FilmJerk Favorites

A group of unique directors and the essential works that you've got to see.

||| Norman Jewison |||
Norman Jewison

Yes, he directed “Moonstruck” and two unforgettable musicals, but Jewison is also responsible for a trilogy of films focusing on racial-injustice, a whacky Cold War comedy and a signature film of Steve McQueen’s showing that he is one of the most versatile directors since Robert Wise.

This blueprint for good investigation dramas tells the story of a black Philadelphia detective investigating a murder in Mississippi who matches wits with a redneck sheriff. Groundbreaking for it’s time, this Oscar winning film is still relevant today and offers a gripping mystery with terrific dramatic performances by a complete cast of fully realized characters.

This is an amazingly funny and entertaining irreverent "Cold War" comedy about a Russian submarine stranded outside an isolated New England town, which throws the locals into a panic. Jewison does a delightful job of utilizing his all-star cast to their fullest, deftly mixing Capra-esq characters with Mel Brooks’s type situations (and vise-versa).

A bored millionaire (Steve McQueen in his prime) masterminds a flawless bank job as Faye Dunaway (an insurance investigator out to get him) identifies him as the mastermind and falls in love along the way. This is the original and the best, with all the arch stylized movie techniques of the ‘60s (including split-screen and fuzzy shallow focus) and the most erotic chess game ever captured on screen.

Recommended by CarrieSpecht

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Google Video Debuts with Christopher Masterson film

By EdwardHavens

January 6th, 2006

Today, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Google founder Larry Page unveiled the new Google Video Store, which hopes to become a groundbreaking film distribution model for the future. Amongst the first films to be made available in the Google Video Store is "Waterborne", an independent feature film that follows the fictional aftermath of a bio-terrorist attack on the water supply of LA, starring Christopher Masterson (Malcolm in the Middle), Jon Gries ("Napoleon Dynamite"), Ajay Naidu ("Office Space") and Lindsay Price (Beverly Hills 90210).


By releasing through a download-to-own distribution model, the filmmakers are hoping to ride the first wave of what they expect to be a dynamic new model for independent film distribution. In addition to streaming the film for free for the first week of release, a digital file of the film can be downloaded to own for a price of $4.99. However, unlike the copy-protected downloads of iTunes Video and other online services, which limit how the viewer can watch their content, "Waterborne" customers may do anything they want with their purchased product, including burning it to a DVD or transfer it to a Video iPod. At CES, "Waterborne" director Ben Rekhi shared his enthusiasm. "When we set out to make "Waterborne," we aimed to think outside the box of conventional filmmaking. Now in releasing it, we want to continue this forward-thinking mentality by embracing new methods of film distribution. The internet is going to revolutionize the film industry just as it has the music industry."

Producer Smriti Mundhra added, "In the traditional distribution framework, a film of this size would be lucky to get released in a handful of theaters, reaching a few thousand viewers at best. But by utilizing Google Video's radical new model, "Waterborne" will get an audience of millions. For those of us working outside the studio system, this kind of exposure is tremendous."

"A lot of people think we are crazy for turning down a six-figure advance to dive into the unknown perils of online distribution," Rekhi said. (It is rumored the filmmakers were offered a six figure distribution deal.) "But its time that someone put their money where their mouth is. No one ever got ahead by playing things safe."

To learn more about Video Google, visit video.google.com. To learn more about "Waterborne," visit www.waterbornethemovie.com