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“He’s like a jazz musician,” Matthew Libatique explains when quizzed on his longtime collaborator Spike Lee.

The two filmmakers, both native New Yorkers, have worked together on five features: Inside Man, She Hate Me, Miracle at St. Anna, Chi-Raq, and, most recently, Highest 2 Lowest, which opens today in U.S. theatres. Only Ernest Dickerson, the great cinematographer behind Lee’s most famous works, Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, and Jungle Fever, has worked with the filmmaker more.

Highest 2 Lowest is Lee’s first New York-shot and set film since 2014’s Da Sweet Blood of Jesus. A remake, or, as Lee has described, a reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low, it’s an ambitious film set across Manhattan and Brooklyn, with some of the most impressive action sequences in Lee’s decades-long career..

The crime-thriller stars Denzel Washington as a music industry exec who becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur’s son is kidnapped by mistake and held for ransom. The wider ensemble features A$AP Rocky, Ilfenesh Hadera, Jeffrey Wright, and Elijah Wright.

Below, Libatique shares some of the secrets behind the film’s production, including how he and Lee managed to shoot on live Subway cars, how they executed the expansive Uptown sequence in the shadow of Yankee Stadium, and working with Denzel Washington. Libatique also talks about his time working on the now-stalled Blade sequel for Marvel.

Highest 2 Lowest is in theatres now and will drop on Apple TV+ on September 5.

Deadline: Matthew, you’re from New York, right? You’ve had a long collaboration with Spike. How’d that come about?

Matthew Libatique: I’m from Elmhurst, Queens, but I met Spike for the first time in California. I was in my early 30s, and I got a call from my agent at the time. She said, ‘Guess who called?’ It was Spike Lee. I freaked out. I remember meeting him at the Mondrian in Hollywood. I had to keep convincing myself to be professional. But we hit it off right away, and the rest is history. I wish I had done more films with him. I’m thankful for our relationship.

Deadline: Spike’s carry such a unique and indescribable feeling. It’s very him. As someone who has worked with him, what do you think creates that energy. What does he different from the others?

Libatique: He’s fearless in how he executes each day and accomplishes a scene. He’s not in the tradition of Ridley Scott, where he shoots everything with three cameras. He will do an entire two pages of dialogue with one shot. It’s really just a feeling. He’s like a jazz musician. The camera, lens, and performances aren’t Spike’s only considerations. He also has an idea of the final music and cadence while we’re shooting. He’s a true craftsman, but he’s also a creative force. He doesn’t see the world the same way as everybody else. And when you talk to him, you see that he’s a student of filmmakers like Billy Wilder, John Ford, and Alfred Hitchcock. So he’s an amalgamation of how he grew up as a kid. Popular culture personified. And a true craftsman.

Deadline: What was Spike’s pitch to you for this film?

Libatique: There was no pitch. Spike said, ‘Matty, I’m doing Kurosawa’s High and Low with Denzel.’ When somebody says that to you, there’s no pitch—that’s it.

Deadline: You’ve been pretty busy over the last few years. You shot ‘Caught Stealing’ and ‘Is This Thing On?.’ How’d this film fit into that schedule?

Libatique: After the strikes, I was going to do the sequel to Blade. I was in Atlanta, and planned to move to New York after the shoot. But the writers’ strikes happened. Blade shut down. I was stuck in Atlanta when Spike called. I finally moved to New York and started prepping with Spike two months later, so it didn’t have to fit in. I couldn’t believe how amazing a project it was, just the reunion of Spike and Denzel. It was an honor.

Deadline: The opening sequence: I have to ask, that wasn’t scripted, was it? How’d you execute it? Did you use drones? How’d you pick the music?

Libatique: I didn’t know what the music was going to be; Spike just came out of left field with it. Who would have expected it? I would’ve thought it might be something else, perhaps a score from Branford or Wynton Marsalis or maybe a Hip Hop track, but it was an old classic. And that’s what I’m saying, if Spike were a chef, he would make the oddest food ever. You think what he does is anachronistic, but it all works because it’s so consistent.

The opening wasn’t really scripted. His first idea was to go over the welcome sign in Brooklyn. And then go towards the building, but they wouldn’t let us fly over the Brooklyn Bridge. You’re not allowed to fly over the Brooklyn Bridge, so we ended up flying towards the building from the other side of the bridge. And then we had the drone up there and started shooting. We also mixed in some helicopter work, which we had to do because later in the film, there’s a chase scene up the East Side Highway, which we shot using the helicopter.

Deadline: People often talk about the difficulties of shooting in New York. What makes it so tough beyond the expense?

Libatique: The city is full of people who aren’t in the film industry, and there’s not a high tolerance for taking over a whole block to shoot something. It’s not like Los Angeles, which is an industry town, so you have to negotiate with real people, which is a challenge for the film commission in New York. For example, we used to be able to shoot two people in a car up and down Fifth Avenue. Now, just getting the location is a problem because they won’t really close down a road, so then you’re starting and stopping. They also have limits on how long you can be in a neighborhood to protect the population. And it’s expensive. But it’s worth it.

Deadline: And the Uptown Puerto Rican parade sequence. It immediately goes down as one of the all-time New York movie sequences. Did you really shoot that on the ground in the Bronx?

Libatique: Yep, we shot right in the shadow of Yankee Stadium. We shot the big party sequence at a skate park about three blocks away from Yankee stadium. Once Denzel’s character leaves the confines of the home, the language of the film changes. We transition into a more handheld environment. I even switched lenses. I switched from an anamorphic lens, the Mercury Atlas 1.5 Prime, to old Canon rangefinders for more flair and softer contrast. That’s when we introduced 16mm and Super 8 cameras. Spike is down for anything, and that’s why it’s so fun to work with him. One day, he said to me, ‘Where can we fit in film?’ And I said, the Puerto Rico Day Parade and the Subway. As soon as he leaves the house, it wouldn’t be one format, because he’s out in the real world. This affluent and famous man has to be out with the rest of us. I wanted to feel like the cinematography had different perspectives.

Deadline: How long did it take to shoot?

Libatique: It was a few days here and there on the Subway. We shot on the actual Subway cars. In New York, you can only shoot on two or three Subway platforms. Working with the Mta in New York is extremely difficult. Obviously, the Subway is used by real people at all hours of the day. There are some old platforms that you’re allowed to shoot on. When you watch the film, the train goes from Wall Street to 42nd Street, 14th Street, all the way Uptown. But it was all just one platform. We were just changing the angle and changing the signs. They also only gave us one train to shoot on, and we could only run it from one stop to another. It took a little time to cheat that.

