George D. Allen
George produces Movie Irv's video content for MovieFanFare; he loves the Universal Monsters, Tarzan movies, "You Bet Your Life," and Werner Herzog films.
George D.'s Posts
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
We've seen a long, if mixed, record of musicians morphing into movie stars. For every David Bowie, there's a Peter Frampton. Whereas it's hard to argue Barbra Streisand hasn't enjoyed success and longevity on the big screen, Madonna's got her fair share of hits and misses. We won't get into the merits of the Neil Diamond Jazz Singer here; let's just blame all that on Lord Olivier.
Prince. Mick Jagger. Tom Waits. Mariah Carey (we're not talking Glitter, we're talking Precious). Norah Jones.
Who's next? For a while there, it looked like Taylor Swift had the inside track. Not so much now. So: Who should be the next musical artist to score on the big screen? Let's Ask Movie Irv:
Has Irv made the right discovery?
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
World-renowned Swedish violinist Holger Brandt (Gosta Ekman) knows what he is about to do is wrong, but he does it anyway, and invites gifted student pianist Anita Hoffman (Ingrid Bergman) out for a “late dinner and wine” after they meet—not so much by coincidence at all—exiting a theatrical performance.
Anita has been providing piano lessons for Anne-Marie, Holger’s little daughter, while he has been away from his wife and children on a long tour; at the girl’s birthday party earlier, she had performed an impromptu duet with him, electrifying the assembled guests. Immediately, Holger realized that Anita would be the perfect choice to replace his retiring accompanist. He also realized he was in love.
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Sometimes, a movie question appears to present a very limited range of possible answers. Like the question, "Is Marlon Brando the Greatest Movie Actor of All Time?"
You might think the answers to a question like that would typically be limited to the following:
Yes.
Or: No.
Or: What a stupid question.
But then, you would not be a real movie fan, would you? Obsessed with estimating and re-estimating the estimable Brando's wide—ahem—range of impact and influence on the world of cinema in general, and film acting in particular. Where the star of The Godfather "places" in the annals of thespianic greatness can be, has been, and shall always remain one of "those" conversations taking place among truly dedicated film buffs. We are not talking about Charlie Sheen. Because, as we all know, Charlie Sheen Is No Marlon Brando. No, we are talking about the man who not only made A Streetcar Named Desire, but also Apocalypse Now. And Free Money. Which, uhm, also starred Charlie Sheen.
So, let's get to it and Ask Movie Irv. Was Brando, Is Brando, Will Brando Always Be...The One?
Brandophiles, wherever you are, are now free to champion or take issue with Irv's verdict.
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
Rested up?
Ready for some serious movie watching?
Perhaps at the outset of this year, you’re feeling frosty enough to curl up and commit to a Movie Marathon. With the recent completion of the eight-part Harry Potter film franchise fresh in everyone’s minds—at least for fans, it ought to be, as Warner Bros. saw fit to announce the imminent pull of the entire series off the shelves, to be discontinued Disney-style for a time—it’s easy to picture the fun of sitting down for the entire run of a popular movie franchise and follow a great character or story through a long and entertaining arc of action.
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
...what movies would you make? Would they be like The Matrix...or like Martha Marcy May Marlene? It was time to Ask Movie Irv this classic question, and he has a pretty clear answer:
Now it's your turn. You've just been handed the keys to a major motion picture studio. Those of you always bemoaning the quality of today's films: have at it! Let's hear your pitches. What kinds of movies would you make?
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Movie fans around the world have something to thank the French for (besides the movie Betty Blue): Ever since the magazine Cahiers du Cinéma promoted the idea that film directors such as Howard Hawks and Alfred Hitchcock, due to the very distinctive and identifiable style of their work, could be designated as the sole "authors" of their films—an assertion with which American critic Andrew Sarris agreed, classifying the controversial argument as the auteur theory—cineastes everywhere have argued endlessly over the idea.
Is the theory legitimate? Are movies artworks for which directors can or should be credited with birthing by virtue of their visions alone? Or, is cinema a more collaborative and industrial enterprise where every craftsperson's talents are as integral to the whole as the man (or woman) calling "action"? For some, this question has an easy answer. For others, the truth is more complex. Let's Ask Movie Irv:
Agreed? Disagreed? Irv is itching to answer another question. Take on his point of view and then give him another meaty, movie-related question to chew on:
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
New Year’s resolution: Watch more foreign films.
Watching foreign cinema is a lot like eating your vegetables. You know you must do it to maintain a balanced and healthy diet, and while you may actually find you enjoy them once you taste them, it’s so much easier to just load up on cheeseburgers and fries.
Maybe I’m just speaking for me, but I would guess those sentiments articulate the unfortunate habits of many a movie fan. To be clear, I have absolutely zero aversion to foreign films (I have no problem “reading” while watching a movie)—I just don’t watch nearly as many as I “should.” I find them just as rewarding—or not, as the case may be—as American-made films.
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Taking offense; an unexpected emergency; sheer boredom...all reasons someone might give for walking out on a movie. It's safe to say we've probably all done it at one time or another. When the exodus is not forced upon you—that is to say, when it's a matter of you making the choice to abandon the film you just plunked down some hard-earned cash to see—that's when it becomes an interesting story about the relationship between you and the cinema.
