Hua wei mei (Bad Romance)

Film starts so promising that can't deny I thought I was watching a French film but after a few minutes style becomes repetitive and annoying, so much that definitively becomes pretentious, too arty and pretentious. Then editing is atrocious.

Film tells three stories, but you can tell that director real interest is the gay interest story as is about the only one that is more developed, but don't expect much development as director decided that only his images will tell the story, so dialogue is down to minimum, with silences that in this movie are absolutely unnecessary as you would have preferred to see "something" happening more coherently. Maybe if he had told one story first, then the next and last, the last one film would have made more sense; but in the end I think that director should have concentrated only in the gay story and film perhaps would have been more entertaining at least to those that like the genre.

Other stories deal with a young mother that meets a young man and last -really shorter- has been promoted as a trio, but actually is about a girl that likes another girl and a man that comes between them. But as movie name tells all stories end bad and unfortunately film is quite bad from any point of view you want to comment it.

François Chang's movie shows a director that wants to fusion French and Chinese cinema, as there are some references to French movies and style also recalls some Chinese movies, but in the end he is not successful in what could been a very interesting fusion. To get an idea of how good this movie could have been just check the trailer, but don't forget that what trailer promises is not delivered by movie.

Can't recommend film but I know that some of my loyal readers enjoy gay interest movies and this film surely will please them as sex scene -when finally comes- is long and hot.

Enjoy.

Watch trailer @MOC

Des Filles en Noir

In real life maybe there is nothing more disturbing than talking about suicide but I find that most movies that touch the theme have not really shown how disturbing it is as opt to show the horror when seeing the act being committed. In my opinion this movie also doesn't show how disturbing could be as director chose to show us motives that make you think about it, which indeed here are interesting as portraits something that nowadays is more relevant than ever before

The film starts when Noémie commits suicide, at least she tries as she is saved. Then we meet Priscilla and we come to realize how close Noemi and Priscilla are, they love each other intensively, but they are not in-love with each other. Theirs is a friendship relationship as intense as friendship could be, tied with a strong common bond, their disillusionment about what their future has in store for them and their total disrespect to what they are living.

They do not respect school as, why study if after graduation comes unemployment or being exploited by an exploiter? They don't respect love as they, besides the love they feel for each other, see no love around them as those who claim to love and/or care about them have taken everything from them. They don't respect sex as around them is used as an end that once achieved, there is not much left; which I believe is the reason why there is no sexual tension between them. Already said too much, but wanted to try to give an idea of what I believe is behind these two characters and the story that I don't think stays in giving a sociological point-of-view as goes deeper into a the infamous philosophical question: what is the purpose of life? A philosophical question that here is not place to philosophize but to concretely think about what many youths in the world have as a future.

Suicide is present here all over but as you perhaps conclude, I don't believe that is what this movie really is about.

Film name comes because both girls dress in black, which many think is because they're goth. Not me. To me they don't look or behave like goths and the only thing they could have in common with goth subculture is that they always dress in black but nothing else. I'm not alone thinking this as director clearly states it when he says:

... elles ne font pas partie d'une idéologie gothique, trop réductrice pour les définir avec justesse ... Si elles avaient été « gothiques », elles auraient effectivement appartenu à un groupe défini. Je tenais à ce qu'elles n'aient aucune appartenance. Ce sont des atomes libres, et c’est peut-être aussi cette liberté-là, immense, trop grande, qui les fait souffrir.

So in a way I find that the use of black costumes is an extension of the darkish color palette that predominates for more than half the movie as when the black dress leaves the screen, film palette also changes. Then transition from one palette into the other is done so beautifully that really eases the terrible scene we are seeing in the screen, when camera slowly retreats to show the beautiful flower colors in the garden.

I'm not familiar with Jean-Paul Civeyrac movies but those who are say that he likes to use symbols in his movies. Even when I read about it I'm not sure what they mean applied to what I saw in this movie, as everything I saw was too clear for me. One so-called symbol is in the scene when Priscilla violently kicks a Lalique chess board; whatever they find symbolic, to me is a clear statement against materialistic things and life.

