87 Countries Seek a "Foreign Film" Oscar Nod at 91st Academy Awards

87 COUNTRIES IN COMPETITION FOR 2018 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM OSCAR

Eighty-seven countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 91st Academy Awards®.  Malawi and Niger are first-time entrants.

The 2018 submissions are:

Afghanistan, “Rona Azim’s Mother,” Jamshid Mahmoudi, director;

Algeria, “Until the End of Time,” Yasmine Chouikh, director;

Argentina, “El Ángel,” Luis Ortega, director;

Armenia, “Spitak,” Alexander Kott, director;

Australia, “Jirga,” Benjamin Gilmour, director;

Austria, “The Waldheim Waltz,” Ruth Beckermann, director;

Bangladesh, “No Bed of Roses,” Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, director;

Belarus, “Crystal Swan,” Darya Zhuk, director;

Belgium, “Girl,” Lukas Dhont, director;

Bolivia, “The Goalkeeper,” Rodrigo “Gory” Patiño, director;

Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Never Leave Me,” Aida Begić, director;

Brazil, “The Great Mystical Circus,” Carlos Diegues, director;

Bulgaria, “Omnipresent,” Ilian Djevelekov, director;

Cambodia, “Graves without a Name,” Rithy Panh, director;

Canada, “Family First,” Sophie Dupuis, director;

Chile, “…And Suddenly the Dawn,” Silvio Caiozzi, director;

China, “Hidden Man,” Jiang Wen, director;

Colombia, “Birds of Passage,” Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra, directors;

Costa Rica, “Medea,” Alexandra Latishev, director;

Croatia, “The Eighth Commissioner,” Ivan Salaj, director;

Czech Republic, “Winter Flies,” Olmo Omerzu, director;

Denmark, “The Guilty,” Gustav Möller, director;

Dominican Republic, “Cocote,” Nelson Carlo De Los Santos Arias, director;

Ecuador, “A Son of Man,” Jamaicanoproblem, director;

Egypt, “Yomeddine,” A.B. Shawky, director;

Estonia, “Take It or Leave It,” Liina Trishkina-Vanhatalo, director;

Finland, “Euthanizer,” Teemu Nikki, director;

France, “Memoir of War,” Emmanuel Finkiel, director;

Georgia, “Namme,” Zaza Khalvashi, director;

Germany, “Never Look Away,” Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, director;

Greece, “Polyxeni,” Dora Masklavanou, director;

Hong Kong, “Operation Red Sea,” Dante Lam, director;

Hungary, “Sunset,” László Nemes, director;

Iceland, “Woman at War,” Benedikt Erlingsson, director;

India, “Village Rockstars,” Rima Das, director;

Indonesia, “Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts,” Mouly Surya, director;

Iran, “No Date, No Signature,” Vahid Jalilvand, director;

Iraq, “The Journey,” Mohamed Jabarah Al-Daradji, director;

Israel, “The Cakemaker,” Ofir Raul Graizer, director;

Italy, “Dogman,” Matteo Garrone, director;

Japan, “Shoplifters,” Hirokazu Kore-eda, director;

Kazakhstan, “Ayka,” Sergey Dvortsevoy, director;

Kenya, “Supa Modo,” Likarion Wainaina, director;

Kosovo, “The Marriage,” Blerta Zeqiri, director;

Latvia, “To Be Continued,” Ivars Seleckis, director;

Lebanon, “Capernaum,” Nadine Labaki, director;

Lithuania, “Wonderful Losers: A Different World,” Arunas Matelis, director;

Luxembourg, “Gutland,” Govinda Van Maele, director;

Macedonia, “Secret Ingredient,” Gjorce Stavreski, director;

Malawi, “The Road to Sunrise,” Shemu Joyah, director;

Mexico, “Roma,” Alfonso Cuarón, director;

Montenegro, “Iskra,” Gojko Berkuljan, director;

Morocco, “Burnout,” Nour-Eddine Lakhmari, director;

Nepal, “Panchayat,” Shivam Adhikari, director;

Netherlands, “The Resistance Banker,” Joram Lürsen, director;

New Zealand, “Yellow Is Forbidden,” Pietra Brettkelly, director;

Niger, “The Wedding Ring,” Rahmatou Keïta, director;

Norway, “What Will People Say,” Iram Haq, director;

Pakistan, “Cake,” Asim Abbasi, director;

Palestine, “Ghost Hunting,” Raed Andoni, director;

Panama, “Ruben Blades Is Not My Name,” Abner Benaim, director;

Paraguay, “The Heiresses,” Marcelo Martinessi, director;

Peru, “Eternity,” Oscar Catacora, director;

Philippines, “Signal Rock,” Chito S. Roño, director;

Poland, “Cold War,” Pawel Pawlikowski, director;

Portugal, “Pilgrimage,” João Botelho, director;

Romania, “I Do Not Care If We Go Down in History as Barbarians,” Radu Jude, director;

Russia, “Sobibor,” Konstantin Khabensky, director;

Serbia, “Offenders,” Dejan Zecevic, director;

Singapore, “Buffalo Boys,” Mike Wiluan, director;

Slovakia, “The Interpreter,” Martin Šulík, director;

Slovenia, “Ivan,” Janez Burger, director;

South Africa, “Sew the Winter to My Skin,” Jahmil X.T. Qubeka, director;

South Korea, “Burning,” Lee Chang-dong, director;

Spain, “Champions,” Javier Fesser, director;

Sweden, “Border,” Ali Abbasi, director;

Switzerland, “Eldorado,” Markus Imhoof, director;

Taiwan, “The Great Buddha+,” Hsin-Yao Huang, director;

Thailand, “Malila The Farewell Flower,” Anucha Boonyawatana, director;

Tunisia, “Beauty and the Dogs,” Kaouther Ben Hania, director;

Turkey, “The Wild Pear Tree,” Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director;

Ukraine, “Donbass,” Sergei Loznitsa, director;

United Kingdom, “I Am Not a Witch,” Rungano Nyoni, director;

Uruguay, “Twelve-Year Night,” Álvaro Brechner, director;

Venezuela, “The Family,” Gustavo Rondón Córdova, director;

Vietnam, “The Tailor,” Buu Loc Tran, Kay Nguyen, directors;

Yemen, “10 Days before the Wedding,” Amr Gamal, director.

Nominations for the 91st Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 22, 2019.

The 91st Oscars® will be held on Sunday, February 24, 2019, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network.  The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

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Dark Horse Collects Tamburini and Liberatore's "Ranx"

Dark Horse to Publish 1980s Cult Classic “Ranx”

Collected for First Time in English

MILWAUKIE, OR—Dark Horse Comics is pleased to announce that it will be publishing the classic Heavy Metal series Ranx for the first time in English since its debut in the 1980s.

This volume collects all of the Ranx stories by two Italian comic masters, writer Stefano Tamburini and artist Tanino Liberatore.

Ranx (also known as RanXerox) is a sci-fi antihero made of photocopier parts and ultraviolence. In a futuristic dystopia, he protects his girlfriend Lubna from vicious drug dealers on a brutal path of sex, carnage, and destruction.

The hardcover will be released on November 9, 2016.

