The great thing about coming up to Edinburgh for the
International Film Festival is that you can indulge in your wildest fantasy,
spending every evening and most of the weekend sitting expectantly in front of
a cinema screen waiting for the next masterpiece or cult film to appear, the
possibility of meeting someone you have admired from a far. Yes it’s a
wonderfully exciting experience and one I can highly recommend. This year I did
meet some very friendly people including Michael Smiley, the lovely Joanne
Froggett and the wonderful Kate Dickie who all agreed to have a wee chat and
there photo’s taken, thank you to them.
This year I managed 21 films over the ten-day period located
in the Filmhouse in Lothian Road and Cineworld in Fountain Park. As previous
years have done my best to support British Film. To this end I have seen 10,
all of which have been worth watching and it’s difficult to choose the best. My
own favourite is Everyone’s Going to Die
because of its unique dialog, but I would say I would recommend A Long Way From Home for those that like
familiar actors and a UK film set in France.
I Am Breathing about the very
brave Neil and Louise Platt was a very moving experience. All British movies I would recommend with the
passable exception of Svengali for
the reasons I noted, but to be honest it’s a close call. The American Dreams
offered a selection of independent movies from the USA of which I sampled
three. Avoid Magic Magic at all costs,
but What Maisie Knew and especially
the political drama The East were
very good. Two films from Sweden the best was Call Girl, Pluto from
South Korea and the very thrilling joy ride that was Motorway was also worth seeing. Other World Cinema from both Poland
and Germany are certainly worth a look. But the best film of this year was the
exceptional Greek drama Joy; maybe
not to every ones taste but certainly to mine.
I have produced
short notes on each of the films in the form of a diary as I did in 2012, which
will hopefully encourage you to seek out and see some of them when on general
release. Perhaps I’ll get a chance to
see some of the better films again at my local cinema, the Robert Burns Centre
Film Theatre in Dumfries. Where possible I have attached some of my own photographs. Please feel free to post your comments
.
Thursday 20th June 2013.
Special Screening UK Premiere.
I Am Breathing.
Director:
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Emma Davie, Morag McKinnon
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Country:
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UK, Denmark.
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Year:
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2012
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Running Time:
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73 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Neil Platt
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Louise Platt
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Oscar
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My first film of this years festival was picked from a varied programme of feature films and documentary’s mainly because one of the joint directors was Morag McKinnon who I first had the pleasure of meeting at the Edinburg International Film Festival back in 2010 during the World Premiere of Donkeys and a second time when she kindly travelled down from Edinburg to take part in a Q&A following the screening of the film at the Robert Burns Centre Film Theatre in Dumfries.
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The Family.
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Her latest film, which she co-directed with Emma Davie, concerns a very brave young man and his wonderfully supportive circle of family and friends. At 33 Scottish Architect Neil Platt was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease. This is an incurable neurological illness that can affect anyone. It rapidly progresses causing paralysis, loss of speech, difficulty with eating and drinking and eventually loosing the ability to swallow or talk. From diagnosis your average life expectancy is around 14 months.
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Neil Platt.
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The documentary has been described as a ‘tale of fun and laughs with a smattering of upset and devastation’ and yes even a subject as harrowing as watching a man die did evoke humour, but as well as making you laugh at times it also made you cry especially when he was with his young son Oscar!
There are two very brave heroes in this ‘tale’, Neil and his wife Louise. Neil insisted on writing a blog right up to the point when he could barely speak. He did this by painstakingly dictating onto a computer via very frustratingly inaccurate speech recognition software. The ever-present Louise was his rock, which I sincerely believe gave him the strength to carry on. This along with the capacity of speech, which Neil’s saw as his last line of defence, was another important part in retaining his will to live.
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Morag McKinnon and Emma Davie.
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At the Q&A following the film we were fortunate to meet not only Emma Davie and Morag but also Neil’s widow Louise. Morag explained that she knew Louise and Neil at University in Edinburgh and when Neil wanted to do more than ‘just write a blog’ to raise awareness of this underfunded disease the couple contacted there old friend and she in turn contacted documentary maker Davie who read the blog, which Neil had called Plattitude. Although the joint directors had moral doubts about making the film it was when they realised that their subject matter was about the importance of life and not about death they went ahead with it. They both admitted that without Neil Platt’s spoken and written word the film would not have been possible. Also involved with the Q&A was a specialist who told us that they needed to devise a treatment which would slow the onset of MND hopefully enabling the patient and the families a few more precious months of life. Also it was important to improve the MND sufferer’s quality of life.
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TheQ&A Panel including Louise centre.
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Be warned this is a hard watch making you realise that there is a thin line between life and death, It’s a film that made me feel very claustrophobic, maybe I should blame it on the warm, packed cinema but it was more likely to bethe fact that MND can attack anyone with Neil swearing that it was a bee sting while out on his beloved motor bike that caused the onset of the disease. But we also found out that his father had died from it in his mid fifties. The film unit worked mainly at weekends not wishing to be too intrusive on the family’s private life and was allowed to use film provided by the family including the final days of Neil’s life. Credit must go to senior editing consultant Janus Billeskov Jansan for his fine collaboration with editor Peter Winther for this heroically powerful film.
The film was screened internationally on 21 June, MND Global Awareness Day, which coincided with its release in UK cinemas.
Thursday 20th June 2013.
American Dreams European Premiere.
What Maisie Knew.
Director:
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Scott McGehee, David Siegel
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Country:
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USA
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Year:
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2012
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Running Time:
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93 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Julianne Moore
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Susanna
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Steve Coogan
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Beale
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Onata Aprile
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Maisie Elizabeth Beale
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Alexander Skarsgard
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Lincoln
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Joanna Vanderham
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Margo
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Some people don’t deserve children! And that definitely includes Susanna, a fifty something rock and roll star who dresses like underage trailer trash and still thinks she can cut it sexually and on the road, and her husband Beale a charming, slightly sleazy art dealer. Both of these rich ‘Manhattanites’ hate one another and certainly do not take their responsibilities seriously when it comes to bringing up their seven-year-old daughter Maisie. When these two get an acrimonious divorce Maisie gets shared between them, but generally gets left in the care of each of their new partners, ex-nanny Margo and bar man Lincoln and its left to this young child to make decision’s well beyond her age.
