As the first week of LFF came to a close after seeing Jason Reitman’s sublime Up In The Air (pictured), I thought how great it was the fest has been wonderfully free of disappointing films. Turns out I spoke too soon as Monday provided the least entertaining satisfying flicks so far. First up was Jane Campion’s Bright Star and although the poster and trailer is full of the usual bullshit PR hyperbole, I’ve read mixed reactions from numerous critics so I, as always, wanted to see for myself. Although I thought it looked beautiful and the leads had a decent amount of chemistry, I have to agree with my esteemed editor in thinking that, in simple terms, it was a bit pants. Unfortunately the afternoon screening did nothing to raise my spirits; The Disappearance of Alice Creed is an inventive debut from J Blakeson about, you guessed it, a girl called Alice Creed who get’s kidnapped. It feels suitably claustrophobic but someone forgot to tell the filmmakers that although we all enjoy some twists and turns but when they’re too many ludicrous but somehow predictable plot turns, you’ve failed.
Tuesday definately picked up the quality with an early screening of (our last issue) An Education. I secretly hope to always hate a performance that has been lauded by everyone and their Gran but alas, Carey Mulligan deserves every bit of it who manages to perfectly combine youthful naivete and blind aspiration in what will no doubt be a star making role. After a quick break it was time for this year’s Palme D’Or winner The White Ribbon, which for some strange reason, was completely rammed. I liked it; yes, you could pretty much see where it was going from the beginning and yes, the 145 minute running time was somewhat uncomfortable but I loved the monochrome cinematography and thought the story and performances were strong.
Now that Clooney has swapped London for Rome, it was up to Clive Owen to provide some swoon-worthy male totty. His latest, The Boys Are Back, is based on Simon Carr’s autobiographical book centred on a period in his life when he reconnected with his children after the death of his wife. I’ll be honest, in the first 10 minutes I was worried as it seemed to be headed down typical Hollywood slush territory; absent working Dad? Check. Loving wife dies suddenly of cancer? Check. Troublesome and confused child? Check. Thankfully it didn’t turn into something capable of giving me diabetes and instead said something interesting about single fathers and the importance of a male role model.
Although I’d be the last one to complain about the likes of Clooney and Owen gracing my fair city, admittedly this years LFF has been somewhat of a sausage fest. That all changed on Thursday with the arrival of Amanda Seyfried and Julianne Moore for the premiere of Chloe, a “re-imagination” (remake to the rest of us) of Nathalie, in which a woman hires a prostitute to seduce her husband and report back to her. I’m not too sure where I stand on this as although I enjoyed it, the Hollywood-ending (which may have come from the original, I haven’t seen it) annoyed me. But I will say this, Miss Seyfried has certainly come a long way since Mean Girls. Oh yeah, for the boys who are interested, Seyfriend and Moore get it on. And…breathe.
Friday seemed to be dedicated to documentary films that a) made me believe NOTHING I see or read and b) question whether or not I should delete my Facebook profile. Starsuckers is the latest from Chris Aitkin who came into the public consciousness with Taking Liberties, but instead of looking at out corrupt politicians, he’s turned his attention to the shams concocted by PRs for the benefit of celebrities. Although the twisted webs was never that surprising, it was interesting to see how everything is done to manipulate the public. Also, no matter how many times you see parents whoring out their children for the sake of fame and fortune, it’s never comfortable viewing. In the evening it was We Live In Public, a look at how the internet and technology has impacted our lives whilst simultaneously telling the story of internet pioneer Josh Harris. It’s pacy and interesting but most of all a bit scary, not only because Harris knew exactly how the net would change our lives, but how we willingly put our lives out there for the world to see.
This is only my third LFF but for the last 2 years there has been a French film that blows my mind. Last year it was The Class and this year it has to be A Prophet; an amazing crime drama charting the rise to power of a young French Arab in prison. The fact that it’s 150 minutes long would be a good reason for me to hate it but it’s the most perfect example of character driven crime based drama. A must see for everyone.
