Cannes Film Festival Awards Winners

Here is the list of the winners at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Palm D'or - The Wind That Shakes the Barley (Ken Loach)

Grand Prixe - Flandres (Bruno Dumont)

Best Director - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Babel)

Best Screenplay - Pedro Almodovar (Volver)

Best Actress(es) - The women from Volver - Penelope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Duenas, Blanca Portillo, Yohana Cobo and Chus Lampreave

Best Actor(s) - The men from Days of Glory - Jamel Debbouze, Samy Naceri, Roschdy Zem and Sami Bouajila

Jury Prize - Red Road (Andrea Arnold)

I am quite pleased with the winners and I am especially happy for Ken Loach. After so many years of making quality films he is finally getting his due. Congratulations to all the winners!

Golden Globes 2007

Here is everything you need to know about next year's Golden Globes.

Golden Globe Dates for the Upcoming Season

Thursday, October 19, 2006 - Final screening date for Television entries

Friday, October 20, 2006 - Final date for press conferences for Television entries

Friday, November 10, 2006 - Deadline for submission of Golden Globe entry forms

Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - 9 a.m. Cecil B. DeMille/Miss Golden Globe Announcement

Friday, December 1, 2006 - Deadline for nomination ballots to be mailed by Ernst & Young to all HFPA members

Wednesday, December 6, 2006 - Final screening date for Motion Pictures

Thursday, December 7, 2006 - Final date for Motion Picture press conferences

Monday, December 11, 2006 - Deadline for receipt by Ernst & Young of nomination ballots

Thursday, December 14, 2006 - 5:00 a.m. Nomination announcement of the 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards

Friday, December 15, 2006 - Deadline for receipt of media credential applications

Tuesday, December 26, 2006 - Final ballots mailed by Ernst & Young to all HFPA members

Tuesday, January 2, 2007 - Deadline for receipt of publicist credential applications

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 - Deadline for receipt by Ernst & Young of final ballots

Monday, January 15, 2007 - Presentation of "The 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards" Live telecast on NBC Television at 8 p.m. EST

Cannes Film Festival Update #5

Here are a few words on the last films that were screened in competition.

The Right of the Weakest

This film takes place in Belgium and is directed by Lucas Belvaux. It focuses on four men, a woman and a child who seem to be down on their luck. It is a story of people who have no work, hope or future but still cling to the possibility of something happening for them. I have not seen any reviews of this film so I don't know if there is any possibility of it winning anything. But the fact that it is being ignored is not a good sign.

The Singer

This film, which is directed by Xavier Giannoli, is the story of an aging dancehall singer (Gerard Depardieu). As he appeals to older women he makes his living by playing at homes for the elderly. One day he meets a young woman named Marion (Cecile de France) and falls in love with her. I have not heard much about this film. You would think that a film with Depardieu,
who is certainly one of the greatest actors around, would produce more buzz. I would have to say that this film will probably not win anything but there could always be a surprise in the best actor category.

Pan's Labyrinth

This bloody fairytale is directed by Guillermo del Toro. It takes place in Fascist era Spain and is about a young girl who thinks that she is the reincarnation of a princess of an underworld kingdom. This film is a fantasy and it is rare that a film in this genre is in the Cannes compeition. The film has had a good response and it could take home a prize. Award or not, I am looking forward to this film because I thought that del Toro's The Devil's Backbone was terrific and I expect that this film might also be great.

Buenos Aires 1977

This film is directed by Israel Adrian Caetano. It is the story of several young men who are imprisoned and escape torture during Argentina's military dictatorship. The film is based on a book written by Claudio Tamburrini who spent 120 days in prison during that period of time. One of the men is played by Rodrigo de la Serna who was magnificent as Che's buddy Alberto in The Motorcyle Diaries. I understand that de la Serna is terrific in this film as well. I have a feeling that either he or the film will walk away with a prize. This film has really peaked my interest and I can't wait until it is released in the US.

The awards will be given out tomorrow and I will post the winners on this blog.

In the meantime, the Fipresci winners were announced earlier today. Here they are:

In Competion - Climate (Nuri Bilge Ceylan)
Critic's Week - Bug (William Friedkin)
Un Certain Regard - Hamaca Paraguaya (Paz Encina)

DVD Review - Nobody Knows Anybody

One of the reasons I wanted to this film is because it is directed by Mateo Gil. Gil, with Alejandro Amenabar, wrote the screenplay for Amenabar's award winning film The Sea Inside as well as the smash hit The Others (Amenabar wrote the musical score for Nobody Knows Anybody).

Simon (Eduardo Noriega) is a crossword puzzle writer for a newspaper. He is also trying to write a novel. Whenever he writes one of his crossword puzzles his roommate Toad (Jordi Molla) helps him out. Toad is a teacher and also a writer. Since it is holy week in Seville Simon wants to gear his crossword puzzle to reflect that theme. Simon is shocked and frightened when he receives a cryptic and threatening message on his answering machine telling him that a certain word must appear in his next crossword puzzle or there will be dire consequences. Simon decides to investigate the situation and finds himself involved in a wicked game that is the brainchild of someone who is very close to him.

