In the late 1970s, an associate professor in the Philosophy department at Johns Hopkins (thesis title: "The Nature of the Natural Numbers") began publishing essays on Hollywood movies. George M. Wilson wasn't the first person to undergo this shift in specialism. At the start of the decade, Stanley Cavell had published The World Viewed, a series of "reflections on the ontology of film." But Cavell had always been concerned with how works of art enable us to think through philosophical themes such as knowledge and meaning, and he held a chair, at Harvard, in Aesthetics. Wilson differed in that he brought a range of analytic gifts to an ongoing revolution: the close reading of American cinema, conceived as part of the "auteur" policy of Truffaut and other writers at Cahiers du cinéma in the 1950s, and concertedly developed in the following decades by critics in England such as V. F.
- 12/11/2017
- MUBI
In a painfully honest documentary, film-maker Josh Appignanesi turns the camera on himself as his partner’s pregnancy causes him severe existential angst
This lovely, very personal and abjectly honest documentary from director Josh Appignanesi – in fact made jointly with his partner Devorah Baum – could as well be entitled A Matter of Life and Death. It is Appignanesi’s moment-by-moment record of his life and feelings on preparing to become a father for the first time in his late thirties, a film embarked on at least partly because of his need to somehow prove himself a breadwinner, a provider, and end an agonising period of professional inactivity. (Before this, Appignanesi had made the features Song of Songs and The Infidel.)
Yet the paradox that all men feel in this situation is that inactivity is all you have: relentless, inescapable, almost existential inactivity, an inability to do anything that bears comparison...
This lovely, very personal and abjectly honest documentary from director Josh Appignanesi – in fact made jointly with his partner Devorah Baum – could as well be entitled A Matter of Life and Death. It is Appignanesi’s moment-by-moment record of his life and feelings on preparing to become a father for the first time in his late thirties, a film embarked on at least partly because of his need to somehow prove himself a breadwinner, a provider, and end an agonising period of professional inactivity. (Before this, Appignanesi had made the features Song of Songs and The Infidel.)
Yet the paradox that all men feel in this situation is that inactivity is all you have: relentless, inescapable, almost existential inactivity, an inability to do anything that bears comparison...
- 11/9/2016
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Highly respected producer worked on Joanna Hogg’s Archipelago and Sally El Hosaini’s My Brother the Devil.
British producer Gayle Griffiths has died following a battle with cancer. She was 49.
Griffiths, who died on Friday (Oct 23) in London, was perhaps best known for producing Joanna Hogg films Archipelago (2010) and Exhibition (2013), which both starred Tom Hiddleston, as well as urban drama My Brother The Devil (2012).
Sally El Hosani, director of My Brother The Devil, wrote on Facebook: “I can honestly say that the film wouldn’t have been what it was without her input and wisdom. She had real vision and believed in the film when many others in the industry didn’t. She was a fighter with a truly generous heart and empathy for the underdog.
“She was never one to make a fuss about her health and all through the filming of My Brother The Devil nobody would have guessed she was also having cancer...
British producer Gayle Griffiths has died following a battle with cancer. She was 49.
Griffiths, who died on Friday (Oct 23) in London, was perhaps best known for producing Joanna Hogg films Archipelago (2010) and Exhibition (2013), which both starred Tom Hiddleston, as well as urban drama My Brother The Devil (2012).
Sally El Hosani, director of My Brother The Devil, wrote on Facebook: “I can honestly say that the film wouldn’t have been what it was without her input and wisdom. She had real vision and believed in the film when many others in the industry didn’t. She was a fighter with a truly generous heart and empathy for the underdog.
“She was never one to make a fuss about her health and all through the filming of My Brother The Devil nobody would have guessed she was also having cancer...
- 10/27/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
The 44th edition of the Festival du Nouveau Cinema has just announced their entire lineup and it’s pretty insane! The festival which takes place in Montreal from October 7 to 18 is screening nearly 400 films and events in only 11 days. This includes 151 feature films and 203 short films from 68 countries – 49 world premieres, 38 North American premieres and 60 Canadian premieres. Give credit to the team of programmers: Claude Chamberlan, Dimitri Eipides Julien Fonfrède, Philippe Gajan, Karolewicz Daniel, Marie-Hélène Brousseau, Katayoun Dibamehr and Gabrielle Tougas-Frechette.
