The strand will be bookended by Alice Lowe’s Prevenge and Xander Robin’s Are We Not Cats [pictured].Scroll down for line-up
The Venice International Film Festival’s (Aug 31 - Sept 10) 2016 Critics’ Week line-up has been revealed.
The independent section of the festival – dedicated to features from debut directors – includes seven titles from five continents.
Opening the strand with be UK director Alice Lowe’s Prevenge (out of competition), which stars Lowe as a pregnant woman on a killing spree and will have its world premiere at the festival.
Lowe was co-writer and co-star of Ben Wheatley’s Sightseers. The film is a Western Edge Pictures/Gennaker production and was shot in Wales last year.
Closing will be Xander Robin’s Are We Not Cats, which was one of three genre titles to screen as a work-in-progress at the Cannes Marche this year as part of an inaugural partnership between genre market Frontières and the Cannes Film Festival...
The Venice International Film Festival’s (Aug 31 - Sept 10) 2016 Critics’ Week line-up has been revealed.
The independent section of the festival – dedicated to features from debut directors – includes seven titles from five continents.
Opening the strand with be UK director Alice Lowe’s Prevenge (out of competition), which stars Lowe as a pregnant woman on a killing spree and will have its world premiere at the festival.
Lowe was co-writer and co-star of Ben Wheatley’s Sightseers. The film is a Western Edge Pictures/Gennaker production and was shot in Wales last year.
Closing will be Xander Robin’s Are We Not Cats, which was one of three genre titles to screen as a work-in-progress at the Cannes Marche this year as part of an inaugural partnership between genre market Frontières and the Cannes Film Festival...
- 7/25/2016
- ScreenDaily
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's ('28 Weeks Later') new twist on the home invasion thriller, 'Intruders', arrived on Blu-ray and DVD here in the UK on Monday. And to celebrate we have a special interview with its star Carice van Houten. Houten stars along with Clive Owen ('Shoot 'Em Up') and are joined by Daniel Bruhl, Kerry Fox ('Shallow Grave'), Ella Purnell, Lolita Chakrabarti, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Mark Wingett. Check out the interview below....
- 5/23/2012
- Horror Asylum
Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
Written by Nicolas Casariego and Jamie Marques
Featuring Clive Owen, Carice Van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala, Ella Purnell, Izan Corchero, Kerry Fox, Hector Alterio
Intruders is about two children who are menaced by a supernatural being known only as Hollow Face; he appears as a CGI murk or a hooded man and wants to trap and imprison the children in his web of darkness.
Or outwardly that is what this story would appear to be about. It is told in two concurrent storylines; that of a Spanish boy and his mother who deal with a nightly visitation that causes her son nightmares, panic attacks, and hellacious visions, and that of a British girl and her parents who endure attacks from a nighttime intruder who continually breaks into the girl’s room at night. The two apparitions are the same: they are this character Hollow Face.
Written by Nicolas Casariego and Jamie Marques
Featuring Clive Owen, Carice Van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala, Ella Purnell, Izan Corchero, Kerry Fox, Hector Alterio
Intruders is about two children who are menaced by a supernatural being known only as Hollow Face; he appears as a CGI murk or a hooded man and wants to trap and imprison the children in his web of darkness.
Or outwardly that is what this story would appear to be about. It is told in two concurrent storylines; that of a Spanish boy and his mother who deal with a nightly visitation that causes her son nightmares, panic attacks, and hellacious visions, and that of a British girl and her parents who endure attacks from a nighttime intruder who continually breaks into the girl’s room at night. The two apparitions are the same: they are this character Hollow Face.
- 3/22/2012
- by Superheidi
- Planet Fury
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's ('28 Weeks Later') new home invasion thriller 'Intruders' starring Clive Owen ('Shoot 'Em Up') will finally arrive stateside this March by invading the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas and then seeing a full general release at the end of the same month. Millennium Entertainment have revealed a new trailer from the creepy looking production which stars Carice van Houten ('Black Death'), Daniel Bruhl, Kerry Fox ('Shallow Grave'), Ella Purnell, Lolita Chakrabarti, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Mark Wingett. 'Intruders' will be invading the SXSW Film Festival this March in Austin, Texas and will see a general release at the end of the same month. Check out the new trailer below....
- 2/16/2012
- Horror Asylum
The first trailer for Juan Carlos Fresnadillo’s Intruders debuted tonight on IMDb. The film, opening on March 30, stars Clive Owen, Caprice Van Houten, Pilar Lopez De Ayala, and Kerry Fox.
