Jessica Hausner with Anne-Katrin Titze on Sylvie Testud’s Christine, Léa Seydoux’s Maria, Bruno Todeschini’s Kuno, and Gilette Barbier’s Frau Hartl in Lourdes: “I was thinking about the story of Heidi [by Johanna Spyri].”
In the first installment with Jessica Hausner on three of her feature films before her latest, the bewitching Club Zero (European Film Award Best Original Score to Markus Binder), we start the conversation with Lourdes, costumes, as always, designed by Tanja Hausner, cinematography by Martin Gschlacht, sound design by Erik Mischijew, and production design by Katharina Wöppermann (Shirin Neshat and Shoja Azari’s Women Without Men).
Kuno (Bruno Todeschini) with Christine (Sylvie Testud), Frau Hartl (Gilette Barbier) and Cécile (Elina Löwensohn)
Maria (Léa Seydoux), a newcomer to the...
In the first installment with Jessica Hausner on three of her feature films before her latest, the bewitching Club Zero (European Film Award Best Original Score to Markus Binder), we start the conversation with Lourdes, costumes, as always, designed by Tanja Hausner, cinematography by Martin Gschlacht, sound design by Erik Mischijew, and production design by Katharina Wöppermann (Shirin Neshat and Shoja Azari’s Women Without Men).
Kuno (Bruno Todeschini) with Christine (Sylvie Testud), Frau Hartl (Gilette Barbier) and Cécile (Elina Löwensohn)
Maria (Léa Seydoux), a newcomer to the...
- 4/26/2024
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Fien Troch’s “Holly,” which world premieres in competition at the Venice Film Festival, has debuted its trailer. MK2 is handling world sales. Troch’s previous film, “Home,” won the Horizons best director award at Venice.
“Holly” follows 15-year-old Holly, who calls her school to say she is staying home for the day. Soon after, a fire breaks out at the school, killing several students. With everyone touched by the tragedy, the community comes together, trying to heal.
Anna, a teacher, intrigued by Holly and her strange premonition, invites her to join the volunteering group she runs. Holly’s presence seems to bring peace of mind, warmth and hope to those she encounters. But soon, people begin to seek out Holly and her cathartic energy, demanding more and more from the girl.
Troch admits that there is something of herself in Holly. “Yes, like her, I am very receptive to other people’s emotions,...
“Holly” follows 15-year-old Holly, who calls her school to say she is staying home for the day. Soon after, a fire breaks out at the school, killing several students. With everyone touched by the tragedy, the community comes together, trying to heal.
Anna, a teacher, intrigued by Holly and her strange premonition, invites her to join the volunteering group she runs. Holly’s presence seems to bring peace of mind, warmth and hope to those she encounters. But soon, people begin to seek out Holly and her cathartic energy, demanding more and more from the girl.
Troch admits that there is something of herself in Holly. “Yes, like her, I am very receptive to other people’s emotions,...
- 8/29/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
It could be argued that “Savage State” ultimately seems worse than it really is only because the opening scenes of this French-Canadian-produced period drama are so deceptively promising. But, really, writer-director David Perrault (“Our Heroes Died Tonight”) has no one to blame but himself. Despite any good will (or at least simple curiosity) he might generate during his intriguingly offbeat first-act set-up, he actively encourages his visually splendid but dramatically fuzzy film to gradually devolve into a gonzo mashup of gothic melodrama, Wild West survival story, and voodoo-flavored supernaturalism, with a side order of slasher-movie tropes and a sprinkling of kinky sex insinuations.
“Savage State” begins by noting that, as early as 1861, Emperor Napoleon III warned “French settlers on the new continent” to maintain “strict neutrality” during the American Civil War. But by December 1863, Edmond (Bruno Todeschini) — paterfamilias of a well-to-do French family situated in St. Charles County, Mo. — recognizes...
“Savage State” begins by noting that, as early as 1861, Emperor Napoleon III warned “French settlers on the new continent” to maintain “strict neutrality” during the American Civil War. But by December 1863, Edmond (Bruno Todeschini) — paterfamilias of a well-to-do French family situated in St. Charles County, Mo. — recognizes...
- 1/28/2021
- by Joe Leydon
- Variety Film + TV
Embarking on a physically challenging journey can also lead to unexpected emotional turmoil. That’s certainly the case for the family of protagonists in the French-produced American Western, ‘Savage State.’ The parents and their teenage daughters set out to move in order to save their lives, but the lengthy voyage presents its own potential life-threatening situations. […]
The post Bruno Todeschini and Constance Dollé Set Out to Protect Their Daughters in Savage State iTunes Code Giveaway appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Bruno Todeschini and Constance Dollé Set Out to Protect Their Daughters in Savage State iTunes Code Giveaway appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 1/21/2021
- by Karen Benardello
- ShockYa
"He's coming with me, Esther..." "He doesn't want you anymore." Samuel Goldwyn Films has released an official trailer for a French indie drama set in America's past titled Savage State, originally L'état Sauvage in French. When the American Civil War breaks out, a family of french settlers must abandon their Missouri home to flee and go back to Paris. They're escorted by a former mercenary whose troubled past soon catches up with him. Sounds like an interesting parable about how bad it is in America and how it's time to get out. Although the politics of this film seem a bit sketchy. Savage State stars Alice Isaaz, Kevin Janssens, Déborah François, Bruno Todeschini, Constance Dollé, Abidou, Maryne Bertieaux, and Kate Moran. This looks gorgeously shot, and so very French, with lots of beautiful women and a few rugged men. Here's the official US trailer (+ posters) for David Perrault's Savage State,...
- 1/10/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Samuel Goldwyn Films has nabbed the North American rights to Savage State, David Perrault’s period western drama.
An early 2021 release is planned for the film about a family of French settlers who flee Missouri to return to Paris as the American Civil War breaks out. They are escorted by a former mercenary whose troubled past soon catches up with him.
Savage State stars Alice Isaaz, Kevin Janssens, Deborah Francois and Bruno Todeschini.
“Savage State tells the story of a journey through the U.S. to Europe. I am thrilled that the film goes backward to meet the American public....
An early 2021 release is planned for the film about a family of French settlers who flee Missouri to return to Paris as the American Civil War breaks out. They are escorted by a former mercenary whose troubled past soon catches up with him.
Savage State stars Alice Isaaz, Kevin Janssens, Deborah Francois and Bruno Todeschini.
“Savage State tells the story of a journey through the U.S. to Europe. I am thrilled that the film goes backward to meet the American public....
- 12/1/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Samuel Goldwyn Films has nabbed the North American rights to Savage State, David Perrault’s period western drama.
An early 2021 release is planned for the film about a family of French settlers who flee Missouri to return to Paris as the American Civil War breaks out. They are escorted by a former mercenary whose troubled past soon catches up with him.
Savage State stars Alice Isaaz, Kevin Janssens, Deborah Francois and Bruno Todeschini.
“Savage State tells the story of a journey through the U.S. to Europe. I am thrilled that the film goes backward to meet the American public....
An early 2021 release is planned for the film about a family of French settlers who flee Missouri to return to Paris as the American Civil War breaks out. They are escorted by a former mercenary whose troubled past soon catches up with him.
