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Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. To keep up with our latest features, sign up for the Weekly Edit newsletter and follow us @mubinotebook on Twitter and Instagram.Dear readers: We are pleased to share the first Rushes roundup of 2025, with big plans for how this feature will develop throughout the year. Among our ambitions is to better represent the film culture everywhere our readers live. Please help us do so by submitting screenings, series, talks, and other events for our listings consideration. Many thanks! –Ed.NEWSIt’s a Wonderful Life.This holiday season, fans of Frank Capra’s Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) were outraged to discover that Amazon Prime streams an abridged version of the film that cuts almost 25 minutes from the original, including the entire “Pottersville” sequence: what Bedford Falls would look like if George Bailey had never been born. Prime also...

"Can there be joy where there has been no sorrow?" Oscar winner Peter Finch belts out these thought-provoking song lyrics in the musical adaptation of the James Hilton novel, Lost Horizon, and it's probably safe to say there was very little joy and lots of sorrow on the set of this ill-fated film. In 1973, producer Ross Hunter had the grand idea to turn the classic story of Shangri-La, first brought to the screen by director Frank Capra in 1937, into a big-budget singing and dancing extravaganza with an all-star cast. Hunter was successful at this kind of thing. He produced the lavish 1953 remake of Magnificent Obsession that turned Rock Hudson into a star. He also helmed the sumptuous 1959 re-imagining of Imitation of Life, breathing new life into Lana Turner's career and setting up young Sandra Dee for future movie success. It was practically a no-brainer that Hunter would make lightning...

Another month, another Criterion Channel lineup. In accordance with Black History Month their selections are especially refreshing: seven by Melvin Van Peebles, five from Kevin Jerome Everson, and Criterion editions of The Harder They Come and The Learning Tree.

Regarding individual features I’m quite happy to see Abderrahmane Sissako’s fantastic Bamako, last year’s big Sundance winner (and Kosovo’s Oscar entry) Hive, and the remarkably beautiful Portuguese feature The Metamorphosis of Birds. Add a three-film Laura Dern collection (including the recently canonized Smooth Talk) and Pasolini’s rarely shown documentary Love Meetings to make this a fine smorgasboard.

See the full list of February titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.

Alan & Naomi, Sterling Van Wagenen, 1992

All That Heaven Allows, Douglas Sirk, 1955

The Angel Levine, Ján Kadár, 1970

Babylon, Franco Rosso, 1980

Babymother, Julian Henriques, 1998

Bamako, Abderrahmane Sissako, 2006

Beat Street, Stan Lathan, 1984

Blacks Britannica, David Koff, 1978

The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,...

When did murder thrillers become horror pix? This one is horror only by association, and star Basil Rathbone would be a suave leading man if he wasn’t slaying wives left and right. He sets his sights on the rich, conveniently suicidal Ellen Drew, yes (sigh) that Ellen Drew. This atypical Paramount thriller has glamour to spare and also some unexpected sideways sexuality with the sinister Martin Kosleck, who almost steals the movie. But not our hearts — in that department it’s Ellen Forever and Ever.

The Mad Doctor

Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1940 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 90 min. / Street Date November 2, 2021 / available through Kino Lorber / 24.95

Starring: Basil Rathbone, Ellen Drew, John Howard, Barbara Jo Allen aka Vera Vague, Ralph Morgan, Martin Kosleck, Kitty Kelly, Sheila Ryan, Norma Varden, Max Wagner.

Cinematography: Ted Tetzlaff

Art Directors: Hans Dreier, Robert Usher

Film Editor: Archie Marshek

Original Music: Victor Young

Written by Howard J. Green...

Lock the doors. Turn on the lights. Check under the bed. Crank up the volume. It’s time for another Halloween Parade!

Please help support the Hollywood Food Coalition.

Click here, and be sure to indicate The Movies That Made Me in the note section so Josh can finally achieve his dream of showing Mandy to his wife!

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Scream Blacula Scream (1973)

Mandy (2018)

Carnival of Souls (1962) – Mary Lambert’s trailer commentary

Night Tide (1961) – Charlie Largent’s Blu-ray review

A Bucket Of Blood (1959) – Allan Arkush’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s DVD review, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Dementia 13 (1963) – Mick Garris’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Region B Blu-ray review, Glenn Erickson’s director’s cut Blu-ray review

The Godfather (1972) – Ernest Dickerson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

The Godfather Part II (1974) – Katt Shea’s trailer commentary

The Conversation (1974) – Josh Olson...

Actor, writer, director and trans icon Isabel Sandoval wants trans characters in film and TV to be layered, complex and multidimensional.

Speaking to Variety during the BFI London Film Festival, where she is the president of the first features jury, the Philippines-born, U.S.-based Sandoval said that a lot of studios and producers relegate trans characters to the periphery.

