(Welcome to Did They Get It Right?, a series where we look at Oscars categories from yesteryear and examine whether the Academy's winners stand the test of time.)
Few directors hold as large a place in the hearts of cinephiles as Stanley Kubrick. The mythology of the director as this reclusive, micromanaging perfectionist who would drive people insane by doing 100 takes of a scene has become the stuff of legend. Some people stand in awe of what he was able to accomplish throughout his career on such a grand scale, and some, naturally, want to take him down a peg because of his godlike status amongst a certain sector of film fans. I don't hold Kubrick up as god. He wouldn't be on my Mt. Rushmore of directors. But the man did direct some of the best films ever made. That's a little difficult to deny.
Because of this revered status,...
Few directors hold as large a place in the hearts of cinephiles as Stanley Kubrick. The mythology of the director as this reclusive, micromanaging perfectionist who would drive people insane by doing 100 takes of a scene has become the stuff of legend. Some people stand in awe of what he was able to accomplish throughout his career on such a grand scale, and some, naturally, want to take him down a peg because of his godlike status amongst a certain sector of film fans. I don't hold Kubrick up as god. He wouldn't be on my Mt. Rushmore of directors. But the man did direct some of the best films ever made. That's a little difficult to deny.
Because of this revered status,...
- 8/20/2023
- by Mike Shutt
- Slash Film
The star from Sid & Nancy, Terminator 2, Candyman, Gattaca, Leaving Las Vegas and the new chiller The Dark And The Wicked takes us on a journey through some of his favorite foreign films.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Candyman (1992)
Frankenstein (1931)
Sid and Nancy (1986)
The Dark And The Wicked (2020)
The Wall of Mexico (2019)
La Dolce Vita (1961)
Il Bidone (1955)
Day For Night (1973)
The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (1967)
8 ½ (1963)
Le Cercle Rouge (1970)
Daredevils of the Red Circle (1939)
Rififi (1955)
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Z (1969)
The Sleeping Car Murders (1965)
The Battle of Algiers (1966)
Burn! (1969)
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
The Italian Job (1969)
The Italian Job (2003)
The Magician (1958)
Wild Strawberries (1957)
Fanny and Alexander (1982)
Persona (1966)
The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
The Last House On The Left (1972)
The Virgin Spring (1960)
Paperhouse (1988)
The Strangers (2008)
The Monster (2016)
Andrei Rublev (1966)
Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)
Nostalghia (1983)
Son of Frankenstein (1939)
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Zorba The Greek (1964)
Pollyanna (1960)
Other Notable Items
Lon...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Candyman (1992)
Frankenstein (1931)
Sid and Nancy (1986)
The Dark And The Wicked (2020)
The Wall of Mexico (2019)
La Dolce Vita (1961)
Il Bidone (1955)
Day For Night (1973)
The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (1967)
8 ½ (1963)
Le Cercle Rouge (1970)
Daredevils of the Red Circle (1939)
Rififi (1955)
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Z (1969)
The Sleeping Car Murders (1965)
The Battle of Algiers (1966)
Burn! (1969)
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
The Italian Job (1969)
The Italian Job (2003)
The Magician (1958)
Wild Strawberries (1957)
Fanny and Alexander (1982)
Persona (1966)
The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
The Last House On The Left (1972)
The Virgin Spring (1960)
Paperhouse (1988)
The Strangers (2008)
The Monster (2016)
Andrei Rublev (1966)
Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)
Nostalghia (1983)
Son of Frankenstein (1939)
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Zorba The Greek (1964)
Pollyanna (1960)
Other Notable Items
Lon...
- 12/15/2020
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Among my predictions so far, two of the surest Oscar bets are that “The Favourite” and its director, Yorgos Lanthimos, will both make the ballot cut. Besides wooing the critics and earning an enviable 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, the bawdy art-house costume drama went from four venues to 34 this past weekend and has already grossed $1 million. Not bad on a budget of $15 million.
It doesn’t hurt that “The Favourite” ruled over the the British Independent Film Awards, winning a record 10 categories, including Best British Independent Film and Best Director.
Not since Stanley Kubrick or Alfred Hitchcock has a filmmaker exhibited such a rich vein of nasty black humor. Apparently, moviegoers are eager to witness the likes of Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz as 18th-century English cousins who viciously vie for the affections of Olivia Colman’s sickly Queen Anne. There is something quite satisfying about observing these ladies as they engage in naughty name-calling,...
It doesn’t hurt that “The Favourite” ruled over the the British Independent Film Awards, winning a record 10 categories, including Best British Independent Film and Best Director.
Not since Stanley Kubrick or Alfred Hitchcock has a filmmaker exhibited such a rich vein of nasty black humor. Apparently, moviegoers are eager to witness the likes of Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz as 18th-century English cousins who viciously vie for the affections of Olivia Colman’s sickly Queen Anne. There is something quite satisfying about observing these ladies as they engage in naughty name-calling,...
