In February, a clip went viral of Steven Spielberg telling Tom Cruise at an Oscars luncheon that he “saved Hollywood’s ass.” Spielberg was referring to the explosive success of Cruise’s return to the pilot seat in “Top Gun: Maverick.” Released in May 2022, the long-awaited sequel was the top earner at the domestic box office last year, raking in over $700 million in the United States. It was the shot in the arm that cinemas needed after the pandemic, and proof positive of Cruise’s enduring appeal as both a marquee movie star and skilled actor — two bona fides not always packaged together so successfully.
Cruise has been leveraging looks and charm, and flexing his blockbuster muscles, for decades. Going all the way back to the early 1980s, his appeal never seems to age, even at 61 years old. He’s skillfully shepherded original movies as a star and producer, never...
Cruise has been leveraging looks and charm, and flexing his blockbuster muscles, for decades. Going all the way back to the early 1980s, his appeal never seems to age, even at 61 years old. He’s skillfully shepherded original movies as a star and producer, never...
- 7/11/2023
- by Ryan Lattanzio, Christian Zilko and Wilson Chapman
- Indiewire
Clint Eastwood's impulse for directing goes back to his early days working on the 1959 TV series "Rawhide." As he described in an interview with Patrick McGilligam printed in the 1999 book "Clint Eastwood: Interviews," edited by Robert E. Kapsis and Kathie Coblentz, he stated that working among cattle while on horseback -- "Rawhide" is about cattle ranchers who fend off bad guys in the Old West -- gave him ideas as to how shots could look better. The story goes that he wanted to take a camera onto a horse with him and film Pov shots in the middle of the bovine action. He was denied on "Rawhide," and was not permitted to direct any episodes. It seems that, in the late '50s and early '60s, actors directing their own TV shows had yet to prove lucrative for CBS.
Eastwood wouldn't direct a feature film until 1973, making his...
Eastwood wouldn't direct a feature film until 1973, making his...
- 1/3/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Dustin Hoffman has the jazzy delivery of the ill-fated comedian down to a tee and Valerie Perrine gives a touching performance as his hapless wife but the real star of Lenny might be director Bob Fosse himself. His electrified portrayals of the seedy strip joints of the fifties, filmed in luminous black and white by Bruce Surtees, rival Scorsese’s own fervid fascination with the seedier side of Times Square in Taxi Driver. Perrine won Best Actress at the 1975 Cannes Film Festival.
The post Lenny appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Lenny appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 8/12/2022
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Clint Eastwood’s 5 Worst and 5 Best Movies as a Director, From ‘The Rookie’ to ‘Unforgiven’ (Photos)
[To clarify, in the best five, it’s Unforgiven as Clint Eastwood‘s best (making Bronco Billy fifth best), and on the worst list, it’s The Rookie as the worst (making Jersey Boys fifth worst)]
The Best
“Unforgiven” (1992): Clint Eastwood held on to screenwriter David Webb Peoples’ revisionist western until the time was right, and the result was an Oscar-bestowed turning point. Evocatively, suspensefully detailing a desperate widower’s reckoning with his savage past, it tracked powerfully as both a pungent deflating of merrily violent western myths and a scarily tense depiction of how, as Eastwood’s killer tells a scared young man, “We all have it comin,” kid.” By the end, each gunshot is Eastwood mercy-killing a genre he loves, and knocking us to our senses about bloody movie justice.
“Million Dollar Baby” (2004): A poor young female boxer (Hilary Swank) wants to fight. The trainer (Eastwood) reluctantly trains. Punches await, small, and huge. An unabashedly rich-in-feeling movie about toughness,...
The Best
“Unforgiven” (1992): Clint Eastwood held on to screenwriter David Webb Peoples’ revisionist western until the time was right, and the result was an Oscar-bestowed turning point. Evocatively, suspensefully detailing a desperate widower’s reckoning with his savage past, it tracked powerfully as both a pungent deflating of merrily violent western myths and a scarily tense depiction of how, as Eastwood’s killer tells a scared young man, “We all have it comin,” kid.” By the end, each gunshot is Eastwood mercy-killing a genre he loves, and knocking us to our senses about bloody movie justice.
