SSelected list of full length feature films and documentaries, critics and quality evaluations in short terms"
(w. p.= world première; i. p.= international première; e. p.= european première) (1° = first film; 2° = second film; ….)
Section Official Competition
“Dovlatov” by Alexey German Jr |
|
Dovlatov, by Alexey German Jr., Russia / Poland / Serbia (w. p.), 126’.
Not a classical biopic, rather a very committed portrait of the world and entourage of Russian-Jewish writer Sergei Dolvatov (1941 - 1990), never published during USSR time. Sergei was also Joseph Brodsky’s close friend. Set in Leningrad on November 1917, during a week, it is a bitter drama, sometimes very moving and never declaratory, about a man who struggles to discover and depict the reality of the people, with free spirit. On the contrary he is forced by the regime to write fake reportages about supposed heroism and happiness. A portrait of a community of intellectuals and artists trapped by Breznev regime’s harsh repression and sneaky censorship: encounters, relationships and dialogues, between despair, attempts to survive, tragicomic and violent situations. An outstanding mise en scène marked by grand tableaux vivants with special dynamism, tracking shots and unique photography and foggy atmosphere. Excellent: in my opinion the best film in the Competition. Silver Bear for outstanding artistic contribution (costume and production design) Sales. Alpha Violet (France)
|
 |
Trailer |
Las Herederas, by Marcelo Martinessi, Paraguay / Uruguay / Brazil / Germany (w. p., 1°), 95’.
A careful portrait of a couple of lesbians, Chela and Chiquita, in their 50s. A very long time relationship in which over the years they have become adapted to a fixed allocation of roles. Being part of middle class, they suffer heavy financial difficulties. Set in Asunción’s old residential barrios, it offers an excellent study of characters and an impressive picture of a decaying social microcosm. It is very well written and offers a wonderful mise en scène, that accurately composes significant huis clos, and remarkable acting. Very, very good. Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize and Silver Bear for Best Actress, also FIPRESCI Award Best Film Sales: Luxbox (France) |
|
“Las Herederas” by Marcelo Martinessi
|
Trailer |
|
“Transit” by Christian Petzold |
|
Transit, by Christian Petzold, Germany / France (w. p.), 101’.
Based on Anna Seghers’ eponymous novel, which she wrote in exile in Mexico during the Second World War, it shows a very complex, intricate, and sometimes artificial, narrative, mixing different individual stories that intersect and overlap each others. Partly noir, partly mysterious puzzle and dystopian nightmare, it offers strong and fascinating romanticism on the path of best Petzold’s poetic. Set in contemporary Marseille, but including period details of 1940s, it configures a tragic scenario that update the fear during the Nazi invasion to political, moral and social contemporary problems under the menace of a regime that persecute all dissidents and minorities. Excellent mise en scène and direction of the cast. Very good. Sales: The Match Factory (Germany)
|
|
Trailer |
Unsane, di Steven Soderbergh, USA (w. p., Out of Competition), 98’.
A thriller - horror, absolutely effective in terms of shocking narrative, dramatic pace and connection with the worst distortion of the Health Care System in the USA. The claustrophobic and mind-blowing story of a neurotic executive in her 30s who, after a voluntary medical examination, is forced, against her will, to be admitted in a psychiatric clinic. In the asylum she must face a man who was her stalker during months, now a paramedic hiding his own identity. A low budget film, perfectly thought out, which mix obsession, addiction, fear and desperate survival instinct, and shows ambiguity, twisting perspectives and fascinating suspense. Excellent. Production: New Regency / Fingerprint Releasing (USA) |
|
“Unsane” by Steven Soderbergh
|
Trailer |
|
“Aga” by Milko Lazarov |
|
Ága, by Milko Lazarov, Bulgaria / Germany / France (w. p., Out of Competition), 96’.
