On the IFFR there is always room for bigger films than the festival was originally intended for. Not that this is a bad thing per se. It does however shift the focus off releases that need more attention and have not found a Dutch distributor yet. Tonight the IFFR will show its traditional surprise film. The Daily Tiger, the daily newspaper of the festival gave it away with a hint that was way too easy. Think big cars and Dirty Harry. You do the math (although it doesn’t even take math). The kids jury gave the MovieSquad Award to Slumdog Millionaire, that is also currently at the top of the audience polls. And is it really that good? No, it is not amazing (due to a major flaw in the script), yet it is an enchanting charming film and who can honestly dislike it’s Mr. Boyle?
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It is pretty hard to find the time, the (working) digital means and the energy to write my updates on a regular basis. In today’s updates you will find reviews of three directing debuts, starting with The Chaser, a suspenseful thriller and the biggest hit of 2008 in Korean cinemas. Next is Better Things, the depressing feature debut of Duane Hopkins and, more cheerful, Dogging: A love Story, which is also a first film and Tiger Award nominee by British director Sean Ellis.
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In today’s minor update two rather interesting films. First is Danish director Nicholas Winding Refn’s international debut, Bronson, a biopic about Britain’s most notorious inmate Charlie Bronson. Second is 4bia (pronounced ‘phobia’) a collection of four short Thai horror films and part of this year’s ‘Hungry Ghosts’ program.
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Fatigue is definitely taking its toll, despite several nights of good sleep. It is hard stay awake during some films, especially when the suck, but so far I have been pretty satisfied with the quality of the films I have seen. Today’s small update includes Jonathan Demme’s take on a dysfunctional family in Rachel Getting Married as well as Flashbacks of a Fool featuring Daniel Craig.
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This year’s edition of the IFFR seems to be more sober in practically each and every sense imaginable. The line-up has been slimmed down, the poster and new tiger logo plain and simple and the press facilities are mediocre compared to the excessive facilities of previous years. Not that I complain (okay a little but that is my nature), since the press gets a lot in return even when there are just six computers to work on (as opposed to more than 12 last year) and internet and wireless connections shutting down at least once a day. I wished I brought along my notebook after all. Still the films, or at least most of them, are great. This first update (I was planning to do one earlier, but there was no way I could post one) includes a French tragic comedy by the directors of Aaltra, Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married and the emotional Japanese dramaTokyo Sonata .
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This year the annual International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) will take place from January 21st to February 1st in, you probably guessed, Rotterdam. This year’s line-up is pretty much slimmed down as opposed to the elaborate but confusing programs of previous editions. The 2009 issue has a substantive amount of Tiger Awards nominees (films co-funded by the festival’s Hubert Bals Fund), including the opening film, The Hungry Ghosts, Sopranos star Micheal Imperioli’s first job as a director. One of the highlight programs this year is also called Hungry Ghosts and consists of horror films from the orient. Since the IFFR has an (unfortunately declining) reputation of screening unknown and obscure films from southeast Asia, the relatively recent revival of the genre will have a perfect platform on this festival. Other important releases include Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married and Danny Boyle’s Golden Globe winner Slumdog Millionaire, as well as the Italian mob thriller Gomorra. As with previous editions, Choking on Popcorn will extensively report from the IFFR bringing you small reviews and impressions on a regular basis.

For more info and the full program go to www.iffr.nl
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“Van Damme is back” says some of the blurb you come across on the internet. But it’s wrong: Van Damme is not “back”, because “back” would imply that after years of less than mediocre C-level action flicks he would have made the new Bloodsport or Kickboxer: a real good action movie that would put him back on the action movie chart and that is not the case. No, Van Damme did something he never did before: he made a real movie. A movie where he does not try to act but really does act. Well, he’s not acting as such; he’s being himself more or less. Van Damme re-invented himself by taking on what is undoubtedly his toughest movie role ever. A movie only few actors – even the really good ones – would have had the guts to make. And he succeeded.

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I generally skip watching the Golden Globes because I feel the GG are typically hokey from year to year. It could even be argued that the small amount of those who make up The Hollywood Foreign Press. But I made the exception this time, because of the nominees and due to the promise of H’wood to go all out in style. I’m not disappointed with much, just four things, really, and deals with class, or lack thereof. But there were some strong, classic moments in the event as well.
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It seems the longer Nicolas Cage’s hair is, the more ridiculous the movie. The longest I remember it was in Con Air, and as much fun as that film was, its story was among the most unlikely I’ve come across. But Bangkok Dangerous might just be the runner up. And it’s nowhere near as enjoyable.

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After seeing the misguided Village and the atrocious Lady in the Water, I was ready to write-off M. Night Shyamalan as a once talented director who lost his touch. So when I had the chance to see The Happening, I braced for another disappointment. The movie started and the opening sequence showed promise, almost washing away any negative judgments I preconceived. I was hooked and wanted to know what was happening with The Happening. Then all that intrigue fell apart, like a week-old cookie: Mark Walburg showed up as a high school science teacher. Yes, Marky Mark as a high school teacher, nothing stranger can be imagined, even from M. Night Shyamalan.
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