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Star Wars creator George Lucas defends diversity in response to criticism over representation of women and minorities. Lucas argues that the characters in the series should be valued for their actions and abilities, not just their appearance. He emphasizes the importance of strong, intelligent female characters like Princess Leia and Queen Amidala in the saga.

George Lucas has launched a spirited defense of diversity in the Star Wars original trilogy and sequels. The subject of diversity has always been a thorny one for Star Wars, with intense debate in the fandom over the degree of representation. Some argue the main heroes are all white males, while others point to the fact Leia Organa is no mere damsel in distress, and Lucas' introduction of Billy Dee Williams' Lando Calrissian in The Empire Strikes Back.

Per Variety, George Lucas himself spoke candidly about the issue at the Cannes Film Festival. In his view,...

George Lucas got candid about criticism of the first six “Star Wars” films during a conversation at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday.

When speaking about the success of the franchise ahead of receiving the festival’s honorary Palme d’Or, Lucas reflected on some of the negative comments he’s received over the years.

“They would say, ‘It’s all white men,'” Lucas said of the films’ critics. “Most of the people are aliens! The idea is you’re supposed to accept people for what they are, whether they’re big and furry or whether they’re green or whatever. The idea is all people are equal.”

Lucas went on to say that the only beings in the “Star Wars” universe who were discriminated against were the robots.

“That was a way of saying, you know, people are always discriminating against something and sooner or later, that’s what’s going to happen,...

Ken Russell’s reputation as a stoker of controversy and flamboyant provocateur in extremis largely precedes his voluminous body of work. His best-known film, The Devils – condemned by the Catholic Church and edited significantly by the film’s producers before finally being released by Warner Bros. in 1971 – continues to uphold a sorcerer-like allure due, in part, to still-relative absence on home-video platforms and repertory circuits. It seems that, in some ways, Russell’s notoriety stems from how much censorship succeeded – an infamy bolstered by the continued inaccessibility of his most notorious efforts, even in the on-demand era, despite the loosening of moral standards since his films first passed through ratings boards. It’s hard to believe that, as far as content is concerned, a modern audience would still find his depictions of sexuality and religion so morally beyond the pale. But from a stylistic perspective, much of Russell’s formal...

This past weekend, the American Society of Cinematographers awarded Greig Fraser for his contribution to Lion as last year’s greatest accomplishment in the field. Of course, his achievement was just a small sampling of the fantastic work from directors of photography, but it did give us a stronger hint at what may be the winner on Oscar night. Ahead of the ceremony, we have a new video compilation that honors all the past winners in the category at the Academy Awards

Created by Burger Fiction, it spans the stunning silent landmark Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans all the way up to the end of Emmanuel Lubezki‘s three-peat win for The Revenant. Aside from the advancements in color and aspect ration, it’s a thrill to see some of cinema’s most iconic shots side-by-side. However, the best way to experience the evolution of the craft is by...

Chicago – One of the greatest records in baseball, the total home run record held by Babe Ruth, was challenged by an unassuming ballplayer named Henry “Hank” Aaron in the early part of the 1970s. The quest to break that record was complicated because Aaron was a black man, and race in America again became an issue. The Smithsonian Channel chronicles that journey, as part of their new “Major League Legends” series, with “The Hammer of Hank Aaron,” premiering on February 29th, 2016.

’The Hammer of Hank Aaron’ Premieres on Monday, February 29th, 2016, on the Smithsonian Channel

Photo credit: Smithsonian Channel

The Smithsonian Channel was in Chicago to launch their “Major League Series” – which will also profile Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Ted Williams – at Studio Xfinity, an amazing 9,000 square foot store where Comcast customers can test, upgrade and interact with a wide range of their TV and security product offerings. The Smithsonian Channel welcomed Dr.

