SSIFF High Tech, TIFF Brouhaha, NYFF Opening

Wouldn't you know. I posted yesterday about the San Sebastián International Film Festival (SSIFF) and, low and behold, today I received a notice that many of the programs, including the opening and closing ceremonies, will be Web cast, and available on mobile phones.

But before I give you the skinny, remember, you can access every post on this blog concerning the Festival, and any other festival, by clicking the tag for that festival (i.e., SSIFF, TIFF, HFF, etc.) found at the bottom of almost every post. Okay, here is the skinny.

This year, San Sebastian Festival TV offers the opening and closing galas, the Donostia Award ceremonies and the press conferences, also a number of videos among which are the Zabaltegi Meetings and the Horizontes Breakfasts, the arrival to San Sebastian of guests, the photocalls, a summary of each day, interviews, different aspects of participation of the teams presenting films at the Festival, and all of the clips of the films participating in the different sections. The content is presented in easy-to-use galleries, with search options to simplify consultation and navigation.

The majority of the programs are broadcast in Spanish, with some English and French. Some subtitles, except for live events. The Official Web site's contents will be accessible also through mobile phones, with a new navigation system adapted to use on these devices accessible through the Festival Official site.

The Festival Newspaper, Festival Diary, will be available in digital (pdf), which will make it available for download from the Official site. There will be special sites for the Press, and for industry representatives. Besides the usual audio translations, the Festival will offer assistance to persons with visual and hearing impairments.

All the above will begin opening day, except for Festival TV where trailers, etc., are now being shown.

See previous posts for more on SSIFF, and click title of this post for Official Site.

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) Brouhaha is over the Festival's choice of Tel Aviv for this year's City to City program.

Piers Handling, Director and CEO of TIFF and Cameron Bailey, Co-Director of the Toronto International Film Festival issued the following statement regarding the City to City program: (See (1) at end of statement)

The Toronto International Film Festival stands by our choice of Tel Aviv as the inaugural focus for the City to City program and we welcome the discussion that is being prompted by our series. We programmed City to City to give our audience a window into Tel Aviv from the perspective of filmmakers who live and work there -- this includes filmmakers who cast a critical eye on the status quo. The city's filmmakers are experiencing a renaissance right now, and we congratulate Tel Aviv director Samuel Maoz on winning the top prize Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for his film LEBANON. Healthy debate about the role of cinema in society is at the core of our Festival every year.

It is unfortunate that the producers of the film HELIOPOLIS have decided to withdraw their film in protest of this year’s City to City program. While director Ahmad Abdalla has voiced his opposition to the program, he is a champion of ensuring that filmmakers from the Arab world continue to have a voice at our Festival. The producers, however, have the legal authority to withdraw the film. . . .

We have had to cancel the first screening for THE TRAVELLER due to a legal dispute between the Italian producer and the Egyptian producer, the Ministry of Culture. The Festival has received no communication from the film's director or producers referring to the issues surrounding the City to City program. . . .

We continue to encourage everyone engaged in the CTC debate to keep the work of these filmmakers front and center as we all grapple with that eternal question: what can art do?"

(1). Slightly edited for length and for American English.

The 47 New York Film Festival opens 25 September and runs through 11 October. Here are some of the special programs:

Opening Night - WILD GRASS (Les herbes folles) based on Christian Gailly’s novel 'The Incident,' Alain Resnais, 2009, France.

Closing Night - BROKEN EMBRACES (Los abrazos rotos), Pedro Almodóvar, 2009, Spain.

Center Piece - PRECIOUS, based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire, directed by Lee Daniels, 2009, USA, winner at the Sundance Film Festival. PRECIOUS won both the grand jury prize and the audience award for drama as well as a special jury prize for acting to Mo'Nique.

Special Screening - LIFE DURING WARTIME, Todd Solondz, 2009, USA.,

Special Screening - LEBANON, Samuel Maoz, 2009, winner of the Golden Lion at this year's Venice Film Festival.

Special Screening - THE WIZARD OF OZ, Victor Fleming, 1939, USA. Celebrating the digital release of this beloved classic, and there will be some special surprise guests, plus a new Warner Home Video Release.

Tickets are on sale now, and are not cheap. Regular screenings, $20, special screenings and programs, $40. Rush Tickets: $10, and only 50 tickets will go on sale one hour before showtime, limit two. Check their Official Site for more options.

San Sebastián IFF Opens Friday

The 57th San Sebastián International Film Festival (the Zinemaldia) opens this Friday, 18 September, in San Sebastián, Spain. Renault, once again, will provide the official cars for the Festival.

Tickets went on sale Sunday and a total of 46,455 tickets were sold as compared to 37, 579 last year. Quentin Tarantino's INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, WATEVER WORKS and PRECIOUS were the first to sell out, the Tarantino movie within seven minutes.

This year's Festival will include a total of 202 films. The competitive sections are as follows: 17 films in the Official Selection, 14 in Zabaltegi-New Directors, 15 in Zabaltegi-Pearls and 13 in Horizontes Latinos. Made in Spain will offer 15 titles and Zinemira-Basque Film Showcase another 9, plus a short retrospective. The Zabaltegi-Specials has a recent addition of Hana Makhmalbaf’s GREEN DAYS.

The 57th Edition will offer 27 world premieres, 5 international premieres and 12 European premieres. The Selection Committee viewed a total of 1,819 films, compared to the 1,696 in 2008, in order to choose the titles presented in the different sections.

Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore and Amanda Seyfried star in the opening movie, CHLOE, which is almost sold out for the largest venue, the Kursaal Auditorium. As of now, there are still tickets available in the smaller venues for opening night.

Only a few tickets remain for the Cannes Festival winner, THE WHITE RIBBON (Das Weisse Band), also winner of this Festival's FIPRESCI Grand Prix. Same for THE IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS and SIN NOMBRE, all three expected to be among the most popular movies screening at the Festival.

Sir Ian McKellen will receive the Donastia Award on the 23rd. Cultivated in the Shakespeare classics, the British actor achieved worldwide fame in THE LORD OF THE RINGS and X-MEN. He won the Festival's Silver Shell for Best Actor in 1998 for GODS AND MONSTERS.

The Antonio Elorza Velodrome has been converted into an enormous 3-D cinema for screening the Spanish premiere of BATTLE FOR TERRA, OCEANWORLD, THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS and the 3-D version of TOY STORY. Almost 3,000 viewers at each screening will be able to enjoy the experience of watching films in three dimension as part of an enormous audience and before a giant screen.

Canadian director Atom Egoyan and producer Ivan Reitman will present their film CHLOE at the Festival opening gala. Quentin Tarantino, Brad Pitt and Christoph Waltz will also present INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, the opening movie of the Zabaltegi-Pearls section, on the first day of the Festival at the Victoria Eugenia Theatre.

At the closing gala in the Kursaal, on Saturday, 26th, the director Rodrigo García, together with actresses Naomi Watts and Kerry Washington, are expected to present MOTHER AND CHILD, bringing the 57th edition to a close.

