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Show Notes:

Click on movie title for the trailer.

Opening Music: Pink’s “Trouble“ (iTunes)

Opening January 6th

The Devil Inside
Roadie
Beneath the Darkness
Once Upon a Time in Anatolia

Opening January 13th

Contraband
Joyful Noise
The Iron Lady
Beauty and the Beast (3D)
Albatross
The Divide
- Kurt’s Review
Loosies
Underworld Awakening
Haywire
Coriolanus
- Jandy’s Review
Red Tails
Miss Bala
- Marina’s Review
Crazy Horse
- Kurt’s Review

Opening January 27th

The Grey
One for the Money
we Need to Talk About Kevin
- Kurt’s Review
Rampart
Albert Nobbs
In Darkness
Man on a Ledge
Declaration of War

Closing Music: Saint Saviour’s “This Aint No Hymn“ (iTunes)

And yes, I’m two timing. Check out my writing at Quietearth.us

Direct Download

Row Three:
RSS Feeds:
Subscribe to “After the Credits”
Subscribe to ALL the RowThree Podcasts on one feed
Subscribe to all posts and discussions

Subscribe with:

We can also be contacted via email – marina@rowthree.com!

Show Notes:

Click on movie title for the trailer.

Opening Music: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ “Immigrant Song” (from The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Trailer)

Opening December 2nd

Shame
- Kurt’s Review
Outrage
- Jandy’s Review
Kinyarwanda
Sleeping Beauty

Opening December 9th

Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy
New Year’s Eve
Young Adult
The Sitter
W.E.
I Melt With You
we Need to Talk About Kevin
- Kurt’s Review

Opening December 16th

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Carnage
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked

Opening December 23rd

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Darkest Hour
We Bought A Zoo
In the Land of Blood and Honey
Pina
- Jandy’s Review

Opening December 30th

War Horse
A Separation
Pariah

Closing Music: David Bowie’s “Queen Bitch“ (iTunes)

And yes, I’m two timing. Check out my writing at Quietearth.us

***** (5/5)

Usually I skip repertory screenings at festivals to focus on the newer stuff that I might not be able to see elsewhere, but when I saw that Artistic Director Pedro Almodóvar had programmed Jean-Pierre Melville’s crime drama Le cercle rouge, I couldn’t resist. I’ve been meaning to see this film for quite a while, ever since I saw and loved Le samourai, but despite a nice Criterion release and it even being on Instant Watch for a while, I didn’t get around to it. Seems like when that happens, I end up with the perfect opportunity to see it on a big screen in a great place like the Egyptian Theatre. Melville is quite simply France’s master of crime dramas (no disrespect to Chabrol or Clouzot, who tended a bit more toward the mystery/thriller aspect anyway), and this film combines elements of crime drama, police procedural, and heist film together perfectly into an intricate slow burn building to its inevitable climax.

Initially, there are two major strands of story. Detective Mattei (André Bourvil) is escorting a suspect, Vogel (Gian-Maria Volonté), on a train when Vogel manages to escape. Meanwhile, Corey (Alain Delon) is being released from prison, but not before being tipped off by a corrupt prison guard about a really great potential job. Corey shakes down a mob friend of his for some money, which sets the rest of the mob on his tail. Vogel happens upon Corey’s car as he’s trying to evade the police dragnet and gets in the trunk, which Corey notices but protects him. The two decide to work the tipped-off job together, bringing in former police sharpshooter Jansen (Yves Montand) as well. So the mob is after Corey, Mattei and the police are after Vogel, the internal affairs department is after Mattei for letting Vogel escape, Jansen is recovering from the DTs, they’re all harrassing a nightclub owner who has mob connections as well as ties to Vogel, and in the midst of all this, Corey, Vogel, and Jansen are planning a major jewel heist. Yes, it’s really complicated, but never once was anything confusing.

Alain Delon gave Jean-Paul Belmondo a run for his money as “coolest 1960s actor,” and this film only solidifies that. Corey doesn’t react very often, his face an implacable slate of ennui and careful calculation. Comparatively, Vogel is a live wire, volatile and unpredictable, hurtling through the woods with abandon as he escapes the police, rolling in and out of Corey’s trunk with a combination of paranoia and resignation. Montand’s Jansen is superb, a broken man plagued by alcoholism and the visions that come with the DTs (it seems Melville had seen Wilder’s The Lost Weekend) and fearful that his once-steady hand is irrevocably shaken. He carries the heart of the film, as Vogel carries the energy and Corey the brains and attitude. Bourvil brings a dogged but world-weary determination to the role of Mattei, dead-set on recapturing Vogel by any means necesary, and yet with a great depth of feeling – he chafes against his boss’s assertion that everyone is evil, despite the mounting evidence suggesting precisely that.

Indeed, lines between cops and crooks are continually blurred here. Mattei is a cop, but is also distrusted by other cops. The job Corey is pulling was tipped by a prison guard. Jansen used to be a cop, and knew Mattei in school. The mobsters are only trying to recover money Corey stole. Everyone’s compromised, everyone’s working multiple angles, but plot elements rarely come off as bait-and-switch twists, rather as just each man doing what he has to in order to survive in this world of trench coats and battered fedoras. If you haven’t kept up with the characters along the way, you’d easily be forgiven for being unable to tell the cops and crooks apart, so similar are their wardrobes. Yet even this is carefully planned: most of the time, two men together will be wearing opposite colors – one cream or white trench coat, one blue or black one. Balance is maintained, everyone is matched by his opposite, even in the production design.

There are a few great heist films in the history of movies (Rififi, Topkapi, Ocean’s Eleven, Big Deal on Madonna Street), but I didn’t realize that Le cercle rouge was a heist movie at all until that part of the plot came to the forefront. It’s about 3/4 the way through the movie before the big job teased in the first few minutes actually gets going. Perhaps it’s because the film is so good at everything it does that it’s not touted as a heist film, because the heist here is extremely well-done and definitely deserves a place among the others I just listed. Clearly it owes a lot to Rififi, the heist taking place in almost dead silence, but with a little more mystery – though we know where they’re breaking into, we see very little of the planning. Trying to figure out how all the pieces will fall into place is part of the enjoyment, and enjoyable it is, just like the rest of the film. This movie is 140 minutes long, but it truly flies by, feeling much shorter than several of the 100 minute movies I’ve seen at this festival.

Director: Jean-Pierre Melville
Screenplay: Jean-Pierre Melville
Producers: Robert Dorfmann
Starring: Alain Delon, André Bourvil, Gian Maria Volontè, Yves Montand, Paul Crauchet, Paul Amiot, Pierre Collet, André Ekyan, Jean-Pierre Posier, François Périer
Country/Language: France, French
Year: 1970
Running Time: 140 min.

****~ (4/5)

Director Jafar Panahi was at the AFI Film Festival a few years ago presenting his film Offside, a well-regarded drama about an Iranian girl breaking all the rules and pretending to be a boy to attend a football game, something that girls are forbidden to do in Iran. This year, he could not be here, and indeed, could not legally make this film, because he has been placed under house arrest and banned from filmmaking for 20 years, with a potential of up to 6 years in prison for making subversive films. This (non)-film documents a day in his life at home while he waits to hear the results of his appeal, chafing under his restriction from his life work and also testing the limits of filmmaking itself.

Since he’s not supposed to make a film, Panahi calls his friend Mojtaba Mirtahmasb (he cheated a bit to get this part in the film) to come over and film him telling the story of the film he was planning to make. Meanwhile, he fills Mirtahmasb and us on how he submitted the script to the government to get the necessary approvals and permits, but was denied, even after making some requested changes. Soon after he was placed under house arrest and banned from filmmaking, screenwriting, and giving interviews for 20 years – but, as he points out, there was no mention of acting or reading an existing script.

He tells the story of the film he won’t be making, then blocks out areas on the floor to represent the location (ala a lo-fi Dogville) and explaining the action. But frustration overtakes, for “if you could tell a film, why make a film?” As Panahi shifts between trying to tell scenes from his screenplay, trying (and largely failing) to use the much-restricted internet, looking over bits of his previous films, and doing everyday activities like feeding his daughter’s pet iguana and having a cup of tea on the balcony, a portrait emerges of a man who is deeply frustrated with his inability to express himself and also somewhat amused by the sheer ridiculousness of the laws that prevent him from doing so.

Outside his windows, sirens and explosions fill the afternoon and evening air – it’s Fireworks Wednesday, the celebration of the Iranian New Year. The celebration has ancient roots, but isn’t really supported by the government, with a much higher than normal police and militia presence as illegal fireworks and arson threaten the streets. The juxtaposition of Panahi’s unauthorized filmmaking with this unsupported festival is implicit, but constant, and one of the most telling moments of the film is when he has grabbed the camera himself and is talking to one of his neighbors. As the neighbor heads outside, he warns the following Panahi not to come out, in case he’s seen with the camera. Meanwhile, a bunch of kids are cultivating a rather large, dangerous-looking fire.

This is Not a Film is obviously an important political statement – it was smuggled out of the country on a flash driven hidden inside a cake and Mirtahmasb was arrested soon after – but it remains very personal. Panahi is quietly angry about his situation, but intent that his fellow Iranian filmmakers not rise to help him for fear they too would be imprisoned. The ending credits are a sea of “Special Thanks to:” with all the names replaced by blank lines, a poignant cap to what we’ve seen. Yet the film has a surprising amount of humor, as Mirtahmasb’s camera is often distracted by the antics of the iguana climbing a nearby bookcase or crawling all over Panahi like a cat. And there’s plenty of time for excursions into filmmaking itself. This is not a film in one way because it can’t be – Panahi can’t make a film, so this must not be one. But secondly, his attempts to tell his screenplay also aren’t a film, because a film is so much more than a description of action. Shots from his own films show the contribution of the actors, the locations, things that he either didn’t predict or can’t describe adequately but that made the film what it is. This is not a film. It is a statement of frustration and artistic integrity that needs to be heard by anyone who cares about cinema or freedom of expression.

Panahi mentions the appeals process that was in progress during the shooting, with a call from his lawyer hoping to eliminate the 20-year ban and reduce the 6-year prison sentence. As of October 17th, 2011, that appeal has been rejected. Mirtahmasb and several other filmmakers remain under arrest as well.

Director: Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Jafar Panahi
Screenplay: Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Jafar Panahi
Starring: Jafar Panahi, Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
Country/Language: Iran, Farsi
Running Time: 75 min

This year’s AFI Fest kicked off last night with the world premiere of Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar, and I head to my first screenings tonight. There will be very little sleep over the next week as I overload on cinema from around the world, catching up on films praised at other festivals and trying to find a few hidden gems on my own. I probably won’t end up going to most of the big-name galas, despite my excitement for some of the titles, due to the difficulty of procuring passes to these things (trying the rush line is an option, but takes up so much time I’d miss other screenings to do it, something I’m not always willing to do for films that will be out in a few weeks anyway). If you’re in the LA area, there’s still time to reserve tickets to various screenings at the AFI Fest website. A lot of things are still available, other things aren’t right now, but they always release more tickets the day before the screening online, or at the box office the day of, or you can wait in the rush line and there’s a good chance you’ll make it in. Here’s the list of what I’ll likely be seeing (getting some major things I won’t be out of the way first). You can see the full lineup here.

All the trailer links open in a lightbox, so you won’t have to leave the site to watch them. Synopsis text stolen shamelessly from the AFI website.

BIG-NAME FILMS I WON’T BE SEEING HERE

Some of these are gala screenings I’d hoped to see but ended up not being able to get tickets, a few others are ones that fell to the vagaries of scheduling because as much as I wanted to see them, they were against ones I wanted to see more. The good news is most of these are going to be easily available in regular release within a few weeks, so it’s no great loss.

The Artist

Director: Michel Hazanavicius
Starring: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Béjo, John Goodman, James Cromwell, Penelope Ann Miller
Country: USA/France
Synopsis:Silence is golden in director Michel Hazanavicius’ delightful and dialogue-less black-and-white feature about Hollywood’s bumpy transition from silent films to “talkies.”
My take: Let’s see, a B&W silent film made in 2011 set in Hollywood during the late 1920s? This movie was friggin’ MADE for me, and the fact that it’s gotten raves at every festival so far this year doesn’t hurt, either. Most anticipated not just of the festival, but of the year.

Watch Trailer

Carnage

Director: Roman Polanski
Starring: Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz, John C. Reilly
Country: France/Germany/Poland/Spain
Synopsis:Razor-sharp and acidly funny, CARNAGE strips away the thin veneer of civilization to find the savage heart beating just below the surface. Adapting Yasmina Reza’s smash comedy play “God of Carnage” to the screen, Roman Polanski assembles a dream cast to portray two sets of New York City parents locked in a showdown after their children clash on a playground.
My take: Polanski plus these four actors piqued my interest already (as well as hearing very positive feedback from the play), but seeing the trailer sealed the deal. This looks HILARIOUS in the best way.

Watch Trailer

Shame

Director: Steve McQueen
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge Dale, Nicole Beharie
Synopsis: A searing examination of sexual compulsion, the film features two extraordinary performances. Michael Fassbender plays Brandon, a seemingly normal New Yorker trapped by his erotic compulsions. Carey Mulligan pivots 180 degrees from her sweet and vulnerable performance in AN EDUCATION as Sissy, Brandon’s needy, neurotic sister.
My take: This sounds both incredible and really hard to watch, at least it would be for me. I want to see it eventually, though, for sure, if only to see what is almost sure to be an Oscar-nominated performance from Fassbender. (Kurt’s review)

Watch Trailer

My Week With Marilyn

Director: Simon Curtis
Starring: Michelle Williams, Kenneth Branagh, Eddie Redmayne, Judi Dench, Emma Watson, Julia Ormond, Dougray Scott, Dominic Cooper
Country: United Kingdom
Synopsis: Michelle Williams gives a luminous performance as Marilyn Monroe, ably supported by Kenneth Branagh and Judi Dench in this intimate portrait of the tragic Hollywood icon.
My take: Advance reviews from people I trust take the film down a few notches for being pretty much your standard biopic, reinforcing the legend more than looking at the actress, but have had nothing but praise for Williams’ performance. As a huge fan of both Williams and Monroe, that’s enough for me.

Watch Trailer

A Separation

Director: Asghar Farhadi
Starring: Leila Hatami, Peyman Moadi, Shahab Hosseini, Sareh Bayat, Sarina Farhadi, Babak Karimi, Merila Zarei
Country: Iran
Synopsis: Winner of the Golden Bear in Berlin, this drama is a complex portrait of an Iranian family torn apart by a divorce and an escalating feud.
My take: This is Iran’s official Oscar entry, and everything I’ve heard about it has been great. It’s only scheduled ONCE at the festival, though, which made it difficult to squeeze in.

Watch Trailer

MY PLANNED SCREENINGS

I likely won’t make it to quite all of these, because some of my schedule for later days is still a bit in flux. But they’re all at least tentatively on there for now. I’m also planning on hitting two or three of the short programs, but I don’t usually research those in advance, just fit them into my schedule as possible. I will recommend Shorts Program 1 if you’re attending the fest because it has The Eagleman Stag in it, which was easily the best short I saw at LAFF – it won the best short subject award at that fest, and I’d be surprised if it doesn’t come up for an animated short nomination at the Oscars.

Melancholia

Director: Lars von Trier
Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Alexander Skarsgård, Charlotte Rampling, Brady Corbet, John Hurt, Stellan Skarsgård, Kiefer Sutherland
Country: Denmark/Sweden/France/Italy
Synopsis: Denmark’s most celebrated and notorious filmmaker returns with a drama about depression, severely dysfunctional families, and the end of the world.
My take: I’m generally a fan of von Trier, provocateur that he is, and if anything, this looks like his most accessible, most lyrical film in…ever, really. It’s getting praise even from people who don’t like him, while not losing the support of those that do. I’ve been looking forward to it for a long time.

Watch Trailer

The Day He Arrives

Director: Hong Sang-soo
Starring: Yu Jun-sang, Kim Sang-joong, Song Sun-mi, Kim Bok-yung
Country: South Korea
Synopsis: In director Hong Sang-soo’s sublime black-and-white vision of Seoul in winter, a filmmaker’s visit to an old friend reverberates with déjà vu-inducing parallels and repetitions.
My take: Hong Sang-soo’s HaHaHa was one of my favorite films of last year’s AFI Fest, so I was excited about this as soon as I heard about it a few months ago and was really hoping AFI would program it.

Watch Trailer

This is Not a Film

Director: Jafar Panahi, Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
Starring: Jafar Panahi
Country: Iran
Synopsis: Banned by Iran from filmmaking for 20 years and threatened with imprisonment, Jafar Panahi offers a remarkable portrait of an artist at the crossroads.
My take: I’m slowly gaining a thing for Iranian film, especially underground Iranian film (I’ve seen and enjoyed one at every festival I’ve been to so far), and though I haven’t seen any of Jafar Panahi’s films, I’ve certainly heard of some – The Circle and Offside are both well-known in world cinema circles. Filmmaking is risky in Iran, though, requiring permits and government approval – Panahi’s personal account of running afoul of the government is sure to be fascinating.

Watch Trailer

Pina

Director: Wim Wenders
Country: Germany/France
Synopsis: Wim Wenders captures the world of choreographer Pina Bausch and her dance company in spectacular 3D with thrilling performances of many of her most famous works.
My take: I’m not a huge fan of 3D, but my best experience with it was Herzog’s Cave of Forgotten Dreams last year, and I think Wenders’ use of it in a dance performance piece could be amazing as well. Even the 2D clips in the trailer are pretty exhilarating.

Watch Trailer

We Need to Talk About Kevin

Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly, Ezra Miller
Country: United Kingdom
Synopsis: Tilda Swinton gives a remarkable performance as Eva, a reluctant mother whose life is shattered beyond repair by her son’s Columbine-like atrocity.
My take: Personally, I don’t gravitate toward school-shooting movies, but everything I’ve heard about this one (including Kurt’s numerous affirmations – review) says that it’s far from your typical take on the genre, instead focusing on the parents in a way that almost turns the film into psychological horror.

Watch Trailer

Headhunters

Director: Morten Tyldum
Starring: Aksel Hennie, Synnøve Macody Lund, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
Country: Norway
Synopsis: In this thriller, corporate headhunter by day, art thief by night Roger will do anything to keep his gorgeous wife happy, even stealing from the wrong adversary.
My take: This has been getting solid reviews (Kurt’s) from the genre festival circuit (it played Midnight Madness at TIFF), and it certainly looks right up my alley. Even that screenshot above is awesome.

Watch Trailer

Target

Director: Alexander Zeldovich
Starring: Maxim Sukhanov, Justine Waddell, Danila Kozlovsky, Daniela Stoyanovich
Country: Russia
Synopsis: In this flamboyant and ambitious Russian science fiction drama, a wealthy couple from Moscow search for the source of eternal youth.
My take: This wasn’t on my radar at all, one of the few I’m really hoping to see that I hadn’t heard of at all before the fest. But I’m always up for foreign arthouse sci-fi, and the trailer looks GORGEOUS.

Watch Trailer

Le cercle rouge (1970)

Director: Jean-Pierre Melville
Starring: Alain Delon, André Bourvil, Gian Maria Volontè, Yves Montand, Paul Crauchet, Paul Amiot, Pierre Collet, André Ekyan, Jean-Pierre Posier, François Périer
Country: France
Synopsis: “LE CERCLE ROUGE is one of those rare, very personal films that achieve the miracle of entertaining all kinds of spectators. It relates in meticulous detail the drama of a robbery in an elegant Parisian jewelry store, but it brilliantly combines the action scenes with the descriptions of the men who commit the robbery and the policeman who pursues them.” ~ Pedro Almodovar
My take: This is a film I’ve been wanting to see for a long time, as a fan of Melville’s other crime films (especially Le samouraï, which also stars Delon). I usually don’t see rep stuff at festivals because I’d rather focus on new stuff, but in this case the timeslot worked out, and I’m really looking forward to seeing this on the big screen for the first time.

Watch Trailer

Extraterrestrial

Director: Nacho Vigalondo
Starring: Julian Villagran, Michelle Jenner, Raul Cimas, Carlos Areces, Miguel Noguera
Country: Spain
Synopsis: TIMECRIMES director Nacho Vigalondo’s surprising second feature finds an alien invasion providing the backdrop for one of the most delightful romantic comedies in years.
My take: I loved Vigalonodo’s Timecrimes, and though the concept of this one isn’t grabbing me as immediately as that one (time travel > aliens), I’m still on board to see what he comes up with.

Watch Trailer

Cafe de Flore

Director: Jean-Marc Vallé
Starring: Vanessa Paradis, Kevin Parent, Hélène Florent, Evelyne Brochu
Country: Canada
Synopsis:In his follow-up to C.R.A.Z.Y., Jean-Marc Vallée tells two parallel stories connected by music about a Montreal D.J. and a mother devoted to her special-needs son.
My take: I wasn’t aware of this film at all until Bob posted a rave review and said he didn’t think he’d see a better film all year. Bob and I tend to have pretty similar taste, so I’m sold.

Watch Trailer

The Kid With a Bike

Director: Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
Starring: Cécile de France, Thomas Doret, Jérémie Renier Fabrizio Rongione, Egon Di Mateo, Olivier Gourmet
Country: Belgium
Synopsis: Winner of the Grand Prix at Cannes, the Dardenne brothers’ latest is the story of a feisty 11-year-old who must overcome his parents’ abandonment.
My take: I’ve had my eye on the Dardennes for a while, but have never actually seen any of their films. This looks to be the year that changes, with a sweet-looking coming-of-age-way-too-young story.

