Chicago – Award winning documentary filmmaker Aviva Kempner is making an appearance in Chicago on behalf of her latest film – co-directed with Ben West – on the continuing controversy regarding sports teams named after Native American tribes and images. “Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting” will screen at the Gene Siskel Film Center, with Aviva Kempner and Ben West in attendance on Friday, April 21st, 2023. Click Imagining for tickets and more information.
The film is an illuminating examination of the movement to end the misappropriation of Native culture. Documenting the origins of the words, images, and gestures that many Native people and their allies find harmful, Aviva Kempner and Ben West (Cheyenne) powerfully chronicle the impact that marginalization of history has had on those peoples, and the social movements to force sports teams at all levels – including locally the Chicago Blackhawks – to change their offensive names.
Directed by Aviva...
The film is an illuminating examination of the movement to end the misappropriation of Native culture. Documenting the origins of the words, images, and gestures that many Native people and their allies find harmful, Aviva Kempner and Ben West (Cheyenne) powerfully chronicle the impact that marginalization of history has had on those peoples, and the social movements to force sports teams at all levels – including locally the Chicago Blackhawks – to change their offensive names.
Directed by Aviva...
- 4/21/2023
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Paul Rudd is one of the go-to faces in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he never expected to land any sort of superhero movie–especially one in the biggest franchise ever. For all he knew, he’d be slappin’ da bass and boasting about his Octagon for the rest of his career.
Prior to becoming a big screen superhero, Paul Rudd had a consistent and respectable career bouncing back and forth between comedies and indies, working with the likes of both Judd Apatow and David Gordon Green. There, too, was some stage work. In other words, Paul Rudd didn’t exactly expect to be in front of too many green screens. “I would tend to go between doing indie movies and plays,” he told Interview. “I was about 30 years old then, and I think all through my twenties, that was the goal. All actors wanted to be in really cool...
Prior to becoming a big screen superhero, Paul Rudd had a consistent and respectable career bouncing back and forth between comedies and indies, working with the likes of both Judd Apatow and David Gordon Green. There, too, was some stage work. In other words, Paul Rudd didn’t exactly expect to be in front of too many green screens. “I would tend to go between doing indie movies and plays,” he told Interview. “I was about 30 years old then, and I think all through my twenties, that was the goal. All actors wanted to be in really cool...
- 2/21/2023
- by Mathew Plale
- JoBlo.com
Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am director Timothy Greenfield-Sanders Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Among the most interesting documentaries in consideration for next year's Best Documentary Feature Academy Award are Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’ Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am on the Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who died this year; Matt Tyrnauer’s Where’s My Roy Cohn? on the infamous lawyer; Frédéric Tcheng’s Halston on the iconic designer; Alison Klayman’s The Brink on Steve Bannon; Aviva Kempner’s The Spy Behind Home Plate on baseball player Moe Berg; Andrey Paounov’s Walking On Water on Christo; Ron Mann's Carmine Street Guitars on Rick Kelly’s shop in New York, and Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese, which had a Special Event screening last week at Doc NYC.
Where’s My Roy Cohn? director Matt Tyrnauer Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Documentary features that...
Among the most interesting documentaries in consideration for next year's Best Documentary Feature Academy Award are Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’ Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am on the Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who died this year; Matt Tyrnauer’s Where’s My Roy Cohn? on the infamous lawyer; Frédéric Tcheng’s Halston on the iconic designer; Alison Klayman’s The Brink on Steve Bannon; Aviva Kempner’s The Spy Behind Home Plate on baseball player Moe Berg; Andrey Paounov’s Walking On Water on Christo; Ron Mann's Carmine Street Guitars on Rick Kelly’s shop in New York, and Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese, which had a Special Event screening last week at Doc NYC.
Where’s My Roy Cohn? director Matt Tyrnauer Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Documentary features that...
- 11/12/2019
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
You cannot imagine how excited Washington, D.C., Nationals fans are about the team making it to the World Series for the first time since 1933, when the capital’s baseball team was called the Senators. Sadly, the Giants beat us then in five games.
The story of how the Nats won the 2019 National League pennant title has the makings of a heartwarming Hollywood movie. Imagine a baseball team that begins the season with a failing record only to come from behind and ace an exciting wild-card game, and battle on to beat the higher-ranked Dodgers and Cardinals.
The Nats consist of old and young players bonded over winning a pennant. The ace veteran, Ryan Zimmerman, age 35, had key hits during the playoffs. Rising star Juan Soto is only 20, and couldn’t legally drink booze during the locker-room celebrations. Soto turns 21 on October 25, so hopefully he will have something to celebrate.
The story of how the Nats won the 2019 National League pennant title has the makings of a heartwarming Hollywood movie. Imagine a baseball team that begins the season with a failing record only to come from behind and ace an exciting wild-card game, and battle on to beat the higher-ranked Dodgers and Cardinals.
The Nats consist of old and young players bonded over winning a pennant. The ace veteran, Ryan Zimmerman, age 35, had key hits during the playoffs. Rising star Juan Soto is only 20, and couldn’t legally drink booze during the locker-room celebrations. Soto turns 21 on October 25, so hopefully he will have something to celebrate.
- 10/23/2019
- by Aviva Kempner
- The Wrap
In Washington, D.C., we are blissfully recovering from Monday night’s game when the Nationals beat the Dodgers to tie up the playoff series 2-2. We are hoarse from yelling and need serious manicures from all the nail biting innings.
