Interview with Bella Ramsey and Andrew Scott for “Catherine, Called Birdy”

In this edition of Meet Me at the Movies: Open Dialogue, Thomas Manning chats with Bella Ramsey and Andrew Scott about their roles in Catherine Called Birdy, a medieval coming-of-age comedy directed by Lena Dunham. Thomas Manning is a member of the NCFCA and SEFCA, and also the co-host of the television show and radio program Meet Me at the […]

Junkie XL Interview — Three Thousand Years of Longing

In this edition of Meet Me at the Movies: Open Dialogue, Thomas Manning chats with Grammy-nominated artist and film composer Tom Holkenborg, AKA Junkie XL, to discuss his work on the George Miller-directed Three Thousand Years of Longing. Holkenborg takes us into a detailed look of his process as a full-contact composer and talks about […]

Top Gun: Maverick is truly special

The success of Top Gun: Maverick is like something we have not seen in the cinematic landscape in many years. It is universally beloved. Critics and fans, cinephiles and casual moviegoers, young and old, rural and urban — practically everyone in the world adores Tom Cruise’s latest go-for-broke spectacle. Now more than two months since […]

Jordan Peele’s Nope displays the power and importance of original storytelling

My initial reaction as the credits rolled on Jordan Peele’s third feature film, Nope, was that I wished the extraordinarily talented writer, director, and producer would return to a smaller scale of filmmaking and storytelling along the lines of his 2017 debut, Get Out. However, as I have continued to reflect upon the experience of […]

Interview with composer Tom howe — Ted lasso

The Run-Down on Movies manager and Meet Me at the Movies co-host Thomas Manning recently interviewed composer Tom Howe about his work on the Emmy-winning Apple TV+ series Ted Lasso. Watch/listen as Howe speaks about the evolution of his creative relationship with Marcus Mumford, the unique rhythm of making music for comedy, the character arc […]

The Black Phone might answer the call for some horror fans, if you keep your expectations in check

Directed by Scott Derrickson in his first feature film since the Marvel Cinematic Universe entry Doctor Strange in 2016, The Black Phone is finally seeing a theatrical release after a couple years of Covid-related delays and conflicts. Adapted from Joe Hill’s short story of the same name, this movie finds Derrickson returning to his horror […]

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – Review

At this point in 2021, it is not necessary to be a fan of comic books or even movies in general to have a surface level familiarity with the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). With a total of 24 films across 13 years grossing nearly $23 billion at the worldwide box office, this franchise has become […]

Akira Kurosawa Series – High and Low (1963)

Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low (1963) sees a return to a contemporaneous urban Japan, a transition from the feudal period examined in many of his films in the previous decade, such as Seven Samurai (1954), Throne of Blood (1957), The Hidden Fortress (1958), and the one-two punch of Yojimbo (1961) and Sanjuro (1962). Yet, many […]

Akira Kurosawa Series – Yojimbo (1961) and Sanjuro (1962)

The Akira Kurosawa double-feature of Yojimbo (1961) and Sanjuro (1962) sees Kurosawa scaling back the scope of his previous samurai features like Seven Samurai (1954) and The Hidden Fortress (1958) for a more concentrated focus on one warrior’s interactions with small towns, rival gangs, juvenile samurai pupils, and political warfare. In Yojimbo and Sanjuro, Toshirô […]

Akira Kurosawa Series – Throne of Blood (1957)

“Behold, within this place Now desolated, stood Once a mighty fortress Lived a proud warrior Murdered my ambition His spirit walking still Vain pride, then as now, will Lead ambition to the kill” Akira Kurosawa’s 1957 film Throne of Blood – his interpretation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, set in feudal Japan – opens and closes with […]