- 12/3/2018
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
Walter Lassally, who won an Academy Award in 1965 for his black-and-white cinematography on Zorba the Greek, has died. He was 90.
Lassally died Monday following complications from surgery on the Greek island of Crete, hospital officials told the Associated Press.
Lassally also shot three films in a row for British director Tony Richardson, concluding with the Oscar best picture winner Tom Jones (1963), and worked six times with American helmer James Ivory.
Lassally also did six films for Greek director Michael Cacoyannis, including the lively Zorba the Greek. The movie,...
Lassally died Monday following complications from surgery on the Greek island of Crete, hospital officials told the Associated Press.
Lassally also shot three films in a row for British director Tony Richardson, concluding with the Oscar best picture winner Tom Jones (1963), and worked six times with American helmer James Ivory.
Lassally also did six films for Greek director Michael Cacoyannis, including the lively Zorba the Greek. The movie,...
- 10/24/2017
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Cinematographer who won an Oscar for the 1964 film classic Zorba the Greek
The title of the cinematographer Walter Lassally’s 1987 autobiography, Itinerant Cameraman, could not have been more apt. Lassally, who has died aged 90, was born in Germany (he had a German father and a Polish mother), lived and worked in the UK, and made films in, among many other countries, Czechoslovakia and Greece.
It was the last of these, where he shot Zorba the Greek (1964), which won him best black-and-white cinematography Oscar, that meant the most to him. Known locally as “Walter the Greek”, Lassally lived for many years outside the city of Chania, on the island of Crete, near the beach that had served as location for the movie’s celebrated final scene, with Anthony Quinn and Alan Bates dancing to the music of Mikis Theodorakis. He shot six films with its Greek director Michael Cacoyannis, but he...
The title of the cinematographer Walter Lassally’s 1987 autobiography, Itinerant Cameraman, could not have been more apt. Lassally, who has died aged 90, was born in Germany (he had a German father and a Polish mother), lived and worked in the UK, and made films in, among many other countries, Czechoslovakia and Greece.
It was the last of these, where he shot Zorba the Greek (1964), which won him best black-and-white cinematography Oscar, that meant the most to him. Known locally as “Walter the Greek”, Lassally lived for many years outside the city of Chania, on the island of Crete, near the beach that had served as location for the movie’s celebrated final scene, with Anthony Quinn and Alan Bates dancing to the music of Mikis Theodorakis. He shot six films with its Greek director Michael Cacoyannis, but he...
- 10/24/2017
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
‘The Salesman’ (Courtesy: Habib Majidi)
By: Carson Blackwelder
Managing Editor
It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we’re well on our way to seeing how the best foreign language film race will shape up at the Oscars in 2017. Leading the pack of the shortlist is The Salesman from Iran, which could land filmmaker Asghar Farhadi a rare second win in the category. How often do we see someone with more than one win in this worldwide competition?
The shortlist of nine films — more about those here — will, on January 24, be trimmed down to the official five nominees that will eventually face off at the Oscars on February 26. This site’s namesake, The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg, lists the current frontrunners as: Germany’s Toni Erdmann (written and directed by Maren Ade), Denmark’s Land of Mine (written and directed by Martin Zandvliet), Sweden’s A...
By: Carson Blackwelder
Managing Editor
It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we’re well on our way to seeing how the best foreign language film race will shape up at the Oscars in 2017. Leading the pack of the shortlist is The Salesman from Iran, which could land filmmaker Asghar Farhadi a rare second win in the category. How often do we see someone with more than one win in this worldwide competition?
The shortlist of nine films — more about those here — will, on January 24, be trimmed down to the official five nominees that will eventually face off at the Oscars on February 26. This site’s namesake, The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg, lists the current frontrunners as: Germany’s Toni Erdmann (written and directed by Maren Ade), Denmark’s Land of Mine (written and directed by Martin Zandvliet), Sweden’s A...
- 12/26/2016
- by Carson Blackwelder
- Scott Feinberg
Pablo Larraín (Courtesy: Andrew Cowie/Afp)
By: Carson Blackwelder
Managing Editor
There’s one director this year that has a chance at being a major crossover success by having two separate films nominated in both the best picture and best foreign language film categories: Pablo Larraín. This filmmaker has Jackie as well as Neruda and could join an elite group of directors who been able to have films — or even one film — in both of these major categories.
Jackie, which stars Natalie Portman as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, is considered a frontrunner in the Oscars race this year by this site’s namesake, The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg. Neruda, which follows an inspector who hunts down Nobel Prize-winning Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, is Chile’s submission for best foreign language film this year and is considered a major threat in that contest. This would be a great feat — especially for someone who,...
By: Carson Blackwelder
Managing Editor
There’s one director this year that has a chance at being a major crossover success by having two separate films nominated in both the best picture and best foreign language film categories: Pablo Larraín. This filmmaker has Jackie as well as Neruda and could join an elite group of directors who been able to have films — or even one film — in both of these major categories.
