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BOYHOOD Pretty Much Sweeps SIFF Golden Space Needle Awards

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At the awards brunch this morning, I admitted to a programer that I didn’t even vote for any of the categories for this year’s SIFF awards. “There’s just too many and no one sees them all anyways,” I remarked. “Even though I saw it at Sundance, I guess I would just give all the awards to Boyhood.” It seems the masses were clued into my wave length, as Richard Linklater‘s Boyhood pretty much went on to take all the audience awards including Best Film, Best Actress for Patricia Arquette and Best Director for Linklater (whom I interviewed last week.)

I have a hard time giving much credit to these awards as there’s just too many films for any one person to have a reasonable grasp on what they’re actually voting on and some of the best stuff always seems to wind up overlooked. The unanimity of support for Boyhood does make me wonder about its eventual Oscar odds. At this point, I think it’s the only film of the year that is a set lock for a Best Picture nomination but will it actually have a shot at winning? While I’d like to say yes, it’s barely even June. No matter, I’ll continue to root for it until I see something else that delivers an equally stunning experience.

The only other win on this list that I was really excited to see was Carlos Marques-Marcet taking a prize for Best New Director for 10,000 KM, which I loved. I actually just interviewed him the other day and will be posting that shortly for anyone interested in the (now award winning) director.

The full list of winners, and accompanying SIFF press release, is included below:

SIFF 2014 GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARDS

 

SIFF celebrates its most popular films and filmmakers with the Golden Space Needle Award. Selected by Festival audiences, awards are given in five categories: Best Film, Best Documentary, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Short Film. This year, nearly 90,000 ballots were submitted.

 

GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST FILM

Boyhood, directed by Richard Linklater (USA 2014)

 

First runner-up: Life Feels Good, directed by Maciej Pieprzyca (Poland 2013)

Second runner-up: How to Train Your Dragon 2, directed by Dean DeBlois (USA 2014)

Third runner-up: The Fault in Our Stars, directed by Josh Boone (USA 2014)

Fourth runner-up: Big in Japan, directed by John Jeffcoat (USA 2014)

 

GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST DOCUMENTARY

Keep On Keepin’ On, directed by Alan Hicks (USA 2014)

 

First runner-up: Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory, directed by Michael Rossato-Bennett (USA 2014)

Second runner-up: I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story, directed by Dave LaMattina, Chad Walker (USA 2014)

Third runner-up: Strictly Sacred: The Story of Girl Trouble, directed by Isaac Olsen (USA 2014)

Fourth runner-up: The Case Against 8, directed by Ben Cotner, Ryan White (USA 2014)

 

GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST DIRECTOR

Richard Linklater, Boyhood (USA 2014)

 

First runner-up: Maciej Pieprzyca, Life Feels Good (Poland 2013)

Second runner-up: Zaza Urushadze, Tangerines (Estonia/Georgia 2013)

Third runner-up: Pawel Pawlikowski, Ida (Poland 2013)

Fourth runner-up: Sara Colangelo, Little Accidents (USA 2014)

 

GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST ACTOR

Dawid Ogrodnik, Life Feels Good (Poland 2013)

 

First runner-up: Guillaume Gallienne, Me, Myself and Mum (Belgium/France/Spain 2013)

Second runner-up: Matt Smith, My Last Year With the Nuns (USA 2014)

Third runner-up: Felix Bossuet, Belle & Sebastien (France 2013)

Fourth runner-up: Igor Samobor, Class Enemy (Slovenia 2013)

 

GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST ACTRESS

Patricia Arquette, Boyhood (USA 2014)

 

First runner-up: Juliette Binoche, 1,000 Times Good Night (Norway 2013)

Second runner-up: Agata Kulesza, Ida (Poland 2013)

Third runner-up: Jenny Slate, Obvious Child (USA 2014)

Fourth runner-up: Jördis Triebel, West (Germany 2013)

 

GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST SHORT FILM

Fool’s Day, directed by Cody Blue Snider (USA 2013)

 

First runner-up: The Hero Pose, directed by Mischa Jakupcak (USA 2013)

Second runner-up: Strings, directed by Pedro Solis (Spain 2013)

Third runner-up: Mr. Invisible, directed by Greg Ash (United Kingdom 2014)

Fourth runner-up: Aban + Khorshid, directed by Darwin Serink (USA 2014)

 

LENA SHARPE AWARD FOR PERSISTENCE OF VISION

Bound: Africans Versus African Americans, directed by Peres Owino (USA 2014)

 

This award is given to the female director’s film that receives the most votes in public balloting at the Festival. Lena Sharpe was co-founder and managing director of Seattle’s Festival of Films by Women Directors and a KCTS-TV associate who died in a plane crash while on assignment. As a tribute to her efforts in bringing the work of women filmmakers to prominence, SIFF created this special award and asked Women in Film Seattle to bestow it.

 

SIFF 2014 COMPETITION AWARDS

SIFF announced three Competition Awards for Best New Director, Best Documentary, and Best New American Film (FIPRESCI). Winners in the juried New Director and Documentary competition each received $2,500 in cash, while the New American Cinema competition winner was awarded a copy of Adobe Creative Suite 6: Production Premium edition in addition to the FIPRESCI prize.

SIFF 2014 BEST NEW DIRECTOR

GRAND JURY PRIZE

10,000KM,directed by Carlos Marques-Marcet (Spain/USA 2014)

JURY STATEMENT: Our unanimous winner is Carlos Marques-Marcet’s 10,000KM for its ability to simply and creatively convey the complexity and fragility of human relationships with gorgeous attention to detail.