East Coast Jewish fans are religiously thrilled our match-up will begin on Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. Et because the start time comes after sundown of our holiest Day of Atonement. We are supposed to observe the holiday by praying in synagogue, not eating or drinking, and not watching baseball.
It’s not fair to those Jewish fans living on the West Coast as the game starts there at 5:30 p.m., which is before sundown. Although I want my home team Nats to win, I do feel empathy for those Jewish Dodgers fans who are confronting religious dilemmas about watching the game during Yom Kippur.
It’s...
East Coast Jewish fans are religiously thrilled our match-up will begin on Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. Et because the start time comes after sundown of our holiest Day of Atonement. We are supposed to observe the holiday by praying in synagogue, not eating or drinking, and not watching baseball.
It’s not fair to those Jewish fans living on the West Coast as the game starts there at 5:30 p.m., which is before sundown. Although I want my home team Nats to win, I do feel empathy for those Jewish Dodgers fans who are confronting religious dilemmas about watching the game during Yom Kippur.
It’s...
- 10/9/2019
- by Aviva Kempner
- The Wrap
There’s a right-wing candidate who unexpectedly rose to power on a wave of nationalist anger despite a history of making rude and racist comments. A woman from a left-wing party vying to become the country’s first female leader. Cries to not just defeat politicians, but to lock them up. Rampant corruption growing out of campaign financing. A country “divided into two irreconcilable parts,” in the words of one observer.
The country in question, by the way, is Brazil, and the observer is filmmaker Petra Costa, whose sobering documentary, “Edge of Democracy,” premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. And if the echoes of the United States are unmistakable and disquieting, that was no doubt the point of Sundance giving the film a coveted opening-night berth.
But it’s not the only reason to give the film a prime timeslot. “Edge of Democracy,” as sprawling and occasionally confusing as it can be,...
The country in question, by the way, is Brazil, and the observer is filmmaker Petra Costa, whose sobering documentary, “Edge of Democracy,” premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. And if the echoes of the United States are unmistakable and disquieting, that was no doubt the point of Sundance giving the film a coveted opening-night berth.
But it’s not the only reason to give the film a prime timeslot. “Edge of Democracy,” as sprawling and occasionally confusing as it can be,...
- 6/19/2019
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
There aren’t a lot of sports stars who could claim to be as interesting as Moe Berg, a Major League baseball player who spoke nearly a dozen languages, blew audiences away on quiz shows, and worked as a spy for the United States government during World War II. Berg nearly assassinated German theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg. Take that, Dwayne Johnson.
Berg, who got his own biopic last year is now the subject of a major documentary. “The Spy Behind Home Plate.” Written and directed by Aviva Kempner (“The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg”), the film assembles pundits, contemporaries and family members, combining new and archived interview footage to reveal the many incredible facets of Berg’s life.
Nimble and efficient, “The Spy Behind Home Plate” races through that life at a steady clip, unloading one fascinating biographical tidbit after another. The action may be staid — it’s a talking-heads documentary,...
Berg, who got his own biopic last year is now the subject of a major documentary. “The Spy Behind Home Plate.” Written and directed by Aviva Kempner (“The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg”), the film assembles pundits, contemporaries and family members, combining new and archived interview footage to reveal the many incredible facets of Berg’s life.
Nimble and efficient, “The Spy Behind Home Plate” races through that life at a steady clip, unloading one fascinating biographical tidbit after another. The action may be staid — it’s a talking-heads documentary,...
- 6/14/2019
- by William Bibbiani
- The Wrap
News coming out of Cannes 2019 was upbeat for multiple acclaimed specialized titles. They are still months away from domestic view, per usual. What is different this year is the lack of summer releases to supply the theaters needed to sustain these later films. A year ago, within a week or so of this early June weekend, three notable narrative titles with strong reviews, “American Animals,” “First Reformed,” and “Hearts Beat Loud,” all played to decent business at core theaters. And then “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” burst into the mix, continuing the current wave of powerful documentary performers.
Whatever the varying quality, no limited opener this weekend is likely to amass a total gross of $250,000. That’s partly because they face serious competition from both “Booksmart” (United Artists) and “Rocketman” (Paramount), which debuted on thousands of screens after launching with splashy major festival attention. Both competed for the same pool of viewers.
Whatever the varying quality, no limited opener this weekend is likely to amass a total gross of $250,000. That’s partly because they face serious competition from both “Booksmart” (United Artists) and “Rocketman” (Paramount), which debuted on thousands of screens after launching with splashy major festival attention. Both competed for the same pool of viewers.
- 6/2/2019
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
Once again, with a huge opening in Los Angeles for music documentary “Echo in the Canyon” (Greenwich), the genre is playing a vital role in keeping arthouses healthy. With “The Biggest Little Farm” (Neon) leading the way among holdovers as it adds theaters, documentaries’ central role in the specialty market stands out in stark contrast to what should have been a strong narrative opener, smart-girl comedy “Booksmart” (United Artists).
Until recently, that well-reviewed SXSW breakout would have been likely to build buzz in limited and play at specialized theaters, but instead opened wide this weekend. Though many core theaters are able to play it, competing theaters lessen their grosses, and in many cases they find themselves replaced by major chain competitors.
Opening
Echo in the Canyon (Greenwich) – Metacritic: 78; Festivals include: Los Angeles 2018
$103,716 in 2 theaters; PTA (per theater average): $51,858
Boomer appeal, top theater placement in Los Angeles, and special appearances...
Until recently, that well-reviewed SXSW breakout would have been likely to build buzz in limited and play at specialized theaters, but instead opened wide this weekend. Though many core theaters are able to play it, competing theaters lessen their grosses, and in many cases they find themselves replaced by major chain competitors.
