Berta Singerman Recites “Camino de la Patria”
Argentinean stage legend Berta Singerman — actually born in Russia — made only three films, one of which in Hollywood: Nada más que una mujer / Nothing More Than a Woman, the 1934 Spanish-language version of the Fox production Pursued (itself a remake of The Painted Woman).
Singerman, who died at the age of 97 in Buenos Aires in 1998, was renowned for her poetry readings. Spanish classical music composer Manuel de Falla once said, "While we, composers, look for music for our words, Berta extracts music from words."
The clip above (I’d say it’s from the 1970s or perhaps early 1980s) shows Berta Singerman being interviewed by journalist Antonio Carrizo. I can’t understand most of what she says (my Spanish sucks); nonetheless, her delivery of Colombian poet-journalist Carlos Castro Saavedra’s 1951 poem "Camino de la Patria" ("Road to the Fatherland" — that’s humankind’s "Fatherland" of peace and freedom) is quite impressive. See (and hear) it for yourself. Note: The poem delivery begins at 1m45s.
Clip posted by teditis.
LATTER DAYS Clip: Mormons Vs. Gays
Patti Smith Indicts George W. Bush
MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA Trailer
Daniel Craig in QUANTUM SOLACE Trailer
Paul Rudd, Seann William Scott in ROLE MODELS Trailer
THE HAUNTING OF MOLLY HARTLEY Trailer
THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS Trailer
A STORY OF HEALING, THE LONG WAY HOME: Oscar’s Docs
The two 1997 Oscar-winning documentaries, Donna Dewey’s A Story of Healing (right) and Mark Jonathan Harris‘ The Long Way Home, will be screened as the final installment of “Oscar’s Docs, Part Four: Academy Award-Winning Documentaries 1988–1997” on Monday, November 24, at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood.
The documentary short subject A Story of Healing follows American plastic surgeons and nurses who have volunteered to help disfigured children and young adults in Vietnam. The screening will be followed by an onstage discussion with producer-director Donna Dewey.
The documentary feature The Long Way Home focuses on the years between the liberation of Jews from Nazi concentration camps to the creation of Israel. It features narration and/or readings by Morgan Freeman, Michael York, Edward Asner, Helen Slater, and others. Writer-director Mark Jonathan Harris, producers Richard Trank and Rabbi Marvin Hier (whose Genocide, which he co-produced, won the 1991 Oscar in the documentary feature category), and editor Kate Amend will take part in a post-screening discussion.
“Oscar’s Docs” is a comprehensive screening series of every short subject and feature to win the Academy Award for documentary filmmaking since the category was established in 1941. As per the Academy’s release, the retrospective features the best available prints – often newly struck or restored editions from the documentary collection of the Academy Film Archive.
The series will return in September 2009 with its sixth installment, screening Academy Award-winning documentaries between 1988 and 2008.
Tickets to each “Oscar’s Docs” screening are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID.
Tickets are available for purchase by mail, online at www.oscars.org, or in person at the Academy box office at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard during regular business hours. Doors open one hour prior to the start of the event. All seating is unreserved.
The Linwood Dunn Theater is located at 1313 Vine Street in Hollywood. Free parking is available through the entrance on Homewood Avenue (one block north of Fountain Avenue).
For additional information, visit www.oscars.org or call (310) 247-3600.
RASHOMON: Monday Nights with Oscar
A Century Ago: The Films of 1908
MILK, Prop. 8, and More Celebrity Gay Slurs
Sundance 2009: To Boycott or Not to Boycott
ONE SURVIVOR REMEMBERS, ANNE FRANK REMEMBERED: Oscar’s Docs
A TIME FOR JUSTICE, MAYA LIN: Oscar’s Docs
THE MORE THE MERRIER: George Stevens Lecture on Directing Series
NANKING, WHITE LIGHT/BLACK RAIN: Contemporary Documentaries
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA at Oakland’s Paramount Theatre
Sundance, Prop. 8, and Boycotts
Via The Advocate:
"Film Independent released a statement on Friday in response to Los Angeles Film Festival director Richard Raddon’s donation to the campaign for Proposition 8, which succeeded in banning gay marriage in California. ‘As a champion of diversity,’ the statement said, ‘Film Independent is dedicated to supporting the civil rights of all individuals. At the same time, our organization does not police the personal, religious, or political choices of any employee, member, or filmmaker.’"
