the Coen Brothers
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Remembering Ben Barenholtz, 1935 – 2019
Exhibitor, distributor, producer and director — one of the seminal figures of the modern American independent film movement, Ben Barenholtz, died last Wednesday in Prague. He was 83. In the late ’60s, Barenholtz programmed New York rep house the Elgin Cinema, where his scheduled mixed experimental films with mainstream movies. It was also where he popularized the concept of the “midnight movie,” playing Alejandro Jodoworsky’s El Topo for months on end. Another midnight movie — Eraserhead — was an early marquee title of Barenholtz’s first distribution company, Libra Films, and later, at Circle Films, he bought and distributed the classic […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jul 3, 2019 -
Watch: Coen Brothers Documentary on VICE Guide to Film
George Clooney, Jeff Bridges, John Turturro, and composer Carter Burwell are among the talking heads who analyze the filmmaking brothers’ oeuvre in VICE Guide to Film‘s recent episode on the Coen Brothers (above). The segment, which amounts to an extended video essay, breaks down scenes from some of their most memorable films and delves into their collaboration process. Discussing the directing duo, Turturro says, “It’s like a two-headed monster.” Previous episodes of the show have focused on the work of Kelly Reichardt, Gus Van Sant, John Carpenter, Todd Haynes, and other directors.
by Paula Bernstein on Jun 6, 2016 -
Considering The Big Lebowski: A XXX Parody
In retrospect it seems inevitable that some enterprising pornographers in Hollywood’s shadow industry would look to the Coen brothers’ quintessential Venice Beach bum The Dude for inspiration. Not only is southern California the hub of the sex biz, The Dude is SoCal made flesh. And now a company called New Sensations has done just this with The Big Lebowski: A XXX Parody, a passionate, nearly shot-for-shot recreation that shows that cute porn is not an oxymoron. Sure, New Sensations has already tackled pop culture with 30 Rock: A XXX Parody and Seinfeld: A XXX Parody, but The Big Lebowski: A […]
by Lauren Wissot on Jul 6, 2010 -
Porn Parodying The Big Lebowski
Okay, it’s the weekend, so I’m allowing myself a frivolous but funny post. Filmmaker was invited to the set of this film just a few weeks ago. We weren’t able to send anybody but I just came across this entirely safe-for-work trailer of the porn parody of The Big Lebowski starring Tom Byron as “The Dude,” Peter, um O’Tool eerily accurate in the John Goodman role, and Kimberly Kane channeling Julianne Moore’s performance artiste. Porn parodies have come a long way. Some of these set-ups compare to the original pretty well. From the press release we received: New Sensations, the […]
by Scott Macaulay on Apr 3, 2010