Savage State stars Alice Isaaz, Kevin Janssens, Deborah Francois and Bruno Todeschini.
“Savage State tells the story of a journey through the U.S. to Europe. I am thrilled that the film goes backward to meet the American public....
- 12/1/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A mercenary walks into the den of a woman and her masked crew. They’re hoping to exchange French luxuries for diamonds, but the mercenary scams them. A classic fight with the sparks of gunpowder ensues, delivering the masculine toughness that encompasses most of the western genre. But the scene quickly shifts to a grand house where women outnumber men five to one. These characters are living and witnessing the savage state of a country that has resulted in a devastating civil war. Unlike most civil war films, the perspective here in writer-director David Perrault’s film is that of French settlers. But along with this unique viewpoint, Savage State can be added to the small canon of female westerns. Containing the same grit and violence as any film set on the American frontier, but it's one that’s wholeheartedly and unabashedly feminine.
It’s Missouri in 1863, home to a family of French settlers.
It’s Missouri in 1863, home to a family of French settlers.
- 8/31/2020
- by Sara Clements
- DailyDead
There’s a satisfying, life-affirming undertow in this story of a midlife romance set on an idyllic Mediterranean island
There’s a whiff of early Antonioni to the sunlight-etched, Med-existential backdrop, and the midlife malaise, of this Italian drama in which a French botanist (Bruno Todeschini) and a Pisan costume designer (Alessia Barela) meet on an island off Sicily to organise a wedding. Inevitably, they fall into bed, but agree to end their romance before the nuptials begin.
Trapping them in a locale from which virtually all youngsters have departed, journeyman Swiss director Rolando Colla – with three other writers – gives an entropic yet life-grasping undertow to their emotional wranglings. Occasionally it drifts close to over-indulging Todeschini; thankfully, the actor anchors his character’s bachelor angst with a sullen heaviness and flashes of underlying distress.
Continue reading...
There’s a whiff of early Antonioni to the sunlight-etched, Med-existential backdrop, and the midlife malaise, of this Italian drama in which a French botanist (Bruno Todeschini) and a Pisan costume designer (Alessia Barela) meet on an island off Sicily to organise a wedding. Inevitably, they fall into bed, but agree to end their romance before the nuptials begin.
Trapping them in a locale from which virtually all youngsters have departed, journeyman Swiss director Rolando Colla – with three other writers – gives an entropic yet life-grasping undertow to their emotional wranglings. Occasionally it drifts close to over-indulging Todeschini; thankfully, the actor anchors his character’s bachelor angst with a sullen heaviness and flashes of underlying distress.
Continue reading...
- 9/15/2017
- by Phil Hoad
- The Guardian - Film News
La vita possibile
Director: Ivano De Matteo
Writer: Valentina Ferlan
Italian actor turned director Ivano De Matteo continues to solidify his prolific reputation following the critical acclaim of his last film, 2014’s The Dinner (which bears a striking resemblance to Paolo Virzi’s Human Capital). While that title was headlined by Giovanna Mezzogiorno and Alessandro Gassman, the young director nabs two more of Italy’s most renowned performers, Marherita Buy and Valeria Golina for his next project, La vita possibile (The Possible Life), a Franco/Italian co-production. The plot concerns a mother and son fleeing the clutches of an abusive man as they try to make a better life for themselves.
Cast: Margherita Buy, Valeria Golino, Bruno Todeschini, Andrea Pittorino
Production Co./Producers: Marco Poccioni, Marco Valsania
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available. Tbd (domestic/international).
Release Date: With his last title premiering out of Venice, we’re wondering if this...
Director: Ivano De Matteo
Writer: Valentina Ferlan
Italian actor turned director Ivano De Matteo continues to solidify his prolific reputation following the critical acclaim of his last film, 2014’s The Dinner (which bears a striking resemblance to Paolo Virzi’s Human Capital). While that title was headlined by Giovanna Mezzogiorno and Alessandro Gassman, the young director nabs two more of Italy’s most renowned performers, Marherita Buy and Valeria Golina for his next project, La vita possibile (The Possible Life), a Franco/Italian co-production. The plot concerns a mother and son fleeing the clutches of an abusive man as they try to make a better life for themselves.
Cast: Margherita Buy, Valeria Golino, Bruno Todeschini, Andrea Pittorino
Production Co./Producers: Marco Poccioni, Marco Valsania
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available. Tbd (domestic/international).
Release Date: With his last title premiering out of Venice, we’re wondering if this...
- 1/5/2016
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Over the past two decades, Austrian auteur Michael Haneke has grown into one of the most formidable cinematic titans currently working today. Winning five awards for his six times competing at Cannes (including Palme d’Or wins in 2009 and 2012), several of his prominent early titles tend to be overlooked in broad discussions concerning the filmmaker’s continued observation of humankind’s increasing inability to communicate.
A purveyor of social maladies, usually within an isolated microcosm, Criterion’s restoration of his first French production, 2000’s Code Unknown, is a perfect opportunity to revisit a prescient example of greater cultural shifts and conflicts to come. Although contemporary audiences might be tempted to lump this early title from Haneke into a movement of cinema from this particular decade wherein interconnected vignettes became a popular format, this compilation of one shot, single-takes is beyond comparison with the glut of busy-bodied melodramas eventually running this composition tactic into the ground.
A purveyor of social maladies, usually within an isolated microcosm, Criterion’s restoration of his first French production, 2000’s Code Unknown, is a perfect opportunity to revisit a prescient example of greater cultural shifts and conflicts to come. Although contemporary audiences might be tempted to lump this early title from Haneke into a movement of cinema from this particular decade wherein interconnected vignettes became a popular format, this compilation of one shot, single-takes is beyond comparison with the glut of busy-bodied melodramas eventually running this composition tactic into the ground.
- 11/10/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Patrice Chéreau dead at 68: French director best known for ‘Queen Margot,’ gay-related dramas (photo: Patrice Chéreau; Isabelle Adjani in ‘Queen Margot’) Screenwriter, sometime actor, and stage, opera, and film director Patrice Chéreau, whose clinically cool — some might say sterile — films were arthouse favorites in some quarters, has died of lung cancer in Paris. Chéreau was 68. Born on November 2, 1944, in Lézigné, in France’s Maine-et-Loire department, and raised in Paris, Patrice Chéreau began directing plays in his late teens. In the mid-’60s, he became the director of a theater in Sartrouville, northwest of Paris, where he staged plays with a strong left-wing bent. Later on he moved to Milan’s Piccolo Teatro, and in the ’80s became the director of the Théâtre des Amandiers in the Parisian suburb of Nanterre. His 1976 staging of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen in the Bavarian town of Bayreuth was considered revolutionary. Patrice Chéreau...
- 10/8/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
This is a talk given by French director of photography Caroline Champetier at the La Roche-sur-Yon International Film Festival in October 2012, originally published in two parts on the festival’s site (www.fif-85.com). This translation is being published with their kind permission. This year's festival will take place from October 16-21, Kelly Reichardt will be the guest of honor. Many thanks to Emmanuel Burdeau, programmer of the festival, Jordan Mintzer and Caroline Champetier.