French director Laurent Cantet will chair the Official Jury. He will be accompanied by Mexican actor Daniel Giménez Cacho, Korean director Bong Joon-ho, Spanish actress Pilar López de Ayala, British director John Madden, Iranian director Samira Makhmalbaf and the Portuguese actress Leonor Silveira.

Some of the glitterati expected to attend the festival, other than those mentioned above are: Ang Lee, Jim Jarmusch, Terry Gilliam, Michael Winterbottom, François Ozon, Tom DiCillo, Jacques Audiard, Johnnie To, Bahman Gobhadi, Lee Daniels, Olivier Hirschbiegel, Christophe Honoré, Juan José Campanella, Matthias Glasner, Fernando Trueba, Isaki Lacuesta, Javier Rebollo, Nicolas Klotz, Jalil Lespert. Robert Duvall, Chiara Mastroianni, Miranda Otto, Brenda Blethyn, Ricardo Darín, Carmen Machi, Lola Dueñas and Ariadna Gil.

The International Film School Meeting 24 and 25 September will offer youngsters the chance to present their works. They and their teachers will also comment on them. The showings at the Kutxa Function Hall are open to the public.

Producer and director Lluís Miñarro will chair the jury consisting of students from the participating film schools that will choose the winning film, the director of which will win €10,000 in Panavision filming material for his or her next work, also earning the chance to participate in the Short Film Corner at Cannes. Twelve countries will participate in the Meeting, which includes a Masterclass.

For more see previous posts. For detailed ticket information, click the title of this post to link to the Festival's official Web site.

Israeli Film Wins Lion at Venice

LEBANON

The 66th Venice International Film Festival (Le Biennale di Venezia)(VIFF), which ran from 2 - 12 September, wrapped yesterday evening with a somewhat surprising list of winners, and only two for the USA. The awards ceremony in the Sala Darsena was followed by the screenings of LOVE YOU (Chengdu, wo ai ni, China) by Fruit Chan and Jian Cui, and RAMBO (Director's Cut) by Sylvester Stallone.

Director Ang Lee, two-time Golden Lion (Leone d'Oro) winner, served as head of the Jury that selected the top prizes, and he personally awarded the Golden Lion for Best Film. He first won the Golden Lion in 2005 for BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, and again for the World War II drama LUST, CAUTION in 2007. His latest movie, TAKING WOODSTOCK, screened out of competition at Venice.

The festival top prize, the Golden Lion for Best Film went to LEBANON (Levanone, Israel), a debut feature film for director Samuel Maoz. Set in June, 1982, the start of the Israel-Lebanon War, four young Israeli soldiers operate a tank that is assigned to go into a Lebanese village to clear it of PLO terrorists, the first tank to cross the border in what was supposed to be a one-day mission. It turns into much more than that.

Director Maoz was only 22 when he fought in the Israel-Lebanon War. He spent years in after-combat distress, suffering outbursts of anger and extended episodes of depression. After 25 years, he decided that creating a fictionalized version of his experiences might help him, and others.

The buzz started early at the Festival for this film as a contender for a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar® for Israel, and it will now kick into high gear. That remains to be seen, as much will depend upon what it does at Toronto, and what distributor picks it up for the U.S. Market.

Shirin Neshat was awarded the Silver Lion (Leone d'Argento) for Best Director for WOMEN WITHOUT MEN (Zanan Bedone Mardan, Germany), and another coveted award, the Special Jury Prize was awarded to SOUL KITCHEN by Fatih Akin (Germany). Note to myself: Films about cooking are coming out of the woodworks this year from a variety of countries on the heels of the Julia Child take-off, JULIE AND JULIA.

The Volpi Cup (Coppa Volpi) for Best Actor / Actress went to British actor Colin Firth for his role in Tom Ford's debut film, A SINGLE MAN (USA), and Russian actress Ksenia Rappoport for her role in the film THE DOUBLE HOUR (La doppia ora, Italy) by Giuseppe Capotondi. A SINGLE MAN is based on the novel by Christopher Isherwood, and the buzz is that this could be Firth's Oscar year. This role is, after all, a strait man who portrays a gay. Again, a lot depends on what happens at Toronto and with the film's yet-to-acquire distributor.

Todd Solondz is bringing home to the USA the "Osella" for Best Screenplay for LIFE DURING WARTIME (USA). Joe Dante will do the same with a Persol 3-D Award for the Best 3-D Stereoscopic Film of the Year (Prize awarded on 11th September 2009) for THE HOLE, a film described as a, "Kiddie horror film." The prize is given to a film that best explores (the) new cinematic frontier” of 3-D. These were the only two Venice Festival awards for the USA.

The Horizon's Award (Orizzonti) went to ENGKWENTRO by Pepe Diokno (Philippines). China's Du Haibin received the Horizon Best Documentary award for 1428. THE MAN'S OTHER WOMAN AND OTHER STORIES (Aadmi ki aurat aur anya kahaniya, India) by Amit Dutta received a special mention.

For list of all awards, click title of this post.

Win Bleacher Seats for Red Carpet

Beginning Monday, 14 September, anyone can enter a random online drawing to be a fan in the bleacher seats flanking the red carpet at the 82nd Academy Awards®. The Awards ceremony will be held on 7 March 2010, in Hollywood, California, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®.

Registration for this drawing will begin on Monday, 14 September, at noon ET/9 a.m. PT and close on Sunday, 20 September, at midnight ET/9 p.m. PT. Click the title of this post to go to entry page.

Toronto IFF, Films You Haven't Heard About

This comes from one of the Toronto International Film Festival Blogs. I post the link here for those who are genuine festivalphiles. You know, the kind of festival goers who love to seek out the unusual at film festivals? Well here are the films you have never heard about at Toronto 2009.

It is doubtful any will ever play at a movie theater near you, but watch for them on DVD sometime next year.

For more up-to-the-minute about Toronto IFF check out "TIFF Alerts" by clicking title of this post.

Have a BlackBerry© smartphone? You can follow the festival from the palm of your hand.

Telluride Wraps, Toronto Opens

Abbie Cornish in the period drama BRIGHT STAR, directed by Jane Campion

One of America's most prestigious film festivals wrapped Labor Day in Colorado. That was, of course, the Telluride Festival (TFF). This year was the 36th and it did not disappoint. Telluride, like the New York Film Festival, is a non-competitive festival. No special awards are given. People go to enjoy restful and beautiful Telluride, to see, appreciate, and to talk, film.

As Oscar® looms, with Telluride under the belt, and Venice closing Saturday (12th), here are some of the films many have tapped as possibly being Oscar bound. First and foremost from Telluride is Jason Reitman's UP IN THE AIR. George Clooney's much-praised performance is considered by many to be a timely theme about an American culture hurting for connection and basic humanity. It now heads to Toronto with a Special Premiere.