“Million Dollar Baby” (2004): A poor young female boxer (Hilary Swank) wants to fight. The trainer (Eastwood) reluctantly trains. Punches await, small, and huge. An unabashedly rich-in-feeling movie about toughness,...
- 9/13/2021
- by Robert Abele
- The Wrap
Clint Eastwood proves again that he Owns the western genre with this odd tale of land reform insurrection and establishment blowback, in New Mexico of 1906. To direct the script by the great Elmore Leonard, Eastwood brought in the western movie legend John Sturges. But Sturges discovered that collaboration now meant acceding to whatever the star wanted. The beautifully filmed movie falls apart even though Sturges saved the day with an 11th hour stunt action climax.
Joe Kidd
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1972 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 88 min. / Street Date October 27, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Robert Duvall, John Saxon, Don Stroud, Stella García, James Wainwright, Paul Koslo, Gregory Walcott, Dick Van Patten, Lynne Marta, John Carter, Pepe Hern, Joaquín Martínez, Clint Ritchie, Chuck Hayward.
Cinematography: Bruce Surtees
Film Editor: Ferris Webster
Original Music: Lalo Schifrin
Written by Elmore Leonard
Produced by Sidney Beckerman
Directed by John Sturges
In 1971 the hottest...
Joe Kidd
Blu-ray
Kl Studio Classics
1972 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 88 min. / Street Date October 27, 2020 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Robert Duvall, John Saxon, Don Stroud, Stella García, James Wainwright, Paul Koslo, Gregory Walcott, Dick Van Patten, Lynne Marta, John Carter, Pepe Hern, Joaquín Martínez, Clint Ritchie, Chuck Hayward.
Cinematography: Bruce Surtees
Film Editor: Ferris Webster
Original Music: Lalo Schifrin
Written by Elmore Leonard
Produced by Sidney Beckerman
Directed by John Sturges
In 1971 the hottest...
- 10/24/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Cinematographer Jack N. Green is proof that nice guys sometimes finish first — even in Hollywood.
Born in 1939, the San Francisco native traveled a long-rising arc in his career, which includes distinguished stints shooting aerial sequences for documentaries and some of the most iconic films of the 1960s, eventually becoming director of photography on a run of Clint Eastwood movies and more recent comedies such as “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Hot Tub Time Machine” and two “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movies.
Green’s parents, Trudy and John Sr., had a shared fascination for photography and rigged up a home darkroom that made a strong artistic impact on their son.
Graduating from high school and barber college at 17, Green planned to make that job his career. But all that changed when he was befriended by shop regular Joe Dieves, a former World War II combat cameraman. Enamored of Dieves’ stories, Green soon joined him,...
Born in 1939, the San Francisco native traveled a long-rising arc in his career, which includes distinguished stints shooting aerial sequences for documentaries and some of the most iconic films of the 1960s, eventually becoming director of photography on a run of Clint Eastwood movies and more recent comedies such as “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Hot Tub Time Machine” and two “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movies.
Green’s parents, Trudy and John Sr., had a shared fascination for photography and rigged up a home darkroom that made a strong artistic impact on their son.
Graduating from high school and barber college at 17, Green planned to make that job his career. But all that changed when he was befriended by shop regular Joe Dieves, a former World War II combat cameraman. Enamored of Dieves’ stories, Green soon joined him,...
- 8/2/2019
- by James C. Udel
- Variety Film + TV
Dustin Hoffman has the clipped, jazzy delivery of the ill-fated comedian down to a tee and Valerie Perrine gives a remarkably touching performance as his hapless wife but the real star of Lenny might be director Bob Fosse himself. His electrified portrayals of the seedy dives and strip joints of the fifties, both tawdry and glamorous in the luminous black and white photography of Bruce Surtees, rival Scorsese’s own fervid fascination with the seedier side of Times Square in Taxi Driver. Perrine won Best Actress at the 1975 Cannes Film Festival. Tfh is happy to welcome filmmaker Robert Weide to our line-up of stellar gurus!
