Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (2008)

Examines the public scandal and private tragedy which led to legendary filmmaker Roman Polanski's sudden flight from the United States.

Director:

Marina Zenovich

Writers:

Joe Bini, P.G. Morgan,

Stars:

Pedro Almodóvar, Istvan Bajzat, Steve Barshop

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Pedro Almodóvar	...	Himself (archive footage)
Istvan Bajzat	...	Himself
Steve Barshop	...	Himself
Marilyn Beck	...	Herself
Madeline Bessmer	...	Herself
Pierre-André Boutang	...	Himself
Andrew Braunsberg	...	Himself
Richard Brenneman	...	Himself
Nicolas Cage	...	Himself (archive footage)
Michael Caine	...	Himself (archive footage)
John Cassavetes	...	Guy Woodhouse (archive footage)
Dick Cavett	...	Himself (archive footage)
Furnell Chatman	...	Himself (archive footage)
Joan Collins	...	Herself (archive footage)
Michael M. Crain	...	Himself

Storyline

In 1977, Roman Polanski was arrested in Los Angeles on charges he gave drugs and had sex with a 13-year-old girl he was photographing for Vogue. Eleven months later, having pled guilty to one count, he fled to Europe before sentencing. This film examines that year-long period, using archival footage of the media frenzy and of Polanski's life before the charges, clips from his films, and contemporary interviews with many of the principles - attorneys, the victim, and Polanski's friends and associates. Polanski remains enigmatic, but portraits emerge of the machinations of justice and of a judge more interested in his image than his word or the law.

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Plot Keywords:

media frenzy | sentencing | media | girl | attorney | 

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Taglines:

The truth couldn't fit in the headlines.

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Genres:

Documentary | Crime

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Official Sites:

Cinefilo (Spanish)

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English French German

Release Date:

11 December 2008 (Greece)

Also Known As:

Polanski. Scigany i pozadany

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$4,613 (USA) (11 July 2008)

Gross:

$59,192 (USA) (26 September 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Antidote Films (I), British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Graceful Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Color:

Black and White Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

Samantha Geimer: The worst part was... no one believed me.

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Connections

Featured in Larry King Live: Episode dated 6 January 2010 (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Lullaby"
Written by Krzysztof Komeda (as Christopher Komeda)
Sung by Mia Farrow

User Reviews

The handling of the trial seems to be Zenovich's primary focus, rather than Polanski.

Poland has produced great filmmakers such as Andrzej Wajda (Ashes and Diamonds, 1958; Man of Marble, 1977) and Krzysztof Kieslowski (A Short Film About Love, 1988; Three Colors: Red, 1994) whose works address directly issues of war, politics, economic turmoil, and moral unrest that have affected their country since WWII. Their films take a serious, hard-nosed slant, and are mostly well-known only in film scholarship and festival circuits.

The other great Polish film director is Roman Polanski, who completes what I dubbed as the "holy trinity of Polish cinema". He is known as the Polish Hitchcock, with films from his early career dwelling in the genre of horror, thriller, and mystery. He further established himself in America with unforgettable films such as Rosemary's Baby (1968) and Chinatown (1974). He also became the first Polish filmmaker to win the Oscar for Best Director for The Pianist (2002).

The most controversial filmmaker to emerge from Eastern Europe of the last fifty years, not for his films (though some are) but for his widely-documented life story, Polanski is able to divide public opinion of him with just the mere mention of his name. This becomes the pursued theme of Marina Zenovich's documentary feature Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired, an above average film that is more informative than entertaining.

I will summarize his life story in one paragraph: A young Polanski escaped the horrors of WWII but the Nazis executed his parents during their brutal reign. He grew up to enjoy fine life, womanizing, and film-making. He was at the height of his career when his pregnant wife was murdered. His life crumbled even further when he was accused of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor (who much later publicly forgave him). He pleaded guilty but the trial was not ethically handled by Judge Rittenband. Polanski then fled the US and never came back.

Through my observation, Polanski is not really made the subject of Wanted and Desired. Rather, it is the handling of the trial that seems to be Zenovich's primary focus. In the film, Polanski takes on the character that we are pressured to empathize with. Zenovich portrays him as a tortured person under too much media glare at that time, and his "escape" to France as a fugitive is seen as a liberating one.

Zenovich uses archival footage, and weaves them with interviews with key persons involved in the trial. Much of her film reveals the flawed, publicity-loving personality of Judge Rittenband, the unfair treatment of Polanski by the press, and the circumstances involving Polanski's alleged sexual assault. In an unbalanced way, Wanted and Desired plays too much on the "Wanted" card, whereas the "Desired" part only comes out as such in the final fifteen minutes of the film.

My stand on the Polanski sexual scandal is that no matter the reputation of the accused, he or she should be sentenced accordingly. However, the suspect handling of the trial has raised concerns over the quality and ethicality of the US judiciary system. Polanski was right to flee the US under the circumstances. Now that he is arrested again in Switzerland for that case that goes back to more than three decades, the question to ask is: Is it really still worth pursuing? SCORE: 6.5/10 (www.filmnomenon.blogspot.com) All rights reserved!