Film in Focus

 
 

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Five Designers on Design in Film

 

Five Designers on Design in Film

Calvin Tsao, half of the esteemed architectural duo Tsao & McKown, emphasizes the importance of collaboration. We asked what five films have helped him. more >

Mexican Cinema Today

 

Mexican Cinema Today

The explosion in new Mexican cinema has brought international attention to new Latin directors. But this is not the first time that Mexican cinema took on the world. more >

Five Designers on Design in Film

 

Five Designers on Design in Film

Guru of grooviness Jonathan Adler remembers the films that opened his eyes to the world of chic and style. more >

The Whitney Biennial Two-Year Plan

 

The Whitney Biennial Two-Year Plan

Every two years, the Whitney Biennial sets upon rethinking the world of American art as we know, including the film/video world. more >

Five Designers on Design in Film

 

Five Designers on Design in Film

Stylish modernist designer William Sofield today selects the five films cinematic experiences influenced his aesthetic sensibility. more >

Five Designers on Design in Film

 

Five Designers on Design in Film

Architect and interior designer Deborah Berke chooses five films which have influenced her sense of style. more >

Five in Focus

 

Five in Focus

To see how films inspire architecture and interior design, we asked five designers to give us their five favorite films. more >

Five Designers on Design in Film

 

Five Designers on Design in Film

For designer Benjamin Noriega-Ortiz, cinema is an infinite font of inspiration. We asked him for his five most inspirational films. more >

Caught Red Banded

 

Caught Red Banded

To mark the release of the Hamlet 2 R-rated trailer, FilmInFocus offers a history of red-band previews. more >

Behind the Blog: Matt Zoller Seitz of <em>The House Next Door</em>

 

Behind the Blog: Matt Zoller Seitz of The House Next Door

The owner of The House Next Door lets us in for a chat about his much-loved blog. more >

Baghdad Boom

 

Baghdad Boom

FilmInFocus collects together multiple perspectives on filmmaking's relationship with Iraq. more >

Crash Course: Making Movies on the Rooftops of Baghdad

 

Crash Course: Making Movies on the Rooftops of Baghdad

Anthony Kaufman reports on the new Iraqi cinema emerging from Baghdad's Independent Film and Television College. more >

A Short History of Iraqi Cinema

 

A Short History of Iraqi Cinema

Including Oliver Reed's Great Question and Saddam Hussein's vanity project helmed by a James Bond director. more >

Shot on the Battlefront: A Brief Guide to the Iraq War on Film

 

Shot on the Battlefront: A Brief Guide to the Iraq War on Film

From Fahrenheit 9/11 through to Battle for Haditha, Nick Dawson looks at the way the film world has viewed the Iraqi conflict. more >

A Law-Abiding Look at Indie Movie Download Sites

 

A Law-Abiding Look at Indie Movie Download Sites

Scott Kirsner explores the options for movie lovers who want to watch movies with leaving their desk. more >

Harvey Milk Lives

 

Harvey Milk Lives

Paul VanDeCarr finds himself back in the 1970s as Gus Van Sant transforms San Francisco for his new film about assassinated gay politician Harvey Milk. more >

Five Favorite Werewolf Movies

 

Five Favorite Werewolf Movies

Sharp Teeth author Toby Barlow gets stuck into some (rather unconventional) cinematic lycanthropes. more >

The Taste of Others

 

The Taste of Others

How can all these websites presume to know what you might "also like?" Scott Kirsner pulls back the curtain to reveal the technology of taste that drives these consumer sites. more >

The Once and Future Austin

 

The Once and Future Austin

Writer and filmmaker Spencer Parsons takes a walk through Slacker-ville, noticing how much has changed and imagining what might still be. more >

The Butler Did It: Servants in Film

 

The Butler Did It: Servants in Film

Cast to serve the story, servants have recently started serving their own class interests in films from Poppins to Pettigrew. Peter Bowen speaks with the help. more >

Bright Young People

 

Bright Young People

Society Shocker! Joel Bleifuss exposes the real-life 24-hour party people of Miss Pettigrew's world. Sex! Drugs! To-die-for handbags! more >

A Director for Every Day: Bharat Nalluri

 

A Director for Every Day: Bharat Nalluri

Director Bharat Nalluri has taken on serial killers, British spies, alien monsters and a tsunami. But, as Scott Macaulay learns, they were nothing compared to Miss Pettigrew. more >

