The Playlist

Jonathan Demme On Future Projects 'Old Fires,' 'Zeitoun' And 'This House We Live In'

By Jessica Kiang
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December 29, 2012 12:25 PM
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3 Comments

Festivals

During the Marrakech Film Festival earlier this month we had a brief chat with director Jonathan Demme ("Stop Making Sense," "The Silence of the Lambs," "Rachel Getting Married," "Neil Young Journeys," etc), who was in town to give one of the festival’s Masterclasses (Darren Aronofsky was among the other filmmakers to give one, you can read our coverage of his masterclass here). The first thing that struck us about Demme, however, was just how enthusiastic of a cinepile the veteran director is -- it’s unusual to come across a person being so honored who is actually spending most of his time at the festival watching the films.

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6 Personal Highlights From The Film Festivals Of 2012

By The Playlist Staff
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December 28, 2012 12:12 PM
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2 Comments

Features

We're generally anti-navelgazing here at The Playlist, but being the end of the year, it can't really be avoided. As we continue to take a look back at the cinematic year of 2012, we're trying to shake things up and keep things fresh outside of the usual Best/Worst lists. This year saw The Playlist making a presence around the world at more than a handful of festivals. And while you've already read our reviews and news, we thought we'd give you a taste of the experience of attending these festivals. Even if you can't make Cannes or board a flight to Marrakech, we hope this helps in translating what it's like to run around a foreign country with nothing more than a laptop and a love of cinema. So, without further ado, here are six personal highlights from the various film festivals in 2012 we attended.

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Marrakech '12 Review: 'Mushrooming' A Pitch Black Comedy With A Pitch Perfect Cast

By Jessica Kiang
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December 17, 2012 6:57 PM
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0 Comments

Festivals

We must confess to being rather behind the curve when it comes to recent Estonian filmmaking, but if we'd hazarded a guess what it might look like prior to watching Toomas Hussar's “Mushrooming,” going on a purely geographical basis we’d have aimed for somewhere halfway between a Finnish film and a Polish film. And Estonia's official entry for the Foreign Language Film Oscar, which takes the absurdist, deadpan humor of an Aki Kaurismaki, and gives it a certain Eastern European social realist spin, would not have disappointed. A darkhearted black comedy with satirical elements, it features a strong cast who negotiate the genre’s notoriously tricky tonal balance well, even managing to sell some of the script's more outlandish contortions. And while all three principals are excellent, perhaps Elina Reinhold has the trickiest arc to achieve, but she accomplishes it so well, with such a light touch, that it brought her a well-deserved Best Actress award at the Marrakech Film Festival.

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John Boorman Talks Almost Making 'Lord Of The Rings,' Working With Marcello Mastroianni, What He's Doing Next & More

By Jessica Kiang
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December 17, 2012 11:02 AM
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5 Comments

News

Veteran director John Boorman, president of the Jury at the Marrakech International Film Festival last week, has had an interestingly checkered career of era-defining highs ("Deliverance," "Point Blank") and baffling, outlandish lows ("Zardoz,""Exorcist II") and all points in between. Now nearing 80, the director, in addition to his presidential duties, was the subject of a "Conversation with…" evening, during which time he reminisced and curmudgeoned in a profane, often hilarious manner, following a showing of his daughter Katrine's documentary about him, "Me and Me Dad." Unfortunately we missed the film, but heard good things about it, and the “Conversation with...” went a long way to making up for that in sheer entertainment value. Essentially as often in his career, Boorman gave the audience exactly what they wanted: lots of gossipy anecdotes about the people he's worked with, and plenty of Billy Wilder quotes. Here are a few choice findings from the evening.

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Gemma Arterton On The "Dirty, Filthy Underworld" Of 'Runner, Runner' & The Difficulty Of Finding Quality Roles For Women In Hollywood

By Jessica Kiang
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December 13, 2012 3:18 PM
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1 Comment

Festivals

Last week at the Marrakech Film Festival, we got to sit down in a small press group with jury member Gemma Arterton. She’s an actress who for a while seemed to be following a fairly standard route, especially for a British starlet, following up her first film “St Trinian's” with some period TV before landing a Bond girl role in “Quantum of Solace.” However, since that breakout, while she’s done studio fare (“Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” the upcoming “Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters”), we’ve also seen her skew more eccentric with some of her choices, taking small, British films like “Tamara Drewe” and “Song for Marion" along with edgy indie thriller "The Disappearance Of Alice Creed," and she boasts a forthcoming lineup that promises much more interesting fare to come.

