John and Rikki at Sicario party, Baoli Beach, Cannes
Sicario (in competition) - Dir. Denis Villeneuve, USA 2004 - is a very absorbing thriller/action movie with Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro in a ruthless pursuit of Mexican drug cartel leaders in which standard rules of engagement are set aside - set mainly in Arizona and Mexico. Emily Blunt starts out as a tough FBI special ops agent in a promisingly strong female role which is unfortunately undermined as the film progresses. An unusual kind of film to be in the Festival Sélection Officielle but an exciting watch. See Trailer at link.
The other films I caught on Tuesday were quite different:
Son of Saul (in competition) Dir. Lazlo Nemes, Hungary 2014 See Peter Bradshaw Guardian review and trailer here
Saul is a Hungarian Jewish prisoner at Auschwicz death camp forced to work in the chaotic horror of the gas chambers, plundering the possessions of their victims and disposing of the corpses in furnaces or lime pits. Incredibly, as the 'shower' is emptied of its latest batch of corpses, laboured breathing reveals the body of a young boy miraculously still alive. Saul helps retrieve the boy only for a camp doctor to extinguish his remaining thread of life. providing the boy with a religious burial becomes an impossible but obsessive mission for Saul, a desperate means of introducing an act of morality into this hell on earth, alongside interventions in other subversive activity across the underground networks within the camp. The formal qualities of the film and the persistent close-up focus on Saul against the hellish backdrop of the screams of the gas chambers, the heaps of corpses, the roar of the furnaces, beatings and executions convey the massive scale and the sickening dehumanisation and 'normalisation' of the genocide.
The Measure of a Man (Dir. Stephane Brise, France 2015 – in competition) - see The Atlantic review and traier here.
Deals with an experienced machine operator who loses his job in factory lay-offs in a fly-on-the-wall style drama reminiscent (sort of think Ken Loach might make). Having been active in trade union resistance of the lay-offs, he has tired of the fight and sets about trying to find new employment. After months of job-seeking, he is eventually taken on as a security officer in a large supermarket, a job requiring some compromise of his principles as he trains in surveillance - of both shoppers and fellow employees. His family life with his wife and disabled son continues (DIY in the house, jive lessons with his wife, discussions at school about his son’s progress, etc.). As spectators we uncomfortably witness, fly-on-the-wall style, the apprehension and questioning of a series of shoplifters (mainly vulnerable individuals whose limited means prevent them taking up the company’s standard offer to let them go if they agree to pay for the pocketed goods. We also witness the confrontation of a long-standing employee for pocketing unclaimed bonus points for herself and the devastating consequences of her dismissal. When a second colleague is similarly confronted with evidence of her repeatedly keeping unclaimed coupons, the moral compromise becomes too great for Thierry (Vincent Lindon, the only professional actor in the film).
Ingrid Bergman - in her own words Dir. Stig Bjorkman, Sweden 2015. A documentary initiated by Bergman’s daughter, Isabella Rossellini (as she recounted at the presentation of the film in the Salle de 60ieme premiere) in conversation with the director at an earlier Cannes film festival. Slightly too long, but nevertheless fascinating, insight into Bergman’s family with footage from an amazingly rich collection of home video material filmed throughout her life, starting from her childhood with films recorded by her father and interviews with her 3 daughters and son (revealing a range of perspectives on their relationship with their mother and changes associated with the break up of her marriages to and Rossellini and filming commitments) as well as public and press reactions to Bergman as a result of her private life. See Hollywood Reporter review from Cannes here.
Isabella Rossellini at presentation of Ingrid... in Salle du 60ieme, Cannes Film Festival
Also - just few words on some of the other films seen on Friday 15 and Saturday 16 May which I haven’t mentioned in earlier blogs:
****Paulina / La patota (seen Fri 15/05) Dir. Santiago Mitre, Argentina/France, 2015. See Hollywood reporter review from Cannes here and trailer here.
A tough and compelling drama about Paulina’s decision to leave her promising careeras lawyer, her barely commenced PhD and her comfortable city life to make a practical contribution to the democratisation project she has been promoting as a social activist. She goes to work as a teacher in a school in a deprived and marginalised are close to the borders between Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay where developing an understanding of human rights and social justice are priorities for the project. When Paulina is raped by initially unknown attackers, rather than going back to the city, she determines to stay in the community and continue the project, adhering to her guiding values and principles as she seeks to come to terms with her emotional response, and find her own way of confronting the experience – and her attackers - and the consequences of the attack. The film’s formal approach, involving reprises of key moments in the film from different points of view, captures something of the protagonist’s attempt to find and maintain a balanced perspective and response to the situation, notwithstanding the conflicting emotions and dilemmas she experiences and the reactions of those around her. A powerful film with a very strong central character and performance.
*NoKids / Sin hijos Dir. Ariel Winograd, Argentina/Spain 2015 (seen Fri 15/05). Review and trailer here.
Light romantic comedy (Maribel Verdú, Diego Peretti). Gabriel has been totally absorbed in his young daughter Sofia for the last few years since his marriage broke down but decides to keep her existence a secret – through a series of outlandish strategies - when he falls for Vicky who is a committed member of the ‘No Kids’ movement and Sofia, who has a candour and inventiveness beyond her age (think Outnumbered’s xx), adds new dimensions to the subterfuge and is the key factor in a slightly predictable ending. See Altapeli review and trailer (Spanish) here.
**Aurora Dir. Rodrigo Sepúlveda, Chile, 2014 (seen Fri 15/05). Trailer here.
Sofia and her husband have been trying to adopt for several years without success. When Sofia sees a news story of a dead baby discovered on a landfill rubbish dump, she determines to find out about the baby whom she names ‘Aurora’. Impervious to the incomprehension of the authorities, Sofia becomes determined to provide the baby with an identity and a recognition that she existed and engages in a seemingly impossible legal battle to gain the right to bury her. Based on the true story – the closing credits of the film indicate that since Aurora, the couple have gone on to provide burials for several other abandoned dead babies. Interesting positioning of her quest at the borderline between determination, dedication and obsession.
More anon....
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