Opening
Echo in the Canyon (Greenwich) – Metacritic: 78; Festivals include: Los Angeles 2018
$103,716 in 2 theaters; PTA (per theater average): $51,858
Boomer appeal, top theater placement in Los Angeles, and special appearances...
- 5/26/2019
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
Andrew Slater’s music documentary Echo In The Canyon opened with a bang in two Los Angeles theaters over the Memorial holiday weekend, crooning out the second-highest opening weekend per theater average of 2019, solidifying further non-fiction as the star genre among the specialties so far this year.
The Greenwich Entertainment release grossed a three-day estimate of $103,716 from its showings at the ArcLight Hollywood and The Landmark in West L.A., giving the title a $51,858 PTA. The year’s top debut average remains with Avengers: Endgame at $76,601 in over forty-six hundred theaters. It is also the best PTA for a doc this year.
Echo In The Canyon debuted at last year’s final Los Angeles Film Festival where Greenwich first viewed the feature. The film celebrates the explosion of popular music that came out of La’s Laurel Canyon in the mid-’60s as folk went electric and The Byrds, The Beach Boys,...
The Greenwich Entertainment release grossed a three-day estimate of $103,716 from its showings at the ArcLight Hollywood and The Landmark in West L.A., giving the title a $51,858 PTA. The year’s top debut average remains with Avengers: Endgame at $76,601 in over forty-six hundred theaters. It is also the best PTA for a doc this year.
Echo In The Canyon debuted at last year’s final Los Angeles Film Festival where Greenwich first viewed the feature. The film celebrates the explosion of popular music that came out of La’s Laurel Canyon in the mid-’60s as folk went electric and The Byrds, The Beach Boys,...
- 5/26/2019
- by Brian Brooks
- Deadline Film + TV
Tom Fleischman working on Aviva Kempner's captivating Moe Berg documentary The Spy Behind Home Plate Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
After I watched the rough cut of Aviva Kempner's The Spy Behind Home Plate, the director invited me to meet her at Soundtracks F/T, where re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman, Oscar-winner for Martin Scorsese's Hugo (with John Midgley) and nominee for The Aviator, Gangs of New York, Jonathan Demme's The Silence Of The Lambs, and Warren Beatty's Reds, was working on her documentary on the elusive Moe Berg. Ira Spiegel, Aviva's sound editor, was also on hand inside Stage B, where Tom was working on the film.
Aviva Kempner on William Donovan's Oss recruitments, including John Ford: "Really bright people, Ivy League, Moe fit in that. A lot of women, Julia Child, Marlene Dietrich - who is my heroine of heroines." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
In 1934, Moe...
After I watched the rough cut of Aviva Kempner's The Spy Behind Home Plate, the director invited me to meet her at Soundtracks F/T, where re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman, Oscar-winner for Martin Scorsese's Hugo (with John Midgley) and nominee for The Aviator, Gangs of New York, Jonathan Demme's The Silence Of The Lambs, and Warren Beatty's Reds, was working on her documentary on the elusive Moe Berg. Ira Spiegel, Aviva's sound editor, was also on hand inside Stage B, where Tom was working on the film.
Aviva Kempner on William Donovan's Oss recruitments, including John Ford: "Really bright people, Ivy League, Moe fit in that. A lot of women, Julia Child, Marlene Dietrich - who is my heroine of heroines." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
In 1934, Moe...
- 5/21/2019
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
"He loved being a mystery." The Ciesla Foundation has debuted an official trailer for an indie documentary titled The Spy Behind Home Plate, which is opening in limited theaters starting this May and expanding to more theaters nationwide throughout June + July. The biopic doc tells the story of Moe Berg, a Jewish baseball player from New York City turned WWII spy. Berg's life story was also turned into a feature film recently, with Paul Rudd playing him in The Catcher Was a Spy. The Spy Behind Home Plate reveals the life of this unknown Jewish hero through rare historical footage and photographs as well as interviews with an All-Star roster of celebrities and other individuals from the worlds of sports, spycraft, and history. Berg may have had only a .243 batting average during his 15-year major league career, but it was the stats he collected for the Oss that made him...
- 3/29/2019
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
The trailer has been released for “The Spy Behind Home Plate,” Aviva Kempner’s documentary about ballplayer-turned-spy Moe Berg. Paul Rudd starred as Berg in last year’s “The Catcher Was a Spy,” meaning that World War II and/or baseball obsessives can plan their own fact-and-fiction double header. Watch the trailer below.
Here’s the synopsis: “In this first ever feature-length documentary about the enigmatic Berg, Kempner again focuses her camera on a little-known Jewish hero. From the streets of Newark to five major league teams during baseball’s Golden Age to his secret life spying for the Oss during WWII…Berg’s improbable story is told with rare historical footage and revealing interviews with family and an All-Star roster from the worlds of history, sports and spy craft.”
That the trailer is being unveiled on Major League Baseball’s Opening Day is no coincidence, as Berg was a...
Here’s the synopsis: “In this first ever feature-length documentary about the enigmatic Berg, Kempner again focuses her camera on a little-known Jewish hero. From the streets of Newark to five major league teams during baseball’s Golden Age to his secret life spying for the Oss during WWII…Berg’s improbable story is told with rare historical footage and revealing interviews with family and an All-Star roster from the worlds of history, sports and spy craft.”
That the trailer is being unveiled on Major League Baseball’s Opening Day is no coincidence, as Berg was a...