“Tanino Liberatore. Italian. Acid-fueled son of R. Corben. His dwindling output is still crowned by his RanXerox.”—Guillermo del Toro

“Ranx is a punk, futuristic Frankenstein monster, and with the under-aged Lubna, they are a bizarre Beauty and the Beast. This artist and writer team have turned a dark mirror to the depths of our id, and we see reflected the base part of ourselves that would take what it wants with no compromise, no apology—and woe to the person who would cross us. But it is all done with a black, wry, satirical sense of humor.”—Richard Corben

“The Ranx character is a punky, post-apocalyptic android built from spare Xerox machine parts. All RanXerox stories were luxuriously illustrated with bizarre, violent and, to put it lightly, unchaste story lines.”—TwitchFilm


About Dark Horse
For 30 years, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. Founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson, the company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent, such as Eric Powell, Mike Mignola, Geof Darrow, Brian Wood, Gail Simone, Stan Sakai, and Guillermo del Toro, and comics legends, such as Will Eisner, Milo Manara, Kazuo Koike, Neil Gaiman and Frank Miller, Dark Horse has developed its own successful properties, such as The Mask, Ghost, X and Barb Wire. Its successful line of comics, manga and products based on popular properties includes Dragon Age, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Tomb Raider, Halo, The Witcher, Serenity, Game of Thrones, and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic book publisher in the US and is recognized as one of the world’s leading entertainment publishers.

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Paolo Sorrentino's "Youth" Named "Best European Film of 2015"

The European Film Awards recognize excellence in European cinematic achievements.  The awards are are presented annually since 1988 by the European Film Academy and are given in over ten categories, of which the most important is “European Film,” the best film of the year award.  The European Film Awards are restricted to European cinema and European producers, directors, and actors.

The winners of the 28th European Film Awards were announced at a ceremony on Saturday, December 12, 2015 in Berlin, Germany.

The 2015/28th European Film Awards winners:

EUROPEAN FILM 2015
Youth, dir: Paolo Sorrentino

EUROPEAN ACTRESS 2015
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years

EUROPEAN ACTOR 2015
Michael Caine, Youth

EUROPEAN DIRECTOR 2015
Paolo Sorrentino, Youth

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD 2015
Marshland, dir: Alberto Rodríguez

EUROPEAN COMEDY 2015
A Pigeon Sat On A Branch Reflecting On Existence, dir: Roy Andersson

EUROPEAN DOCUMENTARY 2015
Amy, dir: Asif Kapadia

EUROPEAN DISCOVERY – PRIX FIPRESCI
Mustang, dir: Deniz Gamze Erguven

EUROPEAN ANIMATED FEATURE FILM 2015
Song Of The Sea, dir: Tomm Moore

EUROPEAN SHORT FILM 2015
Picnic, dir: Jure Pavlovic

EUROPEAN SCREENWRITER 2015
Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthimis Filippou for The Lobster

PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED:

EFA LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 2015
Charlotte Rampling

EUROPEAN CO-PRODUCTION AWARD 2015
Andrea Occhipinti

EUROPEAN SOUND DESIGNER 2015
Vasco Pimentel & Miguel Martins for Arabian Nights – Vol I-III

EUROPEAN COMPOSER 2015
Cat’s Eyes for The Duke Of Burgundy

EUROPEAN COSTUME DESIGNER 2015
Sarah Blenkinsop for The Lobster

EUROPEAN PRODUCTION DESIGNER 2015
Sylvie Olivé for The Brand New Testament

EUROPEAN EDITOR 2015
Jacek Drosio for Body

EUROPEAN CINEMATOGRAPHER 2015
Martin Gschlacht for Goodnight Mommy

EUROPEAN ACHIEVEMENT IN WORLD CINEMA (Honorary Award)
Christoph Waltz

HONORARY AWARD OF THE EFA PRESIDENT AND BOARD
Michael Caine

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Review: "The Great Beauty" is" La grande bellezza"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 38 (of 2015) by Leroy Douresseaux

[A version of this review was first posted on Patreon.]

The Great Beauty (2013)
La grande bellezza – original title
Country: Italy/France
Running time:  141 minutes (2 hours, 21 minutes)
Not rated by the MPAA
DIRECTOR:  Paolo Sorrentino
WRITERS:  Paolo Sorrentino and Umberto Contarello; from a story by Paolo Sorrentino
PRODUCERS:  Francesca Cima and Nicola Giuliano
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Luca Bigazzi
EDITOR:  Cristiano Travagl
COMPOSER:  Lele Marchitelli
Academy Award winner

DRAMA

Starring:  Toni Servillo, Carlo Verdone, Sabrina Ferilli, Carlo Buccirosso, Pamela Villoresi, Galatea Ranzi, Franco Graziosi, Giorgio Pasotti, Sonia Gessner, Luca Marinelli, Serena Grandi, Vernon Dobtcheff, Giovanna Vignola, Isabella Ferrari, and Giusi Merli

La grande bellezza (The Great Beauty) is a 2013 drama from director Paolo Sorrentino.  The Great Beauty is an Italian and French co-production, and as a representative of Italy, it won the Oscar for “Best Foreign Language Film of the Year” for the year 2013.  The film was released to U.S. theaters in 2014.  The Great Beauty follows a writer through timeless and beautiful Rome as he takes stock of his life after he receives a shock from the past.

The Great Beauty focuses on Jep Gambardella (Toni Servillo), a journalist and socialite living in Rome.  He has lived a lavish life in Rome since he moved to the city as a 26-year-old.  Once upon a time, Jep wrote an acclaimed and well-received novel, The Human Apparatus.  While people awaited a second novel, Jep lived a comfortable life of writing about about celebrities and of throwing parties for celebrities and socialites in his fancy luxury apartment.

After his 65th birthday, Jep receives some shocking news about an old girlfriend.  He walks through the side of Rome that is a timeless landscape of absurd beauty and exquisite antiquity.  He reflects on his life and the sense that he is unfulfilled, as he encounters various characters.

The Great Beauty is indeed a great beauty.  The audience follows Jep Gambardella through parts of Rome that are tourist destinations or are either museums or sections of palatial estates.  I could recommend The Great Beauty for the absurd beauty of the film's settings and locales, alone.

As for the film's narrative:  it would be too easy to say that the specter of death hangs over the film.  The theme of growing old permeates the film, and also most of the characters seem to be yearning for more of something in their lives, even if more of what they want is bad for them.  Their lives are emotionally and spiritually empty.  I think the idea is that Jep has drifted through the last four decades of his life without realizing that he needs to establish roots.

I think that The Great Beauty encourages people to realize that beauty comes in fits and flashes between long stretches of what is ugly and banal in life; don't chase the superficial prettiness could be a tag line for the movie.  Still, the parties depicted in this film look pretty good, and the apartments and houses are just lovely.  I enjoyed Jep Gambardella's journey, although it meanders at times, but once again, the beauty in The Great Beauty is just so... beautiful.  This visual splendor alone makes this a truly exceptional film.

9 of 10
A+

Friday, July 31, 2015


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

NOTES:
2014 Academy Awards, USA:  1 win: “Best Foreign Language Film of the Year” (Italy)

2014 Golden Globes, USA:  1 win: “Best Foreign Language Film” (Italy)

2014 BAFTA Awards:  1 win: “Best Film not in the English Language” (Paolo Sorrentino, Nicola Giuliano, and Francesca Cima)

2013 Cannes Film Festival:  1 nomination: “Palme d'Or: (Paolo Sorrentino)

Review: European Actors Shine in Woody Allen's "To Rome with Love"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 34 (of 2014) by Leroy Douresseaux

To Rome with Love (2012)
Running time:  112 minutes (1 hour, 52 minutes)
MPAA – R for some sexual references
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Woody Allen
PRODUCERS:  Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum, Faruk Alatan, and Giampaolo Letta
CINEMATOGRAPHERS:  Darius Khondji
EDITOR:  Alisa Lepselter

ROMANCE/COMEDY with elements of fantasy

Starring:  Woody Allen, Judy Davis, Flavio Parenti, Alison Pill, Fabio Armiliato, Alessandro Tiberi, Alessandra Mastronardi, Penelope Cruz, Antonio Albanese, Jesse Eisenberg, Greta Gerwig, Ellen Page, Alec Baldwin, and Roberto Benigni

To Rome with Love is a 2012 romantic comedy written and directed by Woody Allen.  Like other Allen films, To Rome with Love has magical realist elements.  To Rome with Love follows a small group of visitors and residents of Rome and focuses on their romances and adventures and the predicaments into which they get themselves.

