There is a scholarly theory that proposes films are always telling the story of their creation, singing an endless song about their own history. That seemed to have been literally the case in 1978 when Frank Barrett, a construction worker in Dawson City in the northern Yukon, discovered strips of nitrate film poking out of the earth in the site of a new recreation center — like stubborn blossoms trying to defeat the harshness of winter. Children had taken to lighting the visible strips on fire unaware that in the joy of the pyrotechnic display they were erasing history. Barrett’s unique discovery led to the unearthing of over 500 reels containing films made in the 1910s and 1920s, and considering that it is believed that 75% of all silent films were lost, this might have been the most important finding in the archaeology of film. Taking clips from these reels and solving the mystery of how they ended up buried in the Yukon, director Bill Morrison made Dawson City: Frozen Time which might just be the ultimate found footage film.
Morrison tells three parallel tales: one in which prospectors expel the Hän people from their land upon discovering gold and start the township of Dawson, another in which the glories and failures of the inhabitants of Dawson help jumpstart Hollywood, and a third one which is nothing less than a history of cinema itself. In the first one we see how at the turn of the 19th century, American prospectors made their way up to the Klondike River territory and drained it from its mineral riches, while displacing the original inhabitants. We learn that over one-hundred thousand people tried making their way up to the Yukon, with over seventy thousand either returning gold-less or perishing on the road. One of those who gave up on the way, but found a way to make money off people’s basic instincts was an ancestor of the current American president, who opened the brothel that started their fortune. Talk about prescience.
In fact, Dawson City seems to have emanated this strange energy that should have made it one of the most influential cultural hubs in modern history, but its distance and the way it was so quickly forgotten once the gold ran out gave it a different future. The small town inspired Jack London to write his books of adventure in the snow. It was also the place where Alexander Pantages opened his first theater before becoming one of Hollywood’s biggest impresarios, and Dawson City paved the road for a young Sid Grauman who realized he had a knack for entertaining people and led him to open one of the most iconic movie palaces in history home to the very first Hollywood movie premiere. It’s as if everyone touched by Dawson City went on to lead a notorious life — and in the case of actor William Desmond Taylor, who worked briefly at the Yukon Gold Corporation before leaving to find fame in Tinseltown, also a notorious death.
The ice and earth of the Yukon held much more stories than the reels of film themselves contained, and one of the most impressive feats in the documentary is how Morrison is able to always find his way back to the central narrative. He’s such an astute filmmaker that he creates dialogues that could very well warrant films of their own, such as the depressing notion that the flammability of nitrate film, which caused fires that burned down Dawson’s entire business district nine times in nine years, was also the reason behind filmmaking pioneer Alice Guy-Blaché’s early retirement. After her studio burned down, she simply gave up. Or how photographs of Dawson City inspired Jim Low and Wolf Koenig to make City of Gold, the 1957 documentary short that originated the “Ken Burns” style of panning and zooming on photographs; therefore originating the form Morrison works with in this very film. The short was nominated for an Oscar and the ceremony that year was held at a Pantages theater.
Morrison proves that there is no better way to tell the story of movies than with movies, and it seems almost spooky how the Dawson City reels supplied him with the material he needed. It’s as if the films had been aching to speak to the world. “Speech” is key here, since all the films are silent. In fact Morrison discovers it was talkies that led so many silent films to be discarded. Dawson City was at the end of a distribution line which meant that films had been out for a very long time before they arrived there, and once their engagements were over nobody wanted to pay the cost of shipping the films back to the studios. In telling this shameful story, Morrison allows the images to speak for themselves. He avoids voiceovers or heavy narration choosing, instead to go with simple title cards, supertitles, and musical accompaniment from Alex Somers’ haunting score. Those who believe in fate might believe Morrison was born to tell this story and perhaps these reels were meant to surface only when he was around to share with the world. Those who prefer pragmatism will undoubtedly be captivated by this tale of progress and its relation to art, but both sides will agree that the stories contained here are nothing if not stranger than fiction.
Dawson City: Frozen Time is now in limited release.
Morrison tells three parallel tales: one in which prospectors expel the Hän people from their land upon discovering gold and start the township of Dawson, another in which the glories and failures of the inhabitants of Dawson help jumpstart Hollywood, and a third one which is nothing less than a history of cinema itself. In the first one we see how at the turn of the 19th century, American prospectors made their way up to the Klondike River territory and drained it from its mineral riches, while displacing the original inhabitants. We learn that over one-hundred thousand people tried making their way up to the Yukon, with over seventy thousand either returning gold-less or perishing on the road. One of those who gave up on the way, but found a way to make money off people’s basic instincts was an ancestor of the current American president, who opened the brothel that started their fortune. Talk about prescience.
In fact, Dawson City seems to have emanated this strange energy that should have made it one of the most influential cultural hubs in modern history, but its distance and the way it was so quickly forgotten once the gold ran out gave it a different future. The small town inspired Jack London to write his books of adventure in the snow. It was also the place where Alexander Pantages opened his first theater before becoming one of Hollywood’s biggest impresarios, and Dawson City paved the road for a young Sid Grauman who realized he had a knack for entertaining people and led him to open one of the most iconic movie palaces in history home to the very first Hollywood movie premiere. It’s as if everyone touched by Dawson City went on to lead a notorious life — and in the case of actor William Desmond Taylor, who worked briefly at the Yukon Gold Corporation before leaving to find fame in Tinseltown, also a notorious death.
The ice and earth of the Yukon held much more stories than the reels of film themselves contained, and one of the most impressive feats in the documentary is how Morrison is able to always find his way back to the central narrative. He’s such an astute filmmaker that he creates dialogues that could very well warrant films of their own, such as the depressing notion that the flammability of nitrate film, which caused fires that burned down Dawson’s entire business district nine times in nine years, was also the reason behind filmmaking pioneer Alice Guy-Blaché’s early retirement. After her studio burned down, she simply gave up. Or how photographs of Dawson City inspired Jim Low and Wolf Koenig to make City of Gold, the 1957 documentary short that originated the “Ken Burns” style of panning and zooming on photographs; therefore originating the form Morrison works with in this very film. The short was nominated for an Oscar and the ceremony that year was held at a Pantages theater.
