Mark Olsen writes about all kinds of movies for the Los Angeles Times as both a feature writer and reviewer. He creates a regular series on independent, documentary and foreign language films under the banner of Indie Focus, also curating and hosting the Indie Focus Screening Series. His work has also appeared in Film Comment, the New York Times, LA Weekly, Sight & Sound and other publications. He is from Kansas.
Latest From This Author
Also this week: A Philip Seymour Hoffman series, Joe Wright’s ‘Pride & Prejudice’ at 20, ‘Pink Floyd at Pompeii’ and the classic conversation piece ‘My Dinner With Andre.’
Ted Kotcheff, whose long career included directing ‘First Blood,’ ‘Weekend at Bernie’s,’ ‘Wake in Fright’ and ‘North Dallas Forty’ and executive producing ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,’ has died.
Also this week: Robert Altman’s “Short Cuts,” Kyle MacLachlan appearing with “Dune” and “The Flintstones” and a Rosanna Arquette double-bill of “After Hours” and “Desperately Seeking Susan.”
Also this week: UCLA’s ‘Beyond Barbie,’ Kenneth Turan and Justin Chang talk Jean Harlow’s ‘Bombshell,’ ‘Play It as It Lays’ in 4K and ‘Secret Mall Apartment.’
For the second edition of the local festival, two independent films from 1981, Jessie Maple’s “Will” and Robina Rose’s “Nightshift,” receive belated attention.
Also this week: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur on Indian cinema, Paul Schrader’s ‘Blue Collar’ and ‘American Gigolo’ and reconsidering Maria Schneider in ‘Being Maria.’
Colorado’s Boulder was selected over two other finalist cities, Cincinnati and Salt Lake City. The relocation will steer the festival toward a new era.
Also this week: “Noir City: Hollywood,” Bong Joon Ho and John Carpenter talk “The Thing,” LAFCA presents two from Brad Bird, “Kundun” in 35mm and “The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover.”
The mayor of Miami Beach withdrew a resolution to terminate the lease and funding from a local theater after it showed the Oscar-winning documentary about the West Bank.