Clooney stars in a second much talked about movie this year, THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS, and both will screen at Toronto. He squired Miss Elisabetta Canalis in Venice and Telluride and, most likely, will do it again in Toronto.

Another high-profile movie, THE ROAD, which had screened to a good reception at the Venice International Film Festival, screened Sunday night at Telluride with an opening ovation. The fact that Viggo Mortensen stars, received a special fest tribute, and was on hand for questioning, helped to brighten this adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's bleak, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. John Hillcoat directs and the movie will also receive a Special Premiere at Toronto.

Werner Herzog's BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS, reportedly pleased Telluride fest goers. Herzog, along with star Nicolas Cage, will now take their film North to Port of Call Toronto. Herzog will have another movie this year at Hollywood North, MY SON, MY SON, WHAT HAVE YE DONE? A USA - German co-production.

Other notable movies at Telluride will now go to test their metal at Toronto. Among them, Jane Campion's BRIGHT STAR, Jacques Audiard's A PROPHET, and Michael Haneke's THE WHITE RIBBON (Das Weisse Band) winner at Cannes this year.

The Toronto International Film Festival Group (TIFFG) is a charitable, not-for-profit, cultural organization, which is often dubbed Hollywood North, and ranks with Cannes, Sundance, Berlin and Venice as one of the world's most influential film festivals. I is considered the kick-off of the film awards season, which culminates with the Academy Awards® 7 March 2010.

The lineup of directors, producers, actors, and others for the 34th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), when compared to other film festivals this summer, is huge - - over 500 expected. The Festival opens this Thursday, the 10th and closes on the 19th.

Like many festivals this year, TIFF has expanded its Outdoor programs and free screenings. There are not just free films but also free concerts at the Live at Yonge and Dundas Square.

The winner of the Cadillac People's Choice Award will be announced on the afternoon of 19 September. The presentation that evening on the closing night of the festival is free. Last year, the People's Choice went to Danny Boyle's multiple Academy Award®-winning SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE. It was then that I felt almost certain that the movie had "The It" to win the Academy Award, having also followed its reception at Telluride.

Opening Night - Live satellite feed from the Roy Thomson Hall red carpet for the Opening Night Gala Presentation of CREATION. TIFF YDS Spotlight: Opening Night concert by DJ Champion, hosted by Canadian soprano Measha Brueggergosman.

Closing Night - TIFF Live In Concert Film Series: world premiere of COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS. The Festival Wrap Party, presented in association with Future Projections and hosted by Chuck D, featuring the infectious improvised audiovisual "mashups" of Eclectic Method. With special guest Clyde Stubblefield, plus the presentation of the Cadillac People's Choice Award.

Full Screening List For Toronto

Montreal WFF Awards Announced

The Montreal World Film Festival (MWFF) wrapped last night and presented a large slate of awards. The International Film Critics FIPRESCI PRIZE, as well as the Special Grand Prix of the Jury (feature film) went to WEAVING GIRL by Wang Quan'an (China).

The other top top feature film prize, the Grand prix des Americas, went to KORKORO (FREEDOM) by Tony Gatlif (France), which also garnered the Public Award for the most popular film of the Festival, and Special mention of the Ecumenical Jury.

The Award for Best Documentary Feature went to THE MAIN THING IS TO STAY ALIVE (L'IMPORANT C'EST DE RESTER VIVANT) de Roshane Saidnattar (France-Cambodia). In the short films category the First Prize went to PIGEON IMPOSSIBLE by Lucas Martell (U.S.A.)m abd the Jury Award went to ATTACHED TO YOU (FÄST VID DIG) de Carin Bräck, Cecilia Actis, Mia Hulterstam (Sweden).

OTHER FEATURE-FILM AWARDS:

Best Director: VILLON'S WIFE (VIYON NO TSUMA) by Kichitaro Negishi (Japan);

Best Actress: MARIE LEUENBERGER for the film WILL YOU MARRY US? (DIE STANDESBEAMTIN) by Micha Lewinsky (Switzerland);

Best Actor: CYRON MELVILLE for the film LOVE AND RAGE (VANVITTIG FORELSKET) by Morten Giese (Denmark);

Best Screenplay: I'M GLAD THAT MY MOTHER IS ALIVE (JE SUIS HEUREUX QUE MA MÈRE SOIT VIVANTE) by Claude Miller and Nathan Miller, screenplay by Alain Le Henry (France);

Best Artistic Contribution: SAINT GEORGE SHOOTS THE DRAGON by Srdjan Dragojevic (Serbia-Bosnia-Bulgaria);

Innovation Award: ATASHKAR (FIRE KEEPER) by Mohsen Amiryoussefi (Iran).

ZENITHS FOR THE BEST FIRST FICTION FEATURE FILMS 2009:

Golden Zenith for the Best First Fiction Feature films: JE TE MANGERAI (YOU WILL BE MINE) by Sophie Laloy (France);

Silver Zenith for the First Fiction Feature Film: WHEN THE LEMONS TURNED YELLOW by Mohammadreza Vatandoost (Iran);

Bronze Zenith for the Fisrt Fiction Feature Film: LOS CANALLAS (RIFF RAFF) by Cristina Franco, Jorge Alejandro Fegan; Diego Coral López, Nataly Valencia (Ecuador).

PUBLIC AWARDS (not noted above)

Public Award for the most popular Canadian Feature Film: A CARGO TO AFRICA by Roger Cantin (Canada).

Award for Best Canadian Short Film: SURMENAGE by Alexandre Leblanc, Benoît Bourbonnais (Canada).

Glauber Rocha Award for the Best Latin American Film: ANDRÉS NOS QUIERE DORMIR LA SIESTA (ANDRÉS DOESN'T WANT TO TAKE A SIESTA by Daniel Bustamante (Argentina).

ECUMENICAL PRIZE (not noted above), CEASEFIRE (WAFFENSTILLSTAND) by Lancelot von Naso (Germany).

OTHER AWARDS

Special Awards for their exceptional contribution to the cinematographic art: PIERRE LEBEAU (Canada) and GU JUN (China).

Telluride FF Receives Grant

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has awarded a $50,000 grant to underwrite the 2009, 36thTelluride Film Festival’s Guest Director program. Academy President Tom Sherak announced that Oscar®-winning screenwriter of SIDEWAYS Alexander Payne is this year's Guest Director. Sherak spoke of the importance of the Academy to support such a program as the Telluride Guest Director program at a time when funding for the arts is critical.

Payne is an Academy member and a former Academy governor. This is the second consecutive year that the Academy has funded the program. Last year, the festival’s guest director was Slavoj Zizek, Slovenian political philosopher and cultural critic.

If you are heading to Telluride, Colorado (4 - 7 September), passes are still available to buy for the Telluride Film Festival (TFF) in person. Online ordering is closed. This year's festival poster by artist William Wegman will be unveiled Labor Day Weekend.

Venice IFF Opens Today

The 66th Venice International Film Festival (VIFF) opens today with Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore's BAARIA, hyped as a Sicilian drama that includes Fascism, World War Two and Communism. Tornatore won an Oscar® for CINEMA PARADISO. The festival on the Lido waterfront runs through the 12th.