Morrison proves that there is no better way to tell the story of movies than with movies, and it seems almost spooky how the Dawson City reels supplied him with the material he needed. It’s as if the films had been aching to speak to the world. “Speech” is key here, since all the films are silent. In fact Morrison discovers it was talkies that led so many silent films to be discarded. Dawson City was at the end of a distribution line which meant that films had been out for a very long time before they arrived there, and once their engagements were over nobody wanted to pay the cost of shipping the films back to the studios. In telling this shameful story, Morrison allows the images to speak for themselves. He avoids voiceovers or heavy narration choosing, instead to go with simple title cards, supertitles, and musical accompaniment from Alex Somers’ haunting score. Those who believe in fate might believe Morrison was born to tell this story and perhaps these reels were meant to surface only when he was around to share with the world. Those who prefer pragmatism will undoubtedly be captivated by this tale of progress and its relation to art, but both sides will agree that the stories contained here are nothing if not stranger than fiction.
Dawson City: Frozen Time is now in limited release.
- 6/21/2017
- by Jose Solís
- The Film Stage
As the year comes to a close, there is one group we’ve yet to hear from about the Best of 2016: The Directors.
Filmmakers are busy folks, and some were instantly wary about making a list, with “I haven’t seen enough movies to make a top ten list” a common reply. So we decided to keep it loose. Including TV and other forms of entertainment was encouraged, how they chose to frame their list was totally flexible, and even if they only had a handful of projects they wanted to highlight, IndieWire made it clear we wanted to know what inspired them this year.
The most exciting thing, beyond how many great directors replied, is the time and energy they put into their lists. Be it Kirsten Johnson’s tribute to Abbas Kiarostami, Paul Feig’s surprise message to “Ghostbuster” trolls, Jennifer Kent teasing the start of her new film,...
Filmmakers are busy folks, and some were instantly wary about making a list, with “I haven’t seen enough movies to make a top ten list” a common reply. So we decided to keep it loose. Including TV and other forms of entertainment was encouraged, how they chose to frame their list was totally flexible, and even if they only had a handful of projects they wanted to highlight, IndieWire made it clear we wanted to know what inspired them this year.
The most exciting thing, beyond how many great directors replied, is the time and energy they put into their lists. Be it Kirsten Johnson’s tribute to Abbas Kiarostami, Paul Feig’s surprise message to “Ghostbuster” trolls, Jennifer Kent teasing the start of her new film,...
- 12/28/2016
- by Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
A total of 145 feature documentaries were submitted to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for consideration for the 89th Academy Awards.
Out of those films the members of the Academy’s documentary branch will select a shortlist of 15 features that will be announced in December, and the five nominations will be announced on January 24.
Read More: Documentary, Now: Three Rock Stars Who Run the Fast-Changing Non-Fiction World
Among the titles included in the list are Ava DuVernay’s “13th,” the Sundance Documentary Grand Jury Prize winner “Weiner” by Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg, Raoul Peck’s Toronto Film Festival Audience Award winner “I Am Not Your Negro,” the visually stunning “Voyage of Time: The Imax Experience” by Terrence Malik and Otto Bell’s “The Eagle Huntress.”
Read More: Oscars 2017: 10 Documentary Shorts Vie for Nominations
This year Asif Kapadia and James Gay-Rees’ film “Amy” about British singer Amy Winehouse...
Out of those films the members of the Academy’s documentary branch will select a shortlist of 15 features that will be announced in December, and the five nominations will be announced on January 24.
Read More: Documentary, Now: Three Rock Stars Who Run the Fast-Changing Non-Fiction World
Among the titles included in the list are Ava DuVernay’s “13th,” the Sundance Documentary Grand Jury Prize winner “Weiner” by Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg, Raoul Peck’s Toronto Film Festival Audience Award winner “I Am Not Your Negro,” the visually stunning “Voyage of Time: The Imax Experience” by Terrence Malik and Otto Bell’s “The Eagle Huntress.”
Read More: Oscars 2017: 10 Documentary Shorts Vie for Nominations
This year Asif Kapadia and James Gay-Rees’ film “Amy” about British singer Amy Winehouse...
- 10/29/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options — not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves — we’ve taken it upon ourselves to highlight the titles that have recently hit platforms. Every week, one will be able to see the cream of the crop (or perhaps some simply interesting picks) of streaming titles (new and old) across platforms such as Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, and more (note: U.S. only). Check out our rundown for this week’s selections below.
Complete Unknown (Joshua Marston)
Armed with two top-notch leads and a compelling premise, Joshua Marston‘s third feature, Complete Unknown, spends a lot of time hinting at which direction it will go, without going anywhere at all. Tom (Michael Shannon) is living with his wife Rehema (Azita Ghanizada) in New York City, spending the majority of his days drafting agricultural policy emails in a cramped government office. It is...
Complete Unknown (Joshua Marston)
Armed with two top-notch leads and a compelling premise, Joshua Marston‘s third feature, Complete Unknown, spends a lot of time hinting at which direction it will go, without going anywhere at all. Tom (Michael Shannon) is living with his wife Rehema (Azita Ghanizada) in New York City, spending the majority of his days drafting agricultural policy emails in a cramped government office. It is...
