Filmbiz blog

French School Taken Hostage in Melbourne

by Anthony Roberts | August 09, 2009 14:34

FILMINK’s MIFF correspondent gives us the latest on the festival’s fantastic films. by Anthony Roberts | August 08, 2009 13:54

Skirt Day is a drama/comedy from director Jean Paul Lilienfeld. The movie begins with what seems like an ordinary day in an inner city Parisian public school, as teacher Sonia struggles to control her rowdy and petulant group of multi-racial drama students. These students are crude to say the very least, hurling a swell of insults and sexual innuendo at the frustrated Sonia before she can even have her morning coffee. When Sonia intervenes in a small rift between two students, she finds one of them has a gun, and after accidently discharging a shot which hits one of the students, this ordinary day is suddenly turned on its head.

 

What ensues is a tense, at times funny hostage situation, as Sonia, gun in hand, attempts to teach her students Moliere. On the outside there is the customary hostage-situation hullabaloo - throngs of blood-thirsty media outlets, worried parents, a SWAT team with keyhole cameras, and a hostage negotiator going through a rough patch in his marriage. There are multiple twists and turns throughout the story, and the end is somewhat unexpected.

 

Skirt Day is very strong in addressing issues of race, social class, religion, and the general attitude and behaviour of youth in inner-city areas. The scenes in the drama class are really all about this, as Sonia presses her students (sometimes literally with a gun barrel), questioning their life choices and playing a little on their own insecurities. On these deeper issues, the movie probably doesn't reach the level of Laurent Cantet's recent endeavour The Class, but that's not to say it's not effective, and is obviously a different type of film. You could say this is a cross between The Class and The Negotiator, the latter a Samuel L. Jackson action flick jokingly referenced in the film.

 

Isabelle Adjani does an admirable job as the frustrated Sonia, as does Denis Podalydès, who brings humour to the role of hostage negotiator Labouret. The actors who play the students are also very good, namely Sonia Amori who plays Nawel. There are times that you feel the director Lilienfeld tries to squeeze too many minor subplots into the story, and he may have been better off fleshing out some of the stronger narrative elements. He does a marvellous job with the ending however, however, and the beautiful final shot is quite poignant.

ANARCHY IN MELBOURNE TOWN

by Anthony Roberts | August 08, 2009 13:54

FILMINK’s MIFF correspondent gives us the latest on the festival’s fantastic films.

First up on the program was Louise-Michel, a bizarre black comedy from directors Gustave de Kervern and Benoit Delepine that won the Special Jury Prize at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The story centers around a group of female factory workers, and one particularly peculiar worker named Louise, an illiterate woman who speaks like Yoda and enjoys catching and feathering pigeons. When she and her fellow colleagues are inexplicably laid off from their jobs, Louise has the all too bright inspiration to pool their paltry severance money together and hire a hitman to off their fat cat boss.

 

Enter Michel, a bumbling private security officer who enjoys shooting stars (literally, using his custom made weapons to shoot the sky) and re-enacting special ops manoeuvres which ends with him inadvertently shooting a cow. After a random run in on the street, Louise and Michel form what can only be said as one of the wackiest alliances in recent movie memory. What proceeds is a chaotically perverse series of events which has everything from 9/11 conspiracy theorists, creepy male strippers, and close to everything in between.

 

Louise-Michel is one of those rare films that have moments that simultaneously make you laugh and shudder. Case in point, a scene in which Michel literally drags his terminally ill sister from her hospital bed, dresses her up in heels and skirt, arms her with a derringer, and points her in the direction of a party in which the big boss man is attending so she can do his dirty work for him with

no consequences - it does not go well.

 

Belgian actors Yolande Moreau and Bouli Lanners are superb in the roles of Louise and Michel respectively, their chemistry and eccentric coupling is just a joy to watch. The film also has a funky soundtrack led by Daniel Johnston, somewhat of an apt musical choice considering the oddball nature of the two main characters.

 

While Louise-Michel is very much a satire and at times farcical, the movie does strike a chord and is strangely relatable, especially in this time of fiscal crisis where people are being laid off left, right and center. At its heart, it's an underdog story about two anarchists fighting the capitalist hierarchy, and their attempt to take back power of their own lives, which has been for so long out of their control. The title of the film is an actual reference to the 19th century French anarchist Louise Michel, who was imprisoned and later deported from France for trying to overthrow the government.