'A Beautiful Mind' with Russell Crowe. '31 Days of Oscar' on TCM: 'The Wind and the Lion,' 'The Man Who Would Be King' Turner Classic Movies' “31 Days of Oscar” continues on Saturday, Feb. 6, '16, with more recent fare – as in, several films released in the last four decades. Among these are The Wind and the Lion, The Man Who Would Be King, A Beautiful Mind, Swing Shift, and Broadcast News. John Milius' The Wind and the Lion and John Huston's The Man Who Would Be King are both 1975 releases featuring “Westerners” (i.e., white people) stranded in “exotic” and potentially dangerous locales (i.e., places inhabited by dark-skinned non-Christians) in the distant past: the former in early 20th century Morocco; the latter in a remote region in colonial India in the late 19th century. (That particular area, Kafiristan, is located in today's Afghanistan.) The thematic similarities between the two films end there,...

The 59Th BFI London Film Festival Announces Full 2015 Programme

You can peruse the programme at your leisure here.

The programme for the 59th BFI London Film Festival in partnership launched today, with Festival Director Clare Stewart presenting this year’s rich and diverse selection of films and events. BFI London Film Festival is Britain’s leading film event and one of the world’s oldest film festivals. It introduces the finest new British and international films to an expanding London and UK-wide audience. The Festival provides an essential platform for films seeking global success; and promotes the careers of British and international filmmakers through its industry and awards programmes. With this year’s industry programme stronger than ever, offering international filmmakers and leaders a programme of insightful events covering every area of the film industry‎ Lff positions London as the world’s leading creative city.

The Festival will screen a...

Previous | Image 1 of 25 | NextBai Ling of ‘The Crow.’

Chicago – The Hollywood Show is back, and all your favorite TV and movie stars are available to meet, take pictures with and get autographs. The 2015 Chicago edition is May 1 through 3, with Saturday the 2nd and Sunday the 3rd the celebrity appearance days. HollywoodChicago.com was there for the 2014 Show, and captured some Exclusive Portraits of the type of celebrities the Hollywood Show brings directly to the fans.

Scheduled to appear at the 2014 Hollywood Show include the dynamic duo from the 1966 Batman TV show, Adam West and Burt Ward (Saturday only); Henry “Fonzie” Winkler (Saturday), “Chips” stars Larry Wilcox and Erik Estrada; Louise Fletcher from “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”; Linda Blair from “The Exorcist”; secondary cast members from the popular film “A League of Their Own”; and for the first time some legendary sports celebrities like Bobby Hull (Chicago Black...

By Lee Pfeiffer

You don't have to be gay to admire John Schlesinger's 1971 film Sunday Bloody Sunday, but it probably helps in terms of appreciating just how ground-breaking the movie was in its day. As a straight guy of high school age when the film was released, I do remember it causing a sensation, although it would literally take me decades before I finally caught up with it. Gay friends always spoke reverently of the movie and expressed how the most refreshing aspect of the story was how "normally" a loving relationship between two adult men was portrayed. In viewing the film as a recent Criterion Blu-ray release, I feel I can finally appreciate that point of view. Gay men have long been portrayed in movies, of course, but for the most part they have been depicted as objects of ridicule or as sexual deviants. There were the odd...

News.

The BFI London Film Festival has announced its 2012 award winners. Jacques Audiard's Rust & Bone is the Best Film, and Benh Zeitlin's Beasts of the Southern Wild (which also picked up an award at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival this past week) is the Best Debut. For a complete list of winners, click here. The Rome Film Festival has unveiled some additions to their lineup, including new films from Paul Verhoeven (his mid-length feature Tricked, which we've previously shared the trailer for) and Peter Greenaway. Via The Guardian: It's hard to go very long without hearing word of new projects from Werner Herzog, and his list of forthcoming films has grown yet again with the announcement of his adaptation of Dbc Pierre's Vernon God Little:

"Herzog will return to Texas: it's about a teenager who heads to Mexico after becoming a scapegoat for a high-school killing in a small Texan town.

