As recorded by the American Film Institute, Martin Scorsese discovered Herbert Asbury's 1927 book "The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the Underworld" as early as 1970, back when he was a mere upstart who had only made one feature. It wouldn't be until later in the decade that Scorsese would be able to buy the film rights to the book having acquired some clout from "Taxi Driver" and "Mean Streets." As early as 1977, there were ads in local magazines that had announced a "Gangs of New York" movie with Scorsese slated to direct. It wouldn't be until 1991, however, that a budget could be settled on with producer Alberto Grimaldi getting $30 million from Universal. Universal, six years later, handed the rights to Disney. Scorsese would be allowed to make "Gangs of New York," but only if he and his co-screenwriter Jay Cocks added a love story element to their script.
- 9/26/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Quentin Tarantino crowned Sergio Corbucci as the second-best director of Italian westerns, but our vote goes to Sergio Sollima — this is the most satisfying Spaghetti oater outside of the Leone corral. In his first starring role, Lee Van Cleef is lawman Jonathan Corbett, who pursues Tomas Milian’s killer into Mexico for an American millionaire. Political screenwriter Franco Solinas helped cook up the story, which pitches frontier ethics against ‘establishment’ corruption. The two-disc special edition presents the show in 4 versions, if we count a clever English-Italian language hybrid.
The Big Gundown
Region B Blu-ray
Powerhouse Indicator
1967 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 110, 90, 95 min. / La resa dei conti / Street Date February 13, 2023 / available from Powerhouse Films UK / £22.99
Starring: Lee Van Cleef, Tomas Milian, Walter Barnes, Nieves Navarro, Gérard Herter, Manolita Barroso, Robert Camardiel, Ángel del Pozo, Luisa Rivelli, Luis Barboo, Benito Stefanelli.
Cinematography: Carlo Carlini
Set decorators: Carlo Leva, Carlo Simi, Nicola Tamburo
Costumes: Carlo...
The Big Gundown
Region B Blu-ray
Powerhouse Indicator
1967 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 110, 90, 95 min. / La resa dei conti / Street Date February 13, 2023 / available from Powerhouse Films UK / £22.99
Starring: Lee Van Cleef, Tomas Milian, Walter Barnes, Nieves Navarro, Gérard Herter, Manolita Barroso, Robert Camardiel, Ángel del Pozo, Luisa Rivelli, Luis Barboo, Benito Stefanelli.
Cinematography: Carlo Carlini
Set decorators: Carlo Leva, Carlo Simi, Nicola Tamburo
Costumes: Carlo...
- 2/7/2023
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
This Region-Free import gives us both versions of Gillo Pontecorvo’s fictional tale of colonial misdeeds that sums up old Europe’s attitude toward the New World. Marlon Brando’s agent provocateur and freebooting soldier of fortune foments revolution against the Portuguese and then hires out to reverse everything he’s done for English interests. The big scale production was filmed in several locations across the globe; it has a standout performance from Evaristo Márquez as a charismatic peasant eager to become a conqueror.
Burn!
Region Free Blu-ray
Viavision [Imprint] 194
1969 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 129, 112 min. / Street Date December 28, 2022 / Available from Viavision / au 79.95
Starring: Marlon Brando, Evaristo Márquez, Norman Hill, Renato Salvatori.
Cinematography: Marcello Gatti, Giuseppe Ruzzolini
Production Designer: Sergio Canevari
Art Director: Piero Gherardi
Film Editor: Mario Morra
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Written by Franco Solinas, Giorgio Arlorio
Produced by Alberto Grimaldi
Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo
The enterprising Italian producer Alberto...
Burn!
Region Free Blu-ray
Viavision [Imprint] 194
1969 / Color / 1:66 widescreen / 129, 112 min. / Street Date December 28, 2022 / Available from Viavision / au 79.95
Starring: Marlon Brando, Evaristo Márquez, Norman Hill, Renato Salvatori.
Cinematography: Marcello Gatti, Giuseppe Ruzzolini
Production Designer: Sergio Canevari
Art Director: Piero Gherardi
Film Editor: Mario Morra
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Written by Franco Solinas, Giorgio Arlorio
Produced by Alberto Grimaldi
Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo
The enterprising Italian producer Alberto...
- 12/31/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
When I saw "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" for the first time last year, I was taken aback by how it felt as if I had always known "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." Blondie's forced march through the desert; Angel Eyes's back as he walks through a house full of dead bodies; Tuco running through the cemetery looking for the right grave marker. Not to mention Ennio Moricone's score, whose main theme I guarantee you can quote from memory even if you've never seen the movie. I cannot say if "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" is the best western ever made, because it has plenty of competition even among Leone's own work. But it makes as strong a case as any for mythic permanence, as if it was set down on a tablet rather than filmed.
Of course, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...
Of course, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...
- 10/13/2022
- by Adam Wescott
- Slash Film
The good news is that Kino’s new 4K encodings of Sergio Leone’s first two Italo ‘Dollars’ oaters look terrific, with Fistful showing a lot of improvement: the basic restorations are from prime Italian film elements. And the packages are collector / home theater enthusiast friendly — standard Blu-ray encodings are part of the deal. As the films are still licensed from MGM, they include the extras from 2007 of which we’re very proud. The end results may be the first Leone disc release that makes this viewer ‘The Man with No Complaints.’ Don’t forget, they’re separate purchases.
