Hey folks, Harry here with Elaine again in Rotterdam giving us the nitty gritty on the Rotterdam International Film Festival. The festival is simply giving her just a ton to discuss and this time out the most interesting of the films for me is NO WAY TO LOVE, which she equates to FESTEN, and if you know what that means, then you know what I mean when I say interesting. She's got quite a bit for ya, so let's hop to it...
ROTTERDAM INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
DAY 5
Pleasant surprises. Every festival has a few, and this day had plenty in store for me.
The first thing I discovered upon arriving on the festival premises was that my screening of Tian Zhuangzhuang's "Springtime in a Small Town" had been cancelled. This wasn't the most welcome of surprises, but my disappointment quickly turned to joy when I found out that the gap in my schedule coincided with a screening of "Whale Rider" for which, to my immense surprise, there were still tickets available. So instead of watching a Chinese period drama, I caught my favourite film of the festival again, with 850 crazy fans who weren't quite as touched by it as I was the first time around but gave it a standing ovation nonetheless. It's a rare film that gets an ovation in Holland when the director is nowhere in sight, so this should tell you a bit about how good "Whale Rider" really is.
Needless to say, "Whale Rider" is the clear favourite for the Audience Award at this point. There is quite a gap between it and the number 2, "The Magdalene Sisters," which I reviewed a few days ago.
Other than "Whale Rider," the best thing I saw today was a French psycho drama called "Defense d'aimer" (No Way to Love) which, on top of being one of the more intense films in the festival, features the most handsome man currently working in European cinema, Rodolphe Marconi. Between the sexy bodies depicted in "Choses secretes" (Secret Things) and the oh-so-gorgeous eyes of Mr Marconi in "Defense d'aimer," this is turning into a pretty, er, eye-pleasing festival for French cinema.
Furthermore, I caught an African feature called "Abouna" (Our Father) which I'm too busy to review but which is very interesting in terms of story-telling devices, plus "Paule und Julia" (Paule and Julia), a German boy-meets-girl drama which proves that the recent spate of entertaining German movies has been no fluke. I said it last year, and I'm going to say it again: German cinema is in the ascendant.
Reviews of both "Paule und Julia" and "Defense d'aimer" follow below. I'm also throwing in a review of a Canadian film I caught earlier, "Marion Bridge," which is proving a great hit with the IFFR crowd. Halfway through the festival, "Marion Bridge" ranks 9th in the Audience Poll, making it the third-most popular English-language film behind "The Magdalene Sisters" and "Rabbit-Proof Fence." For those of you who are interested in such matters, "Punch-Drunk Love" is currently the highest-scoring American entry, ranked 22nd or thereabouts.
Enjoy...
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MARION BRIDGE
(Written by Daniel MacIvor; directed by Wiebke von Carolsfeld, Canada)
A few years ago, when she switched from editing (Jeremy Podeswa's "The Five Senses") to directing, Wiebke von Carolsfeld vowed to make "films that touch one's heart in an intelligent way," like those by Ang Lee, Aki Kaurismaki and Wong Kar-wai. She admirably succeeded in doing so in her first feature, "Marion Bridge," which took the Best Canadian Film gong at the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival and appears to be equally popular in Rotterdam.
Best described as an all-female take on the "Festen" (The Celebration) genre, Von Carolsfeld's directing debut is a well-observed family drama filled to the brim with poignancy and Oscar-worthy performances. It is too slight to attract much mainstream attention, but it should go down well with those who liked "The Deep End" and "You Can Count on Me," and do much to further the careers of both the director and the star, Molly Parker.
"Marion Bridge" is the story of a not-so-peaceful family reunion. When the film opens, prodigal daughter Agnes (Molly Parker) returns from Toronto to her hometown in Nova Scotia to spend some quality time with her mother (Marguerite McNeil), who is about to die. It soon transpires that, like her mother, Agnes is an alcoholic with a tendency to stir up trouble, which is why her two elder sisters (both of whom live with their mother) aren't too enthusiastic when she moves in with them. The sisters have problems of their own; the eldest, Theresa (Rebecca Jenkins), is a religious zealot who cannot extricate herself from a disastrous marriage and blames herself for everything that goes wrong, while no. 2, Louise (Stacy Smith), is a graceless TV addict with a criminally low self-esteem and a hint of sexual confusion. Needless to say, there is a secret that explains why these women have such frail egoes, and in the weeks that follow, seemingly self-destructive Agnes does her damnedest to disclose it, despite her sisters' insistence that they must let bygones be bygones and go on with their lives as if nothing had ever happened. Several painful confrontations later, nobody has acquired exactly what the viewer hopes they will get, but there is room for hope, not to mention full acceptance of the past. In a film that deals mostly with acceptance and forgiveness, the latter is about a good as it gets.