“It’s important that when you do have trans characters and trans narratives in your films or TV series, these characters have to be layered and complex, and multi dimensional,” Sandoval said.

In 2011, Sandoval directed and starred in “Señorita,” an expansion of her 2009 short. She played a trans woman who tries to leave sex work by taking care of a friend’s son and joining a mayoral campaign, but she’s hindered by an old client. Sandoval directed “Apparition” (2012), a tale about nuns living in a remote convent during the Marcos years.

Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSFollowing the launch of the English-language podcast earlier this month, yesterday we revealed our upcoming original Spanish-language podcast! In the first season of the Mubi Podcast: Encuentros, co-produced by Mubi and La Corriente del Golfo Podcast, leading voices in Latin American film and culture come together to think about their own methods and processes for approaching the craft, talk about personal experiences, and reflect on films and filmmakers that have inspired their work. We begin with Gael García Bernal (Mexico) and Carolina Sanín (Colombia) as the guests of the first episode, entitled The Ritual of the Masks. The first season of Encuentros consists of in-depth conversations among colleagues, an encounter between two people who share their love for cinema. Check out the trailer above and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts here.Andrea Arnold...

Filmmaker Isabel Sandoval has been named as the first recipient of Galeca’s (The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics) Trailblazer award.

The writer-director-star of the acclaimed transgender-themed film “Lingua Franca” was chosen by the group’s board and propelled by a groundswell of support within the general membership. The special accolade was created to honor entertainment figures who stand out for creating art that inspires empathy, truth and equity.

Sandoval will receive the award virtually in a special interview segment of Galeca’s Dorians Film Toast, a two-hour awards special which will debut on LGBTQ+ streaming TV network Revry on April 18.

Sandoval’s film garnered much critical acclaim on the festival circuit. In 2019, she made history as the first trans woman of color to direct and star in a film screening in competition at the Venice Film Festival, where “Lingua Franca” premiered. The film was acquired and released by Ava DuVernay...

Rumours abound that the actor who played the blind crimefighter has been spotted on the set of Spider-Man 3. His reappearance would be a smart move

It almost comes as a shock, in the era of Disney+ and multitudes of superheroes finding their way to the mouse house’s streaming Shangri-La, to recall that shows such as WandaVision and the forthcoming Loki will not be the first occasions we have seen Marvel’s costumed crimefighters on the small screen. Once upon a time it was ABC’s Agents of Shield and a quintet of New York-set Netflix shows, Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and The Punisher, that were getting the headlines.

The former was recently cancelled after seven seasons, while the Netflix shows wound up in 2018 after a middling crossover event titled The Defenders. Despite occasional weaknesses – Iron Fist almost singlehandedly revived the painfully outdated “white saviour” motif,...

Welcome to this week’s All Elite Wrestling: Dark review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have…Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!! We’ve been f—— robbed! Where’s the Camberet? My Lyndatto sculpture?! The Rings of M’fulche?! Every piece of art has been pilfered like a virgin’s sweet cherry! I’m going to smash Pandetti when I see that little Italian! Well, while I mourn the death of my Shangri-La, perhaps you’ll enjoy the buffet of semi-nudified flesh that leaps across the canvas. Oh! The f—— Pfhindala! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Match #1: Natural Nightmares (Dustin Rhodes & Qt Marshall) def. John Silver and Alex Reynolds

My Opinion: 3 out of 5 – I enjoyed this, with S&r really doing the big work here. It’s nice to see both of them getting to shine with ol’ Dustin and Qt. As matches go, this was meaty and mean, but never too showy.

Frank Capra would’ve celebrated his 122nd birthday on May 18, 2019. The three-time Oscar winner dominated the box office throughout the 1930s with his populist fables, nicknamed “Capra-corn.” Yet how many of these titles remain classics? In honor of his birthday, take a look back at 12 of Capra’s greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Born in 1897 in Siciliy, Italy, Capra came to the United States with his family in 1903. His work often reflected an idealized vision of the American dream, perhaps spurned by his own experiences as an immigrant. Depression-era audiences lapped up his sweetly sentimental screwball comedies, which often centered on the plight of the common man.

SEEOscar Best Director Gallery: Every Winner In Academy Award History

He earned his first Oscar nomination for directing “Lady for a Day” (1933), and his loss was infamously embarrassing: when presented Will Rogers opened the envelope, he said, “Come up and get it,...

Balletic, stylized and rather aloof, MGM’s biggest musical for 1954 still has what musical lovers crave — good dancing, beautiful melodies and unabashed romantic sentiments. Savant has a bad tendency to fixate on the inconsistencies of its fantasy concept — in which God places an ideal Scottish village outside the limits of Time itself.