SPECIAL JURY MENTION

B For Boy, directed by Chika Anadu (Nigeria 2013)

JURY STATEMENT: Our special jury mention goes to B For Boy‘s director Chika Anadu for her assured and fierce storytelling.

Festival programmers select 12 films remarkable for their original concept, striking style, and overall excellence. To be eligible, films must be a director’s first or second feature and without U.S. distribution at the time of their selection. The New Directors Jury is comprised of Ron Leamon (costume designer), Sharon Swart (journalist), and Helen du Toit (Artistic Director, Palm Springs International Film Festival).

2014 Entries:

10,000KM (d: Carlos Marques-Marcet, Spain/USA 2014)

40 Days of Silence (d: Saodat Ismailova, Uzbekistan/Tajikistan/Netherlands/Germany/

France 2014, North American Premiere)

B For Boy (d: Chika Anadu, Nigeria 2013)

Eastern Boys (d: Robin Campillo, France 2013)

History of Fear (d: Benjamín Naishtat, Argentina/Uruguay/France/Germany 2013)

Life Feels Good (d: Maciej Pieprzyca, Poland 2013)

Macondo (d: Sudabeh Mortezai, Austria 2014, North American Premiere)

Me, Myself and Mum (d: Guillaume Gallienne, Belgium/France/Spain 2013)

Remote Control (d: Byamba Sakhya, Mongolia/Germany/USA 2013)

Rhymes for Young Ghouls (d: Jeff Barnaby, Canada (Québec) 2013, US Premiere)

Standing Aside, Watching (d: Yorgos Servetas, Greece 2013)

Viktoria (d: Maya Vitkova, Bulgaria/Romania 2014)

SIFF 2014 BEST DOCUMENTARY

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Marmato, directed by Mark Grieco (Colombia/USA 2014)

JURY STATEMENT: We give the documentary prize to Marmato. With courage and ambition, director Mark Grieco artfully brings to life a personal story with global significance and provides a window into a world that few would have access to.

SPECIAL JURY MENTIONS

Dior and I,directed by Frédéric Tcheng (France 2014) and Garden Lovers, directed by Virpi Suutari (Finland 2014)

JURY STATEMENT: We want to give special recognition for the aesthetic richness and cinematography of these films.

Unscripted and uncut, the world is a resource of unexpected, informative, and altogether exciting storytelling. Documentary filmmakers have, for years, brought these untold stories to life and introduced us to a vast number of fascinating topics we may have never known existed-let alone known were so fascinating. The Documentary Jury is comprised of Brian Brooks (FilmLinc.com), Claudia Puig (USA Today), and Pat Saperstein (Variety).

2014 Entries:

Ballet 422 (d: Jody Lee Lipes, USA 2014)

#ChicagoGirl – The Social Network Takes on a Dictator (d: Joe Piscatella, USA/Syria 2013, North American Premiere)

Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus (d: Madeleine Sackler, United Kingdom/USA/Belarus 2013, US Premiere)

Dior and I (d: Frédéric Tcheng, France 2014)

Garden Lovers (d: Virpi Suutari, Finland 2014, US Premiere)

I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story (d: Dave LaMattina, USA 2014)

Leninland (d: Askold Kurov, Russia/Germany/Netherlands 2013, North American Premiere)

Marmato (d: Mark Grieco, Colombia/USA 2014)

Obama Mama (d: Vivian Norris, USA/Poland/France 2014, World Premiere)

Shake the Dust (d: Adam Sjöberg, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Song of the New Earth (d: Ward Serrill, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Two Raging Grannies (d: Håvard Bustnes, Norway/Denmark/Italy 2014,

North American Premiere)

SIFF 2014 BEST NEW AMERICAN CINEMA

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Red Knot,directed by Scott Cohen (USA/Argentina/Antarctica 2014)

JURY STATEMENT: An ethnographic journey to the South Pole becomes an unsettling tale of fumbled love and transcendent redemption, capped by an extraordinary performance from Olivia Thirlby.

Festival programmers select 12 films without U.S. distribution that are sure to delight audiences looking to explore the exciting vanguard of New American Cinema and compete for the FIPRESCI Award for Best New American Film. The New American Cinema Jury is comprised of members of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI): Juan Manuel Dominguez, Gerald Peary, and Amber Wilkinson.

2014 Entries:

Alex of Venice (d: Chris Messina, USA 2014)

Another (d: Jason Bognacki, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Five Star (d: Keith Miller, USA 2014)

Kinderwald (d: Lise Raven, USA 2013)

Layover (d: Joshua Caldwell, USA 2014, World Premiere)

Little Accidents (d: Sara Colangelo, USA 2014)

Medeas (d: Andrea Pallaoro, USA/Italy/Mexico 2013)

Red Knot (d: Scott Cohen, USA/Argentina/Antarctica 2014, World Premiere)

Sam & Amira (d: Sean Mullin, USA 2014, World Premiere)

The Sleepwalker (d: Mona Fastvold, USA/Norway 2014)

Time Lapse (d: Bradley King, USA 2014, North American Premiere)

X/Y (d: Ryan Piers Williams, USA 2014)

 

SIFF 2014 FUTUREWAVE AND YOUTH JURY AWARDS

 

YOUTH JURY AWARD FOR BEST FUTUREWAVE FEATURE

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Dear White People, directed by Justin Simien (USA)

JURY STATEMENT: For skillfully using humor as a vehicle for social awareness, breaking the mold of traditional cinematic archetypes, and unifying audiences of all backgrounds.

