Lord of the Rings Director Peter Jackson was the guy to take on this challenge, but if you’re expecting to see an action packed movie here, prepare to be surprised. Jackson gets the grizzly bit out of the way in the first twenty minutes and leaves out the graphic details of the novel. Whereas the book left no doubt about the horror Susie Salmon underwent in her final minutes, Jackson barely touches on the matter and leaves the viewer to work it out for themselves. It still successfully achieves the shock impact though, as Susie is lured by a seemingly friendly local neighbour into an underground den. Although you don’t know what he is planning to do to her, it’s  very clear something gruesome is on the cards. Stanley Tucci plays the part of the murderer George Harvey and it’s his performance that really makes the film quite terrifying. He looks harmless enough, but when he’s alone with Susie the mumbling incoherent noises he makes as he’s talking to her are really quite disturbing. The viewer start to share Susie’s discomfort as she begins to sense she is in a dangerous situation.

Plot Synopsis: Following her murder, Susie moves to the afterlife and is stuck in a place called ‘the inbetween’, from which she watches her family as they learn about her death and try to live without her.

The best scenes were those that took place in Susie’s ‘inbetween’ world’, as the cinematography was incredible. It combined images from Susie’s past life when she had been alive, and images from her nightmarish death. For example, at one point Susie feels like she’s drowning (her murderer is throwing evidence into a lake), but she lands on a soft bed, which presumably was from her house. This constant contrast of bad and good reiterates the idea that Susie is halfway between heaven and hell, and that she won’t reach an idyllic heaven until her mind finds peace.

I found this a compelling film, but I was disappointed with the ending. Without giving too much away, the plot seemed to change direction and meaning suddenly in the final ten minutes. It seems to be about Susie’s family getting justice, but then we’re told it’s not about that at all, and it’s actually about them coming to terms with her death and learning to live with it. The come-uppance George Harvey gets seemed like a bit of a cop-out to me and didn’t really feel like enough. I can’t remember if the novel had the same ending or not, but for a film ending, it definitely needed a little more oomph.

Dir: Peter Jackson

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Rachel Weisz, Susan Sarandon

Surrogates

Tom Greer (Bruce Willis) is a detective investigating the discovery of a lethal weapon which not only destroys surrogates, but kills their controllers at the same time. This is a hush hush investigation, as it can’t be made public that using robotic surrogates could be dangerous, as one of the main reasons for using surrogates is that they are supposed to be safe. Any harm that comes to them as they are acting out their controller’s daily life is not supposed to have any impact on their controller. The discovery that a technology exists which can harm both would cause public outcry.

Digital effects are used excessively in this movie, as the robotic surrogates are designed to look like idealised versions of the people controlling them and largely have flawless faces and perfect figures. This is logical and the digitally altered faces allow viewers to easily identify the surrogates from their controlling counterparts. Nevertheless, it was very hard to concentrate on the story when Bruce Willis’ appearance was so obviously altered and expressionless. It was distracting to see a face so familiar look so different.

Fortunately, when Tom’s surrogate is destroyed, he has to come out of his chair and actually start doing some investigating for himself and that’s when we get to see the Bruce Willis we know and love.  As Tom gets more used to life without a surrogate and sees that his relationship with his wife has almost completely disintgrated and they don’t know how to communicate with one another, he starts to question how effective surrogates are and begins to look at them in a negative light.

Unfortunately, despite the interesting idea behind it, Surrogates never really gets going and it fails  to engage the viewer. Tom Greer is the only character we really get attached to, as everyone else is living life through a surrogate, and it’s hard to become attached to someone when you’re aware they’re basically a robot

Dir: Jonathon Mostow

Starring: Bruce Willis, Radha Mitchell, Rosamund Pike, Ving Rhames

Traditionally, yesterday the Tiger Award and Audience Award were handed out. Both went to films I have not seen (this seem to happen nearly every year). The Audience Award went to the Spanish drama Yo, también by directors Álvaro Pastor and Antonio Naharro. I heard very positive signals about this film and all I can hope is it will get a release here in the Netherlands.