Deadline: What was it like working with Denzel again?

Libatique: There are many movie stars, but he is beyond a movie star. He’s just an entity. And the camera loves him. Again, I go back to the jazz reference. For example, you see him rhyme at the end of the film with A$AP. That was all him. It wasn’t scripted. There’s the moment where he’s talking to Jeffrey Wright, and he’s just so frustrated that he starts slamming stuff onto his desk. Again, not scripted. He just creates. So you have Spike person creating behind the camera, and Denzel creating in front of it. It’s a magical combination. Working with him is just a joy to watch.

Deadline: You missed the Cannes premiere. Were you shooting Aronofsky’s film?

Libatique: I wasn’t shooting, I was coloring the film. I just finished it. It took a while, and I just couldn’t take myself away from my concentration. So I opted not to go.

Deadline: One major change since we last spoke in 2023 for Maestro is the discussion around AI in filmmaking and cinematography, specifically. What do you think about it all?

Libatique: It’s piqued my interest. You need to keep up with technology as a cinematographer or filmmaker. Some stuff I’ve seen looks photo-real, while other things look like I’m playing Call of Duty. I know from coloring a movie how AI tools have changed the game. We used to farm out shots for rotoscoping to different countries because it was a laborious process that was expensive to pay for when we did it in the United States. Now we can do it in real time. We had a shot in Highest 2 Lowest where Jeffrey Wright is in Denzel’s office, and there’s a light in his glasses. In the past, you would just take the L because there was nothing you could do about it. But using AI tools, they were able to take previous frames, reconstruct his eye, and remove the light.

It’s incumbent upon us to understand the technology. Everything is being redefined now, like the workflow. I think it will be akin to how the animation workflow works. I’ve experimented with prompting AI, and I never get good results, so it’s interesting. I’m not gonna sit there and be doom and gloom. We gotta face it.

Deadline: Last question: You mentioned Blade. When the film gets back moving will you go back and shoot it?

Libatique: It depends on the script and the filmmaker. But it’s always fun to reunite with old friends like Marvel.

More recently, Anthony Mackie has become a household name, but this was not always the case. The 46-year-old actor got his start in the early 2000s, when he played a couple of one-off TV show roles as well as supporting characters in films. This included parts in Jonathan Demme's The Manchurian Candidate and Spike Lee's She Hate Me.

Things took a turn for Mackie when he made his Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) debut in 2015 in Avengers: Age of Ultron. There, he played the franchise's Sam Wilson / The Falcon. Mackie would go on to reprise this part in Ant-Man, Captain America: Civil War, and more.

Most recently, Mackie was seen as Sam Wilson in this year's Captain America: Brave New World. While the film had a lackluster box office, it did work to help establish Sam Wilson as a critical part of the McU's next phase, as he forms his own Avengers group.

From his early years as an NYU film student to Oscar-winning success with BlacKkKlansman, Spike Lee remains one of the most provocative filmmakers in modern cinema. Each of his “joints” dating back to his breakout 1986 dramedy She’s Gotta Have It often provides a snapshot of where black America stands socially and politically. In 2004, he took on the politics of sex and Wall Street in the satire She Hate Me.

Anthony Mackie believes he should have won an Academy Award.The 46-year-old actor believes that he has been put in several performances that have been deserving of awards but described his role as Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) as " [his] Oscar".In an interview with Esquire, the ‘8 Mile’ star said: "It’s always apropos for me when awards season comes up, because I know I’ve done at least four performances that could have been nominated — if not for a Golden Globe, then an Oscar or an Emmy. "Captain America is my Oscar, because I’ve been overlooked so many times in my career."Mackie - who starred in Spike Lee’s ‘Sucker Free City’ and ‘She Hate Me’ - joked he was the actor to have led the director’s only two films that "nobody saw".He quipped: "I always tell people I hold the title...

Anthony Mackie may now be the definitive superhero of the MCU, but the actor wants to conquer another realm: awards season.

Mackie told Esquire that amid the Oscar campaigns this year, he has to point to his tenure as the Falcon and his character’s recent promotion to Captain America as being his version of an Academy Award.

“It’s always apropos for me when awards season comes up,” Mackie said, “Because I know I’ve done at least four performances that could have been nominated — if not for a Golden Globe, then an Oscar or an Emmy. Captain America is my Oscar, because I’ve been overlooked so many times in my career.”

Mackie, who has worked with auteurs outside of Marvel, quipped that he is infamously the only actor who has led “the two Spike Lee movies nobody saw.” Mackie appeared in Lee’s “Sucker Free City” and “She Hate Me,...

Although Kerry Washington finds the fact that she’s receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame “surreal,” her father, Earl Washington, thinks she should’ve gotten a star a lot sooner.

“Anytime he would hear that somebody was getting one, he was like, ‘Why don’t you have one?’” Washington tells Variety, laughing as she recounts their conversations. “I was like, ‘I don’t know, Dad. I don’t make those decisions.’ So I feel like he’s manifested this moment. I’m excited that I get to share it with him.”

Washington’s father is right. She could’ve been honored anytime in her nearly 25-year career — with a resume highlighted by standout turns in films like “Save the Last Dance,” “The Last King of Scotland,” “She Hate Me” and “Ray,” all before she landed the role of D.C. fixer Olivia Pope on ABC’s “Scandal.

Little Fires Everywhere is a must-watch for Kerry Washington fans, showcasing her prime acting skills and executive producer talent. Confirmation is a riveting TV movie where Washington shines as Anita Hill, delivering a powerful and underrated performance. Our Song, Washington's first film, is a touching coming-of-age drama perfect for all ages, showcasing her talent at the cusp of fame.

Since 1994, Kerry Washington has been a dominant force on the big and small screen, leading to her becoming best known for roles such as Scandal's Olivia Pope and Our Song's Lanisha Brown. Washington's career began when she was still a teenager. Her first projects included the PBS sketch-comedy show, Standard Deviants and the teen/young adult drama movie Our Song. Washington's breakthrough came in the early 2000s when she played Chris Rock's love interest in Bad Company and took on the leading role in Spike Lee's film, She Hate Me.