 

YOUTH JURY AWARD FOR BEST FILMS4FAMILIES FEATURE

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Belle & Sebastien, directed by Nicolas Vanier (France)

JURY STATEMENT: For its realistic characters, beautiful scenery and cinematography, and strong, touching theme of friendship through hard times.

 

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE

Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang, directed by Óskar Santos (Spain)

JURY STATEMENT: For being a funny, adventurous story about the importance of creativity in children’s lives.

 

FUTUREWAVE WAVEMAKER AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN YOUTH FILMMAKING

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Malone Lumarda, Black Rock Creek (USA)

JURY STATEMENT: For its gentle depiction of a young girl exploring her natural surroundings that was both captivating and realistic.

 

FUTUREWAVE SHORTS AUDIENCE AWARD

While We’re Asleep, directed by Summer Matthews (USA)

 

FUTUREWAVE PRODIGY CAMP SCHOLARSHIP

Khidr Joseph, Clapping for the Wrong Reasons (USA)

 

SIFF 2014 SHORT FILM JURY AWARDS

 

All short films shown at the Festival are eligible for both the Golden Space Needle Award and Jury Award. Jurors choose winners in the Narrative, Animation, and Documentary categories. Each jury winner will receive $1,000 and winners in any of the three categories may also qualify to enter their respective films in the Short Film category of the Academy Awards®.

 

LIVE ACTION

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Twaaga, directed by Cédric Ido (Burkina Faso/France)

JURY STATEMENT: A rich and compelling world with beautiful cultural and generational chapters. The seamless use of animated comic book imagery to reflect the protagonist’s journey and the larger political backdrop.

 

SPECIAL JURY MENTION

Aban + Khorshid, directed by Darwin Serink (USA)

JURY STATEMENT: A beautifully filmed and tragic story, based on real life events, about freedoms here that carry the death penalty elsewhere.

 

DOCUMENTARY

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Maikaru, directed by Amanda Harryman (USA)

JURY STATEMENT: An honest, vulnerable and authentic piece that exposes an invisible issue that is happening in Seattle and worldwide. The character’s story of healing leaves the audience with a sense of hope. The use of artistic footage illustrating the character’s transformative journey.

 

SPECIAL JURY MENTION

The Queen (La Reina), directed by Manuel Abramovich (Argentina)

JURY STATEMENT: Effective framing, to craft a haunting portrait of youth in exhibition pageants.

 

ANIMATION

GRAND JURY PRIZE

Rhino Full Throttle, directed by Erik Schmitt (Germany)

JURY STATEMENT: A story of self redemption told through quirky and playful animation bounding with shifting formats that would be dizzying if the story wasn’t so timeless. An animated love story that tips its hat to its own genre.

 

The Short Film Jury comprised of Laura Jean Cronin (B47 Studios), Craig Downing (Couch Fest Films), and Brooks Peck (EMP Museum).

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2014 SIFF Offers 435 Films, I Offer 25 Must Sees

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Update June 3: More reviews added, no standing replacements.

Update May 17: Seeing that some of these didn’t live up to expectation, some prior “Must Sees” have been yanked and new additions have taken their place. After all, who doesn’t love some corrections and omissions?!

For its 40th, the Seattle International Film Festival is again raising the bar on itself, this year offering a whopping 435 films including 198 feature films, 60 documentaries, and 163 short films from 83 countries. Of those, 44 are world premieres, 29 North American premieres and 13 US premieres. All this amongst a slew of festival favorites from this year and last. Let’s just say that the odds of seeing them all just got that much slimmer. 

Kicking the festival off is Oscar-winner (12 Years a Slave) John Ridley‘s Jimi: All is By My Side, a zero frills biopic that chronicles the afro-ed classic rocker’s year in Britain leading up to his iconic Woodstock performance. And all by his side is 12 Years alum Chiwetel Ejiofor who will be in attendance May 19 (6 PM @ The Egyptian Theater) to talk about his new film Half of a Yellow Sun, an African-produced historical drama about Nigerian’s civil war through the 60s. Ejiofor will also take place in a Q&A with an audience eager to speak with the Academy Award nominee that same evening.

The festival will close June 8 at the glorious Cinerama with The One I Love starring Elizabeth Moss (Mad Men) and Mark Duplass (The League) which saw strong reviews opening at Sundance and is said to mix elements of modern romance with “Twilight Zone” twists and turns. Add it to the ever growing “To See” List.

But likely the most exciting and anticipated film of the festival will be found in SIFF’s Centerpiece Gala in Richard Linklater‘s Boyhood on Saturday, May 31 @ 5 PM. I had the great fortune of being amongst the first audience to see this at Sundance and it did nothing short of blow me away. Though I don’t want to be greedy and steal away the seats of those yet uninitiated to Boyhood, I look forward to experiencing it again and may not be able to resist a second viewing.

Since it’s all but impossible to see everything at SIFF, I have a list of 25 must sees that should put you on the right track for this year’s festivities.

The 25 Must Sees of SIFF 2014

Boyhood
Obviously Boyhood is gonna be on the list. I absolutely loved it and could wax said love over this page all day but I’ll spare the gushing and just tell you that of the 80+ films I’ve reviewed this year (!!!) this is the only to have yet received an A+. Sundance review here.

Mood Indigo
Michael Gondry returns to the realm of the weird, this time in his native French language, in what should be equal measures charming, bittersweet, and esoteric. The incredibly alluring Audrey Tatou is Chloe, who becomes wrapped up with a quirky inventor, even though she’s dying (because she has flowers growing in her lungs.)