***
Via Robert Hofler and Michael Jones‘ article "Same-Sex Activists Target Sundance" in Variety:
"With activists against Proposition 8 — California’s ban on same-sex marriage — turning to threats of boycotts, attention is focusing on a surprising target: The Sundance Film Festival.
"The festival has been fielding calls and emails from activists calling for Sundance to pull its films from a Park City fourplex operated by Cinemark Theaters, whose CEO, Alan Stock, contributed $9,999 to the Yes on Prop. 8 campaign."
…
"Until Brad Pitt donated $100,000 to No. on Prop. 8 in September, many in the Hollywood community had been largely silent on the subject. Then there were reports of big-cash donations from Steven Spielberg (another $100,000) and Ellen DeGeneres, who, in the wake of her marriage to Portia de Rossi, taped a TV commercial opposing the proposition. And on the eve of election day, Ellen Page gave a pep talk to leafleteers ready to protest Prop. 8 at the polls.
"’I'm sorry that I can’t vote with you. Where I’m from, marriage is legal for everyone,’ the Canadian Juno actress told the Equality California volunteers gathered at the Gay & Lesbian Center in Hollywood.
***
Via Radar, "Famed Film Festival Low on Cash":
"The Sundance Film Festival, which was co-founded by Robert Redford 30 years ago, may have to ask for state financial help in order to survive.
"According to festival officials, because of the poor economy it’s been more difficult this year to get corporate sponsorships.
"’Instead of signing multiple-year sponsorship deals with a minimum of three years, some of the newer sponsors are signing for one-year contracts,’ said director of Utah Community Development for the Sundance Institute, Sarah West. ‘We’ll probably see some decrease in funding but at the same time, we’re very hopeful that our sponsors will continue to support us.’"
***
As per the Variety article sourced above, Sarah West had denied that Sundance has asked for more cash.
Danny Boyle, GOMORRAH, WALTZ WITH BASHIR: AFI FEST 2008
THE WRESTLER, EVERLASTING MOMENTS, LA RABIA: AFI FEST 2008
Tilda Swinton, Juliette Binoche, Bill Plympton: AFI FEST 2008
THE DESERT WITHIN, TWO-LEGGED HORSE, Documentary Shorts: AFI FEST 2008
ACHILLES AND THE TORTOISE, THE BROTHERS BLOOM: AFI FEST 2008
POUNDCAKE, WITCHHUNT, KASSIM THE DREAM, OF ALL THE THINGS: AFI FEST 2008
THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX, JOHNNY MAD DOG: bfi London Film Festival 2008
Pittsburg Lesbian & Gay Film Festival 2008
Homo Horror: Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival 2008
Oscar 2009: 15 Documentary Semi-Finalists
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will move forward in the voting process for the 81st Academy Awards. A record 94 films had originally qualified in the category.
The 15 films are (in alphabetical order):
At the Death House Door
The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)
Blessed Is the Match: The Life and Death of Hannah Senesh
Encounters at the End of the World
Fuel
The Garden
Glass: [...] Continue Reading…
UNTIL THE LIGHT TAKES US: Q&A with Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell
Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell’s Until the Light Takes Us was one of the most unusual entries at the 2008 AFI FEST held in Los Angeles in early November. In the words of co-director Ewell, the film is "a feature length documentary chronicling the history, ideology and aesthetic of Norwegian black metal — a musical subculture infamous as much for a series of murders and church arsons as it is for its unique musical and visual aesthetics. This is the first (and only) film to truly shed light on a movement that has [...] Continue Reading…
RASHOMON: Monday Nights with Oscar
Akira Kurosawa’s 1950 classic Rashomon, which officially introduced Japanese cinema to the world at large, will be the next film presented as part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ series “Monday Nights with Oscar.” The East Coast premiere of the new digitally restored print of Rashomon will take place on Monday, November 17, at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy Theater in New York City.
