March 8th 2011 is International Women's Day, and – in a neat bit of symmetry – it also marks the start of the 2011 Birds Eye View Film Festival. This festival, which celebrates and promotes the work of female filmmakers both past and present, continues to grow in prominence and it is now enjoying its seventh year. The programme for the 2011 festival was announced this week, and it once again features an eclectic collection of films and events, with new films from around the world lining up alongside classic, female-centred fare from cinema's past.
The highlight in the 2011 programme is the presence of Meek's Cutoff, the latest film from the ever-excellent Kelly Reichardt. It is an extraordinary film, beautiful and strange, and I can't wait to see it again. Another great auteur showing her latest film at the festival is Susanne Bier, whose In a Better World has recently won a Golden Globe and been Oscar-nominated, while Lena Dunham's much talked-about Tiny Furniture is one I'm very curious about. Other films in the lineup that have caught my eye are Night Catches Us and Grown Up Movie Star, while there are some equally interesting offerings in the very strong documentary strand this year. Lucy Walker, an Oscar nominee for her fantastic Waste Land, presents her new documentary Countdown to Zero, while I'll be hoping to catch Guilty Pleasures and Women of Hamas too.
Contemporary cinema is only half of the Birds Eye View programme, however, and there are real gems to be found every year in its archive section. The Sounds and Silents strand is always exciting, with female musicians being commissioned to write and perform new scores to classic silent movies. This year they will be presenting Victor Sjostrom's masterpiece The Wind, the John Barrymore-starring Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and one film I've never heard of before, Sparrows from 1926, starring Mary Pickford. Other classics will be on view in the month-long What a Woman's Gotta Do retrospective at the BFI Southbank. There are some brilliant films showing here – The Night of the Hunter, Fargo, Johnny Guitar, Aliens – as well as a couple, like Stella Dallas and Stage Door that I'm very much looking forward to seeing for the first time.
The 2011 Birds Eye View Festival runs from March 8th to 17th at the BFI Southbank, the ICA and the Southbank Centre. Tickets will be on sale from mid-February. Check the website for further updates.
London Film Festival screenings begin for me on Monday, and the rest of October will be dominated by that festival, with a couple of films a day being on my list until the end of the month. However, there is still plenty going on for people who aren't attending the LFF, with the Barbican's Japanese season looking like the tastiest offering. The highlight is undoubtedly their retrospective of Kenji Mizoguchi, one of the greatest Japanese filmmakers, but one who too rarely seems to be considered alongside the great masters Kurosawa and Ozu. The season will include two of his greatest films, Sansho the Bailiff and Ugetsu monogatari, but the most exciting event is a presentation of an early Mizoguchi work. The Water Magician will be introduced by Tony Rayns before being screened along with a live score and a benshi narrator. It certainly sounds like an event not to missed (although, regrettably, I'll be doing just that due to a prior engagement).
The Barbican's focus on Japan continues with their GirlsWorld strand, which features films like Kamikaze Girls, Memories of Matsuko and Sakuran, while more sedate fun is offered by The Bicycle Film Festival, a celebration of two-wheeled adventures that includes screenings of The Bicycle Thieves and ET. The other major film festival to take place this month is the 2010 Raindance Festival, with the most notable coup being their success in finding a loophole that allows an uncut screening of A Serbian Film. Bruce LaBruce's LA Zombie will ensure A Serbian Film doesn't hold a monopoly on shocking cinema, however, and the eclectic programme also finds room for interesting-looking features like Son of Babylon, Huge, Autumn Adagio and Yuriko's Aroma. Sci-Fi fans are catered for by Sci-fi London's Oktoberfest, which runs from the 14th to the 16th, and the ICA's Story of London season contains an old favourite of mine, The London Nobody Knows starring James Mason.
After all of that, the month ends with a variety of Halloween-themed events. The Prince Charles Cinema will be screening a singalong version of The Rocky Horror Picture Show (be afraid, be very afraid), The Curzon Soho will be hosting a special night of screenings, and so will Frightfest, with an all-nighter being planned for the 30th. Finally, Reel Music III, the third in the increasingly popular series of film music-themed nights, takes place on Friday October 29th at the Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes, offering film fans the perfect opportunity to unwind at the end of a manic month.