The post Lenny appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Lenny appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 5/29/2019
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Director John Milius brings his brand of Maileresque macho to this story of three young Californians who transition from carefree surfers to older-but-wiser adults, a kind of Malibu-set Deer Hunter. Jan-Michael Vincent and Gary Busey star, the script was by Milius and Dennis Aaberg and the cinematography was by that consummate Hollywood pro, Bruce Surtees.
The post Big Wednesday appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Big Wednesday appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 3/18/2019
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Interviewing Charlie Saldana in the quiet of his North Hollywood home, the 79-year-old working key grip still exudes the cool confidence of someone who’s spent a lifetime in partnership with one of Hollywood’s great directors: Clint Eastwood.
Saldana still possesses an actor’s looks, with a salt-white mustache and a full silver mane. He began his career building scaffolding for Disney’s “Pollyanna” in 1960, following military service in the 101st Airborne Division. Joining the grip union, he was employed by Hollywood’s blossoming TV industry on “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “Gomer Pyle, Usmc” “Hogan’s Heroes” and “The Mod Squad.” The neophyte grip learned his craft well.
Born in 1939 to Charles and Josephine Saldana, Charlie was raised with a strong work ethic that drove his rise in the industry. “Gaining grip skill was a layered, educative process,” he says.
Five years on the series “The Rookies” produced...
Saldana still possesses an actor’s looks, with a salt-white mustache and a full silver mane. He began his career building scaffolding for Disney’s “Pollyanna” in 1960, following military service in the 101st Airborne Division. Joining the grip union, he was employed by Hollywood’s blossoming TV industry on “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “Gomer Pyle, Usmc” “Hogan’s Heroes” and “The Mod Squad.” The neophyte grip learned his craft well.
Born in 1939 to Charles and Josephine Saldana, Charlie was raised with a strong work ethic that drove his rise in the industry. “Gaining grip skill was a layered, educative process,” he says.
Five years on the series “The Rookies” produced...
- 12/7/2018
- by James C. Udel
- Variety Film + TV
Arthur Penn’s detective movie is one of the best ever in the genre, one that rewards repeat viewings particularly well. Gumshoe Harry Moseby compartmentalizes his marriage, his job, his past and the greedy Hollywood has-beens he meets, not realizing that everything is interconnected, and fully capable of assembling a world-class conspiracy. Gene Hackman tops a sterling cast in the film that introduced most of us to Melanie Griffith.
Night Moves
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1975 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 100 min. / Street Date August 15, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren, Melanie Griffith, Susan Clark, Edward Binns, Harris Yulin, Kenneth Mars, Janet Ward, James Woods, Anthony Costello.
Cinematography: Bruce Surtees
Production Designer: George Jenkins
Film Editor: Dede Allen
Original Music: Michael Small
Written by Alan Sharp
Produced by Robert M. Sherman
Directed by Arthur Penn
Night Moves is a superb detective thriller that plays with profound ideas without getting its fingers burned.
Night Moves
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1975 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 100 min. / Street Date August 15, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren, Melanie Griffith, Susan Clark, Edward Binns, Harris Yulin, Kenneth Mars, Janet Ward, James Woods, Anthony Costello.
Cinematography: Bruce Surtees
Production Designer: George Jenkins
Film Editor: Dede Allen
Original Music: Michael Small
Written by Alan Sharp
Produced by Robert M. Sherman
Directed by Arthur Penn
Night Moves is a superb detective thriller that plays with profound ideas without getting its fingers burned.
- 8/15/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Directors’ trademarks is a series of articles that examines the “signatures” that filmmakers leave behind in their work. This month, we’re examining the trademark style and calling signs of Clint Eastwood as director.
Clint Eastwood became an american film star in the 1960’s thanks to his acting performances in a number of western films. As he began to branch out with new roles in front of the camera, he sought out to have more creative input into the types of film projects that he would be involved in. One way he was able to accomplish this was by creating his own production company which eventually allowed him to work behind the camera as director. His first film as director was 1971’s Play Misty For Me, which was well received by critics and did well at the box office. HIs second film as director was High Plains Drifter (1973), in which he also starred.
