By Jason Apuzzo. As regular LFM readers know, we loved Chris Morris’ striking new comedy about Islamic terrorism, Four Lions (see our glowing Libertas review from when the film unspooled at The LA Film Festival).
Four Lions is currently playing at the 2010 Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), and a reviewer for Aint It Cool News had this high praise for it:
The day ended with one of my most highly-anticipated films of MIFF, Chris Morris’s FOUR LIONS. There are so many comedians who operate under the assumption that they are “edgy” because they make lots of forced references to things they think are taboo. Chris Morris is one of the few who actually is, shining a sharp, satirical spotlight on our own hypocrisies.
FOUR LIONS, his first film as director and co-writer, is possibly the bravest skewering of cultural mores since LIFE OF BRIAN. When comedy shows or films proudly proclaim they have no political correctness, it usually means they like making fun of a politician’s obesity. FOUR LIONS genuinely discards political correctness, but in an exceptionally smart way, not allowing a single likable character, refusing to present anyone who (a) plays into our own comfortable stereotyped beliefs, or (b) allaying any white or middle-class guilt by having a “Good Muslim” or a “White Politician Who Actually Does Get It”. There are no safe havens in this film, and this — the story of four suicide bombers trying to attack a London target — is all the better for it. I probably missed about 50% of the jokes because I was laughing at the other ones, which is simply an excuse to see it again.
I don’t mind calling it early: FOUR LIONS is the comedy of the year.
We heartily agree. Do whatever you can to see this film. Unfortunately one of the things you won’t be able to do is see it in an American theater, because no company has picked it up for distribution here – even though it was a box office hit in the UK, won the audience award at the LA Film Festival, and was even a hit at Sundance. And this is shameful, because this is an extraordinary film that people should be given the chance to see.
We will continue to bang the drum for this film here at LFM until it gets its American release.
By Patricia Ducey. Kisses, a 2008 Irish film and favorite at many important festivals, is now in wider release throughout the US this summer. [See the trailer below.] Writer/director Lance Daly spins a tale of two abused Irish kids from the unfashionable outskirts of Dublin who run away from home to find freedom from family strife. No leprechauns or legends in this Ireland – the film takes place in a modern, industrialized Ireland, chockablock with rusting warehouses, traffic jams, and pop culture references. Daly, after a few preview screenings in the US, has wisely provided subtitles to aid the American ear in decoding the Irish patois. [I implore other filmmakers whose films are not in spoken American English to do the same. I’m talking to you, Sarah Gavron.]
The Irish Film Board, Bord Scannán na hÉireann, which has been financing and promoting the national cinema of Ireland since the 1990s, helped finance Kisses. What is the “national” cinema of Ireland, though, in actuality? Films written or produced by Irish persons, or films about Ireland? Or some permutation of both? Irish filmmakers have borrowed from early American films, like the docudrama Man of Aran or the romanticized The Quiet Man, and vice versa. I spent some time in Ireland in the ’90s, when the Board first starting supporting these films – I was researching my thesis on this subject – and came to the conclusion that there is no such thing as a purely national cinema. But times were good in Ireland then, and the Board plowed ahead. Irish moviegoers, though, voted with their feet and many of these board-supported films ended up, oddly, being shown in art houses in Ireland – while the likes of Mrs. Doubtfire drew the crowds near Grafton Street. Whether it is smart for any government to support the arts is debatable – just look at the bidding war over tax incentives for movie production here in the US – but such a debate has begun in Ireland due to the now faltering Irish economy.
Young Shane Curry in "Kisses."
The truth is that film and narrative have always been ‘globalized’ and Kisses is no exception. The two runaways, Kylie and Dylan, live in a neighborhood Antoine Doinel would feel at home in. The runaways cadge a ride down the canal ala Huck Finn, courtesy of a Russian émigré boatman who introduces the kids to Dylan’s namesake – Jewish/Christian American folk rocker Bob Dylan – with his impromptu rendition of “Shelter From the Storm.” And later Dylan learns a lesson about the give and take of love from a Jamaican prostitute eking out a living in Dublin.
Dylan and Kylie’s world, though, is a drab working class Ireland. The two families live in comfortable enough homes, but Dylan’s father, a handsome guy, drinks and bullies, while Kylie’s uncle fools everyone in the family except her – she knows from bitter experience what he really is. Both Dylan and Kylie reach the end of their respective ropes on Christmas Day; one battle royale, one unwanted advance too many, and they are off, with Kylie egging Dylan on to make a run for it. They hop a river barge to the city, and the adventure begins – for good and ill.