A Fistful of Dollars + For a Few Dollars More
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1964-1965 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / Street Date May 31, 2022 / Separate Purchases / Available through Kino Lorber Fistful and A Few More /
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gian-Maria Volontè, Lee Van Cleef
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Directed by Sergio Leone
Yes,...
A Fistful of Dollars + For a Few Dollars More
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1964-1965 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / Street Date May 31, 2022 / Separate Purchases / Available through Kino Lorber Fistful and A Few More /
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gian-Maria Volontè, Lee Van Cleef
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Directed by Sergio Leone
Yes,...
- 5/17/2022
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
It’s yet another masterpiece from the Italian director Francesco Rosi, adapting a fiction novel about a political murder conspiracy that is altogether too much of a good fit for the troubled Italy of 1975. Crime star Lino Ventura is the incorruptible detective investigating a series of killings of high-level judges, who begins to intuit that his superiors want the murders to continue. Dark and moody, Rosi’s picture is impeccably directed for a kind of nagging, uneasy suspense, with frightening hints that Ventura is being drawn into a bigger, more sinister frame. With Charles Vanel, Max von Sydow and Fernando Rey, and music by Piero Piccioni. The insightful audio commentary is by Alex Cox. The original Italian title is even more blood-curdling: Cadaveri eccelenti.
Illustrious Corpses
Blu-ray
Kino Classics
1976 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 121 min. / Cadaveri eccellenti; The Context / Street Date September 28, 2021 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Lino Ventura, Tino Carraro, Marcel Bozzuffi,...
Illustrious Corpses
Blu-ray
Kino Classics
1976 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 121 min. / Cadaveri eccellenti; The Context / Street Date September 28, 2021 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Lino Ventura, Tino Carraro, Marcel Bozzuffi,...
- 9/4/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
It’s still one of the most popular movies ever, and fans are proving that by shelling out for an umpteenth home video release, this time on the 4K Ultra HD format. Everybody knows exactly what to expect from Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach, but what about the transfer quality and encoding — Sergio Leone’s film was originally shot in the half-frame Techniscope format, which is on the low-res side to scan in 4K. Kino adds a Blu-ray disc and a mountain of accumulated extras from earlier editions.
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
4K Ultra-hd + Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1966 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 162 min. / Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo / Street Date April 27, 2021 / available through Kino Lorber / 39.95
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, Aldo Giuffrè, Luigi Pistilli, Rada Rassimov, Enzo Petito, Benito Stefanelli, Aldo Sambrell, Al Mulock, Antonio Molino Rojo, Mario Brega, Chelo Alonso,...
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
4K Ultra-hd + Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1966 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 162 min. / Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo / Street Date April 27, 2021 / available through Kino Lorber / 39.95
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, Aldo Giuffrè, Luigi Pistilli, Rada Rassimov, Enzo Petito, Benito Stefanelli, Aldo Sambrell, Al Mulock, Antonio Molino Rojo, Mario Brega, Chelo Alonso,...
- 6/12/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Who will be included for the special “In Memoriam” segment for Sunday night’s Oscars 2021 ceremony? With last year’s Academy Awards happening over 14 months ago, it means an even larger number of film veterans have died. Producers will hopefully be offering a longer remembrance and not leaving out people for the sake of time.
Superstar actor Chadwick Boseman died late last summer and is a nominee as Best Actor for his role in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” Previous Oscar winners from acting categories show who will likely be honored include Sean Connery, Olivia de Havilland, Cloris Leachman and Christopher Plummer. Past acting nominees include Hal Holbrook, Ian Holm, Shirley Knight, George Segal, Cicely Tyson, Max von Sydow and Stuart Whitman.
SEE2021 Oscars presenters: Last year’s winners Renee Zellweger, Joaquin Phoenix, Laura Dern, Brad Pitt returning
Almost all of the near 100 people on the list below were Academy members.
Superstar actor Chadwick Boseman died late last summer and is a nominee as Best Actor for his role in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” Previous Oscar winners from acting categories show who will likely be honored include Sean Connery, Olivia de Havilland, Cloris Leachman and Christopher Plummer. Past acting nominees include Hal Holbrook, Ian Holm, Shirley Knight, George Segal, Cicely Tyson, Max von Sydow and Stuart Whitman.
SEE2021 Oscars presenters: Last year’s winners Renee Zellweger, Joaquin Phoenix, Laura Dern, Brad Pitt returning
Almost all of the near 100 people on the list below were Academy members.
- 4/23/2021
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Italian film producer whose credits included Last Tango in Paris and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
The producer Alberto Grimaldi, who has died aged 95, worked with most of the giants of Italian cinema, including Sergio Leone, Federico Fellini, Pier Paolo Pasolini and Bernardo Bertolucci. Fittingly for someone who began his career as a lawyer, he seemed to spend almost as much time in court, defending the films he had developed and financed, as he did on set. Hardly surprising when his credits included Bertolucci’s erotic chamber piece Last Tango in Paris (1972) and Pasolini’s remorseless study of fascism, Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975). These were among eight of his films that Italian censors and prosecutors accused of offending public decency.
After a three-year legal battle over Last Tango in Paris, Grimaldi received a suspended prison sentence in 1976, along with the director and the film’s stars,...
