Brand new sales agency Neo Art International has picked up worldwide sales rights outside Italy to Claudio Amendola’s black comedy film trilogy “Cassamortari” (“Funeral Family”).
The film trilogy narrates the story of The Pasti Family, a Roman family who work in the funeral business.
The three titles of the saga are set up at Rome-based company Paco Cinematografica, and co-produced with Antonia Nava’s Neo Art Producciones in Barcelona.
“I Cassamortari,” the first title of the saga, was streamed in 2022 in Italy by Amazon Prime Video, described as an Amazon Exclusive production.
Written by Mary Estella Brugiati and Alessandro Bosi, “Ari-Cassamortari” (“Funeral Family 2”), the second delivery, is currently in post.
This time the film tells how the Pasti Brothers have created a name for themselves as VIP gravediggers, along with an eccentric half-sister they had no idea they had.
“Funeral Family 2” cast take in many of the stars of “I Cassamortari,...
The film trilogy narrates the story of The Pasti Family, a Roman family who work in the funeral business.
The three titles of the saga are set up at Rome-based company Paco Cinematografica, and co-produced with Antonia Nava’s Neo Art Producciones in Barcelona.
“I Cassamortari,” the first title of the saga, was streamed in 2022 in Italy by Amazon Prime Video, described as an Amazon Exclusive production.
Written by Mary Estella Brugiati and Alessandro Bosi, “Ari-Cassamortari” (“Funeral Family 2”), the second delivery, is currently in post.
This time the film tells how the Pasti Brothers have created a name for themselves as VIP gravediggers, along with an eccentric half-sister they had no idea they had.
“Funeral Family 2” cast take in many of the stars of “I Cassamortari,...
- 3/5/2024
- by Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
Italian sales agent unveils Cannes market slate.
Italy’s Minerva Pictures has unveiled its Cannes Market slate which includes Ukrainian historical epic Dovbush as well as Italian family comedy And Suddenly it’s Christmas and Mexican thriller Black Minutes.
Dovbush is an action film directed by Oles Sanin about Oleksa Dovbush, a real-life 18th-century Robin Hood of sorts who formed a group of outlaws that robbed rich landowners in the Carpathian Mountains to give to poor Ukrainian villagers.
The film is set to be released in August after suffering substantial delays due to the Ukraine conflict. Potential buyers will be...
Italy’s Minerva Pictures has unveiled its Cannes Market slate which includes Ukrainian historical epic Dovbush as well as Italian family comedy And Suddenly it’s Christmas and Mexican thriller Black Minutes.
Dovbush is an action film directed by Oles Sanin about Oleksa Dovbush, a real-life 18th-century Robin Hood of sorts who formed a group of outlaws that robbed rich landowners in the Carpathian Mountains to give to poor Ukrainian villagers.
The film is set to be released in August after suffering substantial delays due to the Ukraine conflict. Potential buyers will be...
- 4/26/2023
- by Alina Trabattoni
- ScreenDaily
Format
BBC Studios has revealed a format agreement for an Italian version of Abi Morgan‘s hit show “The Split.” Locally titled “Studio Battaglia,” the screenplay has been adapted by Lisa Nur Sultan (Golden Globe winner for “On My Skin”) and is directed by Simone Spada (“Hotel Gagarin”). The Italian cast includes Barbora Bobulova, (“Sacred Heart”), Miriam Dalmazio (“Anna”), Marina Occhionero (“Monterossi”), Lunetta Savino (“Saturn in Opposition”), Massimo Ghini (“The New Pope”) Thomas Trabacchi and Giorgio Marchesi (“Medici”) .
Originally produced by “Chernobyl” maker Sister in association with Little Chick, the six-part Italian series is produced by Palomar with Tempesta Film in collaboration with Rai Fiction. Production is completed and the series will premiere in 2022. Italy is the third market to license the format after Turkey’s Mf Yapim adapting the series as “Evlilik Hakkinda Her Sey” (“All About Marriage”) for Fox TV in Turkey and Korean broadcaster Jtbc licensing it...
BBC Studios has revealed a format agreement for an Italian version of Abi Morgan‘s hit show “The Split.” Locally titled “Studio Battaglia,” the screenplay has been adapted by Lisa Nur Sultan (Golden Globe winner for “On My Skin”) and is directed by Simone Spada (“Hotel Gagarin”). The Italian cast includes Barbora Bobulova, (“Sacred Heart”), Miriam Dalmazio (“Anna”), Marina Occhionero (“Monterossi”), Lunetta Savino (“Saturn in Opposition”), Massimo Ghini (“The New Pope”) Thomas Trabacchi and Giorgio Marchesi (“Medici”) .
Originally produced by “Chernobyl” maker Sister in association with Little Chick, the six-part Italian series is produced by Palomar with Tempesta Film in collaboration with Rai Fiction. Production is completed and the series will premiere in 2022. Italy is the third market to license the format after Turkey’s Mf Yapim adapting the series as “Evlilik Hakkinda Her Sey” (“All About Marriage”) for Fox TV in Turkey and Korean broadcaster Jtbc licensing it...
- 2/21/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Massimo Ghini is an Italian actor who is best known for his performances in “senza Pelle, ” in 1994, “Una Storia Semplice” in 1991, and “There’s No Place Like Home” in 2018. He has had a brilliant career in Italian film and is an international movie star. We wanted to know more about him so we looked into his personal and career history and made some amazing discoveries. To help you become better acquainted with him here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about Massimo Ghini. 1. His Birthday Ghini turned 65 in October of 2019. He was born
10 Things You Didn’t Know About Massimo Ghini...
10 Things You Didn’t Know About Massimo Ghini...
- 2/5/2020
- by Dana Hanson-Firestone
- TVovermind.com
Following the success of The Young Pope TV series, HBO decided to continue telling the story but opted to give the continuation a different title, The New Pope. How will the new series do in the ratings? Will The New Pope be renewed for season two or, come to a natural conclusion? Stay tuned.
A historical drama series, The New Pope stars Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars. The series picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with Lenny Belardo (Law), known as Pope Pius Xiii, in a coma. Following an unpredictable and mysterious turn of events, Secretary of State Voiello (Orlando) succeeds in having Sir John...
A historical drama series, The New Pope stars Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars. The series picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with Lenny Belardo (Law), known as Pope Pius Xiii, in a coma. Following an unpredictable and mysterious turn of events, Secretary of State Voiello (Orlando) succeeds in having Sir John...
- 1/15/2020
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Vulture Watch
Is there more story to tell? Has The New Pope TV show been cancelled? Will it be renewed for a second season on HBO? The television vulture is watching all the latest cancellation and renewal news, so this page is the place to track the status of The New Pope, season two. Bookmark it, or subscribe for the latest updates. Remember, the television vulture is watching your shows. Are you?
What's This TV Show About?
Airing on the HBO cable channel, The New Pope stars Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars. The series picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with Lenny Belardo (Law), known as Pope Pius Xiii, in...
Is there more story to tell? Has The New Pope TV show been cancelled? Will it be renewed for a second season on HBO? The television vulture is watching all the latest cancellation and renewal news, so this page is the place to track the status of The New Pope, season two. Bookmark it, or subscribe for the latest updates. Remember, the television vulture is watching your shows. Are you?
What's This TV Show About?
Airing on the HBO cable channel, The New Pope stars Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars. The series picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with Lenny Belardo (Law), known as Pope Pius Xiii, in...
- 1/15/2020
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
What secrets are John Paul III hiding in the first (only?) season of The New Pope TV show on HBO? As we all know, the Nielsen ratings typically play a big role in determining whether a TV show like The New Pope is cancelled or renewed for season two. Unfortunately, most of us do not live in Nielsen households. Because many viewers feel frustration when their viewing habits and opinions aren't considered, we invite you to rate all of the first season episodes of The New Pope here.
An HBO historical drama, The New Pope stars Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars. The series picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with...
An HBO historical drama, The New Pope stars Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars. The series picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with...
- 1/14/2020
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Network: HBO
Episodes: Ongoing (hour)
Seasons: Ongoing
TV show dates: January 13, 2020 -- present
Series status: Has not been cancelled
Performers include: Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars.
TV show description:
A historical drama series, The New Pope picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with Lenny Belardo (Law), known as Pope Pius Xiii, in a coma.
Following an unpredictable and mysterious turn of events, Secretary of State Voiello (Orlando) succeeds in having Sir John Brannox (Malkovich), a charming and sophisticated moderate English aristocrat, placed on the papal throne, adopting the name John Paul III. Read...
Episodes: Ongoing (hour)
Seasons: Ongoing
TV show dates: January 13, 2020 -- present
Series status: Has not been cancelled
Performers include: Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, Yuliya Snigir, and Massimo Ghini, with Sharon Stone and Marilyn Manson as guest stars.
TV show description:
A historical drama series, The New Pope picks up where The Young Pope TV show left off, with Lenny Belardo (Law), known as Pope Pius Xiii, in a coma.
Following an unpredictable and mysterious turn of events, Secretary of State Voiello (Orlando) succeeds in having Sir John Brannox (Malkovich), a charming and sophisticated moderate English aristocrat, placed on the papal throne, adopting the name John Paul III. Read...