Set somewhere in the icy wastes of Yakutia, in the Republic of Sakha, in north-eastern Siberia, during winter. Based on old legends, it is a special love story tale. An old couple of Inuits, reindeer hunter and fisherman Nanook and his wife Sedna, seriously ill, live in an isolated yurta. Their daily life, shown with a careful mise en scène, genuine documentary gaze and empathy, is ardous, but their relationship is strong, having in common a rich imaginary of dreams and oral traditions in which animals and humans, the livings and the deads, are together. Their only daughter, Ága, left years ago to work in a diamond mine and live in a new town. Sedna would so much love to talk to her, but Nanook don’t want to broach the subject. It is a wonderful study of characters, showing emotional patterns, largely speechless or spoken in ethnic language, without any superfluous psychological implication. The pace is calm but not grave and imposing. Simple but absolutely fascinating and touching, especially for the marvelous ending. Excellent Sales: Beta Cinema (Germany)
|
|
Trailer |
Section Berlinale Special
Unga Astrid (Becoming Astrid), by Pernille Fischer Christensen, Denmark / Sweden / Germany (w. p.), 123’.
Biopic about the youth of the famous writer Astrid Lindgren (1907 - 2002), worldwide children’s favourite author. Basically it tells the drama of her affaire with a married man, when she was 18-year-old, and the choice to not marry him after giving birth to her son and to take care of him on her own. A portrait of a strong independent woman who breaks social norms of her time. A classical film with a wonderful leading actress: Alba August. Good. Sales: Trust Nordisk (Denmark) |
|
“Becoming Astrid ” by Pernille Fischer Christensen
|
Trailer |
|
Section Panorama, Panorama Special and Panorama Dokumenter
“Profile ” by Timur Bekmambetov |
|
Profile, by Timur Bekmambetov, U K / USA / Russia / Cyprus (w. p.), 105’.
An intense and timely thriller, absolutely effective in terms of suspense, pace and unpredictable twists in the narration. Amy, an ambitious television reporter, based in London, sets up a fake Facebook profile. In order to investigate the recruitment of young European women by ISIS, she poses as a new convert to Islam and contacts fighter Bilel in Syria, who is a recruiter. Sitting on her flat, her hair hidden by a hijab, day by day Amy develops an ambiguous rapport with him that blurs line between investigative journalism and real life. The story is told entirely on a computer screen, through Skype, social media, search engines, editing program and through images captured on smartphones or webcams. Amy is managing to be linked quite simultaneously with Bilel and also with her producer, an helper expert on ISIS strategies, her boyfriend, and other sources and contacts. Despite these restrictions, the film crackles with tension, due to a clever screenplay and an original mise en scène. Very good. Panorama Audience Award Sales: Endeavour Content (USA)
|
|
Trailer |
Yocho (Foreboding), by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Japan, 140’.
Taken from the play Yocho Sanpo Suru Shinryakusha, it is a cut-down version of Wowow’s 2017 five-episode TV mini-series with the same title. It is also a companion piece to Kurosawa’s previous film Sanpo suru shinryakusha (Before We Vanish), presented at 2017 Cannes Film Festival, an apocalyptic thriller that hides a metaphor of contemporary Japanese society submitted by a constant anxiety. In this science fiction and dystopian thriller - horror mysterious extra-terrestrial aliens embody humans beings in order to study the people and steal their basic mental and moral concepts of ‘family’, ‘dignity’, ‘fear’ and similar, before launching a full-scale invasion of the Earth. Without jaw-dropping visual effects and spectacular action sequences, it is indeed a fascinating film: it exhibits an extraordinary flair for the depiction of strange spaces as well as the use of colour, light and music. It also shows set-pieces borrowed from different genres, mixing retro and contemporary details to create a personal unnerving vision. And gives a bitter portrait of the decay of the human community, especially the alienated and standardized Japanese society. Very good. Production and Sales: Wowow (Japan) |
|
“Yocho ” by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
|
Trailer |
|
“Genezis ” by Árpad Bogdán |
|
Genezis (Genesis), by Árpad Bogdán, Hungary (w. p., 2°), 120’.