Winsome Sinclair, a veteran casting professional who worked on scores of films and TV shows — many as casting director — including Malcolm D. Lee’s The Best Man, Steven Spielberg’s Amistad, the Gabrielle Union series Being Mary Jane and a dozen Spike Lee movies, died August 12 of colon cancer on Long Island. She was 58.

Her rep Clorissa Wright-Thomas confirmed the news to Deadline, saying Sinclair had been in hospice care and that her family was at her bedside. “It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Winsome Sinclair, a woman of extraordinary faith and a trailblazer in the film industry,” her family said in a statement (read it in full below). “Winsome’s life was a testament to radical faith, and she lived each day with a heart full of love and gratitude.”

Born on October 27, 1965 in Jamaica, she grew up in New York after...

Winsome Sinclair, a prolific casting director best known for her frequent collaborations with Spike Lee, has died at the age of 58 after a battle with colon cancer. News of her passing was confirmed by producer and publicist Cassandra Butcher in a post on Instagram.

“Winsome Sinclair brought light to everyone she encountered, with a unique ability to see more in people than they could see in themselves,” Butcher wrote on Instagram. “A true fan of life and culture, her passion for the arts and her deep love for family and community will continue to inspire those who know her. Winsome’s legacy in the film industry and the lives she touched will live on, reminding us of her vibrant spirit and the stories she helped bring to life.”

Born in 1966, Sinclair began her career in Hollywood as a casting production assistant on Lee’s 1991 film “Jungle Fever” before rising to...

Winsome Sinclair, the casting director who helped bring in actors for Waiting to Exhale, Amistad, Precious, The Best Man and a dozen films directed by Spike Lee, has died. She was 58.

Sinclair died Monday in hospice care on Long Island after a long battle with colon cancer, publicist Clorissa Wright-Thomas told The Hollywood Reporter. Her family was at her bedside.

The New York native launched the global casting agency Winsome Sinclair and Associates in New York in 1996, then relocated the business to Atlanta in 2014 amid that city’s production boom.

Sinclair also cast extras for the John Singleton-directed features Higher Learning (1995), 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) and Abduction (2011), for the Malcolm D. Lee-helmed The Best Man (1999) and Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016) and for the Dee Rees-directed Pariah (2011) and Bessie (2015).

She handled similar duties on the Hughes brothers’ Dead Presidents (1995), Forest Whitaker’s Waiting to Exhale (1995), Steven Spielberg’s...

Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. To keep up with our latest features, sign up for the Weekly Edit newsletter and follow us @mubinotebook on Twitter and Instagram.NEWSMy Life as a Dog.Amid concerns over new provisions for AI, IATSE members have voted to ratify their new three-year contract with AMPTP, which includes a historic 40 percent raise for television and theatrical costume designers.Meanwhile, Teamsters Local 399 “remain far apart” on terms after five weeks of bargaining, reporting that “this was the first week in which we saw the employers take this process seriously.” Their current contract will expire on July 31, after which the union could strike.The Swedish motion-picture industry is calling for a change to the state’s “first-come, first-served” funding process, which most recently distributed all available funds in one minute and seven seconds.Germany plans to nearly double its national film funding...

Anthony Mackie's starring role in an obscure 2004 movie could have launched his TV career after Million Dollar Baby. The Spike Lee-directed project was a pilot for a TV series meant to go head-to-head with HBO's The Wire.

Most fans look back on Anthony Mackie's career and see 8 Mile as his first big break in the industry. His filmography has since demonstrated exceptional range with roles in Million Dollar Baby, Freedomland, and The Hurt Locker, but he is most popular (so far) as the McU's Falcon / Sam Wilson. In an interview with Variety, he recalled how a starring role in Spike Lee's Sucker Free City almost made for a bankable TV career; the 2004 film was made for TV and was the pilot for a planned series. Mackie said the show was a potential contender to The Wire if it was greenlighted, but the project fell through even before the pilot aired.

Tyler James Williams is shifting through poses in front of a photographer when Anthony Mackie appears on set, voice booming, to poke some fun. He asks Williams to coach him on pursing his lips like he’s Trey Songz. During their conversation, Williams outlines his path from “Everybody Hates Chris,” where he played the 13-year-old title character, to starring as first-grade teacher Gregory Eddie on ABC’s hit sitcom “Abbott Elementary.” In exchange, Mackie explains how he played an amnesiac named John Doe in Peacock’s video game adaptation “Twisted Metal,” and what it was like to take his Marvel character, Falcon, from film to TV and back.

Anthony MacKie: Since the last time I saw you, you’ve been nominated for an Emmy 35 times and won, like, 20.

Tyler James Williams: Just two. And same thing: You’re superhero-ing everywhere.

MacKie: I didn’t even get nominated for a BET Award.

Starz has announced the movies and TV shows that will be available on the service in May. The Starz May 2024 schedule includes the finales of the limited series Mary & George and season three of Bmf.

On the film front, Starz is the exclusive streaming home to the latest installment in The Hunger Games franchise, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, which joins the Starz app this month along with several other notable titles, including Outlaw Johnny Black, Manodrome, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, Silent Night, and Nope.

Starz continues to be the home for franchise favorites with Jaws, Jaws 2, Jaws 3, and Jaws: The Revenge, as well as Meet the Parents, Meet the Fockers, and Little Fockers all joining the Starz app this month.

Celebrate Memorial Day Weekend with an Aquaphobia movie marathon on Starz Encore, beginning Saturday, May 25, at 7:00 p.m. with aquatic thrillers such as Jaws,...

The American Society of Cinematographers has done the right thing.

The group said today that Oscar-winning filmmaker Spike Lee will receive its Board of Governors Award next month.

“Spike Lee is one of the most brilliant filmmakers of our time, and the social impact of his work is immeasurable,” ASC President Shelly Johnson said. “This award celebrates his respect for the partnership between director and cinematographer and how two people unite to tell a visual story in a way that can only be recognized as that of collaboration.”

The Brooklyn-raised Lee began his storied career in the 1980s as a writer-director of such films as She’s Gotta Have It, School Daze and Do the Right Thing, for which he earned a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination. Many more celebrated films would follow, including Malcolm X, Mo’ Better Blues, Jungle Fever, Crooklyn, Clockers, He Got Game, Summer of Sam, Girl 6,...

The American Film Institute has its sights set on Matthew Libatique.