- 1/14/2020
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
HBO has set a premiere date for “The New Pope,” the upcoming series starring Jude Law and John Malkovich.
A sequel to Paolo Sorrentino’s 2017 series “The Young Pope,” HBO’s new series will debut Jan. 13 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Here is HBO’s official description:
The series picks up where “The Young Pope” left off, with Jude Law’s Lenny Belardo, known as Pope Pius Xiii, in a coma. Following an unpredictable and mysterious turn of events, Secretary of State Voiello (Silvio Orlando) succeeds in having Sir John Brannox (John Malkovich), a charming and sophisticated moderate English aristocrat, placed on the papal throne, adopting the name John Paul III. The new pope seems ideal, but he conceals secrets and has a certain fragility, and Voiello immediately understands that it will not be easy to replace the charismatic Pius Xiii. Hanging between life and death, Lenny Belardo has become a Saint,...
A sequel to Paolo Sorrentino’s 2017 series “The Young Pope,” HBO’s new series will debut Jan. 13 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Here is HBO’s official description:
The series picks up where “The Young Pope” left off, with Jude Law’s Lenny Belardo, known as Pope Pius Xiii, in a coma. Following an unpredictable and mysterious turn of events, Secretary of State Voiello (Silvio Orlando) succeeds in having Sir John Brannox (John Malkovich), a charming and sophisticated moderate English aristocrat, placed on the papal throne, adopting the name John Paul III. The new pope seems ideal, but he conceals secrets and has a certain fragility, and Voiello immediately understands that it will not be easy to replace the charismatic Pius Xiii. Hanging between life and death, Lenny Belardo has become a Saint,...
- 11/26/2019
- by Margeaux Sippell
- The Wrap
“Everyone in the world should know who the Pope is. It’s not vanity, it’s necessity.”
So declares John Malkovich in a fresh teaser trailer for The New Pope, HBO’s follow-up to 2016’s The Young Pope.
More from TVLineThe New Pope: Jude Law 'Suits' Up (and Turns Heads) in First TeaserMarilyn Manson Joins HBO's The New PopeWatchmen's Jean Smart Talks Laurie's Heroic History, 'Defense Mechanisms' and That Big Blue... Memento
Academy Award-winning director Paolo Sorrentino directed and co-wrote all nine episodes of what is his second limited series set in the world of the modern papacy. Jude Law reprises his role as Lenny,...
So declares John Malkovich in a fresh teaser trailer for The New Pope, HBO’s follow-up to 2016’s The Young Pope.
More from TVLineThe New Pope: Jude Law 'Suits' Up (and Turns Heads) in First TeaserMarilyn Manson Joins HBO's The New PopeWatchmen's Jean Smart Talks Laurie's Heroic History, 'Defense Mechanisms' and That Big Blue... Memento
Academy Award-winning director Paolo Sorrentino directed and co-wrote all nine episodes of what is his second limited series set in the world of the modern papacy. Jude Law reprises his role as Lenny,...
- 11/3/2019
- TVLine.com
Let’s face it. You’ve done a lot of things your life. Accomplishments, achievements. Hopes, dreams.
But have you ever convinced HBO and Sky to fund a day of shooting where Jude Law walks on a beach underneath a tunnel of women bumping volleyballs over his head? Paolo Sorrentino sure has. And so begins the long meme-ified journey to the release of “The New Pope.”
The awaited follow-up to “The Young Pope,” the unclassifiable limited series that first made its debut in the fall of 2016, “The New Pope” looks set to bring its pontiff-related antics to new heights. Sure, Lenny Belardo (Law) isn’t emerging from a giant mound of babies. But it does have slo-mo beach activities set to an instrumental cover of “All Along the Watchtower,” so that seems like something.
As with its predecessor, “The New Pope” will make its debut in Venice next month. Sorrentino...
But have you ever convinced HBO and Sky to fund a day of shooting where Jude Law walks on a beach underneath a tunnel of women bumping volleyballs over his head? Paolo Sorrentino sure has. And so begins the long meme-ified journey to the release of “The New Pope.”
The awaited follow-up to “The Young Pope,” the unclassifiable limited series that first made its debut in the fall of 2016, “The New Pope” looks set to bring its pontiff-related antics to new heights. Sure, Lenny Belardo (Law) isn’t emerging from a giant mound of babies. But it does have slo-mo beach activities set to an instrumental cover of “All Along the Watchtower,” so that seems like something.
As with its predecessor, “The New Pope” will make its debut in Venice next month. Sorrentino...
- 8/28/2019
- by Steve Greene
- Indiewire
The first teaser trailer for The New Pope packs a punch with Jude Law and John Malkovich headlining the papal drama.
The series will get its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 1, as revealed by Deadline earlier this month.
Law, seen in the trailer parading on the beach in his underwear to Devlin’s Watchtower, returns alongside newcomers including Malkovich, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir and Massimo Ghini. Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier and Maurizio Lombardi also return.
Written by Sorrentino with his frequent Italian co-writer Umberto Contarello, who also served as co-writer on Young Pope, and Stefano Bises, The New Pope limited series also is set in the world of modern papacy. The New Pope, an original production of HBO-Sky-Canal+, is produced by Lorenzo Mieli and Mario Gianani for Wildside and co-produced by Mediapro. All eight episodes are being directed...
The series will get its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 1, as revealed by Deadline earlier this month.
Law, seen in the trailer parading on the beach in his underwear to Devlin’s Watchtower, returns alongside newcomers including Malkovich, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir and Massimo Ghini. Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier and Maurizio Lombardi also return.
Written by Sorrentino with his frequent Italian co-writer Umberto Contarello, who also served as co-writer on Young Pope, and Stefano Bises, The New Pope limited series also is set in the world of modern papacy. The New Pope, an original production of HBO-Sky-Canal+, is produced by Lorenzo Mieli and Mario Gianani for Wildside and co-produced by Mediapro. All eight episodes are being directed...
- 8/28/2019
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
HBO released a teaser for “The New Pope” starring Jude Law and John Malkovich on Wednesday, showing us the return of Law’s Pius Xiii and his heavenly body and the holy entrance of Malkovich’s new character — and his more traditional ways.
“The New Pope” is directed by Paolo Sorrentino, who wrote the series with Umberto Contarello and Stefano Bises. The Sky, HBO and Canal+ limited series, which will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival Sept. 1., marks Sorrentino’s second limited series set in the world of the modern papacy.
Watch the teaser for the nine-episode limited series above.
Also Read: John Malkovich to Star in HBO's 'Young Pope' Follow-Up Series With Jude Law
The original series, “The Young Pope,” also created and directed by Sorrentino, debuted on Sky in October 2016 and on HBO in January 2017. Law was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor...
“The New Pope” is directed by Paolo Sorrentino, who wrote the series with Umberto Contarello and Stefano Bises. The Sky, HBO and Canal+ limited series, which will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival Sept. 1., marks Sorrentino’s second limited series set in the world of the modern papacy.
Watch the teaser for the nine-episode limited series above.
Also Read: John Malkovich to Star in HBO's 'Young Pope' Follow-Up Series With Jude Law
The original series, “The Young Pope,” also created and directed by Sorrentino, debuted on Sky in October 2016 and on HBO in January 2017. Law was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor...
- 8/28/2019
- by Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
Time to meet The New Pope. HBO has just released the first photo (see above) from their upcoming follow-up series to The Young Pope.
From Paolo Sorrentino, the new drama will be "set in the world of the modern papacy" and star Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, and Massimo Ghini.
Read More…...
From Paolo Sorrentino, the new drama will be "set in the world of the modern papacy" and star Jude Law, John Malkovich, Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, Maurizio Lombardi, Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, Mark Ivanir, and Massimo Ghini.
Read More…...
- 1/10/2019
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
‘The New Pope’: HBO Gives First Look At Jude Law And John Malkovich; Unveils Cast For Limited Series
In the name of the father, son and holy Jude Law — HBO has released the first official image of The New Pope featuring two-time Academy Award nominees Law and John Malkovich serving some fierce papacy realness. The premium cabler also announced returning and new cast members for the limited series.
Joining Law and Malkovich are many of the returning cast from The Young Pope including Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, and Maurizio Lombardi. In addition to the recently announced Mark Ivanir, the new cast joining the limited series are Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, and Massimo Ghini.
Written by Sorrentino with his frequent Italian co-writer Umberto Contarello, who also served as co-writer on Young Pope, and Stefano Bises, The New Pope limited series also is set in the world of modern papacy. The New Pope, an original production of HBO-Sky-Canal+, is produced by Lorenzo Mieli and Mario Gianani for Wildside and co-produced by Mediapro. All eight episodes are being directed by Academy Award-winning director Paolo Sorrentino.
The Young Pope, created and directed by Sorrentino, debuted on Sky in October 2016 and on HBO in January 2017. The series aired in 150 territories.
Joining Law and Malkovich are many of the returning cast from The Young Pope including Silvio Orlando, Javier Cámara, Cécile de France, Ludivine Sagnier, and Maurizio Lombardi. In addition to the recently announced Mark Ivanir, the new cast joining the limited series are Henry Goodman, Ulrich Thomsen, and Massimo Ghini.
