Ronald Washington, one of the two defendants standing trial for allegedly killing Jam Master Jay, chuckled in court on Wednesday when his attorney, Susan Kellman, invoked Harry Potter in her closing arguments.
The moment came as she discussed the prosecution’s theory that Washington and the other defendant, Karl Jordan Jr., were waiting on a fire escape to enter the recording studio where the DJ, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was killed. She said it was impossible, since the two men would have been seen on surveillance video. Then she paused dramatically.
The moment came as she discussed the prosecution’s theory that Washington and the other defendant, Karl Jordan Jr., were waiting on a fire escape to enter the recording studio where the DJ, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was killed. She said it was impossible, since the two men would have been seen on surveillance video. Then she paused dramatically.
- 2/21/2024
- by Kory Grow
- Rollingstone.com
With the notable exception of the beloved Carrie Fisher, many of the iconic lead actors in the "Star Wars" saga are still with us. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, and Natalie Portman are all going strong, and so are the stars of the space opera's most recent episodes. Some of the actors from the original film who were already veterans at the time, like Alec Guinness and Peter Cushing, died some years ago, but both enjoyed long lives beyond the average age.
Sadly, this cannot be said of numerous other actors involved in the big screen franchise and its recent TV spin-offs. Performers have died in their 70s, 60s, and 50s, many of them leaving us wishing we could have seen more years of great performances from them. Whether they had spotlight roles or were hidden behind alien masks, here are the "Star Wars" actors we lost too soon.
Sadly, this cannot be said of numerous other actors involved in the big screen franchise and its recent TV spin-offs. Performers have died in their 70s, 60s, and 50s, many of them leaving us wishing we could have seen more years of great performances from them. Whether they had spotlight roles or were hidden behind alien masks, here are the "Star Wars" actors we lost too soon.
- 9/2/2023
- by Jack Hawkins
- Slash Film
The evolution of the "Fast & Furious" film series hasn't been so much an act of growth as it has been a mutation. Rob Cohen's 2001 original, "The Fast and the Furious," was little more than a low-expectation, mid-budget summer action flick that was expected to come and go in the public consciousness quite quickly. It was also very clearly cribbing its plot directly from Kathryn Bigelow's decade-old film "Point Break." Cohen merely transposed the 1991 film's setting from the world of criminal surfers to the world of criminal street racers. Vin Diesel is Patrick Swayze and Paul Walker is Keanu Reeves.
But the film ended up a major hit, grossing over $200 million worldwide, and inspiring a sequel with the amusing title of John Singleton's 2003 chapter "2 Fast 2 Furious." Because Diesel didn't return, Walker's character was teamed up with a rival played by Tyrese Gibson. Perhaps unwittingly, an ensemble began to grow.
But the film ended up a major hit, grossing over $200 million worldwide, and inspiring a sequel with the amusing title of John Singleton's 2003 chapter "2 Fast 2 Furious." Because Diesel didn't return, Walker's character was teamed up with a rival played by Tyrese Gibson. Perhaps unwittingly, an ensemble began to grow.
- 5/16/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
To address the rumors again: no, hoverboards were not real. It was director Robert Zemeckis himself that deliberately began the rumor while working on "Back to the Future Part II," once conducting a behind-the-scenes interview where he winkingly suggested the infamous untruth. He claimed that hoverboards had been around for years, but that "parents groups" prevented them from being sold in toy shops. Those who were around 10 years old in 1988 will likely recall spreading rumors that the hoverboards were real, but merely too dangerous for kids to use. It was, of course, all a playful hoax.
The hoverboard scenes in "Back to the Future Part II" were astonishing at the time, and Zemeckis used a complex combination of techniques to film them. When filming from low angles, Zemeckis suspended his actors from above. He used cranes and pulleys, green-screen effects, and some dedicated stunt people to achieve the visuals.
In a notable sequence,...
The hoverboard scenes in "Back to the Future Part II" were astonishing at the time, and Zemeckis used a complex combination of techniques to film them. When filming from low angles, Zemeckis suspended his actors from above. He used cranes and pulleys, green-screen effects, and some dedicated stunt people to achieve the visuals.
In a notable sequence,...
- 5/12/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Literature’s all-time jilted spinster, Miss Havisham, has been played by Martita Hunt, Anne Bancroft, Gillian Anderson and Helena Bonham Carter while also inspiring other memorable screen personalities, most notably “Sunset Boulevard’s” Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson). In “Peaky Blinders” showrunner Steven Knight’s adaptation of “Great Expectations,” Olivia Colman dons the tattered veil of the iconic character to whom unwitting orphan Philip “Pip” Pirrip (Fionn Whitehead) turns as he pursues social repute in Victorian England.