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Kill List

Director: Ben Wheatley
Starring: Neil Maskell, Michael Smiley, MyAnna Buring
Country: United Kingdom
Synopsis: As bills stack up and pressures at home mount, an unemployed dad realizes it’s time to get back on the horse and kill some people.
My take: I’ve heard both extremely positive and extremely negative things about this film; I suspect I will like the general idea but may find it too brutal for my tastes. But this is a midnight film and has no competition, so I miss out on a time slot if I don’t see it. I do generally like British hitman thrillers, so there’s that.

Watch Trailer

Spark of Being

Director: Bill Morrison
Country: United States
Synopsis: Award-winning experimental film director Bill Morrison masterfully retells the classic tale of Frankenstein, using meticulously repurposed found footage.
My take: Come on. It’s a found footage version of Frankenstein. How the heck am I not gonna be interested in that? The most experimental feature film at the festival, too, and that certainly piques my curiosity.

Watch Trailer

Bonsái

Director: Cristián Jiménez
Starring: Diego Noguera, Natalia Galgani, Gabriela Arancibia, Trinidad González, Hugo Medina
Country: Chile
Synopsis: In Cristián Jiménez’s wry and nostalgic tale of love and literature, struggling writer Julio revisits and revises his memories of his college romance with Emilia.
My take: Movies or books that take literature as a basis for interrogating memory and the lines between reality and fiction are some of my favorites, and it looks like that’s what this is doing – definitely whets my interest.

Watch Trailer

Once Upon a Time in Anatolia

Director: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Starring: Muhammet Uzuner, Yilmaz Erdogan,Taner Birsel, A. Mumtaz Taylan, Ercan Kesal
Country: Turkey
Synopsis: A confessed killer leads detectives to his victim’s body in this slow-burning and far from routine police procedural from Turkish master Nuri Bilge Ceylan.
My take: I’ve never seen a Turkish film! This looks like a serious slow burn, and maybe not in a good way, but I do like police procedurals that don’t quite play by the rules, so I’ll give it a chance.

Watch Trailer

The Loneliest Planet

Director: Julia Loktev
Starring: Gael García Bernal, Hani Furstenberg, Bidzina Gujabidze
Country: Germany/USA
Synopsis: Intensely in love and engaged to be married, Alex and Nica live, breathe and yearn for travel adventures. The journey through the mythical hills begins blissfully, but abruptly spins off course due to one crucial action that plunges the couple into a haze of disconnection and doubt.
My take: Yeah, I like this still. And Bernal. This is mostly just a gut feeling that I want to check this film out, which is something I try to listen to at festivals – sometimes gut feelings are totally wrong, but sometimes they bring me wonderful finds.

The Dish & the Spoon

Director: Alison Bagnall
Starring: Greta Gerwig, Olly Alexander, Eleonore Hendricks, Adam Rothenberg, Amy Seimetz
Country: United States
Synopsis: Furious over her husband’s infidelity, Rose recklessly drives to her parent’s deserted beach house with a single goal: revenge. Along the way, Rose meets a young British teen who tags along to bear witness to Rose’s rage-filled, and often humorous, meltdowns.
My take: There seems to be some Mumblecore in this film, but Bagnall has been in the indie film world for a while. I’ll see most anything with Gerwig, and the SXSW clip below is pretty winning.

Watch Clip

Attenberg

Director: Athina Rachel Tsangari
Starring: Ariane Labed, Vangelis Mourikis, Evangelia Randou, Yorgos Lanthimos
Country: Greece
Synopsis: Awaiting her father’s impending death, 23-year-old Marina explores her newly awakened sexuality through lessons from her only friend Bella and with Spyros, a visiting engineer.
My take: Greek cinema is turning heads in the festival world over the past couple of years, with Tsangari near the forefront of what may be a new wave – she’s also acted as producer on Yorgos Lanthimos’s films (he appears in this one). Getting in on the forefront of an exciting new national cinema movement interests me more than the plot of this film, but sometimes that’s enough.

Watch Trailer

Oslo, August 31

Director: Joachim Trier
Starring: Anders Danielsen Lie, Hans Olav Brenner, Ingrid Olava, Johanne Kjellevik Ledang
Country: Norway
Synopsis: In Joachim Trier’s follow-up to REPRISE, a young man fresh out of rehab journeys through Oslo confronting the ghosts of his past and an uncertain future.
My take: A day in the life of a recovering junkie in Oslo sounds like a downer, but it got rave reviews out of TIFF (including LOVES from Bob and Kurt in our TIFF recap post, and it definitely sounds worth a look.

Watch Trailer

Snowtown

Director: Justin Kurzel
Starring: Lucas Pittaway, Daniel Henshall, Louise Harris
Country: Australia
Synopsis: In his feature film debut, director Justin Kurzel brings to the screen the horrifying true story of Australia’s most notorious serial killer.
My take: I’ve loved other Australian crime films (notably The Square and Animal Kingdom, but I hear this one is incredibly brutal and hard to watch (David’s review), yet also amazingly powerful and one of the best films of the year. I’m kind of torn, but I’m leaning towards it over against any of its timeslot competition.

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Faust

Director: Alexandr Sokurov
Starring: Johannes Zeiler, Anton Adasinskiy, Isolda Dychauk, Georg Friedrich, Hanna Schygulla
Country: Russia (but German-language)
Synopsis: RUSSIAN ARK director Alexander Sokurov offers a poetic meditation on Goethe’s legend of the scholar who exchanges his soul for unlimited knowledge.
My take: I’ve only seen Russian Ark among Sokurov’s filmography, and this looks nothing like that. But I do like the Faust story, and I am curious to see more Sokurov stuff.

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Coriolanus

Director: Ralph Fiennes
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Gerard Butler, Brian Cox, Vanessa Redgrave, Jessica Chastain
Country: United Kingdom
Synopsis: In his directing debut, Ralph Fiennes masterfully adapts Shakespeare’s gripping tragedy about power, politics and pride into a bracingly modern and urgent political thriller.
My take: I’ve heard mixed reactions to this coming out of TIFF, and it’s a Shakespeare play I don’t know at ALL, but that cast is hard to beat. I’m going in with low expectations, but we’ll see how it goes.

Watch Trailer

Mama Africa

Director: Mika Kaurismäki
Country: Germany/South Africa/Finland
Synopsis: The late, great Miriam Makeba (1932-2008) was one of the most charismatic African performers of her time. At the height of her popularity in Africa, Makeba boldly took a public anti-apartheid stand that led to the revocation of her passport and the beginning of a lifetime in exile.
My take: I’m not a documentary person by nature, but I try to slip one in once in a while. This one looks very intriguing, as it ties into the black Hollywood experience that I keep running up against at the TCM Festivals, but this time it’s a South African singer forced to relocate to the United States mid-century due to her political stance. Seeing this depends on a few scheduling quirks later in the week, but I’m intrigued.

Watch Trailer

The Silver Cliff

Director: Karim Aïnouz
Starring: Alessandra Negrini, Thiago Martins, Gabi Pereira, Otto Jr., Carla Ribas
Country: Brazil
Synopsis: Abandoned with shocking cruelty by her husband, Violeta embarks on a heartbroken 24-hour odyssey through the bustling and beautiful cityscape of Rio de Janeiro.
My take: I don’t know how interested in this one I am (the trailer below is just a teeny clip that says very little about the film), but it’s basically the only thing in its timeslot, and I do tend to like films that foreground city locations, which it sounds like this one does.

Watch Trailer

Beyond the Black Rainbow

Director: Panos Cosmatos
Starring: Michael Rogers, Eva Allan, Scott Hylands
Country: United States
Synopsis: An intense and hallucinogenic sci-fi film set in 1983, director Panos Cosmatos’ BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW is a one-of-a-kind film experience.
My take: I have NO IDEA what this is going to be like. But there’s no competition for midnight films, so might as well check it out and see.

Watch Trailer

Lynne Ramsay’s new film on parenthood, the aftermath of school shootings, and the psychological horror that accompanies both has been gathering great press at festivals, including enthusiastic support from our own Kurt Halfyard. I’m definitely interested in anything Tilda Swinton does – she makes some bold choices in projects and is always more than up to the task of whatever a director can throw at her. The new one sheet is pretty sharp, and definitely reinforces my intention to see the film at AFI Fest in Hollywood this week, where it screens on November 7th and 8th. Tickets to AFI Fest screenings are free and available now at the AFI Fest website; they release tickets each day and the rush line usually gets in, so don’t give up if they show sold out when you check.

The last groups of films have been announced for AFI Fest 2011 Presented by Audi, which runs November 4th-10th in downtown Hollywood, and I have to say it’s quite a strong program, especially in the Galas and Special Screenings category. I usually don’t go to the galas at AFI or LAFF because most of the films come out soon enough anyway and I prefer to spend my time with smaller stuff, but I think I’m going to have to break that rule to get to see The Artist and Carnage as early as possible. We’re also getting Steve McQueen’s Shame, Luc Besson’s The Lady and My Week With Marilyn as Gala screenings, along with an Evening with Pedro Almodóvar featuring Law of Desire. A lot of stuff from TIFF, but that’s par for the course. AFI’s niche is kind of a “fest of fests” – not too many world premieres, but a pretty comprehensive roundup of the most highly acclaimed films from TIFF, Venice, Cannes, SXSW, Sundance, and other fests.

In the Special Screenings category, I’m most excited about Lars von Trier’s Melancholia, Lynne Ramsay’s We Need to Talk About Kevin (thanks to Kurt’s constant plugging!), and Wim Wender’s foray into 3D filmmaking with the dance doc Pina. So far Herzog’s Cave of Forgotten Dreams has been my favorite use of 3D, and I’m hoping that Wenders can match it. Herzog’s Into the Abyss is also playing AFI this year as a Special Screening, but I’m not sure I can take the subject matter of that one. I might also catch my first Dardenne brothers film with The Kid with a Bike.

Usually the World Cinema is where I find the bulk of interesting films, and there are a number catching my eye here, but not really as many as I remember last year. Maybe I’m looking back with rose-colored glasses. Anyway, I’m definitely going to catch Hong Sang-Soo’s The Day He Arrives after loving his HaHaHa so much last year, and Bob’s glowing review of Café de Flore will almost certainly land it on my schedule as well. I’m curious about Yorgos Lanthimos’s second film Alps, even though I haven’t seen Dogtooth – with both Alps and Attenberg playing the festival, I may get a double-dose of Greek cinema. Béla Tarr’s The Turin Horse will be here, which our own Domenic hails as a masterpiece, and Iran’s A Separation has not only been getting strong reviews from all quarters, but it’s Iran’s official Oscar nominee as well. I’m also curious to check out Joshua Marston’s The Forgiveness of Blood and Nacho Vigalondo’s Extraterrestrial, having been a big fan of their respective previous films Maria Full of Grace and Timecrimes.

There are only a few films in the Breakthrough and Midnight sections – Breakthrough is for films chosen via the festival submission process, Midnight for genre fare. I keep hoping AFI will ramp up their Midnight section one of these years, but so far they’re keeping it small, only three films this year: Beyond the Black Rainbow, Headhunters, and Kill List. I was really hoping to see The Raid in this section, but oh well. I’ll probably try to get to Headhunters for sure, and possibly Kill List. We’ll have to see.

I already wrote a bit about the New Auteurs, Young Americans, and Joe Swanberg sections, so I won’t repeat myself on those. I will, however, post the full lineup under the seats, including those sections.

Click through to see the full line-up. Tell me what else I should be seeing!

GALAS

THE ARTIST: DIR Michel Hazanavicius.

CARNAGE: DIR Roman Polanski.

THE LADY: DIR Luc Besson.

LAW OF DESIRE: An Evening with Pedro Almodover

MY WEEK WITH MARILYN: DIR Simon Curtis.

SHAME: DIR Steve McQueen.

SPECIAL SCREENINGS

BUTTER: DIR Jim Field Smith.

CORIOLANUS: DIR Ralph Fiennes.

I MELT WITH YOU: DIR Mark Pellington.

INTO THE ABYSS: DIR Werner Herzog.

JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME: DIR Jay & Mark Duplass.

THE KID WITH A BIKE: DIR Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne.

MELANCHOLIA: DIR Lars von Trier.

MISS BALA: DIR Gerardo Naranjo.

PINA: DIR Wim Wenders.

RAMPART: DIR Oren Moverman.

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN: DIR Lynne Ramsay.

WORLD CINEMA

ALMAYER’S FOLLY: DIR/SCR Chantal Akerman. Belgium/France. U.S. Premiere.

ALPS: DIR Yorgos Lanthimos. SCR Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou. Greece/France. U.S. Premiere.

ARIRANG: DIR Kim Ki-duk. South Korea. U.S Premiere.

CAFÉ DU FLORE: DIR/SCR Jean-Marc Vallée. Canada. U.S. Premiere.

CARRÉ BLANC: DIR/SCR Jean-Baptiste Léonetti. France/Luxembourg/Russia/Belgium/Switzerland. U.S. Premiere.

THE DAY HE ARRIVES: DIR/SCR Hong Sang-Soo. South Korea. U.S. Premiere.

EXTRATERRESTRIAL: DIR/SCR Nacho Vigalondo. Spain.

FAUST: DIR Alexander Sokurov. SCR Alexander Sokurov, Marina Koreneva. Russia. U.S. Premiere.

FOOTNOTE: DIR/SCR Joseph Cedar. Israel. Israel’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.

THE FORGIVENESS OF BLOOD: DIR Joshua Marston. SCR Joshua Marston, Andamion Murataj. USA/Albania/Denmark/Italy.

THE INVADER: DIR Nicolas Provost. SCR Nicolas Provost, Giordano Gederlini, François Pirot. Belgium. U.S Premiere.

JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI: DIR David Gelb. USA.

KINYARWANDA: DIR/SCR Alrick Brown. USA.

MAMA AFRICA: DIR Mika Kaurismäki. Germany/South Africa/Finland.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA: DIR Nuri Bilge Ceylan. SCR Ercan Kesal, Ebru Ceylan, Nuri Bilge Ceylan. Turkey/Bosnia/Herzegovina. Turkey’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.

PLAY: DIR/SCR Ruben Östlund. Sweden/France/Denmark.

A SEPARATION: DIR/SCR Asghar Farhadi. Iran. Iran’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.

THE SILVER CLIFF: DIR Karim Aïnouz. SCR Beatriz Brachner, Karim Aïnouz. Brazil.

TARGET: DIR Alexander Zeldovich. SCR Vladimir Sorokin, Alexander Zeldovich. Russia.

THIS IS NOT A FILM: DIR/SCR Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Jafar Panahi. Iran.

THE TURIN HORSE: DIR Béla Tarr. SCR Béla Tarr, László Krasznahorkai. Hungary. Hungary’s official foreign-language Oscar submission.

BREAKTHROUGH

EXPECTING: DIR/SCR Francisca Fuenzalida. Chile. U.S. Premiere.

LIGHT OF MINE: DIR Brett Eichenberger. SCR Jill Remensnyder. USA.

THREE AND A HALF: DIR/SCR Naghi Nemati. Iran. U.S. Premiere.

WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT: DIR/SCR Alexandra-Therese Keining. Sweden. World Premiere.

MIDNIGHT

BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW: DIR/SCR Panos Cosmatos. USA.

HEADHUNTERS: DIR Morten Tyldum. SCR Lars Gudmestad, Ulf Ryberg. Norway.

KILL LIST: DIR Ben Wheatley. SCR Ben Wheatley, Amy Jump. UK.

NEW AUTEURS

ATTENBERG: DIR/SCR Athina Rachel Tsangari. Greece.

BONSAI: DIR/SCR Cristián Jiménez. Chile/France/Argentina/Portugal.

BULLHEAD: DIR/SCR Michaël R. Roskam. Belgium.

HANAAN: DIR/SCR Ruslan Pak. Russia/South Korea/Uzbek.

THE LONELIEST PLANET: DIR/SCR Julia Loktev. USA/Germany.

MICHAEL: DIR/SCR Markus Schleinzer. Austria.

OSLO, AUGUST 31: DIR Joachim Trier. SCR Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier. Norway.

RESTLESS CITY: DIR Andrew Dosunmu. SCR Eugene Gussenhoven. USA.

SNOWTOWN: DIR Justin Kurzel. SCR Justin Kurzel, Shaun Grant. Australia.

YOUNG AMERICANS

THE COLOR WHEEL: DIR Alex Ross Perry. SCR Alex Ross Perry, Carlen Altman.

THE DISH & THE SPOON: DIR Alison Bagnall. SCR Alison Bagnall, Andrew Lewis.

DRAGONSLAYER: DIR Tristan Patterson. (Documentary)

GREEN: DIR/SCR Sophia Takal.

SPARK OF BEING: DIR Bill Morrison. (Experimental)

WUSS: DIR/SCR Clay Liford.

SPOTLIGHT ON JOE SWANBERG

ART HISTORY: DIR Joe Swanberg. SCR Joe Swanberg, Josephine Decker, Kent Osborne.

SILVER BULLETS: DIR/SCR Joe Swanberg.

THE ZONE: DIR/SCR Joe Swanberg. World Premiere.

As big-name festival season winds to a close in the wake of TIFF (though there are still plenty of other fests coming soon, as Andrew prepares for Flyaway and the Toronto-ites gear up for Toronto After Dark), AFI Fest is headed for its first week of November time slot, gathering the best of the rest of the year’s festivals together, along with a set of mainstream fall premieres and good chunk of smaller films from up and coming directors. This year’s fest, officially the AFI Fest 2011 Presented by Audi, will be the third AFI Fest in a row to provide free tickets to every screening, which is kind of a huge deal when most festival tickets are in the $12-20 range. Check the website at www.afi.com/afifest to see when tickets are going to be available, but even if the reserved tickets go quickly (and they do), there’s a very good chance at getting in via rush lines the day of the screening. There are also festival passes available if you’d rather not deal with the hassle of reserving tickets and rush lines.

This year Pedro Almodovar will serve as the festival’s artistic director; I can only hope we get as entertaining an intro video as David Lynch provided last year! Lineup announcements are still trickling out; they’ve already announced the opening film of the festival will be Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar, starring Leonardo diCaprio. Five other major Hollywood releases will join it as gala presentations at the landmark Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Last week, they also announced the first three programs of films, New Auteurs, Young Americans, and a Spotlight on Joe Swanberg. There are a few films I’m interested in here, especially in the New Auteurs section, but the majority of notable titles will likely come in the yet-to-be-announced World Cinema category.

New Auteurs selections:

The New Auteurs section highlights first and second-time feature film directors from around the world.

ATTENBERG: DIR/SCR Athina Rachel Tsangari. Greece.
BONSAI: DIR/SCR Cristián Jiménez. Chile/France/Argentina/Portugal.
BULLHEAD: DIR/SCR Michaël R. Roskam. Belgium.
HANAAN: DIR/SCR Ruslan Pak. Russia/South Korea/Uzbek.
THE LONELIEST PLANET: DIR/SCR Julia Loktev. USA/Germany.
MICHAEL: DIR/SCR Markus Schleinzer. Austria.
OSLO, AUGUST 31: DIR Joachim Trier. SCR Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier. Norway.
RESTLESS CITY: DIR Andrew Dosunmu. SCR Eugene Gussenhoven. USA.
SNOWTOWN: DIR Justin Kurzel. SCR Justin Kurzel, Shaun Grant. Australia.

Of this group, I’m most intrigued by Attenberg (though I still haven’t seen Greece’s other major film Dogtooth yet, I ought to get in on this new wave of Greek films that seems to be happening) and The Loneliest Planet, though I’ve also heard very good things about Oslo, August 31 (including “loved” ratings from both Kurt and Bob from TIFF) and Snowtown, though it doesn’t sound like much fun to watch. The only other one I’ve heard of out of this group is Michael, and I’m not sure such a portrait of a pedophile is something I need to see.

Check under the seats for the rest of the lineup so far.

Young Americans selections:

The Young Americans section features work by emerging U.S. filmmakers.

THE COLOR WHEEL: DIR Alex Ross Perry. SCR Alex Ross Perry, Carlen Altman.
THE DISH & THE SPOON: DIR Alison Bagnall. SCR Alison Bagnall, Andrew Lewis.
DRAGONSLAYER: DIR Tristan Patterson. (Documentary)
GREEN: DIR/SCR Sophia Takal.
SPARK OF BEING: DIR Bill Morrison. (Experimental)
WUSS: DIR/SCR Clay Liford.

I haven’t heard of any of these before; it’s quite possible they may be premieres, though the press release doesn’t say for sure. The film guide will once it comes out. Based on the still released so far, they mostly look like your standard young people’s indie American film (if you’ve seen many of these, you know what I mean), but even so, there’s usually one of these per festival that manages to impress me quite a lot, it’s just a question of picking which one to roll the dice on this year. The Dish and the Spoon has got Greta Gerwig in it, so that’s a leg up already.

Spotlight on Joe Swanberg:

SILVER BULLETS: DIR/SCR Joe Swanberg.
ART HISTORY: DIR Joe Swanberg. SCR Joe Swanberg, Josephine Decker, Kent Osborne.
THE ZONE: DIR/SCR Joe Swanberg. World Premiere.

One of the most highly prolific and visible members of the Mumblecore movement, Joe Swanberg has three films coming out this fall (four in 2011, including the already-released Uncle Kent), and AFI made a sidebar spotlight just for them. I’ve only seen one Swanberg film (Hannah Takes the Stairs) and while I liked it, I haven’t been in a huge hurry for more. Four in one year seems spread a little thin, too, but I guess we’ll find out.