Written by Sorrentino with his frequent Italian co-writer Umberto Contarello, who also served as co-writer on Young Pope, and Stefano Bises, The New Pope limited series also is set in the world of modern papacy. The New Pope, an original production of HBO-Sky-Canal+, is produced by Lorenzo Mieli and Mario Gianani for Wildside and co-produced by Mediapro. All eight episodes are being directed by Academy Award-winning director Paolo Sorrentino.
The Young Pope, created and directed by Sorrentino, debuted on Sky in October 2016 and on HBO in January 2017. The series aired in 150 territories.
- 1/9/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Jude Law and John Malkovich join forces as two religious powerhouses in the first look at HBO’s “The New Pope.” The limited series is Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino’s follow-up to “The Young Pope,” which earned critical acclaim when it debuted on HBO in January 2017. Sorrentino is once again directing all eight episodes of the series and co-wrote the scripts with Umberto Contarello and Stefano Bises.
While HBO has debuted our first look at “The New Pope” above, the network is not giving any plot details away. Whether or not “The New Pope” is a continuation of the story in “The Young Pope” has yet to be confirmed, although the official photo suggests that’s the case as it features Jude Law looking very much like his original character Lenny Belardo/Pope Pius Xiii. John Malkovich’s casting was confirmed in July 2018, and the legendary actor is expected to...
While HBO has debuted our first look at “The New Pope” above, the network is not giving any plot details away. Whether or not “The New Pope” is a continuation of the story in “The Young Pope” has yet to be confirmed, although the official photo suggests that’s the case as it features Jude Law looking very much like his original character Lenny Belardo/Pope Pius Xiii. John Malkovich’s casting was confirmed in July 2018, and the legendary actor is expected to...
- 1/9/2019
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
His Holiness… es?
HBO has graced us with our first look at The New Pope, a sequel series to the 2017 miniseries The Young Pope, which starred Jude Law as brash fictional pontiff Lenny, aka Pope Pius Xiii. Based on the new photo above, Law will reprise his role as Lenny in the eight-episode series, joined by new cast addition John Malkovich. HBO is mum on Malkovich’s New Pope role, but judging by his pristine vestments and skullcap — not to mention the series title — we’re betting he’s Lenny replacement in the Vatican. (The Young Pope‘s finale ended with Lenny collapsing,...
HBO has graced us with our first look at The New Pope, a sequel series to the 2017 miniseries The Young Pope, which starred Jude Law as brash fictional pontiff Lenny, aka Pope Pius Xiii. Based on the new photo above, Law will reprise his role as Lenny in the eight-episode series, joined by new cast addition John Malkovich. HBO is mum on Malkovich’s New Pope role, but judging by his pristine vestments and skullcap — not to mention the series title — we’re betting he’s Lenny replacement in the Vatican. (The Young Pope‘s finale ended with Lenny collapsing,...
- 1/9/2019
- TVLine.com
A first-look image of Paolo Sorrentino’s TV series “The New Pope” has been released showing John Malkovich and Jude Law both wearing papal vestments, which appears to confirm rumors that Malkovich will play the new pontiff. The show is currently shooting in Venice.
Sky, HBO, and Canal Plus have also announced that “Homeland” star Mark Ivanir has joined the cast of “The New Pope,” as well as veteran British actor Henry Goodman (“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”); Denmark’s Ulrich Thomsen (“The Blacklist”); and Italy’s Massimo Ghini (“No Place Like Home”). Details are being kept under wraps about their roles in the limited eight-episode series, which is not, strictly speaking, a second season of “The Young Pope.”
Malkovich’s casting had been previously announced. Sharon Stone is also widely reported to be a guest star on “The New Pope,” but a representative for production company Wildside declined to comment Wednesday.
Sky, HBO, and Canal Plus have also announced that “Homeland” star Mark Ivanir has joined the cast of “The New Pope,” as well as veteran British actor Henry Goodman (“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”); Denmark’s Ulrich Thomsen (“The Blacklist”); and Italy’s Massimo Ghini (“No Place Like Home”). Details are being kept under wraps about their roles in the limited eight-episode series, which is not, strictly speaking, a second season of “The Young Pope.”
Malkovich’s casting had been previously announced. Sharon Stone is also widely reported to be a guest star on “The New Pope,” but a representative for production company Wildside declined to comment Wednesday.
- 1/9/2019
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Joseph Baxter Jan 9, 2019
The New Pope, HBO’s sequel series to The Young Pope, will see return Jude Law joined by co-star John Malkovich.
While HBO’s 2016 series The Young Pope was intended as a limited series prestige project from BAFTA-winning director Paolo Sorrentino, plans subsequently emerged for a follow-up series, titled The New Pope. Indeed, the follow up series will showcase a new pope, since HBO has sent white smoke signals of confirmation for Oscar-winning actor John Malkovich.
John Malkovich was revealed as the star of HBO’s The New Pope back in July. While the details of Malkovich’s character were not provided (and remain scarce as of this January 9 update), the very title of the follow-up series does little to hide the fate of said character. While the title, The New Pope, has been known for over a year, having arrived quickly after The Young Pope completed its run,...
The New Pope, HBO’s sequel series to The Young Pope, will see return Jude Law joined by co-star John Malkovich.
While HBO’s 2016 series The Young Pope was intended as a limited series prestige project from BAFTA-winning director Paolo Sorrentino, plans subsequently emerged for a follow-up series, titled The New Pope. Indeed, the follow up series will showcase a new pope, since HBO has sent white smoke signals of confirmation for Oscar-winning actor John Malkovich.
John Malkovich was revealed as the star of HBO’s The New Pope back in July. While the details of Malkovich’s character were not provided (and remain scarce as of this January 9 update), the very title of the follow-up series does little to hide the fate of said character. While the title, The New Pope, has been known for over a year, having arrived quickly after The Young Pope completed its run,...
- 7/2/2018
- Den of Geek
After numerous delays in voting to make it official, Marco Müller has been appointed as artistic director of the International Rome Film Festival. It's a significant move toward raising the profile of the festival. This comes after Müller was not asked back to his role in the same position at the Venice Film Festival -- which clearly overshadows Rome as Italy's most renowned film festival -- earlier this year, which followed 8 years in that position. Previous to that, he had worked for both Rotterdam and Locarno. Müller's appointment by the board of directors of the Cinema per Roma Foundation, chaired by President Paolo Ferrari and board members: Michele Lo Foco (The City of Rome), Salvatore Ronghi (Lazio Region), Massimo Ghini (Province of Rome), Andrea Mondello (Rome Chamber of Commerce) e Carlo Fuortes (Musica per Roma Fondation). "I am really satisfied with this election of Marco Müller as artistic director of the International.
- 3/16/2012
- by Peter Knegt
- Indiewire
Christian De Sica attends Natale in Sud Africa Rome Photocall.Photo copyright Insidefoto / PR Photos. Christian De Sica, Massimo Ghini, Giorgio Panariello and Max Tortora attend Natale in Sud Africa Rome Photocall.Photo copyright Insidefoto / PR Photos. Laura Esquivel, Serena Autieri, Barbara Tabita and Belen Rodriguez attend Natale in Sud Africa Rome Photocall.Photo copyright Insidefoto / PR Photos. Christian De Sica attends Natale in Sud Africa Rome Photocall.Photo copyright Insidefoto / PR Photos. Serena Autieriattends Natale in Sud Africa Rome Photocall.Photo copyright Insidefoto / PR Photos. 12/16/2010 - Belen Rodriguez - "Natale in Sud Africa" Rome Photocall - Rome - Rome, Italy © Insidefoto / PR Photos 12/16/2010 - Belen Rodriguez - "Natale in...
- 12/19/2010
- by Michelle Wray
- Monsters and Critics
Based on a Somerset Maugham novella set in Fascist Italy during the late 1930s, "Up at the Villa" meticulously portrays an expatriate community going to seed, where the pursuit of indolent pleasure supersedes any concern over impending world calamity.
Kristin Scott Thomas plays a sophisticated but curiously naive widow caught up in this insular milieu with the kind of cool passion that has become her trademark. Her journey of self-
discovery is the focal point of this impeccably realized period film geared for adult audiences.
Combining a comedy of manners with sudden death, dangerous liaisons and a tincture of political intrigue, "Villa" should enjoy success with that audience. But it is unlikely to move outside of the specialty market since, not unlike the characters it portrays, the film has an inclination to look away when sex or bloodshed appears. As with other works by Philip and Belinda Haas -- whose films include "Angels and Insects" and "The Music of Chance" -- "Villa" is coolly cerebral even when passions run hot.
The Haases -- he directs and she writes as well as edits -- view human beings as a vaguely exotic species, capable of behavior that fascinates and repels in equal measure. But the characters here, no matter how vividly played, tend toward such overly familiar types as the penniless English widow, the rakish American playboy (Sean Penn) and the social butterfly (Anne Bancroft) with a high title and low morals.
Scott Thomas plays Mary Panton, living off the kindness of friends in the expat community of 1938 Florence. She has borrowed a breathtaking villa for an indeterminate period of time -- which translates as until she finds a suitably wealthy husband.
