All articles by Geoffrey Macnab – Page 184
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Reviews
4 Elements
Dir/scr: Jiska Rickels. Neth. 2006. 89mins.Jiska Rickels' makes an impressive debut with feature-documentary 4 Elements, a self-consciously poetic film essay that has limited narration and little in the way of dialogue. Consisting of four self-contained segments, each representing one of the four elements - fire, water, earth and air - ...
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Reviews
Miss Potter
Dir: Chris Noonan. UK-US. 2006. 93mins.A period feature about a popular children's writer enduring a traumatic life, Chris Noonan's Miss Potter may follow in the footsteps of Shadowlands (about CS Lewis) and Marc Forster's Finding Neverland (about JM Barrie), but it lacks the emotional depth of either. Very handsomely crafted, ...
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Reviews
Dragon Tiger Gate (Lung Fu Mun)
Dir: Wilson Yip. HK. 2006.94mins.Adapted from a popular comic book, Dragon Tiger Gate is a slick butsuperficial martial arts adventure that boasts tremendous fight sequences(choreographed by co-star and co-producer Donnie Yen), colourful productiondesign and appealing central performances that cannot mask the flimsy andderivative storytelling.The film has already openedrobustly in Asia ...
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Reviews
Notes On A Scandal
Dir: Richard Eyre. UK-US.2006. 91mins.Judi Dench's superbperformance galvanises Notes On A Scandal, Richard Eyre's impressive and acutelyobserved adaptation of the Booker-nominated novel. Probing away relentlessly atsuch uncomfortable issues as paedophilia, class envy, sexual jealousy andblackmail, it is a film that has the same queasy, claustrophobic feel as such 1960sBritish films ...
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News
Danes dominate IFDA doc prizes
The 19th International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), proveda triumph for Danish documentary makers.IDFA's most prestigious prize, The VPRO Joris Ivens Award, went to Danish feature doc The Monastery - Mr Vig And The Nun, directed byPernille Rose Gronkjaer. (The Monastery was also selected last weekfor The World Cinema Documentary Competition ...
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News
Greenaway plans doc and game after Nightwatching
Peter Greenaway is preparingJ'Accuse, an 80-minute featuredocumentary and a computer game to complement his new film Nightwatching, which recently finished shooting in Poland and Wales (and is being sold internationally by ContentFilm.)Both the doc and thecomputer game are being produced by Amsterdam-based Submarine, run by FemkeWolting and Bruno Felix. The ...
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IDFA launches with film by new talent Rickels
The 19th InternationalDocumentary Film Festival Amsterdam began last night (Thursday) with ascreening of Jiska Rickels' 4 Elements. The film, a debut feature, was producedand partly financed by Black Book producer San Fu Maltha through his company FuWorks. Along with 17 other feature documentaries, it is in contention forIDFA's most prestigious ...
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Almodovar and Loach head EFA nominations
Nominations for the European Film Awards were announced on November 4, with Pedro Almodovar's Volver leading the field, appearing in six of the seven major categories. The Wind That Shakes The Barley , which surprised many by taking beating the much-fancied Volver for the Palm d'Or, has five nominations, including ...
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Producers warn next Bond film may be shot outside UK
There is no guarantee that the next James Bond film will shoot in the UK. That was the message today from Casino Royale producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli."We're going to have to make that decision again," Wilson toldScreenDaily. "London is the most expensive city in the world ...
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News
San Fu Maltha buys slew of films at AFM for new Indonesian operation
San Fu Maltha, the Dutch producer of Holland's Oscar entry BlackBook, has a dualexistence as joint managing director of new Indonesian distributor andexhibitor, Blitz. Through Queen, the acquisition arm of Blitz, he has picked upa raft of titles in the market.Films that Blitz will be releasing in Indonesia include TheSpirit ...
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IFC Films buys Honore's In Paris from Gemini
Paris-based Gemini Films has closed a US deal on ChristopherHonore's In Pariswith IFC Films. The deal was negotiated by Elizabeth Perlie for Gemini andJonathan Sehring for IFC.In Parishad its world premiere in the Cannes Directors Fortnight this year. It starsRomain Duris and Louis Garrel as brothers. Other deals struck on ...
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Donati, Infascelli team for Mikado's La Pistola
Legendary Italianscreenwriter Sergio Donati, whose credits include Sergio Leone's Once Upon ATime In The West, A Fistful Of Dynamite and For A Few Dollars More,is to partner with maverick director Alex Infascelli (Hate20) on a new $5 million genre project provisionallytitled La Pistola. Principal photography is setfor February 2007 with ...
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News
Red Envelope gets US rights to to Strike from Telepool
Munich-based Telepool hasclosed a deal with Netflix-owned Red Envelope Entertainment for US rights toVolker Schloendorff's Strike, thestory of a female crane operator who co-founded the Solidarity movement inSoviet-era Poland in the 1980s.The film had its world premiere at the TorontoInternational Film Festival in September.Meanwhile, Telepool has soldits 3-D animated feature ...
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News
NonStop sells Mikkelsen-starrer Exit to Germany
Underlining Danish actorMads Mikkelsen's increasing profile in the marketplace, NonStop Sales hasclosed a deal for all German-speaking territories on Mikkelsen's new thriller Exit with Galileo Medien AG. The film, screening onNonStop Sales' AFM slate. The deal was concluded by Michael C Werner forNonStop and Martin Irnich for Germany. Mikkelsen is ...
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Mortagne and Terryn get new posts at Benelux distributor Paradiso
Benelux distributor ParadisoFilm Entertainment has named Olivier Mortagne as its new head of international acquisitionsand Patrick Terryn as chief operating officer. The appointments come in thewake of Erich Engelen's departure from the company earlier in the summer. Asannounced earlier this week, Engelen has now joined A-Film.The appointment of Mortagneis seen ...
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Writer/director Leonard Schrader dies of heart failure
Oscar-nominated screenwriterand director Leonard Schrader died of heart failure in Los Angeles on Nov 2. In his work, Leonard shared hisyounger brother Paul Schrader's obsession with exploring death and violence.Some of his best-known filmsare those he wrote with his brother, among them The Yakuza and Blue Collar. He also ...
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Rotterdam festival increases international industry reach
International Film FestivalRotterdam (IFFR) has launched a major initiative to raise its internationalindustry profile. At AFM this week, IFFR's new head of international PR Marnixvan Wijk has been assiduously courting sellers and buyers in a bid to lure themto the Netherlands for next year's event, which takes place Jan 24 ...
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Six Sales sells titles to Beverly Hills, Quality in Latin America
Madrid-based sales outfitSix Sales has sold Latin American rights to Beverly Hills Enterainment for itsnew CGI animated feature Noah's Lark. The film is directed by LA-based Raul Garcia, whose previous creditsinclude Aladdin, through new company Kandor Graphics. Itwill be ready for delivery in 2008.Six Sales is also doing aroaring trade ...
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Celluloid banks on Asian directors, strikes studio deals
Paris-based sales andproduction outfit Celluloid Dreams is to handle sales on Camera D'Or winnerNaomi Kawase's new feature, provisionally titled Mogari No Mori. The film, in post-production and likely to be vyingfor a place in official selection in Cannes, is about an old man saying goodbyeto his dead widow. This old ...
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Others and Volver lead European Film Awards noms
German hit The Lives Of Others, which was controversially snubbed by both Berlin and Cannes, has won six European Film Award nominations including those for film, director and screenwriter. The only other title with six nods was Pedro Almodovar's widely loved Volver. Both films are considered frontrunners for this year's ...