- 9/30/2016
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
Nearing the halfway mark of the movie year and teetering, as we all are, on the edge of another summer movie abyss which holds only the thinnest promise of providing strong reason to tread amongst the mall-igentsia in search of air-conditioned escape, I find myself feeling far less regret than usual over the movies I’ve missed so far in 2016. Usually by this point I’m bemoaning having had to sideline 20 or 30 interesting pictures because I couldn’t get out to a theater. This year I’ve whiffed on about the same number of movies of interest, but only nine or 10 of those misses have anything like real regret attached to them. It does actively annoy me that I will have to catch up with the likes of Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Cemetery of Splendor, the foodie doc City of Gold, Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, Ethan Hawke as Chet Baker in Born to Be Blue,...
- 5/22/2016
- by Dennis Cozzalio
- Trailers from Hell
No, not that civil war. Movies weren't invented yet.
Next weekend Hollywood is steering completely clear of Captain America: Civil War on four trillion screens. Nobody's even trying to counterprogram but just conceding Disney/Marvel's complete dominion over pop culture. Unless of course you are talking arthouse where the sexiest quartet imaginable will be f***ing around in A Bigger Splash. So before Civil War destroys the box office whilst simultaneously ushering in summer movie season and embarrassing its weird thematic twin predecessor Dawn of Justice, here's a look at where the box office for the year stands in four categories along with links to reviews if we did them (though we've been doing a ton more reviews of late the biggest hits seem to have eluded us in most categories).
How many of these pictures have you seen and what did you take in this weekend? I went to...
Next weekend Hollywood is steering completely clear of Captain America: Civil War on four trillion screens. Nobody's even trying to counterprogram but just conceding Disney/Marvel's complete dominion over pop culture. Unless of course you are talking arthouse where the sexiest quartet imaginable will be f***ing around in A Bigger Splash. So before Civil War destroys the box office whilst simultaneously ushering in summer movie season and embarrassing its weird thematic twin predecessor Dawn of Justice, here's a look at where the box office for the year stands in four categories along with links to reviews if we did them (though we've been doing a ton more reviews of late the biggest hits seem to have eluded us in most categories).
How many of these pictures have you seen and what did you take in this weekend? I went to...
- 5/1/2016
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Disney's Zootopia dominated once again this weekend, bringing in an estimated $50 million in its sophomore session, pushing the film over $140 million domestically in its first ten days of release. Leading the weekend's four new wide releases is 10 Cloverfield Lane with a strong opening weekend performance while The Perfect Match, The Young Messiah and The Brothers Grimsby settled in slots six through eight in the weekend top ten. Dropping only 33.4%, Zootopia is the #1 film for the second weekend in a row as its domestic cume has now climbed to $142.6 million. Internationally the animated feature took in an additional $83.1 million, which is actually up 25% from last weekend. The jump is largely due to the estimated $56.5 million it brought in this weekend in China, an increase of a whopping 139% as its global cume now stands at $431.3 million. As far as the weekend's new releases are concerned, 10 Cloverfield Lane entered its opening weekend with incredibly strong reviews.
- 3/13/2016
- by Brad Brevet <mail@boxofficemojo.com>
- Box Office Mojo
The 3rd annual Louisiana Film Festival wrapped in Baton Rouge this week, after opening with Paul Feig's "Spy" and closing with Sundance winner "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl." Several popular 2015 indies, and Liff premiere "Frankenstein," took prizes, as did New Orleans documentary "Big Charity." This year, the fest also programmed Sundance winner "Cartel Land" and other acclaimed docs "City of Gold," "Best of Enemies," "Tab Hunter Confidential" and more. Louisiana hosted international arthouse sensations "The Tribe," "Eden," "Breathe," "Eden," "Timbuktu," "Manglehorn," Godard's "Goodbye to Language 3D" and more. The highly anticipated "Khalil Gibran's The Prophet" also made its Louisiana premiere. Double winner "I'll See You in My Dreams" opens this Friday in select cities, and vampire mock-doc "What We Do...
- 5/13/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
The Louisiana International Film Festival's 2015 program includes world premieres and acclaimed films that have toured the global festival circuit. As previously announced, the fest will open with the gala premiere of Paul Feig's raucous Melissa McCarthy comedy "Spy" on May 7. Louisiana will host the American premiere of director Bernard Rose's ("Candyman") "Frankenstein," starring Xavier Samuel as the titular Mary Shelley monster roaming current day Los Angeles, on May 9. This year Louisiana has added a surfeit of hot Sundance and SXSW titles, including Sundance winners "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" (which closes the fest on May 10) and "Cartel Land," along with acclaimed docs "City of Gold," "Best of Enemies," "Tab Hunter Confidential" and more. Louisiana will also host international arthouse sensations "The Tribe," "Eden," "Breathe," "Eden,"...
- 4/27/2015
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Magnolia Pictures and Participant Media have teamed up to acquire Sundance documentary “Best of Enemies,” an individual with knowledge of the deal told TheWrap.
The Morgan Neville and Robert Gordon-directed doc, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, follows the series of televised debates between liberal writer Gore Vidal and conservative William F. Buckley in 1968.
Also Read: Watch Sundance Interviews From TheWrap’s Studio With the Fest’s Biggest Stars (Video)
The film dives deep into the two men’s biographies and examines how the debates shaped the way public discourse unfolded in the decades to come.
The deal...
The Morgan Neville and Robert Gordon-directed doc, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, follows the series of televised debates between liberal writer Gore Vidal and conservative William F. Buckley in 1968.
Also Read: Watch Sundance Interviews From TheWrap’s Studio With the Fest’s Biggest Stars (Video)
The film dives deep into the two men’s biographies and examines how the debates shaped the way public discourse unfolded in the decades to come.
The deal...
- 1/28/2015
- by Linda Ge
- The Wrap
The competition movie line-up has been revealed for the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, which runs from January 22nd to February 1st 2015. Below the announcement video you'll find the U.S. and World Competition categories, as well as the Next section.
