45th Karlovy Vary Film Festival

Many of the so called ‘A-List’ festivals have seemingly long since drifted from their original lofty aims of providing cinema for the masses. The chances of getting into screenings at Cannes as a ‘normal punter’ are slim. You can bet that without the right pass, or unless your surname is Weinstein, Venice is going to be difficult. Even Berlin, where public audiences have more of a fighting chance, is still a struggle unless you’re prepared to queue for a very long time indeed.

That’s why the 45th Karlovy Vary Film Festival was so refreshing. Yes, there was a huge industry presence at the event held in the Czech Republic, but the general public were also given plenty of opportunity to see the delights that the festival had on offer (indeed, the festival actually reduced the number of films and increased the number of repeat screenings to give the audience more of an opportunity to see films). With a (mainly) young audience descending upon the small Czech spa town, the festival did what so many of its A-List brethren are unable (or unwilling) to do: cater for the business of film whilst celebrating the pleasure of watching.

And, in a massive programme, there was plenty of pleasure to be had. The International Competition brought forth the World Premiere of the excellent – and ultimate Grand Prix winner – The Mosquito Net, a Spanish film about familial dysfunction, marital crisis and parental overprotection. There’s very much an air of Todd Solondz in its examination of the hypocrisy and deceit that lies at the centre of relationships with a very dark vein of humour. Even moments such as elderly grandparents contemplating suicide have a funny edge to them thanks to a bitingly sharp script and some truly wonderful performances (including Geraldine Chaplin who, even in a role that renders her silent, manages to convey so much from her eyes alone).

More dysfunctional families were explored in the wonderfully crafted, Mother Teresa of Cats. The film, based on the true story of a terrible crime committed by two brothers, has a flashback structure that is reminiscent of the likes of Irreversible and Memento, but opts for a more sombre and subtle portrayal of a family coming apart at the seams. There are some gripping performances, especially from Mateusz Kościukiewicz and Filip Garbacz (who deservedly ended up sharing the prize for Best Actor) as the two siblings at the centre of proceedings, and there is some measured direction which eschews outright horror for an unnerving and sometimes disturbing study into the nature of evil.

Less successful was mockumentary Hitler in Hollywood, in which we see Maria de Medeiros (still best known for her role in Pulp Fiction, something which becomes a running joke in the film) making a documentary about the French actress Micheline Presle. After she discovers a 1939 movie of Presle’s that was never released, she sets out on a journey that soon becomes a battle between the forgotten glories of European cinema and the dominance of Hollywood. There are a few nice and playful moments to be had, including interviews with numerous European auteurs who vociferously complain about the lack of choices audiences are faced with nowadays, and its passionate championing of filmmaking outside of the US is certainly stirring. But the film feels slight, and various stylistic tricks, such as desaturating the colour on all the supporting actors, feels just a little too arch for its own good.

Speaking of American cinema, there was an attempt to deal with the realities of the global recession in The Company Men, which was presented out of competition. Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper play high-flying employees of a company that struggles in the wake of the global financial crisis as the film deals with both the greed of the multinationals and the crisis that masculinity faces in the wake of unemployment. The cast do well, but the film’s attempt at social commentary feels toothless, while John Wells’ direction is flat and uninspired.

Over in the documentary section, UK film The Arbor was utterly astounding. Clio Barnard’s inventive film reconstructs the life of Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar and her daughters by having actors lip-synch extensive recordings of conversations that Barnard conducted with Dunbar’s family and friends. The resulting effect gives the film a vitality and energy, and tells a story that is both tragic and compelling. It’s due for release in the UK in October and it’s a remarkable film that you should try and see.