- 3/29/2019
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
With the 2019 Major League Baseball season officially underway today, check out the trailer for “The Spy Behind Home Plate,” the first feature-length documentary about Moe Berg, the enigmatic and brilliant baseball player who turned spy for the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (Oss) during World War II.
“The Spy Behind Home Plate” is set for a gradual release beginning on May 24, playing film festivals and theaters across the U.S. and internationally.
Berg not only played for the last Washington Senators team to play in a World Series (1933), but he also trained with the Oss not far from the D.C. team’s home, Griffith Stadium. “The Spy Behind Home Plate” features rare historical footage as well as revealing interviews with an all-star roster of celebrities and other individuals from the worlds of sports, spycraft and history.
Also Read: New York Yankees Pitcher Cc Sabathia Joins ESPN as Contributor
“Moe...
“The Spy Behind Home Plate” is set for a gradual release beginning on May 24, playing film festivals and theaters across the U.S. and internationally.
Berg not only played for the last Washington Senators team to play in a World Series (1933), but he also trained with the Oss not far from the D.C. team’s home, Griffith Stadium. “The Spy Behind Home Plate” features rare historical footage as well as revealing interviews with an all-star roster of celebrities and other individuals from the worlds of sports, spycraft and history.
Also Read: New York Yankees Pitcher Cc Sabathia Joins ESPN as Contributor
“Moe...
- 3/28/2019
- by Umberto Gonzalez
- The Wrap
In today’s film news roundup, the “Men In Black” spinoff rounds out its cast, “93Queen” gets distribution and a Moe Berg documentary is in the works.
Castings
Les Twins, Kumail Nanjiani, and Rafe Spall have join the ensemble cast alongside Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, and Liam Neeson of Sony Pictures’ “Men in Black” spinoff.
The movie has started shooting in London. F. Gary Gray is directing the movie from a screenplay by Art Marcum and Matt Holloway. Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald are producing; Steven Spielberg is executive producing, David Beaubaire is overseeing for Sony.
The film is slated for release on June 14, 2019. Les Twins are Laurent Nicolas Bourgeois and Larry Nicolas Bourgeois, a self-taught duo who became well known when their street dancing videos where uploaded to YouTube. They went on to become the star dancers on the Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour by Cirque du Soleil.
Castings
Les Twins, Kumail Nanjiani, and Rafe Spall have join the ensemble cast alongside Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, and Liam Neeson of Sony Pictures’ “Men in Black” spinoff.
The movie has started shooting in London. F. Gary Gray is directing the movie from a screenplay by Art Marcum and Matt Holloway. Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald are producing; Steven Spielberg is executive producing, David Beaubaire is overseeing for Sony.
The film is slated for release on June 14, 2019. Les Twins are Laurent Nicolas Bourgeois and Larry Nicolas Bourgeois, a self-taught duo who became well known when their street dancing videos where uploaded to YouTube. They went on to become the star dancers on the Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour by Cirque du Soleil.
- 6/30/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Sienna Miller as Estella Huni, and Paul Rudd as Moe Berg, in Ben Lewin’s The Catcher Was A Spy. Courtesy of IFC Films. An IFC Films Release.
The Catcher Was A Spy is a strange slice of history, about a real-life Jewish Major League baseball catcher with a degree from Princeton and a knack for languages who turned spy during World War II. As catcher Moe Berg, Paul Rudd heads an impressive cast in a historical film with polished good looks and a score by Howard Shore. The film assembled all the right elements for a prestige biopic but does not quite score a hit.
The Catcher Was A Spy is available on-demand from IFC starting Friday, June 22, and in theaters in New York and Los Angeles.
Part biopic and part WWII spy thriller, The Catcher Was A Spy focuses on a particular part of Moe Berg’s life.
The Catcher Was A Spy is a strange slice of history, about a real-life Jewish Major League baseball catcher with a degree from Princeton and a knack for languages who turned spy during World War II. As catcher Moe Berg, Paul Rudd heads an impressive cast in a historical film with polished good looks and a score by Howard Shore. The film assembled all the right elements for a prestige biopic but does not quite score a hit.
The Catcher Was A Spy is available on-demand from IFC starting Friday, June 22, and in theaters in New York and Los Angeles.
Part biopic and part WWII spy thriller, The Catcher Was A Spy focuses on a particular part of Moe Berg’s life.
- 6/22/2018
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
On paper, this should have been a home run. Adapted from Nicholas Dawidoff’s historical biography of the same name, “The Catcher Was a Spy” is a stiff and serene biopic about a man named Moe Berg, an enigmatic Jew who capped off his middling career with the Boston Red Sox by traveling to Nazi Germany under secret government orders to determine if Hitler was building an atomic bomb, and to assassinate the Nobel Prize-winning scientist in charge of the project if so.
It’s a hell of a war story, combining the foreign intrigue of “The Third Man” with the high-wire suspense of “Where Eagles Dare” (with a touch of homoerotic tension drizzled on top for good measure). Throw in an all-star cast that surrounds Paul Rudd’s lead performance with pinch-hitters like (take a deep breath) Paul Giamatti, Mark Strong, Tom Wilkinson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce,...
It’s a hell of a war story, combining the foreign intrigue of “The Third Man” with the high-wire suspense of “Where Eagles Dare” (with a touch of homoerotic tension drizzled on top for good measure). Throw in an all-star cast that surrounds Paul Rudd’s lead performance with pinch-hitters like (take a deep breath) Paul Giamatti, Mark Strong, Tom Wilkinson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce,...
