Thompson on Hollywood

TIFF Trailer Watch: Searing Doc 'Free Angela & All Political Prisoners' Chronicles Turbulent Life of Activist Angela Davis

Video

Check out the first trailer for Shola Lynch's documentary "Free Angela & All Political Prisoners," an official selection at Toronto in September. The film details the turbulent life of radical activist Angela Davis, a member of the Communist Party, associate of the Black Panthers and UCLA philosophy professor who was charged in 1970 with conspiracy in kidnapping and murdering Judge Harold Haley from the Marin County courthouse.

By Beth Hanna
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August 29, 2012 3:09 PM
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Immersed in Movies: Handicapping the Animation Oscar Race

Features

With the fall/holiday season just around the corner, the Oscar animation race is even more wide open than last season, when "Rango" jumped out early and never looked back in grabbing the Academy Award. In fact, most of the eventual nominees have probably not been released, which makes it hard to pin down how great a year it will turn out to be.

By Bill Desowitz
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August 29, 2012 2:35 PM
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Busy Ryan Gosling to Pre-Sell Directorial Debut 'How to Catch a Monster' at TIFF

News

Heartthrob and meme-inspirer Ryan Gosling is announcing his directorial debut. Gosling plans to write and direct fantasy noir thriller "How to Catch a Monster," starring "Mad Men" regular Christina Hendricks. She plays a single mother of two in a surreal future city that is on the decline. When she gets caught in a dark dreamlike underworld, her teenage son finds a secret road leading to a hidden underwater town.

By Jacob Combs
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August 29, 2012 2:31 PM
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Joss Whedon to Write, Direct Marvel World S.H.I.E.L.D. Pilot for ABC

News

Joss Whedon and "Avengers" fans everywhere rejoice: ABC has ordered a "S.H.I.E.L.D." pilot from the "Buffy" scribe which will focus on the secretive military cum-police force of the Avengers universe. Whedon will direct, pending his schedule, and will co-write the pilot along with Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen.

By Jacob Combs
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August 29, 2012 1:45 PM
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Watch: Stephen Colbert Interviews Andrew Sullivan, Obama Supporter and Diehard Conservative (VIDEO)

Interviews

Andrew Sullivan, the gay conservative writer who helms The Daily Beast's 'The Dish' blog, went on The Colbert Report last night to make a conservative case for Obama. Sullivan, who backed George W. Bush in 2000, was a early supporter of Barack Obama's in 2008.

By Jacob Combs
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August 29, 2012 1:25 PM
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Jon Voight Makes Waves at Republican National Convention

News

Actor Jon Voight is in Tampa this week at the Republican National Convention, and the Oscar-winner ("Coming Home)--who's never been afraid to speak his mind politically, penning a 2008 opinion piece against then-candidate Barack Obama and appearing in a video at the 2008 Republican convention--seems set to share his thoughts about the state of the country with anybody who'll listen. The CliffsNotes version: Obama's a Marxist, and the media is hopelessly biased towards the incumbent in this year's election.

By Jacob Combs
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August 29, 2012 1:22 PM
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James Bond Turns 50, Throws Worldwide Party (VIDEO)

News

Mark your calendars: this year, October 5 will be Global James Bond Day in honor of 50th anniversary of the the famous MI6 agent's film debut. "Dr. No", the first Bond film, premiered on October 5, 1962, and Albert Broccoli's EON Productions (the company behind the Bond films from "Dr. No" to this year's "Skyfall") are partnering with MGM, Sony and Fox Home Entertainment for a day of worldwide events celebrating the spy's life in film.

By Jacob Combs
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August 29, 2012 1:19 PM
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Oscar Watch: Hopes High for Five Animated Feature Nominations; GKIDS To Qualify Four Films

News

In many ways the fate of the Oscar animation race rests on a little distribution company called GKIDS. Why? Because whether there will be more than 13 or more than 16 feature films qualifying in 2012 determines how many nominees there will be.

By Anne Thompson
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August 28, 2012 4:29 PM
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Forget It Jake, It's Chinatown: Flavorwire's 10 Greatest Movie Endings -- Do You Agree?

News

Flavorwire has compiled a list of the 10 greatest movie endings, including the likes of Roman Polanski's "Chinatown," Mike Nichols' "The Graduate" and Charlie Chaplin's "City Lights." Full list and videos below, but beware! Some of these endings (with Henri-Georges Clouzot's "Diaboloque" as the grand dame of doozies) should only be watched if you've already seen the film.

By Beth Hanna
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August 28, 2012 2:18 PM
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Master Auteur Wong Kar Wai to Head Berlin 2013 Jury

Festivals

As we head into fall festivals full tilt, some exciting news from one of the world's top winter fests: Director Wong Kar Wai will head the jury of the Berlin International Film Festival 2013 (running February 7-17).