Monika’s Pensieve

Hollywood investing in Bollywood is old news by now. But it looks like their interest in Indian cinema is growing. It’s no longer just the Hindi language sector they’re after. Fox Star Studios is set to enter the Tamil film industry (also known as Kollywood).
Fox generally seems to be very keen on investing in Indian [...]

This is a report on people being forced out of their houses by corporations.

{FILM DIARY}
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (USA/UK, 2007)
Seen: Friday, 24th April 2009 (DVD, repeat viewing)
Runtime: 116′
Director: Tim Burton
Cast: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jamie Campbell Bower, Laura Michelle Kelly, Jayne Wisener, Ed Sanders
Production House: DreamWorks Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures
Plot: (from imdb)
The infamous story of Benjamin [...]

{FILM DIARY}
Waltz with Bashir (Israel/Germany/France/USA/Finland/Switzerland/Belgium/Australia, 2008)
Seen: Monday, 13th April 2009 (cinema)
Runtime: 90′
Director: Ari Folman
Production House: Bridgit Folman Film Gang, Les Films d'Ici, Razor Film Produktion GmbH
Plot: An animated documentary that tries to piece together a memory from the Israeli-Lebanese war in 1982. Where was Ari Folman during the Sabra and Shatila massacre and what was [...]

{FILM DIARY}
The Reader (USA/Germany, 2008)
Seen: Sunday, 12th April 2009 (cinema)
Runtime: 124′
Director: Stephen Daldry
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, David Kross, Kate Winslet
Production House: Mirage Enterprises, Neunte Babelsberg Film, Weinstein Company, The
Plot: (from imdb)
Post-WWII Germany: Nearly a decade after his affair with an older woman came to a mysterious end, law student Michael Berg re-encounters his former lover as [...]

{FILM DIARY}
Man on Wire (UK/USA, 2008)
Seen: Wednesday, 8th April 2009 (cinema)
Runtime: 94′
Director: James Marsh
Production House: Discovery Films, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Red Box Films, UK Film Council, Wall to Wall
Plot: This is a documentary about Philippe Petit and the team behind him. Petit is a French tight rope walker, who has performed in some very [...]

{FILM SPOTTING}
I Love You Phillip Morris (USA, 2009)
Runtime: 102′
Director: Glenn Ficara, John Requa
Cast: Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor
Production House: Europa Corp., Mad Chance
Plot: The real story of Steven Russell - a conman, who eventually ends up in jail where he finds his one true love… his cellmate.
Trailer

The sceptical part of me thinks that…
The reviews are [...]

Fortunately, April is not as confusing as March ;) Nothing that I’m veeery excited about though.
{FILM SPOTTING}
Waltz With Bashir (Israel/Germany/France/USA/Finland/Switzerland/Belgium/Australia, 2008)
Polish Distributor: Against Gravity (3rd April 2009)
I spotted this originally during the Warsaw Film Festival last year.
Che: Part One (France/Spain/USA, 2008)
Polish Distributor: SPInka (3rd April 2009)
Release Date (worldwide): 21st May 2008
Runtime: 126′
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Benicio [...]

{FILM DIARY}
Coraline (USA, 2009)
Seen: Thursday, 19th March 2009 (cinema)
Runtime: 100′
Director: Henry Selick
Production House: Laika Entertainment, Pandemonium
Plot: Coraline moves to a pink house in the middle of nowhere, where she finds an alternate version of her life where everything is a lot more fun… except that people have buttons for eyes.
Trailer

Impressions In Short
I enjoyed the story, [...]

Here’s my random film fact of the day…
There are differences between how well films do in the box office in different parts of the world. Some of these differences are due to how the films are distributed and/or promoted, but when we’re talking about Hollywood, which has the means to do the distribution and promotion [...]