Out of the 12,166 submissions that the festival received this year only 185 were selected. It looks like there are going to be a lot of great films this year. I always enjoy going to Sundance because you never know what film gems are just waiting to be seen.
U.S. Dramatic Competition
Presenting the world premieres of 16 narrative feature films, the Dramatic Competition offers Festivalgoers a first look at groundbreaking new voices in American independent film.
Advantageous / U.S.A. (Director: Jennifer Phang, Screenwriters: Jacqueline Kim, Jennifer Phang) — In a near-future city where soaring opulence overshadows economic hardship, Gwen and her daughter, Jules, do all they can to hold on to their joy,...
Out of the 12,166 submissions that the festival received this year only 185 were selected. It looks like there are going to be a lot of great films this year. I always enjoy going to Sundance because you never know what film gems are just waiting to be seen.
U.S. Dramatic Competition
Presenting the world premieres of 16 narrative feature films, the Dramatic Competition offers Festivalgoers a first look at groundbreaking new voices in American independent film.
Advantageous / U.S.A. (Director: Jennifer Phang, Screenwriters: Jacqueline Kim, Jennifer Phang) — In a near-future city where soaring opulence overshadows economic hardship, Gwen and her daughter, Jules, do all they can to hold on to their joy,...
- 12/4/2014
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Today the first wave of titles playing at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival were announced and while the majority of the titles are new to me the names in front of the camera most certainly are not as you'll see the likes of Michael Fassbender, Nicole Kidman, Saoirse Ronan, Guy Pearce, Cobie Smulders, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Margot Robbie, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Jack Black, James Marsden, Billy Crudup, Ezra Miller, Jemaine Clement, Sarah Silverman, Toni Collette, Vincent Cassell and many, many more among the titles featured. I have collected several photos from many of the films playing the festival, which will take place from January 22 - February 1 in Utah next year. Today's selection includes the U.S. Dramatic Competition, U.S. Documentary Competition, World Cinema Dramatic Competition, World Cinema Documentary Competition and Next program. I'll be adding a few more pictures soon enough, but for now, have a look and see what stands out.
- 12/3/2014
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Last year, Andrew Droz Palermo and Tracy Droz Tragos’ Rich Hill walked away with U.S. Grand Jury Prize while Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters was perhaps the section’s most buzzed about film. The sixteen titles offerings for 2015 include a first docu offering from Bobcat Goldthwait, Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare director Matthew Heineman, the return of Oscar winning director Morgan Neville (for Twenty Feet from Stardom) with Best of Enemies and the latest from Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love director E. Chai Vasarhelyi. Here are the sweet sixteen:
U.S. Documentary Competition
3½ Minutes / U.S.A. (Director: Marc Silver) — On November 23, 2012, unarmed 17-year-old Jordan Russell Davis was shot at a Jacksonville gas station by Michael David Dunn. 3½ Minutes explores the aftermath of Jordan’s tragic death, the latent and often unseen effects of racism, and the contradictions of the American criminal justice system.
Being Evel / U.
U.S. Documentary Competition
3½ Minutes / U.S.A. (Director: Marc Silver) — On November 23, 2012, unarmed 17-year-old Jordan Russell Davis was shot at a Jacksonville gas station by Michael David Dunn. 3½ Minutes explores the aftermath of Jordan’s tragic death, the latent and often unseen effects of racism, and the contradictions of the American criminal justice system.
Being Evel / U.
- 12/3/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
America’s hottest and most eagerly anticipated film festival is nearly upon us! Running January 22 to February 1, 2015 in Park City, Utah, the annual Sundance Film Festival has launched its initial lineup of in-competition films in the Dramatic, World Cinema, Documentary and Next slates. In all, 66 films were announced in this initial lineup, with the Premieres and Documentary Premieres arriving December 8 and the Short Film slate arriving December 9.
Among the lineup, as always, are some intriguing prospects. The Us Dramatic Competition features films starring stars such as Chiwetel Ejiofor, Margot Robbie, Chris Pine (Z for Zachariah), Jack Black, James Marsden, Kathryn Hahn, Jeffrey Tambor (The D Train), Bel Powley, Alexander Skarsgård, Christopher Meloni, Kristen Wiig (The Diary of a Teenage Girl), Adam Scott, Taylor Schilling, Jason Schwartzman (The Overnight), and Sarah Silverman (I Smile Back), among many others, and new films from recently hot directors including Alfonso-Gomez Rejon, Andrew Bujalski, and Craig Zobel.
Among the lineup, as always, are some intriguing prospects. The Us Dramatic Competition features films starring stars such as Chiwetel Ejiofor, Margot Robbie, Chris Pine (Z for Zachariah), Jack Black, James Marsden, Kathryn Hahn, Jeffrey Tambor (The D Train), Bel Powley, Alexander Skarsgård, Christopher Meloni, Kristen Wiig (The Diary of a Teenage Girl), Adam Scott, Taylor Schilling, Jason Schwartzman (The Overnight), and Sarah Silverman (I Smile Back), among many others, and new films from recently hot directors including Alfonso-Gomez Rejon, Andrew Bujalski, and Craig Zobel.
- 12/3/2014
- by Brian Welk
- SoundOnSight
Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa Season 6 ended its week 5 with a blast for the contestants. Yes, it is time for some serious competition for the contestants as this week got in the wild card twist for them! With 7 wild card entries, season 6 has gone a notch higher. And who are these 7 entries who will give the contestants a run for their places? Read on to know!
1. Rochelle Rao
Whoever has watched the Indian Premier League season 6 knows this pretty lady who was the host of the season. Rochelle is the sister of Chennai VJ and model Paloma Rao and has won the Femina Miss India International 2012. She was also the first runner up in Pantaloons Femina Miss India South in January 2012 and is now here to compete for her place in Jhalak season 6.
2. Rohit Roy
This is one popular TV face here! Rohit has acted in a number of TV soaps, rising...
