Ben Barenholtz Movies

Between 1951 and 1960, an American phenomenon called 'The Music Inn' attained legendary, even iconic status in jazz circles, but continued to evade recognition by the American public, for many decades. Now, with his documentary Music Inn, American film producer Ben Barenholz (Miller's Crossing, Requiem for a Dream) makes his directorial debut, and climbs inside of this legacy for a protracted cinematic exploration of it. Via interviews with jazz legends, vintage photographs, and period archival footage, Barenholz tells the story of visionary American couple Stephanie and Philip Barber, who in 1950 launched the titular summer haven for jazz and folk musicians in the Berkshires. The Music Inn featured both 'Jazz and Folk Roundtables' (or academic discussions of music history, theory and craft led by Professor Marshall Sterns) and 'Jazz Workshops,' where musicians gathered to practice and explore their craft on collective instrumentation. In seemingly no time at all, the site became a magnet for musical giants from across the U.S. Barenholtz's documentary recounts this story by intercutting vintage photographs, archival footage, soundtrack recordings from the Inn, and interviews with both Stephanie Barber and the surviving musicians who participated in the original collective. Subtopics include: race relations as they impacted the club (and the inn as a respite from segregation); The Music Inn as a retreat for both musical artists and their families; the politics of the organization; and its impact on subsequent musical expression, via an investigation of the music that preceded and succeeded it. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Horror-meister George Romero directs this thriller about a 99-pound weakling who strikes back at everyone who has wronged him in the past. Henry Creedlow (Jason Flemyng) works at a fashion mag called Bruiser for the short-fused, dictatorial Miles Styles (Peter Stormare). Henry spends much of his day fantasizing about killing himself and killing others, particularly his nagging wife Janine (Nina Garbiras). After learning that Miles is shagging his wife and that his stockbroker best friend swindled him out of a stack of money, Henry wakes up the following day to learn that his face has mysteriously been rendered white and featureless. Soon, like a mime with bloodlust, Henry violently dispatches with everyone in his life, save Miles' wife, whose paintings may be responsible for his sudden transformation. This film was screened at the 2000 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

An unflinching drama of frustrated ambition and troubled siblings, Georgia examines the relationship between a self-destructive, would-be rock singer and her sister, a successful folk musician. Sadie (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the younger, more troubled sister, a wild child with a taste for reckless behavior, from her dangerous romances to her attachments to drugs and alcohol. Hopping between low-rent clubs, Sadie struggles to make it from gig to gig, delivering rawly emotional performances that lack technical skill. Her repeated career failures drive her further into addiction, sending her life into a downward spiral. Ultimately, she is forced to seek help from her sister Georgia (Mare Winningham), who is everything Sadie is not: married, financially secure, and blessed with a smooth voice that has won her popular success. A clash of seemingly opposite personalities follows, as Georgia attempts to help Sadie without becoming damaged herself. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

The title character, played by John Turturro, is a Broadway playwright, based on Clifford Odets, lured to Hollywood with the promise of untold riches by a boorish studio chieftain (played by Michael Lerner as a combination of Louis B. Mayer and Harry Cohn). Despising the film capital and everything it stands for, Barton Fink comes down with an acute case of writer's block. He is looked after by a secretary (Judy Davis) who has been acting as a ghost writer for an alcoholic screenwriter (John Mahoney, playing a character based on William Faulkner). Also keeping tabs on Fink is a garrulous traveling salesman (John Goodman), the most likeable, stable character in the picture. And then comes the plot twist to end all plot twists, plunging Barton Fink into a surreal nightmare that would make Hieronymus Bosch look like a house painter. Once more, Ethan and Joel Coen serve up a smorgasbord of quirkiness and kinkiness, where nothing is what it seems and nothing turns out as planned. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide