Schickel on Scorsese

BLANK Mar 11, 2011 In this excerpt from his new book, "Conversations With Scorsese," veteran movie reviewer and documentary filmmaker Richard Schickel describes the character, formative struggles and career challenges of the celebrated director, with whom he shared a rich dialogue spanning several decades.In this excerpt from his new book, Richard Schickel describes the character, formative struggles and career challenges of the celebrated director. Dig deeper ( 8 Min. Read )

Columbus, Marx and Zinn Go to Bolivia

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Feb 22, 2011 What is ironically fictional in "Even the Rain's" story is the intrusion on a volatile situation of a film crew intent on portraying Christopher Columbus’ not entirely benign arrival in the New World. What is ironically fictional in "Even the Rain's" story is the intrusion on a volatile situation of a film crew intent on portraying Columbus’ not entirely benign arrival in the New World. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

2010: The Year of Staggering Irrelevance in Oscarland

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Jan 29, 2011 It begins sometime in early December, in a screening room near you, with a handful of middle-aged men and women impatiently awaiting the start of a new movie.This week’s very routine nominations hinted that I was not entirely wrong in my suppositions. Dig deeper ( 5 Min. Read )

Truthdig Radio: Save the Internet, Enlist the Gays, Movies of the Year

Staff / Truthdig Dec 30, 2010 Truthdig editors, contributors and collaborators share their insights into the corporate takeover of the free and fair Internet and the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell." Plus: Richard Schickel's picks for the best movies of the year.Truthdig editors, contributors and collaborators share their insights into the corporate takeover of the free Internet, the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" and the best movies of the year. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

‘Another Year’: The Tragedy of Everyday Life

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Dec 28, 2010 As its title forthrightly states, writer-director Mike Leigh’s “Another Year” simply records the spring-to-spring passage of the annual round of days in these very ordinary lives. I think, for reasons difficult to explain, that it is a near-to-great film. I think, for reasons difficult to explain, that Mike Leigh's "Another Year" is a near-to-great film. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Wall Street Revisited: Greed Is Good and Dull

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Sep 25, 2010 The inherent problem with Oliver Stone's follow-up to his 1987 classic is that it does not have the courage of its own nastiest convictions. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

‘Countdown to Zero’ — or Apocalypse, Whichever Comes First

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Jul 30, 2010 "Countdown to Zero" is an intelligent, graphically sophisticated documentary film about what is almost certainly the most important issue confronting the world today -- nuclear proliferation. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Into the Valley of Death Rode the … 15?

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Jun 25, 2010 The documentary "Restrepo" paints an empathetic portrait of U.S. soldiers at an Afghanistan outpost, but it keeps its audience at a distance. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

The Hack: Reflections on a Nazi-Era Filmmaker

Richard Schickel / Truthdig Jun 19, 2010 "Jud Süss" may be the most odious movie ever made And now we have a talking-heads documentary about it, “Harlan: In the Shadow of Jew Süss,” the work of Felix Moeller, in which the children and grandchildren of the film’s director, Veit Harlan, are invited to comment on the patriarch’s noxious work Now there's a documentary about it that abounds in talk but fails to truly explore this 1940 product . Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )