European film panorama has more aces up its sleeve
The 15th Panorama of European Cinema, already under way at Athens’s Apollon Filmcenter, still has a few surprises in store. The Panorama contains a number of categories, the most noteworthy of which are a focus on Italian women directors, the international competition and the winter season’s previews. After screenings of the comedies «Mi Sei Entrata nel Cuore Come una Lama di Coltello,» «Liberati i Pesci,» the musical «Sud Side Stori» and the drama «Animali Che a Traversano la Strada,» films that remain to be screened in the focus on Italian women directors are Lina Wertmuller’s historical comedy «Ferdinando e Carolina» tomorrow and «Fate un Bel Sorriso» by Anna Di Francisca on October 9. The competition section consists of films which have been released abroad but are not on local distributors’ lists. The future of their distribution in Greece is very much dependent on their success at this festival. The Spanish film «Smoking Room» by Roger Gual and Julio Wallovits will be screened tomorrow, while Saturday’s lineup has two competition films: «Letter to America,» a drama by Bulgaria’s Iglika Triffonova and the Italian social drama «Respiro» by Emanuele Crialese. The competition continues with Russian Aleksandr Rogozhkin’s «Cuckoo» on October 7, Zoltan Kamondi’s social drama «Temptations» and Dimitris Makris’s «As Long as There’s Alcohol…» on October 8, and on October 9, an English/ German/Swahili film titled «Nowhere in Africa.» Tonight’s preview highlight is Majid Majudu’s Iranian social drama «Baran,» while die-hard thriller lovers are looking forward to tomorrow’s showing of the first film of the Hannibal Lecter trilogy, «Red Dragon» with Anthony Hopkins and Edward Norton. Ralph Fiennes loses his mind on Saturday in psychological thriller master David Cronenberg’s «Spider,» while the avant-premieres end with Ken Loach’s latest bittersweet social drama «Sweet Sixteen» on October 9.
