Screening Gotham: The Hoberman Show

Some of today's movie news of note from around New York:

--Sure, I have Gordon Willis haunting my inbox, but J. Hoberman's got what may be the Manhattan piece to end all Manhattan pieces (at least until the next revival) over at The Village Voice. His "Defending Manhattan" features a loving reconsideration of the Woody Allen classic, including rejoinders aimed at doubters from Joan Didion (who "crafted a disdainful, almost nonsensical put-down" in the New York Review of Books) to Ellen Willis ("the most perverse view in the Voice") and others. Unwavering and unforgiving in its focus and spirit (not unlike its subject), it's one of Hoberman's best in a while.

--Hoberman's Cine Phile column this week isn't half-bad either, previewing Anthology's retrospectives of the Living Theater and Woodfall Films and providing a glimpse at MoMA's Premiere Brazil! line-up. (Look for a little more about that soon on The Reeler).

--Over at Movie City Indie, Ray Pride has a great chat with Usama Alshaibi, whose acclaimed Iraq doc Nice Bombs opens this week in New York at the Pioneer Theater. Though any talk of a dying cat always ruins my day. I need a hug.

--Michael Cieply reports that "several of Hollywood’s highest-ranking executives" are calling for an end to residuals fo writers, directors and actors, thus provoking David Poland to foretell a labor-stoppage apocalypse and George Hickenlooper to lose his shit. No worries, George -- you can always re-cut Factory Girl in a couple of years.

Posted at July 12, 2007 11:29 AM