Fests and events, 5/1.

By David Hudson on 05/01/2009

"The startling and often harrowing stories of writer Paul Auster, ex-CIA assassin Dannion Brinkley, and others whose lives have been radically altered by close encounters with lightning strikes make for a suitably charged opening for the largest nonfiction-film festival in North America," writes Jason Anderson for Artforum. "'Act of God' (2009), Jennifer Baichwal's follow-up to 'Manufactured Landscapes' (2006) - her meditative portrait of photographer Edward Burtynsky - is the first Canadian film ever to open Hot Docs, the seventeen-year-old documentary festival." And, as Peter Knegt reports for indieWIRE, Zeitgeist Films has already picked up US rights to "Act of God." And again, Bob Turnbull's been previewing a handful of the festival's selections. Through May 10.

"If 1990s world cinema was ruled by Abbas Kiarostami and Hou Hsiao-hsien, will the 2000s be remembered as the age of two younger Asian masters, Jia Zhangke and Apichatpong Weerasethakul?" asks Mark Peranson in Moving Image Source. "This idea, the more commonsensical the more you think about it, is proffered by Cinematheque Ontario curator James Quandt at the end of a voluminous introductory chapter to 'Apichatpong Weerasethakul,' the most recent volume in the Austrian Filmmuseum series devoted to classic and contemporary filmmakers, and the first major work in English on the Thai filmmaker and artist (who won prizes at Cannes for 2002's 'Blissfully Yours' and 2004's 'Tropical Malady,' both sure to top many critics' lists of the best films of the decade)." A retrospective of Apichatpong Weerasethakul's work is on in Munich through May 24.

"In the US, [Julien] Duvivier remains best known for the energetic Moroccan caper 'Pépé le Moko' (1937), the fifth of his collaborations with that icon of fatalistic cool, Jean Gabin, and the one responsible for making Gabin an international star." Scott Foundas: "Though 'Pépé' remains one of Duvivier's triumphs, it also has been one of the few easy-to-see films in a body of work ill-served by revivals and home video. So MOMA comes to the rescue with a painstakingly curated 22-film Duvivier retro."

Also in the Voice, J Hoberman previews "Red Diva: Lyubov Orlova
First Lady of the Soviet Screen" (through Monday) and: "Few who've experienced catabolism recommend the experience, but BAMcinématek's killer 23-film series 'The Late Film' gives ample evidence of Shock of the Old." An overview from Nick Pinkerton - and more from Richard Brody (New Yorker), Keith Uhlich (Time Out New York) and, in The Auteurs' Notebook, David Phelps: "Mostly, BAM's late films are a particular sort, with no flourishes of young men out to prove their potency; impotence is a constant theme. They're zombie films, but zombies don't just kill people--they let the dead live. And that enchantment, of dead people and places being brought to life, is the other theme, opposite impotence. The great late films can play like works of God, unable to control or enter the world he's made, but able to form it perfectly."

"Cannes Directors' Fortnight announced Wednesday that Frederic Boyer will replace Olivier Pere as artistic director of the sidebar, which runs from May 14 - 24 and presents 24 features in parallel to the Official Selection." Jordan Mintzer reports for Variety. Related: A Cannes FAQ from SF Said in the Telegraph. First question: "Why does Cannes matter?"

Michael Guillén's not able to give us more than 75 words on the 14 films screening at the San Francisco International Film Festival which he reviews in The Auteurs' Notebook and it's there, too, that he explains why. But you know, like 140 characters or the structure of a sestina, sometimes limitations force a critic to shed all but the best he's got.

More from SFIFF: "If you were unaware of the lawsuit between the indigenous Ecuadorian people and Chevron/Texaco, watching Joe Berlinger's 'Crude' will get you up to speed," writes Natalie Gregory at Pixel Vision. At GreenCine Daily, Jeffrey Anderson presents capsule reviews of "Lake Tahoe," "Our Beloved Month of August" and "Ferlinghetti."

Meanwhile, Brian Darr has seen or is about to see "35 Rhums," "California Company Town" and "The Lake," while, at SF360, Dennis Harvey celebrates the restored print of Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in the West."

"Through April, the Coolidge Corner Theatre has been screening a retrospective of Quay films and projects featuring, among others, an animated dream sequence they put together for Julie Taymor's 2002 movie 'Frida' and their own live-action feature flicks 'Institute Benjamenta' and 'The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes.'" Greg Cook in the Boston Phoenix: "The tribute will culminate with the brothers coming to town next week to receive the 2009 Coolidge Award (past winners: Meryl Streep and Zhang Yimou) on May 6, and to screen and discuss excerpts of their films the following day. 'Dormitorium,' a companion exhibit of their animation sets, will be at the Fourth Wall Project through May 21."

The 35th Seattle International Film Festival, the largest and most highly attended event of its kind in the United States, has announced its programming," reports Peter Knegt at indieWIRE. "Running 25 days, the fest will present 203 narrative features, 54 documentary features, and 124 short films from 62 countries, including 31 World Premieres, 45 North American Premieres, and 13 US Premieres. SIFF 2009 will unspool from May 21 through June 14 at multiple venues throughout the city."

For the Los Angeles Times, Susan King previews "From Casablanca to Sahara: Hollywood's North Africa," running through June 29 at UCLA, and rounds up more local goings on.

"'Bringing the Circle Together: A Native American Film Series' is a free monthly film series located in downtown Los Angeles at the National Center for Preservation of Democracy."

In Vue Weekly, David Berry has an overview of a series of Korean films screening at Edmonton's Metro Cinema. Through Sunday.

"Sloppy punches and kicks from a dozen men in a mob scrum are always to be preferred over two guys in an alley. If you get dragged free soon enough, it's more roughing up than being beaten stupid. Still, there's blood." Ray Pride was most likely mistaken for an anarchist in Thessaloniki.

"First Light," the Walter Reade's two-week retrospective of films by Satyajit Ray, wraps today. In The Auteurs' Notebook, Acquarello discovers the ways "Kapurush-o-Mahapurush" ("The Coward" and "The Holy Man") work as a diptych.

Reel Iraq is a festival running in Edinburgh from May 14 thrhough July 12. One of the films screening is "Open Shutters," a doc by Maysoon Pachachi, co-founder of the Independent Film and Televison College in Baghdad. Cath Clarke meets her for the Guardian.

"London's annual celebration of independent cinema, the London Independent Film Festival (LIFF), culminated with directors David William Mills and Danielle Boucher winning the grand prize for their debut feature 'The Burial,'" reports Naman Ramachandran for Cineurpa.

Writing for the Scene, Jim Ridley looks back on this year's Nashville Film Festival and finds it to be a pretty solid edition.

"[W]hen all the posturing and the hype is done, what exactly do these festivals have to offer, what happens there and what's the point?" Kevin Maher in the London Times: "We asked a panel of insiders for the truth about film festivals."

[Photo: "Act of God," Mongrel Media, 2009; "The Circus" ("Tsirk"), Seagull Films, 1936; "Morocco," Paramount Pictures, 1930]

Tags: Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Brothers Quay, Cannes 2009, Hot Docs 2009, Jennifer Baichwal, Julien Duvivier, Lyubov Orlova, Satyajit Ray, Seattle 2009, SFIFF 2009