A train load of soldiers pulls into the Stalingrad station. The recruits are ready to fight – until the door opens.
Gazing across the charred landscape, with exploding bombs and dying men, they soon realize their fates.
And so begins Jean-Jacques Annaud’s “Enemy at the Gates.”
War is hell, and, with poignancy and realism, this film proves it.
It [...]

Thank God for Bob and Harvey Weinstein and Miramax films.
In recent years, they have given us “The English Patient,” “Good Will Hunting,” “Cider House Rules,” “Chocolat” and now, “Malena.”
Director Giuseppe Tornatore’s film, based on a story by Luciano Vincenzoni, chronicles three years in the life of a Sicilian youth during World War II and the [...]

Every film begins with a script. Not only does this provide the skeleton from which directors build their vision, but actors derive their characters and motivation from it.And, ultimately, when the chips are down, the success or failure of a film usually can be traced back to it.
Screenwriters are the architects of film, and this [...]

OMAHA – After nearly three years in the making, the independently financed film, “The Private Public,” finally got its due Feb. 24.
Amid celebrities and paparazzi, it premiered for cast and crew members at the Omaha Community Playhouse.
But the story doesn’t end there.
Director Dana Altman flew to Los Angeles and will screen the project for agents [...]

If you’re sick of industry pictures with canned dialogue, corny jokes and improbable characters, you’ll find Kenneth Lonergan’s “You Can Count on Me” a breath of fresh air.
When presented at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2000, it tied with “Girlfight” for the Grand Jury Prize, and Lonergan won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award. Nominations [...]

Every year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences singles out nominees in categories ranging from Best Picture to Best Documentary.Those who watch the awards ceremonies often bemoan the length of the program and inclusion of lesser known categories. Until March 25, this writer’s goal is to illuminate why these categories are just as [...]