The film has been adapted from a Henry James novel that was first published in 1897 and has been transposed to modern day New York City. This relationship drama, made for adult audiences, is seen thru the eyes of a child and even some of Giles Nuttgens cinematography is shot from Maisie’s eye level.
Following the film a short Q&A was conducted with Perthshire born Joanna Vanderham last seen in Stephan Poliakoff’s highly acclaimed TV Drama series Dancing on the Edge. She explained that she was contacted by her agent whilst filming in Glasgow and told that she was wanted for a part in a film that was to be made in America. Within a very short space of time she found herself in New York playing Margo in her first full-length feature film. The part, which was not necessarily written for someone with a Scottish accent, stretched her emotional acting ability. She went on to tell us that it was very special working with the talented Onata Aprile, who because of her age had restricted working hours.
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Joanna Venderham takes part in the Q&A.
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One can’t help but ask how a young girl could be so level headed when she has spent her first seven years parented by a pair of obnoxious and unlikable people. But the directors, with the help of a tremendous cast pull it off. There are times in the film when you, the audience, truly worry for the safety of a young child and the film would have been even more heart rendering if the character of Maisie had not stood up so well, tackling her hardships with such strength and fortitude. Which I must admit is down to the brilliant acting of Onata Aprile who has a very bright future. The film goes on general release on the 23rd August 2013.
Friday 21st June 2013
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
Svengali.
Director:
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John Hardwick
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Country:
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UK
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Year:
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2012
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Running Time:
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90 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Jonny Owen
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Dixie
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Vicky McClure
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Michelle
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Roger Evans
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Horsey
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Martin Freeman
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Don
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Maxine Peake
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Angie
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Michael Smiley
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Irish Pierre
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Actor, writer and producer Jonny Owen introduced the film and explained that the concept for Svengali started life on You Tube in 2008 as a nine episode series before it was decided to expand the story and the narrative and turn it into a ‘star studded’ feature film.
Basically a story about a man, his love for a girl and a band he wants to manage. The man is Paul Dean a postman from South Wales known as Dixie who has a passion for music and a dream: he wants to discover and manage a great rock band. The girl is his long time soul mate Michelle who shares his passions. It’s when Dixie is trawling through You Tube that he discovers the Band of his dreams: The Premature Congratulations. The young couple head for London in their quest to make The Prems famous and earn their fortune and get married. If only life was that simple and straightforward? What they don’t consider is the sharks, charlatans and moneylenders that are found in temple of the metropolis known as the big city where Dixie is forced to decide what his real priorities are.
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Dixie and Shell.
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An enjoyable and entertaining 90 minutes but not a movie that will exactly set the film world on fire. It did remind me however of Good Vibrations (2012), the story of Terri Hooley and the Belfast punk scene but without that films underlying tension. The opening credits were very good as was the soundtrack. Most of the celebrity cameos were very amusing and the other main actors were convincing. But the luckless main character of Dixie Dean actually got on my nerves the more the film went on and to be honest I found the whole thing a little dated.
Saturday 22nd June 2013.
Focus on Korea UK Premiere.
Pluto (Myungwangsung)
Director:
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Shin Su-won
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Country:
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South Korea
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Year:
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2012
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Running Time:
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114 mins
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Principle Cast:
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David Lee
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Kim June
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Sung June
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Yujin Taylor
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Kim Kkobbi
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Jung Su-jin
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Cho Sung-Ha
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Senior Detective
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One of the new strands included in this years Edinburgh International Film Festival is ‘Focus on Korea’ and Pluto is one of the six films on show to allow UK audiences to discover the most exciting in recent cinema from South Korea.
Filming began on June 9th 2012 and was completed in the following August, its world premiere took place in October 2012, with a general release date in Korea of July 11th 2013, so we are fortunate to see this movie so early in its release schedule.
The story takes place at an elite boarding school and when the film opens we witness the murder of its top student. The main suspect is June a boy from an underprivileged background who has not been able to break into the coveted ranks of the top ten students, a sort of Korean Bullingdon Club. Its when he discovers that there is a conspiracy among these top students to keep all others from obtaining there academic potential that the situation get more explosive.
Academic terrorism rules in a bitter and twisted story where teachers, parents and pupils care more for their grades than they do for their fellow human beings. People who are prepared to go to any lengths no matter how extreme to gain exam results that will catapult them into a career that will reward them with untold riches and power.
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The Korean Bullingdon Club.
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Shin Su-won’s direction, the wonderful cinematography, the totally convincing acting from its mainly young cast and the utterly appropriate soundtrack add to a very strong story line that gives European audiences an example of South Korean filmmaking at its very best.
Saturday 22nd June 2013.
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
A Long Way from Home.
Director:
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Virginia Gilbert
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Country:
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UK, France
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Year:
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2013
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Running Time:
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85 mins
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Principle Cast:
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James Fox
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Joseph
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Natalie Dormer
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Suzanne
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Brenda Fricker
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Brenda
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Paul Nicholls
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Mark
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Suzanne and Joseph stroll in a French vineyard.
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72-year-old Joseph and his wife Brenda have both retired from a working life in the United Kingdom and have become what are called ex-pats. They are living in a modest apartment complex with a swimming pool, in Nimes, Southern France. Both follow what is rapidly becoming a routine existence. Joseph goes for his daily walks and Brenda writes to family and friends back in the UK. They go out most evenings together to the same local restaurant where Brenda has her beloved steak; Joseph is generally a little more adventurous speaking French, his wife is having lessons but she is not making much headway. Neither fraternises with the local people. One evening while in their familiar eating-place Joseph engages a pair of young tourists, Mark and his attractive girlfriend Suzanne, in conversation. Suzanne and Joseph immediately form a bond, Suzanne sees the older man as a confident and father figure while Joseph develops an infatuation, or could it be love, for this very charismatic young woman.
