No More Links (Enough is Enough)

• NYT a fascinating new interview with the always odd Nicolas Cage
• Cartoon Brew an indie animated short is getting a theatrical release! Hair Love will open for Angry Birds 2 in theaters. Should we watch out for it at the Oscars?
• Variety sad news for those who love Asian cinema and follow the Golden Horse Awards (which we've often covered here at TFE)... a political storm is brewing and mainland China and Hong Kong are looking to boycott the event given Chinese feeling that Taiwan (where the ceremony always takes place) is not an independent nation but part of China. Naturally Taiwan feels otherwise (as do the American Oscars which invite Taiwan to submit their own films and don't lump them in with China itself)

More after the jump including new showbiz books, odd news concerning The Little Mermaid, a Barbra Streisand and Ariane Grande duet and more...

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De Laurentiis pt 3: Starting over in America

This week at TFE we're celebrating the centennial of one of cinema’s most prolific and legendary producers, Dino De Laurentiis.  In part one we looked at his breakout Italian hit, in part two an expensive epic flop. Here's Mark Brinkerhoff as Dino crosses the Ocean... 

Dino in 1970, and Al Pacino in Serpico (1973)

Dino De Laurentiis stormed Hollywood in the early ‘70s, quickly on the heels of fantastic successes like 1968’s Barbarella and Danger: Diabolik, which essentially closed out his previous decade (“essentially” because, man oh man, was this man ever prolific). 

 

Having branched from Neo-Italian into more international, English-language cinema, De Laurentiis set his sights on riding the New Hollywood wave then cresting. While still making the occasional spaghetti western and period piece, his films began to dabble more in contemporary themes. In fact, aside from The Valachi Papers (1972), his The Godfather manqué, De Laurentiis’ initial forays into filming stateside resulted in his grittiest, most modern productions to date...

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David Rubin elected President of AMPAS

Casting director David Rubin has been elected the new President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. It's a prestigious position but not without dozens upon dozens of high-profile headaches. Nobody is ever pleased with the Oscars which we've always taken as a sign of their continued relevance; people wouldn't constantly be complaining about the institution if they didn't care about it! 

This will mark the first time a Casting Director has ever served as AMPAS president. The news of Rubin's election came in the same 24 hours that BAFTA announced that they would be adding a Casting category to their awards which begs the following oft asked question... Is there ever going to be an Oscar category for Achievement in Casting?

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Doc Corner: 'One Child Nation' is an Oscar Frontrunner

By Glenn Dunks

When introducing One Child Nation at a recent screening at the Sydney Film Festival, co-director Zhang Lynn noted that all of the Chinese crew were of the generation born to the nation’s one child policy. For both Lynn and her directing partner Nanfu Wang, this searing documentary is clearly more than just an examination of their homeland’s shameful history, but a personal exorcism of sorts. A cleansing for themselves and their subjects, many of whom Wang and Zhang force to confront the demons that have haunted them for decades.

With just two films to her credit about China, Wang has become an important name in the documenting of contemporary Chinese society...

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Soundtracking: Girlhood

by Chris Feil

“Shine bright like a diamond...”

I could (and have) go on ad nauseum about the cinematic relationship between music and the emotions of teenagers, how movies can embody and amplify the way music helps mold our sense of self in youth. But of all the recent films as keyed into this, none of them shatters the fourth wall for empathic purposes as Céline Sciamma’s coming-of-age tale Girlhood. Here she uses the already momentous track “Diamonds” by Rihanna to its own iconic end, embodying female togetherness and the spirit of youth that once made us all feel infinite.

It’s one of the most singular and ecstatic movie moments of the past decade, certainly an essential scene as people begin to reflect on the movie decade...

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