Cover
More of the greatest films you've never seen.
Editorial
Mike Williams tells us this is the third time that Sight and Sound has looked at films that are hidden gems. This time it's about how Mubi has success with it's commitment to independent and art house cinema. However they are not immune from criticism about their involvement with one questionable character. Which brings up the matter of who is investing in the arts and sport. Is that ultimately bad business?
Opening Scenes
All about Israel and Gaza that I skipped.
Editor's Choice
Of the six books discussed, only one was of interest and that was Sonny Boy, a Memoir by Al Pacino. Mike Williams loved the final chapter on ageing and death.
In Production
One interesting piece about a future Sense and Sensibility. Not yet in production, but signed on is Daisy Edgar Jones for Working Title and Focus Features.
In Conversation
Lou Thomas talks about Danny and Michael Philippou's latest horror Bring Her Back. Reviewed in the Sunday Times.
Festivals, Mean Sheets and Reader's Letters
Nothing of interest.
The Long Take
Pamela Hutchinson describes films made with deaf production, or for deaf audiences. We hear examples. Silent films were embraced, although being able to lip read had it's own problems. More recent films are discussed including A Quiet Place and Flow, both great.
Flick Lit
Nicole Flattery tells us about Paul Mazursky's An Unmarried Woman (1978) where divorce is the central theme. Erica and Martin seem to be the perfect married couple, only for the latter to leave for a younger woman he met in a shop. A detailed analysis of the plot follows. On the same subject, Nicole loves Nora Ephron's Heartburn (1983) and The War of the Roses, now being remade as The Roses starring Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch.
TV Eye
Andrew Male is interested in Lauren Greenfield's new documentary Social Studies. (I'm sorry. I just do not get these youngsters and their online lives. Nor should I at my age.)
More Hidden Gems
Fifty little known films chosen by film makes. Some are more interesting than others. To pick out just a few:
No 4 - Chosen by Molly Haskell: George Cukor's Sylvia Scarlett (1935). (See The Directors Series 1.) A very early Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant (the latter not yet a star.)
No 8 - Chosen by Karina Longworth: Vincente Minnelli's Four Horseman of the Apocalypse (1962). The director is better known for musicals such as Gigi and An American in Paris that both won best picture Oscars. But here is Glen Ford in a drama that some say pales in insignificance against the Rudolf Valentino silent version.
No 23 - Chosen by John Bleasedale: Jack Clayton's Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983). Ray Bradbury adapts his own novel and Jonathon Pryce plays Mr Dark at the head of a carnival. Also stars Jason Robards and Pam Grier.
No 39 - Chosen by Mike Leigh: William Coldstream's The Fairy on the Phone (1936). A short public information film about the dos and don'ts of using the telephone. "Hilarious, unashamedly camp and utterly bonkers". See BT Archives.
No 45 - Chosen by Mahdi Fleifel: Bille August's Best Intentions (1992). Cut down for the cinema from a four part Swedish TV series. Written by Ingmar Bergman and won the director a second Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1992.
No 49 - Chosen by Allison Anders: Ron Shelton's Hollywood Homicide (2003). Starring Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett in "a love letter to LA, to Motown and to detective flicks". Also "one of the best car chases ever filmed".
Out of Sight
A long article by B. Ruby Rich who goes into detail about the new film Sorry, Baby out in August. It's "motored by an unseen assault". Not sure.
All About Eva
The director and star Eva Victor in conversation.
Requiem for a Dreamer: Peter Sellers at 100
Andrew Roberts looks at his career over five pages. All so familiar for me, especially The Goon Show and his early films. One reminder of his Heaven's Above with Ian Carmichael to look out for. We have now seen all the Pink Panther films. And of course Doctor Strangelove is one of my all time favourite movies.
Stephanie Rothman: The Secret Life of B's
Beatrice Loayza looks at those B movies Stephanie made under Roger Corman. We hear about her background and how she came to direct. Her films are being shown in a season at the Barbican. There are large posters of some of her drive in movies including The Velvet Vampire and The Working Girls. All with "Rothman's thoughtful approach to B- movie material" and that "they attracted audiences that would not normally be interested in social issues" and that could deliver meaningful political discussions through pleasurable forms of entertainment".
A Woman Under The Influence
Four films that inspired the director.
Gold Standard
Sam Wigley talks to the director Ang Lee about his career. He reminded us about all those successive movies: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), Hulk (2003), Brokeback Mountain (2005) and Life of Pi (2013) and a best director Oscar. But then it all went wrong with Gemini Man (2019) and Billy Lyons Halftime Walk (2016). Lee talks about how difficult it is now to make movies: "The new generation don't have the patience to watch the story". Is he a little bitter? However, there are soon to be rereleases for Sense and Sensibility and The Ice Storm to look out for.
Reviews - Films
The following are those of some interest.
28 Years Later. See my review. That in the magazine only tells us what Danny Boyle's film is about.
The Life of Chuck. Mike Flanagan directs the Stephen King story. I would normally steer clear of any King horror film. This one is told backwards in three parts and stars Tom Hiddleston, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Karen Gillan.
Late Shift. A Swiss/German production set in a hospital in Switzerland. Focused on senior nurse Floria over one night, short staffed and lots of demanding patients and visitors. Excellent review by Philip Concannon.
Materialists. Adam Nayman reviews and Celine Song directs. Starring Dakota Johnson. But it "feels drained and bloodless". Adam didn't like it, but I loved the director's brilliant previous film Past Lives so might give it a go.
Superman
Reviewed by Kim Newman "an encouraging start for new hero David Corenswet". See my review.
DVD and Blu-Ray: Archive TV
The Sweeney - Series 1. Hugely popular TV series in the mid seventies. John Thaw and Dennis Waterman made their names. Seedy and violent.
A Hard Day's Night
Now on Blu-Ray. Richard Lester's directs a script by our one time neighbour Alun Owen. The Beatles on the way up in 1964, their very first film. I went to see it the week it opened in the west end at the old London Pavilion cinema.
From the Archive
"It's a tremendous luxury to explore one's fears". The 40th anniversary rerelease is Daniel Day Lewis in My Beautiful Laundrette. Here is an extract from Sight and Sound Autumn 1989 by Richard Mayne. A profile of the great actor. Lewis was 32 and was just becoming "hot property".
The Powder and the Glory. From the monthly film bulletin of November 1985 comes an article where Jane Root talks to Hanif Kureishi about his "blistering script" for My Beautiful Laundrette.
This Month In .... 1995
The only interesting bits are Performance starring Mick Jagger (my word he did look miles older than me when shown watching the test match) and Waterworld that just might have been saved by Kevin Costner and Dennis Hopper. Or maybe not.