1. Rochelle Rao
Whoever has watched the Indian Premier League season 6 knows this pretty lady who was the host of the season. Rochelle is the sister of Chennai VJ and model Paloma Rao and has won the Femina Miss India International 2012. She was also the first runner up in Pantaloons Femina Miss India South in January 2012 and is now here to compete for her place in Jhalak season 6.
2. Rohit Roy
This is one popular TV face here! Rohit has acted in a number of TV soaps, rising...
- 7/1/2013
- by Samreen Tungekar
- Bollyspice
After the great success of Chhota Bheem TV Series on Pogo TV, India’s leading animated content producer Green Gold Animation in association with PVR Pictures is now releasing their first theatrical movie- Chhota Bheem and the Curse of Damyaan on 18th May 2012. The movie is directed by Rajiv Chilaka.
Chhota Bheem and the Curse of Damyaan will be releasing in Hindi, English, Telugu & Tamil. It will be a fun-filled movie & kids will have a great time watching it. Chhota Bheem has become a phenomenon in India and it is competing with the best of the world. From the time, it has gone on air Chhota Bheem is consistently getting very good Trp ratings and it is helping Pogo TV to reposition itself as one of the leading kids channel.
Synopsis
The story revolves around the famous characters – Bheem, Jaggu, Bholu, Dholu, Raju, Chutki & Kalia. Chhota Bheem and the Curse...
Chhota Bheem and the Curse of Damyaan will be releasing in Hindi, English, Telugu & Tamil. It will be a fun-filled movie & kids will have a great time watching it. Chhota Bheem has become a phenomenon in India and it is competing with the best of the world. From the time, it has gone on air Chhota Bheem is consistently getting very good Trp ratings and it is helping Pogo TV to reposition itself as one of the leading kids channel.
Synopsis
The story revolves around the famous characters – Bheem, Jaggu, Bholu, Dholu, Raju, Chutki & Kalia. Chhota Bheem and the Curse...
- 5/17/2012
- by Press Releases
- Bollyspice
Tales of the Night
Written and directed by Michel Ocelot
France, 2011
French director Michel Ocelot is perhaps best known for his animated films Kirikou and the Sorceress, that film’s sequel, and Azur & Asmar: The Princes’ Quest. His latest feature Tales of the Night is an anthology film made up of six short allegorical folk tales. Derived from his television series Dragons et princesses, it extracts material from five episodes of that show, in addition to containing a sixth new tale. That root in an established television series is perhaps the film version’s only weakness; its recurring creative framing device for the stories is pleasantly unique, but there is no real elaboration regarding it for anyone unfamiliar with the show it perhaps comes from. Additionally, the film just ends after the final story’s conclusion, not returning to the characters of the framing device for a farewell, as though...
Written and directed by Michel Ocelot
France, 2011
French director Michel Ocelot is perhaps best known for his animated films Kirikou and the Sorceress, that film’s sequel, and Azur & Asmar: The Princes’ Quest. His latest feature Tales of the Night is an anthology film made up of six short allegorical folk tales. Derived from his television series Dragons et princesses, it extracts material from five episodes of that show, in addition to containing a sixth new tale. That root in an established television series is perhaps the film version’s only weakness; its recurring creative framing device for the stories is pleasantly unique, but there is no real elaboration regarding it for anyone unfamiliar with the show it perhaps comes from. Additionally, the film just ends after the final story’s conclusion, not returning to the characters of the framing device for a farewell, as though...
- 2/12/2012
- by Josh Slater-Williams
- SoundOnSight
Considering how big a part social networking platforms play in internet users’ everyday lives, it would seem a reasonable proposition to say that tailored Free2Play gaming represents a major opportunity for developers to engage with massive static audiences.
Unfortunately, anyone releasing Facebook games are invariably faced with the stigma of how a good deal of users view Farmville (still a great game though) or those goddawful recruitment based games that lead only to endlessly banal updates polluting your feed. Amazingly, not everyone cares about what crops your growing in your imaginary world there, friend: maybe keep the updates to yourself.
But, there are games available on Facebook that are genuinely entertaining, and which offer an alternative to staring blankly at your feed until someone updates about what their cat had for tea. Or how incredible it is to be a parent…
10. Adventure World
The first Zynga game to feature...
Unfortunately, anyone releasing Facebook games are invariably faced with the stigma of how a good deal of users view Farmville (still a great game though) or those goddawful recruitment based games that lead only to endlessly banal updates polluting your feed. Amazingly, not everyone cares about what crops your growing in your imaginary world there, friend: maybe keep the updates to yourself.
But, there are games available on Facebook that are genuinely entertaining, and which offer an alternative to staring blankly at your feed until someone updates about what their cat had for tea. Or how incredible it is to be a parent…
10. Adventure World
The first Zynga game to feature...
- 11/22/2011
- by Simon Gallagher
- Obsessed with Film
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It may not warrant scholarly interest, but National Treasure 2 is an enjoyable enough adventure, with globetrotting locations, a zippy script and trendy Diane Kruger, back again to show how contemporary fashion with a plot is far more fun than a flick through Vogue.
After creating an eye-catching (and cleverly ironic) ball gown for Diane Kruger as Abigail Chase in the original film, Judianna Makovsky returned to design for sequel National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (2007, directed Jon Turteltaub). Most of the principal cast returned too, including Nicolas Cage as treasure hunter Ben Gates. Although, again, it is Diane Kruger who draws most of our attention.
National Treasure 2 is the story of Ben Gates’ obsessive attempt to clear his ancestral name from the killing of Abraham Lincoln plot and...
It may not warrant scholarly interest, but National Treasure 2 is an enjoyable enough adventure, with globetrotting locations, a zippy script and trendy Diane Kruger, back again to show how contemporary fashion with a plot is far more fun than a flick through Vogue.