Three interwoven fictional stories related to a true tragedy: the 2008 - 2009 attacks by Hungarian neo-Nazi on Roma gipsy villages during which six people were killed. A genuine drama, visually powerful, and a realistic portrait of the political and social situation in contemporary Hungary. Interconnecting three independent narratives via one central act of violence the film recalls Amores perros by Alejandron Gonzales Iñarritu, but each chapter works as its own short story. Árpad Bogdán avoids didacticism and shows some original mise en scène’s choices, despite some problems in editing. Good. Sales: HNFF World Sales (Hungary)
|
|
Trailer |
Land, by Babak Jalili (USA), Italy / France / Netherlands / Mexico / Qatar (w. p., 3°), 111’.
Measured pace and flinty, low-key storytelling for a family and ethnic drama set as an anti-western tale. Native American Denetclaw family lives on the Prairie Wolf reservation: to make a living is hard and one of the three adult brothers is an alcoholic. When they receive the news that the youngest son and commander of a unit in Afghanistan has been killed in action, they find themselves confronted with the U.S. government’s absurd set of rules regarding the repatriation of the body and the funeral. The struggle of one stoical, careworn family as a member of a marginalized group is depicted without emphatic excess. Despite a suffocating solemnity, the film is remarkable both in terms of committed study of characters, between pride, homeland and weakness, and of not conventional depiction of the natural environment. Good. Sales: BAC Films Distribution (France) |
|
“Yocho ” by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
|
Trailer |
|
“Marylin ” by Martín Rodríguez Redondon |
|
Marylin, by Martín Rodríguez Redondo, Argentina / Chile (w. p., 1°), 80’.
A story based on true event. Tender and minimalist existential drama driven to a tragedy, set in rural Argentina, in a small community dominated by machismo. A 16-years-old boy, who discovers his homosexuality and likes to dress and make up as a woman, must face his own family opposition and neighbours’ violence. Linear narrative told with serene understatement, careful study of characters and convincing dramatic pace. Almost very good. Production and Sales: Maravillacine (Argentina)
|
|
Trailer |
Ruo qing shi (Girls Always Happy), by Yang Mingming, China (w. p., 1°), 117’.
Urban dramatic comedy that configures a lively psychological portrait of a complex yet retable mother - daughter relationship. Wu, performed by the director Yang Mingming, a twentysomething woman, lives with her single mother in a traditional one-storey house in one of Beijing’s hutongs. Both consider themselves to be writer, but they rarely arrive to be rewarded for their work. Life could be difficult without the financial support of a divorced, elderly man. The two women spend all the time quarreling about everything, from marriage to money to table manners, with reproches and quibbling, showing anger one moment and comfort the next, between sarcasm, despair and new hopes. Narration is precarious, but dialogues are enjoyable. Despite some clichés, close to American situation comedies, and some fake tones of art imitating life, the film provides a detailed portrait of an intimacy. Good. Sales: Parallax Films (China) |
|
“Girls Always Happy” by Yang Mingming
|
Trailer |
|
“Yardie” by Idris Elba |
|
Yardie, by Idris Elba, U K (i. p., w. p. at Sundance F. F. 2018, 1°), 101’.
Based on Victor Headley’s popular 1992 crime novel, it is an epic story of revenge with a scrappy but naive hero. It also gives a lively portrait of London’s East End atmosphere at the beginning of the 1980s. During the opening act, set in Jamaican capital Kingston in 1973, 12-year-old Denis witnesses his older brother Jerry being shot dead as he was trying to make peace between hostile gangs during a musical street party. In 1983 Denis is a rising star in the criminal ranks of mob boss King Fox who sends him to London to deliver a brick of cocaine. But here he meets the man who shot his brother 10 years earlier and embarks on a bloody, explosive quest for retribution. Despite some grotesque clichés, the film’s pace is vibrant with creative costume design, hand-picked soundtrack of vintage soul, reggae and dancehall cuts and very good cast. Good. Sales: StudioCanal (U K)
|
|
Trailer |
Al Gami’ya (What Comes Around), by Reem Saleh, Lebanon / Egypt / Greece / Qatar / Slovenia (w. p., 1°), 79’.