To Rome with Love tells four unrelated stories.  Hayley (Alison Pill), an American tourist, falls in love with Italian pro bono lawyer and Rome resident, Michelangelo (Flavio Parenti), and they become engaged.  Hayley’s parents, Jerry and Phyllis (Woody Allen and Judy Davis), arrive in Rome to meet Michelangelo and his parents.  Jerry, a retired opera director, discovers that Michelangelo’s father, Giancarlo (Fabio Armiliato), has a wonderful operatic voice, so Jerry decides to make Giancarlo an opera star in spite of everyone’s protests against that.

Newlyweds Antonio (Alessandro Tiberi) and Milly (Alessandra Mastronardi) arrive in Rome from their rustic hometown.  They are supposed to meet Antonio’s well-connected and posh uncles who have lined up a fantastic job interview for him.  However, Antonio and Milly get separated.  Antonio is accidentally forced into an encounter with a gorgeous prostitute named Anna (Penelope Cruz).  Milly meets her favorite actor, Luchino “Luca” Salta (Antonio Albanese), who immediately begins to plot to have sex with the young wife.

John Foy (Alec Baldwin) is visiting Rome and meets Jack (Jesse Eisenberg), a young architecture student.  Jack lives with his girlfriend, Sally (Greta Gerwig).  Sally’s friend, Monica (Ellen Page), a pretentious young actress, arrives in Rome to visit them.  John warns Jack about falling in love with Monica…  Finally, ordinary business man, Leopold Pisanello (Roberto Benigni), suddenly gains an extraordinary life.

To Rome with Love is a romantic, comic, and romantic comedy romp through Rome.  It is not by any means a great film, but this movie does have a kind a charm that I cannot explain.  The American actors are mostly stiff, but Allen does not give them particularly flexible characters.  There is, however, this one great moment when Alec Baldwin’s John gives Ellen Page’s Monica a fantastic death stare.  There is something potent, electric, and maybe even dangerous in this one stare that I wish the rest of the John-Jack-Sally-Monica storyline had.

On the opposite side, the European actors sparkle.  Allen gives them the best characters and also better subplots than he gives the Americans.  The Europeans get inside the shallow characters Allen gives them and make them less shallow and more attractive. One example of this is Antonio Albanese.  Bald at the top of his head and somewhat pudgy, Albanese makes Luca Salta an alluring, sexy man, which in turn makes the idea of Salta as a movie star convincing.

Penelope Cruz, who won a supporting actress Oscar for her performance in an earlier Woody Allen film (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), gives To Rome with Love’s best performance.  She deserved another supporting actor Oscar nomination (at least) for her work here.  When her Anna is onscreen, this film seems to sparkle with new energy because that is what Cruz does – enliven things.  She is an excellent actress and is also quite the spitfire.

I will recommend To Rome with Love to fans of both Woody Allen and Penelope Cruz.  It is not great, but it is worth seeing.

6 of 10
B

Tuesday, July 08, 2014


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: Visually Splendid "The Merchant of Venice" is Soft on Story (Happy B'day, Shakespeare)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 93 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Merchant of Venice (2004)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: U.K., Italy, Luxembourg
Running time:  131 minutes (2 hours, 11 minutes)
MPAA – R for some nudity
DIRECTOR:  Michael Radford
WRITER:  Michael Radford (based upon the play by William Shakespeare)
PRODUCERS:  Cary Brokaw, Michael Lionello Cowan, Barry Navidi, Jason Piette,
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Benoît Delhomme
EDITOR:  Lucia Zucchetti
COMPOSER:  Jocelyn Pook
BAFTA Awards nominee

DRAMA with elements of romance

Starring:  Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, Joseph Fiennes, Lynn Collins, Zuleikha Robinson, Kris Marshall, Charlie Cox, Heather Goldenhersh, and David Harewood

The subject of this movie review is The Merchant of Venice, a 2004 romantic drama from writer-director Michael Radford.  The film is based upon the comedy play, The Merchant of Venice, written by William Shakespeare around 1596.  Radford’s film adaptation is apparently the first full-length, theatrical, sound film version of The Merchant of Venice.  The Merchant of Venice the film is set in 16th century Venice and finds a merchant having to pay a gruesome price after he must default on a large loan he borrowed from a Jewish moneylender for a friend.

William Shakespeare is once again brought to the screen, this time in The Merchant of Venice, another film adaptation of his play about passion, justice, and anti-Semitism.  Set in late 16th century Venice, the story finds Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes) lacking money to woo an heiress, Portia of Belmont (Lynn Collins), because his lavish lifestyle has left him deeply in debt.  So he turns to his merchant friend, Antonio (Jeremy Irons), for the money.  Antonio, however, has his cash tied up in ships and overseas trade, so he secures a loan of 3,000 ducats from Shylock (Al Pacino), a Jew.

In Venice, Jews cannot own property, and they are forced to live in a “geto” (a walled-off section of the city), having only limited access to the city.  Antonio has publicly abused Shylock and other Jews for the practice of usury – money lending.  Spiteful and bitter, Shylock is glad to have Antonio in his debt.  In order to secure the money he wants to give Bassanio, Antonio promises that if he defaults on the loan, he’ll pay Shylock with a pound of flesh – literally.

Bassanio leaves with his friend Gratanio (Kris Marshall) to woo his love, but finds that Portia and her lady-in-waiting, Nerissa (Heather Goldenhersh), have been entertaining other suitors.  Like them, Bassanio must engage in a game of chance (blindly choosing which of three caskets holds the prize that earns Portia’s hand).  However, Jessica (Zuleikha Robinson), Shylock’s daughter, elopes with Bassanio’s friend, Lorenzo (Charlie Cox), and takes a large amount of her father’s personal wealth with her.  Wounded to his very soul, Shylock focuses on Antonio’s debt to him, and when Antonio does default on the loan, Shylock demands his pound of flesh.

I’ve never seen a previous film version of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice (such as the 1973 version starring Laurence Olivier), and I’m only familiar with the text in passing, having never read the entire work.  Thus, I can only judge this film on its contents or merits.  Michael Radford’s version is a somber narrative with occasional explosions of passionate arguments about prejudice, bigotry, and discriminations, and only a few moments of genuinely harmonious scenes of romantic love.  Despite a diverse range of elegant and sumptuous costumes (for which costume designer Sammy Sheldon earned a 2005 BAFTA Award nomination), evocative sets, and stunning locales set on sunny isles (Venice, Italy), Radford’s film is marred by mumbled dialogue, dour characters, and an air of mean-spiritedness that permeates even the most pleasant moments.

The performances are adequate for transforming Shakespeare to the screen, but only Pacino gives a memorable performance as the righteous and wronged Shylock.  If you, dear reader, need to cheat for an English lit class, Cliff Notes would be better than this.  The film merits as a visual treat, but limps as a narrative.