Jackie, which stars Natalie Portman as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, is considered a frontrunner in the Oscars race this year by this site’s namesake, The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg. Neruda, which follows an inspector who hunts down Nobel Prize-winning Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, is Chile’s submission for best foreign language film this year and is considered a major threat in that contest. This would be a great feat — especially for someone who,...
- 11/17/2016
- by Carson Blackwelder
- Scott Feinberg
This is the Pure Movies review of Chevalier, directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari and starring Vangelis Mourikis, Nikos Orphanos and Yorgos Pirpassopoulos. Written by Dr. Garth Twa. Greece is renowned for many things: it is the land of myth, of Dionysian revels, of octopuses hung like pantyhose on clotheslines to dry. It is the land of our first storytelling, birthplace of epics, of comedies, of tragedies; but not, until now, cinematic stories. As a film industry, there hasn’t been much to talk about except, of course, the exceptions, like Theodoros Angelopolous (Ulysses’ Gaze, 1995, Eternity and a Day, 1998—both won big at Cannes) and Costa-Gavras, who, really, made American movies, like Missing (1982) with Jack Lemmon, or Mad City (1997) with John Travolta, or French movies like Z (1969). ‘Greek’ films like Never On a Sunday (Jules Dassin, 1960) and Zorba the Greek (Michael Cacoyannis, 1964) were Greek fetishisation made palatable to tourists by having non-Greek lead actors being swarthy.
- 8/11/2016
- by Dr. Garth Twa
- Pure Movies
'The Fixer' movie with Alan Bates, Dirk Bogarde and Ian Holm (background) 'The Fixer' movie review: 1968 anti-Semitism drama wrecked by cast, direction, and writing In 1969, director John Frankenheimer declared that he felt "better about The Fixer than anything I've ever done in my life." Considering Frankenheimer's previous output – Seven Days in May, the much admired The Manchurian Candidate – it is hard to believe that the director was being anything but a good P.R. man for his latest release. Adapted from Bernard Malamud's National Book Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning novel (itself based on the real story of Jewish brick-factory worker Menahem Mendel Beilis), The Fixer is an overlong, overblown, and overwrought contrivance that, albeit well meaning, carelessly misuses most of the talent involved while sadistically abusing the patience – and at times the intelligence – of its viewers. John Frankenheimer overindulges in 1960s kitsch John Frankenheimer...
- 5/13/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
The Supporting Actress Smackdown of '64 is just 8 days away. So it's time to get your votes in on the nominees that year. Readers, collectively, are the sixth panelists, so grade the nominees (only the ones you've seen) from 1 to 5 hearts. Your votes count toward the smackdown win!
Lila Kedrova Zorba the Greek Gladys Cooper for My Fair Lady Dame Edith Evans The Chalk Garden
Agnes Moorhead Hush... Hush Sweet Charlotte
Grayson Hall Night of the Iguana
But before we here at Tfe get to that particular metaphorical musical-horror mishmash of films with one of the most senior lineups the Academy ever offered up in this category, let's meet our panelists for this 50th anniversary retrospective competition.
The Panel
Special Guest
Melanie Lynskey
Melanie Lynskey is an actor from New Zealand. She made her film debut in Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures (1994) and is currently starring in Joe Swanberg's...
Lila Kedrova Zorba the Greek Gladys Cooper for My Fair Lady Dame Edith Evans The Chalk Garden
Agnes Moorhead Hush... Hush Sweet Charlotte
Grayson Hall Night of the Iguana
But before we here at Tfe get to that particular metaphorical musical-horror mishmash of films with one of the most senior lineups the Academy ever offered up in this category, let's meet our panelists for this 50th anniversary retrospective competition.
The Panel
Special Guest
Melanie Lynskey
Melanie Lynskey is an actor from New Zealand. She made her film debut in Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures (1994) and is currently starring in Joe Swanberg's...
- 6/22/2014
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Dariush Mehrjui
4th Bengaluru International Film Festival (Biffes) that will commence on December 15 will hold a special Retrospective of Iran’s Dariush Mehrjui, who is the guest of honour at the festival. The retrospective will include The Lodgers, Sara, The Pear Tree and The Music Man.
Biffes has announced a competition section for the first time and received about 40 entries. The films in competition include When We Leave by Feo Aladag, Invisible by Michal Aviad, Apartment in Athens by Ruggero Dipaola and Lucky by Avie Luthra among others.
There will be a Retrospective of Michael Cacoyannis of Greece featuring Our Last Spring, The Trojan Woman, Iphigenia, The Cherry Orchard and Sweet Country.
Theodoros Angelopoulos Retrospective comprises Landscape in the Mist, Eternity and a Day and The Weeping Meadow.