Though it revolves around the rape of a woman and the murder of her Samurai husband, Rashomon, co-adapted by Kurosawa and Shinobu Hashimoto from Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s [...] Continue Reading…
QUANTUM SOLACE Soars to the Top of the Box Office
Quantum of Solace crushed its competition at the North American box office this weekend with a whopping $70.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Directed by Marc Forster, the 22nd official James Bond adventure scored the best opening for a Bond movie ever, beating the opening weekend gross of predecessor Casino Royale by $29.6 million. Quantum Solace is currently the worldwide box-office leader.
Last week’s winner, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, slipped to No. 2, earning an impressive $36.1 million to reach a domestic total of $118 million after only [...] Continue Reading…
PURPLE VIOLETS d: Edward Burns
Purple Violets (2007)
Direction and screenplay: Edward Burns. Cast: Selma Blair, Patrick Wilson, Edward Burns, Debra Messing, Dennis Farina, Donal Logue.
Writer-director Edward Burns’ perfectly watchable Purple Violets is a romantic drama about relationships and, to a lesser extent, the world of fiction writing. The film’s focal point is Patti Petalson (Selma Blair), a real-estate agent who has been married for seven years to overbearing chef Chazz Coleman (Donal Logue) and who longs to indulge her true passion, fiction writing. A former college boyfriend, Brian Callahan (Patrick Wilson), is [...] Continue Reading…
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN d: Tomas Alfredson
Låt den rätte komma in / Let the Right One In (2008)
Direction: Tomas Alfredson. Screenplay: John Ajvide Lindqvist, from his novel. Cast: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragnar, Henrik Dahl, Karin Bergquist.
Directed by Tomas Alfredson from a screenplay by John Ajvide Lindqvist, Låt den rätte komma in / Let the Right One In is not only a satisfying horror film from beginning to end — one of the best entries in the vampire genre since Blade, Interview with a Vampire, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula — but it’s also a subtle love story, which [...] Continue Reading…
A Century Ago: The Films of 1908
"A Century Ago: The Films of 1908" will be presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Monday, December 1, at 7:30 p.m. at the Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood. The program will be repeated on Thursday, December 4, at 7 p.m. at the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael, California.
"A Century Ago" will feature a number of 1908 shorts, among them Edison’s Rescued from an Eagle’s Nest (above, lower photo), featuring a performance by none other than D.W. Griffith (right); Biograph’s After Many Years, starring [...] Continue Reading…
ANTARCTICA: Q&A with Yair Hochner
In writer-director Yair Hochner’s intriguing, multi-layered, remarkably well-acted Antarctica, which Regent Releasing is opening tomorrow, November 14, at the Regent Showcase in Hollywood, several gay men and a couple of lesbians get enmeshed in a complex web of sexual/romantic entanglements set in the streets, clubs, and apartment houses of Tel Aviv.
There’s Omer (Tomer Ilan), a handsome, soft-spoken — and still single — librarian who’s about to turn thirty; his sister, Shirley (Lucy Dubinchik), who feels the need to get away from it all despite her love for club owner Michal (Liat Ekta), who also happens to be [...] Continue Reading…
MILK, Prop. 8, and More Celebrity Gay Slurs
Kristopher Tapley at In Contention:
"And I can’t help but wonder what Milk might have meant for today’s cause, if anything, had it landed in the marketplace last month.
"Some of the film’s most inspiring and, indeed, captivating moments come during the sequence that details the Prop 6 fight. Consistently, Harvey Milk (Sean Penn’s career-best portrayal) makes the point, to paraphrase, ‘We have to make them understand that they know us.’ That message, I think, might have carried a lot of heft if voters had made it to the polls four weeks later."
***
I doubt that [...] Continue Reading…
Sundance 2009: To Boycott or Not to Boycott
David Poland at Movie City News:
"Movie City News will spend a lot of money in Park City to cover Sundance this year. I will be happy to pledge, right now, that we will not spend a dime that money in businesses that were financial supporters of California’s Prop 8.
"So… activists… make that list. Make it honestly. Don’t tell me all Mormons are evil or that the entire state is off limits. But if a local gas station company is owned by a Prop 8 funder… we will fill up elsewhere. If a [...] Continue Reading…
Oscar 2009: Animated Film Submissions
Fourteen features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 81st Academy Awards®.