5 of 10
C+

Saturday, May 06, 2006

NOTES:
2005 BAFTA Awards:  1 nomination: “Best Costume Design” (Sammy Sheldon)

Updated:  Wednesday, April 23, 2014

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

"The Great Beauty" Wins 2014 "Best Foreign Language Film" Oscar

Best foreign language film of the year:

 “The Great Beauty” Italy WINNER

Nominees:
“The Broken Circle Breakdown” Belgium
“The Hunt” Denmark
“The Missing Picture” Cambodia
“Omar” Palestine

Down to 9 Films for "Foreign Language Film" Oscar in 2014

9 Foreign Language Films Advance in Oscar® Race

BEVERLY HILLS, CA —Nine features will advance to the next round of voting in the Foreign Language Film category for the 86th Academy Awards®. Seventy-six films had originally been considered in the category.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

Belgium, "The Broken Circle Breakdown," Felix van Groeningen, director;

Bosnia and Herzegovina, "An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker," Danis Tanovic, director;

Cambodia, "The Missing Picture," Rithy Panh, director;

Denmark, "The Hunt," Thomas Vinterberg, director;

Germany, "Two Lives," Georg Maas, director;

Hong Kong, "The Grandmaster," Wong Kar-wai, director;

Hungary, "The Notebook," Janos Szasz, director;

Italy, "The Great Beauty," Paolo Sorrentino, director;

Palestine, "Omar," Hany Abu-Assad, director.

End of List

Foreign Language Film nominations for 2013 are being determined in two phases.

The Phase I committee, consisting of several hundred Los Angeles-based Academy members, screened the original submissions in the category between mid-October and December 16.  The group's top six choices, augmented by three additional selections voted by the Academy's Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee, constitute the shortlist.

The shortlist will be winnowed down to the five nominees by specially invited committees in New York and Los Angeles.  They will spend Friday, January 10, through Sunday, January 12, viewing three films each day and then casting their ballots.

The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2013 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® and televised live on the ABC Television Network.  The presentation, produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

"The Great Beauty" Tops 2013 European Film Awards

by Amos Semien

Director Paolo Sorrentino’s La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty), an Italian and French co-production, was the big winner at the 26th European Film Awards.  The film won four awards, including best picture, director, and actor (for Toni Servillo).  This year’s Cannes winner, Blue is the Warmest Color, did not win any awards.  Although the European Film Awards are the European continent’s equivalent of the Academy Awards (Oscars), they have practically no bearing on the Oscar race.

26th European Film Awards (2013) – Complete list of winners:

European Film:
LA GRANDE BELLEZZA (The Great Beauty)

European Director:
Paolo Sorrentino for LA GRANDE BELLEZZA (The Great Beauty)

European Actress:
Veerle Baetens in THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN

European Actor:
Toni Servillo in LA GRANDE BELLEZZA (The Great Beauty)

European Screenwriter:
François Ozon for DANS LA MAISON (In the House)

European Comedy:
Love Is All You Need, Susanne Bier, Denmark

European Discovery - Prix FIPRESCI:
Oh Boy!, Jan Ole Gerster, Germany

European Animated Feature Film:
The Congress, Ari Folman, Israel, Germany, Poland, Luxembourg, France and Belgium

European Documentary:
The Act of Killing, Joshua Oppenheimer, Denmark, Norway and UK

European Short Film:
Dood Van Een Schaduw (Death of a Shadow), Tom Van Avermaet, Belgium and France, 20'

Carlo di Palma European Cinematographer Award:
Asaf Sudry for Lemale et Ha'Halal (Fill The Void), Israel

European Editor:
Cristiano Travaglioli for La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty), Italy and France

European Production Designer:
Sarah Greenwood for Anna Karenina, UK

European Composer:
Ennio Morricone for The Best Offer, Italy

European Costume Designer:
Paco Delgado for Blancanieves, Spain and France

European Sound Designer:
Matz Müller and Erik Mischijew for Paradies: Glaube (Paradise: Faith), Austria, Germany and France

76 Nations Compete for Five 2013 Foreign Film Oscar Nominations

76 Countries In Competition For 2013 Foreign Language Film Oscar®

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – A record 76 countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 86th Academy Awards®.  Moldova and Saudi Arabia are first-time entrants; Montenegro is submitting for the first time as an independent country.

The 2013 submissions are:

Afghanistan, "Wajma – An Afghan Love Story," Barmak Akram, director;
Albania, "Agon," Robert Budina, director;
Argentina, "The German Doctor," Lucía Puenzo, director;
Australia, "The Rocket," Kim Mordaunt, director;
Austria, "The Wall," Julian Pölsler, director;
Azerbaijan, "Steppe Man," Shamil Aliyev, director;
Bangladesh, "Television," Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, director;
Belgium, "The Broken Circle Breakdown," Felix van Groeningen, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, "An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker," Danis Tanovic, director;
Brazil, "Neighboring Sounds," Kleber Mendonça Filho, director;
Bulgaria, "The Color of the Chameleon," Emil Hristov, director;
Cambodia, "The Missing Picture," Rithy Panh, director;
Canada, "Gabrielle," Louise Archambault, director;
Chad, "GriGris," Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, director;
Chile, "Gloria," Sebastián Lelio, director;
China, "Back to 1942," Feng Xiaogang, director;
Colombia, "La Playa DC," Juan Andrés Arango, director;
Croatia, "Halima’s Path," Arsen Anton Ostojic, director;
Czech Republic, "The Don Juans," Jiri Menzel, director;
Denmark, "The Hunt," Thomas Vinterberg, director;
Dominican Republic, "Quien Manda?" Ronni Castillo, director;
Ecuador, "The Porcelain Horse," Javier Andrade, director;
Egypt, "Winter of Discontent," Ibrahim El Batout, director;
Estonia, "Free Range," Veiko Ounpuu, director;
Finland, "Disciple," Ulrika Bengts, director;
France, "Renoir," Gilles Bourdos, director;
Georgia, "In Bloom," Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Gross, directors;
Germany, "Two Lives," Georg Maas, director;
Greece, "Boy Eating the Bird’s Food," Ektoras Lygizos, director;
Hong Kong, "The Grandmaster," Wong Kar-wai, director;
Hungary, "The Notebook," Janos Szasz, director;
Iceland, "Of Horses and Men," Benedikt Erlingsson, director;
India, "The Good Road," Gyan Correa, director;
Indonesia, "Sang Kiai," Rako Prijanto, director;
Iran, "The Past," Asghar Farhadi, director;
Israel, "Bethlehem," Yuval Adler, director;
Italy, "The Great Beauty," Paolo Sorrentino, director;
Japan, "The Great Passage," Ishii Yuya, director;
Kazakhstan, "Shal," Yermek Tursunov, director;
Latvia, "Mother, I Love You," Janis Nords, director;
Lebanon, "Blind Intersections," Lara Saba, director;
Lithuania, "Conversations on Serious Topics," Giedre Beinoriute, director;
Luxembourg, "Blind Spot," Christophe Wagner, director;
Mexico, "Heli," Amat Escalante, director;
Moldova, "All God’s Children," Adrian Popovici, director;
Montenegro, "Ace of Spades - Bad Destiny," Drasko Djurovic, director;
Morocco, "Horses of God," Nabil Ayouch, director;
Nepal, "Soongava: Dance of the Orchids," Subarna Thapa, director;
Netherlands, "Borgman," Alex van Warmerdam, director;
New Zealand, "White Lies," Dana Rotberg, director;
Norway, "I Am Yours," Iram Haq, director;
Pakistan, "Zinda Bhaag," Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi, directors;
Palestine, "Omar," Hany Abu-Assad, director;
Peru, "The Cleaner," Adrian Saba, director;
Philippines, "Transit," Hannah Espia, director;
Poland, "Walesa. Man of Hope," Andrzej Wajda, director;
Portugal, "Lines of Wellington," Valeria Sarmiento, director;
Romania, "Child’s Pose," Calin Peter Netzer, director;
Russia, "Stalingrad," Fedor Bondarchuk, director;
Saudi Arabia, "Wadjda," Haifaa Al Mansour, director;
Serbia, "Circles," Srdan Golubovic, director;
Singapore, "Ilo Ilo," Anthony Chen, director;
Slovak Republic, "My Dog Killer," Mira Fornay, director;
Slovenia, "Class Enemy," Rok Bicek, director;
South Africa, "Four Corners," Ian Gabriel, director;
South Korea, "Juvenile Offender," Kang Yi-kwan, director;
Spain, "15 Years Plus a Day," Gracia Querejeta, director;
Sweden, "Eat Sleep Die," Gabriela Pichler, director;
Switzerland, "More than Honey," Markus Imhoof, director;
Taiwan, "Soul," Chung Mong-Hong, director;
Thailand, "Countdown," Nattawut Poonpiriya, director;
Turkey, "The Butterfly’s Dream," Yilmaz Erdogan, director;
Ukraine, "Paradjanov," Serge Avedikian and Olena Fetisova, directors;
United Kingdom, "Metro Manila," Sean Ellis, director;
Uruguay, "Anina," Alfredo Soderguit, director;
Venezuela, "Breach in the Silence," Luis Alejandro Rodríguez and Andrés Eduardo Rodríguez, directors.