It is an interesting film with many unsettling images, especially when darkish palette predominates, but I highly appreciate that film doesn't exploit the suicide theme and uses it so effectively to talk about other more interesting subjects.

Absolutely fantastic performance by the two young actresses, Elise Lhomeau and Léa Tissier, especially when their roles are very difficult and director seems to have made them even more difficult. I liked director storytelling style which I believe is also a strong protagonist in story. Film has above standard tech specs that make it a good visual cinematic experience. Civeyrac's movie premiered at 2010 Cannes at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs and "just" took me two years to be able to watch it but wait was worth it.

Not for all audiences as I realize that film can be (or is) very brainy, you have to think beyond what your eyes see in the screen as otherwise you will be seeing only a sequence of quite unpleasant images/scenes with two girls that you will surely will not feel any sympathy at all. So if you don't mind thinking beyond the obvious, then this film is for you and only remind you that this is a very French film consequently be prepare to see it with an open mind.

Last have to comment about something else. This is not a lesbian interest movie or story, but it was hard for me to concentrate into everything that was happening because the most beautiful images of the two characters in the screen, which showed more love and caring than in many lesbian interest movies I have seen lately and perhaps ever. For whatever is worth, I shared my experience.

I strongly recommend this film to some of my loyal readers as definitively is a film that many could enjoy well beyond the obvious storyline. I liked movie a lot more than I imagined but then I had no expectations as this is one film where I knew nothing about story.

Enjoy!!!

Watch trailer @MOC

Impardonnables (Unforgivable)

Not easy to start to talk about this André Téchiné movie as you can tell is a Téchiné movie but story has some elements that suggest that the director is not his young self anymore. As is hard, let me share my experience while watching.

Started watching film understanding everything until I reached the moment when I said, what is this? Am I missing something? What is really going on? Honestly had no idea. So I relaxed continue watching but I was feeling a strong unsettling feeling. Suddenly I forgot about the unsettling feeling and for a minute got distracted as I noticed movie had grabbed me inside the story and I was enjoying the ride. But unfortunately there were moments when story released me enough to think what was going to come next and surprise, surprise I guessed right.

There are not many French movies that I can guess what comes next or that allow me to start thinking, much less a Téchiné film, and me guessing a "complex" plot next move in an auteur film is just unforgivable. Perhaps movie name comes to be because it was going to make me feel unforgiveness as I couldn't find anything else remotely unforgivable.

As always in Téchiné's films there is a relatively complex story with many little stories about the many characters that populate film; stories that eventually merge at one point and to my surprise in this movie that has a clear beginning and clear end, the end is happy. So story is complex due to many character stories; but then not really, perhaps is more confusing as there are some (too many) scenes that give information that doesn't add to the story of any of the characters.

Film tells the story of Francis (André Dussollier) a writer that can't write when he is in love and he falls in love at first sight when he meets Judith (Carole Bouquet), an ex-model, and now the real estate agent he visits when he arrives in Venice and is looking for a small apartment to rent. Judith shows him a house in rural Sant'Erasmo, he says he takes the large house only if she comes to live with him. Judith nose bleeds. Eighteen months later they are married and he has writer's block so he roams the streets and canals of Venice in search of inspiration while Judith continues to work. Everything is bliss until new characters with new stories start to appear and story unfolds in many directions that constantly crisscross and won't meet until almost the end. We have Ana Maria, Judith ex and a private investigator, plus Jérémie her son that is in prison; Alice, Francis daughter, an actress that comes for a visit and suddenly disappears leaving all her responsibilities behind, including her own daughter. So Francis hires Ana Maria to find Alice and we learn she is having a passionate affair with Alvise, an aristocrat involved in small-time drug dealing. Jérémie is released and Francis hires him to follow Judith as he is jealous, which only allows Jérémie to have a one-time affair with Judith as he's mainly a depressive homosexual.

So what's story really all about? To me is about nothing. Nothing special, just an elaborate tale of the regular life of men, women, old and young, who happen to have not-so-exciting but full of problems lives. In the end, as it happens in life, some die, some leave, some endure the problems they got into, some end up happy and some end up badly. Nothing special.

