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 is the 80th birthday of the greatest living American, Chuck Norris! For those who doubt that power of Chuck, consider this: Chuck Norris is a year older than Bernie Sanders and he could still beat him in a fight.
In honor of Chuck’s birthday, here are 4 shots from 4 of his best.
4 Shots From 4 Films
An Eye For An Eye (1981, directed by Steve Carver)
I woke up to the sad news that Max von Sydow, one of the greatest actors of all time, died yesterday. He was 90 years old and he leaves behind a truly amazing filmography. He played saints, sinners, assassins, exorcists, generals, poets, doctors, and even ordinary men who were just trying to make it day-to-day. That he was nominated for only two Academy Awards over a career that lasted 71 years was a major oversight on the Academy’s part. He was an actor who was as capable in arthouse films as he was in the latest installment of a legendary sci-fi franchise.
It’s hard to take a career as long and productive as von Sydow’s and narrow it down to just four shots from four films so I’m not going to try. The shots are below are some of my favorite von Sydow performances but they’re hardly definitive. Max von Sydow gave so many good and memorable performances that it’s hard to know where to start. Below are 4 shots from 4 films from a truly remarkable career.
Max von Sydow, R.I.P.
4 Shots From 4 Films
The Virgin Spring (1960, directed by Ingmar Bergman)
Flash Gordon (1980, directed by Mike Hodges)
Needful Things (1993, directed by Fraser C. Heston)
Shutter Island (2010, directed by Martin Scorsese)
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 pay tribute to director Robert Clouse, who was born 92 years ago today. Best-known for directing Bruce Lee’s biggest hit, Enter The Dragon, Clouse was responsible for some of the most memorable action films of the 70s and the 80s. He was an action auteur who never got the respect that he deserved but we can pay tribute to him today.
4 Shots From 4 Films
Enter The Dragon (1973, directed by Robert Clouse)
Black Belt Jones (1974, directed by Robert Clouse)
The Ultimate Warrior (1975, directed by Robert Clouse)
There’s no particular connection between these films Just a smattering of shots I found interesting in some films I’ve watched recently.
The Concorde… Airport ’79 (1979, dir. David Lowell Rich)
The same year that Ruggero Deodato brought us Concorde Affaire ’79 (1979), the final Airport film came out. It involved pilot George Kennedy having to deal with a reprogrammed drone missile, missiles launched by duped French Air Force officers, and a device designed to decompress the plane by opening the cargo bay door.
This particular shot is from a scene where they fly the plane upside down while George Kennedy fires a flare out of the cockpit as a countermeasure to throw off an incoming missile. Just take that all in.
Shin Godzilla (2016, dir. Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi)
One of the last shots from the film where Godzilla has now become part of the city skyline. If you haven’t seen this Godzilla movie, then I highly recommend you check it out.
The First 9 1/2 Weeks (1998, dir. Alex Wright)
Malcolm McDowell remembering the time he played Caligula (1979) in a knockoff of The Game (1997) which bills itself as prequel to 9 1/2 Weeks (1986). The only connection it has to the first two films is that it tries something like the fridge scene from the original and the shampoo scene from Another 9 1/2 Weeks (1997). However, that’s like Witchcraft 8: Salem’s Ghost (1996) claiming it has a connection to 9 1/2 Weeks because it too features a fridge scene (a disgusting one).
Etoile (1989, dir. Peter Del Monte)
Okay, I’m cheating on this one. I actually watched this film last year when I was finally able to get my hands on two of Jennifer Connelly’s early films–the other being Seven Minutes In Heaven (1985). This was during what I call her mystical period. Another example is Some Girls (1988).
In Etoile (aka Ballet), Jennifer Connelly and some other guy get drawn into a bad movie where Connelly performs in a weird version of Swan Lake. So of course the movie needs to include somebody getting attacked by a giant black swan during a scene a little reminiscent of the time Jessica Harper referenced Dario Argento’s first film while fighting a witch. Yes, I’m well aware that Connelly was also in an Argento film.
As a bonus, here’s what the director thought of the giant black swan.
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 Tenebre, 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 Films
Inferno (1980, dir by Dario Argento)
The House By The Cemetery (1981, dir by Lucio Fulci)
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 is the birthday of one of the greatest films stars ever, Elizabeth Taylor! And you know what that means. It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Elizabeth Taylor Films
A Place in the Sun (1951, dir by George Stevens)
Suddenly, Last Summer (1959, dir by Joseph L. Mankiewicz
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 would have been the 77th birthday of my favorite members of the Beatles (not to mention The Traveling Wilburys), George Harrison. Harrison died far too young but he left behind a legacy of music that is celebrated to this day and will still be celebrated long after the rest of us have moved on.