Because Italian movies have tended to disappoint in the past three years, and film festival attendance is down in general, festival director Marco Mueller is leaning more heavily on American movies that have stars and directors with international reputations.

Expected to walk the red carpet during the festival are Nicolas Cage, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Colin Firth, Tom Ford, Richard Gere, Werner Herzog, John Lasseter, Julianne Moore, Michael Moore, Viggo Mortensen, Eva Mendes, Omar Sharif, Todd Solondz, Sylvester Stallone, Oliver Stone, Charlize Theron, and others.

George Clooney, who has a home in Italy and is a local favorite, appears in the oddly titled movie, THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS, directed by Grant Heslov, along with Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey. The movie is about a reporter, a U.S. military unit in Iraq and the paranormal. The movie is not in competition. Neither are John Lasseter's TOY STORY, 3-D, and TOY STORY 2, 3-D.

Oliver Stone brings SOUTH OF THE BORDER about Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, and Tom Ford makes his feature debut with A SINGLE MAN, starring Colin Firth and Julianne Moore, about fashion. Stallone is there to receive a special award.

Nicolas Cage appears in Werner Herzog's BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS, a remake of the 1992 movie directed by Abel Ferrara, which may break the record for movies with long titles. Mortensen, Theron and Robert Duvall star in THE ROAD.

Venice has always had a global reach and this year is no exception. Who better to represent that than Omar Sharif in Egypt's THE TRAVELER. China, Austria, Israel, Japan, France, Hong Kong and Germany all have films representing their country.

Montreal World FF Opens Thursday

The 33rd Montreal World Film Festival (MWFF, Le Festival des Films du Monde Montréal) opens Thursday, 27th, and will run through 7 September. The Iranian New Wave director, Jafar Panahi, will preside over the international jury, and the full film lineup is available for download in PDF on their Web site. Most of Panahi's films are banned in his home country.

Other members of the jury include Japanese actor-turned-director Eiji Okuda, Quebec actor-producer David La Haye, Spanish writer-director Fernando Méndez-Leite Serrano, French director Pascal Thomas, French film music composer Reinhardt Wagner, and Diane Demers of Montreal, who was chosen in a contest to represent the public on the official jury.

Unfortunately, their press release with the list of films is one big muddle, and the PDF file is by venue and date. There is an alphabetized index at the end of the document, but it is in French.

Thus, I apologize for not giving Film highlights here. I have not the time to wade through it all, so you are on your own. See previous posts on this blog about this year's festival, and click title of this post for link to Web site.

Sorry, that's all I can do concerning Montreal until the jury awards are announced, unless, I get some press releases that are better written.

San Sebastián IFF Sets Competition

The 57th San Sebastián International Film Festival (SIFF) film competition for the Golden Shell will open 18 September with Canadian director Atom Egoyan's CHLOE, starring Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore and Amanda Seyfried. This is first time Egoyan will have a film in competition at the SSIFF.

Columbian born writer and director Rodrigo García, son of Colombian writer Gabriel Garcia Márquez, will close the Festival with his North American film MOTHER and CHILD, starring Naomi Watts, Annette Bening and Samuel L. Jackson. One of Garcia's best known films is NINE LIVES, 2005, and he has extensive credits in television.

American Aaron Schneider, Academy Award winner for Best Short Film, TWO SOLDIERS, 2003, will bring his directorial feature debut, GET LOW, which stars the Donostia Award recipient Robert Duvall, alongside Bill Murray and Sissy Spacek. GET LOW will also compete for the Kutxa-New Directors Award along with 17 others.

From Turkey comes the winner of the SSIFF's Zabaltegi-New Directors in 2005.Turkish director Pelin Esmer, who won with her directorial feature debut OYUN (The Play), will compete for the first time in the Official Selection with 10 to 11 (11’e 10 kala), a co-production between Turkey, France and Germany.

Three of France’s most prestigious directors will enter the competition. Bruno Dumont, having bagged the Cannes Grand Jury Prize twice with L’Humanité (1999) and FLANDERS (2006), will bring HADEWIJCH. François Ozon will present REFUGE (Le refuge). Christophe Honoré returns to the Official Selection for the second consecutive year with MAKING PLANS FOR LENA, starring Chiara Mastroianni, Marie-Christine Barrault and Jean-Marc Barr.

German cinema will be represented by Matthias Glasner with THIS IS LOVE. From Argentina, Juan José Campanella adds THE SECRET OF YOUR EYES (El secreto de sus ojos).

Three Spanish films will participate in the competitive Official Selection: THE DAMNED (Los condenados), THE WOMAN WITHOUT A PIANO (La mujer sin piano), and ME, TOO (Yo, también). In additioin, Fernando Trueba will present THE DANCER AND THE THIEF (El baile de la Victoria) out of competition.

From Iran there is THE WHITE MEADOWS (Keshtzarhaye sepid) by Mohammad Rasoulof. Asia will be represented by South Korean Jeon Soo-il's I CAME FROM BUSAN, and Chinese director Lu Chuan's THE CITY OF LIFE AND DEATH. Lu Chuan is also known as Chuan Lu.

Zabaltegi-Pearls, the showcase for movies feted at the big international festivals but not yet released in Spain, with open with Quentin Tarantino's INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS (Tarantino's spelling). This film, winner of the Best Actor Award for Christoph Waltz at Cannes, will be screened on the first day of the 57th edition on Friday, 18 September.

Also in this showcase are new films by Woody Allen (WHATEVER WORKS), Ang Lee (TAKING WOODSTOCK), Jim Jarmusch (THE LIMITS OF CONTROL, filmed in Madrid), Bahman Ghobadi (NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT PERSIAN CATS), Bong Joon-ho (MOTHER) and Johnnie To (VENGEANCE).

PRECIOUS, the big hit at Sundance Festival, winner of the Special Jury Prize, Best Actress for Mo’Nique and Audience Award, will also be screened in Zabaltegi-Pearls. This movie, initially presented at Sundance and Cannes with the title of PUSH, directed by Lee Daniels, is based on the novel by Sapphire.

Overall, 18 films will compete in competition (Official Selection), 13 Latin American films will compete for the Horizons Award, 17 in the Kutxa-New Directors, plus other sections, and more are yet to be announced. See previous posts for previously announced events, etc. Click title of this post to go to Web site for much more info.

SERIES: Upcoming Film Festivals - August III

VENICE (VIFF - Labiennale)

The 66th Venice International Film Festival, oldest of all, will run at Venice Lido from 2nd to 12th September 2009.The film program has been announced. The USA is well represented this year.

In the International Feature Competition, as mentioned earlier here, BAARÌA, written and directed by Italian Oscar-winner Giuseppe Tornatore (CINEMA PARADISO), will open the Festival. The film will screen in competition.

