Venice International Film Festival
The Film Hub Midlands team took a trip to Italy last month to attend the 81st Venice International Film Festival. With superb films, red carpets and A-listers aplenty, here's how they got on, courtesy of FHM/Flatpack Head of Partnerships Amy Smart.
We touched down in Venice on Tuesday, the day before the opening night, and our first port of call was the Floating Cinema or Cinema Galleggiante. Eirini (Membership Coordinatior at Film Hub Midlands) had heard about this cinema - which sits in the middle of the water behind the island of Giudecca in the Venice Lagoon - a couple of years ago and it was top of our must-see list. The programme is a refreshing and eclectic mix of artist moving image, experimental shorts and documentary features. There’s no typical outdoor cinema fodder here, with no sign of Meryl Streep or Danny Zuko. Included in the €10 ticket is a gondola ride out to a floating seating platform (complete with fully stocked bar) where you can kick back and watch the show as the sun sets, and it really is quite special. Please note: if you need the loo you have to be gondolaled back to shore!
On day 2 we headed to Lido for the opening film Beetlejuice Beetlejuice at Sala Grande, a magnificent 1036 seat theatre. The cast were on top form (Michael Keaton & Catherine O’Hara were absolute delights) and at a snappy 100 mins the film gives viewers a real good time. It should play well with mainstream and arthouse audiences alike.
During our 7 day trip we managed to pack in plenty more star-studded premieres’ including: Almodovar’s first English language feature The Room Next Door (a real doozy); Adrien Brody’s latest The Brutalist, which comes with a hefty 215 min run time (trust us, it’s worth it); erotic thriller Babygirl starring Nicole Kidman; Brad Pitt & George Clooney’s new crime/buddy movie Wolfs (more on that later) and hotly anticipated Maria, in which Angelina Jolie shone like a star. Each of these should fare well at the box office, although Wolfs is getting a streaming release on Apple, which is frustrating as it’s absolutely the kind of film that will bring audiences to cinemas.
Beyond the mainstream we made sure that we packed in plenty of arthouse and foreign language films. Here’s just a few of our highlights:
Amy’s highlights
Mistress Dispeller
A documentary about a love triangle in China, and the woman hired to break it up. Stray director Elizabeth Lo gives us a unique perspective on infidelity as we follow a couple whose marriage is in trouble. The husband is engaged in an extra marital affair and the titular ‘dispeller’ offers a service to quite literally dispel the mistress. It’s like a fly-on-the-wall at couples counselling, and is perhaps the only portrayal of infidelity I’ve seen that gives a fair take on all three parties without judgement. It’s not the easiest watch, peppered with plenty of awkward conversations and genuine raw emotion, but its interesting subject matter kept me hooked.
Miyazaki Spirit of Nature
A straightforward doc about Miyazaki and his relationship with nature that will be sure to delight Studio Ghibli fans. It manages to avoid being hagiographic by exploring the darker elements of Miyazaki's life and his journey from manga artist to masterful storyteller. Spirit of Nature offers a tantalising portrait of a filmmaker often at war with himself, a man with an undying love for the environment around him mired in increasing despair at the state of the world.As someone not particularly fussed with Ghibli, I was enthralled.
Quiet Life
A Russian family seeking asylum in Sweden face the unexpected in this unsettling drama from Alexandros Avranas. I went into this one knowing almost nothing about it and sat through, what I thought, was a dystopian Sci-Fi film set in the not too distant future. I was shocked to discover during the Q&A that it is, in fact, based on true events. Not for the faint hearted, the film explores the phenomenon of Child Resignation Syndrome, which sees children completely withdraw into themselves in a coma-like stasis which largely affects displaced children. I can’t say I enjoyed it but it certainly stayed with me long after the credits rolled.
As well as the stellar films, the string of A-listers (Nicole Kidman is so tall) and the incredible cicchetti, the highlight for both of us was this moment…
After outsmarting security and sneaking into the Salla Grande through a side door, all in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the cast of Wolfs, we struck gold when we got front row seats to Brad Pitt and George Clooney entering the premiere! Every bit movie stars, they graciously posed for selfies, signed autographs and said a quick hello before scary looking men in suits ushered them away. I was in prime position, and actually touched Brad Pitt’s elbow, which will forever be my ‘fun fact about myself for any future ice-breakers.
Thanks Venice, we’ll see you next year!
