News

Stars: Elle O’Hara, Michaela Longden, Sarah Jane Duncan, Jacob Roberts, Johnny Vivash, Julie Hannan, David Howell | Written and Directed by Hayden Hewitt

Credits rolling over, a montage of images that include dildos and men’s faces leering from computer monitors give way to a nightmarish hallucination sequence. Cara, a new psychological horror film from writer/director Hayden Hewitt, starts as it intends to continue, unrelentingly dark and grim.

Cara has recently been released from the grossly misnamed “Sunnyside”, a mental institution where she spent the past several years. Now, she shares an apartment with Ashley who, like her, works as a cam girl. Not a great life, but better than being institutionalized, something she swears she won’t let happen to her again.

Unfortunately, Cara’s mental state seems to already be deteriorating, as evidenced by the post-credits hallucination, and her imagining her therapist Gemma repeatedly calling her a whore during one of their sessions.

Alan Clarke’s brutally unflinching prison drama Scum is set to make its long-awaited return to digital platforms in the UK and Ireland, with Vertigo Releasing confirming a release date of 17th March. The controversial 1979 film, which remains one of the most hard-hitting portrayals of the British borstal system, stars Ray Winstone in a breakthrough performance that would cement his status as one of the country’s most formidable actors.

Originally produced as a BBC television play in 1977, Scum was banned before its intended broadcast, deemed too extreme for public consumption. Clarke and screenwriter Roy Minton refused to let their vision disappear into obscurity, reworking the film as a theatrical release in 1979. What followed was a harrowing portrayal of institutional brutality that quickly became one of the most infamous British films of its era.

Set in a juvenile correctional facility, Scum follows Carlin (Winstone), a young offender who quickly learns...

The live-action adaptation of Aka Akasaka and Mengo Yokoyari’s hit manga Oshi no Ko is making history. Within just 30 days of its release, it became the most-watched Amazon Prime original in Japan, as per the series’ official website.

This massive achievement highlights the show’s popularity since its debut on November 28, when the first six episodes were released worldwide. The final two episodes followed shortly after on December 5.

Each episode of the series introduces a fresh theme song and artist, keeping things dynamic. The in-story idol group B-Komachi wraps up the film with their song ‘Shining Song.’ The unique musical choices have resonated deeply with viewers.

Adding to the excitement, the sequel film hit theaters on December 20, featuring performances by popular names like Nagisa Saitō (formerly of =Love) as Ruby, and Asuka Saitō (ex-Nogizaka46) as Ai. Aqua is played by Kaito Sakurai, while Nanoka Hara portrays Kana Arima.

Casey Chaos, frontman and founding member of Los Angeles metal/punk outfit Amen, has died at the age of 59. Confirmation of the sad news came via the band’s official Facebook page.

In a statement in the social media post, the band mourned the loss of its singer and mastermind, revealing that Casey and Amen had been working on an unannounced project for the past five or six years — presumably the long-awaited follow-up to 2004’s Death Before Musick.

The Facebook post read:

“It is with great sadness, grief and sorrow that we confirm the passing of Casey Chaos after seeing the news currently being reported. As you can imagine, everyone in the band, past and present, are absolutely devastated.

There was a lot going on with Amen in the past 5-6 years that we didn’t announce. Casey loved and appreciated your support, and always wanted to wait until things were complete,...

The Oshi no Ko manga ending date has officially been scheduled. According to the official accounts for the series, Oshi no Ko just has four chapters remaining. Following a hiatus that's set to end on October 24, the final four chapters will be released consecutively, putting the final chapter of the manga in this year's 50th issue of Weekly Young Jump magazine on November 14, 2024.  The 16th volume will close it out in compiled form when it hits shelves in Japan on December 18. The manga written by Aka Akasaka ( Kaguya-sama: Love is War ) and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari ( Scum's Wish ) first launched in Weekly Young Jump in April 2020. Yen Press publishes the series in English and it's also available digitally through Shueisha's Manga Plus service. Here's how the latter describes it: "In the world of showbiz, lies are weapons." Goro works as an Ob-gyn in the countryside, a life...

A stage play adaptation of the Oshi no Ko manga, written by Aka Akasaka ( Kaguya-sama: Love is War ) and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari ( Scum's Wish ), is now set to open in Tokyo and Osaka in December 2024. The title of the play is "Engeki 'Oshi no Ko' 2.5-jigen Butai-hen" ("Stage Play 'Oshi no Ko' 2.5 D Stage Play Arc"), with the story based on the fifth arc of the original manga and currently in the TV anime's ongoing second season. The arc depicts the drama of a manga's stage play production process and adds original elements unique to the theater, including the in-show play Tokyo Blade . A key visual featuring these two stories was released. "Oshi no Ko" stage play key visual "Tokyo Blade" stage play key visual A teaser trailer for the Tokyo Blade stage play is now streaming on the play's official X (formerly Twitter) . Related:...