Some U.S. films in competition that caught my eye, featuring world premieres for all, are:

Director Werner Herzog's BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS, starring Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes, Val Kilmer and Michael Shannon; Tom Ford's A SINGLE MAN, Colin Firth, Julianne Moore and Matthew Goode; John Hillcoa's THE ROAD, Charlize Theron, Viggo Mortensen, Robert Duvall and Guy Pearce; and MICHAEL MOORE's new documentary - CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY.

Three interesting USA productions screening out of competition are:

Director Grant Heslov's THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS, with George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey; John Lasseter's TOY STORY, 3-D, and TOY STORY 2, 3-D; and Antoine Fuqua's BROOKLYN’S FINEST, with Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke, Wesley Snipes and Ellen Barkin, among Hollywood's finest.

American actor Sylvester Stallone will receive a special award. The retrospective section is on Italian cinema rediscovered, and there will be a new trends in world and Italian cinema section, plus an international short film competition.



TORONTO (TIFF)

Toronto International Film Festival, which runs 10 to 19 September will offer 21 Special Presentations. These will feature the works of Alejandro Amenábar, Miguel Arteta, Sylvain Chomet, Rodrigo Garcia, Werner Herzog, Grant Heslov, John Hillcoat, and Tom Ford's directorial debut.

They will include on-screen performances by international superstars Annette Bening, Jeff Bridges, Michael Cera, George Clooney, Willem Dafoe, Robert Duvall, Colin Firth, Zach Galifianakis, Samuel L. Jackson, Ray Liotta, Ewan McGregor, Demi Moore, Julianne Moore, Viggo Mortensen, Guy Pearce, Natalie Portman, Til Schweiger, Charlize Theron, Naomi Watts and Rachel Weisz.

Canadian favorites include Christopher Plummer, Jay Baruchel, Atom Egoyan, Don McKellar, Dilip Mehta, Ruba Nadda, Sandra Oh, Saul Rubinek, Lisa Ray, Peter Stebbings and Jacob Tierney.

Born in India and now Canadian citizens, siblings Deepah and Dilip Mehta wrote the latest Hinglish movie, COOKING WITH STELLA, and brother Dilip directed. The film will premiere 16 September at Toronto in the Roy Thompson Hall. Deepah is best known for her trilogy, FIRE, EARTH, WATER, and BOLLYWOOD / HOLLYWOOD.

The new film center, known as the Bell Lightbox, is now taking shape at the corner of King and John Streets in downtown Toronto. Bell Lightbox will not be ready for this year's festival, but promises to be spectacular.

The five-story complex will bring together the film-loving public, Canadian and international filmmakers, industry professionals, academia and visitors to Toronto from around the world to explore the power of cinema.

Toronto International Film Festival Will again offer a series of free outdoor events at Yonge-Dundas Square (YDS) taking place 10 - 19, and featuring special appearances by George A. Romero, Neil Young, Joan Baez, Jonathan Demme and more.

This year, the Festival is on Facebook. The full film list will be available 20 August, and the schedule goes live on Facebook 25 August, so sign up now. The current film list is posted, but it is not the full one, yet.

SERIES: Upcoming Film Festivals - August II

Montreal World Film Festival (MWFF)

The film program for the 33rd Montreal World Film Festival, 27 August to 7 September 2009, was announced today. This year, once again, the MWFF has a strong program of non-fiction films, beginning with the world premiere of the Official Documentary Film of the Beijing Olympics, THE EVERLASTING FLAME - BEIJING 2008, directed by Gu Jun.

Steven Spielberg called Yang Zhimou's production of the Olympic show "the grandest spectacle of the new millennium." This film, a record of what happened at the 2008 games, will be shown on 5 September. Gu Jun will attend.

The Opening Film of the World Competition is the French film, FAUBOURG 36, written and directed by Christophe Barratier, a nephew of French producer - director Jacques Perrin. The movie stars Gérard Jugnot, Clovis Cornillac, Kad Merad, Nora Arnezeder and Pierre Richard.

Barratier drew from his classical music education for his debut movie, LES CHORISTES (The Chorus). It was the closing film of the 2004 MWFF, and a runaway box office hit in France. It was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song, Vois Sur Ton Chemin (Look to Your Path), for which Barratier wrote the lyrics.

The famous Cirque Éloize will perform at the opening of the 33rd Montreal World Film Festival at the Théâtre Maisonneuve of Place des Arts. The circus troupe will highlight the Festival's visual accent with a performance on the Russian bar, an exciting circus act which combines the skills of the balance beam, the rebound tempo skills of trampoline and the swing handstands skills of the uneven bars and the parallel bars.

The performance will precede the world premiere of 1981, directed by Ricardo Trogi. The Festival's opening evening is by invitation only. Direct Information. Click title of this post for Website. Also, see previous posts in this series for more.

SARAJEVO

The 15th Sarajevo Film Festival (SHFF) opens today, 12 August. The full program is available online in English. There is no one list, searching will be a chore. As mentioned here before, TALES FROM THE GOLDEN AGE will open the Festival.

The Teen Arena opens Thursday, 13 August. The German film THE WILD CHICKS CREW AND LIFE will open the program at the Bosnian Cultural Center. The Sarajevo Film Festival staff has prepared numerous entertaining events for the evening.

This year, the Sarajevo Film Festival launches online ticket sales. A limited number of tickets are available through Bosnia and Herzegovina's first online ticket shop. See previous posts in this series for more.

SERIES: Upcoming Film Festivals - August Updates

Times BFI London Film Festival





The Times BFI London Film Festival (TBFI) is proud to announce that this year's Festival, the 53rd, will open Wednesday, 14 October with the world premiere of FAMTASTIC MR. FOX from visionary director Wes Anderson (THE ROYAL TENEBAUMS, THE DARJEELING LIMITED). The Festival runs from 14 - 29 October 2009.

MR. FOX is Anderson's first animated film, which he co-wrote with Noah Baumbach. He uses classic handmade stop motion techniques to tell the story of the best selling children's book by British author Roald Dahl (author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and James and the Giant Peach). The film features the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep (Mr. and Mrs. Fox), Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Wally Wolodarsky, Eric Anderson, Michael Gambon, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson, Jarvis Cocker and Helen McCrory.

Wes Anderson, George Clooney, Meryl Streep and Jason Schwartzman are expected to attend the opening night screening along with other members of the voice cast.

The Closing Night Gala will include the World Premiere of Ecosse Films' NOWHERE BOY, the highly anticipated debut feature from British artist Sam Taylor-Wood. The film is set in Liverpool, England, 1955. A smart and troubled fifteen year-old named John Lennon (newcomer Aaron Johnson) is hungry for experience.

In a family full of secrets, John's buttoned-up Aunt Mimi (Kristin Scott Thomas), who raised him, and his prodigal mother, Julia (Anne-Marie Duff), clash over him. Yearning for a normal family, he escapes into rock n' roll, and finds a kindred spirit in teenager Paul McCartney (Thomas Brodie Sangster). Just as John begins his new life, tragedy strikes.