 

Next on the hit list was Young Freud in Gaza, a no frills documentary from directors PeÅ Holmquist and Suzanne Khardalian. The story follows Ayed, a young psychotherapist for the Palestinian Authority's Clinic for Mental Health, as he traverses his way through the isolated northern part of Gaza, an area accustomed to violent street demonstrations and suicide attacks. The film was shot between 2006 and 2008, a tumultuous time for the region which saw a violent escalation between Hamas and Fatah.

 

Amid the violence and political instability, it's Ayed's job as the only mental health professional in the area to visit with a wide array of patients suffering in different ways. His lists of clients include Inas, a young woman struggling with an eating disorder and suicidal thoughts; Maysa, who is having trouble forgetting the image of seeing her fiancé die in front of her eyes; Abed, a young man severely injured after a failed suicide mission in Israel; and Hanan, who is struggling with the strains of day to day life with a negligent husband who has two other wives.

 

While this isn't the most polished documentary ever made, (some grainy camera footage and a couple of sound issues), Young Freud in Gaza manages to engage, and more importantly bring to light an aspect of warfare in this area (or any area like this) that goes largely ignored. We often forget the psychological toll that political wars have on civilians, and through the honest and heartfelt accounts of Ayed's patients, we really do get a better understanding of it. This is none more evident than a moving part of the film in which Ayed visits with young children no more than ten years of age, as they recount stories of friends and family members that they've seen die in front of their eyes.

 

With the serious subject matter, the film does have some lighter moments involving Ayed and his family. His parents are desperate for him to get married and find a place of his own; however Ayed is in no rush. A happy compromise is reached towards the end of the film as Ayed moves out of the house, but only to a small little area on the upper level, literally outside the house. The look his father gives him is absolutely priceless.

Beautiful But Scary

by Yumi Stynes | August 05, 2009 17:39

Yumi Stynes gives us her take on the latest cinematic releases.

If you're really looking for a movie to see this week, I highly recommend Drag Me To Hell. It's the new Sam Raimi horror flick and destined to be a classic in the genre. Funny, gross and terribly entertaining, this is the best horror movie I've seen all year! I particularly recommend it if you don't often see horror on the big screen because you'll be amazed how your own body reacts to this visceral delight.

 

Sam Raimi is a highly accomplished film producer, writer and director, (having helmed the last 3 Spider-mans and just announced to do Spidey 4) and he works with utter confidence in the far-fetched and hugely entertaining yarn about a self-improving bank loan officer who evicts an old gypsy woman from her home. Alison Lohman as Christine Brown has three days to set things right before the demons come to drag her to hell. 

 

Awesome?

 

Awesome.

 

For more serious cinema fans it's been an interesting month in Australian film.

 

I recently curated a question/answer session between the writer-director of the new Australian film Cedar Boys, Serhat Ceradee, and two of his stars, Rachael Taylor and Les Chantery. It was the night before the film opened (on June 30) so most people in attendance hadn't seen the film but were movie enthusiasts or budding filmmakers.

 

One of the audience questions was "Why should I see this film if I'm not Lebanese?" I've been thinking about the question all week.

 

Obviously it's a crazy question. Great films are often about very specific times, places and people. Goodfellas is about 1970s blue collar Italian gangsters. Serhat put it like this; "You don't have to be a murderer to watch a crime flick, y'know?"

 

It's true, but I can understand why the question was asked. 

 

Cedar Boys is a story about young Lebanese Australian men searching for the means to make their social ascension at a time in Australia when their ethnic backgrounds hold them back with mostly negative connotations of gang rapists, drive-by shootings and drug dealers.

 

It's not a brilliant film, but a solid story with consistently great performances and enough insights and excitement to make it worth seeing. But am I damning with faint praise? Cedar Boys is worth seeing for many reasons but mostly because the lead actor is a revelation of Aussie talent. Les Chantery, as Tarek, is a star. The NIDA-trained graduate was told at school that he would probably only ever be cast as terrorists, and certainly those types of roles have regularly been on offer in his career so far. But anyone who remembers seeing Russell Crowe in Romper Stomper or Abbie Cornish in Somersault can appreciate the excitement that comes with watching a new discovery in a breakthrough role.