I won't say more because I don't want to spoil the suspense. Gil certainly is not as good a director as Amenabar but he managed to make an entertaining film. I really enjoyed it and I recommend it to anyone who wants to see a good psychological thriller from Spain that has quite a few interesting twists.

The Proposition

The Proposition is beautifully directed by John Hillcoat from a mesmerizing script written by Nick Cave. Cave and Warren Ellis wrote the original music for the film.

This story starts with a British Captain named Stanley (Ray Winstone) arresting two of the notorious Burns Brothers. The brothers are part of a gang who go around raping and murdering people in the Outback of Australia during the 1800s. Stanley decides to take Mike Burns (Richard Wilson) into custody but lets his brother Charlie (Guy Pearce) go with the stipulation that Charlie brings him his brother Arthur (Danny Huston) who is the ringleader of the gang. If Charlie fails to deliver Arthur by Christmas then Mike will be hanged. Nobody but Stanley and a Sergeant, who is his confidante, knows that originally two brothers were captured. It is their secret that Charlie was let go so that he could find his brother and bring him to Stanley.

On his way to find Arthur Charlie comes across a bounty hunter named Jellon Lamb (John Hurt). Lamb wants to find Arthur because there is a reward to be had. Charlie does what he can to try and prevent Lamb from finding his brother.

Captain Stanley was brought over from Britain to clean up the mess. His lovely wife Martha (Emily Watson) seems out of place in this rough town and Stanley tries his best to be protective of her.

Charlie suffers a severe injury after an Aborigine shoots him but is brought back to health by a friend of Arthur's. Charlie tells him the situation regarding Mike which certainly doesn't sit well with Arthur.

In the meantime, the Sergeant starts telling people that Stanley had two brothers but let one go. The poeple in the town are furious about this. There is a great scene when Martha goes to town and everyone turns their heads away from her.

I don't want to say anymore about this film because if I do I will be giving away the whole story.
It is first and foremost a story of retribution. And yes, this film is extremely violent but it is also beautiful. It harkens back to the glory days of the Western genre. Cinematographer Benoit Delhomme does an amazing job of capturing the feel of the Outback. The desert, the sky and everything else is so real that you feel that you are standing in the middle of it. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen even when things got very violent.

All of the acting is excellent. Winstone's portrayal of the complex Stanley is pitch perfect. One minute you see him being brutal and the next moment he is gentle. Hurt, Watson and Pierce are all terrific. But the big surprise here is Huston. Never have I seen him play a character who was so intense (or so vile).

Maybe this film and last year's wonderful The Three Burials marks the return of the Western to cinema. I know that The Coen Brothers will soon start filming an adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's masterful No Country for Old Men. I am quite certain that when I see that film I will have (as I did with this film) a bloody good time.

Cannes Film Festival Update #4 - Let Them Eat Cake

Here are a few words about some more films that are in competition.

Marie Antionette

Sofia Coppola's modernist take on the story of Marie Antoinette was one of the most anticipated films of the Festival. Some people, who had never even seen the film, claimed that it was one of the greatest masterpieces in cinematic history. All of that hype hurt the film rather than helped it. From the way the film was described I always thought that it would be beautiful to look at but a bit shallow when it came to the story. Most of the critics agreed with that assessment. I also didn't care for the fact that Ms. Coppola used punk rock as the soundtrack. But the critics liked Kirsten Dunst in the role of a ditzy Marie. This film can probably be enjoyed if one wants to have a bit of fun - a guilty pleasure if you will. But if someone is looking for a serious history of France and the revolution then I think that they will be disappointed. Right now I don't see this film winning any major awards but Cannes is an unpredictable place so one never knows.

Days of Glory (Indigenes)

Rachid Bouchareb directed this tale of several men from French North Africa who fought in World War II in order to help liberate their mother country from the Nazis. They are fighting for a country that they have never even seen. The men are Moslems (indigenous) and are sometimes treated like second class citizens by their French commanders. This film focuses on how these men deal with not only fighting the war but being different from most of the people who are fighting for the cause. This film has gotten some great reviews and there has been talk of it getting an award. Some people have mentioned a screenplay award but only time will tell. But it looks like this one has a good chance of winning something.

The Family Friend

Paulo Sorrentino's film focuses on an unhappy moneylender. He has many unpleasant habits that turn people off. He thinks that he is alone because of this but he isn't alone. He represents everyone as we all have some of his unpleasant habits. This film seems to be more of a character study than a plot driven film. I have seen some words of praise for this film and I have also seen a bad review. I understand that the critics applauded wildly for the film so maybe it has a chance to win something. I think that its best shot would be for Giacomo Rizzo who plays the lead. Perhaps he will win for best actor. We shall see.

Colossal Youth

In Pedro Costa's film a laborer from Cape Verde has been living in a rundown home on the outskirts of Lisbon for 34 years. After his wife abandons him he moves into a low cost housing development. He meets many poor lost souls and somehow they all become his adopted children. This film sounds very special. It deals with some real life lessons. The images that I saw were just beautiful. Colossal Youth has gotten some very good feedback and it just might win something at the closing ceremony on Sunday night.

