Berta Singerman in NOTHING MORE THAN A WOMAN at UCLA
The 1934 melodrama Nada más que una mujer / Nothing More Than a Woman, a unique sample of the many Spanish-language versions of Hollywood (mostly Fox) films made for export in the 1930s, will be screened at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 19, at UCLA’s Billy Wilder Theater in Westwood. Nothing More Than a Woman will be followed by the 1933 romantic comedy No dejes la puerta abierta / Don’t Leave the Door Open, starring Raul Roulien of Flying Down to Rio. Both restored 35mm prints will be screened with English subtitles.
"Once sound films had become firmly established in the late ’20s," wrote film historian Robert Dickson in the program for UCLA’s 1998 film preservation festival, "and before the advent of acceptable dubbing and subtitling, all of the major studios as well as several independent producers, fearful of losing their international audiences, began to make films in various foreign languages. The Fox studio elected to produce its foreign language releases almost exclusively in Spanish and, in the beginning, simply remade some of its English-language films, although it would later produce certain films only in Spanish. Between 1930 and 1935 [when Fox merged with 20th Century and its production of Spanish-language films was abandoned], Fox made thirty-nine features and six shorts in Spanish. Of these, only ten appear to have survived."
Now, why is Nothing More Than a Woman unique among the surviving films?
Well, the chief reason is that it stars Berta Singerman (above, left, with Luana Alcañiz), Argentina’s answer to Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich, in what is believed to be Singerman’s only extant film. (As per the IMDb, she appeared in two other pictures). Born in Russia (in Minsk, today’s Belarus) in 1901, Singerman was a major star on the Argentinean stage — her father founded Buenos Aires’ first Yiddish-language theater. Singerman, for her part, was particularly renowned for her poetry recitations, a talent she uses to good advantage in this steamy melo set in an off-the-beaten-path island of The Philippines.
The Spanish-language version of Fox’s B-melo Pursued (1934), Nothing More Than a Woman tells the story of Mona Estrada (Singerman), an entertainer who asks for — and, gasp!, gets — a job at the local tropical dive reciting poetry to customers. "Mona’s love affair with the young, handsome, temporarily blinded (don’t ask) young plantation owner is not much more believable," wrote Kenneth Turan in the Los Angeles Times back in 1998, "but when Singerman launches into one of her rhythmic, racy, mesmerizing vocal presentations, you’re afraid to so much as blink in case you miss a word." Even though the Nothing More Than a Woman plot and production values aren’t quite A-class stuff — except for Rudolph Maté’s moody cinematography — Singerman more than holds her own as the mysterious woman with both a shady past and a talent to make words of poetry come to vibrant life.
Also in the Nothing More Than a Woman cast: Alfredo del Diestro, Juan Torena, the Spanish actress Luana Alcañiz (who starred in numerous Spanish-language versions of Fox films; she’s now 92), Lucio Villegas, and Carmen Rodríguez. Harry Lachman directed from Lester Cole (one of the future Hollywood Ten) and Stuart Anthony’s Pursued screenplay, which in turn was taken from Larry Evans‘ story "The Painted Lady." Raymond Van Sickle and John Reinhardt wrote the Nothing More Than a Woman adaptation, while Miguel de Zárraga and Spanish satirist Enrique Jardiel Poncela (uncredited) penned the Spanish-language dialogue. (According to Robert Dickson, Poncela’s name was removed from the credits so audiences wouldn’t think they were about to watch a comedy.)
Rosemary Lane and Victor Jory starred in the original Pursued, while Peggy Shannon and Spencer Tracy headed the cast of the hard-to-watch The Painted Woman (1932), taken from the same story. George O’Brien and Dorothy Mackaill starred in the 1925 silent version.
In the light comedy Don’t Leave the Door Open, the Spanish-language version of Pleasure Cruise, Mexican Rosita Moreno (who starred in eighteen Spanish-language productions) and Brazilian Raul Roulien (whose Spanish is remarkably fluent) star as a recently married couple whose troubles begin quite early in the marriage: Wife Moreno believes that husband Roulien is having an affair, so she decides to have a fling of her own while on a cruise from New York to Havana.
Directed by Lewis Seiler and written by Guy Bolton — with Spanish dialogue by José López Rubio and Paul Perez — Don’t Leave the Door Open also stars Argentinean acting legend Mona Maris, in addition to George J. Lewis, Romualdo Tirado, Rosita Granada, and Ralph Navarro. Carlos Villarías, the star of the Spanish-language Dracula, has a small role as the ship’s purser. Genevieve Tobin, Roland Young, and Ralph Forbes starred in the original Pleasure Cruise.
