A cinematic panorama
Eleftherotypia’s 16th Panorama of European Film is getting an extension this year, running for two weeks beginning tomorrow. The Panorama’s basic core remains almost unchanged (October 3 to October 9 at the Apollon and Asty cinema theaters). In the competition section, for instance, screenings include European films with no local distribution, shown for the first time in Greece. The prize awarded by Eleftherotypia and the Athens Municipality is quite attractive, including the cost of a print, subtitles and free publicity. Avant-premieres have always been a strong feature of the festival, and in this spirit this year’s event features an exciting array of films, including James Ivory’s «Le Divorce,» starring Kate Hudson, Naomi Watts, Leslie Caron and Glenn Close; Chen Kaige’s «Together;» Ethan and Joel Coen’s «Intolerable Cruelty,» featuring George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones; Emily Young’s «Kiss of Life;» Neil Jordan’s «Good Thief» with Nick Nolte, and Kevin Costner’s «Open Range.» The festival’s first part ends with Woody Allen’s «Anything Else.» The film, which recently opened La Mostra film festival in Venice, stars Allen, Christina Ricci, Jason Biggs, Stockard Channing and Danny DeVito. Tributes This year’s Panorama features five tributes. The first is dedicated to Italian director Lina Wertmuller and will feature seven of her films, including «I Basilischi,» «Swept Away,» «The Seduction of Mimi,» and «Pasqualino: Seven Beauties.» In collaboration with the British Council, the Panorama includes a tribute to Michael Caine with landmark films such as «The Ipcress File» and «Get Carter.» Also, there are tributes to director Wim Wenders, actor Max von Sydow and author Georges Simenon. An integral part of the festival are the screenings of silent movies accompanied by live music. This year, these include Alfred Hitchcock’s little known film «The Ring.» The movie will be accompanied by music written by Dionysis Savvopoulos, while F.W. Murnau’s «Faust» will be accompanied by music composed by Nikos Platanos. The festival’s second week will have an Olympic flavor, featuring a tribute to the Olympic Games with 22 films inspired by the world of sports. One of the films to be screened is controversial artist Leni Riefenstahl’s «Olympia ’36.»