Though Knight’s amendments to Charles Dickens’ source material have gotten a mixed response, the show continues to draw praise for its production value. Costume designer Verity Hawkes, whose credits include “Snatch,” “Inkheart” and “Black Mirror,” recently gave an interview to IndieWire’s Sarah Shachat in which she detailed her approach to the unenviable task of distinguishing Knight’s rendition of the character from more than a dozen others.
See ‘Great Expectations’ creator Steven...
Though Knight’s amendments to Charles Dickens’ source material have gotten a mixed response, the show continues to draw praise for its production value. Costume designer Verity Hawkes, whose credits include “Snatch,” “Inkheart” and “Black Mirror,” recently gave an interview to IndieWire’s Sarah Shachat in which she detailed her approach to the unenviable task of distinguishing Knight’s rendition of the character from more than a dozen others.
See ‘Great Expectations’ creator Steven...
- 4/19/2023
- by Ronald Meyer
- Gold Derby
These days it seems like Christmas and horror go together like hot cocoa and candy canes sharpened to a deadly point, but in the long history of film, this is a relatively recent development. Of course there are a few exceptions, but before 1972, it was a rarity to enjoy a vicious Christmas at the local theater. As to why horror was not set at Christmas for so long is an interesting question. Perhaps it was considered off limits to use what many consider a sacred holiday for such dark purposes. But then, holidays of any kind, including Halloween, were rarely seen in horror films before the seventies. In those days, studios would often roll out their theatrical releases over long periods of time, and limiting the reliable market fulfilled by horror films to the small window of the holiday season was likely a risk they were unwilling to take. In the golden age of Hollywood,...
- 12/20/2022
- by Brian Keiper
- bloody-disgusting.com
No one loves a great scene more than the person who first dreamed it up -- the writer. We're asking iconic shows' creators and writers to tell Et all about getting to see their most cherished moment on their series make it from script to screen.
On Wednesday, Feb. 8, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit will reach a major TV milestone when it airs its 400th episode, a feat only previously achieved by eight scripted series over the past four decades. While a lot of credit for the show’s success and stamina is given to the cast led by Mariska Hargitay, who has won an Emmy for playing Det. Olivia Benson, it’s hard to ignore the writing, which has earned several Edgar Allen Poe Award nominations over the course of its run.
More: The Impact and Legacy of 'Law & Order: Svu' 400 Episodes Later
At its core, creator Dick Wolf tells Et the show has always been about...
On Wednesday, Feb. 8, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit will reach a major TV milestone when it airs its 400th episode, a feat only previously achieved by eight scripted series over the past four decades. While a lot of credit for the show’s success and stamina is given to the cast led by Mariska Hargitay, who has won an Emmy for playing Det. Olivia Benson, it’s hard to ignore the writing, which has earned several Edgar Allen Poe Award nominations over the course of its run.
More: The Impact and Legacy of 'Law & Order: Svu' 400 Episodes Later
At its core, creator Dick Wolf tells Et the show has always been about...
- 2/8/2017
- Entertainment Tonight
Quentin Tarantino can't help himself. In early December, after spending the second half of 2015 supplying the thinkpiece industry with one piping-hot take after another, the filmmaker confessed to The Guardian that sitting down for a bunch of long-form interview features may not have been such a great idea. "If I keep giving them fish," he said, "and they're giving me back chum in 450 different outlets, I don't know why I'm doing it." Then less than two weeks later, Tarantino appeared on The Howard Stern Show, where he accused Disney of...
- 12/23/2015
- Rollingstone.com
Yippee-ki-yay! It's action-movie time! From Die Hard to Deliverance, here's what the Guardian and Observer's critics think are the 10 best ever made. Let us know what you think in the comments below
• Top 10 romantic movies
Peter Bradshaw on action movies
In some ways, it should be the quintessential cinema genre. After all, what does the director shout at the beginning of a take? Action – at times a euphemism for violence and machismo – evolved into a recognisable genre in the 80s. Gunplay and athleticism resurfaced in a sweatier and more explicitly violent form, with movies such as Sylvester Stallone's First Blood. The hardware was all-important, and the metallic sheen of the guns was something to be savoured alongside the musculature of the heroes. The genre spawned the action hero. These were not pretty-boys there to melt female hearts: they were there to get a roar of approval from the guys.
• Top 10 romantic movies
Peter Bradshaw on action movies
In some ways, it should be the quintessential cinema genre. After all, what does the director shout at the beginning of a take? Action – at times a euphemism for violence and machismo – evolved into a recognisable genre in the 80s. Gunplay and athleticism resurfaced in a sweatier and more explicitly violent form, with movies such as Sylvester Stallone's First Blood. The hardware was all-important, and the metallic sheen of the guns was something to be savoured alongside the musculature of the heroes. The genre spawned the action hero. These were not pretty-boys there to melt female hearts: they were there to get a roar of approval from the guys.
- 10/10/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
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