Restored by the UCLA Film & Television Archive in the late 1990s, the preservation funds and grants for Nothing More Than a Woman and Don’t Leave the Door Open came from the American Film Institute, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Robert Dickson, co-author (with Juan B. Heinink) of the excellent Cita en Hollywood, a history of Spanish-language film versions of Hollywood (mostly Fox) movies of the 1930s.
Photo: Courtesy of Robert Dickson
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BREAKFAST WITH SCOT Trailer
Directed by Laurie Lynd and adapted by Sean Reycraft from Michael Downing’s novel, Breakfast with Scot — which opened today in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York — stars Tom Cavanagh and Ben Shenkman as an upscale, "discreet" gay couple (one of them used to be a hockey player; the other one is a sports attorney) who unexpectedly find themselves parenting an 11-year-old boy (Noah Bernett) with serious pompom tendencies.
Also in the Breakfast with Scot cast: Graham Greene (Academy Award nominee for Dances with Wolves back in 1990), Fiona Reid, Jeananne Goossen, Colin Cunningham, Sheila McCarthy, Megan Follows, and Alex Popovic.
As per the film’s website, "officially sanctioned by the NHL and the Toronto Maple Leafs, Breakfast with Scot represents the first time a professional sports league has allowed their logo and uniforms to be used in a gay-themed movie."
Clip posted by themikbaby.
Robert De Niro in WHAT JUST HAPPENED? Trailer
Anne Hathaway in PASSENGERS Trailer
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GÉRARD PHILIPE: A MAN NOT AN ANGEL Clip
Robert De Niro in WHAT JUST HAPPENED? Trailer
Directed by Barry Levinson, What Just Happened? was adapted by producer Art Linson from his own novel, which in turn was inspired by the goings-on during the making of The Edge, a 1997 thriller directed by Lee Tamahori, written by David Mamet, and starring Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin, and Elle Macpherson.
What Just Happened? follows a Hollywood producer (Robert De Niro, who also happens to be one of the What Just Happened? producers) as he tries to salvage one bomb while struggling to get a new picture off the ground. Screened at Sundance, What Just Happened? was widely panned. A reedited version of the film closed the Cannes Film Festival.
"In the end, it was entirely appropriate that What Just Happened got the last flicker of light from the projector at this year’s Festival de Cannes," wrote Pete Hammond for The Envelope. "It’s about a troubled movie, starring Sean Penn, that plays to a rainy Cannes within a real-life troubled movie that closes a rainy Cannes. This in a year when the fake film’s star (Penn) served as president of the official selection jury, and the real film’s star, Robert De Niro, presented the Palme d’Or — all during the wettest Cannes in years."
Also in the What Just Happened? cast: Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, Robin Wright Penn, Stanley Tucci, John Turturro, Bruce Willis, Kristen Stewart, and Michael Wincott.
What Just Happened? opens in the US on October 17.
Clip posted by 360inReview.
Anne Hathaway in PASSENGERS Trailer
Edward Norton, Colin Farrell in PRIDE AND GLORY Trailer
ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM Trailer
Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning in THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES Trailer
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GÉRARD PHILIPE: A MAN NOT AN ANGEL Clip
Anne Hathaway in PASSENGERS Trailer
Written by Ronnie Christensen and directed by Rodrigo García, Passengers centers on a grief counselor (Anne Hathaway) working with a group of plane-crash survivors who finds herself up to her neck in some pretty weird mystery when her clients begin to disappear.
Also in the Passengers cast: Patrick Wilson, Andre Braugher, Dianne Wiest, William B. Davis, David Morse, and Ryan Robbins.
Passengers opens in the US on October 24.
Clip posted by watchmoviepreviews.
SAW V Trailer
FEAR(S) OF THE DARK Trailer
Edward Norton, Colin Farrell in PRIDE AND GLORY Trailer
ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM Trailer
Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning in THE [...] Continue Reading…
SAW V Trailer
Co-written by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, Saw V is the directorial debut of production designer David Hackl. (The last three Saws were directed by Darren Lynn Bousman.) The plot has something to do with the Hoffman character (Costas Mandylor) carrying on "the jigsaw legacy" while trying to "eliminate all loose ends." The film’s tagline reads: "You won’t believe how it ends." What I don’t believe is how it keeps on going.
In the Saw V cast: Toby Bell, Julie Benz, Greg Bryk, Meagan Good, Laura Gordon, and Joris Jarsky.
