Born in New Jersey in 1952, director and animator Henry Selick is celebrated not for the number of films he has made but for the consistent quality of his craft. While some filmmakers measure success by output, Selick’s medium—stop‑motion animation—is famously slow and meticulous, which explains why he has released a relatively small but remarkable … Read more

When Judy Garland performed, her gaze seemed to reach beyond the camera, beyond the set and the stars. Her arms often rose like a storyteller’s, reaching for something unseen. She seized songs and stories and breathed life into them with a rare, magnetic presence. That gift is why audiences flocked to see her. Born Frances … Read more

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)Director: Vincente MinnelliScreenwriter: Irving Brecher, Fred F. FinklehoffeStarring: Judy Garland, Margaret O’Brien, Mary Astor, Lucille Bremer, Joan Carroll, Leon Ames, Tom Drake, Marjorie Main, Harry Davenport Few performers reshaped the movie musical the way Judy Garland did. Her performance in 1939’s The Wizard of Oz introduced a new approach to … Read more

Spellbound (2024)Director: Vicky JensonScreenwriters: Lauren Hynek, Elizabeth Martin, Julia MirandaStarring: Rachel Zegler, Nicole Kidman, Javier Bardem, John Lithgow, Susan Fitzer, Olga Merediz, Tituss Burgess, Nathan Lane Skydance Animation’s Spellbound (2024), distributed by Netflix, arrives as a vividly imagined animated feature that frequently demonstrates the medium’s unique potential. Guided by director Vicky Jenson, with a screenplay … Read more

Wicked (2024)Director: John M. ChuScreenwriters: Winnie Holzman, Dana FoxStarring: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande-Butera, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum Eighty-five years after MGM’s iconic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, which cemented its place in film history with technicolor visuals, memorable lines and Judy Garland’s unforgettable voice, Hollywood returns … Read more

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)Director: Sidney LumetScreenwriter: Paul DehnStarring: Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Anthony Perkins, Sean Connery, Vanessa Redgrave, Martin Balsam, Jacqueline Bisset, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Wendy Hiller, Rachel Roberts, John Gielgud Following the cultural success that reinforced Agatha Christie’s standing as the Queen of Crime, filmmakers took on the challenge of bringing … Read more

Pixar Animation Studios stands among the world’s most influential feature animation companies. Beginning life in computer graphics in 1986, the studio grew from a small contender into a creative powerhouse whose critical and commercial success ultimately prompted Disney to acquire it for $7.4 billion in 2006. Pixar’s distinctive 3D animation style changed the industry and … Read more

Gladiator II (2024)Director: Ridley ScottScreenwriters: David Scarpa, Peter CraigStarring: Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen, Joseph Quinn, Fred Hechinger, Derek Jacobi, Tim McInnerny, Lior Raz, Alexander Karim, Rory McCann, Alec Utgoff, Matt Lucas, Peter Mensah, Yuval Gonen Twenty-four years after Ridley Scott’s original epic reshaped modern sword-and-sandal cinema, Gladiator II returns to the … Read more

The Remarkable Life of Ibelin (2024)Director: Benjamin ReeStarring: Mats Steen, Mia Steen, Zoe Croft, Kelsey Ellison, Ed Larkin, John Andrew Mclay, Elena Pitsiaeli, Sebastian Tjørstad, Paul Wild In 2014, 25-year-old Mats Steen from Norway died after a lifetime battling a rare muscular condition. To his parents, Mats’s world seemed small and lonely: a young man … Read more

Interview with the Vampire (1994)Director: Neil JordanScreenwriter: Anne RiceStarring: Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Stephen Rea, Antonio Banderas, Christian Slater, and Kirsten Dunst Neil Jordan’s Interview with the Vampire (1994) stands as a defining moment in the cinematic evolution of the vampire. Adapted from Anne Rice’s novel, the film reimagined the vampire as a romantic, tortured … Read more