DVD Review - Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi

Sixteen year old Shlomi is the caregiver of his family. When he gets home from school he has to bathe and take care of his elderly grandfather. He also has to prepare a meals for his family which also include his mother (who works as a nurse) and his soldier brother. Shlomi's parents are separated because of his father's dalliance with his mother's best friend. Shlomi's mother is just too bitter to accept his father's apology. Shlomi's grandfather speaks French to him and that is where the film gets its title from. Shlomi also has a married sister who has twins. Several times in the film she leaves her husband and then, of course, goes back to him.

It appears that Shlomi has a learning disability. However, one of his teachers and the school principal discover that he is highly intelligent but just has a different way of thinking than most people. The challenge is to get Shlomi's parents to see how special he is so that he can attend a school for gifted children in Haifa. Between his chaotic family and the feelings that he develops for the young woman (who happens to be a little older than Shlomi) who lives next store Shlomi has his hands full. But in the end Shlomi leaves the chaos to attend the school Haifa and live with his new girlfriend (who just got a job in Haifa).

Writer/director Shemi Zahir does a nice job of bringing this Israeli slice of life to the screen.
Since there is nothing political in the film the people could have lived anywhere. Oshri Cohen gives a fine performance as Shlomi and really makes you feel for the boy. This is a nice little film and although I thought the ending was a bit contrived I still think that it is well worth seeing.

Cannes Film Festival Update #3

Here are a few words about some more films that are in the main competition.

The Caiman

This film is Nanni Moretti's satire on the making of a movie about now deposed Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi. Even though the film is very steeped in Italian culture it appears that the message could be applied to any country (hint, hint). I loved Moretti's Caro Diaro and The Son's Room (which won the Palm D'or a few years ago) and I've read some nice things about this film. But I don't know if this film will win any awards. It might but then again it might not.

Light in the Dusk

This is the third in Aki Kaurismaki's "loser" trilogy. I saw both Drifting Clouds and The Man Without a Past and thought that they were both wonderful (Man won Grand Prixe at Cannes and was nominated for a Best Foreign Film Oscar). This film is about a lonely man who, through no fault of his own, finds nothing but bad luck. The film has not been well received and it is highly unlikely that it will win anything.

Flandres

Bruno Dumont is back at Cannes with his latest offering. A few years ago he won the Grand Prixe for his intense film L'Humanite. This film is about young farmers who are called to war in a nameless desert. Dumont tends to use unknown or non professional actors in his films and this one is no exception. The response to this film has been okay but I don't see it winning anything. But I could be wrong because sometimes the jury picks films that no one would expect to win.

Babel

This is Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's highly anticipated follow up to 21 Grams. Like that film and Amores Perroes this film contains several intertwining stories. This time the film is set in Morocco, California, Mexico and Japan. It stars Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt, Gael Garcia Bernal and many unknown actors. As with all of Inarritu's films the script was written by Guillermo Arriaga (he won for Best Screenplay at last year's Cannes for The Three Burials). The film sounds great and I am very much looking forward to seeing it. Many critics have praised this film and it is a top contender for the Palm D'or. However, I have also read that a number of critics thought that it was contrived. So, at this point nothing is definite as there are still quite a number of films to be screened.

Cannes Film Festival Update #2

Here are comments about a few more films that are in competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Red Road

This film is Andrea Arnold's feature debut. Ms. Arnold has previously won an Oscar in the short film category. The film focuses on a woman who is a CCTV operator (played by Kate Dickie). She keeps a watch over people on the streets of Glasgow. One day she spots someone that she knows and decides to confront him about something that happened in the past. Nathalie Press (My Summer of Love) and Martin Compston (Sweet Sixteen) also star in the film. I have read very good things about this film and it sounds like Ms. Dickie might be a frontrunner in the Best Actress category. It is too early to say for sure, but I think that this film just might win a prize.

Climate

This is the new film by Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylon. A few years ago his film Distant won the Grand Prixe and the Best Actor award at Cannes. I had the opportunity to see that film and I found it to be an excellent study of isolation and loneliness. Climate appears to focus on the same theme. It is a tale of a doomed love affair as told through the eyes of the middle aged male partner. This is a story line that is of great interest to me. I have read some good reviews and some bad reviews. So, I am not able to predict whether or not the film will walk away with any prizes. Only time will tell.

Charlie Says

Nicole Garcia directed this ensemble piece (I recognized Jean-Pierre Bacri in one of the photos). It focuses on several men who are unhappy with their lives and view themselves as failures. The film is told through the eyes of 11 year old Charlie who is the son of one of the men. I read one good review and some disappointing comments. Although I find the theme of the film interesting I don't think that it will win any prizes.

Southland Tales

This is Richard Kelly's follow up to his cult hit Donnie Darko. The story takes place in Los Angeles in 2008. It stars The Rock and Sarah Michelle Geller among others. The film is described as a piece of science fiction but, from what I've read, the story seems quite muddled. A few critics liked the film but most have not. From all of the films I read about at the Festival this is the one I am least interested in. In fact, it sounds like a disaster. But, I did not like Donnie Darko so I wasn't expecting much from this. In any event, I am almost certain that this film will not win anything at the Festival.

