Film index

0 Dogville ( 15) 0.... (Lars \‘on 'I‘rier.l)enmark/Sweden/l"rance/Norway/Net herlands/Hnland/( iermany/ltaly/Japan/l 'S/l' K. 2002) Nicole Kidman. llarriet Andersson. Lauren Bacall. Jean-Marc Barr. Paul Bettany. 178mm. \‘on 'l‘rier's huge. beastly experiment in form. Shot on studio stage sets in homage to the BB(‘ dramas of the fills and 7(ls. Dwell/Iv tells the slowly disintegrating story of (lrace (Kidtnan) an impoverished woman who stumbles into a small. isolated. turn of the century pioneer town to ask if the locals w ill take her in. ()f cottrse they're wary at first bttt (irace proyes a tonic to all as she helps blind Jack McKay ((iaz/ara) around the house and baby-sits and cleans for the locals. A remarkable and unique achieyement well worth the challenge of sitting through. Selwm/ I'('l('(l.\'('.

The Dreamers ( 18) 000. (Bernardo Bertolucci. l'K/l-i‘ance/ltaly‘. 2003) Michael Pitt. Louis (Barrel. liy‘a (ireen. Robin Renucci. Anna ('hancellor. 1 15min. 'l'wins Isabelle ((ireen) and Theo ((iarrel) first meet American student Matthew (l’itt) at a protest rally surrounding the sacking of the director of the cinematheque. Henri Langlois. The trio bond through their shared love of itnitating their screen idols and recreating scenes from their fayouritc films. Much of this elegantly shot film unfolds in a rambling Parisian apartment. in which the three adolescents can retreat from the outside world and engage in sexual experimentation. A return to form for this great director. Selected release.

Elephant ( IS) .000 ((itts Van Sant. ['S. 2003) Alex l5rost. liric [)eulen. John Robinson. lilias Mc('onnell. Jordan 'l‘aylor. 81min. Quiet. intelligent. nonjudgemental pseudo reconstruction of the ey‘ents that could have led up to a (‘olumbine-style school massacre. Van Sant tises real students to play the parts of the kids as he slowly rey'eals different parts of the day through various points of \ iew. A major

32 THE LIST 1%) F(}l)*/& Mar 200/1

work. this is a fascinating experiment in the hcat't of the l'S indie sccne. (imsi't'nm; (ilusqmi': ('unu'n. I'ItlI'Ii/imje/I.

The Emperor and the Assassin ( t2) .0. ((‘hen ls'aige. ('hina. 2000) (long l.i. /.hang l‘engyi. l.i Xueiian. lolmin. After their collaboration on the gangster melodrama It'lll/lfl't’\\ .llmui. Kaige and Li. both superstars of contemporary ('hinese

Ben Kingsley exercises his legal domestic rights in House of Sand and Fog

cinema. reunite for this ambitious. epic period drama about (‘hina's first emperor. Reputedly the most expensiy'e Asian film ever made. it is packed with stunning images and interesting ideas. Aiming at both epic spectacle and psychological complexity. (’hen hits the former more surely than the latter. lilnilinuse’. lat/inbmfieli.

The End of Summer (t') 00.0 (Yasuiiro ()/u. Japan. Wot ) Yoko 'l‘sukasa. Setsuko llara. (ianjiro Nakaniura. [02min ()lu's penultimate film focuses on the extended ls'ohayagaw a family in post-war Japan. They are planning for the youngest daughter .\'oriko ('l‘sukasa) to enter into an arranged marriage. and for their widowed daughter-in-law Akiko (llara) to find a suitable new hasband. A health scare for the head of the clan Manbei (Nakamura) results in eyeryone gathering round the old man's bed. Beautifully shot in colour. The 15ml u/Sunmu'r acknowledges both the passing of a traditional way of life and the ineyitability of death. yet it's also filled with generous qualities of warmth and humour. [film/mum Iz'ili'riliureli. Far from Heaven ( 12A) .00. (Todd Haynes. IS. 2003) Julianne Moore. Dennis Quaid. l)ennis llaysbert. l07min. ln style and content. llaynes' film intentionally resembles the tearful melodramas made by Douglas Sirk in the l‘)50s. In these films. reputation takes precedence over emotion and feelings of hue are consequently stamped out by the critical moralising of friends and family. Such is the case in llay'nes' homage when (‘athy (Moore) and l-"rank (Quaid) find themselyes tempted by forbidden fruit ltl their particular (iarden of liden. llay'nes Uses the seeming innocence of the 50s to explore a topically resonant thetnc of how people are restricted by sexist and racist bigotry in a climate of complacent stability. A liltn of great depth and tragedy. Film/muse. Ifrlin/mrg/I. Farewell my Concubine ( IS)

