” and will be preserved under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating, and preserving this distinctive medium,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes, and dreams.”
With the 25 new additions, the National Film Registry now has a total of 750 titles. “Brokeback Mountain,” released in 2005, is the most recently released film to be added to the Registry this year.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating, and preserving this distinctive medium,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes, and dreams.”
With the 25 new additions, the National Film Registry now has a total of 750 titles. “Brokeback Mountain,” released in 2005, is the most recently released film to be added to the Registry this year.
- 12/12/2018
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Since 1989, the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress has been accomplishing the important task of preserving films that “represent important cultural, artistic and historic achievements in filmmaking.” From films way back in 1897 all the way up to 2005, they’ve now reached 750 films that celebrate our heritage and encapsulate our film history.
Today they’ve unveiled their 2018 list, which includes Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain, Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca, and Orson Welles’ The Lady From Shanghai. There’s also Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster behemoth Jurassic Park, Samuel Fuller’s stellar noir Pickup on South Street, the riveting, harrowing documentary Hearts and Minds, and much more.
Check out the full list below and you can watch some films on the registry for free here.
1. Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
2. Broadcast News (1987)
3. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
4. Cinderella (1950)
5. Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
6. Dixon-Wanamaker Expedition to Crow Agency
7. Eve...
Today they’ve unveiled their 2018 list, which includes Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain, Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca, and Orson Welles’ The Lady From Shanghai. There’s also Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster behemoth Jurassic Park, Samuel Fuller’s stellar noir Pickup on South Street, the riveting, harrowing documentary Hearts and Minds, and much more.
Check out the full list below and you can watch some films on the registry for free here.
1. Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
2. Broadcast News (1987)
3. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
4. Cinderella (1950)
5. Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
6. Dixon-Wanamaker Expedition to Crow Agency
7. Eve...
- 12/12/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
“Jurassic Park,” “My Fair Lady,” “Brokeback Mountain” and “The Shining” were among the 25 American films inducted into the National Film Registry, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced Wednesday.
Selection to the registry will help ensure that these films will be preserved for all time because of their cultural, historic and aesthetic importance to the nation’s film heritage.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” Hayden said. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
Also Read: 'Titanic,' 'The Goonies,' 'Superman' Added to National Film Registry
This year’s films span 107 years, from 1898 to 2005. They include blockbusters, documentaries, silent movies, animation and independent films. The 2018 selections bring the number of films in the registry to 750, a small fraction of the Library’s...
Selection to the registry will help ensure that these films will be preserved for all time because of their cultural, historic and aesthetic importance to the nation’s film heritage.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” Hayden said. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
Also Read: 'Titanic,' 'The Goonies,' 'Superman' Added to National Film Registry
This year’s films span 107 years, from 1898 to 2005. They include blockbusters, documentaries, silent movies, animation and independent films. The 2018 selections bring the number of films in the registry to 750, a small fraction of the Library’s...
- 12/12/2018
- by Thom Geier
- The Wrap
“Brokeback Mountain,” “Jurassic Park,” “My Fair Lady,” “The Shining,” “Hud” and “Monterey Pop” are among the best known titles among this year’s additions to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
A place on the list — always made up of 25 films — guarantees the film will be preserved under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act. The criteria for selection is that the movies are “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
The 2018 selections bring the total number of films in the registry to 750. Hayden will discuss the 25 new films with Leonard Maltin on Turner Classic Movies at 8 p.m. E.T. Wednesday.
The new titles...
A place on the list — always made up of 25 films — guarantees the film will be preserved under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act. The criteria for selection is that the movies are “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant.
“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”
The 2018 selections bring the total number of films in the registry to 750. Hayden will discuss the 25 new films with Leonard Maltin on Turner Classic Movies at 8 p.m. E.T. Wednesday.
The new titles...
- 12/12/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Timed to coincide with Cohen Media’s restorations of Buster Keaton’s silent features, “The Great Buster: A Celebration” is a by-the-book documentary of the great comedian’s life and career clearly designed as an appetizer before the classic films are reissued. While Peter Bogdanovich’s enthusiasm for his subject is undeniable, in many cases his choice of talking heads remains questionable, unless being told that “Jackass 2” was influenced by the Great Stoneface really furthers an understanding of Keaton’s brilliance. Structured as a straightforward life story followed by an extended coda looking in detail at the features Cohen is restoring, “The Great Buster” can’t hold a candle to the 1987 three-part series “Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow” but will make do as a decent DVD extra.