The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2013 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® and televised live on the ABC Television Network.  The presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

Review: "Belle de jour" is Trippy and Dream-Like (Remembering Luis Buñuel)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 29 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

Belle de Jour (1967)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:  France/Italy; Language:  French
Running time:  101 minutes (1 hour, 41 minutes)
DIRECTOR:  Luis Bunuel
WRITERS:  Jean-Claude Carriere and Luis Bunuel (from the novel by Joseph Kessel)
PRODUCERS:  Henri Baum, Raymond Hakim, and Robert Hakim
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Sacha Vierny
EDITOR:  Louisette Hautecoeur
BAFTA Awards nominee

DRAMA

Starring:  Catherine Deneuve, Jean Sorel, Michel Piccoli, Geneviève Page, Pierre Clémenti, and Francoise Fabian

The subject of this movie review is Belle de jour, a 1967 film from director Luis Buñuel.  A co-production of France and Italy, this film is based on the 1928 novel, Belle de jour, written by French journalist and novelist, Joseph Kessel.  The film focuses on a sexually frigid young housewife who decides (or is compelled) to spend her midweek afternoons working as a prostitute.

Severine Serizy (Catherine Deneuve) really loves her husband Pierre (Jean Sorel).  However, he doesn’t arouse her, so she can’t be intimate with him.  She entertains numerous, vivid erotic fantasies to satisfy herself.  One day she happens upon the intriguing notion of prostitution.  Before long, she is working as prostitute, named “Belle de Jour,” at a brothel in the afternoons entertaining all manner of weird and unusual clientele.  She remains chaste in her marriage, but one of her clients, who falls madly in lust with her, becomes a danger to her tranquil domesticity.

Some may find Belle de jour’s eroticism dry.  Director Luis Bunuel (The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie) shows Severine’s fantasies to us as surrealistic plays, and Bunuel is considered the father of cinematic surrealism.  It’s an interesting method in that it forces us to pay close attention to the film, mostly in the hopes that we might catch a flashing image of Ms. Deneuve’s beautiful flesh, anything to satisfy our desires to possess Severine.  Certainly, Belle de jour doesn’t blind us with the blunt images of raw sexuality early 21st audiences have not only come to expect in their movies, but often demand.  Bunuel and his screenwriting partner Jean-Claude Carriere fashioned the story so that we can truly understand Severine’s sexual frustrations.  She’s obsessed with being satisfied, and she driven to find ways to satisfy herself, and in a cathartic fashion we become anxious that she find satisfaction.

In the hands of a lesser talent, this movie would bore us to tears, but Ms. Deneuve encompasses her character’s unrequited lusts.  While her character can’t be physically intimate with her husband, Ms. Deneuve’s performance is spiritually intimate with her audience.  She takes us in and makes us part of her; we feel everything she feels, desires what she seeks, and feel all the danger, confusion, and strangeness her job as a prostitute create in her.  Ms. Deneuve makes Severine more than just a character; Severine is our adventure into the border world between real, physical sex and surrealistic and fantastic longing.

Bunuel creates a film that has a rich and vivid dream world, one that is both undeniably real and suddenly ethereal.  He makes Severine’s escapades through the myriad worlds of lust and longing an adventure as interesting as Alice’s through Wonderland.  It’s a strange film; sometimes, I couldn’t help but wonder what was happening.  I was confused when some of Severine’s fantasies went from episodes of titillation to scenes of harsh punishment.  Belle de jour both frustrated and intrigued me.  I won’t call the film perfect, but it’s certainly an enjoyable example of how powerful and confusing film images can be.  Like a dream, a movie sometimes has a way of not giving you what you saw and thought you were getting.  Both a movie and a dream can stay with you even when you’re unsatisfied them.  You wonder about them and dry to decipher them.  Any movie that can be so like a dream deserves to be seen.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
1969 BAFTA Awards:  1 nomination: “Best Actress” (Catherine Deneuve)

Updated:  Monday, July 29, 2013

Review: "I Vampiri" is Not Great, But is Unique (Remembering Mario Bava)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 109 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

I Vampiri (1956) – B&W
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Italy
Running time: 78 minutes (1 hour, 18 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Mario Bava with Riccardo Freda
WRITERS: J.V. Rhemo; from a story by Piero Regnoli and Riccardo Freda
PRODUCERS: Luigi Carpentieri, Ermanno Donati, and Piero Donati
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Mario Bava
EDITOR: Roberto Cinquini
COMPOSERS: Franco Mannino and Roman Vlad

HORROR with elements of drama

Starring: Dario Michaelis, Gianna Maria Canale, Carlo D’Angelo, Wandisa Guida, Angelo Galassi, Renato Tontini, Charles Fawcett, Gisella Mancinotti, Miranda Campa, Antoine Balpêtré, and Paul Muller

The subject of this movie review is I Vampiri (The Vampires), a 1956 Italian horror film. The film is apparently the first sound era Italian horror film, as the genre had been banned in the 1930s and 40s.

Although Riccardo Freda, working under the name “Robert Hampton,” is credited with directing the Italian horror film, I Vampiri, the movie was actually finished by cinematographer Mario Bava after Freda quit the production. I Vampiri has been was first released in the United States as The Devil’s Commandment (1956) and later as Lust of the Vampire (1963).

After a series of young women are found dead with the blood drained from their bodies, the citizens of Paris are calling these the “Vampire Murders.” Inspector Chantal (Carlo D’Angelo) and the French police aren’t the only ones investigating the murders. Pierre Lantin (Dario Michaelis) is a curious journalist determined to solve the murders, but he finds his investigation distracted by the lovely Giselle (Gianna Maria Canale), the niece of Margheita, the Duchess du Grand, who was obsessed with Lantin’s late father.

What Lantin doesn’t know is that back at the Duchess’ castle, mad scientist, Dr. Julien du Grand (Antoine Balpêtré), is draining young women of their blood. When Lorrette Robert (Wandisa Guida), a beautiful student, turns up missing, Lantin follows his suspicions to the Duchess and to the horrifying secret deep in the heart of her castle.

By no means a great film, I Vampiri is a nice introduction to Mario Bava’s ornate style of Gothic horror films. This moody curiosity, which features beautiful dream-like photography and splendid production values, is strangely mesmerizing. Somewhat over the top and yet strangely mannered and staid, I Vampiri is a unique movie treat.