It's this relationship that forms the subject of an intelligent and thoughtful movie. Based on a short story by Virginia Gilbert and adapted by her for the screen. The title not only describes where Joseph is living but where his mind is situated after he meets Suzanne. We are not only treated to a snap shot of an ex pat life style but to a terrific character study of two very different people both of whom appear to have their own private crisis. This British/French co-production is beautifully told and very authentically acted by our four leads with superb direction by Ms. Gilbert who along with Natalie Dormer were happy to talk about the film after its screening.
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Virginia Gilbert and Natalie Dormer.
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When asked why we were not told about the backgrounds of the characters we were informed that the story did not require us to know these details and that to understand the psychology of the characters was enough to engage with them. But of course to achieve this the casting was critical, choosing actors that were capable of interpreting Gilberts vision of the story. It was agreed that the most critical scene was the one involving the cat, which was incidentally a real cat admittedly already deceased but thawed out with a hair dryer after being kept in a freezer. This incident was intended to raise the temperature of the story to a different level, automatically adding depth to the four main individuals giving each their own perfectly balanced story arc.
Beautiful to look at it was shoot on a location that was integral to the narrative, in what is reputed to be the hottest city in France, and completed in just 21 days. The music used for the film has been chosen with care, as had the complete soundscape. I would certainly recommend this unusual love story when it is released later in the year and is the ideal film for art house film audiences.
Saturday 22nd June 2013.
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
We Are the Freaks.
Director:
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Justin Edgar
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Country:
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UK
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Year:
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2013
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Running Time:
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80 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Michael Smiley
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Killer Colin
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Jamie Blackley
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Jack
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Sean Teale
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Chunks
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Mike Bailey
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Parsons
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Rosemund Hanson
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Clare
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Written and directed by Justin Edgar and based on his own life experiences, this is not a movie for the staid or conservative film fan, although Margaret Thatcher does play a large part in the films narrative. Made in Edgars home town of Birmingham and set at a time just after the above women was booted out of number 10 by her own party it involves three teenage friends who embank on a traditional weekend of sex, drugs and rock and roll.
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Dirctor Justin Edgar.
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Jack has a boring job in a bank and is waiting for news of a grant that will enable him to go to University. Parsons has a girlfriend with a tight snatch that nearly rips off his cock. He also has a sexual fixation with Mrs Thatcher and receives life guidance from a drug dealing hard man called Killer Colin who lives in a caravan below a flyover. Last but not least we have Chunks a rich kid who has never had to worry about money, wears a fur coat and drives a red Porsche. These three misfits are the freaks of the title.
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The wonderful Michael Smiley.
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The Q&A that followed the film involved not only the director and the producer but a large contingent of the films cast including the great Michael Smiley who made the sell out audience laugh when he told us that that film had such a low budget that the food that the production company 104Films (which made Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll 2010) provided was shite and that every body involved in the project lost weight! The director informed us that the film was made over a year ago in just three weeks and he felt that it would resonate with today’s teenage youth. He also told us how he managed to develop an acting style right across the cast and how a lot of the dialog was improvised whilst carrying out rehearsals. All the cast agreed that it was great fun to make and this does come across in the final cut. Probably the most entertaining and humorous film I’ve seen so far at this year’s festival. It underlined the energy of youth with its fast pace, clever and imaginative cinematography with everything shot wide screen, which worked extremely well, and to top it all a great soundtrack: highly recommended.
P.S One of the tag line’s for this observantly written film inform us that it is not a teen movie, well thank God for that, which means people of any age can enjoy a movie about the coming of age of three teenagers!
Sunday 23rd June 2013
American Dreams European Premiere.
The East.
The East.
Director:
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Zal Batmanglij
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Country:
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USA
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Year:
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2012
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Running Time:
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116 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Brit Marling
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Sarah Moss
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Alexander Skarsgard
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Benji
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Ellen Page
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Izzy
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Toby Kebbell
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Doc
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Shiloh Fernandez
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Luca
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Patricia Clarkson
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Sharon
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Introduced by Zal Batmanglij as a movie that can be approached from different prospective and viewpoints, which I suspect he meant depended on your personnel view of the films subject matter. It's a thriller about a question that is getting ever harder to answer: the difference between right and wrong and how far you would go to punish those that in your opinion are carrying out the wrongs.
There's always two sides in a conflict and in this case it involves a group of eco-warriors known as The East who set out to punish corporate terrorists who earn millions while ordinary people are left to suffer the consequences of there evil crimes against the environment and public health. Ex FBI agent Sarah Moss is recruited by independent security firm Hiller Brood to infiltrate an anarchist collective in an attempt to put a stop to what are known as 'jams', operations carried out by the group against the evils of modern corporations. Sarah begins to question the morals of her assignment and therefore has to decide where her sympathies lie.
Brit Marling and Batmanglij wrote the story in 2009 after the collapse in 2008 of the Corporate Banks that left ordinary bank employees out of work and feeling cheated by the system. The pair questioned if there was there some way, cinematically, of getting their own back on these uncaring organizations. They both went to live among various collectives for 12 months gathering up their political prospective which enabled them to build up there ideas for the story. This film is a thriller with a difference and says a lot about modern America where serious ecological matters are not spoken about openly and maybe, just maybe the character of Sarah Moss reflects the real life case of Edward Snowden?
Sunday 23rd June 2013
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
The Sea.
Director:
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Stephen Brown
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Country:
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Ireland, UK
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Year:
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2013
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Running Time:
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87 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Ciaran Hinds
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Max Morden
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Charlotte Rampling
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Miss Vavasour
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Natascha McElhone
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Connie Grace
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Rufus Sewell
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Carlo Grace
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Sinead Cusack
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Ann Morden
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Its not very often your have a Man Booker Prize Winner help introduce the world premiere of a film. John Banville, wrote The Sea in 2005 and adapted it for the big screen producing a script with which our other guest, the director Stephen Brown was to translate onto the big screen and what a good job he made of it.