Taiwanese director Hsiao-hsien Hou’s Retrospective comprises Cafe Lumiere, Goodbye South Goodbye, Good Men Good Women, A Summer at Grandpa and Daughter of the Nile.
4th Bengaluru International Film Festival (Biffes) that will commence on December 15 will hold a special Retrospective of Iran’s Dariush Mehrjui, who is the guest of honour at the festival. The retrospective will include The Lodgers, Sara, The Pear Tree and The Music Man.
Biffes has announced a competition section for the first time and received about 40 entries. The films in competition include When We Leave by Feo Aladag, Invisible by Michal Aviad, Apartment in Athens by Ruggero Dipaola and Lucky by Avie Luthra among others.
There will be a Retrospective of Michael Cacoyannis of Greece featuring Our Last Spring, The Trojan Woman, Iphigenia, The Cherry Orchard and Sweet Country.
Theodoros Angelopoulos Retrospective comprises Landscape in the Mist, Eternity and a Day and The Weeping Meadow.
Taiwanese director Hsiao-hsien Hou’s Retrospective comprises Cafe Lumiere, Goodbye South Goodbye, Good Men Good Women, A Summer at Grandpa and Daughter of the Nile.
- 12/14/2011
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Youth Culture History, Margate
The Turner Contemporary has already put Margate on the art map since it opened in its new home on the Kent coast in April, and now this spin-off from their current youth culture exhibition livens up the local film scene with two vintage double bills. First up is a skinhead pairing of This Is England and Mike Leigh's Meantime – the latter with a young Gary Oldman on fine, loutish form. Then on Sunday, the clock winds further back to the 1960s biker gangs of The Leather Boys and Liverpudlian thriller Violent Playground, both quality dramas and faithful records of the postwar teen scene.
Carlton Cinema Westgate, Sat & Sun
Document 9, Glasgow
This grassroots human rights documentary festival is Scotland's largest, and in no danger of running out of subject matter. This year's theme is A Year Of Protest and there are hundreds of long and short...
The Turner Contemporary has already put Margate on the art map since it opened in its new home on the Kent coast in April, and now this spin-off from their current youth culture exhibition livens up the local film scene with two vintage double bills. First up is a skinhead pairing of This Is England and Mike Leigh's Meantime – the latter with a young Gary Oldman on fine, loutish form. Then on Sunday, the clock winds further back to the 1960s biker gangs of The Leather Boys and Liverpudlian thriller Violent Playground, both quality dramas and faithful records of the postwar teen scene.
Carlton Cinema Westgate, Sat & Sun
Document 9, Glasgow
This grassroots human rights documentary festival is Scotland's largest, and in no danger of running out of subject matter. This year's theme is A Year Of Protest and there are hundreds of long and short...
- 10/14/2011
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Francesco Quinn, son of Anthony Quinn and Dino's voice in Michael Bay's Transformers: Dark of the Moon, has died. Quinn collapsed, apparently from a heart attack, while jogging with his son Max in Malibu's La Costa neighborhood on Friday evening (Aug. 5). He was 48. One of Mexican-born, two-time Oscar winner Anthony Quinn's 13 children, Francesco Quinn was born in Rome on March 22, 1963. His mother was costume designer Jolanda Addolori. An actor for 25 years, Quinn was featured in more than 30 movies. His film debut took place in Oliver Stone's Oscar-winning Platoon (1986), in which he played the drug-dealing character Rhah. Among his other credits, usually in minor fare, were Casablanca Express (1989), Cannes Man (1996), and Man vs. Monday (2006). According to the IMDb, he has one movie coming out: Giuseppe Ferrara's Roma nuda. Charles Leinenweber and Thadd Turner's Buttermilk Sky was in pre-production for a possible 2012 release. Additionally, Quinn had roles...
- 8/7/2011
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Celebrated Zorba The Greek director Michael Cacoyannis has been laid to rest in Athens, Greece.
The Cyprus-born filmmaker passed away in hospital on Monday after suffering complications from a heart attack and respiratory problems. He was 89.
The star's friends and family gathered at a church in Athens on Thursday to bid farewell to the film icon in an emotional ceremony.
Among the mourners were composer Mikis Theodorakis, actors Antonis Kafetzopoulos, Costas Ferris and Constantine Giannaris, and local politicians.
Greece's Education Minister Anna Diamantopoulou gave a touching eulogy at the funeral, telling attendees, "Today we say goodbye to a great creator who brought Greek culture to the rest of the world."...
The Cyprus-born filmmaker passed away in hospital on Monday after suffering complications from a heart attack and respiratory problems. He was 89.
The star's friends and family gathered at a church in Athens on Thursday to bid farewell to the film icon in an emotional ceremony.
Among the mourners were composer Mikis Theodorakis, actors Antonis Kafetzopoulos, Costas Ferris and Constantine Giannaris, and local politicians.