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Interview: James Gray Talks Working With Marion Cotillard, Joaquin Phoenix & The Central Crisis Of American Cinema

By Jessica Kiang
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December 12, 2012 3:50 PM
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19 Comments

Festivals

A definite high point of our Marrakech International Film Festival was not only getting the chance to talk with director James Gray (“Two Lovers,” “We Own The Night,” “Little Odessa,” “The Yards”) about his upcoming directorial and writing projects (see our previous coverage here and here), but also having the time to let the conversation spin off, through some of his past experiences, and into a more general discussion about the state of contemporary U.S. cinema. Gray’s perspective as a commentator is of course informed by the kind of filmmaker he is: in his assessment of U.S. cinema being in a state of deep crisis, it is hard not to see a man arguing forcefully for his own livelihood.

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Marrakech ‘12 Review: ’The Attack’ Is A Gripping, Suspenseful, Fearless Drama Set Around A Suicide Bombing

By Jessica Kiang
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December 11, 2012 7:01 PM
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2 Comments

Festivals

Something about its portrayal of a nightmarish descent into a previously inconceivable reality had us comparing Marrakech Film Festival Grand Prix winner “The Attack” to Thomas Vinterberg’s “The Hunt.” But the crucial difference is that while the Danish film is preoccupied with social concerns, “The Attack” plunges head first into one of the thorniest, most intractable political arenas imaginable: Arab/Israeli relations. It’s an audacious undertaking, to set a narrative, almost genre, feature film in a situation whose complexities and sensitivities might make the most engaged of us a bit gunshy, but Lebanese director Ziad Doueiri almost wholly pulls it off, delivering a film that engrosses and impresses like a thriller, even as it strays deep, deep into the belly of the beast.

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Darren Aronofsky Says 'The Fountain' Was Too Expensive, Talks Connecting 'Noah' With Modern Audiences & More

By Jessica Kiang
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December 11, 2012 11:18 AM
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4 Comments

News

One of the most predictably oversubscribed events at the Marrakech International Film Festival this year was Darren Aronofsky’s masterclass. Lasting nearly two hours, however, and delivering a retrospective spin through the five feature films that make up his back catalog, as well as a few nuggets about the forthcoming “Noah,” it actually most caught fire when the proceedings were opened up to the audience. In this section, Aronsofky was at his most forthcoming and engaged, happy to share his expertise with the many film students who got questions in, and passionate in his encouragement of young local filmmakers.

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Terence Stamp Talks Destiny, Vanity & His Thoughts On Michael Shannon Playing General Zod In 'Man Of Steel'

By Jessica Kiang
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December 11, 2012 10:05 AM
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6 Comments

News

One of the most whimsical and enjoyable interviews of our time at the Marrakech International Film Festival came courtesy of iconic British actor Sir Terence Stamp (“Superman II,” “Far from the Madding Crowd,” “The Limey,” among many others), who was in town to present his latest film “Song for Marion” (our review from TIFF is here), in which he stars with fellow Marrakech jury member Gemma Arterton and Vanessa Redgrave. Stamp’s career stretches back to the early ‘60s, when his otherworldly handsomeness saw him teamed, professionally and romantically, with some of the most beautiful women of the age. And in recent times, he's become a reliable presence in Hollywood, ranging from “Yes Man” to “Get Smart” from “Wanted” to “The Adjustment Bureau."

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Marrakech '12: James Gray Still Hoping To Visit 'Lost City of Z,' Talks 'Blood Ties' & Jeremy Renner's Steve McQueen Biopic

By Jessica Kiang
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December 10, 2012 11:18 AM
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6 Comments

News

Thoughtful and erudite, there are few filmmakers as fascinating to listen to as they talk about film than James Gray. So whenever we get the chance to catch up with him, it's a treat, and we managed to spend some time with the helmer at the Marrakech International Film Festival where he was serving on the jury. We spoke at some length about his upcoming, immigrant period drama "Lowlife," (formerly "The Nightingale" -- read all about it here), but we also wondered about some of the movies he's got brewing and what may or may not be next.

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