Check below the seats to see the trailer.

The LA Film Festival is headed our way June 17-26, and I’ve watched the press releases with lineup info with great interest – this year I get to go to as much of the festival as I want, rather than the few films I could manage last year, so I’m setting myself up with a monster of a schedule. And it’s going to be a good one, I think; there are a lot of films on the list from notable directors and actors, several that have been hits on earlier festival stops, and of course, this being Los Angeles, a few obligatory big studio crowdpleasers in addition to the indie and world cinema offerings. The full lineup info is here.

The big gala presentations range from upcoming comic book geekery with Green Lantern to Nicholas Winding Refn’s thriller Drive (fresh off rave reviews from Cannes) to the premiere of Richard Linklater’s latest Bernie, with stops along the way for indie dramas (A Better Life), British genre films (Attack the Block), action thrillers (The Devil’s Double), and Guillermo Del Toro-produced scary fun (Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark). Even without delving past the galas, there’s something here for everyone. Bernie and Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark are the Opening and Closing Night films, respectively, so they’re reserved for passholders, but no fear – they’ll both be in theatres soon enough.

Beyond the galas, though, there are a lot of eye-catching films in the lineup. Here are some of the ones I’m hoping to see, followed by some other notable titles that I don’t think I’m going to be able to fit into my schedule. Feel free to try to change my mind, though, if you’ve seen any of these on earlier festival stops.

On my tentative schedule:

Drive (USA) – Okay, this is a gala, and I mentioned it already, but it is the only gala I’m planning to see, so I’ll toss it in again. The “trailer” for this so far is really just a clip of Ryan Gosling driving a group of thugs away from a crime, but even that is as compelling as all get-out, so I can’t wait to see the rest of it.

Winnie the Pooh (USA) – The Festival is sneaking in Disney’s retro animated feature under the “Summer Showcase” sidebar rather than as a gala, which is an intriguing choice. I worry about what that says about Disney’s hopes for the film, but it may make it easier for me to watch at the fest if I choose to do so.

The Future (USA) – The new film from Miranda July (You and Me and Everyone We Know) is making its debut at the festival, promising a meditative crisis of perceived mortality.

The Innkeepers (USA) – Ti West’s follow-up to Row Three favorite House of the Devil, which looks to be another old-fashioned horror offering.

The Guard (Ireland) – An Irish comedy pairing up Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle as mismatched cop-and-FBI partners? My first thought was it would be a bit too In the Heat of the Night, but the recent trailer allayed those fears, and I’m totally in.

Another Earth (USA) – This film’s trailer is already playing in theatres, and I can’t tell for sure whether it’s more thinking person’s sci-fi or maudlin emo drama, but the base concept of duplicate Earth showing up one day is so intriguing I have to check it out.

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (Brazil) – I haven’t seen Jose Padilha’s first Elite Squad movie, but that isn’t stopping me from checking out the sequel, an action-packed thriller set in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. Looks like Marina quite liked the first entry.

Kawasaki’s Rose (Czech Republic) – Just as a renowned Czech psychiatrist is about to be honored for resisting Communist rule in Czechsolovakia, it’s discovered that he was actually a collaborator – sounds a bit heavy, but director Jan Hrebjk’s Divided We Fall (2001) dealt with WWII collaborators, too, and I loved that film.

Love Crime (France) – Alain Corneau’s latest is a suspense thriller starring Kristin Scott Thomas (she seems to be doing more French roles than English ones lately) and Ludivine Segnier – I’m a total sucker for French cinema, so this was an easy pick.

Karate-Robo Zaborgar (Japan) – This just looks so batshit insane I have to give it a look. From the guide: “Japan’s scientists, politicians and businessmen are in grave danger. The evil secret society Sigma, led by the nefarious Dr. Akunomiya and aided by Miss Borg, a beautiful man-hating cyborg, has been stealing their DNA and using it to build a giant cybernetic robot. The only man who can stop them is secret agent Daimon, who rides a motorcycle that also happens to be a robot with mad karate skills.”

Terri (USA) – A high school outsider story, which don’t tend to be necessarily my favorite thing ever, but with John C. Reilly on board and what looks like a solid performance by young actor Jacob Wysocki, this one might be worthwhile.

Mysteries of Lisbon (Portugal) – I’m a bit wary of planning to see a 4 1/2 hour film, but at the same time, its very length is presenting itself as a challenge to me. I kind of can’t stand to let it go by without giving a chance, and everything I’ve read about the stories-within-stories of Raúl Ruiz’s film make it sound like exactly my kind of thing. (Marina’s VIFF Review)

Haunters (South Korea) – I’m setting myself up for a double-dose of Korean genre films, starting with this one about a guy who can control people with his eyes, all except this other guy who naturally enough is the only person who can stop the first guy. Looks nice and over the top.

The Bad Intentions (Argentina) – A young girl finds out her mom’s going to have another baby, and is convinced that the baby’s birth will bring about her own death; in reaction, she acts out her resentments with morbid imagination. It actually looks like a really black comedy, and the trailer is pretty darkly funny.

The Yellow Sea (South Korea) – My second Korean genre pick is an action film; not entirely sure of the plot based on the trailer, but there’s a hitman and a job and a double-cross or something. Whatever, Korea has yet to let me down.

Sidewalls (Argentina) – A romantic comedy with a young man and woman who live in the same block, share the same interests, but somehow their paths don’t quite manage to intersect – the concept of near-possibility and missed chances is one that appeals to me in fiction, so this jumped right out of the program at me.

Mamitas and Entrance (USA) – Both these films were filmed (and are set) on the East Side of LA, areas where I spend a fair amount of time, pseudo-hipster that I am. That in itself makes me interested; add in the Raising Victor Vargas vibe I get from Mamitas and the low-budget thriller/horror aspect of Entrance, and I’m definitely curious about these two.

The Pruitt-Igoe Myth (USA) – A late addition to my schedule; I’m not particularly into documentaries, but I grew up in St. Louis, and though the Pruitt-Igoe projects were demolished before I was born, its legacy kind of lives on almost silently in St. Louis. I’m curious to learn more about it.

Unfinished Spaces (USA) – Another documentary, oddly enough another one about buildings – maybe I have an untapped interest in architecture? Heh. This one is about a 1961 project started by Fidel Castro to build a National Arts School in Cuba, which was abandoned when the Cuban Revolution associated with the Soviets.

Also notable:

Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (Hong Kong) – I’ve actually really wanted to see this Tsui Hark film since I heard about at some festival like a year ago, so I was excited to see it on the schedule – I think the overall feedback has been kind of lukewarm, but it looks so much fun. But it’s at a different venue and getting to it would mean missing two other films, so I’ll hold off for now.

Hot Coffee and Project Nim (USA) – Two films Row Three covered at Hot Docs show up as part of the free Community Screenings sidebar, so if McDonalds lawsuits and pet chimps are your thing and you live in LA, you can see them gratis. (Kurt’s Hot Coffee and Project Nim reviews)

The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman (USA) – I actually have very little idea what this is. The program bills it as a “Live Theatrical Event,” so I guess it’s a stage musical, but it also says that “Guy Maddin, who will be directing the feature film version, will give stage and cinematic directions to the cast” so there are cinematic elements? I don’t know, but it sounds cool. Different venue means I won’t make it over there, though. I guess I’ll have to wait for Maddin’s film version.

Tyrannosaur (UK) – Actor Paddy Considine makes his feature directing debut with a really dark-sounding film about a widower torn between his moral compass and his all-encompassing rage. Stars Peter Mullan, which is a good sign.

Page One: Inside the New York Times (USA) – Despite my apathy toward documentaries, I actually really want to see this one; I just wanted to see other things more. It seems to be about more than just the NYTimes, but about the whole newspaper crisis in general, focused on the NYT as one of the most prestigious and prominent examples.

An Ordinary Family (USA) – Mike Akel’s follow-up to Chalk, which I didn’t see but meant to, makes its world premiere.

Christopher and His Kind (UK) – A biopic of writer Christopher Isherwood, with Doctor Who‘s Matt Smith as Isherwood going to Berlin in the Weimar era and meeting the decadent and diverse people who would populate his work (and adaptations of it, including Cabaret).

Higher Ground (USA) – Actress Vera Farmiga, who I’ve gotten to like a fair bit over the past few years, makes her directorial debut with this film about a young woman (not Vera, though she does play a role in the film) discovering her spiritual path. This looks like the kind of spiritual-themed film that I don’t like, but I am intrigued by Farmiga’s involvement.

L!fe Happens (USA) – I have a new rule about not going to movies with numerals or punctuation in the middle of words. But this does have Rachel Bilson, Kate Bosworth, Jason Biggs, and others in it, and is set in Silverlake, so it’s got some name recognition. It’ll probably be too damn hip for its own good. I’m sorry, I mean h!p.

Skateistan (Afghanistan) – A doc about a group of Australian aide workers in Afghanistan who bring in skateboards and build a skate park for kids, crossing religious, ethnic, and gender barriers as they do so.

There are lots more films on tap for the festival, both big and small, and that’s not even touching on the retro screening series, which brings things as varied as Wolfgang Petersen’s Das Boot, Elia Kazan’s Wild River and John Singleton’s Boyz n the Hood to the screen, or the numerous panels and events going on throughout the week. I’m going to try to get to the Conversation with Julie Taymor, though I have to admit my interest in the Conversation with James Franco is pretty low. Ah, well. I’m sure that one will be full enough without me. But it looks like a wonderful full week of films, and if I find anything half as good as The New Year (my favorite film last year, discovered at LAFF), I’ll be happy.

You can find the whole line-up and buy tickets for individual films here.

My full review is here.

The trailer is under the seats. Check out the film in limited release and probably VOD July 22nd.

The new releases this week are fairly uninteresting, so I put the classics at the top. A Criterion release of a Chaplin classic is much more worthy of attention. Other than that, it’s a pretty slow week for DVDs/blu-rays, but we get the usual first-of-the-month spate of Instant Watches. I’ve only highlighted a few, in keeping with this new, slightly pared-down format, so be sure to check out the “more” sections. Lots of good stuff in there. A lot of expirations on the first as well, so keep an eye out for those.

CLASSIC PICKS OF THE WEEK

The Great Dictator Criterion
Chaplin’s first full-sound film has him playing a Jewish barber who happens to be a dead ringer for Hitler. It wasn’t common by 1940 to be taking satirical potshots at Hitler, and the film was rather controversial because of it, in fact contributed to Chaplin being forced out of Hollywood as a suspected Communist. Which is all rather silly looking back at this masterpiece and its impassioned message of peace and tolerance, told as always with great charm and humor. BUY
1940 USA. Director: Charles Chaplin. Starring: Charles Chaplin, Paulette Goddard.
Amazon DVD | Amazon Blu-ray | Netflix

Vitaphone Varieties
From the Warner Archives collection comes a 4-DVD set of early Vitaphone shorts – if you thought sound started with The Jazz Singer, think again. These Warner shorts are where they first tested the synchronized sound system that would soon take the world by storm. They’re mostly musical or vaudeville acts, an invaluable insight into a time past. Not sure whether I can afford this set right now, but it’s definitely on my list. BUY, if you’re a film history buff
1926-1930 USA. Director: various. Starring: various.
Amazon DVD (Warner Archive)

OTHER CLASSICS
Le Mans (1971 USA, dir Lee H. Katzin, stars Steve McQueen, Siegfried Rauch; Blu-ray, Netflix)
The Boy Friend (1971 UK/USA, dir Ken Russell, stars Twiggy, Christopher Gable)
One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich (2000 France, dir Chris Marker, doc about Andrei Tarkovsky)

NEW RELEASE PICKS OF THE WEEK

In the City of Sylvia
I’ve been looking forward to checking out this surrealistic look at a romance and a city since I first heard about it on the festival circuit like three years ago. So glad to see it finally getting a release. From the description, it sounds like what an Italo Calvino book would be like if filmed. RENT
2007 Spain/France. Director: José Luis Guerín. Starring: Pilar López de Ayala, Xavier Lafitte.
Amazon DVD | Netflix

Public Speaking
In a similar vein to what Soderbergh has done with his Spaulding Gray films, Scorsese takes on a documentary about one of New York City’s prominent essayists, Fran Lebowitz, editing together footage of interviews and public speaking engagements to build a portrait of this sardonic individual. The trailer for this interested me much more than I expected. RENT
2011 USA. Director: Martin Scorsese. Starring: Fran Lebowitz.
Amazon DVD | Netflix

I Am Number Four
Okay, so this doesn’t really look that good, but I figured I oughtta put something relatively mainstream in here. Why? I dunno. Anyway, I didn’t hate DJ Caruso’s Disturbia, and I quite like both Olyphant and Agron, and…yeah. That’s all I got. Might not be too disappointing a popcorn rental. MAYBE RENT
2011 USA. Director: D.J. Caruso. Starring: Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Dianna Agron.
Amazon DVD | Amazon Blu-ray | Netflix

OTHER NEW RELEASES
Gnomeo & Juliet (2011 USA, dir Kelly Asbury, stars James McAvoy, Emily Blunt; Blu-ray/3D Blu-ray/Netflix)
The Big Bang (2011 USA, dir Tony Krantz, stars Antonio Banderas, Autumn Reeser; Blu-ray/Netflix)
Bitter/Sweet (2009 USA, dir Jeff Hare, stars Kip Pardue, James Brolin; Netflix)
Burning Palms (2010 USA, dir Christopher Landon, stars Zoe Saldana, Nick Stahl; Blu-ray/Netflix)
Cruzando (2009 USA, dir Mando Alvarado, Michael Ray Escamilla, stars David Barrera; Netflix)
Anton Chekhov’s The Duel (2010 USA, dir Dover Koshashvili, stars Andrew Scott, Fiona Glascott; Blu-ray/Netflix)
The End of Poverty? (2009 USA, dir Philippe Diaz, stars John Christensen, William Easterly; Blu-ray/Netflix)
Forget Me Not (2009 USA, dir Tyler Oliver, stars Carly Schroeder, Cody Linley; Netflix)
Johnny (2010 USA, dir D. David Morin, stars Lee Majors, Mel Fair; Netflix)
Mad World (2010 USA, dir Cory Cataldo, stars Gary Cairns, Dylan Vigus; Netflix)
Picasso & Braque Go to the Movies (2008 USA, dir Aren Glimcher, stars Owen Lund, Julian Schnabel; Netflix)
The Scenesters (2010 USA, dir Todd Berger, stars Blaise Miller, Sherilyn Fenn; Netflix)
A Small Act (2010 USA, dir Jennifer Arnold; Netflix)
Thank You (2011 India, dir Anees Bazmee, stars Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor)
Transcendent Man: The Life and Ideas of Ray Kurzweil (2009 USA, dir Robert Barry Ptolemy; Netflix)
The Unloved (2009 UK, dir Samantha Morton, stars Robert Carlyle, Molly Windsor; Netflix)
Violet Tendencies (2010 USA, dir Casper Andreas, stars Mindy Cohn, Marcus Patrick; Netflix)

BLU-RAY PICKS OF THE WEEK

Solaris Criterion Blu-ray
Andrei Tarkovsky’s slow-burn cerebral sci-fi film has been high on my list for a long time, and it can only be more awesome in blu-ray, which Criterion is releasing this week. It’s also getting a rerelease on DVD with new cover art, which unfortunately is much less appealing to me than its original cover art. Can’t win ‘em all. BUY
1972 Russia. Director: Andrei Tarkovsky. Starring: Natalya Bondarchuk, Juri Jarvet.
Amazon Blu-ray | Amazon DVD (re-release) | Netflix

Platoon
Best Picture and Director Oscar winner for 1986, a physically and psychologically brutal examination of combat in Vietnam through the eyes of a young volunteer who finds he’s not valued in his unit due to inexperience and then ends up at odds over an illegal killing in a raid.
1986 USA. Director: Oliver Stone. Starring: Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger.
Amazon Blu-ray/DVD combo | Netflix

OTHER BLU-RAYS
Gettysburg: Director’s Cut (1993 USA, dir Ronald F. Maxwell, stars Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen, Stephen Lang; DVD/Netflix)
Gods and Generals: Extended Director’s Cut (2003 USA, dir Ronald F. Maxwell, stars Jeff Daniels, Stephen Lang; DVD/Netflix)
Grand Prix (1966 USA, dir John Frankenheimer, stars James Garner, Eva Marie Saint; DVD/Netflix)
Papillon (1973 USA, dir Franklin J. Schaffner, stars Steve McQueen, Dustin Hoffman; DVD/Netflix)
Tigerland (2000 USA, dir Joel Schumacher, stars Colin Farrell, Matthew Davis; DVD/Netflix)

TELEVISION PICKS OF THE WEEK

Transformers: The Complete Series
Tired of Michael Bay’s overblown extravaganzas? The full box set of the original 1980s series is here to assuage your nostalgia. BUY if you’re a fan
1984-1987 USA. Creator: Peter Wallach. Starring: Frank Welker, Peter Cullen, Chris Latta.
Amazon DVD | Netflix

Samurai Champloo: The Complete Series
A lot of people recommended this series to me after I loved Cowboy Bebop, but I haven’t had time to jump into another anime series yet. Should I make this my next one? RENT/BUY
2004-2005 Japan. Creator: Shirô Sasaki. Starring: Kazuy Nakai, Ginpei Sato.
Amazon DVD | Amazon Blu-ray | Netflix

OTHER TELEVISION
Children’s Hospital: Seasons 1 & 2 (2008-2009 USA, creator Rob Corddry, stars Lake Bell, Rob Huebel; Netflix)
Ice Road Truckers: Deadliest Roads: Season 1 (2010 USA, stars Hugh Rowland, Alex Debogorski; Blu-ray/Netflix)
Lemonade Mouth (2011 USA, dir Patricia Riggen, stars Bridgit Mendler, Adam Hicks; Netflix)
Melissa & Joey (2010 USA, creator David Kendall, Bob Young, stars Melissa Joan Hart, Joseph Lawrence; Netflix)
The Royal Wedding: William & Catherine (2011 UK, stars Prince William, Kate Middleton; Netflix)

INSTANT WATCH PICKS OF THE WEEK

Manhattan [6/1]
One of Woody Allen’s best films; he’s a neurotic intellectual New Yorker caught between his ex-wife Meryl Streep, his teenage mistress Mariel Hemingway, and Diane Keaton, who just might be his match. Black and white cinematography, a great script, and a Gershwin soundtrack combine to create near perfection.
1979 USA. Director: Woody Allen. Starring: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway.

Crimes and Misdemeanors [6/1]
One of Allen’s most thoughtful and philosophically astute films about broken relationships and betrayed ideals – there are few answers here, but the questions will stay in your mind forever.
1989 USA. Director: Woody Allen. Starring: Woody Allen, Martin Landau, Anjelica Huston.

Hannah and Her Sisters [6/1]
This has all the elements Allen is known for – neurotic characters, infidelity, a tendency to philosophize randomly, New York City, dysfunctional family dynamics, acerbic wit – and blends them together much more cogently and evenly than most of his films do.
1986 USA. Director: Woody Allen. Starring: Mia Farrow, Diane Wiest, Barbara Hershey, Michael Caine.

The Silence of the Lambs [6/1]
Only three films have ever swept the top five Oscars (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Screenplay), and this is one of them, managing both to be a solid serial killer thriller and something more, in its exploration of psychosis and the demons we all hide inside ourselves.
1991 USA. Director: Jonathan Demme. Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins.

The Hustler [6/1]
One of Paul Newman’s most memorable roles as pool sharp Fast Eddie Felson – there’s a lot more going on here than just hustling suckers, though, as Fast Eddie goes from top to bottom and realizes what kind of sacrifices he might have to make to get back up.
1961 USA. Director: Robert Rossen. Starring: Paul Newman, George C. Scott, Jackie Gleason.

Anvil! The Story of Anvil
A big favorite at Row Three, a documentary about an influential but never very famous metal band trying to make a comeback and win their audience – I STILL have not seen it, but now hopefully that’ll change.
2008 Canada. Director: Sacha Gervasi. Starring: Robb Reiner, Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow, Tiziana Arrigoni.

The Fly [6/1]
Cronenberg’s remake of the cult classic, which many say is even better than the original. I missed it last time it was on Instant, but I love the 1958 version, so if this one is better, sign me up.
1986 USA. Director: David Cronenberg. Starring: Jeff Goldblum, Geena Davis.

Diary of a Lost Girl [6/1]
One of a couple of films Pabst made with style-setter Louise Brooks, and one that’s been on my list since I started getting into silent film.
1929 Germany. Director: G.W. Pabst. Starring; Louise Brooks, Fritz Rasp.

The Piano [6/1]
I’m not generally a big Jane Campion fan, but this film works wonderfully, with Hunter a mute woman stuck between an arranged marriage to a wealthy but cruel landowner and the attentions of one of the plantation workers who encourages her self-expression through music. Anna Paquin won an Oscar as Hunter’s young daughter.
1993 Australia. Director: Jane Campion. Starring: Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Anna Paquin.

Les bonnes femmes [6/1]
Not generally listed among the top-flight New Wave films, but this early Chabrol film captures the hanging-out vibe of the movement perfectly, following four disparate shop girls around Paris.
1960 France. Director: Claude Chabrol. Starring: Stéphane Audran, Bernadette Lafont, Lucile Saint-Simon, Clotilde Joano.