Caroline Champetier: I’ve always tried to take a step back from what I’m doing. The more I work, however, the less I’m able to deal with this exercise. I just finished production on Claude Lanzmann’s The Last of the Unjust and have barely said goodbye to David Teboul, a young director who I worked with on Cinq avenue Marceau (2002), a film I think very highly of and that’s about Yves Saint Laurent’s last collection.
Caroline Champetier: I’ve always tried to take a step back from what I’m doing. The more I work, however, the less I’m able to deal with this exercise. I just finished production on Claude Lanzmann’s The Last of the Unjust and have barely said goodbye to David Teboul, a young director who I worked with on Cinq avenue Marceau (2002), a film I think very highly of and that’s about Yves Saint Laurent’s last collection.
- 9/20/2013
- by Ted Fendt
- MUBI
Chicago – In “Delicacy,” the beguiling new film from David and Stéphane Foenkinos, there are moments that beautifully portray the strange effect that love can have on the senses. Two characters spend what appears to be a brief moment together in an office. It’s only upon leaving it that they realize hours have passed by. For fans of charming French rom-coms, this picture may have a similar effect.
The luminous smile that famously graced the face of Audrey Tautou in “Amélie” is replaced by a no less radiant expression of crestfallen heartache. Tautou plays Nathalie, a young woman who loses her great love, François (Pio Marmaï), in a traffic accident. Her stranded heart remains indifferent to the desires of men overwhelmed by her beauty, including her lecherous boss, Charlie (Bruno Todeschini). Thankfully, tragedy has caused Nathalie to favor an uncommon level of frankness, and she has no problem telling Charlie...
The luminous smile that famously graced the face of Audrey Tautou in “Amélie” is replaced by a no less radiant expression of crestfallen heartache. Tautou plays Nathalie, a young woman who loses her great love, François (Pio Marmaï), in a traffic accident. Her stranded heart remains indifferent to the desires of men overwhelmed by her beauty, including her lecherous boss, Charlie (Bruno Todeschini). Thankfully, tragedy has caused Nathalie to favor an uncommon level of frankness, and she has no problem telling Charlie...
- 10/2/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Audrey Tautou has come a long way since her touching, doe-eyed international debut in Amelie. The actress is typecast in such feisty, cutesy roles that it’s hard to determine whether she’s good or just a natural charmer – a bit of both perhaps. In debut directors David Foenkinos and Stephane Foenkinos’ new romance, Delicacy, we find a more determined Tautou at play – who still commands the screen in a delightfully challenging role about life, love and death.
Nathalie (Tautou) is a beautiful, happy and successful Parisian business executive who finds herself suddenly widowed after a three-year marriage to her soul mate. Struggling to cope with her loss, she buries herself and her emotions in her work to the dismay of her friends, family and co-workers.
After being pursued by her boss (Bruno Todeschini), Nathalie finds love and a rekindled zest for life in an unlikely source, her seemingly unexceptional,...
Nathalie (Tautou) is a beautiful, happy and successful Parisian business executive who finds herself suddenly widowed after a three-year marriage to her soul mate. Struggling to cope with her loss, she buries herself and her emotions in her work to the dismay of her friends, family and co-workers.
After being pursued by her boss (Bruno Todeschini), Nathalie finds love and a rekindled zest for life in an unlikely source, her seemingly unexceptional,...
- 4/16/2012
- by Lisa Giles-Keddie
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The Cabin In The Woods (15)
(Drew Goddard, 2011, Us) Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz. 95 mins
It's clear from the outset this Jj Abrams-produced genre offering isn't your standard slasher movie, as a traditional teen country break set-up is monitored by wisecracking officials in some mysterious bunker. But exactly what the twist is, it's better to discover for yourself. Let's just say it gives the horror formula an exhilarating jolt without destroying it, in a Lost-meets-Scooby-Doo sort of way – a meta-mystery tour signposted with spoiler alerts.
Battleship (12A)
(Peter Berg, 2012, Us) Taylor Kitsch, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgård, Rihanna. 131 mins
After the triumph of Transformers, Hasbro spin off another of their products, resulting in an effects-driven alien invasion that looks a lot like, er, Transformers. Expect Michael Bay-scale destruction, lots of CG explosions and military heroism, with extra cheese.
A Night To Remember (PG)
(Roy Ward Baker,...
(Drew Goddard, 2011, Us) Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz. 95 mins
It's clear from the outset this Jj Abrams-produced genre offering isn't your standard slasher movie, as a traditional teen country break set-up is monitored by wisecracking officials in some mysterious bunker. But exactly what the twist is, it's better to discover for yourself. Let's just say it gives the horror formula an exhilarating jolt without destroying it, in a Lost-meets-Scooby-Doo sort of way – a meta-mystery tour signposted with spoiler alerts.
Battleship (12A)
(Peter Berg, 2012, Us) Taylor Kitsch, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgård, Rihanna. 131 mins
After the triumph of Transformers, Hasbro spin off another of their products, resulting in an effects-driven alien invasion that looks a lot like, er, Transformers. Expect Michael Bay-scale destruction, lots of CG explosions and military heroism, with extra cheese.
A Night To Remember (PG)
(Roy Ward Baker,...
- 4/13/2012
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Since March 14, the French film Delicacy, starring Audrey Tautou, has been slowly been rolling out across the United States in limited release. The film, which is based on the best-selling novel by David Foenkinos, who wrote and co-directed the film with his brother Stephane, stars Tautou as Nathalie, a French woman who has buried herself in work since losing her husband of three years. But, seemingly out of the blue and from a completely unexpected source, her spirits are lifted when she begins dating her office subordinate, Markus (Francois Damiens). The film, as its title implies, is rich and enjoyable and one of my favorites so far this year. It is the kind of romantic film the French do so well. The kind of films that American audiences always claim they want to see instead of the typical Hollywood rom-com. A film that makes you want to rush off to Paris and fall in live.
- 4/4/2012
- by Bill Cody
- Rope of Silicon
Film: Delicacy (La délicatesse) (2011) Cast includes: Audrey Tautou (Amélie),François Damiens (Heartbreaker), Bruno Todeschini (Son frére), Pio Marmï (A Happy Event) Writer/Director: David Foenkinos, Stéphane Foenkinos (first feature film) Genre: Humor | Romance (108 minutes) French with subtitles "What will she order? Nothing humdrum like coffee..." François and Nathalie enjoy replaying their first meeting at Les Cailloux. Falling in love was so easy then. When he proposed, it was totally spontaneous... he put his key ring on her finger... and she said yes. Nathalie had it all... a new job, a handsome, loving husband and plans for the future. But it all ends suddenly when François is killed in an accident. At the funeral, all Nathalie can think is, "What if I am frozen in this moment." When Nathalie finally returns to work, she tells her boss Charles to "pile on the work." Charles, who has always had his eye on Nathalie,...
- 3/23/2012
- by Leslie Sisman
- Moviefone
In association with Organic Marketing and Studio Canal UK, we have two pairs of tickets to giveaway to a preview screening of Delicacy.