The Tiger Award for films (co)funded by the IFFR’s Hubert Bals Fund this year went to three films (which seems to become common practice): Costa Rican Agua fría de mar, Mexican Alamar and Thai Mundane History.

This concludes my contribution for Choking on Popcorn for this year’s IFFR (I also wrote for another, Dutch medium). Next year will be the 40th edition of the festival, which demands a proper celebration. Hopefully, the people in charge will succeed in attracting some bigger names, to reinstall or reconfirm the IFFR’s reputation, as well as book some larger titles to provide a better mix of popular arthouse, more commercial titles and hidden Asian gems.

This said, I think the 2010 edition has been extremely fruitful and definitely worth a visit. The amount of sold tickets was 10,000 higher compared to 2009. There are still so many films I have not been able to watch, which leaves me in utter frustration and eager anticipation for future DVD or cinema release.

As a final thought I now provide you with my top five of IFFR 2010 (from what I have attended that is).

TOP 10 IFFR 2010:

1. Un prophète – I consider the odds this French take of ‘The Godfather in the slammer’ for an Oscar in the Foreign Language Film category are very high.

2. A Single Man – Fashion designer Tom Ford’s first feature, or in fact, first film ever, is lush, emotional and simply gorgeous. I made me want to propose to Julianne Moore.

3. Fantastic Mr. Fox – Wes Anderson seems comfortable in the animated field also, even when it is a Roald Dahl fable set on American soil. The top-motion animation is classic and not pixel-perfect which adds to the charm.

4. Symbol – Those who have seen Dai-Nipponjin, that was shown on the IFFR in 2008 may be aware of director Matsumoto Histoshi’s creative and twisted brain will definitely enjoy this film about a man trapped in a white room where there seems no way out.

5. Dial M for Murder – the oldie by Hitchcock was shown in 3-D, which provided a unique experience. All of sudden it became obvious why there were so many vases, lamps and bottles placed in front of Grace Kelly.

Today’s update includes Korean The Mother, by the director of the critically acclaimed The Host and a review of Romanian comedy Tales of the Golden Age. I also highly recommend both!

MOTHER (2009)

Some of you may have seen the very well made horror monster flick The Host by Korean director Bong Joon-Ho from 2006. With Mother, the film-maker explores an entire new territory. The dramatic thriller is about a mother (an enchanting role by Kim Hye-Ja) who is trying to prove the fact her slightly retarded son is not responsible for the murder on a local girl.

The script of Mother could have been a bit more streamlined and even though Joon-Ho’s new film clocks at least half an hour too long, it is the breathtaking performance of Hye-Ja that keeps you glued to the screen regardless. The actress is allowed to play about every emotion of the spectrum imaginable. The ending of Mother is somewhat bitter, but underlines the unconditional love a mother has for her child.

TALES FROM THE GOLDEN AGE (2009)

Tales from the Golden Age, directed by several Romanian directors including Christian Mungiu (from the highly acclaimed 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days), is a compilation of urban legends from the communist period. The five films presented of different lengths (most of them around half an hour) are hilarious, bitter sweet and at some times just extremely funny. The prospect of a visit of government officials causes quite a stir in a small Romanian village. An exploding pig does the same, yet in a different fashion, in an apartment in a big city. And two students have found a way to make money by collecting air and water. Just a few examples of the plots that pass by in Tales from the Golden Age.

The fact these stories all originate from the time Ceausescu reigned (which is most prominent in the last story, which deals with the leader’s picture taken for a state controlled newspaper), not only make these stories seem more real than they really were, but also brings along a sense of rebellion and oppression. Some of these shorts may feel a bit slow, but it is the careful organization of the director that make these films nest into your soul.

