London Film Festival 2004
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Abortion film opens film festival
Mike Leigh hopes the film will spark discussion about abortion Director Mike Leigh's award-winning film Vera Drake has had its UK premiere at the opening of the London Film Festival.The controversial film, about a female abortionist working in the 1950s, had picked up the prestigious Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival. --http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/3758714.stm [Nov 2004]
London Film Festival guide (Dissensus)
Itchy-fingered but not knowing quite what to post, I guess I may as well talk about some of the decent films that UK posters could see at the London Film Festival 2004.Highly recommended-
Garden State is written and directed by one of the guys from Scrubs, a twisted romantic comedy in the vein of Ghost World . Nicking the plot of Six Feet Under, it has a guy coming home for a funeral (and coming off anti-depressants). His friends spend time robbing graves and amusing themselves with William Tell type danger-dares. It's certainly quirky, with both Method Man and Ian Holm making cameos, but a great character study too.
Holy Girl is a study of Catholic guilt co-produced by Almodovar (although the film is Argentinian) where a girl at a hotel is sexually harrassed by a Doctor attending a conference there. She views it as her Mission From God to save him, and tries to befriend- or is it seduce?- him. Although it's about under age sex, there's no shock tactics- a kind of Kieslowski type understanding and empathy extends to all the protagonists.
Wild Side sees female cinematographer Agnes Godard bring a bruised sensuality to Sébastien Lifshitz's tale of a tough love. A menage a trois between two men and a transexual, there's no sensationalism, it's just a a sparse, plain taste of real life in the vein of Ozu- and very moving.
Dig!, the documentary about the Dandy Warhols and (mostly) The Brian Jonestown Massacre is a standard but extremely compelling rockumentary- looking at the music biz with the ruthless scrutiny of a balance sheet breakdown. Seems music is just another business- the hard working Dandys get paid, whereas the relentless infighting of BJM means noone touches them with a barge pole.
Avoid at all costs-
Palindromes, a new Todd Solondz film. If the controversial Happiness was his Brass Eye- a slick, seductive satire that subverts and challenges taboos (notably paedophilia), this is his Jamm. It's chaotic, meandering, occasionally stunningly weird, but mostly an unprofitable 2 hours spent in someone else's unconscious.
Stander , a South African film about a bad cop turned Robin Hood style bank robber. Imagine heist thriller Heat starring ludicrous 70s stereotypes in the vein of the Beastie Boys' Sabotage video and you're half way there.
Last edited by Diggedy Derek --http://www.dissensus.com/showpost.php?p=108&postcount=1 [Nov 2004]
The Times bfi London Film Festival
Welcome to The Times bfi London Film Festival, which runs until Thursday 4 November. Presented by the British Film Institute, the Festival is Europe's largest public film event, with 280 films from 60 countries. Find out more in the introduction to this year's programme by Sandra Hebron, Artistic Director of the Festival, and in our features and interviews by critic Demetrios Matheou. --http://www.lff.org.uk/BFI [...]
280 films from 60 countries
2046 (China / Hong Kong, 2004) 5 x 2 (France, 2004) The 7th Day (Spain, 2003) Aaltra (Belgium, 2004) Accident (UK, 2004) According to the Evidence (UK, 2004) Aftermath (Denmark, 2004) Against the Tide (Sri Lanka, 2004) The Age Of Fire (Italy, 2004) Aïcha (Nigeria / Senegal, 2004) Alice and I (Belgium, 2004) Alice in Wonderland or Who is Guy Debord? (USA, 2003) American Daylight (India, 2004) Amongst the Persuaded (USA, 2004) Anoxi (Canada, 2003) Arks (Sweden, 2004) Arktis - Zwischen Licht und Dunkel (Germany, 2004) Aspect (UK, 2004) Baby Face (USA, 1933) Back to Kotelnitch (France, 2003) Bad Santa (USA, 2003) Balloon (USA, 2004) Baober In Love (China, 2003) Beginning Middle and End (UK, 2004) Beneath Her Window (Slovenia, 2003) Between Us (UK, 2004) Birthday Boy (Australia, 2004) Blindflyers (Germany, 2004) Boris (Ireland, 2004) Bose - The Forgotten