Paul Willistein
Program HostPaul Willistein is Editor of the Lehigh Valley Press Focus section, a position he has held for 10 years. He has received more than one dozen Keystone state journalism awards and an Allentown Arts Commission Arts Ovation Award. He reviews movies and theater and writes features stories about arts and entertainment, news stories about municipal and school topics and takes photographs for Lehigh Valley Press newspapers and web sites.
He has taught screenwriting and media studies at Northampton Community College. He was marketing and public relations director at The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. For 22 years, he worked at The Morning Call, where he was Features Editor, Arts Editor and Entertainment Editor. He worked for the former Bethlehem Globe-Times as Arts Editor, Night Editor and News Reporter. He studied American Studies and film-making at Syracuse University and attended Southern Lehigh High School.
He has written, directed and produced documentary films, some of which have been telecast on public television stations, and narrative fiction films, some of which have been shown in film festivals. He was host and producer of “Hot Splices,” a movie review-interview show; producer and co-host with Michael Gontkosky of ”The Movie Show,” a movie review show, and “Valley Arts,” a Lehigh Valley arts interview show, all telecast on RCN. He is a songwriter, having co-written “Do The Dutch (Hey Now)” with Steve Brosky and Mike Krisukas.
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Jurassic World Dominion is the summer popcorn movie with thrills, action, drama and of course, dinosaurs. The prehistoric leapin,’ flyin’ and stompin’ theropods co-exist with the likes of Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard and Isabella Sermon. -
Paul Willistein of the Lehigh Valley Press reviews the recent trend of re-releases being shown on the big screen with American Graffiti, shown in the “Nostalgia Cinema” series at Civic Theatre of Allentown Theatre514. This one of several in classic, retro and camp film series playing throughout the Lehigh Valley.
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Paul Willistein welcomes Jeff Vaclavik and Jennifer Cotto to preview the 18th annual SouthSide Film Festival, taking place June 14-18 at various venues across Bethlehem.
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Paul Willistein reviews the recent performance of Star Wars - accompanied by the Allentown Symphony Orchestra - at the PPL Center. The event marries live, classical performance with pop culture iconic movies, introducing a new audience to classical music and the history behind some of the most nostalgic music from the movies.
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Paul Willistein of the Lehigh Valley Press says to prepare for the summer movie thrill ride of your life, 34 years later with the heavily-anticipated and delayed sequel, Top Gun: Maverick. It returns Tom Cruise to the big screen as the hotshot Navy jet pilot that brought his stardom to its peak.
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Downton Abbey: A New Era brings the cast of loveable and irascible characters back to the big screen. Fans of the 2019 feature movie and 2010-2015 public television series should enjoy the elegance, chivalry and silly fun anchored by Maggie Smith, with an Oscar nominee-worthy performance.
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The Duke is based on a true story about the theft of a Francisco Goya painting, The Duke of Wellington from The National Gallery in London, England. The film stars Oscar recipients Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren. It’s the last theatrical feature film directed by Roger Michell (Notting Hill, Hyde Park on Hudson, My Cousin Rachel) before his passing.
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With Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Benedict Cumberbatch reprises his role as Dr. Stephen Strange from the 2016 Marvel Cinematic Universe release Dr. Strange. This time, the universe provides several options for Dr. Strange, each more confounding than the next. The film also stars Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong, Rachel McAdams, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Xochitl Gomez.
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The Bad Guys is a DreamWorks animated feature film intended for children. It’s about a group of bad anamorphic characters who want to change their ways. Voice talent includes Sam Rockwell (Mr. Wolf), Marc Maron (Mr. Snake) and Awkwafina (Ms. Tarantula).
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The Northman is an unrelenting, brutal, fictionalized retelling of a Viking saga. Alexander Skarsgård stars as Amleth, a Norseman prince, opposite Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicole Kidman. Also staring are Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe.