Tales from the Golden Age is still screened on:
- Friday February 5th 2:45 pm
- Saturday February 6th 1:15 pm

For more info about the festival and tickets go to iffr.nl
All images courtesy of International Film Festival Rotterdam

But, that set aside (and written off my chest), the festival DOES have a lot of eye candy to offer, and let’s face it: that is what it is all about. I will discuss two of my favorite films of the IFFR so far: François Ozon’s Le refuge and Swedish The Ape.

LE REFUGE (2009)

French director François Ozon seemed to have no sense of direction (no pun intended) the past couple of years, with his English Angel being the worst thing he put out since 5×2. Le refuge (The Refuge) is the last installment in his trilogy dealing with death, Sous le sable and Le temps qui reste being the first two. Le refuge deals with a pregnant woman (Isabelle Carré, who was also pregnant in real life when shooting this film), who loses her boyfriend and the child’s father to a fatal heroine shot. She decides to keep the child, despite her in-laws wanting her to have an abortion. She moves to a summerhouse near the coast where she is kept company by Paul, hey dead boyfriend’s brother.

Even though Le refuge is an attempt to get back in form, the emotional approach is still somewhat shallow. Lead actress Carré does a good job trying to convince and her interaction with Louis-Ronan Choisy, who portrays Paul, is one of the strongest assets Ozon as to offer, despite Choisy’s distant performance. Even though it is still not Ozon playing his best game, Le refuge is promising for future Ozon films.

THE APE (2009)

The Ape is a Swedish drama slash thriller that is completely set up from the claustrophobic point of view of its protagonist Krister. Just as the viewer, the actor playing Krister, Olle Sarri, was not informed about what was really going on in the film. All we know, at first, is that Krister is a hotheaded driving instructor who seems to be agitated about something or someone. As the film progressed the true nature of his worries are unveiled. It ain’t a pretty prospect and Krister has a hard time making amends with an event that has destructed his life permanently.

The Ape sends you into a rather uncomfortable rush and the restless performance of Sarri may even annoy the hell out of you. As the story unfolds, Krister’s motivations may still remain unclear, but you start to develop a combination of repulsion and compassion as well. This goes hand in hand with an unbeatable urge to find out what has happened to Kristen’s life and what his next steps will be to resolve things. The Ape is the second film by Swedish director Jesper Ganslandt, whose directing debut was the highly acclaimed Falkenberg Farewell.

For more info about the festival and tickets go to iffr.nl
All images courtesy of International Film Festival Rotterdam

Today’s update will include two reviews: of Korean horror film Possessed and of the hailed Un prophète.

POSSESSED (2009)

Horror flicks seem to be the perfect starting point for a lot of directors and with it they seem to face themselves with a rather difficult dilemma. They try to approach the genre with originality, while also having to fulfill certain clichés that are typical for the genre. Possessed is the debut of Korean director Lee Yong-Yu and is promising yet rather extremely predictable in its structure. The story centers on a young missing girl and whose disappearance is investigated by her older sister. When the sister arrives at the apartment a lot is unveiled about their mother and the other residents of the apartment building. Some people are convinced the girl was possessed and when people around them die in large quantities and under mysterious circumstances, a police detective becomes determined to solve the enigma.

The biggest mistake the director makes is treating most of his suspense scenes in a similar matter. The arches of many individual scenes are completely interchangeable, therefore isolating the scenes and lacking coherence. The story suffers from an insatiable amount of flashbacks that are brought up when necessary but that do not rely on events occurred earlier in the film. However, many horror fans are likely to enjoy Possessed thoroughly, especially considering the effective and beautiful photography and the occasional gore and plot changes.

Possessed is still screened on:
- Friday February 5th 7:45 pm
- Saturday February 6th 10 pm

UN PROPHÈTE (2009)

This is a coming of age story that takes places in a highly secured prison somewhere in France. The 19-year old Malik is taken into custody for a crime we don’t get to know a lot about ,besides the fact it will cost him six years of his life. In jail, there is one man who decides what happens and to whom. This Italian, Luciano, orders Malik to kill a fellow-prisoner to avoid further punishment and to regain his protection. When Malik succeeds, he becomes a personal protégé of Luciano and Malik’s leaves are used to arrange even more business for the Italian.