Synopsis:
Though no one can see him, Hollow Face lurks in the corners, desperately desiring love but only knowing how to spread fear and hate. He creeps into the life of John Farrow (Clive Owen) after Farrow’s beloved 13-year-old daughter Mia (Ella Purnell) is assaulted in their home. The line between the real and the imaginary blurs as fissures start to open within the family unit. It seems that no security measure can keep Hollow Face out.
Synopsis:
Though no one can see him, Hollow Face lurks in the corners, desperately desiring love but only knowing how to spread fear and hate. He creeps into the life of John Farrow (Clive Owen) after Farrow’s beloved 13-year-old daughter Mia (Ella Purnell) is assaulted in their home. The line between the real and the imaginary blurs as fissures start to open within the family unit. It seems that no security measure can keep Hollow Face out.
- 2/16/2012
- by Justin
- FamousMonsters of Filmland
The South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival announced its always-fun Midnighters section, as well as the complete lineup of 135 short films, for this year’s festival, set for March 9-17 in Austin. Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard’s The Cabin in the Woods will kick things off as the festival’s official Opening Night Film. “Though our regular program already includes a healthy sampling of genre fare, the Midnighters section highlights those that go a bit crazier, gorier, and all-around balls out-ier,” said SXSW senior programmer and operations manager Jarod Neece. “This year’s program includes both veteran...
- 2/8/2012
- by Jeff Labrecque
- EW - Inside Movies
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, director of 28 Weeks Later and the upcoming Highlander redux, is returning to fright fare with Intruders, invading homes on March 30. The film stars Clive Owen, Caprice Van Houten, Pilar Lopez De Ayala, and Kerry Fox.
The first look at villain “Hollow Face” came via a poster this morning. Take a look…
Synopsis:
Though no one can see him, Hollow Face lurks in the corners, desperately desiring love but only knowing how to spread fear and hate. He creeps into the life of John Farrow (Clive Owen) after Farrow’s beloved 13-year-old daughter Mia (Ella Purnell) is assaulted in their home. The line between the real and the imaginary blurs as fissures start to open within the family unit. It seems that no security measure can keep Hollow Face out.
The first look at villain “Hollow Face” came via a poster this morning. Take a look…
Synopsis:
Though no one can see him, Hollow Face lurks in the corners, desperately desiring love but only knowing how to spread fear and hate. He creeps into the life of John Farrow (Clive Owen) after Farrow’s beloved 13-year-old daughter Mia (Ella Purnell) is assaulted in their home. The line between the real and the imaginary blurs as fissures start to open within the family unit. It seems that no security measure can keep Hollow Face out.
- 2/2/2012
- by Justin
- FamousMonsters of Filmland
Even though '28 Weeks Later' helmer Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's new horror-thriller 'Intruders' eased into the cinemas here in the UK like an old man into a nice warm bath, Millennium Entertainment are hoping to push things further for the feature stateside. The UK saw it open last Friday, albeit to an extremely limited amount of theatres, and with the late March release date planned for the folks over in the Us there's plenty more time to salivate audiences with fresh new assets. Take this brand new one-sheet for example featuring a feature-less Clive Owen ('Children of Men'). The story is penned by Nicolas Casariego and Jaime Marques and sees Owen joined by fellow casties Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Kerry Fox, Ella Purnell, Lolita Chakrabarti, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Mark Wingett. Check out the poster below....
- 2/1/2012
- Horror Asylum
The Skin I Live In (La piel que habito) and the other nominations for the 2012 Goya Awards (Premios Goyas) have been announced. The 26th Annual Goya Awards (Premios Goyas), presented by the Academia de las Artes y Ciencias Cinematográficas de España (Spanish Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences), is “Spain’s main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards.” The awards will be handed out on February 19, 2012 in Madrid, Spain.
The full listing of the 2012 Goya Awards (Premios Goyas) nominations is below.
Film
La piel que habito (The Skin I Live In), Pedro Almodovar
No habrá paz para los malvados (No Rest for the Wicked), Enrique Urbizu
La voz dormida (The Sleeping Voice), Benito Zambrano
Blackthorn. Sin destino (Blackthorn), Mateo Gil
Director
Pedro Almodovar, La piel que habito (The Skin I Live In)
Benito Zambrano, La voz dormida...
The full listing of the 2012 Goya Awards (Premios Goyas) nominations is below.
