In Contention

Tag: London

  • Things we lost in the fire

    Apologies for the silence on the site in the last day or so — Kris has been in transit, while I’ve been distracted by dispiriting events close to home.  The riots that have been plaguing London since Saturday night seemed to finally attract the full attention of international news networks today, but I’m not sure how effectively they can convey the queasy jumble of anger, confusion and dread afflicting most of the city’s residents, myself included.

    Many of us, even, are scarcely getting the full impression: it’s hard enough to wrap one’s head around local misfortunes — last night, I was dryly informed via Twitter that a bus a mere half-mile from my house had gone up in flames — before taking in the full, discontinuous jigsaw of incident and loss, and moving on to ponder what this means on a broader (and longer-term) national and social level.

    “It’s sad that so much damage is somehow being done with so little conviction,” I overheard a train passenger say this afternoon, a quote that seemed to me to sum up the stateless quality of the last couple of days.

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  • Fall festivals ready for their close-up

    In the last couple of weeks the major fall film festivals have unveiled aggressively competitive line-ups, and the amount of potential awards product landing at Venice, Telluride, Toronto and New York is, as usual, vast.

    There are plenty of overlapping exhibitions but as for firsties, Venice will get dibs on Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan,” Julie Taymor’s “The Tempest,” Julian Schnabel’s “Miral,” Ben Affleck’s “The Town,” and Richard J. Lewis’s “Barney’s Version” before the films make their way to other fests.  Sofia Coppola’s “Somewhere” will be exclusive to the Lido.

    New York, meanwhile, landed a real coup by boasting the world premiere of David Fincher’s “The Social Network,” which will not be at the other fests.

    Toronto is again packed to the gills with product (too much, if you ask me, but it’s a media circus after all).  Clint Eastwood’s “Hereafter” will see its first bow there before heading off to New York in October.  Tony Goldwyn’s “Conviction” will also debut, as well as John Madden’s “The Debt,” Rowan Joffe’s “Brighton Rock,” Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden’s “It’s Kind of a Funny Story” and Nigel Cole’s “Made in Dagenham.” World premieres searching for distributors at the fest include Robert Redford’s “The Conspirator,” John Cameron Mitchell’s “Rabbit Hole” and Dustin Lance Black’s “What’s Wrong with Virginia,” any of which could end up being awards season possibilities.

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  • A shout from the UK

    A nice view overrides an overcast (duh) drizzle here in London. I’m glancing out over the Thames as I write this, while a hop across the hallway here provides a look at Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and the London Eye. Very pleasant.

    Meanwhile, down on the continent, the Cannes International Film Festival is catching its stride. The big news so far, as you’ll read below, seems to be that “Blindness” might have come in below expectations. Of course I’ll hold out judgment for myself when I see it, but I hope Fernando Meirelles doesn’t become a flash in the pan. As in love with “City of God” as I was, I was not impressed by “The Constant Gardener.” But his latest has been a must-see for me since the project was announced.

    The crew has done a nice job of rounding up info and perspective in this space, but I always take the opportunity this time of year to spotlight Jeff Wells’s coverage of the fest, without a doubt the most eye-catching aspect of Hollywood Elsewhere in a given film year. Hopefully he comes across a change of clothes soon.

    As for me, I’m sure I’ll be in and out with thoughts as the fest pushes forward and as the summer movie season continues to be unveiled. (Indy 4 posters are splattered across the double-deckers out here, of course.) Mike Leigh’s latest, “Happy-Go-Lucky,” is playing up the street at the Chelsea. I’m sure I’ll duck in there to give it a look within the week, as I’m pretty excited for the director’s latest. (Guy reviewed the film for us in April.)  Otherwise it’s finding the typical balance of work and play — as always.