CANNES: FILMS I’M HOPING WILL WORK ME INTO A (SCENTLESS) SWEAT

By Howard Feinstein

The Australian-born critic Shane Danielsen wrote an amusing piece for Indiewire about this year’s Berlin Film Festival. He compared the smell outside some of the screening rooms to that of sperm. I remember it being stinky, but not that particular odor. Shane is, however, a reliable source.

One of two things at Cannes that really gets on my nerves is the smell inside the press screenings, especially those that take place at 8:30 a.m. The 5000-seat theater is packed. No pun intended, but these projections are the pits, the lower depths of hygiene. Maybe it’s time constraints or perhaps cultural practices, but you pray for the manna of soap and toothpaste. Attendees tend to be part of the Great Unwashed; an asthmatic who showers once a day, I feel like one of the huddled masses, yearning to breathe free.

The other annoyance is of a different vein: the pretense of colleagues who don’t refer to films by name, but by director. For example, Melancholia is spoken of as the von Trier. Then there are the Almodovar, the Bilge Ceylan, the Kim Ki-duk, and the van Sant. They don’t call some of the super lightweight movies showing this year the Rob Marshall or the Jodie Foster: in the context of Cannes, they get names: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and The Beaver, respectively.

Like almost every critic, I’ll see the first group, the the films, anyway; it’s almost a necessity. The ones that I’m most looking forward to, however, lie somewhere between those and the films that are called by their titles, if that. These are works by directors much lower on the festival hierarchy and not yet considered to be of the status, or lesser-known filmmakers whose names and titles are both unknown, but whose previous efforts have shown promise. Some of them are the possible surprises that I’m most looking forward to seeing, even if I have to hold my nose in the process.

Competition

The Source / Radu Mihaileanu / France

Mihaileanu epitomizes the Jewish worldview: Life is simultaneously tragic and … Read the rest

JOHN CAMERON MITCHELL, “RABBIT HOLE”

Originally posted online on December 16, 2010. Rabbit Hole is nominated for Best Actress (Nicole Kidman).

David Lindsay-Abaire’s Pulitzer Prize winning play Rabbit Hole might seem like an odd choice for helmer John Cameron Mitchell, a director whose reputation wasn’t gained built on tasteful, upper-middle-class family dramas. Perhaps he’s mellowed, and given the results, why not? The film’s story of parental grief, that of a Westchester County couple (Aaron Eckhart and Nicole Kidman) who, eight months later still lack the emotional wherewithal to deal with the accidental death of their young son, may seem like the stuff of so many Lifetime Channel weepies. But in the hands of this 47-year-old writer, actor and director, it’s a surprisingly understated and buoyant glimpse at the aftermath of personal tragedy. Shirking off the baroque directorial flourishes of Hedwig and the Angry Itch (2001) and the untethered, sexually adventurous performances of Shortbus (2006), Mitchell takes a headlong dive into movie star corralling in Rabbit Hole, and in the process elicits a surprisingly dexterous performance from Kidman and fascinating supporting turns from Sandra Oh and Dianne Wiest.

An army brat turned musical-theater wunderkind, Mitchell studied at Northwestern’s theater school in the early to mid ’80s before cutting his teeth in the Chicago theater world and network television as an actor. He won an Obie for the stage version of Hedwig in 1998, before hatching a film version three years later that won him Sundance’s best director prize and a Golden Globe nomination. He quickly became a cause célèbre, a new standard bearer for indie cinema’s transgender niche, a notion that was broadened by his even more provocative follow up, Short Bus. While his newest project will surely lead to yet another reevaluation of this gifted and beguiling stage dynamo-turned-auteur, a strong throughline of personal storytelling and project-driven aesthetic choices have quickly become his calling cards.

Rabbit Hole opens this Friday.

Filmmaker: When, if ever, did you see Rabbit Hole on stage? Did you see making this film as an opportunity to return to your roots in theater?

