Battle of the Titans: Robert Gordon on William Buckley vs. Gore Vidal in Best of Enemies
Playing at the BAMcineamaFest in Brooklyn and AFI Docs in Los Angeles tonight, Magnolia Pictures' Best of Enemies is a riveting behind-the-scenes account of the explosive 1968 televised debates between liberal Gore Vidal and conservative William F. Buckley Jr., where these two intellectual heavyweights clobbered each other over their views about God, sex, and politics.
We spoke with co-director and producer Robert Gordon about how this film came to be,
Aligning Past, Present & Future in Terminator Genisys
Director Alan Taylor and writers Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier had a lot to juggle when they went to work on Terminator Genisys. With the four previous Terminator films and their corkscrewing stories, the filmmakers had to find a way to honor the universe the franchise has already built while setting off on their own, singular path. At what part of the saga of man's battle with machines would they pick up,
Meet the Crew That Worked on Both Jurassic Park & Jurassic World
Universal's new Jurassic World is being heralded as a proper folllow-up to Steven Spielberg's 1993 classic Jurassic Park, the film that raised the bar for what CGI could accomplish and blew the minds of kids and adults alike. When director Colin Trevorrow took the helm of Jurassic World, the first film in the franchise in 14-years, both he and executive producer Steven Spielberg wanted to recapture the magic of that first film.
Me and Earl and The Dying Girl Director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon
Director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon has faced rejection before in the movie business. In 2014, his horror film The Town that Dreaded Sundown was only released in a few theaters nationwide and then went straight to video on demand. He wanted a chance for that film to build an audience but never had the opportunity. The Texas born filmmaker had steadily worked his way up through the ranks, starting as a personal assistant for some of Hollywood's biggest stars (Nora Ephron,
Melissa McCarthy Continues Tradition of Screwball Spy Comedies in Grand Fashion
In writer-director Paul Feig’s Spy, Melissa McCarthy takes the reins as the latest bumbling protagonist in that tried and tested movie genre: the spy comedy. McCarthy plays CIA desk-jockey Susan Cooper who is unexpectedly called up to go undercover in the field. (See our interview with stunt coordinator J.J. Perry here about turning McCarthy into a proper, butt-kicking spy.)
Unlike the slick, womanizing James Bond, who navigates his way through each world-saving assignment improbably unruffled,
How’d They Film That? Inside the Fault Lines on San Andreas
When your film is about the San Andreas fault giving way and a magnitude 9-plus earthquake turning California into so many dominoes and sinkholes, decimating cities and their historic landmarks, you’re going to need some serious CGI. Yet you’d be surprised how much of San Andreas was shot in camera, using practical stunts and a lot of old fashioned movie magic (and a whole lot of chutzpah from the stunt professionals).
Details on Jurassic World, Questions About Game of Thrones & More
A few things on our minds that we'd love your feedback on, including excitement over Jurassic World, frustration with a certain awful someone on Game of Thrones, and hope for an upcoming comedy. Let us know what we've missed and what you think on the below.
Jurassic World's Indominus Rex is not only a crazy hybrid dinosaur but also a sly jab at our insatiable appetite for the next big thing.
Writer/Director Garrett Bradley is an Artist to Watch
If you haven't heard of director Garrett Bradley, you're probably not alone but you will be if eventually, as this is one young director you want to keep an eye on. Bradley’s very powerful debut, Below Dreams, is a haunting homage to the beauty and spirit of New Orleans’s underside and the passion of those with dreams, both great and small.
Below Dreams is a narrative in the neo-realism style that melds fiction with reality.
H.R. Giger—The Man who Created the Ultimate Alien
H.R. Giger's work has informed the popular imagination to an extent the Swiss surrealist painter could never have guessed when he began his work. He's most well known for his Oscar-winning creations for Ridley Scott's Alien, a film that has touched nearly every science fiction story that has followed it. Giger's influence extends far past Hollywood, however. Horror fanatics, punk and goth culture, pop music, a cottage industry of album cover art, tattoos,
The Spy Who Swiped Right: Tinder & Paul Feig’s Spy Join Forces
"To swipe left or to swipe right, that is the question." – William Shakespeare-Rogers, quoted in 2014.
Most singles in our modern digital age have suffered the agony associated with online dating and online dating apps. Those familiar with the process know its starts with deciding which direction you should swipe, left or right – a euphemism for yes or no – then comes the trepidation of what happens once the deed is done. Who messages who first?