Film
La piel que habito (The Skin I Live In), Pedro Almodovar
No habrá paz para los malvados (No Rest for the Wicked), Enrique Urbizu
La voz dormida (The Sleeping Voice), Benito Zambrano
Blackthorn. Sin destino (Blackthorn), Mateo Gil
Director
Pedro Almodovar, La piel que habito (The Skin I Live In)
Benito Zambrano, La voz dormida...
- 1/11/2012
- by filmbook
- Film-Book
Title: Medianeras (Sidewalls) Director: Gustavo Taretto Starring: Javier Drolas, Pilar Lopez de Ayala, Ines Efron The Argentine film, Medianeras, is a subtle telling about the modern twenty-n-thirty somethings who choose, or are forced, to tackle this world on their own. Set in Buenos Aires Federal District, the flick focuses on a man (Javier Drolas) and a woman (Pilar Lopez de Ayala) who are quietly reflecting about their current stature in today’s society inside their quaint apartments. It’s almost as if their having the slowest moving epiphany of all-time. The guy gets by doing web site work in his “shoe-box” floor-plan all while he vicariously lives life through his vast collection...
- 10/27/2011
- by joe
- ShockYa
Happy Friday! Here's hot Clive Owen striking a hot pose at a photocall at Spain's San Sebastian International Film Festival this morning. His Intruders is screening there, and Clive had director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo as well as costars Carice van Houten, Ella Purnell, Daniel Bruhl, and Pilar Lopez de Ayala for company. The group also attended a press conference for the project. Clive said of their thriller Intruders, "I wouldn't really call it a horror film, it's much deeper, more psychological . . . All the fear and trepidation, the danger in the movie, it's within the characters, so it's a pleasure acting in a role like this. It was an ambitious thing to tie all the elements together and to bring them back on an emotional way. I was hugely excited by the possibilities and that's why I have done it." Clive's fresh off another round of photos and interviews over at Toronto,...
- 9/16/2011
- by Allie Merriam
- Popsugar.com
The Toronto International Film Festival is getting ever closer (taking place 8th-18th September) and as each day passes, we’re being shown more and more from it. Last night, they released a new trailer for Clive Owen’s new movie, Intruders.
It’s directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and stars Clive Owen, Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox.
Synopsis: Intruders tells parallel stories of two families whose lives are disrupted by menacing apparitions: in Spain, a mother tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger, while in Britain, a young girl has terrifying dreams of a demon who becomes a real danger to her and her family
Intruders will hit the UK on 7th October.
Iframe Embed for Youtube...
It’s directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and stars Clive Owen, Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox.
Synopsis: Intruders tells parallel stories of two families whose lives are disrupted by menacing apparitions: in Spain, a mother tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger, while in Britain, a young girl has terrifying dreams of a demon who becomes a real danger to her and her family
Intruders will hit the UK on 7th October.
Iframe Embed for Youtube...
- 8/17/2011
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Universal Pictures (via Fotogramas) have liberated this Spanish poster for the upcoming physcological horror flick ‘Intruders.’ The film is directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later, Intact) and stars the likes of Clive Owen, Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox. ’Intruders’ will open the 59th San Sebastian Film Festival September 16th and is due to...
- 8/9/2011
- by admin
- flicksandbits
A creepy new international trailer has been released for the Clive Owen horror thriller Intruders. The movie was developed by 28 Weeks Later director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, and it's a psychological horror film that revolves around an 11 year-old girl who has to deal with the childhood demons who reappear to scare the hell out of her and her family. Owen plays the girls dad in the film. There's also a parallel story that follows a mother in Spain who tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger.
I'm a big fan of horror films that screw with your head, and it looks like this film will do just that. This movie looks pretty awesome. The movie also stars Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox.
Intruders comes out on October 7th, 2011, and if you like watching horror films then this is something you will want...
I'm a big fan of horror films that screw with your head, and it looks like this film will do just that. This movie looks pretty awesome. The movie also stars Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox.
Intruders comes out on October 7th, 2011, and if you like watching horror films then this is something you will want...
- 7/25/2011
- by Venkman
- GeekTyrant
A second international trailer for the psychological horror-thriller Intruders starring Clive Owen and directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later). We previously didn't know much about the film, but Yahoo! gives us this new synopsis: The film tells parallel stories of two families whose lives are disrupted by menacing apparitions: in Spain, a mother tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger, while in Britain, a young girl has terrifying dreams of a demon who becomes a real danger to her and her family. Along with Owen the film co-stars Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox.