- 6/22/2018
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
It’s easy to imagine scrappy filmmakers rummaging through the anecdotes of history, searching for amazing-but-true stories to transform into hit movies (or at least some Oscar bait). But it’s not enough merely to find a fascinating nugget of trivia; you also have to turn it into a good film. And therein lies the tragedy of “The Catcher Was a Spy.”
“Catcher” stars Paul Rudd as real-life pro baseball player Moe Berg, whose sporting career was perhaps overshadowed by his bizarre overqualifications: He graduated Princeton, Magna Cum Laude, and was fluent in multiple languages. He made regular guest appearances on highfalutin trivia shows. And to top it all off, he was a spy for the U.S. government during World War II.
It’s the sort of character description that would be wildly implausible if it wasn’t, you know, totally true. Berg’s life is a natural for the movies,...
“Catcher” stars Paul Rudd as real-life pro baseball player Moe Berg, whose sporting career was perhaps overshadowed by his bizarre overqualifications: He graduated Princeton, Magna Cum Laude, and was fluent in multiple languages. He made regular guest appearances on highfalutin trivia shows. And to top it all off, he was a spy for the U.S. government during World War II.
It’s the sort of character description that would be wildly implausible if it wasn’t, you know, totally true. Berg’s life is a natural for the movies,...
- 6/21/2018
- by William Bibbiani
- The Wrap
In a way, The Catcher Was A Spy is the perfect star vehicle for Paul Rudd, who built his career on playing (and parodying) the kind of smarmy guy who can convince anyone of anything with a flash of his perfect teeth. That’s also one of the key assets pro baseball player-turned-secret agent Moe Berg (Rudd) brought to…
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- 6/21/2018
- by Katie Rife on Film, shared by Katie Rife to The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
Based on the biographical book of the same name, The Catcher Was A Spy tells the story of Major League Baseball veteran Moe Berg who joined the Office Of Strategic Services as a spy in the World War II. At the premiere of the film, we spoke with director Ben Lewin about his interest in the project and his love of…
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- 6/21/2018
- by Baraka Kaseko and Marah Eakin on Film, shared by Baraka Kaseko to The A.V. Club
- avclub.com
After clearing approximately $420M abroad to date, including a whopping estimated $155M in China, Universal/Legendary’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom finally docks in the U.S. and Canada where estimates are ranging from $135M up to potentially $150M at 4,450 theaters.
While some box office reporters out there will try to make a Cro-magnon-like assessment and say that Fallen Kingdom pales in its domestic opening when compared to the first 2015 reboot’s once-upon-a-time $208.8M record debut, the fact of the matter is that this sequel, which purportedly costs $170M before P&A (we’re hearing it’s closer to $187M net), is already in good shape financially having played two weekends abroad, and headed to $600M worldwide by Sunday after launches in 17 territories including Australia, Mexico and Brazil. The World Cup per...
While some box office reporters out there will try to make a Cro-magnon-like assessment and say that Fallen Kingdom pales in its domestic opening when compared to the first 2015 reboot’s once-upon-a-time $208.8M record debut, the fact of the matter is that this sequel, which purportedly costs $170M before P&A (we’re hearing it’s closer to $187M net), is already in good shape financially having played two weekends abroad, and headed to $600M worldwide by Sunday after launches in 17 territories including Australia, Mexico and Brazil. The World Cup per...
- 6/19/2018
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Patrons of the former Lincoln Plaza Cinemas have banded together to create a film society, New Plaza Cinema. It will present a curated program of independent films at the 250-seat Carole Zabar Center for Film, located at the Marlene Meyerson Jcc Manhattan, about 14 blocks northwest of where Lincoln Plaza Cinemas held court from 1981 until January 28 of their year.
Although initially planned as a summer program, “We’re working to find a more-permanent venue which will offer first-run and independent films,” said Norma Levy, founder of the Coalition for the New Plaza Cinema; she is now fundraising to help it procure a permanent address. Lincoln Plaza Cinemas co-owner Dan Talbot died less than a month before his venue shuttered, and Levy passed out flyers advertising the New Plaza Cinema at his December 31 memorial service.
Talbot’s co-founder and wife of 68 years, Toby, believes her late husband “would have been heartened — as...
Although initially planned as a summer program, “We’re working to find a more-permanent venue which will offer first-run and independent films,” said Norma Levy, founder of the Coalition for the New Plaza Cinema; she is now fundraising to help it procure a permanent address. Lincoln Plaza Cinemas co-owner Dan Talbot died less than a month before his venue shuttered, and Levy passed out flyers advertising the New Plaza Cinema at his December 31 memorial service.
Talbot’s co-founder and wife of 68 years, Toby, believes her late husband “would have been heartened — as...
- 6/12/2018
- by Jenna Marotta
- Indiewire
The new dramatic thriller "The Catcher Was a Spy" is directed by Ben Lewin, starring Paul Rudd ("Ant-Man and The Wasp"), Connie Nielsen ("Wonder Woman") and Mark Strong ("Kick-Ass"), opening July 19, 2018:
"...major league baseball player 'Moe Berg' lives a double life...
"...working for the 'Office of Strategic Services'..."
Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "The Catcher Was A Spy"...
"...major league baseball player 'Moe Berg' lives a double life...
"...working for the 'Office of Strategic Services'..."
Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "The Catcher Was A Spy"...