Karl Bushby Attempts 36,000 Mile Trek in The Walk Around the World
Karl Bushby had two rules when he set out to walk an unbroken path around the world: No form of transport to advance, and he couldn’t go home, to Hull, England, until he arrived on foot.
He made this pact with himself nearly two decades ago, and Bushby's still walking. He's walked across 25 countries, over seven mountain ranges, from the southern tip of Argentina up through South and Central America,
Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of V-E Day Through Film
May 8th marks the 70th anniversary of Victory in Europe (V-E Day). For those fortunate enough to be spending this Friday in the Washington, DC, an event call "Arsenal of Democracy: World War II Victory Capitol Flyover" will feature more than 40 vintage WWII aircraft flying over our nation’s Capitol between noon and 1 p.m. The path will start along the Potomac River; turn left at the Lincoln Memorial to follow Independence Avenue along the Mall,
4 Lessons About the Future of Horror From the Stanley Film Fest
Blood splatters the help, clouds roll over the mountains, zombie baby dolls hang from lamp posts, and the Stanley Hotel glows red at night during the Stanley Film Fest, a horror film festival that just wrapped this past Sunday, May 3. Horror genre icons, amateur filmmakers, legendary producers and Hollywood stars mingled in Estes Park, Colorado over a weekend of shorts and feature films haunted by the horror legacy of Stephen King’s The Shining.
6 Films To Celebrate Cinco de Mayo
Do you know the origins of Cinco de Mayo? You’re not alone if you don’t – it’s the commemoration of the Mexican army’s unlikely victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla in 1862.
Let’s get into the spirit of the holiday, and the many glories of Mexico, through film. Head over to WheretoWatch.com to find these Mexican-themed favorites.
Cinco de Mayo: The Battle (2013)
A defining battle in Mexican history comes to the big screen in this historical war drama detailing the Battle of Puebla.
Celebrating Britain’s Big Week Through Film
There is lots of excitement across the pond. The Royal Family is celebrating a new princess, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, born on Saturday. The common folk will vote on Thursday to elect the UK’s 56th Parliament. So there’s no better time to pour a spot of tea, slather a scone with clotted cream, and snuggle up with a royal themed movie.
Turn on your telly (or mobile device), put on a tiara or a fascinator,
Brett Morgen on Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck & how Frances Bean Made it Happen
Nearly eight years after director Brett Morgen (The Kids Stays in the Picture) was approached by Courtney Love to make a film about her late husband’s life, the documentary, Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, is finally available to fans around the world — premiering on HBO and in select theaters tonight, May 4th.
Using never-before-seen and heard artwork, personal writings, music and home movies (it’s amazing how much footage there is of young Kurt),
Nick Kroll Talks Being Mentored by Mark Duplass for Adult Beginners
Nick Kroll knew that if he wanted a meaty role in a feature film comedy, he needed to develop it himself. Fortunately, Kroll has friends and colleagues who were willing to offer advice on transitioning from TV comic — he stars in his own Kroll Show on Comedy Central and has appeared in the sitcoms The League and Parks and Recreation— to film actor, even on a low budget indie.
From Robert Mugabe to Ray Liotta – That’s a Wrap at the Tribeca Film Festival
New York took center stage in the opening and closing films of the 14th annual Tribeca Film Festival, however the winning films rounded things out with stories from much further afield.
The Saturday Night Live documentary Live From New York! kicked off the proceedings, demonstrating how the landmark comedy show has both responded to the times and occasionally had a hand in shaping them over the 40 years it’s been on air.
Tribeca Recap: Code Looks at the Lack of Women in Computer Science
Why is there such a dearth of women in computer science and other high-tech fields? Director/producer Robin Hauser Reynolds searches for the answers in CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap, which made its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Two years ago Reynolds received a call from her daughter, who had become so discouraged by her male-dominated computer science classes at college (she was one of only two female students),
Who Freaks You Out More: these Grandparents, these Aliens, or Johnny Depp?
Three new trailers with very different sources of extreme tension. So the question we pose to you today is this; who would you rather be trapped in a house with less, the grandparents from M. Night Shyamalan’s upcoming The Visit, Johnny Depp’s Whitey Bulger from the upcoming Black Mass, or whatever the hell those things are in Area 51?
Let's take a look:
The Visit
Yes,
