Florian Gallenberger, the director behind “John Rabe,” a historical drama about the Nanking Massacre in China, and “Colonia,” a political thriller set in Chile against the backdrop of the 1973 military coup, has made his first comedy.
“It’s Just a Phase, Honey,” which had its world premiere at the Zurich Film Festival, offers a hilarious look at a married couple, played by Christoph Maria Herbst and Christiane Paul, who, in the midst of a mid-life crisis, attempt a trial separation.
The film is an adaptation of Maxim Leo and Jochen-Martin Gutsch’s bestseller, which comprises 25 short, unconnected anecdotes. Gallenberger and co-writer Malte Welding had to create a major plotline that included the various scenes of the book.
“We had to and did take some liberties with the novel in order to make it into one story instead of 25 little funny moments,” Gallenberger explains.
Poking fun at the near-50 crowd, the...
“It’s Just a Phase, Honey,” which had its world premiere at the Zurich Film Festival, offers a hilarious look at a married couple, played by Christoph Maria Herbst and Christiane Paul, who, in the midst of a mid-life crisis, attempt a trial separation.
The film is an adaptation of Maxim Leo and Jochen-Martin Gutsch’s bestseller, which comprises 25 short, unconnected anecdotes. Gallenberger and co-writer Malte Welding had to create a major plotline that included the various scenes of the book.
“We had to and did take some liberties with the novel in order to make it into one story instead of 25 little funny moments,” Gallenberger explains.
Poking fun at the near-50 crowd, the...
- 9/30/2021
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
Animated feature Animal Crackers has added some heavyweights to its voice cast. Sir Ian McKellen, Danny DeVito, and Sylvester Stallone will lend their voices to the Blue Dream Studios film about a family whose life is turned upside down when they inherit a rundown circus and a mysterious box of Animal Crackers that turn the person who eats them into the animal they’ve just snacked on. Patrick Warburton, Gilbert Gottfried, Raven-Symoné, Harvey Fierstein, James Arnold Taylor, Tara Strong, and newcomer Lydia Taylor round out the line-up for co-directors Scott Christian Sava and Tony Bancroft. Sava and Dean Lorey are co-writers; Sava is also producing with George Lee and Marcus Englefield from Storyoscopic Films, Jamie Thomason, and Leiming Guan. Odins Eye Entertainment is repping international sales.
Chile-set actioner Redeemer has been picked up for North America by Mpi Media Group, which has set a summer theatrical bow through genre arm Dark Sky Films.
Chile-set actioner Redeemer has been picked up for North America by Mpi Media Group, which has set a summer theatrical bow through genre arm Dark Sky Films.
- 11/6/2014
- by Jen Yamato
- Deadline
Majestic Filmproduktion has provided us with our first look at Colonia, a period drama that takes place during the harrowing Chilean military coup of 1973.
In it, we see Emma Watson’s Lena, a young Germany woman who seeks to rescue her husband Daniel after he is abducted by the covert police of General Pinochet during the height of political upheaval, going up against Mikael Nyqvist’s religious nut, Paul Schäfer — the same Mikael who played Mikael Blomkvist in the Swedish rendition of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
As it happens, Daniel (played here by Daniel Brühl of Rush fame) has been transported to Colonia Dignidad, an infamous anti-communist locale where a dangerous and nefarious cult thrives. In order to save her wayward husband, Watson’s character is forced to assimilate herself into said cult and bear the brunt of the aforementioned Schäfer — as this first still so chillingly depicts.
In it, we see Emma Watson’s Lena, a young Germany woman who seeks to rescue her husband Daniel after he is abducted by the covert police of General Pinochet during the height of political upheaval, going up against Mikael Nyqvist’s religious nut, Paul Schäfer — the same Mikael who played Mikael Blomkvist in the Swedish rendition of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
As it happens, Daniel (played here by Daniel Brühl of Rush fame) has been transported to Colonia Dignidad, an infamous anti-communist locale where a dangerous and nefarious cult thrives. In order to save her wayward husband, Watson’s character is forced to assimilate herself into said cult and bear the brunt of the aforementioned Schäfer — as this first still so chillingly depicts.
- 10/27/2014
- by Michael Briers
- We Got This Covered
Even though, as of late, Emma Watson has been making waves in her fight for gender equality, she is still an actor, and a pretty good one at that. And actors are always in search of their next gig, which she has just signed up for. She and Daniel Bruhl, the should have been Oscar nominated star of Rush (I'm not still bitter about that...), have joined the cast of Colonia for Oscar winner Florian Gallenberger. I am sure many of you out there are surprised to learn that Mr. Gallenberger is an Oscar winner, as was I. He won Best Live-Action Short Film in 2001 for Quiero ser (I want to be...). Admittedly, I am a complete novice when it comes to his films, so I will need to go back and check that short out, as well as his features Schatten der Zeit (Shadows of Time) and John Rabe...
- 9/29/2014
- by Mike Shutt
- Rope of Silicon
Emma Watson and Daniel Brühl will star opposite each other in director Florian Gallenberger's Chilean thriller, Colonia, EW has confirmed. According to The Wrap, Brühl and Watson will play Daniel and Lena, a couple living in the heyday of the military coup in Chile in 1973. The couple become separated when Daniel is abducted by Pinochet's secret police, and Lena is determined to track Daniel down by infiltrating a cult in the sealed off area of Chile known as Colonia Dignidad, where Daniel is being held. Brühl previously worked with Gallenberger on City of War: The Story of John Rabe and Honolulu.
- 9/29/2014
- by Teresa Jue
- EW - Inside Movies
According to Deadline, Emma Watson has signed on to star alongside Rush’s Daniel Bruhl in Colonia, a period war drama set against the Chilean military coup of 1973.
Directed by Florian Gallenberger — the award-winning filmmaker behinds projects such as 2009’s John Rabe — the film will orbit around Watson’s Lena, wife of Bruhl’s Daniel, who sets about rescuing her husband after he is abducted by the secret police of one Augusto Pinochet. To do so, she must join the ranks of a nefarious cult within the sealed-off area of Colonia Dignidad.
The tale, which itself was inspired by true events, was co-written by Gallenberger and Torsten Wenzel and is due to enter production within the coming weeks. In terms of filming locations, the globe-trotting production team will take Colonia to South America, Berlin, Munich and Luxembourg and it’s expected that filming will wrap before the year’s end.
Directed by Florian Gallenberger — the award-winning filmmaker behinds projects such as 2009’s John Rabe — the film will orbit around Watson’s Lena, wife of Bruhl’s Daniel, who sets about rescuing her husband after he is abducted by the secret police of one Augusto Pinochet. To do so, she must join the ranks of a nefarious cult within the sealed-off area of Colonia Dignidad.
The tale, which itself was inspired by true events, was co-written by Gallenberger and Torsten Wenzel and is due to enter production within the coming weeks. In terms of filming locations, the globe-trotting production team will take Colonia to South America, Berlin, Munich and Luxembourg and it’s expected that filming will wrap before the year’s end.
