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It’s time for your Friday film quiz, and this week’s batch of 30 movie-related questions have monkeys in mind…

Fancy another preview of upcoming Friday film quiz themes? We’re planning rounds about the Oscars, Disney movies, and Robert De Niro over the next couple of months, but now, at last, it’s come to this – a quiz about monkeys on film. With Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey (read Maria’s review here) unleashed in cinemas and previous quizzes on Stephen King movies and Planet Of The Apes already behind us, we’ve run out of excuses not to monkey around.

Once you’ve completed this week’s quiz, you’ll find a link to a separate post with the correct answers at the bottom of this post. As always, this is just for fun, but please let us know how you did in the comments (scores out of 30 this week!

When Clint Eastwood became a familiar face to U.S. television viewers via his portrayal of ramrod Rowdy Yates in the CBS Western drama "Rawhide," no one save for maybe his mother saw his handsome mug on their television screen and said, "This man is going to be a transformational figure in motion pictures." No one could've predicted that he'd fly to Spain during his 1964 hiatus from "Rawhide" and make a one-of-a-kind Western with an upstart Italian director named Sergio Leone, thus launching an entire subgenre that would turn him into an international movie star. They certainly couldn't have guessed that he'd also redefine the cop film as a due-process-flouting hardass named Harry Callahan. And then to become a celebrated filmmaker in his own right? Crazy talk.

Clint Eastwood has defied expectations and categorization. At the moment that he was riding high on Westerns and his Dirty Harry persona, he...

Clint Eastwood, ever heard of him? Of course you have … though maybe not around these parts. Whether he’s on screen, behind the camera, or, hell, even both, the two-time Oscar winner is best known for grounded dramas, cutting-edge westerns, crime thrillers, left-of-the-dial comedies, biopics, and the list goes on. But Horror? Short of his bit parts in The Witches and Revenge of the Creature, you’d have to bend the tenets of the genre to make it work.

The most malleable of his films to the Horror genre is his directorial debut: 1971’s Play Misty for Me. Written by Jo Heims and Dean Riesner, the taut thriller pre-dates the “-from hell” subgenre (think: Fatal Attraction) by nearly two decades. It’s also a better movie than most of them. Eastwood not only proves to be the lean and mean director we know and respect today from the get-go, but...

Clint Eastwood became an icon of the Western genre long before he starred in the highest grossing Western of the 1980s, Pale Rider. Released in 1985, the movie, which was also produced and directed by the cinema legend, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and the celebration has started early as fans have been discovering the film on Tubi, sending it straight to the top of the free streaming platform’s movie chart.

As per the synopsis of Pale Rider, “When property owner Coy Lahood (Richard Dysart) starts using a band of hooligans to terrorize a group of small-town gold miners into giving up their territory, an enigmatic man named "Preacher" (Eastwood) arrives in town. Preacher fends off the attacks, and then goes directly to Lahood to negotiate. When the miners, led by Hull Barret (Michael Moriarty), refuse the terms, Lahood sends in Marshall Stockburn (John Russell) to take down Preacher and the others.

Clint Eastwood's 2024 movie with a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score, but was buried in theaters, has become a streaming success. Eastwood made his acting debut back in 1955, but broke through with a lead role in the Western series Rawhide and rose to fame in Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy of spaghetti Westerns during the 1960s. Eastwood became known for much more than Westerns during the 1970s and 1980s, starring as the antihero cop Harry Callahan in five Dirty Harry movies and playing against type in the comedies Every Which Way But Loose and Any Which Way You Can.

In addition to his iconic onscreen roles, Eastwood is just as famous as a filmmaker, making his directorial debut in 1971 with the indie film, Play Misty For Me. Over the years, while a two-time Oscar nominee for acting, Eastwood won Best Director for his 1992 Western Unforgiven and his 2004 boxing drama Million Dollar Baby,...

Clint Eastwood seems to have always been around. Since his industry debut in the mid-50s, the actor has been a steady presence in Hollywood, rarely dropping a year or two between projects. However, Eastwood’s transition from a Spaghetti Western legend to an action movie star to a four Oscars-winning director was littered with “problems” along the way.

Clint Eastwood [Credit: United Artists]

Although “problem films” do not necessarily convey the best message about an actor or a director, every artist collects one or two along the way to becoming a renowned A-list star in the industry. Clint Eastwood is no different. After establishing himself in the Western and action genres, the actor wanted to branch out to discover what else he had to offer.

That is when he landed a $104 million movie that changed his career.

Clint Eastwood wanted to make family-friendly films Every Which Way but Loose (1978) [Credit: co0026840 autoWarner Bros.