Long recognized, together with Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd, as one of the true geniuses of comedy, Keaton’s life is...
Long recognized, together with Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd, as one of the true geniuses of comedy, Keaton’s life is...
- 9/1/2018
- by Jay Weissberg
- Variety Film + TV
Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher will be buried among many other famous stars at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Reynolds’s son and Fisher’s younger brother Todd Fisher told ABC’s 20/20 that he is planning a joint service with Billie Lourd, 24, his niece and Fisher’s daughter. According to Todd, his mother and sister will be buried “among friends,” at Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
Fisher, 60, was aboard an 11-hour flight from London to Los Angeles on Friday, Dec. 23, when she went into cardiac arrest. She later died that following Tuesday in the hospital. Reynolds died a...
Reynolds’s son and Fisher’s younger brother Todd Fisher told ABC’s 20/20 that he is planning a joint service with Billie Lourd, 24, his niece and Fisher’s daughter. According to Todd, his mother and sister will be buried “among friends,” at Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
Fisher, 60, was aboard an 11-hour flight from London to Los Angeles on Friday, Dec. 23, when she went into cardiac arrest. She later died that following Tuesday in the hospital. Reynolds died a...
- 12/31/2016
- by Blake Bakkila
- PEOPLE.com
Above: French grande for El Topo (Alejandro Jodorowsky, Mexico, 1970). Artist: “Moebius,” aka Jean Giraud, aka “Gir” (1938-2012).You might expect something wilder from the fecund paired imaginations of Alejandro Jodorowsky and the artist known as Moebius. But this striking yet unusually restrained poster for El Topo (courtesy of Film/Art Gallery who provided a second, that’s-more-like-it Italian poster for the film that also made the top 20) was the most popular poster on Movie Poster of the Day over the last three months by a long stretch of desert.Collecting the posters with the most likes and reblogs yields a particularly attractive and typically diverse collection of art. There are Danish posters for French films, Polish posters for Italian films, Italian posters for Russian films and Russian posters for American films. Plenty of great artists are represented: from the Sternberg Brothers to John Alvin, from Andrzej Onegin-Dabrowski to Georges Kerfyser,...
- 9/2/2016
- MUBI
This week is Ben Barenholtz' birthday.
We'd like to celebrate by running 2 pieces on his amazing wonderful life.
This is his public bio, which in itself, tells of a rich wonderful career in film.
In the next days we'll publish his amazing memoir of his European childhood when he narrowly escaped from the hands of Jew killers during the War.
I personally owe Ben a lot. When I was producing some years back Ben was working for Almi and bought an indie film I produced 'Home Free All' by Director Stewart Bird for that company. The money from that deal paid our investors and took us out of a deep financial hole. I am always grateful to Ben for his vision and belief in us then.
Now for his professional bio -
Biography for Ben Barenholtz
Birth Name Benjamin Barenholtz
Mini Biography
As an exhibitor, distributor, and producer, Ben Barenholtz has been a key presence in the independent film scene since the late 1960s, when he opened the Elgin Cinema in New York City.
Barenholtz secured his first job in the film business when he became assistant manager of the Rko Bushwick Theater in Brooklyn in 1958. From 1966-68 he managed and lived in the Village Theater, which ultimately became the Filmore East. At the Village Theater Barenholtz provided a home for the counterculture, with appearances by Timothy Leary, Stokley Carmichael, Rap Brown, and Paul Krasner. Some of the first meetings of the anti-Vietnam War movement, including the Poets Against Vietnam, were held at the Village Theater. It was also a major music venue, with performances by The Who, Cream, Leonard Cohen, John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Nina Simone and many others.
In 1968 he opened the Elgin Cinema. The theater became the world's most innovative specialty and revival house, relaunching the films of Buster Keaton and D.W. Griffith, running a variety of independent films by young American directors, and screening cult, underground, and experimental films for the emerging countercultural audience. The films of Stan Brakhage, Jack Smith, Maya Deren, Kenneth Anger, Jonas Mekas, and Andy Warhol, as well as early works by Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese, all played at the Elgin.
