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Like Louis Armstrong, Nellie Mae Rowe claimed July 4, 1900, as the day she was born. If definitive records could be found in either case, they might indicate a less symbolic date. But for Black Americans born into poverty in the Jim Crow South, as Armstrong and Rowe were, that symbolism — Independence Day, the dawn of the century — is significant. Rowe took her independence seriously, as the captivating film portrait This World Is Not My Own makes vibrantly clear. After years of farm work and many more years as a domestic servant, the twice-widowed Georgian decided, in the powerful words of one of her great-great-nieces, “to design my life the way that I want it while I’m on this journey passing through.”

Whether you call her a folk artist, an outsider artist or simply self-taught, Rowe devoted herself with joy to her paintings, drawings and chewing gum sculptures (using gum she’d chomped herself,...

Live performances may be on pause, but fans of Sing Street, John Carney’s cinematic ode to Eighties British bands, can still get their fix. On Wednesday, the cast of Sing Street‘s Broadway adaptation premiered a short video for “Riddle of the Model” — includes Brendan C. Callahan, Zara Devlin, Jakeim Hart, Brenock O’Connor, Gian Perez, Sam Poon, and Anthony Genovesi — and announced that Sing Street: Original Broadway Cast Recording will be out on Tuesday, April 21st.

The theater production of Sing Street — Carney’s semi-autobiographical story of a teenage...

The play is called Women Of A Certain Age, and we critics were invited to see it on the very evening it is set, November 8, 2016: Election Day. Although some of my colleagues were put out when Broadway producer Scott Rudin asked us to attend opening night of The Front Page, none of us has ever complained when asked to do so for the latest installment of Richard Nelson’s series about two unlike families living in the Hudson Valley hamlet of Rhinebeck, New York.

Each of the six plays, of which this was the final, is set in real time on its opening night. Truth to tell, I was nervous about how focused I could be, knowing that the quiet one-act unfolding there in the Public Theater’s third-floor LuEsther Hall would run right up against the first tallies of the voting for President. But these exquisitely intimate plays...

Gravity took top honors last night at the 15th Annual Golden Trailer Awards. 17 trophies were handed out live in Beverly Hills at the Saban theater, while a total of 75 different awards were bestowed upon the best trailers for movies, TV, and video games.

Gravity won Best in Show and Best Thriller for its Detached trailer, which you can watch here:

Warner Bros., the studio that released Gravity, took home 15 Golden Trailer awards altogether. Universal won 9 awards, while Lionsgate was awarded 8 of the trophies. Here are some of the winners of the 2014 15th Annual Golden Trailer Awards:

Best Action

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

"World Event"

Lionsgate/Trailer Park

Best Animation/Family

Frozen

"Forces First Ped"

Disney/Trailer Park

Best Comedy

Bad Words

"Red Band Trailer"

Focus Features/Mark Woolen & Associates

Best Documentary

Blackfish

Magnolia/Zealot

Best Drama

Lee Daniels' the Butler

The Weinstein Company/Av Squad

Best Fantasy Adventure

Maleficent...

It may be a day late, as April Fool's was yesterday, but a newly discovered alternate opening scene from the sci-fi smash hit drama Gravity has arrived online, and it features none other than a cameo from the Man of Steel himself Superman (Christopher Reeve). Watch as the DC Comics superhero helps Sandra Bullock and George Clooney out of a tough jam in a scene that was ultimately rejected by the executives at Warner Bros. Kal-El's involvement drastically changes the course of the entire storyline. Oh, and stick around until the very end, as the stinger makes the whole thing worthwhile.

Gravity was released October 4th, 2013 and stars Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris, Orto Ignatiussen, Paul Sharma, Amy Warren, Basher Savage. The film is directed by Alfonso Cuarón.

