Normally I rely on Pamela to do my instant obituaries, but she’s gallivanting somewhere, so here’s a link to the Wikipedia page. He was tremendous in The Godfather, of course, which everyone should watch more than once. I do have an anecdote. Here’s something just posted on Twitter by my old sparring partner Paul Myers,… [continues]

Jean-Louis Trintignant, who died last week at the age of 91, was an outstanding presence in European Cinema for more than 60 years. During that time he appeared in more 100 films, across a range of styles from romantic drama to political thriller. He was born into a wealthy family near Uzès in the Gard… [continues]

A personal appreciation by comedy writer, producer, performer and novelist Dave Cohen Barry Cryer spent more than six decades as one of the most sought-after joke writers in the business. He began his career working in the comedy shows that took place between the acts at London’s striptease theatres, but found his way into writing… [continues]

The film world lost another notable actor from the world of late 20th century cinema last week – Hardy Krüger, who has died at the age of 93. Krüger was one of a small number of post war German film actors who achieved international status, demonstrating that not all Germans are bad people. Krüger himself,… [continues]

Peter Bogdanovich, who has died aged 82, was a big figure in Hollywood, his influence extending beyond the 17 films he directed himself.  He acted in numerous films and TV series and was a prolific writer on films and actors, initially in Esquire magazine. As a director he is best known for The Last Picture… [continues]

A personal appreciation by Tony Palmer, film director and writer I had the privilege of working with Stephen Sondheim for the ‘musicals’ episode of my TV series All You Need Is Love (1977). Unlike many of his songs, Sondheim was lucid and simple, emphasising his debt to, and friendship with, his mentor and ‘adopted’ father, Oscar… [continues]

Le Magnifique This week European cinema lost one of its greatest stars of the 20thcentury: Jean-Paul Belmondo. Belmondo did it all: after a spell as an amateur boxer he trained as an actor and performed in theatre – a medium to which he returned briefly some 30 years into his film career. In 1959, Jean-Luc… [continues]

By Steve Sasanow There are certain films that make a lasting impression, and the deaths this past month of directors Robert Downey Sr (5/7/21 in Los Angeles) and Richard Donner (7/7/21 in New York City) brought to mind two features of distinctly different character and influence. The year was 1969, a pretty memorable one for… [continues]