Below is the lineup. There’s a lot to process so take your sweet time!
Opening and closing
The whole New Testament directed by Jaco Van Dormael (Toto the Hero, Mr Nobody, The Eighth Day), will kick off this 44th edition.
After its world premiere at the Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes last May, the new opus unconventional Belgian director, starring Benoît Poelvoorde (Three Hearts, Ransom of Glory), Yolande Moreau (Mammuth,...
Below is the lineup. There’s a lot to process so take your sweet time!
Opening and closing
The whole New Testament directed by Jaco Van Dormael (Toto the Hero, Mr Nobody, The Eighth Day), will kick off this 44th edition.
After its world premiere at the Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes last May, the new opus unconventional Belgian director, starring Benoît Poelvoorde (Three Hearts, Ransom of Glory), Yolande Moreau (Mammuth,...
- 9/29/2015
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
★★★☆☆ An elegy for both the lost world of the Jewish shtetl and the fanciful idylls of childhood, the exquisitely lensed Song of Songs (2015) is the new film from award-winning Ukrainian director Eva Neymann. With a narrative constructed of elements plucked from across the work of Yiddish author Sholem Aleichem, it charts the burgeoning feelings between a young boy and girl growing up in close proximity in a traditional Hasidic community in the early 20th century. If a little fleeting and slightly evasive, this perfectly captures the ephemeral nature of their pre-adolescent romance and Rimvydas Leipus' stunning cinematography makes up for any possible shortcomings.
Though nothing like it in terms of form, the compositions remind in some ways of Dietrich
Brüggemann's Stations of the Cross; they resemble slowly moving tableaux somewhere between a book of fairytale illustrations and the paintings of someone like Pieter de Hooch, albeit bathed in the...
Though nothing like it in terms of form, the compositions remind in some ways of Dietrich
Brüggemann's Stations of the Cross; they resemble slowly moving tableaux somewhere between a book of fairytale illustrations and the paintings of someone like Pieter de Hooch, albeit bathed in the...
- 9/10/2015
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Anne Sewitsky‘s Sundance preemed Homesick, Cannes preemed Romanian imports from Radu Muntean‘s One Floor Below and Corneliu Porumboiu‘s The Treasure along with Athina Rachel Tsangari‘s Locarno shown Chevalier are just four of the film titles in the just announced Contemporary World Cinema programme for Tiff. Among the other noteworthy titles in what is mostly a mix of world preems and North American premieres we find Grímur Hákonarson‘s Rams (just picked up by Cohen Media), Alex van Warmerdam well-received Locarno comedy Schneider vs. Bax , the world preem for Sion Sono’s The Whispering Star, and the Oscilloscope Laboratories picked up Ciro Guerra‘s Embrace Of The Serpent. Here are today’s selections that were added to the already announced Canadian items.
25 April (New Zealand), Leanne Pooley Wp
3000 Nights (Palestine-France-Jordan-Lebanon-uae-Qatar), Mai Masri Wp
An (Japan-France-Germany), Naomi Kawase Nap
The Apostate (Spain-France-Uruguay), Federico Veiroj Wp
As I Open...
25 April (New Zealand), Leanne Pooley Wp
3000 Nights (Palestine-France-Jordan-Lebanon-uae-Qatar), Mai Masri Wp
An (Japan-France-Germany), Naomi Kawase Nap
The Apostate (Spain-France-Uruguay), Federico Veiroj Wp
As I Open...
- 8/18/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Due to the large volume of films that the Toronto International Film Festival screens every year, participants often find themselves unsure of how to decide what to see. To that end, festival organisers often distribute the films into numerous programmes to reflect commonalities among them. The Contemporary World Cinema Programme, to that end, looks at the features from filmmakers from around the world, showcasing the talents being displayed from numerous countries.