Clint Eastwood was one of the biggest movie stars of the 1970s and had several career-defining roles throughout this decade. Coming off his breakout success as The Man with No Name in Sergio Leones Dollars Trilogy during the 1960s, Eastwood would not slow down in the following decade as he branched out into action movies, comedies, dramas, and thrillers. With an unmatched onscreen charisma and a tough-guy reputation, Eastwoods 1970s filmography may just be the perfect encapsulation of his entire career.

In the 1970s, Eastwood continued to play tough Western gunslingers and even led a brand new franchise as Inspector Harry Callahan in the Dirty Harry series. While this decade saw some extraordinary highs, it also featured several low points as some comedies and action releases failed to make the same impact as his greatest works. A true icon of the 1970s and beyond, Eastwood even carved out a second...

Clint Eastwood is one of the few faces in Hollywood, who has managed to stay relevant decades into his career. Despite Eastwood’s success as a director in the later stages of his career, he is first and foremost known for his impactful performances in Western movies like the Dollars trilogy and the neo-noir franchise Dirty Harry.

Clint Eastwood is known for his role in the Dollars trilogy (Credit: Constantin Film).

Although both Eastwood-led franchises received praise from critics and were mostly successful at the box office, they do not amount to much compared to the financial success of one of his worst movies. In an interview, Eastwood admitted that he was advised against doing one of his highest-grossing films as an actor, which is considered to be his worst outing by critics. Here is what the veteran had to say about it.

Clint Eastwood’s Agent Advised Him Not...

Quick Links Eastwood Became A Legend In Every Genre He Touched Heartbreak Ridge Is An Eastwood Classic Heartbreak Ridge Perfects the Eastwood Tough Guy Persona Eastwood's War Movie Is Perfect For Top Gun Maverick Fans Eastwood's War Movie Is One Big Quote Mine

In 1964, Clint Eastwood soared to stardom thanks to his role as the Man With No Name in Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars. As the Dollars Trilogy continued, and he became a household name, the star became one of Hollywood's go-to heroes, personifying a roguish, gruff, and morally ambiguous antihero. While movies like Unforgiven, Dirty Harry, and The Gauntlet are among the best in their respective genres, some of his films continue to be underrated.

No matter how talented an actor or how famous they are, every star has their share of overlooked and underrated films under their belt. Few actors have as many such films behind them as Eastwood,...

Is Juror #2 Clint Eastwood”’s swan song?

“Who knows? He’s been saying that for a long time” exclaimed Eastwood’s longtime producer Tim Moore last night at the world premiere of the Warner Bros movie. Juror #2 was played the Tcl Chinese Theatre in Hollywood as AFI Fest’s closing night film.

Moore continued, “At 94 years old, he’s still making films. I’ve been with him for 23 years. I always said I’d retire before he did and I haven’t retired yet.” Moore credits with Eastwood including the 4x Oscar winner’s highest grossing title, American Sniper ($547.6M) as well as The Mule, J. Edgar and more.

Juror #2 follows Nicholas Hoult as Justin Kemp, a recovering alcoholic-journalist who is awaiting his first child with his wife. He gets called to the jury of a murder trial in Georgia, and soon realizes he might be closer to the victim than originally realized.

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Clint Eastwood was one of the biggest movie stars in the world in 1995, but, up until that point, he was not known for appearing in family-friendly films. CBS' "Rawhide," the television series that launched him in the 1960s, and 1982's "Firefox," with its video game tie-in, are probably his two most kid-appropriate works. "Bronco Billy" and "Honkytonk Man" are also family films in a way, though, really, Eastwood only hit the bullseye with kids when he plopped Clyde the orangutan into the bare-knuckle-brawling adventures of Philo Beddoe in "Every Which Way But Loose" and "Any Which Way You Can" (both of which have no shortage of gleefully raunchy moments).

Eastwood also wasn't known for his romantic dramas, so the summer of 1995 promised to be an outlier for him with his adaptation of Robert James Waller's runaway bestseller "The Bridges of Madison County.

Brothers, which swiftly became the number one movie in America on Prime Video, is not shy about the fact that it is derivative of buddy-comedies past. From director Max Barbakow of Palm Springs and with a story by Ethan Cohen, it follows a pair of twins who come from a "long line of felons" as they embark on a reunion heist together. Brothers has quite the star-studded cast, with its trailer toting the phrase "Academy Award nominee" or "winner" multiple times, with supporting actors including the likes of Brendan Fraser, Glenn Close, and Marisa Tomei.

Aside from its impressive creative team and cast, the main selling point of Brothers was that it would be in the vein of other beloved films, particularly 1988s Twins, which creatives went on record stating that Brothers would be inspired by tonally. However, there is one film the romp is pulling from that is arguably less obvious.