The pic will hit UK theaters in October, but Universal has yet to set a domestic bow. Check out the new trailer below.
The pic will hit UK theaters in October, but Universal has yet to set a domestic bow. Check out the new trailer below.
- 7/25/2011
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Universal Pictures have liberated released this UK trailer and these three new images from their upcoming physcological horror flick ‘Intruders.’ The film is directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later, Intact) and stars the likes of Clive Owen, Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox. ’Intruders’ will open the 59th San Sebastian Film Festival September...
- 7/25/2011
- by admin
- flicksandbits
Universal Pictures have just released the first trailer and a few new images from their new thriller / horror movie called Intruders. It’s directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and stars Clive Owen, Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox.
Synopsis: Intruders tells parallel stories of two families whose lives are disrupted by menacing apparitions: in Spain, a mother tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger, while in Britain, a young girl has terrifying dreams of a demon who becomes a real danger to her and her family
‘Intruders’ is set to open the 59th San Sebastian Film Festival in Spain on 16th September and is due to be released in the UK on 7th October.
Scroll down to see the new images.
Trailer Source: Yahoo...
Synopsis: Intruders tells parallel stories of two families whose lives are disrupted by menacing apparitions: in Spain, a mother tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger, while in Britain, a young girl has terrifying dreams of a demon who becomes a real danger to her and her family
‘Intruders’ is set to open the 59th San Sebastian Film Festival in Spain on 16th September and is due to be released in the UK on 7th October.
Scroll down to see the new images.
Trailer Source: Yahoo...
- 7/25/2011
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Cinema Guild will release the 2010 Portuguese drama film The Strange Case of Angelica directed by 102-year-old filmmaker Manoel de Oliveira on Blu-ray and DVD on Aug. 2.
Pilar Lopez de Ayala lives and lounges in The Strange Case of Angelica.
In the movie, late one night, a young photographer named Isaac (Ricardo Trepa) is summoned to by a wealthy family to the last photograph of a young bride, Angelica (Pilar Lopez de Ayala), who has recently and mysteriously passed away. Arriving at their estate, Isaac is struck by Angelica’s hypnotic beauty. But when he looks through his lens, the young woman appears to come to life. From that moment, Isaac will be haunted by Angelica day and night.
Presented in Portuguese with English subtitles, the magical realism-flavored Strange Case of Angelica played a host of international theatrical dates and film festivals in 2010, along with a limited run in U.S.
Pilar Lopez de Ayala lives and lounges in The Strange Case of Angelica.
In the movie, late one night, a young photographer named Isaac (Ricardo Trepa) is summoned to by a wealthy family to the last photograph of a young bride, Angelica (Pilar Lopez de Ayala), who has recently and mysteriously passed away. Arriving at their estate, Isaac is struck by Angelica’s hypnotic beauty. But when he looks through his lens, the young woman appears to come to life. From that moment, Isaac will be haunted by Angelica day and night.
Presented in Portuguese with English subtitles, the magical realism-flavored Strange Case of Angelica played a host of international theatrical dates and film festivals in 2010, along with a limited run in U.S.
- 4/22/2011
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
Pilar Lopez de Ayala, the star of Manoel de Oliveira’s O Estranho Caso de Angélica / The Strange Case of Angelica, holding a Swarovski vintage bag at the You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger premiere at the Palais des Festivals during the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. (Photo: Swarovski / WireImage.) Directed and written by Woody Allen, who has been releasing one movie or so a year since the late ’60s, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger stars Naomi Watts (also at Cannes with Fair Game), Josh Brolin (also at Cannes with Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps), Anthony Hopkins, Antonio Banderas, Freida Pinto, Ewen Bremner, Gemma Jones, Anna Friel, Lucy Punch, [...]...
- 5/18/2010
- by Joan Lister
- Alt Film Guide
As a more economical way of previewing some of the films that are being featured daily at the festival, I've decided to come up with this quick featurette of a journalist retrieving the items in his press box. Today I received press kits for: - As a more economical way of previewing some of the films that are being featured daily at the festival, I've decided to come up with this quick featurette of a journalist retrieving the items in his press box. Today I received press kits for: Sabina Guzzanti's Draquila Italy Trembles, Michel Leclerc's Le Nom des Gens (The Names of Love) starring Jacques Gamblin & Sara Forestier), Chongqing Blues from Wang Xiaoshuai, Mathieu Amalric's Tournee (On Tour) starring himself and non-professional actors and Manoel de Oliveira's The Strange Case of Angelica (with Ricardo Trepa and Pilar Lopez de Ayala). I'll try to add...