The full lineup for the 2015 Tiff Contemporary World Cinema Programme has now been announced, adding to the previously announced slate of Canadian Films in the Programme. The films, as well as their official synopses, can be seen below.
25 April, directed by Leanne Pooley, making its World Premiere
Award-winning filmmaker Leanne Pooley utilizes the letters and memoirs of New Zealand soldiers and nurses along with state of the art animation to tell the true story of the 1915 battle of Gallipoli.
The full lineup for the 2015 Tiff Contemporary World Cinema Programme has now been announced, adding to the previously announced slate of Canadian Films in the Programme. The films, as well as their official synopses, can be seen below.
25 April, directed by Leanne Pooley, making its World Premiere
Award-winning filmmaker Leanne Pooley utilizes the letters and memoirs of New Zealand soldiers and nurses along with state of the art animation to tell the true story of the 1915 battle of Gallipoli.
- 8/18/2015
- by Deepayan Sengupta
- SoundOnSight
Potential awards season contenders Truth from James Vanderbilt and Marc Abraham’s I Saw The Light starring Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams land world premiere slots, while Paco Cabezas’s Mr. Right will close the festival.
London is the subject of the seventh annual City To City programme that features world premieres of Tom Geens’ Couple In A Hole starring Paul Higgins and Kate Dickie and Michael Caton-Jones’ Urban Hymn with Letitia Wright and Shirley Henderson. Elaine Constantine’s Northern Soul gets a North American premiere.
The world premiere of Catherine Hardwicke’s Miss You Already is among five additions to the galas alongside Mr. Right, an action comedy starring Sam Rockwell and Anna Kendrick.
Matthew Cullen’s Martin Amis adaptation London Fields and David Gordon Green’s Our Brand Is Crisis get first public screenings in the Special Presentations roster with I Saw The Light.
Tiff top brass also unveiled the Contemporary World Cinema section, featuring...
London is the subject of the seventh annual City To City programme that features world premieres of Tom Geens’ Couple In A Hole starring Paul Higgins and Kate Dickie and Michael Caton-Jones’ Urban Hymn with Letitia Wright and Shirley Henderson. Elaine Constantine’s Northern Soul gets a North American premiere.
The world premiere of Catherine Hardwicke’s Miss You Already is among five additions to the galas alongside Mr. Right, an action comedy starring Sam Rockwell and Anna Kendrick.
Matthew Cullen’s Martin Amis adaptation London Fields and David Gordon Green’s Our Brand Is Crisis get first public screenings in the Special Presentations roster with I Saw The Light.
Tiff top brass also unveiled the Contemporary World Cinema section, featuring...
- 8/18/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s Mustang and Eva Neymann’s Song Of Songs among winners; industry awards.
Women filmmakers were the big winners at this year’s Odessa International Film Festival (Oiff) which closed at the weekend with a gala screening of Naomi Kawase’s film Sweet Red Bean Paste (An), which premiered in Cannes in May.
The festival-goers voted to give the “Golden Duke” Grand Prix to Deniz Gamze Ergüven for her feature debut Mustang.
The Turkish director was also named Best Director by the International Competition jury headed by French writer-director-actress Jeanne Labrune.
The Turkish-French-German co-production had its world premiere in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight in May and is handled internationally by Kinology.
Ukrainian-born Eva Neymann’s third feature Song Of Songs – which had premiered in Karlovy Vary - was named Best Film by the juries for the International and National Competitions.
Israeli actress Tamar Alkan received the Best Acting Award for her performance as a woman...
Women filmmakers were the big winners at this year’s Odessa International Film Festival (Oiff) which closed at the weekend with a gala screening of Naomi Kawase’s film Sweet Red Bean Paste (An), which premiered in Cannes in May.
The festival-goers voted to give the “Golden Duke” Grand Prix to Deniz Gamze Ergüven for her feature debut Mustang.
The Turkish director was also named Best Director by the International Competition jury headed by French writer-director-actress Jeanne Labrune.
The Turkish-French-German co-production had its world premiere in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight in May and is handled internationally by Kinology.
