FilmWeek

New Book ‘Falling in Love at the Movies” highlights the history of the romantic comedy

In her new book Falling in Love at the Movies, entertainment journalist Esther Zuckerman takes readers through the history of romantic comedies. A beloved genre, having built a reliable audience at the box office and some films even winning Academy Awards, the romcom has held a cultural impact that’s left many longing for romances depicted in Roman Holiday and When Harry Met Sally. So for this week’s FilmWeek feature, we speak to Esther Zuckerman about the rich history and extensive research that went into Falling in Love at the Movies: Rom-Coms from the Screwball Era to Today.

Esther will be doing a book signing, in partnership with Skylight Books, on Friday, Feb. 14 at 6:30 PM at the Los Feliz 3. Following that, she’ll be introducing a 7 PM screening of “Broadcast News.” For ticket information, click here.

Feature: New book ‘Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg: The Whole Equation’ tells the story of two MGM visionaries

Moviegoers nowadays might not know much of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios’ history outside of its iconic mascot, a lion who introduced each film with it’s iconic roar. It was an introduction that was meant to prepare viewers for not just a film, but a spectacle. A new book by retired film critic Kenneth Turan shares the studio’s rich history of spectacle through the work of co-founder Louis B. Mayer, and Irving Thalberg, who served as its head of production following MGM’s inception. For this week’s FilmWeek feature, we’ll speak to former film critic Kenneth Turan, about his forthcoming book Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg: The Whole Equation, and give listeners a glimpse as to how they contributed to Hollywood.

“Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg: The Whole Equation” is available for pre-order, and releases February 4th; click here to learn more.

FilmWeek: 'Presence,' 'Flight Risk,' 'Eternal You,' and More

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Christy Lemire and Peter Rainer review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming.

Presence

Flight Risk 

Inheritance

Eternal You

Brave the Dark

Grafted

Rose

Global Harmony

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Manuel Betancourt and Amy Nicholson review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming.

FilmWeek: 'One of Them Days,' Wolf Man,' 'I'm Still Here,' 'Hard Truths,' and More

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Manuel Betancourt and Amy Nicholson review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming.

• One of Them Days

• Wolf Man

• I’m Still Here

• Grand Theft Hamlet

• Hard Truths

• Eno

• DIG! XX

• Don't Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever

David Lynch, the filmmaker celebrated for his uniquely dark vision in such movies as “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive” and the TV series “Twin Peaks,” has died just days before his 79th birthday.

His family announced the death in a Facebook post on Thursday. The cause of death and location was not immediately available, but Lynch had been public about his emphysema. Lynch was a onetime painter who broke through in the 1970s with the surreal “Eraserhead” and rarely failed to startle and inspire audiences and peers in the following decades. His notable releases ranged from the neo-noir “Mulholland Drive” to the skewed Gothic of “Blue Velvet” to the eclectic and eccentric “Twin Peaks.” Joining us today on FilmWeek is Lael Loewenstein, Manuel Betancourt and Peter Rainer.

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Tim Cogshell, Manuel Betancourt, and Peter Rainer review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming.

A Complete Unknown

Babygirl

Nosferatu

Better Man

The Fire Inside

2073

Vermiglio

From Ground Zero

Harbin

Feature: Wallace & Gromit return to the big screen with ‘Vengeance Most Fowl,’ we talk to the directors

It’s been 19 years since the intuitive, Wensleydale-loving Wallace and Gromit graced the big screen, with their last feature being The Curse of the Wererabbit; now the duo returns with Vengeance Most Fowl, which also marks the return of an old foe, the silent penguin Feathers McGraw. Having begun as a graduation project at the National Film and Television School, and now being a three-time Academy Award-winning cast of characters, Wallace & Gromit creator Nick Park has teamed up with longtime collaborator Merlin Crossingham to direct this latest feature. So for this week’s FilmWeek feature, Larry sits down with Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl directors Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham to discuss all the work that went into making this stop-motion animated feature a reality.

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl will be released in select theaters on December 18 and streaming on Netflix on January 3.

FilmWeek: 'The Brutalist,' 'Sonic the Hedgehog 3,' 'Mufasa: The Lion King,' 'The Count of Monte Cristo,' and More

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Christy Lemire and Wade Major review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming.

• The Brutalist

• Mufasa: The Lion King

• Sonic the Hedgehog 3

• Homestead

• The Room Next Door

• The Count of Monte Cristo

• Counted Out

• The Wages of Fear (1953)

Feature: 1972 Munich Hostage Crisis broadcast gets revisited in ‘September 5,’ we discuss the film with its director.

Movies centered on journalists have been somewhat of a trend over the years, with Spotlight and The Post serving as recent examples, and some older classics like All The President’s Men and The Insider. Writer-director Tim Fehlbaum’s latest project, September 5, looks to add to the tradition with a timely story of broadcast journalists attempting to cover an international incident in real-time. The film follows the 1972 Munich Olympics, with its inciting incident being 11 Israeli hostages held by Palestinian militants. It was coverage that was watched by roughly 900 million viewers, showing just how serious this event was. Hansjörg Weißbrich, the film’s editor, creates tension despite most of the film being set in one building; his work on the film has since been acknowledged by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, which awarded September 5 for its Best Editing category. For this week’s feature, we talk to filmmaker Tim Fehlbaum about the making of September 5 and the work it took to revisit a dark moment in history.

FilmWeek: 'Kraven the Hunter,' 'Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl,' 'Nickel Boys,' and More

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Manuel Betancourt, Peter Rainer, and Charles Solomon review this weekend’s new movie releases on streaming and on-demand platforms.

• Kraven the Hunter

• Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

• September 5

• Nickel Boys

• The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim

• Oh, Canada

• The Last Showgirl

• The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes

• Carry-On

• Endless Summer Syndrome