The Oscar nominated cinematographer, who graduated from the institution in 1992, has been tapped to receive AFI’s Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal. It will be presented during the AFI Life Achievement Award tribute to Nicole Kidman at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on April 27.

The medal is awarded annually “to an alumnus of either the AFI Conservatory or the [AFI Directing Workshop for Women] who best embodies the qualities of the late director: talent, taste, dedication and commitment to quality filmmaking.” Schaffner, who died in 1989, won a best director Oscar for Patton in 1970. Recipients of the Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal include David Lynch, Edward Zwick, Amy Heckerling, Terrence Malick, Darren Aronofsky, Patty Jenkins, Paul Schrader, Janusz Kamiński, Caleb Deschanel, Lesli Linka Glatter, Rachel Morrison, Melina Matsoukas, Siân Heder and others.

The honor comes as Libatique has earned raves for working on Bradley Cooper...

James McCaffrey, who portrayed the firefighter and 9/11 victim Jimmy Keefe on Rescue Me and provided the voice of the title character in Max Payne video games, has died. He was 65.

McCaffrey died Sunday at his home in Larchmont, New York, after a battle with myeloma, his wife, actress Rochelle Boström, told The Hollywood Reporter.

McCaffrey also starred in the 1990s as expert driver Michael Payton/Joe Astor on the first and fourth seasons of the NBC drama Viper and as Capt. Arthur O’Byrne on the Fox crime series New York Undercover.

McCaffrey’s Jimmy was killed on 9/11, and his vision hounded friend and fellow New York firefighter Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary) over all seven seasons (2004-11) of the acclaimed FX drama Rescue Me. He said it was his favorite role.

He voiced Max Payne — the avenging former NYPD officer turned DEA agent whose wife and daughter were murdered by...

Kerry Washington is sharing her story.

In her new memoir Thicker Than Water, out Tuesday, the “Scandal” star reveals that early in her career she had an abortion.

“I struggled a lot in the beginning with whether or not to include my abortion story,” she told People of her choice to include the story in her book. “At first I wasn’t really sure how it fit into this story of my life. But I started to feel like it was really important for me to share this.”

Read More: Kerry Washington Discovered That Her Dad Isn’t Her Biological Father: ‘Turned My World Upside Down’

In the book, Washington recalls the early period in her career, after finding success in 2001’s “Save the Last Dance” and Spike Lee’s 2003 film “She Hate Me”.

At the time, still in her 20s, the actress had a romantic encounter that resulted in an unplanned pregnancy,...

If you’re wondering what’s new on Amazon Prime Video in June, the answer is a lot. The streamer has a solid slate of movies heading into summer 2023. From the first two “Creed” films to “Love, Rosie,” “Yours, Mine & Ours” and other clever romantic comedies, the streamer has a range of options for viewers with different tastes. Newer theatrical releases arriving on the streamer in June include “TÁR,” “Armageddon Time,” and “M3GAN.”

TV premieres to look forward to include Boots Riley’s “I’m A Virgo” and the fourth and final season of John Krasinski’s “Jack Ryan.” “Crazy Rich Asians” arrives early in June, followed by “Interstellar” for all Christopher Nolan and Matthew McConaughey lovers. Even though “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” doesn’t release in theaters until November, all four “Hunger Games” films land on Prime Video this June. Perfect timing — maybe even with a reread...

With its list of new releases for June 2023, Prime is bringing a handful of Amazon Originals and many recent movie hits to the fold.

It’s actually quite a busy month for non-American programming in Amazon Originals department. Shows and movies like Deadloch, My Fault, and Medellín all originate from outside the U.S. and U.K. For the American and British crowd, however, the streamer is debuting two big tentpoles.

The first is I’m a Virgo on June 23. Acclaimed director Boots Riley’s TV followup to Sorry to Bother You will tale the surreal and satirical tale of a giant in Oakland. That will be followed by the more conventional (assumedly) fourth season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan on June 30.

The real fireworks this month come from a ludicrously deep bench of library TV and movie titles. Give them a look for yourself below but if we were to highlight just a few,...

The fourth and final season of “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” arrives on Prime Video on June 30. It finds Ryan — now the new acting CIA director — unearthing internal corruption and suspicious black ops that leaves the United States vulnerable to attack. John Krasinski stars as the tough-as-nails Ryan.

Watch the “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” trailer:

“Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets” is a new docuseries that reveals the truth behind the myth of the wholesome religious family and their involvement with the predatory Bill Gothard and The Institute in Basic Life Principles. The organization’s abusive practices — and the insidious long political game it plays — is revealed on June 2. The Duggars and their 19 “happy” kids are exposed as frauds, while also being manipulated by Gothard and enduring the scandal of Josh, their sexually abusive son.

Check out the “Shiny Happy People” trailer:

When a body is found on the beach in the Tasmanian town of Deadloch,...

Some sad news has come in to end the week, as it has been announced that legendary NFL player-turned-actor Jim Brown has passed at the age of 87. His passing was announced by his wife on Instagram, with no cause of death being provided.

Born on February 17, 1936, in St. Simons Islang, Georgia, Brown is considered to be one of the greatest football players of all time. He was drafted out of Syracuse University by the Cleveland Browns in 1957, and spent all nine years of his NFL career with the team. Deadline notes that “his bruising running style redefined the running back position”. He was the first NFL player to make over 100 career rushing touchdowns and set single season and career rushing records. He was a three time Mvp, Rookie of the Year, eight time All-Pro, and eight time rushing leader. With him on the team, the Browns won the NFL championship...

The Ghost with the Most, Beetlejuice, is finally getting a sequel to his 1988 classic, and Italian actress Monica Bellucci is in talks to join the cast. Cameras will roll later this month on Beetlejuice 2, with Michael Keaton, Catharine O’Hara, Winona Ryder, Jenna Ortega, and Justin Theroux also starring.

Beetlejuice 2 haunts theaters on September 6, 2024, with Ortega playing Lydia Deetz’s daughter. Tim Burton directs from a script by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, co-creators and co-showrunners of Netflix’s Wednesday series. Filming is going down this summer in London. Burton’s longtime collaborator, Danny Elfman, provides the score. Brad Pitt’s Plan B banner is producing the sequel.

Notoriously, Beetlejuice 2 was in limbo for years. Burton would only make the film if Keaton agreed to return, and Ryder would only play Lydia if Burton and Keaton were on board. With all three returning, work on the long-awaited sequel is underway.