Ukrainian-born Eva Neymann’s third feature Song Of Songs – which had premiered in Karlovy Vary - was named Best Film by the juries for the International and National Competitions.
Israeli actress Tamar Alkan received the Best Acting Award for her performance as a woman...
- 7/20/2015
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
Producer-director Andrey Silvestrov’s The Ice Hole was named the winner of the first Screen International Best Pitch Award at the Moscow Business Square (Mbs).
The €400,000 comedy by Silvestrov’s new company Cooperation Propub is based on characters who are typical to the modern world: an artist, an oligarch, the Russian president and an alcoholic.
The ironic and tragic view of modern Russia also received an award sponsored by the Russian company Cosmosfilm.
In addition, the Finnish post-production house Post Control offered production services as a prize to Elizaveta Stishova’s Suleiman Mountain by Trikita Entertainment, which is being developed as part of the B’Est training programme.
The Mgap entertainment legal practice donated a prize of legal advice to the documentary project Baubxy about the Bauhaus and Vkhutemas movements by Sergei Shanovich.
Valeriy Polienko’s 1990s-set drama Kosa was selected by the Russian crowdfunding platform Planeta.ru to receive professional advice on its production.
The award-winning...
The €400,000 comedy by Silvestrov’s new company Cooperation Propub is based on characters who are typical to the modern world: an artist, an oligarch, the Russian president and an alcoholic.
The ironic and tragic view of modern Russia also received an award sponsored by the Russian company Cosmosfilm.
In addition, the Finnish post-production house Post Control offered production services as a prize to Elizaveta Stishova’s Suleiman Mountain by Trikita Entertainment, which is being developed as part of the B’Est training programme.
The Mgap entertainment legal practice donated a prize of legal advice to the documentary project Baubxy about the Bauhaus and Vkhutemas movements by Sergei Shanovich.
Valeriy Polienko’s 1990s-set drama Kosa was selected by the Russian crowdfunding platform Planeta.ru to receive professional advice on its production.
The award-winning...
- 6/24/2015
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
Thierry Frémaux to provide live commentary on restored films by Louis Lumière.
Cannes Film Festival general delegate Thierry Frémaux is to present a screening of Lumière! - and will provide live commentary himself - at the 6th Odessa International Film Festival (July 10-18).
The selection of 98 restored films, directed by movie pioneer Louis Lumière and his cameramen, will be screened internationally for the first time following its Cannes premiere.
It forms part of the line-up of the festival, which also announced the 12 films in the international competition and six features (and 18 shorts) in the national competition.
Two Ukrainian films will participate in both competitions.
Oiff president Viktoriya Tigipko said there had been a trend this year for submissions by female directors.
“During this year’s selection we have noticed an interesting trend: 30% of the entries submitted to the International Competition were from female directors,” said Tigipko.
“As a result, four out of the 12 films selected are directed...
Cannes Film Festival general delegate Thierry Frémaux is to present a screening of Lumière! - and will provide live commentary himself - at the 6th Odessa International Film Festival (July 10-18).
The selection of 98 restored films, directed by movie pioneer Louis Lumière and his cameramen, will be screened internationally for the first time following its Cannes premiere.
It forms part of the line-up of the festival, which also announced the 12 films in the international competition and six features (and 18 shorts) in the national competition.
Two Ukrainian films will participate in both competitions.
Oiff president Viktoriya Tigipko said there had been a trend this year for submissions by female directors.
“During this year’s selection we have noticed an interesting trend: 30% of the entries submitted to the International Competition were from female directors,” said Tigipko.
“As a result, four out of the 12 films selected are directed...
- 6/18/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Anti-Nazi satire from Stations of the Cross director Dietrich Bruggemann and a new documentary from Mark Cousins among titles.Scroll down for competition line-ups
The 50th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (July 3-11) has unveiled the competition titles in its Official Selection, East of the West, Forum of Independents and Documentary sections.
The main competition will comprise seven world premieres and six international premieres, including the new film from Stations of the Cross director Dietrich Brüggemann, Heil, a satirical comedy centred on neo-Nazis.