- 5/11/2018
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
I've got a fantastic trailer for Paul Rudd's new film The Catcher Was a Spy. This is a very different film for Rudd to be a part of and he did a fantastic job in it. The film is a gripping, stranger-than-fiction espionage thriller that tells the fascinating true story of Moe Berg, a professional baseball player who became a World War II spy.
A Jewish, Princeton-educated, multilingual catcher for the Boston Red Sox with a closely-guarded private life, the enigmatic Berg (Paul Rudd) was already a man of mystery when, in 1944, the Us government’s wartime intelligence agency enlisted his services. His mission: go behind enemy lines in Europe to assassinate the Nazi’s chief nuclear scientist before the Germans develop an atomic bomb. Trading in his catcher’s mitt for a trench coat, Berg must rely on his formidable, steel-trap intellect in a high-stakes game of...
A Jewish, Princeton-educated, multilingual catcher for the Boston Red Sox with a closely-guarded private life, the enigmatic Berg (Paul Rudd) was already a man of mystery when, in 1944, the Us government’s wartime intelligence agency enlisted his services. His mission: go behind enemy lines in Europe to assassinate the Nazi’s chief nuclear scientist before the Germans develop an atomic bomb. Trading in his catcher’s mitt for a trench coat, Berg must rely on his formidable, steel-trap intellect in a high-stakes game of...
- 5/3/2018
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Before he gets small later this summer, Paul Rudd is doing some good ol’ fashioned drama with The Catcher Was a Spy. Premiering at Sundance earlier this year, the WWII-set feature comes from Ben Lewin (The Sessions) and also stars Mark Strong, Jeff Daniels, Paul Giamatti, Sienna Miller, and Guy Pearce. The true story follows Rudd as Moe Berg, a professional baseball player who became a World War II spy. Ahead of a release next month from IFC Films, the first trailer has now arrived.
“From the start, there’s plenty to like about The Catcher Was a Spy, directed by Ben Lewin and starring Paul Rudd,” Dan Mecca said in his review. “Based on the fascinating life of pro baseball player Moe Berg and adapted from Nicholas Dawidoff’s book of the same name, this is the type of film that feels slightly out of place at Sundance. There...
“From the start, there’s plenty to like about The Catcher Was a Spy, directed by Ben Lewin and starring Paul Rudd,” Dan Mecca said in his review. “Based on the fascinating life of pro baseball player Moe Berg and adapted from Nicholas Dawidoff’s book of the same name, this is the type of film that feels slightly out of place at Sundance. There...
- 5/3/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
A few weeks before the debut of his Marvel superhero film Ant-Man and the Wasp, Paul Rudd goes indie to portray Boston Red Sox catcher turned U.S. spy Moe Berg in IFC’s The Catcher Was a Spy.
The newly released trailer chronicles the true story of how the U.S. government recruited Berg, who graduated from Princeton and Columbia, for his intimate knowledge of Eastern European language and history during World War II.
Outside of his Mlb career, Berg spoke seven languages and had done successful circuits on numerous trivia quiz shows.
As an intelligence operative, he interviewed physicists about the...
The newly released trailer chronicles the true story of how the U.S. government recruited Berg, who graduated from Princeton and Columbia, for his intimate knowledge of Eastern European language and history during World War II.
Outside of his Mlb career, Berg spoke seven languages and had done successful circuits on numerous trivia quiz shows.
As an intelligence operative, he interviewed physicists about the...
- 5/2/2018
- by Michael Waters
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paul Rudd tries his hand at drama in The Catcher Was a Spy trailer. Based on a true story, the film finds Rudd playing Moe Berg, a professional baseball player who became a World War II spy. The week of Paul Rudd movie trailers continues! On the heels of the recent Ant-Man and the Wasp trailer, we now […]
The post ‘The Catcher Was a Spy’ Trailer: Paul Rudd Gets Dramatic appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘The Catcher Was a Spy’ Trailer: Paul Rudd Gets Dramatic appeared first on /Film.
- 5/2/2018
- by Chris Evangelista
- Slash Film
You’ve heard of “The Catcher in the Rye,” but what about “The Catcher Was a Spy?” Paul Rudd plays the title character in Ben Lewin’s film, which premiered at Sundance earlier this year and is based on the true story of a ballplayer-turned-spy who helped the United States develop an atomic bomb before Nazi Germany. Avail yourself of the trailer below.
Moe Berg (Rudd) has already played in the Major League for 15 seasons when he answers the call of duty, which here comes in the form of putting his unique capabilities — in addition to his athletic acumen, Berg is an Ivy League graduate and attorney — toward the momentous (and top secret) task of defeating Hitler.
Jeff Daniels, Mark Strong, Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce, Paul Giamatti, and Hiroyuki Sanada co-star in the film, which was written by Robert Rodat (“Saving Private Ryan”). IFC Films will release “The Catcher Was a Spy...
Moe Berg (Rudd) has already played in the Major League for 15 seasons when he answers the call of duty, which here comes in the form of putting his unique capabilities — in addition to his athletic acumen, Berg is an Ivy League graduate and attorney — toward the momentous (and top secret) task of defeating Hitler.
Jeff Daniels, Mark Strong, Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce, Paul Giamatti, and Hiroyuki Sanada co-star in the film, which was written by Robert Rodat (“Saving Private Ryan”). IFC Films will release “The Catcher Was a Spy...
- 5/2/2018
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
A few weeks before the debut of his Marvel superhero film <em>Ant-Man and the Wasp</em>, Paul Rudd goes indie to portray Boston Red Sox catcher turned U.S. spy Moe Berg in IFC’s <em>The Catcher Was a Spy</em>.
