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David Cronenberg

Film

30 Behind-the-Scenes Monster Movie Photos That Will Blow Your Mind

By Jason Bailey on

Because it came out in the ‘90s and now people old enough to remember it are running websites, a lot of Internet ink has been spilled recently over the 20th anniversary of The Sandlot, writer/director David Mikey Evans’s 1993 remembrance of baseball, boyhood friends, and the summer of ’62. But the most interesting discovery of all of this nostalgia bathing was the unveiling of three photos (by Mr. Evans himself) of the elaborate puppets they used to create “The Beast,” the giant English mastiff that terrifies that neighborhood kids. Looking at those images (and you can check them out after the jump), we get a little nostalgic ourselves — for a time when computers weren’t the solution for scaring an audience, leaving artists and puppeteers to create the horrifying creatures of moviedom. Let’s take a look at how it used to be done. … Read More

Film

Flavorwire’s Guide to Movies You Need to Stream This Week

By Jason Bailey on

Welcome to Flavorwire’s streaming movie guide, in which we help you sift through the scores of movies streaming on Netflix, Hulu, and other services to find the best of the recently available, freshly relevant, or soon to expire. This week, we’ve got great flicks from Jack Nicholson, Ryan Gosling, Robert Pattinson, Clive Owen, Michelle Williams, Kirsten Dunst, Catherine Keener, Viola Davis, Harvey Keitel, Pam Grier, Toni Collete, Stanley Kubrick, and David Cronenberg. Check them all out after the jump, and follow the title links to watch them right now. … Read More

Film

A Crash Course in the Early Films of David Cronenberg

By Julia Pugachevsky on

Today marks the 70th birthday of David Cronenberg, the Canadian filmmaker J. Hoberman once called “the most audacious and challenging narrative director in the English-speaking world.” While the 21st century has found him moving closer to the mainstream with such films as A History of Violence and Eastern Promises, he is better known to generations of cultish fans as a founding father of the “body horror” genre, exploring the fear people have of uncontrolled physical changes in their body and eventually expanding the idea to fit into his psychological thrillers and sexually charged dramas. Below, for those who remain unfamiliar with the first few decades of his work, we’ve put together a crash course in early Cronenberg. … Read More

Film

10 Great Movies Inspired by Operas

By Alison Nastasi on

There’s plenty of drama to spare when it comes to the world of opera. Occasionally, filmmakers have been directly inspired by the songbooks of classical composers, while others have looked to the performances and thundering music to create symbolic, contemporary interpretations. Opera is rich, profound source material. The opulent costumes and staging, the history, and the emotional stories are ripe for cinematic adaptations. We’ve collected a few of our favorites for your perusal in celebration of the 109th anniversary of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly and the Blu-ray release of Don Giovanni. See what a behind-the-scenes documentary, a Werner Herzog epic, and other retellings of opera’s theatrical tales have to offer after the jump. … Read More

Film

20 Brilliant Filmmakers on Why They Make Movies

By Jason Bailey on

A couple of weeks back, we combed through our favorite quotes and offered up a few words from some of our favorite musicians about why they do what they do. That post was so well liked that we decided to seek out similar thoughts from some of our favorite moviemakers, to find out what drives them, what motivates them, and what pushes them to create. The best are collected after the jump; feel free to add your own in the comments. … Read More

Film

Horror Films You Didn’t Realize Were Based on True Stories

By Alison Nastasi on

While it’s true that many horror filmmakers have plastered the phony “true story” label on their movies in hopes of filling theater seats and winning box office gold, some scary movies have been inspired by real-life events. Tragic tales, actual murder cases, and dark memories are usually the basis for these films, proving that truth can be more terrifying than fiction. Most of us know the story behind famous fright films like The Exorcist, The Amityville Horror, or even Texas Chainsaw Massacre (serial killer Ed Gein has inspired dozens of movies thanks to his gruesome history), but we wanted to fill you in on several lesser-known, real-life plotlines that influenced popular works of horror. Test your knowledge past the break, and feel free to chat about any of your favorite true terror tales in the… Read More

Film

Flavorwire’s 50 Essential Horror Films, Part 2

By Alison Nastasi on

As Halloween draws near, you’ll undoubtedly see dozens of lists analyzing the scariest, goriest, and even the funniest of horror films. Nostalgia surrounding the spooky holiday conjures a breathless excitement to seek and share the movies that toy with our deep-seated fears. If you’re new to the horror genre, we don’t want you to feel left out of the fun. We’ve created a list of 50 essential films that will educate and entertain you all month long. Each week, we’ll be counting down to number one and exploring a breadth of titles. Whether you’re looking for a creepy tale to watch on Halloween night, or you’re interested in honing your horror knowledge, check out the second installment in our must-see movies below. Then, catch up with part one, and continue the countdown with parts three, four, and the top ten. … Read More

Film

10 Cult Filmmakers Who Went Mainstream

By Jason Bailey on

The Avengers hits DVD and Blu-ray today, fresh from a theatrical run that placed it in the top three highest-grossing films of all time. Not too shabby for a second-time director. Yes, there are many reasons to be cheered by the success of The Avengers: it’s a big, loud summer blockbuster with a brain and a heart; it serves as a triple-exception to our resistance to a) sequels, b) superhero movies, and c) 3D; and most importantly, it has given cult phenom Joss Whedon the kind of crossover success most filmmakers can only dream of. After the jump, a look at how the Browncoats’ fave became Tinseltown’s, and nine other tales of cult filmmakers and the plays they made for mainstream success. … Read More

Film

The 10 Best Stephen King Movies

By Jason Bailey on

Tomorrow is the 65th birthday of Mr. Stephen King — yep, the master of pop horror is now a senior citizen — so break out a party hat, have a slice of cake, and douse yourself in pig’s blood. Mr. King’s gradual progression, over the last couple of decades, from genre populist to critical darling has been a joy to watch. But the conventional wisdom that his books make for lousy movies inexplicably still holds. Make no mistake, they’ve turned his works into some turkeys, as anyone who’s sat through Graveyard Shift, Dreamcatcher, or his first (and so far only) directorial effort Maximum Overdrive can tell you. But his novels and stories have also provided the groundwork for several genuinely great movies — many of them, surprisingly enough, not even set in the world of the supernatural. After the jump, our picks for the best Stephen King movies to date. … Read More

Film

‘Eastern Promises 2′ Might Not Be Happening Now

By Caroline Stanley on

While we don’t always meet sequel announcements with excitement, when we heard that David Cronenberg was working on a followup to his 2007 gangster flick Eastern Promises that would involve both the original films’ stars (Viggo Mortensen and Vincent Cassel) and screenwriter (Steven Knight), we were more than willing to put aside our usual skepticism.… Read More