Cannes News – Adrift and more ... Fanny Ardant news

I was positively surprised to find Vincent Cassel in a Brazilian film and well, now I’m more curious than before. Check this.

As for Vincent Cassel in the role of the father, Heitor Dhalia added: "I saw him giving an interview on TV and I thought to myself, ‘What? Cassel speaks Portuguese?’ I couldn’t think of any Brazilian actor of the right age to play the part that had all his charm…I sent Cassel the screenplay for Adrift through his agent, along with a DVD of my previous film Drained, and he loved it. He thought the film ‘crazy, very weird’. I then went to Paris on a very quick trip, staying only 24 hours just to meet him…Cassel is a generous actor, very expressive, who contributes suggestions to the director."

Info about the film.

"As it is a film about becoming an adult, I began to remember my own childhood and my teenage years," explained Heitor Dhalia. "I lived with my parents near the beaches for over 20 years, but one of them, called Pau Amarelo, near Recife, was special. My parents got divorced when I was 10; I was therefore younger than Filipa in the movie. It was after I began incorporating elements from my childhood that the film began to take shape and gain more meaning – that whole universe of childhood friends, and my parent’s friends, all middle class intellectual petty bourgeoisie. Adrift takes place in the early 80s, a time when major changes were taking place in Brazilian society. Our grandparents had lived together for their whole lives, happy or not; couples began to get divorced in the late 70s, still facing the taboos coming from the 50s and 60s."

Yes, I’m looking forward to eventually be able to watch this Brazilian film that I know will not “scare” me as many Brazilian films do. If you feel like listening Vincent speaking Portuguese (as he calls it), check the interview at the Canal + Le Grand Journal that’s here and you will also see some film scenes.

More stuff…

The White Ribbon by Austrian Michael Haneke really calls my special attention and perhaps is just me, but from clips I find that the story (not the visuals) could be similar in intensity to Carlos Reygadas film Stellet Licht.

Another film that calls my special attention is Tale in the Darkness by Russian Nikolay Knomeriki… hmm! I know the wait is going to be very long, but I hope I can see it eventually. Check this info.

In Tale in the Darkness, the Russian director brings to the screen Angelina, a rather solitary individual. She's a policewoman and devotes herself body and soul into helping delinquents and youth in difficulty. Until one day, she decides to find time in her life to discover love…

Marco Bellocchio’s Vincere is being described as a “surprise hit”, “Un magnifique portrait de femme”… hmm! From trailers and scenes I’m not that sure… but, it is a must be seen for me as I have to see everything with Giovanna Mezzogiorno –terrible, but a valid reason, isn’t?

Quentin Tarrantino’s Inglorious Basterds is a movie that of course I’ll watch, but I’m not rushing to watch it. One UK headline says “Quentin Tarantino's wartime spaghetti western about a bunch of Nazi-hunting Americans is just Gott-awful…” but most of the press is really positive about the film.

I know that I’ll have to have a very strong drink before watching Lars von Trier’s Antichrist, but who could resist a Trier film even if is his vision of horror? Gosh, not me.

I really do not need to read news about the collective film produced by Christian Mungiu, Tales from the Golden Age as is a Must Be Seen film for me, but check this:

Whether these are true stories or just products of the Romanian imagination, or its sense of humor, is beside the point. Amazingly vital, thanks to the fact that Romanian cinema has finally found an outlet after years of silence, this film, with its variable geometry, calls to mind the Italian cinema of the 60s and 70s, as Mungiu himself pointed out: popular, immediate, and entertaining.

Now, definitively I’m “dying” to watch this collection of stories…

There are two films that have to be screened yet, but I can’t wait to find more info about. One is –of course- Fanny Ardant’s Cendre et Sang (is being screened today!) and the other is Chilean Sebastian Campos (aka Leilo) Navidad (also today? Yes, is today check this in Spanish ).

One of the byproducts of Cannes this year that has called my attention at many sites is the many videos that do Zapping (which is exactly what you do at home). Here is one example



From this zapping, I have one question with no answer, what’s Hilary Swank doing at Cannes?

Well, after all the buzz, Angelina Jolie is at Cannes and if you want to check some pics go here … she looks great and is wearing what seems a very “interesting” dress. Okay, now I have to watch the red carpet @ the official site, let’s see if is at least fun to watch. If you do not want to watch it, then read my highlights (he, he).

Wow! Claudia Cardinale! Laura Morante!! But that’s not the “steps” from Inglorious Basterds, is for the screening of Antonioni’s recently restored L’Avventura… Ornella Muti! Lots of other great looking Italian actresses… Kevin Pollak (?) Oh! Both films are screened at the same cinema...but different screens…this is strange, but I do not mind at all as otherwise I’ll have missed the Antonioni “news”… great!!! @ minute 13 the Tarantino music starts and the Inglorious Basterds cast start to ride the red carpet… Beautiful black dress, who is she?… as expected the fans crowd is huge… Vincent Perez! ... The Twilight actor… hmm! He would love to work for Tarantino… (who doesn’t? –shame Kristen Stewart was not here…)… Emile Hirsch! (I like him)… The President of the Camera D’Or (forgot his name) … Michelle Yeoh!! Emma de Caunes!! Gosh, this is a lot better than any Oscar red carpet (he, he) …Who’s her in the blue dress?? … Asia Argento… the jury is coming… Isabelle, Robin, et all the jury members… gee, who are those great looking women??? … this is getting chaotic… Elsa Zylberstein! She would love to be in a Tarantino movie… the jury again… Isabelle is sooo elegant! … Sharon Stone… OMG! Ditta von Teese!!! That’s something worth seeing... okay Brad Pitt and Angelina … yes the crowd goes wild, but is a very civilized crowd for a nice change… Quentin… Diane Kruger… cleared the red carpet, yes Quentin and cast are next… Brad and Angelina still signing autographs… Quentin dancing with Melanie yes is the Pulp Fiction song… Mike Myers … crazy Quentin fooling around in French… I’m glad to find that Melanie Laurent is in the film … @minute 40 the annoying “buffering” started, grrr! … the interviewer trying to get to Angelina, it’s impossible (of course!)… Daniel Bruhl (love him in the Lenin film) … Eli Roth (who is he???)… Miracle, Angelina said one word to the interviewer! (lol!)… Michael Fassbender is this movie too (???) well he’s taking pics with the complete cast … wow! the cast is getting a lot better… Angelina alone, she looks good… Daniel Bruhl too in the movie… okay, is official have to see the movie faster… I was annoyed with all the Brad Pitt thing, but the cast is great! … Brad Pitt went to get Angelina … the crowd goes wilder … yes, she looks really good in this red carpet … Brad waves the crowd that screams… gosh… the cast arrives inside the theater to acclaim… like happens with all the films! It’s a long video (almost one hour) but is entertaining and made me wish to see the movie … faster, so not bad at all!!

Okay I checked the cast and also in the movie are Julie Dreyfus, Maggie Cheung, Cloris Leachman (?) and surprise: Rod Taylor (!!!).

I really hoped that this was all, but surprise-surprise Fanny Ardant photocall and interview are UP!!! If you want to check it go here; I have to wait as my bandwidth is complaining so, I’ll watch it later…

Great day @ Cannes!!!