Very interesting documentary about one ‘al Gami’ya’, a self help solidarity network in Rod El Farag, one of Cairo’s poorest districts. In this community, which comprises several members of the quarter’s inhabitants, everyone regularly contributes a small amount of money put in a pot. At weekly meetings, a collective decision is made as to who is currently the neediest, or who will receive some cash in order to purchase some goods they really need. Reem Saleh spent six year following the members of one such community with her camera. She depicts their daily struggle for survival but also their attitudes to tradition, sickness, female identity and death. The result is an amazing intimate portrait of mutual support set with empathy and without didacticism. Very good. Production and Sales: Mazameer (Lebanon) |
|
“Al Gami’ya (What Comes Around)” by Reem Saleh
|
Trailer |
|
Section Forum
“Yardie” by Idris Elba |
|
Yardie, by Idris Elba, U K (i. p., w. p. at Sundance F. F. 2018, 1°), 101’.
Based on Victor Headley’s popular 1992 crime novel, it is an epic story of revenge with a scrappy but naive hero. It also gives a lively portrait of London’s East End atmosphere at the beginning of the 1980s. During the opening act, set in Jamaican capital Kingston in 1973, 12-year-old Denis witnesses his older brother Jerry being shot dead as he was trying to make peace between hostile gangs during a musical street party. In 1983 Denis is a rising star in the criminal ranks of mob boss King Fox who sends him to London to deliver a brick of cocaine. But here he meets the man who shot his brother 10 years earlier and embarks on a bloody, explosive quest for retribution. Despite some grotesque clichés, the film’s pace is vibrant with creative costume design, hand-picked soundtrack of vintage soul, reggae and dancehall cuts and very good cast. Good. Sales: StudioCanal (U K)
|
|
Trailer |
Al Gami’ya (What Comes Around), by Reem Saleh, Lebanon / Egypt / Greece / Qatar / Slovenia (w. p., 1°), 79’.
Very interesting documentary about one ‘al Gami’ya’, a self help solidarity network in Rod El Farag, one of Cairo’s poorest districts. In this community, which comprises several members of the quarter’s inhabitants, everyone regularly contributes a small amount of money put in a pot. At weekly meetings, a collective decision is made as to who is currently the neediest, or who will receive some cash in order to purchase some goods they really need. Reem Saleh spent six year following the members of one such community with her camera. She depicts their daily struggle for survival but also their attitudes to tradition, sickness, female identity and death. The result is an amazing intimate portrait of mutual support set with empathy and without didacticism. Very good. Production and Sales: Mazameer (Lebanon) |
|
“Al Gami’ya (What Comes Around)” by Reem Saleh
|
Trailer |
|
dessen wirkt das Schweizer Paradox fast harmlos: hier arbeiten Asylsuchende für 3 Franken Stundenlohn. Gleichzeitig zieht man es vor, an der Entwicklung von Robotern zu arbeiten, etwa um Pflegepersonals zu entlasten, als Hilfsbedürftigen Arbeitsplätze anzubieten.
“An Elephant Sitting Still” by Hu Bo |
|
An Elephant Sitting Still, by Hu Bo, China (w. p., 1°), 230’.
A very impressive portrait of the disillusionment and hollow sense of emptiness experienced by the people in contemporary Chinese society. A downward dramatic spiral marked by violent individualism, egoism, hypocrisy, guilt and fatality. In the northern Chinese run-down industrial city of Manzhouli, where solitude and sadness prevail, the fates of three protagonists and other characters are inextricably bound together. Each of them are struggling to navigate the violence and hate that permeates their lives. 16-year-old Wei Bu is on the run after pushing another pupil down a staircase, and his classmate, Huang Ling, finds herself publicly shamed after a video exposing her affair with the deputy headmaster goes viral. Meanwhile Mr. Wang, a kind-hearted pensioner, is being forced out of his apartment by his own son who wants to offload him onto a retirement home. All the events from the interlocking plot lines took place within one day, from dawn to dusk. Hu’s screenplay is absolutely a jewel in terms of great ambition and patience.