The Song in their Hearts: "If I Didn't Care"

 

The Song in their Hearts: "If I Didn't Care"

In Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Amy Adams sings "If I Didn't Care" as if it's her story. Alicia Van Couvering discovers the real story behind the song. more >

The Real Miss Pettigrew

 

The Real Miss Pettigrew

Priya Jain on the life and career of Winifred Watson, the British novelist who created Miss Pettigrew. more >

Five Favorite Films About Domestics

 

Five Favorite Films About Domestics

The Nanny Diaries authors Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus celebrate the release of Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day by choosing their favorite movies about "help." more >

Behind the Blog: Karina Longworth of <i>SpoutBlog</i>

 

Behind the Blog: Karina Longworth of SpoutBlog

SpoutBlog's Karina Longworth takes us inside her portion of the blogosphere. more >

Excerpt from <em>Miss Pettigrew Lives for a  Day</em>

 

Excerpt from Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

Read the start of Winifred Watson's 1938 novel and you see why people love this book. more >

Behind the Blog: Brandon Harris of <i>Cinema Echo Chamber</i>

 

Behind the Blog: Brandon Harris of Cinema Echo Chamber

Filmmaker and blogger Brandon Harris gives us a tour of his Cinema Echo Chamber. more >

Martin McDonagh on Brendan Gleeson

 

Martin McDonagh on Brendan Gleeson

In Bruges writer-director Martin McDonagh speaks about his regular star, the underrated Irish actor. more >

Five Favorite Children's Books

 

Five Favorite Children's Books

Atonement star Saoirse Ronan, who plays budding writer Briony, gives us a tour of her personal library. more >

Bruges: “A Fucking Fairy Tale”

 

Bruges: “A Fucking Fairy Tale”

If In Bruges' killers turn that charming medieval town into a bloodbath, that's nothing compared to what its own citizens used to do. Joel Bleifuss explains. more >

Five Political News Sites

 

Five Political News Sites

For the week of Super Tuesday, we've asked five documentary filmmakers to give us their five favorite news websites. Our final director is Rachel Boynton. more >

Death Becomes Him: A Movie Hitman History

 

Death Becomes Him: A Movie Hitman History

In Bruges continues the great, though relatively recent, tradition of the hitman movie. Scott Macaulay gets this dark subgenre in his crosshairs. more >

Five Political News Sites

 

Five Political News Sites

For the week of Super Tuesday, we've asked five documentary filmmakers to give us their five favorite news websites. American Blackout director Ian Inaba chooses his today. more >

Martin McDonagh's Morality

 

Martin McDonagh's Morality

Priya Jain looks back at the morally complex, blackly comic and very violent theatrical work of In Bruges director Martin McDonagh. more >

Five Political News Sites

 

Five Political News Sites

For the week of Super Tuesday, we've asked five documentary filmmakers to give us their five favorite news websites. Today, Astra Taylor picks hers. more >

Five Political News Sites

 

Five Political News Sites

For the week of Super Tuesday, we've asked five documentary filmmakers to give us their five favorite news websites. Today, we get Joan Sekler's line up. more >

Five Political News Sites

 

Five Political News Sites

For the week of Super Tuesday, we've asked five documentary filmmakers to give us their five favorite news websites: First up, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady. more >

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

 

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

Filmmaker Magazine's Jason Guerrasio is our final person to turn his focus on Sundance 2008. more >

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

 

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

Screen International's David D'Arcy picks five memories from his time at Sundance 2008. more >

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

 

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

David Wilson (True/False Film Festival) "eats, drinks, breathes and occasionally makes documentaries." Here what he ingested at Sundance this year. more >

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

 

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

Film journalist Anthony Kaufman casts an eye back on the highs and lows of Sundance's 2008 edition. more >

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

 

Five Things I Took Away From the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

Programmer and distributor Connie White looks back on this year's Sundance experience. more >

Five Things for Short Filmmakers to Know Coming to Sundance

 

Five Things for Short Filmmakers to Know Coming to Sundance

Ian Olds gives short filmmakers the lowdown on the Park City experience. more >

Five Things to Know in Going to the Sundance Film Festival

 

Five Things to Know in Going to the Sundance Film Festival

After showing Great World of Sound at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, Craig Zobel reminds us what's important there. more >