Hero (India, 2004) Breaking Out (UK, 2004) Brothers (Denmark, 2004) Bugs (Macedonia, 2003) Bullet Boy (UK, 2004) Bus Stop (UK, 2004) Café lumière (Japan, 2004) Captive (Argentina, 2003) Caterina in the Big City (Italy, 2003) Champions (Czech Republic, 2004) Chemins de Traverse (France, 2003) Chisholm '72 - Unbought and Unbossed (USA, 2004) Cinevardaphoto 3 films by Agnès Varda (When Photos Trigger Films) (France, ) City Paradise (UK, 2004) Clara and I (France, 2004) A Common Thread (France, 2004) The Complete Japanese Showa Song-Book (Japan, 2003) Confusion (France, 2004) Consequences of Love (Italy, 2004) Consider Yourself At Home (UK, 2003) Counsellor at Law (USA, 1933) The Crab Revolution (France, 2004) Criminal (USA, 2004) Cut (Singapore, 2004) Czech Dream (Czech Republic, 2004) D.E.B.S. (USA, 2004) Dahucapra Rupidahu (France, 2003) Dandelion (USA, 2003) Darwin's Nightmare (Austria / Belgium / France, 2004) The Day of the Hawk (Italy, 2004) Daybreak (Sweden, 2003) Dealer (Hungary, 2004) Delamu (China / Japan, 2004) Dichtung und Wahrheit (Austria, 2003) Dig! (USA, 2003) Door in the Floor (USA, 2004) The Door to the Sun (Egypt / France, 2004) Down to the Bone (USA, 2003) Driver for Vera (Russia / Ukraine, 2004) Drum (South Africa, 2004) Dying of Love (Germany, 2004) Dysmorpho (Sweden, 2004) Eating Sausage (New Zealand, 2004) Edgeplay: A Film About The Runaways (USA, 2004) The Edukators (Austria / Germany, 2004) The Eiffel Tower (Sweden, 2004) Elephant Palm Tree (UK, 2004) Elephants Never Forget (Venezuela / Mexico, 2004) Emma and Daniel - The Meeting (Sweden, 2003) Enduring Love (UK, 2004) Enid's Idyll (USA, 2004) L'Esquive (France, 2003) Everybody is a Killer (Belgium / France / UK, 2004) Exactly (USA, 2003) Father's Garden (Democratic Republic of Congo, 2004) The Fete (UK, 2004) Fiddlesticks (USA, 1930) Flower (Japan, 2004) For a Tango (UK, 2004) Freedom and Unfreedom (USA, 2004) Frozen (UK, 2004) Fruit Loop (UK, 2004) Garden State (USA, 2003) Getting Acquainted (USA, 1914) Gravity (UK, 2004) Handicap (France, 2004) Hank Williams: Honky Tonk Blues (USA, 2004) The Happiness Thief (UK, 2004) Harvest Time (Russia, 2004) Head On (Germany, 2003) Hearst Metrotone Newsreel, No. 272 (USA, 1930) Héctor (Spain, 2003) Here (Bosnia / Croatia / Herzegovina, 2003) The Hero (Angola / Portugal, 2004) A Hole in My Heart (Sweden, 2004) The Holy Girl (Argentina / Italy / Spain, 2004) L'homme sans ombre (Canada / Switzerland, 2004) Hotel (Austria, 2004) The House Keys (France / Germany / Italy, 2004) House of Flying Daggers (China / Hong Kong, 2003) I Began To Wish (USA, 2003) I Heart Huckabees (USA, 2004) I Like Working (Mobbing) (Italy, 2003) Ich bin Traurig (Austria, 2004) In the Battlefields (Belgium / France / Lebanon, 2004) In the Realms of the Unreal (USA, 2004) In Your Hands (Denmark, 2003) The Incomparable Miss C. (Canada, 2004) The Incredibles (USA, 2004) Innocence (France, 2004) Intimate Interviews: Bela Lugosi (USA, 1931) Izo (Japan, 2004) Jester Till (Belgium / Germany, 2003) Kamiya's Correspondence (UK, 2004) Kid Auto Races (USA, 1914) Kill Your Idols (USA, 2004) Kilvo (Austria, 2004) King's Game (Denmark, 2004) Knitting a Love Song (UK, 2004) Lalon (Bangladesh, 2004) Lard (UK, 2004) The Last Minute (France, 2004) Last Night (USA, 2004) The Last of the First (USA, 2004) León and Olvido (Spain, 2004) Light & Class (South Korea, 2004) Lila Says (France / Italy / UK, 2004) Lingchi: Echoes of a Historical Photograph (Taiwan, 2002) Little B & MBT (USA, 2003) Little Terrorist (UK, 2004) A Little Touch of Humanity (France, 2004) The Lizard (Iran, 2004) Lorenzo (USA, 2003) Los Angeles Plays Itself (USA, 2003) Lost Embrace (Argentina / France / Italy / Spain, 2004) Love in Thoughts (Germany, 2004) Lucia (Germany, 2004) Lucky For Some (Australia, 2004) Luke (USA, 2004) Ma mère (France / Portugal, 2004) Mabel at the Wheel (aka A Hot Finish) (USA, 1914) Mabel's Married Life (USA, 1914) Man About Dog (Ireland / UK, 2004) The Man from Laramie (USA, 1955) Manasarovar (India, 2004) The Manchurian Candidate (USA, 2004) Marco Solo (Australia, 2004) Maria Full of Grace (Colombia / USA, 2003) Mateo Falcone (France, 2004) Max and Mona (South Africa, 2004) Mean Creek (USA, 2003) Meditations on Revolution V: Foreign City (USA, 2003) Melinda and