Greece's Education Minister Anna Diamantopoulou gave a touching eulogy at the funeral, telling attendees, "Today we say goodbye to a great creator who brought Greek culture to the rest of the world."...
- 7/29/2011
- WENN
The Venice and Toronto film festivals officially announced the big films that would premiere at their event this week. Expect lots of Clooney
The big story
It's festival time as the official announcements of the Venice and Toronto line-ups confirm rumours that had been sloshing around the internet for weeks. Venice leaked via Variety on Tuesday (officially confirmed just this afternoon). Toronto's big catches drip ... dripped out via an organiser's Twitter account later the same day. Tiny, tenacious Telluride's still watertight, but it definitely won't have the world premieres of George Clooney's The Ides of March, Roman Polanski's Carnage or Steven Soderbergh's Contagion (all playing at Venice), and better not have the first showings of The Descendants (Alexander Payne), The Deep Blue Sea (Terence Davies) or Moneyball (Bennett Miller), if it doesn't want several angry Canadian festival programmers hiking up to its gates.
Venice runs August 31-September 10, Toronto September 8-18. Guardian.
The big story
It's festival time as the official announcements of the Venice and Toronto line-ups confirm rumours that had been sloshing around the internet for weeks. Venice leaked via Variety on Tuesday (officially confirmed just this afternoon). Toronto's big catches drip ... dripped out via an organiser's Twitter account later the same day. Tiny, tenacious Telluride's still watertight, but it definitely won't have the world premieres of George Clooney's The Ides of March, Roman Polanski's Carnage or Steven Soderbergh's Contagion (all playing at Venice), and better not have the first showings of The Descendants (Alexander Payne), The Deep Blue Sea (Terence Davies) or Moneyball (Bennett Miller), if it doesn't want several angry Canadian festival programmers hiking up to its gates.
Venice runs August 31-September 10, Toronto September 8-18. Guardian.
- 7/28/2011
- The Guardian - Film News
Michael Cacoyannis, the Greek-Cypriot filmmaker known for his film Zorba the Greek (1964) passed away on Monday. He was reportedly suffering from heart ailment and chronic respiratory problems.
Zorba the Greek received three Oscar nominations for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film.
His filmography comprises works like Stella (1955), Elektra (1962), The Trojan Women (1971) and Iphigenia (1977).
He won nominations regularly at Cannes International Film Festival for his films, while Elektra won two awards at Cannes.
Zorba the Greek received three Oscar nominations for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film.
His filmography comprises works like Stella (1955), Elektra (1962), The Trojan Women (1971) and Iphigenia (1977).
He won nominations regularly at Cannes International Film Festival for his films, while Elektra won two awards at Cannes.
- 7/26/2011
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Director best known for the visually splendid and energetic Zorba the Greek
Although the first Greek films appeared in 1912, long periods of war and instability crippled any attempts at forming a national film industry. This meant that few features were produced until the 1950s, when the director Michael Cacoyannis, who has died aged 90, became the embodiment of Greek cinema, giving it an international reputation which reached a peak of popularity with his Zorba the Greek (1964).
Based on Nikos Kazantzakis's novel, the film burst on to the screen with extraordinary energy and visual splendour. It brilliantly combined the rhythmic music of Mikis Theodorakis and the Oscar-winning black-and-white cinematography of Walter Lassally with indelible performances by Anthony Quinn, Alan Bates, Irene Papas and Lila Kedrova (who won the Oscar for best supporting actress).
The film celebrated joie de vivre, yet there was an underlying pessimism and an echo of Greek tragedy...
Although the first Greek films appeared in 1912, long periods of war and instability crippled any attempts at forming a national film industry. This meant that few features were produced until the 1950s, when the director Michael Cacoyannis, who has died aged 90, became the embodiment of Greek cinema, giving it an international reputation which reached a peak of popularity with his Zorba the Greek (1964).
Based on Nikos Kazantzakis's novel, the film burst on to the screen with extraordinary energy and visual splendour. It brilliantly combined the rhythmic music of Mikis Theodorakis and the Oscar-winning black-and-white cinematography of Walter Lassally with indelible performances by Anthony Quinn, Alan Bates, Irene Papas and Lila Kedrova (who won the Oscar for best supporting actress).
The film celebrated joie de vivre, yet there was an underlying pessimism and an echo of Greek tragedy...
- 7/25/2011
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
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 46 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]! Header photo: R2-D2's secret revealed [2] at Comic-Con. Oscar nominated filmmaker and screenwriter Michael Cacoyannis (Zorba the Greek) died [3] Monday of complications from a heart attack and chronic respiratory problems at age 89. “Imperial Chopper” T-shirt [4]. Total Film [5] lists the 50 Best Time Time Travel Movies. A 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea limited edition 1,000 piece set designed by Disney Artist Jason Zucker will be released via the Disney Parks Online Store [6] only on August 12th, 2011. BuzzFeed [7] lists...