- 9/29/2014
- by Michael Briers
- We Got This Covered
"Harry Potter" and "Perks of Being a Wallflower" star Emma Watson made waves last week for her impassioned United Nations speech on the topic of feminism. Watson's “HeForShe" campaign made waves in the social sphere and continues to snowball with support, but it appears the endeavor won't disable the star from going about her day job. Deadline reports that Watson is on board a Chilean docudrama, fresh territory for the worldly 24-year-old actress. Watson will costar alongside "Inglorious Basterds" actor Daniel Bruhl in "Colonia," from German director Florian Gallenberger. The film revolves around a young couple who sink deeper and deeper into the 1973 Chilean military coup. When Bruhl's character is abducted by Pinochet’s secret police, Watson tracks him to a sealed-off area in Southern Chile called "Colonia Dignidad." According to Deadline's announcement, "The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by a lay preacher, but is in fact...
- 9/29/2014
- by Matt Patches
- Hitfix
Thriller marks Emma Watson’s first lead role since Harry Potter.
Pincipal photography is about to begin on thriller Colonia, from German director Florian Gallenberger (John Rabe).
The film stars Emma Watson in her first lead role since the Harry Potter franchise and Daniel Brühl, the German star of Rush and The Face of an Angel.
The film will shoot in Luxembourg, Munich, Berlin and South America, until the end of the year.
Colonia tells the story of Lena and Daniel, a young couple, who become entangled in the Chilean military coup of 1973.
Daniel is abducted by Pinochet’s secret police and Lena tracks him to a sealed off area in the South of the country, called Colonia Dignidad.
The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by lay preacher Paul Schäfer but, in fact, is a place nobody ever escaped from. Lena decides to join the cult in order to find Daniel.
Gallenberger is directing...
Pincipal photography is about to begin on thriller Colonia, from German director Florian Gallenberger (John Rabe).
The film stars Emma Watson in her first lead role since the Harry Potter franchise and Daniel Brühl, the German star of Rush and The Face of an Angel.
The film will shoot in Luxembourg, Munich, Berlin and South America, until the end of the year.
Colonia tells the story of Lena and Daniel, a young couple, who become entangled in the Chilean military coup of 1973.
Daniel is abducted by Pinochet’s secret police and Lena tracks him to a sealed off area in the South of the country, called Colonia Dignidad.
The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by lay preacher Paul Schäfer but, in fact, is a place nobody ever escaped from. Lena decides to join the cult in order to find Daniel.
Gallenberger is directing...
- 9/29/2014
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Thriller marks Emma Watson’s first lead role since Harry Potter.
Pincipal photography is about to begin on thriller Colonia, from German director Florian Gallenberger (John Rabe).
The film stars Emma Watson in her first lead role since the Harry Potter franchise and Daniel Brühl, the German star of Rush and The Face of an Angel.
The film will shoot in Luxembourg, Munich, Berlin and South America, until the end of the year.
Colonia tells the story of Lena and Daniel, a young couple, who become entangled in the Chilean military coup of 1973.
Daniel is abducted by Pinochet’s secret police and Lena tracks him to a sealed off area in the South of the country, called Colonia Dignidad.
The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by lay preacher Paul Schäfer but, in fact, is a place nobody ever escaped from. Lena decides to join the cult in order to find Daniel.
Gallenberger is directing...
Pincipal photography is about to begin on thriller Colonia, from German director Florian Gallenberger (John Rabe).
The film stars Emma Watson in her first lead role since the Harry Potter franchise and Daniel Brühl, the German star of Rush and The Face of an Angel.
The film will shoot in Luxembourg, Munich, Berlin and South America, until the end of the year.
Colonia tells the story of Lena and Daniel, a young couple, who become entangled in the Chilean military coup of 1973.
Daniel is abducted by Pinochet’s secret police and Lena tracks him to a sealed off area in the South of the country, called Colonia Dignidad.
The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by lay preacher Paul Schäfer but, in fact, is a place nobody ever escaped from. Lena decides to join the cult in order to find Daniel.
Gallenberger is directing...
- 9/29/2014
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
German helmer Florian Gallenberger won an Oscar for his 2000 short film Quiero Ser (I Want To Be…) and followed that up with such features as Honolulu and City Of War: The Story Of John Rabe. Both those films starred Daniel Bruhl with whom the director is reteaming on Colonia. Principal photography is about to begin on the thriller that has Emma Watson opposite Bruhl in a tale inspired by true events. They play a young couple who become entangled in the Chilean military coup of 1973. Daniel (Bruhl) is abducted by Pinochet’s secret police and Lena (Watson) tracks him to a sealed-off area in the south of the country called Colonia Dignidad. The Colonia presents itself as a charitable mission run by a lay preacher, but is in fact a place from which no one has ever escaped. In order to find her beloved, Lena decides to join the cult.
- 9/29/2014
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline
Exclusive: Tour de Force director to adapt Tc Boyle’s cult novel Water Music.
Tour de Force’s Christian Zübert is looking to make his first English-language directorial debut with an adaptation of Tc Boyle’s cult novel Water Music.
Boyle’s semi-fictional historical adventure novel is set in the late 18th and early 19th century, following the parallel adventures and intertwining fates of its protagonists, the fictional petty criminal Ned Rise and the famous Scottish-born explorer Mungo Park who led expeditions into Western Africa.
Speaking exclusively to Screen ahead of Tour de Force’s North American premiere at Tiff tonight [Sept 8], Zübert said that Water Music is “a combination of Indiana Jones in Africa and an 18th century Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. It’s really off-the-wall and very emotional. I think it would now be the time where one could make this film thanks to the possibilities of digital technology.”
Zübert is currently...
Tour de Force’s Christian Zübert is looking to make his first English-language directorial debut with an adaptation of Tc Boyle’s cult novel Water Music.
Boyle’s semi-fictional historical adventure novel is set in the late 18th and early 19th century, following the parallel adventures and intertwining fates of its protagonists, the fictional petty criminal Ned Rise and the famous Scottish-born explorer Mungo Park who led expeditions into Western Africa.
Speaking exclusively to Screen ahead of Tour de Force’s North American premiere at Tiff tonight [Sept 8], Zübert said that Water Music is “a combination of Indiana Jones in Africa and an 18th century Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. It’s really off-the-wall and very emotional. I think it would now be the time where one could make this film thanks to the possibilities of digital technology.”
Zübert is currently...
- 9/8/2014
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
A couple of years ago, there appeared within a week of each other two serious, sober films about one of the worst atrocities of an atrocious century, the Japanese siege and destruction of Nanking in the winter of 1937-38 that resulted in the massacre of some 300,000 civilians. Lu Chuan's black-and-white City of Life and Death tells the story from the point of view of the Chinese victims and the Japanese invaders. Florian Gallenberger's restrained City of War: The Story of John Rabe observes the events through the eyes of a group of European residents, among them a Schindler figure, boss of the Siemens factory (and, ironically, a Nazi party member), who created a safety zone that saved the lives of 200,000 Chinese citizens.
Zhang Yimou, one of China's most talented film-makers (his landmark movies include Red Sorghum, Raise the Red Lantern and Ju Dou), has unwisely imposed a largely fictionalised story on this appalling incident.
Zhang Yimou, one of China's most talented film-makers (his landmark movies include Red Sorghum, Raise the Red Lantern and Ju Dou), has unwisely imposed a largely fictionalised story on this appalling incident.