If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
After today's press launch for this year's London Film Festival, much of the discussion centred on films that didn't appear in the programme. I had certainly expected to see pictures like Love and Other Drugs, Somewhere and Rabbit Hole in the line-up; I had hoped to see Caves of Forgotten Dreams, Outrage and In a Better World; and I had clung on to the tiny possibility of a True Grit screening (and the infinitesimal chance of Tree of Life making an appearance). None of these pictures did appear in the 30 minute preview reel that played at the Odeon Leicester Square, but some very interesting features are in the programme (although the first three are all Surprise Film contenders), and here's my take on the programme for LFF 2010.
Opening and Closing Night Galas
I'm not a fan of Kazuo Ishiguro's novel Never Let Me Go, so this adaptation was an underwhelming choice for the opening film, and the brief snippet I saw this morning didn't excite me. The film is directed by Mark Romanek, making his first feature since the striking but sterile One Hour Photo, and it stars the three go-to British actors of their generation: Keira Knightly, Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield. It's sure to be an awards contender, but this is not top of my list of films to see at the festival.
The closing night picture, however, is a much more enticing prospect. 127 Hours, Danny Boyle's first film since the runaway success of Slumdog Millionaire, is the story of Aron Ralston, a mountain climber who found himself trapped under a boulder in Utah and was forced to cut off his own arm to survive. It's an astonishing true story and will prove a demanding challenge for both Boyle and star James Franco, with the central character being alone and immobile for much of the picture.Gala Screenings
Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, a psychological thriller about rival ballet dancers, is one of the films I'm very much looking forward to at this year's festival, with Natalie Portman reportedly giving a superb performance in the lead role. Aronofsky has been on an uneven streak, but at his best he is capable of creating vivid sequences that deliver a real emotional punch. I'm also intrigued by Biutiful, even though I've liked Alejandro González Iñárritu's films less and less since his outstanding debut Amores perros. However, a lot of that was down to the contrived screenplays provided by Guillermo Arriaga and this film marks Iñárritu's first feature since that pair went their separate ways. He remains a truly gifted director but he also has a weakness for melodrama and portentousness that may well be exposed by the story of a dying man (Javier Bardem) who can connect with the dead.
For his latest film Another Year, Mike Leigh has called upon a cast of familiar faces, including Jim Broadbent and Lesley Manville, in a story about ageing and loneliness, while Apichatpong Weerasethakul (thankfully, he also answers to "Joe") brings his distinctive Palme d'Or winner Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall Past Lives to the festival. However, of all of the films that were announced this morning, The Great White Silence was the one that actually made me gasp with excitement. A documentary that details Captain Scott's fateful journey to the South Pole, it was shot by the Terra Nova's official cameraman Herbert Ponting and it has now been fully restored and will be presented with a live score at the Archive Gala. The images shown at the press launch were breathtaking, and I can't wait to see the rest of this invaluable documentary.
The Film on the Square
Despite a warning from a friend who saw the film at Cannes, I'm still looking forward to seeing Cristi Puiu's Aurora, in which the director himself plays a disgruntled man slowly drifting towards murder. The key word there is slowly, as I've been told that the picture's pacing makes it something of an ordeal, but having directed the brilliant The Death of Mr Lazarescu a few years ago, Puiu is a director who has earned my trust. Similarly, the enormous leap directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck made from Half Nelson to Sugar ensures I'm eagerly anticipating their third feature It's Kind of a Funny Story, which once again takes them in a new direction. Olivier Assayas is another director who constantly seems to be reinventing himself, and his biopic of Carlos the Jackal is surely his most ambitious film yet. It was originally made for French TV, but I'm looking forward to devouring all five and a half hours of Carlos in one sitting, even if it will take up the whole of my Saturday afternoon.
