Shadows: Arthouse Films ’03
SEX IS COMEDY | SHIRI | WINGED MIGRATION
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More mainstream art films have their own pages.
Even more offbeat films are at the SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL.
last update
11.May.03
IN THE NAME OF BUDDHA
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dir-scr Rajesh Touchriver with Shiju, Soniya, Jyothi Lal, Amit, Jayasurya, Pamela, Sunil Kudavattoor, Edison, Sherry Roy, Biju, Pushpa Kallayi, Sreeja, Kalyani, Anuradha release UK 16.May.03 • 02/UK 2h26 
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Intimately examining the three-sided violence that has plagued Sri Lanka for 20 years, this film's title isn't descriptive; it's a plea for peace. And there's nothing subtle about it! And this all-encompassing attempt to get a message across undermines the film's drama even more than the uneven production values. The film opens as Siva (Shiju) flees his country and travels to London, where he applies for refugee status. We then watch events unfold in flashback back home, where Siva is studying medicine with plans to work with his father (Jayasurya) in a government clinic. He also plans to marry his sweetheart Geetha (Soniya). But all around them war is raging between the Lankan army and the Tamil rebels. Both sides use brutal methods in their cause; both claim a higher calling. And when India arrives with a peacekeeping force, it seems everything will finally settle down. Not even close.There's a vital, important, urgent story here that needs to be told, but a dramatic film like this can't stand up under the weight of such strong sermonising. The dialog is so preachy that it undermines every scene completely. This is a pity because the characters are compelling and interesting, and quite well-played too. And while Touchriver's camera work is often stunningly beautiful, his direction is amateurish and often quite indulgent, with random cuts and simple errors that make it hard for us to keep track of who's fighting whom. There's a strange mix of excellent technical work with awkward clumsiness in things like makeup, music and dubbing. And thematically, Touchriver milks every scene for all he's got. You can hardly blame him for being so heavy handed in his approach, but a lighter touch would be far more effective. And a clearer focus on the characters and their own personal situations would draw us in much more urgently. If the filmmakers want to tell the whole story (and they should!), maybe they'll make a proper documentary and leave nothing out. [18 themes, language, strong violence] 8.May.03
THE LEOPARD [Il Gattopardo]
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dir Luchino Visconti; scr Suso Cecchi d'Amico, Pasquale Festa Campanile, Massimo Franciosa, Enrico Medioli, Luchino Visconti with Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon, Claudia Cardinale, Rina Morelli, Paolo Stoppa, Romolo Valli, Lucilla Morlacchi, Serge Reggiani, Ida Galli, Ottavia Piccolo, Pierre Clementi, Carlo Valenzano release Italy 28.Mar.63; reissue UK 2.May.03 • Fox 63/Italy 2h55  REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
If that plot summary sounds grand, just watch! This is one of the most gorgeously produced films in history, with sweeping scenery, sumptuous sets and costumes, and a cast of thousands. And it all works to tell a deeply personal story. Visconti marshals all of this impeccably, keeping the scale epic and the drama intimate. With a fine attention to detail, he takes us right back to the place and time, filling each scene with throwaway humour and authentic touches, drawing out the script's subtleties and keeping the emotions right where we can feel them. It's breathtaking cinema on an amazing scale that never loses sight of real life. Even the sight of Lancaster, Delon and Cardinale dubbed into Italian (with English subtitles) somehow doesn't distract from the story, probably because the acting is so solid and the characters so well-written. This is a moving family drama framed against a sharp political and cultural background that actually means something. This is essential cinema. [PG themes, violence, language] 30.Apr.03
SEX IS COMEDY
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dir-scr Catherine Breillat with Anne Parillaud, Gregoire Colin, Roxane Mesquida, Ashley Wanninger, Dominique Colladant, Bart Binnema, Yves Osmu, Elisabete Piecho, Francis Seleck, Diane Scapa, Ana Lorena, Julia Fragata release UK 25.Jul.03, US 22.Oct.04 • Canal+ 02/France 1h34  REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
There are several brilliant moments in this film that catch you off guard with their transparency and meaning. It's an insightful glimpse into the mechanics of filmmaking, especially at the point where a difficult and emotional "nude scene" needs to be shot. There's a clever opening sequence involving the filming of a kiss on the beach--it's supposed to be summertime, but it's absolutely freezing. The extras won't stop shivering and the lead actors are unsure of each other. Then we move to the main studio-based scene and the tensions are highlighted in a new and intriguing way, right up to the astonishingly emotional ending. Along the way we get far too much ponderous French wordiness (everyone analyses everything endlessly!), but as Breillat unravels the creative process of acting, writing and directing, she really says some important things here. The performances are terrific, and work on several levels, while Breillat keeps the film looking natural and real, avoiding the temptation to play film-set tricks on us (there are a few). But it captures both the exhilaration and tedium of the filmmaking process--and of looking for and finding passion wherever it might be. [18 themes, language, nudity, adult situations] 29.Apr.03
SHIRI
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dir-scr Kang Je-gyu with Han Suk-kyu, Choi Min-sik, Kim Yoon-jin, Song Kang-ho, Derek Kim, Yoon Joo-Sang, Park Yong-Woo release US 8.Feb.02; UK 2.May.03 • 99/Korea 2h05  REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
It's all a bit complicated to watch, especially with a growing ensemble of characters and increasingly confusing situations. But there's a strong centre to the film that carries us through, and eventually involves us completely. There are scenes of unbearable tension (even though they resort to tired count-down cinematic techniques, they still work!), and some surprisingly moving emotion as one of the agents tries to protect his fiancee (Kim), who runs an aquarium shop. This is a big, bold, amazingly satisfying film, and writer-director Kang keeps the atmosphere colourful, the effects and stunt work astonishing, the human drama intimate and the political subtext palpable. In other words, it's bound to be remade by Hollywood into a mindless action movie that won't hold a candle to this film. See the original if you can! [18 themes, strong violence, language] 22.Apr.03
WINGED MIGRATION [Le Peuple Migrateur]
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dir Jacques Perrin; scr Stephane Durand, Jacques Perrin, Francis Roux narrator Jacques Perrin; with albatross, condors, cranes, doves, ducks, eagles, egrets, gannets, geese, grebes, gulls, macaws, pigeons, pelicans, penguins, puffins, robins, sparrows, starlings, storks, swans, terns release US 18.Apr.03; UK summer.03 • Sony 01/France 1h29 REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
The main achievement here, like in Microcosmos, is that the cinematography is so up close and personal that we can actually see the personalities of the birds, which makes their activities much more engaging. The filmmakers also creatively bring in the human element, as we see the birds interacting with hunters, farmers, fishermen, road traffic and even Eastern European industrial blight. Minimal narration and brief captions identify the birds and where they travel each year. Strangely, there is never an explanation of why birds migrate (if I was a bird, I'd just go to the tropics and stay there--better weather and food all year round!), and the background music is a bit goofy at times. But the film is full of clever, witty and dramatic moments all shot and edited with precision. It's so accomplished that you'd love to see the filmmakers get their hands on an Imax camera. Although that might be even more overwhelming.
[U some suspense and nature violence] 1.May.03