Barenholtz also developed new ways of screening movies. He started screening dance and opera films on Saturday and Sunday mornings. He created the "All Night Show" - movies started at midnight and ended at dawn. Most notably, Barenholtz originated the "Midnight Movie" in 1970 with Alexander Jodorowsky's El Topo, which ran for 6 months, 7 days a week, to sold out audiences.
The film was eventually bought by John Lennon. El Topo was followed at midnight by John Waters' Pink Flamingoes and Perry Henzell's The Harder They Come. Barenholtz formed the specialty distributor Libra Films in 1972.
The first film Libra distributed was a revival of Jean-Pierre Melville's Les Enfants Terrible, followed by Claude Chabrol's Just Before Nightfall, and Jean-Charles Tacchella's Cousin, Cousine, which became one of the largest grossing foreign films in the Us and was nominated for 3 Academy Awards.
Libra also launched and distributed, among others, George Romero's Martin, John Sayles' first feature Return of the Secaucus Seven, David Lynch's first feature Eraserhead, Karen Arthur's first feature Legacy, Earl Mack's first feature Children of Theater Street, and Peter Gothar's first feature Time Stands Still.
Barenholtz sold Libra Films to the Almi Group in 1982, but stayed with the company to become the President of Libra-Cinema 5 Films. In 1984 he left Almi and joined with Ted and Jim Pedas to form Circle Releasing. Among the films released by Circle were Yoshimitsu Morita's The Family Game, Guy Maddin's first feature Tales From the Gimli Hospital, Vincent Ward's The Navigator, John Woo's The Killer, Catherine Breillat's 36 Fillette, DeWitt Sage's first feature Pavarotti In China, Alain Cavalier's Therese, and Blood Simple, the first film by Joel and Ethan Coen.
His involvement in film production began with Wynn Chamberlain's Brand X and George Romero's Martin. He continued working with the Coens on the production of Raising Arizona, and as executive producer of Miller's Crossing and Barton Fink, which won the Palme d'Or at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival, as well as awards for Best Director and Best Actor. This was the first and last time the three top honors have all gone to the same film at Cannes.
Barenholtz went on to produce George Romero's Bruiser, J Todd Anderson's The Naked Man, Adek Drabinski's Cheat, executive-produced Gregory Hines' directorial debut Bleeding Hearts and Ulu Grossbard's Georgia, which earned an Academy Award nomination for Mare Winningham. He served as co-executive producer of Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream, which earned Ellen Burstyn an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in 2000.
Barenholtz appeared in the documentary The Hicks in Hollywood, had a bit role in Liquid Sky, and appeared as a zombie in Romero's classic Dawn of the Dead. He was the main subject of Stuart Samuels' 2005 documentary Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream.
Barenholtz directed his first feature, Music Inn, a documentary about the famed jazz venue.
Barenholtz was the producer of Jamie Greenberg's feature film Stags.
In 2012, Barenholtz produced Suzuya Bobo's first feature Family Games.
Barenholtz has recently completed directing and post production on Wakaliwood the Documentary, which was shot entirely in Kampala, Uganda. The film will be released in 2013.
He is now developing two feature fiction films which begin production in 2013.
IMDb Mini Biography By: Ben Barenholtz...
We'd like to celebrate by running 2 pieces on his amazing wonderful life.
This is his public bio, which in itself, tells of a rich wonderful career in film.
In the next days we'll publish his amazing memoir of his European childhood when he narrowly escaped from the hands of Jew killers during the War.
I personally owe Ben a lot. When I was producing some years back Ben was working for Almi and bought an indie film I produced 'Home Free All' by Director Stewart Bird for that company. The money from that deal paid our investors and took us out of a deep financial hole. I am always grateful to Ben for his vision and belief in us then.
Now for his professional bio -
Biography for Ben Barenholtz
Birth Name Benjamin Barenholtz
Mini Biography
As an exhibitor, distributor, and producer, Ben Barenholtz has been a key presence in the independent film scene since the late 1960s, when he opened the Elgin Cinema in New York City.