The movie's first dress ball has barely finished before that problem is apparently solved. Sir Edgar Swift (James Fox), a friend since her childhood, comes calling with a stiff but proper proposal of marriage. While Princess San Ferdinando (Bancroft) pragmatically urges this union, she nonetheless sets Mary up at her next party with Rowley Flint (Penn), a married American who carries a certain reputation with women.
At the same party, Mary also receives the attentions of a hard-hearted Fascist officer (Massimo Ghini). But, inconceivably, she ends up that night, on an impulse, with an impoverished Austrian refugee (Jeremy Davies).
Not understanding the rules of this society's games, the refugee confuses Mary's sexual slumming for true love and shows up in her bedroom the following night. Following her ignominious rejection of him, he attempts a rape. A gun -- belonging to Sir Edgar -- is produced and it discharges. The young man has committed suicide. Turning to Rowley for help, she disposes of the body. But the next day, Rowley is imprisoned and she must resort to theft and blackmail to extricate him from jail.
Most of Maugham's story transfers smoothly from page to screen with a couple of exceptions. The details of Rowley's detention and the possession of Sir Edgar's gun are vague. And the introduction into the story of Lucky Leadbetter (Derek Jacobi), a witty, cynical outsider among the expats, is poorly handled and, in the end, his character is all too extraneous.
But Thomas brilliantly carries the movie, playing the roller coaster of emotions -- one moment tender and the next virtually heartless -- with enough delicate nuances that she never loses the audience's empathy. And Bancroft glories in a role that invites carefully calibrated histrionics.
Other actors aren't so lucky. Neither Penn nor Davies looks entirely comfortable in these period roles. Penn in particular appears so straitjacketed that no real character emerges from his ingratiating smile and smart clothes. Fox and Jacobi are essentially rehashing roles they've played elsewhere, and better.
Maurizio Calvesi's cinematography and Paul Brown's production design catch a sinister darkness amid Florence's ageless beauty and haunting statuary. And period details are perfectly evoked down to the dowdy fashions -- also by Brown -- that so poorly flatter the feminine form.
UP AT THE VILLA
USA Films
October Films and Intermedia Films presents a Mirage/Stanley Buchthal production
Producer: Geoff Stier
Director: Philip Haas
Writer: Brenda Haas
Based on a novella by: W. Somerset Maugham
Executive producers: Sydney Pollack, Arnon Milchan, Stanley Buchthal
Co-executive producers: Guy East, Nigel Sinclair
Director of photography: Maurizio Calvesi
Production and costume designer: Paul Brown
Music: Pino Donaggio
Co-producer: David Brown
Editor: Belinda Haas
Color/stereo
Cast:
Mary Panton: Kristin Scott Thomas
Rowley Flint: Sean Penn
Princess San Ferdinando: Anne Bancroft
Sir Edgar Swift: James Fox
Karl Richter: Jeremy Davies
Lucky Leadbetter: Derek Jacobi
Running time -- 115 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Kristin Scott Thomas plays a sophisticated but curiously naive widow caught up in this insular milieu with the kind of cool passion that has become her trademark. Her journey of self-
discovery is the focal point of this impeccably realized period film geared for adult audiences.
Combining a comedy of manners with sudden death, dangerous liaisons and a tincture of political intrigue, "Villa" should enjoy success with that audience. But it is unlikely to move outside of the specialty market since, not unlike the characters it portrays, the film has an inclination to look away when sex or bloodshed appears. As with other works by Philip and Belinda Haas -- whose films include "Angels and Insects" and "The Music of Chance" -- "Villa" is coolly cerebral even when passions run hot.
The Haases -- he directs and she writes as well as edits -- view human beings as a vaguely exotic species, capable of behavior that fascinates and repels in equal measure. But the characters here, no matter how vividly played, tend toward such overly familiar types as the penniless English widow, the rakish American playboy (Sean Penn) and the social butterfly (Anne Bancroft) with a high title and low morals.
Scott Thomas plays Mary Panton, living off the kindness of friends in the expat community of 1938 Florence. She has borrowed a breathtaking villa for an indeterminate period of time -- which translates as until she finds a suitably wealthy husband.
The movie's first dress ball has barely finished before that problem is apparently solved. Sir Edgar Swift (James Fox), a friend since her childhood, comes calling with a stiff but proper proposal of marriage. While Princess San Ferdinando (Bancroft) pragmatically urges this union, she nonetheless sets Mary up at her next party with Rowley Flint (Penn), a married American who carries a certain reputation with women.
At the same party, Mary also receives the attentions of a hard-hearted Fascist officer (Massimo Ghini). But, inconceivably, she ends up that night, on an impulse, with an impoverished Austrian refugee (Jeremy Davies).
Not understanding the rules of this society's games, the refugee confuses Mary's sexual slumming for true love and shows up in her bedroom the following night. Following her ignominious rejection of him, he attempts a rape. A gun -- belonging to Sir Edgar -- is produced and it discharges. The young man has committed suicide. Turning to Rowley for help, she disposes of the body. But the next day, Rowley is imprisoned and she must resort to theft and blackmail to extricate him from jail.
Most of Maugham's story transfers smoothly from page to screen with a couple of exceptions. The details of Rowley's detention and the possession of Sir Edgar's gun are vague. And the introduction into the story of Lucky Leadbetter (Derek Jacobi), a witty, cynical outsider among the expats, is poorly handled and, in the end, his character is all too extraneous.
But Thomas brilliantly carries the movie, playing the roller coaster of emotions -- one moment tender and the next virtually heartless -- with enough delicate nuances that she never loses the audience's empathy. And Bancroft glories in a role that invites carefully calibrated histrionics.
Other actors aren't so lucky. Neither Penn nor Davies looks entirely comfortable in these period roles. Penn in particular appears so straitjacketed that no real character emerges from his ingratiating smile and smart clothes. Fox and Jacobi are essentially rehashing roles they've played elsewhere, and better.
Maurizio Calvesi's cinematography and Paul Brown's production design catch a sinister darkness amid Florence's ageless beauty and haunting statuary. And period details are perfectly evoked down to the dowdy fashions -- also by Brown -- that so poorly flatter the feminine form.
UP AT THE VILLA
USA Films
October Films and Intermedia Films presents a Mirage/Stanley Buchthal production
Producer: Geoff Stier
Director: Philip Haas
Writer: Brenda Haas
Based on a novella by: W. Somerset Maugham
Executive producers: Sydney Pollack, Arnon Milchan, Stanley Buchthal
Co-executive producers: Guy East, Nigel Sinclair
Director of photography: Maurizio Calvesi
Production and costume designer: Paul Brown
Music: Pino Donaggio
Co-producer: David Brown
Editor: Belinda Haas
Color/stereo
Cast:
Mary Panton: Kristin Scott Thomas
Rowley Flint: Sean Penn
Princess San Ferdinando: Anne Bancroft
Sir Edgar Swift: James Fox
Karl Richter: Jeremy Davies
Lucky Leadbetter: Derek Jacobi
Running time -- 115 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 4/28/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In "The Truce", Francesco Rosi achieves something amazing: He's made a big, extroverted historical drama, complete with vast landscapes and swarms of extras, that also succeeds in evoking the most fragile, constantly shifting emotional states of its characters.
"The Truce" has an authentic spiritual dimension, a passion to separate the essential from the ephemeral in its exploration of human nature.
Based on Primo Levi's classic memoir "La Tregua" (The Reawakening), an account of the author's circuitous journey home to Italy after his liberation from Auschwitz in 1945, "The Truce" gets its strongest effects in some of its gentlest moments -- such as the expression of personal triumph on a man's face as he hands a precious slab of bread to a friend, realizing at that moment that despite all he's been through, his humanity hasn't been obliterated.
Levi, a research chemist by profession, described the experience of imprisonment and liberation with ferocious precision in three books, including "Survival in Auschwitz" and "Moments of Reprieve" in addition to "The Reawakening". Only a few scenes here depict the camps in operation, and then only in brief flashbacks, but their soul-squeezing atmosphere is vividly evoked in the behavior and body language of newly liberated prisoners.
Rosi has always had a special gift for using landscapes and enclosed architectural spaces expressively: the enveloping, official corridors of "Illustrious Corpses" (1976); the oddly canted perspectives of a sun-baked village perched on a mountaintop in "Christ Stopped at Eboli" (1979). In "The Truce", a journey from the cramped, gray chambers of Auschwitz into the desolate expanse of postwar Europe -- snaking across half the continent, deep into Russia and back out again, on foot and by train -- mirrors the expansion of constricted human spirits.
The larger mysteries of Levi's life, the evolution of the clenched prisoner of the memoirs into the acclaimed writer of playful essays and metafictional tales "The Periodic Table" and "The Monkey's Wrench" -- not to mention the forces that drove him to suicide in 1987 -- are beyond the scope of this, and perhaps any, film. But we see the beginnings of the process; and what's more, we feel them.
Rosi's sensuous approach turns out to be a perfect match for this material because so much of Levi's struggle to reconnect with the world is visual. Words like "seeing" or "observing" just don't measure up to the urgency of Levi's gaze; he seems to be interrogating reality, trying to peer all the way down into it, mining it for secrets that can help him reawaken.