- 8/4/2012
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
In the late 1980's Milli Vanilli blasted to the top of the charts on exotic good looks and the wonder of spandex over lean muscle. But they didn't stay there long, banned from public consumption even quicker than they were welcomed, after they were exposed as lip sync frauds who had never recorded the songs in the first place. Universal Pictures was working to piece together a film about the infamous fakes a few years ago, but it didn't get too far. Now Deadline reports that German director Florian Gallenberger will rewrite and helm the picture with The Kennedy/Marshall Company ("Munich," "The Bourne Ultimatum")
You may recall that Milli Vanilli was a somewhat well disguised product of German pop from start to finish, so it's fitting a German would take on the story. Gallenberger won an Academy Award for his short film "Quiero Ser," and his feature "John Rabe,...
You may recall that Milli Vanilli was a somewhat well disguised product of German pop from start to finish, so it's fitting a German would take on the story. Gallenberger won an Academy Award for his short film "Quiero Ser," and his feature "John Rabe,...
- 2/16/2011
- by Brandon Kim
- ifc.com
Here's the answer to an age old question. Ok, well, a question and rumor from 2009. Is Brett Ratner directing the long-gestating biopic of 'late-80s fraudulent pop stars Milli Vanilli? The answer is: no. In the works since 2007, the Kennedy/Marshall Company (the producers behind the "Bourne" franchise, plus Steven Spielberg's two upcoming films, "War Horse," and "The Adventures Of Tintin") have now officially found their man in German filmmaker Florian Gallenberger, whose Mexican-shot "Quiero Ser" ("I Want To Be") won the 2001 Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film. He also directed the 2009 drama, "John Rabe," starring Steve…...
- 2/15/2011
- The Playlist
Yes, you know it’s true… ooh, ooh, ooh… that Florian Gallenberger has signed on to write and direct a feature film based on the 80s pop duo – Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan or, if you prefer Milli Vanilli!
Gallenberger is German director who won an Oscar for his live-action short Quero Ser and directed John Rabe, so we guess that this could be an interesting project.
The story will revolve around Pilatus and Morvan, who were hired by German record producer Frank Farian as the faces of his music group. Farian had the signers and the songs, but wanted a certain look, which he found when he spotted model/dancer friends Pilatus and Morvan in a Munich club.
Milli Vanilli debut album achieved international success and earned them a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1990. They soon became one of the most popular pop acts in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Gallenberger is German director who won an Oscar for his live-action short Quero Ser and directed John Rabe, so we guess that this could be an interesting project.
The story will revolve around Pilatus and Morvan, who were hired by German record producer Frank Farian as the faces of his music group. Farian had the signers and the songs, but wanted a certain look, which he found when he spotted model/dancer friends Pilatus and Morvan in a Munich club.
Milli Vanilli debut album achieved international success and earned them a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1990. They soon became one of the most popular pop acts in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
- 2/14/2011
- by Fiona
- Filmofilia
We know the gist of the Milli Vanilli story, basically how the two were Grammy-winning singers who were only lip-synching this whole time. The Kennedy/Marshall Company wants to make their story "Milli Vanilli" into a film with the help of Florian Gallenberger. They're tapping onto the filmmaker to rewrite the script and direct the project. Originally the project was holding shop at Universal Pictures with Jeff Nathanson penning an early draft of the "Milli Vanilli" script. Kennedy/Marshall scooped up the rights and the script, and now they're working on it by themselves with Nathanson still on as producer.This must be exciting times for Gallenberger, since this is his first Hollywood feature film. He's previously directed "John Rabe," starring Steve Buscemi, and won some awards for his work. Now he gets to tackle the biggest controversial '80s duo out there. The two were found in Munich who...
- 2/12/2011
- LRMonline.com
Deadline has learned that Florian Gallenberger, the German-born filmmaker who won an Oscar for his live-action short "Quero Ser" and directed "John Rabe," has signed on to write and direct a feature film based on the 80s pop duo Milli Vanilli. The story will revolve around Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, who were hired by German record producer Frank Farian as the faces of his music group. Farian had the signers and the songs, but wanted a certain look, which he found when he spotted model/dancer friends Pilatus and Morvan in a Munich club. They soared to the top of the charts with songs like "Blame It On The Rain" and "Girl You Know It's True" until evidence began to mount that they were lip-synching frauds. Farian ended up exposing the charade, but by then, the group has sold millions of records and won a Grammy Award. The trophy was taken away,...
- 2/11/2011
- WorstPreviews.com
A film based on the story of the two lip-syncing male models who sold millions of records and won a Grammy before their scam was revealed, leading to the accidental death/suicide of one of them, has found a writer/director, and his names is Florian Gallenberger!
Who? Florian Gallenberger – the German-born filmmaker, whose last feature, John Rabe, which starred Steve Buscemi, and nearly swept the 2009 Deutscher Filmpreis (the German Film Awards version of the Oscars), including winning the Best Picture crown.
It’s worth noting that Milli Vanilli was discovered in Germany, where the duo, Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus, met.
But talk about a human tragicomedy of Shakespearean proportions!
A film based on the group has loooong been in the works (I recall talking about it on my previous blog, over 2 years ago). But, for a number of reasons, it’s been stuck in development limbo, switching production...
Who? Florian Gallenberger – the German-born filmmaker, whose last feature, John Rabe, which starred Steve Buscemi, and nearly swept the 2009 Deutscher Filmpreis (the German Film Awards version of the Oscars), including winning the Best Picture crown.
It’s worth noting that Milli Vanilli was discovered in Germany, where the duo, Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus, met.
But talk about a human tragicomedy of Shakespearean proportions!
A film based on the group has loooong been in the works (I recall talking about it on my previous blog, over 2 years ago). But, for a number of reasons, it’s been stuck in development limbo, switching production...
- 2/11/2011
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
The story of lip-synching early 90s duo Milli Vanilli is tailor-made for some kind of rise and fall biopic, and that exact project has been in the works at least since 2007, though you know at least a few ambitious producers have been eyeing the rights from the moment their Grammy was taken away in 1990. Now after years in development, a writer-director has finally boarded the project-- according to Deadline, German Oscar-winner Florian Gallenberger will take the reins and start writing a script immediately. Gallenberger won the Oscar for Best Live-Action short in 2000, and also directed the German feature film John Rabe, which starred Steve Buscemi and won four German FIlm Awards in 2009 (no, I have no idea why I've never heard of this movie before). The Milli Vanilli story also has significant German connections-- the man who put them together in the first place was German-born Frank Farian; he's also...
- 2/11/2011
- cinemablend.com
Exclusive: Florian Gallenberger has been set by The Kennedy/Marshall Company to rewrite and direct Milli Vanilli, a feature film that tells the story of the '80s pop duo that soared to the top of the charts then fell just as precipitously when they were exposed as lip-synching frauds. Gallenberger is the German-born filmmaker who won the Academy Award for his live action short film Quiero Ser. His feature John Rabe, which was shot in China and starred Steve Buscemi, won four 2009 German Film Awards including Best Picture. This is the first Hollywood film for Gallenberger, who just signed with UTA and continues to be managed by Anonymous Content. It turns out that Milli Vanilli is a decidedly German story. The duo, Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, were hired by German record producer Frank Farian to front a group he'd put together locally. Farian had the singers and the songs,...