After creating an eye-catching (and cleverly ironic) ball gown for Diane Kruger as Abigail Chase in the original film, Judianna Makovsky returned to design for sequel National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (2007, directed Jon Turteltaub). Most of the principal cast returned too, including Nicolas Cage as treasure hunter Ben Gates. Although, again, it is Diane Kruger who draws most of our attention.
National Treasure 2 is the story of Ben Gates’ obsessive attempt to clear his ancestral name from the killing of Abraham Lincoln plot and...
- 4/26/2011
- by Chris Laverty
- Clothes on Film
MTV announced earlier today that Jersey Shore — the highest-rated TV show to ever feature a four-foot-nine tanning addict sticking her overheated rump into a mini-fridge — will fly to Italy for its upcoming fourth season. According to the press release, the cast is “excited to trade gorillas for Italian stallions,” which is really offensive, unless you actually picture a society where gorillas and stallions are an important part of the economy. Kids, this is crazy, crazy, crazy! I can’t contain myself. This is the best news I’ve heard since I stopped caring about the future of humanity. Jersey Shore...
- 1/25/2011
- by Darren Franich
- EW.com - PopWatch
During the 70's, 80's, and 90's, independent Spanish exploitation filmmaker Juan Piquer Simon quietly and lovingly cooked up an ambitious and outrageous collection of goofy and gonzo genre cinema curiosities, full of cracked charm and fantastical old-school practical effects (rubber-suit monsters, matte paintings, opticals, etc.). Ever since I converged on Simon's wild filmography for the first time, by unintentionally discovering separate films independently of each other and then tying them all back to the same man, I have always been impressed and intrigued by his eclectic string of independently made oddball fantasy cinema delights, like; Where Time Began (aka Fabulous Journey To The Center Of The Earth) (1976), the MST3K made-famous The Pod People (1983), Supersonic Man (1979), Slugs: The Movie (1988) (served up on Jfd Ep#8), Mystery On Monster Island (1981), The Rift (aka Endless Descent) (1990), Sea Devils (1982), Pieces (1982), Cthulhu Mansion (1990) and Manoa, the City of Gold (1999), among others.
According to IMDb; "Simon...
According to IMDb; "Simon...
- 1/15/2011
- by noreply@blogger.com (Kevin, Mark & Parker)
While one waits to watch Tera Kya Hoga Johny on the big screen, the fact remains that when launched, it was one of those first few films based on the darker side of Mumbai. However, over the years gone by, half a dozen odd films belonging to this genre have arrived, most recent being Allah Ke Banday. Some of the other prominent films have been City Of Gold and Striker as well. In such a scenario, how does film maker Sudhir Mishra feel that the freshness of Tera Kya Hoga Johny woul...
- 12/6/2010
- GlamSham
May 3, 2010: Movie lovers can heave a sigh of relief with the release of ‘Bird Idol’, ‘City of Gold’, ‘Kuchh Kariye’ and ‘Muskurake Dekh Zara’. Why, one may ask, since none of these films survived even a week at the box office? Well, that’s because majority of these were the ones that belonged to ‘come today gone tomorrow’ category and barely managed to find a slot for themselves before biggies starting arriving with ‘Housefull’. Now that each of these films is finally out, it’s a matter of celebration for the industry because hopefully,.
- 5/3/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
Shocking! Seventeen films released in cinemas across the country last Friday, April 23. Seven of them were in Hindi and included Apartment, City Of Gold, Kuchh Kariye, Bird Idol, Muskura Ke Dekh Zara and Mumbai 118. Apart from these, four were dubbed in Hindi, and three were in English. Predictably, all flopped. What is surprising is that many industry folks were actually unaware that so many movies were releasing on the same day. According to a well-placed source in a multiplex chain, even the basic marketing was absent in the case of some, and it’s no wonder that many viewers were unaware ...
- 4/29/2010
- Hindustan Times - Cinema
April 26, 2010: No, the week gone by hasn’t changed anything for Bollywood. In fact it has only made the hunger for better films increase by leaps and bounds if box office response for the newer releases is anything to go by. Even the combined collections of each of the five films – ‘Apartment’, ‘Bird Idol’, ‘City of Gold’, ‘Kuchh Kariye’ and ‘Muskurake Dekh Zara’ – wasn’t good enough to result into 100% collections for a single show on any of the days. In simpler terms, the average standing of each of the five films didn’t.
- 4/26/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
The yawning hiatus that is being created between the haves and the have-nots is becoming a major area of concern for the policy makers and social thinkers. Civil Society's other major arm, i.e. cinema and here it is meant the mainstream cinema was not contributing its might. But it seems with Mahesh Manjerekar City Of Gold things could change....
- 4/23/2010
- GlamSham
April 22, 2010: The rush hour is on and understandably so. After all Ipl gets over this weekend which means biggies would start dominating theaters week after week. This is the last and final call for medium and smaller budget films to make their way in theaters and this is the reason why we have inconsequential films like ‘Bird Idol’, ‘City of Gold’, ‘Kuchh Kariye’ and ‘Muskurake Dekh Zara’ arriving out of nowhere and jostling for screen space.
‘Bird Idol’ is an animation film and looking at the sub-standard.
‘Bird Idol’ is an animation film and looking at the sub-standard.
- 4/22/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
Next week is going to be a crowded one (if we go by listed releases). There is Som Shekhar's Muskurake Dekh Zara, the Tanushree Dutta starrer Apartment, the animated Bird Idol and a host of other smaller releases like City Of Gold - Mumbai 1982 Ek Ankahi Kahani, Musaa etc. The reason is obvious, the dreaded Ipl is getting over this Sunday! One feels that it will be an interesting straight clash between Jagmohan Mundra's Apartment, which is targeting the fans of thriller genre and...
