PSIFF 13-Jan

Numb
Canada, 2007, 93 Minute Running Time
Topics: Comedy, Science Fiction

Hudson Milbank (Matthew Perry) is a screenwriter who smokes a too-strong joint that sends him over the edge into what is diagnosed as “depersonalization disorder,” the sense that everything around him is unreal. He meets the girl of his dreams, making his race to recovery imperative, and he seeks out every therapy imaginable.

DIRECTOR: Harris Goldberg
Producer: Kirk Shaw
Editor: Jeff Wisheugard
Screenwriter: Harris Goldberg
Cinematographer: Eric Steelberg
Music: Ryan Shore
Principal Cast: Matthew Perry, Mary Steenbergen, Lynn Collins, Kevin Pollack, Helen Shaver



This years festival went great and the final show is screening right now. Here's part two the films I've seen.

• Under the Same Moon

• Lagerfeld Confidential - insight into the life of Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld
  

• Black White & Gray

• Shake Hands with the Devil

• A Man Named Pearl - super cute documentary of a man becoming a leading topiary artist
  

• Days of Darkness - very smart, fun
  

• Tell No One - by far the drama/suspense film of the festival
  

• Watching the Detectives

• Numb
  

PSIFF 12-Jan

Tell No One
Ne le dis à personne
France, 2006, 126 Minute Running Time
Topics: Drama, Thriller
Language: French

Popular American mystery writer Harlan Coben’s novel Tell No One finally makes it to the silver screen in this action-packed adaptation directed by heartthrob Guillaume Canet. Featuring an extraordinary cast this thriller revolves around a pediatrician, who unexpectedly finds himself to be a suspect eight years after his wife was mysteriously murdered.

DIRECTOR: Guillaume Canet
Producer: Alain Attal
Editor: Hervé de Luze
Screenwriter: Guillaume Canet, Philippe Lefebvre, based on the novel by Harlan Coben
Cinematographer: Christophe Offenstein
Music: Mathieu Chedid
Principal Cast: François Cluzet, André Dussollier, Marie-Josée Croze, Jean Rochefort, Kristin Scott Thomas, François Berléand
Filmography: My Idol (2003)
World Sales: EuropaCorp

Watching the Detectives
USA, 2007, 92 Minute Running Time
Topic: Comedy

Cillian Murphy and Lucy Liu star in this loopy screwball farce about a self-proclaimed film geek who finds himself swept into a predicament right out of the movies when a thrill-seeking femme fatale enters his life.

DIRECTOR: Paul Soter
Producer: Celine Ratrray, Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Galt Niederhoffer
Editor: Jeff Canavan
Screenwriter: Paul Soter
Cinematographer: Christophe Lanzenberg
Music: Nathan Barr
Principal Cast: Cillian Murphy, Lucy Liu, Callie Thorne

PSIFF 11-Jan

A Man Named Pearl
USA, 2006, 78 Minute Running Time
Topics: Documentary, Family Friendly

This charming documentary (akin in tone to The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill) follows a factory worker and self-taught topiary artist who transformed his South Carolina yard into an inspirational garden—and a major tourist destination.

DIRECTOR: Scott Galloway, Brent Pierson
Producer: Scott Galloway, Brent Pierson
Editor: Greg Grzeszcak
Cinematographer: J. Steven Anderson
Music: Fred Story
Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Days of Darkness
L’Âge des ténèbres
Canada, 2007, 104 Minute Running Time
Additional Countries: France
Topics: Comedy, Drama
Language: French English Sub-Titles

Final part of a trilogy that began with Decline of the American Empire and The Barbarian Invasions. Everyman Jean-Marc escapes his Kafkaesque office and arid home life into a fantasy world of glamour and power in this witty dissection of the malaise of contemporary life.