Grand Central
Blue is the Warmest Color star Lea Seydoux puts in her second turn against A Prophet‘s Tahar Rahim in this French/Austrian production about a risky love affair set at the nuclear power plant where they both work.

Venus in Furs
Carnage wasn’t exactly the prodigal return for Roman Polanski we might have hoped for but it was anything but bad. Polanski continues his recent tradition of adapting lauded plays with Venus in Furs which stars Mathiew Amalric (Quantum of Solace) and is filmed in Polanski’s native French. Venus focuses on a playwright’s battle with his creative side. SIFF review here.

Cannibal
The chilling promo image alone gets me thinking Psycho and added to the fact that this production is in part Spanish, Romanian, Russian and French, gives it the taste of “something new.” Hopefully it brings the scares to the table in a SIFF surprisingly short on them. No longer considered must see, read our SIFF review here.

The Double (new addition)
Jesse Eisenberg stars as two polar opposites in this Orson Welles inspired black comedy. Wickedly weird but quietly potent, The Double might not be the best doppleganger film of the year (that award goes to Enemy) but it’s certainly compelling viewing that’ll leave you oddly fulfilled. SIFF review here.


Wetlands
A brilliantly told German satirical sexploitation/black comedy based on the popular and controversial German novel from Charlotte Roche. Wetlands is ooey, gooey fun that’ll make the hardest of stomachs churn every now and again but fully worth it for anyone up to the task. Sundance review here.

Lucky Them
What better to symbolize Seattle than the Sub Pop music scene? Megan Griffiths, who directed last year’s critically acclaimed Eden, takes on an entirely different subject right here in the rainy city and feel aided by performances from Toni Collette, Thomas Haden Church, and Oliver Platt.

They Came Together
Although the trailer shown seems to suggest a movie so deep in meta that it didn’t know which way was up, They Came Together found loads of fans when it played at this year’s Sundance. The ingredients alone – Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, David Waine (director of Wet Hot American Summer) in a doubly farcical, heavily tongue-in-cheek rom-com – seems primed for success.

How to Train Your Dragon 2
This is a tricky one to really anticipate as sequels are as much of a toss up as one can plan for but if the quality boast of Toy Story 3 and the wild success of the first How to Train Your Dragon are any indication, this could be the best widely-released animated feature of the year.

Time Lapse
Bradley King‘s directoral debut follows a group of three friends who discover a camera that shows events in the future, and looks to combine elements of sci-fi and horror into a thrilling narrative ride. Set for it’s North American premiere at SIFF, Time Lapse looks more promising than most within its field. Not gushing SIFF review here.

The Trip To Italy (new addition)
Four years after The Trip, Steve Coogan may be more clean cut than the shaggy Brit we once was but his and Rob Brydon’s chemistry is as flammable as ever. “Their old-as-they-are relationship paves the way for improvisation prowess so organic its feels more like second natural than performance. More impressions, absolutely stunning vistas, Alanis Morissette’s croon, lazily waxing on life and pasta, pasta, pasta gives intrepid life to The Trip to Italy.” SIFF review here.


The Skeleton Twins
SNL favorites Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig join Bellingham director Craig Johnson to tell his droll comedy about a pair of twins who cheat death and reunite to vent about it. Glowing SIFF review here.

Happy Christmas
Joe Swanberg returns to SIFF to present yet another unscripted, inescapably 21st-century dramedy this time starring Girls creator and star Lena Dunham. I was a big fan of Drinking Buddies and hope this can replicate a similar sense of realism in its relationship. SIFF review here.

Leading Lady
One of SIFF’s world premieres and the return of Fanie Fourie’s Lobola (SIFF’s 2013 Best Film winner) director, Leading Lady sees a struggling actress move to South Africa to prepare for the role of a lifetime but ends up finding so much more. An absolutely abysmal film that I regret ever suggesting. Please accept my apology.

Intruders (new addition)
Considering that I’ve hacked a lot of Foreign language World Cinema out of this list of Best Sees, I wanted to make sure to draw some attention to one of the better of the foreign films and a film that is sure to excite audiences willing to pop on their glasses for 90 minutes. Intruders is Hitchcock by way of South Korean, an exciting thrill ride that doesn’t let up until the credits roll. SIFF review here.

Obvious Child
Jenny Slate might be the new face of NYC faux-chic after the string of success Obvious Child has seen. Honest, hilarious and horny, this tale of growing up in a modern age has been winning support like Daenerys liberating Slavery’s Bay. SIFF review here.

Calvary
If you leave the theater after Calvary dried-eyed, you must be at least part Fembot. With a monstrous performance from Brendan Gleeson, stunning cinematography and a decidedly more mature turn for director John Michael McDonagh, Calvary is a must see. Sundance review here.

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Firestorm
This 2013 Hong Kong feature was nominated for a slew of native film awards including Best Action Choreography, Best Editing, Best Visual Effects and Best New Director and with my penchant for violent Asian cinema, I have trouble believing that this won’t be a surprise victory for SIFF. Could not be less of a must see. Ugly SIFF review here.

10,000 KM (new addition)
A vivid portrayal of love fading under the constaints of long distance, this Spanish romance is filmed with lively realism and overflowing with brillant performances from its captivating leads. A definer of the phrase “must see”. SIFF review here.

Frank
Although the stars seem alligned to keep me from this film (I stood in line for it at Sundance and SXSW and was denied) the fact that it’s coming to Seattle seems to either be mocking me or setting up a third times a charm situation. The fact that I already own a Frank mask pretty much necessitates me seeing this strange musical drama starring Michael Fassbender enclosed in a giant head. SIFF review here.