OTHER INSTANT WATCHES

Accident (1967 UK, dir Joseph Losey, stars Dirk Bogarde, Jacqueline Sassard) [6/1]
Bananas (1971 USA, dir Woody Allen, stars Woody Allen, Louise Lasser) [6/1]
The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend (1949 USA, dir Preston Sturges, stars Betty Grable, Cesar Romero) [6/1]
Blood & Wine (1996 USA, dir Bob Rafelson, stars Jack Nicholson, Michael Caine, Judy Davis) [6/1]
The Bodyguard (1992 USA, dir Mick Jackson, stars Kevin Costner, Whitney Houston) [6/1]
Born to Be Bad (1934 USA, dir Lowell Sherman, stars Loretta Young, Cary Grant) [6/1]
Bowling for Columbine (2002 USA, dir Michael Moore) [6/1]
The Crow: City of Angels (1996 USA, dir Tim Pope, stars Vincent Perez, Mia Kirshner) [6/1]
The Desert Fox (1951 USA, dir Henry Hathaway, stars James Mason, Jessica Tandy) [6/1]
Dr. Dolittle (1998 USA, dir Betty Thomas, stars Eddie Murphy, Oliver Platt) [6/1]
The Edge (1997 USA, dir Lee Tamahori, stars Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin) [6/1]
A Farewell to Arms (1957 USA, dir Charles Vidor, stars Rock Hudson, Jennifer Jones) [6/1]
Hackers (1995 USA, dir Iain Softley, stars Jonny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie) [6/1]
Harry Brown (2009 UK, dir Daniel Barber, stars Michael Caine, David Bradley, Emily Mortimer) [6/1]
House of Strangers (1949 USA, dir Joseph L. Mankiewicz, stars Edward G. Robinson, Richard Conte) [6/1]
The Importance of Being Earnest (2002 UK, dir Oliver Parker, stars Rupert Everett, Colin Firth) [6/1]
Important Things with Demetri Martin: Season 2 (2010 USA, stars Demetri Martin)
Killers (2010 USA, dir Robert Luketic, stars Katherine Heigl, Ashton Kutcher) [6/1]
Lebanon (2009 Israel, dir Samuel Maoz) [6/1]
A Life Less Ordinary (1997 USA, dir Danny Boyle, stars Ewan McGregor, Cameron Diaz) [6/1]
The Long Hot Summer (1958 USA, dir Martin Ritt, stars Paul Newman, Orson Welles) [6/1]
Marlene (1984 Germany, dir Maximilian Schell, stars Marlene Dietrich) [6/1]
9 to 5 (1980 USA, dir Colin Higgins, stars Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton) [6/1]
One from the Heart (1982 USA, dir Francis Ford Coppola, stars Frederic Forrest, Teri Garr) [6/1]
The Pit and the Pendulum (1961 USA, dir Roger Corman, stars Vincent Price, John Kerr) [6/1]
The Red Violin (1998 Canada/Italy/UK, dir Frnacois Girard, stars Samuel L. Jackson, Irene Grazioli) [6/1]
The Return of the Pink Panther (1975 UK, dir Blake Edwards, stars Peter Sellers) [6/1]
Revenge of the Nerds (1984 USA, dir Jeff Canew, stars Robert Carradine, Anthony Edwards) [6/1]
The Sarah Silverman Program: Season 3 (2010 USA, stars Sarah Silverman)
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1961 UK, dir Karel Reisz, stars Albert Finney) [6/1]
The Secret of Santa Vittoria (1969 USA, dir Stanley Kramer, stars Anthony Quinn, Anna Magnani) [6/1]
S1m0ne (2002 USA, dir Andrew Niccol, stars Al Pacino, Catherine Keener)
Sons and Lovers (1960 UK, dir Jack Cardiff, stars Dean Stockwell, Trevor Howard, Wendy Hiller) [6/1]
Takers (2010 USA, dir John Luessenhop, stars Matt Dillon, Paul Walker, Hayden Christensen)
Vincent and Theo (1990 USA, dir Robert Altman, stars Tim Roth, Paul Rhys) [6/1]
A Walk on the Moon (1999 USA, dir Tony Goldwyn, stars Viggo Mortensen, Diane Lane) [6/1]
The Way of the Gun (2000 USA, dir Christopher MacQuarrie, stars Benicio Del Toro, Ryan Phillippe) [6/1]
The Wedding Banquet (1993 Taiwan/USA, dir Ang Lee, stars Winston Chao, Mitchell Lichtenstein) [6/1]
What’s New Pussycat? (1965 UK, dir Clive Donner, stars Peter O’Toole, Peter Sellers) [6/1]
The Yards (2000 USA, dir James Gray, stars Mark Wahlberg, James Caan) [6/1]

See all new and upcoming titles.

ISTANT WATCH EXPIRING PICKS

A lot of the Nickelodeon cartoons and some of the Comedy Central series that were due to expire on the 29th are no longer marked for expiration, so apparently Netflix re-upped most of those deals. The chunk of Criterion films is still expiring on 5/26, and all the James Bond movies are now set to expire on 6/1. I’ve separated out my most recommended ones in each section by displaying their posters, but many of the others are excellent as well. Hover over the images to see title and date of expiration.

Criterion (all 5/26)

Ballad of a Soldier (1959 USSR, dir Grigori Chukhrai, stars Vladimir Ivashov)
Bed and Board (1970 France, dir François Truffaut, stars Jean-Pierre Léaud, Claude Jade)
Black Orpheus (1959 Brazil, dir Marcel Camus, stars Breno Mello, Marpessa Dawn)
Branded to Kill (1967 Japan, dir Seijun Suzuki, stars Joe Shishido, Mariko Ogawa)
Burden of Dreams (1982 USA, dir Wes Blank, stars Werner Herzog)
Eyes Without a Face (1959 France, dir Georges Franju, stars Pierre Brassuer, Edith Scob)
Grey Gardens (1975 USA, dir Albert & David Maysles)
Harlan County, U.S.A (1976 USA, dir Barbara Kopple)
Hearts and Minds (1974 USA, dir Peter Davis)
Knife in the Water (1962 Poland, dir Roman Polanski, stars Leon Niemczyk, Jolanta Umecka)
Le jetee (1961 France, dir Chris Marker, stars Jean Négroni, Hélène Chatelain)
Lord of the Flies (1963 UK, dir Peter Brook, stars James Aubrey, Tom Chapin)
A Nos Amours (1983 France, dir Maurice Pialet, stars Sandrine Bonnaire, Maurice Pialet)
Ratcatcher (1999 UK, dir Lynne Ramsey, stars William Eadie, Tommy Flanagan)
Sans Soleil (1982 France, dir Chris Marker, stars Florence Delay, Arielle Dombasle)
The Thief of Bagdad (1940 UK, dir Michael Powell etc., stars Conrad Veidt, Sabu)

Movies

Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman (2009 USA, dir ???, stars Julius Shulman) [5/25]
Porcile (1969 Italy, dir Pier Paolo Pasolini, stars Franco Citti, Pierre Clémenti) [5/25]
Yentl (1983 USA, dir Barbra Streisand, stars Barbra Streisand, Mandy Patinkin) [5/25]
Michael Jackson’s This Is It (2009 USA, dir Kenny Ortega) [5/26]
Sleepless in Seattle (1993 USA, dir Nora Ephron, stars Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks) [5/26]
Look Who’s Talking (1989 USA, dir Amy Heckerling, stars Bruce Willis, John Travolta) [5/27]
The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964 Italy, dir Pier Paolo Pasolini, stars Mario Socrate, Susanna Pasolini) [5/29]
Desk Set (1957 USA, dir Walter Lang, stars Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn) [5/30]
ABC Africa (2002 Iran, dir Abbas Kiarostami) [5/31]
Bandolero! (1968 USA, dir Andrew V. McLaglen, stars James Stewart, Dean Martin) [5/31]
The Fly (1958 USA, dir Kurt Neumann, stars Vincent Price, David Hedison, Patricia Owens) [5/31]
There’s No Business Like Show Business (1954 USA, dir Walter Lang, stars Marilyn Monroe) [5/31]
Night and the City (1950 UK, dir Jules Dassin, stars Richard Widmark, Gene Tierney) [5/31]
Stormy Weather (1943 USA, dir Andrew Stone, stars Lena Horne, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson) [5/31]
Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958 USA, dir Nathan Juran, stars Allison Hayes, Roy Gordon) [6/1]
Batman Forever (1995 USA, dir Joel Schumacher, stars Val Kilmer, Nicole Kidman) [6/1]
Blood: The Last Vampire (2000 Japan, dir Hiroyuki Kitakubo, stars Youki Kudoh, Saemi Nakamura) [6/1]
Bollywod/Hollywood (2002 India, dir Deepa Mehta, stars Rahul Khanna, Lisa Ray) [6/1]
The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990 USA, dir Brian DePalma, stars Bruce Willis, Tom Hanks) [6/1]
Broken English (2007 USA, dir Zoe R. Cassavetes, stars Parker Posey, Melvil Poupaud) [6/1]
Bubble (2006 USA, dir Steven Soderbergh, stars Dustin James Ashley, Debbie Doebereiner) [6/1]
Cashback (2006 UK, dir Sean Ellis, stars Shaun Evans, Emilia Fox) [6/1]
Cat People (1982 USA, dir Paul Schrader, stars Nastassja Kinski, Malcolm McDowell) [6/1]
The Cotton Club (1984 USA, dir Francis Ford Coppola, stars Richard Gere, Gregory Hines) [6/1]
Dances with Wolves (1990 USA, dir Kevin Costner, stars Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell) [6/1]
Dead Man’s Shoes (2004 USA, dir Shane Meadows, stars Paddy Considine, Gary Stretch) [6/1]
Death to Smoochy (2002 USA, dir Danny DeVito, stars Robin Williams, Edward Norton) [6/1]
Diamonds are Forever (1971 UK, dir Guy Hamilton, stars Sean Connery, Jill St. John) [6/1]
District B13 (2004 USA, dir Pierre Morel, stars Cyril Raffaelli, David Belle) [6/1]
Do You Like Hitchcock? (2005 USA, dir Dario Argento, stars Chiara Conti, Elisabetta Rocchetti) [6/1]
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005 USA, dir Alex Gibney, stars Peter Coyote, Gray Davis) [6/1]
Fay Grim (2006 USA, dir Hal Hartley, stars Parker Posey, Jeff Goldblum) [6/1]
Fellini’s Casanova (1976 Italy, dir Federico Fellini, stars, Donald Sutherland, Tina Aumont) [6/1]
A Fish Called Wanda (1988 USA, dir Charles Crichton, stars John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis) [6/1]
For Your Eyes Only (1981 UK, dir John Glen, stars Roger Moore, Carole Bouquet) [6/1]
Ghost in the Shell (1995 Japan, dir Mamoru Oshii, stars Atsuko Tanaka, Akio Ôtsuka) [6/1]
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2004 Japan, creator Mamoru Oshii, stars Atsuko Tanaka) [6/1]
Godzilla vs. Mothra (1964 Japan, dir Ishirô Honda, stars Akira Takarada, Yuriko Hoshi) [6/1]
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (1956 Japan, dir Ishirô Honda, stars Raymond Burr, Takeshi Shimura) [6/1]
Happy Gilmore (1996 USA, dir Dennis Dugan, stars Adam Sandler, Christopher McDonald) [6/1]
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978 USA, dir Philip Kaufman, stars Donald Sutherland) [6/1]
The Killing Fields (1984 UK, dir Roland Joffé stars Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor) [6/1]
Licence to Kill (1989 UK, dir John Glen, stars Timothy Dalton, Robert Davi) [6/1]
Live and Let Die (1973 UK, dir Guy Hamilton, stars Roger Moore, Jane Seymour) [6/1]
The Living Daylights (1987 UK, dir John Glen, stars Timothy Dalton, Maryam d’Abo) [6/1]
The Man with the Golden Gun (1975 UK, dir Guy Hamilton, stars Roger Moore, Christopher Lee) [6/1]
Moonraker (1979 UK, dir Lewis Gilbert, stars Roger Moore, Lois Chiles) [6/1]
The Naked Spur (1953 USA, dir Anthony Mann, stars James Stewart, Janet Leigh) [6/1]
Never Say Never Again (1983 UK, dir Irvin Kershner, stars Sean Connery, Kim Basinger) [6/1]
Ninja Scroll (1995 Japan, dir Yoshiaki Kawajiri) [6/1]
No Way Out (1987 USA, dir Roger Donaldson, stars Kevin Costner, Sean Young) [6/1]
Octopussy (1984 UK, dir John Glen, stars Roger Moore, Maud Adams) [6/1]
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969 UK, dir Peter Hunt, stars George Lazenby, Diana Rigg) [6/1]
Ong-bak: The Thai Warrior (2003 Thailand, dir Prachya Pinkaew, stars Tony Jaa) [6/1]
The Pledge (2001 USA, dir Sean Penn, stars Jack Nicholson, Dale Dickey) [6/1]
Pulse (2001 USA, dir Kiyoshi Kurosawa, stars Kumiko Aso, Koyuki) [6/1]
Roger and Me (1989 USA, dir Michael Moore) [6/1]
Rumble in the Bronx (1995 Hong Kong, dir Stanley Tong, stars Jackie Chan, Anita Mui) [6/1]
Severence (2006 UK, dir Christopher Smith, stars Toby Stephens, Laura Harris) [6/1]
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977 UK, dir Lewis Gilbert, stars Roger Moore, Barbara Bach) [6/1]
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968 USA, dir Norman Jewison, stars Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway) [6/1]
Thunderball (1965 UK, dir Terence Young, stars Sean Connery, Claudine Auger) [6/1]
Ulee’s Gold (1997 USA, dir Victor Nunez, stars Peter Fonda, Patricia Richardson) [6/1]
A View to a Kill (1985 UK, dir John Glen, stars Roger Moore, Christopher Walken) [6/1]
Waterworld (1995 USA, dir Kevin Reynolds, Kevin Costner, stars Kevin Costner, Dennis Hopper) [6/1]
You Only Live Twice (1967 UK, dir Lewis Gilbert, stars Sean Connery, Akiko Wakabayashi) [6/1]
The Prince and the Showgirl (1957 USA, dir Laurence Olivier, stars Laurence Olivier, Marilyn Monroe) [6/6]
Teeth (2006 USA, dir Mitchell Lichtenstein, stars Jess Weixler, Josh Pais) [6/6]
Good Will Hunting (1997 USA, dir Gus Van Sant, stars Matt Damon, Robin Williams) [6/7]
Becket (1964 UK, dir Peter Glenville, stars Peter O’Toole, Richard Burton) [6/9]
Spider Baby (1964 USA, dir Jack Hill, stars Lon Chaney Jr, Carol Ohmart) [6/9]
Meet John Doe (1941 USA, dir Frank Capra, stars Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck) [6/10]

Television

MST3K: Monster a Go-Go (1993 USA, stars Joel Hodgson, Kevin Murphy) [5/25]
MST3K: Secret Agent, Super Dragon (1993 USA, stars Joel Hodgson, Kevin Murphy) [5/25]
MST3K: The Giant Gila Monster (1992 USA, stars Joel Hodgson, Kevin Murphy) [5/25]
MST3K: The Rebel Set (1992 USA, stars Joel Hodgson, Kevin Murphy) [5/25]
MST3K: The Starfighters (1994 USA, stars Kevin Murphy, Michael J. Nelson) [5/25]

See all expiring titles.

Disclaimers

• Amazon links use my affiliate account, and will kick a small percentage of your purchase back to me. You pay the same price you would anyway.
• Not all new releases are available on Netflix immediately. Some studio films have a 30-day release window before Netflix can rent them, and some smaller releases are not picked up by Netflix immediately. Add them to your “saved” queue if you’re interested; that tells Netflix there is demand for the disc.
• Not all new Blu-ray releases are available on Netflix – Netflix usually buys both DVD and Blu-ray editions of new releases, but if a DVD has already been released, they don’t always get the Blu-ray when it comes out later.
• Instant Watch releases are not always 100% accurate – often the data from the API is not fully accurate until the actual day of release. I always check on release day to make sure things actually do hit Instant Watch, but for things that come out later than Tuesday when I publish this post, I won’t be able to tell.
• Instant Watch expirations are not always 100% accurate – sometimes they don’t expire after all, sometimes things expire with little advance warning. I always check to make sure the data is accurate to the best of my knowledge when I publish the post, but things could still change, especially since I’m giving expiration warnings up to two weeks in advance.
• I rely on Box Office Mojo and InstantWatcher for the majority of the data for these posts, so thank you to them for the work they do.

The Hot Docs 2011 festival may now be over (award winners announced and we’ll post them shortly), but we still have some reviews (capsules like these as well as full ones) to percolate through over the next few days.

Superheroes (2011 – Michael Barnett) – The regular average-joe playing at superhero is a bit past its freshness date as a central plot point in fictional film at this point (four films in the past year or so made use of it), but what about in documentaries? You knew there had to be a few “crazies” running around in the dark with their homemade capes, so a feature length film about them sounds like a blast right? Well, yes and no. Barnett’s Superheroes is at times a fascinating look at a good 20-30 different people who patrol their streets (almost always in a costume with a mask) from all over North America and can be a great deal of fun as we see the different approaches to crime fighting, weapon choices and costume design. It’s more than just tinged with sadness, though, as we hear some of these people’s back stories and find out why they feel compelled to help protect their neighbourhoods. I found there to be a few too many stories to get completely wrapped up in the individual characters, but there’s enough in the film to still penetrate the most robust of defenses. Also, who knew that even superheroes weren’t beyond the occasional bit of entrapment?

Hollywood Complex (2010 – Dylan Nelson, Dan Sturman) – No matter how often I have to remind myself that I shouldn’t judge other parents in how they choose to raise their own children, occasionally I just can’t help it. And The Hollywood Complex – which covers the better part of 8 months in an apartment complex for families looking to break their children into television stardom – had me handing down sentences like Judge Judy trying to clear the docket on a Friday afternoon. In many cases, one of the parents stays with the child in a small apartment for the entire period of “pilot season” (when the networks are looking to cast their new shows and regularly look for new faces) while the other stays far away at home. In one somewhat upsetting case, the mother and daughter had been living at the complex for 3 full years (not even going back home to the rest of their family during the summer months) hitting auditions, casting calls and the like – with nary a job to show for it. The film provides some interesting behind the scenes looks at the process, the different types of coaching and training the kids get and a diverse set of opinions by professionals. The most galling are the rah-rah coaches who feed the kids and parents’ heads with dreams of fame and fortune when in reality the business is rather unforgiving. There’s not a great deal special in the way the film is shot, but it does what it needs to do. The unfortunate thing is that films of this type really need their central characters to be not just people you root for, but ones you feel a connection to in some way. For the most part, all I felt was frustration and even disgust.

Open Secret (2010 – Steve Licktieg) – Director Licktieg turns the camera on himself and his family to tell the story of his upbringing and a little secret about his parents. Can you really call it a secret, though, when everyone knows it? Everyone except Licktieg that is – until his teenage years, he assumed his parents were his parents and he just happened to have been one of those “ooops” babies who popped out years after the couple thought they were finished having kids (hence the slew of much older siblings). Not only did Lickteig discover he was adopted, but that his real mother had been with him the whole time in the form of his “sister”. There’s some fascinating material to work with here – his real mother was more interested in getting away from the family than really helping raise her son while his grandmother was a controlling and cold caregiver – but unfortunately Licktieg is too close to the subject and as a first time filmmaker (coming from his job at NPR public radio), he never really explores some fundamental questions and occasionally drops into self-pity. It must be difficult to try to rebuild your own idea of who you are and I give him credit for attempting to use the film in that capacity, but Open Secret ultimately fails to provide much mystery, answers or sympathy.

Matchmaking Mayor (2011 – Erika Hnikova) – Zemplinske Hamre is not atypical amongst its fellow Slovak villages – all are suffering from an elderly population that is dying off and a younger one that is slow to couple itself off in order to create new generations. What does make Zemplinske Hamre stand apart is a mayor who won’t stay quiet about what he sees as upcoming negative population growth – so much so that he broadcasts over the village loudpseakers via his daily addresses that the town’s singles need to shape up or their culture will be lost. He offers bonuses for those who procreate, but eventually decides to try to create a big party for all the singles where they can find their love connections. His singular focus is a bit off-putting for some villagers, but he manages to put on his party. But will anyone show up? Though occasionally funny and touching in spots, the film overall plays like an epitaph for the smaller Slovak towns and their lifestyle. Partially due to the nature of humans not being able to save themselves from themselves, but also because of the tough economic times and an overall lack of joy present in the villagers’ lives. The filmmakers follow several different people in the days leading up to the party, but never quite get any in-depth profiles of these citizens and don’t really get much chance to dig for the root of the issue. Still, it’s more than little heart-breaking at times.

The Battle For Barking (2010 – Laura Fairrie) – If you have any interest at all in British politics, you’ve likely heard of the BNP (British National Party) – a bunch of (IMO) racist opportunists looking to kick all immigrants out of “their” country by placing blame for pretty much all of the country’s ills on everyone they don’t consider to be true British people. Why study the specifics of complicated issues when you can scapegoat groups you don’t understand and try to appeal to the masses’ need for quick fix answers? Fairrie’s cameras follow BNP leader Nick Griffin and a few of his cronies during their campaign to win a seat in the riding of Barking – a diverse multicultural part of London – while also tailing Labour candidate Margaret Hodge. It’s not overly original in its approach (behind the scenes discussions about tactics, person on the street interviews, etc.), but it’s very effective as we follow both sides through the slings and arrows of what amounts to a campaign these days. Hodge isn’t a perfect representative for the area either (there’s some disconnect between her wealth and the lower classes in the area), but she’s not taking the BNP’s crap lightly. If there was any doubt about the lack of thoughtful consideration the BNP puts into its ideas, you just have to listen to Griffin, his advisors or pretty much any of their backers speak for a few minutes off script. I’ve no doubt that many of these people have issues, but the scariest thing is to see how many of them are so quick to look for a fall guy that they drop all sense of logic or humanity.

