Charles Crichton’s THE LAVENDER HILL MOB (1951), a classic heist comedy starring Alec Guinness, will run in a new 4K restoration at Film Forum from Friday, May 10 through Thursday, May 16.
“It’s a good job we’re both honest men,” remarks seedy Cockney knickknack manufacturer and hustler Stanley Holloway (13 years later, My Fair Lady’s Alfred Doolittle) as he gets the gist of fastidious bank clerk Guinness’ scheme: to smuggle Bank of England gold bullion out of the country by melting them down into seemingly tacky Eiffel Tower souvenirs.
One of the highlights of the golden years of British comedies from Britain’s famed Ealing Studios, THE LAVENDER HILL MOB was an international smash hit that won screenwriter T.E.B. Clarke an Oscar for Best Writing and a Best Actor nomination for Guinness, as well as a BAFTA Award for Best British Film. Its dénouement atop the real (filmed on location) Eiffel Tower features the most dizzying comedy chase ever.
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Today the nonprofit Sundance Institute announced the filmmakers selected to receive the 2024 Merata Mita Fellowship and the inaugural Graton Fellowship for Artists from California-Based Tribes. The Merata Mita Fellowship is an annual fellowship named in honor of the late Māori filmmaker Merata Mita (1942–2010) to support Indigenous women-identified artists endeavoring to direct their first feature film. This year’s Merata Mita Fellowship will go to Libby Hakaraia (Ngati Kapu, Ngati Raukawa au ki te tonga). The recently announced Graton Fellowship, created to support Indigenous artists from California-based tribes, both federally and non federally recognized, will go to Tazbah Rose Chavez (Dinè, Nüümü, San Carlos Apache). Both fellows were recognized at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Native Forum Celebration Presented by NBCUniversal Launch and Nia Tero at The Park in Park City, Utah.
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) announced today the highly anticipated lineup for the 39th edition, which will run February 7 to 17, 2024. The festival will showcase 45 world premieres and 77 U.S. premieres from 48 countries, along with tributes featuring the year’s top talent, panel discussions, and free community education and outreach programs.
Zero to oneToday, in advance of the 40th edition of the Sundance Film Festival kicking off on January 18, the nonprofit Sundance Institute is commemorating the four decades of extraordinary independent filmmaking presented at the Festival with the results of a survey taken by the filmmaking communities on their top ten feature films that have screened at the Festival since it began in 1985. 