- 2/11/2011
- by MIKE FLEMING
- Deadline
Christian Bale has never been one to make conventional career choices. He'll drop 75 pounds to play an insomniac in an indie like "The Machinist," then turn around and pack on 90 pounds to play a jacked superhero in a blockbuster like "Batman Begins." So it really shouldn't come as a surprise that in between collecting awards (and likely an Oscar nod) for his turn as an emaciated, drugged-out ex-boxer in "The Fighter" and bulking up to don the Batsuit for a third time in "The Dark Knight Rises," Bale is once again defying expectations... this time signing on to star in a Chinese blockbuster.
Yes, you read that correctly. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bale will headline "Nanjing Heroes," a period drama about the Massacre of Nanjing, also known as the"Rape of Nanking, from award-winning Chinese filmmaker Zhang Youmi ("Hero," "Raise the Red Lantern"). And here's the kicker. The film has a $90 million budget,...
Yes, you read that correctly. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bale will headline "Nanjing Heroes," a period drama about the Massacre of Nanjing, also known as the"Rape of Nanking, from award-winning Chinese filmmaker Zhang Youmi ("Hero," "Raise the Red Lantern"). And here's the kicker. The film has a $90 million budget,...
- 12/22/2010
- by Tom DiChiara
- MTV Movies Blog
"Being Michael Madsen" (2010)
Directed by Michael Mongillo
Released by Midnight Releasing
While not as distinguished or meta as "Being John Malkovich," expect this mockumentary about the "Reservoir Dogs" star to be equally surreal as Madsen recruits sister Virginia and "Kill Bill" co-stars Daryl Hannah and the late David Carradine to co-star in this film that sees him accused of murder. Rather than sit idly by, Madsen turns the table on the paparazzi photographer fueling the allegations by hiring a trio of filmmakers to follow his every move.
"Beneath Clouds" (2002)
Directed by Ivan Sen
Released by Cinema Epoch
This Australian drama stars Dannielle Hall and the late Damian Pitt as Lena and Vaughn, a pair of strangers thrown together by circumstance to travel across the country to Sydney where Lena hopes to learn more about her long-absent father and Vaughn hope to leave behind his criminal past and see his ailing mother.
Directed by Michael Mongillo
Released by Midnight Releasing
While not as distinguished or meta as "Being John Malkovich," expect this mockumentary about the "Reservoir Dogs" star to be equally surreal as Madsen recruits sister Virginia and "Kill Bill" co-stars Daryl Hannah and the late David Carradine to co-star in this film that sees him accused of murder. Rather than sit idly by, Madsen turns the table on the paparazzi photographer fueling the allegations by hiring a trio of filmmakers to follow his every move.
"Beneath Clouds" (2002)
Directed by Ivan Sen
Released by Cinema Epoch
This Australian drama stars Dannielle Hall and the late Damian Pitt as Lena and Vaughn, a pair of strangers thrown together by circumstance to travel across the country to Sydney where Lena hopes to learn more about her long-absent father and Vaughn hope to leave behind his criminal past and see his ailing mother.
- 9/7/2010
- by Stephen Saito
- ifc.com
Bob Ellis looks back at this year’s Sydney Film Festival.
We are forbidden urination after a three-hour film and herded bursting out into the rain and pushed in front of speeding traffic by big Tongan guardians of the Red Carpet while inside, in the ever-gorgeous art-deco foyer, barmen and pie vendors gazed on its lovely emptiness planning their bankruptcies and other careers and cursing, like all of us, the Clare Stewart Effect on world cinema.
Audiences entering successive sessions without hellish incident these last 113 years have not educated this woman; clamour, ticketless offices, caffeine deprivation, pissed trousers and lack of a chance to chat between sessions (or even sit on the marble steps) have characterised her Cromwellian rule for years now and several deaths, I calculate, from the pelting rain and it is wrong for her to preen her ghastly dress sense in golden spotlight just because certain films...
We are forbidden urination after a three-hour film and herded bursting out into the rain and pushed in front of speeding traffic by big Tongan guardians of the Red Carpet while inside, in the ever-gorgeous art-deco foyer, barmen and pie vendors gazed on its lovely emptiness planning their bankruptcies and other careers and cursing, like all of us, the Clare Stewart Effect on world cinema.
Audiences entering successive sessions without hellish incident these last 113 years have not educated this woman; clamour, ticketless offices, caffeine deprivation, pissed trousers and lack of a chance to chat between sessions (or even sit on the marble steps) have characterised her Cromwellian rule for years now and several deaths, I calculate, from the pelting rain and it is wrong for her to preen her ghastly dress sense in golden spotlight just because certain films...
- 6/23/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Writer-director Florian Gallenberger’s interest in bringing the story of John Rabe to the big screen presented an intriguing challenge: How does one portray a Nazi as a hero, especially one who rescues Chinese civilians by sheltering them under the giant swastika of a German flag? Despite his allegiance to Hitler, Rabe performed a Schindler-esque rescue of innocent victims due in large part, ironically, to his Nazi affiliation and the party’s alliance with the Japanese.
At the outset, Rabe (played by Ulrich Tukur) is not a sympathetic character. The director of Siemens China in 1937 Nanking, he is preparing to leave his post after nearly 30 years of service. He works closely with the Chinese, but he treats them — and compares them to — children. When the Japanese attack the capital at the outset of the Second Sino-Japanese War, however, he offers refuge to his workers and their families at the Siemens plant.
At the outset, Rabe (played by Ulrich Tukur) is not a sympathetic character. The director of Siemens China in 1937 Nanking, he is preparing to leave his post after nearly 30 years of service. He works closely with the Chinese, but he treats them — and compares them to — children. When the Japanese attack the capital at the outset of the Second Sino-Japanese War, however, he offers refuge to his workers and their families at the Siemens plant.
- 5/23/2010
- Moving Pictures Magazine
As a German born in the 1970s, writer-director Florian Gallenberger understands his own country's role in World War II genocide. So he was careful in what he had to say about the Japanese' massacres and mass rape in Nanking in 1937 in his film, John Rabe, opening in limited release today (5/21/10). "Being German, I'm not one to point fingers or to put blame on the Japanese," Gallenberger, 38, says in a telephone interview. "But from what I read, for the Japanese, the Chinese were definitely a lower race. The way they behaved to the Japanese was very comparable to the way the Germans behaved during the Holocaust. Of course, what the Germans did was on a much bigger scale. But the mindset was similar." In John Rabe, Gallenberger tells the true story of a German businessman, Rabe, who was head of...
- 5/21/2010
- by Marshall Fine
- Huffington Post
One of the few films so far this year that deserves to be called an epic. Great acting and superb sets and cinematography make this a great success Breakthrough feature film director Florian Gallenberger is off to a great start with this 130-minute extravaganza featuring first rate performances and cinematography from an accomplished cast and crew. After his 2001 Oscar winning short .I want to be.. (Quiero ser) he had the street cred to grab some backing and he did exactly that. Ulrich Tukur does a corker of a job playing John Rabe and has collected several German film awards for his work. This movie is based on the true story of Rabe, a corporate executive for German mega-corporation...