There is some brilliant stuff in here, and much of it comes courtesy of the script, adapted from his own play by Daniel MacIvor. MacIvor not only has a wonderful ear for dialogue (as witnessed in the snappy exchanges between Agnes and Theresa), but in Agnes, Theresa and Louise he gives us three heroines who are so human, so vulnerable that one cannot help feeling for them. Though far from stupid, the three sisters have a capacity for getting burnt rarely seen in North American cinema; they also happen to be extremely sensitive, which makes their vulnerability just a bit more painful. Both MacIvor's dialogues (consisting mostly of hurt recriminations) and the actresses' body language make this pain tangible. As usual, Parker is the standout, infusing Agnes with a fragility which is occasionally painful to behold. There is a particularly impressive scene towards the end of the film where Agnes rings her AA mentor in Toronto to tell her she is "feeling good" while the tremor in her voice and the fear in her eyes indicate that she is feeling anything but good. It is a quiet, relatively underplayed scene, but so monumental in its understatement that it should by rights elevate Parker to the A-list status that has so far eluded her.
It isn't just Parker vehicle, though. "Marion Bridge" is an ensemble film, and such is Von Carolsfeld's skill as a director that she got career-making performances out of all involved. She also effected (or at least captured) an astonishing chemistry between the three leads, notably Parker and Jenkins. The chemistry between the sisters is noticeable at all times, but never more so than when they are silent, in the quiet intervals between arguments. When Agnes and Theresa share a sofa to watch TV together, one gets a powerful sense that they are close to each other; that no matter how much they may have grown apart over the years, they are sisters, and will always be. A similar intimacy is felt when Agnes and Theresa share a late-night moment of bonding on the top of the stairs, or when Louise turns around in bed to tell Agnes that she is going to make a dream come true. There is little drama in these scenes; just real, honest intimacy, and somehow it is more moving than any effusion of tears, any Hollywood show of sentiment could ever be. The fact that it ends with a bonding experience for not three but five persons just makes it a little bit better.
Here's a testament to how good "Marion Bridge" is. At the end of the screening I attended, a roomful of industry people stayed in their seats until the credits had completely stopped rolling, quietly taking in every last little detail the film had to offer. Although the majority of those present were women, the ones who seemed most moved by the film were men, proving for once and for all that a family drama full of women needn't be a chick flick.
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DEFENSE D'AIMER (NO WAY TO LOVE)
(Written and directed by Rodolphe Marconi, France)
Maybe it's because I'm a writer myself. Maybe it's because as a three-time exchange student, I can relate to the emotional upheaval that is moving to a foreign country on your own. Maybe it's because, like the protagonist, I know what it's like to be obsessed with someone you hardly know, and to be unable to exorcise that person from your thoughts. Maybe it's simply because actor-director Rodolphe Marconi has the most gorgeous eyes in the world. Whatever the reason, "Defense d'aimer" (No Way to Love) struck a chord with me - the kind of chord intense films about intense people often strike with me.
"Defense d'aimer" is a heavyish psycho drama dealing with obsession and emotional imprisonment. The protagonist, Bruce (played with appropriate sensitivity by Marconi himself), is a young screen-writer who has won a scholarship enabling him to spend a year at Rome's Villa Medici. The idea is that by living in such beautiful surroundings, he will be inspired to write beautiful things himself. Clearly, though, Bruce is blocked; his brother (a famous writer) has died of AIDS, his girlfriend has just left him, and he is too much of an artist easily to connect with the other scholarship recipients at the villa, who, being artists themselves, aren't too sociable, either. Then his luck changes. Bruce meets Matteo (Andrea Necci), a handsome Italian who reminds him of his brother and may fill the void his brother has left. For his part, Matteo appears to be interested in Bruce, too. He shows up at all hours of the day, drawing Bruce into a web of attraction and repulsion, elaborate games and cruelty from which he finds it hard to extract himself. Before he knows it, Bruce is obsessed with Matteo, talking to him when he is not there, stalking him, and feeling awfully sorry for himself when Matteo moves on to a next victim. Clearly, he needs a release from his obsession, and he finds it in the most dramatic way; a way reminiscent of classical tragedies, which, like all other old things Rome has to offer, are a tangible force in the background, and a source of inspiration to those inhabiting the Villa Medici.
Marconi deserves credit for the aplomb with which he throws big, classical emotions on the screen, and the aestheticism with which he makes them look appealing. Through dark, moody close-ups of long, brooding looks, he establishes an atmosphere of yearning powerful enough to draw in those who have never experienced such passion themselves. That the passion thus depicted is of one man for another man is only incidental. For although the attraction between Bruce and Matteo is clearly of a homo-erotic nature, "Defense d'aimer" is not about a coming-out, nor about homosexuality in general. Rather, it is about obsession, about clinging to someone when it seems life has little else to offer, and the fact that both the lover and his beloved happen to be male just adds to the classical feeling of the film.
Sadly, "Defense d'aimer" also suffers from some classical exaggeration. Although the beginnings of Bruce's obsession with Matteo are beautifully delineated, the full depth of his madness (depicted in the second half of the film) seems rather self-indulgent, particularly when he begins to pine away. When Matteo withdraws from Bruce's embrace, Bruce pines - pines so long and bitterly that one is in danger of losing one's respect for him. For although he pines beautifully (those eyes! those eyes!), one inevitably reaches the point where one wishes to see him get his act back together and use the cruel experience he has just had as a stepping stone for creation. For as everybody knows, suffering is the staple on which artists feed, so why doesn't Bruce (a script-writer in need of material) feed on his?