Directed by David Foenkinos and Stephane Foenkinos, Delicacy centres on Nathalie Kerr (played BAFTA nominee Audrey Tautou), a French woman, who, three years after the sudden and unexpected death of her husband, is courted by a Swedish co-worker.
In addition to Tautou, Delicacy stars Francois Damiens, Bruno Todeschini, Melanie Bernier, Josephine de Meaux, Pio Marmai and Marc Citti.
The screening, part of Rendez-vous with French cinema programme, will take place at 8:15pm on Saturday, March 24 at the Filmhouse in Edinburgh.
Following the film, the directors, David and Stephane, will participate in a Q & A session.
To find out how to enter click next below for details of how to enter.
Directed by David Foenkinos and Stephane Foenkinos, Delicacy centres on Nathalie Kerr (played BAFTA nominee Audrey Tautou), a French woman, who, three years after the sudden and unexpected death of her husband, is courted by a Swedish co-worker.
In addition to Tautou, Delicacy stars Francois Damiens, Bruno Todeschini, Melanie Bernier, Josephine de Meaux, Pio Marmai and Marc Citti.
The screening, part of Rendez-vous with French cinema programme, will take place at 8:15pm on Saturday, March 24 at the Filmhouse in Edinburgh.
Following the film, the directors, David and Stephane, will participate in a Q & A session.
To find out how to enter click next below for details of how to enter.
- 3/19/2012
- by Competitons
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Title: Delicacy Cohen Media Group Review by: Harvey Karten Director: David Foenkinos, Stéphane Foenkinos Screenwriter: David Foenkinos from his novel “La Délicatesse” Cast: Audrey Tautou, François Damiens, Bruno Todeschini, Mélanie Bernier, Joséphine de Meaux, Pio Marmaï, Monique Chaumette Screened at: Review 2, NYC, 2/15/12 Opens: March 16, 2012 Anyone who has loved and lost–whether through the death of a significant other or a dropped relationship–can identify with the delicate plight of the principal character in David Foenkinos and Stéphane Foenkinos’ “Delicacy.” The writer and directors, whose previous work, a short comedy “Une histoire de pieds” (about a couple’s first date as seen from the perspective of a foot), deliver a...
- 2/17/2012
- by Brian Corder
- ShockYa
The thriller Switch will be released in France's theatres on July 6. This film has a Canadian connection. In fact, Switch is the first French film in which Canadian actress Karine Vanasse plays.
In this film, she stars as a Montrealer named Sophie Malaterre. She decides to go live in Paris. In order to do so, she exchanges on a web site her apartment with someone else. However, once in Paris, the police tells her that a corpse has been found in Sophie's new apartment in Paris.
The film also stars Eric Cantona, Mehdi Nebbou, Aurélien Recoing, Karina Testa, Bruno Todeschini and Niseema Theillaud. Other Canadians in the cast include Maxim Roy and Sophie Faucher.
In this film, she stars as a Montrealer named Sophie Malaterre. She decides to go live in Paris. In order to do so, she exchanges on a web site her apartment with someone else. However, once in Paris, the police tells her that a corpse has been found in Sophie's new apartment in Paris.
The film also stars Eric Cantona, Mehdi Nebbou, Aurélien Recoing, Karina Testa, Bruno Todeschini and Niseema Theillaud. Other Canadians in the cast include Maxim Roy and Sophie Faucher.
- 6/30/2011
- by anhkhoido@gmail.com (Anh Khoi Do)
- The Cultural Post
This week production began on an Audrey Tautou toplined project which once again taps into familiar semi-dramatic rom-comedic functions as some of her more recent string of roles. Having just completed filming on actor-turned director Jalil Lespert's Des vents contraries, she'll be shooting in the French capitol for author turned director David Foenkinos who is turning his best-seller novel Delicacy into a feature film. Tautou will be paired alongside Belgium's François Damiens (nominated for the 2011 Best Supporting Actor César for Heartbreaker). 2.4.7 Films' Marc-Antoine Robert and Xavier Rigault are producing. Gist: Also starring Bruno Todeschini, Joséphine de Meaux, Mélanie Bernier, Pio Marmai, Monique Chaumette, Christophe Malavoy and the always enjoyable Ariane Ascaride, here's the book description: Nathalie and François had been the perfect couple, and perfectly happy. But after François dies suddenly, only seven years into their still blissful marriage, the widowed Nathalie begins to erect a fortress around her...
- 3/11/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
A cinematheque curator would have a tough time running a series on French filmmaker Yves Caumon. Unlike the prolific Ozon, Caumon, a full time film professor takes his time between his film - his notable first two have been the Cannes selected 2001's Amours d’enfance and 2005's Cache-cache. Cineuropa.org reports that Caumon's third film has taken flight. L'oiseau which has already begun lensing with Sandrine Kiberlain (Mademoiselle Chambon) in the lead, alongside Clément Sibony, Bruno Todeschini and Serge Riaboukine. Scripted by Caumon, the film centres on Anne (Kiberlain) who has lost a child. With no friends and no love, her life seems to be over already. Nobody sees or notices her and she ensures it stays that way. She effectively retires from life, in the middle of everyone. But one day, years later, a bird falls into the chimney shaft of her home and everything changes. Logic would...
- 7/12/2010
- IONCINEMA.com
This is the Pure Movies review of Lourdes. Directed by Jessica Hausner, starring Sylvie Testud, Léa Seydoux, Gilette Barbier, Gerhard Liebmann, Bruno Todeschini, Elina Löwensohn and Katharina Flicker. Reviewed exclusively by Garth Twa. It’s a movie that utilizes and plays with the possibilities and conventions of cinema, that challenges your preconceived notions, that actually changes you, changes your brain, like a great piece of literature. You look differently at the world. This isn’t spectacular—there are no explosions or chases through the glowing trees of Pandora—but rather it is small and disconcertingly intimate, which is the size something needs to be to get properly under your skin. It’s the kind of movie that makes me love cinema.
- 7/11/2010
- by Garth Twa
- Pure Movies
This is an exclusive interview with Sylvie Testud following her performance in Lourdes, by Garth Twa. The film is directed by Jessica Hausner, and also stars Léa Seydoux, Gilette Barbier, Gerhard Liebmann, Bruno Todeschini, Elina Löwensohn and Katharina Flicker. The interview was with acclaimed director and screenwriter Garth Twa. In Lourdes, the new film by director Jessica Hausner, Sylvie Testud stars as Christine, a woman crippled by multiple sclerosis. It is a complex, subtle, slightly wicked film that explores religion, the business of religion, human nature, and faith.
- 7/10/2010
- by Garth Twa
- Pure Movies
Rating: 5.0/5.0
Chicago – Most films about faith seem artistically limited by their spiritual subject matter. Some religiously devout filmmakers are so fixed in their beliefs that they lack the ability to perceive life with the complexity necessary to create resonant art. A perennial classic like Cecil B. DeMille’s “The Ten Commandments” may have magnificent scope and spectacle, but it has all the dramatic depth and nuance of a Bible card.