DIRECTOR: Denys Arcand
Producer: Denise Robert, Daniel Louis
Editor: Isabelle Dedieux
Screenwriter: Denys Arcand
Cinematographer: Guy Dufaux
Music: Philippe Miller
Principal Cast: Marc Labrèche, Diane Kruger, Sylvie Léonard, Emma de Caunes, Didier Lucien
Filmography: The Barbarian Invasions (2003), Stardom (2000), Love and Human Remains (1993), Jesus of Montreal (1989), The Decline of the American Empire (1986)
World Sales: Studio Canal

PSIFF 10-Jan

Lagerfeld Confidential
France, 2007, 87 Minute Running Time
Topic: Documentary
Language: French/English English Sub-Titles

Fashionistas and non-fashionistas alike will enjoy this documentary about the prolific and eccentric German-born designer Karl Lagerfeld, reviver of the Chanel brand, stylish to the tips of his fingers—adorned in fingerless gloves and multiple silver rings.

DIRECTOR: Rodolphe Marconi
Producer: Gregory Bernard
Editor: Laure Mercier
Screenwriter: Rodlphe Marconi
Cinematographer: Rodolphe Marconi
Principal Cast: Featuring: Karl Lagerfield, Anna Wintour, Nicole Kidman, Princess Caroline of Monaco,
Filmography: The Last Day (2004), Love Forbidden (2002), This Is My Body (2001)
World Sales: Films Distribution

Black White + Gray
USA, 2007, 72 Minute Running Time
Topics: Documentary, Gay/Lesbian, Music

Exploring the relationships between legendary curator Sam Wagstaff, famed photographer Robert Mapplethorpe and punk rock’s “poet laureate” Patti Smith, Black White + Gray reveals the fascinating story of the influential figures who helped form the epicenter of New York’s grand collision of art, fashion, music and clublife in the ‘70s and ‘80s.

DIRECTOR: James Crump
Producer: Stanley Buchthal, David Koh, Maja Hoffmann
Editor: Dave Giles, William Davis
Screenwriter: James Crump
Cinematographer: Christopher Felver, Harry Geller, Paul Lundahl, Eric Koziol, David Koh
Music: J. Ralph
Principal Cast: Patti Smith, Dominick Dunne, Euggnia Parry, Sam Wagstaf, Robert Mapplethorpe
Filmography: Debut Feature Film
World Sales: Arthouse Films

Shake Hands with the Devil
Canada, 2007, 112 Minute Running Time
Topics: Drama, Political
Language: English/French English Sub-Titles

Shackled by an inadequate mandate, a U.N. general fights to prevent the seemingly inevitable violence as civil war threatens to break out in Rwanda in this devastating drama—an indictment of the global community’s failure to respond to humanitarian crisis.

DIRECTOR: Roger Spottiswoode
Producer: Laszlo Barna, Michael Donovan
Editor: Michel Arcand
Screenwriter: Michael Donovan
Cinematographer: Miroslaw Baszak
Music: David Hirschfelder
Principal Cast: Roy Dupuis, James Gallanders, Michel Mongeau, Deborah Kara Unger, Owen Lebakeng Sejake
Filmography: Ripley Under Ground (2005), The 6th Day (2000), Air America (1990), Shoot to Kill (1988), Under Fire (1983)
World Sales: Bankside Films

PSIFF 9-Jan

Under the Same Moon
La Misma Luna
USA, 2007, 109 Minute Running Time
Topic: Drama
Language: English/Spanish English Sub-Titles

A nine-year-old Mexican boy has himself smuggled across the border in order to find the Los Angeles-based mother he hasn’t seen in four years. Patricia Riggen’s emotionally powerful and politically pointed tale cannot fail to move.

DIRECTOR: Patricia Riggen
Producer: Patricia Riggen, Geraldo Barrera
Editor: Aleshka Ferrero
Screenwriter: Ligiah Villalobos
Cinematographer: Checco Varese
Music: Carlo Siliotto
Principal Cast: Adrian Alonso, Kate del Castillo, Eugenio Derbez, America Ferrara, Carmen Salinas, Jesse Garcia, Maria Rojo
Filmography: Debut Feature Film

PSIFF 8-Jan

I've seen so many great films so far, and I'm catching up on the blog here while there's singing and dancing on the screen, 162 min. of such...yes, you guessed it, a Bollywood film is playing.

Some thoughts that come to mind of the films I've seen:

Chihuly in the Hotshop

• Fun documentary illustrating the amazing glass made by Chihuly and crew.
• The Tom Tom Club rocks the entire soundtrack.