The term "icon" is grossly overused when discussing artists and celebrities, but it applies to Clint Eastwood. Between his pivotal role in the popularization of the Spaghetti Western and his revolutionizing of the crime film with his five-film portrayal of "Dirty" Harry Callahan, you could say there wasn't a more important actor throughout the second half of the 20th century and no one who knows the terrain would take issue with your assessment. Eastwood wasn't just an international movie star, he was, for good and ill, an avatar for law and order in America. He played violent men who uncomfortably lived by simple codes. His characters typically "won," but they paid a sometimes terrible price for triumphing. They compromised their values. They placed loved ones in harm's way. They punished themselves for punishing others (or just behaving like a lout). And once upon a time, audiences were in the market...

Warning: Major spoilers for Amazon's Brothers below!Brothers offers a dark flipside to one of Clint Eastwood's most profitable movies. Brothers appears to be heavily inspired by the Arnold Schwarzenegger/Danny DeVito joint Twins, where the mismatched stars played identical twins. While not an official remake by any stretch, Brothers riffs on Twins in several ways. This includes the main characters going on a road trip that involves meeting their mother, while also being stalked by a relentless criminal trying to acquire an item they're holding onto.

This even extends to Brothers' ending sequence, where the twins are chased around by the movie's villain (played by Brendan Fraser) with a shotgun. The key difference between the two, however, is tone. Twins is a goofy comedy fit for the whole family, while Brothers is littered with pitch-black comedy throughout. The cast of Brothers 2024 - including leads Josh Brolin and...

Brothers follows a reformed criminal who is trying desperately to stay that when. He finds his plans turned upside down when he reunites with his unpredictable twin brother for one last heist. What comes next is a chaotic cross-country adventure filled with shootouts and family tension.

Peter Dinklage and Josh Brolin star in the film, playing the twin brothers. Both Dinklage and Brolin have extensive acting careers, and this is not the first film they have been in together. The two were in the McU's Avengers: Infinity War with Brolin portraying Thanos, and Dinklage playing Eitri. Brothers comes to select theaters on October 10 and starts streaming on Prime Video on October 17.

Related Brothers Trailer: Josh Brolin & Peter Dinklage Are Criminal Twins Looking To Do One Last Job

Prime Video has released the trailer for Brothers, giving a look at Josh Brolin and Peter Dinklage in their roles as twin criminals doing a final job.

While plenty of movies from the 1970s have since built up cult followings, that does not mean they have not aged poorly in the subsequent decades. Whether due to outdated social and political content, poor special effects, or even outrageous concepts that dont hold up in todays modern cinema landscape, its interesting to notice how much time can ravage an audiences perspective on a particular film. While these movies may have aged poorly, that does not necessarily make them bad, and it's important to view them as products of the era in which they were made.

Some of the best films from the 1970s have their fair share of issues regarding being outdated, and this was especially the case for cult classics that already stood outside of normal cinematic expectations. From silly premises like an offbeat comedy casting Clint Eastwood opposite an ape to sci-fi classics whose special effects just didnt hold up,...

Saturday Night Live has seen so many mega-celebrities deliver monologues and do their best impressions on the Studio 8H stage over the years, but Lorne Michaels still thinks about the few superstars who passed on the opportunity — thank god he was able to cross Elon Musk off the list.

Within the last decade, the inscrutable decision-making process that leads to the selection of each week’s Saturday Night Live host has seemed especially chaotic. Michaels and his team drew heavy criticism for booking Donald Trump to host the show in the midst of Trump’s first presidential campaign back in 2015, and the aforementioned tech billionaire and propaganda platformer’s performance on SNL in 2021 was cringey and unfunny at best, and shamefully out-of-touch at worst. When former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley made a cameo in a cold open during the most recent season of SNL, star...

In a business as risky as the entertainment industry, where nothing can be said for sure about a project and whether it would appease the audience or go down as a forgettable memory, Clint Eastwood has proven his genius one too many times. Be it through guaranteed successes or some really dangerous ones, he has managed to enchant audiences in the most outstanding manner possible.

Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino. | Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures.

For one, his 1978 comedy-action Every Which Way but Loose was considered one of his riskiest projects when he decided to undertake it. Due to uncertainty of how viewers would react to it, some even considered it potentially flopping. And yet, Eastwood being Eastwood proved to everyone that he could turn even the movie that could have easily ended his career into a surprise hit.

Clint Eastwood Was Told Every Which Way but Loose Would “Flop”

When...

Quick Links Philo Beddoe Is Clint Eastwood's Craziest Role Clint Eastwood Turned Monkey Business Into Box-Office Gold This 1989 Flop Made Eastwood Quit Comedy Clint Eastwood's venture into comedy paid off from a financial perspective, with Every Which Way But Loose being his first film to cross the $100 million mark at the domestic box office. Clyde the orangutan steals the show, showcasing a deeply personal and touching relationship with Philo Beddoe and bringing hilarity to the sequel. After the critical failure of Any Which Way You Can, Eastwood never ventured back into straight comedy, retreating to his stoic on-screen persona.