Polish documentary director Marcin Koszałkaʼs will present his feature debut, The Red Spider, a psychological thriller inspired by true events from the 1950s that delves into the mechanisms that give rise to a mass murderer.
Danish documentary maker Daniel Dencik will present his first feature, Gold Coast, about a young anti-colonial idealist who sets out for Danish Guinea to set up a coffee plantation - but not everything goes to plan. The music is...
The 50th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (July 3-11) has unveiled the competition titles in its Official Selection, East of the West, Forum of Independents and Documentary sections.
The main competition will comprise seven world premieres and six international premieres, including the new film from Stations of the Cross director Dietrich Brüggemann, Heil, a satirical comedy centred on neo-Nazis.
Polish documentary director Marcin Koszałkaʼs will present his feature debut, The Red Spider, a psychological thriller inspired by true events from the 1950s that delves into the mechanisms that give rise to a mass murderer.
Danish documentary maker Daniel Dencik will present his first feature, Gold Coast, about a young anti-colonial idealist who sets out for Danish Guinea to set up a coffee plantation - but not everything goes to plan. The music is...
- 6/2/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
There are some performers who become synonymous with a particular genre, but at some point choose to head off in a different direction and try something new. One-time romcom queen Julia Roberts dipped a toe into drama with Erin Brockovich, Sandra Bullock did the same with The Blind Side and Gravity, and Steve Carell is now following suit with Foxcatcher. These endeavours are almost always compelling, exciting and successful – and with each casting announcement, we hope that we might hear about the next brave experimentation of a household name. This is not one of those times, however, as we discover that Sarah Jessica Parker will play an “uptight” single woman in the upcoming romantic comedy, All Roads Lead To Rome.
Maggie (Parker) is a conservative, closely-wound type, who embarks on an exciting journey across Italy with her former lover, Luca, in pursuit of her wayward and rebellious teenage daughter. Ambi Pictures...
Maggie (Parker) is a conservative, closely-wound type, who embarks on an exciting journey across Italy with her former lover, Luca, in pursuit of her wayward and rebellious teenage daughter. Ambi Pictures...
- 10/4/2014
- by Sarah Myles
- We Got This Covered
A review of "The Devil, Probably" by Mireille Latil-Le-Dantec. Originally published in Issue 77, July-August 1977, of Cinématographe. Translation by Ted Fendt. Thanks to Marie-Pierre Duhamel.
"I challenge you all now, all you atheists. With what will you save the world, and where have you found a normal line of progress for it, you men of science, of co-operation, of labour-wage, and all the rest of it?
With credit? What's credit? Where will credit take you? [...] Without recognizing any moral basis except the satisfaction of individual egoism and material necessity! [...] It's a law, that's true; but it's no more normal than the law of destruction, or even self-destruction. [...] Yes, sir, the law of self-destruction and the law of self-preservation are equally strong in humanity! The devil has equal dominion over humanity till the limit of time which we know not. You laugh? You don't believe in the devil? Disbelief in the devil is a French idea,...
"I challenge you all now, all you atheists. With what will you save the world, and where have you found a normal line of progress for it, you men of science, of co-operation, of labour-wage, and all the rest of it?
With credit? What's credit? Where will credit take you? [...] Without recognizing any moral basis except the satisfaction of individual egoism and material necessity! [...] It's a law, that's true; but it's no more normal than the law of destruction, or even self-destruction. [...] Yes, sir, the law of self-destruction and the law of self-preservation are equally strong in humanity! The devil has equal dominion over humanity till the limit of time which we know not. You laugh? You don't believe in the devil? Disbelief in the devil is a French idea,...
- 3/31/2014
- by Ted Fendt
- MUBI
I started writing this piece a little over two years ago when, wondering if this was a debate whose terms I wanted to propagate, I thought twice. After the recent Godard retro in New York, however, thinking thrice, I've decided not to think about it again. With very special thanks to Sam Engel, Matthew Flanagan, Danny Kasman, Andy Rector, Gina Telaroli, who provided so much of the source code for this piece. There's no greater fount of wisdom in the world for a guy to plagiarize.