Brigadoon

Blu-ray

Warner Archive Collection

1954 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 108 min. / Street Date September 26, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99

Starring: Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, Cyd Charisse, Elaine Stewart, Barry Jones, Albert Sharpe, Virginia Bosler, Jimmy Thompson.

Cinematography: Joseph Ruttenberg

Art Direction: Preston Ames, Cedric Gibbons

Film Editor: Albert Akst

Original Music: Frederick Loewe

Screenplay, book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner

Produced by Arthur Freed

Directed by Vincente Minnelli

MGM underwent some severe cutbacks in 1953; most of its contract players were dropped including the majority of its proud roster of stars. The studio would have to survive in a new kind of Hollywood,...

Another great Samuel Fuller film on Blu-ray — this one is a crime tale set in downtown Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo, that forms an interracial romantic triangle. It’s risky for its year because of the sexual dynamics — a Japanese-American man falls in love with a Caucasian woman. Fuller’s approach is years ahead of its time, even if Columbia’s sales job was a little weird.

The Crimson Kimono

Blu-ray

Twilight Time

1959 / B&W / 1:85 widescreen / 81 min. / Street Date July 18, 2017 / Available from the Twilight Time Movies Store 29.95

Starring: Victoria Shaw, Glenn Corbett, James Shigeta, Anna Lee, Paul Dubov, Jaclynne Greene, Neyle Morrow, Gloria Pall, , Barbara Hayden, George Yoshinaga.

Cinematography: Sam Leavitt

Film Editor: Jerome Thoms

Original Music: Harry Sukman

Written, Produced and Directed by Samuel Fuller

“What was his strange appeal for American girls?”

Believe it or not, there was once a time when Samuel Fuller was a fringe figure,...

Ron Moody as Fagin in 'Oliver!' based on Charles Dickens' 'Oliver Twist.' Ron Moody as Fagin in Dickens musical 'Oliver!': Box office and critical hit (See previous post: "Ron Moody: 'Oliver!' Actor, Academy Award Nominee Dead at 91.") Although British made, Oliver! turned out to be an elephantine release along the lines of – exclamation point or no – Gypsy, Star!, Hello Dolly!, and other Hollywood mega-musicals from the mid'-50s to the early '70s.[1] But however bloated and conventional the final result, and a cast whose best-known name was that of director Carol Reed's nephew, Oliver Reed, Oliver! found countless fans.[2] The mostly British production became a huge financial and critical success in the U.S. at a time when star-studded mega-musicals had become perilous – at times downright disastrous – ventures.[3] Upon the American release of Oliver! in Dec. 1968, frequently acerbic The...

A first sampling of Sundance offerings reveals illuminating documentaries and compelling, if not perfect, narratives

A bit of friendly advice to the producers of “Ten Thousand Saints”: Please, please, please get rid of the opening narration in which the protagonist observes that life is like a river. It’s the worst line of dialogue in the whole movie, and it starts the proceedings off with a cringe.

Luckily, the script (by directors Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, adapting the novel by Eleanor Henderson) gets better from there. After the death of his best friend Teddy (Avan Jogia, also...

Actor James Shigeta has died at age 81. Born in Honolulu, Shigeta became a singing star in Japan- despite not knowing how to speak the language. In the 1950s and 1960s, he- along with actress Nancy Kwan- broke racial barriers in Hollywood. It was traditional for caucasian actors to play Asian leading characters. However, the handsome Shigeta landed a lead role in the film version of the Broadway hit musical Flower Drum Song, starring alongside Kwan. The film was significant in that all the leading roles were played by Asian actors. Shigeta, riding high from good reviews, carved a successful career in television and theatrical feature films. Among his credits were the Elvis Presley film Paradise, Hawaiian Style, Bridge to the Sun, Midway, the ill-fated 1973 musical remake of Lost Horizon and the blockbuster 1988 action film Die Hard. For more click here .  

(Nancy Kwan discusses her friendship with James Shigeta and...

We pay tribute to the actor James Shigeta, famous for his roles in Flower Drum Song, Die Hard, and a legion other turns on stage and TV.

For a generation of moviegoers, James Shigeta will be immediately recognisable as Joseph Takagi, the Nakatomi Corporation boss who's ruthlessly despatched by Alan Rickman's sneering villain in the 1988 hit, Die Hard. But there was so much more to Shigeta than John McTiernan's action classic - that appearance was, in fact, but one of many in a long and fruitful career on stage, television and the silver screen.

Born in Hawaii in 1933, Shigeta embarked on a singing career after winning first place in a TV show called Original Amateur Hour. His subsequent success was such that a lengthy run of appearances in Tokyo musicals left him with the nickname, The Frank Sinatra of Japan.

Returning to America in the late 1950s, Shigeta...

Asian-American actor James Shigeta has died, aged 81.