It's important to not only view a film in the context of current societal norms, but when viewing older films it's just as important to think of them in the context of how it would have been perceived when it was originally released. This is easy enough when it comes to visual effects, but when it comes to societal norms and thematic material it's importance goes beyond what's visually believable. Released in 1971 on the heels of the unanticipated success of Midnight Cowboy, John Schlesinger's Sunday Bloody Sunday centers on a trio of Londoners. Daniel Hirsh (Peter Finch) is a middle-aged, Jewish doctor, Alex (Glenda Jackson) is a thirty-something divorcee and between the two is Bob (Murray Head), a young artist who is sleeping with both of them. Bob isn't keeping his love affair secret from either Daniel or Alex, both of which do their best to understand while craving his attention and affection.

By Allen Gardner

Prometheus (20th Century Fox) Ridley Scott’s quasi-prequel to his 1979 classic “Alien” has an intergalactic exploratory team (Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba) arriving on a uncharted planet, where they discover what appears to be a dormant alien spacecraft and what might be the first discovery of intelligent life outside of Earth. Of course, everything goes straight to hell before you can scream “Don’t touch that egg!” Sumptuous visuals and strong performances from the cast (not to mention a nearly-perfect first half) can’t compensate for gaping plot and logic holes that nearly sink the proceedings in the film’s protracted second half. It feels as though some very crucial footage wound up on the cutting room floor. Perhaps, as with “Alien” and “Aliens” we’ll see a “Director’s Cut” of “Prometheus” arriving on DVD within the next year. In the meantime,...

Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: Oct. 23, 2012

Price: DVD $29.95, Blu-ray $39.95

Studio: Criterion

Glenda Jackson stands between Peter Finch (l.) and Murray Head--or does she?--in Sunday Bloody Sunday.

British filmmaker John Schlesinger followed his Academy Award–winning 1969 film Midnight Cowboy with 1971’s Sunday Bloody Sunday, a sophisticated and highly personal drama about love and sex.

Sunday Bloody Sunday depicts the romantic lives of two Londoners—a middle-aged doctor (Peter Finch, Network) and a prickly thirty-something divorcée (Glenda Jackson, Women in Love) —who are sleeping with the same handsome young artist (Murray Head, TV’s Heartbeat).

Written by novelist and critic Penelope Gilliatt, the R-rated Sunday Bloody Sunday was considered to be quite a racy revelation way back when. Looking back on the film now, it’s definitely one of the 1970s’ most intelligent, multi-textured films about the complexities of romantic relationships.

The Criterion Blu-ray and DVD editions of the film contains...

It’s always sad when an actor or filmmaker dies, and in 2011 we have had to mourn the loss of many great stars of past and present. Pete Postlethwaite, John Barry, Maria Schneider, Jane Russell, Michael Gough, Elizabeth Taylor, Sidney Lumet, Peter Falk – all great losses, many of them at much too young an age. Only ten days ago John Neville, the delightfully charismatic star of Terry Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, passed away peacefully aged 86.

But perhaps none of these deaths should be mourned more than that of Ken Russell, who died this week in his sleep at the ripe old age of 84. Aside from his short-lived and ill-advised appearance on Celebrity Big Brother, his name will be unfamiliar to the majority of young filmgoers – people who didn’t grow up with his biopics of Elgar and Mahler, people who didn’t spend their twenties listening to Who records,...

Singer, comic actor and stalwart of Coronation Street

Betty Driver, who has died aged 91, was a gutsy and durable comic actor who meant one thing to young audiences and quite another to those who could remember the second world war and the years immediately after it. To the youthful, she will be remembered as Betty Turpin (later Betty Williams), the barmaid, shoulder to cry on and wife of the policeman Cyril Turpin in Granada television's Coronation Street, whose cast she joined in 1969.

To a much older audience, she will also be remembered for her appearances in repertory theatres and in stage revues; as the child star who took over from the popular singer Gracie Fields on a stage tour, doing some of her best-known numbers; and as the principal singer for a year with the leading dance orchestra leader of the time, Henry Hall, on his BBC radio programme,...