0... ((‘hen Kaige. (‘hina. 1903) (long l.i. l.eslie ('heung. [hang l"engyi. lSOHllll. The story of two Peking ()pera actors and the woman who comes between them proy'ides an intitnately detailed story which is set to a constantly shifting backdrop of ('hinese politics during the 20th century. The opera setting proy‘ides colour and spectacle. and questions how far a man w ill go for his art: the historical episodes giye this l’alme d'()r-winning film the llay'ottt' of a genuine epic. film/muse. Ifdinluug/i. Festival in the Desert (Po) (Lionel Brouet. l‘rance. 2003) 00min. lleld so deep within the Sahara l)esert that it‘s only reachable by camel. this African festiyal is

a liyely and unique celebration of the music and culture of its Tuareg people. (‘lips of world cinema are showcased alongside impromptu jam sessions and camel racing in this documentary that celebrates the highlights of this \iy'acious festiy'al and its people. film/muse. [zilm/mre/i.

Floating Weeds (t’( ;) O...

(Yasujiro ()lll. Japan. 1059) (ianjiro .\'akamura. Machiko Kyu. Ayako Wakao. lliroshi ls'awaguchi. llaruko Sugimura.

1 19min. In a sleepy seaside \ illage in southern Japan. a group of trayelling players arriy'e one sultry summer. The troupe‘s leader ls'omaiuro (.\'akamura) soon looks up his former flame ()yoshi (Sugimura). Out of jealousy. Koniajuro's current mistress and leading lady Sumiko (Kyti) instructs a young actress Kayo (Ayako \Vako) to seduce Kiyoshi. Richly atmospheric late period ()/u that illustrates the filmmakers accomplished y'isual artistry. Him/me lli'w/s deftly shifts from the comic to the melancholic. ey‘er respectful of the transience of human ll\'Cs. the filtn treats its beleaguered characters w ith notable generosity. I'i/m/muu’. [film/Hugh.

Freaky Friday ( l’(;) 00 (Mark 5 Waters. IS. 200.?) Jamie Lee (’urtis. Lindsay l.ohan. Mark llarmon. llarold (iould. (’had Michael Murray. 97min. ('ontrol freak munt l)r 'l‘ess (‘oleman ((‘nrtisi and her l5-year- old daughter Anna (l.ohan) are not getting along. They don‘t see cyc-to-cy e on clothes. hair. iiiusic. and certainly not in each other‘s taste in men. Then an old (‘hinese lady causes a little mystic mayhem. and they are both forced to spend a couple of day s in each others' bodies. So so yersion of the mttcl) loy‘cd Jotlic l-‘oster Disney \ehicle front Wit). Mildly diy'erting. and as Usual (‘urtis glycs it her all. Selected I'l'lt'UH'.

Frida ( 15) .0. (Julie 'l‘ay mor. l'SA/(‘anadtr 2002) Saltna llayck. Alfred Molina. (icoffrcy Rtish. Antonio Banderas. Saffron Burrows. lidward Norton. 123mm. Actor Salma llay ek fulfills her life-long dream of portraying the Mexican icon. artist l‘rida Kahlo. in this film which chronicles her extraordinary life as an artistic. political and sexual reyolutionary. l-filI‘Ii/nuje/i I'i/m (inf/(l. [ti/inlmreli.

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