The producer Alberto Grimaldi, who has died aged 95, worked with most of the giants of Italian cinema, including Sergio Leone, Federico Fellini, Pier Paolo Pasolini and Bernardo Bertolucci. Fittingly for someone who began his career as a lawyer, he seemed to spend almost as much time in court, defending the films he had developed and financed, as he did on set. Hardly surprising when his credits included Bertolucci’s erotic chamber piece Last Tango in Paris (1972) and Pasolini’s remorseless study of fascism, Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975). These were among eight of his films that Italian censors and prosecutors accused of offending public decency.
After a three-year legal battle over Last Tango in Paris, Grimaldi received a suspended prison sentence in 1976, along with the director and the film’s stars,...
- 2/10/2021
- by Ryan Gilbey
- The Guardian - Film News
Italian film producer Alberto Grimaldi, whose credits include The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly and Gangs of New York, has died. He was 95.
His death from natural causes on Saturday in Miami was confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by one of his sons, Maurizio Grimaldi. “We loved him, he was a big presence, and he leaves behind a remarkable film legacy,” his son said in a statement.
Grimaldi produced more than 80 movies, working with such directors as Federico Fellini, Bernardo Bertolucci, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Gillo Pontecorvo, Martin Scorsese and Sergio Leone, mostly during the 1960s and ’70s....
His death from natural causes on Saturday in Miami was confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by one of his sons, Maurizio Grimaldi. “We loved him, he was a big presence, and he leaves behind a remarkable film legacy,” his son said in a statement.
Grimaldi produced more than 80 movies, working with such directors as Federico Fellini, Bernardo Bertolucci, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Gillo Pontecorvo, Martin Scorsese and Sergio Leone, mostly during the 1960s and ’70s....
- 1/25/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Italian film producer Alberto Grimaldi, whose credits include The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly and Gangs of New York, has died. He was 95.
His death from natural causes on Saturday in Miami was confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by one of his sons, Maurizio Grimaldi. “We loved him, he was a big presence, and he leaves behind a remarkable film legacy,” his son said in a statement.
Grimaldi produced more than 80 movies, working with such directors as Federico Fellini, Bernardo Bertolucci, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Gillo Pontecorvo, Martin Scorsese and Sergio Leone, mostly during the 1960s and ’70s....
His death from natural causes on Saturday in Miami was confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by one of his sons, Maurizio Grimaldi. “We loved him, he was a big presence, and he leaves behind a remarkable film legacy,” his son said in a statement.
Grimaldi produced more than 80 movies, working with such directors as Federico Fellini, Bernardo Bertolucci, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Gillo Pontecorvo, Martin Scorsese and Sergio Leone, mostly during the 1960s and ’70s....
- 1/25/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Alberto Grimaldi, a film producer whose credits include the Spaghetti Western “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” and Martin Scorsese’s “Gangs of New York,” has died. He was 95.
Grimaldi’s son, Maurizio Grimaldi, confirmed his death to Variety, adding that his father died of natural causes.
Born in Naples, Italy on March 28, 1925, Grimaldi originally studied law before starting his own production company, Produzioni Europee Associati, or P.E.A., in 1961. The first feature film Grimaldi produced was the Spanish western film “L’ombra di Zorro,” which released the following year. Grimaldi produced his first Spaghetti Western film, “I due violenti,” in 1964. P.E.A. became known for its low-budget action movies that were often co-productions with Spain and West Germany, and remained active until the early ’80s.
In 1965, Grimaldi first collaborated with Sergio Leone on the international co-production “For a Few Dollars More,” starring Clint Eastwood. The two...
Grimaldi’s son, Maurizio Grimaldi, confirmed his death to Variety, adding that his father died of natural causes.
Born in Naples, Italy on March 28, 1925, Grimaldi originally studied law before starting his own production company, Produzioni Europee Associati, or P.E.A., in 1961. The first feature film Grimaldi produced was the Spanish western film “L’ombra di Zorro,” which released the following year. Grimaldi produced his first Spaghetti Western film, “I due violenti,” in 1964. P.E.A. became known for its low-budget action movies that were often co-productions with Spain and West Germany, and remained active until the early ’80s.
In 1965, Grimaldi first collaborated with Sergio Leone on the international co-production “For a Few Dollars More,” starring Clint Eastwood. The two...
- 1/25/2021
- by Ellise Shafer
- Variety Film + TV
Anthology films are almost by definition a mixed bag, and even when one of their sort garners strong critical acclaim, as the Coen Brothers’ The Ballad of Buster Scruggs did last November, most reactions end up settling into a “this story is better than this story” sort of comparison game. Horror anthologies tend to be even more wildly variant in quality within their individual films, and British production company Amicus Films released a string of them in the ‘60s to mid ‘70s– titles like Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors, And Now the Screaming Starts, The House That Dripped Blood, Asylum and Tales That Witness Madness were a real hit-or-miss selection, with Amicus scoring highest when they adapted EC Comics stories into their big hits Tales from the Crypt (1972) and the follow-up Vault of Horror (1973).
But probably the best horror anthologies—Dead of Night (1945), an atypically creepy release from Britain’s Ealing Studios,...
But probably the best horror anthologies—Dead of Night (1945), an atypically creepy release from Britain’s Ealing Studios,...
