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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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