To watch Marco Bellocchio’s incendiary poliziottesco film Slap the Monster on Page One is to realize that the playbook of fascism has hardly changed over the past half-century. Exposing the thinly veiled collusion of right-wing politicians and reactionary media outlets, the demonization of leftist protesters, and the hypocritical piety that ran rampant during Italy’s “years of lead,” Bellocchio’s film probes the ways in which truth is undermined to shape public opinion and sway elections.
As the editor of Il Giornale, a fictional Italian newspaper, Giancarlo Bizanti (Gian Maria Volontè) certainly understands the power of seizing control of a narrative before one’s even been formed. Speaking to the lonely, embittered Rita (Laura Betti)—whom he manipulates into betraying her left-wing activist ex, Mario (Carrado Solari), ultimately falsely implicating the man in the murder of his current girlfriend, Maria (Silvia Kramar)—he says, “Let’s not try to lose our sense of reality.
As the editor of Il Giornale, a fictional Italian newspaper, Giancarlo Bizanti (Gian Maria Volontè) certainly understands the power of seizing control of a narrative before one’s even been formed. Speaking to the lonely, embittered Rita (Laura Betti)—whom he manipulates into betraying her left-wing activist ex, Mario (Carrado Solari), ultimately falsely implicating the man in the murder of his current girlfriend, Maria (Silvia Kramar)—he says, “Let’s not try to lose our sense of reality.
- 11/10/2024
- by Derek Smith
- Slant Magazine
Can radical theater make a good movie? Elio Petri continues his string of biting social comment movies with a black comedy about rich people, thieves, and the notion of ownership — it’s a caustic position paper but also a funny satire, with quirky yet believable characters. Ugo Tognazzi is terrific as scheming capitalist, as much a prisoner of his wealth as a poor clerk is of his poverty.
Property is No Longer a Theft
Blu-ray + DVD
Arrow Video USA
1973 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 126 min. / Street Date March 28, 2017 / La proprietà non è più un furto / Available from Arrow Video / 39.95
Starring: Ugo Tognazzi, Flavio Bucci, Daria Nicolodi, Mario Scaccia, Orazio Orlando, Julien Guiomar, Cecilia Polizzi, Jacques Herlin, Ada Pometti, Salvo Randone.
Cinematography: Luigi Kuveiller
Film Editor: Ruggero Mastroianni
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Production design / Costume design: Gianni Polidori
Written by Elio Petri, Ugo Pirro
Produced by Claudio Mancini
Directed by Elio Petri
Essere o Avere?...
Property is No Longer a Theft
Blu-ray + DVD
Arrow Video USA
1973 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 126 min. / Street Date March 28, 2017 / La proprietà non è più un furto / Available from Arrow Video / 39.95
Starring: Ugo Tognazzi, Flavio Bucci, Daria Nicolodi, Mario Scaccia, Orazio Orlando, Julien Guiomar, Cecilia Polizzi, Jacques Herlin, Ada Pometti, Salvo Randone.
Cinematography: Luigi Kuveiller
Film Editor: Ruggero Mastroianni
Original Music: Ennio Morricone
Production design / Costume design: Gianni Polidori
Written by Elio Petri, Ugo Pirro
Produced by Claudio Mancini
Directed by Elio Petri
Essere o Avere?...
- 4/8/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Sneak Peek footage and images from the R-rated 'Marie Antoinette' romantic feature "Farewell, My Queen ("Les Adieux à la reine") directed by Benoît Jacquot, based on the novel of the same name by author Chantal Thomas.
The film is an eyewitness account of France's doomed Queen 'Marie Antoinette' (Diane Kruger), as seen through the eyes of an infatuated, female servant, 'Sidonie Laborde' (Léa Seydoux) :
"...in 1789, on the eve of the 'French Revolution', the court at the 'Palace of Versailles' still live their routines, relatively unconcerned by the increasing turmoil in Paris a distance away.