There’s no joint like a Spike Lee Joint, but what other movies does the director love?

Over four decades and 30 films, Brooklyn-raised Lee has established himself as the type of director whose work can’t be replicated. The traits that make a Spike Lee Joint a Spike Lee Joint are easy to spot: the fiery and often political subject matter, the mix of humor with drama, those iconic floaty dolly shots, and an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach to stylistic experimentation.

Lee’s fearlessness as a director makes for a fascinating mixed-bag of a filmography. The auteur has at least three undeniable masterpieces under his belt: 1989’s “Do the Right Thing,” a searing drama about police violence and racism; 1992’s “Malcolm X,” an epic starring Denzel Washington as the titular Civil Rights leader; and 2002’s “25th Hour,” the greatest portrait of life in New York after 9/11 put to film. Depending on who you ask,...

Hooray! A romantic comedy that revives the screwball formula where two people talk themselves silly — and we only had to go to the end of the solar system to make it happen. Adam (Anthony Mackie) and Jane (Zoë Chao) are the sole surviving astronauts on a ship with no navigation and no communication system able to transmit their grievances to their NASA superiors who presumably think them dead. How long have they been adrift? Three years. How literal is the title “If You Were the Last”? Very.

But Kristian Mercado, making his narrative debut after directing a string of stand-up specials, and Angela Bourassa, who wrote the Black List-hailed screenplay, haven’t made a film about settling for the nearest sexual organ. Instead, the swooning comes from watching these platonic shipmates debate why they should, and shouldn’t, settle — only to realize that their ability to have these frank...

Spike Lee will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award for Distinguished Achievement in Motion Picture Direction at this year’s DGA Awards, Directors Guild of America President Lesli Linka Glatter announced today.

The DGA’s highest honor will be presented to Lee at the 74th annual DGA Awards on Saturday, March 12. Lee is the first Black director to get the award, which recognizes extraordinary efforts in the art of cinema, He joins a roster of just 35 helmers so honored, including Frank Capra, Alfred Hitchcock, Orson Welles, Billy Wilder, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Miloš Forman and, most recently, Ridley Scott.

In a statement, Glatter said, “Icon. Trailblazer. Visionary. Spike Lee has changed the face of cinema, and there is no single word that encapsulates his significance to the craft of directing. From his groundbreaking Do the Right Thing, BlacKkKlansman, and everything in-between – to his signature ‘double dolly’ shot, Spike is an innovator on so many levels.

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From “Do the Right Thing” to “Da 5 Bloods,” Spike Lee’s film catalog is packed with classics that have shaped Black cinema, and film at large. The Brooklyn-born auteur is known for a unique storytelling style, and of course, his signature double-dolly shot (where the character remains stationary while the background moves), which he’s used in several films including “Mo’ Better Blueseppice” and “Malcolm X.”

Last week, Film at Lincoln Center presented Lee with the Chaplin Award during the 46th Chaplin Award Gala, held at New York City’s Alice Tully Hall. The celebration, which was delayed a year because of the pandemic, included an excerpt from Lee’s HBO documentary...

James Wan has announced that his new film Malignant has finished via Instagram and Facebook, along with this image.

Malignant comes out September 10th. I finally wrapped it last week. This was supposed to be my “little horror thriller” I do between the big ones, but the pandemic pushed it as long the big ones. I’m super excited for this film. I don’t even know how to describe it. I wanted to do something original and genre-bending, and different to my other work, but still in the spirit of the horror-thrillers I grew up with. More to come. #MalignantMovie

James Wan

Here’s the official site via WB: https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/malignant

It was announced December 17, 2019 that shooting wrapped in Los Angeles on Atomic Monster’s “Malignant,” the latest creation from “Conjuring” universe architect James Wan. The film marks director Wan’s return to his...

Spike Lee is being honored with the American Cinematheque Award, and it undoubtedly encapsulates the director’s nearly five decades of artistic achievement. The award will be presented Jan. 14 in a virtual ceremony. “It’s a recognition of the body of work, and I’ve been putting in the work since the fall of 1979,” says Lee.

Previous American Cinematheque Award honorees include Amy Adams (2017), Bradley Cooper (2018) and Charlize Theron (2019).

After graduating from Morehouse College, Lee attended New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in the graduate film program. He has been a tenured professor and the artistic director since 2002. Lee also eyes the next generation of filmmakers and considers himself a “proud parent” when looking at all of his students, including directors Shaka King (“Judas and the Black Messiah”) and Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”).

“I’ve always felt that teachers that teach well are also learning from their students,...

Spike Lee will receive the American Cinematheque Award and will be honored during a virtual tribute on Jan. 14, 2021.

American Cinematheque chair Rick Nicita said the legendary director always keeps his finger on the pulse of society.

“As a cultural arts organization that celebrates the importance of film in our society, Spike Lee is the perfect choice for the Cinematheque’s annual award,” Nicita said. “Spike’s ability to perceive and depict the tone of contemporary society is shown in his movies, ranging from ‘Do the Right Thing,’ ‘She’s Gotta Have It,’ ‘Malcolm X’ and ‘BlacKkKlansman’ to name only a few. He continues his outstanding output with this year’s ‘Da 5 Bloods’ and ‘American Utopia.’ We look forward with great anticipation to where he will next shine his light.”

“BlacKkKlansman,” which Lee co-wrote and directed, won the Academy Award for adapted screenplay. He was also nominated for an Oscar for directing and producing “BlacKkKlansman.

Lee “honored to be the first person of the African diaspora (USA) to be named president of the Cannes Jury and of a main film festival.”

Us director Spike Lee will serve as jury president of the 2020 Cannes Film Festival, which will run this year from May 12-May 23.

“When I got the call that I was offered the opportunity to be president of Cannes Jury for 2020, I was shocked, happy, surprised and proud all at the same time,” said Lee.

”I’m honored to be the first person of the African diaspora (USA) to be named president of the Cannes...

That's a wrap! James Wan has wrapped filming his new horror movie Malignant. Wan has spent the past few years directing massive blockbusters, such as Aquaman and Furious 7. But now, the man behind The Conjuring universe is taking a trip back to his original horror roots with his latest creation. While much remains mysterious about this particular project, Wan has shared some final set photos following the production wrapping over the weekend.