DVD Review - Duma

This beautiful film was almost totally ignored when it was released last year. Warner Brothers tried releasing it in various cities but despite great reviews (93% on Rotten Tomatoes) people didn't go to the theaters to see it. In New York City it played in only one theater and for only a short period of time. So I was very happy when the film came out on DVD this past week.

Duma is very loosely based on a book (a true story) entitled Living with Dooms written by Carol Cawthra Hopecraft and Xan Hopecraft. The adaptation is so loose that the book and the film have very little in common. It doesn't matter because even though I haven't read the book (which I am sure is great) I can tell you that the film is just wonderful.

The story starts off with little cheetah Duma losing his mother to lions. He is wandering around when Xan (Alex Michaeletos) and his father (Campbell Scott) spot him and take him home. Although his mother (Hope Davis) and his father tell him that Duma will eventually have to be released into the wild, Xan gets very attached to his big cat. Xan says that if you name something then you are responsible for it. The name Duma means cheetah in Swahili.

Eventually Duma grows into an adult cheetah. Xan's father says that they have to bring him back into the wild before it is too late and makes plans with Xan to bring Duma back home. Unfortunately, his father gets sick and eventually dies. Xan and his mother are forced to lease their farm and move to the city. Duma will have to go to a wildlife park. Xan doesn't want this to happen so the embarks on a great adventure to bring Duma back to the place where he was originally found. This is quite a journey and sometimes it is a dangerous one. Along the way Xan meets Ripkuna (Eamonn Walker) a man who is trying to find his way home. At first it seems that Ripkuna wants to exploit Xan and bring Duma into the authorities so that he can collect a great reward. But, in the end Ripkuna helps Xan and Duma reach their destination and Xan helps to save Ripkuna's life.

Carroll Ballard has made wonderful films about animals and nature (The Black Stallion, Fly Away Home) and this film ranks among his best. The film is gorgeous to look at and the credit for that goes to cinematographer Werner Maritz (I can only imagine what this film looks like on the big screen). The screenplay by Mark St. Germain and Karen Janszen is crisp and is funny in just the right places and serious when it needs to be. The acting by Michaeletos and Walker is very good. But, the star of the film is the magnificent Duma (he was played by four real cheetahs).

People complain that there aren't that many good family films out there. Well, here is one that is intelligent and compassionate. I hope that people will see it now that it is out on DVD. I
think that the film is suitable for children eight and above but this is a film that adults can enjoy and learn from as well. Xan discovered that love doesn't disappear just because someone is not with you. This is something that each and every one of us can embrace.

Cannes Film Festival Update

I want to say a word about some of the films in competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival. This is based on what I have read. Oh yes, I wish I were there and, perhaps, one day I will be. But for now, here are a few comments on some of the films.

Summer Palace

This film is directed by Lou Ye and it takes place in the late 1980s. The film has a political bent because the backdrop is China's demonstrations that took place at that time. This culminated with the massacre at Tiananmen Square. It also focuses on the love story between two of the protesters. It sounds like a lovely and interesting film but the reviews have been mixed so I don't know if this is a film that will be remembered next week when the awards are given out. Summer Palace is the only Asian film in this year's competition and I read that the Chinese censors might pull the film out of the festival.

The Wind That Shakes the Barley

I am a huge Ken Loach fan and I always look forward to a new film by this wonderful director. This film takes place in Ireland in the 1920s during the time that Ireland was fighting for its freedom from Britain. The wonderful Cillian Murphy plays a young doctor who becomes involved in the upheaval. I love Irish films and films that have to do with Irish politics. I know that this can be a hard sell but I think that films that deal with particular events in history should be seen by as many people as possible. The way the film unfolds sounds reminiscent of my favorite film by Loach, Land and Freedom. As of yesterday, the film did not have a US distributor but I hope that changes by the time the festival ends. I have read that the critics gave this film a great deal of applause during a screening but some of the reviews I read were not great. So, I don't know what this film's potential is regarding getting an award.

Fast Food Nation

This film by Richard Linklater is based on a best selling book of the same name written by Eric Schlosser. I never read the book because as a vegetarian for many years I am well aware of what goes on at slaughterhouses and what is in the food that is served in the fast food restaurants. But I was glad that the book was so popular and I will almost certainly see the film when it arrives in theaters in the US. The film has an ensemble cast which includes Catalina Sandino Moreno, Ethan Hawke and Greg Kinnear. I know that it focuses on the terrible working conditions for fast food workers and, as I mentioned above, how things are done at slaughterhouses. The film has gotten some good reviews but from what I've seen I think that the reviews are mostly a mixed bag. As of now, I don't see this film getting an award but I could be wrong. In any case, if this film helps turn people into vegetarians then it did its job.