"When news about the storming of the 'Bastille' reaches the Court, most aristocrats and servants desert the Palace, fearing that the government is falling.
"They abandon the Royal Family. But 'Sidonie Laborde', a young servant who is the Queen's reader, has a crush on the monarch and refuses to flee.
"She...
The film is an eyewitness account of France's doomed Queen 'Marie Antoinette' (Diane Kruger), as seen through the eyes of an infatuated, female servant, 'Sidonie Laborde' (Léa Seydoux) :
"...in 1789, on the eve of the 'French Revolution', the court at the 'Palace of Versailles' still live their routines, relatively unconcerned by the increasing turmoil in Paris a distance away.
"When news about the storming of the 'Bastille' reaches the Court, most aristocrats and servants desert the Palace, fearing that the government is falling.
"They abandon the Royal Family. But 'Sidonie Laborde', a young servant who is the Queen's reader, has a crush on the monarch and refuses to flee.
"She...
- 7/27/2013
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
Sneak Peek new images from the dramatic period feature "Farewell, My Queen ("Les Adieux à la reine") directed by Benoît Jacquot, based on the novel of the same name by author Chantal Thomas.
The film is an eyewitness account of France's doomed Queen 'Marie Antoinette' (Diane Kruger), as seen through the eyes of an infatuated, female servant, 'Sidonie Laborde' (Léa Seydoux) :
"...in 1789, on the eve of the 'French Revolution', the court at the 'Palace of Versailles' still live their routines, relatively unconcerned by the increasing turmoil in Paris a distance away.
"When news about the storming of the 'Bastille' reaches the Court, most aristocrats and servants desert the Palace, fearing that the government is falling.
"They abandon the Royal Family. But 'Sidonie Laborde', a young servant who is the Queen's reader, has a crush on the monarch and refuses to flee.
"She feels secure under the protection...
The film is an eyewitness account of France's doomed Queen 'Marie Antoinette' (Diane Kruger), as seen through the eyes of an infatuated, female servant, 'Sidonie Laborde' (Léa Seydoux) :
"...in 1789, on the eve of the 'French Revolution', the court at the 'Palace of Versailles' still live their routines, relatively unconcerned by the increasing turmoil in Paris a distance away.
"When news about the storming of the 'Bastille' reaches the Court, most aristocrats and servants desert the Palace, fearing that the government is falling.
"They abandon the Royal Family. But 'Sidonie Laborde', a young servant who is the Queen's reader, has a crush on the monarch and refuses to flee.
"She feels secure under the protection...
- 9/28/2012
- by M. Stevens
- SneakPeek
Sneak Peek actress Diane Kruger in the new dramatic feature "Farewell, My Queen ("Les Adieux à la reine") directed by Benoît Jacquot, based on the novel of the same name by author Chantal Thomas.
The film is an eyewitness account of France's Queen 'Marie Antoinette' (Kruger), before she falls under the guillotine, as seen through the eyes of a young female servant, 'Sidonie Laborde' (Léa Seydoux) :
"...in 1789, on the eve of the 'French Revolution', the court at the 'Palace of Versailles' still live their routines, relatively unconcerned by the increasing turmoil in Paris a distance away. When news about the storming of the 'Bastille' reaches the Court, most aristocrats and servants desert the Palace, fearing that the government is falling. They abandon the Royal Family.
But 'Sidonie Laborde', a young servant who is the Queen's reader, has a crush on her and refuses to flee.
"She feels...
The film is an eyewitness account of France's Queen 'Marie Antoinette' (Kruger), before she falls under the guillotine, as seen through the eyes of a young female servant, 'Sidonie Laborde' (Léa Seydoux) :
"...in 1789, on the eve of the 'French Revolution', the court at the 'Palace of Versailles' still live their routines, relatively unconcerned by the increasing turmoil in Paris a distance away. When news about the storming of the 'Bastille' reaches the Court, most aristocrats and servants desert the Palace, fearing that the government is falling. They abandon the Royal Family.