What makes a film like “Lourdes” so mesmerizing, apart from its exquisite acting, cinematography and direction, is the fact that it’s the work of a filmmaker who doesn’t claim to have all the answers. Writer/director Jessica Hausner is uninterested in spoonfeeding superficial enlightenment to her audience. Yet she also has no intention of mocking Catholicism, or any other religion, with self-congratulatory satire or blasphemous put-downs. Though her film has been described as a “dark comedy,” it is...
Chicago – Most films about faith seem artistically limited by their spiritual subject matter. Some religiously devout filmmakers are so fixed in their beliefs that they lack the ability to perceive life with the complexity necessary to create resonant art. A perennial classic like Cecil B. DeMille’s “The Ten Commandments” may have magnificent scope and spectacle, but it has all the dramatic depth and nuance of a Bible card.
What makes a film like “Lourdes” so mesmerizing, apart from its exquisite acting, cinematography and direction, is the fact that it’s the work of a filmmaker who doesn’t claim to have all the answers. Writer/director Jessica Hausner is uninterested in spoonfeeding superficial enlightenment to her audience. Yet she also has no intention of mocking Catholicism, or any other religion, with self-congratulatory satire or blasphemous put-downs. Though her film has been described as a “dark comedy,” it is...
- 5/13/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Jessica Hausner's drama is subtle, mysterious and brilliant, says Peter Bradshaw
"Leaving the miraculous out of life is like leaving out the lavatory or dreams or breakfast," wrote Graham Greene, but the miraculous certainly does tend to get left out of films, unless they are specifically about the life of Christ. So a contemporary movie set in Lourdes, among the believers and wheelchair-users who have come to that famous shrine in the hope of a cure, must inevitably trigger a series of expectations in the viewer: expectations of irony and disillusion, of some grotesque reversal, or maybe, in place of a cure, some violently satirical Dr Strangelove moment, a nauseous anti-miracle, like the ex-Nazi's euphoric scream of "I can walk!" in Kubrick's film at the instant when the earth's nuclear destruction is guaranteed.
Furthermore, this movie is by Jessica Hausner, the Austrian director whose name is habitually mentioned in...
"Leaving the miraculous out of life is like leaving out the lavatory or dreams or breakfast," wrote Graham Greene, but the miraculous certainly does tend to get left out of films, unless they are specifically about the life of Christ. So a contemporary movie set in Lourdes, among the believers and wheelchair-users who have come to that famous shrine in the hope of a cure, must inevitably trigger a series of expectations in the viewer: expectations of irony and disillusion, of some grotesque reversal, or maybe, in place of a cure, some violently satirical Dr Strangelove moment, a nauseous anti-miracle, like the ex-Nazi's euphoric scream of "I can walk!" in Kubrick's film at the instant when the earth's nuclear destruction is guaranteed.
Furthermore, this movie is by Jessica Hausner, the Austrian director whose name is habitually mentioned in...
- 3/25/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Fans of Ewan McGregor, Kristen Stewart and James Van Der Beek (!) will be seeing double this spring, as arthouses and multiplexes host an array of indie films ranging from the travails of septuagenarian New Yorkers looking for love ("The Last New Yorker") to 13-year-old assassins on the hunt for their first kill ("Kick-Ass"). If real life is more your speed, there are new documentaries about reviving animation strips (the Disney doc "Waking Sleeping Beauty") and stripping down (the burlesque history "Behind the Burly Q"), while foreign wonders like the French crime epics "A Prophet" and "Mesrine" mix with Korean treasures "Mother" and "The Good, The Bad and The Weird."
But of course, why limit yourself to just what's playing in the first-run theater near you? We've also included a look at the films that will be playing Anywhere But a Movie Theater (online, on demand, and on DVD) in the next few months,...
But of course, why limit yourself to just what's playing in the first-run theater near you? We've also included a look at the films that will be playing Anywhere But a Movie Theater (online, on demand, and on DVD) in the next few months,...
- 2/16/2010
- by Stephen Saito
- ifc.com
The 2010 Sundance Film Festival will screen the animated short horror film The Zo, written and directed by Glenda Wharton.
Also in the Sundance lineup are several sci-fi and fantasy movies directed by women, including Sara Elliassen's bleak and futuristic short Still Birds; Austrian filmmaker Pippilotti Rist's LSD-inspired riff on Pippi Longstocking called Pepperminta; Floria Sigismundi's rockumentary about the all-female rockers The Runaways; and Hotel director Jessica Hausner's fantastic drama Lourdes. Read on for details and trailers...
The Zo: USA (Director and Screenwriter: Glenda Wharton)-A hand-drawn animated film about abuse and escape, where a child becomes trapped in a nightmare house by a monster.
Still Birds / Norway (Director and Screenwriter: Sara Eliassen)-A dystopic fable that takes place in an enclosed world in which the last girl on earth who can speak is about to have her voice stolen by other jealous children.
Pepperminta / Austria, Switzerland (Director: Pipilotti Rist; Screenwriters: Pipilotti Rist,...
Also in the Sundance lineup are several sci-fi and fantasy movies directed by women, including Sara Elliassen's bleak and futuristic short Still Birds; Austrian filmmaker Pippilotti Rist's LSD-inspired riff on Pippi Longstocking called Pepperminta; Floria Sigismundi's rockumentary about the all-female rockers The Runaways; and Hotel director Jessica Hausner's fantastic drama Lourdes. Read on for details and trailers...
The Zo: USA (Director and Screenwriter: Glenda Wharton)-A hand-drawn animated film about abuse and escape, where a child becomes trapped in a nightmare house by a monster.
Still Birds / Norway (Director and Screenwriter: Sara Eliassen)-A dystopic fable that takes place in an enclosed world in which the last girl on earth who can speak is about to have her voice stolen by other jealous children.
Pepperminta / Austria, Switzerland (Director: Pipilotti Rist; Screenwriters: Pipilotti Rist,...
- 12/13/2009
- by Superheidi
- Planet Fury
The Spotlight section (replacing the awkward Spectrum sidebar) is a place where the festival will showcase some great finds on the festival circuit. And let me tell you, there is some great stuff here especially with Tiff/Venice titles such as I am Love, Lourdes, Mother & Child, A Prophet and Women Without Men. - The Spotlight section (replacing the awkward Spectrum sidebar) is a place where the festival will showcase some great finds on the festival circuit. And let me tell you, there is some great stuff here especially with Tiff/Venice titles such as I am Love, Lourdes, Mother & Child, A Prophet and Women Without Men. The list includes some Cannes fair in Safdie Bros.' Daddy Longlegs (formerly known as Go Get Some Rosemary) and Noe's Enter the Void. Having already seen a good number of these pics, also means, less films for me to worry about.
- 12/13/2009
- IONCINEMA.com
On Wednesday the Sundance Film Festival unveiled the films competing in late January 2010. Yesterday they announced the rest of the line-up of independent films vying for attention for industry types and the curious public.
The entire list of 53 films is below, but here are a few that stood out to me from the premieres alone:
Mumblecore directors the Duplass Brothers, have a new, untitled movie starring an unusually high-profile cast compared to their usual improvisational crew. John C. Reilly, Marisa Tomei, Jonah Hill, and Catherine Keener. Reilly and Keener are actually in two films at the 2010 festival.