Ahmed Best has revealed how George Lucas views the concept of balance in the Force. Balance in the Force is not a blend of light and dark as many wrongly perceive, but striving for pure light and rejecting the dark. The Force will always have a dark side, but choosing to fight for the light is what brings balance.

Balance in the Force has been an essential plot point of Star Wars since its inception, with a prequel trilogy actor revealing what George Lucas himself meant by the phrase. The many Star Wars movies and shows have never provided a distinct, concrete explanation of what balance in the Force means. Upcoming Star Wars movies will likely continue to follow this trend, given that the Force is such a mysterious entity within the galaxy. Star Wars' upcoming TV shows will be similar, to avoid answering a question even Lucas' franchise projects did not.

Spend the summer with your faves! Hit anime series Oshi no Ko is taking over Tokorozawa's Seibuen Amusement Park for a summer festival including fireworks, food and much more. Popular attractions at the park will feature newly recorded audio from the cast of the anime. Additionally, a fireworks display held on national holidays and weekends will combine music, video and voice with laser lighting and pyrotechnics to make you feel like you're at a real concert. Pen lights will also be on sale. Related: Oshi no Ko Season 2 Creditless Opening and Ending Videos Get the Spotlight During the day, take part in a stamp rally to win a special acrylic card featuring one of the show's idols. Other goods will also be available for sale at the park, including acrylic stands and postcards. The park's restaurant will offer Oshi no Ko themed menu items for a limited time, including an...

Quick Links "Their Characters Have Such Unique Motivations": Why Maul And Phasma Were Chosen For The Revenge At Last Expansion "Both Characters Have Unique Game Engines": How Phasma And Maul's Gameplay Will Work In Star Wars Villainous In the upcoming expansion for the Star Wars Villainous board game, titled "Revenge at Last," players will be able to pit Darth Maul and Captain Phasma against each other in a standalone game or combine them with other villains to achieve their unique objectives. The game draws inspiration from the characters' extensive lore, with Maul focusing on manipulating heroes to defeat their friends and Phasma working to train and promote First Order Stormtroopers. The game designers chose these characters because of their unique motivations within the Star Wars Universe, incorporating different game mechanics and play patterns. Revenge at Last can be mixed with other Star Wars Villainous titles or played on its own,...

Ahead of a July 3 broadcast in Japan, the official website and accounts for the Oshi no Ko anime released another main trailer for Season 2 that previews further entertainment industry drama to the tune of ending song "Burning" by rock band Hitsujibungaku ( The Heike Story Op). It was also announced that "Fatale" by Gemn, a new unit made up of Kento Nakajima and Tatsuya Kitani ( Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2 Op), will serve as the sequel's opening song. Related: Anime of the Year 2024 Nominee Spotlight: Oshi no Ko The first season of the  Oshi no Ko  TV anime is currently streaming on Hidive. The manga, written by Aka Akasaka ( Kaguya-sama: Love is War ) and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari ( Scum's Wish ), is published in  Weekly Young Jump  in Japan while Manga Plus digitally publishes the  manga's official English version . Yen Press releases  physical editions of the English manga . Manga Plus describes the series...

The official website for the Oshi no Ko TV anime series confirmed today that its second season is set to premiere on 35 stations across Japan on July 3, 2024. And a new 30-second commercial featuring the second season's opening theme song, "Fatale" sung by Gemn, a singer whose identity has yet to be revealed, is now streamed on the anime's official YouTube channel . As reported , the first episode's advance screening event is set to be held at the Marunouchi Piccadilly theater in Tokyo on June 30, 2024. The event will be simultaneously broadcast live nationwide. Related : Oshi no Ko Season 2 Anime Gets Early Episode 1 Screenings in Japan The first season of the  Oshi no Ko  TV anime is currently streaming on Hidive. The manga, written by Aka Akasaka ( Kaguya-sama: Love is War ) and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari ( Scum's Wish ), is published in  Weekly Young Jump  in Japan while Manga Plus digitally publishes...

Former President Donald Trump honored Memorial Day with a scorching post calling out current President Joe Biden and Judge Lewis Kaplan, among others. Trump initially posted an image of himself saluting a decorated wreath.

After, Trump posted, “Happy Memorial Day to All, including the Human Scum that is working so hard to destroy our Once Great Country.” In the lengthy post, Trump named E. Jean Carroll, Judge Juan Merchan and Judge Arthur Engoron, calling him a “Radical Left, Trump-Hating Federal Judge” and “N.Y. State Wacko Judge.”

Trump’s post received criticism from social media, including the Biden-Harris X account that called out Trump for not honoring fallen soldiers. Other accounts shared similar opinions.