- 3/31/2019
- by Dennis Cozzalio
- Trailers from Hell
Guest reviewer Lee Broughton is back with an in-depth look at Sergio Corbucci’s grand ‘Zapata’ Spaghetti Western. Set in post-1900 Mexico, Tony Musante’s rebellious peon wants to be a hero of the revolution but he primarily robs the rich in order to pay the extortionate wages that are demanded by Franco Nero’s interloping Polish mercenary-cum-military advisor. The resultant political allegory is played out on an almost epic scale and is suitably enlivened by the presence of a villainous Jack Palance, a plethora of large scale action scenes, an imaginatively used period car and biplane and a rousing soundtrack score by Ennio Morricone and Bruno Nicolai.
The Mercenary (Il mercenario)
Region B Blu-ray
88 Films The Italian Collection
1968 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 106 min. / A Professional Gun, Il mercenario / Street Date, 8 Jan 2018 / £15.99
Starring: Franco Nero, Tony Musante, Jack Palance, Giovanna Ralli, Franco Giacobini, Eduardo Fajardo, Franco Ressel, Raf Baldassarre, Tito Garcia.
The Mercenary (Il mercenario)
Region B Blu-ray
88 Films The Italian Collection
1968 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 106 min. / A Professional Gun, Il mercenario / Street Date, 8 Jan 2018 / £15.99
Starring: Franco Nero, Tony Musante, Jack Palance, Giovanna Ralli, Franco Giacobini, Eduardo Fajardo, Franco Ressel, Raf Baldassarre, Tito Garcia.
- 2/20/2018
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Sergio Leone’s Civil War gunslinger epic is everybody’s favorite western, and most everybody has a bone to pick regarding problems with the previous DVDs and Blu-rays. The good news is that Kino’s 50th Anniversary Special Edition takes giant leaps in correcting older audio issues . . . but the bad news . . .
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Blu-ray
2-Disc 50th Anniversary Special Edition
Kl Studio Classics
1966 / Color / 2:35 widescreen (Techniscope) / 187 161, 148 min. / Il Buono, Il Brutto, Il cattivo/ Street Date August 14, 2017 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, Aldo Giuffrè, Luigi Pistilli, Mario Brega, Al Mulock, Aldo Sambrell.
Cinematography: Tonino Delli Colli
Production Designer: Carlo Simi
Film Editor: Eugenio Alabiso, Nino Baragli
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Written by Agenore Incrocci, Furio Scarpelli, Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Leone, story by Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Leone.
Produced by Alberto Grimaldi
Directed by Sergio Leone
I’d like to report...
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Blu-ray
2-Disc 50th Anniversary Special Edition
Kl Studio Classics
1966 / Color / 2:35 widescreen (Techniscope) / 187 161, 148 min. / Il Buono, Il Brutto, Il cattivo/ Street Date August 14, 2017 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, Aldo Giuffrè, Luigi Pistilli, Mario Brega, Al Mulock, Aldo Sambrell.
Cinematography: Tonino Delli Colli
Production Designer: Carlo Simi
Film Editor: Eugenio Alabiso, Nino Baragli
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Written by Agenore Incrocci, Furio Scarpelli, Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Leone, story by Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Leone.
Produced by Alberto Grimaldi
Directed by Sergio Leone
I’d like to report...
- 8/12/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Writer-director Sergio Sollima gives us one of the best 'political' Italo westerns from the pre- May '68 era... with two top stars in great form, Gian Maria Volontè and Tomas Milian. This two-disc German import has both the long and short versions of the movie in HD, with full language options for each. Face to Face (Faccia a faccia; Von Angesicht zu Angesicht) Region A+B Blu-ray Explosive Media (Alive) 1967 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 93, 112 min. / Street Date April 29, 2016 / available at Amazon.de / E 21,93 Starring Gian Maria Volontè, Tomas Milian, William Berger, Jolanda Modio, Gianni Rizzo, Carole André Ángel del Pozo, Aldo Sambrell, Antonio Casas, Lidia Alfonsi, John Karlsen, Gastone Moschin, G&eacutge;rard Tichy. Cinematography Raphael Pacheco Film Editor Eugenio Alabiso Original Music Ennio Morricone Art Direction and sets Carlo Simi Written by Sergio Donati, Sergio Sollima Produced by Arturo González, Alberto Grimaldi <Directed by Sergio Sollima
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Wow,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Wow,...
- 10/4/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Kino Lorber brings the 1967 spaghetti Western Face to Face to Blu-ray this month, one of director Sergio Sollima’s most notable titles, previously released on DVD as a box-set with the two other titles in Sollima’s trilogy The Big Gundown (1966) and Run, Man, Run (1968). Noted for imbuing his work with a bit of actual social and historical context, there’s a bit more substance than usual for a film relegated to the periphery of a movement dominated by a mere handful of notable names. Though it’s ultimately not at the same level as iconic works by Sergio Leone and hasn’t reached the same level of reappraisal as several other retroactively recuperated directors, it features more nuanced characterizations in its complex narrative structure than is usually evident in other titles of the era.
Boston professor Brad Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonte) is suffering from poor health, and is forced...
Boston professor Brad Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonte) is suffering from poor health, and is forced...
- 8/18/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Akahige, Amarcord, Aleksandr Nevskij among Venice Classics titles; Bertrand Tavernier selects four films.