The Company Men, starring Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Rosemarie DeWitt about corporate downsizing.
Rodrigo Cortes’ Buried, starring Ryan Reynolds as a man buried alive in a coffin. I’ve read the script and its great. More on that as soon as I can.
The Runaways, the...
The entire list of 53 films is below, but here are a few that stood out to me from the premieres alone:
Mumblecore directors the Duplass Brothers, have a new, untitled movie starring an unusually high-profile cast compared to their usual improvisational crew. John C. Reilly, Marisa Tomei, Jonah Hill, and Catherine Keener. Reilly and Keener are actually in two films at the 2010 festival.
The Company Men, starring Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Rosemarie DeWitt about corporate downsizing.
Rodrigo Cortes’ Buried, starring Ryan Reynolds as a man buried alive in a coffin. I’ve read the script and its great. More on that as soon as I can.
The Runaways, the...
- 12/5/2009
- by Jeff Leins
- newsinfilm.com
We are 49 days out and counting down to Sundance 2010. Yesterday, we unveiled the list of competition films for the upcoming festival. Today, we have your list of out-of-competition films which include Premieres, Spotlight, New Frontier, and, my personal favorite, Park City at Midnight, which has featured past entries like Black Dynamite, The Descent, and Saw.
Check out next year’s lineup for the out-of-competition films:
Premieres
To showcase the diversity to contemporary independent cinema, the Sundance Film Festival Premieres section offers the latest work from American and international directors as well as world premieres of highly anticipated films. Presented by Entertainment Weekly.
Abel / Mexico, USA (Director: Diego Luna; Screenwriters: Diego Luna and Agusto Mendoza)–A peculiar young boy, blurring reality and fantasy, assumes the responsibilities of a family man in his father’s absence. Cast: Jose Maria Yazpik, Karina Gidi, Carlos Aragon, Christopher Ruiz-Esparza, Gerardo Ruiz-Esparza. World Premiere
Cane Toads:...
Check out next year’s lineup for the out-of-competition films:
Premieres
To showcase the diversity to contemporary independent cinema, the Sundance Film Festival Premieres section offers the latest work from American and international directors as well as world premieres of highly anticipated films. Presented by Entertainment Weekly.
Abel / Mexico, USA (Director: Diego Luna; Screenwriters: Diego Luna and Agusto Mendoza)–A peculiar young boy, blurring reality and fantasy, assumes the responsibilities of a family man in his father’s absence. Cast: Jose Maria Yazpik, Karina Gidi, Carlos Aragon, Christopher Ruiz-Esparza, Gerardo Ruiz-Esparza. World Premiere
Cane Toads:...
- 12/4/2009
- by Kirk
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Yesterday we got the list for the films playing in competition at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and today we get the rest of the films that will be featured and there are quite a few that make 2010 look much stronger based on pedigree alone than I have seen in quite some time. Variety has a big write-up detailing the categories and more on the festival right here, but I am just going to offer up the titles and let you sort it all out.
The titles already in the RopeofSilicon database are linked.
Premieres
All films are from the United States unless otherwise noted Abel (Mexico-u.S.), the directorial debut of actor Diego Luna, written by Luna and Agusto Mendoza, about a peculiar young boy who, as he blurs reality and fantasy, takes over the responsibilities of a family man in his father's absence. With Jose Maria Yazpik, Karina Gidi,...
The titles already in the RopeofSilicon database are linked.
Premieres
All films are from the United States unless otherwise noted Abel (Mexico-u.S.), the directorial debut of actor Diego Luna, written by Luna and Agusto Mendoza, about a peculiar young boy who, as he blurs reality and fantasy, takes over the responsibilities of a family man in his father's absence. With Jose Maria Yazpik, Karina Gidi,...
- 12/3/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
In addition to the competition titles which were announced yesterday, Sundance has announced the remainder of their line-up and it includes some titles we’re already familiar with along with a huge number of premieres.
Also on the docket are two new series: Next which showcases low/no budget films and Spotlight which highlights films which festival programmers deem worthy of extra love including Enter the Void (review) and Lourdes (the trailer for which I really liked).
I’m particularly excited to see some of the titles in the New Frontier program but overall, the line-up is an impressive one but the Kristen Stewart fan in me is excited to see her turn as Joan Jett in The Runaways and I think it’s fair to say we’re all dying to see Vincenzo Natali’s hotly anticipated Splice (trailer).
In the Midnight section, Adam Green's Frozen is sounding mighty find,...
Also on the docket are two new series: Next which showcases low/no budget films and Spotlight which highlights films which festival programmers deem worthy of extra love including Enter the Void (review) and Lourdes (the trailer for which I really liked).
I’m particularly excited to see some of the titles in the New Frontier program but overall, the line-up is an impressive one but the Kristen Stewart fan in me is excited to see her turn as Joan Jett in The Runaways and I think it’s fair to say we’re all dying to see Vincenzo Natali’s hotly anticipated Splice (trailer).
In the Midnight section, Adam Green's Frozen is sounding mighty find,...
- 12/3/2009
- QuietEarth.us
Sundance released their slate for 2010. It includes:43 documentaries on the Middle East12 films about friends who 'discover' something33 movies about people you've never heard about1 comedyHopefully the lineup this year is strong but it doesn't look that way compared to last year. Last year we had Push (Precious), that Lil Wayne documentary that never went anywhere, Mystery Team which might make my top ten, Moon, Mike Tyson documentary, Cold Souls. Just so much last January that was excellent. I hope I don't go out therer and freeze my tail off just to see...I don't know, a documentary about a former Pakistani prime minister or something silly like that.Here's the lineup so far: Premieres To showcase the diversity to contemporary independent cinema, the Sundance Film Festival Premieres section offers the latest work from American and international directors as well as world premieres of highly anticipated films. Presented by Entertainment Weekly.
- 12/3/2009
- LRMonline.com
The Sundance Film Festival's competition lineup for 2010, announced Wednesday, might demand that audiences wear their serious caps. But the out-of-competition selections allow programmers and viewers to cut loose a little.
The 53 films that populate this year's Premieres, Next, Spotlight, Park City at Midnight and New Frontier sections run the gamut from the cosmically experimental to the star-studded and silly. There is indeed something for everyone at this year's event, which runs Jan. 21-31 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.
As usual, Premieres collects work involving the industry's higher-profile talent, none more so than John Wells' feature directorial debut, "The Company Men," which stars Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper. Mexican actor Diego Luna's directorial debut, "Abel," will screen, as will Philip Seymour Hoffman's "Jack Goes Boating."
Michael Winterbottom has the rare distinction of having two films in...
The 53 films that populate this year's Premieres, Next, Spotlight, Park City at Midnight and New Frontier sections run the gamut from the cosmically experimental to the star-studded and silly. There is indeed something for everyone at this year's event, which runs Jan. 21-31 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.