 

The other Australian actor on the cusp of a breakthrough is Sophie Lowe, star of the new film from actor turned director Rachel Ward. Out of Chadwick modelling agency's stables, Lowe plays the title character in Beautiful Kate. Like a lot of eerily beautiful model-actors, Lowe appears to come from the methadone school of acting. Blank detachment; aloof sexuality. Do you learn that on the runway? I dunno, maybe it's female jealousy or something, but I found similar problems with Gemma Ward's performance in The Black Balloon. Another model trying her hand at acting, Gemma was great, but her relationship with the camera was so intense that her interactions with the other characters shrank in comparison. These girls are so dazzling they can annihilate their surroundings, and not necessarily at the service of the story.

 

Beautiful Kate is about a dysfunctional family regrouping to farewell their dying father. Bryan Brown is the hardened patriarch slowly losing his menace as his body fails, Rachel Griffiths plays the quietly observant younger sister and Ben Mendelsohn is the brother who bares the most obvious scars of the family's past.

 

Beautiful Kate is a well-made film with a far greater budget than Cedar Boys but will probably leave audiences a little mystified. Cedar Boys has a clear purpose. Beautiful Kate, based on a book by Newton Thornburg, centres around a fairly baffling idea. If that girl in the Cedar Boys audience was compelled to ask "Why should I see this film if I'm not Lebanese?" she could also ask, "Why should I see this film if I haven't experienced incest?"

 

Top 5 Films About Incest:

 

Hotel New Hampshire

Rob Lowe and Jodie Foster make for very sexy siblings in this 1984 drama based on a book by John Irving where the sister and brother repeatedly commit consensual incest.

 

Creepiness level: 3

 

 

Capturing the Friedmans

This Andrew Jarecki documentary about an upper-class American Jewish family appeals at first to our better instincts - they can't be that bad, surely. The story of Professor Arnold Friedman and his 18 year-old son Jesse, their trial and incarceration is like falling down a sinkhole into hell.

 

Creepiness level:  5

 

 

The War Zone

When actors direct their first film after decades in the biz, it's often a deeply personal tale they have been waiting their whole lives to tell. Tim Roth's family Christmases must've taken a dark turn after 1999 when he released this heavy, heavy film.

 

Creepiness level:  5

 

 

Chinatown

"She's my sister!" SLAP! "She's my daughter!" SLAP! "She's my sister and my daughter!" Faye Dunaway's anguished confession that she gave birth to her own sister at the end of Roman Polanski's gumshoe classic Chinatown is still shocking. The film came out in 1974.

 

Creepiness level:  4

 

Bad Boy Bubby

Bubby is kept locked up by his Mam. They have sex. She has long grey hair and giant saggy boobs. It's a very funny film. The sex scenes are not funny. A Rolf de Heer masterpiece from 1993 and unmissable for anyone who loves Australian film.

 

Creepiness level: 2

 

Incest is still such a touchy subject (ahem) that filmmakers can't make titillating or overly sexy, or even particularly funny. It just has to be serious. And weird.

 

Viva La Revolucion

by Anthony Roberts | August 03, 2009 10:48

FILMINK’s MIFF correspondent gives us the latest on the festival’s fantastic films.

You know when you're walking down the street and you spot an angst ridden fourteen year-old wearing a Ramones t-shirt, yet you know if their iPod came to life and belted them in the eardrum with Sheena is a Punk Rocker that they wouldn't know what they were listening to? You kind of feel that's the same with the countless amount of ignorant hipsters who traipse around sporting Che Guevara t-shirts, berets, and satchels - while they know this Che fellow had something to do with Cuba and the Revolution, they don't actually have any clue what he really did.

 

Well enter teacher and director Steven Soderbergh, the man behind the Ernesto ‘Che' Guevara biopic, which stars Benicio Del Toro in the role of the uber-iconic Revolutionary. Split into two films, Che Part 1 (The Argentine) and Che Part 2 (Guerrilla), this ambitious telling of his story spans over a decade of Che's life, and you could say that it picks up a few years after Walter Salles' 2004 film The Motorcycle Diaries left off. The film premiered in Cannes in 2008 as a single, four and a half hour film, but has since been repackaged as two separate films.

 

Che Part One (The Argentine) begins in 1956 when the young Argentinean doctor and a select group of Cuban exiles, led by Fidel Castro, start a grassroots guerrilla warfare campaign, with the ultimate aim of ousting the US-aligned leader Fulgencio Batista and bringing freedom and independence to Cuba. The three years of fighting, which ends in obvious victory, intercuts with New York in 1964, where Che visits the United Nations to address the world about the plight of his adopted country and further promise to bring the same sovereignty to the rest of Latin America. Che Part Two (Guerrilla) picks up a year later with Che already established as this celebrity revolutionary figure, as he embarks on bringing the revolution to Bolivia by overthrowing the country's government. The doomed mission ends with Che's death in 1966. Part Two is based on the actual diary Che kept during the campaign.