|
|
Trailer |
By following this group of nobodies trying to get through another day and chronicling the utter moral bankruptcy everywhere they look, it recalls Edward Yang’s minute world-building in A Brighter Summer Day, in which aggression and social unrest under a repressive regime slow burn to explosive consequences, and Jia Zhangke’s ruthless dissection of the greed and sick materialism of modern-day China in A Touch of Sin. Hu’s detailed observations and the ability with which he weaves multiple chains of cause and effect together provides a grand scenario of sorrow. He writes microscopically, depicting the characters’ circumstances and choices at every turn, but addresses at the same time something on a much larger scale: most people in the film harbor no evil intentions, but they can’t seem to do right either. Sparingly but impassionedly, he tells a story that bares a lifetime’s worth of despair. Hu paints a grim picture of a corrupt, soul-crushing society whose social fabric is wilting under the weight of rapid globalization, but despite placing his characters in considerable and persistent danger, his vision, both as writer and director, is always sympathetic to their struggles. His virtuoso visual composition demonstrates a sharp instinct for aesthetics. Beautiful, mysterious, lyrical and somehow relaxing in spite of its sadness and persistent instances of violence, the film configures a hallucinatory aura, thanks primarily to the lyricism of his camera. There are a lot of long takes. Some feature extended conversations between two characters, captured boldly unabridged, build the tension of the scene on its simplicity alone. Others involve complicated logistics, overcome with apparent ease betraying little premeditation. Hu Bo, whose novels already caused sensation in China, offers an astonishing debut, standing as an uncompromising voice in today’s government-censored, market-dictated Chinese cinema. But tragically this is the final chapter of his legacy, because on October 12, 2017, the artist, shortly after completing the film, took his own life, at just 29 years of age. A violent individual responses to a hostile, alienating climate. A masterpiece, the best film seen in the Berlinale.
Con el viento (Facing the Wind), by Meritxell Colell Aparicio, Spain / France / Argentina (w. p., 1°), 108’.
A wonderful existential drama and an exciting study of characters. Mónica has been living in Buenos Aires for 20 years, far from her family, working as a professional dancer when she receives the news that her father is seriously ill back in Spain. By the time she arrives to the remote family house, in the countryside close to Burgos, he’s already passed away. She decides to stay in the big farmhouse to help her mother sell it. Soon after the past pushes its way into Mónica’s existence with unexpected force. Regrets about missed chances bubble up and she realizes she has limited time left with her mother. The film meticulously portrays virtually uninhabited rural area: the fields lashed by the harsh winter weather, the rugged, stormy landscape, whose sheer expanse opens out Mónica’s inner confinement, and, of course, the ever-present wind. |
|
“Con el viento (Facing the Wind), ” by Meritxell Colell Aparicio
|
Trailer |
|
It provides a special combination of interior scenes and amazing landscape’s long shots. Mónica finds increasing warmth in spending time with her mother, sister, and niece and, step by step, surmounts old conflicts. Meritxell Colell Aparicio manages to tell a story of fundamental emotions with little more than few simple gestures: an intimate itinerary that become more and more plausible and moving. Very, very good. Production: Polar Star Films (Spain)
“Last Child, ” by Shin Dong-seok |
|
Last Child, by Shin Dong-seok, South Korea (i. p., w.p. at Pusan F. F. 2017, 1°), 124’.
A powerful tale of guilt and grief that configures a complex web of suffering through a trio of astonishing performances. A middle-aged couple who run a small interior decorating business are grieving the tragic loss of their son Eun-chan, who drowned in a river six month ago while trying to save a friend’s life. The husband take an interest in helping Gi-hyun, the boy who was saved, eventually offering him a job in his store, and his wife, though initially reluctant, also comes to embrace him. As the three protagonists develop a shared rhythm, they could almost be mistaken for a family. But the closer the trio becomes, the guiltier Gi-hyun feels. One day, unable to keep up a lie any longer, he reveals what really happened that day by the river and confesses the truth about Eun-chan’s death. Sadness curdles into a desire for revenge.
|
|
Trailer |
But the film retains its calm, and its hugely focused visual compositions provide space for all kinds of emotional outbursts. The provincial setting, precisely drawn, becomes a stage where questions of vengeance and atonement are played out. Shin Dong-seok explores a very painful subject matter, choosing a gradual revelation strategy and trying to hold back from emotional extremes by not forcing empathy on spectators. The film avoids feeling contrived and seems very real as the characters’ pain come into extremely sharp focus. It’s a minor fault that the final heavy emotional climax is slightly dissonant compared to the fascinating moral issues and character work that had marked the all film. Very, very good. Sales: Encore Distribution (Canada)
Apatride (Stateless), by Narjiss Nejjar, Morocco (w. p., 6°), 94’.