Think that wrote too much about a movie that I know many will not like as even when is great to look at -especially one scene with younger Ana Maria shot in black and white- but that is not easy to follow with the many inconsistencies the story has.

Anyway movie is not for all audiences, not even for those that enjoy European movies, this is only suited for those who love Téchiné no matter if he seems to be losing his impressive storytelling style seen in many of his movies.

After realizing how much I could write about movie I came to realize that I like this movie no matter those unforgivable elements. Movie that was screened at 2011 Cannes Directors' Fortnight.

Enjoy!!

Watch trailer @MOC

Hemingway & Gellhorn

I'm afraid this movie was in Cannes mainly to honor Philip Kaufman as can't find another reason to include screening in the Official Selection. This is a TV movie that I can't compare to the other TV movie screened recently in fest, Carlos in the short or longer versions, even when both are biopics' Carlos seems like a masterpiece (which I don't think it is) when you put both movies side by side.

If I take this movie out of the Cannes context then can say that movie is so-so but is nothing similar to Kaufman's style in The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Henry & June or Quills; so if I forget that Kaufman used to do great movies, then yes movie is entertaining with some great moments thanks mainly to Kidman performance and ironically, to the most not-believable story that benefits not one historic figure, much less Gellhorn. Don't think story is a Gellhorn bio and obviously is not Hemingway bio, so what is the story all about? A fictionalized slice of life telling about the times when Gellhorn and Hemingway were married? A romanticized vision of two strong-head characters? I have no idea as nothing I try to imagine fits to what I saw in this movie, that perhaps would have been better as the story of two fictional characters.

Being positive the story told is entertaining -but confusing if you relate it to reality- and Kidman has some good moments. Then I truly believe that the main male role was a miscast in whatever sense you want to imagine the character (Hemingway or anyone else) as Clive Owen performance seemed like a caricature of man that at first is charming to after become hideous. Is like there would be two parts to this movie, one when they meet up to when they get married, the other starts the minute they marry. The male character changes the film but the female character remains the same, which is kind of unfair as even when Hemingway was no saint, Gellhorn wasn't neither, so the "second act or movie part" should had been with both characters transforming more similar to reality.

Anyway know that many are not familiar with the story of the real characters and if you are one of them probably film story will seem dull and predictable, quite melodramatic and at many times worth of the Lifetime channel more than HBO. Then as a film, has its good moments with use of old footage but quality is uneven as I can clearly tell when actors were over-imposed of footage.

The story really killed the movie for me, so it's a terrible way to start my Cannes viewing experience. Know that I can only recommend this film to those that enjoy watching more Lifetime than HBO movies and to those that have to watch everything (good or bad) with Nicole Kidman, like me. I you also are like me, then be at ease as Kidman is on the good side of performing in this film.

All I wrote feels like me rambling, which is exactly a faithful portrait of how I feel the story is told in movie.

Enjoy.

Watch trailer @MOC

65th Festival de Cannes Award Winners

Great ceremony with great awards, some will not be pleased, but I am.  To check winners at official site go here. The Jury gave a post-awards press conference I suggest to watch to learn some reasons why they gave the awards to the honored films. Go here.

Main Competition

Palme d’Or: Amour (Love), Michael Haneke, France, Austria, and Germany

Grand Prix: Reality, Matteo Garrone, Italy and France

Jury Prize: The Angels’ Share, Ken Loach, UK and France

Best Director: Carlos Reygadas for Post Tenebras Lux, Mexico, France, and Netherlands
Best Screenplay: După dealuri (Beyond the Hills), Cristian Mungiu, Romania

Best Actress: Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur in După dealuri (Beyond the Hills), Cristian Mungiu, Romania
Best Actor: Mads Mikkelsen Jagten (The Hunt), Thomas Vinterberg, Denmark