- 7/25/2011
- by Peter Sciretta
- Slash Film
Michael Cacoyannis, best known for the 1964 Oscar-nominated drama Zorba the Greek, died of complications from a heart attack and chronic respiratory problems early Monday at an Athens hospital. He was either 89 or 90, depending on the source. Born in Limassol, Cyprus, on June 11, 1921 or 1922, the young Cacoyannis (Mihalis Kakogiannis in Greek) was sent to London to study Law, but later turned to the theater, studying Drama at the Old Vic and playing various roles on the British stage, including the lead in Albert Camus' Caligula. Unable to find work in the British film industry, he eventually moved to Athens. Cacoyannis' directorial debut took place in the early '50s, with the breezy comedy Windfall in Athens (1955), whose production lasted two years. International acclaim followed the release of Stella (1955), which was screened in competition at the Cannes Film Festival. This drama about a free-spirited young woman (Melina Mercouri) torn by her...
- 7/25/2011
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Acclaimed Zorba The Greek director Michael Cacoyannis has died in Athens, Greece, aged 89.
The Cyprus-born filmmaker passed away in hospital on Monday after suffering complications from a heart attack and respiratory problems.
Cacoyannis made his directorial debut with Windfall in Athens in 1954 and, just two years later, his movie Stella picked up a Golden Globe for best foreign language film.
He went on to work with stars including Katharine Hepburn, Vanessa Redgrave and Candice Bergen, but is best known for his 1964 classic Zorba the Greek, starring Anthony Quinn.
The big screen adaptation of Nikos Kazantzakis' novel received two technical Academy Awards as well as the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Lila Kedrova in 1965.
Paying tribute to Cacoyannis, Greece's Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos says, "His movies received awards at the most important film festivals in the world. His work became the vehicle that took Greek culture to every corner of the earth, and served as a source of inspiration for Greek and foreign artists."
Cacoyannis is survived by his sister Giannoula, according to the Associated Press.
The Cyprus-born filmmaker passed away in hospital on Monday after suffering complications from a heart attack and respiratory problems.
Cacoyannis made his directorial debut with Windfall in Athens in 1954 and, just two years later, his movie Stella picked up a Golden Globe for best foreign language film.
He went on to work with stars including Katharine Hepburn, Vanessa Redgrave and Candice Bergen, but is best known for his 1964 classic Zorba the Greek, starring Anthony Quinn.
The big screen adaptation of Nikos Kazantzakis' novel received two technical Academy Awards as well as the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Lila Kedrova in 1965.
Paying tribute to Cacoyannis, Greece's Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos says, "His movies received awards at the most important film festivals in the world. His work became the vehicle that took Greek culture to every corner of the earth, and served as a source of inspiration for Greek and foreign artists."
Cacoyannis is survived by his sister Giannoula, according to the Associated Press.
- 7/25/2011
- WENN
Cypriot film-maker – real name Mihalis Kakogiannis – behind 1964 smash Zorba the Greek has passed away, according to reports
Multi-award-winning Cypriot film-maker Mihalis Kakogiannis, best known for the 1964 hit Zorba the Greek starring Anthony Quinn, has died at the age of 90, it has been reported. Kakogiannis, who was billed under the name Michael Cacoyannis for his English-language productions, was nominated in three separate Oscar categories for Zorba (including best director), and became a regular in competition at Cannes.
Born in Limassol in 1922, Kakogiannis learned his craft in the UK at the Old Vic, before travelling to Greece to shoot his first film, Windfall in Athens. His follow-up, Stella, starring a young Melina Mercouri, became an international hit and set Kakogiannis on his way. Zorba the Greek, adapted from a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, eventually won three Oscars (though none for Kakogiannis himself).
Thereafter Kakogiannis found it hard to match Zorba's success. His follow-up,...
Multi-award-winning Cypriot film-maker Mihalis Kakogiannis, best known for the 1964 hit Zorba the Greek starring Anthony Quinn, has died at the age of 90, it has been reported. Kakogiannis, who was billed under the name Michael Cacoyannis for his English-language productions, was nominated in three separate Oscar categories for Zorba (including best director), and became a regular in competition at Cannes.
Born in Limassol in 1922, Kakogiannis learned his craft in the UK at the Old Vic, before travelling to Greece to shoot his first film, Windfall in Athens. His follow-up, Stella, starring a young Melina Mercouri, became an international hit and set Kakogiannis on his way. Zorba the Greek, adapted from a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, eventually won three Oscars (though none for Kakogiannis himself).
Thereafter Kakogiannis found it hard to match Zorba's success. His follow-up,...