Volver

Pedro Almodovar's latest film was a big hit in Spain. It focuses on two sisters played by Penelope Cruz and Lola Duenas (Talk to Her, The Sea Inside) who are visited by the ghost of their mother (Carmen Maura). The daughters have their problems and their mother is trying to help their lives improve in ways that only a mother (especially a ghost) can do. The film is a comedy but from what I've read there is a lot of tenderness and even tears in the film. Almodovar really knows how to write roles for women and and it sounds like the characters in this film are some of his best. I have a feeling that this film will touch the same nerves that All About My Mother did. I have been a fan of Almodovar's since the late 80s and I love the fact that as he matured so have his films (starting with Live Flesh). I read that this film had a very long standing ovation in Cannes. Out of the four films that I have written about this is the one that will almost definitely get a big prize. I don't know if it will be for the film, for Almodovar or for Cruz but it will be something big. The film opens up in the US in October and I can't wait to see it. Viva Pedro!!

The Da Vinci Code

So many people have read Dan Brown's book or are familiar with the controversy over it that I am only going to write a few lines about the plot of this film.

Harvard Professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) is in Paris giving a lecture. Shortly thereafter he is accused of murdering a curator from the Louvre. The accusation is based upon the fact that Langdon was supposed to meet the curator (but the curator never showed up) and his name is in the curator's date book. To Langdon's rescue comes policewoman Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou) who just happens to be the slain man's granddaughter (and is not a policewoman after all). They escape from the Louvre and are pursued by a dogged policeman named Captain Fache (Jean Reno). They find refuge in the house of an eccentric British scholar named Leigh Teabing (Ian McKellan). In the meantime, there are more murders which are carried out by an Albino monk named Silas (Paul Bettany) who takes his orders from the sleazy Bishop Aringarosa (Alfred Molina) who gets his orders from a mysterious man known only as "The Teacher." It turns out that Robert and Sophie have to figure out the puzzle that will lead them to the mystery of the Holy Grail. A group known as the Priory of Sion (to which Sophie's grandfather belonged) has a secret that they would like to reveal to the world. The secret is that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and that they had a child. In other words, Jesus was a man not a god. An opposing Catholic group, Opus Dei, wants to destroy everyone connected to the Priory. In that way they would destroy the secret and maintain the status quo of the Church. That is the plot in a nutshell. There are a few other things that we discover but if you haven't read the book then why should I spoil the film for you (if you decide you still want to see it after reading this review)?

The film is directed by Ron Howard and is just so dull. Howard takes no risks because he wants everyone to like his film. A.O. Scott of the New York Times summed Howard and the film up in just one word - safe. A film like this needs an edgier filmmaker. Akiva Goldsman's script is plodding and the characters are like stick figures. I can't totally fault Howard and Goldsman for this. Brown is not a great writer and the novel also suffered from characters that were not fleshed out.

Hanks is a good actor but he is not right for the role of Langdon. He doesn't seem intellectual enough to be a professor. Tautou's character lacks vim and vigor and her chemistry with Hanks is nonexistent. McKellan gives the best performance in the film. His character is a lively number. However, the last time we see him in the film he comes across as a buffoon. Bettany's Silas is almost cartoonish. I expect to see a character like this on the children's morning cartoon show on television. In a scene in which Silas performs self flagellation I should have felt revulsion. Instead, I found myself laughing. Reno runs around and screams and that is about it.
And, Molina has almost nothing to do as the unsavory Bishop. The best things about the film are the haunting musical score by Hans Zimmer and the beautiful cinematography by Salvatore Totino.

The film runs two and a half hours and really needs to be edited by at least a half an hour. This is a case where more is less. The subject covered in The Da Vinci Code is a fascinating one. I hope that one day we will have a film (and a book) that is equally as fascinating.

DVD Review - Nathalie

What a pleasure it is to see that there are still films for adults being made. It is too bad that this film had a very short run in New York City and played in only one theater. It came out on DVD right after that run.

Bernard (Gerard Depardieu) is a successful businessman and his wife Catherine (Fanny Ardant) is a gynecologist. They are middle aged and middle class and have been married for a long time. The fire seems to have gone out of their marriage. Catherine plans a surprise birthday party for Bernard but during the party he calls to tell her that he missed his plane and won't be back from his business trip until the following day. After Bernard returns Catherine checks the messages on his cell phone. She finds out that he is having an affair and confronts him with this fact. Bernard admits that once in a while he has sex with someone else but that these affairs are meaningless to him.

Catherine is quite disturbed about this. She wanders into a private club where high class prostitutes service well to do men. It is there she meets the beautiful Marlene (Emmanuelle Beart) and decides to ask her for help. Catherine wants Marlene to pick up Bernard and have an affair with him. Catherine also wants Marlene to report back to her with every detail of what transpires between them. For doing this Marlene will be well paid. As a precaution, Catherine has Marlene use the name Nathalie when she is with Bernard.

After her first meeting with Bernard, Marlene gives Catherine all of the erotic details of their pairing. Each time they meet the sexual details get hotter. Although Marlene is telling Catherine all about her trysts with Bernard this film is not about Marlene and Bernard. It is about the seductive relationship between Catherine and Marlene. I won't say more because I don't want to give away what happens. I will make a comment about a particular scene in the film. In this scene Catherine visits her mother and tells her mother that Bernard is cheating on her. Her mother comments that is not surprising because these things happen. The scene shows how relaxed the French (and Europeans in general) are about sex. They seem to be able to tell the difference between love and sex more easily than their American counterparts.