The cinematography is lovely. Daly shoots the opening scenes of the housing development in bleak black and white, and lets the color slowly seep into the frame as the kids and the boatman get farther and farther away from home (a nod to The Wizard of Oz? Again, the cross-pollination of film). The two child stars, real Dublin kids Kelly O’Neill as Kylie (a Drew Barrymore look-alike) and Shane Curry as Dylan, shine as newcomers. Daly draws joyous and heartbreaking performances from both of them, without the wise-assery or precociousness we see in so many preteen stories. I wished that perhaps Kylie was a little less heroic a heroine, but that’s a minor quibble.
If you liked a recent Irish film Once, you will like Kisses. Kisses is the anti-Inception. It is small and slight but you won’t forget it – just like your first kiss.
David Soul (left) with Fred Ward as Ronald Reagan in "Farewell."
By Joe Bendel. Instead of the man who knew too much, he was the spy who knew everything. Codenamed “Farewell” by the French, Colonel Vladimir Vetrov was charged with reviewing the intelligence the KGB gathered on the free world—every speck of it, including the extent to which each western intelligence agency had been compromised. He also knew the Soviet government had failed to live up to its promises. President Ronald Reagan called the resulting L’Affaire Farewell: “one of the most important espionage cases of the 20th century.” It also inspired Christian Carion’s espionage drama Farewell (trailer below), which opens in Los Angeles and New York this Friday night.
Like the real-life Vetrov on whom he is based, Colonel Grigoriev was once stationed in Paris, where he rebuffed the advances of the French and American intelligence services. However, by 1981, the Colonel had come to the conclusion the Soviet Union needed drastic reform – so he approached the DST, the French equivalent of the FBI (the only western intelligence agency the KGB had not bothered to infiltrate) through Pierre, a French businessman with no formal involvement in the world of espionage.
Out of his element, Pierre wants to extricate himself from the affair as soon as possible, but Grigoriev insists on dealing only with him, considering the professionals untrustworthy. Partly in recognition of the value of Grigoriev’s intel and partly out of a sense of budding friendship, Pierre becomes the Colonel’s amateur handler, passing a wealth of information on to the DST.
While Pierre and Grigoriev meet in parks and train stations, another alliance in being forged between President Reagan and Mitterrand, France’s newly elected socialist prime minister. The President is less than thrilled at the prospect of Communist ministers in the new French cabinet, but Mitterrand has an olive branch to offer: “Farewell.”
Farewell’s portrayal of these influential world leaders is quite fascinating and surprisingly even-handed. Philippe Magnan’s Mitterrand is intelligent but aloof, coming across like more than a bit of a cold fish. Refreshingly, Pres. Reagan is not depicted as a doddering bumbler, but as an engaged and commanding leader. Yes, there are scenes of Reagan using classic film as a metaphor with his National Security Advisor (played by an almost unrecognizable David Soul), but never in way that calls his judgment into question.
Yet, there is something about Reagan’s distinct mannerisms that are hard to emulate without lapsing into caricature. American actor Fred Ward takes a good shot, but he still sounds more like a Saturday Night Live impersonation than a real flesh and blood individual. Frankly, Ronald Reagan remains such a commanding presence in the national consciousness it makes any dramatic representation problematic.
Not too friendly: Vselovod Shilovsky as Gorbachev in "Farewell."
Fortunately, Farewell’s primary leads are uniformly excellent. Though he looks appropriately rumpled, Emir Kusturica plays Grigoriev sharp as a tack, keenly aware of his own personal contradictions. As Pierre, Guillaume Canet’s performance is also smart and understated, avoiding the headshaking “what-did-I-get-myself-into” histrionics. As a result, viewers believe the unqualified trust Grigoriev places in him.
Technically well produced, cinematographer Walther Vanden Ende and designer Jean-Michel Simonet effectively capture the oppressive drabness of the Brezhnev era. Yet ideologically, Farewell resists easy classification. While it certainly conveys the repressive and corrupt nature of Soviet Communism, the film sometimes suggests a John Le Carre-like equivalency, at least between the rival spy masters. However, the shrewd conclusion again challenges the audience’s conceptions of faith and loyalty, within the context of the preceding “L’Affaire Farewell.”
Considering how long it has been since a brainy spy film sneaked into theaters, Farewell is quite welcome indeed. Featuring two compelling lead performances and a meaty story that intrigues on several levels, it is an engrossing film. It also might be the fairest shake Pres. Reagan has gotten on screen since his inauguration in 1981, ironically coming by way of France. Definitely recommended, Farewell opens Friday (7/23) in both Los Angeles and New York, expanding to other cities the following week.
By Joe Bendel. The Chinese government is very protective of its international image. That is why it is so remarkable Bruce Beresford’s Mao’s Last Dancer was allowed to film there. [LFM Co-Editor Govindini Murty has covered Mao’s Last Dancer previously in-depth here.] Evidently, the government “suggested” some revisions to the script once shooting was underway, but according to the press notes, the Australian director categorically disregarded them, even though it jeopardized the entire production. The centerpiece film of the upcoming Asian American International Film Festival, Dancer is one of several selections that will interest China watchers when the fest kicks off tomorrow night in New York.