Clint Eastwood became an american film star in the 1960’s thanks to his acting performances in a number of western films. As he began to branch out with new roles in front of the camera, he sought out to have more creative input into the types of film projects that he would be involved in. One way he was able to accomplish this was by creating his own production company which eventually allowed him to work behind the camera as director. His first film as director was 1971’s Play Misty For Me, which was well received by critics and did well at the box office. HIs second film as director was High Plains Drifter (1973), in which he also starred.
- 9/28/2016
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (G.S. Perno)
- Cinelinx
John Flynn's The Outfit (1974), a brutally efficient bit of business based glancingly on Richard Stark’s procedurally inquisitive and poetic crime novel of the same name, is a movie that feels like it’s never heard of a rounded corner; it’s blunt like a 1970 Dodge Monaco pinning a couple of killers against a Dumpster and a brick wall. I say “glancingly” because the movie, as Glenn Kenny observed upon The Outfit’s DVD release from the Warner Archives, is based less on the chronologically unconcerned novel than an idea taken from it. On the page Stark's protagonist, the unflappable Parker, his face altered by plastic surgery to the degree that past associates often take a fatal beat too long to realize to whom it is they are speaking, assumes the detached perspective of a bruised deity, undertaking the orchestration of a series of robberies administered to Mob-run businesses...
- 6/5/2016
- by Dennis Cozzalio
- Trailers from Hell
Puppy love is sweet until it turns deadly. Packed with special features including new interviews with the cast, Alan Shapiro’s The Crush (1993) Blu-ray will be released by Scream Factory on June 21st, and the special features have now been revealed.
Press Release: Romantic obsession has harrowing consequences in ‘90s cult-classic, suspense thriller The Crush, written and directed by Alan Shapiro (Flipper, TV’s The Outsiders) and starring Cary Elwes (Saw, The Princess Bride, Twister), Alicia Silverstone (Clueless, Batman and Robin), Jennifer Rubin (Bad Dreams, Screamers) and Kurtwood Smith (TV’s Agent Carter, That ‘70s Show). On June 21st, 2016, Scream Factory™ is proud to present The Crush Blu-ray edition, featuring new audio commentary with writer/director Alan Shapiro, new interviews with Kurtwood Smith and Jennifer Rubin, and more!
Available for the first time on Blu-ray, this special Scream Factory home entertainment release is a must-have for movie collectors, horror/ thriller...
Press Release: Romantic obsession has harrowing consequences in ‘90s cult-classic, suspense thriller The Crush, written and directed by Alan Shapiro (Flipper, TV’s The Outsiders) and starring Cary Elwes (Saw, The Princess Bride, Twister), Alicia Silverstone (Clueless, Batman and Robin), Jennifer Rubin (Bad Dreams, Screamers) and Kurtwood Smith (TV’s Agent Carter, That ‘70s Show). On June 21st, 2016, Scream Factory™ is proud to present The Crush Blu-ray edition, featuring new audio commentary with writer/director Alan Shapiro, new interviews with Kurtwood Smith and Jennifer Rubin, and more!
Available for the first time on Blu-ray, this special Scream Factory home entertainment release is a must-have for movie collectors, horror/ thriller...
- 5/11/2016
- by Tamika Jones
- DailyDead
Lenny Bruce: Dustin Hoffman in the 1974 Bob Fosse movie. Lenny Bruce movie review: Polemical stand-up comedian merited less timid biopic (Oscar Movie Series) Bob Fosse's 1974 biopic Lenny has two chief assets: the ever relevant free speech issues it raises and the riveting presence of Valerie Perrine. The film itself, however, is only sporadically thought-provoking or emotionally gripping; in fact, Lenny is a major artistic letdown, considering all the talent involved and the fertile material at hand. After all, much more should have come out of a joint effort between director Fosse, fresh off his Academy Award win for Cabaret; playwright-screenwriter Julian Barry, whose stage version of Lenny earned Cliff Gorman a Tony Award; two-time Best Actor Oscar nominee Dustin Hoffman (The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy); and cinematographer Bruce Surtees (Play Misty for Me, Blume in Love). Their larger-than-life subject? Lenny Bruce, the stand-up comedian who became one of the...