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Man Booker Prize Winner John Banville.
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Described as ‘a journey back in time to a summer of turbulent emotions’. The summer in question is the early 1950’s and the place is Co Wexford located in the South East Region of Ireland in fact it was filmed on the same beaches where Spielberg shot Saving Private Ryan. Max Morden, a retired art historian, returns to where he and his family spent their summer holidays to reconcile himself with both the events of his youth, and the recent loss of his beloved wife Ann. He stays in a boarding house that was once the home of the Graces, a family that befriended him during this idyllic youthful period of his life, which in turn awakened his latent sexuality and subsequently involved him in a tragedy that was to have a marked effect on the remainder of his life including taking solace from copious amount of alcohol in an attempt to nullify his bad memories.
Basically Banvilles story is one of age, loneliness and the effect that death of a loved one can have upon a person and the ensuing grief that follows such a tragedy. Brown’s debut feature is a sensitive piece of filmmaking with a small ensemble cast of experienced actors that manage to convey the subtleties of the novel successfully to the big screen. Ciaran Hinds is especially good with Charlotte Rampling still able to play the femme fatale with her oriental robe and cigarette holder. The film took only 25 days to film and both Stephen Brown and John Banville informed another sell out Filmhouse screening that they were very pleased with the end result as were tonight’s appreciative audience.
Sunday 23rd June 2013
American Dreams European Premiere.
Magic Magic.
Director:
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Sebastian Silva
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Country:
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Chilean, USA
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Year:
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2013
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Running Time:
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97 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Juno Temple
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Alicia
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Michael Cera
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Brink
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Emily Browning
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Sarah
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Catalina Sandino
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Barbara
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Agustin Silva
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Agustin
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The main reason for this choice of film was the fact that Juno Temple was its star and after last years brilliant performance as Dottie Smith along side Matthew McConaughey in Killer Joe I was really looking forward to seeing her again in this UK Premiere. But this time I was disappointed; to cut the crap this was the worst film I have seen for a quite a long time!
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The poster summed up the film 'dark and dreary'
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It supposedly tells the story of a teenage girl Alicia (Juno) who arrives in Chile to go on holiday with her cousin Sarah and three of Sarah’s friends. It's the first time that this naive young girl has been out side the USA. She quickly realises that the trip is a big mistake when her cousin has to go back home to retake an exam and she's left to fit into a alien world with three people she obviously does not get on with, Sarah's boyfriend Agustin, his sister Barbara who makes it very clear that she has no time for Alicia and last but not least a nut case who calls himself Brink (played by the dreadful Michael Cera). Sarah eventually rejoins the group but by this time the paranoia that has befallen Alicia has descended to the depths of madness, having fixations and imagining all sorts of strange things: even South American witchcraft proves to be no help!
The first sixty minutes of the strangely perverse movie has very little cohesion and really did not make a lot of sense, with the second half descending into what can only be described as mumbo jumbo. The Director of Photography seemed to favour dark rather than light which really did not help the viewer grasp Sebastian Silva's story. Some viewers at the Film House screening found the film rather funny but the humour certainly went over my head. A better title would have been ‘Five go Mad in Chile’ (with apologies to Enid Blyton).
Monday 24th June 2013
Focus on Sweden UK Premiere.
Roland Hassel (Hassel – Privatspanarna)
Director:
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Mans Mansson
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Country:
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Sweden
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Year:
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2012
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Running Time:
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74 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Lars-Erik Berenett
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Roland Hassel
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Paul Fried
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Lisbeth Palme
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Goran Lambertz
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Jourhavande Advokat
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Roland Erillsson
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Olof Palme
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‘Scandi crime drama like you have never seen it before’ is how this year’s festival programme described Mans Mansson’s debut film which being a fan my self of this type of genre definitely wet my movie taste buds. The statement was right, its not the normal Scandinavian crime drama served up on BBC 4 on a Saturday evening. In the Swedish Film Database the synopsis reads as follows:
Roland Hassel, now a retired police detective, cannot let go of the unsolved 1986 murder of Sweden's Prime Minister, Olof Palme. In this study of the powerlessness of the Swedish male, the popular fictional character Hassel is desperate to get his hands on the $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Palme's murderer.
What it does not explain is that it is not a crime drama at all. Yes ex-cop Hassel would love to solve this real life crime that neither the Swedish police nor America’s FBI managed to do, but with out resources or access to the files he has no chance anyway. Instead he attends the 25th anniversary re-enactment of the unsolved crime that seems to involve a group of men that are obsessed with the murder of the Swedish Prime Minister[1]. This re-enactment of the shooting apparently takes place ever year in Stockholm, even to the extent of the FBI staking out the anniversary in the early 1990’s and arresting those taking part on suspicion of murder!
Created by Olov Svedelid, who has written 29 books dedication to the character, Roland Hassel appeared in 10 films between 1986 and 1992 and a further film made in 1999, all of which featured Lars-Erik Berenett as does this latest reincarnation. Although the least known Swedish police character internationally, it set the standard for other better known Swedish crime drama like Wallander and of course Beck.
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Mans Mansson.
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Mansson and his editor George Cragg were in attendance to take part in a Q&A conducted by film expert Dr Jonathan Murray. The director explained that he had been a fan of the detective since he was a boy and virtually grew up with him on Swedish TV. But he did say that his film was not well received in his home country because the Swedish public was anticipating a new Hassel crime story and this new film was not what they were expecting. Having had no experience of these stories I can only judge this movie from that prospective, but judging by the Scandinavian crime drama I am familiar with, I can see where the Swedes were coming from. Mansson explained that he had bought the rights to the characters name with the purpose of making this the last outing for the now retired detective but he admitted that it did appear that the intention was to remake the stories for television, so we may well see the detective on BBC 4 after all.
This strangely unique film does however include the normal deadpan humour found in films from this part of the world, in fact it did remind me of the humour found in Aki Kaurismaki body of work. Shoot on location in Stockholm to resemble the TV of the 1980’s its probably a film that deserves repeated viewing to fully appreciate a rather different approach to what has become a familiar genre.