And so:
***
“Pauvres choses! Elles n’ont que le nom qu’on leur impose.”
“Poor things! They have nothing but the name imposed upon them.” — Film Socialisme
“You can stick your little pins in that voodoo doll.
Very sorry baby, doesn’t look like me at all.” — Leonard Cohen, “Tower of Song”
"Three Jewish characters, it's a lot for a single film. The fourth...
And so:
***
“Pauvres choses! Elles n’ont que le nom qu’on leur impose.”
“Poor things! They have nothing but the name imposed upon them.” — Film Socialisme
“You can stick your little pins in that voodoo doll.
Very sorry baby, doesn’t look like me at all.” — Leonard Cohen, “Tower of Song”
"Three Jewish characters, it's a lot for a single film. The fourth...
- 12/5/2013
- by David Phelps
- MUBI
In 2011, the same year that The Tree of Life finally arrived in movie theaters, a collection of articles was published under the title Terrence Malick: Film and Philosophy. In terms of the latter half of that titular equation, a quick perusal of the book's index reveals the usual suspects: Kant, Hegel, and, of course, Heidegger. Thoreau gets a mention, as do Nietzsche and Marx. Yet absent from this volume on Malick as cinematic philosopher are Augustine of Hippo, Thomas Aquinas, and Bernard of Clairvaux, or any prominent theologian. The Bible itself appears very sparingly: a couple references to Genesis and Exodus, and a note observing the relevance of Psalm 90 to Badlands and Days of Heaven. For all the ubiquitous discussion of the philosophical character of Malick's films, the increasingly apparent theological shades of Malick's philosophy have been investigated relatively infrequently in film scholarship and almost never, except in passing,...
- 7/22/2013
- by Josh Timmermann
- MUBI
Working Title is missing a trick by turning Merlin into a modern piece. Will we see Hugh Grant as a bumbling yet charming children's magician?
I must confess that the BBC's Merlin TV series is something of a guilty pleasure, despite its recycled storylines and ropy panto acting. Every episode these days seems to involve the main characters becoming magically controlled by some agent of evil, and if Morgana flashes her eyes with knowing menace one more time, I just don't know how I'll cope.
Still, the essential premise of the series, which filters the Arthurian mythology through a sort of buddy comedy prism, has a degree of sense. That's more than can be said for Working Title's plan to return the greatest wizard ever known to the big screen, as revealed today by the Hollywood Reporter.
Among only a smattering of details is the information that the story will...
I must confess that the BBC's Merlin TV series is something of a guilty pleasure, despite its recycled storylines and ropy panto acting. Every episode these days seems to involve the main characters becoming magically controlled by some agent of evil, and if Morgana flashes her eyes with knowing menace one more time, I just don't know how I'll cope.
Still, the essential premise of the series, which filters the Arthurian mythology through a sort of buddy comedy prism, has a degree of sense. That's more than can be said for Working Title's plan to return the greatest wizard ever known to the big screen, as revealed today by the Hollywood Reporter.
Among only a smattering of details is the information that the story will...
- 11/11/2010
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
Working Title has plans to develop a pitch based on the legendary character Merlin, reports Heat Vision . Specifics on the film are unknown at this time, but the pitch comes from Jay Basu, writer of the 2005 film Song of Songs and author of the 2003 novel The Stars Can Wait . Merlin, a key figure in Arthurian legend, has developed into a narrative archetype, referenced in cinema since its earliest days. Though there is currently a BBC television series with the title Merlin , also based on the character, it is unlikely that this film has any connection to that property.
- 11/11/2010
- Comingsoon.net
Mankind faces extermination and only a renegade archangel can save us. Settle down with a six-pack for the perfect night in
"The last time God lost faith in man he sent a flood. This time he's sent..." Paul Bettany with a machine gun! Yes folks, it's angels-with-Uzis time in Legion as the four horsemen of the apocalypse are upstaged by shrieking hordes of divinely possessed madmen. Having once again exhausted the patience of the Almighty, mankind faces extermination by God's army, with only a gun-toting renegade archangel Michael and the customers of a remote desert diner standing between us and the gates of Hell. And if that doesn't sound like the perfect recipe for an evening in with a curry and a six-pack, then there's no pleasing you!
