Palm Springs International Film Festival
Our selection of 9 films. Some foreign/international with subtitles, some not so foreign. Some low budget and some not so low budget and some syndicated; such as, Albert Nobbs and Salmon Fishing.
Terraferma - Italy * * * *
Subtitled
Award Buzz for Foreign Language film
A political powder keg sparks intense drama in Emanuele Crialese's latest tale of working class Sicilians. On this occasion, Crialese's protagonist is Ernesto (Mimmo Cuticchio), an old-fashioned fisherman on an island that's quickly turning into a tourist trap. Happening upon an imperiled boatload of African refugees, he selflessly rescues a handful of passengers and hides them from the authorities. Meanwhile, Ernesto's daughter-in-law (Donatella Finocchiaro) and grandson (Filippo Pucillo) agonize over the potential repercussions of harboring illegal immigrants until one of them is driven to commit a horrendous crime. Well-versed in the customs and concerns of Sicilians, Crialese has helmed a film that's rich in authenticity and generous with its insights. Furthermore, the writer/director possesses a gift for seamlessly incorporating front-page issues into the fabric of an intimate family drama. In a narrative rife with struggles—whether it's Ernesto's efforts to preserve his failing livelihood or the immigrants' hazardous pursuit of a better life—the most compelling conflict found here is undoubtedly the one between traditional values and an increasingly callous world. (When Ernesto, the elderly Sicilian fisherman recues a boatload of African immigrants, he must decide whether to do what the law demands or what he knows to be right). Three generations of family struggling with what is correct and right. Excellent.
Albert Nobbs - Ireland * * * * *
Starring Career Achievement Award winner, Glenn Close
This beguiling tragic-comic tale has been a labor of love for star Glenn Close, who first played the title character on stage 30 years ago, cowrote the screen adaptation with Irish novelist John Banville, and also served as a producer on the film. A nineteenth century Dubliner, Albert is the headwaiter and butler at Morrison’s Hotel. Long in the employ of the proprietor, Mrs Baker (Pauline Collins), Albert is an impeccable servant, but an odd, lonely man who keeps himself to himself. And no wonder, because he’s a she, so used to passing as the opposite sex for employment purposes that s/he is now virtually sexless. But Albert’s life isknocked sideways when fate and Mrs Baker insist on sending another man to share her bed…. Close pulls off this demanding role with virtuoso delicacy and restraint, but it’s hardly a one-man (or one-woman) show: the stellar supporting cast includes director Rodrigo Garcia’s In Treatment protégé Mia Wasikowski as a pretty maid Albert takes a shine too, Brendan Gleason as the house doctor and the great stage actress Janet McTeer in a revelatory performance as Albert’s initial foil and ultimate inspiration. Superb!
Sons of Norway - Norway * * * *
Subtitled
The director, Jens Lien was available for Q & A.
Is it possible to rebel when your free spirit father supports you unconditionally? This bittersweet coming-of-age tale, well directed by Jens Lien (The Bothersome Man), is the funniest, most poignant Scandinavian dramedy since My Life As A Dog. The action takes place in the 1970s, in an Oslo bedroom suburb. Surprisingly, one of the architects behind this tidy, dehumanizing, concrete development is Magnus, a rambunctious hippie with rather unorthodox ideas on child rearing. When a sudden tragedy nearly immobilizes Magnus, (his wife dies when she is hit on a bicycle by a motorist), his teen son Nikolaj channels his rage and alienation into punk rock. Pierced, pomaded and prickly with attitude, he challenges the status quo of their suburban hell in ways that rile the town fathers. The unusual father-son relationship provides many of the film’s laughs (especially during the twosome’s summer holiday at a Swedish nudist camp) as well as Nikolaj’s more frustrating moments. The uninhibited Magnus doesn’t seem conscious of the line between father and friend, and he crosses it once too often for sensitive Nikolaj. Well depicted love between mother and son. Excellent but disturbing.
Holidays by the Sea - France * * * *
No Dialogue
A tribute to Jacques Tati’s classic comedy Mr. Hulot’s Holiday, Holidays By The Sea is a chucklesome bit of whimsy. With no significant dialogue, this mix of skillful physical playing, judicious comic timing and absurd situations heightened by smart camerawork, editing and production design follows a cross-section of French types as their paths intersect during a weekend at the coast. First witnessed on their way to the shore, the characters include a retired couple, a pair of leather-clad punks, several families in a caravan park, a traveling salesman meeting his mistress, and two sets of unhappy spouses whose holiday is unexpectedly spiced up by a runaway kite. Besides plenty of erotic adventures, the action embraces games of golf and scrabble, life drawing, funeral rites, a visit to a nudist camp, and a near-hurricane. Rabaté comes from the world of graphic novels, and his sharp visual sense gives rise to numerous witty sight gags. With weather and landscape proving as important as the characters, the jokes revolve around modes of transportation and accommodation as well as l’amour. Winner: Best Director, Karlovy Vary Film Festival. Excellent.
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen - UK * * * * *
Starring Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt and Krisin Scott Thomas who was fabulous.