Dramatic portrait of a Moroccan woman in her 30s trapped in the border area between Morocco and Algeria. In 1975, Hénia and her father were deported from Algeria along with 45,000 other Moroccan families. Her Algerian mother remained behind and her father died soon afterward. In the meantime Hénia has grown into a woman, but she’s still trying to go home. Unfortunately, her papers disappeared along with her father. A quietly sensual film, with careful composition of images, set before a bewitching backdrop that recounts the consequences of a historical event whose effects are still being felt today. Production: LaProd (Morocco) and Moon a Deal Films (France) |
|
“Apatride (Stateless)” by Narjiss Nejjar
|
Trailer |
|
“Los débiles (The Weak Ones)” , by Raúl Rico and Eduardo Giralt Brun |
|
Los débiles (The Weak Ones), by Raúl Rico and Eduardo Giralt Brun, Mexico (w. p., 1°), 65’.
A creative spin on the classic tale of crime and punishment: a revenge film in which the need for vengeance ultimately fades into the background. A road movie extraordinarily rich in atmosphere, with calm and composed camera work and marvellously droll humour, featuring striking locales in a landscape both fascinating and disturbing. After his dogs have been killed, Victor, a stoic farmer, goes in search of the underage culprits in the underworld of the Mexican state of Sinaloa, the stretch of land on Mexico’s Pacific coast that a ruthless criminal cartel has transformed into bloody terrain. Violence and death are part of everyday life here. Victor’s journey is hemmed in by an eccentric cast of characters, each of whom reveals a new clue, until the two rivals finally meet in a brilliant and unexpected finale. Presented as a series of short, languidly paced vignettes with absurdist overtones, this picaresque trip shows more realistic and more surreal moments: sober, somber and pure point-and-shoot documentary scenes and others that recall kind of overcooked, theater-of-the-absurd version of rural Mexico. Despite minimalistic narrative, Rico and Brun display an already developed and original cinematic style, especially framing all kind of faces and locations really set the region apart. Very good. Sales: Luz verde (France)
|
|
Trailer |
Grass, by Hong Sang-soo, South Korea (w. p.), 66’.
One more film about his usual themes by the Korean maestro: tales of life, love, connection, sorrow and yearning all together. In this last one there are two more components: the theme of the death and a female scriptwriter acting as a witness of the superb minuetto of characters. Just one location: the central alleyway of a coffee-house in a traditional district of Seoul. To the sound of Franz Schubert, Richard Wagner, or Jacques Offenbach, Hong Sang-soo offers another variation on the recurring motif of all his films, when happens when men and women meet. A young woman accuses a young man of being responsible for her girlfriend’s suicide. A little later, she pays him a compliment. In the middle of the conversation, there’s a whip-pan on to the neighbouring table where a woman is sitting at her laptop. She overhears snatches of dialogue and develops them further. |
|
“Grass” by Hong Sang-soo
|
Trailer |
|
At times, she gets involved in the plot; at others, characters seek her advice. All Hong Sang-soo’s films look similar but the truth is that they show different perspectives of life complexity. Once again he confirms his classic naturalistic style, with a conversation-driven package that recalls Rohmer, Rivette, Resnais or Woody Allen but it is firmly rooted in Korean specific context: precious black-and-white images and simple but sophisticate mise en scène, with a composition of static camera straight shots, zooms, close ups and pan shots. This time he serves up an existential-minded series of vignette-like chats between couple of characters of different sex. But, being a film filled with his usual intimacy and fresh humour, it is more essential: a sad observation of anonymous characters, more concerned with the bigger picture of the human existence than the individual details. Excellent. Sales: Finecut (South Korea)
"Maki'la , by Machérie Ekwa Bahango Giralt Brun |
|
Maki'la, by Machérie Ekwa Bahango, Democratic Republic of Congo / France (w. p., 1°), 78’.