Anne Fontaine directs the film with great sensitivity and makes all of her characters seem very real. In other hands Marlene's character could have been shown as just some tart out to make a buck. But here we see that she has a day job as a beautician, has friends and likes to roller skate. Screenwriter Jacques Fieschi does a good job of writing a story that is obviously from a woman's point of view. Depardieu does a fine job of conveying hurt and bewilderment. But, the film belongs to the women - Beart and, especially Ardant are splendid in their roles. The film is erotic and, even though I figured out what happens before the film ends, I still found the film suspenseful. A most intriguing film and I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to see a film that is made for mature audiences only.

DVD Review - Howl's Moving Castle

Hayau Miyazaki's latest film is much in the same vein as his previous films. The best way to describe his films would be magical fantasy. There is a heroine, this time named Sophie, who is only eighteen years old and toils at her late father's hat shop. She never gives a thought to what she really wants out of life. One day the wicked Witch of the Waste casts a spell on her and she turns into an old woman. She leaves the place where she is living and comes upon a strange moving castle owned by a wizard named Howl. Earlier in the film Howl rescued her from some evil creatures so this is not their first encounter. The castle is run by a young boy name Markl and a very chatty fire named Calcifer. Because there is a war going on Howl changes his appearance so he cannot be recognized and moves his castle when he feels that it is necessary to do so. But, at some point he becomes tired of running. In time, the Witch of the Waste seems to have changed her stripes and Sophie develops feelings for Howl.

The film is based on a children's book written by Diana Wynne-Jones. It doesn't have a heavy plot and think that it is suitable for children over six. The animation is just enchanting and the characters look pretty real. The version that I saw was dubbed and in English. I imagine the film would have a different feel in the original Japanese and I wonder if I would like the film more or less if I saw a version with subtitles. I thought that Jean Simmons as Granny Sophie and Emily Mortimer as Young Sophie were wonderful (and it was so great to see Jean Simmons involved with film again even if she was just a the voice of an animated character). Lauren Bacall was deliciously wicked as the Witch of the Waste and Christian Bale was good as Howl. Billy Crystal was the voice of Calcifer and sometimes he got it right but sometimes he went overboard with the "schtick."

This is a delightful film and it once again proves that Miyazaki is one of the best directors of animated cinema. I also liked the anti-war theme that ran throughout the film which gave the film relevance to the times that we live in.

Wah-Wah

Richard E. Grant makes a good directorial debut with this semi-autobiographical story of a young boy's life in Swaziland. The story takes place in the late 60s. Young Ralph Compton (Zachary Fox) is in the back seat of a car. In the front seat his mother Lauren (Miranda Richardson) is having sex with a man who is not his father. Obviously, she thinks that Ralph is asleep but he is not. Things between Ralph's mother and father Harry (Gabriel Byrne) keep getting worse. Eventually Lauren leaves Harry and Ralph to run away with the man who was in the car - who happens to be Harry's best friend. They are both devastated as is Gwen (Julie Walters) who is the wife of the man who strayed. Harry starts drinking heavily and Ralph decides that the best thing to do is go away to boarding school.

Two years pass and it is time for Ralph (now played by Nicholas Hoult) to return home. To his surprise his father has remarried. Harry's new wife Ruby (Emily Watson) is a free spirited American who can't stand all of the snobbish bullshit (which she calls Wah-Wah) of the upper crust colonials. You would think that Harry would be happy with his new wife but he is still embittered by what Lauren did. Adding to his problems, Swaziland is on the brink of independence and as Harry works for the Crown he is afraid that he will be without a job. All of this only makes him drink more and become very abusive towards Ruby and Ralph.

In the meantime, Ralph is trying to sort out things for himself. Princess Margaret will attend a special independence ceremony and a group of the colonials are planning a special performance of Camelot for her. To ease his mind a bit and get him out of the house Ralph decides to take a lead part in the play. I don't want to say any more about the plot of the film except that there are a few twists and turns in the lives of the main characters.

The film was shot in Swaziland and it is beautiful to look at. Byrne, Watson, Richardson, Walters and Hoult are all top notch. So are the supporting players which include Celia Imrie and Fenella Woolger. Grant did a good job of fleshing out the characters in his script. This coming of age tale is a very bumpy ride but it is told with affection instead of bitterness. I really liked this film and I hope that people get to see it but it is very small and I am afraid that it will be overlooked. If you can't see it in a theater then look for it when it comes out on DVD.

The Groomsmen

The Groomsmen is the new film from writer/director Edward Burns. I saw this film as a preview and it took me a while to get into it. At the start of the film I didn't think much of it but as the film went on it grew on me.