Highway Gospel (2010 – Jaret Belliveau) – I used to be an avid skateboarder back in my teens (not a good one, but an avid one) and loved leafing through issues of Skateboarder magazine looking at all the insane aerials that the Stacy Peraltas and Tony Alvas in California were pulling. Occasionally you’d hear about the slalom dudes and – as you viewed them careening down hillside roads – wonder if they were even crazier than the guys flying out of backyard pools. It turns out they are. Belliveau’s film traces two separate Canadian devotees of the sport who are past their prime, getting creaky in the bones and yet still love the speed and thrills of the sport. One manages what is considered the premiere slalom road course race in the world (though he’s beyond the point where he can compete due to injuries) and the other manages his own skatepark in Ottawa while still training for a shot at the world championships as he slides past the half-century mark. The two stories never really come together to any great degree, but they both show the spirit of people intoxicated by their passions and willing to sacrifice for them (giving up health and wealth). It definitely made me want to reach for my old board – even if I risked pulling a muscle doing it.

I managed to catch this Guillermo Del Toro produced Spanish ghost story in Toronto (even briefly running into the big man himself, which was pretty cool.) Directed by Guillem Morales, Julia’s Eyes went on to be the opening night film for the 2010 edition of Sitges, where leading lady Belén Rueda (The Orphanage) turned quite a few heads in a red dress. But enough about these little festival details. The film is being released commercially in the UK by Optimum (May 20th, 2011) releasing and they have issued the first English friendly trailer for the film (no word on this side of the pond yet.) High on atmosphere and virtuoso camera work, maybe a bit low on originality, it is a workman film that yields a good time at the movies considering what often passes for horror or scares out of Hollywoodland. Jandy liked it a bit more than I did.

Julia, a woman suffering from degenerative sight disease, finds her twin sister Sara, who has already gone blind as a result of the same disease, hanged in the basement of her house. In spite of the fact that everything points to suicide, Julia decides to investigate what she intuitively feels is a murder case, entering a dark world that seems to hide a mysterious presence.

The trailer (thanks QE!) is tucked under the seat.

To watch more, visit rightster.com

I‘ve been working on these DVD/Instant Watch release posts on my personal blog, and I’m finally getting efficient enough at them that I think I can commit to crossposting them here without them being incredibly out of date by the time I do. So let’s give it a try. Next week I should be on a Tuesday or Wednesday schedule with them. The Instant Watch releases for this post are US only; for future posts I’m going to try to include Canadian release information.

The big DVD/Blu release this week is The Fighter, fresh off Best Supporting Actor and Actress Oscar wins for Christian Bale and Melissa Leo. Also check out No One Knows About Persian Cats, though, a fine example of Iranian underground cinema, where some pretty exciting things are happening. This is the first time I’ve included Instant Watch expiring titles; be aware that the lists of expiring films, which I pull from InstantWatcher.com, which in turn gets them from Netflix’s API, are often not set in stone. Things sometimes don’t expire, are brought back quickly, or expire without hitting the InstantWatcher lists at all prior to their expiration. So hopefully this will be a helpful guide, but it’s not a perfect one.

BUY

Au revoir, les enfants Criterion blu-ray
A French boys’ school in the 1940s gets a new student. One boy in particular befriends him, but it soon becomes clear that the new boy is Jewish and on the run from the Nazis. Incredibly subtle and moving view of WWII and its attendant racial conflict through the eyes of children.
1987 France. Director: Louis Malle. Starring: Gaspard Manesse, Francine Racette.
Amazon Blu-ray | Netflix (DVD and streaming)

RENT

The Fighter
I don’t have a lot of use for boxing movies, which is why I couldn’t stir up much personal interest in seeing this last year, despite having liked David O. Russell films in the past. The reviews were strong enough, though, and pointed out aspects of the story dealing with Bale’s drug addiction, media portrayal of the story, and the interfamilial relationships (and accompanying excellent acting turns) that definitely make me willing to check it out on DVD.
2010 USA. Director: David O. Russell. Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo.
Amazon DVD | Amazon Blu-ray | Netflix (DVD and Blu-ray)

No One Knows About Persian Cats
I caught this a couple of years ago at the AFI Film Festival, and it’s stuck with me – it’s the fictionalized story of the two real-life musicians Negar and Ashkan, who attempt to put on one last underground rock show in Tehran before fleeing to London, where they can perform without government censorship and interference (the film also had to be shot guerilla-style, without government permits). Also on Instant Watch.
2009 Iran. Director: Bahman Ghobadi. Starring: Negar Shaghaghi, Ashkan Koshanejad.
Amazon DVD | Netflix (DVD and streaming)

Yi Yi Criterion blu-ray
I haven’t seen this yet, but it always comes up high on critical best lists, and as I try to acquaint myself better with Asian cinema, this is definitely something I need to rectify. And now I can on blu-ray!
2000 China. Director: Edward Yang. Starring: Nianzhen Wu, Elaine Jin.
Amazon Blu-ray | Amazon DVD (previoiusly released) | Netflix (DVD, not Criterion)

Waste Land
A nominee for the Best Documentary Feature award this year, following concept artist Vik Muniz as he works with Brazilian garbage pickers to create art in Rio’s largest landfill. I’m intrigued.Also on Instant Watch
2010 USA. Director: Lucy Walker. Starring: Vik Muniz.
Amazon DVD | Netflix (DVD and streaming)

SKIP

Hereafter
I’m sorry, Mr. Eastwood. I respect you as both an actor and a director, but this latest sortie about a guy who’s somehow connected to the afterlife (and other people who are haunted by death) just seems…not good. I could barely stand the earnestness of the trailer, I’d never last through the whole movie.
2010 USA. Director: Clint Eastwood. Starring: Matt Damon, Bryce Dallas Howard.
Amazon DVD | Amazon Blu-ray (includes DVD and digital copy) | Netflix (DVD and Blu-ray 4/12)

The Switch
I will grant that Will Speck did good work on Easy A, but I’m not remotely intrigued by anything else in this romcom.
2010 USA. Director: Will Speck, Josh Gordon. Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman.
Amazon DVD | Amazon Blu-ray | Netflix (DVD and Blu-ray)

WATCH INSTANTLY

Nights of Cabiria
Fellini at his most neo-realist, though he tends to bring a touch of the surreal into whatever he does. This is probably my favorite Fellini film, actually, though I have a few vying for position. Masina is just unbeatable. The trailer for this is still in my sidebar, actually, from a while back, so check that out.
1957 Italy. Director: Federico Fellini. Starring: Guilietta Masina, François Périer, Franca Marzi.

Alphaville
Not my favorite Jean-Luc Godard film, but it’s still pretty cool – his only foray into science fiction, with secret agent Lemmy Caution sent into to take down a supercomputer. But it’s sci-fi with a very Godardian feel, more concerned with language play and existential questions than most.
1965 France. Director: Jean-Luc Godard. Starring: Eddie Constantine, Anna Karina.

The Producers
Finding it tough to make money on Broadway? Producer Max Bialystock did, until his mousy accountant hit upon the possibility of producing a flop and making off with the investment money, so they choose sure-fire flop musical “Springtime for Hitler.” Easily one of the funniest movies ever made.
1968 USA. Director: Mel Brooks. Starring: Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder.

This Is Spinal Tap
One of the definitive mockumentaries, taking aim at a fictional heavy metal band trying to make a comeback. So much of this film has become legendary, and for good reason. So kick back, turn it up to eleven, and don’t trip over Stonehenge.
1984 USA. Director: Rob Reiner. Starring: Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, Peter Michael Dillon.

Agora [3/18]
If there’s such a thing as a cerebral epic, Agora is a shining example of it, taking as its subject the relationship between science and religion (both Christian and pagan) in 4th century Alexandria, focusing on Weisz as philosopher Hypatia and her celestial discoveries, but also the armed conflicts between different factions of the time.
2009 Spain. Director: Alejandro Amenábar. Starring: Rachel Weisz, Max Minghella, Rupert Evans.

Bob le flambeur
Bob is a retired criminal with a soft spot for street kids Paolo and Anne. But Bob is also a gambler (the title is “Bob the Gambler” in English) when they hatch a casino robbery scheme and he agrees to help them for a final heist, his complusion threatens everything. This is a New Wave forerunner, with the kind of quiet, weary sophistication that marks French crime films.
1956 France. Director: Jean-Pierre Melville. Starring: Roger Duchesne, Daniel Cauchy, Isabelle Corey

Army of Shadows
I’m actually pretty ashamed that I haven’t seen this yet, since I love every Melville film I have seen and this one is generally touted as one of his best, following a group of French Resistance fighters with an uncompromising vision borne of Melville’s own experiences during WWII.
1968 France. Director: Jean-Pierre Melville. Starring: Lino Ventura, Paul Meurisse, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Simone Signoret.

Half Nelson
One of the first films that really brought attention to Ryan Gosling; here he’s a crack-addicted teacher who forms an unlikely friendship with one of his middle-schoolers – what could be mere feel-good inspirational schmaltz becomes something much darker and deeper thanks to Fleck’s unerring direction and Gosling’s strong performance (matched beat for beat by Epps).
2006 USA. Director: Ryan Fleck. Starring: Ryan Gosling, Shareeka Epps, Anthony Mackie.

The Lion in Winter
O’Toole and Hepburn face off as King Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the most volatile royal couples in British history – a lot is at stake during this particular Christmas Eve celebration, as they engage in a battle of the wills for who will inherit the throne from Henry. Excellently produced costume drama held together by tremendous performances all around (an Oscar-winning one for Hepburn).
1968 USA, dir Anthony Harvey, stars Peter O’Toole, Katharine Hepburn, Anthony Hopkins.

Wild Grass
The latest from French New Wave auteur Alain Resnais (Last Year at Marienbad), with a quirk-ridden story of love and obsession – the trailer doesn’t quite convince me, but some reviews from people who know French film (and Resnais) suggests there’s more going on here that I will probably like.
2009 France. Director: Alain Resnais. Starring: André Dussollier, Sabine Azéma, Mathieu Amalric.

Archer
An animated spy comedy series? Sign me up for that. I don’t keep good track of FX shows, so I hadn’t heard of this until it hit Netflix a few months back, but then it stopped streaming before I had a chance to check it out. Now it’s back, and I definitely want to check it out this time.
2010 USA. Creator: Adam Reed, Matt Thompson. Starring: H. Jon Benjamin, Judy Greer, Chris Parnell.

Darling
Julie Christie won an Oscar for her portrayal of an ambitious fashion model who works her way from man to man on her way to the top, with a great view of London’s mod scene on the way.
1965 UK, dir John Schlesinger, stars Julie Christie, Dirk Bogarde, Laurence Harvey.

The Inspector General
I haven’t seen this myself, but it’s supposedly one of Danny Kaye’s finest moments, as a traveling con man in a small Russian town who poses as the Czar’s inspector and gets plenty of bribes from the corrupt townspeople. Kaye on a good day can pretty unbeatable, so I’m definitely looking forward to checking this out.
1949 USA. Director: Henry Koster. Starring: Danny Kaye, Walter Slezak, Elsa Lanchester.
 

The Man in the White Suit
One of the few Ealing comedies I haven’t seen, but they’re all definitely worthwhile, so I have high hopes for this one, which is about a chemist (Guinness) who invents an indestructible cloth and then ends up on the run as textile manufacturers fear the economic impact of such a fabric and the mob who want it for themselves.
1951 UK. Director: Alexander Mackendrick. Starring: Alec Guinness, Joan Greenwood, Cecil Parker.

Mystery Team
A feature comedy from the Derrick Comedy team, of which Donald Glover is the most recognizable member due to his role on Community, about an Encyclopedia Brown-esque group of kids who never really outgrew the Mystery Team hijinks of their youth, even though they’re about to graduate from high school. It’s pretty silly, but a lot of fun if you go along with it.
2009 USA. Director Dan Eckman. Starring Donald Glover, D.C. Pierson, Dominic Dierkes.

The Servant
Joseph Losey’s taut drama is generally considered top-drawer British cinema, especially thanks to its script by Harold Pinter and strong acting turns. Bogarde is Fox’s manservant, but as he slowly and carefully takes over his master’s affairs, the roles subtly start to reverse.
1963 UK. Director: Joseph Losey. Starring: Dirk Bogarde, James Fox, Sarah Miles.

War and Peace
It can’t be easy to bring one of Russia’s most epic novels to the screen in under three hours, and I haven’t seen the film to judge how well Vidor and company do it, but it has a pretty great cast, and they did know how to do opulence back then.
1956 USA. Director: King Vidor. Starring: Henry Fonda, Audrey Hepburn, Mel Ferrer, Herbert Lom, Anita Ekberg.

From Paris With Love [3/18]
I didn’t see this, but it looks like decent popcorn espionage thriller fun, as Rhys Meyers plays a lowly intelligence agent pulled in over his head by Travolta. The script is by Luc Besson, and I do like me some Besson films.
2009 USA. Director: Pierre Morel. Starring: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, John Travolta.

Oceans [3/19]
Disneynature takes on the oceans of the world, highlighting unusual life forms and investigating the complex interplay between life in the ocean and life on land. I’m not a huge documentary person, but I do like pretty pictures sometimes if I can get them for free.
2009 USA. Director: Jacques Perrin, Jacques Cluzaud.

Death Race 2000
In a futuristic world, teams race across America and score points by killing random bystanders. Sounds like good wholesome entertainment! Produced by Roger Corman, which doesn’t surprise me in the least.
1975 USA. Director: Paul Bartel. Starring: David Carradine, Sylvester Stallone, Simone Griffeth.

Carnal Knowledge
I actually really disliked this film when I saw it, but your mileage may vary – it certainly is a good example of the type of character-driven, conversation-driven drama that dominated New Hollywood, and there’s one scene with Nicholson that’s pretty compelling (if also off-putting). I just got really frustrated with its gender politics. Maybe I was supposed to. Anyway.
1971 USA. Director: Mike Nichols. Starring: Jack Nicholson, Art Garfunkel, Candice Bergen, Rita Moreno.

OTHER RELEASES

MOVIES AND MORE
Hemingway’s Garden of Eden (2008 UK, dir John Irvin, stars Jack Huston, Mena Suvari, Caterina Murino; Netflix)
Spooner (2009 USA, dir Drake Doremus, stars Matthew Lillard, Nora Zehetner; Netflix)

NEW ON BLU-RAY
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004 USA, dir Adam McKay, stars Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Steve Carrell; Netflix)
Battle of the Warriors (2006 China, dir Jacob Cheung, stars Any Lau, Zhiwen Wang; Netflix)

INSTANT WATCH
The Bat (1959 USA, dir Crane Wilbur, stars Agnes Moorehead, Vincent Price)
Down from the Mountain (2000 USA, dir D.A. Pennebaker, stars Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris)
The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2000 USA, dir Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato, stars Tammy Faye)
Gulliver’s Travels (1939 USA, dir Dave Fleischer, stars Jessica Dragonette, Lanny Ross)
Happy Tears (2009 USA, dir Mitchell Lichtenstein, stars Parker Posey, Demi Moore, Rip Torn, Ellen Barkin) [3/19]
I’m With Lucy (2002 USA, dir Jon Sherman, stars Monica Potter, John Hannah, Gael Garcia Bernal, Anthony LaPaglia, Henry Thomas, David Boreanaz) [3/18]
The Last Warrior (2001 USA, dir Sheldon Lettich, stars Dolph Lundgren, Sherri Alexander)
Lone Star State of Mind (2002 USA, dir David Semel, stars Joshua Jackson, James King, DJ Qualls) [3/18]
Murder by Decree (1979 UK, dir Bob Clark, stars Christopher Plummer, Donald Sutherland, John Gielgud, James Mason)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: The Atomic Brain (1964 USA, dir Joseph V. Mascelli, stars Marjorie Eaton, Frank Gerstle, Frank Fowler)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: Beginning of the End (1957 USA, dir Bert I. Gordon, stars Peter Graves, Peggie Castle, Morris Ankrum)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: The Girl in Gold Boots (1968 USA, dir Ted V. Mikels, stars Jody Daniels, Leslie McRae, Tom Pace)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: Gunslinger (1956 USA, dir Roger Corman, stars John Ireland, Beverly Garland, Allison Hayes)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: Hamlet (1961 Germany, dir Franz Peter Wirth, stars Maximillian Schell, Hans Caninenberg, Ricardo Montalban)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: I Accuse My Parents (1944 USA, dir Sam Newfield, stars Robert Lowell, Mary Beth Hughes, John Miljan)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies (1964 USA, dir Ray Dennis Steckler, stars Ray Dennis Stckler, Carolyn Brandt, Brett O’Hara)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: Red Zone Cuba (1966 USA, dir Coleman Francis, stars Coleman Francis, Anthony Cardoza, Harold Saunders)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: The Touch of Satan (1971 USA, dir Don Henderson, stars Michael Berry, Emby Mellay, Lee Amber)
Mystery Science Theatre 3000: The Unearthly (1957 USA, dir Boris Petroff, stars John Carradine, Myron Healey, Allison Hayes)
Practical Magic (1998 USA, dir Griffin Dunne, stars Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman)
Santa Fe Trail (1940 USA, dir Michael Curtiz, stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland)
The Southerner (1945 USA, dir Jean Renoir, stars Zachary Scott, Betty Field)
Three Kingdoms (2008 Hong Kong, dir Daniel Lee, stars Andy Lau, Maggie Q)
Top Dog (1995 USA, dir Aaron Norris, stars Chuck Norris, Timothy Bottoms)
Ulysses (1954 Italy, dir Mario Camerini, stars Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn, Silvana Mangano)
The Virginian Seasons 1, 2, 3 (1962-64, stars James Drury, Doug McClure, Lee J. Cobb)
The War Bride (2001 USA, dir Lyndon Chubbuck, stars Anna Friel, Aden Young, Brenda Fricker)
The Wasp Woman (1959 USA, dir Roger Corman, stars Susan Cabot, Michael Mark)

EXPIRING SOON FROM INSTANT WATCH
White Squall (1996 USA, dir Ridley Scott, stars Jeff Bridges, Scott Wolf, John Savage) [3/19]
Hush (1998 USA, dir Jonathan Darby, stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Lange) [3/21]
The Man from Snowy River (1982 Australia, dir George T. Miller, stars Tom Burlinson, Sigrid Thornton, Kirk Douglas) [3/21]
James and the Giant Peach (1996 USA, dir Henry Selick, stars Richard Dreyfuss, Jane Leeves, Susan Sarandon) [3/21]
$9.99 (2008 Australia, dir Tatia Rosenthal, stars Geoffrey Rush, Anthony LaPaglia) [3/23]
The Vicious Kind (2008 USA, dir Lee Toland Krieger, stars Adam Scott, Brittany Snow, J.K. Simmons) [3/23]
St. Elmo’s Fire (1985 USA, dir Joel Schumacher, stars Demi Moore, Rob Lowe) [3/23]
Zombies of Mass Destruction (2009 USA, dir Kevin Hamedani, stars Doug Fahl, Cooper Hopkins, Janette Armand) [3/23]
Careful (1992 Canada, dir Guy Maddin, stars Kyle McCulloch, Gosia Dobrowolska) [3/24]
Defending Your Life (1991 USA, dir Albert Brooks, stars Albert Brooks, Meryl Streep) [3/25]
The Ugly Truth (2009 USA, dir Robert Luketic, stars Gerard Butler, Katherine Heigl) [3/25]
Mr. Jones (1993 USA, dir Mike Figgis, stars Richard Gere, Lena Olin) [3/26]
Someone to Watch Over Me (1987 USA, dir Ridley Scott, stars Mimi Rogers, Tom Berenger, Lorraine Bracco) [3/26]
Stir Crazy (1980 USA, dir Sidney Poitier, stars Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, Craig T. Nelson) [3/26]
The Duchess (2008 USA, dir Saul Dibb, stars Keira Knightley, Dominic Cooper) [3/26]
About Last Night… (1986 USA, dir Edward Zwick, stars Rob Lowe, Demi Moore) [3/26]
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1994 USA, dir Kenneth Branagh, stars Robert De Niro, John Cleese, Helena Bonham Carter) [3/26]
Showgirls (1995 USA, dir Paul Verhoeven, stars Elizabeth Berkley, Gina Gershon) [3/26]
The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965 USA, dir George Stevens, David Lean, Jean Negulesco, stars Max von Sydow, Charlton Heston, John Wayne) [3/28]
Minnie and Moskovitz (1971 USA, dir John Cassavetes, stars Gena Rowlands) [3/29]

Disclaimers

• Amazon links use our affiliate account, and will kick a small percentage of your purchase back to us. You pay the same price you would anyway.
• Not all new releases are available on Netflix immediately. Some studio films have a 30-day release window before Netflix can rent them, and some smaller releases are not picked up by Netflix immediately. Add them to your “saved” queue if you’re interested; that tells Netflix there is demand for the disc.
• Not all new Blu-ray releases are available on Netflix – Netflix usually buys both DVD and Blu-ray editions of new releases, but if a DVD has already been released, they don’t always get the Blu-ray when it comes out later.
• Instant Watch releases are not always 100% accurate – often the data from the API is not fully accurate until the actual day of release. I always check on release day to make sure things actually do hit Instant Watch, but for things that come out later than Tuesday when I publish this post, I won’t be able to tell.
• Instant Watch expirations are not always 100% accurate – sometimes they don’t expire after all, sometimes things expire with little advance warning. I always check to make sure the data is accurate to the best of my knowledge when I publish the post, but things could still change, especially since I’m giving expiration warnings up to two weeks in advance.
• I rely on Box Office Mojo and InstantWatcher for the majority of the data for these posts, so thank you to them for the work they do.