Jonathan Mak Plays it his Way

 

Jonathan Mak Plays it his Way

Jonathan Mak is bringing an old school, DIY feel to gaming, as Heather Chaplin finds out. more >

Behind the Blog: Matt Dentler of <em>Matt Dentler's Blog</em>

 

Behind the Blog: Matt Dentler of Matt Dentler's Blog

Matt Dentler, producer of the SXSW Film Festival, is also one of the web's most prolific film bloggers. more >

Imagining War

 

Imagining War

From Edison to Atonement, film has constantly reshaped the ways we imagine, if not wage, war. Joel Bleifuss reports. more >

Class is Out: England Between the Wars

 

Class is Out: England Between the Wars

In Atonement's Britain, between the World Wars was not a lull in the storm, but a storm all its own. Bill Schwarz analyzes the shifting climate. more >

Being Authentic: James McAvoy on Film Acting

 

Being Authentic: James McAvoy on Film Acting

At 28, Atonement's James McAvoy has already played a lifetime of characters. Nick Dawson asks why he acts the way he does. more >

Design of History: Sarah Greenwood's <em>Atonement</em>

 

Design of History: Sarah Greenwood's Atonement

To bring a historical novel to life, production designer Sarah Greenwood goes beyond finding the perfect decoration. more >

Top Five So-Called 'Turkeys' That Are Actually Terrific

 

Top Five So-Called 'Turkeys' That Are Actually Terrific

Richard T. Kelly adapts a list from his book Ten Bad Dates with De Niro to re-package some long forgotten cinematic gifts just in time for the holiday season. more >

Playing to Type: Scoring <em>Atonement</em>

 

Playing to Type: Scoring Atonement

Scott Macaulay talks to composer Dario Marianelli about his innovative score for Atonement. more >

The Greatest War's Films

 

The Greatest War's Films

A look at the way in which the portrayal of World War Two on screen has shifted, from wartime propaganda to modern reassessments such as Atonement. more >

A Walk through Cinematic Paris

 

A Walk through Cinematic Paris

Kevin Conroy Scott follows the ghosts of Amélie and Francois Truffaut's alter ego Antoine Doinel. more >

Eileen Chang and <i>Lust, Caution</i>

 

Eileen Chang and Lust, Caution

David Wang highlights the unique place that "Lust, Caution" author Eileen Chang holds in contemporary Chinese culture. more >

Behind the Blog: David Hudson of <i>GreenCine Daily</i>

 

Behind the Blog: David Hudson of GreenCine Daily

David Hudson, the brains behind the must-read blog GreenCine Daily, maps out today's internet landscape. more >

Grief 2.0: How the Internet Is Sad

 

Grief 2.0: How the Internet Is Sad

In Reservation Road a family confronts their worst nightmare online. Is this how we grieve now? more >

What Would Ethan Do?: Notes on Revenge

 

What Would Ethan Do?: Notes on Revenge

From Greek tragedy to Reservation Road, Joel Bleifuss examines the complicated reasons for revenge. more >

Top Five Revenge Films

 

Top Five Revenge Films

Composer/performer Diamanda Galás gets her revenge with five nasty little films. From creepy eco-horror to pulp feminism, here are five films that illustrate the art of getting even. more >

Real Baseball: America's Favorite Pastimes

 

Real Baseball: America's Favorite Pastimes

Real ball players swap out uniforms for costumes to pitch in as movie stars through out film history. more >

Book To Screen: Reading Peter Gethers

 

Book To Screen: Reading Peter Gethers

Peter Gethers on Random House Films' Reservation Road, and why he can't make up his mind about a job. more >

The Road Less Taken: Nick Wechsler on Producing Movies

 

The Road Less Taken: Nick Wechsler on Producing Movies

Scott Macaulay talks with Reservation Road's producer Nick Wechsler about his 30-film career. more >

A Chronicle of Changing Clothes

 

A Chronicle of Changing Clothes

In addition to being a keen observer of human nature, Eileen Chang followed fashion religiously, and nothing said more than than a hemline. more >

On Ang Lee

 

On Ang Lee

Rick Moody on Ang Lee's genius at rendering place and time, be it the 19th century England or 70s New England. more >

Mah-Jongg: The Tiles of History

 