6 of 10
B

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

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DreamWorks Announces New International Partnerships

DreamWorks Studios Announces 10 Additional Strategic International Partnerships Through Its Agreement with Mister Smith Entertainment

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DreamWorks Studios is pleased to announce that, through their existing collaboration with David Garrett’s Mister Smith Entertainment to represent DreamWorks Studios' films for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, they have concluded a further ten key partnership deals with leading independent distribution companies.

DreamWorks has entered into multi-year output agreements to distribute the company's films in all media with international distributors: Acme in the Baltics, Blitz for Croatia/Slovenia/Serbia; Odeon in Greece; Sam Film in Iceland; United King in Israel; Andrea Leone Film in Italy; Monolith in Poland; Lusomundo in Portugal; through a joint venture between Tri Pictures & DeaPlaneta for Spain; and Fida Film in Turkey.

"On behalf of Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider, we are delighted to now have in place our remaining key international distribution partners. We look forward to working with these premier companies as we expand the global reach of our films in the marketplace. Our thanks to David Garrett and his team at Mister Smith Entertainment who continue to be a key partner," said Jeff Small, DreamWorks' President and COO.

As part of the Company’s strategy to create a network of partnerships for their product internationally with a view to additional financial flexibility and capitalizing on the expanding global market, DreamWorks previously announced partnerships with Constantin Film, Entertainment One (eOne), Nordisk Film, and Italia Film in Fall 2012. DreamWorks’ domestic distributor, The Walt Disney Company, will continue to handle North America, Latin America, Asia, Russia and Australia. Reliance continues to finance production of DreamWorks’ films and hold distribution rights in India.

Mister Smith CEO David Garrett commented, “It is a true affirmation to the Olympian status of DreamWorks Studios that they have been able to secure partnerships with the cream of the independents across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Every single one of these partners are leaders in their field, and this is reflected in their undoubted professionalism, and their shared passion for movies. These strategic partnerships create an outstanding network of distribution for the upcoming DreamWorks Studios slate.”

Upcoming features under the DreamWorks deal with Mister Smith Entertainment include: "Delivery Man" (Vince Vaughn, Chris Pratt, Scr./Dir. Ken Scott) currently in post-production, the Wikileaks drama "The Fifth Estate" (Benedict Cumberbatch, Daniel Bruhl, Laura Linney, Anthony Mackie, David Thewlis, Peter Capaldi, Dan Stevens, Alicia Vikander and Carice van Houten, Dir. Bill Condon) currently in production, and "Need for Speed" (Aaron Paul, Dominic Cooper, Imogen Poots, Dir. Scott Waugh) which starts principal photography in April.


About DreamWorks Studios
DreamWorks Studios is a motion picture company formed in 2009 and led by Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider in partnership with The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. The company’s recent releases include Spielberg's "Lincoln," starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones. The film has grossed over $160 million at the U.S. box office and has been nominated for twelve Academy Awards® including Best Picture and Best Director. Other releases include "Real Steel," starring Hugh Jackman and directed by Shawn Levy, Steven Spielberg’s "War Horse," based on Michael Morpurgo’s award-winning book and was nominated for six Academy Awards® including Best Picture, and "The Help," which resonated with audiences around the country and earned over $200 million at the box office and received four Academy Award® nominations with Octavia Spencer winning one for Best Supporting Actress. Upcoming films include the comedy "Delivery Man," starring Vince Vaughn, the WikiLeaks drama "The Fifth Estate," and car racing actioner "Need for Speed."

DreamWorks Studios can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DreamWorksStudios and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/dw_studios.

About Mister Smith Entertainment
Led by CEO David Garrett, Mister Smith Entertainment is involved in the financing, co-financing and licensing of high-quality mainstream feature films and filmmaker driven movies for the global market. The company is a joint venture between Garrett and Constantin Film. Mister Smith Entertainment's current film slate includes: Inimitable Pictures’ "Imagine," Dan Fogelman’s directorial debut starring Academy Award® winner Al Pacino, Academy Award® nominee Jeremy Renner and Academy Award®nominee Julianne Moore, which starts filming in April; Constantin Film's "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones," the first film in the highly anticipated action fantasy franchise based on Cassandra Clare's #1 best-selling book series and scheduled for release in August 2013 through Screen Gems; Constantin Film's compelling true story "3,096 Days" based on the autobiography of Natascha Kampusch, the Austrian girl who was held captive for over 8 years and whose escape made headlines around the world, which is due for release in early 2013; and Constantin Film's romantic comedy “Love, Rosie” which is based on the best-selling novel Where Rainbows End by internationally renowned author Cecelia Ahern, starring Lily Collins, Sam Claflin, directed by Christian Ditte and scheduled to commence principal photography in May 2013.

About Acme Film/Baltics
ACME Film is one of the largest theatrical distributors in the Baltics, distributing films from Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., Lionsgate/Summit, Lakeshore and many other top independent producers.

Blitz Film & Video Distribution/Croatia/Slovenia/Serbia
Blitz Film the leading film distributor in Croatia and the countries of former Yugoslavia, including film distribution of motion pictures and other content through standard types of distribution – theatrical, video, TV - as well as through new technologies such as Video on Demand, IPTV, internet etc. Founded in 1992 in Croatia, the company has extended its operation to almost all countries of ex-Yugoslavia through its own group of companies: Blitz Slovenia, Blitz Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Millennium Serbia. Blitz has represented U.S. Studios including Warner Bros Pictures International, Universal Pictures International, Paramount Pictures International, DreamWorks Animation, and 20th Century Fox with respect to exclusive theatrical distribution, and is also the exclusive video distributor of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Paramount Home Entertainment Global, DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment LLC and DreamWorks LLC. Blitz has a very successful long-term cooperation with a number of independent companies including Icon Entertainment, Europa Corp, Lakeshore Entertainment, Summit Entertainment, Pathe Distribution, Studio Canal, LionsGate and others, whose film it distributes throughout all media.

https://www.facebook.com/CineStarMultiplexi

http://www.blitz-cinestar.hr/cinestar

About Odeon / Greece
Odeon S.A. is one of the leading theatrical distribution companies in Greece and Cyprus. While operating 40% of the territory's film theatres Odeon also manufactures and distributes DVDs and BDs and is the exclusive licensee for FOX, MGM/UA (theatrical and home entertainment), Paramount Pictures (home entertainment only). Odeon has also been developing and producing Greek films over the last two decades that includes "Loufing & Camouflage: Sirens of the Agean" and "Brides".

About Samfilm/Iceland
Samfilm was founded by Mr. Arni Samuelsson, its CEO, in 1975 and is the biggest distribution company in Iceland. Samfilm is the local distributor for Warner Bros, Paramount and Walt Disney, both on theatrical and DVD. On the gaming side, Samfilm handles distribution for Disney Interactive and Warner Interactive. Samfilm exhibition side runs 5 locations, 3 cinemas in Reykjavik with a total of 13 screens and two outside Reykjavik with a total of 4 screens. Market share in both Distribution and Exhibition has been around 45-55% in recent years. SAMcinemas have been vigilant for new opportunities which live presentations via satellite from the Metropolitan Opera and National Theatre in London as well as other live events prove.

About United King/Israel
United King Films Israel is one of the largest exhibitor and distributor of mainstream and art house cinema. United King Films owns a chain of the largest cinema complexes in Israel, which brings around 35%-40% of box office admissions in Israel. At the moment the chain includes 6 complexes with 5 more to be built within the next 3 years. United King Films distributes around 50 films each year such as; "The Twilight Saga," "Zero Dark Thirty," "Crash," "The Pianist," "Beasts of the Southern Wild," "Rust & Bone," "Holly Motors" and many more.

United King Films is also the biggest producer of Israeli Films including two Oscar nominated films "Beaufort" and "Footnote" as well as "Lebanon," "Walk on Water," "The Bubble" and many more.

