Casting By

2012

1h 29m

Documentary

List

94%

17 Reviews

Tomatometer

80%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Interviews with Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, Robert Duvall, Glenn Close, Al Pacino and others illustrate a look at how casting directors have shaped the direction of Hollywood over the last 50 years.

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Audience Member

Loving and detailed documentary about the legendary Hollywood casting director Marion Dougherty. Plenty of actors and directors - Clint Eastwood, Glenn Close, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, Robert Redford among them -attest to her warmth and instinctive skills. Only Taylor Hackford will have cause to regret his contribution.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Great film and very informative.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Terrific. Educational for film buffs in the best way and with all star participation. A doc very well done.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

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Audience Member

A fascinating look at an approach to casting by looking at some of the giants of the field, one that does not get its due nor is properly appreciated as a vital piece of the film making process. Where it falters somewhat is in its dismissing of the previous studio system of selecting actors who they had under contract. It was imperfect for sure but resulted in many classics so obviously something about it worked, though to hear about it here it was a worthless and completely counter productive to proper casting.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

3 words - casting director nominee

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

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Audience Member

A thoroughly interesting and revealing documentary on an often unsung role of movie production.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/02/23

Full Review

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Leonard Maltin

leonardmaltin.com

In his impressively researched film, Donahue makes it clear why and how Dougherty helped define her profession.

Nov 1, 2013

Full Review

Joe Neumaier

New York Daily News

A look into one of the most invisible, and crucial, of cinematic disciplines.

Rated: 3/5

Oct 31, 2013

Full Review

Daphne Howland

Village Voice

While Dougherty clearly had an almost eerie sense of how a particular actor might inhabit a part, this film also shows that she may have single-handedly created a filmmaking craft and then made it indispensable.

Oct 29, 2013

Full Review

Farah Cheded

A Good Movie To Watch

An eye-opening documentary giving filmmaking’s most invisible profession its due.

Dec 2, 2023

Full Review

John Powers

Vogue

While the movie is not especially thoughtful (to put it mildly), it's worth seeing for all its revelatory TV clips and for celebrating one of the great female innovators in post-World War II movie history.

Jul 13, 2017

Full Review

David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

An entertaining, informative documentary...

Rated: 3/4

Feb 25, 2016

Full Review

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Synopsis

Interviews with Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, Robert Duvall, Glenn Close, Al Pacino and others illustrate a look at how casting directors have shaped the direction of Hollywood over the last 50 years.

Director: Tom Donahue
Production Co: Tashtego Films
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 5, 2016
Runtime: 1h 29m

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