Even as we spoke on the phone last week, filmmaker Errol Morris said he was still putting the finishing touches on his new documentary, a version of which I had seen not long before the Oscar-winning director of “The Fog of War” and “Gates of Heaven” chatted with me from his home in Massachusetts. Until recently, he was still color correcting and filling in the musical score. Letting go of the ... more >
INTERVIEWS
INTERVIEW: “Ultimately, it’s the deepest quest of all,” Errol Morris speaks with us about his new film “My psychedelic love story,” it airs tonight
Fourth Floor Productions; Moxie Pictures
Coherent and intense horror indie “Fishbowl” started streaming on Tuesday. We got a sit-down with the brother-sister team who directed it and this is what they said
"I like a slow burn, where you take [something] realistic and maybe exaggerate it a little bit" (S. Kinigopoulos)
Stephen and Alexa Kinigopoulos wanted to make a movie where they came from. The siblings, who co-directed the new psychological thriller “Fishbowl,” grew up near Baltimore, and so when they were seeking a setting for their film, they simply cast their gaze out the window. “When you’re surrounded by those locations every day, you maybe see them differently. And it’s always great to shoot in ... more >
“Jamal [Khashoggi] was one of our own”; interview with KINGDOM OF SILENCE director Rick Rowley
Film was co-executive produced by Alex Gibney ("Taxi to the dark side")
Jigsaw Productions; Showtime Documentary Films
Directed by Rick Rowley
It has been two years since Jamal Khashoggi walked into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and was never seen again. The royal family at first claimed Khashoggi had left the consulate on his own, but then changed their story to say a fight had broken out. But the full truth, later confirmed by the CIA, was far worse: He was murdered inside the consulate by a hit squad sent by the frequent target of ... more >
“There were literally firearms everywhere. They had no fear of us and we had no fear of them,” our talk with NICK QUESTED, director of “Blood on the Wall,” which premieres this week
A National Geographic documentary
Nick Quested believes the War on Drugs cannot be properly understood without examining the social, economic and political situation of our neighbors to the south. The documentarian says that Americans all too often view the import of drugs as Mexico’s problem rather than one of interconnectedness between our two nations. “What Americans should understand is that this is a problem of economics, ... more >
The pursuit of self-realization taken to another level: “Rising Phoenix” (PREMIERING ON NETFLIX THIS WEEKEND)
Directed by Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgu
Thanks to covid-19, both the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics were postponed to 2021. That means the competitors will have another whole year to train and prepare for their events in Tokyo. And however disappointing, it’s just one more bump on the road for the Paralympics athletes featured in the new documentary “Rising Phoenix,” which opens on Netflix this weekend. Directed by Ian Bonhôte and ... more >
“Even in this terrible time of pandemic, there’s something about art and music and beauty that we can all aspire to” (Lynn Montgomery)
Our interview with the director of "Amazing Grace"
Grace Fisher’s positivity has served the young lady well over her two decades of life, as she honed her musical abilities on guitar and piano, while dreaming of becoming a composer. “My mom always said that [even] as a young girl, I’ve been blessed with a happy outlook on anything,” Fisher told me recently of her optimistic attitude. Incredibly, Fisher has maintained that same poise and ... more >
Screen Comment interviews WENDY GUERRERO, Bentonville Film Festival president of programming
Five years' young this year, Bentonville Film Festival adapts to the pandemic while hewing close to its principle of inclusiveness and diversity
Like all current cinema events, the 2020 iteration of the Bentonville Film Festival is taking place almost exclusively online. Next week, the festival started by Oscar-winner Geena Davis will take place in Northwest Arkansas as pure usual, but with on-the-ground screenings taking place at a local drive-in—with nearly everything else going virtual. Panel discussions, celebrity guests and a great ... more >