Roger Durling's Big Picture
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A Chat with Haaz Sleiman, Star of Tom McCarthy’s The Visitor
The Immigrant Experience, Post-9/11
Roger Durling chats with the star of a film that reflects the immigrant experience in America, post 9/11. Read story.
Chatting with the Makers and Stars of Young@Heart
Old Folks Singing New
The new documentary Young@Heart is the first indie crowd pleaser of the year, a surprising and uplifting look at sustaining a lust for life and laughing at the idea of acting your age. Read story.
Spain Unleashes The Orphanage on American Soil
The Ghosts in Your Head
Spain’s official film submission for the Academy Awards is a ghost story titled The Orphanage — and it’s one of the tensest experiences I’ve ever had at the movies. Read story.
Santa Barbara’s Reigning Film Fanatic Runs Down His Top 10 Films of 2007
The Best of a Banner Year
This past year was a banner year for film, so coming up with the best 10 is a difficult exercise. I started with a list of 25, and had to simmer that down substantially, eventually cutting out some favorites along the way. So before we get to my top 10, here are some movies worth mentioning: Read story.
What the Master Is Thinking
A Chat with Legendary Filmmaker David Cronenberg
A Chat with Legendary Filmmaker David Cronenberg, whose Eastern Promise is released on DVD today. Read story.
Inside The Kite Runner, The Savages, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, and Juno
A Quadruple Threat of Holiday Hits
Movie studios wait until the end of the year to release their best stuff, so they can capitalize on the many awards being handed out around now. Read story.
Sitting Down with Joe Wright, Director of Atonement
Loving the Limitations of Adaptation
Atonement is the film adaptation of Ian McEwan’s bestselling novel. Starring James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, and Vanessa Redgrave, it starts on a very hot day in 1935 when 13-year-old Briony sees her older sister, Cecilia (Knightley), take off her clothes and jump in the country house’s fountain in front of their housekeeper’s son (McAvoy). Read story.
An Interview with Frank Langella, Star of Starting Out in the Evening
From the Stage to the Screen and Back
Frank Langella has been choosy about the roles he decides to play on the big screen. Meanwhile, he has cultivated a remarkable career in the theater, winning three Tony awards, including one for best actor this past June for his instantly legendary portrayal on Broadway of President Richard Nixon in the play Frost/Nixon. Read story.
A Chat with Josh Brolin, Star of No Country for Old Men
Comprehending the Coen Brothers
The Coen brothers’ new film, No Country for Old Men, has been called a masterpiece by several national critics, and it’s the second most roundly praised film of the year behind Ratatouille. Based on the novel by Pulitzer Prize-winner Cormac McCarthy, the movie is about the chain of events that happen after Llewelyn Moss grabs a bag of money from the site of a drug deal gone wrong. Read story.
A Talk with I’m Not There Writer/Director Todd Haynes
Being Bob Dylan
Todd Haynes’s film I’m Not There is the wildest mainstream film you’ll see this year. It’s about Bob Dylan, but Dylan is played by six different actors, including Richard Gere, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, and Cate Blanchett. Read story.
Director Craig Gillespie on Dolls, Ryan Gosling, and Lars and the Real Girl
All Dolled Up
After a painful childhood, Lars lives isolated in his brother’s garage. One day, he introduces Bianca, an anatomically correct polyurethane doll, as his girlfriend to his family and the people of his small town, turning their lives and his own upside down. Read story.
The Magic of Myths
Elizabeth: The Golden Age Director Shekhar Kapur on Making History Relevant
In 1999, Elizabeth was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including best actress for Cate Blanchett as the queen. The film depicted the early years of Queen Elizabeth I and her ascendancy to the throne of England. Almost a decade later, its director Shekhar Kapur has assembled most of his original collaborators and continues the story of the Virgin Queen and her battles both personal and against the Kingdom of Spain in Elizabeth: The Golden Years. I recently met with the director to discuss the film. Read story.
Paul Haggis, Director of In the Valley of Elah, Discusses Hidden Impacts of Iraq War
Good Kids Going Bad
After finishing his Academy Award-winning Crash in 2003, Paul Haggis decided to start work on a film about the Iraq War. Studios would not get near the project, but with the help of Clint Eastwood, Haggis was able to get In the Valley of Elah funded. Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, and Susan Sarandon are exemplary in this film about a father’s search for his missing Iraq veteran son. Read story.
A Report from Canada’s Biggest Film Festival
Atoning for Toronto
Alongside Cannes, Berlin, Venice, and Sundance, Toronto is considered to be one of the top five film festivals in the world. Spread throughout the city in numerous venues with dozens of events, the Toronto Film Festival is big, with a daunting and hefty schedule of hundreds of films. It’s also become the place to showcase those releases that are timed for Oscar consideration, which means that every night, there are about four red-carpet events happening at once with dueling parties vying for your attention. Read story.
The Telluride Wrap-Up
The Best Film Fest
It’s no secret that I love film festivals —I’m the happiest and most fulfilled in that environment. Every once in a while somebody asks me, “Which is your favorite?” My answer for the past 25 years has been the same: Telluride Film Festival. Nothing comes close. Nothing quite compares. Read story.
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