Akahige, Amarcord, Aleksandr Nevskij and A Matter of Life and Death are among 21 titles announced today to screen in Venice’s (September 2-12) Classics section, which will reveal further titles later this month.
Director Bertrand Tavernier, who is to receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement award, has selected and will present four films for the Classics strand: Pattes Blances (White Paws) by Jean Grémillion, La Lupa (The Vixen) by Alberto Lattuada, Sonnenstrahl (Ray of Sunshine) by Pál Fejös and A Matter of Life and Death by Michael Powell and Eric Pressburger.
The 21 restorations:
Akahige (Red Beard) by Akira Kurosawa (Japan, 1965, 185’, B&W), restoration by Tōhō Co., Ltd.
Aleksandr Nevskij (Alexander Nevsky) by Sergej Michajlovič Ėjzenštejn (Ussr, 1938, 108’, B&W), restoration by Mosfilm
Amarcord by Federico Fellini (Italy, 1973, 123’, Color) restoration by Cineteca di Bologna with the support of yoox.com and the...
Akahige, Amarcord, Aleksandr Nevskij and A Matter of Life and Death are among 21 titles announced today to screen in Venice’s (September 2-12) Classics section, which will reveal further titles later this month.
Director Bertrand Tavernier, who is to receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement award, has selected and will present four films for the Classics strand: Pattes Blances (White Paws) by Jean Grémillion, La Lupa (The Vixen) by Alberto Lattuada, Sonnenstrahl (Ray of Sunshine) by Pál Fejös and A Matter of Life and Death by Michael Powell and Eric Pressburger.
The 21 restorations:
Akahige (Red Beard) by Akira Kurosawa (Japan, 1965, 185’, B&W), restoration by Tōhō Co., Ltd.
Aleksandr Nevskij (Alexander Nevsky) by Sergej Michajlovič Ėjzenštejn (Ussr, 1938, 108’, B&W), restoration by Mosfilm
Amarcord by Federico Fellini (Italy, 1973, 123’, Color) restoration by Cineteca di Bologna with the support of yoox.com and the...
- 7/20/2015
- by mantus@masonlive.gmu.edu (Madison Antus)
- ScreenDaily
Above: Giotto, Meeting at the Golden Gate, 1305.
Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Salò (1975) was released by Criterion in 1998 and in 2004 they released Mamma Roma (1962). This past month they released a much belated box-set of his six-hour Trilogy of Life (1971-1974), in a beautiful restoration and accompanied with an awesome heap of great docs, essays and other goodies. On December 13 MoMA started a month-long retrospective dedicated to his work.
I. Defending Pasolini Against His Devotees
The prevailing view of Pier Paolo Pasolini has become subjugated to the misshapen reputation of his most infamous film, Salò (1975). The film’s unyielding serial descent into ever more severe cycles of mutilation, sodomy, coprophagia, and chronic rape of a group of 12-15 year olds has scandalized and influenced a culture that is frantic for any stimuli that can remind its constituents of their humanity. The film has furnished ample fodder for generations of filmmakers intent on...
Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Salò (1975) was released by Criterion in 1998 and in 2004 they released Mamma Roma (1962). This past month they released a much belated box-set of his six-hour Trilogy of Life (1971-1974), in a beautiful restoration and accompanied with an awesome heap of great docs, essays and other goodies. On December 13 MoMA started a month-long retrospective dedicated to his work.
I. Defending Pasolini Against His Devotees
The prevailing view of Pier Paolo Pasolini has become subjugated to the misshapen reputation of his most infamous film, Salò (1975). The film’s unyielding serial descent into ever more severe cycles of mutilation, sodomy, coprophagia, and chronic rape of a group of 12-15 year olds has scandalized and influenced a culture that is frantic for any stimuli that can remind its constituents of their humanity. The film has furnished ample fodder for generations of filmmakers intent on...
- 12/26/2012
- by Gabriel Abrantes
- MUBI
Well we're back again with the bumper crop of must-have DVDs and Blu-rays for the month of May – from historic Italian epics to underground American sensations to a chilly, expressionistic film noir to movies where Raquel Welch plays a Vegas showgirl fleeing a murderer – we’ve got them all hear for you. So look on below to see what's worth your money this month....
"1900" (1976) Blu-ray
Why You Should Care: At the time of its release, Bernardo Bertolucci's historical epic was said to be the most expensive (requiring the financial commitment of three major studios – 20th Century Fox, Paramount, and United Artists) and ambitious ever mounted in Italy. It's a tale of two friends (played by Robert De Niro and Gerard Depardieu), born on the same day at the dawn of the 20th century, and the way that their lives crisscross, intersect, and diverge wildly over the rocky course of history.
"1900" (1976) Blu-ray
Why You Should Care: At the time of its release, Bernardo Bertolucci's historical epic was said to be the most expensive (requiring the financial commitment of three major studios – 20th Century Fox, Paramount, and United Artists) and ambitious ever mounted in Italy. It's a tale of two friends (played by Robert De Niro and Gerard Depardieu), born on the same day at the dawn of the 20th century, and the way that their lives crisscross, intersect, and diverge wildly over the rocky course of history.
- 5/3/2012
- by Drew Taylor
- The Playlist
Bernard Rose joins the guru stable, bringing with him the trailer to Pasolini’s The Decameron.