 

Not surprisingly, Soderbergh doesn't follow the prototypical biopic formula with both Che instalments, apart from the possible exclusion of some of the uglier moments of Guevara's life in this period. There is no narrative build-up - no Che in his younger days as an idealistic young doctor, no romances, no internal conflicts, etc... Rather, what makes this a fascinating study is the fact that Soderbergh seems more focused on the smaller, more modest moments that, while seemingly innocuous and irrelevant, allow us to really understand the power of the man and how he was able to do what he did.

 

For example, in Che Part One there is a scene in which Che and his men are taking respite in the jungles of Cuba, and the Commandant politely requests that one of his soldiers do some homework (Che has a greater hope that every person in Latin America be literate). The soldier responds to Che that he is too tired to work. In reply, Che just stares down the young, illiterate subordinate, who quickly pulls out his pencil and paper and gets to work. In another scene, before preparing to go on television for an interview, Che is asked if he wants any make-up. He shakes his head, a wry smile on his face, only to change his mind a few seconds later by saying "Maybe a little powder". From his struggles with his asthma to his continued work as a doctor, it's the view through all these smaller windows which effectively give the audience the larger scope of the man.

 

Del Toro is nothing short of extraordinary as Che, commanding every single frame with a powerful and dignified integrity. You really feel this is the man Del Toro was born to portray on screen, and anyone less in the role would have been, well, less. The figure of Guevara is an interesting yet foreign one to most people, but Del Toro plays him in such a way that he makes Che familiar and identifiable to the audience, without being overtly emotional. Del Toro is said to have done years of research for the role, from reading personal writings of the man, to interviews with members of his family and even a five minute encounter with Fidel Castro. The fact that Del Toro wasn't nominated for an Oscar for this role is quite perplexing.

 

It is also quite remarkable that both films combined were shot over 76 days, and with a budget of only US $58 million - you could have doubled each figure and I would have believed it (you'll understand once you see both films). Seeing both films back to back however was a little much, and there are moments in Che Part Two that do drag, and you're not totally sure which direction you're being taken. As a whole though, this ambitious project is definitely worth a viewing if not for the array of wicked facial hair.

 

Che Part One (The Argentine) next screens Tuesday August 4, 4:45pm, Kino Cinema, Collins Street

 

Che Part Two (Guerilla) next screens Wednesday August 5, 4:30pm Kino Cinema, Collins Street

 

The films will also be released in cinemas in October.

 

The Wife and Girlfriend Experience

by Anthony Roberts | July 29, 2009 14:21

FILMINK's MIFF correspondent gives us the latest on the festival's fantastic films.

MIFF Blog, Session 2

 

Anthony Roberts explores the program at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

 

First of the night's double header was Katalin Varga, and for all those nineteenth century Romanian history buffs I'll stop you right there - no, this is not a biopic on the life and times of Katalin Varga, the leader of the Transylvania Miners' Movement in the 1840s. I'm very sorry to disappoint.

 

Rather, this a contemporary revenge drama set against the backdrop of Romania's picturesque Carpathian Mountains. From first time helmer Peter Strickland, the story begins with Katalin and her son, Orban, being harshly exiled from their village by her irate husband Zsigmond, who finds out that Katalin was raped eleven years previous (he calls her a "whore", probably not the reaction she was hoping for).

 

Katalin and Orban (who was actually fathered by the man who raped Katalin) proceed to take a road trip across the Romanian countryside in a horse and cart (on a side note, I found it strange that she owned a mobile phone, but still got by using this method of transportation). While Katalin continues to tell her innocent companion that they're going to visit her ailing mother, she has more sinister plans in mind - to avenge the traumatic crime that was committed against her all those years ago. 

 

What has all the makings of a taut, archaic revenge flick misses the mark a little. The pace is too slow, and while the sweeping shots of the Transylvanian countryside are aesthetically pleasing, Strickland holds many of these shots too long, and you kind of become aware of it. It was also difficult to buy into Katalin's motivation for revenge. It seems as though it was spurred on by the fact that she was kicked out of the house by an unsympathetic husband, and vengeance was just something to do.

 

The film does have fairly strong performances from lead actress Hilda Peter, as well as Tibor Palffy who plays Antal, the man at the center of Katalin's retribution. And the fact that it was shot over four years, with an entire budget of  less than 30,000 Euros, is pretty damn extraordinary. I wouldn't think many filmmakers could produce such an effort for so little money.