Barenholtz secured his first job in the film business when he became assistant manager of the Rko Bushwick Theater in Brooklyn in 1958. From 1966-68 he managed and lived in the Village Theater, which ultimately became the Filmore East. At the Village Theater Barenholtz provided a home for the counterculture, with appearances by Timothy Leary, Stokley Carmichael, Rap Brown, and Paul Krasner. Some of the first meetings of the anti-Vietnam War movement, including the Poets Against Vietnam, were held at the Village Theater. It was also a major music venue, with performances by The Who, Cream, Leonard Cohen, John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Nina Simone and many others.
In 1968 he opened the Elgin Cinema. The theater became the world's most innovative specialty and revival house, relaunching the films of Buster Keaton and D.W. Griffith, running a variety of independent films by young American directors, and screening cult, underground, and experimental films for the emerging countercultural audience. The films of Stan Brakhage, Jack Smith, Maya Deren, Kenneth Anger, Jonas Mekas, and Andy Warhol, as well as early works by Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese, all played at the Elgin.
Barenholtz also developed new ways of screening movies. He started screening dance and opera films on Saturday and Sunday mornings. He created the "All Night Show" - movies started at midnight and ended at dawn. Most notably, Barenholtz originated the "Midnight Movie" in 1970 with Alexander Jodorowsky's El Topo, which ran for 6 months, 7 days a week, to sold out audiences.
The film was eventually bought by John Lennon. El Topo was followed at midnight by John Waters' Pink Flamingoes and Perry Henzell's The Harder They Come. Barenholtz formed the specialty distributor Libra Films in 1972.
The first film Libra distributed was a revival of Jean-Pierre Melville's Les Enfants Terrible, followed by Claude Chabrol's Just Before Nightfall, and Jean-Charles Tacchella's Cousin, Cousine, which became one of the largest grossing foreign films in the Us and was nominated for 3 Academy Awards.
Libra also launched and distributed, among others, George Romero's Martin, John Sayles' first feature Return of the Secaucus Seven, David Lynch's first feature Eraserhead, Karen Arthur's first feature Legacy, Earl Mack's first feature Children of Theater Street, and Peter Gothar's first feature Time Stands Still.
Barenholtz sold Libra Films to the Almi Group in 1982, but stayed with the company to become the President of Libra-Cinema 5 Films. In 1984 he left Almi and joined with Ted and Jim Pedas to form Circle Releasing. Among the films released by Circle were Yoshimitsu Morita's The Family Game, Guy Maddin's first feature Tales From the Gimli Hospital, Vincent Ward's The Navigator, John Woo's The Killer, Catherine Breillat's 36 Fillette, DeWitt Sage's first feature Pavarotti In China, Alain Cavalier's Therese, and Blood Simple, the first film by Joel and Ethan Coen.
His involvement in film production began with Wynn Chamberlain's Brand X and George Romero's Martin. He continued working with the Coens on the production of Raising Arizona, and as executive producer of Miller's Crossing and Barton Fink, which won the Palme d'Or at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival, as well as awards for Best Director and Best Actor. This was the first and last time the three top honors have all gone to the same film at Cannes.
Barenholtz went on to produce George Romero's Bruiser, J Todd Anderson's The Naked Man, Adek Drabinski's Cheat, executive-produced Gregory Hines' directorial debut Bleeding Hearts and Ulu Grossbard's Georgia, which earned an Academy Award nomination for Mare Winningham. He served as co-executive producer of Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream, which earned Ellen Burstyn an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in 2000.
Barenholtz appeared in the documentary The Hicks in Hollywood, had a bit role in Liquid Sky, and appeared as a zombie in Romero's classic Dawn of the Dead. He was the main subject of Stuart Samuels' 2005 documentary Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream.
Barenholtz directed his first feature, Music Inn, a documentary about the famed jazz venue.
Barenholtz was the producer of Jamie Greenberg's feature film Stags.
In 2012, Barenholtz produced Suzuya Bobo's first feature Family Games.
Barenholtz has recently completed directing and post production on Wakaliwood the Documentary, which was shot entirely in Kampala, Uganda. The film will be released in 2013.
