Capsule Review of Films from the 59th London Film Festival

Kiomars Vejdani's Capsule Reviews of Films from the 59th London Film Festival



THE LOBSTER
Director : Yorgos Lanthimos
UK-Ireland -Greece 2015

Films of Yorgos Lanthimos are always odd (the good example is Dogtooth) but here he pushes the boundaries of oddity up to the absurd. The film is set sometime in the future when celibacy is condemned. Anyone without a partner has 45 days to find one. Otherwise (with advanced surgical methods of future) he will be turned into the animal of his choice. The animal that film's protagonist has chosen is lobster (hence the title of the film). The setting can be seen as a hotel or a luxury prison and residents as guests or prisoners. The rules are as arbitrary and irrational as the those imposed by the father on his children in Dogtooth. The result is an environment which dehumanizes the people. Irrational rules and absurd behaviour are at the roots of film,s dry humour. But in the end film moves towards a more serious tone and sincerity of feelings when the protagonist chooses the woman he loves against all regulations and in the process makes the biggest sacrifice of his life.


THE ASSASSIN
Director : Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Taiwan-China – Hong Kong 2015

Winner of Best Director Award in this year's Cannes Film Festival Assassin is another example of skilfully made martial art film by Hou Hsiao- Hsien. Set during the ancient dynasty of Tang in
9th century China, it revolves around the character of woman trained in martial arts and equipped with highest level of skills to act as assassin and carry out missions as commanded by her master until she is given a mission which is against her moral beliefs and personal feelings. The story of her moral awakening is told in slow measured pace against the background of classical splendour of ancient China. A visually rich and stylish film,beautifully photographed scenery and skilfully choreographed scenes of fast pace martial arts action.


CEMETERY OF SPLENDOUR
Director :Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Thailand-UK-France

In the hazy heat of tropical area, a group of sick soldiers in a hospital which used to be a school, a mother visiting her son who is in coma, a volunteer visiting girl who has the power of heeling and the ability to see the past. With these elements the director creates his familiar world. In a dreamlike state boundaries between sleep and wakefulness,reality and fantasy, past and present, life and death are all blurred. People change their identity without changing their appearance. Ghosts look like living people while real environment turns into a dreamlike one with neon lights which change colour non-stop. Film ends in a cemetery which has vanished long time ago and now only exists in our memory As his usual Apichatpong Weerasethakul leaves us somewhere between dream and wakefulness


TANGERINE
Director :Sean Baker
USA 2015

A hilarious film about two transsexual hookers on New Year,s Eve are trying to find a girl who has an affair with boyfriend of one of them. In their search for the girl they go through a series of funny situations with odd characters. A fast moving film,bursting with energy, having jokes at every moment. But in the end slowing down to stress the value of true friendship.


VERY BIG SHOT
Director : Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya
Lebanon-Qatar 2015

The film begins with something like Goodfellas in Lebanon with plenty of violence. But soon it changes its tone to become a comedy about film making with the protagonist acting as the producer. But at the last few moments of the film, as the protagonist decides to enter politics,yet another another aspect of the film is introduced. So the film that started as a gangster thriller ends up as a social climbing satire.


DESIERTO
Director : Jonas Cuaron
Mexico – France 2015

Film is about a group of Mexicans being killed by a sadistic mentally deranged sharp shooter while illegally crossing the border into America. Director Jonas Cuaron uses their massacre as a basis for a thriller, increasing the film,s tension as the acts of killing progresses without much attention to dramatic depth. Despite the superficial current of excitement the plot is too incredible to be convincing and the protagonists too stereotyped to arouse our sympathy.


OFFICE 
Director : Johnnie To
China – Hong Kong  2015

The film with the help of elaborate sets,cast of hundreds, bright colour photography, and added
3D technology shows us how not to make musicals. Its only use is as a proof that making of musicals is best left to Hollywood.


THE CLUB 
Director : Pablo Larrain
Chile 2015

The film begins with a quotation from Bible stating that God after creating the light liked it so much that He decided to keep it separate from darkness. The new film of Pablo Larrain concentrates on this area of darkness. In a house by the seaside in the remote part of the country live a group of priests ( and a nun ) who because of some sinful act in their past are barred from active duties.
Pablo Larrain uses such a setting and characters to create an infernal atmosphere. Film,s dramatic tension is created out of contrast between attitude of characters and strict rules of church ( represented by a visiting supervisor, an upright priest with strong religious faith ). Larrain's priests are a mixture of evil beings committing acts of extreme cruelty,and normal human people who enjoy pleasures of life and are honest and frank about their sexuality ( the film,s dialogue is sexually very explicit ) Through their characters and the resulting moral ambiguity Larrain gives us a controversial picture of church and its rules.