 

Katalin Varga next screens Monday August 3, 4:45pm, Forum Theatre

 

The second act of the night was Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience, a sporadic, digitally shot endeavour which is his follow-up film to the five-hour biopic Che, which is also showing at this year's festival (split into two parts, reviews to come). This film follows high-class escort Chelsea as she navigates her way through the trendy haunts of Manhattan to give her clients a slice of the perfect girlfriend that they seemingly don't have time for.

 

The story takes place over five days on the eve of the 2008 Presidential election and smack bang in the middle of the Global Financial Crisis. Over this short period we encounter Chelsea as she deals with her slew of different clients, her relationship with boyfriend and personal trainer Chris, and her attempts to expand her brand in a time of economic peril.

 

Soderbergh is on top of his game here, with his thoughtfully fragmented editing along with his honest cinematography - using only natural light - perfectly capturing dimly lit trendy Manhattan nightspots and boutique shops. He also does a terrific job of adapting the story and the GFC, which hit right at the time the film was being made. You feel much of the story dealt with these issues anyway, but the transition is fairly seamless.

 

Soderbergh doesn't allow the film to be a simple narrative of the escort business either. He doesn't portray Chelsea as the stereotypical bed-hopping vixen who has to deal with a bevy of sweaty men and their weird sexual fantasies. In fact, the film doesn't contain anything close to a graphic sex scene, unless you count the unexpected climax of the film which takes place in a Hassidic bakery. Rather, this is a story of the escort as businesswoman with her own brand, and the notions of power, control, and capitalism.

 

This project first garnered a significant amount of attention when it was announced that Sasha Grey, a well known adult film actress, was cast in the lead role. And Grey is somewhat of a revelation here, bringing a genuine realism to the role of the seemingly unaffected Chelsea. Grey plays it perfectly as this detached, very cold persona, a necessity in that line of work (as explored in the film by a journalist who is doing a story on her). But there are a couple of moments of unexpected vulnerability, and Grey plays these scenes understatedly well. Chris Santos, another unknown actor (the film is filled with a cast of unknowns) who plays boyfriend Chris, is also great in his role as he attempts to financially stay afloat, as well as dealing with the difficult nature of his relationship with an escort.

 

Also watch out for a coincidental tie-in to this year's MIFF, and a scene in which two street folk singers spout the words "Everyone's a Critic".

 

The Girlfriend Experience next screens Sunday August 9, 9pm, ACMI

 

Dolphin Sushi Anyone? MIFF Blog, Day 1.

by Anthony Roberts | July 27, 2009 09:51

Anthony Roberts explores the program at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

A tantalising MIFF tasting plate to start with; a Romanian comedy/melodrama entrée, followed by a potentially best doco of 2009 main course.

 

First on the schedule was Silent Wedding, an utterly charming Romanian comedy/melodrama from writer/director Horatiu Malaele. The film opens on the bleak countryside of the Balkan state as a TV crew makes their way into a dilapidated town to film a story for a local news program. What they find in the town are elderly, mournful women dressed in black, and an overtly exuberant yet creepy mature prostitute.

 

We are quickly transported from the grey austerity to the sun and vivaciousness of 1953, and this same Romanian village bursting with life and larger than life characters - from a wise cracking midget to a bumbling Mayor. The story centers around the impending nuptials of Iancu and Mara, and just as the effervescent townspeople are about to partake in the joyous wedding banquet, a menacing Soviet soldier informs them that Stalin is dead, and they must refrain from such activities.

 

What ensues is a preposterous yet hilariously muted wedding celebration. They have everything you'd expect at a silent wedding - a band pretending to play music, precocious children with gags in their mouths, mimed wedding speeches, and guests eating with their hands as utensils make too much noise. And I'm not one who generally enjoys a fart gag, but this movie has one of the funniest and longest ones in recent memory.

 

Silent Wedding is a visual treat, contrasting brilliantly from stark, modern day dreariness to the vibrant radiance of rural Romania. The actors do a brilliant job in bringing genuine warmth to each character, as well as having an uncanny comedic rapport with each other that feels amazingly natural - this truly is a community you want to be a part of. On a deeper level, it is also a heartbreaking story about resistance during the deep, dark days of communism, and this fairytale town and the people who stand up and fight, even if no one can hear them.