He is now developing two feature fiction films which begin production in 2013.
IMDb Mini Biography By: Ben Barenholtz...
- 10/8/2013
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
Great Silent director-star Buster Keaton is revered by the likes of Jackie Chan and Johnny Depp, who channels him in "The Lone Ranger" and even borrows some of his train stunts from his 1927 classic "The General" (available in full on Hulu and below). Orson Welles once stated that "The General" is "the greatest comedy ever made, the greatest Civil War film ever made, and perhaps the greatest film ever made." One reason, ironically, that Keaton is remembered is that the remarkable string of features that he produced between 1920 and 1929--including other must-sees "The Navigator," "Sherlock, Jr." and "Our Hospitality"-- was out of circulation for decades. When the films, accompanied by brilliant shorts, were suddenly freed from legal restraints and released by the collector Raymond Rohauer, critics were able to evaluate them all at once and delivered enthusiastic praise. Some of the essays compared Keaton favorably to director and rival Charlie Chaplin,...
- 7/2/2013
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Those who had dealings with Michael Winner over the years invariably came away with a new tale to tell, perpetuating his notoriety. My first encounter with him was when a colleague and I visited his production company, Scimitar Films, in Sackville Street, central London, to discuss his forthcoming discussion on stage at the National Film Theatre.
We entered to a swath of smoke, with Michael genially puffing on a fat Havana, feet up on his huge desk, in a smartly decorated office with – among other niceties – an Elisabeth Frink sculpture. It was the lair of a mini movie mogul.
Formalities over, he suggested lunch and we were ushered into his gleaming, black Rolls-Royce, which purred gently down the street, turning left into Piccadilly and then into the tiny Air Street, where it stopped outside a Spanish restaurant. He told his chauffeur to return in a couple of hours and the...
We entered to a swath of smoke, with Michael genially puffing on a fat Havana, feet up on his huge desk, in a smartly decorated office with – among other niceties – an Elisabeth Frink sculpture. It was the lair of a mini movie mogul.
Formalities over, he suggested lunch and we were ushered into his gleaming, black Rolls-Royce, which purred gently down the street, turning left into Piccadilly and then into the tiny Air Street, where it stopped outside a Spanish restaurant. He told his chauffeur to return in a couple of hours and the...
- 1/22/2013
- by Brian Baxter
- The Guardian - Film News
Each new Buster Keaton Blu-ray from Kino Classics brings mixed feelings. While I'm certainly thankful for the wonderful presentations and fascinating extras, there is always a little bit of sadness mixed in as I realize that Kino is reaching the end of their Keaton catalog. Buster's The Navigator marks the penultimate feature from The Great Stone Face in Kino's catalog, and now that only College remains, I'm already starting to miss the collection. Thankfully, we'll be left with some fantastic films, great extras, and the potential for a wonderful personal Keaton archive, and The Navigator certainly earns its place in that number.For The Navigator, Buster Keaton revisits one of his most beloved character types, the spoiled little rich boy. The clueless children of privilege that...
- 9/3/2012
- Screen Anarchy
Moviefone's Pick of the Week "The Five-Year Engagement" What's It About? Jason Segel and Emily Blunt play a happily devoted couple whose impending nuptials keep getting delayed by her rising career. See It Because: Segel re-teams with his "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" co-writer and director for another romantic comedy that's very R-rated. It's a little too long, but with a supporting cast including players from "The Office," "Parks & Rec," "30 Rock" and "Community," it's pretty much an all-star team of funny people. (Also Available on Amazon Instant Video) New on DVD & Blu-ray "High School" What's It About? An MIT-bound star scholar tries weed for the first time, the night before his psycho principal (Michael Chiklis) imposes a school-wide drug test. In order to get away with his crime, he concocts a ridiculous plan to get the entire school stoned -- with the help of even more psycho dealer (Adrien Brody). In the end,...