Mitchell: Funny thing, I … Read the rest

JORGE MICHEL GRAU, “WE ARE WHAT WE ARE”

By Brandon Harris

In We Are What We Are, first time Mexican helmer Jorge Michel Grau creates a deeply unsettling portrait of contemporary Mexican urban life which steady grows into many things all at once: a sincere family drama, an earnest exploration of the moral implications of cannibalism and a ribald satire of the seemingly intractable political and economic corruption that is haunting present day Mexico. All moody nighttime vistas and grim, claustrophobic interiors, Grau’s film manages both social commentary and grisly, bone-chilling terror the old-fashioned way, but it still manages to have a depth of human feeling that isn’t the stock and trade of this type of genre fare.

A graduate of Mexico’s state-operated Centro de Capacitacion Cinematographica, Grau worked as a producer and production manager on Mexican features, documentaries and education programs for television before his directorial breakthrough. We Are What We Are bowed at last year Director’s Fortnight in Cannes before premiering stateside at last fall’s New York Film Festival. It opens domestically from IFC this friday.

Filmmaker: Your film builds very gradually, with a sort of slow burn rhythm that is popular on the festival circuit, but still somewhat unusual for the horror genre. How would you describe your approach to and inspirations from the universe of horror films?

Grau: I grew up watching horror films. What I wanted to deal with in this film was the disintegration of a family within a framework borrowed from the horror genres, but actually this is the experience of living in Mexico City. You can be living inside your home and outside of you; you’re surrounded by a situation that’s pretty much like that of a horror film. There are quite a number of cinematic references within the film to the genre of horror films or a cinema of violence,because that’s what I’m interested in. One of the obvious references in the film is to Guillermo Del Toro’s first film Cronos. That’s my approach to horror films, that’s the why I choose to shoot the film the … Read the rest

Fraud Alert

Charles Ferguson follows up his hard-hitting Iraq War documentary, No End in Sight, with another investigative look at a complicated and controversial subject: the global economic crisis. In Inside Job, Ferguson indicts the growth of the banking industry for causing the global economic crisis, asking why not a single person has gone to jail because of it. By Scott Macaulay

CANNES COVERAGE, CAM ARCHER INTERVIEW NEW ON THE SITE

By Scott Macaulay

With both our “25 New Faces” feature and the IFP’s Narrative Lab coming up, I’ve been kind of backlogged here on the blog. But, I just posted a couple of things: first, Livia Bloom’s recap of Cannes in our Festival Coverage section, and then my interview with Shit Year director Cam Archer, conducted in Cannes after the premiere of his film in the Director’s Fortnight section. And, in a separate post, Bloom wonders why there were not any female directors in Competition in Cannes this year. You can check them out at the links.… Read the rest

2010 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | By Livia Bloom

“You know the kind of movie where people laugh and cry?” asked a filmmaker character in Kornél Mundruczó’s Tender Son: The Frankenstein Project (seeking American distribution). “I want you to cry.” “I am crying,” responded the would-be actor before him, his face frozen solid. The internalization of emotion, and the tiny, subtle ways it can creep into the features and postures of even the most stoic characters was explored in some of the best work at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

At first glance, the protagonist of A Screaming Man (pictured above) (Un homme qui crie, seeking distribution), by the talented Chadian director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, looks less like a man screaming than a man lounging. Champion (played by Saleh Haroun) hangs out with his teenage son in the pool of the posh hotel where they work, feeds watermelon to his wife till juice drips from her chin, and knows all his neighbors by their nicknames. At night, he does sit-ups on a plastic mat outside his home until he can do no more; then a pause; then he begins again. When this former swimming ace loses the job that defines him, emotional hurt barely registers on his placid surface. Only gradually do his actions, set against the backdrop of his country’s political strife, begin to belie the startling ferocity of his true response and the disastrous ripples of its consequences.

Although not one female director was selected for the Official Cannes Competition this year, it was a great year for female performers. Several actresses did yeoman’s work, backwards and in heels. In Lee Chan-dong’s Poetry, which won this year’s prize for Best Screenplay and has happily been acquired by Kino International, Korean actress Yoon Jung-hee carried the weight of a 139-minute opus on her thin frame. As Mija, an aging working-class maid raising her grandson in a small town, her character is at once modest and tragic, eccentric and proud. She holds her responsibilities very quietly, even when they become nearly unbearable. In Mija, these qualities are communicated in the smallest of ways; they are there in … Read the rest

“UNCLE BOONMEE” TOPS CANNES WINNERS

The 63rd edition of the Cannes Film Festival wrapped up this evening in France with Apichatpong Weerasethakul‘s Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (pictured) taking the coveted Palme d’Or. Other winners include Xavier Beauvois‘s Of God and Men receiving the Grand Prix, Mathieu Amalric winning Best Director for Tournee, Juliette Binoche was awarded Best Actress for Certified Copy and in a tie Javier Bardem (Biutiful) and Elio Germano (La Nostra Vita) won Best Actor. See full list of winners below.

