Roger Ebert
1942 - 2013Ebert's began his criticizing career in 1967 as a critic for the Chicago Sun-Times and later gained national recognition co-hosting a number of shows with Gene Siskel in which they coined the 'thumbs up- thumbs down' style of reviewing.
Following Siskel's 1999 death Ebert continued to host "And The Movies" with Richard Roeper until 2006 when he stopped appearing due to developing Thyroid cancer. Complications from the cancer ended up taking much of his tongue and jaw, forcing Ebert to undergo massive reconstruction surgery and speak with the help of a computer program (which was configured with his own voice due to the volume of recorded spoken language from Ebert's TV show).
He continued to write reviews for his website later in life. On April 3rd, 2013 announced his cancer had returned and he would be taking a "leave of presence", lowering the amount he would be writing and only reviewing films he wanted to review.
Ebert succumbed to his cancer the next day, April 4th, 2013.
The balcony is closed.
Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy
Andrew Kasch, Daniel Farrands
Heather Langenkamp, Robert Englund
For decades, Freddy Krueger has slashed his way through the dreams of countless youngsters, scaring up over half a billion dollars at the box office across eight terrifying, spectacular films.
Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy
Life Itself
Steve James
Stephen Stanton, Roger Ebert
The surprising and entertaining life of renowned film critic and social commentator Roger Ebert (1942-2013): his early days as a freewheeling bachelor and Pulitzer Prize winner, his famously contentious partnership with Gene Siskel, his life-altering marriage, and his brave and transcendent battle with cancer.
Life Itself
Chuck Jones: Extremes and In-Betweens - A Life in Animation
Margaret Selby
Chuck Jones, Ken Burns
This biography, shown on American television as part of the PBS "Great Performances" series, examines the life works of one of Hollywood's most celebrated animators, Chuck (Charles M.) Jones. He is best known for Warner Brothers cartoons featuring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote, and Pepe LePew. Included are plenty of behind-the-scenes descriptions of how an animated film is made, and (best of all) many clips from Chuck's cartoons.
Chuck Jones: Extremes and In-Betweens – A Life in Animation
It Conquered Hollywood! The Story of American International Pictures
John Watkin, Eamon Harrington
Samuel Z. Arkoff, Peter Bogdanovich
A 60-minute salute to American International Pictures. Entertainment lawyer Samuel Z. Arkoff founded AIP (then called American Releasing Corporation) on a $3000 loan in 1954 with his partner, James H. Nicholson, a former West Coast exhibitor and distributor. The company made its mark by targeting teenagers with quickly produced films that exploited subjects mainstream films were reluctant to tackle.
It Conquered Hollywood! The Story of American International Pictures
You Can't Do That! The Making of 'A Hard Day's Night'
Paul McCartney, John Lennon
Thirty years after A Hard Day's Night, its producer, director, writer and others describe its making. United Artists Records came to Walter Shenson, asking him to produce a movie so UA could issue a soundtrack album. Shenson signed Lester to direct, and they got the Beatles to agree to star. Shenson sent Owen to Dublin to spend time with the Fab Four; from this came a script built around their being prisoners of their own success. Phil Collins, himself an extra on A Hard Day's Night, hosts this examination of a seminal film: what was ad-libbed, why was it a hit, what was its influence on other movies, and how did it define the way the public viewed each Beatle for years to come?
You Can't Do That! The Making of 'A Hard Day's Night'
Ballyhoo: The Hollywood Sideshow!
Peter Jones
Frankie Avalon, Peter Bogdanovich
This documentary celebrates the ridiculous stunts used by Hollywood over the years to market its worst movies. These include the ’50s drive-in where moviegoers could drop off their dirty laundry and pick it up after the show, horror filmmaker William Castle’s vibrating seats and producer Sam Arkoff’s offer to pay for the funeral of anyone scared to death by his film. Amusing interviews with critic Roger Ebert and director John Waters, creator of Smell-O-Vision, enliven a program that has one central failing: host Frankie Avalon, who remains as schlocky as ever.
Ballyhoo: The Hollywood Sideshow!
Dead Teenager Movie
Julie Ng
Ryan Merriman, Chelan Simmons
DEAD TEENAGER MOVIE is a short-format documentary examining a specific sub-genre of teen slasher films; namely the Dead Teenager Movie - a term coined by movie critic, Roger Ebert. Through the use of interviews with cultural professors, film historians, directors, writers, producers and film critics, and with visual aids from movie clips of several dead teen horror films, the documentary explores the origins of these stories from their beginnings in urban legends to their jump to the big screen in the late 70s to their modern incarnations (like FINAL DESTINATION 3 and its two predecessors). It look sat what clichés and stereotypes define the sub-genre, and how they have developed in cinema over time, particularly finding a home at New Line Cinema.
Dead Teenager Movie
Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade
Tom Thurman
Kris Kristofferson, R.G. Armstrong
An account of the life and work of American film director Sam Peckinpah (1925-84), a tortured artist whose genius and inner demons changed the Western genre forever.
Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade
Kubrick by Kubrick
Grégory Monro
Stanley Kubrick, Малкольм Джон Тейлор
A rare and transcendent journey into the life and films of the legendary Stanley Kubrick like we've never seen before, featuring a treasure trove of unearthed interview recordings from the master himself.
Kubrick by Kubrick
Above, Beneath and Beyond the Valley: The Making of a Musical-Horror-Sex-Comedy
Dolly Read, Roger Ebert
Retrospective documentary about the making of the 1970 cult film "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls."
Above, Beneath and Beyond the Valley: The Making of a Musical-Horror-Sex-Comedy
Vision of a Future Passed: The Prophecy of 2001
Gary Leva
Arthur C. Clarke, John Baxter
This documentary about "2001: A Space Odyssey" looks at some of the things that seemed fanciful in 1968, which don't seem quite as much anymore.
Vision of a Future Passed: The Prophecy of 2001