Nine 14th-century scatological stories from Boccaccio’s Decameron form the basis of the first entry in Pier Paolo Pasolini’s “Trilogy of Life”, followed by The Canterbury Tales and Arabian Nights. Trailers from Hell welcomes filmmaker Bernard Rose to its guru ranks with his thoughts about this typically eye catching Alberto Grimaldi production, complete with Morricone score.
Click here to watch the trailer.
First off, a big welcome to our newest guru, Bernard Rose, who was one of the pioneering music video directors in the early days of MTV shooting “Relax” for Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and “Red Red Wine” for UB40. Rose’s feature credits as writer and director include
Paperhouse Candyman Immortal Beloved Anna Karenina Ivans Xtc The Kreutzer Sonata Mr Nice and, most recently, Two Jacks.
So, yeah, there’s that.
Nine 14th-century scatological stories from Boccaccio’s Decameron form the basis of the first entry in Pier Paolo Pasolini’s “Trilogy of Life”, followed by The Canterbury Tales and Arabian Nights. Trailers from Hell welcomes filmmaker Bernard Rose to its guru ranks with his thoughts about this typically eye catching Alberto Grimaldi production, complete with Morricone score.
Click here to watch the trailer.
First off, a big welcome to our newest guru, Bernard Rose, who was one of the pioneering music video directors in the early days of MTV shooting “Relax” for Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and “Red Red Wine” for UB40. Rose’s feature credits as writer and director include
Paperhouse Candyman Immortal Beloved Anna Karenina Ivans Xtc The Kreutzer Sonata Mr Nice and, most recently, Two Jacks.
So, yeah, there’s that.
- 7/13/2011
- by Danny
- Trailers from Hell
The films of Fellini, Pasolini, and De Sica. The week’s preview lies ahead.
On Monday, July 11, join John Landis for the trailer to La Strada.
The film that put Federico Fellini on the map internationally, with his wife Giuliana Masina’s indelible performance as the waif mistreated by brutish strongman Anthony Quinn. Richard Basehart provides further Us name value although he doesn’t dub himself in the English version. Winner of the first Academy Award for foreign language film in 1956.
On Wednesday, July 13, join Bernard Rose for the trailer to The Decameron.
Nine 14th-century scatological stories from Boccaccio’s Decameron form the basis of the first entry in Pier Paolo Pasolini’s “Trilogy of Life”, followed by The Canterbury Tales and Arabian Nights. Trailers from Hell welcomes filmmaker Bernard Rose to its guru ranks with his thoughts about this typically eye catching Alberto Grimaldi production, complete with Morricone score.
On Monday, July 11, join John Landis for the trailer to La Strada.
The film that put Federico Fellini on the map internationally, with his wife Giuliana Masina’s indelible performance as the waif mistreated by brutish strongman Anthony Quinn. Richard Basehart provides further Us name value although he doesn’t dub himself in the English version. Winner of the first Academy Award for foreign language film in 1956.
On Wednesday, July 13, join Bernard Rose for the trailer to The Decameron.
Nine 14th-century scatological stories from Boccaccio’s Decameron form the basis of the first entry in Pier Paolo Pasolini’s “Trilogy of Life”, followed by The Canterbury Tales and Arabian Nights. Trailers from Hell welcomes filmmaker Bernard Rose to its guru ranks with his thoughts about this typically eye catching Alberto Grimaldi production, complete with Morricone score.
- 7/11/2011
- by Danny
- Trailers from Hell
Produced by Sergio Leone’s long-term partner, Alberto Grimaldi, and complete with a score by the iconic Ennio Morricone, Face to Face (aka Faccia a Faccia) is an oft-forgotten spaghetti western from Italian director Sergio Sollima, famous for The Big Gundown (1966).
The film focuses on two protagonists; a history professor, Brad Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonté), and an outlaw, Solomon ‘Beauregard’ Bennett (Thomas Milian). Retiring due to ill health, Fletcher moves to Texas but through an act of kindness becomes entangled with an injured Bennett on the run from the law. Lying low, the health of the men improves, and each becomes fascinated by the contrasting persona of the other. Following a shoot-out, Fletcher is allowed to follow Bennett as he regroups with the 'Wild Gang,’ slowly ingratiating himself with the criminal community.
While Fletcher connects with his more sinister and bestial emotions, Bennett undergoes a crisis of conscious and re-evaluates...
The film focuses on two protagonists; a history professor, Brad Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonté), and an outlaw, Solomon ‘Beauregard’ Bennett (Thomas Milian). Retiring due to ill health, Fletcher moves to Texas but through an act of kindness becomes entangled with an injured Bennett on the run from the law. Lying low, the health of the men improves, and each becomes fascinated by the contrasting persona of the other. Following a shoot-out, Fletcher is allowed to follow Bennett as he regroups with the 'Wild Gang,’ slowly ingratiating himself with the criminal community.
While Fletcher connects with his more sinister and bestial emotions, Bennett undergoes a crisis of conscious and re-evaluates...
