In 2011, Karl von Randow and Matt Buchanan, two tech-loving New Zealand film buffs, launched Letterboxd, a movie review and rating app inspired by Goodreads, the platform that does the same for books. For several years, they juggled this small project with their work at a web design studio. Then came the Covid-19 pandemic. In March 2020, they hired their first full-time employee, and with the world confined to their homes, their user base exploded. In 2023, the company was acquired by the Canadian company Tiny and today boasts over 26 million user profiles. While this figure seems insignificant compared to companies like Instagram (with around three billion active users), it reflects the cultural power of film as a source of conversation. Those who love movies enjoy watching them as much as discussing and analyzing them in detail, and Letterboxd is aimed at that community — including famous filmmakers and performers.
© photo: MPTV.net (Barry Wetcher)
With 2019’s The Irishman, director Martin Scorsese and star Robert De Niro reunited for another movie dealing with the history of organized crime in America. This was a seismic event, as the two artists were perhaps most associated with the mob movie, and their last collaboration had been 1995’s Casino, another sprawling mob epic based on real events. Even more encouraging was the return of De Niro’s Casino, Goodfellas,and Raging Bull costar Joe Pesci, and even better than that, Al Pacino would be working with Scorsese for the first time. The movie arguably became the defining mobster film of the 21st century, and the central trio made it even more meaningful, with one caveat: their age.
In 2023, iconic director Martin Scorsese proved that age is just a number by delivering yet another masterclass in filmmaking with the historical epic Killers of the Flower Moon. A sweeping, visually stunning adaptation set in 1920s Oklahoma, the film starred the likes of Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, two frequent collaborators of Scorsese's. Killers of the Flower Moon earned universal acclaim, including ten Academy Award nominations, although it would eventually miss out in every category.
Tony Leung (Hong Kong, 63) enters the lobby of a Madrid hotel and brings with him an absolute sense of calm. The pace slows; you even get the impression the temperature has dropped slightly. Leung’s image in the film collective was sealed by his role in In the Mood for Love, Wong Kar-wai’s masterpiece that earned Leung the best actor award at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. A man anchored in melancholy, unable to confront his unfaithful wife or to declare his love to his neighbor. That introspection turned Leung into one of the coolest men on the planet.
© FRANCIS TSANG (EL PAÍS)
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