But 'Sidonie Laborde', a young servant who is the Queen's reader, has a crush on her and refuses to flee.
"She feels...
- 9/20/2012
- by M. Stevens
- SneakPeek
Rank the week of July 5th’s Blu-ray and DVD new releases against the best films of all-time: New Releases Hobo With A Shotgun
(DVD and Blu-Ray | Nr | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #3839
Times Ranked: 1526
Win Percentage: 47%
Top-20 Rankings: 7
Directed By: Jason Eisener
Starring: Rutger Hauer • Gregory Smith • Molly Dunsworth • Brian Downey • Nick Bateman
Genres: Action • Adventure • Crime • Crime Thriller • Thriller
Rank This Movie
Wake Wood
(DVD and Blu-Ray | Nr | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #15374
Times Ranked: 35
Win Percentage: 32%
Top-20 Rankings: 0
Directed By: David Keating
Starring: Eva Birthistle • Ella Connolly • Amelia Crowley • Aidan Gillen • Timothy Spall
Genres: Drama • Horror
Rank This Movie
13 Assassins
(DVD and Blu-Ray | Nr | 2010)
Flickchart Ranking: #2732
Times Ranked: 1084
Win Percentage: 59%
Top-20 Rankings: 8
Directed By: Takashi Miike
Starring: Koji Yakusho • Takayuki Yamada • Yusuke Iseya • Gorô Inagaki • Masachika Ichimura
Genres: Action • Ensemble Film • Period Film • Samurai Film
Rank This Movie
Bloodrayne: The Third Reich
(DVD and Blu-ray | R | 2010)
Flickchart Ranking: #17903
Times Ranked: 30
Win Percentage: 42%
Top-...
(DVD and Blu-Ray | Nr | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #3839
Times Ranked: 1526
Win Percentage: 47%
Top-20 Rankings: 7
Directed By: Jason Eisener
Starring: Rutger Hauer • Gregory Smith • Molly Dunsworth • Brian Downey • Nick Bateman
Genres: Action • Adventure • Crime • Crime Thriller • Thriller
Rank This Movie
Wake Wood
(DVD and Blu-Ray | Nr | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #15374
Times Ranked: 35
Win Percentage: 32%
Top-20 Rankings: 0
Directed By: David Keating
Starring: Eva Birthistle • Ella Connolly • Amelia Crowley • Aidan Gillen • Timothy Spall
Genres: Drama • Horror
Rank This Movie
13 Assassins
(DVD and Blu-Ray | Nr | 2010)
Flickchart Ranking: #2732
Times Ranked: 1084
Win Percentage: 59%
Top-20 Rankings: 8
Directed By: Takashi Miike
Starring: Koji Yakusho • Takayuki Yamada • Yusuke Iseya • Gorô Inagaki • Masachika Ichimura
Genres: Action • Ensemble Film • Period Film • Samurai Film
Rank This Movie
Bloodrayne: The Third Reich
(DVD and Blu-ray | R | 2010)
Flickchart Ranking: #17903
Times Ranked: 30
Win Percentage: 42%
Top-...
- 7/5/2011
- by Jonathan Hardesty
- Flickchart
A new trailer for Cannes Festival’s winner Of Gods and Men has been debuted via Apple.
The excluding of a beloved French film in the Best Foreign Language Film category of Oscar nominees – and the inclusion of a skeptically regarded Algerian one – has raised a few eyebrows and damaged some egos in France. Opening in NY and La on February 25th, director Xavier Beauvois has assembled an excellent cast for this “quietly powerful” film including, Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Philippe Laudenbach, and Jacques Herlin.
Of Gods and Men Movie Photos
Having been commercial success in its domestic market, the drama will hit limited U.S. theaters. However, in the grand scheme of French-American relations, it’s a small bump in the road.
Just a quck reminder:
The film with a screenplay written by Etienne Comar, centers its story on the monastery of Tibhirine, where Trappist monks lived...