- 7/25/2011
- by Andrew Pulver
- The Guardian - Film News
Zorba The Greek director Michael Cacoyannis has died at the age of 89. Cacoyannis passed away early Monday morning in Athens from a heart attack and chronic respiratory problems, a hospital spokesperson told The AP. No funeral plans have been announced. The Cyprus-born Cacoyannis began his career by directing a series of critically-acclaimed Greek films, including 1955's Golden Globe-winning Stella and the 1960 hit Our Last Spring. Zorba The Greek earned Cacoyannis international success and numerous accolades. The tale of a British man who returns to his ancestral homeland of Greece (more)...
- 7/25/2011
- by By Justin Harp
- Digital Spy
Yannis Economides' Knifer Now in its second year, the Hellenic Film Academy Awards ceremony was held in Athens on May 4. Veteran filmmaker Michael Cacoyannis (Zorba the Greek, The Trojan Women) received an honorary award, while absentee filmmaker Yannis Economides' Macherovgaltis / Knifer was the big winner, taking home seven awards including Best Film, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Knifer tells the story of a man who goes live with his uncle in the outskirts of Athens. Once there, one of his duties is the protection of two purebred dogs. Syllas Tzoumerkas' first feature, Homeland, won five awards, including Best Directorial Debut and Best Supporting Actress (Ioanna Tsirigouli). Homeland follows a dysfunctional Greek family living in a dysfunctional country (that's Greece as well) from the 1970s to the present. The Best Actress was Ariane Labed for her performance as a young woman attempting to cope with sex, death, and...
- 5/6/2011
- by Steve Montgomery
- Alt Film Guide
The 2nd Annual Awards Ceremony of the Hellenic Film Academy was held in Athens yesterday, and the big winner was the Cypriot director Yannis Economides with his third feature film, "Macherovgaltis" (Knifer). Knifer competed against the Venice Film Festival winners and favorites, Attenberg and Hora Proelefsis (Homeland) and still managed to win seven awards out of the nine that has been nominated including Best Feature, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Economides’ black and white drama is about Nikos, an ordinary guy, who after his father’s sudden death decides to go live and work with his uncle in the suburbs of Athens. Nikos also accepts his uncle’s offer which consists of protecting two purebred dogs from the hostile neighbors. Knifer also won the awards for Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Sound and Best Film Editing. Syllas Tzoumerkas’ Hora Proelefsis (Homeland) was originally the Academy’s favorite film with 12 nominations,...
- 5/5/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
Screenwriter and father of contemporary Greek theatre whose work blended mysticism and realism
Outside his native Greece, the playwright Iakovos Kambanellis, who has died of renal failure aged 89, was perhaps best known as a screenwriter on films, including Stella (1955), directed by Michael Cacoyannis. Kambanellis, who was always attracted to contemporary versions of classic tales, had first written the script as a play, Stella With the Red Gloves, based on Carmen, but it was never produced on the Greek stage because of its sexual frankness. Shot in the streets of Athens, the film follows a man-hungry singer (Melina Mercouri) who refuses to marry her lover, and begins a passionate affair with a football player. The film made Mercouri into a star and boosted Greek cinema's international reputation.
Although he did not consider himself a poet, Kambanellis also wrote some fine lyric poems that were turned into memorable songs by Greece's leading composers.
Outside his native Greece, the playwright Iakovos Kambanellis, who has died of renal failure aged 89, was perhaps best known as a screenwriter on films, including Stella (1955), directed by Michael Cacoyannis. Kambanellis, who was always attracted to contemporary versions of classic tales, had first written the script as a play, Stella With the Red Gloves, based on Carmen, but it was never produced on the Greek stage because of its sexual frankness. Shot in the streets of Athens, the film follows a man-hungry singer (Melina Mercouri) who refuses to marry her lover, and begins a passionate affair with a football player. The film made Mercouri into a star and boosted Greek cinema's international reputation.
Although he did not consider himself a poet, Kambanellis also wrote some fine lyric poems that were turned into memorable songs by Greece's leading composers.
- 4/4/2011
- The Guardian - Film News
If filming classical literature always presents difficulties to the filmmaker, one of them is the haloed status of classical texts. Since the classics appear not to be about ordinary people, we are uncertain how Achilles or Arjuna should be represented, whether they should be made human or beings of another kind. The efforts made by writers to humanize epic characters by infusing them with ‘psychology’ – e.g. Iravathi Karve’s Yugantha – may be well-intentioned but they do not add to our understanding of the epics. Putting our thoughts and our kind of motives into the heads of epic characters seems to reduce their stature. A reason may be that the epics were created before the birth of the ‘individual’, before Man and the World had been differentiated, before the inner and the outer were set apart. Oedipus killed his father and married his mother not because of ‘psychology’ – i.e.
- 3/23/2011
- by MK Raghvendra
- DearCinema.com
Dooman River
Zhang Lu’s Dooman River (La riviere tumen), which recently won the Best International Film at the Pune International Film Festival, will open the first edition of the Yashwant International Film Festival on January 20. The festival will take place in Mumbai from January 20th to 26th 2011.