Infinitely more fun than the generically similar End of Days (Arnie v the Devil) and better looking than Constantine (give me Bettany...
"The last time God lost faith in man he sent a flood. This time he's sent..." Paul Bettany with a machine gun! Yes folks, it's angels-with-Uzis time in Legion as the four horsemen of the apocalypse are upstaged by shrieking hordes of divinely possessed madmen. Having once again exhausted the patience of the Almighty, mankind faces extermination by God's army, with only a gun-toting renegade archangel Michael and the customers of a remote desert diner standing between us and the gates of Hell. And if that doesn't sound like the perfect recipe for an evening in with a curry and a six-pack, then there's no pleasing you!
Infinitely more fun than the generically similar End of Days (Arnie v the Devil) and better looking than Constantine (give me Bettany...
- 8/7/2010
- by Mark Kermode
- The Guardian - Film News
David Baddiel's story of a Muslim man who discovers he is Jewish unfolds in a series of inventive, often very funny encounters, says Philip French
Ethnic identity and the troubling competition between religious groups have been perennial subjects for both tragedy and comedy, and for the melodramatic and sentimental spaces in between. Now with The Infidel, the author and Jewish stand-up David Baddiel, one of the sharpest and funniest men in Britain, has thrown himself into the fray at a time when the stakes are perhaps higher than ever before. Will he succeed where others have failed and how would his success be measured?
One of the most popular plays of the 1920s, Abie's Irish Rose, about the love affair between young Jewish and Irish New Yorkers, is now remembered largely for a couplet in Rogers and Hart's "Manhattan" ("Our future babies we'll take to Abie's Irish Rose/ I...
Ethnic identity and the troubling competition between religious groups have been perennial subjects for both tragedy and comedy, and for the melodramatic and sentimental spaces in between. Now with The Infidel, the author and Jewish stand-up David Baddiel, one of the sharpest and funniest men in Britain, has thrown himself into the fray at a time when the stakes are perhaps higher than ever before. Will he succeed where others have failed and how would his success be measured?
One of the most popular plays of the 1920s, Abie's Irish Rose, about the love affair between young Jewish and Irish New Yorkers, is now remembered largely for a couplet in Rogers and Hart's "Manhattan" ("Our future babies we'll take to Abie's Irish Rose/ I...
- 4/10/2010
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
A secret birth certificate kicks off an identity-crisis comedy, starring Omid Djalili and written by David Baddiel. By Peter Bradshaw
Four years ago, director Josh Appignanesi released his debut feature, Song of Songs, an austere, fiercely disquieting study of transgression, identity and faith in the Orthodox Jewish community of north London. Startlingly, for this second project, he has chosen something that is similar in many ways – but shifts gear for something more confrontational and taboo-busting.
This is a broad comedy that gleefully and repeatedly stamps on the tender toes of liberal correctness, comparable perhaps to East Is East or something by the Farrelly Brothers. It stars Omid Djalili, Archie Panjabi and Richard Schiff (the presidential aide Toby, from TV's The West Wing), and the original screenplay is by David Baddiel, whom I should, in the interests of full disclosure, emphasise that I know and like, and whose sense of humour I probably share.
Four years ago, director Josh Appignanesi released his debut feature, Song of Songs, an austere, fiercely disquieting study of transgression, identity and faith in the Orthodox Jewish community of north London. Startlingly, for this second project, he has chosen something that is similar in many ways – but shifts gear for something more confrontational and taboo-busting.
This is a broad comedy that gleefully and repeatedly stamps on the tender toes of liberal correctness, comparable perhaps to East Is East or something by the Farrelly Brothers. It stars Omid Djalili, Archie Panjabi and Richard Schiff (the presidential aide Toby, from TV's The West Wing), and the original screenplay is by David Baddiel, whom I should, in the interests of full disclosure, emphasise that I know and like, and whose sense of humour I probably share.
- 4/8/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
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