YOUTH
Director : Paolo Sorrentino
Italy 2015

Paolo Sorrentino's new film, like The Great Beauty is about looking back at life after reaching the summit of one,s creative career, With the difference that here we have two protagonists. A retired composer (Michael Caine) and a film director (Harvey Keitel) Being close friends for many years they enjoy each other,s company while staying in a spa hotel in Switzerland. Like the previous film they encounter a range of colourful characters,each with their own idiosyncrasies. They go over their ups and downs of life, remember their happy and sad moments. In the end they reach to the conclusion that at the their old age there is not much more to do but to look back. One of them accepts the situation and compromises. The other does not. Another stylish film by Paolo Sorretino, as beautiful as the Great Beauty.


VIRGIN MOUNTAIN
Director : Dagur Kari
Iceland – Denmark 2015

The film takes us through stages of emotional development of a young man from a childlike existence to full maturity and total independence. Director Dagur Kari in portraying the character of his protagonist pays a great deal of attention to psychological details, taking his time to build his process of development into a mature man. A very humane and heart warming film.


LAND OF MINE
Director : Martin Zandvliet
Denmark - Germany 2015

With the liberation of Holland at the end of second world war the Allied faced the problem of a good number of mine fields in need of detonation and decided to give this task to German prisoners. Director Martin Zandvliet bases his powerful drama on victimization of German soldiers. The prisoners ( mostly teenage boys ) are treated insensitively and cruelly by Allied officers, using them as a target for aggression and to retaliate for crimes of German army while the were victorious. The film by such a reversal of roles raises the morally controversial issue of consequence of victory and its effect on victors. Our sympathy is with young German prisoners.

The film's tension escalates with each occasion that the group goes through fear of death or sorrow of losing yet another friend. The film,s change of moral tone is personified in the character of the camp,s warden and his change of attitude from hostile prejudice and angry cruelty to sympathy, affection and kindness. It is a film which by condemning the consequences of war, whether victory or defeat, puts maximum value on humanity  

Fish & Cat (Shahram Mokri, 2013)

MAHI VA GORBEH [Fish & Cat]
Director: Shahram Mokri
Reviewed by Kiomars Vejdani

The first thing we notice about Mahi va Gorbeh is the technical challenge Shahram Mokri has taken on board. The film is shot uninterruptedly from start to finish in one long take. But film’s technical excellence is only a doorway to a dark and ambiguous world. By passing through this doorway we face a labyrinth with multitude of questions awaiting us at every corner. Within a single shot of the film we encounter numerous characters, all crammed in a limited space, their life stories cutting across each other to make a complex pattern.

Our first point of contact with the film is a crime story. Right at the beginning of the film we are informed that it is based on a true event of horrible crimes committed by owners of a restaurant in northern Iran. But despite such information, there is no visual sign of any crime within the film. It is totally free of physical violence. Mokri seems not in the least interested in crime story. His approach to film’s subject is purely philosophical. Any referral to a committed crime is indirect and nothing more than a hint like the vague cry of anguish and agony we hear from far away, or the machete Babak takes with him before going into the woods and the blood stained foul smelling bag he carries along. Any intention of crime by Babak is only implied by his way of interaction with his potential victims, either a threatening manner (like his encounter with the driver at the beginning of the film), or a cunning approach (the way he lured Parvaneh into the depth of the woods). The nearest we get to witnessing any evidence of crime is the scene of the cat holding a cut off finger in his mouth. But again instead of visually presenting such an image it is described by Mina and we only have her horrified reaction as she stares straight at us. The subjective viewpoint of camera is enough to convey her horror.

Architecture as Character

http://cinearchitecture.tumblr.com/post/131611804372/art-directed-by-ralph-berger-and-albert-s

The Program (Stephen Frears, 2015)

THE PROGRAM
Director: Stephen Frears; UK/France, 2015
Reviewed by Kiomars Vejdani

Stephen Frears' film about Lance Armstrong is dealing with not so much his sporting life but more so his personality. While film acknowledges his sporting talent as a cyclist and his courageous comeback after cancer, he puts more emphasis on his character flaws. He is selfish, excessively ambitious, obsessed with winning Tour de France. He uses any means to achieve his goal including unethical and illegal ones such as collaboration with doctor of dubious character and unprofessional conduct, clandestine use of illegal drugs. His activities move him gradually further away from true spirit of sport. The unethical aspect of Armstrong's activities are presented through the character of David Walsh, a sport journalist who stands up to him and makes his activities publicly known. As a result Armstrong loses all his awards.