With a script from Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours) based on Paul Torday’s bestselling novel, this witty rom-com revolves around the effort to make the impossible possible, as a reticent bureaucrat (Ewan McGregor) joins forces with a determined legal representative (the delectable Emily Blunt) to introduce fly fishing into the Middle East. McGregor stars as Fred Jones, stuffy government fisheries scientist who is reluctantly drawn into the seemingly ludicrous effort by a fishing-obsessed Arab sheik (Amr Waked) to introduce British salmon into the wadis of the Yemen. At first resisting the proposal, he is pressured into going along with the plan at the behest of senior diplomats, who are intent upon gaining the sheik’s favor. Urged on by the Arab’s British rep, Harriet (Blunt), Fred is ultimately won over by the sheik’s passion for the sport, which he believes brings him “closer to God”, and hopes it will do the same for his countrymen. As the mismatched Fred and Harriet embark upon their task, a different sort of sport gains their interest… Directed by the modern maestro of cinematic whimsy Lasse Hallström (Chocolat, My Life as a Dog), and boasting a brilliantly brittle comedic performance by Kristin Scott Thomas as the Prime Minister’s PR maven, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a true delight. Superb!
Cloudburst - Canada * * * * *
PSIFF favorite Thom Fitzgerald (The Wild Dogs; The Hanging Garden) evokes virtuoso performances from Oscar-winning actresses Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker in this uproarious dramedy about two women – lovers for 31 years – who must go on the run in order to stay together. Dukakis plays Stella, an antagonistic, foul-mouthed old bull dyke who lives with her long-time lover– the near-blind and slightly dotty Dot (Fricker)–in their bucolic home by the sea. When Dot’s neurotic granddaughter Molly shows up, announcing that she’s putting Dot in an old folks home, Stella throws her out, giving her an earful in the process. Not to be put off, Molly returns with a policeman and takes Dot away, leaving Stella bereft, but not beaten. Stella soon breaks her out of the home, and the two head for Canada to get married, picking up a young hitchhiker on the way. Thus begins an alternately poignant and riotous comedy that has much to say about the true nature of love and commitment. Incredibly foul language, maybe a little too much but necessary to give the movie the punch required. A touching love story. The director, Francis Searle was very candid and told us quite a bit about the filming which took place in Nova Scotia. The fellow that played the young man, Robert Preston, spoke of being sandwiched between Olympia and Brenda for 36 days in a truck while filming. We also learned that the stunt man who ran naked from the house had his first speaking part for this film. It was because Francis and Robert (as well as the cinemaphotographer) were forthcoming that the Q & A so was interesting. Superb.
Happy New Year, Grandma - Spain * * * *
Subtitles
In this hilarious black comedy, Maritxu, a harried and highly-strung Basque woman, is becoming exhausted by the demands of her elderly mother Mari. Maritxu won’t hear of putting her in a nursing home, so her husband takes her on a vacation and conspires to have Mari taken to the home by his daughter Miren and son-in-law Kintxo. The plan backfires when Mari runs away. Kintxo tracks her down at a luxury hotel and has to take her into his home. The old lady is a terror, manipulative and vindictive, so he starts to consider a drastic solution. In his first solo outing as a director, Telmo Esnal works from a cracking script he cowrote with Asier Altuna (who codirected their previous film together, Aupa Etxebeste!). With a superb ensemble cast, led by Joxean Bengoetxea as the bumbling, put-upon Kintxo, Esnal creates a world populated with beautifully rendered, realistic characters increasingly driven to despair by the conniving grandma, played with quiet—and not so quiet—ferocity by Montserrat Carulla. Turned very black with the Grandma took the hammer to Kintxo's dogs and went off the tracks. Grandma calling Maritxu non stop added humour and the twist. Excellent.
Old Goats - USA * * * * *
This unlikely comedy follows three cantankerous old guys in the Pacific Northwest. Although they are more than occasionally grumpy old men, they’re mostly just guys who are embracing what’s left of their lives with gusto and a heavy dose of humor (and infectious bs). Old Goats is the often hilarious and always heartfelt bromance of three older men (actors Bob Burkholder, David VanderWal, and Britton Crosley, playing themselves) who refuse to go gentle into that good night of retirement and old age. Bob is in the process of writing a memoir about his life as a soldier, while David does what he can to evade the prying eyes of his wife. Meanwhile, Britton, the most active of the bunch, tries to find true love on the internet, his efforts resulting in one of the film’s funniest scenes. Shot in a style similar to Mike Leigh’s Another Year (but with a microbudget), Old Goats finds humor in the everyday foibles of retirement life, providing a refreshing perspective on the golden years through the eyes of three men who don’t feel (or act) as old as they should. Taylor Gutterson, David VanderWal and the actress that played Britton's girlfriend, too the stage for a Q & A. We found out that Taylor did the camera work with a friend and shot the film for $13,000. Obviously the actors weren't paid. Taylor found the leading actress working as a teller at his bank. Superb and was voted best of the fest.
Sandman - Switzerland * * * *
Subtitled
An entertaining, playfully surreal modern fairy tale that’s like a cross between Kafka, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and nothing else we’ve seen before. Boasting wackily appealing acting, visuals and music, writer/director Luisi’s laugh-out-loud comedy explores the discrepancy between what every person could be and what he or she actually is. One fine morning, arrogant stamp collector Benno finds sand in his bed. At first he tries to ignore the mess, but he soon realizes that the sand is coming from him. As he sheds more and more sand, his limbs start to vanish. Day after day the amount of sand increases and soon his time literally starts running short. Finally Benno is left no choice but to ask for help. Sandra is a frustrated singer who runs a small coffee shop underneath his apartment. Although Benno hates her with a passion, he starts dreaming about her every night. What could Sandra and the dreams have to do with the sand? Winner: Audience Award, Filmfestival Max Ophuls. Great story. Funny and excellent.