Clint Eastwood has always had a dry sense of humor as an actor, especially in the Dirty Harry films, which charmingly edge close to parody through his ability and willingness to poke sly fun at his incomparable screen persona while maintaining an air of competence and strength. Eastwood entered the...

Road trips have served as the basis for some of Hollywood's best stories for decades, especially in the comedy genre. These movies often follow characters who, through shared adversity, become closer as friends. Everything from buddy-style dynamics to family trips makes the road trip one of the most enduring, successful formulas on film, merging elements of adventure with relatable situations as characters battle the odds to reach their destinations.

Road trips can take on a variety of forms, from tense modern Westerns to comedic adventures, but all of them share the same focus on character growth and overcoming adversity. There aren't nearly enough of these movies, but some stand out as a testament to the value of a good road-faring adventure. Whether through a modern cross-country story of self-discovery or an old-school crime tale, these films are the best road trip movies out there.

Every Which Way But Loose Is...

It won’t be wrong to say that success is often measured by awards and accolades in the entertainment industry. But for Tom Cruise—the man who scaled the Burj Khalifa (remember the Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol sequence) and soared as Maverick—it seems that the true measure of achievement lies in the journey rather than the destination.

In a 2002 interview with Vanity Fair, the actor, now 61, revealed his deep desire to have a career-defining moment similar to Clint Eastwood’s Oscar-winning Western film Unforgiven. Arguably one of the greatest Western flicks of all time, Eastwood not only produced and directed this 1992 magnum opus but even starred in it.

Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible – Fallout | Skydance Tc Productions

The film was also highlighted by an Academy Award-winning performance from Gene Hackman and exceptional work by Richard Harris. With a resounding vote of approval from critics, Unforgiven offered a critical analysis...

Clint Eastwood's iconic roles in top-grossing films showcase his enduring box office appeal and versatility as an actor. From Dirty Harry to emotional dramas like Million Dollar Baby, Eastwood's films resonate with audiences worldwide. Eastwood's triple-threat talent as actor, director, and producer shines in box office hits like Gran Torino, captivating viewers.

Clint Eastwood's star power reliably attracts audiences, ensuring significant box office earnings. Though not every film he stars in rakes in huge profits, there are ten that stand out as the highest-grossing of his career. From Clint Eastwoods iconic roles as the "Man With No Name" in Sergio Leone's Spaghetti Westerns to the uncompromising Inspector Harry Callahan in the Dirty Harry series, the actor has embodied a timeless brand of cinematic masculinity for over six decades.

His intelligent filmmaking and prolific acting have contributed to an impressive net worth and a collective worldwide gross of $3.8 billion for his films.

Burt Reynolds and Clint Eastwood's legendary Hollywood friendship led to a friendly rivalry and eventual collaboration in City Heat. Despite high expectations for City Heat due to the star power of Eastwood and Reynolds, the film did not live up to blockbuster status. A serious injury to Reynolds on the first day of filming altered his career trajectory and led to false rumors about his health, impacting his stardom.

The friendship between Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds began in 1959, when the pair, both of whom were Universal Pictures contract players, were simultaneously fired by Universal. As Reynolds fondly recounted throughout the rest of his career, he was fired because of his acting, while Eastwood was let go because Universal objected to his chipped tooth and large Adam’s apple.

After achieving film stardom, Eastwood with the Dollar Trilogy Western film series, and Reynolds with the 1972 thriller Deliverance, they maintained...

After the rolling laughs, hoots, hollers, whistling and clapping at tonight’s world premiere of Road House at SXSW on Friday, Amazon MGM Studios may want to think again before putting this Jake Gyllenhaal-Conor McGregor rock ’em sock ’em beefcakes pugilist movie on Prime Video. It doesn’t take an elbow to the head to wake up to the fact that Road House clearly needs to make a destination to cinemas.

The jam-packed Paramount Theatre here in Austin, TX devoured this Doug Liman-directed movie like a dozen beef ribs from Terry Black’s Barbeque. By no means was this last-minute, unexpected trip for Liman a waste of time for the filmmaker.

While the streamer has turned a corner and committed to theatrical, and is largely judicious in making the proper call as to what goes on the service or on the big screen, this non-stop action-in-paradise movie,...

There are a lot of weird things that have happened in the history of the movies, but Clint Eastwood riding with an Orangutan named Clyde, resulting in one of his biggest hits as an actor is certainly in the pantheon of cinematic outlandishness. How can a man who has epitomized the Spaghetti Western, and has stood as the shining example of machismo, achieve great commercial success from a silly comedy? Well, that's immeasurable star power for you, and James Fargo's Every Which Way but Loose is a testament to Eastwood's versatility and innate magnetism with audiences.

On Friday nights, IndieWire After Dark takes a feature-length beat to honor fringe cinema in the streaming age.