The Grand Seduction
Taylor Kitsch plays a doctor, Brendan Gleeson a fisherman in this Canadian comedy that looks to play fast and loose with the deadpan side of things. Seeing Kitsch and Gleeson (much anticipated) return to comedy oughta be worth the price of admission alone. SIFF review here.

Creep
Mark Duplass returns again, this time as a twisted stalker. He chews up the scenery like never before and is an absolute joy to watch. First time director Patrick Brice has made the found footage flick his own, crafting an unnerving thriller that’s frightening and cleverly twisty to boot! SXSW review here.

The Internet’s Own Boy
I asked someone at Sundance what their favorite film at the fest was and they pointed out this unassuming documentary. Following the life of Aaron Swartz, who laid the groundwork for RSS feeds and all but invented Reddit before killing himself at age 26, The Internet’s Own Boy appears heartbreaking and need to know. SIFF review here.


In Order of Disappearance
Stellan Skarsgard plays a snowplow driver who’s son is brutally murdered, leading to a chilling dark comedy that marries bloody revenge to belly laughs in this twisted fantasy said to be a tonal cousin to Fargo. SIFF review here.

Difret
SIFF programmer Dustin Kaspar gave the insider tip on the Africa Film segment, calling Difret the early “best of fest.” A 14-year old Aberash guns down an attacker that leads into a long court trial that bleeds into an ethical tribunal on Ethiopia’s warped marriage traditions that smile on kidnapping and rape. All based on a true story. Mild SIFF review here.

To Kill a Man
You know when you’re a critic when you look at a movie’s description and “Grand Jury prize-winning,” “vigilantism” and “Chile/France” pop out to you like solid gold. In sum: a man weighs the benefits and consequences of taking revenge. SIFF review here.

Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter
There must be something in the water making us all think Fargo as the cult Coen classic seems to be at an all-time high in terms of its popularity and influence. Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter sees an outcast Japanese misanthrope travel to Minnesota to seek out Steve Buschemi‘s abandoned satchel stuffed with cold, hard ransom cash. It’s a delightfully unorthodox romp, nothing short of epic. SXSW review here.

Fight Church
A documentary about a group of church goers who beat each other up to prove their devotion to God? Sign me up. Mildly disappointed SIFF review here.

Starred Up (new addition)
A brutal prison drama starring Jack O’Connell and Ben Mendelsohn showcasing the transformative power of a jail cell, Starred Up is certainly a hard watch but one that will leave you thinking. SIFF review here.

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Surely there are many, many (many) more and there’s a good chance that some on the above list may end up stinking and sinking but we’re still mostly doing guesswork at this stage. However from word of mouth, early reviews and first hand experience, you have a good chance of catching some great material if you follow any above recommendations.

Check out the trailer for SIFF’s 40th anniversary here and visit SIFF’s website to buy tickets and check out more of the lineup.

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12 YEARS A SLAVE Wins TIFF Audience Award

by Posted in Festival News
 

Winning at the highly watched, well-hyped Toronto International Film Festival can do wonderful things for a career, and speaks plenty about future Oscar nominations. At TIFF, the festival’s films are voted on by an audience instead of a Jury. Recent films given the People’s Choice Award  include Slumdog Millionaire, The King’s Speech and Argo.

That bodes well for 12 Years a Slave director Steve McQueen and his actors and crew, a well put together ensemble that numbers Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon Northrup, the protagonist and author of the memoir that 12 Years a Slave is based on. Co-starring in the film, Michael Fassbender is the cruel plantation owner Edwin Epps who oversees Northrup after purchasing him off  William Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch), a Baptist preacher and slave owner. Brad Pitt, Quvenzhané Wallis, Paul Giamatti and other stars also lend their talents to this coherent ensemble. With the stake so high in talent, it’s no wonder the film has received acclaim from all of its viewers.

Couple great source material and superb with striking cinematography by Sean Bobbitt, wonderful writing by John Ridley, and superb direction by Steve McQueen, and it’s little wonder that 12 Years a Slave did take the cake at TIFF this year.  In an exploration of slavery that damns nearly every white character on screen while consistently reaffirming Northrup’s existent humanity, even under duress,, McQueen has set himself and his cast up well for Oscar season. Many Oscar tipsters have even mentioned that McQueen, the London-born Holland resident, could end up being the first a black director to win Best Director at the Academy Awards.
 
Before TIFF, 12 Years a Slave premiered as a sneak peak in the Telluride Film Festival,and has since been confirmed for the 2013 BFI London Film Festival as well. It’ll get commercial release by Fox Searchlight Pictures and Regency Enterprises on October 18, 2013. Given the film’s popularity with critics, we can be sure to expect more film festival showings and even more acclaim for 12 Years a Slave and its cast in the coming months.  To see a trailer for this wonderful drama, click here. 

12 Years a Slave is directed by Steve McQueen and stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Brad Pitt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Giamatti, Quvenzhane Wallis, Sarah Paulson, Paul Dano, Scoot McNairy, Garrett Dillahunt, Alfre Woodard, Dwight Henry, and Michael K. Williams. It hits theaters on October 18.

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Toronto International Film Festival Announces Full Line Up

by Posted in Festival News
This year’s TIFF certainly has a loaded playlist and I’m starting to consider just bucking up and attending, but we’ll see if those dreams actually come into fruition. The event will launch with their opening night film The Fifth Estate, the Wikileaks feature starring Benedict Cumberbatch. Also included in the Gala Presentations, there is the much anticipated August: Osage County with Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, Kill Your Darlings which premiered at Sundance with Daniel Radcliffe and Dane Dehaan, Justin Chadwick‘s Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom starring Idris Elba and Jonathan Teplitzky‘s The Railway Man starring Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman.

