Thompson on Hollywood

Rating 'Psycho,' Behind-the-Scenes 'Hitchcock' and the Universal Hitchcock Fifteen

Features

I got over the awful HBO "The Girl," starring Toby Jones as Alfred Hitchcock and Sienna Miller as Tippi Hedren, by watching the entire Dick Cavett Hitchcock interview. I had more fun with Thursday night's AFI FEST world premiere of Sacha Gervasi's light-hearted "Hitchcock," starring a superb ensemble led by Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren as the master auteur and his collaborator and wife Alma Reville, who the director thanked when he won his AFI Achievement Award, but I confess that I'd rather stick with the real thing.

By Anne Thompson
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November 2, 2012 2:23 PM
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AFI FEST 2012: The World's Best Cinema - From 'Hitchcock' to 'Rust and Bone,' Foreign Oscar Hopefuls & AFM

Festivals

While the American Film Market takes Santa Monica, the 26th annual AFI Fest brings diverse cinematic life to Hollywood Thursday night with the world premiere of "Hitchcock." The Sacha Gervasi film starring Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren and Scarlett Johansson is one of only two world premieres at the festival, and the second has technically already had a "secret screening" at the New York Film Festival: Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln."

By Anne Thompson and Sophia Savage
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October 31, 2012 4:23 PM
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AFI Fest 2012 Announces World Cinema, Breakthrough, Midnight and Shorts -- 'Amour,' 'Pieta,' 'Beyond the Hills' & More

Festivals

AFI Fest (November 1-8) has announced the final portion of its lineup, including World Cinema, Breakthrough, Midnight and Short Film programs. 12 Foreign-Language Oscar entries are in the mix, most notably Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or winner "Amour," Kim Ki-duk's Golden Lion winner "Pieta," Denmark's Berlin prize-winner "A Royal Affair" and Cristian Mungiu's "Beyond the Hills," which scored a shared best actress prize in Cannes.

By Beth Hanna
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October 15, 2012 1:18 PM
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Mel Brooks, 'Long-Reigning King of Comedy,' To Receive AFI Life Achievement Award

Awards

AFI will honor Mel Brooks with the 41st Life Achivement Award, their highest honor. On June 6, 2013, Brooks will be presented with the award at a gala tribute in Los Angeles, which will later be aired on TNT. AFI's Sir Howard Stringer says, "Mel Brooks is America’s long-reigning king of comedy...

By Sophia Savage
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October 5, 2012 12:24 PM
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'The Hobbit' US Premiere to Benefit AFI with Gala Event

News

The US premiere of Peter Jackson's "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," the first of the forthcoming trilogy, will benefit the American Film Institute with a gala event on December 6 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York. Benefit tickets and packages are available here (beware, they start at $500 per person). On December 14 the rest of the country can enjoy the film in theaters.

By Sophia Savage
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October 4, 2012 3:23 PM
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AFI Fest 2012 Announces Young Americans and New Auteurs Lineup, Including Baker, Cronenberg & Loznitsa

Festivals

AFI Fest 2012, running November 1-8 in Los Angeles, announces the titles for its Young Americans and New Auteurs programs. Young Americans features works from emerging American filmmakers (eligible for an Audience Award), while New Auteurs has titles from around the world by first and second-time directors (eligible for a Grand Jury Award)...

By Sophia Savage
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October 3, 2012 3:23 PM
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AFI FEST Opens with 'Hitchcock' Starring Hopkins and Mirren

News

The American Film Institute (AFI) is closing AFI FEST with Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" and opening on November 1 with Sacha Gervasi's "Hitchcock."

By Anne Thompson
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September 27, 2012 1:00 PM
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AFI FEST Lands Spielberg's 'Lincoln' as Closing Night Film

Festivals

One of the fall Oscar contenders that is still sight unseen--and was not booked into any major film festivals--is Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln." Well, the DreamWorks/Fox/Participant movie starring Daniel Day Lewis as the 16th president has finally landed a festival berth at the height of awards season fervor in L.A.: The AFI Fest will show the film as its fest gala closer on November 8. The movie, adapted by Tony Kushner from Doris Kearns Goodwin's bestseller "Team of Rivals," co-stars Sally Field...

By Anne Thompson
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September 20, 2012 1:33 PM
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American Cinematheque vs. American Film Institute: One's Young, the Other Isn't

News

Bravo to the American Cinematheque for singling out a comedian, Ben Stiller, for its 26th annual achievement award. He is more than worthy. But this choice does serve to highlight the growing gap between the Cinematheque tribute, which tends to veer toward stars in their moneymaking prime, and the American Film Institute achievement award, which often hits stars at the senior end of their career trajectory.

By Anne Thompson & Sophia Savage
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August 9, 2012 5:02 PM
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Obit: Screenwriter Frank Pierson Fought Against the Impoverishment of Film Language

News

Frank Pierson, who won an Academy Award for his screenplay of “Dog Day Afternoon” in 1975, was nominated for two other Oscars, and then turned himself into an Emmy-winning director, died Monday in Los Angeles at the age of 87 after a short illness.