by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent Academy Award nominee Diane Lane has been in the public eye since Coppola, even before THE COTTON CLUB, where she polished her star so brightly that the film still shines out today. Now Focus Features has her set in this gem opposite another leading man of the period, Kevin Costner. The film is novel adaptation LET HIM GO, on deck for November release. LET HIM GO, set in 1951 in Montana, revisits Western themes of family and isolation where t...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent Friday night for the next three weeks just got a little more exciting now that Focus Features is a teenager. The Comcast-owned movie label plans to gift the public three great first-run features from the past on Aug. 25, Sept. 1, and Sept. 8. All in celebration of their 15th anniversary in the business, the trio of star-vehicles will be shown for free on Facebook LIVE. Big names include Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Carrey, Elijah Wood, Mar...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent It’s fitting that Leslie Zemeckis is in Italy when we decide to do an interview, because the word burlesque is derived from Italian roots in “burla,” meaning mockery, to poke fun yet shine a spotlight on sexuality. Actor, writer, documentarian Zemeckis has just come out with a line of burlesque emojis inspired by a project she did on Lili St Cyr, among other performers, but the line from her Showtime documentary BEHIND THE BUR...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent Nothing like a rousing World War II “never surrender” movie to lift the spirits from current political events; thus comes DARKEST HOUR, set for release from Focus Features on Nov. 22, the day US President John F. Kennedy was shot, not a coincidence one guesses. “You can’t reason with a tiger when your head is in its mouth,” bellows Gary Oldman as a very convincing and Oscar buzzy Winston Churchill. And he is backed u...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent There was a time when Sofia Coppola could be at an awards show and overlooked as a famous daughter; not anymore, not for years now since LOST IN TRANSLATION. But in her new film, THE BEGUILED, which is a retool of a 1971 Clint Eastwood starrer, she really comes of age as a visionary writer/director. Even in what is considered a remake of a movie based on a novel by Thomas Cullinan, it has a distinctive feel that's all hers. The film opens J...

SPOTLIGHT MEDIA PRODUCTIONS   The 2015 Oscars, By Adrienne Papp   By Adrienne Papp The Oscars have been handed out, the corks on the champagne bottles have been popped, the winners are all sleeping off their hangovers, and the movie industry has put a wrap on the 2015 Oscars. On Sunday night during the 87th Academy Awards broadcast shown on ABC, “Birdman” took home Best Picture and Best Director...