 

Silent Wedding next screens 7 August, 4:45pm, Greater Union, Russell Street

 

Next up was The Cove, a compellingly powerful and moving documentary from filmmaker and conservationist Louie Psihoyos. The film centers on a small cove in Taiji, Japan where, unbeknown to the rest of the world (including most Japanese), the slaughter of approximately 23,000 dolphins takes place every year. Remember in 2007 when Heroes star Hayden Panettiere and Aussie Isabel Lucas were arrested on surfboards for peacefully protesting animal rights? It was in the metaphorical bloody waters (not always metaphorical, actually) of Taiji.

 

At the heart of the story is Richard O'Barry, a confrontational dolphin crusader who was once the primary animal trainer for the TV show Flipper. His sour experience on the series left him remorseful to say the least, and his subsequent years have been spent fighting the dolphin cause. This is what led him to the small town of Taiji, which has been a whaling epicenter for centuries, and is also a hub of dolphin activity. The fishermen capture and sell dolphins to theme parks all over the world for up to US $150,000 a pop, while the rest are lured to this cove using sonar and are systematically and inhumanely slaughtered for food.

 

This truly is a remarkable documentary, which is part awareness campaign and part action-adventure. Psihoyos is the Conservationalist equivalent of Danny Ocean (pardon the pun), as he goes about assembling a covert group of activists and deep sea divers to infiltrate this hidden cove, which is heavily guarded by security and infuriated local fishermen. Being tailed by the local police everywhere they go, the group's mission is to somehow get footage of the horrific events that go on every morning at this cove and bring it to the attention of the world.

 

Psihoyos does a superb job at balancing every aspect of story - from Barry's regretful past training of the Flipper dolphins, to the inner workings of the International Whale Commission, and the actual Ocean's 11's style mission which is a real thrill ride. And the pay-off is possibly the most harrowing 3-4 minutes of footage you'll ever see in a documentary, the type of haunting images that will stay with you for a long while after the film ends. While at times being a difficult film to watch, The Cove might very well be the best documentary of 2009.

 

The Cove next screens August 4, 4:45pm, Greater Union, Russell Street

 

Response to Kamal Fedal

by Janice Forbes | July 21, 2009 12:25

The issues Kamal raises have been debated in the electronic media and I draw on that.   Keeping African slaves has been practised by white Berber/Arabs...

The issues Kamal raises have been debated in the electronic media and I draw on that.

 

Keeping African slaves has been practised by white Berber/Arabs for several hundred years and has been hard to eradicate. UN and Human Rights Watch confirm that it is still practised in the Saharawi camps.

 

Most dialogue is in Spanish. Hassania is not a written language and agreement on translation is unlikely. All Hassania dialogue could be removed without changing the message.

 

A 2008 UNHCR report on the Saharawi camps notes that the Polisario's suppression of freedom of speech and freedom of movement of camp residents continues to be a concern.

 

The film underwent intense legal scrutiny following a three-year campaign by the Polisario to suppress it. If there had been a problem it would not have been screened at SFF.

 

Footage was stolen and shown on Moroccan TV, apparently damaging the Polisario campaign for independence. This does not mean film makers are Moroccan spies. They inadvertently became caught up someone else's war.

 

The media campaign to suppress the film is been lent credibilty by human rights activist, Meredith Burgmann, and her former chief of staff, Yvette Andrews, through their involvement with the Australia Western Sahara Association which has links to the ALP. In 2004 Andrews visited the Saharawi camps with Burgmann and made a film showing the official Polisario version of their fight for independence.

 

The 7.30 Report is not impartial however the film makers are credible in their interview, available on Youtube.

 

Ich Liebe Bruno

by Yumi Stynes | July 09, 2009 11:19

Yumi Stynes wraps up the week in film, starting with Bruno, Winged Creatures and Ice Age 3.

I interviewed Sacha Baron Cohen in 2006 as ‘Borat'. All journalists who wanted to speak with him had been warned that the interview with the star comedian would be in character and we were asked to submit questions several days before the interview.

 

Familiar TV faces lounged around the swanky Sydney hotel (called the ‘W' back then) - Kochie, Andrew G, Merrick and Rosso, and more - waiting for their turn with the mustachioed hero. What was really fascinating and scary was the look on these peoples' faces as they emerged after their interviews. Most looked shell-shocked. Several were wiping tears of laughter from their eyes. If a presenter went in with a producer, they'd stagger out gaping at each other with complete disbelief, mouths dangling open and repeating things like, "What the f***?!" and "Oh my God!"