Sam Bell, another newcomer portrays George Harrison alongside a strong supporting cast that includes David Morrissey and David Threlfall. Matt Greenhalgh (CONTROL) wrote the script.

Sam Taylor-Wood has confirmed she will attend the Festival. No word yet on the rest of the cast. The film will release in the UK on 26 December 2009.

The full program for The Festival will be announced at the Press Launch on Wednesday 9 September. The 2009 Festival Web site is not up yet. Click title of this post for Web site.





Sarajevo

The Sarajevo Film Festival (SHFF) announces the juries for the feature, documentary and short films competitions, as well as the jury to select the European short films for the festival. This year is the 15th edition, and it will run from 12 - 20 August.

Festival will host Oscar-winning filmmaker Andrea Arnold, who will present her newest film, FISH TANK in the Open Air Program. American Actor Kevin Spacey, who helped found the Festival is expected to attend again this year. So is UK director Mike Leigh, another Festival sponsor.

Telluride

The 36th Telluride Film Festival (TFF), 4-7 September, 2009, in Telluride, Colorado, presented by National Film Preserve LTD, will present a special program in honor of artist and film critic Manny Farber. "The Celebration of Manny Farber" will include an intimate bookstore signing of The Library of America's September 2009 release, Farber on Film: The Complete Film Writings of Manny Farber, with editor Robert Polito and Farber's wife and collaborator, Patricia Patterson.




San Sebastián

Fernando Trueba, winner of the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award for BELLE EPOQUE (1992), will present his new film, El baile de la Victoria (The Dancer and the Thief), as part of the Official Selection, out of competition at the Sebastián International Film Festival (SSIFF).

Belle époque, n., French, Belle = beautiful, époque = era. Usually referring to an era of artistic and cultural refinement in a society, especially in France at the beginning of the 20th century.

For more on Spanish films at the Festival.

Hollywood Film Festival

The 13th annual Hollywood Film Festival (HFF) will run 21 - 26 October, 2009. Web page is up, and they are calling for entries.

SERIES: "Upcoming Film Festivals"

Montreal, Venice and Telluride

MONTREAL





The 33rd Montreal World Film Festival (MWFF): Le Festival des Films du Monde Montréal, 27 August - 7 September. The world première of Ricardo Trogi's 1981 will open the Festival 27 August at the Théâtre Maisonneuve of Place des Arts. The semi-autobiographical dramatic comedy will open in Quebec theaters 4 September.

Writer-director Ricardo Trogi came to critical and popular attention in 2003 when his debut feature QUEBEC-MONTREAL won four Jutras, including best film, script and direction, enjoyed box office success in Quebec, and won plaudits in festivals around the world. Trogi's second film, (DODGING THE CLOCK) won the Olivier prize in 2006 for best comedy, and scored a similar hit at the box office.

The Festival will pay tribute to Quebec film, television and stage actor Pierre Lebeau, and will honor him with Festival's highest award, the Grand Prize of the Americas. As a corollary to this tribute, the World Film Festival will show Lebeau's latest starring vehicle, Roger Cantin's CARGO FOR AFRICA (Un Cargo pour l'Afrique), which will receive its world première in the World Competition of this year's Festival.

The complete program has not yet been announced. For more info about tickets, etc., visit the Web Site, call 514-848-3883, or send an e-mail: info@ffm-montreal.org.

VENICE

The 66th Venice International Film Festival (VIFF), the world's oldest film festival, opens in Venice 2 September and runs through the 12th. BAARÌA, written and directed by Italian Oscar-winner Giuseppe Tornatore (Cinema Paradiso), will be the Opening Film of the 66th Venice International Film Festival, to be held at the Venice Lido from 2 to 12 September 2009, again under the direction of Marco Müller and organized by the Venice Biennale, which is chaired by Paolo Baratta. The film will screen in competition.

It will also be the gala world première for BAARÌA in the Sala Grande of the Palazzo del Cinema at the Lido. It is the first Italian film to open the Venice Film Festival for two decades and is the Italian film industry’s most costly production for many years.

The Festival also offers an online channel with video and interactive elements. The final film program has not yet been announced. Web Site.

TELLURIDE

Alexander Payne, American director and screenwriter, will be this year's Guest Director at the 36thTelluride Film Festival (TFF), 4-7 September 2009, in Telluride, Colorado, presented by National Film Preserve LTD. Director, Alexander Payne.

Each year the Festival’s directors select one of the world’s great film lovers to join them in the creation of the Festival. The Guest Director serves as a key collaborator in the Festival’s programming decisions, bringing new ideas and overlooked films to Telluride.

ACME Passes are sold out - Cinephile, Festival, and Patron Passes still available!

Kudos to the Festival for a much-improved Web Site.

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QUICK NOTES:

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TRAVERSE CITY



Additional screenings have been added at the Traverse City Film Festival due to demand. Also, some additional special programs. The Festival runs Tuesday, 28 July, through Sunday, 2 August. Check the Web Site for more info.

Become a 2010 Friend of the Film Festival before noon on 2 August 2009, to be entered into a Grand Prize Drawing for the chance to win a FESTIVAL PASS FOR LIFE and passes to next year's film festival! And Friends who join before 1 September will pay the original Friends prices before they double again!

For current ticketing info call 231-946-3731, or send an email: info@traversecityfilmfestival.org. Web Site.

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NEW YORK

The 47th New York Film Festival (NYFF) will return to the newly renovated Alice Tully Hall in NYC. Presented by The Film Society, the 17-day New York Film Festival runs 25 September to 11 October, 2009. September 25 - October 11, 2009. Film submissions have now closed.

This year is the 60th year of the People’s Republic of China, and a Festival sidebar will showcase the first major U.S. retrospective of Chinese cinema between establishment of the People’s Republic in 1949 and the beginnings of the Cultural Revolution in 1966. Also scheduled is a tribute to Hindi director, producer, and actor Guru Dutt, frequently credited with ushering in the golden era of Indian cinema in the 1950s and ’60s. Festival Web Site. Film Society of Lincoln Center.

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SAN SEBASTIAN

The San Sebastián International Film Festival's (SSIFF) early planning and work are paying off as the Festival is ahead of schedule in programming. American filmmaker Quentin Tarantino will open the Zabaltegi-Pearls section with his anticipated INGLOURIOUS BASTARDS, which won the Best Actor Award for Christoph Waltz at Cannes. It will be screened on the first day of the 57th edition, Friday, 18 September.

Already locked are new films by Woody Allen, Ang Lee, Jim Jarmusch, Bahman Ghobadi, Bong Joon-ho and Johnnie To, among others. Much, much more in next post. Web Site.

The films of director Richard Brooks and French Movie Trends will top the retrospective section. Web Site.

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TORONTO

The Toronto Film Festival (10 - 19 September) has announced the 20 films from film festival around the world. Documentary program announced. Canadian films will be announced 4 August. Web Site.