Other fine directors bringing their work to the festival include Errol Morris with Tabloid and Kelly Reichardt with Meek's Cutoff. I'm tentatively looking forward to Gregg Araki's Kaboom, even though I suspect this may be closer in tone to his earlier work (which I hated) than his recent Mysterious Skin and Smiley Face. I'm not really a huge fan of Jean-Luc Godard either, but the hugely divided opinion that greeted his latest film at Cannes has piqued my interest. Film socialisme is another of Godard's cinematic essays, with the director utilising a wide range of footage to say...well, what exactly? One way or another, it's sure to provoke much debate and a number of heated reactions.
I'll probably also try to make time for George Clooney in The American, Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling in My Blue Valentine, Jerzy Skolimowski's Essential Killing and 21 year-old sensation Xavier Dolan's Heartbeats. Richard Ayoade presents his directorial debut Submarine at the festival, while Thomas Vinterberg returns with, er, Submarino, and Jan Švankmajer is back (hooray!) with Surviving Life.
World Cinema
Of the French features at the festival, I'm glad to see another effort from Catherine Breillat, whose recent fascination with gothic fairy tales has resulted in an adaptation of Sleeping Beauty. Benoît Jacquot and Guillaume Canet are back with Deep in the Woods and Little White Lies respectively, while the ever-excellent Isabelle Huppert plays a prostitute in Jeanne Labrune's Special Treatment. Further afield, The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceauşescu is a documentary telling the story of the Romanian leader's rise to power, Hunting & Sons is a Dutch feature exploring the breakdown of a marriage over an unplanned pregnancy, and Daniele Luchetti – director of the acclaimed My Brother is an Only Child – returns to the festival with Our Life. Eva Green and Matt Smith star in Benedek Fliegauf's Womb, Mars uses intriguing animation techniques to tell an unusual sci-fi story, and Lemmy is a documentary about the legendary Motorhead frontman. The clip shown from this film at the press launch drew big laughs, when Lemmy disputed the claim that sleeping with 1,000 women was a big deal ("I'm 63 years old. If you work it out, it's not that many a year").
To be honest, one of the chief pleasures of the LFF is always finding unexpected gems from all over the globe. After a quick glance at the programme the following films caught my eye: Southern District (Bolivia), Sawako Decides (Japan); Life, Above All (South Africa); Joy (Netherlands); Sandcastle (Singapore); The Magic Tree (Poland); Mysteries of Lisbon (Portugal); Cold Water of the Sea (Costa Rica); Orion (Iran); Revolución (Mexico).
Archives
This year's archives strand is tremendously exciting. Aside from the screening of The Great White Silence that I've already covered, there are restored versions of The Bridge on the River Kwai, Pandora's Box, Boudou Saved From Drowning, Man With a Movie Camera and Picnic. Above all, there will be a presentation of Edward Yang's 1991 film A Brighter Summer Day, which was recently restored by Martin Scorsese's World Cinema Foundation. This is a film I've wanted to see for years, and I was delighted to see it in the programme.
In Person
There's an impressive line-up of actors and filmmakers appearing at the NFT this year for onstage interviews about their career and their craft. Peter Mullan, Hilary Swank, Mark Romanek, Javier Bardem, Olivier Assayas, Darren Aronofsky and Alejandro González Iñárritu are all scheduled to appear.
Surprise Film.
At this early stage, I'm putting my money on Somewhere, which would be both predictable and disappointing. I'd like to think it could be True Grit or The Way Back, but of course I'm still dreaming about Tree of Life. Yeah, I know it will never happen...but wouldn't it be the best surprise film ever?
My cinemagoing in September will take place to the music of Nino Rota, with the composer's astounding body of work being celebrated at the NFT throughout the month. 8½, Rocco and His Brothers, La Dolce Vita, The Godfather Part II and Amarcord are among the films screening this month, but the greatest treat of all is the extended run of The Leopard in a new print. I watched Visconti's 1963 masterpiece, starring a magnificent Burt Lancaster, just a few days ago and it took my breath away. The sumptuous production design, elegant camerawork, confident storytelling and, of course, the wonderful score make this a film that simply must be seen on the big screen. Don't miss this opportunity.