The Edge of Heaven

• Beautiful and powerful. One of my favorites so far.
  
• I'm still thinking about this film and the intricate ways peoples lives can entwine... seven degrees of separation.

City of Men

• Another action packed adventure in the favelas of Rio

The Band's Visit

• Countless witty and hilarious scenes. Also one of my favorites.

Beaufort

• A war film where not a single bullet is fired.

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days

• Powerful, emotional, brilliant
  
• Beautifully shot.
  

XXY

• A favorite

Vivere

• Reminded me of "Lovers of the Arctic Circle" in that scenes are repeated from different character's perspectives, and how different things are perceived from the previous glimpse.
• Complex, very interesting and creative

One Hundred Nails

• Is truth found in books or in the moment...living life? Are the words and pages of books really more important that a coffee with a friend, or a kiss?
  

Vivere

Germany, 2007, 97 Minute Running Time
Topics: Drama, Gay/Lesbian, Woman Director
Language: German/Italian English Sub-Titles

The lives of three troubled women intersect one fateful Christmas Eve and become inextricably linked in this touching exploration of Francesca, Eva and Gerlinde—three lost souls on the run.

DIRECTOR: Angelina Maccarone
Producer: Anita Elsani
Editor: Bettina Böhler
Screenwriter: Angelina Maccarone
Cinematographer: Judith Kaufmann
Music: Jakob Hansounis, Hartmut Ewert
Principal Cast: Hannelore Elsner, Esther Zimmering, Kim Schnitzer, Egbert-Jan Weeber, Tygo Gernandt
Filmography: Hounded (2006), Unveiled (2005), Everything Will Be Fine (1998)

One Hundred Nails
Centochiodi
Italy, 2007, 92 Minute Running Time
Topic: Drama
Language: Italian English Sub-Titles

The last narrative movie of the great Italian maestro Ermanno Olmi, who has vowed to work only in documentary from now on, One Hundred Nails is a controversial tale of a man who runs from his life and find shelter in a village on the river Po.

DIRECTOR: Ermanno Olmi
Producer: Luigi Musini, Roberto Cicutto
Editor: Paolo Cottingnola
Screenwriter: Ermanno Olmi
Cinematographer: Fabio Olmi
Music: Fabio Vacchi
Principal Cast: Raz Degan, Luna Bendandi, Amina Syed, Michele Zattara, Damiano Scaini
Filmography: The Profession of Arms (2001), The Legend of the Holy Drinker (1988), The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1978), One Fine Day (1968), Il Posto (1961)
World Sales: Intramovies

PSIFF 7-Jan

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
4 luni, 3 saptamini si 2 zile
Romania, 2007, 113 Minute Running Time
Topic: Drama
Language: Romanian/English English Sub-Titles

One of the most highly acclaimed films of the year, this gritty, gripping drama portrays a university student who helps her roommate arrange an illegal abortion and is forced into a maelstrom of dramatic events.

DIRECTOR: Cristian Mungiu
Producer: Cristian Mungiu, Oleg Mutu
Editor: Dana Bunescu
Screenwriter: Cristian Mungiu
Cinematographer: Oleg Mutu
Principal Cast: Anamaria Marinca, Vlad Ivanov, Laura Vasiliu, Alex Potocean
Filmography: Occident (2002)
World Sales: Wild Bunch

XXY
Argentina, 2007, 91 Minute Running Time
Additional Countries: Spain/France
Topics: Drama, Gay/Lesbian, Woman Director
Language: Spanish English Sub-Titles

The psychological damage caused by inappropriate gender assignation is sensitively explored in newcomer Lucia Puenzo’s brave study of teen angst in a teenager with something to be angst-ridden about. Born a hermaphrodite and raised as a girl, 15-year old Alex is nudged by her parents toward making a ‘choice’ that will decree her entire future.