First, the spoiler-free pitch for one editor’s midnight movie pick — something weird and wonderful from any age of film that deserves our memorializing.

Then, the spoiler-filled aftermath as experienced by the unwitting editor attacked by this week’s recommendation.

The Pitch: That’s $1522 Per Ape, Per Day!

Two weeks ago, when I found myself watching “Eye of the Cat” for this very column, I realized that it was a remnant of a niche subgenre that has been dormant for far too long: films about humans and animals competing for large inheritances. Despite the fact that pets have absolutely no use for human currency, it used to be perfectly acceptable to open a film with a will reading, only for a human protagonist to discover that his rich relative left their...

Mickey Gilbert, the fearless stunt performer who jumped off a cliff for Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and doubled for Gene Wilder in films including Blazing Saddles, Silver Streak and The Frisco Kid, has died. He was 87.

Gilbert died Monday of natural causes at his home in Camarillo, California, his oldest son, Tim Gilbert, also a stunt performer, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Early in his career, Gilbert was a horse wrangler in William Wyler’s Ben-Hur (1959) and a bank robber in Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch (1969). Years later, he took the lumps for Lee Majors’ Colt Seavers on the 1981-86 ABC action show The Fall Guy.

Though they weren’t friends at the time, Gilbert and Redford were in the same class at Van Nuys High School, graduating in 1954. They got together on George Roy Hill’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) when Redford...

William O’Connell, whose extensive TV and film acting credits in the 1960s and ’70s included a memorably villainous role on Star Trek and a string of adversaries in the films of his frequent collaborator Clint Eastwood, died January 15 at his home in Sherman Oaks, CA. He was 94.

His death was announced to Deadline by a family friend. A cause was not disclosed.

O’Connell scored a lengthy roster of TV episodic credits in the 1960s, becoming a busy character actor of the day. He had small roles, often nameless characters distinguished only by their job titles — Flagman, Cabbie, Field Rep. #1 — in Highway Patrol, Peter Gunn and The Twilight Zone, also popping up on Dennis the Menace, My Three Sons, The Outer Limits, Bonanza, The Munsters, Batman and The Lucy Show.

His most memorable TV role from the era came in 1967, when he was cast in the Season 2 “Journey to Babel” episode of Star Trek as Thelev,...

On Friday nights, IndieWire After Dark takes a feature-length beat to honor fringe cinema in the streaming age.

First, the spoiler-free pitch for one editor’s midnight movie pick — something weird and wonderful from any age of film that deserves our memorializing.

Then, the spoiler-filled aftermath as experienced by the unwitting editor attacked by this week’s recommendation.

The Pitch: Clint Might Be Complicit in an Orangutan Date Rape

By 1978, Clint Eastwood had starred in Sergio Leone’s Man With No Name trilogy, headlined three “Dirty Harry” movies, and directed six feature films. He could have pulled an Alexander the Great and wept because there was nothing left to conquer. Instead, he teamed up with a monkey.

Against the advice of his agent and manager, Eastwood used his Hollywood clout to force a weird little comedy script called “Every Which Way But Loose” into production. He stars in the film as Philo Beddoe,...

From pre-Code gangster films to Bette Davis blazing a trail for female protagonists to blockbuster super- hero sagas, Warner Bros. Pictures’ output has been synonymous with the most popular stories of the day — and the iconic filmmakers who brought them to life.

Since being installed in June 2022, Warner Bros. Pictures Group co-chairs and CEOs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy have steadily built upon this legacy that has been the foundation of the studio since its earliest days.

“The history of the studio and their approach to filmmaking over the years really lines up with our belief in marrying the right filmmakers with the right IP and the right stories,” Abdy tells Variety. Adds De Luca, “We just wanted to continue that practice of trying to be a good home for the preeminent filmmakers of the day — and then try and find that next generation as well.”

Margot Robbie in 2023’s “Barbie”

Clint Eastwood,...

Bloody Disgusting has learned the sad news this afternoon that actor and stuntman George P. Wilbur has passed away at 81 years old.

A member of the Hollywood Stuntmen’s Hall of Fame, George P. Wilbur is most known to horror fans for playing Michael Myers in both Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers.

Wilbur is one of only a small handful of actors to play Michael Myers more than once.

He was also a stunt player on Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers.

George P. Wilbur’s career began with stand-in work for John Wayne in the 1960s, and he went on to amass over 100 television and film credits spanning six decades.

Other films on Wilbur’s resume as a stunt man, stunt double and stunt coordinator include Planet of the Apes (1968), Blazing Saddles, The Towering Inferno, Grizzly, Escape from New York,...