Set in Kinshasa’s slummy neighborhoods, it is a striking and very genuine portrait of street’s teenagers. Maki, a tough 19-year-old woman, has been on the streets a long time and is married to Mbingazor, a miserable gang’s boss. She learned to steal, to trick and to be a prostitute. But at some point, she has had enough of this gang of boys, who are too busy getting high and drunk to do anything with themselves. Survival must be secured. Then she crosses paths with the much younger Acha. This newcomer is a fresh arrival in Kinshasa, and doesn’t yet know the rules. Spurred on by Acha’s beginner’s luck as a thief, the pair set off on an adventure together, which soon arouses Mbingazor’s jealousy. Despite a very simple linear narrative, this existential drama is credible and effective, due to documentary quality, convincing study of characters and an amazing cast of young non professional actors. It offers raw realism and avoids pretentious psychological implications and didacticism. Sales: Orange Studio (France)
|
|
Trailer |
Old Love, by Park Kiyong, South Korea (i. p., w. p. at Pusan F. F. 2017, 8°), 90’.
The chronicle of a “romantic” encounter that becomes a film about displacement, not merely of individuals, but of an entire generation. On a winter day, a man and a woman, once college sweethearts, chance to meet at Seoul Incheon Airport after 25 years. Following a long time away, Yoon-hee returns home from Canada to look after her mother, who has Alzheimer’s, while Jung-soo has lifted his child who left on another journey. When they meet again a week later, they realize their old flame still burns, feeling a romantic thrill and confusion at the same time. They have been separated by decades of choices which led them along different paths, neither of which seem to have come to the destinations they'd hoped for. Now in their late 40s, they were part of a theatre group during college time and the film succeeds in bringing their lives back to the stage without seeming static or theatrical. |
|
“Old Love ” by Park Kiyong
|
Trailer |
|
It is not grand words, but much more the lowering of eyelids, the nuances of emphasis, the open and reserved gazes, which betray the sense that their lives haven’t gone as they would have liked. Sometimes looking back into the past reinforces the melancholy, sometimes it creates clarity. This slow burn drama shows the director’s empathetic gaze, perfect pace, attentive camera work and wonderful acting performances by the two protagonists. Almost very good. Sales: Good Move Media (Hong Kong)
"Djamilia (Jamila)" , by Aminatou Echard |
|
Djamilia (Jamila), by Aminatou Echard, France (w. p., 1°), 84’.
A very interesting
documentary about the female identity and condition in Kyrgyzstan. Self-confident and strong-willed Jamila is the young Kyrgyz woman protagonist of Chingiz Aitmatov’s eponymous 1958 novel. It’s World War II and her husband is at the front, she’s unhappy in her arranged marriage and decides to break with tradition and elope with her great love. A famous literary heroine, Jamila turns out to be an ideal subject for Aminatou Echard to start conversations with women in Kyrgyzstan and gain access to their world. For whether the women are speaking about their own lives, it quickly becomes clear how powerful the conflicts, longings, and desires for self-determination still are. Echard shot her film on silent Super-8 film, recording the sound separately. Instead, the film connects literature, reality and the present. The result is a set of carefully composed portraits whose reflects the strength of today’s Kyrgyz women. Good Sales: 529 Dragons (France)
|
|
Trailer |
Minatomachi (Inland Sea), by Kazuhiro Soda, Japan / USA (w. p.), 122’.
