Hollywood star says he regrets lobbying makers of the US television show Finding Your RootsBen Affleck has admitted he was “embarrassed” about a slave-owning ancestor and says that’s why he lobbied television chiefs to hide his story in a documentary about his heritage.The Hollywood star said he regretted trying to influence what went into the programme and was now glad that his family history...
'Frankly it blew my mind': how Tron changed cinema – and predicted … – The Guardian
From cyberspace to AI, Steven Lisberger’s 1982 sci-fi classic was way ahead of its time. The team behind it explain how they made a game-changerBack in 1982, computers meant one of two things in the popular imagination. Either they were room-sized machines used by the military-industrial complex to crunch data on stuff like nuclear wars and stock markets, or they were fridge-sized arcade games...
Hoop Dreams: where are the main figures now? – The Guardian
Twenty years after the landmark documentary was cruelly snubbed at the Oscars, we take a look at where the principals are today In 1986, filmmakers Steve James, Frederick Marx and Peter Gilbert set out to film a 30-minute PBS documentary on playground basketball as a window into Chicago’s street culture. Some 300 hours of footage and three years of editing later, Hoop Dreams emerged overnight as...
The Northman director Robert Eggers: 'I'm shocked I made such a … – The Guardian
The American film-maker behind arthouse hits The Witch and The Lighthouse on how he came to create The Northman, a blood-soaked Viking blockbuster starring Alexander SkarsgårdIn his first film, the $4m Sundance sensation The Witch, Robert Eggers etched a human battle between Puritanism and the occult in 17th-century New England, written entirely in early modern English. He followed it up with The...
'Violence isn't OK': Hollywood reacts to Will Smith slapping Chris Rock – The Guardian
Reactions to the most talked-about moment of the Oscars ranged from delight in the mess to concernIt was the bombshell moment of the Oscars. Not feelgood best picture winner Coda, or historic wins for the Afro-Latina actor Ariana DeBose or deaf actor Troy Kotsur, or the Academy hiring not one but three hosts – Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes and Regina Hall – for the first time since 2018. No, by far...
Britain's 'New Medium Helicopter' project continuing – UK Defence Journal
It is anticipated that the new helicopter will be fully operational and integrated into service by the mid-2020s.The Ministry of Defence had previously announced that four manufacturers had been selected to progress to the next phase of the New Medium Helicopter acquisition programme.Kevan Jones, MP for North Durham, recently asked:“To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress...
Nightmare Alley review – a neo-noir knockout from Guillermo del Toro – The Guardian
Bradley Cooper plays a carnival conman drawn into a dark underworld in this dazzling drama from the Mexican directorLike its disreputable bedfellow the horror genre, film noir is an unruly beast – a term used to unite wildly disparate movies sharing an aesthetic philosophy that is on the tilt and frayed at the edges. From the hard-boiled crime dramas of the 1930s to the softcore erotic thrillers...
Tommy Chong: 'We were always high. That was the job' – The Guardian
How does half of stoner duo Cheech and Chong cope with coronavirus lockdown? Fine – thanks to drugs, his wife and the experience of nine months in prison for selling bong pipesTommy Chong has got the munchies. It’s early afternoon in locked-down LA, and last night he was on the pot cookies. “My wife, Shelby, just made a whole batch of them – oatmeal and maple syrup.” He stops to correct himself...
Venice film festival 2022 opening roundup – a promisingly juicy start – The Guardian
Call Me By Your name director Luca Guadagnino serves up some fine young cannibals, Cate Blanchett dazzles in a musical tour de force, and Call My Agent!’s Laure Calamy is full of surprisesVenice has a reputation as the easy A-list festival – the one that comes as a gentle package of calm and Campari by contrast with the agitation of Cannes. Well, the calm may yet settle upon us, but it’ll take a...
Euro 2016: How the football world cheered Portugal’s victory on Twitter – Sports News , Firstpost – Firstpost
24 teams, 51 games, 108 goals.One new champion! #EURO2016 pic.twitter.com/OZ4pQMGvUC— UEFA EURO 2016 (@UEFAEURO) July 10, 2016After a month-long tournament, Portugal were crowned the new Euro champions on Sunday beating France on its home turf with an extra-time goal. France were the favourites before the game, but luck was on Portugal’s side. Even though the team’s talisman...
