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12 Famous Actors and the Films You Forgot They Directed

By Jason Bailey on

As you may have heard, Scarlett Johansson is going to make the leap from actress to feature filmmaker, helming an adaptation of Truman Capote’s first, posthumously published novel Summer Crossing. The path from one side of the camera to the other is a well-trod one, so here’s hoping that Ms. Johansson follows in the footsteps of distinguished actors-turned-directors like Charles Laughton, Orson Welles, and Clint Eastwood. But don’t forget, not all actors find the transition so easy; some try it once and never again, the job of director a strange and forgotten footnote on otherwise stellar careers. … Read More

Film

The Most Controversial Moments at the Cannes Film Festival

By Alison Nastasi on

France’s Cannes Film Festival has seen its share of controversies since it started in 1946. Blame the Riviera sun or the filmmaking iconoclasts that gather on the red carpet each year, but various high jinks and bizarre publicity stunts have often dominated the festivities. Bold action isn’t always required to shake things up, however. Often times it’s just the movies themselves that cause a scene with audiences and the Cannes jury. With the current 66th annual festival underway, we wanted to take a look at ten of Cannes most controversial moments. … Read More

Film

The 20 Best Disney Animated Feature Films

By Tyler Coates on

Eighty-five years ago this week, on May 15, 1928, Mickey Mouse made his animated debut in the short “Plane Crazy,” the little-seen film that isn’t quite as popular as the first distributed Disney film, “Steamboat Willie.” While Mickey Mouse became the face of the Disney empire, he didn’t make it into many of the studio’s feature films. But his success and popularity made his creator Walt Disney a household name, and he paved the way for the great animated films for which Disney’s studio became known. To celebrate this anniversary, we took on the massive task of ranking Walt Disney Pictures’ 20 greatest animated features.  … Read More

Film

Flavorwire Interview: Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach on Creating ‘Frances Ha’ Together

By Jason Bailey on

Anyone who saw Greta Gerwig providing the soft, gooey center for Noah Baumbach’s sharply acidic Greenberg would understand why he’d want to cast her again; as the accidental love interest to Ben Stiller’s misanthrope, she gave a performance so nuanced yet winning and deeply felt that it sent anyone who observed it reeling for synonyms for “star quality.” His initial idea for their follow-up, Frances Ha, was vague: “I just had more general ideas that it would be something in New York and something in black and white and something with Greta,” he recalls. “I didn’t really know more than that — and maybe something that felt sort of European to me, some, like, story of youth.” But he wasn’t interested in solely collaborating as actor and director. “I suppose I had an instinct, to kind of involve her in the process of coming up with what it was going to be.” Gerwig jokes that his motivations may have been more pragmatic. “I think part of it was, he was like, ‘You’re cheap, right?’” … Read More

Film

Despite His Protests, Zach Braff’s Cannes Deal Violates the Spirit of His Kickstarter Campaign

By Jason Bailey on

It’s not like anyone was crossing their fingers and wishing upon a star to talk about Zach Braff and Kickstarter again, but here we go. “Zach Braff’s Kickstarter Film Lands Full Financing,” reads the headline at The Hollywood Reporter, which got all the details of Braff’s Cannes deal with Worldview Entertainment to “fund much of Wish I Was Here,” the Garden State follow-up that Braff already raised $2.6 million for via the crowd-funding site. It’s a deal that seems to confirm the worst grumblings about the project (that it was a publicity stunt, that it was a vanity move, that it was a gross exploitation of crowd funding by a multimillionaire). And though the Reporter has updated its piece with softer language concerning the full extent of Worldview’s participation, the new controversy surrounding the project raises further questions about exactly how these hybrid Kickstarter/Hollywood projects should work — and who will benefit from them. … Read More

Celebrity

Zoe Saldana Is the Latest Hollywood Ingénue to Use Bisexuality as a PR Tactic

By Tyler Coates on

The ladyblogs are all abuzz over this month’s issue of Allure, featuring Star Trek star Zoe Saldana. The cover line under her boldface name reads, “115 Pounds of Grit and Heartache,” bait that the Internet has gleefully seized, because the business of calling out sexism is always booming. But buried within the actual profile of Saldana is another irritating trend that Hollywood ingénues willingly participate in: the casual mention of the actress’s bisexuality. … Read More

Film

‘Star Trek Into Darkness’s’ Clumsy, Superficial Commentary on Drones

By Jason Bailey on

Star Trek has never shied from allegory — in fact, from the original 1960s series incarnation, creator Gene Rodenberry saw the show’s parallel universe as an opportunity to “make statements about sex, religion, Vietnam, politics, and intercontinental missiles.” His show, and the spin-offs and films that followed, offered up commentary on war, the environment, torture, and the like, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that J.J. Abrams’s new sequel Star Trek Into Darkness treads into the waters of political allegory. What’s surprising for the franchise (but not for the current moviemaking culture) is that it does it so shallowly. … Read More

Film

Gorgeous Original Posters for Paul Thomas Anderson Movies From Mondo

By Jason Bailey on

Well, looks like Mondo has off and done it again. The collectible art division of our beloved Alamo Drafthouse Cinema has a new series of posters dedicated to the work of Paul Thomas Anderson, and they’re knockouts. Mondo artist Aaron Horkey curated the series; after the jump, you can see their posters for Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood, Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, and Hard Eight (aka Sidney), along with Horkey’s thoughts on the pieces and the artists responsible. … Read More

Film

The 50 Greatest Movie Villains of All Time

By Jason Bailey on

The true nature of Star Trek Into Darkness’s villain has become perhaps the Internet’s worst-kept secret, but don’t worry — you’ll not have it spoiled here. Suffice it to say that the film’s antagonist is fiercely intelligent, physically brutal, and hellbent on revenge. In other words, this is a great movie villain. But what makes a truly memorable one? Sifting through the scores of iconic movie bad guys and girls reveals that villainy comes in all shapes, sizes, and levels of intensity; ranking them against each other is a tall order, but your Flavorwire was willing to give it a… Read More

Film

Guess What: Hollywood’s ‘Bridesmaids’ Revolution Never Happened

By Jason Bailey on

Hey, remember back when Bridesmaids came out, and everybody was all, “It’s your social responsibility to support female-driven comedy,” and then it was a hit, so yay for funny ladies? And then The Hunger Games came out, and everybody was all, “It’s your social responsibility to support a female-driven blockbuster,” and then it was a hit, so yay for lady ass-kickers? Well, as it turns out, none of that mattered a lick, because according to a study released yesterday by the USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, female representation in popular films is at its lowest level in five years. So thanks for nothing, Hollywood. … Read More