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5 articles from 2009

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The gutting of Miramax, Pt. II: Is this the end of New York movie culture?

2 November 2009 3:58 PM, PST | EW.com - The Movie Critics | See recent EW.com - The Movie Critics news »

Last week, it was announced that Miramax Films would close its New York offices, and that its president, Daniel Battsek, was being asked to step down. If that sounds like an unhappy day for the world of independent film -- well, it is. Yet as far as Miramax is concerned, it's really just one more nail in a coffin that was already slamming shut. In case you missed the news, here's the post I wrote back on Oct. 11 about the gutting of Miramax that took place last month, and what it could portend, in general, for studio specialty divisions. There's »

- Owen Gleiberman

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Husbands and Wives

18 August 2009 7:10 AM, PDT | ifc.com | See recent IFC news »

The mistake that people have made about John Cassavetes, both those who fall swooning at the altar of his films and those who find them overwrought, irritating and indulgent, is in considering him as a realist. A mere realist. Cassavetes' work may look realistic, spontaneous and controlled in the moment by emotional typhoons, but this is not your Italian granddaddy's neo-realist peasant drama or anything like the new-ish introverted realism coming in thick bolts out of the global cameras of the Dardennes, Jia, Tsai, Reygadas, Costa, etc. The only Cassavetes movie that was truly improvised was his first, "Shadows" (1959); after that, the scripts were fleshed out in grueling detail through rehearsals, and what grumpy Hollywood turks like Sean Penn and Vincent Gallo have seen as letting the actor's id run free in a psychodramatic hothouse of booze and childish regression -- cutting through the bullshit and getting to the reality »

- Michael Atkinson

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DVD Review: Two John Cassavetes Classics Are Inducted Into Criterion Collection

26 February 2009 1:16 PM, PST | HollywoodChicago.com | See recent HollywoodChicago.com news »

Chicago – Entries number 251 and number 252 in the most important and impressive series of DVDs in the history of the format, The Criterion Collection, come from the same influential writer/director, one of the godfathers of the independent film industry, John Cassavetes. Both are worthwhile additions to any serious film collector’s shelf.

DVD Rating: 4.5/5.0 The first of the pair is the half-century old “Shadows,” Cassavetes’ directorial debut. As the credit so perfectly says “Improvised/Directed by John Cassavetes”. These visionary films were the forerunner of the American independent film movement - creative people getting together with a camera to create art.

Shadows was released on DVD on February 17th, 2009.

Photo credit: Courtesy of the Criterion Collection Those creative people in “Shadows” were headed by Lelia Goldoni and Anthony Ray. Goldoni plays a character of the same name, a light-skinned black woman living in New York City with her two brothers. »

- adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)

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Jeff Lipsky Tells Young Filmmakers, Critics to “suck it”

3 February 2009 8:08 AM, PST | Spout.com | See recent Spout news »

6. I predict the death of mumblecore movies by 2011. Independent films will once again boast strong scripts and, as such, will reach a broader audience. This is probably as good a time as any to reiterate to critics who invoke the name of John Cassavetes in their reviews of so-called mumblecore fare: John’s only improvised film was Shadows. Suck it. Indie film distribution stalwart-turned-director Jeff Lipsky has written a two-part, ten item list of reasons he's "bullish on the state of indie" film for Ted Hope's blog Truly Free Film. The ... »

- Karina Longworth

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Jeff Lipsky Tells Young Filmmakers, Critics to “suck it”

3 February 2009 8:08 AM, PST | Spout.com | See recent Spout news »

6. I predict the death of mumblecore movies by 2011. Independent films will once again boast strong scripts and, as such, will reach a broader audience. This is probably as good a time as any to reiterate to critics who invoke the name of John Cassavetes in their reviews of so-called mumblecore fare: John’s only improvised film was Shadows. Suck it. Indie film distribution stalwart-turned-director Jeff Lipsky has written a two-part, ten item list of reasons he's "bullish on the state of indie" film for Ted Hope's blog Truly Free Film. The ... »

- Karina Longworth

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5 articles from 2009

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