Mah-Jongg: The Tiles of History

Bari Zibrak looks at Mah-Jongg: from being a backdrop in Lust, Caution to community center in LA. more >

Mopping the Floor in <em>Eastern Promises</em>

 

Mopping the Floor in Eastern Promises

Stunt coordinator Julian Spencer explains how he choreographed Viggo Mortensen's naked fight scene in Eastern Promises. more >

With Noah Cowan at the Toronto International Film Festival

 

With Noah Cowan at the Toronto International Film Festival

Follow co-director Noah Cowan as he prepares to launch the Toronto International Film Festival. more >

Top Five Favorite Movie Fight Scenes

 

Top Five Favorite Movie Fight Scenes

Filmmaker Justin Lin takes a step back to consider which are his own five favorite fight scenes. more >

Shanghai in 1942

 

Shanghai in 1942

In the '40s, Shanghai was most cosmopolitan city around. Then things changed. Joel Bleifuss reports on what happened to Lust, Caution's Shanghai. more >

Behind the Blog: Andrew Grant of <i>Like Anna Karina's Sweater</i>

 

Behind the Blog: Andrew Grant of Like Anna Karina's Sweater

Andrew Grant has blogged his way to fame and not so much fortune with his site, Like Anna Karina's Sweater. more >

Ian Bogost: Games People Play

 

Ian Bogost: Games People Play

Heather Chaplin profiles Ian Bogost, whose computer games are a playground for politics and critical thinking. more >

When the Ink Dries: Tattoos in the Russian Mafia

 

When the Ink Dries: Tattoos in the Russian Mafia

Scott Macaulay talks with Alix Lambert whose film Mark of Cain on Russian prison tattoos inspired Eastern Promises. more >

Train of Thought: Making <i>Sin Nombre</i>

 

Train of Thought: Making Sin Nombre

Director Cary Fukunaga talks with Scott Macaulay about upcoming feature Sin Nombre. more >

The Elusive Spy Story

 

The Elusive Spy Story

Master spy storyteller Alan Furst has a hard time tracking down his five favorite espionage films. more >

We Are Family: Crime Organizations Around the World

 

We Are Family: Crime Organizations Around the World

Every country has a mafia, and some export them–like the Russians to London in Eastern Promises. more >

The Violence Within

 

The Violence Within

Director David Cronenberg talks with Scott Macaulay about what makes violence the stuff of cinema. more >

<i>Sealed Off</i>: A Short Story By Eileen Chang

 

Sealed Off: A Short Story By Eileen Chang

Strangers stranded on a tram briefly connect in Eileen Chang's haunting story from Love In A Fallen City more >

Introduction to <i>Lust, Caution</i>

 

Introduction to Lust, Caution

In his introduction to Eileen Chang's story "Lust, Caution," James Schamus looks at the politics of performance. more >

David Cronenberg Annotated Filmography

 

David Cronenberg Annotated Filmography

Follow David Cronenberg's 18-film career from the medical horror story Shivers to Eastern Promises. more >

In the Zone: The Films of David Cronenberg

 

In the Zone: The Films of David Cronenberg

Jonathan Romney unlocks the secret behind David Cronenberg's talent for making everything wonderfully strange. more >

Crime Film Sites

 

Crime Film Sites

Here are links to everything nasty, mean, and criminal you could ever want. more >

An Introduction to FilmInFocus

 

An Introduction to FilmInFocus

Welcome to FilmInFocus, the website for grown-up movie lovers. more >

Business as Usual: The Rise of the Russian Mafia

 

Business as Usual: The Rise of the Russian Mafia

In These Times editor Joel Bleifuss takes a hard look at the Russian mafia–in film and in the real world. more >

David Cronenberg On the Web

 

David Cronenberg On the Web

Scott Macaulay discovers a range of internet sites that look for the real David Cronenberg. more >

Afterword to <i>Lust, Caution</i>

 

Afterword to Lust, Caution

Ang Lee sums up his feelings about Eileen Chang's story, "Lust, Caution" in his Afterword. more >

Baltimore with John Waters

 

Baltimore with John Waters

John Waters points out the Baltimore movie theaters in which there's more action in the aisles than on the screen. more >

Top Five British Crime Films

 

Top Five British Crime Films

Best-selling mystery writer Ian Rankin knows crime pays. Here are his five favorite British thrillers. more >