The newly released trailer chronicles the true story of how the U.S. government recruited Berg, who graduated from Princeton and Columbia, for his intimate knowledge of Eastern European language and history during World War II.
Outside of his Mlb career, Berg spoke seven languages and had done successful circuits on numerous trivia quiz shows.
As an intelligence operative, he interviewed physicists about ...
The newly released trailer chronicles the true story of how the U.S. government recruited Berg, who graduated from Princeton and Columbia, for his intimate knowledge of Eastern European language and history during World War II.
Outside of his Mlb career, Berg spoke seven languages and had done successful circuits on numerous trivia quiz shows.
As an intelligence operative, he interviewed physicists about ...
Distribute sets June 22 release for Sundance premiere.
IFC Films has acquired Us rights to Second World War drama The Catcher Was A Spy starring Paul Rudd, Sienna Miller, Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce, and Paul Giamatti.
Ben Lewin directed from a screenplay by Robert Rodat based upon Nicholas Dawidoff’s 1994 non-fiction book The Catcher Was a Spy: The Mysterious Life Of Moe Berg.
PalmStar Media’s Kevin Frakes, Animus Films’ Jim Young, Serena Films’ Tatiana Kelly and Windy Hill Pictures’ Buddy Patrick produced the film, which debuted in Sundance at the start of the year. IFC Films has set a theatrical...
IFC Films has acquired Us rights to Second World War drama The Catcher Was A Spy starring Paul Rudd, Sienna Miller, Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce, and Paul Giamatti.
Ben Lewin directed from a screenplay by Robert Rodat based upon Nicholas Dawidoff’s 1994 non-fiction book The Catcher Was a Spy: The Mysterious Life Of Moe Berg.
PalmStar Media’s Kevin Frakes, Animus Films’ Jim Young, Serena Films’ Tatiana Kelly and Windy Hill Pictures’ Buddy Patrick produced the film, which debuted in Sundance at the start of the year. IFC Films has set a theatrical...
- 5/1/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
IFC Films has acquired the U.S. rights to “The Catcher Was a Spy,” starring Paul Rudd and Sienna Miller, the distribution company announced Tuesday.
Directed by Ben Lewin and written by Robert Rodat, the film is based upon the 1995 non-fiction bestseller “The Catcher Was a Spy: The Mysterious Life of Moe Berg” by Nicholas Dawidoff.
The World War II drama also stars Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce and Paul Giamatti and was produced by PalmStar Media’s Kevin Frakes, Animus Films’ Jim Young, Serena Films’ Tatiana Kelly and Windy Hill Pictures’ Buddy Patrick.
“The Catcher Was a Spy” is based on the true story of Major League Baseball player Moe Berg, who joined the U.S. in its wartime efforts to defeat the Nazis. But once he ascertains how close the Nazis are to building an atomic bomb, he has to make the life-or-death decision that will impact the rest of humanity.
Directed by Ben Lewin and written by Robert Rodat, the film is based upon the 1995 non-fiction bestseller “The Catcher Was a Spy: The Mysterious Life of Moe Berg” by Nicholas Dawidoff.
The World War II drama also stars Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce and Paul Giamatti and was produced by PalmStar Media’s Kevin Frakes, Animus Films’ Jim Young, Serena Films’ Tatiana Kelly and Windy Hill Pictures’ Buddy Patrick.
“The Catcher Was a Spy” is based on the true story of Major League Baseball player Moe Berg, who joined the U.S. in its wartime efforts to defeat the Nazis. But once he ascertains how close the Nazis are to building an atomic bomb, he has to make the life-or-death decision that will impact the rest of humanity.
- 5/1/2018
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Wrap
IFC acquired U.S. rights to The Catcher Was a Spy, with Paul Rudd starring as Moe Berg. He was a pro ballplayer who was a spy against the Nazis.
Pic premiered at Sundance. Ben Lewin directed the film, which also stars Sienna Miller, Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce and Paul Giamatti. Robert Rodate wrote the script based on the Nicholas Dawidoff book. Kevin Frakes, Jim Young, Tatiana Kelly and Buddy Patrick produced.
Pic will be released June 22, 2018.
Pic premiered at Sundance. Ben Lewin directed the film, which also stars Sienna Miller, Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce and Paul Giamatti. Robert Rodate wrote the script based on the Nicholas Dawidoff book. Kevin Frakes, Jim Young, Tatiana Kelly and Buddy Patrick produced.
Pic will be released June 22, 2018.
- 5/1/2018
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
The Cather was a Spy is a serious departure from the comedies you normally see Paul Rudd in and a steep dive into drama-laden territory. He plays Moe Berg, the catcher for the Boston Red Sox during the WWII era. In this movie he’s recruited by the Us government to take out a German scientist played by Mark Strong as he’s suspected of creating atomic weapons for the Nazis. This man wasn’t just any ballplayer being plucked off the field either, he was a regular contestant on a quiz show, spoke nine languages, and was a Jewish Ivy League graduate.
Paul Rudd Tackles Drama in “The Catcher was a Spy”...
Paul Rudd Tackles Drama in “The Catcher was a Spy”...
- 2/3/2018
- by Wake
- TVovermind.com
In 1944, the U.S. government asked a multilingual Jewish baseball player to travel through enemy lines in Italy, make his way to Zurich and assassinate the head of Germany's atomic-bomb program. This isn't a man-on-a-mission sequel to Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds — it's a true story. (Sorta. Important asterisks go here.) Ben Lewin's The Catcher Was a Spy casts Paul Rudd as that athlete, Moe Berg, and surrounds him with a surprisingly top-shelf supporting cast. Bad buzz out of its Sundance premiere is puzzling, as this is a very enjoyable middle-of-the-road adventure, especially for moviegoers willing to see just about anything...