In the Special Presentations department, we have Cannes Palme D’or winner Blue is the Warmest Color, Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years a Slave, Dallas Buyers Club starring Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, Alfonso Cuarón‘s Gravity with George Clooney and Sandra Bullock, Prisoners starring Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal, Jonathan Glazer‘s Under the Skin with Scarlett Johansson,  Devil’s Knot with Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon, Dom Hemingway starring Jude Law, Jim Jarmusch‘s Only Lovers Left Alive and Asghar Farhadi‘s The Past.

Take a look at the full list below.

GALAS

  • American Dreams in China (dir. Peter Ho-Sun Chan) – Hong Kong/China
  • The Art of the Steal (dir. Jonathan Sobol) – Canada
  • August: Osage County (dir. John Wells) – USA
  • Cold Eyes (dir. Cho Ui-seok and Kim Byung-seo) – South Korea
  • The Fifth Estate (dir. Bill Condon) – USA [Opening Night Film]
  • The Grand Seduction (dir. Don McKellar) – Canada
  • Kill Your Darlings (dir. John Krokidas) – USA
  • Life of Crime (dir. Daniel Schechter) – USA [Closing Night Film]
  • The Love Punch (dir. Joel Hopkins) – France
  • The Lunchbox (dir. Ritesh Batra) – India/France/Germany
  • Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (dir. Justin Chadwick) – South Africa
  • Parkland (dir. Peter Landesman) – USA
  • The Railway Man (dir. Jonathan Teplitzky) – Australia/United Kingdom
  • The Right Kind of Wrong (dir. Jeremiah Chechik) – Canada
  • Shuddh Desi Romance (dir. Maneesh Sharma) – India
  • Supermensch The Legend of Shep Gordon (dir. Mike Myers) – USA

 

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS

 

  • 12 Years a Slave (dir. Steve McQueen) – USA
  • All Is By My Side (dir. John Ridley) – United Kingdom
  • Attila Marcel (dir. Sylvain Chomet) – France
  • Bad Words (dir. Jason Bateman) – USA
  • Belle (dir. Amma Asante) – United Kingdom
  • Blue Is the Warmest Color (dir. Abdellatif Kechiche) – France
  • Burning Bush (dir. Agnieszka Holland) – Czech Republic
  • Can a Song Save Your Life? (dir. John Carney) – USA
  • Cannibal (Caníbal) (dir. Manuel Martín Cuenca) – Spain/Romania/Russia/France
  • Dallas Buyers Club (dir. Jean-Marc Vallée) – USA
  • Devil’s Knot (dir. Atom Egoyan) – USA
  • The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him and Her (dir. Ned Benson) – USA
  • Dom Hemingway (dir. Richard Shepard) – United Kingdom
  • Don Jon (dir. Joseph Gordon-Levitt) – USA
  • The Double (dir. Richard Ayoade) – United Kingdom
  • Enough Said (dir. Nicole Holofcener) – USA
  • Exit Marrakech (dir. Caroline Link) – Germany
  • Felony (dir. Matthew Saville) – Australia
  • Gloria (dir. Sebastián Lelio) – Chile/Spain
  • Going Away (Il est parti dimanche) (dir. Nicole Garcia) – France
  • Gravity (dir. Alfonso Cuarón) – USA/United Kingdom
  • The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza) (dir. Paolo Sorrentino) – Italy
  • Hateship Loveship (dir. Liza Johnson) – USA
  • Ida (dir. Pawel Pawlikowski) – Poland
  • L’intrepido (dir. Gianni Amelio) – Italy
  • The Invisible Woman (dir. Ralph Fiennes) – United Kingdom
  • Joe (dir. David Gordon Green) – USA
  • Labor Day (dir. Jason Reitman) – USA
  • Like Father, Like Son (dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda) – Japan
  • MARY Queen of Scots Thomas (dir. Imbach) – France/Switzerland
  • Night Moves (dir. Kelly Reichardt) – USA
  • Omar (dir. Hany Abu-Assad) – Palestine
  • One Chance (dir. David Frankel) – USA
  • Only Lovers Left Alive (dir. Jim Jarmusch) – USA
  • The Past (Le Passé) (dir. Asghar Farhadi) – France/Italy
  • Philomena (dir. Stephen Frears) – United Kingdom
  • Pioneer (Pionér) (dir. Erik Skjoldbjærg) – Norway/Germany/Sweden/France/Finland
  • Prisoners (dir. Denis Villeneuve) – USA
  • Quai d’Orsay (dir. Bertrand Tavernier) – France
  • REAL (dir. Kiyoshi Kurosawa) – Japan
  • Starred Up (dir. David Mackenzie) – United Kingdom
  • Third Person (dir. Paul Haggis) – Belgium
  • Those Happy Years (Anni Felici) (dir. Daniele Luchetti) – Italy
  • Under the Skin (dir. Jonathan Glazer) – USA/United Kingdom
  • Violette (dir. Martin Provost) – France/Belgium
  • Visitors (dir. Godfrey Reggio) – USA
  • Walesa. Man of Hope. (Walesa. Czlowiek z nadziei.) (dir. Andrzej Wajda) – Poland
  • We are the Best! (Vi är bäst!) (dir. Lukas Moodysson) – Sweden
  • Le Week-End (dir. Roger Michell) – United Kingdom
  • You Are Here (dir. Matthew Weiner) – USA
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Toronto International Film Festival Announces Lineup

by Posted in Festival News

This year’s TIFF certainly has a loaded playlist and I’m starting to consider just bucking up and attending, but we’ll see if those dreams actually come into fruition. The event will launch with their opening night film The Fifth Estate, the Wikileaks feature starring Benedict Cumberbatch. Also included in the Gala Presentations, there is the much anticipated August: Osage County with Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, Kill Your Darlings which premiered at Sundance with Daniel Radcliffe and Dane Dehaan, Justin Chadwick‘s Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom starring Idris Elba and Jonathan Teplitzky‘s The Railway Man starring Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman.