John Turturro, as Levi, damps his trademark eruptive energy way down; the force of his personality remains, but as an impacted ember of intelligence. Speaking English with a soft Italian accent, Turturro shows the desperate intensity of Primo's watchfulness. "You are a scientist", a friend tells him. "You notice things". It's a description not only of a personality trait but also of the vocation Levi discovered at Auschwitz, to become a "witness" to the Holocaust. Where other prisoners burn their camp uniforms and seek to purge the experience from memory, Levi carefully saves his numbered prison shirt and wears it always under his new clothes.
There are aspects of Levi's account, especially its questing, analytical intelligence, that don't come across as powerfully onscreen as they do in print. When Turturro is required to recite some of Levi's written observations as lines of dialogue, his otherwise fine, fluid performance stiffens up.
"The Truce" is a great film in its ultimate effects, if not in every last detail. The decision to film the story in English, to build the film linguistically around Turturro, puts some of the European actors in supporting roles in an uncomfortable position, struggling with pronunciation when they should be living in the characters. Massimo Ghini, as Primo's ebullient buddy Cesare, and Agnieszka Wagner, as a radiant dumpling of a Russian nurse who plays a key role in reawakening Levi's senses, rise to the occasion. But Yugoslavian actor Rade Serbedzija turns one of Levi's pivotal traveling companions, a domineering, shrewd operator known only as the Greek, into a sub-Zorba stereotype.
In this context, though, all particular complaints are quibbles. What matters most about "The Truce" is that Rosi's magnificent film is altogether worthy of its subject.
THE TRUCE
Miramax Films
Director; Francesco Rosi
Screenplay; Francesco Rosi,
Stefano Rulli, Sandra Petraglia
Based on the book "La Tregua" (The Reawakening) by:; Primo Levi
Producers; Leo Pescarolo, Guido De Laurentiis
Directors of photography; Pasqualini De Santis, Marco Pontecorvo
Editors; Ruggero Mastroianni,
Bruno Sarandrea
Music; Luis Bacalov
Color
Cast:
Primo; John Turturro
Cesare; Massimo Ghini
The Greek; Rade Serbedzija
Daniele; Stefano Dionisi
Colonel Rovi; Teco Celio
Galina; Agnieszka Wagner
Flora; Lorenza Indovina
Running time -- 116 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
"The Truce" has an authentic spiritual dimension, a passion to separate the essential from the ephemeral in its exploration of human nature.
Based on Primo Levi's classic memoir "La Tregua" (The Reawakening), an account of the author's circuitous journey home to Italy after his liberation from Auschwitz in 1945, "The Truce" gets its strongest effects in some of its gentlest moments -- such as the expression of personal triumph on a man's face as he hands a precious slab of bread to a friend, realizing at that moment that despite all he's been through, his humanity hasn't been obliterated.
Levi, a research chemist by profession, described the experience of imprisonment and liberation with ferocious precision in three books, including "Survival in Auschwitz" and "Moments of Reprieve" in addition to "The Reawakening". Only a few scenes here depict the camps in operation, and then only in brief flashbacks, but their soul-squeezing atmosphere is vividly evoked in the behavior and body language of newly liberated prisoners.
Rosi has always had a special gift for using landscapes and enclosed architectural spaces expressively: the enveloping, official corridors of "Illustrious Corpses" (1976); the oddly canted perspectives of a sun-baked village perched on a mountaintop in "Christ Stopped at Eboli" (1979). In "The Truce", a journey from the cramped, gray chambers of Auschwitz into the desolate expanse of postwar Europe -- snaking across half the continent, deep into Russia and back out again, on foot and by train -- mirrors the expansion of constricted human spirits.
The larger mysteries of Levi's life, the evolution of the clenched prisoner of the memoirs into the acclaimed writer of playful essays and metafictional tales "The Periodic Table" and "The Monkey's Wrench" -- not to mention the forces that drove him to suicide in 1987 -- are beyond the scope of this, and perhaps any, film. But we see the beginnings of the process; and what's more, we feel them.
Rosi's sensuous approach turns out to be a perfect match for this material because so much of Levi's struggle to reconnect with the world is visual. Words like "seeing" or "observing" just don't measure up to the urgency of Levi's gaze; he seems to be interrogating reality, trying to peer all the way down into it, mining it for secrets that can help him reawaken.
John Turturro, as Levi, damps his trademark eruptive energy way down; the force of his personality remains, but as an impacted ember of intelligence. Speaking English with a soft Italian accent, Turturro shows the desperate intensity of Primo's watchfulness. "You are a scientist", a friend tells him. "You notice things". It's a description not only of a personality trait but also of the vocation Levi discovered at Auschwitz, to become a "witness" to the Holocaust. Where other prisoners burn their camp uniforms and seek to purge the experience from memory, Levi carefully saves his numbered prison shirt and wears it always under his new clothes.
There are aspects of Levi's account, especially its questing, analytical intelligence, that don't come across as powerfully onscreen as they do in print. When Turturro is required to recite some of Levi's written observations as lines of dialogue, his otherwise fine, fluid performance stiffens up.
"The Truce" is a great film in its ultimate effects, if not in every last detail. The decision to film the story in English, to build the film linguistically around Turturro, puts some of the European actors in supporting roles in an uncomfortable position, struggling with pronunciation when they should be living in the characters. Massimo Ghini, as Primo's ebullient buddy Cesare, and Agnieszka Wagner, as a radiant dumpling of a Russian nurse who plays a key role in reawakening Levi's senses, rise to the occasion. But Yugoslavian actor Rade Serbedzija turns one of Levi's pivotal traveling companions, a domineering, shrewd operator known only as the Greek, into a sub-Zorba stereotype.
In this context, though, all particular complaints are quibbles. What matters most about "The Truce" is that Rosi's magnificent film is altogether worthy of its subject.
THE TRUCE
Miramax Films
Director; Francesco Rosi
Screenplay; Francesco Rosi,
Stefano Rulli, Sandra Petraglia
Based on the book "La Tregua" (The Reawakening) by:; Primo Levi
Producers; Leo Pescarolo, Guido De Laurentiis
Directors of photography; Pasqualini De Santis, Marco Pontecorvo
Editors; Ruggero Mastroianni,
Bruno Sarandrea
Music; Luis Bacalov
Color
Cast:
Primo; John Turturro
Cesare; Massimo Ghini
The Greek; Rade Serbedzija
Daniele; Stefano Dionisi
Colonel Rovi; Teco Celio
Galina; Agnieszka Wagner
Flora; Lorenza Indovina
Running time -- 116 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 4/24/1998
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Today
THE GAME BAG (IL CARNIERI)
5 p.m., Mann's Chinese
(also 2:30 p.m. Monday, Monica)
Three Italian tourists on a hunting trip to the Balkan peninsula run into more trouble than they ever imagined when they get caught up in the Serbo-Croatian war.
Travelers Renzo (Massimo Ghini), Paolo (Antonio Catania) and Roberto Roberto Zibetti) press on toward a game reserve despite rumors of unrest in Yugoslavia. When their guide misses a rendezvous, they enlist the aid of the hunter's daughter, Rada (Paraskeva Djukelova), to guide them.
Following a hunting accident, they seek medical aid in the city, are rousted by local police officials and forced to flee to a once-luxury hotel with dozens of other refugees. Sniper fire blasts the hotel constantly. The irony of hunters becoming prey is not lost on the party.
"The Game Bag", directed by Maurizio Zaccaro, effectively paints the picture of war-torn city streets, hopeless refugees and grim civil war with the pathos of relatives torn apart by conflict.
Vivid photography, believable characterizations and a claustrophobic tale make this a worthwhile feature. The Italian film, subtitled, is likely to get good play in foreign-language venues.
Michael Farkash
THE BIG EMPTY
8:15 p.m., Monica
(also 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Monica)
It's always a pleasure when a genre gets a thoughtful twist. "The Big Empty" takes us on a bleak spin into the world of a private detective, a case of marital infidelity and the question of faith.
In this oddly stylized, sometimes dryly funny production, Lloyd Meadows (James McManus, who also wrote the script) is an alienated waiter who becomes an alienated private eye. His romantic ideals pretty much dissolve as the cases that come his way turn out to be ugly ones -- like getting the goods on unfaithful partners.
When Jane Danforth (Ellen Goldwasser) steps into his life, he finds himself attracted to her innocence and looks -- with the darker side of him torn between shattering her illusions and protecting her. Was her husband, Peter (Pablo Bryant) faithless, or is it all a misunderstanding?
Lloyd probes deeper and deeper into the couple's lives, his alliances continually shifting as some disturbing secrets are manifested.
Viewers will find themselves captivated by the plight of these three characters, even though the stylized acting work at times is so-so.
The story is rough and could benefit from more judicious editing, but director Jack Perez is someone to watch with this ambitious, worthwhile venture. Production values are decent, and music (credit Jean-Michel Michenaud) is truly interesting.
There's a good chance that this film will be one of those to make it out of the festival circuit and gain some attention from art house audiences.
Michael Farkash
Sweet Jane
10:45 p.m., Monica
(also 6 p.m. Sunday, Monica)
Taking its title from the Lou Reed song and its thematic cues from "Midnight Cowboy" and "Trainspotting", screenwriter Joe Gayton's ("Uncommon Valor", "Bulletproof") feature directorial debut nevertheless has something fresh to offer thanks mainly to its lead performances.