Are you one of those folks who complains that zombies do not speak when the increasing legions of zombie fanatics yell ‘Braaaaaiiiins!’ during festival screenings? Or perhaps you are one of those higher-on-the-geek-scale types that cites Return of the Living Dead as the origin of that particular trend? (Editors Note: Guilty!) Do you debate with your friends about the nature of running zombies vs. shambling zombies, or whether or not Danny Boyle’s 28 Weeks Later even qualifies as a zombie film? Jovanka Vuckovic, former editor of Rue Morgue Magazine, and a leading lady of the macabre, is here to make sure that we can all just get along by educating expert and novice alike in Z-lore, according to history, legend and the ever increasing swell of popular culture. The zombie movie has had a long and elastic history in literature and folklore, from The Bible (*snicker*) to Haitian Voodoo, and in past couple of years has it a kind of cultural zenith, particularly in the movies and its first blush into upscale cable TV. Thus, Zombies! An Illustrated History of the Undead arrives with some pretty impressive release timing to bring everyone up-to-speed (so to speak.)

Vuckovic’s prose is functional and matter of fact as she walks the reader through nine odd decades of undead cinema in a thorough, yet efficient manner. The strength is certainly in the “Illustrated” portion of the book, as presented here is a treasure trove of iconic and nearly forgotten one-sheets and film stills from just about every zombie movie ever made up until the 1980s, when the growing list of low-budget zombie productions gets a little to unwieldy and cuts have to be made. One enjoyable aspect in the writing is that the author does occasionally inject opinion or a critical statement, which comes highly appreciated, from my circle at least, namely a bit of defense of Romero’s Day of the Dead, whilst calling out Survival of the Dead (the 2009 Romero zombie picture) for the crapfest that it is. Of course Romero factors heavily into the proceedings, he writes the foreward in the book, and lengthy spreads are given to the three original entries in the …of the Dead series. Some harsh (but appropriate) words are leveled at the each of the three remakes (with a soft spot for the Tom Savini 1990 update of Night, and an outright dismissal of the Steven Miner Day There is a very detailed section on pre-Romero zombie cinema that (for my money) demands attention. From the days of post-Universal-Monster Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi to ‘poverty row’ studios taking their own kick at the can with details on more upscale efforts by Jean Rollin all they way up to the first adaptation of Robert Matheson’s seminal short story, I Am Legend (Last Man On Earth) acknowledged here as the catalyst of the modern zombie picture as big Z moved from Haitian black-magic to ‘unexplained’ apocalypse. There are also loving (and critical) examinations of the stretch of Italian exploitation cinema of the 1970s and 1980s (From Fulci to Soavi) and looks at China, Hong Kong, Japan and the recent burbles and gurgles from the UK, France, Africa and Canada. There is fair case made for the convergence of video games and films (The Resident Evil series, for instance) kicking off the latest (and peak) craze of the sub-genre and the book closes out on how everything is multimedia (from comics and how-to manuals, to series television, rock’n'roll and performance art from Urban walks to viral videos set in Philippines’ incarceration centres.)

As a more-than-casual fan of all things Zombie for decades, sure, much if it is well known, but Vuckovic’s skill is making this sort of compendium-style narrative look easy! The through-line of the zombie and his constant metamorphosis makes for a real page-turner. Perhaps more importantly, there are several titles I’ve missed or was unawares that have been brought to my attention. And that is the real goal of books of this kind for the film-lover. Hidden Gems. Oh, and the extra Braaaaaiiiins go down nicely! (“Send … more … paramedics.”)

*BONUS GIVEAWAY FOR THOSE WHO READ THIS FAR!*

Yes it is kind of hidden under the seat, but I would like this to go to an interested fan. I have a single copy of Zombies! An Illustrated History of the Undead for giveaway to Rowthree readers (and for those interested, there are two more where this review is cross-published at Twitchfilm.net). All you have to do is tell me (kurt -at- rowthree.com) exactly (zombie aficionados will know what I mean) what happens when “There is no more room in hell…”

• The Sitges Festival And Director Angel Sala Charged with EXHIBITION OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY for Screening A SERBIAN FILM
  “A Serbian Film is shocking and extreme cinema and designed to be so. But child porn? That is absolutely ridiculous – the scene that tends to get people worked up occurring entirely offscreen with the violence implied and not actually depicted – and I can only hope that the courts recognize it as such and throw the case out.”
• Process of Blockbuster Sale objected to by Disney, Universal, landlords, U.S. trustee and others
  Other studios that have said in court documents they are owed millions of dollars for products shipped since September include Universal, 20th Century Fox and Summit Entertainment. Several of the objecting parties, including the U.S. trustee, argued in court papers that instead of seeking a buyer, Blockbuster should be forced into Chapter 7, a liquidation of all its assets. That would mark a dramatic end to a company that less than a decade ago dominated the U.S. DVD and VHS rental market.
• 52 Most Iconic Use of Pop Songs in Movies
  Who hasn’t heard a familiar pop song on the radio only to be transported back to the film that featured it? You probably never even paid a second thought, let alone liked that particular song before it became associated with that cinematic sequence. Yet, it was such a perfect complement to that one moment in the movie that you now know the lyrics by heart. In honor to that fleeting but powerful connection between music and film, we count down 52 of the most iconic pop songs in movies.
• If There Were an Oscar for Film Titles
  Saul Bass on Film Titles: “My initial thoughts about what a title can do was to set mood and the prime underlying core of the film’s story, to express the story in some metaphorical way. I saw the title as a way of conditioning the audience, so that when the film actually began, viewers would have an emotional resonance with it.”
• A History of Choose Your Own Adventure
  From the start, the books were full of innovative page hacks. Readers would be trapped in the occasional time loop, forced to flip back and forth between two pages. Most memorable was Inside UFO 54-40, a book in which the most desired outcome, discovering the Planet Ultima, could only be achieved by readers who cheated and flipped through the book until they reached the page on their own. At that point, the book congratulated the reader for breaking the rules.
• Playing With the Truth: Film in 2010
  AIf I were to ask you to imagine the sinking of the Titanic, what images come to your mind? What about Roman gladiator fighting in the Colosseum? What do you picture when you think of John Smith and Pocahontas, or the Zodiac killer who terrorized San Francisco, or the fate of United Flight 93, or the storming of Omaha Beach on D-Day? You see where I’m going with this: for many people, films based on true events serve as the primary influence on the subconscious in remembering or imagining those events.
• The Best Picture Nominees And Their Video Games Counterparts
  Welcome to our very own version of the Academy Awards, where we’ve paired a recent game with the same dramatic aspirations, themes, or capital D drama as each of the ten best picture nominees. We’ve also picked an Oscar-worthy scene from each, proving once and for all that games belong on the red carpet as much as the next sighing starlet.

You can now take a look at RowThree’s bookmarks at any time of your choosing simply by clicking the “delicious” button in the upper right of the page. It looks remarkably similar to this:

Without any further ado, let’s get to it!…

****½ (4.5/5)

The myth of the American sleepover is a bit of an elusive concept, somehow tying in one character’s suggestion that there’s a mythic quality to teenagerhood itself – a mistaken belief that there’s something amazing and exciting about being a teenager that causes us to grow up too quickly, not appreciating the wonders of childhood before they’re lost to us forever – along with the paradox that sleepovers are something associated with childhood and yet also, in the context of the film, provide opportunities for unsupervised teenage shenanigans (many characters mock sleepovers a little even as they prepare to attend one). There are three sleepovers all together in the film, all taking place on the last night before school (the film takes place in one 24-hour period) – four if you include the much more organized and chaperoned on-campus college freshman sleepover – providing a modicum of structure to the young people who drift around in them, between them, or on the edges of them.

This ensemble cast is almost all made up of nonprofessional 15 to 19-year-olds, which sounds like a recipe for disaster, but in writer/director David Robert Mitchell’s hands, it turns out much better than you’d ever dream. Each major character has their own little plot going on – Rob wants to find a girl he saw in the supermarket and can’t forget, Maggie feels she wasted her summer in terms of finding romance and wants to rectify that before school starts the next day, Scott is drifting a bit after dropping out of college and wonders if finding a set of twins he’d crushed on in high school would help, Claudia’s new in town and tries both to find her place and assert her lack of care about fitting in, and other characters wind in and out of these plots much as people in small communities do.

And that’s the thing that really drew me into the film – it’s clearly very carefully structured, yet it doesn’t feel like it is. It feels very natural, moving from one connection to another, and from missed connections to near connections to unwanted connections. Because the heart of high school is trying to find those connections, learning who you’re going to be as an adult, and how to define yourself in relation to those around you – as cliched as all that sounds, that’s the breathing reality of what Mitchell has captured here. All the characters as written and acted felt like people I knew – as in, literally, I was going “this character reminds me of that girl I knew in college or this guy in high school.” Whether this simply made me like the film better because I related to it or whether it’s a testament to Mitchell’s ability to capture very specific characters that were real enough for me to feel like I knew them, I can’t say for sure. Perhaps some of both.

Any bits that seem slightly amateurish in editing are more than made up for by several other scenes which are subtly perfect. I rarely notice sound design, but there’s a shot here where a plot/character-handoff is handled solely by the sound of a car going by, which was a great touch. Other scenes handled the angst of teenagerhood with a grace seldom found in film, managing to leave the characters room to breathe and exist without shortchanging any plot or characterization elsewhere. With such a large cast and complex narrative structure, I initially worried about getting lost or having trouble keeping track of the characters, but I needn’t have – everything is exceptionally clear and easy to follow. It’s quite a feat of writing, and certainly helped by the cast of bright-faced unknowns, all of whom carry out their roles with captivating guilelessness.

I had this ranked at a 4/5 immediately after the festival, trying to be conservative with what might just be an initial dose of love for a film that hit most of my buttons, but as I think back about it, that love hasn’t diminished, so I’m bumping it up to a 4.5/5. That may not hold over time, but this is exactly the kind of indie film we need more of – truly independent, based on solid writing and fresh acting, yet without the sort of pretentiousness that some indies feel they need to prove their worth. The Myth of the American Sleepover isn’t trying to prove anything. It’s just trying to capture, as Mitchell said in his introduction, the beats and rhythms of those moments in our lives that seem inconsequential but actually hold more meaning than we can understand at the time. And it does that brilliantly.

Writer/Director: David Robert Mitchell
Cinematography: James Laxton
Producers: Adele Romanski, Justin Barber, Cherie Saulter, Michael Ferris Gibson
Starring: Claire Sloma, Marlon Morton, Brett Jacobsen, Amanda Bauer, Nikita Ramsay, Jade Ramsay, Wyatt McCallum, Amy Seimetz
Country: United States

I‘ve already managed to get behind on writing AFI Fest reviews, but I couldn’t resist taking a moment to share this video intro that has been playing before every film at the festival. David Lynch is the artistic director of the festival (this is the first year there’s even been one of those, I think), and his sensibility is definitely in play for all the posters and promotional materials. And then there’s this little tribute to AFI where David Lynch is awesome pretty much just by talking. Over the past few days, the reaction to this clip has gone from “WTF was that” to outright love and people joining him on the final “I love AFI.”

Someday I’m going to see a South Korean film that isn’t good. That day hasn’t come yet, and it certainly doesn’t come with HaHaHa, a superbly crafted and warmly engaging drama from director Hong Sang-soo, which happened to win the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes this year. A pair of friends meet for drinks and take the opportunity to reminisce about a city they both spent time at recently, taking turns sharing memories. However, the two men, Moon-kyeong and Joong-sik, don’t realize that they had been frequenting the same places and interacting with the same people. This premise provides an intricate structure upon which Hong interweaves the stories of five or six people as they move in and out of each others’ lives.

At first, these connections seem incidental – Joong-sik and his poet friend eat at a noodle shop that we know is owned by Moon-kyeong’s mother. Moon-kyeong meets a woman who we later learn is dating the poet (who appears in nearly all of Joong-sik’s memories). This woman, Seong-ok, soon becomes something of the solid thread between the two set of stories, as Moon-kyeong begins falling in love with her even while she continues to see the poet in Joong-sik’s memories. Sometimes the stories get quite close together, as when Moon-kyeong talks with his mother in the kitchen while Joong-sik is passed out drunk in the front room (there is a LOT of drinking in the movie, which got incredibly amusing at times). But throughout most of the movie, they don’t realize what we know all along – that their lives in this town and the stories they are telling are inextricably intertwined.

There’s not a whole lot of forward momentum in the film – it doesn’t really build to a giant climax or reveal – but in its moments, its little character interactions, its gently humorous dialogue, it has an incredible amount of warmth and charm. I could’ve just sat and watched this for a lot longer than the film’s running time and watched umpteen more sets of memories from these two. There’s such a deep sense of humanity, of joy, of sadness, of life itself in the film that I didn’t want to let it go. The narrators promise to tell only good stories, pleasant memories, but as we see their memories unfold, it’s clear that there’s more than what they’re explicitly telling each other, and indeed, the camera learns more than what either narrator would know (conversations between Seong-ok and the poet, for example). That may seem inconsistent with the conceit of the film, but it doesn’t feel out of place – it merely feels like the filmmaker stepping in and subtly showing that what we see and what we tell is not the whole story – there’s a very subdued but effective theme running throughout that there’s a difference between what others tell you and actually seeing things for yourself. A dream tells Moon-kyeong to “only see the good things in life,” which is largely what the film shows (making it very pleasant and enjoyable to watch), but there are definitely elements of things aren’t good or pleasant that deepen and complicate the film wonderfully.

Despite the more serious things that happen, the overall tone of HaHaHa matches its title – Hong Sang-soo handles things with a light and humorous touch, making the film pleasant to watch despite the somewhat meandering nature of the story. I also really enjoyed the stylistic touch of having the present day scenes (Moon-kyeong and Joong-sik sharing memories) in black and white stills with voice-over, reserving motion and full color for the memories. It’s both opposite of what you’d expect in terms of normal stylistic choices to depict past and present, and thematically relevant by way of foregrounding and highlighting the memories, making them more real in a way than the framing present-day period. HaHaHa is easily one of my favorite films of the festival, and I’m really disappointed I couldn’t work the scheduling out to see Hong’s other film here, Oki’s Movie, but I definitely plan to delve further into his filmography.

Writer/Director: Hong Sang-soo
Starring: Kim Sang-kyung, Yu Jun-Sang, Moon So-ri
Country: South Korea
Running Time: 115 min.

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Show Notes:

Click on movie title for the trailer.

Opening Music: Roxy Music’s “Love Is The Drug“ (iTunes)

Opening November 5th

Megamind
Due Date
127 Hours
For Colored Girls
Fair Game
Four Lions
Red Hill

Opening November 12th

Unstoppable
Morning Glory
Skyline
Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer
Cool It (Mike’s review)
Tiny Furniture

Opening November 19th

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
The Next Three Days
Made in Dagenham

Opening November 26th

Tangled
Burlesque
Love and Other Drugs
Faster
The King’s Speech

Vancouver

Fifth Avenue Cinemas:

Waste Land
Jolene

The Ridge:

A Film Unfinished (Marina’s review)

Vancity Theatre:

Down Terrace (John’s review)
Vision

Pacific Cinematheque:

European Union Film Festival

Closing Music: The Heavy’s “How Do You Like Me Now (Joker Remix)“ (iTunes)

And yes, I’m two timing. Check out my writing at Quietearth.us

The AFI Film Festival is hitting Los Angeles the first week of November, and I’m pretty stoked. It’s kind of a “best-of” festival in that it’s late in festival season and tends to pull a lot of the more well-received films from Sundance, Cannes, Venice, TIFF, etc. So there may not be a lot of big premieres (though red carpet galas at Grauman’s Chinese are nothing to scoff at, even if the films have played other fests), but for those of us who can’t always make it out of town it’s a great way to catch up with the buzz-worthy films. Thanks to sponsor Audi (the official name of the fest is AFI Fest 2010 Presented by Audi…I know, I know), the fest will be offering free tickets to all screenings, just ilke they did last year. So if you’re in LA, be sure to check out ticket availability because these are going to be some of the best films of the year, and you could see them FOR FREE. (Also, don’t be discouraged if you can’t get tickets immediately to something you wanted to see – last year they released more tickets for almost everything throughout the week, and even people who just went without pre-reserving tickets and just stood in the rush lines had a fair chance of getting in.) Festival passes are on sale now; individual tickets will be available on October 28th, following the release of the full schedule on October 25th. Not much time to plan!

So, what’s actually going to be playing? The gala screenings include Edward Zwick’s Love & Other Drugs with Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal, TIFF Audience Award winner The King’s Speech with Colin Firth as King George VI, Barney’s Version with Paul Giamatti, Diego Luna’s directorial debut Abel, Casino Jack with Kevin Spacey, The Company Men with Ben Affleck, and Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan. Special Screenings are John Sayles’ newest Amigo, John Cameron Mitchell’s Rabbit Hole with Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart, Made in Dagenham with Sally Hawkins, and Werner Herzog’s 3D foray Cave of Forgotten Dreams.

But it’s not only big prestige movies that AFI’s got on display – the Young Americans and New Auteurs sections feature indepedent filmmakers making their first or second films, including Xavier Dolan with Heartbeats (his first feature I Killed My Mother was my favorite from this fest last year) and a bunch of really moodily poetic-looking films that are going to be tough for me to choose between, even though I haven’t heard of most of them.

Then in World Cinema we get Takashi Miike’s 13 Assassins, Im Sang-soo’s The Housemaid (as well as a screening of the 1960 version), Kim Jee-woon’s I Saw the Devil, Abbas Kiarostami’s Certified Copy, Cannes winner Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, Quentin Dupieux’s Rubber (which I cannot wait to check out), and Jean-Luc Godard’s Film Socialisme (which I sort of want to see but am a bit afraid of by this point). A new Midnight section is appallingly small with only three films, but one of them is Guillermo Del Toro-produced Julia’s Eyes, so I’m happy about that.

Check out the full listing of screenings from the press releases after the jump. They may still add more, but this is likely the majority.

Gala Screenings

LOVE & OTHER DRUGS: Edward Zwick’s satiric romp through the world of cutthroat Viagra sales stars Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal as mismatched lovers who discover that love is the ultimate drug. DIR Edward Zwick. SCR Charles Randolph and Edward Zwick & Marshall Herskovitz. CAST Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, Oliver Platt, Hank Azaria, Josh Gad, Judy Greer, Gabriel Macht. USA. World Premiere.

THE KING’S SPEECH: Colin Firth stars as the stuttering King George VI and Geoffrey Rush as his maverick Australian speech therapist. DIR Tom Hooper. SCR David Seidler. CAST Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, Geoffrey Rush, Guy Pearce, Timothy Spall. UK/Australia.

BLUE VALENTINE: Flooded with romantic memories of their courtship, Dean and Cindy use one night to try and save their failing marriage. DIR Derek Cianfrance. SCR Derek Cianfrance, Joey Curtis and Cami Delavigne. CAST Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams. USA.

BARNEY’S VERSION: A wise and witty tale of a seemingly ordinary man who lives an extraordinary life. DIR Richard J. Lewis. SCR Michael Konyves. CAST Dustin Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Rachelle Lefevre, Scott Speedman. Canada/Italy.

ABEL: In his feature directorial debut, Diego Luna offers a strange, alluring fable of a disturbed child attempting to become his own father. DIR Diego Luna. SCR Diego Luna, Augusto Mendoza. CAST Christopher Ruíz-Esparza, José MarÌa Yazpik, Karina Gidi, Carlos Aragûn, Gerardo Ruíz-Esparza, Geraldine Alejandra. Mexico.

CASINO JACK: Notorious lobbyist Jack Abramoff finds himself in bed with mafia assassins in this fact-inspired film. DIR George Hickenlooper. SCR Norman Snider. CAST Kevin Spacey, Barry Pepper, Kelly Preston, Rachelle Lafevre, Jon Lovitz. Canada.

THE COMPANY MEN: Bobby Walker is living the American dream when corporate downsizing forces him and two co-workers to re-define their lives. DIR/SCR John Wells. CAST Ben Affleck, Chris Cooper, Kevin Costner, Tommy Lee Jones, Maria Bello, Rosemary DeWitt. USA.

BLACK SWAN: Darren Aronofsky’s stunningly operatic film stars Natalie Portman as a rising ballet star pushing her body and soul to the limit. DIR Darren Aronofsky. SCR Mark Heyman & Andres Heinz & John McLaughlin. CAST Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder. USA.

AMIGO: Parallels to current events abound in John Sayles’ compelling drama about the moral quandaries facing U.S. soldiers and local cooperators a century ago in the Philippine-American War. DIR/SCR John Sayles. CAST Garret Dillahunt, Joel Torre, Chris Cooper, DJ Qualls, Brian Lee Franklin. USA/Philippines. U.S. Premiere.

RABBIT HOLE: A vivid, honest, hopeful and unexpectedly witty portrait of a family searching for what remains possible in the most impossible of all situations. DIR John Cameron Mitchell. SCR David Lindsay-Abaire. CAST Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, Dianne Wiest, Miles Teller, Tammy Blanchard, Sandra Oh. USA.

MADE IN DAGENHAM: Alongside 55,000 men, 187 women work as machinists in a car assembly plant and are paid a fraction of what the men earn. The women go on strike, eventually leading to a national crisis. DIR Nigel Cole. SCR William Ivory. CAST Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike. UK.

CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS: Visionary director Werner Herzog takes us on a 3-D journey into the most distant past of human history as his camera encounters the 35,000-year-old paintings of the Chauvet Cave. DIR Werner Herzog. USA.

World Cinema

This section presents new work by many of the world’s most renowned filmmakers.

13 ASSASSINS: DIR Takashi Miike. SCR Daisuke Tengan. Japan.

BOY: DIR/SCR Taika Waititi. New Zealand.

CARANCHO: DIR Pablo Trapero. SCR Alejandro Fadel, Martín Mauregui, Santiago Mitre, Pablo Trapero. Argentina/France/Chile.

CERTIFIED COPY (COPIE CONFORME): DIR/SCR Abbas Kiarostami. France/Italy/Iran.

CHICO & RITA: DIR Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal, Tono Errando. SCR Fernando Trueba, Ignacio Martínez de Pisûn. Spain/UK.

FILM SOCIALISM (FILM SOCIALISME): DIR/SCR Jean-Luc Goddard. Switzerland.

HAHAHA: DIR/SCR Hong Sangsoo. South Korea.

HIS & HERS: DIR Ken Wardrop. Ireland.

THE HOUSEMAID (1960): DIR/SCR Kim Ki-young. South Korea.

THE HOUSEMAID (2010): DIR Im Sang-soo. SCR Kim Ki-young, Im Sang-soo. South Korea.

THE HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER: DIR Eran Riklis. SCR Noah Stollman. Israel/Germany/France/Romania.

I SAW THE DEVIL: DIR Kim Jee-woon. SCR Park Hoon-jung. South Korea.

KARAMAY: DIR Xu Xin. China.

OKI’S MOVIE: DIR/SCR Hong Sangsoo. South Korea.

OUTRAGE: DIR/SCR: Takeshi Kitano. Japan.

PINK SARIS: DIR Kim Longinotto. UK.

POETRY: DIR/SCR Lee Chang-dong. South Korea.

PRECIOUS LIFE: Dir: Shlomi Eldar. Israel.

THE PRINCESS OF MONTPENSIER: DIR Bertrand Tavernier. SCR Jean Cosmos, François Olivier Rousseau, Bertrand Tavernier. France.

RUBBER: DIR/SCR Quentin Dupieux. USA.

A SCREAMING MAN (HOMME QUE CRIE): DIR/SCR Mahamat-Saleh Haroun. France/Belgium/Chad.

SUBMARINO: DIR/SCR Thomas Vinterberg. Denmark.

UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES (LUNG BOONMEE RALUEK CHAT): DIR/SCR Apichatpong Weerasethakul. UK/Thailand/France/Germany/Spain.

Young Americans

The Young Americans section features work by emerging U.S. filmmakers whose stories reflects the distinct American regions in which they are set.

AARDVARK (New York): DIR/SCR Kitao Sakurai. USA. North American Premiere.

LITTLEROCK (California): DIR/SCR Mike Ott. USA.

THE MYTH OF THE AMERICAN SLEEPOVER (Michigan): DIR/SCR David Robert Mitchell. USA.

PUTTY HILL (Maryland.): DIR/SCR Matt Porterfield. USA.

TWO GATES OF SLEEP (Louisiana): DIR/SCR Alistair Banks Griffin. USA. U.S. Premiere.

SOME DAYS ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS (Oregon): DIR/SCR Matt McCormick. USA.

New Auteurs

The New Auteurs section distinguishes first- and second-time feature film directors from around the world.

ADRIENN PÁL (PÁL ADRIENN): DIR Ágnes Kocsis. SCR ¡gnes Kocsis and Andrea Roberti. Hungary/Netherlands/Austria/France. U.S. Premiere.

BEDEVILLED: DIR Cheol-soo Jang. SCR Choi Gwan-young. South Korea.

THE FOUR TIMES (LE QUATTRO VOLTE): DIR/SCR Michelangelo Frammartino. Italy/Germany/Switzerland.

HEARTBEATS (LES AMOURS IMAGINAIRES): DIR/SCR Xavier Dolan. Canada.

NOTHING’S ALL BAD (SMUKKE MENNESKER): DIR/SCR Mikkel Munch-Fals. U.S. Premiere.

PULSAR: DIR/SCR Alex Stockman. Belgium.

SHIT YEAR: DIR/SCR Cam Archer. USA.

Midnight Selections

This new section showcases comedy and horror programming worthy of midnight viewings.

CARGO: DIR Ivan Engler, Ralph Etter. SCR Arnold Bucher, Ivan Engler, Patrik Steinmann, Thilo Röscheisen. Switzerland.

JULIA’S EYES (LOS OJOS DE JULIA): DIR Guillem Morales. SCR Guillem Morales, Oriol Paulo. Spain.

NORWEGIAN NINJA (KOMMANDER TREHOLT & NINJATROPPEN): DIR/SCR Thomas Cappelen Malling. Norway.

Alt/Art Selections

This section presents films about art, artists and the artistic struggle for freedom of expression.

BARBERSHOP PUNK: DIR Georgia Archer, Kristin Armfield. USA.

BLANK CITY: DIR Celine Danhier. USA.

FREE RADICALS: DIR Pip Chodorov. France. U.S. Premiere

Breakthrough Selections

This section – new to AFI FEST – highlights films discovered solely through the submissions process. The films in this section are in competition for the Breakthrough Audience Award and its accompanying $5,000 cash prize.

HAMILL: DIR Oren Kaplan. SCR Joseph McKelheer, Eben Kostbar. USA. World Premiere.

I WILL FOLLOW: DIR/SCR Ava DuVernay. USA.

REMOVAL: DIR Nick Simon. SCR Daniel Meersand, Nick Simon, Oz Perkins. USA. World Premiere.

THE WEATHER STATION (PRYACHSYA): DIR Johnny O’Reilly. SCR Aleksei Kolmogorov, Johnny O’Reilly. Russia. World Premiere.

WIN/WIN: DIR/SCR Jaap van Heusden. Netherlands.

Short Film Selections

The films in this section are in competition for the Grand Jury Prize for Live Action Short Film and Animated Short Film – both recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as qualifiers for the annual Academy Awards®.

52 TAKES OF THE SAME THING THEN BOOBS: DIR/SCR T. Arthur Cottam. USA.
THE ABYSS BOYS: DIR/SCR Jan-Hendrik Beetge. South Africa.
THE ACCORDION: DIR/SCR Jafar Panahi. Iran.
BERIK: DIR/SCR Daniel Borgman. Denmark.
BOTTLE: DIR/SCR Kirsten Lepore. USA.
DELMER BUILDS A MACHINE: DIR/SCR Landon Zakheim. USA.
EXCUSE ME: DIR/SCR Duncan Birmingham. USA.
FEEDER: DIR Joseph Ernst. SCR Joseph Ernst, Dean Wei. Netherlands/UK.
THE HIGH LEVEL BRIDGE: DIR/SCR Trevor Anderson. Canada.
I LOVE LUCI: DIR/SCR Colin Kennedy. UK.
I MISS: DIR/SCR Annie Dorsen. USA.
IF YOU DRIVE AT NIGHT, TRY TO HAVE COMPANY: DIR/SCR Isabel MuÒoz. Mexico.
KIDS MIGHT FLY: DIR/SCR Alex Taylor. UK.
LONG LIVE THE NEW FLESH: DIR Nicolas Provost. Belgium.
MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON: DIR Dean Fleischer-Camp. SCR Jenny Slate, Dean Fleischer-Camp. USA.
MARY LAST SEEN: DIR/SCR T. Sean Durkin. USA.
ON LEAVE: DIR/SCR Asaf Saban. Israel.
PHOTOGRAPH OF JESUS: DIR Laurie Hill. UK.
PIXELS: DIR/SCR Paul Emile Boucher. France.
QUADRANGLE: DIR Amy Grappell. USA.
THE RESPONSE: DIR Andrew Spieler. SCR Andrew Spieler, Marina Stabile, Julia Norw. USA.
SACRAMENTO: A FAMILY FABLE: DIR/SCR Michael Bodie. USA.
THE SANDPIT: DIR Sam O’Hare. USA.
THE SAVAGE CANVAS: DIR Tim Hope. SCR Tim Hope, Susanna Kleeman. UK.
SOME BOYS DON’T LEAVE: DIR Maggie Kiley. SCR Maggie Kiley, Matthew Mullen. USA.
STRIPS: DIR Felix Dufour-Laperriere. Canada.
SUCCESSFUL ALCOHOLICS: DIR Jordan Vogt-Roberts. SCR T.J. Miller, Jordan Vogt- Roberts. USA.
TELEPHONEME: DIR/SCR MK12. USA.
TIME FREAK: DIR/SCR Andrew Bowler. USA.
TUB: DIR/SCR Bobby Miller. USA.
VOICE ON THE LINE: DIR Kelly Sears. USA.

In the 1940s, the Nazi’s shot an unfinished film about life within the Warsaw Ghetto, a film that for years was used as a document of life within the ghetto. And then a few years ago, a new, previously unseen reel of the film was found, forever changing the meaning of the images we’d previously seen and taken in as fact.

Yael Hersonski’s documentary A Film Unfinished, goes beyond the images on screen and provides a deeply researched, rich history of the film that changes not only the way we look at this sliver of history but how we observe and read images in general. Supported by interviews from individuals who survived the ghetto and recall the filming and even a camera operator who remembers the herding and directing of Jews, we learn the truth of life in the ghetto and the lengths the propaganda machine was willing to stretch to make its point.

What’s most fascinating about Hersonki’s film is that while she meticulously breaks down the film to uncover the fake images, she makes us question not only the validity of this document but of other historical documents through the years. What other bits of history have we misread or misunderstood? And perhaps most importantly, how can we insure that this doesn’t happen again?

A powerful, devastating film, A Film Unfinished isn’t an easy watch but a necessary one and an excellent counterpart to Errol Morris’ Standard Operating Procedure which also explores the meaning of images and how they are perceived.

See VIFF screening schedule for show times.

Trailer tucked under the seats.

13 Assassins
Miike Takashi

Kurt’s Review

Marina’s Review [QE]

We’re in 1844, 20-odd years before the overthrow of the shogunate, when the council of elders decides to act against the cruel and depraved Lord Naritsugu (Inagaki Goro) before he rises to high political office. Retired samurai Shinzaemon (Yakusho Koji) is given the secret task of recruiting a squad of assassins to make Naritsugu “disappear” during a trip to his domain in Akashi. The first half of the film follows the Seven Samurai template, with Shinzaemon assembling his team – and admitting one gutsy peasant pretender (Iseya Yusuke in an updated version of the Mifune role) alongside the professionals. The second half, with the assassins turning the entire town of Ochiai into a giant trap for the villain, is more like a riff on the ambush in King Hu’s A Touch of Zen. Whatever its antecedents, this sets the gold standard for genre entertainment in 2010. (courtesy of VIFF)

A Film Unfinished
Yael Hersonski

Marina’s Review

One of the most lauded of recent documentaries and an unforgettable experience on levels intellectual, aesthetic and instinctual, Yael Hersonki’s A Film Unfinished is destined to become one of the great found-footage films of this century. She uses the 1942 Nazi propaganda film Ghetto, which purported to depict the inhumanity of the Jewish community to its own. The film she “found” had no soundtrack and the footage was little more than a horrifying relic of the Third Reich’s madness, until the discovery of rare outtakes, as well as interviews with an SS cameraman, led Hersonki to reveal that the truth was even stranger than Nazi fiction. (courtesy of VIFF)

Altitude
Kaare Andrews

Marina’s Review [QE]

On their final weekend together before college life pulls them apart, rookie pilot Sara, her boyfriend Bruce, cousin Cory and pals Mel and Sal plan the ultimate concert getaway aboard a small private plane. Just minutes into the flight, the novice aviator faces her first real emergency. The plane’s elevator jams, causing it to gradually gain altitude. Then a vast, unnatural storm envelops them, instruments mysteriously malfunction, and all contact with the ground is lost. Bruce, who has kept his pathological fear of flying a secret, panics and has to be subdued. Meanwhile tensions between Cory and Sal escalate as their rivalry for Mel’s affection boils over.

Unable to find their way out of the endless clouds, and with ice on the wings threatening to seal their fate, Cory tries to free the jammed elevator in a hair-raising tail walk. But regaining control of the plane provides only a temporary reprieve. Something in the storm is stalking them, picking them off one by one, and it won’t stop until everyone is dead.(courtesy of VIFF)

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American Grindhouse
Elijah Drenner

Marina’s Review [QE]

Come one! Come all! Step right into the grindhouse! And be sure to check your good taste at the door… Equal parts history lesson and love letter, Elijah Drenner’s edutaining romp leads us through the backwaters of sleaze cinema and celebrates some of the big screen’s greatest guilty pleasures. Narrated by cult icon Robert Forster and employing both genre filmmakers and film historians as tour guides, the documentary traces the movies’ appetite for the salacious all the way back to Thomas Edison’s early celluloid experiments. When Hollywood studios were strong-armed by the morally upstanding production code in the 1930s, underground cinema truly flourished, thanks to an environment steeped in hucksterism, sensationalism and one-upmanship. (courtesy of VIFF)

Another Year
Mike Leigh

Mike’s Review

Kurt’s Review

This touching and beautifully nuanced drama from England’s master of cinematic improvisation, Mike Leigh, depicts a collection of lonely characters revolving around a happy middle-aged couple. The ensemble acting is of a high caliber. It has been given a rapturous welcome at the Cannes Film Festival, touted as his best work since Secrets and Lies (1996)… Leigh has a knack of making the ordinary extraordinary. Here he deals with themes of class, family and depression over a period of a year, breaking it up into seasonal chapters. (courtesy of VIFF)

Anton Chekhov’s The Duel
Dover Kosashvili

Marina’s Review

With his Israeli Late Marriage (VIFF 02) Dover Kosashvili announced himself as a sensual director of relationships, those alive, dying or dead. Few thought he would make an American adaptation of a celebrated novella by Chekhov, but this tale too is about such relationships, albeit at the end of the 19th century in Russia. A civil servant (Andrew Scott), his married mistress (Fiona Glascott) and a zoologist (Tobias Menzies) spend a summer together in the Caucasus. Emotional and psychological sparks fly between them amidst gorgeously photographed countryside vistas. But this is no idyllic period piece – “the film mixes bitterness and laughter with strong dramatic passages” (The New York Times) and is played to perfection by its three leads. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Bush League
Cy Kuckenbaker

Review

The players on the Tony Bombers football team in Zokolere, Malawi, serve as a microcosm for Cy Kuckenbaker’s on-the-ground look at social progress – and the lack thereof – in that Malawian village. The team’s engaging players shed light on their issues and concerns while the film as a whole captures the frustrations faced by Westerners trying to “do good.” (courtesy of VIFF)

Carancho
Pablo Trapero

Review

A corrupt society eventually infects even its decent, noble-minded citizens in Carancho… from Argentinean director Pablo Trapero… An expertly crafted thriller steeped in the social injustices of Buenos Aires, it combines crisp storytelling with appealingly flawed characters and moments of startling violence… Opening titles inform us that road accidents have become an epidemic in Argentina… It has become a vital part of the economy for unscrupulous lawyers and wary insurance companies plagued by compensation claims. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Carlos
Olivier Assayas

Marina’s Review

Carlos is everything Che wanted to be and much, much more – a dynamic, convincing and revelatory account of a notorious revolutionary terrorist’s career that rivets the attention during every one of its 321 minutes. In what is certainly his best work, French director Olivier Assayas adopts a fleet, ever-propulsive style that creates an extraordinary you-are-there sense of verisimilitude, while Edgar Ramírez inhabits the title role with arrogant charisma of Brando in his prime. It’s an astonishing film. (courtesy of VIFF)

Cell 211
Daniel Monzón

Andrew’s Review

One of the biggest hits on Spanish screens this past year. As far as first days on the job go, they don’t come much worse than this. A trainee prison guard, Juan (newcomer Alberto Ammann in a star-making turn) becomes trapped in a cellblock that’s just been overrun by psychotic prisoner Malamadre (Luis Tosar, brimming with unhinged intensity) and his henchman. Cleverly passing himself off as a fellow convict, Juan ingratiates himself to the uprising’s ringleader and uncovers his plan to use captive Basque terrorists as leverage in his negotiations. Consequently, Juan is left to not just save his own skin but also stop a proverbial powder keg from erupting. (courtesy of VIFF)

Chicks
Sophie Letourneur

Review

Sophie Letourneur’s fresh and vibrant dramatic-comedy captures a group of 19- and 20-year-old women in Paris as they party their way to the cusp of adulthood. Featuring a group of up-and-coming stars, Letourneur’s feature debut (she was 29 when she finished it) has the all-important ring of truth to it. These are the young adults of today – both for better and for worse. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Cold Fish
Sono Sion

Bob’s Review

Marina’s Review [QE]

Sono Shion announces his outrageous thriller as being based on a true story, but you’ll have raised a skeptical eyebrow well before you’re wallowing in the first bloodbath. The factual case which inspired the one-time poet involved dog-breeders in Saitama Prefecture, but Sono sets his story in the bizarre world of tropical fish retailing. Shop-owner Shamoto is increasingly estranged from his wife and daughter (teenager Mitsuko has reached a “difficult age”) and lives for visits to his favourite planetarium. When Murata Yukio, boss of a tropical fish supermarket (a stupendous performance from former comedian Denden), steps into his life, Shamoto’s world is transformed. It’s not until he witnesses Murata murdering an investor and is forced to help with the splattery disposal of the corpse that he realizes just how much his world has been transformed. With the same irresponsible glee he showed in Exte and Love Exposure, Sono piles on the agony: several murders later, Shamoto is struggling to outwit Murata, call the cops and regain the respect of his wife and daughter. Will he succeed? What do you think? (courtesy of VIFF)

Cold Weather
Aaron Katz

Marina’s Review [QE]

With Cascadian vistas crisply shot by cinematographer Andrew Reed and crackling dialogue (by the director and fellow producers Ben Stambler and Brendon McFadden), Aaron Katz’s shape-shifting feature is a delicious amalgam of family-bonding drama, mumblecore riff, and genuinely involving genre exercise. By injecting a healthy dose of plot into a well-rounded character dramedy about real people and their (mostly) real-life dilemmas, Katz jars American independent cinema out of its navel-gazing doldrums – there hasn’t been a movie this fresh and genuinely funny for what seems like ages. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Dear Prudence
Rebecca Zlotowski

Marina’s Review [QE]

The young – and soon to be very well known – Léa Seydoux gives a deceptive and deeply affecting performance as the eponymous lead in Rebecca Zlotowski’s debut drama about a teenager, at home alone after her mother’s recent death. With her mysteriously absent father only a disembodied voice on the telephone, Prudence both relishes her freedom, skipping school, hanging with kids from the wrong side of the tracks, while seeming not to care about her mother’s passing. Her family – a caring, but mostly absent sister, a cousin – seem genuinely shocked by her non-observance of mourning rituals given she’s Jewish, (something so underplayed in the film that some viewers seem to have missed it). Soon she manages to finagle herself into a thoroughly disaffected milieu: that of the underground motorbike racing culture in the Paris suburb of Rungis, where tragedy is a weekly occurrence and promiscuity a given… (courtesy of VIFF)

Down Terrace

Ben Wheatley

Kurt’s Review

A blackly comic British gangster film unlike any British gangster film we have seen before, Down Terrace has been described as The Sopranos directed by Mike Leigh – but it’s more ruthless than that suggests, and funnier too. In fact, Eastenders directed by Quentin Tarantino might be nearer the mark. When Karl (co-writer Robin Hill) returns home after four months on remand, he’s greeted by his dad, Bill, and a handful of close friends – but which one grassed him out to the police? (courtesy of VIFF)

End of Animal
Jo Sung-Hee

Marina’s Review [QE]

One of the most striking debuts in Korean film history, End of Animal conjures up an apocalypse whose implications are out of all proportion with the film’s own scale. You could think of it as a broken-down road movie. Soon-Young is travelling by taxi to her mother’s place in Taeryung when the driver picks up a second passenger, who soon reveals that he has no money or plastic to pay his share of the fare. What the stranger does have, though, is uncanny insights into the minds of both Soon-Young and the driver (the latter’s marriage has been in trouble since he was caught with an underage girl), and he goes on to predict that all electrical power will fail any moment now… which it does. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Fathers&Sons
Carl Bessai

Marina’s Review

From its bawdy, tender, tragic and hilarious opening scene, Carl Bessai’s film sets a tone of rueful comedy and forceful emotion that never flags. This is a comedy-drama that takes both avenues to their furthest extremes – a cathartic, bittersweet, very intimate look at love and anger across the generation gap. The film follows four different stories involving middle-aged men and their fathers, jumping between different cultures, careers, sexualities and sensibilities. (courtesy of VIFF)

If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle
Florin Serban

Marina’s Review [QE]

Immediately reminiscent of VIFF 09 favourite A Prophet, Florin Serban’s “jewel of a first feature” (The Observer) documents the ordeals that a callow protagonist endures within the walls of a correctional facility. Eighteen-year-old Silviu (George Pistereanu, a newcomer with intensity to spare) has scant days remaining in his sentence. However, his wait assumes a desperate urgency after a visit from his beloved younger brother and the revelation that their estranged mother plans to immediately abscond to Italy with the youngster. Stonewalled by the prison administration in his attempts to secure an early release and subject to the emotional and physical brutality of his fellow inmates, Silviu is soon pushed to the breaking point. (courtesy of VIFF)

