What constitutes a "master" and why should I submit or—in some cases—resubmit? If ever a sensual power exchange between filmmaker and audience comes into play, it's in this auteurist arena. Without question, Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Tokyo Sonata is my most anticipated cinematic experience from TIFF08 and—if an interview opportunity lifts its head—I will be in bliss. From my mouth to the ears of angels.
Most of these films are North American premieres which had buzz-drenched critical runs at Cannes08 and, of those, I most certainly will catch Lorna's Silence, Of Time and the City, Three Monkeys, and—of course!—24 City. As if these riches aren't enough, I'll return from Toronto just in time to appreciate the Pacific Film Archive's Jia Zhang-ke's retrospective!
The World Premiere of Paul Schraeder's Adam Resurrected likewise has my complete attention, as does Agnès Varda's Les Plages d'Agnès.
24 City (Er shi si cheng ji)—Jia Zhang-ke (Still Life), China. A state-owned munitions factory in Southwest China shuts down to be replaced by a gargantuan luxury housing complex called 24 City. Through reflections on the life of work that binds them all, old workers, factory executives and yuppies assemble a history of China. At The Greencine Daily, Dave Hudson has gathered the critical response from Cannes08. A couple of days later, Dave spotlighted Manohla Dargis calibrating her initial impressions of 24 City for The New York Times, which include points of convergence and divergence with—of all things—Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull! "Without nostalgia but with sensitivity and depth of feeling," she praises, "Mr. Jia is documenting a country and several generations that are disappearing before the world's eyes." IMdb reports that during the Cannes press conference, Jia Zhang-ke, Joan Chen and Tao Zhao observed a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the 2008 devastating earthquake in China. The film was shot in Chengdu, in Sichuan province where the earthquake struck. North American Premiere.
Achilles and the Tortoise (Achilles to Kame)—Takeshi Kitano, Japan. Story of Machisu (Kitano), an aging man determined to fulfill his life-long dream of becoming a painter. Faced with frustration and failure, he persists in living out his passion with help of his wife, who continues to support her husband amid the harsh realities of success; or, lack thereof. With roughly 70 pieces of Kitano's own artwork, Achilles and the Tortoise completes the filmmaker's self-reflective trilogy. Spurred on by Mark Schilling's advance copy at Variety, the film is highly anticipated at Twitch. Achilles and the Tortoise will be in competition for the Golden Lion at the 65th annual Venice Film Festival, scheduled to run from August 27 to September 6, 2008. North American Premiere.
Adam Resurrected—Paul Schrader, Germany/Israel/USA. Director Paul Schrader's newest film, Adam Resurrected, is based on the crowning achievement of one of Israel's literary masters, Yoram Kaniuk. Adam Stein (Jeff Goldblum) is a charismatic patient at a mental institution for Holocaust survivors in Israel. Before the war, Adam was a Jewish vaudeville performer in Germany, until he found himself in a concentration camp confronted by Commandant Klein (Willem Dafoe). He survives the camp by becoming the Commandant's "dog", entertaining him with his musical and comedic talents. While at the institution years later, Adam must confront his past head-on for the sake of someone else's salvation. Essential background on Schrader can be had at Girish Shambu's site. I'll also be reading George Kouvaros's University of Illinois Press monograph on the plane. World Premiere.
Everlasting Moments (Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick)—Jan Troell (The Emigrants; As White as in Snow) Denmark/Sweden. From Academy Award™-nominated Swedish filmmaker Jan Troell comes a true story from early 20th-century Sweden. In a time of social change and poverty, the young working-class woman Maria wins a camera in a lottery. The camera enables Maria to see the world through new eyes, but it also becomes a threat to her somewhat alcoholic womanizing husband, as it brings the charming photographer Pedersen into her life. World Premiere.
Four Nights with Anna (Cztery noce z Anna)—Jerzy Skolimowski (Moonlighting), Poland/France. A hospital worker once witnessed the brutal rape of Anna, now a young nurse in the same hospital. Secretly forcing himself into her life, and bedroom, he develops an intense fixation that begs the question, "How far will he go?" At The Greencine Daily, Dave Hudson has gathered the critical response from Cannes08.