The excluding of a beloved French film in the Best Foreign Language Film category of Oscar nominees – and the inclusion of a skeptically regarded Algerian one – has raised a few eyebrows and damaged some egos in France. Opening in NY and La on February 25th, director Xavier Beauvois has assembled an excellent cast for this “quietly powerful” film including, Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Philippe Laudenbach, and Jacques Herlin.
Of Gods and Men Movie Photos
Having been commercial success in its domestic market, the drama will hit limited U.S. theaters. However, in the grand scheme of French-American relations, it’s a small bump in the road.
Just a quck reminder:
The film with a screenplay written by Etienne Comar, centers its story on the monastery of Tibhirine, where Trappist monks lived...
- 1/28/2011
- by Nikola Mraovic
- Filmofilia
One of the things about working at a film festival is that you don’t always have the opportunity to watch the films at the festival. That was the case when I worked at the NY Film Festival back in September and why I wasn’t able to see the well received film, Of Gods and Men.
Opening in NY and La on February 25th, director Xavier Beauvois has assembled an excellent cast for this “quietly powerful” film…or so I hear. The film stars Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Philippe Laudenbach, and Jacques Herlin. I suggest you check out the trailer below because it is quite good for a drama of this caliber. Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Eight French Christian monks live in harmony with their Muslim brothers in a monastery perched in the mountains of North Africa in the 1990s.
Opening in NY and La on February 25th, director Xavier Beauvois has assembled an excellent cast for this “quietly powerful” film…or so I hear. The film stars Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Philippe Laudenbach, and Jacques Herlin. I suggest you check out the trailer below because it is quite good for a drama of this caliber. Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Eight French Christian monks live in harmony with their Muslim brothers in a monastery perched in the mountains of North Africa in the 1990s.
- 1/27/2011
- by Alex DiGiovanna
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
One of the surprise omissions from the Academy's Foreign Language shortlist this year was the absence of Xavier Beauvois's Of Gods and Men (Des hommes et des dieux), a film I saw on my final day at the Cannes Film Festival as it was one of the films I'd missed and many were talking about as a possible contender for the Palm d'Or. It didn't end up winning as it lost to fellow shortlist exclusion Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives.
I never did get around to reviewing it, but I will get a second shot come February 25, the day Sony PIctures Classics will release the film in New York and Los Angeles prior to what I imagine will be a slow roll out to the major cities around the country shortly thereafter.
The film is quite good as it tells the story of eight French Christian...
I never did get around to reviewing it, but I will get a second shot come February 25, the day Sony PIctures Classics will release the film in New York and Los Angeles prior to what I imagine will be a slow roll out to the major cities around the country shortly thereafter.
The film is quite good as it tells the story of eight French Christian...
- 1/27/2011
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Cannes Film Festival winner Xavier Beauvois Incendies gets new videos. Clips are up from Of Gods and Men, Sony Pictures Classics, starring Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Philippe Laudenbach, Jacques Herlin, Loïc Pichon and Xavier Maly. The film is helmed by Xavier Beauvois who wrote alongside Etienne Comar and is a multiple award winner and nominee in numerous film festivals. The historical drama was selected as a winner of the Best Foreign Language Film by the National Board of Review. Pic opens on February 25th, exclusive to New York and Los Angeles...
- 1/6/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Cannes Film Festival winner Xavier Beauvois Incendies gets new videos. Clips are up from Of Gods and Men, Sony Pictures Classics, starring Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Philippe Laudenbach, Jacques Herlin, Loïc Pichon and Xavier Maly. The film is helmed by Xavier Beauvois who wrote alongside Etienne Comar and is a multiple award winner and nominee in numerous film festivals. The historical drama was selected as a winner of the Best Foreign Language Film by the National Board of Review. Pic opens on February 25th, exclusive to New York and Los Angeles...