Un prophète is harsh and realistic and certainly not for the faint-hearted. The lead is played by a newcomer, whose natural performance seems to be perfectly able to carry the heavy ordeals his character has to face. Even though Malik is in prison most of the time, a lot of emphasis is on his leaves, in which he has to undertake a lot of action in a limited time. These scenes are a welcome change from dreary prison life. Un prophète is currently on the shortlist in the Foreign Language category for the Oscars and has very big chance of winning.

RATINGX

Un prophète is still screened on:
- Tuesday February 2nd 5 pm
- Saturday February 6th 10:30 pm

For more info about the festival and tickets go to iffr.nl
All images courtesy of International Film Festival Rotterdam

This first report contains two reviews: for Wes Anderson’s The Fantastic Mr. Fox and Australia’s entry for the Oscars: Samson & Delilah.

FANTASTIC MR. FOX (2009)

Now, Wes Anderson turning to the field of stop-motion animation, there’s something different! Anderson decided to pick the famous Roald Dahl fable, Fantastic Mr. Fox, as his animated feature debut. The style of the animation may be considered very old school, which brings an interesting flare to the humor presented. Some may raise an eyebrow for Anderson’s attempt to Americanize a typically British story about a bunch of foxes trying to get even with a bunch of farmers slash industrials.

The aforementioned translation to American soil is the biggest flaw of Fantastic Mr. Fox. The humor is very typical for the work of Anderson and even may be too much of an acquired taste. It is a combination of slapstick comedy routines and verbal conundrums that may be too hard to grasp for young viewers. The voice cast is astounding, though and consists of one George Clooney, Meryl Streep, among other Anderson veterans like Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman. Fantastic Mr. Fox is more Wes Anderson than it is Roald Dahl.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is still screened on:
- Friday January 29th 7:45 pm
- Monday February 1st 10:45 pm
- Saturday February 6th 9:30 am

SAMSON & DELILAH (2009)

Samson & Delilah is the first time full-length feature of Aboriginal director Warwick Thornton. It has received the Palm d’Or in Cannes as well as many awards in homeland Australia. Warwick, who also did the cinematography of his film, shot his feature around Alice Springs. The main actors are all amateurs. Samson & Delilah mainly thrives on image rather than dialogues, which makes it somewhat hard to get into.

It is about two youngsters trying to escape boredom by leaving their home village after a tragic event. It turns out life is just as unkind outside of the village. Because it is mainly without dialogue, Samson & Delilah may be a bit dull at times. This is also caused by the fact it is at least twenty minutes too long. The imagery and performances, however, are quite impressive. It is a hopeless film with a tiny spark of hope in the end.

Samson & Delilah is still screened on:
- Saturday January 30th 4 pm
- Monday February 1st 9:45 pm
- Thursday February 4th 7:15 pm

For more info about the festival and tickets go to iffr.nl
All images courtesy of International Film Festival Rotterdam

Like previous years Choking on Popcorn will report exclusively from the IFFR with small reviews and impressions.

For more info and the full program go to www.iffr.nl (also available in English)

As she is portrayed in the film, there are three personas to Sabrina and never the three shall meet. There is the unabashed Id that prances and screams and performs on stage, flinging her hair wildly, soaking it all in. Charisma and complete control over herself and her crowd ooze from her pores. Here she seems comfortable. Here she seems complete. Then there is the Superego of the teacher, watching over her students, caring for them, wanting the best for them. Again, there is a measure of control and, though there may not be as much gusto, it still feels like she is comfortable in her situation and her place in that world. Finally there is the Ego persona of Sabrina in her dating life. This life is filled with uncomfortable silences, cautious mousy stares and desperate pleas to God or to anyone who would please just intervene or lend a hand. She is a woman of very little action and even fewer words. Most of her dialogue during the dating scenes comes in the form of voiceovers, as if she’s so scared to communicate with her date so she’ll just talk to herself. She is an observer of her own life as she lets things and people happen to her. She has lost, and is in no hurry to regain, any control over what may befall her.