 

Inside, they had decked out a pretty unremarkable hotel room (I've once interviewed Foo Fighters in the same room) with animal fur rugs, kaftan material and ethnic decorations and entering the room, Baron Cohen greeted me in character. Behind my right shoulder was an autocue facing him containing my questions and prepared answers by ‘Borat'.

 

If it sounds contrived, it was - very carefully, meticulously prepared. But the interview was successful because Borat could deviate from the script and the most brilliant moments arrived when he improvised.

 

A similarly meticulous approach can be detected deep in the anal creases of gay Austrian fashionista ‘Bruno'. Bruno, like Borat, upsets people by loving and accepting himself while being deeply offensive to others. Particularly in the United States of America, where self-improvement is a national pastime and being ‘born again' is a religion, Borat and Bruno's unwillingness to self-loathe seems downright anarchistic. It's obvious to compare the two films but they definitely share a prototype: two friends strive to learn more about themselves and the world while road tripping as strangers in a strange land. There is even a comparable nude scene.

 

Critics aren't liking this one as much as ‘Borat', complaining that Bruno is less innocent and more disgusting. There are certainly lines in there that'll make you choke. You will find yourself looking across at your movie companions, saying, "He did NOT just say that!" But I think this is a wonderful film, full of daring and balls and no kidding, there are moments in it that make you feel like a good film can change people. Utterly unmissable.

 

A mystifying little film called Winged Creatures is out this week with a star cast that includes Forest Whitaker, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Guy Pearce and Kate Beckinsale, and was directed by Aussie Rowan Wood, who did that amazing head-trip The Boys back in 1998. Winged Creatures tells the story of the aftermath of a shooting in a diner and the struggles of various ordinary people as they try to deal with it. The movie is based on a book by Roy Freirich and probably makes more sense if you've read it. Maybe. Too many characters with not enough resolution make this a kind of indigestible snack. Forest Whitaker's storyline is the most interesting. He plays Charlie Archenault, a guy who's been diagnosed with cancer who is nearly shot dead as he stands next to the cash register. The idea that he must be lucky plagues Charlie and he goes off on 3-day bender, testing his luck at a casino. Winged Creatures is also interesting for including child actor Dakota Fanning who's fifteen now but still playing the anaemic, haunted little girl she started with in War of the Worlds.

 

Finally, it was with great excitement that I packed up my two daughters for a trip to the alpine slopes of Thredbo, NSW, for the ‘Snow Carpet' premiere of Ice Age 3. I've seen many, many different ways that film distribution companies try and get critics' attention but this has been one of the best. Now my kids scream when they see an ad for this film on the back of a bus. The film itself is great for young ones up to ten and as with the preceding two films, the weasel character Scratte, steals the show. But will he finally get his acorn? Ice Age 3 is out in 3-D.

 

An Indecent Proposal

by Yumi Stynes | July 01, 2009 11:20

Shia LaBeouf is a fascinating young actor whose star has been steadily on the rise. After an adolescence of small but strong support roles...

Shia LaBeouf is a fascinating young actor whose star has been steadily on the rise. After an adolescence of small but strong support roles in movies like I, Robot and Bobby, at the age of 23 he got a lead role in the thriller Disturbia, which came out in 2007. The film was formulaic in most ways except for young LaBeouf. 

 

His character Kale is a troubled teen under house arrest for punching out a teacher and who, with so much time at home, starts spying on his neighbours. In spite of all of Kale's repressed teenage horniness, he's a likeable, multi-faceted guy and Shia plays him with such nuance and intelligence that an average movie becomes a quite good one.

Transformers followed, where his acting chops were tested against some rather large and noisy computer-generated machines, but for me the real revelation was Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Up against iconic greats like Cate Blanchett, Ray Winstone, John Hurt and of course, Harrison Ford, Shia not only held his own, he acted his ass off. Not a word is wasted. When he says, "You're a teacher?" to Indiana Jones, the line is brimming with humour, disbelief and is pitched perfectly. He reminds me a bit of Ryan Gosling - they're both rich in talent.

 

The forgettable film Eagle Eye starred LaBeouf in 2008. It was a big-budget thriller with a shoddy premise that in spite of its inability to hold water, was entertaining and made Shia even more bankable.

 

So how does his ascent hold up against the about-to-be critically derided sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen? In short, Shia LaBeouf is fine but the movie could've used him more and the machines less. If there's a lesson to be learned from Alien VS Predator (and believe me, there are many lessons to be learned from that film. And from Rambo), it's that action gets boring when it doesn't involve a human. Who can we relate to? The Alien or the Predator? Who cares?