- 6/5/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Genre mash-ups may be commonplace these days, but it took a mad genius to even consider combining film-noir and teen sex comedy back in 1983. Paul Brickman’s wildly successful experiment, Risky Business, not only launched the career of Tom Cruise, it set a new benchmark for substantive sex comedies. Here, we had an observant and erotic satire that always entertained and never sermonized. Through the use of film-noir conventions and evocative symbolism, Brickman’s classic takes the teen movie into shadowy territory while still remaining accessible. It’s a masterful script that warrants closer analysis.
Risky Business towers above its 80’s contemporaries because writer/director, Paul Brickman, was less concerned about the loss of virginal innocence than the loss of moral innocence. Our hero, totally unprepared for the shady inner-workings of the adult world, tumbles deeper into chaos with each new indulgence. Instead of letting Joel Goodsen (Tom Cruise) off...
Risky Business towers above its 80’s contemporaries because writer/director, Paul Brickman, was less concerned about the loss of virginal innocence than the loss of moral innocence. Our hero, totally unprepared for the shady inner-workings of the adult world, tumbles deeper into chaos with each new indulgence. Instead of letting Joel Goodsen (Tom Cruise) off...
- 5/27/2014
- by J.R. Kinnard
- SoundOnSight
This week on Trailers from Hell, TV writer and produce Alan Spencer talks about the fourth film in the Dirty Harry series, "Sudden Impact," starring Clint Eastwood: Though notable as the only "Dirty Harry" movie to be directed by Clint Eastwood himself, "Sudden Impact" earned its place in American culture as the movie that inspired Ronald Reagan to co-opt Harry's deadpan dare to a gun-wielding punk, "Go ahead, make my day." Bruce Surtees, Eastwood's longtime cinematographer, once again brings his distinctly hardboiled visual style to Harry Callahan's unforgiving universe.
- 3/31/2014
- by Trailers From Hell
- Thompson on Hollywood
Though notable as the only “Dirty Harry” movie to be directed by Clint Eastwood himself, Sudden Impact earned its place in American culture as the movie that inspired Ronald Reagan to co-opt Harry’s deadpan dare to a gun-wielding punk, “Go ahead, make my day.” Bruce Surtees, Eastwood’s longtime cinematographer, once again brings his distinctly hardboiled visual style to Harry Callahan’s unforgiving universe.
The post Sudden Impact appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Sudden Impact appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 3/31/2014
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Rock 'n Roll Will Never Die! continues at Trailers from Hell, with filmmaker Ti West introducing "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains."Nearly a lost film, music maven Lou Adler’s cheerful 1982 film about an inadvertent punk band was shot under the title All Washed Up and was shelved after a disastrous preview, only to be revived on the art house circuit in 1985. At one point there was only one surviving print, which was frequently programmed at Santa Monica’s Nuart Theater. Diane Lane and Laura Dern are the not-so-fabulous Stains with various real life rockers (including Steve Jones, Paul Simonon and Fee Waybill) fleshing out their rival bands. Cinematography by Bruce Surtees, the Dp behind the majority of Clint Eastwood’s more iconic films.
- 3/5/2014
- by Trailers From Hell
- Thompson on Hollywood
Nearly a lost film, music maven Lou Adler’s cheerful 1982 film about an inadvertent punk band was shot under the title All Washed Up and was shelved after a disastrous preview, only to be revived on the art house circuit in 1985. At one point there was only one surviving print, which was frequently programmed at Santa Monica’s Nuart Theater. Diane Lane and Laura Dern are the not-so-fabulous Stains with various real life rockers (including Steve Jones, Paul Simonon and Fee Waybill) fleshing out their rival bands. Cinematography by Bruce Surtees, the Dp behind the majority of Clint Eastwood’s more iconic films.
The post Ladies & Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
The post Ladies & Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains appeared first on Trailers From Hell.
