Helmut Newton: The Bad and the Beautiful

Directed by Gero von Boehm

Year: 2020

Country: Germany

Language: English, French, German

One of the great masters of photography, Helmut Newton made a name for himself exploring the female form, and his cult status continues long after his tragic death in a Los Angeles car crash in 2004. Newton worked around the globe, from Singapore to Australia to Paris to Los Angeles, but Weimar Germany was the visual hallmark of his work. Newton's unique and striking way of depicting women has always posed the question: did he empower his subjects or treat them as sexual objects? Through candid interviews with Grace Jones, Charlotte Rampling, Isabella Rossellini, Anna Wintour, Claudia Schiffer, Marianne Faithfull, Hanna Schygulla, Nadja Auermann, and Newton's wife June (a.k.a. photographer Alice Springs), this documentary captures his legacy and seeks to answer questions about the themes at the core of his life's work – creating provocative and subversive images of women. The film also features Newton’s own home movies, archival footage (including a pointed exchange with Susan Sontag) and, of course, scores of iconic Newton photographs. The result: a wildly entertaining portrait of a controversial genius.

Reviews

"A gossipy portrait of a charmingly naughty boy whose genius is perhaps best appreciated on a second viewing with the sound off and the eyes wide open."

- Jeannette Catsoulis, The New York Times

"An engaging and surprisingly playful documentary about the man who was arguably the most transgressive photographer to emerge from the 1960s and '70s."

- Owen Gleiberman, Variety

"Delights in its hero's troublemaking side and urges viewers to look beyond his pictures' surface sexual politics."

- John Defore, The Hollywood Reporter

"Unexpectedly moving... a nostalgic time capsule of an art-world rebel whose unorthodox methods and decidedly politically incorrect vision couldn’t exist today."

- Ryan Lattanzio, Indiewire

"Newton’s career can be seen as one endless, erotic-fantasy scrapbook he made and kept for himself. Von Boehm succeeds so well in bringing Newton to life"

- James Verniers, Boston Herald

"Enlightening and provocative."

- – Roxana Hadadi, RogerEbert.com

Cast

Charlotte Rampling
Isabella Rossellini
Grace Jones
Anna Wintour
Claudia Schiffer

Arena, New York Times, Miami, 1978. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

Self portrait, Monte Carlo, 1993. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

Pina Bausch, Wuppertal, 1983. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

Grace Jones and Dolph Lundgren, Los Angeles, 1985. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

David Lynch and Isabella Rossellini, Los Angeles, 1988. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

Chicken, French Vogue, Paris, 1984. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

Rue Aubriot, Yves Saint Laurent, Paris, 1975. Photo by Helmut Newton, courtesy Helmut Newton Foundation.

Helmut Newton, Monte Carlo, 1987. Photo by Alice Springs.

Helmut Newton and Sylvia Gobbel, Ramatuelle, 1981. Photo by Alice Springs.

Marianne Faithful in a scene from the film, courtesy Kino Lorber.

Claudie Schiffer in a scene from the film, courtesy Kino Lorber.

Anna Wintour in a scene from the film, courtesy Kino Lorber.

Charlotte Rampling in a scene from the film, courtesy Kino Lorber.