You can lift the scenes of the band and the scenes of the teacher right out of the movie and not touch the plot at all. That may be a writing flaw or that may just be who Sabrina is. The character would not be as interesting or as fleshed out, but really, as I stated before, these are three completely separate worlds she revolves in that don’t have much bearing with each other. Which is a bit incredulous, I have to say. After a while of the dating life, one begins to wish for a Tyler Durden moment where the punk-band Id breaks through the timid Ego, slaps her horrible dates around and verbally eviscerates them to the point they will never be such douche bags again.

As is the case with such personal films, this is a passion project of the writer/producer/star, Sabrina. She struggled through the pre-production of this movie with it almost not happening and falling apart but got it done in order to give us this film. All which makes me wonder why she felt such a burning need to bring us this story in the first place. Was it the need for an emotional release, some sort of psychiatric experiment to get things off her chest? Or is it some sort of penance, a way to be emotionally brutal with herself and to come to terms with who she is or was? Perhaps it was just her reaching out to others who may be in the same boat, a comforting hand explaining that this too shall pass. Maybe it’s a combination of all of the above and Sabrina will show herself to, once again, be much more complex then any single line of explanation can hold.

Like a lot of people, I grew up listening to The Beatles. I know most of their songs word for word, but prior to seeing this film, I had little knowledge about the individual Beatles and their history. Nowhere Boy allowed me to learn something about John Lennon. The film covers important stages in his teenage life,  which include: the death of his uncle and father figure, his blossoming relationship with his previously absent mother, buying his first guitar, meeting Paul McCartney and forming the band that would make music history.

Nowhere Boy largely focuses on Lennon’s troubled and complex family life. At the start of the movie, Lennon’s uncle dies and John is griefstruck.  This death leaves John in the sole care of his Aunt Mimi (Kristin Scott Thomas). After his Uncle’s funeral John is reintroduced to his mother Julia, who for reasons unknown has been absent from his life for years, despite only living a few streets away. Against Aunt Mimi’s wishes,  the pair start to get to know one another. Julia introduces him to rock music and encourages John to learn guitar, and John relishes this new attention.

The differences between the two sisters Julia and Mimi is very great, and it’s not obvious until stated that they are even related. Mimi has always tried to teach John rules and limits and finds it difficult to show affection, whilst Julia actively encourages John’s rebellious side and lavishes attention on him. Julia’s overly affectionate manner, particularly towards John, is actually uncomfortable to watch at times, and hints at unstable tendencies. The two parenting methods don’t seem to work in conjuction with one another and the conflict causes John to rebel.

Aaron Johnson is truly incredible as John Lennon. He sounds exactly like him, and it’s not just the liverpool accent; he also manages to pefectly convey the idiosyncracies of Lennon’s voice and mannerisms. From the very start of the film, it’s easy for the viewer to accept Johnson as Lennon and get carried along by the story. Thomas Sangster (you may recognise him as the young boy in love in Love Actually) is less impressive as Paul McCartney. He’s peculiar looking, which is in contrast to McCartney’s conventional good looks, and it was hard to see past this aesthetic difference. This isn’t really a major issue though, as at this period in John’s life, McCartney only has a small part to play anyway.

Kristin Scott Thomas is brilliantly cast as Aunt Mimi. She is prim and proper, and incapable of expressing affection and emotion, although we can clearly see she feels it. There is a touching moment when John tries to hug her after her husband’s death and all she can do is tell him to stop being silly.

Nowere Boy is a touching portrayal of a musical legend  before he reached the heights of fame. It provides a glimpse into what made Lennon the man and musician he became and looks at relationships in his youth that may have inspired  his future music.

Dir: Sam Taylor Wood

Starring: Aaron Johnson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Ann-Marie Duff