The 14 submitted features are:
“Bolt”
“Delgo”
“Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!”
“Dragon Hunters”
“Fly Me to the Moon”
“Igor”
“Kung Fu Panda”
“Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”
“$9.99”
“The Sky Crawlers”
“Sword of the Stranger”
“The Tale of Despereaux”
“WALL-E”
“Waltz [...] Continue Reading…
MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA Tops Box Office
DreamWorks Animation’s Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa dominated the North American box office this weekend with a stunning $63.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath’s sequel to the 2005 hit raced to the top spot early on, beating its predecessor’s opening weekend gross by $16.3 million. In Escape 2 Africa, New York zoo animals Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman try to fly back home, but accidentally end up somewhere else in Africa.
Debuting in second place with a surprising $19.2 million was David Wain’s [...] Continue Reading…
European Film Awards 2008
EUROPEAN FILM 2008
IL DIVO, Italy
written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino
produced by Indigofilm, Lucky Red, Parco Film, Babe Films, StudioCanal,
Arte France Cinéma
ENTRE LES MURS (The Class), France
directed by Laurent Cantet
written by Laurent Cantet, François Begaudeau & Robin Campillo after
the novel of François Begaudeau
produced by Haut et Court, France 2 Cinéma
GOMORRA (Gomorrah), Italy
directed by Matteo Garrone
written by Maurizio Bracci, Ugo Chiti, Gianni di Gregorio, Matteo Garrone,
Massimo Gaudioso & Roberto Saviano
produced by Fandango, RAI Cinema
HAPPY-GO-LUCKY, [...] Continue Reading…
Jason Priestley, Marisa Tomei, Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham: AFI FEST 2008
The images below are from arrivals at AFI Fest 2008 held at Arclight Hollywood on November 6.
Marisa Tomei (Photo by Toby Canham/Getty Images for AFI)
Mickey Rourke at the Los Angeles premiere of The Wrestler (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Evan Rachel Wood (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Darren Aronofsky (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Jason Priestley (Photo by Toby Canham/Getty Images for AFI)
Jason Statham (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Scott Elrod (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Bill Plympton (Photo by Toby Canham/Getty Images [...] Continue Reading…
Danny Boyle, GOMORRAH, WALTZ WITH BASHIR: AFI FEST 2008
Below are a few choices tonight, November 6, at AFI FEST 2008, held at ArcLight Hollywood. (Note: The A Quiet Little Wedding screening will take place at the Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard.)
Schedule and synopses from the AFI FEST 2008 website.
7:00 p.m.
Danny Boyle Tribute
45 minutes
Danny Boyle’s career has been marked by the remarkable variety of themes, locations and genres he has tackled and his extraordinary eye for discovering talent. After several provocative made-for-BBC films, his first theatrical feature, the riveting dark-comedy thriller SHALLOW GRAVE, introduced Ewan McGregor and won the BAFTA award for best [...] Continue Reading…
Tilda Swinton, Kathleen Quinlan at AFI FEST 2008
The images below are from arrivals at AFI Fest 2008 held at Arclight Hollywood on November 5.
Tilda Swinton (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Rafael Monserrate of Poundcake (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for AFI)
Bai Ling of Dim Sum Funeral (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for AFI)
Kathleen Quinlan; Deshja Driggs; Troy Hall; Rafael Monserrate; Jay O. Sanders of Poundcake (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for AFI)
Kathleen Quinlan; Jay O. Sanders (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
Joanna Cassidy, Mark Ruffalo at AFI FEST [...] Continue Reading…
THE WRESTLER, EVERLASTING MOMENTS, LA RABIA: AFI FEST 2008
Below are a few choices tonight, November 6, at AFI FEST 2008, held at ArcLight Hollywood. (Note: The Wrestler screening will take place at the Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard.)
Schedule and synopses from the AFI FEST 2008 website.
6:45 p.m.