Full reviews of Dancer are embargoed until the week of its theatrical release, but expect to hear terms like “crowd pleasing” after its festival screening this Saturday. The story of ballet dancer Cunxin Li’s defection to America, Dancer depicts the Cultural Revolution as a period when art was debased by ideology. Madame Mao herself makes an appearance, despite “requests” to the contrary from the Chinese government. Offering plenty to discuss, look forward to a proper review of Beresford’s film here at Libertas in the near future.
From "Mao's Last Dancer."
Ballet also figures tangentially in Taipei 24H, an anthology film commissioned by Taiwanese Public Television that captures vignettes of life throughout the capitol city during one average but eventful day. Appropriately, 24H saves its deepest and most accomplished film for last—4:00 AM to be exact.
Featuring renowned Taiwanese auteur Tsai Ming-liang, directed – in a reversal of roles – by his cinematic alter-ego, actor Kang-sheng Lee, Remembrance is deceptively simple. Having sold her business, the proprietress of a late night coffee shop is joined by a regular customer for a final cup of java and to watch a documentary on Luo Man-fei, a Taiwanese ballerina who died of lung cancer – but whose celebrated performance of choreography, shaped by the experiences of Tiananmen Square survivors, still has the power to move the night owls decades later. Brief but elegant, Remembrance celebrates quiet moments of beauty, and those who inspire them.
Once, rural peasants represented an ideologically privileged class in China. Today, they mostly lead hardscrabble lives of strife and want, particularly when compared to urban professionals. It is an iniquity frequently captured by the Digital-Generation of independent Chinese directors, as well as two American-based filmmakers whose stylistically compatible shorts set in China will also screen during AAIFF ‘10.
D-Generation documentaries represent with scrupulous accuracy the living conditions of the unfortunates who exist on the margins of Chinese society. However, their length and studiously languid aesthetics can try the patience of some audiences. In contrast, Tani Ikeda’s documentary short Turn of the Harvest is a manageable twelve minutes, but still gives viewers an honest, tactile sense of its subjects’ lives.
A late middle-aged couple works their wheat field, quietly joking between themselves. The man has a broken finger he has not treated for three weeks. Yet, outwardly they seem happy. However, as Ikeda interviews his wife, it becomes clear their relationship is not all it might appear. Especially painful for her was a decision to relinquish one of the twins she gave birth to, out of economic necessity. Surprisingly, they choose to give up their son, because boys cost more to raise.
Luo Qian in Chloe Zhao's "Daughters."
Of course, boys tend to be preferred over girls, which accounts for the looming shortage of marriageable women under China’s restrictive family planning. Take for instance the family of fourteen year year-old Maple in Chloé Zhao’s narrative short Daughters. With a coveted baby boy on the way, her parents suddenly have one daughter too many. Coldly pragmatic, they see only two options. Either they foist off her sweet tempered young sister on a distant family member, or they arrange her marriage to a disturbingly old man. Not surprisingly, such news causes confusion and resentment for the preteen.
Daughters is nine minutes of focused heartbreak, featuring a devastating performance from young Luo Qian as Maple. Though brief, it is undeniably assured filmmaking, all the more impressive considering it was the NYU alumnus’ second year film.
AAIFF’s centerpiece, Dancer, screens this Saturday (7/17), in advance of its late August opening. Well worth seeing for Remembrance alone, Taipei 23H screens on Sunday (7/18). Daughters screens as part of AAIFF’s Oh Family, Where Art Thou? block of shorts this Sunday, while Harvest screens the next day as part of the Untold Stories shortsprogram.
By Jason Apuzzo. Lately we’ve been showing you some exciting new indie sci-fi films (see here, here and here), several of which were crowd-funded, that show how new advances in visual FX are drastically expanding the imaginative possibilities of independent filmmaking. We’ve also discussed how these films can not only dazzle us visually, but engage contemporary social anxieties associated with war and invasion.
Today we want to tell you about another exciting project called The 3rd Letter (see the film’s trailer above) from acclaimed filmmaker and ILM visual FX artist Grzegorz Jonkajtys. [Jonkajtys’ recent ILM credits include Pan’s Labyrinth, The Mist and Terminator: Salvation.] Jonkajtys had an extraordinary short film called “Ark” shown at Cannes at few years ago. The film turned a lot of heads, and now he’s hooked up with producer/co-writer Philip Bastiaan Koch on The 3rd Letter (originally titled “36 Stairs”), an extravagant-looking, 15 minute short film that’s apparently about to hit the festival circuit hard.
