Fests and events, 5/11.

By David Hudson on 05/11/2009

"After winning the Cannes Grand Prix with his 2003 revenge epic 'Oldboy,' Park Chan-wook has faltered somewhat (2005's 'Sympathy For Lady Vengeance,' the poorly received 'I'm A Cyborg, But That's OK' in 2006)," writes Darcy Paquet for Screen, "but his visually arresting vampire movie 'Thirst' looks certain to create a stir: adopting a more lyrical mode than before, this complex and supremely inventive work sees the filmmaker back on top form."

In other Cannes news, first, from Tilman Baumgaertel: "Kong Rithdee has an interview in the Bangkok Post with Pen-ek Ratanaruang on his new movie 'Nymph,; which will be the only Thai film in this year's Cannes Film Festival. It is about a love triangle between a couple from Bangkok and a tree spirit."

With "Spring Fever," Lou Ye is defying a five-year ban on his making films imposed by the Chinese government, reports the BBC: "It was shot secretly with a handheld camera in China using five actors. The film, made in two months in Nanjing city, tells the story of a wife's quest to spy on the passionate relationship between her husband and another man. It could be his most controversial film yet because it deals with homosexuality in China - still a taboo subject in the country."

"It's been more than 25 years since Billy (Silver Dollar) Baxter last graced the Cannes Film Festival, and yet as I pack for this year's event, I am thinking about him even now, and I am smiling," writes Roger Ebert. "Billy single-handedly created an alternate reality at Cannes, and such was the force of his personality that those who came within earshot were seduced. In the words of Elaine May, he carried on a way of life that was extinct before he was born."

And the Telegraph's Sukhdev Sandhu explains "Why I love Cannes," while the Guardian presents a gallery of contenders and Chris MaGee passes along an online viewing tip: the trailer for Isabel Coixet's "Map of the Sounds of Tokyo."

"The Venice Film Festival says it will give lifetime achievement awards this year to Disney's chief creative officer and four Pixar directors for their work in animation," reports the AP.

Tonight at Anthology Film Archives in New York: "Johnny Berlin 2: Notes from the Dumpster."

Tomorrow night at the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, Ohio, comic book artist P Craig Russell will be on hand with director Wayne Alan Harold to introduce a screening of "Night Music: The Art of P Craig Russell."

At SF360, Sura Wood talks with Elliot Lavine about curating "I Wake Up Dreaming: The Haunted World of the B Film Noir," running at the Roxie in San Francisco from Friday through May 28.

"You can forget 'Zombie Strippers' (2008), nothing quite equals 'Dyn Amo' (1972) as a burlesque horror show!" blogs Stewart Home. The BFI's Stephen Dwoskin season rnds through the end of May.

"Steve McQueen," a collection of photographs by William Claxton, is on at StyleInvestor in Munich through June 5.

Josef Braun posts a Hot Docs roundup. More from Bob Turnbull.

[Photo: "Thirst," Focus Features, 2009]

Tags: Cannes 2009, Film Noir, Lou Ye, P Craig Russell, Park Chan-wook, Pen-ek Ratanaruang, Roger Ebert, Steve McQueen