While everyone knows George from his music, what is often forgotten is that Harrison is also often credited with helping to revive the British film industry. After the break-up of the Beatles, Harrison partnered with Denis O’Brien and formed HandMade Films. At a time when British cinema was struggling both financially and artistically, Harrison served as executive producer for some of the best films to come out of the British film industry. Harrison championed many talented British directors and he used his clout to get many otherwise difficult project produced. It’s fair to say that, if not for his support, the members of Monty Python would never have been able to make the then-controversial Life of Brian, which is now widely regarded as one of the best British comedies ever made.
Today, on his birthday, here are four shots of four films executive produced by George Harrison.
4 Shots From 4 Films
Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979, directed by Terry Jones)
The Missionary (1982, directed by Richard Loncraine)
A Private Function (1984, directed by Malcolm Mowbray)
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, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy 82nd birthday to the one and only Paul Morrissey!
Though he may not be as well known as some of his contemporaries, Paul Morrissey is one of the godfathers of independent film. He first came to notice as a collaborator of Andy Warhol’s. Morrisey’s first films were shot at the Factory and starred the members of Warhol’s entourage. At a time when the indie film scene barely even existed, Morrissey was making boldly transgressive films and distributing them largely on his own. In fact, it could probably be argued that, if not for Paul Morrissey, the American independent film scene would never have grown into the impressive artistic and financial force that it is today.
There’s always been some debate over how much influence Warhol had over Morrissey’s films. Morrissey has always said that Warhol had next to nothing to do with the films, beyond occasionally taking a producer’s or a co-director’s credit. Others have disagreed. What can be said for sure is that, even after Warhol retreated from directly involving himself in the cinematic arts, Morrissey continued to make fiercely independent films.
Paul Morrissey made films about outsiders. While other directors were telling stories about the middle and upper classes, Morrissey was making movies about junkies, prostitutes, and people simply trying to make it from one day to another. His films also frequently satirized classic Hollywood genres. In fact, his two best-known films, Flesh for Frankenstein and Blood for Dracula, not only satirized the old Universal horror films but also the Marxist-themed films being made in Europe. A devout Catholic and a political conservative, Morrissey took a particular delight in tweaking the left-wing assumptions of the counterculture. Who can forget Joe Dallesandro’s gloriously shallow revolutionary in Blood for Dracula?
Here are….
4 Shots From 4 Paul Morrissey Films
Chelsea Girls (1966, dir by Paul Morrissey and Andy Warhol)
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 is the 120th birthday of the great Spanish surrealist filmmaker, Luis Bunuel! Continuing the tradition that we’ve just started here at the Shattered Lens, that means that it is now time for….
4 Shots From 4 Luis Buñuel Films
(This post, I should add, was a true pleasure to put together because Luis Buñuel is truly one of the most visually inspiring directors of all time. If you haven’t seen a Luis Buñuel film, 2020 is the perfect year to discover him!)
Illusion Travels By Streetcar (1954, dir by Luis Buñuel)
The Exterminating Angel (1962, dir by Luis Buñuel)
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!
95 years ago today, Sam Peckinpah was born in Fresno, California. He went on to become one of the most influential and most self-destructive directors of all time. Peckinpah was as legendary for his combative personality and his behind-the-scenes conflicts with the studios as he was for his talent.
Even after he revolutionized the western with The Wild Bunch, Peckinpah often struggled to get work and, when he died at the too young age of 59, it was after years of being neglected by the same industry that had once embraced him. Fortunately, a new generation of filmmakers discovered and appreciated Peckinpah’s work and have kept Mad Sam’s legacy going today. Directors like Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez owe a huge debt to him. (Once Upon A Time In Hollywood particularly felt as if it was suffused with the spirit of Peckinpah.) Whenever you see someone getting shot in slow motion or a group of old timers (whether they’re criminals or cowboys) getting ready to take a final stand, you’re seeing the influence of Sam Peckinpah.
In honor of Sam Peckinpah, here are:
4 Shots from 4 Films
The Wild Bunch (1969, directed by Sam Peckinpah)
The Getaway (1972, directed by Sam Peckinpah)
Cross of Iron (1977, directed by Sam Peckinpah)
The Osterman Weekend (1983, directed by Sam Peckinpah)
Through the Shattered Lens 