The story takes place in a blue collar neighborhood in City Island. Paulie (played by Burns) is getting married in a few days to his pregnant girlfriend Sue (Brittany Murphy). To say that he has butterflies in his stomach is an understatement. The center of the story revolves around Paulie and the relationship between him and his Groomsmen. Paulie's brother (Donal Logue) has marriage problems, job problems and drinking problems. In addition to all of this, he is quite overweight. He is jealous of Paulie's success as a writer and the fact that Paulie and Sue are having a baby while he and his wife can't seem to conceive. Paulie's cousin Mike (Jay Mohr) lives with his father and works in his father's business. He is trying to win back his ex-girlfriend but without any success. T.J. (John Leguizamo) comes back into town for the wedding after being gone for eight years. Mike is fuming at T.J. because T.J. left town with Mike's favorite baseball card. Later on we find out T.J.'s big secret, which is the reason he left town all those years ago. Matthew Lilliard plays another friend of Paulie's but we don't find out much about
him except that he has two sons that he loves and that he works in a bar.

The film is about friendship, family and responsibility. All of these men are in their 30s but there is a certain level of immaturity about them. They just want to stay little boys. The film has a great deal of warmth, which is something that I like. I also like the fact that Burns makes good use of his Irish ethnicity. For the most part, I like the way the film captured City Island. It is only in the scene where they are playing soccer that the shots could have been sharper. The script is not complicated and you don't have to wrack your brain to figure out what is going on (I was not at all surprised by T.J.'s big secret). Burns is appealing but he is not a great actor. But Logue, Leguizamo and Mohr all give good performances. There is little character development given to the women in this film. They are just accessories for the men. This is by no means a great film. But, it is a pleasant slice of life and I think that it is a good thing that Burns is making films about blue collar guys. Very few American filmmakers focus on their lives and I give him credit for doing that.

DVD Review - Fateless

Lajos Koltai directs this amazing film about the Holocaust as told through the eyes of a teenage boy. The story is based on a novel written by Nobel Prize winner Imre Kertesz who also wrote the screenplay.

Gyuri Koves appears to be just like any boy of fourteen and a half. But, his life is turned upside down when his father is sent to a labor camp just because he is a Jew. Gyuri lives with his stepmother but also makes time for his real mother. He is also close to his neighbors in his tight knit Jewish community. Gyuri has special papers which enables him to travel around Budapest so that he can work. One day on his way to work the bus he is on is stopped and all Jews are ordered to get off. A great number of Jews are rounded up and then detained. In the end they are all sent off to concentration camps. Gyuri winds up in Auschwitz but he is eventually transferred to Buchenwald to do hard labor.

The film is unsparing in showing what happens to Gyuri. He starts out as a handsome boy with a beautiful head of curls and becomes an emaciated ghost of his former self. But, no matter how bad things get Gyuri seems to accept things as they are and just tries to survive. The film feels so real that you think you are right there with the prisoners. There is a scene in which the prisoners are standing in the yard and the camera shows them from different angles. You can see many of the prisoners swaying and trembling because they are in such bad shape and it is hard for them to stand. You see one prisoner fall down from lack of strength. There is another scene of just one prisoner trying to stay up but almost hitting the ground. It is hard to believe that something so ugly could look so beautiful but you just can't keep your eyes off the film. Daniel Craig has a cameo as a GI who is helping to liberate the camp. He also happens to be Jewish and he tells Gyuri not to go back to Hungary but to start a new life in Sweden,
Switzerland or the US. But, Gyuri feels that he has no other choice but to go home.

It is no wonder that this film looks as great as it does. It is Koltai's first film as a director but he has been the cinematographer on many films and has frequently worked with Istvan Szabo. This is a terrific first feature and I look forward to seeing what he does next. Kertesz's screenplay is sharp and truly conveys the feeling of someone who has lived through these horrible events. Gyula Padus' cinematography is gorgeous and Ennio Morricone's beautiful score puts tears in your eyes. And, Marcell Nagy as Gyuri is outstanding. He was only twelve when he made this film and I think that he has a great future as an actor if that is what he wants.

The DVD has a making of featurette and an interview with Kertesz in which he talks about the script originally being written by an English screenwriter. The script was very bad and Kertesz had to come to the rescue and rewrite it. Kertesz also talks about why he doesn't like Schindler's list and his problem with Steven Spielberg. Whether or not you agree with him you will find what he has to say most interesting.

This is not a Holocaust film that has an uplifting ending. There are no heroes. Rather than being optimistic about humanity the film has great doubts about humanity. Yes, this is a tough film but life is tough and I highly recommend that people see it. I've seen many films on the subject and this is indeed one of the best.

DVD Review - The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till

I was a very young child when Emmett Till, a fourteen year old black boy, was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 so I was really not aware of his story until much later on. I remember that Bob Dylan wrote a song about the murder in the early 60s.

Keith Beauchamp decided to go back and investigate the case and he has made a terrific film documenting what happened that fateful day that helped to ignite the Civil Right's movement in the United States.

Beauchamp interviews some of Emmett's relatives and friends. Some of these people were with him the day that he allegedly whistled at Carolyn Bryant, who was white. All of the interviews are thought provoking. The center of the film is Emmett's mother Mamie Till Bradley. Her words just tear at your heart. I felt totally drained after she described what the murderers did to Emmett. And, I couldn't look at the photos of that poor, mangled boy. I cannot believe that these sub-humans could do something like this to a fourteen year old boy but that is what white people did to black people in the south at that time (and once in a while it still happens today - James Byrd is an example of this).

