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Weekend Newsreel: May 19, 2006
Compiled by the FilmBuffOnLine staff
Passport To Ealing Comedies:
The British Film
Institute has created an on exhaustive online guide to the classic
comedies produced by Ealing Studios hosted by British chat show
presenter Jonathan Ross. The virtual tour covers the history of the
British studio that produced such comedy classics as Passport To
Pimlico, The Ladykillers and Kind Hearts And Coronets.
The guide is interactive to a point that allows viewers to skip past
sections they are not interested in, though a BFI spokesman warns,
“Those who do not share Jonathan's enthusiasm for the films find
themselves victims of his wit. This approach gives a much more
intimate, conversational feel for web visitors who feel as if he is
talking directly to them.” You can access the tour through the BFI’s
Screenonline website
here.
Disney War Art On Exhibit:
The
National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio
is currently hosting an exhibit World War II-era combat insignia
designs featuring various animated characters from the Walt Disney
Studio. Like all of the other Hollywood film studios, Disney
contributed greatly to the war effort. In addition to producing
propaganda shorts for regular theatrical distribution and specialty
training films for the Armed Forces (most of which have been
collected into the Disney Treasures DVD release “On The Front Lines:
The War Years“), the studio also allowed its animated characters to
used in various military units’ insignias, even going so far as to
set up a five-man crew of artists to create over 1,200 insignia
designs over the space of five years. The designs were used for
units from bombing squadrons to naval vessels to chaplain’s corps to
training schools. The exhibit contains not only original artwork
drawn by the Disney studio unit but actual unit patches and
photographs of planes bearing Disney designed nose art. For those
unable to visit the exhibit before it closes on June 11, they have
posted an extensive on line gallery of photos
here.
3-D Film Expo Returns:
The second World
3-D Film Expo has announced their lineup for their September
festival at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles. Among the 35
feature films and 20 short films that will be screening at the 10
day event include such classics as House of Wax (1953), the
musical Kiss Me Kate (1953), Creature From The Black
Lagoon (1954) and Alfred Hitchcock’s Dial ‘M’ For Murder
(1954). The fest will also be premiering two films that were
originally filmed in 3-D but initially released in the standard 2-D
format- Diamond Wizard and Jivaro (both 1954). For
more information and a complete schedule, visit the festival’s
website here.
In Remembrance
Cy Feuer- The head of
Republic Studios’ music department in the 1930s and
`40s has passed away at age 95.
Frankie Thomas-
The
1930s juvenile actor who appeared in the Nancy
Drew mystery series has passed away at age 85.
Jay Presson Allen-
The
screenwriter responsible for the screen adaptations
of the novel Marnie for and the musical
Cabaret has passed away at age 84.
Opening This Week
May 19
-
The Da Vinci Code
-
The King (NY, LA)
-
Lemming (NY) -
website
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Moonlight (NY, LA,
Chicago, Toronto)-
website
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Mouth To Mouth (NY)-
website
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On The Hedge-
website
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See No Evil-
website
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Sketches Of Frank Gehry
(LA)- website
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Twelve And Holding (NY)
May
24
May 25
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