[1] Security had never been a major issue, and Olof Palme could often be seen without any bodyguard protection. The night of his murder was one such occasion. Walking home from a cinema with his wife Lisbet Palme in the central Stockholm Street Sveavägen, close to midnight on 28 February 1986, the couple was attacked by an assassin. Palme was fatally shot in the back at close range. A second shot was fired at Lisbet Palme, the bullet grazing her back. She survived without serious injuries.
Monday 24th June 2013
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
Mister John.
Director:
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Christine Molloy, Joe Lawlor
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Country:
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UK
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Year:
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2013
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Running Time:
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95 mins
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Principle Cast:
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Aidan Gillen
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Gerry Devine
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Claire Keelan
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Kathleen Devine
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Zoe Tay
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Kim Devine
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Michael Thomas
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Lester
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Joe Lawlor.
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No one does angst quite like Aidan Gillian, even when he lined up with the Christine Molloy, Joe Lawlor and the films Producer David Collins to introduce this World Premiere he looked a very troubled man and did not return to take part in the Q&A! But I’ll forgive him because he really nailed the part of Gerry Devine in the directing partnership’s second feature film following their debut with Helen in 2008.
Gerry, who lives in London with his wife Kathleen and their young daughter, is going through a marriage breakdown after discovering that Kathleen had sex with another man. He gets a chance to escape from the tensions of this affair when he has to travel to the South East Asia to sort out his brother John’s estate after he had drowned in mysterious circumstances. Upon arriving in this erotic part of the world he goes to stay with John’s beautiful Chinese
wife Kim and help’s her reopen the hostess bar owned by her husband and called Mister John. Its here that Gerry gets an opportunity to reinvent himself, encouraged by Kim to wear her husbands clothes he seems to be taking on his persona. What will become of Gerry? Will he assume his brother’s identity or will he return home to re-join his daughter and patch things up with his wife?
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Christine Molloy.
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In a fairly lengthy Q&A Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor gave some incite into the character of Gerry. Describing him as an Irish man abroad that lets things happen to him, when even his wife’s infidelity is a symptom of the failure of his marriage and not the reason for it. Gerry never really shows any interest in sex even with the temptations that befall him in South East Asia. The only time he gets a hard-on is from the after effects of being bitten by a snake!
The film evokes a ‘maybe’ world of easy sex, always at a distance but forming an important current running through the movie. Its eroticism is never overstated although it would not be an exaggeration to describe the general female cast as ‘sexy’. The movie is beautiful to look at, shot with 35mm film on location in Singapore. Its soundtrack deliberately ruptures the narrative at times which is not meant as a criticism having the effect of raising the level of the film were necessary. Granted its core narrative is similar to Helen but it’s a movie that stands on its own merits, and there are plenty to enjoy when Artificial Eye give it a general release.
Tuesday 25th June 2013
International Competition European Premiere.
Joy (Hara)
Director:
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Elias Giannakakis
| |
Country:
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Greece
| |
Year:
|
2012
| |
Running Time:
|
80 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
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Amalia Moutousi
|
Hara
|
Lyda Protopsalti
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Hara’s Mother
| |
Stefania Goulioti
|
Baby’s Mother
| |
Nikos Flessas
|
Walker
|
Played out against the modern day Greek austerity crisis Elias Giannakakos second feature film is about a crime that would rock any civilised society.
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Hara and the baby.
|
We see a woman enter a maternity ward and leave with her baby; we follow her to her apartment where we find she has all the requirements to enable a mother to take care of a 3-month-old child. For two days we witness scenes of love and affection between a mother and her baby. We take it for granted that this women is devoted to her child and its not until we are informed by a radio station that a baby has been kidnapped from a maternity ward, that the we realise that the baby does not belong to the woman. Hara is arrested and appears in court, her charges include murder and the abduction of a minor but she refuses to speak a word in her defence.
I know this may sound daft, but this drama was so intriguing I never noticed the film was shot in black and white for the first 60 minutes! The film has a simple straight forward narrative with no twists and turns, no flashbacks it just tells a story of a sad and lonely women who is happy to sacrifice everything just to experienced joy for two days of her life. Amalia Moutousi is on screen the whole time and her portrayal of Hara is acting at is very best. She won Best Actress at the Hellenic Film Academy Awards and if this film ever gets a general release then I’m sure many more accolades will be forthcoming. A totally convincing 80 minutes of perfect art house cinema. I only hope you get the opportunity to see this absorbing movie. Unfortunately I was unable to attend the Q&A with the film director.
Tuesday 25th June 2013
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
Uwantme2killhim
Director:
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Andrew Douglas
|
|
Country:
|
UK
|
|
Year:
|
2013
|
|
Running Time:
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93 mins
|
|
Principle Cast:
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Jamie Blackley
|
Mark
|
Toby Regbo
|
John
|
|
Joanne Froggatt
|
DI Sarah Clayton
|
|
Liz White
|
Janet Dobinson
|
|
Jaime Winstone
|
Rachel East
|
|
Mark Womack
|
Marks Dad
|
 |
with Joanne Froggett
|
This film has a premise that could only be described, as far-fetched if is was not a true story! In fact the film was based on a 2005 Vanity Fair feature written by Judy Bachrach entitled U Want Me 2 Kill Him, even this article sounds a work of fiction with the film leaving out some of it’s more outlandish material, but again I repeat it’s a true story taking place in 2003 in the prosperous Manchester suburb of Altrincham.
When 16-year-old Mark meets local girl Rachel on the internet he begins an intense online relationship, and quickly finds that he’s besotted, and will do anything for her, even befriend her awkward 14-year-old bullied brother John. When Rachel, who is trapped in the grips of an abusive boyfriend, is murdered, Mark and John develop violent desires to avenge her death. Their actions draw the attention of a secret government department as they unwittingly stumble upon an ongoing operation. Soon, Mark is recruited to commit a devastatingly harrowing crime, one that would make British legal history.