Taking to Instagram, James Wan revealed a handful of photos from behind-the-scenes, with various cast and crew members holding the clapboard. Unfortunately, they don't reveal much in terms of what to expect from the movie itself, as Wan seems to be playing this one particularly close to the chest. Wan provided the following caption with the photos.

"So we wrapped principal photography on Malignant over the weekend. Big thank you to an amazing cast and crew!! You...

Exclusive: Intercut Capital, founded this year by producers David Pomier and R. Bryan Wright and which is a co-financier on the upcoming Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, has added $125 million in new funding in a partnership with TinRes Entertainment. The private lender plans to expand its scope worldwide eyeing projects budgeted between $3 million-$20 million.

News of the deal is being unveiled Monday at the American Film Market in Santa Monica.

It’s the latest move from Intercut, which launched earlier this year. Pomier is a producer whose credits include Free State of Jones, Looper, Self/less, Cleaner, Seeking Justice, Spike Lee’s She Hate Me, 25th Hour and Miracle at St. Anna, U-Turn and the Coen Brothers’ Raising Arizona. Wright is a film producer and financier whose credits include Jumper, Miracle at St. Anna and Cadillac Records, as well as working on Zipper, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, Left Behind, American Horror House and The Chameleon.

Oscar-winning filmmaker Spike Lee might not be in the awards season mix this year — after finally winning his first Oscar last year for scripting “BlacKkKlansman,” he’s deserving of a break — but the indelible New Yorker will be on hand to accept at least one huge honor in 2020. Film at Lincoln Center has announced that Lee will be honored at the 46th Chaplin Award Gala on Monday, April 27, 2020. “We are delighted to honor Spike Lee, an original and iconic New York filmmaker,” said Ann Tenenbaum, Film at Lincoln Center’s Board Chairwoman, in an official statement. “It is thrilling to welcome his bold voice into the pantheon of artists who have received the Chaplin Award.”

The Chaplin Award Gala is the organization’s most important fundraising event of the year and all proceeds benefit the organization in its mission to support the art and craft of cinema. The annual gala...

Spike Lee’s politically charged cinema has irked the Academy in the past, but his witty take on how a black policeman outsmarted the Ku Klux Klan could prove sweetly timed

“Today’s young generation, they don’t know anything,” says Spike Lee in the Oscar-winning Rumble in the Jungle documentary, When We Were Kings. “Something happened last year, they know nothing about it. There are these great, great stories. These great historic events. I’m not talking about 1850s stuff. They don’t know who Malcolm X is. They don’t know who JFK is. They don’t know Muhammad Ali or Jackie Robinson. You can go down the line. It’s scary.”

You could interpret Lee’s career, in part, as an exercise in filling those holes in America’s collective memory. Malcolm X is probably the most famous example, with his 1992 film reigniting a debate about the...

Regina King to collect Psiff Chairman’s Award.

BlacKkKlansman director Spike Lee will receive the Career Achievement Award at the 30th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival’s (Psiff) film awards gala on January 3.

Lee’s honour follows the announcement earlier this week that If Beale Street Could Talk star Regina King will receive the Chairman’s Award at the show.

Lee joins previously announced honourees Glenn Close, Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, King, Rami Malek, Melissa McCarthy and the film Green Book.

Past recipients of the Career Achievement Award include Annette Bening, Kevin Costner, Bruce Dern, Robert Duvall, Clint Eastwood,...

Cinematographer Matthew Libatique has been arrested and charged with assaulting first responders in Poland, The Associated Press reports. Libatique was in Poland attending this year’s International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography Camerimage. “A Star Is Born” was selected to compete in the festival’s main competition.

According to the AP, the altercation between Libatique and first responders occurred Tuesday, November 13 in the city of Bydgoszcz near the cinematographer’s hotel. Medical officials were called to the hotel to treat Libatique, who was reportedly intoxicated and seen staggering around the location.

“The patient suddenly became aggressive toward medical rescuers, used offensive words and hit the head of the emergency medical team,” Krzysztof Wisniewski, an emergency official, told Polish broadcaster TVN24.

Wisniewski also said a paramedic had a broken tooth and other injuries after being hit by Libatique. Bydgoszcz city police spokeswoman Monika Chlebicz added that the cinematographer then...

by Nathaniel R

No offense intended to the actual president of Saoirse Ronan's fan club (do fan clubs still exist?) but Brian Dennehy, who has been onscreen for my entire moviegoing life, is taking over. He just loves her. Since we love it when actors express non-generic a publicist could have written this admiration for other actors, we must share.

Dennehy was interviewed for The Av Club's fun series "Random Roles" in which they ask famous actors about specific roles in their careers without revealing beforehand which roles they'll be discussing. For Dennehy, it's an eclectic mix including Death of a Salesman (for which he won a Golden Globe), Rambo, Romeo + Juliet, Tommy Boy, She Hate Me, and more. When they get to The Seagull (2018), Dennehy just goes off on his admiration for three-time Oscar nominee Saoirse Ronan.

He says...

Focus Features has announced that Academy Award winning director Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman will open in theaters later this summer on August 10, 2018 starring previously announced John David Washington, Adam Driver (Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Inside Llewyn Davis), Laura Harrier (Spider-Man: Homecoming), and Topher Grace (Traffic, Spider-Man 3).

From visionary director Spike Lee comes the provocative story based on Ron Stallworth's real life as Colorado Springs's first African-American police officer who went undercover to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan. Unbelievably, Detective Stallworth (John David Washington) and his partner Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) penetrate the Kkk at its highest levels to thwart its attempt to take over the city. Produced by the team behind the Academy-Award&#174 winning Get Out, Spike Lee uses his trademark take-no-prisoner style and humor to tell this story often missing from the history books.

BlacKkKlansman is being produced by Sean McKittrick and Raymond Mansfield for QC Entertainment,...

Ossie Davis’ children are inspiring a new wave of activists through their father’s legacy.

The film, television and Broadway actor, director, poet, playwright and civil rights activist who died in 2005 at the age of 87, would have celebrated his 100th birthday on Monday (Dec. 18). In honor of the centennial milestone, Nora Davis Day, Guy Davis and Dr. Hasna Muhammad Davis (the three children of Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee) are highlighting their father’s “contributions to the struggle.”

“We know that if Dad and Mom were around now, they would want to be a part of this discourse around civil rights. This renewed activism, the challenging of the status quo, and augmenting the voices that are truly marginalized,” Hasna told Et during a phone interview on Friday. “Since he’s not here, we do have this opportunity to include his and Mom's voices, so that we can help attribute and provide historical context, and encourage the vehicle...