Palme d’Or:
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Grand Prix (runner-up):
Des Hommes Et Des Dieux (Of God and Men), directed by Xavier Beauvois

Prix de la Mise en Scene (best director):
Mathieu Amalric for Tournee (On Tour)

Prix du Scenario (best screenplay):
Poetry by Lee Chang-dong

Prix du Jury (jury prize):
A Screaming Man, directed by Mahamat-Saleh Harou

Camera d’Or (best first feature):
Año Bisiesto, directed by Michael Rowe

Prix d’interpretation masculine (best actor):
Javier Bardem for Biutiful
AND
Elio Germano for La Nostra Vita

Prix d’interpretation feminine (best actress):
Juliette Binoche for Certified Copy

Palme d’Or (short film):
Chienne d’Histoire, directed by Serge Avedikian

Other winners:

UN CERTAIN REGARD
Prize of Un Certain Regard: Ha Ha Ha, directed by Hong Sangsoo
Jury Prize: Octubre, directed by Daniel Vega & Diego Vega
Special Prize: The three actresses—Adela Sanzhez, Eva Bianco, and Victoria Rapos—from Ivan Fund & Santiago Losa’s Los Labios (The Lips)

DIRECTORS’ FORTNIGHT
Art Cinema Award: Pieds nus sur les limaces, directed by Fabienne Berthaud (France)
Prix SACD/SACD Prize: Illégal, directed Olivier Masset-Depasse (Belgium – Luxembourg – France).
Label Europa Cinemas: Le Quattro Volte, directed by Michelangelo Frammartino (Italy)
PRIX SFR: Cautare, directed Ionut Piturescu (Romania) and Mary Last Seen, directed by Sean Durkin (USA)
Palm Dog Award: Vuk, the goatherd’s dog in Le Quattro Volte, directed by Michelangelo Frammartino

INTERNATIONAL CRITICS’ WEEK
Grand Prix Semaine de la Critique: Armadillo, directed by Janus Metz
SACD Prize: Bi, dung so! (Bi, Don’t Be Afraid!), directed … Read the rest

“HA HA HA” WINS UN CERTAIN REGARD

South Korean filmmaker Hong Sangsoo‘s Ha Ha Ha received top honors for Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section last night.

The jury also gave a special award to the three actresses from Ivan Fund and Santiago Losa’s Los Labios (The Lips), Adela Sanchez, Eva Bianco, and Victoria Raposo.

The main Cannes jury awards will be announced later today.… Read the rest

DIRECTORS’ FORTNIGHT SLATE ANNOUNCED

Earlier today Cannes unveiled the 24 films selected for its annual sidebar, Directors’ Fortnight. Opening this year with Renaud Barret & Florent de la Tullaye’s documentary Benda Bilili!, the line-up is dominated by first-time filmmakers, 11 in all. One American standout is Cam Archer (Wild Tigers I Have Known) who will be screening his latest, Shit Year, starring Ellen Barkin.

Fortnight will take place May 13-23.

Full list of titles below.

