Latest news with #filmhistory
Geek Tyrant
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
Video Essay Explains Why JAWS Was Lightning in a Bottle and Why It Can't Happen Again — GeekTyrant
In his latest video essay, Matt Draper dives deep into the turbulent waters behind Jaws , Steven Spielberg's 1975 classic that changed movies, how movies are made, and how they are marketed. The video explores everything from the troubled production (including the now-legendary malfunctioning mechanical shark, Bruce) to the massive cultural ripple effect the film created. He lays out how Jaws became the first modern blockbuster, not by design but by accident, shaped by limitations that forced Spielberg to innovate turning suspense into art. The video came with the followin note: 'A look back at 50 years of Jaws, revealing the history behind Peter Benchley's Novel, Steven Spielberg's blockbuster film, the many bad sequels, and the stories behind some of the most influential movies ever and their impact on both film and the world.' Draper also argues that the success of Jaws is impossible to replicate. The industry today is too controlled, too polished, too risk-averse to allow the kind of chaos that forged this movie's legacy.
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Box Office Queen Becomes the Highest-Grossing Lead Actor of All Time
Box Office Queen Becomes the Highest-Grossing Lead Actor of All Time originally appeared on Parade. Scarlett Johansson just made box office history. The Oscar-nominated actress, 40, has officially become the highest-grossing lead actor of all time, surpassing her fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe alums Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Downey Jr., according to verified data from The Numbers. The milestone comes on the heels of a massive opening weekend for Jurassic World Rebirth, which debuted July 3 and earned $147.3 million domestically and $318.3 million globally through Sunday. That colossal opening pushed Johansson's total global box office haul for leading and ensemble-lead roles to an astonishing $14.61 billion — edging Jackson's $14.60 billion and Downey Jr.'s $14.3 billion. What's more: Johansson got there with just 36 films playing lead roles, compared to Jackson's 71 and Downey's 45. Her average worldwide gross stands at $405.9 million per film, significantly outpacing both actors. Many of Johansson's biggest hits have come from her decade-long portrayal of Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow in the MCU, including Avengers: Endgame ($2.7B), Infinity War ($2B), The Avengers ($1.5B), and Age of Ultron ($1.4B). Outside of Marvel, Johansson headlined major earners like The Jungle Book ($951M), Sing ($631M), and Lucy ($457M). Her latest win comes from a new franchise. In Jurassic World Rebirth, Johansson stars as Zora Bennett, a hardened mercenary brought into the action by a pharmaceutical executive (Rupert Friend) to team up with a paleontologist (Jonathan Bailey) on a high-stakes mission involving dinosaur DNA. Clearly, Johansson is no longer just Marvel's most elite assassin. She's Hollywood's most bankable star. Period. Jurassic World Rebirth is now playing in theaters nationwide. Box Office Queen Becomes the Highest-Grossing Lead Actor of All Time first appeared on Parade on Jul 7, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
Al Bawaba
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Al Bawaba
Damascus uproar: Historic Syrian cinema ordered to vacate in one week
ALBAWABA - Artists, directors, and cultural leaders from all over Syria are very angry about the Damascus Endowments Directorate's choice to end its lease deal with Al-Kindi Cinema. A lot of people on social media were upset about what they saw as the disappearance of a major cultural icon in Damascus. Some even said it was a blow to the city's film history that goes back more than a hundred years. The General Organization for Cinema used to own Al-Kindi Cinema, which is listed under property record number 2285 in the Salhiya area. On July 10, 2025, the Directorate sent out a formal letter ending the lease. A less than $30-a-year rent has been paid for decades for the more than 700-square-meter spot. The relatives of the original tenant, Mohammad Aref Al-Kheimi & Co., have been told by the authorities to leave the property within seven days. If they don't, the order will be enforced through the courts. The Directorate said that the site would be fixed up and turned into a culture center to "spread knowledge and enlightenment" among young Syrians. After opening in the 1920s as "Adonis Cinema," Al-Kindi Cinema changed its name to "Balqis Cinema" before being bought by the General Organization for Cinema in 1976. It has been an important part of Syrian film culture ever since, hosting both foreign and Arab film events. Some people are against the lease because they say it is a "automatically renewable contract," which means that it can't be broken without a change in the law. Legal experts, like lawyer Ismail Nasr, said the Directorate's action wasn't legal and that it should have waited for future changes to property rules before taking action. Some people wanted to take back long-leased trust homes, but a lot of other people said that renegotiating the rent would have been a better option for everyone. They also didn't like the one-week date for eviction, pointing out that the cinema had valuable technical equipment and was historically important.
CNN
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
The history of Superman in the movies
Rick Damigella looks at the silver screen history of the Man of Steel, from George Reeves in 1951, to David Corenswet in 2025.
Geek Tyrant
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
Steven Spielberg Says He Used to Sneak onto the JAWS Set at Universal Studios Tour and Cry — GeekTyrant
When you think of Jaws , you think of great freakin' movie that made history and changed Holywood. The first summer blockbuster. The origin of the modern event film. But behind the legend is a story of stress, anxiety, and a young filmmaker nearly broken by the experience. According to Steven Spielberg himself, he used to deal with that weight in a very unexpected place, quietly hiding out on the set of the Jaws Studio Tour ride at Universal Studios. In the upcoming documentary Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story , which hits Hulu and Disney+ next month, Spielberg opens up about the lingering emotional toll the film left on him. One moment in particular moment is when Universal shipped the original Orca boat from Martha's Vineyard to the backlot for the Studio Tour attraction, Spielberg began making regular solo visits. Not for nostalgia or photo ops. But for healing. He said: 'When they brought one of the boats all the way back from Martha's Vineyard and shipped the boat, the Orca, to the Universal backlot and put it in the water right next to the Jaws ride. 'I used to get on my electric cart, without telling anybody, and I would sneak behind the trams so nobody could see me and I'd just sneak on board the boat and I would sit in the cabin in that little leatherette booth and I would just sit there and sometimes cry.' That might sound strange coming from the man whose film changed the industry forever. But Jaws was a grueling ordeal to make. Mechanical shark failures, an unforgiving shooting location, and an over-budget, over-schedule nightmare that had the young director fearing for his career. It left scars that didn't fade easily. He added: 'I had nothing to cry about. The film was this phenomenon, and I'm sitting here shedding tears because I'm not able to divest myself of the experience. The boat helped me to begin to forget. That Orca was my therapeutic companion for several years after Jaws came out.' It's a very personal revelation, one that reframes how we view not just the making of Jaws , but Spielberg himself. He wasn't basking in the glory of a hit. He was still emotionally tethered to a project that nearly broke him. For a time, the Orca wasn't a prop or a set piece. It was a quiet place where he could process it all. Unfortunately, the original Orca didn't last forever. The elements eventually wore it down and it had to be removed from the backlot. A replica stands in its place today, but now, knowing what the original boat meant to Spielberg, it feels like that spot on the tour holds a different kind of history. So next time you're on the Universal Studios Tram Tour, coasting past the fake shark and the docks of Amity Island, think about the filmmaker who used to quietly sit there, out of sight. Not as a legend, just as a guy trying to let go of something that never fully let go of him.
