Film HITLIST THE BEST FILM & DVD RELEASES
list.co.uk/film
La Piscine Jacques Deray’s 1960s crime satire digitally reissued for us all to wonder again at the beauty of Alain Delon, Romy Schneider and Jane Birkin. See Also Released, page 66 and review at list.co.uk. Selected release from Fri 30 Sep.
Drive Ryan Gosling goes the way of Steve McQueen in Nicolas Winding Refn’s moody, introspective homage to 1980s crime thrillers. Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman offer strong support. See review, page 62. General release from Fri 23 Sep. Melancholia Lars Von Trier’s controversial apocalypse drama is a rare and beautiful beast. Kirsten Dunst and Kiefer Sutherland are revelations. See review, page 66. Selected release from Fri 30 Sep.
Midnight in Paris Woody Allen makes decent film shocker! Paris-set fantasy starring Owen Wilson, Kathy Bates and Rachel McAdams. See review, page 62. Selected release from Fri 7 Oct.
Perfect Sense Filmmaker David Mackenzie returns to Scotland for this off-beat sci-fi thriller starring Ewan McGregor and Eva Green. See review, page 63. Selected release from Fri 7 Oct. Albatross Thoughtful and thought- provoking coming-of-age drama set in a British seaside hotel. A hit at this year’s EIFF. See review, page 64 and profile, right. Selected release from Fri 14 Oct.
Red, White & Blue Moody and minimalist Texas-set horror from promising Brit director Simon Rumley. Noah Taylor and Amanda Fuller go beyond the call of duty. See review, page 64. Selected release from Fri 30 Sep.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Consummate and inventive adaptation of John Le Carre’s Cold War thriller. Gary Oldman and stellar British cast all do sterling work. See review at list.co.uk. Out now on general release.
Tyrannosaur Life on a Leeds council estate is grim but the suburbs are worse. Powerful character drama written and directed by actor Paddy Considine. See feature, page 61 and review, page 66. Selected release from Fri 7 Oct.
Take One Action Film Festival The festival that celebrates the people and films that are changing the world gets under way. Coverage is at list.co.uk. Filmhouse, Edinburgh, GFT, Glasgow & CCA, Glasgow until Sun 2 Oct.
60 THE LIST 22 Sep–20 Oct 2011
Profile SEBASTIAN KOCH
Born Karlsruhe, Germany, May 31 1962. Background Koch has worked solidly in European films and TV for over 25 years, but it was his terrific performance in The Lives of Others (2006) that made him recognisable to cinema audiences worldwide. His role as blocked writer Jonathan in this month’s Albatross is only the second English-speaking film role of his career.
On his acting process ‘I’m a teamworker. I love to talk a lot before shooting, to read a lot, to go through [the script] like ‘OK, we don’t need this sentence, let’s change that’, so that on the day we know exactly what we want. And then we can try things, because when you’re actually on set it’s different; new ideas come, and you can take them, because you know exactly what you’re looking for.’
On choosing roles ‘I always want to do things that really have to be done, something that’s a challenge – and I’m trying not to repeat myself. I have no ‘dream role’. It just comes to me; it’s very intuitive, and I say, ‘OK, I have to do this now’. It’s not logical, just ‘I have to jump into this very strange character’ or something like that, I can’t even explain it. But mostly, it makes sense when I look back.’
What he says about his Albatross co-star Jessica Brown Findlay ‘She started with this film, and did it wonderfully – just to see these first steps was wonderful for me, and perhaps to help and support her a bit. She’s really brilliant in the film; she’s Emelia, exactly what the script wanted.’ Interesting fact When he was 18 years old, Koch went on a motorbiking holiday in the Scottish Highlands. (Paul Gallagher) ■ Albatross is on general release from Fri 14 Oct. See review, page 64.