On Memorial Day, Biden visited Arlington National Cemetary and delivered a tribute to the fallen soldiers. “Freedom has never been guaranteed. Every generation has to earn it. Fight for it,” Biden said. “Defend it in battle between autocracy and democracy.

Many of cinema’s hard men are notorious softies in real life. Ray Winstone may well be one of those, even if he admits to not looking particularly approachable.

“My wife always says to me, ‘Why do you look like you’re going to kill someone when you walk into a room?'” he tells Variety. “But I don’t mean to!”

Winstone’s long-standing status as the go-to man to depict violent approach-with-caution individuals or British mob bosses continues to serve him, however, as “The Gentleman” — Guy Ritchie’s eight-part Netflix spinoff of his 2019 gangster comedy feature of the same name — proves. In the series, awash in the classic Ritchie mix of guns, drugs, violence, aristocrats, boxing and tweed, Winstone stars as a gangland patriarch and head of a massive weed-growing empire. Because of course he does — who else would you cast as an elder statesman than the actor...

With three new projects shortly to be released, the screen’s favourite hardman gets stuck into politics, family, Sunday lunch and ‘cockney morality’

The actor Ray Winstone, who is best known for his depictions of men muddled in criminality, has a torso so large and legs so thin that seeing him enter the breakfast lounge of a London hotel is like watching a barrel walk in on stilts. Winstone is 67 now. In real life he resembles the characters he has spent a career perpetuating on screen. He maintains the east London accent he developed in childhood. He swears gruffly and nonstop. He chuckles at calling people “fuckers”. It would surprise no one if he were voted film and television’s most specific brand. When, partway through our discussion, I ask if he’s ever troubled by people considering him professionally one-dimensional, he replies, “Not one fucking bit – you typecast yourself.

John McVicar died on 6 September 2022 of a heart attack, aged 82. He was a seasoned ex-convict who turned his hand from armed robbery to a career in journalism, writing about crime and justice for the Guardian, the New Statesman and Spiked. However, this biopic is not about McVicar, the autodidact. Instead, it is a crime film about McVicar’s 1968 prison break that’s told with an austere, turn-of-the-’80s aesthetic comparable to Scum, The Black Panther and The Long Good Friday.

Roger Daltrey’s presence may raise questions about McVicar’s seriousness, but this isn’t a lazy rock star vehicle — Daltrey assumes the role with a sinewy attitude that doesn’t want for credibility. Credible too are McVicar’s fellow inmates and the staff who corral them at Hmp Durham, where life is stark but not without goodwill. There is a fair amount of camaraderie, in fact, with conflict rarely going beyond coarse words.

Scum & Villainy is the first expansion for the Star Wars Villainous board game, featuring Boba Fett, Cad Bane, and the Seventh Sister as playable characters. The expansion is compatible with the base game, Power of the Dark Side, allowing players to combine characters from both boxes. The artwork in Scum & Villainy is visually impressive, with each villain deck and character figure reflecting the accuracy of the Star Wars canon. Boba Fett, Cad Bane, and the Seventh Sister each have unique goals and mechanics that align with their characters.

The first expansion for the popular Star Wars Villainous board game has arrived, featuring Boba Fett and more in the new Scum & Villainy. Featuring three new playable characters and new mechanics to learn, Scum and Villainy allows players eager for a new challenge to enter the seedier side of the galaxy where friends and foes can change at the drop of Cad Bane's signature big hat.

Warning: Contains spoilers for Oshi no Ko volume #8.Oshi no Ko has been subtly hinting that Ruby is secretly LGBTQ+ for a while now, and here’s a breakdown of everything that points in that direction. While Oshi no Ko creators Aka Akasaka and Mengo Yokoyari have never published anything that explicitly falls into the yaoi or yuri genres, both creators have experience with incorporating LGBTQ+ themes into their works. For example, Yokoyari’s previous work, Scum’s Wish, has a lesbian character in Sanae, whose sexuality is explored across the series, and in Akasaka’s Kaguya-sama: Love is War, the story slowly develops a romance between Chika and Hayasaka that’s implied to have become a full-fledged relationship by their adult years.

The team behind Oshi no Ko has clear experience with putting LGBTQ+ themes in their works, and that shows itself again with how Ruby has been heavily...

American Horror Story has been around long enough to build its own connected universe, but that has also made way for plot holes, such as the Zodiac Killer one created by Hotel and Cult. Although American Horror Story is an anthology TV series, the appearances and references of characters and events in different seasons have made way for an AHS connected universe, which peaked in season 8, Apocalypse, which brought together Murder House, Coven, and Hotel. Since then, viewers have looked for details that further connect the seasons of American Horror Story, but they have also found various plot holes.

American Horror Story season 5, Hotel, took the audience to Hotel Cortez, a haunted place where a group of vampires, led by The Countess (Lady Gaga), lived, as well as the ghosts of those who died inside the hotel. Hotel Cortez was built by James Patrick March (Evan Peters), a serial killer...