- 5/21/2011
- Shadowlocked
There's some major movement on Cloud Atlas, the adaptation of David Mitchell's ambitious novel that Tom Tykwer and Andy and Lana Wachowski are writing and planning to direct together. The project has been crawling forward for some time, and was recently announced as a definite 'go' with Tom Hanks in one of the key roles. Quite a few other people have been discussed as possible cast members, and the news today confirms Halle Berry and Hugo Weaving and adds Ben Whishaw. Much more info, including a long casting/character breakdown, is after the break. The big news, via THR [1], isn't necessarily that those actors are now firm additions to the project, but that all the actors cast will play multiple roles. So, first, for the uninitiated, let's hit the major question: What is Cloud Atlas? The novel is difficult to quickly summarize, as it is made up of six...
- 5/12/2011
- by Russ Fischer
- Slash Film
Martin Scorsese's careerlong exploration of the role of violence in American society culminates in "Gangs of New York". The view here is that brutality and corruption played midwives to the American nation, that the American dream of liberty from European despotism, monarchy and aristocratic privilege ran afoul of the New World vices of bigotry and anarchy almost immediately. This is a relentless, pitch-black portrait of New York in 1863 that, while thoroughly rooted in historical fact, is nonetheless painted from limited pigments.
Astonishing and audacious, the film certainly creates a kind of perverse beauty and excitement out of its horrors. Scorsese seems to want the viewer to get a voyeuristic rush from gut-spilling fights featuring knives, cleavers and bats. And just as certainly, "Gangs" poses a major challenge to Miramax's marketing department.
Here is a movie from arguably America's most brilliant filmmaker, yet one so dark and disturbing you might label it a "feel-bad" movie. It's a gangster film, one of cinema's more durable genres, yet mired in arcane history and forgotten political movements. Scorsese's reputation ensures a solid opening here and perhaps even better in Europe. But Miramax will have a hard time recouping the enormous cost of re-creating 19th century New York at Rome's Cinecitta Studios.
Inspired by Herbert Asbury's 1928 classic study, the script by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan embroils the viewer in a now-forgotten district of Lower Manhattan known as Five Points. Here everyone prays to one God or another, but in reality, God does not venture into this satanic terrain.
Ruled by an underworld barbarian known as Bill the Butcher (Daniel Day-Lewis, in his first movie since 1997's "The Boxer"), the area's only business is crime: theft, racketeering, prostitution, gambling, drugs and murder. Bill has made a devil's alliance with Boss Tweed (Jim Broadbent), supplying muscle to the political boss who would rule the city. It is into this cauldron that immigrants, mostly Catholics despised by Nativists, surge on a daily basis.
Unlike Scorsese's previous gangster movies, such as "GoodFellas" or "Casino", there is little complexity to this 1863 underworld. There is a bad guy in Bill the Butcher, who carves up people and pigs with equal enthusiasm. And there is a young hero in an American-born Irish orphan named Amsterdam (Leonardo DiCaprio), determined to avenge Bill's murder of his father, Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson), an Irish immigrant leader, 16 years earlier.
Amsterdam somewhat implausibly worms his way into Bill's Nativist gang and then into his confidence, becoming a son to the chief. The lad gets involved romantically with a beauteous, headstrong pickpocket, Jenny (Cameron Diaz), who has links to Bill as well. Other characters fill out the rogue's gallery: Monk (Brendan Gleeson), a strong-arm enforcer settled into shopkeeping; Happy Jack John C. Reilly), a former gang member-turned-corrupt copper; and Johnny (Henry Thomas), an Amsterdam loyalist with strong instincts for self-preservation.
Against the backdrop of the Civil War -- of President Lincoln's unpopular conscription and coffins arriving daily in the city -- come the political maneuverings of Boss Tweed and a betrayal that alerts Bill to Amsterdam's true intentions. This lead to a climax amid the worst riot in American history, the Draft Riots, where much of Manhattan was destroyed first by immigrant mobs, then by soldiers and Navy guns.
DiCaprio makes the protagonist's thirst for revenge and reclamation of family honor palpable. But he doesn't look the part of a street tough. Nor is the script helpful by insisting that despite 16 long years in a religious "house of refuge," he has lost none of his street smarts.
The film's great performance belongs to Day-Lewis, a sociopath given free reign to spill blood in copious amounts. Here anger -- at politicians, foreign "invaders," high society -- mingles with humor and a sense of detachment. He's illiterate yet understands how power works and how to hold it through terror.
Cinematographer Michael Ballhaus, designer Dante Ferretti and costumer Sandy Powell conspire to bring to life paintings and engravings of Old New York -- its interiors almost monochromatic, the streets filled with smoky colors and nights made sinister by gaslight and flickering fires that dot the landscape.
Yet this 168-minute movie, reportedly cut down from a 195-minute version, never gets you inside the story so you understand how the characters feel about their deeds. Whether or not a longer version would have given the film more texture and dimension, this one presents a blinkered vision of American history, relegated to a few streets and alleys of Lower Manhattan and a few thugs who left no mark except perhaps on the collective unconscious.