Les Plages d'Agnès—Agnès Varda, France. Autobiographical documentary about the life of director Agnes Varda.
Lorna's Silence (Le Silence de Lorna)—Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne, Belgium/France/Italy. A young Albanian in Belgium (Arta Dobroshi), becomes entangled in a sham marriage orchestrated by mobster Fabio, an arrangement that will end in murder if Lorna chooses to keep silent. At The Greencine Daily, Dave Hudson has gathered together the critical response from Cannes08, where Lorna's Silence won the Prix du Scenario (best screenplay). For FIPRESCI, Barbara Lorey writes that Dobroshi's "resistance against dehumanization" is demonstrated "with unobtrusive yet radiant strength", by which she "achieves truly heroic greatness through her humanity." At Melbourne Film Blog, Paul Martin claims Lorna's Silence as his festival favorite, praising Dobroshi's performance: "She skillfully treads a fragile path between deceit and criminality on the one hand, and innocence and an empathetic character on the other. She depicts vulnerability, valor and resourcefulness wonderfully." North American Premiere. Picked up for distribution by SONY.
This Night (Nuit de chien)—Werner Schroeter, France/ Germany/Portugal. This powerful and provocative film follows Ossorio Vignale as he arrives in his hometown in search of Clara, the woman he loves. Much to his horror, Clara has gone missing and his once-beloved town has been taken over by a terrifying militia led by a rich mercenary. Once he starts hearing contrasting reports on the whereabouts of his beloved, Ossorio realizes that everyone is a potential threat. Together with Victoria, a friend's daughter, he struggles to escape peril and flee the town safely. North American Premiere.
Of Time and the City—Terence Davies (Distant Voices Still Lives, House of Mirth), United Kingdom. Davies returns to his native Liverpool and his filmmaking roots to capture a sense of the city today and its influences on him growing up in the late '40s and early '50s. Anticipating Cannes, Frank Cottrell Boyce interviewed Davies for The Guardian. Jason Anderson had the honors for Cinema Scope and Jason Solomons for The Observer. At The Greencine Daily, Dave Hudson has gathered together the critical response from Cannes08. In his Cannes report to Sight and Sound, Nick James describes Davies' voiceover monologue as characterized by "his inimitable darkling breathy delivery" wherein he "utters poetry quotations, passionate insights and camp upsweeps." At l'Humanité, Jean Roy selects choice quotes from Davies' voiceover monologue; my favorite: "I have lived under Paul VI, John-Paul II and Clitoris the Umpteenth." Dispatching to The Telegraph from the Edinburgh Film Festival, Tim Robey doesn't find much not to thrill to in Davies "enthralling docu-ode." North American Premiere.
Three Monkeys (Üç maymun)—Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Turkey/France/ Italy. A family dislocated when small failings blow up into extravagant lies battles against the odds to stay together by covering up the truth. In order to avoid hardship and responsibilities that would otherwise be impossible to endure, the family chooses to ignore the truth, not to see, hear or talk about it. But does playing Three Monkeys invalidate the truth of its existence? At The Greencine Daily, Dave Hudson has gathered the critical response from Cannes08, where Three Monkeys earned Ceylan the Best Director Award. North American Premiere.
Tokyo Sonata—Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Cure, Bright Future, Doppelganger), Japan/The Netherlands/ Hong Kong. Tokyo Sonata from filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa is a portrait of a struggling Japanese family: a father who abruptly loses his job and conceals it from his family; the eldest son who hardly ever returns home from college; the youngest son who furtively takes piano lessons without telling his parents; and the mother, who knows deep down that her role is to keep the family together, but cannot find the will to do so. Somehow a single, unforeseeable rift has developed within the family, spreading quickly and quietly, and threatening to break them apart. At The Greencine Daily, Dave Hudson has gathered together the critical response from Cannes08 where Tokyo Sonata won the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize. From the Sydney Film Festival, Matt Riviera reviews the film. North American Premiere.
Trailers for Achilles and the Tortoise, Of Time and the City, Silence of Lorna, Three Monkeys and Tokyo Sonata can be found at the Twitch TIFF Trailer Park.
Cross-published on The Evening Class.