An activist protesting sexual violence against women in Ukraine has been removed tonight from the Cannes red carpet for George Miller’s Three Thousand Years Of Longing.

The naked and screaming woman had paint daubed on her body in the colours of the Ukrainian flag and the words ‘Stop Raping Us’ across her chest and stomach. She had the word ‘Scum’ written on her back.

There is mounting evidence of summary executions, rape and torture carried out by Russian forces in Ukraine.

The French activist group Scum has just posted an explanation on Twitter.

Une activiste Scum s'introduit sur le tapis rouge du festival de #Cannes2022 pour dénoncer les violences sexuelles infligées aux ukrainiennes dans le contexte de la guerre.#cannes2022redcarpet pic.twitter.com/cGEJDghD2k

— Scum (@scum_officiel) May 20, 2022

Scum was a radical feminist manifesto published in the 1960s. However, the above Twitter handle only came into existence last month.

Stars: Keira Lane, Neal Ward, Segun Akinwoleola, Siobhan Bayford, Cassandra French, Kelly Goudie, Tiana Hoath, Paul King, Megan Lockhurst | Written and Directed by Darren James King

Directed by Darren James King, April is a stark and somewhat grim reminder of what an unshackled British director can produce. Movies like Scum, The Firm, This is England and Dead Man’s Shoes. You know, true “cheery” Brit flicks! Films that are few and far between these days on account of… well that’s another conversation for another day. Here we have a director who, while somewhat restricted by budget, is unwavering in his commitment to telling us a grim story with its grim reality. A project that for any father watching will set your mind racing, all capped with a “If I am doing this I’m getting lost in the moment” performance from Neal Ward. This is British low budget at its...

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds have announced B-Sides & Rarities Part II, a second collection of rare and unreleased tracks that the group recorded over the past decade and a half.

The band released their first B-Sides & Rarities compilation in 2005. Since then, he and the Bad Seeds have recorded two more discs’ worth of B-sides and rarities, both released and unheard.

In total, the 27-song B-Sides & Rarities Part II boasts 19 unreleased tracks — compiled by Cave and Bad Seeds member Warren Ellis — including the first recordings of album cuts like “Skeleton Tree,...

The writer/director of Martha Marcy May Marlene and The Nest takes hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante on an exploration of his favorite cinematic endings.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011)

The Nest (2020)

Citizen Kane (1941)

The Cowboys (1972)

The Parallax View (1974)

Three Days of the Condor (1975)

Limbo (1999)

Nashville (1975)

The Long Goodbye (1973)

3 Women (1977)

Chinatown (1974)

Some Like It Hot (1959)

The Third Man (1949)

Do The Right Thing (1989)

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)

Our Idiot Brother (2011)

Shoot The Moon (1982)

Parasite (2019)

The Wild Bunch (1969)

The Ice Storm (1997)

Kramer Vs. Kramer (1979)

The Brood (1979)

The Graduate (1967)

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)

The Candidate (1972)

The Sixth Sense (1999)

The Birds (1963)

The Firm (1989)

Scum (1979)

The Firm (2009)

The Vanishing (1988)

The Vanishing (1993)

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Repulsion (1965)

Pirates (1986)

What? (1972)

Blowup (1966)

Blow Out (1981)

The Long Good Friday (1980)

Other Notable Items

Jude Law

Carrie Coon

Quentin Tarantino

John Wayne

The Pure Cinema Podcast

The Film Forum

Warren Beatty

Tfh Guru Howard...

Acclaimed stuntman and action director extraordinaire Jesse V. Johnson joins us to discuss the U.S. based action films and filmmakers that have influenced him the most.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

On The Waterfront (1954)

Fultah Fisher’s Boarding House (1922)

Undisputed (2002)

Undisputed II: Last Man Standing (2006)

Undisputed III: Redemption (2010)

Boyka: Undisputed (2016)

The Killer Elite (1975)

Convoy (1978)

The Osterman Weekend (1983)

Bring Me The Head Of Alfredo Garcia (1974)

Le Cercle Rouge (1970)

Straw Dogs (1971)

The Wild Bunch (1969)

Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995)

The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

The Birdcage (1996)

Cross of Iron (1977)

Electra Glide in Blue (1973)

Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry (1974)

Easy Rider (1969)

Fail Safe (1964)

The Cincinnati Kid (1965)

Ride The High Country (1962)

Major Dundee (1965)

Jinxed! (1982)

Beowulf (2007)

Kiss Me Deadly (1955)

Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (2019)

The Girl Hunters (1963)

Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

Point Blank (1967)

Falling Down (1993)

M (1951)

M (1931)

The Black Vampire (1953)

The Roaring Twenties (1939)

Scum (1979)

Elephant (1989)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), possibly Joe’s favorite John Ford...