IMAX Corporation and Warner Bros. Pictures, a division of Time Warner Inc., today announced that Gravity has passed the $100 million global box office benchmark in 639 IMAX 3D theatres worldwide since its initial release Thursday, Oct. 3, 2013. As of Feb. 5, 2014, the film had reached $48.6 million in 330 IMAX 3D theatres domestically and $51.5 million from 309 theatres internationally. Gravity represents the third IMAX Hollywood film to cross the $100-million threshold, following Avatar in 2010 and The Dark Knight Rises in 2012.

Gravity continues to pull moviegoers in to IMAX theatres, with a Jan. 31, 2014, re-release into 330 IMAX 3D locations in North America and other international territories.

Filmmaker Alfonso Cuar&#243n's internationally lauded drama, which stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, has been a hit with audiences and critics alike, closing in on the $700 million mark at the global box office, while receiving 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. Demand for the film -- which was also nominated for four Golden Globes,...

The 25th Annual Producers Guild of America Awards were handed out last night, with Gravity and 12 Years a Slave tying for the guild's top honor, the The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for 'Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures'. Some guilds do not allow for ties to happen, and this is the first time in the PGA's history that it has happened for their biggest award.

Take a look at the rest of the big winners below, which were announced at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures:

- Gravity (Warner Bros. Pictures) - Producers: Alfonso Cuar&#243n, David Heyman

- 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures) - Producers: Anthony Katagas, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen, Brad Pitt & Dede GardnerAmerican Hustle (Columbia Pictures) - Producers: Megan Ellison, Jon Gordon, Charles Roven, Richard SuckleBlue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics) - Producers: Letty Aronson, Stephen...

Experience space like never before in the Academy Award-nominated Gravity, arriving onto Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and Digital HD on February 25 from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. A heart-pounding thriller starring Academy Award winners Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side) and George Clooney (Syriana), and stunningly directed by Academy Award-nominee Alfonso Cuar&#243n, Gravity pulls you into the infinite and unforgiving realm of deep space.

Gravity was written by Alfonso Cuar&#243n and Jon&#225s Cuar&#243n and produced by Alfonso Cuar&#243n and David Heyman (the Harry Potter films), with Christopher DeFaria, Nikki Penny and Stephen Jones serving as executive producers.

Gravity will be available on Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack for $44.95 and on Blu-ray Combo Pack for $35.99. Both include a digital version of the movie on Digital HD with UltraViolet. Fans can also own Gravity in Digital HD on February 25 via purchase from digital retailers.

Gravity has...

Following its 10 Academy Award nominations earlier today, IMAX and Warner Bros. announced that the hit sci-fi thriller Gravity will be re-released in IMAX 3D theaters nationwide on January 31. The film is already slated for a second run in over 900 conventional theaters starting tomorrow, January 17. In addition, Warner Bros. has provided us with new photos featuring stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. Take a look at these images, then check out the official press release with more details on the re-release.

IMAX Corporation and Warner Bros. Pictures, a division of Time Warner Inc., today announced that Alfonso Cuar&#243n's Gravity, one of the most popular films ever offered in IMAX 3D, will be returning to domestic IMAX theatres starting Jan. 31.

Cuar&#243n's spectacular sci-fi thriller, which stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, has been a hit with audiences and critics alike, grossing nearly $700 million at the global box office, while receiving...

Yesterday, the Visual Effects Society (Ves) named acclaimed filmmaker Alfonso Cuar&#243n the recipient of its Visionary Award in recognition of his extraordinary career, most recently including his landmark achievement on this year's hugely successful sci-fi thriller Gravity. To celebrate, Warner Bros. has released a new behind-the-scenes 'making of' featurette that takes fans deep into the production process of this nail-biter about two astronauts (Sandra Bullock and George Clooney) stranded in space. Warning: Those who have not yet seen Gravity, which has taken in over $652 million at the box office, might want to wait before they settle in for this mini-documentary. As the end spoils the thrilling climax of the actual movie itself. If you're already a fan, settle in for a look at how this 2013 masterpiece came together.