The 3rd Letter takes place in a dystopian future in which human beings depend on bio-mechanical alterations in order to withstand the detriorating climate. [Shades of BP?] Set against a polluted, megalopolis world, the tragic tale of Jeffrey Brief (Rodrigo Lopresti) unfolds. When faced with the imminent loss of his health insurance, Brief unwittingly unravels a dark truth (involving population control – shades of Soylent Green?) that apparently pushes him to extreme measures …
Here’s some of what Jonkajtys says about his film in a recent interview:
Tell us how you designed this distinctive dystopian world. It looks like a bureaucratic nightmare – like something out of 1984 or THE TRIAL.
I wanted to bring certain aspects of what’s happening in the contemporary society and push it a bit further. The world Jeffrey, the main character, lives in is not set in any particular time or place. We will see a lot of stylistically and periodically mismatched designs, equipments and architecture. With this approach, on an extremely limited budget, it’s easier to find the props and sets rather than build everything from scratch. Plus, it serves the story, creating a kind of conglomerate of periodical and modern elements. Jeffrey’s haircut and clothing (designed by Gus Harput) is very much inspired by Winston’s character from the film 1984.
Of course, the movie is also very relevant. It deals with things like the health insurance industry. How do you avoid becoming too preachy?
The movie is all about Jeffery’s case. The most important aspect of the story is how he will react in the situation he has found himself in – what his choice will be. The insurance situation is only a setting that serves this story. I think it’s good that it is so relevant. More people can relate to it.
It’s not clear to me precisely what the nature of the film’s social critique is regarding the health industry and/or government controls. Basically the film looks like classic sci-fi dystopia stuff. Suffice it to say that since government and the private insurance industry are slowly merging into one, creating what is almost sure to be a ‘dystopian’ situation – with freedom and individual consumer choice evaporating into thin air – this film certainly appears grounded in what we’re going through today.
Our future health care bureaucracies?
Visually The 3rd Letter looks completely fabulous, very much in keeping with Jonkajtys’ prior work (I’m also a fan of his short “Legacy”). The film was shot on a Canon EOS 5D Mark II, and the VFX shots really expand out the film’s world, considering that it was apparently just shot around Jonkajtys’ basement and a few practical locations. I’d also like to note, again, that this ambitious-looking project was at least in part crowd-funded (see the film’s Kickstarter page, with a reported 47 backers providing the film’s modest $7K budget).
I’ve been up to ILM a few times to visit, but never had the pleasure of meeting Grzegorz. From what I read about him, his family – he originally comes from Poland – seems to have had some terrible encounters with communism and fascism. His father was apparently deported to Kazakhstan in 1940 with his family after the Nazi invasion. His grandfather was also apparently arrested by the Soviet military police, and never heard from again. I can only imagine that these sorts of emotional, family experiences would sharpen Jonkajtys’ perspective on the benefits of freedom.
We wish him the very best with this project. You can follow the film’s progress on its Facebook page.
Not only is the Angelina Jolie Russian spy thriller Salt opening later this month – a film which, incidentally, has already been banned in China; not only is the Red Dawn remake being released later this year (presumably); not only is Mao’s Last Dancer coming out later this summer, but so too on July 23rd is a new French Cold War thriller called Farewell being released starring (among others) Willem Defoe, and Fred Ward as Ronald Reagan. The film deals with one of the crucial Cold War espionage coups that delivered vital intelligence to America and the West. The film opens July 23rd in New York and Los Angeles, spreading to other markets all the way through September. Farewell showed at the Toronto and Telluride film festivals earlier this year, and has already received glowing reviews from Todd McCarthy (formerly of Variety), as well as Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Jeff Stein of The Washington Post. You can watch the trailer to the film below.
Farewell tells the true story of a disenchanted K.G.B. colonel named ‘Sergei Grigoriev’ (the real colonel was actually named Vladimir Vetrov) — eventually code-named ‘Farewell’ by Western spy agencies – who decides that he can no longer serve the Soviet state, and consequently chooses to funnel classified information to French intelligence agents.
This intelligence apparently included information on what the Soviets knew about our air defenses, how much the Soviets were spending on defense, what defense technologies they were stealing from the United States, and also a list of highly placed K.G.B. agents who’d infiltrated government and industry in the West. The leaking of this information, when later combined with President Reagan’s public commitment to create the ‘Star Wars’ missile defense system, were crucial elements in the winning of the Cold War.
The French angle on this story is twofold: the courier for the secret information was Pierre Froment, an otherwise innocent employee of a French multinational corporation. And the information itself was eventually transmitted to Ronald Reagan by then-French President François Mitterrand.
The trailer for the film certainly looks compelling. Here’s some of what Todd McCarthy said about the film while he was with Variety: “A harrowing, richly human and well-acted espionage tale. … It’s juicy, fascinating stuff, well orchestrated, and finely thesped. [Director Christian] Carion keeps things simmering on medium-high heat throughout.” Continue reading New Anti-Soviet Film Farewell Depicts Spycraft That Won the Cold War
