Film Index PROFILE
ANNE CONSIGNY Born 25 May 1963 in Alençon, Orne, France Background One of five children, Consigny grew up in the French capital, where he father was a high-ranking civil servant. She attended Paris’ National Conservatory for Drama aged 16 and two years later joined the Comédie-Française, before going on to work with British theatre director Peter Brook. Her breakthrough film role came in 2005, when she won a French César for her performance as a woman wavering on the brink of marriage in the melancholic romantic drama Not Here to be Loved. Since then the blonde actress has impressed in a number of films including Julian Schnabel’s The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Arnaud Desplechin’s A Christmas Tale, and Jean- François Richet’s Mesrine. What’s she up to now? Consigny plays Suzanne, the understanding wife of the middle- aged obsessive Georges (André Dussollier) in veteran French director Alain Resnais’ Wild Grass, a playful and visually flamboyant tale of romantic chance and coincidence. On preparing for Wild Grass: ‘Resnais asked us to read the Christian Gailly book The Incident, which Wild Grass is based on. He actually asked us to read all 13 novels that Gailly has written, so that the we would understand the tone of the film. The writing is very musical, it’s like a piece of jazz.’ On being directed by Resnais: ‘He hardly says anything during shooting. After we’d done a take I’d take a look at him, because he tends to be behind the camera. I could tell from his eyes whether he was happy or not – they were either sparkling or lifeless. In terms of instructions, he’d just say, “Move a bit to the left, or to the right”.’ Interesting Fact Consigny’s son Vladimir, who plays her character’s on-screen son in Wild Grass, has also appeared in an episode of the British sit-com The Inbetweeners. (Tom Dawson) ■ Wild Grass, Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Tue 13 to Sun 18 Jul.
54 THE LIST 8–22 Jul 2010
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, star rating, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Paul Dale ✽✽ Indicates Hitlist entry ✽✽ Ajami (15) ●●●●● (Scandar Copti, Yaron Shani, Germany/Israel, 2009) Fouad Habash, Nisrine Rihan, Elias Saba. 125min. See review, page 51. Glasgow Film Theatre. Alice in Wonderland 2D (PG) ●●●●● (Tim Burton, US, 2010) Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter. 108min. A sequel of sorts that takes in elements of both Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass, this finds Alice (Wasikowska) as a teenager returning to Underland, which has long since fallen into the tyrannical grip of the Red Queen (Bonham Carter). Dark and visually arresting, yet not quite as emotionally involving as Burton’s very best work. Odeon at the Quay, Glasgow; Odeon, Edinburgh. Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel (U) ●●●●● (Betty Thomas, US, 2009) Voices of Justin Long, Anna Faris, Jason Lee. 88min. The singing chipmunk trio contend with the pressures of high school, celebrity and rival female band The Chipettes. Grosvenor, Glasgow. Amores Perros (Love’s a Bitch) (18) ●●●●● (Alejandro Gonzalez Irritu, Mexico, 2001) Emilio Echevarria, Gael Garcia Bernal, Goya Toledo. 153min. Inarritu’s debut feature tells three overlapping stories – a teenager drawn into the world of illegal dog-fighting, the infidelity of a middle-aged media executive and an elderly homeless man – by using shifting time-frames, tangentially linked characters and jagged verbal rhythms. Part of 25 Years of Filmhouse. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Andre Rieu Live in Maastricht (E) (Netherlands, 2009) 140min. The virtuoso violinist returns to his hometown for a huge open air concert, broadcast live via satellite. He is accompanied by the Johann Strauss Orchestra. Glasgow Film Theatre. Arthur and the Invisibles (U) ●●●●● (Luc Besson, France, 2007) Voices of Freddie Highmore, Mia Farrow, Ron Crawford. 93min. In an adaptation of his own children’s book, Besson mixes live- action and CGI animation with patchy results. Glasgow Film Theatre. Bad Lieutenant – Port of Call: New Orleans (18) ●●●●● (Werner Herzog, US, 2009) Nicolas Cage, Eva
Mendes, Val Kilmer. 122min. New Orleans police sergeant Terence McDonagh (Cage) saves a drowning prisoner, earning him a promotion and a back injury. Addiction follows and as things spiral out of control momentum and perception change and nothing goes the way one might expect. Repeated viewing is necessary, cult status is guaranteed. Cameo, Edinburgh. Baraka (PG) ●●●●● (Ron Fricke, US, 1992) 96min. This environmentally aware eco-doc in the style of Koyaanisqatsi has the major advantage of having been shot in 70mm, which makes the stunning cinematography the star of the show. Beautiful footage of Planet Earth is juxtaposed with man’s harmful relation to it, with the Big Statement being pushed forwards by a series of powerful images. A genuine spectacle. Part of 25 Years of Filmhouse. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. The Beat That My Heart Skipped (15) ●●●●● (Jacque Audiard, France, 2004) Romain Duris, Niels Arestrup, Linh- Dam Pham, Emmanuelle Devos. 106min. Gangster and wannabe pianist Thomas (Duris) and his friends spend their days and nights violently managing refugee squatted flats for greedy Parisian developers but his secret ambition is to become a concert pianist. Stunning remake of James Toback’s 1978 small thriller Fingers. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Beau Travail (15) ●●●●● (Claire Denis, France, 2000) Denis Lavant, Michel Subor, Gregoire Colin. 90min. An imaginative reworking of Herman Melville’s novella Billy Budd, Sailor, Beau Travail sees writer-director Denis relocating the source material from the 19th century British navy to the present-day French Foreign Legion. In Marseille, Sergeant Galoup (Denis Lavant) recalls the events that led to him being forced to leave the corps after being posted to a remote outpost in Djibouti, East Africa. A work filled with beauty, sadness and mystery. Mesmerising filmmaking. Part of Denis season. Glasgow Film Theatre; Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Bliss (18) ●●●●● (Ray Lawrence, Australia, 1985) Barry Otto, Lynette Curran, Helen Jones. 112min. Advertising executive Otto suffers a massive heart attack and is clinically dead for four minutes. When he regains consciousness he believes himself to be in Hell and begins to jot down all the bizarre happenings that substantiate this conviction. Generally considered an improvement on Peter Carey’s original novel, this is a weird and blackly humorous parable about love and death, given immense credibility by the committed performance of Otto. Part of On Stage, On
Sammy Going South Rare cinema screening of legendary Scottish/American filmmaker Alexander Mackendrick’s little seen 1963 African adventure film starring Edward G Robinson and Harry H Corbett among others. Not as well known as Mackendrick’s previous films – Whisky Galore! and Sweet Smell of Success – this film has recently been restored for release for DVD. ■ Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Fri 16-Sun 18 Jul.