As Jane, a heroin addict who barely survives an overdose only to be informed she's HIV-positive, the always interesting Samantha Mathis does her most adult work to date. Meanwhile, Joseph Gordon-Levitt ("3rd Rock From the Sun"), in the role of a 15-year-old in the advanced stages of the disease who picks Jane as his guardian angel, is similarly impressive.
While the salvation motif is somewhat shopworn, the young actors infuse the production with an affecting vitality.
Michael Rechtshaffen
Saturday
PERFECT MOMENT
12:15 p.m.,
Hollywood Galaxy
(also 6 p.m. Thursday, Monica)
"If you were to die tomorrow, what moment would you most remember and how did it change your life?" More than 80 people are asked that question in "Perfect Moment", and the answers are often poignant and affecting.
Writer-director Nicholas Hondrogen, in his classy, disturbing but overlong documentary, notes that all profits are to be donated to AIDS assistance, although AIDS is only one of the preoccupations expressed here.
In the documentary are images of birth, realized mortality and rape. Composer Philip Glass and others remember the birth of their children as electrifying moments; broadcaster Larry King recalls the heart attack that changed his life; and a Los Angeles actress recalls the details of her terrifying rape.
The filmmaker also turns the camera on himself, moving nude about his apartment, expressing doubts about his film, philosophizing and even setting up some visual images -- including showing a gasping fish out of water to bring home a point about suffering.
"Perfect Moment", which won the Audience Awards at the 1997 Slamdance International Film Festival, focuses on a number of fascinating personalities. Nevertheless, the documentary could benefit from a little judicious cutting. We'd probably take more away with us if there were less voices presented.
Michael Farkash
HANDS ON A HARDBODY
1:30 p.m., Monica
(also 3 p.m. Tuesday, Hollywood Galaxy)
While the title may certainly sound provocative, the hardbody in question is actually a shiny new Nissan pick-up truck and the hands belong to two dozen Longview, Texas, hopefuls determined to take it home at the end of a grueling endurance test.
S.R. Bindler's amusing and unexpectedly stirring documentary keeps tabs on a select grouping of the competitors who must keep at least one hand on the object of their desire at all times, not counting brief hourly food and bathroom breaks. Three days later a dazed and confused winner will emerge, but along the way we get to know some of the annual contest's livelier participants.
Serving as an unofficial guide is former winner and return competitor Benny Perkins, who offers up such morsels of wisdom as "When you lose your mind, you lose the contest" with the centered tranquility of a Zen master.
Michael Rechtshaffen
MARQUISE
2:10 p.m., Mann's Chinese
(also 10 a.m. Sunday, Hollywood Galaxy)
Films about the theater are many, and, unfortunately, tend to be filmed as if they were stage presentations. Such is the aesthetic of "Marquise", a sprawling look into the backstage world of Moliere.
Centered around Marquise (Sophie Marceau), a beautiful wench who wins her way into the fabled French troupe using her dancing prowess, not to mention her pelvic gyrations, "Marquise" is certainly no marquee production. Static, verbose and distended, this French film is mired in the conventions of the stage musical. Always populated by a screenful of highly costumed yowlers, "Marquise" is a mishmash of overblown characterizations. Its feeble plottings are generally advanced by desultory dialogue, usually shouted out in turn by a bevy of background characters.
Undeniably, it does provide an educational and amusing glimpse into the inner court of Louis XIV and a peek into the less-than-sparkling incandescence of Versailles.
Duane Byrge
LOVER GIRL
7:45 p.m., Monica
(also 8:45 p.m. Tuesday, Monica)
Destined to outrage some viewers but winning points for its frank approach to a sticky subject, "Lover Girl" is a tight and well-realized comedy-drama about a runaway 16-year-old-girl (Tara Subkoff) seeking shelter and eventually employment from a tough woman (Sandra Bernhard) who manages a massage parlor where sexual activity is de rigueur. At first the lead, whose adventuresome mother has vanished, appeals to her wild sister (Kristy Swanson), but she is quickly rebuffed and seeks a friendly port elsewhere.
Subkoff is superb as the affable new girl who doesn't follow strict orders to stay away from the clients when she hangs around the parlor. One thing leads to another and she becomes a clandestine employee, but her bonding with Bernhard's character makes her jealous sister come looking for work and jumping at the chance to earn good money. Soon, both siblings end up briefly (and uncomfortably) in the same room with a customer prepared for action and the rocky extended family begins to unravel.
The ensemble cast is amply fleshed out and the lead's eventual disenchantment with all around her is preordained. But the film's end is a bit too precious given the often acidic nature of the ongoing conflicts and heated rows she's caused.
Nonetheless, "Lover Girl" is a strong feature debut from filmmaking duo Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse and could find an enthusiastic following in limited release with the proper handling.
David Hunter
REAL STORIES OF THE DONUT MEN
10:15 p.m., Monica
(also 5 p.m. Monday, Monica)
A Latino filmmaker's skirmish with the authorities over his illegally parked car leads to a goofy voyage down the rabbit hole in "Real Stories of the Donut Men" -- Donut Men is a reference to policemen.
Juan Pelotes (Randy Gatica), after a beating by police, trips into strange territory that has only a marginal relationship to reality. Life for him turns into a sort of underground comic book, with cleverly subversive philosophizing.
In writer-director Beeaje Quick's black-and-white film, Juan suddenly becomes a computer hacker, disables the police computer, and arranges for two anarchistic punk rockers to be set up as motorcycle cops.
For a full day, the two punk rockers throw their weight around -- director Quick playing Officer Homes, and Ignacio Alvarez playing Officer God. The two cops are deadpan, mean, and on a counter-culture rampage of absolute power. They enforce street punks' right to play their boom boxes loudly. They harass beautiful women. They beat up innocent squares.
Some of the high jinks are on target, some are muddled misses. It's clear that the director is spoofing the bureaucracy, but many of his points of view are murky.
This is the stuff of midnight art house venues, where "Real Stories" may have limited cult appeal. For the viewer in search of a giddy alternative film, with Three Stooges sensibilities in the mix, there's some funny stuff.
Michael Farkash
PUNCHING THE CLOWN: A PORTRAIT OF HENRY PHILLIPS
10:30 p.m., Monica
(also 2:15 p.m. Thursday, Hollywood Galaxy)
More mockumentary than documentary, this portrait of Los Angeles-based satirical singer-songwriter Henry Phillips is at its best when it sticks to the latter.
The fictionalized portions, in which director Gregori Viens plays Phillips' affected French buddy Fabrice, aren't half as amusing as the pair apparently think they are. But "Punching the Clown" (a euphemism for a notorious solo activity) is most effective when it lets the singing do the talking.
Phillips' edgy songs, captured in black-and-white live performance footage, are actually quite good in a Tom Lehrer-meets-Lenny Bruce kind of way, with each innocent, pretty melody effectively counterpointed by a dark, downward spiral of caustic social commentary.
Michael Rechtshaffen
Sunday
ELLES
1:15 p.m., Monica
(also 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Hollywood Galaxy)
It may have enough soapy subplots to fuel a season of "Melrose Place", but what Luis Galvao Teles' "romantic comedy about the female sex" may lack in restrained refinement, it makes up for quite nicely with delectable performances from some of Europe's most fascinating actresses.
Besides looking absolutely terrific, Miou-Miou (as a school teacher who's having an affair with a lovestruck student), Marthe Keller (as said student's hypochondriacal mother and said teacher's good friend), Marisa Berenson (as the proprietor of an exclusive beauty salon) and Carmen Maura (as a busy TV journalist with a faltering marriage) do finely seasoned ensemble work along with the fifth "elle" of the title, singer-dancer Guesch Patti as a hyper chanteuse.
Life should be so glamorous.
Michael Rechtshaffen
BEST MAN
3:15 p.m., Monica
(also 7:15 p.m. Thursday, Mann's Chinese)
In 1976, documentary filmmaker Ira Wohl took home an Oscar for "Best Boy", a moving portrait of his 50-year-old, mentally retarded cousin Philly, whose aging parents were no longer able to care for him at home.
Two decades later, Wohl's equally affecting follow-up finds Philly just as spirited as ever despite the arthritis that has begun settling in on the eve of his 70th birthday. And once again, Wohl isn't exactly an innocent bystander. Having last time made an on-camera push for Philly to move into a group residence, this time he campaigns for his cousin to have his Bar Mitzvah, albeit 57 years late.
Once again Wohl's probing camera reveals a lot about family dynamics -- be it Philly's surrogate group home siblings or his colorful sister Frances, who functions as Philly's primary noninstitutional care-giver and a central figure in her own right.
Michael Rechtshaffen
THE WINGS OF A DOVE
7:30 p.m., Monica
Henry James was never more eloquently saluted than in this sterling adaptation of "The Wings of the Dove", one of his later novels. Scrumptiously realized, this Miramax release is a brilliantly polished work but one that has not been overrubbed as to wear off its human energy.