Shigeta made several television and movie appearances throughout his career, notably in the first Die Hard film.

The actor played executive Joseph Takagi in the 1988 movie, who is shot by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) after refusing to surrender the security code to the skyscraper's bank vault.

Prior to Die Hard, Shigeta also starred in the 1961 film adaptation of Broadway musical Flower Drum Song as Wang Ta.

The Honolulu-born actor also appeared in Paradise, Hawaiian Style, Midway and Lost Horizon.

His television credits include Hawaii 5-0, Perry Mason, Mission: Impossible, Ironside, and Beverly Hills 90210.

From John Travolta to Bob Dylan, from Ed Wood to Orson Welles: ‘The Greatest Bad Movies of All Time’ (photo: John Travolta in the Scientology-inspired movie ‘Battlefield Earth’) Phil Hall’s The Greatest Bad Movies of All Time, tagged as a "new celebration of cinematic inanity," was published by Bear Manor on August 12, 2013. According to the book’s press release, the Greatest Bad Movies "are the films that inspire wonder" — of a unique variety: "You are left wondering how seemingly intelligent people could gather together and spend money to create such bizarre productions." According to Phil Hall, among the most wonder-inspiring movies ever made are John Travolta’s Roger Christian-directed Scientology-inspired megabomb Battlefield Earth; John Huston’s sort of The Maltese Falcon send up Beat the Devil, starring Humphrey Bogart, Jennifer Jones, and Gina Lollobrigida; Robert Altman’s Health, featuring a classy cast that includes Glenda Jackson, James Garner,...

…the only thing we can do is play the song.

Alright now. For all you boppers out there in the big web city, all you internet people with an ear for action, I’ve got something for you. It’s a special for that real live bunch from Coney. (And there ends my near-aimless, only-amusing-to-me riff on Lynne Thigpen in The Warriors.)

The Cinefamily (hosts of our mighty live event) have — on their excellent and revamped website — just launched a new, monthly podcast dedicated to the deepest and best soundtrack cuts. It’s a full hour of music that’s great all the way through. Here’s what you get in the podcast, hosted by The Cinefamily’s Bret:

Son of Dracula – Daybreak (Harry Nilsson)

The Cannonball Run – Cannonball (Ray Stevens)

Perfect Strangers – I’m A Shadow on the Walls of the City (Michael Minard)

——

Lifeforce – Theme (Henry Mancini)

Crosscurrent...

Genevieve Bujold as Anne Boleyn in Charles Jarrott's Anne of the Thousand Days Charles Jarrott, best known for the period dramas Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) and Mary Queen of Scots (1971), and for the disastrous musical Lost Horizon (1973), died Friday, Feb. 4, at the Motion Picture Home in Woodland Hills. Jarrott, who was 83, had been suffering from prostate cancer. In early 1970, the London-born Jarrott (June 16, 1927) made film history of sorts when his feature debut, Anne of the Thousand Days, was nominated for a total of 10 Academy Awards — more than any other movie that year — including Best Picture (produced by Hal B. Wallis), Best Actor (Richard Burton as Henry VIII), and Best Actress (Genevieve Bujold as Anne Boleyn), whereas Jarrott himself was bypassed by the Academy's Directors Branch. The only other comparable instance in the Academy Awards' 83-year history is the omission of [...]...

Following my graduation in 1960, I was hired by Columbia-owned Screen Gems International as a very junior administration and sales executive.

It was during the mid-'60s that a friend suggested to someone at CBS that they offer me a job and, as I understood it, their reply was, "Why would we want to hire a film peddler like Norman?"

Eventually, I managed and sold billions of dollars of content for Columbia (twice), CBS, PolyGram and MGM/UA, but I always have remained a film peddler. My education in this business has lasted 50 years, and though it is not brain surgery, it is not as simple as my bosses often thought it to be.

Every company I ever worked for -- with the exception of CBS, where the broadcast business was a license to print money -- believed it was just one theatrical hit away from solvency. (Even the Eye got enamored of the film biz,...

Whatever you think of Milk, there’s no denying that the Oscar-nominated biopic is putting a long-overdue spotlight on the life of Harvey Milk, allowing much of the mainstream audience to learn about his singular achievements for the very first time.

But why stop there? Now that Milk has proven that stirring gay life stories can appeal to more than just a gay audience, Hollywood should think about making movies about the following legends. We’ll even help them decide which to make first by throwing in a rating of 1-5 Harveys for each story’s eventual Oscar bait-ability. That should help land some big name stars.

Montgomery Clift

Who he was: Gorgeous leading man of the 1950s (From Here to Eternity [1953], A Place in the Sun [1951]) who led a torturously closeted existence in Hollywood. Survived a somewhat disfiguring car accident during the filming of Raintree County (1957) opposite Elizabeth Taylor,...