How a film opens says a lot about its style and tone, and can turn people off or make them sit forward in their seats with curiosity. This week’s big new release, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, has a hard act to follow; its 2014 predecessor had a memorable opening in which hero Peter Quill/Star-Lord dances through an alien world, blasting “Come and Get Your Love” on his old Walkman. As we wait to see if Vol. 2 lives up to the original, let’s look at 15 of the best opening scenes in movies.
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There aren’t a lot of classic films that get the collectible art treatment unless they hit that sweet nerd niche, usually in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. But as artist Jonathan Burton proves, you can’t go wrong with paying tribute to the films of Alfred Hitchcock.
Mad Duck Posters is releasing a few Vertigo prints featuring imagery inspired by both Shakespeare and the opening title designs of the iconic Saul Bass. These prints are bright, vibrant and available for you to purchase today. Check them out below. Read More »
There are plenty of action figures for the heroes of movies out there, but filmmakers don’t get the merchandise they deserve. Mondo is hoping to change that by giving legendary filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock his own sixth scale collectible figure.
The Alfred Hitchcock figure was first announced back in 2014 when Mondo revealed they were venturing into the collectible toy market. Now the figure is finally available for purchase, and if you need some convincing that it’s worth the price tag, there are some awesome shots of the collectible after the jump.
However, if you’re not in the market to drop some cash on an expensive filmmaker toy, maybe you’d rather get some more collectible artwork for your walls, this time for some of Alfred Hitchcock’s movies. Check out Mondo’s new Alfred Hitchcock offerings after the jump. Read More »
In July 2014, one of our favorite artists Scott Campbell (aka Scott C) held a scavenger hunt to find his original watercolor Great Showdown paintings in the original filming locations across Los Angeles. This year he returns with The Great Great Showdown Hunt, a bigger and more epic hunt which will take the concept worldwide.
Todays edition takes us to . Do you live near these cities? You’re going to have to be quick, smart and pop culture-savvy to find these, but if you can, you might be able to get yourself an original Scott C painting. And if you miss out on London, you might have another chance later in the week!
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Though you may not know it by name, you’ve undoubtedly seen the dolly zoom (or push pull) shot used in countless movies. It’s the shot that looks like it’s zooming in on something while everything else in the background seems to be getting farther away.
Don’t worry if you can’t picture what this shot looks like on screen, because a new video essay from Vashi Visuals takes a look at 23 versions of the shot throughout the history of cinema. And thankfully, he begins with Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, the film that made the dolly zoom shot famous. Read More »
Legendary filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock was born on August 13, 1899. That’s makes tomorrow his birthday and though the director passed away 33 years ago, his legacy can still be felt today. To celebrate the Master of Suspense’s birth, Mondo is revealing brand new posters for two of his most well-regarded films.
Tomer Hanuka has taken a gruesome snapshot that immortalizes Psycho, while Ghoulish Gary Pullin has not one, but two, different takes on Sight and Sound‘s Best Movie of All Time: Vertigo. Check them out below. Read More »
Whether you’re afraid of heights or spilling your beverages, three posters for classic movies came out Friday. Spoke Art has two brand new prints for Sight and Sound’s greatest film of all time, Alfred Hitchcock‘s Vertigo, created by Chuck Sperry and Sam Smith, which is screening in 70mm in San Francisco this weekend. The other is for The Coen Brothers‘ The Big Lebowski, curated by Poster Collective and drawn by Ghoulish Gary Pullin. Check them out below. Read More »
This week, Dave, Devindra, and Adam muse on the pleasures of space jail, ponder the virtues of a filmic canon, and explain why Total Recall represents everything that’s wrong with cinema today. Special guest Matt Singer joins us from Criticwire and Filmspotting: SVU.
You can always e-mail us at slashfilmcast(AT)gmail(DOT)com, or call and leave a voicemail at 781-583-1993. We’ll be reviewing The Bourne Legacy next week.
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What is the greatest film of all time? Orson Welles‘ directorial debut Citizen Kane has often been given the honor, but a new iteration of a poll considered to be one of cinema’s most significant has overturned Kane‘s rule.
When Alfred Hitchcock‘s Vertigo opened in 1958, it met with a middling reception and many negative reviews. In 1968 Robin Wood’s book Hitchcock’s Films was part of the process of critical re-evaluation of the movie, calling it his “masterpiece to date.” In 1973 Vertigo was one of five movies owned by Hitchcock that the director took out of circulation. Vertigo was away from screens for ten years, and in that time interest in the film grew exponentially. When it was finally re-released in ’83, Vertigo was hailed as a classic and an important film.
Once a decade, the British magazine Sight and Sound conducts a poll of critics and filmmakers to generate lists of the ten best films ever made. In 1982, Vertigo hit the critics’ list at #7. In 1992 it had climbed to #4, and in 2002 it was second only to Citizen Kane.
Now, with the release of the 2012 poll, Vertigo has toppled Kane to be voted by critics as the best film ever made. Read More »
Cool Posts From Around the Web:
We’re reached a point in the evolution of film criticism where a shift is occurring. Critics who’ve been in the game for decades and decades are slowly beginning to give way to a younger, more vocal audience, many of whom are online. The beautiful thing about that is, though they all share a love of cinema, everyone has their own opinions of how and why we got there. And the best way to show that is with a top ten list.
The online contingent prides themselves upon being the new guard and, to that end, our friends at Film School Rejects polled 37 online critics and four young filmmakers for their lists of the ten greatest films of all time. They then gave those lists a point value and came up with a top ten that’s simultaneously familiar and controversial as it certainly caters to a younger demographic. Check it out and leave your thoughts below. Read More »