Now relocated to North London and five years in the making, it’s a story of Internet obsession and the addictive nature of chat rooms and how a normal teenager’s ever-deeper involvement can lead to harrowing consequences. It was explained at the Q&A that there are legal restrictions still attached to the case so we may never know the true identities of the people involved and with only minimal reporting taking place at the time of the incident if it were not for the Vanity Fair piece we would never of had this film. Because of the suspenseful nature of the story I do not want to say to much as it will ruin the ending for you but I would suggest that its certainly worth 93 minutes of your time if you crave a youth orientated modern slant on the perils of the Internet.
The two main leads Jamie Blackley and Toby Regbo jointly won The Audience Award for Best Performance in a British Feature Film.
Wednesday 26th June 2013.
Wednesday 26th June 2013.
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
Everyone’s Going to Die.
Director:
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Jones
| |
Country:
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UK
| |
Year:
|
2013
| |
Running Time:
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83 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
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Nora Tschirner
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Melanie
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Rob Knighton
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Ray
| |
Kellie Shirley
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Ali
| |
Madeline Duggan
|
Laura
| |
Stirling Gallacher
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Jackie
|
Various elements go to make a good and enjoyable film. One of these is of course the quality of the writing and the British two person collective known as Jones appears to have a real knack for great dialog. It transposes this movie into a one that exceeds all expectations normally associated with a low budget independent film that is funded privately by individuals giving small amounts of money. Max and Michael who come from London form this working collective who between them wrote, co-produced, directed and edited this their debut feature film.
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A working collective called Jones.
|
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A talent to watch Rob Knighton.
|
Both the title of the movie and EIFF programme tag line a gangster screwball comedy are a little misleading. The comedy is more black than screwball, its not a gangster film either, although one of the main characters Ray is kind of gangster, anyway he wears a black suit and unwittingly carry’s a gun! Ray travels to a British seaside resort, which greatly resembles Folkestone, to visit the family of his dead brother who he has not seen for many years. They live in the house were Ray spent his childhood, a place which only evokes bad memory’s. He’s not in the town long before he meets, quite by accident, the attractive 29-year-old German émigré Melanie who is swiftly falling out of love with her boyfriend. It’s this developing relationship that the film is about. You know the type of thing, an interlude in one’s life than can change you for good but does not necessary lead anywhere. Here we have two lonely people away from home who are both going through a personal crisis and find solace in each other company.
I’ve already mentioned the wonderful dialog but even that alone would not be enough without actors than can bring it to life. In his first major film role, new discovery Rob Knighton executes his lines with perfect comedy timing. German TV and film actress Nora Tschirner is faultless in the role of Melanie, and her 8-minute single shot monolog in Rays car will have you spell bound. This scene also highlights the wonderful lighting and framing by DOP Dan Stafford Clark. It’s a movie which knows what its doing, its eloquent tone, its appropriate soundtrack all add to what so far is probable one of the best British films at the festival and one I would certainly want to see again.
Thursday 27th June 2013
Focus on Sweden UK Premiere.
Call Girl.
Director:
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Mikael Marcimain
| |
Country:
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Sweden
| |
Year:
|
2012
| |
Running Time:
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140 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
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Sofia Karemyr
|
Iris Dahl
|
Simon J Berger
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John Sandberg
| |
Josefin Asplund
|
Sonja Hansson
| |
Pernilla August
|
Dagmar Glans
| |
Sven Nordin
|
Glenn
|
The second of my Focus on Sweden strand is much more like the traditional Scandinavian fare we have come to admire so much on BBC 4 on a Saturday evening with its mix of political corruption and crime, but this time it includes the world of sex for sale and underage prostitution. The movie is inspired by actual events that took place in Stockholm in the late 1970’s
Hypocrisy is the name of the game in this very exciting and captivating thriller. Set at a time of women’s liberation and the furtherance of their rights, the film shows how these liberal notions only apply when the rich and powerful allow them to apply. Dagmar Glans, in the parlance of the sex industry, is a madam who procures sexual favours for a high-class clientele including the prime minister, government officials and high-ranking members of the police force. As you would expect from this kind of genre the story is recounted from different angles, but at its core are two young girls, Iris and Sonja, who have a placement in juvenile homes. It’s these two that that Dagmar recruits to satisfy her a client’s underage sexual needs and it’s Iris that could bring down the highest echelons of Sweden’s political structure.
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Dagmar Glans grooms the underage Iris.
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This realistic presentation of a privileged minority caused a massive controversy in Sweden due to the film alluding that Olof Palme (that man again) bought sex from underage prostitutes. Palme's son sued the filmmakers on the grounds of defamation. Just to warn you that this is a very explicit piece of filmmaking and Mikael Marcimain does not hold back on detail. This is in fact the longest film I have seen at this years festival but its 140 minute running time went exceptional quickly which it testament of my enjoyment of this very exciting film.
Thursday 27th June 2013
Directors Showcase UK Premiere.
Motorway (Che sau)
Director:
|
Pou-Soi Cheang
| |
Country:
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Hong Kong
| |
Year:
|
2012
| |
Running Time:
|
90 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
|
Shawn Yue
|
Cheung
|
Anthony Wong
|
Lo
| |
Xiaodong Guo
|
Jiang
|
This high octane Hong Kong action movie is the type of film that when you leave the cinema gives you an urge to drive at high speeds, execute hand brake turns and generally burn rubber. You remember, the time before descending to the realms of a family saloon and a child seat!
This Milkyway Image production is the usual slick and polished movie you would expect from Hong Kong and producer Johnnie To. The plots thin but that's not very important, what this film is about is the driving of cars fast and furious though the streets of Hong Kong. On one side you have Cheung and his partner father figure Lo who are members of HK's Invisible Squad, a section of the police force that drive unmarked cars to catch speed offenders. Cheung is addicted to speed with his partner accusing him of joining this branch of the police so he could speed legally! On the other side we have Jiang a legendary get away driver who returns to HK to break his friend Wong out of jail to take part in a diamond host. Is Cheung in the same driving league as his criminal nemesis and will his partner return to the driving seat just days before his retirement?