Carol (Todd Haynes, 2015)

CAROL
Director: Todd Haynes; USA/UK, 2015
Reviewed by Kiomars Vejdani

In Todd Haynes' new film, like his Far From Heaven, the influence of Douglas Sirk is very much noticeable. Carol is a romantic melodrama about a relationship condemned and forbidden by the morality rules of the time (mid fifties, Haynes, favourite era) Carol (Cate Blanchett) is a rich woman from the upper class and a homosexual. She is attracted towards Therese (Rooney Mara)
a young photographer who is equally in love with her. Their relationship remains purely emotional for quite a while before reaching physical level. But there are many moral and social barriers in the way of their love, the most prominent one Carol's husband, a jealous and possessive man who nevertheless is desperately in love with Carol, frustrated by her loving someone else and angry about her homosexuality and its stigma. Only the courage of two women enables them to overcome the obstacles in the way of their love. The last moment of the film with alternate close ups of two women keep looking at each other is its highest romantic moment. Essential to film's romantic mood is the excellent performances by Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara (Winner of Best Actress Award in this year's Cannes Film Festival).

Suffragette (Sarah Gavron, 2015)

SUFFRAGETTE
Director: Sarah Gavron; UK, 2015
Reviewed by Kiomars Vejdani

Meant to be one of the prestigious productions of the year, the film is about women's fight for the right to vote in England 1917, as inspired and led by the activist group Suffragetes. The film uses the experience of its protagonist (an ordinary housewife played by Carey Mulligan) to depict the development of the movement. From the condition of women with hard manual work and low wages in a male dominated world to gradual emergence of social awareness and reacting to the injustice of social discrimination, initially peaceful protest but later on defiant acts of sabotage, harsh treatment by the police to suppress the movement, sacrifices of losing job and family, and eventually recognition through one of the members sacrificing her life. Director Sarah Gavron gives a powerful drama based on her own feminist conviction and belief in the rights of women.

Francofonia (Alexander Sokurov, 2015)

FRANCOFONIA
Director: Alexander Sokurov; France/Germany/Netherlands, 2015
Reviewed by Kiomars Vejdani

The story of Louvre told the way only Alexander Sukorov can tell with a style as unique and distinguished as ever. Similarity of its visual treatment to Russian Arc (except its continuous take) is very noticeable. Like the previous film it takes us on a journey through time. From historical origin of Louvre and building of the castle in its initial form through different stages of its development with added structures, right up to its present day state. In his presentation of Louvre Sokurov's main emphasis is on its role in preservation of cultural and artistic heritage of France as the foundation of civilization. In developing his theme Sokurov resorts to any device. He takes us back and forth in time, moves between reality and fantasy. He uses any visual element at his disposal: archive material, dramatic re-enactment, and animation. He brings characters from history back to life. He jokes with them (Napoleon in particular is object of his fun), and in the end tells them their future. Accompanying the images we have Sokurov's continuous informative, and at times sarcastic commentary. Francofonia is more than a documentary. It is a document on necessity of having something of lasting values in the imperfect world of mankind.

El botón de nácar (Patricio Guzmán, 2015)

PEARL BUTTON
Director: Patricio Guzmán; France/Chile/Spain, 2015
Reviewed by Kiomars Vejdani

Patricio Guzmán in his new film uses the same format as Nostalgia for the Light, starting with exploration of nature by science and ending up with investigation of crimes committed by the dictatorial regime of Pinochet in Chile. In the previous film he used astronomy to explore stars in the universe and archaeology to find about early history of mankind in the sands of Atacama desert. But in his new film the object of his scientific exploration is water. It is argued that water is not only the source of life and its creation, but also the agent of its transfer between planets. The existence of water (and hence life) on other planets has been explored by scientific methods. On planet earth people at ancient times used water to move to new areas, settle and build their homes. They enjoyed a peaceful and happy life until Europeans arrived and a chain of exploitation and atrocity in countries like Chile began with criminal acts of previous dictatorial regime as its last link. Throughout the film Guzmán's running commentary is delivered in measured pace to accompany his poetic images. Presentation of atrocities in this film is not as elaborate as in Nostalgia for the Light, nevertheless it is equally powerful, specially in the section about throwing bodies attached to pieces of heavy metal from the aeroplane into the ocean to conceal evidences of their crimes. We see one of these pieces of metal brought back from the bottom of the sea by the divers. The human body is completely dissolved by the salt water of the ocean over the years. The only thing left of it is a pearl button implanted into the metal. The whole history of criminal acts of dictatorial regime is encapsulated in this tiny button.