DIRECTOR: Lucia Puenzo
Producer: Luis Puenzo, José María Morales
Editor: Alex Zito, Hugo Primero
Screenwriter: Lucía Puenzo
Cinematographer: Natasha Braier
Music: Andrés Goldstein, Daniel Tarrab
Principal Cast: Ricardo Darín, Valeria Bertucceli, Germán Palacios, Carolina Peleritti, Martín Piroyansky, Inés Efron
Filmography: Debut Feature Film
World Sales: Pyramide International

PSIFF 6-Jan

The Champagne Spy
Meragel Hashampaniya
Israel, 2007, 90 Minute Running Time
Additional Countries: Germany
Topics: Documentary, Thriller
Language: English/Hebrew/French/German English Sub-Titles

Oded is just 12 years old when his father reveals to him that he's a Mossad spy. While anxiously awaiting his return from a top secret mission in Cairo, Oded journeys into the shadowy corners of his father's real and covert identities.

DIRECTOR: Nadav Schirman
Producer: Eilon Ratzowsky, Koby Gal-Raday, Carl Ludwig Rettinger, Yossi Uzrad
Editor: Joelle Alexis
Screenwriter: Nadav Schirman
Cinematographer: Itai Neeman
Music: Ran Bagno
Principal Cast: Oded Gur Arie, Meir Amit, Avrum Shalom, Jacob Nachmias, Arie Sivan
Filmography: Debut Feature Film
World Sales: Films Transit Intl., Inc.

The Band's Visit
Bikur Hatizmoret
Israel, 2007, 89 Minute Running Time
Additional Countries: USA/France
Topic: Drama
Language: Arabic/English/Hebrew English Sub-Titles

This witty and gentle lark presents an Egyptian brass band in a backwater, desert Israeli town and the comical tensions that erupt among the band’s members, hosts, and potential audience.

DIRECTOR: Eran Kolirin
Producer: Eilon Ratzkovsky, Ehud Bleiburg, Yossi Uzrad, Koby Gal-Raday, Guy Jacoel
Editor: Arik Lahav Leibovitz
Screenwriter: Eran Kolirin
Cinematographer: Shai Goldman
Music: Habib Sehadeh Hanna
Principal Cast: Sasson Gabai, Ronit Elkabetz, Saleh Bakri, Khalifa Natour, Imad Jabar
Filmography: Debut Feature Film
World Sales: Bleiberg Entertainment

Beaufort
Israel, 2007, 120 Minute Running Time
Topics: Drama, Political, War
Language: Hebrew English Sub-Titles

The last days of a legendary Israeli outpost in Lebanon are brought to harrowing life (and death) in this searing docudrama. Drawing comparisons to All Quiet on the Western Front, the film was awarded the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin Film Festival.

DIRECTOR: Joseph Cedar
Producer: David Mandil, David Silber
Editor: Zohar M. Sela
Screenwriter: Ron Leshem, Joseph Cedar
Cinematographer: Ofer Inov
Music: Isahi Adar
Principal Cast: Oshri Cohen, Itay Tiran, Eli Eltonyo, Ohad Knoller, Itay Turgeman
Filmography: Campfire (2004), Time of Favor (2001)
World Sales: Bavaria Film International

PSIFF 5-Jan

Body of War
USA, 2007, 87 Minute Running Time
Topics: Documentary, Political, War, Woman Director

Veteran talk-show host Phil Donahue’s Academy Award-nominated documentary is a hardhitting indictment of governmental misuse of power focusing on one of its most courageous victims—a soldier paralyzed by a bullet five days after his arrival in Iraq.

DIRECTOR: Phil Donohue, Ellen Spiro
Producer: Ellen Spiro, Phil Donahue, Karen Bernstein
Editor: Bernadine Colish
Cinematographer: Ellen Spiro
Music: Eddie Vedder, Jeff Layton
Principal Cast: Tomas Young, Cathy Smith, Senator Robert Byrd
Filmography: Ellen Spiro: Troop 1500 (2005), Roam Sweet Home (1996), Greetings From Out Here (1993) Phil Donahue:, Debut Feature
World Sales: The Film Sales Company

City of Men
Cidade dos Homens
Brazil, 2007, 106 Minute Running Time
Topic: Drama
Language: Portuguese English Sub-Titles

From the team behind companion piece City of God comes this less razzle-dazzle but more emotionally affecting story of the friendship between two 18-year-olds in the slums of Rio and the effects on their relationship caused by a burgeoning gang war.

