Argo - Reel History

One again Alex von Tunzelmann demonstrates that a Hollywood success is a less than accurate retelling of what really happened:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2013/feb/22/argo-ben-affleck-reel-history

It was an excellent film which did not let reality get in the way of a good story...

Film Posters

We try to advertise the films we screen by producing eye-catching posters, and thanks tot he power of the internet we can usually incorporate some if not all of the original film poster.

I've always appreciated good film posters, and for a while had some on the wall in a student flat.  However it was only recently that I realised the trouble that film companies went through to produce the memorable final product.

The Guardian recently included a gallery of posters for well-known films, together with the earlier drafts that did not quite make the grade:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/gallery/2013/may/17/classic-film-posters-cut-in-pictures

IMHO the rejected poster for Clockwork Orange would look better on a paperback copy of the novel.

Downfall - Reel History

Having studied history at University I've always enjoyed the Reel History column in The Guardian: it's fascinating to see that directors can take just as many liberties with real events as they do when supposedly filming a novel.

However this week's entry gives the best grades I've ever seen for both entertainment and history: not surprising as the film is Downfall - the story of Hitler's last days in the bunker.. 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2013/may/16/downfall-final-days-adolf-hitler?CMP=EMCFLMEML1672

We screened the film in one of our earliest seasons and I still think that it is one of the best we have ever shown.

Roger Ebert

When we started out film society each of the committee members took on a different responsibility.  Our treasurer is an accountant and we have two techies who can set up he projector and sound system in what looks like a couple of minutes.

This did not leave much foe me to do.  Initially I took on responsibility for the bar and ensured we have sufficient stocks for our screenings - in terms of profitability we are a wine club that screens films.  However we also realised that we needed to provide information on our films to our customers, and so I took on responsibility for producing film notes. 

As a lifelong reader of The Guardian and The Observer I always read the reviews by Peter Bradshaw and Philip French, but as I started googling for information about some of our more obscure films I started finding more and more references to Roger Ebert and his reviews.  Soon he became a regular source of material, and it was always a pleasure to read both his blog and his reviews of just about any film, not just the next one that we were due to screen.

I knew he had been ill, but his sudden death was a real shock.  The following website is a fitting tribute to his brilliant life and career:
 
http://www.rogerebert.com/memoriam

The End of an Era

Sad news that Philip French will be leaving The Observer later on this year:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/may/04/philip-french-observer-film

His column is always a highlight of the weekend and his book I Found It At The Movies was brilliant.

A small crumb of comfort is that there are more books in the pipeline...

Movies versus Cinema

A billiant speech by Steven Soderbergh on the difference between movies and cinema:

http://www.indiewire.com/article/full-transcript-of-steven-soderberghs-impassioned-state-of-cinema-rant-from-sfiff

In summary, movies are what we watch and cinema is something that is made.