SERIES - “Upcoming Film Festivals”

Traverse City, Sarajevo & Telluride

Traverse City FF Tickets On Sale

This is it! Tickets for the 5th Traverse City Film Festival went on sale Sunday at noon in downtown Traverse City, Michigan, for Friends of the Festival, which will run Tuesday, 28 July through Sunday, 2 August.

Remaining tickets will go on sale to the general public this coming Saturday, 18 July, at 12 noon in the box office located at 300 E. Front Street, Traverse City. Sales online and by phone (231-946-3731) begin at 6 pm.

For more about the Festival, see my two previous blog posts in this series, Upcoming Film Festivals. There is still time to become a Friend of the Festival. The best way is through the Web site. While you are there, check the site for other passes, get information on the many special programs the Festival is offering this year, as well as the films showing.
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Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina

The Sarajevo Film Festival began during the Serbian invasion of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1994-1995, Sarajevo’s residents decided to establish the Sarajevo Film Festival. In the beginning, it looked like a pipe dream, like fighting the windmills. No one thought that the dream of a group of movie enthusiasts would grow from amongst war into the most important annual event not only in B-H, but in the entire region.

Now, the Festival is one of the biggest cultural events in B-H, and the one with the most attendance. The Festival award is the Heart of Sarajevo. This year is the 15th edition, and it will run from 12 - 20 August. American Actor Kevin Spacey, who helped found the Festival is expected to attend again this year. So is UK director Mike Leigh, another Festival sponsor.

Opening the festival is TALES FROM THE GOLDEN AGE, written and directed by Cristian Mungiu, whose last movie was the acclaimed 4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS & 2 DAYS (2007). GOLDEN AGE is described as an unconventional personal history of the late Communist period in Romania. Remember what they did to the disabled and orphan children? Web site.
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TELLURIDE

A quick note about Telluride, which will be in the spotlight in the next post of this series. Passes are now on sale. They are expensive and they go fast. If you want to take a chance, go here.
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Some festivals that will be spotlighted in the continuation of the Series:

August -

Montreal WFF: Le Festival des Films du Monde Montréal, Canada, 27 August - 7 September.

Venice: 2 - 12 September, Italy, the granddaddy of them all.

Telluride 4 - 7 September, Colorado, a wonderful time of year to be there.

Toronto: 10-19 September, Canada.

San Sebastián: 18 - 26 September.

SERIES - upcoming, TCFF Guide Available

The Traverse City Film Festival Guide is now available. This year is the 5th TCFF, running from 28 July to 2 August. It is held mainly at the historic State Theatre in downtown Traverse City, Michigan.

With 71 features and 50 short films from over 30 different countries and five continents, the TCFF has something for everyone, including children. To get the film guide with everything you want to know about the festival, film selection, special programs, etc., download the pdf version: http://www.traversecityfilmfest.org/tcffguide09.pdf

Meanwhile, if I get any additional info before the opening, I shall post it here. Three highlights from the festival not mentioned in my previous post, but are in the Film Guide:

1. Greetings from Tehran/Palestine and Vine — Two sections of incredible films from the Middle East, a region that needs to have its unfiltered voice heard now more than ever.

2. ROGER AND ME - This is the 20th anniversary of Michael Moore’s groundbreaking documentary.

3. Woodstock 40th Anniversary — Celebrate the seminal cultural event of the 20th century with never-before-seen concert footage, and special guests who performed at Woodstock live on stage at the State Theatre.

SERIES - “Upcoming Film Festivals”

Traverse City, Michigan

The Traverse City Film Festival (TCFF) will turn five next month when it kicks off its annual celebration at the State Theatre, Tuesday, 28 July. It will run through Sunday, 2 August. Michael Moore reports he has watched over 300 movies in preparation for the programs.

The official program will be released 2 July, but here is a sneak preview. First, the legendary director Paul Mazursky and his family will be on hand for this year's TCFF Lifetime Achievement Award. Mazursky's filmography includes "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," "Moscow on the Hudson," "Harry and Tonto," "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice," "Enemies: A Love Story," "An Unmarried Woman" and dozens of others. Mazursky will appear at screenings of three of his films and will speak on a panel as well.

TCFF Kids Fest will present award-winning independent children's films from around the world at 9:30 am Wednesday through Saturday of festival week at the State Theatre. Tickets will be reduced in price to $6 for these films, made for kids, which most young people never get the chance to see.

This year, the Festival is launching the TCFF Film School to offer students of all ages a chance to learn about the art of making movies. Five master classes will be taught for three hours each day of the festival from Tuesday through Saturday. This mini film camp will create an opportunity to meet with a different visiting filmmaker each day who will teach the craft of cinema to those interested.

Low-cost licensed child care, which I have never seen at film festivals, will be available Wednesday through Sunday.Interested parents should visit for more information, to offer comments, or make reservations.

This is only one of the services TCFF is offering this year to help everyone enjoy the festival despite the economic downturn that has hit Michigan exceptionally hard. They are holding ticket prices at the same price as last year, screening free movies outdoors each night, and foregoing some of the lavishness at parties.

Tickets to regular movies are $9. Opening and closing night films are $25, with opening and closing night parties ticketed separately at $50. Friends of the Traverse City Film Festival get half off opening and closing night party tickets, according to their benefit level. Tickets are available in advance and during the festival.

All tickets go on sale at the Front Street Cybercafe box office to Friends of the Film Festival on Sunday,12 July, 12 noon on a walk-up basis only. At 6 p.m. that day, Friends may also begin purchasing tickets by phone and online. Public ticket sales begin Saturday, 18 July.

82nd Best Feature Oscar® Will Have Ten Noms

Academy Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Sid Ganis announced today at a press conference in Beverly Hills that the 82nd Academy Awards®, which will be presented on 7 March 2010, will have 10 feature films vying in the Best Feature Picture category. For over 65 years the number of nominees has remained at five. CASABLANCA
won Best Feature Picture over nine others in 1943.

Ganis explained, "Having 10 Best Picture nominees is going allow Academy voters to recognize and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories, but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize."

The 82nd Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Tuesday, 2 February. The Oscar® ceremony honoring films for 2009 will take place at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network.

Carradine Funeral - rest in peace, Grasshopper

(8 December 1936 - 3 June 2009)

Actor / Director / Producer / Writer/ Editor / Composer/ Musician David Carradine was buried Saturday in private, and by invitation only. Much has been written, and sensationalized about his death, but here is something that has not been mentioned.

Carradine made a movie with a Spanish filmmaker friend of mine, Jose Luis Borau, ON THE LINE (aka, Downstream, and Rio abajo in Spain) in 1984. It is about a Border Patrol agent (Carradine) who is determined to catch his old nemesis, an American criminal who successfully smuggles illegal aliens across the border from Mexico. He gets involved with a woman in the red light district and that involvement changes the course of his life.

The movie has two unique distinctions: (1) It is the last movie appearance of the venerable American actor, Sam Jaffe, (2) It was the first and only English language film Spanish filmmaker Jose Luis Borau has made, and (3) Spanish actress Victoria Abril made her debut in an English language film. She played the woman of the red light district.