- 2/1/2018
- by John DeFore
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paul Rudd takes on one of the most dramatic roles in his career in his upcoming film The Catcher Was a Spy. I’m a big fan of Paul Rudd and he always tends to make interesting and good films with humor. This movie is definitely a departure from what we are used to seeing from Rudd, but he does a great job in it.
The movie is set during World War II and Rudd plays a major league baseball player named Moe Berg, who was a catcher for the Red Sox. It's based on the true story of how he was recruited by the government to assassinate a German scientist named Werner Heisenberg (Mark Strong) who the government believes is developing an atomic weapon for Nazi Germany and they want to stop him.
Before Moe Berg was recruited by the Office of Security Services (the precursor to the CIA), he was a catcher,...
The movie is set during World War II and Rudd plays a major league baseball player named Moe Berg, who was a catcher for the Red Sox. It's based on the true story of how he was recruited by the government to assassinate a German scientist named Werner Heisenberg (Mark Strong) who the government believes is developing an atomic weapon for Nazi Germany and they want to stop him.
Before Moe Berg was recruited by the Office of Security Services (the precursor to the CIA), he was a catcher,...
- 1/30/2018
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Mark Yoshikawa worked as an assistant editor for a decade before he began editing films and TV series full time. This decade he’s edited three films by Terrence Malick, the first two installments of the Hunger Games franchise and three episodes of HBO’s Westworld. His latest film, The Catcher Was a Spy, tells the real-life story of Moe Berg, a professional baseball player who became a spy for a U.S. intelligence agency during World War II. The film stars Paul Rudd, in a rare dramatic, along with cast of heavy hitters: Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce and Paul Giamatti. Below, Yoshikawa speaks with Filmmaker about […]...
- 1/28/2018
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Rudd plays a real-life Boston Red Sox catcher-turned-second world war secret agent in a serviceable adaptation of Nicholas Dawidoff’s bestselling biography
Paul Rudd is fantastic as the enigmatic Moe Berg, a real life footnote from history in the serviceable thriller The Catcher Was A Spy. This is the type of film that causes you to run to Wikipedia the moment it ends to learn just how much of it is true. As is always the case, this is a bad idea. Nevertheless, this movie, which is all plot and very little drama, remains engaging because the story is so neat.
But considering this adaptation of Nicholas Dawidoff’s bestselling book took almost 14 years to get made, and with who knows how many different directors, it is a reminder that every weird true tale doesn’t always lend itself to a film.
Continue reading...
Paul Rudd is fantastic as the enigmatic Moe Berg, a real life footnote from history in the serviceable thriller The Catcher Was A Spy. This is the type of film that causes you to run to Wikipedia the moment it ends to learn just how much of it is true. As is always the case, this is a bad idea. Nevertheless, this movie, which is all plot and very little drama, remains engaging because the story is so neat.
But considering this adaptation of Nicholas Dawidoff’s bestselling book took almost 14 years to get made, and with who knows how many different directors, it is a reminder that every weird true tale doesn’t always lend itself to a film.
Continue reading...
- 1/25/2018
- by Jordan Hoffman
- The Guardian - Film News
In 2005, Filmmaker hailed Andrij Parekh as one of its 25 New Faces of Independent Film. Since then, the New York-based Dp has gone on to shoot a number of major films and series: Blue Valentine, The Zookeeper’s Wife and HBO’s Show Me a Hero, to name a few. Parekh served as the Dp on The Catcher Was a Spy, a period drama starring Paul Rudd as a professional baseball player (Moe Berg) who was tapped to become a spy during World War II. Ahead of the film’s premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, Parekh spoke with Filmmaker about the film’s […]...
- 1/25/2018
- by Filmmaker Staff
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Plot: The story of Moe Berg (Paul Rudd), a professional baseball player-turned O.S.S agent during World War II. Review: The Catcher Was A Spy comes to Sundance with an appropriate amount of behind-the-scenes intrigue given the premise. Originally tipped as a Tiff 2017 entry, the premiere was canceled a few weeks before the festival when the final cut wasn’t ready in time. This actually... Read More...
- 1/22/2018
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
IFC Films has acquired the U.S. rights to The Catcher Was a Spy, starring Paul Rudd.
In the historical drama, Rudd portrays Moe Berg, a major league catcher who teams up with the Office of Security Services (the precursor to the CIA) during World War II. The novice spy — is a Jewish Ivy League graduate who speaks nine languages — is quickly trained and sent into the field to stop German scientist Werner Heisenberg before he can build an atomic bomb for the Nazis.
Ben Lewin (The Sessions) directed from Robert Rodat's adaptation of Nicholas Dawidoff's 1994 biography. Sienna Miller, Jeff...
In the historical drama, Rudd portrays Moe Berg, a major league catcher who teams up with the Office of Security Services (the precursor to the CIA) during World War II. The novice spy — is a Jewish Ivy League graduate who speaks nine languages — is quickly trained and sent into the field to stop German scientist Werner Heisenberg before he can build an atomic bomb for the Nazis.
Ben Lewin (The Sessions) directed from Robert Rodat's adaptation of Nicholas Dawidoff's 1994 biography. Sienna Miller, Jeff...
- 1/19/2018
- by Ashley Lee,Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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