As a fan of Scum and Villainy lists in X-Wing 2.0 and as someone with no history of the original X-Wing, I am often excited to by the sheer weirdness of the new ships that this faction offers. I generally field squadrons of large ships with a lot of strange attachments including the Yt-300 Light Freighter with it’s escape craft and the Slave 1 with it’s unique ability to shoot both forwards and backwards.

The new Hounds Tooth ship (based on the Yv-666 Light Freighter) is another ship that fits this brief perfectly. Familiar to fans of the Star Wars lore as the ship of bounty hunter Bossk, the Hounds Tooth has a formidable nine hull and three shields, whilst also firing with three dice on a 180 degree forward arc. Particularly pleasing to me is that with the “Hounds Tooth” title card, the ship can house a Z-95-AF4 starfighter upon destruction,...

James Marsh’s heist-caper “King of Thieves” reunites beloved British actors for a story that’s familiar yet still surprising. In a rat pack that includes Michael Caine, Jim Broadbent, Michael Gambon, Tom Courtenay and Ray Winstone, these mild-mannered gents play retired criminals who unite for one last tantalizing score: the chance to steal over £200 million in jewels and money.

Brian (Caine) is the reluctant leader of this grizzly pack, breaking his promise to his late wife to leave his notorious days behind him. But he knows a score too good to pass up, and when timid, but criminally minded whippersnapper Basil shows him a way into a high-security vault holding millions worth of goods, Brian rallies his troops for one last show. Basil ingratiates his way into their company as an expert in wiring and as the person who knows everything there is to know about their target.

Their crew is a motley one.

I’ve come to expect pure madness from Devolver Digital. Publishers of games like Hotline Miami, Shadow Warrior, and Enter the Gungeon, the only overarching classification I can come up with is “high-quality indie alternative.” For Devolver, over the top is their baseline, and they just go up from there. Irreverently pushing the line of the sane […]

The post Scum Is An Insane Game Made By Croatian Madmen appeared first on Dread Central.

If you ask “Scum’s” Creative Director Tomislav Pongrac, he’ll say the survival game genre is basically dead.

Where once for him playing a survival game opened his eyes to an new world with a million possibilities, now the number of those types of games is shrinking rapidly.

“Nothing’s happening in that genre,” Pongrac said speaking of the latest trend that has swept Early Access games over the past year. “Eventually, it’s all getting reduced to Battle Royale.”

It’s with that mentality that Pongrac brought his game to E3. Developed by Gamepires, produced by Crotean, and published by Devolver, “Scum” is a “super max survival sim” set in a reality TV show about prisoners trying to escape from an island. In a brutal landscape, the online multiplayer game challenges players to survive, gain renown from the show’s viewers, and perhaps escape. But it’s so,...

Starring Andrew Robinson (Dirty Harry, Charley Varrick), Clare Higgins (Hellbound: Hellraiser 2, Silent Witness), Ashley Laurence (Hellbound: Hellraiser 2, Lurking Fear), Sean Chapman (Made in Britain, Scum) and directed by Clive Barker (Nightbreed, Lord of Illusions), Hellraiser is returning to cinemas and receiving a gorgeous Blu-ray Steelbook just in time for Halloween!

That’s right folks Pinhead and his Cenobites are back in the cinema to celebrate the big 30th year anniversary and guess what… The folks at Arrow Films/Video are releasing a beautiful steelbook on October 30th too! If your a horror hound this is a must buy steelbook and a must revisit in the cinema. The 30th Anniversary re-release of Hellraiser – appropriately debuting on Friday 13th October – gives audiences a chance to see it once more in all its gory big screen glory and for the uninitiated to have their souls torn apart for the first time!

For those who are unfamiliar with Hellraiser,...

Skinheads, hit men, cops, criminals, cops-posing-as-criminals, princes, junkies, executioners, politicians, supervillains, an 18th-century fop, a 19th-century impressionist painter and a 21st-century psychotic chimp – you name it, and there's an extremely good chance that Tim Roth has played it. The 56-year-old British actor has the sort of varied, overstuffed resumé that suggests a reserved spot in the steadily-working-character-actor canon, and has not one but two projects hitting TV screens at the moment: Tin Star, an Amazon thriller that about an expat cop living in Canada that starts as a quirky fish-out-of-water...

Louisa Mellor Sep 8, 2017

Tim Roth leads an excellent cast in unpredictable new Sky Atlantic revenge drama Tin Star, out now…

“It’s the disposal,” says Tim Roth. “The killing isn’t the problem, it’s the disposal that’s the problem. You run out of space.” The storage issues faced by serial killers aren’t something to which many of us will have devoted much thought. Roth has. Reassuringly, he’s had reason to thanks to his recent sinister role as real-life murderer Reg Christie in BBC drama Rillington Place. “Charming fella” he jokes.

