Francis Ford Coppola

CHICAGO – “Francis Ford Coppola: 5 Film Collection,” a four-disc/five-movie set from Lionsgate, is a unique offering in that it certainly doesn’t include “the best of” its namesake or even four movies that are thematically intertwined. There are two undeniable classics in here, two of the most important films of the ’70s, and their inclusion on Blu-ray makes the set interesting, but it’s far from a comprehensive look at the legendary director; more of a sampler set.

CHICAGO – If Robert K. Elder’s book, “The Film That Changed My Life,” is indeed providing a blueprint for the screening series continuing this month at the Music Box, then cinephiles have every right to rejoice. Elder’s book interviewed a wide variety of filmmakers about the films that left a permanent impact on them, and the series reunites Elder and the filmmakers for screenings of their favorite films.

CHICAGO – Sofia Coppola’s films are intriguing in a way that’s often difficult to put into words. I often find my attention drifting during my initial viewing of them, and yet they somehow manage to linger in my mind long after others have faded. Her problematic costume drama, “Marie Antoinette,” has become one of my favorite films to leave on in the background of a room, simply for the pleasure of dwelling in its subtly nuanced atmosphere.

CHICAGO – It’s been thirty-five years since Francis Ford Coppola wrote an original screenplay for one of his pictures, and though “Tetro” is certainly not in the same league as his last singular written work (1974’s “The Conversation”), it is still the most cinematically exciting, hauntingly beautiful, and achingly personal film he’s made in decades.

CHICAGO – Now that he is widely recognized as one of the best filmmakers of all time, it’s almost hard to believe that there was a period in the career of Akira Kurosawa when he couldn’t get financing to make a film. Kurosawa went through a very dark time in the ’70s, punctuated by his disastrous experience with “Tora! Tora! Tora!,” and needed the weight of Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas to help with his comeback, “Kagemusha,” now available in a beautiful Criterion Collection Blu-Ray release.

CHICAGO – Last fall, Francis Ford Coppola made the comment that Al Pacino and Robert De Niro (along with Jack Nicholson) had lost their ambition. Coppola essentially said they have been phoning in their performances and picking safer movies. “Righteous Kill” could be the case study to that argument.