- 5/21/2010
- by Ron Wilkinson
- Monsters and Critics
'John Rabe" is the story of -- you guessed it -- John Rabe, a Schindler-like hero of World War II. Rabe was a German businessman who was able to save more than 200,000 Chinese during the Japanese siege of Nanking in 1937, during which countless civilians and POWs were raped and slaughtered by the Nippon army -- an event that even now Japan officially refuses to fully acknowledge. Rabe and other Westerners set up a "safe zone," in which civilians were to be shielded from the Japanese. The agreement didn't always work, but it did save many lives.
- 5/21/2010
- by By V.A. MUSETTO
- NYPost.com
By 1937, German businessman John Rabe had spent three decades establishing a beachhead for the Siemens Company in Nanking, China, where his branch made significant inroads in giving the area an energy infrastructure. Just before he would have handed over the branch to his successor and headed back to Berlin, however, Japanese warplanes laid waste to large swaths of the city, and in the days that followed, the Imperial Army followed up by systematically brutalizing and killing the Chinese civilian population. Deciding to stay in Nanking leaves Rabe in a difficult spot: How much loyalty does he show toward the ...
- 5/20/2010
- avclub.com
It's only in the last 15 years or so that the truth about the Rape of Nanking has broken through the wall of propaganda thrown up by the Japanese to cover their own tracks and their own embarrassment. In the past decade, however, there have been books (including the thorough Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang), documentaries and even fiction films that have touched upon the wholesale carnage that invading Japanese troops visited upon civilians and soldiers alike in Nanking at the end of 1937. John Rabe, a new film by Florian Gallenberger opening in limited released Friday (5/21/10), comes at it from a different angle, watching the invasion and massacre from the viewpoint of a German businessman who is about the leave China. Instead, he finds himself tapped to lead a humanitarian effort by other foreigners, all of whom are...
- 5/19/2010
- by Marshall Fine
- Huffington Post
Moscow – To celebrate the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II, the government of St Petersburg is launching an international film forum, scheduled to be held in Russia's "cultural capital" from May 2 through 5.
The event's organizers said that the mission of the forum, which is to feature screenings, retrospectives, photography exhibitions, round-table discussions and conferences focused on war-themed cinema, is "to use the language of cinema to discuss issues of peace in the world and the improvement of relations between different generations and different cultures."
With renowned Russian film director Alexei German as the forum's president, the event is to feature the premieres of Florian Gallenberger's "John Rabe," Lancelot von Naso's "Ceasefire" and several recent Russian features.
Among the forum's guests are expected to be directors Fyodor Bondarchuk and Alexander Sokurov, actor Antonio Banderas, producer Andrew G. Vajna, actress Melanie Griffith and head of Twentieth Century Fox Cis Hans-Bodo Mueller.
The event's organizers said that the mission of the forum, which is to feature screenings, retrospectives, photography exhibitions, round-table discussions and conferences focused on war-themed cinema, is "to use the language of cinema to discuss issues of peace in the world and the improvement of relations between different generations and different cultures."
With renowned Russian film director Alexei German as the forum's president, the event is to feature the premieres of Florian Gallenberger's "John Rabe," Lancelot von Naso's "Ceasefire" and several recent Russian features.
Among the forum's guests are expected to be directors Fyodor Bondarchuk and Alexander Sokurov, actor Antonio Banderas, producer Andrew G. Vajna, actress Melanie Griffith and head of Twentieth Century Fox Cis Hans-Bodo Mueller.
- 4/28/2010
- by By Vladimir Kozlov
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
German businessman John Rabe established the Nanking Safety Zone during the Japanese occupation of that region, and it’s estimated he saved the lives of 200,000 Chinese from the Japanese military atrocities.
- 4/22/2010
- by Ryan Adams
- AwardsDaily.com
Strand has released a trailer for "John Rabe," the true story of a German businessman who saved the lives of thousands of people in the lead-up to WWII.
If that sounds a lot like "Schindler's List," well yes, the subject matter is similar. That said, Rabe and Schindler were very different. Whereas Schindler was able to use the system to save German Jews, Rabe rescued thousands of Chinese during the Nanking Massacre in China.
Check it out:
"John Rabe" opens in limited release on May 21, 2010.
Source and Photo: Rama's Screen
ShareThis...
If that sounds a lot like "Schindler's List," well yes, the subject matter is similar. That said, Rabe and Schindler were very different. Whereas Schindler was able to use the system to save German Jews, Rabe rescued thousands of Chinese during the Nanking Massacre in China.
Check it out:
"John Rabe" opens in limited release on May 21, 2010.
Source and Photo: Rama's Screen
ShareThis...
- 4/22/2010
- by amcsts@gmail.com
- AMC - Script to Screen
Here is the trailer for Strand Releasing upcoming historical drama John Rabe.
Based on a true story, John Rabe tells the epic story of a German businessman who rescued more than 200,000 civilians during the “The Rape of Nanking” in China. On December 13, 1937, the Nanking Massacre started and lasted for about eight weeks as thousands of prisoners of war and civilians were murdered by the Japanese soldiers, and women and children were raped.
While the Imperial Japanese Army unleashes a wave of brutality on the civilian population, Rabe and his comrades courageously and skillfully negotiate with the Japanese and wrest a guarantee for a safety zone from them. Hundreds of thousands pour into the zone – much more than expected. However, the Japanese continue to harass and attack the population, and it becomes more and more difficult to get supplies. A race against time begins as the Japanese plan to storm the zone.
Based on a true story, John Rabe tells the epic story of a German businessman who rescued more than 200,000 civilians during the “The Rape of Nanking” in China. On December 13, 1937, the Nanking Massacre started and lasted for about eight weeks as thousands of prisoners of war and civilians were murdered by the Japanese soldiers, and women and children were raped.
While the Imperial Japanese Army unleashes a wave of brutality on the civilian population, Rabe and his comrades courageously and skillfully negotiate with the Japanese and wrest a guarantee for a safety zone from them. Hundreds of thousands pour into the zone – much more than expected. However, the Japanese continue to harass and attack the population, and it becomes more and more difficult to get supplies. A race against time begins as the Japanese plan to storm the zone.
- 4/22/2010
- by Allan Ford
- Filmofilia
See new images as well as the trailer for Strand Releasing's "John Rabe" war drama. The Florian Gallenberger-directed and written film stars Ulrich Tukur, Daniel Brühl, Anne Consigny, Dagmar Manzel, Zhang Jingchu, Teruyuki Kagawa, Mathias Herrman and Steve Buscemi. Based on a true story, John Rabe tells the story of a German businessman who rescued more than 200,000 civilians during the so-called “Nanking Massacre” in China. Drawing from John Rabe’s 1937 diaries as source material, Academy Award ® Winner Florian Gallenberger has crafted a portrait of a man revered as a saint in China to this day and yet never rewarded for his courage during his lifetime. An Official Selection at the Berlin Film Festival...
- 4/22/2010
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Today we have a Us trailer for the upcoming historical drama "John Rabe," starring Ulrich Tukur (The White Ribbon), Steve Buscemi, and Daniel Bruhl (Inglourious Basterds). Check it out below. Plot: "John Rabe" tells the true story of a German businessman who rescued more than 200,000 civilians during the so.called "Nanking Massacre" in China. Drawing from John Rabe's 1937 diaries as source material, the film presents a portrait of a man revered as a saint in China to this day and yet never rewarded for his courage during his lifetime. The new movie is directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Florian Gallenberger and has appeared at many film festival. It will get a limited Us theatrical release on May 21st. Trailer: If you cannot see the player, click here.