Everlasting Moments
Directed by: Jan Troell. Written by: Niklas Rådström, Jan Troell, Agneta Troell
Cast: Maria Heiskanen, Mikael Persbrandt, Jesper Christensen
One fine day in 1907 in the Swedish village of Malmö, Maria Larsson (Maria Heiskanen) wins a Contessa camera in a lottery. That camera accounts for the title of the latest film by the Swedish master and Oscar nominee [...] Continue Reading…
Vivien Leigh on Turner Classic Movies
Tonight, November 5, on Turner Classic Movies:
It’s Vivien Leigh night. The India-born British actress would have turned 95 today.
Leigh, who died in 1967, was one of the best — and most underused — film talents of the 20th century: a mere 15 or so films as a leading lady/star during her 30+-year career.
You can’t quite tell how good Leigh could be in the British-made Fire Over England, in which she plays future husband’s Laurence Olivier’s love interest. Her breathtaking beauty, however, is very much in evidence despite the heavy makeup. The leading female role in [...] Continue Reading…
Joanna Cassidy, Mark Ruffalo at AFI FEST 2008
The images below are from arrivals at AFI Fest 2008 held at Arclight Hollywood on November 3.
Photos: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for AFI
Joanna Cassidy
Director Anthony Fabian, whose Skin was screened at AFI FEST 2008
Director Roberto Berliner and producer Rodrigo Letier of Pindorama - The True Story of Seven Dwarves
Director Rian Johnson, actor Mark Ruffalo of The Brothers Bloom
Arnaud Desplechin, Dennis Lambert at AFI FEST 2008
Benicio Del Toro, Steven Soderbergh at CHE Screening: AFI FEST 2008
Meryl Streep, Amy Adams at DOUBT Premiere: AFI FEST 2008
Leslie Caron Academy Salute Photos
Natalie Portman, Claudio Santamaria, Marco Bechis: Venice Film [...] Continue Reading…
Tilda Swinton, Juliette Binoche, Bill Plympton: AFI FEST 2008
Below are a few choices tonight, November 5, at AFI FEST 2008, held at ArcLight Hollywood. (Note: The Lion’s Den screening will take place at the Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard.)
Schedule and synopses from the AFI FEST 2008 website.
7:00 p.m.
Poundcake
Directed by: Rafael Monserrate. Written by: Troy Hall, Kevin Logie
Cast: Jay O. Sanders, Kathleen Quinlan, Troy D. Hall, Deshja Driggs-Hall, Kevin Logie, Rob Bogue, Marisa Coughlan
This dysfunctional family comedy with heart stars Academy Award nominee Kathleen Quinlan and Jay O. Sanders and takes place in Buffalo, N.Y., in the late ’80s. On the night before Thanksgiving, Cliff [...] Continue Reading…
THE DESERT WITHIN, TWO-LEGGED HORSE, Documentary Shorts: AFI FEST 2008
Below are a few choices tonight, November 4, at AFI FEST 2008, held at ArcLight Hollywood.
Schedule and synopses from the AFI FEST 2008 website.
7:00pm
Two-Legged Horse
Written and Directed by: Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Cast: Ziya Mirza Mohamad, Haron Ahad, Gol Gotai Karimi, Khojeh Nader
Acclaimed director Samira Makhmalbaf (5 IN THE AFTERNOON, THE BLACKBOARD) returns to AFI FEST with TWO-LEGGED HORSE, an exploration of how two people can test the very limits of a human relationship. Set in Afghanistan, the film introduces us to a subculture of impoverished children who find shelter in a maze of abandoned sewer pipes. A father sets out [...] Continue Reading…
ACHILLES AND THE TORTOISE, THE BROTHERS BLOOM: AFI FEST 2008
Below are a few choices tonight, November 3, at AFI FEST 2008, held at ArcLight Hollywood.
Schedule and synopses from the AFI FEST 2008 website.
7:00 p.m.
The Brothers Bloom (USA). Directed and Written By: Rian Johnson
Cast: Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo, Rinko Kikuchi, Robbie Coltrane
Academy Award winner® Rachel Weisz (THE CONSTANT GARDENER), Academy Award® winner Adrien Brody (THE PIANIST), Mark Ruffalo (ZODIAC), and Academy Award® nominee Rinko Kikuchi (BABEL) star in this globe-trotting comedy about the last great adventure of the world’s two best con men. Welcome to the world of THE BROTHERS BLOOM, where [...] Continue Reading…