I was curious to see how “The Birth of a Nation” — which I first saw at Sundance, where it drew two standing ovations and won the jury and audience prizes — would play for a real audience; in this case, at UCLA Extension’s fall screening series Sneak Previews.

As I watched the film again, I recognized the power of this handsomely mounted movie. Writer-director Nate Parker carefully crafted the (mostly) historically accurate story to show how, in 1831, the charismatic and educated slave Nat Turner (Parker) preached the gospel around his Virginia county, to the enrichment of his childhood playmate and master Samuel Turner (Armie Hammer), in order to placate the local restless slave population, many of them living under far worse conditions.

He witnessed horror after horror, including the brutal gang rape of his beloved wife (Aja Naomi King), which eventually sent him on a mission of righteous vengeance from the Lord.

I was curious to see how “The Birth of a Nation” — which I first saw at Sundance, where it drew two standing ovations and won the jury and audience prizes — would play for a real audience; in this case, at UCLA Extension’s fall screening series Sneak Previews.

As I watched the film again, I recognized the power of this handsomely mounted movie. Writer-director Nate Parker carefully crafted the (mostly) historically accurate story to show how, in 1831, the charismatic and educated slave Nat Turner (Parker) preached the gospel around his Virginia county, to the enrichment of his childhood playmate and master Samuel Turner (Armie Hammer), in order to placate the local restless slave population, many of them living under far worse conditions.

He witnessed horror after horror, including the brutal gang rape of his beloved wife (Aja Naomi King), which eventually sent him on a mission of righteous vengeance from the Lord.

Revisiting Spike Lee's Perplexing 'She Hate Me' on Its 11th Anniversary Continue Reading →...

Sexual Healing: Spike Lee’s New Joint Aims to Anoint

Provocateur Spike Lee continues to fling his ambition into surprising experimental formats and narratives. Following the box office failure of his 2008 war drama Miracle at St. Anna, Lee has branched out inventively, though his feature narrative products have not often received the same level of critical acclaim elicited by his early titles from the late 80s and early 90s when he was a lone representative of black independent cinema at the art house. After funding 2012’s Red Hook Summer out of pocket and controversially trawling Kickstarter for 2014’s Da Sweet Blood of Jesus (a remake of Bill Gunn’s 1973 classic Ganja & Hess), he’s back with his grandest platform in quite some time with Chi-raq, so named for the controversial moniker Chicago has earned due to the astronomical urban violence plaguing the metropolis’ South Side. Assembling an impressive cast, including...

I recently sat down with director Isabel Coixet, and actors Patricia Clarkson and Sarita Choudhury at the Crosby Hotel in New York City, to discuss their new film "Learning to Drive." The film, written by Sarah Kernochan, is based on the autobiographical New Yorker short story by Katha Pollit, a long-time political columnist for the Nation.

Wendy is a fiery Manhattan author whose husband has just left her for a younger woman; Darwan is a soft-spoken taxi driver from India on the verge of an arranged marriage. As Wendy sets out to reclaim her independence, she runs into a barrier common to many lifelong New Yorkers: she’s never learned to drive. When Wendy hires Darwan to teach her, her unraveling life and his calm restraint seem like an awkward fit. But as he shows her how to take control of the wheel, and she coaches him on how to impress a woman, their unlikely friendship awakens them to the joy, humor, and love in starting life anew.

My conversation began with Isabel Coixet and Sarita Choudhury

Isabel Coixet’s award-winning film credits include "Demaisiado viejo para morir joven," "Things I Never Told You,""My Life Without Me," "The Secret Life of Words," "Paris, je t’aime," "Elegy," "Map of the Sounds of Tokyo," "Yesterday Never Ends," "Another Me," "Nobody Wants the Night," as well as documentaries, including "Invisibles."

Currently, Sarita Choudhury can be seen on Showtime’s "Homeland." Her film credits include "Admission," "Gayby," "Midnight’s Children," "Generation Um…," "Entre Nos," "The Accidental Husband," "Lady in the Water," "The War Within," "Mississippi Masala," "Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love," "She Hate Me," "Just a Kiss," "Wild West," "High Art," "The House of the Spirits," "Gloria," and "A Perfect Murder."

Susan Kouguell: Tell me about the process of how "Learning to Drive" came about.

Isabel Coixet: We started talking about making this film with Patricia and Ben Kingsley when we were making "Elegy" (directed by Coixet, starring Clarkson and Kingsley) and we got along very well and we wanted to make another film together. Patricia discovered the short story by Katha Pollit, and she gave it to me and I thought it was wonderful. And then we got the screenwriter Sarah Kernocha involved. The film is a comedy but not a classical comedy. It was a very difficult film to pitch because you know financiers and producers want something they can put in one box and you can’t with this film. It was a long process. It took nine years.

Some Words Unspoken and the Intimacy of the Camera

Isabel Coixet: There is always this romantic feeling underneath [subtext], I think there is that possibility. You have to be true to your words. If they are true, you will have to stick to your words.

Sarita Choudhury: That’s what happens with people you meet. No you were my inspiration don’t make me your inspiration.

Isabel Coixet: I love Henry James. There is a possibility of romance in the air. My romantic side is always excited when I see something like this.

Sarita Choudhury: I had so few words in the film. In a way, I kept the words because I had to know not to say them. For us the script -- the situational was also in the script; the languidness. It was because Isabel holds the camera. There was a pace created to it. When you’re acting you can feel where the camera is, but when the camera is at the end of Isabel’s hand and she’s moving it, it almost creates an intimacy between you and the camera, and you and the actor. There’s a pace you normally don’t get in film. You didn’t know when she was on your face; you had to keep acting like acting in the theatre.

On The Lack of Women Directors

Isabel Coixet: There are so many articles about it. I’m always afraid to play the victim, to complain too much. I know there is an inequity with men and women directors. This is an issue in the world. I always say, (Coixet smiles) we have to ask for more salary to make up for all these years and maybe if we ask for more they’ll give us the same as a man.

I want to put my words where my mouth is by producing female directors; they are amazing talented people. I’m producing three short films and a feature documentary. That’s what I do.

Sarita Choudhury: I just did a young woman’s short film; there is something about her that’s brilliant. I’ve done two short films. I can’t change the caste system and I can’t do the voluntary work I need to be doing. Film is no different from the world, like Isabel said. That’s our work, to get every woman involved. And if a man is brilliant, let him in too.