FEATURE FILMS
Alegria (Joy), directed by Marina Méliande et Felipe Braganca (Brazil)
All Good Children, directed by Alicia Duffy (UK)
Alting bliver godt igen (Everything Will Be Fine), directed by Christoffer Boe (Denmark-Sweden-France)
Año bisiesto, directed by Michael Rowe (Mexico)
Benda Bilili!, directed by Renaud Barret & Florent de la Tullaye (France) (documentary)
La Casa muda (The Silent House), directed by Gustavo Hernandez (Uruguay)
Cleveland vs. Wall Street, directed by Jean-Stéphane Bron (Switzerland – France) (documentary)
“Des Filles en noir,” directed by Jean-Paul Civeyrac (France)
Ha’Meshotet (The Wanderer), directed by Avishai Sivan (Israel)
Illégal, directed by Olivier Masset-Depasse (Belgium-Luxembourg-France)
The Light Thief, directed by Aktan Arym Kubat (Kyrgyzistan)
Little Baby Jesus of Flandr, directed by Gust Vandenberghe (Belgium)
La Mirada invisible (The Invisible Eye), directed by Diego Lerman (Argentina-France-Spain)
Picco, directed by Philip Koch (Germany)
Pieds nus sur les limaces (Lily Sometimes), directed by Fabienne Berthaud (France)
Le Quattro volte, directed by Michelangelo Frammartino (Italy-Germany-Switzerland)
Shit Year, directed by Cam Archer (U.S.)
Somos lo que hay (We Are What We Are), directed by Jorge Michel Grau (Mexico)
Tiger Factory, directed by Woo Ming jin (Malaysia)
Todos vós sodes capitáns, directed by Oliver Laxe (Spain)
Two Gates Of Sleep, directed by Alistair Banks Griffin (U.S.)
Un Poison violent, directed by Katell Quillevéré (France)

SPECIAL SCREENINGS
Stones In Exile, directed by Stephen Kijak (U.K.) (documentary)
Boxing Gym, directed by Frederik Wiseman (U.S.A.) (documentary)

SHORT FILMS
Cautare (Quest), directed by Ionut Piturescu (Romania)
Ett tyst barn (A Silent Child), directed by Jesper Klevenas (Sweden)
Licht, directed by Andre Schreuders (The Netherlands)
Mary Last Seen, directed by Sean Durkin (U.S.A.)
Petit tailleur, directed by Louis Garrel … Read the rest

CANNES 2010 LINE-UP ANNOUNCED

The South of France will be filled with familiar faces for this year’s Cannes Film Festival as the line-up was announced overnight in Paris.

As previously announced Ridley Scott‘s Robin Hood will open the festival. Notable names attending will include Woody Allen, Oliver Stone, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Jean Luc-Godard and Gregg Araki (full list of titles below). The one glaring omission is Terrence Malick‘s Tree of Life, though festival chief Thierry Fremaux says there more titles are expected to be announced as the festival approaches.

The fest will take place May 12-23.

IN COMPETITION:
Tournee
directed by Mathieu Almaric

Des Hommes et des Dieux
directed by Xavier Beauvois

Biutiful
directed by Alejandro Gonzales Innaritu

Hors la loi
directed by Rachid Bouchareb

Un Homme Qui Crie (A Screaming Man)
directed by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun

Housemaid
directed by Im Sangsoo

Copie Conforme (The Certified Copy)
directed by Abbas Kiarostami

Outrage
directed by Takeshi Kitano

Poetry
directed by Lee Chang-dong

Another Year
directed by Mike Leigh

Fair Game
directed by Doug Liman

You, My Joy
directed by Sergei Loznitsa

La Nostra Vita
directed by Daniele Luchetti

Utomlyonnye Solntsem 2
directed by Nikita Mikhalkov

La Princesse de Monptpensier
directed by Bertrand Tavernier

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul

OUT OF COMPETITION:
You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger
directed by Woody Allen

Tamara Drewe
directed by Stephen Frears

Wall Street – Money Never Sleeps
directed by Oliver Stone

MIDNIGHT SCREENINGS:
Kaboom,
directed by Gregg Araki

L’Autre Monde (Blackhole)
directed by Gilles Marchand

SPECIAL SCREENINGS:
Inside Job
directed by Charles Ferguson

Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow
directed by Sophie Fiennes

Nostalgia de la Luz (Nostalgia for the Light)
directed by Patricio Guzman

Draquila – L’Italia Che Trema
directed by Sabina Guzzanti

Chantrapas
directed by Otar Iosseliani

Abel
directed by Diego Luna

UN CERTAIN REGARD:
Blue Valentine
directed by Derek Cianfrance

O Estranho Caso de Angelica (Anjelica)
directed by Manouel de Oliveira

Les Amours Imaginaires (Heartbeats)
directed by Xavier Dolan

Los Labios
directed by Ivan Fund and Santiago Loza

Simon Werner a Disparu…
directed … Read the rest