Borau writes, producers, acts and directs. He gained international fame for FURTIVOS (Poachers, 1975). Abril currently has two Spanish language films in post production.

Carradine, at the time of his death, had six movies in post production in which he had a role. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television in 1997, and many award nominations, but had few wins. He was nominated for an Emmy in 1973 for Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Drama Series - Continuing) for: "Kung Fu" (1972).

David Carradine was the eldest son of legendary character actor John Carradine. His acting family includes brothers Keith and Robert Carradine, and Michael Bowen, as well as his daughters Calista and Kansas Carradine, and neices Ever Carradine and Martha Plimpton.

Woody Allen’s Homage to London

Woody Allen in San Sebastian 2008.

Lucy Punch, recent.
The British actress, Lucy Punch, is reported to have wowed writer-director Woody Allen with a screen test for his yet untitled movie set to be filmed in London this summer. She will be replacing Nicole Kidman who accepted the role in March, but canceled weeks later because of a scheduling conflict.

Punch is a relatively unknown. She starred on the CBS series "The Class" and had roles in HOT FUZZ and ELLA ENCHANTED. She has a role in YOUNG AMERICANS, a comedy, scheduled to be released by Universal Pictures in January.

Punch will be joining a lead cast that includes, so far, Antonio Banderas, Freida Pinto, Naomi Watts, Josh Brolin and Anthony Hopkins. She will be the least experienced actor in the lead cast.

Looking at Lucy Punch’s picture, and having seen ELLA ENCHANTED, I find her resemblance to a young Mia Farrow striking. Considering Allen’s long history with younger women, including Diane Keaton, Allen’s former wife Mia Farrow, and his current wife Soon-Yi, who is the adopted daughter of Farrow and Andre Previn, I must exclaim: Watch out Soon-Yi

Meanwhile, there is a rumor that Freida Pinto, recently a member of the leasd cast of Oscar-winner SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, has been tapped to play the new Bond Girl. If so, she may have scheduling problems, too.

THE CANNES AFTERGLOW

The Cannes Film Festival (CFF) wrapped 23 May. Scroll down for my post of the top winners, 24 May. Since then, there have been further discussions about them.

The world-wide economic slowdown impacted Cannes this year. There were far fewer yachts, stars, press, and attendees. In the U.S., film critics are considered a luxury, and many newspapers have cut then from their staff. That is not true in Europe. For example, a newspaper in France, even though it may be experiencing a financial slowdown, will not ever think of cutting its film critic.

Biggest disappointment among the films in competition was Ang Lee's, TAKING WOODSTOCK. John Powers says the movie is “dinky”. Others made comments such as, “. . . highly anticipated, yet underwhelming.” Powers feels it is not very good cinematically, and probably should not have been in the Festival. He says it is fun to watch, and thinks Cannes accepted it because the Festival turned down BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2006). Judging by the Jury picks, this could have been the Festival for Lee’s LUST, CAUTION (2007).

The biggest surprise about a film that did not get an award at the Festival is Jane Campion's BRIGHT STAR. It received great reviews by critics viewing the film at the Festival. Apparently, it did not impress the Jury. Powers dubbed this years Cannes Festival, a Festival of Violence and Extremes.

The most deliberately provocative movie is Lars von Trier’s ANTICHRIST. Entertainment Weekly’s critic pulled no punches when he wrote, “Scenes of sexual mutilation in this gruesome story of a couple in [marital] hell elicited involuntary groans and then boos.” Most of the other critics left out “involuntary,” adding jeers, foot pounding, and many leaving the theater.

It has been widely reported that Trier suffered a bout of deep depression before embarking on this film. Despite the huge outcry against the film, Austrian Charlotte Gainsbourg won Best Actress for her role.

There was much buzz about Heath Ledger’s final performance in Terry Gilliam’s THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS, which screened out of competition. As usual, the critics didn’t get the film at all. They seldom get a Gilliam movie, but many die-hard fans do. When Ledger died about halfway through the filming, the role was recast to have Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell portray "physically transformed versions" of Tony.

No one else has speculated on this but I am going to. Could the Joker role followed by the mysterious stranger Tony in this “the Devil will have his due, if I don’t undo my mistakes” movie, coupled with Ledger’s recent divorce, and drug use, all have united to seal Ledger’s fate? It is the Doctor’s daughter, Valentina, who is in peril because of what her father has done, and Ledger had a young daughter. Just speculating.

Most critics were kind to Pedro Almodóvar’s latest with Penélope Cruz, BROKEN EMBRACES, praising her performance, but lukewarm to the movie. Poor Penélope had a bad cold, or flu, and missed most of the festivities.

Almodóvar and Lee are losing their mojo, according to the majority of the critics. Perhaps, both need to take a break to unwind and recharge.

On the other hand, critics and viewers generally praised Quentin Tarantino’s INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, which is the name of a gang slaughtering Nazis. Powers calls it an amazing film because it takes us back to the 1960s WW II Nazi movies, with glimpses reminding one of the TV show, Hogan’s Heroes, but BASTERDS is 100 times more violent. Brad Pitt stars, but Australian Christopher Waltz as a "Jew hunter" in Nazi Germany, won Best Actor for the role, stealing Pitt’s thunder.


Michael Haneke ***** Christopher Waltz ***** Charlotte Gainsbourg

As to the winner, award-winning Austrian writer/director Michael Haneke's black and white drama, THE WHITE RIBBON (Das Weisse Band, Austria), basically little negative has been written about this stark film, which won both the FIPRESCI Prize and the Golden Palm. In an over-baring patriarchal society, strange and brutal things happen at a rural school in northern 1913 Germany just prior to WW I, which seem to be ritual punishments. How will this affect the school system, and will what happens at school and in the community sew the seeds for fascism?

Haneke's THE PIANO TEACHER (La pianiste, 2001) vaulted him onto the world cinema scene. That award-winner was followed by another critically acclaimed movie, HIDDEN (Caché, 2005), winning the FIPRESCI Prize, and a Best Director for Haneke.

At the Munich Film Festival on 3 July, Haneke will be honored by his peers with the CineMerit Award. Munich Festival kicks off on 26 June and runs until 4 July. I look for THE WHITE RIBBON to do extremely well in Munich, the beautiful city with a sinister past.

To help you wrap the afterglow of Cannes, here are some great links:
1. John Powers, "On the Ground at Cannes, " Part I - Fresh Air, PBS, Tuesday, 26 May.
2. John Powers, "On the Ground at Cannes, " Part II - Fresh Air, PBS, Wednesday, 27 May.
3. “Violence Reaps Rewards at Cannes Festival,” Manohla Dargis, The New York Times, 25 May.
4. ”The Ballyhooed, the Magical and All that Mutilation: Cannes ‘09 Winds Down,“ Eric Kohn, Indiwire, 24 May [The link is wrong, but works as 06].

I can hardly wait for next year.