It’s a city that’s larger than life. A city without limits. A glittering mecca of excess and forbidden desires. Discover the fascinating story of this fabled destination and the people who created it. From the mobsters who made Vegas into their version of American Dream to the tycoons of today’s family mega-resorts, this is the ultimate insider’s tour of America’s neon oasis. Illuminating interviews with luminaries like Alan King, Wayne Newton and Debbie Reynolds, writer Nick Pileggi, entrepreneur Steve Wynn and Howard Hughes frontman Robert Mayheu offer a unique, unvarnished look at the fabled city, while never-before-seen footage opens a window to its tumultuous past.
Tag: USA
The touching portrayal of a young mother (and dance student) who travels to California after the death of her husband. In order to pay the bills she takes up burlesque dancing. To her dismay, the club she works at is sold to new owners who transform it into a hardcore strip club, where the dancers must bare all. Reluctantly, she performs. Unfortunately, a photographer hired by her father-in-law is in the audience, who snaps some naughty pics of her performing. He uses these to try and get custody of his grandson.
The rise, fall, and rebirth of Christian Hosoi, the young man who helped skateboarding re-emerge as a major cultural influence in the 1980s. The inventive skater and businessman was incarcerated in 2000 for trafficking controlled substances across state lines, and since his parole in 2004, the Born-Again Christian has dedicated his life to being a good father and positive influence on the sport.
In Michel Auder’s Cleopatra, Viva is the queen, shrieking with an authority different from the languorous speech patterns she had perfected in Warhol’s films. The (newly invented) snowmobile substitutes for horses; the industrial setting of a factory becomes a showplace of armaments, and the whole Egypt section takes place in upstate New York. The streets and parks of Rome, where Waldon lived at the time, are the staging ground for his role as Caesar.
Listen, America! documents the personalities and texture of the 60’s from this unique perspective of foreknowledge. A tapestry of mass riots and individual confessions, naked body-painted orgies and militant Underground organizing makes Listen, America! a singular evocation of its time. Exuberant in the shadow of what is to come, the film shares a poignant complicity with its contemporary audience.
“Uncle” Moses is a wealthy garment store owner in the Lower East Side. He lords his wealth and its attendant power over the neighborhood, dispensing noblesse oblige and conducting casual affairs with numerous women. When he falls in love with the beautiful young daughter of one of his employees, he discovers what it is like to be beholden to another person.
When Elena Sandoval returns from Mexico to her family’s ranch in California, she hopes to bring new ideas to modernize their business. Her plans, however, spark conflict with relatives who cling to tradition. Romance, rivalry, and cultural clashes unfold, leading to a spirited mix of comedy, music, and misunderstandings before harmony is restored.