- 3/5/2014
- by TFH Team
- Trailers from Hell
Where were Andy Griffith, Larry Hagman and other well-known celebrities in this year's Oscars In Memoriam montage? They were online at Oscar.com.
Every year it's one of the more reliably ridiculous award show controversies: Who didn't make the cut for In Memoriam?
When it comes to the Oscars, these "snubs" are particularly sensitive given the prestige and viewership of the show, and the fact that the montage inevitably leaves out names and faces of recognizable stars -- usually those known far more for their work in television than their work in film, which is the medium that the Academy Awards actually celebrate.
However, the Academy is hip to the annual controversy and this year produced a supplemental slideshow on their website featuring 114 names and photos of entertainers and film craftspeople who passed away in the past year.
Among the late greats included in the slideshow but not on the...
Every year it's one of the more reliably ridiculous award show controversies: Who didn't make the cut for In Memoriam?
When it comes to the Oscars, these "snubs" are particularly sensitive given the prestige and viewership of the show, and the fact that the montage inevitably leaves out names and faces of recognizable stars -- usually those known far more for their work in television than their work in film, which is the medium that the Academy Awards actually celebrate.
However, the Academy is hip to the annual controversy and this year produced a supplemental slideshow on their website featuring 114 names and photos of entertainers and film craftspeople who passed away in the past year.
Among the late greats included in the slideshow but not on the...
- 2/25/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
Turner Classic Movies has unveiled its annual “TCM Remembers“ video, which pays tribute to the cinematic artists who passed away in 2012. This year’s “TCM Remembers” montage opens with film and TV star Andy Griffith and includes such on-camera luminaries as Celeste Holm, Ann Rutherford, Ben Gazzara, Larry Hagman, Michael Clarke Duncan and longtime friend of TCM Ernest Borgnine, to name a few.
Celebrated figures from behind the camera include producer Richard D. Zanuck, director/producer Tony Scott, writer/director Nora Ephron, writers Gore Vidal and Ray Bradbury, cinematographer Bruce Surtees, conceptual designer Ralph McQuarrie and special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi. In addition, TCM pays tribute to several music makers who found success in the film world, including Whitney Houston, Andy Williams, Davy Jones and Levon Helm, as well as songwriters Hal David, Marvin Hamlisch and Robert Sherman.
For this year’s “TCM Remembers” tribute, TCM chose the song “Wait...
Celebrated figures from behind the camera include producer Richard D. Zanuck, director/producer Tony Scott, writer/director Nora Ephron, writers Gore Vidal and Ray Bradbury, cinematographer Bruce Surtees, conceptual designer Ralph McQuarrie and special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi. In addition, TCM pays tribute to several music makers who found success in the film world, including Whitney Houston, Andy Williams, Davy Jones and Levon Helm, as well as songwriters Hal David, Marvin Hamlisch and Robert Sherman.
For this year’s “TCM Remembers” tribute, TCM chose the song “Wait...
- 12/10/2012
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
All those who complain about the liberal domination of Hollywood have never come across John Milius. A film school pal of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, Milius had tried to join the Marine Corp, but was turned away due to his asthma. Instead, he channeled his frustrations into both a life-long obsession with firearms (he was paid for "Jeremiah Johnson" in antique weaponry, and has served on the NRA Board of Directors) and making some of the most masculine, testosterone-filled movies of all time, both as an acclaimed writer and as a director. The basis for both Paul Le Mat's character in "American Graffiti" and Walter in "The Big Lebowski" -- the Coens are friends of Milius, and offered him the part of Jack Lipnick in "Barton Fink" -- he's one of film history's most singular, colorful characters.
He might not have had the overwhelming success of Lucas or Spielberg,...
He might not have had the overwhelming success of Lucas or Spielberg,...
- 4/12/2012
- by Oliver Lyttelton
- The Playlist
Oscar-nominated cinematographer who worked on Lenny, Dirty Harry and The Beguiled
The American cinematographer Bruce Surtees, who has died aged 74, became known as "the prince of darkness" for his muted and often lugubrious style of lighting. However, while Surtees was well-suited to the nocturnal street scenes of Dirty Harry (1971), the Rembrandt-esque arrangements of The Beguiled (1971) and the claustrophobic interiors of Escape from Alcatraz (1979), all directed by Don Siegel, he was also at home with the wide open spaces of the western Joe Kidd (1972) and the surfing movie Big Wednesday (1978).