Beyond that season, I'll also be taking the opportunity to see Black Narcissus and The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp once again as part of the Deborah Kerr season, and Korean director Hong Sangsoo will be coming to London as part of a complete retrospective. Also appearing at the NFT this month are a number of acclaimed screenwriters who will be taking part in a series of BAFTA lectures, with Aline Brosh McKenna, Christopher Hampton, David Hare, Ronald Harwood, Peter Morgan and Simon Beaufoy all ready to discuss their craft. The biggest draw of September, however, may be Michael Caine, who will be discussing his remarkable career onstage at the end of the month as he promotes his autobiography. The event will be followed by one of my favourite Caine films: The Man Who Would Be King.
Elsewhere, Vincente Minnelli is in focus at the Barbican, while a number of fine films are on offer for free at both The Scoop and the Portobello Film Festival. The London Spanish Film Festival features new films from Julio Medem and Carlos Saura while the Cambridge Film Festival has a diverse programme, including films from Roy Andersson, Carl Theodor Dreyer and Nicolas Philibert. Finally, the festival season is now in full swing, with Venice, Toronto and New York all kicking off this month, but I've got my eye on next Wednesday when the full programme for this year's London Film Festival is announced. I'll have a complete preview of the 2010 LFF this time next week.
If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
Over 80 years after it was first released, Fritz Lang's Metropolis, one of the most influential films ever made, has now been reborn. The discovery of footage long thought lost in Argentina in 2008 has enabled the restoration and reconstruction of a film that is now closer to Lang's original vision than ever before, and now viewers in the UK will finally get the chance to experience it. Metropolis will be re-released in cinemas in September, ahead of its DVD and Blu-Ray release, but I'll be seeing it on August 26th, when it will be receive its UK premiere at the NFT. Frankly, I can't wait.
The Metropolis screening ties in nicely with the BFI's ongoing celebration of its archive's 75th anniversary, which continues in August. There will be more screenings of rare and recently rediscovered titles and a number of nitrate presentations, including Gene Kelly in Anchors Aweigh. Beyond the archive screenings, the Future Human season also continues in August with sci-fi features from the past forty years, ranging from Tarkovsky's Stalker to Spielberg's Minority Report, and including the UK premiere of Second Life documentary Life 2.0 as well as a screening of The City of Lost Children that will be followed by a Marc Caro Q&A. Finally, South American cinema's 21st century renaissance goes under the spotlight (although this season seems to be missing some of the most notable films from this era, such as Amores perros or Y tu mamá también), and Steve McQueen's career is the subject of a retrospective.
From August 13th-15th, the NFT will play host to the third Empire Movie-Con, a weekend of screenings, Q&As and events. The full details of the weekend have not yet been announced, but it has been revealed that the eagerly anticipated Scott Pilgrim vs. The World will round things off with a Sunday night screening. Animation fans will be treated to the International Animation Festival which takes place towards the end of the month, while horrors fans will find all of their bloody needs satisfied at the 11th FrightFest festival, which this year includes screenings of the I Spit on Your Grave remake and the already notorious A Serbian Film. Whether or not I have the desire or the stomach to watch that particularly nasty-sounding shocker is a debate I'm still having with myself.
If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
Last year, Quentin Tarantino used the volatile properties of nitrate film to bring down the Nazis and now London-based cineastes have the rare opportunity to experience the spectacle and danger of this beautiful but fragile film stock. The NFT is the only public cinema in the UK licensed to screen nitrate prints, and they are taking advantage of that position to showcase such films during the summer. In July, two great films will be shown, John Boulting's Brighton Rock and Alexander Korda's The Private Life of Henry VIII – featuring Charles Laughton's legendary performance as the monarch – alongside two pictures I haven't seen, the Italian noir Fugitive Lady and The Yearling, a Technicolor drama starring Gregory Peck. These enticing screenings are part of the BFI's 75th anniversary celebration of their National Archive, and they are also taking the opportunity to put some recently discovered and salvaged films on display. These will screen in the BFI Most Wanted strand, and one I'm particularly anticipating is His Lordship, an early directorial effort from the great Michael Powell, even if Powell was notoriously dismissive of his early 'quickies' later in his career.
