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The Schmooze Friday Film: What Is the UN Good For?
In his documentary, “U.N. Me,” opening in cities around the U.S. today, first-time filmmaker Ami Horowitz takes shots at the United Nations and most of them land squarely on target. Horowitz charges that U.N. brass knew about the potential for genocide in Rwanda — and could have prevented it; that U.N. peacekeeping troops opened fire…
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The Schmooze ‘Broken Cameras’ Director Sees Hope for Israel
When emailing and skyping with Guy Davidi, the 33-year old Israeli co-director of “5 Broken Cameras,” opening May 30 in New York at the Film Forum, one encounters a sophisticated — albeit imperfect — speaker of English, with a vaguely British accent. His views, however, are always sharp: “My belief is that the construction of…
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The Schmooze Friday Film: Debbie Goodstein on ‘Mighty Fine’
The film “Mighty Fine” is ostensibly about the fictional Fine family — a Holocaust survivor mother, a father with temper issues and two daughters who bear the weight of his problems. Joe Fine (Chazz Palminteri) means well. It’s the 1970s, he’s in the rag trade and business is bad. Even moving the family and business…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Barry Sonnenfeld on ‘Men in Black’
Understandably, Barry Sonnenfeld seems surprised by the question. He pauses briefly, chuckles and then says, no, he doesn’t believe any of the Men in Black are Hasidim. “But,” he quickly, adds, “some of them could be in disguise.” As far as he knows, none of the MIB aliens are Jewish, either. “I don’t really think…
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The Schmooze Israeli Horror Comes to Life
“THE STATE OF ISRAEL IS UNDER ATTACK,” blares the headline in May’s Rue Morgue magazine. But the threat’s not coming from the usual suspects. This time, it’s zombies, serial killers and apocalyptic plagues that have the country on high alert. And it’s happening on the big screen. Israeli horror is finally coming into its own…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Philip Kaufman on Martin Buber and His Cat
Nearly a half-century after making his first film — the Hasidic-inspired “Goldstein” — director Philip Kaufman is having a moment. MoMA recently hosted a weeklong retrospective of his work, from brainy pop (“The Right Stuff”) to high art (“The Unbearable Lightness of Being”). Film scholar Annette Insdorf just published “Philip Kaufman” (University of Illinois Press),…
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The Schmooze Q&A: Maggie Gyllenhaal on ‘Hysteria’
Image courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics Maggie Gyllenhaal is no stranger to playing strong, confident women. The Academy Award-nominated actress has played roles ranging from a journalist and single mom in “Crazy Heart” to a liberal and outspoken academic in “Mona Lisa Smile.” Her latest film, “Hysteria,” which opens May 18, is set in London…
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The Schmooze ‘Dictator’ Is Sacha Baron Cohen’s Best Film Yet
Until “The Dictator,” only a certain class of people appreciated Sasha Baron Cohen’s sense of humor — a class that fell between freshmen and juniors. In previous incarnations — as Ali G, Borat and Bruno — Cohen’s humor centered on putting unsuspecting people in awkward situations. It was occasionally funny, but more often just painful…
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