GANGS OF NEW YORK
Miramax Films
An Alberto Grimaldi production
Credits:
Director: Martin Scorsese
Screenwriters: Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian, Kenneth Lonergan
Story by: Jay Cocks
Producers: Alberto Grimaldi, Harvey Weinstein
Executive producers: Michael Ovitz, Bob Weinstein, Rick Yorn, Michael Hausman, Maurizio Grimaldi
Director of photography: Michael Ballhaus
Production designer: Dante Ferretti
Music: Howard Shore
Costume designer: Sandy Powell
Editor: Thelma Schoonmaker
Cast:
Amsterdam Vallon: Leonardo DiCaprio
Bill the Butcher: Daniel Day-Lewis
Jenny Everdeane: Cameron Diaz
Boss Tweed: Jim Broadbent
Happy Jack: John C. Reilly
Johnny Sirocco: Henry Thomas
Monk: Brendan Gleeson
Priest Vallon: Liam Neeson
Running time -- 168 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
Astonishing and audacious, the film certainly creates a kind of perverse beauty and excitement out of its horrors. Scorsese seems to want the viewer to get a voyeuristic rush from gut-spilling fights featuring knives, cleavers and bats. And just as certainly, "Gangs" poses a major challenge to Miramax's marketing department.
Here is a movie from arguably America's most brilliant filmmaker, yet one so dark and disturbing you might label it a "feel-bad" movie. It's a gangster film, one of cinema's more durable genres, yet mired in arcane history and forgotten political movements. Scorsese's reputation ensures a solid opening here and perhaps even better in Europe. But Miramax will have a hard time recouping the enormous cost of re-creating 19th century New York at Rome's Cinecitta Studios.
Inspired by Herbert Asbury's 1928 classic study, the script by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan embroils the viewer in a now-forgotten district of Lower Manhattan known as Five Points. Here everyone prays to one God or another, but in reality, God does not venture into this satanic terrain.
Ruled by an underworld barbarian known as Bill the Butcher (Daniel Day-Lewis, in his first movie since 1997's "The Boxer"), the area's only business is crime: theft, racketeering, prostitution, gambling, drugs and murder. Bill has made a devil's alliance with Boss Tweed (Jim Broadbent), supplying muscle to the political boss who would rule the city. It is into this cauldron that immigrants, mostly Catholics despised by Nativists, surge on a daily basis.
Unlike Scorsese's previous gangster movies, such as "GoodFellas" or "Casino", there is little complexity to this 1863 underworld. There is a bad guy in Bill the Butcher, who carves up people and pigs with equal enthusiasm. And there is a young hero in an American-born Irish orphan named Amsterdam (Leonardo DiCaprio), determined to avenge Bill's murder of his father, Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson), an Irish immigrant leader, 16 years earlier.
Amsterdam somewhat implausibly worms his way into Bill's Nativist gang and then into his confidence, becoming a son to the chief. The lad gets involved romantically with a beauteous, headstrong pickpocket, Jenny (Cameron Diaz), who has links to Bill as well. Other characters fill out the rogue's gallery: Monk (Brendan Gleeson), a strong-arm enforcer settled into shopkeeping; Happy Jack John C. Reilly), a former gang member-turned-corrupt copper; and Johnny (Henry Thomas), an Amsterdam loyalist with strong instincts for self-preservation.
Against the backdrop of the Civil War -- of President Lincoln's unpopular conscription and coffins arriving daily in the city -- come the political maneuverings of Boss Tweed and a betrayal that alerts Bill to Amsterdam's true intentions. This lead to a climax amid the worst riot in American history, the Draft Riots, where much of Manhattan was destroyed first by immigrant mobs, then by soldiers and Navy guns.
DiCaprio makes the protagonist's thirst for revenge and reclamation of family honor palpable. But he doesn't look the part of a street tough. Nor is the script helpful by insisting that despite 16 long years in a religious "house of refuge," he has lost none of his street smarts.
The film's great performance belongs to Day-Lewis, a sociopath given free reign to spill blood in copious amounts. Here anger -- at politicians, foreign "invaders," high society -- mingles with humor and a sense of detachment. He's illiterate yet understands how power works and how to hold it through terror.
Cinematographer Michael Ballhaus, designer Dante Ferretti and costumer Sandy Powell conspire to bring to life paintings and engravings of Old New York -- its interiors almost monochromatic, the streets filled with smoky colors and nights made sinister by gaslight and flickering fires that dot the landscape.
Yet this 168-minute movie, reportedly cut down from a 195-minute version, never gets you inside the story so you understand how the characters feel about their deeds. Whether or not a longer version would have given the film more texture and dimension, this one presents a blinkered vision of American history, relegated to a few streets and alleys of Lower Manhattan and a few thugs who left no mark except perhaps on the collective unconscious.
GANGS OF NEW YORK
Miramax Films
An Alberto Grimaldi production
Credits:
Director: Martin Scorsese
Screenwriters: Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian, Kenneth Lonergan
Story by: Jay Cocks
Producers: Alberto Grimaldi, Harvey Weinstein
Executive producers: Michael Ovitz, Bob Weinstein, Rick Yorn, Michael Hausman, Maurizio Grimaldi
Director of photography: Michael Ballhaus
Production designer: Dante Ferretti
Music: Howard Shore
Costume designer: Sandy Powell
Editor: Thelma Schoonmaker
Cast:
Amsterdam Vallon: Leonardo DiCaprio
Bill the Butcher: Daniel Day-Lewis
Jenny Everdeane: Cameron Diaz
Boss Tweed: Jim Broadbent
Happy Jack: John C. Reilly
Johnny Sirocco: Henry Thomas
Monk: Brendan Gleeson
Priest Vallon: Liam Neeson
Running time -- 168 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 12/6/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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