Also at the NFT in July will be the work of Alberto Cavalcanti, the adventurous director whose eclectic oeuvre encompassed a variety of countries and genres, and this season will include screenings of Dead of Night, Went the Day Well? and They Made Me a Fugitive. A two-month season of science fiction cinema kicks off in July as well, with a wonderful variety of screenings building up to the UK premiere of the newly restored Metropolis in August (I'll have more on that next month). The collection ranges from silents such as Aelita: Queen of Mars to the unmissable 2001: A Space Odyssey in 70mm, with diverse offerings such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Fantastic Voyage, Sleeper and The Man Who Fell to Earth also on view. Finally, there's the opportunity to catch up with the work of Goran Paskaljevic, the Serbian filmmaker whose work has rarely received UK distribution.
Elsewhere, short films are given a welcome platform at the annual Rushes Soho Shorts Festival, which will screen over 140 mini but mighty films between July 21st and 30th. Indian cinema will be in the spotlight at the London Indian Film Festival from the 15th to the 20th, and fans of Romanian cinema's new wave will be interested in the 7th Romanian Film Festival, which runs at Curzon Mayfair early this month and features the UK premiere of Police, Adjective. The ICA will be hosting POUT 2, a short season of gay cinema, and the Tibetan Film Festival runs throughout the month in July before going on tour in August.
Finally, if you actually like the stiflingly hot weather we're currently experiencing (personally, I struggle with anything above room temperature), then perhaps you'll fancy sitting outside to enjoy some movies rather than in a nice air-conditioned cinema. If so, head down to Somerset House towards the end of the month for some screenings in Film4's always-popular Summer Screen. It will be kicking off with the premiere of Knight and Day, and there are some genuine classics on offer here. Mulholland Drive, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Manhattan and Paths of Glory are part of the schedule, but my pick has to be Powell and Pressburger's masterpiece Black Narcissus. Hell, even I might brave the great outdoors for that one.
If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon is widely recognised as the film that introduced western audiences to Japanese cinema, and in June we will have the opportunity to enjoy that film once again on the big screen, as it will be screened in an extended run at the NFT. It is part of Kurosawa & His Influence, a season of films celebrating one of the most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Some of his greatest works will be shown, including Ikiru, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood and Red Beard (frustratingly, there is no Ran, which I would love to see in a cinema), and there is also the chance to see how he made his mark on subsequent films, with pictures like The Virgin Spring, The Wind and the Lion and Last Man Standing taking their place alongside his own oeuvre. The NFT will also be honouring Grace Kelly in June in a season that complements the Grace Kelly: Style Icon exhibition currently on display at the V&A museum, while Ray Harryhausen will be in town to celebrate his 90th birthday. John Landis will be hosting a BAFTA tribute evening to the legendary artist, while Harryhausen himself will introduce screenings of his own Jason and the Argonauts, and his favourite film King Kong.
The Roxy Extraordinary Film Season lives up to its title with screenings of pictures like Sátántangó, Stalker, Straw Dogs and El Topo, many of which will have the added bonus of introductions, live musical performances and discussion events. If those films aren't extraordinary enough for you, then head down to the Barbican for their Surreal Film House season, which includes the work of David Lynch, Luis Buñuel, Jean Cocteau and Hans Richter. The Barbican will also be celebrating the work of another director with a taste for the surreal, screening a number of Terry Gilliam films in their Directorspective, and Brazilian cinema will be highlighted at the end of the month with 10 films on show, many of which will be followed by director Q&A sessions.