Clint Eastwood rose to stardom in the 1960s by employing a minimalist style of acting as Sergio Leone's Man with No Name in "A Fistful of Dollars," "For a Few Dollars More," and "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." His characters were men of few words and even fewer expressions. Some critics at the time mistook this as a laughable lack of range on Eastwood's part -- an assertion the actor would prove incorrect with shockingly vulnerable performances in "Play Misty for Me" and "The Beguiled."

But while Eastwood was not precious with his image, he was keenly aware of what he could not, or should not, do. He could play blustery types like John Wilson (based on director John Huston) in "White Hunter Black Heart," but he knew not to emote. He could tweak his on-screen persona, but he almost never went broad.

In terms of performance style and genre preferences,...

Of the handful of movie franchises Clint Eastwood starred in, the Every Which Way But Loose films have aged the worst. Even at the height of movie stardom, Eastwood tended to avoid sequels in favor of working on original projects. Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy acted as his screen breakthrough, and he returned for four sequels to Dirty Harry. Towards the end of the '70s, he wanted to shake up his image and make a full-on comedy. The result was Eastwood's most successful film, Every Which Way But Loose. This cast Clint as a down-on-his-luck bare-knuckle brawler who owns a pet orangutan named Clyde.

Eastwood has stated his agents strongly advised him against Every Which Way But Loose, and it was met with terrible reviews. Yet, audiences flocked to see the movie, with Clyde being a big part of its appeal. Eastwood returned shortly after for Any Which Way You Can,...

Clint Eastwood's most personal film Bronco Billy has sadly become one of his most obscure too. Throughout much of the '70s, Eastwood mainly focused on violent action thrillers like the Dirty Harry movies or The Gauntlet, in addition to his burgeoning directing career. He made an odd right turn into comedy with 1978's Every Which Way But Loose, which famously paired him with an orangutan co-star. Every Which Way But Loose's huge success made it Clint Eastwood's most successful film ever - a record it still holds - and signaled his willingness to experiment with his screen image. 1980's Bronco Billy was the next step in that evolution.

This comedy-drama was helmed by Eastwood and he plays the title character, who runs a traveling circus. Billy is a former shoe salesman who fulfills his dream of becoming a modern-day cowboy, with his oddball troupe consisting of former convicts and alcoholics.

Clint Eastwood is justifiably considered one of our greatest living directors. Over his nearly 70-year career, he has received 11 Academy Award nominations and won four times. His revisionist Western "Unforgiven" is widely hailed as the modern apotheosis of the genre. Few filmmakers have left a deeper impact on American cinema. Even fewer have opted to share the screen with a bird-flipping, beer-swilling orangutan that enjoys voiding its bowels in police cars.

It's telling that Eastwood handed off the directorial duties on "Every Which Way But Loose" to his frequent Ad James Fargo. You could also argue that Fargo, having done...

The post Every Which Way But Loose Was A Controversial Project For Clint Eastwood To Choose appeared first on /Film.

Gene Lebell, who had an acting and stunt career that stretched from The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet to 24 and who the WWE called today “a towering figure in the world of martial arts,” has died. He was 89.

Lebell reportedly had more than 1,000 TV and movie credits, mostly as a stuntman, but also as a heavy, often a fight referee and sometimes a colorful background character. Dubbed “The Godfather of Grappling,” he faced off onscreen against Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Bruce Lee. He refereed Muhammad Ali’s infamous fight against Japanese wrestler Antonio Inoki. Holding a 10th degree red belt in Judo and a 9th degree black belt in Ju-jitsu, helped train everyone from Lee to Norris to “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and Ronda Rousey.

“Gene was the guy who taught Bruce Lee about grappling,” according to comedian, podcaster and UFC color commentator Joe Rogan.

The duo...

Tuesday Am Update: The Tom Cruise Paramount/Skydance sequel goes to an even higher stratosphere with a 4-day 160.5M Memorial Day opening record. Global is at a 300M start. Important to note that given the whole thing of rolling the 13.2M Thursday previews of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End into its opening weekend, that movie still has the 3-day over Memorial Day weekend with 127.97M to Top Gun: Maverick‘s 126.7M.

Monday Am Update: Paramount/Skydance’s Top Gun: Maverick has beaten Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End fair and square for the Memorial Day opening 4-day record (+ previews) at the domestic box office with 156M. While easily Tom Cruise’s best opening of all-time, producer Jerry Bruckheimer is the common denominator of the two largest Memorial Day weekend openings at the domestic box office.

At World’s End’s four-day holiday...

Exclusive: Gus Van Sant (Good Will Hunting), Lenny Kravitz (Lee Daniels’ The Butler), Beverly D’Angelo (Violent Night), Colleen Camp (Back on the Strip) and Gavin Rossdale (The Bling Ring) have signed on to star alongside Vito Schnabel in the dark comedy The Trainer, which Tony Kaye (American History X) is directing from Schnabel and Jeff Solomon’s script.