- 1/6/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Severe, austere and deeply moving, Xavier Beauvois's film about monks threatened by fundamentalists is one of the year's highlights, says Peter Bradshaw
"Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction." The speaker is Luc, an elderly Catholic monk played by 79-year-old Michael Lonsdale, quoting a pensée of Pascal. He does it at a moment of crisis and ambiguity: does this thought apply to the Islamist mujahideen who are threatening to kill him and his brothers? Or should it rather apply to these future victims, secretly infatuated with the idea of a martyrdom that will fan the flames of violence for generations to come?
That reference is the sole, perhaps pre-emptive, concession to secularism in this stunningly passionate and deeply moving film by the French director Xavier Beauvois, based on the kidnapping and murder of monks in Algeria by fundamentalists in...
"Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction." The speaker is Luc, an elderly Catholic monk played by 79-year-old Michael Lonsdale, quoting a pensée of Pascal. He does it at a moment of crisis and ambiguity: does this thought apply to the Islamist mujahideen who are threatening to kill him and his brothers? Or should it rather apply to these future victims, secretly infatuated with the idea of a martyrdom that will fan the flames of violence for generations to come?
That reference is the sole, perhaps pre-emptive, concession to secularism in this stunningly passionate and deeply moving film by the French director Xavier Beauvois, based on the kidnapping and murder of monks in Algeria by fundamentalists in...
- 12/3/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Our film critic makes the nominations for his own personal Oscars in a widely underrated year for film
December is the season of list-making and Top 10 compiling, but when I mention this to other critics, it's been getting winces and shrugs and mutterings that 2010 hasn't been a vintage year. I'm not so sure about that. It's true that the huge arthouse hits like The White Ribbon and A Prophet are now a very distant memory — A Prophet in fact was released at the very beginning of this year, but has been so extensively discussed, that I don't mention it below. Some huge crowd-pleasers, like Danny Boyle's 127 Hours, Tom Hooper's The King's Speech and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, haven't yet had a full release and neither has Kelly Reichardt's western, Meek's Cutoff. These things may combine to produce the impression that 2010 is in itself a thin year.
December is the season of list-making and Top 10 compiling, but when I mention this to other critics, it's been getting winces and shrugs and mutterings that 2010 hasn't been a vintage year. I'm not so sure about that. It's true that the huge arthouse hits like The White Ribbon and A Prophet are now a very distant memory — A Prophet in fact was released at the very beginning of this year, but has been so extensively discussed, that I don't mention it below. Some huge crowd-pleasers, like Danny Boyle's 127 Hours, Tom Hooper's The King's Speech and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, haven't yet had a full release and neither has Kelly Reichardt's western, Meek's Cutoff. These things may combine to produce the impression that 2010 is in itself a thin year.
- 12/1/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
As we promised, we’re here to continue our little chat about Cannes Film Festival 2010, so, another title shceduled to compete for the Palme d’Or this year is Of Gods and Men (or, if you prefer Des hommes et des dieux), an upcoming French drama movie, directed by Xavier Beauvois.
So, if you’re interested in some drama about a brotherhood of Cistercian monks who stand up for their beliefs when confronted by fundamentalists, than you should definitely pay attention on this one…
But, there’s much more about this story, so here is full synopsis: “A monastery high in the mountains of the Maghreb, some time in the 90s…Eight French Cistercian monks live in harmony with the Muslim population. Close to the villagers, they share in their labors and festivities, and take care of their daily medical needs. When a group of foreign workers are massacred, panic seizes the region.
So, if you’re interested in some drama about a brotherhood of Cistercian monks who stand up for their beliefs when confronted by fundamentalists, than you should definitely pay attention on this one…
But, there’s much more about this story, so here is full synopsis: “A monastery high in the mountains of the Maghreb, some time in the 90s…Eight French Cistercian monks live in harmony with the Muslim population. Close to the villagers, they share in their labors and festivities, and take care of their daily medical needs. When a group of foreign workers are massacred, panic seizes the region.
- 4/27/2010
- by Fiona
- Filmofilia
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