TCM Classic Film Fest Day 2: Is that Martin Scorsese?!?

by Anne-Marie

Only one day in, and the TCM Classic Film Fest is already full of surprises! The biggest news of last night was supposed to be the red carpet premiere of the new digital restoration of In The Heat of the Night. The event at the TCL Chinese Theatre did not disappoint - Lee Grant, Walter Mirisch, Norman Jewison, and Sidney Poitier himself all made appearances to a standing ovation before the screening.

However, several hours before the red carpet officially unrolled, the eyes of festival goers turned eastward to the Egyptian Theatre after a sudden mid-afternoon tweet from Turner Classic Movies...

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Details about the Sundance winners

For those of you who were way to caught up in the Oscar nomination race to have been paying attention to Sundance (*raises hand in solidarity*) we thought rather than just share the winners list from Sundance we'd include a couple of details about the films in question. Some of these films will vanish as some festival films always do and others might be on top ten lists and in the awards race next year, you never know. Sundance has a number of different juries so they're broken up into types of films that those juries oversee.

U.S. DRAMATIC
Grand Jury Prize: I don’t feel at home in this world anymore.
This thriller about a depressed nurse (Melanie Lynskey) and her neighbor (Elijah Wood) tracking down burglars who broke into her house comes from actor turned debuting writer/director Macon Blair. It's skipping theaters and premiering on Netflix on February 24th...

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"Where is Kyra" wins raves for La Pfeiff

True story: I started our new "Pfandom" series specifically for two reasons. The second was to cheer myself up in these awful democracy-losing times. The first though was to welcome our pfavorite, Michelle Pfeiffer, back. The twitter debate rages on what we shall call this year ("The Pfeiffersance? Michellaisance?" any other suggestions?). The first of her pfour roles this year is the title character in Where is Kyra?, which just premiered at Sundance. I will not be reading any reviews as I'd like to experience it pfresh but my understanding is that it's Oscar nominated cinematographer Bradford Young (Arrival) and Michelle herself winning the raves while people are less jazzed about the movie itself? Regardless, TFE's official stance is that it's very unfortunate that Pfeiffer did not show to support her movie. Director Andrew Dosunmu (Mother of George) had to go it alone. If she doesn't leave home to promote her movies this year,  the comeback may be rather less than glamorous and successful. But what can you do? She's an elusive creature. 

If you don't have my aversion to reading reviews before you see a film, reviews are now available at Village Voice, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Screen Daily, Ion Cinema, Playlist, and Yahoo! Movies.

It’s only 'It’s Only the End of the World'

Josh here, reflecting on the backlash against Xavier Dolan now he’s seen It’s Only the End of the World at the Sydney Film Festival

In what must be a true sign of success, Xavier Dolan was booed and savaged by critics at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year when his latest film It’s Only the End of the World premiered. The reaction was swift not just against his film, but against the filmmaker himself. Dolan address this, and reacted strongly to The Playlist which remarked “It's simply impossible to believe that a story this stridently self-pitying could not refer, more or less explicitly, to writer/director Dolan himself… It suggests a level of martyred self-involvement on Dolan's part that is tantamount to a persecution complex”. This was just one of many vicious reactions online and especially on twitter, against the film but then, in turn, against Dolan for defending himself against criticism.

The apparent taboo of a filmmaker reading, and responding to a critic was a major sore point. As though a critic should get the final word. It’s hard here not to recall the brilliant monologue from Ratatouille...

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TCMFF Honors Francis Ford Coppola

Anne Marie here, bringing you the concrete facts from TCM Film Festival.

Francis Ford Coppola was honored twice at TCM Film Festival today. First, the legendary director added his hands and feet to the stars imprinted in the cement outside the TCL Chinese Theatre. Son Roman Coppola, wife Eleanor, and fellow director and friend Peter Bogdonavich were also in attendance to honor the 77 year old legend at the ceremony.

Later, Coppola sat down at the TCL Chinese Theatre with TCM host Ben Mankiewicz before a special screening of The Conversation. Mankiewicz and Coppola discussed the director's full 50 year career, and his (in)famous struggles to get his now-iconic films made in the first place. From fighting studio casting vetoes during The Godfather to self-financing Apocalypse Now, there seems to be no film in the director's oeuvre that he didn't have to fight for in some way. Quipped Mankiewicz, "Your stories don't really reflect well on the Paramount management."

When the interview turned to The Conversation, Coppola had much more passionate things to say. Inspired by Blow Up, Coppola actually wrote the script a year and a half before shooting The Godfather. In fact  Coppola freely admitted that The Conversation never would have been made if not for his most gangster film, though he suspects he was only hired for The Godfather because he was cheap, Italian, and could be pushed around. Still, Coppola stated that he was grateful for those who left their legacy on his work: director Irving Kershner, who encouraged him to write, and TCM, who keeps all of his movies in the cinematic conversation