The festival will showcase competition films from the recently concluded Pune International Film Festival in the following sections: World Cinema competition, Marathi Cinema competition, Student Film competition and Short films competition done jointly by Pune and Goa International Film Festival Fest.
Babu Band Baaja which won the Best Marathi Film Award in 9th Pune International Film Festival will be the closing film of the festival.
Five films of the Greek director Michael Cacoyannis will be screened in a Retrospective while The Focus on Korea section will present six acclaimed Korean films from last 10 years. In a Special Screening, four acclaimed German Films...
Zhang Lu’s Dooman River (La riviere tumen), which recently won the Best International Film at the Pune International Film Festival, will open the first edition of the Yashwant International Film Festival on January 20. The festival will take place in Mumbai from January 20th to 26th 2011.
The festival will showcase competition films from the recently concluded Pune International Film Festival in the following sections: World Cinema competition, Marathi Cinema competition, Student Film competition and Short films competition done jointly by Pune and Goa International Film Festival Fest.
Babu Band Baaja which won the Best Marathi Film Award in 9th Pune International Film Festival will be the closing film of the festival.
Five films of the Greek director Michael Cacoyannis will be screened in a Retrospective while The Focus on Korea section will present six acclaimed Korean films from last 10 years. In a Special Screening, four acclaimed German Films...
- 1/18/2011
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
The Goa Film Festival that was from the 22nd of November to the 2nd of December and I managed to attend the first five days. Unfortunately, I got sick just after the festival and couldn’t compile the report in time. Anyway, some of the films screened here will go on to be important during award season and since that’s around the corner, I figured I’d club my impression of the festival with reviews of the films, since I had foreshadowed some of the buzz. Please keep in mind that this is not blow-by-blow and a laundry list of films reviewed but an impression of one of the biggest Asian film celebrations and the many conversations and predictions I managed to collect.
Rewind
So, here I am at the International Film Festival of India in Goa, an anarchic carnival of cinema that is as much an index of...
Rewind
So, here I am at the International Film Festival of India in Goa, an anarchic carnival of cinema that is as much an index of...
- 1/12/2011
- by Kamayani Sharma
- The Moving Arts Journal
One hundred years ago on this very day 30s actress Gloria Stuart was born in Santa Monica. Happy birthday Gloria! Stuart made her name on James Whale's pictures like The Old Dark House (fun movie) and The Invisible Man before her screen career petered out in the 1940s. Then, über famously, James Cameron resurrected her to play the 100 year old survivor of Titanic. And the best part... she's still with us today!
Were you confused like Britney Spears when she tossed the Heart of the Ocean back into it in Titanic? Do you think Kate Winslet hopes to grow up to look just like her? "I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying."
-Woody AllenSince Gloria is not the oldest living Oscar nominee, it's list time. Who's still with us? (If I forgot anyone, do let me know in the comments.
Were you confused like Britney Spears when she tossed the Heart of the Ocean back into it in Titanic? Do you think Kate Winslet hopes to grow up to look just like her? "I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying."
-Woody AllenSince Gloria is not the oldest living Oscar nominee, it's list time. Who's still with us? (If I forgot anyone, do let me know in the comments.
- 7/5/2010
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Khandhar (The Ruins) (1984)
My friends are amazed that I should rate a Mrinal Sen film among the very best in world cinema. In fact, there are two films of Mrinal-da that I rate very high—Oka oorie katha (a film in Telugu language based on the Munshi Premchand tale Kafan) made in 1977 and Khandhar (made in Hindi language). These are two films, for me, which raise the bar of quality of Indian cinema, decades after they were made.
Mrinal Sen is an acknowledged Leftist. Yet a viewer of Khandhar will not come across Communist propaganda or even a red flag. There are no political speeches. The Mrinal-da of the overtly political Chorus-that won awards at Moscow and Berlin festivals apart from top Indian national honors--and Calcutta ’71 cannot be recognized as such in Khandhar.
Why then do I rate Khandhar so high? Is it because it won the Golden Hugo...
My friends are amazed that I should rate a Mrinal Sen film among the very best in world cinema. In fact, there are two films of Mrinal-da that I rate very high—Oka oorie katha (a film in Telugu language based on the Munshi Premchand tale Kafan) made in 1977 and Khandhar (made in Hindi language). These are two films, for me, which raise the bar of quality of Indian cinema, decades after they were made.
Mrinal Sen is an acknowledged Leftist. Yet a viewer of Khandhar will not come across Communist propaganda or even a red flag. There are no political speeches. The Mrinal-da of the overtly political Chorus-that won awards at Moscow and Berlin festivals apart from top Indian national honors--and Calcutta ’71 cannot be recognized as such in Khandhar.
Why then do I rate Khandhar so high? Is it because it won the Golden Hugo...
- 3/11/2010
- by Jugu Abraham
- DearCinema.com
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