As usual, Premieres collects work involving the industry's higher-profile talent, none more so than John Wells' feature directorial debut, "The Company Men," which stars Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper. Mexican actor Diego Luna's directorial debut, "Abel," will screen, as will Philip Seymour Hoffman's "Jack Goes Boating."
Michael Winterbottom has the rare distinction of having two films in...
- 12/3/2009
- by By Jay A. Fernandez
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Jessica Hausner's critically acclaimed French-language drama "Lourdes" took home the Golden Giraldillo Award this past weekend at the 2009 edition of the Sevilla European Film Festival.
Starring Sylvie Testud, Léa Seydoux, Bruno Todeschini, Gilette Barbier, the film follows Christine, a woman in a wheelchair who travels to Lourdes in an attempt to escape her isolation.
Meanwhile, Urszula Antoniak's "Nothing Personal" picked up the Silver Giraldillo. The Special Jury Award went to Malcolm Vevnville's "44 inch chest." "Garbo, the Spy" won in the documentary category.
Starring Sylvie Testud, Léa Seydoux, Bruno Todeschini, Gilette Barbier, the film follows Christine, a woman in a wheelchair who travels to Lourdes in an attempt to escape her isolation.
Meanwhile, Urszula Antoniak's "Nothing Personal" picked up the Silver Giraldillo. The Special Jury Award went to Malcolm Vevnville's "44 inch chest." "Garbo, the Spy" won in the documentary category.
- 11/16/2009
- by Franck Tabouring
- screeninglog.com
Venice International Film Festival
VENICE, Italy -- Italian director Paolo Franchi's brittle little story of male angst tells of a man named Bruno (Bruno Todeschini) who spends all his time looking glum and wandering off on his own.
Something is happening to Bruno, and it may be the result of learning that he is sterile or that his company is in financial trouble and the bank manager has given him a week to settle his debts. Perhaps it's just that he hasn't told his wife anything about it and given that the radiantly perfect Irene Jacob plays his loving spouse Anne, perhaps he's simply off his nut.
Cryptic but not engaging, and with a painfully loud and ugly sound mix, the film, which screened In Competition at the Venice International Film Festival, is unlikely to travel far beyond its home market.
Not very much becomes clear in the murky screenplay, which Franchi cowrote, especially when it introduces a suicidal stalker named Luca (Elio Germano) who turns out to be the son of Bruno's banker Mr. Neri (Paolo Graziosi), who has gone missing. Luca has panic attacks, is cruel to his patient girlfriend Elisa (Mimosa Campironi) and has sexual fantasies about Bruno's wife.
Unlike Bruno, who becomes increasingly detached from everyone including Luca after the boy tells him he has murdered his father. Ordinarily, that would lead to some tension in a movie but not in this one.
FALLEN HEROES Fallen Heroes (Nessuna qualita agli eroi)
An ITC Movie production
Director: Paolo Franchi
Writers: Paol Franchi, Daniela Ceselli, Michele Pellegrini
Producers: Beppe Caschetto, Anastasia Michelagnoli
Director of photography: Cesare Accetta
Production designer: Gianmaria Cau
Music: Martin Wheeler
Co-producers: Donatella Botti, Elda Guidinetti, Andres Pfaeffli;
Costume designer: Grazia Colombini
Editor: Alessio Doglione.
Cast:
Bruno: Bruno Todeschini
Luca: Elio Germano
Anne: Irene Jacob
Cecile: Maria DeMedeiros
Giorgio Neri: Paolo Graziosi
Elisa: Mimosa Campironi
Bruno's mother: Alexandra Stewart
Exhibition lecturer: Rinaldo Rocco
No MPAA rating, running time 102 minutes...
VENICE, Italy -- Italian director Paolo Franchi's brittle little story of male angst tells of a man named Bruno (Bruno Todeschini) who spends all his time looking glum and wandering off on his own.
Something is happening to Bruno, and it may be the result of learning that he is sterile or that his company is in financial trouble and the bank manager has given him a week to settle his debts. Perhaps it's just that he hasn't told his wife anything about it and given that the radiantly perfect Irene Jacob plays his loving spouse Anne, perhaps he's simply off his nut.
Cryptic but not engaging, and with a painfully loud and ugly sound mix, the film, which screened In Competition at the Venice International Film Festival, is unlikely to travel far beyond its home market.
Not very much becomes clear in the murky screenplay, which Franchi cowrote, especially when it introduces a suicidal stalker named Luca (Elio Germano) who turns out to be the son of Bruno's banker Mr. Neri (Paolo Graziosi), who has gone missing. Luca has panic attacks, is cruel to his patient girlfriend Elisa (Mimosa Campironi) and has sexual fantasies about Bruno's wife.
Unlike Bruno, who becomes increasingly detached from everyone including Luca after the boy tells him he has murdered his father. Ordinarily, that would lead to some tension in a movie but not in this one.
FALLEN HEROES Fallen Heroes (Nessuna qualita agli eroi)
An ITC Movie production
Director: Paolo Franchi
Writers: Paol Franchi, Daniela Ceselli, Michele Pellegrini
Producers: Beppe Caschetto, Anastasia Michelagnoli
Director of photography: Cesare Accetta
Production designer: Gianmaria Cau
Music: Martin Wheeler
Co-producers: Donatella Botti, Elda Guidinetti, Andres Pfaeffli;
Costume designer: Grazia Colombini
Editor: Alessio Doglione.
Cast:
Bruno: Bruno Todeschini
Luca: Elio Germano
Anne: Irene Jacob
Cecile: Maria DeMedeiros
Giorgio Neri: Paolo Graziosi
Elisa: Mimosa Campironi
Bruno's mother: Alexandra Stewart
Exhibition lecturer: Rinaldo Rocco
No MPAA rating, running time 102 minutes...
- 8/31/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Locarno International Film Festival
LOCARNO, Switzerland -- In one sense it's not a long day that errant husband Serge spends in Jacob Berger's cautionary tale 1 journee, but in another it could last a lifetime.
Having departed his marital bed, he stops at another, and leaving afterward in his car, he hits something on the road, something human. The implications of the man's behavior reverberate not only between the women in his life but also toward his young son. Berger's film takes a sophisticated look at the complications of adultery, and he shows a deft hand with the ironies that invariably accompany it. With well-drawn characters and appealing players, the wry drama could travel well in urban markets.
Serge (Bruno Todeschini) is catnip to women who love "that little animal begging to be saved," as one of them says. Torn between two lovers and distraught by the belief that he has hit someone with his car, he reports to the police, where skeptical Inspector Haddid (Zinedine Soualem) begins an investigation.
Serge's wife Pietra (Natacha Regnier) suspects he is cheating, and his mistress, Mathilde (Noemie Kocher), is ready to end their affair. Meanwhile, Serge and Pietra's precocious son Vlad (Louis Dussol) and Mathilde's daughter Manon (Amelia Jacob) have become friends in school.
Berger, who wrote the screenplay with Kocher, shifts back and forth in time so that events only gradually become clear. Charming and intelligent, young Vlad appears to be the most grown up of the lot of them. The story takes unpredictable paths, and scenes are invested with smart, often droll dialogue, which the cast delivers with flair. Vlad's encounters with his father's mistress are quite provocative as the boy clearly takes after his old man to the delight of the woman.