Bryant's husband Roy and J.W. Milam were put on trial and there was sufficient evidence to convict them. But, (big surprise) an all white, all male jury found them not guilty. Beauchamp's film moved the U.S. Department of Justice to reopen the case. Although Bryant and Milam are dead there is proof that others were involved. Sadly, Emmett's mother passed away in 2003 and she did not see her son's killers brought to justice. Hopefully, the rest of us will. I highly recommend that everyone see this film and I think that it is a film that should be shown in schools throughout the US in the hopes that something this hateful will never happen again.

The Promise

Chen Kaige has created a beautifully shot Asian fairy tale. When Qingcheng is a young girl she makes a promise to a fairy goddess that in order to be rich and have all the material possessions that she wants she will never be able to keep the man she loves. Before Qingcheng meets the goddess she steals some food from a boy who wanted her to be his slave. So, in order not to have to worry about being hungry again she makes the promise to the goddess.

As time goes on, we see various factions waging war. General Guangming, who commands one of the armies is out to save the King but he is gravely wounded. So he gives his red armor to his slave Kunlun to do the job for him. When Kunlun gets to the royal castle he finds the King with Qingcheng who is now his Princess. The King ridicules her and wants her to take off her clothing in front of many people but she refuses and he tries to kill her. When Kunlun sees this he kills the King. Qingcheng is grateful to the man that everyone thinks is the General.

What follows are many chases, battles, martial arts, etc. We've seen this many times before but that doesn't mean I didn't find it enjoyable. We meet characters such as Wuhuan who has been carrying a bitter secret with him for many years and Snow Wolf, a man who is more dead than alive. The film also focuses on how fleeting love can be and how we can sometimes change our destiny.

Many critics have been unkind to the film. I must admit that it is not as good as some of Chen's earlier work, especially his masterpiece Farewell My Concubine. But, it is entertaining and beautiful to look at. I, for one, can think of worse ways to spend an hour and forty five minutes.

DVD Review - Eros

Eros means sexual love but, unfortunately, Eros is not a very erotic film. The best thing that can be said about the film is that it is a somewhat interesting mess. The second best thing is that I saw it on DVD rather than in the theater and paid a lot less money to see it.

The film is a compilation of three short films from three well known directors. The first segment entitled The Hand, is directed by Wong Kar Wai and stars Gong Li (or Li Gong as she now calls herself) as a high class prostitute who is facing hard times. Ms. Gong's character is used to having her clothing custom made by a tailor. Because he is getting old she decides to hire his young assistant as her new tailor. He is very innocent and after she offers him a bit of pleasure he becomes totally devoted to her. The story is cold and convoluted and didn't do a thing for me. With a few exceptions (In the Mood for Love being one of them) I am not a big fan of Mr. Wong's style of filmmaking. The best thing about this segment is Ms. Gong's acting (which is almost always good) and Christopher Doyle's cinematography (I loved the shot of the torrential rain hitting the pavement).

The second segment is entitled Equilibrium and it is directed by Steven Soderbergh. Soderbergh has had his share of hits and misses and this film is one of his misses. Robert Downey, Jr. stars as a man who keeps having an erotic dream about a woman who is not his wife but who seems to be someone that he knows. He is also having some problems at work. His shrink is played by Alan Arkin. The first part of the film is in color and is the dream segment. The second (and main) part of this short film is in black and white and consists of Downey's character telling his shrink about the dream. While the shrink comments on what his patient says he is also busy looking out the window with binoculars and sending paper airplanes to someone he knows. The last part of this film is in color. Downey's character is awakened by an alarm clock. His wife comes in to say good morning and we discover that she is the woman in the dream. At work we see him with his co-worker Hal who happens to look just like the shrink. What does all of this mean? As someone who is interested in the interpretation of dreams, I can tell you that I couldn't care less. Downey and Arkin give good performances and they deserve to be in better films. This story is an exercise in pretentiousness.

The final segment is entitled The Dangerous Thread of Things and is directed by the Italian master Michaelangelo Antonioni. This segment may be the closest thing to eroticism that we have in the film but that doesn't mean it is good. The film is beautiful to look at because we are at a lovely beach in Italy. The story is about a well to do couple who are having problems.
The wife, who is topless, is sitting at a pool. When her husband comes over to her she puts on her sheer top and continues getting dressed. They go out to have lunch at a restaurant and then part ways. He meets a woman who is also staying in the area. She invites him into her place and they have sex. Later on the wife is on the phone to the husband (who is in France) and she tells him that she misses him. In the last scene of the film we find her nude and walking on the beach. She comes across the woman who had sex with her husband who is lying on the beach (and also happens to be nude) and stands over her. That's the whole thing. The sex scene was pretty boring and the nudity was no big deal. I expected more of Antonioni and to say that I was disappointed is an understatement.

Bottom line: There is absolutely no connection between the three segments of the film. And, there is not one character in the film that was worth thinking about. This just goes to show that being a good director is not enough. You need a good plot and interesting characters to make your film a success.