This wonderful piece of nonsense has the stamp of the great Johnnie To all over it, which means that the film may sound a familiar part of the normal Asian action genre but as with To's other films its polish and style make it stand head and shoulder above the rest in the entertainment stakes. A film that does make you seat on the edge of your seat during these wonderfully exciting car chase screens.
Friday 28th June 2013.
Directors Showcase International Premiere.
Traffic Department (Drogoewka)
Director:
|
Wojtek Smarzowski
| |
Country:
|
Poland
| |
Year:
|
2013
| |
Running Time:
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117 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
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Bartlomiej Topa
|
Ryszard Krol
|
Arkadiusz Jakubik
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Petrycki
| |
Julia Kijowska
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Madecka
| |
Eryk Lubos
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Banas
| |
Robert Wabish
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Hawryluk
|
One of the highlights of last years EIFF was a film called Rosa the story of a Masurian women who in the summer of 1945 is visited by an ex officer of the Polish Resistance Movement who has brought back her dead husbands last effects. This was an unusual and tender love story between two people that really have nothing to loose other than each other. The Polish filmmaker Wojtek Smarzowski directed it and this year the festival is screening his follow up to what was a genuinely moving film.
This new offering is a gritty crime thriller and involves the Warsaw Traffic Police, where the norm involves accepting bribes and sexual favour’s for traffic offences, and where alcohol and partying are routine. The departments Sergeant Krol is accused of murdering one of his colleague’s and is arrested. He escapes and starts his own investigation to clear his name and consequently uncovers a crooked land deal that reaches to the top levels of government and will reap the perpetrators a vast fortune. Smarzowski offers us not only an insight into endemic corruption within the police force but an allegory for modern day Polish society.
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The Warsaw Traffic police at work.
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The director, who had come direct from the Moscow International Film Festival, was in attendance at the screening and admitted that he had made this film to be seen more than once and after watching it I know exactly what he means. It’s difficult at times to follow the complicated intricacies of a rather frantic narrative that jumps around from mobile phone footage to standard hand held camera work, the jump cuts and fast editing add to the plot confusion. But as the director stated a second or even a third viewing would probable sort this out. Although the director was a man of few words he did tell us however that it had been his ambition to make a film about corruption that started in the back seat of a police car and that he only makes films if the subject matter interests him personally. Intelligently made, it’s not a film for people that want instant entertainment whilst eating a bucket of popcorn!
Friday 28th June 2013.
Michael Powell Award Competition World Premiere.
For Those in Peril.
Director:
|
Paul Wright
| |
Country:
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UK
| |
Year:
|
2013
| |
Running Time:
|
93 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
|
George MacKay
|
Aaron
|
Kate Dickie
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Cathy
| |
Nichola Burley
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Jane
| |
Michael Smiley
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Jane’s Father
|
 |
with Kate Dickie.
|
Following the screening of director Paul Wright’s impressive debut feature film I asked him if when he wrote the story he had based any of it on the Solway Harvester disaster, a scallop dredger from Kirkcudbright Scotland which sank off the coast of the Isle of Man in heavy storms on 11th January 2000 loosing all seven crew members, as his film had brought this terrible tragedy to mind. His answer was that he knew nothing about this sinking until after he had completed the screenplay. Later when talking to Kate Dickie, who comes from Newton Stewart, she told me it was her that brought the similarity between the real life incident and the movie to Wrights attention.
 |
Kate with Michael Smiley and a young 'Aaron'
|
Working along side his brother Michael on the fishing boats had been a dream for Aaron. When he finally gets his wish tragedy strikes and the boat claims the lives of five crewmembers including Michael. The only survivor is Aaron who cannot remember what happened. He refuses to believe that his brother and the other crew members are really dead and that some how the local legend of the sea monster, that was told to him as a young boy, has come true and if he can get back to sea he can, some how, rescue them and bring them back alive. Gradually the village folk turn against him, their animosity towards him driving him to feel ever more alienated. Suffocated by his own anguish the only support he gets is from his mother Cathy and Georges grieving girlfriend Jane.
 |
The talented Paul Wright.
|
Originally premiering at this year’s Cannes Film Festival this UK premiere was the first time most of the cast had actually seen the film. Also in attendance were families from the coastal fishing village of Gourdon in Aberdeenshire where the film was shot on location.
The fractured narrative and the various film formats added to the darkness that’s always involved with the mysteries and the power of the sea. Images, the director informed us, was his main motivation along with the story’s he heard as a child living by the sea. Mention must be made of the films young lead George McKay whose portrayal of the anguish and torment that possesses Aaron is powerfully believable and the backbone of Wrights movie with Kate Dickie giving her normal assured performance as Aarons mother. The Q&A finished with a promise by Scotsman Paul Wright that he was more than happy to continue to make films in his home country but with the skill he has shown in making this movie the attraction could there for him to move further a field to practice his filmmaking trade: lets hope he doesn’t.
Saturday 29th June 2013.
Fantastic Voyages: Richard Fleischer.
10 Rillington Place.
Director:
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Richard Fleischer
| |
Country:
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UK
| |
Year:
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1971
| |
Running Time:
|
111 mins
| |
Principle Cast:
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Richard Attenborough
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John Reginald Christie
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Judy Geeson
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Beryl Evens
| |
John Hurt
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Timothy John Evens
| |
Pat Heywood
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Mrs Ethel Christie
| |
Andre Morell
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Judge Lewis
|
Richard Fleischer made only a handful of British films, by far the best was 10 Rillington Place shown at this years EIFF as part of the retrospective, Fantastic Voyages: The Films of Richard Fleischer.