Very nice documentary set in the fishing village of Ushimado that, like many areas of rural Japan, suffers from an ageing population. Shot in mesmerising black and white, it is a wonderful observational work that shows special sensibility and empathy. Every day, Mr Murata, now 90-year-old, still takes his boat out on the inland sea that separates Honshu and Shikoku, two of Japan’s main islands. He sells his catch at the local market, with a large share going to Mrs Koso, who runs the local fish trade and tours the village daily in her delivery van. She knows her customers’ preferences and habits inside out and tells the filmmaker how long each of the empty houses has been abandoned. There is also the elderly Mrs Komiyama who occasionally tells heart-breaking stories. Once again the experienced documentarist Kazuhiro Soda offers a convincing anthropological portrait. Very good. Sales: TriCoast Worldwide (USA) |
|
“Minatomachi (Inland Sea)” by Kazuhiro Soda
|
Trailer |
|
Section Generation 14plus
"Hendi va Hormoz (Hendi and Hormoz)" , by Abbas Amini |
|
Hendi va Hormoz (Hendi and Hormoz), by Abbas Amini, Iran / Czech Republic (w. p., 2°), 88’.
Set on the coast of Hormuz, the Iranian island in Persian Gulf that has a rich supply of haematite, it is a convincing juvenile drama. 16-year-old Hormoz is consoled by the prospect of being hired at the strip mine as he is married off to 13-year-old Hendi. But the young man finds the doors of opportunity shut tight. When Hendi becomes pregnant, Hormoz enters into an ominous pact with a smuggler in order to ensure his family’s livelihood. Abbas Amini offers a careful portrait of the cultural and social context, avoiding clichés and didacticism. Good. Sales: DreamLab Films (France)
|
|
Trailer |
Para Aduma (Red Cow), by Tsivia Barkai Yacov, Israel (w. p., 1°), 90’.
Set in a West Bank settlement populated by Israeli zealots who believe in the coming of the Messiah, it is a powerful existential drama about a teenage girl's sexual awakening and her eventual coming out prevented by the strict religious beliefs of her widowed father. 17-year-old Benny feels as lonely and trapped as her devout father’s treasured red calf in its enclosure. Benny’s mother died giving birth to her, and she grew up alone with her caring yet patriarchal father. He is a figure of authority and a mentor for many people in their Jerusalem religious community, mainly extremists who want at any cost to return to the Temple Mount, which they have been banned from for so long. Day by day Benny becomes increasingly critical of her father’s religious, utopian nationalism, but she doesn’t dare to openly defy him. |
|
“Para Aduma (Red Cow)” by Tsivia Barkai Yacov
|
Trailer |
|
Confined to a life of prayer and study, as well as to preparation classes for her future role as a devout Jewish wife, Benny soon grows interested in another young woman, member of their tight-knit group: the beautiful and self-confident Yael. The two quickly hit it off, and before long their friendship blossoms into something more. But in a place where girls are relegated to minor roles and the only acceptable union is between a man and a woman, there is little hope for such an affair to stand up against sectarian doctrine. Tsivia Barkai Yacov deftly uses a familiar story to explore questions of faith, family and identity in a closed community where homosexuality is all but forbidden. He keeps the drama intimate and perfectly captures, with an exciting naturalistic style, Benny’s longing and emotions. Very, very good. Sales. Alma Cinema (France)
"Retablo" by Álvaro Delgado-Aparicio L |
|
Retablo, by Álvaro Delgado-Aparicio L., Perù / Germany / Norway (i. p, w. p. at Lima F. F. 2017, 1°), 101’.
A striking family drama that captures, with great credibility, specific cultural and social aspects of a quechua campesino community. 14-year-old Segundo lives with his parents in a village high up in the Andes Mountains of Peru. His father Noé is a respected artisan, a story-box maker, and Segundo’s role model. With loving eye for detail, he artfully crafts altarpieces for church and homes, and is preparing his son to follow in his footsteps. But cracks form in their tight bond when Segundo accidentally finds out his father hidden homosexuality. Trapped in a chauvinistic environment, Segundo will try to deal in silence with Noé’s secret. Anyway tragic ending forces him to make a difficult choice. The film takes an unflinching look behind the facades of a seemingly intact village community, in which patriarchal rules and machista model are imposed with unrelenting violence. It offers very mature mise en scène, with bright photography in saturated colours, and powerful performances by the entire cast. Special Mention Youth Jury Generation 14plus Sales: Heretic Outreach (Greece)
|
|
Trailer |
|
