The Nanny Diaries (directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini) For a while there it seemed like the book-reading public couldn't get enough of those thinly veiled New York-centric roman à clefs. There weren't very well-written but hoo boy were they juicy. Fortunately as these fluffy chick novels and insider smack downs like The Devil Wears Prada and now The Nanny Diaries have begun to make their way to the silver screen, they've proven......

Most people recognize James Urbaniak as the intellectual indie-film icon from Henry Fool and American Splendor, while others probably think of him as the voice of Dr. Venture on Adult Swim’s The Venture Bros. and The Accountant from the (now defunct) series Kidnapped (not to mention the foot fetishist from Sex and the City). Theatergoers remember his critically acclaimed performance in 2005’s Off-Broadway hit Thom Pain (Based on Nothing). And bloggers around the world have......

THEATER: In September 2005, theater director Peter S. Petralia embarked on the Trans-Siberian Railway, connecting with artists from around the world for as long as the train stayed in the station. He would give them an art "package" and they, in return, would send something back to him. His collection of art objects and stories have culminated in Invisible Messages, currently running at P.S. 122 through Sunday. The multimedia work uses Petralia’s art-experiment as a......

Oh, Paul Giamatti... Hollywood may like good acting, but Oscars loves pretty faces better. Gothamist thought that when you didn't get nominated for your role as Pig Vomit in Private Parts, it was because of the whole movie-about-Howard-Stern thing. When you didn't get nominated for American Splendor, we guessed "Maybe Oscar voters don't get indie cartoons." But, now, as your peers in the Actors' Branch of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences have......

Arguably the most important film festival in the world, even after last year's unspectacular showing, the Cannes Film Festival starts again, with movie screenings around the clock, preening stars, and deals being made furiously. Why is Cannes important? In a nutshell, it helps films get launched, whether they're American films looking for a bigger audience (think Pulp Fiction and Mulholland Drive) or foreign films looking for American distribution. Films Gothamist is interested in that are......

Michael Tully, Actor/Writer/Musician...

In one of the more interesting studio moves, Universal is going to let American Splendor directors-writers Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini to write and direct the remake of the Bride of Frankenstein. According to Variety, the film will be "set in contemporary Gotham, centered on a young woman attending college. After being haunted by someone else's memories, she gradually discovers that she died and was then unnaturally brought back to life." Oscar nominated......

The beloved Douglas Adams book, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, has already been made into a BBC series (now on DVD), and will be made into a film this April. Casting thus far: Martin Freeman (The Office) as Arthur Dent, Mos Def as Ford Prefect, and Zooey Deschanel as Trillian. The role of Zaphod Beeblebrox has not be cast yet. The British directing duo, Hammer & Tongs (aka Garth Jennings and Nick Goldsmith),......

The New York Film Critics' Circle has announced its picks for the year in film, with many smaller films getting kudos, but studio epic Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was called best picture. Lost in Translation was recognized with Sofia Coppola as best director and Billy Murray as best actor (from indie major Focus Features), and indie Secret Lives of Dentists emerging with best actress Hope Davis (earning the award for......

You've seen the movie, now draw the protagonist. Harvey Pekar, growly Everyman whose less than perfect life is celebrated in American Splendor, is offering people the opportunity to draw him in a comic strip (joining artists like R. Crumb) based on his stories. Then, submissions will be posted and people can vote for their favorite attempts at splendorizing Harvey. Gothamist would enter, but our level of artistic aptitude is much like Harvey's - stick figures......

From Chick Lit to Chick Movie
Gothamist and its readers try to cast The Parker Grey Show.
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- Getting to know Baltimore - The Sneaker Lootings of 2003 - Bad celebrity tattoo ideas - Paul Newman is joking. Joking, okay? Like being funny. Not serious. - Renee Zellweger: Anorexic, alcoholic, or just plain crazy - Will the NJ Nets move to Brooklyn? Not if Jersey can help it. - Where to pee in the city - See American Splendor - Tiny Factory t-shirts: There's nothing wrong with being North Korean; it's just......

Gothamist saw American Splendor this past weekend and enjoyed this twist on a biopic. The film offers Paul Giamatti as underground writer/cartoonist (though he doesn't draw) Harvey Pekar, as well as the real Harvey Pekar giving narration, as well as other real-life people making appearances alongside the actors who portray them. Giamatti is so perfect as this beleagured, lonely crank, with mouth partly open, perhaps in pain, that it's almost painful to watch. And......