Il Cinema Ritrovato 2012, Part I

photo by Ehsan Khoshbakht

گزارش جشنوارۀ Il Cinema Ritrovato، بولونيا، ايتاليا، 23 تا 30 ژوئن 2012

والش و گِرِميون، زير آفتاب سوزان

احسان خوش‌بخت

به اندرو ساريس

1 فرود

وقتي روي اولين پلۀ هواپيمايي كه بعد از يك ساعت و نيم گذر از آسمان آلمان و بلژيك در فرودگاه بولونيا در شمال ايتاليا آرام گرفته بود پاگذاشتم، موج گرما يخِ شبِ سردِ پيشين در فرودگاه استنستد لندن را آب كرد. آفتاب با وقار بولونيا به تابستانِ خاكستري جزيرۀ بريتانيا دهن كجي مي‌كرد و شعاع‌هاي درخشان نور روي ديوارهاي نارنجي و قهوه‌اي روشن و مردم بي‌خيال در شلوارك‌ها و عينك‌هاي آفتابي كه براي رسيدن به هركجا كه عازمش بودند كوچك‌ترين شتابي نداشتند، مرز بين اروپاي سرد پروتستان و معجزۀ حرارت مديترانه‌اي و فراغ خاطر كاتوليك‌هاي جنوب اروپا را پررنگ مي‌كرد. وقتي جرج سَندرز در سفر در ايتاليا نظرش دربارۀ اين سرزمين به اينگريد برگمن مي‌گويد («مردم پرسروصدا و تنبل»)، اظهار نظرش بيش‌تر نوعي حسادت نسبت به فرهنگي كه جاي سرسام را به آرامش و جاي ادب قراردادي را به سرخوشي داده به نظر مي‌رسد.

در حين حركت به طرف اتوبوسي كه به مركز شهر مي‌رفت لازم بود كه كم‌كم لباس‌هاي اضافي را به دل چمداني كه چرخ‌هايش از ديشب چند كيلومتري روي زمين به اين ور و آن ور كشيده شده بود بفرستم. اتوبوس از ايستگاه بيرون نيامده همشهري‌هاي مسن بولونيايي همديگر را پيدا مي‌كردند و به گرمي مشغول چاق سلامتي مي‌شدند. انگليسي‌هاي مسافر گيج و بهت زده به نظر مي‌آمدند و ژاپني‌ها دوربين‌هاي گران قيمت و لنزهاي غول‌آسايشان را از چمدان بيرون مي‌كشيدند. چه كسي مي‌تواند زير اين آفتاب خيره‌كننده كه انگار از چهار جهت روي سرت مي‌تابد عكس بگيرد؟ از چه عكس بگيرد؟ از ذوب شدن تدريجي فضا در آفتاب؟

LFF 2015: First Feature Competition#2

Light Years

Reviews of the First Feature Competition at London Film Festival, Part II
By Kiomars Vejdani

LIGHT YEARS
Director: Esther May Campbell; UK, 2015

The film is from the collective point of view three children whose lives are affected by a dysfunctional father and a mostly absent mother due to mental illness. The impression they have of their parents is like a star light years away which even though can be seen by us might not exist any more. we see the fragmented lives of these children running parallel to each other with the hope of one day family being reunited.

PARTISAN
Director: Ariel Kleiman; Austria, 2014

The film revolves around the enigmatic character of Gregori (played by Vincent Cassel), the leader of a hideaway community of women and their children. He is protective of people under his care, providing them with food and amenities of life. But at the same time he acts like a dictator establishing arbitrary rules, very often illogical, at times immoral and even illegal. Anyone disobeying him will be banished from the community. His character is a mixture of saint and sinner. The double nature of his character is the basis for film's moral ambiguity. Our doubts about Gregori's character and his morality is personified by Alexander, an eleven year boy, who initially see him as a hero but gradually begins to see the other side of his character. The film ends at the moment of Alexander's indecision about the action to take against Gregori, leaving the audience in a moral limbo.

WEDDING DOLL
Director: Nitzan Gilady; Israel, 2015

The film has a mentally handicapped young girl as its protagonist. She can not survive without the support of her mother. She can cope with a simple manual job in a workshop. Her only talent is making wedding dolls. The plot revolves around her romantic fantasy about a young man who by emotionally exploiting her encourages the fantasy. Her ultimate dream is marrying the man which ends up in a bitter disillusionment at the climax of the film. The film's simple technique matches the purity and innocence of its main character.

KRISHA
Director: Trey Edward Shults; USA, 2015

A family drama about reunion of film's title protagonist with her her family. A complicated character with a range of emotional problems, Krisha is trying to re-establish rapport with her family after a long period of absence. But her excessive demand for love, both giving and receiving, proves to be counter-productive, causing rejection by members of the family. The film's tension builds up as the hostility of others escalates and becomes more direct ending up in the film's climax of a stormy scene. A powerful drama with an excellent performance by Krisha Fairchild in the title role.