The film currently in production, after nearly a decade in development, is based on an original story by Schnabel. It unfolds over eight days of sleep-deprived chaos and follows Jack (Schnabel), a down-on-his-luck fitness expert living with his mother in Los Angeles, who takes a maniacal swing at fame and fortune, trying to realize his version of the American dream.

Julia Fox, Steven Van Zandt, Taylour Paige, Stephen Dorff, John McEnroe, Gina Gershon, Luka Sabbat, Soo Joo Park, Brock O’Hurn, Bella Thorne, Laird Hamilton and Duke Nicholson are also set to star.

“How many times have I told you? I don’t want him drinking beer except Saturdays.”

Held Over A Second Weekend! The Starlite Drive-in (15605 N. State Highway 21, Cadet, Mo 63630) will be showing a Clint Eastwood Triple Feature this weekend September 24th-25th with his latest, Cry MacHo followed by Every Which Way But Loose (1978), and Any Which Way You Can (1980) . The show starts at 7:30. The Starlite’s other screen will be showing Cop Shop and Forever Purge It’s always best to order tickets in advance! The Starlite’s site can be found Here.

From Warner Bros. Pictures come director/producer Clint Eastwood’s uplifting and poignant drama Cry MacHo. The film stars Clint Eastwood as Mike Milo, a one-time rodeo star and washed-up horse breeder who, in 1979, takes a job from an ex-boss to bring the man’s young son home from Mexico. Forced to take the backroads on their way to Texas,...

It feels disingenuous to call Shaun of the Dead a spoof of zombie movies, because parody implies mockery, and Edgar Wright’s movie has nothing but affection for the classics of horror cinema.

Related: Shaun Of The Dead 10 Ways It Established Edgar Wright's Style

Thanks to Wright’s homage-driven filmmaking style, Shaun of the Dead references a lot more than just horror movies. It also has nods to The Godfather, King Kong, and Every Which Way But Loose. But, as a movie about the undead, its main source of inspiration is horror cinema, and a select few terrifying cinematic gems are referenced throughout Shaun of the Dead.

William Smith, the actor who was best known for brawling with Clint Eastwood in Any Which Way You Can as well as appearing regularly on the last season of Hawaii Five-o, has passed away at the age of 88. The news was confirmed by Smith's wife, Joanne Cervelli Smith, who said that her husband had died at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. He is survived by his wife of 31 years, and his two children, William E Smith III and Sherri Anne Cervelli.

William Smith was born in 1933 on the cattle ranch owned by his family, where he then grew up working with many much loved horses. By the time he was ten, the family moved home to Southern California, but the years he spent living on the ranch would have a profound effect on him and greatly influenced the parts he would later place...

Hello, everyone! As we begin to look forward to a new month, we have one last round of home media releases coming our way to finish out the last few days of June first. Prospect, one of this writer’s favorite indie sci-fi films of the last few years, is getting the 4K treatment from Vinegar Syndrome and Gunpowder & Sky, and Scream Factory has put together a Limited Edition Steelbook for Battle Beyond the Stars. Other Blu-ray and DVD releases for June 29th include Night Terror (Aka Night Drive), Scare Us, and Night Things.

Battle Beyond the Stars: Limited Edition Steelbook

Seven mercenaries are recruited from throughout the galaxy to save a peaceful planet from the threat of an evil tyrant bent on dominating the entire universe. Among them are a lizard-like humanoid, a space cowboy, a female warrior and a brooding killer-for-hire.

Bonus Content:

2K Scan of the...

The always delightful Doctor Z hangs with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante while discussing a few of his favorite monkey movies.

Dr. Z – Tmtmm Pod Mentions

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Planet of the Apes (1968) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

Beneath The Planet of the Apes (1970) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

Escape From The Planet of the Apes (1971)

Battle For The Planet of the Apes (1973) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

Every Which Way But Loose (1978)

Any Which Way You Can (1980)

The Godfather Part II (1974) – Katt Shea’s trailer commentary

Schindler’s List (1993)

Godzilla Vs. Kong (2021)

King Kong Vs. Godzilla (1962) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

King Kong (1933)

Conan The Barbarian (1982)

Godzilla (1954) – Don Coscarelli’s trailer commentary

Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Stalag 17 (1953)

In The Heat Of The Night (1967) – Michael Schlesinger’s trailer commentary

King Kong Escapes (1967)

Murders In The Rue Morgue (1932)

The Sorrow And The Pity (1972)

My Octopus Teacher (2020)

It Came From Beneath The Sea...

Sad news has come in to pass along as it's been reported that Buddy Van Horn has passed away. A veteran stuntman who performed dangerous stunts for Clint Eastwood in more than 30 movies, Van Horn was also a filmmaker who directed movies like Any Which Way You Can and The Dead Pool. Sadly, a new Los Angeles Times obituary reveals that Van Horn died on May 11, though a cause of death wasn't specified. He was 92 years old.