Also remarkable was Jeff Malmberg’s Marwencol, an account of Mark Hogancamp’s long road to recovery after being beaten senseless by thugs outside a New York club in 2000. Unable to afford traditional therapy, Hogancamp begins building a model World War II village in his backyard, named Marwencol, and populated with representations of family, friends and himself. When his work is ‘discovered’ his unique therapy is soon lauded as exciting art. Hogancamp is a fascinating subject as he painfully deals with a past unremembered and a present that is a continual struggle. In pouring his anger and frustration into his own world, Hogancamp is remarkably self-aware about his emotions and the reality of his situation, and it’s to Malmberg’s credit that he allows his subject plenty of room to tell his story. Managing to be both forceful and understated, the film is a noteworthy piece of work.

Garbo: The Spy was a fun little Spanish film that explored a World War II agent who managed to play off both the Germans and the Allies with a network of made-up informants. While it comes off as very TV, the story was engaging and well told.

In the short documentaries on offer, Poet of the Elephant House was a particularly beautiful paean to poetry, photography and love. Director Anna Juhlin offers a tender portrait of her poet grandfather who, as a photographer, took pictures of the likes of Man Ray and Samuel Beckett. There’s a certain magic here as the film shows how Juhlin discovers her family’s history not only through the testimony of her grandfather, but also through the photos he has taken over the years.

Also screened was the brilliant Son of Babylon, already lauded in Sundance and Berlin. The Iraq/UK co-production follows 12-year-old Ahmed and his grandmother who begin a trip to Southern Iraq to find the boy’s missing father. As they move closer to their destination they hear disconcerting talk of the discovery of mass graves, and soon their journey begins to take a tragic turn. This is bold and crusading filmmaking at its finest, managing to be both an affecting drama and strong social piece about the tragedy of massive graves in the region. Director Mohamed Al-Daradji manages to be both simple and direct with his storytelling (ably helped by a natural performance from Yaseer Taleb as young Ahmed) while avoiding overt didacticism. Already announced as Iraq’s entry into the 2011 Academy Awards, fingers crossed that the film gets a proper theatrical release over the coming months.

Other highlights included My Joy, Sergei Loznitsa’s stunning feature film debut. Already well known on the festival circuit for his documentaries, Loznitsa presents a dark and disturbing shaggy dog story that follows a truck driver whose ordinary day takes a wild diversion from normality. Marked with character vignettes and a fine sense of the surreal, there is some truly astounding cinematography on offer and a penchant for long, lingering shots that build up a real sense of tension and atmosphere. It’s an utterly unique and consistently enthralling affair that marks Loznitsa as an ultra-talented fiction director.

The Woman with a Broken Nose was an enjoyable film from Serbia about a gruff taxi driver forced to look after a baby left in the back of his cab, whilst from the Czech films on offer, Protektor was a compellingly stylish World War II film about a radio broadcaster forced to collaborate with the Nazis or give up on his Jewish wife. Kawasaki’s Rose was a slow-starting but ultimately absorbing story of a professor whose dark past comes to haunt him. Also look out for the lovely follow up to the documentary Czech Dream, Czech Peace. An account of the struggles that ensued when it was discovered that the US wanted to build a radar base on Czech soil, it’s a more traditional affair than the directors’ previous film. Remarkably even handed and well told, it’s a fine treatment of an important and conscientious subject.

While Cannes et al have seemingly fallen into the trap of presenting the latest auteur hits, there seems to be a genuine air of excitement and discovery at Karlovy Vary. True, there were the requisite stars and big screenings (Jude Law was this year’s special guest while films such as the dull Tom Cruise actioner Knight and Day were given special screenings), but these seemed a complement to the rest of the festival rather than its raison d’etre. And, at 45 years old, the Karlovy Vary formula has been seemingly working well making it an enjoyable and important part of the festival calendar.

For more information on the Karlovy Vary Film Festival check out the official site.
Laurence and LWLies would like to say thanks to Alexandra, Aleksandra, Angeliki, Annelli, Chris, Darren, Dimitri, Hali, Harri, Isabel, Margit and Tiina. A special thanks to Viktor for all the help.

45th Karlovy Vary Film Festival (text) by Laurence Boyce is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.