- 5/13/2010
- IONCINEMA.com
As a more economical way of previewing some of the films that are being featured daily at the festival, I've decided to come up with this quick featurette of a journalist retrieving the items in his press box. Today I received press kits for: Sabina Guzzanti's Draquila Italy Trembles, Michel Leclerc's Le Nom des Gens (The Names of Love) starring Jacques Gamblin & Sara Forestier), Chongqing Blues from Wang Xiaoshuai, Mathieu Amalric's Tournee (On Tour) starring himself and non-professional actors and Manoel de Oliveira's The Strange Case of Angelica (with Ricardo Trepa and Pilar Lopez de Ayala). I'll try to add commentary and some face time as I actually flip the pages of the guides in the future installments.
- 5/13/2010
- IONCINEMA.com
I think Manoel de Oliveira might just be my new hero. The Portuguese director turned 101 on Friday, but age is definitely not slowing him down. Instead, the director is trucking along with his newest film, The Strange Case of Angelica. Man, I hope that if I manage to live that long that I can still be doing the thing I love!
Aside from still making movies at the age of 101, Oliveira is keeping his family close to him in the process. His grandson, Ricardo Trepa, has been a regular in Oliveira’s films since 1990, and now will be starring in Angelica.
In the film, Trepa will play a photographer who is asked by the owners of a hotel to take photos of their daughter (Angelica) who just died. The ghost of Angelica later begins to appear to the photographer as a ghost. Pilar Lopez de Ayala will play the role of Angelica.
Aside from still making movies at the age of 101, Oliveira is keeping his family close to him in the process. His grandson, Ricardo Trepa, has been a regular in Oliveira’s films since 1990, and now will be starring in Angelica.
In the film, Trepa will play a photographer who is asked by the owners of a hotel to take photos of their daughter (Angelica) who just died. The ghost of Angelica later begins to appear to the photographer as a ghost. Pilar Lopez de Ayala will play the role of Angelica.
- 12/16/2009
- by Carly
- Atomic Popcorn
Madrid -- The 57th San Sebastian International Film Festival kicked off Sept. 18 with Canadian director Atom Egoyan gracing the stage at the festival's inaugural gala to present "Chloe," which opened the Official Section.
Producer Margaret Menegaz picked up the Fipresci grand prize for Michael Haneke's "The White Ribbon," voted the best film of 2009 by the Federation of International Film Critics.
The inaugural ceremony, held in the futuristic Kursaal convention center, was presented by Spanish journalist Edurne Ormazabal, with Francis Lorenzo and Barbara Goenaga, in Spanish, English and the local Basque language as is customary for the festival held in Spain's northern Basque region.
Spanish film academy president Alex de la Iglesia was on hand to help launch Spain's biggest festival, as were members of the official jury, including jury chair Laurent Cantet, actors Daniel Gimenez-Cacho, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Leonor Silveira, and directors Bong Joon-ho, John Madden and Samira Makhmalbaf.
Producer Margaret Menegaz picked up the Fipresci grand prize for Michael Haneke's "The White Ribbon," voted the best film of 2009 by the Federation of International Film Critics.
The inaugural ceremony, held in the futuristic Kursaal convention center, was presented by Spanish journalist Edurne Ormazabal, with Francis Lorenzo and Barbara Goenaga, in Spanish, English and the local Basque language as is customary for the festival held in Spain's northern Basque region.
Spanish film academy president Alex de la Iglesia was on hand to help launch Spain's biggest festival, as were members of the official jury, including jury chair Laurent Cantet, actors Daniel Gimenez-Cacho, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Leonor Silveira, and directors Bong Joon-ho, John Madden and Samira Makhmalbaf.
- 9/20/2009
- by By Pamela Rolfe
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Madrid -- Quentin Tarantino, Brad Pitt and Christoph Waltz will attend the opening gala on Sept. 18 of the 57th San Sebastian International Film Festival, as they present "Inglourious Basterds," running in the Zabaltegi-Pearls Section.
Also expected on hand for the opening night, is Atom Egoyan, who will screen the international debut of his "Chloe," while Naomi Watts and Kerry Washington are scheduled to attend the closing ceremony on the 26th, as they help Rodrigo Garcia present his latest work, "Mother and Child."