- 4/22/2010
- WorstPreviews.com
Strand Releasing has released the official Us trailer for Florian Gallenberger's historical drama John Rabe. The film tells the true-story of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese during the 1937 Nanjing massacre. German actor Ulrich Tukur (The White Ribbon) stars as John Rabe, alongside Daniel Brühl (Inglourious Basterds), Steve Buscemi, Anne Consigny, Jingchu Zhang, and Teruyuki Kagawa. The film won the Outstanding Feature Film, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role at the German Film Awards. The trailer is now online and embedded after the jump. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below. Official Plot Synopsis: Based on a true story, John Rabe tells the story of a German businessman who rescued more than 200,000 civilians during the so—called “Nanking Massacre” in China. Drawing from John Rabe’s 1937 diaries as source material, Academy Award ® Winner Florian Gallenberger ...
- 4/22/2010
- by Peter Sciretta
- Slash Film
Strand Releasing has the official Us trailer for John Rabe, a true-story account of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese during the Nanjing massacre in 1937. This docudrama stars German actor Ulrich Tukur (The White Ribbon) as John Rabe and Daniel Brühl (Fredrick Zoller of Inglourious Basterds) as well as Steve Buscemi, one of the few Americans in the cast (who you'll see in the trailer). I'm a sucker for war movies and while this is less of a war movie and more of a drama about a great man who saves many lives, kind of like Schindler's List, it still does look fantastic and I'm looking forward to seeing it. Watch the official Us trailer for Florian Gallenberger's John Rabe: [flv:http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/JohnRabe-officialtrailer.flv http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/JohnRabe-officialtrailer.jpg 598 248] You can also watch the official Us trailer for John Rabe in High Definition on Apple John Rabe is both written and directed by German ...
- 4/22/2010
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
City Of War: The Story Of John Rabe - an award-winning account of one man's heroism during an atrocity - is released on DVD in the UK by Metrodome on May 3.
The film tells the true story of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese civilians from slaughter by the Japanese army in the Nanjing Massacre of 1937-38.
The Nanjing (or Nanking) Massacre occurred in a six-week period following the Japanese capture of the city of Nanjing, former capital of the Republic of China, in December 1937. Hundreds of thousands of people were said to have been murdered and tens of thousands of women were raped.
City of War scooped the Audience Award at the 2009 German Film Festival. It also picked up over seven nominations at the German Film Academy Awards (known colloquially as the Lolas, after the female statuette inspired by Marlene Dietrich role as Lola Lola in Der blaue Engel...
The film tells the true story of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese civilians from slaughter by the Japanese army in the Nanjing Massacre of 1937-38.
The Nanjing (or Nanking) Massacre occurred in a six-week period following the Japanese capture of the city of Nanjing, former capital of the Republic of China, in December 1937. Hundreds of thousands of people were said to have been murdered and tens of thousands of women were raped.
City of War scooped the Audience Award at the 2009 German Film Festival. It also picked up over seven nominations at the German Film Academy Awards (known colloquially as the Lolas, after the female statuette inspired by Marlene Dietrich role as Lola Lola in Der blaue Engel...
- 4/20/2010
- by David Bentley
- The Geek Files
Lu Chuan's re-creation of the siege of Nanjing in 1938 is relentlessly horrific
The German movie City of War, released two weeks ago, recreated the Japanese siege and destruction of Nanjing in the winter of 1937-38 from the viewpoint of the European residents. Led by the Schindler-like German businessman John Rabe, they created a safety zone that saved the lives of 100,000 Chinese soldiers and citizens during a massacre in which 300,000 were killed. Lu Chuan's less coherent movie, shot in black and white, tells the story through the eyes of the local Chinese, and of the Japanese invaders. Some of the latter are shocked, some bewildered, but most are ready participants in one of the worst atrocities of an atrocious century.
More graphic in its depiction of rape and systematic killing than the German film, City of Life and Death is relentlessly, unforgettably horrific. Rabe is present, but more prominence is given to his dedicated assistant,...
The German movie City of War, released two weeks ago, recreated the Japanese siege and destruction of Nanjing in the winter of 1937-38 from the viewpoint of the European residents. Led by the Schindler-like German businessman John Rabe, they created a safety zone that saved the lives of 100,000 Chinese soldiers and citizens during a massacre in which 300,000 were killed. Lu Chuan's less coherent movie, shot in black and white, tells the story through the eyes of the local Chinese, and of the Japanese invaders. Some of the latter are shocked, some bewildered, but most are ready participants in one of the worst atrocities of an atrocious century.
More graphic in its depiction of rape and systematic killing than the German film, City of Life and Death is relentlessly, unforgettably horrific. Rabe is present, but more prominence is given to his dedicated assistant,...
- 4/17/2010
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
Clash of the Titans and How to Train Your Dragon's kick-ass box office contributed to a huge cash windfall for UK cinemas over the Easter weekend, resulting in a 112% rise over the equivalent period in 2009
The Easter bonanza
Posting the second-best weekend for box office in the past 12 months, the 2-4 April period proved a huge cash windfall for UK cinemas, with film fans flocking to the plexes over Easter. Once again, families proved a potent market, with Clash of the Titans appealing to older kids, and How to Train Your Dragon and Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang mopping up younger ones. Older teens and twentysomethings looking to escape their families could choose between Clash of the Titans and Kick-Ass.
The figures in our top 10 below do not include takings on bank holiday Monday, but if those are added in, the top three titles – all new releases – contributed...
The Easter bonanza
Posting the second-best weekend for box office in the past 12 months, the 2-4 April period proved a huge cash windfall for UK cinemas, with film fans flocking to the plexes over Easter. Once again, families proved a potent market, with Clash of the Titans appealing to older kids, and How to Train Your Dragon and Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang mopping up younger ones. Older teens and twentysomethings looking to escape their families could choose between Clash of the Titans and Kick-Ass.
The figures in our top 10 below do not include takings on bank holiday Monday, but if those are added in, the top three titles – all new releases – contributed...
- 4/7/2010
- by Charles Gant
- The Guardian - Film News
Kick-Ass (15)
(Matthew Vaughn, 2010, Us/UK) Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloë Moretz. 118 mins
Now that the likes of Batman and Spider-Man are risk-averse, broad-spectrum cash juggernauts, it's refreshing to see a comic-book movie that doesn't play by the rules. Like a spoilt brat, this is foul-mouthed, hyperactive, extremely violent, and all the better for it. And despite dealing with the pitfalls of becoming a real-life vigilante (with no super-powers), it successfully segues from teen loser comedy to full-on action fantasy without losing its stride, just as it straddles the divide between fan-friendly cult material and mainstream crowd-pleaser.
Clash Of The Titans 3D (12A)
(Louis Leterrier, 2010, Us) Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson. 106 mins
So much state-of-the-art technology and A-list talent has been thrown at this sword-and-sandals epic, some of it is bound to stick. And if the 3D looks like a hurried afterthought and the story a bit of a Greek salad, there's always another giant scorpion,...
