4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Hal Needham Edition

Posted on March 6, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, we take a moment to remember the great director and stuntman, Hal Needham. It’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 Hal Needham Films

Smokey and the Bandit (1977, dir by Hal Needham, DP: Bobby Byrne)

Hooper (1978, dir by Hal Needham, DP: Bobby Byrne)

The Cannonball Run (1981, dir by Hal Needham, DP: Michael Butler)

Rad (1986, dir by Hal Needham, DP: Richard Leiterman)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Pier Paolo Pasolini Edition

Posted on March 5, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

103 years ago, on this date, Pier Paolo Pasolini was born in Italy. His controversial films and his mysterious death continue to inspire debate to this very day. Both the man and his works were full of intriguing contradictions. Pasolini was an atheist who made one of the best Biblical films ever made. He was a communist who made films that celebrated individual freedom and who had little use for the upper class liberals who made up much of the European counterculture of the 1960s. In the end, he was an artist unafraid to challenge all assumptions, whether they were found on the right or the left. His final film, Salo, was the most controversial of his career. It was also projected to be the first part of a trilogy, though those plans were ended by Pasolini’s murder.

It’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 Pier Paolo Pasolini Films

Accatone (1961, dir by Pier Paolo Pasolini, DP: Tonino Delli Colli)

The Gospel According To St. Matthew (1964, dir by Pier Paolo Pasolini, DP: Tonino Delli Colli)

The Hawks and The Sparrows (1966, dir by Pier Paolo Pasolini, DP: Mario Bernardo and Tonino Delli Colli)

Salo (1975, dir by Pier Paolo Pasolini, DP: Tonino Delli Colli)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special New Orleans Edition

Posted on March 4, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films is just what it says it is, 4 (or more) shots from 4 (or more) of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films lets the visuals do the talking.

Today, the Shattered Lens pays homage to the greatest of Mardi Gras cities, New Orleans!

4 Shots From 4 New Orleans-Set Films

Easy Rider (1969, dir by Dennis Hopper, DP: Laszlo Kovacs)

Zandalee (1990, dir by Sam Pillsbury, DP: Walt Lloyd)

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008, dir by David Fincher, DP: Claudio Miranda)

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (2009, dir by Werner Herzog, DP: Peter Zieitlinger)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special George Miller Edition

Posted on March 3, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Today the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to one of our favorite people, George Miller! The doctor-turned-director began his cinematic career with 1979’s Mad Max and he’s gone on to become one of the most influential and important filmmakers out there. In honor of George Miller’s birthday, here are….

4 Shots From 4 George Miller Films

Mad Max (1979, dir by George Miller, DP: Dave Eggby)

The Road Warrior (1981, dir by George Miller, DP: Dean Semler)

Babe: Pig In The City (1998, dir by George Miller, DP: Andrew Lesnie)

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015, dir by George Miller, DP: John Seale)

8 Shots From 8 Films: Special Lisa Marie’s Favorite Best Picture Winners Edition

Posted on March 2, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

8 Shots From 8 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 8 Shots From 8 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

My list of my favorite Best Picture winners is a fluid one. There are a few — like All About Eve, It Happened One Night, the two Godfathers — that are always on the list. I love these four films with all my heart. Then there are films like No Country For Old Men that I think about and say, “Of course that’s going on the list!” There are other films that have snuck up on me. Until I was making out this list, I didn’t realize how much I truly did like Coda.

Anyway, here’s my top 8!

8 Shots From 8 Oscar-Winning Films

It Happened One Night (1934, dir by Frank Capra, DP: Joseph Walker)

Casablanca (1942, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Arthur Edeson)

All About Eve (1950, dir by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, DP: Milton R. Krassner)

West Side Story (1961, dir by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, DP: Daniel L. Fapp)

The Godfather (1972, dir by Francis Ford Coppola, DP: Gordon Willis)

The Godfather Part II (dir by Francis Ford Coppola, DP: Gordon Willis)

No Country For Old Men (2007, dir by Joel and Ethan Coen, DP: Roger Deakins)

CODA (2021, dir by Sian Heder, DP: Paula Huidobro)

My Oscar Predictions

Posted on March 2, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Okay, let’s do this! Here are my predictions of what will win at the big show tonight!

Best Picture — Anora

Best Directing — Sean Baker, Anora

Best Actor — Timothee Chalamet, A Complete Unknown

Best Actress — Mikey Madison, Anora

Best Supporting Actor — Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain

Best Supporting Actress — Ariana Grande, Wicked

Best Original Screenplay — A Real Pain

Best Adapted Screenplay — Conclave

Best Animated Feature — The Wild Robot

Best Production Design — Wicked

Best Cinematography — Nosferatu

Best Costume Design — Wicked

Best Film Editing — Conclave

Best Makeup and Hairstyling — Wicked

Best Sound — Dune Part II

Best Visual Effects — Dune Part II

Best Original Score — The Brutalist

Best Original Song — Never Too Late from Elton John: Never Too Late

Best Documentary Feature — Sugarcane

Best International Feature: I’m Still Here

Best Animated Short: Yuck!

Best Documentary Short: The Only Girl In The Orchestra

Best Live Action Short: The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

4 Shots From 4 Films – Hong Kong super-actor Lau Ching-Wan!

Posted on March 1, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Today I want to share my love of the great Hong Kong actor Lau Ching-Wan! I’ve been a huge fan going back to the time when I bought the book, “Hollywood East: Hong Kong Movies and the People Who Make Them,” sometime around 2000 or so. I was already hooked on the films of Chow Yun-Fat, but it was in this book that I really discovered the special connection between director Johnnie To and Lau Ching-Wan. Of course I was immediately obsessed, and I soon would see some movies that I still consider my very favorites. At 61 years of age, Lau is still very much in demand and at the top of his game. In 2023, he won his third Hong Kong Film Award for the film DETECTIVE VS. SLEUTHS. In January of this year, the Hong Kong Film Critics Society named him their Best Actor for a record fifth time for his performance in the film PAPA (2024). He’s a truly incredible talent. Enjoy!

C’EST LA VIE, MON CHERI (1993)

THE LONGEST NITE (1998)

THE WHITE STORM (2013)

DETECTIVE VS. SLEUTHS (2022)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Ania Pieroni Edition

Posted on February 28, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Today is the birthday of Italian actress Ania Pieroni.

You may not recognize the name but, if you’re a fan of Italian horror, chances are that you’ve seen Ania Pieroni at least once. Even though she only has 11 credits listed on the imdb and apparently made her last film over 30 years ago, Ania Pieroni achieved screen immortality by playing key roles in three of the greatest Italian films ever made.

In Dario Argento’s Inferno, she was the first actress to play the mysterious Mother of Tears.

In Lucio Fulci’s The House By The Cemetery, she played the mysterious housekeeper and nanny who, in one of the film’s most memorable scenes, nonchalantly mops up a huge pool of blood before subsequently losing her head in the house’s basement.

And then, in Argento’s Tenebrae, she played the unfortunate shoplifter who pays a steep price for not paying for Peter Neal’s latest novel.

Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to Ania Pieroni with….

4 Shots From 4 Ania Pieroni Films