True story: when I was a wee thing, my first real job was over the border in an international hamburger restaurant. One night I severed the top of my pinkie finger off on the lettuce bin and my manager went and grabbed my time card and clocked me off for the night before he called […]
The most distinctive feature of the world of this over-saturated, crime-Y, attention deficit disordered, B-grade action flick is a complete lack of caring and empathy. Characters shoot each other one moment, neck the next, rescue innocent children one scene, only to shrug briefly at their death moments later. What matters is not your value system […]
Whilst it’s expected to find slow, bleak cinema in official competition at Cannes, it’s surprising to find a film this poor on the list. Cannes does tend to support its alumni, so perhaps it’s Takeshi Kitano’s past successes at the festival (with films like Kikujiro no Natsu) that have helped. It’s difficult to believe however […]
With twelve of the nineteen ‘In Competition’ films already screened at Cannes, no clear frontrunner has emerged for the coveted Palme d’Or prize, although most critics have Mike Leigh’s drama about getting old and lonely ahead by a few frames. For me Leigh has become a sort of English Woody Allen, with dialogue driven screenplays, […]
With less than 24 hours to go to its red-carpet opening night, Cannes is busy with digging and rigging. The colourful flowers that adorn the Promenade de la Croisette – the famous beachside street that leads to the purpose build festival building, Le Palais – are quickly being planted, the lawns trimmed and the huge […]
When I saw the email, my heart raced. “Do you want to interview Micheal Haneke?” it read. ‘Are you kidding’, I thought. ‘Is Scorsese a Catholic?’ I called the publicist back immediately, and after agreeing a date, sat down to work out what I would ask the 68 year-old Austrian film director who has been […]
There are some things the rule books just don’t prepare you for. The correct number of buttons done up on one’s waistcoat, the incorrect times to wear thongs, when to sneeze at a concert, Debrett’s has these things covered. What is to be done, however, when your husband is killed by insurgents in Afghanistan and, […]
Filmmaker Elia Suleiman was the first Palestinian filmmaker to play in competition at the Cannes Film Festival with his 2002 film Divine Intervention, winning the Jury Prize. His latest film is a fantastic fusion of absurdist theatre and poignant autobiography, a sweeping panorama composed of the small moments that make up a half-century in the […]
Powered by
WordPress2.2.2