Venice lineup includes ‘The Road,’ ‘Capitalism: A Love Story’

(UPDATE: For whatever reason, my initial source failed to mention that George A. Romero’s latest zombie opus, “Survival of the Dead,” is also in competition.)

In years past, the Venice Film Festival has unveiled several titles that went on to figure significantly in the awards season ahead — “Brokeback Mountain,”The Queen,” “Far From Heaven” and “Vera Drake” all began their journeys with major wins on the Venetian Lido. Last year alone gifted us with “The Wrestler,” “Rachel Getting Married” and this summer’s hot property, “The Hurt Locker.”

However, looking down the list of list of titles in competition at this year’s fest, it’s hard to tell if there are any selections that could go a similar distance.

As usual for the festival, it’s a Euro-loaded menu — and a tasty one at that, featuring new offerings from the likes of Claire Denis, Fatih Akin and Jacques Rivette — while, as with Cannes this year, the U.S. contingent is on the small side. (There is, incidentally, one “surprise film” film in competition, so the speculation is not yet over.)

Now is as good a time as any to reveal that I have an invested interest in the lineup, as I’m attending the festival for the first time, so we’ll be bringing you all the Venice news and reviews first-hand for a change.

(More details, and a full list of films in competition, after the cut.)

So for the Oscar-watchers’ perspective, most of the attention will probably be focused on John Hillcoat’s long-long-delayed adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road,” which will finally get its first formal outing — after some early screenings and positive advance word — on the Lido. If Viggo Mortensen is to get any awards traction in this year’s race, expect the buzz to start here.

The biggest, brashest American selection is Michael Moore’s much-hyped, but as yet unseen, recession documentary “Capitalism: A Love Story.” It’ll be Moore’s first Venice entry — he’s more accustomed to making noise in Cannes of late — but I’m guessing his main priority will be to gather some sound and fury before he blusters into Toronto immediately afterwards. Another American title making a stop in Italy en route to Canada is Werner Herzog’s rather questionable-looking take (don’t call it a remake) on “Bad Lieutenant.”

Todd Solondz’s first feature in five years, “Life During Wartime,” will also make its debut in Venice, adding further intrigue to the lineup. A while ago, the film was announced as a “part-sequel, part-variation” to his 1998 modern classic “Happiness,” with a typically eccentric ensemble including Charlotte Rampling, Allison Janney, Paul Reubens and Paris Hilton. With Solondz, however, there’s no way of knowing what it is until we lay eyes on it.

Still, perhaps the most wild-card U.S. title in competition is fashion maven Tom Ford’s first foray into filmmaking, “A Single Man.” Ford wrote and directed the adaptation of Christopher Isherwood’s highly regarded 1964 novel, and has assembled an exciting cast including Julianne Moore, Colin Firth and the wonderful Ginnifer Goodwin. There’s a risk of this heading into vanity-project territory, but Ford is a smart guy, so I’ll bite. (Plus, having spent a fortune on a pair of his glasses, I’d like a good film in return for my brand loyalty.)

Away from the American fare — oddly, there are no British films in the mix whatsoever — there’s even more to feast on, with a particularly robust French selection. Jaco van Dormael (“The Eighth Day”) will bring his first feature in 13 years to the table, while the redoubtable Patrice Chereau (“Queen Margot,” “Intimacy”) returns after a slightly shorter 4-year sabbatical.

The prospect of new work from 81 year-old veteran Jacques Rivette (whose “Celine and Julie Go Boating” ranks high in my personal canon) always sets mouths watering among serious cinephiles, while I’m personally most excited about a second consecutive trip to the Lido from Claire Denis.

Denis’s stunning “35 Shots of Rum” — which you may remember I adored at the recent Edinburgh fest — played out of competition at Venice last year, provoking much grumbling from critics who felt it deserved a shot at the gold. So the inclusion of Denis’s “White Material,” which stars Isabelle Huppert, in this year’s competition could be seen as a peace offering of sorts from festival organizers.

Meanwhile, high-profile titles playing out of competition this year include Steven Soderbergh’s “The Informant!” and Grant Heslov’s Iraq satire “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” whose starry cast includes George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey. The fun kicks off on 2 September … I’m getting itchy with excitement already.

The full competition lineup is listed below. Meanwhile, a complete list of all the sidebar selections and out of competition titles can be found here.

“Baaria,” Giuseppe Tornatore (Italy) (opening film)
“Soul Kitchen,” Fatih Akin (Germany)
“La Doppia Ora,” Giuseppe Capotondi (Italy)
“Yi ngoi (Accident),” Cheang Pou-Soi (China/Hong Kong)
“Persecution,” Patrice Chereau (France)
“Lo Spazio Bianco (White Space),” Francesca Comencini (Italy)
“White Material,” Claire Denis (France)
“Mr. Nobody,” Jaco van Dormael (France)
“A Single Man,” Tom Ford (USA)
“Lourdes,” Jessica Hausner (Austria)
“Bad Lieutenant: Port Of New Orleans,” USA (Werner Herzog)
“The Road,” John Hillcoat (USA)
“Ahasin Wetei (Between Two Worlds),” Vimukhti Jayasundara (Sri Lanka)
“El Mosafer (The Traveller),” Ahmed Maher (Eqypt)
“Levanon (Lebanon),” Samuel Maoz (Israel)
“Capitalism: A Love Story,” Michael Moore (USA)
“Zanan-e-bedun-e mardan (Women Without Men),” Shirin Neshat (Germany)
“Il Grande Sogno (The Big Dream)” Michele Placido (Italy)
“36 Vues Du Pic Saint Loup,” Jacques Rivette (France)
“Survival of the Dead,” George A. Romero (USA)
“Life During Wartime,” Todd Solondz (USA)
“Tetsuo The Bullet Man,” Shinya Tsukamoto (Japan)
“Lei wangzi (Prince of Tears),” Yonfan (China/Taiwan/Hong Kong)

There will also be an additional “surprise” film in competition.