See related 26 new UK TV shows to look out for Life On Mars: revisiting a terrific UK crime drama Line Of Duty series 4: creator Jed Mercurio interview

Roth is back on UK television on the other side of the law in new Sky Atlantic drama Tin Star, which has already been renewed for a second series.

Scum At Cinefamily | 611 N Fairfax Ave.

Beginning Friday, a new Dcp restoration of British director Alan Clarke’s harrowing 1979 film Scum comes to Cinefamily for a well-deserved weeklong run. Set in an anonymous British borstal, a youth detention center for only the most violent and unrepentant of young men, Scum follows the arrival and uneasy integration of three new inmates played by Ray Winstone, Julian Firth and Alrick Riley. In short, brutal order, sides are taken and the tenuous dynamic collapses, and through a series of gripping set pieces Clarke presents an unflinching vision of damaged masculinity at...

Since any New York City cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.

Quad Cinema

Films by Fosse, Visconti, Chabrol, and Ed Wood play as part of “Quadrophilia: Queer Edition.”

Maurice and Funeral Parade of Roses continue playing.

Metrograph

The restoration of Alan Clarke’s Scum, a must-see, is now screening.

“Welcome to Metrograph A-z” continues, including multiple showings of Todd Haynes’ Safe.

A Father’s Day special occurs this Sunday.

Though released nearly four decades ago, the impact of British director Alan Clarke’s stripped-down, visually matter-of-fact-yet-enrapturing “prison” drama Scum can still be felt in ripples throughout modern cinema, from the dirt-caked musings of the excellent Starred Up, to the philosophical discussion posed between a beaten Bobby Sands and stubborn priest in Steve McQueen’s Hunger. Shrouded in controversy upon its release, Scum has sat for years under the sort of “banned film” title that lends to a certain morbid fascination, which itself overlooks potential (or inherent) cinematic value. But Scum lives up to its title to this day, its manic energy balanced with an assured and naked openness that creates a searing level of realism and, as such, savagery.

Scum is set in a juvenile-offender institution that is more akin to youthful hell than a chance at redemption for its sordid inmates, who struggle, fall, and brawl in the...

Alan Clarke‘s little-seen prison drama Scum has already been available on Blu-ray via Kino Lorber for a few years now, but they’ll finally be giving the 2K restoration a theatrical run later this year, and with this news comes a inventive new trailer. Playing with the film’s Banned label, the trailer features only stills from Scum — some tantalizing or provocative — and reviews from critics, read aloud by the hard-bit narrator.

Starring a young and spry Ray Winstone, Scum tells the story of life in a brutal British prison, where there’s no easy way out. While it seemingly had clause for a ban in the 70’s, what is perhaps most interesting is if it still contains shock value in today’s climate. See the trailer below, with a nod to Blu-ray.com.

A landmark expose of Britain’s violent reform schools, Alan Clarke’s Scum is a controversial shock to the system.

Kino Lorber continues their run of re-releasing interestingly obscure films with their newest addition, Alan Clarke’s 1979 film “Scum,” arriving with a fresh 2K restoration. The Ray Winstone starring film follows young violent thug Carlin as he arrives at a British reform school. While at the school, he rises through the ranks using violence and intimidation, eventually reaching the top of the school pecking order.

Continue reading Trailer For Alan Clarke’s Newly Restored, Controversial ‘Scum’ Starring Ray Winstone at The Playlist.

Houda Benyamina [pictured], Jessica Hausner and Rebecca Daly among directors due to attend the festival.

The Les Arcs European Film Festival will champion female filmmakers at its eighth edition unfolding in the heart of the French Alps Dec 10-17.

A sidebar titled The New Women of Cinema will screen features by 10 female directors including Houda Benyamina’s Caméra d’Or-winning Divines, Rebecca Daly’s Mammal and Rachel Lang’s Baden Baden.

Older titles such as Jessica Hausner’s Lourdes, Agnes Kocsis’ Fresh Air and Nanouk Leopold’s Brownian Movement are also included in the line-up

The initiative is an extension of the festival’s Femme de Cinema award introduced in 2013, the recipients of which have included Bosnian director Jamila Zbanic and Poland’s Małgorzata Szumowska.

Alongside the screenings, there will also be a presentation on a specially-commissioned study of emerging female directors, as well as round-tables and a master-class by one of the attending female directors.

The programme...

Houda Benyamina [pictured], Jessica Hausner and Rebecca Daly among directors due to attend the festival.

The Les Arcs European Film Festival will champion female filmmakers at its eighth edition unfolding in the heart of the French Alps Dec 10-17.

A sidebar titled The New Women of Cinema will screen features by 10 female directors including Houda Benyamina’s Caméra d’Or-winning Divines, Rebecca Daly’s Mammal and Rachel Lang’s Baden Baden.

