WATCH >> Remembering James Earl Jones
From Academy Class 1996 interview: “What drew me to acting? It is language, speech.
It’s the thing I’ve denied myself all those years. I now have an abnormal appreciation for it.
The idea that you could do a Shakespeare play or any well-written play and say things you
never imagine saying or never imagine thinking in your
own life you can say easily. That’s what it’s all about.”
WATCH >> John Cassavetes, Ben Gazzara and the late-great Gena Rowlands talk in a restaurant
When we first made Woman Under The Influence, I said “John, gosh, nobody who is 18 or 20 is going to know what we are talking about.” And then I found that young people would stop us on the street and say “that’s my mom and dad, that’s what I grew up in.” Then other people in their 30’s would say “that’s the story of my life. That’s exactly what I went through.” And that was the most satisfying thing as a performer I had ever done. -Gena Rowlands
READ >> Why Marlon Brando turned down ‘Little Big Man’
Although casting a “big name” like Brando may have generated publicity for Little Big Man,
his refusal allowed Chief Dan George to receive his breakout role in the film.
His performance earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor,
and was essential to the film’s critical and financial success.
READ >> Robert Towne on the Plight of Screenwriters
No matter what is said about how a movie gets made, one fact is inescapable:
until the screenwriter does his job, nobody else, like actors, can do theirs.
Until the screenwriter does his job, nobody else has a job. In other words,
he is the asshole who keeps everybody else from going to work.
GO TO >> Early films of Sissy Spacek & Shelley Duval @ BAM
This July, at BAM in Brooklyn, NY: This series gathers together many of Spacek’s and Duvall’s films from the mid to late 70s, including classics like The Shining, Badlands, Carrie, Brewster McCloud, and more, with a special spotlight on their singular collaboration in Robert Altman’s masterpiece 3 Women. Take stock of the exceptional talents of two of Hollywood’s most distinctive actresses in this outrageously fun collection of genre-spanning classics.
READ >> Some advice from Cheryl Dunye
‘Keep putting yourself out where you belong’ says Cheryl Dunye,
the filmmaker who shaped how Black LGBTQ+ stories are told.
LISTEN >> An interview with the Late-Great, Roger Corman
The Late-Great Roger Corman talks career, his influence on filmmakers
and bringing Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers to the Drive-In.
R.I.P. Roger Corman
WATCH >> BTS of Almodovar’s ‘All About My Mother’
Happy Mother’s Day
READ >> The film fans who refuse to surrender to streaming: ‘One day you’ll barter bread for our DVDs’
“Everything is available on streaming”… well it kind of isn’t.
And the thing that is available on streaming could just not be tomorrow,
if two companies you don’t care about get in a fight about licensing.