Melinda (USA, 2004) Millions (UK, 2004) The Miracle of the Wolves (France, 1924) Mondovino (France, 2004) Moolaadé (Senegal, 2004) Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (USA, 1939) My Father Is An Engineer (France, 2004) My Sister Eileen (USA, 1955) My Summer of Love (UK, 2004) Mysterious Skin (USA, 2004) Napoleon Dynamite (USA, 2004) Night Nurse (USA, 1931) Nobody Knows (Japan, 2004) Nobody's Perfect (USA, 2004) The Nomi Song (Germany, 2004) Notre musique (France / Switzerland, 2004) Nuée (Canada, 2003) Oh, Man (Italy, 2004) The Old Man and the Studio (USA, 2003) On the Waterfront (USA, 1954) Or (Mon Trésor) (France / Israel, 2004) Orders of Love (UK, 2004) Osmosis (France, 2004) Our Own (Russia, 2004) Out of the Forest (Israel, 2003) The Overture (Thailand, 2004) Pal Joey (USA, 1957) Palindromes (USA, 2004) Parallels (France, 2004) Paths of Glory (USA, 1957) The Patio (Spain, 2003) Peptalk (Sweden, 2004) The Phantom Inventory (France, 2004) Pin Boy (Argentina, 2004) Pizza (USA, 2004) The Plague (UK, 2004) Playing Dead (UK, 2004) Le Pont des arts (France, 2004) Portrait of Jason (USA, 1967) Pourquoi (pas) le Brésil (France, 2004) Preserving Cultural Traditions in a Period of Instability (Austria, 2004) Public Lighting (Canada, 2004) Raincoat (India, 2004) Raining Cats and Frogs (France, 2003) Ray (USA, 2003) The River (India / USA, 1951) The Riverside (Iran, 2004) Roads to Koktebel (Russia, 2003) Ryan (Canada, 2004) Seafood (UK, 2004) The Second Floor Mystery (USA, 1930) Self Help (UK, 2003) SET-4 (Netherlands, 2003) Shock and Awe (USA, 2004) Sing with the Street Singer (USA, 1933) Six Shooter (UK, 2004) Skagafjördur (USA, 2004) Sky Blue (South Korea, 2003) Slavery (USA, 2004) Soar (Australia, 2003) Soldiers Pay (USA, 2004) The Soul Hunter (France / Germany / Greece, 2003) South of the Clouds (China, 2004) Spies (Germany, 1928) Splendid Float (Taiwan, 2004) A Spoonful Of Sugar (USA, 2003) Stander (Canada / South Africa / UK, 2003) Stray Dogs (Iran, 2004) Strings (Denmark, 2004) Surprise Film (, ) T:O:U:C:H:O:F:E:V:I:L (Japan, 2003) Tang Poetry (China / South Korea, 2003) Tarnation (USA, 2004) The Ten Steps (Ireland, 2004) Textism (Japan, 2003) Things Fall Apart (USA, 2003) Things We Want to See (USA, 2004) Thirst (Israel / Palestine, 2004) Threnody (USA, 2004) Through My Thick Glasses (Canada / Norway, 2003) Throw Your Watch to the Water (Spain, 2004) The Time We Killed (USA, 2004) To Take a Wife (France / Israel, 2004) Tony Takitani (Japan, 2004) Top Spot (UK, 2004) Touch of Pink (Canada / UK, 2003) À Tout de suite (France, 2004) Travel Songs 1967-1981 (USA, 2003) Trilogy: The Weeping Meadow (France / Greece / Italy, 2004) Triple Agent (France / Greece / Italy / Russia / Spain, 2003) Tropical Malady (France / Germany / Italy / Thailand, 2004) The Trumouse Show (Spain, 2003) Tube Mice (UK, 2004) Turtles Can Fly (Iran / Iraq, 2004) Underground Railway (USA, 2004) Undertow (USA, 2004) Undo (UK, 2004) Uniform (China, 2003) Uno (Norway, 2004) Up Against Them All (Brazil, 2004) Vanity Fair (UK / USA, 2004) Variations (USA, 1992-98) Vera Drake (UK, 2004) Visions of Europe (Austria / Belgium / Cyprus / Czech Republic / Denmark / Estonia / Finland / France / Germany / Greece / Hungary / Ireland / Italy / Latvia / Lithuania / Luxembourg / Malta / Netherlands / Poland / Portugal / Slovakia / Slovenia / Spain / Sweden / UK, 2004) Une visite au Louvre (, 2004) Vital (Japan, 2004) Warsaw (Poland, 2003) Water, Water (UK, 2003) A Way of Life (UK, 2004) We Don't Live Here Anymore (USA, 2004) Wednesday Afternoon (USA, 2004) What Goes Up (USA, 2003) What Remains Of Us (Canada, 2004) Whisky (Argentina / Germany / Spain / Uruguay, 2004) The White Train (Spain / Argentina, 2003) Wild Side (Belgium / France / UK, 2003) With George Bush on My Mind (Spain, 2003) Woman is the Future of Man (France / South Korea, 2004) Woman of the Breakwater (Philippines, 2003) Women's Love (Egypt, 2004) The Woodsman (USA, 2003) The World (China / France, 2004) The Wound (Belgium / France, 2004) Yasmin (UK, 2004) YES (USA / UK, 2003) Yesterday (South Africa, 2004) Zenith (Norway, 2003) Zwerk (Netherlands, 2004) [] (USA, 2003) -- http://www.lff.org.uk/films.php?year=2004&Alpha=%25&show=false [Oct 2004]
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