The story begins in 1947. We witness ‘Reg’ Christie murder a women in a drab ground floor kitchen in a run down 3-story house in Rillington Place Ladbroke Grove West London. He renders her unconscious with a homemade gassing device, struggles her and buries her in the garden of the house where we can’t help but notice the remains of a previous murder. We move on 5 years to 1949 and a family has moved into the top floor of the house, the illiterate lorry driver Timothy Evans, and his wife Beryl and their infant daughter Geraldine. When Beryl discovers she is pregnant again she askes Christie, who tells her he assisted a Doctor and knows how to perform abortions, for help with a termination. Based on the book, Ten Rillington Place by Ludovic Kennedy and adapted for the screen by Clive Exton it tells the true story of a grave miscarriage of justice involving Timothy Evans.
 |
John Reginald Christie.
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During the introduction to the film we were informed that the print we were about to watch was direct from the Sony vaults in California in the USA and had not been seen for many years. We were also told that in 1954 Rillington Place was renamed Ruston Place because of the notoriety that the court case had brought to the street. The house was still occupied in 1970 and the three families that were living there at this time refused to allow the filming to take place, so an empty property, number 7, was used instead. The houses and the street were eventually demolished and the area has changed completely.
 |
Timothy Evans.
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In an interview with the Times newspaper in 1970 Richard Attenborough spoke about the role of Christie and was quoted as saying ‘I do not like playing the part, but I accepted it at once without seeing the script. I have never felt so totally involved in any part as this. It is a most devastating statement on capital punishment’ His role in this film is probably one of the best in a long and distinguished career. The fresh-faced John Hurt, who plays Evans, was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. The movie has lost none of its creepy atmospherics and 1940 period detail is spot on, you can almost smell the pealing wallpaper and the rotten plasterwork. This is, I must admit, the first time I had seen the film and most confess it was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
Saturday 29th
June 2013.
World Perspectives UK Premiere.
Oh Boy.
Director:
|
Jan Ole Gerster
|
|
Country:
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Germany
|
|
Year:
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2012
|
|
Running Time:
|
85 mins
|
|
Principle Cast:
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Tom Schilling
|
Niko Fischer
|
Marc Hosemann
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Matze
|
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Friederike Kempter
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Julika Hoffmann
|
|
Justine von Dohnanyi
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Karl Speckenbach
|
Dropout Niko Fisher drifts unobtrusively through life. Jan
Ole Gerster debut feature film chronicles one day and night in his turbulent existence.
At breakfast he breaks up with his girlfriend, midmorning a psychiatrist
diagnoses him with an emotional imbalance when he tries to get his driving
licence back after losing it to the drink drive limit. A lunch time meeting
with his father does not go to plan when Dad tells his son that he knows he has
not been attending University for the past two years and has stopped his
allowance. When asked what he’s been doing for the last two years, he answers
‘thinking’! Also during the day he is
confronted by his new neighbour, who attempts to pass on his own problems to
the 27 year old, befriending him with gift’s of meatballs and Schnapps. In the
evening he meets a beautiful girl from his schooldays that he once bullied for
being over weight. This encounter leads to a confrontation with three thugs.
Through out the day the only thing that Niko really wants is a cup of coffee;
somehow this simple request remains out of his grasp for one reason or another.
So finally late into the evening he enters a bar for one last attempt and meets
a man that has returned to the city after 60 years absence, the old man tells
him a harrowing tale of why he left in the first place then collapses in the
street and with Niko accompanying him is taken to hospital. This final act forces
our main protagonist’s to get his own life back into clear focus.
 |
| Niko with ex-school friend Julika. |
This is a wonderful wee movie, with a screenplay written by
the director, which contains some very poignant and humorous moments. Beautifully
photographed in black and white it uses its Berlin locations to great effect. For
the role of Niko Tom Shilling deservedly won 2013’s German Film Award for Best
Actor. He manages to make this character very human and encourages an empathy
that perhaps not always deserved as the young Mr Fisher’s problems are
generally brought on by the fact that he is not always prepared to get involved
with life. Another great example of modern German cinema.
Saturday 29th
June 2013.
Directors Showcase UK Premiere.
Gold.
Director:
|
Thomas Arslan
|
|
Country:
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Germany
|
|
Year:
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2013
|
|
Running Time:
|
96 mins
|
|
Principle Cast:
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Nina Hoss
|
Emily Meyer
|
Marko Mandic
|
Carl Bohmer
|
|
Uwe Bohm
|
Gustav Muller
|
|
Lars Rudolph
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Joseph Rossmann
|
|
Peter Kurth
|
||
Rosa Enskat
|
Maria Dietz
|
Canada 1898. A group of settlers are about to set out
on a journey to the goldfields of Dawson in the Yukon Territory. Each one has
paid a large sum of money to Wilhelmina Laser to lead them to the riches of the
Klondike gold rush. Accompanied by Laser's hired wrangler Carl Bohmer, the
group of seven sets out on a journey, the dangers of which they are ill
prepared for.
 |
| The uninviting wilderness. |
The settlers are originally from Germany, which puts a
different slant on a familiar genre. Director and screenwriter Thomas Arsian
paints a portrait of these hopeful prospectors though the seven characters
involved. Laser himself professes to be familiar with the trail through Canada
and claims to have been to the gold fields previously but can he be trusted to
fulfill the contract he has with his fellow travellers. Then we have Bohmer a
man hiding a violent past. Emily Meyer is an aloof young divorcée whose
morals are questioned because she travels unaccompanied. An elderly couple
has sold their restaurant to come on this trip, taking one last chance to
make their fortune. Rossmann has a wife and four children that live in poverty;
he craves to give them a life they deserve. The final member of the group is
Gustav Muller a bully whose says he's only on this trip to write and photograph
the journey for a newspaper, but the others don’t believe him.
 |
| The aloof Emily Meyer. |
Beautifully photographed by DOP Patrick Orth, this
barren wilderness has never looked so gorgeously uninviting. Slow and
precise it allows the viewer to feel part of this classic western road trip
where tragedy and bad luck waits at every turn. Dylan Carlson’s music adds
a sinister emotional feel to my final film of the 2013 Edinburgh International
Film Festival.
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| The End. |
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