With the second festival weekend quickly approaching, the festival has had a few days to catch a second breath before the final home stretch and the announcement of the Crystal Globe winners on Saturday.
109,251 tickets were already sold and it looks like the festival will beat last year’s figures, proving not even the recession is strong enough of a reason for the fans to miss their favorite festival in central Europe.
Those who followed films in competition were certainly in for some interesting experience so far. The most expected film was Hitler à Hollywood (Hitler in Hollywood) by Frédéric Sojcher. This mockumentary thriller on a plot against European cinema stars Maria de Medeiros (Pulp Fiction, Henry & June), and Micheline Presle (Devil in the Flesh, I Want to Go Home) as well as other renowned actors and directors. This playful, mystifying film playing with the viewer’s conception of reality combining both, fiction and documentary, received mixed reviews so far, the final verdict of the jury yet to be seen.
Another competition film worth mentioning for its provocative nature is definitely Matka Teresa od kotów (Mother Teresa of Cats). This disturbing film based on a true story in Poland that happened two years ago opens with a brutal murder of a mother by her two sons. The film uses retrospective to tell most of the story and was a hard one to chew for the audience as well as film critics.
Among some of the amazing films I had a chance to see in the past couple of days was Na Putu (On The Path), a second feature by Jasmila Žbanić, whose first film Grbavica won a Golden Bear in Berlin. Her second film portraying a relationship of a young couple Amar and Luna set in today’s Bosnia and Herzegovina and their struggle to come to terms with the war and religion is as intense as her first feature. The focus stays on the main characters the whole time, studying their motives, never letting you rest. Superb acting, direction, music and cinematography again prove Žbanić is a true master of her craft.
I also have to mention a Jaroslav Fuit film Dvojka (Twosome). This Czech film is a road movie following Veronika and Michal on their holiday in Scandinavia hoping to overcome a crisis of their five-year relationship. After meeting Shimi, their trip takes on a different turn, revealing their true character. This film, together with Zoufalci (Dreamers) proves the new Czech talent is not afraid to dig below the surface and show the raw truth about the values the young Czech generation struggles with today.
Today, I’m looking forward to seeing The Company Men, first feature by John Wells, icon of screenwriting and producing, and tomorrow the screening of Nikita Mikhalkov’s new film Utomljonnyje solncem 2: Predstojanije (Burnt by the Sun 2: Exodus), screened in Cannes this year. The film did not receive good reviews, however, so I’m curious what the reactions will be among the KVIFF audience. Mikhalkov will receive a Crystal Globe for Outstanding Artistic Contribution to World Cinema before the screening.
Following a Master Class yesterday with the icon of film criticism Michel Ciment, where he spoke of the origins of film criticism in the 20th century, encouraged young filmmakers to experiment, denounced set rules for film criticism, spoke of the work of his favorite filmmakers, and highlighted the growing importance of film festivals and declining impact of film reviews on audience’s opinion, I’m looking forward to see a film he cooperated on, a portrait of John Boorman, as well as a documentary on his work, Michel Ciment: The Art of Sharing Movies, where he chats up directors such as Wim Wenders, Quentin Tarantino, and many others, screening on Saturday afternoon, just in time for me to make it to the closing ceremony, the final celebration of the spa town’s film party of the year.
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