 

In the Special Presentations department, we have Cannes Palme D’or winner Blue is the Warmest Color, Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years a Slave, Dallas Buyers Club starring Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, Alfonso Cuarón‘s Gravity with George Clooney and Sandra Bullock, Prisoners starring Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal, Jonathan Glazer‘s Under the Skin with Scarlett Johansson,  Devil’s Knot with Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon, Dom Hemingway starring Jude Law, Jim Jarmusch‘s Only Lovers Left Alive and Asghar Farhadi‘s The Past.

Take a look at the full list below.

GALAS

  • American Dreams in China (dir. Peter Ho-Sun Chan) – Hong Kong/China
  • The Art of the Steal (dir. Jonathan Sobol) – Canada
  • August: Osage County (dir. John Wells) – USA
  • Cold Eyes (dir. Cho Ui-seok and Kim Byung-seo) – South Korea
  • The Fifth Estate (dir. Bill Condon) – USA [Opening Night Film]
  • The Grand Seduction (dir. Don McKellar) – Canada
  • Kill Your Darlings (dir. John Krokidas) – USA
  • Life of Crime (dir. Daniel Schechter) – USA [Closing Night Film]
  • The Love Punch (dir. Joel Hopkins) – France
  • The Lunchbox (dir. Ritesh Batra) – India/France/Germany
  • Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (dir. Justin Chadwick) – South Africa
  • Parkland (dir. Peter Landesman) – USA
  • The Railway Man (dir. Jonathan Teplitzky) – Australia/United Kingdom
  • The Right Kind of Wrong (dir. Jeremiah Chechik) – Canada
  • Shuddh Desi Romance (dir. Maneesh Sharma) – India
  • Supermensch The Legend of Shep Gordon (dir. Mike Myers) – USA

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS

  • 12 Years a Slave (dir. Steve McQueen) – USA
  • All Is By My Side (dir. John Ridley) – United Kingdom
  • Attila Marcel (dir. Sylvain Chomet) – France
  • Bad Words (dir. Jason Bateman) – USA
  • Belle (dir. Amma Asante) – United Kingdom
  • Blue Is the Warmest Color (dir. Abdellatif Kechiche) – France
  • Burning Bush (dir. Agnieszka Holland) – Czech Republic
  • Can a Song Save Your Life? (dir. John Carney) – USA
  • Cannibal (Caníbal) (dir. Manuel Martín Cuenca) – Spain/Romania/Russia/France
  • Dallas Buyers Club (dir. Jean-Marc Vallée) – USA
  • Devil’s Knot (dir. Atom Egoyan) – USA
  • The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him and Her (dir. Ned Benson) – USA
  • Dom Hemingway (dir. Richard Shepard) – United Kingdom
  • Don Jon (dir. Joseph Gordon-Levitt) – USA
  • The Double (dir. Richard Ayoade) – United Kingdom
  • Enough Said (dir. Nicole Holofcener) – USA
  • Exit Marrakech (dir. Caroline Link) – Germany
  • Felony (dir. Matthew Saville) – Australia
  • Gloria (dir. Sebastián Lelio) – Chile/Spain
  • Going Away (Il est parti dimanche) (dir. Nicole Garcia) – France
  • Gravity (dir. Alfonso Cuarón) – USA/United Kingdom
  • The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza) (dir. Paolo Sorrentino) – Italy
  • Hateship Loveship (dir. Liza Johnson) – USA
  • Ida (dir. Pawel Pawlikowski) – Poland
  • L’intrepido (dir. Gianni Amelio) – Italy
  • The Invisible Woman (dir. Ralph Fiennes) – United Kingdom
  • Joe (dir. David Gordon Green) – USA
  • Labor Day (dir. Jason Reitman) – USA
  • Like Father, Like Son (dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda) – Japan
  • MARY Queen of Scots Thomas (dir. Imbach) – France/Switzerland
  • Night Moves (dir. Kelly Reichardt) – USA
  • Omar (dir. Hany Abu-Assad) – Palestine
  • One Chance (dir. David Frankel) – USA
  • Only Lovers Left Alive (dir. Jim Jarmusch) – USA
  • The Past (Le Passé) (dir. Asghar Farhadi) – France/Italy
  • Philomena (dir. Stephen Frears) – United Kingdom
  • Pioneer (Pionér) (dir. Erik Skjoldbjærg) – Norway/Germany/Sweden/France/Finland
  • Prisoners (dir. Denis Villeneuve) – USA
  • Quai d’Orsay (dir. Bertrand Tavernier) – France
  • REAL (dir. Kiyoshi Kurosawa) – Japan
  • Starred Up (dir. David Mackenzie) – United Kingdom
  • Third Person (dir. Paul Haggis) – Belgium
  • Those Happy Years (Anni Felici) (dir. Daniele Luchetti) – Italy
  • Under the Skin (dir. Jonathan Glazer) – USA/United Kingdom
  • Violette (dir. Martin Provost) – France/Belgium
  • Visitors (dir. Godfrey Reggio) – USA
  • Walesa. Man of Hope. (Walesa. Czlowiek z nadziei.) (dir. Andrzej Wajda) – Poland
  • We are the Best! (Vi är bäst!) (dir. Lukas Moodysson) – Sweden
  • Le Week-End (dir. Roger Michell) – United Kingdom
  • You Are Here (dir. Matthew Weiner) – USA
post

BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR Wins the Palme d'Or at Cannes

by Posted in Festival News

 

The 2013 Cannes Film Festival has now come to a close with the more desired Palme d’Or headed to the hands of Abdellatif Kechiche for Blue is the Warmest Color. Although this is one of the few films that I didn’t really have on my radar, apparently it got a lot of buzz from those at Cannes. Following the footsteps of a young, traditional girl who realizes that she has feelings for an older woman, this film got lots of buzz for its ultra-realistic 10-minute girl-on-girl sex scene.