For those weary of the pretensions of the old-furniture genre -- namely those period classics that have been dusted off for highbrow audiences and presented with the detached dispatch of an elderly major-domo -- this Iain Softley-directed work is an exuberant, refined yet earthy affair.
In this gilded gem, the cast is magnificent. Helena Bonham Carter is aswirl with unresolved passions, while Linus Roache as her intrepid admirer is a keen mix of assertiveness and agony.
Duane Byrge
THE WITMAN BOYS
9:45 p.m., Monica
(also 2 p.m. Wednesday, Mann's Chinese)
For those who couldn't get enough of animal torture in "Gummo" comes "The Witman Boys", a chilly, clinical narrative of two young boys who, in the aftermath of their father's unexpected death, descend into a life of debauchery and sadism. However, this film is an unremarkable, old-stuff yarn that will enlighten no one in this Menendez brothers era.
Set on the eve of World War I in a tiny, Hungarian town, "The Witman Boys" is an icy, expressionistic tale of cunning and cruelty that, perhaps, is Hungary's version of Leopold/Loeb.
While screenwriter-director Janos Szasz ("Woyzek") intelligently lays out the boys' psychopathic proclivities, the narrative is so straightforwardly shaven as to be simplistic.
Duane Byrge
CHARACTER
10:15 p.m., Mann's Chinese
(also 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Monica)
A winner at the recent Golden Calf Awards, the Dutch equivalent of the Oscars, Mike van Diem's ambitious directorial debut is based on a celebrated novel by F. Bordewijk set in 1920s Holland. The performance by Belgian actor Jan Decleir as a monstrous civil servant and evil parent is a standout in the engrossing but downbeat tale of an illegitimate child's frustrating youth and young adulthood in the shadow of his powerful father.
Co-starring Fredja van Huer, Victor Low and Hans Kesting, van Diem's well-paced and richly mounted film begins and ends with the circumstances surrounding the suspicious death of Decleir's chillingly remote and unforgiving character, who opposes his industrious bastard's business enterprises and otherwise appears to have an unapologetic mean streak, both toward his own flesh and blood and the poor people he evicts with such grim enjoyment.
One longs for his comeuppance, but the director does not deny him a shred of humanity while his beleaguered offspring is pushed to the breaking point and contemplates the ultimate revenge.
David Hunter
COST OF LIVING
10:30 p.m., Monica
(also 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, Monica)
A mysterious drifter named Billie finds her journey of fierce independence derailed in a small fishing village, where she runs afoul of a couple of local guys and has her bankroll stolen by person or persons unknown.
In "Cost of Living", Edie Falco brings the character of Billie to compelling life. A woman on the run, scam artist Billie doesn't take nothing from nobody. She's also closed-mouthed about herself. But the more she conceals her past, the more we want to learn about this woman.
That enigmatic, dangerous past starts catching up with Billie as she lingers too long in the town. She's been done wrong by a fisherman and stays for payback. Soon, other dangers are popping up, including the lure of true love.
Falco's hard-edged take on the role of Billie, who must eventually choose between love and survival, is heartfelt and revealing in this character-driven tale. The episodic, stop-start feel of the work does not matter that much as long as we can watch Falco in action.
Despite the memorable characters, director Stan Schofield has assembled an uneven film with too many loose threads. The plot could have been made a bit more twisty. It's unlikely "Cost of Living" will get a wide release.
Michael Farkash...
THE GAME BAG (IL CARNIERI)
5 p.m., Mann's Chinese
(also 2:30 p.m. Monday, Monica)
Three Italian tourists on a hunting trip to the Balkan peninsula run into more trouble than they ever imagined when they get caught up in the Serbo-Croatian war.
Travelers Renzo (Massimo Ghini), Paolo (Antonio Catania) and Roberto Roberto Zibetti) press on toward a game reserve despite rumors of unrest in Yugoslavia. When their guide misses a rendezvous, they enlist the aid of the hunter's daughter, Rada (Paraskeva Djukelova), to guide them.
Following a hunting accident, they seek medical aid in the city, are rousted by local police officials and forced to flee to a once-luxury hotel with dozens of other refugees. Sniper fire blasts the hotel constantly. The irony of hunters becoming prey is not lost on the party.
"The Game Bag", directed by Maurizio Zaccaro, effectively paints the picture of war-torn city streets, hopeless refugees and grim civil war with the pathos of relatives torn apart by conflict.
Vivid photography, believable characterizations and a claustrophobic tale make this a worthwhile feature. The Italian film, subtitled, is likely to get good play in foreign-language venues.
Michael Farkash
THE BIG EMPTY
8:15 p.m., Monica
(also 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Monica)
It's always a pleasure when a genre gets a thoughtful twist. "The Big Empty" takes us on a bleak spin into the world of a private detective, a case of marital infidelity and the question of faith.
In this oddly stylized, sometimes dryly funny production, Lloyd Meadows (James McManus, who also wrote the script) is an alienated waiter who becomes an alienated private eye. His romantic ideals pretty much dissolve as the cases that come his way turn out to be ugly ones -- like getting the goods on unfaithful partners.
When Jane Danforth (Ellen Goldwasser) steps into his life, he finds himself attracted to her innocence and looks -- with the darker side of him torn between shattering her illusions and protecting her. Was her husband, Peter (Pablo Bryant) faithless, or is it all a misunderstanding?
Lloyd probes deeper and deeper into the couple's lives, his alliances continually shifting as some disturbing secrets are manifested.
Viewers will find themselves captivated by the plight of these three characters, even though the stylized acting work at times is so-so.
The story is rough and could benefit from more judicious editing, but director Jack Perez is someone to watch with this ambitious, worthwhile venture. Production values are decent, and music (credit Jean-Michel Michenaud) is truly interesting.
There's a good chance that this film will be one of those to make it out of the festival circuit and gain some attention from art house audiences.
Michael Farkash
Sweet Jane
10:45 p.m., Monica
(also 6 p.m. Sunday, Monica)
Taking its title from the Lou Reed song and its thematic cues from "Midnight Cowboy" and "Trainspotting", screenwriter Joe Gayton's ("Uncommon Valor", "Bulletproof") feature directorial debut nevertheless has something fresh to offer thanks mainly to its lead performances.
As Jane, a heroin addict who barely survives an overdose only to be informed she's HIV-positive, the always interesting Samantha Mathis does her most adult work to date. Meanwhile, Joseph Gordon-Levitt ("3rd Rock From the Sun"), in the role of a 15-year-old in the advanced stages of the disease who picks Jane as his guardian angel, is similarly impressive.
While the salvation motif is somewhat shopworn, the young actors infuse the production with an affecting vitality.
Michael Rechtshaffen
Saturday
PERFECT MOMENT
12:15 p.m.,
Hollywood Galaxy
(also 6 p.m. Thursday, Monica)
"If you were to die tomorrow, what moment would you most remember and how did it change your life?" More than 80 people are asked that question in "Perfect Moment", and the answers are often poignant and affecting.
Writer-director Nicholas Hondrogen, in his classy, disturbing but overlong documentary, notes that all profits are to be donated to AIDS assistance, although AIDS is only one of the preoccupations expressed here.
In the documentary are images of birth, realized mortality and rape. Composer Philip Glass and others remember the birth of their children as electrifying moments; broadcaster Larry King recalls the heart attack that changed his life; and a Los Angeles actress recalls the details of her terrifying rape.
The filmmaker also turns the camera on himself, moving nude about his apartment, expressing doubts about his film, philosophizing and even setting up some visual images -- including showing a gasping fish out of water to bring home a point about suffering.
"Perfect Moment", which won the Audience Awards at the 1997 Slamdance International Film Festival, focuses on a number of fascinating personalities. Nevertheless, the documentary could benefit from a little judicious cutting. We'd probably take more away with us if there were less voices presented.
Michael Farkash
HANDS ON A HARDBODY
1:30 p.m., Monica
(also 3 p.m. Tuesday, Hollywood Galaxy)
While the title may certainly sound provocative, the hardbody in question is actually a shiny new Nissan pick-up truck and the hands belong to two dozen Longview, Texas, hopefuls determined to take it home at the end of a grueling endurance test.
S.R. Bindler's amusing and unexpectedly stirring documentary keeps tabs on a select grouping of the competitors who must keep at least one hand on the object of their desire at all times, not counting brief hourly food and bathroom breaks. Three days later a dazed and confused winner will emerge, but along the way we get to know some of the annual contest's livelier participants.
Serving as an unofficial guide is former winner and return competitor Benny Perkins, who offers up such morsels of wisdom as "When you lose your mind, you lose the contest" with the centered tranquility of a Zen master.
Michael Rechtshaffen
MARQUISE
2:10 p.m., Mann's Chinese
(also 10 a.m. Sunday, Hollywood Galaxy)
Films about the theater are many, and, unfortunately, tend to be filmed as if they were stage presentations. Such is the aesthetic of "Marquise", a sprawling look into the backstage world of Moliere.
Centered around Marquise (Sophie Marceau), a beautiful wench who wins her way into the fabled French troupe using her dancing prowess, not to mention her pelvic gyrations, "Marquise" is certainly no marquee production. Static, verbose and distended, this French film is mired in the conventions of the stage musical. Always populated by a screenful of highly costumed yowlers, "Marquise" is a mishmash of overblown characterizations. Its feeble plottings are generally advanced by desultory dialogue, usually shouted out in turn by a bevy of background characters.