Fortunately, Bruce does eventually exorcise his demons, and when he does, he does so in a manner that is both emotionally and aesthetically satisfying. I will not give away the ending, but I will say it is classical tragedy at its grandest - terrible beauty, beauty is terrible, that sort of thing.
They don't make 'em like this in America.
Although it is a bit too heavy and self-indulgent to rank as a masterpiece, "Defense d'aimer" is an ambitious, aesthetically pleasing film that proves Marconi is as confident in front of a camera as behind it. If it seems a tad too intense to those who lead balanced lives, it should impress those who are familiar with slightly more passionate feelings, and ring true to those who have experienced a measure of obsession themselves. And yes, I do count myself amongst the latter. That's what being a writer is about, you know.
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PAULE UND JULIA (PAULE AND JULIA)
(Written and directed by Torsten Loehn, Germany)
Boy meets girl; boy falls in love with girl; boy and girl have their share of trouble, but seem to end up living happily ever after. That could be the one-sentence run-down of "Paule and Julia," but as you'd expect from an 83-minute film, there are a few twists.
You see, Paule and Julia are different. VERY different. And while it's true that opposites attract (or so we're told), Paul and Julia are so diametrically opposed that one really wonders if their relationship has a future. Surely, one asks oneself halfway through the film, this isn't going to be one of those movies in which the hero and the heroine do NOT end up together?
Consider the odds. Julia is the 18-year-old daughter of a famous architect - rich, spoilt and quite proud. Paule, on the other hand, is a 15-year-old juvenile delinquent from a decidedly unfashionable working-class background with neither manners nor an education. And the first thing Paule does after spotting Julia in a street isn't wooing her, but mugging her - with a knife he tells her he'll use if she doesn't give him her handbag of her own accord. Hardly the beginning of an ideal romance, is it?
Needless to say, Paule and Julia do hit it off eventually, and between the two, a strange relationship develops that fills the voids in their lives. For Paule, despite his tough exterior, really yearns for someone to shower his affections upon, while Julia, who seems at first sight to have it all, badly craves some attention and excitement. So when Paule invites Julia to take a walk on the wild side, Julia accepts the challenge, while for his part, Paule believes that Julia may be the ticket to a more settled existence.
There is a catch, though. For while Paule is pursuing Julia, he is also involved in a scam set up by his friend Arnel, a small-time crook at the mercy of his gang-running uncle. And while Paule loves Julia, and really wants to say goodbye to his old life for her sake, he cannot turn his back on Arnel, even though it is obvious that Arnel is just one step removed from Very Serious Trouble. After all, Paule and Arnel are friends, and how can you desert a trusted friend just because you have met a rich, beautiful young lady? Especially when the friend in question is a 12-year-old refugee from Bosnia who would have perished long ago if it hadn't been for your help...
I'll be honest with you. From the description in the fest bible, I thought "Paule and Julia" was going to be a meandering monster trying hard to be many things and failing to be anything at all, and the above description would certainly make it sound like one. Against all odds, though, "Paule and Julia" turned out to be a realistic and involving drama, with real, human characters and a plot that niftily weaves together the different strands from which it is made up. Far from breaking under the strain of wishing to tell three stories at the same time, "Paule and Julia" comes off all the stronger for its ambition, each story adding something of use to the other. Ultimately, the love angle is played up more strongly than the crime and friendship angles, but that doesn't mean the crime and friendship stories are mere decoration. It's just that this is, after all, a boy-meets-girl story, and they tend to revolve around love.
There is some excellent stuff here. From the moving way the two emotionally stunted teenagers fall in love with each other to the painfully realistic way Paule's continued involvement with Arnel drives them apart, the relationship between Paule and Julia is well drawn and convincingly acted by the leads, Marlon Kittel (Paule) and Oona Devi Liebich (Julia). For his part, young Arnel Taci makes an equally impressive Arnel - tragic but ultimately unlikeable, and obviously envious of the place Julia occupies in Paule's heart. The tension that develops between him and Julia is tangible, and it is this tension (caused by the fact that love and friendship cannot prevail at the same time, and that Julia and Arnel want very different things from Paule) that gives the film the compelling quality it unmistakeably has.
Sadly, the compelling atmosphere doesn't go anywhere in the end. Although "Paule and Julia" is undeniably an accomplished look into three teenagers' empty lives, it somehow lacks the kind of energy, the kind of powerful sentiment that really makes a film stand out. It is intelligent film-making, but not memorable; and while it moves and amuses in equal parts, it is too nondescript, too directionless to make a lasting impression. Still, it is undeniably a promising debut for Loehn, who puts himself on the map as a director to watch. It is also added proof that the German film industry is back on its feet - a welcome recovery after the lean years that were the nineties.
Elaine