Saw V opens in the US on [...] Continue Reading…
Leslie Caron Salute + GIGI and LILI Screenings
Leslie Caron will be on hand for the premiere of a new digital restoration of the 1958 best picture Oscar winner Gigi tomorrow, October 10, at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. Film critic Stephen Farber will host an onstage conversation with Caron. (Note: This event is sold out. More information on additional tickets at the bottom of this article.)
"An Academy Salute to Leslie Caron" is being presented in cooperation with the American Cinematheque and the Santa Monica Puppetry Center. [...] Continue Reading…
FEAR(S) OF THE DARK Trailer
Peur(s) du noir / Fear(s) of the Dark features several intertwined stories focusing on nightmares, phobias, and the like. The Fear(s) of the Dark segments were written and directed by graphic artists Blutch, Charles Burns, Marie Caillou, Pierre di Sciullo, Lorenzo Mattotti, and Richard McGuire. Blutch, Burns, and di Sciullo also co-wrote the screenplay, along with Romain Slocombe, Jerry Kramsky, and Michel Pirus.
Among the voices featured in Fear(s) of the Dark are those of Guillaume Depardieu and Nicole Garcia.
Fear(s) of the Dark opens in the US on October 24. It opened in France [...] Continue Reading…
Edward Norton, Colin Farrell in PRIDE AND GLORY Trailer
Co-written and directed by Gavin O’Connor, Pride and Glory chronicles the breaking apart of a family filled with police officers after one family member (Edward Norton) starts investigating the murder of four New York cops. The trail leads to the police department itself and to a web of corruption involving his brother (Noah Emmerich) and brother-in-law (Colin Farrell).
Joe Carnahan co-wrote the screenplay with O’Connor. Also in the Pride and Glory cast: Jon Voight, Jennifer Ehle, and John Ortiz.
Pride and Glory opens in the US on October 24.
Official Site.
Clip posted by mpit55.
ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN [...] Continue Reading…
ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM Trailer
Believe it or not, there’s a serious global financial crisis going on. So, how about some escapism?
What better video clip to watch at this time than the trailer of Alex Gibney’s 2004 Academy Award-nominated documentary feature Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room? Doesn’t the title alone make you think of those smart guys wearing expensive suits, driving expensive cars, sitting in expensive chairs in expansive offices in expansive high-rises, and living in equally expansive (and expensive) mansions?
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National Film Board of Canada Salute
“A Salute to the National Film Board of Canada” (NFB) will be presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ — in partnership with the Charles Guggenheim Center for the Documentary Film and the Foundation for the National Archives — on Thursday, October 23, at 7 p.m. at the William G. McGowan Theater at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. The event will be hosted by animation critic and historian Charles Solomon, following an introduction by Academy President Sid Ganis.
The National Film Board of Canada salute will include [...] Continue Reading…
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Set in 1964 South Carolina, during the height of the Civil Rights Movement, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of a 14 year-old motherless white girl (Dakota Fanning) who learns about life from several black women, among them Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson, Academy Award nominees Queen Latifah and Sophie Okonedo, and Alicia Keys. Based on Sue Monk Kidd’s novel, The Secret Life of Bees was adapted and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood.
Also in the Secret Life of Bees cast: Paul Bettany and Hilarie Burton.
The Secret Life of Bees opens in the [...] Continue Reading…
Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore in HE’S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU Trailer
In the romantic comedy He’s Just Not That into You young and attractive women fall for guys who don’t seem (I guess seem is the key here) to care all that much about them. Or at least not the way they (the women) want them (the guys) to.
Directed by Ken Kwapis (best known for his work on the TV series The Office), and adapted by Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein from Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo’s bestseller, He’s Just Not That into You stars Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, Drew Barrymore (who’s also [...] Continue Reading…
Bob Hope: Thanks for the Memories
Although Bob Hope was one of the most popular American (though English-born) entertainers of the 20th century, I’ve always found him hard to swallow. So, why am I so disappointed that I won’t be in New York City this fall (Oct. 7–Nov. 25) to check out the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts’ free screenings of the series "Bob Hope: Thanks for the Memories"?
Well, how about the fact that the series, arranged by Joseph Yranski of the New York Library for the Performing Arts’ Reserve Film & Video Collection, will be screening the little-seen, British-made The [...] Continue Reading…
Rock Hudson Was Not
When it was publicly revealed that Rock Hudson was gay — back in the mid-1980s, as the actor became the best-known person with AIDS in the world — I was surprised to learn that people were surprised about the "news." After all, years earlier, when I was a little kid, I remember my mother mentioning that fact to me while we were watching reruns of McMillan and Wife on TV. (The Wife, by the way, was the delightful Susan Saint James. Where the hell is she??)