Camera d’Or: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin, USA

Short Films
Palme d’Or: Sessiz-be Deng (Silent), L. Rezan Yeşilbaş, Turkey

Un Certain Regard

Un Certain Regard Prize: Después de Lucía, Michel Franco, Mexico
Special Jury Prize: Le Grand Soir, Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern, France
Special Mention: Djeca (Children), Aida Begić, Bosnia Herzegovina
Un Certain Regard Award for Best Actress (tie): Suzanne Clement in Laurence Anyways, Xavier Dolan, Canada, France and Emilie Dequenne in A Perdre La raison (Loving without Reason), Joachim Lafosse, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, and Switzerland

Quinzaine des Réalisateurs (Directors' Fortnight)

Feature Films
SACD Prize: Camille redouble (Camille Rewinds), Noémie Lvovsky, France
Special Mention: Ernest et Celestine, Stéphane Aubier, Vincent Patar and Benjamin Renner, France, Belgium and Luxembourg
Arte Cinema Prize: No, Pablo Larraín, USA and Chile
Label Europa Cinemas Prize: El Taaib, Merzak Allouache, Algeria and France

Short Films
Illy Prize: The Curse, Fyzal Boulifa,UK and Morocco

Carrosse d'Or: Nuri Bilge Ceylan

Semaine de la Critique (Critic's Week)

Feature Films
Grand Prize: Aquí y Allá, Antonio Méndez Esparza, Spain, USA and Mexico
Visionary Award: Sofia’s Last Ambulance, Ilian Metev, Germany, Croatia and Bulgaria
SACD Prize: Les Voisins de Dieu (God's Neighbors), Meni Yaesh, Israel and France
ACID/CCAS Support: Los Salvajes (The Wild Ones), Alejandro Fadel, Argentina

Grand Rail d'Or: Hors les murs (Beyond the Walls), David Lambert, Belgium, Canada and France

Short Films
Best Short Film: Circle Line, Shin Suwon, South Korea
Special Mention: O Duplo (Doppelgänger), Juliana Rojas, Brazil
Discovery Award: Un Dimanche matin (A Sunday Morning), Damien Manivel, France
Petit Rail d'Or: Ce n’est pas un film de cow-boys (It’s not a Cowboys Movie), Benjamin Parent, France

Cinéfondation

First Prize: ДОРОГА НА Doroga na (The Road To), Taisia Igumentseva,VGIK, Russia
Second Prize: Abigail, Matthew James Reilly, NYU, USA
Third Prize: Los Anfitriones (The Hosts), Miguel Angel Moulet, EICTV, Cuba

The Atelier Arte Prize: In Your Name by Marco van Geffen, Netherlands, Germany and France

Collateral Awards

FIPRESCI Awards
Main Competition: В тумане V Tumane (In the Fog), Sergei Loznitsa, Germany, Netherlands, Belarus, Russia and Latvia
Un Certain Regard: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin, USA
Quinzaine des Réalisateurs: Rengaine (Hold Back), Rachid Djaidani, France

Ecumenical Jury Award: Jagten (The Hunt), Thomas Vinterberg, Denmark
Special Mention: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin, USA

Prix de la Jeunesse: Holy Motors, Leos Carax, France
Prix Regards Jeunes: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin, USA

Prix François Chalais: Les Chevaux de Dieu (God’s Horses), Nabil Ayouch, France, Morocco, Tunisia

Queer Palm
Feature Film: Laurence Anyways, Xavier Dolan, Canada and France
Short Film: Ce n’est pas un film de cow-boys (It’s not a Cowboys Movie), Benjamin Parent, France

Palm Dog: Banjo and Poppy in Sightseers, Ben Wheatley, UK

65th Festival de Cannes Caméra d’Or Winner

2012 Camera d'Or winner is in *BLUE.

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 5/14
The Caméra d’Or prize is awarded to the best First Film presented in the Official Selection (Competition, Out of Competition and Un Certain Regard), in Critics’ Week or Directors’ Fortnight. The Prize will be awarded by the president of the jury, Brazilian Carlos Diegues, at the Closing Ceremony on Sunday 27th May.

As you know I've been indicating in each Cannes post the first films, but this is the complete selection that includes first films in the Cannes Classics and Cinéma de la Plage programs.

These are the 25 films competing for the Camera d'Or.

