Alberto Barbera, artistic director of the Venice Film Festival, has elaborated on his controversial selection of Roman Polanski’s The Palace after he revealed he himself told the director it was “not completely resolved” and in the face of generally excoriating reviews of the film.
Barbera has faced criticism for including the film, which is playing out of competition in official selection.
As Polanksi has admitted to the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl in the US in 1977 he is unable to attend Venice to promote The Palace for fear of extradition to the US from Italy. He lives in Switzerland.
However, Barbera wholeheartedly defended the film and its inclusion to Screen today.
“I absolutely do not agree at all, in the most absolute way, [with] the negativity of the judgments expressed towards the film, which deserves much more, compared to how it is being treated,” he said.
“Above all what certainly must not be accepted is the complete lack of respect towards one of the greatest masters of modern and contemporary cinema. You can’t treat it in such a dismissive way. You can like the film or dislike it. That is not the problem. Everyone has the right to express their opinions. But the way in which the negative judgment has been expressed. Well, that still counts and here there was a lack of respect towards Polanski.”
“It has been criticised by a large slice of critics who in my opinion had just before seen a series of great films that they were thrilled by like the [Yorgos] Lanthimos or [Bradley] Cooper ones,” he suggested. “They were coming from watching films that were extraordinary and completely successful films.
“This is a movie - I told him [Polanski] this and so I can repeat it here to you – it’s a film that is not completely resolved. It starts well and grows when it should conclude with fireworks. It just kind of sags in the finale. It is a film, however, with qualities and talents. He’s still a great director and so I still find it quite hard to accept the way in which he is being criticized, not the critical analysis per se.”
Barbera said he was pleased in general with how the festival is unfolding,
“People didn’t get frightened off by the lack of US [star] presence. Overall the public [attendance] increased noticeably compared to last year. The first five days of the festival there was an 8% increase in tickets, 17% increase in subscriptions. The screening halls attendance went up 18% in the days, they were all full, even for minor films and for the restored classics.
“The big themes of this year are tied to migration, climate change, adolescence, gender fluidity. It’s a cinema this year that is very attentive to reality, so focussed on contemporary themes. If we think of Lanthimos, this is a gothic tale from the past but it talks about contemporary themes like sexuality, the role of the female. A very contemporary cinema even when it seeks refuge in the past.”
The Venice Film Festival continues until Saturday September 9.
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