Screen. Filmhouse, Edinburgh.
✽✽ Bluebeard ●●●●● (Catherine Breillat, France, 2009) Dominique
Thomas, Lola Créton, Daphné Baiwir. 107min. See review, page 50. Cameo, Edinburgh. Boys on Film (tbc) (Various, Various) 94min. A touring programme of shorts, courtesy of the BFI London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. Features: Candy Boy, Protect Me From What I Want, Dish :), Lucky Blue and My Name is Love. Glasgow Film Theatre.
✽✽ Breathless (À Bout de Soufflé) (PG) ●●●●● (Jean-Luc Godard,
France, 1960) Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg 90 min. French New Wave classic reissued. Cameo, Edinburgh. Brooklyn’s Finest (18) ●●●●● (Antoine Fuqua, US, 2010) Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke. 132min. The ironic title refers to three police officers who operate within the grey area of the law, where upholding justice and personal interest make uncomfortable bedfellows. Although the acting falls short, Fuqua ensures that there is always something interesting to watch on screen. Selected release. The Brothers (PG) ●●●●● (David MacDonald, UK, 1947) Patricia Roc, Maxwell Reed, Duncan Macrae, Will Fyffe. 91min. When an orphan girl arrives in a Skye fishing village, a family feud is triggered. This darkly told story oozes superstition while benefiting from good use of outdoor locations. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Chungking Express (12) ●●●●● (Wong Kar-Wai, Hong Kong, 1994) Brigitte Lin, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Tony Leung, Faye Wang. 97min. Glorious concoction of humour, energy, style and kookiness Part of 25 Years of Filmhouse. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. The Collector (18) ●●●●● (Marcus Dunstan, US, 2009) Juan Fernández, Josh Stewart, Michael Reilly Burke. 86min. A petty criminal inadvertently breaks into his rich client’s home the same night as a brutal and intelligent serial killer calls. The gore is exquisitely crafted and there’s depth and mystery to the central villain that could certainly sustain a new franchise. Selected release. Le Concert (15) ●●●●● (Radu Mihaileanu, France/Italy/Romania/Belgium, 2009) Aleksei Guskov, Mélanie Laurent, Dmitri Nazarov. 123min. See review, page 51. Glasgow Film Theatre; Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Crazy Heart (15) ●●●●● (Scott Cooper, US, 2009) Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Keane. 111min. Based a novel by Thomas Cobb, leisurely southernfried character study Crazy Heart focuses on the travails of down-on-his-luck western singer-songwriter Bad Blake, played by the remarkable Bridges. Things begin to look up when he hooks up with a young music journalist and single mother (Gyllenhaal), but Bad is sadly on a one way ticket to rehab. Empire, Clydebank. Croupier (15) ●●●●● (Mike Hodges, UK, 1997) Clive Owen, Gina McKee, Alex Kingston. 94min. Jack (Owen) is a struggling writer who takes up a job in a London casino where he quickly proves himself to be an accomplished croupier. But he finds himself assisting Jeni (Kingston), a South African gambler who’s apparently in debt to a gang of criminals. Hodges’ taut, intelligent and darkly amusing drama. Part of Magic Cinema season. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Dear John (12A) ●●●●● (Lasse Hallström, US, 2010) Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Richard Jenkins. 108min. Seyfried plays Savannah, a student who strikes up a relationship with on leave soldier John Tyree (Tatum), but their romance is stymied when Tyree decides to put his military career first, and the inevitable Dear John letter results in mutual heartbreak. Cameo, Edinburgh. Death at a Funeral (15) ●●●●● (Neil LaBute, US, 2010) Peter Dinklage, Chris Rock, Zoe Saldana. 91min. A scene-by- scene remake of 2007’s ultra-lame Frank Oz comedy Death at a Funeral, this is a facile, crude, unloved sub-Richard Curtis farce in