About Andrea Leone Film/Italy
ANDREA LEONE FILMS was founded in 1989 by Sergio Leone and is currently owned by Andrea and Raffaella Leone, respectively the son and daughter of the Director. The company handles the renowned library of western pictures directed by Sergio Leone for Italy and co-owns rest of the world along with co-producers MGM, PARAMOUNT, UA. Besides the Sergio Leone estate the company owns and or controls a library of over 400 titles for ITALY.

ALF has output or volume deals with the main independent TV movie production companies acquiring 50/60 pictures per year. And in 2000 ALF moved into the theatrical arena with bigger budget theatrical titles acquiring 10 to 20 feature films per year in the US $10 to US $60 million range from companies such as LIONS GATE, MILLENNIUM FILMS, LAKESHORE etc. ALF has recently increased its library for ITALY acquiring prestigious libraries from independent distributors such as CAPITOL (LARGO/INTERMEDIA/FRANCHISE), LIONSGATE, LAKESHORE, ECHOBRIDGE /ALLIANCE, FIRST LOOK, PANDORA, FILM FOUR etc.

Created as a branch of ALF in 2010, PACMEDIA is a new product placement and major events company based in both Rome and Los Angeles. Pacmedia is already strongly placed in the market with an extensive client roster headed by Italy’s leading car group FIAT/LANCIA/ALFA ROMEO and in the US the CHRISLER/JEEP/DODGE group.

In 2012 ALF has also been appointed as exclusive representative for the TV Library of NEW REGENCY.

About Monolith Films/Poland
Monolith Films, Poland’s leading independent film distributor, has been operating in the Polish market since 1998. In 2012 the company signed an output deal with Lionsgate/Summit. Monolith Films has distributed such blockbusters as: "American Pie,” “What Women Want,” “Hannibal,” “The Passion of the Christ”, “Alexander,” “Mr & Mrs Smith,” “Apocalypto,” “Step up,” “Twilight Saga” and “Taken”. In addition to distribution, Monolith Films is active in the production of the local movies.

About Lusomundo/Portugal
About ZON - www.zon.pt
ZON is the leader of the Portuguese Pay TV market, with 1.6 million customers and the leading provider of next generation broadband, cinema distribution and exhibition. ZON is also the only operator of fixed telephony to grow.

About Tri Pictures & DeaPlaneta for Spain
DeAPlaneta, the result of a joint venture between two major European communication groups – DeAgostini and Planeta – is a role model in the Spanish audiovisual sector. In addition to acquiring and distributing films for cinema, Home Entertainment and television, it distributes contents in fiction, documentaries and children’s entertainment through DeAPlaneta Distribución and Planeta Junior.

DeAPlaneta is the second largest independent distributor in Spain. Its catalogue includes Oscar-winners such as "The Pianist," "The Hurt Locker" and "The King's Speech," together with major commercial hit films such as "Planet 51" and "The Knowing." Upcoming films include from the anticipated film adaptations of Stephenie Meyer’s new saga "The Host" and Noah Gordon’s worldwide Bestseller "The Physician" to prestigious Steve McQueen’s "Twelve Years a Slave" or the film adaptation of 2008 Pulitzer Prize "August: Osage County."

TRIPICTURES was founded in 1987 and is one of the leading independent distributors in Spain focused on commercial titles for all windows of exploitation. Tripictures’ catalogue includes films like "Seven Years in Tibet," "Golden Compass," The Asterix Franchise," Alexander the Great," "Sex and the City" or the recently Oscar nominated "Flight." Today, TRIPICTURES has a catalogue of over 360 titles. In 2006, VOCENTO, a leading Spanish multimedia publishing group, acquired 70% of TRIPICTURES, allowing the company to integrate and create synergies with other television production and services companies within the group. Upcoming titles include the next film from Oscar nominated director David O’Russell, "The Place Beyond the Pines" starring Ryan Goslin and Bradley Cooper, "Non Stop," starring Liam Neeson or the epic action adventure, "I, Frankenstein."

About Fida Film/Turkey
For the last 48 years, Fida Film has been the leading company in cinema advertising, acquisitions and film production in Turkey. Fida Film started acquiring theatrical, home video and television rights for foreign films in 2004. Fida Film has more than 400 feature films in its current slate from partnerships with several prestigious studios and production companies.

Winners at the 69th Venice Film Festival Announced

Paul Thomas Anderson's "The Master" Wins, Then Loses the "Golden Lion"

Kim Ki-duk's "Pieta" Wins the Golden Lion

Founded in 1932, the Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world.  The 69th edition just ended... with some controversy.

Apparently, there is a new rule for the festival's film awards.  The film that wins the "Golden Lion," which is the Venice Film Festival's top prize, cannot win other awards.  The jury (with Michael Mann as this year's President of the jury) initially awarded the Golden Lion to Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master, which focuses on an L. Ron Hubbard-like figure.  The jury had also awarded the film other awards.  In order to give The Master several trophies, the jury had to reconsider the Golden Lion, so they gave it to Pieta, a film by Korean director, Kim Ki-duk.

Official Awards of the 69th Venice Film Festival

• VENEZIA 69

GOLDEN LION for Best Film to PIETA by Kim Ki-duk (Republic of Korea)

SILVER LION for Best Director to THE MASTER by Paul Thomas Anderson (USA)

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE to Paradies: Glaube by Ulrich Seidl (Austria, Germany, France)

COPPA VOLPI for Best Actor to Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix in the film THE MASTER by Paul Thomas Anderson (USA)

COPPA VOLPI for Best Actress Hadas Yaron in the film LEMALE ET HA’CHALAL by Rama Bursthein (Israel)

MARCELLO MASTROIANNI AWARD for Best New Young Actor or Actress to Fabrizio Falco in the films BELLA ADDORMENTATA by Marco Bellocchio (Italy) and È STATO IL FIGLIO by Daniele Ciprí (Italy)

AWARD FOR BEST SCREENPLAY to Olivier Assayas for the film APRES MAI by Olivier Assayas (France)

AWARD FOR THE BEST TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTION (CINEMATOGRAPHY) to Daniele Ciprì for the film È STATO IL FIGLIO by Daniele Ciprì (Italy)


• LION OF THE FUTURE – “LUIGI DE LAURENTIIS” VENICE AWARD FOR A DEBUT FILM to KÜF (MOLD) by Ali Aydin (Turkey, Germany) VENICE INTERNATIONAL FILM CRITICS’ WEEK as well as a prize of 100,000 USD, donated by Filmauro di Aurelio e Luigi De Laurentiis to be divided equally between director and producer

• ORIZZONTI ("Horizons" - honors new trends)

ORIZZONTI AWARD FOR BEST FILM (full-length films) to SAN ZIMEI by Wang Bing (France, Hong Kong)

SPECIAL ORIZZONTI JURY PRIZE (full-length films) to TANGO LIBRE by Frédéric Fonteyne (France, Belgium, Luxembourg)

ORIZZONTI YOUTUBE AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM to CHO-DE by Yoo Min-young (South Korea)

EUROPEAN FILM AWARDS 2012-EFA to TITLOI TELOUS by Yorgos Zois (Greece)


GOLDEN LION FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT 2012 to Francesco Rosi

JAEGER-LECOULTRE GLORY TO THE FILMMAKER AWARD to Spike Lee

PERSOL AWARD to Michael Cimino

L’ORÉAL PARIS PER IL CINEMA AWARD to Giulia Bevilacqua

Review: "Seven Beauties" is Fine Cinema (Happy B'day, Giancarlo Giannini)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 37 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Seven Beauties (1975)
Pasqualino Settebellezze – original Italian title
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Italy
Running time: 115 minutes (1 hour, 55 minutes)
MPAA – R
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Lina Wertmüller
PRODUCERS: Arrigo Colombo and Lina Wertmüller
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Tonino Delli Colli
EDITOR: Franco Fraticelli
COMPOSER: Enzo Jannacci
Academy Award nominee

COMEDY/DRAMA/WAR

Starring: Giancarlo Giannini, Fernando Rey, Shirley Stoler, Elena Fiore, Piero Di Iorio, Enzo Vitale, Roberto Herlitzka, Lucio Amelio, and Ermelinda De Felice

In Pasqualino Settebellezze or (by its English title) Seven Beauties, Pasqualino Frafusco (Giancarlo Giannini) is a small time crook and hood wannabe who lives in Naples with his mother and seven sisters. As the movie begins, Pasqualino and a fellow soldier (Piero Di Iorio) are lost behind enemy lines, somewhere in Germany, during World War II. German soldiers eventually capture the duo, and they are interned in some kind of prisoner camp (which may also double as a concentration camp for Jews).