I then asked Patricia Clarkson about her involvement with "Learning to Drive."

Academy Award® nominee and Emmy Award-winning actress, Patricia Clarkson, has worked extensively in independent films. The National Board of Review and the National Society of Film Critics named her Best Supporting Actress of the Year for "Pieces of April" and "The Station Agent." Her many film credits include "The Maze Runner," "Last Weekend," "Friends With Benefits," "One Day," "Easy A," "Shutter Island," "Vicky Christina Barcelona," "Elegy," "No Reservations," "All the Kings’ Men," "Lars and the Real Girl, and "Good Night, and Good Luck."

Susan Kouguell: What attracted you to the project?

Patricia Clarkson: I loved the Katha Pollit story in The New Yorker; it serendipitously came to me. I love Wendy, I love this character. I was nine years younger at the time, but I still felt I knew her. I was relentless trying to get this film made with producer Dana Friedman. I found it an equal dose of funny and tragic. I liked the almost commedia dell'arte aspect; this absurd situation and finding the tragic comedy. A woman who is brilliant who lives a great life -- she has everything, but “forgets to look up,” and then meets a man who has experienced tragic loss. They have disparate worlds. I found it a quintessential New York story, but it’s also universal. It’s an independent film, but it’s not independently-minded.

Some Final Words

The disparate worlds about which Clarkson refers to in regard to her character, Wendy’s relationship with Darwan [Ben Kingsley] -- the life of a financially successful New Yorker compared to the immigrant’s struggle, was a thematic element that I further discussed with Coixet and Choudhury. As Choudhury said to me, Coixet’s visual choices of her character, such as the moment when she watches feet walk by her basement apartment window, feeling trapped, underscore the poignancy of this fish-out-of-water situation. Coixet captures these elements with a delicate balance of both drama and comedy.

It was an inspiring morning to speak with these three powerful and talented women, who are committed to sharing their knowledge with the next generation of female filmmakers.

Award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker, Susan Kouguell teaches screenwriting at Purchase College Suny, and presents international seminars on screenwriting and film. Author of Savvy Characters Sell Screenplays! and The Savvy Screenwriter, she is chairperson of Su-City Pictures East, LLC, a consulting company founded in 1990 where she works with writers, filmmakers, and executives worldwide. www.su-city-pictures.com, http://su-city-pictures.com/wpblog...

Eleven rears ago this month, Spike Lee's polarizing "She Hate Me" opened in theaters in the USA. The specific release date was July 30, 2004, so I'm a week early in terms of its exact 11th anniversary date. But it gives you 1 week to catch up by re-watching the film and joining the conversation that this post might generate. There's plenty going on in "She Hate Me" that, as I recall, left me utterly confused and frustrated when I saw it 11 years ago, and still does today, despite such a stellar cast that, on paper, on any other project, would/should instantly draw one's attention, including the late Ossie Davis’ turn as a judge in really a...

Jennifer Aniston, Sienna Miller, David Oyelowo, Chris Pratt, John Travolta and Kerry Washington will be presenters at this year’s Oscars, show producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron announced today.

Aniston has starred in such films as “Cake” (2014), “We’re the Millers” (2013), “Horrible Bosses” (2011), “Marley & Me” (2008) and “Bruce Almighty” (2003). She also starred in all ten seasons of “Friends,” for which she won the 2002 Emmy® Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.

Miller co-stars in “American Sniper” and “Foxcatcher,” both of which have garnered multiple Oscar nominations this year. She previously appeared in such features as “Factory Girl” (2006) and “Layer Cake” (2005). Her upcoming films include “High-Rise,” “Adam Jones” and “Lost City of Z.”

Oyelowo portrayed Martin Luther King, Jr. in this year’s Best Picture nominee “Selma.” His other recent feature credits include “A Most Violent Year” (2014), “Interstellar” (2014), “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” (2013) and “Jack Reacher” (2012). He will next be...

Jennifer Aniston, Sienna Miller, David Oyelowo, Chris Pratt, Chris Rock and John Travolta will be presenters at this year’s Oscars, show producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron announced today. The Oscars, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, will air on Sunday, February 22, live on ABC. Aniston has starred in such films as “Cake” (2014), “We’re the Millers” (2013), “Horrible Bosses” (2011), “Marley & Me” (2008) and “Bruce Almighty” (2003). She also starred in all ten seasons of “Friends,” for which she won the 2002 Emmy® Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. Miller co-stars in “American Sniper” and “Foxcatcher,” both of which have garnered multiple Oscar® nominations this year. She previously appeared in such features as “Factory Girl” (2006) and “Layer Cake” (2005). Her upcoming films include “High-Rise,” “Adam Jones” and “Lost City of Z.” Oyelowo portrayed Martin Luther King, Jr. in this year’s Best Picture nominee “Selma.” His other recent feature credits include “A Most Violent Year...

We here at the Playlist have been firmly in the tank for Anthony Mackie since at least 2006’s “Half Nelson,” if not Spike Lee’s wildly uneven “She Hate Me,” so it’s nice to see Hollywood finally coming around and recognizing his talent. As “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” continues its victory lap – $708 million worldwide and counting – and Mackie’s charismatic Falcon continues to be seen the world over, we’ll bring you up-to-date on the actor’s latest moves. The journey of the Dan Pritzker-helmed “Bolden” is a long and winding one. The biopic focuses on a musician, Buddy Bolden, one of the key figures of early jazz. Not much is known about Bolden, who died in 1931” with his legend being his lasting legacy and no known recordings of his work exist. The film originally began shooting in 2007 with Mackie in the lead role before adjourning for two years until Pritzker – who,...

Just in time for the release of his mystery Kickstarter-funded joint, Da Sweet Blood Of Jesus, this summer, BAMcinématek in Brooklyn, New York will host a retrospective of Spike Lee's film, in a series titled "By Any Means Necessary: A Spike Lee Joints Retrospective" running from June 29 - July 10. It will probably be a good time for me to revisit my Spike Lee retro from a couple of years ago, during which I revisited what I called his *forgotten* films - essentially, those titles that rarely come up when conversations about favorite Spike Lee films are had - like Girl 6, She Hate Me, Bamboozled, and others.  I wonder if we'll ever see a Tyler Perry retrospective. He's directed about...