- 8/31/2012
- by Eric Larnick
- Moviefone
"More than fifty years have passed since critics rediscovered Buster Keaton and pronounced him the most 'modern' silent film clown, a title he hasn't shaken since." So begins Jana Prikryl's terrific essay, "The Genius of Buster," in the New York Review of Books:
In his own day he was certainly famous but never commanded the wealth or popularity of Charlie Chaplin or Harold Lloyd, and he suffered most when talkies arrived. It may be that later stars like Cary Grant and Paul Newman and Harrison Ford have made us more susceptible to Keaton's model of offhand stoicism than his own audiences were. Seeking for his ghost is a fruitless business, though; for one thing, film comedy today has swung back toward the sappy, blatant slapstick that Keaton disdained. There's some "irony" in what Judd Apatow and Adam Sandler do, but it's irony that clamors to win the identification of the...
In his own day he was certainly famous but never commanded the wealth or popularity of Charlie Chaplin or Harold Lloyd, and he suffered most when talkies arrived. It may be that later stars like Cary Grant and Paul Newman and Harrison Ford have made us more susceptible to Keaton's model of offhand stoicism than his own audiences were. Seeking for his ghost is a fruitless business, though; for one thing, film comedy today has swung back toward the sappy, blatant slapstick that Keaton disdained. There's some "irony" in what Judd Apatow and Adam Sandler do, but it's irony that clamors to win the identification of the...
- 5/24/2011
- MUBI
Netflix has revolutionized the home movie experience for fans of film with its instant streaming technology. Netflix Nuggets is my way of spreading the word about independent, classic and foreign films made available by Netflix for instant streaming.
How I Ended This Summer (2010)
Streaming Available: 05/10/2011
Synopsis: At an isolated science station in the Arctic, meteorologist Sergei and young intern Pavel face the impending closure of the now-irrelevant base. While Sergei eagerly anticipates returning to his family, Pavel still hopes for a grand adventure. Average Netflix rating: 3.5
Blue Velvet (1986)
Streaming Available: 05/15/2011
Synopsis: An innocent man gets mixed up in a small-town murder mystery involving a kinky nightclub chanteuse and a kidnapper with a penchant for snorting helium in this moodily surreal mystery from writer-director David Lynch. Average Netflix rating: 3.4
Don Juan Demarco (1994)
Streaming Available: 05/15/2011
Synopsis: Marlon Brando stars as a psychiatrist assigned to diagnose a mysterious man who’s convinced that...
How I Ended This Summer (2010)
Streaming Available: 05/10/2011
Synopsis: At an isolated science station in the Arctic, meteorologist Sergei and young intern Pavel face the impending closure of the now-irrelevant base. While Sergei eagerly anticipates returning to his family, Pavel still hopes for a grand adventure. Average Netflix rating: 3.5
Blue Velvet (1986)
Streaming Available: 05/15/2011
Synopsis: An innocent man gets mixed up in a small-town murder mystery involving a kinky nightclub chanteuse and a kidnapper with a penchant for snorting helium in this moodily surreal mystery from writer-director David Lynch. Average Netflix rating: 3.4
Don Juan Demarco (1994)
Streaming Available: 05/15/2011
Synopsis: Marlon Brando stars as a psychiatrist assigned to diagnose a mysterious man who’s convinced that...
- 5/10/2011
- by Travis Keune
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The Barbican continued its mission to make Sunday a day of silence with a screening of Buster Keaton’s 1924 comedy, The Navigator on 9 January. The film was Keaton’s biggest box office success, but I suspect most of us in the audience weren’t that interested in the statistics. Jack Black’s Gulliver’s Travels (2010) might be packing them in at your local multiplex, but will his latest be garnering new fans 87 years from now?
The Navigator stars Keaton as Rollo Treadway, a rich layabout who takes it into his empty head to get married to Betsy (Kathryn McGuire). Sadly, proposing marriage is just the first of many things Rollo proves to be not so good at. Chastened, he decides to embark on a cruise to Honolulu without her.
The film is a mostly a two-hander, as several mishaps and an act of skulduggery leave Rollo and his intended adrift...
The Navigator stars Keaton as Rollo Treadway, a rich layabout who takes it into his empty head to get married to Betsy (Kathryn McGuire). Sadly, proposing marriage is just the first of many things Rollo proves to be not so good at. Chastened, he decides to embark on a cruise to Honolulu without her.