"Buddy has saved my life throughout the years," Clint Eastwood said in a statement responding to the news, per Variety. "He took all my hits. I will miss our talks as he always made me laugh. He was a true friend."

Born Wayne Van Horn and sometimes credited as such, Van Horn was born on Aug. 20, 1928, in Los Angeles, California. Destined for a life in show business, Van Horn was born on the...

There’s no putting Clint Eastwood out to pasture.

Clint turns 91 today, and it’s worth celebrating the fact that this Hollywood legend is still turning out work at a faster clip and higher quality than practically anyone in the business. Granted, prolific doesn’t always mean better, and it can be frustrating to see his fans greet every new film as a fresh masterpiece, when only a fraction of them truly deserve the title. But consider that since the turn of the century, he has given us 17 films including “Mystic River,” “Million Dollar Baby,“ “Letters from Iwo Jima” and “American Sniper”.

Five decades ago this year, Eastwood made his directorial debut in “Play Misty for Me,” and for a time, he was dismissed as one of those “actors who directs” — a condescending label typically slapped on dilettantes who did the job just once, like Marlon Brando (with “One-Eyed Jacks...

Wayne “Buddy” Van Horn, veteran stuntman who worked with Clint Eastwood on over 30 films and directed “Any Which Way You Can” and “The Dead Pool,” died May 11, according to an obituary notice in the Los Angeles Times. He was 92.

Sometimes credited as Wayne Van Horn, he started working with Eastwood as a stunt double in 1967, and continued working as a stunt coordinator on his films up until “J. Edgar” in 2011. He also directed three movies starring Eastwood: “Any Which Way You Can,” “The Dead Pool” and “Pink Cadillac.” 1980’s “Any Which Way You Can” was the sequel to James Fargo’s “Every Which Way but Loose,” and 1988’s “The Dead Pool” is the fifth and final film in the “Dirty Harry” series, also starring Patricia Clarkson, Liam Neeson and Jim Carrey in his first dramatic film role.

The longtime stuntman was “born on the back lot of Universal Studios,” according to his obit notice.

Chuck Hicks, the stuntman, actor and frequent Clint Eastwood combatant whose credits included Every Which Way but Loose, The Twilight Zone, Cool Hand Luke and Dick Tracy, has died. He was 93.

Hicks died May 4 in Las Vegas after suffering a stroke about six months ago, his son Kirk told The Hollywood Reporter.

Survivors also include his wife, stuntwoman Kaye Wade Hicks. They met in Burbank in the early 1950s, reconnected in 1980 when he was playing Omar Sharif’s bodyguard in the CBS telefilm Pleasure Palace and wed some 10 years ago.

Six-foot-2 and a muscular 230 pounds in his prime, Hicks was a onetime running ...

Chuck Hicks, the stuntman, actor and frequent Clint Eastwood combatant whose credits included Every Which Way but Loose, The Twilight Zone, Cool Hand Luke and Dick Tracy, has died. He was 93.

Hicks died May 4 in Las Vegas after suffering a stroke about six months ago, his son Kirk told The Hollywood Reporter.

Survivors also include his wife, stuntwoman Kaye Wade Hicks. They met in Burbank in the early 1950s, reconnected in 1980 when he was playing Omar Sharif’s bodyguard in the CBS telefilm Pleasure Palace and wed some 10 years ago.

Six-foot-2 and a muscular 230 pounds in his prime, Hicks was a onetime running ...

By Tim McGlynn

Every so often I come across a movie from years ago that I simply overlooked or didn’t have the opportunity to see. After viewing the Kino-Lorber Blu-ray release of Caravans, I have to say I’m rather sorry I missed this one.

Caravans, directed by James Fargo, had a brief release from Universal in 1978, after which it disappeared with only an ABC-TV airing and sporadic appearances on cable to mark its existence. The trailer promises that Caravans is the greatest desert adventure since Lawrence of Arabia, which clearly it is not. However, there is much to enjoy with this new video release.

The year is 1948 and American diplomat Mark Miller (Michael Sarrazin) is sent to the fictional Middle Eastern country of Zakharstan to search for Ellen Jasper(Jennifer O’ Neill), the daughter of a U.S. senator. Ellen has left her husband, Colonel Nazrullah (Behrouz...

Thirty-five years to the month that his major-label debut single, “On the Other Hand,” was first released, Country Music Hall of Fame member Randy Travis has unveiled a never-before-heard track. “Fool’s Love Affair,” marks the first single of Travis’ career since a 2013 stroke robbed the singer of his distinctive, influential voice.

“Fool’s Love Affair” explores the temptations and repercussions of cheating, but acknowledges the folly of the illicit weekly romance, from secret phone calls and a familiar motel room to the lingering guilt and doubt that follow the couple’s liaisons,...