Official Selection
Antiviral, Brandon Cronenberg, Canada and USA
*Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin, USA
Gimme the Loot, Adam Leon, USA
La Playa, Juan Andrés Arango, Colombia
Me and Me Dad, Katrine Boorman, UK and Ireland
Red Tails, Anthony Hemingway, USA
The Sapphires, Wayne Blair, Australia
Trashed, Candida Brady, UK
Villegas, Gonzalo Tobal, Argentina, Netherlands, and France

Quinzaine des réalisateurs
Alyah, Elie Wajerman, France
돼지의 왕 Dae gi eui wang (aka Dwae-ji-ui wang) (The King of Pigs), Yeun Sang-Ho, South Korea
Infancia Clandestina (Clandestine Childhood), Benjamin Avila, Argentina, Spain and Brazil
La Sirga, William Vega, Colombia, France and Mexico
Rengaine (Hold Back), Rachid Djaidani, France
Room 237, Rodney Ascher, USA
Yek Khanévadéh-e Mohtaram ( A Respectable Family), Massoud Bakhshi, Iran

Semaine de la Critique
Aquí y Allá, Antonio Méndez Esparza, Spain, USA and Mexico
Au galop (In A Rush), Louis-Do de Lencquesaing, France
המשגיחים Les Voisins de Dieu (God's Neighbors), Meni Yaesh, Israel and France
Hors les murs (Beyond the Walls), David Lambert, Belgium, Canada and France
Peddlers, Vasan Bala, India
Los Salvajes (The Wild Ones), Alejandro Fadel, Argentina
Sofia’s Last Ambulance, Ilian Metev, Germany, Croatia and Bulgaria
Broken, Rufus Norris, UK
Augustine, Alice Winocour, France

Caméra d’or Jury
President: Carlos Diegues, director, Brazil
Gloria Satta, journalist, Italy
Rémy Chevrin, representing the French Association of Film Cinematographers, France
Hervé Icovic, on behalf of the Federation of Cinema, Audiovisual and Multimedia Industries, France
Michel Andrieu, representing the Society of Film Directors, France
Francis Gavelle, the French Union of Film Critics, France

To check list and info about each film go here.  and to read info about each jury member go here.

Final Day at 2012 Cannes

Suddenly I was here with not much to do so this is my real last post that will be more in the non-serious side of the fest.

Is too early to publish, so probably will come back with more info, later.

The Jury

While all the rumors populate the net, the jury works and thanks to Gilles Jacob -who has been very Twitter active today- here are some nice photos from the room in the villa.





Rumors

The kind of rumors I like as is the best thermometer to speculate more accurately about possible winners.

From not reliable sources
Has been "confirmed" (not really) that Marion was called to come back from NY; then don't forget that Nicole Kidman hasn't left Cannes... Any of those two winning will be fine for me.
Audiard was ALSO called back... Audiard was at last night event at Magic Cannes
Moretti does not like Haneke, Mungiu or Salles, thus winner will be bizarre

Thomas Vinterberg and Mads Mikkelsen have been called back...

From really reliable sources
In Cannes, Mungiu, Carax... Audiard, Cotillard ... Getting interesting...

Me talking
Would be nice if Mungiu gets a second Palme? If Audiard gets his first Palme? If FINALLY Leos Carax get a Cannes award, la Palme? If Cotillard gets her first Cannes award? Yes, yes, yes, and yes.

Yesterday I was asked who could get the Best Actor award besides Trintignant? My first guess is Mads Mikkelsen, second Matthias Schoenaerts. An American? Hmm maybe Matthew McConaughey in Mud. But there are no rumors yet about who is in Cannes. The one that hasn't leave Cannes is McConaughey. Writing this and first gossip appears, yes Mads has been my expected winner since film was screened at fest. Then seems Pattinson hasn't leave Cannes too, if he wins I'll be in total shock!

Irreverent

Very Acid joke (free translation): Cannes rumor: only the Best Actress award will be given to a female. (took me 2 readings to really get it, ha)

Many, including Gilles Jacob (or who manages his account) have been saying: Habemus Palmam? (he, he)

Testing Links with Live info...

WATCH LIVE HERE.