The Ves award will be presented to Alfonso Cuar&#243n at the 12th Annual Ves Awards on February 12, 2014 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Be warned, if you haven't seen the sci-fi thriller Gravity yet, there will be plenty of spoilers throughout this story. Gravity co-writer Jon&#225s Cuar&#243n, the son of director Alfonso Cuar&#243n, has written and directed a seven-minute short film entitled Aningaaq, which ties into the blockbuster that just passed $500 million worldwide. This short shows us the other side of Dr. Ryan Stone's (Sandra Bullock) distress call made from the Russian space station, where she makes contact with a man speaking an unidentified foreign language. Aningaaq centers on the Inuit fisherman in Greenland who answers her call. Check out the video, then read on for more information.

The short film was initially set to be included in the Gravity Blu-ray and DVD release, but now, after festival screenings in Telluride and Venice, Warner Bros. is submitting Aningaaq for Oscar consideration in the Best Live-Action Short category. If...

  Gravity (2013) Film Review from the 57th Annual BFI London Film Festival (Lff), a movie directed by Alfonso Cuaron, starring Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris, Orto Ignatiussen, Paul Scharma, Amy Warren and Basher Savage. Gravity is a visual masterpiece and an emotional powerhouse. There are only a few films which could [...]

Continue reading: Film Review: Gravity: London Film Festival 2013...

‘Gravity’ falls? Not at the domestic box office, as Sandra Bullock and George Clooney space thriller to enjoy one of biggest October openings ever (photo: Alfonso Cuarón directing Sandra Bullock and George Clooney in ‘Gravity’) Alfonso Cuarón’s Warner Bros.-released Gravity will undoubtedly have one of the biggest October openings ever at the North American box office. As mentioned in my previous Gravity box office post, Cuarón’s mix of adventure, horror, suspense thriller, and psychological drama starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney was expected to earn around $40 million by Sunday evening. The Warner Bros.-distributed $100 million-budgeted film will, however, easily surpass that figure. (Note: some sources peg Gravity‘s budget at between $80 million and $120 million, not including marketing and distribution expenses.) (See also: “‘Gravity’ Box Office Record?“) The story of two U.S. astronauts adrift in the solar system after chunks of Earth-orbiting debris crash into their space shuttle,...

‘Gravity’ box office: Sandra Bullock and George Clooney solar system thriller soars on Friday (photo: Sandra Bullock in ‘Gravity’) In large part thanks to brisk 3D ticket sales, Alfonso Cuarón’s Warner Bros.-released Gravity is bound to far surpass initial opening-weekend estimates at the North American box office. Starring Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side) and George Clooney (Syriana, Argo), by Sunday evening the $100 million-budgeted two-character psychological thriller about two U.S. astronauts adrift in space was expected to collect around $40 million from 3,575 locations according to early tracking — with 91% of its tickets sales going to the film’s whopping 3,150 3D venues. (For comparison’s sake, back in 2009 3D theaters represented 90% of James Cameron’s Avatar advance ticket sales.) (See also: “‘Gravity’: Biggest October Box Office Debut Ever for an ‘Original Film.’“) On late Thursday, October 3, 2013, and Friday midnight, Gravity took in a solid — but hardly outstanding — $1.4 million.

When the debris of a mishandled destruction of a satellite showers a group of astronauts in orbit on a routine Hubble Space Telescope mission, it hails down, shredding everything in its path. Caught in the Earth’s orbit, the wreckage has an incredible momentum behind it. In space, every second is vital and every inch of movement is crucial in survival, so when one of the astronauts dislodges from a piece of the space shuttle out of control, it sends that individual hurtling through space with nothing to slow it down, nothing to bring it back to its inert state. This intense sequence is not the climax of Gravity, it is just a taste of the first 20 minutes of the film.

Even though Gravity is grounded in reality, this is an exemplary science fiction-horror story birthed to be seen on the big screen and yes it is worth the extra price for 3D.