Kevin Lally on Film

Interviews and more from the former executive editor of Film Journal International and Boxoffice Pro

Remembering Terence Davies, Film Poet of the Ordinary

The acclaimed British writer-director Terence Davies died today, October 7, at the age of 77, after a short illness. I met the soft-spoken but defiantly idiosyncratic artist in 1993, to discuss one of his most lauded films, The Long Day Closes. Davies went on to make seven more features: The Neon Bible, based on the novel by…

gkevinlally

October 7, 2023

Davies, Terence, Filmmakers
Agnieszka Holland’s Masterly ‘Green Border’ Is a Devastating Portrait of Poland’s Refugee Crisis

Agnieszka Holland’s Green Border is more than a movie—it’s a soul-shaking experience. It may be the most important and eye-opening film playing at the 61st New York Film Festival—in fact, I’d call it one of the most important films of this decade. Holland, the veteran Polish director of Europa Europa, Washington Square and other fine films, was spurred by the…

gkevinlally

October 6, 2023

Film Appreciation
The 61st New York Film Festival Is a Robust Showcase of Award Contenders

Every September I contract a severe case of Fear Of Missing Out, as word filters in from the Venice, Telluride and Toronto film festivals. Fortunately, my hometown New York Film Festival nabs many of the buzzy titles from those fests, so my FOMO is short-lived. The 2023 NYFF would have been a starry one if…

gkevinlally

October 3, 2023

Film Appreciation
My Encounters with Billy Wilder, Part 2

For my second interview session with Billy Wilder on March 4, 1994, at his office in Beverly Hills, the legendary writer-director allowed me 45 minutes—and served as my personal countdown clock. In our wide-ranging conversation, we talked about his relatives in Vienna, his early days in Hollywood, his reasons for becoming a director, his high…

gkevinlally

August 17, 2023

Filmmakers, Wilder, Billy
My First Encounter with Billy Wilder

It’s now 117 years since the birth of Billy Wilder on June 22, 1906. I had the good fortune to interview the great writer-director of the classics Double Indemnity, Sunset Blvd., Some Like It Hot, The Apartment and so many others in his office in Beverly Hills on September 17, 1993, the first of six encounters (two in…

gkevinlally

June 16, 2023

Filmmakers, Wilder, Billy
‘Lord of the Ants’ and ‘Strangeness’ Are Two Highlights at Lincoln Center’s Annual ‘Open Roads’ Italian Series

Every spring, Film at Lincoln Center’s “Open Roads” series brings proof that Italian cinema is alive and well. The 22nd edition, running June 1-8, presents 11 new Italian features, plus a three-film salute to director Mario Martone. The opening-night selection is Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird, adapted from the decades-spanning, Strega Prize-winning novel by Sandro Veronisi and…

gkevinlally

May 30, 2023

Film Appreciation