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1 week ago | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
On June 20, 1975 Universal released the highly-anticipated big screen version of Peter Benchley's international bestseller "Jaws". The movie was not a sleeper boxoffice hit. Universal, concerned by the film's troubled production history and it's considerable budget overruns, backed the release with a massive promotional campaign and opened the movie in over 500 theaters across the United States, which was the widest opening for any movie in history.
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Mar 16, 2025 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
If you are a Cinema Retro reader, I'll go out on a limb and assume you are familiar with John Ford's 1956 masterpiece "The Searchers". The film was a hit when it opened but didn't gain the stature of being a classic until years later. Over time, film scholars began to reassess the movie and proclaimed it to be perhaps Ford's greatest work.
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Mar 15, 2025 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
Critics should always tread carefully when covering movies in the film noir genre. Generally speaking, these are complex plots with a number of twists and all too often reviewers tend to disclose too many spoilers. Having said that, I'll try to cover Crime of Passion in a manner that doesn't commit that cardinal sin.
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Feb 15, 2025 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
In a stunning announcement, James Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson say that they have made an agreement with Amazon, which co-owns the rights to the legendary film franchise, to have Amazon assume creative control of future Bond films. Broccoli and Wilson will retain co-ownership of the franchise but will retire from being involved in the production of new 007 films. Bond fans have anxiously awaited news of a new Bond movie but none has been forthcoming.
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Feb 1, 2025 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
Actor Tony Roberts has passed away at age 85. The cause of death was lung cancer. He had a long career on stage and on screen and his face was familiar to even those who didn't know his name. Fittingly, his autobiography was titled "Do You Know Me?" Roberts was adept at playing dramatic roles and appeared in such esteemed dramatic films as "Serpico" and "The Taking of Pelham One Two Three". He is best known to movie fans for his roles in six Woody Allen films.
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Jan 24, 2025 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
Actress and singer Marianne Faithfull has passed away at age 78. Faithfull was discovered in 1964 and quickly became one of the so-called "It Girls" who helped define the emerging mod movement in London. Faithfull gained fame with her recording of "As Tears Go By", which was written by Mick Jagger and fellow Rolling Stone member Keith Richard. Although the song was envisioned to be sung by a much older person reflecting on their life, Faithfull was only 17 years-old at the time.
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Nov 24, 2024 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
James Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson accepted the Motion Picture Academy's coveted Thalberg Award for lifetime achievement in the film industry. It's the same award that was earned by Albert R. Broccoli in 1981. Barbara and Michael inherited the mantle of producing the Bond films when Cubby retired from that role prior to "GoldenEye" going into production.
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Nov 18, 2024 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
Ray Milland was an Oscar-winning actor but most movie fans probably don't realize he was also a film director. His productions were generally modestly-budgeted and played to modest results. In 1965, Milland was offered the opportunity to star in a stage production of writer Jack Roffey's whodunnit "Hostile Witness". The play had opened the year before in the West End. Milland, who had not appeared on stage in quite some time, was sufficiently impressed enough to accept the offer.
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Oct 25, 2024 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
Quincy Jones, one of the most famous and distinguished names in the history of modern music, has passed away at age 91. Jones was the very definition of "multi-talented": he composed, conducted, produced and wrote songs. He was the recipient of 28 Grammy Awards and worked with some of the greatest names in the music industry. His collaborations with Michael Jackson produced three hit albums, one of whicn- "Thriller"- is the top-selling record album of all time.
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Sep 19, 2024 | 
cinemaretro.com | Lee Pfeiffer |Cinema Retro
By Lee Pfeiffer
Following his break-out performance as Superman in the 1978
blockbuster, Christopher Reeve deftly avoided being typecast in the role
despite appearing in several sequels. However, his non-Superman flicks
were a decidedly mixed bag. Virtually none of them were successful at
the boxoffice at the time of their initial release, although Somewhere in Time found a loyal cult audience over the years and Deathtrap
seems more entertaining now than it did in 1982.
