Screening Gotham: Critics! Critics! Critics!

Some of today's movie news of note from around New York:

--You know you've thwacked a nerve when The Wall Street Journal's gentleman critic Joe Morgenstern lunges a gauntlet in your general direction. This means you, Peter Bart. Meanwhile, Lou Lumenick points us to CHUD, where The Reeler apparently ranks high yet scores low in the crisis-parsing circle jerk.

--Among critics actually writing about movies, Keith Uhlich calls his shot early in the Berlin Alexanderplatz roundelay sure to ensue as MoMA prepares to unleash the 15-hour film's restoration next week. And at ScreenGrab, Bryan Whitefield ruminates about the New Directors/New Film festival that was.

--The Cinetrix has the latest, greatest hits from ex-mayor/current reviewer extraordinaire Ed Koch, including classic rejoinders for everything from Avenue Montaigne ("If you understand French, this film will undoubtedly have a greater impact on you") to A.O. Scott (Re Reign Over Me: "Scott is wrong on this one"). I can't wait to read what he has to say about Peter Bart.

--Finally, the Reporter's restless Gregg Goldstein brings two scoops from the local business front: Warner Independent is getting cheap with the new shingle Volume One -- up to 30 films in five years, with budgets around $5 million -- and Paradox Entertainment is getting cheap with it's own newbie label, Grey Matter. First production: the horror flick Pigman Road, which features, according to Goldstein, "a disturbing antagonist the company hopes to use in sequels." Bring on the B's.

Posted at April 3, 2007 12:11 PM