(Matthew Vaughn, 2010, Us/UK) Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloë Moretz. 118 mins
Now that the likes of Batman and Spider-Man are risk-averse, broad-spectrum cash juggernauts, it's refreshing to see a comic-book movie that doesn't play by the rules. Like a spoilt brat, this is foul-mouthed, hyperactive, extremely violent, and all the better for it. And despite dealing with the pitfalls of becoming a real-life vigilante (with no super-powers), it successfully segues from teen loser comedy to full-on action fantasy without losing its stride, just as it straddles the divide between fan-friendly cult material and mainstream crowd-pleaser.
Clash Of The Titans 3D (12A)
(Louis Leterrier, 2010, Us) Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson. 106 mins
So much state-of-the-art technology and A-list talent has been thrown at this sword-and-sandals epic, some of it is bound to stick. And if the 3D looks like a hurried afterthought and the story a bit of a Greek salad, there's always another giant scorpion,...
- 4/2/2010
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Film about another "good German" of the Nazi era. By Peter Bradshaw
Florian Gallenberger's stately TV-movie-ish feature attempts to confer proto-Schindler status on John Rabe, another "good German" of the Nazi era. Decently played by Ulrich Tukur (the feudal baron in Haneke's White Ribbon) Rabe was an employee of the German industrial giant Siemens in the Chinese city of Nanking and in 1937 was an intimate, appalled witness to the invasion and civilian massacre by the Japanese, Germany's axis partners. He set up a civilian "safe zone", which though trampled on by the invader, still made him a hero to the Chinese. It's an expensively mounted production with an impressive international cast and some earnest attempts to convey the brutality. But everything seems glossy and muted, like a romantic novel without romance and Rabe's tragically forlorn and unappreciated existence after the war is not shown.
Rating: 2/5
DramaPeriod and historicalPeter Bradshaw
guardian.
Florian Gallenberger's stately TV-movie-ish feature attempts to confer proto-Schindler status on John Rabe, another "good German" of the Nazi era. Decently played by Ulrich Tukur (the feudal baron in Haneke's White Ribbon) Rabe was an employee of the German industrial giant Siemens in the Chinese city of Nanking and in 1937 was an intimate, appalled witness to the invasion and civilian massacre by the Japanese, Germany's axis partners. He set up a civilian "safe zone", which though trampled on by the invader, still made him a hero to the Chinese. It's an expensively mounted production with an impressive international cast and some earnest attempts to convey the brutality. But everything seems glossy and muted, like a romantic novel without romance and Rabe's tragically forlorn and unappreciated existence after the war is not shown.
Rating: 2/5
DramaPeriod and historicalPeter Bradshaw
guardian.
- 4/1/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Lourdes (U)
(Jessica Hausner, 2009, Aus/Fra/Ger) Sylvie Testud, Léa Seydoux, Elina Löwensohn. 99 mins
Handsomely photographed and coolly observant, this excursion to the French pilgrimage town manages to be both a penetrating study of the spiritual tourism racket and a genuine mystical inquiry. Testud is our central pilgrim, paralysed from the neck down and, like many others, in search of a miracle. But unlike those others, she gets one. Or does she? We're given much to think about.
No One Knows About Persian Cats (12A)
(Bahman Ghobadi, 2009, Iran) Negar Shaghaghi, Ashkan Khoshanejad. 107 mins
A suitably guerrilla-style tour of Iran's underground (often literally) music scene – a place where even gentle indie rock is considered seditious. Mostly factual and shot illegally, it's eye (and ear)-opening stuff.
The Blind Side (12A)
(John Lee Hancock, 2009, Us) Sandra Bullock, Quinton Aaron. 128 mins
Bullock might have got her Oscar but that doesn't make it any...
(Jessica Hausner, 2009, Aus/Fra/Ger) Sylvie Testud, Léa Seydoux, Elina Löwensohn. 99 mins
Handsomely photographed and coolly observant, this excursion to the French pilgrimage town manages to be both a penetrating study of the spiritual tourism racket and a genuine mystical inquiry. Testud is our central pilgrim, paralysed from the neck down and, like many others, in search of a miracle. But unlike those others, she gets one. Or does she? We're given much to think about.
No One Knows About Persian Cats (12A)
(Bahman Ghobadi, 2009, Iran) Negar Shaghaghi, Ashkan Khoshanejad. 107 mins
A suitably guerrilla-style tour of Iran's underground (often literally) music scene – a place where even gentle indie rock is considered seditious. Mostly factual and shot illegally, it's eye (and ear)-opening stuff.
The Blind Side (12A)
(John Lee Hancock, 2009, Us) Sandra Bullock, Quinton Aaron. 128 mins
Bullock might have got her Oscar but that doesn't make it any...
- 3/27/2010
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
The 33rd Portland International Film Festival announces the Oregonian Audience Award winners. This year’s Festival wrapped up its 18 day run Sunday, February 28th after 195 total screenings at multiple theater locations in the downtown cultural district of Portland. This year’s Festival was attended by over 30,000 attendees and included 77 features and 39 shorts from over 40 countries.
Complete coverage of Piff 2010
Don’t forget to vote for the 8th Annual Tsr Movie Awards
Audience winners include Best Narrative Feature The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Sweden) and Best Documentary Feature The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls (New Zealand). The winner of the Best New Director Award is Hernán A. Goldfrid with Music On Hold (Argentina).
This year’s Short Film Award goes to Portland filmmaker Kyle Bell with the film The Mouse That Soared.
This year’s Piff presenting sponsors include The Oregonian and Regal Cinemas Major sponsors include the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation,...
Complete coverage of Piff 2010
Don’t forget to vote for the 8th Annual Tsr Movie Awards
Audience winners include Best Narrative Feature The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Sweden) and Best Documentary Feature The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls (New Zealand). The winner of the Best New Director Award is Hernán A. Goldfrid with Music On Hold (Argentina).
This year’s Short Film Award goes to Portland filmmaker Kyle Bell with the film The Mouse That Soared.
This year’s Piff presenting sponsors include The Oregonian and Regal Cinemas Major sponsors include the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation,...
- 3/1/2010
- by Jeff Bayer
- The Scorecard Review
Much praise has already been sung on this site about "City of Life and Death" , Chuan Lu's film about the Nanjing massacre. I'm going to add a little to that, but the biggest news I have is that the English-friendly regionfree BluRay release by MegaStar is damn good. I'll elaborate later...
Also, last month I happened to see Florian Gallenberger's "John Rabe" , the Other big film released last year about the Nanjing massacre. And while the consensus seems to be that the Chinese effort is the best of the two, it is worthy of note that at the start of this year both movies had the same score (7.3) on IMDb...
So how do they truly compare?...
Also, last month I happened to see Florian Gallenberger's "John Rabe" , the Other big film released last year about the Nanjing massacre. And while the consensus seems to be that the Chinese effort is the best of the two, it is worthy of note that at the start of this year both movies had the same score (7.3) on IMDb...
So how do they truly compare?...
- 1/29/2010
- Screen Anarchy
One month, 280 films and 70,000 words later, my guide to the films of 2010 is now complete. I hope you've enjoyed reading it all - it's been utterly exhausting but an ultimately rewarding venture I've been single-handedly pulling together since early December. If you have liked it, my only request is that you help spread the word about it now that it's all done.
