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Why It’s Essential Viewing 20th Television While plenty of television classics pioneered either a genre or a cinematic format or a particular ethos, “MASH” successfully did all three and then some. The show constantly broke the boundaries of what television was capable of. First, with kinetic filmmaking that clearly took place off the studio lot, then with gut-punch plots that expanded the boundaries of what TV comedy could look like, and finally, with episodes that broke from familiar structures in innovative ways....

‘What are the stakes?’ United Artists Releasing The training montage in Ryan Coogler’s “Creed” cross-cuts between Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) preparing for a major boxing match while Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), his trainer and mentor, undergoes treatment for his cancer. It’s a powerful sequence that serves to juxtapose the two characters and where they are at in their lives, capping off with a shot where Adonis joyfully realizes he’s ready for his fight....

The Legendary John Waters Is Returning To Directing For Liarmouth: A Feel-Bad Romance Filmbuff By Erin Brady/Oct. 6, 2022 2:33 pm EST It’s a blessed day for sickos everywhere. That’s because not only will John Waters’ recent novel “Liarmouth: A Feel-Bad Romance” be getting a film adaptation, but it is being helmed by the absolute best person for the job: Waters himself. Deadline exclusively reported the news, with the film being produced by Village Roadshow Entertainment....

The Stand Miniseries Let Stephen King Correct A Major Regret Paramount By Witney Seibold/Aug. 20, 2022 12:26 pm EST As of 2022, Stephen King’s novel “The Stand” — originally published in 1978, then expanded and reworked extensively in 1990 — remains the author’s longest. If anything, King is prolific. The novel, a whopping 1,153 pages in length, is an apocalypse story about an eternal struggle between the forces of good and evil, with hundreds of members of humanity serving as their moral foot soldiers....

‘How do I get that scary?’ Bryanston Distributing Company There is a big misconception about “Texas Chain Saw Massacre” and how violent it actually is by today’s standards. Many people, myself included, assumed that the original 1974 film was extremely gory and bloody. However, it is actually quite conservative in its depiction of violence, instead focusing more on the psychological terror that comes with a masked killer — you have a feeling that they’re somewhere out there, lurking in the shadows and about to strike at any point....

Ghostbusters II was an ongoing ‘point of reference’ Columbia Pictures Jon Kasdan, as it turns out, is a big fan of the original 1988 movie, and ’80s movies in general. And it’s that love for both “Willow” and that era’s style of filmmaking that propelled him to push forward with the sequel series. Far from simply wanting to capitalize on the original movie’s cult following, which seemingly grew exponentially since “Willow’s” initial release, Kasdan is clearly passionate about the material and wanted to use “Willow” as a way to evoke that sense of excitement that so many seem to recall feeling in the pre-internet age....

Stress led to R2-D2’s iconic scream Lucasfilm It all starts with some advice George Lucas had for the team crafting the sound of this universe; rather than use a synthesizer, “go out into the world with your tape recorder,” as “The Sounds of Star Wars” author J.W. Rinzler recalled to NPR back in 2010. Sound designer Ben Burtt was then tasked with gathering a library of real-world sounds that could then later be manipulated to craft the sounds of this universe....

Wendell And Wild Director Henry Selick Teases His Movie That Was Too ‘Weird’ For Disney [Set Visit] Netflix By BJ Colangelo/Aug. 30, 2022 9:45 am EST When it comes to stop-motion animated features, Henry Selick is in a league all his own. The acclaimed director of beloved films like “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “James and the Giant Peach,” and “Monkeybone,” is back with his first feature since “Coraline” — the Netflix film, “Wendell and Wild....

Why The Batman Composer Michael Giacchino Snuck A Reference To A Beloved Indie Filmmaker Into His Track Titles [Exclusive] Warner Bros. Pictures By Sandy Schaefer/Oct. 14, 2022 12:46 pm EST The only thing better than Michael Giacchino’s film and TV scores might be his title tracks. At a certain point in his career, the ultra-busy composer decided he was done giving his musical themes standard (read: boring) names like “[Name of Character]’s Suite” or those describing the scene they accompany in plain terms....

Yellowjackets Renewed For Season 3 Before Season 2’s Premiere This Spring Showtime By Valerie Ettenhofer/Dec. 15, 2022 4:41 pm EST Praise be to the Antler Queen! “Yellowjackets” has already earned a third season renewal months ahead of its season 2 premiere. The show about probably-cannibalistic teen girl plane crash survivors has proven itself a welcome hit for Showtime, and this is certainly welcome news for fans of the puzzle box drama....

Alfred Hitchcock Took A Childlike Approach To The Big Twist In Vertigo Paramount By Joe Roberts/Dec. 11, 2022 8:00 am EST This post contains spoilers for “Vertigo.” Alfred Hitchcock liked to make things weird, and not just on-screen. He made things beyond weird for Tippi Hedren in “The Birds” and generally made a lot of actors uncomfortable, to say the least. He also managed to make some excellent films, with as sinister an aura as the man himself seemingly possessed....