- 4/21/2010
- GlamSham
New Delhi, April 19 – ‘Apartment’, ‘City of Gold’, ‘Bird Idol’, ‘Kuchh Kariye’ and ‘Muskurake Dekh Zara’ – all the Hindi films releasing Friday have a common thread. All of them have Mumbai as the backdrop for themes varying from the space crunch in the city to organised crime and even an animation flick.
In ‘Apartment’, director Jagmohan Mundhra portrays a ‘contemporary story, set in today’s Mumbai’ where people share room with complete.
In ‘Apartment’, director Jagmohan Mundhra portrays a ‘contemporary story, set in today’s Mumbai’ where people share room with complete.
- 4/19/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
He’s been on an interview-giving spree for sometime now. However, he fears talking too much about his films might jinx them. Well, if he’s fed up, he’s hiding it well. He laughs, “I don’t mind talking about my films or a social issue. But I don’t like to comment on my personal life.” Ahem. His latest film, Lalbaug Parel (City of Gold), made on a Rs five crore budget, is supposedly the most expensive Marathi film till date. Set against the backdrop of the 1982 mill workers strike in the city, Manjrekar has cast real-life mill workers’children in ...
- 4/9/2010
- Hindustan Times - Cinema
Kashmira Shah, currently working on City of Gold with Seema Biswas, demonstrated what a good contortionist she is by deftly sinking her foot into her mouth at the recent launch for the movie in Mumbai. Surrounding by crowds of actors struggling to build their careers, she said, “Nowadays, the actors who say that they get plenty of scripts everyday but don’t have time to read through them are nothing but big liars!The reality is- they don’t even have a single script in their hand!”
And just in case we thought she’d omitted to insult her old sparring partner Rakhi Sawant today, she went on to say, "I don't know who Rakhi is. I don't think anyone knows who she is," before revealing that she was planning on getting involved in a new reality TV show. Rumour has it that this could be Colors’ Bingo Night if...
And just in case we thought she’d omitted to insult her old sparring partner Rakhi Sawant today, she went on to say, "I don't know who Rakhi is. I don't think anyone knows who she is," before revealing that she was planning on getting involved in a new reality TV show. Rumour has it that this could be Colors’ Bingo Night if...
- 2/19/2010
- Bollyspice
Kashmira Shah has said that actors who claim that they have a lot of scripts to choose from are liars. The actress, who was speaking at the launch of Mahesh Manjrekar's film City of Gold, also said that she didn't understand why her peers lie about how busy they are. "Nowadays, the actors who say that they get plenty of scripts everyday but don't have time to go through them are nothing but big liars," Shah told (more)...
- 2/19/2010
- by By Will Astbury
- Digital Spy
February 19, 2010: Outrageous claims seem to be Kashmira Shah’s forte, as she piggybacks on controversies to get her share of fame. The actress who is mostly seen in the side-roles of Bollywood films yet again created a storm by calling certain actors ‘liar’ and ‘hypocrites’.
The ‘choosy’ or nearly out-of-work actress courted controversy yet again at the launch of Mahesh Manjrekar’s film ‘City of Gold’, where in the middle of a press meet, she took a potshot at actors saying, “Nowadays, the actors who say that they get plenty of scripts everyday.
The ‘choosy’ or nearly out-of-work actress courted controversy yet again at the launch of Mahesh Manjrekar’s film ‘City of Gold’, where in the middle of a press meet, she took a potshot at actors saying, “Nowadays, the actors who say that they get plenty of scripts everyday.
- 2/19/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
February 19, 2010: After a rather long sabbatical of nearly four years Mahesh Manjrekar returns to direction with the film ‘City Of Gold’. The film narrates the trials and tribulations of Mumbai mill workers during the eighties.
As if that was not a daunting task in itself, director Mahesh took his job way too seriously and went ahead to narrate and check back the dialogues of each and every member of his cast of 65 actors!
Phew! With this Mahesh gets a round of applause as this is a first in Bollywood. Making the cast of 65 characters memorize their dialogues and keeping a check on them.
As if that was not a daunting task in itself, director Mahesh took his job way too seriously and went ahead to narrate and check back the dialogues of each and every member of his cast of 65 actors!
Phew! With this Mahesh gets a round of applause as this is a first in Bollywood. Making the cast of 65 characters memorize their dialogues and keeping a check on them.
- 2/19/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
February 17, 2010: Mahesh Manjrekar returns to direction after a gap of four years with ‘City Of Gold’. He unveiled first look of the film recently in presence of entire cast including Satish Kaushik, Seema Biswas, Sachin Khedekar, Kashmira Shah, debutant Karan Patel, Siddharth Jadhav, Ankush Chaudhary, Sameer Dharmadhikari, Vineet Kumar Singh, Veena Jhamkar, Shashank Shende and Anusha Dandekar. The film has been produced by Dar Motion Picture and it has been shot simultaneously in Hindi and Marathi, with the Hindi version titled ‘City of Gold’.
On this occasion Mahesh Manjrekar.
On this occasion Mahesh Manjrekar.
- 2/17/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
Mumbai, Feb 17 – Mahesh Manjrekar, who returns to direction with the ‘City Of Gold’, says a film cannot be made without money therefore its box office performance is vital for its maker.
‘Box-office satisfaction always comes first. If I do three films for creative satisfaction and my producer bears loss then no producer will ever stand by me,’ Manjrekar told reporters Wednesday after the first look of ‘City of Gold’ was unveiled.
‘Films cannot.
‘Box-office satisfaction always comes first. If I do three films for creative satisfaction and my producer bears loss then no producer will ever stand by me,’ Manjrekar told reporters Wednesday after the first look of ‘City of Gold’ was unveiled.
‘Films cannot.