French film director Laurent Cantet will chair the official competition jury. He will be accompanied by Mexican actor Daniel Gimenez Cacho, Korean director Bong Joon-ho, the Spanish actress Pilar Lopez de Ayala, British director John Madden, Iranian director Samira Makhmalbaf and Portuguese actress Leonor Silveira.
British actress Saffron Burrows will chair the New Directors Jury, responsible for awarding the €90,000 ($110,000) top prize. The jury is rounded out by director Borja Cobeaga,...
Also expected on hand for the opening night, is Atom Egoyan, who will screen the international debut of his "Chloe," while Naomi Watts and Kerry Washington are scheduled to attend the closing ceremony on the 26th, as they help Rodrigo Garcia present his latest work, "Mother and Child."
French film director Laurent Cantet will chair the official competition jury. He will be accompanied by Mexican actor Daniel Gimenez Cacho, Korean director Bong Joon-ho, the Spanish actress Pilar Lopez de Ayala, British director John Madden, Iranian director Samira Makhmalbaf and Portuguese actress Leonor Silveira.
British actress Saffron Burrows will chair the New Directors Jury, responsible for awarding the €90,000 ($110,000) top prize. The jury is rounded out by director Borja Cobeaga,...
- 9/4/2009
- by By Pamela Rolfe
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Venice International Film Festival
VENICE, Italy -- Virtually a silent movie apart from the everyday sounds of the French city of Strasbourg, Spanish director Jose Luis Guerin's lyrical tale of forlorn love, In the City of Sylvia, is a treat for romantics and people watchers.
It's a simple tale of an artistic young man (Xavier Lafitte) who returns to Strasbourg in search of a woman named Sylvia with whom he had a brief affair six years earlier. He spends his time at cafes in the vicinity of their first meeting, writing notes and sketching images of the people he sees. In due course he spots someone (Pilar Lopez de Ayala) he thinks is Sylvia and follows her.
Slow moving and filled with tiny observed moments, the film is wonderfully crafted by director Guerin and cinematographer Nathasa Braier. Screened in competition at the Venice International Film Festival, it could be in line for awards and with its beautiful players and universal appeal it should do well internationally.
The anonymous young man who sits down one day at the Cafe du TNS-Theatre National de Strasbourg has the looks of Byron and an eye for human expression. The camera goes with him as he unobtrusively gazes at a range of mostly young people talking animatedly or sitting in silence; lovers kissing; couples disagreeing and individuals sitting, thinking, and staring at something or nothing.
It's a full 35 minutes before anyone speaks and that's when the young man calls out the name Sylvia. But the woman ignores him and follows a wandering course through the city's Old Town with the man in gentle pursuit. In other circumstances, the young man's behavior would be odd or threatening, and there comes a time when the object of his attentions makes that point.
But Lafitte is so assured in his portrayal of honest yearning and De Ayala is such a radiantly beautiful mystery that the film is more succulent than piquant. Filled with small eye-pleasing images, it's a picture that audiences may wish to see more than once in order to relish it all.
IN THE CITY OF SYLVIA
Eddie Saeta S.A., Chateau-Rouge
Credits:
Director, writer: Jose Luis Guerin
Producers: Luis Minarro, Gaelle Jones
Director of photography: Natasha Braier
Production designer: Maite Sanchez
Costume designers: Valerie-Elder Fontaine & Miriam Compte
Editor: Nuria Esquerra
Cast:
Pilar Lopez de Ayala, Xavier Lafitte, Laurence Cordier, Tanja Czichy, Eric Dietrich, Charlotte Dupont
Running time -- 84 minutes
No MPAA rating...
VENICE, Italy -- Virtually a silent movie apart from the everyday sounds of the French city of Strasbourg, Spanish director Jose Luis Guerin's lyrical tale of forlorn love, In the City of Sylvia, is a treat for romantics and people watchers.
It's a simple tale of an artistic young man (Xavier Lafitte) who returns to Strasbourg in search of a woman named Sylvia with whom he had a brief affair six years earlier. He spends his time at cafes in the vicinity of their first meeting, writing notes and sketching images of the people he sees. In due course he spots someone (Pilar Lopez de Ayala) he thinks is Sylvia and follows her.
Slow moving and filled with tiny observed moments, the film is wonderfully crafted by director Guerin and cinematographer Nathasa Braier. Screened in competition at the Venice International Film Festival, it could be in line for awards and with its beautiful players and universal appeal it should do well internationally.