Alien’s Contract Forced Ridley Scott To Film Scenes He Knew Would Never Make The Cut It wasn’t until the release of James Cameron’s 1986 film “Aliens” that it was established where xenomorph eggs come from. In Ridley Scott’s 1979 original “Alien,” an extraterrestrial storehouse full of leathery eggs was seemingly left behind unattended. Where the eggs came from, and what they were doing in the storehouse, would remain a mystery. Inside one of the eggs was centipede-like bone critter that rammed its ovipositor down the throat of Kane (John Hurt) and forced him into a coma, clinging onto his face....

All Quiet On The Western Front Director Edward Berger Wanted A Different Kind Of War Film [Exclusive Interview] Netflix/Reiner Bajo By Danielle Ryan/Oct. 20, 2022 2:00 pm EST War is hell, but many depictions of war are focused on the heroics involved. Even the most brutal and heart-wrenching war cinema classics, like “Saving Private Ryan,” have an element of heroism embedded within the narrative that makes them ultimately a story of human perseverance....

Avatar: The Way Of Water Made Big Waves At The Box Office, But Will It Be Enough? 20th Century Studios By Ryan Scott/Dec. 19, 2022 11:46 am EST It was the weekend so many people have been waiting well over a decade to see. And those wanting to see the box office come to life in 2022 have had their eyes on December 16. Why? Because James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water,” the long-awaited follow-up to his 2009 sci-fi blockbuster smash (still the highest-grossing movie of all time), finally arrived....

Barbarian Star Justin Long Reveals Four Of His Favorite Horror Movies 20th Century Studios By Danielle Ryan/Nov. 5, 2022 3:49 pm EST It’s been a great year for indie horror, and the surprise hit “Barbarian” is just one of the many fantastic offerings from this glut of spooky cinema. The new film from Zach Cregger highlights the horrors of AirBnBs, creating a truly terrifying tale of travel gone terribly wrong. Justin Long, who frequently stars in comedies but also cut his teeth on the Kevin Smith horror-comedy “Tusk” and Sam Raimi’s “Drag Me to Hell,” appears in the back half of the film in a role that has to be seen to be believed....

Black Adam’s Quintessa Swindell On How Dance Inspired Cyclone’s Movement And Changed Their Body Image [Exclusive Interview] Frank Masi/Warner Bros. Pictures By Jenna Busch/Oct. 10, 2022 5:20 pm EST The long-anticipated “Black Adam” will finally hit theaters this month after more than a decade in development. Dwayne Johnson plays the titular anti-hero in the new film in the DC Extended Universe, a character who has been awakened thousands of years after being granted superpowers, now out to avenge the son he lost....

Diamond Select Assembles Avengers: Endgame Captain America Mini-Bust [Exclusive] Diamond Select Toys By Max Evry/Sept. 14, 2022 3:47 pm EST The sight of Captain America with his battle damaged vibranium shield during the final battle of “Avengers: Endgame” was a low-point moment foreshadowed as far back as Tony Stark’s bleak vision in “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” However, once an army of superheroic saviors appeared behind Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Mjolnir flew into his hand, it gave him the perfect moment to finally drop the “Avengers … assemble” line we’d all been waiting for....

Disney In Talks With BBC To Acquire Doctor Who Streaming Rights BBC By Valerie Ettenhofer/July 22, 2022 7:31 pm EST “Doctor Who” has aired for many decades now, and across its storied run, a few things have always held true: the Doctor will always regenerate eventually; they’ll (almost) always have a companion on their adventures; finally, the show will always air first on the BBC. Except today, Bloomberg is reporting that the last point in this list may not be as set in stone as we thought....

Dumb Money: Everything We Know So Far About The New GameStop Movie Starring Seth Rogen And Pete Davidson Hulu By BJ Colangelo/Sept. 1, 2022 9:54 pm EST A lot of weird stuff has happened since the start of the pandemic, and studios are already working like clockwork to crank out film adaptations of that weirdness. In one of the most high-profile ventures, “Dumb Money” looks to tell the story of that time in 2021 when a bunch of Reddit investors broke the stock market by causing the stocks in GameStop, a barely surviving company, to skyrocket....

Gertie’s Halloween costume was based on something Scott’s mother made her Universal Pictures You may remember the Halloween portion of “E.T.” as the scene where Elliott (Henry Thomas) and his older brother Michael (Robert MacNaughton) sneak their alien friend out of the house in a ghost costume. But prior to their departure, you see their younger sister Gertie (Drew Barrymore) dressed as a cowgirl. In an interview with /Film’s Bill Bria, Scott explained that Gertie’s getup was more than just a run-of-the-mill adorable Halloween costume idea:...