If you're a fellow blogger or site owner, please give it a plug on your site. If you're a reader, give it a mention on Facebook, Twitter or other online places you might venture. A lot of effort went into this, the greatest reward so far has been seeing it talked about and hearing your reactions. I'm glad many of you have gotten a lot of use out of the previous pages, so I hope you enjoy this final part:
Vincere
Opens: 2010
Cast: Filippo Timi, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Corrado Invernizzi,...
If you're a fellow blogger or site owner, please give it a plug on your site. If you're a reader, give it a mention on Facebook, Twitter or other online places you might venture. A lot of effort went into this, the greatest reward so far has been seeing it talked about and hearing your reactions. I'm glad many of you have gotten a lot of use out of the previous pages, so I hope you enjoy this final part:
Vincere
Opens: 2010
Cast: Filippo Timi, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Corrado Invernizzi,...
- 1/13/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Cologne, Germany – Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or and European Film Prize winner "The White Ribbon" and war crimes drama "Storm" from Hans-Christian Schmid lead the nominations for the annual awards of the German Film Critics association, announced Monday.
Both "The White Ribbon" and "Storm" picked up four nominations, including for best picture.
The other best picture nominees are Sandra Nettlebeck's "Helen" starring Ashley Judd; Marcus H. Rosenmuller's period drama "Little White Lies;" World War II epic "John Rabe" from Florian Gallenberger and two comedies: Andreas Dresen's film industry spoof "Whisky with Vodka" and the romcom "Lila, Lila" from director Alain Gsponer.
The winners will be announced during the 60th Berlin International Film Festival, which runs Feb. 11-21.
Both "The White Ribbon" and "Storm" picked up four nominations, including for best picture.
The other best picture nominees are Sandra Nettlebeck's "Helen" starring Ashley Judd; Marcus H. Rosenmuller's period drama "Little White Lies;" World War II epic "John Rabe" from Florian Gallenberger and two comedies: Andreas Dresen's film industry spoof "Whisky with Vodka" and the romcom "Lila, Lila" from director Alain Gsponer.
The winners will be announced during the 60th Berlin International Film Festival, which runs Feb. 11-21.
- 1/11/2010
- by By Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
St. Trinian's II: The Legend of Fritton's Gold
Opens: 2010
Cast: Colin Firth, Rupert Everett, David Tennant, Gemma Arterton, Talulah Riley
Director: Oliver Parker, Barnaby Thompson
Summary: A rollercoaster-style treasure hunt for the legendary Fritton’s Gold ensues as the feisty and ever-resourceful schoolgirls of St Trinian’s face their most fearsome establishment rivals yet - the villainous Pomfrey and his sidekicks from the women-hating secret society known as AD1.
Analysis: While it didn't travel much beyond the UK, 2007's reboot of the "St Trinian's" franchise nearly doubled its £7 million production budget in sales in the UK alone - making it one of the top grossing independent British films of the past decade. Reviews were decidedly mixed but generally pretty weak at the time, so the greenlighting of a sequel surprised quite a few.
Despite a critical drubbing, the core audience of young British teenage girls seemed to be satisfied by...
Opens: 2010
Cast: Colin Firth, Rupert Everett, David Tennant, Gemma Arterton, Talulah Riley
Director: Oliver Parker, Barnaby Thompson
Summary: A rollercoaster-style treasure hunt for the legendary Fritton’s Gold ensues as the feisty and ever-resourceful schoolgirls of St Trinian’s face their most fearsome establishment rivals yet - the villainous Pomfrey and his sidekicks from the women-hating secret society known as AD1.
Analysis: While it didn't travel much beyond the UK, 2007's reboot of the "St Trinian's" franchise nearly doubled its £7 million production budget in sales in the UK alone - making it one of the top grossing independent British films of the past decade. Reviews were decidedly mixed but generally pretty weak at the time, so the greenlighting of a sequel surprised quite a few.
Despite a critical drubbing, the core audience of young British teenage girls seemed to be satisfied by...
- 1/9/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Shanghai
Opens: 2010
Cast: John Cusack, Gong Li, Ken Watanabe, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chow Yun-Fat
Director: Mikael Hafstrom
Summary: In the months leading up to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, an American man arrives in Shanghai to find his friend recently murdered. In investigating his friend's death, he stumbles upon a secret the United States government has been keeping and falls in love in the process.
Analysis: After being granted permission to shoot in the Chinese city, the $10 million production found its permit quickly being revoked by the Government who expressed concerns about the script. The result is Bangkok and the United Kingdom standing in for the real Shanghai which seems kind of against the entire point.
Cusack himself has emphatically endorsed the project in interviews, calling it a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity", but being stuck at the cash-strapped Weinstein Company means that its release plans are unsure beyond a vague promise of a limited bow around Easter.
Opens: 2010
Cast: John Cusack, Gong Li, Ken Watanabe, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chow Yun-Fat
Director: Mikael Hafstrom
Summary: In the months leading up to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, an American man arrives in Shanghai to find his friend recently murdered. In investigating his friend's death, he stumbles upon a secret the United States government has been keeping and falls in love in the process.
Analysis: After being granted permission to shoot in the Chinese city, the $10 million production found its permit quickly being revoked by the Government who expressed concerns about the script. The result is Bangkok and the United Kingdom standing in for the real Shanghai which seems kind of against the entire point.
Cusack himself has emphatically endorsed the project in interviews, calling it a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity", but being stuck at the cash-strapped Weinstein Company means that its release plans are unsure beyond a vague promise of a limited bow around Easter.
- 1/5/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
A Prophet
Opens: February 12th 2010
Cast: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup, Adel Bencherif, Hichem Yacoubi, Reda Kateb
Director: Jacques Audiard
Summary: Sent to prison, Malik El Djebena falls under the sway of a group of Corsicans who enforce their rule in the prison. As the 'missions' go by, he toughens himself and wins their confidence but uses his intelligence to discreetly develop his own network.
Analysis: Finally scoring a limited release in the Us in February, Jacques Audiard's violent and hard-edged prison drama won the Grand Prix at Cannes, scored Best Film at the London Film Festival, and is already the hotly tipped favourite to take the Oscar for Best Foreign Film late next month.
Reviews have been stellar around the world for the film which quickly became the most universally admired entry in the often hotly contentious first week of Cannes back in May. From a breakout performance by Tahar Rahim,...
Opens: February 12th 2010
Cast: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup, Adel Bencherif, Hichem Yacoubi, Reda Kateb
Director: Jacques Audiard
Summary: Sent to prison, Malik El Djebena falls under the sway of a group of Corsicans who enforce their rule in the prison. As the 'missions' go by, he toughens himself and wins their confidence but uses his intelligence to discreetly develop his own network.
Analysis: Finally scoring a limited release in the Us in February, Jacques Audiard's violent and hard-edged prison drama won the Grand Prix at Cannes, scored Best Film at the London Film Festival, and is already the hotly tipped favourite to take the Oscar for Best Foreign Film late next month.
Reviews have been stellar around the world for the film which quickly became the most universally admired entry in the often hotly contentious first week of Cannes back in May. From a breakout performance by Tahar Rahim,...
- 1/2/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
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