The anonymous young man who sits down one day at the Cafe du TNS-Theatre National de Strasbourg has the looks of Byron and an eye for human expression. The camera goes with him as he unobtrusively gazes at a range of mostly young people talking animatedly or sitting in silence; lovers kissing; couples disagreeing and individuals sitting, thinking, and staring at something or nothing.
It's a full 35 minutes before anyone speaks and that's when the young man calls out the name Sylvia. But the woman ignores him and follows a wandering course through the city's Old Town with the man in gentle pursuit. In other circumstances, the young man's behavior would be odd or threatening, and there comes a time when the object of his attentions makes that point.
But Lafitte is so assured in his portrayal of honest yearning and De Ayala is such a radiantly beautiful mystery that the film is more succulent than piquant. Filled with small eye-pleasing images, it's a picture that audiences may wish to see more than once in order to relish it all.
IN THE CITY OF SYLVIA
Eddie Saeta S.A., Chateau-Rouge
Credits:
Director, writer: Jose Luis Guerin
Producers: Luis Minarro, Gaelle Jones
Director of photography: Natasha Braier
Production designer: Maite Sanchez
Costume designers: Valerie-Elder Fontaine & Miriam Compte
Editor: Nuria Esquerra
Cast:
Pilar Lopez de Ayala, Xavier Lafitte, Laurence Cordier, Tanja Czichy, Eric Dietrich, Charlotte Dupont
Running time -- 84 minutes
No MPAA rating...
MADRID -- David Trueba's Bienvenido a casa (Welcome Home) will open the ninth Malaga Spanish Film Festival, scheduled to run March 17-25, organizers said Tuesday. Bienvenido is a co-production between Trueba's brother's production house, Fernando Trueba PC, and Ensueno Films, the production wing of commercial television channel Antena 3. Starring Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Alejo Sauras, the coming-of-age tale follows a love story that illustrates life's inconsistencies. It is David Trueba's fourth feature. The fest in the Spanish Mediterranean town is the country's leading Spanish film festival. This year, the dates have been shifted from June.
In "Mad Love" (Juana La Loca), veteran Spanish writer-director Vicente Aranda subjects a remote historical figure to modern-day psychological treatment. Joan of Castile (1479-1555) has gone down in history as "Joan the Mad". Obsessively jealous of her husband -- and we can pretty much guess what the problem was when we learn he was known as Philip the Handsome -- Joan was devastated by his early death. Behaving erratically before and after Philip's death, Joan was confined for the remainder of her life in a castle by her father and later her son.
To Aranda, all this smacks of "mad love," an unbridled passion we moderns know all too well. So he portrays Joan as something of a spoiled Beverly Hills wife, unfortunate to love her husband excessively but none too wisely. Newcomer Pilar Lopez de Ayala won a Goya for her portrayal of Mad Joan, and the film was Spain's entry for this year's foreign language film Oscar. Yet the distant subject matter and the unavoidably gloomy tale that engulfs these characters probably doom the Sony Pictures Classics release to a limited audience.
Aranda's script takes pains to contemporize its medieval characters. There are only passing references to the religious austerity of the Spanish court and its persecution of non-Catholics. Otherwise, Joan and Philip (Italian actor Daniele Liotti, who is dubbed) are like any dysfunctional couple. He barely troubles to conceal his love affairs with other women, while she suffers jealous rages within the royal apartments. Apparently, Joan has an insatiable need for the pleasures of the marital bed. Even breast-feeding her children -- the only maternal act we witness in the movie -- sends her into ecstasy.
Upon her unexpected ascension to the Castilian throne because of the deaths of an older brother, sister and finally her mother in 1504, Joan ignores her duties as a monarch to pursue evidence of her husband's transgressions. Egged on by his supporters, Philip decides to have his wife declared mad so he can seize the throne. Only his sudden death delays this action.
The trouble with making this queen a thoroughly modern maiden is that it also makes her appear foolish and shallow rather than, as was more likely, a victim of mental illness. It's hard to sympathize with a ruler who has so little regard for her own subjects, children or the role history has thrust upon her.
The two main actors do fine jobs of humanizing their characters, but the time leaps make them struggle to ascribe motives and subtleties to ever-shifting behavior patterns. Courtiers come off as a conniving lot, as is common in costume dramas, but the actors do create vivid personalities. Especially noteworthy is Manuela Arcuri, who manages to be sensual yet hugely vulnerable as Philip's Moorish mistress.