His deceptively simple black-and-white scheme for Lenny (1974), Bob Fosse's semi-documentary biopic of the comedian Lenny Bruce, earned Surtees an Oscar nomination. The film's compelling stand-up sequences owe almost as much to the expert lighting of the nightclub as they do to Dustin Hoffman's performance. As Hoffman paces the stage, chased by his own shadow, the light captures wisps of...
The American cinematographer Bruce Surtees, who has died aged 74, became known as "the prince of darkness" for his muted and often lugubrious style of lighting. However, while Surtees was well-suited to the nocturnal street scenes of Dirty Harry (1971), the Rembrandt-esque arrangements of The Beguiled (1971) and the claustrophobic interiors of Escape from Alcatraz (1979), all directed by Don Siegel, he was also at home with the wide open spaces of the western Joe Kidd (1972) and the surfing movie Big Wednesday (1978).
His deceptively simple black-and-white scheme for Lenny (1974), Bob Fosse's semi-documentary biopic of the comedian Lenny Bruce, earned Surtees an Oscar nomination. The film's compelling stand-up sequences owe almost as much to the expert lighting of the nightclub as they do to Dustin Hoffman's performance. As Hoffman paces the stage, chased by his own shadow, the light captures wisps of...
- 2/29/2012
- by Chris Wiegand
- The Guardian - Film News
Since January 27, Geoff Manaugh of the widely acclaimed Bldgblog has been hosting Breaking Out and Breaking In: A Distributed Film Fest of Prison Breaks and Bank Heists, "an exploration of the use and misuse of space in prison escapes and bank heists, where architecture is the obstacle between you and what you're looking for." The idea is to have anyone and everyone watch the films, wherever we may be, and then discuss them at Bldgblog: "It's a 'distributed' film fest; there is no central venue, just a curated list of films and a list of days on which to watch them. There's no set time, no geographic exclusion, and no limit to the food breaks or repeated scenes you might require. And it all leads up to a public discussion at Studio-x NYC on Tuesday, April 24." Discussions opened so far: Renoir's Grand Illusion (1937), Bresson's A Man Escaped (1956), John Sturges...
- 2/27/2012
- MUBI
Clint Eastwood's longtime collaborator Bruce Surtees has died at the age of 74.
The Oscar-nominated cinematographer passed away last Thursday, according to Variety. No more details about his death were known as WENN went to press.
Surtees was the son of legendary Hollywood cinematographer Robert L. Surtees, who won Oscars for King Solomon's Mines, The Bad and the Beautiful, and the epic Ben Hur, and he is best known for his extensive work with Eastwood.
He made 14 films with the veteran actor/director, including 1971's Dirty Harry, and Eastwood chose Surtees as his director of photography when he made his directorial debut on Play Misty for Me in 1971.
Surtees won an Oscar nomination in 1975 for his work on Bob Fosse's Lenny Bruce biopic Lenny and his other film credits include Risky Business and Beverly Hills Cop.
The Oscar-nominated cinematographer passed away last Thursday, according to Variety. No more details about his death were known as WENN went to press.
Surtees was the son of legendary Hollywood cinematographer Robert L. Surtees, who won Oscars for King Solomon's Mines, The Bad and the Beautiful, and the epic Ben Hur, and he is best known for his extensive work with Eastwood.
He made 14 films with the veteran actor/director, including 1971's Dirty Harry, and Eastwood chose Surtees as his director of photography when he made his directorial debut on Play Misty for Me in 1971.
Surtees won an Oscar nomination in 1975 for his work on Bob Fosse's Lenny Bruce biopic Lenny and his other film credits include Risky Business and Beverly Hills Cop.