- 2/17/2010
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
He may be known for making politically charged statements, but actor/filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar says he is “not cut out for politics”. “I don’t have the patience... an angry man cannot get into politics,” he says. Talking about his next directorial venture, City of Gold, which is the first of three films he’s signed on for with Dar Media, Manjrekar says, “The film will focus on the plight of Mumbai’s mill workers and how nothing is being done to change that.” As for comparisons with his earlier hit, Vaastav, he says, “This is a more stimulating film than Vaastav. The script is far ...
- 1/8/2010
- Hindustan Times - Celebrity
City Of God and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind have been declared the best movies of the past decade in leading U.S. music and culture magazine Paste.
Fernando Meirelles' critically-acclaimed City of God topped the magazine's critics list ahead of Amelie and Almost Famous, while Jim Carrey's bizarre 2004 film Eternal Sunshine beat The Royal Tenenbaums and Amelie in the Readers' Poll.
City of Gold finished ninth in the Readers' Poll, while Eternal Sunshine landed fifth among the critics' picks.
Fernando Meirelles' critically-acclaimed City of God topped the magazine's critics list ahead of Amelie and Almost Famous, while Jim Carrey's bizarre 2004 film Eternal Sunshine beat The Royal Tenenbaums and Amelie in the Readers' Poll.
City of Gold finished ninth in the Readers' Poll, while Eternal Sunshine landed fifth among the critics' picks.
- 12/1/2009
- WENN
Mahesh Manjrekar has said that the compelling script for his latest movie inspired his "creative juices". The star also claims that the script for City of Gold made his return to directing very enjoyable. "With City of Gold, I have finally found a subject that has got my creative juices flowing all over again. Only once in a blue moon you get such a compelling script and that too based on real life incidents. It was such a great concept that I got back to direction (more)...
- 11/27/2009
- by By Will Astbury
- Digital Spy
Mumbai, Nov 27 (Ians) After two years, Bollywood filmmaker-actor Mahesh Manjrekar has returned to direction with crime thriller “City of Gold”. He says the film’s subject is so “compelling” that it set his “creative juices flowing all over again”.
“With ‘City of Gold’, I have finally found a subject that has got my creative juices flowing all over again. Only once in a blue moon you get such a compelling script and that too based on real life incidents. It was such a great concept that I got back to direction without any delay,” Manjrekar, whose last directorial venture was “Deha”, said in a statement.
“The film is a no holds barred look at the.
“With ‘City of Gold’, I have finally found a subject that has got my creative juices flowing all over again. Only once in a blue moon you get such a compelling script and that too based on real life incidents. It was such a great concept that I got back to direction without any delay,” Manjrekar, whose last directorial venture was “Deha”, said in a statement.
“The film is a no holds barred look at the.
- 11/27/2009
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
Dar Media Private Limited (Dar Media) today announced its entry into the high octane business of film production by way of a three-film deal with maverick filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar. The first of these cinematic productions - City Of Gold - is currently in advanced stages of production, with principal shooting expected to be completed by end of December, 2010. This apart, Dar Media is currently in advanced negotiations with at least two other film-makers for projects that will com...
- 11/26/2009
- GlamSham
After her appearance in Wake Up Sid, super-hot item girl Kashmira Shah is continuing her performance in Bollywood with a role in Mahesh Manjrekar’s City of Gold. The film also stars veteran Marathi actress Reema Lagoo.
In addition, Kashmira is set to appear in Shaam’s Agam Puram, which includes a hot item number from Kahmira that also features Mumbai starlets Sona Khan, Pooja Choudhary and Deepika Pant. "Kashmira performed in a specially erected pub set-up at a cost of Rs 25 lakh,” said a source, “The number is certain to be one of the highlights of the movie." Meenakshi and Megha Khan make up the rest of the leasing cast for this much-anticipated movie.
Recently returned from a holiday in Toronto, Kashmira – who participated in the first season of Bigg Boss, says she is trying to keep in touch with the current series, “When I was in India, I used to follow the show,...
In addition, Kashmira is set to appear in Shaam’s Agam Puram, which includes a hot item number from Kahmira that also features Mumbai starlets Sona Khan, Pooja Choudhary and Deepika Pant. "Kashmira performed in a specially erected pub set-up at a cost of Rs 25 lakh,” said a source, “The number is certain to be one of the highlights of the movie." Meenakshi and Megha Khan make up the rest of the leasing cast for this much-anticipated movie.
Recently returned from a holiday in Toronto, Kashmira – who participated in the first season of Bigg Boss, says she is trying to keep in touch with the current series, “When I was in India, I used to follow the show,...
- 11/11/2009
- Bollyspice
Mahesh Manjrekar has cast Kashmera Shah in his next film, City of Gold. This will be Kashmera’s first proper role as she has only done item numbers in Mahesh’s earlier films, Kurukshetra (2000) and Vaastav (1999).
Kashmera is very excited about her role in the film where she plays a Marathi girl whose character exudes a lot of oomph. She can’t wait for the film to start shooting. The film also stars Reema Lagoo, Sachin Khedekar, Chetan Hansraj and Shivaji Satam.
Kashmera is very excited about her role in the film where she plays a Marathi girl whose character exudes a lot of oomph. She can’t wait for the film to start shooting. The film also stars Reema Lagoo, Sachin Khedekar, Chetan Hansraj and Shivaji Satam.
- 11/9/2009
- by realbollywood
- RealBollywood.com
Kashmera Shah, who has only done item numbers in Mahesh Manjrekar-directed films such as Kurukshetra (2000) and Vaastav (1999), is now doing a full-fledged role in his next, City of Gold.Commenting on her role in the film, Kashmera said, .I have a very good equation with Mahesh. It.s great to be part of his next film in which I will be playing a Marathi mulgi and, of course, my character will have a lot of oomph. I can.t wait for the shoot to begin..City of Gold also stars Shivaji Satam, Reema Lagoo, Sachin Khedekar and Chetan Hansraj.
- 11/8/2009
- Filmicafe
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