Thompson on Hollywood

WATCH: Featurette on Soderbergh's Cannes-Bound 'Behind the Candelabra,' Starring Douglas and Damon

Video

To prep you for Steven Soderbergh's upcoming biopic, "Behind the Candelabra," HBO just released a fantastic 12-minute short movie about the making of the feature. More than getting into the nitty-gritty of the production, these clips cover much of Liberace's biography, psychology, exuberance, and charisma.

By Maggie Lange
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May 4, 2013 4:27 PM
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WATCH: Winsome 60 Second 'Star Wars' Recap

Video

Prefer to think about "Star Wars" rather than the Kentucky Derby or Cinco de Mayo? These are the droids you're looking for! Enjoy this animated version of "Episode IV." Not a plot point is missed in this simple rehashing. The light sabers are particularly amusing.

By Maggie Lange
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May 4, 2013 4:23 PM
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EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Gibney Talks Manning and Assange, Stars of his 'WikiLeaks' Expose

Interviews

Until recently, nobody knew who Bradley Manning was. Now he's all over the media, having pleaded guilty to ten charges (and not guilty to 12 others) before a Maryland military judge (see his leaked testimony here) for “misusing classified data,” the unlawful possession of classified material, exposing a cache of files, including videos, military logs and 250,000 State Department cables, and the transfer of this material to WikiLeaks. These charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail. “The more I read the cables, the more I came to the conclusion that this was the type of information that should become public,” he told the judge.

By Anne Thompson
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May 2, 2013 1:48 PM
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EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: 'Kill List' Director Ben Wheatley Talks IFC's 'Sightseers'

Interviews

Brit filmmaker Ben Wheatley had brought his prior two low-budget features, "Down Terrace" and "Kill List," to the Cannes market. Then he made his proper Cannes debut with "Sightseers" in the Director's Fortnight, an unexpected breakout during an unexceptional year. Then the film played the fest circuit, including Toronto. IFC opens the dark relationship comedy in New York and L.A.on May 10. See my flipcam interview with Wheatley below.

By Anne Thompson
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May 2, 2013 1:39 PM
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WATCH White House Correspondent Dinner Parodies from Steven Spielberg, Daniel Day Lewis, and Kevin Spacey (VIDEO)

Video

This year's annual D.C. schmooze-fest, the White House Correspondents Dinner, featured some mischievous film and television parodies. There's nothing subversive or particularly astute here, but watching big muckety-mucks make fun of themselves is always a pleasure.

By Maggie Lange
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April 28, 2013 7:41 PM
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Skinny Matthew McConaughey Talks New Approach to Roles: 'Mud,' 'Dallas Buyer's Club,' 'Magic Mike' [EXCLUSIVE VIDEO]

Interviews

When we sat down with Matthew McConaughey last November, he looked scarily thin. He'd lost 38 pounds to prep for passion project "The Dallas Buyer's Club," about a straight man fighting HIV who becomes a dealer in unapproved drugs to stave off AIDS. (The film just landed a distributor.) The actor was fasting and subsisting on a diet of fresh fish and a daily glass of red wine. He was down from 182 to 143 pounds as he was just about to start filming. (Flip cam video below.)

By Anne Thompson
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April 25, 2013 2:28 PM
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'Upstream Color' Star Amy Seimetz Talks Multitasking and Directing 'Sun Don't Shine' (EXCLUSIVE VIDEO)

Interviews

Back in 2010, indie producer-writer-actress Amy Seimetz was living in Tampa, Florida and dealing with losses in her family, "a lot of anxiety," she says, when she realized that "I need to get out of acting in these movies... I need to direct my own thing." Her first feature "Sun Don't Shine" is a well-shot micro-budget portrait of a couple on the run for murder in the mold of James M. Cain's "The Postman Always Rings Twice"

By Anne Thompson
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April 24, 2013 4:13 PM
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WATCH EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Ira Deutchman's Sundance Art House Convergence Keynote on Independent Marketing

Video

Anyone wondering about the future of the film industry should pay heed to Ira Deutchman's warnings about sticking to the same old ways. They aren't going to work much longer. Think local and consider appointment cinema, he suggests wisely. "There's too little commercial product chasing too many screens, and too much good product chasing too few good screens." And, he sums up: "Distribution is easy. Marketing is hard. Old fashioned showmanship has got to come back."

By Anne Thompson
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April 23, 2013 3:56 PM
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Rookie News Anchor Blows it with F-Bomb First Day on the Job (VIDEO)

Video

In this video clip, newly anointed news anchor AJ Clemente embarrasses himself by detonating the f-bomb on not just his first day on the job, but his first moment for NBC's North Dakota arm KFYR-TV. Clemente was promptly suspended.

By Ryan Lattanzio
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April 22, 2013 3:59 PM
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WATCH STREISAND CLIPS, as the Star Accepts the Film Society at Lincoln Center's Chaplin Award

Awards

Monday night, the Film Society at Lincoln Center in NY pays homage to Barbra Streisand for their 40th annual Chaplin Award Gala, which follows her recent performance of "The Way We Were" during the In Memoriam segment on the Academy Awards telecast.