Noticias

In the history of black filmmaking, “Stir Crazy” is rarely cited as a groundbreaker or an enduring high point. However, Sidney Poitier’s 1980 comedy sold more tickets in North America than “The Fate of the Furious,” or any other film by a black director.

Poitier’s career has included multiple breakout moments. He was the first black lead acting Oscar winner with “Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner;” he starred in two blockbuster films in 1967 with “To Sir With Love” (over $300 million, adjusted gross) and “In the Heat of the Night” ($177 million, adjusted gross). He was, more than even Denzel Washington or any other black actor-turned-director, an icon of cinema when he made “Stir Crazy.” And it was this film, more than any other, that found access to all domestic audiences.

That said, it’s a film that doesn’t have the resonance of other historical blockbusters like “Gone With the Wind,...

I don’t know if you’re anything like me, but I can often spend hours upon hours trawling through iTunes looking for new movies to buy… Usually I’ll randomly come across a title I haven’t seen in years and use the “Cast & Crew” links to make my way down the rabbit hole to the more obscure side of Apple’s digital movie service.

Now whilst many will decry that iTunes is a terrible VOD service due to Apple’s desire to lock its audience to their platforms, if you have an Apple TV or iPad be aware – there are some truly obscure films hidden away in the depths of the vast collection of movies. Some of which have been made available in the UK for the first time since VHS and a Lot that have been added to the service in their original uncut form!

So, with...

Coffy/Foxy Brown/Friday Foster

Coffy and Foxy Brown written and directed by Jack Hill

Friday Foster written by Orville H. Hampton, directed by Arthur Marks

USA, 1973/1974/1975

Olive Films recently released several Blaxploitation titles on Blu-ray for the first time, all on the same day. This included the Fred Williamson-starring Hammer, from 1972, as well as three Pam Grier films: Coffy (1973), Foxy Brown (1974), and Friday Foster (1975). Hammer isn’t a particular favorite, but these latter three were most welcome, especially Coffy, which is quite possibly the greatest of all Blaxploitation features, even better than the more popular Shaft (1971) and Super Fly (1972). As much as anything, these three releases are notable for showcasing Grier at her finest during a period of immensely enjoyable work and exceptional productivity—15 films from her minor debut in Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) to Friday Foster. Around these films, she also starred in several other...

Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies that have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Harve Bennett (1930-2015) - Producer. He worked on the Star Trek movie franchise, beginning with Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and staying through Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. He died on February 25. (Deadline) Lynn Borden (1937-2015) - Actress. Best known for TV's Hazel, she also appears in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, The Carpetbaggers, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry, Black Mama White Mama (see below), Frogs, the...

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Robert Rodriguez is a paradox. He makes extremely violent action movies and he makes extremely saccharine kids’ movies. He doesn’t want to work in the studio system, but you could argue that his output is incredibly studio-friendly: Sequels, spin-offs, comic book adaptations. Over the last decade, Rodriguez has created an infrastructure around himself that would theoretically allow him to make any movie he wants — and in 2011, he really wanted to make Spy Kids 4.

Rodriguez was a pioneer in HD filmmaking and digital backlots and 3-D technology, which also makes him a pioneer in Things Film Lovers Despise. He is...

Following the box office success of his first feature, A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas director Todd Strauss-Schulson has signed on to direct Final Girls . Variety has the word, saying that the New Line horror comedy is described as a combination between Back to the Future and Friday the 13th . In the film, from screenwriters Mark Fortin and Josh Miller (who were previously involved with Robert Rodriguez's seemingly defunct "Women in Chains!" television series), has a teenage girl and her friends sucked into the 80's slasher film that her mother starred in. Strauss-Schulson was also recently linked to the Warner Bros. comedy Family Getaway . Whether or not this project replaces that one remains to be seen but Family Getaway is likely to be able to move...

Following the box office success of his first feature, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas director Todd Strauss-Schulson has signed on to direct Final Girls . Variety has the word, saying that the New Line horror comedy is described as a combination between Back to the Future and Friday the 13th . In the film, from screenwriters Mark Fortin and Josh Miller (who were previously involved with Robert Rodriguez's seemingly defunct "Women in Chains!" television series), a teenage girl and her friends are sucked into the '80s slasher film that her mother starred in. Strauss-Schulson was also recently linked to the Warner Bros. comedy Family Getaway . Whether or not this project replaces that one remains to be seen but Family Getaway is likely to be able to...