Attractively filmed in Geneva, the film also boasts a wonderfully varied and evocative score by French composer Cyril Morin, drawing on strings, wind instruments and piano to infuse the proceedings with added wit and poignancy.
ONE JOURNEY
Vega Film, Why Not Prods., Avventura Films
Credits:
Director: Jacob Berger
Screenwriters: Jacob Berger, Noemie Kocher
Producer: Ruth Waldburger
Director of photography: Jean-Marc Fabre
Production designers: Denis Mercier, Roger Martin
Music: Cyril Morin
Co-producer: Josef Steinberger
Costume designers: Nathalie Raoul, Francoise Nicolet
Editor: Catherine Quesemand
Cast:
Serge: Bruno Todeschini
Pietra: Natacha Regnier
Mathilde: Noemie Kocher
Inspector Haddid: Zinedine Soualem
Vlad: Louis Dussol
Manon: Amelia Jacob
Japanese Man: Hiro Uchiyama
Running time -- 95 minutes
No MPAA rating...
LOCARNO, Switzerland -- In one sense it's not a long day that errant husband Serge spends in Jacob Berger's cautionary tale 1 journee, but in another it could last a lifetime.
Having departed his marital bed, he stops at another, and leaving afterward in his car, he hits something on the road, something human. The implications of the man's behavior reverberate not only between the women in his life but also toward his young son. Berger's film takes a sophisticated look at the complications of adultery, and he shows a deft hand with the ironies that invariably accompany it. With well-drawn characters and appealing players, the wry drama could travel well in urban markets.
Serge (Bruno Todeschini) is catnip to women who love "that little animal begging to be saved," as one of them says. Torn between two lovers and distraught by the belief that he has hit someone with his car, he reports to the police, where skeptical Inspector Haddid (Zinedine Soualem) begins an investigation.
Serge's wife Pietra (Natacha Regnier) suspects he is cheating, and his mistress, Mathilde (Noemie Kocher), is ready to end their affair. Meanwhile, Serge and Pietra's precocious son Vlad (Louis Dussol) and Mathilde's daughter Manon (Amelia Jacob) have become friends in school.
Berger, who wrote the screenplay with Kocher, shifts back and forth in time so that events only gradually become clear. Charming and intelligent, young Vlad appears to be the most grown up of the lot of them. The story takes unpredictable paths, and scenes are invested with smart, often droll dialogue, which the cast delivers with flair. Vlad's encounters with his father's mistress are quite provocative as the boy clearly takes after his old man to the delight of the woman.
Attractively filmed in Geneva, the film also boasts a wonderfully varied and evocative score by French composer Cyril Morin, drawing on strings, wind instruments and piano to infuse the proceedings with added wit and poignancy.
ONE JOURNEY
Vega Film, Why Not Prods., Avventura Films
Credits:
Director: Jacob Berger
Screenwriters: Jacob Berger, Noemie Kocher
Producer: Ruth Waldburger
Director of photography: Jean-Marc Fabre
Production designers: Denis Mercier, Roger Martin
Music: Cyril Morin
Co-producer: Josef Steinberger
Costume designers: Nathalie Raoul, Francoise Nicolet
Editor: Catherine Quesemand
Cast:
Serge: Bruno Todeschini
Pietra: Natacha Regnier
Mathilde: Noemie Kocher
Inspector Haddid: Zinedine Soualem
Vlad: Louis Dussol
Manon: Amelia Jacob
Japanese Man: Hiro Uchiyama
Running time -- 95 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 8/23/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
- The jury composed of Walter Carvalho, Saverio Costanzo, Irène Jacob, Jia Zhang-ke, Romuald Karmakar and Bruno Todeschini gave out a bunch of leopards on the weekend. Masahiro Kobayashi (see pic above) won the Golden Leopard for his film Ai no yokan (The Rebirth). Best Director was awarded to Capitaine Achab by Philippe Ramos (France) and the Special Jury Prize went to Memories (Jeonju Digital Project 2007) by Pedro Costa, Harun Farocki and Eugène Green. Spanish actress Carmen Maura and the French actor Michel Piccoli both received an Excellence Award (Michel Piccoli also received the prize for best actor in Sous les toits de Paris, joint winner was Michele Venitucci in Fuori dalle corde). And finally (and not surprisingly), Death at a Funeral (the Brit comedy by Frank Oz) won the audience award – this making it the 5th or 6th time that it has walked away from an international festival with such honors.
- 8/13/2007
- IONCINEMA.com
Flach Pyramide International
Never one to shy away from stories dealing with very intense human contact, filmmaker Patrice Chereau ("Intimacy") gets up close and personal with this portrait of tricky family dynamics.
Based on the Philippe Besson novel "Son Frere", the unflinchingly clinical "His Brother" -- which screened at the City of Lights/City of Angels Film Festival -- deals with the relationship between a pair of estranged siblings who are brought together after one of them is diagnosed with a potentially fatal blood disease.
When his illness forces him to check into the hospital, Thomas (Bruno Todeschini) calls upon his gay younger brother, Luc (Eric Caravaca), to help care for him. At first reluctant and resentful for the earlier years in which he felt abandoned by his Big Brother, Luc gradually rises to the task.
Shunning artifice, Chereau insists on keeping things graphically real -- a sequence in which Thomas is given a pre-op chest-to-groin shave by two nurses is carried out with excruciating, real-time precision.
The characters' interior lives, meanwhile, are examined with the same kind of X-ray-reading scrutiny, and while its two credible leads are certainly up to the challenge, there's a relentless claustrophobia that prevents the film from taking on a fully dimensional life of its own.
By the time Chereau has cued an appropriately dirgelike Marianne Faithfull tune, his emotional shut-ins aren't The Only Ones in serious need of a blast of fresh air.
Never one to shy away from stories dealing with very intense human contact, filmmaker Patrice Chereau ("Intimacy") gets up close and personal with this portrait of tricky family dynamics.
Based on the Philippe Besson novel "Son Frere", the unflinchingly clinical "His Brother" -- which screened at the City of Lights/City of Angels Film Festival -- deals with the relationship between a pair of estranged siblings who are brought together after one of them is diagnosed with a potentially fatal blood disease.
When his illness forces him to check into the hospital, Thomas (Bruno Todeschini) calls upon his gay younger brother, Luc (Eric Caravaca), to help care for him. At first reluctant and resentful for the earlier years in which he felt abandoned by his Big Brother, Luc gradually rises to the task.
Shunning artifice, Chereau insists on keeping things graphically real -- a sequence in which Thomas is given a pre-op chest-to-groin shave by two nurses is carried out with excruciating, real-time precision.
The characters' interior lives, meanwhile, are examined with the same kind of X-ray-reading scrutiny, and while its two credible leads are certainly up to the challenge, there's a relentless claustrophobia that prevents the film from taking on a fully dimensional life of its own.
By the time Chereau has cued an appropriately dirgelike Marianne Faithfull tune, his emotional shut-ins aren't The Only Ones in serious need of a blast of fresh air.
- 4/10/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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