 

I had to interview Megan Fox two years ago and the only time she cracked a smile was when she was talking about her Transformers co-star Shia LeBeouf ("He's wonderful") and when I asked her if the Team America song about how crap her director is ever ran through her head. Pearl Harbor sucked and I miss you. / Why does Michael Bay get to keep on making movies? / I guess Pearl Harbor sucked, just a little bit more than I miss you."

 

Look, if you've got your period or you haven't been laid for a long time, you could get worse therapy than a lobotomy via the latest romantic comedy to star Sandra Bullock, The Proposal. Her plastic surgery seems to have calmed down a bit since Premonition (terrible film, co-stars Aussie actor Julian McMahon who, let's face it, is no Shia LaBeouf) and she's actually great. I know! Crazy, huh? Look, the film follows the rom-com formula beautifully, the romance is believable and cute and even though actor Ryan Reynolds has never actually done anything good, he's lovely in this. Yuh, no jokes. I liked it. It's like cinematic comfort food this winter.

 

If you need somewhere to take kids on a rainy day this season and the aquarium is too crowded, and you've already had everything pierced, and you've been banned from the art gallery, and all your friends hate you, the new Will Ferrell comedy Land of the Lost is not too scary for kids and not too painful for adults. You may even enjoy the subtle drug references. Ferrell's co-star Anna Friel is a refreshingly normal girl who doesn't play bimbo and Danny McBride as the redneck buddy is also fun.

 

Finally, a quick word about the new French film to star Amelie's Audrey Tautou - Coco Avant Chanel. If I don't tell you this, no one else will: It's boring. Sorry!

 

Response to: The Truth Is Out There. Day 9 of the Sydney Film Festival. A Daily Blog.

by Dov Kornits | June 23, 2009 08:55

Kamal Fedal, Western Sahara Representative to Australia, responds to our reportage of the controversial Sydney Film Fest screening of 'Stolen'.

I’d like to draw your attention to some serious issues related to this film: concerns relating to the truth; copyrights; ethical conduct; consent and individual rights.

 

Since the screening of “Stolen” during the Sydney Film Festival on 11 June 2009, few important issues have come to light: http://www.abc.net.au/news/video/2009/06/15/2598994.htm  

"Stolen" is seriously misleading in alleging slavery in the camps and it misuses the story of Fetim Sellami who withdrew her consent, as have most of the other Saharawis who were filmed.

 

The following are some of the main problems with “Stolen”:

 

Most of the translation Hassania (local language) into English is completely wrong.

 

Many of the scenes in the film were constructed (acted, cut and mixed to give certain false impressions…etc) so this is not a documentary.

 

The filmmakers have included in the film footage shot by an American cameraman called Carlos Gonzales without his permission. This is a breach of copyrights. The filmmakers have now been forced to delete that part of the film.

 

Saharawis involved in the film have testified that they were given money to speak: Please check: http://media.smh.com.au/entertainment/red-carpet/sahara-slavery-fiercely-denied-582354.html,

 

Screen Australia has admitted that it has no release (consent) signed or otherwise from the Saharawis involved in the documentary.

 

There is also a serious issue regarding the involvement of the Moroccan regime in the documentary and its use of the film as propaganda tool to harm the Saharawi struggle for freedom and self-determination.

 

For Australian media coverage on this controversy, Kamal has provided the following links:

The 7.30 Report: http://www.abc.net.au/news/video/2009/06/15/2598994.htm
 
Bob Ellis article: http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/stories/s2598993.htm

 

http://media.smh.com.au/entertainment/red-carpet/sahara-slavery-fiercely-denied-582354.html   (watch video).

http://artneuro.wordpress.com/2009/06/16/slave-to-the-funding/
 
http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/film/sydney-film-festival-2009/protesters-step-up-campaign-to-have-slave-film-banned/2009/06/16/1244918036854.html

http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/film/sydney-film-festival-2009/i-am-not-a-slave-says-film-subject/2009/06/11/1244664795732.html

 

Sunday 12:00 - ABC NewsRadio's 'Out of Africa' with Fiona Ellis-Jones ...

An in-depth look at African cultural, political and economic affairs, featuring news stories and extended interviews from across the continent:    Listen : http://mpegmedia.abc.net.au/newsradio/audio/20090614-outofafrica.mp3