Older titles such as Jessica Hausner’s Lourdes, Agnes Kocsis’ Fresh Air and Nanouk Leopold’s Brownian Movement are also included in the line-up

The initiative is an extension of the festival’s Femme de Cinema award introduced in 2013, the recipients of which have included Bosnian director Jamila Zbanic and Poland’s Małgorzata Szumowska.

Alongside the screenings, there will also be a presentation on a specially-commissioned study of emerging female directors, as well as round-tables and a master-class by one of the attending female directors.

The programme...

Llinos Cathryn Thomas Aug 5, 2016

Thirty years since it ended, we revisit much-loved 80s historical fantasy series Robin Of Sherwood...

The Robin Hood legend has been retold in countless ways, but one of the most memorable of modern times is Richard Carpenter’s hugely influential 1980s imagining, telling the story of Sherwood’s band of outlaws with a combination of realism and luminous fantasy with its roots in British folklore.

Made by Htv in association with production company Goldcrest Films (which was also behind Chariots Of Fire and Gandhi), its 26 episodes ran on ITV from 1984 to 1986, garnering a positive critical reception and inspiring a fan following that’s still enthusiastically active today.

Much of the success of the show was down to the spot-on casting and the chemistry between the performers. Michael Praed’s charismatic-yet-otherworldly presence as Robin was the perfect match for the show’s aesthetic, and the more down-to-earth Little John,...

In 1982, Scum director Alan Clarke cast David Bowie in an adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s early play for the BBC. Baal was Brecht’s first full length play, written in 1918 (reworked in 1926). Bowie stars as the title character, an outcast poet/musician who has a series of affairs and is involved in a killing. Bowie, who had recently performed in The Elephant Man on Broadway, acted and sang the lead role, alongside a cast that included Jonathan Kent and Zoë Wanamaker. This exclusive clip comprises the first full minute of the film, including the “ichthyosaurus” monologue and the first two verses of Bowie’s rendition of Baal’s Hymn.

Baal is included in the Blu-ray box set Dissent and Disruption: Alan Clarke at the BBC (1969-1989) and in the DVD box set Alan Clarke at the BBC, Volume 2: Disruption (1978-1989), out this week1982 archive article: Nancy Banks-Smith’s...

The director of Scum, Made in Britain and The Firm made films that were brilliant, disconcerting and radical – and set the template for others to follow

I’ve been thinking about Alan Clarke recently. That’s not unusual: he’s a director I love, and his glorious, bristling films mean a lot to me. So it was his name that I first came up with when I started work on six short videos about the mavericks of British film. Maverick is a tricky word to parse, but if it meant anything at all, then Clarke – off on his own path, sparring with authority – has to be the benchmark.

Although we start in 1964 with Peter Watkins’s Culloden, four of the subjects are still alive and making films. All the same, it was hard not to feel a pang while we worked, and Clarke was why. Part of that was simply...

Shot over 2 weeks in London and the South Coast, Blood And Carpet is a 1960’s influenced, kitchen sink, comedy thriller. Directed by Graham Fletcher-Cook and starring Annie Burkin (Zebra Crossing), Billy Wright (Betsy And Leonard) and Frank Boyce (Tony) it features supporting roles from Nicola Stapleton (EastEnders, The Rise Of The Krays) Julian Firth (Scum) and Andrew Tiernan (300, The Pianist). !

London 1967 and Ruby and Lyle have a problem. A … Continue reading →

Horrornews.net...

BAFTA’s latest Life In Pictures conversation featured British screen icon Ray Winstone, who proved a big draw despite the unseasonably warm October afternoon. With no new title to stump for (although he did mention his upcoming childhood-focused autobiography Young Winstone), the veteran instead entertained the crowd with a freewheeling look at his four-decade-long career, which includes prominent roles in films such as Noah, The Departed, and Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.

While he had plenty of quips about his adventures in Hollywood – including an uncanny Martin Scorsese impression – Winstone spoke passionately about his work in British cinema.

Famous for playing East End tough guys – “My wife asked me why I always walk in a room looking like I’m going to kill someone” – Winstone waxed lyrical about Gary Oldman’s work directing him in the gritty 1997 drama Nil By Mouth.

That film unflinchingly looks at...

The U.K.’s most famous cinematic hardman, Ray Winstone, reflected on his life and career at a special BAFTA Life In Pictures event held in London on Sunday. In a good-humored Q&A, the actor spoke humbly about his first theatrical steps, revealing that his breakthrough debut role as a teenager in Scum, Alan Clarke’s gritty and violent 1977 drama about life in a British young offenders’ prison, had "nothing to do with acting." "It was the way I walked down a corridor," he said, adding that his leading role of Carlin had been written for a

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British star of Sexy Beast and Noah to talk on stage about his screen career.

British tough-guy actor Ray Winstone is to discuss his craft and career at a BAFTA A Life In Pictures event on Oct 5. The event will take place at BAFTA’s headquarters in London’s Piccadilly.