Outside of that big first place prize, Joel and Ethan Coen won the Grand Prix for Inside Llewyn Davis, Amat Escalante won Best Director for Heli and Kore-Eda Hirokazu‘s Soshite Chichi Ni Naru (Like Father, Like Son) won the Jury Prize.

On the acting side of the equation, Bruce Dern took home Best Actor for his role in Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska and Berenice Bejo won Best Actress for The Past.

Perhaps the worst news to come out of Cannes is that Nicholas Winding Refn‘s Only God Forgives, which was one of my most anticipated films of the year, got booed at its premiere for being overly-violent and overly-artsy. Damn shame.

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post

Seattle International Film Festival Line-Up Loaded With Gems

by Posted in Festival News

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Today, the Seattle International Film Festival  unveiled its full lineup for this year’s festival. As this will be my first year covering it (and my first time covering any festival of this pedigree), I anxiously anticipated what the organizers had in store and the answers are pretty exciting. Running from May 16-June 9, SIFF has more to offer than ever before.

SIFF officially launches with Joss Whedon‘s Much Ado About Nothing at its Opening Night Gala. Famously filmed in a mere 12 days, this modernized Shakespeare adaptation tells the tale of love unacquainted and unrequited. Whedon is expected to attend alongside stars Alexis Denisof, Amy Acker, Nathan Fillion, and Clark Gregg.

While Whedon’s black-and-white Bard tale will be sure to charm audiences, Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring, which will close out the festival, delves into the toxic allure of crime and celebrity in this true-life story of a band of teenage thieves who rob the richest of Hollywood’s stars.

Other notable entries to the festival include:

    • Blackfish
      Blackfish       documents the much-publicized 2010 killing of an orca whale trainer at SeaWorld. It premiered at this year’s Sundance Festival, posing poignant questions about the tactics and ethics of this multinational but predominantly corporate aquarium.

 

  • Byzantium
    From the director of Interview With A Vampire, Neil Jordan‘s Byzantium is a mystery thriller that features (you guessed it) vampires. Starring Saoirse Ronan and Gemma Arterton, Byzantium has been called a stylish and seductive film that mixes up the familiar vampiric tropes.

 

  •  Decoding Annie Parker
    Decoding Annie Parker     is based on the true story of geneticist Mary-Claire King, who, faced with colleague ridicule and disbelief, proved that breast cancer is born of heredity rather than chance. Featuring a strong cast with Helen Hunt, Aaron Paul, Samantha Morton, Bradley Whitford, Maggie Grace, Alice Eve and Rashida Jones, this film charters how cancer was just almost cured.

 

  • Epic
    From Dreamworks Studios comes this animated feature about the smaller things, er, people in life. Much like Ferngully, Epic takes us to a microscopic level where little people battle malevolent animals in order to save the forest that they love so dearly.

 

  • Frances Ha
    Following up on a pair of sobering and darkly comical critical darlings, Greenberg and The Squid and The Whale, Noah Baumbach takes his distinctive touch to Frances Ha, a “quirky romantic comedy” set to the backdrop of New York City which is already winning the critics over in droves.

  • Monsters University
    Rewinding time back to when monsters Sulley and Mike met at college, this prequel is Pixar‘s latest offering. After a string of misses, Monsters University has a chance to bring the heart and charm back to a studio once renown for just that. 

 

  • The Way, Way Back
    Starring Liam James (The Killing), Toni Collette (United States of Tara), Steve Carell (The Office) and Sam Rockwell (Moon), The Way, Way Back is a coming of age story about a circular kid trying to fit into a square hole who finds an unlikely friend at a water park.

 

  • Twenty Feet From Stardom
    A documentary by Morgan Neville, Twenty Feet From Stardom aims the spotlight at the oft-unnoticed backup singers for some of the world’s best talent. The film will feature interviews by Stevie Wonder, Mick Jagger, Sheryl Crowe and Bette Midler as they talk about these unsung stars living in the periphery of stardom.Seattle International Film Festival
    May 16- June 9, 2013
  • V/H/S 2 
    While last year’s cult hit V/H/S hardly reinvented the wheel with its found footage montage premise, it made waves in the horror genre for doing what horror movies should — scaring the pants off people. This structureless compilation follows almost exactly in the footsteps of its predecessor with five short horrifying segments that lack a strong central thread tying them together. Brendan Walsh of Screen Crave praised it, saying: “This time around, it feels like every filmmaker is right in their wheelhouse, presenting a polished, terrifying vision.”

As there are over 400 films playing at this years festival, there are countless others including a selection of short films and a slew of documentaries. Representing 85 countries and featuring 49 world premieres, 47 North American premieres and 18 U.S. premieres, this is sure to be one of the greatest years in SIFF history.

Before you go, check out the awesome little trailers for SIFF 2013 that’s rife with movie references and some cool little claymation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFLQ8oCNu0s

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