Movie Irv has seen many, many, many movies. Has he ever walked out on one? If so, why? Was he overwhelmed by the sugary content of The Sound of Music? Did he feel the shame of a city in the midst of the murky 3-D of The Last Airbender? Perhaps A Serbian Film sent him into the men's room as he lost his lunch? It's time to Ask Movie Irv:
So ends Irv's confession. He's already taken on How You Shop for a Movie Collector and Do You Read the Book Before Seeing the Movie, and now he needs a few more questions. If you want to know when such-and-such is coming out on DVD or Blu-ray, go ask Irv on the DVD Beat and TV Tip Sheet posts. Got a trivia nugget you think will stump us? Ask MovieFanFare or visit our Facebook page. In this arena, we seek the movie-related inquiries that are unusual or challenging. Go for it in the comments:
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
Remakes, blah. Reboots? They’re so yesterday. I own thousands of comic books, but even this hardcore comics fan has had just about enough of comic book movies.
Big-budget motion pictures based on videogames are old hat. Films based on board games—which you’d think would have been buried forever based on the public and critical response to Clue—are about to enjoy a mini-renaissance with the release of Battleship and, no kidding, an eventual adaptation of the game Monopoly being headed up (at least for now) by none other than Ridley Scott.
Maybe you’ve heard of him:
Alien. Blade Runner. Thelma & Louise. Gladiator. Black Hawk Down. Alien, for crying out loud. Scott has been nominated for the Best Director Oscar three times.
It is indeed tempting to openly mock the notion of a Parker Brothers'-inspired blockbuster, where the hero may be a short, portly fellow with a handlebar moustache (Philip Seymour Hoffman in an “A”-list cast, or Jason Alexander if it’s deemed straight-to-video-worthy instead?); where “Passing Go” and “Community Chest” will have to be worked into a script that also features red hotels, a Scottie terrier, and a thimble—but we should remember that we’ve already had “the Facebook Movie.”
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Last year, I received The Invention of Hugo Cabret as a Christmas gift. This year, Martin Scorsese's film of it, Hugo (Gee, was the original title too "intellectual"?), is getting tons of high praise. I didn't get around to reading the book before the movie hit the screen; now I face a tough choice.
Am I going to experience novelist Brian Selznick's original vision via the Caldecott-winning book before seeing Marty's new picture? (It shouldn't take long. Lots of big pictures) Or, being a devoted Scorsese fan, will I want to see what the revered filmmaker hath wrought first? At the moment, I'm stuck for a decision. Think I'll Ask Movie Irv:
Have different opinions about the whole book-before-movie, book-versus-movie, movie-better-than-book thing? While you're thinking up mind-tickling new questions to Ask Movie Irv (he's already given you his insights about shopping for movie collectors), ante up with some reactions below.
UPDATED: Since the preparation of this post, I (George, not Irv): read the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret; then saw the movie Hugo. Still not sure if that was the "right" choice or not (If you know the story going into the film, you will already be well aware of the movie's big revelation)...but that was the one I made. Yours?
George D. Allen and Irv Slifkin | Movie Buzz, Movie Buzz Podcast
Got a question to Ask Movie Irv? Not of the "When is (title X) coming out on DVD/Blu-ray?" variety—he gets plenty of those queries via the Ask MovieFanFare, DVD Beat and TV Tip Sheet threads—and not of the "trivia quiz" type, either; it's all too easy for him to look up the answers to "What was the name of that actor in (that movie)?" or "How many times was (that actress) nominated for the Oscar?"
No, we are looking for some challenges. And we'll open up Irv's new series with a question that, at first glance, would seem like a softball...but is the answer to the question "How Do You Shop for a Movie Collector?" really so simple? Here's Irv:
I have plenty of other questions for Irv already lined up, but you should also play a role in keeping him on his toes. So, think of a question or two and Ask Movie Irv below!
George D. Allen | Staff Notes
I have a personal relationship with Jesus.
To be more specific, lest the huffing and puffing get too heated right out of the gate: what I mean is that I have a personal experience related to the intersection of Jesus, entertainment, and controversy, which makes the treatment of the Christian savior in motion pictures of particular interest to me. I’ll pocket that story until the end, though, so we can move more quickly into this rumination of Jesus on film.
Talking Jesus and movies is a little like talking politics and movies. I haven’t had any trepidations about occupying this space with pieces involving the latter coupling (go here, and here, or even here to see what I’m talking about), but I will admit that putting words to screen on the former was a job that lent itself easily to much procrastination.
Why? Because even more so than mixing thoughts on movies and politics, venturing into the thorny thicket of Jesus Cinema presents two distinct and intimidating handicaps from the start. There’s the search for an original approach to the subject matter—sort of like what the writer faces trying to discover something “new” to say about Citizen Kane or Psycho—and then, there’s the reality that most people come to the conversation with hardened (if not positively confrontational) opinions about which movies dealing with Jesus are:
…worthwhile;
…meaningful;
…intelligent;
…reverent;
…and, on the flip side of the coin, positively blasphemous.
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