Venue	City	State	Screening Options
ACME Screening Room	Lambertville	NJ	Virtual Cinema
AFI Silver	Silver Spring	MD	Virtual Cinema
After Hours Film Society	Naperville	IL	Virtual Cinema
Arena Theater	Point Arena	CA	Virtual Cinema
ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks	Bethlehem	PA	Virtual Cinema
Aspen Film	Aspen	CO	Virtual Cinema
Athens Ciné	Athens	GA	Virtual Cinema
Avalon Theatre	Washington	DC	Virtual Cinema
Avon Theatre	Stamford	CT	Virtual Cinema
Belcourt Theatre	Nashville	TN	Virtual Cinema
Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA)	Berkeley	CA	Virtual Cinema
Bozeman Film Society	Bozeman	MT	Virtual Cinema
Bryn Mawr Film Institute	Bryn Mawr	PA	Virtual Cinema
Cameo Art House Theatre	Fayetteville	NC	Virtual Cinema
Cameo Cinema	St. Helena	CA	Virtual Cinema
Cape Ann Community Cinema	Gloucester	MA	Virtual Cinema
Carolina Theatre	Durham	NC	Virtual Cinema
Charles Theatre	Baltimore	MD	Virtual Cinema
Chelsea Theater	Chapel Hill	NC	Virtual Cinema
Cinema 21	Portland	OR	Virtual Cinema
Cinema Lamont	Oak Park	MI	Virtual Cinema
Cinemapolis	Ithaca	NY	Virtual Cinema
Cleveland Cinemas	Cleveland	OH	Virtual Cinema
Cleveland Cinematheque	Cleveland	OH	Virtual Cinema
Colonial Theatre	Phoenixville	PA	Virtual Cinema
Coral Gables Art Cinema	Coral Gables	FL	Virtual Cinema
Corazon Cinema	St Augustine	FL	Virtual Cinema
Dairy Arts Center	Boulder	CO	Virtual Cinema
Darkside Cinema	Corvallis	OR	Virtual Cinema
Downing Film Center	Newburgh	NY	Virtual Cinema
Drexel Theatre	Columbus	OH	Virtual Cinema
Enzian Theatre	Maitland	FL	Virtual Cinema
Film Forum	New York	NY	Virtual Cinema
Film Society of Summit	Summit	NJ	Virtual Cinema
Fine Arts Theatre	Asheville	NC	Virtual Cinema
Hamptons Film	East Hampton	NY	Virtual Cinema
Hurleyville Performing Arts Centre	Hurleyville	NY	Virtual Cinema
International Film Series	Boulder	CO	Virtual Cinema
Jane Pickens Theatre	Newport	RI	Virtual Cinema
Kiggins Theatre	Vancouver	WA	Virtual Cinema
Laemmle Theatres	Los Angeles	CA	Virtual Cinema
LeFont Film Society	Atlanta	GA	Virtual Cinema
Lumiere Cinema	Los Angeles	CA	Virtual Cinema
Majestic Theater	Gettysburg	PA	Virtual Cinema
Mary D. Fisher Theatre	Sedona	AZ	Virtual Cinema
Middleburg Film Festival	Middleburg	VA	Virtual Cinema
Midtown Cinema	Harrisburg	PA	Virtual Cinema
Music Box Theatre	Chicago	IL	Virtual Cinema
No Festival Required	Phoenix	AZ	Virtual Cinema
North Park Theatre	Buffalo	NY	Virtual Cinema
O Cinema	Miami Beach	FL	Virtual Cinema
Palm Springs Cultural Center	Palm Springs	CA	Virtual Cinema
Philadelphia Film Society	Philadelphia	PA	Virtual Cinema
Plaza Cinema & Media Arts Center	Patchogue	NY	Virtual Cinema
Plaza Theatre	Atlanta	GA	Virtual Cinema
Red River Theatres	Concord	NH	Virtual Cinema
Reg Lenna Center for the Arts	Jamestown	NY	Virtual Cinema
Rio Theatre	Santa Cruz	CA	Virtual Cinema
Salem Cinema	Salem	OR	Virtual Cinema
ShowRoom Cinemas	Asbury Park	NJ	Virtual Cinema
SIFF Film Center	Seattle	WA	Virtual Cinema
Tampa Theatre	Tampa	FL	Virtual Cinema
TCAN Cinema	Natick	MA	Virtual Cinema
The Colonial Theatre	Bethlehem	NH	Virtual Cinema
The Frida Cinema	Santa Ana	CA	Virtual Cinema
The Grand Berry Theater	Fort Worth	TX	Virtual Cinema
The Loft Cinema	Tucson	AZ	Virtual Cinema
The Moviehouse	Millerton	NY	Virtual Cinema
The Nightlight Cinema	Akron	OH	Virtual Cinema
The Ryder Film Series	Bloomington	IN	Virtual Cinema
The Screening Room	Amherst	NY	Virtual Cinema
Tivoli at the Nelson-Atkins	Kansas City	MO	Virtual Cinema
Vermont International Film Festival	Burlington	VT	Virtual Cinema
Violet Crown Austin	Austin	TX	Virtual Cinema
Violet Crown Charlottesville	Charlottesville	VA	Virtual Cinema
Violet Crown Santa Fe	Santa Fe	NM	Virtual Cinema
Waters Edge Cinema	Provincetown	MA	Virtual Cinema

Helmut Newton: The Bad and the Beautiful

Directed by Gero von Boehm

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Helmut Newton: The Bad and the Beautiful

Directed by Gero von Boehm

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