Matt Singer is the editor and critic of the website ScreenCrush.com. For five years, he was the on-air host of IFC News on the Independent Film Channel, hosting coverage of film festivals and red carpets around the world. A member of the New York Film Critics Circle, he’s been a frequent contributor to the television shows CBS This Morning Saturday and Ebert Presents At the Movies, and his writing has also appeared in print and online at The Village Voice, The Dissolve, and Indiewire. His first book, Marvel’s Spider-Man: From Amazing to Spectacular, is on sale now.
Matt Singer
A New Olaf Song Helps Kids Cope With Social Distancing
It’s called “I Am With You.”
Jerry Maren, ‘Wizard of Oz’s Last Living Munchkin, Dies at 98
Maren played one of the members of the Lollipop Guild in the Hollywood classic.
Federal Judge Orders ‘Making a Murderer’ Subject Released From Prison
Netflix has already announced a second season of Making a Murderer, their surprise hit true-crime series that captured the nation’s imagination last winter. The streaming service confirmed last month that filmmakers Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos were already at work on a second batch of episodes “centering on new developments in the [Steven] Avery and [Brendan] Dassey cases. If that’s true, their show just got a huge real-life plot twist.
‘Inside Out’ Review: A New Pixar Masterpiece
It’s been at least five years since the last great Pixar film (or more, depending on your feelings about Toy Story 3). In the interim, they produced a series of sequels — some quite entertaining, but few as transcendently beautiful as the original concepts that turned the studio into the most dependable brand in all of Hollywood. Their latest effort, Inside Out, isn’t just a return to form; it surpasses almost all of their previous classics. It is, from start to finish, one of the best films Pixar has ever made.
Disney Officially Announces ‘Frozen 2’; Original Creative Team Set to Return
The news out of Disney’s shareholder meeting keeps on coming. This one isn’t much of a surprise: Disney is making Frozen 2. In a related story, the sky is blue and water is wet (until a princess with freezing powers comes along and turns it into ice).
Bestflix: The Best New Netflix Instant Titles to Watch in March 2015
ScreenCrush is proud to present Bestflix, our new monthly web series and a companion to our regular column of Netflix recommendations.
Leonard Nimoy, Beloved Mr. Spock From ‘Star Trek,’ Passes Away at 83
We have very sad news to report from The New York Times: Leonard Nimoy, Star Trek’s Mr. Spock for almost 50 years, has died. Nimoy’s wife, Susan Bay Nimoy, told the Times the cause of death was “end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.” The beloved actor and director was 83 years old.
Watch the ‘Cinderella’ Trailer Before it Turns Back Into a Pumpkin
Disney’s big kick right now is revisionist versions of classic fairy tales. ‘Sleeping Beauty’ became ‘Maleficent,’ a sympathetic look at the supposedly “evil” witch. Last Christmas’ ‘Into the Woods’ followed numerous fairy tales to find the unhappy endings after their “happily ever after.” Even ‘Frozen’ reconfigured numerous classic fairy tale tropes (the handsome price was secretly [SPOILER ALERT] the bad guy, and the film’s true love story was actually between a pair of sisters). What’s most surprising about Disney’s new live-action ‘Cinderella’ is how unsurprising it looks; it seems totally unlike those films in its old-school vibe.
There’s Still a Role in the New ‘Ghostbusters’ For Bill Murray
So Sony and director Paul Feig have found their new Ghostbusters: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, and Kate McKinnon. This whole idea of an all-female ‘Ghostbusters’ reboot came together after the passing of original series star and co-writer Harold Ramis, when director Ivan Reitman relinquished the franchise’s director’s chair and everyone involved finally gave up on trying to convince stubborn (and probably very wise) Bill Murray to make a second sequel to the original film.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Adds ‘The Running Man’ to His List of Possible Sequels
“I’ll be back,” is no longer just Arnold Schwarzenegger’s most famous movie quote and catchphase. It’s now his main business model. While doing a Q&A in England last weekend, Schwarzenegger announced there was another potential sequel in his future: ‘The Running Man,’ his 1987 sci-fi thriller based on a novel by Stephen King about a dark future where criminals compete for their lives on reality television (that dark future, apparently, was the year 2014).
Disney Announces Release Dates For Two More Animated Movies
Disney's upcoming roster of animated pictures already includes projects like Pixar's long-awaited 'The Good Dinosaur,' 'Inside Out,' and 'Finding Dory.' Now the company has officially dated two more projects from its Walt Disney Animation Studios.
’42’ Review
My grandmother, Rhoda Singer, died earlier this year. She lived much of her life in Brooklyn and was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan. Her favorite player was Pee Wee Reese, the Dodgers' scrappy white shortstop who famously silenced a racist Cincinnati crowd by putting his arm around his black teammate Jackie Robinson during pre-game warmups.
I thought about my grandmother a lot while watching '42,' the new