Anyhow, today’s jaded crowd, looking at the above photograph, will surely assert that [...] Continue Reading…
DEADLY DECEPTION, IN THE SHADOW OF THE STARS: Oscar’s Docs
The two 1991 Oscar-winning documentaries, Debra Chasnoff’s short Deadly Deception: General Electric, Nuclear Weapons and Our Environment, and Allie Light and Irving Saraf’s feature In the Shadow of the Stars will be screened as part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ series "Oscar’s Docs, Part Four: Academy Award-Winning Documentaries 1988–1997" on Monday, October 13, at 7:30 p.m. at the Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood. Debra Chasnoff, Irving Saraf, and Allie Light will take part in post-screening discussions.
The documentary short subject Deadly Deception: General Electric, Nuclear [...] Continue Reading…
GÉRARD PHILIPE: A MAN NOT AN ANGEL Clip
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Among Philipe’s best-known films are Georges Lampin’s L’Idiot, opposite Edwige Feuillère; Claude Autant-Lara’s Le Diable au corps, opposite Micheline Presle; Max Ophüls’ all-star La Ronde; Christian-Jaque’s Fanfan la Tulipe, with Gina Lollobrigida; René Clair’s Les Belles de nuit, with Martine Carol [...] Continue Reading…
CITY OF EMBER Trailer
Directed by Gil Kenan and adapted by Caroline Thompson from Jeanne Duprau’s book, City of Ember is set in the city of the title, whose great lights have begun to fail. At that point, a couple of teens (Academy Award nominee Saoirse Ronan, Harry Treadaway) set out to find a way to keep the City of Ember’s lights on.
Also in the City of Ember cast: Tim Robbins, Bill Murray, Martin Landau, Toby Jones, Mackenzie Crook, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, and Mary Kay Place.
City of Ember opens in the US on October 10.
Official site.
Clip posted by BasilHitsManuel.
QUARANTINE Trailer
GOOD DICK Trailer
Mark [...] Continue Reading…
QUARANTINE Trailer
Directed and co-written by John Erick Dowdle, Quarantine is a remake of Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza’s 2007 Spanish horror-thriller Rec, winner of two Goyas (best editing, David Gallart; best new actress, Manuela Velasco). Now set in 2008 Los Angeles, Quarantine depicts the battle for survival inside an apartment building that has been quarantined by the Center for Disease Control after the authorities learn of a virus that has turned some of the building’s residents into rabid killers.
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BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA Beats EAGLE EYE
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Raja Gosnell’s film about a spoiled chihuahua ending up astray in Mexico had no problems taking over the No. 1 spot from last week’s box-office winner Eagle Eye, which finished in second place.
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GOOD DICK Trailer
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Also in the Max Payne cast: Beau Bridges, Chris ‘Ludacris’ Bridges, Chris O’Donnell, and Nelly Furtado.
Max Payne opens in the [...] Continue Reading…
Artivist Film Festival 2008
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ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO Trailer
In Kevin Smith’s Zack and Miri Make a Porno, a couple of friends, Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks), try to earn some much needed dinero by making an adult movie together. (The word "adult" here doesn’t refer to a movie with Oscar aspirations.) When the going gets hot, Zack and Miri come to realize that they actually have feelings for one another. (The word "feelings" here doesn’t refer to either fraternal love or unbridled lust.)
Also in the Zack and Miri Make a Porno cast: Jason Mewes, Craig Robinson, Traci Lords, and Justin Long.
Zack and Miri Make [...] Continue Reading…
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN Trailer
Directed by Tomas Alfredson and adapted by John Ajvide Lindqvist from his own novel, the horror-romance Swedish production Låt den rätte komma in / Let the Right One In follows a bullied boy (Kåre Hedebrant) who falls in love with a weird girl (Lina Leandersson) who happens to be a vampire. Together, they set out to draw bully blood — but then the boy starts wondering about the ethics of it all. How far will his love for the girl go?
Also in the Let the Right One In cast: Per Ragnar, Henrik Dahl, Karin Bergquist, and Peter Carlberg.
Let [...] Continue Reading…
Makeup Artists and Hairstylists: A Forum on Contemporary Technique
“Makeup Artists and Hairstylists: A Forum on Contemporary Technique" is an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ three-evening seminar series that will be held on Thursdays, October 16, 23, and 30, from 7 to 10 p.m., at the Academy’s Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood.
As per the Academy’s press release, "’Makeup Artists and Hairstylists’ will offer a comprehensive look at contemporary motion picture makeup and hairstyling techniques from the perspective of the practitioners themselves. Each week’s topic will be illuminated by film clips, onstage discussions with working makeup artists and [...] Continue Reading…