Finally, away from cinema, I'd like to draw your attention to LIFT 2010, an international theatre festival that will run from June 23rd and throughout July. In particular, I'd like to highlight Hotel Medea, a six-hour interactive play performed by the amazing Zecora Ura group. Don't be put off by the fact that the performance begins at midnight and ends at dawn, because I attended the play when they staged it at the Arcola Theatre last year, not really knowing what I was letting myself in for, and it turned out to be one of the most extraordinary theatrical experiences I've ever had. Be bold and take a chance on this one. You won't regret it.If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
There are many ways to measure a filmmaker's influence. Has a particular director broken cinematic boundaries? Have they influenced whole generations of aspiring filmmakers? Have they established a filmmaking style so distinctive it is instantly recognisable as the work of a singular artist? The debate as to who exactly is the most influential director of all time is one that will undoubtedly rage on for as long as we watch films, but Michaël Parent over at Le Mot du Cinephiliaque is bravely taking a stab at answering that question. He has invited fellow bloggers to submit their own choices for the 25 most influential directors in cinema history, and he will be compiling the results after the voting closes on June 23rd. I've already submitted my own list, although it was an agonising task and as soon as I'd finished I thought of some glaring omissions, so I'm hoping to encourage others to follow my lead and help make this poll and wide-ranging and competitive as possible. The resulting list will be fascinating, and will surely spark even more debate.
There are some artists whose work demands to be seen on the big screen, and Jack Cardiff is one of them. In May, the NFT will be celebrating the work of the great cinematographer who died last year, with a season of his beautiful films. It will offer us another opportunity to enjoy his legendary collaborations with Powell and Pressburger – in fact, I'm going to see The Red Shoes once more this afternoon – as well as highlighting a few of his lesser-known works. Chief among these if Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, which is a film I have wanted to see for years and will be released in an extended run from May 14th. During May, the NFT will also be welcoming Nouvelle Vague legend Agnès Varda, who will be in town to introduce a number of screenings during her retrospective. Cleo From 5 to 7 will enjoy an extended run from this weekend, and she will also be introducing one of her own favourite films, Federico Fellini's Amarcord, as part of the Screen Epiphanies strand. Two other screen icons – Leslie Neilsen and Tippi Hedren – will be attending the NFT this month as well, with both taking part in on stage interviews after screenings of Airplane! and The Birds.
Animation fans should head down to the Barbican at the end of the month for Animate the World, a series of screenings and events celebrating the best in contemporary animation, from recent hits such as Fantastic Mr Fox and Up to small-scale and more diverse fare like Metropia and The Secret of Kells. There is also an intriguing Japanese double-bill comprising of Mamoru Hosoda's Summer Wars and a new take of Dante's Inferno, which has been created by a team of animation filmmakers from around the world. The Barbican will also be celebrating the work of Eric Rohmer throughout the month by screening five of the French director's films. Finally, the Apollo will be the setting for the London Sci-Fi Film Festival, while the Terracotta Film Festival will be showcasing great new films from the Far East at the Prince Charles cinema.If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
The first in a monthly feature detailing exciting happenings in the film calendar.
The BFI will spend April paying tribute to two legends. Throughout the month, Paul Newman will be celebrated with a retrospective of his work, from his star-making turn in Somebody Up There Likes Me to classics such as The Hustler, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, Cool Hand Luke, The Verdict and The Hudsucker Proxy. The extraordinary range of brilliant performances showcased in these films again proves that Newman was both one of our greatest actors and one of our greatest movie stars. The other legend being honoured by the BFI in April is Alfred Hitchock's Psycho, which turns 50 this year. Their season A Classic in Context offers us the chance to see films that may have inspired this indelible chiller, as well as subsequent works that owe a debt to Hitch's masterpiece. This approach has yielded an eclectic and fascinating collection of movies, and I'm personally looking forward to seeing Nicholas Ray's On Dangerous Ground for the first time, as well as enjoying my favourite Orson Welles film, Touch of Evil, on the big screen. The other intriguing event taking place at the NFT this month is a weekend devoted to HBO, the US cable network responsible for the most groundbreaking and brilliant television of the past decade. Highlights include a preview screening of David Simon's Treme and a showing of the first two episodes from the new war drama The Pacific. HBO bigwigs Richard Plepler and Mike Lombardo will be present to discuss the secrets of their success, while the great Larry David will be appearing for an onstage interview that is sure to be memorable.