The film is a mostly a two-hander, as several mishaps and an act of skulduggery leave Rollo and his intended adrift...
- 1/19/2011
- by Daniel Green
- CineVue
Filmmaker Curtis Harrington: 1926-2007.
Our Friend Curtis Harrington
by Jon Zelazny
Curtis Harrington was born in Los Angeles in 1926. He made short films as a teenager, graduated from USC, and began his Hollywood career in the 1950’s. By the end of the decade, he was directing: independent films, studio pictures, made-for-tv movies, and episodic TV. He completed his last short film in 2002, and died in 2007 at the age of 80.
I knew Curtis well in his final years, as did writer-producer Dennis Bartok, the former head programmer of L.A.’s famed American Cinematheque.
Dennis Bartok: I think the most interesting aspect of Curtis’s career is that he was really the only filmmaker to successfully transition from the avant-garde scene of the late 1940’s to directing Hollywood feature films. And when you see how distinctive his movies are, you wish he could’ve made more… but when you...
Our Friend Curtis Harrington
by Jon Zelazny
Curtis Harrington was born in Los Angeles in 1926. He made short films as a teenager, graduated from USC, and began his Hollywood career in the 1950’s. By the end of the decade, he was directing: independent films, studio pictures, made-for-tv movies, and episodic TV. He completed his last short film in 2002, and died in 2007 at the age of 80.
I knew Curtis well in his final years, as did writer-producer Dennis Bartok, the former head programmer of L.A.’s famed American Cinematheque.
Dennis Bartok: I think the most interesting aspect of Curtis’s career is that he was really the only filmmaker to successfully transition from the avant-garde scene of the late 1940’s to directing Hollywood feature films. And when you see how distinctive his movies are, you wish he could’ve made more… but when you...
- 4/1/2010
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Mira Mexico! London
The darkly surreal edge that saturates both comedy and tragedy in Mexican cinema is a constant source of delight, and there's plenty of it on show in this season of contemporary Mexican talent. Rollicking circus black comedy Meet The Head Of Juan Pérez, for example, revolves around a magician's unfortunate decapitation, while in Rodrigo Pla's art-and animation-suffused The Desert Within, a peasant attempts to thwart a government ban on religion. There's also Daniel And Ana, a shocking tale of kidnapped siblings, and Five Days Without Nora, a heart-warming take on a well-organised suicide.
Barbican Screen, EC2, Thu to 27 Jan
Slapstick 2010, Bristol
Whether it's a twirl of Chaplin's cane, fisticuffs between Laurel and Hardy or a cartoon anvil falling on an unsuspecting cartoon head, chances are you're a secret, or not-so-secret, lover of slapstick comedy. And why not? As this sixth slapstick silent comedy festival proves, it's as popular today as ever.
The darkly surreal edge that saturates both comedy and tragedy in Mexican cinema is a constant source of delight, and there's plenty of it on show in this season of contemporary Mexican talent. Rollicking circus black comedy Meet The Head Of Juan Pérez, for example, revolves around a magician's unfortunate decapitation, while in Rodrigo Pla's art-and animation-suffused The Desert Within, a peasant attempts to thwart a government ban on religion. There's also Daniel And Ana, a shocking tale of kidnapped siblings, and Five Days Without Nora, a heart-warming take on a well-organised suicide.
Barbican Screen, EC2, Thu to 27 Jan
Slapstick 2010, Bristol
Whether it's a twirl of Chaplin's cane, fisticuffs between Laurel and Hardy or a cartoon anvil falling on an unsuspecting cartoon head, chances are you're a secret, or not-so-secret, lover of slapstick comedy. And why not? As this sixth slapstick silent comedy festival proves, it's as popular today as ever.
- 1/16/2010
- by Andrea Hubert
- The Guardian - Film News
The Douris Corp., which holds rights to the classic motion pictures starring and directed by Buster Keaton, has struck an agreement with Paris-based MK2, the worldwide distributor of the films of Charlie Chaplin, for MK2 to digitally restore Douris' Keaton films for digital theatrical release in select cities. The titles to be restored include Our Hospitality, The Navigator, Sherlock, Jr., Go West, Seven Chances and Battling Butler.
- 4/16/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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.