Aranda sometimes drifts into cliches. A heavy downpour accompanies the announcement of the death of Joan's mother. Joan's father is seen eating like a pig while conspiring with her husband to make certain we really don't like him. A voice-over narration turns the film into a history lesson rather than a tale of doomed love.
The pomp and circumstance, art direction, elegant lighting and cinematography evoke the medieval world well. Jose Nieto's orchestrations are in a restrained classical mode. But the milieu on display, not quite medieval and not quite modern, never comes to life.
MAD LOVE
Sony Pictures Classics
An Enrique Cerezo PC/Production Group/Take 2000 production in association with TVE, Canal Plus, TeleMadrid
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Vicente Aranda
Producer: Enrique Cerezo
Director of photography: Paco Femenia
Production designer: Josep Rosell
Music: Jose Nieto
Costume designer: Javier Artinano
Editor: Teresa Font
Cast:
Joan: Pilar Lopez de Ayala
Philip: Daniele Liotti
Aixa: Mannuela Arcuri
Alvaro de Estuniga: Eloy Azorin
Elvira: Rosana Pastor
De Vere: Guiliano Gemma
Admiral: Roberto Alvarez
Ines: Caroline Bona
Running time -- 117 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
To Aranda, all this smacks of "mad love," an unbridled passion we moderns know all too well. So he portrays Joan as something of a spoiled Beverly Hills wife, unfortunate to love her husband excessively but none too wisely. Newcomer Pilar Lopez de Ayala won a Goya for her portrayal of Mad Joan, and the film was Spain's entry for this year's foreign language film Oscar. Yet the distant subject matter and the unavoidably gloomy tale that engulfs these characters probably doom the Sony Pictures Classics release to a limited audience.
Aranda's script takes pains to contemporize its medieval characters. There are only passing references to the religious austerity of the Spanish court and its persecution of non-Catholics. Otherwise, Joan and Philip (Italian actor Daniele Liotti, who is dubbed) are like any dysfunctional couple. He barely troubles to conceal his love affairs with other women, while she suffers jealous rages within the royal apartments. Apparently, Joan has an insatiable need for the pleasures of the marital bed. Even breast-feeding her children -- the only maternal act we witness in the movie -- sends her into ecstasy.
Upon her unexpected ascension to the Castilian throne because of the deaths of an older brother, sister and finally her mother in 1504, Joan ignores her duties as a monarch to pursue evidence of her husband's transgressions. Egged on by his supporters, Philip decides to have his wife declared mad so he can seize the throne. Only his sudden death delays this action.
The trouble with making this queen a thoroughly modern maiden is that it also makes her appear foolish and shallow rather than, as was more likely, a victim of mental illness. It's hard to sympathize with a ruler who has so little regard for her own subjects, children or the role history has thrust upon her.
The two main actors do fine jobs of humanizing their characters, but the time leaps make them struggle to ascribe motives and subtleties to ever-shifting behavior patterns. Courtiers come off as a conniving lot, as is common in costume dramas, but the actors do create vivid personalities. Especially noteworthy is Manuela Arcuri, who manages to be sensual yet hugely vulnerable as Philip's Moorish mistress.
Aranda sometimes drifts into cliches. A heavy downpour accompanies the announcement of the death of Joan's mother. Joan's father is seen eating like a pig while conspiring with her husband to make certain we really don't like him. A voice-over narration turns the film into a history lesson rather than a tale of doomed love.
The pomp and circumstance, art direction, elegant lighting and cinematography evoke the medieval world well. Jose Nieto's orchestrations are in a restrained classical mode. But the milieu on display, not quite medieval and not quite modern, never comes to life.
MAD LOVE
Sony Pictures Classics
An Enrique Cerezo PC/Production Group/Take 2000 production in association with TVE, Canal Plus, TeleMadrid
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Vicente Aranda
Producer: Enrique Cerezo
Director of photography: Paco Femenia
Production designer: Josep Rosell
Music: Jose Nieto
Costume designer: Javier Artinano
Editor: Teresa Font
Cast:
Joan: Pilar Lopez de Ayala
Philip: Daniele Liotti
Aixa: Mannuela Arcuri
Alvaro de Estuniga: Eloy Azorin
Elvira: Rosana Pastor
De Vere: Guiliano Gemma
Admiral: Roberto Alvarez
Ines: Caroline Bona
Running time -- 117 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 8/27/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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