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In the Shadows
Thomas Arslan

Marina’s Review [QE]

Hardened career criminal Trojan (a mesmerizing Mišel Maticevic) is released from jail, confronts his former boss for a share of the take from the job that landed him in the joint, and is pursued by the boss’ goons. With a dirty cop on his tail – who suspects, correctly, that Trojan is planning something big – Trojan enlists the help of his sometime lover, a corrupt lawyer, to set up an armoured-car heist… (courtesy of VIFF)

Inside Job
Charles Ferguson

Mike’s Review

This will probably be the most high-profile and important film on the recent financial crisis. Charles Ferguson (No End in Sight) makes the dizzying Byzantine complexities – and who’s to blame – explicitly clear in riveting and angering fashion. You will not believe what you will hear spoken. The end result of the film’s precise and careful analysis is that the financial crisis of 2007-10, a series of events that gave rise to losses in the trillions of dollars and kicked the world economy into the worst financial disaster since the Great Depression, could have been avoided. (courtesy of VIFF)

Into Eternity
Michael Madsen

Marina’s Review

Finland’s Onkalo facility for nuclear waste is expected to take more than 100 years to build and to last for 100,000, with the hope that earth’s future inhabitants (who – or whatever – they may be) will never discover it. Michael Madsen’s chin-dropping documentary poses profound questions not only about the nuclear industry, but also about the very nature of human history. (courtesy of VIFF)

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King’s Road
Valdís Óskarsdóttir

Marina’s Review [QE]

Behind the satire and outright comedy of the Valdís Óskarsdóttir’s (an award-winning editor who cut Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) end-of-the-road movie is the very genuine sense of anger that so many Icelanders feel at the way the current economic crisis has singled out their small island nation for a thorough thrashing. German heartthrob Daniel Brühl, serving as the audience’s surrogate, is Rupert, journeying to King’s Road – a “holiday resort” he’s been told – with his friend Junior (Gísli Örn Gardarsson), a former local. When they arrive, courtesy of a larcenous and very unfriendly cab driver, all Rupert sees is a bunch of motley trailers stuck in the mud, and the very eccentric people who inhabit them. Rupert is not amused… (courtesy of VIFF)

Littlerock
Mike Ott

Marina’s Review [QE]

“A perfect David Lynch setting,” is how filmmaker Mike Ott sums up Littlerock, California. Which is to say that it initially appears rather unexceptional. Nevertheless, Atsuko, a Japanese tourist, becomes utterly enchanted with the community and its slacker denizens while waylaid there due to car trouble. Despite not speaking a word of English, she immerses herself in the small town’s culture (such as it is). Instances of everyday surrealism slowly emerge, be it Atsuko downing beers in an abandoned house in the desert or gawking at the costumed cavalcade at a Fourth of July parade (captured guerrilla-style by Ott for full authenticity). (courtesy of VIFF)

The Man from Nowhere
Lee Jeong-beom

Marina’s Review [QE]

A big summer hit in Korea, The Man from Nowhere is a well-plotted action-thriller made with energy, taste and heart, a guilt-free pleasure, which marks Won Bin’s transition from “kid-brother” roles to centre-stage. (He played the son in Bong Joon-Ho’s Mother.) At the start, Cha Tae-Shik is a shadowy figure, hiding from the world as the half-hearted owner of a small pawnshop in the Yongsan district of Seoul; his only human contact is with his neighbours: a sleazy nightclub dancer and her neglected young daughter So-Mi (played by Kim Sae-Ron, the kid from orphan-drama A Brand New Life). When these neighbours are kidnapped by psychotic gangsters, on the trail of some stolen heroin, Tae-Shik rediscovers his mojo as a Bourne-like figure trained as a fearless killing machine by the Korean equivalent of the CIA. He finds himself up against some seriously nasty guys (child slave labour, organ harvesting from innocent victims, you name it) but finds the inner strengths – and the emotional drive – to keep fighting. Writer-director Lee Jeong-Beom comes up with some great characters and lines (you gotta love the tetchy drug-lord who’s nostalgic for the days of military dictatorship), but his best achievement is the blend of motion and emotion in a blur of speed. (courtesy of VIFF)

Metamorphosis
Lee Samchil

Marina’s Review [QE]

Inspired by F. Kafka’s story The Metamorphosis, Lee Samchil’s amazing experimental feature traps us inside the consciousness of a man with a deeply repressed guilty secret. The entire film is shot from this guy’s point-of-view (which adds the film to the short list of titles in film history which have gone for this formal challenge), starting on the day when he wakes to find his body changed and his mouth incapable of speech. We gradually learn some of his forlorn back-story: both parents died in a road accident; at war with his hated sister over whether or not to sell the house; out of work and increasingly reluctant to venture outdoors ever since the International Monetary Fund’s harsh intervention in the Korean economy. As the days tick by and he explores the parameters of his predicament, he slowly learns to see afresh – and we, of course, learn with him. Inexorably, though, we approach the return of the repressed… (courtesy of VIFF)

Mighty Jerome
Charles Officer

Marina’s Review

Mighty Jerome explores the turbulent life and career of the record-setting African-Canadian track-and-field star. Inspired by Fil Fraser’s book Running Uphill, the film is directed by Charles Officer, and produced by Selwyn Jacob (Warrior Boyz, The Journey of Lesra Martin) of the NFB’s Pacific and Yukon Centre. “Twenty-seven years after his untimely death at 42, Harry Jerome’s accomplishments as an athlete and social activist embody the perseverance of the human spirit,” says Officer. “He was, at one time, the fastest man on the planet.” “Besides being a champion athlete, Harry Jerome was also a champion of equal opportunities for minorities,” Jacob says. Charles Officer, a former athlete himself, is also a champion in his own right, a visionary of the black aesthetic in Canadian cinema. (courtesy of VIFF)

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MODRA
Ingrid Veninger

Marina’s Review [QE]

Teenagers Lina (Hallie Switzer) and Leco (Alexander Gammal) are casual acquaintances, she coming off a bitter break-up, he looking to score. Summer has begun, and Lina is already committed to a trip to her family’s homeland, Slovakia. She whimsically asks Leco to take her boyfriend’s place as a travelling companion, and he accepts. Their hopeful, slightly reckless decision is totally believable yet a bit mysterious. That’s writer-director Veninger’s game: she sticks close to her subjects without feeling the need to explain everything. (courtesy of VIFF)

Monsters
Gareth Edwards

Kurt’s Review

Jandy’s Review

When a NASA space probe picks up a few strays and crash lands in the Gulf of Mexico, new and enormous forms of life, complete with multiple tentacles and nasty dispositions, begin to emerge and wreak havoc on the locals. Large sections of Mexico deemed to be part of an Infected Zone are cordoned off from the US by an enormous fence, leaving the Mexican people to fend for themselves. (Acidic zingers such as this are sprinkled throughout the film adding extra levels of piquancy.) A young American photographer on assignment to get images of the earth’s new inhabitants gets a side job picking up the daughter of his employer, who has missed her ferry and must be escorted back to the safety of the US through the writhing heart of the Infected Zone. As the pair journey cross-country, in the care of various mercenaries and local guides, the film veers into almost cinéma vérité-type territory. The lore of the film is that Edwards and crew shot scenes with local people and then simply slipped in some CGI creatures later on. The result is a near-seamless collision of hard-bitten reality and fantastic fiction. This is DIY filmmaking at its best and superb example of what can be done with creative ingenuity and blood and guts on the ground. (courtesy of VIFF)

Mysteries of Lisbon
Raúl Ruiz

Marina’s Review

Que grande filme! Based on the legendary (and still untranslated) Portuguese novel by Camilo Castelo Branco, Raúl Ruiz’s spectacular historical epic plunges us into a veritable whirlwind of adventures and escapades, coincidences and revelations, multiple identities within multiple identities, stories within stories, sentiments and violent passions, vengeance and love affairs—all wrapped in a rhapsodic voyage that takes us from Portugal to France, Italy, and as far as the shores of Brazil. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Of Gods and Men
Xavier Beauvois

Marina’s Review [QE]

The thematic area of international terrorism, while deeply mined, is given close and thoughtful attention in Xavier Beavois gravely beautiful drama. Of Gods and Men is based on the 1996 Tibhirine attack, in which an order of Cicstercian monks confront Islamic fundamentalists with only the strength of their faith. Against the majesty of Algeria’s Atlas Mountains, the quotidian activity of the monks (gardening, dispensing medical help to the locals, and religious observances) proceed with humble grace. Even as the mounting threat of terrorist violence looms, the brotherhood maintain their mission. (courtesy of VIFF)

Of Love and Other Demons
Hilda Hidalgo

Review

The moment young Sierva Maria de Todos los Angeles rolls over in her hammock and three feet of auburn ringlets spill out onto the ground, the heated language of Gabriel García Márquez’s celebrated magical realism unfurls in overripe, luscious detail. Against the backdrop of 18th-century Cartagena, García Marquez’s sprawling narrative – full of sexually dissipated aristocrats, the Inquisition’s inquisitors, slavery – entwines one like so much jungle growth. Or, perhaps more correctly, coppery tresses. (courtesy of VIFF)

Plug & Pray
Jens Schanze

Marina’s Review [QE]

Globetrotting documentarian Jens Shanze tracks down cutting-edge inventors like Ray Kurzweil and Hiroshi Ishiguro who are hellbent on making artificial life a reality. In fact, Ishiguro has already constructed an android doppelganger of himself. Feel free to let your jaw drop as you watch “Geminoid” play a guessing game with a human opponent. While you can’t help but marvel at such ingenious creations, a chill nevertheless runs along one’s spine as these geniuses wax enthusiastic about mankind’s impending ability to meld with technology and achieve eternal life. Frighteningly, Weizenbaum’s death (a “natural end” that he welcomed) seems to have silenced the sole voice of reason amongst these brilliant minds. (courtesy of VIFF)

The Princess of Montpensier
Bertrand Tavernier

Marina’s Review

During 16th-century France’s era of bloody religious strife, the cultivated soldier-scholar Chabanne (played by the brilliant Lambert Wilson, also in Of Gods and Men) grows disillusioned with the endless savagery. He is hired as an instructor for Marie, an irresistibly beautiful romantic-erotic prize sought by several young noblemen. As he experiences his own forbidden desire for Marie, Chabanne must also protect her from the dangerously corrupt court dominated by Catherine De Medici… Tavernier translates Madame de Lafayette’s novel into a brilliant evocation of the terrible conflict between duty and passion. Though the themes are classic – this is the stuff of tragedies from Racine and Corneille – Tavernier manages to make them feel passionately, urgently contemporary. (courtesy of VIFF)

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R
Michael Noer, Tobias Lindholm

Marina’s Review [QE]

A fitting companion to Jacques Audiard’s breakout drama A Prophet, Michael Noer and Tobias Lindholm’s R, is another suitably gritty entry to the prison film genre. The filmmakers (who hail from screenwriting and documentary backgrounds) load their debut feature with rankly authentic atmosphere and a surprising narrative conceit that packs a serious punch. R (which stands for Rune) is a blond toughie with an outsized chip on his shoulder. Consigned to one of Denmark’s oldest and meanest prisons, he is initially out-manned by older, bigger cons. Shortly after his arrival, the ultra menacing The Mason advises him that if he doesn’t do the older man’s bidding, that he will himself be subject to some extreme violence. But young R is not without resources, and he soon makes his way in this neo-Darwinian society by concocting a clever way to deal drugs (hint: there’s reason he asks his grandma to bring him Kinder Eggs). The film’s violence, predatory tactics and man-eat-man action will guarantee a cult following, but there is a sharp intelligence at work here. The camera that dogs R’s heels, and the soundtrack of muttering noise and threat creates a powerful impression. (courtesy of VIFF)

Repeaters
Carl Bessai

Marina’s Review [QE]

Gripping and contemplative in equal measure, Repeaters is a thriller with a philosophical twist. Three emotionally scarred addicts in a rehab clinic come to realize that they are living through the same day again and again. This predicament seems at first to be the ultimate gift for the addicts, giving them a freedom from long-term consequences that they’ve always wanted. Gradually, however, they come to realize that there’s no such thing as a life without consequences – that there’s no escaping the future or the past. The film’s story conceit is perfectly suited to the condition of addiction, with the initial promise of freedom and indulgence giving way to a maddening trap of repetition and seeming futility. The fantasy situation that these three find themselves in is a perfect metaphor for the paradoxes of dependence and personal freedom that define substance abuse. This is a dark film, but ultimately a hopeful one. Thematically ambitious, it nevertheless folds its ideas into an unpretentious thriller form, making for a challenging but totally compelling experience. Director Carl Bessai draws powerful, emotionally authentic performances from his cast, and shows a strong talent for evoking terror and warmth – often within the same scene. A powerful, life-affirming film. (courtesy of VIFF)

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The Robber
Benjamin Heisenberg

Marina’s Review [QE]

Laconic and ultra-realistic in style, Benjamin Heisenberg’s (Sleeper) latest drama is based on the true story of one Johannes Rettenberger, a bank robber in 1980s Vienna with the nickname of Pumpgun Ronnie because of the Ronald Reagan mask he sported while committing his crimes. In jail he took up running and when he got out he alternated between his newfound passion for marathons and his old-time jones for robbing banks, trying and failing to substitute the endorphin high he got from the former for the kicks he took from the latter. Andreas Lust immerses himself in the character of Rettenberger, giving him a chilling and implacable need that can never be fulfilled. (courtesy of VIFF)

Rubber
Quentin Dupieux

Kurt’s Review

Marina’s Review [QE]

Cronenberg meets Buñuel meets Goodyear in Rubber, an homage to the road movie, the Western, the B movie, and, last but not least, as a sheriff explains in the film’s hilarious opening sequence, to “no reason.” In the California desert, a pack of semi-eager spectators are unceremoniously dumped, binoculars in hand, to witness the show before their eyes, and provide a running commentary. A shabby tire, somewhere in the distance, wobbly stands up, tentatively exploring his newfound powers on a beer bottle and a bunny rabbit, before spying a leggy goddess (Roxane Mesquida, looking really hot) zooming by on the highway. The action soon shifts to a rundown motel, where the tire starts stalking his prey… (courtesy of VIFF)

The Sleeping Beauty
Catherine Breillat

Marina’s Review

Once upon a time… In a castle somewhere in a bygone age… The fairy Carabosse cuts the umbilical cord of a newborn babe, a little girl called Anastasia. Three young scatterbrained fairies appear, their cheeks red from running… Too late, says Carabosse, at 16 the child’s hand will be pierced and she’ll die. The young fairies burst into tears! Their lateness didn’t deserve that. Now they must ward off the fatal curse… They just manage to predict that instead of dying, Anastasia will fall asleep for 100 years. Sleeping for a century is very boring, so they bestow on her the possibility of wandering far and wide in her dreams during those 100 years… (courtesy of VIFF)

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Snap
Carmel Winters

Marina’s Review

As carefully researched and work-shopped as a drama may be, the steps from life to stage to screen don’t always work. Snap does. It’s a gripping, intensely cinematic work that tells the story of how one small family has been haunted and psychologically fractured. To say more about how and why would be to rob the film of its difficult rewards. Suffice it to say that Snap is a very accomplished debut feature distinguished in its acting, cinematography, sound design, editing and direction, and by its vivid sense of being in-broad-daylight. (courtesy of VIFF)

The Strange Case of Angelica
Manoel de Oliveira

Review

The greatest film ever made by a 101-year-old, Manoel de Oliveira’s latest miracle again stars his grandson Ricardo Trepa – who’s turning into quite the actor – this time playing Isaac, an ill-at-ease Jewish photographer living in a boarding house in Régua, in the Duoro Valley. Late one night, he receives an urgent call from a wealthy Catholic family to take the last photograph of their daughter, Angelica, who died a few days after her wedding. Arriving at the house of mourning, Isaac gets his first glimpse of Angelica and is overwhelmed by her beauty. As soon as he looks at her through the camera, the young woman appears to come back to life just for him. Isaac instantly falls in love with her. From that moment on, Angelica will haunt him night and day. (courtesy of VIFF)

Surviving Life
Jan Švankmajer

Review

Jan Švankmajer (auteur/animator/provocateur) brings the world of the unconscious to light through the story of Eugene, whose waking life begins unravelling when he visits a psychoanalyst to undergo dream interpretation and discovers he has impregnated his own anima… The story is drawn directly from Švankmajer’s own dreams (and if the idea of being plunged into the unconscious mind of Švankmajer doesn’t give you pause, you might want to ensure that you still have a pulse). This is rich and loamy stuff, steeped in Freudian and Jungian analysis, and injected with a healthy dose of perversity. Eugene spends his waking life in the company of his wife Miladu, but his sleeping hours are devoted to his dream girl. His dual existence is not the only double life taking place. (courtesy of VIFF)

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Tamara Drewe
Stephen Frears

David’s Review

When journalist Tamara (Gemma Arterton) returns home to bucolic Ewedown, Dorset, having made good and having had a nose job, her arrival sets off a tsunami of gossip, lust and jealousy in admirers including local hunk Andy Cobb (Luke Evans), rock star Ben Sergeant (Dominic Cooper) and novelist Nicholas Hardiment (Roger Allam)… There’s a suitably chucklesome opening to this smart comic fable of follies–adapted by Moira Buffini from the Posy Simmonds graphic novel very loosely inspired by Thomas Hardy’s Far From The Madding Crowd… Tamara is a columnist for The Independent but Miss Drewe doesn’t seem to do much work, so busy is she exercising her sexual confidence and emotional confusion… While not particularly noted for mirth, director Stephen Frears is more alert than many would have been to the inherent social comment and darker aspects of the goings-on. He lets the wicked turns and dialogue do their job without semaphoring, “This bit’s going to be funny.” It’s all the wittier, and at times downright touching, for not being done too tongue-in-cheek. (courtesy of VIFF)

Transfer
Damir Lukacevic

Marina’s Review [QE]

In this cool, cerebral sci-fi for adults, the newest form of neocolonialism comes to light. A wealthy and privileged white couple (Hermann and Anna), nearing the end of their lives, purchase the bodies of a very beautiful young African couple (Apolain and Sarah) as a new lease on life. For a million euros, Hermann and Anna can enjoy the physical pleasures afforded to the young and nubile through the technology of the “Personality Transfer” system. For 20 hours each day, they’re downloaded into the younger couple’s perfectly healthy bodies to frolic therein. Apolain and Sarah can only be themselves again for four hours each night when the elderly couple are sleeping. But when Hermann and Anna decide they would like to make the procedure permanent, an unforeseen consequence impacts on all four people. (courtesy of VIFF)

The Tree
Julie Bertucelli

Marina’s Review

Review

Based on Judy Pascoe’s novel Our Father Who Art in the Tree, Bertuccelli’s film handles the subject of loss with sensitivity and depth. Gainsbourg is excellent, as is young Morgana Davies, whose belief in her father’s afterlife leads to some brilliantly executed special effects. (courtesy of VIFF)

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The Ugly Duckling
Garri Bardin

Marina’s Review

The colour of a mud puddle, with a snaky neck, and two currant-eyes, the titular fowl of Garri Bardin’s gorgeous adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson’s story, has the face that only a mother could love. But unfortunately, this duckling’s adoptive parents want nothing to do with their homely offspring. What’s a duckling to do, but burst into song! (courtesy of VIFF)

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Apichatpong Weerasethakul /span>

Marc’s Review

Boonmee is a farmer with failing kidneys (he has a Lao assistant, perhaps an illegal immigrant, to help with his dialysis) who comes home to his beehives and tamarind plantation to die. He is soon visited by the ghost of his late wife Huay and by his long-lost son Boonsong, whose body has changed since he had sex with a monkey spirit; supernatural beings, we learn, are attracted to those living beings they love. As his current life ebbs away, we see an episode which may be one of the past lives he recalls: a sexual encounter between an unhappy princess and a talking catfish. (courtesy of VIFF)

Uncle Brian
Nick McAnulty

Marina’s Review

Uncle Brian is a dark comedic tragedy about Brian, a teenager who blatantly disregards life’s responsibilities, and the humorous hazards and consequences that befall him for feeling that he is above them. Nick McAnulty’s debut feature stars Daniel MacLean as the least avuncular uncle ever, the kind who puts the “fun” in “dysfunctional family.” He’s not actually an uncle yet, but that’s the least of his worries. Everybody seems to be either conspiring against him or ignoring him completely. McAnulty brings a firm hand and an unblinking eye to this brutally told tale of a teenager who seizes the day by the throat, but blithely disregards the responsibility that is the flip side of freedom. His life is a hands-free ride on a broken-down roller coaster; a dirty, sloppy mess of sex, violence and alienation. When scandalous accusations and violent threats turn his whacko world further awry, Brian discovers the downside of burning bridges – and that sometimes saying you’re sorry just isn’t enough. (courtesy of VIFF)

The Woodmans
C. Scott Willis

Marina’s Review

For the Woodmans, art is both a family affair and a way of life. Furthermore, it’s the smoking gun in the tragic death of Francesca Woodman, posthumously regarded as one of the leading photographers of the 20th century.

The impressive creative output of George (painter/father), Betty (ceramicist/mother) and Charles (electronic artist/brother) was quickly eclipsed by the evocative photography and video work of their “intense” and “self-possessed” daughter/sister. Fascinated with the female form, Francesca routinely served as her own model, cutting a figure simultaneously liberated and vulnerable. Alas, it was this latter attribute that eventually ceded control of the artist’s psyche, leading to her 1981 suicide. (courtesy of VIFF)

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