Undeniably, it does provide an educational and amusing glimpse into the inner court of Louis XIV and a peek into the less-than-sparkling incandescence of Versailles.
Duane Byrge
LOVER GIRL
7:45 p.m., Monica
(also 8:45 p.m. Tuesday, Monica)
Destined to outrage some viewers but winning points for its frank approach to a sticky subject, "Lover Girl" is a tight and well-realized comedy-drama about a runaway 16-year-old-girl (Tara Subkoff) seeking shelter and eventually employment from a tough woman (Sandra Bernhard) who manages a massage parlor where sexual activity is de rigueur. At first the lead, whose adventuresome mother has vanished, appeals to her wild sister (Kristy Swanson), but she is quickly rebuffed and seeks a friendly port elsewhere.
Subkoff is superb as the affable new girl who doesn't follow strict orders to stay away from the clients when she hangs around the parlor. One thing leads to another and she becomes a clandestine employee, but her bonding with Bernhard's character makes her jealous sister come looking for work and jumping at the chance to earn good money. Soon, both siblings end up briefly (and uncomfortably) in the same room with a customer prepared for action and the rocky extended family begins to unravel.
The ensemble cast is amply fleshed out and the lead's eventual disenchantment with all around her is preordained. But the film's end is a bit too precious given the often acidic nature of the ongoing conflicts and heated rows she's caused.
Nonetheless, "Lover Girl" is a strong feature debut from filmmaking duo Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse and could find an enthusiastic following in limited release with the proper handling.
David Hunter
REAL STORIES OF THE DONUT MEN
10:15 p.m., Monica
(also 5 p.m. Monday, Monica)
A Latino filmmaker's skirmish with the authorities over his illegally parked car leads to a goofy voyage down the rabbit hole in "Real Stories of the Donut Men" -- Donut Men is a reference to policemen.
Juan Pelotes (Randy Gatica), after a beating by police, trips into strange territory that has only a marginal relationship to reality. Life for him turns into a sort of underground comic book, with cleverly subversive philosophizing.
In writer-director Beeaje Quick's black-and-white film, Juan suddenly becomes a computer hacker, disables the police computer, and arranges for two anarchistic punk rockers to be set up as motorcycle cops.
For a full day, the two punk rockers throw their weight around -- director Quick playing Officer Homes, and Ignacio Alvarez playing Officer God. The two cops are deadpan, mean, and on a counter-culture rampage of absolute power. They enforce street punks' right to play their boom boxes loudly. They harass beautiful women. They beat up innocent squares.
Some of the high jinks are on target, some are muddled misses. It's clear that the director is spoofing the bureaucracy, but many of his points of view are murky.
This is the stuff of midnight art house venues, where "Real Stories" may have limited cult appeal. For the viewer in search of a giddy alternative film, with Three Stooges sensibilities in the mix, there's some funny stuff.
Michael Farkash
PUNCHING THE CLOWN: A PORTRAIT OF HENRY PHILLIPS
10:30 p.m., Monica
(also 2:15 p.m. Thursday, Hollywood Galaxy)
More mockumentary than documentary, this portrait of Los Angeles-based satirical singer-songwriter Henry Phillips is at its best when it sticks to the latter.
The fictionalized portions, in which director Gregori Viens plays Phillips' affected French buddy Fabrice, aren't half as amusing as the pair apparently think they are. But "Punching the Clown" (a euphemism for a notorious solo activity) is most effective when it lets the singing do the talking.
Phillips' edgy songs, captured in black-and-white live performance footage, are actually quite good in a Tom Lehrer-meets-Lenny Bruce kind of way, with each innocent, pretty melody effectively counterpointed by a dark, downward spiral of caustic social commentary.
Michael Rechtshaffen
Sunday
ELLES
1:15 p.m., Monica
(also 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Hollywood Galaxy)
It may have enough soapy subplots to fuel a season of "Melrose Place", but what Luis Galvao Teles' "romantic comedy about the female sex" may lack in restrained refinement, it makes up for quite nicely with delectable performances from some of Europe's most fascinating actresses.
Besides looking absolutely terrific, Miou-Miou (as a school teacher who's having an affair with a lovestruck student), Marthe Keller (as said student's hypochondriacal mother and said teacher's good friend), Marisa Berenson (as the proprietor of an exclusive beauty salon) and Carmen Maura (as a busy TV journalist with a faltering marriage) do finely seasoned ensemble work along with the fifth "elle" of the title, singer-dancer Guesch Patti as a hyper chanteuse.
Life should be so glamorous.
Michael Rechtshaffen
BEST MAN
3:15 p.m., Monica
(also 7:15 p.m. Thursday, Mann's Chinese)
In 1976, documentary filmmaker Ira Wohl took home an Oscar for "Best Boy", a moving portrait of his 50-year-old, mentally retarded cousin Philly, whose aging parents were no longer able to care for him at home.
Two decades later, Wohl's equally affecting follow-up finds Philly just as spirited as ever despite the arthritis that has begun settling in on the eve of his 70th birthday. And once again, Wohl isn't exactly an innocent bystander. Having last time made an on-camera push for Philly to move into a group residence, this time he campaigns for his cousin to have his Bar Mitzvah, albeit 57 years late.
Once again Wohl's probing camera reveals a lot about family dynamics -- be it Philly's surrogate group home siblings or his colorful sister Frances, who functions as Philly's primary noninstitutional care-giver and a central figure in her own right.
Michael Rechtshaffen
THE WINGS OF A DOVE
7:30 p.m., Monica
Henry James was never more eloquently saluted than in this sterling adaptation of "The Wings of the Dove", one of his later novels. Scrumptiously realized, this Miramax release is a brilliantly polished work but one that has not been overrubbed as to wear off its human energy.
For those weary of the pretensions of the old-furniture genre -- namely those period classics that have been dusted off for highbrow audiences and presented with the detached dispatch of an elderly major-domo -- this Iain Softley-directed work is an exuberant, refined yet earthy affair.
In this gilded gem, the cast is magnificent. Helena Bonham Carter is aswirl with unresolved passions, while Linus Roache as her intrepid admirer is a keen mix of assertiveness and agony.
Duane Byrge
THE WITMAN BOYS
9:45 p.m., Monica
(also 2 p.m. Wednesday, Mann's Chinese)
For those who couldn't get enough of animal torture in "Gummo" comes "The Witman Boys", a chilly, clinical narrative of two young boys who, in the aftermath of their father's unexpected death, descend into a life of debauchery and sadism. However, this film is an unremarkable, old-stuff yarn that will enlighten no one in this Menendez brothers era.
Set on the eve of World War I in a tiny, Hungarian town, "The Witman Boys" is an icy, expressionistic tale of cunning and cruelty that, perhaps, is Hungary's version of Leopold/Loeb.
While screenwriter-director Janos Szasz ("Woyzek") intelligently lays out the boys' psychopathic proclivities, the narrative is so straightforwardly shaven as to be simplistic.
Duane Byrge
CHARACTER
10:15 p.m., Mann's Chinese
(also 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Monica)
A winner at the recent Golden Calf Awards, the Dutch equivalent of the Oscars, Mike van Diem's ambitious directorial debut is based on a celebrated novel by F. Bordewijk set in 1920s Holland. The performance by Belgian actor Jan Decleir as a monstrous civil servant and evil parent is a standout in the engrossing but downbeat tale of an illegitimate child's frustrating youth and young adulthood in the shadow of his powerful father.
Co-starring Fredja van Huer, Victor Low and Hans Kesting, van Diem's well-paced and richly mounted film begins and ends with the circumstances surrounding the suspicious death of Decleir's chillingly remote and unforgiving character, who opposes his industrious bastard's business enterprises and otherwise appears to have an unapologetic mean streak, both toward his own flesh and blood and the poor people he evicts with such grim enjoyment.
One longs for his comeuppance, but the director does not deny him a shred of humanity while his beleaguered offspring is pushed to the breaking point and contemplates the ultimate revenge.
David Hunter
COST OF LIVING
10:30 p.m., Monica
(also 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, Monica)
A mysterious drifter named Billie finds her journey of fierce independence derailed in a small fishing village, where she runs afoul of a couple of local guys and has her bankroll stolen by person or persons unknown.
In "Cost of Living", Edie Falco brings the character of Billie to compelling life. A woman on the run, scam artist Billie doesn't take nothing from nobody. She's also closed-mouthed about herself. But the more she conceals her past, the more we want to learn about this woman.
That enigmatic, dangerous past starts catching up with Billie as she lingers too long in the town. She's been done wrong by a fisherman and stays for payback. Soon, other dangers are popping up, including the lure of true love.
Falco's hard-edged take on the role of Billie, who must eventually choose between love and survival, is heartfelt and revealing in this character-driven tale. The episodic, stop-start feel of the work does not matter that much as long as we can watch Falco in action.
Despite the memorable characters, director Stan Schofield has assembled an uneven film with too many loose threads. The plot could have been made a bit more twisty. It's unlikely "Cost of Living" will get a wide release.
Michael Farkash...
- 10/24/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.