Because he has by his own estimation always been a ladies man, Pasqualino decides on a plan to woo an evil female German commandant (Shirley Stoler) in an attempt to save his life, a plan that of course goes horribly awry. Pasqualino’s camp trials are interspersed with scenes from his life in Naples and the time he spent in a mental institution for killing a man who he believed had insulted him and his family by turning one of Pasqualino’s sisters into a prostitute.

Seven Beauties earned Lina Wertmüller the first Oscar® nomination for a woman as Best Director. The film is part satirical and part farce, and it’s also a tragicomic drama that focuses on the soul of a common man. Giannini also earned a Best Actor nomination for his performance as a man who sells his body to the Germans and ends up loosing his soul or, at the very least, his spirit to them. Giannini’s performance is one of the great comic masterpieces, but many people may miss this because of the film’s darker tones. Pasqualino is a womanizing clown who thinks he has the world by the balls until the horrors of war and the internment camp show him how brutal people can be to one another. He thought he knew, but his imprisonments really show him how ugly dog eat dog can be.

Seven Beauties might be one of the best films about internment camps, except for the fact that it’s not really about that. Still, the film makes a salient point about the evil, greediness, and selfishness at the core of the human soul. If the film has a fault (and it’s a minor one), it’s that Wertmüller’s script glosses over the impact of Pasqualino’s mother and sisters on him and his character. Otherwise, this is an example of the great cinema Italy has given the world.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
1977 Academy Awards: 4 nominations: “Best Actor in a Leading Role” (Giancarlo Giannini), “Best Director” (Lina Wertmüller), “Best Foreign Language Film” (Italy), and “Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen” (Lina Wertmüller)

1977 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Foreign Film” (Italy)

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Review: "Black Sunday" Remains a Chilling Mario Bava Masterpiece

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 126 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

La Demonio del Maschera (1960) – B&W
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Italy
Running time: 87 minutes
CINEMATOGRAPHER/DIRECTOR: Mario Bava
WRITERS: Ennio De Concini and Mario Serandrei, with English dialogue by George Higgins (based upon the short story “The Viy” by Nikolai Gogol)
PRODUCERS: Massimo De Rita and Lou Rusoff (U.S. version)
EDITOR: Mario Serandrei

HORROR/THRILLER

Starring: Barbara Steele, John Richardson, Andrea Checci, Ivo Garrani, Arturo Dominici, Enrico Olivieri, Antonio Pierfederici, and Tino Bianchi

Acclaimed Italian horror director Mario Bava made his directorial debut with the film, La Demonio del Maschera, which first received a U.S. release in 1961 under the title, Black Sunday. Previously, Bava had finished other directors’ films, but did not receive a screen credit as a director until Black Sunday. The story is based upon a Russian folktale, and Bava also co-wrote the film, but did not receive a screen credit as a writer.

Condemned to die as a witch in the 17th century, Princess Asa Vajda (Barbara Steele) returns two centuries after her execution to wreak vengeance on her executioners’ descendents. Those descendents are Prince Vadja (Ivo Garrani), his son, Prince Constantine Vajda (Enrico Olivieri), and Katia Vadja (Barbara Steele), who looks just like Princess Asa. Two men, Dr. Thomas Kruvajan (Andrea Checci) and his young companion, Dr. Andre Gorobec (John Richardson), traveling through the countryside, stumble upon Asa’s grave and unwittingly reawaken her. Soon, Dr. Gorobec and a local priest are in a race against time to save Katia from becoming the sacrifice that will allow Asa to walk the Earth again and unleash Hell’s undead demons.

Simply put, this is a masterpiece of black and white gothic horror filmmaking. Steeped in rich atmosphere and lush shadows, Black Sunday is truly frightening. (It had me with my back pressed against the sofa.) Filled with a hellish sexual yearning and sadism, Black Sunday’s production values are worthy of a Hollywood historical epic. Black Sunday is pure visual dark poetry – a horror film that refuses to be forgotten.

8 of 10
A

Thursday, September 13, 2007

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The Flesh Eaters of Lucio Fulci's "Zombie" Still Scary

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 168 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux


Zombi 2 (1979)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Italy
Zombie (1980) – U.S. release
Running time: 91 minutes (1 hour, 31 minutes)
MPAA – R for horror violence/gore and nudity
DIRECTOR: Lucio Fulci
WRITER: Elisa Briganti (Dardano Sacchetti, uncredited)
PRODUCERS: Fabrizio De Angelis and Ugo Tucci
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Sergio Salvati
EDITOR: Vincenzo Tomassi

HORROR

Starring: Tisa Farrow, Ian McCulloch, Richard Johnson, Al Cliver, Auretta Gay, Stefania D’Amario, Olga Karlatos, Ugo Bologna, and Dakkar

The Italian film, Zombi 2, was made to capitalize on George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead (1978), which was titled Zombi for its Italian release. The filmmakers tried to make Zombi 2 kind of a sequel to Romero’s DOTD, which is apparently why Zombi 2’s opening and closing scenes are set in New York City.

A flesh hungry ghoul murders a New York harbor patrolman aboard an abandoned yacht. Anne (Tisa Farrow), the daughter of the yacht’s missing owner, teams up (reluctantly, at first) with newspaper reporter, Peter West (Ian McCulloch), for a private investigation into Anne’s father’s whereabouts. They eventually travel to a small Caribbean island where the dead apparently refuse to stay dead, and join up with a vacationing couple for the trip to the island.

Dr. David Menard (Richard Johnson), who runs an island hospital out of an abandoned church, is allegedly trying to find a scientific cause for why the dead walk. His wife believes Dr. Menard’s experiments are the cause for the walking dead. The natives (whom we never see) apparently believe that the zombies are the result of a voodoo curse wrought by an unseen voodoo priest somewhere in the island’s interior. Either way, Anne, Peter, and a couple who helps them get to the island must fight the ever-increasing number of blood thirsty zombies if they are to survive the zombies.

Zombie (its American release title) is a creepy and chilling (especially at the end) old-fashioned zombie movie that is as good as anything outside Romero’s original trilogy. It features some of the best zombie makeup I’ve ever seen, and these zombies, made up to look as if they were way into a state of decay, or probably the scariest looking zombies you’ll see on screen. The film’s problems, however, are major. The characters are ciphers; we don’t know much about them or get to know them, and it’s hard to sympathize with them beyond hoping that they don’t become zombie snacks. The plot is simple, but the script is a clumsy attempt to get from one scary scene to the next. Still, I recommend this to fans of zombie movies and horror films in general because the creature makeup and costumes make these zombies convincing ghouls and this film an effective fright flick.

5 of 10
B-