Monika’s Pensieve

{FILM SPOTTING}
Even more format changes ;-P Am still using the rating system from last month, but have foregone 0 and -1. Feels like overkill. Am staying with the +0.5 rating though, at least for the moment.

Tetro (USA/Italy/Spain/Argentina, 2009)

Release Date (Poland): 3rd September 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 14th May 2009
Runtime: 127′
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Cast: Vincent Gallo, Alden Ehrenreich, Maribel Verdú
Production House: American Zoetrope, BIM Distribuzione, Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), Tornasol Films, Zoetropa
Plot: (from imdb)

Bennie travels to Buenos Aires to find his long-missing older brother, a once-promising writer who is now a remnant of his former self. Bennie’s discovery of his brother’s near-finished play might hold the answer to understanding their shared past and renewing their bond.

Trailer

General Feelings
Mainly, I just like the trailer ;) Although, the fact that it’s a well known director helps I suppose. And I loved Maribel Verdú in Y Tu Mama Tambien, so another opportunity to see her is a good thing *grin*

Shortbus (USA, 2006)

Release Date (Poland): 17th September 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 20th May 2006
Runtime: 101′
Director: John Cameron Mitchell
Production House: THINKFilm, Fortissimo Films, Q Television, Process Productions
Plot: (from imdb)

A group of New Yorkers get caught up in their romantic-sexual milieu converge at an underground salon infamous for its blend of art, music, politics, and carnality.

Trailer

General Feelings
Couldn’t make my mind up about this one… This contains unsimulated sex (which is perhaps why it took so long to make it to Poland), but apparently the sex scenes are very much part of the action and have lots of good dialogue. It sounds like an interesting experiment - a film about relationships without censoring anything. But I have rather mixed feelings about it.
What finally convinced me to spot this at +1 was the dialogue, which appeals to my stupid sense of humour:

- Was that the first time someone sang the National Anthem into your ass?
- No

And another quote:

- Are you a top or a bottom?
- I beg your pardon?
- I mean in real life.
- This is real life.
- Let me put it this way: do you think we should get out of Iraq?

Matka Teresa od kotów (Poland, 2010)

Release Date (Poland): 17th September 2010
Runtime: 95′
Director: Pawel Sala
Production House: Rozwój Film Production, Syrena Films
Plot: Based on a real event, in which two boys (12 and 22 years old) murdered their own mother.

Trailer

General Feelings
This film has been much talked about in Poland. Apparently, the decision not to award it with anything at the festival in Gdynia (the most important national film festival) was very controversial. Many thought it should have received the main prize.
In fact, unlike most of the other Polish films shown in Gdynia, the film has been noticed internationally - Maciej Kościukiewicz and Filip Garbacz won the Best Actor award at the Karlovy Vary film festival for their performances as the two brothers.
So I’d quite like to check it out and see what all this controversy is about :)

Io sono l’amore (Italy, 2009)

Release Date (Poland): 24th September 2010
Release Date (worldwide): 5th September 2009
Runtime: 120′
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Cast: Tilda Swinton,
Production House: First Sun, Mikado Film
Plot: (from imdb)

A tragic love story set at the turn of the millennium in Milan. The film follows the fall of the haute bourgeoisie due to the forces of passion and unconditional love.

Trailer

General Feelings
Normally, I’d have little interest in a film like this. But this one has aroused my curiosity because the idea of having Tilda Swinton performing a part in Italian is bizarre to me. Apparently, she learnt both Italian and Russian specifically for this film.
But also, this film has had the most amazing reviews.

The Last Airbender (USA, 2010)
Release Date: 3rd September
This one’s actually fast becoming more of a -1 :] There’s exactly one reason why I’d like to see it and his name is Dev Patel. I’m curious what he’ll be like post-Slumdog and this part is particularly interesting to me as it has a slightly villainous vibe to it.
However, chances that I’ll actually go see it are getting smaller by the minute. The film has some of the worst reviews ever, the trailer looks horrid and Shyamalan has been doing flop after flop recently. Even the special effects (which should be the main asset of a film like this) look horrible. So Dev Patel is literally my only reason to see it, everything else screams no. And considering it’s been dubbed for the Polish market and I won’t even get to hear his voice, it probably doesn’t make any sense to see it.

Moon (UK, 2010)
Release Date: 3rd September
Ordinarily this would be a strong +1, maybe even +2. It’s a small British film which has won loads of awards. It sounds sort of claustrophobic (which is an atmosphere I love portrayed on film). And I’ve just generally heard loads of good stuff about it. However, it stars Sam Rockwell :] Not only that, but apparently he’s on the screen practically non-stop - it’s almost a one person cast. And to make matters worse, the character’s sanity is questionable, which is what I hate Sam Rockwell doing the most (IMO he fails at portraying any kind of vulnerability).
So all in all, this sounds like a film that will be very frustrating for me (I already hate what I’ve seen of Rockwell on the trailer). Kin’s seen it and has confirmed this view of the matter and we have a very similar view of Rockwell, so ugh… I wish Dev Patel and Sam Rockwell had exchanged parts ;-P This would make spotting films much simpler ;)

Micmacs (France, 2009)
Release Date: 10th September
It looks beautifully shot, Jean-Pierre Jeunet is a very interesting director and on top of that I loved Yolande Moreau in Seraphine. And yet… there’s something about it that makes me think “same old, same old” and ultimately puts me off a bit.

Resident Evil: Afterlife (UK/Germany/USA, 2010)
Release Date: 10th September
The trailer looks spectacular - the cinematography and the special effects are really, really beautiful. Apparently, they used the same technology as Avatar did. Also, I rather like Milla Jovovich. However, that’s where the good stuff ends ;) In terms of plot and characters, it doesn’t seem like it has much and I’m not one to enjoy pure action.
It’s a shame though, cause on the visual side I’ve rarely seen something that would attract me quite this much. I get a huge kick out of watching the grey, empty landscapes on the trailer - they’re fantastic!

Na Putu (Bosnia and Herzegovina/Austria/Germany/Croatia, 2009)
Release Date: 10th September
I’ve seen the director’s previous (award-winning) film, Grbavica and I rather liked it. But not enough to particularly want to follow her career. This one interests me because it deals with Islam and how somebody can suddenly end up practising a much more extreme version of it. Plus, one doesn’t often talk about Islam in the context of Bosnia.
But I suppose I’m more curious about the issues in the film than the film itself, which is why this hasn’t made +1.

Ne te retourne pas (France/Italy/Luxembourg/Belgium, 2009)
Release Date: 17th September
This I’m curious about because it stars Sophie Marceau and Monica Bellucci. They play the same character, so it’s kind of intriguing. But what puts me off is that it sounds like precisely the kind of French film I won’t like :]

Karate Kid (USA/China, 2010)
Release Date: 24th September
This one looks amusing (I like Jackie Chan’s sense of humour ;)) if I was in the mood for something a bit more commercial. But as it’s been dubbed for the Polish market, I probably won’t want to see it.