Billy Wilder Speaks

Jun 22, 2006

1h 12m

★ 7.0

The wit and wisdom of one of Hollywood's most acclaimed filmmakers

Overview

In 1988, German filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff sat down with legendary director Billy Wilder (1906-2002) at his office in Beverly Hills, California, and turned on his camera for a series of filmed interviews. (A recut of the 1992 TV miniseries Billy, How Did You Do It?)

Genres

Documentary

TV Movie

Production Companies

Neue Bioskop Film

Billy Wilder Speaks Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Self - Filmmaker

Billy Wilder

Self - Filmmaker / Interviewer

Volker Schlöndorff

Self - Writer / Interviewer

Hellmuth Karasek

A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.

8.0

Bernard Blier, façon puzzle

Dec 23, 2020

In a career spanning more than half a century, Bernard Blier has shot more than 180 films. He alone represents a history of French cinema without having spent his time cultivating its legend. He crossed his century as an actor with the modesty of a craftsman. He believed in learning, know-how and transmission. He considered himself, like the butcher or the cabinetmaker, as a man useful to his fellow men. Bernard Blier found in Louis Jouvet, who was his teacher at the Conservatory, a master at playing, a mentor and even a spiritual father. Jouvet taught Blier the love of acting, theater and Molière. And if he knew how to take hold of Michel Audiard's best tirades like no one else, notably those of the "Tontons Flingueurs", it is to this apprenticeship that he owes it.

6.1

The Case of Bruno Lüdke

Feb 17, 2021

The incredible story of Bruno Lüdke (1908-44), the alleged worst mass murderer in German criminal history; or actually, a story of forged files and fake news that takes place during the darkest years of the Third Reich, when the principles of criminal justice, subjected to the yoke of a totalitarian system that is beginning to collapse, mean absolutely nothing.

0.0

Orchestrator of Storms: The Fantastique World of Jean Rollin

Jul 16, 2022

The story of French filmmaker Jean Rollin (1938-2010), one of the most singular voices of European cult cinema, deeply misunderstood and widely misrepresented.

6.7

Star Trek: The Captain's Summit

Apr 12, 2009

The Captains' Summit documents the first time in Star Trek history that four stars who at some point have played Captains in Star Trek (William Shatner, Patrick Stewart, Leonard Nimoy, Jonathan Frakes) have been brought together for a 70-minute rare and unprecedented round table event. Whoopi Goldberg, star of Star Trek: The Next Generation, hosts the event.

6.0

The Deluge: Postscriptum

Nov 14, 2024

Despite the anti-Semitic campaign launched by the Polish People's Government in the late 1960s, director Jerzy Hoffman finishes working on the film Pan Wołodyjowski. It becomes the ticket to the production of Potop, the most expensive film in the history of Polish cinematography. During his work, the director not only has to deal with mounting production problems, the distrust of the People's Government, but also with the expectations of millions of Poles.

7.2

Alain Delon, a unique portrait

Nov 2, 2015

Biography of a star and figure study : This fascinating portrait is for anyone who wants to know more about the man behind the mask. By the end of the film, you will view this famous French icon in a totally different light. Delon speaks in a series of surprising interviews, spanning nearly 50 years.

7.0

The House That Shadows Built

Jul 8, 1931

The House That Shadows Built (1931) is a short feature, roughly 48 minutes long, from Paramount Pictures made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the studio's founding in 1912. It was a promotional film for exhibitors and never had a regular theatrical release and includes a brief history of Paramount, interviews with various actors, and clips from upcoming projects (some of which never came to fruition). The title comes from a biography of Paramount founder Adolph Zukor, The House That Shadows Built (1928), by William Henry Irwin.

7.3

A Trip to Paramountown

Jul 10, 1922

Documentary short film depicting the filmmaking activity at the Paramount Studios in Hollywood, featuring dozens of stars captured candidly and at work.

6.5

Bruce Springsteen, le chanteur qui murmurait à l'oreille de l'Amérique

Jul 31, 2024

No overview available.

8.0

Tina Turner - My Songs. My Life

Jul 19, 2024

No overview available.

8.3

Aurora's Sunrise

Apr 21, 2023

The story of how Aurora Mardiganian (1901-94), a survivor of the Armenian genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire (1915-17), became a Hollywood silent film star.

0.0

David Lean: A Self Portrait

Jan 1, 1971

A television documentary on the life and career of British film director David Lean. Scenes of Lean directing are intercut with personal interviews in which the director explains his methods, the beginnings of his career, and his relationships with actors and actresses.

6.4

Elton John: Never Too Late

Nov 15, 2024

Sir Elton John looks back on his life and the astonishing early days of his 50-year career in this emotionally charged, full-circle journey. As he prepares for his final concert in North America at Dodger Stadium, Elton takes us back in time and recounts his struggles with adversity, abuse, and addiction, and how he overcame them to become the icon he is today.

6.4

The Memory of Cinema: A Film About Fernando Méndez-Leite

Nov 10, 2023

A look at the life and work of Spanish filmmaker and film critic Fernando Méndez-Leite, as he writes his memoirs and a novel with autobiographical resonances.

No Image Available

0.0

Drama, Tanz und Beine

Jan 7, 2007

No overview available.

8.8

Christopher Reeve, Superman Forever

Sep 28, 2024

A French documentary on Superman actor Christopher Reeve as told by his French voice dubbing actor, Pierre Arditi.

7.8

Coup 53

Sep 1, 2019

Tehran, Iran, August 19, 1953. A group of Iranian conspirators who, with the approval of the deposed tyrant Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, have conspired with agents of the British MI6 and the US CIA, manage to put an end to the democratic government led by Mohammad Mosaddegh, a dramatic event that will begin the tragic era of coups d'état that, orchestrated by the CIA, will take place, over the following decades, in dozens of countries around the world.

5.4

Dinner with a Vampire

Dec 30, 1988

A camera crew unearths a thousand year old vampire from Mesopotamia. Years after his rise from the grave, the vampire becomes a famous horror film director and holds auditions for his up and coming film. Four young hopefuls are chosen and are invited to spend the night at the vampire's house. At dinner the vampire reveals his true nature to his guests and the real reason why they are there, to kill him before dawn, as he has grown bored with his existence.

0.0

Ishiro Honda: Memoirs of a Film Director

Oct 4, 2024

A documentary film that delves into the life and cinematic career of one of Japan's most prolific directors: Ishiro Honda. The film will spotlight Honda's filmography from both a historical and personal perspective, exploring his contributions to the Japanese film industry and his firsthand experiences of war, from which he barely survived. It will also delve into his profound feelings regarding the atomic bomb, a subject that became an obsession for him and was frequently reflected in his films. The documentary will analyze Honda's body of work through interviews with individuals who had the privilege of collaborating with him, as well as experts on Honda's films from both Japan and the Western world. Furthermore, the film will uncover Honda's friendship and professional relationship with director Akira Kurosawa.

Billy Wilder Speaks

Overview

Genres

Production Companies

Billy Wilder Speaks Trailers