DIRECTOR: Paulo Morelli
Producer: Andrea Barata Ribeiro, Bel Berlinck, Fernando Meirelles, Paulo Morelli
Editor: Daniel Rezende
Screenwriter: Elena Soarez
Cinematographer: Adriano Goldman
Music: Antonio Pinto
Principal Cast: Darlan Cunha, Douglas Silva, Jonathan Haagensen, Rodrigo dos Santos, Camila Monteiro
Filmography: Speaker Phone (2003), O Preço da Paz (2003), Lápide (1997)
World Sales: Buena Vista International

Palm Springs International Film Festival 4-Jan

I've returned for the second time to work the Palm Springs International Film Festival. My venue is the Annenburg Theater at the Palm Springs Art Museum. I've decided to keep a list here of every film I see at the festival this year, so check back as the list grows.

Sweet Mud
Adama Meshuga’at
Israel, 2006, 101 Minute Running Time
Additional Countries: Germany/Japan/France
Topic: Drama
Language: Hebrew/English/French English Sub-Titles

For many, the concept of the Israeli kibbutz connotes solidarity, community spirit and romanticism. The reality, however, can be very different. Winner of four Israeli Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Sweet Mud makes an interesting complement to the documentary Eight Twenty Eight.

DIRECTOR: Dror Shaul
Producer: Dror Shaul
Editor: Isaac Sehayek
Screenwriter: Dror Shaul
Cinematographer: Sebastian Edschmid
Music: Tsoof Philosof, Adi Rennert
Principal Cast: Tomer Steinhof, Ronit Yudkevitch, Henri Garcin, Shai Avivi, Gal Zaid
Filmography: Witch (2003)
World Sales: Bavaria Film International

14 Women
USA, 2007, 77 Minute Running Time
Topics: Documentary, Political, Woman Director

An intimate documentary portrait of the 14 female senators who currently serve our country. Director Mary Lambert has gained extraordinary access, following the senators cinema verité style from 2004–2006 as they struggle to fight the good fight while balancing family, friends and workload.

DIRECTOR: Mary Lambert
Producer: Mary Lambert, Nicole Boxer, Sharon Oreck
Editor: Michelle Harrison, Stephen Kanter
Cinematographer: Mary Lambert, Bill Pope, James Callanan, Elliot Klayman, Michael Cho
Music: Jamishied Sharifi
Principal Cast: Narrated by Annette Benning
Filmography: The In Crowd (2000), Clubland (1999), Pet Sematary (1989), Siesta (1987)

Chihuly in the Hotshop
USA, 2007, 90 Minute Running Time
World Premiere
Topic: Documentary

This engaging documentary focuses on Dale Chihuly, whose work in the field of glassblowing has revolutionized the medium. The camera follows Chihuly at a weeklong residency at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, where it captures the creative chaos of his working style.

DIRECTOR: Peter West
Producer: Mark McDonnell
Editor: Peter West, John Campbell
Cinematographer: Joseph Hudson, Bruce Hutson, Peter West
Music: Tom Tom Club

The Edge of Heaven
Auf der Anderen Seite
Germany, 2007, 120 Minute Running Time
Additional Countries: Turkey
Topics: Drama, Gay/Lesbian
Language: German/Turkish/English English Sub-Titles

Superb humanist drama, where six lives intersect in the never-ending search for love. When a tragic accident befalls his father, college professor Nejat leaves Germany for Turkey to find a young woman he feels has been wronged—raising questions about family, homeland and sexuality.

DIRECTOR: Fatih Akin
Producer: Fatih Akin, Andreas Thiel, Klaus Maeck
Editor: Andrew Bird
Screenwriter: Fatih Akin
Cinematographer: Rainer Klausmann
Music: Shantel
Principal Cast: Nurgül Yesilçay, Baki Davrak, Patrycia Ziolkowska, Nursel Köse, Tuncel Kurtiz, Hannah Schygulla
Filmography: Head-On (2004), Solino (2002), In July (2000), Short Sharp Shock (1998)
World Sales: The Match Factory GmbH