- 2/27/2012
- WENN
Blockbuster – the one-time giant in the home video rental business which went bankrupt last September – was bought at auction this past week by Dish Network for $320 million. According to Dish, it intends to combine its wireless technology with Blockbuster’s brand name recognition, studio relationships and digital rights to re-establish Blockbuster as a player in the direct-to-home market against Netflix and newer contenders like Amazon and a Warner Bros. online rental service to be offered on Facebook.
However this plays out long-term, the auction buy is the last page in a final chapter begun back in September when Blockbuster busted. To trot out the old cliché, it’s the – everybody now — end of an era.
The business Blockbuster used to be in seemed revolutionary in its day, though it seems almost quaint now; come Friday, some delegate from the family would trot to the neighborhood video store hoping to get...
However this plays out long-term, the auction buy is the last page in a final chapter begun back in September when Blockbuster busted. To trot out the old cliché, it’s the – everybody now — end of an era.
The business Blockbuster used to be in seemed revolutionary in its day, though it seems almost quaint now; come Friday, some delegate from the family would trot to the neighborhood video store hoping to get...
- 4/10/2011
- by Bill Mesce
- SoundOnSight
As a director, Katt Shea helped to launch the careers of such actors as Drew Barrymore, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mena Suvari, Alison Lohman, Christina Applegate, and Angelina Jolie. As a writer, she has helped create scripts for Roger Corman, and has even been the recipient of the Peabody Award for her first television movie for CBS.
Jason Anders recently caught up with Shea to discuss her career both in front of, and behind the camera - starting with Psycho III...
Ja/Fangoria: Let's start with your acting career, specifically with your role in the 1986 film Psycho III; what was it like to work with the legendary Anthony Perkins, not only on screen as an actor, but being under his direction for the film as well?
Ks: Anthony was under a lot of pressure as he was starring in and directing his first feature film, not only that, it was for a...
Jason Anders recently caught up with Shea to discuss her career both in front of, and behind the camera - starting with Psycho III...
Ja/Fangoria: Let's start with your acting career, specifically with your role in the 1986 film Psycho III; what was it like to work with the legendary Anthony Perkins, not only on screen as an actor, but being under his direction for the film as well?
Ks: Anthony was under a lot of pressure as he was starring in and directing his first feature film, not only that, it was for a...
- 10/20/2009
- by no-reply@fangoria.com (Jason Anders)
- Fangoria
DVD Release Date: Dec. 2
Director: Samuel Fuller
Writers: Fuller, Curtis Hanson
Cinematographer: Bruce Surtees
Starring: Kristy McNichol, Paul Winfield Studio/Run Time: Paramount, 90 mins.
Canine race exploration finally released on DVD
Even with the presidential election behind us, America’s issues with race won’t be going away anytime soon. Take, for example, Samuel Fuller’s 1982 film White Dog, previously only available as a bootleg until this Criterion edition. Over his 30-plus-year career, Fuller never shied from brutal topics, always challenging the studio system—whether with films about prostitution, insane asylums or the savagery of war. But this story about a dog trained to attack and kill black people was unceremoniously shelved by Paramount for over two decades. Past the shock of its premise, it’s a relatively straight-ahead tale, wherein a dog, rescued by McNichol, turns out to be a savage racist. Animal trainer Winfield is determined to re-program...
Director: Samuel Fuller
Writers: Fuller, Curtis Hanson
Cinematographer: Bruce Surtees
Starring: Kristy McNichol, Paul Winfield Studio/Run Time: Paramount, 90 mins.
Canine race exploration finally released on DVD
Even with the presidential election behind us, America’s issues with race won’t be going away anytime soon. Take, for example, Samuel Fuller’s 1982 film White Dog, previously only available as a bootleg until this Criterion edition. Over his 30-plus-year career, Fuller never shied from brutal topics, always challenging the studio system—whether with films about prostitution, insane asylums or the savagery of war. But this story about a dog trained to attack and kill black people was unceremoniously shelved by Paramount for over two decades. Past the shock of its premise, it’s a relatively straight-ahead tale, wherein a dog, rescued by McNichol, turns out to be a savage racist. Animal trainer Winfield is determined to re-program...
- 12/4/2008
- Pastemagazine.com
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