Winstone’s association with BAFTA goes back to 1980 when he was nominated for Most Promising Newcomer for one of his earliest roles in drama That Summer!.

The actor first made an impact in 1977 playing a young offender in the controversial television drama Scum. He went on to star in British cult classics Quadrophenia, Nil By Mouth (for which he received his second BAFTA nomination), The War Zone and Sexy Beast.

The past decade has seen Winstone star in Hollywood blockbusters including The Departed, Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull, Beowolf and more recently Darren Aronofsky’s Noah.

His TV work has included BAFTA-winning Great Expectations, Emmy-winning Henry VIII...

From fizzy drink sizes to video nasties to employment law, we look at the films that had an impact on legislation as well as culture...

Some films appear in the cinema, entertain their audience, make their money, and then dutifully shuffle off into the mists of history, only to be wheeled out now and again on TV. But occasionally, one comes along that has a lasting impact, and every so often, a movie has at least some influence on an eventual change in the law.

Here, we're going to look at a few examples of that, as we examine a selection of films that have had an impact more lasting than how much they made at the box office...

Scum

Originally conceived as a BBC Play For Today, Alan Clarke's Scum was pulled by the corporation from its broadcast schedules. Undeterred, Clarke and writer Roy Minton reworked it as a film,...

★★★★☆The young male inmate rallying against the system is hardly untapped territory in film, but with Starred Up (2013) writer Jonathan Asser and director David Mackenzie have succeeded in putting a fresh spin on that schema, bolstered further by a powerhouse performance from Skins graduate Jack O'Connell. It's no surprise that the likes of Tom Hardy (Bronson) and Ray Winstone (Scum) have used the sub-genre in the past as means of launching their big screen careers. It's the kind of milieu which seems primed to showcase an actor's abilities and O'Connell more than rises to the challenge here. For the first ten minutes our lead doesn't even utter a word, yet somehow completely commands the screen.

Jack O'Connell gives an electrifying performance as a violent teenager forced to confront parental authority in prison

When inspirational director Alan Clarke cooked up an authentic television portrait of incarcerated British youth in the late 1970s, the resultant film was so alarming that it was promptly banned by the BBC. Clarke subsequently remade Scum for the cinema, and both the small- and big-screen versions of his most notorious work have since cast long shadows over their respective mediums. Plaudits, then, to David Mackenzie for fashioning a tough but empathetic (if uneven) prison drama which marks out its own territory in an arena in which Clarke's epochal work is still the daddy, even now.

Shot (but not set) in Northern Ireland on a tight schedule and even tighter budget, this eye-catching and frequently pulse-pounding drama finds high-risk young offender Eric (Jack O'Connell) being moved up to an adult prison where he...

Jack O'Connell gives an electrifying performance as a violent teenager forced to confront parental authority in prison

When inspirational director Alan Clarke cooked up an authentic television portrait of incarcerated British youth in the late 1970s, the resultant film was so alarming that it was promptly banned by the BBC. Clarke subsequently remade Scum for the cinema, and both the small- and big-screen versions of his most notorious work have since cast long shadows over their respective mediums. Plaudits, then, to David Mackenzie for fashioning a tough but empathetic (if uneven) prison drama which marks out its own territory in an arena in which Clarke's epochal work is still the daddy, even now.

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Warner Home Video

Mobsters, mafioso, hoodlums, gang-bangers, capos, love, betrayal, drugs, murder and money; it is all here. The very fact that organised crime has its own genre is a testament to how loved Gangster films are.

The fascination with a world that is beyond comprehension for most that watch, is something that has always been apparent in the cinematic world and thankfully it has always been brimming with incredible films to compliment the obsession.

Here, compiled for your humble discretion (with Huge spoilers), is an attempted order of the iconic moments from the very best the movie world has to offer when it comes to Gangster movies…

20. Yes, Yes, Yes! – Sexy Beast (2000)

FilmFour

Brutal Gangster boss Teddy Bass (McShane) sends Don Logan (Ben Kingsley) to persuade retired Gal Dove (Ray Winstone) into one last job, and hilarity ensues! In all seriousness, this film is a joy to watch, with...

A visceral, swaggering performance in the prison drama is set to help propel the former Skins star to stardom. He reveals why 2014 is lining up to be his big year – and why he's ready for it

Jack O'Connell is not pissing about. These are his words. He has just put in the performance of his career in prison drama Starred Up, he's shooting Angelina Jolie's Unbroken – an account of the life of Olympic runner and second-world-war hero Louis Zamperini – in which he again takes the lead, and he's about to tackle a blockbuster with Zack Snyder in 300: Rise of an Empire. He has been acting for 10 years. He's done with partying – he's ready to justify himself. He's intense and focused, older and wiser than the kid who came up through the ranks of the E4 teen drama Skins. He's 23 years old.

I meet O'Connell at the tail end...