Tuesday, November 06, 2007

European Film Buffet


A preview for AFI Silver's 20th annual European Union Film Festival can be found here.

1 comment:

shubbuck said...

2007 EUROPEAN UNION FILM SHOWCASE – ADDITIONAL TITLES JUST ADDED!
AFI Silver announces the addition of two new titles to the EU Film Showcase lineup! They are: Sweden's 2007 Oscar selection YOU, THE LIVING, directed by Roy Andersson and Portugal's 2007 Oscar selection BELLE TOUJOURS, directed by our recent recipient of the AFI Silver Legacy Award, Manoel de Oliveira.

In addition, director Panikos Chrissanthou, has confirmed he will host a Q&A after his screenings of AKAMAS on both Monday and Tuesday night. Tickets available on line with no service fee or at the boxoffice. www.AFI.com/Silver or 301.495.6700.

* * * * *
2007 Oscar Submission from Sweden for Best Foreign Language Film
YOU, THE LIVING [Du, levande]
Roy Andersson returns with another look at the human condition, in all its foibles, mad frustrations and madcap flailings, in this one-of-kind compendium of comic vignettes. The director of SONGS FROM THE SECOND FLOOR brings his absurdist wit to this bitingly sardonic, but nonetheless sweet, sketch comedy, with frequently uproarious results. Official Selection, 2007 Cannes Film Festival; Best Director, 2007 Chicago Film Festival; Nominee for Best Director, 2007 European Film Academy Awards.
DIR/SCR Roy Andersson; PROD Philippe Bober, Pernilla Sandström. Sweden, 2007, color, 94 minutes. In Swedish with English subtitles.

Saturday, Nov. 17, 7:30; Sunday, Nov. 18, 1:30

2007 Oscar Submission from Portugal for Best Foreign Language Film
BELLE TOUJOURS
BELLE TOUJOURS is master filmmaker Manoel de Oliveira's ingenious tribute to two cinematic greats, Luis Buñuel and Jean-Claude Carrière. A sequel to Buñuel's BELLE DE JOUR, his film reunites the two main characters thirty-eight years later in Paris. Michel Piccoli is again cast as the acrimonious Henri, the keeper of the one secret Séverine is desperate to discover. Catherine Deneuve's performance in the original film as Séverine, the frigid young wife with secret fantasies of being ravaged and dominated, was exquisitely nuanced. Now, Henri is disgusted when the "new" Séverine tells him she wishes to retreat to a convent. Further referencing Buñuel and Carrière - who cast two actresses as Conchita in THAT OBSCURE OBJECT OF DESIRE - de Oliveira casts Bulle Ogier to play Deneuve's unforgettable role (her blonde wig provides a hilarious touch).—Diana Sanchez, Toronto Film Festival. Official Selection, 2006 Venice, Toronto Film Festivals. DIR/SCR Manoel de Oliveira, PROD Miguel Cadilhe. Portugal, 2006, color, 70 min. In French with English subtitles.

Saturday, Nov. 17, 12:45; Sunday, Nov. 18, 12:20

* * * * *
AKAMAS
IN PERSON: Director and Screenwriter Panikos Chrissanthou.
Best Film, 2007 Los Angeles Greek Film Festival
Official Selection, 2006 Venice Film Festival
Omeris, a Turkish Cypriot boy, grows up in the innocent years of his homeland. When he falls in love with a Greek-Cypriot girl, he realizes that the world is not as he imagined it to be. DIR/SCR/PROD Panikos Chrissanthou. Cyprus/Greece/Turkey/Hungary, 2006, color, 124 min. In Greek and Turkish with English subtitles.

Monday, November 19, 9:00; Tuesday, November 20, 9:00