Elsewhere, the Barbican is hosting the 2010 London International Documentary Festival – which will be opened by Abel Ferrara's Napoli, Napoli, Napoli – as well as highlighting the work of Jane Campion in a retrospective. The ICA have planned a short season entitled Movies + Music = Morricone, which will give viewers the welcome opportunity to see The Good, The Bad and the Ugly, The Battle of Algiers and The Thing, while the weekend of the 24th and 25th sees the staging of Fan Fest, which is billed as the The Ultimate Spy and Sci-Fi event. Taking place at The London Film Museum, the weekendwill be heaven for James Bond fans, with confirmed guests including Richard Kiel, George Lazenby, Honor Blackman, Jesper Christensen and Sir Christopher Lee, who will be receiving a lifetime achievement award and taking part in a Q&A session. The legendary Ray Harryhausen will also be appearing at this event, and there will be memorabilia on display from a wide variety of classic films and TV shows. Finally the East End Film Festival kicks off on April 22nd, with eight days of new films and Q&As from local talent. Michael Nyman and Paul Andrew Williams will be among the guests appearing at this year's festival.
If you know of any upcoming film events that you'd like me to include in future articles, please let me know at philipconcannon@googlemail.com.
After compiling my best of the year list for 2009, I was struck by an unusual occurrence. Out of the twenty films that I selected as the year's finest, five and a half of them (taking into consideration Sugar's co-director) had been made by women, meaning over a quarter of the year's best pictures were the product of female directorial vision. In a traditionally patriarchal industry, where female filmmakers are a distinct minority, this is no small feat, and with Kathryn Bigelow looking set to collect a well-deserved Oscar next month, it seems that female directors are finally pushing out of cinema's ghetto and into the mainstream. All of which means the Birds Eye View Film Festival feels more relevant than ever. This annual event, which celebrates female filmmakers from every corner of the globe, is now in its sixth year, and every passing year seems to bring a more eclectic and exciting programme.
I have already seen a couple of the features that are appearing in this year's festival, and while I was disappointed in Wanuri Kahiu's well-meaning drama From A Whisper, I was stunned by Jessica Hausner's bold and haunting Lourdes, and moved by Cherien Dabis' witty immigrant drama Amreeka. During the course of the festival, I am particularly looking forward to Map of the Sounds of Tokyo, the new film by Isabel Coixet, and Mia Hansen-Løve's The Father of My Children, while Drew Barrymore makes her directorial debut with Whip It, the festival's closing night film. These are just a few of the festival's intriguing offerings, although I'm certain I'll end up stumbling across an unexpected gem in one of the less high-profile features – maybe the Romanian Mall Girls, or Columbia's Entre Nos, will fit that bill.
But highlighting new features is only half of what the Birds Eye View Film Festival has to offer. Short films get their chance to shine in four separate programmes, and there are special strands dedicated to fashion and music, as well as a series of training courses. In partnership with the British Film Institute, the festival is staging a superb season called Blonde Crazy, celebrating the sexy, comical and violent history of fair-haired femmes on screen. The season runs the gamut from Jean Harlow to Sharon Stone via Marilyn Monroe, and a few of my personal favourites are included (including Ernst Lubitsch's glorious To Be Or Not To Be), as well as silent screenings of The Patsy, The Adventures of Prince Ahmed and Chicago, all of which feature specially-commissioned live scores. Perhaps the festival's biggest coup, however, is the appearance of Susanne Bier, one of European cinema's foremost filmmakers regardless of gender. Her work will be celebrated in a retrospective, and the director herself will be discussing her career in what is bound to be a fascinating masterclass.
The Birds Eye View Film Festival runs from March 4th – 12th at the ICA and the NFT.
